Chapter Text
When Percy woke up and saw Will sitting at his bedside, he was overcome with a strong sense of déjà vu.
“I’m getting sick of—” he started to joke, but cut off with a groan, clutching at his freshly-bandaged side.
“Pulling crazy stunts and waking up like this? Yeah me too.” Will joked as he helped prop Percy up against the headboard.
“What … happened?” Percy muttered. “Is everyone okay?”
“The Emperor is safe,” Will assured him, “A little shocked, but fine. Frank and Hazel had a few cuts and bruises, nothing major. Annabeth’s shoulder was dislocated and Centurion Ramírez-Arellano got a nasty cut on her leg, but they’ll both make full recoveries.”
Will paused as Percy drank in this information.
“They found Kronos’s body,” Will said. “We don’t— nobody knows how you did it, but he’s dead.”
Percy shuddered when he thought of Kronos’s final moments, of the blood streaming down his face, of his terrifying roars of pain and rage, of the sound of his body hitting the pavement.
“And, um, Centurion Grace is fine too. He got slashed across his chest but his armor took the brunt of the blow. He brought you here, actually. We were all worried that you wouldn’t pull through, you were in really bad shape.” Will glared at him, but there was no heat behind it. “But luckily, your body is as stubborn as you.”
Percy’s eyes shot back open. Oh Gods, he had totally forgotten about blacking out in Jason’s arms and begging for his forgiveness.
“He’s with the Emperor right now, providing a full report,” Will continued. “He stayed for a few minutes, but then he had to go.”
Percy tried not to imagine Jason hovering by his cot, watching Percy’s chest rise and fall. Perhaps Jason brushed away a piece of Percy’s hair like he did when they reunited, before rising swiftly and leaving.
Luckily, Percy was dragged out of that particular rabbit hole when Annabeth poked her head in. “Percy! You’re awake!”
She entered, followed by Frank, Hazel, and Centurion Ramírez-Arellano. Annabeth’s shoulder was wrapped and Reyna was leaning slightly on Frank, who had a black eye. But they were all grinning madly.
“You did it,” Hazel said, golden-brown eyes glittering with admiration. “You took Kronos down.”
“We did it,” Percy corrected. For a long, carefree moment, they just smiled at each other, basking in their victory against all odds.
“How’s your shoulder, Annabeth?” Percy asked worriedly.
Annabeth flexed her shoulder gingerly. “Oh don’t worry about me. I’ll be back to flipping you onto your ass in no time.”
Percy chuckled, turning to the centurion. “And you’re okay too? Why aren’t you reporting to the Emperor with Jason, Centurion Ramírez-Arellano?”
She raised an elegant eyebrow at him. “I think you’ve earned the right to call me Reyna, Percy. And I’m fine. Jason’s the Senior Centurion, so it’s his responsibility to report to the Emperor. I’m taking care of my troops.”
Percy smiled gratefully at her when she said my troops .
“What do you want to do now?” Frank asked curiously.
And suddenly, Percy was too tired to be brave anymore. His body ached too much and he was too ashamed to face Jason again. He was too afraid that, outside of the heat of battle, Jason wouldn’t want to touch Percy anymore, or brush his hair away, or press a kiss to his knuckles. He was in too much pain to watch Jason’s face change as he remembered how Percy had lied to him for months. Sure, they were highly compatible, there was no questioning that, not after what had happened in the palace. But there was also no guarantee that mere biology could trump their … complicated history. There were just too many reasons for Jason to turn him away.
“I think … I think I’d like to go home,” Percy admitted quietly, not looking up.
A warm hand landed onto his shoulder and squeezed.
“We’ll take you,” Annabeth said. The others nodded solemnly. Frank picked up Percy’s knapsack while Hazel and Will helped Percy stand, and slowly led him out.
*
Reyna wasn’t able to join them due to her duties to the legion, but before they left, she pulled Percy aside and gifted one of her own personal swords to replace Grover’s.
“For the most badass submissive I’ve ever met.” Reyna said with a smile.
He stared at her gratefully, too overwhelmed to speak, before yanking her into a tight hug. Reyna stiffened in surprise for a second before slowly wrapping her arms around him.
“Thank you.” he finally whispered. “For everything.”
“Take care of yourself, Jackson.”
Riding on Blackjack made his side ache something fierce, but Percy was so eager to return home and see his friends that the pain faded into the background.
The minute they dismounted their horses, a streak of black charged towards Will and tackled him so hard that he almost fell flat onto his back. The others watched on with amusement as Will let out a surprised oomph, before burying his nose into Nico’s dark hair with a contented sigh.
Piper and Leo rounded the corner seconds later, out of breath from chasing after Nico.
“Percy!” Leo gasped. “You’re back!”
They threw themselves at him, and even though it made his ribs scream, Percy hugged them back just as tightly, breathing in their familiar scents.
“We were so worried about you,” Piper drew away, glaring up at Percy with wet eyes. “Grover wanted to ride out after you but Juniper said that you would get in huge trouble if they found out you were a sub.”
Percy avoided the other legionnaires’ eyes.
