AN: Well, look who's back! Did anyone miss me while I was MIA? Guess none. Anyway, I'm back with a short multi-chapter story. This is a Percabeth AU as usual (shut up they're my OTP). I'll be free until December ends so I guess that's the time I have to write. After that, well. . . . Please tell me what you think of this and if this was even worth continuing.

Special thanks to KorrohShipper for being my beta even though I suck. Yeah. Thanks really.

Annabeth shuffles on her bed and snuggles into her pillows closer, the subtle citrusy scent of her shampoo making their way inside her nostrils. She breathes in and tries to ignore the constant ticking of the clock, its low tick tock sound slowly irritating her. Her insomnia is starting to get back again after weeks of sleeping without it. It also doesn't help the fact that she got this big project coming. And although she might be awake at night, it doesn't mean that her mind is awake too. Grumbling to herself about paying another cup of coffee tomorrow, Annabeth decides to test her luck in getting a decent amount of sleep when she hears Athena screeching loudly, followed by a muffled pained cry.

Annabeth hastily scrambles off the bed and puts a shirt on as she blindly fumbles for the light switch. The bulb flickers on, and she has to shield her eyes from the sudden brightness.

"Meowww!" Athena shrieks again, and Annabeth rolls her eyes.

This has been the situation almost every night—her cat screaming her head off for something so insignificant. A little scratching sound here, the soft closing of the door and even the sound of a flicking switch—the black cat howls at almost everything. Heck, maybe even to the snores of her neighbors.

If Annabeth just didn't get too attached with the grumpy cat, she'd easily send it for adoption. But Athena has been a constant in the blonde's life now— that even the cat's unjustified anger for almost everyone and everything became a bit tolerable.

Just a bit.

Once she finds herself at her front door, Annabeth opens it with her left hand posed at her waist, ready to reprimand the cat when her eyes widen in surprise.

A man—who looks no older than her—glares at the cat, while clutching his left leg. Athena only mirrors his stare; the cold and unforgiving silvery eyes of the cat burns something that looks like a threat at the guy. They both seemed unfazed by their intense staring session until the man hisses in pain. The sound of him cursing shakes Annabeth out of her stupor.

She rushes at his side and carefully examines the bleeding scratches Athena made on his leg. "Are you okay?" she asks then instantly smacks herself internally for such a stupid question.

"Your cat scratched me," the man says, his voice rich and deep, "do you think I'm okay?"

Annabeth decides to ignore his snarky remark. "Let's come inside and I'll help you patch it up."

"Alright."

He moves to stand up and almost loses his balance when Annabeth helps him to his feet. They walk inside slowly, with Annabeth supporting his weight. The guy suddenly stops and gestures to Athena, who seems to be skinning him alive in her head.

"That. . . thing isn't going to scratch me again, is she?" he asks warily. Annabeth tries not to laugh at the pure look of fear in his face. His bright sea green eyes are glowing in the night- like the eyes of a phantom -and staring at her seriously.

"I'll try."

"What?!"

She laughs softly before looking at him. "Sorry. Relax, she's not gonna harm you under my watch."

It's Annabeth turn to exchange stares with Athena, hoping to convey the 'bad cat we'll talk later about your punishment' look. The message seems to work, as the cat reluctantly turns and shuffles against the shadows and slips into the night. Athena is also too stubborn to obey her orders. Unfortunately, the same goes with the master.

Annabeth helps the man settle on her couch comfortably before rushing off to grab the first aid kit hidden in one of the cabinets. She fishes out some cotton balls, alcohol and band aids before going back to examine his cuts.

Once Annabeth sits herself in front of him, the guy talks. "Thanks for helping me by the way. Sorry if I was a bit snappy earlier."

"That's fine. It's my responsibility to help you. After all, I'm Athena's—" she looks briefly to her cat's silhouette by the window "—owner," she responds. She takes the alcohol and cotton balls and looks at him in the eyes. "This is going to hurt a bit," she warns.

"Okay. Just be—Ouch! Aw!"

"Sorry."

They sit in silence for awhile; with Annabeth focusing on his wounds and the guy trying not to yelp in pain.

"So. . ." the guy draws out, "I'm Percy."

Annabeth glances at him with a small smile. "You're Percy. Okay."

Percy tilted his head in an attempt to stare at her. "That was supposed to be the cue to tell me your name."

"I didn't know this conversation was supposed to have a cue."

"Isn't that what most people do?"

"What if I'm not part of that 'most people'?"

"Okay," Percy lets out a full on grin. "You have a point."

"I always do." Annabeth smiles back with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "But for the sake of your effort, it's Annabeth."

"Annabeth," he repeats.

"Yeah. That's my name."

"Annabeth," Percy says again, "that's a weird name."

"I didn't think Percy was a normal name either," she retorts.

"It is a normal name," he defends. "But to be fair, my real name is Perseus, which is a hundred times weirder than Annabeth."

"Yeah. And honestly, I don't think Perseus suits you. You don't look like a hero at all," Annabeth says with a teasing tone.

"And to think that I thought Aurora was your name or something along the lines of that."

"Aurora? Aurora sounds old," Annabeth scrunches her nose in disgust. "And isn't that a princess' name?"

"Yeah. Don't you want to sound like a princess?"

Annabeth shakes her head at him. "No. Those aren't just my thing. Anyway, what brings you out in this time of the night? And I'm pretty sure you're not my neighbor who doesn't come out of his apartment."

He folds his hands on his lap. "I'm a marriage counselor. I work for your neighbor next door."

"Oh." Annabeth recalls it now. The couple—Mr and Mrs. Jones had just moved in recently and were newly weds too. Apparently, they're going on a rocky road marriage judging by the late night screaming and shouting. Annabeth is sure she's heard of Percy from Mrs. Jones before, but the name escaped her memory quickly. It's not as if she knew that he'll be scratched by Athena tonight.

Percy rubs the back of his neck. "Sorry, but I can't tell much. They deserve their privacy, but I can only hope they're gonna be able to fix it."

Annabeth looks at him. "Isn't that what you do? Fix marriages?"

"I'm just there to help them identify what is wrong and give some probable solutions. It's up to them whether to take it or not," he says with a melancholic smile.

Annabeth shakily stands up; her legs feel slightly numb for crouching for so long. "There. You're all fixed up."

Percy stands too, wincing a bit from the pain. He smiles warmly at her. "Thanks for the help, Annabeth."

"No problem. And good luck with Mr. and Mrs. Jones."

He pauses by her door, "Thanks. And see you soon, I guess."

"Yeah," Annabeth says. The corners of her mouth pull a little higher. "Soon. Bye Percy."

"Good night, Annabeth," he whispers and turns around to start his way home.

When Annabeth goes back to her bed, she realizes that she doesn't need to wait for sleep to have a weird dream after all. A weird but nice dream anyway.

Please review.