A/N - This story was originally going to be published on Thalia's birthday, which I did! ... just not on ff. It wasn't on time on ao3 either rip
Annabeth!" Thalia said, running up to her friend and giving her a tight hug. "Ooh, it's been so long!"
"Thalia, it's only been a few months," Annabeth said, though she hugged back with a roll of her eyes. "Happy Birthday. I got you this."
She pulled out a tiny box, handing it to the daughter of Zeus. Thalia untied the silver ribbon and opened it, to find a simple charm bracelet, clasped together with a silver moon. Next to it was a single, tiny star. A smile spread over Thalia's face. "Thank you." She whispered, lifting it up to examine. Annabeth gently took it in her hands and placed it on her wrist.
"Annabeth Chase, Camp Half-Blood." Thalia said, and the rainbow in front of her rippled until it formed the iris message to the daughter of Athena. "Hey, Annabeth~" she said in a teasing tone as the other girl looked up. "Guess what day it is?"
Annabeth thought for a second. "Oh, I nearly forgot!" she exclaimed "Happy birthday!"
Thalia laughed. "You? Forget?"
"Well, you weren't at Camp this year. I lost track of the date with everything going on. How's the Hunt?"
"Great! We recruited three new girls!"
Annabeth smiled. "Sounds like you've got your hands full. Is that why you haven't come by camp?"
"Yeah, sorry about that."
"Oh, don't worry. I'll just give you my present next time you swing by."
"You really didn't have t-"
"Thalia, you're one of my closest friends." Annabeth interrupted, reaching out of view of the message for a moment before coming back into frame holding a tiny silver box. "Besides, that bracelet looks a little weird with only one charm."
Thalia looked down at her wrist, where the bracelet sat next to her other one; the one that transformed into Aegis. They had both been tarnished by the months on the Hunt, but the silver charm bracelet still shone softly in the moonlight. A fond smile made its way onto her face. "Thank you, Annabeth."
It was later than Thalia would have liked when she iris messaged her brother. "Hey, Jason."
"Thalia, hey!" He replied. "Happy birthday."
"Thanks."
Jason pushed his glasses up his nose as he smiled at Thalia, and there was some random noises from his end of the message. He turned in his seat slightly to see what was up, just as two other demigods leaned into frame.
"Happy birthday!" Percy and Annabeth said, waving to Thalia. She grinned, and Annabeth waved a silver box in front of her face.
"Special delivery for the birthday girl~" she sang. "I don't want to waste drachma on Hermes Mail though, so you'll just have to pick it up next time you're at Camp."
Jason rolled his eyes. "It's the same cost as an iris message."
"Yeah," Percy said "but Thalia called us, so it doesn't count!"
She laughed at that.
"Happy birthday, Thalia!" Annabeth grinned as she waved through the iris message. Thalia blinked. Was it already her birthday? The last year had flown by, she didn't even realise.
"...thank you, Annabeth," She replied after a moment. Thalia was now... "How old am I?"
Annabeth paused for a moment, tapping a finger to her chin. "Well, after the ageing with the tree, you'd be... nineteen."
Annabeth had grown into a beautiful young woman. She wore her hair short now- clipping it back from her face with a simple pin. She was far from the tiny seven year old Thalia once knew. "Nineteen." She repeated quietly, almost to herself.
"Mhmm, I can hardly believe it myself." Annabeth nodded slightly. "I nearly forgot to get you this." She held up a silver box, and Thalia knew immediately what was in it.
Her charm bracelet was filling faster than she realised, now that she looked down at it.
Percy popped a messy black mop of hair into frame. "Get your immortal ass back to Camp, we need to celebrate properly."
Thalia laughed, shaking her head. "I've got the Hunt to take care of, Fish Boy."
Annabeth looked slightly disappointed, but she smiled anyway. "We'll still celebrate whenever you get back to camp."
"Surprise!" Everyone yelled as Thalia walked into the room, streamers and party poppers flying. She laughed.
"Not much of a surprise, y'know," she said, grabbing Percy into a headlock and giving him noogies. "I could see you all through the window."
Jason snapped his fingers. "Knew we forgot something!" He said, but there was a familiar glint in his eyes.
Percy struggled in Thalia's grip and she grinned, releasing the son of Poseidon. "So you want any cake?" He asked as soon as he regained his composure.
"Is it blue?" She asked suspiciously, eyeing Percy. Annabeth laughed, lacing her fingers with Thalia's and dragging her over to a table stacked with party food.
"I talked him out of it." She said, though she gave a loving smile to her boyfriend nonetheless.
After the cutting of the cake, Annabeth pressed a silver box into the palm of Thalia's hand.
