Finesse - Bruno Mars

THE CAMPS WAS STRANGELY STILL as Y/N and Percy made their way back to the cabins. Everyone seemed to steer clear of Y/N and Percy, which was fine by Y/N. As everyone walked into the mess hall, the fire glowed a strange color. It was hot pink, and roaring with power. As Y/N glanced over to it, his eyes widened, and his body stiffened. All the campers seemed to stop walking as well, turning to him.

As Y/N's eyes locked onto the woman, a shockwave seemed to immobilize him. She was dressed in a brown shawl and an orange dress, her long brown hair cascading elegantly over her shoulders. However, it wasn't just her appearance that struck Y/N. Her demeanour was devoid of arrogance or haughtiness; instead, she radiated a genuine emotional warmth, surpassing even the raging fire. Her eyes held a softness, a tenderness that made Y/N feel like he could be a carefree child again, sheltered from all the troubles of the world. If someone searched for the word "Mom" in the dictionary, there should have been a picture of her beside it.

Chiron trotted up to her, smiling warmly. He turned to the rest of the campers, shooing them away. "Go back to your cabins, everyone," he called. "I think Y/N needs some time alone." As everyone shuffled away, Chiron walked up to Y/N, winking. He then followed everyone else, leaving Y/N with the woman.

Y/N stared back at the woman. Her smile radiated such warmness, that it seemed as though she could make all him problems go away with a laugh and a lollipop. Y/N made his way over to her, his mind in a daze. As he got closer, Y/N finally came to his senses.

"M...M-Mom?" Y/N whimpered, emotions swirling through his mind like eels. She looked into his eyes, her pupils blazing with warm flames.

"My son," she confirmed. Her voice like songbirds in spring, gentle as feathers. But there was a certain familiarity to her, as if Y/N had met her before.

Then it clicked. The same orange dress. The warm smile. The fire in her eyes. "L-Lucy??" He gasped. She threw her head back, laughing. Her laugh seemed to take any aches Y/N had away, like instant painkillers.

"You are insightful, Y/N," she smiled. Getting up from her position on the rug, she stood up, dusting herself off. She took some slow steps towards him, holding out her arms. Before Y/N knew it, he ran forward, jumping into her arms.

Tears streaked down Y/N's cheeks as he bawled into her shoulder. Each negative thought about his parents, any anger he had pent up, disappeared within an instant. Y/N's body ached for warmth, as he gripped his mother tightly, afraid that if he let go, she would fade.

Some might feel embarrassed to cry in front of their parents, but not Y/N. He took shaky, ragged breaths, allowing his tears to flow freely onto her shoulder. Never in his life had Y/N needed something as desperately as he did then. What felt like minutes stretched into hours as he held his mother, Y/N's sobs resonating in the air.

Eventually, he pulled away, his tears streaking Y/N's face. He assumed her dress would be soaked, but to his surprise, it showed no sign of Y/N's sudden outburst. he stared back at her momentarily, before glancing down at his feet.

"Sorry," Y/N muttered, embarrassed. Hestia simply laughed again, and caressed Y/N's face. With her thumbs, she wiped away any remaining tears. He held her hand to his cheek, basking in its warmth.

"Shall we sit?" She asked. Waving her hand, the rug was instantly covered with food. Ice-cream, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, marshmallows, cookies. Y/N staggered over to the rug, taking a seat across from her. As Y/N gazed into her eyes, he felt his own eyes tear up slightly.

"Why?" Y/N murmured. "Why only now, after all this time?" Hestia looked a little pained, and Y//N felt awfully guilty.

"There are ancient laws, Y/N," she sighed, handing him a warm cup of cocoa. "There are rules about visiting your demigod children. But it killed me. To see you grow up in that orphanage alone." She seemed so sincere, so kind, that Y/N almost began to comfort her instead.

"Even now," she continued. "I am bending the rules quite a lot." She reached over, placing a warm hand on Y/N's leg. Thunder rumbled softly in the distance, but she just looked up, smiling.

"Zeus can be lenient at times, of course. Especially now." She added with a smile. "After all, Y/N, you are special." He gazed up at her, almost choking on hiss hot chocolate.

"Me? Special?" Y/N repeated.  nodded, amused by his flustered expression.

"You are my first, Y/N," she whispered, her voice impossibly soft. He cocked his head, still confused.

"My first child," she added. That explained it.

Hestia was a virgin goddess. When offered her hand in marriage by Poseidon and Apollo, she declined, stating that she wanted to be a virgin for life. "But...I thought you swore to never have kids?" Y/N questioned. She smiled at this, as if he was a child questioning things about the sky.

