In total, twelve hunters had died. The remaining girls had taken their bodies and performed a burning ritual in the woods, attended by Thalia, who was offered her previous position as lieutenant. Annabeth wasn't mad that she accepted it, she just knew that she'd miss her best friend.

"Luke is being buried next to his Mom" She told Annabeth the day she was leaving on the hunt, both of them knowing that she wouldn't be back for a long time but neither of them mentioning it. Time healed all wounds, but some much slower than others. Annabeth hoped that when she returned she'd be stronger than before "The people were mixed about him getting a hero's award; half of them don't think he deserves it"

"Well that half can just lump it; you come back soon, okay?" Annabeth told her. Thalia hugged her tight before backing away, giving her one last smile before turning and joining her hunters. Annabeth turned and joined her new family, too; maybe it was best for both of them that they stay apart for a while.

The heroes were front-page news for weeks; all of them receiving awards and being questioned about what happened. Praetor returned with her troops and declared her battle won too, with far fewer casualties, and to Leo's extreme envy- actual war cannons and scorpion ballistae. Annabeth visited the villa a few times, exchanging tips on architecture and running a legion and soon, the two became on much better terms than before. In fact, Reyna Ramilez-Arellano grew very close to the team, and was soon visiting them all for dinner and taking care of them if ever they needed it.

"Hey Wise Girl, haven't you heard? its your night off tonight" A quiet voice said, catching Annabeth by surprise as she sat on her favourite rooftop. Percy stood behind her, wearing a smart suit and green tie that matched his eyes. Obviously, Juniper had picked it out for him, because she knew him, and knowing him his favourite tie would have little finding nemo patterns or something equally as ridiculous.

"Why are you all dressed up?" She asked curiously, sliding off the edge of the roof and toward him, her feathers fading immediately. She straightened his tie without thinking, and he chuckled.

"Well, I was hoping to take my girlfriend out to dinner, but she's always busy with work..."

Annabeth sighed.

"I forgot. I'm sorry" She said, and he laughed, kissing her forehead.

"Don't worry about it, luckily I have a friend who makes mean enchiladas; and I brought dinner to you" He told her brightly, producing a small picnic basket from no where. She laughed.

"Why are you so sweet to me?" She asked, as Percy pulled out a blanket and spread it out on the rooftop. Annabeth joined him in sitting on it, taking an enchilada gratefully; she had been getting rather hungry on her watch.

"because you deserve it. And I am making up for the anniversaries that I will likely forget"

"Ah. Knew there was a reason" She said, not mad in the slightest about the possibility of him forgetting anniversaries- the fact that he was planning to stick around long enough for them to have them was enough for her. The promise of something permanent; that was what Annabeth dreamed of. After everything that had happened, with so much change and confusion, she could really do with something constant in her life. The fact that it was Percy was just a bonus.

It was a wonderful night, one of the first of many rooftop dates that the pair would have, and it marked the start of a new life for Annabeth; balancing her hero/normal identities, learning that sleeping in was not a crime, nor was sleeping over- she didn't believe in happily ever afters, but she was certain this was as close as she'd ever been. She wanted to build something permanent; and this was how it started.

*1 year later*

"Do you agree to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"I do"

Annabeth beamed at Percy as the vows were exchanged, a beautiful ceremony organised by yours truly, Piper helping out with colour pallet and dress designing. The small group of guests were tearing up, Piper and Jason sharing a handkerchief in the front row, Leo struggling with his tie just behind them. Percy, holding a gorgeous golden wedding ring, shook his step-father's hand and handed it to him, looking delighted as Paul placed it carefully on his mother's finger. Annabeth handed Sally her ring and met Percy's eyes across them, trying not to laugh as her boyfriend looked ready to combust with joy- she almost told him that was Leo's job, but disturbing the wedding would've got her killed by her best friend, Piper. The couple kissed and officially became husband and wife, and Piper and Hazel clapped the loudest and waved at the pair, Hazel sobbing uncontrolledly and Frank not quite knowing what to do about it.

