Lassa

I get to the stables and find Jesse sitting on a bail of hay. He's wearing what he wore earlier, jeans, converse, and a camp t-shirt. Makes me feel a little overdressed, but my outfit is casual enough and most people don't bring as many changes of clothes as I did.

"Hi, Jesse." I say and he looks up. His eyes widen for a second, then he clears his throat and smiles at me. I look down and hope my blush isn't too noticeable.

"Lassa. Hey." He hops down off the hay bail and comes over to grab my hand. "You look amazing." He whispers in my ear, making me blush a whole lot harder.

"Thank you. You don't look too bad yourself." I smile at him. "I brought the blanket." I say, gesturing to my backpack. "You bring the plates and cups?"

"Sure did. So now might be a good time to admit, I actually don't know how to ride a horse, let alone a Pegasi."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I guess I just wanted to go out with you so bad I couldn't admit it earlier. And now I look totally stupid. So I'm sorry, we can resch-" He starts, but I accidentally cut him off with a giggle.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm not making fun of you, I swear. I'm just not used to guys going out of their way to hang out with me."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Look, back home I'm actually a riding instructor. If you want, I can teach you another day."

"I'd love that. But for now…what? Do you just want to have a date in a stall?" He asks. I shake my head.

"Would you be okay riding double? I'll sit up front, you just sit behind and hang on. Skyfall is a really gentle flier." I offer. He's quiet for a second.

"I guess that would be okay." He finally says. I smile.

"Okay. She's just a few more stalls that way." I tell him and we walk down the barn hall. When Skyfall sees us she excitedly greets me.

Lady Lassa! I'm so glad to see you! She says in my head.

"You too, Skyfall." I say, stroking her neck, then look back at Jesse."She won't bite. You can come closer."

"Okay." He runs his hands through his hair and comes forward to pet Skyfall, but she backs up with a nervous nicker.

"Easy, Girl. It's okay. He won't hurt you."

I don't like him, Lady Lassa.

"It's okay. He's just new to riding. He'll be okay." I tell her, then turn to Jesse. "Try to calm down if you're nervous at all. Horses can pick up on anxiety, making them more nervous themselves."

"Okay, I'll try."

"We don't have to go." I say gently. "We totally could just have the picnic here in Skyfall's stall."

"No. No, I want to go." He tells me.

"Alright then. Let's go outside, Skyfall. We're going to ride double. Can you take us to that Sandbar?"

I still don't like him. But as you wish, Lady Lassa. She tells me. We trot outside and Skyfall bows so I can count, then Jesse right behind me.

"You want to keep good posture with your shoulders, knees, and heels all in line. Keep your heels down, and other than that…hold onto me." I say, hoping my excitement isn't too evident in my voice.

"Got it." He says and wraps his arms around my waist. I lean back into him just a bit, then grab Skyfall's mane and give her a light kick. She spreads her wings, and after a couple of flaps we're off. Jesse' grip tightens around my waist.

"It's okay. We won't fall. And even if we somehow did, Skyfall would catch us." I say, turning my head back against his ear so he can hear me.

"All the same, I'm going to keep hanging on tight."

"Fine with me." I laugh as we glide through the clouds. Underneath me, I feel Skyfall tense the way she does before she flips. "Skyfall!" I yell. "Don't you dare!" She whinnies a laugh and tucks her wings to dive before spreading them out with a flap and flying in an upside down arc. Jesse yells in my ear behind me, holding me so tight my ribs hurt. Skyfall Whinnies again, and I feel her tense underneath me. "Skyfall, I swear I'll pluck your wings and send you to the glue factory!"

You would never, Lady Lassa. She says to me, then wraps her wings around her body and dives with a spin.

"Skyfall Even out right now!" I yell at her as Jesse screams behind me.

Yes, My Lady. I can hear the smirk in her tone as she spreads her wings and we start gliding smoothly.

"Jesse, I am so sorry." I say. He pants and holds tight to me still. "She's normally not like this."

"It's *gasp* Fine. It's fine now. She's gliding now."

"Yes. And she's not getting any apples or carrots."

Lady Lassa…. She whines. I was just having a bit of fun.

"No treats." I tell her. "Really, Jesse, are you okay?

