Hello everyone! I hope you're all safe and healthy- please do wash your hands and follow basic hygiene. Also, if you're a non-vegetarian, maybe consider becoming a vegetarian? (I'm kidding, don't kill me)
I'm sorry that I updated much later than I said I would update- I kept feeling like this chapter was not good enough, and I still feel that.

Also, I asked if y'all wanted Percabeth to meet through Jason, or professionally and I got mixed reviews, so I kind of did both. Maybe that's why I don't like it. Ugh, I don't know.
I don't think this is my best and I feel something is missing, but I just figured I could just get it done with, instead of procrastinating.

Stay safe everyone!

"I am a lover of words and tragically beautiful things, poor timing and longing, and all things with soul, and I wonder if that means I am entirely broken, or if those are the things that have been keeping me whole."

~ Nicole Lyons

Previously:
Jason interrupted in a yelp, as though he himself was shocked at the suggestion."Percy's getting married!"

Chapter 3

One hour ago

It was far too early in the morning to function without decent coffee.
Thalia glared at her steaming styrofoam cup of the diluted garbage that the office administrator dared to call coffee.

"You'd think that the freaking FBI would invest in some above-average caffeine," she grumbled, shuffling away from the break room, still groggy from the all-nighter she'd pulled. She was almost beginning to believe the overtime was not worth it.

"Special Agent Grace!" Michael Yew from Counter-Intelligence called out. "She's looking for you!"
Thalia cursed, dumping her shitty coffee into the nearest trash can, smoothing out the lines on her shirt.

"Do I look like I slept here?" she asked, tucking a choppy lock of dark hair behind her ear. "How do I look?"

Michael scrutinised her, one eye narrowed in an exaggerated inspection, then cocked an eyebrow at her. "You want the truth or a confidence-boost?"
"Screw you, Mike," she rolled her eyes, shoving past him, anticipating his usual lament at the nickname.
"Don't call me that!" he yelled, as expected and she chuckled, shaking her head, flipping him the bird behind her back.

She knocked- two, precise knocks, as instructed by the woman behind the door, several times in the past- and waited.
"Come in." As she walked in, closing the door softly behind her, she smiled to herself at the sight of the most powerful woman she'd ever met.

The woman seated at the desk didn't look up from the folder of paperwork she was currently skimming, glasses trained on the print.
"How is the Dare case coming along?"

Executive deputy chief for the Criminal Investigative Division of the FBI, Artemis Leto had the kind of voice that was filled with quiet command. Thalia had no idea if the woman spoke softly, to use it as a power move, or simply had that kind of voice, but it served its purpose: everyone was extremely intimidated by her. She held herself like royalty- so most of the employees at the Manhattan branch had taken to referring to her as 'The Lady'.

The woman is a five-foot redhead and everyone is petrified of her, Thalia sighed to herself admiringly.

"Not great. I made a breakthrough with one of Dare enterprises' clients- he wasn't a legitimate client- but he's disappeared, gone off the grid. I won't be surprised if he was scared into hiding by Dare's people."

Artemis removed her wire-framed glasses, not a red strand of hair out of place, and looked up at Thalia, hands folded calmly on the table.
"You're in luck," she said simply, "Wyatt Dare's daughter showed up last night in Manhattan, claiming she just saw him murder her mother."

For a moment, the dark-haired Agent stared at her superior in dumb shock.
"You're kidding."
Artemis spared her the smallest quirk of her lips. "No, I'm not."
Wow. Thoughts were springing like sparks from a firework in her brain. "WITPRO?" she asked.

"Your friend Nico di Angelo's the deputy Marshall in charge. I want you to work with the NYPD if you need to- okay, Grace? I know we don't have the best relationship with them, but we've got to give them something. Cooperate." Artemis's gray-silver eyes were distractingly clever. "Understood?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"I assume you know what to do?"
"Oh, yes," Thalia grinned, the exhaustion and crankiness from the lack of coffee melting away. "I know what to do."

Nico was caught in the everyday New York traffic when he got the call.
He spared a glance at his cab driver- the man's mustache was quivering as he shook his fist and yelled out the window at another cabbie- and deemed him sufficiently preoccupied before picking up.
"Yeah, shitface, I know this is your case- I was going to call you after-"

"Well, hello to you too, death breath- is that how you answer the phone?" Thalia was always in the mood for a game of who's-got-the-most-creative-insult.
"For you? Always."
Her snort echoed through the line. "Listen, I can't drop by the precinct to get the case files until they officially sign over the case to us- and that probably won't happen for another hour. Where's the kid?"

