"Aarrgh!" Annabeth practically yelled, stomping angrily across the room in their boat. It wasn't a huge boat, but was far larger than the one they'd commandeered from Circe's island. "I can't believe it! These Romans are just… just…"

It wasn't often she was lost for words.

"Extremely disciplined, to a fault?" Percy asked.

Annabeth scowled. "No." Then she paused. "Well, yes, but it's more that they're putting on a front of discipline. Or, well… maybe getting back into it after a long time. And at least some of them have had such an easy life! Grown up away from monsters with their families here in New Rome…"

"So, soft and full of obvious corruption and politics that make everything more difficult?" he tried again.

"Yes," Annabeth said, almost relieved that he seemed to get what she'd been aiming at. Then she seemed to realize who she was talking to as she tensed. Percy looked away, hating to see that.

"They're not as 'soft' as they may seem," he finally said. "They do take their training seriously."

"They're mean," Tyson said, frowning.

Percy patted him on the arm, grateful for his brother's intervention. "Yeah, they can be. But they can also be nice, buddy. Besides, we did come during war time. It's understandable that they're a little… stand-offish."

Annabeth snorted and said, "Understatement," under her breath.

"Greeks have issues too," Percy pointed out, one eyebrow raised in amusement.

The daughter of Athena sighed, rubbing her temple. "Yeah." Then she frowned. "You didn't seem to have any problems, though. Back at the Senate."

Percy frowned. What was she getting at?

"You seemed to know exactly what to say and how to say it. Why?"

Oh, that. He shrugged, relaxing a little. "God of demigods doesn't just apply to Greeks. I didn't have a schism like many of the Olympians, but there was a noticeable difference. Besides, I had to get the senate to change things themselves. Just ordering change wouldn't really help. So I had to stand up there and convince them to raise the age of joining the legion."

Annabeth blinked. "Joining the… how old do they have to be now?"

Percy winced. "There… isn't a minimum age right now as far as I know. Some enter as young as eight, and there's a ten-year minimum service record to stay in the legion."

Her eyes grew wide. "As young as… how do they even get an education?! Do they? The ones that enter that young, that is?"

He shifted uncomfortably, as if he were the one responsible, despite very much being on the same page as her.

Some god he made.

Then again, he'd always known that.

"There are classes people are… encouraged to take on their downtime."

She just stared at him. "There is so much wrong with that I don't know where to start."

"Why do you think I wanted to change it?" Percy asked. "Just like I hate that children under sixteen go on quests at Camp Half-Blood. It's wrong to expect children to do that."

Annabeth backed off, blinking rapidly as she wrapped her head around… something. That wasn't the reaction he'd expected. What had he said?

Oh. Right. She wouldn't have been able to leave camp until much older if she hadn't gone on a quest that summer. Something she'd desperately wanted in both lives.

Percy sighed. So it was that conversation, huh? "What the gods want us children to do is wrong, Annabeth. I wasn't lying when I said Luke had good points and that I agreed with him. I hate how they treat their mortal children—how they have to treat them. That's one thing that's changed that I can't stand. Heraclese had been old enough to have a wife and children by the time of the twelve labors. He had to do things before that, sure, but he, Achilles, Theseus, Jason, Perseus… they were all well into their teens before they were sent on quests."

"But… how could we prove ourselves… otherwise?" she asked, pausing because she was working it out herself. She knew it wasn't right. It just wasn't what she wanted to hear. But she was working it out anyway because this was Annabeth Chase, Wise Girl Extraordinaire.

No, he couldn't think of her like that. He mentally slapped himself and took a deep breath.

"No one," he started gently, "should have to prove themselves worthy of love and affection—of any positive attention—from their parents."

Which… may very well be a foreign concept to her with the parents she'd had. And Percy liked Fredrick. He did. He also got where the man was coming from. That didn't mean he'd made the right choices for his daughter.

They sat there in silence for several seconds as she seemed to work through that, brows drawn together and lip caught between her teeth.

When he realized she probably wouldn't be saying anything else for a while, he turned to his brother. "Hey, big guy. There was probably some stuff back there you didn't understand. What do you need me to explain?"

Tyson's own shoulders slumped in relief, but before he could say anything, a knock on the side of the boat drew everyone's attention.

"Hold that thought," Percy said, hand unconsciously drifting towards Riptide. He hadn't given up the blade, even as a god. Well, he had once, to his daughter, but she'd given it back when she'd retired from questing. (And he most certainly hadn't let her go on a quest before 16, no matter what the Fates said.)

