Raised from the Depths: The Apple of Their Eyes [A Percy Jackson FanFiction]

Thirty-eight: Like mother, like daughter

As I began to wake up, the feeling of consciousness turned to grogginess, and dull aches and pains raked my body. I flinched, letting out a short groan.

I remembered falling. I remembered him. He broke the fall when we landed on his pegasus.

"Sol?" I called out in a hoarse voice. When I didn't hear his voice reply, I attempted to sit up, only to have a hand grasp my shoulder and gently guide me back down. "Sol?" I asked on a whisper, but when I touched the hand with mine, it wasn't warm like his skin.

"Shhh, Affinity. The boy will be fine. His cabin mates took him to the Apollo cabin." A sweet voice responded, and instantly my heart fluttered, and I blinked my eyes open, forcing on the face in front of me.

"Mom." I whispered, tears beginning to prick my eyes. She returned my response with a brilliant white smile.

Being she was my adopted mother, she looked nothing like me, but honestly, that made her all the more beautiful. She had smooth, glowing brown skin, and her eyes were an earthy green. Her hair was a strange, wavy caramel brown- it's not often you see someone with hair lighter than their skin, but on my mom, it worked.

"Hello, Affinity." She muttered, running her fingers through my greasy hair. "That was quite a trick you just pulled. And since when do you fly gryphons?"

"Gryphons... Well, I..." I trailed off, my mind beginning to process everything that was actually happening. "Wait a minute. How are- how are you here? Chiron said that mortals can't enter here!" I exclaimed, trying to sit up, but my mom placed her hand on my chest to keep me from doing so.

"We may not be related, Affinity, but we have quite a few things in common." She began exclaiming as she retook a seat beside me and grabbed a sweating glass of nectar from a table. As she sat me up gently for me to drink, I did a quick check of my surroundings- we were in the Hades cabin, although we were completely alone. Nico was no where to be seen. I grabbed the glass of nectar and took a deep drink. With my mom here, it tasted like the hot chocolate she used to make me as a kid; warm, sweet, and comforting sensation spread radiated through me instantly. I managed to down half the glass before she pulled it away from me. "We're both demigods."

The nectar caused a wave of energy to crash through me, and some of the sore, stiff feeling in my muscles went away, and the groggy fog lifted from my mind. "And you didn't think it would be a good idea to tell me?" I pressed, my tone slightly frustrated. That was quite the secret for a mother to keep for 15 years.

"Your father and I tried once. Remember that one day a few years back, when we took you to see the movie Hercules?" She questioned.

"Oh... Yeah. That's what got me hooked on mythology." I muttered.

"Well, in the car, when I tried to explain that I was like Hercules, you just kept rambling on about how I couldn't defeat a Hydra, or wrestle an immortal lion, so I dropped it. Partly because you were right, most daughters of Demeter can't do those things. But I suppose part of me hoped that if you learned enough about mythology, you might come to realize it yourself." My mom explained. There was a gleam of regret in her eyes. "Instead, you developed the idea the stories weren't stories, just myths."

"Well, it is called Greek mythology, mom." I pointed out, stretching in my seat. Several joints poped, and my back and ribs screamed in protest, causing me to flinch. "Did you know I was a demigod?"

"Yes, but your father knew before I did. He's a mortal who can see through the Mist, which is rare for a man, but that's how he and I met. He was the only one who noticed that flowers seemed to grow towards me. In the orphanage, you were like a magnet to him, and he fell in love in mere seconds. Only after I held you in my arms did I realize we had a baby demigod on our hands." My mom explained. I must admit, I was quite happy to finally here the whole story- well, the true version of it, anyways. "Because demigods attract monsters, we moved out to Marquette, because it was a more isolated place to raise a child. But we couldn't hide you forever, and I knew this. A week before you disappeared, I contacted Chiron about you, and he said he would send a group of campers to retrieve you. Then, one day, you never came home. I knew you were safe at Camp Half Blood, but by time I got here, Chiron said you were sent on a quest to find the Golden Apple of Discord."

I smiled. The quest seemed like it was such a long time ago now. "Speaking of your quest, I suspect Chiron will want to talk to you soon." My mother fretted, guiding me to my feet gently. I bit my lip as pain enflamed my rib cage. "Come on, let's go clean you up. You look like you've been through Hell and back."

"Well, I didn't get to go to Tartarus, but the Fields of Asphodel were depressing enough for me." I stated.

___________
So, the next part should be the last chapter, BUT I'm adding a prologue and an epilogue too, so, stay tuned XD