Archive of Our Own ^beta

Poseidon used to have a recurring dream. A majestic creature not unlike a unicorn was running across different scenes that his mind would create for it to gracefully gallop across. A vast field, a wide beach with freshly wet sand, even across the surface of a wide body of water itself, leaping with glee over waves.

The beast seemed to call to him at the end of each dream, turning to look at him and nodding in the other direction as if it wanted him to run with it. He wanted to, badly. 

He did not think that animal existed, at least not yet, so he vowed to make it himself someday. He didn’t want to forget, though, so he went to his mother, and begged her to help him make a prototype so that if he could create anything when his powers came in, then he would remember what it was to look like.

He would make that animal, he’d sworn to her with the utmost seriousness, he just needed a visual to keep it fresh in his mind in case the vision was lost. He’d wheedled her so much, endured so many long sighs, hard glares, and pursed lips until finally she made a deal with him.

“If I make this for you, you are not allowed to ask any more stupid questions for at least a month,” she told him.

“Done. I’ll leave you alone, as much as I can, promise…” He said, his small hands gripping her dress. She wrinkled her nose at him and he remembered his claws, and he let go, making sure he did not poke any holes into the fabric. She told him to draw her a picture of his vision and describe an animal close to it, which was easy enough.

“A unicorn, but smaller and without the horn.” Unicorns were stocky, proud beasts, and while he could definitely picture his creature as having different breeds, like a wolf or different colors of fish that he would see in the lake whenever he happened to ‘fall’ in it again, the lack of a horn would definitely set apart his creature from a unicorn.

“Very original,” she said without tone. She let him select some blue fabrics. “What will your creature be good for?”

“Lots of things! It will not be as difficult as a unicorn, and they won’t eat meat, so that they are easier for their riders to feed!”

“Riders?”

“Yes! Long distance travelling and farm work are some things it will be able to do… but they will still be majestic creatures, proud and strong, but they won’t be as hard to work with…”

“You seem to get along with the unicorns fine,” she said idly, cutting out shapes.

“Yes… but I am not one of their masters. They don’t have to get along with me, they just do…”

“You are heir. You might be their master someday, if you work hard enough for it.” He beamed at her. That sounded very close to encouragement. He watched quietly as she worked, not wanting to get more on her nerves than he was already.

When the creature was done, Rhea handed it to him and stood to leave.

“Thank you, mother!” He said squeezing the creature tight. It was soft, and friendly looking, its button eyes inviting him to hug it.

“What will your creature be called?” She asked, pausing in the doorway.

“The animal creature or the one you’ve made?” He asked for clarification.

“The beast in your vision.”

“A horse,” he said, and she looked at him with intrigue.

“Unique. What will you name that, if you do?” She pointed to the stuffed creature.

“Mr. Horsey!” He grinned, but her curiosity fell, as if she had been impressed with his original thinking for all of ten seconds before it was ruined. She rolled her eyes and left him to his own devices. He returned to his room to play with his horse, and as promised, bothered her as little as possible for a month. 

He carried Mr. Horsey with him everywhere, showing him off to his siblings, who were surprised and happy for him.

He always tried to be mindful of his claws around the toy, but inevitably, one day he tore a rip into his flank. He was so upset, apologizing over and over to the horse toy, who said nothing in return. He would swear that his button eyes looked pained.

He took Mr. Horsey to his mother, tears in his eyes, and asked her to fix it.

“I already made it for you, child, what more do you want?”

“He’s hurt! Please?”

“No. You broke it, you can find a way to fix it. You are heir to your father’s throne, you ought to act like it. Stop your sniveling over it unless you wish me to take it from you for it being such a big distraction to your studies.”

He’d clutched Mr. Horsey tightly to his chest at the thought of losing him, and quickly fled his mother’s presence. He went to go find one of his sisters. Maybe they could help him, mother had taught them how to sew…

He found Hestia first, but she was working on training her fire, and the thought of that anywhere near his precious (and very flammable) toy scared him. Demeter was next, but the last time she had played with Mr. Horsey with Poseidon, she had tied his toy up and made her own doll pretend to save him. What if she tied him up again? His beloved toy was already bleeding out stuffing, he did not need more trauma, least of all being tied up while bleeding! His poor horse…

He knew that she would undoubtedly help, but the mental image was so distressing on his already anxious mind that he forewent asking Demeter. Hades’ hands were large and clumsy around a delicate needle, so Hera he found next. She was working on perfecting her blessings, which seemed harmless enough around his toy that he peeked in.