"I'm never getting on this horse again, but I'm okay."

"She's usually gentle. I mean, I fly with her like that sometimes, but with others she's docile. I don't know what got into her."

"Really. I'm good." He gasps as we land. He quickly slides off and puts his hands on my hips to pull me off as soon as he regains his balance. "It's fine. Let's just eat." He says, and I nod then will the sandbar dry and push the water back so we can spread the blanket and get our plates and cups out. Skyfall Winnies and trots off to the far end, and starts grazing on seaweed. I smile at Jesse, excited to be here.

"Rare Ribeye, Cesar salad, and a loaded baked potato." He says to his plate. "Coca-cola." To his cup.

"That sounds good." I tell him, then pick up my plate and cup. "Medium rare ribeye, chicken Caesar salad, and macaroni and Cheese. Sweet Tea."

"Sweet Tea?" He asks me. I nod.

"It's a staple where I'm from. Do you want to bless the food?" I ask as he's about to dig in.

"What? Oh, right." He grabs my hand, and I blush as he laces our fingers together and clears his throat. "Oh Lord, thank you for the food before us and the company we have in each other. Bless this food to the nourishment of our bodies. Amen."

"Amen." I echo and dig in. "So, as nice as it is to go on a date, original purpose of us being here was for me to answer some questions best I could."

"Right. How on Earth does the Greek and Roman pantheons fit into a monotheistic religion?"

"It's not as complicated as people make it out to be. The gods aren't gods in the way that Jehovah is. Gaia, Oranus, Tartarus, and the other primordial gods like them aren't gods at all, but fallen angels who followed Lucifer in his rebellion. So are some of the Nymphs, naiads, dreads, and aeris. It depended on what rank they held in Heaven. The titans, giants, and gods are their children. That makes us, the hybrids of these descendants of angels and humans, nephilim. Although halfblood or demigod works too."

"Why would God allow them to keep control, even just for a time, if Satan and his followers are just going to temp humans into sin?"

"Because there is no righteousness without freewill. If you never do anything wrong, but you never had the choice to do something right, it isn't righteous at all. It's just…unproblematic at best. Pathetic at worst. God lets us have choice with temptation so that our life has meaning. Eventually, that temptation will be removed in his kingdom and we can rest with him in joy and peace in Paradise. But for now, we suffer for righteousness sake in this world, trying to live like Christ and bringing as many people as we can to him."

"And what of those who we can't? I mean, I've heard the stories firsthand about your brother, all his trips to the underworld and Tartarus. What about Hades, god of the underworld? How does all that fit into Christianity where we're told there's just Heaven and Hell?" I smile at him.

"Annabeth asked me the same question my first night here. And like I told her, I'm not totally sure, but I have a guess. I think the underworld is Sheol. It's a waiting place until the second coming, when Jesus will take everyone that belongs to him up to Heaven with him and send those who don't into the pit."

"But what about all the people who have died and gone straight to Heaven and come back? They tell about the family they saw there."

"Like I said, I don't know everything. My best guess is that some people God takes to Heaven right away, and others he has a purpose for in Sheol. He'll collect them when it's time."

"Interesting theories. Not what I usually talk about on a first date with a girl."

"What do you usually talk about on a first date with a girl?"

"To be honest, I can't tell you."

"Why?"

"Because this is my first date with a girl." He smiles at me, and leans closer, putting his weight on one arm. "But if I had been on a date before, and I felt then the way I'm feeling now, I'd probably be talking about how beautiful she is." I smile and blush harder at the compliment.

"This is really your first date? That's surprising." I say, taking a swig of my Tea.

"Surprising?"

"Yeah. The way you look…I mean, I'm sure I'm not the first girl to notice." I blush, stumbling on my words. He laughs a little.

"You're not. You're just the first girl to catch my notice too." He laughs. "Well, the first girl to catch my notice that my mom wouldn't have had to drive me to the movies with. Or chaperoned. Honestly, Not totally sure I'm even allowed to be on a date right now…and now I've said too much, and you probably think I'm some kind of Mama's boy." He says, and purses his lips. I slide my fingers in line with his on the blanket.

"Not at all." I promise. "But I'm not at all ashamed to admit I'm totally Daddy's little girl."

"You've met Poseidon?" He asks, excited. I shake my head.

