Betrayal and Redemption

Chapter 21

A.N. Awww Percy is the cutest. Should i start to put these at the end of the chapter instead of the beginning. I don't own Percy Jackson sadly.

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Artemis flashed to her Hunter's campsite while they were eating dinner. "How did the meeting go Milady." Phoebe spoke.

"Very well. I have news, some of you will enjoy it others will not. We are going to have a male join our Hunt for a short amount of time while he recovers." There were many outburst from the older hunters.

"Who is this male Milady?" Thalia spoke.

"You will be very happy Thalia. Percy Jackson will be joining us while he recovers." Thalia had a grin that almost split her face and the new hunters looked ecstatic.

"You mean the one that got Zoe killed? Why would we let a boy join us?"

"Phoebe I personally vouched for him and offered him a place here, you were not at the battle on Mt. Tam, Zoe would have died either way and she knew it. The prophecy said she would and she knew the risks. Percy did everything in his power to save her, he was the only man Zoe considered a friends." Phoebe looked shocked. "Now if any of you are rude or disrespectful to Percy i will give you the proper punishment. Ask any questions."

"What is he even recovering from. I mean he's a boy so i must be something quite small." Phoebe spoke despite the speech she just gave.

"Well Phoebe if you're going to blatantly ignore my words i will punish you later but now about your question. Percy became a champion of Hestia five years ago and her and Hera have sent him on missions to save demigod and bring them either here or camp. Stand up if you were brought by Percy to us." Every single new recruit stood.

Phoebe looked flabbergasted. "How would he had found our camp?"

"Aside from being the most powerful demigod to ever live. I blessed him after the war. He has the same blessing as you girls, along with Hera and Hestia."

"You blessed a boy?"

"Yes i did Phoebe, because he deserved. He had never been anything but respectful and kind to you me and all maidens and women."

"You never told us when he was recovering from." A little girl name Kira spoke up. She was one of the first to be brought by Percy.

"Yes right after Percy dropped a son of Hermes off at camp he felt a presence following him. He ran to get away from camp and when he was about to get away he was captured. He was taken by the Titan Koios, he was taken to the fields of punishment where he wouldn't be found and tortured. He gained many new scars along with many old one reopened. When i left camp i went to Hades and we went to the fields of punishment to rescue Percy. When we got to him he was coughing up blood and bleeding out. We took him to my brother who healed him and he woke up earlier today. I spoke my father about giving Percy a place with us while he recovered and got back into the groove of fighting. He will come as soon as he is well enough."

"Do you expect us to slave around and do chores while the bot sits there and does nothing?"

"Percy already knows that he will do chores and help hunt as soon as he is able. He understands that he is interrupting our way of life and promised me he would be as little of a burden as he could be."

"Percy always thought of himself like that." Thalia spoke softly getting questioning looks urging her to continue. "He always thought of himself as a burden, like he wasn't worthy of living. He doesn't believe he is worthy of all the fame he gets. If you ask him he would swear that anyone of his friends that have died are more of heros then him and he would switch places with them because he isn't worthy to live." Many hunters looked very shocked and concerned. "When Zoe died i was the only person he talk to for weeks. He kept telling me that it was his fault she died and he should have died because she was more of a hero then he would ever be."

"This is a perfect reason you need to be kind to him. He is in a very fragile state and needs support. He doesn't want to go back to camp because of his past and he had nowhere else. This will not only be good for him but you girls to. Percy is the opposite of the men i warn you away from. I know it will take some getting used to, but please start to think of him as an older brother."

"And if i catch you being rude to him, gods forbid physical hurting him your punishment will be severe and depending on what you i will kick you out. But it should never come to that because you will listen to what i say. I'm not asking for you to make him your best friends, but i'm asking you to treat him with the respect that he deserves. He if the reason we are all still alive and has been through much more then he should have been through. Can you girls do that for me?" A round of nods and yes greeted her, she smiles. "Phoebe i need to talk to you."

Phoebe stood and followed her into her tent. "Sit." Phoebe sat.

"What is it Milady?"

"I know of your past i know you blame him for getting Zoe killed, but i need you to trust me. You have to be respectful to him, you may have lived longer, but he has seen much more and will see much more in his future. He has bad things coming and nobody blames him more then himself. Please don't make accusations, Zoe didn't blame him, like i said she knew the risks of what would happen. She knew she would be facing her father and she charged against him even after she had been by Ladon. She gave Percy his sword Riptide, he tried to return it but she told him he was a hero worth of it and she wanted him to have it."

"He was the only male she considered a friend and i consider him a friend. At his request i call him Percy and at my request he only calls me Artemis. I hold this man in very high esteem and he needs this. I told you he has been through a lot and he needs someone right now."

"What has he been through Milady?" It wasn't her place to tell but if it helped she would do it.

"He grew up with a stepfather who abused both him and his mother. He was always sent away to boarding schools where he was taunted and teased and had no friends. He never stayed at a school for more than a year because bad luck followed him and was teased for it. When he first came to camp he was attacked by the Minotaur and his mother was taken by Hades. His second year Chiron was forced out of camp and his best friend was lost so he traveled through the sea of monsters. Third year Annabeth was taken, Zoe and Bianca died after he promised Nico he would keep her safe. His fourth year he was forced to travel through the Labyrinth and watch Kronos rise. His fifth year he bathed in the Styx, lead a army, faced off against two Titans, lost a lot of his friends. His parents were murdered while he was dealing with all those deaths, Annabeth cheated on him, and only one person was there for him. He was forced to hide and taken and tortured by a Titan for weeks while he resisted it. And that is just touching on the major points."

They were both teary eyes now unaware of the group of girls outside the tent cry at his story. "How is he still sane?"

"Because he is very strong willed and extremely loyal. His fatal flaw is loyalty, the gods were worried that he would choose to save his friends over saving the world. All he ever wanted a family and friends that would care for him and love him. Just when he thought he had that it was taken away. Do you understand why he needs this now?"

"Yes Milady i understand very well, i'm sorry for how i acted earlier, this man deserves respect."

"Thank you Phoebe. I hope we can be his new family." Outside the tent Thalia ran away to her tent tears streaming down her face. She knew all this happened but hearing it being said just made it so much more real. She knew he just wanted a family, but i was never serious to her until now.