I’m glad people like my Trials of Apollo art asdfghjk I adore the books so much!! I love how it’s separated from the previous 2 books, like it’s a new story, Percy and the gang are in the background, and a new characters get to be presented. I love how the topic of abuse is written into the story. I love that it’s a story about how a god and a 12 years old helps each others overcome past abuse, learn to be better than their abusers, learn to let themselves be forgiven, learn to allow themselves a new beginning, and break the cycle they’ve been put through. I love that romance isn’t the center of the story at all in any way, but LGBTQ+ characters are still half of the characters in this story. I love the character developement, when I finished the book and flipped through the first book again, I see clearly just how they’ve grown. And yes, in the end, I suppose the one word to summed up this books would be “grow”. After all, the main characters are a child of Demeter, goddess of all things that grows, and a sun god, whose ray nurishes them.
“We’re staying together,” he promised. “You’re not getting away from me. Never again.”
Only then did she understand what would happen. A one-way trip. A very hard fall.
“As long as we’re together,” she said.
She heard Nico and Hazel still screaming for help. She saw sunlight far, far above- maybe the last sunlight she would ever see. Then Percy let go of his ledge, and together, holding hands, he and Annabeth fell into the endless darkness.
Apollo spends time with all of his children. He visits Camp a lot, and they do things together. Watching movies, going hiking, arguing about the books they’ve been reading. He’s not sure that he’s a very good father, but he’s trying.
He also takes time for each of them individually. He takes Austin to watch jazz bands and when Austin gets a slot performing at a small venue, Apollo is in the crowd.
It turns out Will has a natural talent for driving the sun chariot. Apollo is relieved that he doesn’t have to relive the terror of letting Thalia take the wheel. Thank the gods his child is better at driving than his sister. Sometimes he and Will head out from camp and just drive around, listening to music and talking. Will has a lot of responsibility on his shoulders and it gives him a break.
Kayla is extremely competitive, and she’s never disheartened that her father has an unnatural ability in archery. In fact, she uses it as motivation to improve. They talk about the process of qualifying for the Olympics and what she’ll need to do. Apollo becomes her unofficial coach, and he even gets to meet her other dad again at one of her competitions.
He takes time getting to know his other children. At first, they’re confused. Was he always at Camp? Did he distance himself from them until they got there? He chooses to be honest with them. He could lie, and tell them he’s always visited Camp Half-Blood. But he knows now that he only hurts people by lying and pretending that he’s a better person than he is.
Piano lessons with Meg are predictably chaotic. He discovers that god or not, she’s not afraid to punch him in the ribs when he annoys her, which she seems to do more often than is reasonable. It unnerves him that Peaches also seems to show up every time he’s teaching Meg, as if he’s threatening Apollo.
Nico remains thoroughly unimpressed by him, but they begin to develop a friendship. He understands that Nico is reserved because he’s hurting. Apollo doesn’t push him to talk, but he makes it clear that if Nico ever needs anything, he will do what he can. He is happy to see that Nico and Will are happy together, and sometimes Apollo will take over healing duties at Camp so that Will can take time off and take Nico on a date.
Weekly pinochle tournaments are now a thing. Apollo and Dionysus have even drawn up a score board, and they take the competition seriously. At least, that’s what they like to pretend. Really, they just enjoy spending time together and talking as brothers. Chiron is resigned to their competitive attitude, but he can always be found on the porch, talking with them.
During their first winter break, Percy and Annabeth drop by and visit Camp. There are fewer people there than during the summer, but sometimes, less is more. The year rounders decorate the dining pavilion and all of the cabins, and even Mr. D gets into the Christmas spirit after being pestered by Nico, and agrees to decorate the big house. He tried to protest, arguing that Greek gods do not celebrate Christmas, but after the fifth zombie popped up in his path he gave up and agreed to join in. Percy and Annabeth bring lots of stories from Camp Jupiter and their first semester at New Rome University. They also bring plenty of photos of Estelle, and all of the campers agree that she is family.
They Iris message the Waystation, Meg, and Hazel and Frank at Camp Jupiter. Who knew four-way Iris messages were possible. Suddenly the room is full of familiar faces and voices, exchanging news. Apollo thinks that in all of his life, this is the most perfect holiday he’s ever had.
