Okay, so this is another songfic, Taylor Swift this time. The song is "Brought Up That Way." The song was leaked onto the Internet. It was previously unreleased. I figured as long as it was leaked, I might as well a story out of it. So here it is.
Summery: Emily, Percy and Annabeth's daughter, was always very close to her father after her mother's death. He was always there for her-through bullies, boyfriend troubles and the like. But when the Fates threaten to take her away from him, he has to hope for a miracle.
Disclaimer: The song is Taylor Swift's. Percy and all other characters you recognize are Rick Riordan's. I only own Emily, Kasey, and Mark.
Percy was sitting in the waiting room of a hosipital, waiting as his wife, Annabeth, was giving birth. He was incredibly nervous; after all, this was his and Annabeth's first child.
He loved Annabeth. They had been best friends since they were twelve, and they'd been dating since they were sixteen. They had been a steady couple for several years. Finally, when they were both twenty, he made the biggest decision of his life-he asked her to marry him. Of course, she said yes. They had convinced Zeus to let them get married on Olympus, and they had even made it so their mortal guests (Percy's mom, Annabeth's dad, and Rachel Dare) could come onto Olympus that day. It had been an amazing wedding. They had honeymooned in Greece.
Now here he was, nine months later, sitting in an hosipital waiting room, waiting for his and Annabeth's child to be born.
He looked down at his hands. Gods, how much longer was he going to have to wait?
Someone sat down beside him. "Hey, Percy," said a familar voice.
Percy looked up. His two cousins, Thalia, daughter of Zeus, and Nico, son of Hades, had walked in without him even noticing. Nico had claimed the seat next to Percy's, and Thalia was leaning against the wall.
"What are you guys doing here?" Percy asked.
Thalia grinned. "Like we were going to miss this."
"Thalia, I thought you were off with the Hunters."
"I was. But I asked Artemis if I could come and support you. It took a little convincing on my part, but she finally said yes," Thalia explained.
Percy looked at Nico. "And you? Aren't you supposed to be in the Underworld?"
Nico grinned. "Usually, yes. But I slipped out without my dad noticing. I had to come support my two favorite cousins!" He clapped Percy on the back. "I ran into Thalia outside the hosipital. It seemed we both had the same idea-to come support you and Annabeth."
"Well, thanks," Percy said.
"No problem," Nico said.
A doctor walked in. "Mr. Jackson?" he asked, his face unusually sober.
Percy stood up. "Yes?"
The doctor looked uncertainly at Thalia and Nico. "It's okay, doctor," Percy said. "These are my cousins. Anything you have to say to me you can say in front of them."
"Very well," the doctor said. "Your wife conceived a beautiful baby girl, Mr. Jackson."
"That's great!" Thalia said, smiling at Percy.
But the doctor shook his head. "Unfortunately, your wife died in the process." Percy's heart nearly stopped. He stared at the doctor uncomprehendingly. "I'm very sorry, Mr. Jackson."
The doctor walked away, and Percy sunk into his chair. He put his head in his hands and sobbed. Thalia reached out hesitantly and put her hand on his arm. "I'm really sorry, Percy," she said. She looked nearly as heartbroken as he was, and it was no surprise. After all, she had known Annabeth since she was seven.
"My Wise Girl..." Percy sobbed. "No..."
Nico looked upset, too, but not as upset as Thalia and Percy, since he hadn't known Annabeth as long as either of them had, and of course, he hadn't been in love with her. "I should've known," he sighed. "I'm a son of Hades, I should've known she was..." His voice broke.
"Don't blame yourself, Nico," Percy said. "There's nothing we could've done."
The doctor walked in. "Mr. Jackson?"
Percy wiped his eyes. "Yes?"
"Would you like to see your daughter?"
Percy stood up. "Yes."
Thalia and Nico stood up, too. "We'll come with you, man," Nico said. "For support."
Percy almost smiled. "Thank you."
The three cousins followed the doctor, who showed them to the bed Percy's daughter was at. "Here is she, sir," the doctor said.
Percy looked at the baby, and his heart nearly broke.
She looked just like Annabeth. Same blonde hair, same grey eyes. Percy imagined that this was what Annabeth had looked like as a baby.
"She's beautiful," Percy whispered.
"What would you like to name her?" the doctor asked.
Percy thought about, and the perfect name came to him. "Emily," he decided. "Emily Annabeth Jackson."
Emily comes home from school
And grabs her daddy's hand
He says, "Baby girl, what's wrong with you?"
