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dyde21 · 7 years

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Seventeen Going on Seven

This is partially dedicated to @solbabydraws who I promised to post this story for a few days ago. Also cause they’re a wonderful, beautiful, supportive person. Enjoy! Fair warning, it’s pretty long.

XxXxXxXxX

Percy ducked as deadly credit cards sped through the air just above his head, sticking out of the concrete like tiny daggers.

“Where are you going? Our sales are to die for!” The womanly snarl came out.

Rolling his eyes, Percy rolled to the left as another set of cards whizzed past him. The jokes had stopped being funny about five minutes into running for his life. “A little help here!” He called out, though he knew the rest of their gang were busy with their own saleswomen.

“A little busy!” Jason called out, deflecting a bronze umbrella, that opened to a fan of knives.

“Next time, we're just ordering online! I'm done shopping!” Leo called out as he ducked behind a trashcan as the woman ran past him.

Spinning in place, Percy swiped another set of cards out of the air. They couldn't keep running, eventually the monsters would catch up. He dashed forward, ducking a swing from her claws as he cut off one of her legs. The monster flailed, but Percy stabbed downwards and finished off the beast. Looking for who else could use help, he spotted a cloud of dust around an invisible figure running away, being chased by another saleswoman holding multiple vials in their hands. Percy figured Annabeth had been hit by something, so even her cap wasn't letting her hide to find an opportunity.

Ripping a trashcan lid off a nearby bin, he hurled it towards the saleswoman.

Before he could celebrate however, the woman just reached up and caught it. “I'm with a customer right now, please wait your turn.” She said in a sickeningly sweet tone, before she flexed her hand and bent the metal like it was paper.

That had been the distraction Annabeth had needed, as she had turned and stabbed the woman in the gut before jumping backwards as the saleswoman flailed with her claws. Quickly making her way to Percy, Annabeth just grinned, removing her hat. “Thanks for the help, Seaweed Brain.”

Smirking, Percy was about to reply when he saw the lady raise her hands with the vials. Throwing one, Percy barely had time to shove Annabeth out of the way as it collided with the pavement, a sickly green ooze appearing and beginning it melt through the ground.

Annabeth staggered, off balance from the sudden shove, but before she could regain her balance she saw another one heading straight towards her. Desperate, she raised her hands but it would be too late. At least until she saw Percy dive in front of her, arms wide, as the vial of liquid exploded across his back.

Annabeth shrieked, expecting to see her boyfriend melting, but nothing was happening.

Even the saleswoman looked stunned. “Oh, wrong vial! Dammit! Now this time I'll...” She never got to finish her sentence as Jason's sword lopped off her head, leaving her dissolving into dust.

The rest of the crew ran over as Percy dropped to his knees.

Kneeling in front of him, Annabeth held his face in her hands gently. “Percy, look at me. Is everything okay? What are you feeling?”

Percy just stared at her, confused. “I don't know. I feel strange... I... I feel fine mostly though. Nothing hurts.”

Hazel frowned. “There's no way that vial was just water. Something... something is on you. Probably a potion, but we have no way of knowing what it could have been.”

Annabeth frowned, her mind racing a million miles a minute. What could it be? Judging by Percy's expression, he felt normal. Which was bad, that meant whatever it was would be subtle. “Take off your shirt Percy.” She ordered.

Percy raised an eyebrow as Hazel flushed, looking away. “Excuse me?” The son of poseidon said after a moment.

Annabeth however was already lifting his hoodie off of him, tugging at his shirt. She ignored the red creeping in her cheeks. “We don't know what potion hit you, but it's still on your shirt and hoodie. You can't leave those on in case it's dangerous. It could be explosive for all we know.”

That did the trick as Percy quickly stripped off his shirt, throwing it in a nearby trash can.

Piper snickered as she saw Annabeth eyeing Percy's chest with a look she was probably unaware she had on. Nudging her boyfriend, she convinced Jason to give Percy his jacket for the trip home. She figured Hazel would be less uncomfortable that way, and Annabeth wouldn't be as distracted.

Annabeth held Percy's hand as they walked back, cautiously studying him, looking for any idea of what effect the potion could have had. “I'm sorry.” She muttered softly to him.

Shaking his head, Percy smiled. “It's not your fault. It's a good thing we stopped them.”

The crew of the Argo II had decided to meet up to get some lunch. Even Reyna had joined them, since the leaders of both the Greek and roman camps had decided to meet up regularly in order to stay in contact, and maintain relationships to avoid future conflict the best they could. On the way, Annabeth had happened to notice some monsters sneaking off down an alley. Annabeth had said they should follow them, since gathering monsters usually meant some sort of problem that would try to kill them eventually. Reyna had agreed, and their course had been decided.

There they had found a backstreet market for monsters. All sorts of knick-knacks, potions, and spare weapons were sold there, along with fresh hot dogs. Everything a monster could need to slay some demi-gods. Figuring they couldn't leave it alone, they had launched a surprise attack on the small stand, destroying it. It turned out the owners weren't too happy with having their shop destroyed, so they had struck back.

Annabeth just stayed quiet, still studying him. “When we get back to camp, you're going straight to Chiron. We need to figure out what hit you. Maybe a hectate kid can help you too.”

Nodding his head, Percy smiled weakly. “Okay, mom.” He said with a small laugh.

Pouting, Annabeth wanted to call him out but she figured that having her boyfriend not freaking out about being splashed with some dangerous liquid was probably better than the alternative.

By the time the crew had managed to make it back to the camp, night was already falling. Percy had gone to Chiron to be checked out, by they hadn't been able to make heads or tails of what had hit Percy. Will had also confirmed that Percy still seemed to be in perfect health. That meant one of two things. Either the potion was harmless, it could have been a dud or just not affected him for some reason. Or that whatever it was had a specific trigger or a time delay.

Annabeth was terrified of the later, and refused to let Percy fall asleep. It had taken him convincing her for an hour that it was safe for him to sleep, that she could check on him in the morning. He had explained that he had absolute faith that Annabeth would have been able to handle any problems that could arise. He trusted her with his life.

They had kissed goodnight, with Annabeth threatening him that if anything happened to him while she slept she would never forgive her boyfriend.

After setting an early alarm, Annabeth finally headed to bed. She would wake up early and check on him. She wanted to stay up, but she knew that she had to get some sleep herself. She was exhausted, and if she didn't properly sleep she could miss something tomorrow if a problem did show itself.

XxXxXxXxX

In the cold morning, Annabeth hugged her arms close to herself as she padded across the camp softly. Her nerves were racing, but she needed to stay calm. She knew not to worry, Percy would be sleeping in his mess of a bed as usual, no big deal. As she crossed the camp, there were only a few campers up by this time. Some getting in some morning training, others looking for an early breakfast.

Annabeth side stepped a little boy who seemed lost. He was wearing a large camp half blood T-shirt a few sizes too big for him, and his shorts drooped past his knees. Annabeth figured he must have been a new camper, someone found young. It reminded her of herself when she first got here. Shaking her head, she pushed those memories from her mind. She could check on the kid later, she had to make sure her boyfriend was okay first.

Approaching his cabin, she knocked on the door but was surprise when it had swung open. His bed was empty, the seats thrown aside like he had gotten up normally. But his cabin was empty. Immediately Annabeth's heart kicked into overdrive. He could NOT be missing again. She would tear down Olympus herself if her boyfriend was missing. She was not going through that ordeal ever again. She began sprinting around the camp, looking for any sign of him. As she crossed back across the cabins, she saw the little boy from earlier crying on the ground. He sat on the ground, wiping away tears as he wailed.

Annabeth paused. She wanted to keep searching for her boyfriend, but the little boy was tugging at her maternal heartstrings. She couldn't just ignore a child's tears, especially if Percy just happened to be safe somewhere else in camp. There was plenty of places she hadn't checked yet.

With a sigh, she plastered on a smile as she stopped and knelt down, getting eye level with the little kid.

“Hey, is everything all right?” She asked gently. “What cabin are you from?” She asked, looking him over to try and find any sign of his parentage. Once she found his cabin, others could take care of him while she looked for her boyfriend.