I don’t know why but I have this headcanon that the Apollo kids have an older sister who lives in NYC. She’s like 22 or something as of TOA, so she was only around 19 when Lee was killed and then a year later Michael died, so she feels pretty responsible because she’d gone off to college to start her life, and although she rushed to join the battles she couldn’t save her brothers.
But she’s that cool older sister. She’s really into music, she plays guitar in a band and sings, and when she was a kid she participated in a lot of theater. When Will and Nico are annoyed with everyone at camp she lets them crash at her place and they stay up late watching tv and she doesn’t care if they go to the movies and come home late as long as she knows they’re safe.
She doesn’t take any shit from Mr. D and she’s only two years older than Castor and Pollux so was pretty good friends with them when they were all kids. She’d just laugh when Mr. D would try giving her a hard time and he has grudging respect for her because of this.
She was left at camp when she was really young, younger than Annabeth even and so she looks up to Chiron as a parent. She’s tried to be there for her younger siblings, but in that chaotic way you do when you’re not raised in a typical family and don’t actually have a great role model to follow. She remembers the things Chiron taught her, not just about studying but also about being kind and showing up for your friends, and she tries to model those things in how she interacts with her siblings.
She listens to Will and tries to guide him through his task of leading the Apollo cabin. Austin hangs out with her and they play music together and she takes him to see all the cool bands in the city. Kayla is relieved that she has an older sister and they talk about growing up and figuring out who you want to be and how you’re supposed to have anything close to a normal dating life when you live at Camp Half-Blood. Neither of them are really interested in their hair or makeup but sometimes they will dye each other’s hair and they wander around the stores and pick out ridiculous outfits that they think are ugly and are never going to buy.
Apollo disappointed her a lot. He was never really there for her, as he was never there for any of them. And there’s a part of her that resented him for this, particularly after Lee died and he didn’t even visit any of them. But she would have never considered joining Luke to fight against the gods. Not because she thinks the gods are right, she doesn’t. But because she loves Camp Half-Blood and everyone who lives there too much, and she wants to build something better, not tear down the world.
So there you go. A headcanon that has absolutely no basis in anything RR has written but that still feels very real to me.
grecia reading The Trials of Apollo #1: the hidden oracle
first impression: the covers of this saga look actuallydope
“My name is apollo. I used to be a god” hi sweetheart
“I inflicted a plague on the Greeks who besieged Troy.” can u shut the fuck up
WHO TF IS LAST-NAMED PAPADOPOULOS IM CRYING
A four thousand year old god being afraid of a 12y.o girl? this is amazing
“I know someone who might help. He lives on the Upper East Side. Take me to him, and I shall reward you.” let it be who i’m thinking of please
“Zeus did not answer. He was probably too busy recording my humiliation to share on Snapchat.” Help me
“Let’s find Percy Jackson.”’ WAAAAAAAA
“For children blessed with an immortal parent, they were strangely sensitive about their backgrounds.” this bitch didnt just say blessed
“the young man swung open the apartment door and said, “Why?” As usual, I was struck by his resemblance to his father, Poseidon. He had the same sea-green eyes, the same dark tousled hair, the same handsome features that could shift from humor to anger so easily.” PERCY MY BELOVED SON, MY FIRSTBORN HI BABY BOY
“sacred sybil” ??? “Are u cursed?” what the actual fuck apollo
“The war ended in August. It’s January.” percy is 17 im gonna fucking SOB
sally finally got to write her book <333
“He smiled, and some of that old demigod mischief twinkled in his eyes.” STOP
“Some of the best demigods have gotten their start by blowing up toilets.” *sobs in the lightning thief*
“I did not like the way she was grinning at Percy. I didn’t want the girl to develop a crush. We might never get out of here” LMFAO everyone falls in love with my boy i know he’s so gorgeous he’s stunning he’s mesmerizing
Because Poseidon
“I keep thinking, I have now killed every single thing in Greek mythology. But the list never seems to end.” “You haven’t killed me yet” “Don’t tempt me.” percy is so done w apollo’s shit
“The calmness of his eyes, the smile resting easily on his lips, the way his hair curled around his ears…” oh? look at that! im sobbing!
