Drowning in the Siren's Song -II

Chapter 15

Apollo's godly aura still left him dazed as he unmounted from Blackjack. He purposely moved just a bit slower to adjust to him, taking an extra second to turn around. Those extra moments were spent taking in the freshness of the nature around him; the trees, the soil. The rays of the new morning glowed gently, matching with the gold in his eyes.

"How are you, Percy?" Apollo cracked a small smile, knowing exactly 'how' he was. He had let himself peek at his progress through the sun chariot sometimes. He'd even seen the boy fight and win against Lupa.
"Good, Sir." Percy said, bowing at the neck, returning to meet his eyes confidently. 

His powers weren't the only thing that had grown. Apollo was reminded again of how young he was. He had shot up drastically and had now reached his chest. Being immortal for so long, he'd forgotten how quickly human children tend to grow. It had almost been a year since Percy had left and in such a short time, he had come back looking even more mature. Not to mention, handsome. 

Apollo had seen his fair share of pretty humans, his own children being ones on whom poetry was written, but he had to admit that Percy could indeed be mistaken for Aphrodite's blood. Of course, he was no better than a scruffy puppy now, with his hair and clothes all shaggy and untidy, but his face was enough to make anyone forget. Simply his gaze made him look like he was a character in a painting; his eyes too bright a hue to be made anywhere other than on a palette.  

"And the quest," A dramatic pause was needed, "how was it?" Apollo sat on his throne, a dusty rock at the edge of a tree. "I hope California suited your taste?" 
"It helped sharpen my knives. And Keria's talons." Percy smirked quickly, glancing at the bird who was still pecking at Blackjack's mane. He nodded, suddenly feeling bittersweet. It was great to be back, but had already started missing the Wolf House. It was an ache that would burn longer than expected. "I learned a lot."

"Then all is well and good." Apollo gestured to another rock and watched Percy sit.
"My family," He grimaced, "has both lost and gained interest in you."
As clarification he added, "Thankfully my father's eyes are elsewhere right now, and so are my uncles, but a few of the gods are curious." 

He felt Percy's eyes on him as he continued, "Hephaestus for one, has discovered that he favors you. Apparently, you helped his son?" He raised an eyebrow at him, silently reprimanding and complimenting him. "He understands not wanting to associate with one's parents so he is turning a blind eye to whoever you may be. That said, I assume he will remain watchful but uninterested in your affairs."

"Aphrodite, meanwhile, has learnt of you through means which even I am unsure of and definitely out of your control." This time, Apollo laughed, ignoring the serious air of the matter. "She gained word of you because of your face!"

Percy choked, coughing with wide eyes, flabbergast. "What?!"
"Somehow the gossips and rumors have travelled to her ears, telling her of a child who is pretty enough to compel nature spirits into submission." He laughed again, "She is closest to the truth, I'll say!" 

Percy was still shocked, but kept growing worried as Apollo did not show signs of stopping his list. 
"Athena, I'm pretty sure, at least has suspicions of your identity. The child of hers you helped, Annabeth? She is favored. Since then, she has had eyes on you but also, has ignored you ever since my sister got involved. She respects my sister enough to not pry in her 'interests'." 

"Demeter, as you may have guessed, was drawn because of your influence on nature. She had assumed you a child of hers or a descendant of a nature god but stopped her investigation when she learnt of the Nature's and Pan's blessing." 

Seeing his sigh of relief he added, "She regards you highly, Percy, as a beloved of plants."
He blushed under the praise, glad in some ways. 

"The others are similar, getting distracted by my sister, or your blessings and simply letting you out of their minds once you had left. The ones who are paying attention will not jeopardize you, at least now."

"Thank you." Percy meant it. It was a big favor, and somehow, free. 

"Not yet, Percy." Apollo grew serious, his golden eyes heavy, bearing down on him. "I cannot be sure of Poseidon, nor Neptune."
Percy stiffened, knowing that the name of his father would come up, one day or another. 
"He shows no interest whatsoever, but it is truly hard to say. He is the most involved in the domains you have a rule over, and therefore may already know of you and your 'adventures'. But it is entirely possible that he knows nothing. As far as I know, he had not once showed any signs that a child of his roams the earth." 

"I am no child of his." Percy growled, having nothing more to say. He had always known it would be very easy for Poseidon to find out about him, but it was not motivation enough to forgo the lakes, rivers and seas around him.
He didn't consider himself Poseidon's son, but he was a prince of the sea. That was not going to change. 

"I see." Apollo nodded, clapping his hands and getting up. Business talks were now finished between the two and the tension in the air has dissipated. His eyes remained the heavy gold but they adopted a sparkle which was missing before. 

He flashed a perfect smile at him, reaching out to pat him on the head, an action he'd missed. Between strokes where his hand got tangled in the waves of his hair, his sweet, gentle voice said, "Let's spar?"