He just sniffled. “I don't know. I want my mommy.”

Annabeth frowned, but she noticed his necklace and her blood turned to ice. There were far too many beads for a child his age. What was worse was she noticed a charm that only one camper had. A gift she had made herself.

“What's your name?” She asked, dreading the answer.

“P-Percy Jackson.” The boy answered, still wiping away tears.

Annabeth's stomach knotted. This wasn't good. This was not good at all. Her boyfriend was a child. A kid. Her blood had already turned to ice, but another, almost scarier thought crept into her mind.

“D... do you know who I am?” She asked gently.

The boy looked at her , frowning. “I... I don't...” He paused. “Annie?”

Annabeth raised an eyebrow. Normally she hated people calling her that, but considering his state she could give him a pass. “Annabeth.” Her heart was soaring at the fact he remembered her. That meant not everything was gone. Whatever had changed him hadn't completely removed who he was.

“Here, let's go see Mr. Chiron, okay?” She said gently, offering a hand. Her hero of a boyfriend was currently a little child. She was in way over her head.

Percy stepped back, pouting and shaking his head. “No! I wanna see my mom!”

“Percy...” Annabeth felt her heart breaking. He looked just like a lost little kid looking for his mom. He was a lost little kid looking for his mom.

“I want my mom!” He said, backing up a little more, looking like he was about to take off into a sprint. “I'm not supposed to talk to strangers... but I know you.” He said, looking confused if he couldn't decide if he remembered her or not.

Annabeth frowned, unsure of how to deal with this. She was never the best with kids, though she had decent practice from her years at the camp. “Okay, let's go see your mom, okay?” She said after a moment, a plan forming in her mind.

Percy nodded, taking the hand Annabeth had offered him.

Gently leading him along, she lead him to one of the fountains. Tossing in a Drachma, she spoke quickly. “Sally Jackson.” She said after her prayer to Iris.

The mist shimmered, before the image of Sally flickered into existence. Luckily she was already up, and was doing some dishes in the morning.

Looking up, Sally smiled at seeing Annabeth. “Well hello there dear. Is everything okay?” She asked, turning off the faucet and drying her hands.

“Hello Sally. Uh... I need you to not freak out. Everything is fine, mostly. But I'm going to need your help here...”

Before she could explain further, Percy had stepped forward, reaching towards the mist. “Mom!” He called out.

Sally's expression turned to surprise, a look of fear crossing her face for just a moment, before Annabeth saw her put on a sweet smile. “Hello Percy, is everything okay?”

Percy just shook his head, balling up his fists. “I want to go home. I don't like it here. I miss you! I want food!” He began to complain, shaking as if he was going to start crying again.

Sally looked like she wanted to take him into her arms. “Shh... honey. It's okay.” Her voice caught in her throat a bit, as she cast a worry glance over to Annabeth. “Percy, mommy is a little far away right now, okay? Now I need you to be a good boy, and listen to Annabeth. She's going to take care of you today. If you behave, I'll even let her give you some cookies, okay?” Sally reasoned.

Percy's eyes widened as a toothy grin formed on his face. “Okay! But they have to be blue!”

Sally smiled, tears threatening the corners of her eyes. “Of course.”

Annabeth stepped forward. “Thank you Sally, I swear to you on the river Styx, we will get him back to normal.”

Sally just nodded her head. “I know you will. Just... keep him safe will you? I know he can be a bit of a handful at that age, but he's a good kid. I promise you.” She said, trying to stay strong after seeing her child forced to such a young age again.

Annabeth smiled softly. “Don't worry, I'm used to dealing with him.”

Sally just laughed. “I know. Keep me updated, okay? Tell him to call me when he is back to normal so I can see it with my own eyes.” Annabeth nodded. “Oh and... take some pictures? I didn't get to take too many while Gabe was around. It's not the same but...” She trailed off, a playful smile on her face.

Laughing, Annabeth nodded. “Okay.”

Sally thought for a moment, noticing the image starting to fade. “If nothing is working try singing!” She called out at the end, just before the image cut out.

Annabeth froze, she wasn't exactly the best singer. Hopefully that wouldn't come up.

“Come on Percy, let's go see Chiron then we can get you some breakfast, okay?” She said, holding out her hand.

Percy stared at her a moment, debating, before he nodded and took her hand, letting her lead him across the camp.

A few minutes later and Chiron was kneeling down on his front legs, looking at Percy who seemed to think Chiron was the coolest thing. He glanced over at Annabeth. “So it seems we found out the effects of the potion.” He said wryly.

Annabeth had her heads in her hands. “Not the worst thing that could have happened, but we need to fix him. I can't be dating a 7 year old.” She said, her tone dripping with concern for Percy. She wanted nothing more than to find a way to cure him.

Chiron offered a small smile. “Certainly not the worst outcome. It seems it was a potion that regressed his age, but his health seems to be perfectly fine. Though his memories seem shaky. He remembered you, but not I nor most of the camp. I fear if we leave him like this for too long he may not regain them all. I'll consult my texts and see what I can come up with to reverse it. For now... supervise him today, will you? You're free from your duties, so just babysit him please. While we have plenty of young campers, I don't feel comfortable treating him like others. Both due to his popularity, and his habit of finding trouble.”

Annabeth nodded. “I'm on it.” She glanced over at Percy, who was currently wandering over towards one of the ornamental spears in the house. Her eyes widened as she rushed over, scooping him up into her arms. Today was going to be a long day, she just knew it.

Chiron just shook his head. “Good luck.”

Percy just looked up at Annabeth, flashing her a spotted grin.

Annabeth nearly squealed with how cute he looked. “Let's go get some food, okay?”

Percy threw his arms up in a cheer. “Yay! I want pancakes!”

Annabeth just laughed, walking out with him in her arms.

About half an hour later, Percy sat happily in Annabeth's lap. The benches were a little low, so he sat on her lap so he could eat comfortably. She just gently played with his hair, watching him with an amused smirk as he made a mess with his blueberry blue pancakes. He also had blue milk to wash it down with. He seemed to be in heaven.

Originally Annabeth had considered trying to hide Percy's... change, but she knew that she wouldn't have been able to keep up the con for long. Too many people knew him and would look for him if he just vanished suddenly. Especially if Annabeth was gone as well. So instead, she decided to weather the storm, though she put up with zero crap from anyone about it. If her boyfriend was stuck as a child, she was going to spoil him until they could fix it.

They had only ate at his table for a little while before the rest of the crew had shown up. Piper had been first, curious as to who the child Annabeth had been eating with was. Her jaw had dropped when she had seen Percy, beginning to freak out before Annabeth could explain. Soon Piper had calmed down as well. She was instantly on board with the idea of spoiling him. At least after being reassured that Percy was in fact okay, and they were working on a way to reverse it. She had taken her seat across from Annabeth, watching Percy with an amused smile.

Jason had been the next to show up, following his girlfriend. Any amusement that may have come with seeing Percy as a kid was drowned out by concern for him at first. Annabeth had assured him as soon Jason was also mildly amused by Percy, at least until Piper started commenting that she wish she could see Jason as a kid.

Not long after, Frank and Hazel had shown up. Frank had been too shocked to properly speak, while Hazel had reacted similarly to Jason. Soon though, she had moved over with a napkin and cleaned up the mess Percy was making with a gentle smile.

Leo had been the last to show up, having slept in late. He took it in stride the best, already getting a dangerous glint in his eyes. “Oh man, I have the best toys for him back in my cabin.” Before Annabeth could protest, Leo had already run off, cackling, leaving Calypso who pretty much reacted like Hazel, beginning to mother Percy.

Piper had taken Percy into her lap so Annabeth could get her own breakfast.

They had all tried to gauge how much of each of them Percy remembered, and were amused by the results.

He called Piper “the pretty lady”, and was rather attached to her. Jason he had quickly announced that he didn't like and called him “Stupid.” This caused Jason to gasp in shock as Piper burst out into uncontrolled laughter.

He called Hazel “Hazy”, and just kept calling Frank cool. He liked them a lot.

When Leo had returned, Percy had remembered his name, but was much more fascinated by the fact he had two new actions figures to play with, ones that would actually beat up each other on their own.

