Yup the exact labyrinth that father of Icarus made.

Hermes: Well crud Daedalus you really had to build that Labyrinth to expand once you died? Ugh…Athena’s power should’ve been holding it back from swallowing the world…

Hermes: Well thank god-…me that Theseus asked that you’d do that…despite being Poseidon’s son…

I think that one of my favorite parts of studying the Iliad and the Trojan war is how incredible the world building is. The fact that you can research any of the characters and find their life prior to and (in some cases) after the Trojan War, their families and typically fathers which themselves form parts of different epics (Telamon, Peleus and Laertes all being Argonauts who sailed with Jason for the golden fleece) (Depending on the version Herakles, Orpheus, Theseus and Atalanta could’ve also been there with them), and just how much content there is about each figure in the war that you wouldn’t know just by reading the Iliad.

Why was Paris chosen by the gods to pick which goddess was the most beautiful? He proved to the gods on a previous ocassion in a bull competition he hosted which Ares won that he was a fair and honest judge (I guess he lost that fairness in judgement by the time the goddesses appeared before him)

How did Achilles become such an almost undefeatable warrior? He was the son of an Argonaut and a sea-nymph raised by Hera whom both Poseidon and Zeus wanted to bed, and was trained by mighty Chiron who taught heroes like Orpheus and Herakles.

Why are the walls of Troy “impenetrable”? They were built by Apollo and Poseidon disguised as humans due to a punishment from Zeus.

And this is all known with thousands of lines of the Trojan War’s story being lost to time. Imagine if we had more of the Nostoi or Cypria or Little Iliad, if we still had plays like “Myrmidons” or had a better historical understanding of Mycenaean Greece.

And still, with all this content, the Trojan War is just a section of the greater greek myths. The mythologized greek world existed far before Troy, and it continued to push forward far after.

Minotaur

In Greek mythology, the Minotaur was a monster with the body of a man and the head and tail of a bull. The Minotaur was the offspring of the Cretan Queen Pasiphae and a majestic bull. Due to the Minotaur's monstrous form, King Minos ordered the craftsman, Daedalus, and his son, Icarus, to build a huge maze known as the Labyrinth to house the beast. The Minotaur remained in the Labyrinth receiving annual offerings of youths and maidens to eat. He was eventually killed by the Athenian hero Theseus.

The word Minotaur is a compound word consisting of the ancient Greek name "Μίνως" or "Minos" and the noun "ταύρος" or "bull." Thus, the word Minotaur comes to mean "bull of Minos." While, the Minotaur's birth name, Asterion, in ancient Greek "ἀστέριον" means "starry one" which suggests an association with the bull constellation: Taurus.

Minos & The Bull from the Sea

In Greek myth, Minos was one of the three sons from the union of Europa and Zeus; when Zeus was took the form of a bull. Europa's husband was the King of Crete, Asterion, who looked over the boys as if they were his own. When Aseterion died, it was unclear which of the three sons should ascend to power. The three sons were Minos, Sarpedon, and Rhadamanthus. It was Minos, whose name in Cretan actually means king, who was fated to be king of Crete even though Minos' ascension to power was a difficult journey because he first had to see off his sibling rivals. Minos, however, had one advantage that his brothers did not. He claimed that he had the support and authority from the gods to rule, and he boasted that he could prove it by praying for whatever he wanted and the gods would make it so. Thus, one day while sacrificing to Poseidon, he prayed that a bull would appear from the depths of the sea. Minos vowed to heaven that he would sacrifice the bull to Poseidon once it appeared. Poseidon, then, produced a magnificent bull from the sea; thus, Minos' claim for power was validated for no one dared to defy the favor of the gods, let alone the mighty Poseidon who ruled over all of the seas. As a result of winning the throne, Minos banished his brothers from Crete. The three brothers would be re-united in afterlife, for after they died they were made judges in the Underworld. It was their task to judge the dead in order to assign where their placement was in the Underworld based upon the merits of their life.

However, King Minos did not fulfill his vow to Poseidon; he kept the majestic Cretan bull for himself and sacrificed a different one to the god. Angered by King Minos' disrespect, Poseidon plotted to punish him for his arrogance and hubris. In accordance to some versions of the myth, it is Poseidon who punishes Minos by instilling a passion within the king's wife, Pasiphae, for the bull that came from the sea. However, according to the Roman author Hyginus, it is Venus (Aphrodite) who curses Pasiphae, because the Queen had not shown proper piety to the goddess for some time. The goddess punished her by sending a salacious passion for the majestic bull from the sea. Another version tells how Poseidon, angered by Minos, went to Aphrodite for her help in the matter and she cursed Pasiphae as a favor to Poseidon.

Continue reading...

I’ve been thinking about whether or not to cut out most of the sexual assault from my personal retellings and reimagining a of Greek myths and I think I’ve decided that I will cut out most of it but not all of it.

My reason behind this is that there are characters in Greek myth that you’re generally meant to root for. I think cutting all the patriarchy out and ignoring the problematic parts entirely for retellings meant for teens and adults gives a false impression that the ancient Greeks and Romans were cool and progressive actually. But, no. They were patriarchal societies.

At the same time though, if a character is a rapist, generally modern audiences will not like them. Understandably so. But if they’re meant to be the main character and it’s important that they succeed or if they’re meant to be a good man brought down, you see the writers dilemma when it comes to using mythology in their stories.

So what do I do? My personal approach is to make it complicated. Every writer will have their own approach though and I’m not gonna call any of them wrong outright. Turning the Olympian gods and their demogod children into cheaters is an understandable leap to make. And ancient authors did this too. In some versions of the abduction of Helen by Theseus he doesn’t touch her because she’s not of legal marrying age yet, but in other versions he straight up rapes a 14 year old.

Both of these versions make him look like an awful person but one of them at least makes him look like he has at least a skeleton of some morals. I imagine that many in Ancient Greece and Rome were also uncomfortable with certain aspects of their stories. Like how Pindar was obviously uncomfortable with Tantalus cooking up his son and instead was like no guys Poseidon just fell in love with him and swept him off to Olympus and that started a rumor that he was killed.

