He hadn't seen her since the day they graduated high school.


Counting Stars

Percy

Chapter 1

Lately I been, I been losing sleep
Dreaming about the things that we could be

It was noon by the time Percy woke up. Getting out of bed was done at a leisurely pace. He quietly slipped on a semi-large jumper with a picture of a blue fish on it and put on his light blue skinny jeans.

"How do you wear those?" It was Grover, Percy's roommate. Percy slipped on his grey canvas shoes. They were a gift from his friend Rachel. The shoes were paint splattered; she must've forgotten to put them in a bag. Somehow she managed to make it look like she did it on purpose. Percy smiled. He forgot how creative she was.

Percy stood up and put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Maybe if you quit wearing those baggy pants, you'd find out?" Grover laughed and shook his head.

"Nah, man. You know me."

"Yeah. Goat Boy." Percy chuckled at his annoyed expression and left Grover standing in the doorway of his bedroom. He scampered out after him. "What do you want? You never talk to me unless you want something. Food?" Grover shook his head and hid a smile.

"I do not," Grover nibbled on the sleeve of his jacket in a nervous manner, a strange habit of his, "it's just that my girlfriend, Juniper, is coming over and―" Percy held up a hand.

"Hold it. Juniper? As in the little shy girl who wears those floral sundresses all the time and is a nature-freak just like you?" Grover nodded. "Oh. She's your girlfriend now, eh? Moving up the social ladder, my friend. Good job."

Grover sighed and dreamily stared at the flowers he had bought at the last nature reserve he went to. "Yeah. But that's not the point. She's coming over, and I really think we should clean the house." Percy raised a brow.

"Dude. Juniper came over, and I walked out of my room in underwear. Do you really think she'll mind if a few of our jackets are strewn here and there or if most of my incomplete homework from last year that should've been burned a long time ago is sitting on most of the kitchen table?" Grover shook his head. "Good. Then neither of us have to clean. Case closed." Percy took the leftovers he was reheating out of the microwave.

Taking a seat on the couch, he picked up his phone. 8 new messages. He scrolled through them.

Rachel: Do you think you could can come to the studio for a bit? I'm having some trouble putting up this painting. Thanks.

Tyson: School is over. Going to Daddy's this week. Amphitrite is angry at him. New son "cyclops" (you know those big bullies in that gang). Very dangerous. Very mean. Goes to my school.

Frank: Can I borrow that purple beanie? Hazel keeps telling me to wear it.

Hazel: Can you let Frank borrow that purple beanie? Frank needs to wear it.

Reyna: Aurum is sick. Do you mind watching Argentum while I take his brother to the vet?

Rachel: Never mind. Octavian helped.

Tyson: Amphitrite yelled at Daddy. She slapped him. It was funny, but scary. Daddy told me not to worry. But I worry. He has a bruise on his left cheek. It's a funny colour.

Reyna: Please, Percy, I'm really worried for him. Hurry.

He finished the leftovers and grabbed his car keys off the counter. "G-man, I have to go. I need to help Reyna with Argentum. She's taking Aurum to the vet. I don't know when I'll be back."

Grover yelled back an "okay" before continuing to do whatever he was doing.

The car ride to Reyna's house was quick. He knew enough back-roads to bypass the usual traffic. She was sitting on the front porch with Aurum in her lap. His golden pelt wasn't as "bright" as usual. It seemed more like a dirty blonde colour. Reyna sighed in relief and set the sick dog onto the ground. She lived in a more rural area of New York and had enough land for her dogs to run around. Right now though, neither of them seemed ready to play. Aurum still lied still on the cement of her porch, and Argentum, Aurum's brother, was seen to be laying on the couch, a paw slung lazily off the cushion.

Reyna gave Percy a quick hug and thanks before picking up her dog and taking him to the car. He walked into her house. "Hi, Argie." It was a nickname he came up with a few days ago. Reyna hated it; the dog loved it. "You must feel so bad for Aurum, aren't you, boy?" Argie whimpered slightly. "Well don't worry about it. The vet can fix him up so he'll be even healthier than he was before." Argie rolled onto his back.

