"I'm telling you, Percy's got this in the bag. No competition."
"Now just hold your horses there, Zhang. My boy Jason's holding his own just fine," replied Leo loyally, if not a little distracted still watching the sparring match.
"How many times have they had these fights?" replied Frank, taking his eyes of the match to address the back of Leo's head where he sat on the step below him in the amphitheatre of the sword fighting arena.
"I dunno…a bunch?" answered Leo suspiciously, still not turning around.
"And how many times has my boy Percy kicked your boy Jason's ass?" teased Frank, grinning at the way Leo's shoulders hunched up in response.
"To be fair," interjected Nico diplomatically, "they've both won their fair share. Besides, they tie more often than not."
"Be that as it may, with the way Jason's been performing so far, I think it's safe to say Percy's gonna take this one," said Frank confidently.
He returned his attention to the match before them, just in time to see Jason smoothly avoid Percy's jab; slide under his guard to get behind him and whap Percy's backside with the flat of his gladius on his way past with a laugh before dancing away out of reach. Percy yelped in surprise, clapping a hand to his rear as he whirled around to face his grinning boyfriend with an indignant huff.
"You were saying?" trilled Leo smugly, shooting him a gleeful smirk over his shoulder.
Frank flashed him a sarcastic smile but held his tongue because he could hear Nico sniggering at him too and knew he was outnumbered here. It was never fun to be the only Roman among Greeks. He watched idly as Percy and Jason continued to exchange blows a while longer. He'd watched this fight a hundred times over. It had been exciting the first few times; to see two such powerful demigods challenge each other, but that excitement had mostly dwindled by now. Both Percy and Jason were highly skilled in combat and really were as close to evenly matched as any pair he'd seen. Not to mention the fact that despite the first few challenges truly being challenges; each boy fighting to win with everything they had, the two now mostly used sparring as an excuse to flirt with each other. Which was fine, but not exactly thrilling for those in the audience.
"So, does anyone actually know the stakes here?" inquired Nico after a while, reclining against Frank's step and looking between them. Perhaps he was as bored waiting for the fight to wrap up as Frank was.
"Halloween, isn't it?" answered Leo vaguely, turning his body more in their direction but keeping one eye on the fight. "Winner decides on their costume?"
Nico hummed, stretching his legs languidly. "Yeah, I know. I meant do we know what the options are. I want to know who to root for."
Frank arched his eyebrows realising he didn't know either. "Huh, good point. Percy never mentioned to me. You hear anything from Jason, Leo?"
Leo spared them a glance to answer with an eloquent "nope" and a shrug. Nico let his head hang back and groaned. Definitely bored then.
"You'd think they'd have decided by now. Leaving it to the day of is pushing it a little, no?" muttered Frank, also sliding down on his step and stretching out. Watching Nico was making him tired as well.
"Meh, they'll be fine," dismissed Leo. "Jay didn't tell me what he was pushing for, but they both have the costumes they want ready to go. They just gotta agree."
"And since that's not their strong point," Nico made a sweeping gesture to the arena floor, "violence."
Frank snorted his amusement. It'd taken some time to warm up to the son of Hades, but after they had all managed to pull through their quest on the Argo II together and had some time where their lives weren't constantly in danger to bond, Frank didn't think he was so bad anymore. Nico was actually pretty funny when he felt like speaking up. He was glad Hazel had given them the excuse to spend more time around one another.
"See that's the trouble with couple's costumes," sighed Leo, shaking his head in sympathy for his friends. "Guys like me that fly solo don't have to worry about anyone else's costumes. I'm free to wear whatever I like."
"Oh yeah? So, what's your plan for tonight then, Valdez," asked Nico, shooting him an amused grin. "Wow me."
"Heh, oh I will, don't you worry," grinned Leo confidently. "But I think I'll keep it a surprise for tonight - like those two demidorks."
"And you, Frank? You 'flying solo' as well, or are you coordinating with Hazel?" asked Nico, looking back at Frank with one eye closed as he crossed his arms behind his head, half melting into the stone steps.
Frank felt himself squirm as both boys turned to him. He'd bonded with Nico sure, but that didn't mean he didn't still find the fourteen-year-old intimidating. Especially when the fact he was dating Nico's little sister came up. He could never be entirely sure that Nico wasn't about to unleash his underworldly wrath on him if he gave an answer Nico didn't like. At times Frank had thought it would've been less intimidating to speak to Hazel's parents instead of her brother – until he remembered who her father was anyway.