"I did," she confirmed. "But that didn't stop me from wanting any." She seemed to go into a dreamy state, her eyes staring up at the stars. "For millennia, I have craved nothing but love." She continued. "I have always been considered the last Olympian. Always put below everyone else." She seemed saddened, almost disappointed.

"When Dionysus was born, I gave up my throne to keep the balance." She said flatly. "I now tend to the flames, taking care of what is left behind." She sighed heavily, taking a sip of her own hot chocolate. "To be truthful, I was... afraid."

I was stunned. His mother, the fire goddess, of home and family. Was scared? "Scared of what?" He questioned. She seemed to wince a little from his words, and she tapped the side of her cup.

"Of marriage." She replied simply. Y/N stared down at a cookie, feeling a little awkward. "I never wanted to be tied to the vows of Motherhood. It irked me so. But that was before I met your father." The mentioning of his father seemed to brighten the mood, and the fire burned a little brighter.

"He was mortal?" Y/N asked. Hestia shrugged, smiling dreamily. It was so cute, seeing an all-powerful goddess smitten over a normal human.

"I don't exaggerate when I say that he was 1 in a billion, Y/N." She stated. "It seemed so wrong for me. To fall in love with a mortal? Impossible. But..." She sighed. "...it happened. Whether caused by the fates, or simply instinct. I always had my suspicions that he was more than just a human."

"What happened to him?" He asked. A look of darkness and sorrow passed over her face, and Y/N instantly felt guilty about his question.

"I spent along time with your father." She whispered, her voice soft. "Way longer than a god or goddess should ever spend. But I simply couldn't help it." She took a deep breath lowering her voice even more. "When I announced you were to be born, he was so joyful." She seemed to reminisce slightly, looking up into the trees above.

"One day, I came home to find him dead."

Y/N sat there, shocked at what he just heard. No build-up. No monsters. Just dead. Hestia seemed to understand his expression because she reached over, patting Y/N's back softly. "He was dead." She stated. "A heart attack. At a young age as well."

"Why" Y/N replied, his voice soft.

"Even to this day, I do not know." She said sadly. "He showed no signs of an early death. Perhaps, a punishment for revealing my true identity to him."

Y/N wondered what he would have been thinking. An all-powerful goddess, one that had sworn to be a virgin forever, had fallen for him. Y/N would've felt pretty good.

"I talked to him, in the underworld." He stared back at her, a surprised look on his face. "I've always had a soft for my brothers," she added with a small smile. "Hades is no exception."

"Did you get him back?" Y/N asked. Hestia simply shook her head.

"Despite my requests, he could not leave." She sighed. "Perhaps it was my fault for staying with him for so long, or perhaps Hades felt particularly grumpy that day. But I do hope for you to see him one day."

"I... see..." Y/N stared into his hot chocolate, in disbelief. This all seemed too surreal for him. But there was one thing he still wanted to ask.

"Um...Hestia...." Y/N began.

"Mom," She corrected.

"Y-Yes...Mom...What happened at the river before?" She raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" She questioned.

"At the river... I... the flames...." Y/N still couldn't form coherent sentences. Pathetic. Hestia smiled, looking at his palm.

"You are powerful, my son." She said so nonchalantly, as if she was talking about the weather.

"Me? But you..." He paused, deciding his words carefully. "You... aren't an Olympian anymore." she looked at him with an annoyed expression, as if Y/N was stealing from the cookie jar she hid.

"Does that make me any less of a Goddess. Hmmm?" She took a sip of her hot chocolate. "Just because I have no influence in the Olympian council doesn't mean I am weaker than my family." She took a careful bite of a cookie.

"You forget that I am the oldest out of my siblings. I was the firstborn of the titan Kronos. The first goddess." She smiled at Y/N, warming his face again. "Not only that, but you are my first child." She took his hand in hers, squeezing it gently. "Make no mistake, you ARE powerful."

Thunder rumbled in the distance, causing the goddess to look up, slightly annoyed. She sighed before waving her hand. Instantly, all the food disappeared, including Y/N's cup of cocoa. She stood up, pulling him up with her.

"Zeus grows impatient, my child." She whispered. Y/N looked back at her, holding back tears.

"W-Will... I... see you again?" He whispered, his voice cracking. She rolled her eyes before pulling him into a warm hug. Instantly, he felt better, my tears seemingly drying up.

"Perhaps." She whispered back. "But I have a strange feeling your friend, 'Lucy', will visit you more than I." She giggled quietly, pulling away. "I hope to see you soon, my son." She said with a final goodbye. With a final wave, she faded, her form rippling like flames.