Chapter 54: A Promise Kept
A/N: Here's the new Chapter! Which also means the next four chapters are up on my for early access as well as the chance to vote on the direction of the story!
Time for a pivot chapter~
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“… I can’t.”
Percy won’t pretend those words hurt him as much as he can tell they hurt Clarisse. The way her face falls immediately makes that fact readily apparent. But it doesn’t mean they’re even remotely easy for him to say. He finds himself trapped between a rock and a hard place. He just got done promising Hestia that he would stay put for the duration of this crisis. But then here comes Clarisse, practically begging for his help.
He finds himself more torn than ever before, but at the end of the day his promise to Hestia has to supersede his desire to help Clarisse.
“I’m sorry Clarisse, but Hestia just asked me not to leave the Camp under any circumstances. She made me promise that I would stay close by until this current crisis is resolved. Seeing as your Quest is literally about resolving said crisis, I can’t go on it with you. Not without breaking my promise to the Goddess.”
Fortunately, he has a pretty damn good excuse. Still, Percy can tell it doesn’t completely make things better. Clarisse still looks disappointed. Funny that, because from what he knew of her the year before, he’s not sure she would have taken ANYONE with her on this Quest if the Clarisse la Rue of that time were here right now. Not even her fellow siblings from Ares Cabin. She wouldn’t have wanted to share the glory.
But a lot can happen in a year. Hell, a lot can happen in just a handful of days. In less than a week, Percy, Clarisse, Annabeth, and Grover had all been through enough to change anyone’s world view and then some.
She understands though. He can see in Clarisse’s eyes that she understands. Hestia’s words is law, even when it’s just a request. Even for belligerent demigods like the types over in Ares Cabin, the Goddess of the Hearth is well-liked and deeply respected. That Hestia made Percy promise to stay put is more ironclad than anything else.
“I… I understand.”
Clarisse still looks a little defeated though. Percy, meanwhile, isn’t quite done yet.
“I can’t go… but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take Annabeth.”
Both blondes jolt at that, throwing slightly incredulous looks at one another. They’d all been through the same events last year. Events that had brought them all closer together in a myriad of different ways. However, Percy wasn’t an idiot. He recognized full well that for Clarisse and Annabeth, they had years and years of bad blood between them before he came into the picture. Not exactly the sort of thing that a single Quest and a whole lot of threesomes could wash away right off the bat.
“Look, I get it. You two don’t like each other. But answer me this… do you hate each other?”
Brows furrowing, Clarisse and Annabeth exchange another glance before shrugging and shaking their heads respectively.
“I guess not?”
“No, of course not.”
Percy grins at their answers.
“Would you have necessarily said the same last year, before you met me?”
That gets more thoughtful expressions on their faces, so Percy goes in for the kill.
“You two are two of the most capable demigods I know. You’re the daughters of a War God and War Goddess. You’re strong and you’re smart and if there’s anyone I’d rather have on such a crucial quest as this one if not myself… it’s both of you. I know that if you go together, you’ll have each other’s backs. And I know if you go together, I can trust you both to come back safe and sound.”
There’s an energy in the air as Percy speaks with full confidence. He doesn’t doubt a single word that comes out of his mouth, and he can tell that has quite the effect on both Annabeth and Clarisse. They turn towards one another once more, but this time it’s not just a quick glance. Instead, they look into each other’s eyes for a long time, clearly having some sort of private conversation that Percy isn’t privy to. Finally… Clarisse sticks out her hand.
“… Alright. Annabeth Chase… will you come on my Quest with me?”
The Daughter of Athena straightens up and swallows thickly before slowly nodding and accepting Clarisse’s hand.
“… I will.”
Again, Percy wishes more than anything that he could go with them. Going to the Sea of Monsters to retrieve the Golden Fleece didn’t exactly sound like it would be a cakewalk. They would need all the help they could get, but his hands were tied. Besides, if Hestia’s worries were accurate, then he might make things worse instead of better.
Things would be hard enough for Clarisse and Annabeth without anyone personally gunning after Percy (like Hera for instance) showing up to make even more of a mess of things. No… it was better this way, in the end. Better to put his faith in these two and hang back this time around. Not just so he could weather the storm under Hestia’s protection… but so that he could help the Goddess protect Camp Half-Blood in turn.
