✩ ━━━ chapter seven, the story of hiroki. ❝My last lie, even if it hurts to death, I am hiding myself under a mask for you,❞

"PLEASE," DEMETER SAID SNOBBISHLY. "AS IF HIROKI COULD LAND SOMEONE LIKE HIM." The little kid—well, the god of sleep—turned around and glared at Demeter, cheeks burning like melted gold in a crucible. "Excuse me," Hypnos shrieked indignantly, voice cracking like a prepubescent boy. "Hiroki is extremely lovely! Poseidon's spawn is lucky that my son even glanced in his direction!"

"Heard him, Persephone? His son, lovely? Ha!" Demeter laughed scornfully. "He's a traitor to all of Olympus, Hypnos dear!"

Queen Persephone didn't look like she was paying attention to her mother, studying Percy curiously with warm brown eyes, her gown blooming with various flowers.

The god of sleep huffed, crossing his arms. "We can't all be perfect." He said simply.

"A kid of yours is mediocre at best," Demeter muttered, adjusting the dried grass woven into her black hair.

Nico continued to kneel beside Percy, but Percy wasn't in the mood to deal with Hades' crap. He glared up at the god of the dead. "What do you want, Hades?"

"To talk, of course." The god twisted his mouth in a cruel smile. "Didn't Nico tell you?"

"So, this whole quest was a lie." Percy scowled. "Nico brought me down here to get me killed."

"Oh, no," Hades said. "I'm afraid Nico was quite sincere about wanting to help you. The boy is as honest as he is dense. I simply convinced him to take a small detour and bring you here first."

Demeter looked at Percy. "You get betrayed by the love of your life and suddenly nobody can be trusted. Shame on you, Perseus Jackson." She turned to her daughter. "I keep telling you, daughter. Demigods are just terrible—"

"Father," Nico spoke over Demeter, "you promised that Percy would not be harmed. You said if I brought him, you would tell me about my past—about my mother."

Queen Persephone sighed dramatically. "Can we please not talk about that woman in my presence?"

"I'm sorry, my dove," Hades said. "I had to promise the boy something."

The goddess of the harvest laughed. "I warned you, daughter. This scoundrel Hades is no good. You could've married the god of doctors or the god of lawyers, but no. You had to eat the pomegranate."

"Mother—"

"And get stuck in the Underworld!"

"Mother, please—"

"And here it is August, and do you come home like you're supposed to? Do you ever think about your poor lonely mother?"

"DEMETER!" Hades shouted. "That is enough. You are a guest in my house."

"I am starting to see why my son defected." Hypnos sighed, plump hands covering his eyes. "I rather be eaten by Kronos than deal with Demeter for another hour."

Percy nodded sympathetically as Demeter continued. "Oh, a house is it?" she said. "You call this dump a house? Make my daughter live in this dark, damp—"

"I told you," Hades said, grinding his teeth, "there's a war in the world above. You and Persephone are better off here with me."

"Excuse me," Percy broke in. "But if you're going to kill me, could you just get on with it?"

All three gods looked at the son of Poseidon.

"Well, this one has an attitude," Demeter observed.

Hypnos looked amused. "I already like you."

"Indeed," Hades agreed. "I'd like to kill him."

"Husband, we talked about this," Persephone chided. "You can't go around incinerating—"

"EXCUSE ME!" Hypnos shouted, little wings fluttering like hummingbird's wings as he skyrocketed up. "We have an important topic to discuss! Can we all please concentrate. And not another single word from you, Demeter!"

"Fine, fine. Maybe if all of you ate more cereal—" Demeter disappeared in a swirl of wheat. Persephone raised an eyebrow at the god of sleep, who just shrugged, and she disappeared after her mother.

"Hades, go tell the boy about his mother." Hypnos narrowed his eyes at the King of the Underworld. When Hades crumbled and beckoned Nico to walk with him, Percy remembered that Hypnos—the little kid in front of him, getting comfortable on one of Persephone's flowerbeds—is older than the Olympians.

It was an unusual feeling, being in Hades' throne room without the creepy presence of the god. Hypnos didn't seem to mind, wings beating with effort as he flew upwards to be at the same level as Percy. "What do you know about Hiroki?" Hypnos asked. "About his affairs with the gods? His mortal family? Anything, anything?"

Percy bit the inside of his cheek. "Not a lot." He laughed bitterly, sitting in front of the god. "I didn't even know his name."

Hypnos hummed a little tune. "Micah." He said as if testing the name. "Who is like God; my resentful little boy." Percy's eyebrow furrowed. Hypnos smiled, the sadness odd on the face of someone so youthful. "That's the meaning of the name Micah—Who is like God? On that day My anger will burn against them, and I will abandon them and hide My face from them, so that they will be consumed, and many troubles and afflictions will befall them. On that day they will say, 'Have not these disasters come upon us because our God is no longer with us?'"

"I'm, uh, not really religious," Percy said.

