Chapter 5

"Hello once again, sisters." Perseus spoke in a calm, even tone. But his hardened volcanic rock black eyes betrayed his voice. His eyes gleamed with tears, emotions swirled like an endless vortex of power. Flickering with happiness, sadness, and love as he gazed at his sisters. A huge lump was stuck in Perseus' throat as he swallowed thickly. The expression displayed across the Hesperides faces had not changed since he first came.

Immediately he panicked, fear swarmed him. Smothering him in an endless bog. The happy look on his face changed to a scared expression. Making him look like an innocent little boy, scared of what was to come next. Instead of the thousand year old man who had been exiled from his home. His shorter stature slumped forwards, his head dropped slightly.

Perseus' black eyes looked like fragile glass, threatening to break at any moment, the never charging eyes of his sisters were scaring him immensely, also intense pain exploded in his heart. His eyes flickered to the Hesperide that looked the youngest, just a few inches shorter than the rest of the nymphs of sunset.

"Hesperia." He whispered quietly, the lump in his throat seemed to be swelling as he struggled to breath, his neck was burning with intense fire. Suddenly the emotionless façade of the youngest Hesperide changed very quickly. Her eyes filling with tears, shining with a new light. As if the light of happiness in her eyes had been missing for millenia.

Hesperia squealed loudly in happiness, and the lump in his throat dissolved quickly. Lunging forward, Hesperia wrapped her arms tightly around Perseus' neck. Her feet dangling just a few inches off the ground. Despite her smaller height, she was almost as tall as Perseus. Who was only around 5' 3" in height. Short for a man's height, but they were all around that height. Her head was placed into the crook of the son of Atlas' neck, tears dripped onto his neck as Perseus smiled after returning the sudden hug with just as much enthusiasm as his younger sister.

Perseus spun around quickly, his smile stretching wider than before as he could hear and feel Hesperia' giggles across his neck. The hug was tight, immense strength from both of them as they squeezed each other as tightly as possible. It seemed to be some unspoken challenge.

Until finally the youngest Hesperide started to wheeze loudly. "Percy, I can't breath." She gasped out. Perseus' smile never faltered from his face as he set down the slightly blue faced Hesperia gently. As she drew ragged breaths, she still smiled at Perseus. Her pearly white teeth shining.

Hesperia leaned up on her toes and planted a childish kiss onto his left cheek. "It has been a while big brother." She said with a dazzling smile, the tears were still in her eyes, but she seemed the happiest she had been in many years. Perseus laughed as tears of happiness rolled down his cheeks, before he pulled Hesperia into a hug.

Her face pressed deep into his chest. Hesperia could not describe how happy she was to see her brother again. Her nose inhaled his intoxicating scent. She could smell the scent of the ocean on him. Out of all the Hesperides, Perseus was the only one who had gotten the smell of their mother.

The youngest Hesperide could feel the eyes of the other's on them. She knew that the others were only waiting for their little reunion to be done so they could reunite with their dear missed brother. All of them, a year later, even many years later cried about missing him. They loved him deeply, one of the only men that they could all care for. Even though he was their brother.

All four of the Hesperides has thought he was dead, his immortality had been taken away at the hands of their father, Atlas and their sister Zoë, whom all of them had been furious with. All of them, trying and almost always failing to get her cast out of the garden. They all berated her, yelling and scorning at her. Giving her looks of immense, indescribable hatred that could not be expressed without violence.

But how had he regained immortality?

Finally she started sobbing into her older brother's chest. The warmth and comfort she got when in her brothers arms was unable to be described. Perseus rubbed her back, tracing small circles on his sisters back. He placed his chin softly onto the raven black hair of his sister.

After a few minutes Hesperia pulled back from the embrace of her brother, and smiled at him with a watery smile, tears stains on her cheeks. Her brother gently cupped her face in his hands, using his fingers to softly wipe away her tears.

"There is no need to cry sister. I am here for you, for now." He said, causing Hesperia to furrow her eyebrows in confusion. Their other sisters eyebrows furrowed as well. As they all seemed to to hear the hidden message he conveyed in his words.

She snapped backwards from him, wrenching his hands free from her cheeks, looking at him with anger and fury, but also sadness. "What do you mean, by 'for now?'" She growled angrily. Her face red from anger, her eyes had once more welled up with tears. Percy's eyes widened as he realized what he had said.

"It is nothing of importance, I mean that I will have to leave as I am forbidden from staying in the garden for long. But I will visit you all as much as I can." He said with a small smile. Hesperia and the other two younger Hesperides smiled ad nodded their heads in acceptance to the answer in which Perseus replied with. All except the oldest of the Hesperides, who narrowed her eyes almost to slits as she stared at the only son of Atlas and Pleione.

