This is something I've been working on for a while and here's me impulse posting the prologue. I wrote the first few chapters as though it was a B99 crossover but it wasn't really working for me so I rewrote the whole thing (oops). I live for the PJO royalty AUs and I love Anastasia so it seemed only fitting to get this out there.

I don't own any of the characters and technically not the overall plot either but all of the writing is my own. Hope you enjoy :)

xxx

"Mom!" Percy pulled at his mothers hand as the parade drew closer. "We have to get to the front! We have to see them!"

The young boy was grinning ear-to-ear, weaving amongst the crowd to see the carriages pass. Sally - ever the doting mother - made sure to keep her eyes on him, a soft smile spreading across her features. Why he was quite so eager to see the carriages, she wasn't sure. He hadn't been this enthusiastic when she'd brought him last year.

Percy was at the front just as the centrepiece of the parade approached. Ah, Sally thought, the princess.

As a maid in the palace, Sally thought highly of the royal family. They'd provided her a steady wage and a home for her and her son at the end of the day, and that was more than she could've hoped for when she remembered where she'd been. Percy earned his keep running the odd errand, but he was only young. He was a messenger amongst the soldiers that trained on the palace grounds and even attended his own classes in swordsmanship. She was more than used to his groans of another set of drills giving him some grievance or other.

But this year, the princess had caught his eye.

The youngest daughter of the Chase family was hardheaded and opinionated. Sally had heard tales of little Annabeth staging a protest on the sexism still present amongst royalty or rallying for better pay for the working class. The woman had even signed one of her petitions once when the sweetheart had come into the kitchens armed with stacks upon stacks of old library books the palace butler wanted to throw out.

"Books are priceless and should not go to waste! It is wrong of Mr D to plan to burn such an item, and equally as wrong that literature is so inaccessible for children less privileged than myself. Please, if you, your children or anyone you know will want a book, take them. They're yours to keep." She'd announced from the kitchen stool. Then, as an afterthought, she added: "And please sign my petition to make literature better accessible in poorly funded schools."

Sally has even taken what looked to be a book about some kind of spy or action hero. Percy had never been one for reading, but he was now able to recite the whole text like a mantra and even re-enacted some of the scenes in his training.

A few weeks prior to the parade, Percy had come back from his training to his quarters with a blush on his cheeks and one name on his tongue. Annabeth.

"Annabeth was in our class today."

"Annabeth?" His mother had asked to prompt him.

"You know, mom... Princess Annabeth. She was in our class. She wanted to train like her older brother did - girls can fight too you know - but she's really good. Chiron said he trained her privately but that she was too good and needed a challenge, so he brought her into our class so she could practice duels." Percy babbled, helping his mom arrange the trays for her to take to the princes for their suppers. "She's only 7 mom, so she's a whole 2 years ahead of what her brother was. She's so good! She nearly took poor Connor's eye out - though maybe he wasn't the most competent opponent."

It made sense to her now, why Percy was so eager to see the parade. He'd seen Annabeth fight and he knew she was a princess, but she certainly looked to fit the part today.

On the carriage was the King and Queen, Frederick and Athena, with their eldest, Luke on 3 thrones on a platform in the centre. He was next in line to the throne, betrothed to the princess of the neighbouring country.

The other young royals were stood around the balcony, waving to the crowds of people. Sally spotted Malcolm winking at a few young women at his feet. Ever the romantic.

The youngest princess was on the back of the parade float. She was wearing a beautiful gown, a rich red that complemented her tanned skin and a tiara worth twice what Sally would make in a year or two. She was beaming at her audience and blowing kisses to wherever the flowers that were thrown at her feet had come from.

Sally finally caught up to Percy and glanced at the mesmerised look on his face. Oh, to be young and in love...

Annabeth's eyes skimmed the hoards of people. It was hot outside and she felt clammy under the layers of her dress. Her neck ached from the weight of the tiara and her arm was burning from waving. But she loved the parades. So many people had gathered to see her and her family and she was going to give them what they wanted. Annabeth could only give them the hour she was out on the float for and she wouldn't waste a second of it complaining about her own petty problems.

Castor, the chefs son whom she'd grown fond of whenever she made trips down to the kitchens for cookies, had told her how much the parades had meant to him and his brother before they started working at the palace. It was a reminder that the royal family, though often unseen, still cared about their people. Annabeth wasn't going to let a single person in the country down today.

