The Gods' Tether

Chapter 11

I smile softly as Percy falls asleep in my arms. I hold him and don't let go. I had always felt protective over my siblings, especially the demigod ones. I was one of the few my father trusted when he would get a mortal pregnant. So I often took the role of midwife with the women through the years. Then after my sibling was born, if I could, I would stay around as long as I could without the mortals around us getting suspicious.

I gently play with Percy's hair before looking at Annabeth. "What happened? I haven't seen him have such a bad panic attack in a while." I say quietly to her. She frowns and fidgets with her hands. "We were just in here cuddling and he dozed off. Then he woke up in a panic attack. I think he was having a nightmare." She says softly.

I nod and take a deep breath. The few demigods that didn't have nightmares were the lucky ones. The few that still had their innocence about their lives as a demigod.  I wish I could take away all of the misery and pain in all the demigods' lives. We shouldn't make them do the work of the gods. Sometimes I feel like the gods forget that their demigod children are more like mortals than gods. 

"Annabeth, could you be a dear and let the gods know everything is okay? And that I will see them at dinner or at Capture the Flag. It will depend on when Percy wakes and if he is ready or not to be around people." I say calmly to her. She nods and looks at the door. Then she moves close and kisses Percy's forehead before leaving the Poseidon cabin.

I then just close my eyes and focus on the sound of my brother's breathing. Life had been simple and peaceful when he was a child and didn't know he was a demigod. My missions were shorter and I would babysit Percy on the days I was home. When I would sneak him snacks to cheer him up after he got in trouble with his schools. Or when I would let him have a sleepover at my apartment when Sally would pick up extra shifts at work.

A small groan of pain brings me back to the present. I look at the clock and see that about a half hour has passed before I look down and smile softly when I see Percy awake. "Otōto," I say softly to him so he knows he is not alone and is safe. He yawns while rubbing his head. I let him move and get out of the bed. I get him a glass of water. I bring it to him and he drinks it. Then I take a seat on the edge of the bed.

"Do you want to talk about it or just try to forget it?" I ask once he finishes the glass of water. He stays quiet and thinks it over for a bit. "Can we just forget about it for now?" He asks, not looking at me. I nod, "Of course. I don't judge how you handle your pain and trauma." I say while I reach over and ruffle his hair.

He looks up at me and gives me a small smile. "Do you want to stay in the cabin? Or we can go to my cabin and I could make some blue cookies. Though they won't be as good as Mama Sally's cookies." I say as I smile back. "Can we stay here? I don't want to deal with any gods that might be in your cabin." He says as he looks out the window and sees Apollo talking to some of his children.

"That is alright. I don't mind staying in here. I don't think any gods would be in the cabin without me here, but they definitely won't come in here since they won't want to piss off Dad at all." I say as I move to sit next to him on the bed and we cuddle up. I hold him like I used to when he was little.

"Sorry if you were doing something before all of this. I would have been fine eventually." He mumbled quietly after we had been quiet for a bit. I look at him and give him a firm but loving look. "Perseus Jackson. You are my brother. My family. My blood. You will always take priority in my life just like any other family member would. I will come to you whenever I can. So never say sorry for things you have no control over."

He looks away, but I notice him tearing up a bit. This was a side of him, not many people knew about. This was the little brother I knew. The boy who wasn't always strong or sassy. The boy who was so loyal to everyone important to him but took the unnecessary guilt if anything happened to them. I hold him tighter to comfort him.

My heart was breaking for my brother. He has gone through too much for his age. It wasn't like it was centuries ago when the demigods were more god than mortal. These children weren't meant for these quests and wars. Maybe having more gods at camp will make them finally realize that. "It is all okay, Otōto," I whisper to him.

Once he calms back down, I kiss the top of his head. "How about we Iris message Mama Sally and you can check in with how she is doing while I go grab us some snacks. Dinner may be soon but there is always room for ice cream and blue Coke." I suggest as I ruffle his hair. He nods slowly. I get out of the bed and go to the fountain. 

I grab some drachma and Iris message. I smile when I see Sally Jackson in the rainbow with her back facing me while washing the dishes. "Mama Sally," I call out to get her attention. Percy slowly gets up and comes over to the fountain. She turns and smiles at me. "Yui, it has been too long since you last Iris messaged or visited." She says.

"Sorry, I was busy in Japan helping my grandfather after doing a big mission. Don't worry, I will give you all the details I can another time. But Percy here wanted to check in on you. I am going to grab some snacks and then I will be back to talk too." I say to her happily. "Alright Dear." She says before turning her attention to Percy. 

I leave quickly to give them some privacy. I head quickly to my cabin to get the ice cream and glasses. When I enter the kitchen, I find Loki and Thor relaxing in there while drinking what looks like some kind of Asgardian ale. Since they weren't talking to me or willing to forgive me yet, I just ignored them and went to the freezer and then the cupboard. I could hear Loki scoffing behind me. 

I roll my eyes and take what I came for. Then I leave the kitchen without saying a word. I was about to walk out the cabin door just as Balder was coming inside. "Sorry Balder." I say as I go to move around him. "Yui! You should come join Loki, Thor, and I. We were just going to have some drinks." He offers happily. I smile apologetically. "Sorry, Balder. I was just going to have some snacks with my brother while we talked with his mom." I explain.

He seems a bit sad about it, but he accepts it. "Alright. Will we see you at dinner then?" He asks. I nod. "Yeah, Percy should be up to go to dinner. If not, I will see you guys at Capture the Flag." I say to try to cheer him up. "But I should get going before the ice cream starts to melt," I say before I leave. He waves before going to join the other Norse gods.

I head back to Cabin 3. Percy and Sally were laughing about something. Thankfully he seemed to be doing better after having talked with his mom for a bit. I grab some bowls that I had in my bunk area that I kept for moments like this. I dish us up some ice cream. I pass him a bowl and a glass which filled with blue Coke.

We chill and talk with Sally while we enjoy our snack. We talk about the good moments from the past. We lost track of time and before we knew it, it was time for dinner. We didn't want to go, but after a light playful scolding from Sally, we headed to the dining pavilion to have dinner. When we got there, Annabeth came over and hugged Percy. He reassured her he was fine.

I head to the table to give them a moment. I head to the Poseidon table and sit down. I wait for Percy to come join me. I saw the gods head to their table and was tempted to go sit with them if it would look bad to Dad. Before I could think anymore about it, Percy came to the table. The pavilion was filled with the buzz of demigods excited for Capture the Flag. I was looking forward to it too.