The wedding went seamlessly; bride, groom and guests moved from the ceremony to the party, situated in the grand hall of the museum- it was a favourite for weddings.

"How does it feel Mrs Blofis? Told you It'd be perfect" Annabeth beamed, finding the bride greeting guests. She looked beautiful in her white dress, dark hair braided intricately about her head like a crown, veil so long that it blended into her dress at the bottom. Annabeth was so used to seeing Sally in jeans and shirts that were covered in stains- she was just as astounded by how gorgeous she was as the first time she'd seen her during her fitting.

"Oh Annabeth, thank you so much for organising this- its so wonderful" She gushed, hugging her tightly. Annabeth laughed.

"You're like a mom to me, Sally; I was happy to organise your wedding. You deserve a perfect day" She told her. Sally looked a little teary.

"Don't make me cry Annabeth! Piper did a great job on my make-up! I can't ruin it!"

"Hey, I've already cried; I look like a mess" She grinned. Sally patted her cheek.

"You look radiant Annabeth; my son is very lucky"

At the mention of him, Percy appeared, hugging his mother and kissing her cheek, still beaming.

"Hey Mom. Piper says we're ready for speeches before dinner- she wants you at the top table" He told her. Sally nodded and headed off, leaving Annabeth and Percy alone. Percy reached out for her immediately, pulling her to him and kissing her.

"You look good" He murmured against her mouth. She hummed.

"Silver is my colour" Was her reply. Percy's hands wound around her waist, skimming across the fabric, making Annabeth shiver. She'd refused to let him see her in her dress until the wedding, and she was glad- he seemed to very much appreciate the surprise.

"I really can't handle you in this dress" He admitted "I almost carried you away half-way through the ceremony"

"I wouldn't have minded" Annabeth laughed "But Piper would kill us"

"Worth it" He said, kissing her again. He'd already loosened his tie and unbuttoned his suit jacket, which was tailored to fit him perfectly, and even though Percy hated suits, Annabeth thought they made him look drool-worthy. Almost as drool-worthy as his hero suit, which hugged every inch of him...

"Hey, keep it PG, there are children present" A flowery voice said, laughter in her voice, and Annabeth looked over Percy's shoulder to where Juniper was stood, amused, rocking a small child on her hip. The baby was just under a year old, already sporting a full head of curly hair and a taste for keys and other metal objects.

"hello there little man!" Percy greeted "Sorry but this Lady is taken, you're gonna have to charm someone else"

Both Juniper and Annabeth rolled their eyes whilst the baby boy clapped and reached for his Godfather as he always did whenever he saw him. Percy spun the child around, pretending he was an airoplane and making whooshing noises. The baby giggled madly.

"Okay, don't make him sick, I'm wearing nice clothes today" Juniper giggled, and brushed down her dark green dress as if worried her son had already splattered some form of baby food or vomit on it. The baby laughed and blew rasberries, and Annabeth pinched his cheek. He was such an adorable child, Annabeth was delighted whenever she and Percy got to visit him.

"Cutie pie. You're just like your papa" She told him. The baby didn't understand what she said, but he grasped the affection and beamed at her, waving his little fists and babbling in his baby language.

"Come on you guys, everyone else is sat down!" Piper cried, marching over meaning business. Juniper claimed back her son and swept over to her assigned table, taking a seat next to Grover and placing their child in a high-chair between them. Annabeth and Percy made their way to the top table and sat in their seats, beside each other. Percy held her hand beneath the table and she smiled.

"You're nervous about your speech" She assumed.

"You need to stop freaking me out by reading my mind" He replied. She kissed his cheek.

"You'll be fine"

Of course, Percy dropped his notes twice, couldn't work the microphone and stuttered for the first thirty seconds of his speech- but what he said about his mother and father in law reduced everyone in the room to tears, including Annabeth.

"W- how are you suddenly so good with words?" She demanded. Every time Percy tried to tell her some romantic speech, he stuttered so bad she had to kiss him to shut him up. Percy blushed.

"I-uh. Practiced. A lot. Jason helped me rehearse" He said, and she smiled. He was the sweetest dork she knew.

