Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Mom? I’m home,” Percy called out as he hurried in the door. It was cold outside, and while that didn’t bother him much, it would bother her. Besides, he did still get cold if he didn’t focus on regulating his temperature (something that had been automatic as a god), and he’d had enough training for the day. He focused on taking his coat off and hanging it up behind the door before going for his boots. They had dirty snow all over them, slowly melting. He waved a hand and cleaned it all up.

“Percy?!” she asked, looking up from the kitchen table. She sounded a little nervous. Like she’d been caught red-handed. She’d also immediately stood. He frowned and looked up to see her coming towards him, blocking the dining room from view. “How was the park?”

“It was fine. I got att—” he started, but she cut him off. Weird. She never did that.

“I’ve got a friend over,” she said hurriedly.

Percy blinked, then leaned around her to see a man sitting at the table. He almost jumped for joy. Paul! He looked exactly as Percy remembered him from his early teens. Brown hair just beginning to gray at the temples, sparkling eyes that took in the situation, laugh lines and wrinkles barely noticeable around the corners of his eyes and mouth. It always struck Percy that he looked so… normal. Sometimes, he couldn’t help but be jealous. Average human features that didn’t strike an automatic sense of power or superiority. Accepting.

He loved it.

Wasn’t this a little early though? Hadn’t his Mom met Paul just before Artemis got captured? And that was at least a year in the future…

Hmm. He didn’t know. This may very well be on track. And he really didn’t want to complain.

Gift-horses and all that.

“Oh. Hi,” Percy said, grinning. “I—”

“Percy,” his mother said, eyes darting down to his hands. He blinked and looked down. He followed her gaze to the ball of dirty water hovering just under his palm. Oh. He swallowed and looked up, meeting his mother’s fondly exasperated expression. He closed his hand around the water.

“Sorry about the snow, mom. I’ll wipe it up.”

She smiled, shook her head, and brought him in for a hug. “Don’t worry about it. It’ll dry. Just, be careful.”

“I will,” he said, returning the hug. After a moment, she turned back to Paul, who was watching them with a soft smile.

“Percy, this is Paul Blofis.” She gestured to their guest, who stood up with a hand outstretched. “Paul, this is my son, Percy.”

“Pleased to meet you,” Paul said as Percy took his hand. He had to mentally will all the water away from said hand before Paul saw it, but it wasn’t difficult. More difficult to make sure it wasn’t seen than anything. What was this, ‘Now You See Me?’

“You too,” Percy said before glancing at his mother. “I’m guessing he’s staying for dinner?”

For once, his mother seemed flat-footed. “I… we hadn’t discussed it.”

“It’s fine,” Paul waved his hand. “We were just finishing up.”

“Finishing up what?” Percy asked innocently.

“Studying,” his mother said. “Paul is in my creative writing class. We have an assignment due and I asked him for help.”

“Oh?” Percy asked, hoping it sounded at least somewhat like he’d just heard new information. Judging from his mother’s narrowed eyes, he didn’t succeed. Why did that just make it all the more amusing?

“Well, you’ve been just as much help to me,” Paul said, turning to Sally. “Some of your ideas… I never would have come up with anything that good.”

His mother blushed, much to Percy’s amusement. “Oh, well…. Thank you. It’s really not much.”

“It is,” he insisted. If Percy had still been a god, he would have conjured some popcorn. This was too cute.

“Well, I—” Sally’s response was cut off by a loud thumping at the door. Even Percy jumped.

“Oh, Tyson!” he said, giving into his recent habit of reaching up and grabbing one of his necklaces when he’d forgotten something or got upset. He always had three necklaces: A prism maker so he could contact someone if necessary, his camp necklace, and the Lethe Water he got from Hades. This time, he grabbed the vial of water. “Sorry, Mom. I told him he could stay here tonight.”

His mother seemed somewhat relieved. Hmm. There was something to that, but he’d have to look into it later. “Oh, that’s fine. I told you—and him—that he could stay here whenever he isn’t with your father.”

Because of course Percy had sought out Tyson. Tyson and he had remained close far into the future and was one of the siblings he loved the best. He'd never become a good conversationalist, but that was part of what made him so easy to be around, at least in Percy’s opinion. And they'd understood each other on a level no one else really had.

Naturally, almost as soon as they’d been alone that first time, Percy had explained the whole Poseidon thing and even taken him to the ocean. Not Atlantis—even he hadn’t been there yet this time around—but their father had shown up to greet them. He’d asked Percy to show Tyson the ropes up top so he could get some experience before trying the forges, if that was what he wanted to do. Since they were going to Meriwether again this time around, the only thing to do was introduce his brother to his mother. She’d practically adopted him, and even though they didn’t really have another room, Percy didn’t mind sharing his. Some days he would go back to his refrigerator box (much to the Jackson’s consternation), but those were getting fewer and farther between.

Also, Percy may or may not have taken care of a certain sphinx as soon as he could when he’d returned initiallh. He didn’t think he’d been fast enough, but it had been something he could do to help Tyson. Because he’d tried to find the cyclops before then, but something had stopped him every time—be it a monster attack or just the inability to see through the Mist surrounding Tyson’s living space. He’d even asked his father, but Poseidon had only answered that until Tyson wanted to be found, he wouldn’t be. Percy had had to accept that, but that didn’t mean he’d had to like it. So finally seeing the cyclops again had been nothing short of relieving. Definitely one of the best days that year, even if Matt Sloane was still a borborópēs** and bully. Percy had dealt with worse. Besides, it was amusing using subtle water powers to screw with Matt’s clique.

“You have another son?” Paul asked as Percy reached the door, sounding surprised.

“Oh, no,” his mom said. “That’s Percy’s half-brother. His father’s son.”

“Oh.”

“Buddy!” Percy said as he opened the door.

“They’re very close,” Sally whispered loudly.

Tyson swept Percy into a hug and spun him around like they hadn’t just seen each other the day before. Percy didn’t care, laughing loudly and hugging the cyclops back. “I’m back!”

“Welcome back,” Sally said.

“Hi, Percy’s Mom!”

Percy’s mother sighed. “You don’t have to call me that, honey. You can call me Sally. Or Auntie. Or ‘Mom’ if you want.”

They’d been through this before, but Tyson didn’t seem to grasp what they were trying to tell him. Like usual, he just tipped his head to one side. “But you aren’t my auntie. Or my mom.”

Percy and his mother exchanged fondly exasperated glances. He’d catch on eventually. It didn’t help that Tyson had grown up on the streets and was literally eight years old. He wouldn’t stay in that mindset forever.

Tyson set Percy down suddenly, stiffly. His single eye narrowed on Paul. “Who are you?”

“Oh, buddy, this is Paul! He’s a friend of Mom’s! A good guy,” Percy said hurriedly. He also whispered, “Mortal,” under his breath. Tyson should be able to hear that and not Paul.

The cyclops glanced suspiciously between the other three people in the apartment before nodding and holding out a hand like they’d taught him.

“Tyson.”

“Good to meet you,” Paul said, shaking the cyclops’ hand. Judging from his slight grimace, Tyson may have squeezed a little hard. “Anyway, I think it might be time for me to make my exit.”

Percy’s frown dimmed. “You don’t have to,” he started, but Paul shook his head.

“No, I think having to cook for two extra people is too much for anyone.”

Sally frowned, but didn’t protest. “Alright.”

“Though,” Paul said, cheeks darkening a little, “I wouldn’t mind something next Wednesday, after Christmas? Just you and me.” Sally’s blush darkened, but her eyes lit up.

Too.

Cute.

“Oh, um… sure!”

“Tyson and I will make plans with Dad then,” he spoke up. His mother’s eyes narrowed in suspicion again. “I wanted to anyway,” he preempted before Paul could object.

Paul tipped his head at Percy, pleasantly surprised. He glanced back at Sally. “I’ll text you the time?”

“I should have the necessary research data,” she said softly.

Smiling, Paul reached to take her hand and bent down to kiss it. “Until then, goodnight my lady.”

Oh, he was almost as bad as Dad. No wonder his mother had fallen for him.

“What—” Tyson started, but Percy shushed him.

“I’ll explain later, buddy.”

His brother frowned, but nodded.

While Sally walked Paul to the door, Percy rummaged through the kitchen for something to eat. Tyson still liked Peanut butter, but his mom would probably want something healthier than that for dinner.

“Percy,” his Mom said just a couple of minutes later. Tyson already had a sandwich in his hands, ready to swallow it whole. He froze, looking at Sally with a big eye. She didn’t like him eating just before dinner. Which was probably why her ignoring that made Tyson’s eye widen even more.

“Yeah, Mom?” he said innocently, putting the peanut butter back in the cupboard.

“Did I meet Paul in the future?”

He grinned but didn’t turn to face her, shrugging instead. “Even if I did know, you know I wouldn’t tell you.”

A sigh. “Percy.”

“Come on, Mom,” he said, schooling his features and turning to her. “Let’s say you didn’t, and neither of us know where it’s going, which makes it pointless. Or I could tell you you did and exactly how your relationship goes. Do you really want me to do either of those?”

Sally pressed her lips together for a moment, but then she shook her head. “No, I suppose not.”

Percy smiled. “Okay then. So, what’s for—”

Before he could ask what was for dinner and if he could help, another loud knock on the door cut him off, making everyone jump.

“Oh,” Sally said, blinking. “I’ll bet Paul forgot something.” She glanced around, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. Neither did Percy.

“I’ll be right back.”

Percy shook his head fondly and went back to rummaging through the cupboards when he heard his mother speak.

“Oh! Oh my… Annabeth, right?”

Percy froze.

“Y-yeah.” He heard the soft, familiar voice and dropped the boxes of pasta in his hands as he sprinted into the other room. Why would Annabeth come here?

“Annabeth?” he asked, breathless. Sure enough, she stood in the doorway, shifting from foot to foot nervously. She wouldn’t meet his eyes. “What’s wrong?”

She didn’t answer for a couple of seconds. When she did, she cleared her throat. “Well, I thought about what you said, about my family, and… you’re right. I think I should give them another chance. So I’m going home for the rest of the year.” She fiddled with her necklace absently.

“What are you doing here then?” he asked, hand reaching for his own camp necklace this time.

She bit her lip. “My train doesn’t leave for another couple of days. There… may have been a monster fight that canceled the one I was supposed to leave on tonight. I don’t want to make anyone from camp drive all the way down here just to get me, so I… um… can I stay here until then?”

That was suspicious. The Annabeth he knew—especially at this age—wouldn’t have come unless she felt she had no other choice. And she always put safety above comfort. Actually, she likely wouldn’t even be comfortable here, and yet, here she was. No, that didn’t make sense. Something else had happened. That train-of-thought zoomed through his head in seconds, but before he could open his mouth to say something, his mother had already answered.

“Of course, honey! Come in.” She opened the door wide. “With Percy’s brother here, we’ll have to get you set up on the couch, but that shouldn’t be a problem.”

Annabeth froze. “Percy’s… brother?”

She caught sight of Tyson just then and paled significantly.

“You know, this was a bad idea. I’m… just going to call someone from camp.”

“Tyson won’t hurt you,” Percy said, folding his arms.

Annabeth rounded on him. “Do you know what he is?!”

Percy nodded. “Yes. He’s a cyclops and my brother. He’s never met his mother, but father sent me to help him.” Well, he had in another life. It counted.

He hated seeing the hurt bordering on betrayal in her eyes, but she needed to address her biases. At least when it came to Tyson.

“Sent you to… but…”

“I know he’s just a child now, only eight, right buddy?” he asked Tyson, who looked up and nodded, grinning. Globs of peanut butter caked his teeth. Okay, not the best introduction, but it could have been worse too. Percy went on anyway. “He’s just eight now, but he grew up to help lead my father’s armies in the future.”

“I did?” Tyson asked. Percy wasn’t entirely sure Tyson grasped the concept of time-travel, but he’d been told anyway. Percy refused to treat Tyson like anything other than a normal kid—a kid who was still learning, but who was more intelligent than most people gave him credit for. The time-traveler would not fall into that trap.

“Yup. You’re gonna do great things, buddy.”

Annabeth shifted from foot to foot again. Then Sally put her hand on the younger girl’s shoulder. “Honey, if you want, you can sleep in my room. It has a locking door. I can take the couch.”

The blond looked so surprised at Sally's offer, Percy almost broke into a hearty laugh. Although, once he thought about it, that was kind of sad. That someone offering something so kind was foreign and a surprise to the daughter of Athena …

“No, no! I couldn’t do that to you!”

“Nonsense,” Sally waved her hand. “You need a place to stay, and I refuse to let you not be comfortable and safe enough to sleep. I can’t kick Tyson out either, though, so this is the best solution.”

“But…” Annabeth started again.

“Don’t fight her on it,” Percy said, amping up the drama. “You’ll lose. My mom just has a way of doing that.”

That just made the blond even angrier and she turned to Sally. “No, I can’t let you give me your room.”

But Percy knew Annabeth Chase had met her match, because Sally could out-stubborn gods.

He’d seen it happen.

Annabeth’s defeated, tired look after she’d finally finished speaking with Sally Jackson a half-an-hour later stirred both a vindictive pride and sort of pity for the girl. He wouldn't voice it, Annabeth would hate that, but it was still there. It was similar to the first time his mother and girlfriend had clashed in the previous universe. Well, for something a little more mundane than the end of the world in any case.

“That’s my mom,” he said from the kitchen where he’d started dinner with Tyson. “Dad said she’s a queen among women. He’s not wrong.”

“I heard that!” Sally called from the other room.

“Good!” Percy called back. “He never stopped talking about you, you know!”

“Percy!” his mom said back. He could just imagine the look on her face and her cheeks burning. Teasing her about her love life was kind of cathartic. She’d had no problems teasing him about his.

“You told your Mom you came back in time?” Annabeth asked, incredulous.

Percy blinked at her. “Well, yeah. She’s the first one I told.”

“Percy, she’s mortal!”

More blinking. What did that have to do with anything? “And?”

Annabeth took a deep breath, looking like she wanted to strangle him. “Some gods can read mortal’s minds!”

Percy snorted. “Most gods know about me anyway, and even if they didn’t, gods only pay attention to the mortals that catch their eye personally. They don’t really care otherwise.” He sighed. “Unfortunately. But, their loss. Besides, becoming a Greek God doesn’t make you suddenly able to listen to every single voice out there. Trust me, I know.”

He shuddered.

Annabeth didn’t seem to know what to say to that, just watching him with a troubled expression. Finally, she shook her head. “And what about that?” she pointed to Tyson. “Does it know?”

Right. This. Percy couldn’t stop himself from rolling his eyes. “He is right here and can hear everything you say. Right, buddy?”

“Yes,” Tyson said, nodding firmly. “But you’re hard to understand sometimes.”

Percy patted him on the shoulder. “Tell me when something doesn’t make sense. I may not be able to explain right then, but I will later.”

“He can speak?!” Annabeth asked, eyes wide in horror.

“Yes,” Tyson said, grinning. “You’re pretty.”

“Ew!” She backed away defensively. Tyson immediately shied away, confusion and hurt in his eye.

“Hey, that’s not you, buddy. She’s had bad experiences with people who look like you before.”

She hissed, about to verbally tear into Percy, but Tyson beat her to it.

“Others who look like me? But they’re not me.”

“No, they aren’t,” Percy said, meeting Annabeth’s angry gaze. “There are plenty of good cyclopes in the myths and around today. Dad has armies of them in his palace.”

“Yeah, under the sea,” Annabeth hissed. “Not up here on dry land where cyclopes kill demigods. And it wasn’t just once! Do you remember Polyphemus?!”

Percy nodded. “Yes. I also remember multiple demigods who wanted to hurt other demigods. Should I judge all demigods like that?”

“That’s different!”

He shrugged. “Not as different as you might think.” He sighed. “But I also get it. Where you’re coming from. Grandfather has plenty of cyclopes and demigods working for him too. Even before that… well, it’s understandable to be wary. You should be. But plenty of monsters are good and helpful, too. The cleaning harpies at camp. Technically Chiron could be considered a monster like most centaurs. And Tyson here.” He clapped the cyclops on the shoulder. “Best brother anyone could ask for. Don’t tell Triton I said that.”

Tyson, who may or may not have followed all of that, did get that last part as he suddenly burst into tears and threw his arms around Percy.

“You’re the best big brother!”

Percy patted him where he could (difficult to do with his arms pinned to his sides). “I try, buddy. I’m not perfect, but I do try.”

“Big?” Annabeth asked. From her expression, her entire world may have just turned upside down. Good. Percy hoped so.

“Well, I am older,” Percy said. “Not even counting the future. Like I said, Tyson, here, is only eight, like I said.” He smiled as Tyson finally put him down, using an arm to wipe away tears. “Fortunately, cyclopes aren’t mortal.”

Annabeth’s eyes widened. “Wait. He was still alive. In the future, I mean.”

Percy stiffened. He really didn’t want to think of everyone who had died. Again. He also didn’t want to think about how he’d left Tyson behind when he’d come back here. So he just turned back to the stove and the… fudge, how long had they not been stirring the pot?

“Yeah,” he muttered.

Thankfully, she didn’t press it. Sally came out just a couple of seconds later with a bundle of sheets and blankets in her hands, saying she’d fixed everything up so Annabeth could have clean sheets and privacy. The daughter of Athena still didn’t seem to know what to say to that.

Sally and Annabeth set the table and they all sat down to eat the blue-dyed spaghetti that… actually looked less blue and more brown, but it tasted good. Thankfully, Annabeth seemed to perk up as the night wore on. By the time Sally brought out games to play afterwards, they were all laughing and joking, even if Annabeth avoided Tyson as much as she could. Ignoring was a step above actively hating and harassing. Baby steps.

When they finally cleaned up in preparation for bed, Annabeth tried one more time to get Sally to sleep in her own room, but his Mom would have none of it, setting up her own bed on the couch. Percy even asked his mom if she wanted his bed. He hated sleeping on the couch (he did not fit, even now) but he’d be willing to do it for those he loved.

Naturally, his mother rejected his offer and he just sighed in resignation. Tyson got his typical blanket and pillows spread on Percy's floor. He’d broken their air mattress long ago. Percy was considering filling one with water that he could keep control of, but didn't want to experiment in the apartment so his mom could get her deposit back. Annabeth went into his mother’s room and locked the door while his mother finished setting up the couch and they all finally settled in.

Of course the third unexpected knock on the door woke them all up later that night. Tyson and Percy both sprang up, ready to fight before another knock on the front door had them relaxing a little.

“Stay here, buddy,” Percy said quietly, grabbing Riptide. “I’m going to go see what’s going on.”

He’d already heard his mother get up. “I’m coming,” she called out tiredly.

“Mom, no!” Percy said, rushing out of his room. “We have two demigods and a cyclops here!”

Sally blinked as her mind kept waking up from sleep. Then her brow furrowed in worry. “Right.”

“Let me…” Percy said, sneaking up to the door and peeking out.

The sight that greeted him made him step back and wonder if he was still sleeping.

“What?!” Sally asked. “What is it?”

“Percy?” Annabeth’s slurred voice came from down the hall. He almost didn’t register because his mind wasn’t wrapping around what he’d seen.

After several seconds, he looked through the hole again. No change.

He scrambled to unlock the door.

“Percy?!” his Mom said again, but then he threw open the door to face the old man standing there.

“What the…” he started, blinking and shaking his head. “Neptune? What are you doing here?”

Chapter Text

Percy immediately knew he screwed up when both his mother and Annabeth said: "Neptune?!"

The older man in front of him raised a gray eyebrow pointedly. Even with his older appearance there was something otherworldly to him. Poseidon looked like a beach bum most of the time. Neptune took on the appearance of an old, tired fisherman, complete with hat, sweater, trench coat, boots… the works.

"You have no room to talk," Percy whispered to him. "You're the one who surprised me."

"Didn't you say you rolled with the punches?"

"I never said that," Percy said. "I said humans and mortals adapt. That doesn't mean I don't get surprised, or that I'm not allowed. If gods can, demigods can. And I know gods can be surprised."

The side of Neptune's mouth lifted into a smirk. "So I hear."

"So you… ugh," Percy facepalmed. "I knew that schism was bad but I didn't think it was that bad."

The god had the audacity to just shrug.

"What's going on?" Annabeth asked, anger creeping into her voice.

Percy took a deep breath, pinching the bridge of his nose, before stepping to the side. "Come on in and help me explain."

Neptune raised an eyebrow again. Great. He'd always been one to just kind of communicate with looks.

"You knew she was here. I'm not going to lie to her. Or to Mom."

"Fair enough," Neptune shrugged.

"Wait, is this the Roman thing you told me about?" Sally asked quietly, staring warily at the god as he stepped inside. Percy closed the door behind him.

"What Roman thing?" Annabeth asked, exasperated.

Percy sighed. "Have a seat and we'll explain everything. Just let me go get Tyson."

Annabeth groaned. Percy ignored her, stepping past her, making his way down the hall. He found his brother sleeping again. Must have fallen back asleep when he'd realized nothing was wrong. That was so like Tyson.

Smiling and shaking his head fondly, Percy shut the door and made his way back out to the living room, where everyone sat on the edge of their seat in awkward silence.

"He's asleep and I'm not waking him up for this."

Annabeth looked relieved, if a little guilty. His mom and Neptune just nodded in agreement.

"So," Percy said, taking a seat between his Mom and Neptune, fixing his gaze on Annabeth. "You know how a lot of people think the Roman and Greek gods are more or less the same?" She nodded, eyes narrowing. "Well, they're not. Well… not entirely."

Neptune snorted. Percy shot him a 'shut up' look before turning back to his friend. "Rome was known for conquering and absorbing cultures into their system. It was a way of integrating the cultures they conquered. And that's grossly oversimplified, but I'm sure you'll look it up later."

"Oh, I will," Annabeth said, sitting back in the armchair with her arms crossed.

"Anyway, the same thing happened when they finally conquered Greece. A lot of the gods from that culture were integrated into the Roman pantheon. But the problem was, they already had their own gods, and gods from other cultures. So people who worshiped different gods for the same or similar things… they ended up merging a lot of the time. Kind of like how the goddess of love was both born from Ouranos and later from Zeus."

"Like Epithets?" Annabeth asked.

"Yes," Percy said. "And… no."

It was her turn to raise an unimpressed eyebrow.

"Oh, I like her," Neptune said.

Both Percy and Annabeth shot him a glare before the former went on.

"Neptune, here, is the Roman god of both freshwater and the sea–depending on where and when you're looking at Ancient Roman culture. And he was integrated a bit late into the pantheon because Romans tend to focus more on land-based conquests than sea-based. They had a sea-based presence, but it just wasn't as big as over the land. At least not until much later, and even then. A lot of scholars think he's also based off of the Etruscan god Nethuns."

Another snort from Neptune but this one sounded bitter and annoyed.

Annabeth frowned. "Etruscan?"

"They lived in ancient Italy, before and during early Rome… I think?" He turned to Neptune. Who just shrugged. Percy rolled his eyes. This was why he preferred his father.

"Scholars think…" Annabeth said, obviously working something out in her mind. Then she turned to Neptune and addressed him specifically. "Is that true, then? Are you a combination of Poseidon and Nethuns?"

Neptune shrugged. "On some level, yes. Though it isn't that easy or simple."

"It never is," Percy muttered before going on.

"Anyway, either way, the Romans changed a lot when it came to the different gods."

"Like my mother. She isn't a war goddess in Rome," Annabeth said slowly. Percy beamed. He knew she'd catch on.

"Exactly. Minerva is a goddess of Victory in some areas—don't ask me how that works with Nike and Victoria, but our family is nothing if not complicated."

Everyone snorted or chuckled or hummed in agreement.

"But yeah," Percy went on. "There are a lot of gods and goddesses that don't cross over. Circe is Greek, and Quirinus is Roman."

Annabeth nodded, seeming to absorb that well. Then she leaned forward, gaze focused on Percy. He had to consciously make himself not shuffle under the intensity.

"So, you're saying that other pantheons and gods exist."

"Of course, girl," Neptune said tiredly. "Norse, Egyptian, Indian, East Asian, Americas, Polynesia, Africa. All their gods are just as real as I am."

"Di Immortales," Annabeth muttered.

"Yeah," Percy said. "Though there usually isn't any interaction outside of one's pantheon." He shot a deadpan look at Neptune.

"I have reasons for being here," he defended.

"And they are?" Percy asked.

"Wait!" Annabeth said before Neptune could answer. She looked back at Percy suspiciously. "You said something about a schism." Oh, he'd hoped she hadn't heard that. But of course she did. "And why would you focus on them not being the same unless…"

"Yup," Neptune said, popping the p. "Sometimes I'm Neptune, sometimes I'm Poseidon." His form flickered for just a moment, but he ultimately stayed in his Roman form.

"Dad," Percy said tiredly, then kicked himself. Neptune really wasn't his father.

"So my mother…"

"Is sometimes Athena, and sometimes Minerva."

"Whatever happened to not speaking names aloud?" Sally piped up for the first time.

"Well, one god is here, and the other has a daughter here," Neptune pointed out.

"Those aren't the only names you've mentioned," Sally returned. "Maybe we should be a bit more careful?"

Neptune shrugged but seemed to acquiesce. "I see why my counterpart liked you," was all he said, shooting Sally an appreciative look.

Percy turned to Neptune, eyes wide and mouth open. Had he just…? "No! Don't even think about it." He did not need a Thalia and Jason situation in his own family. Not that he wouldn't care for a hypothetical Roman brother or sister, and would protect them with everything he had, but that would just be something else on his plate that he really didn't need.

Neptune shrugged again.

"Wait… if there are Roman gods, and Greek demigods…" Annabeth whispered, eyes widening in realization.

"This one's definitely a keeper," Neptune whispered to Percy, who dropped his head into his hands. He really didn't want to explain why that was such a bad idea to suggest and tease him about.

"But, why isn't there just another Roman part of Camp? Where to the Roman demigods go?"

"Camp Jupiter," Neptune said. "In San Francisco."

"What?! But San Francisco is dangerous for demigods! That's why I'm worried about going there now!"

"I… wait," Percy said, frowning. "I thought your father didn't move there until next year."

She let out a frustrated breath. "He would have stayed in Virginia if I'd come to live with them this summer, but because I didn't, they went out west early. They just moved there last month."

"Huh," Percy muttered. Well, that made sense.

"But that's not all, is it," Annabeth said, tone almost accusing.

"What's not all?"

"Why is San Francisco dangerous? Truthfully?"

Percy sighed, suddenly tired. "It's dangerous for Greek demigods."

More blinks from Annabeth. "What?"

"Rome overthrew Greece," Percy explained. "Adapted a lot of their pantheon and put down some pretty strict rules. That doesn't even get into the whole Troy vs Greece thing. Troy wasn't Roman, but many Romans did consider Troy as their 'Mother City'. I'm sure you've read The Aeneid. A lot of Romans think they came in and perfected the Greek ideals." Percy rolled his eyes. "There's a lot of animosity there." Despite the fact that many Ancient Romans seemed to be obsessed with Greece to a point of almost trying to become them…. But that tended to be a bad thing to bring up around either camp, especially at this point

"So maybe don't go spreading this around at your camp?" Neptune said offhandedly, but with the slightest edge to it. "Last thing we need is another civil war."

Annabeth blinked, looking both offended and overwhelmed. Of course, she still thought through it.

"Civil… as in the American Civil War? but World War II was basically started and fought between the children of the Big Three! In Europe!"

"You think movin' from one country and culture to another is that easy?" Neptune asked pointedly. "Or fast?"

"But…" Annabeth started.

Percy just held up a hand. "The Civil War was fought by Greeks and Romans who had made their way over here. Or, well, that's what started it. But the Greeks and Romans already over here almost wiped each other out, Annabeth. If we start talking about Roman demigods to Greeks, or Greek demigods to Romans, it could start another war—one in which the gods can't help because of their schism."

"A right headache, those are. Debilitating when both sides are praying to a different part of you for help and victory."

"I can't believe this," Annabeth muttered, sitting back.

"It's a lot to take in," Percy said, sympathetic, before turning back to Neptune. "But that begs the question: Why are you here? I'm Greek." Mostly.

"You've got a spark of me in there too," Neptune said.

His mother sighed, and he made a mental note to speak with her later.

"Okay, I can see it, but why come here? Why now?"

At that, Neptune sighed and sat forward, steepling his fingers together. "I'm here on behalf of my pantheon."

"As in the Roman side," Percy said slowly. "That doesn't answer any questions. What would Jupiter want with me?"

"More Juno."

Percy winced. "That's even less appealing."

Neptune snorted and smirked. "Knew I liked ya."

In all honesty, Percy had never quite known what to think of Neptune's attention. Sure, he liked all facets of his father liking him, but at the same time, they really were different enough to easily separate in his mind. He'd never really considered Neptune his father for that reason.

"Besides," Percy went on, "you've never been big on the rest of the Pantheon. Why did they choose you?"

"'Cause I get something out of it too."

Percy felt his expression dry out. "That's not exactly endearing."

Neptune shrugged. Percy had never noticed how much he liked to do that. Then again, he hadn't interacted with Neptune a lot.

"I want you to go to Camp Jupiter, as my representative. I want you to fix up that hovel they call a temple and make sure that they know I'm watching them."

"That's not going to help," Percy said, rubbing his temple. "They're already afraid of you. And any of your kids. That will include me if you're claiming me."

"If you're going as my representative, of course I'm claiming you."

"Is Poseidon okay with that?"

"He can't do much about it. Besides, you were claimed by both of us in that other life, weren't you? And you've prayed to me in this one."

"You have?" Annabeth asked.

"I was trying to get his attention," Percy explained quickly before focusing back on Neptune. His eyes were blue—deep ocean blue. It had always been a little disconcerting to see such a strange color on the man who was supposed to be his father.

"But why now? Why not wait until…." he paused, glancing at Annabeth again. She watched them carefully, taking down everything they said. "Until the next war," he finished.

"There will be another war?!" Annabeth practically screeched.

A loud pounding from below made everyone jump. Percy glanced at the clock. Almost three in the morning. They were obviously being too loud for their neighbors. Oops.

"Shhh!" he said, both to Neptune and Annabeth.

"We're not sure there will be another war," Neptune said. "The Earthborn are stirring."

Percy's mouth dropped open. "What?!" he hissed. "We can't face Giants and Titans at the same time! If they work together." Which was a big if, but not impossible.