“crotchkicker mccaffrey” I CACKLED
WAAAAAAAAHH NICO HI MY BABY
significant annoyance
“they were so cute together it made me feel desolate” istg
not paolo’s arms JFJKFKS
“She’s a communist!” JFKFKDJF THIS CSNT BE REAL
apollo sayin’ gay relationships w gods can also have children might be the best thing i’ve read
MY CHILDREN KAYLA AND AUSTIN ARE MISSING WHAT
paolo got his leg sewed for god’s sake
will being a doctor in charge and nico his little nurse this is good food
rachel elizabeth dare my redhead beloved so pleased to see u again !! <3
rachel jealous over apollo having more oracles bestie pls
apollo using meg’s rings as a necklace </3
apollo’s thoughts about daphne in the woods oh the poetic tragedy of a lost love <\3
“rhea’s laugh reminded me of a piglet with asthma” HELP ME??
who’s the emperors??? nero??? caligula??? commodus?? TELL ME
OH IT’S NERO
apollo’s melancholy singing for daphne & hyacinthus <\333
‘“Sing. Sing like you did before" “I—I can’t. My voice is almost gone.” Besides, I thought, I don’t want to risk losing you again.’ man dont do this to me
"I love the Internet! It is impossible for me to fade completely now. I am immortal on Wikipedia!” i DID SEARCH THIS DUDE, sorry apollo
MEG WHAT DID YOU DO
"Artemis shot me in the groin because I was flirting with her Hunters.” JDFKDFK GO BESTIE
“I stared at my beloved Dumpster waif. Yes, somehow over the past week she had become beloved to me.” awe
The dryads & zephyros helping apollo in the woods <3
“Will, Kayla, Austin. Come with me” “And Nico. I have a doctor’s note” boi ur doctor’s note only consist on being by will’s side
WAAAAAAAHHH MY OCEAN BABY BOY IS HERE
“I wanted to flirt with Chiara and steal her away from Damien…or perhaps steal Damien away from Chiara, I wasn’t sure yet.” this dude is so painfully bisexual it kills me
percy & rachel together again it’s been so long since i read them interact <3
MY FIRE BOY AND MY GIRL ARE BACKKKK
they’re beating the shit out of my boy leo
“When they first saw each other, Percy and Calypso had hugged awkwardly. I hadn’t witnessed such a tense greeting since Patroclus met Achilles’s war prize, Briseis. (Long story. Juicy gossip. Ask me later.)” DUDE YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME
“piece of torta” help. also my water boi & fire boi giving each other a high five
apollo, leo & calypso walking together to the amphitheater <3
grecia reading Trials of Apollo #2: the dark prophecy
LEONIDAS- NO PUEDE SWR
Calypso just punched the shit out of that oldass lady, go bestie !!
“The most worthless of teens!” JFKSKDK calypso istg
leo wearing overalls tho
“Our adopted daughter” GO LESBIANS
not apollo thinkin’ the hunters of artemis are some kind of mafia
small exploding latino ☄
“These tofu enchiladas are sabrosas. Gotta get the recipe from Josephine. My homegirl Piper would love them.” oh gods leo & piper besties my beloveds
MEG’S BACK
meg crying into apollo’s chest <\3
“My sister has saved many young women from horrible situations.” finally u realize dumbass <3
madre de los dioses
love is an open door from frozENJKDKFKS i was obsessed with this movie
WISDOM BABY!
THALIA MY BELOVED THUNDER GIRL IS HERE
“lesteropoulos” dude what
“I think you decided to help me because you like me.” “What makes you say that?” “Oh, come now. The first time we met, you said I was hot. Don’t think I didn’t hear that comment.” JAKZJFK DKSLK WHAT IS THIS
thalia meeting meg <3
leo & calypso are gonna stay at Waystation <\333
because meg <3
No spoilers??? bestie u’re about to die and u want to be surprised of ur imminent death??
