𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐅𝐔𝐄𝐋. pj & ac

III.

𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖑𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙𝖓𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖊𝖋

PHOENIX DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT as she lined up for dinner the night of Capture the Flag. Similarly, the campers didn't know how to react.

Her Hermes cabin mates stared and whispered as she stood up from her corner and lined up behind Percy at Dinnertime. Luke looked stunned, but he gave her an encouraging nod when he noticed he was staring. She rolled her eyes, avoiding his. She hardly thought it was that big of a deal.

"You're coming with us?" The new boy asked

She sneered, "What does it look like? Are you blind as well as dumb?"

"You're a real sweetheart did you know that?" He teased, facing forward as the line started towards the dining hall.

She growled, "Don't call me that."

"Why, you don't like it?" He asked.

"No."

"Good to know."

Phoenix crossed her hands across her chest, she huffed in annoyance. The closer they got to the Hermes table, the more shocked faces she noticed. The louder the constant whisperings that she couldn't decipher got. She almost turned right back towards the cabins, until she noticed grey eyes.

Annabeth gave her a gentle smile. Phoenix looked away at once. She sat down grudgingly next to Percy, her arms still crossed over her chest.

He started to ask her about the four empty cabins

"Ask Luke, I'm not your tour guide." She mumbled bitterly, taking a swig of her water.

"You're real helpful, sweetheart."

"You're a real pain in my ass, Jackson." She hissed,

"Why aren't you eating?" Percy asked

She glared into his green eyes. "Are you always so curious?"

He shrugged, "Oh y'know. Only when I find out I have to go to a magically protected summer camp because I'm half god and all the Greek myths are true."

She huffed, ignoring his last question. "Number eight, the silver one, belongs to Artemis, She vowed to be a maiden forever. So no kids. The cabin is, you know, honorary. If she didn't have one, she'd be angry."

"Yeah, okay. But the other three, the ones at the end. Are those the Big Three?"

Phoenix ran her fork over her empty plate. "No. One of them, number two, is Hera's," She said. "That's another honorary thing. She's the goddess of marriage, so she won't go around having affairs with mortals. That's what her husband's for. Big Three, is the three powerful brothers, the sons of Kronos."

"Zeus, Poseidon, Hades."

"Bingo. After the great battle with the Titans, they took over the world from their dad and drew lots to decide who got what."

"Zeus got the sky," Percy remembered. "Poseidon the sea, Hades the Underworld."

"Uh-huh," Phoenix said. "Guess you're not such an idiot after all."

"Gee. Thanks." He rolled his eyes. Taking a bite out of his—Blue pizza slice? "But Hades doesn't have a cabin here."

"No. He doesn't have a throne on Olympus, either. He's in the Underworld." Phoenix shrugged. "The black sheep of his family I guess."

"But Zeus and Poseidon—they both had, like, a bazillion kids in the myths. Why are their cabins empty?" Percy asked

Phoenix groaned, as if talking to the boy took a lot out of her. "About sixty years ago, after World War II, the Big Three agreed they wouldn't sire any more heroes. Their children were too powerful. They were affecting the course of human events too much, causing too much carnage. World War II was basically a fight between the sons of Zeus and Poseidon on one side, and the sons of Hades on the other. The winning side, Zeus and Poseidon, made Hades swear an oath with them: no more affairs with mortal women. They all swore on the River Styx."