The Pricking of Briar Rose -Zeus/Percy –Based on Briar Rose (aka Sleeping Beauty)

 

“You are completely wrong, Mother.”

 

The goddess scoffed.

 

“And you are an idiot. Whatever could he see in her? For Zeus’ sake, she’s a Daughter of Athena. Percy will be bored within a year, if not less. And Annabeth is so irritating and uninteresting.”

 

Eros scoffed back, “And Rachel is too odd for Percy. Percy’s sweet and he’s kind…but I’m not sure his connection to Rachel is strong enough to rival the one he has with Annabeth.”

 

Aphrodite glowered at her son, gritting her teeth.

 

“I tell you, Annabeth is a bore! Their passion will fizzle into nothing in no time!”

 

“And I say that Rachel is incompatible with Percy!”

 

In typical Aphrodite fashion, she huffed and turned on her heel to walk out on her son first. She immediately walked over to Ares’ palace, ready to rant to her lover.

 

Who was typically (typically nowadays at least) averting his eyes away from her and started furiously polishing his spear as soon as she started in on the subject.

 

“Why are you so fixated on his love life?” he grunted, scowling. He still wasn’t looking at her. “Who cares about the sea brat’s love life? So what if he wants to date that weirdo mortal or Athena’s bitchy girl?”

 

“Bitchy! That’s it! That’s exactly the word I was looking for to describe Annabeth. Not as bitchy as her mother, but still,” Aphrodite sneered. “And I care about Percy’s love life because I like him and he’s amusing. And I don’t think I’ve gotten as much amusement from anyone else, especially about their love life, than Percy’s. It’s boring around here and he’s my only entertainment. I have to get my kicks from somewhere, you know.”

 

Ares grunted simply, going for the caveman act to avoid actually having to answer to that.

 

“I got it! I’ll just borrow some of Eros’ little toys and make myself a Percy romance cocktail that’ll so go my way,” Aphrodite said slyly, squealing happily after as she thought more about it.

 

And before Ares could protest even more, the goddess of love had disappeared. Once she’d taken her son’s bow and grabbed a random arrow, she went for Apollo. It wasn’t like she could fire it. Her aim would totally be off and she would miss her chance if she missed. There wouldn’t be a second opportunity so she had to get it right the first time. And who else but sweet and handsome Apollo would shoot it for her?

 

Not that brat Artemis or cold Athena.

 

She huffed inwardly. She would get hers over them, that was for sure. And once she’d located Apollo, who barely protested as she dragged him with her, she was gearing towards her ultimate plan. Percy would get his perfect romance, and she would get her perfect ending. It would’ve been more perfect if Percy would end up with her, but they all knew that the gods and goddesses were decisively staying out of it, or else they knew they would end up fighting each other and creating a drastic war.

 

Percy was their Helen after all.

 

“I don’t think this is a good idea,” Apollo muttered.

 

“Ugh, you’re being just like Ares,” Aphrodite clenched her hands.

 

She wasn’t stupid though. She knew why for their attitudes. She knew how Ares felt, even if he tried to act indifferent and pretend otherwise. Apollo was similar, though he was more open and accepting of how he felt.

 

But she felt the same way. They weren’t the only ones feeling like this –the others did too. They didn’t have to be stupid about it though. They should be happy if Percy was happy.

 

They found Percy’s new apartment and did the normal, mortal thing. They used his front door and knocked. However, when there was no response, they looked at each other.

 

“He’s here, right?” Apollo asked uncertainly.

 

“I didn’t check,” Aphrodite admitted. “But we can just go in and see if he is. And if he’s not, we’ll just wait for him.”

 

Apollo reluctantly agreed and the two of them slipped into the apartment easily. They split up and looked around, but didn’t see him. Aphrodite went into the kitchen, where she screamed and ran towards Percy’s fallen figure.

 

“Percy? Percy, are you alright?” she was asking hysterically.

 

Apollo found them and took over, gently prying her away and pushing her aside, checking on Percy himself.

 

“He’s breathing. It’s steady,” he noted, starting to feel confusion. “I’m…not sure what’s wrong.”

 

He would need some time to find out what had happened, but it would be just as well if they took him to the mortal hospital. He picked up Percy and grabbed onto Aphrodite’s hand, ignoring her hyperventilating and concentrating on teleporting to the hospital. At an inconspicuous spot, he made sure his and Aphrodite’s clothing were appropriate, before rushing into the ER. While Aphrodite stood motionless to the side, Apollo tried to explain had happened as well as he could. Percy was taken and put into a room.