"I was going to give you this after the party, but I thought you'd like it now."
Thalia celebrated a day late, but none of her friends seemed to mind. Annabeth just smiled and sung Happy Birthday, holding up the traditional silver gift.
Annabeth was older than her now, and had been for several years. She hardly noticed.
By coincidence, the Hunt was residing in the Artemis Cabin at camp when Thalia's birthday rolled around. She was attacked at midnight by a very happy Annabeth, who gave her a tight hug and heartfelt words, a tiny silver box shoved into her hands. Another star to the bracelet, another year.
Fireworks lit up the sky above Long Island Sound, depicting legends and stories- the stories of Thalia Grace and her friends.
It was Christmas before Thalia had even realised she missed her own birthday. Annabeth simply brushed off her apologies with a wave of her hand.
"The charm can be a late Christmas present, too," she said. "I hope you don't mind."
She didn't mind. When she was young, most of her gifts would be joint Christmas-Birthday anyway. The joys of the two dates being mere days apart.
And so Annabeth waved a silver-wrapped box in front of her smile.
"Would you like it delivered or scheduled for pick-up?"
Thalia didn't care much for her next birthday, spending the time on a quest with Her Lady Artemis herself. They shared secrets the entire time, nothing hidden between them. (They also spent the entire time talking smack about boys, but who was checking?)
She didn't know how old she was anymore. It was hard enough after being a tree had slowed down her ageing.
"Jason Grace," Thalia said, glancing over her shoulder to make sure she was a safe distance from camp. She knew the Hunters were fine with her contacting Jason because he was her brother, but it was better to be safe than sorry. "Camp Half-blood."
She didn't know if that was where he was at the moment, due to him traveling back and forth between the Greek and Roman camps, but it was the first one she thought of. Camp Half-Blood had been her home once.
The rainbow rippled and formed a connection to Jason. He didn't notice for a moment, yelping in shock and falling backwards once he caught sight of her. Thalia laughed loudly, a genuine smile spreading over her face. "Hey, little bro." She said.
Jason picked himself up off the ground, dusting himself off. She found herself lost in thought, realising how much older he was now. "Happy Birthday, Thalia." He said, bringing her back to the real world.
"Thanks." She pursed her lips in thought, not noticing as she zoned out again.
"...'lia? Thalia!"
"Hmm, sorry?"
"I asked if you had called Annabeth and Percy yet."
The two demigods now lived together in New Rome. It meant they were safe from monsters and could continue with normal lives (as normal as the could get, being a half-blood), but the Hunt didn't stop by as often. That was Roman territory, even if the two sides did reconcile.
"Not yet, no." She replied, feeling slightly guilty.
"I suggest you do so, then," Jason said, before smiling again. "Annabeth has more than a tiny gift for you this year."
"Happy Birthday!" her friends crowded around the tiny rainbow, smiling and waving. Thalia smiled back, though her heart wasn't into it.
"Thanks." She said, and Annabeth held up a tiny silver present.
Thalia and the Hunters spent her next birthday tracking a manticore.
Jason and Annabeth waited for iris messages that never came, and Percy decided that from that year forth, they would call Thalia instead.
"Happy Birthday, Auntie Thalia!" A young girl called, a mass of black curls sticking into frame. She was scooped up by her father, who gave her a swift kiss to the top of her head. Percy and Annabeth's kid. They were parents. Years had passed, and Thalia hadn't cared too much.
"How old are you?" Thalia asked the little girl. She smiled, revealing a missing tooth, and held up four fingers.
"Auntie, how old are you?" she asked in return, and Percy shifted so she rested on his hip.
Thalia paused, frowning. She had lost track. Hesitantly, she looked down to the old charm bracelet.
It had been joined by another bracelet several charms back, not being able to fit them all. She switched them to the other wrist so they didn't get in the way of Aegis.
She started to count the stars, thought she knew it did nothing- she hardly remembered how old she was before she became a Hunter. "I don't know."
Annabeth walked into frame, giving a smile when she saw who it was. "Hey, Thalia."
"Hey."
"Happy Birthday."
"Thanks."
"Your gift should be arriving soon."
And that was it. They had drifted apart over the years. Annabeth had a family now. Thalia had her duties. It was only natural.
January came and went. Nobody said anything to Thalia, and she didn't notice. A silver-wrapped gift was handed to her the next time she and Annabeth met, and it took her a moment to remember why.
Annabeth's daughter was older than her, now. It was terrifying to think of, that such a tiny child was now sixteen, the family in New Rome growing. She was the oldest of three kids. Percy and Annabeth didn't go on any more adventures.
