FATEDPLUTO

Whatever part of his brain that was still working wondered if he'd been struck by a sadistic Cupid, or if you'd been blessed by Venus while traveling the world with your family.

He took a sharp gulp and strolled over to you, trying to appear as if his breath hadn't been sucked away from his lungs at your charming beauty.

You turned to face him, eyes lighting up at the sight of your childhood friend. Octavian wondered what you must think of him. He didn't think he'd changed very much from the boy you once knew.

Sure, he was taller, more muscular. But he was still pale, still had blonde hair he didn't know what to do with. He was still him. And suddenly that didn't feel good at all.

You rushed over to him, wrapping your perfectly sculpted arms around him into the tightest hug he'd ever received. Thankfully his training prevented him from displaying any of the warmth he felt within his chest.

He heard the sound of his own voice asking you how you'd been. Which prompted you into telling all your stories and adventures of the places you'd been.

Now, Octavian was listening, after all listening was one of the things he was best at. But a larger part of his mind was enrapt on your beauty. No matter how much he tried, he couldn't ignore how imperfectly perfect you'd become.

With each flicker of his eyes, he found another fault, another imperfection on you. But it wasn't bad, if anything it made you better. Like a broken vase being held together by gold. You were human, but you were a stunning one.

After what felt like hours of him silently admiring you. You off-handedly mentioned you were hungry, before you began telling another story that you'd forgotten to mention.

Octavian interjects into the story, offering you a free lunch, reminding you of all the times you'd both rush to the beloved and quiet cafe after your draining lessons.

You quickly agreed, following him down the path towards the shop. Although Octavian preferred silence, he asked you questions about the story you'd just told.

Your smile was worth whatever preferences he once had as you ranting about another country you'd visited on your journey.

A group of fellow legacies waved and called out to you, causing you to pause your stroll. Their eyes betrayed their wholesome smiles, they were as infatuated by you as he was. Octavian hated it.

They invited you to whatever they were doing, probably something exciting and fun but he wasn't listening. Octavian did something a cruel and un-feeling Augur like himself wouldn't ever do.

He lifted his arm, slinging it casually over your shoulder. Octavian kept his eyes forward, his expression looking as if he was dying of boredom.

He couldn't see the way the legacies eyed him with suspicion, confusion and outright shock. Nor could he see the way your head whipped towards him, hopeful eyes glancing up at him.

You stepped forward, letting his arm drop back to his side. The pain within his chest could only be described as pure agony. But then you swiveled on your heel, to face him. A playful smile upon your lips.

You quickly grabbed his hand, locking your hands together. A smirk tugged at his lips, but didn't say anything. His words had failed him as his brain turned to nothing but an accessory.

With a heavenly giggle you tugged him into walking, guiding him to continue walking beside you, this time hand in hand. You both walked the familiar route towards your and his favourite cafe.

ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁

You are never late. In fact, you are known for arriving at activities early. That’s the type of student you are during the school season, and it reflects on you during the summer at Camp Half-Blood. 

It’s Jason’s favorite time of the day—training. He puts a little pep in his step because he knows his favorite person also has training with him—you. Jason was never late, nor early like you. He always arrived five minutes before it started, enough time to speak to you as you wrapped your hands to keep a firmer grip on your sword. Entering the training area, his eyes immediately scan for you, only to come up short. To say he was confused was an understatement.

Jason knows he didn’t get the schedule wrong, because he had checked the sheet attached to one of the pillars, confirming you are supposed to be here. Did you get your schedule mixed up? No, you don’t simply mix up your schedule. Knowing how you are, Jason begins to spiral, worried something may have happened to you. Something bad.

“Grace!” Malcolm, one of the children of Athena, calls over. He beckons Jason over with two fingers, watching with fixated eyes as Jason closes the distance between the two. Malcolm is not as confident as his sister, Annabeth, but he does radiate respect. As for Jason, he may be bigger and stronger than the son of Athena, but he most certainly doesn’t want to get on his bad side. 