 

For a while, they really didn’t know what was wrong, and even scarier was that Percy was still asleep for the next three days. They didn’t dare go to the others and tell them what happened. All of them would all panic and the world would be in chaos before they knew it.

 

They? They were already feeling chaotic as it were.

 

“He has what is called Kleine-Levin Syndrome,” the doctor told them on the seventh day. It was a disease Apollo wasn’t familiar with. There were so many in the world that Apollo didn’t always catch up, despite being a god of medicine. He tended to seek out the knowledge when the occasion called for it, and now with a name, Apollo could feel the information surging through his mind.

 

“It’s also known as the ‘Sleeping Beauty’ Syndrome,” the doctor continued. “His continued sleep is the main basis of the condition. Anyone diagnosed with it can generally have an episode that lasts from a week to less than a month, hours if they’re lucky. Years if they’re not.”

 

“Do you know when he’ll wake up right now?” Aphrodite spoke up, voice quiet and teary.

 

“I’m sorry,” the doctor apologized. “There’s really no way to tell.”

 

Apollo looked over the goddess, who had taken to crying again. She looked up at him and they both knew the others needed to be told, especially now that Percy was going to sleep, sleep, sleep…

 

Would he sleep forever?

 

They were immortals. Couldn’t they do something about this? Wouldn’t they be able to cure him?

 

Somehow or other, they found that they were unable to have any power over the situation, no matter what they wanted.

 

 

Why did it have to be him?

 

Zeus wasn’t sure what he was doing there. Many of the others had faithfully visited the young mortal, but he had staved off a visit for as long as he could, redoubling his focus on rebuilding the damages gained from the war and monitoring the world, fulfilling his duties and responsibilities…

 

It was now six months since Percy Jackson had succumbed to a deep sleep he had yet to awaken from, and it was only now that Zeus had come.

 

Seeing him now, Zeus didn’t like how still and silent, so utterly pale the young man was. He could not see the sea-green eyes that was alive with emotion, similar to his brother’s eyes and yet so, so different. There was nothing to show the lifeless form in front of him was the brave young man who had saved all of Olympus from crumbling into ruin and ashes.

 

“But now here you are,” Zeus murmured, reluctantly taking a seat by his bedside. “Did you prick your finger, Briar Rose?” he mocked bitterly.

 

He reached over and idly took a hand, examining Percy’s fingers. They were oddly soft, but with only slight calluses.

 

“And who was the evil Malificent who sent you into such a deep sleep?” His voice became somber, just as his eyes looked upon Percy tiredly and yet sorrowfully. If he’d let himself, he knew longing would be present in his eyes as well.

 

Zeus let go of Percy’s hands, letting it fall just from a slight tilt of his own hand, and watching as Percy’s fell limply back onto the bed.

 

This wasn’t a fairytale. He wasn’t Prince Charming –none of them were –and there was no villain to fight against. Just a sleeping boy, just some pathetic gods, and a disease that couldn’t be touched on (not even by the gods themselves).

 

 

So Percy slept.

 

“You don’t seem to be sleeping well,” Hera commented.

 

Zeus waved dismissively. “Well, there are others who seem to be sleeping too much.”

 

“Why don’t you go to him?” she said softly.

 

Zeus stayed quiet, ignoring her. She sighed and left.

 

“There’s too much work to do,” he finally said to the emptiness of the room.

 

It echoed in the chamber, and then silence once again haunted him.

 

Nevertheless, Zeus once again visited Percy. Still silent and still unmoving in the hospital bed, Zeus just shook his head at the young man.

 

“Why did I bother?”

 

Why did he? Truth was, he knew the answer. It was the same for all the others. But nothing ever good came from him, and he knew that Percy wasn’t his to have. He wasn’t any of theirs to have.

 

“Today, will you wake? Or are you guarded by a dragon that will never let you free?’ Zeus questioned the comatose demigod seriously. “When the world is nothing but ashes, will you come then? Will you breathe life into statues? Shatter us like glass, break us into pieces? What is it that you want, Perseus? What do you want from us? What will it take for you to wake up?”