He referred to Calypso as Cally the entire time, and just said she smelled nice and reminded him of his mom.

Eventually Annabeth had finished her breakfast, pouting slightly with all the attention Percy was giving the others while he didn't seem to remember her. “You still remember me, right?” She asked, attempting to hide the hurt in her voice.

Percy had just climbed in her lap, giving her that toothy grin. “You're annabee... annabe... Annabeth! I remember that you're the best of them all.” He said with a snicker.

Annabeth just grinned. “Good answer. Now let's go play.” She said, helping him up as she took his hand and began to lead him towards the beach. She figured she needed to keep him as far away as she could front the archery range, lava wall, and the arena. With his luck, too much could go wrong.

They had decided to take shifts in baby sitting him, letting the others either try to help Chiron come up with a cure, or attend to their various duties throughout the day.

Piper and Jason had decided to take the first shift. Piper was chatting with him in the nearby field, teaching him to make flower crowns while Jason helped. Itching to get some practice in, Jason had moved off to the side to practice his sword play. This of course immediately drew Percy's attention.

Piper glared at her boyfriend as she held Percy's shoulders. They couldn't let him use a real sword, and they were just glad he hadn't realized he had one in his pocket. Eventually after a few tears from Percy, and some quick thinking, Jason had managed to find two wooden practice swords.

Of course Jason just blocked Percy's attack, but apparently losing ten years hadn't done much to curb his enthusiasm. The little boy had been swinging with all his strength, and had no qualms about bruising the hell out of Jason's legs. Eventually Jason had taken the dive and let Percy “defeat” him. Percy stood with one foot on Jason's chest, holding his wooden sword up. Piper of course had taken a picture and clapped her hands. She had made sure to get a camera from Leo right away, there was no way this was going to pass without evidence.

Eventually though their shift ended, and Frank and Hazel had tagged in. Frank had shown him his ability to change into animals, which instantly made him Percy's new favorite boy. Hazel had just laughed, before she had an idea. She quickly made her way across the camp, leaving Percy to continue his piggy back ride on a bear. Normally a poor choice for someone in charge a kid to make, but Frank was responsible.

A few minutes she had returned, a redhead in tow.

“Oh my gods. It's true.” Rachel had said suddenly. Without hesitation she ran over, lifting up Percy and swinging him in a circle. Percy just giggled and cheered, happy.

Setting him down, she giggled as he wandered around dizzy.

Meanwhile Hazel had finished setting up what she had brought. She had gotten some large pads of paper, and a punch of paint from Rachel. Immediately Percy's eyes widened and ran over, eager to start painting. He was about to start, when he paused and set down the brush. He stood up, holding his hands together as he looked up at Rachel and Hazel with large pleading eyes. “Is it okay if I use your colors and paint?” He asked politely. “My mom says I'm supposed to ask first.”

Rachel and Hazel just melted into maternal jellies. “Of course.” Rachel managed to say, laughing as she saw Percy's eyes light up like it was Christmas. He quickly gave both her and Hazel a hug before he settled down and started painting. He was chaotic, but having a blast. He even had Frank change into a few animals for him to paint a portrait of, which Frank was willing to oblige.

Rachel and Hazel settled down, chatting happily about how cute Percy was being while they worked on their own art.

A little while passed, and Leo showed up, dragging a rather large bag behind him. Percy had made an absolute mess, and had spots of paint all over his clothes and cheeks.

At the sight of the bag, Frank had stood up and moved in front of Percy, just to be safe.

Leo waved him off. “Relax, these are safe. I'm dealing with a kid after all.”

Squatting down, he grinned at Percy. “Do you wanna see the coolest toys?”

Once again Percy's eyes widened, nodding eagerly.

Leo just grinned and let out a whistle. The bag opened up and a small army of toys began marching out in a line, one at a time. Percy gasped with each one. “Those are so cool!”

Leo grinned. “I know right?”

Hazel paused. “Did you make all those today? You only found out about Percy being a kid a few hours ago...”

Leo rubbed the back of his neck. “Uhh... I may have been working on these for a while.” Hazel just shook her head with a small smile. Percy knelt down, looking at them. “Can I play with them?” He asked.

Calypso just walked up, smiling. “He's surprisingly well behaved.”

Leo nodded. “Go wild! But check this out. Number 1, kick number 2!” The small figures hummed with life as one of them walked over and planted a kick in the chest of another, knocking it onto the ground.

Percy practically exploded with happiness. Immediately Percy had divide out the figurines between Leo and himself as they started shouting commands, getting the two sets of robots to fight each other.

Joining Hazel and Rachel, Calypso sat down with a smile watching Percy.

“It seemed he was much better behaved back when he still listened to his mom.” Piper remarked with a laugh. Calypso and Hazel both laughed as they watched the boys play. Before long, even Frank had gotten involved, being drawn in at the idea of commanding an army.

They continued to fight, calling out commands. Eventually though, one figure took two many hits and when it was punched, exploded into smaller gears and sprayed some oil around.

Immediately Percy burst out into tears, wailing. In a heart beat, Piper had closed the distance and wrapped him up in a tight hug. “Shh it's okay honey.”

Percy just continued to cry, before looking at Leo. “I-I-I'm S-Sorry!” He choked out between sobs.

Leo was just staring wide eyed. He wasn't the best at dealing with crying kids. “It's fine! I can fix it. They were made to get broken after a while.”

Percy slowly stopped crying, sniffling. “R-Really? You aren't mad?”

Leo nodded, grinning. “This is a battle right? The robots are going to break, don't worry about it. I'll fix them up tonight and they'll be just like new!”

Percy wiped away some tears. He was quiet for a moment, making them all pause. “3! Kick 5 in the face!” Soon the battle had started up again, every once in a while a figurine breaking.

Piper had moved back to Rachel and Calypso. The girls were giggling at Percy's joyous expression once again.

After a few moments though, Piper's smile faded. “They can fix him, right? Like, don't get me wrong. Percy is super cute as a kid, but I miss his normal laugh. Plus I don't think I can handle baby sitting duty for years.”

Rachel and Hazel's faces both turned more somber. “Chiron will find a way. Magic made him younger, that means there's a way to reverse it.” Hazel explained.

Just then Annabeth had walked up. “It's lunch time.” She told everyone, looking over Percy carefully. He still seemed fine, which caused her to let out a sigh of relief. In truth, she didn't want to leave his side at all, but she knew the best thing she could do was to help Chiron with research.

Percy stood up and rushed over. “Annabeth! You missed it! Pipes made me a crown! Then I beat up Jason!” This caused a smirk to play at her lips. Even as a kid, it seemed Percy didn't change much. “Then Frank turned into a massive dog!”

“Bear.” Hazel chimed in helpfully.

“Then Hazy brought back Ra... raa...Red! She brought over Red who let me paint! Then Leo showed his toys! They are SO COOL! They can kick and everything!” He continued to rattle off.

Annabeth just patted his hair. “That sounds like you had fun.”

Percy nodded. “But I missed you.”

Annabeth looked away, blushing slightly as Piper and Calypso burst out into giggles at her expression.

Finally noticing his state, she frowned. “You're all messy.” She said, shooting an accusing look at Rachel and Leo, who both shrunk away slightly.

This time Calypso stood up, walking over and grabbing Percy's hand. “Come on, let's go get cleaned up then we can some lunch, okay?”

“Okay!” He said happily as he followed Calypso back towards camp.

“Any progress?” Piper asked Annabeth carefully, noticing the blonde's worried gaze at Percy's retreating form.

Annabeth nodded. “We found a promising lead. It's out of my understanding so Chiron is trying to follow it. Thanks for watching him, he can't sit still as a teen, I doubt he could sit in a library as a kid.”

She paused, before snapping. “That reminds me.” She quickly made her way over towards Percy's cabin, pulling out a coin. Tossing it into the fountain she offered a prayer to Iris.

“Thalia Grace please.”

After a moment the mist shimmered and revealed a raven haired girl packing up a tent.

Thalia noticed Annabeth and grinned. “Hey Annabeth, what's up?”