So yeah I’m working on a long line of guys going no actually that’s where I draw the line I don’t like that it’s actually this instead. And you may disagree where I or other people draw those lines.

Well. Make your own retelling then. Actually. Do it. The world can’t have too many in my opinion.

Theseus and women

Theseus is one of the most hated characters in Greek mythology on the internet and l wanted defend him because l love him and he's clearly, VERY clearly misunderstood. Now, by misunderstood l don't mean, "Oh, his father wasn't around so he was traumatized," l mean he is always characterized as this misogynist egoist man who everybody loves just because he's a MAN™, which isn't true at all. I'm not going to explain why l love him directly in this post but I'm just going to explain why people misinterpret his relationship with women, because other than his "misstreatment" of women, he's literally just a guy.

Theseus and Amphitrite

Like, look at him! He's just a boy! Anyways, let's start with the obvious reason he gets hate.

Ariadne

We all know the story of him leaving her behind and then Dionysus finds her yada yada. We don't know why he does this, some people say that he's just a jerk and did this dick move because he wanted to but l beg to differ. Many modern-day writers tried to explain this abandonment, though most of them just painted Theseus as a jerk like leaving her because she was annoying or like what l said, just because he's a dick. I was researching how authors reasoned him for his abandonment and guess what THERE ARE SOURCES ARE EXPLAINING HIS ACTION, 1) She was killed by Artemis, this is not a well-known one but it is an explanation of him leaving Ariadne behind, Ariadne was killed by Artemis while she was giving birth to his sons, l couldn't find a reason on why she did it but this is a reason, 2) Dionysus demanded him to leave her because he wanted her, some sources say this and even say that the reason Theseus forgot to change his sails was that he was sad about leaving Ariadne behind, now, does this mean he's an angel, no because some sources do say 3) Theseus willingly leaving her behind, however, they all give a different explanation. A reason l like comes from the book "The king must die" where Ariadne is participating in a human sacrificial ritual and Theseus doesn't like that because it reminds him of Medea or something. I don't know l just read it while researching l didn't read the book but l like it, Ariadne being all crazy and that because it would explain why she's great with Dionysus and her parents are both very cold people, one being a goddess and one being... Minos. I heard there are versions where Athena tells him to leave her but l couldn't find them so that could have been added very later. Now, what version do l see as the truth? None. I like the version my brother suggested, which is "He forgot,". HE FORGOT, HES FORGETFUL, AND HE ALSO FORGETS TO CHANGE THE SAILS. I like it so much because HES LITERALLY JUST A GUY. But, in all seriousness, you can dislike Theseus for leaving Ariadne behind since there are sources that say he left her willingly but check the other versions too.

Theseus, Athena, Dionysus, and Ariadne.

Now that that's out of the way, let's see any other reason Theseus gets hate that involves yet another woman! Which is...

Helen

There is a myth that Helen is kidnapped by Theseus... That's it. So, for context (even though everyone knows it already) Theseus and his "best bud" (wink, wink) Pirithous are both demigods, Theseus being Poseidon's son and Pirithous Zeus's. Since they both have divine blood, they conclude that they will marry one of Zeus's daughters, Theseus picks Helen and Pirithous picks Persephone (like an idiot). They abduct Helen, yada yada, try to abduct Persephone but fail miserably, yada yada. And people dislike him because... he kidnapped Helen, yeah, okay, let's break this down. Kidnapping women was a very well-known thing in ancient Greece, was it acknowledged it was bad? Yes. But was it still there? Also yes. But this isn't about lust, Theseus kidnaps Helen because she is Zeus's daughter and he thinks he deserves at least a demi-god because he is one too. Can this be considered hubris? Yes, it can, and in my opinion, it is. Theseus has done very heroic stuff and wants something in return, he thinks that a mortal wife is too little for him so he picks what he thinks is the best thing for him, a wife whose father is Zeus. He doesn't do this as an act of lust, just hubris, and maybe for reputation, since Helen is the most beautiful woman, having the most beautiful woman as a wife is a thing to be proud of. But that doesn't mean Theseus gets what he wants immediately, because Helen is young, very young. He even acknowledges that as an Athenian, which is okay to marry a 14-year-old girl, but Helen is younger. Sources change her age from 9 to 12, but the point is, she's too young. So, Theseus decides he'll wait and gives her to his mother in the meantime. When he gets rescued by Heracles, he faces consequences, which is learning his mother is now a slave to Castor and Pollux. This is what l like about him too, he's a king, a hero, yet faces consequences more than anyone. Even if he doesn't, when he does bad things to another, bad things happen to him later, Karma bites him in the ass, and in my opinion making a character face consequences is the best way to make them feel human and relatable. Theseus isn't the only one, every mortal in Greek mythology are human-like character to me because they face consequences! Heracles, Achilles, Agamemnon, Odysseus, Bellerophon, and many more make bad choices, face the consequences, and acknowledge them! Theseus kidnapping Helen is a bad thing, yes, but he didn't even touch her because she was a child and his mother got taken away in the end.

Theseus taking away Helen

So yeah, this is it. I was going to go into more detail about his relationship with women since there are women he helps and respects but this is all for now. If l made any mistakes, please let me know without sounding rude, l can take constructive criticism. Anyways, have a good day!

(@coloricioso was the one who asked me to explain my Theseus obsession, so here it is!)

