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Chapter Text

Oenomel (Greek ) something combining strength with sweetness

“I am always going to protect those that need protecting.” Percy said firmly, and for a second both gods felt the solemn vow resonate through them, the truth echoing powerfully, the sentiment naive and somewhat foolish but impossibly strong.

Percy keeps the puppy close to his chest as he runs, taking care to keep him protected from the thundering storm, internally amused at Zeus for being a drama queen.

When he barges in to his apartment he lets his backpack and jacket and hair dry off with a thought and runs inside.

Yes, that apartment was all his. A gift from the gods where the gods had pretended they hadn’t gifted it to him and he had pretended he didn’t know anything about it. It just wouldn’t do to show such deliberate and blatant favoritism.

Flinging off the backpack and throwing the jacket on the stand where it hooked itself with a flourish, Percy very carefully kneels down and opens his palm letting the little ball roll out on the floor.

When Percy had first tried to pick him up, the little pup had, despite being just barely old enough to walk steadily on both legs, tried to defend itself by attacking Percy. His palms had been scrapped up (which had by now thankfully healed by the rain) but Percy had been stubborn.

He had sat in the rain for a whole ten minutes, feeding the little one his own dinner. Percy had thought that a puppy this little would not be able to eat, but apparently he must have been older than he looked because he had easily torn up the meat through his razor sharp teeth and whimpered for more.

Percy hadn’t been able to say no.

Which is what brought him to his kitchen, hastily rummaging through his fridge for some more meat.

He keeps peering to see if the pup is okay which was stupid. Of course he was okay. Where would the pup even go? He was too young to run away.

When Percy walks over, the puppy wags his tail and pants happily and tries to walk towards Percy but fumbles on wobbly feet and slips. Percy can’t help but coo at him. What was it about little ones that made everything they do look adorable?

As the puppy tore happily through his food, Percy took the chance to see exactly what he had brought home.

The pup had a gorgeous black coat, almost yellow-golden eyes, small but not as small as Percy had thought in the darkness of the storm.

By the time, Percy took him in, the puppy had eaten his fill and looked to Percy, wagging his tail.

Percy was unsure on what to do now. Was the puppy full now? Or did he want more? Percy didn’t know much about dogs, he didn’t even know what breed this dog was supposed to be. He wasn’t one of the common ones, either an exotic variety or perhaps a hybrid kind.

He did know that a dog wagging his tail meant he was happy though. Or was that just a myth he had heard somewhere?

Percy carefully brought his fingers towards the puppy, wary of getting scratched or bitten again. Those teeth looked razor sharp and Percy suspected that the puppy could cut off his finger before he could even scream.

But apparently he was trusted now, because the puppy wagged his tail and walked closer, happily licking at Percy’s fingers, his legs looking much more steady now.

Percy frowned a little, wondering if his unsteady gait and clumsiness had little to do with him being so young and more to do with him being so hungry. Apparently, the puppy doesn’t like to see him frown because it attacked him and for a second there is a moment of instinctual panic and the realization that he can’t hurt a puppy even if it was feral, when the puppy tries to climb up on him, his paws in Percy’s shirt and trying to lick at his face but falling miserably short.

“What should I name you?” he wondered with a laugh sitting down cross-legged and letting the excited puppy on his lap when he tried to climb up. “Wait, are you a boy or a girl?”

Percy tried to lift him up, but apparently one feeding wasn’t enough to make the puppy trust him that much and though he didn’t attack again, he whimpered and squirmed uneasily in his hands until Percy dropped him back on safe ground, cooing lightly and running his fingers through his fur to calm him down.

A gender-neutral name then. “Alex.” He decides and pleased that his naming skills had improved since the last fiasco where he had named the Ophiotaurus Bessie and had to confess that in front of an entire council of powerful gods, moves on to playing with him.

Alex is the most awesome, most enthusiastic and lively friend Percy has ever had and he is always happy to see him. In the initial days, Percy had been worried about leaving Alex alone but had dubiously filled his bowls for both water and food and had reluctantly gone off to work.

Paul’s family was apparently made of terrifyingly rich businessmen with huge hearts for those they considered family. Percy who had always been a single child with little to no family to call his own (Camp was a whole new ballgame and he loved camp but it didn’t count) had been overwhelmed by the warm reception and the enthusiastic love by them all.

Of course he had known that Paul must be reasonably well-off. He had graduated from college and was working in one of the more elite private schools and had his own place and a good car and no student loans or housing debts or anything of the sort.

(Really Paul seemed almost too good to be true but then again Percy thought the same about his own mother so perhaps that was appropriate. And he was starting to suspect that Aphrodite might have had a hand in it. Percy had decided that he would forgive Aphrodite and her tendency to mess with his head and love life a thousand times if she kept his mother and step-father happy.)

The point was his parents were well off and adamant about including Percy in the family business.

You have a good head for business, Paul’s brother Arthur and his father had both insisted. Percy had been dubious but had relented for an internship in the months he had been looking for college and had been reasonably surprised by what business was actually about and how much he didn’t hate it.

So now he had a good well-paying job with his bosses being friendly family members (which he could not have imagined even in his wildest, most wistful fantasies), awesome friends from camp, a happy family but the thing he could always count on: a happy Alex who always welcomed him with a smile. Or at least the canine equivalent of a smile.

Alex was now firmly a member of Percy’s family and Percy always tended to get irrationally offended when someone called Alex a pet.

