Hullo! So this is a short little idea I came up with randomly. Hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

If a certain character in this chapter confuses you because of its gender, refer to the bottom of page. If this makes no sense then ignore it.

Also, note that I used an excerpt from The Lightning Thief but I changed the POV from first person to third. Enjoy and stay Persassy!

"Percy!" Annabeth giggled uncontrollably.

Percy loved it when she did that.
So he continued to chase her around the blanket with blue frosting on his hands.

Finally, he pinned her down. He dabbed her nose, leaving it noticeably blue.

"You little––" Annabeth started, but was drowned out by her own giggles.

Percy laughed, helping her up.

Annabeth was attempting to lick the frosting off her nose. Her eyes were crossed, her brows scrunched in concentration.

That was only something Percy would do. Maybe he was rubbing off on her.

He grinned at the thought while grabbing a napkin to wipe his stained fingers.

"I let you get me," Annabeth remarked, still smiling.

"I know."

They plopped down side by side, munching on peanut butter sandwiches and blue-dyed coke.

It was nice to get away from their demigod lives for a while, and simply spend some time together.

Percy did expect something to go wrong, but so far, so good.

Key words: so far.

If something strange were to happen, Percy figured it would be the odd monster attack, or maybe even some lazy god asking for "help." Apollo, maybe. Hermes. Hades. Really any divine being that has better things to do rather than retrieve dangerous (as in world ending) weapons or move a finger to erase something they aren't very fond of. Because, of course, that's what halfbloods are for.

But what he didn't expect was a pink, curly-haired canine trampling over their (somewhat) beautiful set up.

The poodle had come out of nowhere. It circled their picnic blanket, dodging the blue coke that was now splattered.

Percy and Annabeth shared a look.

Annabeth's eyes were wide. Percy simply raised an eyebrow.

The dog sat on it's hunches in front of the couple, head tilted, as if expecting something.

It barked, sending a clear message: give me some food.

Annabeth's hand found its way to some bread, eyes still glued to the poodle, mouth agape.

Percy finally voiced both of their thoughts.

"Gladiola?"

Arff!

Annabeth handed him the bread. He lay down with it, wolfing it down, only occasionally stopping to lick his chops.

Percy and Annabeth watched intently.
They both knew they would get an explanation soon enough. Their minds were on other things.

Their first quest together.

Just the sight of small Gladiola brought so many memories back. From the stolen lightning bolt to the giant cyclops' man eating sheep to the dam snack bar and even wrong turns in the Labyrinth.

First kisses.

Countless risks.

Endless sacrifices.

New friends.

Old ones.

Betrayals and goodbye's.

Amnesia and tears.

The pits of hell.

Fatal flaws...

All of it.

Percy's mind flashed to that day long ago.

"You can talk to animals?"

Grover ignored the question. "Percy, meet Gladiola. Gladiola, Percy."

Percy stared at Annabeth, figuring she'd crack up at this practical joke they were playing on him, but she looked deadly serious.

"I'm not saying hello to the poodle," he said. "Forget it."

"Percy," Annabeth said. "I said hello to the poodle. You say hello to the poodle."

The poodle growled.

He said hello to the poodle.

Percy reached for his Wise Girl's hand and intertwined their fingers.

She looked at him, smiling slightly.
They had been thinking about the same things.

Annabeth nodded. They had come to a silent agreement.

Percy cleared his throat.

"So. Gladiola. Do you...need a place to stay?"

It's been a while since I've read TLT, so I did a little research on Gladiola the poodle. Apparently it's a boy. I believe it was mentioned in the book but, hey, I forget things. Didn't the owners mistake it for a girl or something? Idk.

Comment your thoughts! Leave a vote!

Thanks for reading and stay tuned for next time!

~ Grace