"Uh," Nico glanced out the window, at the never-ending queue of cars up the block. "Yeah, she's at the precinct, with the guy who came and dropped her off, apparently. I'll update you once I get there. It's gonna take a while."
"Wait, who dropped her off?"
"Some Peter- or, wait," he glanced at the name he'd scrawled onto his notepad. "Percy Jackson."

Uncharacteristic silence.
"Did you say Percy Jackson?" Thalia seemed shocked, if her high-pitched tone of incredulity was any indication.
"Yeah, why?"
"The moron's my cousin!"
Now it was Nico's turn to pause. "You're kidding!"

"How is he involved?"

"I don't know yet, Thalia, it's your job to find out," Nico retorted. "What's your cousin like? Can I trust him?"
"He's a goofy idiot and too nice if you ask me, but you can trust him." Thalia still sounded confused. "Wait, what the heck kinda trouble is he getting himself into? How does he even know this girl?"

Nico figured his morning had just gotten a lot more interesting.
He shoved a twenty into the cabbie's hands and got out of the car, deciding to walk the three blocks remaining- it would be faster, anyway.
"I have no idea," he said, dodging bikers and pedestrians. "But I'll let you know when I find out."

The Present

Percy fought to keep the shock at bay as he stared at his cousin in growing horror.
Lying to the woman would only get him further away from adopting Rachel, what the heck was he doing? He was going to strangle him-

"Is that true, Mr. Jackson?" Nico interjected.

Everyone was staring at him.
Reyna's eyes were so wide, he could see himself reflected in them.

"Uh," he glanced at Mrs. Dodds' face. She seemed to be assessing him, glancing down at Rachel gripping his arm and looked like she was reconsidering.

He may have been reading her expression wrong, but at that moment he didn't care. He'd take any small sliver of hope. No matter what the social worker said, he knew that there would still be some amount of time that Rachel would spend in a home or with a family she didn't know and couldn't trust.

He raced through the possibilities, considering it: He could pretend to be engaged and then claim they broke up... or, well, he'd figure it out later.
And besides, if he let her go now, he didn't know if he'd ever see her again.
"Yes. Yes, I am. Engaged, yep."
He hoped he hadn't been too obvious.

"Then why did you look so surprised when Jason said that?" Reyna asked, a suspicious brow rising. Percy floundered for an answer, but Jason swooped in for the rescue, yet again.
"Well, I wasn't supposed to tell anyone- he wanted to tell his mother first, before anyone else. You know how he is- Mama's boy, through and through!" the two of them shared a bout of nervous laughter. Reyna didn't look very convinced, but the attention shifted to Dodds.
"And your soon-to-be-wife would be okay with this arrangement?" She asked. "You're not even married yet, and you want a kid?"

"Yes, yep, definitely." his heart was pumping erratically, he could hear his own pulse in his ears. He swallowed. "She loves kids."

Jason nodded vigorously as though to attest to the child-loving nature of his fake fiancé.

Nico di Angelo's lips twitched like he was hiding a very satisfied smile. "Give me a moment, please." he said, pulling out his phone and backing out of the room. Percy wished he could do that. Oh, wait- he could!
Then Mrs. Dodds considered her clipboard, frowning. She turned to Percy.

"And what's your fiancé's name-"
"Actually," Percy interrupted. "I was supposed to call her. I will-I'll do that right now. Um, just a minute."
Without waiting for their acquiescence, grabbed Jason's arm and dragged him to a somewhat secluded corner of the bullpen.

"Sir, I think we don't have to relocate Rachel. Wyatt Dare would never expect us to leave her under his nose, in Manhattan."
There was a brief silence from the other side of the call and Nico fidgeted, surprised at his own gall and more so by his concern for the kid. Guess he was a sucker for kids, like everyone else, huh.

"Why?" US Marshall Hades P, and Nico's immediate superior, asked, finally.
"The FBI Agent in charge of the Dare case-"

"Ah yes, that dratted Grace girl."
"-she knows the guy that brought Rachel Dare to the precinct: Percy Jackson. She trusts him. And so does Rachel."
"What are you saying, di Angelo?"
"I think it's important for the girl to stay with someone she trusts sir. She seems close with this guy- I think we should keep her here- with Jackson."

