Chapter Text
August 18, 2009: Camp Half-Blood
Percy Jackson sat at the end of Camp Half-Blood’s one and only dock. He frequented this spot in times of peace and times of trouble, today being one of both somehow. August 18 was a date he would always remember (or so he thought). It was his birthday for one, although today had not been very festive.
Wooping from afar and the unmistakable sound of a firework launching into the sky interrupted his train of thought. He sighed; the world seemed to be out to get him today.
So maybe it was a little festive; defeating the Titan Lord of Time seemed to give people high spirits. But for Percy, he was lost. This was one of the rare few moments of peace he had in his short life (he was exaggerating a little bit, but at least in recent memory) and instead of relishing in the joy around him and celebrating his birthday, he was sitting alone with his toes dipping into the calm waters of Lake Half-Blood. He couldn’t complain about the relaxation time, but his mind was not as clear as the waters.
Percy was hurt. He had learned that the past three years, the strangest and most difficult and yet best years of his life, everyone he knew had been lying to him. The people around him—Chiron, his father, the other gods, hell even Annabeth—they all knew that the prophecy surrounding his existence called for his death. He had been frolicking around a world of magic and monsters, risking his life for a bunch of people that didn’t even have the common courtesy to tell him that he was destined to die at sixteen.
Mentally he reached out, grasping the water. He formed different shapes, making a horse prance around on top of the calm waters. An eagle swooped around an intricate tree that a deer rested under.
Percy heard gentle steps coming up the dock but didn’t bother turning around. He sighed. Clearly people didn’t understand he wanted to be left alone after his entire world had crumbled around him.
“Dramatic as always, I see.” A warm body plopped down directly next to him. Percy continued to play with the water, seeing curly red hair and pasty skin out the corner of his eye. “What are you doing here, Rachel?”
The girl shrugs, staring intently at the scene of a school of fish Percy formed in front of her. “I figured you needed someone to talk to, someone who wasn’t a big part of this whole… end of the world thing, I guess.”
Percy let his gaze meet hers, and the corners of his mouth slightly lifted. “No, I meant how the hell did you get here, Rachel?”
She slowly blinked. “Oh. Chauffeurs are very convenient, as much as I hate the emissions from the Chrysler."
Percy sighed. Rich people. “Still not my question, Rachel. You’re mortal.”
She snorted. “I noticed. Do you not want me here or something? You know it was you and Annabeth who invited me here in the first place.” Percy flinched at the mention of Annabeth.
Unfortunately for his fragile emotional state, Rachel was very observant. “What happened? Is Annabeth okay?” The girl looked panicked and Percy grabbed her forearm with a cold, calming grasp. “Annabeth is fine, Rachel. She’s out there… well I don’t really know what she’s doing.”
Rachel looked at him in a way that reminded him of Annabeth a little too much. Those two really seemed to rub off on each other since the Labyrinth. “Knowing the two of you she’s probably out there moping too. You two and your emotions, so infuriating.”
This drew a chuckle out of Percy, and Rachel lit up with a smile. Her smile was so beautiful and teeth so white that it always made Percy a little jealous, at least that was the name he assigned to the emotion she made him feel.
Rachel continued to watch him play with the water. “You know, I would never see you doing art but this is beautiful, all of these moving parts and mini sculptures.”
“Huh, I’d never thought of it that way.”
“You’re really bad at giving yourself credit for things, Seaweed Brain.” A third joined their mix. Annabeth took off her shoes and sat down , nestling into Rachel so the three could fit on the small edge of the dock. They sat there in silence, feet dangling in the cool water and shapes floating around the three.
“They really are beautiful, reminds me of you in a way,” Annabeth said. She rested a hand on Rachel’s thigh. The girl did not shy away.
“She’s right,” chirped Rachel. “They have the same aura as you.”
“In case you two hadn’t noticed, I’m the one controlling them,” Percy said, perhaps too harshly. An antelope crashed back into the lake. He felt a soft touch on his back as Rachel pulled him closer. The two demigods now sandwiched her, her whole body hot with the warriors blood within them. “Calm down, Percy.” Her voice did not come off as demeaning, but rather calming. It reminded him of Artemis and his mother, two people that did not share much in common but had always managed to make him feel safe (as safe as a boy could feel in the company of the hunters anyway).
The three enjoyed each other’s company for a moment, hundreds of thoughts shared between them and none of them comfortable, yet it felt possible to get through it all with the others’ help.
Percy laid his head on Rachel’s lap and felt Annabeth run her soft hands through his soft, black hair. “That all really happened, huh?”
Annabeth stared off into the now setting sun, her hand not leaving his hair. “That it did, Seaweed Brain.”
“It was more of a rhetorical question, Wise Girl.”
“Since when has Percy known these big words, Annabeth has been rubbing off on you, big guy?” Rachel engaged in their banter easily. It felt second nature to have her there with them, despite the small amount of time both of them had known her.
Percy turned his head upwards so he could look at both the sky and Rachel’s face. “I don’t think I’ll ever forget the blood, Beth.” Tears brimmed in the corners of his seagreen eyes.
Annabeth hummed in agreement and further buried herself into Rachel’s side.
Rachel wrapped her arms around each of them, pulling them in for a tight hug. “My two little brave demigods. You guys saved the world.”
“Thanks, Rach,” Percy said as the tears fell onto the wooden planks below them. He collected them with his powers and formed a little heart with a few swishes of his finger.
“There’s some things the three of us have to talk about. About us, about the world, about what all of this means,” Annabeth said, circling her finger around the three of them.
Rachel hummed. “Later.”
“Later,” Percy agreed. “Can you keep stroking my hair, it feels really good.”
Annabeth laughed. “You are the birthday boy, aren’t you?”
Rachel smiled lightly. “Happy birthday, Percy. I hoped you got everything you wished for.”
Percy returned the smile. He looked at the two of them and held out a hand for Rachel to take, kissing it gently. “All of us are still alive and I’m pretty darn happy right here, so I think I’m glad for now. Like Annabeth said, there’s some pretty heavy stuff we need to talk about, especially me and you,” he gave Annabeth a stern glance and she withered. “But for now I think I’m happy with the two girls I love.”
Rachel grinned and gave him a quick kiss. “Hey, not fair,” Annabeth said while Rachel held her back. “I should get to give him a birthday smooch.”
