#it's like the only thing people retain about that book is that percy remembered annabeth and hazel thought he was a god at first

[bayetea]

unfortunately at a point where I just don't trust anyone's opinions on frank/hazel or frazel or their dynamic with percy anymore. a lot of u guys have not read son of neptune in 5 years and it shows

[vidimillion]

idk if ur still doing jasico hc but if u r... college aus! what majors, background, etc? i love college aus

i love them too anon. i love them too. (thanks for the req!)

the university library is packed with people studying for midterms. some people are sitting on the floor, with no chairs left. a ways away from the louder parts of the library, by the windows, there's a really cute guy who's got a small table all to himself. the cute guy sees jason desperately looking for somewhere to study and pulls his bag off the other chair at the table, silently offering.

jason sits down and tries to work, he really does. he's got all his architecture and literature textbooks out, and it works for a little while. jason notices that among the guy's textbooks, there's a few open poetry books that he seemed to read on his study breaks.  jason recognizes a few of them and feels a nagging desire to say something smart, something that strikes up an interesting conversation with this really cute stranger, "emily dickinson was a lesbian."

his faces goes red as he dies on the inside. surprising him, cute stranger stares at him and says something along the lines of, "oscar wilde and michelangelo were definitely gay too."

jason learns the cute boy's name is nico di angelo, and it's gotta be one of the prettiest names he's ever heard used by a real human being. he introduces himself and nico tells him his name is pretty. they're both double majors, something they impressed eachother with because they hadn't often heard of other people taking two majors. nico double-majors in economics and psychology, which impresses jason a lot. jason double-majors in english and architecture.

they're fast friends, and apparently great study buddies because they make it a schedule to study together nearly everyday. they meet up at the library, the yard in front of the school, campus gardens, family-owned cafes off campus. they get to know each other a lot, and realize they're in a few of the same psych and classical studies classes. apparently, nico's that one kid who was late to class and scaled the side of the building to climb through the window. nico discovers that jason's the kid who poured a 6-hour energy into a starbucks black coffee with twelve shots of espresso in it.

more under cut

after exams are over, they both feel dread at the thought that they won't meet up as often anymore. well, it's a lie, they're friends now and they ain't ever gonna let each other go.

they figure out they've got a ton of mutual friends— so many it's odd they've never met before then. percy the bio major who's on the swim team, annabeth who's in the same architecture course as jason, reyna who majors in business and polisci and is the only other person they know who's a double-major. they start by hanging out with their mutual friends, then they introduce each other to their other friends. soon enough, practically everyone they know is in the same friend group.

the ENTIRE group ships jason and nico. they want it to happen so bad in fact, that they literally set them up??

the theatre club is planning a modern— and lgbt friendly— reimagination of one of shakespeare's classics. piper and percy trick nico and jason into "helping them make their audition tape", when in reality they're not sending the audition tape for themselves. jason and nico get the parts of the two main characters.

that's a story for another time though. in short, it works, and jason and nico start dating after opening night. piper and percy are proud to say that they're the reason why.

they planned to have their first "date" date at a poetry slam, where nico's friend's band would play. there was a power outage, so both events were cancelled. instead of rescheduling the date, nico got the idea to bring jason to the roof of his apartment building with his ipad and some snacks. they binged a few movies and watched their part of the city light up when the power came back on.

jason's roommate just moved out and he really can't afford his apartment on his own. no matter how appealing the thought of living with nico sounds, it's way too soon to ask him if he'd move in with him. surprising him, nico asks jason if he'd like to move into nico's apartment— the one he lives alone in which is far nicer than jason's and is 50% paid for by his dad. nico says it's because jason's building doesn't allow dogs and he'd want to bring his dog with him if he moved. hazel and reyna know it's because nico would prefer jason to live in a less cramped space. jason agrees anyway.

nico technically has two dogs, one he co-owns with percy who's name is mrs. o' leary. the second one is a pup of his father's purebred rottweiler cerberus— she's half bear hunting dog, retaining ceberus's coloring but is far larger and far fuffier. her name's amelia. jason fucking loves her, but he's a cat person at heart.

jason successfully convinces nico to adopt a cat—  a gorgeous grey ragdoll who he's named tempest the second, after the cat from jason's childhood.

everybody will assume that between the two of them, nico's the sleep-deprived one. they're not wrong, but most people don't know that jason's even fucking worse. his skin is just so perfect that he never gets eye bags. he can go for almost a full week without sleeping. nico hates this but jason says nico does the same thing.

