#percy and annabeth get to relax with their friends under the sun and get to not tell them everything about their experiences

[supercutszns]

twin beads | luke castellan

wc + pairing: 6.7k, luke x daughter of poseidon! reader

synopsis: you’ve been unclaimed for five years. you’ve loved your best friend even longer. the sea used to be your greatest solace, but after percy jackson comes to camp, it’s your cruelest reminder. (based on this ask!)

warnings: best friends to lovers <3, percy/reader sibling dynamic, fluff and angst then fluff again, hurt/comfort, shameless making out. sorry this one is so long but besties to lovers is my lifeblood!!! i get so attached!! designated song is true blue by boygenius:)

i. you said you wanted to feel alive, so we went to the beach

“Ahoy, sailor!”

The familiar voice ricochets across the lake. You turn, leaving glimmers of sun behind you as you stare back at the docks of Camp Half-Blood. An orange blob with a curly mop of hair is beckoning you. You laugh, wave back at him, and plunge into the water. It cools your face after staying above the surface for so long—you just love watching the light reflected off the waves. But the second you’re under the water, the soreness in your muscles, the heat on your face, the exhaustion from treading for so long, are washed away from you. You swim with precision and vigor, relishing the feel of the river cupping your limbs to spur you forward. Not to sound lame, but you fucking love swimming. 

But maybe not as much as you love your best friend. 

He laughs when your head pops out of the water at the edge of the dock. “Wow, that took you longer than usual,” he teases, brown eyes glinting in the dawn. “You getting sloppy?”

You huff, splashing some water up at him but it barely touches him. “I’m tired, you moron. I’ve been out there for an hour.”

Luke leans down at the edge of the dock, offering you a hand. His face is bemused when you latch onto him, and with a good flex of his bicep he pulls you up. “All right, c’mon,” he grunts.

All your energy evaporates the second your body’s out of the water. You’re far too lazy to be graceful, so you sprawl out onto the dock like a dying fish, letting the sun kiss every inch of you. “Eww,” Luke giggles overtop you, prodding your side with the tip of his shoe. “Get up, you mermaid.” 

“Make me, you mailman.”

Your arm drapes over your eyes, and you sigh. There really is nothing better than these moments; droplets of water soaking into your skin after an early morning swim, your best friend right beside you. 

He keeps nudging you with your shoe, over and over until your ribs start to hurt. You groan, swatting him away and stretching out your limbs with a groan, letting them pop and relax, until you blearily make your way to your feet. 

“You forgot your towel again,” Luke condones, but like always, he’s brought one for you. 

He goes through a practiced routine of drying you off, wrapping the towel around your shoulders and down your arms, across your back, scrunching the water out of your hair. It doesn’t matter how cold the water gets—this part always makes you warm. 

“Thanks,” you smile as he hands the towel off to you. “Anything interesting happen this morning, O Captain, my captain?”

“Not yet, sailor, sir,” he replies in a stuffy, gruff voice the two of you have joked around with since you were kids. “Just grabbing you for breakfast.”

You giggle, following him past the docks and to the shore. Once you’ve grabbed all your stuff, you both fall in stride and head towards your cabin, your twin five-beaded necklaces hanging over your shirts. 

Five years ago, when you got to Camp for the first time, you were as big a loser as any. You were bad at everything—everything—and had no real friends until you accidentally whacked some other friendless loser in the head with an oar when you were about to go canoeing. Luke got mad at you, but his little sister Annabeth was even more furious. He offered to be your partner for the day anyway. You’ve been partners ever since. 

Over the years the two of you have grown in status at the camp, more so Luke than you. He’s an excellent cabin leader and by far the greatest swordsman in camp. You, still unclaimed, have found solace in giving younger campers swimming lessons and wading out there on your own till you get sunstroke. (It’s happened a few times. Luke is never pleased, but also refuses to let the Apollo campers take care of you. He nurses you back to health with ice cream and horrible gossip.)

But every night you return to the Hermes cabin with a hollowness in your chest. One bunk emptied, then immediately filled. You’ve had the same one for five years, and the only condolence is that it’s right next to Luke’s, and sometimes you spend hours at night making faces at each other till your laughter endangers other people’s sleep. 

Yes, you love the water at Camp Half-Blood, but you love Luke most. 

Rumours of a new kid are rustling at camp. You haven’t seen him, but you’re just dying to get in on the gossip. Apparently he slayed a minotaur. Apparently Annabeth has seen him. And apparently he’s unclaimed. You hate to admit it, but this is the most exciting news you’ve heard in weeks!

Your afternoon is spent giving some swimming lessons and taking some Demeter campers canoeing. (Some of them freak out on the water. so it’s a nice challenge to untangle the sea plants they get hooked around their boat.) It feels like you’ve been here forever. A break is in desperate demand right now. 

You have no idea what kind of God heard your prayers, but your fellow counsellor has an unimpressed look on her face when she taps you on the shoulder and goes, “Your friend’s calling you.” 

The way she says it is almost degrading. You turn to look back at the shore to see the dark curly hair you’d spot a mile away. Next to him is a much shorter orange blob, shuffling awkwardly as Luke attempts to flag you down. Score!

You shoot an apologetic look at her. “Uh … I’ll be right back.” You wince, already disposing of your baggy orange shirt (it’s Luke’s) with your bathing suit underneath. 

“No you won’t,” she says dryly. “Just go.”

You flash a smile you hope is loaded with charm, and you’re off into water. As you swim, the only thing on your mind is I really really hope that’s the new kid, and I wonder what Luke’s face looks like right now. (He’s probably grinning, eyes crinkled at the sides as he tries to follow your figure beneath the waves. Maybe he’s doing that cute thing where his head tilts to the side as he watches.) 

When you’re close enough to the shore, you come out of the water, wringing your hair. “Hey, guys!” It’s Luke, Chris, and some blonde kid you’re sure is the new one. “What’s up?”

Luke is about to say something, then he frowns. “Where’s my shirt?”

“Left it in the canoe, I’ll go back for it later,” you reply, limply gesturing behind you. 

“And where’s your towel?”  

“Okay, I did bring one this time!” You counter. “I just gave it to a little Ares kid ‘cause she forgot hers.” 

Luke clicks his tongue, shakes his head at you, but of course he’s got one in his hands so what’s the worry? He’s endearingly amused when you take the cloth and dry yourself off, and the new boy, having watched this all raptly, widens his eyes and drawls, “Ohhhh, so you’re his gi—”

“This is Camp’s resident mermaid, Percy.” Chris butts in, adding your name almost as an afterthought. 

After you fasten your towel around you, you’re put off by Percy’s scrutinizing stare. “Look, it’s been a pretty weird day so I cannot tell if you’re joking or not.” 

“I’m not a mermaid,” you snipe, throwing Chris a dirty look. “People just call me that because I give swimming lessons here.” You stick your hand out to the blonde boy. “Nice to meet you, Percy.” 

He gives a polite nod, a little awkward. “Right back at ya.” The two of you study each other as you shake. He’s young, probably about twelve, a smatter of freckles across his face. His eyes look like the lake. Something itches in the back of your brain. There’s a moment where the shake is suspended, neither of you have let go but are no longer actively holding on, and you see it in his face that he’s studying you, too. Huh.

The conversation continues as normal, but you almost start to feel queasy for a second. “We’re trying to find something Percy’s good at,” Luke says with a pat on Percy’s shoulder. “You got any ideas?”

“Yes, please, because I really would like to have a word with my father,” Percy clips. “Is Glory, like, purely a skill thing or can I get some if I tie someone else’s shoes or something?” 

“I don’t have shoes,” you add unhelpfully. 

“It’s okay, dude,” Luke squeezes Percy’s shoulder. “Camp is great, no matter where you end up.”

Even if you’re like her, he means without saying. Even if you don’t end up anywhere. 

You meet Luke’s eyes. This is a kid that wants so badly to meet his father, to ease the ache inside him. You are the absolute worst person for this. One of the longest current unclaimed streaks and your ache remains. To Percy, you’re the biggest example of a failure there is, and Luke is only just now realizing it. 

“Maybe try the infirmary?” You pipe, shuffling back and forth on the sand. “You might have a knack for medicine.”

“Doubt it,” Percy swallows. “But yeah, okay. Who’s your parent, again?”

Percy can’t see it, but Luke and Chris send you a shifty look and all you can do is widen your eyes to be like, Help! Don’t make me crush his dreams! I don’t want another kid to hate me! 

You swallow. No matter how fast you think, you cannot come to a logical sentence. “I, uh—”

Just then, in another stroke of luck (wow, that’s two more than usual) an Athena counsellor that looks insanely disgruntled is running towards you. “Stolls put spiders in our cabin again,” he heaves once at a stop. “Please get rid of them.”

“Can’t you just squash ‘em?” Percy asks. 

“Not the spiders, the twins.” 

Chris is already nodding, but Luke looks to you first. He’s anxious, disappointed. You wish you could smooth out the creases in his brow with your thumb. “Don’t worry,” you stretch out a smile. “I’ll chill with Percy. It won’t take you guys too long.”

He’s still hesitant. You’re not sure this is a good call either. But he reaches out, quickly squeezes your shoulder and mutters, “Thank you.” Your skin feels gooey when he touches it. 

His signature roguish smile returns as he looks back to Percy. The side of his face is shadowed by the sun so well it makes you jealous. “Don’t give her a hard time, eh?” He reprimands playfully. 

Percy smiles a little. “I’ll try not to.”

You are once again reminded just how easy it is to love Luke. How effortlessly he moves into your heart. It happened to you after you slapped him with an oar. It’s already happening to Percy.

You’re sure he won’t like you nearly half as much. 

After Luke and Chris leave, Percy resigns to staring out at the campers canoeing on the lake. Maybe now is a good time to admit you’re not good with kids. Luke has tried many times to make you his welcome partner, but you can’t take to the role nearly as well. You’re perpetually antsy. And sweaty. 

“So, what cabin are you a part of that lets you do this all day?” Percy asks, squinting against the sun. 

Your heart gets heavy. With a sigh, you sit yourself down, and Percy soon follows. “Hermes, actually,” you say as casually as you can. 

Percy goes pale as a sheet. “Uh, what?”

“I’m unclaimed,” you clarify. “I don’t … I don’t have a parent.”

There’s always a pitiful pause whenever a camper figures that out. This one is somehow … clunkier. “Oh,” Percy says. “Oh. Okay, that makes sense. For a second I thought—phew.” Then his eyes trail down to the thread hooked around your fingers, the five beads you run your thumb over. “How long have you been here?”

“Five long, blissful years,” you hum dryly. 

Water ripples over pebbles on the shore. Every new camper’s ambition is eroded by the truth you represent. Percy’s no different. His brows furrow and his face falls. “And you’ve never been claimed?” He asks, and you can feel the noxious mix of pity, confusion and despair laced beneath it. 

You shake your head, watching some Demeter kids splashing each other’s canoes with their oars. “Nope. But it’s not so bad. I like my cabin, you know? I like my life. Doesn’t really matter who your parents are anyway, I think. You do the same activities as everyone else, just on different teams.”

“But doesn’t it make you mad?”

“It used to,” you shrug, “But not anymore. It’s just …” You sigh, rolling a bead against your thumb. “If I’m unclaimed, I’m unclaimed. That’s the way it is. You can’t force the Gods to do anything.” 

“That’s what Luke said,” Percy remarks, almost bitterly. 

“I’m a rare case though, Percy,” you half-lie to him, nudging him a bit with your shoulder. “You’ll get claimed. It’s your first day. And until then you’re kind of free to be whatever. You don’t have to fit into anything, which is kinda nice, and you can screw around as much as you want and nobody can really get mad at you ‘cause you’re new.” A smile rises on your face. “And I heard you killed a minotaur, so you’ve already got some cool points.”

His face screws up in a grimace, and it makes you laugh. “Oh joy, cool points. Can’t live without those.”

Okay, maybe you’re not bad with kids. Maybe you’re just bad with boring kids. Because this is going decent, right? 

“What if I don’t get claimed, though?” Percy asks after a moment, a vulnerable note eclipsing him. It resonates inside your chest. You pause for a moment, heaving a loaded breath. 

“Do you fart a lot in your sleep?”

His melancholy pauses. He looks at you like you’ve grown another head. “Uh … what? No? I think?”

“Then you can take the bunk above mine if you want. It’s empty now,” you say. “And if you’re never claimed you can come swimming with me, and we can find seashells to put under Luke’s pillow every night until he starts thinking they’ve always been there.”

Percy blinks. “Do you have any friends?”

“Yes, and I’m going to torture him until I die. Cabin eleven is oodles of fun, Percy, you’ll see!”

He looks a little horrified. “Luke said I was going to like you,” he mutters. “I … am not sure if he’s right.”

Oh, well. You’ll take it. 

ii. you can't help but become the sun

You can’t sleep, and Luke knows it. His eyes burn into the side of your face as you stare up at your bunk. You sneak him a look. He smiles ruefully. Sweeping his arm up from beneath his covers, a makeshift tent is formed next to him. He nods to you. Before you know it, you’ve abandoned your own bed, taking a single step until you skirt into the pocket of his mattress Luke has carved for you. He lets the sheets fall, cocooning you with him the way he always does. 

You’ve been sharing beds on occasion for years. One of you gets cold, has a nightmare, or wants to talk until your mind fades out, the only solution is a place next to each other. Whispers against cheeks, giggles muffled into pillows, necklaces knocking together. You used to be further apart. Now you can’t remember the last time Luke hasn’t latched onto you the second you’re within reach. It warms you a little more each time. 

When your head hits his pillow, the two of you just stare at each other for a moment, lips pursed in amusement. His face is so wildly nostalgic to you—five years seems like too short a time to have known him. His eyes are pitch-dark and soft with exhaustion, but you can still pick out the trademark Hermes mirth glimmering through. You sometimes forget his scar, probably because you know he wants you to forget it. He’d kill you for thinking this, but you kind of like the way it hugs the curve of his cheek, bunches up when his dimple appears. It makes you sad. It makes you happy. It makes you love him. 

“Percy likes you,” he whispers, opening himself up so your chin brushes his shoulder. “That’s a first.”

He’s only wearing a tank top to sleep, so his warmth seeps through his skin when you tap him on the chest. “Shut up!” You hiss back, tapering into a giggle. “Has he picked up on anything yet?”

Luke bites the inside of his cheek, regretfully shaking his head. “Nope. But all that skill stuff is kinda arbitrary anyways. He’s still hung up on kleos, though, so … that’ll come in handy for Capture the Flag.”

“Ah, yes. Using a child’s misguided need for fulfilment as a weapon. A camp classic.” 

“Well someone’s gotta be useful for Capture the Flag in this cabin and it sure as hell isn’t you, mermaid,” he barbs back. 

Your jaw drops in mock offense and you squeeze a hand around his shoulder to shake him. “I will put you in a headlock right now, Luke, I’ll break your arm—”

“Be quiet!” He giggles as you attempt to wrangle yourself on top of him. “I’ll be nice to you, I’ll be nice, stop!” You get absolutely nowhere before the bed creaks and Luke shoves you back down. Your pulse rattles through your mouth as you laugh silently. “You’re the worst,” he mutters in your ear, raising the hairs on your neck.

“Well Percy likes me, so,” you turn your nose to the sky like a haughty old lady. 

“Percy’s a funnier, less annoying version of you,” he pokes your side. “That’s how I knew you’d get along, you weirdo.”

The momentary adrenaline this conversation has brought you is mellowing. “Hey, I’m very—very funny,” you mumble through a yawn. 

Luke laughs quietly. “Sure you are.”

He pulls you back to him, arm slung around the dip of your waist. When you make no protest, he seals you against his shoulder again. It’s started to feel a little different, him holding you like this. There’s an uncertainty your body faces about how to respond. His thumb runs over your spine and you decide to relax into him, pressing your face into the crook of his neck. Your chin knocks against his collarbone and you have the urge to curl yourself against his chest, just to feel him breathe. 

“Get some sleep, sailor,” he murmurs, fingers brushing through the roots of your hair. You don’t think he realizes he’s doing it. Your cheeks warm, and you bury yourself even further into the space against his shoulder and his pillow. Gods, there’s something wrong with you, isn’t there?

“Will do, soldier.” The campy voice you do is half hearted at best as you find yourself absorbed in the closest thing to a full home you’ll ever get. In this sleepy hollow with bedsheets and a boy, there is acceptance. 

Well, mostly. You think you dream about Luke brushing a kiss along your hairline in your last bit of consciousness. You think you wish it was real. You think you want him to do it again.   

iii. when you don't know who you are, you fuck around and find out

The last time your cabin lost a game of Capture the Flag, you’d still been taller than Luke. That’s how long your winning streak has felt. There’s no reason you foresee that changing today. Even when Annabeth drags Percy along with her on whatever surely precarious quest to victory she’s created. It’s unlike her, to bring a newbie along. It’s concerning. 

“He’s fine,” Luke drawls to you when your face has been tense for twenty minutes. “Annabeth’s got a plan.” He’s a little winded after clearing out some Ares kids with Chris. You aren’t much use when it comes to weapons—your friends take the lead as you wait from a distance, ready for backup. Thank the Gods they didn’t need it this time. You’re content to just watch, but whenever Luke grins after getting another kid to surrender, veins in his arms raised like rivers on a map, you get a little distracted and you’re not sure why. 

You just huff back at him, totally normal when he wipes a sheen of sweat off his jaw. “Annabeth’s gonna use him as cannon fodder,” you mutter back, and Luke hits your arm with an appalled grin. 

Annabeth did, in fact, have a plan. So you won. Obviously. 

You’re still doubtful Percy wasn’t cannon fodder, though, with how beat up he looks on the shoreline when the rest of your team flocks to the stolen flag to claim victory. He’s slumped down on the rocky shore, a few equally beaten Ares kids straggling away from him. 

“So I was right, huh?” Luke hums in your ear, pulling your eyes to him. 

He’s revelling in newfound glory, and damn it, you get confused when you look at him when he’s like this. You’re not sure when it happened but you want to tear your heart out of its chest because of how sick it makes you. Some of his curls are stuck to his forehead with sweat, his hair suffering a serious case of helmet-head. But it’s the pride oozing off him, the infectious happiness laced through his smile, that makes you fond of him in a way you’re not sure you should be. He’s beloved for a reason—he looks almost prophetic after winning a match, and he knows it. A glaring difference between the gangly boy you met all those summers ago. If you weren’t his best friend, you’d probably be one of his many admirers, watching his teammates fawn over his talent and wishing you were beside him. 

But you are beside him. And you’re his friend. Not an admirer. So everything’s fine. 

“You wouldn’t be saying that if we lost,” you retort, knocking your chestplate against his. It’s meant to be a friendly nudge, but Luke leans into it until you swear you feel his heart beating through the metal. 

He’s grown into his smile, less boyish and more wry. “You know I never lose, sailor.” 

You want to reply, but his eyes are startlingly pretty in the sunlight. That’s normal. Whatever. A heat rises in the apples of your cheeks so you scoff lightly and turn away as soon as possible. You feel Luke’s gaze following as you turn attention elsewhere. Your sternum feels fluttery.

Percy catches your attention again. Gods, he looks beat. He’s talking to Annabeth as she helps him up, and you see the gnarly scrape marring his cheek. You should probably check on him, right? 

You’re halfway to the kids when Annabeth shoves Percy backwards into the water. Like, shoves. 

“Annabeth!” You’re scowling at her the same way she scowled at you when you first hit Luke with that oar, rushing over to help Percy. 

“What is wrong with you?” Percy sputters out lying in the lake, but you’re ankles-deep in the water before you know it. He’s glaring daggers at Annabeth, but she looks relatively unimpressed. What happened during this game? 

“Thanks,” Percy mutters as you help him up. 

You say something to shrug it off but you can’t remember what, because your eyes are drawn to the scrape on his cheek. You have to blink a few times to get it, but you’re pretty sure it’s dissolving. Vanishing off his skin. “What the hell?”

Everyone on the shore is watching him now, trying to memorize his injuries before they wash away. Percy’s staring down at himself like he’s just been body-swapped. “I don’t understand.” 

You’ve never seen anything like this before. The strangest feeling fuels you—your bones feel firmer somehow, like the blood inside your body has weight to it. Like something is happening. A fear pierces your gut. 

Annabeth’s eyes have raised, and so have Percy’s. Your mouth goes dry. Right above him is the symbol of a trident, radiating so blue it washes out the sky itself. 

The claiming symbol of Poseidon. 

“Your dad’s calling,” Annabeth says, a smile itching the corners of her mouth. 

Percy looks like he’s going to pass out. You probably do too. “Told you you’d get claimed,” you manage to squeeze the words through the knot in your chest. 

You’re smiling until Percy looks at you, then looks up. His face goes white as a sheet. Or, as white as it can bathed in a pale blue glow. “Uh…” He blinks slowly, and your stomach twists. “I think she was talking to you.”

When you look up and see an identical trident looming over your head, you know something’s wrong. It’s made worse when Chiron rings out your and Percy’s name, branding you as children of Poseidon. 

Poseidon. 

You have a father. And he’s known you all this time. Your ears hollow out like a rush of water in a cavern.

Luke is the first to kneel. The rest of the camp follows. You watch as the entire camp basks in the glory of newcomer Percy Jackson, so quickly claimed by one of the most powerful Gods of Olympus. And you, who has waited five years to earn even a shred of his favour. 

This thing you’ve wanted for so long is suddenly the greatest insult in the world. Your best friend can’t even meet your eyes. 

iv. i remember who i am when i'm with you

You stare at Percy as he unpacks his things. Waiting to see traces of yourself in his face, traces of your father. Anything that could give you an inkling of what he looks like. Of what you look like. Of how this happened in the first place. 

