Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson world or characters, or anything related to the Greek Mythology world etc., I'm just a fan :)

Prologue, part 1

Poseidon

Was there such a thing as mortal goddesses?

It didn't make much sense, but as a mortal 19-year-old strolled alone on the beach of Montauk, her blue eyes full of wonder and a fond little smile playing on her lips, he felt himself slowly and surely being pulled ashore.

There was this mortal saying he liked, 'still waters run deep'. Well, with this one, he was able to see her strong energies, her deeply blocked emotions, buried deep but still very intense.

As he floated in the waves, invisible for now, and watched the funny little mortal woman sitting in his waves, watching her surroundings with great pleasure and somehow deep serenity, he knew she had some sad upbringing to be so repressed. That's what made her smiles so real. Her buried emotions sipped out of them.

Oh no.

No.

He is under an oath! And, and married, Amphitrite would kill him. No! Sweet mortal woman be damned, he's under an oath! Besides, the next offspring of his or his brothers' would be miserable. Their mother would be miserable! This happy, careless woman in front of him might mourn her child after only 16 years! How can he do that because of his own selfishness?

"Oh, I just love the sea so much," the girl mumbled to herself, watching the drippy, wet sand as it flowed down from her hand, "it's the only place that makes me feel… calm."

Is she doing this on purpose?! He wondered as he gritted his teeth. Damn it, woman, don't gush about his kingdom and flatter him unintentionally when he's trying to find the strength to walk away from you! Or… or swim away. Stupid water puns.

Then a tear splashed to her cheek. Then a whole lot of them. Soon enough she was crying desperately, brokenly, and he made the effort to look into her short life, see what caused all that deep, strangling pain.

Poor girl, he saddened as he watched her with her face buried in her hands, her long brown hair swimming around her in the streams, her tears soaking into his ocean.

Well, if only to save the water her tears were wasting. He was the Lord of Water, or, or something similar to that, so he was against water waste.

Oh, who was he kidding? Pretty mortal woman charmed him with her intense emotions and sweet smile, and he wanted to get to know her.

He started to walk towards her, dressing himself in appropriate diving clothes and wetting himself so he doesn't look bizarre to her, just stepping dry, and normally clothed out of the ocean. He dropped his snorkel into the water and directed it to hit her knee softly.

As if he'd walk to her with a snorkel stuck in his mouth! He has some game!

The lean girl jumped a bit as the snorkel hit her, and straightened up in surprise when the diver approached her. He trimmed his beard, so it'll look like a mortal hipster's would and decided on a look of a 30-year-old, instead of his usual 45 to 50 look. He was still, by all means, a wide chested, strong individual, but no need to appear like an in-shape grandpa to the mortal young adult.

"Er," she looked up, the snorkel in her hand and he could immediately see shame in her face for being caught crying, "is this, er…" and her eyes widened as they settled on him, "um…"

Wow, she's stammering!

That's flattering.

He's a handsome being, sure, but he rarely appeared so handsome to them they can't finish a sentence.

It was adorable, seeing her blue eyes wide and shocked. Was he that good looking to her?

"Yes?" He asked with an amused little smile.

"You're glowing," she gulped.

What?

Nothing intelligent followed then. "Huh?"

Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Are you like those… those… things? I mean, you don't feel as dark, but they're the only things glowing."

What was this sweet creature babbling about?

He sat down slowly next to her, removing his goggles to take a better look at her. His green eyes bore into hers, and she cowered somewhat and put a bit of distance between them, moving on the wet sand.

"You're… you're strong," she noted, her eyes scanning his body.

He puffed out his chest somewhat and grinned. "Well, thanks, sweetie! It's mostly good nutrition, but the workouts are important too."

"No…" and she laughed, now reddening, "I meant, your aura is strong. I… I know you're not like me."

"Not like you?"

She leaned forward to whisper, as if scared someone would overhear her, "I don't glow. My friends and most people on the street don't glow. Those that do, are not human, right?"

Ooh, we have a clear-sighted in the house!

"Why, you are absolutely right, sweetheart," and he snapped his fingers, getting rid of the black diving suit and goggles, they looked ridiculous on him anyway, "let me ask you something else though. You seem to know and see a lot. If you know for a fact I'm not a human like you, why aren't you running away?"

