Percy muscled the car through mid-morning traffic, the white New York plates on the cars around him strangely comforting. Nico rested his head against the window and stared up the buildings while Thalia and Clarisse tossed a knife back and forth.
"Almost there," Percy announced. His heart fluttered in his chest. It had been so long, the thought of seeing his mom again made him strangely nervous. All he left was the voicemail from the pay phone in Alaska, six months gone and that was all.
Thalia grinned at him in the rear view mirror. "I love your mom. Remember when she pulled out that shotgun?"
"Wait, yeah!" Clarisse said. "That was totally badass. You know. For a mortal."
"She makes good birthday cake," Nico offered.
Percy put the car in reverse, glancing behind him as he parallel parked outside the apartment building. He gripped the steering wheel for a moment to steady his hands. Why am I so nervous?
Nico glanced over at him. "You good?"
"I'm, um, yeah. I just haven't seen her in forever and I..."
"You don't have to explain. Just get up there, yeah?"
"Right." Percy smiled awkwardly over at him. "I'll come back for you guys in a sec."
He hopped out of the car and slammed the door behind him, taking a moment to crane his neck up at the building. His mom and Paul moved out of their old apartment, and as Percy reached in his pocket he realized he didn't even have a key. At least he knew the apartment number.
Percy took the stairs two at time, then walked down the long hallway to the bronze 412 above the doorway. He wiped his hands on his pants, took a deep breath, and rang the doorbell.
Footsteps and muffled voices approached, and the door flew open to reveal his mom, drying her hands on her apron. Her blue eyes were blank for a moment, then her eyebrows drew in and her mouth fell open.
"Percy!" she gasped, pulling him forward into her embrace. She squeezed him tight, and in the hand that stroked his hair Percy could feel the slight tremor.
"Mom," he choked out, and buried his face in her shoulder.
She smelled like cinnamon and felt like home.
His mom finally broke their embrace and held him at arms length, her eyes traveling across his face. Percy imagined he looked older, more worn down, and she seemed to sense the cloud around him.
"Percy," she breathed, like saying his name was a privilege. "I have a million questions, but they don't matter anymore. Are you okay?"
Percy blinked back the moisture gathering in his eyes. "I'm- I'm hanging in there, mom. I'll tell you the whole story, I promise. But first, is it okay if my friends come up to? This could take a while."
"Of course." His mom straightened, still drinking in Percy's presence. "We'd be happy to welcome them in. But first, you should see Paul."
Percy grinned at the mention of his stepdad. After Smelly Gabe, his mom deserved the world and she found that in Paul. It was Paul who taught Percy to drive, who offered him girl advice, who didn't run when he learned who Percy really was.
"Paul, honey!" his mom called back into the apartment, "come see who's here!"
"In a sec!" he called back, the oven door rattling.
"Are you making cookies?" The thought nearly made Percy weak in the knees. What he wouldn't give for one of his mom's cookies after all this time.
His mom smiled, passing a finger in front of her lips. "You have to wait for the second batch to come out before you start on them. Will Annabeth be joining us?"
At the mention of Annabeth, Percy's heart sank. His mom must have read his expression immediately because she embraced him again. "Honey, I'm so sorry. You can fill me in on everything."
Paul padded up behind them. "Who's... Percy?"
Percy turned from his mom and grinned at his stepdad. "Paul! It's been- oof!"
Paul wrapped him in a bear hug and clapped him on the shoulder. "It's been so long, we thought- well..."
"I'm here now," Percy said. "I'm sorry for all the worry I must have caused, it's been a crazy six months."
"Of course," Paul said, shaking his head. "I can't imagine what you've gone through. Come in, have a cookie!"
"I'll get my friends," Percy said. "And then you'll regret saying that."
Percy turned back down the hall before the tears came, silent and uncontrollable. He'd been running on adrenaline for so long, seeing his parents released a dam he didn't know he'd built. He leaned against the railing in the stairs to collect himself. C'mon Percy, he told himself, pull yourself together.