Rachel pecked her on the lips next. “I love you and you. I love both of you idiots, not please stop almost getting yourselves killed. I cried myself to sleep last night thinking about all the ways you two could get impaled by the guy I hit with my hairbrush.”
Percy laughed and hugged her tightly. “I promise I’ll keep her safe for you, Rach.”
Annabeth stuck her tongue out. “Like I’m not the one stopping you from throwing yourself into every monster’s claws in the pursuit of every idiot on earth from getting themselves killed.”
Now they kissed and years of tension and love made it a deep one. Rachel was caught in the middle of the mess of limbs and mouths and while she was happy, she also nearly fell into the lake. “As much as I love you two, you’re about to crush me.”
Annabeth broke away from the kiss and consumed Rachel in a big bear hug. “Thank you for helping me understand myself, Rachel.” They kissed lightly.
“It wasn’t selfless or anything,” she said with a smirk. “I just really like hot blondes.”
All of them were laughing and fell over into a dog pile on the dock. “I love you guys.” It didn’t really matter who said it, they all felt it.
December 15, 2009: Camp Half-Blood
He was gone. It had happened the night before. Annabeth woke up like usual, her siblings still slumbering around her in the early morning. She left her cabin after getting ready quietly in the near-dark, she was quite proficient at it with these years of being the only early riser in the cabin. The dew-covered grass shone brilliantly in the sunlight that peaked over the horizon and reflected off of Lake Halfblood, the dock a happy reminder of the events that had occurred a few months ago.
She approached the stairs of Cabin 3, no longer afraid of being smitten on approach after a rather pleasant interaction with Percy’s father in which he ensured that any friend of Percy was a friend of his. While she was allowed entrance to the cabin, she respected her boyfriend’s (gods that felt good to say) privacy, so she gently knocked on the door and tapped her foot on the beechwood porch of the cabin. The orangish-red glare of the morning sun reminded her of Rachel’s hair. The girl was currently back at home in NYC taking art classes at some swanky institution her father’s wealth had granted her access to, not that Annabeth ever reminded her of that. Rachel was very independent and did not like to be reminded of her wealth, even if she let her and Percy abuse it often themselves. “I love spoiling my babies,” she had said which caused Annabeth to snort impertinently.
Annabeth knocked on the door, harder this time. “Wakey wakey, Seaweed Brain. It’s morning run time. I know how much you love our morning time,” she said mockingly but they both did very much enjoy each other's company when most of the rest of the camp still slumbered. Annabeth was sure Rachel was still sound asleep as she was the night owl of the trio. Percy was surprisingly just as much of a morning person as Annabeth, which drew some ire from Rachel when the two would wake her up for breakfast at the ungodly hour of 10:30.
She frowned now. “Percy come on, you’re burning daylight.” Usually he would be out the door by now, but he had yet to even respond. After a third minute of knocking, Annabeth sighed and decided to go for a walk by herself. Percy must have overslept or something.
Breakfast came around and Percy still wasn’t present. Now Annabeth was truly worried, along with some others.
“Where’s hubby?” asked Clarrise. “You two idiots have been attached to the hip since the end of the war.”
Annabeth scoffed. “Like you and Silena have been any better.”
The daughter of Ares stuttered and turned red. “That’s different. She almost died and-”
Annabeth laughed loudly as the other girl hooked herself around the muscular frame of Clarrise. “You’re saying you don’t love me as much as Percy and Annabeth do?”
She dragged Clarrise off, but Annabeth still chewed her nails nervously. Percy never missed breakfast, not on his worst days. Had he been kept up all night by nightmares? Was he sick?
Chiron trotted over to her, clearly seeing either her worry or the empty Poseidon table. “Everything alright, Annabeth?”
“It’s just Percy, Chiron. He wasn’t awake for our morning walk and now he’s not at breakfast either. It’s just not like him, especially after he was perfectly fine yesterday.”
Chiron placed his strong, comforting hand on Annabeth’s shoulder. “It will be fine, Annabeth. I am sure Percy is just a little tired. You may go check on him if you’d like, I will take your cabin for archery first, just make sure to return once you check on him.”
Annabeth smiled. “Thank you so much Chiron, I will make it quick. I’ll be right back once I knock some sense into him.”
Hours later, she was still clutching his sheets, hoping to hold onto some of their all-but-faded warmth. Rachel had arrived about an hour after she had found out, apparently abandoning all of her classes for the day and rushing back to Camp Half-Blood, back to home, back to her. “Hey, Beth,” she said it so quietly, like she was afraid any loud noises would break her.
Annabeth sniffled loudly. “He’s gone, Rachel. It hasn’t even been 3 months and they took him from me.” She sobbed loudly as the redhead wrapped her up in a hug.
“I know, Beth.” She stroked her soft blonde hair as Annabeth dropped her head into Rachel’s lap. “You two have the most rotten luck, and I feel like I can’t do anything to help. I just sit around and paint while you guys march off to battle and risk your lives to keep me safe.”
Annabeth wiped her face with the sleeve of her grey USC sweater. She picked her head up from Rachel’s lap and placed a soothing kiss on the other girl’s lips. “Don’t do that, Rach. You know how much we love you, and I’d do anything to keep you safe. And don’t act like you don’t do anything for us. Some days it feels like you’re our only tie to the mortal world, and you spoil us rotten.” Both girls had a small smile now, before they deflated at their circumstances.
Annabeth sat up in Percy’s bed. “I should… well I guess I should go start a search party.”
“Chiron and Clarrise were already starting when I got here. Chiron called every person or creature he’s ever known to help and Clarrise got a hold of the hunters. All we know so far is whatever god or entity did it isn’t fessing up. Olympus is closed, and Mr. D skipped town. I have a feeling this has something to do with that new prophecy and the seven.”
Annabeth laughed bitterly. “Another war. More death and suffering and less time with the people I love.”
Rachel kissed her. “No matter what, you two have me to come back to. Now go out there and find Percy, you two need each other.” She pushed Annabeth out the bed. “Oh,” she stopped the blonde as she went to leave the cabin, “and try not to die, sweetie.”
Annabeth smiled. “Duely noted.”
April 5, 2010: The Wolf House
Percy cringed and bit the stick Lupa had handed to him. He heard the sickening crack as she set his bone. He held back the tears to keep at least some appearances.