"What?!" Annabeth asked, face so pale she was almost glowing in the darkness. Behind him, his mother let out a shuddering breath.

"We may not have a choice," Neptune said quietly. "And we need to start integration if we are to stand together."

Percy stood and began pacing. This… this couldn't be happening. He took a deep breath. "At least you all didn't erase my memories and shove me in the wolf house this time."

He paused. "Wait, do I have to go through Lupa?"

Neptune shook his head. "No. As my representative, you won't be joining the legion."

"Like Nico last time," he muttered.

At Neptune's questioning eyebrow, Percy shook his head. "Uncle H had a similar idea last time and had Nico go to Camp Jupiter as his liaison or representative or whatever."

"Hmm. Hades and Pluto always did have less problems with the schism than most of the rest of us."

"Except Ap—"

"Percy," his mother said, warning. Right. Names.

"Sorry," he muttered, but focused back on the god. "So you want me to go to Camp Jupiter and fix up your temple. Fine. You also want me to help them get ready to fight?"

"Yes."

"Because Earthborn are rising."

"Yes."

He sighed. "I'll bet that means Eidolons aren't far behind and then the Giants." Neptune nodded.

"What about the Earth Mother?" Percy asked. Annabeth gasped.

Neptune shook his head. "No sign of her yet. But that doesn't mean much.

"Now, if you want to save our pathetic camp, you may want to get going. I want you there—"

"Wait," Percy interrupted. Neptune scowled, but didn't say anything. "What do you mean, 'save them'? You make it sound like they're in trouble now."

Neptune blinked, surprised. "What? Didn't I say?"

"Say what?" Percy asked, ready to throw his hands in the air.

"Oh. Well that's why I'm here. We need you to save Camp Jupiter. They're currently under siege."

Percy just stared at him. So did everyone else.

Then, "WHAT?!"

Chapter Text

"Oh. Well that's why I'm here. We need you to save Camp Jupiter. They're currently under siege."

Everyone stared at Neptune as if he'd grown a second head.

"WHAT?!"

The god blinked pointedly. "That's why we need you there now. An army—we believe it from Othrys—has set up around the major entrances to the Camp. I believe the mortals see a protest of some kind."

"Why didn't you lead with that?" Percy asked, exasperated.

"I was going to, but then we had to explain to your family what was going on."

Ignoring that he'd called Annabeth family (because he did not have the mental spoons for that can of worms just then), Percy put a hand to the bridge of his nose. He was Greek. He didn't want to deal with idiotic Greek gods, let alone idiotic Roman ones.

Except Mars. He'd take Mars over Ares any day. Not that that was a high bar, but hey.

But then, who else would step in to help? And they were still demigods. And legacies. And their families.

"Fine," Percy said before anyone else could put their two cents in. "Though going on a road trip across the country seems like a great way to attract too much attention. How do you want me to get there? Water travel?"

"Hmm," Neptune said, brushing a hand over his beard as he thought. "Not dramatic enough."

"Wait," Sally said suddenly. "You're going to accept? Just like that?"

Percy turned to face her worried gaze. She was shaking. He reached out, gently taking her hands.

"Mom, we need the Roman camp. Ignoring that I do have friends there—even if they don't know who I am right now—and you know how far I'd go to save my friends, we need New Rome to attack Mount Othrys so the Greeks can defend Mount Olympus. Even if neither of those applied, I used to be the god of demigods, and I still have that domain. I have to do whatever I can to help them."

"But you're Greek," Annabeth said. "Didn't you both say that Greeks and Romans don't get along? Won't they kill you?"

"That's if we tell them," Percy said. "I don't plan on it—at least not until the time is right—and I'm pretty sure Neptune won't."

"The more I can avoid talking to them, the better."

Annabeth frowned. "Won't they be able to tell somehow?"

Percy tipped his hand back and forth. "Maybe some of them will get an inkling, but if Neptune is claiming me, there shouldn't be a problem."

She bit her lip. "But, you're essentially going into enemy territory. Without backup."

Percy shrugged. "Wouldn't be the first time."

That seemed to be the wrong thing to say. The way Annabeth's brow furrowed in something akin to horror said as much. He'd wanted to reassure her, though. How had that backfired?

"No," she said firmly, setting her jaw. Uh-oh, he knew that expression. She'd just gotten an idea and she would not back down on it. "You're not going in alone. I'm going with you." Then she seemed to realize who she was talking to and turned to Neptune, annoyed but respectful. "If you'll let me, sir."

"I don't mind, but I can't claim you. Minerva would have my head."

"Names," Sally said tiredly.

"Right," Neptune said, actually sounding sorry as he glanced over at her.

"I'll just tell them I'm a daughter of Min—the Roman counterpart of my mother then," Annabeth said. "Or unclaimed."

Neptune shook his head. "No god worth their salt would send an unclaimed demigod as a part of a delegate party. But claiming to be her daughter could be… problematic."

The daughter of Athena pursed her lips. "And why is that?"

"Romans take vows of chastity very seriously," Percy said. "You'd be open to a lot of ridicule and skepticism at best, outright hatred at worst."

"We can explain how most of my mother's children are born. That's how we do it here. Why wouldn't that transfer over?"

Neptune shook his head. "You don't understand. Min…" he glanced at a glaring Sally, "your mother's Roman counterpart is considered one of the most important goddesses of Roman religion. As I recall, Greeks believe in the 'Big Three', being my counterpart and my two brothers." Annabeth nodded slowly. "Your mother was considered by many to be one of the first founding gods of Rome instead of me. She's just as important in her own way as my brothers and sisters." He snorted derisively. "Definitely more so than me." *

Annabeth's frown deepened.

Percy sighed. "They'd expect you to be Big Three powerful."

Her eyes narrowed. "Are you saying I'm not strong enough?"

Percy held up his hands. "I think anyone who underestimates you deserves exactly what they get. They'd just expect… flashier is all."

"Well they can take their expectations and—"

"Annabeth," Sally said quietly. "If you're going, you need to know what you're up against. That's what they're explaining."

Percy nodded emphatically, grateful for his Mom's tact. "We're not saying we agree. We don't." He glanced at Neptune. "Well, I don't."

"I think most Romans are ridiculous," Neptune muttered. "I had one intact temple that was built to last in all of Rome. ONE."

Percy sighed. "Dad, this is about Annabeth, not you."

He held up his hands. "I'm just saying I don't agree."

Annabeth huffed. "Look, I'm coming. I'll make them acknowledge me if I have to, or we'll go and stop their siege and I'll leave. I'm going to San Francisco anyway. We'll figure it out."

"You can take your cyclops brother too, if you want," Neptune said. "Make it a three-man team to help with odds of success."

Well, when he put it like that….

"But if they're under siege, and I'm not water-traveling—because I still can't take anyone else with me—how do we get in?" Percy asked again. "Or is this something we have to figure out." And if he sounded really tired or completely done, could anyone really blame him?

"I'll sneak you up the Little Tiber and into camp that way," Neptune said, nodding firmly. "We can make a big show of it. I can be there too. The more of an impression you make, the less of a problem they'll have accepting you."

Percy sighed. He wasn't wrong. "The one thing Greeks and Romans have completely in common is their theatrics."

Neptune raised an amused eyebrow. "Are you any different?"

Percy opened his mouth, thought about it, then closed it again and slumped back against the couch, arms folded, though he wasn't sulking. "No." He couldn't deny it. He was probably one of the less flamboyant (god or demigod), and he still managed to stick out like a sore thumb. Especially when he got angry. Then he started more or less wanting to both intimidate his enemy and power his way through problems. Not exactly subtle.

"Didn't think so."

"I still don't like this," Sally said.

"I don't think any of us do," Percy muttered.

"No." Neptune had gone back to looking ridiculously annoyed at the entire thing. "But we'll like what happens less if we don't do something about it. Unfortunately."

"Why can't you do something about it?" Sally asked shortly.

Neptune shrugged, albeit stiffly. "Mainly because of laws and rules in place, some by Chaos themselves, and some by my loving brother." Wow, that had been sarcastic, even for Neptune. "Demigods are involved, so I can only do so much. Same for the other gods."

"It's a form of protection," Percy said, rubbing his temple again. Just like every other time, it didn't help the headache much, but he'd take what he could get at this point. "The kind of power gods and Titans can throw around just…. An aura from most gods can cripple and even kill many humans. That's without them pushing full-on, Mom. By setting that precedent, that gods aren't allowed to blatantly interfere with mortals without extremely good reasons, they could protect humans, and those who didn't follow those rules could be punished and/or captured justly."

"Allowed us to restrain some power on most of the Titans," Neptune said, nodding.

"That doesn't mean it shouldn't be tweaked," Percy said, eyeing the god pointedly.

He held up his hands. "Take it up with my brother."

Percy sighed. "I will.

"About the quest, though: can we try and get a couple more hours of sleep, or do you need us there asap?"

"Well, Western Standard time is three hours behind here."

"And it's four in the morning," Sally said firmly.

"For maximum effect, we'll probably want to get there during morning rotation," Percy said dryly. Neptune nodded thoughtfully.

"I'll be back at 10."

With that he vanished.

The three remaining mortals sat in silence for several seconds.

"I think… I need some time to process this," Annabeth said, standing up. She glanced at Percy as she passed him. "I will have questions."

He nodded. "I'll answer as many as I can tomorrow."

She returned his nod and went back down the hallway. A couple of seconds later, he heard the bedroom door close. Then he turned to his mother, who sat staring at him sadly.

"I'll be fine, Mom."

"This didn't happen last time, did it?"

He bit his lip. "No."

"Then you can't guarantee it'll be alright."

Percy looked down, hands clenching into fists. "I never can."

More heavy silence.

"Is it always like this?" she asked, voice shaky. "Is it just… the way it is?"

"I was changing it," he said firmly, feeling that spark of right in his chest at the word and conviction. Stupid new domain. He ignored it. "I was doing what I could to make them see, and it was working, Mom."

Her lips thinned, like she was trying to stop herself from crying. "I'm sorry you had to."

A lump formed in his throat. "Yeah. Me too."

There didn't seem to be much to say after that, so his mother gave him a hug and they returned to bed. He hoped they got some more sleep. He did, but only after a very long time staring at his ceiling, and even then it was fitful and restless.

xXx

The next morning, Percy explained everything to Tyson, who was thrilled to be going to help his big brother. Then Annabeth sat down at the breakfast table, gaze intense, and he resigned himself to answering her questions. Most of them dealt with how the camps differed—she was more than a little shocked when she found out they had a city where they could stay safe and raise families—and how she would be expected to act. He answered the questions as best he could, but there were things he didn't know or couldn't remember, mainly dealing with how the gods were different and what exactly that entailed, much to both of their frustration.

After breakfast and the hour-and-a-half long questioning session, the three children went to pack. It didn't take them long to get ready to go as Annabeth already had most of her things packed, Tyson didn't have a whole lot (they were working on it) and Percy didn't need a lot.

After triple checking that he had everything, he dragged a duffelbag and backpack out into the living room ahead of Annabeth and Tyson at about 20 to 10 to see his mother and Neptune in a deep, serious discussion. Huh, when had he arrived?

"Lord Neptune," Annabeth said, which was probably a good thing because Percy wouldn't have used such respect.

Both of the adults looked over at them, his mom biting her lip worriedly.

"Mom," he tried again, "we'll be fine."

She frowned. "You know you can't guarantee that." She glanced at Neptune. "No one can."

To his credit, the god looked away, ashamed.

"What I can do is give you this," he said after a moment, holding up three medallions with a trident on them. "These will home in on each other, among other small things. Focus on the person you wish to contact and it will point you in the correct direction. They also cannot be removed without your permission. This way, your questmates will always find you. It will also identify you under my protection as a representative party from my kingdom."

The three questers each took a medallion and slipped it over their heads. Annabeth shot Tyson an uneasy glance, but still put it on. Percy immediately felt less tired and more alert when his newest charm laid warmly against his chest. Was that the medallion itself? Or its connection to the sea? He glanced at Annabeth and Tyson but didn't see much of a difference.

"Now," Neptune said, holding out his hand to Percy. "Take my hand, and that of one of your questmates. I'd prefer you all to be touching."

"Makes flashing easier," Percy whispered to Annabeth. He reached for her hand, but she pulled away, hurrying over and taking Neptune's other one, albeit respectfully. The god didn't seem to know what to think of that, and Percy still didn't want to enlighten him. So he just took Tyson's hand and closed his eyes.

"I love you, Percy," his mom said, wrapping her arms around him in one last hug.

"I love you too, Mom." He leaned into her, relishing her warmth. "We'll come back."

And then they were gone.

xXx

Percy opened his eyes and found himself on a boat.

He frowned, spinning around to take everything in. It was a new boat, larger than the one he, Luke, and Annabeth had taken to the Sea of Monsters. Not too large, but very, very nice. Annabeth and Tyson had appeared on the deck beside him, both blinking in surprise, trying to get their bearings.

"Is this the lake by the camp?" Annabeth asked, frowning at the large expanse of water around them.

"No. This is the Pacific Ocean," Percy said, confused. "Just off of San Francisco."

She paused. "I have to see if I can get a refund on those tickets," she muttered.

"Dizzy," Tyson said, holding his head and thumping to the deck, shaking the boat.

"Wait, why did we get the free ride all the way over here?" Annabeth asked suddenly, cheeks beginning to darken in anger. Entirely fair. Bianca and Clarisse had nearly killed themselves getting from one side of the country to the other the year before. Percy had told her about their own trip across the country during that first quest too.

"Because the quest has not yet started," Neptune said, appearing before them. Although, instead of his old-man visage, he looked far more like Poseidon. A man in his mid-to-late twenties with a physique The Rock would be jealous of under long, black hair. Much longer than Poseidon usually wore it. He also sported a much longer beard that seemed to flow down his chest, more akin to supermodel hair than a normal beard. Poseidon kept that much shorter too.

Neptune had also kept a sort of grizzled aura around him that his Greek counterpart did not have. He was not a happy god. Which actually ticked Percy off. If Neptune couldn't find a home in his own Pantheon, where could he?

There was more to that he'd have to explore. Just, later.

"This is actually different from your normal quests, Annabeth Chase."

"Is it… a Roman thing?" she asked carefully.

"No," Neptune shook his head. "As you are specifically representing me in this endeavor, your deeds will automatically be associated with my name. Until this 'quest' is finished, I am your patron god, and you represent me. Thus it is my responsibility to prepare you."

"How is that different from going on a quest for a god?" she asked. Percy could tell she'd valiantly tried to keep accusation out of her voice, and it had only really seeped in a little to her credit.

"You do not represent the god in that instance, and getting to the quest is often considered part of the challenge. That is not the case here."

Percy knew that. He'd never liked it, but he knew it. Annabeth wasn't happy about it, he could tell, but she nodded and let it go.

Good, because Percy had some questions of his own. "How will this work? Will you be able to shield us from the armies as we travel up river?"

"No need, I will teleport you all into the lake inside the Roman border, underwater. I will go up and announce you myself. From there, your quest will begin and I can only give you so much help."

"Because of rules," Annabeth said.

Neptune shot her an unimpressed stare that had her gulping. "Yes."

He turned back to Percy. "I will be able to help you at times, but if you stray from the goals I have given you, I may not be able to help at all."

"Those being to restore your temple, help Camp Jupiter prepare for war, and somehow end the siege on New Rome." Always best to double (and triple) check. Again.

"Yes."

Percy sighed. This would be so fun. Not.

Annabeth, though, had a sudden light come into her eye. "About your temple? Can we make adjustments to it?"

Neptune snorted. "You may tear it down and rebuild it for all I care."

Definitely the wrong thing to say.

"Can I design a new one?" The utter excitement in her voice made Percy smile. That was so her.

Neptune paused, blinking. "Yes," he finally said after a minute. Then, "You may be a better fit for this than I initially thought. You are a loyal and helpful child. Minerva should be proud to call you hers."

Annabeth's face went bright red and she looked down, but Percy could tell she was pleased. "Thank you, my lord."

"Hmm," was all Neptune said, studying her for several seconds longer before turning back to Percy. "Do you have any questions?"

"Should my cover story be that I was under the sea with you?"

"That is fine. Although you," he said to Annabeth, "were a lost demigod my son found wandering."

"Ah," Annabeth said, nodding slowly.

"And Tyson?" Percy asked.

"Is coming to learn the basics of blacksmithing with the children of Vulcan. He will help you all prepare for war."

"And the imperial gold we may need for those weapons?"

"Wait," Annabeth said, "imperial gold?"

Percy sighed. "They don't have celestial bronze here. That's mainly a Greek thing. I'm sure you know that Silver, bronze, and iron could be more highly sought after than gold in many of Ancient Greece's city-states. Romans came later and have Imperial Gold that fulfills more or less the same role. They're not the same but… I can give you a run-down later."

Her eyes had taken on a hungry glint that promised many more question sessions. Long, exhausting question sessions. With no make out sessions at the end to look forward to.

The things he did to respect his friends' boundaries.

"Oh, you will definitely be giving me a rundown later," she said, then focused on an amused Neptune. "So this quest will end when your temple is restored, the camp is freed, and the Romans are more prepared for war?"

"Yes."

"Any further goals or definitions must be discussed before they are added on?"

"Of course."

"We can call on you at any time and you will listen, even if you may not answer?"

"Yes."

Why did Neptune seem to only be growing more amused by her questions? That seemed dangerous to Percy.

"This is Percy's quest, so we defer to him?"

"If necessary."

"As long as we are making progress towards your stated goals, we can do whatever else we want?"

That made the god frown. "Within reason. Ultimately, we do need the city and the camp saved, so nothing that jeopardizes that."

Annabeth nodded. "What do we tell the camp about Percy's time-travel?"

That brought everyone up short. Neptune's frown deepened in thought. Finally, he answered. "Keep it secret for now."

"What if I have to tell someone?" Percy asked, thinking of Jason and Reyna. Dakota had been pretty cool too.

"Then decide as a group."

Well, fair enough.

Oh, he'd have to tell Annabeth about Jason's relation to Thalia. That would not be a fun conversation. He sighed inwardly.

"Are we allowed to go on quests?" Annabeth asked.

"No. You are not part of the legion."

"Even in a life-or-death situation?" Percy asked warily.

Neptune smiled grimly. "Let us hope it will not come to that."

"But what if it does?" Annabeth pressed.

The god sighed, definitely not amused anymore. "Ask me first."

The two demigods nodded.

"May I call out of here? To the outside world?" was Annabeth's next question.

"As long as you do not spread your location or knowledge of this camp to your own. Also, beware, Romans do not use Iris messages."

Annabeth frowned. "Do they not have an approximate equivalent for her?"

"Yes, Arcus," Percy said. "But again, nuanced differences…"

She hummed and seemed to think on that for a moment. Finally, she looked up at Neptune again.

"I may have more questions in the future," she said after another moment of contemplation.

"I would be surprised if you didn't."

Wait, had he just… Nope. He'd think about that later. Though with Annabeth's pout, she caught it too.

"Right. I think we're about ready to go," Percy said, turning to his brother. "Right bud…dy." Tyson had fallen asleep on the deck again. Sometimes Percy very much envied him.

"I'll get him up," Neptune said, reaching out and touching Tyson's forehead, just above his eye. Said eye popped open not seconds later and he sat up straight.

"I'm here to make things!" he said excitedly, suddenly full of energy.

Yeah, that was definitely jealousy. Or maybe he was just tired.

"You may all stay on the ship for the entirety of your stay. There should be enough room for all of you."

Annabeth eyed Tyson warily. "Thank you, my lord." Any enthusiasm had drained from her voice, but thankfully Neptune didn't seem to take offense.

"Now…" Neptune said suddenly. A bright light flashed around them and they found themselves in an air bubble at the bottom of a lake. A lake in California, Percy could tell. "Let me go and announce you." The god disappeared in a wave of water that splashed to the deck, leaving the three questers staring at a puddle.

"Did he just…?" Annabeth asked.

Percy sighed. "Yes. It was actually fairly considerate of him. It may not have even occurred to Poseidon to give us a warning."

Above them the lake rose. Percy looked towards the surface, annoyed. He didn't have to make that much of a spectacle, did he? Neither Tyson or Annabeth seemed to notice. Tyson was still staring at the puddle on the deck in horror while Annabeth was rubbing the bridge of her nose.

Relatable.

"He's okay, big guy," Percy said to Tyson.

"He's water."

"Well… yes."

"No, he's The God of the Sea," Annabeth muttered. "There's a difference."

Well, she wasn't wrong, but even if Tyson was more intelligent than most people gave him credit for, he was still in some form of shock at seeing his newly introduced father figure dissolve into water. Percy had fully intended on explaining that later. He shot Annabeth a 'why would you say that?' look. She didn't so much as acknowledge it.

Rolling his eyes, Percy turned back to Tyson. "Hey, remember when I said our dad was a sea god?" Tyson nodded. "That's what a lot of sea gods do. And lake and water gods for that matter. And naiads. And nerieds." The cyclops just blinked. Percy frowned. Was he rambling? Probably. And just after he'd thought badly of Annabeth for giving too much information away.

Looked like he was right on his way to becoming a typical Greek god if he was already being that hypocritical.

The thought nearly made him sick and he vowed to keep a closer eye on his judgment in the future. Somehow…

After a couple of moments, though, Tyson sniffed and smiled up at his brother. "Thanks, big brother."

Percy felt himself relax. "No problem, buddy. That's what big brothers are for.

"Now, you should probably stand up. Neptune will want his grand entrance and will be cranky if we don't do everything we can to give it to him."

No sooner had he said so than the ship began to rise through the lake.

"The dramatics," Annabeth whispered to herself. Percy was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to hear that.

He still decided to say something. "Going into a battle where the other side is intimidated gives us an advantage. Dramatic entrances are valid battle tactics."

"Didn't you have problems with his theatrics?" She asked, turning to him with a scowl on her face at being overheard.

"Oh, most definitely," Percy affirmed as he stood at the railing. "That doesn't stop it from being a valid tactic. It's just too much trouble for me to really commit to most of the time."

Annabeth snorted, but looked thoughtful.

A couple of seconds later, the water fell around them and the boat finally came to rest on the surface.

"This is my child, Perseus Jackson. Treat him as you would a delegation from the gods for that is what he and his party are! He is my representative in this camp, here to make sure you do change your ways and give all gods the proper worship they deserve!"

Percy sighed inwardly. Not only did that give away too many Greek ties with his name alone, but that kind of intimidation wouldn't help Camp Jupiter accept him. Or any of them.

"His companions are my other son, Tyson the Cyclops and," he paused, glancing at Annabeth for a moment. Sensing what was coming, the two demigods braced themselves. Percy still didn't think Annabeth realized what she would be in for with this, but he also knew if anyone could make idiots change their mind about stupid things, it would be her. It only took a couple of seconds for Neptune to continue, but it was still noticeable. Percy frowned at the god's lack of evasiveness. "Annabeth Chase, daughter of Minerva." Several exclamations drew Percy's attention to the shore of the lake where several Roman campers in various levels of armor (on the way to the Coliseum? Or just training by the lake?) stood with mouths open or whispering harshly to one another.

Percy found himself scanning the crowd for familiar blond hair and glasses… wait, Jason didn't have glasses yet, did he? No. He was pretty sure of it. Right, those had been given to him by Asclepius.

Funnily enough, he actually found two other faces he knew first. To his relief, Reyna and Hylla both stood on the far right of the group amidst several other girls, some of which he definitely remembered from Circe's island. Neither of the two sisters seemed to care about the god raising the lake in a show of extreme force as he yelled at the Romans. No, they stared with dropped jaws at the boat. And the two demigods standing at its railing. Of course.

Oh, and there was a very young Octavian standing next to an older guy in white-and-purple robes. Joy. Percy wondered if he could curb the guy's lust for power and control? That was, very likely, his fatal flaw if Percy was to guess.

Then a head of golden-blond hair lifted from the back and into the air, clumsily—like he was being held up by a cyclone or something (probably not that far off)—and Percy breathed out a sigh of relief at seeing his old friend. He hadn't been the first friend Percy had lost, but his death had been one of the worst guilt wise. And with Percy's fatal flaw/domain of personal loyalty, that said a lot. Too much.

It had never stopped hurting. (None of them ever did.)

Moving on.

"Know I will be watching!" Neptune suddenly boomed before vanishing into the water. Again. Except on a much larger scale than at the bottom of the lake. If Percy hadn't been prepared for it, the resulting wave would have definitely beached them. As it was, it soaked a lot of people, but Percy managed to make the lake calm quickly and pushed the water towards the dock he could see.

"Did your 'dad' just leave us alone in hostile territory after antagonizing the entire Roman Legion?" Annabeth asked dryly.

Percy sighed. "Yup."

A pause. "Why are we doing this again?"

"To save the world."

Annabeth sighed. "That's unfair. I'm supposed to be the reasonable one."

Percy snorted as a smile made its way onto his face. Her words still reminded him so much of his wife… but it was different now, less painful. He hoped it continued to get better.

He steered his thoughts away from that very quickly, instead choosing to focus on the man in a Praetor's purple cape stalking almost angrily down the dock towards them.

"Well," Percy muttered, "here goes everything."

Chapter Text

Percy pulled the boat to the un-occupied side of the dock. The other side had rows of smaller boats in various states of repair tied to it. The dock looked sturdy enough though. At least it held up to a very large praetor's heavy, angry steps.

The trio on the boat watched the newcomer carefully, especially as he looked about ready to tear them apart with his bare hands. Percy had to wonder why, but didn't think voicing the question would be conducive to good relations. Instead he kept studying the legionnaire. He was older, in his early twenties probably, with dark hair and a red tint to his brown eyes. Huh, was that Mars' aura he sensed there? Probably.

Calmly, Percy stepped out of the boat, willing the bow's mooring line to come to him. It did, albeit slowly. Right. Reduced power over boats. Yay. Well, whatever worked.

The praetor's eyes widened as Percy began to tie up the boat while Annabeth and Tyson also stepped (albeit with far less grace) onto the pier. Then the Roman seemed to psych himself up for something and forced a grin that looked far more like a grimace onto his face.

"Delegation of the great Neptune," he said through gritted teeth. "Welcome to Camp Jupiter."

Percy sent a far more real (if mildly more threatening) smile at him. "Thank you for having us!"

The guy's eye twitched, but he pushed on anyway. "I am Praetor Wade Jacobs."

"Percy Jackson," Percy said, holding out his hand. He noted out of the corner of his eye that Annabeth was tying the aft mooring rope to the dock as well. Good. That meant he could focus on their already so warm welcome. "We're here to help out and hopefully stop this siege."

Any pretense of welcome dropped from Jacobs' face. "With all due respect," meaning none with that tone of voice, "we don't need your help. We can handle this on our own."

And there was the Roman pride. Or the Mars/Ares pride. Or both. Ouch. He'd never realized how that might build. Had Frank had to deal with that? Or maybe Percy had never considered it because Frank was just that awesome.

"Wade!" A new voice had everyone turning to the head of the dock, where another praetor was making their way towards them. She was tall, probably in her late teens, with red hair tied into a high ponytail, brown eyes and freckles that just seemed to enhance the shape of her face. Jacobs' eye twitched again before that fake smile went back on his face and he turned to the approaching woman.

"Praetor Parsons."

She rolled her eyes at his address. Hmm, interesting.

"Drop it, Wade. And can you please not tick off the delegation from the very powerful god of water and seas?"

"Their presence is an insult!" he practically hissed, gesturing behind him to Percy, Annabeth, and Tyson. "As if we can't take care of ourselves—"

"Saturn's forces are literally right at our door, and you want to turn away help?" Parsons snapped back. "For your pride?"

"Neptune's children are cursed!" Ah, there it was. "And that one claims to be a child of Minerva! As if Lady Minerva would—"

"Then we bring it before the Senate! We get explanations, expectations, perimeters, and then we vote on what to do!" Parsons yelled. Some of the campers on the shore, still watching them all, shifted uncomfortably. "You've been a praetor for almost four months and a legionnaire for eight years before that! You know all of this!"

Jacobs' eyes narrowed, but he didn't say anything. Taking that as affirmation, the red-head put a hand to the bridge of her nose.

"It's like you let becoming a praetor get to your head. You don't suddenly get to make every decision! This is still New Rome!"

Percy could hear the older praetor's teeth grinding.

He opened his mouth, but Parsons held up her hand. "No. I don't want to hear it. Go call an emergency Senate meeting while I—you know, the one of us who seems to have any manners at all—take care of our guests."

"What right do you have to order me around like that?" Jacobs' asked, looking about ready to attack his fellow Praetor. "We have the same rank!"

"The right of clear-headedness and some intelligence. Also, I get home before you and I can make sure you sleep on the couch tonight."

Oh. Were they dating? Lovers? Married? Wasn't that a conflict of interests? Hmm.

Percy could almost see steam coming out of Jacobs' ears. He opened his mouth once again, but once again Parsons cut him off.

"Fatal. Flaw," she said.

That seemed to reach Jacobs, and he snapped his mouth closed. His anger flickered to one of… worry? Fear? Something akin to that. It was just a second, but Percy still caught it.

"Fine," he snapped, then turned and stomped up the dock towards the Roman demigods waiting there.

Meanwhile, Parsons let out a long sigh and watched him go worriedly. After a moment, she schooled her expression and turned to the trio of questers. "I apologize profusely for that," she said, inclining her head deeply. "The war has been weighing on him and he tends to lash out when he's overwhelmed.

"I am Praetor Mia Parsons, daughter of Feronia."

"Goddess of wildlife, fertility, health, and liberty." Percy said.

The praetor seemed surprised.

"Among other things." She extended her hand. "Call me Mia or Praetor Mia unless it's before the Senate. Although, speaking of, I will have to escort you there as soon as possible."

"What for?" Tyson asked, curious.

Mia didn't jump, but it looked to be a near thing as she eyed Tyson carefully. "Mainly to vote on what to do with you."

Annabeth stepped next to Percy, confusion plain on her face. (She hated being confused, he knew.) "What about Lord Neptune's orders?"

"Lord Neptune is… not a very welcome god around here," Mia said nervously. "And while I know it would be… problematic to go against those orders, I have as much authority as Praetor Jacobs."

"Well, we're here to change the misconception of my father's children anyway!" Percy said happily.

"They may vote to kick you out of camp," the red-head warned.

Percy snorted. "They're not that stupid."

Mia blinked at him, as if wondering how he had the audacity to say that, before throwing her head back and laughing. "Debatable. Especially during war."

