Here's the first part of a one shot/mini story I've been working on for about a week :)

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Point of view: Omniscient and Limited Third

Type: Mortal AU

Main Ship: Percabeth

Word Count: 3889

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The time was ten o'clock P.M, way passed seven-year-old Annabeth's bedtime. No matter, she couldn't sleep. Her mother had tucked her in over two hours ago before returning to her office. Annabeth couldn't sleep with the fact that her mother was working so late still lingering in her young mind.

The young girl climbed out of her glamorous grey canopy bed and slid into her favorite owl slippers. She shuffled out of her room and down the hall to her mother's office.

Athena Chase's office had three grey walls, with one brick accent wall at the back. The brick wall had a large white bay window with cushions and a bookshelf was on each side. Numerous awards and accomplishments in the form of certificates lined the grey walls. Athena's desk was centered on a large white rug, and a chair was on either side. Sitting on the side facing the door was Athena herself.

"Mommy," Annabeth whispered to get her mother's attention.

Athena looked up from her computer monitor and peered at the little girl. A small smile danced on the mother's lips, but she quickly put it away as she turned on Mother Mode.

"Annabeth, it's late. Why aren't you in bed?" she murmured.

"Why aren't you in bed, Mommy?" Annabeth asked.

Athena gazed at her child over her glasses, letting out the tiniest of smiles. "I have work to do."

Annabeth crossed her arms. "You always have work to do."

"There's always work to be done, Annabeth. Someday you'll get it."

The little girl sighed, rubbing her eyes. "Can I stay up with you, Mommy?"

Athena looked down at the spread of paperwork on her desk, and then down at her daughter, her replica. "Just a few minutes, Annabeth, then you have to go to bed. Alright?"

Annabeth nodded, smiling. She climbed up onto the chair opposite her mother's.

As Athena went back to work, her mini-me gazed at her in admiration. The two had different hair colors - Annabeth's was golden blonde whilst Athena's was chocolate brown - but that's about where the differences stopped. They both had long princess curls, fierce grey eyes, button noses, plump lips, and angular faces. Athena loved grey, so Annabeth loved grey. Athena loved owls, so Annabeth loved owls. Athena loved architecture, so Annabeth loved architecture. Sometimes, Athena feared that her daughter would never develop her own personality. All young Annabeth wanted was to be just like her mom.

Suddenly, Athena's phone rang, startling both of them out of their thoughts. She picked up the phone and greeted whoever was on the other side.

"Hello, Athena Chase speaking. No, I'm not busy. Yes, I can come in. All right be there in fifteen minutes. Goodbye." She hung up the phone with a click. "Annabeth, sweetie, I have to head into work. Run to your room and get settled down. I have to go talk to your father, and then I'll tuck you in."

Annabeth pouted, brushing her hair behind her ear and holding back a yawn. "Fine."

She slid off the desk chair and rushed to her bedroom down the hall. On the third floor was her bedroom, as well as her parents' bedroom and offices. On the second floor were all four guest rooms. The first floor had the kitchen, dining room, living room, and a spare bathroom. The basement was where all the maid's cleaning supplies were kept, as well as the chef's spare dry goods. The attic held all of Frederick and Athena Chase's unimportant accomplishments.

Annabeth kicked off her slippers and slid into her bed. Five or so minutes later, her mother came into the room.

"Goodnight, sweetheart. I love you, I'll see you in the morning."

"Why do you have to go?" Annabeth asked.

"They need me in the office," Athena explained. "Sleep tight, I love you."

The little girl crossed her arms. "Night."

"Annabeth," her mother said sternly, "I love you."

"I'll love you in the morning," the child retorted.

Athena chuckled. "I'll hold you to that. Goodnight, Annabeth."

"Goodnight, Mommy."

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Annabeth blinked back tears as she set down the bouquet of daisies against the gravestone. Dozens of others laid there, rotting away. The preteen sank to her knees. Dirt smeared her knees, but she didn't care.