The woman growled. “You must be stronger, pup. I have high hopes for you. I haven’t had a student as strong as you in eons. Not even Jason Grace could rival your power.”
Jason… Grace? Why did that sound familiar? Percy shrugged it off. Lupa never went easy on him, which he hoped was a good sign. He didn’t think she was the lying type, at least not to save his feelings, so it must be true.
He stood up, shaking off his right wrist, and switching his sword to his non-dominant hand. Lupa let out a sound that was a mixture of a laugh and a howl. He heard the pitter-patter of paws on the dirt of the ground outside. “Again,” Lupa said, and Percy had no choice but to prepare himself. “By the time I’m done with you, Perseus Jackson will be a name known throughout the ages. You will be as great as my first sons, Romus and Remulus, all you require is discipline.”
Percy brandished Riptide and snarled at the woman. She bared her teeth and took on a wolfish grin.
Hours spent training later, Percy and the wolf woman crouched by the fire, him resting his head on her mane-like mop of hair. She smiled lightly at him. “I have never let myself grow this close to one of my students, not since Romus and Remulus. You are a special child, Perseus Jackson.”
Percy smiled up at her. “Thank you, mother Lupa.” He saw her reach down to put a hand in his hair, but she stopped herself. “You try to keep up appearances too much. It will not make me any weaker if you wish to show tenderness toward one you care for.” The wolf-mother hummed and ran her fingers through his mess of dark hair.
The soothing sensation reminded him of home, despite him having no clue where home was. As he sat there in the grasp of his mentor, he was reminded of two heads of hair, one red and the other blonde, as well as a warm smile and soft touches.
“Having a dream, demigod?” Lupa asked him, breaking him out of his thoughts.
“Less a dream and more a memory.”
She hummed a tune older than the country around them. “Memories are good, yes? They are what you seek when you leave here.”
Percy shook his head, drawing a raised eyebrow from Lupa. “What I seek is to make you proud, mother.”
The woman smoothed his wild hair and smiled gently. “I am sure you will find glory outside these walls.”
There was a comfortable silence for some time. “What memories have stirred in your head, my pup.”
Percy paused, trying to put his fingers on what exactly it is that he remembered. “Comfort,” he settled for. “I see… love and care. People who take care of me and make me feel safe. I see nights around a fire quite like this and two people, one blonde and one ginger. They hold me close and play with my hair, like you, except I think they are… more to me- well not more but different to me.”
Lupa laughs. “You do not need to pull your punches child, I will not despair if I am not your favorite person in the world. My training is harsh, and for good reason.”
“I am aware, mother Lupa. For the time being, you are my favorite, though I suspect I have other people I care for somewhere.”
Her fingers slipped out his hair. “For now I will care for you, my pup.” Percy drifted into sleep, dreaming of strawberries and kisses under the stars.
June 20, 2010: Rainbow Organic Foods & Lifestyles
The smell of the room was strange. It was a mixture of aloe, cactus, and candles, one that made Percy’s nose itch. Frank and Hazel didn’t seem to notice and Fleecy seemed rather harmless so he let it go.
“Lady Iris,” Fleecy called out, and a woman came out of a door behind the counter. She wore tie dye clothing like Fleecy, with long golden locks that made Percy’s heart ache.
“Ah, if it isn’t Percy Jackson. I was wondering if you would ever pay me a visit in person.”
Percy’s eyes went wide. “What? You know me.”
The blonde woman scoffed. “Of course I know you, you are Perseus Jackson.”
Frank eyed her warily but Hazel put a reassuring hand on his broad shoulder. She whispered something to him, but Percy’s mind was too preoccupied to notice. “So you must know where I came from.”
The woman nodded. “Why of course, your mother is a phenomenal woman. One of the few mortals I allow to use my services.”
Hazel was surprised. “You let mortals use a magic messaging system?”
“A select few,” she emphasized. “It is more of a favor for him, anyway. I let his mother and that Rachel girl contact him to make sure he hasn’t got himself killed, although I haven’t been able to get a message through to you in some time,” she scolded him. “Your family is worried sick.”
His head ached, so much so that he dropped to the floor. Rachel. Rachel. Rachel. Why does that sound so familiar?
Hazel dropped to the ground to support him, and Frank pointed his bow at the woman. “What did you do to him?”
The woman frowned. “I did not do anything. Though it seems my words did him no good. His memories seem to be suppressed by some magical influence.”
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Percy said, clutching his head.
“Say, Frank Zhang: I have a problem, a little pest situation outside my shop.”
“You mean the snakes the size of a toddler,” Percy said, still on the floor.
“And,” she continued, ignoring Percy, “I happen to have some information that would be helpful to you,” her color-shifting eyes stared deep into Frank’s own.
“You have to do it, Frank,” Hazel said. “She might know something about Percy.”
Iris shook her head. “Oh no, this has nothing to do with Persues. This is Frank’s duty for his own information.”
Frank shuddered. “I’ll do it.”
Percy jumped up. “Frank, don’t be crazy, you can’t kill those things by yourself! You’ll get yourself killed!”
“Thanks for the confidence, Percy, but this is something I have to do.” He stared intently out the window, patting his left pocket.
“Get some rest, Mr. Jackson,” Fleecy said. “Maybe with you asleep I can get a message out to your friends.”
His eyes darted to her. “You’d do that?”
Iris scoffed. “We owe you quite a lot of favors, Perseus Jackson, the least we can do is get a message out to your girlfriends to tell them you’re alive.”
“Girlfriends?” both Percy and Hazel said before Percy hit the floor with a thud. Hazel looked over to Iris to see her holding a now-lit candle. “That ought to do the trick until Mr. Zhang gets rid of those horrid reptiles.”
June 14, 2010: Camp Jupiter
Percy threw Terminus’ head with the force of every muscle in his body, and with a sickening crack, the giant was dead. It left some spoils, but Percy didn’t pay them any mind. He traveled around the battleground, killing any monsters that were dumb enough to stick around and helping move the injured and dead. When the field was clear, he moved into the infirmary, healing as many as he could with his powers.
When all was said and done, Percy was exhausted, but he trudged out of the infirmary to go assess the damage and deal with whatever political bullshit Octavian would put on him about the quest. The only positive that Percy could see from all of this was that he finally had his memories back. He was still missing some things, but he could remember the broad strokes and important things, like the fact he was soon to be a big brother, his mother was the most wonderful woman in the world, and he had two beautiful girlfriends who were probably worried sick about him.