 

Nothing. Percy had never been the type to want something in exchange for something else. And really –what would happen if he did wake up? Would this happen again? The condition Percy had said that the episodes would happen, and there were no cures and there was nothing to help predict when an episode would come. They would be flying blind trying to figure this out, and Percy’s own life would be disrupted and put on hold so many times. How would he be able to go through life, the rest of his life, plagued by this condition that would take over himself? Take over his life?

 

“Do you want to wake up to that, Percy?” Zeus asked gravely. “Is that why it’s taking you so long to wake up? Because if you do, you know your life will never be the same and you won’t be able to stop the episodes or control them? That you would be condemned to missing out large periods of your life, just having to leave everything behind as you can’t help falling asleep and unable to wake from your slumber?”

 

What would happen to Percy? Would he, if left in his kitchen and not been found by Aphrodite and Apollo, just simply stayed lying on the floor, day after day passing him unknowingly by? Would his body crave and be denied nutrients, and he starved to death?

 

The images, the questions, the thoughts –they were all in Zeus’ head, unable to go away or to resolve them. Now more than ever, though, he couldn’t keep them from haunting him. Not with Percy right there in front of him, lying as if death had already claimed him.

 

“You can’t sleep forever,” Zeus told him. “You’ll have to wake up sometime.”

 

But there was no answer for him, so Zeus stood up to leave. He paused and looked at Percy, leaning over him and hovering above his face. His lips came close to the other’s, before settling on kissing the corner of Percy’s lips.

 

 

“Wake soon please. I don’t beg often, but I beg you now.”

 

Percy slept through another two months, and it was now a total of eight months of never-ending sleep. Zeus was with his brother now, and he could see how affected Poseidon was over his son’s state. He, too, felt miserable, but he kept himself in check and showed nothing but stoicism.

 

But then, Percy stirred and woke up.

 

“Percy!” Poseidon cried out, startling Zeus out of his reverie.

 

Both men came closer and checked the awakening demigod, who looked back at them blearily.

 

“W-what happened?” Percy said groggily. “Why am I in the hospital?”

 

Zeus took a step back and allowed Poseidon to take the lead and tell his son what had happened and what was wrong with him. From there, he could see Percy’s changing emotions. First, he looked confused. Then he was horrified. And then, after that, he looked resigned.

 

Resigned was the worse, and made Zeus look away and refuse the urge to want to come closer and offer comfort.

 

It was not his place.

 

However, his brother soon left and Zeus was standing there awkwardly, even though he didn’t show it. Percy gave him a sad smile, shrugging.

 

“It’s not the worse that could happen, right? And it’s not fatal. All in all, I guess I lucked out in the disease department, huh?”

 

“You deserve better,” Zeus said, taking the other aback.

 

Percy gave another smile, one much more happier, and Zeus felt himself feel less tense. The younger man rubbed at his eyes, yawning a bit. Both of them grimaced.

 

“I feel so tired, even though everyone says I slept for so long,” Percy muttered.

 

“It’s your condition. You’re going to be really tired a lot,” he explained quietly.

 

The other didn’t seem too happy with the news, but there wasn’t anything anyone could do about it.

 

“We can watch some movies, so that you don’t fall back to sleep right away,” Zeus suggested.

 

At that, Percy gave a wide grin and nodded, and Zeus settled into a chair by Percy’s bedside, taking the remote for the room’s TV. He switched it on and admitted he used his godly powers a bit to put a movie he liked onto the screen.

 

 

It wasn’t long after the second movie started that he knew Percy fell asleep, but this time he knew it wouldn’t be too long.

 

“Hungry much?” Zeus asked in amusement as Percy wolfed down another serving of fettucine.

 

Inwardly, he knew that Percy’s new condition would get him to have an excessive appetite and some unusual cravings, but nonetheless, Zeus was still surprised that when he’d come to visit Percy in his apartment, the young man had announced that he’d suddenly felt like eating fettucine. Not just any Italian food, but specifically fettucine. And the amount the demigod was eating was rather staggering.

 

“Very hungry,” Percy admitted sheepishly. “I don’t know why, but I feel really hungry and for some reason, I really felt like fettucine alfredo to eat right now.”

