Like any other day in New York, people went about doing their own business: going to school, driving to work, celebrating a birthday; marriage, christening, buying groceries, chatting with friends, staying with family, and going on a vacation. Unbeknownst to all, a party of great importance was literally happening right above them.
Olympus was a bustle of energy as the anniversary of the defeat of Kronos filled everyone with joy. Three years ago the lord of the Titans was defeated by the campers of Camp Half-Blood and by the son of the eldest gods, Perseus Jackson. One might ask how a bunch of campers were able to defend Olympus from the armies of hell-well, the answer was simple; sacrifice and hope.
Without the sacrifice of the many demigods, nature spirits, centaurs and satyrs the story would be told differently; and without the hope, each and every one of them held dear it would be a hundred percent true. In the end, the Titan army could not compete with the major differences between the forces ending in the darkness to succumb to the light.
Today was a day to honour those who fell and to celebrate the defeat of the damned. As such one particular demigod son of Poseidon found himself wandering the halls of the throne room.
Percy found himself walking amongst the many statues and paintings of the gods. Each showed different tales from the good, all the way to the…not so bad; which was surprising considering the Olympians were awfully prideful at times.
After one particular statue of Artemis stepping on a jackalope like a mind sociopath, Percy thought it was enough and turned around to find the nearest exit; which ironically-like any other romance novel (don't ask how he knew)-led to one of Olympus' finest gardens.
"Damn it's nice out here," Percy praised as he walked by all sorts of flowers.
He strolled around the grounds whistling whilst looking at all the different plants. It was peaceful and serene with no one around making him want to sleep but the only thing missing was a bench for him to actually lay down on; he debated on sleeping on a nice patch of grass but thought against it. Who knew if someone was stumbling on him; with all the crazy nymphs around he was bound to face some sort of trouble.
In the end, he chose to just continue his walk; often thinking of whatever was on his mind such as his mom's blue cookies which made him drool…ew. Percy chuckled softly as a particular memory of Tyson and Mrs. O-Leary popped up. As another memory was about to pop up his thoughts were interrupted by someone singing.
Percy stopped abruptly.
His breathing stopped as he listened. He didn't know who it was but that wasn't what was on his mind. Instead, he wanted to sit and just listen to their voice; allowing it to warm him up in a way that Hestia's hearth would do whenever he sat with her. But for some reason as he kept listening he began to want more, he wanted to see who it was; to watch and listen as their most loyal fan.
For the first time, Percy wasn't content.
…
She didn't know where it all went wrong but she was way beyond the line of help. Maybe if she had Hestia's strength, the determination of Artemis, Athena's wisdom, and Demeter's strong will; would she have been able to walk down a different path, but it was too late and there was no choice for her but to live with her mistakes.
Where did she go wrong? It was always on her mind, nagging and eating her thoughts whenever she strayed too far into the past; and every time the answer would be the same "Nothing" she didn't know what went wrong or how it went wrong. It frustrated her so much but there was nothing she could do.
And it was only when she almost allowed herself to fall into the void that she found her saving grace.
You must think that I'm stupid
You must think that I'm a fool
You must think that I'm new to this
But I have seen this all before
She was alone with no soul in sight, no wandering eyes, no prying ears; she preferred it this way and it made her smile.
I'm never gonna let you close to me
Even though you mean the most to me
'Cause every time I open up, it hurts
When she was alone she could sing, she could let herself be free; free from all her worries. There was nothing except her and the wind.
So, I'm never gonna get too close to you
Even when I mean the most to you
In case you go and leave me in the dirt
Aphrodite…didn't need anyone, she didn't want anyone to find her; no, she preferred it this way and she loved it. After all, what would they say?
But every time you hurt me, the less that I cry
And every time you leave me, the quicker these tears dry
Whatever it was she knew it would only lead to pain, harm, to suffering and she already had too much of that. Aphrodite didn't want that, she already faced so much judgment…but in a way, it was on her.
And every time you walk out, the less I love you
Baby, we don't stand a chance, it's sad, but it's true
And so she couldn't help but lie. They could mock her, tease her, ridicule her and paint her in a bad light; judge her the way they liked, curse her for the things she'd done. But it didn't matter cause' after all, all she needed was her singing.
I'm way too good at goodbyes
…
I'm way too good at goodbyes
…
I'm way too good-
"Who's there?" Aphrodite demanded.
She didn't know how they hid their presence but that didn't matter because they heard her and if they saw who she was…no, she had to hide. Quickly without a single thought, she snapped her finger and disappeared from her spot by the railing.