"I guess we'll just have to convince them then," Percy grinned. "This way?" He pointed down the dock.

Mia just seemed amused. "Yes. I'll show you a couple of sights on the way there."

"What happened to 'as soon as possible'?" Annabeth asked.

The praetor raised one eyebrow. "As a daughter of Minerva, I thought you'd want to see the library."

Oh, she was good. Annabeth's eyes lightened hungrily. "Well, I suppose just a couple of stops wouldn't hurt…"

Mia laughed again. "I think we'll get along just fine. Now, if you'd like to follow me."

And with that, they made their way into New Rome.

xXx

They almost didn't make the meeting. First, Terminus gave them issues (big surprise there) and then the fountain, then Mia had to explain to a very concerned Annabeth and Tyson about the ghosts who stared at them and whispered 'Graecus' under their breaths. Fortunately, when they caught a glimpse of Tyson watching them, they skedaddled. Percy and Annabeth exchanged glances but otherwise said nothing about it as Percy patted Tyson's back and told him that it wasn't his fault the ghosts were mean. Tyson said he appreciated that.

Then things started to look up as Mia took them to some guard towers that stretched out over the city (thankfully, she didn't say anything about the 'best' architecture as Reyna had—that would have been a fight).

Annabeth's face almost went blank when she saw the city in the distance and Mia explained about legacies and families. That was something they'd have to discuss later. Their mini-tour ended on a high note with the Public Library, then smashed back to a low note as Percy almost had to physically drag Annabeth out of it, especially when she found out she couldn't get a library card because she didn't belong to New Rome or the Legion. When the librarian—a sharp-eyed man with reading glasses and a receding hairline—said that aloud, Percy thought Annabeth might just attack right then and there.

She was still fuming when an amused (and intrigued) Mia led them into the senate chamber. Right up onto the dais in front of the enormous half-circle filled with annoyed, purple-dressed senate members.

Right, Percy always hated this part. Even as a god, he'd never ended up in front of the Senate when they were happy. He wasn't sure they could do "happy". Something about the seats, maybe?

Jacobs sat in the left-most seat meant for the praetors, arms folded and lips pursed. He made it look menacing. Definitely a Mars kid. And if this was what everyone remembered about Mars kids, then no wonder Frank with his clear head and reluctance to rush into things had been (would be) such a surprise.

The praetor watched the four in their group approach him with a cold gaze. Formulating. Just accentuating the difference between Roman and Greek. Ares kids were usually itching for a fight. They were battle crazed. Mars was more about the war. Didn't mean Mars kids weren't battle crazed, but they did tend to be more controlled about it and think about future repercussions better.

Percy may be a little biased, but he still didn't think Mars kids pulled off calculating like Athena kids did though.

Yeah, definitely biased.

They crowded onto the dais, the three newcomers lining up behind the praetors as Mia took her seat. There was barely enough room for all of them, especially with Tyson, but they made it work. Percy stood in the middle with Tyson on his left and Annabeth on his right.

He didn't listen as Mia announced them and their goals according to Neptune. Apparently, the Roman side of his father had laid those down clearly: Restore his temple, listen to their instruction for fighting (they'd undoubtedly have to prove they were worth listening to later), and allow them to help with the siege. While Mia laid that out, Percy studied the people of the Senate. Many of them were faces he remembered. Not everyone in the Senate was a legionnaire, but they had to have been at some point. It had always bothered Percy that many of the people there were in their thirties and forties. Why were children out there fighting battles when these people sat here making decisions they wouldn't have to fight through?

It had been something he'd been working on in New Rome in the future. It was pretty common for legacies to go into the legion at fourteen to sixteen. Lupa's demigods could be anywhere from nine to thirteen. He'd had to fight really hard to get that raised to sixteen and thirteen respectively. Had even gotten a program in place for the new Roman demigods from Lupa to be fostered with different families until they could join the legion, making sure they received a formal education before they entered service at the least.

He still found the fact that he'd had to do that ridiculous. Lupa had disagreed, saying the younger they learned to train and fight, the more chance they had of surviving. He'd argued that once they got to New Rome, that became more or less moot. It had been an ongoing thing. The idea of having to start all over with that again both ticked him off, and made him aware of a very heavy weight on his shoulders.

Percy took a deep breath. Later. He had to focus on the immediate to get to the later anyway.

"We don't need their help!" Jacobs' voice brought Percy out of his musing. "We are New Rome. We are Camp Jupiter. We solve our own problems!"

Several shouts of agreement. Including one from Octavian, who wasn't a part of the Senate but sat off to one side next to a very old man Percy had never met before. Was Octavian in an apprenticeship of some kind? For becoming an Augur? He had to be in the legion already too. Hmm.

"Solve our own problems?" Mia retorted. "Undoubtedly we can, but at what cost? How many more legionnaires do we have to lose first? Especially when we don't need to?"

"What can three people do?" Jacobs asked scathingly. "Especially these three? One cursed, one liar, one monster!"

"Excuse me?" Percy said shortly while Annabeth's eyes narrowed.

"Am I wrong?" he asked, whirling on them. "You are a son of Neptune! Children of Neptune are cursed! Children of Minerva don't exist, for obvious reasons, and he's a cyclops!"

"Can we speak?" Percy asked dryly, making his displeasure obvious but refusing to rise to any bait. "Or are you just going to sit there and make more assumptions you know nothing about?"

"Yes," Mia said before Jacobs' face could grow any redder or protest.

"First," Percy said, taking the offered opportunity before anyone else could and turning to the Senate body, "I'm surprised that such an astute body as the Roman Senate would mistake power for a curse." He was definitely drawing on his more Roman side just then. And here he hadn't thought he still had one. The fact that he'd had to learn to address the Senate to get his changes across in the future may have helped.

"Yes, children of Neptune can be powerful. Yes, my father is the Earthshaker. Yes, responsibilities for my abilities come with that. Hence why I was training away from camp. Unlike my brother one hundred years ago, I have control over my water and earth abilities. My father made sure of it." Okay, he was making that up off the top of his head at this point. Although, he technically hadn't lied. His father had made sure. That had been more as a god than as a demigod, though, and it had been Poseidon, not Neptune, but details. "I can guarantee that unless this camp is in dire need and I have no other choice, the earthquake of 1906 will not happen again." He could guarantee that.

"Are you saying Lord Neptune didn't send you to destroy us?" someone from the senate shouted.

"As if Lord Jupiter," ugh, he really hated saying that, "would allow such a thing. All Lord Neptune wants is respect. Something sorely lacking judging by the state of his temple."

"You haven't even seen it, yet," Jacobs said.

Percy eyed him, turning his head only slightly. "Am I wrong?" He so enjoyed throwing other people's words back in their face. And judging from Jacobs' silence and clenched jaw, he knew it.

"As for my brother, Tyson, he is meant to work in… my father's forges in the future." He'd almost said Poseidon there. Yup, still more Greek than Roman. Probably always would be. And he had no problem with that. "As the children of Vulcan are said to be the best of the best," one thing he'd learned in the future, flattery worked. He still hated it. "Father figured that sending him here to learn the basics will be beneficial to both him and us." Something else he'd learned was to reveal an angle. If people knew why someone was doing something, they didn't often look deeper.

"We did get some new imperial gold to make weapons from," someone—probably a daughter or legacy of Vulcan—said. She was a woman, probably in her twenties or thirties, likely of Polynesian heritage if Percy had to guess. He made a mental note to find and befriend her later.

"And as for a Daughter of Minerva," Percy went on after giving the woman an acknowledging nod, before turning to Annabeth, "I'll let her explain."

He stepped aside and glanced at his partner. Her mouth had set into a firm line—one that said she was nervous but determined. Percy had to withhold a nostalgic smile.

"My name is Annabeth Chase, daughter of the virgin Goddess Minerva."

Cue protests. "How can that be?" the man sitting next to Octavian asked, his voice somehow rising over everyone else's. He didn't shout, but his voice projected, and he had a sort of calm certainty about him. He was someone to watch.

Percy wondered how Annabeth would respond to that. He almost expected her to take them to task and just tear everything wrong about their culture down right then and there. He hoped she had more tact than that, but this was thirteen-year-old Annabeth.

He shouldn't have worried.

"Have you such little faith in your goddesses?" she accused. "Do you think they are held to the same mortal limitations? Of course not! My mother met my father while he was studying at Harvard. I suppose she thought him worthy of a gift, because I was birthed from her head—from their union of minds, not bodies. Much like my mother was born from… Jupiter's head, so was I born from hers. I am a demigod because my father is mortal."

"Why would such a goddess be interested in plebeian human ideas?" someone asked. Percy memorized his face and made a mental note to 'talk' to the guy later. Still not someone he recognized… yet.

"You will have to ask my mother about that," Annabeth snapped. "However, if you wish to call Lord Neptune's own words into question, then please, proceed."

Yeah, that shut them up. No one here was stupid enough to get on a god's bad side. Especially if that god already seemed very unhappy with them.

Percy would have left that off with a last snarky shot had he been in Annabeth's place, but she just seemed satisfied when no one spoke against her. Nodding firmly, she stepped back beside Percy. He shot her a smile and a nod. She returned the nod.

"In any case," Mia finally said, "Lord Neptune wishes for his temple to be restored, but obviously understands that we cannot currently take any time or manpower to do so. He surely has his reasons for his timing, but for now, I motion for a vote that allows them to stay."

"In what capacity?" Jacobs asked suddenly. "To rebuild temples or make armor and weapons is all well and good, but what about instruction? Or allowing them to help us stop the siege?"

Percy raised his hand at that. "If I may?"

Jacobs turned to him, teeth bared and eyes narrowed. He was definitely one of Lupa's.

"Please," Mia said when her fellow Praetor didn't answer.

"Obviously you should not take instruction from someone who has not proven themselves," Percy conceded. Jacobs looked surprised and suspicious. Percy had to withhold a smirk. "I propose that at a time we agree on now, both myself and Annabeth will fight three people of your choice. Each." Whispers broke out around the room. "Let us prove that we have the skills necessary to instruct you."

"Why should we learn from self-taught newbies?" someone yelled. That one was definitely in the legion, Percy knew his face but not his name.

"Other than the fact that I learned from my father's own guards?" Percy asked dryly. "The Roman way is good. No one can deny that. But even the best fall into habits. Habits that can be taken advantage of. Fighting those of us who have different strategies can only strengthen the legion.

"Also," he grinned, "I've been learning to fight for well over a decade—" centuries counted— "now, and Annabeth here has been learning since she was seven."

More hushed murmurs.

"Then I move to postpone the vote," Jacobs said. "Tomorrow, after they have shown us their…" he paused and sneered at them, "skills, we can put it to a vote then!"

"I second," the same legionnaire who had just questioned them said.

Mia looked mildly annoyed as she nodded and moved forward. "All in favor?"

The vote was nearly unanimous.

"All against?"

A handful of people raised their hands, some of them ghosts. Percy couldn't remember if they had a vote around this time or not. They did in the future, but it didn't hold the same weight as a live Senate member.

"Then I move that tomorrow at 1000 hours, our guests will spar with three people—chosen by myself and Praetor Jacobs, unless someone disagrees…" she faded off, but no one spoke. She nodded. "Until then, we treat them as the guests they are," she emphasized. "All in favor?" This time it was unanimous. And honestly, Percy was fine with that.

"Where will they stay?" the old man (the current Augur?) by Octavian, asked.

"Our boat will be sufficient," Percy said. "We are here on Lord Neptune's behalf. He has graciously provided accommodations. Even if we are allowed to stay, we would likely remain there unless instructed otherwise." He seriously doubted they'd be stupid enough to not let them stay, but letting them know they would be out of the way as much as possible could work in their favor.

The old man nodded thoughtfully.

"Very well," Mia said, then turned to the Senate. "Are there any other questions or problems?"

"What of their food?" the woman who Percy had pegged as a child or legacy of Vulcan asked. "We have limited resources."

"We have enough for today," Percy said. "Any other resources, we are willing to work out with if we are allowed to stay." This really brought back his memories of standing in front of the Senate before. At least this was going better. The first few times in his first lifetime had been awful.

That seemed to appease several people in the room. Just how bad was their condition?

"Any other problems or questions?" Mia asked again.

No one spoke this time. After several seconds, she nodded. "Then I move to adjourn. All in favor?"

Another unanimous vote and the senate chamber emptied almost immediately, groups of two or three huddling together and whispering as they left, shooting the newcomer trio several glances ranging from intrigued, through wary, and into downright hostile territory.

Mia sighed and turned to Jacobs, who still stood next to them, arms folded and eyes narrowed. Maybe that was his default? "We can discuss who to pick for the demonstration at lunch?" She posed it as a question. Jacobs nodded once, the gesture firm and resolute, before turning and marching away.

The remaining praetor let out another sigh before turning to the delegation. Percy noted that Tyson just seemed confused, but Annabeth was obviously hiding a storm of anger below a stony mask. The way her pupils flared and her nose scrunched ever so slightly…

She'd probably hate that he knew her so well, so he said nothing as Mia spoke.

"I'm sorry for this, but although I said 'guests', I'm going to have to ask you to remain on your ship or the dock for the rest of the day, unless something extreme comes up. In which case, please find me. I'll be in the Second Cohort barracks. Just… be careful. You can find Wade there too."

"Wade?" Tyson asked.

"That's the other guy's name, remember Big Guy?" Percy asked. "Wade Jacobs."

"Oh," the cyclops said, nodding. This was probably a lot for him. Percy made a mental note to talk with him about everything later.

For now, though, he turned back to the Praetor. "We will return to our boat then."

"Allow me to accompany you," she said. "We may also have to post guards at the dock, for your own safety as well as ours."

Annabeth's fists balled and she looked about ready to start yelling—or verbally tearing apart—so Percy jumped in first.

"That's understandable. We are newcomers here."

Mia smiled gratefully. "Thank you for understanding."

"No problem," Percy said.

Annabeth scoffed, but otherwise didn't say anything as Mia led them down from the dais and out of the Senate building.

"So," she said once they found themselves under Apollo's rays. "You said you trained with your father? What is it like, under water? Is he in the sea, or a lake? Have you met other gods there? Merpeople?"

Percy almost laughed, especially when he noticed Annabeth perking up in front of them. Apparently Mia wasn't the only one interested.

"Well, my father lives in Atlantis, obviously under the sea…"

Chapter Text

"Aarrgh!" Annabeth practically yelled, stomping angrily across the room in their boat. It wasn't a huge boat, but was far larger than the one they'd commandeered from Circe's island. "I can't believe it! These Romans are just… just…"

It wasn't often she was lost for words.

"Extremely disciplined, to a fault?" Percy asked.

Annabeth scowled. "No." Then she paused. "Well, yes, but it's more that they're putting on a front of discipline. Or, well… maybe getting back into it after a long time. And at least some of them have had such an easy life! Grown up away from monsters with their families here in New Rome…"

"So, soft and full of obvious corruption and politics that make everything more difficult?" he tried again.

"Yes," Annabeth said, almost relieved that he seemed to get what she'd been aiming at. Then she seemed to realize who she was talking to as she tensed. Percy looked away, hating to see that.

"They're not as 'soft' as they may seem," he finally said. "They do take their training seriously."

"They're mean," Tyson said, frowning.

Percy patted him on the arm, grateful for his brother's intervention. "Yeah, they can be. But they can also be nice, buddy. Besides, we did come during war time. It's understandable that they're a little… stand-offish."

Annabeth snorted and said, "Understatement," under her breath.

"Greeks have issues too," Percy pointed out, one eyebrow raised in amusement.

The daughter of Athena sighed, rubbing her temple. "Yeah." Then she frowned. "You didn't seem to have any problems, though. Back at the Senate."

Percy frowned. What was she getting at?

"You seemed to know exactly what to say and how to say it. Why?"

Oh, that. He shrugged, relaxing a little. "God of demigods doesn't just apply to Greeks. I didn't have a schism like many of the Olympians, but there was a noticeable difference. Besides, I had to get the senate to change things themselves. Just ordering change wouldn't really help. So I had to stand up there and convince them to raise the age of joining the legion."

Annabeth blinked. "Joining the… how old do they have to be now?"

Percy winced. "There… isn't a minimum age right now as far as I know. Some enter as young as eight, and there's a ten-year minimum service record to stay in the legion."

Her eyes grew wide. "As young as… how do they even get an education?! Do they? The ones that enter that young, that is?"

He shifted uncomfortably, as if he were the one responsible, despite very much being on the same page as her.

Some god he made.

Then again, he'd always known that.

"There are classes people are… encouraged to take on their downtime."

She just stared at him. "There is so much wrong with that I don't know where to start."

"Why do you think I wanted to change it?" Percy asked. "Just like I hate that children under sixteen go on quests at Camp Half-Blood. It's wrong to expect children to do that."

Annabeth backed off, blinking rapidly as she wrapped her head around… something. That wasn't the reaction he'd expected. What had he said?

Oh. Right. She wouldn't have been able to leave camp until much older if she hadn't gone on a quest that summer. Something she'd desperately wanted in both lives.

Percy sighed. So it was that conversation, huh? "What the gods want us children to do is wrong, Annabeth. I wasn't lying when I said Luke had good points and that I agreed with him. I hate how they treat their mortal children—how they have to treat them. That's one thing that's changed that I can't stand. Heraclese had been old enough to have a wife and children by the time of the twelve labors. He had to do things before that, sure, but he, Achilles, Theseus, Jason, Perseus… they were all well into their teens before they were sent on quests."

"But… how could we prove ourselves… otherwise?" she asked, pausing because she was working it out herself. She knew it wasn't right. It just wasn't what she wanted to hear. But she was working it out anyway because this was Annabeth Chase, Wise Girl Extraordinaire.

No, he couldn't think of her like that. He mentally slapped himself and took a deep breath.

"No one," he started gently, "should have to prove themselves worthy of love and affection—of any positive attention—from their parents."

Which… may very well be a foreign concept to her with the parents she'd had. And Percy liked Fredrick. He did. He also got where the man was coming from. That didn't mean he'd made the right choices for his daughter.

They sat there in silence for several seconds as she seemed to work through that, brows drawn together and lip caught between her teeth.

When he realized she probably wouldn't be saying anything else for a while, he turned to his brother. "Hey, big guy. There was probably some stuff back there you didn't understand. What do you need me to explain?"

Tyson's own shoulders slumped in relief, but before he could say anything, a knock on the side of the boat drew everyone's attention.

"Hold that thought," Percy said, hand unconsciously drifting towards Riptide. He hadn't given up the blade, even as a god. Well, he had once, to his daughter, but she'd given it back when she'd retired from questing. (And he most certainly hadn't let her go on a quest before 16, no matter what the Fates said.)

Climbing the stairs, he peered out onto the deck via a window and blinked. For the second time in twenty four hours, he found himself taking a step back and trying to wrap his head around what he saw. Had that been?

He looked again.

Yes, that was Jason standing outside, dressed in armor and spear in hand. And next to him stood Dakota, of all people.

Quickly, Percy opened the door.

"Hello?"

"Hi," Jason said, a little awkwardly, but with a smile as big as ever. "I just wanted to introduce myself and my fellow guard here. We'll be guarding the dock for the next four hours."

Right. Percy smiled and held out his hand. "Hi. Percy Jackson, son of Neptune. Though I guess you already know that."

He knew he'd made a mistake the moment Jason opened his smiling mouth. "This is Dakota Scipio* and I'm Jason Grace of the Fifth Cohort." Percy almost winced. He didn't, but it was a near thing. He could almost sense Annabeth's attention focusing on them. Also, had Jason been a part of the fifth? Then why had he been such a hero but the fifth had such a bad reputation when he'd come in after the second Titan war?

"I'm a son of Bacchus," Dakota said nonchalantly—it very much reminded Percy of Mr. D.

"And I'm… um… a son of Jupiter," Jason said, seeming self conscious of that for some reason. Which was weird. This was nothing like the Jason Percy remembered.

Annabeth's gasp didn't help.

Oh, she'd definitely put Thalia and Jason's relationship together.

That would not be a fun conversation.

"Thanks for introducing yourself," Percy said as he shook their hands, forcing a smile on his face and hoping it looked more real than it felt. "It's nice to meet both of you."

"We'll just be at the head of the dock if you need us," Jason said, relaxing a little. Apparently he was used to people freaking out about his father. Which, fair. But Percy had never had that problem.

"Thanks again," Percy reiterated. "If you need any water or anything, let us know." They wouldn't. Not on duty and not from the newbies, but it was only polite to offer.

"Do you have any kool-aid?" Dakota asked, proving Percy wrong. Then again, it was probably a Dakota thing more than a Roman thing.

Jason turned to his partner. "Dakota. No."

"Dakota, yes."

Percy laughed. Both of these boys had died too soon. (Too many demigods did.) It was good to see them again.

"Sorry, no kool-aid," the time-traveler said, "But I can filter just about any water." He reached out and pulled some water over the side of the boat, had it drop everything that wasn't water inside of it, and then brought it to hover over his hand expectantly. Both a reminder of his power, who his father was, and what he can do, but also a way of proposing it non-threateningly. The other two demigods' eyes widened and they exchanged glances.

"Right," Dakota said, his voice mildly softer than before.

"Anyway, thanks," Jason said, turning to walk away. "It was good to meet you!" Dakota just nodded and followed him.

"You too!" Percy called after them. He watched them climb onto the dock and then, knowing more or less what was coming. He braced himself and turned to see a fuming Annabeth standing with her hands on her hips, looking incredibly like her mother just then, minus the dark hair Athena tended to sport.

"You're right," Tyson said from behind her, making her jump, but that only seemed to tick her off more. "They're nice."

"I know, right?" Percy said. "I—"

"Perseus Jackson, you'd better explain right now."

Percy winced. "You… really don't want to call me that." Probably a good thing she didn't know his middle name. He hadn't really used it the first time around. And his mother only ever used it when she was really upset with him, which didn't happen often.

Annabeth's eyes just narrowed and he held up his hands. "Okay, okay! I was going to tell you! I promise!"

"Jason Grace? Son of Jupiter? He's Thalia's brother, isn't he?!"

"Yes. But I couldn't say anything before without explaining everything, which could have gotten everyone involved killed!"

Annabeth's eyes narrowed. "Killed? How, exactly?"

Percy sighed. "We told you about the schism. And the Civil War. It practically incapacitated most gods and almost wiped out all demigods here in America. They keep the camps separate for a reason. Not just for them." Though mostly, in Percy's opinion.

"The gods don't want that to happen again, so they keep all knowledge of any other myth-related camps separate. If demigods find out by accident… well…" He knew his expression darkened, but he didn't care. Annabeth needed to know. Her eyes widened.

"That's why you weren't happy about Neptune coming while I was there," she said quietly.

Percy nodded. "If you tell the wrong person, it puts everyone involved in danger of death by smiting. That's why I didn't tell you, Luke, or Thalia. I wanted to. I am going to the moment I can. But right now, telling her could get her killed." And he wouldn't put Luke or Annabeth through that again. Or especially Thalia.

Annabeth grabbed some hair from the bottom of her pony-tail absently and began to play with the curls. Percy looked away from the familiar gesture.

"How could you ever tell her, then?" She asked. "At some point, in your past, the camps knew about each other, right?"

Percy nodded. "Yeah, but it was a mess. Camp Jupiter marched on Camp Half-Blood and we almost had another war between us. We avoided it in the end, but I'd really prefer to avoid that close of a call again. As for when I would tell her, I was waiting for her to join the Hunt."

Annabeth looked taken aback. "Join the Hunt? As in Artemis' Hunt?"

"Yes…" Percy said slowly.

"Did she in your past?"

He nodded again. "Yes. To avoid fulfilling the prophecy. If she joined the Hunt, she'd be a day younger than sixteen forever."

"Oh," Annabeth muttered. "And Luke… right."

Percy frowned. "Why?" he asked.

Annabeth bit her lip. "I… don't think she's joining the Hunt this time around."

That surprised Percy. He had a hard time remembering Thalia without that silver tiara in her hair. She'd always been there. His longest living friend (who wasn't born immortal) in the future. The idea that she wouldn't this time around…

He felt his breath catch as he tried to wrap his head around that, a deeply unsettling feeling rising inside him. The boat began rocking a little.

"What's wrong?" Tyson asked, looking around worriedly. Percy opened his mouth to respond, but how was he supposed to explain that Thalia had kind of grown to be his rock—his sister in all but blood. She'd constantly prayed to him, but said silly things, like memes and jokes that made him laugh. He'd never been an authority figure to her, and he wouldn't want to be.

"I… um… why?" he started addressing Tyson, but couldn't finish, so turned his attention to Annabeth.

She shuffled uncomfortably. "Luke and Thalia are dating," she said softly.

Percy's eyes widened. "They what?"

"I know, right?" Annabeth said, relief once again rushing over her face, only to be replaced with anger not seconds later. "And they didn't even tell me! I had to walk in on them kissing before they did! I just… can't believe it!" Then her voice quieted. "Why wouldn't they tell me?"

Several things rushed through Percy's mind just then. Thalia telling Zoe she was right about boys and men just before the latter's death. Annabeth's red cheeks whenever she looked at Luke in those first few years. How happy Annabeth and Luke had been when they'd gotten Thalia back this time around.

Oh.

That was… messy.

Not to mention, there could be any number of reasons why they wouldn't tell Annabeth. Maybe they hadn't figured their own relationship out yet. Or maybe they didn't want to hurt her. Or maybe they'd planned on it but hadn't gotten the chance. Percy didn't know. And he didn't think his speculations would help Annabeth just then.

"Have you talked to them about it?" he finally decided on asking.

She scoffed and looked away. "No."

And there was something very un-Annabeth like in that. Evasive and… wait…

"Annabeth, did you decide to come live with your father because of that?"

She stiffened, and her lips pursed in that 'you've figured me out but I don't want to admit it' kind of way he hadn't seen in so long. Then, she got angry.

"Well, why wouldn't I? If they can't trust me, then why should I stay there?"

Percy sighed quietly. Maybe those potential reasons would help out after all. "What if that was the first time they'd kissed?"

Annabeth blinked. Then grumbled, "It didn't look like the first time."

"But how do you know?" he asked. "Or maybe they'd only just gotten together and just hadn't had a chance to tell you."

The daughter of Athena bit her lip.

"Or maybe it goes deeper than that?" Percy found himself asking, because that's what the counselor in him would do. Even if it killed him as her former husband. (No, not hers!) "You're pretty open to yourself about your own faults, Annabeth. Everyone knows that." So she didn't think it was future knowledge, even if it kind of was.

She took a deep breath. "You think I'm jealous."

She'd put it together. Sometimes the brain on this girl astounded him.

"Are you?"

Her eyebrows drew together. "I… I don't know," she said, eyes meeting his desperately. "They're my family! I wouldn't be alive without them! They mean everything to me!"

"Did you have a crush on Luke?" he prompted. She needed to understand her emotions to process them.

"Who doesn't?" she snapped. Percy just held up his hands.

"And Thalia?"

"Thalia…" Annabeth said quietly, then sighed. "Maybe, I don't know either. She's everything I've always wanted to be. Powerful, strong, determined, kind, smart…"

They fell quiet for several seconds. In the corner of the room, Tyson had sat down and was tinkering with something. That was fine. Percy appreciated his tinkering, and also appreciated the space. Tyson really was the best. And Percy vowed he would explain everything to his brother later.

Finally, Percy decided to speak. "I think you need to talk to them." Something like fear flashed through her eyes, so he held up his hand. "Not now, necessarily, but at some point. You sound like you have a lot of questions to ask them, and I don't think you want something like this to end your relationships. But you're going to have to be honest with yourself and them before it'll work."

She deflated, shoulders falling forward as she nodded. "Yeah. You… I really hate it, but you're right. I just…"

"When you're ready," he insisted, though that probably wasn't something someone could really be ready for. At least not at thirteen.

She still nodded. "Yeah. I… um. Thanks." She shot him a watery smile.

He returned it with one of his own before realizing how close they'd gotten. Now would probably be a very good time to retreat and leave her to her thoughts, no matter how much he wanted to hold her while she thought.

I'm older than her, he insisted. The power dynamic there was not fair or equal in any right. She didn't want to even try, and that was her choice, and he would respect it. Even if it nearly killed him every time he had to remind himself of that.

A swim would probably be good right now. Yes. He could get to know the surroundings. Again. It may be different now than in the future. A great idea. And maybe he could take Tyson and answer any of the cyclops' questions.

"How about you think about it," he said as he stepped away. "That is what you're good at, after all, isn't it?"

She snorted, but looked far better than she had before. "Yeah."

"Great," he said, forcing another smile. "Hey Ty, buddy! How about we go swimming?" The dryads and naiads hadn't been big in Ancient Rome as far as he knew, and they likely wouldn't run into many here, but they could see what was actually in the lake. He'd never really bothered with it in the future, so this was something new for him.

"Really?" Tyson asked as he looked up, eye lighting up.

"Yeah," Percy grinned. "Let's go."

"Okay!" He got to his feet and hurried over to Percy, who opened the door.

Tyson frowned. "What about… Annie Beth?"

"Annabeth," Percy and Annabeth said simultaneously. Percy smiled at her, but once again, she just looked away. He ignored the stab through his heart. "And she needs some time to herself, okay big guy?"

Tyson thought about that for a moment before nodding. Then he turned and waved at Annabeth.

"See you later, Annie Beth."

"AnnAbeth," she reiterated. Percy just sighed. He'd get it eventually.

Percy closed the door behind them, letting Tyson go first, and then leaped onto the dock.

"Hey, guys!" Percy yelled. The two guards at the front of the pier turned around. "We're gonna go swimming, okay?"

Before they could give him a yay or nay, he ran back onto the boat, flew past Tyson, and dived over the railing.

"Come on!" he yelled before he hit the water. Then he turned and waited for his brother. Just a couple of seconds later, Tyson joined him. Percy grinned.

"Let's go!" he said, swimming downward. Tyson laughed and followed.

Percy tried not to think about going back to the boat, where he'd be staying with Annabeth. They each had their own room, but they weren't large. And had been situated right next to each other. Percy sighed. This would be harder than he'd initially thought, but was probably something he really needed, just so he could work on reiterating that this was not his wife. (Some days he REALLY wished his brain would get the memo. Or, more probably, his heart.)

That didn't mean it would be painless.