Okay can you tell me facts about Poseidon wife Amphitrite

"AMPHITRITE, the consort of Poseidon, was generally thought to have been a daughter of Nereus (although an alternative tradition presented her as a daughter of Okeanos, and it is stated in one source that she was the mother of the Nereids) [Nereid, Hes. Theog. 243; Okeanid, Apollod. 1.2.2, 1.4.5; consort of Poseidon, ibid. 931–4, Pi. Ol. 6.104–5, Bacch. 17.109–11; mother of Nereids, Mel. adesp. 21]. She was a reluctant bride as was commonly the case with the Nereids, who preferred to live a carefree life as virgins in the company of their parents and many sisters. According to one account, Poseidon abducted her from the island of Naxos after she had emerged from the sea to dance on the shore with her sisters [Schol. Od. 3.91]; or else she fled from him when he tried to court her, and hid herself in the depths of the Ocean near Atlas (i.e. in the far west). In the latter case, Poseidon sent many envoys in search of her, including his special beast the dolphin, who discovered her in the outer Ocean and carried her to Poseidon on its back (or at least let him know where she was hiding). The god was so grateful that he declared the dolphin sacred and placed an image of it among the stars (as the northern constellation Delphinus) [Hides "near Atlas" and after being won over by the dolphin agrees to mary Poseidon, Eratosth. Catast. 31, Hyg. Astr. 2.17; Hides in the Halls of Okeanos and the Dolphin reveals her location to Poseidon who carries her off against her will, Oppian. Halieutica 1. 38]. After finally becoming the wife of Poseidon, Amphitrite lived at his side in his golden palace beneath the sea, enjoying high honour as the queen of the seas. Although she is depicted quite frequently in works of art as a goddess of noble aspect, often enthroned beside her husband, she rarely appears in mythical tales. According to a fairly ancient legend, she offered a gracious reception to Theseus (here regarded as a son of Poseidon) when he threw himself off a ship to prove to Minos that he was a son of the god of the sea [she presents him with a purple robe and a wreath or crown that she had received from Aphrodite as a wedding gift, an alternative version of the origin of Ariadne's crown, Bacchylides. F. 17, Paus. 1.17.3; Hyg. Astr. 2.5]; and a story of later origin claimed that she caused Skylla to be turned into a monster after discovering that her husband had embarked on a love affair with her [Servius ad Aeneid 3.420; Tzetzes ad Lycophron 45]. Poseidon and Amphitrite are credited with only a single child in the Theogony, the sea-god Triton, ‘who holds the depths of the sea and lives with his mother and the lord his father, a fearsome god’ [Hes. Theog. 930–3]. Apollodorus adds two daughters, Benthesikyme (Wave of the Deep) and Rhode, the nymph or personification of the island of Rhodes [Apollod. 3.15.4 and 1.4.5 respectively]." – Routledge Handbook of Greek Mythology 7th Edition, Robin Hard.

She also attends the birth of Apollo along with other goddesses [Homeric Hymn 3 to Delian Apollo, 89–102], demands the sacrifice of a lesbian maiden [Plutarch. Septem Sapientum Convivium 163b; De sollertia animalium 36], transforms the Alkyonides into halcyons when they leap off Kanastraion, the peak of Pellene [Suidas s.v. Alkyonides], and transforms Skylla (here the daughter of Nisos, though confused with the monster of the same name) into a Ciris bird (perhaps an Egret) [Appendix Vergiliana. Ciris 478].

Lastly, she's most frequently attested as a metonym or personification of the sea [eg. Eurip. Cycl. 702; Ov. Met. 1.14], and is hailed as mother and/or nurse of dolphins, fish, seals and other sea creatures [eg. Aelian On Animals 12.45; Homer Od. 4.404, 5.422, 12.97].

One thing I used to find kind of funny as a kid just getting into Greek mythology was how Kronos and Rhea had three sons and three daughters... and yet, only two of them got married, rather than everyone pairing up in three divine brother/sister pairs.

I remember I would do little thought experiments to figure out how things might have worked out in an alternate version for the married pairs that could have formed in addition to Zeus/Hera after Kronos' and the Titans' defeat and reached these conclusions about them:

Poseidon/Demeter: this one is kiiiind of canon already, because there is a myth where they have children together, but... Poseidon doesn't exactly care about Demeter's consent there, let's leave it at that. But for the sake of argument, let's just say this wouldn't happen in this AU, and just look at their roles and personality. To oversimplify things a lot, Poseidon is the sea and Demeter is the earth. The sea is often called "barren" in Ancient Greek poetry, while the earth is ideally fertile and generous. These things already make for a potentially fun "uniting the opposites to reach equilibrium" theme. Also, Poseidon is known for causing earthquakes in his wrath as well as punishing mortals who offend him (the Minotaur was born when Minos wouldn't sacrifice his best bull to him so he made Minos' wife go mad...), while Demeter created winter when Persephone got abducted by Hades (creating considerable trouble for the mortals and even the gods themselves) and keeps recreating it whenever her daughter leaves for the Underworld again, which makes me think they're both very emotional and strong-willed. A relationship between them could be as explosive as the one between Zeus and Hera, and while that wouldn't be very healthy, probably, it could be an interesting dynamic!

Hades/Hestia: Hades is the god of the Underworld: people who have done terrible things are punished horribly for eternity in his gloomy realm, he doesn't take people going against him lightly (like when Theseus and Pirithoos tried to kidnap Persephone...), and he usually doesn't allow anyone to come back to the world of the living (though there are a couple of attempted exceptions). However, this doesn't mean he's evil or mindlessly cruel or sadistic, just strict to the point of being ruthless. Hestia is associated with fire, but instead of being a wild, destructive force, she's the patron of hearth and home. They have a similarly "not nearly as bad as they could be considering common views on their domains." And I can also see both of them caring a lot about boundaries and rules, all things considered. But Hestia could have a softness about her that Hades lacks. And Hades, perhaps, could act as a sort of grim protector for her. I also see them both as the quiet, reserved type, personally, which could make them get along pretty great, bonding through the messes of their chaotic family.

Poseidon/Hestia: Water and fire, anyone? It could be a case of "opposites attract" both in terms of elements and personalities... even if in very different ways. Ironically, Hestia, the fire goddess, could calm down Poseidon's wrath and mellow him out, while Poseidon, the sea god, could bring excitement and wildness in Hestia's life.

Hades/Demeter: ... this one always felt so weird to even consider lmao. But they both seem like gods who prefer going off to do their own thing away from the other Olympians, on some level. Plus, they're both connected to earth: Hades is the mysteries hidden under it, while Demeter is the prosperity and beauty that grows out of it. They would inevitably be a little like a variation of Hades/Persephone, I think, but the lack of an age gap would also influence their dynamic and make it a bit different. It wouldn't bea mature man and a young, lively maiden, but two siblings (possibly very close in age) growing together on more or less equal footing. I like to imagine them both as rather indipendent people, but I always end up giving a motherly streak to Demeter and an insecure/withdrawn one to Hades (likely due to my vision of the myth of the abduction of Persephone, I admit) and so I feel that would make for some sweet hurt/comfort.