It’s a futile search. Percy’s blue eyes, his freckles, the bridge of his nose, they’re all … nothing. Half of you is half of him, but there’s no indication of which parts. The cabin is cold. You’re not going to sleep well without Luke nearby. You’re not going to sleep well ever again. 

You feel nothing but strife, your throat closing in every time you take even a second to think. You don’t want Percy to see you cry. So you do what you always do. 

This has to be in the running for most overwhelming day of all time ever. Even when submerged in your favourite place on earth, you can’t get away from your dad. Your dumb stupid dad that has made the things you love and has ruined your life. 

You swim hard, and you loathe how good it feels. At least you know why now, but that doesn’t do much to ease you. When you pop up again, the sun has started to sink into the sea. And Gods, you have to give your dad credit. The landscape is so gorgeous you almost forget how long he’s ignored you. 

You wonder if this is the last time you’ll find solace in the lake. If eventually, it’ll be nothing but an extension of your father’s neglect. 

The water ripples around you. You frown, barely having noticed it when someone taps your shoulder. You turn. “Luke?” You swallow, but why are you surprised? 

He’s panting, cheeks splotched with sun as he treads water, droplets worming down his face from his soaking curls. “Been looking for you,” he puffs, “Percy’s worried. Called you from the—from the thingie but don’t think you heard me.”

You assume he means the docks, but you don’t say anything as he takes a deep, grounding breath. “You’ve been out here for hours. Hours. For a second I thought you drowned.”

“Now we know that can’t fucking happen,” you mutter a touch too bitterly, staring down at your legs warped beneath the water. 

Luke’s silent as he watches you. “…Have you been crying?”

When you don’t reply, Luke tugs on your wrist. “C’mon, sailor, let’s go.”

“Not tired,” you say, frozen by the hot tears brimming on your lashes. 

“I’m not leaving you out here. Come on.” He frowns when you yank your hand away as he tries pulling you again. “You’re gonna get heatstroke.”

“I’m fine.”

“No, you’re not.”

He reaches for you again and you try to reject it for a moment, but he’s stronger than you, and he loves you better than even the water could. The second he has you close your resolve falters. He holds you against his shoulder, knees knocking against yours as you tread. 

“It’s okay,” he croons when you involuntarily start to cry. For a Poseidon kid, you can’t seem to control your waterworks. “It’s okay, I know.”

His hand cards through your scalp and you relish in the warmth of his bare skin on your cheek. He smells like comfort. You cling to it with all you have, until your nails start to dig into his skin and your eyesight blurs. 

“Come back with me and I’ll dry you off, okay?” He kisses the top of your head, the way you dreamed it last night. “I’ll take care of it.”

You’re not sure which it he’s referring to, because it could honestly apply to anything. When you both set off for shore, you’re so distracted by your own misery that Luke’s actually able to keep up with you. He’s up on the dock before you so he can pull you out.��

The second you’re out of the water you feel like you’ve been gutted with a lead pipe. All the energy it gave you leaves, and you realize just how right Luke was about spending too much time out there. You can’t feel your legs. 

You buckle over almost instantly, but Luke holds you before you can even think of falling. “I’ve got you,” he assures, guiding you down to sit on the dock. Your eyes are too weak to even admire the sunset. Luke drapes a towel over your shoulders, rubbing it over your arms, a welcome familiarity. He takes his time, wringing your hair and drying your back as you gaze blankly ahead. There’s a tenderness to it now. Luke’s ruthless when it comes to a lot of things. When it comes to how he loves, too. But there’s nothing demanding here. He lets your tears fall in silence, undisturbed, the touch of his hands through the cloth a silent promise. 

When you’re fairly dry, he fetches something then quickly comes back. “Here.”

It’s his shirt. You only notice you’ve been shivering as he pulls it over your head, lets you fill in the sleeves, gently gathers your hair back. “Thanks,” you say. His fingertips brush your neck as he hooks them around your necklace to rest it over the shirt. You think he does it to remind you you’re still the same. You’ve had five years together. It doesn’t have to end now. 

“Why did it take him so long?” You struggle to say, eyes glossed like sea glass. “Why—why now? What did I do?”

Luke puts an arm around you. “I don’t know,” he mumbles honestly. 

You sink into his warmth like a wave meets the shore. “Five years, Luke. He ignored me for five years. And he takes Percy right—right away.” It’s hard not to choke between every word. “I just thought I’d never get claimed, and I was fine with that, and now I’m … this!”

Its hard to tell if the dampness of your cheeks are the remnants of saltwater or your tears. “I don’t want this,” you sniffle. “I waited so long … and I just don’t want it.”

Luke rubs your shoulder, lips pursed against your head. He murmurs into your hair, “I know, sailor. It’ll be okay. Promise.”

His voice is reserved. You look up at him. His jaw is resolute, his eyes red-rimmed in a way you hadn’t noticed before. “You’re upset too,” you comment quietly. 

He laughs listlessly. “Yeah, of course I am. I’m losing my favourite cabin mate.”

You sniff and try to smile. “Percy?”

He rolls his eyes fondly, and it feels like all you want. He squeezes your shoulders tight and you long desperately to be closer. “I just don’t know what I did wrong,” you whisper, pressing your cheek into him. “Why didn’t he see me until he saw Percy? Am I just … unremarkable or something?”

“No, no. Absolutely not—c’mere.” Luke loops an arm around your waist and manoeuvres you into his arms, cradled on his lap so you can bury your face in his neck. You can’t stop fucking crying, but his patience for you is infinite. “You are by far the most remarkable person I know.” He seals you against his chest, scratching your scalp the way he knows you like. “None of this is you, okay? Your dad’s an idiot. You are—you’re everything. They’re all mindless up there, they don’t know how to love you. They don’t deserve to.”

An edge seeps into his timbre that gives you pause. You feel weak, discarded. It sounds like he’s talking about a different person. But he’s right. He has to be, because he knows you better than you know yourself.

Luke keeps going. You peek at his face when he speaks. Stubborn as ever. “He doesn’t have any fucking right to you. If he wanted that he should’ve claimed you when you got here. You have a life. You … you had a home. And now just because he’s got another kid he kills two birds with one stone? He pretends like this is some Godly intervention? Like he didn’t ignore you the whole time you’ve been here because he couldn’t stand how much you didn’t need him? How much better you are? You’re my …” He struggles, brows furrowed, the sun melting in his eyes. “You’re my best friend, and we’re supposed to be together. He’s not allowed to take that from you.”

Your heart stirs. “Sounds like you’re jealous,” you try to tease.

Luke heaves a sigh, his muscles rippling against your chest. You’re suddenly aware of the fact that he’s got no shirt on. And that he’s pressed against you in a way that makes you question if you should be this close. Beads of water cling to the divots in his skin, and you linger a little too long on one nestled in his collarbone. You swear you think this every time he goes swimming with you: when did he get so … hot? And every time you think it, you want to gouge your heart out with a spoon. 

“Can you blame me?” A melancholy smile plays on his face. “I liked having you all to myself.”

Tears spring to your eyes all over again. “I liked that too.”

It’s a whisper that sends you forward, Luke bringing his forehead to your own, and you want to live in the warmth that coils through you. His nose catches against yours when he laughs, but he doesn’t move. You take a moment to savour it. You think he does too.

He wipes a tear off your face as you say, “I’m still yours.”

“Yeah?” Luke hums a bit, his hand sliding up your waist in a most unfriendly manner. “How?” 

You catch the glimmer in his eyes, that plucky smile he’s had since fourteen. Something shifts.

“What are you asking me, Luke?” You can’t fight the smile. 

“What do you want me to ask you?”

“I dunno, what do you want me to want you to ask you—”

“My Gods, you’re a pain in the ass.”

He groans, throws his head back, and kisses you like you aren’t the most annoying person in the world. 

It’s so cliché, but for a brief moment your strife is well worth it. You yank him closer before he pulls away. It’s a little unsure, the two of you so used to toeing the line, but soon you’ve given in and your hands are in his hair, mouths parting, and it’s messy and wanting and everything you need. 

Luke slips his hands beneath the hem of your shirt, palms flattening against your sun-beaten skin. It feels so good, better because the shirt is already his, a whine scratching your throat as he moves up so his thumbs graze the skin beneath the tie in your bathing suit. 

“Oh, sailor,” he coos against your mouth. You want to retaliate but it’s lost when he squeezes your thighs, warming you in all the right places. It’s hard to understand this is even happening—it feels like you’re underwater, a blissful fuzziness growing in your head entirely at his mercy. 

He razes kisses down your still-damp neck, catching pearls of water on his tongue. You cling to his shoulders, raking your hands down his back just so you can feel more of him. Luke’s dropped down to your collarbone at this point, tugging the neck of your shirt down as his teeth graze the bone. “You’re my best friend,” he mutters over your skin. “Still mine. Always mine.”

“Mmhm,” is all you can say back, the husk in his voice making your eyes screw shut. He teases a spot so sensitive you groan and laugh at the same time. The regret is immediate, but you feel a chuckle pass his lips, too. “Luke,” you purse a smile. He dots kisses back up your neck until you start returning the favour. 

You kiss his jaw, a few spots on his neck, feeling the flex of his muscle all around you as he squeezes the fat of your hips. You finally sweep up the water in the hollow of his collarbones, and his grunt of your name makes you, frankly, delirious. 

He brings your mouth back to his, skin sticking to each other. It’s harder to kiss as fervently when you’re both giggling against each other’s tongues, running fingers along the planes of each other’s bodies trying to see which places feel new and which are known from memory. It’s a fifty-fifty split, and you love it. 

Somewhere along the way he peeled off your shirt because it was clinging in places you knew he wanted, but now you’re panting and giggling into his hair, his nose pressed into your neck, both of you melded together with salt and sun. “You really know how to cheer a girl up, mailman,” you grin. 

His lips fix to your skin. “Really? You’re still gonna call me that right now?”

“Yeah.”

“Like it better when you call me captain,” he murmurs, nose grazing along your pulse. 

You swallow, “That doesn’t work unless we’re doing the whole sailor-ship bit.”

“We’re always doing the sailor-ship bit.”

“I seriously can’t believe I’m in love with you.”

He sighs warmly at the words. “You have no idea how much I’ve been dying for you to say that. Even though I knew you would.”

You roll your eyes as he presses his forehead to yours, and you’re more glad than ever that his face is the one you love so much. It’s a pretty great face. 

“You’re gonna be okay,” he says tenderly. “You’re too incredible for Poseidon. You’re worth more than that.”

He still looks gorgeous blurred by your tears. You listen to the beat of his heart and the waves rolling. “More than any water anywhere?”

“More than the fucking Styx, sailor. I’ll promise you that.”

That night, Luke stays with you and Percy in your cold chapel of a cabin. You exchange stories until Percy falls asleep in his bed, curled up like a sea otter. “He’s a drooler,” Luke notes fondly, eyes flicking to yours. “Like you.”

You shove his chest playfully until he wraps his arms around you and anchors you to sleep, like every night before. This time, as you drift off, he kisses your forehead again. Once because he loves you, and twice to make sure you know it’s real. 

luke taglist: @sunniskyies @apollos-calliope @lillycore @sunny747 @m00ng4z3r @pabkeh @thaliagracesgf @theadventuresofanartist @bonnie-tz @ash-williamsss @sucker-4-angst @kitkat-writes-stuff @too-deviant

let me know if you want to be added to the taglist!

#perrie’s fics #perrie's requests #luke castellan #luke castellan x reader #luke castellan imagine #luke castellan pjo #pjo fic #pjo fanfic #luke castellan fic #luke castellan x you #percy jackson and the olympians #charlie bushnell #pjo x reader #pjo #luke castellan angst #luke castellan fluff

[the-dumpster-fire-of-life]

In Every Life Time

Description: In every life time, you lost him. But in this one, each part of him you lost you find once more, staring back at you with a bit of each one you loved in each life time.

Percy has had many nightmares ever since he was young, especially since coming to camp Half Blood and being claimed as a son of Poseidon.

But he never liked any other dreams like these ones.

Percy would lay in bed, drift off only to end up somewhere else. Somewhere familiar. Somewhere he liked and somewhere he wasn't in a rush to leave.

Unlike the others before, this was different, but the same all at once.

Percy sat in a field, it was dark out, but the fireflies in the air lit up the sky unlike the stars did.

And Percy was breath taken once more as he stared at the same Goddess he saw every night sitting under the same willow rree, dressed in a white and gold trimmed Greek styled dress.

This time, the Goddess didn't look very...Goddes-Like. She looked younger, the same he always sees her as, but this time she felt it. Like in this dream, she wasn't a Goddess. The very first fifteen years of her life.

Like she was normal, younger, an actual teenager relaxing under a willow tree.

A boy in similar Greek clothing held his head in her lap, smiling up at the Goddess as if she had hung the sun up herself, hung the stars and painted the sky right before him.

Percy knew that look. He saw it every time in glimpses shared between the woman and all of the ones before, every single one different but the same all at once.

He looked a bit just like every one of them.

The same nose as the wood nymph from three dreams ago he had, the same green eyes as the Olympian from six dreams ago he had, black hair like the boy who ran around with a much younger goddess he had, the first dream he had of her.

“I would like to stay here.” Percy could make out the paint words, knowing what the man would say even before he spoke.

He saw the goddess speak, and like before, saw a look of sadness in her eyes as she smoothed her hand over the man's wild and messy hair. Hair just like Percys.

“I…I would like that as well…but we can't.” The goddess said, an almost distant look in her eyes before the warrior took her hand, kissing the back of it softly with a sigh.

“Why? You always say that like you're one step ahead. Why can I not?”

“I- I do not know. But...You will find out soon enough.”

And before Percy knew it, the all too well love scene before him faded in battle cries, swords clanging together and shouts of war.

Percy was in the middle of a battlefield, Gods and Goddess's fighting side by side and some against one another, fires roaring all around, he couldn't make out many faces, the ash burning in his lungs as he coughed.

Only thing he could see were her tears. Her tears as she held a limp, and very much so, dead and familiar man in her lap, brushing her thumbs against his cheeks as she said a silent prayer, her forehead to his almost as if it could bring him back.

She didn't sob, but he could hear her almost silent whispers.

"We should have stayed under our tree. I'm so sorry, my love. Please...find me when you are ready."

And just like that, Percy woke up with the bed shaken as Tyson woke him up, dragging him out of bed, to breakfast, and along the way to Annabeth and Grover with the goat boy he called his best friend, almost tap dancing in what seemed to be joy.

“Percy! I- we got chosen!”

“...What?”

Percy didn't expect for Grover to go on a rant about how the upcoming war was brewing, like he didn't already know.

Annabeth even had to cut in as Grover ran out of breath, giving the boy a moment before he started up again.

“Olympus needs all the warriors they can get. And they chose us to find the Goddess of (Create something you like bc idk)!” Grover fanboyed.

“Who?” Percy asked, confused at his friend's behavior and having never heard of that one. He's heard of, and fought, many gods and goddesses, but he's sure that one would've stuck if he crossed that bridge.

“The Goddess of (you choose).” Annabeth re-stated. “She used to be a mortal, but was captured during a really, really bad war and since the ones who captured her were fighting the gods, they punished her with immortality until-”

Annabeth cut herself off.

“Until what?” Percy probed with a frown, not wanting anyone to withhold information from him anymore.

“Until something. Her story doesn't go on from that, the ones that took her never said where she was. Even after they were sent to the Underworld and punished, she's been missing ever since!” Grover finished, almost shaking Percy by the shoulders.

Percy finally got it.

“So- we have to find her?”

“Yeah! Just like when we found Pan- but this can't be like that. This time, she is alive!” Grover insisted.

“We don't know that.” Annabeth sighed.

“Yes, we do!” Grover wasn't living this down and wasn't letting Annabeth either. “I know it, and we are gonna find her!”

And that's how Percy was dragged along the state, searching the skies, the gardens, underground, in every mythical and every sacred place he could think of.

Until, finally, Grover has led them to a garden of lights. For a seemingly prison, Percy has to admit, it didn't look like it.

Deers laid in the grass, birds chirped to their heart's desire, animals frolicking in the grass, koi and any other fish you could name in a waterfall so clear you could see to the bottom that glowed in the light.

It almost looked real. So surreal Percy didn't expect it. Especially when he leaned a bit too close, and a fish jumped up and scared him, falling back into the lake with a groan and his butt soaked.

He heard Annabeth and Grover yelp, their feet clashing with the water as they ran down after him.

He groaned as Annabeth and Grover dragged him to stand up, he almost barely noticed as both his friends froze in the middle of helping him, and a breeze went just past him.

No, not past him. It seemed to go over his entire body, around his arms, legs, messing up his already wild and black hair, feeling it on his nose, cheeks, lips and his eyes.

“Percy…”

Percy could barely make out Grovers whisper, his friend catching Percy's attention barely.

Percy looked between Annabeth and Grover, confused before he looked to see they were staring at a willow tree. Or, more like under the Willow tree.

Percy could feel his breath taken once more like in his dreams, seeing the same girl from them looking right back at him with the same look on her face

#percy jackson x reader #percy jackson #pjo x reader #anabeth pjo #percy pjo #grover pjo #pjo series #percy jackson and the olympians #percy jackson and the olympians x reader

[leoslosttoolbelt]

A little valdangelo word vomit for the weekend idk what im doing

Even as it sets, the sun feels like it’s burning into his back. Leo welcomes the natural heat because he knows that the seasons will change and autumn will come soon, and when autumn starts, so does Leo’s semester at university. 

Unlike some of his other friends he decided to leave both camps and go to MIT - his mom left enough money in his college fund for him to afford a small studio near campus and he’s landed himself a hefty scholarship. He’s only been at camp for a little less than two years but he still feels something tug at his heart at the thought of leaving. 

He’s safe here. There are people like him in camp - his siblings and his friends and even Dionysos who’s kind of nice when you get to know him. 

There’s Nico too. 

Nico who’s sitting beside him, bare legs dangling in the water as they watch the ripples. 

Nico’s said that he wants to stay at camp for a while longer before moving on - a decision that Leo understands. Nico deserves to be safe, he deserves to be surrounded with people who understand him. Leo would want to stay too if he wasn’t so used to always being on the move from the age of four. 

Besides, Nico promised he’d visit whenever either of them got lonely. 

This is still their last summer - and that leaves a bittersweet taste in his mouth. 

He’s sparred with Nico and gotten a stick and poke tattoo done by Piper. He’s woken up tangled in Nico’s dark grey bed sheets and fallen asleep to the sound of Jason and Percy arguing about something that he can’t be bothered to pay attention to. He’s watched Nico get his first piercing and helped Annabeth with her ‘summer architectural projects’. He snuck out of camp with Nico to watch the sunset and swam in the sea with Percy. 

He’s spent hours just laying beside Nico in his room, tracing the curves of his skin and trying to commit them to memory. Pressing his fingers against the slope of his collarbones and kissing the back of his knees. He’s carded his fingers through Nico’s hair and woken up to the feeling of Nico’s fingers scratching lazily at his binder but he still doesn’t know what they are. 

They kiss. 

Nico presses him against his door when everyone’s asleep and Leo’s makeshift bed in Bunker 9 can fit 2 people now. He can feel the ghost of Nico’s soft fingers brushing against his waist when they’re with friends - and he can recall the way Nico looks when he’s asleep, eyebrows relaxed and nose twitching every once in a while. 

They’ve kept whatever it is going on between them a secret for the summer and Leo doesn’t mind in the slightest. 

He thought it would bother him, all the sneaking around and secret glances during meals. He thought that he wouldn’t be satisfied with making out in a bed of pegasus hay (not the best makeout spot) and having no one to go to when he wants to rant and scream about the way Nico randomly stuffs his hands in Leo’s pockets. He always thought that when he would love - it would be loud and red and all consuming. 

But this summer fling is coloured golden and soft along the corners. Nico makes him feel so safe and secure. He never pushes Leo to take off his binder when they’re fooling around but always makes sure that he’s being safe about his binding schedule. 

Nico looks at Leo in a way that Leo’s never been looked at before and he doesn’t think that he’s ready to ever find out how Nico feels about him - he doesn’t think that he’s strong enough to handle that just yet. 

“You’ve been quiet for a while.” Nico splashes him with water - Leo shivers. 

“Fuck you,” He replies without any heat behind his words as he kicks Nico’s shin under the water. “Just thinking about next week.” 

Nico hums, scooting closer to him. Their pinkies are barely touching on the grass and Leo thinks back to the first time they sat like this, back when Nico was still a bit weird with how much and how long he touched Leo. Back when he didn’t know that this summer would be the most memorable one of his life. 

Leo turns to face him, eyes drawn to the piece of shiny metal poking from his lips. He remembers the day Nico got his lip piercing - probably because they didn’t kiss for a full two weeks afterwards, leaving Leo all needy and dramatic. The ring digs into the skin of Nico’s lip and Leo’s found himself staring at it unconsciously whenever he speaks - he’s pretty sure that Nico knows, just like he knows that he’s staring right now. 

“Wanna know something about my piercing?” He asks. 

Leo nods. He’s still staring. 

“Ever since I got it,” He leans in so that Leo can hear him even if he whispers. “They make my lips feel really cold.” 

Leo can’t really help the quirk of his eyebrows when he hears that, or the little breath he lets out when he asks, “Oh?” 

Nico nods, looking at Leo in the same way that makes his heart flutter and his chest tighten. They’re in public - in plain fucking sight of anyone who might want to walk by and Nico is looking at him as if he’s something worth being cherishd - as if their summer together might bleed into all the other seasons. 

Leo’s not the best at words - he says too much without actually saying things that matter - which is why instead of ‘I love you’ or ‘I’m scared about college’ or ‘I hope you come visit’ or ‘what are we now that summer is over’ or even ‘I hope the season’s don’t change us’ he laughs and says “I could help with that you know.” 