Perseus turned his head to his eldest sister, and paled slightly at the look he was receiving from her as well as the look in her eyes. The lie he spoke did not easily fool Aegle as he had hoped. He should have known, the fates had always hated him. But he had never figured out why.

His eyes turned away from Aegle before she could break through his thin wall of defense against his sisters, already weakened as it was from Hesperia' crying. He nervously ran a hand through his midnight black hair, taking a deep breath to keep the tears at bay, he was slammed into another hug from one of his other sisters.

"Arethusa." He murmured quietly as the grip on him tightened at the sound of her name. Unlike Hesperia, Arethusa did not cry in Perseus' arms, she believed she was stronger than that. But Perseus thought he could hear the slight sniffles that were muffled into his chest.

Her head was buried into his neck, he could feel the smile stretched across her face on his neck. "I love you, Arethusa." He whispered in her dark, raven black hair.

Arethusa sniffled one more time before pulling back from Percy's embrace. She placed her hand on his cheek and smiled widely, her red outlined eyes seemed to smile as well from the huge smile from Arethusa.

"I love you too, my sweet and innocent big brother." She said in a cute small tone of voice. Percy smiled brightly at her, as she planted a kiss on each of his cheeks. She leaned up to his ear.

"I am not as gullible as you think brother. You will tell me what you meant." She growled angrily into his ear, only so Percy could hear her. Percy instantly felt electricity spark up his spine as he shivered slightly from her tone.

Arethusa pulled back and smiled at the slightly afraid face Percy was making after her words.

Even before Arethusa could step back from Percy he was slammed into another hug. This one so powerful it sent him stumbling backwards at the strength behind the hug.

His arms wrapped tightly around the small woman's frame that had enveloped him in the huge hug. Her arms wrapped tightly around his neck, Perseus smiled.

"Hello my dear, little sister, Erytheia. " He said smirking smugly. Erytheia pulled away scowling. She narrowed her dark obsidian eyes at Percy, crossed her copper tan arms across her chest and glared at him.

"You are only older than me by a few years." She growled at him. Percy raised his hands in surrender, but he was still smiling. His dark eyes twinkling with mischievousness. The playful look in his sisters eyes made him happy and giddy. It felt as if Percy had never been banished and had never left the garden and they had been a family for the last millenia like it should have been.

The mirth and hollow, shattered looks in his dark onyx black eyes was already starting to vanish. His fragile looking eyes that had been there for the last few thousand years he had been gone from the garden were already replaced.

"I know that sis, but it still makes me older." Percy said cheekily. Erytheia glared at him in mock anger as well as huffing loudly, before turning her head away from him. All of them looked so alike the five of them could have been quintuplets.

Percy turned as he felt a presence to the side of him away from the three sisters he had already greeted. As soon as he turned to look at the person beside him, a resonating slap echoed throughout the whole garden.

Percy looked wide eyed, along with the three sisters he had greeted. All of there eyes were wide as Percy stumbled back, his left hand going up to his cheek and touching the red blotch that was now across his left cheek.

"Aegle." He swallowed. Slightly wincing at the stinging sensation upon his face. Aegle was the oldest of the Hesperides and the only one that was older than Percy.

Percy could see the anger she was shaking with. But Percy was very good at reading other people's emotions. Especially his families emotions. Aegle looked so broken and upset, but she had her guard up. Trying to keep the fact of how broken she was after Percy had been banished from the garden.

Her eyes were black flames as she balled a fist and cocked backwards and swung as powerful as she could muster. And with her father, Atlas. That was a lot of strength. Quickly, Percy caught her fist, stopping her in her tracks.

Percy pulled her roughly forward. Forcing Aegle into his arms as he enveloped her in a tight hug. "I love you too." He said. After a few moments of hesitation, as if she was afraid Percy would vanish from her grasp.

"I love you." She mumbled into his chest. Hoping he would not hear her say those words. She could sense Percy was smiling, so she guesses he had heard it. But he chose to stay quiet. Lucky for him!

"From the slap, it seems you also share some of Zoë' traits from father." He teased. Immediately, all four of his sisters eyes flared in immense sharp flares of raw fury, their obsidian colored eyes bursting into flames, glowing like the dark coals of a fire.

"I am nothing like that," She snarled venomously. "scullion." She added as an afterthought.

Percy's eyes widened, shocked his sisters will still mad from what Zoë did millenia ago. He would have thought they had forgiven her by now.

"You guys are still angry at her?" He said with wide eyes. The four remaining Hesperides stare at Percy incredulously.

"Why would we not be?" Hesperia roared. Percy stepped backwards, clearly taken aback by the immense amount of hate and venom in his sisters voice.