Percy could imagine Annabeth desperately searching every inch of the country trying to find him, while Rachel poured herself into a canvas, ignoring the terrible circumstances around her. He hoped they at least had each other while he had been gone.
As he thought of these things and made his way back out toward the fields of Mars, he noticed that the legion seemed to be meeting near the center. Or waiting he supposed, as the crowd turned around as he approached. “Oh no,” Percy said, as Dakota reached him first and smiled with his Koolaid stained lips. “Didn’t think you could get away from the hero’s return, did you, Jackson?” Gwen and him lifted Percy up onto a shield and before he knew it he was being launched into the air by the entire legion.
He laughed as he came down hard onto the shield and felt himself being pushed to the front of the pack, where a smiling Reyna waited on a central wooden platform. “Romans,” she shouted. “We gather here to celebrate the triumph of Rome! We were able to defend the homeland, largely due to the actions of this valiant warrior,” Reyna placed a hand on his shoulder. “While I am sure some of you were annoyed at the wait, Percy was busy tending to the wounded,” a solemn hush fell over the crowd and many bowed. “While we were able to defeat the forces of evil, Rome has suffered many losses, and I would encourage you to hug your comrades, as some were not lucky enough to make it out of the battle alive.”
Most turned to their brothers and sisters in arms, and many hugs and cries were shared in a few moments of silence.
“But enough with the mourning for now,” Reyna said. “We have gathered here to honor one of the strongest of our forces, Percy Jackson, one of the rescuers of the symbol of the legion and the slayer of Polybotes.” Percy blushed as hundreds of his comrades, including Hazel and Frank who were with him on stage applauded him loudly.
“My brothers and sisters,” Reyna continued. “Rome has been troubled in the past months by the fact that I—one mere woman—has been leading you, instead of the typical two praetor system. While I still hold out hope that our comrade, Jason Grace, is alive and well somewhere else-”
“Camp Half-Blood,” Percy interjected. “Juno took Jason and I and swapped us. I was sent here to Camp Jupiter and Jason Grace was sent to the Greek camp in New York.”
Mutterings were heard around the crowd and Octavian jumped to his feet. “So it is true, you are a filthy Graceus. One sent here to destroy us! He must not be trusted, praetor.”
Dakota jumped to Percy’s defense. “Now wait just a minute, Octavian. Percy saved us all. Everyone here saw how he led the armies of Rome and defeated Polybotes. He deserves highest honors, not to be attacked just because he may be Greek.” The crowd seemed to be in agreement.
“I agree,” said Reyna. “Which is why, as I was getting to before being interrupted,” Percy blushed and Octavian stuttered. “I intend to honor Percy Jackson with the highest rank in all of Rome. My legion,” Reyna shouted now, “who among you believe Percy Jackson unworthy of praetorship.” Everyone went silent, except for Octavian.
“You can’t be serious, Reyna!”
“That is praetor to you, Octavian.”
“Have we all gone mad,” he shouted to the crowd. “This man has just admitted to all of us he is a Graceus, he is the enemy of Rome. He should be executed, not made praetor!”
Frank stepped forward pushing Octavian away from the limelight. His eyes glowed red. “Hold on here. You can’t be saying that a war hero should be executed! You of all people, Octavian, can’t be the one saying this, after all, I personally saw you flee the battlefield and cower for your life as your fellow Romans were cut down by the forces of Polybotes.”
Percy had no idea where this confidence from Frank was coming from but he loved it.
Reyna raised an eyebrow. “This is a serious accusation, Centurion Zhang, does anyone wish to corroborate his statement?”
A centurion from the first legion stepped forward. “I will, praetor. I saw Octavian fleeing the battlefield at the appearance of the giant. He pretended to be injured and threw himself into the Little Tiber.”
Percy held back a laugh and he could see Reyna was not in a much better state. “Well if that is the case, guards, take him away.” Octavian cried out as he was seized by some nearby soldiers and dragged away to New Rome. “We shall deal with that at another time. For now,” she turned to Percy, “do you, Perseus Jackson, son of Neptune, accept the praetorship of New Rome,” she held out a large, purple cape identical to her own.
Percy nodded. “I do.”
Reyna now turned back to the crowd. “Do you, the twelfth legion of Rome accept Perseus Jackson as your praetor?” The sound of hundreds of cheers from the legion reached Percy’s ears as Reyna placed the cape around his shoulder. He didn’t really know what to do now, if he should make a speech, but Reyna saved him by pushing him off the stage and into the waiting arms of the crowd. He was once again placed on a shield and this time carried off toward the Roman Senate, smiling all the way.
Hours later, Octavian’s name somehow cleared and both Percy and Reyna scowling, they met by the praetor housing; Percy supposed they were neighbors now. Reyna leaned over a railing on the balcony of the roman styled mini-mansion, looking at New Rome in the distance.
“This is not how I imagined my day going,” Percy said.
Reyna laughed. “I do not believe I had this in mind this morning either, but I suppose it was for the better.” She looked into his sea green eyes and smiled.
Percy smiled back, but felt a little wrong. “Listen, Reyna I-” he was interrupted by a kiss. He pulled away as fast as he could, feeling a little gross as he did.
Reyna’s eyes went wide and they watered slightly. “I’m sorry- I don’t know why I did that it just-”
Percy laughed. “It’s okay, Reyna. Just don’t do it again, okay?”
She nodded. “That was rather rash of me, I apologize. I just thought… well typically Roman praetors grow rather close and often hold rather… intimate relationships.”
“Well if you didn’t notice, I’m not a very typical Roman praetor.” Reyna laughed heartily. “I’m spoken for Reyna.”
She nodded. “I suppose one as attractive as you would have a girlfriend.”
“Two actually,” he said with a grin.
Reyna rolled her eyes. “Save some for the rest of us, Jackson,” she said with a chuckle.
“Nope,” he said. “These two are mine, praetor. I know a few people looking though, Thalia would love someone as muscular as you.” She blushed.
“Stop that. Tell me about yourself, the things that you did not know before anyway. I want to know more about my fellow praetor, even if we are not that close.”
He grinned. “Oh you are going to regret letting me talk. You’re going to be here for hours.”
She groaned. “I should have known you would be like this. Is it too late to choose Octavian?’