Now, I'll say that, while I'm a serial multishipper, I don't actually ship these pairings. They're just fun to think about in a "what if" context for this specific AU, but talking more in general, Hades/Persephone is one of my main mythology ships, Poseidon/Demeter has all that canon history I talked about which squicks me out a bit, and I usually see Hestia as someone on the aroace spectrum. Although... that last one doesn't always stop me from shipping her, as sometimes I like to imagine her capable of romantic attraction, so only ace without the aro part.

Actually, I really like shipping her with Hermes, as either a onesided "he has a major crush on her but she's too aromantic to even notice" pairing or something requited depending on the specific types of shenanigans I feel like imagining for them. A lot of it is another "opposites" and "balancing each other out" thing: Hermes is a god of travellers, merchants, and thieves (who presumably also move around quite a bit, lol) as well as one who's able to cross boundaries (he also has a function as a psychopomp, travellling from the world of the living to the Underworld) so I associate him with open spaces and the freedom of going wherever you want to do whatever you want, while Hestia, as I've already said, is home and hearth, so in a way she represents closed, secluded spaces that are also safe and intimate. But there's also the way I see the age difference/generation gap between them. I usually think of Hermes as a sassy, reckless, relatively young god, while I see Hestia as a warm and maternal woman who definitely has a few thousand years on him.

I think Hermes would be attracted to her stability, kindness, and in general just how level-headed and reliable she can be without ever getting boring. (She's still a fire goodess after all, so I do think she has a more "fiery" side, determined and sharp, under the softness. ;)) While Hestia would enjoy (platonically or not) his youthful daring as well as his clever mind, resourcefulness and wit.

Basically, in my head he'd love to be her boytoy and she, his aunt, would occasionally not mind being his mommy, lmao.

This was a really fun post and I love all of the different dynamics that you sent up! They're all intriguing in their own ways but I really like the way you described the potential of Hades and Hestia in particular.

Thanks for sharing your musings with us!

While we're on the subject of Greek Monsters being Victims

I honestly feel pretty bad for the Minotaur.

First some backstory; A prince named Minos was competing with his brother from the throne of their island, Crete, and decided the best way to get a one up on his brother was to show the gods favored him. So he prayed to Poseidon for his favor and Poseidon decided, "Yeah, sure", and gifted Minos a pure white bull as a sign of favor.

(A side note, historically ancient Crete had a huge thing for Bulls, most of their surviving culture heavily featured bovine sigils which might explain how this story came to be and so on).

The Cretans, who loved Bulls, of course recognized what this meant and Minos ascended to the throne. Of course, here is where the classic mortal arrogance steps on divine pride comes in. See, Minos was supposed to sacrifice the bull to Poseidon as a show of thanks but Minos decided that he liked the white bull far too much to simply kill, so he sacrificed a different bull and kept Poseidon's cow hoping he could have his cake and eat it too. Poseidon was reasonably a bit pissed that this mortal reneged on their very simple deal and decided some wildly indiscriminate divine judgement was called for.

Poseidon decided the most poetic thing to do was to make Minos' wife love the Bull even more than anyone on Crete, even Minos... by, like, a lot. Like, a lot. Long story short, Minos had a bastard son who was half bull and was horrified. According to the myth, the Minotaur was originally raised by Minos' wife but quickly became vicious and as an unnatural beast feasted on human flesh since it had no actual place in the food chain. To contain it, Minos tasked Daedalus to construct a massive labyrinth to contain the Minotaur.

There it would languish for years, lost in the dark and even used as a sadistic form of execution for Minos' enemies, specifically Athenian men and women handed over to Minos after he waged war with them until eventually Theseus would arrive and slay the Minotaur.

Now, you may be wondering why I would feel bad for this guy. By all accounts, the Minotaur had no chance of growing out of its monstrous ways. Very quickly it turned into a man-eating beast with violent tendencies. How can it compare to another tragic myth like Medusa?

Generally, I think the fact it had no chance to begin with is tragic in and of itself. Medusa was a victim of divine crossfire between Athena and Poseidon, while the Minotaur was a victim of Divine Circumstance. Poseidon didn't care what became of the Minotaur after it was born, merely that it came into this world to torment Minos after he was slighted by the mortal. Perhaps there was a chance it could have overcome its base instincts, but the Minotaur was from the start designed and intended to be a horrifying beast.

It was despised by Minos from the moment it drew breath, and it certainly horrified the people of ancient Greece. It must have grown physically much faster than it did mentally, and with an unnatural mix of animalistic instinct and human mentality would have made it difficult to handle without being able to rip men and women limb from limb. It would spend the rest of its life wandering a dark maze, feasting on whoever Minos threw in there to survive.

I think the last point that gets me is that monsters don't have names. Minotaur is an anglicized version of its Greek name, Minotauros, meaning the Bull of Minos, which was a description of what it was but it also had a name; Asterion, after Minos' foster father. It was a half-animal that probably deserved to be put down, but in the end it was a thing that was brought into a world that would despise it and never had the chance to learn and be better.

It makes me wonder if the Minotaur being a mindless monster with no hope is the better option than a confused and neglected creature who had no choice but to become the beast his people saw him as.

Can you tell the difference game from mine version or LO/RS version

Note that I do not own the characters from the Greek Myth, I was doing this for fun.

(Fact Chiron’s necklace can turn him with human legs and he can take it off to turn him back into a centaur)

My Chiron

Chiron is superlative centaur amongst his brethren since he was called the "wisest and justest of all the centaurs". He is the son of Cronus and the beautiful nymph Philyra, he is the step brother of Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, Poseidon, Zeus. He is husband of the lovely Chariclo and the father of Hippe, Endeïs, Ocyrhoe, Carystus and Aristaeus and the teacher of Achilles.

Likes: his students, his family, watching Theseus making a big idiot out of himself, being outdoor and reading.

Dislikes: Theseus, his father and losing his loved ones.

