Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians
"Percy, will you play with me?"
I cringed as my little sister stared up at me with pleading blue eyes, her bottom lip quivering. I hated it when Sophie made that face. I could never seem to say no.
Don't get me wrong. I loved Sophie to pieces. She was technically my stepsister, but I couldn't care less. She was the cutest thing since baby seals.
But playing with Sophie had a downside, as it usually involved the dreaded Barbie dolls, which is enough to give any kid a nightmare.
Sophie tugged on my pants leg.
"Please Percy? I don't have anyone to play with, and you're not doing anything."
"I am doing something," I defended. "I'm doing reading…stuff." I glanced at my assigned English book on the table, which I had naturally neglected to open.
"But you haven't played with me all week." Sophie pointed out.
Ah. The Guilt Factor. Clever…
"Please, Percy? Daddy said you never read anyway…"
Thanks a lot, Paul.
"Alright," I sighed, defeated. "But just for a little while."
"Yay!" Sophie grinned and dragged me over to her box of dolls on the floor.
"You can play with Daisy." She handed me a Barbie with blonde hair in a short pink dress.
"Why do Barbies all have blonde hair and blue eyes? Are they like, clones or something?"
"They're all different." Sophie assured me.
"I guess…"
"I'll play with this one." Sophie announced as she pulled out a doll in the puffiest dress I'd ever seen.
"How does she walk through doors?" I wondered aloud, receiving a glare from Sophie in return.
"She'll be the princess," Sophie announced, walking her doll forward.
"Why does she get to be the princess?"
"Because she's the prettiest!" Sophie said as if that were the most obvious thing in the world.
I narrowed my eyes. I was just about fed up with girls at school, thinking they were better than everyone else just because they were considered "pretty."
If Sophie was starting to think like that…
Sophie began to play with her doll.
"Everyone, today is my sixteenth birthday! And I'm getting married!" Her Barbie announced.
Married at sixteen?
"Doesn't she want a car?" I asked.
"Why would she want a car?" Sophie said.
"To, you know, drive around and stuff."
"But her mommy can do that." Sophie reasoned. She clearly confused, so I gave up.
"You know what, never mind. She's getting married." I resigned.
"To Mr. Hopkins!" She announced, grabbing another toy out of her box.
"But Mr. Hopkins is a sock monkey," I speculated.
Sophie gave me the most incredulous look.
"It's the 21st century, Percy! Barbie can marry whoever she wants!"
I laughed and held up my hands. She sounded so much like Annabeth, Sophie's favorite babysitter. Annabeth would be proud.
"Percy, hold Barbie." Sophie said as she rummaged through her box again. I examined the doll's disproportionate body.
"Why are her feet so freakishly small?" I wondered aloud.
"Small feet are pretty." Sophie reasoned.
"No they're not, you could never walk on them,"
Sophie considered that, but she continued to search through her box.
"And her waist is so tiny." I continued. "Where does she even put her organs? And don't even get me started on her face."
"Her face is fine!" Sophie said, starting to get annoyed.
"But her nose is almost nonexistent and her eyes are huge! I mean, come on, she looks more like an alien from Mars or something."
"Percy!" Sophie gasped. "Stop it!"
I don't know why I was ranting. I guess I was just so bewildered that every girl's ideal body was to that of a Barbie.
"I'm sorry Sophie," I sighed. "Let's just get on with our game."
Satisfied, Sophie turned back to her box. Finally, she found her prize.
"Aha!" she exclaimed. "Here it is!" She held up a doll with stiff curly blonde hair.
"I'm gonna name her Annabeth!" Sophie said excitedly."
My eyes widened with horror. Annabeth as a Barbie…the very idea made me shudder.
"Um, Sophie, let's uh, chose a different name, shall we?" I said cautiously.
"Why?" Sophie questioned.
"Well, um, because she doesn't really look like Annabeth." I said, noting the heavily lined eyes.
Sophie thought about for a moment, then plopped the doll in my hand.
"Then can you make her look like Annabeth?"
"What?"
"Please?" She made the baby seal face again.
"Uh, Sophie, I…okay." I gave in.
"Yay!" Sophie grinned and turned back to her game.
Well, if that's what she wanted…
Half an hour later, I smiled proudly at my creation.
The doll's hair was up in a messy ponytail, with half her hair burnt off (apparently you can't curl Barbie hair). Her dress was cut very sloppily into somewhat shorts, and a bit of orange material covered her chest. Tannish-colored nail polish covered the makeup over her plastic eyes, as well as on her lips. Her eyes were colored in with silvery glitter.
And for good measure, I doused her in mud and red food coloring, because when is a demigod not covered in muck and blood?
It kind of looked like a demented Annabeth, but Annabeth nonetheless.
However, when I handed it to Sophie she shrieked and screamed, "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"
"I made her look like Annabeth, just like you asked me to!" I defended myself.
"No, you didn't! YOU RUINED HER!" She was starting to sound hysterical.
Just then, my brain had one of those rare moments where it actually had a good idea.
"Sophie," I said, gently taking the doll from her. "I'll admit, I might have gone a bit overboard, but I just want you to answer one question for me."
Sophie sniffed. "What?"
"Do you still think she's pretty?" I asked her.
Sophie took the doll from me and examined it closely. She must have stood there for about five minutes with me holding my breath before she smiled.
"Yes, she's still pretty." She decided. "She's beautiful."
I exhaled. "Maybe what's on the outside isn't what matters."
"No," Sophie agreed. She hugged me tight and looked up with shining eyes. Maybe I had taught her something after all.
"But you still ruined her." She accused.
I laughed. "Alright, I'll buy you a new one."
"I didn't say I didn't want it." Sophie countered. "I want to show this to Annabeth first." She grinned and ran upstairs to her room.
Oh, that'll give Annabeth nightmares for weeks…
Oops.
Is it just me, or do Barbie dolls look really creepy? Just me? Okay. Have a nice day. :)