Chapter Text
Percy was at the California Disneyland, of all places, but it wasn’t crowded or noisy the way it usually was. The noon sky was a golden blue, the smell of cotton candy and popcorn hung in the air. For once, there were no monsters, no swords, no gods to deal with — just him and Annabeth, two teen on a date.
She looked happy. Not the tight-lipped, calculating kind of happy Percy saw during successful battle plans, but the kind of happiness that reached her storm-gray eyes and made her giggle at his awful jokes. She wore a seagreen kurti and jeans (which Percy definitely didn’t think was coincidence), and her hair glimmered in the sun like spun gold.
They’d spent the day doing all the things Percy loved for once— eating through every food stall like they were in an Olympic event, riding all the rides, and even winning a Nemo and a Queen of Hearts plushie from the ring toss.
Now, the two of them sat side by side on a park bench. Percy bashfully clutched the plushies in his lap, grinning like a goof, while Annabeth leaned closer, teasing him about how he’d screamed louder than her on the roller coaster.
But then — the teasing tone softened. Her voice turned gentle, eyes locked on his. The air grew still, and Percy could feel the warmth of her shoulder against his. His heartbeat stumbled.
Annabeth’s hand brushed against his cheek, and for a second, the world stopped around them.
Annabeth smiled, the corners of her lips puckering in that way that made him melt. And when she leaned in — eyes fluttering shut, just a breath away — Percy, blushing furiously, leaned in too.
---
His eyes blinked blearily, still half asleep— until reality hit him like a tidal wave.
Great, that was a dream.
Then came worse stuff. His vision cleared and he realized he was staring up at his mom’s amused face… and Paul’s bewildered one. His lips were still puckered, a string of drool glistening on his chin.
His mom's brown eyes were sparkling with that motherly knowingness that made Percy wish he could just sink through the mattress. Beside her, Paul balanced a blue cupcake with a single candle on top — the kind that probably said “Happy 16th Birthday, Percy!” in slightly wobbly frosting.
For a few seconds, nobody said anything. The silence was so thick you could’ve cut it with Riptide.
Then she tilted her head.
“Nice dream?” she asked, voice sweet — too sweet.
Paul looked like he wanted to disappear. “Uh… we, uh, were gonna surprise you—”
But Percy didn’t let him finish. His face went crimson faster than a lava flow, and he immediately yanked his blanket over his head, muffling a groan.
“OH GODS, MOM!” came his mortified voice from under the covers. “Can we just— pretend this didn’t happen? Please?”
Sally chuckled softly, setting the gift down on his nightstand. “Sure, honey,” she said, her tone dripping with amusement. “We’ll just forget the part where you were kissing in your sleep.”
Under the blanket, Percy groaned again, loudly.
---
Few minutes later, Percy sat cross-legged on his bed, his hair sticking up in every direction like it had survived a hurricane.
He let out a sigh and glanced at the small pile of pillow pets and plushies scattered around his room. His council of bros whom he still held in high regard like his real friends. Today they were to induct a net arrival: the oversized raven plush sat propped against his headboard.
Percy picked it up and grinned faintly. It was fluffy and adorbale. “You know, Ethan, for a guy who once tried to stab me, you’ve got surprisingly good taste,” he muttered.
Then he read the tag hanging from its wing and turned crimson. It bore Ethan's suprisngly neat cursive handwriting—‘Sorry I can’t make it, Percy. Grandpa’s funeral and some stuff I have handle at home. Found from Drew you have taste for adorable pillowpets at your age. So here is this fellow as your new henchman. Happy Birthday– E.N.’
It was weirdly touching, in a two-former-enemies-being-awkwardly-kind sort of way yet the jibe was clear.
He ruffled the raven’s head and sighed. “I am defs gonna give Drew a piece of my mind for telling him about my pillow pet love, though. Totally not cool.”
Then a worse image came into his mind. His frenemy and rival Alabaster, finding out about it and turning him into a laughing stock.
He glanced at the next gift on his nightstand that had just arrived— a sleek Sephora perfume bottle tied with a blue ribbon. Drew’s note was taped to the side, her handwriting neat and smug - You reek of horse dung and the trash can when you sweat. Fix it. Also, get a haircut. Your current look screams wet mop. – Drew.’
Percy groaned. “She’s with Ethan now being real cousins for once and still finds ways to roast me from across the country.”
He then swapped into his Goode High School track suit. The navy jacket got tied up around his waist — too humid to wear properly — and his tanktop clung to his shoulders from the lingering humidity.