Friends/Allies: Asclepius, Aristaeus, Actaeon, Achilles, Jason, Medus, Odysseus, Patroclus and the gods.

Enemies: Theseus (because he is a ungrateful mama’s boy man child, so he lets Koalemos who is the stupid god of stupidity to be his teacher to teach him wrong as a joke), his father (because he ate his siblings) and monsters.

Personality: he may look very layered back and chill, but he is very wise and he can give his useful skills/teachings to his students to become a skillful warriors, he is also a skilled and a strong warrior himself. He loves his beloved Chariclo and he is a wonderful father.

LO Chiron

RS just did the same with Morpheus is to genderbend a well known male character from Greek mythology into a woman, because she is too lazy to make new female characters or she is doing this to piss off people. Instead of a skillful and wise warrior and teacher, she is now a useless psychologist who gives bad and unhealthy advice to Pink RS and she makes some stupid decisions.

Misc PJO fic recs (Part 1)

Trading tomorrow by darkmagyk and losingletters

Percy Jackson arrives at Camp Half-Blood bruised and bleeding, with the knowledge that he's the son of a god and his mother is dead. His little display with the Minotaur has caught the attention of the camp. But he’s not sure it is good attention, yet.

Only the Hermes Cabin's not-quite Co-counselor Theseus, ‘call me Theo,’ doesn't treat him like a fascinating zoo exhibit. Which would be a relief, except he looks exactly like Percy: same green eyes, same trouble making smile, same black hair. The only differences are the fact that Theo is six years older, covered in battle scars, and the black tattoo on his arm. A trident and the letters SPQR.

Theo is eighteen, powerful, and unclaimed. And his resemblance to Percy could set a dangerous precedent.

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Why don’t we rewrite the stars (changing the world to be ours) by thewritingmaniac

Percy is six when he learns he can travel in time, and nine when he tries to change the past. He certainly doesn’t expect a blond girl about his age to stop him, telling him bossily that she’s a Time Guardian (and he definitely doesn’t expect to see her again). Percabeth, AU

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thatjacksonkid by TheGermanGrim_Reaper

Following an episode of Buzzfeed Unsolved, several twitter users do their best to uncover the truth about Percy Jackson. They get surprisingly far.

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The Jackson files by ideasofmarch

Makin’ pancakes @makinbaconpancakes Does anyone know who the fuck Percy Jackson is???

Oranges are spicy @ronaldmcd Whomst?

Makin’ pancakes @makinbaconpancakes Check rachel dares insta story

Oranges are spicy @ronaldmcd k

Oranges are spicy @ronaldmcd Okay somebody find out who this kid is right damn now.

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Rachel Elizabeth Dare posts a video of Percy on her instagram story. it all just spirals from there.

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Three and a half stars by inkncoffee

Food is terrible, decor tasteless, weekend shifts seem to correspond with the onset of natural disasters??? Serving staff is pretty great, though, overall 3.5/5 would probably go again

p.s. is tipping sand dollars standard now or is the creepy, semi-regular customer just crazy?

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In the amber of a moment by rynna_aurelia

Nico di Angelo wakes up in Westover Hall again.

And again.

And again.

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A rose by any other name by izzymrdb

It wasn't Poseidon who met Sally on that beach on Montauk, but rather a far older, much more ancient version of him.

Percy is born far older and younger than he should be.

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Five times percy leaned on his friends, and one time he stood alone by kitty_pryde_bi_pride

Percy meets his friends on the battlefield and they all know he’s unbeatable, even alone. And he is alone, even with the sea and the earth and the blessing of the Styx and the blood in their veins- he can tell they think he’s gone as mad as Luke.

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We have each other now by professorrjlupin

“You’re in Asphodel.” She doesn’t know how to respond. It wasn’t a question. He takes his hands out of his pocket. His nails are coated in black, and a thick band of metal is on one of his fingers. He’s twisting it like a bottlecap. Hazel looks away. “I can get you out of here,” he says. He’s still twisting, brown eyes unfocused and glazing.

Hazel’s lungs are filled with water. “What?”

“The Doors of Death are open. You can leave.” Hazel doesn’t know what the doors are, but he’s looking at her now and she knows he isn’t lying. She knows she can follow him, she knows it by the cold feeling down her spine. She can do it.

“Okay.”

He nods. “Let’s go.”

Nico brings Hazel to Camp Jupiter from Asphodel.

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FLIP by IcyDeath

Instead of Percy, Nico gets taken by Hera for her 'exchange program' between the Romans and Greeks. A certain son of Apollo isn't happy about that.

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Falling for you by 1967hogwartsgoddess

Annabeth was slipping and Percy dived to save her; something went wrong. On the surface, Annabeth leads the Seven, desperate to rescue him and unite the camps. Alone in Tartarus, Percy finds himself making harsher choices, discovering darker methods, unlocking deeper powers, tortured and fighting for his life. He swears he's still a good kid. Post MOA

Final chapter is an AU following on from chapter 66.

The Firebrands as constellations because I love them

Avar Kriss: Lyra or the lyre. This constellation represents the lyre of Orpheus, a legendary Greek musician who used his musical talents to rescue his beloved from the Underworld, and he would have succeeded, if he didn’t turn around

Elzar Mann: Orion or The Hunter. Orion was a great hunter and hero in Ancient Greece, however he struggled to keep his emotions and temper in check which led to his death at the hands of his friend. Pushed by nightmares to chase after a monstrous scorpion, a nearly beaten Orion is mistakenly killed by his companion, Artemis, who had been tricked into thinking he was the monster. In some stories it is said that he even attacks Artemis after the scorpion's venom drives him mad, however there are many versions, so it is difficult to choose just one

Stella Gios: Corona Borealis or the Crown represents the crown worn by Ariadne at her wedding to the god Dionysus after being abandoned and left to die by Theseus, son of Poseidon. It represents her ascendancy from mortal princess to immortal goddess

Bonus! Starlight Beacon: Bonus: Starlight Beacon: Argo Navis or the Argo Ship, the legendary ship that Jason and the argonauts sailed on during their quests

hercules, greek hero who performed the twelve labors (5143)

“when talking about such a popular god, goddess, or hero i am going to for warn paraphrasing - of course all these stories have more details and all these popular gods have stories within stories. i would love to share them all/in detail but i would need a book and a lot more time to write it. my attempt in writing these posts are to inform you on the high level story of the god’s or goddess’s life. that being said if any one of the events regaled in the post pique you interest - please let me know i don’t mind giving a more in-depth tale of any of the events mentioned.”

hercules (the non-disney version).