"And you don't think it's too risky?"

"I think there's a risk, definitely," Nico scratched his chin, glancing over at the young girl's face through the glass partition. She looked lost, eyes flitting back to Percy every now and then. Nico wasn't entirely sure that the story with Percy's so-called fiancé checked out, but it wouldn't matter as long as he had the kid's back.
"But I think this risk is one that might just be worth it."

Hades seemed to consider this. "Alright." he bit out, "But this is on you."

"Yes sir, understood." Nico felt considerably lighter. "CPS, sir?"
"I'll take care of it."

When he turned, Jason raised his hands, as though surrendering, already apologetic.
"Hey, man-"
"What the heck, Grace!?" he whisper-yelled, "Not only did I just lie to a social worker, I lied to a US Marshall, and the cops- who now think I am to be married! This charade is going to fall apart the moment they-"

"It doesn't have to be a charade," Jason said quickly, eyes darting to the side to ensure no one was eavesdropping. Percy was flabbergasted.
"Dude, what are you saying?".
"I mean," Jason hesitated, as though thinking things through. He looked... slightly excited even. "Listen, okay? Seriously. I have no idea why you want to get into all this trouble- but I trust you know what you're doing. So you need to trust me when I say this is not just a random whim- I do have a plan, and it's perfect! Two birds with one stone! I have a friend- you've met her, actually, and she needs this too-"

"Wait, hold up." Percy held a hand up, unable to believe the absurd words spilling from Jason's mouth. "Are you actually suggesting that I get married? For real?"
Jason nodded enthusiastically, oblivious to the utter disbelief rippling forth from him. Had the blond fool lost his mind?
"What. Is wrong. With you?!" Percy knuckled the back of Jason's head and the latter winced, protesting. But before he could retort, Mrs. Dodds interrupted them, from across the bullpen:

"Mr. Jackson!" she called, a phone pressed to her chest, like she'd just gotten a call. The befuddled expression on her face gave him pause. The woman had always looked like she stepped on cat poop. Now, she looked like she was finally portraying an emotion that wasn't condescension or disgust: that had to mean something unexpected had happened.
"Yes?" he asked, hesitantly, warily.
She frowned and looked down at her clipboard again.
"My superior just called," she said, "and he has decided that we can begin the adoption process. I guess they thought you'd make a good fit. Especially with your... fiancé."
Her tone betrayed her disbelief (which, in all honesty was not unwarranted) and a slight hint of suspicion regarding his fake fiancé. He didn't know if it was a good or a bad thing that this was all happening so fast.

"You can fill in the forms tomorrow, and I will brief you on the process," she sauntered over and handed him a card. 'Alecto Dodds' it read in fine print, with the logo of the USA Social services and a phone number, email, etcetera at the bottom. "Call me tomorrow for the address. I hope you'll bring your fiancé?"
Crap. Crap, crap, crap. Damn Jason for getting him into this mess. Damn Alecto Dodds. How in the hell did he get approved that quickly anyway? He couldn't see any other way out of this predicament – and he certainly wasn't going to question miracles.
"Yep. Sure, I will. She will be coming, don't you worry, ha ha," he choked out weakly, wiping his palms against his legs and taking her card. "Thank you...?"

But despite the jerky panic of the idea of deceiving the government, he felt relief at the idea that Rachel would be safe. And with him! Wow. The last hour barely registered in his brain. He'd walked into this precinct the previous night with a little girl he could barely call his friend, and now he was going to walk out with a ward (well, technically not until tomorrow would she truly be his ward, but these were semantics.) The kid hadn't been her feisty self today and Percy was worried about her. She'd seemed so strong that sometimes he forgot she was only seven-or eight? He wasn't sure- and needed comfort and guidance the way any child did. No wonder she had told him her father wasn't looking for her- he was a mob boss, and the poor thing... what horrors had she seen in her short lifespan?

Mrs. Dodds merely nodded, giving him a brief, suspicious once-over, before turning away. "I'm taking her to the shelter now, so you'd better say your goodbyes." she said over her shoulder.
That spurred him into action.
"I'm going to say goodbye to Rachel, and then head for my meeting at noon- but we are not done talking about this!" Percy hissed at Jason before starting off behind the demon lady.

