Fears and Flaws

A/N: Hello dearest wattpaders! Today, I present to you another Percy Jackson fanfiction! I am completely ignoring "The Demigod Files" and pretending that Percy hasn't already met Phobos, so I'm remaking his character to fit the needs of my fic. Just keep that in mind while you're reading so you don't go all "he isn't like that" or "Percy's reaction to him wasn't that bad" or "those aren't Percy's fears" 'cause this is just me making a fic here. Btw, this is placed after they sailed away from the House of Hades, and there are some of my own personal headcannons filtered throughout this fic, one of which is in this chapter! Enjoy! Vote/comment!
(P. S. I'm still working on that next chapter for THOT, hopefully this will tide you over until it's ready!)

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Flaws and Fears
Percy's POV

"Ugh...my head...can't a guy go one day without seriously bonking his noggin?" Percy groaned and sat up, rubbing his temples with both hands. Once the ache in his head was down to a manageable sledgehammer-to-the-brain, he studied his surroundings. "Where in the gods' names am I?"

The hopelessly confused demigod was in a room so large with ceilings so high, he couldn't see where the room ended in any direction besides the floor. Darkness was creeping in on him like an animal on the prowl; the silence was so complete, he could feel it pressing down on him from everywhere. When he tried to move off the hospital-type bed he was sitting on, it seemed as though an invisible force was holding him back. Eventually, he huffed in annoyance and gave up, deciding to try and explore his mind instead of his environment.

Percy pressed his hands to his temples again, desperately trying to call up any memories of how he'd gotten to where he was, why he was there, what had happened to his other friends---anything at all---but every time a memory seemed to surface, it was ripped away again by the pounding of his head.

Though the tiny bits and pieces he did manage to catch a glimpse of weren't very encouraging: a view of the House of Hades shrinking into the background, the sky swirling around him as he fell (or was he pulled?) off the Argo 2, his friends screaming his name, everyone trying to reach him, everyone trying to hold on to their leader. Percy frowned and the groaned in annoyance, "Why do I always have to get pulled away from my friends when we're in the middle of a freakin' war!?"

"Because there are always more lessons for you to learn in order for you to succeed."

The son of Poseidon gasped in surprise and looked around frantically for the source of the voice, pulling out Riptide and swinging it around in a wide arc, "Whoever or whatever you are, show yourself! I'm sure you have some long, evil monologue you want to give to explain why you captured me!"

The strange voice that seemed to come from everywhere at once chuckled, "My, you're quick to judge, aren't you Perseus? Just because I kidnapped you does not mean that my intentions were evil."

"Well, if they aren't evil, then what are they?" he asked suspiciously, lowering his sword arm slightly.

The voice admitted, "I would not say they are completely good or that they will not hurt you, but they will teach you a very important lesson, one that you must learn to defeat Gaea."

"Oh, that's just great! I finally get myself out of Tartarus just to be sucked into another nightmare!" Percy rolled his eyes. "If you're going to teach me some kind of lesson, don't I at least have the right to know who's subjecting me to it?"

"Fair enough." The voice seemed to have collected into one area behind him. He whipped his head around, only to find a god that he was definitely not expecting it to be.

"Phobos, god of fear, in the flesh," the god proclaimed. He was dressed in all black robes that draped over his tall, lean frame. In fact, he was so tall, he loomed over Percy like a cold, dark shadow. He wore black sunglasses that hid his eyes, but nothing covered his smile that said 'I'm going to torture you for the fun of it.' Man, he really hated that smile, he got it way too often.