“Hey, Sei, what’s up?” She asked as shyly knocked on the door. He came in and walked up to her, holding out Mr. Horsey.

“I hurt him… can you help him?” He asked her, looking up at her with his best puppy dog eyes. Hera gently took him, examined the tear, and smiled down at him.

“Sure. Give me just a bit, okay?” He nodded, and watched as she fetched her sewing needles and thread. While she worked, he looked down at his hands, hating the way the tips of his fingers angled into points. He pressed them into his palm, wishing that they were rounded like his sisters’. They had nice, gentle shaped fingers, they never hurt their dolls…

Hera was doing something with his horse, and he looked up. Her hands were glowing, and she was uttering something. His heart filled with panic, instinct screaming to rescue Mr. Horsey from the light show, but it faded at the same time that he remembered that Hera wouldn’t do anything to intentionally upset him like that, not like their parents would. All the same, he chewed his lip anxiously as he watched.

Hera held him up proudly. “Here you go! I stitched him up and then put a little patch on it cause I figured you wouldn’t like the texture of how I did the stitching, so this should be better. And, I’ve been working on protective blessings in my studies, so I threw one on for good measure. Here, try and scratch him. If it didn’t work, I’ll stitch him up again for you,” she said, putting Mr. Horsey in Poseidon’s unprepared hands. She nodded imploringly at him, as if seriously expecting him to intentionally try to hurt Mr. Horsey. He looked down at his toy, seeing his claws carefully bent away from the soft fabric. Hera nodded again, but Poseidon just stared into Mr. Horsey’s button eyes, as if the horse was pleading with him not to. He didn’t want to. His heart and eyes burned at the thought.

“I… I can’t…” he breathed, eyes flicking up to her. Her proud smile dropped. “I- I don’t wanna h-hurt him…

“Oh, hey, I’m sorry, it’s okay… you don’t have to. It’s okay. He’s been through a lot today, huh?” Hera chewed her lip as she watched him, pulling him closer. He nodded, his eyes watering. “Well, he’s okay now… and he’s gonna be a lot more durable, so you won’t hurt him again. It’s okay…”

“Really..?”

“Really.” Hera rubbed his back as he rubbed his face into Mr. Horsey, familiarizing himself with the feel of the new patch. It was nice. He liked it, added some character, and a little spot. Maybe some of his horses in the future could have spots like this one.

– – –

Poseidon had done his best to avoid showing Mr. Horsey to his father. The Titan disapproved of weakness and material dependencies in his heir, and Poseidon having a stuffed toy to comfort himself would definitely be frowned upon. Unfortunately, it was unavoidable that Kronos would  call upon him for training at random times, and one of those times inevitably fell when he was carrying around Mr. Horsey.

“What is that ,” Kronos said when Poseidon arrived at their training spot by the lake. Disgust laced his voice, and he frowned down at Poseidon, who quickly put Mr. Horsey down among his other things.

“It’s nothing, sir…” he said, before remembering himself. Kronos would never let that answer fly.. “A creature… I kept dreaming about it, so mother was so kind as to help me put it into a temporary physical form so that I could remember it for my later years.”

“Why have you brought it to training?”

“I did not have time to put it back in my room, sir. I know you expect expediency, I did not want to make you wait.” He bowed quickly, using his respectful words that he was taught to use when spoken to by someone above him.

“A good titan would be able to merely remember the creature for later. To have a toy made of it is foolish and a waste of your mother’s time.”

“Y-yes, sir, I know, sir… please forgive me, I am not yet a good titan like you are…”

“That you are not,” his father sneered. He reached over Poseidon to inspect Mr. Horsey, and Poseidon’s final mistake was stepping back instinctively in his way to protect his horse. Kronos growled at him, and shoved him away with the very hand reaching for the toy. Poseidon scrambled to his feet anxiously as Mr. Horsey was lifted up, up, up into the air and far out of his reach. 

“This is pathetic. You should be grateful your mother chose to waste such precious time on you.”

“I know, sir…” he said, his voice thin to his own ears, he could not imagine how it sounded to his father’s. Kronos scoffed. 

“You are worried about the toy? Titans do not bother with things as inconsequential as worry. This will teach you proper materialism,” he said, before tossing Mr. Horsey behind him, Poseidon watching, his stomach tight, as he sailed through the air and fell into the lake. He stared at the spot that Mr. Horsey had disappeared, mentally tacking on ability to swim onto his list for the real creatures later on, wishing, hoping, praying that somehow, life would be breathed into Mr. Horsey, and he would resurface. He didn’t.