"Today was the last day of sixth grade," the girl began. "It was pretty fun, I guess. We played a lot of games and then had a big award ceremony. I won most of the academic ones. I guess I'm proud. I wish you were there, though."

Annabeth rubbed her thumb against the engraved letters and mouthed the quote at the bottom that she knew by heart. She heard a clap of thunder, so she glanced up at the sky. Scattered grey clouds were quickly condensing into one large storm cloud.

She stood up and whipped out her cell phone. First, she opened up the camera app to make sure her eyes weren't too red. Then, she began to dial the familiar digits of her family's chauffeur's number. Just as Annabeth was about to press the call button, drops of rain began to fall. She tugged on her grey hood and called her driver. When he picked up, she asked him to drive around to the front of the cemetery. He quickly agreed - he was being paid, after all - so Annabeth hung up.

As she walked to the front of the gate, the rain and wind picked up. She heard someone shout a swear, so she looked around and spotted a guy leaning against a gravestone. He had black hair and looked to be about the same age as Annabeth.

The boy was furiously typing on his phone. To Annabeth, it looked like the poor kid had been caught in the rain just like her, but couldn't get a ride. She bit her lip, contemplating whether or not to be a nice person. She could offer the guy a ride, but what reason did she have? He could be a murderer or a robber. The last thing Annabeth needed was to get her mansion robbed.

"Hey," she called out, instantly cringing at the sad croak seasoning her voice. She cleared her throat. "Hey!"

The boy looked up timidly. "Uh, hi."

Wow, Annabeth thought.

The boy had bright green eyes clouded with tears - but what else would you expect in a cemetery? - a straight Grecian nose, and plump pink lips. He was quite the looker for being around twelve or thirteen.

Annabeth scolded herself. What would her mother think of her having such thoughts about a boy? She'd be very disappointed. Athena Chase always reminded her daughter that work came first.

"You need a ride?" Annabeth asked cooly.

The boy blushed. "Yeah, but you don't need to do that."

"Too bad. You're going to be stuck here for a while from the looks of it." She pointed at his phone, which showed that he was locked out of it.

He rubbed the back of his neck. "I - er, forgot my password."

Annabeth nodded. "Right. Did you forget your address, too?"

He shook his head. "No, I did not, Wise Girl."

She rolled her eyes. "Come on, my driver's here. And the name is Annabeth."

"Percy Jackson," he offered, extending his arm.

The two shook hands, and Annabeth would be lying if she said she didn't feel tingles. His sea-green eyes were locked on her grey ones, and she would have stayed like that forever if a loud clap of thunder didn't make her jump.

Annabeth spun on her heel and sped to the cemetery entrance. Percy quickly caught up with her, and the two walked in silence.

The Chase's chauffeur, Jules-Albert, was leaning against the side of their shiny black Mercedes G-Wagon. The second he spotted the two young grievers, he straightened up and opened up the backseat door. Annabeth climbed in and scooted to the far left side, and Percy sat on her right. Jules-Albert shut the door before rushing to the driver's seat and starting up the car.

"Where to, Mademoiselle?"

Annabeth glanced at Percy, who quickly babbled off his address. Annabeth recalled that that street was a part of the dingier side of Manhattan, but she had already guessed that the kid wasn't the richest.

Percy was glancing around the car, wide-eyed. When the two pairs of eyes met, his jaw dropped. "You have a chauffeur?" he asked incredulously. "And a G-Wagon?"

Annabeth nodded, holding back a smile. "You thought I was kidding when I said my driver was here?"

He bit his lip. "I guess I just blocked it out. That's insane. Who are your parents?"

Annabeth stiffened and stared out the window. "Frederick and Athena Chase," she muttered.

She felt Percy's gaze on the back of her head. "Oh. Isn't she the one who - "

Annabeth cut him off with a stern glare.

The rest of the car ride, Percy cracked jokes and told stories, trying to lift Annabeth's mood. It did work quite a few times. In fact, it worked more than the stubborn girl would like to admit.

