I can't believe this. My cousin, Thalia Grace, invited me to spend the day with her. I was very excited, seeing as spending time with my seventeen year old cousin was a rarity. I was only twelve. So, imagine my surprise and disappointment when I was just about to leave to go visit her, and she cancels.

Yeah, I was mad.

"I'm sorry, Percy. Today is the only day I can spend with her. You remember her, don't you? From the park last month?"

"Yeah," I grumbled. "Why can't you see her tomorrow?"

"She's busy, and so am I. I'm spending some time with Luke."

I sighed and rolled my eyes. "Fine. When is the next time I can see you?"

Thalia paused, then gasped. "Why don't you come to her house with me?"

"What? I barely know her!" I exclaimed.

"Oh, Annabeth is so sweet once she warms up to you. You'll have a great time, Perce."

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"Um, who is that?"

Thalia had just sauntered up to the front door of this girl's house. Almost immediately, the girl answered, and she already had a que of snarky replies lined up for me.

"That's my little cousin, Percy Jackson. You met him a few weeks ago, remember?"

The girl nodded, her pretty blonde princess curls bobbing around her head.

"Hey," I said.

"Hi. Come in, I guess."

The girl, Annabeth, opened the door wider and Thalia and I scurried inside. I quickly noticed the flurry of boxes piled in the corner.

"Don't mind those," Annabeth said, leading us down a hallway. "My dad still needs to finish unpacking his office. My room is done already, though, don't worry."

She opened a door and revealed a very mature room for a twelve year old. The walls were painted a deep grey, similar to her eyes. The plush carpet was a lighter grey. A twin bed was set against the back corner, and was adorned by a patterned quilt and a few pillows. I noticed a memory board hanging above the bed. I stepped closer, taking a better look.

There were several pictures, mostly consisting of the same trio: younger versions of Annabeth, Thalia, and her good friend Luke Castellan.

"Wait, you know Luke?" I turned back to Annabeth.

She rolled her eyes. "Duh. Why would I have pictures of a stranger on my walls, dummy?"

I blushed. "I don't know. Cool room, though."

She smiled proudly. "Thanks. I decorated it all by myself. I hope to be either a designer or an architect someday, because that's what my mom did."

"Did?" I blurted.

She crossed her arms. "Yeah, my mom died when I was little. That's part of why I ran away and found Thals and Luke."

Before I pressed further, Thalia sent me a look. If I stayed on Annabeth's good side, maybe I could freely get the information from her.

So, I just nodded and said, "My dad died when I was little, too. Lost at sea. I still go to the ocean to remember him, though, so I see why you like those hobbies."

Annabeth let loose a small smile. "I'm sorry for your loss," she told me.

I waved my hand. "No worries."

I looked at Thalia, who seemed to be smiling like the mother of an honor student. I rolled my eyes. 

"What were you guys planning to do?" I asked curiously. My ADHD was starting to kick in, and I needed something to do before I started getting fidgety. I didn't want to freak Annabeth out.

"We were going to catch up a bit, then maybe play a few games," Thalia said.

I visibly perked up, making Annabeth roll her eyes. 

"Are you that bored already, Seaweed Brain?"

My cheeks flushed. "Actually, Wise Girl, I have ADHD. I can't help it."

She stepped away from me and looked to Thalia. "Did you tell him?"

"What?" I asked.

Thalia shook her head.

"Weird," Annabeth mumbled.

"What's weird?"

"I have ADHD too, as well as dyslexia," Annabeth explained.

My eyes widened. "Same."

Annabeth laughed. "Now Thalia has two ADHD ridden minors to look after, with reading problems."

Thalia rolled her brilliantly blue eyes. "Let's go find something to do, knuckleheads."

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"Come on!"

"Yes!" Annabeth cackled.

I threw my hands in the air, immensely frustrated. Annabeth had just beaten me at bowling on Wii sports for the fifth time in a row.

Thalia smirked. "Girl power, am I right, Annie?"

They high fived.

Annabeth turned to me and stuck out her hand. I reluctantly shook it.

"I wonder if you're that bad in real life," she pondered out loud, mocking me.

I narrowed my eyes. "Oh, you're on. I'll crush you, Annie."

She scowled, and I almost backed away. "Don't call me Annie, or it'll be the last thing you do."

I held back a wince. "But Thalia said it earlier, and - "

"I haven't had an appointment in a while, but, unless my eyes are deceiving me, you don't look like Thalia to me."