He knows how protective Annabeth is of her boyfriend and of her siblings.

“Yes?” Jason answers, planting his feet in front of the shorter boy.

“Where’s Y/N? They’re supposed to co-lead the activity with me,” Malcolm cracks his fingers, a nervous tick he’s developed over the years. 

“I was wondering the same thing. I’m worried something may have happened to them,” Jason confesses, his words coming out in a hushed whisper.

Malcolm shakes his head, “nah, I think we would know. Plus, they're a lot like Annabeth. It’d take a lot for something bad to happen to them. Maybe they’re running late, if they’re not here in the next couple minutes, go check around for me.”

Jason nods, though the two boys both were thinking the same thing. It’s incredibly unusual for you to be late. Your middle name might as well be ‘early,’ because it’s just wired into your brain. 

Malcolm won’t admit it, but Jason being concerned that something bad could’ve happened to you made him incredibly worried. No. You were fine—at least that’s what Malcolm was telling himself.

Seven minutes had passed. Seven minutes of Jason keeping his eyes fixated on the door as he trained by himself in the corner. It wasn’t his turn to spar with another camper, and he’s becoming restless every minute you don’t show up. Realizing how long it’s been, he puts down the weights he had been using in their original place, sheathing his sword as he makes a beeline for a door. He makes eye contact with Malcolm, who nods his head before Jason leaves.

Jason wasn’t really sure where to look for you. Years of being trained as a soldier made him think something bad had happened to you. The rational side of him disagreed. 

Taking a deep breath, Jason tries to think like his other friends. Not like Leo. But like Frank, Annabeth, and Percy. Where would they look first?

Percy would check the dunes, the place you go to when you need to clear your head.

Frank would ask your friends if they’ve seen you at all that day.

Annabeth would check your cabin, the place you’d most likely be at this time of day.

Jason settles on checking your cabin. If you weren’t there, he’d then check the dune. And by Zeus, if you weren’t in either of those places, he’ll resort to asking around. He sent a prayer to his father that you’ll be in one of the first two places. 

His tall legs eat up the distance to your cabin. He knew the route by heart at this point, however he’s met with a sudden dilemma—your cabin door is locked. Internally groaning, he thinks back to when Leo had picked locks multiple times during their quest on the Argo II. He didn’t have the tools necessary for it, and he’s not making a trip to the Hephaestus cabin to search through his friend’s items. 

Jason crouches, becoming eye-to-eye with the keyhole. He raises his pointer finger, focusing on his raw power. The raw power that his father so generously gave him. He sends a small gust of wind through, one that is small yet very powerful. He imagines as if he’s seeing the mechanisms inside of the lock, forming the wind into the shape of a key, then turning it to the left. A soft click tells him it worked. 

Ha, take that Leo, Jason thought.

Jason opens the door, peeking his head in. Nobody was in the communal space of the cabin, while the doors to the multiple rooms of bunk beds was closed. He knew which room was yours—you snuck him in one time during the camp-fire, when everyone had been distracted.

His boots echo against the wooden flooring of the cabin, the place seemingly a ghost town. Jason has the urge to slide up against the wall, to sleuth through your cabin so nobody can detect his presence. He shakes the thoughts from his head—he’s being silly. You’re fine, there’s no reason to act like a soldier. Especially not in your cabin. 

He softly twists the knob of your door, slowly pushing it open. The room is dark, the blackout curtains that have become quite popular in a lot of cabins found their way into yours as well. He squints his eyes, adjusting to the darkness. His eyes instantly search for your designated bunk, eyes falling on the the figure laying in it. 

Stepping closer, he quickly makes out your face, sleeping soundly underneath your blankets, cheek smushed against your pillow. Jason releases a breath, one he didn’t realize he was holding, now knowing you were perfectly fine. Of course you were, why wouldn’t you be? 

