Note: This idea was given to me by a friend of a friend of a friend. I'm told she once had a story with this plot posted, so if it reminds you of something, that's why. Enjoy, lovelies.

Everything Changes
Prologue
The Day of the Prophecy

Thalia wasn't the kind of girl who'd wanted her 16th birthday to be a big deal. Anyone who'd ever met her could vouch for the fact that she'd never watched a single episode of My Super Sweet 16 to gain ideas for a party, nor had she once whined about wanting a brand new car to rock her driver's test with.

Unfortunately, the people at Camp Half-Blood had other intentions.

Thalia could remember the argument she'd had with Silena the week before her birthday. "Please let me throw you a party," the daughter of Aphrodite had begged. "You only turn sixteen once. Don't you want to remember it?"

"Silena, you only turn every age once. Sixteen is no reason to celebrate," Thalia had retorted with her patented eye roll.

"But it's your sixteenth birthday," Silena emphasized, fixing the other girl with a patronizing look.

"Yes, and I know this is difficult for you to understand, so let me say it slowly – I. Don't. Want. A. Party," Thalia said slowly, enunciating every word in the futile hope that it would get through to her. "I don't even want to acknowledge that it's my birthday."

Silena had nodded, and Thalia had assumed that was the end of that. She underestimated just how much the daughter of Aphrodite's brain had been poisoned by mass quantities of hairspray.

What Silena didn't understand was that for a girl like Thalia, a trip to the dentist's office was more appealing than a party – especially a party for her. Even a root canal without any Novocain was infinitely better than a 16th birthday party.

Which was why she was seriously considering Silena – among several other very violent things that are probably best left unmentioned – when she walked into the dining pavilion on the morning of her sixteenth birthday.

Balloons. Streamers. A giant pink banner that read 'Happy Birthday Thalia!' In other words, it resembled one of her worst nightmares with alarming accuracy. And there, sitting next to a huge cake, was Silena with a big stupid smile on her face. Thalia felt an overwhelming urge to knock out a few of those pearly whites.

"Happy sweet sixteen, Thalia!" Silena said as she stood up. After smoothing out the nonexistent wrinkles in her short skirt, she just stood there like she was expecting to be hugged or something. Once she realized this wasn't happening, she hustled over to Thalia as fast as her six-inch stilettos would allow.

Dropping her voice to a whisper, Silena quietly said, "Don't worry. I knew you were trying to be modest when we talked. Everyone knows it's proper etiquette to pretend you don't want a party."

Thalia wasn't sure if this was one of the stupid rules Aphrodite's children were infamous for making up or if there was some truth to it. Either way, Thalia was far from happy. "Silena, did it ever occur to you that I was serious when I said I didn't want a party?" she asked, her voice dripping with venom.

Silena actually laughed. "Thalia, you can drop the act now."

By that point, Thalia was convinced that Silena's brain was more than a little rotten by all the hairspray she'd used. "I even got Percy to help. At first he thought that you wouldn't want a party, but then I explained it all to him," Silena continued.

Percy Jackson – the only son of Athena here at Camp Half-Blood who didn't have piercing gray eyes, and coincidentally, the only one in his cabin that Thalia could stand. She even considered him a friend, having known him since he was a little kid.

That didn't stop Thalia from directing a glare in the direction of the Athena table. Percy shrugged helplessly and mouthed, "Sorry! She didn't give me a choice." It hardly pacified Thalia. He should have known better, and he'd hear it from her later.

Silena was oblivious to the growing tension. "Well now we can eat cake and-"

Smoke flooded the pavilion, creating an instant fog. A few people exchanged nervous glances. Silena immediately went quiet – if the smoke didn't tip Thalia off that something was wrong, that definitely did.

"Um…Percy, I don't remember us setting up a smoke machine," Silena said nervously as she inched closer to Thalia.

"That's because we didn't," Percy said simply. That was part of the reason Thalia liked Percy. Even though he had the brains of any other Athena kid, he had a plain and simple way of putting things. Come to think of it, he wasn't like the other Athena kids in a lot of ways.

Silena gulped nervously and looked to Chiron at the head table, who was looking at the scene with indifference. He offered her a halfhearted shrug. Thalia was getting the vibe that this part of the party hadn't been planned, especially when a man's form emerged from the smoke.

The man had pale blonde hair that brushed his jade green eyes, like it'd been needing a trim for quite some time. His lips were curved into a frown that looked like a regular visitor on his face. Combined with his pale skin, Thalia decided he was probably one of those sulky guys who didn't get out much. Yet his most prominent feature was the aura of power he seemed to give off.

"Phoebus Apollo," Mr. D's voice rang out loud and clear through the dead silence. "What brings you to Camp Half-Blood?"

Apollo was the first god Thalia had ever met – not including Mr. D. She'd always imagined the god of music and poetry as a more lively person, and the practically albino skin was a blatant contradiction to his title as the god of the sun.

"Oh, those angsty tortured poet types are always so cute," Silena whispered in Thalia's ear.

"What do you expect, brother?" His voice sounded detached and melancholy, yet the way it carried effortlessly gave away his divine nature. "I come with a prophecy so important that it must be me who reveals it."

There was a mummy in the attic who was the usual herald of prophecies. Thalia had never seen her, but Luke had before…well, it was best not to go there.

Apollo cleared his throat dramatically as he looked around at the campers, his gaze slowly focusing on me. His eyes had this way of seeing through someone, like he was looking directly at their soul. It creeped Thalia out. "Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus, is it true that you are sixteen today?"

It took a nudge from Silena to help Thalia find her voice. "Uh, yeah. That's right."

The god turned, addressing the camp as a whole. "Here stands the daughter of a broken oath. The prophecy I come to deliver is not about her, but for the next child of the forsaken oath who reaches her age."

Thalia didn't like being referred to as the daughter of a broken oath. She tried not to think about the rules that had been disregarded by her father – the reason she shouldn't be alive.

"The next child of the Big Three to turn sixteen will make a decision that will determine the future of Olympus. The hero is going to die, and there's going to be some cursed knife involved," Apollo said dramatically. "Oh, and lots of sleep," he added as an afterthought.

"Apollo," Mr. D said after it became clear that no else was going to speak up. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't prophecies supposed to be vague and nondescript?"

The god shrugged. "There's a reason they're usually given to my oracle. I forgot what the exact wording was. It's probably for the best – it's depressing watching you all mope about how unclear the prophecy is."

"But isn't the exact wording important?" Mr. D pressed, looking to Chiron for support. The centaur was staring at his goblet intensely, demanding something a bit stronger than the beverages approved for campers, no doubt. It was no secret that the famous trainer of heroes was less than satisfied with his job.

Apollo's frown deepened. "Your problem – not mine." And with that, the god disappeared in a poof of smoke. The first real god Thalia met definitely hadn't made a great first impression.

Then it sank in. One of the other Big Three gods was going to violate his oath. There was going to be another kid like her, and they were going to decide the fate of Olympus.

But at least one good thing came out of it. With a beaming smile, Thalia said, "Well, I guess this means we'll just have to cancel my birthday celebration!"

Random question for my lovely reviewers - If you read my description, you know Luke's out of the picture. Any guesses on who our villain will be?