Chapter Text

After dinner that night (during which Percy had lit a small fire in a stove in the corner and they'd all sacrificed part of their dinner again—Percy to Hestia and Neptune because it was probably a good idea to stay on his good side), they all retreated to their rooms to do their own thing. Annabeth called her father and let him know that her train had been late and because of it, she was on a quest now. She'd be there soon, though she didn't have a set time. At least that's what she told Percy she'd said. Judging from the look in her eyes, something else had gone down that she wasn't sure how to take.

Percy didn't ask and she didn't tell.

Meanwhile, he called his mother and some of his other friends from camp, mainly to wish them happy holidays or Merry Christmas, or whatever they preferred. Most people just appreciated the well wishes, and he loved that. His mother was just glad he'd made it safely.

He'd called the entire Hermes cabin, and whoever remained there. Leo and Beckendorf at the Hephaestus cabin (they seemed to be working on something big for any upcoming battles, so yay there). Luke and Thalia had been at the Zeus cabin moping and unhappy but obviously taking comfort in each other if their holding hands the whole time had been anything to go by. Honestly, Percy was a little surprised Luke had been let into the Zeus cabin at all, really, but there he was. They said they'd talk to him about what was bugging them later (even though he already knew), but they'd like to be alone at the moment. He respected that and told them he'd give them another call in the upcoming days.

Then he worked through most of the rest of the Hermes cabin who hadn't been at camp, before beginning to contact the rest of the cabins and the people he'd befriended, just to say hi. That had taken a large portion of his secret stash of drachma, and unfortunately he couldn't just go out and get more because Romans didn't use them. He could potentially use Roman coins, but didn't think he could get those easily with how New Rome was treating their group. At least he was still getting his monthly 'allowance' from Poseidon (don't ask him how that worked with the schism) so it shouldn't be too bad, he'd just have to be frugal for a while.

He'd actually ended with the Apollo cabin and Erin being the last person he'd contacted; wanting to end the night on a good note.

After she answered and they exchanged hellos, he asked her how Colorado was.

"Boring, but I'm looking forward to graduating high school."

Right. She was eighteen. Almost nineteen. He hadn't spoken to her about her plans for after graduation.

"Any colleges picked out?"

"Well," she said thoughtfully, "I have applied to a few good ones in New York so I can be there to help out with the camp more."

Percy's shoulders relaxed, and he was glad she probably couldn't see that through the small window of the IM-phones as Percy liked to call them. No one else but Leo did, but he was positive it would catch on eventually.

"So you're coming back?" he asked quietly.

"Of course," she said fondly. "I know a lot of people graduate and never look back, but that's not me. I'd like to keep teaching healing to my siblings. Besides, Luke's there. He's only a year older than me and he stays."

He didn't have anywhere else to go. But Percy didn't think that was his place to say.

Then Erin paused, as if thinking hard about something.

"I… didn't survive the harpy attack in the original timeline, did I." It wasn't a question. Percy felt himself stiffen.

"I don't know," he said.

"You knew something was coming for me, though."

He sighed. "You were sixteen last summer, almost seventeen. There weren't a lot of options."

Neither one of them spoke for a while after he said that. Then, "You said you might be several centuries old." Percy cursed his past self. He hadn't wanted the camp to know about his godhood status, so he hadn't said anything about it. Only that he was from the future. When people asked from when, he just said a while and shrugged, keeping it vague. The only other person he'd told besides Luke and Annabeth had been Thalia. And the gods, but they didn't count.

"You are, aren't you." Again, it wasn't a question. And he couldn't lie to her. Not outright. But if he deflected, she'd take it as truth anyway.

"Yeah," he muttered.

Another pause. "How?"

He shook his head. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Okay," she said after a moment. "But if you ever do… I'm pretty good at keeping a secret."

He smiled at the tiny window. Judging from her own small grin, she'd seen it. "Thanks," he said. "I might take you up on that."

He didn't want to keep talking about it, and tried to change the subject back, but it felt stilted. Not negative, necessarily, but awkward. Finally, after some goodbyes, they ended the call. It wasn't the high note he'd wanted to end on, but he'd take it.

xXx

Percy had asked the other two which room they'd be comfortable with taking. Annabeth, as wary as she'd been around him, still wanted nothing to do with Tyson more, so she asked for the far room and if he could take the middle. Tyson had just been happy to have his own room that wasn't a refrigerator box. The look on Annabeth's face when he'd said that had been uncertain, but she hadn't said anything.

Once they'd all gone to bed for the night, Percy couldn't seem to sleep. When he finally did drift off, though, he knew it was another one of those dreams almost immediately.

It didn't help that he seemed to be in Tartarus. Thankfully, he'd had enough dreams about the place over the years that he honestly only felt mild discomfort at the inhospitable landscape. The gold mist swirling before him was another matter.

"Perseus," Kronos' cold, dark voice—so opposed to the brilliant, golden glow—said.

Percy took a deep breath at his name—his full name, of course. "Grandfather."

The gold formed into a general figure of a face, one that thankfully looked nothing like Luke's. It took Percy a minute to realize that this must be Kronos' actual face, or an approximation, because he could pick out features he recognized. Some in himself even. The shape of the eyes. The cheekbones. That smile.

Why did his father have to inherit Kronos' smile? And then pass it onto Percy? He withheld a shudder.

"I have to thank you for being a messenger," the Titan said. "My future self was quite ingenious to take advantage of the situation. Though it seems you received your memories faster, unfortunately. No matter though."

Percy wondered if that meant Kronos still didn't have all his memories. He could hope, but couldn't assume.

He also didn't think he could press Kronos for more answers without giving away too much information of his own, so he just changed the subject.

"Where's Roxanne?"

"You know, Perseus," the Titan went on as if Percy hadn't even spoken, "I always thought it funny, once I heard of your ascension, of course. What were your domains again? There were five of them, correct?" Percy's jaw clenched, still not wanting to give too much away or risk falling into his destruction domain again. Why did all his domains have to follow him back? He'd been just fine with only his father's, the first time.

"Protecting your little demigods was one, wasn't it?"

"Where's Roxanne?"

Once again, Kronos continued as if he hadn't heard Percy. "Loyalty—to gods that don't deserve it, of course." Percy snorted. If Kronos thought that was where his loyalties lie, he didn't know nearly as much as he thought he did.

"Something with the ocean, too. But something about the earth as well. Weren't those combined?"

Percy just shook his head, wondering if Kronos could even see him. Most likely, he could only sense Percy's consciousness but that wasn't a certainty either.

"Then there was the one you gained down here." Percy couldn't help that he stiffened. He didn't want Kronos to know about Ahklys… but then again, if he'd somehow reformed down in Tartarus, even enough to send some memories back from the future, then he'd probably coalesced enough to learn about that. Percy really wished that memory had gotten lost along the way back in time.

"What a cruel little godling you are."

"I don't want to hear that from you," Percy responded. "Now, where's Roxanne?"

"Powerful too. Why did you side with the Olympians?" Because they wouldn't destroy the world on a whim. Or, at least, had a less likely chance. He was still convinced Kronos would wipe out humans as much as he could if he won. At least Morpheus—who had sided with him the first time—cared about humans enough to put them to sleep. Well, either he cared, or he hadn't wanted the panicked crowds that could get in the monsters' ways. Humans banding together could turn the tide out of sheer numbers if sufficiently motivated. They'd have difficulties fighting monsters, but it would be possible. They'd just have to be clever about it all, but they could be. Kronos either knew that and didn't want to deal with them, or he didn't and saw them as insects to wipe away. Percy didn't know which, but he couldn't let someone who thought either gain control again.

"Why? Because they're not you," he said instead. "Now answer the question."

"And then there's your last one… Perseus." Percy winced. It was bad enough when demigods and gods said his name, but Kronos was putting as much power behind his voice as he could, and it was waking Percy's destructive side. "It's amazing how altruistic some of your other domains are. Even liquid, to an extent, despite how you gained that one. Loyalty, your little half-mortals… even the ocean one can be pretty neutral. But destruction, Perseus? One of these doesn't belong, methinks."

"Yeah, well, sapient beings are complicated like that," Percy snapped back. "Go figure. Now, for the last time, where. Is. Roxanne?" He knew he put too much power behind that—more than he wanted, but unfortunately not enough to phase Kronos as he laughed.

"Right here." The golden aura swept around Percy, and he turned to see a figure curled up next to the Phlegethon, dirty, bleeding from where jagged rocks had pricked her, and so dirty she almost blended in with the river bank.

"Roxanne!" he yelled, rushing forward. She didn't respond. He reached her side and checked. She was breathing, but slowly.

"Thankfully, I remembered your little stint down here," Kronos said thoughtfully as Percy dropped to his knees, not caring about the sharp rocks biting into them. He reached his spectral hands out to her. She stirred at his touch. He tried to channel as much of his demigod domain into her as he could. He could heal demigods in the future, just because they were his domain. But did he have that kind of power now? Especially in a dream. He didn't know. He hoped so. "That's what saved her," the Titan went on. Percy ignored him, closing his eyes and focusing on her. It reminded him of the night they'd found her outside the camp. "The Phlegethon. And my presence, of course. But living down here is so… difficult. So little food. She has to kill monsters to eat, you know, Perseus."

Percy grit his teeth. He had to focus on his single demigod domain. Nothing else could sneak in or he could hurt her.

Almost as if he'd read Percy's mind, Kronos chuckled darkly. "Such conflicting domains. Protection and preservation versus destruction. Gods with conflicting domains tend to end up at war with themselves. I wonder how long that will take you? And which side will win."

Below him, Roxanne groaned and opened her eyes, a dull brown-gray almost blending into her dirty skin.

"Who's there?" she slurred.

"It's me, Percy."

But she didn't respond, head rolling back onto the ground almost immediately.

"Thank you for sending her my way," Kronos said, almost mildly. Percy grit his teeth. "A mean little thing, this one. Vindictive."

"Do you say that about everyone?" Percy asked, once again trying to focus on helping Roxanne. He knew what it was like down here, and if he could give her any respite from the nightmarish landscape, he would.

"Only those who deserve it."

Percy snorted. "That's called 'projection'. You should look it up."

Thump, thump, thump! What was that noise? And where was it coming from?

"Well, I think it's about time you woke up then, now that we've had our little talk, Perseus. After all, I have plans to alter, and you have a storm to quell."

Confused, Percy blinked. "Wait, what?"

But then he found himself gasping and sitting up in his small bunk. The boat rocked hard and he fell out of his bed. What?

"Percy!" Annabeth's voice came from the other side of the door, "is this your storm?"

He stood up. "My what?"

"Your storm!"

"Big brother!" Tyson wailed. "I don't feel so good."

Another wave rushed the boat. Percy gulped and reached out to the lake around them. Large waves rocked the entire body of water, and he could sense the storm above. A storm that shouldn't be there…

Cursing, he reached out to his surroundings and breathed out, trying to calm everything and himself. Slowly, ever so slowly, the wind calmed and the waves smoothed out. The clouds overhead began to clear away. That had been his storm. But he thought he'd been getting better with his control…

Except Kronos had kept digging at him, trying to prod him into… this? Probably. He grit his teeth, but continued to force the lake to calm.

Finally, everything had returned to normal and he glanced up to see his open door. Annabeth stood there, staring at him. Tyson peeked around over her shoulder, face pale.

"Percy…" she started slowly, "what was that?"

He grit his teeth. "Grandfather," he growled.

Her eyes widened and her own face paled. "What… did he want?"

"To sabotage me. Kept calling me by my full name."

She frowned. "Using your full name does that?"

He shook his head, feeling more tired than he had when he'd gone to sleep. "When spoken by a Titan, it does." Apparently.

"Any Titan?" she asked cautiously.

He shrugged. "Dunno. Really don't want to find out."

She nodded but her troubled frown didn't leave her face.

"Big Brother!" Tyson said, rushing into the room and scooping Percy up, causing the boat to rock again with the sudden shift of weight. Behind him, Annabeth—who had jumped out of the way—yelled in protest as she tried to keep her feet. Percy wondered how she had in that storm. Maybe she hadn't? He tried not to feel guilty.

"Hey, I'm okay, big guy," he said, patting Tyson's back. The cyclops just continued to hug him. Sighing, Percy resigned himself to being his brother's support demigod for the next half-hour at least. Behind him, Annabeth sighed and he heard her bare feet tromp back to her room.

Eventually, he managed to get Tyson back into bed, then collapsed onto his bunk himself. At least he wouldn't have to get up too early tomorrow. Maybe he could sleep in.

Yeah, right.

As he drifted off again, he made a mental note to send as much food down to Roxanne as he could once he got back. He could get something to the Hermes shrine at least. Maybe some canned goods?

That was the last thought he remembered before sleep overtook him once again.

xXx

He woke to the sound of wood hitting wood.

"Yay!" Tyson yelled after a moment. "You're so good, Annie Beth."

Annabeth didn't answer, but the noises did start up again. More aggressively. Well, she wasn't yelling at anyone, and Tyson didn't sound like he was in pain, so Percy would call it a win. For now.

After washing up and grabbing an apple, some peanut butter, and some bread from the cabinet in the small kitchen, he climbed up the stairs and into the cool morning of a Californian winter. The sun had risen, but hadn't cleared the mountains in the distance yet, so he'd managed to sleep in fairly late. A nice surprise. He didn't expect it to last.

"Brother!" Tyson said happily the moment he saw Percy.

"Finally," Annabeth said tightly, spinning around from where she'd been hitting a dummy set up in the middle of the deck. There wasn't a lot of space, but that could be training in and of itself. Where she'd gotten a dummy, he had no idea. Maybe she'd asked their guards? "We need to strategize if we're going to win this."

Percy found himself smiling at that, albeit a little sadly. That was so Annabeth. Just… not his Wise Girl. "Because Athena always has a plan?" he still found himself saying.

She scoffed. "Of course. Tell me everything you can about the fighting style here."

His smile brightened, and may have turned just a little smug. "I'll do you one better. Most fights are best two out of three for demonstrations like this. I don't know if that's how they used to do it in Ancient Rome, but it is how they do it here. I know how they fight from experience, so I figure if I go first, you can watch their movements and come up with a strategy then."

She blinked, eyebrows rising in surprise before lowering in thought. She put a hand to her chin, then nodded. "Good plan. But I'd still like to know what you can tell me about them."

"Fair enough. Well, there's a reason Rome dominated the Mediterranean Sea for nearly a thousand years, give or take a century or two. While their fighting style changed significantly over the years, the really successful plans tended to work around discipline, consistency, and later on, numbers. Their god of war did take over battle strategy and it shows. They incorporated a lot of planning into their strategies. It made them very successful, and you'll find a lot of that implemented here in New Rome today."

She scowled, but took that in, nodding. Then she eyed him suspiciously. "Why am I hearing a 'but' in there?"

He shrugged. "Every style of fighting has its weaknesses. Greeks tend to power through things in general." Her eyes narrowed and he held his hands up. "Not saying that there's no strategy in the way Greeks fought. Of course there was. But usually not to the harsh and rigorous standards of the Romans. Greeks tend to be more unpredictable, and that can be a strength or a weakness. Romans tend to be very rigid. That can be a strength or a weakness."

"But not every Roman—especially New Roman—will necessarily adhere to that stereotype," she muttered.

Percy grinned, nodding. Of course she'd catch onto that.

"What type of armor will we be wearing?"

"Probably a decent amount. This isn't a fight to the death, though they'll probably set the conditions of winning and losing once we get there. It could be first blood, it could be knock out or surrender. But they will definitely have armor, a shield, and at least one weapon of your choice. Since we're the challenging party, we'll choose our weapon first and may not know what the defenders choose. But you will have to declare every weapon you take into the arena. Not doing so could invalidate the fight."

She sighed, but nodded again. "Okay. Yeah. We can do this."

He smiled. She was probably trying to convince herself, but she wouldn't say it if she didn't see at least a possibility.

"Percy," Tyson said suddenly, voice small. "You and Annie Beth are fighting today, right?"

Turning to his brother, Percy nodded.

"I don't want you to fight."

How was it that Percy couldn't help but think of Tyson at this age as adorable? And sweet. And just the best.

"A cyclops that doesn't want to fight?" Annabeth asked skeptically, voice low enough he could barely hear it. Percy was pretty sure he wasn't supposed to hear it, so he ignored it and pushed down the frustration and anger that rose with those words. He'd deal with that later.

"I don't like it either, buddy," he said, walking up to his suspiciously shiny-eyed brother. Code yellow, code yellow, potential crying alert! Handle with care. "But we have to prove that we're worth listening to, and the people around here don't tend to listen to people who aren't skilled. Unfortunately, fighting is a big thing here, and something we'll have to do in the future. It's part of the reason we're here at all, to help Camp Jupiter prepare for war. So we have to prove we can."

Tyson just looked down sadly. "I don't like it."

"Me neither. But unfortunately, in the pantheon we were born into, we have to get used to it." Though maybe that was something he could change?

His domains thrummed with that thought and he felt himself stiffen. Pushing the thought aside (again, later), he put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "But you're not here to fight. You're here to learn how to build things. So you don't have to worry about fighting at least."

Tyson's eye lit up. "Right! I remember!"

Annabeth scoffed again, but Percy still ignored her. "Hopefully, you won't have to fight while you're here at all." Great, he just jinxed it, didn't he? Trying to keep that thought from showing on his face, he went on. "But you do have to be prepared for it, just in case. Okay, buddy?"

Tyson didn't look happy, but he still nodded. At least he didn't look like he was about to cry still. Crisis averted.

After a couple of moments, Tyson brightened again. His moods hadn't been nearly so whiplash in the future, but Percy still found it endearing. "I'll build you the best weapons!"

"Whoa, there," Percy said, smiling. "I already have Riptide." He held up his pen. Tyson's shoulders sank, so the time-traveler hurried on. "But I could use a shield. One I can take with me. Or maybe some armor. Annabeth too."

"Don't bring me into this," she muttered, but there wasn't a bite to her words. At least not like there had been. Improvement.

"Anyway," he clapped a much happier looking Tyson on the shoulder. "I'm going to show Annabeth a couple of Roman basics, and then we can go for a swim if we get done early enough. Sound good?"

"Yeah!" Tyson beamed.

"Great," Percy said as he stood. "Now, let me show you some of the basics you can expect to see." He turned to Annabeth and took out Riptide, holding it up. "Romans tend to get in close with a lot of stabbing and thrusting while using their larger shields to protect their bodies. Not always, but again, basics. Now this move…"

He continued to show her a lot of what she could expect and could already see her latching onto the different movements and how they could be useful and what chain of strikes, slashes, and parries could be beneficial. She wasn't a daughter of a war goddess for nothing.

Now if her body would be able to keep up with it was another matter altogether, but he would be surprised if she didn't already have a dozen strategies in place by the time he finished an hour and a half later. Of course, that was when he realized Tyson had finished off his apple, the peanut butter, and half the loaf of bread.

"Tyson!" he'd practically whimpered. Now he'd actually have to cook something for breakfast. His brother had just rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. Something about the entire scene must have looked funny because Annabeth burst into laughter and both of the boys turned to stare at her. That, of course, just made her laugh harder.

He pouted outwardly, but inside, he beamed. Maybe this whole quest wouldn't go too badly after all?

He really should have known better.

Chapter Text

They showed up at the coliseum a good twenty minutes before their 'match', escorted by guards Percy didn't know. He wished it had been Jason and Dakota again, as the guards didn't really talk to them, but everyone seemed okay with that arrangement. People stared at them as they were led by, taking the long way to likely advertise the upcoming match. Which probably meant the Romans were pretty sure they'd win. Percy wished he had a phone to record their reactions when that didn't happen.

Naturally, once inside the coliseum, they were taken to the rooms underneath the stands and given their choice of leather armor and weapons. Annabeth grimly took more daggers and knives before scrunching her nose at the shields. Eventually, though, she picked a smaller one that she could lift and move around relatively easily. Percy also chose a smaller shield, but refrained from any more weapons. The only other thing he insisted on taking was a canteen of water that he'd brought with him from the boat. The guards watched him empty and refill it with pure water so they could tell he hadn't 'slipped anything into it'. He even took a sip of the water, and then had Annabeth and Tyson both drink (after thoroughly cleaning off the spout) so they could make sure it wasn't poisoned. Percy couldn't help but think that Zeus'… er, Jupiter's paranoia was rubbing off on the camp. Maybe they should consider changing the name to avoid any more paranoia? He chuckled at the thought but refused to voice it aloud, even when Annabeth shot him a questioning look. He liked living.

They both took leather armor vests and even though he could tell Annabeth didn't like them, the leather belts and strips hanging from them to protect their hips and legs. Annabeth opted for a vambrace on her sword arm and she was not happy when their selection of grieves didn't fit her. They weren't common in Roman fighting, though Percy had never really understood why. Of course, he'd never really cared to look up the reason, just encouraged people to wear what would protect them, Roman or Greek.

He didn't bother with vambraces himself. They hadn't been super common in either style, but he liked them when fighting with Greek weapons and armor, not so much with Roman. He did manage to find grieves that fit him and strapped them onto his shins while Annabeth glared daggers at him. Then they both found helmets that fit—Annabeth grumbling about how it didn't sit right for several minutes—and picked up their shields.

After that, they were about as ready as they'd ever be. Exchanging glances and nods, they turned to the guards, both nodding in satisfaction. Then they led them through the giant, double doors and into the arena.

It was already pretty full. While the stands weren't as full as if the whole city had turned up for it, Romans of all ages had taken seats and a low murmur floated over the arena. After a moment, the guards indicated for them to stop and stepped to the side. Meanwhile, Annabeth and Percy both turned to the large box where the two praetors sat. It reminded Percy of the time they'd needed Bacchus' help during the Giant War and he had to withhold a scowl. That was not a fond memory. And even though he'd been in this very coliseum multiple times, he'd never been in the position of fighting before. Gods didn't do that.

At ten on the dot, Mia stepped forward, face neutral. Next to her, Jacobs smirked, reminding Percy of a drakon about to pounce. He frowned as warning bells went off in his head.

"Challengers, Delegation of Neptune, you are here to prove your worth regarding your claims. If you are to prove that you can teach us or fight next to us, you must prove that there is something you can teach us."

And she was supposedly on their side. Great.

Romans.

"You have challenged three people of our choice. You must win all three matches for your offer to be seriously considered."

Wait, what? He blinked and felt his lips tighten in frustration.

"I thought you said it would be best two out of three," Annabeth hissed out of the corner of her mouth.

"It should be," he said back.

"Each of you will alternate fighting our chosen opponents in three one-on-one battles each. Declare your weapons." They both did so.

"Now, pick a number to see who goes first," the praetor continued. From the glance they shot each other, both Greeks noted she didn't announce their opponents' weapons.

"Percy," Annabeth's voice had more anger weighing it down than before.

He cleared his throat and stepped forward. "As the leader of my father's envoy, I claim the right to go first."

"That's not how it's going to go," Jacobs said, causing Mia to roll her eyes. He didn't seem to care though, focusing his gaze on the two demigods in the arena. "You came here, challenged us, insulted us by saying you know better, and if you want to prove it, you'd better be willing to play by our rules or go running back to the sea and your daddy."

Annabeth let out an angry huff next to him. Percy, himself, had to count to ten to keep from exploding at the boy and telling him exactly how stupid he was being. That wouldn't help them here. (It rarely helped him anywhere else, to be honest, but that had never stopped him before… which made stopping here all the harder.)

"We will recall you did not give us that honor," was all he could say. It was a bigger threat than most there probably knew. Thankfully, the Senate members should understand. If they won now, there would be a disgraced element added to the loss. It wasn't as much as he'd like, or as much as Jacobs deserved, but it was something.

"Sorry, best I could do," he whispered to Annabeth. She nodded minutely.

"So, pick a number," Jacobs taunted.

"Tell your fellow praetor what the number is," he shot back.

Jacob's red-brown eyes narrowed. "Are you calling me a liar?"

"No," Percy shrugged, "but you did just deny me a reasonable honor. You set the stage for this confrontation, not me."

The older boy's jaw set, hard, but he knew he'd been backed into a corner. So he leaned over and whispered into Mia's ears. Unfortunately, Percy couldn't hear—he missed the more divine hearing he'd had—or see what he said. This would be a genuine game of chance.

"The number is set between one and twenty," Mia announced.

Was it just Percy, or did this seem very un-Roman-like?

"He's proud," Annabeth whispered. "He'll probably choose a higher number. You guess higher, and I'll guess lower."

Percy nodded. "Eighteen," he said.

"Three," Annabeth said.

He knew they'd miscalculated when Jacobs' grin returned. "Eight."

"What?" the blond asked quietly, shocked.

"Battle strategy," Percy said through gritted teeth. Then he turned to her, meeting her wide, fearful gaze. She'd been thrown off. "They want to see your prowess in fighting and strategy. They don't think you can fight and don't know if your strategy applies to fighting. They will underestimate you, but even if they didn't, I know you can do this, Annabeth."

"You're saying that because you knew her," she said, voice panicked. "I'm thirteen."

Percy frowned. That sounded like something she'd been hiding for a while. He shook his head. "At the age of twelve, you still came with me through the sea of monsters to help me find the fleece. It was your idea that worked there. You still came here with me. You have all the knowledge you need.

"You can do this, Annabeth Chase."

She didn't answer, but that steely look had come back into her eyes with his words. Thankfully.

"Are you done yet?" Jacobs asked, mocking.

That just seemed to help her determination solidify, because she nodded firmly to Percy. He smiled and turned to follow the guards who had come to escort him to somewhere he could watch the fight.

"Then let this match begin!" Jacobs yelled. He got several cheers and Percy rolled his eyes. Dramatic much? Yes, he knew that was the pot calling the kettle black.

Then, across the arena, the large doors opened to reveal a demigod. A very large demigod. He had to be at least six feet tall with muscles that would impress Arnold Schwarzenegger. They'd really stacked the odds, hadn't they. Percy's hands closed into fists and he shot the praetor box a dangerous look. Mia shrugged at him apologetically, but Jacobs' eyes didn't leave the arena, nor did his smirk leave his face.

Taking a deep breath, Percy studied Annabeth. She seemed to be calming herself down. He noted a definite gulp, but she didn't look away from her opponent.

"Wait!" Percy called. "What are the terms for winning?"

Thankfully, Mia heard him. From the smirk on her lips, the oversight hadn't been accidental. Another test. Yay.

"Nothing intentionally lethal, fight to incapacitation or clear kill shot, no head, neck, or reproductive organ targets. Any questions?"

"For both of us?" Percy asked. He knew Romans. Out-sneaked anyone but Hermes and Athena kids. They loved their loopholes and were good at creating them.

Another smile while Jacobs scowled. "Yes."

Percy nodded and stepped back. "Good luck," he whispered under his breath, resisting the temptation to call her 'Wise Girl', even out of hearing range (old habits died hard). She wouldn't need luck, but it wouldn't hurt. Still, he was glad he'd gone over some basics with her that morning. They needed to earn the Romans' respect to get them out of this siege and prepare for Kronos' war. He didn't think they could truly beat Kronos without Camp Jupiter's help. Those kinds of stakes would make anyone nervous.

Fortunately, he and Annabeth both worked better under pressure.

Mia shouted for the match to start and the crowd picked up, calling out and cheering. Percy tuned them out. From the look on Annabeth's face, she did too. She took a defensive stance behind her shield, eyes narrowed and already searching for openings to take advantage of. The guy they'd sent for her was probably twice her height and three times around. Not fair by any means. Good thing they hadn't expected fair.

In her opponent's favor, he didn't seem to be the type to rush forward blindly. He also took a defensive stance and inched forward with his own narrowed expression. That was good because Annabeth had time to make plans, but also very much not good as it meant he was taking her seriously and playing defensive.

The crowd didn't seem to like the fact that Annabeth wasn't moving at all, and that her opponent was being careful. The cheers turned to boos and other less than pleasant shouts.

Then, to everyone's surprise, Annabeth squatted down. With her position and the shield she rested on the ground in front of her, Percy couldn't see what she was doing. The crowd quieted down for a second before shouting even louder.

The Roman demigod had a head on his shoulders. He paused for a moment when she initially squatted down, but charged forward after only a second. Annabeth didn't seem surprised, gladly rolling out of the way as he practically went barreling past. He took a swipe at her, but misjudged her height and missed nicking her with his gladius by inches. If that had been a spatha, it would have cut her deeply. Percy forced himself to remain still, but he felt his fists clench around his own weapons anyway.

She obviously wasn't used to such a heavy, cumbersome shield, but she still gained her feet and took a stance as her opponent whipped around. Why hadn't she used a throwing knife to get him? He'd been fairly open if a ways away…

Hmm. Probably because she had a plan.

He took another breath and waited.

Her opponent took a large step forward, hand raised to chop down with his sword. It was obvious and projected to anyone who had ever fought before, but he was counting on Annabeth being new to her weapons and unsteady on her feet after something like that. Thankfully, she wasn't. At the very last second, she stepped to the side—his outside—and reached out to slice his arm. Gently, all things considered, but she still drew first blood.

Percy allowed a small smile to play on his lips.

"First Blood," Mia called out, looking thoughtful. The stadium erupted. Annabeth paid them no heed as she knelt down again, but stood up quickly, just in time to meet the Roman's sword with one of her daggers. Percy wondered why she'd done that. She couldn't stand up to him in strength. But, after a moment, she slipped to the side. Anyone else would have stumbled, but her opponent seemed to have expected that as he simply turned to follow her.

Instead of rushing, again, he hunkered down and began to inch forward again. Annabeth crouched down to the stadium ground a third time. This time, Percy saw her grab something from the dirt and then stand up again, far more quickly than before. Her hand disappeared into her pocket. He blinked. She was gathering pebbles? Why?

The man surged forward again, but instead of jumping to his outside as she had before, she stepped inside and met his shield with her own at just the right angle. He stumbled off course, but she also took several steps back. She'd braced herself, but he had to weigh 180 lb at least. She probably weighed 70 soaking wet. There was no contest. They managed to gain their feet about the same time, but Annabeth still managed to brush her hand down and grab a pebble to stick in her pocket before he came charging at her again.

This time, though, he feinted. She went to dive out of the way again, but he shifted weight and used a leg to kick out at her. It caught her in the chest and sent her flying. The crowd went wild. Percy felt his fingernails begin to dig into the palms of his hands, but couldn't make himself loosen them.

The opponent ran after her, and she was obviously coughing. Then she reached into her pocket. The one that held the stones. She looked back at the approaching man, but why wasn't she getting up? Had he hit her that hard? Percy bit his lip, keeping his powers under tight control. Some clouds still began to gather overhead.

