Hey guys! So I honestly could not get any studying done so I decided to ~finally~ finish this story I've been working on for ages (because it had to be just right).

Basically, I realized that Annabeth kinda needed a mother figure in her life, with Athena on Olympus and her stepmom being horrible to her, and all. and obviously this person is Sally Jackson, who may be the most kindhearted character in the series ever. So here we go :)

Enjoy!

WGG

"Annabeth, dear, are you awake? I made you some pancakes if you want them," Sally said as she peeped into her son's room, where his girlfriend had passed out.

Annabeth sat upright quickly. Her hair was surprisingly tidy, although the bedsheets were a mess and her eyes were bloodshot like she'd been crying. Sally was sure she had already been awake. Annabeth smiled and declined the food, saying, "I've got a calc test in an hour. I better go back to my dorm and study a bit. Thanks for the offer, though, Sally."

And with that, Annabeth quickly ran into the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and left via the fire escape before Sally could try and stuff anything down her mouth.

Sally was worried. Annabeth hadn't been sleeping well at all since Percy disappeared, and her new habit of not eating breakfast was not good. At least Sally had convinced her to sleep in Percy's room instead of in the dorm - this way, Annabeth would be forced to eat dinner properly. After all, she had come to think of Annabeth as her daughter, and any good mom makes sure their children are fed and happy.

There was a knock on the door. Sally looked at the clock - it was only 2 in the afternoon. Percy's school didn't leave until 3. Who would be coming at this time?

She opened the door cautiously, and to her relief, there was no monster behind it. There was, however, Annabeth, who was looking uncharacteristically scared and a little shy.

"Annabeth! It's so good to see you. How is your boarding school? Is Thalia settling in okay? Why don't you come in? I just made some peanut butter sandwiches, and I'm sure you're hungry," Sally rattled off.

"Sally, I think I'm dying," Annabeth whispered.

Then Sally realized that even though it was the middle of September, Annabeth had a black jacket tied around her waist and was looking rather uncomfortable sitting down. How old was she now - 13? 14? Sally immediately guessed what had happened and smiled kindly.

"Oh no, did no one explain this to you? Come with me. Don't worry, sweetheart, you're not dying, it's perfectly normal…"

Way back in June, Percy had given her Annabeth's phone number so she could reach them on their date in an emergency. Well, technically, it wasn't a date on account of her son not realizing his own feelings, but whatever. Sally sighed. Her son truly was a Seaweed Brain sometimes.

So on a random day, soon after Percy reappeared at camp Mount St. Helens, Sally was shocked to get a phone call from Annabeth. She pressed the 'accept' button, puzzled. Why would they need her help? She soon found out when Annabeth started talking up a storm-

"Sally I think, I mean, I'm not sure, but I think he met someone while he was gone and also he memorized the phone number of some girl named Rachel and I kissed him oh my gods he must think I'm nuts or one of those girls, or does he even know…? I don't even know and why am I even telling you all this in the first place? He's your son, this must be so awkward for you, I'm so sorry. I mean I would go ask an Aphrodite girl for help but their advice is either 'Ask Silena,' who's too busy with Beckendorf or 'put some makeup on' and if that's not the worst advice in the world then I don't know what is…"

Sally interrupted before Annabeth could continue, saying, "first of all, calm down. And this Rachel girl - Paul was telling me about her, she was in the room with Percy when he blew up half of Goode, so they haven't known each other that long. You have absolutely nothing to worry about, dear."

Then Annabeth whispered, "Rachel's only half of the problem. I mean, she is a problem because he memorized her freaking phone number. But more importantly, I think he met Calypso. That's why he was gone so long after the eruption."

Sally racked her brains, trying to find the particular myth involving Calypso. Oh, that's right - she was the sorceress from The Odyssey who fell in love with Odysseus and made him stay with her, despite the fact he had a wife. No wonder Annabeth was worried.