He punched her in the shoulder and the two sat talking until the sun went down.
June 15, 2010: Camp Jupiter
Percy stood in the field of Mars, his purple toga fluttering in the wind and the army of Rome flanking his and Reyna’s position at the forefront. Uncomfortable mutters came from behind him, but he remained faithful that the transmission from the little Mexican boy was truthful. He didn’t remember him from Camp, but he could feel in his gut that he was to be trusted. He also felt in his gut that Annabeth was on that ship. The large flying Greek trireme had been spotted by their eagles about ten minutes before they had received the message and it had taken all of Percy’s political skill and maybe a little bit of siren speak to convince the Senate they shouldn’t shoot it out the sky the second it reached Roman territory.
Reyna muttered beside him, careful not to let her voice reach Octavian. “And you are sure they are no threat.”
Percy let his eyes travel around the approaching ship, from the golden dragon figurehead to the cannons and ballistas littering its sides and even the exceptionally large and slightly threatening sails. “No, I’m really not, Reyna,” he whispered back. “I haven’t been certain about anything since I got here, that’s what’s made everything so fun.”
Reyna scoffed. “I think you and I have very different ideas of ‘fun’,” she said with airquotes. “But you do not believe them to be a threat, yes?”
Percy nodded. “The helmsman seems a little too nice to fire on New Rome without a reason, so I think our job as praetors should be to not give them a reason. We should allow them to come down and meet with us, show them around and see the reason for their arrival.”
“Besides the obvious,” Reyna said with a sigh.
Percy’s left eyebrow rose. “What’s the obvious?”
Reyna looked at him seriously with her stern brown eyes. “The Greeks did not come here at this time for a friendly chat. They will want their leader, their hero back. They come to take you from us… from me, Percy.” She looked more scared than Percy thought possible from Reyna.
He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “I’m not going to abandon my duties, Reyna. I may have been Greek my whole life, but now I am as Roman as the majority of our army. I may only have one line of service, but I am a praetor. I have promised to serve this city and this army until my last breath, and I will keep that promise.”
Reyna hugged him. “You are such a schmoozer, Percy Jackson. You’re going to have the Senate wrapped around your finger.”
Percy laughed. “What makes you think I don’t already,” he wiggled his eyebrows. “I’m already working on a proposition to cut the position of praetor and replace it with one president.”
“Pulling a Julius Ceaser, eh. I could not see that from you, praetor.” Reyna liked calling him that. It made her feel warm inside to once again have a strong partner to carry her burdens with her. It was one of the reasons she was so eager to kiss him, the overwhelming emotions of comfort she had been feeling were mistaken as love. It was also the reason she was so scared to let the Greeks in. There was no mistaking that they would want their leader back. Percy did not sugarcoat it when he told her himself and Annabeth were the closest thing to a praetor the Greeks had had in a millennium. They needed leadership, especially with the hard times coming, but Reyna was in no mood to give up her partner this soon into his reign, even if Jason was on that ship like Percy suggested.
The two sat in a comfortable silence as the Greek warship approached closer and closer to the city of New Rome. Percy felt his army tense behind him, heard the whispers and the chewing of nails at the prospect of the Greeks firing on the place they called home. Octavian approached them rapidly when the ship was less than a league away, its sheer size now apparent to all. “My praetors, the ship is not far out. Now would be the perfect time to arm the ballistas and prepare the legion for combat.”
Percy hummed and gave Reyna a look. “What do you think, Reyna?” he asked, shocking Octavian. “Should we arm the legion? Prepare for war?”
Reyna contemplated deeply for a moment, or at least pretended to. “No, I think not. We ought to prepare the legion to welcome the Greek leaders for a civilized discussion, like true Romans, we will settle this feud with our words before our weapons.”
Percy nodded at her statement. “Wise words, my praetor. I agree. Rome is the home of democracy, and it would be rather unlike us to attack without provocation or reason.”
Octavian sputtered in front of the Roman leadership and army. His face grew red at not getting his way. “What would you know about the Roman way?” he screeched at Percy. “You are a Graceus, unfit for a position such as the one you supposedly hold here! In fact, I am under the opinion that you are little more than a sock puppet for the forces of the Greeks and Giants! And yet here you stand, telling me–a pureblooded Roman augur–what we should do as Romans!” All eyes were on Octavian now. He drew his ceremonial dagger, which caused the guards around the praetors to jump for their spears, but Percy raised his hand. “Let him continue, he is no threat.” Reyna raised her eyebrow but nodded as well. Octavian raised the blade high into the air, his face still red as a tomato and his arms quivering despite the small size of the weapon. He looked near tears as he continued his shouting. “Perseus Jackson will be the downfall of Rome! He is an enemy to everything we stand for and if we as Romans allow him to continue to stand here and command us to let a ship designed for our destruction fly toward our home, we are all doomed!” His arm fell for a second, strained from holding up the dagger, but he quickly returned it to its place. Reyna scoffed at the drama of it. “I, Octavian Augustus Aeneas, augur of Rome and legacy of Lord Phoebus Apollo, call on the gods led by my patron great Jupiter Optimus Maximus to strike down the great threat to Rome standing here today!”
Pandemonium broke out. Many among the legion raised their shields to protect them from the sky. Some plugged their ears, some covered their eyes, a few dove for cover. On the stage Octavian stood with his dagger held high, looking smugly at the two praetors. Percy and Reyna remained looking unimpressed. A few seconds went by with nothing happening. “Well now that your dramatics are over, Octavian,” Reyna said, but Percy put a hand on her shoulder, stopping her. He pointed up into the clouds, where a glowing eagle formed above the legion.
Octavian shouted in triumph falling to his knees with his dagger still held high. “See!” he shouted victoriously. “I was right, the gods will strike down this Graceus and we will be free to destroy the warship!” The sky boomed and the eagle glowed every brighter, but Percy remained standing there calmly. “Why are you not running, oh enemy of Rome. No matter, you will soon see what happens to those who deceive the gods.”
The sky churned and a large boom sounded, drawing cries from the legions of Rome. All were terrified and everyone but Octavian, Percy, and Reyna dove off the stage. A flash of blue blinded everyone temporarily and then a large arc of lighting descended toward the legion. Octavian let out one more cheer at his victory. “Praise to great Jove, slaughterer of the enemies of Rome-” Then the sound of a million volts of lighting deafened all ears.