"no babe, it’s not the same, the longest I've gone without sleep is four days and you haven't slept since last tuesday."

nico has a habit of humming and softly singing when he's bored or distracted. once, jason had his head in nico's lap and nico was combing through his hair with his fingers. nico suddenly begins to sing really softly, something italian that jason's never heard before but if he has he can't tell. he falls asleep in like under five minutes, which surprises nico because jason's so stubborn about sleep. at first he doesn't know why jason fell asleep so fast, until a little over a week later when jason asks him to do it again. (nico thinks it's really fucking cute.)

in reality, nico knows why jason doesn't sleep that much.

before nico met jason, he kind of thought that jay was a spoilt rich kid who played lacrosse in high school or something. he always admired that jason was very hardworking— had two jobs and worked his ass off for his grades, and still spared time for his friends. he didn't realize until later on in their relationship that he was kind of right at first— jason hailed from a rich family, but they didn't want to pay for anything unless he was studying to be a lawyer like his dad. nico loves that about jason— he had the option to have his tuition, his rent, everything paid for as long as he studied something he had no passion in. and he decided he'd rather work.

(and when jason told him, it broke nico's heart because he knew what being abandoned by your family like that felt like. hades is a far better father now— he pays nico's tuition, half of his rent and actually enjoys communicating with him— but nico still remembers his life when he wasn't. it's a little bit of the reason why nico asked jason to move in with him, so that he didn't have to work so hard for rent as well as tuition)

that's all i've got anon i don't know anything about the college experience i'm sorry

[addictedtothis]

‘Cause all of me, Loves all of you

Annabeth started into the boy's sea-green eyes. He looked right back at her. He shyly handed her journal to her. "Thank you," she whispered silently, almost mutely. The boy smiled and stood up, then offered her a hand and pulled her up. The moment was magical as they stared into each other's eyes, saying nothing, but everything.

Unfortunately, her moment was up; She felt like she was Cinderella, and the clock had just struck twelve. Flustered, the girl spoke up. "Hi, I'm Annabeth."

The boy smiled kindly, still staring into the depths of her gray orbs, and replied, "Nice to meet you, Beautiful," he said, then blushed, as if he wasn't planning on saying that aloud. She blushed–something which she had been doing ever since she'd been accidentally knocked over by the swim team's captain. "I'm Percy."

"Uh," she jerkily pointed towards the doors. "I-I've got to go. See you around," she said, flushing because he'd called her beautiful.

It was only after Annabeth went home that she realized something: "The introductory sentence!" she yelled. Annabeth knew it was a bad omen to ignore the introductory sentence; Bad things happened to those who did. She knew it wasn't just some silly superstition.

That night, she cried herself to sleep.

"Grandpa!" the five-year-old called after she'd finished brushing her teeth that night. Annabeth's hair was half-dried from her shower, and her teeth were minty fresh. She was ready for her bedtime story.

"Are you ready, Daisy?"

Grandfather Chase called his granddaughter Daisy. He said she was pure, and innocent, much like the lovely flower.

She beamed. "Yes!"

"Alright," he chuckled, tucking the girl into her bed before taking a seat at the wooden chair next to it. The old man breathed deeply, and placed his spectacles on the nightstand. He leaned over, switching the night lamp on. Annabeth stared at her grandpa's old, wrinkly face, which was illuminated by a golden glow. He looked into the girl's gray eyes, which matched her mother's, and started his tale.

"Once upon a time," he started, with his rustic storyteller's voice. Grandpa Chase was from a small town in Britain, and though he moved to the United States decades ago, he managed to retain part of his accent. "A clumsy young lad went to an old library. He was working on a project for his college, when a gust of wind—" he blew into Annabeth's face, causing his minty breath to ruffle her golden hair. "—blew his papers away, making them scatter around. The boy was mighty disappointed; He'd worked long and hard to finish his assignment, but now, it was ruined."

Her grandfather sat silently for a while, making the mood mysterious.

"Grandpa? What happened then?" the young girl asked.

"Suddenly, a beautiful young woman walked inside. She helped the man collect his papers that were fluttering in the breeze. A few moments later, all of his things had been collected, but neither was willing to leave, as they stared into each others eyes . . . Alas, not all things last forever, Annabeth. The pair had to part ways, but not without a kiss to the cheek."

"Did they get married and have babies and live happily ever after?" Annabeth blurted out; she'd been reading way too many princess stories.

Grandfather laughed deeply, but it was sad. "They did get married, and they had a beautiful little girl," he sighed. "But they had to leave their baby daughter . . ."

"Where did they go?"

He tenderly stroked the curious girl's hair. "It was their turn to meet the Gods." He stood up abruptly, kissed her forehead and murmured, "Goodnight, Daisy."

Annabeth looked at the doorway long after he'd left.

                                                         ∞

The girl looked above Annabeth's head to read out her introductory sentence. Honestly, it had irked Annabeth for years when people introduced themselves without making eye-contact. Except for that one time, she thought bitterly.