A blow thudded against his side, knocking him to the ground once more. His ribs protested as he pushed himself up. He lost the point where Mr. Horsey fell in. When he looked up, father was angry. Properly so, now, probably because Poseidon had given too much attention to a toy beyond his reach now. Poseidon stepped back from his father slightly, wincing away from his anger.

“If you deem that thing as more important to your lessons, then you may go in and get it yourself! Stay in there, for all I care, while you’re at it!” Poseidon scrambled back as one of his father’s large hands moved to close around him, which really only made Kronos grip tighter, his grip crushing, squeezing his already bruised side. He could feel his father’s arm moving, and the world spun around him as he was thrown into the air. He gasped for a new breath, before smacking into the surface of the water.

Permission granted to search for his toy, his eyes opened underwater as the initial sting of impact faded. He tried to kick to see where he landed. He could be so far off from where Mr. Horsey was, and he’d have no idea. The lake was vast and deep, Mr. Horsey could be far beyond his reach still.

He was barely able to breach the surface to get a breath and to see his father walking away towards the palace. He couldn’t tell how far he was from the shore, couldn’t remember where his horse fell. His limited swimming ability failed him, and he went under once more. He looked around desperately, in between trying to struggle to the surface for more air. He kept trying, but he just sank further and further each time.

As the minutes passed, his lungs burned, his vision began to get blurry, and his body grew tired. This was not exactly a still lake, it always spit him out eventually, somehow, so he knew that eventually, even if air and his body failed him again, he would make it back to shore. Always did. He wasn’t so sure about Mr. Horsey. A fish might eat him, or he might just fall apart here in the cold water. The thought had him curling up into a little ball as he sank. Maybe he should stay down here, too. His father would undoubtedly be pleased, not having a disappointment for an heir. Mother wouldn’t care… his siblings would be sad, but they would probably eventually get over it… maybe… or he would just be dooming them to a long while of misery and grief until his parents chose to replace him with a new little brother for them.

A current brushed by him, and he opened his eyes, black forming around the edges of his vision. He hadn’t quite mastered the ability to turn off the need for air, but maybe down here he’d get it. Maybe he’d breathe water, instead.

The current brushed him again, but this time he saw a face peer out of the dark, seeming to solidify from the water. It smiled at him, full of fangs, but a friendly smile all the same. He smiled back, doing his best to do so despite not feeling very smiley right then. The face seemed excited by his sharp teeth, pointing at their own as more of their body revealed itself. Naiad , his mind whispered. Freshwater nymph. He waved, and they waved back before seeing that he had claws like theirs, and getting more excited. Then they pointed at his legs, and gestured to their own tail, as if asking where his was. He shook his head, and they frowned. He pointed up, and their eyes widened. They turned, waved at the water, and a current pulled forth a familiar blue horse. He lit up, grabbing Mr. Horsey when he came near, and hugging him tight. He did his best to thank the naiad, but black was still encroaching on his vision.

With the last dredges of consciousness he had, he felt the naiad grab a hold of him and start pulling, swimming quickly with him in tow. He tightened his grip on Mr. Horsey, determined not to lose him again as his vision finally faded.

When he woke up, there were four concerned faces above him. It was dark now, and his body hurt. He coughed slightly, and water surged up and out of him, and he was quickly turned onto his side until he stopped coughing up water. He felt wrung out when he was, flopping onto his back. His side ached, not helped by being rolled into it. 

His hand was clenched tight around something, and he looked down, relieved to see Mr. Horsey still with him.

“Are you okay?” Hades was asking, looking stressed and worried. He blinked as the question processed, before nodding. “You weren’t at dinner, father said you’d gone for a swim…”

Well father wasn’t wrong on that, he guessed. It was unfortunate that he’d missed dinner, he was starving.

“Fell in during training…” he muttered, looking away. He felt a hand touch his wrist and start to pry open his hand from around Mr. Horsey, and he panicked, gnashing his teeth in warning.

“It’s okay… I’m just gonna dry him for you, that’s all…” Hestia said, and he reluctantly let go. Hades helped him sit up, and he leaned back against his sibling, watching with trepidation as Hestia squeezed water out of Mr. Horsey, wringing him out before holding him over her hand, which ignited. Poseidon watched, hoping Hera’s blessing would hold fast on his horse. 

It did. Soon, Mr. Horsey was drier than he was, and Hestia helped him dry off, too, hugging him and spreading warmth over his body until he stopped shivering and water rolled off in steam from his clothes. When he was dry enough, Mr. Horsey was placed back in his hands. He hugged him tight.