Alex was now much much bigger, his black fur was glossy, he had once hated baths but when he saw how much Percy loved water and how long he tended to stay in, he had reluctantly started getting in, at first just afraid of Percy drowning but slowly coming to tolerate and perhaps even like it.

When Percy knelt down to hug Alex, Alex could easily rest his head on Percy’s head, tucking him in under his chin as if Percy was a young pup who needed his protection and when Percy went to sleep, Alex would barge in and lay himself down beside Percy, the entirety of him focused on Percy and his protection.

In the earlier days when Alex had still been little, Percy had tried to set boundaries by locking the door and not letting him in. Alex had a dog bed and he could use it and it was very comfortable.

But Alex would just sit by Percy’s door and whimper to be let in and when Percy came out in the morning, he would still be sprawled outside the door, waiting for Percy.

Percy had lasted three whole nights before he gave in which was impressive and terrible because those three nights had been enough to convince Percy that he must be a monster to have tried to ignore Alex whining for help.

His whole morning work-out now also included Alex who tried to help and cheer Percy on in his own way, sometimes even trying to imitate what Percy was doing. For a dog, Percy decided he wasn’t half bad.

In the quieter evenings, when Percy was lazily watching TV or some Netflix or something (which generally didn’t happen often; his ADHD kept him moving and Percy did have a huge social circle and many responsibilities, to his mother and to Paul and his family and to the gods), Alex would also forego his usual enthusiasm to curl up on the couch with Percy.

Sometimes when he was feeling playful though, he would nudge and jump over Percy and try to roll him around until Percy gave up on watching whatever it was that he was halfheartedly watching and either play with Alex or if he felt too tired, go to bed.

And that was another thing. Alex had firmly set a bed-time for Percy. In camp, after curfew, no cabin could keep their lights on for too long. They didn’t want to either, with a lack of technology and no desire to read books (except for the Athenian cabin) they usually slept on time to wake up fresh the very next day.

Living alone though had given him the sort of freedom that made his sleeping habits worsen, his nightmares and prophetic dreams about the past, present, future amplifying those bad habits.

Alex though despite not knowing how to read a clock would start trying to usher Percy to bed at about 10. Percy didn’t remember when it had started. As a puppy, Alex had definitely not been this demanding.

But sleeping with Alex in the same house had calmed his nightmares and though no-one could do anything about his prophetic dreams, he didn’t wake up in cold sweat, panicked and numb at it anymore.

When Percy tried to skip breakfast, sometimes just to punish himself, just to see what happened (nothing did, of course), Alex would whimper and whine and Percy would come back home to a still-full bowl, Alex whining sadly with his paws over his eyes. Percy never even tried that anymore.

Sometimes when they walked around New York, just the two of them, some monster would attack, and usually before Alex could even growl, Percy had already cut them down with a calm movement of his sword. But once, just once, a monster had jumped him from behind while he had been battling two others.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t realized there was a monster at his back, he had amazing reflexes and practically had eyes in the back of his head. But there was nowhere to jump and before Percy could devise a brilliant terrifying plan to get out, Alex had already jumped behind him.

“Alex, no!” Percy cried in horror, his anger and fear giving him the strength to cut those monsters down even faster as he whirled around to see Alex trying to bite off a chunk off the hell-hound. Percy ran forward and struck down, the hell-hound dissolving in a burst of golden dust.

Percy frantically tried to check Alex for injuries while Alex whimpered and tried to check Percy for injuries and they both fumbled with each other’s limbs and managed nothing until Percy took a deep breath and said, “Wait, Alex. Stop!”

Alex froze, his tail moving slowly, anxiously as he stared at Percy. Percy selfishly moved Alex, checking on him first before showing Alex his arms which were unscathed. Alex bound forward and sniffed around Percy and only after he was sure Percy was okay, he laid his head down on Percy’s shoulder, eyes sad and round and big.

Percy felt guilty even though it wasn’t his fault and it wasn’t like he could have done anything about it anyway. He hugged Alex back, feeling unconditional love and loyalty and adoration from Alex and somehow felt more loved than he had in his entire life, which wasn’t fair to his mom or to Annabeth or to Paul or any of the others who had all tried his best, but Percy also knew that no matter what happened, Alex would always stand by his side.

It all culminated one day when trouble literally came knocking at his door in the form of a mischievous trickster god and a bright sunny god.

The knock sent Alex into a frenzy, who barked and ran to the front door, pawing at it.

“Off, Alex!” Percy said sternly, not happy at his door being scratched up. And well, they had to have some boundaries.

Percy understood Alex’s enthusiasm. He usually met his other friends at other locations, because Alex was over-the-top protective over Percy and once when Jason had come over to ‘spend the night’, Alex had tried his best to jump Jason when Jason had pushed Percy against the wall and tried to give him a hickey. (what, he was the son of a Greek god. Things like these just happened sometimes and his preferences changed all the time).

Jason had insisted he had seen murder in Alex’s eyes and he had almost been killed. Percy had just rolled his eyes at how much of a baby Jason was being. Alex was a sweetheart.

Anyway, incidents like these had convinced his friends and even the tenants of the same building to not come in and if they were ever in the area, they dropped him a message and he’d be the one to come out. (Mobiles were still hard, but Percy had to live his life and had just decided to embrace the craziness in his life.)

He opened the door a fraction and slipped out, Alex still whining and panting for attention. He was not happy that he was being left behind.

Both Apollo and Hermes looked at him with a raised eyebrow, looking at his awkward attempts to sneak out without letting out Alex, who was convinced that he was the sole reason for Percy’s continued life and vitality and meeting someone else without him would lead to his untimely demise.