Leo was staring at the sword belted at his waist with awestruck eyes. “How did you hide your orientation? What’s harder to fight with, a sword or a spear? Did you fight the barbarians? Was it scary?”
Percy chuckled at the rapid fire questions and ruffled Leo’s curls affectionately. “Passing as a dom was all Will, spears are harder to fight with, yes, I fought the barbarians, and yes, it was very scary.”
Will re-joined them. Nico clung onto him like a limpet, glaring fiercely at the rest of them as if daring them to make fun of him.
“You guys should have seen Percy in action,” Will boasted. “He bested Kronos in single combat and took out the majority of his army.”
Percy flushed as the other subs stared at him with awe. “It wasn’t all me. I couldn’t have done it without my friends. Let me introduce them.”
Percy turned to the doms, smirking to himself when he caught Annabeth staring open-mouthed at Piper. He was pleasantly surprised to notice that both Frank and Hazel were eyeing Leo with keen interest as well.
He introduced the doms one by one, and they engaged the subs hesitantly. Frank was beet-red and Hazel was twirling a stray curl nervously. Even Annabeth—cool, collected Annabeth—looked rather flustered.
Percy had to bite the inside of his cheek to maintain his composure. Doms. They could face down Kronos’s barbarians fearlessly, but place them in front of two attractive, unmated subs and they were putty. No wonder they didn’t let subs join the legion.
As the others mingled, Percy turned to Nico. “Um, where is …?”
But before he could finish his question, Grover turned the corner with Juniper on his heels.
Juniper immediately dashed over and pulled Percy down into a hug, babbling about how scared and worried they had been.
Over her shoulder, Percy made eye contact with Grover.
“Percy.” he whispered.
At Grover’s murmur, Juniper pulled away, and the dom slowly limped over to him. Around them, the others fell silent and turned to watch the scene unfold unabashedly.
“Hey, Grover.” Percy said meekly. “I, um, I lost your sword. But here’s a new one that my centurion gave me.”
Percy thought he heard Annabeth smack her forehead as he presented Reyna’s sword.
Grover took the sword. He stared down at it, then back up at Percy. When he didn’t say anything, Percy forced himself to speak again, voice breaking every other word. “Grover, I know you must have, um, mixed feelings about seeing me. I want you to know that I am so, so sorry—”
Grover cut him off, casting the sword aside and pulling him into a fierce hug. Percy melted into the embrace, feeling all his weariness and pain fade away. Around him, the others collectively released a sigh of relief.
“I’m just happy you’re back home safe.” Grover whispered. “I missed you so much, Perce.”
Percy closed his eyes, and felt a tear trickle down his right cheek. “Me too.”
*
Percy never thought he’d say this, but he almost missed the gruelling training at Camp Jupiter. At the very least, he missed the constant hustle and bustle of the soldiers around him and the driving sense of purpose.
At least Annabeth, Frank, and Hazel were still in town. They claimed that they weren’t leaving until they were sure that Percy had made a full recovery. Something about Percy’s lack of self preservation instincts and his tendency to make foolhardy decisions that resulted in life-threatening injuries, which was just preposterous really. You end up bedridden two times and everyone thinks that you’re prone to injury. So unfair.
(Plus, Percy knew that was only part of the reason they hadn’t left. The other part had to do with two lovely subs).
He wasn’t really complaining though. It was nice to get to know the doms and spend time with them outside of the context of training and fighting for their lives. It was even more fun to watch them attempt to woo Piper and Leo. (And really, watching Annabeth, Frank, and Hazel tiptoe around them only made Percy gain even more respect for Will, because apparently he was the only dom in the entire Roman Empire who knew how to properly woo a sub). Percy had a bet going with Nico and Will on which relationship would happen first. Nico had instantly taken a liking to Hazel and firmly believed that she and Frank would be the first to make a move. Will sided with his sub, of course. Percy had his money on Annabeth and Piper.
Still, even with the company, re-adjusting to civilian life was difficult. Today, like most days, Percy found himself back in the stables, quietly grooming Blackjack and thinking about a certain centurion.
He knew that it hadn’t been very brave of him to sneak away from Rome without saying goodbye to Jason. He had known that and accepted it at the time as the price for his lies, but now that he was home, he found that he was full of sorrow and regret. His physical wounds were healing nicely, thanks to Grover and Juniper and Will, but the memories and trauma of his experience in the war lingered.
For the millionth time, he wondered what they had done with Kronos’s body.
Grover and Juniper had burst into his bedroom his first night home. Percy didn’t know what noises he had been making, but they couldn’t have been pleasant because Grover’s face had been drained of color and Juniper had been shaking. They had curled up beside him, holding him while he gasped and trembled and recounted his fight with Kronos. Grover had told him all the right things—that he’d done it to save the Emperor and Rome, that Kronos was a monster and murder, that it had been his only option.
Percy knew that, while all those things were true, none of them had been the driving force behind his actions. He had blinded Kronos and let him fall to his death because he had nearly killed Jason. He had acted out of selfish reasons, and would therefore probably never rest easy with Kronos’s death.