He plopped back onto the bed chatting absently to his plushies again. “So, plan for today…” he said, ticking things off on his fingers. “First, last practice with Coach before the state-level backstroke competition tomorrow. Time to win gold. Then—” he glanced at a corner of his room “ my 16th birthday party in the evening. Friends from school and Camp Half-Blood both will coming. Should be… big time chaos.”
He was personally looking forward to it more than winning gold. This would the first time he ever celebrated his birthday with a huge party. The great prophecy had made slaying Kronos his destiny and spoken a big deal about Percy surviving to 16 for a half blood of the eldest gods. Now here was Percy
His gaze drifted toward his desk, where a copy of his invitation to his swag 16 bash sat. He’d emailed off virtual copies to all the invitees but one: Rachel’s address in Connecticut. She’d just become the new Oracle of Delphi and had rushed home sick afterwards. The Lamia curse had been temporarily handled with the creature being vaporized and expelled to Tartarus, but Percy didn’t have a phone of his own yet to call her.
“Hope you’re okay, Rach,” he murmured.
Then, his heart did that weird fluttery thing again.
He would finally ask Annabeth out today. After years of tension, arguments, almost-deaths, and Luke-shaped hindrance, they’d finally make it official. Success was guarnteed given they had a romantic spark for each other.
Percy leaned back, grinning like a total dork. “Guess Travis was right. I really am a simp.”
The word tasted ridiculous coming from his mouth, but he couldn’t stop smiling. Then the grin faltered, replaced by quiet sorrow as he thought of someone else — Michael Yew.
Michael, the sharp-tongued, brave son of Apollo and his best friend aftee Grover was still lying in a coma after the Battle of Manhattan. He would have been very proud of Percy for growing some balls.
He glanced towards the sun, half in prayer. “C’mon, Apollo. Do your healing thing for your own son. Please.”
No reponse as expected. He sighed and walked out in irritation. But little did know that the eyes of the raven plushie were glowing an eerie yellow.
---
Percy grabbed a quick breakfast on his way out — a couple of blue muffins and a to-go cup of coffee his mom had set aside for him — while she and Paul were already knee-deep in birthday decor. The apartment was slowly transforming into an ocean-blue wonderland: streamers, balloons, sea-shell garlands, and a banner that probably read "Happy Birthday Percy!”
He paused in the doorway, watching his mom bustle humming softly, her hand resting on her baby bump. A little set of twins were the way in Percy's life and he’d only found out about in the middle of the Titan War thanks to Irene's powers. The thought made him smile, but also worry.
What if a grudgy monster attacked mom? It already happened thrice.
“Mom, you sure you should be doing all this?” he asked, frowning as she stretched up to hang another streamer. “You’re, what, three and a half months along? You should be resting.”
She waved him off with that same calm confidence that always made Percy feel like a little kid again. “Sweetheart, a little moving around is good for me at this stage. It's gonna get heavier as your siblings keep growinf in there. Besides, I used to carry crates twice as heavy as these when I was pregnant with you, back before Gabe.”
“Yeah, but these ones are… y’know, mortal,” Percy reminded gently.
That earned him a headpat. “And these mortal babies have a very overprotective demigod big brother,” she said. “Now go, before you’re late for swim practice.”
Percy sighed, but couldn’t help smiling back. “Okay, okay. But promise me you’ll take it easy and let Paul handle the heavy work.”
“I promise,” she said, though he caught the glint in her eyes that said no guarantees.
Shaking his head, Percy grabbed the keys to his mom’s Prius, slung his gym bag over his shoulder, and headed out. Sliding into the driver’s seat, he adjusted the mirror and turned on the AC, feeling smug about his still-new junior license. He’d gotten it in July and had been driving short distances since then whenever he didn’t feel like taking the bus.
Just as he reached for a muffin, a male voice suddenly echoed- sharp, and very annoyed.
Percy nearly jumped out of his skin. A faint rainbow shimmered across the dashboard, and before he could say “What the fuck—,” an Iris Message flickered into view.
On the other end sat Malcolm Pace, Annabeth’s no-nonsense half-brother, and one of the more level-headed children of Athena. Except right now, Malcolm looked furious. His blonde hair was a mess, his jaw tight, grey eyes narrowed like he was ready to lunge at him.
“Malcolm?” Percy asked, blinking. “What gives?”
“What gives?” Malcolm snapped, voice dripping disbelief. “You give, Percy! I can’t believe you’d actually do this to my sister!”
Percy blinked harder. “Do what? What are you talking about?”
Malcolm glared through the rainbow connection. “Don’t play dumb with me. Annabeth’s heartbroken. You gave her false hope and yet kept cheaing on her? I expected the probablity of you being this cruel to be zero.”