He doesn’t know who initiates the kiss - he doesn’t think it matters too much. But Nico’s lips are on his - soft and cold and sticky sweet from the lemonade he had earlier. Nico is cupping his cheeks and - why are his hands so fucking cold - Leo’s hands are on his shoulders, fumbling to pull him closer. 

Leo giggles against Nico’s lips when he feels one of the boy's dark curls tickle his cheeks, and then he’s pulling away just to be pulled back into a longer kiss. 

Leo can feel Nico’s smile against his own and that’s how he knows that he’s got it real bad for the boy kissing him, enough to make this summer romance work even when Autumn rolls by. 

#pjo hoo toa #leo valdez #nico di angelo #valdangelo #boys kissing #drabble

[love-has-a-way-ofgrowingbackward]

It's Stop Making The Seven As Nico's Friend Group In Fanfics Friday

#nico di angelo #they fucking hated him #or were scared by him #I'd go so far as to say disgusted #NO he deserves better than going back to the people who mistreated him #not ONE of them noticed him starving himself and interrogated the hell outta him the moment he came back from tartarus and the jar #????? #like what's up with that #percy and annabeth get to relax with their friends under the sun and get to not tell them everything about their experiences #they even saw all that through the mist and they had each other and had people waiting for them to come up #NOT Nico #he went on purpose #just for them #and it's like they don't even give him a choice??? #they look at him like he's a fucking freak??? #hello??? #he's not??? #he's just. #severely neurodivergent (hello rsd) #with EVEN worse cptsd #he was thirteen fucking years old #im pretty sure they wouldn't even treat a stranger as badly as they did Nico #what the FUCK was up with Frank rounding up on Nico because he forgot a fucking card game rule in the middle of a fucking fight #im sure he would've controlled himself enough if it was someone else like piper or something #(he and piper weren't friends but he would still treat her with more respect than nico got all his life) #he would NEVER get away without apologising later #nico's entire trauma roots from intense shame #the argo 2 crew did NOT help with that #im not asking them to play shrink ik they're teens too but some basic respect would've been nice #esp to the boy who went to motherfucking tartarus for them and almost killed himself for camps that rejected him

[knuffled]

Just Practice - Chapter 15

this is the most important chapter in the story so far since chapter seven, so i hope you enjoy this! if you could drop a comment and/or reblog to support all the hard work, it would mean a lot to me! 

here’s the ao3 link

The first thing that greeted Annabeth when she stepped out of her car was the sound of crashing waves and the smell of sea salt carried on a gentle breeze. She leaned against the side of her car and drank in the view of the ocean, relishing in the way the wind tousled her hair. The beach was packed with families and college students on spring break, and for good reason. It was late March, and the weather was absolutely perfect outside. The sand was pleasantly warm between her toes, and seagulls cawed overhead in a clear blue sky.

Coming to the beach for spring break had been Rachel’s idea. Her father owned a villa not far from the shore, and she had offered to let them all stay there overnight. It was exactly what Annabeth needed after the past month and a half. After Percy’s victory at state, Annabeth had been absolutely swamped with school work. Nearly every week there was some new project deadline, essay to turn in, or exam to study for, and by the time finals rolled around, Annabeth found herself running on fumes. She hadn’t realized how bad it was until she came home after her final exam and promptly passed the fuck out in her room only to wake up the following afternoon, seventeen hours later.

Annabeth gave herself some time to just stand barefoot in the sand until Piper texted her, informing her that she and Jason were setting up camp further down the beach where it was more secluded. Taking that as her cue to move, Annabeth leisurely made her way down the beach and found Piper and Jason a few minutes later, trying to set up a beach umbrella. The umbrella was an ancient red and white striped monstrosity that looked like it had seen better days. Annabeth watched her friends struggle for a while, amused by how frustrated they were getting when the base of the umbrella slipped in the sand, until Piper noticed her and scowled.

“Are you just gonna stand there and watch or do you plan on helping out?” Piper huffed.

“But you were doing oh so well without me,” Annabeth said innocently. “I wouldn’t want to get in the way or anything.”

Jason put a hand on Piper’s shoulder before she could snap and offered Annabeth a tired smile. “We could really use your help, Annabeth.”

“Well, since you asked so nicely.”

Piper muttered something foul under her breath, but Annabeth couldn’t help grinning anyways before she went to help Jason. It took longer than she would have liked, but eventually the three of them managed to get the umbrella to stay in place, just as Hazel, Frank, and Leo arrived.

Leo pointed at the umbrella and said, “That thing looks like it came straight out of the fifties.”

“Shut it, Valdez,” Piper snapped. “We just spent nearly twenty minutes trying to get that fucker to stay still.”

Leo held his palms up in surrender. “Ok, apologies. Looks like someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. I get it. It’s cool.”

“That wasn’t an invitation to keep talking,” Piper warned.

Leo pantomimed zipping his lips, making Annabeth grin. Rolling her eyes, Hazel unzipped her backpack and handed each of them a bottle of homemade lemonade.

“Hopefully, it’s still cold and all the ice didn’t melt,” Hazel said.

Piper took a sip and moaned, “Hazel, you’re a goddamn lifesaver.”

“Don’t make noises like that in public,” Annabeth quipped.

Although she wanted to glare at Annabeth, Piper spotted Rachel and Percy further down the beach and called out to them instead. Annabeth’s heart suddenly began pounding harder in her chest, and she found herself involuntarily searching for him over her shoulder. They had barely talked or even seen each other since State, so she had expected to be more excited to see him, but she found herself strangely nervous instead. The nervousness only grew worse for some reason when Percy noticed her and sent her a warm smile.

“Sorry we’re late,” Percy said. “Rache forgot something so we had to drive back to her place.”

“Let’s not sweat the details,” Rachel said, waving her hand dismissively. “Now, I don’t know about you all, but I am dying to get into the water. Anyone know where the changing rooms are?”

“I saw some on the way here,” Hazel said. “Annabeth, did you want to join us?”

Annabeth cleared her throat and shook her head. “Uh, no, I’m wearing my swimsuit under my clothes already.”

With that, Hazel nodded and left with Rachel for the changing rooms. The boys went down to the water, but Percy stayed behind since he had brought some beach towels with him. He spread them beneath the umbrella so they wouldn’t have to sit on the sand. Piper left a short while later once she was done applying some sunscreen, leaving Annabeth and Percy alone. Annabeth borrowed Piper’s sunscreen as an excuse to leave after Percy did, but he plopped down beside her with a sigh instead.

Annabeth couldn’t help sneaking a quick sidelong glance at him. He looked good, really good. His unzipped black sweatshirt billowed in the breeze and stood in sharp contrast to the white shirt he wore underneath. There was a relaxed, easy smile on his face, and his sun-kissed skin made him look positively radiant.

“Hey, stranger,” Percy said, derailing her thoughts. “Haven’t seen you in a hot minute.”

Annabeth tucked her hair behind her reddening ears and said, “Y-Yeah, not since State, I think.”

“Glad to see you’re still in one piece,” Percy said.

Annabeth breathed a laugh. “Not entirely sure about that.”

Percy cocked his head to the side and studied her. “You do look a little worse for the wear.”

“Rude.”

“And who’s fault is that?” Percy asked, raising an eyebrow. “I distinctly remember warning you not to take three AP courses your senior year, but you wouldn’t listen to me.”

Annabeth scowled and said, “You don’t have to sound so smug about it.”

Percy laughed and leaned back on his elbows. “And what would be the fun in that? It’s not every day that you get to tell Annabeth Chase that you told her so.”

“Someone sure sounds awfully pleased with himself.”

“Oh, believe me, I am,” Percy said, grinning. “But I do suppose I can cut you some slack. You know, considering how we’re at the beach and all.”

“How magnanimous of you,” Annabeth deadpanned.

Percy made a show of clapping mildly. “Oh, well done. That sounded like an SAT word.”

Annabeth barked a laugh despite herself and shoved him, but that only made his grin widen. She was relieved to feel the awkwardness dissipating between them, but her respite was short lived because Percy suddenly removed his shirt and tossed it on the towel beside her.

“W-What are you doing? Why are you taking off your clothes?” Annabeth stammered, unable to hide the panic in her voice.

Percy looked at her like she had sprouted a second head. “It’s kind of hard to go swimming when you still have your clothes on.”

Annabeth looked away to hide the fact that her face was turning pink. “I know that! But can’t you go change in the changing rooms?”

Percy blinked in surprise and said, “Oh, sorry. You’ve seen me do this like a hundred times, so I didn’t think that you’d mind.”

He was right. She had seen him shirtless more times than she could count, so why was she suddenly being so weird about it? She needed to get a fucking grip. And yet, it was everything she could do not to stare shamelessly at him. Christ, at this proximity, the scent of his cologne was inescapable, and it only served to make her feel even more flustered.

“Annabeth, are you okay? You’ve been acting really strange,” Percy said.

“I-I’m fine,” Annabeth squeaked. “Just tired.”

“Alright, try not to push yourself,” Percy said, standing up. “I’m gonna head down to the water now. Let me know if you need anything.”

Annabeth nodded, still refusing to look at him. It was only after he was gone that she stopped holding her breath. She screwed her eyes shut and buried her face in her hands. What the fuck was she doing? Why was she acting so weird? All her feelings seemed to contradict one another. She felt a bizarre mix of exhilaration and anxiety, like thousands of butterflies fluttering about in the pit of her stomach. Her eyes were drawn to Percy even though she couldn’t bear to look at him. There was definitely something wrong with her.

Annabeth took a deep breath and forced herself to stand up and head down to the water. For now, she resolved herself to just make the most of her time at the beach instead of wallowing in her own awkwardness. Nevertheless, she did make a point of avoiding where Percy was to give herself a breather. However, in her momentary lapse of concentration, Piper snuck up on her and tackled her into the sea, sending salt water rushing up her nose.

She surfaced sputtering and discombobulated only to find Piper laughing uproariously behind her. Annabeth chased after her in a murderous rage, but Piper quickly retreated to the sea and put some distance between them. Piper had always been the better swimmer, so it took a few minutes before Annabeth finally caught her, but once she did, Annabeth dunked her underwater for a full minute as payback.

Eventually, Rachel and Hazel returned from the changing rooms and joined them in the water as well. They all splashed around together for a few hours under the midday sun, and Annabeth forgot all about how awkward she felt around Percy.

They broke for lunch after that and settled on a shack that sold burgers further up the beach. Unfortunately, the only vegetarian option on the menu was fries, so Piper had to drive herself to a nearby Taco Bell. Annabeth couldn’t help feeling sorry for her when Piper returned twenty minutes later, absolutely livid, because the rest of them had already finished eating.

“I can’t fucking believe there are still restaurants in this day and age that don’t have vegetarian options,” Piper fumed.

“Remind me to buy some stuff for dinner tonight so you don’t have to do this again,” Rachel said, yawning.

“How far away is your villa again?” Frank asked.

“Just a fifteen minute drive or so,” Rachel said, finishing her salad. “We’ve got a firepit out back, so we can have a bonfire tonight! We can make smores and everything.”

“Dibs on lighting the bonfire,” Leo said quickly.

“Abso-fucking-lutely not,” Piper said vehemently.

“C’mon, I promise I’ll keep it under control this time, Pipes,” Leo pleaded.

“The last time you were in charge of the bonfire, you nearly burned my fucking house down,” Piper snapped.

“That was like three years ago!”

“It was at my birthday last June.”

“I’ll handle the fire, Leo,” Jason interrupted. “You can help me out if you’d like.”

Leo sank in his seat and crossed his arms over his chest. “You guys are no fun.”

“A bonfire sounds nice,” Frank said, ignoring him.

“Yeah, it’ll be chill,” Rachel said, nodding. “We’ll have a section of the beach all to ourselves. I think my dad probably has some alcohol stashed away somewhere in the house.”

“Percy, watch over us and make sure we don’t do anything stupid,” Piper said, throwing an arm around his shoulder.

Percy gave her a wary look. “I don’t recall volunteering to be a babysitter.”

“But you’re the only one here that doesn’t drink,” Piper protested. “Pretty please?”

Percy raised an eyebrow. “Buttering me up isn’t going to work, you know.”

“Annabeth, help me convince your boyfriend,” Piper whined.

Annabeth paused mid-drink and looked between them. “Don’t look at me. I’m not the one that’ll get black-out drunk and try to like hunt for mermaids or something.”

That got a laugh out of everyone, much to Piper’s chagrin.

After they finished eating, they returned to their spot under the umbrella. Hazel and Frank went back to laze around in the water while Rachel and Leo decided to go build sandcastles on the beach. The rest of them sat under the umbrella and talked amongst themselves for a while, but eventually Jason left for the bathroom. Percy joined him because he said he had spotted a shop selling snow cones on the way here, leaving Annabeth alone with Piper.

Once they were out of earshot, Piper turned to Annabeth with a wolfish grin. “Lovin’ the swimsuit, babe.”

“This is hardly anything special,” Annabeth said, rolling her eyes. She was just wearing a plain black two piece she’d found at Target the summer before.

Piper raised an eyebrow and said, “Percy certainly seemed to think it was. Boy couldn’t take his eyes off you.”

Annabeth blinked in surprise. Piper had to be trolling her. Sure, she had felt his eyes on her a few times, but that didn’t mean anything.

“You’re obviously fucking with me.”

“I’m being serious,” Piper laughed. “You look hot, Annababe.”

Annabeth looked down at her swimsuit and felt her face heat up. She didn’t really think she was much to look at honestly. It wasn’t like she had low self-esteem or anything, but her body had always been more of an instrument to her than a source of beauty. If you asked her, the only things she really had going for her were her height and the slender, toned physique that she had built over years of running long distance. Beyond that, Annabeth thought she was rather plain.

“Thanks,” Annabeth mumbled.

“You’re welcome,” Piper said, stifling a yawn. “I wonder what’s taking him so long.”

Annabeth shielded her eyes from the sun and scanned the beach for Percy, but she didn’t see him anywhere. Instead of sitting around and getting stuck in her thoughts, Annabeth decided to take her mind off things and search for him instead.

She stood up and brushed the sand off her thighs and said, “I’m gonna go look for him.”

“Ok, stay safe,” Piper said. “I think I’m going to take a nap.”

Annabeth nodded and made her way back in the direction of the parking lot. Percy had said that the snow cone shop was on the other end, but he still should have gotten back by now. Maybe he was having trouble carrying all those snow cones by himself or perhaps the line was really long. She made it all the way to the shop without running into Percy, and she couldn’t see him standing in line either.

She scanned the surrounding area for him without much luck and almost gave up on her search when she spotted the familiar outline of his back. He was cradling a carton of snow cones in his arms and talking to two college aged girls. Annabeth took a step forward, trepidation filling her chest. She couldn’t make out the look on his face because his back was turned towards her, but she thought she caught a glimpse of a polite, confused smile on his face, like he wasn’t entirely sure why the girls were talking to him.

Annabeth balled her hands in fists at her sides and clenched her jaw. It was obvious by the way the girls laughed sycophantically and twirled their hair, practically thrusting their tits in his face, that they were hitting on him. What did the idiot think would happen if he was gonna waltz around the beach shirtless like that?

She had half a mind to go over and interrupt them, but for some reason she found herself rooted in place. Annabeth wasn’t sure why she disliked them so much, but the more she thought about it, the less reason she realized she had to interfere. Percy wasn’t actually her boyfriend after all. Besides, he was free to leave at any time, but he hadn’t which probably meant he wanted to be there. In any case, it was none of her business to step in.

And yet, she couldn’t force herself to simply turn on her heels and leave either.

But then one of the girls, a haughty looking redhead, started tugging on his forearm insistently. Percy made a small show of resistance, enough to show he wasn’t interested, but apparently they didn’t seem to pick up on that because the other girl decided to help her friend by tugging Percy’s other arm.

Annabeth moved without realizing what she was doing and pulled Percy against her chest. A possessive thrill rushed through her when the look of discomfort on his face gave way to relief once he saw her.

She positioned herself in front of Percy and glared at the girls. “What’s going on here?”

The redhead’s eyes flashed with irritation, but she forced herself to muster a saccharine smile. “Oh, we were just inviting him to come have some drinks with us.”

“Can’t you see he’s clearly uncomfortable?” Annabeth asked. “I’m guessing he even told you he doesn’t drink too.”

The girls exchanged looks with each other. “I mean, he was obviously joking about that.”

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. “Or maybe you just don’t know how to take no for an answer.”

The girls recoiled like they had been slapped across the face. Annabeth took the opportunity to whisper to Percy that they were leaving and led him away by the hand before the girls could react. The girls protested behind them, but the only thing Annabeth could focus on was the feeling of Percy’s hand in hers. Blood pounded in Annabeth’s ears, and something simmered in her veins like magma. It took her a while to realize that Percy was calling out for her to stop.

“Annabeth, slow down,” Percy said. “You’re hurting me.”

Annabeth dropped his wrist like she’d been burned and looked away. “Sorry.”

Percy set the snow cones down and rubbed his wrist. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

“Are you sur-”

“I said I’m fine,” Annabeth snapped.

Her tone was harsh enough to prove she was lying, but she couldn’t help it. Something dark smoldered in the pit of her stomach, making her restless. She didn’t know what it was, but the sensation was intolerable and she wanted it to stop.

Percy put a hand on her shoulder and forced her to face him. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

Annabeth balled her hands into fists and stared at her feet. “I-I don’t know. I’m just- I don’t know, I feel really weird.”

“What do you mean?”

“I just hated it, seeing the way they were clinging on to you,” Annabeth said tightly. “Why didn’t you just leave? It was like you wanted them to fawn all over you.”

“I tried but they wouldn’t let me leave.”

Annabeth met his eyes for the first time. “If you really wanted to leave, they wouldn’t have been able to stop you.”

Percy blinked in surprise and furrowed his brow. “Are you- are you jealous?”

Annabeth crossed her arms over her chest, and her face began to prickle. “I-I don’t know. I just didn’t like it.”

Percy’s lips tugged upwards involuntarily in a smile, making Annabeth even angrier. “What’s so funny?”

Percy hid his smile behind his hand. “Oh, um, nothing. Sorry. I just wanted to say that you didn’t have anything to worry about. They were making me super uncomfortable.”

Annabeth pursed her lips and said, “I find that kind of hard to believe.”

“Annabeth, come on, you could tell that they were creeping the fuck out of me from a mile away,” Percy said exasperatedly.

That was enough to coax a smile out of her. “You mean you didn’t like getting eye fucked by total strangers?”

Percy gave her an incredulous look and said, “You know, having tried it, I can’t really say it’s for me.”

“Yeah?” Annabeth asked, grinning.

“Yes,” Percy said flatly. “Besides, I already have a lovely fake-girlfriend willing to save me when I’m a damsel in distress.”

Annabeth’s heart skipped a beat. “Sounds like a real catch.”

“Oh, she most definitely is.”

Annabeth knew that Percy had meant it as a joke, but it made her heart squeeze a little in her chest all the same. She turned away before her face turned red and fought the ridiculous urge to smile. Christ, she needed to get ahold of herself.

“You good?” Percy asked carefully.

Annabeth nodded. “Yeah.”

“We should get going then,” Percy said. “The snow cones are starting to melt.”

“And who’s fault is that?” Annabeth said, raising an eyebrow.

“Don’t be rude to the guy that bought you a strawberry-rhubarb snow cone.”

“A thousand apologies, your majesty.”

Percy hummed happily to himself. “That’s more like it.”

:::

After sunset, they finally left the beach and made for Rachel’s villa. The villa was massive, easily twice the size of Annabeth’s house, and designed in a Spanish style. Annabeth took a moment to admire the terracotta tiled roof, and the large windows that allowed for a generous view of the Pacific. The villa had six separate bedrooms, which she personally found a bit excessive, but it proved to be for the best since there were eight of them. After Rachel took a room for herself, the rest of them drew straws to determine who would have a room to themselves, and Annabeth somehow managed to win.

Annabeth’s first course of action after dropping off her luggage was to shower. She didn’t like having to shower after spending so much time in the ocean since it made her skin all dry and wrinkly, but it was still a relief to finally wash off all the sand that had stuck to her all day. Unfortunately, Annabeth had been forced to pack in a hurry, so she could only change into what she worn earlier that morning. She had only brought a single change of clothes with her and that was for tomorrow.

She took some time to admire her room while she towel-dried her hair. It wasn’t particularly large, but it was tastefully decorated. A large queen bed sat in the center of the room, flanked by a small cherry wood drawer. Sheer linen curtains framed a tall window that looked out over the ocean. Annabeth leaned against the open window sill and drank in the view of the Pacific. The full moon hung directly overhead and cast its pale, diffused reflection onto the dark water below.

Just as she finished drying her hair, there was a knock at her door. Percy peered into her room, fiddling with the zipper on his sweatshirt.

“Hey, ready to go? I think Jason and Leo are getting the fire started.”

Annabeth set her towel aside and nodded. “Yeah, let’s go.”

The bonfire was nearly fully lit by the time they arrived. Jason sat atop one of the four logs circling the pit and kept a watchful eye on the flames. Off to the side, Frank was helping Leo dump some charcoal into the mouth of an expensive looking barbeque grill. Rachel and Hazel chatted to themselves and cut meat and vegetables at the outdoor kitchen countertop. Piper was the only one that appeared to be missing.

Percy noticed that Frank and Leo were having trouble and went over to help them with the grill, leaving Annabeth alone. She didn’t want to be the only one twiddling her thumbs so she figured she would go and help Rachel and Hazel.

“Need any help?” Annabeth asked them.

Hazel shook her head. “No thanks. We are pretty much done here, but we appreciate the offer.”

“Besides, not sure how much I trust you in the kitchen with a knife,” Rachel teased.

