They didn't tell anyone they were going to the hospital. Annabeth didn't want to feel crowded or have to play hostess or frankly embarrass herself. And besides, this was their moment, when their twosome was lost forever to the great adventure of family. They would never be just Percy-and-Annabeth again. They would be Percy-and-Annabeth-and "?".
There were many photos taken within moments of the arrival of Jackson baby number one. But the one Percy sent out in the quiet, rosy hours of the dawn, when all the fuss was over and mother and baby were sleeping peacefully, was by far his favourite. Annabeth slept on her side, the spill of her hair, slant of her nose, and the faint cup of the hand resting on the pillow all visible in the frame. Pulled up next to her was the baby's glass bassinet, bearing that inexplicable wonder inside. The baby slept in the exact same pose as it's mother, hand resting on mattress, nose slant replicated exactly on their velvet skin, the tuft of curls—albeit much darker than their mothers—sweeping across their tiny brow the exact same way. That was the moment Percy was blown away completely by this stranger he knew so well, and the moment he feel head over heels in love.
Piper was shaken awake by Jason, who was grinning at her. "What's wrong?" She murmured sleepily, propping herself up on one elbow and rubbing her eyes. "What happened?"
In answer, Jason held up his phone with the picture Percy had sent him glowing. The message was simple: Please welcome Mackenzie Sarah Jackson to the world; February 19th, 2:53 am, 7 pounds 11 ounces. The phone pinged again, and there was the first family picture, taken just minutes after Mackenzie was born. Percy sat on the edge of the bed next to Annabeth, sweat along her hairline as she held her daughter. Both parents were looking, clearly captivated, at the baby, and Percy was kissing Annabeth's temple. The message read, "Surprise."
Piper shrieked. "They had their baby!"
"They had their baby," Jason grinned, examining the new picture. Piper's phone rang and she scrambled for it, only to get the full blast of Hazel's shriek in her ear.
"She's perfect," Hazel was saying, ecstatic. Frank was laughing in the background. "Holy Hades, why didn't they tell anyone?"
"Because it's them," Piper pointed out, laughing. "Together or not at all."
"Another text," Jason announced. "'Want to know why we named her Mackenzie?'"
"YES," Piper exclaimed, Hazel still in her ear.
"I'm calling him," Jason decided.
Percy picked up ring one. "Sup," his voice was low, a little more gravelly than usual, but casual.
"That's all you have to say."
"Dude, there are no words." Percy's smile could literally be heard over the line.
"How did it go?"
"You don't want details. But they're fine. They're both fine."
"I'm really happy for you, man."
"Thanks. That means a lot." Percy paused. "So do you want to put Piper on the line, or let her salivate some more?"
Jason laughed, and held out the phone to Piper, who was bouncing up and down.
"Percy," she yelled. "Oh, my gods. I want to know everything. Is she okay? How healthy is she? What does her name mean? How's Annabeth?"
"Calm down, Pipes. It's like five am."
"Percy, please," she charmspeaked pleadingly. Percy laughed. "Fine. She's perfect. Ten fingers, ten toes, brown hair and from what I've been able to tell, greenish greyish eyes. They are big and absolutely stunning. And Annabeth was spectacular, as always."
Piper squealed. "So what does her name mean?"
"Well, the Sarah part is for my mom, because Sally comes from the name Sarah, apparently. It means either princess or noblewoman, I think. I picked her first name," he said proudly, "because I thought it was pretty, but mostly because it means "child of a wise leader".
Piper broke out laughing.
Meanwhile, Jason has Hazel on the phone in one ear, and his own phone—held captive by Piper—was pinging as someone tried to get through. Jason waved his arms around, signalling.
"Percy, I'm calling you back in five minutes," Piper said decisively. "And I want more pictures."
"Three pics and you call me back in the morning," Percy bargained.
"Deal." Piper sighed ecstatically. "I'm really aggressively happy for you guys."
Percy laughed quietly. "Thanks, Pipes. I'll talk to you soon." He hung up, and Piper answered the incoming call. A barrage of noisemakers and firecrackers met her ears.
"DID YOU HEAR?" Leo practically yelled Piper's ear off. Jason got off the phone with Hazel only to have Piper's phone, still in his hands, buzz with another incoming call. He answered quickly, holding a hand over his free ear to block out his wife's conversation.
"Yes!" Piper was shouting back at Leo with equal verve.
"I'm on the phone with Reyna," Jason told her, and she nodded, still holding Jason's cell to her ear. "Did you get pictures?" She asked Leo.
"Yeah, the one with 'surprise' as the caption, right?"
"Hey, Pipes, there's more," Jason said, grinning as he held out her phone. Piper couldn't resist a squeal as another three pictures of Baby Jackson came in, each one more adorable than the last. Reyna had hung up, vowing to call back in the morning and make plans to visit the newly minted Jackson family.
None of them got much sleep that night. They were all calling each other, juggling cell phones, squealing and exclaiming and celebrating. There are few moments of complete happiness in a person's life, let alone a demigod's life. When they come around, you savour them. So they did, in different apartments and different places: in Jason and Piper's apartment, both of them still nut brown from their honeymoon, studying pictures over a glass of diluted nectar. In Hazel and Frank's, among bulletin boards pinned with wedding tidbits, in the warm glow of the oven light, with the jazzy music of Hazel's childhood playing softly in the background. In Reyna's apartment, as she sifted through her organized drawers trying to find wrapping paper and baked cupcakes at five am because she was happy and she could. In Leo and Calypso's warm, above-garage apartment, with much noisemakers and Spanish tunes, and Festus' humming and creaking as the couple started an aggressive hand of Crazy Eights.
In a quiet hospital room across town, Percy celebrated just a little more.
He called his mother.
Sally awoke from a dead sleep, her answer sleepy and vaguely concerned. "Hello?" she asked groggily.
"Mom," Percy said, his voice breaking.
"Percy," she exclaimed. "Is everything all right?"
"Everything's fine." He swallowed hard. "We had our baby, Mom."
There's a moment in nearly every parent's life when their baby has their own baby. When, suddenly, the cycle goes on and everything changes. Everything a parent has ever felt about their child comes rushing back and they think, as they hang on to a phone or a newborn, so it goes again. My baby will feel all of this now, everything I have felt, they will feel. Their baby, this miracle, will change everything for them.
Sally Jackson had that moment sitting in a bed miles away from a son whom she had let out her door every morning, wondering if he would ever return. She had wondered if she'd ever have this moment, had wondered when her son disappeared for months or was home hours late or marched off into a battle he may not return from. She didn't wonder anymore. She was still and silent for a moment, quiet tears beginning to flow down her cheeks.
"Oh, Percy," she whispered.
The cycle began anew.