Falling Backwards (A Heroes of Olympus AU and Fanficton)

Chapter 15

"Oh, not much." Laurel smiled as Tristan handed her her sandwich and gave her a peck on the cheek. "Apparently, Percy and Annabeth are thinking about starting a family."

"That's wonderful!" Tristan smiled brightly as he handed Piper and Jason their sandwiches before sitting down and taking his own. "They will be wonderful parents."

"I think you're right, Dad." Piper smiled as she bit into her PB&J. It was as delicious as usual.

They sat and chatted for a little while longer before Laurel sighed.

"Tristan, we need to talk." Tristan looked up at her, slightly worried. "Jason, could you go get Gleeson and Mellie please?" When Jason returned with the two, the conversation continued.

"What is it, honey bear?"

"You know how I've never told you about my mother?" Tristan nodded. "Well, that's because she isn't human." Tristan stared at her, confused.

"What are you talking about?"

"She isn't human." Tristan seemed to realize that Jason, Piper, and Leo were all still in the room.

"Love, don't you think we should talk about this in private?" Laurel shook her head.

"No, Jason, Piper, Mellie, and Gleeson need to be here for this. It concerns them, too." Tristan looked even more confused than ever. "Tristan, my mother isn't human."

"You keep saying that, but I have no idea what you're talking about." Tristan was clearly trying to stay calm, but his voice kept wavering.

"My mother is a goddess." For a few moments, the only sound that were made came from Leo.

Then, Tristan asked, "What in God's name are you talking about?"

"My mother is a goddess, Tristan. As is Piper's mother, and Jason's father is a God. And I'm fairly sure Leo's biological father is, too."

"This is insane!" Tristan was standing now, and was starting to raise his voice, and it was upsetting Leo. Leo didn't like it when people were angry or loud, and he was starting to whine. "Laurel, this doesn't make any sense!"

"Tristan, please calm down. You're upsetting Leo."

"Laurel, you just told me that your mother was a goddess, my daughter's mother was a goddess, and my son-in-law and my grandson's fathers were gods! And now you want me to stay calm? You're insane!"

"No, Dad, she's not." Piper spoke up, handing Leo to Jason as she stood up. "Dad, my mother is a goddess. In the literal sense of the word. And Jason's dad is a god, and so is Leo's dad. My mom is Aphrodite, Jason's father is Jupiter, and Leo's father is Hephaestus. There's no easy way to say this, but the Greek and Roman gods weren't myths. They are very, very real, and they're still here. They've moved over the centuries, to wherever the point of western civilization has been, and for the last couple of centuries, they've been in America." Tristan just stared at Piper with sad eyes that made it obvious that he didn't believe her.

"Pipes, I don't know what's going on, but please stop lying to me. You don't know how bad it hurts when you lie to me."

"That's the thing, Dad. I'm telling you the truth."