Hercules is the son of Zeus and Alcmene (sometimes listed Amphitryon - the grandchild of Perseus, the hero who slew Medusa). Zeus, of course, courted Alcmene in secret - the night of Hercules's conception, Alcmene disguised herself as her husband Amphityon after sleeping with him, in order to sneak out to Zeus. In this myth and having slept with two men on that night, nine months later, Alcmene gives birth to Iphicles and Hercules (lol twins? medically speaking, unlikely due to the DNA that is unshared between the two). Hera learns that Hercules is Zeus's demi-god son and immediately is enraged - sending snakes into the cradle of the two newborns. Hercules strangles these creatures, whilst Iphicles cries. In most myths, after this occurrence, there is a time jump (sometimes not: Hercules kills his music teacher, Linus, accidentally in a fit of rage, thereafter he faces a fate who wishes him to choose between a happy, unmarketable life and tragic, rememberable life - he chooses neither) in which Hercules is a man, father of many children, and a slayer of the Cithaeron Lion. This lion was thought to have preyed on Amphitryon's and Thespius's flocks of sheep. After hunting the lion for fifty some days, Hercules famously donned the skin of the lion, creating the deadhead of the beast - showing he was the top predator. Thespius's way of thanking Hercules was then having his daughters sleep with Hercules. After his youth Hercules marries the Theban King Creon's daughter, Megara. Hera, not having forgotten her spiteful ways, cursed Hercules. Hercules ends up slaughtering his family members in a fit of madness caused by Hera (sometimes he kills just Megara, sometimes just the children, and sometimes all of the above). To atone for his crimes Hercules visits a Pythia who informs him to seek his cousin Eurystheus and do whatever he asks of him.

Thus the Twelve Labors of Hercules are born. First, the Nemean Lion whom Hercules killed with his bare hands because the lion's skin was invulnerable. After slaughtering the creature, he shed the Cithaeron Lion's fur to wear the Nemean Lion's like armor. Second, Lernaean Hydra whom Hercules killed with the help of his nephew, Iolaus, who cauterized the site of decapitation each time Hercules lobbed off a head to prevent new heads from growing back. After defeating this creature, Hercules coated his arrows in the creature's poisonous blood. Third, the Ceryneian Head who was requested to be brought back alive to Eurystheus, who wished to give it to Artemis. This doe was thought to have antlers and breath fire - making this not as easy a feat. Fourth, Erymanthian Boar. Fifth, Augean Stables which involved cleaning the stables of King Augeas's immortal cows. Sixth, Stymphalian Birds, the man-eating birds in which Hercules's shot down with his poisonous arrows after scaring them out of hiding by using Athena's gifted rattle. Seventh, Cretan Bull as we recall from the Minos post, Minos had deprived Poseidon of his sacrifice - Hercules captured the bull and gave it to Eurystheus who release's it in the city of Marathon (later, Theseus kills the Cretan Bull because it terrorizes this city). Eighth, steal the Mares of Diomedes - these flesh eating horses were lured away by Hercules who fed them his own horse. Ninth, steal the Girdle of Hippolyta - the Amazonian queen received this gift from her father, Ares (which shows the militant nature of the Amazons she led), yet Hercules defeated them. Tenth, steal the Cattle of Geryon who were guarded by Orthrus, the two-headed dog - Hercules ends up killing the dog, Geryon, and Geryon's shepherds. After these first ten Hercules was supposed to be even but it was Eurystheus who demanded two more. Eleventh, the Golden Apples of the Hesperides. How Hercules learns of the location of these apples varies; in some he asks Prometheus who is set free by Hercules, in others, Hercules captures Nereus. Either way he finds his way to the garden to discover Hera's guard - Ladon, the dragon. Sadly, Hercules kills the beast but can't get into the garden because the creature's body is in the way. This causes Hercules to ask Atlas to get them - Hercules says he will take on Zeus's task to Atlas (holding up the heavens) whilst he gets them. Atlas agrees and retrieves the fruit but attempts to leave Hercules to hold the heaven's. Hercules tricked Atlas into taking it back and then leaves Atlas there to continue holding up the heavens. Twelfth, retrieving Cerberus from the Underworld - he convinces Hades into letting him borrow the creature.

Many years after these tasks, as we recall from the Nessus post, Deianira naively gives Hercules a tunic which peels and burns away his skin. Hercules dies in agony - after his death ceremony, he becomes a god of Olympus and Hera allows him to marry Hebe. IN MY OPINION Heracles in your chart represents a) where you are godly in the mortal realm, b) if/how you are a womanizer, c) where you are the best at hunting/searching/tracking, d) where you may feel a higher being is out to get you, e) where you atone for doing horrible things by doing horrible things, f) the tasks you may be forced to do, and/or g) where you feel betrayed by those you love.

i encourage you to look into the aspects of heracles along with the sign, degree, and house placement. for the more advanced astrologers, take a look at the persona chart of heracles AND/OR add the other characters involved to see how they support or impede heracles!

OTHER RELATED ASTEROIDS/PLANETS: hebe (6), hera (103), minos (6239), nessus (7066), prometheus (1809), pythia (432), zeus (5731 / h42), iphiklos (43706), augeias (13184), diomedes (1437), hippolyta (10295), orthos (2329), nereus (4660), hades (h41), and cerberus (1865)!

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Sort of knew about Class of the Titans years ago, but now I'm really diving into it.

Got this idea, and it would be nice to bounce ideas off of. It's not very much dust, and it'll spoil everything, but here I am writing it out, hehe.

So yeah, like my teenage/college years, I'm writing another canon/OC pairing. This girl OC will be paired with Neil.