"Hey! I'm Piper. Mind if I sit next to you?" the brunette–Piper–asked.

Annabeth looked up to read her sentence too. It read: (Smile) "Sure, Piper! I'm Annabeth."

Almost mechanically, Annabeth's fake smile slipped off her face, and Piper slumped into the seat opposite to Annabeth's.

"What made you come here?" Annabeth asked.

"Well, it was either introducing myself to a bunch of high-schoolers—" she pointed towards a large group "—or introduce myself to one college-age student."

Annabeth nodded sympathetically; She'd been in that position quite a few times.

"So, just a question," Piper spoke up after a minute; Annabeth looked up from her novel. "Our introductory sentences were pretty . . . chill. Like, what exactly is that supposed to mean? Are we friends? Rivals?"

Annabeth started beaming. "I don't know, actually. Doesn't that make it so much better?" She smiled genuinely. "So, are you in college too?"

"Yeah, I'm a junior at Harvard."

"Same!"

"Cool," Piper leaned forward in interest. "I'm majoring in communications. What about you?"

"Architecture," Annabeth smiled, showing Piper the blueprint that was spread open on the library table.

"Wow . . . what is that?"

"Just a blueprint for a project. I had to recreate a famous building. This is my take on the Parthenon."

Piper nodded appreciatively. "Are you gonna make a model, or something?"

"Yep."

"Hey, I'm heading to the diner for dinner," Piper laughed at her own joke. "Wanna join me?"

"Sure," Annabeth said, packing her things up.

Piper and Annabeth chatted some more. In a matter of minutes, it was like they'd known each other for years.

"Ow!"

Annabeth opened her eyes to see that she'd just crashed into someone and sent all of their things flying. "Sorry," she muttered, not glancing at their face.

". . . Annabeth Chase?" the person–a boy–said, making her look up in shock.

"How do you—? Oh, it's you," Annabeth said, her heart beating at a hundred miles per hour. She needed to get away ASAP. "Come on, Piper," she said, rushing to her feet and dragging her new friend out of the door, while he sat on the ground, looking at her retreating figure.

                                                        ∞

"What was that all about?" Piper demanded when they sat at the diner.

Annabeth tried to stop her hands from fidgeting around, so she clamped them together tightly. "He's . . . Percy Jackson," she said.

"Elaborate," Piper said, looking at her expectantly.

"We bumped into each other in high school, and forgot to say our introductory sentences," Annabeth explained, hoping Piper wouldn't ask for more. But fate was not on her side.

"So?"

"Piper . . ." she said. Annabeth knew why it was a bad omen. Her parents had experienced that first-hand, and her grandfather had seen it.

"Annabeth?" Piper's voice was gentle now. Annabeth felt relaxed; she felt like she could spill her heart to Piper; she felt like she could trust Piper.

She sighed. "I'll have to tell you everything from the top. My parent's died when I was a baby, so I lived with my grandpa. He used to tell me stories about them." She grinned a little, recalling his wispy, balding white hair and the wrinkles near his eyes which showed just how much he smiled. "My parents . . . they didn't say their sentences properly. Apparently, Dad told Grandpa that he forgot about his sentence, and so did Mom. Although my grandfather was concerned, he was happy for them. Later they got married, and I was born a couple of years later. Everything seemed great, until one rainy night. I was at Grandpa's house while my parents went outside. An hour later, the police called, informing him that his son and daughter-in-law were dead. It was a road accident."

"Oh, Annabeth."

"It's okay, Piper. I was a year old. I don't remember them." She smiled sadly. "So, yeah. Grandpa always told me never to forget my introductory sentences, but I did."

"You know," Piper smirked mischievously. "No one said you'll fall in love and make babies with Percy."

"Piper!" Annabeth was appalled, yet she couldn't help laughing. Nothing would happen, right?

                                                        ∞

She was walking home late one night, having just finished reading a book at the library on-campus.

"Annabeth!" a boy shouted.

Annabeth turned around to see a figure walking behind her. The darkness of the night certainly didn't help her nerves, so she started a light jog.

"It's me, Annabeth. Percy!" he continued, which made her start sprinting. But she soon got tired; Carrying a heavy bag wasn't easy whilst running. Shortly, he caught up to her.

"Woah! Slow down. Do you remember me?" he asked.

Annabeth counted to ten and ignored him, hoping he'd get the hint that she didn't want to talk to him and he'd leave. But he was probably the most oblivious person on the planet.

"I'm Percy Jackson . . . Goode High School . . . Um, we were seniors three years ago . . . Any of that ringing a bell?"

She didn't reply and chose to keep walking towards the dorm rooms.