Annabeth's shoulders drooped as her gaze fell. A heavy sigh escaped her as she felt the tough facade she had been keeping up starting to crack.

Immediately Thalia's grin shifted to a look of concern as she dropped her pack, focusing solely on Annabeth. “What's wrong? Did you have a fight with Percy? Did he-”

Quickly shaking her head, Annabeth took another breath.

“We didn't have a fight... but it is Percy.” She said. She paused for a moment. “I need your help.”

Thalia nodded. “Of course. Now will you tell me what's going on?”

Annabeth nodded. “Well, you see we kinda ran into these monsters. They were having a garage sale or something...”

Thalia quirked an eyebrow.

“Anyway, one of them threw a potion at me, but Percy just had to be a hero and jumped in front.”

Immediately Thalia tensed. “Is he okay?” She asked quickly. She turned her head, barking an order at some other hunters.

Annabeth's gaze dropped. “Physically... mostly. He's... he's turned into a kid.” She spit out.

Thalia staggered, clearly not expecting that sentence. Her gaze rapidly shifted between amused and concerned, before settling on some mix of the two. “He's a kid?”

Annabeth nodded. “Like 7 years old.”

“So not much changed?” Thalia said with a grin.

Annabeth's eyes snapped to her adoptive sister's, glaring at her. “This isn't funny! I'm so worried. What if we can't fix it? What if he's stuck? All because I was too slow to rea-”

“Annabeth!” Thalia interrupted loudly, snapping her out of her spiral. “I'm sorry, I know this isn't a joke. Trust me, I want to help him too. However I can. What can I do, I know you called for a reason.”

Annabeth nodded, running a hand through her hair. “Chiron has an idea of something that might work. But he needs a certain ingredient, a rare rabbit that is in the area... I remember hearing you guys were close. You are hunters after all... I was hoping maybe...”

Thalia just grinned. “No worries, we got this. Artemis just left off for some important meeting, leaving us on break for a little. I was actually thinking about swinging by so I'm in the area. Now describe this rabbit to me again?”

Annabeth quickly went through the description Chiron had given her.

Thalia nodded. “That's what I thought. I know exactly what you are talking about. I'll snag one over and be there in a few hours.”

Annabeth let out a shaky breath of relief. “Thank you Thalia... seriously. I just...”

Grinning, the punk hunter just offered the blonde a warm smile. “Hey, it's okay. We'll fix this. I'll bring you this rabbit and we'll get whatever else Chiron needs. Now I need to go, have fun baby sitting!” Thalia called out before moving a hand through the message, ending it.

Feeling a new surge of confidence, Annabeth moved back towards the dining hall.

This time she saw Percy sitting on Calypso's lap while chewing on a sandwich. When Annabeth showed up his eyes lit up and he quickly hopped down, running over and giving her a bit hug.

Smirking, Annabeth pat his head gently, unable to return the hug since he was wrapped around her legs. “I missed you too. Now finish your lunch, okay?”

Percy nodded, quickly running back and clambering onto Calypso to eat again.

Annabeth sat down next to him, dropping her head into her arms with a small sigh. She found Percy absolutely adorable as a kid, but the more time that passed, the more she missed his more mature goofy smirk. She just wanted her seaweed brain back.

Gently moving over, Piper rubbed Annabeth's back reassuringly.

Lunch came and went, and soon Percy was running through the camp again, fascinated by all the cool “toys.” Leo had to personally steer him away from the rock wall, explaining that Annabeth would throw him into the lava if he so much as let Percy break a sweat from the heat of it.

Not watching where he was going, a few minutes later the boy crashed into the legs of someone, bouncing off and landing on his butt. He sniffled once, holding up his scratched hands. It was clear he was trying not to cry.

In a moment Annabeth had swooped to his side, gently brushing dirt off his hands.

“Watch it ki- Oh, Percy? I heard what had happened.” Clarisse's voice rang out, a teasing lilt in it.

“Not today, La Rue.” Annabeth warned.

Clarisse just laughed. “What? I heard he's fine. He's just finally acting more like his age. It seems appropriate.”

Annabeth stood up, her fists clenching as her hand inched towards the dagger she had on her belt.

Clarisse stared at him for a moment longer, before sighing. “Just... let me know if I can help, okay? It... wouldn't be fun pulverizing him as a kid.”

This disarmed Annabeth. She nodded, surprised. “Okay.”

Just huffing, the daughter of Ares walked back towards her cabin.

Annabeth watched her, tilting her head. Had she actually come to check on Percy?

“So It's true.” Another voice rang out, causing Annabeth to turn around. “Percy really is a child again.” Reyna said, a curious brow raised.

Annabeth ran a hand through her hair again. “Yeah. We're trying to fix that.”

Reyna frowned, crossing her arms as she looked at Percy. “You shouldn't run around camp, you could get hurt, you know? You should behave yourself and stay quiet so they can help you.”

Percy ducked his head, stepping behind Annabeth and hiding behind her, peaking around her legs.

Annabeth rested a hand on his head, gently playing with his hair. She shot a mild glare at Reyna. “You're scaring him, you don't need to be so strict with him. He doesn't know better.” She defended him.

Reyna raised an eyebrow. “And you're babying him. He should be better behaved than that at least. I saw him running all across camp. There are too many dangers here for a kid to be running around. Even campers his age are better behaved.”

Annabeth's eyes narrowed slightly. “They also have had the opportunity to learn what it's like at this camp. From what I can tell, he's still used to living at home with his mom. This is probably like a normal summer camp to him.”

Reyna just rolled her eyes. “You're too soft with him.” She paused for a moment, glancing down at the boy staring at her terrified behind the blonde. Realizing he was making eye contact with Reyna, he quickly let out a small eek before hiding behind Annabeth again. Reyna frowned, before squatting down.

“Hey, I'm sorry for scaring you. Would you like a lollipop?” She said, producing a sucker she had grabbed from the camp store. Strict or not, Percy was still her friend and she was worried about him in such a state. She did want to help him after all. He had done so much for the world, he didn't deserve this.

Percy paused, looking up at Annabeth confused. Seeing her nod with a smile, Percy quickly stepped out from behind her and walked over to Reyna slowly reaching out and grabbing it. He grinned at the blue color as he took off the wrapper. After a moment he had paused, just before it was in his mouth.

“Thank you Reyna.” He said politely before popping it in his mouth. Reyna grinned, messing up his hair a little before standing up.

Annabeth grinned at her approvingly, before placing her hand on Percy's back and leading him back towards the beach. Looking over her shoulder at Reyna, she grinned. “We're having a picnic on the beach. Join us.” She said, not really leaving room for discussion.

Reyna opened her mouth to protest but found Annabeth already walking away, leading Percy along. Letting out a sigh, she adjusted her hair before following behind Annabeth.

When Reyna caught up with Annabeth after changing, she saw Percy already playing in the surf near the water's edge. Hazel had laid out a large blanket while Frank, Jason, and Piper were all setting out food they had gotten from the pavilion. Annabeth stood on the edge of the surf, fidgeting nervously with the hem of her shirt she wore over her swimsuit. Idly, some part of Reyna's mind registered the fact that shirt was too large to be hers and was probably one of Percy's.

Leo was off to the side, assembling something that was looking suspiciously like an ice cream machine, and she even saw Will and Nico off to the side, resting in the shade of the nearby trees. They were chatting happily, bringing a small smile to Reyna's face. She had come to appreciate any time she could see a smile on the boy's face after all they went through. Opting to take a seat near Frank and Hazel, she watched Piper stand up, an amused smirk shot towards Annabeth.

Piper quickly made her way over to Annabeth with a wry smile. “Indecisive?”

Annabeth jumped slightly, having been too lost in her own thoughts to properly register Piper's approach. “Piper!” She squeaked out, before shaking her head. “I'm just not sure how safe I need to be with him. He has no idea he can control water, but I doubt his father would let him drown. He wants to play in the water, but I'm scared if I let him out of my sight he's going to end up playing at the bottom of the sea and we'd never be able to get him back.” She explained with a frustrated sigh. The only thing that could make her worry about her seaweed brain more, would be if he lost control of his powers. Normally she knew he was powerful enough to find a way out of any situation, but she couldn't even count on that anymore.