Hypnos replied, "Neither is Hiroki."

"Since my son was unable to speak, I'll do it." Hypnos' wings fluttered as the little god stretched, his eyes shimmering like gold glitter as he sat on the ground in one of the flowerbeds, legs crossed like a child, a quilt worn around his shoulders. "Hiroki, unfortunately, did not inherit my gift for storytelling. Shall we start with a classic? It was a dark and stormy night..."

Percy couldn't help but smile a little. Hypnos grinned as well, and sparkles fluttered from his eyelashes. "His family story starts in Japan, where his grandparents migrated from Guangdong, China. Hiroki's grandmother owned a music shop, meant to introduce traditional Chinese instruments to the people of Kamagasaki. Hisa inherited after her mother's passing. It wasn't too popular and never enough to support Hisa and her first son, Naoki. So, she worked multiple jobs—she worked at local restaurants, gambling dens, traveled across districts as a housekeeper and a caretaker."

"Micah—Hiroki—has a brother?" Percy couldn't help but ask. "A mortal family? He said his mother abandoned at birth—"

Hypnos nodded, a far-away sigh escaping him. "Hiroki has always been a prodigy." The god explained. "He is gifted in every aspect but the heart; he doesn't understand the drive of emotions."

It was weird—every time Percy heard the word prodigy from one of the parents from Yancy Academy, it was always said smugly and with pride. Hypnos said it slowly like it's a curse.

"The world is brutal for a single mother grieving," Hypnos said sadly. "Hisa always dreamed of becoming a violist and Naoki's dreams were filled with a cheerful family. The harshness of life never allowed either. Hisa could never accomplish her dream in her situation, too busy trying to provide for her son. And Naoki grew alone, rarely seeing his mother. Yet Hisa kept dreaming and kept playing her violin, and Naoki remained hopeful!"

Hypnos straighter and a cloud of sparkles emitted from his hair, the flowers around him blossoming like the Moonlace at his mom's apartment. "That's what called out to me!" He chirped with glee. "Dreams so simple, so humble, yet so desperately wanted. That's what a dream does, Percy! They keep you alive and enduring because the hope of a future is enough."

"I helped Hisa as much as I could—I did!" Hypnos nodded, champagne eyes bubbling with a raw sense of life and energy. "I guarded her dreams, Naoki's as well, and watched over them, send visions of her shop to tourists and whispered tunes for her to write. Eventually, she gained enough money to leave Japan."

Percy nodded, unimpressed. "Let me guess. Somewhere between guarding her dreams and leaving Japan, Micah was born?"

Hypnos' cheeks turned became a golden color, and the set of wings in his forehead fluttered. "I'll admit," the god of sleep said bashfully. "It was a lovely harmonica and Hisa eagerly taught me how to play it. I'm different, now! Look at my cute cheeks now, Jackson!"

It was easy to forget how old Hypnos is when he wears the face of a child.  Percy asked, "So, Micah? Hiroki?"

"He began walking in six mortal months!" Hypnos said with pride. "I was the first to hold him, of course. His first word was 'gah!' which now I understand is supposed to be seek shelter because he would throw his used diapers with the accuracy of a—"

Percy interrupted him. "Lord Hypnos."

The god smiled, indulging. "Hiroki lived warmly with his mother and brother, Percy," Hypnos answered simply. "His mother loved him regardless of his blessing, as did Naoki."

"Then why did he lie?" Percy demanded. "Everyone at camp believed it when he said he didn't have mortal relatives, that his mom abandoned him!"

"He is a kind boy, Percy." The god sighed after a fleeting silence. "But he is naïve, blinded by concepts bigger than him, the notation of a greater good. I introduced him to a world without love, filled careless gods and suffering demigods—and Hiroki placed that world ahead of his own needs."

"He thought that by becoming the best, he could stand in front of the gods with pride and worth. And with the gods, he could bring unity to all the demigods." Hypnos' story told of burden and age-old hurt. "If he could earn the respect and favor of Zeus and the Olympians then he could help the unclaimed and the misguided half-bloods know love as he did."

Percy swallowed his anger, remembering each time he met Micah— Hiroki—after a quest, falling apart and in bleeding out on the bunk bed of some poor kids, yet leaving with the excuse of needing to train.

"And he did, Percy," Hypnos said. "From a young age, Hiroki proved himself to be extraordinary. His accomplishments attracted the Olympians. They agreed to change their behavior—under one condition; he became theirs." The god spat out. "Hiroki agreed."

Percy sat down, dragging his knees towards his chest, covering his eyes. He couldn't imagine what belonging to the Olympians would entail.

Hypnos did not halt his story; "The gods ordered him to cut all ties to the mortal world, and he agreed yet again; because to my gentle-hearted son, the happiness of the world outweighs his suffering."

"And his family?" Percy was afraid to ask.