"No. I was talking about my Stepdad. His name's Cass Jackson, and he married my mom when she was pregnant with me, so he's been there for my whole life. He's the best father anyone could ask for. I'm really close with my family. It's just My parents, me, and my little brothers. I'm starting to get closer to Percy too. What about you?"

"Am I getting close to Percy?" He laughs. "Can't say so. To be honest, your brother scares me. He's so intense."

"No, I wasn't asking if you were close to Percy, although he's not that bad if you get to know him. I was asking about your family. Is it just you and your mom, or do you have siblings or a stepdad? What about the rest of the Hermes cabin?"

"Questions, Questions. Personal questions." He says with a teasing tone.

"Well yeah, isn't the point of going on a date to get to know each other better?"

"Fine. It was just me and my mom, but she died a few months ago. So now it's just me, and I guess I'll be staying here at the camp."

"Oh. I'm sorry." I say, feeling a wave of compassion for him.

"That's why I didn't want to bring it up just yet. I didn't want to bring the mood down. Can we talk about something else?"

"Sure." I say, and scoot closer to him, leaning my back against his side and my head on his shoulder. "Let's talk about how beautiful this sunset is. And maybe after, your favorite music, movies, and books. Finish it all up with a game of would you rather." I suggest. I feel him relax and rest his chin on my head and we do just that, letting the sun go down. When the stars come out, we lay down and I show him different constellations I've learned to recognize. When my watch beeps at 9:30, saying we need to go back before Curfew I sigh. I don't want the night to end, but I get up anyway.

"What's that for?" Jesse asks me, standing up himself.

"The alarm for Curfew. C'mon, we need to get back." I say, then put two fingers in my mouth and whistle for Skyfall. "You'll have to suffer one more Pegasus ride." I ruefully smile at him. "I'll try to make sure she behaves this time."

"Wait. One more thing."

"What?"

"Would you rather…." He smiles, and cups my cheek with one hand. My heart starts beating like a hummingbird on cocaine. "Go back now or let me kiss you first?" He asks in a low voice, making all the hair on my body stand on end. I forget how to speak. Part of me is saying to wait, but the rest of me is begging for this to happen. I stand there like a statue. "If you want me to stop, all you have to do is say so." He tells me and leans in, gently pressing his mouth to mine. Heat pours into my body, and no, I don't want him to stop. It takes a second to move, but once I do I somehow find my hands working their way into his blonde hair. My lips part a little bit more, and he deepens the kiss, putting his hands on my waist. Heat rushes through me when his fingers brush the skin below the hem of my shirt. I don't think I've ever been more aware of how scrawny I am, How stick-like my body is. But Jesse doesn't seem to care. I don't know how long we would have stayed like that if my watch didn't beep again, making us pull apart. I weakly smile at him, hoping he doesn't notice I'm shaking.

"I'd rather stay out with you all night, but I think we need to go back." I say softly. He smiles.

"Do I absolutely have to ride Skyfall again?"

"Unless you want to swim back. But I'll make sure she behaves. If you're up for it, I'd love to meet you at the stables tomorrow after breakfast and I'll give you a riding lesson. On a different Pegasus."

"After today, I'm officially scared of Pegasi. But if it means a second date with you, I'll go."

"Then it's a date." I say, and smile as I turn to where Skyfall trotted up next to us and mount. "Gentle this time, Skyfall, and you Might get one carrot." I tell her as Jesse gets up behind me.

Alright, Lady Lass. She whines and takes off. Jesse holds tight to my waist, and I lean back into him, enjoying his warmth in the cool night air.

We land at the stables, and as promised I give Skyfall exactly one carrot. Jesse hesitates a second, then grabs my hand as he walks me to my cabin. We see the campfire in the distance and hear everyone singing, but I don't feel like I'm missing out at all walking next to Jesse. We get to the cabin and I put my hand on the doorknob and turn to him to say goodnight, hoping he can't see my blush in the darkness.

"I had a good time tonight, Jesse. Thank you." I say. My heart hammers in my chest. "But uhh….did that kiss mean something? Or did you just want to kiss me?"

"Of course I wanted to kiss you. That doesn't mean it didn't mean anything."