Less than ten minutes later, Jules-Albert pulled the car into a small parking lot parallel to a five-story apartment building.

"This is it," Percy stated. "Thanks."

"Yeah, no problem," Annabeth murmured. "Try not to forget your password anymore."

"I'll do my best," he retorted.

"Maybe if you write it down somewhere, you won't forget."

"Maybe. Try writing down your number for me, and we'll see if I remember it."

Annabeth grinned, but a blush lit up her cheeks. She dug out a marker from the console of the car. "Hand," she ordered.

She held Percy's left hand delicately in her own and scribbled her seven digits down.

Percy smiled down at his hand. "See you, Annabeth."

"Later. Perce."

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Annabeth wept as she crawled out of bed. Annabeth whimpered as she spooned her cereal into her mouth. Annabeth sniffled as she stepped into her black dress. Annabeth sat stone-faced in the back of her family's expensive G-Wagon.

"So first, Grandpa Jasper is going to do a small reading, and then Auntie April will read off a poem, and then I am going to do a eulogy, and finally Uncle Pat will read a verse as the casket is lowered," Frederick explained to his grief-filled child.

Annabeth nodded solemnly. "Then we go to the reception and act like it never happened."

Her father shook with light laughter. "If you would like. Listen, Annabeth, losing a parent is something no one is ever ready for. You're only seven. This is going to be hard, but I want you to know that I love you and am so proud of you."

Once again, the little girl emotionlessly nodded her head. "Okay."

All throughout the funeral and reception, Annabeth was quiet. She had cried all her tears. But still, she would forever be tainted with grief and regret. Athena Chase was dead, and Annabeth never told her she loved her.

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Annabeth sighed as the insistent tone of her alarm clock blared through her room. Seeing as it was the first day of freshmen year, her alarm was set unnecessarily early. She sat up and ran her fingers through her long blonde hair, wincing as they got stuck in several snarls.

Yawning, she kicked her legs out from beneath her covers and slid her feet into a pair of slippers. Annabeth made her way out of her room, down the hallway, and down the flight of stairs to the kitchen. The Chases' chef was standing in front of the stove, flipping something in a pan.

"Morning, Haleigh. What'd you make today?"

Haleigh, the chef, turned to look at the young teen. "Good morning, Miss. I made fresh chocolate chip pancakes today, and squeezed fresh oranges into OJ for you as well."

"You don't need to call me that, Haleigh," Annabeth told her, smiling. "And thank you very much. I'll be in the dining room."

Annabeth wandered to the next room over, the dining room. The second she sat in her normal seat, her mood dropped. The Chases had an unnecessarily long dining table that could seat twenty guests but rarely did. Frederick would always sit at the head, with Annabeth on his left and Athena on his right. Six years ago, Helen took Athena's place.

Helen was essentially Annabeth's worst nightmare. She was really strict, harsh, and had no ethics. She hired extremely young staff, like Haleigh, who was barely 13 years old when she started working for the Chases. She rarely helped Annabeth with drama or similar teen struggles. She wouldn't let Annabeth hang out with people that she didn't know, or stay out past ten o'clock. Worst of all, Helen tried to replace Athena and take over her role as Annabeth's mother, and Annabeth couldn't stand it.

Haleigh set down a plate of her famous chocolate chip pancakes and a glass of orange juice in front of Annabeth. "Here you go, Miss."

Annabeth rolled her eyes playfully. "Thank you, Haleigh. Have a nice day."

"You too, Miss. Try not to be late."

Annabeth squinted her eyes, before widening them in realization. She was running ten minutes late already. She shoveled in her pancakes and gulped down her juice as fast as she could without choking, before standing up and rushing out of the dining room. She made it in perfect time, seeing as she just passed Helen in the hallway, who had her twin sons in tow behind her.

"Good morning, Annie. Are you excited for your first day?" the she-devil asked her.

"I'm late, I've got to go," Annabeth murmured, not even bothering to correct Helen. How many times did she have to tell her guardians that her name was Annabeth? Not Annie, or Anna, or Beth; Annabeth.

