So here's the next Chapter, with the beginning of the tour that Percy promised Annabeth, the return of Ryan, and the introduction of an OC created by Sword10835, who got the name of Percy's blind date correct from back in the beginning of the story.

Review responses:

hproxx1999 - As you wish. And I am very glad you were impressed by that Chapter.

AutumnLeaves03 - Aww, thank you!

JustLucky05 - Thanks!

LiveLaughLoveAndStayYou - They are, aren't they? I've gotta admit I've loved Percy/Annabeth since before Battle of the Labyrinth (I think it was at the end of Sea of Monsters where I realized the two of them were probably going to get together in the end), so I was really glad when they did, and... Well, that's beside the point now. But honestly, this has been one of my favorite stories I've written so far, and I'm really looking forward to some of the really cute stuff to come. Wish I could say more, but don't want to spoil anything!

Lost-In-A-New-World - Thanks!

Disclaimer - I really don't own Percy Jackson.

"How long do you have until you have to be back at work?" I queried as we stepped through the sliding doors into the air-conditioned interior of the aquarium, wanting to work out whether I actually had the time to give my girlfriend the tour I had promised her a few days earlier.

"Well, considering that the only remaining thing that I absolutely have to have finished today is currently on the table in me and Juniper's apartment, and even that is almost entirely done anyway, pretty much all the time I want. Why do you ask?"

I smiled, squeezing the blonde girl's hand gently. "Just wanting to make sure I have time to give you the full tour, that's all".

"Well, lead the way. I'm excited to see what kind of sea creatures you get to work with every day".

"It's not just strictly sea creatures. We have penguins as well"

Annabeth's eyes lit up with delight. "You have penguins here?"

I pretended to think about it, mentally adding the fact that my girlfriend loved penguins into the list of things that I knew about her. "Well, unless something's changed in the past two hours, yes. Anyway, let me just put my jacket away, and we can get on with the tour".

~Five minutes later~

Ryan came wandering over to me as I left the locker room. "Hey, man. How was your break?" he queried.

"Pretty good. I'm going to show Annabeth around, since I promised her I'd give her a tour, you mind taking over for a little bit longer?"

"Of course, man, anything you need. You'd do as much for me one of these days, anyway".

I chuckled, patting him on the shoulder playfully. "Get yourself a girlfriend first, Ryan. Then we'll talk about what favours I owe you".

"Fair enough, man. Now, go show your girlfriend around before I change my mind" he retorted jokingly.

"You got it".

I walked quickly back over to where I had left Annabeth, finding her in the same place she had been before we'd left in the first place, watching the red-bellied piranha swimming endlessly back and forth in their tank. I smiled softly to myself at my girlfriend's fascination with the fish, wrapping my arms around the blonde's waist and pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. "Pygocentrus nattereri".

My girlfriend glanced up at me in surprise. "Sorry?"

Quickly realizing that my girlfriend's surprise was due to the fact that she didn't understand what I had just said, I was quick to clarify exactly what I had meant. "Pygocentrus nattereri, more commonly known as the red-bellied piranha or red piranha. It's one of the few species of piranha which is actually considered to be dangerous to humans, though its reputation is actually a lot worse than it deserves".

"Tell me more?"

Glad that someone was actually interested in what I had to say, apart from the usual tour groups of school kids that came to the aquarium, I smiled. "For a start, they're actually omnivores, not carnivores, and they're primarily scavengers and foragers".

"So what exactly do they feed on?" Annabeth queried, her eyes returning to the fish.

"Their typical diet includes insects, worms, crustaceans, and other fish, and they prefer insects and plants during the rainy season where food is more abundant" I replied easily.

She raised an eyebrow. "You're beginning to sound like a Wikipedia article".

I grinned, and then pulled away, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. "C'mon, Wise Girl, there's so much more I want you to see".

She went willingly, allowing me to pull her through the room and over to a large open-topped tank. In the middle of the tank was a brown-haired girl about the same age as us, who was staring intently at the surface of the water, occasionally slapping her palm against the liquid as if she was waiting for something. "What do you think is in this tank?" I asked my girlfriend, as I gestured to one of the wooden benches around the room, wordlessly suggesting that we sit down for a few minutes.

She nodded and sank down onto the bench, examining the tank with calculating grey eyes. "Judging by the size of the tank, something big. Normally I'd say that it would probably be a shark of some kind, but with the way she's hitting the surface of the water, I think it's unlikely... Honestly, I don't know. What is in the tank, Percy?"

I was about to answer when a sleek black form burst from the water, swiftly enveloping the brown-haired girl's lower arm in its mouth. Annabeth jumped slightly, giving me a quick glare as I chuckled at the startled expression on her face. "That, Annabeth, is a short-tailed stingray. That particular one's name is Phoebe. She has a habit of doing that whenever we disturb her nap time. Or when she wants food, which is practically all the time".

We watched the girl interact with the sleek black creature for a few minutes more before Phoebe lost interest in what was going on and disappeared back under the surface of the pool. I smiled slightly, helping my girlfriend to her feet and leading her over to the side of the pool. Seeing us, the brown-haired girl smiled and waved, making her way over to join us. "Has Phoebe been behaving herself, Mel?"

The girl looked up, grinning. "Oh, hey Percy. Yeah, she's been surprisingly good actually, considering how mischievous she usually is".

Annabeth coughed quietly beside me, and I chuckled, knowing instantly what she wanted. "Oh, right. Melody, this is Annabeth Chase, my girlfriend. Annabeth, this is Melody, the aquarium's resident stingray expert".

Melody nodded. "That's me. Well, technically my full title is 'stingray expert and enthusiast', but 'stingray expert' is close enough".

Annabeth smiled warmly. "It's nice to meet you, Melody".

"Nice to meet you too. Hey, how would you like to be able to touch a stingray barb? It doesn't involve Phoebe or any of our other short-tails here stinging you, I promise".

My girlfriend and I glanced at each other, and she nodded a couple of seconds later. "That would actually be really cool".

And the tour continues next Chapter!

Keep in mind, I have no idea whether any aquarium in New York is actually designed anything like this and in fact the aquarium is almost completely based on one that we have here in New Zealand. And Phoebe is based on one of the short-tailed stingrays that lives there.

Songs of the week:

Join Together, by The Who

Fire and Rain, by James Taylor.