“What was that?” Hermes snickered when Percy finally slipped out and closed the door behind him.

“Alex is a great friend. He worries. I’ll make it up to him.” Maybe feed him a few treats from his own hand or perhaps they could both eat ice-cream.

Apollo shook his head in amusement. “Is that the puppy you found out in the rain that day?”

“Yeah. But…were you stalking me, Apollo?” Apollo…Percy squinted in disbelief. Apollo might have almost blushed. Hermes looked at Apollo and snickered, but took pity on him. “You kept calling Zeus a drama queen. It was hilarious.”

“I said that out loud?!”

Hermes laughed and nodded. Apollo was still not meeting his eyes, but really right now Percy had bigger problems. “And I didn’t get smited down?”

“It’s smote down, and no. Zeus is trying to be a better uncle.”

Percy looked at him in disbelief, sure he had heard it wrong. “Zeus? An uncle? What, to me?” It was all so absurd he didn’t even know what to start laughing at. From behind the door, Alex whimpered.

“Alex, just give me 5 minutes. I’ll be right in, okay?” Alex didn’t make any more noises which Percy took to mean he understood.

“Alright, all that aside, why are you guys really here?”

Apollo took over, apparently over whatever had caused his bout of embarrassment. Apollo was just plain weird sometimes.

Don’t get Percy wrong, he was one of the nicest gods Percy had ever met and his mortal stint as Lester had only made him softer but that didn’t change his weird habits and the fact that Poseidon was startling wary of his and Apollo’s friendship which was also kinda weird because he hadn’t much cared about Annabeth or Jason but whatever. Percy didn’t much think about these things. Thinking too deep only made him more lost.

“We have a quest.”

“A quest?” Percy said dubiously. “Why don’t you guys ask one of the camps for help? They are just itching to prove themselves.”

“No, I don’t mean we want to assign a quest. I mean, the two of us have a quest. Zeus’ orders.”

“Gods have quests?”

“Sure. I mean, remember when the master-bolt was stolen, we were all assigned to go look for it. Except now we have to do this quest in pairs. Athena and Artemis teamed up. Hermes and me. Ares took his sons along for help. Hephaestus is ground-control.”

“Wow. Good effort. 10 out of 10. But I am not helping with whatever scheme you have somehow managed to now cook up and get in trouble with.”

“At least hear us out.” Apollo smiled brightly at him.

Percy gave him a dubious smile but nodded. He liked Apollo. Apollo was easily one of the nicest gods he had ever met and dropped by every now and then just to check up on Percy, which was sweet. And it also put him firmly in the category of ‘friend’.

“There’s a beast that has stirred up. It’s so old that not even the Big Three have ever seen it, just heard stories from older titans-”

“Seriously?” Percy never really thought about just how old the Big Three were but really, they were ancient and decrepit. They were there before man had even properly come out of their caves and had lived through and influenced them as they built civilization. If the Big Three had been buildings, they would have already fallen down and rotted and each and every brick that made them up would already have become powder again.

“C’mon, Perce.” Hermes coaxed. “This is dangerous stuff. What if we get killed? It might take days, weeks or maybe even months to crawl back, and it’ll be so painful.”

Percy put his hand on his waist, staring them down. “I am mortal. If I get killed, I am gone forever.”

They both looked taken aback by that. “You are mortal,” Apollo muttered. Percy didn’t know if it was a question or a realization or what. He just rolled his eyes and opened the front door again.

It all happened so suddenly Percy didn’t even have time to properly react.

Alex bound out happily, then somehow before Percy could react, he turned to Hermes and Apollo growling low in his throat just as Hermes caduceus activated into his full form, Hermes glowing dangerously and Apollo took out his bow and arrow, aiming towards Alex.

“No,” Percy shrieked in disbelief, throwing himself in the middle holding onto Alex so he wouldn’t try to attack the gods and get smote down.

“Percy, get away!” Apollo said tersely.

“No! I get it, sometimes Alex can be a bit much but he is mine and I love him and he’s a sweetheart, okay?”

Apollo and Hermes stare at him for a beat, which gives Percy the chance to look Alex in the eye and tell him off, “No, boy. Down you go!” Alex whimpered a little, still half-way up on Percy but slowly falls back on four legs and solid ground, tail between his legs.

“This is…Alex?” Apollo said, his voice faint.

“Yes, I get it. He is not always that friendly to strangers but it’s only ‘cos he is worried for me. And he wouldn’t have tried to attack you if you hadn’t taken out your weapons, you know. Just growled a little and tried to show you who is boss.”

Hermes and Apollo look at each other. There is a beat of incredulous silence.

“I’ll go report on Olympus. You stay here,” and before Percy could question what was happening, Hermes had already jogged away, to flash at a safer place.

Apollo tried for a brave smile.

“What in the name of Hades is going on?” Percy had gotten pretty good at saying hell instead of Hades and god instead of gods in public, but being around this side of the family just brought it out.

“Let’s just go in.” Apollo sighed and tried to slip through the open door, but Alex, the little rascal jumped up and barked alarmingly. Apollo yelped and took 3 large steps back.

“Are you scared of dogs?” Percy wondered, but didn’t question it further. He was used to gods and demigods having seemingly silly and unusual fears and triggers but they usually heralded greater tragedies, so Percy didn’t pry.