She says, "Please don't make me go back there again"
She said, "I wish there was some way to make them stop it"
So he drives her down to that principle's office
Seven years later.
Percy was on the phone with Rachel Dare, waiting for Emily to come home from school. Ever since Annabeth's death, Percy seemed to be getting closer and closer to Rachel. Rachel made him feel happy again. So did Emily, who was in second grade now. Emily looked to Rachel as her mother figure, since Emily had never known her real mother.
"So how is Emily doing in school?" Rachel asked.
"Pretty good, I think," Percy said. "It's a good thing she didn't inherit our ADHD or dyslexia. I don't think I would've been able to handle it." He laughed.
Rachel laughed. "No, I don't think you would have," she agreed.
Percy heard a door open and close. "Oh, Emily's home," he said. "I have to go."
"Alright," Rachel said. "I'll see you later, Percy."
"See you."
He hung up the phone and turned towards the front door. "Emily?" he called.
The little girl flew at him. She grabbed his hand. Her face was streaked with tears. "Daddy..." she sobbed, burying her face in his arm.
He hated seeing her so upset. Emily was a wonderful little girl who looked just like her mother. When she was upset, he felt upset, too. He knelt down and pulled her into his arms. She cried into his shoulder. For a few minutes, he just let her cry. Then he pulled her away and looked into her eyes. "Sweetheart, what's wrong?" he asked.
Emily sniffled. "Please, Daddy, don't make me go back there," she said.
"Why, what's wrong?" A horrible thought occured to him. "Honey, are the other kids bullying you?"
Fresh tears poured from her eyes. She nodded. "They just won't stop it," she burst out through her tears. "They're just so mean, Daddy."
Percy stood up. "Get your coat, Emily," he said, reaching for the car keys sitting on the kitchen counter.
She wiped a stray tear from her eyes. "Why?"
"I'm going to have a little talk with your principle," he said through gritted teeth.
He said: "I didn't bring her up do they could cut her down
I didn't bring her here so they could shut her out
I live my whole damn life to see that little girl's smile
So why are tears pouring down that sweet face?
She was brought up that way"
Percy parked his car in the parkling lot of Emily's elementry school. He stepped out and opened Emily's door for her.
Emily took his hand. Tears were still pouring down from her face. "Daddy, Mr. Coleman's mean," she said. "Really mean."
"Well, Daddy can be mean, too," he told her.
"How mean, Daddy?"
"Real mean!" he said, picking her up and swinging her onto his back. "Come on, sweetheart. Let's go talk to this Mr. Coleman."
With her still on his back, he barged into the school and into the principle's office. The balding man sitting behind the desk looked up. "Yes?" he said in a bored tone. The man's tone reminded Percy of the director of Camp Half-Blood, the wine god, Dionysus. Percy instantly disliked him.
Percy set Emily down on the ground, and she immediantly went to hid behind his legs. Percy gave the man a cold look. "Are you the principle?"
"I'm Mr. Coleman, yes."
"I'm Emily Jackson's father," Percy informed him. Mr. Coleman's expression froze. "My little girl just told me that the other students are bullying her. I want it to stop."
"Sir, I'm sure it's just a misunderstanding-"
"A misunderstanding, is it? I don't think so." Percy glared hard at Mr. Coleman. "Look, I didn't bring my daughter to this school so the other kids could just shut her out. I brought her here so she could be accepted."
"She-she is accepted, sir," Mr. Coleman said quickly.
Percy shook his head. "No. She isn't. Look, I live my whole damn life to keep that smile on Emily's face. But there's no smile on her right now. There's nothing but tears on that...that sweet little face." He almost said, On Annabeth's face. He stopped himself just in time. "I want all the other students to stop bullying her, or I will send her to another school. I will not allow this bullying to continue, Mr Coleman."
"Sir-"
"She wasn't brought up that way."
Emily's home late again
He sees that boy's car drive away
Oh, but something's differant this time
She doesn't have too much to say
She said, "He tried, but there's just some things I won't do"
And through the tears she said, "I couldn't do that to you"
Percy sighed. Emily was home late again.
Ever since she had started hanging out with that kid she had met at Camp Half-Blood, he couldn't shake the undeniable feeling that he was losing her forever. Mark was a son of Hephaestus, and, in Percy's opinion, way too good for his daughter. Emily was fifteen now, and on her way to becoming a beautiful young woman. She looked so much like Annabeth did when she was fifteen, it was unbelivable. Every time Percy looked at Emily, it was like looking at Annabeth again.