He can’t help himself as he reaches a hand out, caressing your cheekbone with his calloused fingers, a small smile playing on his lips as he watches you sleep. Unconsciously, you lean into his touch, unaware he’s physically with you in the room. You looked so peaceful, and he knows you needed the sleep. You looked especially tired yesterday, with deep bags under your eyes. 

You should be at your activity, with Jason. But he lets you sleep, you look far too beautiful. He drops a kiss on your forehead, tucking you in further as he leaves the room and your cabin, leaving the doors as he found them. 

When he returns back to training without you, Malcolm panics for a moment. He can’t help but he an empath, being incredibly worried and protective over his friends—you being one of those people. He rushes over to Jason, silently demanding he reports back. He may not have authority over the son of Zeus, but he complies.

“Y/N’s sleeping,” Jason simply says, shrugging his broad shoulders.

“Huh,” Malcolm relaxes, “I didn’t expect that.”

“Trust me,” Jason places a hand on his shoulder, “neither did I. But we should let them sleep.”

Malcolm nods, returning to his spot at the front of the room as he resumes watching other campers spar each other or training by themselves. Jason continues his training, anticipating the end of the activity so he could visit you again during his break. 

✩₊⚡︎⋆☾⋆₊✧

Jason Grace never thought he would see the day in which he was scared of someone. He was raised by wolves, for gods sakes! Jason was the epitome of a perfect hero—brave, strong, powerful, and people feared him rather than the other way around. Even when it came to Percy Jackson, Jason respected him rather than feared him.

Though, he never thought he’d be scared of you. Well, you are a child of Hades, after all. Your  dark gaze strikes fear into your enemies. Jason did find it weird, he didn’t have this issue with Nico, your paternal half-brother. In fact, he saw Nico as his own little brother.

And now, Jason stood awkwardly at Camp Half-Blood, figuring out a way to go up to you to tell you that Nico requested your presence in the infirmary. Jason internally scolded himself, he’s faced Gaea, he can simply talk to one of Hades’ children. Right?

Jason takes a deep breath, locking his nerves in a box as he walks up to you. You brightly chatter with Katie Gardner, sharing stories about Persephone’s garden. The children of Demeter were always interested in hearing about the garden, intrigued on how something so beautiful thrives in the Underworld. As for you, you had no problem talking about it. In fact, it was your favorite place in the Underworld, but you don’t tell your dad that.

Jason clears his throat from behind you, announcing his presence. The corner of Katie’s mouth tips down, getting the hint as she bids you goodbye, heading towards the strawberry fields. You turn around, slightly perplexed on why Jason Grace is speaking to you. You found yourself envying your brother slightly, in the relationship he had with the blonde boy, he didn’t understand that you thought he was very attractive. But you kept that to yourself.

“Hey,” you initiate the conversation, letting him know he can speak.

He ignores your greeting, cutting straight to the chase. “Uh, Nico needs you.” Jason internally scolded himself for how cryptic and stupid he sounded, not giving the details. He’s never one to mess up on his words, being trained from birth to be a leader.

You furrow your brows, panic quickly settling in. “What? Is he okay?”

Jason puts his hands up in surrender, “he’s fine.” He notices how your body visibly tenses, relief coursing through your body. Despite the unease he feels, he can’t help but melt at your protectiveness over your brother. “He needs your help in the infirmary.”

You roll your eyes, not at Jason, but at your brother’s antics. Him being dragged to help in the infirmary by his boyfriend meant you also got tortured. Before Nico became a permanent member at camp, if you were being called into the infirmary—it meant a camper has died and they wanted you to bless their body before they were burnt. 

“Thanks, Jason.” You smile at the blonde boy before spinning on your heel, making a beeline for the infirmary.

What you don’t notice is the way Jason’s eyes widen in surprise, or how his heart began racing. He didn’t expect to see such warmth in your eyes as you spoke to him. Now that he’s really thinking about it, he recalls seeing it as well when you spoke to Katie. Not that he was paying that close attention to you.