He coaxed Alex in and kept himself between Alex and Apollo, finally sitting on the floor, cross-legged which as he had expected prompted Alex to settle himself around him and Percy leaned behind him into his fur uncrossing his legs to side-saddle into Alex’s chest.

Before they could try to talk to each other, his front door barged open and Poseidon swirled in with that same casual grace that always made Percy smile. Alex growled, ears flat and paws but didn’t get up yet.

That’s why Percy had chosen to sit there. Alex wouldn’t disturb Percy if he could help it and that wouldn’t happen unless Alex was reasonably certain of a threat.

He felt a new level of disrespect, not even getting up to welcome his guest, but there was little to be done right now. “Hey, dad. I’d get up to greet you but Alex is pretty rabid right now. I am the only thing keeping him calm.”

Poseidon smiled at him, that same calm impassive smile. “Hello, Percy. I find you well. If you wouldn’t mind introducing us…?”

Percy’s smile widened. Poseidon was probably the first person to talk about Alex like he was an equal, which endeared his father to Percy even more. Percy cautiously got up, calling out to them to stay where they were.

“He is a little scared by you just barging in,” Percy explained. Apollo scoffed but neither said anything and Percy didn’t pursue it.

“Alex,” he called which made Alex turn to him expectantly. “Meet my dad, Poseidon.”

He walked towards Poseidon and grabbed his hand, ignoring the sudden shiver up his spine. There were barely a handful of times they had met and physical contact was even rarer, but the connection between a god and his half-blood was one of the strongest there was and it always felt special somehow, despite the physical distances between them.

Alex growled at Poseidon but made no further move to attack, which was pretty much what he had been expecting. Alex had definitely seen Jason and others in his apartment a few times but only got confrontational when someone tried to grab one of Percy’s things, startled or ‘hurt’ Percy or tried to enter without Percy.

Percy knelt with one knee in front of Alex, kissing him to calm him down which worked.

“Let him smell you,” Percy told Poseidon.

Poseidon let his hands in front of Alex and Alex growled a little, but still sniffed him without attacking. Done with his inspection, Alex ran back toward Percy, trying to roll him over, to which Percy growled back.

“He’ll tolerate you now,” Percy told Poseidon. “He is a little grumpy to anyone who isn’t me, so you’re on a probation of sorts right now, but he won’t hurt you. He’ll just complain to me about anything he thinks you’re doing wrong. Unless he thinks you’re hurting me.”

“Percy, do you even realize what he is?” Apollo asked. “That is the beast we were sent to hunt down!”

“Alex is no beast!” Percy snapped angrily.

“Percy, calm down.” Poseidon said soothingly. “What Apollo means to say is, Alex is a lot older than you think he is.”

Percy looked at Alex for a second, which was really all the time he needed to make a decision. “It doesn’t matter. Alex is my friend and I’ll protect him.”

“He doesn’t need your protection. He can give Olympian gods a run for their money. I bet he can even give The Big Three pause for awhile.” Apollo said exasperated.

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Poseidon snapped, his pride clearly stung.

Percy bit back a smile, pleased to see Apollo’s ego contained firmly, not even flinching to admit that he might not be all powerful and perfect.

“Even if he is that powerful and dangerous,” Percy granted, still not believing it. Alex liked to eat his food off of Percy’s fingers for god’s sake, “it doesn’t matter. If you keep killing off anything or anyone with the slightest hint of power, you can never live or rule well.”

“You wanted to protect the Ophiotaurus too.” Poseidon mused.

“I am always going to protect those that need protecting.” Percy said firmly, and for a second both gods felt the solemn vow resonate through them, the truth echoing powerfully, the sentiment naïve and somewhat foolish but impossibly strong.

“Bessie and Alex are both innocent and they’re not hurting anybody.” Percy hugged Alex who was watching with narrowed slit eyes, steady legs prepared to strike, unsure of what had caused Percy distress but willing to fight to protect him.

“You will have to take your argument to the court.” Apollo said reluctantly. “Zeus might seem like an irrational paranoid fool-” Thunder sounded which they all ignored. “-but he is a fair and impassive judge. I am guessing Artemis or Athena or perhaps both of them might have a problem with it so they’ll argue against it. But I got your back. You can call me for help anytime.”

Poseidon glared at Apollo as he winked at Percy and Percy blushed a little, unsure if he was reading this right.

“I will stand by you.” Poseidon declared, eyes crinkling with a smile. He caressed Percy’s cheek endearingly, ignoring Alex’s low growl.

To Poseidon, it didn’t matter how powerful the beast might be or how much the Ophiotaurus might have cost them. He had always loved his children fiercely and he stood by Percy and his reckless schemes. They always paid off.

Sometimes all you needed was a good heart and a step in the right direction. Everything else came in time.

Chapter Text

"Fix this," Poseidon commanded, slamming his trident on the floor.

"You are not the king. I am. You do not command me, Poseidon." Zeus said, but he sounded tired.

Poseidon's eyes softened in defeat and his shoulders slumped. "Please," he pleaded. "Alex has not harmed anyone, has he?"

"But he will." Zeus said with quiet surety. "He is a wild hunter, Poseidon. You have heard the stories, same as me. Percy somehow has him on a leash for now. But he can tear down cities with ease and did so with great relish. And he can hurt gods as if they were mere mortals. Why take the unnecessary risk?"

"Because my son asked me to. You know he can do the impossible. And Alex if tamed suitably can be a great asset to Olympus."

"Your son is a mortal! He will die in 50-60 years, if that. What after that? Who will take responsibility for Alex after that?"