“Did father try to take him from you?” Demeter asked gently. Poseidon glanced nervously at the lake before nodding. “Maybe leave him in your room from now on until after dinner…” He nodded. Mr. Horsey had definitely earned himself a long reprieve from all this stress.

– – –

Poseidon had a new little brother, and a new reason to hate his claws. Maybe Hera could cast a protective blessing on little Zeus, as well, so that Poseidon wouldn’t accidentally hurt him as he once had his horse.

He wasn’t allowed to hold his little brother, mother had said so. Maybe when he was a bit older, though, he and Zeus could play together. Maybe Zeus would get his own toy animal, since mother seemed to dote on him enough that Zeus wouldn’t have to ask so much as Poseidon had, and they could play together! Poseidon sure hoped they could.

His older siblings let him hold Zeus when their mother was not in the room, but he was nervous sometimes. What if he accidentally hurt him? Mother would be so mad, and he would have to sleep outside again. What if she walked in on him disobeying one of her direct orders? Then he and his siblings would be punished, for they had allowed the disobedience, and he didn’t want to get them in trouble. However… as much as he was scared of what could happen, he really, really wanted to hold Zeus.

Zeus never cried when Poseidon held him, always quieted and either slept in his arms, or stared up at him with bright, golden eyes that made Poseidon think of an old prophecy that their mother had said once, how the golden one would rule. Zeus would be a great man, Poseidon knew it, and he would be behind him every step of the way, doing his part as the spare son to support the ones who would achieve greatness. 

– – –

In the dark and the gloom, where all was foul and acrid smelling and the only thing keeping him mentally present was pain and his siblings, there were three things that plagued his mind always, outside the basic necessities for survival.

First and foremost, was Zeus safe? Their baby brother hadn’t joined them down here, so he could only assume that he was, unless mother wasn’t safe for Zeus either… but no. Zeus was her favorite, her golden child. She loved him, he would be safe with her.

Secondly, when would they get out? They routinely asked that, merely wondering aloud when things were quiet and they had enough room to stretch their legs and not be burned by acid. They could never give an answer, never even speak one aloud, for fear it would be never . It certainly felt like never.

Last, but certainly not least, not to Poseidon, was that he missed his horse. In the dark and dank atmosphere, when all he remembered was pain, he needed the comfort Mr. Horsey had always provided when he was scared or hurting. He missed telling him his secrets in the safety of the night, missed when he could cry silently into his soft side and not be judged or coddled. Here, they all had reason to cry. It was nothing special anymore, but he just wanted to hold his horse again, rub his face against his flank like he used to. But he was not a child anymore, and he would have to be fine without it. Besides… it probably would have been swallowed by the acid, anyway, and then he never would have gotten it back. It was time to move on.

His mother would not care to retrieve it for him, even if she had ever favored him. There was no telling when they would get out. He simply had to let it go.

When the time came that they were able to be free of the foul air, they had no time for Poseidon to even think about stopping in his room to get Mr. Horsey. Through the over ten years that they had been in Kronos’ stomach, he had all but forgotten about him over time, having more important things to focus on, like not going crazy. That was an important thing. 

He had been tugged along through blinding light for what felt like miles until he was finally able to collapse in the grass and just breathe for a second, expel the foul air and try to blink away the brightness of the light. 

At their camp, he was treated just as coldly as he’d imagined he would be by Rhea. They were put to work pretty quick after they recovered, though, and Poseidon had no time to think of Mr. Horsey, not when there was a war to be won.

He thought of him again the first time he ever saw Zeus’ room. Poseidon had already been feeling a little jealous of his little brother, every time he looked between them and saw muscle on Zeus where he could only feel bone on himself. Every time Zeus made a casual mention of something that happened while they were gone, or just the ability to not know what the inside of a stomach smelled like. The jealousy peaked, though, when in an attempt to bond with his older brother, Zeus decided to show him his room.

It was definitely comfortable looking, with soft blankets and softer pillows, but one thing stood out to him, capturing his attention faster than anything else and holding him in such a grip that he almost couldn’t breathe.

There, on the nightstand, sat Mr. Horsey.

Zeus had him. All these years of worrying where he was, and Zeus had him. Of course Rhea would give Mr. Horsey to Zeus, her favorite child deserved to have a toy, and it wasn’t like Poseidon would be needing it where he was. What offended Poseidon most was that he wasn’t even among the bedding, in a place of honor and comfort as deserving of a horse of his station, but instead separated and relegated to the nightstand, half slumped over like a sad, rejected old man. He wasn’t even properly appreciated with Zeus!