No, he was uneasy around you. You were a child of Hades, after all. He had to protect his life at all costs, being a child of the Big Three meant you were powerful, just like himself and Percy. Similarly to your brother, you always dressed like you were ready for a funeral. Maybe even your own. You could raise the dead, and to Jason, that made him uneasy. But, his heart never raced around Nico. He never found himself hesitating to go up to the son of Hades to speak to him. He never shifted from foot to foot, fidgeting as he desperately tried to keep his composure while in Nico’s presence.

“Why do you have hearts in your eyes?” Frank’s voice startled Jason, making the blonde literally jump. Frank furrows his brows, shocked by Jason’s reaction. If there was one thing Frank knew about Jason Grace, is that he never gets jumpy, scared, or anything of the sort. “Are you okay?”

“Don’t sneak up on me like that,” Jason muttered at the boy.

“I didn’t, I called out your name as I walked over here,” Frank retorted pointedly, looking the boy up and down.

“Besides the point. What were you saying?”

Frank hesitates before speaking, “I asked why you have hearts in your eyes.”

“I don’t have hearts in my eyes.”

Frank laughed, the warm sound engulfing the two in the middle of Camp Half-Blood. “Yes, you do. I know that look anywhere.”

“Why?” He tilts his head, “because you give it to Hazel all the time?”

Frank scowls, “no, because Percy only looks at Annabeth with that look. So, who’s the lucky person?”

“Nobody,” Jason snapped back, too quickly. Frank caught it. The faint blush on his cheeks, the way he kept fidgeting nervously. It didn’t help that Frank was watching him talk to you.

“So, it’s not Y/N?” Frank raises a brow, giving a knowing look to Jason.

Jason laughs. But not an actual laugh, more like a nervous laugh. “Why would I have heart eyes for someone who makes me uneasy?”

Frank furrows his brows, “they make you uneasy? How?”

“They’re a child of Hades,” Jason points out.

Frank still looks confused, Jason’s reasoning not enough to answer his question. “So is Nico and Hazel.”

“I-well,” Jason found himself speechless, for the first time in his life. Gone was the confident, stoic praetor. Instead, all that remained was a flustered teenager. “They can raise the dead, and they always look ready for a funeral!”

“So does Nico,” Frank deadpans at the boy.

Truth be told, Frank was right. Jason would never tell him that, of course, but puzzle pieces started slowly fitting into place. Jason’s first love was pretty much assigned to him by Hera. He didn’t need to do anything, she simply erased his memory and used her godly powers to make Piper in love with him. And even after they found out the truth, they were still able to use the stepping stones Hera had placed to continue their relationship. Not until they broke up.

Was he really feeling uneasy around you? Or was he actually crushing? You were beautiful, as beautiful as a god, at least in Jason’s eyes. He kept wondering how Hades could have a child as mesmerizing and beautiful as you. You may be a demigod, just like him, but your beauty outweighed every god, even Aphrodite and Apollo. 

And the way you treated others? It was different to how he expected a child of Hades to be. Even though Nico is kind, in his own way, he has a lot of trauma, so it’s to be expected to be different for him. But you? You always approached people with a smile on your face, ready to help anyone and everyone, no matter what. Your dark brown eyes that you inherited from Hades always held so much warmth, even when you were using your powers. 

In the corner of his eye, Jason noticed you exiting the infirmary with Nico. Now that he was really looking, he could tell how different the two of you were. Sure, you both had your corpse-like appearance, clad with sullen eyes, and preferred dark clothing, but you two were different. When Will Solace wasn’t around, Nico always seemed sad, like he was missing his other half. But with you, you were always upbeat and trying to bring up everyone’s energy. Nico relied more on his powers than his sword, and that was evident with his physique. You, on the other hand, have constantly won your fights using your sword rather than powers, your physique much more defined than your brothers. 

The biggest difference, though, was that you always managed to make Jason nervous not because of your heritage, but because he liked you. Jason Grace became acutely aware of two things. One, that he has a crush on you, Hades’ child. Second, that he has no idea how to tell you.