Climbing the stairs, he peered out onto the deck via a window and blinked. For the second time in twenty four hours, he found himself taking a step back and trying to wrap his head around what he saw. Had that been?

He looked again.

Yes, that was Jason standing outside, dressed in armor and spear in hand. And next to him stood Dakota, of all people.

Quickly, Percy opened the door.

"Hello?"

"Hi," Jason said, a little awkwardly, but with a smile as big as ever. "I just wanted to introduce myself and my fellow guard here. We'll be guarding the dock for the next four hours."

Right. Percy smiled and held out his hand. "Hi. Percy Jackson, son of Neptune. Though I guess you already know that."

He knew he'd made a mistake the moment Jason opened his smiling mouth. "This is Dakota Scipio* and I'm Jason Grace of the Fifth Cohort." Percy almost winced. He didn't, but it was a near thing. He could almost sense Annabeth's attention focusing on them. Also, had Jason been a part of the fifth? Then why had he been such a hero but the fifth had such a bad reputation when he'd come in after the second Titan war?

"I'm a son of Bacchus," Dakota said nonchalantly—it very much reminded Percy of Mr. D.

"And I'm… um… a son of Jupiter," Jason said, seeming self conscious of that for some reason. Which was weird. This was nothing like the Jason Percy remembered.

Annabeth's gasp didn't help.

Oh, she'd definitely put Thalia and Jason's relationship together.

That would not be a fun conversation.

"Thanks for introducing yourself," Percy said as he shook their hands, forcing a smile on his face and hoping it looked more real than it felt. "It's nice to meet both of you."

"We'll just be at the head of the dock if you need us," Jason said, relaxing a little. Apparently he was used to people freaking out about his father. Which, fair. But Percy had never had that problem.

"Thanks again," Percy reiterated. "If you need any water or anything, let us know." They wouldn't. Not on duty and not from the newbies, but it was only polite to offer.

"Do you have any kool-aid?" Dakota asked, proving Percy wrong. Then again, it was probably a Dakota thing more than a Roman thing.

Jason turned to his partner. "Dakota. No."

"Dakota, yes."

Percy laughed. Both of these boys had died too soon. (Too many demigods did.) It was good to see them again.

"Sorry, no kool-aid," the time-traveler said, "But I can filter just about any water." He reached out and pulled some water over the side of the boat, had it drop everything that wasn't water inside of it, and then brought it to hover over his hand expectantly. Both a reminder of his power, who his father was, and what he can do, but also a way of proposing it non-threateningly. The other two demigods' eyes widened and they exchanged glances.

"Right," Dakota said, his voice mildly softer than before.

"Anyway, thanks," Jason said, turning to walk away. "It was good to meet you!" Dakota just nodded and followed him.

"You too!" Percy called after them. He watched them climb onto the dock and then, knowing more or less what was coming. He braced himself and turned to see a fuming Annabeth standing with her hands on her hips, looking incredibly like her mother just then, minus the dark hair Athena tended to sport.

"You're right," Tyson said from behind her, making her jump, but that only seemed to tick her off more. "They're nice."

"I know, right?" Percy said. "I—"

"Perseus Jackson, you'd better explain right now."

Percy winced. "You… really don't want to call me that." Probably a good thing she didn't know his middle name. He hadn't really used it the first time around. And his mother only ever used it when she was really upset with him, which didn't happen often.

Annabeth's eyes just narrowed and he held up his hands. "Okay, okay! I was going to tell you! I promise!"

"Jason Grace? Son of Jupiter? He's Thalia's brother, isn't he?!"

"Yes. But I couldn't say anything before without explaining everything, which could have gotten everyone involved killed!"

Annabeth's eyes narrowed. "Killed? How, exactly?"

Percy sighed. "We told you about the schism. And the Civil War. It practically incapacitated most gods and almost wiped out all demigods here in America. They keep the camps separate for a reason. Not just for them." Though mostly, in Percy's opinion.

"The gods don't want that to happen again, so they keep all knowledge of any other myth-related camps separate. If demigods find out by accident… well…" He knew his expression darkened, but he didn't care. Annabeth needed to know. Her eyes widened.

"That's why you weren't happy about Neptune coming while I was there," she said quietly.

Percy nodded. "If you tell the wrong person, it puts everyone involved in danger of death by smiting. That's why I didn't tell you, Luke, or Thalia. I wanted to. I am going to the moment I can. But right now, telling her could get her killed." And he wouldn't put Luke or Annabeth through that again. Or especially Thalia.

Annabeth grabbed some hair from the bottom of her pony-tail absently and began to play with the curls. Percy looked away from the familiar gesture.