The explosion blinded everyone in the field. There was silence all around for a whole minute. When the dust cleared and the eyes of the legion were once again on their leaders, the stage held two solitary figures, coated in soot but otherwise completely unharmed. Perseus Jackson and Reyna Ramírez-Arellano, clad in armor of imperial gold still shining through the ash and the brilliant purple capes of the praetorship, stood alone and strong on the stage. Reyna was giving Percy an amused smirk as he twirled the dagger Octavian had held moments ago. “I guess we’re going to need a new augur,” Percy said with a smirk that matched Reyna’s.
No one said anything for more than a minute, and then everything erupted. People began to cheer and chant Percy’s name. For the second time in the past 24 hours the legion held their Greek praetor on a shield and hoisted him over the crowd, this time joined by his partner. When the two praetors were finally deposited back on the stage, once again joined by the Senators and guards who casually wiped the dirt off themselves from their unexpected stage dives, Percy took his place at the front of the stage and addressed his legion. “Romans,” he shouted, “this should be a lesson to us all! Octavian allowed himself to view himself as greater than his brothers in arms simply because of his origins and abilities. Let this teach us that no matter where we come from, no matter what we can do, no matter who we are, first and foremost we are the army of Rome.” He held up Riptide high in the air, much higher than poor Octavian had, and this time the legion drew their blades to mirror him. “We are the Twelfth Legion of Rome, and as your leaders, myself and Praetor Ramírez-Arellano swear ourselves to the service of New Rome and our people.” He beat his chest and saluted them as Reyna stepped forward and cleared her throat. “Praetor Jackson is quite right,” she said. “I, Praetor Reyna Ramírez-Arellano, swear myself to the service and interests of the Twelfth Legion of Rome,” she said, mirroring Percy’s salute.
The legion yelled in support of their praetors and banged their shields. About a mile away, Leo Valdez shivered. He turned to Annabeth, who was manning the helm with him. “I think they know we’re coming,” he said with a pale face. Annabeth snorted. “No shit, Valdez. We’re flying a massive fucking warship straight into the heart of their land!” Leo flinched at her scolding.
Jason laughed as he landed next to the pair. “Go easy on him, Annabeth. Leo’s new to this stuff.” Leo nodded at his support. “Yeah, Ms. Supreme Leader, cut me some slack,” he said with a scowl.
Jason’s face went serious. “I’ve only ever heard that noise once before. That’s the full forces of the Twelfth Legions united as one.” Annabeth paled. “That doesn’t sound good, but I’m sure we can get through to this Reyna girl, right Jason?” She looked into his blue eyes, so reminiscent of his sister Thalia. “Oh I’m sure. Reyna is the only leader I’d be confident in comparing to you. She’s very reasonable and I doubt she wants to draw a target on New Rome when we’re piloting this beast,” he said, patting the Argo II. Annabeth blushed at his praise while Leo merely grinned. “This baby will be ready to blow away some Romans if the need arises." Jason didn’t look very happy at this comment and Annabeth smacked him over the head. Leo sobbed and held his head. “That’s enough war talk for today, Valdez,” Annabeth scolded him. “Need I remind you that my boyfriend is probably down there somewhere.”
Jason flew away again and Leo skulked away muttering something about last minute repairs, leaving Annabeth alone on the bridge. In the time since Percy had gone missing she had developed a disdain for being alone. She had spent every waking moment organizing search efforts or assisting with quests or training campers and left her brain little time to think, which was not normal for her. Nights had been spent in Rachel’s company, with nightmares coming in the rare event that Annabeth had to sleep alone. Annabeth hadn’t let Rachel come along with the Argo II. She couldn’t risk it, as much as Rachel had pestered her about Percy being her boyfriend too, if things were at their worst, and the Romans really did kill Greeks on site, Annabeth couldn’t deal with losing Rachel too. Her and Percy could reunite in Elysium, but she had no idea how Hades would treat a mortal girl, as heroic and awesome as Rachel was. She could always move on and find a normal mortal to settle down with and have an amazingly long normal mortal life. Annabeth’s eyes began to water a little at the thought of never seeing Rachel again, before her pity party was interrupted by a smooth voice.
“Are you going to be done mopping around soon or should I just call you again later, gorgeous?” Anabeth spun around so fast she nearly gave herself whiplash. “Rachel,” she let out breathlessly. The redhead looked just as amazing as she had the day the Argo II took off, when she had planted one last kiss on Annabeth’s lips and said one thing, “You both better come back alive, and soon.” Annabeth smiled widely and wiped her eyes at the sight of her beautiful girlfriend. “Hey, Rach,” she said meekly, twirling her curly blonde hair around her index finger.
The pale girl smiled back and blew a kiss through the Iris message. “It’s been almost a week and you have yet to call me.” Annabeth winced. “Straight to the point, huh?” Rachel gave her a death stare. “There is nothing straight about this point. I miss my girlfriend and she refuses to call me while before she goes off to risk her life making contact with a secret sect of Roman demigods to go fight a war with the Earth itself.” Annabeth let out her first laugh since she had boarded the Argo II. “Well when you put it that way it seems so simple.”
Rachel hummed and looked Annabeth over. “You haven’t been sleeping. That’s not good for you and it makes your AUDHD go haywire.” Annabeth scoffed. “You care about me too much for your own good. Besides, I’ve been completely fine without sleep, no meltdowns and I’ve been fully locked in on planning.” Rachel raised an eyebrow and continued humming whatever song was playing out of her one earbud. “Just because I’m not there every night doesn’t give you a free pass not to care about your own health.” Tears formed in the blonde’s eyes for a moment before she wiped them away. “It’s so hard to sleep alone,” she whispered. Rachel gave her a loving smile. “I’m so sorry, Beth. I wish I could be there with you, but someone wasn’t so supportive of that idea.” That made Annabeth mad. “I’m not risking your life just so I can sleep at night, Rachel!” she yelled. The redhead’s eyes went wide at the sudden tone shift. “See, this is why you need sleep! You’re so volatile when you don’t get your sleep, Beth,” she said a little quieter. “I love you, and I care about you.” That calmed Annabeth down. She once again wiped her face and cleared her throat, before locking eyes with Rachel for the first time since she had left–those beautiful balls of green she had fallen in love with during their time in the labyrinth. Rachel smiled at the eyecontact. “You’re so brave, Annabeth Chase. You can get through this. Plus, hopefully in a few minutes you and Percy will be reunited.” Both of them smiled deeply. “I’m so jealous,” Rachel said with a frown. “You two get each other and I’m here alone.” Annabeth gave her a psychic pat on the back. “We’ll call you every night I swear.” Rachel raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t that what you told me when you left,” she said, causing Annabeth to blush. “I mean it this time,” she said with conviction.