Percy’s stomach dropped. He gripped the steering wheel, heart hammering. “Wait—what? I didn’t cheat on her! I haven’t even talked to her since—since the battle!”
Malcolm’s expression hardened. “If you want to explain yourself, meet her at the Starbucks store outskirts of Queens Midtown. You owe her that much.”
And with that, the message ended, leaving Percy feel like he was having a sunstroke despite the hum of the AC
For a long moment, he just stared at the empty space where Malcolm’s face had been. His thoughts spun like a whirlpool.
What was that about?
“This has to be a prank,” he muttered, trying to calm himself. “Probably Alabaster’s idea of a surprise party setup or something.”
But no matter how many times he told himself that, his pulse wouldn’t slow down. His gut twisted in that way that told him something was wrong.
He started the engine, revved it hard, and pulled out onto the street.
---
When Percy barged into the Starbucks store, all his hope crumbled.
There were no party balloons, no friends jumping out, no laughter. Just Annabeth.
She sat alone at a corner table by the window, a cup of untouched cappuccino in front of her. Her expression wasn’t soft or warm — it was carved from stone. Her eyes were red, but dry, her jaw set in the same resolute way it had been the night she’d chosen to allowed Percy to land the final blow on Luke to end Kronos.
Percy’s heart dropped straight into his stomach.
He rushed inside, the bell above the door jingling, and hurried over to her table, ignoring others in the store. “Annabeth!” he blurted, nearly tripping over a chair. “What...what’s going on? Malcolm said—”
Annabeth didn’t look up at first. She stirred her coffee once, then finally lifted her gaze. Percy froze under its chill.
“I only came,” she said quietly, “because Mal wanted me to hear a logical explanation before deciding you weren’t worth the effort.”
The words hit him harder than any monster punch.
She exhaled shakily, then added, her tone laced with venom, “So… happy 16th birthday, Percy. You and Rachel Dare and your little cheer squad at Goode can celebrate however you want. I hope your polycule works out just fine.”
Percy blinked, utterly lost. “Wait—what? Annabeth, what are you talking about? What polycule?”
Without a word, she pulled out her phone, unlocked it, and slid it across the table toward him.
“Explain this.”
Percy hesitated, then looked down — and felt the blood drain from his face. The screen opened into the WhatsApp account of an unknown number bearing photos of him.
He was smiling, flirting, and hanging out with Rachel Dare and a few of the Goode High cheerleaders. And then — the one that made his stomach lurch — shots of him in just black speedos waist-deep in water, passiontely making out with Rachel also in swim wear.
The background on the picture matched the location of the week long Dare family vacation in the Caribbean. Percy had left it early because Beckendorf had borrowed him to blow up the ship of monsters working for Kronos.
He looked up at Annabeth, horrified. “Wise girl, ...these aren’t real! I swear on the Styx, I’d never...I’d never do that! They’re photoshopped.”
“I never know what goes on in that single brain cell of yours, Percy,” she said bitterly. “Romance, sarcasm — whatever it is, you’ve never been honest about it."
Percy’s throat went dry. “Please—Annabeth, you have to believe me.”
But she just nodded toward the phone again. “Then explain the voice note.”
Percy’s shaking fingers tapped it open.
A moment later, he heard his own voice — mocking, arrogant, cruel.
“Annabeth’s just a red flag waiting to happen. Needy, bossy — still hung up on Luke. I am just her second option. You actually get me, Rach. You are smarter, even a better kisser. Oh yeaaa..”
Then came suspicous noises.
The café seemed to tilt sideways. Percy felt his stomach twist violently as he realized what those noises were.
Annabeth shut the voice note off sharply and snatched her phone back, her expression torn between fury and exhaustion. Her fingers trembled slightly as she said, “I didn’t believe this either, Percy. Not until Travis confirmed it with some background check on your activites.”
Percy blinked, confused. “Confirmed what?”
Annabeth’s tone was clipped, but her voice cracked halfway through. “That you went to that Easter brunch with Rachel and her art friends — the one where you posed shirtless for them to sketch. And that you went on a Caribbean cruise with her family, only coming back because Beckendorf called you and I’m only finding out about all this now.”
Percy’s stomach sank. “Annabeth, lemme talk about it...”
“Oh, I’d love to hear this.” she said bitterly, crossing her arms.
He swallowed hard, trying to steady his voice. “Rachel and I are friends. That’s it. I only stopped by that brunch after swim practice because I was starving and they offered food. They talked me into posing for their art sketches, that’s all — nothing weird. And the cruise? That wasn’t even planned. Rachel’s family invited me last minute, and I had no phone. Also it was not something to chat about in the middle of a warzone with arson and death all around us. You know what things were like then!” He ran a hand through his hair, desperate. “And that recording? It’s fake, Annabeth. Rachel and I never talked like that or did it— ever. You can call and ask her about it.”