Nodding decisively, Clarisse… suddenly pulls her top over her head, exposing her chest.
“We’ll leave in the morning. For now… we’re going to have lots of goodbye sex.”
Percy blinks and then blushes, only to let out a sheepish laugh and glance over at Bianca.
“Ah… well, it was Bianca’s turn next, I’m afraid.”
Clarisse directs a mulish look at the ‘newcomer’, one that causes Bianca to blanch a little bit. Bianca was a strong-willed woman, but she was also a product of her time… and no doubt sensed just how close the three of them were to one another.
“I-I don’t mind waiting…”
Percy sighs as Clarisse turns a smug smirk his way. He’s tempted to shut the blonde down, but he can’t help feeling guilty still over not being able to go with her on the Quest. And honestly, in terms of bullying… Clarisse HAS gotten a lot better from when they first met. Such improvement deserves to be rewarded.
Besides, the foursome that follows, which involves all of them missing dinner time and fucking pretty late into the night, gives Bianca ample opportunity to get her missed turn back anyways. Percy might not be able to go with Clarisse and Annabeth, but this much he can do at least… and so he gives each and every one of the three women multiple deep, hard dickings until they’re exhausted and finally drift off to sleep.
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The next day, Percy and Bianca see Clarisse and Annabeth off. As it turns out, Ares had felt bad enough about his actions while under Kronos’ control that he’d overcompensated in the process. Not that he’d used any words like ‘sorry’ or ‘apology’ when he’d dropped the CSS Birmingham into Clarisse’s lap. However, going from zapping her with her own spear for being a disobedient whelp to throwing an entire battleship manned by dead Confederate soldiers her way was… quite the leap.
Watching them go, Percy knows in his heart of hearts that they’ll succeed. But at the same time, he can’t help but worry for them. He can’t pray to Hestia for their success, given the Goddess of the Hearth has enough on her plate. But…
Aphrodite, if you’re listening… please watch over Annabeth Chase and Clarisse la Rue for me while I cannot.
It’s a bit of a Hail Mary and Percy isn’t even sure if it works or not, but he thinks he hears light female laughter on the wind and feels the caress of a hand against his cheek for a moment before the sensation vanishes. Hopefully, his prayer would not go unanswered. On the other hand, Percy might wind up owing Aphrodite if she did intervene in some way. But then, that was a price he was willing to pay.
Besides, the Goddess of Love have come to him in his dreams to warm him of another Goddess’ designs on him. Surely she wasn’t that bad, right?
Pushing such thoughts out of his mind even as the CSS Birmingham disappears over the horizon, Percy turns to walk back to Camp only to pause as he sees Bianca watching him with an unreadable expression on her face. Blinking, he flushes a little bit.
“… Sorry if you wanted to go on the Quest, Bianca. But… look, I’m not saying you’re not ready, but Clarisse and Annabeth… well, they’re just starting to tolerate each other.”
It’s Bianca’s turn to blink for a moment, before she slowly shakes her head.
“That’s alright Percy. I didn’t want to go on the Quest. At least, not without you. Honestly… I’m just surprised that you didn’t go on the Quest.”
Percy frowns at that.
“I made a promise to Hestia…”
Nodding slowly, Bianca hums.
“It’s just… well, you don’t seem like the type to let anything hold you back from taking charge and being the hero, usually.”
That gives Percy pause. He can’t help but fall silent as they walk back to Camp together, thinking over both Bianca’s words and his choices. She’s sort of right, in a way. He’s never really considered himself a hero, but that doesn’t stop him from acting like one, does it? Except…
“Sometimes, the world doesn’t need a hero. Or at least, sometimes it doesn’t need me to be a hero. There are plenty of heroes and heroines out there already. Especially among us demigods. But sometimes, I think what’s needed most of all isn’t a hero… it’s a defender. A guardian. A protector, if you will.”
“… a king…”
Glancing over at Bianca, Percy frowns and furrows his brow.
“What was that?”
But the Daughter of Hades just shakes her head at him, eyes wide.