Her name is Belle, and she is a descendant of Bellerophon.

Since Bellerophon was the tamer of Pegasus, she loves horses and rides them often. Throughout the fic, she rides into battles with Pegasus like her ancestor.

Since Bellerophon and Theseus are sons of Poseidon, that would make Belle and Theresa distant cousins.

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This part is sort of me brainstorming how Neil and Belle are a couple.

What's challenging for me as a writer is how to make a person with narcissism in a relationship, since Neil loves himself more than anything. Despite him being the descendant of Narcissus, he does pull through for the team. Even though he is self-centred and a diva, it doesn't make him a bad person.

Since Belle is sort of the female version name from 'Bellerophon', Belle loves Beauty and the Beast, since the protagonist shares the same name with her (hehe).

One idea I had with this is Belle is watching Beauty and the Beast at night since she is homesick for her family. Even her father would read Beauty and the Beast to her at night before bed. Neil comes around and sees that she is in the rec room watching TV. Seeing as how he wants to keep school unity together, he watches Beauty and the Beast with Belle, and comforts her. Saying that she has friends here at New Olympia High School and they care and appreciate her.

Aside from the film night moment, from Beauty and the Beast and Belle's name sake, Belle shows Neil that beauty is more than just what's on the outside and is skin deep. Something that the other six never even brought up or told him.

This is what Neil brings to the table for Belle.

Being a descendant of Bellerophon, from the myth, he had a long way to go from his tale, even though he pulled through. Other heroes had more success, like Hercules, Theseus, etc. Neil helps Belle to believe in herself with his confidence. His self-love made everyone annoyed at him, though it helped Belle to see to be proud of being related to Bellerophon. Narcissus didn't do much himself. After all, Belle brought Pegasus back. It was more than what he could have ever done.

When they are officially a couple, with the song and story of 'Beauty and the Beast', Neil told Belle that he had no trouble being the 'Beast' to her 'Beauty'. Though she was fine with being 'Beast', since she handled horses often and could be a tomboy at times. 'Beauty' suited him better anyways (lol).

You know, it's kinda funny as to how Disney pairs Hades with Maleficent instead of his Actual Wife (Persephone) when the Original versions of Sleeping Beauty, the first being "Perceforest" where actually feature in some of the Greek/Roman Goddesses using some of the Roman and Greek Names (Venus, Lucina, and Themis) and that Themis was the one who cursed the Princess and not a Dark Fairy which would be popular in later versions.

I've also see that you've added in Oberon and Titania in your own Family Tree of Sleeping Beauty/Hercules, when in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" Theseus (who was Poseidon's Demigod Son) and Hippolyta are actual Mythological Figures.

I'd sorta like to ask on what Disney is trying to do with their own lore but does Sleeping Beauty have any connection to Greco-Roman Mythology? Cause I've heard of the first version which one of the Three Goddesses from the Greco-Roman Pantheon did appear in that Fairy Tale.

I wish I knew.

-. Hades brainrot, have a few disconnected thoughts:

fighting Lernie is so MUCH FUCKING FUN oh god i can’t get enough of that fight IT’S MY FAVOURITE

he only recently dubbed her Lernie for me but what the fKIG ‘Lernie Vanquished’ THIS GAME

i underestimated the lambert plume at first but by god the way it makes me lOSE MY MINd you get to a certain point Zagreus becomes so fast (if you get a few Hermes boons while you’re at it, EVEN FASTER) that i sorta start cackling maniacally at my screen

next god i’m forging a bond with is Ares because that guy’s doom curse saved my ass so often and also i love how this rendition of him makes him so ELEGANT~

Asterius gib me that AUTOGRAPH, Zagreus WHY WON’T YOU ASK HIM

one of these days i’m gonna figure out how to fuck up Theseus before Asterius bc i wanna hear the dialogue that would produce

when Hermes asked me if i wanted him to shut up for a moment i was APPALLED he better never

least favourite gods are Zeus for obvious reasons and Poseidon bc he was the first trial of the gods disadvantage i had to get through and that wave PISSED ME OFF

least favourite boons are Dionysus’ but that’s only because i don’t know how to use ‘em lmao I MEAN THAT? GAIN SOME HEALTH WITH EACH HIT ONE? oh god that actually got me through that first hades win EDIT: that’s not a boon, that’s a daedalus hammer for Stygius lmao

that thing people say that when they hear Eurydice for the first time? or Orpheus singing his lament? yeah, it’s true, i lost all brain capacity because i truly tried to get into this game BLIND as hell, they fucked me up

there was this one point where i was doing pretty well with the pierced butterfly and Zagreus drops a line after clearing a chamber that sounded SO EERILY like Thanatos (like? the delivery?) and there’s no way Darren Korb didn’t do that on purpose HE’S INSANE he obviously did

Than’s butterfly pisses me off the moment i hit asphodel and start stepping in magma I MEAN i got the layout down SURE but YOU KNOW

i will literally sometimes choose a chamber JUST because i want to talk to that particular god and by that particular god i mean Hermes no strategical thinking there, just straight up brainrot

a few runs ago i somehow managed to guess that not only was Thanatos gonna spawn in this run but also the exact chamber he’d spawn in, i just chose a door and was overcome by this certainty that Than would be on the next field and BOOM, thanks for the centaur heart bby

my least favourite fury to fight against is Alecto because i’m far worse at defeating her than i am at the other two lmao (altho surprisingly Tisiphone almost beat my ass the other day, i haven’t lost against a fury in AGES that would have been embarrassing~)

i can’t bring myself to give Sisyphus a nectar because the version of his myth i’m familiar with makes me hate him and i can’t get past that lmao but i also WANT to get him a nectar FOR THAT COMPLETITION RATE

when i got into the temple of styx for the first time i almost threw an aggressive tantrum and start crying at the notion of having to fight Cerberus and I KNOW he’d never would have but the small part of me that doubts everything DOUBTED and then Zagreus stopped his bullshit and gave the CUTEST LIL LAUGH I’VE EVER HEARD and that laughter right there defined so much about how i see him lmao he’s a cute lil shit he’s the worst he’s my baby he’s an immortal god he’s sassy as fuck he’s absolutely useless at administrative work he’s strong and dangerous he’s just some guy he’s my son and my enemy he’s in love with everyone he isn’t related to he’s fucking terrifying

demeter is so COLD and MEAN she doesn’t know she’s my grandmama AND IT SHOWS

Hello! Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe Hercules' myth involves him being mortal before becoming the god of strength. Does this mean humans can ascend to godhood?