“Okay. Get ready.” “For what?” “No spoilers.” “I hate you.” them >>>
'“Yes,” I found myself saying. “Yes, I would die to save Meg McCaffrey.”’ oh apollo
apollo cradling meg’s head into his lap in the cave i will sob now
uh oh apollo turning into light in front of everyone
georgie just- didn’t give a fuck about apollo lmfao ok ok that’s fine she’s better w her mums
“that’s gotta be my homeboy frank zhang” homeboi
“T”???? Valdez’s hot texan sauce???? MY TWO CHILDREN THALIA AND LEO ARE BESTIES NOW AAAHH
leo’s gonna go to camp jupiter and see my other children hazel, frank & reyna oh my god
thalia asking apollo to check on jason my beloved thunder children <3
GROVER MY SATYR SON WHERE HAVE U BEEN
grecia reading The Trials of Apollo #3: the burning maze
*eyes bloodshot and swiping her nose w her sleeve* oh boy this was a nightmare
Grover misses my baby boy percy me too boi
THE EMPEROR IS CALIGULA WHAT THE FUCK
PIPER HI SWEETHEART
piper worrying about leo my sweet children <3
oh piper & jason broke up?- oh okay okay
piper my love girl hugging meg and giving her a kiss on her forehead i cant cry this enough
omg ong piper using her charmspeak as if nothing: gaslight gatekeep gIRLBOSS
apollo thinking piper reminds him of aphrodite when she’s mad <3
omg they’re gonna go to find my thunder boy jason !! :3
WAAAAHHH JASON HI BABY I MISSED U HE’S USING HIS GLASSES
thalia’s pic on jason’s wall ahh i love my thunder children ⚡
APOLLO SAYING HE ALREADY FLIRTED W THALIA WHILE BEING SIBLINGS KDFJFJDSK NAO PUEDE SERR
WHAT DO YOU MEAN ONE HAS TO DIE
“Promise me one thing. Whatever happens, when you get back to Olympus, when you’re a god again, remember. Remember what it’s like to be human.” bro don’t do this to me
jason & apollo’s brothers moment <33
’“Im furious.” “Oh.” “Furious, but also empathetic.” “Right.”’ what am i gonna do with these two
apollo explaining to meg that maybe she’s reflecting her anger to someone else…. dude this saga gets more into psychological stuff i love it honestly…
jason complimenting meg my sweet myopic thunder boy i love him sm <3
“Aphrodite pushed me into thinking I was…that I needed to…” ………my bestie can u please explain what exactly do you mean here?
i never thought i’d see a god threatening to kill himself in order to safe his mortal friends oh gods apollo ily <\333
“This idiot cant even kill himself right!” skdjdf u really had to say this didnt u
my thunder boy making a mega explosion how powerful <3
jason appearing thru the smoke with his sword on his hand such an entrance for my thunder son >:)
oh piper looks baddass all wrecked up and mad we love to see it >:))
WHAT TEB ACTQUL FUDK DID JUST HAPPEN???????¿¿¿????????¿¿¿¿¿¿???
NONONONONOOOOO TEMPEST GO BACK GO BACK FOR HIM
AH TEMPEST BROUGHT MY THUNDER BOY FUCK YES
HE’S STILL DE*D, FUCK NONONONO ¿$¡¿%#¡¿#*%!
apollo & meg’s conversation in the car…… smiling thru my tears rn
“Her fury in combat had been rivaled only by the tenderness with which she spoke of her brother.” I CANT STAND THIS ANYMORE
Απολλων = apollon
apollo cupping his face w his hands after the verse mentioned hyacinthus <\3 i love it sm that he’s very sentimental <3
'“Meg,” I said, “can you attach yourself to the wall?” “Do I look like Spider-Man?” JFKFKSKFK
“I wondered, not for the first time, why we Greek deities had never created a god of family therapy” this is a good question tho
PIPER MY LOVE GIRL IS BACK
'“One good stab in the back deserves another.” Piper kissed Medea on the cheek. “I’d tell you to say hello to Jason for me, but he’ll be in Elysium. You…won’t.”’ GASLIGHT GATEKEEP GIRLBOSS
’“Hail the Meg, daughter of the creator!” “Hail satyr!” cute
im gonna fucking rip my neck my boy jason is in a FUCKING COFFIN OH GOD GET HIM TF OUT OF IT WAKE HIM UP WITH A ELECTRIC SHOCK OR SOMETHING
piper cut her hair choppier and she kinda looks like my thunder girl thalia i will cry <\3
PIPER AND LEO CRYING NO STOP THIS NOW
“I would be apollo. I would remember” ah gods <\3 <3
it will never not be funny to imagine a 16 old emotional, awkward and acne covered boy aka apollo as lester calling himself the father of a bunch of kids that are OLDER than him and giving them tearly proud dad smooches
i keep imagining cinematic flashes between these really intense sequences in tower of nero and then percy, annabeth, and grover just obliviously jamming out on a super fun road trip to california
Things about Tower of Nero that I want to highlight to remember them forever:
Lu being an absolute badass woman, I just love her too much
Piper McClean being canon wlw, she was actually kissing another girl, we really fell in love in october
Chaos being canonically female (just chaos being mentioned as a deity rather than what’s below tartarus)
nobody DIED, like no one on the good side at least?? yes plenty of beings have died throughout TOA, but nobody died in TON?? so many died in TLO and BOO, I expected to mourn someone and I didn’t have too??! it made me so happy
solangelo. that’s it. solangelo makes me happy.