“Hey Annabeth, we have a situation,” she heard Piper call from the deck. Annabeth turned and saw how near they were to their destination, to Percy. She turned back to Rachel, green eyes meeting grey one last time. “I love you, Rachel. I’ll call you as soon as I can,” she promised. The redhead smiled. “I’m holding you to that, Beth. Now go get our man.” Annabeth laughed as she swiped away the Iris message and marched down the steps to the deck.
The sight that met her at the deck was not a pretty one. Leo was scrambling around putting out fires that seemed to be coming from below deck. Jason flew up and down the length of the ship slashing at thin air, apparently certain he was actually accomplishing something. Annabeth just sighed and rubbed her forehead, taking a spot on the floor next to Piper. “Any idea what’s going on?” she asked the brunette as she watched Coach Hedge join the chaos. Piper shrugged. “Fire broke out and Jason and Leo are certain it was either a Roman eagle or evil spirits.” Annabeth raised an eyebrow and the girls shared a look. “And your opinion?” she asked Piper. “I don’t have an opinion,” Piper stated, “but I saw Leo set the fire by mistake when he tripped up the stairs coming from the engine room.” They shared a laugh as the boys finally got the situation under control.
Leo, now smouldering and soot coated, walked up to the pair. “Thanks for the help guys,” he grumbled. Annabeth was preparing a retort when her eyebrows suddenly shot up. “Leo,” she started, “who’s at the helm?” Everyone’s eyes went wide and Piper let out a gasp. Leo shot up toward the bridge and Annabeth leaned over a railing to see how close they were to their destination. The ship lurched to a sudden stop, too sudden even for Leo’s reckless driving. Annabeth barely caught herself before she went tumbling over the edge. She saw Hedge knock his head into a mast and Leo came flying back down the stairs he had just ran up. He would have to be checked for a concussion, that much was certain. Piper caught herself with her knife, leaving a large gash in the wooden boards of the Argo II’s deck, but as far as Annabeth could tell that was the most obvious damage. Jason floated about 100 feet in front of the ship, no longer wildly swinging, but now gawking at the sight below him. Annabeth could gather from what he had talked about that he was familiar with the sights and sounds below him, but it must be a shock seeing it after all his time with the Greeks. She was missing her glasses so what she could actually see was very limited, but the sounds below them were startling. The cheers of thousands of soldiers and banging of drums and shields reached her ears every few seconds. Leo seemed capable of the Argo II’s destructive capabilities but they certainly stood no match for an army as large as the Romans’ seemed. “Jason!” she shouted over the steady winds. “Get back on deck!” Her fellow blonde listened and now the crew huddled around her near the main mast.
“Status report, Leo.” The latino nodded. “The Argo II is unharmed and fully functional, Boss Lady.” She held back her urge to smack him and turned to Jason. “Anything out of the ordinary with the Roman army?” He shook his head. “Besides the fact that they are more unified than I’ve ever seen them, they don’t look particularly eager to destroy. The way they’re acting down there… I would hazard a guess they are ready to welcome us.” Annabeth nodded and saw Piper jump for joy. “This is great,” she said. “We should send Jason down there and tell them we come in peace.” Annabeth threw her arm protectively in front of Piper. “Not so fast. We’re lucky they haven’t blown us out of the sky yet, it must mean they got Leo’s transmission. We don’t need to take any more unnecessary risks. No one goes anywhere without everyone. We all got that?” Everyone nodded in agreement and Leo even threw in a salute that she was not particularly happy with.
“What stopped us anyway?” Coach Hedge asked, hoisting his club up in a way that showed he was ready to clobber whoever dared to check them. “That would be me,” a new voice said and the whole crew jumped. Piper screamed and Hedge swung his baseball bat, nearly taking Jason’s head off. Everyone’s weapons were drawn as they turned to what had spoken. A… stack of stones? A pillar guy of some sort, as Leo would later put it, sat at the front of the Argo II. “And you are?” Annabeth asked, stepping in front of her crew and brandishing her dagger. “I am Terminus, god of boundaries and protector of New Rome, and you, graceus, are far from home.”
Back on the ground, the Roman army was growing impatient and nervous. “Are we sure that thing isn’t a threat?” Dakota whispered to Percy on stage. Mummerings from the crowd seemed to hold similar questions, and Percy could tell it was only a matter of time before Octavian’s calls for blood were answered post-mortem. He asked Reyna for advice. “All we can do is wait,” she responded, and even he was not fully satisfied with that answer. Finally Terminus returned. “Oh yeah,” he said, “that thing is not coming anywhere near New Rome.” The army grumbled and some glances of fear were shared amongst comrades. “Terminus, are we sure they can not simply land the ship here-” Reyna was interrupted by the god. “No, no, no, no, I will not be allowing a massive Greek warship loaded with every weapon known to the Earth to land in Roman territory, no matter how many former praetors are on board.”
“So Jason is home,” Percy chirped. Reyna nodded happily. “It is great to have a true Roman hero return home, but he is a former praetor as Terminus stated.” She locked eyes with Percy and gave him an unhappy glance. “That he is,” Percy agreed, “and I’m afraid he will have to ferry the occupants of the ship down here at this rate.” Terminus gave them one ultimatum. “I will allow the Greeks to lower their ship and disembark as long as they surrender their weapons upon entering Roman territory.” Percy and Reyna both nodded. “A fair compromise,” one praetor agreed. “Please inform our Greek brethren of this.” Terminus poofed away in a cloud of dust and grumblings about the word ‘brethren’ and when he returned once again a ladder descended from the large Greek vessel. Thousands of Romans watched as small figures descended the hundreds of rungs around 100 yards away, the whole process carefully watched by the flying form of their former praetor.
