Heroes of New York (NYH Rewrite)

Blue Spaghetti

Jackson/Blofis Apartment

"Perseus Jackson!"

Percy winced. "Hey, Mom. . ."

Sally Jackson crossed her arms. "Young man, you are thirty-four minutes late! Where were you?"

"I, uh, kinda got kidnapped by the Avengers?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"Seriously," Percy mumbled.

Hawkeye poked his head around the doorframe. "Hi."

"And they want to talk to me after school tomorrow," the demigod added.

"Is there anything I need to be worried about?" Sally asked.

"Nah, it's just a quick chat."

"More like an interrogation," Clint corrected.

"Not helping."

Sally crossed her arms. "And how do I know that you're actually a government official and not some weirdo off the street?"

Hawkeye pulled out a badge and handed it to her. He then pulled out a cell phone, dialed a number, and handed it over as well. Sally's eyes widened as she listened to the voice on the other end of the phone, occasionally muttering a soft "uh huh." When the call ended, she silently handed both the phone and badge back to Clint.

Letting out a long sigh, Sally shook her head. "I can't do anything about this because it's the government, can I?" she asked in a weak voice.

Clint just shrugged and smiled. "Sorry?"

Percy glanced back and forth between the two. "Who was on the phone?"

Sally and Clint glanced at each other. In the kitchen, a timer beeped, and Sally immediately started heading that way. "Dinner should be ready. I made spaghetti, if you'd like some, Mr. Avenger."

"But who was on the phone?" Percy asked.

"Call me Hawkeye, or Clint," Clint introduced.

Percy sighed, realizing the adults were ignoring his question.

"Nice to meet you, Clint. I'm Sally. Just a forewarning: the noodles are blue. It's a family joke." Sally paused and turned around. "I made a large batch. Would any of the agents outside like some?"

"Not funny, Mom," the demigod muttered.

Clint shifted uncomfortably. "No, they're good."

Percy stared at him. "There are agents outside the apartment?"

"You're a threat."

"I'm a child!"

"You're seventeen. That's basically an adult."

Sally poked her head out of the kitchen. "Don't give him any comebacks he can use against me in future arguments!"

At that moment, Paul walked into the room, holding baby Estelle, who was shaking a rattle and babbling happily to herself. "Ah, Percy, you're back," he said, then turned to Hawkeye. "And you are. . ?"

"A superhero who wants to kidnap me after school tomorrow," Percy said. 

Clint grimaced. "Clint," he introduced. 

Paul raised his eyebrows. "Kidnapping? Sally, are we okay with this?"

"I need your help in the kitchen, honey!" Sally called, dragging Paul (still holding Estelle) into the other room. "It's the Avengers and a top-secret government agency, so there's not much we can do. They probably have suspicions about Percy's father, even if they don't know everything," she hissed.

"Okay. And we're discussing this in here because we don't want to confirm anything in front of that agent?"

"Exactly." Sally pursed her lips as she pulled dinner plates out of a kitchen cabinet. "I'll call Annabeth tomorrow morning after Percy and the agent leave the apartment. She'll be able to contact the camp and get help, if Percy needs it."

Paul raised his eyebrows again. "If Percy needs it?" He began buckling Estelle into her high chair.

"As much as I don't want to think about it, this probably isn't much more dangerous than those quests he goes on. Of course, I don't like it when he goes on quests, but I don't think we have much of a choice here." Sally began heaping spoonfuls (ladle-fuls?) of blue spaghetti onto the plates.

"You're taking this rather well."

"I can see through a mystical barrier that hides monsters from human sight. My son is half Greek god. We helped fight an army in front of the Empire State Building. At this point, what's there to worry about?"

"Um, honey, you worry about Percy almost constantly."

"That's because I'm his mother," Sally sassed. (Now we see where Persassy gets it.) "Worrying will never not be in my DNA." She opened a drawer and grabbed some forks before calling to Clint and Percy. "Boys! Dinner's ready!"

The pair trudged into the room. Clint sat next to Percy, watching the teen out of the corner of his eye as he ate. Estelle giggled as she plastered noodles to her head, swirling the sauce through her hair. Sally sighed. This would be a long night.

A/N Hey, guys! Sorry for the long wait. My account has sort-of been on hiatus since last fall, but I'm back now! And to (hopefully) make it up to you: two chapters in the same day!

Thank you all for your patience and support while I was MIA. Life was sort of crazy, and it was really helpful to know that I could take some time to chill out and take care of myself without having to worry about updating. Thank you so much! You guys are awesome! 

That being said, I'm going to try my best to be more consistent in updating now. Again, thank you so much for your support! Keep being wonderful!

~CB