"Yes. Um, we…we're coordinating, yes," he murmured, equally pleased that Hazel had suggested matching costumes and flustered about it.
Nico closed his eyes and laughed lightly. "Don't look so afraid, big guy. I don't mind you dressing up with my baby sister."
Frank relaxed a fraction,
"As long as it's an appropriate costume of course."
And wound right back up again. However, one glance at Nico's wide smile told him the son of Hades was just messing with him. He hoped.
"Yeah, it – it's fine."
"Don't tell us you're keeping us in suspense too?" whined Leo dramatically. He tugged on Frank's pants leg pathetically. "Come on, spill it."
Frank felt himself flush red, even in the face of Leo's hypocrisy. He was happy Hazel had asked him to join in on her idea, but he was a little unsure of his half of the costume. Not to mention the thought of a pretty girl like Hazel dressed up like a princess would've made him blush any day.
He sighed, ready for Leo to have a field day. "You know that movie The Princess and The Frog?"
Nico opened his eyes to glance up at him, surprised. Leo looked delighted.
"Please tell me Hazel wants to be the frog."
"Of course not! She's going to be the – the princess." Frank felt his blush deepen again at the thought.
"Ah, a missed opportunity," lamented Leo with a sigh. "So are we talking frog costume for you, or are you breaking out those freaky Poseidon powers and going the whole hog – well, frog."
"Costume," muttered Frank quietly, picturing the fuzzy green onesie Hazel had somehow managed to find in his size. She thought it was cute.
"Gotta admit, it's definitely not something I would've guessed," said Leo, glancing back to the fight for an update ("ooh! That's gotta hurt."). So long as he wasn't making fun of him, Frank didn't care.
"She likes Disney," murmured Frank protectively, even though he knew Leo was more interested in the match now than him.
"That she does," agreed Nico, regarding him with a small smile. He gave Frank's leg a little nudge with his elbow. "I approve by the way if it means anything. I think you'll make a very cute frog, Frank."
Frank wasn't completely sure if Nico was teasing him, but he didn't think that was the case. "Thanks," he offered, returning the small smile. Nico's approval did mean something to him.
"Guess it's your turn then, Nico," chimed in Leo, in between his broken commentary on Percy and Jason's match whenever someone got an advantage or fumbled.
"Do I even need a costume?" grumbled Nico, rolling his eyes. "I'm scary enough already."
Frank grinned at him, nudging him gently with his knee. "Come on, it's Halloween! Even scary guys like you should shake up their brand of creepy for the night."
Nico snorted, glancing back to the arena where both boys had their swords locked in front of their faces. Jason said something to Percy with a grin that made Percy roll his eyes and elbow him in the face. Percy flipped Riptide smoothly, quipping something back at Jason that they couldn't hear, while the blond sulked and rubbed at his sore nose.
"Yes, well that's what Will seems to think as well. He's "forbidden me" from coming to the campfire tonight without a costume. And to make sure I don't back out; he's roped me into his costume."
That managed to pry Leo's attention away from the match long enough for him to turn quickly to Nico and ask loudly, "you're doing a couple's costume with Solace?!"
Nico huffed lightly, cheeks tinted the slightest pink and stubbornly looked away from Leo gaping at him. "It's not a couple's costume, Leo. He was already going as Frankenstein. He's just using this as an excuse to make me go as Frankenstein's monster now is all."
"That's cute," grinned Frank. He didn't even cower under the look Nico shot him; the threat greatly diminished by pink cheeks.
"Yeah well, I think it's cheating. I can't go like as myself because it's not a costume, but he can be a doctor? That shouldn't count as him dressing up either," Nico grumbled, crossing his arms.
"Well, I'm sure you'll make a very cute monster," cooed Leo, grinning. "Our very own Nicostein."
Nico made a face at the name. "What's wrong with regular old Frankenstein?"
"Nothing," shrugged Leo lightly. "But we already have a Frank. It'll get confusing if you have Frank in your name too."
Frank and Nico both blinked at Leo blankly for a moment, but it didn't seem to bother the son of Hephaestus in the slightest. Frank supposed Leo was used to this kind of response to his lame jokes by now.