“I’m not completely hopeless. I made Percy chicken soup when he got sick, and he said it was pretty good,” Annabeth protested.

Rachel laughed and said, “You could literally make Percy drink poison, and he’d tell you it was delicious if you were the one that made it.”

Blood rushed to Annabeth’s face, making Rachel laugh even harder. She patted Annabeth’s shoulder benevolently and said, “Trust me. It’s for your own good, Chase.”

Annabeth shrugged her off and sat on one of the logs with a scowl. “Where’s Piper?”

“Rachel forgot to get her ingredients, so she had to go buy herself dinner again, the poor girl,” Hazel said.

Rachel looked repentant enough for Annabeth to feel sorry for her, so Annabeth tried to comfort her by saying, “She’s probably more than happy to have Taco Bell twice in one day.”

Annabeth started when someone swatted the back of her head. She turned and looked up with a frown to see Piper standing behind her, holding a burrito.

“Heard that, asshole.”

“You’re literally eating a burrito right now,” Annabeth muttered.

Piper’s face turned pink. “It’s from Chipotle! You can tell by the size!”

“Wow, someone’s getting adventurous,” Annabeth deadpanned.

Piper sat down at the log across from her, beside Jason, and narrowed her eyes. “Bite me.”

Annabeth was interrupted by Leo before she could respond. He skipped over to them with a manic grin and said, “We finally got the grill working!”

“You’re not gonna accidentally blow us up or anything right?” Piper asked dubiously.

“Pipes, charcoal can’t explode,” Leo said flatly. “I know you’re a vegetarian and all, but that’s literally second grade science class.”

“You can never be too sure when it comes to you,” Piper sniffed.

Leo rolled his eyes and waltzed over to Hazel and Rachel. “Looks like you’re almost done! I’ll start taking things over to the grill to get started.”

“Frank, make sure you keep an eye on him!” Hazel shouted when Leo took a plateful of meat and vegetables with him.

Rachel declared to the group that she would go find where her father had stashed his alcohol and returned a short while later with an assortment of liquor and a tray full of glasses. They all poured themselves drinks, apart from Percy, and sat around the fire.

Annabeth had helped herself to some fancy looking bourbon, mainly because she had never tried it before. Her first sip made her throat burn and forced her to cough. Percy gave her a worried look, but she ignored him and took another sip. Once she got over how strong it was, she had to admit that the bourbon was really good. It didn’t take long for that familiar warmth to spread through her body and soften the harsh edges of the world around her.

It took some time for the food to arrive, but it was well worth the wait. Frank had found an array of spices in the kitchen pantry to season the meat with, so even the smell was incredible. After an exhausting day at the beach, they all practically inhaled their food. Piper finished her food first since she had a head start and set up a smores station for dessert. It wasn’t long before they were fighting for spots to roast their marshmallows on the fire.

Later, Rachel disappeared inside the villa and returned with an acoustic guitar. She strummed a few chords and started singing softly, the sound of waves and the crackling fire providing an ambient backdrop. At first, she sang on her own and they were content to listen, but as they got more drunk and uninhibited, they would join in whenever she played a tune they recognized. Barring Frank and Piper, the rest of them were practically tone-deaf, so it sounded so bad that it would send them all into fits of laughter.

It was at times like this that Annabeth was struck by just how lucky she was to have such good friends. She didn’t have many good things in her life, but this was one of them and it wouldn’t last forever. There was no telling where they would all be in a years time or if they would ever be this close again, but that didn’t make her feel sad. Instead, an overwhelming sense of love and gratitude surged through her veins, compelling her to drink in every moment and seat it into her memory so that she would never forget.

But through it all, Annabeth found her eyes drawn to the boy sitting beside her the most. She unconsciously pulled herself closer to Percy over the course of the night and luxuriated in the way their elbows knocked together, a reminder that he was there. Annabeth would catch herself staring at him and the way the flames lit up his laughing face, making him all look every bit as invincible as she felt. At some point, she caught his hand and tangled his fingers between her own, and when he squeezed her hand, she smiled so hard it hurt.

As the night wore on, more of them left, unable to stay awake any longer, until eventually Percy and Annabeth were the only one remaining. The quietness was welcome change after all the noise they had been making, but it was hard not to fall asleep the sound of the rolling waves. Annabeth struggled to keep her drooping eyes open, but Percy looked perfectly fine, probably because he was the only one who hadn’t drank.

“You should go get some sleep,” Percy murmured. “Look like you’re gonna pass out.”

Annabeth hummed and rested her head on his shoulder. “Don’t want to.”

“If you’re expecting me to carry you, you’re going to be sorely mistaken,” Percy said, raising an eyebrow. “You’re too heavy.”

If she had the energy, Annabeth would have scowled. “Rude.”

Percy grinned and looked out over the ocean with a pensive, almost melancholy look. Annabeth poked his cheek with her finger to get him to look at her.

“What are you thinking about?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” Percy said. “About everything, I guess.”

“Hmm, deep.”

Percy laughed and said, “Alright, smarty pants, I was thinking about the future and my friends and you.”

“Then why do you look so sad?” Annabeth asked, sitting up straighter.

Percy blinked in surprise and said, “I look sad?”

Annabeth nodded and pressed a finger to his brow. “You’re giving yourself wrinkles, like you always do when you’re upset.”

There was a pause before Percy said, “Remember earlier when you saved me from those college girls?”

“What about it?”

Percy stared up at the sky and smiled bitterly. “I never imagined you would ever get jealous over me.”

Maybe it was the alcohol talking, but Annabeth found herself saying, “Neither did I.”

Percy turned to her with wide eyes, making her frown. “What?”

“I, uh, wasn’t expecting you to answer seriously.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes and nudged him affectionately. “I’m taking this seriously because you are.”

Percy smiled softly and said, “Thanks, I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome, you dork,” Annabeth said fondly. “Honestly, since when did you become the serious, responsible out of the two of us. What ever happened to the kid that caught frogs during recess and put worms in Nancy Bobofit’s locker?”

Percy laughed and said, “Well, one of us had to grow up, so I figured it might as well be me.”

Annabeth half-heartedly jabbed him with her elbow. “Jerk.”

“You’ve grown up a lot too,” Percy said. “You just don’t realize it.”

“Yeah, how so?” Annabeth asked, raising an eyebrow.

“You’ve learned to temper yourself. When you were younger, it was like fire ran through your veins. You acted like the world and everything were promised to you, not out of some sense of arrogance, but like it was your birthright. I remember how you used to argue with the teachers and stuff in front of the whole class because it never occurred to you that there were people you shouldn’t pick fights with. I was always kind of in of awe of how stupidly brave you were. I still am,” Percy said, softly.

A lump formed in Annabeth’s throat. Percy was right, about everything, but that wasn’t what was getting to her. It was the fact that his words were a testament to the fact that he had been there with her since the beginning. He had seen her as a bossy, bratty little seven year old and had stuck by her side all the way till now.

“We have been through a lot together, haven’t we?” Annabeth asked thickly.

The tender look in Percy’s eyes made her heart squeeze a little in her chest. “Yeah, we have.”

Annabeth screwed her eyes shut, unable to look at him. She didn’t want this to end, but the moment was beginning to get too much for her, so she stood up suddenly.

“Alright, enough with all the sappiness,” Annabeth said. “Race you to the beach?”

Without waiting for him to respond, Annabeth took off for the water’s edge, running as hard as she could. Percy started a moment later, humoring her like always, and quickly made up the distance. If it wasn’t for the sand and the fact that she was super drunk, Annabeth would have won, but it wasn’t long before Percy caught up to her and slung her over his shoulder. Annabeth shrieked and pounded on his back.

“You better not dump me in the water, you asshole!” Annabeth yelled.

Percy ignored her and sped towards the water, making her fear for the worst. She braced herself for impact, but it never came. Instead, he set her down onto dry sand and grinned down at her. Annabeth scowled and stood up, dusting the sand off her shorts, watching as he rolled up his shorts and waded further into the water. The encroaching tide was cold enough to make her jump when it tickled her toes, but Percy seemed perfectly fine going knee deep into it.

The moonlight streamed down on him, illuminating half his face with its pale glow. Wind rustled his hair and billowed through his clothes as he stared out at the horizon. Under the moonlight, he seemed to age backwards and actually look his eighteen years - the hard lines of worry on his brow smoothened, and the tightness and frustration in his jaws released. There was something about his pale figure standing in the inky sea that made him look so beautiful and true that it made it hard for her to breathe. It reminded her of how Piper had said she had fallen for Jason, how he had seemed to glow, and she couldn’t help feeling like she understood exactly what Piper had meant.

Percy noticed her looking and raised an eyebrow. “What?”

Annabeth balled her hands into fists at her side. She wasn’t ready to say it. Not yet. “N-Nothing.”

Percy didn’t look convinced, but he shrugged all the same. Annabeth stared down at her feet so that she wouldn’t be forced to look at him, but her heart pounded in her chest urgently. She started when Percy draped his sweatshirt over her shoulders and stepped past her. It was warm, and it smelled like him.

“I’m gonna head inside,” Percy said softly. “Don’t stay out for too long, okay?”

Annabeth nodded, not trusting herself to speak. Percy lingered there for a moment longer before leaving. Annabeth waited till she heard him enter the villa before she collapsed down on the sand and hugged her knees to her chest. An explanation for her actions and feelings today were finally starting to dawn on her, which sent equal parts terror and exhilaration coursing through her as she stared up at the moon. Her inability to look at him conflicting with her desire never to leave him, the nervousness and exhilaration, the jealousy - all of it pointed to one thing. She was just having a hard time accepting it.

Whenever Annabeth had imagined falling in love, she had expected it to strike her like a bolt of lightning, illuminating her with a sudden, arresting, all-consuming knowledge.

She hadn’t ever imagined that it would be like this: soft and gentle, like an unfolding discovery, the way the petals unfurled when a flower bloomed. And yet, just as sure, just as certain.

Annabeth buried her face in her hands. Try as she might, she couldn’t deny it any longer.

Fuck.

She was in love with him, wasn’t she? She was in love with Percy Jackson.

#just practice #percabeth #percabeth fluff #percabeth fic #percy jackson #annabeth chase #percabeth fake dating au

[purple-fireflies]

Could you do number 99 with Percabeth?

Hey N! Thanks for the ask :)

You can find the prompt list here if anyone would like to request something

Prompt: 99. “I fell in love with you, not them.”

I made it a songfic (Mine by Taylor Swift)

And yes, I'm aware I haven't done the entire song in it's completion, I just took the parts I wanted.

You were in college, working part-time, waiting tables Left a small town, never looked back I was a flight risk, with a fear of fallin' Wondering why we bother with love, if it never lasts

Annabeth is 7. Her dad is yelling, he's yelling so loudly and she wants to run. So badly.

So she does.

She runs and she almost gets caught. Scary men leer at her and she doesn't know where she's going.

A boy, a boy with golden hair, golden like the sun, finds her.

She's safe.

Or, better said, she was 7.

Now, she's 14 and everyone is telling her that Luke is a traitor.

Now, she makes the decision not to love.

Why should she, if all they're going to do is leave her?

And this annoying brat of a kid keeps hanging around her. He's nice, Percy.

Percy, who's very clumsy. Percy, who has a gift with a sword. A gift so similar to Luke's. Percy, who looks at her like she always has the answers. Percy, who makes her laugh.

Percy, who's going to die, if the Oracle is right, or who's going to leave.

I say, "Can you believe it?" As we're lyin' on the couch The moment, I can see it Yes, yes, I can see it now

She can't stop herself from getting attached to Percy. And, wow, does she try.

So now, she's just bitten the bullet.

And well, the time she has with Percy before he turns 16 is the sweetest she gets.

They go to beaches and pools, and he tries to splash her but never succeeds anyway.

They pick strawberries in the garden at Camp Half-Blood and laze around in the sun.

She cheers him on at swim meets and he convinces her to reopen contact with her dad.

And easily, as if it was second nature, she falls. She sees Luke's face at the back of her mind each time she thinks "I love you"

It wouldn't happen either way. The oracle says Percy's going to die.

Even if he didn't, Percy would leave anyway.

Do you remember, we were sittin', there by the water? You put your arm around me for the first time You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter You are the best thing, that's ever been mine

"I bet you I can swim 10 laps in under 2 minutes," Percy says, flipping his hair out of the way.

Stop. Don't look at his eyes. It's Percy. Just. Percy.

"You're the son of Poseidon, seaweed brain, that's hardly a fair bet,"

"You're no fun," Percy whines, sitting on the blanket Annabeth put down.

The reflection of the pool glints in Percy's eyes as he shoots Annabeth a lopsided smile.

"I keep you alive, don't I?" She shoots back, ruffling his hair.

"Not that I'm not ecstatic to see you, because I am, but aren't you supposed to be in California right now?" He asks.

"Family was visiting New York, so I thought I'd, you know, stop by," She replies, trying to be nonchalant.

"Your dad doesn't know you're here does he?" Percy asks.

"No, he does not,"

"Good to know I'm a bad influence," He says, grinning that grin that campers swoon about when he's not looking.

Only for you, Annabeth thinks.

She punches him instead.

Flash forward, and we're takin' on the world together And there's a drawer of my things at your place You learn my secrets and you figure out why I'm guarded You say we'll never make my parents' mistakes

And we got bills to pay We got nothin' figured out When it was hard to take Yes, yes This is what I thought about

New Rome is gorgeous and so is their apartment.

Well, it would be. You know, if Percy would actually unpack the boxes once in a while.

But, it's fine. It's amazing actually. Because after everything, everything, she finally gets this.

She finally gets to have this.

Even when she's freaking out about the rent or her student loans or how Percy always tracks mud into the apartment, she gets to have this.

She gets to have Percy for the rest of their lives.

And I remember that fight, two-thirty am 'Cause everything was slipping right out of our hands I ran out, crying, and you followed me out into the street

Braced myself for the goodbye, 'Cause that's all I've ever known Then, you took me by surprise You said, "I'll never leave you alone"

"You're not listening, Percy!"

"Annabeth, I am. And I'm telling you, there's nothing to worry about!"

"Of course there is something to worry about!"

"It's just Rachel. We're friends. Friends, Annabeth. That's it."

"You and I were friends before the ring, Percy," Annabeth yells back.

She knows Percy would never. She knows, she knows, she knows.

But she's scared. And she doesn't want him to leave. She wants this to be her something permanent and she's scared.

"Anna—" Percy tries to respond, moving closer.

She relaxes slightly when he hugs her.

"I fell in love with you, Annabeth, not Rachel." He says, his voice a soft whisper.

She looks up, and she sees his eyes.

He understands. He understands that she's scared.

And she knows he's not leaving.

Not when they were 16, not when Hera took her, and not now.

They're forever.

#percabeth #percabeth fic #percy and annabeth #percy x annabeth #send me asks #sorry this was so long lol #drabble

[cuquitalocita]

'Tis the Season- Percabeth

AN: Percabeth AU where Sally Blofis is an art teacher and a new student has just moved in down the street.  Percy wants nothing more than to spend his Saturday relaxing on the couch with his little sister, but when he meets this new blonde... well, needless to say things weren’t what he planned.

This is based on a real encounter my friend had so thanks Caeden, I hope you learn her name :)

~~

Percy puffed a mouthful of ice-cold air through his conjoined fists as he rocked back and forth on his heels.  He glared at the bare wooden door, manifesting it to open as he knocked again with more force this time, suddenly annoyed at everything-; the early hour, the freezing weather, the art supplies his mother had asked him to drop off at her new student’s house- the student that also happened to be his new neighbor, and even the lack of decoration on said neighbor's house.  

He couldn’t believe it, but sure enough, his hand had come into contact with the one door in the neighborhood- hell- the one door in New York that didn’t have a wreath on it.  

No lights rimmed the house’s massive exterior and no cheesy blow-up Frosty’s or Rudolph’s littered the front yard, no smoke came from the wood-burning chimney which was everyone’s favorite house perk around this time of year, and from what Percy could see through the windows, no extravagantly bright Christmas tree stood anywhere in the house.

Who were these people?  And what the hell was wrong with them?

Percy almost felt as if it was a personal attack on himself and his family who always went all out for the holidays starting right as October ended, shoving up the largest tree they could find in the living room and munching on his mother’s delicious blue chocolate chip cookies as he and Estelle decorated the tree.  

His little sister had even asked him to let her put the star on the tree this year and Percy had been more than obliged to do so, lifting her up until she sat on his shoulders and reached over his head to set their Christmas in motion.

So as he stared at the cold dark house, he couldn’t help but feeling a negative prejudice against them without having met the people. 

Distaste soured his mouth as he rolled his eyes and scooped up the box of heavy art supplies that had been lying at his feet.  This time his knock was anything but friendly and something a bit too aggressive for the holiday season. Percy heard rushed angry footsteps stomp through the house before the heavy door flew open as if it was nothing to reveal-

“God what-”  

The rest of the words buzz out of comprehension in Percy’s mind as he stared at the blonde in front of him.  He wondered if his jaw had dropped to the floor or if he was just imagining the sudden hollowness in his stomach and facial features as though one look from her had made his soul soluble and had phased through his body and onto the ground, ready to be stepped on by her.

She was- well, she was gorgeous.

Wearing simple black leggings and a sweatshirt covered with a flannel and toes covered in fuzzy bear socks.  The girl couldn’t have been any older or younger than him if Percy had to guess, but her high and defined cheekbones gave her the illusion of utmost respect and entitlement that also happened to frame her face in the picture of elegance.  Her tan skin indicated that she definitely wasn’t from New York or anywhere without too much sun but with her blonde hair it was unlikely that her tan was too genetic.  It was wildly curly, stuck in a strange knot she had clearly done up at the last minute, even forgetting some pieces that were sticking out in ringlets that framed her perfect face, some of them even covering up her eyes.

Her eyes.

God, Percy didn’t even know what to think about her eyes or where to start. The sharp gray color like storm clouds that reflected a power he didn’t know a teenage girl could possess?  Or the sharp electricity of the calculating gaze they fixed him with?  Her eyes held an intensity unlike Percy had ever experienced and he found himself unable to pull away- matching her look with his own, and green and gray met in the middle, colliding in some sort of delightful chaos.  

Apparently, she had asked Percy a question- she was now looking at him under raised brows.

“Uh-” Percy managed out.  “Sorry, what?”

The girl opened her mouth as if to snap out a retort but quickly shut it tried again, her eyes slipping away from his for a second before returning.

“I asked if I could help you?” she asked, not kindly.  But Percy couldn’t have cared less considering that her voice was just about as perfect as her face- smoky and lower than a girls usually was.  He knew he could listen to it for hours.

“Hello?  Are you conscious?” 

Or- maybe not.  

Get it together Percy.

“Sorry I’m just- uh, never mind.  It’s so cold I think I have a brain freeze,” he tried.

She didn’t laugh, and he couldn’t say he was surprised.  But something in her features softened, making her look younger, and the cold sent a blush onto her cheeks.

“So...” she urged him.

“Oh!” he reached into the top of the box to pull out a white piece of paper.  “Uh, I’m supposed to give this to... Annabeth Chase?”  

The girl inhaled and held out her arms, letting them drop to her sides after a second.

“That’s me.”

Annabeth.  And of course, the name had to suit her perfectly, clearly chosen with thought about which two names to mesh together for a child intelligent enough to probably invent a new space shuttle.

“Great.”  Percy had managed to find his voice again.  “This is for you.  From my Mom.”  She fixed him with a bemused look and as an explanation, he said, “She’s the art teacher at Goode, and because of the stuff her AP students are doing she usually thinks its easier for them to use her own supplies instead of the crappy public school stuff.”

Annabeth had started nodding halfway through his sentence, clearly picking up the hint quickly enough and before Percy could move an inch, the box was out of his hands and in Annabeth’s arms.  She held the weight like it was nothing which Percy- due to the walk there- could say definitely wasn’t true.  

“You don’t have to-”

“I’ve got it,” she replied dismissively.  “Anything else?”

“Trying to get rid of me so quickly Chase?” he smirked to cover up how fast his heart was pounding as her eyes met his.

“Well you know what they say.  When you try and don’t succeed...” 

“Ouch!” Percy feigned an injury, clutching his numb hand to his shoulder as if he had been shot.  But Annabeth just rolled her eyes and Percy was able to catch the almost unrecognizable tilt to the side of her lip in a small smile.  A beat of warmth coursed through him at the sight.  “I was also sent to give you...” 

Percy picked up the tin container that was on the ground next to Annabeth’s feet.

“These.”

“What are they?” she asked, and her gray eyes took on a curious note.

“They’re your official welcome to the neighborhood- from my Mom.  They’re cookies, she makes the best batch you’ll ever taste.”  Annabeth’s mouth almost pulled into a smile before flattening out again and when she looked back at him- well, Percy didn’t know what to think.

She arched a brow.  “What if I said I’m allergic to gluten?”

Percy smiled, playing along.  “I’d say you’re an awful liar and a buzzkill.”

“And if I said I just don’t like chocolate chip cookies?”

“I’d say you’re a psychopath and a witch.  How did you know they’re chocolate chip?”  When Annabeth smiled, a piece of Percy’s heart seemed to chip off, leaving him breathless at how beautiful it was.

“I guess I can just read you like a book Jackson,” she shrugged then turned her back to him as she looked inside the house as if contemplating something.

“Well, I have to put this inside and I’d rather your Mom didn’t fail me for killing her son, so you can come in.”  She didn’t wait for his response before turning and strutting into her house, leaving Percy with no other option but to follow.

He closed the door behind him and relished the warmth of the massive house and before he could look around Annabeth was back at his side and grabbing the tin of cookies from him.  She opened the lid and took one out- pausing to observe it.

She adorably quirked an eyebrow upwards.  “Blue?”