Then Annabeth threw her hand out. The calculation for the timing and amount of force she'd have to use was insane, but she'd done it, somehow. Several pebbles flew from her hand, landing just as his foot slammed down on top of several of them. It wasn't much, it only barely caused him to stumble, but it was enough for Annabeth. She launched forward from the ground, into his legs with her shield, managed to slide to the side as he toppled forward, and jumped onto his back. In moments, she held her dagger to the back of his neck under his helmet.

An obvious kill shot.

The arena went silent for a good five seconds.

"Winner, Annabeth Chase," Mia announced, eyebrows mid-way through her forehead.

Percy let out a breath he'd been holding, feeling the tension go out of his body as Annabeth stepped off her opponent, nodded politely to him, and turned to walk back towards Percy.

He grinned.

Elated, she returned it.

After several loud seconds, Mia held her hand up and the crowd died down. "Percy Jackson," she called. Smiling at Annabeth, he strode forward as her opponent retreated, seemingly in a daze. The man that walked through the doors on the opposite side, passing the first guy, was somehow even larger.

They probably thought it would intimidate him. Instead, Percy grinned and swung his sword around. This would be fun.

He didn't know what the Romans thought he'd get when his sword clashed with a guy almost twice his size, but a sharp grin and an excitement whirling around him probably wasn't it. The guy was pretty skilled, but much like with Annabeth's fight, there were ways around it. He could stop the guy's swings, but it took too much effort, so he misdirected, parried, and moved. Keeping part of his demigod brain on his feet, he practically whirled around the guy, overwhelming him with the sheer amount of swings he took.

Swarming was a valid tactic.

He got first blood, and then—even though the guy managed to nick him a couple of times—managed to make him lose his balance and fall back with a thud. He looked up to Percy, holding Riptide to his opponent's throat. A mix of fear, respect, and resentment shot through the Roman's eyes.

"Could you even kill anything with that?" he sneered. "That's not imperial gold."

Right, they didn't have celestial bronze. For a moment, he froze, but centuries of experience made him mentally shove right through that and shrug.

"First, that's not the point." Mia must have announced his win because the stadium erupted. He dropped his sword. "Second, this is something my dad gave me." He shrugged and turned to walk away, keeping half of his attention on the guy. He'd been attacked from behind too many times to do otherwise. Thankfully, the guy wasn't stupid.

"Nice job," Annabeth said as she got back to him, looking impressed.

He grinned. "Thanks. Did that help you at all?"

She smiled. "Definitely."

He shot her his shark grin. "Good. Take the next guy out."

Her smile widened, gaining an amused and far more confident edge. She nodded and walked out into the stadium again.

Her next opponent looked to be on the older side. Maybe in his forties? Fifties? Definitely ancient for a Greek demigod. He noted Annabeth's jaw tightening and wondered if she'd thought the same thing, or if she was just focused on her match. She would have noticed either way, but he wouldn't put it past her to file the thought away to examine later.

The Roman bowed respectfully, and Annabeth did the same, though she didn't take her eyes off of him. He smiled and said something to her Percy couldn't hear. It didn't tick her off, making her tip her head to the side thoughtfully and nodding before retaking her stance.

Mia announced the beginning of the fight, and the man shot forward.

First was strength. Second was skill, apparently, because this man knew how to fight. Almost immediately, he had Annabeth on the back foot just through sheer experience, and while she held her own, Percy found himself biting his lip in worry. She was still just a thirteen-year-old. Admittedly, a thirteen-year-old who had grown up fighting for her life, but still.

This still went beyond unfair.

And then she showed her intelligence again by managing to rip her shield off of her arm and throw it in under a second. Just… how? Then again, that was his Wise…

Styx. He needed to get a handle on that.

Her opponent was not expecting that, knocking it to the side in confusion and turning to see her rushing at him right afterwards. He blinked and moved to stop her, but didn't seem to notice her twitching her arm and allowing one of her other daggers to fall into it, at least not until she'd knocked his sword out of the way with her right hand, but thrust her hand up, pushing the sword out of the way. The guy's eyes widened as he noticed her sacrificing her second weapon. He looked down just in time to see her holding her left hand dagger to his stomach, aimed up towards his heart.

The arena fell silent again.

Percy grinned. The man said something that looked like 'that was foolish'.

She mouthed something back, probably something about how it had worked. He shook his head, somehow managing to give off an air of disappointment and surprised amusement simultaneously. He also looked up at the box and nodded.

"Winner, Annabeth Chase." Even Mia sounded flabbergasted. Instead of cheers and shouts, shocked whispers and murmurs spread over the arena.

Yeah, screw that.

"Yeah!" he yelled. "Go Annabeth!" He clapped for her. That did start applause from the stadium. She turned around to glare at him, cheeks red from embarrassment. Her opponent smiled, said something that had her huffing, and then bowed as he turned to leave. She bowed back, but hurried towards him, not meeting his eyes.

He frowned, wanting to ask what the man said, but then Mia called his name. His mouth clopped closed in frustration, but he tried to look confident as he walked towards the center of the arena.

The girl they put him against was younger this time. Younger and fast. Really fast. No sooner had their match started than she was in front of him, swinging her sword for his neck. He managed to stop her, but she almost seemed to be a blur. It wouldn't be a problem were he still a god, but this was unnaturally fast. Like…

Like Hermes fast. Or Mercury.

Oh.

Well, fine. If she wanted to bring powers into it, he would oblige. He reached for his canteen, twisting the cap open. She noticed and she shot her spatha out to that side. He dodged—barely—but the canteen at his side was suddenly gone. With a metallic thump, it fell to the ground, spilling most of its contents.

The girl grinned smugly. "Oops. Did I spill your water?"

Oh, she was gloating. Percy blinked at her, then smiled. It wasn't a nice smile. She faltered.

He still reached out to the water, easily separated it from the dirt on the ground, not caring if it was a little muddy, and then drew it up to hover over his hand in a bubble.

"Don't worry about it," he replied. Her eyes went wide and her confidence shattered. He didn't wait for her to regain her emotional balance, launching at her and swinging as fast as he could. If he hadn't caught her off guard, he didn't doubt she would have met him blow for blow, easily matching him even if she didn't understand his fighting style yet.

Then her determination hardened and she managed to duck one of his swings and get first blood. He still rolled to the side in time to avoid anything more, but he had to admit he was impressed. She kept an eye on the sphere of water he kept floating around him, but he'd been around the block more than a couple of times. And Annabeth had been his best friend and wife in another life. He knew how to strategize.

So he broke off a small bubble, a fraction of the size of the water from the canteen, when he blocked the floating ball from her view. Then he just had to wait for her to step near it… there. She didn't notice it rising into the air behind her, or him hardening the outside into ice so the middle was still liquid and easily controllable.

The crowd sure did, yelling and screaming at her, but she'd tuned them out. Good.

He waited until she jumped back to regather herself, and then stood straight, holding his hands up. She blinked, surprised.

"That's game."

"What do you mean?" she asked angrily.

He raised an eyebrow and tapped his neck. One of her hands rose to her neck to find the small knife he'd made out of the ice floating there. She grabbed it and paled when she saw what it was and looked back up at him.

"But… you…"

He shrugged and glanced at the box.

"Winner, Percy Jackson."

Jacobs looked like he was about to pop a vein. Percy didn't quite bounce or skip back to Annabeth (who had folded her arms and smirked at him knowingly) and their guards, but it was close. Meanwhile, his opponent, looking at him thoughtfully, turned and walked out of the stadium, head held high. Good for her. No, really, that showed a lot of character.

"And as for the final round," Jacobs' voice suddenly announced as the crowd died down, "Annabeth Chase will be fighting me."

Silence once again fell over the stadium as he stood up and took his praetor cloak off. Mia didn't look surprised. Percy really needed to have a talk with her about what being on someone's side (or at least not against them) means. Romans.

He paused at that thought and had to amend it. The majority of demigods. Even with his demigod domain, he could admit that. People could do and overlook some pretty awful things while trying to survive.

Like him with Akhlys…

Even 300 years later, that still haunted him.

Yeah. Focus on the here and now.

"You have a plan?" he asked his partner.

Annabeth snorted. "Athena always has a plan."

Percy raised an eyebrow at her. "You're not Athena. You're Annabeth." She rounded on him, offended, so he hurried on. "You can think things through that she can't—understand things she can't, just because of who you are and how you were born. I think that will come in handy here."

She closed her mouth, blinking at him. A slight red tinted her cheeks.

"You can do this," he affirmed, softening his voice to show his sincerity.

She looked down. She didn't say anything, but he knew what she was thinking without having to tap into any of her emotions.

"Everything I said before still applies. It always will." He took a deep breath and looked back out to see Jacobs striding into the center of the arena. "You cannot be the woman I remember. You never will be. And that's okay. You'll be your own Annabeth, and you will be just as amazing—will shine just as bright, but in your own way."

She scoffed and began walking away from him. "Of course I will," she said, but he could hear the touch of gratitude. It seemed she'd need a lot of reassurance. And that was fine. In her shoes, he'd probably need the same.

She stopped several feet in front of Jacobs and crouched down. He said something to her, but she didn't respond. He just grinned wider. Percy did not like that grin.

Mia called for the combatants to prepare. Annabeth dropped her shield, letting it rock back and forth on the ground at her feet. The cheers in the crowd fell to a confused murmur, before increasing again. They didn't sound happy. Percy breathed, trying to dispel his anger. Annabeth breathed to focus.

The praetor seemed to get over her own shock, and finally dropped her hand.

The match began.

Chapter Text

The two combatants launched themselves at each other, Annabeth with two daggers in each hand and no shield. Percy bit his cheek. What was she thinking? Going completely on the offensive like that?

No, she had a plan. He just had to watch it play out.

(He hated that he had to say that to himself over and over again, but she was thirteen!)

(Hazel had been thirteen during the prophecy of the seven.)

(No, Percy. Here. And. Now.)

Annabeth shifted as if to dodge to one side, but feinted and rolled to the other side. Jacobs swung, barely missing her. She still managed to roll to her feet and took off while he was still turning to follow her. It wasn't much but at least she had a head start. Where was she going, though?

Her opponent took off after her, easily gaining ground with his superior height and stride. Wait, she was running towards the edge of the arena? Why? That would limit her options. A great idea if there was more than one person or monster she had to fight, but one on one?

Jacobs had nearly caught her when she got close enough to the wall to leap at it. One foot on the sheer stone propelled her up, the second foot pushing her off the wall to flip over her opponent's head as he swung down. His sword swing missed her by centimeters. Percy's breath caught in his throat. If she'd miscalculated…

But she hadn't. That was what he had to tell himself. He still had to force himself to breathe as she landed behind Jacobs, who was still recovering from his missed swing. He turned again, almost fast enough to catch her. Almost.

She scratched his arm with both of her daggers as she rushed past him, then backed off.

"First blood!" Mia yelled, then sat back in her chair. She watched the fight thoughtfully, studying it. Percy grinned. They were already learning something. Even if nothing else happened, they'd hopefully started to fulfill their quest.

Annabeth rolled to the side, then leaped up and grabbed the edge of Jacobs' shield with just a couple of fingers she could lift from her daggers without losing them, but it was enough to throw him off as she pushed the shield away, dashing past him. That had also been dangerous, and it showed when he swung for her and slashed at her back. The sword connected, leaving a line of red and a tattered shirt behind.

Percy grit his teeth, seeing Annabeth cry out and her face contort in pain, but she didn't stop, racing along the edge of the arena.

"Is that all you know how to do? Run away?" Jacobs yelled after her.

She grit her teeth obviously, but didn't answer, even as the crowd roared. Her opponent once again took off after her, quickly catching up.

He seemed more cautious this time, opting for a stab at her back once he reached her. She must have calculated somehow because she dodged to the side at just the right second, and practically threw herself on his arm as the sword darted past her. It wasn't ideal, and Percy could see her pain as what must have been her stomach hit his sword guard (not to mention her back), but she didn't lose any momentum, reaching out as he was pulled off balance, and aiming for his side with her dagger.

He hit her with his shield, shoving her away. Annabeth stumbled back, frowning. She'd nicked his side, but it wasn't a killing shot. She got a nasty slice on her own side for her efforts. Percy swallowed, even as she backed up, holding one hand out with a dagger in it to guard her while her other hand went to her new injury.

(Percy tried, without much success, to not think about how much he would love to tear the guy limb from limb.)

"Is that all you have, fake?" Jacobs yelled. "It's obvious I'm the better fighter!"

"Maybe," Annabeth said, still backing up slowly. Percy could barely hear her from where he stood, but at least the crowd had quieted down too, wanting to hear what she would say. "But that's the thing about wisdom and strategy. It's not just about fighting."

"It shouldn't be about fighting at all, with you!" Jacobs grinned cruelly. "That's my father's domain. Of course I'd be superior!"

Annabeth's eyes narrowed.

"Wisdom is applicable anywhere."

Jacobs scoffed. "You think—gah!"

He backed off, throwing his hand over his eyes. What had she… wait. The sun. She'd purposefully positioned herself so she could reflect that light into his eyes from her dagger. The one she'd been holding out.

That had been at least part of her plan all along.

Percy relaxed and snorted in laughter. Then, to his surprise, she threw a dagger at the ground in front of Jacobs. The dirt was too hard for it to stick, and she hadn't thrown it hard anyway. Just what…? And instead of pressing the advantage, she made to turn and run again.

"Why you b—" Jacobs started, but his foot stepped on the dagger she'd thrown and he went down, flailing. In a flash, Annabeth had turned 180 degrees and sprinted towards him. She leaped, once again barely missing his sword as he tried to stop her, but then she was inside his guard and had a dagger to his neck in seconds.

"Kill," Percy saw her mouthing to Jacobs, whose eyes widened in shock.

Yet again, the arena went dead silent except for the wind.

This time, no one seemed to want to break it. Even Percy was trying to keep his snorts of laughter quiet.

"Winner, Annabeth Chase," Mia said, though even she seemed too stunned to speak loudly.

Then, finally, someone began clapping. It started slow, but someone else joined in, and another, and another. More and more people added their clapping until the entire arena drowned in thunder and was screaming in support of Annabeth. She blinked, looking up and around, surprised at the sudden change of attitude towards her.

That was her mistake.

Jacobs suddenly pushed her off, shouting something. A ripple went through the crowd as Percy rushed forward. The match was over! But Jacobs didn't seem to care. He raised his sword—he was going to kill her! She looked up, stunned, eyes wide in fear.

Percy reached out ready to take control of his blood if he had to. Or hers. Yeah, that would probably be better. He could get her out of harm's way without giving too many cards away. Besides, if he grabbed Jacobs' blood, the guy may not survive.

Thankfully, Percy needn't have bothered because suddenly, Mia was there, sword catching Jacobs' as she stood over Annabeth protectively. How she'd gotten there so fast, Percy didn't know, but she'd gone from sitting in her chair, to dropping at least a story onto the ground and getting to Jacobs and Annabeth before Percy had even seen…

"The match is over!" she screamed at her fellow praetor.

"NO!" he screamed back. "NO IT ISN'T!"

Mia opened her mouth again, but was cut off when bells from outside of the coliseum started ringing.

For just a moment, everyone froze, as if checking to see they'd heard correctly. Then the stands practically erupted. Everyone stood, grabbing their friends or families and rushing out of the arena, including Mia and Jacobs, leaving Annabeth and Percy behind with a bunch of ghosts and no guards even.

The two demigods stared at each other as the arena continued to empty.

"What's going on?" Annabeth yelled.

"I dunno!" Percy said, then noticed someone moving a little slower than the others.

"Hey," he yelled to the nearest person, an older woman who was hobbling out more slowly than others. "Excuse me, but what's going on?"

The woman turned to blink at him in surprise. "The bells are ringing," she said, voice barely audible over the din of everyone moving and trying to shove their way out of the arena.

"And that means…?" Percy asked.

The woman's mouth thinned into a hard line. "It means New Rome is under attack."

Oh.

xXx

Even in their chaos, Romans were organized. Admittedly, the legionnaires had more practice and fell into lines and cohorts almost immediately, but even the civilians and retired—Hades, even the kids—seemed to know exactly where to go.

Which left Percy and Annabeth behind. Which said a lot about New Rome's current mind-set. They didn't leave people they saw as potential threats alone. Ever. Neptune said the valley was under siege, but they hadn't seen much when it came to the armies keeping them in siege. To Percy, it hadn't seemed like much of a siege at all. But this? How quickly the stadium emptied and the legionnaires disappeared…

Just how bad was it?

"What do we do now?" Annabeth asked as she and Percy hurried back under the coliseum seats, into the lower rooms. If he didn't know her as well as he did, he may not have realized how she wasn't asking what they could do, she was getting more information so she could make an informed decision regarding her next steps. What were their options?

He opened his mouth to suggest they try and find Tyson and get to the front lines, but their two guards from earlier rounded the corner towards them before he could answer her. Seeing them was both disappointing and relieving. Maybe every hand wasn't needed at the fight or breach or whatever was going on. Maybe the situation wasn't that bad after all. He really wished he could tell for sure and know what was being attacked, but he'd only just gotten to Camp Jupiter and would need time to get to know the valley of this time.

"You are to follow us back to your ship," one of them said. "Praetor's orders."

Any relief Percy felt drained out of him. That didn't sound promising. He exchanged a glance with Annabeth before fixing his gaze on the guards. "We're going to fight."

They both shook their heads. "Praetor's orders," the second one repeated.

Percy's jaw clenched while Annabeth's eyes narrowed. "I've passed my three fights," she pointed out.

"Praetor's orders," was their only reply.

Percy and Annabeth exchanged frustrated glances again. They could figure which praetor had given that order.

"Fine," Percy said. His companion's expression darkened and she stared at him incredulously, but she didn't speak up again. She must know he had a plan. Good.

The guards seemed relieved. One guard led the procession while the other fell into step behind Percy and Annabeth. They didn't even make the two take off their armor. That would definitely help in the future.

The entire area seemed about as silent as a tomb as the four of them made their way back through the streets and out of the city, towards the lake. Percy knew how fast the Romans could move, but this went above and beyond. There were many advantages and disadvantages to their way of life, but how fast everyone could fall in line and go when and where they needed to go was definitely a positive. And impressive.

It still unnerved Percy.

"So," he said after a moment, "where is the fighting?"

Neither guard answered. He hadn't been at the defense of New Rome when the Triumvirate attacked, but he'd seen the aftermath, and as a god, had known Camp Jupiter almost as well as he'd known Camp Half-Blood. It came with the territory of being a god of demigods. There were several points where people could actually enter New Rome, but all of them were well guarded (except for a couple of secret passages, but if the monsters had gotten in that way, they would have exited the coliseum to the battle) and none of them were large enough to bring in an entire army except one: The Caldecott Tunnel*. He doubted the entirety of New Rome would have left the coliseum for anything less than a full-on attack, now that he thought about it.

If it wasn't an army attacking, Percy would eat one of Annabeth's textbooks. Without salt. And then probably go on the run for the rest of his life to hide from her wrath, but hey. So why had Kronos sent his army to siege New Rome? They were relatively self sufficient, and in an easily defensible home base. There was a reason he hadn't before and why Gaea had to send an army rivaling Lord of the Ring's Orc armies to try and take New Rome. So why had Kronos decided to try? To rid Percy of allies? Because they would be easier to attack than Camp Half-Blood simply by proximity to Orthrys?

They were good questions that needed to be answered, but maybe, Percy realized, he should speculate later and go back to trying to get information about what was going on and where from their guards right now.

"Look, guys," he said, "I can't know where to stay away from if I don't know where the fighting is."

They still didn't answer. That was fine. He was pretty sure he knew where to go. At least now he could claim ignorance if they 'accidentally' ended up in the fight.

He was Greek and always would be. And yeah, he had a Roman side as a god, but he would never be one of those super-strict Romans. His Greek self and Roman self were barely distinguishable. And if there was a difference as a demigod now, it wouldn't be nearly enough to keep him from going to help the camp.

God of Personal Loyalty. (Well, Demigod.) So sue him.

To Percy's relief, they found Tyson pacing on the deck of their boat as they were led down the dock.

"Big Brother!" the cyclops yelled happily, almost tipping the boat as he ran over and threw his arms around Percy.

"Hey, there, Big Guy," the time-traveler said, patting his brother on the back.

"I was worried!" Tyson stepped back, holding Percy at arm's length and looking him over, as if to make sure he wasn't hurt. "They said there was fighting! Not in the Coliseum!"

"We came here to fight," Annabeth said from behind Percy. He glanced over his shoulder to see her glaring at the two guards. The fact that they seemed unfazed at her death-glare said a lot about them. They either had nerves of steel or they really didn't know what that look meant. Probably the latter.

They'd learn.

"We're fine, buddy," was all he said to his brother. Annabeth huffed.

The two guards continued to watch them until all three were on the boat.

"We will be guarding the dock," guard one said then. Neither one of them looked too happy about that. Percy understood. They were stuck here, babysitting, while everyone else fought.

"Of course," Percy said with a nod.

The two guards seemed to relax at that. So they'd been expecting a fight. It seemed they had him pegged at least. The trio watched them as they marched back down the dock and took posts at either end. One faced away from them, one faced towards them. Smart, but ultimately useless.

"Percy," Annabeth said once they were out of ear-shot, "why are we just sitting here?! We're here to help defend the camp!"

He held up his hands. "I know, I know." Then he smiled, knowing very well he looked like a troublemaker. It fit just then. "But I'm guessing it hasn't gotten around yet that Tyson and I can breathe underwater. And I'm also willing to bet they think everything with the boat and the water when we entered camp was my father, and that I can't do the same."

The daughter of Athena stood there, blinking for several seconds, before she relaxed. "So, you do have a brain under there."

He scoffed. "Of course I do. I had my fair share of good ideas this summer during—hey!" Her words finally registered fully. "What do you mean 'under there'?"

His Annabeth would have said something about his good-looking exterior, or if she was particularly annoyed with him, his reckless streak. This Annabeth just grinned, raising one eyebrow.

"Do you want to come or not?" he asked dryly.

Her raised eyebrow quirked higher. "Would you really go without me? The only one of us who actually completed their three fights in front of the Romans?"

Percy opened his mouth to say that yes, he would go without her, except it would be a lie because she was right. Of course. If they went, they would be risking a lot already. If he went with her, who already had proven herself to the Romans via their own rules, it would strengthen their position. She'd lived up to their standards—surpassed them even—and she had a right to fight per Roman Law. And from her smirk, she knew she was right.

"We have to fight?" Tyson asked worriedly.

Percy shook his head, focusing on his brother. "We do, buddy. But not you. They don't want you to fight at all."

"But I can fight," he said, unsurely.

"I know you can," Percy said earnestly, because Tyson had been an excellent fighter. "But you don't have to. And you weren't sent here to. One day I know you'll be an awesome warrior in Dad's armies, but for now, you're here to learn how to make things. And if you want lessons in fighting, I'll start teaching you later. Sound good?"

"Yes!" he said at the same time Annabeth hissed, "Percy!"

"Great," Percy said, clapping his brother on the shoulder. He shot Annabeth a look that said 'We'll talk about this later.' She didn't look happy, but didn't protest further.

"Anyway, we're going to head off, okay buddy?" Percy said, turning his attention back on Tyson and clapping him on the shoulder.

He still looked uncertain. "Will you and Annie Bell be okay?"

"Annabeth!" Annabeth said. At this point, Percy was pretty sure Tyson thought it was a joke or something. He actually had a surprisingly subtle pranking streak that had many Atlantis residents in stitches when they heard.

"We'll be fine," Percy assured him. "We could use a good meal when we get back though."

Tyson immediately lit up. "I can make sandwiches!" Peanut butter to be precise, but he did learn from Percy's mom, so he learned from the best. And he'd also said that loud enough the guards may have heard. Hopefully they'd think the trio on the boat was getting lunch or something.

"That would be great!" Percy said, grinning. "Now, we're going to go over here—" he pointed to where they'd be blocked from view of the guard, conveniently where the door to go below deck was (he may or may not have done that on purpose)— "and get into the water."

Tyson's smile drooped.

"We'll be back, Big Guy," Percy promised as he walked across the deck, ushering Tyson ahead of him. "You stay here for now, okay?"

His single eye began to tear up. "Okay," he said, voice trembling, before he squeezed through the doorway to go below. Percy and Annabeth exchanged looks as the door shut.

"Come on," Percy whispered, hurrying over to the side and swinging over. He called the water up to him so there wouldn't be a loud splash.

"What did you mean when you said you'd teach him how to fight?" Annabeth hissed as she followed. He lowered himself into the pillar of water, then beckoned for her to follow. She did, and he brought the water up around her head, trapping air inside, before lowering them both into the lake, all outside of the guards' view.

"I meant what I said," he answered once they were swimming through the murky lake water towards the river. It wasn't the worst water he'd seen in a lake before, but it could use some cleaning. "Tyson will learn to fight. I'd prefer he learns it right."

"He's a cyclops," she said, as if Percy had somehow missed that. "A monster! You know that, right?"

"Some cyclopes can be good," he responded tiredly. "And I know you know my father is the father of monsters. What does that make me?"

Silence. "Not every child of Poseidon is a monster," she muttered, but it was halfhearted at best. That stung. Well, he had scared her before. He probably deserved it.

"Come on," was all he said, moving them towards the mouth of the Little Tiber. They swam in silence after that. Too bad they couldn't water-travel. He still hadn't figured out how with other people.

The river didn't get too shallow to swim in until they neared the crossing by the tunnel, thankfully. A little ways down the stream, Percy and Annabeth floated to the surface, kept suspended there with their heads barely above water by him. He'd expected the Romans to be crossing in straight, neat lines, or out of sight down the tunnel, but apparently something had happened because he could already see fighting in the field between the tunnel and the river.

He cursed. That wasn't supposed to happen. Did a bunch of monsters sneak up behind them? How?

"Is that all the Romans fighting?" Annabeth asked, noting the relatively small number.

Percy frowned. "No." That was maybe one cohort. Not even a full one with what he could see of their wounded. (He hated seeing that). He could sense others on the opposite side of the tunnel…. "Everyone's fighting at the other end," he informed her. Reaching out he tried to see what the demigods and legacies there were seeing. As a god, it would be child's play. Now, he only caught glimpses, but it wasn't promising.

Sometimes he hated being right.

"There's an army on the other side."

She let out a long breath. There may not be a lot of monsters on this side, but that didn't stop the fact that the legion had been trapped from both sides—their rearguard attacked somehow. It wouldn't last, but it could do damage. Especially if they had to retreat.

Thankfully, before they could do anything, a small number of soldiers came marching from the city to the river, led by a centurion.

"Report!" the demigod—the man Percy had fought, of course—said to a soldier who had backed up to take a breather by the river, covered in gold dust.

"The Praetors marched into the tunnel, but we were flanked by more monsters!" the soldier said as he saluted. Or she. Percy couldn't tell. Had he mentioned he hated being right sometimes?

The Centurion swore. "The other entrances must have been compromised." He turned to his troops. "Billy! I want you to take a third of the cohort west. Check all entrances and exits. If you run into any monsters or resistance, send word back here. Carla, take a third north. Spencer? East! Terry, Amy, Brad, Mark, and Anthony? Stay here with me. We'll back up here." With several 'yes, sir!'s, the group split up. Percy frowned. Very rarely did cohorts split up, but his instructions were sound and understandable.

Even Annabeth seemed to think so.

"It looks like they have everything under control," she whispered to Percy. "Do you know the other entrances? Maybe we should head there instead."

"In the future," Percy said uncertainly. "But most entrances are probably not the same today." Not after all the rebuilding they'd had to do.

"The barracks themselves were walled," Annabeth muttered. "The city was walled… the coliseum is fairly defensible, but is the entire valley walled?"

Percy shook his head. "No. Just certain parts. The terrain behind the town—to the north and east, mainly—is pretty rugged. Someone really determined could get through there, but not an entire army. At least, not without us knowing. So no one ever saw a point."

Annabeth sighed. "Probably doesn't mean much coming from someone who lives at a literal summer camp all-year-round, but that seems like a bit of an oversight."

The time-traveler shrugged. "It's never been a problem before."

"Okay, maybe we should—" Annabeth started but cut herself off when another group came into view. Percy's stomach dropped. It was a group of monsters: dracanae, empousa, cynociphili, cyclopes…. The usual suspects. Percy felt himself pale. He hadn't sensed any demigods dying yet (and hopefully he wouldn't at all), but his ability to sense legacies before they went on quests or otherwise put their lives on the line for the camp and/or questmates had always been weaker. He'd inevitably had stronger connections to legionnaires under his domain after New Rome (and later, New Corinth at Camp Half-Blood) fought a battle. He also didn't have nearly as strong a connection to the demigods of New Rome, having not met them. That seemed to be a limit of his powers as a demigod himself.

And clearly someone somewhere wasn't doing their job… or they weren't alive to do their job anymore if more than one group of monsters had been able to sneak around and ambush the fighters from behind.

Or they had a traitor.

Styx.

"No, no, no…" he said as he watched the monsters throw themselves across the river. They'd definitely come from inside New Rome, and he was torn. He should go to the other checkpoints…

Annabeth stared at him for a couple of seconds, seeing his worry. "They could have come in through one spot and split up precisely for this. Divide and conquer," she suggested, though she didn't sound too sure herself. Percy just closed his eyes. This was why cohorts so rarely split up.

He was more than a little ashamed that by the time he acted, the monsters had already crossed the river. It wouldn't have happened as a god—wouldn't even have been a problem as he could just split his consciousness and teleport to where he needed to be. He would have almost automatically done just that in the future, and was surprised that his inability to do so just then jarred him.

Three-hundred years with the mind-set of a god didn't just go away in two and a half years in his demigod body. He knew that. Didn't mean he had to like it.

He really hated how many obstacles he was running into in the body he preferred. Give and take he supposed as he willed the water to push them forward and into the wide shallows. The fact of the matter was, they were at the tunnel, and people here needed his help. He didn't have time to go running around New Rome.

"Come on," he said as he withdrew Riptide. They had a camp—and several lives—to save.

Chapter Text

"Come on," Percy said as he withdrew Riptide. They had a camp—and several lives—to save.

"Right," Annabeth said, and followed him into battle.

It felt right. And he regretted that. Why did she have to be so amazing? Even at this age?