"We crashed into each other one day, in the hallway—Oh! Is this about me calling you beautiful? I swear, I didn't mean to offend you or anything. I'm sorry."

She finally decided to break her silence. "Did you read that from your introductory sentence?"

"My introductory—? Oh, no. Is that a problem?"

"Introductory sentences are everything! They determine our relationship; we can't break the rules!" her breathing quickened; she didn't want to cause either of them harm, but her parents—

"Annabeth? Annabeth!" Her hands started shaking. The blood pounded in her ears. Annabeth had never been one to step out of line, but now, she'd probably broken the worse rule possible. She started gasping for air. She needed more oxygen, quickly. Annabeth slowly sank to the ground; she felt like she was drowning.

"Annabeth, breathe," Percy's voice said. He gripped her shoulders, helping her sit. His voice was shaky, but he tried to control it, like he was panicking too but was trying to keep calm for her sake. "Breathe." He breathed deeply, hoping she'd notice and mimic his actions.

"Are you alright?" Percy asked her a few minutes later. He handed her a water bottle and she took it gratefully. The boy sat on the pavement next to her.

"Yeah." Her voice came out raspy. She cleared her throat. "Yeah. Thanks."

"So . . . what happened?" he pried.

"Uh, panic attack. That happens sometimes, when I get too stressed," she admitted.

"Why?"

She gulped down some more water. "Huh?"

"I mean, what was the trigger this time? Why were you feeling stressed?"

Annabeth bit her lip. She really didn't want to have this conversation with Percy. Especially because it would seem like such a trivial reason to him. But once she started speaking, the words flew out of her mouth on their own accord.

"Oh . . ." he said.

"You probably think I'm a freak now," she muttered, mostly to herself.

"Nah. My parent's story is kinda similar, actually."

Annabeth's eyes shot up, and she rushed to explain. "I never—I mean—Not like, soulmates, or anything." She wrung her hands, frustrated at her inability to explain properly.

Luckily, he seemed to understand. "You were just concerned for us? Like acquaintances?" Was that disappointment in his voice?

She nodded. "I have to get going." She stood up. "It's pretty late. Bye."

"Okay," he said. "Should I . . . walk you to your dorm? Mine's near yours," he nearly begged.

"Uh-alright."

The walk home was silent.

                                                        ∞

"Listen up, Class," Professor Davis announced. "For this semester, we want you to work with the marine biology students to create underwater structures for marine organisms. You can make whatever you'd like. Be creative!"

Instantly, the class broke out into chatters of excitement.

"Silence! I'll be announcing the pairs only once!"

Annabeth leaned forward in interest; they'd never collaborated with students taking other majors.

"Liam O'Brian and Louis Thompson . . ."

"Annabeth Chase and Percy Jackson." Annabeth's head shot up, hoping it wasn't true. That night held the most awkward moments in history.

"Alright, that's all. Meet your partners after college today. From tomorrow onwards you'll be working together, after all, so meet them," Professor Davis said. " Oh, Charlotte Williams, please pass the instructions papers around. Thank you." He walked out of the class, leaving the students in a frenzy of questions.

                                                        ∞

"Save me, Piper!" Annabeth complained at the coffee store.

Piper looked at her amusedly. "It's just a project. What could go wrong?"

Annabeth glared at her while she sipped her warm drink, but it was hard to take a pouting girl with a foam mustache seriously.

"You know what happened, idiot," she muttered.

"Annabeth!" Piper laughed. "Everyone embarrasses themselves once in a while."

"You—"

"I could write a novel about the times I've embarrassed myself."

Annabeth stubbornly ignored Piper, and continued sketching in her little journal. She still hadn't wiped away the foam mustache, and Piper found it too endearing to wipe away.

What a mistake.

"Hey, Annabeth. We're working on that project together," Percy said when he saw them at the coffee shop five minutes later.

"Hello." Annabeth smiled forcibly.

"You have a little something . . ." he gestured to her facial foam while hiding a grin.

Absolutely mortified, Annabeth's eyes widened and she wiped the foam away. Meanwhile, Percy sat down at the empty chair at their table. "Hi—"

"Piper. Hey, Percy." she smiled. "I better leave you guys." She stood up.

"Piper, it's alright!" Annabeth rushed out, desperate to have her best friend there. Hopefully she'd save Annabeth from the future awkward moments she'd face. Or maybe not; she certainly hadn't told her about the foam.

"I have a class," she laughed. "Taata!"

Annabeth turned back to the boy that sat perpendicular to her. "So, the project. Have you read the instructions and guidelines?" she asked.

"No," he said sheepishly.

"Okay. Let's go over it now and we can meet up at . . . 5:30 every evening?"

"Sure." He nodded. "The library?"

"Yeah."

Their eyes met for a second too long. Annabeth was the first to snap out of it.

