𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄𝐍° ! percy jackson

𝐢.𝐢𝐢𝐢 - 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐬 (𝐚)

"She's the one who actually cared about me. Who took care of me, raised me. She is my mother. She's the one who cared enough to call herself that." Aurora recognized the bitterness in his voice, the sadness coating his words, all too well. She saw her reflection in his glassy eyes, and she swallowed thickly. "I don't care who my dad is. That doesn't matter. He was gone my entire life. He's dead, for all I know. I never needed him before, and I don't need him now. My mom is Sally Jackson. She works at the candy store in Grand Central Station. At least, she used to."

"But, you're dad," Annabeth took a deep breath. Aurora could see the calculations buzzing around in her brain. "He's not just some deadbeat."

"Deadbeat god." Aurora coughed into her fist, which received a glare from her friend.

"He's not dead. He's not gone."

"How can you say that? You know him?" Classic response.

"No, but you're right here, Jackson." Aurora said, staring at the boy. "You wouldn't be here—you couldn't be here—if you weren't one of us."

"You don't know anything about me." Percy argued defiantly.

"No, but I do know that you probably moved from school to school. And kicked out of every single one. Probably diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD. Been told you're crazy, insane for seeing things that don't exist." Aurora almost felt bad at how embarrassed Percy looked.

"What does that have to do with anything?"

Aurora let Annabeth explain everything, the ADHD, the dyslexia.

As the three young demigods continued to walk, they began to approach the naiads, who waved flirtatiously at Percy. Aurora frowned. She never liked the naiads, who tried to seduce any boy they saw. Percy had been through enough without their charming smiles.

He waved back.

"Don't encourage them," Annabeth warned.

"They're awful flirts." Aurora added, giving them a dirty look. "They're not even that pretty anyway."

"Naiads," Percy repeated, looking woozy in the head. "That's it. I want to go home now."

Annabeth frowned. "Don't you get it? You are home. This is the only safe place on earth for kids like us."

"You mean, mentally disturbed kids?" Aurora laughed at Percy's response. "Broken kids? Am I in another school for 'troubled kids?' Because that's me! Broken, disturbed, troubled."

"I mean, some of us are." She deadpanned with a wink, trying to feel like she wasn't seen by Percy's dry deadpan of how fucked up they all were. "But Annie means not human. Or, half human."

"Half human and, what, half god?" Percy asked, like it was unbelievable.

"Well, we're all children of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit, according to the New Testament—"

Annabeth groaned, shoving her friend, who was grinning devilishly. "Rory, stop confusing him. Yes, half god. Your father isn't dead, Percy. He's one of the Olympians."

"But, that's... crazy. It's just myths! If all the kids here are half-gods—" Percy looked like his head was going to explode.

"Demigods," Annabeth corrected. "That's the official term. Or half bloods."

"Then who's your dad?"

Percy fucked up.

Aurora was going to sit back and let Annabeth rip him apart, but she couldn't. Meeting the eye of her best friend, she shook her head slightly.