"How could you ever tell her, then?" She asked. "At some point, in your past, the camps knew about each other, right?"

Percy nodded. "Yeah, but it was a mess. Camp Jupiter marched on Camp Half-Blood and we almost had another war between us. We avoided it in the end, but I'd really prefer to avoid that close of a call again. As for when I would tell her, I was waiting for her to join the Hunt."

Annabeth looked taken aback. "Join the Hunt? As in Artemis' Hunt?"

"Yes…" Percy said slowly.

"Did she in your past?"

He nodded again. "Yes. To avoid fulfilling the prophecy. If she joined the Hunt, she'd be a day younger than sixteen forever."

"Oh," Annabeth muttered. "And Luke… right."

Percy frowned. "Why?" he asked.

Annabeth bit her lip. "I… don't think she's joining the Hunt this time around."

That surprised Percy. He had a hard time remembering Thalia without that silver tiara in her hair. She'd always been there. His longest living friend (who wasn't born immortal) in the future. The idea that she wouldn't this time around…

He felt his breath catch as he tried to wrap his head around that, a deeply unsettling feeling rising inside him. The boat began rocking a little.

"What's wrong?" Tyson asked, looking around worriedly. Percy opened his mouth to respond, but how was he supposed to explain that Thalia had kind of grown to be his rock—his sister in all but blood. She'd constantly prayed to him, but said silly things, like memes and jokes that made him laugh. He'd never been an authority figure to her, and he wouldn't want to be.

"I… um… why?" he started addressing Tyson, but couldn't finish, so turned his attention to Annabeth.

She shuffled uncomfortably. "Luke and Thalia are dating," she said softly.

Percy's eyes widened. "They what?"

"I know, right?" Annabeth said, relief once again rushing over her face, only to be replaced with anger not seconds later. "And they didn't even tell me! I had to walk in on them kissing before they did! I just… can't believe it!" Then her voice quieted. "Why wouldn't they tell me?"

Several things rushed through Percy's mind just then. Thalia telling Zoe she was right about boys and men just before the latter's death. Annabeth's red cheeks whenever she looked at Luke in those first few years. How happy Annabeth and Luke had been when they'd gotten Thalia back this time around.

Oh.

That was… messy.

Not to mention, there could be any number of reasons why they wouldn't tell Annabeth. Maybe they hadn't figured their own relationship out yet. Or maybe they didn't want to hurt her. Or maybe they'd planned on it but hadn't gotten the chance. Percy didn't know. And he didn't think his speculations would help Annabeth just then.

"Have you talked to them about it?" he finally decided on asking.

She scoffed and looked away. "No."

And there was something very un-Annabeth like in that. Evasive and… wait…

"Annabeth, did you decide to come live with your father because of that?"

She stiffened, and her lips pursed in that 'you've figured me out but I don't want to admit it' kind of way he hadn't seen in so long. Then, she got angry.

"Well, why wouldn't I? If they can't trust me, then why should I stay there?"

Percy sighed quietly. Maybe those potential reasons would help out after all. "What if that was the first time they'd kissed?"

Annabeth blinked. Then grumbled, "It didn't look like the first time."

"But how do you know?" he asked. "Or maybe they'd only just gotten together and just hadn't had a chance to tell you."

The daughter of Athena bit her lip.

"Or maybe it goes deeper than that?" Percy found himself asking, because that's what the counselor in him would do. Even if it killed him as her former husband. (No, not hers!) "You're pretty open to yourself about your own faults, Annabeth. Everyone knows that." So she didn't think it was future knowledge, even if it kind of was.

She took a deep breath. "You think I'm jealous."

She'd put it together. Sometimes the brain on this girl astounded him.

"Are you?"

Her eyebrows drew together. "I… I don't know," she said, eyes meeting his desperately. "They're my family! I wouldn't be alive without them! They mean everything to me!"

"Did you have a crush on Luke?" he prompted. She needed to understand her emotions to process them.

"Who doesn't?" she snapped. Percy just held up his hands.

"And Thalia?"

"Thalia…" Annabeth said quietly, then sighed. "Maybe, I don't know either. She's everything I've always wanted to be. Powerful, strong, determined, kind, smart…"

They fell quiet for several seconds. In the corner of the room, Tyson had sat down and was tinkering with something. That was fine. Percy appreciated his tinkering, and also appreciated the space. Tyson really was the best. And Percy vowed he would explain everything to his brother later.

Finally, Percy decided to speak. "I think you need to talk to them." Something like fear flashed through her eyes, so he held up his hand. "Not now, necessarily, but at some point. You sound like you have a lot of questions to ask them, and I don't think you want something like this to end your relationships. But you're going to have to be honest with yourself and them before it'll work."