"If you do not return Alex to him, I fear he won't last a year."

Zeus looked at him with horrified surprise.

"He won't eat," Poseidon said with the desperation of a father. "He keeps saying he is not hungry. He won't even get out of his apartment anymore. Please, Zeus. Don't make me lose my son." Poseidon almost choked at the thought of it.

Zeus lightly closed his eyes in defeat and silent despair. "Take me to Alex."

Even from all the way down the halls, anybody could hear Alex in the cells.

"He is crying. I hadn't realized that the beast could cry," Apollo informed them as they walked down. "Percy-" He paused a second over the name, an almost imperceptible hitch to his tone. "Percy asked me to keep an eye on Alex. Just to see how he was doing. But Alex won't eat. Or sleep. He does keep crying though. It's…it's surprisingly hard to hear."

Zeus squinted at Apollo, surprised by the sudden goodness, 'humanity' a mortal would say because mortals liked to think they had the copy-right and trademark on such goodness.

"Did you tell him the truth?" Poseidon asked, his tone on edge.

"You know I did," Apollo said in defeat. "He wanted the truth."

"But he did not need to hear it," Poseidon said coldly. "If something happens to my son-"

"I am monitoring his health," Apollo cut him off. "I will do everything possible to help Percy. I won't let anything happen to him if I can help it, Uncle."

Poseidon glowered at him, but Apollo impressed them both by standing his ground. "He means a lot to me, Lord Uncle." He admitted quietly.

"And what if he says no?"

"He probably will. There is a reason I haven't pursued him. I care for him more than just for a couple of nights of fun."

Poseidon stopped walking and just stared at Apollo, an almost indecipherable look on his face. He stared until Apollo fidgeted and even Zeus looked down. There was nothing more important to Poseidon than family, a trait that Zeus usually admired and could count on for his brother. But right now Poseidon was firmly on Percy's side and Percy's side only.

He said nothing more, just turned around and finally walked on. Apollo looked to Zeus, something almost fragile on his expression. They both followed Poseidon.

Alex was in chains, all four of his limbs wrapped in thick celestial bronze and he was still behind bars, the imperial gold of the cells steaming with electricity. He had stopped whimpering to stare at Poseidon with slit eyes and a tilted head, probably remembering a cordial invitation.

Seeing Zeus however, he immediately growled and threw himself on the bars. His body sizzled where he managed to hit it, burning with electricity. Thankfully, he was bound too tight to get very far. He still managed to burn himself in a few places, flaky and black and golden-ish ichor in places.

It did not lessen the hate burning off his eyes. His warm golden eyes were now a flaming red, he looked bigger, his nails sharper, his teeth more pointed. There was nothing but hatred and anger in his eyes.

"He looks feral," Zeus said, trying not to let his apprehension show. "We can't let him out."

"Percy can calm him down." Apollo muttered but he too was staring at the gruesome sight in a disgusted trance. There was half-rotting meat in the cells from when they had first tried to feed Alex but Alex had refused to take even a single bite. Nobody had dared to get in to take away the dishes and though there were no new ones, the old ones smelled bad enough.

Alex bared his teeth and growled, showing off his shiny teeth. "I think he seems a bit too hungry," Zeus muttered.

"Percy can do it," Apollo insisted. "I don't trust Alex but I trust Percy and I would easily trust Percy with Alex. Alex does not like us or care for us, but he loves Percy. I know it. I have seen it."

"Apollo is right," Poseidon said, but he sounded reluctant and it seemed forced. He did not want his mortal son to walk over to such a feral beast who had not even eaten in the past few days. Especially one that Percy was so sentimental about that he would not even defend himself against.

"You want to throw your son in with that?" Zeus asked incredulous. As if to prove a point, Alex threw himself against the bars again, howling in pain and anger and grief.

"Percy won't accept that Alex is…is gone." Poseidon said faintly. "He needs to understand and accept that there is nothing to be done. He won't live with any less." Alex howled and stomped his forelegs against the floor.

Even trapped, there was something so feral in his eyes that Zeus murmured that they should go out and talk elsewhere, and Poseidon did not even make fun of him.

Percy impatiently tapped at the desk but his eyes kept going back to the photo sitting on his desk.

It was the first picture of Alex and Percy together and it had come out great. Back then Alex was still a little pup, all furry ball and heartbreakingly sweet eyes and little paws that Percy could easily balance on the tips of his fingers. He had been so little back then it had surprised Percy that he had managed to grow so big but then again him not actually being a dog probably explained everything.

In the picture, Percy was sitting cross-legged on his own bed, smiling at the puppy cradled in his cupped hands. His hands were at eye-level and Percy could still swear Alex was smiling back at him.

"I miss you," Percy told the picture sadly, but then clamped up. He had already cried so much over this and he did not want to make a defense for Alex while sobbing pathetically about said friend.

"I talked to dad," Apollo whispered from the next seat. Percy did not even have the energy to jump. He just felt drained. He tiredly looked to Apollo and thought, if this was a monster, I'd already be dead. He shook his head. Gods, he needed to up his game. He couldn't help Alex by being a dead weight.

"What did he say?"

"He seems reluctant," Apollo admitted. "But he did agree to meet you today, didn't he?"

"Why?" Percy threw his hands up. "What has Alex even done to him? I mean, they called Bessie a dangerous monster too, but I still don't see it and they agreed to protect her too."