Percy shrugged, scratching the back of his neck to cover up how red it probably was.

“What’s wrong with blue?”

“I didn’t say there was anything wrong with blue.  Your choice?” she assumed, and Percy could just nod.  She was sharp, he’d give her that.

He tried not to watch as she took a bite and her eyes widened a fraction. 

“Are you sure your mom is an art teacher and not God?  These are amazing!” Percy smiled and rolled his eyes, shrugging.  His first Annabeth Chase compliment, and it had been to his mother.  

“Every Mom has two things,” he said, and he watched as Annabeth’s gray eyes darkened a fraction.  

“No,” she said quietly, finishing off the cookie and dusting her fingers off.  “They don’t.”  Percy opened his mouth to say something but Annabeth had moved to the kitchen counter and was unpacking his mother’s box.

He glanced around the room in silence, his eyes quickly migrating to a painting he could have recognized anywhere.  His feet seemed to fly across the house quicker than ever to observe the painting and his jaw dropped as he realized-

“Annabeth.  Chase.” he managed out.

Annabeth spun around and one look at his face had her own turning cold and letting out a broken laugh.

“Of course you recognize the painting.  I keep forgetting you’re the son of an art teacher.”  Her feet were silent as she walked to stand next to him and observe the painting, her calculating gaze back on display.

“Your mother is Athena Chase?”  

“The one and only,” she replied without taking her eyes off of the painting.  Angry eyes.

Percy gaped at her, somehow even more impressed with the blonde girl in front of him.  If her mother was one of the best painters he had ever seen and she was in a college-level art class- he could only imagine how talented she was. “She’s amazing!  I mean- she painted The Eye of Nobody in-”

“Twenty minutes.  Yep, I’m aware.”  Annabeth’s eyes shot back to his and the fiery anger in them stopped him in his tracks.  “And if you’re just gonna stand there and gawk all day, you can look it up on the internet.  So if we’re done here...” she began walking towards the door and suddenly Percy was the angry one.  

He hadn’t said anything wrong.  So why was she suddenly so pissed at him?

The words were out before he could stop them.

“Do you have an issue with me?” 

Annabeth’s hand stopped on the handle of the door and she turned back to him, her gaze searing into his face.

“Did I say I have an issue with you?” she snapped.

“You seem like the type of girl who has an issue with everyone,” Percy shot back, suddenly sick of being Mr. Nice Guy.  

Since the moment she had opened the door, Annabeth had been colder than the ten-degree weather outside and Percy was just about sick of it.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”  Annabeth folded her arms in front of her and Percy could’ve felt the power and stubbornness in the stance all the way from North Korea, where he would much rather have been at this moment.

“That maybe if you stopped glaring for two seconds people might tolerate you.” The measly seconds that Annabeth had smiled- or even stopped glaring- had made Percy feel warmer than any present on Christmas day, and it seemed to be the one thing Annabeth refused to do.  

“Don’t flatter yourself into thinking I care what you think of me Jackson,” she scoffed, and damn if the sound didn’t make him want to kiss her annoying face.   Glaring at him in blind anger and she was still the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, and Percy was starting to hate her for it.

“Bold of you to assume I was talking about me, Chase.  Maybe I was referring to whatever poor soul gets stuck walking next to you on the sidewalk.”

Her eyes flashed.

“It’s cute how ignorant you are.  Keep it up.  We wouldn’t want anyone to think the Jackson boy is anything less than perfect, now would we?”

“So you do think I’m cute?  At least you admit it,” Percy smirked.

Annabeth rolled her eyes, apparently done with this conversation.  Her mouth pulled into a cold smirk.  

“The only thing that I think is cute is your complete lack of knowledge about anything not having to do with your precious swim team,” she gestured to his Goode High Swimming hoodie, “or what skateboard you’re getting for Christmas this year,” she sneered.

“Oh because you think of much more important things,” he rolled his eyes.

“I didn’t need to meet you to know that I do, Jackson.”

He hid how the comment stung, unable to give her the high ground.

“Well, that’s not a very nice thing to say, Miss Chase.  We wouldn’t want you to end up on the naughty list.”  

Annabeth gave him a look of pure disgust and yanked the door open, grabbing his arm with so much force that Percy wasn’t ready for how fast he was thrown out the door.  Percy ignored the electricity her touch had felt like on his arm as he looked at her again.

“I’ll tell you exactly where you can shove your list.”  She arched her brow as if in a challenge and Percy couldn’t help it as a laugh burst out of his mouth and he caught the lift of Annabeth’s before she turned it back down again.  

“Well I have to say, bantering you has been fun, it really has.  I probably burnt off enough calories to eat an entire tin of cookies again.  But that being said, I am sad to announce that it’s time for me to make my departure.”

“An unfortunate event,” Annabeth replied in a monotone voice while rolling her eyes.

Percy ignored her comment.  “Aw don’t worry Wise Girl, I know you’ll miss me but no need to fret.  I’m sure our paths will cross once more.  So with these final words, I leave you.”

“Why, Jackson, do you insist on being such a royal pain in my ass?”

“Well I can’t very well be a peasant pain, now can I?  Have you seen this face?” 

Annabeth took a step out of the house until they were almost nose to nose, due to her being a step above his and Percy’s heart skipped a beat.  

“Indeed I have.  You better get going before I change my mind about getting an A and make some changes to that pretty face.  And say thank you to your Mom for me.  For the supplies-and the cookies.”  

Had she said something?  Percy was hardly listening with how close they were.  She smelled of lemon.  Of course, she had to smell like one of the best scents ever.  

“Well in that case,” Percy managed to get out.  

So Percy forced himself to step back and didn’t mistake the look of victory in the blonde’s eyes as he walked back to the front of her house where the mailbox sat.  He turned back one final time.

“I knew you thought I was pretty Wise Girl,” he called out with a wink, and Percy would’ve paid money to see her roll her eyes in such a humorous way again.

“Maybe I was pitying you.  ‘Tis the season and all that,” she shrugged, leveling him with a gaze he never wanted to break.

“Have fun with Max, Mrs. Grinch,” was all Percy said as he walked off without hearing the retort he knew she had ready on her tongue.  

Because she always had something to say.  Annabeth Chase could dish it out as well as she could take it and Percy had never met anyone like her.  She was witty and intelligent, and so damn beautiful that he couldn’t resist looking back just in time to see her turn to go back into the house.

And there was no mistaking the expression on her face as anything other than a true, gorgeous Annabeth Chase smile.  

And hell if Percy didn’t trip on his own feet and go careening straight into Mr. D’s massive pile of old snow that lay on the side of his house after seeing it. The snow shocked him enough to get out of Annabeth land long enough to dust off the snow and stand again, shaking the wet snow out of his hair when he heard the unmistakable voice of a certain blonde.

“I saw that Jackson!”  

‘Tis the season indeed.

~~

ahhhhh!!  that’s it!  i hope you guys enjoyed reading this as much as i enjoyed writing it even though i totally strayed from my original idea of a cutie meet cute hehe my bad.  but hey, what’s percabeth without a little fighting right?  

anyway, thank you so, so much for reading and ily!

#percy jackson #annabeth chase #percabeth #fanfic

[pjoseries]

hi! congrats on reaching 600 followers!! i'm a brand new follower and i'd love to request ✨ a drabble for percabeth and soulmate (born with a tattoo of soulmate's last words) thank you and congrats again!

✨ soulmates are born with a tattoo of their soulmate's last words (ao3 link)

(***post-canon, major character death, some violence)

══════════════════

The ocean is quiet today. The waves skirt passed her ankles like it’s afraid to overwhelm her. It won’t. Nothing about the water can—too many memories steeped in sunlight, gold dripping through her hands until all that’s left are remnants of the shine she once experienced. She should try to thank Poseidon for taming the sea for the day, but she thinks he needs it too. He’s always been fond of Percy and despite knowing him for years, the death of his son will still weigh heavily on him. 

Annabeth curls her knees up to her chest and she settles her head down, one hand drifting mindlessly through the sand. It takes her a minute to realize she was doodling Percy’s features, nothing really distinct. Just the sharp line of a jaw, the swoop of his hair, the curve of his smile. It hasn’t been long since the funeral, since she gripped Percy’s shroud in her hands and watched as everyone bowed their head and spoke a prayer when it caught flame, but she’s so scared of forgetting his face. She wipes away the sand on her bare calves, letting it stick to her even if the coarseness of it makes her itch under her skin. 

She can’t help but remember the last time his funeral happened, years ago when they were both just teens, and Percy barged in on his shroud burning. Gods, the anger left as quickly as it appeared, too busy drowning in relief at the sight of him. She remembers those weeks after she left Percy to die on that mountain, remembers how she thought with a bitter tinge of regret that he wasn’t her soulmate, but he was her best friend and she lost him and it took everything in her not to break down because it was her fault. 

Then he came back. But he’s not coming back this time. Not even if she begs the gods, travels down to Hades to bargain for his soul herself. She’s not Orpheus and he’s not Eurydice and they’re not a tragedy or some messed up story that can be solved with a few tricks and pretty words. 

Percy’s dead.  

He said the last words etched into the fabric of her skin. That’s more permanent than death. 

His words ache on the side of her ribs, burning a little. It’s nothing she hasn’t dealt with before, so she just shifts quietly to ease the pain. 

There’s a crash of a wave that’s louder in her ears and somebody sits next to her. She doesn’t turn her head from her view of the sea. Bits of sun peaks through the gray skies and it hits the water, bouncing the light back up to her own gaze. The ocean today is a few shades off from Percy’s eyes. 

“I’m sorry for your loss,” Poseidon says, something caught in his throat. Annabeth ignores it and nods in acknowledgement. 

She coughs. “I’m sorry for yours too.”

They stay silent and the waves recede even more, not like when Percy does it. He restrains it so much when he’s emotional, it roars back at him, a perfect representation of his own thoughts. Today though, it’s not suppressed and bubbling and ready to strike out again. It’s just sad.  

“He’s probably waiting in Elysium.” The for you is implied, but she hears it all the same. 

“You knew?” she asks, spreading her legs out in front of her. She risks a glance at Poseidon and, fuck, it hurts so much to see Percy in him. She adds, almost casually if it’s not for her eyes stinging from the tears she’s holding back, “That we’re soulmates. Were soulmates.”

“It’s not a known fact, but we can sense soulmates. Not to the extent that Aphrodite does, but the stronger the bond, the more apparent it is.”

“How long have you known?”

“Oh, early on,” he says, giving her a gentle smile. “Perhaps when you were dancing back in Olympus. The first time, mind you.”

The laugh that leaves her chest is a little wobbly. She wipes her tears away swiftly. “I miss him. So much.”

“I do too.”

“I don’t know how I’m gonna do this without him,” she says, her hands trembling. “He had so many years left, so many left—” with me. “A-and now I have to live without him? Stupid Seaweed Brain. He could’ve at least waited a few more damn years! Demigods don’t live long anyway, I’d probably get killed by some rogue monster.” 

In a fit of childish anger, she throws some sand at the sea. It doesn’t help. She huffs out an exasperated breath and lays down, throwing an arm over her eyes. The sand tickles at her scalp and she can feel a lump of slimy seaweed near her arm. 

Stupid seaweed. 

Her chest shakes with silent sobs and Poseidon taps at her shoulder, giving her time to grieve. And she has time. All the time, without Percy. 

Annabeth sends a prayer to Percy and thinks, I’ll see you later.

It must’ve been the wind, but she can almost hear a voice call back: Take your time. I’m not going anywhere. 

━━━━━━━━━▼━━━━━━━━━

Annabeth finds Percy in the crowd and jumps into his awaiting arms, ignoring any odd stares that’s sent her way. He lifts her up off her feet and twirls her around before kissing the tip of her nose. He grins widely, his dimple widening and she presses her lips to it. 

“Missed you,” she says into his cheek. 

“Missed you too, baby,” he says, then whispers, “How’s Olympus holding up?”

She rolls her eyes and threads her arm through Percy’s, gripping at his elbow as they start walking down to their apartment. “You’d think after fifteen years, they’d finally stop arguing about statute placements. Anyway, forget that. Who are we meeting today for dinner? Is it Demeter’s kids or Apollo’s?” 

“Neither, it’s Nike’s kids today.”

Percy makes it a tradition to bring some of the kids out one day of the week to Sally’s for a wellness check-up and ask if they need a place to crash while some transition out of camp back into the world. Annabeth thinks it’s sweet that Percy’s such a caring camp counselor. She knows if someone ever did that for her back when she was a year-round camper, she’d cry. As much as she loves it (and she does, enough to share some of Percy’s camp duties when she has some free time during summer), it’s rather isolating. 

While they’re walking, they hear the sound of metal and hissing and they take one look at each other before they run towards the alleyway. 

It’s one of the kids, bruised up and bleeding, but her sword’s still up despite her whole arm shaking. The kid’s eyes catch Percy’s and her body relaxes slightly, but enough for the empousa on the far right to begin striking. 

Percy quickly uncaps riptide and intercepts it. His movements are sure and steady, moving his body in front of the kid’s. Annabeth flicks her wrist and her knife comes down easily in her hand. She circles the next two empousi on the left and manages to kill one by surprise. Annabeth’s lucky she’s wearing a simple tee and jeans instead of her usual outfit whenever she goes up to Olympus. There’s way too many for one kid and her mind whirs with hundreds of possible answers as to why there’s a hoard near Sally’s apartment tonight. Despite her thoughts, she manages to gut another one while Percy’s fighting off two more and the kid another. 

In what seems like a split second, the kid screams and Percy turns around and blocks the attack that would’ve gone through the kid’s heart. But as he does so, his back turns against the other two and Annabeth rushes to fight them off because, dammit, she should’ve had his back. In a panic, she throws her knife and it lodges into one of their heads, leaving her knife clattering on the ground surrounded by dust. But she’s too late. Gods, she’s too late. 

Annabeth picks her knife back up, but the empousa tears a whole through Percy’s side, just as he kills the one targeting the kid. Annabeth yells, feral and wild, and slits the empousa’s throat, the last of their gurgling laugh dying as they turn to dust. 

Percy slumps to the floor and Annabeth rushes to him. She pats at her pockets for her emergency stash of ambrosia, but they’re flat. She turns towards the kid, frantic, and orders, “Run back to Sally’s and grab the ambrosia.”

The kid’s eyes were flickering towards Percy’s stomach. Frightened. Annabeth doesn’t have the guts to admit that she’s frightened too. “Go.”

The kid runs and Annabeth’s attention is back to Percy who’s shivering. They have no water, no ambrosia, and they’re in the middle of a damn alleyway and he’s bleeding out so fast. Shit. 

“Percy,” she says, trembling. “Can you move? We have to move, baby.”

“Can’t,” he grits out. He lets out a forced laugh. “Think my insides are gonna pop out.”

Annabeth’s vision is blurry and she can’t fucking see anything. She shudders in a breath and tries to gently hold Percy together. “Percy, please. Please, this can’t be how it ends. You’re supposed to be with me forever.”

“Sorry,” he says. “Sorry, baby. My—fuck, my forever isn’t that long. Glad I spent it with you.”

“We have to get out of here,” she mutters, leaning down and pressing her forehead to his. Her tears fall on his cheeks. She repeats, “We have to get out of here.”

There’s something unbearably sad in Percy’s gaze. The hand that’s not pressed to his stomach reaches up and tucks her hair back. It falls back down, too weak to hold itself up any longer. “Everything will be alright. It’s okay, Annabeth. Everything will be alright.”

She shakes her head and sobs.

Those are the words tattooed on her ribs. When she reaches up again to say more, Percy’s eyes were glazed and distant, staring up at the gloomy sky. 

━━━━━━━━━▼━━━━━━━━━

When they find her, she’s still crying, holding her dead soulmate to her chest.

#percabeth fic #percabeth drabbles #percabeth #pjo #f: pjo #p: percabeth #misc: fr #my writing #* #je réponds #la poste #alyssa's 600 #frozen2s #tw character death #tw violence #yet again the tags fail me #fic: we can meet again somewhere

[happyk44]

For @achillesmonochrome based in this AU

--

Annabeth splayed out on the bed. Two hours listening to Percy rant and rave and then another hour helping him fine tune his shrine for the billionth time.

Why couldn't he just use a candle like a normal person?

Piper kicked open the bedroom door and stood there, arms on her hips, eyes flaring. Annabeth sat up and grinned. "You look sexy."

Piper stormed over and pushed her down, straddling her hips. "There's no amount of flattery that can save you now. You've crossed the line, Bethany."

Settling her hands into the nice curve of Piper's hips, Annabeth rolled her eyes. "He's my best friend."

"And that's fine! But using Grover-" She jabbed Annabeth's chest. "That's just cheating."

"You say that like he's actually going to come down and pick one of them," Annabeth huffed.

"I like to believe in love."

"And that's what makes you a sucker." She locked her grip and rolled them over, her hands snapping up to pin Piper's in place above her head. "You look cute like this."

Piper grinned mockingly. "Not happening."

Annabeth groaned and dropped her head. "Pipes-"

"Nope!" In a smooth move even Annabeth couldn’t have calculated, Piper slid one leg under Annabeth’s outstretched body, locking it over her shoulder and flipping her over. She bounced up before Annabeth could grab her again. “No sexy time for you until you apologize and agree to stop helping Percy in his worthless crusade for moon ass.”

“No.” Piper flipped her hair over her shoulder and fixed Annabeth with a pointed look. Fine. She could dig her heels in too. Annabeth crossed her arms. “If you’re going to be a nuisance about this, I’m not cuddling you tonight.”

Piper’s face fell for a quick second before hardening. “I don’t need cuddles.”

She was such a liar. She was almost as bad, if not worse, than Percy was when it came to demanding casual physical affection. If Percy was an octopus then she was a koala.

Clingy as fuck.

“Okay. Then we’re both fine.” Annabeth pulled her hair up into a tight ponytail. Piper’s eyes traced the bare skin of her exposed neck and shoulders. “I’m gonna order Taco Bell.”

As she passed by Piper, she deliberately held her body back, refusing the barest hint of skin-to-skin and smiled meanly at her girlfriend of three years. Piper frowned as she passed, the frown slipping into a scowl the moment Annabeth had her back turned.

“I don’t need cuddles,” she heard her mutter.

Annabeth snorted. Yes, you do.

She grabbed the Taco Bell menu pinned to their takeout board and flipped through it. Fishing her phone from her back pocket, she opened up the delivery app, eyes still trained on the words written in front of her. Out of the corner of her vision, she saw her phone go black.

She glanced at it. Gave it a little shake. Huh, she thought, pressing the power button and watching it glow back to life. Weird. Thought I changed the screen time.

She shook her head, scrolling through the delivery app until she hit Taco Bell. She passed the menu off to Piper’s outstretched hands, sneakily dipping out of the way when she tried to stroke her fingers on the grab.

Halfway through her order, the phone went black again. “Are you fucking shitting me?” she muttered. She squeezed the power button.

It didn’t turn on.

What the-

“Ann?” Piper called out. She glanced up to where she was staring. The TV was glitching, a mass of empty static on the screen. “Is it broken?” Annabeth stepped closer, Piper not following. ”This is how white people die, Annabeth!”

“Oh, don’t be ridiculous.” Annabeth glanced behind the TV. “It’s probably just a wire or something.”

“Of course you would say that,” Piper hissed, grabbing the metallic bat from her baseball kit stored by the front door. Bat balanced in front of her, she pushed herself up the wall. “Between me and you, I’ll probably die first. You get to be the final girl.”

“If I’m gonna be the final girl, it’ll be because I’m smart enough not to get outwitted by a demon,” Annabeth grunted, reaching behind the TV and fiddling with the wires. She checked the TV, seeing empty static. “Not because of racism.”

“It always comes down to racism,” Piper muttered.

Annabeth frowned, stepping out from the side. She picked up the remote and tried to change the channel but the static didn’t vanish. “Fucking hell,” she grumbled. “Must be the cable box.”

“Demon!” Piper protested. “Did you fuck with one of my sigils? I swear to the gods, Beth, if you fucked with one of my sigils-”

“Why would I fuck with one of your sigils, Pipes?” Annabeth yanked out the cable box and fiddled with the wires but it was fine. She frowned and turned the box off. The static didn’t vanish. She turned the TV off. The red light vanished but the static remained. “Hmm. Well, now I’m stumped.”

“Check on my sigils!”

She groaned. “If I knew letting you live with me would make a puppet like this, I wouldn’t have agreed,” she muttered, pushing up from her knees and checking the hidden painter’s tape Piper had pressed along the edge of the wall. It took a few seconds for her to spark her own second vision to see the hidden tape and it’s resulting intricately designed sigils.

“I don’t know why you didn’t have your own! Who lives without protection like that?” Piper protested.

Her knees burned as she crawled along the floor but she still huffed out, “People who don’t have werewolf friends?”

“Hahaha.” 

“I’m only kidding a little bit.” She grunted as she came to the doorway splitting the living room from the hallway. “I don’t fuck with anything or anyone that doesn’t belong to our Lady Reyna and/or isn’t human. That keeps me pretty safe.”

“Grover isn’t human.”

“Grover doesn’t count,” Annabeth muttered. She turned to crawl around the doorway when her vision split. Ugh. Another reason why she couldn’t bother with sigil. Hiding them from the eyes of others meant split vision and she was never good at managing second sight.

Her beliefs stemmed from strength, confidence, strategy.

There wasn’t that much magic, if any, she bothered to follow. Second sight wasn’t even necessary until she met Piper.

“What’s wrong?”

“Vision split,” she muttered. “Gimme a second.”

Seeming slightly more relaxed that the sigils in the area where the main issues were happening weren’t snapped, Piper nodded. Then someone knocked on the door. “Oh, fuck no.”

“Relax,” Annabeth huffed, standing up.

