✩ ━━━ chapter twelve, part one, a poppy-stem and the river lethe. ❝another sun under the sky continues to rise and set, i just become a cloud and leave myself to the wind,❞

WHEN PERCY RETURNED TO THE WILLIAMSBURG BRIDGE, NOBODY SPOKE TO HIM. Hiroki's army was gone, the Apollo campers—the ones who weren't slaughtered by the Hellhounds—rummaged the empty battleground. Together, they walked back to the Plaza Hotel to rest.

The campers seemed uneasy around him, casting him side looks and whispered to each other. Percy overlooked it, brushing it off as the worry for their siblings and need for guidance, but then he heard a small blonde-haired girl whisper to her older brother, 'why is Percy so angry?' and 'was he crying?' It made him feel terrible. Percy stopped crying long ago, his tears long dried. His face was twisted into a pissed-off scowl, still. He really couldn't bring himself to not be angry though, so he just allowed it to scare off his comrades even if he ached to comfort them.

With an arm twisted unnaturally and a wry grin on his face despite the drying blood splatters on his cheeks, a fourteen-year-old Apollo camper Will Solace approached him. "Percy? Are you hurt?"

"Don't worry about it," Percy said, gripping the red poppy in his hand tightly; he is the only one unharmed out of the army. He didn't want to think about the curse of Achilles too deeply. With a leveled voice, as a leader's voice should be, he asked: "Damage?"

Will Solace looked at the ground, kicking the hard pavement. "We're still searching for those who went missing. We can't find Michael..." He hesitated. "And, uh, a lot of injuries, but nothing major. Annabeth, too. She tried to follow you, but an enemy managed to slice her arm."

Percy turned his head sharply. "But she's okay, right?"

Will nodded nervously. "The dagger was poisoned, but I treated her quickly. The venom hasn't gotten past the shoulder yet. It's not so bad. I sent her ahead with one of my siblings."

With Will's reassurance, Percy calmed slightly. With a last check around the perimeters, the remaining half-bloods headed to the Plaza hotel. Percy hurried past the fountain outside the hotel, eager to check on Annabeth and his friends when a bronze apple sailed over his head. "You, mini-Poseidon!"

Percy turned to the life-size bronze statue standing in the middle of the cascade. He tried to figure out who she is, but the only clues were the bronze sheet around her legs and the basket of metal fruit in her arms. It couldn't be Demeter, since the old croon would just start complaining like she had when they met in the Underworld, and there aren't many fruit-related deities.

Uncertain, he tried to evoke all of Micah's lessons and called out. "Lady... Pompona?"

The statue paused its movement, jerking with surprise at being recognized. She sniffled, turning her head haughtily. "Yes, yes! I'm Pompona, the Roman Goddess of Plenty. Be more certain next time, or I'll get offended!" She mumbled something to herself, then told him; "If it wasn't for that dreamy boy of yours, always so polite, I would turn your insides into a fruit cocktail!"

Percy's brow furrowed. He tried to think of who she was speaking of, then realized—Polite is the last word anyone would use to describe Micah, but dreamy is among the top ten adjectives. He glanced at Will. The son of Apollo took the hint and waved his siblings over with his good arm, the campers heading inside the hotel, too tired to care about the goddess or her words.

"You mean Micah?' He asked the goddess quietly. Isn't it too dangerous for a goddess to publicly mention Hiroki's fake alliance? The Plaza wasn't the best place for a headquarters to begin with, much less discuss very sensitive information in the open.

Pompona looked miffed. "Don't look so worried, child! No one can overhear us. The Plaza is my territory to protect."

Percy's eyes widened with surprise. The bronze statue continued to ramble. "Who else cares about us? Of course, I'm talking about that white-haired cherub. None of the minor gods would care if it wasn't for him! Not the reason why I called you, nonetheless!" She caught herself. "I was told to announce to the boy with sea-green eyes and a blood-red poppy of the alliance of minor gods to Olympus."

Percy jerked back with surprise. "An alliance?"

Hiroki always regarded the minor deities with unwavering respect and an unreasonable amount of devotion, the first thing he taught Percy after he joined the camp, but he never shared why. Percy always assumed it was due to Hiroki's obsessive interest in knowing everything, but it didn't explain the high regard, or why Pompona spoke with an exasperated-yet-fond tone; Clearly, the admiration seemed mutual.

With what Hypnos and Hiroki himself shared, he knew why Micah hated the Olympians—and Percy did too, a hot sweltering feeling building in his gut, ready to explode at any second, barely contained by the war for now—but he didn't know why Hiroki felt so strongly about minor gods. Because his father is considered one despite being older than all twelve Olympians, or because they are unrecognized? Maybe simply because they are not the Olympians?

Pompona shifted the weight of the metal fruit basket in her hands. Her face was harsh as she told him, "Yes, an alliance. Thank you for having the decency to be surprised. Mount Olympus never welcomed us, nor has it welcomed our children." She said bluntly. "To be honest, I do not like you. I do not like your father. Micah takes precedence over Olympus and the half-bloods. By a miracle's doing, the only hero who has ever shown us—the forgotten gods, the one erased from history with our glory and achievements stolen—the respect and worship we rightfully deserve, believes you are worth protecting. Considered yourself blessed, Perseus Jackson."

"He has changed our world in ways you do not know," the goddess said. "I owe it to the one who will make the Olympians bow to us a chance to live long enough to do it. I'll stand guard here. Find Lord Hypnos. Tell your army of our alliance; prepare for battle, win, and protect that boy when it is time."