"And I can't tell you how rare and impossible it is that the Council actually agreed to protecting the Ophiotaurus. It could grant unfathomable power to any immortal that sacrifices it. And yet, you managed to do the impossible. But Alex is different from that…he is older, more dangerous. The Ophiotaurus was ultimately harmless in most situations and only dangerous in the enemy hands, but Alex is an enemy. He is powerful in his own right-"

"Are you calling my Alex a monster? Because he is wonderful and perfect and he loves me as much as I love him."

"Hey, don't make me the villain here." Despite his words, Apollo's tone is still soft. A little sharper, but neither loud nor offended. "I have been defending Alex for you since day 1. Even when you're not there, I take your side, okay? I am just saying though, he looks a little feral right now."

"You'd be feral too if you were trapped in some cell with all of your arms and legs chained and hadn't eaten since forever." Percy looked to Apollo then softened. "I can calm him down. He listens to me. I just need to get to him."

Before Apollo could say any more, Zeus appeared in the doorway, looking around in surprise.

"Come in," Percy said though Zeus was already in, with the apartment door closed behind him, considering he had teleported here.

"You live here?" Zeus asked.

"Yeah," Percy said, glumly looking around. "It's nice, isn't it?" He said un-enthusiastically. It's not that Percy didn't like it, he quite likes his apartment. It's just that it didn't feel like his without Alex bounding about, knocking things over and whining for attention and staring protectively and attentively at Percy from the other room.

Zeus made a face and shook his head, "No!"

"Wow," Percy said sarcastically. "If you hate this, you should have seen my apartment before this one. Or really, the one before that, the one I actually grew up in. That one was just-" Percy shook his head, actually feeling repulsed again remembering that place.

"Whatever. We are not here about my apartment which I like just fine, thank you very much-" And was actually a gift from some gods, don't know if you even know about this, Zeus. "We are all here about Alex."

"Percy," Zeus said and shook his head. "Alex is a security risk. And I cannot, in good conscience, let you in there to be torn apart by a starving beast."

"Alex is not going to eat me, okay? And besides, why do you think he is not eating? He is in mourning. As in, he misses me. He will be cool with me there. Please, Uncle. He is my best friend. Trust me, when he looks at me, he is going to feel so much better." Percy looked at Zeus imploringly.

"How does he do that?" Zeus asked Apollo in disbelief. Then turned to Percy, "How do you do that? Make a terrible awful idea seem like an almost good one."

"I have had a lot of practice, Uncle. Please." His voice embarrassingly broke. But that was enough for Zeus' eyes to soften. Percy softened his eyes and tried to look cute and harmless (he was scarily good at that, he was always told. Otherwise his expulsion rate would have been even higher which Percy could definitely not have afforded).

Zeus sighed and looked to his son. Percy resisted the urge to smile and cheer. He knew he had won this round.

Percy curled up in his fingers in emotion. Even from here, he could hear Alex. It hurt somewhere deep like a scalpel was scratching his bone. Except instead of his bone, it was his soul. He wanted to get closer to his dad or even Apollo for support, but they would think he was scared, try to stop him again and Percy was not ready to stay even one more day away from Alex. Not now that he was so close.

Alex was in chains, all four of them held down with celestial bronze. It hurt to see him chained like a common mutt but it was still a relief to see him again. His soft black fur (which now looked worn-down), his soulful gold-brown eyes, the small patches of snow white on his paws, like little white gloves on his otherwise black coat.

Percy remembered those white paws when they had been little. He would run his hands through them, marveling how something could be so small and wonderful and strong.

Alex looked up at him from where he was down panting in the ground, and for a second their eyes met. Percy could see it all: his exhaustion and his pain and his grief as if there was the weight of the whole world on his back.

Then Alex looked behind him, and Percy had no trouble reading his fear. Alex howled and threw himself at the bars, harder than he ever had before. His skin split at a place and golden ichor trickled out. His sharp teeth cut at his own mouth, making him look even more feral. He looked like a wounded cornered animal desperate for survival.

"Get out!" Percy said to the three gods behind him, still looking to Alex, who was getting increasingly more frantic.

"Good idea," Zeus agreed easily, reaching out a hand to grab his nephew. Alex was shrieking and moaning and tearing off anything he could possibly reach.

"What, no! I am not coming with. He is afraid of you right now. But he needs me here. I can snap him out of this, but you need to get out."

"Afraid?" Zeus mouthed in disbelief. Really, he thought, Percy made Alex out to be some innocent and clueless little house pet.

"I am not leaving you with…with that," Apollo said with emotion. "Percy, I stood by your side because I trust you but I won't leave you with something that feral and wild. Not alone."

"I don't need you to protect me," Percy hissed.

"Just as Alex doesn't you to protect him?"

Percy gave him an exasperated grief-stricken look. Alex cried out and stomped his feet again, the chains rattling dangerously. Apollo looked at Alex, a little more afraid than he wanted to admit to. Zeus and Poseidon got out their weapons. "Please, Percy, you are my friend. Come with me and let the Big Three deal with this," Apollo implored, tugging at Percy's hand.

Percy yanked his hand back. Despite the obvious fear in his eyes, there was also a fire that impressed Apollo more than he would ever admit to. "And Alex is my friend. And he needs me right now."

Poseidon closed his eyes in defeat. He had seen that expression before, he knew that one like the back of his hand. Percy would not budge. Not on this. No matter what he had to do to get to it. He couldn't change his son's mind. He was either with him or against him.

He sighed reluctantly. And then Poseidon did something he had never ever in his immortal ever done.