“I didn’t say anything. But your words… something in them really resonated with me just now. I think you’re right, Percy. And I think you need to allow yourself to believe that too. What you’re doing by staying behind… it’s not cowardly or cravenly. Protecting what you love is just as important as any heroics.”
Percy smiles, feeling bolstered by Bianca’s vote of confidence. It wasn’t perfect. He still felt weird, not going on the quest. But… he’d made Hestia a promise long before Clarisse asked him to go with her. That meant that promise superseded Clarisse’s request, full stop.
Besides… it wasn’t like they would be lounging around Camp Half-Blood anyways. There was no room for that in the current crisis. Straightening up and squaring his shoulders, Percy gives Bianca a nod.
“Come on. Let’s get some sparring in and see if we can get some of the others to join us for training. Then… we’ll see if we can’t help alleviate Hestia’s load a bit by taking care of some of those monsters bashing at the borders of her domain.”
Bianca’s eyes widen in excitement and she quickly nods. He’s been training her since they met after all, but he’s not sure she’s ready to face off against any of the tougher monsters just yet. At least not by herself. That’s fine though, because they’re in Camp Half-Blood… and nobody is by themselves here.
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Things settle into a routine, as they tend to when one stays in one place long enough. For Percy, that routine keeps him busy, which is what he needs right now. He quickly finds himself being thrust into the position of a leader by the other Campers. Maybe it’s Luke’s betrayal, or the lack of truly ambitious sorts like Clarisse and Annabeth, or even just the fact that Hestia is practically laid up in the Big House, but nobody even tries to fight Percy when he takes charge.
Technically, Camp Half-Blood is managed by Hestia and Chiron. Hestia as the Camp Director, and Chiron as the Activities Director. But of course, this isn’t some kid’s summer camp. They’re all adults here, so there’s a Senior Council made up of the leaders of each cabin.
Percy, by dint of being literally the only person in Poseidon Cabin, is automatically guaranteed a place on this Senior Council. That said, he certainly wasn’t guaranteed any sort of respect or authority. And because Hades didn’t actually have a Cabin in Camp Half-Blood yet, it didn’t matter if Bianca was pretty much Known as a Daughter of Hades right off the rip… she was not guaranteed a position on the Senior Council.
That hadn’t stopped Percy from bringing her onboard all the same, however, and nobody had actually made any attempt to stop him either. Nor had there been any pushback against everything else he’d pushed for since. From the trainings, to the patrols, to the buddy system… while there had been some minor grumbling here and there, it had all gone over rather well.
One might even be able to ignore the dire straits Camp Half-Blood was in, what with how well everyone was working together. So long as one also ignored the lack of any Capture the Flag games, or other frivolous activities. Or the fact that they were becoming more and more militarized by the day.
But Percy honestly couldn’t bring himself to feel guilty over the part he played in making that happen. Especially when he saw the effect it was having on Hestia. All of the patrols, all of the monster cullings… while it didn’t completely solve the problem, it did buy them time. More than that, it allowed Hestia to take her focus off of the borders for short bursts of time. She could even attend dinner each night after they went out and killed as many monsters as they could on the border of the Camp.
Of course, when it came to monster killing… Percy was perhaps the best there was. He was a natural, really. Sure, he was also a damn good leader, but at the end of the day it just made more sense to go solo in order to be able to cover more ground. Hestia’s domain was large, and the border wrapped all the way around the Camp. To properly clear out a good portion of the beasties each day meant they had to split up at least a little to cover more ground.
Everyone else was split into squads, and Bianca even had her own squad that she was leading at this point. But Percy… Percy was a one-man monster-killing machine.
As he stabs Riptide into the latest foe and watches them burst into golden dust, Percy reflects that he’s almost glad he stayed behind most days at this point. He’s really making an impact here at Camp, more than he thought he would.
Straightening up and rolling his shoulders, the Son of Poseidon looks around himself for another monster to kill but finds nothing. It’s just him in the clearing at this point… or so he thinks.
“Hello Adonis. Or do you prefer Perseus?"
Jolting, Percy spins around… and finds himself face to face with a Goddess.
[ ] Its Persephone - 17%
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