The Guardians

Chapter 5

Blaise was confused. On his tenth birthday, three women in black had come and rescued him from his mother. They took him to some camp in the woods, where he met someone named Percy who knew about magic and had his injuries healed. He was given a warm outfit similar to the ones the women had worn, except it was slightly more masculine. Then, he was brought back to Percy, who was dueling a younger kid with swords.

Percy explained that gods were real and that he was a god of elements, which included magic. He then explained that he had formed a group called the Guardians and what they did. Finally, he offered Blaise the choice to join them, though he would still age and would go to Hogwarts so Percy could have someone there to keep an eye on things.

Blaise accepted and was given a blessing that made everything seem clearer. He was handed a small pack and told it would turn into his tent.

Then, he was trained. He trained with magic, weapons, weaponless combat, strength of mind, and plenty of other things. He struggled at first, but soon got the hang of everything.

The Guardians quickly became his family, and by the beginning of Yule, he trusted them completely. The person he was closest with was Nico, who taught him how to control his emotions. He was also close with Piper, who saw him as a younger brother.

So, in general, life was good for Blaise. Much better than it had been with his mother, at any rate.

∆_______________∆

It was the end of the year when Loki finally made this decision. Him and Thor had narrowed it down to only four gods. Eros, Perseus, Apollo, and Hermes. They were sitting together and trying to decide between the four.

"Apollo is going to be consistently unfaithful," Thor said. "Eros will likely be the same."

Loki wrinkled his nose and crossed them out. As gods, it was expected that your spouse would cheat occasionally, but Loki didn't want someone who would be too disloyal. "Hermes or Perseus," he said.

"Hermes is always busy," Thor mused. "His job is very demanding."

That sounded appealing, but Loki knew reasonably that if he was in isolation even longer, he would go insane. So, he sighed and crossed Hermes off the list. He then looked back at Perseus's profile.

The Greek was handsome, that was easily determined. His domains included peace, so that was likely a good sign. His title was long and Loki skimmed it, feeling slightly surprised at all Perseus had done.

"Perseus it is, then," Loki said.

Thor smiled sadly and patted his back. "I will visit, Brother."

Loki smiled back, just as sadly. "Please inform Father of my choice."

Thor nodded. "Very well. I will return tomorrow. Good night, Brother."

∆_______________∆

Zeus got the return message from Odin and gulped. How would he convince Perseus to marry? "Hera!" he called.

"Yes, Zeus?"

He silently handed his wife the letter, watching as her eyes widened. "Is there no other way?" she asked.

"I offered him anyone in the book. I forgot about Perseus."

Hera laughed harshly. "Get Artemis to talk him into it. Chaos knows she's the only one he listens to out of all of us."

Zeus sighed and called Artemis to beg for her help. She would be angry with him, but she would understand. He hoped.

∆_______________∆

Percy was wrapping Yule presents for his Guardians when Artemis flashed in. "How can I help you?" he asked, looking up from the katanas he was wrapping for Damian.

"Olympus is on the verge of another war," Artemis said cautiously. "Father found a way to avoid it, but you're not going to like it."

Percy raised and eyebrow. "Just tell me already, Arty."

Artemis handed him a folder. "A marriage alliance."

Percy opened the folder to find a picture of a handsome god and some information about him. "Prince Loki of Asgard?"

Artemis slowly nodded. "Father offered any unmarried deity in the pantheon."

Percy frowned as he started to realize what this meant. "Who did Loki choose?"

"You," Artemis said. "Father forgot you were in the book when he sent it to King Odin and you were chosen."

Percy took a deep breath. "Are you saying that I have to get married?"

She nodded. "I'm saying it's the only way we can avoid another war."

"I'll do it," Percy said with a heavy sigh. "When do I need to be there?"

"Thank you, Percy," Artemis said, feeling relieved that he had agreed. "The signing is tomorrow at noon."

Percy nodded stiffly as she flashed away. He decided to put it out of his mind for a while and work on wrapping his gifts.

Once he had wrapped them all, he called his Guardians to gather around the campfire. "I'm getting married," he said bluntly.

"What?" Annabeth asked.

"In order to avoid war with Asgard, I am marrying the second prince."

It took a while for everyone to calm down and accept it, though none were happy with Zeus at the moment. In fact, Annabeth had spent a whole ten minutes cursing the god's name.

That night, they exchanged gifts and enjoyed the company of their family. Percy loved it. He loved having this family. He loved his life. He could only hope that his upcoming marriage wouldn't ruin it.