 

Zeus nodded, but didn’t voice his thoughts. Instead, he reached over and grabbed Percy’s hand, squeezing it lightly. The younger male’s cheeks tinted slightly and he gave a rather shy smile to Zeus, but no words were exchanged. Percy continued to eat and Zeus sat there quietly, eying the other closely and hoping that the other wouldn’t suddenly feel like sleeping.

 

“Tomorrow, let’s walk through the park. It’s supposed to be great weather then!” Percy beamed at him.

 

“Okay,” Zeus nodded again, agreeing.

 

And if he tensed as Percy kept giving little yawns through the rest of the night, then there was no need to show it and alarm the other.

 

So tomorrow came soon enough, and the two of them were walking quietly and peacefully through the park. Percy seemed hesitant, but leaned in and grabbed Zeus’ hand. He didn’t say anything and neither did Percy.

 

“If I fall asleep again, will you be there when I wake up?”

 

Zeus was surprised by the sudden question, but as he looked down at the young man by his side (who was resolutely staring ahead), he took the question into consideration.

 

He’d been so hesitant, so reluctant to come near Percy. To be so concerned and to care for the other, especially through the initial crisis. But…

 

“I’ll be there.”

 

It was very hard to stay away and to make himself indifferent.

 

An hour later, Zeus and Percy sat on a bench, and within moments Percy’s head was on his shoulder and he was slumping against Zeus’ body as he fell asleep. This time, Zeus knew that it would be awhile before he awoke.

 

 

Sighing, heart heavy, Zeus took Percy into his arms and carried him home.

 

This time, Percy was asleep only for a week. A week too many, but at least it wasn’t months. Months that took so much from Percy’s life.

 

When Percy awoke, Zeus (as promised) was right there by his side. He had looked after him, taken care of his needs, and done what he could for Percy while he slept on. All the equipment needed for Percy was there, so that he didn’t have to go back to the hospital.

 

It had still been a very long week.

 

It was yet another chunk of time stolen from Percy, and Zeus wondered if there was going to be so many that Percy would end up wasting his life, unable to really live his life the way he wanted. Percy didn’t look concerned, but Zeus could tell that deep down, it really bothered Percy to be losing so much of his life to periods of sleep.

 

But the other wouldn’t say a thing about it, and just wanted to live what little time he had awake before he ended up falling asleep again.

 

He did begin to notice that Percy was increasingly becoming apathetic to everything. It was another thing he knew was a cause of the condition, and made him anxious.

 

“Percy,” he called out, running a hand through Percy’s dark hair.

 

Percy turned to look at him, eyes uncaring and slightly blank, before returning to gaze outside unemotionally. Zeus felt the urge to return to Olympus and go back to pretending nothing was happening, but he was already here now and in the thick of things. So instead, he reached over and gathered the young man into his arms and held him tightly.

 

“It’ll be okay, Percy. It will be.”

 

Zeus didn’t know if he really believed that.

 

He was certain that at least his belief faded just a little bit more, as one day he found Percy muttering under his breath and angrily rummaging through his drawers. And then he was breaking down into tears right in front of Zeus, and the god had to leave his post by the bedroom door and rush over.

 

“It’s just mood swings, Percy,” he muttered into his hair. “Just mood swings.”

 

 

He wished that was all there was, but the mood swings was just part of a bigger picture.

 

Percy was huddled against the couch’s side, curled into a ball. He was flipping through the channels, eyes staring but not really watching. He looked miserable.

 

“Are you alright, Percy?” Zeus asked quietly.

 

“I’m tired. I’m physically tired. I’m emotionally tired. I want it all to stop,” Percy closed his eyes.

 

“You’re depressed,” Zeus said gently. “You can’t help feeling like this. Why don’t we go out for ice cream?”

 

“I’m always something,” Percy said bitterly. “It’s always going to be something with me. Why are you here? Why are you still with me?”

 

Zeus sat next to him. He tried to find something to say, but nothing would come out. Nothing seemed right. Instead, Zeus just sat there. Soon enough Percy shuffled closer and burrowed into his side, and neither made any mention of the tears Percy was trying to hold back.

 

“I saw something this morning,” Percy admitted.

 

Zeus stilled and waited for Percy to continue.

 

“I was making breakfast and then I saw Luke,” he whispered. “He wasn’t saying anything. He was just sitting on my table, staring at me. He looked so sad.”

 

Zeus knew it was a hallucination. One third of KLS patients had those or delusions. But it didn’t mean that Percy wasn’t seeing it and that it wouldn’t affect him.