The goddess turned her back to him, bearing fierce and unmovable. Percy headed inside when he realized she would not speak again; he checked on the campers and hunters as he walked up the elevators, smiling at whoever wasn't too busy eating or sleeping in the penthouse suites. With the minor gods on their side, the half-bloods could rest for longer.

A mixture of love and awe filled him; Percy wanted to laugh. They could win this war, he was sure of it now; All because of Hiroki, because of his soulmate.

Jake Mason, the new counselor from Hephaestus, directed him to Annabeth as he gave a general update. She lay on a lounge chair in the terrace, complexion ashen. Between whispered apologies, Silena wiped the chilled sweat from her forehead with a cloth, rearranging the blankets encasing Annabeth with concern.

Her wound was bandaged, but the skin around the gash still resembled decayed skin, green and horrible.

"Annabeth..." Percy breathed out, looking at her wound worriedly.

"Poison on the dagger," she mumbled. "Pretty stupid of me, huh?"

Percy knelt down next to her, checking her temperature. "I'm sorry. I should've stayed with you,"

Annabeth tried to shrug, wincing slightly. Her eyes were sad. "You should've... But you're always cashing after him, aren't you? I don't know why I expected something to change."

The sun rose as the silence between grew. Percy couldn't deny her words, and Annabeth couldn't fool herself anymore.

"He's good," Percy said simply. "Annabeth, I love him. He is the one for me. I'm... I'm sorry,"

Annabeth's jaw tightened. "Why him?"

"You know why, Wise girl. You were there," Percy picked up the cloth Silena left behind. Annabeth's forehead broke out in sweat again.

She scoffed. "Why didn't you listen when I told you to stay away from him?"

"I've always been weak for charming assholes," His lip curled at the thought of the Micah from then, when Percy first joined the camp: so unapproachable and cold with his stare and words, yet always the first one to look away whenever their eyes met. Likewise, always the first one to look back.

Annabeth shook her head weakly, and a tear spilled. "Not him, though—anyone but him."

Percy frowned. He knew Annabeth could be persistent about a lot of things, but she approached everything with bravery instead of tears. She wouldn't cry over a rejection she knew was coming. "Annabeth..." Percy asked slowly, trying to understand. "Why do you hate Micah?"

Annabeth didn't say anything for a while, gazing to the red-tinted sky. Percy waited, clenching his fist around the rag, willing himself to calm down.

"He..." Annabeth began with a faraway look in her eyes. "Back then, with Luke and Thalia... When Grover who tried to get us to Camp Half-Blood... In New York, with the Cyclops and all the Furies. He was there, Percy. Nobody ever believed me, but I saw him."

Percy's eyebrows furrowed, a dark feeling inclosing his heart. His throat felt dry as he asked very carefully, unsure if he felt afraid because of the possibility—because Hiroki confessed to something similar hours earlier—or the fear came from Annabeth knowing what Hiroki had done without the reason why. "Annabeth, what do you mean?"

"He killed Thalia." Annabeth confessed. "I saw Micah killed Thalia."

"No, you did not." Percy denied before he could understand her words. "He was nine, Annabeth."

Annabeth sat up on the chair, beads of sweat running down her temple. "Age doesn't mean anything for us. I saw him do it, Percy."

Percy grew enraged, holding the rag with clenched fingers. He did not move to wipe the feverish sweat away. "'Age doesn't mean anything for us?'" He repeated with resentment. "We're still humans, Annabeth! I don't care if he was a prodigy or whatever the hell people called him—He was nine-years-old when Thalia died! You're the one who told me she sacrificed herself for her friends! How can you say he killed her now?"

"I knew you wouldn't believe me." Annabeth scoffed, looking away from her.

The issue is that Percy could believe her—How couldn't he when Hiroki admitted similar acts himself—but it made him feel nothing. Isn't that an issue? That Micah possibly killed Thalia, his friend, and Percy did not feel anything different? Micah killed innocents and Percy's love for him did not waver, it did not feel filthy; it still came as naturally as breathing.

Hiroki had asked him, is it not me who committed the murder? And Percy refused to reply because Micah has been shackled since he was a child. Did he have any other choice? Could've he outsmarted the gods like he is doing now and allowed those half-bloods to live? Percy didn't know. None of them knew, and that's why his anger against Annabeth burned.

He lamented Hiroki's innocent dream of giving a home to all half-bloods. Staring at Annabeth, who accused a child of murder, he wondered where it all went wrong. Where the gods began demanding too much from a gifted little boy with a too-soft heart and turned him into Micah.

"I'm going back to Olympus," Percy stood up, handing Annabeth the cloth. "I need to speak with Lord Hypnos. Keep resting, Wise Girl. We need our best strategist."

Annabeth gritted her teeth. "That's it? You're—you're still choosing him? After finding out the truth?"

"It's your truth, Annabeth. And yeah, that's it." Percy said with a sluggish shrug. He's never been selfish before. It's a strange feeling, but he bears it amiably with the knowledge he'll see Hiroki soon.

"You're a coward, Percy Jackson." Annabeth hissed as he walked away.

Those words stung before; now, he barely listened to them. Now, he knew there are worst things in the universe than to be a coward. 

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄 ! ! !

part two should be out by thursday pls hold me accountable

and uhhh sorry for not updating uhhh ive been writing the PREQUEL YES WE GET A PREQUEL we lots and lots of micah and it's going to be glorious 

also id like to know ppl thoughts on the whole 'micah killed babies and maybe thalia but did he really have a choice but is it okay even if he didnt' discussion cus i dont know what to think of it myself and it would be really interesting to see others thoughts