He glanced out the window and saw Mark's car driving away. He sighed in relief. Emily would walk in any minute now.
Sure enough, a few seconds later, the door slammed. Emily walked in, keeping her head down. "Hi, Dad," she said, not looking up.
He frowned. Something was wrong. "Emily?" Percy said. She looked up slowly, but she didn't met his eyes. "What's wrong, sweetie?"
She didn't answer. Percy began to panic. "Emily! Look at me! Tell me what's wrong."
Slowly, hesitantly, she met his eyes.
Her eyes, so much like Annabeth's, were bloodshot from crying. "Emily, what happened?" Percy demanded.
She started to cry. Percy, caught off guard, hesitantly put his arms around her. "Oh, sweetie, it's okay," he said soothingly, hugging her tightly. "What happened, Emily?"
"Daddy, he-he tried, but-" She sniffled. "There's just some things I won't do."
Percy's worry quickly turned to anger. "He tried to rape you?" he asked urgently. She nodded, biting down hard on her lip. Percy shook his head. "I always knew that boy was no good," he said.
"I-I stabbed him in the arm with my knife," she said. "I-I didn't want to...I couldn't do that to you, Daddy."
Percy felt his heart break. Maybe he wasn't losing her after all.
He said: "I didn't bring you up so he could wear you down
Take that innocent heart and turn it inside out
I live my whole damn life to see that little girl's smile
So don't let nobody take that away
You weren't brought up that way"
"Emily," he said. He spoke quietly, but surely. "Emily, listen to me." She looked up at him. He put his hands on her shoulders. "I didn't bring you up so he could wear you down."
"Dad-" she said.
"No, listen. That boy isn't good for you. He's better off gone from your life. But that's okay, because there'll be other boys. Boys who won't try to use you like Mark did."
"Dad-" she said again.
But Percy had started pouring his heart out, and once he had started, he couldn't stop. "You look just like your mother, you know that? Beautiful girl, your mother was. Every time I look at you, it's like I'm looking at my Wise Girl. And there was nothing I hated more than to see my Wise Girl upset."
Emily sniffed. She wiped her tears with the back of her hand. "Do I really look like my mom?" she asked.
"Are you kidding? You could be her twin."
"Really?"
"Really."
He could see that Emily was still upset about what Mark had tried to do, so he said, "Emily, I've lived my whole damn life to see that smile on your face. Don't let any boy take that away, okay, honey? I didn't bring you up so that boy could take that sweet, innocent heart and turn it inside out," he said firmly.
"Daddy-" Emily said, smiling at her father's words.
"You weren't brought up that way," Percy said.
The phone rings on a rainy night
Says it's Officer Tate
He says, "Sir, there's been an accident
You better get down here right away
A drunken driver missed an overpass
And Emily, she's fading fast"
Two years later, Percy was looking out the window as rain fell down on the city of New York.
He sighed. Emily was supposed to come back home from Camp Half-Blood tonight. He hoped she was being careful. The rain had made the pavement pretty slick.
The phone rang. He sighed and went into the kitchen to answer the phone. "Hello?" he said.
"Mr. Jackson?"
It was Emily's best friend, Kasey. Kasey was a daughter of Aphrodite. She and Emily were practically inseparable. "Oh, hi, Kasey," Percy said. "Is Emily on her way home yet?"
"Actually, Mr. Jackson, there's something I have to tell you," Kasey said, and for the first time, Percy noticed that she sounded like she'd been crying.
"Kasey, what's wrong? What happened?"
Kasey took a deep breath. "Mr. Jackson, there was an accident," she said, and her voice broke. "A drunken driver missed an overpass. You better get down here right away."
Percy's heart nearly stopped. "Which hosipital are you in?" he asked urgently.
"The one nearest to your apartment building," Kasey said.
"I'll be there as fast as I can."
"Good."
"What about Emily?" Percy asked. "Is she going to be alright?"
Kasey didn't answer. "Kasey? Dammit, what about Emily? Is my little girl going to be alright?" Her heart was beating a thousand miles a minute. He hadn't felt so panicked since the time Annabeth had taken a knife for him and he'd been afraid she might die. His heart clenched as he waiting for Kasey's reply.
"No, sir," Kasey said quietly. "The doctors, they-" She choked back a sob. "They don't think she's going to make it."