"No, I mean, I was raised so that a kiss means the start of a relationship. But…I don't want to assume you were raised the same."

"Ah. The 'what are we' talk. Didn't think we'd be having it so soon."

"Well you kissed me so soon." I counter.

"Tell you what, Lassa. I'll think about it, and take you out a few more times. Next time I kiss you, It'll be us starting a relationship. If you can't wait that long, however long it takes, I'll understand and we'll just be friends. Fair?" I smile at him.

"Fair." I say, then start inside. I turn around at the last second. "Jesse?" I blush. "It was a really good first kiss. Thank you." He walks over, so close I'm pressed against the door and I wonder if he's going to kiss me again now. But he just kisses my cheek and whispers in my ear.

"Goodnight, Thalassa." He says, My heart explodes with his closeness and hearing my name roll off his lips so perfectly. He walks off without another word, leaving me standing on the porch of my cabin shaking like a leaf and grinning like an idiot.

….

Percy

I walk hand in hand with Annabeth back to the cabin, finishing off a marshmallow from the campfire. I'm content with the night, but kinda worried about Lassa. I know it's not really my business, but I kinda doubt from what she's told me about her parents that she's allowed to date anyways, let alone older boys. And I don't like this kid. He's easy going enough, but gets frustrated and angry quickly when things don't go his way. He's cocky, too. And Lassa's an eleven year old, new to crushes and boys and attraction in general and therefore likely easily manipulated. But she's enough like me to know if I said any of this to her, she'd just want to do it more.

With her free hand, Annabeth's holding a legal pad, going over her research into Christianity. Her eyes are kinda glazed over, so I decide to try and talk to her and snap her out of it.

"What are you looking at?" I ask.

"Research. Christianity. It's all fitting together a little too nicely. I can't find the cracks."

"Does that mean maybe it's true?" I ask.

"Can't be. I just haven't dug deep enough yet."

"Well, we're about to be back at the cabin. How about you put it away and get ready to see Lassa."

"Fine." She says with a sigh, lowering the legal pad. "What are you thinking about?" Annabeth asks me, playing with my fingers as she holds my hand. I kiss her temple.

"Something I'll just keep to myself for now." I say. Lassa's probably at the cabin already, and Annabeth will have more questions than I have time for if I tell her what's on my mind. We get to cabin three and walk in, and Lassa's sitting on her bed with her hair back in braids and face clear of makeup, wearing plaid cotton shorts and a white t-shirt for Pajamas. She's smiling ear to ear.

"Everything go well I take it?" Annabeth asks her.

"Yeah. We had fun." She says, blushing slightly. "Thanks for helping me get ready."

"Of Course."

"Well…glad you had fun, Lassa." I tell her, not sure what else to say and head into the bathroom. I take about 5 minutes to shower, brush my teeth and change then head back into the main room. Annabeth and Lassa both stop talking as soon as I open the door, so I know they were talking about her date. I go and kiss Lassa on the top of her hair, feeling the need to be closer to her tonight.

"Goodnight, Lassa."

"Goodnight, Percy." She smiles at me. I walk over to my bed and Kiss Annabeth goodnight, getting under the covers and closing my eyes. I even out my breathing, but fight any sleep that comes my way. I want to hear this.

"I think he's out." Annabeth whispers a few minutes later. Lassa giggles. "Keep going! I'm excited to hear this."

"Well, he was already nervous around the Pegasi which made Skyfall herself a bit anxious about him." Skyfall didn't like him. Noted. "So when we went flying, even though I told her to just glide gently, she did flips and spins, completely freaking him out." I owe that Pegasus some carrots. "He was holding so tightly to me it was hurting my ribs. I didn't mind though." Asshole needs his own Pegasus to ride. Noted. I'll talk to Blackjack. "So anyways when we landed on the sandbar, he helped me down. Annabeth when his fingers hit the skin on my waist I felt like my body was on fire." This kid has hands. Lassa needs to lose the crop tops.

"I know the feeling." Annabeth says, moving her fingers into my hair.

