Chapter 1

Percy was, for the first time in his 19 years of life, content. He had good reason to be. Life was good. For starters, they weren't actively engaged in a war against supernatural forces. That was a refreshing change of pace. He had wonderful friends, whom he loved, not the least of which were his questmates from the Prophecy of 7. They had only gotten closer since their days aboard the Argo 2. The fact that they actually had their own space now, instead of being crammed aboard a boat, might have had something to do with that. He had a fulfilling job, if one could even call it that, instructing the younger campers. The fact that they worshipped the ground he walked on, just made things easier.

And last, but most certainly not least, he had the girl of his dreams. Annabeth Chase. The perfect girlfriend. The perfect person, as far as he was concerned. In the 2 years since the climactic battle against Gaia, the two had only grown closer and closer. So, when Percy's best friend, Jason, proposed to his girlfriend, Piper, it had given Percy a bit of a kick in the ass. He was going to propose to Annabeth. Now all he had to do, was plan how to do it.

But that wasn't on his mind just then. He was on the beach, lying on the soft sand, with Annabeth wrapped in his arms. He tried not to think about stuff like that when she was near him. He knew she couldn't actually read minds, but she could read him like an open book. So, reluctant to have his surprise ruined, he made an active effort to think about other things when she was around. This, after some time, led her to ask if he was feeling ok, because he looked constipated whenever she was around, but he waved it off. It would all be worth it when he saw the look on her face.

It was a perfect Spring day. There wasn't a cloud in sight, and it was warm enough to be nice without being overbearing. The waves were gorgeous, and Percy was mentally planning on going surfing a little later, once he and Annabeth had enjoyed each other's company for just a little longer.

It was perfect. Almost too good to be true.

And the sad fact was, in Percy's life, if something seemed too good to be true, then it was.

A shriek shattered the silence, and the sense of peace with jaw-dropping efficiency.

Percy and Annabeth, supported by 20 years of demigod experience between them, were up and on their feet, weapons drawn, before their brains even fully comprehended what was going on. Whatever that noise had been, it had come from the forest, near the barrier that served as Camp Half-Blood's border. Which meant there was a fairly likely culprit behind the sound. A demigod. More specifically, a demigod being chased by monsters.

The pair immediately started sprinting in that direction, Percy's powerful muscles pushing him along, and Annabeth's much lighter frame moving effortlessly, as if she were gliding. They were the first ones to get there and immediately saw the problem. A single, young-looking demigod, on his back, 5 dracaena closing in on him.

Naturally, with all their experience, Percy and Annabeth made short work of them. They hacked and slashed, stabbed and gutted. The whole thing was over in less than a minute, as the young demigod looked on in amazement.

When they were done, they each turned to each other to make sure they were ok. Once that had been verified, they winked simultaneously and broke down laughing. Once they had composed themselves a little, they turned to the kid, and Percy immediately noticed something kind of interesting about him. He had very dark hair, much like Percy himself did. He had sea-green eyes, much like Percy himself did. He had a golden bronze tan, and a powerful, yet underdeveloped frame.

A son of Poseidon. Percy had a brother.

"That was… That was amazing! How did you two do that? Are you like me?" the kid asked, amazement obvious in his voice.

'More than you know, kid' Percy thought sarcastically,

But instead, he just said, "Yeah, we're like you," and offered him a hand, pulling him to his feet.

"What's your name?" Annabeth asked kindly.

"Oh, I'm Jack. Jack Evans."

Percy and Annabeth introduced themselves.

"So, uh, do you guys know where I can find some kind of camp? Apparently, it's around here somewhere."

Exchanging looks of amusement, Percy and Annabeth nodded,

"Sure, buddy, come on, we'll take you."

"Seriously? Wow, that's amazing, thank you! I've been running for days. One of those things attacked me on my way home from school, and I just started running. Then a voice in my head started giving me directions. I was starting to think I was crazy."

Annabeth chuckled, "Oh, don't worry. You're not crazy. At least, you're not any crazier than the rest of us."

Jack chuckled timidly, but he cast Percy a worried look.

"Don't worry about Annabeth, she can just be a little mean to the newer kids," Percy said, shooting her a playful look.

She pretended to look affronted, "Excuse me? I couldn't possibly have been more welcoming when you first showed up!"