Nico, Thalia, and Clarisse were sitting on the curb tossing rocks on the road when Percy found them.
"She good?" Clarisse asked.
Percy cleared his throat. "Um, yes. You guys can come up if you want."
"Awesome." Thalia leaped to her feet and brushed off her black jeans. "If I have to watch Nico reanimate one more rat skeleton..."
"Hey!" Nico protested. "I'm testing a theory." He closed his eyes and reached out. A second later, a rat skeleton skittered across the road before collapsing to dust. Nico opened his eyes and smiled drunkenly. "I knew I could do it. Still got it." Then he promptly collapsed on to the sidewalk.
Clarisse rolled her eyes and scooped Nico up like a puppy. "Let's go, punk. Being out in the open like this is making me nervous."
Percy led Thalia and Clarisse carrying Nico up the stairs and down the hall to his apartment. Once they were all situated on the couch chewing cookies, Percy explained the situation.
He gave the watered-down version of course, briefly describing his adventures in Alaska with Frank and Hazel, then what happened when Jason and Annabeth arrived at Camp Jupiter. By the end, Percy could barely speak in full sentences and Clarisse ate an entire sheet of cookies.
His mom pursed her lips. "Percy, as much as I love Annabeth, you can't go to war like this. Isn't this exactly what Gaea wants?"
"If camp doesn't attack first, Rome will," Clarisse said. "Romans are well known for their offense, not so much their defense."
Percy poured himself another glass of lemonade, dabbing the the drips he spilled with his finger tips. "You know what else Rome is good at? Collapsing from the inside. We can't write off Annabeth, she must be working on this too."
"And I have to believe that when it comes down to it, Rome won't fight," Thalia added. "I can't imagine my brother would choose war."
Percy rolled his eyes. "Your brother already chose war. This is all his fault!"
The lamp on the end table sparked. "You mean Hera's fault, right?" Thalia's blue eyes narrowed. "She did this to him, she's always hated children of Zeus. She broke my legs over nothing, you really trust her to come up with a plan?"
Percy knew Thalia was thinking about that day too. That statue was supposed to kill Annabeth, and it would have if Thalia hadn't pushed her out of the way. If Annabeth had died, the Titans would have won. Maybe Hera wasn't the best planner.
"We don't have to follow Hera's plan," Percy said, "but if it comes down to a Greek vs Roman fight then we have to win."
Thalia clenched her jaw but said nothing.
His mom sat forward. "You should see what Chiron thinks. Hasn't there been enough war?" Her face was tired, the lines at the corners of her eyes pointed downward and Percy was struck with the realization of how much of what he did came back to her. He'd nearly died over and over again and each time his mom had to bear that strain. But that was the cost of a demigod kid, right?
"I was hoping this might be the last war," Percy said softly. But even he knew how weak that sounded. He was a child of the big three, the war was never really over. Thalia met his gaze, her brows furrowed. She knew that better than anyone, was that not why she joined the hunters?
His mom cleared her throat and wiped the heel of her hand under her eyes. "Percy, I trust your judgement whatever direction you want to take this. But for the love of god, be careful. I can't-" her voice broke and she turned away.
"Mom," Percy took her hands. It nearly broke his heart to see her like this. Of course he didn't blame her, six months of having no idea where her son was must have been unbearable. "I promise I'll be fine. I always am, right?" He bit his lip. "But I have to do this to get Annabeth back. I can't lose her now."
His mom lifted her head and Percy saw the same fire reflected back in her eyes. Everyone assumed Percy got his rebellious streak from Poseidon, and maybe that was true. But his mom was the one who used Medusa's head on Gabe, who shot monsters with a shotgun, who had the courage to always stand up for what was right. No, he got his fire from his mom.
She let go of Percy's hands and stood to her full height. "Then let's get her back."