Percy said he was glad to leave all the world-saving to newer half-bloods, but Thalia could see how much he missed it in his eyes.
"Hey, Thalia! Guess what day it is!" A new Hunter called, and Thalia turned from where she was sitting to look at the girl. It took a moment to remember her.
"Jane, right?"
"Yup!" the girl looked incredibly cheerful, bouncing on the spot. Her dimples made her smile all the cuter. "It's my birthday! I'm officially a teenager!"
"Well, happy birthday." Thalia said, before she excused herself, not having the heart to tell Jane that she would never be older than twelve. The words had caught in her throat.
Jane had turned to another Hunter to ask what was wrong, and she had replied: "Years do not matter to us any longer, little one."
Thalia had never been told that. She figured it out herself.
Jason didn't call, but Thalia didn't notice. December turned into January, and she hardly cared when a couple of the Hunters wished her a happy birthday.
One year, a silver star didn't arrive. The next year, Annabeth gave her two, along with a third bracelet, flooded with apologies and hugs.
"How old are you now?" Percy asked, leaning back in his chair. He had a grey streak that reminded Thalia of when he had held the Sky. When she didn't answer immediately, Percy just sighed, giving a nod. "I guess we knew you would forget one day." He said.
"I didn't forget." She shot back, every bit the teenager she still was. "I'm fifteen."
Annabeth smiled sadly at Thalia, holding up a tiny silver box. "I'll send it your way." She said, just as the message timed out.
She was a day shy of sixteen, and she always would be. Thalia stopped caring for how many years she had been that age. She never counted the stars on her wrist. Their number grew faster, but Thalia didn't remember what they meant.
Thalia found herself laughing every time a new Hunter celebrated their birthday. It was adorable, really, that they thought it meant ageing.
She was bitter, of course. Thalia now knew why the older Hunters didn't care.
She never grew out of clothes, and only ever had to replace them once they were worn through. She stopped getting shirts of her favourite bands, ripped up jeans and spiked leather. A plain black t-shirt and simple silver earrings replaced her old punk-like style. She refused to wear the earrings like stars that a Hunter had offered her. Those were only for her bracelets.
"I'm fifteen. I'm fifteen. I'm fifteen." She repeated it to herself quietly, staring at the stars on her wrist.
That would never change.
She had met Jason in person two days ago, when it had been her birthday. He had handed her Annabeth's gift, given her a hug and they exchanged stories; and with a small pang of sadness she noted that he had grey hairs.
Language had changed slightly, yet Thalia didn't let go of her old ways. New Hunters were confused by their Lieutenant's slang, and the exchange pained Thalia as she realised this is what Zoë must have felt. The only way to see how long it has been was by Thalia's eyes.
Her face would always be round, never changed by wrinkles or blemishes. She would always look child-like, with a spray of freckles over her nose and her electric blue eyes.
The blue was a tiny bit duller now, carrying the weight of so much more.
She asked her friends not to call on the 22nd anymore. It didn't matter.
It was just another day in the year.
She hid herself away in her tent when the Hunters started singing Happy Birthday, and it wasn't until a week later that she learned that tiny little Zali shared the same birth date.
It wasn't Zali's fault, but Thalia resented the girl for celebrating.
Annabeth was a grandmother. It was common for her to recount her adventures to the little ones, enraptured with every word. Thalia found herself sitting in on one of these stories, aching for the time when Annabeth was just a little girl. She used to be Thalia's family.
Now she had her own, and Thalia felt alone.
She didn't say it- it would only hurt the both of them.
Nobody sent Thalia stars anymore.
The Hunters stood by her in silent vigil as she held back tears, chin held high in farewell to her best friend.
Percy didn't say a word, eyes and throat raw as he stood, hands gripped tightly by his grandchildren.
Thalia had never hated being immortal more than in that moment.
She didn't get attached anymore. Not after she had to say farewell to Percy.
She was inconsolable after losing Jason. It had been bad enough the first time. She couldn't say goodbye again.
Their lives were special.
Thalia's wasn't.
Life was only special because it had an end.
Someone gave Thalia a tiny silver star charm. "Your bracelets haven't been added to in a while," they had said "That fourth one looked a little empty with only one."
Thalia held it in her hand for hours, reminiscing days long gone by. She decided to engrave a name on it.
Annabeth
She began to seek out star charms, adding names to each of them to match the ones in the sky. She wore her friends and family on her wrist, remembering them every time she looked down.
Thalia's end was not until hundreds of years later, in the midst of a battle. But as the pain turned to numbness, her hand squeezed by Her Lady Artemis', she smiled.
Life was precious, no matter the end.
She would join her friends in the stars.