"Annabeth, you do realize that Calypso would have offered to let him stay with her, right? And he definitely refused, because he's back. Which means he already has someone here. And I'm 99% sure it's not Rachel."

Annabeth paused, then said, "Thanks, Sally. Wow, I was not thinking things through. Um, one more thing - can you not mention this whole conversation to anyone ever? Thanks."

Sally laughed, then shook her head. During her pregnancy, Sally had imagined having similar conversations with her daughter at this age. Then of course, Percy had been a boy. Sally missed having girl talk.

Percy and Annabeth were sitting on the couch, watching The Little Mermaid. Well, Percy was sitting on the couch and Annabeth was stretched out with her head on his lap while Percy played with her hair. Sally could not help but smile - they had been together for exactly a week, but those two were so in love. She made a mental note to get Paul to take a picture on his DSLR later so they could show it at the wedding in the future. Gods, she must ship Percy and Annabeth more than the Aphrodite girls.

"Hey, Wise Girl, are you looking forward to our dinner tonight? I booked a reservation at that new Italian restaurant near Madison Square Garden. I'm really excited," Percy said, as he leaned down to kiss her. Annabeth sat up and returned the favor, and it lasted quite some time (Sally was starting to feel uncomfortable from her vantage point in the kitchen).

Suddenly, Annabeth broke apart, saying, "My dorm is out of chocolate and three of my roommates are synced at the moment, and I really don't want to get up so do you mind running to the corner store and getting a pack of Cadbury?" She smiled sweetly and Sally chuckled to herself. People always told her that her son's "Baby Seal" eyes were too persuasive, but Annabeth's puppy-dog face really took the cake.

"Okay, fine," Percy said, rolling his eyes kissing Annabeth's cheek.

As soon as he left, Annabeth ran into the kitchen.

"Sally! I need help," she said as she made herself comfortable on the countertop. "Today evening is like my first date ever and I don't have a dress and we're going to a super fancy restaurant, can you help?"

Sally put the tray of cookies she was holding into the oven, and said, "Of course, sweetheart. I have some unopened dresses that Paul bought from Macy's for me, but they were not my style. I think they'll look beautiful on you. Would you like to come try them on? Knowing Percy, he'll eat all the chocolate and would need to go back and buy more, so it should take a while."

Annabeth eased herself onto the ground and laughed. "Why do you think I sent him?"

Sally laughed too.

"By the way - I need help with the makeup too. I can never seem to wing my eyeliner just right."

Two hours later, Percy reappeared with the chocolate and gasped when he saw his girlfriend in an elegant, violet gown, her hair in a high ponytail and a the coral pendant around her neck. Annabeth walked over to him, kissed his cheek, and said, "wear your good suit today, with the purple tie. I didn't spend so much time looking for a dress for you to come in jeans." Sally winked at her, and she smiled back.

To Sally's surprise, Annabeth came back in twenty minutes after she left through the fire escape, and collapsed on the couch. Sally rushed over and checker her temperature.

"Annabeth, are you feeling alright? You do have a slight temperature. If you want, you can stay here today. You won't do well in your calc test if you're sick."

Annabeth nodded, but didn't move further. Sally sat next to her and stroked her hair comfortingly until Annabeth whispered, "how do you do it? Stay so strong, I mean. I'm so worried about Percy, it hurts to do anything except try and find him. And I'm an emotional wreck. Daughters of Athena are not emotional wrecks."

Sally wrapped her in a hug, and said, "It's hard, but you have to remember that Percy wouldn't want you to be unhappy. So I stay positive. But it's okay to cry sometimes, sweetheart. There's no use to keeping your feelings in. And pretty soon, we will have a lead on where Percy is. I'm sure of it."

Sally didn't know what else to say. As parents - or guardian, in this case - you're supposed to be there for your children, to kiss away their pains and tell them that they'll be okay. But how are you supposed to do that when the pain that envelops them surrounds you too?