DA : Chapter 35: Goodbye III

"If you'd want to be the godfather?" she asked anxiously.

Jason looked at them, stunned beyond words for a minute at least before he smiled even brighter and hugged Hazel again while shouting, "Of course! I'd be honored!"

...

There was a little cheer for that as the mood in the house skyrocketed. They spent another couple of hours like that, talking happily and telling Andy all sorts of stories from their adventures as demigods until it the hour got late. Andy glanced out into the pitch black night.

"Looks like it's time to head out," she murmured sadly but Hazel put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Well I hope you know you are always welcome here," she said warmly making Andy nod happily.

"And you better let us know when the special day comes," Andy said while pointing at her tiny bump. "We'll all want to be there for that day … I'll even make sure my brother comes along."

"But won't it be dangerous if the gods spotted him or sensed him near?" she asked but Jason answered for her.

"I could always speak to Aether and see if he'd be okay bringing you into the Palace of the Sky for that day so all of us can be there for you," he offered making Frank and Hazel's jaws drop.

"Yeah and hopefully Nico will have spoken to your father about us and he could make up some story about bringing you into the Underworld for the birth too," she added with a wink.

"A-are you sure?" Frank asked nervously. "Wouldn't the gods find it odd?"

"Maybe but it's not like they're on good terms with Hazel's dad anyways after what they did years ago," Andy answered with a shrug. "And if not, we'll figure something out."

"Thank you," Frank said as he draped an arm around his wife.

"Our pleasure," she replied as Jason stood beside her. "Oh, and if you want to contact us. Pray to Nyx, Rhea, Mnemosyne, Aether, Hemera, or Taratrus." She paused for a moment before adding.

"And if you just want to send a letter or message, write on a piece of paper and stick it into a shadow while praying to Nyx or even Percy. One of them will get it immediately."

"I just learned that it works with light too," Jason pipped up. "Same thing, stick a letter in clear daylight and pray to Hemera or Aether and they'll get it. I'm not connected to the domains since I haven't claimed the right to be an heir so I can't receive messages that way yet."

"Noted," Frank said with a nod before there were several goodbye hugs.

Soon enough both were stepping out of the house, the happy couple looking at them with warm smiles. Andromeda gave them a wave before looking at Jason.

"So, does Aether expect you back yet?" she asked.

"I'm good for another few hours," he replied easily.

"Then you're hanging out with me," she said as she snagged his arm before shadow traveling them back to Tartarus.

They stumbled a little, or more like Jason did and she caught him making him blush. It was odd, considering his blood was slowly turning to ichor so he was a reddish gold. She giggled at it though but stopped when she heard a throat being cleared.

She turned to see her brother looking at them in amusement, sweat trailing down his exposed torso as his swords Sin and Purgatory rested at his sides .She glanced around and realized she'd jumped them to the training grounds by accident in her haste.

She looked across from Percy to see Rhea there as well, dressed in a tight fitting sports bra and yoga pants, her hair in a ponytail, and also gleaming with sweat.

In her hands was her bow staff, Testament, made of a mix of black Tartarean steel and emerald that she used her earth domain to obtain.

The entire staff was just about seven feet long, with the main rode made of the steel while the emerald covered the blunt ends and formed tendril patterns reaching towards the center with the leather grips.

She was broken out of her musings when Percy snapped his fingers to get her attention.

"Sup sis, how was the trip?" he asked.

Andromeda glanced at Jason before both beamed at Percy and told him everything. By the end Rhea was hoping with excitement at the news of a baby on the way.

"Oh, we are so visiting them soon," Percy agreed as he set a hand on his girlfriend's shoulder to calm her down slightly.

"How soon?" Rhea asked eagerly.

"Don't worry love, soon enough," Percy answered with a chuckle before his head randomly tilted to the side as if he was listening to something before a sly smile appeared on his face. He then glanced at Jason and said, "I do believe you have some siblings on the way."

Before they could even ask Percy smirked before dissolving into shadows while Rhea had a knowing smile on her face.

"Do you know what he's talking about?" Jason asked as he looked at Rhea.

"It's a surprise," she replied with a wink before turning around and heading for the House of Night in the distance. "Let's get to the house, we are expecting company after all …"

...

( Thalia POV )

Thalia sat silently in her tent, her thoughts racing as she looked down at her own hands for what felt like hours. It had been little more than a day since Nico came and revealed the truth to her. She hadn't been able to sleep since and couldn't so much as look Artemis in the face throughout the whole day.

She didn't know what to do anymore and she'd never felt more alone in her life. Here she was, with the band of girls that were her supposed family, only to learn of the horrors that had been hidden here.

Sure, she'd known that after the wars something had seemed to change within her mistress and even the other gods on the rare occasions they visited. It was as if now that the threats of their own ends weren't there, they no longer needed to pretend to be amiable or respectful towards the demigods.