In the wake of all the unbelievable nonsense he'd been sucked into the previous evening and this morning, Percy was slightly relieved but also disappointed to return to his normal, everyday life- if only for a few hours. He was gazing, unfocused at the growing pile of paperwork on his desk, his mind miles away with a child in a sterile room, asked questions by grown-ups who wouldn't be bothered to ask her the one question that really mattered: Are you okay?
He'd hated to leave Rachel in the care of Mrs. Dodds, (who was a Fury from Hell incarnate) but reality hardly checked for his opinion on things, now did it?
His phone rang, startling him out of his musings.

There was slight static on the other line as he picked up. "Please tell me you've left already." the voice on the other end said.
He checked his watch.

"It's at noon, right?" he asked his friend and lawyer, Silena Beauregard.
"Which means you gotta leave now, dumb-ass. It's only a few blocks away, but being early-"
"-Is how you make a good impression. I know." He shoved his troubled thoughts of his soon-to-be-ward, and a fake fiancé out of his mind, focusing on his new project.

"Did you forget your tie again?"
"Uh-"
"You did, didn't you? Honestly, Percy-"
"It's okay, it's just a tie, Silena, come on."
"... just be on time."

But even as he donned his coat, grabbing his briefcase and mentally ran through a checklist of whatever he needed for the meeting, Rachel was never far from his thoughts.

Annabeth rose when the other side entered, four in all: three men and a woman. She immediately felt a kinship with the woman, resenting herself for it the next second. She wasn't intimidated by any of the men, and for all she knew this woman was the most formidable of them all. She herself struggled against the daily turmoil and conflicts that came with a competitive workplace in which men were so used to seeing only other men, and now she was doing the exact same thing most others did to her: underestimate the woman.
All these years of progress and the gender roles were still deeply ingrained. She held back the internal sigh, pasting a professional smile on her face.

The liaison for the project, a young Mr. Stoll, greeted them and offered them the opposite side of the conference table.
"This is the team lead for the project from Atlantis Holdings- Percy Jackson, and this is his team. Sir, would you like to make the introductions?"
A lean, dark-haired man stepped forward, hand outstretched. She recognized the placid, professional smile as the same she wore and allowed herself an amused glance at his hair, which was a total mess, sticking up every which way. To his credit, however, the rest of him was well-groomed- a simple navy blue suit- he even made it look good without a tie.

"A pleasure," she said, taking his warm, rough palm in hers, shaking it firmly, as Stoll introduced her.

Athena had ensured that her daughter perfected the art of a firm handshake: not too tight a grip, not more than one movement, and no sweaty palms- before she had even entered her company.
A woman needs to be twice as good as a man to get half the recognition for it, her mother had once told her. You can't afford to seem vulnerable.
The memory was too hazy to recall whether she'd been bitter or if it was just another one of those matter-of-fact statements she had made and now... well, now she was dead. Annabeth supposed she would never know.

Some of her inward melancholic thoughts must have shown in her eyes because the man- Percy Jackson- smiled at her for real this time, his hand still gripping hers and she drew away, angry at herself.
You can't afford to seem vulnerable.

Everyone shook hands as Mr. Jackson introduced his team, and she hers. The other two men were his financial head and one of his top engineers and the woman was his lawyer.

"I'm surprised the CEO is involved in this," he stated, inclining his head toward her. Now that she studied him, he seemed familiar, like she had seen him somewhere.
"I'm not officially the CEO yet," her smile was brittle. "And it's a huge project."

And it was... but also, for Annabeth, this was personal. Her first project without her mother holding the reigns- it was a bittersweet sort of challenge. While she had always wanted to be able to call the final shots on all projects- or at least, her own- she hadn't wanted it like this. Never like this. Grief pricked the back of her eyes and she choked it back with a vengeance.
You can't afford to seem vulnerable.

This project would be a test of her competence- or the lack of it.
There was no need to elaborate on her insecurities, however so she left it at that.

"Exactly," he grinned, and one cheek dimpled. As he leaned forward, she noticed his eyes were a piercing sea green. "I can't wait to see what you have in mind."
Does he just have one of those faces? She wondered, because she was now sure she had seen him before. Or do I know him?

