Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.

We climbed the stairs quickly, anxious to get out of the enclosed space. I could tell that my mom was paranoid about another attack, and this was one of the worse places in the apartment complex for that, where any one of us could fall to our deaths. I tried to stay optimistic.

My mom fumbled with the key for a minute before she turned it, the door clicking open. We piled inside, and Annabeth and I plopped down on the couch next to each other, thankful that it hadn't been any worse than it had been. I thought occurred to me, and I took no time in musing over it; I just blurted it out.

"Annabeth," I began slowly for once, "Where are you going to go to school if…if you stay?" It was surely a question worthy of Athena in my standards. Knowing me, Annabeth was probably wondering if I was going to ask whether or not she would stay in our apartment or at a hotel. She shrugged.

"Well, I assumed that I'd go to school with you," she said. That made sense. Scratch that about it being worthy of Athena.

"Oh," was my brilliant response. "But how…"

"How will I register, get my classes and whatnot? Your mom'll help me. She already offered to work that out. Great, right?" She seemed genuinely pleased with this. That lifted my spirits. "And she already got me settled in a room." She looked at me sideways. I pondered this for a split second, and then I realized who's room she'd gotten.

"Wait—she gave you my room?" Annabeth nodded.

"She said not to worry about it, because I was the guest." She looked a little shamefaced, but I didn't care.

"Hope you don't mind the mess," was all I said.

"I'm used to it, Seaweed Brain," she informed me. I scowled at her, but I couldn't keep the smile off my face for long.

"Anybody up for a movie?" my mom called from the kitchen. "I got a pretty good one that I picked up today, and I have popcorn and blue candy." Yes, always blue candy.

"Sure," Annabeth called back, leaning over the back of the couch and stretching her neck to try to see her.

"Don't break your neck, sweetie," my mom chuckled, coming in and putting a hand on her head. "Who's up for 'The Mist'?"

The movie was alright, I'd give it that much. But if all that Hollywood could come up with were monsters that no one ever saw because they hid in this 'mist', then they were lacking in creativity. Now, say that they used a few three-headed monsters, a couple of immortal gods, sirens, and mixed in with a few magical items, then maybe they'd get somewhere. As it was, I had more adventure when I was twelve than those people locked in the grocery store had in their entire lives. Honestly.

When the movie was finished it was a little bit after six, and I was hungry. We had eaten the blue candy and popcorn, but that was gone within five minutes. I think I ate half of it by myself.

"What'd you think?" my mom asked, turning in her seat. I shrugged. But Annabeth gave her full opinion.

"It was mediocre. The plot was alright, but the heights that some of those monsters were supposed to be doesn't make much sense, when taken critically. Take the scene with the big flies. Their bodies are way too heavy for their wings to carry them. Now, if…" And she went on for another minute and a half, according to my watch/shield Tyson had made me. I took it off only when…well, never.

"What?" Annabeth suddenly snapped at me. "Do I ramble too much?" I looked up at her in surprise.

"N-no," I stuttered. Stupid reaction. "I just can't keep up with you. You know that." I frowned slightly. It was a partial lie—I could understand her when I was paying attention and she explained the things that I didn't know, but she took a lot of pride in being the daughter of Athena. The best thing was just to let her have her own way sometimes.

"Percy, you can keep up just fine," Annabeth said, calling my bluff. "You just don't pay attention." I merely shrugged.

"Okay, sure." I got up off the couch. "Mom, what's for dinner?"

"I made a salad with bacon, eggs, croutons, green peppers, and bits of ham," she replied offhandedly. So we were eating limp leaves for dinner. I preferred to save that for the desperately-out-of-food-and-nearly-starving-to-death occasions, as few as they were. I wanted to roll my eyes, but I knew my mom was trying to get everything right for Annabeth. Wandering into my room, I noticed that the blue sheets were freshly cleaned with a closed green suitcase on it, and that my desk had been cleared off of all my odds and ends of pictures and newspaper clippings. My newest hobby was to try to find evidence of mythical creatures that humans waved off as who knows what. I hadn't been very lucky so far.

A sudden instant of inspiration hit me; who else better was there to study Greek with than Annabeth? She knew more than I did, and I could never study with my mom—she mispronounced the words all the time, making me more confused than when I started. I could still understand her, but it sounded wrong all the time.

I meandered back into the living room, but no one was there, so I tried the kitchen. Annabeth was helping my mom mix the salad, her hair pulled back out of her face in a curly ponytail. They looked happy together, which made me happy. I all but forgot about Greek. At least Annabeth could talk to my mom with her problems, unlike me. I usually made them worse. Then again, I was usually the cause, too.

"…and I'm confused," Annabeth was saying. "I'm not sure what I should…" She spotted me, and her face turned pink. "Hey, Seaweed Brain, were you eavesdropping?"

I shook my head. "No. You'd personally rip out my liver," I reasoned. Well, it would get pretty close. She smiled.

"You bet I would." My mom cleared her throat.

"No death threats in my house, please," she scolded, but it was only half-hearted. She picked up the salad bowl and headed towards the table. "At least not while I'm here." Annabeth and I looked at each other and shrugged. She'd probably threaten me as sure as Ares was still ticked. Life moves on.

We ate dinner, laughing and joking at my expense. My mother thought it would be nice to tell stories of when I was little, about how I had used to ask about my father and whatnot. Annabeth listened as if she was interested, but she was probably bored to tears under that mask. I didn't blame her.

By the time we finished eating, my face was a nice shade of bright red, and I excused myself and escaped to the bathroom, turning the water on and filling the tub to the brim. I soaked in there for a while, gaining back what strength I had lost when I had tried to hack the Harpy to pieces earlier. I heard my mom's footsteps approach, and she complained, "You need to get out of there, Perseus." I hated it when she used my actual name. It usually meant trouble. "We've decided to play a game." Oh, a game. Yeah, my ADHD wasn't going to enjoy that too much.

Reluctantly I got out of the suds and made my way out into the living room. Annabeth put a hand to her mouth and laughed, looking at my hair. I knew that it was standing up all over the place in black clumps, but I wasn't going anywhere.

"Just because I'm not a princess…" I trailed off, letting her finish that by herself. She glared at me.

"Yeah, Perseus," she sneered, taunting me.

"Go build a bridge," I mumbled back. "You're smart enough, Wise Girl."

"How about a cell, Seaweed Brain? That way I can keep you in it." Ooh, she was good at that, I had to hand it to her. She had it coming…

A/N: Wow, so many reviews and favorites!! I'm so thrilled that you all loved it! Please keep it up? Constructive criticism is entirely acceptable. Oh yeah, and I won't update until probably Thursday at the latest, because Spring Break is coming and all of my teachers are cramming in tests. Oh, the joy of high school.