He walked over to Percy and curled Percy's long thin fingers around his Trident. "I don't get my powers from this Trident nor am I dependent on it," Poseidon explained. "But it is still a very powerful weapon in it's own right. It helps me channel my powers. It amplifies the littlest of my actions. Promise me you will use this to protect yourself if push came to shove."

"Dad-" Percy stopped, unsure on what he was supposed to say. Zeus is looking at his brother in disbelief. "Have you lost your mind? You won't let even Triton, your heir touch your symbol of power."

"If he gets into such an impossible situation," Poseidon grumbled. "I will help him out with any means necessary too."

"It's your symbol of power," Percy pressed. "I know how much it means to you. And I don't want anything to happen to it."

Poseidon rolled his eyes, looking good-natured and resigned. He…he looked like a father. "It is a godly weapon, it won't just break or have something bad happen to it. I don't just hand it over because it is dangerous to play around with such a dangerous weapon when it could fall into potential enemy hands. But I trust you. Promise me you will use it to defend yourself if you need to."

"I promise," Percy whispered, feeling like a little child faced with his larger-than-life father; awe and adoration and the feeling of being protected because there was obviously no-one better or bigger than his own dad.

Poseidon grabbed Zeus and dragged him out, Zeus too flabbergasted to even put up a token protest. Apollo resignedly followed after them. Poseidon stopped to look behind and say, "And Percy, my Trident does mean a lot to me. But never as much as my family. And you, you are my favorite son." He winked and the three disappeared from view.

Percy felt his eyes sting and wiped at his eyes. He turned around to face Alex, who was now quietly, anxiously staring at his face. "Hey," Percy whispered, kneeling down to face Alex's cell. Kneeling down meant he was shorter than Alex but Alex liked it that way. He could tuck in his human under his chin and protect him from anything in the world. Or at least try to.

Alex softly whined at him, his eyes now big and soft and sad, his teeth tucked back in, lightly pawing at the ground as if he wanted to go out and touch Percy again.

"I got it," Percy shushed Alex, feeling a smile grow on his face, feeling giddy and happy.

He got up and leaned the Trident against the wall on the other side. He had promised his dad that he'd use it if he needed to, but he just did not need it. "Okay, how does this open?" Percy jumped up and looked anxiously through the buttons on the board.

There were so many! And Percy had the sinking feeling that some of them were for torture or for putting the resisting captive to sleep or perhaps even death. This was a cell for immortal evil beings and traitors to the kingdom.

"Got it," Percy gasped as he finally found the instructions stashed in one of the corners. "Thanks, Apollo," he whispered. He was pretty sure gods did not need instruction manuals or anything of the sort. But there was something that Apollo had said which tugged at his memory, and apparently Apollo was willing to help a lot more than he had reluctantly said he would.

Percy typed in the first code and the electricity whirring in the bars died down. The second code opened the bars and the third unlocked the manacles on Alex.

Alex did not even hesitate, bounding forward tongue lolling as he jumped on Percy. Alex was heavy enough for Percy to go down, chuckling. Percy sat down awkwardly on the dirty floors, Alex half on his lap like an over-eager, over-grown puppy.

Percy blissfully settled his head against Alex's muzzle, fingers carting through his soft fur. "I missed you," he whispered to Alex, kissing him.

Despite Poseidon's gift and Apollo's trust, all three gods jumped over a foot when they saw Alex out of his cage. Alex growled low in his throat but he made no move to attack. He stopped walking when he saw the three gods out and nudged Percy back, trying to protect him with his own body.

"Dad," Percy hissed, waving the Trident awkwardly. He wanted to have both of his hands free to calm Alex down if need be. Poseidon did not even hesitate to call on his Trident back to him as it whirred through the air and to him. It was just instinctual, a reflexive action to a dangerous threat.

"It's okay, Alex," Percy said brightly, rubbing Alex's back with his fingers. "They won't hurt you, okay?" Alex purred at Percy but did not get away from his defensive position.

"See," Percy said pointedly, "he is just scared for me and for himself. I mean, you did lock him up and Uncle, you grabbed me and got me out of the room at the time. I think that he thinks that you hurt me. So see, he is just a sweetheart trying to protect me. And I mean, he obviously does not want to go back to his cell. He is harmless."

"Harmless?" Zeus said to himself in disbelief. Percy really, really needed a new dictionary.

"Father? I heard you were-" Athena and Artemis both ran in full battle armor and promptly shrieked like little girls and jumped two feet in the air.

"It's okay," Percy said slowly, calmly. "Alex is cool. Nobody freak out please."

Athena gave him a look of such exasperated resignation that Percy almost laughed. It was almost like having Annabeth here. He put up a hand to ward off further commentary. "And nobody insult Alex. We have both had a long week and he doesn't deserve it."

They all just looked stunned.

"Here," Percy said, tugging at Apollo's hand who let Percy lead him to Alex. "See, harmless."

Alex glanced lazily at Apollo, tail wagging slowly from side to side, then turned back to squint threateningly at Zeus. Apollo uneasily breathed through his mouth. "Good boy, please don't eat me."

Percy snorted. "I just don't get what you are so afraid of. Alex is cute and adorable and cuddly."

"You are cute too. Didn't stop you from destroying your enemies," Apollo pointed out. Despite the situation, Poseidon glared at Apollo. Percy blushed a little, flattered at the compliment and the way it was delivered.

"Okay, so he can hurt his enemies too," Percy tried. "But he is not going to hurt us, any of us. Because we are not enemies." He looked fondly over at Alex and scratched him behind his ear, just like Alex liked it.