Shaking her head, Piper threw an arm over Annabeth's shoulder. “Relax. It's just a kid playing on the beach. I'm sure the water will still behave for him, and the Naiads wouldn't let anything happen to him.”

Annabeth looked at Piper, before slowly nodding. “You're probably right.”

“Of course I am.” Piper said with a snicker. It was amusing that the one thing that could cause the level-headed, always prepared Annabeth to get flustered was her boyfriend. Love truly was a scary thing. “See? They're looking out for hi-” Piper started out gesturing towards the Naiads who were approaching the little Percy with a smile. She was cut off as one of them quickly grabbed Percy, before yanking him deep into the water. Both Piper and Annabeth stood next to each other, jaws dropped.

“Surely they're just playing, right?” Piper asked with a nervous chuckle.

There was the sound of scrambling as Jason stumbled up to them. “Was that Percy? Did he just get pulled to the bottom of the sea? Can he even breathe underwater right now?”

Annabeth's hand fluttered around her body, looking for any sort of knife. “That's it. I'm killing them. I'm killing every Naiad in this entire lake.”

Piper was suddenly grateful bikini's were devoid of many opportunities to stash weapons, as she wasn't sure Annabeth needed a weapon on her until they figured out what was happening with Percy.

“Fra-” Annabeth started, pausing as she saw the large boy sprinting down the beach. Getting as far as he could on two feet, she saw him jump before changing mid air into a dolphin. Just as he was about to dive under, the water in the lake exploded upwards.

Annabeth nearly collapsed in relief as she saw Percy laughing and smiling, holding onto a harness as he rode a sea creature. It was fine. The Naiads had just given him a ride on... a...

“Is he on a shark?” Leo asked, raising his goggles and looking up.

Annabeth felt her blood turn to ice again. “They put a child on a shark.” She stormed over to Leo, holding out her hand. “Give me the sharpest thing you have on you. We're having seafood tonight.” She muttered, expectantly.

Leo backed up, raising his hands. “I'm not sure you should be around anything sharp, and that's coming from me.”

Piper quickly made her way over to Annabeth, resting a hand on her friends shoulder as she let a little charm speak slip into her words. “Relax, Annabeth. They're just playing. Percy is having fun and they aren't putting him in any serious danger.” Piper felt a tad guilty on using her powers on Annabeth, but she knew that Annabeth wasn't thinking clearly due to the day she's been having, and she was also pretty sure Chiron wouldn't appreciate a war between demigods and Naiads. Nor would Percy's father for that matter.

Annabeth glared at Piper for a moment. “It's a shark! And don't charm speak me.” She snapped, before she sighed and dropped her shoulders. “Fine. But we're getting him off a shark. I'm not dealing with that today.”

Piper nodded, turning back to see Frank already letting Percy climb on his back as a dolphin, squeaking happily as he began to drag Percy around the lake.

Placing both her hands on Annabeth's shoulders, Piper shoved her back towards the blanket. “Now you need to sit down, have a sandwich, and just relax.”

Annabeth grumbled a bit, but listened to her friend, finally taking a seat. Percy was in Frank's hands, and he was responsible. The blonde had barely sat for a few seconds before she found a plate with sandwiches and chips being placed with her hands, a reassuring smile from Hazel helping ease her nerves.

Annabeth let herself be distracted by the ebb and flow of the conversation, her eyes still practically scanning Percy every few seconds. She still didn't trust the naiads, but Frank was on duty and Annabeth trusted him. He was too big of a softie to put him in any danger. Plus, he had that whole descendant of the sea god thing going on for him too. The water was his terrain.

Eventually Hazel flagged down Frank, telling him to get some food himself too.

Frank swam one last lap before leading Percy back to the beach. Setting him down, Frank changed back and gratefully took the towel from his girlfriend as he began to dry off.

Annabeth quickly walked over, squatting down and toweling off Percy. It seemed he didn't have perfect control of his powers, considering he was still wet after swimming. Percy just giggled and squirmed as he tried to free himself but Annabeth just laughed and kept up her assault with the fluffy towel.

Eventually satisfied that Percy was dry enough to not soak everything on their blanket, she led him over to the food.

Without hesitation, Percy began to pile food onto his plate, with a little help from the others, before he wandered over and sat in Annabeth's lap and began to happily eat it. Letting her eyes shut, feeling him safe within her grasp, Annabeth tried to relax. This day had been taxing in so many ways, she was ready for it to be over. Last she heard, they were just waiting on the delivery from Thalia for the final ingredient before they could hopefully fix Percy.

Percy would be safe. He would be back to normal soon. She would have her normal seaweed brain back. She missed him so much. It just wasn't the same.

Eventually it was getting darker, so everyone began to pack up their stuff. They would have a bonfire tonight, so they had to get ready for it. Frank had been watching Percy while the rest packed up, until Leo had gotten his help dismantling the ice cream machine he had made for a desert for them all.

Percy was standing in place, obediently. His mom had told him to listen to Annabeth, so he would! He would stay put while they finished putting away their toys. Then Annabeth had promised him something yummy. But that was when he saw it.

He wasn't quite sure what it was, but it was small and furry. Biting his lip, Percy felt a conflict inside him. He knew he should behave and listen to Annabeth, but he was so curious. He couldn't get the little creature out of his mind.

The creature squeaked at him, before turning and running towards the woods.

He HAD to know what that creature was. Turning to Annabeth, who was busy helping out Hazy anyway, he muttered a “I'll be right back.” He told her he would be gone, so it was okay, right? His mom always said she just wanted to know where he was.

Turning, he ran off into the forest, chasing the squeaking creature.

XxXxXxXxX

“Thanks for waiting!” Frank said politely to Percy, turning back around. He dropped the wrench he had been holding, feeling his heart stop. “Percy?” He called quietly, looking around. The kid was gone.

Annabeth was going to be furious. He was dead. This was the end of his life. Not that stupid stick, no, it was losing her child-boyfriend.

“Annabeth?”

“Hmm?” She asked, a smile on her face from Piper's joke.

“I can't find Percy.” Frank admitted.

Instantly the group froze in place. They all looked to Annabeth after a moment.

“What?” Annabeth tried to keep her voice calm and level.

“I turned around for a moment, and he said he was going to stay still, but he's gone...”

Annabeth just dropped her head into her hands. Why couldn't today have gone easy, just for once?

“Percy's in the woods!” Juniper said, suddenly emerging from the forest. She looked a bit out of breath.

“I heard what happened, and I just saw him roaming through there, and I don't think he should be alo-” She trailed off as Annabeth sprinted past her, calling out a combination of thanks, and Greek curses to just about everything.

Annabeth stumbled through the trees. He couldn't have gotten far. He was just a kid, and it wasn't like he was trying to run away. She figured he must have found something that sparked his interest. But why today of all days. They had stocked the woods with creatures for practicing hunting just the other day. The woods were far too dangerous for a kid to be wandering in a lone.

Feeling her heart rate kick into over drive, Annabeth was torn between shouting Percy's name for his attention, and staying quiet to avoid stirring any threats that could be nearby. That was when she heard a loud wail.

XxXxXxXxX

Percy scrambled backwards, staring at the large doggie growling at him. It was utterly massive. It had a muzzle on it, but it's sharp claws were still free.

“Mommy! Annabeth!” He cried out desperately, stumbling over branches away from it.

The beast let out a muffled roar as it lunged, swiping a claw at Percy.

Just before it could have struck him, he felt something wrap him up and tackle him away. He let out a short wail as the forest floor scratched him up, but he was suddenly held tightly against someone. All he could see was a mess of blonde hair in his face.

Clutching Percy close, Annabeth was a bit wide-eyed and frantic. She had just barely made it in time, if she hadn't gotten to Percy...

Shaking her head, she didn't have time to dwell on that. They had nearly died countless times before now. She needed to deal with this beast first. Thankfully it was muzzled, but she was still unarmed.

Another muffled roar, and the beast lunged again.

Riptide sprang to her mind, realizing Percy must still have it on him, but it was too late. She didn't have time to find it as the beast lunged. Turning around, she huddled over Percy to protect him and braced for the impact.