will being incredibly supportive of nico, and instead of stopping him, going with him on dangerous adventures because he doesn’t want to leave him alone. also them treating Nico’s PTSD for what it is
WILL SOLACE CANONICALLY GLOWS IN THE DARK. HE’S A GLOWSTICK BABY.
also will just appearing at the gates of the throne room, glowing in rage because someone touched his boyfriend (and tried to kill his dad), and him just marching through everyone (everyone else letting him), just to pick up his hurt precious boyfriend and take care of him.
meg McCaffrey got her happy ending. she’s baby, she deserves her family and her happy ending. also Lu being the mother and the 12 children being siblings?? that’s one hell of a way to tell nero to fuck off and right his mistakes. we love meg.
dionysus being the best olympian after apollo. the duo content we needed, and now will never get
nico mentioning bob and how he wants to go look for him, because he can still be in tartarus
rachel still being a Total badass and hitting people in the eye with her blue hairbrush thus being iconic
meg acting as lester’s anchor and only reason why he didn’t let go of the ledge, not falling into chaos, is top tier ‘reasons why I cried reading’, because if you think about it, Meg is the first ever friend apollo ever had, and them being best friends is everything to me
also apollo choosing to go looking as lester rather than apollo because lester feels like home is on top tier 'reasons why I cried reading’ too
again, the only thing apollo did in the end (once he was god again) that could be described as 'godly’ was be in several places at once, fly his chariot, and get meg her unicorn
but apollo shooting fucking fire out of his hands is crazy asf, it was so cool. he really got amazing godly powers this book.
rick being bold enough to showcase abusive parenting knowing that a huge porcentage of his readers are minors, helping many realize that they could be in abusive households, and giving them a tool to reach out for help
apollo defeating nero was so satisfactory, because you realize in the end, that nero wasn’t really a monster, he was monstrous, but still very much human (if only with some godly power), and pretty useless once he couldn’t hide behind props and weapons, his being wasn’t powerful, he was just under layers of protection
the jackson/blofis scene was so warm and loving, they really are willing to put their family in danger, baby estelle in danger, to help 'percy’s friends’ even tho she knew percy didn’t like apollo, but she still takes in everyone who needs help, and paul being a loving and accepting husband
sally working on her SECOND novel, she really is having her best life
none of the big heroes from other series having protagonism, besides nico and will, instead giving the other kids from camp halfblood their chance to show they’re just as worthy as the “heroes of olympus”
(still I would have loved to see a scene with everyone else, like the heroes of olympus guys, fighting together one last time, just for nostalgia’s sake - I legit hoped to see percy and annabeth arriving with chiron in triumvirate tower, but yeah)
the arrow of dodona may have been a dumb, cringey, and slightly ridiculous thing at first, and I personally rolled my eyes everytime it said anything, but it knew what would happen from the start, and without its sacrifice, apollo would have achieved nothing. we stan one arrow
nico wearing a white cowboy hat. idky but it makes my heart swell with joy. he a gay cowboy
y'all know I love Apollo’s arch, and I just gotta point this out. his trials, his time as lester, started with him falling to earth, and ended with him getting up after purposely throwing himself off the earth, towards tartarus, almost falling to chaos. that’s really clever writing.
the olympians watching over him, and some actually being concerned for him rather than his progress.
poseidon not really giving a fuck about the world or council meetings anymore because percy’s not there anymore
athena being the only one apart from artemis who trusted apollo could do it makes me warm fsr
lester deciding that the best way to retell his adventures is by singing is hilarious to me, he really thinks it’ll solve everything
Grover not telling percy and annabeth jason died seems so funny to me, he really said “nah it doesn’t matter much, field trip, yes”
“hey man” my heart broke in twenty million pieces. like I don’t know where I expected to see jason. but that wasn’t it. and it hurt me as much as it hurt apollo man.
