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His mom had laughed when he first brought it up. She'd said he used to do similar things. "In fact," she'd said, "you would do much weirder reenactments because yours were all sea themed. I'll never forget the day you were just lying on the floor and I asked what was wrong, only for you to factually tell me that you were a sand dollar and so this was perfectly normal behavior."
Percy found that story hard to believe. Though, not as hard as he supposed someone else would find it. He'd always been an imaginative child. It was something he once prided himself on.
It was also something that often got him in trouble. Especially with Gabe. It had meant pain. It had meant punishment.
So he had learned to suppress his imagination. To hide it away. To not give into it. He had, effectively, killed his inner dreamer.
It was at that realization that Percy had sworn on the Styx. He would do all in his power to ensure Estelle could use her imagination whenever she wanted, and help it grow as much as it could. A crack of thunder had confirmed his oath.
Sure, it had been impulsive to swear on the Styx itself for that promise, but when did Percy ever do anything not impulsive? And sure, he'd had a few close calls, his skin getting unbearably hot, literal steam coming off of him. But it wasn't like he'd exploded yet. And if he did, Percy figured he kinda deserved it. As big brother, his duty, at least in his mind, was to always put Estelle first.
It's how he had come to be in his current situation. His knees were already protesting, the hard wood floor of their brand new house doing nothing to help his aching joints. Still, he leaned down on all fours, placing more pressure on them. For Estelle.
Percy tipped his head so it was only a few inches off the floor. He could now peer straight into Estelle's eyes. The toddler giggled and toppled sideways off her own hands and knees.
She wiggled around on her back, maneuvering until she was directly under Percy's face. He leaned down and booped her nose with his own. Estelle squealed, chubby hands clapping excitedly. "'Gin Per-tee! 'Gin! 'Gin! 'Gin!"
With a chuckle of his own, Percy touched their noses together again. Then he tipped his head even further and tickled Estelle's nose with his hair. She laughed, and intertwined her small fingers into the black mess. She only held on for a minute, before letting go, Percy's head coming back up and the half siblings smiling brightly at each other.
"What are we being today, Ellie?"
As if that was the magic switch, Estelle rolled back over to her hands and knees. She stared at Percy intently, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. "Pokey pines!"
"Pokey pines?"
Estelle nodded happily. "Pokey pines big and scawy. Sharp. Ow!" She pulled one hand up and shook it as if she'd touched a cactus spine.
Percy smiled. "That's right Ellie. Porcupines are pretty big and scary. They're super sharp. You're so smart!"
Estelle squirmed between Percy's arms, where they still sat, supporting his weight. She scooted forward till she was next to his legs and under his belly. As soon as she was, she pushed off her knees, hands still on the floor. Pushing up on her tiptoes she barely grazed Percy's belly. She wiggled her bum against him. "Pokey! I pokey you Per-tee!"
"Oh no! Not the dreaded pokey!" Percy carefully, but still dramatically, rolled to his side. He flung one hand across his forehead. "Save me!"
Instantly, Estelle was on her feet. She put her tiny fists on her hips. "I save Per-tee!" She declared before running at full speed and flopping on Percy's belly.
Despite the wind being knocked out of him, Percy grinned. This is why he had made his oath. That look of joy, the excitement as suddenly she decided to change what she was pretending to be. And, upon hearing his sister's laugh Percy decided, it was all worth it.