But it never came.

Peaking over her shoulder, she saw 3 silvery arrows sticking out of the neck of the hound. It stumbled around in protest, snarling the best it could.

It raised it claws over Annabeth for one last attack when Annabeth smelt the familiar smell of ozone. A second later and the beast erupted into a flash of electricity, before it crumpled to dust on the ground.

Thalia emerged, looking pissed off. For good measure, she shot one last arrow into the beast.

She immediately ran over to Annabeth, carefully examining her, and the boy for cuts.

“Are you two all right?” She asked, a desperate panic in her voice.

Annabeth nodded. “Don't worry, I'm fine.” Stepping back, she was about to check Percy over when she felt Thalia pull her into her arms for a very tight hug.

“That was too close.” Thalia mumbled softly, running her hand through Annabeth's hair for a moment. Getting her fill of assurance that Annabeth was in fact fine, Thalia pulled back and shifted her gaze to the little boy.

Little Percy was just standing there, sniffling as he cried and wiped away tears with balled up fists. “I just want to go home. I don't like this anymore.”

Thalia felt her heartstrings tug at the scene. The boy she usually found both infuriating and admirable was reduced to a terrified kid. She may have sworn of romantic love, but that didn't mean that her maternal instincts were gone. It reminded her of when she had just found Annabeth with Luke.

The sound of a branch breaking somewhere near by, had all of three of them jump. In a moment, Annabeth had Percy in her arms again, as she fished around his pocket for riptide. Thalia summoned her bow again, spinning around. “Now is not the time.” She snarled, not in the mood for any more monsters.

“Peace.” A girl said, stepping out with her hands raised. It was a young girl, dressed in similar hunting gear to Thalia.

Recognizing one of the other huntresses, Thalia stowed her bow. “Tell them to go set up camp. We'll be staying for a few days. I'll let Artemis know of our plans.” She ordered. Thalia watched the girl nod before she turned and vanished back into the woods.

Turning back, Thalia saw Annabeth had managed to stop Percy from crying. At the moment she held him in her arms, his legs around her waist as he wrapped his arms around her neck and buried his head into her neck.

“I've got the rabbit. Let's go back.” Thalia offered gently, carefully watching Annabeth's expression. It was pretty obvious how stressed and emotionally drained Annabeth was. Thalia was extremely worried about Percy, and she could hardly imagine how Annabeth must be feeling after seeing her boyfriend in that state, then almost losing him moments ago.

Annabeth just nodded meekly before she began to walk back. She held Percy just a little bit closer to her, whispering soft reassurances in his ear. “You're so brave. You can go home soon.” She said quietly.

Before long, Annabeth emerged out of the woods, seeing the rest of their little crew. Immediately they rushed towards her, looking both at her and Percy.

“We were looking for you, then the hunters told us you were safe and leaving. Are both of you okay?” Hazel asked worriedly.

Annabeth nodded. “We're fine. We just... need to fix him soon.” She said gently, hoping no one noticed her voice cracking. Judging by their expressions, they did.

An hour later, and Chiron was preparing the potion while Annabeth sat with Percy around the campfire. She had wanted him to get some sleep, but Chiron insisted that he have the potion before he slept for the night, citing that he didn't know if the spell could be worse if Percy went to sleep again. He doubted it was the case, but Annabeth figured better safe than sorry. She wouldn't gamble with Percy's life.

Plus, the boy had been uncharacteristically quiet since the incident, so she had hoped to raise his spirits. It seemed the campfire had done just that, luckily. Percy was happily dancing in front of her as they all worked through their sing-alongs. His shirt was stained with the remains of the smores he had consumed, and a stain from when he had gotten a bit too eager drinking his blue coke.

Aside from having to herd him away from the fire he kept wandering too close to, Annabeth was glad to see him laughing again. She just desperately wished to hear his normal deeper laugh that she had come to adore.

Piper had an arm around her shoulder, reassuringly rubbing it as she also laughed at the young Percy cheering as he waved his arms, currently getting a piggyback ride from Thalia.

Thankfully, Chiron had approached them with a small cup half way through one of their songs.

“It's done. I've had all the best brewers at the camp double check, this should fix him up swiftly.” She handed Annabeth the cup. “Make sure he drinks all of it, to be safe.”

Annabeth could hardly contain her excitement. She had almost started crying at just finally hearing the good news.

“Percy!” She called out, grabbing the boy's attention as he ran over quickly, stumbling a bit.

“What's up Annabeth?” He asked eagerly, before a yawn escaped him. He rubbed his eyes, swaying slightly.

She had noticed his dancing had slowed down recently, she figured his busy day was finally wearing down even his stamina.

“I need you to do me a favor.” She said gently, kneeling down to be eye level with him.

Yawning again, Percy nodded. “Okay. Mommy told me to listen to you anyway.” He muttered, still rubbing his eyes.

Biting her lip, Annabeth put aside how utterly adorable he looked at the moment. Though, judging by the camera flash that happen to her right, Piper had managed to grab a picture to remember.

“I need you to drink this for me. This will help you feel better.”

Percy nodded, reaching for the cup. He smelled it, before he scrunched up his face and shoved the cup back into Annabeth's hands. “That smells bad! I don't want to!” He muttered defiantly.

Suppressing the frustration, Annabeth tried to stay calm. Screaming at the child that he desperately needed to drink it to get back to normal and give her her seaweed brain back wouldn't help the situation. Desperation called for desperate measures. “If you drink it all, you can have another smore, and on our way back to bed I promise to grab you some blue candy. I won't even tell Sally!” She promised.

His eyes widened. “Do you promise? I don't want to get in trouble.” He said, his eyes slightly more awake, and skeptical now.

Annabeth nodded, holding out her pinky. “I pinky promise.”

Percy stared at her for a moment, before hooking his pinky with hers for the promise. “You promised.” He said, before taking the cup.

Annabeth just let out a sigh of relief. So yeah, she bribed a child with a bunch of sweets right before bed to make her life easier. So sue her.

Percy sniffed it once before grimacing again. But he looked at Annabeth, and then managed to quickly drink all of it. He blanched, very clearly unhappy with the taste.

Annabeth quickly messed with his hair, giving him a kiss on the forehead. “Good job! I'm proud of you.”

Percy just grinned. “You promised!” Nodding, Annabeth turned to make another smore when she found Piper handing her a freshly prepared one already. Flashing her a grateful smile, she gave it to the eager child who immediately began making a mess as he tried to eat it too quickly.

Laughing, Annabeth just leaned back and tried to hold back the tears of relief. Percy had drank the potion. He would be fine. He would finally be okay.

A little while later and it was getting late. Normally they would all be up a little longer, but Percy was yawning constantly and sitting patiently at her side.

Turning to her friends, she patted Percy's head. “It's probably well past his bedtime. I'm going to get him in to bed. I'll see you all tomorrow with Percy as good as new hopefully.” They all said goodbye, many of them giving Percy a hug.

Walking back, she was surprised to feel Percy stop walking. “You promised me candy.” He muttered, holding his ground with his tired eyes surprisingly defiant.

Annabeth paused, she had forgotten about that. The camp store would be closed by now. Chewing her lip for a moment, she quickly considered her options.

Scooping up Percy into her arms to save time, she quickly made her way over and found the pair of twins she was looking for. “Connor!” She called out quickly, getting his attention. “I need a favor. I need you to get me some blue candy. I made a promise.” She explained, glancing at Percy who had perked up at the mention of candy.

Connor had a grin on. “You'll owe me.” He said.

Annabeth shivered at the thought. Being in debt to the stolls was usually a bad thing, one that almost always lead to getting in trouble. “Fine.”

Connor saluted, before quickly disappearing into the night. A few minutes later, Connor returned with a bag of candy, amazingly all of it was blue.

Raising it to Annabeth, he smirked. “Your order madam”

Annabeth shifted Percy to rest in one arm as her other one fell to the handle of her dagger. “I swear if there is even one piece of candy that's slightly off in that bag, you will wish you were lucky enough to be forced back into being a kid instead. Do not try me tonight.”