She sprinted up the stairs and into her bedroom, grateful that she had set out her outfit and backpack before going to bed the previous night. Annabeth threw on her favorite denim shorts - not too long or too short - and a light grey teeshirt with a red flannel on top. She slid her feet into her fresh white Converse and rushed to her ensuite bathroom. At first, Annabeth attempted to brush her teeth while detangling her hair. That failed, of course, but nevertheless, she made it out of the bathroom in two minutes. At last, she slid her black backpack onto her shoulders and unplugged her phone from her nightstand. She ran out of her room while checking her notifications.

Annabeth had a few first-day school emails from her new teachers, as well as a text from her father wishing her a good first day, but the one that caught her eye was a text from the all-important Percy Jackson.

Come find me once you get your sched :)

Annabeth smiled, quickly typing away.

Okay, will do

The second Annabeth stepped out of her small mansion, she was hit by a wave of heat. There was something to be said about central air conditioning. She quickly slung her bag down to her elbow and shrugged off her flannel before tying it around her waist as she made her way to the garage.

Jules-Albert was waiting with the sleek new Mercedes-Benz, leaning against the rear passenger door. He opened up the back door for her and Annabeth graciously climbed inside the refreshing car.

Annabeth shoved her earbuds into her ears while Jules-Albert rolled up the garage door and leaned into the gas. Twenty or so minutes later, with the New York traffic, they arrived at Annabeth's new school.

Goode High School would be the first public school Annabeth had ever attended. Seeing as her mother was rich, famous, and deceased, and her father was up there in the educational world, Annabeth was always sent to safe private schools. Somehow, she had managed to coerce her father and stepmother into letting her have the normal high school experience. Funnily enough, it was mostly Helen's doing. But one nice thing would never make up for years of horridness.

Stepping inside the large brick building, Annabeth made her way down the hall to the main office, doing her best to avoid the swarms of high schoolers. She stepped inside the office and spotted the secretary typing away on a computer.

Annabeth winced and cleared her throat. "Hey there, I'm a new student. Do you have a schedule for me?"

The secretary scanned the teen over the monitor screen. "Most likely. What's your name?"

"Annabeth Chase."

The woman clicked with her mouse a few times. "Yes, it's right here. I can print it off for you."

Annabeth sighed in relief. "Thank you very much."

"Of course, have a nice day and a Goode year!"

The student did her best not to roll her eyes at the enthusiastic secretary. "Thanks, you too."

Annabeth turned around and began looking for her homeroom, room number 600. Along the way, she sent a quick text to Percy.

What's your homeroom? Mine is 600 with Brunner

When he responded, Annabeth sported a happy grin.

Me too :D Meet u there?

Annabeth responded affirmatively and sped down the halls to her homeroom. The second she popped her head inside, she noticed Percy sitting down in the back right corner. She made her way over while scanning the room and taking in the scenery.

She didn't recognize anyone except Percy, but she was okay with that. As long as she had her best friend, she could make it through.

Annabeth plopped beside Percy and tapped his shoulder. He looked up and smiled, yanking his earbuds out.

"Hey, Wise Girl. You made it, I see," he greeted.

She rolled her eyes. "I sure hope you can see that, Seaweed Brain," she retorted while digging out her schedule. "Let me see yours to compare."

Percy handed over a crumpled piece of paper sheepishly. "It's a little...worn."

Annabeth laughed before concentrating on the floating letters and numbers. "We have English, Greek mythology, gym, and lunch together. That's not the worst."

Percy nodded, still grinning happily. "Yeah, it's pretty good. That's exciting. Do you know anyone in any of your other classes?"

The young teenager shook her head. "No, but I don't mind. Plus, I'm not the worst at making friends. Technically, I initiated our whole friendship," she pointed out.

Percy smiled blissfully. "You're right, as I've learned you often are," he teased.

Annabeth chuckled, tucking her schedule back into her bag and turning to face the front. She noticed that a teacher, presumably Mr. Brunner, was scribbling something out on the board.