"Okay, the guidelines."

                                                        ∞

"How was it?" Piper asked. She was currently sitting on Annabeth's bed eating Cheetos and getting the orange dust everywhere, but Annabeth—who was usually a neat freak—didn't so much as glance at Piper.

"Fine," she said half-heartedly, while she typed away on her laptop.

"Whatcha doing?"

"I had this brilliant idea, Piper!" she said, making Piper jolt and the sudden change in her pitch. "If I do most of the project myself, I can meet him less. So, I'm researching about . . . water stuff." She went back into her trance.

"Annabeth, they put you guys in pairs for a reason!"

"Whatever, McLean. It's your turn to clean the house. Get off my bed and get the vaccum," she said. It was tit-for-tat.

Piper sighed; it was no use arguing with a determined Annabeth. Yet she shouted, "You know, he might want to actually do the project with you!"

"Or, I might just be doing him a favor!" the gray-eyed girl yelled back.

                                                        ∞

"Hi, Percy!" Annabeth chirped when they met at the library that evening.

"Hello?" He looked around, making sure she wasn't taking to another Percy. She usually ignored him when they met up.

"Guess what?" she beamed. Today, Annabeth was a ray of sunshine, and that honestly worried Percy. "I finished most of the project. You should take it home. Make a couple changes if you'd like," she waved it off, ignoring the boy's hurt expression.

"It was supposed to be a group project." He spoke slowly, as if he were talking to a young child.

"And your point is?" she raised an eyebrow.

His rage flared up, hot and angry. "What?—You know what? Nevermind. You can do the entire thing on your own!" He stormed past her and out of the library.

                                                        ∞

Percy scoffed as he sat down to do his own project. She was infuriating. Instead of manning up and facing her problems with him, she'd chosen to run away from them.

"Fine then. See if I care!" he yelled at the wall.

Percy looked at the instructions again. How in the world would he manage to do the architectural part? He placed his hands on his head and ignoring the migraine that was forming.

                                                        ∞

The next day, he walked up to Annabeth Chase and sternly told her straight on her (pretty) face, "We were supposed to do this together, whether you like it or not," and she nodded meekly, following him to the library.

As if.

This is how it went:

Percy: Hey, uh, Annabeth. D'you have a minute?

Annabeth: What is it?

Percy: Listen, I know nothing about architecture, and I'm sorry for how I reacted yesterday . . . Can we please do the project together? Please?

Annabeth: Fine.

He tried to ignore the way she said it, like she was disgusted but would help him anyway. He had a four months to get into her good books, anyway.

                                                        ∞

"Tell me again, why can't we use cement?" Annabeth asked. For a nerd, she sure had no idea about water. He wondered how she even thought about doing this on her own.

"It pollutes the water."

"Oh . . . then what can we use?" she asked.

Over the course of a month, Annabeth had slowly warmed up to him. They could even be considered as friends.

"Uh, concrete, acrylic and steel, I guess," he said after flipping through his textbook.

She absentmindedly nodded, sketching something on a piece of loose paper.

"Wait, so . . . ?"

And the cycle continued.

                                                        ∞

"Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase," the professor announced.

Annabeth held the model—she didn't trust him after their little rehearsal, where he'd nearly smashed the delicate structure—and they ascended the podium.

"Hello everyone!" Percy smiled.

"That was incredible!" Annabeth yelled, giddy with happiness. He laughed too; they had gotten an A+ grade and their project was considered as the best.

"Careful. You'll fall off the roof!" he said; she was teetering dangerously towards the edge of the roof. They were celebrating at one of Percy's favorite places—the roof on top of an old restaurant.

Annabeth didn't hear him above the sounds of the wind and her yelling, though. His instincts kicked in and Percy jumped up to pull her away from the end.

"Woah!" he said, wrapping his arms around the girl, who was just about to trip and fall. He'd underestimated their momentum though, and they fell on the roof, Annabeth's lips hovering just above his.

"Uh . . ." Annabeth said. She was staring at him, mesmerized by his warm features. The slant of his nose; the pink color on his nose; the blush that spread across his cheeks; the shy smile that graced his lips; his long, long black eyelashes; and the colors that swirled in his playful eyes. Luckily, she was able to compose herself and got off of him, laughing nervously.

Percy ran a hand through his hair, smiling awkwardly. "You wanna leave? It's getting chilly."

She nodded, choosing to look at her sneakers rather than at him, but he caught the blush on her face.

Percy and Annabeth silently walked towards their dorms. It was late at night, and Percy's thoughts drifted back to the night that he'd met her, shouting her name. He still remembered the way she gasped for air, her mind threatening to choke her.

It made him ask her: "Are you still scared about our introductory sentences?"

