#mis fics

“Listen… sir,” the satyr insisted, crossing his arms around a hand holding a baseball bat. “There seems to be something lost in…”

“Are you threatening me?” 

Hades’ eyebrow of disbelief was up, which meant Maria had to intervene. “Ade, mio caro, why don’t we bring the fellow in. We’ll discuss whatever he has to say calmly over tea.”

He looked as willing to agree as the snarky satyr in front of them, but these were Maria’s lodgings, and if there was any honour in either of them, they’d agree for her sake.

She stared at Hades for a couple of seconds, enough for him to get the message.

“All right,” he agreed at last. “Let us speak inside.” He glared at the satyr. “But stay well away from my children.”

Maria rolled her eyes but let it slip. If she was honest, it made warmth spread through her to hear Hades defend their children so vehemently.

She softly pushed him out of the way, and extended her arm towards the living room. 

“Mr…”

“Hedge,” the satyr said. “Gleeson Hedge.”

“All right, Mr Hedge,” she said, turning from the door and walking towards the tea cart. “If you’ll follow me. Do you drink tea, coffee?”

The satyr shook his head. “No.” He hesitated for a second. “No, thank you.”

Maria nodded —there went her idea of having some coffee—, then sat on the sofa, leaving an armchair for the satyr. She hoped he wouldn’t leave any kind of farm animal smell on her cushions.

Hades perched on the sofa’s arm, next to her, a godly wall between the goat-man and herself.

“Ma’am,” Gleeson said, his voice slightly softer than it had been. “You know your children are demigods. You should also know the threats they face.”

“I am not either of my brothers,” Hades scoffed. “I wouldn’t have lied about…”

Maria put a hand on his arm. “I know their lives will be complicated,” she looked up to Hades, “but he’ll help them. They’ll be protected.”

Gleeson gave them a funny look. He set his eyes on Hades. “You wouldn’t lie to her, but you’d make promises you can’t keep? Gods aren’t allowed to stay with their demigod children.”

Hades’ arm tensed under her hand, his eyes had hardened with anger. “That’s a rule for Olympians, a group from which I am notably excluded.”

She squeezed his arm. “The reason doesn’t matter.” She turned towards the satyr. “My children don’t need to go anywhere, they will be brought up with their family, that’s more than enough.”

The satyr seemed to consider his next step. “It’s only a summer camp, children in the US attend these to have fun during the summer. There’s sports, activities, and self-defence lessons. Children of the Big Three Gods usually stay year-round, like a boarding school.”

“No boarding schools,” Maria said. “I went to finishing school, I hated it. My children will live with me. And they won’t be spending all their summer holidays away. Is this something most parents of demigod children agree to?”

Gleeson shrugged. “Most parents know their limitations.” He clearly thought that was to have an effect on her, obviously, he didn’t know her well. “It’s hard to be a mother of children who…”

“Don’t bore us with assumptions,” Hades interrupted. “You don’t care how difficult or not this would be for her, and you certainly don’t want my children in that place to protect them. You want to surveil them. To make sure they grow up fearing,” Gleeson frowned, “forgive me, respecting my brother and his sycophants more than they love me.”

“That’s foolish,” she said. “You’re their father, of course they’ll love you more than an uncle they don’t know.”

“That’s not what…” Gleeson tried, but Hades was quicker.

“Demigods are considered weapons for the gods,” Hades explained. “We can’t overstep each other’s domains, so we use our children as tools, or soldiers. My dear brother fears I’ll use Nico and Bianca to threaten his power.” He snorted. He turned towards the satyr who shrunk into his seat involuntarily. “Tell Chiron he can be at ease. I don’t plan on risking my children’s wellbeing over petty revenge.”

Gleeson looked awfully uncomfortable. Clearly, Hades had been spot on in his deduction. 

“The conversation is going into a tangent,” Gleeson said. His voice was tight and there was a vein in his temple that looked about to burst. “It wasn’t Lord Zeus who asked for your children. I imagine he must’ve mentioned them to Chiron, it was him who sent me here.”

Hades huffed. “And whose interest does Chiron work for, I wonder.”

Maria stood up and walked towards the window. From up in the hotel’s fourth floor, she could see the whole park across the street. She spotted Nico and Bianca, running around with some other children who’d been staying a floor below theirs. 

She wanted them safe, of course she did, but the satyr had all but confirmed Hades’ suspicions that his family wanted to train her children to resent or mistrust their father.

She focused back on the conversation behind her, still petty retorts from both parties. 

“I’m sorry,” she told the satyr. “But your trip has been in vain. My children will remain here.”

The satyr’s frown deepened. “Lady, here’s the deal…”

“No.” Her voice was firm. “I won’t budge. I don’t care if your… superiors are upset about my decision. They are my children, and I know what’s best for them.”

“They’ll be overrun by monsters, by creatures wishing them ill!”

Maria took a deep breath. “That is why they will have their father to rely on.”

Gleeson turned to Hades. “You know that won’t do, they’ll be sending somebody else to convince her.”

“I am right here!” Maria snapped. 

“I’ll be waiting.” Hades promised at the same time. “Go, tell Chiron what’s transpired here. Let him send whoever he wants.”

Gleeson stood up muttering under his breath.

Maria walked him to the door and saw him off, stomping angrily down the stairs with his bat.

She jumped when she heard Hades say behind her: “He’s right to think my brother won’t let this go. We have to find a solution that protects you three properly.”

She looked at him. “You wouldn’t let anything happen to them.”

Hades shook his head, taking her hand in his. “Nothing Camp Half-Blood can send is a threat, but if either of my brothers gets involved… You’d be safer elsewhere.”

“I can’t decide to go away!” She argued. 

Hades looked her in the eye. “You left Veneto because you knew they’d be coming for you, for them. This is the same.”

“It’s not the same, back home…”

Hades held her face in his hands, caressing her cheeks with his thumbs. “That satyr will take around twenty four hours to get back to New York. That’s how long you have to decide.” He let go of her, turning to face down the window. “I’ll stay with the children until I’m sure he’s gone.”

He melted in a puddle of shadow. 

Maria leaned into the windowsill to find Nico and Bianca.

There they were, trying to keep a see-saw balanced between them. Next to them, in a bench under the shadow of a tree, sat their father, studying the park, undoubtedly daring the satyr to approach.