Origins of Olympus S2 One-Shots

What is Love? - Solis

Cal didn't know how it happened, but the night after the Trial of Ares, all the Egyptians demigods gathered in the common area to spend 'quality time together' as Ricarro put it. He wasn't exactly complaining but his growing headache definitely was.

"Where's Mikhail?" Davis asked, swatting Nero away from his drink with a sneer. If the spirit could stick their owl tongue out, at him Cal was pretty sure they would.

Inpu flipped through his book on the couch while pretending to not be paying attention to anything else. "Who knows. Guy didn't even show up to the trial which I assume counselors are supposed to do."

Davis shrugged. "Only counselor I saw there was the Greeks'."

"Yeah well, she had to be there, she was announcing the thing." He yawned, stretching his arms above his head. Magnus patted his head and gently smoothed down his ears. He smiled at them tiredly.

"Long day? Mev asked.

"Longer."

Mev shook his head. "I'm starting to be glad I missed the trial if that's the case." He sighed with content and leaned back against the couch. "So, Ricarro, what have you been up tp?"

The boy in question perked up from his seat on the floor. "Oh! Cal taught me about love!"

Mev laughed. "Did he now?"

Solis looked back and forth between them, eyebrows creased. "What's love?"

Cal groaned. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Inpu refuse to look in their direction. "Oh boy, here we go again," he muttered. "Ricarro, do you want to explain it to him?"

Ricarro happily shook his head and took a seat on the couch next to Mev. "Nope! I'll let you take this, earth mom. You're really good at it!"

If it weren't for the genuine smile on his face, Cal would've thought he was intentionally trying to torture him. Relinquishing his sanity, he patted the coffee table and Solis bolted up, sitting on it with Scar standing guard by his feet.

"So how I explained it to Ricarro is that... basically it's a step up from like. Do you know what liking someone means?"

"Magnus explained it to me once! They said it means you want to be around them a lot and you don't find excuses to ignore their existence." He smiled proudly and Cal shifted his eyes to Magnus who just stared blankly at their feet. Somewhere behind him, Davis coughed uncomfortably.

"That's right, uncle! That's right... "

'Oh gods.' "Yup, so love is just like that only amplified, I guess would be the right word for it. It's just an intense positive feeling you have for someone."

"Do you love anyone?" Solis asked innocently.

Cal blinked. "I guess? I do love my mom." He ignored the pang in his chest remembering his poor mother back in the city, hopefully not wondering where he was. He had prayed that whoever his father was had told her about being a god and the possibility of her son being pulled away from his life at a sudden moment's notice.

"Ohhh," Solis drew out in understanding, "so it's like how I feel about my dad?"

Cal grinned, pleased and relieved. "That's right. There's different kinds of love and that one's called familial love. It's what you feel for your family."

"Hmmmm," Solis nodded seriously. He stared at the ground for a couple beats, eyes narrowed in focus. Cal glanced at Magnus, concerned he was going to overwork his brain thinking when he suddenly looked up, ecstatic. "So it's...like how I love Inpu and Magnus?"

Silence shot the air. Magnus froze and Inpu slowly lowered his book. "What?"

"Well, you're my family so that means I love you guys! Right?"

Magnus' eye twitched and they shared a look with their brother. "I...I guess," they said through strained breath.

"And also that I love Davis, because he's my nephew-"

"Awww, uncle!"

"-and I love Cal!"

Cal's brain short circuited. "Excuse me? You-you consider me family?"

"Well yeah, of course," Solis said matter-of-factly.

"I- I need a moment." Cal turned away from Solis' calm face and mentally screamed, audibly muffled yells into his hands. Simple but heavy words and it was so much, so much, at once. Just take it like any other information; absorb it and accept it. Absorb and accept. Absorb and accept. Absorb and accept-

This was his life now. Dwelling on it with any more anxiety would drive him crazy. Something churned in his chest, a gentle settling that eased on his heart. The same that he felt when he turned up in Egypt and when he arrived at the camp's pyramid.

Cal took in a deep, deep breath and spun around to face Solis. And the others. Six Egyptians, plus Nero, stared back at him with varying degrees of confusion and worry. Ricarro even seemed on the verge of tears.

"You okay, neighbro?" Davis asked.

'This is my family now. I can deal with that.' "Yeah," Cal exhaled, "yeah I'm fine."

"Should we tell him about the birds and bees too, earth mom?"

"ABSOLUTELY NOT!"