Hi! Sorry for the late reply, I've been busy but this ask is fascinating!

Hercules or Heracles (the Greek version of his name) is a demigod.

His mother, Alcmene, is human, while his father is Zeus. He was already part god like Perseus, Bellerophon and Achilles. Hercules was only able to ascend to godhood because he was already halfway there and while humans like Patroclus and Sappho can be possibly venerated as heroes or past ancestors, ancient Greece is very explicit on making sure that any human who ascends to godhood is a demigod, even if they are said to have a human mother and human father, like the story of Theseus whose human father was Aegeus but many myths claim it was actually Poseidon: (LINK)

So, can humans who are not already demigods ascend to godhood? No, according to the ancient Greeks, they can't.

This does not mean people didn't do extraordinary things, it's just that the ancient Greeks assumed whoever did extraordinary things was a demigod. This happened because when people accomplished something extraordinary in ancient Greece, the public considered that person to be someone who went beyond human limitation and thus considered more than human. People started suspecting a god as a possible parent.

Sometimes the person claiming to be a demigod did it for political reasons, like Alexander the Great who claimed to be the son of Zeus. Did people actually believe him? Not until he was able to prove his superhuman ability by creating one of the largest empires in human history at such a young age and in such a short time: (LINK)

Another thing I want to mention is how important ancestry was to the ancient Greeks.

Every Greek person only had one name and sometimes multiple people had the same name. So in order to differentiate between two people with the same name, their "last name" would be the name of their father, for example: "Theseus son of Aegus."

When someone didn't know who the father was, they would go by the mother's name, but if the person did something extraordinary, then people would start claiming they were the illegitimate child of a god (usually Zeus) and they would speculate and make stories about them emphasizing their status as a demigod (this is one of the reasons why there are a lot of stories about Zeus and rape. To the ancient Greeks, rape ment "going behind the father's back" even if the women wanted to be in a union with the god because to the ancient Greeks women did not have autonomy so their father's permission was very important).

Classifying a person who did the impossible as a demigod was very important to the ancient Greeks for a few reasons:

1. It would create the idea that only living demigods can do impossible things and thus disencourage "regular" humans from thinking they can also do that and thus keeping them in line for the politicians in power who ruled every aspect of their lives.

2. It cemented the idea that the gods still interact with their people and future demigods will be bestowed with their blessings and thus their hometowns would also benefit from said blessings.

3. Adding to reason number 2, it was also used for tourism.

4. It kept the honor of both women and children who didn't have a man claiming to be the head of their household and thus allowed the father of the mother to not have a shamed lineage.

5. It was especially used by kings to keep tyrants from taking over and kept civilians from rising against them for fear they would be cursed by their divine parental figure.

6. It was used to explain the unexplainable and as a way to keep people from thinking they could do something without the influence of a god and thus letting it get to their heads as we see in the cautionary tale of Bellerophon who grew impatient with his accomplishments being accredited to his father Poseidon and people assuming it was because he was a demigod and not because of his own efforts. After growing so frustrated over losing so much personal credit, he demanded a place on Olympus because of all he accomplished and was sent a gadfly by Zeus for using pegasus to force his way into Olympus and thus falling to his death after the gadfly bit pegasus who bucked Bellerophon off: (LINK)

WARNING!!!:

The idea that a human can be a god is very dangerous and one often used by toxic cults forcing their will on others. They push the narrative that someone is the reincarnation of Apollo or the child of Zeus and will use that narrative to try to force people to do things they don't want to do because a living "god" told them to do it.

People who believe they are a god are often described as having a "God Complex" (LINK). Not only is having a god complex dangerous to the person and everyone around them, but it's often associated with an extreme form of narcissism (LINK)

Why are god complexes so dangerous? Every human is fallible. We make mistakes and we grow and learn from those mistakes when we admit to them. People who have god complexes usually believe they are so perfect it's impossible for them to make mistakes so they blame everyone else around them and never take responsibility for themselves. As someone who grew up with very narcissistic adults with god complexes, it's frustrating to be gaslit and blamed for things you never did. They also don't believe in consent or believe they are above needing consent because they are a god and "know better."

If you meet someone claiming to be a god

RUN!

Seriously, run. Everyone has the ability to do and create extraordinary things but people with god complexes do not understand consent or how to respect the will of others because they think they are above other humans. Although I'm not a big fan of Witchtok, here's a little jingle that helps explain more about people with god complexes. (Tw: mentions of violence) (LINK)

Demigods are best left to mythology and storytelling.

They can be very inspiring, but a living "god" is very dangerous because they force their will onto others and are not above intimidation tactics. Here is a list of people who had been worshipped as living gods in the past and this includes Hitler, so you can see why the idea of "living gods" makes me very uncomfortable: (LINK)

These Delphic Maxims address god-complexes:

11) Φρόνει θνητά: Think mortal thoughts.

141) Εὖ πάσχε ὡς θνητός: Do as well as your mortal status permits.

The way that I personally interpret these two maxims is as a reminder that humans are human with human limits. It therefore asks that we not act like a god because that's assuming we no longer see ourselves as human.

It also asks that we not assume we can think like a god because that's over simplifying the way that the gods operate by applying human morals to them when they are beyond our comprehension and know things we'll never know, so they are a lot more complex than we'll ever understand, and assuming we know is to limit the gods.

But overall the main message is to respect the will of others by not thinking you are way better because you are more god-like than they are. EVERY person has the ability to be spiritual and the ability to create in such extraordinary ways that seem almost "god-like" to others but we are still human with human limits.

I personally believe human limits are beautiful and one of the many reasons why the gods are so fascinated with us. The gods get to see what we accomplish with such fragile lives, small limits that are carried by strong wills and big hearts.

I hope this helps!