So uh Percy is like, the bestest big sister ever and Estelle and Alex are adorable. Also- Annabeth and Piper are both mentally just like 'Hm, this totally doesn't make us thing about a distant future with baby Percy's.
Replies:
Undeath9087: It'll be fun I know that- I do have plans. Bianca's need for space is understandable in a lot of ways.
ant-death: Poseidon just there pouting while his daughter spends more time in the Underworld than with him.
Zephyr0f8: I hope you enjoy, and you have to wait and see!
They spent hours making plans- Percy would be in control of the boat, for obvious reasons.
Sally was already working on that at least, making half a dozen phone calls and setting things up for the next day. From what Percy overheard Sally would be trying to get them a cabin cruiser- so that they'd be able to sleep and live on the boat comfortably for the several days they were likely to have to spend at sea.
After all it wasn't like they'd have any issues with affording it.
They'd plotted out the rough route they'd take- depending on the speed of the boat it could take them anywhere from a day and a half to three days to reach the Sea of Monsters- without any interruptions, which wasn't something that Percy was willing to rely on, for understandable reasons.
Once that was planned Carter sent Percy off to fetch her copy of the Odyssey and he insisted on them running through all of the potential threats in the Sea of Monsters- the known ones anyway.
And Sadie had started to snicker as Carter had grabbed a pen and paper and started to try and plan for every eventuality- with Annabeth's help of course.
Percy understood it- they liked being prepared. Still, she was pretty sure that if they spent all that time making plans it would be a waste. There was only so much good that planning could do.
And after what felt like a lifetime Percy decided to head up to bed, yawning.
Sadie and Walt had given up an hour earlier than she did- and Piper half an hour before she did.
But Annabeth, Carter and Zia were still going strong, brainstorming plans and back up plans, and back up plans for the back up plans. Really it was impressive. And it made Percy's head ache just thinking about it.
Charging in and making it up as they went along was so much easier.
But it seemed to be making Annabeth relax somewhat- she felt in control. And that was good for her, so Percy decided to leave her in Carter and Zia's capable hands and she headed to her bedroom, and when she let herself in, flicking her lights on, she paused in the doorway, gaze focusing on two little lumps under her covers.
She felt a soft smile flitting across her face, and she moved slowly, kicking her shoes off and padding towards her bed, leaning over and gently pulling the covers down slightly.
And sure enough, it was as she'd expected.
Alex and Estelle, both tucked away under her blankets.
Percy wondered how long they'd been there. Probably a while knowing them. The twins did sometimes like sneaking into their big siblings rooms to try and jump out and scare them. And even if they didn't have a clue what was going on they were bound to have realised that something was.
The mischief probably comforted them in the face of their worry.
The thought made Percy sigh softly to herself. They must have fallen asleep waiting for her to arrive. She honestly felt a tiny bit guilty for not arriving sooner, but still. She very carefully slipped her hands under Alex's sleeping form, not lifting him fully but gently shifting him so that he was cuddled up right next to Estelle- and he didn't wake up, though he did let out a little huffing whining noise.
That made Percy smile softly, brushing her fingers through his tight curls and leaning down to press her lips to the top of her head. And she could admit that sometimes she understood why her mom hated the idea of them growing up so much. If she was honest the idea of the twins growing up didn't sit well with her. She'd be pretty happy if they could stay like this forever. Small, innocent and unaware of the dangers of the world around them.
She exhaled, brushing her hair out of her face, staring for a long moment before she moved, quickly pulling out her pyjamas and pulling them on before she slipped into her bed next to the twins. And she almost laughed at the way that, when the bed dipped slightly with her weight, the both instantly squirmed and rolled in a way that meant that they were quickly tucked into her side.
Percy carefully shifted, draping an arm over the twins as she hummed very softly, a soft lilting melody with faint traces of magic in it- magic without words, magic that she'd learned from Nephthys that would make their dreams sweet and pleasant. It wasn't a big spell. And it was the least she could do for her baby siblings.
Then she closed her own eyes, breathing out slowly, steadily. And it didn't take her long to fall asleep.
And thankfully it was a peaceful sleep, with no interruptions until the morning came- and when Percy woke up it was to the feeling of little hands pressed against her cheeks- and she forced herself not to smile, not to open her eyes for a good ten seconds- after all she knew who it was likely to be.
And she could hear whispered voices too.
"-sh. Don' wake her up." and yes, yes that was Estelle's voice. She sounded very serious, "Mama says Percy gotta go away 'gain today. The longer she's all sleepy the longer she stays."
"'S Percy." Alex spoke in the tones of one who was stating the obvious. "She'll come back soon. Jus' like las' time." and Percy felt her chest going tight, a warmth flooding through her.
She'd never stop feeling warm inside when she was reminded of how much faith her family had in her.
So of course she did the only thing she could, she reached out quickly, arms lashing out and up, catching both of them, making them squeal loudly as she pulled them into a tight hug.
"And what do you two think you're doing?!"
"PERCY!" that came from Estelle, who's face was squashed against Percy's shoulder, but Percy could hear the laughter in her voice-and Alex wasn't even trying to hide his giggles as he tried to squirm out of her grip.