Piper swung her bat at her, freezing a foot away. “If you try to open that door, I will kill you.”

“If I learn how to apply sigils, will you learn how to use a proper weapon?” Annabeth pushed the bat out of her face. “Reyna cannot be looking down on you with approval for this.”

“She looks down on me with hella approval,” Piper said. “And fuck off from the door.”

Annabeth rose her arms over her head and backed up. “Fine, fine, fine.”

She watched with slight trepidation as Piper approached the front door, peaking through the peephole. Her stance tightened and she backed up.

“What is it?”

“Nothing,” Piper hissed through gritted teeth. “Just an empty hallway. Don’t fucking like that.” She turned out, her eyes glowing faintly with second sight before she pushed her bat into Annabeth’s hands and dropped to her knees, furiously checking on the sigils taped around the apartment.

In her absence, Annabeth glanced back at the static TV. Hmm.

Balancing the bat over her shoulder, she stepped up to it once more, fishing her phone from her pocket. It was still black. She glanced between the TV and the phone, frowning. She didn’t pocket her phone but walked into the kitchen, turning on the microwave. It counted down from thirty, steady, until it reached twenty-five.

Then it glitched, numbers spiralling. The glow inside didn’t stop but changed from it’s usual bright orange spin to an unearthly red.

Grover passed through her mind, his weird brown aura.

Her mother didn’t use sigils anywhere but the bedrooms, citing privacy. The first time he’d tried to pass through, her light turned a dark brown, casting a creepy glow, before Annabeth had the chance to give him the code.

Red...

Red could be many things. The sun, war, fire. She pressed her fingers to the microwave’s buttons, reverting Aethin code to Arabic numerals. As soon as she hit nine, the final number, the microwave began to count down again. Her phone glowed back to life, the delivery app peering back at her. 

As she turned, she called out, “Hey, Pipes, it’s not a demon, I think it was just-” She jerked to a frozen stop.

Lady Reyna stared down at her, all six foot five glory and righteousness. “A god?” she asked. Her smile was not kind or threatening - a blank neutrality that had Annabeth shivering, feeling all too small and all too much like a slice of prey. “You’d be right.”

“Ann, why did you stop-” Piper’s voice faltered before she weakly finished, “-talking.”

“I believe she was caught off guard,” Lady Reyna said, stepping to the side. She gestured loosely to Annabeth’s side and Piper slid right into the spot. “I have something I’d like to discuss.”

“I told her not to get summer’s kiss,” Annabeth said. Her mouth was dry as hell.

“It smelled nice,” Piper whispered.

Lady Reyna frowned then snorted. “No, no, this isn’t about my candle. This about my friend. Nico. Lord of the night skies, prince of death.”

“Oh.” Seriously? Was he seriously choosing between their weirdly obsessive friends? “Okay.”

She pushed her hand through her hair, muscles rippling under her tunic. Annabeth resisted the urge to reach out and touch, gently slapping away Piper’s hand as she tried to so.

“I find their obsession... concerning but easy enough to ignore. But now they’ve roped you, my lovely followers-” Annabeth’s knees smacked together. “-into their strange brigade. I find that a personal affront. If they’re so willing to court a god-” Her tone darkened, eyes glowing whiter than bone. “-they should be doing so of their own merit. Proving themselves worthy of such a man.”

Annabeth tried to respond but her breath caught out in her throat, releasing no words, just broken sounds.

Lady Reyna sighed. “I would appreciate you passing on my message. Hazel is... reluctant to agree with me. What with her own interest in one of your... obsessive friends. Talking with my own followers, however, is never out of the question.”

“Of course,” Piper breathed. “I didn’t like helping Jason anyway.”

Liar. “Yeah.” Annabeth coughed. “Same. With- with- Percy.”

Lady Reyna clasped her hands. “Wonderful then.” She stepped back. “I hope you’ll heed my words about your involvement in thier conquest. I’d rather this not be the reason for my next visit.”

She was gone before either of them could say a word.

Next visit. Annabeth stared at the spot she’d been standing. NEXT VISIT?

“Did... Did she just say she was coming back?” Piper whispered.

“Uh huh.”

“Do you think... do you think she meant, like... temple visit? Like... normal?”

“Uh uh.”

“Oh.” Piper sounded faint. “We’re gonna have to deep clean.”

Annabeth covered her face with her hands and sank down to the floor in a slightly tense squat. “Uh huh.”

“Might as well get a new mattress,” Piper muttered. “Since I’m gonna fuck her.”

Annabeth groaned. “Piper!”

“You can join us! That was totally expected for you to do, Annie!”

Annabeth pulled her hands from her face and looked up at her girlfriend. “Well...” She faltered. Lady Reyna’s muscles rippling came back to view. Her stacked biceps. “Good.” 

#reyna ramirez arellano #annabeth chase #pipabeth #piper mclean #pjo fanfic #my fanfic #my writing #happy talks pjo

[percabethfeelsfandom]

PJO/HOO Aesthetics

Aesthetics

Percy Jackson-

Running a hand through wet hair. Pulling yourself out of a pool. Opening your eyes under water. Dancing and messing around in your room with the one you love. Blasting your music to the max through earphones. Riding down a hill on your skateboard. Throwing a pebble into still water. Hacking at a dummy and slicing it in half in one go.

Annabeth Chase-

Sliding a book into its allocated space on a bookshelf. Turning to the first page of a long awaited novel. Closing a book and returning it to its place on your bookshelf. Writing for so long that your hand hurts. Tightening your ponytail after a long training session. Relaxing on the couch with the one you love. Unsheathing and sheathing your danger before and after a fight.

Nico Di Angelo-

Standing on the edge of the cliff. Twisting your ring around your finger. Clenching your fists and cracking your knuckles. Unzipping your jacket in the wind, letting it blow over you. Sculling cold water. Walking across the road without looking both ways. Having be your enemy at swords point and knowing that they have no chance at winning.

Leo Valdez-

Wiping dirty hands on already dirty overalls. Feeling the heat of a machine beneath your hands. Letting hot water run down your body in a shower. Being surrounded by those you love the most. The hum and clank of machinery, more familiar and beautiful than any other music in the world. Laughing so hard, that all your insides hurt, but in the best way possible. Letting flames engulf your body as you unleash the pain that you keep hidden.

Reyna Arellano Ramirez-

Sweeping your cloak over your head as you rush out the door. Pounding your fist against a table to get everyone's attention. Speaking softly but everyone is listening. Unstrapping your armour after a long day. Twisting your ring around your finger. Sipping your favourite hot chocolate down the streets of New Rome. Being around people who don't look at you as a scary leader, but as a friend.

Will Solace-

Tightening a bandage around a patients arm. Slinging an arm around the person you love the most. Letting all your anger out by shouting into a pillow. Watching the sun rise and set. Seeing sun shine through the blinds. Waking up at the crack of dawn. Pushing your hair back as you concentrate on your patient. Rushing around the infirmary knowing people are counting on you, and knowing that you can do this. That you can save them all.

Frank Zhang-

Pulling a hood over your head as snow falls. Hugging just a little tighter as the friends around you become family. Changing so swiftly into different animals it's like an instinct. Pulling the bow string as far as possible and letting it fly. Watching as the arrow you shot flies home. Getting a bullseye each time you hit. Stuffing your face with your favourite food on your favourite holiday. Watching as people who used to make fun of you learn to respect you.

Hazel Levesque-

Walking barefoot in a garden. Being able to feel the hum of metal under the ground. Riding on a horse and feeling like you're flying. Playing with a necklace at the base of your neck. Fiddling with a bracelet. Letting your hair out naturally. Speaking freely no matter what your opinion is. The warmth of a hand in yours.

Jason Grace-

The zap of static you get when you touch metal. Smoothing your hair down, after it gets messy in the wind. Driving with the top of your car down. Sheer power and adrenaline rushing through your veins. Flipping coins, and watching it land perfectly balanced in the middle. The familiarity of a sword hilt in your hand. The shock of electricity when you hold someones hand but it has nothing to do with your magic.

Piper McLean-

The rasp of your voice in the morning when you wake up. Pieces of hair falling from your braid and pushing it away from your face. Fighting back to back with people you trust more than yourself. Speaking clearly in a room full of voices, and being heard. Holding hands with your best friends. The warmth in your heart when you’re with that one person. Unsheathing and sheathing your danger before and after a fight.

#percy jackson #annabeth chase #Nico di Angelo #will solace #jason grace #piper mclean #frank zhang #leo valdez #Hazel Levesque #reyna avila ramirez arellano #Heroes of Olympus #percy jackson and the olympians #aesthetics #rick riordan #percabeth #frazel #caleo #trialsofapollo #magnus chase and the gods of asgard #jiper #camp half blood #camp jupiter #demigods

[bookworlders]

the wedding date - chapter 5

percabeth fake dating!au part 5!!!

part 1 

Cabin 3 was unrecognizable from when they had arrived the night before. Annabeth’s suitcase had erupted and her makeup and hair appliances now littered every flat surface. Thankfully, Percy had vacated their room to hangout with Frank and Leo so she could ready in private.

It had been awhile since she’d gotten dolled up to this extent, curling her hair, a full face of makeup, and heels. Annabeth hadn’t gotten this glammed up since Piper and Thalia moved away.

Annabeth went out with Rachel occasionally, but it was always to some hipster dive bar in the Village where a flannel and jeans would suffice. Sometimes, if Annabeth was going straight from work to meet Rachel, she’d even try to make herself look worse coming from a day at the office to fit in with Rachel’s grungier friends.

It was nice to take time to do her hair and mix-and-match and pick out an outfit that matched with the bachelorette party sashes Leo had acquired for them. Getting ready was especially relaxing after she had taken the best shower of her life. It was a much needed hot, relaxing session after the day they had all just had.

After brunch, all of the wedding guests had returned to their rooms to change, and rest up for an afternoon of camp activities.

Annabeth set down her curling iron, and shook her arm out, sore from their first activity after brunch — archery. Annabeth had never been spectacular at it in camp, and the years removed their camp training days had made her worse. Not as terrible as Percy, though. Annabeth spent the morning laughing at the cute face he made while he aimed for the targets.

Annabeth finished curling her hair, and got to work concealing a scratch on her arm.

After archery, a group had taken an excursion to the training arena to spar.

“Who’s next?” Annabeth asked, eyes sparkling as she swiped sweat from her brow. She held out her hand and helped Jason up.

“Hades, Annabeth,” Jason muttered, sheathing his golden gladius, “Can’t even give me a break on my wedding weekend?”

Annabeth grinned, “I was already going easy on you, Grace.” She looked around for her next opponent. Piper, Hazel, and a group had gone to the stables to groom the horses. Leo sat, bruised, physically and his ego, on the sidelines nursing a scrape on his arm. Frank messed with the straw poking out of one of sparring dummies, and refused to make eye contact with her. “Come on!”

“I’ll have a go,” piped Percy, standing up from the bench where he’d been sitting with Nico watching Reyna and Thalia spar across the arena.

Annabeth shot him a look, “Really Percy? It’s alright. These guys are just babies.”

Percy stood directly in front of her, “No, for real, I’ll spar with you.”

“Percy, no it’s okay,” Annabeth sheathed her knife in the holster of thigh, “We’ve all trained to sword fight since we were kids at this camp, it’s—”

“You scared?” Percy said, his wagging eyebrow challenging her.

Annabeth gaze darkened, “Alright, then.” She unsheathed her knife, “Pick your weapon.”

Percy picked up a bronze sword from the chest Chiron had brought out to the sparring area, swinging it back and forth testing its’ weight, “You alright with those little knives, Chase?” He stood in front of her.

Annabeth unsheathed another, “Perfect with them. They let me get closer to my opponent.” She stood directly in front of him. Thalia and Reyna had paused their spar to watch.

Percy grinned, “Rules?”

Annabeth twirled the knife in her left hand, using them to point to the markings on the straw covered sparring arena, “First person to step out of the boundaries.”

“Not to the death?” Percy grinned at her.

Annabeth smirked back, “Ready, Jackson?”

The two faced each other within the ring and fell into a fighting stance. Annabeth beckoned him with her hand to make the first move. Percy made the first strike, and Annabeth parried him with a basic block, but Percy struck again, this time disarming Annabeth. Her knife cluttered to the ground. Annabeth raised an eyebrow, her face failing to conceal the shock.

“Jason, I think she really was going easy on you,” Percy said, sweeping up her knife and tossing it back to her. “Don’t you dare go easy on me, Chase. Let’s call that a warm-up round.”

Annabeth’s expression was unreadable, “Fine, let’s go again.” This time, Annabeth made the first move, which Percy smoothly blocked.

Suddenly, they were dancing. The clang of bronze against bronze and the whip of blades flying through the air filled the training arena. Every strike from another was met by a perfectly in sync parry. They fought as if choreographed, his body occupying the space hers was in seconds before being interrupted by the clang of metal. Annabeth didn’t know if she was fighting against Percy or with him. He seemed to know exactly what her next move would be.

Annabeth’s muscles burned in a way she hadn’t felt since her camp days — the exertion required of an equally adept opponent. No one had matched her combat skill like this since, well since Luke, who had taught her to fight in the first place. Fighting with Percy was a dance, and she didn’t want the song to end.

Annabeth knew that she wouldn’t be able to outpower Percy, not due to her own strength or skill, but because she was three rounds of sparring in and he was fresh. His technique was a little rough around the edges, but his natural skill was apparent. Annabeth noticed this in his stance, and they way his arms extended when he swung his blade at her.

She would have to end this round with strategy. He had caught her off guard with his skill when he disarmed her in the first round when she was going easy on him, but now she truly was exerting herself. Percy was having fun, too much to stop or give in. She could tell from the way he almost had her disarmed a couple times, but also eased up just in time for her to inter his saber with one of her knives. How dare he go easy on her now, Annabeth thought as she swung her blade as his throat.

Clang! Percy blocked it. She saw him grin and couldn’t help a smile from spreading across her face.

But she had a plan. Percy swung his sword at her, and Annabeth resisted the urge to block, just for a second, but that was all it took. Percy’s arm faltered, just for a second, when she didn’t move from his attack. The tip of the blade grazed her arm. That second hesitation was all Annabeth needed to get close enough to shove Percy off balance and take a step out of boundaries.

Jason and the others whooped and cheered from the sidelines.

“That’s what you get for going easy on me, Jackson,” Annabeth said, holding out her hand.

Percy shook it, and didn’t let go, “Believe me, I wasn’t.”

“Where’d you learn to fight like that?”

“I’m an actor. Years of stage combat classes.”

“Nerd.

Annabeth finished concealing the scratch on her arm, and began tidying up her mess of makeup and clothes around the cabin.

After a couple more rounds that afternoon (Percy and Jason fighting round after round until eventually calling a tie), they left to meet up with the stable group in the woods for a game of capture the flag — bridesmaids and dates against groomsmen and dates. Annabeth’s team won, of course. “I always have a plan,” Annabeth said with a wink. That plan had just so happened to involve Percy as bait and a distraction while Annabeth claimed Jason’s flag right from under his nose.

A walk through the strawberry fields in the afternoon had allowed Percy to bond with her camp friends. They all seemed to love him, and she did as well the more she got to know him. Percy was charming and funny and retorted back to her witty remarks with clever jibes at her that made her laugh. They hung back from the group on the walk and Percy told her about his mom, Sally, who raised him as a single parent and faithfully supported his acting career, and his stepdad Paul, who was an English teacher.

Annabeth justified it as informing Percy on the need-to-knows of being her fake boyfriend, but the sun and the smell of strawberries had her spilling tales of her stepmom and the rough years with her dad and the move from Virginia to San Francisco that made her summers at camp the best times of her childhood.

When they had returned from the strawberry fields, Jason and the groomsmen had invited Percy for a couple of beers down by the lake. Annabeth said goodbye to him with a kiss on the cheek to get ready for Piper’s bachelorette party.

That had been an hour or two ago before Annabeth had taken the best shower of her life, and washed away the grime and sweat of the day. It had been an amazing first day of Piper and Jason’s wedding weekend, participating in her favorite camp activities and getting to know Percy — bringing him as her date was a great idea from the looks of today.

Annabeth looked in the mirror hanging against the wall next to the door of Cabin 3 and adjust the bridesmaid sash over the short black dress she wore. Piper had no idea what was coming for her for her bachelorette party.

~

sorry for the long wait, hope you enjoyed xx

#mywriting #percabeth #fanfiction #the wedding date #percy jackson #annabeth chase #fake dating!au

[rosywaifu]

Home {A Percy Jackson Oneshot}

Hi Everyone! This is for @coldheartedgay ‘s AU: 

“Can I ask a small request from a PJ AU I made? The general premise is that Half Bloods are born with certain hair color depending on their Godly Parent. Percy - Aqua Annabeth - Silverish blonde Grover - Deep Green Etc.” 

I read this request at one in the morning, so I may have gone a little off-book so if this isn’t what you had in mind, LMK and I will redo it to what you actually wanted! But, when I reread it this morning, I thought what I wrote was actually kind of cute so here you go! Please, enjoy and keep requesting, I love it!! 

Percy brushed the hair from his forehead, trying different hairstyles by pushing and pulling the strands in different positions. He made faces at his reflection; pouted lips, smoldering eyes, sucked in cheeks for the haute couture look. Finally, he let his aquamarine locks flop against his forehead framing the deep green eyes staring back at him. He was worried about today. If all went well, he’d be engaged. He gave his appearance a last once-over and walked out of his cabin. The air was warm but he was able to stay cool from the breeze coming in from the ocean. He brushed the invisible dirt from his dark blue dress shirt, not being able to keep from fidgeting from his nerves. He tucked and smoothed and picked at his entire shirt to keep his nerves smothered. Once he reached the door of the Athena Cabin, he was sure his shirt was worse than when he started. After a deep breath of the May evening air, he rapped his knuckles three times sharply against the dark oak wood. He took a step back to let the air take hold in the space between him and the door. Hardly a second passes before the door swings open to reveal the silver haired beauty that was Annabeth. Percy drank in her appearance appreciatively; soft, silvery hair curled like a princesses draping down her shoulders with just the slightest bounce. Her tanned skin sporting a bright smile. Her dark grey sweater dress contrasted nicely against her hair and complimented her skin tone. Her camp necklace adorned on her neck. Percy thought she was incredibly beautiful and could hardly keep himself from proposing right there in the door way in front of all her siblings. “Wow, Seaweed Brain, you look great! Very dashing.” She smiled as she teased slightly with her words, but meaning every one. “Not so bad your self, Wise Girl. Took my breath away.” He said smoothly making her smile as she clasped his hand tightly into her own as she closed the door behind her. “Ah, I thought Piper got a little crazy with all the primping but seeing how smart you’re dressed, i’m glad she made me look so nice- even for just a casual date.” She sighed as she talked, half because she was so content with walking with Percy right then and half because she was frustrated he never gets any of the hints she’s dropping to have him propose. Annabeth wasn’t normally one to beat around the bush, but she had let Piper and Hazel convince her that proposing was a delicate matter. She had to use subtlety, they said. It had been 3 months now and Annabeth was about ready to shove that subtlety right in its—