Alex growled in contentment, eyes half-lidded in bliss.

"He looks like a house-broken pet," Athena said in disbelief.

"Alex is not a pet!" Percy snapped. "He is just my best friend."

"Great," Poseidon muttered sarcastically, shaking his head, just as Artemis said, "Exactly! He is not a pet. He is a wild beast. He apparently likes living with you enough to live with the restrictions, but he won't be able to control himself for very long. He is a hunter."

"It has been over a year since I got him and he hasn't stepped one paw out of line, has he? Besides, if he likes hunting, we can go hunting. Or try something." He turned his imploring big green eyes to them. "Please give me and Alex a chance. He hasn't hurt anyone despite having been chained down and starved, has he? I mean, it's hard to mess up worse than that."

They all reluctantly muttered in agreement. It was true, Alex had more than enough reason and chance to hurt them. And Percy was right beside him, defenceless and with his guard down. One big chomp and his arm could be gone. Or his head. And yet, Alex was just concerned with protecting Percy and nuzzling him affectionately.

"How does he make every bad idea seem like a good one?" Zeus groaned again, backed into a corner.

"And yet, it always goes right," Poseidon helpfully pointed out just as Percy said, "It's just a special talent."

"You hear that, Alex? We are going home!" Percy told him excitedly. Alex eyed Percy almost a bit disinterestedly. Before anyone could start panicking, thinking that Alex wasn't responding to Percy and they were all going to get eaten, Percy muttered, "He is hungry."

Artemis did not even hesitate. She rapidly brought forward a piece of meat and threw it to Percy before Alex decided that any of them could make for a fine enough meal.

Sure enough, Alex perked up a little, ears pricked up. Percy leaned down and before he could throw it down to Alex, Alex crowded against Percy and sniffled at his hands.

Percy sighed but tore off a piece and let his hand open with the piece on it. Alex positioned himself and ate it from Percy's hands, tail wagging enthusiastically from side to side. Finished with the piece, he took a step back and patiently but expectantly looked to Percy.

"He really is harmless to you." Someone muttered to him.

"Yeah, you wanna try?" Percy held out another piece between his fingers and looked back with a smirk. They vigorously shook their head. Percy smirked and tore off another piece as Alex started nibbling at his fingers in impatience.

"Okay," Zeus said finally. "Clearly you have this all under control. But we need to have a proper discussion of rules. So drop Alex in your apartment-"

"Oh no. Everyone has limits and me being away from him, especially right now, is a sure fire way to get him hyper. And not in a good way."

"Great," Athena muttered, eyeing them both distrustfully.

"So you accept that Alex can be harmful."

"Yes," Percy reluctantly agreed. "He can be."

Poseidon nodded, a gleam in his eyes. "You do realize that Alex is immortal, right?"

Percy paused. He had known it peripherally that Alex had to be logically not mortal. He had just really never realized it per se. "Yes, I suppose he is."

"So who will take responsibility for Alex after you are gone?" Athena jumped at the chance. There was no denying how much Athena hated the two of them. Percy thought it was because she was afraid of Alex.

In a way, she was right. It was logical to eliminate the threat before it had the chance to evolve. But life could not always be lived on core logic. Living by stern logic, there would be no need to help old people cross the streets and no gain in protecting a stranger who might not help you back but could surely land you in hot water.

Percy thought about it. Normally, he would say Artemis, she was the goddess of the wild. But it was obvious there was no one around to protect Alex after he was gone. And well, he had seen the lackluster shine fading off the chains; Alex would not go down without a fight, especially if there was no one to temper his rage if Percy was dead.

A divine battle was always fearsome. Thousands of lives would easily be lost, probably more.

Percy dug his fingers into Alex's fur to ground himself, thinking hard. Alex whined at his distress, licking at his face. "No, Alex," Percy muttered mildly. "That's just gross."

Alex just settled his head on Percy's shoulder as Percy absently petted him.

"But Alex is a good warrior to have at our sides," Apollo defended. Percy looked at him gratefully. Apollo was so awesome and he had helped him so so much, despite his own doubts.

Zeus turned to Percy, a twinkle in his eyes. "And what if we made you Alex's guardian?" He looked at Percy meaningfully. "An immortal guardian."

Ignoring the way they were all gaping at him, he elaborated, "Of course. That will only be one part of your numerous duties. You will also be expected to advice the Council on numerous matters."

"But I am the adviser," Athena protested.

"You are the strategist," Zeus corrected. "There are things more important than battle strategies that a Council might need a second opinion on."

"He is my son," Poseidon protested. "He belongs under the sea too."

"He can assist the oceans as part of his duties." Zeus relented.

Zeus turned to Percy. He looked overwhelmed. He felt overwhelmed. This was a bit too much. "Take your time," Zeus said kindly. "Think about it. Give us an answer by week's end. But I think you already know what you want."

Percy looked over at Alex, who was looking at him with unconditional loyalty and trust in his eyes. Like Percy could do no wrong. Percy knew that wasn't true but he also knew that it wasn't his decision to make. If Alex thought the world of him, it wasn't his to question.

He nodded. "Yeah, Alex needs me."

He wasn't sure he was ready to shed mortal suffering and pain, he wasn't sure he was ready to be infinite and beyond, and he didn't think that he deserved something so vast or that could handle the pain of it all.

He kissed Alex again to ground himself.

A leap of faith, he thought, his heart pounding. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes and said yes.