"Leggo!"
"Nope." Percy sat up, hugging them tighter and pressing her lips to the top of Alex's head. "I got you both-"
"Never!" Estelle cried the word, and somehow she managed to squirm out of Percy's grip, pouncing on her back, little arms wrapping around Percy's neck from behind, and Percy cackled, practically leaping out of bed, shifting her grip on Alex, so that she was gripping his ankles.
He let out an excited shriek, flailing his arms as she swung him around.
"The terrible twosome could never defeat the great and mighty Percy Kane!"
"Lex! Grab her legs!"
And Alex managed to reach out, grabbing at Percy's legs, giggling as he did- though it didn't exactly do much for him. "Oh you little devils-"
"We gots you!"
"Ah! Yes!" Percy suddenly grinned widely, unable to help herself as she took one step, two step, three steps back and then toppled backwards onto her bed- which made Estelle yelp loudly, squirming from where she was suddenly pinned beneath her big sister.
"NOOOOO!"
"Yes!" Percy cheered the word- and through the chaos she didn't notice her bedroom door opening- and she didn't notice Piper and Annabeth peering in at her, both of them smiling despite themselves at the sight of Percy playing with her siblings.
If she'd been paying attention she would have heard Annabeth's whispered, "I think that's the cutest thing I have ever seen." and she'd have seen Piper's understanding nod.
Instead she didn't notice them until Annabeth let out a somewhat awkward noise- like she was clearing her throat, drawing Percy's attention.
The daughter of Poseidon turned her head, blinking slowly before she grinned, a goofy smile. "Hey guys!"
"Are you done crushing Estelle?" Piper asked, crooking an eyebrow at the daughter of Poseidon.
"I dunno." Percy didn't even falter- "What do you guys think-" because Alex was already scrambling and trying to push Percy off of Estelle- who was still squirming, both of the twins giggling.
"No squishing 'Stelle!" Alex declared loudly, "Piper! Help." he gave her his most winning smile, and Piper laughed loudly.
"You know you kids are too damn cute. The world will tremble at the might of the baby Kanes." then Piper turned her attention to Percy, clearly focusing. "Sit up and get off of your baby sister."
"Awe." Percy pouted, but she let Piper's voice seize control of her, doing as her best friend told her- and as soon as she was free Estelle was scrambling off the bed and grabbing Alex's hand, both of them sprinting out of the room, giggling as if they'd made some great escape.
"You're really good with them." Annabeth smiled softly, "It's sweet."
"What can I say." Percy gave a proud little grin, "I'm Percy Kane, I'm great at like, everything. You want the worlds best baby sister? You're looking at her. You want the worlds best big sister, you're looking at her."
"I feel like Sadie might argue against that fact." Piper remarked- which made Percy pause, clearly considering that fact before shrugging.
"Eh, I can take her."
"Of course you can." Annabeth rolled her eyes fondly, shaking her head. "You are such a Seaweed Brain."
"Hush it Wise girl." Percy shot back lightly as she rose from her bed, "How did you guys sleep anyway? What time did you even go to bed?" that was directed at Annabeth, who flushed slightly.
"I don't know exactly. I think Carter carried me to my room after I passed out while we were planning." she admitted, clearly embarrassed, "I slept well though. No nightmares. I'm hoping that's because we've got the message and we're planning on leaving today."
"Your mom's arranged a boat for us." Piper added, "It's at New York Harbor. We're meant to be going there for eleven."
Percy's gaze moved instantly to the clock on the bedside table- which showed that it was eight thirty. That would give her time to get up, dress and have some breakfast before they needed to worry too much about heading out. "Right." she pressed her lips together, running her fingers through her loose tangled curls.
"Piper and I have packed some bags with the big necessities." Annabeth spoke up, "Survival gear- stuff like wax and ropes and things. Potions for if any of us gets hurt. Everything we could think of. Carter suggested putting one bag into the duat and having one on the boat with us."
"Not a bad idea." Percy nodded to herself. They'd need to have at least one bag with them- in an emergency Percy might not be able to get to the bag if it was in the Duat- and they couldn't be sure what effect the Sea of Monsters would have on her magic- on her ability to reach into the Duat.
And, it would be good to have one in the Duat in case anything happened and they lost or damaged the bag they kept with them. "What about food-"
"Also in the bag, lots of long lasting stuff." Piper informed Percy. "I think we're as ready as we can be."
"You guys might be but I'm not." Percy let out a huff, "I need to get dressed. I'll meet you guys on the terrace for some breakfast in-" Percy glanced at the clock again, "Half an hour. I want to shower and everything." she might as well make the most of the ability to shower. She couldn't be sure how much chance she'd get to do anything like that over the next week or two. If they were sailing on dangerous seas.
And she watched as Annabeth and Piper left, staring after them for a long moment before she waved the door shut and headed towards her en-suite bathroom.
And at least she'd gotten a good night sleep and a nice wake up with her siblings. After all, she doubted that their quest this time would be as, relatively speaking, easy as the last.