"She got you banished." Arethusa snapped. Clearly upset Percy did not seem as angry or sad at the actions Zoë had taken in banishing Percy from their home.

"For her own selfish reasons, her own brother. Our brother." Erytheia growled.

"She took our brother away, by her own reasons, she ruined our lives. Taking away a major piece of us when you were banished." Aegle screamed.

"We loved you, and she took you away." All four Hesperides screamed in unison.

Percy eyes widened in realization. His head drooped.

"You should learn to forgive, life is not pleasant spending your time hating someone or being bitter over what happened in the past, the past is over with. The future is the only thing to look forward to. Move past the bad things that have happened in your life and you will live life better."

The four Hesperides still looked very angry, but they seemed to cool down slightly.

"I have one question," Percy said, causing the Hesperides eyebrows to shoot up in unison. Percy had to stifle a laugh, trying to keep his tone serious. "Is father still trapped under his prison of the sky?" He asked with an eyebrow raised.

Hesperia chuckled softly at the face Percy was making, while Aegle shook her head.

"No. He has escaped." Percy's copper skin paled slightly at her words.

Suddenly, Percy changed the topic quickly. Clapping his hands together and rubbing them for emphasis. "This little family reunion has been great and all, but I need to see my little dragon." Percy said smiling.

The four Hesperides rolled their eyes at Percy's enthusiasm to saying hello to Ladon. "You never change, little brother." Aegle teased. Causing Percy to scowl slightly. "I swear you love Ladon more than you love us at times." Percy smirked a little and gave all of them an innocent look, all four of his sisters chuckled softly at their brother.

"You better not leave before saying goodbye." Hesperia and Erytheia said quietly, a threat in the undertone of their voices. Before the two vanished in a slight gust of wind, only a soft singing from the two as they vanished.

As soon as Hesperia and Erytheia vanished from sight, Aegle and Arethusa turned to Percy with narrowed eyes. Percy paled and went to turn, but before he could move, Aegle grabbed his ear and yanked hard downwards.

Percy yelped in protest as he was forced to his knees. "Arethusa, help me." He pleaded. But his younger sister just stared at him, trying to force questions out of him with her eyes.

Percy gulped and tried to swallow the lump in his throat. "What did you mean?" Aegle growled in a low whisper. Percy turned to Arethusa, his black eyes pleading with her.

"Help me." He mouthed. Aegle twisted further, Percy gave another yelp of protest.

"I can see you, idiot." Aegle growled. Arethusa grabbed him by the cheeks and forced Percy to look her in the eyes.

"What did you mean?" She asked in a calm voice.

Percy took in a deep breath. "I- I- I..." Percy began.

Line Break

Percy slowly approached Ladon. Over his shoulder, was a dead sheep, dripping slightly with crimson red blood. The one hundred headed dragon was tightly coiled around the tree of the golden apples. The apples of immortality. He slowed down a bit, as if sensing danger. He cautiously took his next step.

As soon as his foot connected to the ground, Ladon shook awake. His hundred heads staring directly at Percy, a look of hunger in his two hundred yellow eyes.

"Hello, Ladon. Do you remember me? Old pal." He asked a little warily. Fifty of his dragon heads were hissing and looking at Percy with a look of longing in their bright topaz colored eyes.

The other fifty heads were staring at Percy warily, as if Percy was trying to steal a golden apple. They seemed to recognize Percy as a threat, as if he had tried to steal a golden apple before and made an enemy of Ladon.

Finally the heads caught notice of the dead sheep that was over Percy's shoulder. "Yes, my little dragon." Percy murmured, finally excited. "I used to feed you by hand, I see you still like sheep." Percy said in a soothing voice, the fifty heads that at once were looking at Percy warily were now looking at him in a familial recognition.

Percy with his immense strength, grabbed one of the legs of the sheep over his back, he turned and with his might threw the dead sheep straight for his middle heads.

Ladon started to attack the dead sheep viciously, the one hundred heads all fighting over the one sheep.

Percy smiled brightly, before walking closer to the dragon without any sense of fear or uneasiness. He reached out and affectionately stroked one of the heads not attacking the dead sheep.

The dragon let out of puff of smoke through his nose and growled slightly, the dragon showing it's way of being pleased. Percy continued for a few minutes. "This was not what I came here for." He said quietly to the dragon, as if afraid his sister would overhear.

"This will only cause them more sadness and heartbreak in the future. And it will all be my fault. They will be sad all over again. And with father gone, it is starting the beginning of the end."

The dragon growled slightly again, letting Percy know he was pleased.

"Aegle, Erytheia, Arethusa, Hesperia and even Zoë will be devastated by the events and the future that will transpire. This will cause me to hate myself. I came to see if my father was still under the sky. Hopefully, avoiding the meeting with my sisters."

"It has begun."