"We ate and talked, and he asked me a lot of questions about my faith. Then we talked about some more personal things. Like I'm super close with my family and it was just him and his mom until she passed away. He didn't really want to talk about that. So we talked about books, movies and music. He's okay with country music like me, but doesn't love it. He's super into older music, like Queen and the Beatles and Elvis. It was something he and his mom shared." Okay, so he has good taste in music. I'll grant him that. "He doesn't read much, being dyslexic, but is super into this one book he had to read in school called the Giver. He also likes the Maze Runner. They're dystopian novels. And he's a fan of Marvel movies but DC shows. Also likes the Fast and Furious saga and Oceans 11, 12 and 13." Fits for a Son of Hermes.

"Sounds like a Son of Hermes." Annabeth smiles. I fight a smile that would tip them off that I'm awake.

"And we played Would you Rather. Then when the sun went down, I showed him all the constellations I know."

"Sounds like a super romantic night."

"It was. And when it was time to go back, He asked me one more would you rather question."

"What'd he ask?"

"He asked if I'd rather head back or let him kiss me!" Lassa says excitedly.

Say you headed back. Say you headed back.

"What did you tell him?" Annabeth asks.

"I didn't really tell him anything. I kinda froze. So he just told me to tell him to stop if I wanted him to. And…I decided to keep my mouth shut." She squeals. "Annabeth, it was such an amazing kiss. His hands were on my waist, and mine were in his hair. I felt like I couldn't breathe but it was amazing." Okay, the kid and I are going to have some one on one sword practice.

"So are Y'all an item then?"

"Not yet. I asked him about that when we got back to the cabin. He said he wants to get to know me more, and the next time he kisses me, it'll be asking to start a relationship. And if I'm not willing to wait for that, I can walk at any time, no questions asked."

"Gotcha." Annabeth says, and I can tell from the clip of the word she's on guard now. Lassa doesn't notice though.

"So then, he just leaned in, kissed my cheek, and whispered 'Goodnight, Thalassa' in my ear. The way he said my name…I was shaking with excitement of everything. That was it. After that I showered and got ready for bed and waited for you to get here."

"Well I'm glad you had a good time. Get some sleep. I want to talk with you more in the morning."

"Sounds good. Goodnight, Annabeth."

"Goodnight, Lassa." A second later the lights are off and Annabeth nestles close to me. I let sleep approach now, but as I drift off, I'm just thinking about the sword lesson Jesse James is getting tomorrow.

…

I wake up with the sunrise, and get dressed and ready quickly before heading to cabin 11. Walking in, I avoid the traps the Stolls set and look for James' bunk. When I spot him, I walk over and kick the bed, rousing him from his sleep.

"Wha-Percy?" He asks, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

"Get up. Get dressed. Meet me at the arena in no more than 5 minutes. Bring your sword" I say and walk out, then run to the arena and start timing him once I get there. It's 7 minutes later when he finally runs in, tripping on his untied converse laces.

"7 minutes. I thought I said 5."

"You woke me up at the crack of dawn! You're lucky I came at all!" He says, frustrated.

"No, you're lucky you listened to come here. I would have been pretty upset otherwise." I smile a crooked smile at him. "Dangerous things happen when a child of Poseidon gets upset."

"What do you want, Percy?"

"To give you a one on one lesson." I say, pulling riptide out.

"You're crazy. I'm going back to bed." He says and turns around to leave. I practice the Water Whip move Lassa taught me and hit him in the back of the neck. "Ouch! What the Hades, Percy?!"

"You're dating my little sister, James. We need some time together. If you didn't want to be dragged out of bed you shouldn't have made an after breakfast date with her."

"That's what this is about?"

"Well that, and you also suck at sword fighting." I smirk at him. His face goes red.

"I suck at sword fighting? I've only been here a few weeks and I'm already the best in my age group!"

"Then show me." I daunt him. He glares at me then unsheathes his sword. I smile. We circle each other, and then he finally takes a swing. I block it easily, and let him take a few more shots before going on offense. Once I do, I push him back against the wall, exhausting him, making him block strikes both high and low, side to side. When he's backed against the wall I use the first trick Luke ever taught me and disarm him, then put Riptide against his throat.

"You may be gifted, but you have a lot to learn and you're not better than me. Got it?" I ask. He nods. "Good." I say and cap Riptide. "Listen man," I say and sit down with my back to the arena wall. He slides down next to me, still trying to catch his breath. "I may have only known Lassa for a few weeks now, but I already love her. She's my little sister. And I don't like her going out with you."