“So, I thought we’d have a picnic near the strawberry fields and the water.” Percy’s voice musing out his plan for the evening kept her from finishing her derailed train of thought. “Sounds lovely, Percy.” They walked in step to the place where Percy was sure he pulled off the most romantic picnic area that ever was. A deep blue and grey plush rug, mechanical candles (as to not start and forest fires), fresh strawberries, cherries, macaroons, and sparkling lemonade. He wanted to get champagne to toast to like they do in the movies, but Chiron, as happy as he was that Percy was proposing the Annabeth, would not bend the rules of no alcohol on camp; even to those of legal drinking age. So, sparkling lemonade it was. Annabeth gasped at all the effort, Percy went through- all the food and drink with the candles glowing in the fading blue sky, even lily pads with little pink and purple flowers floated atop to the water in the little inlet. The whole area looked like a magic forest. She gave Percy a big smile who looked a little sheepish at her happiness. He wanted to make this their most memorable date yet. Sure it was happening at camp, and not a fancy french restaurant but camp was home and their favorite place to be, especially with each other. They sat down and talked about random things and nearly anything that popped into her head. Annabeth talked about the new building design she came up with, explaining all the intricate and delicate ideas and designs she came up for it. Percy half listened to Annabeth, truly trying to listen no matter how hard it was for him to pay attention when she talked about stuff like architecture. He wasn’t super into it but that didn’t mean he didn’t try to pay attention and ask quality questions. The other half fretted about the right time to pop the question without cutting her off too soon or waiting until the end of the date. Soon, Annabeth started asking questions for Percy; how his day went, what he had done since the last time they saw each other (which was only since breakfast that morning). Percy’s tensed shoulders relaxed at talking about the sea animal he got to save that day; a large sea dragon of sorts, about the size of a baby calf, got caught in flurry of fisherman’s hook, fishing poles and netting. He got pretty banged up and his dad sent word to him, via hippocampi, that the mythical creature needed his help. And Percy truly animated when he told the tale of his daring rescue, diving under the ocean waves, swimming as far as the English docks to rescue the incredible creature. Annabeth smiled as she could literally feel the love he had for animals. Eventually, the evening began winding down as Percy felt the anticipation buzzing his every nerve. Annabeth began to clean up but Percy stopped her quickly. “Hold off on that a second. I-i have to talk to you..” his voice was jilted and stiff. Annabeth had a gut instant fear that he was breaking up with her. Would Percy really be the type of guy who would give her a great last date before breaking her heart, like how you give your dog the best last day before having to put him down just so they have one last good memory? Percy, with how completely endearing he is, and idiotic, would probably think a great last date would ease the blow of a breakup, unknowing how wrong he was. Annabeth’s moment of doubt was quickly scrubbed away as she remembered how amazing her relationship was with her boyfriend. Things started to ease as they left their teen years behind; calm and soothing. They spent a great deal of time with one another but still had their own friends and lives as to not smother one another. In fact, it was her relationship being so great that led her to wanting to get married in the first place. She stood up and grasped Percy’s hand gently as he led her a tad closer to the water, wanting to feel the comfortable rock of the waves; encouraging him. He knelt down and grasped both her hands tightly in his grasp. “Annabeth, I love you so much, I would probably, no actually i know i would have died without you back when we were twelve on our first quest together. You have saved my butt so many times over the last ten years, I know i’ve saved yours at least half as many. Without you, my life would be less interesting. I wouldn’t know any of the differences of buildings, I wouldn’t understand what it means to be a hero at all without you teaching me your resolve, confidence, determination and power. You are the most incredible, smart, beautiful, infuriating and talented person i’ve ever met. I love getting lost in our discussions on the lives of the greeks might going on, I love getting lost in ADHD and caffeine fueled ramblings. I love to being in the same room as you. I have been building to this moment for years now.” He pulled out a ring box and exposed the small and dainty silver ring, with the most intricate engraving of wave designs and olive branches interchanging curling up to wrap around the small and modest ocean colored jewel. The jewel seemed to change color with the light passing through it giving it the appearance as if the jewel contained a part of the Mediterranean sea within it. “Annabeth “Wise Girl” Chase, will you do me the absolute pleasure of becoming your husband, your meddling partner, for good?” His eyes twinkled with hope and promise, a smile tearing his face apart as he stared adoringly at her deep storming grey eyes pool with love and excitement. Annabeth fell to her knees, a large smile unable to be constrained on her face. “Yes! Gods, yes seaweed brain! I love you!” And before Percy could slip the dainty ring on her finger, she pulled him into a kiss, embracing him fully, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. His own arms pulling her closer into him, wrapping his own arms tightly around her waist. Seconds later, they pulled apart and Percy was able to pull the ring from the box and slide it softly onto her ring finger. As he did so, Annabeth reveled in the fact that some times when the light danced perfectly on the sparkling jewel, it looked like it was colored as vibrantly aqua as Percy’s hair. Percy watched her face smile at her new rings as she admired it. “I got the jewel straight from the ocean. I went deep sea diving for months looking for the perfect one. When I saw it, the filtered light from the sun streaking through the ocean made it look silvery blue and it reminded me of you; your eyes and your hair. Plus I had Leo and Tyson design the actual ring part, giving my two-sense about the design here and there of course but they built it. However i did make sure they included a specific point.” He smiled conspiratorially, making her arch her eyebrow in piqued curiosity. He gently grabbed her wrist and gently pushed the jewel deeper into the ring. It turned into a half shield, covering her wrist to her elbow and about her arms width above and below. She marveled at the beautiful shield; deep silver with the etched designs of ocean waves and olive branches seemingly moving in wave patterns across the shield. “I named it stavroménoi erastés, meaning Star Crossed Lovers, as a reminder I guess that even though our parents hated each other, our friendship and love can survive and conquer anything. To always protect you and to have a little piece of me when we’re apart.” He winked with the boyish grin adorning his features. Out of the corner of her eye, Annabeth saw something move near the bushes. And thanks to the nearby ocean, Percy had the same quick instinct. With incredible precision from years of battle reflexes, that and living this close to a forest packed with monsters and Clarisse, Percy drew his sword Riptide from his pocking, dislodging the cap as he pulled it out, ready for use just as Annabeth shielded part of her face with her shiny new sword as she drew the dagger that had previously been strapped to the outside of her upper thigh. They pointed their weapons to the noise, poised to attack at the slightly motion of an ambush. “Show yourself!” Annabeth called with incredible strength, almost making Percy want to drop his weapon at her mercy. He thanked all the gods on his good list that he never had to be on the business end of her dagger like that. Suddenly a large tuft of forest green hair appeared above some of the bushes, sporting rather silly looking branches, that Annabeth quickly deciphered as horns. Soon a glimpse of pink hair, flaming red hair, sky blue hair, dark black hair, dark, oil slicked-looking red hair, bright gold hair and blood red hair peaked over the top. Percy And Annabeth shared amused looks before lowering their weapons. The spots of colored hair soon officially identified themselves as Grover, Piper, Clarisse, Jason, Nico, Leo, Hazel and Frank. They all shared a slight look of embarrassment but it was more or less overshadowed by their excitement. “S-s-sorry, guys! We couldn’t help but watch! We would never want to miss the proposal of Percabeth!” Grover bleated. He ran and gave Percy the manliest embrace he could muster. Suddenly, the whole gang was surrounding them, cheering him for finally being able to muster the courage to do it, admiring the ring, and celebrating their engagement between the favorite couple of camp half-blood. As much as Percy wanted to be mad and embarrassed that they had all heard him pour his heart out and let it gush all over the place, he was actually very glad to have his own little cheer squad, cheering him on and lending their support to this anticipated moment. Annabeth was a little more angry than Percy but her anger quickly subsided as her friends gushed over the idea of a wedding making her insides feel all giddy and excited. The stole a glance at one another over the roar of love and support from their friends, no- family and admired each others glow of love making their hair glitter silver and aqua in the bright, sparkling moon. He was so glad he proposed, knowing right there, right then, the wedding would most definitely take place here at camp; at home.

Word Count: 2,261

#Percy Jackson #PJO #Heroes of Olympus #HoO #Annabeth Chase #Piper McLean #Grover Underwood #Clarisse LaRue #Jason Grace #Nico Di Angelo #Leo Valdez #Hazel Levesque #Frank Zhang #Percabeth #Wedding AU #Hair Color AU #Writing #OneShot #Fanfic

[desperauxtilling]

Rentrée (Jason/Nico)

History repeats itself: Jason hates his family, has good intentions going rogue, and Nico is collateral damage.

Happy Jasico Saturday, here’s some canon divergence angst.

“Can you tell me about my sister?”

Nico sits with his legs swinging over the crow’s nest, leaning into Jason, who stands with arms folded over the guard railing. He focuses somewhere beyond the rouge spattered sky. Nico thinks he looks good bathed in the red light. It tints his hair to a soft, strawberry blond he wishes he could run his fingers through.

“Thalia is… headstrong,” he starts. “I met her around the same time I met Percy. We became reluctant allies. She was better friends with Bianca than me.” He takes a shuddering breath.

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to bring up--”

“No. It’s okay.” Nico pats his knee, smirking when he jumps. “You know about the quest with our sisters, right?”

Jason nods. Some distant storm fills his eyes. There’s a tension in his shoulders Nico wishes to unknot, understand. “Annabeth told me when I asked about her gray hair.” He raps his knuckles against the rail. “My sister changed her fate by becoming a hunter. She refused the prophecy.”

Nico nods. The opposite happened to Bianca. If she stayed, she would have survived. It haunts Nico that he’s the reason she was so eager to get away from camp. The Hades figurine she tried to get him sealed her fate.

“Thanks for talking with me,” he says after a long silence takes over them. Nico’s hardly talked but he gives the slightest twitch of his lips. Jason traces a lock of Nico’s hair that fell in his face, casting it behind his ear. When he turns red, the son of Jupiter smiles. Then he leaves.

“What do you know about Reyna?” he asks Nico. Hazel and Frank are there, too, relaxing beside him. Jason is determined to be friends with Nico after the Split incident, forging something real out of the crash that Cupid crafted.

“Strong leader. Self assured. Driven.” He scratches his neck. “She led the assault on Mount Othrys with you. Well, she led the army while you took on Krios.”

“She had faith in me, even when she knew my rocky ancestry,” Frank says. “She could have refused me from camp… but she didn’t.”

“You two seemed close,” Hazel said. “Whenever I saw you both together, I got the sense you had been friends for a long time. You always covered each other’s backs.”

Jason’s fingers tap nervously against the deck. He’s fidgeting. He’s doing that more lately, Nico has noticed. It’s unlike him. An impulse strikes him and he places his hand over Jason’s. Jason is surprised, cheeks tinging pink, but he grins. Thanks Nico again and leaves.

This continues. Jason unintentionally inspires Nico to open by inquiring about the past. Thalia, Percy and Annabeth’s quests, Kronos’ rise from the side of the Greeks. He gets to know Nico, too. Wants to get to know him. It makes him feel good to have someone like that there for him.

“Is it okay that I’m mad at Thalia?”

Nico’s head lolls against Jason’s shoulder. “I was mad at Bianca.”

“I’m just angry at her because she’s lucky. Dad cares about her. She was able to escape the prophecy. She has the gods’ favor.”

“The gods’ favor doesn’t mean everything, Jason,” he points out.

“It doesn’t mean anything.”

His voice turns to gravel and Nico looks up in surprise. Jason’s face is contorted with anger. Sparks dance along his knuckles. He’s heard angry curses from Annabeth when Percy was missing, but nothing so outright opposed to the gods from anyone but… since... “Hey…” Nico hesitates to reach for his hand. “Jason. Are you all right?”

He flexes his fingers and, with steam, the electricity dissipates. “Sorry. Frustrated, that’s all.” His words grow small. “Wish that I could remember.”

“Percy remembers. Hera hasn’t…?” Nico asks sadly, trailing off when Jason shakes his head.

“Guess she still needs me.” Jason rubs the back of his head. Firms his hand on Nico’s shoulder then stands. “Thanks.”

“For what?”

Jason turns to grant Nico a small smile. “I can tell when people are lying. You never lie to me.”

Percy and Annabeth are plucked from Tartarus and he’s getting ready to leave with Reyna and the statue. There’s something about it that’s changed Jason. Seeing Annabeth and Percy sets off something in his blue eyes. His jaw clenches. His shoulders tense. When Leo and Piper try getting close, he pushes them away. “Annabeth sure is lucky,” he says one day. Nico stands beside him at the helm, trying not to look too giddy as he mans the wheel (maybe he’s finally getting to live out all those pirate adventures he read about).

Nico, stepping on pinpricks, asks, “Why?”

“She has Percy.”

Nico snorts. “Thanks for reminding me.”

“She got to grow up with Thalia.” His blue eyes are cold, his tone cross. “I wish I’d had that.” Nico lays a hand on his shoulder and Jason takes it, smiling softly. But Nico can feel a storm trembling under his skin. Jason is itching to leave, itching to spread his wings. Dangerous. Jagged. Nico pushes those familiar thoughts away.

Jason’s getting worse.

He sees him speaking quietly with Reyna by the statue while he’s securing the ropes to himself. And, to his dread and delight, Jason claps him on the shoulder and turns him around. “You be careful, okay, Nico?”

“You know me. Nothing but careful.” His taunt makes Jason laugh and the sound lift Nico’s heart. It’s just the two of them, now. Nico can’t say he’ll miss the ship but he already misses Jason.

“You know you can trust me, right?” Jason asks. He claps his hand to Nico’s face, traces his thumb against his soft cheek. Nico feels very small suddenly. “You can come to me for anything.” Jason takes a step forward.

“Yes,” Nico breathes. He hates the way his voice catches on his high breath, but. It’s hard to stay coherent with Jason this warm and this close and this intense.

“I can trust you.” Not quite a question. The statement carries a finality that scares him back to reality. Jason is so cold and serious, now. The hand, once charcoal, turns to lead against his cheek. Dragging him into the earth.

“Yes,” Nico says again. He trusts Jason and wants Jason to trust him too so he burrows that fear away from his heart.

Jason pats his cheek. Kisses his brow. Then he leaves.

Reyna and Nico and Hedge have a good dynamic. He understands why Reyna and Jason were close and sees some of those same comfortable qualities in her that drew him to Jason. But she’s harder and colder, closer to Nico. Their relationship grows. He sees the same want to protect him that he once saw in Bianca. And he doesn’t feel like he’s being bossed around, either. They’re equals. Friends. They care for each other.

That’s why he screams when Bryce’s ghostly hands wrap around her neck and she vanishes into the earth. Hedge is yelling something, swinging his bat, only to get flung back into the hard rock of the Athena Parthenos. A finger on the statue cracks. His head bleeds.

“Reyna--” he gasps out. Sword hangs heavy at his side. The earth starts to swallow him, too. The jar. Tartarus. Gaea’s soft hands creeping up his ankles. “No, no, no--” They’re supposed to be safe here. With each other.

Bryce leers over him. Grips Nico’s chin in hand. Something thunks against his head. Blood. He tastes it in his mouth, spilling over his cut lip onto Bryce’s thumb. The Roman laughs. That sound bounces around Nico’s head for hours, echoing, echoing in the tunnels of the underground.

Nico catches one last glimpse of the sky and for a moment, he thinks of Jason’s eyes.

Then nothing.

Warm, soft dirt. Spilling into him. Filling the space around him. Tempting and suffocating. Reyna’s here, somewhere, but when he tries to reach for her it’s like wading through clay. Slow. Slippery. Mud filling up his mouth and nose. Blood spilling from his mouth and nose. The earth binds him and raises him up, presenting a prize to the middle of the acropolis. Giants loom in the distance, footsteps shaking stone pillars. The sun is high and hot. Reyna’s back rests against his. That’s all the comfort he has.

Footsteps. Racing up the stone stairs. He tries to make out a voice, but it’s a garbled mess of syllables he can’t pronounce. His sister’s voice slips in there somewhere and he tries to raise his head but he’s so weak and it hits the tile again with a groan.

“Hazel, no! It could be a trap.” A beat. “Let me go in. I can fly in and out of there.”

“Careful, Jason.” Sick and barely conscious, Nico still recognizes Percy’s voice. Welcomes it.

There’s a cool gust of air and he welcomes it with a weak sigh. Careful footsteps toward him. Someone kneels down, casts a friendly shadow over himself and Reyna. “Nico.” Jason’s hands are warm on his face, rousing his consciousness. Brush some of his bangs off his forehead. “Nico, it’s me. You’re okay.”

“Jason.” He licks his lips. Tries to let the name settle on his tongue again. “What are you… why… here.” He tries to open his eyes and everything is bright, so white, he can’t focus. Jason rides the tremor out with him until he can see the rest of the seven, blurry in the distance. “I’m here to help you, Nico,” he whispers. “You were in danger.”

He remembers Bryce’s laugh ringing in his ears, slipping into the warm earth, and a horrible, familiar darkness. “Jasonngh... Where’s—Reyna is...” Unconscious beside him, groaning as she starts to stir.  

“You’re both in kind of rough shape.” Jason jostles Nico into his arms, gentle, examining his wounded head. There’s something off about his blue eyes. Something that screams danger. His hair is mussed, the bags under his eyes are heavy, the scar on his lip seems so much more jagged. So unlike Jason. The reality he’s been unwilling to accept until now hits him full force. “But I’ve got you. You’re both going to be okay.” And so much like Luke.

“Jason, get out of there,” Frank advises quietly. He takes a step forward and Jason holds out his hand. Suddenly, a spark of electricity flies forth, crafting a field around the trio. Nico jumps but he doesn’t leave Jason’s arms, how warm and safe it feels. He’s scared. But he can’t leave.

The rest of their group stares at him. Nico blinks. “Jason?” he asks quietly. Tugs his shirt collar. “What’s…” He looks to Hazel, her eyes wide and full of fright. And now he knows he is in great danger. Something presses sharp and hard into his side and he winces.

“Jason, l want to see my brother,” Hazel says. Her voice shakes. “Let me see him.” Nico’s head lolls to the side to catch her worried eye. “Haze—“ Jason’s hand comes to cup his jaw and pull Nico’s face against his chest. “I can’t do that, Hazel. I’m sorry.” Jason’s tone is laden with finality and remorse. Nico is panicked now but. His lids are so heavy. His limbs are so heavy. Movement isn't an option. And Jason is still soft and temperate. Reyna props herself up on her elbow, wheezing. “Nico,” she grits out, her eyes shut tight. “Nico, where—“ Jason places a forceful hand on her shoulder. “Rest, Reyna. I’ve got you.” Her eyes remain closed. His voice registers slowly and she releases a shuddering sigh. “Jason. What are you doing?”

Percy strides forward, pulling riptide. Ready to defend. Ready to save them. There’s an understanding in his eyes. He’s watched Jason deteriorate in Nico’s absence, something he loathes to have missed. Could he have stopped this? Done anything? Could any of them have?

And still, can they?

Nico looks whatever’s digging into his ribs--a sharp golden dagger hanging on Jason’s belt. As soon as it registers as a knife, Jason’s pulled the weapon and pressed it to Nico’s throat. It’s only light pressure but he struggles to breathe. “Don’t come any closer, Percy,” Jason warns, crouching, forcing Nico onto his knees to avoid the sharp cut of a knife. “If you care about Nico at all... you’ll stay right where you are.” “Jason, you have no idea what you’re doing.” Percy’s weapon is clenched tight in his hand. His desperate eyes meet Nico’s. “I’ve seen this before. I know what’ll happen. You can’t honestly believe Gaea is more trustworthy than the gods. Than our family.” He gestures to the stars, to the disheartened crew. It's so hollow. It didn't help then and it won't now. Somewhere, Nico hears, Family. You promised. “Please don’t do this. Let Nico and Reyna go.” Reyna’s hand reaches for Jason’s upper arm. His wielding hand drops the smallest distance from Nico’s throat. “Don’t. He’s... don’t hurt him, Jason.” Her voice still sounds so strong, even when it’s that quiet. “Come home. Don’t do this.”

“Percy... this is the only way I can protect them. Protect all of you.” He doesn’t waver, though he pauses to suck in a breath. “I’ve been following the gods for so long... they’ve done nothing but hurt me. Hurt us. Hurt my sister. They hurt you, too. I can see it. I know how angry you are. They took you from Annabeth, they let you fall into Tartarus... But now I have a chance to stop that from happening again. They won’t be able to hurt us anymore.”

"This is only going to make things worse," Leo whispers. He looks so cold. "You know this isn't right."

"I don't care about what's right. I care about justice." The blade rests cool, taut against Nico’s throat and he gasps.

"Where's the justice in this?" Hazel demands. "I know you're hurt, I know you're scared--but you're just hurting the only people you're trying to protect." Her eyes meet Nico's and he almost whimpers. He wants to struggle but that knife is so tight against him he can't move. "Gaea's just using you. Don't let her."

"Don't tell me that. I know, and I--I am sick of your camp telling me what to do." Jason's blue eyes turn dark and stormy and his hand pulses low with electricity. "Your name is soldier first. War is burned into you before you can even ask what it is. You're a machine, you're a weapon, you're a means to an end. The first thing they did to you, Hazel, was burn that mark onto your arm. You're hardly a teenager. And I was--five? I don't know. I don't know anymore." Reyna's head bows low and Jason draws in a shaky breath. And despite everything, Nico just wants to unwind him, to hold him, to calm him down. All he can do is grip the hand with the blade tighter, try to soothe Jason by tracing his thumb over the back of his hand. "I've been there since I was a kid. And I took every order, every word... I was perfect. And for what?" The traces of tears in his eyes turn to ice. "If I'm going to be used, from now on, I'm having some kind of say in it."

“Jason, I know...” Piper whispers. "But this isn't the way. Just put down the knife. Let us talk to you. Let us help you." Her melodious voice carries over and stills them both. Mechanical, the blade starts to fall from its position. Jason's eyes glaze over. That gives Reyna the opportunity to pull his hand away from Nico’s throat. He falls to the floor as soon as he’s released.

Jason looks between Piper and Reyna in disbelief, then settles on the former with a scathing look. "Stop trying to control me!" Nico tries to breathe again, dizzy. The sky and the stones spin around his head.

Piper panics. Grips her choppy bangs. "No, no I wasn't--please, just listen--"

"I'm done listening." Through his struggling consciousness, he watches Reyna grapple for the knife. Jason pin her down. Jason cutting her arm. Not too deep, but he knows just where to cut to get blood to flow. She grits her teeth and groans against the stones of Athens. Her wide eyes meet Nico’s. Run. 

He tries but he can hardly stand. Hazel starts running toward him, too, despite the electric field between them. "Help--" He doesn't know who to ask for help anymore. He reaches, staggers— Jason pulls him back in.

“This’ll hurt, but not for long.” Jason pulls Nico’s back to his chest, forcing his hand out. He presses the dagger tight into his palm, a threat, a promise. “I’m not going to let anything bad happen to you, Nico.” “You’re hurting me.” He chokes. “Jason, it hurts—“ The blade is cool when it slides across his palm. He gasps, soft, and the blade clatters to the ground. Jason grasps his bleeding hand. Forces his palm open. His chin rests on Nico’s shoulder, blue eyes narrowed in focus and cold as steel. He can hear the crew screaming. Hazel trying to find a way around the field, shaking the ground. Percy swinging his sword at it even though horrible shocks course through him. Annabeth standing there frozen in wide eyed shock. “They won’t hurt you ever again,” Jason promises. He isn’t sure if Jason means the gods or their friends. Then his blood spatters the ancient rock of Athens, joining Reyna’s, and the earth splits in two.

“This can’t be happening,” Nico whispers, hoping the words are enough to wake him from this nightmare. He’s not part of the prophecy. He’s not one of the seven. He’s not supposed to be here. But he is. He’s bleeding. He’s waking the earth mother.

Reyna launches herself on Jason with a cry, reaching for his blade again. His arm tightens around Nico’s throat. “--Rey--Ru--ngh--” He tries to throw off Jason and Reyna. Don’t save me, he wants to beg.

“Jason, you idiot--!” She’s yelling, arm bleeding all over his camp shirt. Jason elbows her in the stomach, knocking her to the ground again. He has the audacity to look ashamed. Nico still can’t breathe. Claws at Jason’s arm. The ground shakes and the seven are scattered. But Reyna’s distraction works. The electricity dies down.

