Forgot to Say [Percy Jackson and the Olympians Fanfic]

Midnight Ends

Percy sighed as he looked at himself with his closet door mirror, fingers deftly making a knot for his tie. From the corner of his eye, he saw his...sort of sister peeking in on him shyly, and he smiled at her through the mirror.

"You need something, Rosemarie?"

She shifted a little nervously, before she shuffled into the large closet space. She gave him a small smile but didn't say anything, opting to just stand near him and watch him get ready for work.

It was strange to think he now had custody of her. It was stranger to think that she was also sort of his sister, or at least the sister of a past life of his. Something in him kind of believed in it, but it was harder for him to grasp the whole Greek mythos being not so much myths but truth. And there was a part of him, something he felt strange about and not wholly comfortable about, that felt the faint echoes of affection for Elena –Athena. From the moment, he crossed paths with her, he'd instinctively wanted to take care of her and felt instantly fond of her (and at times, he uncomfortably was aware that he'd been more than fond).

"Do you...do you still like her?" his sister asked quietly and he knew who she was talking about.

"I liked her as she was," he told her. "But that's as a person and not in the romantic way you're thinking of. I...admit that there's this part of me that still feels something, but at the same time it's faint and feels like echoes. It doesn't feel wholly me, but it's there and it's sincere nonetheless."

The fact that it didn't feel all him was what helped him realize and come to terms with the fact he had a past life and in that life had adored the wisdom goddess, and it made him feel glad in a way that he wasn't going crazy over his feelings. Still, the fact those feelings were present at all bothered him, even though he realized how and why they were.

Rosemarie sniffed slightly and he could see the tears that sprung up in her eyes, though they didn't fall. He finished up with his tie, tugging tight, before he reached out with an arm and put it around her, pulling her close. She buried her face against his shoulder and he could feel her tears dampen his suit.

"Still don't want to go to school?"

She shook her head against him.

"How about you come to work with me then?" he asked gently and she nodded. "Alright, get ready then. I'll wait for you in the living room."

"Mmkay," she muttered before pulling away and wiping her face. She gave him an awkward smile before she hurriedly left to get ready. He shook his head and smiled to himself.

He left his closet and retrieved his glasses, slipping them on as he walked into his living room, before spotting his mother rummaging through his kitchen in agitation.

"Geez, Mom, you could call first," he teased and Hera looked up from where she was digging through. Her name though, comparing to the Greek myths, now made sense as to why she was named as so.

"Son," she said, frowning heavily. "I'm trying to make an apple pie."

He raised an eyebrow at his mother. "Alright, you don't just suddenly come over and want to bake something. What's wrong?"

Hera straightened up and crossed her arms furiously across her chest. "Please tell me you aren't dating anyone named Athena."

That did it. Now he knew this whole Greek thing must have some truth to it.

"I'm not," he said flatly. "But I did meet her."

To his shock and disbelief, his mother let out a string of curses that he had never heard from or thought to hear from her.