"So back to these idiots," said Nico, smoothly and totally subtly changing the subject, waving a hand at where Percy was chasing Jason in circles waving his sword wildly, both laughing cheerfully. "Who's got guesses about their costume ideas?"
"I want to believe Percy would be more creative than dressing up as a fish," said Frank, watching his friend almost run right onto Jason's gladius, throwing himself into a low backwards bend in a game of high stakes limbo. "But…it is Percy."
"Mm, I wouldn't overestimate Jason's creativity either," hummed Leo doubtfully. "He might be planning something dumb like a cloud."
"I wouldn't put it past either of them to come up with really boring costumes for themselves," Nico agreed, "But don't forget that they're also picking ones out for each other."
"Oh, that's a good point," nodded Leo contemplatively. "That requires a little more thought."
"You don't think Percy would have Jason dress up as Superman, do you?" Frank grimaced, but even as he thought it, he could absolutely believe Percy would want to do that. "Surely they wouldn't be that cheesy."
Nico barked a laugh. "No, they did that last year. I forgot, you and Hazel stayed at Camp Jupiter last year, didn't you?"
"Trust me, man, you should be glad you missed it. They were so obnoxious about it," groaned Leo, rolling his eyes. Then he scrunched his nose in distaste. "Ugh, and Jason had Percy go as Aquaman, so you can imagine how it went."
Frank raised his eyebrows and gave a low whistle. He's surprised he hadn't hear about it from Percy for months afterwards. He could absolutely imagine how obnoxiously cute they'd have been with each other playing superheroes. And how much they must've disrupted the party using their powers to "enhance" their costumes.
"Oh! And we have a winner!" announced Leo suddenly.
Nico and Frank looked back over to the arena floor to find Jason sprawled on his backside, gladius a few feet to the side, with Percy standing tall over him, Riptide pointed down towards his chest. Frank smirked, proud of his friend for winning. He guessed Percy had gotten Jason with that crafty little twirly trick he did with his sword. Again. Jason fell for it almost as many times as frank himself did. Both boys looked out of breath and in need of a shower, flushed with equal parts exhaustion and enjoyment.
Frank and the others clapped and whooped. Even Leo started catcalling for Percy in between booing Jason who rolled his eyes dramatically at his best friend's teasing. Percy capped his sword and turned to face his adoring audience with a wide and utterly dorky grin, curtseying comically. Then Percy pulled Jason to his feet and said something Frank couldn't catch over the last of their clapping. Jason did not return Percy's mischievous grin, instead looking like he was whining whatever his response was to his boyfriend. Percy's enthusiasm didn't waver, however, as he shook his head, grinning even more brightly, clearly excited. Frank presumed they were discussing the results of their bet.
He didn't get to find out though, because instead of coming over to meet them, Percy took Jason by the wrist and dragged him along behind him while he practically skipped out of the arena looking gleeful enough that even Frank started feeling as nervous about Percy's plans as Jason looked.
"Uh, rude," said Leo, folding his arms and looking after the pair. "They didn't even say goodbye."
"We'll see them at the party soon enough anyway," shrugged Nico, forgiving as always. He stood and stretched with a yawn. "Think I'll squeeze in a nap before getting dressed."
Frank tried to swallow his own yawn – damn Nico's tiredness was contagious. His costume wouldn't take very long to get into and there were still a few hours of daylight left before the usual campfire-turned-party, but he had other things he'd rather take care of than nap. Even if he was feeling a little sleepy now. Dammit Nico.
He glanced around for any sign of Jason or Percy as the three of them left the amphitheatre but didn't find any. He assumed Percy must've made a beeline for either the showers or his cabin. Frank hoped for the showers; he'd seen how sweaty they'd gotten and didn't need that hanging around them at the party. He imagined Percy showing Jason what they'd be wearing tonight; imagined Jason complaining, if his reluctance in the arena had been anything to go by; and Percy joyfully reminding him that he lost the bet, so he had to. He supposed he'd just have to wait until the campfire to see what Percy had up his sleeve.
Later
"Ohh, you guys look so cute!" squealed Piper, dragging Annabeth and Leo behind her as she joined the group.
"Thanks," said Hazel, with a shy laugh, twirling one of her curls around a finger self-consciously. She peeked up at Frank and flashed him a small but happy smile, poking his side gently. "Told you you looked good."