Leo and Hazel run forward. Jason blows Leo back with a gust of wind but Hazel grounds herself in the faulty stone and raises it up around them, crafting a prison. “You don’t want to fight me, Jason,” she growls. Cursed gemstones rise from the ground and the mist warbles around her fingertips. She radiates darkness and magic. “Not when my brother is on the line.”

And then the giants come in.

Footsteps shake the entire acropolis. Nico remembers the jar. Walls start closing in around him. He’s shaking. Jason’s hand over his mouth is gentle, fingers tracing his cheeks, pulling the breath from his lips through gesture. He can’t breathe. Reyna is yelling. He’s getting dizzy. Hazel is crying. He’s so tired. Percy’s green eyes meet his through cracks of stone. Darkness.

He falls slack in Jason’s arms.

#jasico #pjo #hoo #nico di angelo #jason grace #thalia grace #luke castellan #:))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))) #jasico saturday #jasico discord tag

[esompthinfics]

Percy Jackson Hamilton Au

So, I’ve been listening to the Percy Jackson musical nonstop for a few days now. And I’ve got ideas. (Under the cut because this is a long-ass post).

Imagine it:

Small child Alex never met his dad, right? His mother dies of sickness, and then almost immediately after, it starts raining. And keeps raining. And there’s a huge hurricane. Despite everyone else around him drowning and dying in the storm, Alex is fine. It was weird, almost like the water had no effect on him. Like he couldn’t seem to drown.

He gets bounced around from foster home to foster home; keeps getting kicked out of schools because he’s a troubled kid who doesn’t know how to function like a normal person.

He spends all of his time reading and writing, but it takes him forever, because of his dyslexia. So he has headaches a lot. Which kinda worries his only friend, John. But, John’s worried about everything all the time, so Alex doesn’t think too much about it. John’s kinda got this weird “I-would-die-for-you” vibe, that Alex doesn’t know how he feels about yet. Are all best friends like this? Alex just tries to return the sentiment.

Mr. Washington is a really cool mythology teacher, and even though he’s in a wheelchair, he still somehow towers over everyone in the room. Alex really looks up to the man, especially since he seems to know everything about the world. He goes to Mr. Washington with questions often.

Anyway, things really started getting weird when Alex, John, and their class went on a field trip with Mr. Washington. Sometime after talking about the Greek Gods and before lunch, Alex got attacked by the substitute teacher. He must’ve been extremely sleep deprived, because he totally saw her turn into a monster. The principal didn’t believe him, though, and he got expelled. Again.

Alex doesn’t know how he and John ended up at this weird camp. He’s almost positive this is all some weird dream, because suddenly people are talking about the gods as if they’re real.

Now imagine Alex being told he’s a demigod; a son of some great, ancient creature. And instead of freaking out or not believing them, he just gets really excited and goes, “I freakin’ knew it!!”, much to John’s amusement.

He takes to the whole “demigod” thing pretty well, and throws himself into everything Camp Halfblood has to offer. Sword fights? Cool as hell. Pegasus? Fascinating. Learning about ancient Greece? Freakin’ rad.

And for the first time in his life; Alex has found friends. People who like him, and understand him. There’s lots  of people that Alex just flocks to, because they’ve been through the same shit he has. You know; no parents, no future, no hope.

There’s John, who’s been Alex’s friend for a few years now. Turns out he’s a satyr; a half-goat boy that’s a child of Pan. Suddenly all of his little quirks and his love for food and nature makes sense to Alex.

Hercules is a son of Apollo. He’s a weird mix between super chill and crazy wild. Alex doesn’t know if they’re going to break into the Pegasus stables, or if they’re going to sit out in the sun and nap. Unlike his godly parent, Herc is actually pretty good at poetry. Alex likes to listen to him preform his newest prose.

Lafayette is a funny fellow. He’s a son of Athena; incredibly wise and quick with a sword. He and Alex become buddies instantly. Laf’s excited to have someone that can keep up with his wit, in both of his languages. He doesn’t have a good relationship with his godly parent, like everyone else at camp. Rumor has it, Athena is a bit upset that Laf is a son, and therefore resents him for it. Laf tries his hardest to win her affections. It’s an uphill battle, but that’s why he’s good at strategy, right?

Angelica, a daughter of Ares, scares the shit out of Alex. She has some kind of grudge against him from day one, but he’s sure once they see eye-to-eye, they’ll get along. She has a temper, and is an amazing fighter. The only thing that seems to calm her down is Eliza.

Eliza is a daughter of Hephaestus; she’s not too super into blacksmithery - she’s good at it, she just doesn’t care for it - but she does have a nack for starting fires. It’s surprising that someone so sweet would have an interest in something so intense. Alex likes to watch her work while she makes weapons. She looks so pretty with the light of the flames shining on her face.

Peggy is a daughter of Demeter. She and John get along well, because they both spend a lot of time in the gardens. It’s through John that Alex becomes good friends with Peggy. She’s calm and relaxed, while the rest of camp is hectic. She doesn’t have a whole lot of drama or anything; she says it’s bad for the plants. Whenever Alex needs a break, he goes and finds Peggy. Sometimes they just sit in silence; it’s a nice change.

Maria is a daughter of Aphrodite, and it shows. Alex will admit, he’s stared a bit too long to be polite. She’s pretty and kind. She’s one of the lucky ones that gets to talk to their godly parent fairly often. But she claims that Aphrodite just shows up to steal her cute dates. It’s sad to say, she has maybe the best relationship with her godly parent than the rest of them.

Charles is a son of Hermes. He’s pretty cool. He was one of the first people to show Alex around, and since Alex didn’t know who his godly parent was, he got to bunk with Charles and the others in the Hermes cabin. Alex and he get along pretty well. But there’s something a little weird about him. He’s super spiteful of his dad, but, well, isn’t everyone here?

And then there’s the adults that run the camp.

The guy in charge of camp is incredibly annoying. Alex hates everything about him. His arrogant attitude, his stupid southern accent, his need to constantly remind Alex that he’s “the god of wine” and blah blah blah. He goes by Mr. D (Alex calls him “Mr. Dick” behind his back), but Alex has heard Washington call him “Thomas” when they’re alone. There’s gotta be a story behind that, and Alex is determined to figure it out.

No one told him that Mr. Washington was a horse??? But okay, that’s cool. Alex can roll with that. Now his vast knowledge makes a bit more sense. Of course he knows about history and mythology; he lived through it. Turns out his name isn’t even Mr. Washington, so that’s great.

Now, once Alex finds out he’s a son of Poseidon, things get angsty.

“...You’re telling me that my dad was the reason why my home got hit with that hurricane?” Alex asked darkly, his fists clenched.

“Alex, listen, he probably didn’t mean to.” Herc said quietly, putting a hand on his shoulder. “It was, you know, an accident.”

“Yeah, and it might not’ve even been him. It could’ve been you.” John added, ducking his head to meet Alex’s gaze.

“What?” Alex’s eyes widened slightly.

“John.” Herc warned him sternly.

But John didn’t listen, “Al... Haven’t you noticed...? The storms? When you’re upset...?”

Alex took a shaky step back, his mind racing. “No, no...”

“You’re doing it now.” John whispered, his eyes on the sky, where dark clouds have started to form.

It’s a big ol’ emotional scene. Anyway, they go on an adventure and basically follow the Percy Jackson plot line or whatever. I just want nerdy, godly founding fathers.

Alternatively: Herc could be a son of Hermes (as a spy/messenger); Eliza could be a daughter of Athena (just to fit Annabeth’s character); Laf could be a son of Aphrodite (cuz Daveed, am I right?); Lee could be a son of Ares (except he sucks at fighting, and that’s why Ares hates him); and Alex could be a son of Apollo (simply bc Apollo is super arrogant af).

#hamilton #percy jackson #greek gods #alexander hamilton #percy jackson au #someone else needs to write this #bc i dont want to write it #i just want to read it #ok? #ok

[thefandomofoneshots]

Percy Jackson x Daughter of Apollo! Reader

Request: “Can I get a Percy Jackson x reader ? Where she’s a daughter of apollo and the two of them and Anna Beth r on a mission, but it goes wrong and she ends up distracting the monsters and gets killed so apollo blames Percy, but then she somehow comes back to life and they get together and just lots of fluff??? Thx ily!” -Anonymous

The life of a demigod was never fair.

You spent your life serving the gods, whether they be your parent or not. You go on quests. You fight monsters. You save the world. You got hurt. You lost the people you love. You die young.

This was a truth that all demigods faced.

Percy Jackson was fortunate, he’s best friends remained with him even after many many close calls. But all good things must come to an end, this end came in the form of you.

You were a daughter of Apollo. Nobody at camp were surprised when you were claimed, you had a light around you that spread to whomever saw your smile. Even on your hardest days you’d smile through the pain, bringing light to others and consequently bringing happiness to yourself. You spent your life making others happy and protecting those you love. That was your greatest weakness, your compassion. But it was one of the things Percy loved most about you.

The mission was supposed to be simple, all you had to do was to find a demigod and bring them back to camp. Percy, Annabeth and yourself left the camp in the morning and found the son of Aphrodite before nightfall.

It was late afternoon when the monster attacked. The four of you were on your way back to camp in high spirits. You were smiling and telling the other three horrible jokes. Both boys laughed along with you while Annabeth rolled her eyes, concealing the small smile on her face. The attack was sudden, a hell hound, something the three of you had taken on many times. Something that shouldn’t have cause as much damage as it did.

Your first concern was the young demigod. Percy pulled out his sword and you pulled out your bow, yelling at Annabeth to take the boy and run back to camp, only a 10 minute walk away. You and Percy had fought a few times together and worked together well, battling the hell hound with ease. The hound had been turned to dust and the two of you relaxed. Smiling at each other, you gathered the backpack you had dropped. Percy was kneeling on the ground collecting the items that had fallen out of his bag when you saw it. Two red eye glowering at him from the darkness.

Everything happened so quickly.

The hound launched. Percy was pushed to the ground. You screamed.

Percy swung his sword widely, slashing the hound’s neck. Golden dust rained down on you as you laid on the ground, a hand weakly resting on one of your wounds, but it was no use. Percy kneeled by your side, stripping himself of his jacket and putting pressure on your wounds. There was a scratch running deep across your stomach, another along your chest and a third on your cheek. Tears steamed down his face as he checked your neck for a pulse. His scream could be heard from camp.

Three days had passed and Percy hadn’t left his cabin. He sat on his bed, his tear stained face hid between his knees, mumbling apologies over and over again. He hadn’t even left when they burnt your shroud. The seven constantly checked up on him, trying to get him to leave his cabin or at the least eat more than a few bites of food. He couldn’t. He couldn’t go outside and look at the sun as he couldn’t understand how it was still alight without you here. He couldn’t watch as the other campers got on with their day as if she was still here. So he sat in his room, curled in a ball on his bed, his thoughts never once drifting from you.

After the sun set on the fourth day, Percy received a surprise visiter. When the flash of light appeared in his room, Percy didn’t even bother to look up, too grief stricken to go on a petty quest from them.

Instead of being scolded by Hera or consulted by his father, Percy was picked up by his shoulders and slammed into a wall. He looked up to see the face of the god he had least expected to visit him, your father, Apollo. He looked how Percy felt. His tear stricken face was red and his blood shot eyes filled with anger and a consuming pain.

“It was your fault!” He screamed. “She was too young to die, she wasn’t supposed to die! That beast was meant for you, the all mighty son of Poseidon!” Apollo slammed Percy into another wall, instead of fighting, Percy let the god throw him around like a rag doll. “If you hadn’t been with her, if she hadn’t cared for you, she’d still be here!” Percy was thrown across the room, hitting the floor with a loud thud. He watched as his tears dropped on the wood before snapping his head to your father.

“Don’t you think I know that? Don’t you think I blame myself for what happened to (y/n)?” His voice bounced off the walls of his cabin. “You’re right, she was too young to die, she was too innocent! If I could I’d go back and stop her from what she did but I can’t! I can still see her blood in my hands! I can still see her eyes staring at me without their light! Her death will haunt me until the day I die! I loved her! I still do love her! And I will never stop loving her! That’s why she died!” Percy’s hoarse voice lowered to a whisper. “It’s my fault she’s gone.”

He couldn’t bring himself to look up at the man that resembled you so much, so his eyes glued themselves to the floor and watched as it dampened from his tears. Percy considered just staying there for the rest of his life, until he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder.

Percy slowly lifted his head at the familiar touch and through his blurred vision, he say you, a bright aura surrounded your smiling face. Percy’s eyes never left your face, too afraid if they did it’d been the last time he would see you. Your hand moved to his face and wiped the tears off his face with your thumb.

“Hi.”

Percy let out a chocked laugh on your simple greeting, a smile spread on his face.

“Hi.”

His hands moved to cup your face, his smile widen when he felt your soft skin under his touch. Another laughed escaped as he pulled you into his embrace. Your head rested in the crook of his neck and he could feel your tears on his shirt as well as the ones running down his face. Threading his fingers in your hair, he pulled your back to see your watery smile.

Shaking his head he spoke. “How?”

You laughed and Percy felt his dark world brighten at the sound.

“The gods. You’ve done so much for them I think they wanted to give you something back. I’m sorry about my dad by the way. The gods called him back before I got here, I’ll scold him for what he did, later.”

Percy nodded his head and laughed again, not being able to contain his happiness he kissed you. Your arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer to you. Neither of you had to talk, the kiss said it all, you felt the pain Percy had been through during your absence and the joy that you were back. Most importantly you felt the unconditional love he had for you. And he felt the love he and for you.

Greek mythology was filled with tragedy about demigods dying young and lovers being thrust apart. You and Percy were not going to be one of those stories.

#Percy Jackson #Percy Jackson x reader #Percy Jackson imagines #annabeth chase #camp half blood #Apollo #father Apollo

[bananannabeth]

that home

that home by cinematic orchestra just popped up on my spotify and brought back all of the crushing emotions of to build a home, so. go read that fic. and then this drabble. and then listen to this on repeat and cry with me.

Apartment 6 hadn’t felt like home for a long time. It was somehow far too big and far too small at the same time. 

There wasn’t enough room for Mrs O’Leary to run around, so she was constantly knocking things off tables and skittering on the rug in the lounge, and sometimes when she was particularly excited Annabeth would have to press herself up against the hall wall to avoid being bowled over by her as she ran by. There were boxes hidden in every spare space, storage containers under the desk and folders and loose sheets of paper and pens scattered over every surface.

But there was too much space at the breakfast bar in the kitchen, an empty seat at the dinner table, cold sheets on the other side of the bed. There was a gaping hole looming there, and even though memories of Percy were threatening to spill from every corner of the apartment, Annabeth just couldn’t fill it.

She had to leave.

Piper was shattered when she found out. 

They were sitting at the cafe around the corner, enjoying Annabeth’s favourite omelettes after a morning jog, and Piper was looking at her as though she’d said she was moving to Australia. “Are you sure you want to go?”

“Yeah, Pipes, I’m sure,” Annabeth said, resting her fork on her plate. “I can’t stay here anymore.”

“But -” Piper’s face scrunched up and she sighed. “I know I’m being selfish, I’m sorry, it’s just so nice having my best friend right across the hall. What am I going to do without you?”

“I’m only moving to Montauk. And besides, you’ve got Jason,” Annabeth said.

“He’s not the same.”

Annabeth laughed, but the sound died on her lips when someone new entered the cafe, immediately capturing her attention. He wasn’t anything extraordinary, just a man with dark, scruffy hair and a blue t-shirt, but Annabeth’s heart squeezed tightly in her chest and she had to tear her gaze away.

For a moment, time blurred, and Annabeth was transported back to a morning long ago, when Percy had tripped through the door of this cafe, skateboard under his arm, and insisted on buying her breakfast to return the favour she’d done in cooking him eggs and bacon. He’d ignored her protests and they’d sat in the corner and she’d laughed way more than she’d intended to at his dumb jokes, and he’d smiled so brightly that the rest of the cafe had melted away, leaving just the two of them and the spark that had raced up Annabeth’s spine when their knees had knocked together underneath the table.

And then he was gone, and Annabeth was back in the present moment, with a coffee going cold and Piper frowning at her worriedly. 

“I see him everywhere,” Annabeth said quietly, curling her hands around her cup in an attempt to hide how they were shaking. “It’s been almost two years and I’m still waiting for him to walk around every corner, every day. I can’t keep living like this.”

Piper reached across the table and gently unfurled her hands, holding them still. “I’m going to miss seeing you every day.”

Annabeth swallowed thickly. “I’m going to miss you too, Pipes.”

Packing was a nightmare. Mrs O’Leary became unbearably panicky, probably remembering the last time Annabeth had packed things into boxes, and wound herself around Annabeth’s legs, crying and whining.

“It’s okay, girl,” Annabeth said, dropping to her knees and hugging the giant dog. “I’m not going anywhere. I promise. We’re sticking together, you and I.”

Mrs O’Leary licked her hand, and then barked at a lamp in the corner.

“We’re going somewhere big enough for you. Somewhere you can run.”

Mrs O’Leary’s tail thumped noisily against the carpet in excitement. 

“Yeah, that’s my girl.” Annabeth smiled and ruffled her fur. “We’re gonna be okay. Just don’t cry when I pack up all your toys.”

The Stoll brothers helped her load her life into the back of the moving van she’d rented, making jokes about how their parties were going to be so quiet without her there, and how they were going to miss leaving notices on the communal message boards for her to find. 

“Take care of the place for me,” she said, standing on the tips of her toes to hug Travis. 

“We’ll try not to burn it down,” he replied, winking.

“Pssh, we’ll leave that to Jason,” Connor said, laughing. 

“Oh, you start one electrical fire and you get such a reputation!” Annabeth spun around to see Jason strolling casually out the front door. He looked calm, at first glance, but behind his glasses she could see his expression was a little hurt. “Were you really trying to sneak away without saying goodbye?”

Annabeth huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. “God, you’re as dramatic as your wife. It’s not goodbye, I’m literally just moving to Montauk -”

“Annabeth Chase!” Piper jogged out onto the street, eyes blazing. “How dare you! You sneaky little shit, you really thought you could leave without telling us?”

“I didn’t want to upset you, and you’re coming over on Friday, it’s not that big a deal -”

“It is so a big deal!” Piper punched her lightly in the arm before enveloping her in a tight hug. “We were going to help.”

“It’s okay, Travis and Connor helped me load everything in and Sally and Paul are meeting me there -”

“Are you sure there’s nothing we can do?”

Annabeth smiled softly and kissed Piper’s forehead. “I’m one hundred percent sure. I’ve got this under control.”

From the passenger seat of the van, Mrs O’Leary stuck her head out the window and barked.

“Yeah, I’m coming!” Annabeth called to her, checking the time on her phone. “This is a loading zone, I better... you know, get going.”

Piper pulled her in for another hug, squeezing tight enough to crack a rib. Jason went for a handshake and then changed his mind and hugged her even tighter than Piper had. The Stoll brothers patted her on the shoulder and wished her well.

And then Annabeth took off for her new home, and didn’t look back.

The first thing she saw was the tree. Visible from the road, it towered in the front yard, branches reaching out and up to the sky, twisting and turning in a way that was perfect for climbing. She’d insisted on keeping it there, informed all builders that they weren’t to touch it under circumstances. She liked the thought of having something on her property that had weathered so many storms and was still standing, tall and proud. That tree was like a metaphor for the entire house and everything it stood for. The tree stayed.

The next thing she saw was a battered blue Prius, Sally and Paul leaning against it, faces lighting up as she pulled up the drive.

“Oh, Annabeth,” Sally breathed before she was even fully out of the car, rushing around to hug her. “It’s beautiful.”

Annabeth smiled at Paul over Sally’s shoulder. “You really think so?”

“Of course!” 

Their enthusiasm didn’t abate as Annabeth gave them a tour through the empty rooms, pointing out all of her carefully considered features. There was a deep spa bath and a huge shower in the bathroom, for relaxing; A huge open plan kitchen and dining room beside a lounge, where she could host parties and entertain friends; A study that was going to double as a library; All of it illuminated by skylights strategically positioned in the roof to ensure as much sun as possible comes through to warm the hardwood floors.

Annabeth stopped in the lounge, pointing out the floor to ceiling window to a space in the backyard. “The pool’s going to go there, when I get enough money.”

Sally gasped. “Oh, look at that view.”

Annabeth lifted her gaze to where the sea was visible over the low sand dunes. The late afternoon sun was glinting off it, making the waves sparkle. Annabeth breathed out, feeling a weight lift off her shoulders. “It’s nice to be able to see the ocean.”

Sally nodded, tears welling in her eyes. “Percy would love this.”

Annabeth hugged herself, blinking rapidly. She wanted to say something in reply, but found herself suddenly incapable of speech. Mrs O’Leary barked softly and nuzzled against Annabeth’s leg.

“We’re so proud of you, Annabeth,” Paul said quietly.

And that was what pushed her over the edge. Annabeth stood there, crying silently, watching the waves roll into shore with her family around her.

The door creaked behind Sally and Paul as Annabeth let them out, leaning on the doorframe, waving goodbye and yelling her thanks. When their headlights disappeared down the drive, she checked that Mrs O’Leary was asleep before padding up the stairs and into one of the currently-spare bedrooms, which was filled with boxes all marked with the word Percy.

Annabeth shuffled them around until she found the one that was more rectangular than square, longer than all the rest. With trembling hands, she cut through the packing tape and opened the flaps, gently unfurling the blanket inside until she reached what she was after.

Annabeth took a deep breath and pulled Percy’s skateboard out of the box. She ran her hands reverently over the board, smiling softly and feeling like she’d finally made it home.

#mine #to build a home #why do you write like you're running out of time? #percabeth #angst #pjo #pjo fic #hoo #hoo fic #i havent proofread this i hope its not terrible