FAVOURITE IDIOT || P.J

14

❛ fighting a jerk relative ❜

A COAST GUARD BOAT PICKED THE FOUR UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE BAY.

Percy had forced his clothes to be wet, avoiding weird stares. He had also given his shoes to Grover than wonder why one of them had hooves.

After reaching land, they stumbled down the beach, watching the city burn against a beautiful sunrise.

"I don't believe it," Annabeth scoffed, "We went all that way—"

"It was a trick," Percy said, "A strategy worthy of Athena."

"Hey," Y/n warned, ready to defend her best friend.

"You get it, don't you?"

Her face softens, and she looks to the ground, "Yeah, I get it."

"Well I don't!" Grover complained, "Would somebody—" Annabeth hit Grover behind his head, telling him to read the room.

"Percy..." Y/n said, "I'm sorry about your mom. I really am..."

"The prophecy was right. 'You shall go west and face the god who has turned.' But that wasn't Hades. He didn't want war among the Big Three. Someone else pulled off the theft. Someone stole Zeus's master bolt and Hades' helm, and framed me because I'm Poseidon's kid. Poseidon will get blamed by both sides. By sundown today, there will be a three-way war and I'll have caused it."

Grover shook his head, "But who would be that sneaky? Who would want a war that bad?"

Percy narrowed his eyes as he looked down the beach, "Gee, let me think."

Standing there was Ares, "Hey, kid. You were supposed to die."

"You tricked me," Percy said, "You stole the helm and the master bolt."

Ares grinned, "Well now, I didn't steal them personally. Gods talking each other's symbols of power—that's a big no-no. But you're not the only hero in the world who can run errands."

Y/n raised a brow, "Who did you use? Clarisse? She was there at the winter solstice."

"Doesn't matter. The point is, you're impeding the war effort. See, Percy was to die in the Underworld. Then Old Seaweed will be mad at Hades for killing him. Corpse Breath will have Zeus's master bolt, so Zeus'll be mad at him. And Hades is still looking for this.."

He took out a ski cap from his pocket and placed it between the handlebars of his bike. Immediately the cap transformed into an elaborate bronze war helmet.

"The helm of darkness," Grover gasped.

"Exactly. Hades will be mad at both Zeus and Poseidon because he doesn't know who took this. Pretty soon, we got a nice little three-way slugfest going on."

"But they're your family!" Annabeth protested.

The god shrugged, "Best kind of war. Always the bloodiest. Nothing like watching your relatives fight, I always say."

"Oh yeah? What about Aphrodite?" Y/n spat, "I bet she won't like it when she hears that her little boyfriend sent her daughter on a trap."

Ares glared at her, his eyes grew hotter behind his black glasses.

"You gave me the backpack in Denver. The master bolt was there the whole time." Percy said.

"Yes and no. It's probably too complicated for your little mortal brain to follow, but the backpack is the master bolt's sheath, just morphed a bit. The bolt connected to it, sort of like that sword you've got. It always return to your pocket right? Anyway, I tinkered with the magic so the bolt would only return once you reached the Underworld. You got close to Hades...bingo, you got mail. If you died along the way—no loss. I still had the weapon."