Pushing his uncomfortable train of thought to the side, Percy rushed out of the river and onto the path behind the monsters backing up their comrades at the tunnel. A cry of warning went up from the legionnaires.

"Where did they come from?" he heard someone yell.

Yeah, screw that. (He really had been a camp director for too long if his language was that clean automatically….) He paused, reaching behind him and grabbing as much water from the river as he could.

"Percy?" Annabeth asked when she noted he wasn't by her side anymore.

"Keep going!" he said. "I'm right behind you."

He lifted the water behind him into the air. His gut protested, but it wasn't anything he'd really have an issue with.

Annabeth's eyes widened, but she nodded and kept running. Huffing slightly, Percy hurried after her.

"What the—"

"What is that?"

"Is that the river?"

Questions from both monsters and Romans reached him, but he couldn't afford to focus on them. He only had eyes for the group of monsters in front of them. They must have noticed something from their prey because some stopped and turned around, eyes widening as Percy grinned.

Try and destroy his camp? Not today. With a wave of his hand, he willed the water into spikes and shot them at the monsters. They ran faster than before, but it was too late. In moments, the entire group was gold dust and Percy hadn't even used a fifth of the water behind him.

"Show off," Annabeth said, but she was smiling. His own smile widened, and he knew his teeth had grown sharp again.

He withdrew Riptide and the two of them plunged into the battle. He whipped water around, as fast as he dared. Accuracy was the key. He refused to hurt any of the demigods or legacies around him. Beside him, Annabeth weaved in and out, hitting monsters in weak points before most of them even realized they'd been hit.

Percy's smile nearly split his face with how wide it was.

Their arrival was definitely a turning point. Within minutes, the monsters in the clearing had vanished, leaving tired and wounded legionnaires in their wake. After checking to make sure they'd destroyed every last intruder, several demigods turned to stare at Percy, who let the water drop behind him tiredly. He'd had about half left, and it splashed to the ground, creating a muddy mess or watering whatever plants had managed to grow there. He didn't really care.

"You okay?" Annabeth asked.

"Yeah," he muttered, then shot her a wry smile. "Used too much power. I do that sometimes."

She snorted. "Dramatic much?"

His smile widened. "I got it from my Dad. He's a little dramatic sometimes."

She rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to say something else, but the leader—the centurion guy Percy had fought in the arena—came storming up to them.

"What was that ?" He didn't yell, but he didn't have to.

Percy and Annabeth exchanged glances.

"We thought we saw some monsters and followed them," she said, running a hand over her damp curls. Oh, smart. And not exactly untrue either.

"You haven't been cleared to fight with us!" he said, golden-blond hair shining in the sunlight. And those blue eyes? Definitely a son of Apollo.

"I passed your unfair tests," Annabeth said dryly.

"Yeah," Percy backed her up. "And we're not about to let monsters sneak up on you if we can help it. That literally goes against why we're here. You know, on behalf of my father , Neptune. Ring a bell?"

"Percy," Annabeth hissed in her 'you're being too disrespectful' tone. It had been a while since he'd heard that from her. Not since she got to a point where she wanted to give the gods the middle finger herself. Ah, the nostalgia bomb hit for the second time in the last ten minutes.

Oh. He was doing it again, wasn't he. Comparing this Annabeth and his wife. Aarg! Why was it so hard to stop doing that?

Maybe because you still have the mind-set of a 300 year old god? His subconscious whispered dryly.

Wow. He knew it was bad when he was being sarcastic at himself. Ugh. Didn't he have a new domain? As much as he didn't like to think about it, shouldn't he be able to use change now? (Despite him not knowing how to access that domain at will yet and, you know, not wanting to think about it at all.) Hmm, something about all of that felt wrong in a way he hadn't considered before, but he couldn't seem to define it.

Looked like he'd be doing more contemplating about it in the near future whether he wanted to or not.

The centurion took a deep breath and rubbed the bridge of his nose, drawing Percy out of his musings, thankfully. "You need to return to your ship."

He took back that 'thankfully' part.

"We can help," Annabeth insisted. "You just saw it."

"Not my call. And now some of us will have to escort you back too, taking them away from the fight."

"A fight you likely would have lost many more people in if we hadn't been here," Annabeth huffed.

"If you're fighting with us, then you'll follow my orders!"

Annabeth opened her mouth to say something back, but Percy put a hand out to stop her. She shot a glare at him, which he didn't meet, keeping his focus on the centurion (he really needed to get the guy's name).

"Annabeth. It's okay. However," he took a deep breath, "we can help the wounded. Let us at least take them and retreat."

The Centurion's eyes narrowed, but he glanced around. Even now, wounded Romans were limping or being carried out of the tunnel.

"Fine," he said. "But I am reporting this."

"Of course," Percy said.

The Centurion huffed and turned. "All severely wounded, here. You will be retreating for treatment." A cacophony of objections met his words. Their presences grew in Percy's mind with their loyalty. "That is an order!" The objections ceased, but the frustrated expressions didn't. Annabeth wasn't happy either, but Percy could tell they'd pushed as far as they could go without having to deal with major fall-out in the future. Currently, there would still be consequences.

They spent the next 45 minutes gathering everyone and withdrawing across the river, Percy in front and Annabeth in back of the procession. Apparently, accompanying a small company of Romans back to the healer's hall within the camp's borders counted as an escort.

Once there, Percy stood on a nearby bench, just inside the doors, and started yelling.

"Is anyone poisoned? I can take care of that!"

One of the legionnaires looked up suspiciously. "How?"

Percy shrugged. "Using water to surround it and draw it out of the wounds. I'll need clean water."

"We have unicorn droughts for that," someone else said.

The thing about unicorn droughts was that they weren't ambrosia. Not even close. They were enhancers . Given pure, they could jump-start someone's healing, but it could take a lot of stamina. It purified the body, but the effect only lasted so long and wasn't as strong as was often needed. Used in conjunction with certain herbs, they could make some military-grade equivalent of medications—like antibiotics when given with garlic, ginger, or honey—but Percy could literally heal them outright.

Curse Romans and their stupid, stubborn paranoia.

"I can take it out of your system so you don't have to use unicorn drought supplies." He knew how they were made, with shavings from a rhino horn crushed into a powder, and mixed with water treated by a unicorn horn. Unicorn horns weren't exactly easy to come by as unicorns were used by the Romans and tended to die when their horns were lost.*

Also, the process was both magical and very precise.

"Over here!" Someone called. Percy looked over to see a girl with strawberry-blond hair frantically waving. "Hurry!"

Nodding, Percy hopped down and rushed over.

"He was stabbed by a Cyclops," she said desperately, gesturing to the pale kid lying on the cot, skin a stark contrast to his ink-black hair.

He probably wasn't even seventeen.

"Do you have water?" Percy asked, beating down his frustration at the boy's young age as he searched for the wound, finding it on the boy's thigh.

"Anna," someone else hissed.

The girl didn't even look like she'd heard, thrusting forward a water bottle for Percy. "I drank from it. Will it still work?"

The time-traveler smiled and took the water with a nod. "Yes."

Making a show of taking the water out of the bottle, he let it float in the air while he untied the bandage, already sensing for the foreign substance inside the boy's body. Oh, it had spread pretty far. That wasn't good.

"Can you help him?"

Percy took a deep breath. As a god? This would be simple. As a mortal? Not so much. That didn't mean he wouldn't try.

Nodding at her, he made a show of wrapping the water around the kid’s leg. It wasn't actually going to do anything, but he really didn't want to explain to them that he could control any liquid.

"Hold him," Percy said, then reached inside the boy's body as Anna moved to follow his instructions. Taking a deep breath, he grabbed the foreign substance and pulled. The body below him moved and he distantly heard a groan, but he didn't stop, reaching farther and gathering more of the substance. It wasn't just the actual poison he needed to grab, but the damage it was causing. Most of it could heal on its own, but some cells would need to come out. He could intrinsically sense which would be the most damaging. He could even before he'd ascended. Ever since Tartarus.

Thanks, Akhlys. (That thought was simultaneously sarcastic and grudgingly not.)

He didn't know how long he spent pulling damaged tissue (bit by bit, in liquid) and poison out of the boy, but by the time he finished, he felt as if he would fall over and the boy had stopped struggling. Now he slept peacefully. They'd just have to stop the bleeding.

"There," he said, turning to the girl, who was watching him with wide eyes. "Make sure to keep the wound disinfected and redress it, and he should be fine."

"Percy," Annabeth's voice came from behind him. He turned to see her staring at him as if unable to make sense of what she was seeing.

"What?" he asked.

For several seconds she just studied him, but then she shook her head and gestured over her shoulder. "There's another poison case over here. Can you do more?"

Setting his jaw in determination, Percy nodded and strode forward.

He spent the next several hours treating wounds until he more or less collapsed from using his divine powers too much.

He could tell when he'd gone too long as black spots creeped from the side of his vision and he stumbled. He may have fallen to his knees, but he was most definitely caught by familiar arms. Before his eyes closed, he smiled up to the familiar gray eyes surrounded by blond curls above him.

"Thanks, Wise Girl," he whispered before he knew no more.

xXx

"Sir! Sir!" A dracaena slithered up to the enormous figure, not looking up from the floor. She knew her place.

"If that titan has summoned me as if he had the right again—"

"Sir!" she said, cutting him off, then wincing. How could she have been so stupid?

"This had better be good."

She swallowed, both thankful he hadn't just sent her back to Tartarus, and very much concerned for her future existence. Reforming was never a pleasant process.

"He's at camp, sir!"

A pause. "Are you certain?"

The dracaena nodded emphatically. "Yes, sir! I saw it with my own eyes! Water rising from the river, turning into ice shards, raining down from the sky only to pierce monsters! He is definitely there!"

The enormous figure grinned and glanced over at the cages shoved against the wall with huddling forms inside.

"Excellent."

Chapter Text

Percy walked through the fog as it swirled around him. He frowned. Normally he could sense the fog at least a little as it was made up of droplets of water, but he couldn't here. Why?

He didn't know. He also kept walking, as if his body were on autopilot.

A dream then? No, a vision. It had that feel to it. He didn't fight it, letting the vision take him where it would.

He was climbing something… a mountain? He couldn't be sure, unable to make anything definitive out through the fog. Eventually he came to a plateau, or at least an area that evened off more. An enormous wall spread before him. A castle? Dark and foreboding?

Othrys. Almost as if in reaction to that thought, the fog cleared some, revealing… ruins. Various forms of black stone lay scattered everywhere. The remains of Othrys? But, even these ruins shouldn't be here. It was as if time was undoing itself…

A booming laugh drew his attention. Instinctively, he was drawn to a relatively intact door leading down. Stepping automatically around the stony remains, Percy crept silently down the stairwell he found.

"Bring in the next one!" The voice shook the earth.

"NO!" someone shouted—someone obviously much smaller and with less power than the first. "NO! KELSEY!"

A girl yelled angrily, grunting. Percy hurried faster, reaching the bottom of the stairwell to find himself in a long, underground hall. Along one side, barred cells had been built into the wall. All of them empty. In front of the cells sat cages; tiny cages each holding a human who could barely sit up.

No, not a human, demigods and legacies. Monsters were dragging a struggling girl away from the cages. She had dark brown hair and hazel eyes that reminded him of Demeter sometimes. Or Ceres.

"Don't worry," one of the monsters (Percy couldn't make out which type through the dream) said nastily. "We'll take him next.'

"No!" Kelsey shrieked. "He's a legacy! He won't—"

"Too bad," another voice said. The monsters stopped and the girl—Kelsey apparently—looked up, and up, and up at two enormous figures. The first, booming voice had been malicious, and Percy knew the voice, even though he couldn't place it at the moment. He knew the second 'large' voice too, though it seemed cold and calculated compared to the first. "Perhaps you shouldn't have opposed our lord."

"Like you would have given us a choice," the girl hissed. Percy liked her. She had guts.

The second figure (Percy couldn't make them out) leaned down. "Maybe you'll last longer than the last one, then? Take her."

The monsters dragged the struggling girl towards Percy and up the stairs. He let them pass and turned to follow, but the vision began to fade.

"No," he said, starting to run, reaching out to hold the dream in place, but he'd never had any connection to the realm of dreams. Not outside of what those dreams could show him. The vision slipped away like fine mist, leaving Percy with more questions than ever.

xXx

Percy didn't know the healing hall of Camp Jupiter like he knew the room in the Big House the Apollo campers used for their equivalent at Camp Half-Blood. That didn't stop him from recognizing where he was almost immediately when he slowly came to. More beds, different aesthetic, same feeling. One he'd never liked, because it meant restraints and rules and things he couldn't control regarding himself. It came with being related to multiple powerful sea deities. Although, to be fair, he'd never met a demigod who liked recovering in the healer's hall.

ADHD sucked.

Part of him wanted to go back to sleep, but most of him needed to know what had happened. The feeling was familiar, nostalgic, but was definitely one of those he hadn't missed after his ascension. Perfect memories could be a blessing and a curse, but was something he liked relying on.

Forcing his eyes open, he saw a large hall full of beds in three rows. Annabeth sat in a chair next to him, leg bouncing as she read, something that only happened when she was uncomfortable or on edge. Which, considering where they were, fair. Next to her, on a small side-table, sat a sketchbook and pencils. He could already see several designs on the pages.

Taking a deep breath was enough to draw her attention, gray eyes flicking over to him. Relief flashed across her face before she closed the book and sat forward.

"Hey," he said.

"You. Are. Ridiculous."

He snorted, smiling. At least he wasn't drooling

.

"What did I do to gain that title this time?"

She rolled her eyes. "Only working yourself to exhaustion." She huffed.

"Had to save lives," he replied, allowing his eyes to close for a couple more moments.

When she didn't respond, he opened them again and found her studying him. "I don't get you," she finally said. "It's almost like you don't care about yourself at all."

He frowned. "I do."

"Do you?" she asked. "Because this isn't the first time you've worked yourself to exhaustion to help people. Only one or two of them were even in real danger this time."

Why would that…

Oh. Right. Greek god. Of course she'd find that surprising.

"You didn't expect that from a former… you know," he glanced around, looking for anyone listening in. No one was really close to them, but there were other people in the hall: healers, other patients, guards. They couldn't be too careful.

"No, I didn't," she said. "Especially a son of Po… Neptune."

"That's fair," he muttered. He knew his father's myths. "Demigod domain, though."

"Yeah, but that only explains so much. You… care."

Hadn't he proved that? Several times over? "Of course I do. I've always thought life is precious. No matter how short most mortals' lives are. Besides, I'm still… I was still young for one of them. Most of my friends had only been dead for a little over two centuries by the time I came back here."

"Hmm," was all Annabeth said. He wasn't exactly sure what was going on in her head… and that wasn't something he was used to.

Finally, she sighed. "You called me 'Wise Girl'."

Percy blinked, then his eyes widened and he sat up. "I did? Styx, I'm sorry!" Right, he did remember that now. Sort of. It was fuzzy.

She didn't answer, lips tight as she looked down. She didn't believe him.

"No, really, I'm sorry."

Annabeth huffed. Percy internally kicked himself.

"Look," he said as calmly as he could, "I'm trying. I promise I am."

"Then why did it happen?" she asked quietly.

It was Percy's turn to look away. "I've spent…" he paused and looked around. No one nearby. He could finish that sentence. "300 years remembering your face in that capacity. That doesn't just go away."

His companion sighed and slumped back against the chair she'd been sitting in. "That makes sense. Doesn't mean I have to like it."

"No, it doesn't," he agreed, flopping back onto the bed. It wasn't an awful mattress for what it was, but not exactly comfortable either. Eh, he'd slept in worse places. After a few more moments of silence, he managed to put his thoughts together. "I don't want to make you uncomfortable. I really don't. So I am sorry, and I promise I am trying. I know it's not a lot, but… that's all I can offer right now." Could she really expect more of him? Former god or not? He had a feeling that had a lot to do with this.

"Yeah," she said after a moment. He noticed she didn't say it was alright, which was frustrating but understandable, so he didn't push.

Instead he looked around for a healer, or at least a reason to change the topic. He found the latter when he saw a section of the beds closed off with sheets hung between pvc pipes at the far end of the hall. He could sense people there. All of them were demigods, but his loyalty domain was acting up too.

Annabeth turned to look in the direction he'd gestured, then shrugged as she swiveled back to him. "I did ask. They said chronic cases from earlier in the siege. Though they did just take someone over there earlier today."

Percy frowned. "That would make sense…"

"What would make sense?" Annabeth asked.

Oh. Right. He hadn't explained all of his domains to her. Not really. He should… probably do that, seeing as they were technically on a quest together and she knew about his time-travel.

Once again, he glanced around before leaning closer. "So, you know I have my own domains now. Five… er, six." That still felt really weird to say. "Though I've always had a connection to my dad I could use in a pinch. That link is stronger now than it was in the future." When he was his own deity, though it really had always been there.

Her eyes narrowed. "That still seems really clean-cut for a Gr… er, Roman god." He wasn't sure why she bothered. Too much would be given away if someone heard the conversation at all. They were both still looking around warily with almost every word.

He shrugged at her comment. "Like I said, I was new. There hadn't been a lot of time to get my origins mixed up." Which was still not something he liked to think about. He didn't want other people to force him to change. Ever.

"And what did you mean when you changed it to six?"

He shrunk back a little, looking down. "I… recently gained a new one. Remember when I said something clicked inside of me on our last quest?"

Her eyes widened. "Oh."

He nodded. "Yeah. Anyway, I know that last year, I told you about my domains, but kind of focused on the ones that were really relevant," destruction and liquids definitely, and the depths too, he supposed. "There's also loyalty and—"

"Demigods," Annabeth finished for him, her eyes narrowing even more. "You said your loyalty to demigods stopped you from destroying Olympus, but that's more of the loyalty domain. So what exactly do you mean when you say 'demigods' are your domain? And how does that apply here?" At least she was whispering.

Percy sighed. They were getting side-tracked, but he didn't think trying to keep the conversation at the original point would endear him to her, so he didn't fight it.

"Protection, health, general knowledge. I'm sort of a patron. Or… I was. Now I'm… it's complicated." Probably a mascot. Oh, the irony.

"I'm sure," she said sardonically.

"It's not my fault this all happened to me," he protested.

"Right," she said. "So you can help demigods?"

"I mean, I always have, but it's a little more. I can… you know, can I give you the run-down later? When there's a much smaller chance of us being overheard?"

It took her a second to nod, but she finally did. "So, back to loyalty and demigods?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I can sense demigods. I have a harder time with legacies unless they're particularly loyal to someone or the camps." Or himself in particular, but he didn't like to encourage that. "The more loyalty someone can demonstrate, the more in tune with me they are. Those demigods," he nodded towards the cordoned off area, "light up like Christmas trees."

She raised an eyebrow, then glanced back at the area and frowned. "All of them, though?"

"Yeah."

"How many are there?"

He blinked, but didn't see a reason to not answer, so he closed his eyes and counted. "I can sense fourteen."

"Can you sense their health?"

"Sort of. They're… not doing well. Most are in comas." His heart went out to them. Maybe he could do something for them?

"All of them?" Annabeth asked again.

He gave another nod. "Yeah."

"And there aren't any others over there? Some that don't register on your senses like that?"

Percy blinked. "I don't think so. Why?"

"It's just… statistically strange. If they're just casualties from the war, some people could have gotten hurt when the fighting started. And others could have been traitors, or just doing their job. Why do they all register like that to you?"

Well, now that she mentioned it… there was some variation, but it was minimal compared to what he normally sensed after a battle. So she, unsurprisingly, had a point.

"Do they have limbs missing?" Annabeth asked, the glint in her eye saying she'd just found a puzzle she'd like to solve. It wasn't the obsessive look she could get, but if they didn't reach a reasonable conclusion soon, it could become that.

Unfortunately, he couldn't really answer her question. Well, not definitively. "I don't… think so?" They seemed to be in perfect health other than exhaustion and some minor problems here and there, but that didn't always take lost limbs into account.

"Hmm. You said something about Unicorn draughts? Do they work like ambrosia or nectar?"

Percy was already shaking his head. "No. They're magical, not divine. More than half of the legion are legacies and can't handle direct ambrosia or nectar. Even watered down can be dangerous, so the Unicorn Draughts were developed as an alternative. They're enhancers, more than anything else." He went on to give her examples and she paused, thinking.

"They still sound like they can cure and heal a lot," she said. He nodded. "So why haven't those people been cured? Can draughts not bring them out of comas?"

"I guess that would depend on what put them in a coma," he admitted. "But you have a good point."

Another pause. "Do you… think you could do something about them?" Annabeth asked slowly.

"I was trying to figure that out myself," he said. "There's a good chance I could do something, but obviously I'd have to know what was going on first. And even then, I don't have the kind of power I used to."

"Hmm," Annabeth said again.

"The people behind those curtains are prisoners returned from the Titan army," a new voice had them spinning to see an obvious child of Apollo (at least one of them kept their name across pantheons) dressed in Roman armor standing there, a clipboard in hand.

His eyes rose when Percy's sword stopped at his neck and Annabeth crouched, ready to pounce. His gaze went to the sword.

"That's… um… how did you get that in here?"

Percy sighed and dropped his sword. His Celestial Bronze sword that someone had just gotten a really close look at. Not imperial gold. He needed to come up with an excuse for that.

"It's from my father," he said. "Made of a metal not used around here, and it returns to my pocket within a few minutes, no matter what happens to it."

The boy looked thoughtful, though surprisingly not upset. "Huh. No wonder Terminus seems to be apoplectic."

Annabeth sighed and gestured to the boy. "Percy, this is Marcus, legacy of Apollo." She sounded a little bitter when she said that. He made a mental note to ask her about it later.

"Are you my doctor then?" he asked instead, focusing on the young man. He had golden-blond hair, of course, but brown eyes instead of blue or gold, and glasses. Otherwise, he looked like just about any other legionnaire, lanky and lean, though with the obvious muscles in his arms, he had to be an archer. Big surprise there.

"That would be me," he said. "We have to keep our visiting representatives healthy."

"How often do you get liaisons from gods, Dr. Marcus?" Percy couldn't help but ask.

Marcus rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Well, you're the first as far as I know, but I think that's all the more reason to keep you healthy."

Fair enough.

"Also, it's Mark." Huh. Most Romans insisted on using their full name—at least their first name. Percy already liked this guy. Maybe that was the closet anarchist in him.

"You were talking about the people over there?" Annabeth cut in, wanting to sate her curiosity as always.

The smile on Mark's face faded as he looked at the closed-off area. "I'm only telling you this because everyone more or less knows, and I want you prepared if you get captured."

"Captured?" Percy asked slowly. He had a really bad feeling about this.

Mark nodded. "Captured. That's how we realized there was an army parked outside our door. They didn't come in and attack, they just started grabbing people going on supply runs or quests. It wasn't until Praetor Jacobs managed to escape and get back that we even knew what was going on." He sighed, shaking his head. "Ever since, we've found people dumped in front of the tunnel every couple of days. Usually one person, laid out. They don't seem to care if anyone comes out to check on the person, letting us take our injured back. Probably because they know there's nothing we can do for almost any of them."

He sighed. "I don't know what they're doing to them, but nearly everyone has been returned alive, if with severe exhaustion and, for some reason, gray hair."

It was that last part that tipped Percy off. He stiffened. Annabeth must have noticed because her attention was on him almost immediately.

"What is it?"

"I… think I know what's going on," he said slowly. "But you're not going to like it."

"I doubt I will, but we're at a loss right now," Mark said tiredly. "Please, anything could help."

Percy swallowed. "I think… the Titans and monsters are kidnapping demigods to hold up the sky."

The other two stared at him.

"I assume they took a lot of demigods," Percy said quietly. "Wouldn't that explain why? Most demigods couldn't hold up the sky for more than a day. A couple may not even last hours. It's demoralizing for the camp, it brings down the enemy numbers, and it allows them to free up a certain Titan…"

"Atlas," Mark whispered. "I… their bodies do show signs of extreme stress… Oh. Di immortales. It's worse than we thought."

"Yeah," Percy said quietly. "How many more are missing?"

The healer's mouth thinned. "Close to forty."

Percy cursed while Annabeth paled. That was two thirds of Camp Half-Blood during a normal summer.

"We have to do something about this," Percy said, making to get up.

"I'll bring it to my centurion and the Praetors," the healer said sternly, putting a hand in front of Percy to stop him from getting up.

"No, you don't—"

"I don't get it?" Mark asked. "You just got here, those are my friends and fellow soldiers out there, and you really want to say I don't understand?" He didn't say it harshly, but there was a warning in his voice that only healers seemed to grasp in Percy's experience.

Not being stupid, he immediately shut his mouth.

"I promise I'll bring this new… theory to the proper channels. It will have to go before the Senate before we can issue a quest anyway. Unless a god specifically asks for one."

"And even then," Annabeth muttered.

Thankfully, Mark seemed more amused at her comment than anything. A chill Roman. He hadn't really expected to run into one—especially a healer—this early in the timeline. Though, did Dakota count as chill? Probably.

Seeing that he couldn't do much about it (no matter how unhappy his demigod domain was), Percy sighed. "Fine. When can I leave?"

"Tired of our hospitality that fast?" Mark asked.

"No," Percy said quickly, the last thing he needed to do was offend more Romans, "I…" he faded off when he saw the smirk on the healer's face. Oh. He really liked this guy. "I think it's pretty universal that demigods don't like being stuck somewhere."

The smirk on Mark's face grew into an outright smile. "That's fair. I—"

He cut off when the doors slammed open and none other than Praetor Jacobs stood in the doorway, fuming.

"Jackson!" he yelled.

And that's when Percy saw the real healer inside Marcus come out. His face darkened as he turned to rush towards the newcomer instantly.

"Praetor Jacobs! Lower your voice!" Oh, and it looked like he wasn't the only one. Several others dressed in white lab-coats hurried over, each looking about ready to kill.

"How dare you! I am a praetor and—" Jacobs started, but much to Percy's satisfaction, Mark cut him off. Apparently he was the head healer around here. Well.

"I don't care if you're a god! You will follow the laws laid down by our city and the legion! This is a place of healing and you will respect it or you will not be welcome back! Do I make myself clear?!" Definitely a Roman.

Praetor Jacobs blinked, surprised. His face reddened, but he glanced around at the other healers backing Mark up and seemed to think better of it. He was still far enough away that when he lowered his voice, speaking through his teeth (so satisfying!), Percy and Annabeth couldn't hear.

Which was a little strange. As a god he'd definitely be able to.

It wasn't the first time he'd thought that.

"You know," Annabeth whispered to him, amused, "I think healers are the same no matter where you go."

Percy snorted.

The two continued to watch as Praetor Jacobs and Mark had a heated, but far more quiet discussion. Then the healer stepped back in surprise. Jacobs nodded grimly, as if to say 'now you see why I did that'.

Mark frowned and stepped forward, whispering something harshly and making the Praetor scowl before Mark turned around and hurriedly made his way towards Percy and Annabeth.

"Apparently," he said when he got into speaking range, "there has been a problem regarding your… er, teammate."

Percy frowned. "Tyson? What's wrong?"

"He's currently making his way—very loudly—towards the Caldecott Tunnel, calling your names."

"Calling our—" the time traveler cut off, eyes going wide before turning to Annabeth accusingly. "You didn't tell him?"

Annabeth's mouth thinned. "It didn't cross my mind."

Percy wanted to groan. She could not get over her biases fast enough. Sighing and shaking his head, he turned to look up at Mark, already getting up.

"Do I have permission to go?"

Mark's expression dried out. "Would it stop you if I said 'no'?"

Percy didn't answer with anything other than a shrug, but the healer got the message.

"Yeah. Not surprised. Thing is, you need to rest to recover. After you calm your brother down, either come back here or go back to your boat. I don't care. Just go somewhere you can stay for the whole night and rest. We'll get to any decisions regarding you and the camp tomorrow, but today is your rest day. Understand?"

Percy grinned. "Yeah. Thanks, man."

"'Thanks, man' he says," Mike muttered. "Are you even Roman?" Percy and Annabeth exchanged glances, but Mark didn't seem to notice. Apparently it had been a rhetorical question because he was rubbing the bridge of his nose. "I don't even want to know how Neptune raised you—or why he was allowed to. Just follow instructions, please?"

Percy nodded, maybe a little too quickly, before hurrying out of the hall, Annabeth hot on his heels.

xXx

Mark sighed as he watched Jackson and Chase leave, both steering well clear of Jacobs. Which, with the obvious animosity, was understandable. If Mark had dared defy orders and push boundaries like they had, he'd be avoiding authority for as long as he could too. He had a feeling the delegation demigods were going to be some of those demigods. The kind that managed to stir up trouble no matter what.

He'd actually find it amusing and get ready to sit back and watch the fireworks if he wasn't the one who would have to deal with the fallout.

Almost as if reading his thoughts, Praetor Jacobs shot him a dirty look before turning and storming out himself.

"'Join the legion,' they said," he muttered to himself as he made his way back to the coma ward. "'Become a healer! Your father was a healer! Your grandmother was a healer and daughter of Phoebus Apollo! You'll do great! It'll set you up for life!'"

Which was all true. But that didn't mean he had to like the pressure of the job.

"Four more years," he muttered. Then he could open his own practice in New Rome, or go to school and actually become an accredited doctor in the real world. Or… something. Something other than being roped into the harsh regiment that was the Legion.

Not that he hated the legion. It was just… getting old.

He glanced down at their newest patient. He'd known Margarita before. A stunning beauty, daughter of Venus, the ability to tell anyone their deepest desire; now she lay, unconscious, looking like she'd aged 40 years in the last two weeks she'd been missing. Her long, thick brown hair now lay in a stringy halo of white and gray around her. No color left. Hollow cheeks, sallow skin, and he'd just gotten the x-rays back too. Severe damage in her spinal cord, hip, knee, and ankle joints. Just like the others. Most of that could be addressed with the Unicorn draughts, but not all of it. And definitely not her hair. The aging might be healable… but the biggest problem was the fact that there were thirteen more patients they hadn't lost. Two (both legacies) had been left on their doorstep near dead and hadn't made it.

As much as Mark didn't like to think about it, Jackson's theory made sense. Why wouldn't Saturn want to free one of their best generals? And as a bonus, dropping them off alive back at Camp Jupiter was putting a strain on their medical supplies. There hadn't been this kind of a shortage of supplies in decades. Not since the civil war, when their camp needed supplies but they hadn't had access to the natural unicorn breeding areas in the Cascades. They'd been all the way over in the plains at that point, where they had more access to…

That thought struck him for a moment and his eyes almost unconsciously rose to the door where the demigods had disappeared through.