Frank felt the reflexive heat in his face but didn't try to hide the smile tugging at his lips as he looked down at her. He had been stiff and all too aware of any eyes on him when they'd arrived at the campfire. Frank was a fairly big guy compared to most of the other campers; and the bright green, fuzzy frog onesie he had crammed himself into did little to lessen his natural tendency to draw the eye. But Hazel and he had quickly met up with Will and Nico and he'd since had a little time to get used to it. The onesie was very cartoonish, but he did have to privately admit that it was also incredibly soft and cosy. Hazel seemed to agree judging from how she always seemed to be clinging to his sleeve, or how she was more often than not leaning into his side or tucking herself under his arm. Not that he minded a bit.
Frank was quite taken with her costume as well. Hazel made a very cute princess. The green dress and tiara really suited her, and he could tell how much she was enjoying getting to dress up in something so unlike her usual legionnaire getup. She hadn't stopped smiling since she'd put it on, which was also very cute. He was used to seeing Hazel with her hair down or up in a ponytail, but tonight she had it all up high with just a few ringlets around her face. Frank quickly realised he'd been staring again and had zoned out of the conversation. Hazel really was a pretty girl.
It seemed they'd moved onto discussing Leo's costume. Frank nearly swallowed his tongue when he leaned around slightly to see past Piper. Leo was dressed as a fireman; he'd even done himself up with little smudges of soot. No doubt it was authentic. The part that took Frank by surprise was that Leo had shrugged off the jacket and hand it tied around his waist instead. And he hadn't bothered with an undershirt. He was grinning confidently back at them all, chest puffed out and hands on his hips, letting them all admire his costume. He'd at least kept the suspenders for his trousers on, which wasn't much in the way of modesty, but it made Frank feel a little better.
"Pretty hot, right?" grinned Leo, eyes glinting with amusement; though whether that was from his outfit or his pun, Frank wasn't sure.
"A little on the nose, isn't it?" asked Nico wryly, looking him up and down. "Couldn't you have been, like, a milkman or something?"
"Nothing sexy about dairy," quipped Leo undeterred. Then he shot Frank a sly grin. "Ain't that right, Frank?"
Frank was honestly a little surprised Leo had even remembered he was lactose intolerant but couldn't deny the laugh the comment startled out of him. "I hear that," he smirked back, accepting the proffered fist bump.
"Besides," continued Leo, putting his hands behind his head and stretching idly, "you gotta use what you got. Isn't that right, zombie boy?"
Nico scowled at him but there was no heat to it. "Frankenstein doesn't really count as a zombie. Besides, it's not like it was my idea."
"But aren't you glad you joined in?" asked Will, smiling brightly at Nico.
Nico stuck his tongue out at Will in reply, which only made the blond laugh. He propped an arm on Will's shoulder and used him as a leaning post, which Will didn't seem to mind.
"Well, I think you're a very attractive fireman," cut in Piper supportively, giving Leo a high five. "You can definitely work a pair of suspenders; I'll give you that."
"Thank you, Piper. Glad somebody appreciates my appeal," said Leo loftily. He hooked his thumbs into his suspenders and rocked back and forth happily on his heels.
"You could've just been a normal fireman though. Why a half-naked one?" grunted Nico, peering at him from the corner of his eye.
"Because I'm not a fireman; I'm a sexy fireman! And no sexy fireman keeps all his clothes on. Duh."
Nico snorted. "Yeah, but why do you need to be a se–"
"Do not even ask what the need for sexy costumes is on Halloween. I know you are not that clueless, Deathboy," interrupted Leo imperiously. Nico rolled his eyes at the old nickname.
"Yeah, I gotta agree with Leo on this one," said Piper, nodding. Then she grinned playfully. "After a certain age, you're just supposed to dress a little slutty."
"Very true," agreed Annabeth, also nodding sagely, before eloquently adding; "them's the rules."
Frank raised an eyebrow at the girls despite his mild amusement. He supposed they'd taken these rules into account when choosing their own costumes. Seems they'd come as a double act like Will and Nico. Annabeth was in a short white dress with wings and a halo, while Piper wore shorts, a cropped red top and devil horns. Frank wouldn't have called it slutty perse, but he wasn't surprised at the number of nearby campers who kept (very unsubtly) glancing over to gawk at the duo. But the girls, like Leo, seemed quite pleased with the attention their costumes were garnering them.