"Shall we, Mr Jackson?" she gestured to the empty seats around the sleek, glass table. She sat directly opposite to Jackson, folding her palms on the table, trying her best to appear a cool, collected figure.
"Percy, please." he said, dragging his seat back, eyes meeting hers. She nodded.
"Athena Design and co. will present their pitch for the aquarium project this hour and after we break for lunch, we'll discuss the rest of the details." Mr. Stoll announced, before gently closing the door.
For a moment, they sized each other up, silent. Then it began.

"I have an hour for lunch, Jason. We need to talk." he growled into his phone.
"Got it. Do I pick you up?"
Percy consulted his watch. "Yeah, that would be best."

He rattled off an address and Jason paused. "Wait, you're at the Athena Design building?"
Percy frowned. "Yeah, why?"
"Oh. Why are you there?" Jason sounded pleasantly surprised.
"I had a meeting, but how is that important-"
"That's perfect! Wow, yeah stay there- there's a diner down the street."
"Wait, Jason- why do you sound surp-"
Jason hung up.
"Dick." Percy muttered under his breath, annoyed at Jason's cryptic questioning. Unbothered ass. He had less than a day to find himself a fiancé and it was all Jason's fault.

His foot tapped restlessly against the tile as he waited for the ever-so-slow elevator that seemed to be practically inching its way up. When it finally arrived, with a soft ding, he stepped in, relieved, and agitated at the same time.
Percy was just about to call Alecto Dodds and check in despite her reassurance of Rachel's safety, when someone yelled- "Hold the door, please!"

He pressed the 'open door' button repeatedly, as a panting Annabeth Chase hurried toward him, phone pressed to her ear, a cloth folder-bag of sorts in her other hand. She offered him a brief, grateful smile before continuing her conversation with the recipient of her call.
Something about the blonde felt familiar, like he had met her or known her before, but despite racking his brain, he couldn't recall how or where he might have met her before. He had spent nearly a third of the meeting, mulling over the possibility of having run into her at college, or school... had he dated her? He'd shaken off the notion immediately. Women like Annabeth Chase were way out of his league.

"I don't care how many people are waiting, you need to-" her hushed voice was strained with a sort of intense urgency, devoid of the passion she'd possessed when presenting her idea for the aquarium, answering every question with an enthusiastic fascination that left him confident of her abilities. This woman in the elevator with him was robbed of her straight spine and crisp tone, her back slightly hunched, the fingers of her free hand twisting the corner of her shirt. "- no, how about you listen, I-... hello? Did you just- hang up on me?!"

She broke off, staring at the blank screen in disbelief and a low sound of frustrated rage escaped her throat. Her fist tightened around the black plastic, knuckles whitening as she sighed and turned to Percy.
"Hello," she murmured, inclining her head briefly. He echoed her greeting, cursing the speed of the elevator and its poorly chosen 'cheery' music. She turned toward him a second later, inhaling like she wanted to ask something, but turned away again.

They spent the rest of the slow ride in awkward silence.

Her phone began ringing the second the elevator doors opened, and Annabeth swiped at the screen without even looking at the name, eager to escape the strained awkward tension with a man she sort of knew but didn't exactly. She smiled at Jackson apologetically before pressing the phone to her ear, walking briskly toward the reception desk at the lobby's entrance.
"Hello?"

"Hey, Annabeth, you free for lunch?"
Jason.
"Oh, hey man," she shifted her phone and held it between her ear and neck, as she zipped open her folder and whipped out a couple of papers. "No, I've got a couple of things to do. And I'm really pissed- I asked another attorney to give me a second opinion on disputing my mother's will, and the secretary just said no and hung up on me!"

"Dude, seriously, this is important," Jason said, his voice muffled by her neck. "Trust me, you will not regret it."

"I can't- I'm expecting a delivery that I have to personally sign for Jason, and-" she shuffled over the papers to the receptionist, miming the action for 'Stamp'. The amused receptionist nodded, and obliged. "-I have a meeting after, so I can't be late."

"It's at the diner in the corner, you know the place," he insisted. "It won't take too long."

Annabeth sighed.

"Fine," she grumbled, carefully slipping the stamped papers back into the folder and zipping it up. "I'll be there in twenty, after I get the delivery."

"Sounds good. See ya."
"Bye."