Connor raised his hands in a peace offering. “Hey! This is legit. Didn't even steal it. Tonight, at least. Just trying to get a kid some candy, a noble cause if I've ever heard of one.” He paused, before his smile shifted from mischievous to genuine. “Besides, I do want to see Percy back to normal too. Come on, I'm not heartless.” He offered.

Taken back a bit by his honestly, Annabeth nodded. “Thank you, for real.”

Connor just waved as he went back to join his brother.

Annabeth handed a few pieces to Percy as they made the long trek back to his cabin.

“What now?” Percy asked, as well as he could with his mouth on a lollipop.

“It's past your bedtime. I let you stay up, but you need to sleep.”

Percy's eyes widened as he began to squirm in her arms. She was forced to set him down to avoid dropping him.

“No! I'm having too much fun! I want to go back with Thals and Pipes and all of them! We're having too much fun!” He exclaimed, though his point was weakened by the big yawn he broke into.

“Percy...” Annabeth tried gently, at her wits end.

“No!” He said, stomping his foot.

Annabeth was about to scream. That's when Sally's words popped in her mind. Looking around, she was glad she was alone. “Come on Percy.” Scooping him up, she began to sing softly. She wasn't exactly a good singer, but she hoped it would be enough.

“The seaweed is always greener, in somebody else's lake...” She started to sing softly, swaying him slightly as they walked. Sure the little mermaid wasn't exactly a lullaby, but she knew he knew the song, and it was one of the few songs she knew all the words to from the number of times they cuddled watching the movie while relaxing in his apartment.

Percy's protests gradually grew weaker and weaker, until he was dozing off on her shoulder.

Managing to get him into the cabin, she set him down on the bed and pulled off his shoes and socks to try and get him a little comfier. Tucking him in, she leaned down to kiss his head.

“I love you Percy. Please go back to normal. I miss you, and I need you.” She whispered gently.

Turning back, she moved to go back to her own cabin when she heard his tired, and slightly scared voice. “Annabeth?”

“Yes honey?” She asked, turning around and kneeling next to the bed.

“Can you stay please? I'm... scared. I don't like this cabin. It's too big and dark.” He muttered.

Annabeth paused, looking at his exhausted, yet scared face. Nodding she quickly kicked off her own shoes and rummaged around his cabin for a spare pair of sweatpants. Quickly changing in his bathroom, he climbed into the bed with him.

Percy nestled up against her, and within moments he was fast asleep.

Kissing his forehead one last time, she watched him for a moments, running a hand through his hair. Before long she found herself drifting off to sleep to, praying with all she had that he would be back to normal soon.

Annabeth was more than thrilled to find herself waking up in her favorite pair of strong arms, with a deeper voice gently saying her name.

“Morning Annabeth.” He muttered, a little confused but hardly complaining.

Annabeth just threw her arms around his neck, quickly kissing him.

“Welcome back, Percy.”

XxXxXxXxX

I hope you enjoyed it! I’ve wanted to post this for quite a while, I just never really got around to finishing it. I know the ages in the title aren’t accurate, that Percy would be a little older but I just found it catchy. Also, I’m accepting Percabeth Fluff prompts/suggestions so please send me any ideas, or words, or songs etc if you have any! I’d love to consider your idea and hopefully write something for it!

#percabeth #pjo #percy jackson #annabeth chase #HoO #I love writing stories like this #It was really fun

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zach-the-fox · 4 years

Text

EXP 630 Episode 1: Appearing Alien

The residents of Kokaua town bustle all over the streets as people walk into the stores and emerge with food, clothing, and accessories. Their hats and sunglasses are their shields from the sun as they attend the festival. Several small, colorful, alien-like creatures among them are seen as well. Walking along the street is a tall woman with olive skin and black hair. Her age appears as if she’s twenty-years-old. She protects herself from the sun with a beige sun hat and dark turquoise sunglasses. A red tank top with a denim mini skirt and sandals are her choice of apparel as she ambles among the crowd. Beside her is a blue alien-like creature with black eyes and long ears.

“It’s quite crowded today, Stitch,” says the woman. “Who would’ve thought there’d be hundreds of tourists attending.”

“Eh,” replies the blue alien to her. “Lots of people. Lilo right.”

“Let’s stick together. Easy to get lost in this crowd.” The two friends stay close to each other as they head down the street full of pedestrians, passing a group of kids as they play around a gushing fountain made from a fire hydrant. The water streams down the side of the road and into a grate, touching a little blue ball inscribed with the number “630” on it. The sphere glows bright yellow and expands a couple of inches before flashing streaks of light and resonating a small explosion, disrupting the children at play, as well as the woman and her blue companion. In the ball’s place lies a creature, revealing to be an alien. The alien is much like the blue one, but in shades of grey with small antennae sticking out from its head and a tuft of hair in the center. A blue bandana around its neck and a long, lizard-like tail are the final features distinguishing it from the other.

The grey alien’s black eyes open halfway, rolling its head slightly before putting a paw on top of it. “Oh, my head,” it says in a deep voice, revealing the gender to be male. He rolls himself onto his belly and proceeds to stand, keeping his paw on his head. “What happened…?” As he brings his head up, he notices the kids staring at him, including the girl with the blue creature. “Where am I?” There is no answer from anyone. “What’s going on here? Why are you people looking at me like that?” He takes his paw away from his head and gasps upon noticing it. “What?” Looking at the store behind the children, he sees his reflection in the glass window and scurries over for a better look. His eyes widen at the sight of his appearance. “W-what?! H-how can this be?!”

“Stitch, look,” Lilo begins. “It’s another one of those experiments.”

“Look like Stitch,” Stitch says. “But Stitch don’t recognize cousin.”

“Must be one we’ve missed… Let’s catch him.”

The grey alien sees Stitch approach him. “Uh… H-hello…” The blue creature doesn’t respond and instead continues toward him. “W-what are you doing…?” The grey one holds up his arm, showing the palm of his paw to Stitch. “D-don’t come any closer… Ple-” A powerful force produces from his palm and pushes the blue alien away into the building across the street, crashing through the glass window. The sudden move causes shock among the crowd, especially to the grey alien. “What the?! How did that happen?” Stitch emerges from the opening of the shattered window with a growl. “Uh oh…” The other creature backs away a couple of feet before turning around and taking off into the alleyway. The blue experiment chases after him, as well as the woman. Crossing roads and weaving through buildings, the blue alien finds that the experiment has disappeared into the crowd. As the girl catches up to the blue alien, they split off and cut through the sea of people. Lilo and Stitch sprint through the streets, avoiding pedestrians as they struggle to chase down the grey experiment. Upon meeting up in an alleyway, they stop and scan the area.

“Where did he go?!” shouts Lilo. “Stitch, did you see where he went?”

“Naga,” replies Stitch. “Stitch no see cousin.”

“We have to find him. He couldn’t have gotten far.” The pair comb through the alleyway, walking up while continuing their search for the perpetrator.

As they head up through the corridor and turn the corner, a trashcan lid pops up, revealing the grey experiment from within. He steps down onto the pavement and wipes his forehead. “Phew, that was close…” The experiment looks at his reflection again from a small puddle. He then looks down at his paws, and clenches them. “What the heck happened to me…? How did I even get this way…?” He picks his head up. “I need to get out of here…” He turns to the street, watching the people pass by. “Wait… I shouldn’t go out with that crazy woman and her blue dog thing out to get me… I need to find something to cover myself.” Turning his head, the alien takes notice of a white sheet hanging from a wire. He goes over and snatches it. “This will do!” Wearing it over his head like a hooded poncho, he walks out into the open, swerving around people as he goes through. No one seems to take interest in the little alien as he crosses the road. After a minute’s walk, he’s out of the town and along sandy shores of a beach. The waves crash against the sand from the sparkling water as the sun reflects its rays off of it. Seeing nobody but beachgoers, the grey alien waltzes along.

“Hey, Kid,” calls a voice, he’s immediately stopped by a pair of odd-looking experiments. One of them is short and colored in lime-green, feminine in form. The other alien beside her appears to be yellowish in color, taller and fatter. One of his limbs consists of a mechanical contraption, appearing to be a prosthetic of some sort. “We saw what you did,” says the green one. “The way you tossed Stitch into a window like that.”