She looked down and smiled somewhat, and now she was definitely blushing. And oh, how charmed was he by that. "You feel different," she admitted, "warmer. Positive. You…" and then her eyes widened and looked between him and the sea. "Your sea-green aura. You came out of the water. The way the waves act around you -"

Oh, the way he was spared from salty splashes to his face. Well, anyone with water-powers would spare themselves from that. But she was right. He was sitting inside a circle of eerily calm sea-water. Around him, the waves hit the shore as usual.

" - and how incredibly strong you feel. Like how, how thick your aura is. Are you… are you Poseidon?"

"Smart, perceptive girl you are! As a matter of fact, yes. And as the Lord of the Seas, I always find myself drawn to those who appreciate my kingdom. And you are one of them, aren't you?"

She smiled warmly and looked forward to the broad horizons of the ocean. "The sea is… is a healing place for me."

As she watched the sea, he watched her, her gentle features twisting with sadness, her eyes filling again with that dreadful emotion he saw in them when he watched her earlier.

"You're just proving how wise you are again," Poseidon told her, his voice soft, "not many know this, but the sea truly has healing powers. Mostly to the aching mind, though your occasional eel could also provide powerful ointment for wounds."

She chuckled, passing her hand in the calm water around them, and he felt as if it was him she was stroking.

"What's your name," he smiled, "given that you know mine?"

She smiled back, her eyes wandering around his face curiously. "Sally Jackson."

Not one.

Not one, but two babies!

He had to stop it, he had to prevent it somehow -

But how could he?

He couldn't. They were his children. Two children of the sea.

When Amphitrite would hear, she won't forgive him for weeks - heck, years! And Zeus… How could he possibly hide them from Zeus?

And the prophecy- who would it be about, when there were two of them? He couldn't deal with it alone. He needed help, but from someone he can trust.

"So, little brother… Twins," the Goddess of the Hearth stood beside Poseidon as they both watched Sally Jackson with an enormous belly stirring what seemed to be cookie dough. Had Sally not been clear-sighted, it could've been a funny sight to her, a 40-year-old, bearded and serious individual, consulting with a tiny 8-year-old. But Sally immediately knew that the girl was a goddess, and had caught on quite quickly on who exactly she was, too.

"You're Hestia, right?"

"Yes," the girl smiled approvingly at her, "you're very perceptive. I don't get recognized often, not even from beings from our own world."

"You, you feel warm and friendly, and your aura is the deepest, shiniest maroon I've ever seen."

Hestia nodded, her smile softening as she walked forward slowly and put both her hands on Sally's swollen abdomen. Sally recoiled somewhat, but Hestia's little hands must've been warm and soft, for she calmed a second later.

"Yes," Hestia hummed, smiling warmly to the almost 20-year-old mortal, "two, healthy babies. A boy and a girl."

"Oh, I didn't know it's one of each," Sally chuckled, her own hands stroking her stomach.

His heart pinched at the sweet sight in front of him, but hesitation and worry immediately filled his head.

"Your heart is good," Hestia said, "and your intentions are pure. You'll be a loving mother. But… my brother's children are strong, and I'm afraid he never had twins before. Two children of the sea would attract a lot of attention from monsters."

Sally nodded and closed her eyes. Poseidon knew she figured as much.

"Some… some mortal men stink," she mumbled, smiling sadly, "some of them smell so bad, my nose would be clogged for days afterward. I can… I can marry one of them."

His throat closed in dread.

Sweet, lovely Sally, she should have a man who would worship her, a man to give her all she deserved, all that Poseidon couldn't give. Not some excuse of a man, that stinked because his personality was putrid.

"You don't have to, Sally," he murmured.

She watched him sadly. "Living in the sea - bothering queen Amphitrite and arousing her hatred to our twins is not a sufficient solution, my sweet Poseidon."

He closed his eyes, sad, and mostly guilty.

He caused this to her. Because he couldn't resist himself, she was now forced to marry a human piece of garbage. He hated how, with all the strength he had, he still couldn't help sweet Sally and his own twin children.

/

They finished introductions and now the two immortals watched silently as Sally made sweets.

"They would both like cookies, I can tell that already," Sally smiled down at her stomach as it clearly moved with the fetuses' kicks.

"That's not a hard bet to make, Sally, all children like cookies," Poseidon grinned inspite of himself at the mortal, who smiled back. He then cleared his throat. "I brought Hestia with me because she is the goddess of the hearth, the home. I thought it right to consult with her on our… situation."

"Our twins," Sally smiled, correcting him softly. "Well, I was surprised as well. But when I thought of it again, I was kind of happy. You told me, and I can also guess that it is a dangerous world out there, especially for demigods, and especially for strong demigods, as your children must be. So, the thought that they'd have each other makes me kind of happy."