…
Percy hid behind a tree with his back leaning against the bark. His eyes were closed but his ears were open and listening to the melodic voice just a few feet away from him. When he got close he instantly knew it was a female but he didn't know who. They could be a demigod, nature spirit, minor goddess, or even an Olympian; but before he could leave his hiding spot they stopped singing.
His heart began to beat fast as the silence seemed to stretch on.
"Who's there?" they demanded.
Percy was about to reveal himself but stopped. Should he reveal himself? What would happen if he did? Would they be mad? All these thoughts ran through his head and before he could fully make up his mind he felt their presence disappear.
Slowly he peeked around the tree and found the area empty. Percy sighed softly before walking up to the railings where he looked down at the mortals below. Should he have revealed himself? He wondered but shook his head wildly; berating himself mentally for not making up his mind quickly enough.
…
2 years later
"Are you ready Percy?" Triton grinned. The twin-tailed minor god of the sea wore a royal blue robe and a silver crown made of different seashells while sporting a mischievous smile just like his dad. Blood seemed to be a major thing among the royal family.
"As ready as I'll ever be," Percy winced. "I just want this to be all over. Then I can go visit my mom and play with my sister."
After being trained for the last two years by both his dad and Triton it was finally time for him to accept immortality. In the end, he ended up agreeing to their offer with one condition; and that was he didn't want to be part of the Olympian council. His dad looked as if he wanted to argue but ultimately agreed-albeit a bit reluctant-which he was grateful for.
Zeus was fine with it but for some reason, Percy swore he saw a bit of disappointment cross his face. Did his uncle want him to become an Olympian? Well, he was beginning to notice the change towards him and how his uncle seemed to actually–for the first time–like his nephew.
Because he declined the offer he instead became a minor god of the sea. His official titles were the god of deep waters and loyalty. Something he found rather interesting, especially the part of the deep water which he asked his dad about. The sea god merely shrugged and told him to visit the Marina Trench where his sister Kym was currently at.
At first, he found it odd but for some reason, he felt more at ease; like the water was a lot different and appeared to affect him a lot more.
…but it didn't compare to that place.
…
Percy didn't know what brought him back here; back to where it all began. He was sad that the mysterious singer was gone forever and will never hear her again, but as he came upon the same bend from 2 years ago he heard it once more. It carried itself amongst the flowers of all sizes, through the trees and shrubbery and dancing with the wind overhead.
This time he vowed to find who the mystery person is. So without a moment's hesitation, he walked towards the voice but slowly and quietly so as to not alert them and get them to leave before he could introduce himself. As he got closer and closer he began to slow his steps unconsciously. All his body wanted to do was just listen. Sit down and listen as the voice filled him with a weird feeling that he had never felt before.
"No," Percy shook his head and took another step. He was almost there, all he needed was one final step before he could enter the hidden spot of the garden but as he took that one final step a stick snapped below him. Percy's breath hitched at the same time the voice stopped.
"Please don't leave, please don't leave," he prayed again and again. "Please don't-" His eyes widened and before he could even comprehend what was happening he walked out from the undergrowth and was met with nothing. "Damnit," Percy huffed before flashing away. Maybe next time he could catch her but today just wasn't it.
…
1 year later
"Aphrodite?" Percy whispered in shock at the wide-eyed goddess. "Wait, all this time it's you that's been singing?"
They stared at each other in disbelief; Aphrodite not knowing how she had just been caught. Were her wards gone? Was she too distracted? All sorts of questions ran through her head until she came upon one: Perseus was an immortal like her. She mentally slapped herself on the forehead at forgetting that Perseus was made a minor god of the sea.
Her heart raced as she thought of an answer. What can she tell him that would prevent him from revealing her secret? In the end, she did what she was known for.
Swaying her hips and arching a delicate brow she walked up to him. "My my, was the hero of Olympus stalking me?" she whispered slyly in his ear. A nervous chuckle was her answer as the son of Poseidon looked anywhere but her eyes.
Aphrodite smiled and placed a hand on his chest. "Well, Perseus? What is your answer?" She waited for him to speak but what he said next caught her off guard.
"Can I hear you sing again?" Percy blurted.
Aphrodite looked at him speechless. Didn't she just try to seduce him? She swore he had blushed just a minute ago but how could that lead to this?
"Uh, um I-" Aphrodite stumbled on her words which made her frown. She never stumbled, it was always the opposite. "Ahem, excuse me but what?"
"Your voice, I want to hear you sing again," Percy reaffirmed. Unlike her, his eyes gazed into hers with determination as if saying he wouldn't back down no matter what.
"B-but why?"
"You have a nice voice why else?" he said nonchalantly.
Aphrodite paused. A weird feeling filled her body and for the first time, she felt a spark.
"What is this?" she wondered.