 

“I want to go back to sleep now. At least I wasn’t seeing anything then,” Percy murmured, sounding sleepy.

 

“Sleep then,” Zeus reluctantly encouraged.

 

 

And when Percy wouldn’t wake up in the morning, he knew it was going to be another episode.

 

“Thank you,” Poseidon told him tiredly. “I wish I could be here more often, but there’s so much for me to fix and finish. I’m tempted to throw it all at Triton so I could be here, if I didn’t know that boy would just let everything fall apart.”

 

Zeus gave his brother a small quirk of lips.

 

“Will he be out long this time, you think?” Poseidon continued carefully, watching his slumbering son with somber eyes.

 

“I don’t know,” Zeus said honestly. “His episodes are sporadic. I’m hoping it won’t be longer than a week, like last time.”

 

“Thank you for caring for once,” Poseidon said suddenly. “It means a lot.”

 

“Sometimes I wish I didn’t,” Zeus confessed. “It would be so much easier if I didn’t.”

 

“But you do,” Poseidon said knowingly. “And I thank you for it.”

 

When Poseidon left, Zeus went back to Percy’s bedside and stared down at the young man.

 

“You won’t be asleep for long this time,” he predicted. “We’ll go somewhere. I promise.”

 

And Percy woke up only three days later, to which Zeus took him skydiving. The bursts of laughter and the wide grins on his face was worth everything, and Zeus felt the anxious knot in his chest ease. This, he could do. He could make Percy happy. He could find ways to make him happy and everything will be alright.

 

“Is things really alright?” Hera would ask later that day.

 

“Why do you care?” Zeus grumbled irritably. “Wouldn’t you rather turn him into a tree or something?”

 

She rolled her eyes. “Fates no. I quite like him. At least he’s not some shrew and he respects and adores his mother. Much more than my ungrateful brats. If he’d been my son…” she said, somewhat wistful.

 

“He’s getting worse,” he admitted to his wife. “I don’t know what to do for him. And he’s losing so much of his life to this condition. How is he going to be able to experience everything life has to offer, if he can’t even be awake to experience them? What if he grows old and dies first, before he can really be happy?”

 

Hera idly fingered the bowl of apples on the table. “That wouldn’t be fair at all,” she agreed. “Our hero of heroes should have gotten the life he wanted.”

 

“He doesn’t have it,” Zeus glared down at the table.

 

“So give it to him,” Hera said firmly. “Even if it has to be in increments.”

 

She took one apple and replaced it with a familiar golden one.

 

“He refused us last time,” Zeus mused, observing the golden apple precariously.

 

“He did,” she acknowledged. “But things can change. Things have changed.”

 

 

She disappeared and Zeus was left with his thoughts and the glimmer of gold.

 

“You look like you have a headache,” Zeus noted, watching Percy as he massaged the temples of his head.

 

“That obvious?” Percy gave him a familiar tired smile. “Head’s been hurting. But that’s part of the whole thing, right? I’ll get used to it.”

 

There was a lot he had to get used to.

 

Zeus gave a small smile and sat beside Percy on his bed. “You haven’t had an episode for a while though,” Zeus encouraged. “Just keep living day by day. Enjoy yourself when you can.”

 

He saw Percy suddenly shifting, slight fidgets that made Zeus cock his head to the side a little.

 

“I’ve been having other issues lately too,” Percy came clean, looking bothered. “I, um…”

 

Zeus was completely caught off guard when Percy leaned in and kissed him. Soft lips that he’d dreamed out, the scent of wintergreen and strawberries…His senses were assaulted by all things Percy, and he pushed back slightly, moving his arms to hold Percy against him.

 

“Percy, you know this is your –”

 

“I know,” Percy said quietly. “I read up with what I would have to deal with, and even if this is me being hypersexual, I still want you.”

 

So Zeus kissed him again, intending to show Percy that he meant it when he said he’d always be there when Percy woke up.

 

And if afterwards, Zeus showed Percy the golden apple and asked the question without saying the words, it was just inevitable.

 

“What if, even after I eat it, I’m still stuck with this?” Percy asked softly, staring at it in Zeus’ hand.

 

“Then you’ll see me waiting for you when you wake up after every time, for all eternity,” he promised.

 

Percy gave a small smile and took the first bite.