"Well it was beautiful. I wondered where you were going every week" She mused. He rubbed the back of his head.

"I thought you'd laugh at me"

"Seaweed brain, I'm not cruel- I'll laugh at you when we get home" She told him, and he laughed, relaxing immediately.

Hazel recorded Sally and Paul's first dance as husband and wife and then other couples joined them- Percy and Annabeth took some convincing, but eventually they too slow danced to a love song- okay, they leaned from side to side; neither of them had taken the available dance lessons that Piper had suggested. Grover was chasing his son around the dance floor as he wobbled, unbalanced, but still managing to outrun his father. Annabeth knew he'd be passed out in under than an hour though, giving his parents a well-deserved break.

At the end of the party, Annabeth and Percy stayed behind to help Percy's parents in saying goodbye to everyone, helping the more drunken guests into taxis and giving directions to others.

"See you on Wednesday- dinner at ours, okay?" Calypso said, hugging both of them and smiling. She looked very lovely in her Grecian style dress, she even wore a laurel at some point, but Jason had 'borrowed' it and hadn't given it back.

"Yep, just don't let Leo cook again, I like food that isn't on fire" Percy told her. She laughed and nodded.

"I'll be cooking this time- I've banned him from the kitchen" Calypso confirmed.

She left, arm around a slightly drunk Leo, and Percy turned to Annabeth.

"Should we go home?" He asked. Annabeth, very much enjoying that 'going home' meant taking Percy with her, nodded almost eagerly. They said goodbye to Sally and Paul who were also on their way out, and set off down the street.

"Have you heard from Thalia?" Percy asked, draping his jacket around her shoulders as she shivered in the chilly night air, warming her up instantly. She pushed her arms through the sleeves gratefullly.

"Yeah, she said the hunt is going well; she plans to visit sometime this month. Visit Luke's grave" She confirmed.

"That's good; its been too long" Percy replied, watching the sky. A few days ago, due to a crazed madman with electricity powers, the city had a power-outage; and suddenly the sky had been alight with stars, causing a five minute news bullitin and Annabeth and Percy taking a break from chasing the criminal down and admiring the sky for a while. They got him in the end, he wasn't hard to catch, but Annabeth missed the night sky she'd seen that night. She knew Thalia would've loved it.

"It has"

There was silence for a moment, the pair wandering home in an easy silence.

"I really enjoyed that wedding" Percy said cheerfully, lacing their hands together and swinging them between them.

"So did I" Annabeth agreed, wandering with him into the road, the hour so late that there were no cars ready to run them over. There was some kind of novelty about walking in the road that Annabeth enjoyed.

"We should have one"

"A party?"

"A wedding. Not right now, but-"

"Yeah, yeah- Maybe we should"

Annabeth didn't need to look at Percy to know that he was smiling, and she couldn't help the smile that appeared on her face too. Percy squeezed her hand.

"I'm glad you said that Wise Girl- I can sleep easy now"

Annabeth laughed, nudging Percy with her shoulder. She was blushing, definitely, but in the best way.

"You're an idiot, seaweed brain"

"And you love me for it" Percy sang.

"Yes, yes I do"

And they went home. A week later, Annabeth was wearing an engagement ring. She never wore it when on patrols, in case it got lost or damaged, but otherwise she never took it off.

"Oh my gosh Annabeth! Can I organise your wedding too?!" Piper asked the moment she saw the ring. Percy and Annabeth had agreed to have a long engagement, but Annabeth couldn't say no to Piper, who began collecting samples of everything from the get-go. Percy just laughed when Annabeth told him that night, and told her to go to sleep and quit worrying.

So she did. It was a great decision, really.

Is this a suitable epilogue? I hope so, because this is where it ends. What do you think? Good? Bad? Worst thing you ever read in your entire life and you don't know why you stuck around? I need to know these things! I fully intend to write more Percy Jackson fics, so I hope you give them a looksie when they appear, because you guys are great! Especially those of you who remind me to update- without you this would probably only have like six chapters :') so thank you!