Percy closed his eyes, resting his head against Blackjack’s neck.
Behind him, someone opened the doors. Percy turned with a smile, about to remind Grover of the last time the dom had found him moping in the stables, when he saw who it was. The smile slid off his face, and he dropped Blackjack’s brush.
“Jason?”
Jason stepped into the threshold slowly. He stood straight and tall, with his hands clasped behind his back, but Percy could see the nervous tension in his shoulders. Instead of his usual crimson cloak, he was now wearing a deep purple cape. There was also a shining eagle medal pinned to his chest.
“Or, Praetor Grace, now. You got promoted.”
Jason, looking like he couldn’t stop himself, took another step forward. “Yes, Reyna and I were elected as the new praetors.”
“Congratulations!” Percy said earnestly. “It’s certainly well-deserved.”
Jason’s mouth tightened. “If anyone should have been rewarded—”
Percy waved it aside. “Eh.”
“I’ve come as an emissary,” Jason said, suddenly remembering to bow. “His Majesty wished to thank you for your service. He would like to offer you a place on his council. And he sends you this crest—” Jason’s hands came from behind his back to remove a golden pendant from around his neck, which he handed to Percy, “so that everyone will know what you have done for the Empire.”
Percy stared down at the medallion. “Thank you. Or, I send my thanks to the Emperor.” he corrected. He showed it to Blackjack with a small grin, before tucking it carefully into his tunic pocket and looking back up at Jason.
Jason, who had been following his movements like a hawk, met Percy’s eyes and straightened.
“Thank you for coming.” Percy offered.
Jason swallowed. “To tell you the truth, I— I volunteered to come here because I wanted to see you.”
Percy blinked at him.
“You left so quickly,” Jason continued. “Without— you didn’t say goodbye, and I wasn’t sure if. If you, uh.”
When Percy stayed silent, Jason’s shoulders tensed further. “If you felt it,” he said, voice quiet but intense, “in the corridor. Our connection.”
Percy hesitated. “I did,” he finally said, and Jason’s shoulders relaxed slightly. “But Jason, that doesn’t have to mean anything, if you don’t want it to.”
Jason’s mouth opened and closed like a fish. It should have made him look dumb, but Percy was so stupidly, pathetically in love with him that he found it charming.
“You were so angry with me after you found out I was a sub,” Percy explained quietly, avoiding Jason’s eyes. “It was like you wanted to forget you ever met me—”
“No,” Jason choked out. His voice was so impassioned that Percy looked back up at him. “Percy, no. I was being stupid. I was angry and hurt that you hid your orientation, but I should have realized that nothing else between us had been a lie. And I could never forget meeting you, Gods Percy, you’re incredible. You joined the legion just to protect your friend. You started out as one of the worst recruits I’d ever seen and managed to surpass everyone through sheer will. You took out Kronos’s entire army and defeated him single-handedly and you saved my life twice! You’re tougher and braver and stronger than any dom I know and you— you inspire me and I want you. I mean, I would be honored to have a sub like you by my side.”
Percy stared at Jason for a long moment, before heaving a sigh. “To be honest with you, in return … I didn’t just join the legion to protect Grover. I went because I wanted to. I wanted the chance to prove myself, to leave behind the quiet, boring, miserable life that subs are expected to live. I hated all of it, so much. So Jason, I don’t think I could be a good sub to you.” Percy admitted, feeling a certain sense of peace despite the ache in his chest. This was the right thing to do.
The corner of Jason’s scarred mouth quirked up. “Well, Percy,” he said, taking a step forward. “I’m not sure I would be a very good dom, either.”
“Um, what?” Percy said, surprised into laughter.
“An honorable dom always protects his sub,” Jason recited tonelessly, “A dom of honor commands his family and acts with strength, wisdom, and conviction.” Percy nodded, remembering Grover repeating the same words.
Jason took another step forward, closing the distance between them. “A good dom doesn’t want his sub rushing into battles alongside him,” he said, taking Percy’s hands in his own. “Doesn’t long for his sub to challenge him, to push him, to fight next to him and with him.”
Percy smiled shyly up at Jason. “It sounds like we were both very poor at our lessons.”
Jason smirked back, before stepping so close that Percy felt their knees touch, then their stomachs, and then finally, their lips.
The first seconds were hesitant, only the barest touch, a whisper against each other’s mouths. But then Percy started to laugh around their kiss and Jason released his hands and wrapped his arms around Percy instead, yanking him in and up with a kind of joyous carelessness. One of Jason’s hands roamed up Percy’s back while his other hand clasped around Percy’s jaw, tilting his head just right and kissing him deeply.
When they drew back, both of them were gasping for breath.
“Come, Praetor Grace,” Percy said coyly, leading him towards the door. “I’ve waited for you long enough.”
“Jason,” the dom corrected, and Percy yanked him in for another kiss.
“I’ll call you what I want,” he teased when they broke apart.
Jason laughed and pulled him in tight with a hand around his waist. “Let’s go then, my sub,” he said, and Percy, for once, happily obeyed.