Apollo and Artemis argued louder and harsher words were spit out, Hermes who usually at least said hi to his daughters in the Hunt during deliveries simply appeared, finished business and left.

They didn't say anything but she could tell some of his daughters felt hurt about it, him being one of the only males they still cared about.

She also hadn't spoken to her own father in years after one odd visit with him asking her if she would consider leaving the Hunt to become a goddess on Olympus.

She denied it without hesitation, at the time feeling sure that her place was here rather than on Olympus and she couldn't shake the feeling that godly politics would be involved if she did. Hell, just look what happened to her so called friend, Annabeth.

The pair had long since drifted apart, especially when Thalia learned about the cheating on Percy with Apollo of all people … and the irony that followed.

She wasn't sure how or why it happened, but a year or so after Percy's disappearance, Zeus announced that Apollo and Annabeth were getting hitched. She remembered the wedding as a blur, since just about everyone from Camp Half-blood and the Hunt had to attend along with a few senators from New Rome.

She'd been sorta happy for Annabeth but they just weren't close anymore and the friendship was at an end.

She still felt some pity though when, surprise, surprise! Took a year (impressive enough honestly) but soon Apollo was caught having an affair with a mortal and had another bun in the oven (confirmed by Hestia, Artemis informed her at the time).

Apparently Annabeth nearly went full Hera on the mortal but luckily Hestia put her foot down about harming innocent mortals or demigods.

That was another thing, the few times she'd visited Olympus in the years, Thalia had heard how Hestia is nearly silent at all meetings now and doesn't even try to stop her brothers from fighting. She only ever speaks up when something regarding a demigod is mentioned and usually only to prevent hasty actions.

So Olympus was a mess ever since Percy left and she was pretty sure she didn't even know the half of it … but now she could understand why. Hestia and Hades being reluctant to even take part, the louder bickering and threats sent between the gods, and the dramas revolving around them and the demigods.

Apparently now her own brother could be added to the list of vanishing demigods which made her wonder how New Rome would react?

Their guardian and Pontifus Maximus, one of the seven, gone without a trace just like Percy nearly nine years ago. Add to that the mysterious disappearances of other gods and the wolf … no, Percy's infiltration while recovering his sister. He'd been so close and yet she'd never known until now.

She could still recall the few times he simply sat beside her and offered silent comfort on her down days or when she occasionally scratched him behind the ears.

He'd been such a welcome presence then and now she had the chance to have it again along with her family. Andromeda, Nico, Jason, and Percy were all waiting to see if she would join them and in her hands was the marble keeping her from them.

But then what about the Hunt? She knew that Percy was the one to kill Phoebe and would likely want the entire Hunt to burn for what they did to his family and the crimes committed over the years. That had been her first sign that things were wrong with Artemis and the other gods.

They were reverting, becoming far more like their myths … just as merciless, cruel, and abusive. Artemis had once been like a sister or even mom to them, more so in Thalia's case since they actually are sisters, but things had fallen apart.

Her sister had changed from the once noble Olympian that helped spare Percy after he saved her. But on the inside she'd been boiling with rage at having a debt to anyone, especially a male.

Just like her, many of the gods were starting to feel belittled and insulted to have one demigod not only save them repeatedly but also made them change their ways when most clearly didn't want to. He had been an upstart, a change, a guide and role model for the next generation of demigods … and that was dangerous to millennia old beings set in their ways.

It made sense that they would want him either leashed by the ancient laws as a god with them … or disposed of. 'So is that what's happening to me?' she wondered as she thought about her father's request and the slow separation she was feeling from the Hunt.

In time her attitude towards men had become increasingly apparent as she did not outright show hostility towards them until they gave her a reason to.

It also wasn't a secret that she would often go to nearby streams when they had the chance and IM Nico just to have a familiar face to speak to but many in the Hunt thought she was calling him for other motives and weren't exactly quiet about the accusations.

She bared with it though and kept on with her duty, protecting the Hunt as the lieutenant. But could she now after everything?

In these three years things have only gotten worse. Artemis tries to pull a tough and cold façade now but behind closed doors, Thalia had been the only one to see Artemis break down and cry nearly every night for a year.

She'd tried to help and comfort her as much as she could but nothing she did seemed to help and in one of those nights, where Artemis had fallen asleep with her head on Thalia's lap, did Thalia learn a shocking reason as to why Phoebe's death had hurt Artemis so much.

She and Phoebe had been lovers.

With Phoebe taken away in such a brutal fashion and Artemis powerless to help, she'd broken. Her warmth had all but vanished even to the point members of the Hunt tried to avoid her.

Her normally intense silver-yellow eyes had dulled along with the moon and she trusted no one … save maybe for Thalia herself.

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Don't forget to throw some power Stones, to keep the story going.

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