Rise (Percy Jackson x Reader)

six

rewritten: april 15, 2021; edited: november 21, 2021 & august 3 & 5, 2023

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"Hurry up, Perce!"

Percy snaps out of his daze, shaking his head and jogging up to Grover. He had been busy looking around him at Camp Half-Blood with awe, not even aware that his feet had stopped moving and Grover had continued ahead without him. "Sorry," Percy apologizes, falling into step beside his best friend.

Grover waves it off. "No worries. You seem a bit lost, what's up?"

Percy shrugs, "It's just that . . ." He sighs, thinking about how to phrase his question. "Earlier, you kept saying 'we'. We couldn't tell you, we needed to keep you safe, we thought you should come to camp after being attacked. So—"

"—who's the other person?" Grover finishes, a knowing smile tugging at the corner of his lips, and Percy nods.

"Yeah, pretty much."

Grover chuckles lightly, looking ahead with gentle admiration in his expression. "You're already ahead of the game, Percy." He shakes his head in amusement. "I was just about to introduce you."

Percy looks up from his feet, squinting at the figure approaching in the distance. At first glance, he assumes he's watching a person ride a horse, but upon closer inspection, he realizes it to be—

"Mr. Brunner?" he asks, eyebrows furrowed. But it wasn't just Mr. Brunner—it was Mr. Brunner's top half (which remains very much human) that sits atop the lower half of a horse's body. "You- you're a centaur?" Percy comes to the realization, earning a nod.

"In my world, I am called Chiron," Percy's apparently-not-human-and-not-a-real-teacher-but-now-former-teacher explains.

Percy nods, surprising himself with how easily he accepts the truth. "So, the wheelchair . . .?" he starts, catching on.

Chiron smiles. "It was a cover-up," he says. He pats Percy's shoulder, his expression now apologetic. "I am truly sorry I couldn't tell you, but it was necessary to keep you safe."

Percy nods, tired of the whole 'we kept it from you to keep you from dying and shit' explanation after arguing about it less than an hour ago.

"So, Chiron," Grover says, drawing attention to himself, "are we gonna initiate him today, or what?"

Percy looks at his best friend, startled at the way that sentence sounds. "There's an initiation?" he asks. His stomach twists with concern.

Chiron chuckles at his expression. "Of sorts," he answers cryptically. Turning to Grover, he nods. "I think we will. Show him to the armory."

"The armory?" Percy asks, looking between Grover and Chiron, who has started walking away.

Grover laughs, tugging on Percy's arm and walking off. "Come on!"

Percy nervously follows behind, hoping that his best friend will provide explanation.

"Now, don't be startled, but we're getting you armored up because you're gonna be playing Capture the Flag with the others today."

Percy shakes his head. "Grover. No," he says, crossing his arms and coming to a halt. Grover raises an eyebrow, stopping as well.

"Percy. Yes."

Percy's protests continue to be ignored as Grover pulls on his arms, dragging him around campers and flag poles. "Okay, okay!" Percy groans, and the satyr lets go of him. "Thank you." Percy dusts himself off, and Grover nods in acknowledgement of his words.