(also I kinda hoped we would see nico summon his spirit or smth, but I’m actually happy nico realized that jason went by his own choice, and he was in peace, so he decided not to summon him, because it was alright. that hurt too)
kinda love how lester passes out after literally every battle. it reminds you that even tho he’s apollo, his body isn’t. I’m sure we all would pass out too if we did a quarter of what lester did in the span of 4 days. his body isn’t made to endure that, it doesn’t even have a halfblood endurance, it’s a weak mortal body
the trogs were fucking hilarious. their screeches and grrs, idk there’s something ridiculous and so childish about them, it’s so fun
really happy that apollo never had a /real/ love interest (reyna doesn’t count), cause that wasn’t what his story was about. instead he got to make so many friends, and have quality time with them and his children, it’s amazing
apollo being thankful people were telling him he’d grown, and was more human, because he realized that was the best thing he could have learned from his time as a mortal
also him saying fuck you man to zeus and his speech, like “no asshole dad, I did learn, I’m not going to see this as punishment, it was a great time in which bad things happened but I enjoyed it.” yes, we love apollo not letting zeus win
getting to see what everyone will do now. nico and will figuring out rachel’s prophecy, probs saving bob. rachel living her best life away from her parents. leo doing what leo does, always helping those who have no one else. the hunters’ open storyline about this fox, possibly hinting at content? piper settling down in a quiet life is what she deserves tbh, she’s earned quiet life with a cute gf, wish her the best. Frank and hazel being the best praetors, and I bet they will continue to be so. And annabeth and percy, who chose their happiness over all, at last
kinda wish we got to see someone still really miss jason after apollo becomes god again tho lmao like apollo missed jason more than the others, nico and piper being the exception. I mean, leo is fine and dandy, hazel and frank are okay, percy and annabeth are done mourning… I just we got to see any of them really mourning, rather than reading they mourned. it would have made it feel more emotional
the last conversation and the last words in general. “the sun always comes back” and “we’re friends now. call on me. I’ll be there for you” that shit got me sobbing my heart out. rick really managed to do right by the books and end it like he should have, unlike BOO. he took what made TLO good and used a similar formula. it’s very different from “and for once I didn’t look back”, but it still fills you with warmth and the feeling that even though it’s over, it’s okay.
I’m just really emotional, this is all I can think about, but you bet I’m gonna add more when I remember
he’s so annoying to text …. there’s MINIMUM three emojis per message and he’ll double triple quadruple text he doesn’t care!!! buzz buzz it’s leo again!
leo hates talking on the phone, he can do facetime but if someone calls him he just stares at the caller id until they hang up and then he texts “sup what do u want”
despite what’d u’d expect u will not EVER catch him on a rollercoaster or any similar rides??? this is actually p common with hephaestus kids because a side effect of their abilities is that they can sense EVERY rusty bolt and crooked frame and rotting piece of board
his voice is kind of raspy and a little higher pitched and he has the sliiightest accent (he grew up in texas and his first language was spanish so no one can ever place it when they first meet him)
leo’s always moving!!! he’s super fidgety and restless, he uses big arm gestures and he drums his hands and taps his feet and absolutely never sits still no matter how many times u tell him
u know that video where the guy shows a bunch of kids how chicken nuggets are made and then he’s like “now WHO would still eat this???” and all the kids put up their hands? leo
leo walking into the athena cabin just to start shit: so is water wet?
he’s SOOOO good with kids but not always like. toddlers or babies. like they gotta b able to walk and talk and go to the bathroom on their own he can’t be expected to take on that kind of responsibility
leo’s really good with long-range weapons since he has really good hand-eye coordination, but he struggles a lot with hand-to-hand combat and with weapons like swords or daggers
he can solve a rubix cube with his eyes closed and can recite over 120 digits of pi
i hate to admit it but he’d probably use like one of those 3-in-1 shampoo/conditioner/body washes
