Life of a Young Demigod: Book 3 (Percy Jackson reader-insert)

I Miss The Greatest Show on Earth

Pro tip: don't fly via gargoyle if you can help it. By the time we landed, my shoulders were aching and my wrists were all scratched up from the surprisingly rough feet of our "friends". I'd frankly rather be back on that plane ride of doom carrying the most powerful weapon on earth like I was two summers ago than take Air Gargoyle again. We quickly thanked them when they dropped us off at the beach and made our way towards the pier.

"How will we know which one Nereus is?" Asked Percy, glancing around at the myriad of homeless people and beach bums hanging out in the shade.

"Go look for him. Trust me, thy will be able to tell." Was Zoë's simple response.

Percy glanced at me, but I simply shrugged in response. Me, Zoë, and Grover got some food while Percy made his way through the crowds, looking for the old man of the sea. Eventually, we heard a commotion down closer to the end of the pier, and rushed over. Sure enough, there was Percy, wrestling with a particularly ratty looking homeless guy. He was rapidly changing form, from an eel to a sea lion to even a jellyfish at one point, but Percy held tight. Nereus eventually managed to get loose for a moment, and leapt into the sea, but Percy followed close behind him, and I knew as soon as it happened that Percy had him. Nobody would be able to beat him in the water. Sure enough, a minute or so later Percy and Nereus shot up out of the ocean, landing on the pier with a crunch.

"FINE! One question! But that's all you get!"

Percy paused for a moment. I could see it in his eyes, he so desperately wanted to ask where Annabeth was, but he shook his head, seemingly telling himself he had to ask a question that would help find Artemis.

"Where is the monster Artemis was seeking?"

Nereus began laughing maniacally. "Oh! That's an easy one!" He said, pointing over the edge of the pier. "It's right there!"

Percy glanced at him, profoundly confused. "I... what..."

Nereus jumped up. "Bye! One question!"

With that, before any of us could as much as lift a finger, he was gone, jumping straight into the ocean and rocketing off into the distance.

Percy kicked an empty bucked. "DAMMIT!"

Thalia stifled a laugh. "Heh. Dam."

Zoë rushed over to the edge, and her eyes went wide. "It... no. Of course. As the others have returned so must it."

The rest of us made our way over and looked down where she was. There, swimming in a small circle, was a strange little creature. It looked almost like a cow, but way longer, and without any legs.

"Is... is that the horrible monster Artemis was chasing?"

Zoë nodded. "Do not be deceived by its innocent looks. The Ophiotaurus is perhaps the most dangerous monster of them all. It is said whoever slays it and sacrifices it's entrails will have the power to destroy Olympus."

Percy frowned. "Bessie is that dangerous? But she's so... harmless."

"MOOO!"

Grover sighed. "She says her name isn't Bessie. And Percy, there is great power in killing innocence. Dark power, but great all the same."

I pursed my lips. "So... what do we do? The rational part of me says we have to kill it and destroy the entrails, but..."

Percy shook his head adamantly. "No. We aren't going to hurt her. I just need to... wait. Grover. You can talk to her, right?"

Grover nodded slowly.

"Take her. Get her back to camp. We can keep her safe there until we come up with a better plan. I'll ask my dad to keep her safe until you get there."

Zoë frowned. "That's a big ask. It'll need a powerful prayer."

Percy took his lionskin cloak off without hesitation and tossed it into the sea. "Dad. Please accept this offering. Could you keep Grover and Bessie safe until they get to camp?"

The cloak fizzled into nothingness, as if to signal an agreement had been reached. Percy smiled softly. "Thanks dad. Now get going Grover. Hop on her back and tell her where to go. She'll take care of the rest."

Grover did as asked. As he and Bessie rode off into the distance, the rest of us walked along the beach, and I remembered something.

"Hey guys, will you be alright for a bit? I uh... need to make a call."

Percy nodded. "Go ahead man. Just don't take too long, we need to figure out where to go next."

I nodded and rushed off. I found one of those beach changing rooms and blocked the door with a stool. I used a bit of magic to transform the window into a prism, and tossed a drachma into the rainbow it formed.

"Oh Iris, goddess of the rainbow, accept my offering. Andromeda Fitzgerald, Camp Half-Blood."

"Y/N! How are you! Nico's been asking about you guys!"

My stomach dropped and I began to cry softly.

"Darling? What's wrong?"

I spoke softly. "B...Bianca. She..."

Andromeda's face fell. "Oh gods..."

"I wasn't there. I was chasing after Johnathan. She died a hero."

Andromeda nodded slowly as I explained the rest. "There wasn't anything you could have done my dear. She made her choice, you know that. Every one of us would have done the same in her position."

I smiled softly. "I... I know."

"I know it still hurts. It's going to for a while. But I'm here for you, my love. I always will be."

I smiled softly. "Thanks Sunshine. You always know what to say."

Andromeda smirked. "Sunshine? I like it."

I laughed, actually laughed, for the first time in a while. "Good. I thought it was a bit uncreative, but..."

Andromeda rolled her eyes at me. "Shush it, Starlight. Quit while you're ahead."

"Starlight? I like that one too. You're better at this than me I think."

Andromeda smiled. "It's just what your magic reminds me of for some reason. It has that same ethereal quality to it."

I was about to launch into a lecture about why that was, but thought better of it. "How are things back at camp?"

Andromeda shrugged. "More or less the same as usual. Nothing too interesting going on. I managed to beat Clarisse in wrestling yesterday, which is pretty cool I guess."

I smirked. "That's my 'Meda."

Suddenly, I heard what sounded like maniacal screaming from outside. I groaned. "Knowing my luck thats somehow Percy's fault. Got to go."

Andromeda sighed. "Alright. Be safe out there Starlight. Come back to me in one piece."

I smiled and blew here a kiss. "Will do, Sunshine. Love you!"

Andromeda blew me a kiss. "Love you too my dear!"

With that, I cut the connection and rushed out. To my surprise, there was no fight, simply a couple security guards running around aimlessly, one tearing his hair out screaming about worms in his head. I rushed over to the others, who were making their way towards me.

"What in Hades happened here?"

Percy smirked. "Thorn showed up. Mr. D helped us, for once."

I stood there for a moment, utterly gobsmacked. "You're telling me the one time I miss a fight Mr. D of all people is the one who saves the day?"

I glanced around at Zoë and Thalia, virtually begging them to tell me Percy was punking me. They simply shrugged.

"You have got to be kidding me. Dam."

Percy let out a snort of laughter. "Come on, man. We're heading to Annabeth's family's place. We need to borrow a car."