Chapter 1: I Pass Out At My First Party

(Present Day) Percy's POV

Mom was ecstatic.

"My little Percy's growing up!" she sobbed as I hung bright blue streamers from our apartment ceiling.

"It's just a party Sally," Paul chuckled, setting two jumbo sized bottles of coke out on our tiny dining room table. Suddenly serious he said, "Now Percy, I don't want any trouble so think responsibly. Your mother and I-"

"Oh come on Paul," I said rolling my eyes, "Half-Bloods don't drink anyway. The risks our too great that one of us would hit someone with a sword or ignite something with Greek fire."

"Or burn something important down!" Added Annabeth cheerfully, ducking under the small doorway that led to our kitchen. (When I was younger my mom and I used to joke that elves had once inhabited our apartment building).

Annabeth's hair was pulled back in a messy bun, however a few strands had escaped to curl loosely around her grey eyes. She was covered from had to foot and flour and a dab of icing had dried on her nose-a result of her wresting matches with the mixture no doubt.

"Alright, alright!" Paul threw his hands up in surrender.

"How'd the cake turn out sweetie?" My mom inquired of Annabeth, grabbing a dishtowel and beginning to wipe down dusty, white kitchen terror that was my girlfriend.

"Oh ummm... I'm not sure I would call it a cake exactly Sally, " she blushed slightly underneath her floury coating, "It turned out to be more of a blue version of Flubber,"

I laughed, wiping the frosting off her nose, "So you're telling me that the designer of architectural masterpieces on the top Mt. Olympus can't bake a Birthday Cake?"

"Shut up Seaweed Brain!" She pushed me playfully, clouds of flour descending whenever she moved her hands.

"All right Percy, now what do you do if monsters—" my mom started.

"I call Chiron and get everyone to camp straight away." We had been over this at least 1000 times this summer break.

"And if Grover starts chewing on the sofa again?"

"I politely direct him to our stash of aluminum cans in the kitchen."

"Good. OK sweetheart, have fun!" she said happily before giving Annabeth and me a hug and yanked a protesting Paul outside.

"But not too much fun," Paul warned before closing the door behind them.

Annabeth turned to me, "Well," she said mysteriously, coming closer," Now that we're alone-"

The doorbell rang.

I glanced with annoyance at the door, and then longingly back at her.

"Do I have too?" I whined.

"Yes Kelp Head! I did NOT make this beautiful blob of a birthday cake for nothing,"

I sighed and reluctantly went to answer the door, coming face to face with Leo's wide toothy grin.

"PARTY!" He shouted, charging in with an old fashioned boom box slung over his shoulder.

"Oh no no no dunderhead head! I get to pick the music this time!"

Thalia feverently chased inside after the son of Hephaestus, wrenching the boom box away from his grasp with a look of, I-Will-Shock-You-If-I-Don't- Get-My-Way.

She had changed out of her traditional hunter garb, and instead wore her classic pair of ripped jeans and a Smashing Pumpkins t-shirt. Over the past few months, her original pixie cut had grown a few inches, her dark hair now resting at her shoulders. I remembered that Zoe had told me once that the Hunter's of Artemis were forbidden from trimming their hair.

Leo pouted for a moment after his reluctant defeat, but then brightened again as he recognized the familiar shapes of Hazel and Frank.

To Frank's obvious annoyance, Leo reached forward and grabbed Hazel's hand, dragging her over to a table towered high with Papa John's boxes.

"Come on Hazel," he said excitedly, "I'm going to introduce you to your first piece of pizza!"

"Is it some sort of fruit?" Hazel questioned curiously as she was pulled away.

Frank was left to sit dejectedly on the couch, staring glumly at his grape soda. Poor guy. It had taken him months to get Hazel to go out with him, and now she was being swept away right in front of his sometimes-animal nose.

Piper, Jason, and Grover arrived next, and I awkwardly shook hands with Jason while Grover bee lined for our recycling bin. Piper began chatting to Annabeth about her next idea for the new Pantheon, (construction would begin on Mt. Olympus next fall), and Frank had transformed into a humming bird and was zooming around my living room. Yup. Normal demigod day.

Nico was the last individual to slink inside from the shadows, his bony thin fingers shoved into his pockets, a flop of dark hair falling over his dark circles. To anybody else, he might have looked like one sick, un-dead puppy, but to us, this was just normal Nico.

"NICO!" Hazel shouted happily, literally enveloping his skinny frame into a bone-crushing hug, (no pun intended).

"Hi guys, "he murmured shuffling in my direction, "Happy Birthday Percy,"

From the deep pockets of his leather jacket he pulled to King Size Hersey Bars.

Jason whistled. "Damn kid!"

That was the thing about demigods. Most of us were dirt poor, but we were all pretty good at gift giving.

According to the "Throwing House Parties: A Guide for Stupid People" book that Dionysus had once chucked at my head, (long story involving the eating of some of his sacred grapes), I was supposed to make some sort of speech to thank everyone for coming and all that crap.

I attempted to clear my throat in a very classy and official matter, but it

"OK everybody," I began, turning to the mob of demigods in front of me. Suddenly our apartment seemed really small. "I just wanted to say that—"

"No need to give us a whole monologue Kelp Head," Annabeth rolled her eyes, "We're all happy just to be somewhere outside of camp or school."

"LET'S GET THIS PARTY STARTED!" Thalia yelled before running over to our stereo to crank up some heavy metal rock music.

The party was going well. Nico and Jason stood in the corner having a conversation with a dead ghost that Nico had conjured who looked suspiciously like Abraham Lincoln. Annabeth sat at the table cheerfully blabbing to Grover about an ancient monument in Egypt while he stared longingly at our couch.

I was about to offer him a Red Bull aluminum can, when the doorbell rang for the extra 5 boxes of pizzas my mother had ordered. I paid the gangly, acne covered deliveryman and slammed the door in his face before he could finish saying, "Hey is that Abraham Linc—"

Then all at once, I felt sick.

My head pounded and the world swirled around me in muti- colored hues. I dropped the pizzas in surprise. "

"Percy are you alright?" Annabeth asked sounding worried.

"Yeah, I just need a glass of water," I slurred before the ground spun up to meet me.

I blinked my eyes drearily on the floor, and saw blurred faces above me. The last think I felt before I descended into darkness was Annabeth's warm hands urgently shaking my shoulders.

Thanks guys! Hope you liked it! Not goanna beg for review or anything but… *gives sly smile* not that they wouldn't be appreciated or anything: D Just no hating please!

-Under the Willow Tree