She looked at him; he'd just jostled her out of the thoughts of her own. Annabeth didn't reply for a while. "No, I guess. I didn't want what happened to my parents happen to us." She shrugged. "Plus, I never broke rules before."

Percy grinned at the way she'd pointedly said the word "before." He was guilty of making her break quite a few rules during the four months they'd known each other. They'd done some pretty epic things like skating in the dorm corridors and visiting the campus roof that was off-limits.

"Bye," Annabeth said—almost unwilling to leave—and it was then that Percy realized that they'd reached their dormitories.

"Bye, Beautiful," he said teasingly, but meaning it wholeheartedly.

He expected her to punch him, but what she did next was completely unexpected.

She pressed her lips to his for a second before pulling away, and blushing furiously, she ran towards her room. He stood there for a minute, frozen, like a statue.

                                                        ∞

"My little girl's in love!" Piper teased with tears—actual tears!—in her eyes.

"Shut up!" Annabeth complained, but didn't try to stop the infectious grin that adorned her face.

"Awww!"

Annabeth threw a pillow at her best friend's face.

Annabeth knew it was considered a bad omen to forget introductory sentences. But for once, she didn't care.

                                                        ∞

Decades later:

Percy and Annabeth had done many things together.

After Annabeth had kissed Percy, she waited to see if he'd ask her out, before doing it herself a week later, and almost screwed up Percy's romantic proposal—with roses and the whole shebang. They'd made an underwater castle of their own, basing it off their project. It had become a famous tourist spot. They'd gotten married, had kids, their kids had gotten married too, and they had become grandparents. Age hadn't taken a huge toll on either of them; Annabeth was still as fresh as a daisy, and Percy was still as handsome as he'd been forty years ago.

Now, they were lounging at the beach with Piper and her husband, Jason; The four of them had become lifelong friends.

The couple smiled at their grandchildren, who were playing in the sand, a few feet away from them.

"We've come a long way," Annabeth said, starting to get philosophical.

"Yeah," he agreed. A memory surfaced to his mind. "You know, introductory sentences aren't everything."

Looking at the smile on her face, he knew she remembered. "We can make our own rules."

Piper snorted, interrupting the tender moment. "Looks like you guys did fall in love and made babies, after all."

"What?" the boys asked.

"Nothing!" Annabeth said, but she was laughing like she knew what Piper was talking about.

Percy shook his head, and wrapped an arm around Annabeth's shoulder, enjoying the sunset, thinking about his life and love.

Fin.

~

So I wrote this story a while ago (November 1st 2020, to be exact) on FF.net under the name LittleMissPrincess. 

I’m really proud of this story -  😅 - so here I am, posting this on tumblr.

Thanks for reading. Byeee!

[afandomqueen101blog]

The Heroes of Olympus: The Son of Neptune: A Book Review

The Heroes of Olympus: The Son of Neptune Book Review

(SPOILER ALERT WARNING)

AUTHOR: Rick Riordan

RELEASED DATE: October 11, 2011

SERIES: Heroes of Olympus

PAGES: Approx. 513 pages

RATING: 5/5 STARS

 PERCY IS BACK!

 From the very first page, I was hooked on the second installment of The Heroes of Olympus series, The Son of Neptune. Much like its predecessor, The Lost Hero, The Son of Neptune is told from 3rd person narrative by three characters; three chapters are told from one character’s POV before switching to the next character and so on. It’s an interesting format and completely different; readers are used to seeing and experiencing the world of gods, demigods and monsters through Percy’s POV only. It’s a refreshing change that makes it easier to not only see action happening from other people’s view point (one of the pluses to having multiple perspectives), but allows us to get to know the new characters Rick Riordan has introduced. And there were plenty of new characters to be introduced in this book.

 As with The Lost Hero, we’re introduced to a character who doesn’t remember who he is, where he came from, how he ended up where he’s currently at, or why; and in order to have his memories returned to him, he needs to go on a quest alongside newfound friends to save an immortal. Only this time, we’re not talking about Jason Grace, the son of Jupiter. We’re talking about Percy Jackson, the son of Poseidon. And the immortal in need of saving? The God of Death.

 *~*~*

 Percy Jackson has never had the best of luck, but even he couldn’t believe the chain of events that followed him since waking up from his long slumber: training with the she-wolf goddess Lupa with a pen-turned-sword; evading vengeful gorgons that never die no matter how many times or ways he kills them; struggling with no memory of his own name and history; living practically as a homeless teenager scavenging for food and essentials as he travels to the only safe haven Lupa explains there is for people like him – a camp for demigod children. Finding the camp isn’t easy when one is chased by immortal monsters and carrying a disguised goddess; things are further complicated when he realizes upon arrival that he is regarded as much a threat and outsider to the campers than he considered the gorgons that followed him cross-country. He perseveres for one reason, for one memory, for one name that Percy is certain must mean a great deal to him, if he was able to retain it above all other memories: Annabeth.

