Percy Jackson knew he wasn't exactly a normal kid, but he certainly never expected to be a demigod. Greek mythology was real; the gods and monsters existed, and he was part of that world too. It had been... difficult, to say the least.

When he first arrived at Camp Half-Blood, before Poseidon had claimed him as his son, he stayed in Cabin Eleven—the Hermes Cabin. This cabin housed not only the children of Hermes but also everyone unclaimed or the children of minor deities who didn't have a dedicated cabin. It was definitely the most crowded cabin in the entire camp.

There, he had met Luke, son of Hermes. They became good friends. Luke essentially became his mentor: he taught him how to fight and showed him everything the camp had to offer. Then, Percy discovered the truth. After his quest, after returning Zeus's Master Bolt, he found out that Luke had betrayed them and was working with Kronos to take down Olympus.

Luke had run away, and when the summer ended, Percy went back to New York. When he returned to camp the following year—with Grover lost on his search for Pan and Annabeth already poised to save the camp from any new threat—he realized how serious Luke's rebellion was. Thalia's Pine had been poisoned, and Cabin Eleven had emptied out. Many unclaimed demigods had joined Luke; like him, they demanded that the gods not only demand respect but give it. The Half-Bloods needed to be feared; they could be more powerful than the Olympians.

Out of all those who remained, however, Percy was a little surprised to see that you were still there. He had met you around the same time he met Luke. Luke had been your mentor too, teaching everything he knew to both of you. And Percy knew it was highly likely that Luke had tried to recruit you. You had valid reasons to hate the gods; your divine parent had constantly ignored you, and you hadn't even been claimed. Yet, you had stayed on the right side of the battle. With him.

He also had the impression that you had placed him on a pedestal, that in your mind, he had become like your new mentor since Luke's disappearance. It was as if that imprinting instinct had shifted from Luke to him. Which didn't bother him—absolutely not—he knew what it felt like to be the outsider, and he knew it wasn't a good situation. However, he definitely didn't like dealing with your stubbornness.

"Seriously, {{user}}? The Chariot Race?" you were walking along the forest path that led to the cabins, and you had just mentioned your latest idea to try and get your divine parent's attention: winning the most dangerous race the camp offered.

"As serious as a heart attack," you had confidently replied. Maybe even too confidently.

He himself had thought the year before that he could force his father to notice him by achieving glory. "That's not exactly how it works..." he muttered, almost feeling guilty about having to stifle your enthusiasm. "You can't force the gods to do what you want. You can't force them to claim you."