He glanced at Hazel who was still tucked into his side and was also staring at the girls' outfits. He could see the slightest pink tint to her cheeks when she gave him a smile and a shrug as if to say, 'to each their own, I guess'. Frank gave her a little squeeze in agreement, but upon clocking Conner Stoll with his jaw most of the way to the floor as he stared at Piper, was quite glad Hazel just wanted to be a princess.
"Whoo-hoo, Jackson! Lookin' good!"
The call grabbed the group's attention enough to cut off Nico hassling Leo about his modesty ("Ugh, fine. I'll put it on but I'm leaving it unbuttoned and that's as far as I'll go, Di Angelo!"), and all looked around for the last of their friends.
"Speaking of immodest costumes," crowed Annabeth, utterly delighted.
"He gets it," seconded Leo gleefully, digging his elbow into Nico's ribs with a wink.
Frank watched Jason and Percy make their way through huddles of demigods, no doubt looking for them amidst the wolf whistles and catcalls. Percy was absolutely loving it, going by the wide grin on his face. He was being carried bridal style by Jason around the campfire, waving brightly at everyone that called out to them. Jason, Frank noted, seemed a little less enthused; his rigid posture and avoidance of looking any other campers in the face dead giveaways of his self-consciousness. Frank gave a sympathetic smile as he watched them weave through jovial campers; thinking they were a good example of the divide between a Greek's easy-going nature and a Roman's inclination for decorum and quiet uniformity. Despite his time as Praetor and all the acclaim that came with it, Jason had never seemed the type to enjoy a lot of attention on him. Frank could empathise with that.
Annabeth called out to them, grabbing their attention and calling them over. Percy gave her a bright grin when he saw her. Jason seemed to relax at the sight of them as he hastened his pace over to their group. He joined their huddle in relief between Frank and Annabeth, showing no intent to put Percy down.
"Hey guys!" beamed Percy.
"Hey," echoed Jason, his smile more reserved but no less genuine.
"So, what do you think?" asked Percy, gesturing to their costumes.
Percy was wearing a green fishtail with blue trim. It was vaguely shiny, tight and highlighted his narrow waist. He was shirtless, wearing only his camp beads around his neck and two beaded bracelets; one blue and one green to match his tail. This left his chest and arms on display and was clearly the cause of most of the excitement. Even Frank could admit Percy was an attractive guy, physically speaking.
Jason was wearing a loose white shirt with a wide collar cut low enough on his chest to expose his own camp necklace with its single bead, marking the one full summer he'd spent there. He wore dark blue pants tucked into knee high boots, with a red sash around his middle. Jason was steadfastly avoiding looking at anyone outside their small group, but Frank could see that that was not mutual. Many campers were eyeing him up just as appreciatively as they were Percy. His costume was attractive in a more subtle way. Percy's drew the eye, but once they found their way to Jason, it was no less impressive. Frank didn't quite have words to explain it, but the outfit played to Jason's strengths more than if he'd also strolled in half naked. He just couldn't quite put his finger on it.
"Oh wow! I love it!" squealed Hazel excitedly, from beside him. "You're the Little Mermaid!"
Frank arched his eyebrows in surprise, taking a second look at their costumes. Of course, he'd seen the movie before. Hazel liked it. And it was a good movie in its own right, he wasn't ashamed to admit it. He could see it clearly now that he knew what he was looking for. He'd sort of vaguely assumed Jason was supposed to be a pirate or something, but now he realised he'd come as the prince from the movie. Ah, that's the word for it. Princely. Maybe it was a holdover from Jason's time as Praetor, but Frank had always seen Jason with a somewhat regal air to him. He had to commend Percy's choice of costume – even if he still suspected Percy getting to be shirtless and show himself off had been at least part of his motivation. He also felt a bit better about his frog onesie having more people with Disney based costumes around.
"If you wanted to be the Little Mermaid you should've at least gotten a wig," said Leo, appraising Percy's tail. "Pretty weak, Jackson."
"Well, I adapted it a little bit," replied Percy, waving Leo off. He wriggled in Jason's arms, flapping his tail happily. "I'm just your average Merman tonight, Valdez." He winked at Leo. "We'll do drag another time."
"At least Ariel had the decency to cover up a bit," grouched Nico. He was directing a scowl at Percy as he spoke, but his eyes kept darting between Percy's face and his chest, and his cheeks were just starting to turn pink. "Where's your bra, man? Have some shame."