 Hazel Levesque is cursed. Precious gems appear where she is and it’s all she can do to make sure no one touches the diamonds, rubies, emeralds and gold that brings more misery than joy to its finders. If this weren’t bad enough, she struggles with blackouts that force her to relive memories from her life in New Orleans, Louisiana with her mother: the eve of her 13th birthday, when her mother (resentful of Hazel’s curse) succumbs to the bidding of a powerful woman’s voice; the move to Alaska, the land beyond the gods; the months of Hazel abiding by the Voice’s command and using her gift to resurrect a being from the earth itself in exchange for her mother’s safety. However much she wants to forget it, when the quest is set, she knows she has to go. The monster responsible for Death’s capture is the very creature she had helped to resurrect. Without Death, monsters will continue reviving instantly. And this is a wrong that she must correct…even if it means dying. Again.

 Frank Zhang is uncertain of his godly heritage. Being as bulky and clumsy as he is, the only form of fighting he excels at is archery – which doesn’t win him much popularity with the rest of the campers at Camp Jupiter. Worse even than that, he carries with him an object that, if burnt, will ultimately kill him. Haunted by this secret, mourning for his dead mother, plagued by a family legacy he still doesn’t fully understand, and confused by his grandmother’s and late mother’s insistence that he can be anything he wants to be – a “special power” inherited from past heroes – Frank’s only solace is his best friend Hazel. Uncertain if he can truly lead the quest issued from the Roman god Mars, she might be the only one he can trust to tell his greatest secret, his greatest weakness.

 Months have passed since Jason, Piper and Leo have returned from their quest to save Hera. Now comes the tale of the troubles Camp Jupiter has faced in the time since the end of the Titan-God war, and what has happened to the missing son of Poseidon.

 The instant revival of defeated monsters continues to plague the demigod heroes. They certainly plague Percy Jackson, who has been unable to go a day without a monster coming to attack since leaving Lupa’s care. Whatever relief he finds upon entering Camp Jupiter is short-lived, as well; despite having the Roman goddess Juno’s blessing, Percy – as the son of Neptune/Poseidon – finds himself little popularity with the other campers. He also has the distinct feeling he doesn’t belong at Camp Jupiter, whatever else Frank Zhang and Hazel Levesque claim. Being watched by both Reyna, the Praetor of Camp Jupiter with a connection to Percy’s past, and Octavian, the power-hungry Augur, Percy strives to adjust to his new home when circumstances force him and his friends on a quest to save Thanatos, the god of Death. And they must accomplish this before the Feast of Fortuna, or else Camp Jupiter may be struck with misfortune.

 Sailing from San Francisco on a raggedy boat liable to sink at any given moment, it’s a race against time as Percy, Hazel and Frank set out: first to Portland, Oregon, to see a resurrected seer who knows the location of Death; then to Seattle, Washington, to meet with Reyna’s sister, queen of the Amazons; to Frank’s home in Canada to learn the secrets of his family’s power; and then to Alaska, the land beyond the gods’ domain and power. Being on their own (and unable to contact Camp Jupiter for help, if needed), their only aid on their perilous journey comes in the form of a harpy who recites prophecies, and a horse from Hazel’s past. But will that be enough for them to survive the upcoming battle in Alaska? How to succeed, when the last group of demigods who made such a journey, decades earlier, never returned? What sacrifice will Hazel and Frank have to make to free Death? And how long will Percy have to go without his memories?

 *~*~*

 PERCY’S BACK! HE’S RETURNED! PERCY! PERCY! PERCY!

 The Lost Hero was a great start to this new series by Rick Riordan, but The Son of Neptune sealed my love and new-found fanaticism. Not only has everyone’s favorite Seaweed Brain returned (PERCY! PERCY! PERCY!), but we finally get introduced to Camp Jupiter, the other camp for demigods that we readers never knew existed and were more than curious (dare I say, obsessed) to know about, ever since we learned of its existence in the last book. And boy, was I not disappointed by what I discovered and learned.

 Camp Jupiter is both like and unlike Camp Half Blood. They have satyrs (AKA fawns) but they do nothing at this camp besides loiter and beg for food; they have ghosts; they have an entire city called New Rome where demigods can “retire” from quests to go to school, get married, have a family, etc.; they have ghosts; they separate the demigods into battalions based on rank and talent as opposed to parentage; they have ghosts; their leaders (AKA Praetors) are demigod warriors that oversee the safety and running of the entire camp alongside a Senate of  other veteran warriors; they have ghosts; they have an Augur, which is basically a seer who can foretell the future by reading the stuffing from teddy bears, as opposed to real animals like the olden days; and THEY HAVE GHOSTS!