She spotted him at the front of the crowd. A familiar face, though she couldn't place where from, stood beside his mother. Catching his eye, she smiled at him and felt herself blush when she noticed him bending slightly at the waist as though he were bowing. She blew a kiss and lost sight of him as other people pushed in front.

Percy was ecstatic for the rest of the day and wore the shade of embarrassment on his cheeks for the entire evening. At supper, he and Clarisse sat gossiping about the parade. Clarisse wasn't the most forthcoming of his friends from training, but she meant well and Percy was prepared to do enough talking for the both of them that night.

~~~

The wedding of Luke and Miranda was much anticipated amongst the palace staff. Somehow, Percy was even more excited than the whole of the kitchen combined. Chiron has offered him the position of 'waiter' during the evening of the celebration. It wasn't much, he was to stand by one of the pillars with a tray of food for people to pick at. But he got to wear a tailor made suit and maybe, if he was lucky, he could see the princess again.

The night had approached with increasing velocity until suddenly he was in the great hall in his (surprisingly not itchy) attire, ready for the guests to arrive.

Each person was announced as they came down the grand staircase and Percy was instructed to clap at every name before picking up his tray for the night. An endless list of names began and Percy barely noticed his hands going numb and tingly. He perked up when the announcer moved from Dukes and Duchesses, Counts and Countesses and onto Prince and Princesses. Any moment now, he would be able to see her again.

And then there she was. "Princess Bea and Princess Annabeth of Athens,"

Her gown was pale tonight, a blush pink. Dusted rose, Silena would probably inform him. It didn't matter. Whatever it was, she looked stunning.

Her brothers arrived as a trio, which Percy was thankful for. His hands were starting to feel stiff from all the clapping. Then the King and Queen. Then the Princess Miranda, accompanying Prince Luke.

As soon as the feeling in his hands returned, his arm was starting to feel numb too. The tray wasn't heavy, but he knew to hold it at the perfect right angle. At one point, he discretely switched arms. He'd been trying to put it off, but as soon as his right arm started twitching from exhaustion and threatening to ruin his display of treats, he knew he had to.

An hour passed by quickly, a buzz of noise and movement. The newly-weds danced in the centre before making their exit, Percy kept his eyes peeled for the princess and the guests mingled.

Then everything seemed to happen in slow motion. There was a crash. It sounded distant, perhaps a few rooms down, though in the palace, that was quite a distance. The room seemed to hush and stand still. In hindsight, they should've run then.

Another crash, closer this time. And then -

BOOM

Percy's ears were ringing, his tray was forgotten, clattering to the floor somehow in silence because he couldn't hear anymore. His leg felt like fire beneath him but he clung to one of the roof supports to keep upright.

The room was in flames. Anyone not unconscious (they weren't dead, surely, they couldn't be dead) was running and screaming for help. Percy presumed they were screaming. He couldn't hear the sound coming out of their mouths for the constant thumping of his heartbeat in his head. A few feet away from Percy, a body moved.

Dusted pink skirts were now singed and blackened, but unmistakable all the same. Percy moved over to her and tapped her gently as a warning he was there. Summoning whatever strength he could muster, Percy hoisted the princess to her feet and they limped beside one another to the edge of the room. He was spluttering and she had tear tracks streaming down her sooty cheeks but he had enough determination for the both of them. His leg burned but he knew that she must feel worse than he did. He refused to believe anyone was dead, but Matthew and Bobby had certainly looked better...

"Here." Percy said, pulling her towards a loose panel in the wall. He wasn't sure if she had heard him, but she seemed to follow his lead. The tunnels he and Clarisse had discovered a few months ago when delivering messages to the guards were now more useful than merely saving them a few seconds of walking down long corridors. Percy crawled through the gap and held his hand out to the princess.

Annabeth followed him in silence, her eyes unfocused and breath hitched. Her family was gone, they were there and she was going and- She bit her lip to stop a sob. A princess doesn't cry, she reminded herself. A leader doesn't cry. Not if she could help it.

They crawled for what felt like forever before Percy offered her a hand to stand up. They'd reached the kitchens now. Percy needed to find his mom.

"Down this one, princess." He said, directing her to the tunnel leading beyond the palace boarder. "That'll get you out of here, if that's what you want." She only nodded, dazed.

"Stay safe, princess." He offered her a sad smile, wishing he could go with her. But she had to get out of there. She'd be back in a few days, once this had all calmed down. Percy had to find his mom.

He needed to go, needed to get a move on. But he let himself stand for a moment until her dusted rose ballet slippers were long out of his sight.