'Are you even a Roman?' he'd asked. He hadn't meant it, but…

"No," he whispered to himself. That didn't make sense. The newcomers obviously wanted to help Camp Jupiter and New Rome. They'd gone against orders to do so. There could be severe consequences for that, and they seemed to realize that. "It couldn't be." Lord Neptune himself had claimed them. It made no sense. Besides, "They were wiped out."

And yet…

He glanced down at Margarita again. How did they come to that conclusion so quickly? Being under the sky to free Atlas. To be fair, they had seemed to have a very private discussion after Jackson had initially woken up, one reason Mark had waited for them to seemingly change subject before approaching. Everyone was entitled to their own secrets and privacy.

Except…

No, he had circumstantial evidence at best. Mark was not about to throw the entire valley into chaos by accusing Lord Neptune's delegation of being their mortal enemies (next to, you know, monsters and Titans). New Rome didn't have the capacity to deal with that right now, and even if it was true, and those two were Greek, as long as they were here to help the camp, he didn't care.

He didn't.

To be fair, he didn't have time to. Not when the valley was essentially under siege. (Though why hadn't the monsters attacked en masse? They'd proved they could today…)

No, he had to focus. He had a report to type up so he could liaise with the other healers and Praetors (which he also needed to schedule) so he could get more opinions on if this new theory—as much as it made sense—was something they were willing to entertain.

He was busy. They were fine.

He'd just… keep an eye on them. Yeah.

Chapter Text

Mia heard the door to her apartment open and then thump closed, not quite a slam but not gentle either. At least he was holding back. Days like this she wondered why she'd agreed to move in with him. Honestly, the legion hadn't been happy about it either, and the moment someone thought either one of them was compromised, they'd be booted out of Praetorship faster than they could blink.

"Did you get the cyclops taken care of?" she asked, making sure to keep her voice calm. She knew Wade. He probably wouldn't be in the mood to do anything but fight. Well, as long as he stuck by their rules, she'd let him vent.

"Of course I did? Not that—" he cut off. The corners of her lips tipped up. He'd been about to break their rules and stopped himself. She'd have to tell him how proud she was of him later, when he'd be more open to the compliment. "Did you think I couldn't?"

"Nothing of the sort," she said calmly, putting the last of the bills in their file. "I was just making sure everything was running smoothly again."

"Nothing will run smoothly as long as those people are here!"

And there it was. She sighed. They probably wouldn't even completely get through everything that needed to be said tonight. Which sucked because then one of them would probably be sleeping on the couch, but it was what it was. They could at least set themselves up for finishing it tomorrow.

Whoever said the sun should never set on an argument had never met Wade Jacobs.

"Wade," she said as he stormed into the room, throwing his Praetor cloak over a chair at their dining room table. She frowned at that, but at least he hadn't disrespected the office by throwing the cloak on the floor. "They're here at the behest of a god."

"They're an insult! Making out that we can't even fight our own battles!"

"We're under siege. We'll run out of supplies eventually. Having new ways to fight can only help us. And having a formerly unwilling and unhappy god on our side can only help the camp." He had to know that. He was just being stubborn. Or maybe he saw them as a threat to his power? She could understand that, but thought he'd gotten past it.

"They're dangerous!"

Or maybe he was just worried about the valley and wanted to protect it. She licked her lips, feeling a surge of affection towards her boyfriend. But she had to focus. He wasn't done by any means, and she couldn't afford to get distracted. Fortunately, she'd had enough practice.

"Yes, they're dangerous. So are we."

"We're loyal to the legion! They're not!"

"Not as far as we know," she corrected.

"We can't take that chance!"

"We have to," she said calmly, meeting his eyes. She hated how he stared at her with those red eyes, the flared nostrils, the heavy breathing. Yes, it sucked that one of them would be on the couch tonight.

Taking a deep breath, she focused on the points she wanted to bring up earlier. "Wade, what happens if we don't let them stay? If we anger Lord Neptune, we would be making another enemy. I know you don't trust him, but of our choices, this is the most logical."

He shook his head. "There's something off about them! I know you can sense it."

She frowned. "I can," she agreed. She didn't know what it was, but they put her on edge. It was something she could eventually get around, but until then, she'd treat them as the potential ticking time-bombs they were, placating until they proved to be a threat, at which point she'd de-arm them. Literally if necessary. "But that's why I want to get close to them, Wade. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer."

He huffed. "Then what does that make me?"

She frowned at him. "Really close to a strike one."

His lips thinned. "I don't like you near them."

So that was it? No, not all of it, but part of it. She felt her expression dry out as she crossed her arms and sat back pointedly in her chair.

"I know you can take care of yourself," he said to her unanswered point. "That doesn't mean I have to like it, or approve of them. The least we can do is lessen their threat."

She nodded. "Fine. But don't go too far."

His eyes flashed. "I—" he stopped again and took a deep breath. "I'm turning in early."

And there it was. Looked like she'd be taking the couch tonight. Which was fine. She liked their couch.

"Alright. I'll leave food in the fridge. But you have breakfast tomorrow."

"Yeah," he waved over his shoulder. "See you tomorrow."

Then he paused before going into their room. "I love you," he muttered, only barely audible, but she couldn't help an honest-to-goodness smile stretch across her face as he disappeared inside the room and shut the door behind him. That was a first. It just showed how much he was improving—how hard he was trying.

And one of these days, he'd figure out just how attractive that was to her. That would be a good day. Until then, this worked for them. Three strikes against the rules they'd both agreed on, and they would get someone else involved. Separation until they cooled down enough to discuss things like civilized adults. Splitting chores and bills.

He came off as rough around the edges, sure, but she honestly wouldn't want her boyfriend any other way.

xXx

Percy and Annabeth managed to get a very upset Tyson calmed down and back to the boat fairly quickly. As soon as the cyclops—who was dragging a good dozen or so people behind him as he stalked down the road (thankfully, no one had tried to attack him)—saw his missing companions, he ran up to them, crying, and hugged his brother. Or, more accurately, attempted to asphyxiate him via squeezing. Eight years old, and his limbs still felt like tree trunks.

Once back at their ship, they ate the lunch Tyson had prepared for them… the day before. No wonder he'd been so upset. And apparently he'd been up all night worrying because he nearly fell asleep at the table while they ate. Percy smiled as he helped his brother finish up, then squeeze into his room and bed, where he fell asleep almost immediately in what looked like the most uncomfortable position imaginable.

Sometimes he really envied Tyson. Though he missed the older Tyson, who had definitely matured and was easier to talk to, if more opinionated and much, much larger. Still, baby Tyson was adorable.

Shaking his head and shutting the door quietly (not that it would matter) he made his way back up to the deck, still feeling his own exhaustion. He considered taking a dive overboard and, seeing Annabeth taking up her training again (that corner she was practicing against would be completely gone by the time they left, he suspected) and deciding he didn't need to get these healers on his bad side yet either, he let her know he'd be spending the next several hours under the lake resting. She gave him a skeptical look, so he promised he wouldn't go anywhere else, and she finally nodded.

There truly was nothing nicer than being underwater at times. Most of the time, he just found a peace and calm that nothing else could touch. He especially liked the depths, but that was likely more of a domain thing than anything else. Too bad this lake was shallow. And still dirty, but he found that in the ocean too. It still healed him and gave him exactly what he needed—a place to clear his head.

He didn't know how long he stayed down there, but eventually he sensed something disturbing the water above him. Near the boat.

Frowning, he got to his feet and pushed off the bottom.

"There he is," he heard Annabeth say as he broke the surface.

Percy frowned. "What? Is something wrong?"

"We have guests," she said tiredly.

"Wait, we what?"

He willed the water to bring him up to the edge of the boat. So as not to freak anyone out, he hopped over the railing like he'd climbed up a ladder, and came face to face with a much younger Reyna and Hylla Ramírez-Arellano. Oh.

"Hi," he said, glancing over at Annabeth. She didn't seem upset, so that was good at least.

"These two wanted to talk to us about Circe's Island?" She raised an eyebrow at him.

Oh. Right.

"We were a little confused when we got here and no one had heard of a child of the Sea God," Hylla said dryly.

"Yup," Percy said. "That's me."

"I didn't think gods could raise their children," Reyna said slowly.

The time-traveler cleared his throat. "Oh. He didn't. Raise me, I mean. I was raised by my mother."

"Then how were you on a quest?" Hylla asked. "You had to be on a quest on that island."

Percy winced. "Long story short? My uncle—Jupiter's—ultimate weapon was stolen. He thought I did it, even though I didn't initially know about all… this," he looked around, but shot Annabeth a significant look. One that said he'd explain later. She seemed to catch on and nodded.

"Then he found out that I had a cousin via Pluto, and decided she was the one who stole it instead. But Uncle didn't want me on that quest anymore, so they sent me on another quest. I needed questmates, and fortunately, they knew of two demigods not here at camp who wanted to help."

"Where's the other guy?" Reyna asked. "The third one besides you two?"

Percy bit the inside of his cheek for a moment before smiling. "He's getting ready for college."

"Outside of New Rome?"

"He didn't want to join the legion."

A pause. "That sounds dangerous."

Percy shrugged. "Life of freedom. He's the one who found Annabeth when she was younger. Helped her and another girl get around." He shot the blond an apologetic look for even hinting at her past. Her narrowed eyes said there would be a discussion about that later.

"Why didn't the gods come here to New Rome?" Hylla asked.

He shrugged. "I dunno. They're gods. I don't really question them." Well, that was an outright lie, but one they should accept as truth.

Hylla didn't look impressed. "Not bad, but I still think you're Greek."

Percy tried not to stiffen or glance over at Annabeth. "What do you mean?" he asked.

"Greeks were supposed to be wiped out," Hylla said, crossing her arms. "At least according to our records. But Circe is a Greek goddess. And if Greek gods and goddesses are still around…"

Well, Styx.

Percy took a deep breath. He didn't dare pray, because if this got to the gods (or worse, around camp), they may have several dead demigods on their hands. Zeus would most definitely smite them.

"Saying things like that can get you killed," he said quietly, glancing back at the lake. He really hoped his father hadn't heard that. Or anyone else.

"So it is true!" Hylla crowed triumphantly.

"I'm not kidding," Percy said worriedly. "If you try and tell anyone something like that, the gods will kill you!"

"Why?" Reyna asked.

"Because Greeks and Romans have almost wiped each other off the face of this continent once. They don't want it to happen again."

Annabeth huffed. "You should have kept denying it," she muttered. "How old are you again?"

He shot her a dry look. It wasn't his fault he had a 12-year-old brain again. Besides, he trusted Reyna. Maybe not Hylla so much, but definitely Reyna.

"If Greeks and Romans are so antagonistic," Hylla said slowly, "then why are you here?"

"To help," Percy said tiredly. "I swear it on the Styx."

Thunder rumbled. The girls looked up, surprised.

"That's an unbreakable oath for a demigod. If I break it, I die."

"I'm here to help, too," Annabeth said. "I swear it on the Styx."

The two girls stared at them as more thunder rumbled.

"Why?" Hylla stressed again.

Fine. Percy could clarify. "Mainly because my dad asked me to." Well, not mainly, but they didn't need to know that.

"Why would a Greek god want to help us?" Reyna asked warily.

"They're not always different gods… technically," Percy said, slumping down against the side of the boat to get himself comfortable. This was going to be a long explanation. "God's aren't like humans. They're ideals made manifest. So when one culture," he gestured around them, "assimilates another, the god can go with the new culture. But the problem is, the new culture often combines gods and ideals. So they're the same but they're not, and they change. It's… hard to explain."

"They're… different, but the same?" Hylla said, confused.

"Yeah, so when two camps are praying to different sides of the same god for help over their enemies, it can create problems. Different sides want to come out at the same time and—"

"Think of it like DID," Annabeth interrupted, obviously annoyed with Percy's bad descriptions. "Dissociative Identity Disorder, sometimes known as Multiple Personality Disorder. Only one personality can really be in charge of the body at the same time." Well, not really—for either DID or the gods—but that was probably the easiest way to say it, so Percy just nodded.

"It's more complicated, but yeah. That's a good way to put it."

Both of the girls seemed less confused and more thoughtful, leaning against the side of the boat opposite of Percy and Annabeth. At least no one seemed inclined to fight the other.

"Why aren't we dead then?" Hylla finally asked. "If knowing all of this is so dangerous?"

"Will you tell anyone?" Percy returned nonchalantly.

The two sisters exchanged glances. "No," Hylla finally said.

"Then I don't see a problem."

"Are you a god?" Reyna asked quietly.

Percy jumped. No, seriously, how did these demigods keep figuring him out?! He wasn't that bad was he?

Annabeth snorted. He shot her a glare.

"You raised a wave over our island," Hylla said dryly at his surprise. "Lady Cir… Circe said something about ascending?"

Percy closed his eyes. "I didn't ascend. I was able to stop it."

"What?" Hylla asked. "Stop… Why would you want to stop that?"

Percy's mouth thinned. "Because then I'd watch my family die and leave all over again," he said quietly looking into the distance. He didn't want to tell them about the prophecy—fulfilled or not. Not yet. Maybe not ever. He liked Reyna and was fine with Hylla like this, but they weren't friends. Not now. He wondered why he was okay with telling them as much as he had. Probably because they were demigods he'd known.

And they already knew a lot anyway.

"Would you really want to leave your sister behind?" he asked, still not looking at them. "Your brother? Your family and friends? Your whole life? All to go and live with overgrown children with too much power who have little concept outside of 'me'?"

Thunder rumbled in the distance, Jupiter threatening him, but he didn't do much more than close his eyes. When he opened them, the others were staring at him.

"I have a mother," he said to their unasked question. "The most amazing woman anyone could ever ask to be their mother. I potentially have a step-father who actually cares and maybe siblings in the future. I have friends. People I really don't want to see die. But human lives—even now-a-days—are so short compared to eternity. Or even a thousand years."

The three girls all exchanged glances, but Percy didn't mind. He wanted them to understand, but didn't think he really could make them. Being a god had a certain mindset to it. One he didn't think he could ever truly lose again. And, as much as he hated that he would ascend again, he liked that he understood the mindset, even if he didn't agree with it. Especially because he didn't agree with it.

He could be a bridge between the gods and the demigods. Hades knew, they needed one.

"I… wanted to thank you," Hylla finally said quietly. "Those vitamins you gave the other girls… when I took one, it was like a fog lifted from me. I could see every lie Circe told us. It was because of you I realized how dangerous it was there. Us and a bunch of other girls took the pirate boat and sailed out of the sea. It… wasn't easy, but we did it. I thought we were safe there, but we were just being brainwashed."

"I'm sorry you had to leave," Percy said quietly.

"Yeah, well, we're here now. We split up, half-way, you know. When we reached land, half of us wanted to come over here, the other half wanted to go north."

"That's where all those new girls came from?" Annabeth asked.

"New girls?" Percy interjected.

His companion nodded. "A bunch of new girls came to—" she paused, blinked, and then eyed the other girls, who exchanged smug looks.

"So there is a Greek camp."

More thunder. Percy was pretty sure this wasn't directed at him this time. The sisters noticed too because they both looked up to the sky warily.

"But they're safe, right?" Reyna asked quietly, nothing like the strong, confident woman Percy knew. Where were her dogs? Had she not gotten them yet? Had he accidentally prevented her from finding them?

"Yes," Annabeth said. "They're safe. I can promise you that."

Reyna nodded. "Good."

"Well," Hylla finally said, straightening up and stretching. "We are daughters of a battle goddess. I was wondering if you'd want to spar two lowly probatios?"

Annabeth practically lit up. "Yes!" she said.

"Do we have permission?" Percy asked.

"Not you," Annabeth said. "You need to rest still."

What? But that's not fair! "I did!"

"For the rest of the day! Doctor's orders."

"Annabeth, I—"

"No. And if you keep arguing, you'll wake up Tyson."

He wouldn't. Tyson slept like the dead. But he also recognized that tone of voice. She'd die on that hill. That didn't mean he had to like it.

"Fine," he grumbled, sitting back against the railing. Annabeth just nodded firmly. Which was so like her. He just couldn't stay mad.

"Alright," Hylla said, withdrawing a sword—short, but barely Roman with that shape—and grinned at the daughter of Athena. "Let's see how you… outsiders fight."

Percy stayed on deck, watching them switch off sparring with each other, calling out pointers when he noticed something off, and heckling when he didn't. By the time all of them were breathing heavily after a three-way battle, they seemed mutually ready to team up to defeat him. He held up his hands when they turned to glare at him simultaneously.

"What?" he asked, grinning. If they really wanted him to stop, he would, but they'd have to swallow their pride and ask him.

And, as he thought, all three girls just rolled their eyes and sat down on the deck to rest. There were chairs at the far end of the boat, but while it wasn't a large deck, that still seemed a little too far away to speak comfortably and they all chose to sit against the railing like Percy. He'd moved a couple of times when he'd gotten too stiff (something that didn't happen as a god), but also didn't want to move much out of sheer laziness. If he really wanted something, he could probably call up some water and freeze it, although he didn't think Annabeth would be very happy with him if he did and he really didn't want a fight just then.

"This was fun," Hylla said. "We'll have to do this again on our next watch."

Percy blinked. "Wait, watch?"

The older Roman raised an amused eyebrow at him. "Well, yeah. Best excuse we had to come and talk to you without admitting we knew you before. Would be too suspicious for probatios."

Oh. That… made sense.

"How long have you been here?" Annabeth asked.

"Since October," Reyna said, curling up. Did she find the balmy, California winter cold? Although, she was raised on tropical islands, so Percy supposed that made sense. He could barely tell the difference. If she started shivering, he was getting her a blanket. "How long have the girls been at your camp?"

"End of September," Annabeth said.

"I like how you fight," Hylla said. "And I'd like to check up on the girls. Any way you guys could get me into your camp?"

Percy and Annabeth exchanged looks. "No promises," Percy finally said. "Not until the war is over at least. And we'd likely have to get the camps to at least know about each other and be on decent terms first."

"But—" Hylla started.

Reyna cut her off. "That's understandable." She shot her sister a warning look.

Hylla just huffed, brushing her long braid behind her shoulder.

"We'll think about it," Annabeth said. "Maybe we can set up a similar situation to us—a delegation of some kind."

The older sister blinked, then smiled. It was the warmest smile Percy had seen on her face. Ever. "Maybe. Depends on if I stick around here or not."

Reyna frowned. "Hylla…"

"Don't you 'Hylla' me. I'm only here because of you."

The younger sister looked down. "Do you hate it here that much?"

Hylla's expression softened. "No. Though a lot of that is because you're here. I just…"

"Hate going from being in charge and having a rank to starting from the bottom again."

"And they won't let me prove—" Hylla frowned and glanced at Percy and Annabeth. "We should talk about this later."

Reyna sighed, looking far older than she probably should, even as she nodded.

Not long after that, the girls bid them goodbye, saying they should probably take up their station at the front of the dock. Percy and Annabeth watched them go before heading down to make dinner. Apparently the smell of food cooking was the only thing that would wake Tyson up, and he went right back to sleep after they'd cleaned up.

Eventually, Annabeth annoyed Percy into going to bed early. Frustrated, he laid down, thinking he wouldn't get to sleep after all the rest he'd had earlier.

He would never admit he was out within ten minutes.

Chapter Text

Percy looked around at the black ruins shrouded in fog and sighed. Another one of those dreams. That was definitely something he hadn't missed as a god. Of course, then he'd gone into weird trances for what felt like hours but passed in seconds in the real world. Or for what felt like seconds but was actually days or weeks. He did get visions then. Sometimes.

It still sucked, just differently.

He groaned and would have pinched the bridge of his nose if he'd had an actual body. Then he threw his hands in the air—or imagined himself doing so. May as well see what the dream wanted him to see.

Making an educated guess, Percy walked calmly to the door from before leading below the ruins. One too-long staircase later, he exited into a Titan-less dungeon, guarded by several dracaenas. Making sure no one else was there, he hurried past the guards—hardly sparing them a glance—making a bee-line towards the rows of cages.

Seeing the cages that barely came to his waist in front of much larger cells made him sick. He could see the demigods crouched inside, forced to crawl to move. The cells were empty. If Percy had a real body, he would have clenched his teeth and had to force himself to breathe deeply. He imagined himself doing the same now so he didn't transfer his power outside to his actual body. But he had to say, he was looking forward to smacking down as many Titans as he could again.

The demigods he found seemed to be in one of three basic states: Numb fear, where they'd sit and rock or just stare into space, severe anger where they fought back to a point of multiple bruises and harsh voices from all the screaming, or a sort of listlessness that bordered on depression, different from the numbness with how they limply laid in their cages instead of sitting or even curling up in one of the corners. Those were the worst. And he couldn't do anything about it! Even if he didn't have his demigod domain, this would hurt. No one should be treated like this. He had to do something, get these demigods out—

A booming voice from a once-again enormous but featureless figure drew everyone's attention. Several demigods whimpered or shrank back. Others sprang at the bars, renewing their yelling and screaming. A few didn't react at all.

"Get them all out."

Percy wasn't the only one to do a double take at the unexpected—and sudden—declaration.

"My Lord—" one of the dracaenas said slowly, but the guy cut her off.

"Now. Don't harm them."

Then he left. The guards huffed angrily but followed orders, opening cages and forcing—in some cases dragging—prisoners out. He couldn't do much more than watch.

Then he realized he recognized one of the prisoners. Gwen, from the fifth cohort. The one Octavian had killed but who had come back due to the doors of death fiasco in his first life. She looked… tired. Dark circles under her eyes made it difficult to even see their color, and her hair hung limply by the side of her face.

"Gwen," he said, reaching out, but nothing happened. Styx. What was going on?

Before he could follow the demigods or the enormous figure to try and find out, his surroundings faded out into a familiar forest in Camp Half-Blood. He stood a couple-dozen yards away from Zeus' fist and all the traps laid there in case anyone came out of the Labyrinth. Luke, in full armor, sat on a fallen log, leg bouncing up and down. Thalia, also in armor, paced restlessly a couple of feet away, shoes crunching in the dusting of snow that had likely blown in from outside.

"Are… you sure?" Thalia asked suddenly, turning to Luke with a pale face. Despite her typical energy, Percy didn't think he'd ever heard her sound so small.

"He says she contacted him—that she's safe—but he won't tell me where she is," Luke said, teeth gritted as he tapped his fingers on the log next to him. "I just know she's not with him."

Oh. They were talking about Annabeth.

"She should have shown up days ago," Thalia muttered. She put her face in her hands. Percy expected her to blow up and start accusing people—like she often did when worried or upset. So her next words surprised him.

"This is all my fault," she said through gritted teeth. Apparently her relationship with Luke was more different than they realized. Percy wasn't sure what to think about that.

"It's not your fault she walked in on us," Luke muttered, running a hand through his hair. His other hand held his helmet on his lap.

"I kissed you. I should have—" she started, but he cut her off sharply.

"Did I feel like I was fighting? I wanted it just as much as you did."

Thalia's breath hitched as she stood straight, hurt. "Wanted? You… don't still?"

Luke froze, eyes fixed on Thalia with an expression bordering on unreadable, but Percy thought he saw some incredulity and fear in there.

"No, I do! I…" Luke obviously forced himself to relax, taking a deep breath. "Thalia." He met her eyes again, despite the hurt plain to see there. "There is no one else I would trust with my back more than you. That hasn't changed. And I can't see a future without you in it. When you… When we first came to camp, and I had to look up at that tree every day, it took me to some pretty dark places. If it hadn't been for Annabeth…" he faded off and took another steadying breath. "You and Annabeth are family. You always will be. Not even Kronos himself could change that."

Idiot! He needed to stop saying the Titan's name! Though he wasn't wrong. Even when stabbing himself on Mount Olympus, Luke had still seemed to count both Annabeth and Thalia as family, even if he'd treated them worse than the Olympians treated their kids.

Still…

Luke swallowed and seemed to gather himself. Thalia just stood there, watching him as she digested what he'd said. After a moment, he rose and approached her. "I won't lie, this is kind of new territory for me—for both of us. I didn't think I'd make it this far, to be honest. Neither of us did. And we almost didn't, multiple times. But I'd like to find out." Slowly, he reached out and took her hand. She didn't fight it. Percy wanted to back away. This felt too personal.

"But Annabeth," Thalia started, voice quieter. She was looking up at Luke now, like he hung the stars.

Way too personal.

Luke shook his head. "Things are changing. They always do. She'll have to learn to live with that eventually, whether we work out or not."

Thalia closed her eyes for several seconds and leaned her head forward to rest on his chest. "You're right. It's just, I don't want to choose myself over her. She's just a kid—"

"Technically, so are you," Luke said. "I mean, you're almost sixteen according to the gods." He paused, then slumped down next to her on a log. "And so am I, even if I'm nineteen. We're all kids, Thalia. All of us fighting fights we shouldn't have to—they're not ours, and yet here we are. It's… not fair. It's not right. But it is our lives.

"As for everything else, as much as I love Annabeth, she has to understand that we deserve good things too."

Thalia snorted and stepped closer to him. "We hurt her."

"That's not our fault."

"Maybe, but I don't think it's hers either."

Luke seemed to collapse in on himself at that, bringing an arm up around her. "No. It's not. It's just… I'd feel better if I knew she was safe. When it comes to us, I know she'll come around eventually, but she's running away. Again. This time it's from me. From us. She's either been in this camp, near me, or with her father for the last five years. Before this summer, the only time she'd ever been out of camp was to see her family. And that never worked out. Now that I don't know where she is…" his voice cracked a little before he faded off.

Thalia frowned. "Luke," she said quietly, "you said it yourself: things are changing. You're right. And maybe some of that change is letting her have more freedom."

"She's twelve."

"I was younger when I met you."

"That doesn't make it any better. That doesn't make any of this any better!"

"No," Thalia said with a sigh. "But it is our lives."

Luke snorted weakly. "Throwing my own words back at me?"

She shrugged and looked up at him, leaning close. "I say things how I see them. It's why you love me."

"Well," he started, voice shaking but a mischievous smile tugging at his lips.

Thalia stepped back and punched his arm. "Shut up. You do. Besides, I'll do whatever I have to—beat you however many times it takes—to make you see that."

The older teen's smile grew a little more genuine. "I was wondering when you'd bring violence into it."

Thalia rolled her eyes and leaned up to kiss Luke quickly before stepping away and going back to pacing. "Okay, so here's the plan: We wait until New Years. If we haven't heard from Annabeth by then, we ask for a quest. If we're refused, we leave camp anyway."

Luke laughed out loud, still a little weak, but far less tense. He also reached out and snagged her as she walked by, bringing her close to him. She shrieked for a moment, but the smile on her face said she didn't mind. "We'll be kicked out," he said quietly, warmly. Percy really didn't want to be here any longer.

After a moment, Thalia shrugged. "So? It isn't like we didn't live on our own for over a year before. We can do it again. Annabeth's worth it. Things may be changing, but if we need to show her we still care for her—will always care for her—no matter what, then so be it."

"You—" he started, but a new voice cut him off.

"Hey!" Ray, an older camper from the Ares cabin (though still younger than Luke) came storming up to them. "What are you two doing? You're supposed to be guarding the entrance to the Labyrinth! Not cuddling your S.O.!"

Thalia rolled her eyes. "We're watching."

"No, you're…" Ray continued but his voice faded out.

Percy didn't snap awake, but he was alert almost immediately. He lay in bed, staring at the ceiling as he went over the dreams, both ominous in their own ways. He didn't like what he'd seen in Orthrys. They were planning something and he had no idea what to do to prepare for it. Maybe there was nothing to do except get stronger—gain more control over his demigod power.

Then there was Annabeth, who was obviously pushing Thalia and Luke away due to… well, there were a couple of options, despite what she'd said earlier. That could have some nasty future ramifications with camp unity and their relationship with the hunters…

Percy blinked as something occurred to him. Thalia had been part of the hunters for so long they were practically synonymous in his mind. But that wasn't the case here. Thalia seemed more than willing to try a relationship with Luke, and only girls who had never been in a relationship with a man were allowed in, as far as he knew. Though he didn't know the specifics… he'd never really wanted to.

So even if things didn't work out with Luke, Thalia… likely wouldn't be entering the hunters.

She wouldn't be a hunter.

Annabeth had hinted as much before but… it hadn't processed until that dream. Why did it feel like a bigger gut-punch than all the Orthrys revelations? Like someone had stolen the breath from his lungs, laughing at him as he choked on air.

Like he had with Akhlys…

No. Why did he think of that? (Why did he always think of that when something took him by surprise? Even after he'd talked about it.) Back to Thalia not being in the hunt.

It took him a minute to realize why that bothered him so much. She wouldn't be immortal. In the future, he'd had two friends still alive from this time period: Tyson and Thalia. Grover had just died, leaving only those two and him. He'd already known having his family and friends die on him again would destroy him just as it had the first time. He remembered each and every one of their deaths. But he'd still had people to hold him together, and now having one less in the future…

He wanted to be sick.

And how awful was he for thinking that? Thalia had the potential to be happy here, and he wanted her to give all that up just so he could have her as a friend in the future? Di Immortales, he really was becoming one of them!

And yet, the idea of living his life in the future alone, with only his divine family there…

The boat began to rock. He barely noticed.

They weren't so bad. They really weren't. They were just… Greek gods. Selfish and self-centered for the most part. He'd felt like he always had to walk on eggshells around them. Everyone except Tyson…

His breath was coming in too fast. He had to calm down, but he couldn't seem to make himself. Every time he tried, Thalia's face under her silver tiara flashed through his mind. He could almost picture her dead, like Joon had been, his face pale with the loss of blood. He'd been on a quest, and Percy could only interfere so much. Or Sara, with her throat basically gone… or Billy, or Aaron, or Jess, or Binna, or Chae-Yeong, or Abbo, or Imani, or Mensa, or James, or Taylor or any one of the hundreds of other children he'd failed over the centuries.

And this time, Thalia would be one of them. One less tie to his humanity—

And he was doing it again! This wasn't about him! It was about Thalia and the fact that she wouldn't be alive and just how much had he changed?

Your consequences overdue.

The words struck him, even if that prophecy had been fulfilled. How many consequences of his meddling did he not see? Did he not—

"Percy!"