"If that's as charming as you're capable of being, then I'm gonna have to start questioning Chiron's decision to put you on the welcoming committee."

She play-frowned and shook her head.

"C-Chiron?" Jack squeaked.

"Yeah, he's the camp director."

"Isn't he some guy from Ancient Greece?"

Annabeth laughed.

"Do you remember any other detail about Chiron from Ancient Greece?"

Jack shook his head, obviously confused.

Percy was about to tell him when Annabeth shook her head.

"Trust me, it'll be easier if he sees for himself."

He figured she knew better, as was often the case.

They led Jack to the Big House and brought him to Chiron, who, naturally, was playing a hand of pinochle with Mr. D.

They explained the situation, and Percy knew Chiron saw the resemblance between Jack and himself, and wondered how the ancient centaur would handle it. As ever, with great delicacy and grace. He explained what Jack was, what Camp Half-Blood was, and how things worked. Then, sensing that Percy and Annabeth would need some time alone to go over it all, he arranged for Katie Gardner to give Jack a tour of Camp.

Percy led Annabeth to his cabin, since it was one of the few places where they were guaranteed privacy. But not for long, apparently.

"I… I have a brother," he said slowly, still processing it.

Annabeth nodded slowly. She looked empathetic, but he knew she couldn't understand why this was such a big deal to him. Athena had plenty of kids at Camp Half-Blood, so she had grown up with brothers and sisters. But Percy had never had that. He'd always been an only child. But now, finding out he had a brother just felt weird.

"How do you feel about that?"

Percy didn't know what to say to that. He thought for a few moments and settled on the truth.

"I feel this weird pit in my stomach. Kinda like I can't believe my dad would move on like that. I mean, he's gotta be… What? 11? My dad had a kid with someone 11 years ago, and he never mentioned it to me? I mean, who does that?"

Annabeth just sat there, watching him.

"But then I figure, my parents were never together, like regular parents usually are. It's not like they were married or anything."

"But they kind of were, in your head."

"I guess. I always kinda figured he loved her. I never thought I'd have a brother or sister."

"I know you didn't. It's alright to be upset about this. But you understand that it's not Jack's fault, right?"

Percy sighed deeply and nodded.

"Yeah, I know. Not his fault what his dad does."

"Exactly. I'm guessing your dad will claim him later tonight. I guess you've got until then to pretend you're still an only child," she said jokingly.

He smiled. She smiled back.

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Jack was, in fact, claimed that night at the campfire. And he was, in fact, Poseidon's son. Needless to say, there was a serious reaction. Percy tried to stay out of the whole thing, but there were a lot of people asking what he thought about the whole thing. He just smiled and shrugged.

A few months went by, and Jack acclimated to camp life quite well. Like his older brother, Jack proved to be something of a prodigy, and he had a serious work ethic to back up his natural talent. That was, in no small part, thanks to a lot of guidance from Percy, who had vowed to put his personal feelings about their father aside, and help his brother become the best version of himself. 

It led to the two brothers becoming quite close. Percy discovered that he quite liked having a brother. At least, a brother like Jack, who was eager to learn and soak up as much information as he could.

One thing Percy was quite relieved about, was the fact that Jack seemed to be a pretty good kid. Even though he was getting a lot of praise and attention just because of who his father and brother were, he remained humble and rooted in reality. He didn't let it get to his head, which was good because Percy wasn't sure he could handle a petulant, spoiled child for a brother. Jack spent plenty of his time helping other campers as much as he could, not because he expected something in return, but simply because he thought it was the right thing to do. Percy found himself feeling proud of the kid.

The brothers spent more and more time together as the months wore on, until it became that the only times when Percy didn't have Jack attached to him, was when he was spending time with Annabeth. Even at his young age, Jack understood that Percy and Annabeth needed their alone time, and neither was particularly fun to be around when they were deprived of it.

Things were going very well on that front too. Percy had spoken to Athena, and after a lot of arguing, begging, groveling, and promising, she had consented to him proposing to her daughter. Then he went through a miniature version of the same thing with Poseidon, who wasn't exactly happy about his son marrying the daughter of his mortal enemy, but he also agreed in the end.

Once he'd spoken to both of them and received both their blessings, he went and spoke to Hephaestus on a whim. He and the blacksmith god were on good terms, even though they rarely interacted. He asked for an engagement ring and was delighted when he was provided one nearly a week later. Percy had been expecting an angle of Quid Pro Quo, as was often the case with deities, but Hephaestus flat-out refused to be paid for his work, which Percy thought was very generous. 