"Why?" He coughs. I pull the water bottles on the far end of the wall over to us and we both take a few sips.

"I'm going to be honest. For one, you're three years older than her. She's eleven. I'm not even sure her parents allow her to date. Two, you're cocky and hotheaded. That's a bad combination. And three, if I 'm being perfectly blunt, I just don't get the feeling I should trust you."

"Tha-" He starts, but I hold my hand up

"Let's get to the why. Why do you want to be dating my eleven year old sister?" I ask. He looks at the ground.

"She's pretty. She's sweet. And fearless. Isn't that enough for a start?" He asks, then looks at me again. I sigh.

"Look, at the end of the day, I don't get a vote on who my sister dates. But if you hurt her physically, I'll dispatch you to Hades myself. I know you can't promise you won't hurt her somehow else, but as long as you don't disrespect her, we're cool. Got it?"

I ask, looking him in the face.

"Got it. Big Brother's scary."

"I'm serious, James. Don't hurt her."

"Don't worry, Percy. She'll be fine.

….

Annabeth

I wake up and see Percy's already gone, which is strange for him. He'd usually sleep in until noon if he could. I sit up and stretch, seeing Lassa's already up and dressed, just reading and writing letters home now. I smile at my little sister.

"How's your family doing?" I ask her. She looks up at me and smiles.

"They're doing good. My brothers are helping Daddy on his fishing boat and learning to skimboard. They're also helping my dad finish building an add on to our house so I can have my own room and bathroom when I get back."

"You don't have your own room?"

"Well, I will when I get home. But no, up until now I've shared with my brothers."

"And how about your mom?"

"She's good. She's always wanted to open her own beachside restaurant, and it looks like the bank is willing to give her a loan after all these years. They're using my dad's sailboat, the Wavecrest, as collateral."

"That's great! What does your mother cook?" I ask. She smiles.

"A little bit of everything. But I guess it's because she was raised on the coast, she's best with seafood."

"Are you going to tell them about Jesse?" I ask. The smile falls off her face and she purses her lips.

"Not yet."

"Why not?"

"I'm not sure they'd approve. They'd want me to wait until I'm older. And I don't want to wait." She answers. I purse my lips, wondering if I should say something.

"Give me a few minutes." I say and go into the bathroom. I brush my teeth, wash my face, braid my hair back, put on some deodorant and change clothes then go back out. "C'mon, Lassa, let's go for a walk." I tell her. She puts her stuff aside and follows me out of the cabin. We walk along the path that leads up to Half Blood Hill, where Thalia's tree stands. We get there and I pet the drakon guarding it.

"So what is it?" She asks after a while of us making small talk.

"Lassa, tell me what you know about this tree."

"Umm ...If I remember right, Grover Underwood was escorting Thalia Grace, Zeus' daughter to camp. But you and Luke Castellan came too. You were being chased by monsters, and Thalia stood here and fought them all off to give the rest of you time to make it to camp. As she died, Zeus turned her into a tree so her spirit could protect the boundary. Then a few years ago, the Golden Fleece revived her. She's now a hunter of Artemis. But the tree still protects the camp."

"Right." I tell her. "And what do you know about Luke Castellan?"

"Not much. I know he was a son of Hermes. I know he was the instrument Kronos used to start the Titan War. And I know he saved the world at the end. He died, but Percy told me the gods decided his case was too complicated. He couldn't go to Asphodel, Elysian, or the Fields. So they granted him immortality on Ogygia with Calypso. Leo told you that they have a couple of kids now." She says. I smile at the reminder.

"That's right. Luke saved me from the streets when I was a kid. He was an older son of Hermes that when I was your age, I started to fall for."

"I see where this is going." She says, and crosses her arms.

"I'm just saying be careful, Lassa. Hermes passes his traits to his kids like any other god or goddess. Remember he's a trickster god. I'm not saying Jesse is going to start the third Titan war. Or even that his intentions are bad. I'm just asking you to be on your guard before things get too serious. I don't want you to get hurt."

"Alright. Alright, Annabeth. Thanks for the warning." She sighs. "I'm going to breakfast. Then to the stables to meet Jesse. I'll be careful." She tells me then walks off.