Shadows and The Sea - The Darkling

Aleksander Learns & Anxiety

Percy's POV

I woke up once more in the dark room and the man who I had just about spilled my whole life to was sitting at the edge of the bed. This time, I wasn't startled by his being there but more like expecting it. However, this time I was covered with something. I soon realized it was his kefta.

What? Why would he give me his personal kefta? Why not my own or even just a regular blanket?

It made my heart skip a beat when I thought about what could have possibly compelled him to give me his kefta but I didn't dare address it. I simply draped the gorgeous dark coat around my shoulders because I couldn't tear myself away from the comfort it gave me.

The Grisha keftas are all made with glorious quality but there's something about it being his kefta that made it feel like I was wrapped in comfort and safety.

I slowly sat up and ran a hand through my unruly hair, "How long was I out this time?"

He just continued to stare at me with an expression that I couldn't decipher quite yet, "Only 30 minutes."

We sat in silence, just looking at each other. I knew that there were millions of questions he wanted to ask me and I didn't blame him. I would too if I had been overloaded with so much information like he had.

And I still have to tell him about our bond... schit.

I awkwardly fiddled with my rings and the embroidery of the kefta around my shoulders when I finally gathered enough courage to start the conversation, "I'm sorry if it was all too much...but I'll answer any questions to the best of my abilities."

He was quiet for a little while longer before he started the long process, "Why did you go through all that so young?"

I was dumbfounded at his first question. I blinked at him before asking, "I'm sorry?"

He rose from the bed and started pacing, "Why were you put through that at the age of 12? There were literal gods in your world with unbridled power at their fingertips. They could bring the world to their knees and they set children, their children, to fight their wars for them! Without experience. Without proper training. You could be tracked by monsters out to kill you and they never lifted a finger."

I tracked his aggravated form with my eyes as he continued to rant about how the gods treated demigods. I knew the situation surrounding the gods' relationship with demigods was bad, that was Luke's whole message. He was frustrated with the fact that we were treated like pawns most of the time by our so-called parents. Most at that time didn't really do much for their kids.

I got lucky with my dad being who he is and also being his only daughter. Gods like Aphrodite, Ares, and Hermes had lots of children so some tended to be pushed into the background if they didn't complete a quest that brought glory to their name. Even the gods that were not recognized as much had this issue but at the same time, they were bullied because their parents were considered minor.

But seeing his frustration from what he saw in my memories shocked me and made me feel something warm inside. Maybe it was the fact that he was getting so worked up on my behalf.

"Well...it wasn't always like that but Zeus was a paranoid man and thought that if the gods were given unlimited contact with their children, they would start to ignore and reject their duties. So he made a law that none of the gods were allowed to interact with any of their children. Some had to wait years to be even claimed because the lesser known gods had even less connection to their children then the main 12 that sat on the council. I got lucky and my father helped me throughout my journey but others weren't... " I trailed off.