He said: "God, I didn't bring her up so they could lay her down
Nearly killed me the day they put her momma in the ground
Only thing that kept me alive was that little girl's smile
So please don't take that away
It won't be easy taking her today
She wasn't brought up that way"
Percy rushed into the hospital. He ran over to the information desk. "What room is Emily Jackson in?" he asked urgently, panting because he had ran the whole way from the parking lot.
"Who are you, sir?" the woman asked.
"I'm her father."
The woman hesitated. "She's in Room 316, sir. That way." She pointed down a hallway.
"Thank you." Percy turned away.
"Sir-" the woman called out, but Percy had already ran off down the hallway she had pointed at.
When Percy reached Room 316, he found a small crowd gathered outside the room. "Percy!" Rachel Dare exclaimed.
Her red hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail, and her eyes were red from crying. She hugged him. "Oh, thank goodness, you're here!" she said.
"How's Emily?" he asked.
"She's in a coma," Rachel whispered.
Percy's mind went blank. "No," he gasped.
He looked around at all the familar faces. Chiron was there, in his wheelchair, wheeling back and forth anxiously. And Thalia and Nico, Thalia not a day over fifteen. Kasey was there, leaning against the wall, crying hysterically. Grover and Tyson were there, Grover chewing nervously on his shirt. And Percy's mother, now an old woman. And all of Emily's other friends from Camp Half-Blood.
"Percy," Sally said. She hugged her son tightly. "I'm so sorry."
"Did you call Annabeth's dad?" he asked, knowing Frederick Chase would want to know that his granddaughter was in a coma.
"We tried, man," Nico said. "But we just got his answering machine. But we're gonna keep trying."
A doctor walked out of Emily's room. He peered at the crowd of people. "Mr. Jackson?" he asked.
"Yes?" Percy said, dreading what the doctor might say.
"We've done everything we can. But I'm afraid your daughter may not make it," the doctor told him solemnly.
Percy felt like he had seventeen years ago, when he'd been told that his beautiful Annabeth had died. "Can I go in and see her?" he asked, choking back the tears that were threatening to escape.
"Yes. But no one else."
Percy nodded, and walked into the room.
Emily laid on the bed. About a dozen strange tubes were hooked up to her. A heart monitor beeped.
Emily looked like a limp little doll, lying there on the bed. Percy sat down at the edge of her bed. "Oh, Emily," he whispered.
He began praying to his father. "Dad, I don't know if you can do anything here, but if you can, then do something. Don't let Emily die. Please."
A tear spilled over. He didn't bother to wipe it away. "Please, Dad. I didn't bring her up just so she could die before she even had a chance to live. It nearly killed me the day Annabeth died. The only thing that kept me going was Emily's precious little smile. Please, don't let her die. Do whatever you can, Dad. But don't let Emily die. She wasn't brought up that way."
Somewhere up on Olympus, Poseidon whispered, "I will do what I can, son."
Beside him, Athena said, "We both will."
He stands over the hospital bed
Emily opens her eyes
Two days past, and it seemed like Percy's prayer had gone by unheard.
Percy stood over the hospital bed and stared at the heart moniter that continued to beep. He could only hope that it never went out.
Percy hadn't left the hosiptal room once in the last two days, except for when the doctor's asked him to leave. Visitors came and went. Chiron had gotten hold of Annabeth's dad, who had came to New York on the first flight out of San Francisco. He was staying at Percy's apartment, since Percy hadn't been there in two days.
Rachel had been great support. She was always there when Percy needed a shoulder to cry on. Percy didn't know what he would do if Rachel hadn't been there to help him.
Emily's eyelids fluttered. She moaned.
Percy looked at her, hardly daring to believe it.
Emily's fingers twitched.
"Emily?" he whispered.
The doctors had said that the chances that she would survive were one in a million. It had been a pretty back wreck. The doctors had told him not to get his hopes up.
But sometimes even doctors were wrong.
A miracle happened.
Emily opened her eyes.
"Dad?" she asked.
He could hardly believe it. "Emily," he gasped.
She smiled. "Hi, Daddy," she said.
Tears spilled from his eyes, but they weren't from grief. They were from happiness-sheer happiness. Happiness because his little girl was alright. She was alive. She had beat the odds.
Emily always had been a fighter.
He hugged her carefully, as she was very fragile right now. "I love you, sweetie," he said. "More than anything in the world
She hugged him back, just as carefully. "I love you too, Daddy," she said.
Sometimes, miracles do happen.