Annabeth crossed her arms triumphantly, and my cousin threw her head back with laughter.

"Whatever," I mumbled.

"Hey, is Percy short for something?" Annabeth suddenly asked.

I nodded and opened my mouth, before shutting it abruptly. I couldn't believe I almost just spilled the thing that embarrassed me most, my name, to this stranger. Well, she wasn't really a stranger, more of an acquaintance.

Annabeth's grey eyes sparkled with both mischief and curiosity. She turned to Thalia and asked the same question.

"Yup," Thalia replied. "His real name is Perseus."

"Thalia!" I bellowed.

She laughed. "Yes, Perseus?"

"Why would you say that?" I asked, mortified. The tips of my ears burnt red.

She shrugged. "I don't know. I felt like it, I s'pose."

Annabeth let out the laugh she was holding in. "Like, after that Greek hero, the son of Zeus? The handsome guy who married Princess Andromeda?" she all but shouted.

I nodded sheepishly. "You're a nerd, you know that?"

She laughed. "I'll let it slide, but only for you, Seaweed Brain."

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"I can't believe you, punk!" Thalia exclaimed.

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What did I do this time?"

It was almost sunset, so Thalia was walking me home from Annabeth's house. She didn't live very far away from me, and I wasn't sure how I felt about that.

"You had me convinced that I'd have to totally monitor your conversations. Where did you get these people skills?"

I rolled my eyes and nudged her over. "You're so annoying."

"There's the Percy I know. Throwing mindless insults left and right, not being flattered by a pretty chick."

I blushed. "I don't even understand what you are saying, Thalia."

She smiled. "Sure you don't. Come on, we're almost back to your place."

We made our way up to my stinky apartment. Luckily, Gabe, my nasty stepfather, was away on some gambling trip for the end of summer. If he stuck to his plan, I would be left unbothered for my birthday, which was a few days away.

My precious mother was passed out on the ripped up leather sofa that Gabe refused to replace. Thalia and I rushed past her very quietly and shut ourselves into my tiny bedroom.

"I can't believe she lives like that," Thalia mumbled.

"Yeah, I know. I want her to leave Gabe, but whenever I mention it she immediately declines, saying she would never. I don't know why, but I do know that guy's a real sleaze ball."

Thalia smirked. "I'd like to believe that you get your sarcasm and fabulous vocabulary of insults from me, Kelp Head."

I laughed. "So, what are you doing with Luke tomorrow?"

She looked into her lap. "I don't know. Probably just meet at a coffee shop or something. Something simple. Safe, even."

I frowned, pretty confused.

Luke was two years older than Thalia, almost twenty. He had met her when they were young, about eleven and thirteen. They were practically inseparable, until Thalia got to high school. That was Luke's junior year, and about halfway through, he dropped out. His dad had left his family the summer before, and his mother's mental illness had been rapidly getting worse. It all left its mark on Luke, and he eventually snapped. I was sorry for the poor guy.

Thalia was only fourteen then, and already had enough pressures on her. She was essentially an orphan with no immediate family. She had been living with Luke and his family, but ever since it had broke apart she felt she had no place there. So, Thalia returned to the streets like she had lived before she met Luke. But, a couple of months ago, when she was reunited with Annabeth, she was forced to revisit old memories and talk with Luke. I wasn't entirely sure where their relationship stood, but apparently Luke wasn't doing so well, and my cousin still cared for the guy.

Thalia and I chatted aimlessly for almost an hour before she told me she had to leave.

"I'll call you tomorrow, when I finish up with Luke," she told me. "Stay safe."

"Bye, Thalia."

"Bye, Percy."

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I really hope that that was what you were hoping for! It's a little over 1500 words, which is pretty good for me! Plus, not only did you get some Percabeth fluff, but also some backgrounds on Thalia and Luke.

In case you were wondering, yes, that was the first time that Annabeth and Percy really hung out with each other. It was set just under three years prior to the main plot. Gabe and Sally are still a thing, as Percy doesn't ditch him until the next summer. Percy hasn't even stood up for himself yet.

Speaking of, for the next milestone, would you like a flashback to the first time Percy stood up for himself? It would take place about a week from this little story.

I hope you enjoyed, seeing as this is not only for celebrating 500 reads, but also hitting number five in #Percabeth

See you soon with a normal chapter!