The ring itself, was stunningly beautiful. A band of solid silver, a hefty yet tasteful diamond in the center, winged by two matching emeralds. It was perfect. Now, he just had to figure out how he was going to do it.

He already knew where. When he'd spoken to his father, he'd asked for him to float the bill for Percy to take Annabeth to a nice Italian restaurant in Manhattan, and the sea god had agreed. So, he would propose there, after a perfect evening of fine wining and dining.

But… how?

What would he say? What could he say? What mere words were there to describe how he felt about the love of his life? Percy wasn't exactly a wordsmith at the best of times, but this was just ridiculous.

Then he figured improvisation was always one of his main strengths, so perhaps he'd simply wait until it was time, and then just say what came to mind. Yeah, that seemed like the way to go.

Percy had asked her almost a week prior if she'd like to go on a proper date with him, and she'd said yes, so he'd made the reservations. The most important reservations, he would ever make in his life.

The restaurant was nice. So nice, that Percy was really glad he'd thought to ask his father to foot the bill. He'd have been worried if he'd had to pay. But he didn't, and he could simply enjoy his evening. There was nothing life-threatening to worry about. No world-ending quests against evil gods, no monsters. Just each other.

Once they'd eaten their food and drank their drinks, and their ADHD kicked in a little, they settled the tab and sat there for a moment preparing to leave. This was the moment of truth. They'd had a wonderful evening, and now it was time to pop the question.

But he chickened out.

The ring box in his pocket suddenly seemed impossibly heavy. He was sweating, and his palms were clammy. He obviously couldn't see himself, but he instinctively knew that he was pale. This wasn't how he wanted to do it. 

They took a cab back to Camp Half-Blood and Percy asked if Annabeth wanted to take a walk along the beach. She agreed, and they took off their shoes and started strolling across the soft sand, holding hands. 

It was a beautiful night. There were no clouds in the sky, and it was a full moon, which was absolutely stunning. For some reason he couldn't fully comprehend, he sent a mental prayer to Artemis, thanking her. It was cool enough that they weren't sweating, but not cold enough that it was uncomfortable. Perfect.

After around 20 minutes of casually strolling, talking about nothing much, Percy stopped them and turned to face her. Annabeth looked as beautiful as he had ever seen her. Her long princess curls were flowing down her back, and Percy couldn't quite tell if they just fell like that, or if it had taken work on her part. She was wearing a grey dress with a V neckline and a silver owl pendant he had bought for her on a whim a few months previously. Her face was free of makeup, apart from some eyeliner which accented her grey eyes amazingly. The light smattering of freckles along the bridge of her nose and the tops of her cheeks were on full display, and there was something about them he found impossibly enchanting

Looking at her there, backlit by the bright moon reflected off the waves, he suddenly wasn't so terrified of the ring in his pocket. He wasn't worried about what she might say, or how she would react. And a single look into her eyes told him she already knew exactly what he had planned. He could just tell that she knew. But she wasn't saying anything. She wanted him to say it himself. 

Ordinarily, he might have been upset that she had anticipated what he'd hoped would be a surprise. But not just then. 

"I love you," he said simply.

Because at the end of the day, those were the only words that mattered to him. That was all he wanted to tell her. Everything else was just details.

He got down on one knee, took the ring out of his pocket, and opened the box before her.

"Marry me," he said softly.

She was grinning now, more than he had ever seen her. She tackled him to the ground and kissed him, almost desperately. He kissed back, dropping the ring in the process, to free up his hands so they could wrap around her waist.

They just kissed for a minute before Percy made the executive decision to pull back.

"I'm guessing that's a yes?" he asked breathlessly.

She gasped a laugh. Her eyes were wet now, and filled with more love than he could have imagined was possible.

"Seaweed Brain," she half-admonished softly.

He groped around the sand for a few moments before he found the ring. Good thing, too, otherwise Hephaestus would have been pretty mad if he'd had to ask for another one.

Percy slipped the engagement ring on Annabeth's left ring finger and kissed her again. He felt her tears on his face now. Or maybe they were tears of his own. He wasn't entirely sure. And more importantly, he didn't care.