But he couldn’t ask for him back, it had been over a decade, and for all that he really, really wanted to take him back, he still cared for his little brother. Mr. Horsey had been Zeus’ now for almost as long as he had been Poseidon’s, if not longer. He had no right.

His heart still clenched with longing and a brief flash of resentment, though, because of course his one item of comfort would be stripped away from him, too.

Zeus waved a hand in front of his face. “Hellooo! You in there?” He asked. Poseidon blinked, and forced down his immediate instinctive glare. “I asked you if you like it. My room.”

“Yeah. It’s great.” Poseidon said, his voice unintentionally clipped. Zeus frowned, and his gaze followed to where Poseidon had been staring, but was now pointedly ignoring.

“Oh! Your horse! Mother let me keep it safe for you.”

“I can see that. That’s… good. I’m glad.”

“Sorry if this wasn’t okay,” Zeus said, walking over and plucking Mr. Horsey off the nightstand by his mane. He walked back over and offered it to Poseidon, but Poseidon did not move to take his horse immediately, just looking up at Zeus almost warily. “Mother gave it to me, but I kept it for when you would get out… I… I missed you, and it helped a lot when I was young, to have something of yours, but now you’re back! So… here. I tried to keep it in the same condition as you left it…”

“… him. Left him …”

“Oh. Right, haha, mister horsey.  But here, that’s why I brought you in here, didn’t know who all you wanted to see that you had him back… you and mom seemed kind of frosty…”

“Isn’t he yours now..?”

“I saved him for you , though..”

“… don’t you need him?”

“Brother. I’ve kept him safe for you until you could take over,” Zeus says with a small smile, and the jealousy and tiny seed of resentment in his chest died a sudden and quick death. Zeus was just keeping his horse safe for him… drawing what comfort he could when he missed them… he was being genuine in his offer, Poseidon deemed.

Poseidon gingerly took him, mindful of his claws, and wasn’t able to make himself outwardly react outside of a nod and a quiet ‘thank you’ .

He excused himself quickly after that, going to his room and curling up around his Mr. Horsey and let himself silently cry, silently telling him everything that’s happened, holding him so tight for all the years he’s missed. He smelled of Zeus, but that was okay, because Zeus was safe, Zeus meant hope… Zeus had kept his horse safe all these years, not made any claim over him despite having the full right to… it meant more to Poseidon that Zeus was being so chill about his horse than Zeus would ever know. And the fact that he had pulled him aside privately for that… it was a gesture that would not be forgotten by Poseidon anytime soon.

– – –

It wasn’t long before Poseidon had need of Mr. Horsey’s comfort again, when weeks of training for battle toiled on, and the divide between he and his siblings’ abilities grew wider. He still struggled with the sword, while his siblings had mastered it and had begun honing their powers. Poseidon didn’t even know what his were supposed to be !

Frustration built in his chest until it exploded at another failed training step, and with a shout of anger, Poseidon hurled the training sword at a wall, the blade embedding deep into the wall despite its blunt edge, just as a door beside it opened, and Zeus walked in, Rhea right behind him. Poseidon went cold as Rhea surveyed the room, levelling him with that disappointed stare that had only grown into a deeper frown the more he failed to catch up with his siblings. Zeus was still staring at the training sword still stuck in the wall next to his head.

Poseidon moved, pushing past them before either of them could say a word. He fled to his room, and threw himself onto his bed, thrashing around in a fit of frustration, growling animalistically into a much-bitten pillow. Once he’d gotten that out of his system, he just lay there for a second, before seeking out his source of comfort. Once he had Mr. Horsey within his grasp, he twisted on the bed, curling around himself and shoving his horse against his face, rubbing the soft material across his face, trying to soothe himself before he cried. He did that too much. He just… didn’t know what else to do, when the feelings got too big, and he was so small, too small to contain them. He knew everyone was disappointed in his failure to thrive, even out here where they had food, they had water, they had sunlight, everything Demeter said was necessary for things to grow, and surely that meant people as well. Only, he wasn’t growing, he was failing, always falling short of everyone’s expectations. His siblings wouldn’t say it to his face, but he knew it.

Of course, king of worst timing as he was, Zeus would pick the worst moment ever to open his door without knocking. He froze in the doorway, and Poseidon stared up at him, glaring through his tears. Zeus blinked at him, floundering with what he was about to say, before instead quickly leaving, shutting the door behind him.

