undoing [percy jackson]

iii. a tearful reunion

ANDROMEDA

The Hunters claimed the back of the bus, clearly wanting to keep their distance from Apollo and probably also Percy and Nico. Bianca didn't hesitate to sit with them. Nico barely even seemed to notice, too busy geeking out over the shuttle bus that was actually a sun, which, like, valid.

He was bouncing in the driver's seat. "This is so cool! Is this really the sun? I thought Helios and Selene were the sun and moon gods. How come sometimes it's them and sometimes it's you and Artemis?"

"Downsizing," Apollo answered. "The Romans started it. They couldn't afford all those temple sacrifices, so they laid off Helios and Selene and folded their duties into our job descriptions. My sis got the moon. I got the sun. It was pretty annoying at first, but at least I got this cool car."

"Wow," Andi said, storing her luggage in one of the overhead cabinets. "Even divine beings are negatively impacted by capitalism."

No one paid her any mind. Nico was looking up at Apollo with wide eyes. "But how does it work? I thought the sun was a big fiery ball of gas!"

If Apollo was annoyed by all of Nico's questions, he did a great job of not showing it. Instead, he chuckled and ruffled Nico's hair affectionately. "That rumor probably got started because Artemis used to call me a big fiery ball of gas. Seriously, kid, it depends on whether you're talking astronomy or philosophy. You want to talk astronomy? Bah, what fun is that? You want to talk about how humans think about the sun? Ah, now that's more interesting. They've got a lot riding on the sun...er, so to speak. It keeps them warm, grows their crops, powers engines, makes everything look, well, sunnier. This chariot is built out of human dreams about the sun, kid. It's as old as Western Civilization. Every day, it drives across the sky from east to west, lighting up all those puny little mortal lives. The chariot is a manifestation of the sun's power, the way mortals perceive it. Make sense?"

Nico frowned and shook his head. "No."

"Well then, just think of it as a really powerful, really dangerous solar car."

Nico's face lit back up. "Can I drive?"

"No," Apollo replied. "Too young."

Grover's hand shot into the air. "Oo! Oo!"

"Mm, no," Apollo said. "Too furry." His gaze drifted right over Percy and Andi (who was trying to hide behind Percy) to Thalia.

"Daughter of Zeus!" he exclaimed, beaming. "Lord of the sky. Perfect."

Thalia's eyes went wide with terror. "Oh, no. No, thanks."

"C'mon," Apollo insisted. "How old are you?"

"I don't know," Thalia admitted after a moment's hesitation. Andi pursed her lips, then realized she probably should've had more of a reaction to that. Luckily, it seemed like no one was paying attention to her in the slightest.

Some things never change, even in alternate universes.

"You're fifteen, almost sixteen," Apollo deduced.

Thalia furrowed her brow. "How do you know that?"

"Hey, I'm the god of prophecy. I know stuff. You'll turn sixteen in about a week."

"That's my birthday! December 22nd."

"Which means you're old enough to drive with a learner's permit!"

Thalia grimaced. "Uh—"

"I know what you're going to say," Apollo interjected. "You don't deserve an honor like driving the sun chariot."