Percy sighed. "You're not doing much." Reyna's house phone rang. He picked it up.

"Reyna! Where are you? The meeting is about to start and I have no idea where you are!" Jason. He was a friend of Reyna's. Percy didn't know him that well, but Reyna apparently had a long history with him.

"Hi, Jason. It's Percy Jackson, that guy who covered for you when you were away in Arizona. Yeah, you see, Aurum got sick a little bit earlier, so Reyna took him to the vet."

He heard a small huff of annoyance come from the other end before a deep inhale. "Alright. I'll get Gwen to take her place."

"Alright."

"Yeah."

"Mhmm."

There was an awkward pause. Percy looked at the wall in front of him. "Mhmm. Yeah. Bye."

"Bye."

He set the phone back on the charger. "Argie, never talk to Jason over the phone."

The dog barked.


Reyna got back to her house around two. "Sorry. The vet said that Aurum had swallowed some metal." She laughed. "It's happened before. I've had to take him multiple times for eating metal. I just don't know the signs that he has." She pet Argentum between the ears. "He's going to stay the night there. They have to give him a check-up anyways. Quick once over. Though I'm pretty sure he still needs some shots. Not quite up-to-date there." She smiled softly at Argie. "Good dog. You didn't cause Percy any trouble did you?"

"No. We had a great time. Isn't that right, Argie?" He laughed when Reyna clenched her fists. "Fine, fine. Argentum. It's about time I got back. I may or may not have taken some of your food by the way. Also Jason called. You missed a meeting. Gwen filled in for you."

Reyna sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Alright. Well bye, Percy." She gave him another quick hug before she locked the door and left Percy outside. He walked back to his car.

The weather was chilly. Today was December first. Wow. That was fast.

He stopped at a little cafe that served the best hot chocolate there was. Hestia's was printed on a sign over the door. The smell of burning firewood made his eyes droop a bit. It wasn't anywhere near the average time a person falls asleep, but with the gloomy weather and dark clouds, anything warm and inviting could make someone tired. And Hestia's was both of those things.

The little bell chimed when he walked in. A girl of eight years sat by the fireplace, an iron staff in hand. She wore a homemade brown dress and her light hair was pulled back into a ponytail. She smiled at him. Her eyes flickered in the candlelight. "Percy!" she cried. "Mom! Mom! Mo-o-o-om! Percy's here! Can I make him his hot chocolate? Please?"

A woman with light brown hair and soft, ever-changing eyes stepped out from a closet holding a small apron. She tossed it to the girl. "Yes, Hestia. Now get to work!" Hestia laughed at her mother Rhea's shouting. Percy smiled. Hestia's was established by the mother and daughter and home to the mother and daughter. He walked up to the counter and handed Rhea fifty dollars. When she shook her head and handed it back, he chuckled. "It's pretty good hot chocolate." He leaned in. "Get her a new dress." Rhea smiled and put it in her pocket.

"Thank you, Percy. Have you heard anything about your grandfather?"

Percy shook his head.

"Oh. Kronos was... he was something else. Since you haven't heard anything, he's most likely still in jail." Rhea gave a small breath of relief. "I better check on Hestia. She gets a bit... messy when cooking." She went into the little home-style kitchen behind the counter.

Percy nodded and sat at a table. Someone else was sitting there too. They had their nose in a book, and their long blonde curls covered their face. He tapped the book. "Hey, can I sit here?"

The woman let out a quiet and quick gasp when he spoke. She shut the book with great force and raised her eyes towards his face. Grey met green.

Percy gave a soft smile. "Annabeth."

She sent a strained one in return. "Percy."


Disclaimer: All canon characters and possibly mentioned canon events belong to the owner who had ever so rightfully copyrighted their hard work, and I, the Artist, am in no way whatsoever, that person. In this case, the "owner" is Mr. Richard Russell "Rick" Riordan, Jr.