Once the bell rang, the man turned around and acknowledged the class. "Good morning, class. I'm Mr. Brunner. I'm going to run through attendance quickly, and then we can get to know each other a bit, before finally discussing what this school year is going to look like for most of you."

Mr. Brunner rustled through the papers on his desk until he found his attendance sheet. He began reading off names.

"Silena Beauregard?" he read off.

Everyone looked at the girl sitting smack in the middle of the room. "I'm here," she replied in a delicate voice.

"Alright, Annabeth Chase?"

The girl noticed a few heads turn, but that wasn't surprising to the young lady. Most people had heard of the tragic death of Athena Chase, and how her stubborn young lookalike never quite got over it.

Annabeth ignored the curious gazes of her peers and kept her focus on the teacher. "Here."

Once Mr. Brunner ran through all twenty or so names, he set down his paper and walked to stand in front of the white board, which was to the right of his desk from the students' view. He drew out a symbol on the board. It looked like a large "U," but instead of rounded edges, it had ninety degree angles.

"Everyone line up against the walls in a shape similar to this, and stand with your back against the wall. Make sure you're ordered alphabetical, starting at the door."

Annabeth took that as her cue to stand up and make her way near door. Silena Beauregard was on her left, and a girl named Rachel Dare was on her right.

"Hey," Rachel whispered, "I think that Percy kid is trying to get your attention."

Annabeth glanced over at the red head on her right, before looking for her best friend. He was in the back right corner of the room, at about 2:00 from Annabeth's view. The boy was waving his arm wildly, and the second the two met eyes, he stuck out his tongue and crossed his sea green eyes. Instantly, Annabeth broke out into a grin, before blowing up her cheeks and staring down her nose.

Percy's deep laughter resonated around the room, causing the idle chatter to halt.

"Is something funny, Mr. Jackson?" their teacher asked curiously.

Percy blushed tomato red, furiously shaking his head. "Nope, I'm all set."

Mr. Brunner nodded and clasped his hands. "Okay, starting at the beginning of the line with Silena, let's all share one interesting fact about ourselves. I'll give you a minute to think."

The blonde resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Of course they would do something as basic and classic as naming off personal facts on the first day.

"So," Rachel piped up, "are you and Percy dating?"

Annabeth scoffed. "Definitely not. He's my best friend."

The red-haired girl nodded. "That's good. I think he's really cute, but I wouldn't want to split anyone up."

Annabeth narrowed her eyes at Rachel. "Yeah, we aren't dating."

Silena tapped Annabeth's shoulder. "You sure? Almost every time I look at one of you, you're staring at the other. Plus, he certainly is a looker."

Focusing in on the boy in question, Annabeth scanned his features. With a solid 5 foot 9 height, perfectly messy black hair, sparkling green eyes, a perfectly straight nose, contoured cheeks, and a bold jawline, Percy Jackson was very handsome. But he and Annabeth were just friends, and she wanted it to stay that way. At least, that's what she had convinced herself.

Annabeth didn't need a boyfriend. She needed to focus on her education, and then on getting a job, and then she could find a lover and start a family. But knowledge comes first. That was how she'd been taught, and that was what she would do.

Percy caught her gaze and smiled kindly. Annabeth immediately returned the gesture, before giving her attention to the two girls adjacent her.

Annabeth shook her head. "No, I'm sure. Percy and I are just friends."

The ladies nodded just as Mr. Brunner clapped his hands to get the attention of the class. "Are we ready?"

Consecutively, Annabeth's peers murmured affirmatively, and Silena began.

"My mother runs a salon in town," she said.

Everyone nodded approvingly before quieting down for Annabeth to speak.

She cleared her throat. "This is the first public school I've ever been to."

Ignoring her classmate's surprised expressions, she looked over at Percy, who was smiling adoringly. She sheepishly grinned back.

Sure, the whole high school thing could be hard, but at least Annabeth had her best friend to get her through.

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Stay tuned for part 2 :)