Gods and Demigods Read the Queen's Champion

Chapter 7: Out in the Open

Everyone gathered in the throne room and resumed their places. Poseidon volunteered to read the next chapter.

Chapter 7: Out in the Open

Artemis arrived on Olympus after spending the afternoon comforting Thalia and a very distraught Chloe.

Phoebe looked down guiltily. She felt bad for her actions and wished she could take them back. She was ashamed that she had treated Percy so poorly despite direct orders from Lady Artemis. She was lucky that Percy chose to forgive her.

Artemis had forbidden Phoebe from leaving the infirmary tent. Artemis wasn't sure if Thalia would attack her again or not.

"To be honest, I would've attacked her again," Thalia said, bluntly. "I was really pissed off with her. I would have probably hurt her, really really badly if she had stepped foot outside of the tent."

"I don't blame you," Phoebe said with a sigh. "I was a real bitch."

"No you weren't, Phoebe," Percy reassured. "You have every right to not like me, and we've mended our relationship since then, so you did nothing wrong."

"Just because you forgive me, Percy, doesn't make what I did right," Phoebe argued. "You need to not be so forgiving all of the damn time."

"Sorry, that's not going to happen," Percy said, sheepishly.

Part of her couldn't blame Thalia.

"And she shouldn't have," Phoebe said.

The truth was that most of the hunters were angry with Phoebe.

Phoebe put her head in her hands. She knew that her other sisters were annoyed with her and her treatment towards Percy, but she was just so frustrated with men in general. She had felt betrayed, and she made unnecessary generalizations that made it hard for her to trust any man.

Most of them actually liked Percy and knew he didn't deserve what she had said to him.

Artemis rested her head on Percy's shoulder. She was happy that her sisters had learned to accept Percy as a respectable man. He made her happier than she had ever felt, even with Orion. Percy respected her and her feelings and her beliefs, and it made her happy like a room without a roof.

They knew what he had been through and appreciated the work he had done to bring them new sisters. A few of the youngest hunters were contemplating whether or not the hunt was the best place for them to be.

Phoebe allowed a tear to roll down her cheek. All of this drama was her fault, and she had no one to blame but herself.

They hated men but did not want to be apart of a group that treated the man who saved their lives so badly.

Phoebe couldn't help but cry a little, but was comforted by Percy and her fellow hunters. They understood how she felt and knew the only thing they could do was reassure her that things would be better.

Artemis approached the throne room on Olympus nervously. Her father had called a council meeting but Hermes didn't know what it was about. Artemis was a little worried about Hera. If she knew what had happened she might blow up in the meeting. That would open up a whole other bag of problems.

While Hera made Artemis a little uneasy, she truly feared what Poseidon would do if his son disappeared again and Artemis' hunters were to blame. Artemis steeled her nerves and pushed the throne room doors open.

"I wouldn't have blamed you or your hunters," Poseidon reassured. "It would be hard, but I would understand that Percy had chosen his own path and made his own decisions. I wouldn't be happy, but I wouldn't necessarily be mad."