"She's not wrong, brother," Hestia smiled her warm smile, and it calmed Poseidon somewhat, "There's strength in that. They will have each other."

Poseidon was quiet for some time before finally nodding, although the way the pipes in the walls of the house shook suggested that he wasn't quite calm yet. "I… Agree. However, there is the matter of the prophecy."

Hestia bowed her head.

Sally's hands touched her stomach absently. "What prophecy?"

It was settled. The boy baby will be born first, and the girl baby would be held for another 24 hours, so that her brother was the hero from the prophecy. Hestia would help with the delaying with her forces, as she was the goddess of home (and that included family) and knew how to do that.

And truly, Perseus Jackson was born a healthy baby on the 18th of July, and on the 19th of July followed his twin sister, Penelope Jackson.

Poseidon broke the rules without much care as he came to visit Sally and the twins, three days after they were born. Sally was asleep on the bed, exhaustion and weariness of new motherhood granting her deep slumber. In the corner of the room, he could see a crib that shined in a sea-green glow. His heart thumped strongly as he stepped slowly and glanced at his sleeping children.

Then, who he knew to be Perseus woke up, and Poseidon's heart clenched when eyes, as green as his watched him. He also had a mane of raven hair, just like Poseidon's.

Not wanting him to wake his mother or his sister, but mostly curious and aching to hold his son, he bent down and softly picked up the tiny baby.

He was so… light. So vulnerable.

Truly, he didn't have mortal children for so long that he forgot how weak, how helpless they were when they started their lives. But still, as his rough palms held onto Perseus' tiny body, he felt the vibrating liquids in his body, the buried strong energy.

"You'll reach greatness, my boy. You'll be a true hero. I just know it," he whispered to him and kissed his cheek.

The tiny baby held out his miniature hand and opened his small mouth, but besides that, he was silent.

The one who wasn't silent was the boy's sister, Penelope.

Perhaps feeling the absence of her brother's warmth next to her, the infant started to mew and complain quietly.

"Hey, we don't want anyone jealous," he murmured softly, "we also don't want your mother up, she needs her sleep."

Putting back Perseus tenderly, making sure his head was settled and safe, he picked up Penelope and watched her with warmth in his green eyes.

She had his eyes, but her hair was lighter, and… well, he couldn't tell just yet, but he had a hunch that this one would resemble Sally a lot. And to him, that was the greatest achievement in the world.

"Yes," he cooed at the tiny creature as she calmed in his arms and looked up to him with his eyes, "you may have my eyes, but you're gonna be a lot like your mom, huh?"

The baby yawned, her entire face stretched and scrunched with the action, and he chuckled softly.

"I'll take that as a yes. Well, good. Be as hopeful and kind as your mom, and carve your own way in the world, my girl. I'm confident you'll always achieve your goals. You'll make me proud, my sweet daughter."

He kissed her cheek too, and as he placed her back in the crib, Perseus' hand reached out to hold on to her. That lightened some of the weight in him at leaving them behind.

They have each other.

As he turned around one last time to bid farewell to their sleeping mother, he found her watching him quietly, a single tear on her cheek, shining in the moonlight seeping through the window.

He sighed, and walked slowly to the bed, sitting on its edge with a heavy heart.

"My Sally," he sighed, evident longing on his face. She sat up and soon enough her arms stretched to hold him. He hugged her back, breathing her in, and memorizing her essence and her being as it was in his arms one last time.

"This is goodbye," she didn't ask, she acknowledged, and he nodded slowly.

"I wish I could offer more," he murmured, "we think ourselves so powerful, so great, but all it takes is one, kind hearted mortal like yourself to humble us. What can I offer you that holds meaning? Emotional support, care, love…"

"You gave me the greatest gift," she smiled, "I know it sounds cliché, but I mean it. I have meaning, I have love. These two…" and she sighed blissfully into his shoulder.

He felt warmth, and relief, and… and adoration. His children will be loved.

"Promise me something, though."

"Anything, my Sally. Anything that I can give, I will."

"When the moment comes, when… when you meet them and you can help them and love them… don't hold back."

And they both looked back to the crib, where their tiny children were.

He nodded, his lips clenching. "These children will be embedded deep in me, and when the time comes and they move into my world and leave yours, however I can help them, I will. I promise."

A/N

Part 2 is soon to follow.

THANKS FOR READING!