Second Chance (Percy Jackson Chaos Theory Fanfic)

Sally Jackson

Percy POV

We arrived in relatively quick time since it wasn't a typically busy day for New York. The taxi driver was a boss, letting Nico and I off for free just because we were nice to him. Strange people these days...

Just before we entered my mother's apartment, Nico had the terrible, brilliant idea of having me wear my mask and hood and then reveal myself by dramatically tearing them off.

Except there was a problem with that.

"Uh, you do realize that I saw no need to bring those particular items and therefore cannot wear them at the moment," I pointed out mildly, standing outside the door.

Nico face-palmed himself. "Blast it, I was hoping to have some fun. Oh, well, guess we'll just do the boring old 'oh-look-mom-Ive-been-missing-five-years-and-now-I-suddenly-decide-to-show-up!' entrance then, huh?"

"Boring?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow in amusement. "You've got a warped brain, Death Breath."

The evil glare was sent my direction, a perfect ten-pointer since Nico had perfected the look over the first few years I knew him. "Don't call me that. It's annoying."

"You know if you tell me it annoys you I'm just going to do it all the more," I announced lightly, lifting my hand and rapping my knuckles against the door.

"Why you little-" Nico began, but when Mom opened the door, he switched sentences and exclaimed, "Mrs. Jackson! I mean, Mrs. Blofis!!"

Sally Jackson smiled at Nico. "Hello again, Nico. Come on in."

Curse the door. It was in my face. She couldn't see me right now. Nico saw my situation and stifled a laugh. "Oh, wait, I have a friend I'd like you to meet." He grabbed my wrist in an iron grip and yanked me forward, squashing me between him and my mother.

Her face was priceless. I will never, ever forget the way she looked at me, first with shock, then with awe, then with an inseparable depth of love. Her hand went up to her mouth as tears formed in her eyes. "Percy...?"

"Uh, hey, Mom," I whispered in reply, suddenly feeling uncomfortable. What do you tell your mother after you've been gone for five years and become the heir of the universe? She was gonna flip.

"Percy!" Mom practically screamed out my name, which surprised me, and without further ado made a show out of leaping onto me and hugging me. Her arms encircled me so tightly I thought she was trying to strangle me.

Paul Blofis, hearing the commotion, met us out in the hall, and the moment he caught sight of me, his face went slack. "Percy Jackson, is that really you?" He stepped forward and hugged me as well. "Glad to have you back, son."

I nodded to him as best I could with my mother's head beneath my chin. "Good to be back, Mr. Blofis."

Nico tapped me and whispered to me quietly. "Your mom is married to Paul now."

That halted my thoughts in their tracks. For a moment, I wasn't sure what to think of all of this, but I came to terms and accepted it. And to be honest, I truly was happy.

"Well, then I suppose congratulations are in order," I announced, pulling back from Mom slightly. "I'm glad you and Paul... er, Mr. Blofis are married now, Mom. You deserve a nice guy like him in your life."

"Thank you, Percy," Mom smiled, while Paul just said, "That's my man!" and clapped me on the back.

There was only one thing I wasn't going to do, and that was call Paul "Dad". I already had a dad, and a very good one, so I wasn't about to replace him.

Mom stroked her hand through my long, tangled black hair. "Where have you been, Percy? It's almost five years to the day now."

Oh, wow, she was right. I had disappeared in August, on the second, and today was July thirtieth. Three more days and it would have been exactly five years since I left.

"It's a long story, Mom," was my reply. Of course I didn't want to tell her the truth, because she wouldn't like it and would go into one of those really long lectures about being careful that I wouldn't listen to anyway. "Let's just say it involved two deaths, two times being brought back to life, a fight with the most powerful guy in the universe, being hidden from my friends, revealing myself, and finding my life back in Camp Half-Blood again."

I said it all so quickly that I wasn't sure she had caught any of that, and when confusion spread across her face, I knew my thoughts were correct.

"What?"

"Oh, you should have seen him!" Nico randomly burst out, drawing his sword and swinging it around expertly. Show-off. "All like, wishhhh wishh swing slice twirl around slice again use super cool powers and put a shield up around camp stab Void through the heart bleh and oh look I'm alive again!"

Laughter could not have been contained inside me even if Atlas made me hold up the sky again. My mother and Paul did nothing but stare blankly at Nico, while here I was in the background, laughing like some crazed lunatic.

"Um, Percy, honey, what is he talking about?" Mother pleaded, gazing at me with one of those answer-me-or-die looks.

Her expression didn't daunt me for once, and almost worried me- was I that indifferent now?- but I waved it off, wiping my eyes. "Nothing, nothing, he's just overstating what happened with Void a bit."

"Void?" Paul spoke up. "Whoever that is, they don't sound thrilling. Or dramatic, for that matter."

I twirled a lock of Mom's hair around my finger, enjoying the way she held me just like old times. "Oh, he's just the destroyer of the universe, ya know, no biggie."

The silence stretched on so long I wasn't sure if Mom even grasped what I was saying. "Destroyer of the universe? And- and you had to fight him?"

"Weeeelll..." I drew the word out into a long syllable, shifting uncomfortably on my feet. "Yeah, but I beat him!"

I kicked Nico in the shin before he could say anything about my death, and he let out a squeak, after which he fixed me with his most evil glare.

"Oh..." Mom seemed unsure of what to say. She ended up changing the subject completely. "Well, why don't you boys come inside and join us for lunch?"

"K," Nico mumbled, rubbing his sore leg. As Mom led us inside, he leaned over to me and teasingly growled, "Don't ever do that again, Seaweed Brain, or I will personally wrap you in a shield, cover you with pizza, and feed you to Mrs. O'Leary."

"You really think she'd eat me?" I feigned mock innocency toward Nico, who stuck his tongue out at me.

Then I shoved him into the living room.