A/N: Yes, this is late. I wrote this last night and posted it on tumblr (shameless plug: link in profile), but didn't have enough time to post it here.

Happy New Years to all of you. Also a very, very belated Merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah (not really sure when that's celebrated, sorry), and anything else that I'm forgetting because I'm a culturally unaware teenager.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians or Heroes of Olympus book series, and nor do I own any of its characters (as much as I wish I did). Also, the cover is by viria off tumblr (go check her out - she's amazing).

All in all, Percy Jackson can definitely say that he's looking forward to the next year, if tonight's any indication of the future.

It's New Year's Eve. He sits on the sofa in his mom's (and his and Paul's) apartment, Annabeth curled into his side. His mom's having one of those New Year's parties where memories are heavily reminisced upon and eggnog is consumed in large quantities, and generally everyone goes home either pleasantly buzzed or full out smashed drunk.

He can hear his mom, Paul, and Annabeth's parents and step-siblings talking in the kitchen, barely audible over the Christmas music playing in the background, glad for the privacy his mom 'subtly' gave them. As he lifts a glass of the 'kid-proof' (so named by his mother, because despite the fact that he was seventeen and literally been to hell and back, his mom still wouldn't let him touch alcohol. Figures. He'd probably sneak some later anyways) egg nog to his lips and takes a sip, he uses his free hand to pull Annabeth closer.

Annabeth. She'd flown back to San Francisco on Christmas Eve to celebrate Christmas with her family—despite Percy's many requests and not-so-subtle pleas for her to stay—saying that she spends the entire freaking school year with him anyways, and she hadn't seen her dad and step-mom for ages, and blah blah blah, he was a man and he should suck it up, for Hades' sake (quote unquote). She'd only flown back in to New York that day with the rest of her family, and Percy wasn't planning to let her go anytime soon (no, literally, he doesn't even really want to let her out of his sight, for Zeus' sake).

As if sensing him thinking about her, Annabeth turns to look at him, her lips curving upwards into a soft smile, her beautiful eyes lightening into a silver color. She'd let her hair out after the hours spent on the airplane, and it curled freely everywhere, tickling the side of Percy's neck. It still smelt like lemons, like it always had. Percy likes lemons.

"Any New Years' resolutions, Seaweed Brain?" she asks softly, raising an eyebrow at him, shifting in his arms. He could just make out the head of the deer emblazoned on her dark green holiday sweater, the one that was a soft-of match to his blue snowman sweater (gifts from Thalia, apparently as some sort of demented joke).

"Yeah," he responds, frowning at Annabeth as she steals his glass of egg nog. "To try not to die as much."

To anyone else, this would have been a horrible thing to say, but this is the type of humor that only demigods like them could fully appreciate. Annabeth snorts into the drink, tilting her head back and laughing a full on belly laugh. Percy drinks (no pun intended) in the sight of her laughing so wonderfully, her hair spilling across the fabric of the couch, her eyes open and cheeks flushed with laughter. He can't help but laugh along with her, pressing a quick kiss against the side of her temple.

The adults in the kitchen stop talking and cautiously peek into the living room, probably expecting some sort of monster or blood or even worse, two drunk demigods. Sarcasm much intended.

Percy twists around just in time to catch the tail ends of the relieved looks upon his and Annabeth's respective parental figures' faces (and the curious looks upon Bobby and Matt's faces) before they retreat back into the kitchen.

"Good one," Annabeth says once she's stopped laughing, clutching her stomach and altogether sounding fairly winded from her chuckles. "Mine would be to stop getting involved in wars that involve really old, really mean deities. Also to finish re-designing Olympus."

Percy nods appreciatively at her words. "That too."

He asks her about Olympus, and she tells him about this shrine/memorial she's been designing for Iapetus and Damasen. They don't cringe or hesitate as much as they used to when talking about Tartarus, which is good. They're making progress, they really are, even if neither he nor Annabeth can go anywhere without Riptide or her Drakon bone sword or replacement knife. But still, it's progress.

She's just telling Percy about this idea she wants to pitch to the gods to have all the names of all the demigods, gods, giants, titans, nature spirits, mortals, and friendly monsters that died fighting in the Giant War (an idea which Percy wholeheartedly supports), when there's a knock at the door, and an all-too-familiar voice calls out, "Hey, Jackson! Open up! The party has arrived!"

Annabeth lets her head fall onto Percy's head and lets out a groan. "Oh gods," she breathes as Percy gently moves her head over so he can get up. "Why him? Why now?"

Percy smirks and rolls his eyes at her affectionately. "Oh come on, Wise Girl, Leo's not that bad." But he puts emphasis on the 'that' for a reason.

He opens the door, giving the newcomers a wide berth. Leo, of course, is at the front, grinning crazily in true Leo fashion with a pair of those Christmas antlers perched precariously on his head, followed by Piper (dressed in an overlarge Christmas sweater patterned with dancing reindeer), a half-harassed and half-amused looking Jason, a smirking Thalia, a happy looking Hazel, and an amused but uncomfortable looking Frank.

He lets them in (which, in hindsight, was his first mistake). And sure, Thalia (with the help of Annabeth) tells a lot of embarrassing stories, and Leo drinks all of the egg nog (both kinds), but he wouldn't have it any other way.

(Plus, he gets that midnight kiss with Annabeth, so he can deal with a little bit of Leo-annoyingness for a while).

:3 PERCABETH IS SO CUTE AND ADORABLE. I CAN'T HANDLE IT.

P.S. Happy 2014! I hope it's the best year yet for all of you :)

~Alex (aka dontforget2live) xx