Annabeth’s eyes blazed. “You always have an excuse for mistakes, Seaweed brain! I called your friend and she didnot pick up. You never compromise, you never think about how it looks from my side! You say you care, but you hide things — you always have!”
“That’s not fair. You do too.”
“Fair?” she cut him off, voice sharp enough to draw blood and got up. “You think a girl and a boy can just be friends? That’s not how it works, Percy. You’re either siblings or something more. We are done here! Forget about ever dating me.”
Percy took a step closer, trying to hold her. “Annabeth, please. I didn’t—”
Before he could get another word out, her hand lashed across his cheek.
SMAACKK!
The sharp crack echoed through the quiet café.
Percy just stood there, stunned, his left cheek burning.
Something inside him cracked — not from the pain, but from what it meant. The girl he’d trusted with his life, the one he’d fought beside through hell and back, had just hit him.
And suddenly, his PTSD surged back making it hard to breath or think— Gabe’s drunken fists, Nancy Bobofit’s psychilogical bullying, Clarisse’s taunts. Every time he’d been made to feel small, humiliated, worthless.
Annabeth just fumed and mildly sneered, clearly not regretting anything she did.
“You know what, wise daughter of Athena?” he said hoarsely. “Maybe you’re right about me. Maybe I am a simp for other girls. But you—” he laughed bitterly, tears stinging his eyes, “you and Luke weren’t just friends either, were you? You would done anything to get his touch and attention even when he clearly liked Thalia. You didnot even kiss me until you suspected he was dead, despite how much you claim to love me.”
Annabeth flinched a bit, but Percy didn’t stop. His voice broke with fury and heartbreak. “So here’s my last explanation. SCREW YOU!”
He turned and bolted out of the café, ignoring everything, including the ache in his chest that felt worse than any sword wound.
---
Percy finally stopped running when his legs gave out. It was a narrow alley between two apartment buildings. He punched the wall hard igorning the pain surging in his fist and cursed aloud.
"DAMN ITTT!!!"
The tears came before he could even stop them. Hot, bitter, helpless.
He pressed a hand to his chest, clutching his shirt like it could hold him together. “Happy birthday, Perseus Jackson,” he muttered shakily, voice cracking. “Worst one since you were eleven.”
Everything hurt. He’d faced monsters, titans, and gods, but none of that compared to the feeling of being misunderstood and insulted by the one girl he’d trusted and loved most. Now he got again what loyalty being a fatal flaw meant like. Even if the Fates thought this was for some kind of greater good, he wished it hadn’t happened like this. Not when he’d finally let his guard down and was this emotionally invested in Annabeth.
People had warned him before — about her temper, her pride, her tendency to overthink and jump to rash logical conclusions. He’d always defended her, always said she was wiser than that. But now… now he wasn’t so sure.
He wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, trembling. He wanted to disappear somewhere forever and stay there. Let the silence drown his heartache. Water was the only thing that had ever understood him completely. Maybe today, it could be his therapy again.
Yup...I should go to my swimming practice.
Suddenly a strange sound cut through the quiet — a rhythmic hasty clop-clop of hooves on pavement, followed by the rapid creak of wooden wheels.
Percy froze. That sound didn’t belong in Manhattan.
He looked up — and his breath caught.
Out of what looked like a dead-end of the alley emerged a carriage. Something straight out of the Bridgerton set.
It was massive, ornate, and utterly out of place — built in polished black wood trimmed with gold, glowing faintly from eerie green lanterns hanging from its sides. The horses were midnight black, their eyes glimmering faintly like emeralds, and the coachman was a tall, shadowed figure dressed in an old-fashioned black-and-gold suit, face obscured beneath a top hat.
Percy translated the language of the horses and gulped when he relaized they were rhythmically saying Reap the soul past the night.
What in Poseidon’s name…?
He squinted at the symbol on the door — an unfamiliar crest, elegant yet ominous a raven in a mirror.
Is this some kind of new chariot Hades came up with?
He then relaized the carriage was about to hit straight onto him. Having given the Achilles curse in order to normal only meant that he was either going to land in the Underworld or in the hosptial.
“Oh, you’ve gotta be kidding me—”
He tried to dive out of the way, but he wasn’t fast enough. The carriage slammed into him with terrifying force.
"AHHHH!"
Percy’s yell echoed off the alley walls before everything went black.
Pain ripped through him — sharp, burning, consuming. Then came flashes — visions — rapid and disjointed. Finally a hand reached out from the darkness. It clasped Percy's wrist tightly and dragged him into the light.