Percy gave him a sly grin as he sat up straight in Jason's hold and clapped his hands over his chest to hide his nipples, while Jason looked quietly unimpressed by his boyfriend's antics under his prevailing blush. "Happy?" he asked, still giving them all that smug smirk, and his eyebrows jumped once teasingly.
"Ah, don't listen to grumpy guts over here," laughed Leo. "He's already lectured me on my costume too."
"He's just sulking because I made him dress up," teased Will, poking at Nico's cheek playfully. Nico arched a brow at him but offered no complaint.
"But you think I look hot, don't you?" pressed Leo, spreading his arms for their evaluation, giving a quick turn and wiggling his eyebrows enthusiastically.
"Too hot," assured Percy solemnly.
"Hot damn," agreed Jason.
Percy beamed at Jason and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Proud of you!"
Jason gave a wide, lopsided smile looking pleased with himself.
"Well, modesty or no modesty, I think you look hot," chimed in Piper, raising her cup to Percy in mock toast while he tipped his head appreciatively to her. She looked at Jason next. "And you, my friend, make a ridiculously fine Disney prince."
Jason's blush flared up again, colouring his cheeks and nose, while he laughed in embarrassment and readjusted his grip on Percy so he wouldn't fall. "Thanks, Pipes."
"Aw, you'll get him all shy again," cooed Percy, hooking an arm around Jason's shoulders comfortably. "I tried to tell him back in his cabin how good he looks. You should've seen how red he went."
Jason's mouth twitched as Percy ran his hand up the back of his neck and into his hair, the red in his cheeks darkening a shade. "Knock it off, Percy," he grumbled, giving his boyfriend a warning look.
Percy just grinned wider, eyes narrowing slyly. "My very own handsome, charming, wonderful Disney prince," he purred, lightly running a finger in lazy circles in the centre of Jason's chest that his shirt didn't cover. He drawled each compliment slowly and deliberately, eyes glinting in amusement as Jason's jaw clenched and his grip on Percy tightened.
"Steady on there, boys," interrupted Piper, through a poorly repressed chuckle at how easily Percy could get under Jason's skin. She always told him how Percy had him wrapped around his little finger, and even now Jason still stubbornly denied it. "There are children present."
Frank saw Leo and Nico both turn to glance at Hazel automatically with instinctive nods of silent agreement. She gave Nico a sheepish grin and sunk further into the fleece of Frank's side. Leo also glanced at Nico with the same expression, just as Nico turned to do the same to him. Leo gave him a very offended look, to which Nico obstinately arched his eyebrows.
"Nothing indecent going on here," sighed Percy innocently, sinking back down more comfortably into Jason's arms. "Just complimenting my boyfriend~"
Frank snorted at the denial. He knew Percy well enough by now to know how utterly indecent he liked to be around Jason. He made Leo look shy by comparison – and that was saying something. But Percy seemed ready to behave himself for now. He flashed a happy smile at Jason, whose expression immediately melted as offered a soft, adoring smile in return. Percy wriggled happily in the blond's hold and idly flicked his tail as he returned his attention to the group at large.
It was a little while later when Frank watched Jason hike Percy up, tossing him up into the air slightly to get a better hold around the slippery material of the tail. Percy, a little giddy from the drinks he'd had, giggled gleefully at the treatment. Frank was impressed Jason had yet to put Percy down and almost felt compelled to take a turn if only to give the poor guy a break. Annabeth had apparently taken notice as well.
"Are you really planning to carry him around like that all night?" she asked, leaning in to speak with Jason without derailing the group's main conversation. Percy looked round at her with a pleased grin.
"He lost the bet," he told her happily, "so he has to."
Percy leaned into Jason, cuddling up to his chest snugly.
"It's part of the costume," he said, batting his eyes innocently up at his boyfriend.
Annabeth raised her eyebrows at Jason in question, the corner of her mouth tugging up in amusement at her best friend's behaviour. Jason just looked at her wearily, but there was amusement in his eyes too. They both knew he was far too soft for Percy to not be willing to carry him around all night if that's what Percy had asked for. He shrugged at her with a helplessly smitten smile.
"It's part of the costume," he agreed warmly.
A/N: Never written PJO before so sorry if it's OOC. Based on this awesome picture by indigonite post/122649145993/anon-told-me-about-the-mermaid-parade-in-coney