“That?” the grey alien questions. “Listen, I didn’t mean it… I didn’t know I was-”

“Yo, chill,” she interrupts. “I’m not condemning you. That was cool. “The name’s Bonnie, by the way. This is my good pal, Clyde.” She points to the plump alien. “I see you’re new around here.”

“Uh, I guess,” goes the grey experiment. “I’m just confused as to what’s going on…”

“You’re telling us,” utters Clyde. “Never met an alien experiment whose confused.”

“Alien experiment?” The grey one repeats. “What do you mean by-” He’s then interrupted by the dark blue alien pinning him to the ground. The grey experiment pushes the blue creature off him and back away a couple of feet. Stitch growls and snarls at him. “That’s not good… Listen! I didn’t intend to send you flying! I swear… I didn’t know!” The grey alien holds his paws up to him as a sign of ease. Stitch growls at him, getting ready for his next strike. “I don’t mean any harm. I really don’t know how I-�� A projectile flies in from behind and hits the grey alien. Electricity surges all around his body for a few seconds before falling onto his knees, then flat on his stomach. His eyes remain open, but halfway as he feels as if all the energy left his body. Stitch, Bonnie, and Clyde turn to where the blast had originated from, pinpointing it to the girl, who has a blaster in her grasp.

“Stay away from him!” Lilo tells the duo. “This experiment is dangerous.” She approaches the downed alien as he still lies, motionless in his resting spot. “We need to take him back to Jumba and figure out what he is.” These are the last of the conversation the grey alien hears before his eyes close, dragging him into a dark void of unconsciousness.

***

The grey creature’s eyelids are light enough to open again, but his reaction is slow, causing his eyes to stay halfway open for a few seconds before they become fully opened. As his senses return and he comes to, he finds himself surrounded by glass all around. He looks around frantically, placing his paws on the glass to realize he is trapped in some cell aboard a ship. His breathing and heartrate increase in speed. “Where am I now?!” The grey alien lets out a gasp and backs up when a large, round head with a set of four eyes appear in his view. He makes out the creature before him as large and obese with pale pink skin. The larger alien examines him, forcing the grey one to remain still, paralyzed with fear.

“Hm,” begins the plump hippo-like alien. “Well, looks like our specimen’s awake now. Where did you find this one again?” He turns to the girl behind him with the blue alien.

“In town,” says Lilo. “He just activated in the street out of nowhere. Stitch and I tried to catch him, but he got away. We spotted him with Bonnie and Clyde. I would be careful, Jumba. This experiment seems to be dangerous. He launched Stitch into a store with some incredible force.”

“Little girl need not to worry,” Jumba tells her. “I am careful. Shouldn’t be long before data gives us information.” He motions to his computer. The grey alien looks toward Stitch, growls and stands at the ready. The grey alien tries to remain calm in his situation despite being contained like a prisoner.

“Who wants cookies?” Another alien appears. This one is much different than the plump one. From the build of the body and male tone, its gender is revealed. He is a rather slender-looking alien, lime-green in color with one eye while wearing a long muumuu covering his entire body. He holds a tray out. “I just pulled them out of the-” He pauses, noticing everyone. “Jumba, are you making more of those little monsters again?!”

Lilo defends Jumba. “No, Pleakley! We just found this one in town.”

“Eh,” Stitch adds. “New experiment. Unknown to Stitch.”

“Unknown to us,” she corrects him, looking at the grey experiment, who still has his paws on the glass, staring at the group. “That’s odd… He doesn’t seem to be acting violent or anything…”

“Lilo!” calls a feminine voice. Everyone turns and notices another woman, very similar to Lilo, walks in. “Where have you been?! You and Stitch are still grounded!”

“Nani,” Lilo starts. “I was only trying to-”

“Don’t you “Nani” me, Young Lady!” Nani spurts. “You and Stitch should know better to-” She stops, then notices the grey alien in the glass prison. “What are you guys doing here? Creating more experiments?!”

“We’re trying to find out what this new little monster is,” Pleakley tells her. He turns to Jumba. “Why can’t you just look him up on your archives?”

“Because new experiment was not created here, nor is full alien,” Jumba replies. He steps aside from his computer, showing the data encrypted on it as he reads along. “Experiment 630. Contains a high concentration of Experiment 626’s DNA as well as designed within the 600 series, but also has DNA like little girl and sister within. 630 is not full alien experiment.”

Lilo’s face turns to surprise. “You mean, this alien experiment is really a human being?!”

“Yes and no,” Jumba responds. “Data shows that Experiment 630 is newly-registered experiment with telekinetic powers. Not much else is known about him.” As he explains, the grey alien’s face turns to shock, as does everyone else’s. “Quite fascinating. I have not seen a human-turned experiment before.”

“Crazy,” comments Stitch.

“Are you going to let me out of here?” asks the grey alien. “I promise to behave.”

“I’m not sure if we should,” Lilo tells him. “We just met you, and we barely know who you are.”

“My name is Zach!” The imprisoned experiment tells them. “I came from the mainland. I was staying in Honolulu with friends for a graduation party, and then I woke up like this… I don’t know why I’m this way or how I appeared in the streets. Please, I don’t mean any harm. Honest…” Nani looks to Lilo, who then nods to Jumba. The big alien types away at his computer, raising the glass barrier up into the ceiling, freeing the little grey being. “Thank you kindly…”

“Sorry Stitch and I chased you down,” Lilo says. “We didn’t mean to hurt you. We didn’t know.”

“Eh!” replies Stitch. “Zach okay?”

“I’m fine,” Zach responds. “I’m just unsure of what to do now…”

Lilo steps closer to Nani, leans closer to her ear, and whispers something. Nani protests her idea at first, but as Lilo continues to beg and plead, Nani lets out a sigh of defeat before giving in. Lilo then turns to Zach. “Why don’t you come with us? We’d like to bring you inside the house for dinner.” Stitch turns to her, confused and one eye narrowed. Jumba and Pleakley look at her the same.

Zach keeps his glare at her. “Um, really…?”

“Consider it as a way of apologizing and making up for getting off at the wrong foot.”

***

Everyone sits around a small dining table in the kitchen, eating food prepared by Nani. Lilo explains everything she knows to the grey alien. “The alien experiments, like Stitch here, were created by Jumba Jookiba as his attempt of being an evil genius to conquer the universe. The experiments were meant to be his little army, including Stitch. When Stitch got loose, he tracked him down to Earth with his friend, Pleakley. Well, after a bit of quarreling and such, he eventually befriended me and my older sister, Nani. Long story short, we became one big ohana, or family in Hawaiian.”

“Yeah, and you all had a funny way of meeting,” says Zach. “So, all the strange creatures I saw in town were Jumba’s alien experiments? Why are they all living peacefully?”

“Stitch and I managed to convert them all to good,” she continues. “Peace was achieved because of us. However, Jumba never stopped making experiments.”

“About Zach,” Stitch butts in. “Zach tell us Zach’s story.”

Zach points to himself. “My story? I… can’t really tell much other than being here with my friends… We came here for a graduation party in Honolulu. We were staying up late to dance and enjoy ourselves. The last thing I remember before being an alien experiment was when I went back to my room and crashed into bed…”

“Then, you know more than we do,” Pleakley says. “I’m sure your friends are okay and are worried about you.”

“I need to find them… I also need to find out how to turn myself back…”

Stitch puts his paw on his arm. “Zach relax. Will find friends.”

“New experiment 630 looks tired,” says Jumba. “Perhaps you should stay the night.”

“Stay?” he repeats. “Are you all comfortable with that idea? I don’t want to feel like I’m intruding on your privacy.”

“No, it’ll be fine,” Pleakley tells him. “Jumba and I turned the old ship into a bed and not breakfast hotel. We’ll provide you with a nice cozy bed for you.”

“Thank you,” Zach responds. “You are kind souls… Despite the odd encounters earlier.” Everyone gives a little chuckle.

#lilo and stitch #Lilo_and_Stitch #Experiment_oc

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