Percy took a deep breath. Like nearly every other moment of every day he had spent since he went missing, he had no idea what was about to happen. He had been nonstop confused and fighting for his life since he had woken up in the Wolf House over a month ago, but he was now minutes away from seeing his girlfriend. He contemplated all the things he had begun to remember about her: how soft her curly blonde hair was, how cute her face looked when she was deep in thought or frustrated, the way she always came to his cabin when she went nonverbal or had a meltdown, how she cuddled up to Rachel whenever he said something stupid that upset her. Oh gods, Rachel. Percy had been missing from her life for as long as Annabeth’s now, but Percy knew that she wouldn’t be on board. The life of a demigod was a dangerous one, and all three of them knew it, which is why Annabeth and Percy always vowed that Rachel would be left out of all questing after the labyrinth, much to her annoyance. She always contended that she could handle herself, she had thrown a hairbrush at the Titan Lord of Time afterall, but they were not willing to risk her life like that. Percy missed Rachel desperately, but with how desperate the situation at hand was, he highly doubted they would be reunited any time soon.
Through all of his musings, Reyna remained by his side carefully observing the oncoming demigods. When she saw a blonde figure that she was very confident was not Jason sprinting toward them and Percy was still spaced out, she bumped his shoulder. He turned to her with a confused expression. “I believe that one is coming for you,” she said, pointing at the girl full sprinting toward them. Percy’s eyes went wide and he took off toward her, cape flowing in the wind behind him. Their guards tensed as the praetor took off, but Reyna raised her hand, calming the forces of the legion. “Leave him be,” she said calmly. “We shall wait for Praetor Jackson to return with his gi- the Greek envoy.” she said with a cough. Some of the senators chuckled.
Percy was running the fastest he ever had. With every step Annabeth neared. The two of them combined were moving faster than Grover on enchilada day. Percy figured the fact that he remembered that was a good sign for his amnesia. One thing he was certain of– that he had never forgotten no matter how hard Hera had tried–was that he loved Annabeth Chase with all his heart, so he kept running.
With a crash of bodies they finally met. Percy’s arms wrapped around her, pulling his girlfriend into a bone crushing hug. Annabeth returned it and he noticed with a jolt that she was crying. Her tears stained his purple shirt as he rubbed slow circles into her back. “Shhh,” he said. “It’s alright, I’m here now.” She was fully ugly crying now, her mascara running down her face as she stared happily into the eyes of the man she loved. “I was so worried,” she sobbed. “Rachel kept telling me you would be fine but I couldn’t get all of the terrible things that could have happened to you out of my head.” Percy kissed her gently. She cried softer now but still stimmed gently by rubbing circles into his strong arms.
Both the Greeks and the Romans watched from afar. Piper teared up at the emotion of it all. Her Aphrodite side felt the love present and the human element of seeing one of her best friends finally see peace again combined to bring her near tears. Jason hugged her tight. Leo whistled. “I can see why she was so eager to get back to him,” he said as Percy pulled Annabeth into a deep kiss. “Leo,” Piper scolded.
Reyna smiled. She was a little jealous of the Greek girl, but she was slowly getting over her short-lived crush on the son of Neptune. Dakota whistled and nudged Gwen with his shoulder. “I never knew Jackson was such a schmoozer with the ladies. I thought he saved it all for the Senate.” The group dissolved into laughter. Hazel blushed at the deep kiss. Frank grinned and put a hand on her shoulder, only increasing her blush.
Annabeth’s tears finally ceased after their kiss. Percy grinned. “Look at that pretty face,” he said, smoothing her blonde curls. “I missed you so much, Wise Girl.” She wiped her face and then wrapped her arm around his. “Me too, Seaweed Brain,” and she tightened her grip. His eyes went wide. “You wouldn’t dare,” he said, but she had that evil look in her eye. Percy felt himself go flying.
Leo gawked from below the Argo II. “Woah,” he said, wide eyed. “What the hell is happening?” Jason looked concerned. “Should we intervene?” he asked Piper. “I think they’re going to beat us to it,” she said, pointing at the advancing Roman army. “It might be time to retreat,” Jason said. “Nah,” responded Leo. “Let’s let this play out.”
Reyna led the charge toward the girl. She must defend her partner. She knew it was foolish to trust the graceus. Percy’s own trust would be his downfall. Percy lied still on the ground, unmoving. The blonde was staring at Reyna and the army, wide eyed. “Go,” Reyna shouted, “defend our praetor from the enemy.”
The blonde girl looked fearfully at them and kicked their praetor. Percy suddenly shot up, just as surprised as her. She was glad to see that he was still alive, but the girl must be holding him hostage as leverage. She saw Percy raise his hands and shout, but could not hear him over the sound of the full power of the twelfth legion. When he jumped up and down waving his arms, Reyna finally called for the advance to stop.
“-op. Stop!” Percy yelled. The army had stopped a few yards from him and Annabeth. “Reyna,” he shouted. “What the Hades are you doing! I’m a praetor for gods sake. You all are really just going to attack us like that for nothing.”
“What are you talking about, Praetor Jackson? Have you lost your mind? The graceus was going to kill you.” Percy glared at her. “Reyna… this is my girlfriend.”
“Well yes, I gathered that. It does not change the fact she has attacked a praetor of Rome.” The glare did not cease. The blonde girl was still dumbfounded.
“Reyna, she didn’t hurt me. She’s my girlfriend for Hades sake! I’ve known her since I was twelve!” Reyna blushed shamefully. She had to admit she was a little rash. Percy stood before the army of Rome. “Romans!” he shouted, once again abusing his people skills. “Annabeth Chase has done me and our nation no harm. She has come as an envoy of Camp Half-Blood, home of the Greeks–my home,” he finished. “We shall welcome her and her companions with open arms and forge lasting relations with our demigod brothers in arms!” The Romans would listen to him, Reyna was sure. She would, at the least. Nods and mumbles of agreement went around. “Looks like Praetor Jackson has already made some lasting relations with the Greeks,” someone called out from the crowd. Percy pulled Annabeth closer as she blushed. “Just go back to your barracks and take the day off,” Percy called. Everyone cheered. “Not you, Dakota,” Percy yelled as he saw the man wander off. “It was worth a shot.”
Percy pecked Annabeth on the lips. “What do you say you introduce me to your friends?” Annabeth grinned. “I get to show you off?” He nodded as she snuggled into his arms. “Then I get to show you my baby.” She raised an eyebrow. “Don’t tell me you’ve been cheating on me.” He laughed. “Only with the city of New Rome.” The two walked off, arm and arm.