She deflated, shoulders falling forward as she nodded. "Yeah. You… I really hate it, but you're right. I just…"

"When you're ready," he insisted, though that probably wasn't something someone could really be ready for. At least not at thirteen.

She still nodded. "Yeah. I… um. Thanks." She shot him a watery smile.

He returned it with one of his own before realizing how close they'd gotten. Now would probably be a very good time to retreat and leave her to her thoughts, no matter how much he wanted to hold her while she thought.

I'm older than her, he insisted. The power dynamic there was not fair or equal in any right. She didn't want to even try, and that was her choice, and he would respect it. Even if it nearly killed him every time he had to remind himself of that.

A swim would probably be good right now. Yes. He could get to know the surroundings. Again. It may be different now than in the future. A great idea. And maybe he could take Tyson and answer any of the cyclops' questions.

"How about you think about it," he said as he stepped away. "That is what you're good at, after all, isn't it?"

She snorted, but looked far better than she had before. "Yeah."

"Great," he said, forcing another smile. "Hey Ty, buddy! How about we go swimming?" The dryads and naiads hadn't been big in Ancient Rome as far as he knew, and they likely wouldn't run into many here, but they could see what was actually in the lake. He'd never really bothered with it in the future, so this was something new for him.

"Really?" Tyson asked as he looked up, eye lighting up.

"Yeah," Percy grinned. "Let's go."

"Okay!" He got to his feet and hurried over to Percy, who opened the door.

Tyson frowned. "What about… Annie Beth?"

"Annabeth," Percy and Annabeth said simultaneously. Percy smiled at her, but once again, she just looked away. He ignored the stab through his heart. "And she needs some time to herself, okay big guy?"

Tyson thought about that for a moment before nodding. Then he turned and waved at Annabeth.

"See you later, Annie Beth."

"AnnAbeth," she reiterated. Percy just sighed. He'd get it eventually.

Percy closed the door behind them, letting Tyson go first, and then leaped onto the dock.

"Hey, guys!" Percy yelled. The two guards at the front of the pier turned around. "We're gonna go swimming, okay?"

Before they could give him a yay or nay, he ran back onto the boat, flew past Tyson, and dived over the railing.

"Come on!" he yelled before he hit the water. Then he turned and waited for his brother. Just a couple of seconds later, Tyson joined him. Percy grinned.

"Let's go!" he said, swimming downward. Tyson laughed and followed.

Percy tried not to think about going back to the boat, where he'd be staying with Annabeth. They each had their own room, but they weren't large. And had been situated right next to each other. Percy sighed. This would be harder than he'd initially thought, but was probably something he really needed, just so he could work on reiterating that this was not his wife. (Some days he REALLY wished his brain would get the memo. Or, more probably, his heart.)

That didn't mean it would be painless.

xXx

AN: *He had to have a name, but the wiki didn't give one. *shrug* I've heard this one in the US today, so it's the one I chose. No other reason. LOL

Also, to make it clear, I want to point out that Percy still loves HIS Annabeth, and while he knows in his head this isn't her, seeing his wife's face every time he looks at her won't make it easy, nor will it be something he just gets over. He's TRYING. And that's kind of the point. People often can't help what they feel, at least not initially. What someone can help is how they feed that thought/feeling and how they react to it. People can change–thought processes, habits, and beliefs. One of the biggest lies in this world I've come across is the idea that people don't change, or can't. They can, just… usually not in the way you want them to. I've seen people able to change their thought process, but it takes a lot of time and effort, which is something I wanted to show here. I really despise when people just write a change and then the character's different and everything's good! That's not how life goes and I find it very unrelatable.

So yeah.

Still working on getting Hubby home, but he has new exercises that seem to be really helping him and is working with his coordination much better than before. Still not enough where he can stand on his own (let alone walk) but I'll take what progress we get!

Thank you so much for your continued support!

Also, thanks to my beta readers and specific supporters: Srinikha, Snow, Asterius Daemon, Shadow Slayer, Starlight3, The Chromancer, Fiah, Pan_theytic_idiot, aaron E., Rayanne E., Splashbear, Shelby A., Rodger44777, and Quathis for their help on this!

Check out my discord for a link (#announcements or #Obis-podfics-and-youtube) to my youtube and my original book on Amazon! I'm open to suggestions as to where else besides Amazon it would be good to sell. Any thoughts?

Discord: www. discord. gg/xDDz3gqWfy (no spaces)