"Big Brother!"

He barely heard the voices in his room as his thoughts continued to spiral, like the walls of a hurricane. Faces kept flashing before his eyes, all lifeless, all dead. Thalia was there too. Some had only been burnt husks. Some had just been blood splatters. Some had been eaten—eaten by—

Hands grabbed his and he looked up, ready to fight whoever he found… until he saw Annabeth and Tyson.

For several seconds it didn't register. He almost didn't recognize the blond curls bouncing around her head, but those gray eyes—those worried, stormy eyes.

"Deep breaths!" she said. "You have to count your breathing."

"I… can't…" he managed to get out, voice choking. Large hands came to his back, steadying and soothing. Tyson.

"You can!" Annabeth said firmly, then stumbled. Why did she stumble? "Breathe with me!" she said once she'd regained herself. She grabbed his hand and put his palm on her collarbone so he could feel her chest rising and falling. "In, two, three, four," she said, "hold, two, three, four… out, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight. Again."

He focused on her face—her eyes, and the way her shoulders rose with each lung full. She was doing that for him, he knew, so he concentrated on it.

It took him a moment to realize the boat was rocking. Again. And the sky had gone dark outside.

Hades, he really needed to get a hold of himself.

So he focused back on the breathing, trying to calm his power and his body. He didn't know how long it took, but when he became aware again, the boat wasn't rocking and the sun streamed through the window.

He looked around, noting the room and the bed and Annabeth and Tyson, both sitting on his bunk. Tyson was holding him gently from behind while Annabeth stared at him, hard, from in front.

"Are you back with us?" she asked.

Percy closed his eyes, forcing himself to settle, and nodded. "Yeah." His voice still came out harsh and hoarse, but not as bad as before.

"That's the second time in the last three days this has happened," Annabeth said, gently guiding Percy's hand back to his side. His hand felt cold when she released it, but he didn't say anything. "Eventually, they're going to put it together, if they haven't already."

Oh. Right. The Romans. Percy closed his eyes again. "Right. Sorry."

She sighed, shaking her head. "Not your fault. Nightm—" she started, but before she could get farther, noise from people in their boat had them snapping their heads to the door, just in time to see Jason and Dakota come stumbling down the narrow hallway.

"Are you guys alright?" Jason asked breathlessly. Percy never thought he would have gotten used to glasses on that face, but now he realized how strange Jason looked without them.

Great. Now he was disassociating.

Annabeth sighed. "Just a nightmare."

Percy snorted again, still hysterical. No, he had to keep himself calm.

"Wait," Dakota said, eyes widening, "that was him?!"

It was getting harder and harder to not laugh, but that would just make things worse, Percy knew. It would be hysterical. "Not a nightmare," was all he could manage to say.

Annabeth whipped around to stare at him, blinking. "What?"

"Had a…" he paused, glancing between Annabeth and Jason. Apparently he and Dakota were back on duty? Whatever. He still didn't think he could have the 'I'm from the future' or 'I will ascend—I know because I've done it before' talks. Not right now. So, back to talking about 'dreams' it was.

"In my dream, Thalia joined Lady Diana as a huntress."

Jason's eyes widened and Dakota blinked. "I did hear rumors about some sort of hunt…" Dakota muttered. Percy ignored him for his own sanity just then. (He needed every microbe he could get.)

"Wait, 'Thalia?'" Jason asked.

Styx. He did not want to have that talk right now either.

"A friend of ours," Annabeth said dismissively, though she'd tensed too. Good to know she was on his side this time around.

"But… I don't think she will," he said, focusing on Annabeth, pleading for her to understand. "In my dream, she and Tyson were the only two…" he faded off.

It took Annabeth a moment to get it before her face morphed into something between horror and pity. Had he been in any other place, he would have hated that, but here it meant she understood, at least to some extent.

"It was just her and Tyson," he whispered. "Just them. And my father."

"Oh," the daughter of Athena said, voice a little strangled.

"What?" Jason asked.

"I don't… know if I can explain it," Annabeth said. Percy felt himself relax a little more at her words. Not lovers, not married, and she still wanted to protect him.

There was a reason he'd fallen in love with this girl.

And he'd lose her again.

He choked off a sob.

"Alone…" she whispered, face having lost color. She didn't look quite as pale as Nico got, but it looked close. How hadn't she passed out from blood loss then?

"Just… Tyson," he whispered, letting his head fall into his hands.

"Oh."

She'd just gotten something else.

Behind her, Jason cleared his throat. "Um… are you… um… is there anything we can do?"

Percy had never seen Jason's dead body in the future, but he could imagine it all too well, floating on the water with a hole in his chest, blood leaking into the ocean. Sky and sea… Jason had gone below the water to save him during the Giant War, and Percy couldn't even return the favor? Couldn't have been there to save him?

He was crying now, and he didn't even know why. He'd mourned for his friends long ago.

"Big brother…" Tyson said, distressed. Right, he was there. Percy turned to him and buried his head into the side of his brother's shirt. He felt younger than thirteen just then. He felt like he was four and crying to his mother as she told him not to worry about what the other kids or mean teachers said about him. That he wasn't a freak or a troublemaker. That they were wrong.

Why was everything negative in his life coming back to him just then?

At least the boat hadn't started rocking again.

"I'm gonna go get him something to drink," he heard Dakota say.

And suddenly Percy felt his cheeks heat up with embarrassment—which didn't help in the slightest. Here he was, crying, in front of Younger Annabeth, Jason, and Dakota. What would the Romans think when they heard about this? Why was he acting like this? He did feel different than when he took this younger form in the future. Was it because he was human? Or because his body was really thirteen? Or was it just everything building up when he hadn't even noticed?

He cursed quietly, hoping no one heard it, but also didn't dare let Tyson go. If he did, he'd break and he wasn't sure he'd be able to pick himself up again. The cyclops just sat there, patting Percy on the back.

"Um… would this be a bad time to let you know that the Praetors would like to see you?" Jason asked nervously.

He heard Annabeth sigh. "Let them know, we'll be a little while. But we will come as soon as possible."

"Right, of course!" Jason said hurriedly. "I'll… um… show myself out."

"Here's some wat—" Dakota cut off as two loud 'oofs' and a thump sounded, followed by more thumps, a splash, and a clatter.

Percy was finally able to look over to see the two boys on the floor on either side of his cabin door rubbing various areas of their bodies.

Tyson snorted. Annabeth looked away, hiding a smile. Percy couldn't see Jason's expression as they weren't facing each other, but he got a sense of embarrassment. Dakota just looked annoyed.

Percy, himself, chuckled. Once. But it was enough to break the metaphorical bands holding his chest too tightly.

"I'm so sorry," Jason said.

"Nah, it's my fault," Dakota muttered, glancing at the cup and spilled water before sighing.

Percy smiled as he reached out and lifted the water into the air. Both Dakota and Jason stared at the resulting floating ball, wide-eyed.

"I can even make sure there aren't any contamin…" Percy faded off. He… sensed something.

"This water's been blessed."

Both Annabeth and Jason whipped around to face him. "What?"

"This water's been blessed," Percy repeated, eyes finding those dark-purple irises that Bacchus and Dionysus kids so often had. Dakota just looked away, blush coming to his cheeks.

"I just wanted to help."

"Wait, you blessed it?" Annabeth asked.

Dakota nodded as he stood, brushing himself off and pointedly not looking at them. "I can't do a lot with my powers, but… I can do that. I can calm people down or hype them up… yeah."

There were so many applications to that, Percy didn't know where to start.

No, later. Deal with the right now stuff right now.

"I… thank you," Percy said, bringing the water to him. He'd dropped anything that wasn't water or magical, leaving only pure water behind.

"Not that it help—" Dakota started, but cut off when he saw Percy bring the water to his lips and drink. Almost immediately, a warm calm washed over him. It was strange. He could sense how it wasn't actually him calming himself down, but he saw how it could help in a bad situation. Kind of like a hug from the inside. Did that even make sense?

"Wait… did you just…?" Dakota asked.

"I told you; I can make sure it doesn't have any contaminants."

"But I…"

Percy smiled. "I trust you. And thank you. That did help. So… how long does it usually last?"

"Uh…" the son of Bacchus blinked, "depends on the blessing and the situation… what I bless. Grape juice holds the strongest… charge, I guess?"

"And probably how fast the drink goes through your system," Percy nodded. "That's fair. Though, have you considered doing that before events—like war games? Or on missions?"

Dakota shuffled a little, looking far more flustered than Percy had ever seen him. "Oh. Um… I don't… want to become dependent on it."

Which was also fair, especially for a son of Bacchus, the wine god. But still…

"Alright," Percy said, nodding, "but consider that your powers are there to be used. And I think you can be more of a help to others than you realize."

The legionnaire looked away. "I'll… think about it."

"Good," Percy said.

"Are… you okay, though?" Jason asked, confused. It took Percy a moment to realize why. He'd just been crying. He didn't like to cry in front of people. Yeah. He didn't bother trying to keep the blood from rushing to his cheeks.

He could still see his conjured image of an older Jason dead. It didn't really bring his mood down again (that blessing was incredible) but it did add a sort of bittersweetness to everything.

And now here he was, calm and smiling. Emotional whiplash and all that.

"That blessing exaggerated my nature, I think. The sea's like that," he finally decided on. "Ever flowing, ever changing, snap moods, snap decisions. I know it can get frustrating."

A pause.

"I thought… Neptune was the god of fresh waters…" Dakota said slowly.

Styx.

Percy just smiled. "Among other things."

"Right," Jason said slowly. "Okay, so… will you be able to attend the senate meeting in…" he checked his watch and winced. "Fifteen minutes."

Percy glanced at Annabeth, who nodded, and then back at Tyson, who just seemed to be watching his brother.

He sighed. "Yeah. We'll probably be late, though."

"There's always a good fifteen minutes of regular business first," Dakota said with forced nonchalance. "Though I recommend not being later than ten minutes."

"Then I guess we'd better hurry," Percy said, throwing off his covers. "We'll meet you on deck in five."

Annabeth nodded and followed the other two boys out of the room when they turned to leave, though she turned in the other direction at the hallway, heading to her own room.

"I need you to hurry up and change, okay, buddy?" Percy asked Tyson.

The cyclops nodded, but bit his lip. "Are you okay, Percy?"

He had the best brother in the world. Smiling, he lightly slugged his brother's arm. "When I have people like you around? Yeah."

Tyson still looked suspicious, but eventually nodded. "Good."

"Okay, hurry up, big guy," Percy said, shooing him out of the room.

It had been so crowded with all five of them in the boat's limited interior. Once the door closed, though, it felt empty. Percy let his smile drop and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. He wasn't done being upset about Thalia. Not yet. Maybe not ever. He hadn't realized how reliant he'd become on her. She'd definitely been like a sister to him.

He'd known there would be consequences, and he'd known he'd have to grieve his friends' but… not like that.

And Dakota's blessing still held, which was good because he didn't want to break down again. Yeah, that kid had more power than he realized. And maybe Percy had needed that 'blessing' a lot more than he realized, because that had been a shock.

"Three hundred years, and I still can't learn a thing," he muttered to himself as he looked for some clean clothes. His father had fully stocked the boat, so there was that, though instead of bright orange shirts, they were all blue. Percy approved, but the blue color didn't do much to raise his spirits like it usually did. He was calm, but that didn't make him happy.

He thought he'd known what would happen—that he'd been prepared. He'd thought he could live with the consequences of staying and changing things.

But he wasn't. And he'd been stupid to think he would be.

After a moment, he shook his head. "Stop throwing a pity party and get going," he told himself. He'd work though all of this later. When they didn't have a Senate meeting to attend.

And maybe he'd head out to sea to do it too. Or, maybe when the quest was done. He had a feeling he'd need a lot of time to think in the near future.

And nothing important around to destroy.

Chapter Text

Percy stepped onto the dais in front of the Senate with Annabeth and Tyson. Beside him sat Mia and Jacobs. He didn't think he'd ever call that man by his first name. The second Praetor was obviously unhappy, but was keeping himself together and professional. Percy would have to give him that at least.

They'd gotten there a little late, but hadn't been called up yet, so there was that. He hoped that if anyone did notice them sneaking in, no one would care. They had other things to worry about, after all.

Then Jacobs stood up. That could not be good.

"Now that our visiting delegation has finally arrived," he said. So they had noticed. Percy refused to let himself show anything other than cool disinterest at Jacobs' words and hoped the other two followed his lead. "We can do a final vote on accepting the delegation into our ranks or not.

"All in—"

"Praetor Jacobs," Mia stepped in, causing her fellow Praetor to twitch. "They have a right to final words before the vote."

"Citizens do!" he countered. "Of which they are not! They're not even probatios!"

And then Percy saw one of the best things he'd ever seen in his life. He saw Mia snap. She turned to Jacobs, fire in her eyes. That did not look like the daughter of a goddess of wildlife, fertility, health, and liberty. Maybe he needed to brush up on Feronia's domains? Or maybe she'd just finally had enough, but that was definitely divinity leaking out of her eyes.

"Wade Jacobs!" she said to him. "You are a Praetor of this fine body! Act like it! We have rules for a reason, not your petty vindictiveness! These three are here at the behest of a god! They have petitioned—legally—for the equivalent of asylum and are doing so simply to help us! I do not know what they have done to offend you so, but you will get your act together or so help me I will bring up a disciplinary action against you! Do you understand?!"

The entire senate fell into silence while everyone stared at her in shock, none so blatant as Jacobs himself.

Then Mia took a deep breath and calmed herself, leaning forward so only those on the dias could hear. "I know you can be better than this. I know the war is putting stress on you, but this is the old you. The one you said you'd changed. Was that a lie?"

For several seconds he just stared back, face unreadable. Then he sighed, shoulders slumping ever so slightly. His eyes left hers to meet Percy's. The time-traveler looked away quickly. He'd been a part of far too many personal moments between couples lately.

"Praetor Parsons is correct," Jacobs' voice finally rang through the room and Percy looked up to see him addressing the senate. "In my rush to protect New Rome, I have allowed my suspicions to turn into paranoia. You have my apologies." He bowed to the Senate body. "It will not happen again."

Then he turned to the trio, all staring in shock. "You have one final chance to convince this Senate before our vote."

With that he stepped back.

That may have been one of the single most amazing things Percy had ever seen. And from the way Mia smiled at Jacobs, with more than a little relief, there was quite a bit of history there.

Percy smiled. He wasn't about to complain.

"Only one of you may speak," Mia said before taking her seat, face once again stoic as she looked out into the Senate. Most of them were whispering to one another, but they quieted down quickly.

"Well?" Percy asked Annabeth.

"Lord Neptune asked you to lead this," she said with a shrug.

Percy nodded, then glanced up at Tyson. He stared back at Percy with a wide, pleading eye. Yeah, no. Percy would never make him do anything in front of the Senate. So it looked like it was up to him.

Repressing a sigh, he stepped past the Praetors. He hoped he didn't screw this up. Calm speeches were never his thing.

"To the Senators of New Rome, I thank you," he said with a small bow before standing again. "I thank you for allowing me this chance, and I thank you for deliberating over our proposal.

"I know my father is not seen as the most… approachable, especially for a god. But he is part of this pantheon. He is the brother to Lords Jupiter and Pluto, as well as Ladies Juno, Ceres, and Vesta. I will not lie and say there is no ulterior motive either. He wants the respect he deserves as a god of this pantheon. He wants a better temple and acknowledgment. But he was tasked with this by the other gods. He—they all—want New Rome to not just survive, but thrive. And he would do anything to stop his father from rising again. Even if nothing else, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. As long as Saturn is a threat, my father will fight him and stand next to whoever he has to. This is New Rome's chance to prove to my father that he can trust you. He is also giving you the chance to trust him, at least as far as you would any other god.

"As for the three of us, we are here not just for him, but for ourselves as well. We are here to learn just as much as we are here to help. Doing what we can to fortify New Rome will only help us all in the future. It is a mutually beneficial arrangement, and I humbly ask for your consideration. Thank you."

Silence reigned for several seconds after that. Percy wasn't sure he'd said the right thing, but it had been true and from the heart so… One of the senators—one Percy didn't know—finally raised his hand.

"Senator Delmatius Priscus," Mia said.

The man had brown hair and green eyes—not sea green like Percy's, but leaf green. Ceres demigod or legacy, perhaps?

"I would like to point out that our—" he paused, and his mouth flattened in annoyance as he glanced at Percy and his questmates— "esteemed guests have not finished the tasks set before them."

"Annabeth Chase did," Mia said calmly.

"Percy Jackson did not," Jacobs pointed out. She shot him a look, but before she could say anything else, a centurion stepped forward. The blond one from the battle by the river. He hadn't been seated with the Senate, but with the guards. Now he stood patiently, waiting to be addressed.

"Centurion Williams," Mia said. "You wish to speak?"

He nodded.

Mia nodded back before turning to the Senate. "All in favor?" *

Percy sighed. This was why he hated Senate meetings. The minutia and back-and-forth regarding whether someone could even speak grated on his nerves. He knew he had some Roman traits, but he was—and probably always would be—Greek, through and through.

Thankfully, the Senate seemed interested and voted to hear the soldier.

Mia nodded. "You may speak, Centurion."

"Thank you, Praetor Parsons," he said, bowing shallowly. Then he walked onto the dais from the side opposite of Percy's delegation.

"Esteemed Senators. I would like to explain what I saw while leading my legionnaires to fight against the invading forces yesterday morning. Due to Cohort Four being on duty on the day in question—the day our esteemed guests fought in the arena—our cohort was the last to arrive at the battle. We came to the crossing of the Little Tiber and saw monsters fighting, not because they got through the tunnel, but from behind. With that knowledge, I sent some of my best leaders and soldiers to the other entry points in the valley, then led the remaining ones to help.

"Not minutes later, we were also ambushed from behind." Murmurs rose from the Senators, but no one spoke up, so Centurion Williams went on. "It wasn't a large group, but it did take us by surprise. I have no doubt we could have handled it, but not without losses from our legionnaires.

"That was when Mr. Jackson and Ms. Chase arrived. At first I didn't notice—after all, how could two more fighters make a difference? But then I saw the entire stretch of river from the southwest side of the crossing to the northeast, lift into the air." He paused. Several senators stared, wide-eyed, while others looked pale. Still others frowned skeptically, but the majority seemed to believe the Centurion. Percy couldn't help his cheeks burning without using his powers, but he didn't mind letting the Senate know he was blushing at the exposure of his deed.

"I, of course, continued to fight, but didn't quite believe what I was seeing until part of the water break off, then split into even smaller, grapefruit-sized balls, and then solidified into ice spikes."

"Ice spikes?" One senator asked a little weakly. Mia sent a frown at him (probably for speaking out of turn) but let it go as she focused back on Williams.

"Yes, sir. I know, because one impaled the monster I was fighting, right through the neck. The monster, of course, disappeared, leaving only the spike behind. As far as I know, his aim was nearly perfect. No Roman met their end—or got injured—by his attack. I suppose he couldn't hit every monster like that due to angles of attack, movement of opponents and allies, etc. But then he fought with us, pulling out his sword and using both that and his remaining water to defeat our opponent.

"I realize that everyone may have been looking forward to seeing him fight you, Praetor," he turned to Mia, "but I strongly advocate for someone so dedicated and powerful to help us in any way he can, whether he finished the fight or not." For a moment, he stood, staring at the Praetors. Mia looked thoughtful while Jacobs sat, stone-faced. No one said anything, so the Centurion bowed, turned, and stepped off the dais, returning to his post beside the other Centurions, who all seemed surprised he'd said anything.

"Mr. Jackson," Mia said to Percy, "is what Centurion Williams said true?"

Percy didn't nod immediately. He didn't want to seem too eager. But after a few moments, he acknowledged what she'd said. "Yes, Praetor."

"You were assigned to your boat, were you not?"

He glanced at Annabeth for the barest moment. She was the one who had come up with their story at the healer's hall earlier. "We thought we saw something when being escorted back to the boat and decided to check, just in case."

"And why did you not tell your guards?"

"It would have been difficult for the guards to reach what we'd seen on time," Annabeth cut in. Mia frowned, but didn't stop her. "As a son of Neptune, Percy could check it out immediately instead of wasting time. I asked to come along."

"That was not your decision to make."

"It saved lives," Annabeth said.

"It could have killed people just as easily."

Annabeth opened her mouth again, but Percy cut in. "We understand, Praetor. Where we are from, we are unused to having to report something like this. It won't happen again."

He saw Annabeth huff from the corner of his eye, but she didn't argue more.

Mia's eyes narrowed, but she nodded. "In the future, we will expect you to report to the correct authority. This is your only warning."

"Of course," Percy said with a small bow. Thankfully, Annabeth did the same, despite her pride. He wasn't sure he had the right to be proud of her, but he was.

"Good," Mia said and turned to the Senate. "Does anyone else have anything to say for or against the delegation?"

"They don't follow orders," the man beside Octavian said. Percy really needed to get his name. "They don't belong here."

Oh. He'd probably figured it out.

"According to Lord Neptune, they do," Mia said. "Do you have something to say against Lord Neptune, Agaur Octavian?"

Wait, his name was Octavian too? Right, the Romans did like to recycle names. Maybe Octavian's grandfather or something?

Neither the old man, nor the younger Octavian seemed to want to say anything more, but they didn't look happy about conceding either.

"Anyone else?" Mia asked.

Thankfully no one else had anything more to say.

"Very well. I call for a vote. To accept Lord Neptune's delegation as he intended or not. All for?" Several hands rose with 'aye's. They took the number. "All against." Hands rose. It looked like more people wanted them to stay than not. Percy breathed a sigh of relief. They probably knew his father would not have taken it well if they'd denied him.

He wondered what the people who were against it were thinking, really. Why did they have to vote on it? Percy had been sent by a god. Or maybe his father was right and they'd stopped fearing Neptune so much as they feared his children, leaving nothing but contempt for the god. Even after three-hundred years, he thought Romans were weird. And really caught up in their bureaucracy. If it didn't have a dozen exact steps planned out with the proper paperwork, it probably wasn't Roman.

Okay, that may have been the cynical Greek in him talking, but still.

"The majority has spoken. The delegation is accepted and we will begin on their goals immediately. Mr. Tyson," she turned to the group. "You will help the children of Vulcan create weapons. You will begin as soon as the Senate debate finishes. Ralph Gergenhouser," an obvious child of Vulcan stepped forward, face blank. He had the typical Mediterranean tan with dark hair and eyes. Also, he gave Beckendorf a run for his money when it came to muscles. The guy had arms as thick around as Percy's legs.

"You are tasked with showing Mr. Tyson of our under-water delegation, the forges. Please begin his training like you would any other demigod."

The man nodded to Mia and then to Tyson. Okay. He didn't seem awful, but Percy would have to talk to him about potentially 'slipping' tools and how if Tyson came to harm or disappeared, there would be no peace or treaty talks. Percy would take anyone remotely worthwhile below and leave the rest of the camp to die. That would wreak havoc on his domains, so he really hoped it didn't go there. But one could never tell and this was something he could potentially nip in the bud.

"Ms. Chase and Mr. Jackson, the Senate will now discuss a potential class schedule and how to work that around the other objectives given you by your father."

Percy and Annabeth both nodded in acquiescence.

"Mr. Tyson, you are dismissed. All non-essential personnel, you are also dismissed. Centurions, you are considered essential personnel."

Percy withheld a sigh as he watched several people shuffle out, among them Jason, Dakota, Reyna, Hylla, and (thankfully) the two Octavians. Percy wasn't unhappy to see them go, but he was a little confused. Weren't they supposed to stay as essential personnel? Or maybe that came about later, with the younger Octavian taking over as Augur? Well, he wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.

Heh… see what he did there?

Once the hallway doors had closed, Mia cleared her throat. "We will now take suggestions as to what we need and where exactly your talents lie," she said to Percy and Annabeth. As if the two of them didn't know already.

No, seriously, Romans.

This was going to be a long session.

xXx

"Are all Senate meetings like that?" Annabeth's voice almost croaked as she and Percy walked down the road towards their boat. They still had an escort—another legionnaire the time-traveler didn't know—but from a distance, so they at least had some privacy. Their 'escort' was supposed to be there as a point of contact. Neither Percy or Annabeth had missed that they were, in fact, still being babysat… or watched as a foreign entity.

Which, fair, but he didn't remember Nico having an escort when Percy had shown up with amnesia.

That, of course, brought up the thought of the queen of the gods. He scowled. He'd gotten to a point where he felt sorry for Hera over the years, but he'd still never quite forgiven her for wiping his memory and literally throwing him to the wolves.

"Don't the demigods here have ADHD and dyslexia too?" Annabeth asked tiredly, drawing Percy back to the present. Even her normally bouncy, blond curls looked dead and tired.

"They do," Percy said sluggishly. "They have a hard time reading anything that isn't Latin." Percy and Annabeth hadn't been the only ones tapping their feet or drumming their fingers against their legs, and he knew Annabeth would have noticed that, but she was thirteen. Most of the Senators had had decades to come to terms with any learning or action disabilities, so their resulting stoicism may have come off as simple boredom instead of the signs they were.

Annabeth sighed. "I'm glad I was born—" she started, but glanced over her shoulder for the barest second before amending what she'd been about to say. "As I was." Greek. She meant Greek. "I like a plan. But this…"

"It's rules for rule's sake," Percy agreed. "I never got it, but believe it or not, it actually helps a lot of people here. It gives them a structure to lean back on. People here see it as more of a support than a restriction." He remembered Hazel and Frank, who had both grown into their own and had thrived in New Rome in a way Percy never could have. But then again, Jason had become a Praetor, but had seemed to really love Camp Half-Blood before he'd broken up with Piper. Had that been because of Piper? He didn't think so—or not just because of her—but he couldn't pinpoint why he thought that.

"Well, most people," he decided to amend.

Annabeth shot him a considering glance, but seemed too tired to question it otherwise.

"At least we have that all sorted out," she muttered. And they did. They'd gone back and forth between the Senate, the Centurions, the Praetors, and Percy and Annabeth to try and figure out what would work best for everyone. It hadn't helped that they'd seemed to accept Percy's power and Annabeth's skill as some kind of acknowledgment that they were an authority, because they'd suddenly started to treat the two as if they could do anything and be anywhere they needed to without sleep, travel, or meals. Or that they could each be in two places at once.

The fact that Percy and Annabeth had to remind them—three separate times—that they weren't gods (yet, in Percy's case, though neither him or Annabeth wanted to inform them of that) and needed the same basic accommodations as any normal demigod said a lot about what would be expected of them. Which was fine, for the most part. Both he and Annabeth could live up to a watered-down version of that. Still wasn't a pressure he enjoyed.

"I really hope Tyson is having a better time than us," he muttered. He probably was. Had probably already made a dozen swords or something.

"Would you like to stop by and see?" Annabeth asked, slowing her pace. Percy blinked over at her. That… was probably the nicest thing she'd said in this life regarding Tyson.

The relief on his face must have been pretty palpable because she stopped when he looked at her. "That's a great idea!" he said happily, turning to their escort.

"Could you show us to the forge? I'd like to check up on my brother."

The man blinked, frowned, but then nodded. "This way," he said, as if Percy didn't know the way. To be fair, they didn't know that, but still.

Some of his own energy crept back into him as he approached the forge, a large building adjacent to Camp Jupiter itself. They had to go through the camp to get to it, but Percy couldn't care less, just wanting to see his brother. He ignored the legionnaires staring at them as they passed.

And he was, for once, grateful to be right. No sooner had they opened the doors to the forge than Tyson almost barreled them over.

"Big brother! Big brother! Look at what I made!" he held out three different swords of various sizes and shapes. One of them looked distinctly Greek, though the others seemed far more Roman.

"Wow, Ty!" he said, suitably impressed. "All that in the time you've been here?"

"He's a natural," the legionnaire who had been instructed to take Tyson said as he strode up to them.

"Uh, Ralph, right?" Percy asked.

The man shook his head. "It's easier than my last name, so that's fine. Nice to meet you," he held out his hand to both Percy and Annabeth, who each shook it firmly. He had a good grip. No surprise.

"Thanks for helping him out," Percy said.

Ralph raised one eyebrow, looking far too much like Spock for it to be funny. Vulcan. Spock. Yeah, Percy really wished there was someone around who would get that joke and not be offended. "It was my assignment."

"Still, you obviously have done a good job," Percy insisted.

"He didn't need much help, knowing most things instinctively," Ralph replied. "Mostly we have to watch out for his safety around others and the general rules of the forge."

The time-traveler grinned. That sounded like his brother. He'd still like to have a word with Ralph later about how he's still vulnerable to Imperial Gold, but it seemed things were going well so far. He hadn't noticed any animosity from anyone else in the forge either.

"Do you want to stay longer, buddy?" he asked Tyson, who nodded emphatically.

"Yes, please!"

"Is that alright?" he asked the Roman, who shrugged.

"I'll be here for a while yet. I can keep an eye on him. Was planning to anyway."

"Thanks!" Percy turned back to his brother. "Just don't get back to the boat too late. Annabeth and I both have to start teaching lessons in the morning." The fact that it was after noon now made him just want to sort of shrivel and die inside. They'd literally been in the Senate building all morning, and he already wanted to go to sleep. But he had to make sure he got good sleep tonight so he would be at his best for his first lesson here in New Rome. The fact that they'd been given the rest of the day to finalize any lesson plans was more of a blessing than they could probably expect again from the Senate.

"Okay!" Tyson said excitedly, scooping his brother into a hug he could barely breathe through.

Percy just patted him on the back and watched him hurry back through the different stations and anvils to one that was probably his.

Ralph just bowed to them and turned to follow Tyson with slow, nonchalant movements. Either he was being meticulous about not being agitated around a cyclops or he was really that chill. For a Roman.

Taking the hint, Annabeth and Percy left the forge, following their 'guide' back through Camp Jupiter towards the path that would eventually take them to the lake and their boat.

"I… suppose he's not so bad," Annabeth finally muttered after several minutes of silent walking.

"Who? Ralph?" Percy asked.

She shot him an annoyed glare. "No. Well, yes, but I meant Tyson."

Percy blinked, then had to withhold a face-splitting grin. He knew she wouldn't appreciate it.

"For a cyclops," she added.

He couldn't stop his lips twitching up as he looked at her. She huffed. "What?"

"Nothing," he said simply, if brightly. They walked the rest of the way back to their boat in an easy silence.