"Hiroki always lived at a distance, observing everything without getting directly involved," Hypnos responded, passing a hand on the baby quilt he carried. He looked at it as if it's a treasure of unmeasurable worth. "I taught him to manipulate the Mist at an early age to hide his wings, but it was still a fear that stopped him from going out. He never had many friends. His family remained as his only tie to the mortal world."

Hypnos locked eyes with him. "He knew couldn't achieve what he desired with his mortal family holding him back, but he couldn't live without his family, so he took away his own options."

Hypnos sighed; Percy felt the weariness in his chest, a knot forming in his "What do you know of the River Lethe?" The god asked.

Percy's heart ached. "It's the river of forgetfulness."

Hypnos nodded slowly, gaze far away. "A mere drop from the river can make someone begin to forget their whole identity." Percy cursed, covering his head with his arms, resting his forehead against his knees. "If done carefully, specific memories can be erased completely."

"But— It doesn't— That doesn't make sense!" Percy argued. "Chiron said Micah has been in Camp Half-blood his entire life."

"Spirits who wish to be reborn bathe in the River Lethe," Hypnos said. "In a sense, Chiron is right. The day Hiroki bathed in the river, he was reborn as Micah. He chose to forget his family, but not the reason why. He remembered his dedication to the demigods. Camp Half-blood became his life. Every action he took, he did it with the wellbeing of the camp in mind."

"He was only a child," Hypnos said lowly. "He asked me for a favor, one that would help him achieve his dream. I swore to help him—because why should a child be denied of their dream? I should've..." Hypnos sighed with regret. "It was during winter, a day before his birthday. He asked to be escorted to Camp Half-Blood. I assume it was because he made some friends and wanted to celebrate with them. He assured me he would return home alone. Hours later, Hisa prayed to me, hysterical over a letter from Hiroki— he never returned."

"How could he do that to his mom? To himself?" Percy demanded. "To his brother! For a bunch of strangers? He—Micah is so stupid!" Tears of frustration gathered in his eyes.

"He is naïve." Hypnos corrected. "And kind and his commitment borderline recklessness."

"He's an idiot." Percy wiped away his tears.

Hypnos smiled. "That too, I agree."

"He earned the respect of Zeus and bargained with the Olympians." Hypnos continued to narrate. "In exchange for becoming their....ambassador, let's say, the Olympians improved their treatment towards half-bloods; because of Hiroki's sacrifice, the Olympians began to protect the camps, listen to prayers, provide guidance when needed. Do you truly think the gods would willingly claim their children? My son forced them to."

Hypnos moved his hands as he spoke as if telling the tales of a hero. "Hiroki learned secrets and gained knowledge of unimaginable importance; obtained wealth and respect. But it shattered his very soul, Percy." He looked down, unable to handle the suffering in the gods' eyes—but Hypnos lifted Percy's chin, forcing him to meet Hypnos' gaze. "The Olympians destroyed my child," he said. "Every wicked thought that has ever occupied your mind, every immoral action you can imagine; immortality leaves you jaded, and twisted, Percy—and my son has done unspeakable things under the orders of the Olympians. My son has murdered and tortured and stolen because of them."

"So? He made a deal with the Olympians and forgot his whole identity?" Percy tried to comprehend everything. "For the sake of the half-bloods?"

Hypnos nodded. "He desired change. And he achieved in the only way he could think of."

"Then why join Kronos?" Percy's heart struck loudly in his chest, the pulse driving him crazy. He stood up, pacing around the throne room. "Why sacrifice his entire life for the half-bloods then join the Titan swearing to destroy Olympus? It doesn't make any sense!"

Hypnos stretched before standing up, not bothering to hide a yawn. "At least you are smarter than Poseidon. That's good, that's good." Hypnos mumbled, standing up. "Hiroki is clever—more cunning than a majority of the gods on a regular day. Now he is playing warmonger. Why would Micah abandon the people he spent his entire life fighting for? Why join the one creature threatening them?"

"To know your Enemy, you must become your Enemy." Hypnos quoted."If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle. What better way to get to know your enemy but to join them?"

Hope threatened to burst Percy's heart. "Listen, Lord Hypnos, I don't really think I can handle another disappointment right now—"

Hypnos interrupted him. "And I don't really think I can handle losing my son to Kronos."

The two looked at each other, Hypnos' ancient eyes studying an unflinching Percy.

"Will you help me, Perseus Jackson?" The god asked.

Micah might not be a traitor.

Percy grinned, feeling like nothing in the world could touch him. Maybe it was stupid of him to even dare to hope, but if there's a possibility of Micah—Hiroki, whatever he wanted to be called—being innocent and the two surviving the war, then—Then everything would be worth it.

"So," Percy said, "What's the plan?"

Hypnos snapped his fingers and Percy's world turned black.

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄 ! ! !

hirocah (hiroki + micah because i'm a slut for identity porn) and his dad need to stop knocing people out with their snapping lolalso YAY hiromicah might be evil he might not be the only thing we truly know is that hypnos is the best dad.

Please comment and vote! Until next time!