Poseidon wasn’t able to meet Zeus’ gaze at dinner that night. The one time they did, Zeus offered him a tiny smile, and Poseidon just looked away, ashamed.

That night, when Poseidon had shut himself in his room once more, Zeus came back. He knocked this time, and Poseidon looked up from where he was at the small table in his room, trying to write something and having a hard time making the parchment stay still. Zeus let himself in, and stood expectantly in the doorway.

“Your horse has been missing the weekly strategy meetings,” Zeus informed him, as if that meant anything to Poseidon.

“The weekly what ?”

“Strategy meetings. Keep up. He’s been attending them for years with Eaglet.” Zeus presents a little stuffed eagle, looking at Poseidon expectantly. “Well? Come on, we’ve got a lot of strategy meetings to catch your horse up on! Get up, come on!” Zeus said, ushering Poseidon out the door after he’d confusingly grabbed Mr. Horsey at Zeus’ insistence.

Zeus led him down the hall to his own room, opening the door to some tiny towers splayed out around the floor. Zeus sat down and put Eaglet in the middle of it. Poseidon awkwardly sat as well, waiting for Zeus to say something.

“So, this is our base, and here’s the titans. I say we go in,” he started, picking up Eaglet and making a swooping motion with him and knocking over the titans’ tower, “and destroy them all. Solid plan, right?”

“… that’s your plan..? What if it’s not that easy?” Poseidon asked.

“Well then lucky that Eaglet has a loyal friend to back him up!” Zeus reached over, grabbed Mr. Horsey from beside Poseidon, and plopped him right in the middle of the action, too. “So! What’s Mr. Horsey’s first move?”

“Um… I guess… well, he’s a horse, so…”

“Yeah but those don’t exist, so what can he do? Explain him to me? I’ve only ever been able to pretend or assume, so this is valuable information!” Zeus looked earnestly at him.

“Well… horses can trample people… and run fast, carry soldiers…”

“All good things, but what can he do? He’s a special horse, right?”

“I… I don’t know what he can do…” Poseidon murmured, looking away slightly. He didn’t know what he could do, himself, either.

“Well, he seems good for soldier morale,” Zeus pointed out. “He certainly helps yours, so I’d say that he’s good with emotions…”

“That’s a good idea…”

“I’m full of those!”

“Definitely full of something,” Poseidon quipped, a smile growing on his face, and Zeus gasped in faux offense. Poseidon got more into their ‘strategy meeting’ the longer it went on, both of them using their ‘avatars’ to play fight and have little mock battles. Sometimes it even branched into just pure fake fighting, a horse versus an eagle, each of them making up more and more outrageous things to say to one-up the other. It was everything that Poseidon wished he could have had with Zeus when they were younger.

Then, as with all good things, at least regarding Zeus, it was cut short by their mother, who came in to ask what the ruckus was, and stopped short when she saw Poseidon.

“What are you doing in here? Why are you playing with dolls?” She asked, the disdainful curl of her lip more directed at Poseidon than it was at Zeus. Poseidon cast his eyes down. They were playing, but somehow she always made him feel so inferior for even the smallest of things, even for something as innocent as playing with his little brother.

“I… we will stop… I apol-”

"Don't worry about it, brother." Zeus cut in smoothly. "Mother Rhea, we're having a strategy meeting. You know that I'm a tactile learner. In the absence of actual opponents to crush, Poseidon is helping me visualize the battlefield." Zeus flashed her a brilliant smile, and she softened slightly at him.

"Hm." Rhea stared at them for a moment longer with the frown still upon her lips. But she would not deny Zeus, her favorite son, and so she took his explanation and left, giving a terse nod to them both. A spark of hope filled Poseidon. Zeus hadn’t let them be bullied out of playing. Hopefully that meant that it could continue, that they could do this again. He would enjoy that.

It did. At least once a week they would meet up in Zeus’ room for ‘strategy meetings’. Zeus even suggested some different modes of training, such as trying weapons other than a sword. Swords just didn’t fit some people, and until Poseidon’s powers revealed themselves to him, he should figure out what weapon type felt more natural to him.

The next day, he tried a spear, and it felt so much more natural in his hand than a sword. A polearm was traditionally used with two hands, but Poseidon found himself skilled at throwing them, even though it was an unusual way to handle a spear. 

