Author's Note: My friend, whom I shall call "Aphrodite Girl" came up with this idea. I like it. I'd written most of it right after posting Thunderstorm, so that was forever ago. But I thought, since Percy's sixteenth birthday was super confusing and I didn't even know where it started in the book, 'cuz it all ran together, why don't I use this as his sixteenth birthday. So this is a little one-shot about Sally thinking about Percy and the summer, since his real birthday was super crazy.

Hope I did a good job!

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO.

Sixteen

I got out of my car and stared up at the giant hill. A sudden rush of memories came flooding to my mind. I remembered the first time we'd climbed this hill together. We were being chased by an angry bull-man who'd wanted to feast on my son. I remembered him running up this hill with Grover, his satyr protector, slung over his shoulder. The only frustrating part was that I couldn't remember anything past that point. That had seemed like so long ago…

I watched as a red-haired girl came down the hill. I recognized her—Rachel Dare, a friend of Percy's. He'd gotten so close to her over the summer. They'd only met two years ago, but you'd never know, the way they were always together.

She noticed me, and her eyes lit up. "Hi, Ms. Jackson!" she called, waving her hand at me. I smiled and returned her wave. I asked her how her summer had been, and she told me all of the crazy things that I'd missed while I was passed out in a Prius, or waiting for my son at the bottom of the Empire State Building.

I couldn't help grinning. "Sounds like the rest of your summer was great, Rachel," I told her.

She smiled back. "It was," she agreed. "But trust me; Percy's was probably much better." She looked away, smiling slyly to herself, like she knew a little secret. I watched her as she got into her father's shiny Mercedes.

I couldn't help but think of how far we'd gotten. It was almost impossible for me to imagine the little boy I'd been trying to protect when he was twelve. I remembered that first summer, when he'd come home to me with a bandage around his arm, barely able to stand up. Even so, he'd told me all about his first year at camp and his first quest, but also about all sorts of danger he was in as a son of Poseidon. But I remembered how he'd looked at me confidently, his green eyes shining brightly, and assured me that he was okay, that he didn't need my protection anymore, that he could take care of himself. Year after year he'd come back from each quest with a new story every time.

Another car pulled up behind mine. A tall, blond man stepped out, along with two identical blond boys. His face looked familiar, but I wasn't sure why.

He saw me and flashed me a friendly smile. I returned it, holding out my hand. "Sally Jackson," I introduced myself.

"Frederick Chase." He stopped, then said, "You wouldn't happen to be Percy Jackson's mom, would you?"

I smiled. "You wouldn't happen to be Annabeth Chase's dad, would you?"

"As a matter of fact, I am."

"And I'm Percy's mom."

"Nice to meet you. Annabeth tells me so much about Percy. Great things."

One of the twins rolled his eyes. "Annoying things. He's all she talks about."

The other one nodded in agreement. "I wish she'd just go out with him and give us all a break."

I laughed. "Don't worry," I assured them. "Percy can't keep his mouth shut about Annabeth either."

As if on cue, I glanced up and saw a blond teenage girl sprinting down toward us, followed by a dark-haired teenage guy. I smiled wide.

"You'll never catch me, Seaweed Brain!" she yelled back.

"Never say never, Wise Girl!" he called. He put on a burst of speed and caught up with her, so they were running side-by-side. Then he tackled her with a huge hug, picking her up and spinning her around lovingly. The girl laughed. So did the boy. So did I.

I shook my head, thinking, Oh, Percy.

He kept twirling Annabeth around, until they both toppled over and rolled down the hill. I could hear Annabeth trying in vain to scream at him, but her giggles kept her from sounding angry. When they finally came to a stop at the bottom of the hill, where we were waiting, they were both cracking up.

"I'm sorry," Percy chuckled.

"Say that to my sore back," Annabeth said, pushing him away, but still laughing.

The twin blondes both raised eyebrows at the two teenagers. "Nice job, you guys," one said.

Percy just rolled his eyes and got up, helping Annabeth up as well. I noticed that his skin shimmered a little bit, just slightly. It was almost like a force field around him. Immediately, I recognized the curse of Achilles, Percy's new invulnerability.

"Hey, Mom," he called to me, still hand-in-hand with Annabeth.

"Hi, Dad," Annabeth greeted her father.

I smiled at the two of them. "Well, looks like someone made the best of this summer," I commented.

Percy nodded. "Definitely."

"So are you finally going out with him?" one of the twins asked Annabeth.

Annabeth smiled at Percy, then gave him a peck on the cheek. "Yeah," she said. "I guess you could say that."

Annabeth's father nodded, and I could see a smile starting to spread across his face as well. "Well, we'd better get going, Annie," he said.

Percy nodded. Then he sighed. "Um, so I guess…I'll see you in New York?"

Annabeth hugged him tightly. "See you in New York," she said.

I pretended not to notice as Percy pulled her in for a sweet kiss, but I couldn't help but smile. I knew all along that he liked her. It was just something that moms could notice from time to time.

Percy walked over to the car with me. He was smiling like crazy.

"Looks like you had a fun summer," I noticed. "So, you're finally going out with Annabeth, huh?"

He blushed, but he nodded.

"How was the rest of your birthday?" I asked him.

His face turned even redder. "I got a chocolate cupcake," he offered.

"Yeah, because getting a cupcake on your birthday is so embarrassing," I said sarcastically. "Now, what are you blushing about?"

"I got dumped into the canoe lake," he told me.

I laughed. "Why?"

He took a sudden interest in his sneakers. "Let's just say that Annabeth and I had the best underwater kiss of all time," he said.

"Ah, I see," I said, smiling. "You really like her, don't you?"

He nodded, smiling and blushing. "Yeah, I really do. So…" he said, in a let's-change-the-subject voice. "…can I drive?" he asked, holding his hand out for the key.

I cracked up. "Sure," I said, dropping the keys into his open palm. "You're sixteen now; you'll be getting your license soon. Practice makes perfect."

"Yes!" I heard him whisper to himself.

As we drove away, I thought I saw Percy glance in the rearview mirror. He smiled once. "By the way, Mom," he said, "shooting that monster with that shotgun—awesome."

"Thanks, Percy," I laughed as Percy drove as back to the city.

Sorry, couldn't resist having Percy do something totally Percy-like. So, one more time, Happy Birthday, Percy.

Thank you to all those who read and reviewed. I love you all!

~Mandi2341