 Again, Rick Riordan has gone above and beyond what I expected of him. I should really learn not to underestimate his ability to mix mythology and history into the modern setting, and giving us characters that are so relatable and enjoyable that it’s near impossible not to fall in love with them. I wasn’t even past the first page of the first chapter before I was reminded, strongly, why I love Percy so much: he is sassiness personified; he never lacks in humor, wit or sarcastic remarks regardless of the situation, and his loyalty, courage, compassion and understanding won over all the occupants of Camp Jupiter just as easily as it won us, the readers, over. I never realized until now just how much I missed reading from his point of view.

 Frank and Hazel, much like Piper and Leo from The Lost Hero, became pleasant surprises. While at first I did think they would be similar to Leo and Piper (which one can argue they still are), it didn’t make me dislike them. Both have their own secrets, their own fears and insecurities and personal histories to overcome on this journey to the north, their own powers to discover and control, and their own weaknesses to accept. Hazel, as far as I know, is the youngest of our heroes, but she doesn’t lack courage or cleverness, and her power, the curse that brought her and her mother misfortune, is a talent that became useful in a way she hadn’t expected (and it was a surprise to us readers, too; that scene in the Amazon factory was beyond funny). Frank, described as a klutz when we first meet him, had a lot to prove but I, again, was shocked at the realization of what his “secret” power was, the one that he inherited from his ancestors, and how that same family history was connected to the gods and their history with the warriors and heroes in the East, notably China. It also made me wonder something: will Rick Riordan ever expand on that particular bit of history, or bring us stories about the warriors and heroes and gods of the Asian population? Well, I guess that’s a question for another day, but I know it will always be in the back of my mind. Just like how this other question will be on my mind: is Frank’s grandmother really dead? I hope not, because in the few scenes when she was present, I got the sense that she was like McGonagall from Harry Potter: strict, clever, stronger than appearance suggests, and able to make grown men and monsters kneel for forgiveness with just a simple glare. I absolutely adore her.

 New gods and goddesses were met and discovered on this journey. I personally enjoyed Iris, the Rainbow goddess, simply because she was so unlike anything I ever imagined. I honestly didn’t know what to expect of her, or what her modern personality would be like, but I certainly didn’t think I could’ve imagined her as I did when she was introduced. That scene when her store is nearly attacked by those monsters? I can’t deny, I laughed out loud at how it played out.

 I laughed as I read through The Son of Neptune, and it’s not because of Percy either. Rick Riordan just surprises you with every character you meet: the gods and goddesses, the monsters, the mortal villains from Greek and Roman myth, and the heroes. He has a way of adding humor to almost any situation and even though it takes a while for the descriptions to materialize in your head, when they do, you can’t un-see them.

 The Son of Neptune wasn’t just funny; it also had a lot of action. It did not lack in battles or tense moments. There were plenty of times that Percy, Hazel and Frank were in a situation and I was trying to figure out, before it actually happened, what they would do to get out of their current dilemma. None of my theories ever panned out because Rick Riordan just surprises you with how the characters manage to defeat, evade or destroy their enemies. The battle in Alaska, with Hazel, Frank and Percy facing off against the giant Alcyoneus and an entire army of ghosts, was both spectacular and nerve-wrecking to read. And then there was the battle with another Giant and another army of monsters at Camp Jupiter, when Percy, Hazel and Frank succeed with their mission and return to San Francisco. Rick Riordan, not only famous for his way of modernizing ancient myths, heroes and deities, was also able to give us enough detail so that we can picture the battles in our head and see and feel for the characters as they face  off against some of their worst enemies.

 And by far, one of my favorite scenes to happen is when Percy faces off against the giant Polybotes, the giant created specifically to oppose Poseidon.

 Now hailed as a hero of New Rome and Camp Jupiter, the truth behind Percy’s parentage – and the existence of Greek demigods – is unveiled to the Senate, Octavian and Reyna, and before any decision can be made on what to do about this piece of information, and whether it’s even possible for the Greeks and Romans to work together to prevail against Gaea and her growing army, word reaches them that a ship is heading their way. A ship, according to the message they received, that has come for Percy, and hails from Camp Half Blood.

 The time has come. It is time for the Greeks and Romans to meet at last, for Jason to return to Camp Jupiter, and for Percy to reunite with his friends. What outcome will this meeting produce, though, for the two camps?

 I can’t wait to find out as I start on the next book, The Mark of Athena.

 And if I can tell you anything about this next book, based on the title alone, it’s this: the seventh – and last – hero of the Great Prophecy to come will be revealed.