Not long after that, Poseidon had learned that his powers lied with the sea, and troughs of water had been added to the training arena. Poseidon had finally mastered the creation of his horse, and droves of them had sprung from the very seafoam on the beach in the most recent battle that they’d had. They were beautiful creatures, just as he’d envisioned all those years ago, though none of them were blue. He supposed that if they were his sacred animal, he could just be a blue horse.

He’d discovered his affinity for the trident, the weapon appearing in his hand as his control over water sharpened into a focus, his right arm reforming out of water after so long being absent. It still mysteriously hurt sometimes, but having a replacement for it helped a lot.

His self-made prosthetic arm came more naturally to him the more he practiced it, though that didn’t stop his siblings from making a game of who could make him break concentration the fastest. He didn’t mind it, most days, though he pretended he did. Really, it helped him stress test it and get better at controlling the arm through different circumstances and various distractions. He didn’t, however, appreciate Zeus’ usually foolproof (and slightly painful) way to break his hold over the arm, which was just by lightly shocking the nerves in his shoulder. He really never appreciated that, especially since sensation always seemed intensified on his right shoulder, ever since he’d lost the arm.

It all came to a head one day, after a long, drawn out battle with some of the Titan army’s footsoldiers. They’d just kept coming, and by the end of it, all six of them were exhausted. Poseidon had managed to keep his arm up the whole time, and so obviously Zeus thought, as a way to lift everyone’s spirits, that he would finish out the day with their little game. He reached over and pinched Poseidon’s stump while he wasn’t paying attention, a little zap shooting through him. Poseidon’s already frayed nerves lashed out at the supposed attack, and the next thing he knew, Zeus was on the ground, soaking wet.

“You hit me!” Zeus said in outrage. Poseidon felt his defense come up, and he snarled back.

“You started it!”

“I was messing with you!”

“It hurt!”

“Oh boo hoo, you got pinched! No reason for you to bowl me over with a wave!”

“Well you shocked me!”

“Barely! What, can’t take a little shock?”

“I can! Doesn’t mean I have to!”

“It was a joke! Let it go!”

“Then stop doing that!” Poseidon growled.

“Everyone else does it, why can’t I?” Zeus snipped back, both of their hot-headed natures coming out. 

“I don’t like it when you do it!”

“But you do with them, huh? Cause you like them better than me, cause I’m your replacement?” Zeus egged him on, and neither of them were calm enough to see the hurt that that statement caused both of them, not when something primal awoke in Poseidon at the insult, his body suddenly surging forth and free of its usual shape, bending into something more, beating the ground with his hooves. Zeus answered the transformation with one of his own, and their siblings stopped trying to calm them down for their own safety, clearing out of the way as a blue horse and a great golden eagle clashed in the middle of the training yard.

Water surged and slapped the eagle out of the sky, and the eagle responded by beating its wings against the sky, lightning crackling around him. Poseidon felt surprisingly free as he leapt towards Zeus, water rising and assisting his ascent to meet his brother in the sky, 

“ POSEIDON! ” He heard, and the voice stopped him in his tracks midair, just as Zeus was calling down a lightning bolt that he obviously expected Poseidon to deflect, had their mother not called to him with such anger and venom. 

The lightning strike hit him straight in the flank, and the water dropped with him as he hit the ground, writhing in pain as electricity coursed through him. Zeus immediately touched down, shifting back into his usual shape as agony forced Poseidon to do the same, but their mother got to him first, hauling him up with a bruising grip that made his right arm ache . 

“What is wrong with you?!” Rhea demanded, shaking him as Poseidon struggled to respond, his body jerking slightly with the lightning in his veins, weighing his tongue down and making it impossible to speak. “Apologize to your brother, how dare you fight your future king like such an… an animal !”

Poseidon choked out an apology after a couple tries where his voice just didn’t work, and Rhea scoffed in his face at his weakness, but stopped when Zeus shyly approached her.

“Mother, I can… I can handle this. I started it, I’m sorry.”

“… I expect better of you,” she said, though it still felt like she was talking at Poseidon. She released his shoulders and he fell to his knees, finally able to curl in on himself, and he watched the hem of her dress disappear from his sight as she left. Zeus dropped to his knees beside Poseidon, quickly recalling what electricity remained buzzing in him. Poseidon slumped when the pain was gone, Zeus looping his arm around his shoulders and helping him up. Hades appeared on his other side, and Zeus let their older brother take him, gently picking him up. Poseidon said nothing, dazed with the memory of the pain. Zeus was truly a formidable opponent.