"Are you going to make me wait until dessert, or are you going to freaking spill already?" Percy snapped. He figured he'd been extremely patient, all things considered.
The diner was the cheery, all-kinds diner where one could enjoy an afternoon with friends or family, with its homely panels of mahogany and red, glass windows overlooking a busy road. The smell of grease and meat infiltrated their nostrils.
The waitress had greeted them with a warm smile and a menu and Jason had situated them at a fairly secluded back booth. None of this was soothing Percy's agitation, as he shuffled opposite to Jason with his back facing the entrance. Jason rolled his eyes.

"You're being overdramatic."
Unbelievable.

"I'm being-?- you-" Percy spluttered for the proper expression of his disbelief. His cousin waited, fingers steepled, eyebrows raised.

"I'm- not getting married." He stated finally.
"You heard that Dodds lady- couples have a better chance at-"

"Okay- listen, Jason. Even assuming that I do get married- which is absurd because I'm not seeing anyone and wives don't just fall out of the skies- it's stupid and silly and completely unnecessary!"
"No, listen-"

"Besides, I only want to help Rachel- I love that kid. I'll find a way-"

"Oh, for the love of- will you listen?"
"Fine, what?!"

Jason exhaled slowly.

"Can you- and honestly, tell me- can you honestly think of a solution that doesn't involve getting yourself a fake fiancé in the next day?"

Percy opened his mouth to retort- then shut it, defeated. Jason was right. He couldn't.

"That's what I thought." Jason said. "I know you want to keep denying it until its impossible to. Now- I have a friend, who also needs a fake marriage, alright? This works out perfectly for the two of you- you can just get a quick divorce once this whole thing blows over and it will be perfect, okay? You're welcome."

"But-"

The waitress with the warm smile and the notepad in her pocket interrupted at the best time: "Would you like anything to order?"
"Oh, we're waiting for someone else, thanks- she'll be here in five minutes." Jason smiled at her apologetically. She glanced at the other occupants of the diner: there weren't many, just a family in the front table and a solitary man with a newspaper. Not a busy day.
"Take your time," she shrugged, tucking the notepad back into her pocket and sauntering away.
"Who's joining us?" Percy's brows were in danger of disappearing into his hairline.

"Your future fiancé," Jason allowed himself a small smile, amused by Percy's incredulity.
"You didn't tell me-" he gripped his raven hair in frustration, banging his head on the table. "Jason, I can't just marry someone- let alone someone I have never met!"

"Oh, that's okay- you have met her."
Percy raised his head. "Who?"
"It's-" Jason paused, eyes flitting over Percy's shoulder, to the entrance. He raised his voice and his hand, waving. "-Annabeth!"

Percy twisted around, still slumped in his seat, and was introduced, for the second time that day- to Annabeth Chase.

Annabeth and Percy stared at each other, surprised, to say the least, and more than a little bit confused.
"Jason, what's going on? Mr Jackson... what..?" she began, wondering what kind of bizarre prank the world was playing on her.

"It's Percy," he said, then clamped his mouth shut like he realized that wasn't very important right then. Annabeth was really tired of these surprises that seemed to keep jumping at her these days: her mother's death, the will, Jason and Piper's engagement- and now this.

Jason stood, biting his lower lip nervously, and gestured to the seat beside him. "Why don't you take a seat?"

She did.
Then the waitress shuffled over to their table eagerly, impatient from all the waiting. You and me both, sis, Annabeth thought sourly. They were both tired of the waiting.

"What can I get you?"

"Some damn clarity." she muttered.
The brunette lady peered at her in bewilderment. "I'm sorry?"
She sighed and shook her head, ordering her lunch.

The moment the waitress walked away, she turned to Jason. "Okay, why am I in this diner with you- and the guy I'm supposed to meet with post-lunch?"
"Wait, you guys have a meeting?" the blond man seemed genuinely surprised.
"Jason, you said we've met before so what-" Percy Jackson began, sea-green eyes alight with exasperation- and that's when it struck her.
An image of Percy- younger, with a baseball cap placed backward on his still-unruly hair, a crooked grin- rose in her head, like the answer she'd been searching for all morning. No wonder he'd looked familiar.

"You're Jason's cousin!" she exclaimed, equally delighted (at figuring out the matter of his strange familiarity) and disappointed (in the amount of time it took to recognize him). "We have met before."