Hades put Poseidon in his room and pulled a blanket up over him, leaving him to rest. Poseidon’s hand found Mr. Horsey, and he pulled him up to his face.

I did it , he silently told the horse. I made you real.

The next day, Poseidon and Zeus couldn’t meet each other’s gaze. Poseidon could sense guilt from Zeus, but knew he was under too much pressure from Rhea to say any sort of apology.

Poseidon couldn’t stop thinking about how similar their fight was to the many mock battles they’d had between Eaglet and Mr. Horsey, and the idea of them fighting like that again sent his stomach churning. 

That night, he knocked at Zeus’ door. His little brother opened it, and Poseidon crossed his arms, flesh over water.

“I came to apologize to Eaglet.”

“What?” Zeus asks, clearly not having expected that.

“I came to apologize to Eaglet,” Poseidon repeated. Zeus looked visibly uncomfortable with his presence for a second, which hurt, but he stepped aside for Poseidon to come in. Poseidon looked at Eaglet on the bed. “I’m sorry that I fought Zeus when he bore your image. Any ill-will was not my intent, nor was any injury. I’ll try to avoid that in the future.”

Zeus looked between Poseidon and the stuffed bird, at a loss for what to say. That was fine. Poseidon wasn’t expecting an apology anyway. Victors should not apologise for the harm they dealt in winning, or at least… that was what Poseidon had been taught. Ruthlessness was mercy, after all, and the losers should supplicate to the winners or accept their deaths.

Poseidon turned and left before Zeus could get his bearings to respond, closing the door behind him and speedwalking back to his room. An hour or two later, there was a knock at his door, and Poseidon opened it to reveal Zeus, who crossed his arms and looked at him.

“I came to apologise to Mr. Horsey.” Poseidon fought back a begrudging smile, and stepped aside. “I’m sorry that I fought Poseidon while he looked like you. I didn’t mean to hurt him, I was just… tired, and angry. It felt like he was singling me out for something all of our siblings do, and I had an over-the-top reaction… I’ll try to work on that, I just… need someone to keep me accountable…” Zeus said, looking to Poseidon, who felt suddenly like he was being led to an important task. “Mother says I’m going to be a good king, but… I’ve got a lot of pride, and I let it get to my head sometimes… think you can… slap some sense into me every once in a while if I go too far?”

“It would be my honor to slap you, my king,” Poseidon said, some playfulness returning to his tone. Zeus rolled his eyes.

“So… you weren’t intentionally singling me out back there, right..?”

“My arm… feels pain more strongly than the rest of me… after… him , I can’t feel pain as much anymore, except for my arm… I don’t know, I can usually handle it, I just… snapped. I’m sorry…”

“Oh… I’m sorry, too… I’ll… I’ll try to remember that. And brother..?”

“Yes?”

“You know I’m not a replacement for you, right..? I don’t think either of us want that to be true.”

“You were always going to be the child of prophecy… I wasn’t happy being heir. Hades took that burden from me first, but he would not like being saddled with the title of king, either. It is a good fit for you, little brother.”

“What if I become too much? What if my people or children rise against me someday, like we’re doing to our father?”

“Then I guess it’s good you have an accountability partner. I’ll always be there for you if you need me. I swear it,” Poseidon said, the room rippling with divine oath. Zeus smiled, and thanked him in a nod.

– – –

Millennia had passed between the beginnings of the war on the titans, and ages upon ages of strife, arguments, bad times and peace times had passed between them. Poseidon sighed, looking in the mirror as he fussed with his appearance. It was his first meeting back in Olympus after his… hiatus, and subsequent assistance in the second victory over the titans. Old scars had faded, both with Apollo’s assistance and with some shared forgiveness between Poseidon and his younger brother. Poseidon was almost… looking forward to this, despite his tolerance for social interaction. Nevertheless, he wanted to look his best. He glanced around the room, his eyes landing on an old stuffed horse, sitting on a tiny handmade throne of coral on his desk. Poseidon breezed over and picked up the horse.

“Bet you miss Eaglet, huh. It’s been a while… I bet Eaglet misses you, too. Come on, then. I guess you can go. Since you’ve twisted my arm about it.” Poseidon put Mr. Horsey in a small bag that he usually brought with him to Olympus, in case he wanted to sneak wine or other goodies back down to Aegea that they didn’t usually have. Wine would be a nice surprise for his wife. “Ready to go?” he asked the horse, giving himself another cursory glance in the mirror. He looked fine. He patted his bag, and glided off to his transportation pools, feeling more ready for a meeting than he had been in a very long time.