Percy blinked at her, recognition filling in the gaps between the befuddlement. "That's why you looked so familiar- you're Piper's ex-roommate!" he laughed. "Wow, I can't believe I didn't remember."

"Er, so... what's going on?" she pressed.

"Um," Jason began, eyes flitting nervously between the pair of them. "Well... Percy actually needs something that- that you need too. The uh..."

He seemed to not know how to continue, scratching the skin behind his ear in chagrin. They waited him out, as patiently as they could- but Annabeth figured he had maybe five more seconds before she whacked him on the head.

"Okay, I'm just going to say it!" Jason exhaled. "You need to get married-" she glared at him, appalled that he would mention the dreaded bane of her goddamn existence casually to a man she barely knew!- "-and Percy needs to get married too! You both should marry each other!"

"What!?" She'd been ready to whack him anyway, when Percy turned to her.
"You need this too?"
"I- I- I'm- it's not-Ugh!" her frustration rippled to the surface. "It's complicated. But yes."
He nodded like he completely understood. "Yeah, same."

At first, it was just embarrassment and frustrated surprise. Then apprehension joined the mixture of volatile emotion bubbling up inside her. She thought of the several attempts she had made just in the past three days, to succeed- to make the best of whatever situation she'd ben put in, the constant feeling like she was missing something and the fear that she might lose everything. She needed a solution. And a solution had just presented itself (well, Jason had presented it) to her- why refuse without understanding it, at the very least? The majority of her being heaved at the thought of following Athena's game plan.

She had failed.
She had so hoped that there would be something she could circumvent- like cheating in a game. Except, this isn't cheating! she reminded herself. And you have a solution!

She took a deep breath.
"Alright," she told the man with the sea-glass eyes across from her. "Explain."

Thalia knocked her knuckles against the desk again. "Hey, I've been waiting here for a lot longer than 'two minutes' like you said, dude," she puffed out a breath, annoyed. "Where's your lieutenant?"

The man seated at the entrance to filing and evidence room shrugged, arms still folded. He didn't seem too bothered by her impatience.
Inter-agency politics are so goddamn annoying, she grumbled to herself, eyeing the dude's slumped I-don't-care posture and stained mouth. Was that Kool-Aid on his shirt?

"You know- you could at least pretend to do your job." she snapped at him.
He raised his brows. "I am doing my job. Waitin' for the Lieutenant to sign off."
She couldn't exactly argue with that.

"Ah, Special Agent Grace?"

Thalia turned to see the owner of the voice- a lean Hispanic woman with dark eyes- approach, her expression stormy. "I'm Lieutenant Ramirez-Arellano. I guess you're here for the case that you stole from us?"
She had to admit, she was a bit thrown off by the open hostility- but two could play at this game. Just as she opened her mouth to fire back some fiery retort, Artemis's command echoed in her head. Cooperate. She painstakingly ground her jaw shut.
"Yep," she felt like she was almost in physical pain, keeping herself from flinging a well-deserved insult at the cop. "I'm Thalia. I need the files."

Ramirez-Arellano glared at her, turning away jerkily and nodding at the man who slumped at his desk. He shrugged and grabbed the file on top of the pile of folders on his desk.
Thalia refrained from exclaiming in indignation. The file had been right there? Asshole.

The Lieutenant flipped it open- and frowned. "Dakota," her voice was strained. "Where's the Dare file?"

Dakota sighed exasperatedly, leaning forward. "This is the-" he blinked. Then blinked again. Maybe all that Kool-Aid was catching up with him. "Oh my God."

Thalia was gripped with the chilly sensation that something had gone wrong. And if something had gone wrong at the beginning... that didn't bode well for the rest of the case.

"What?" she demanded. "What is it?"
She shoved the woman to the side and flipped the folder open. It was empty.

"It's stolen," the Lieutenant's face was taut with anger and disbelief. "The case files are gone."

Okay, so if you didn't completely 'feel' the Percabeth meeting- it's because I made it as anticlimactic and awkward as possible. Most of these Rom-Coms or romance fanfics have sparks flying the second they meet- and that's just not realistic to me. Sometimes the person you end up falling in love with is someone you have to gradually get to know and love.

Meeting new people is awkward for most of us. It's real.