A/N: You know the superstition with the number 13? How most buildings don't have a 13th floor or airplane rows go from 12 to 14? Well I feel like this chapter is the one that just wanted to skip my brain. I know it has been forever. Trust me, I'm sorry. My life has been busy: Mamma Mia! (that went awesome, btw), school projects and AP testing (ugh), family issues, and some serious health stuff (both myself and other family members, not related to CoVid-19 but certainly not helped by it).

I'll save the rest of my note for the end of the chapter for those who are just here for the story. Enjoy chapter 13 (I think you'll really enjoy the ending ;D).

13 – Deck the Halls with Terrorists, fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

It wasn't soon after Percy and Annabeth had made their decision to not go back to New Rome that Percy ran into a problem. The big problem: New Rome required a very different set of qualifications for employment than anywhere in the mortal world. Sure, Percy had half a degree in Marine Biology, but that wasn't going to get him a job unless he could finish it out. Tony had offered to pay for Percy to attend a local college and finish his degree, but the demigod wasn't sure how he felt about taking the man's money. Sure, the guy was a billionaire, but he was already giving them free housing.

And thus, Percy had found a job working as a tour guide at the aquarium. It was a nice job: his co-workers were friendly, the pay wasn't horrible, and the aquarium's inhabitants were always excited to see him. Although he wouldn't mind less of the small petty fish drama that the fish always begged his help for: the 'so-and-so's encroaching on my coral piece' and the ever-popular 'they stole my food'.

Or, at least, mostly petty.

As soon as Percy had walked into the aquarium that morning, he was assaulted by the sounds of several fish calling for him. It seemed to echo through the halls, the call bouncing from tank to tank to make sure he heard them. Their voices were on the verge of panic, which worried Percy as all of the aquatic life at the aquarium were pretty mellow compared to other fish in the ocean. Curious, Percy rushed through the halls to the coral reef tank, following the cries of the fish. The aquarium gradually grew quieter as he grew closer to the square.

The tank seemed to be divided into three small groups: one swimming frantically back and forth right by the glass; a small group huddled near the back of the tank; and another small group hovering right by a large coral insert. Percy ran up to them.

What's going on?

One of the fish from the group near the glass spoke: My lord, Victor was attacked last night by Bill. We separated them, but Victor was injured.

Percy noticed the orange-lined triggerfish in the corner at the back of the tank, sectioned off from the rest of the tank. His attention shifted to the queen parrotfish, Victor. The demigod could see the damaged fin, or rather what was left of it. There was a faint hint of pink where the muscle peered through the torn scales. It's not that bad, my Lord, Victor told Percy. And I did kinda provoke Bill…

"No worries," Percy eased the anxious parrotfish. "I'll go inform the vet and we can get you some antibiotics. I'll talk to you and Bill later."

Percy strolled down the halls that led to the vet's office. He passed a couple of his co-workers on his way, all getting ready for the flood of visitors coming to the aquarium. Percy's mind thought back to that day, just a couple months ago, when Percy had visited the aquarium with Annabeth and Estelle, right before Agent Coulson showed up at his apartment and changed his life. It seemed crazy to think that, if Blackjack hadn't decided to go out flying that day, Percy would be sitting in a classroom in New Rome instead of living in with two superheroes, one a billionaire and the other a super-soldier.

He knocked on the vet's office door, pushing it open when he heard the vet yell "Come in." Dr. Kurt stood in the corner, next to the tank containing Ollie the Octopus, in for his routine check-up. Dr. Kurt straightened, eyebrows furrowing when she noticed Percy. "Ah, hello. What do you need?"

"Two of the fishes in the coral reef tank got into a fight and one of them has an injured fin. I figured you'd want to assess them and stop any chance of an infection."

Dr. Kurt sealed Ollie back in his tank, who didn't seem all that bothered. Percy knew that Ollie was more than capable of getting out on his own. Just last month, it had been found that he'd been sneaking out of his tank at night and grabbing midnight snacks. Dr. Kurt grabbed a cart that would allow for her to transfer Victor if the vet deemed it necessary. Percy held the door for her before following her all the way to the coral reef exhibit. "All right," she said. "Which one?"

Percy pointed out Victor who seemed to be all alone now. The rest of the fish in the tank had returned to their normal swimming patterns, excluding Bill who Percy noticed lurking in the back of the tank, swimming slowly in circles.

Dr. Kurt whistled. "Nice eye you got there. Luckily, the damage doesn't seem too bad. Still, better to be cautious. We'll get him set up in a treatment tank and give him a couple days to recover."

It took ten minutes for them to get Victor out of the large tank and into his own small tank. Most of the time had been spent waiting for Jake, one of their aquarium divers, to get into gear. Percy sat on the deck above the tank after Dr. Kurt had wheeled Victor away, talking to Jake who had stayed in the water, waiting for another diver to bring the tank cleaning supplies. They were talking about the upcoming Giants game against the Detroit Lions when Percy noticed that some of the fish were gravitating towards him. Jake frowned when he noticed. "They must think it's feeding time." He explained before waving his hand at them. "Shoo, Brandon will bring your breakfast later. Go on."

The fish didn't move.

"Come on, swim away." Jake gave Percy a confused look. "This doesn't normally happen. Don't know why they're acting up." He stared at the fish. "Seriously, go away."

Percy sighed when the fish remained. "Scram," he told them. A chorus of 'Yes, my lord' echoed in his head as the fish started to swim away.

Jake shook his head in amazement. "Man, I don't know how you did that. It's like you have a connection with them. What are you, a fish whisperer?"

"Totally," Percy nodded, leaning into the joke. "They call me their lord and everything."

Jake laughed. "Yeah, I'm sure they do."

Percy just smiled.

\~*~/

The months seemed to fly by. October and November came and went, and before Percy knew it, it was the middle of December. With only a week until Christmas, Percy spent a good chunk of his time alternating between shopping for presents to give to his friends and family and the aquarium working. Annabeth had also become busier. As construction started, the number of meetings she had to attend doubled. At least she said the process was moving along quickly.

The tower had been decorated for the holidays—tall green trees with glittering ornaments littering the lobby and communal spaces along with twinkling lights, garland, and fake snow. Even though Tony wasn't there (busy dealing with his company in Malibu), the rest of the Avengers team had popped in at least once to drop off gifts under the tree in the living room.

Currently, Percy was playing a game of UNO with Steve. The tv was on in the background and Annabeth sat next to Percy, a folder and some papers next to her. Steve had just played a 'Draw Four' card when Annabeth lunged off the couch. Percy turned to see her grab the remote and turn the volume on before the news on the tv caught his attention.

"We're live at Tony Stark's Malibu mansion where an attack has just been launched, supposedly by the terrorist known as the 'Mandarin.'" The news anchor reported as footage of a large house on a cliffside next to the ocean. Everyone was silent as they watched as a missile struck into the already crumbling mansion, causing a large chunk to break off and fall into the ocean. "This attack is likely prompted by Tony Stark's recent message to the terrorist."

A video popped up in the corner of the screen, showing Tony with his back to the camera. "Here's a little holiday greeting I've been wanting to send to the Mandarin," Tony said to the group of reporters that were crowded around him. "I just didn't know how to phrase it till now: my name is Tony Stark and I'm not afraid of you. I know you're a coward, so I've decided that you just died pal. I'm gonna come get the body. There's no politics here, just good old-fashioned revenge; there's no Pentagon, it's just you and me. And on the off chance that you're a man, here's my home address—10880 Malibu Point, 90265. I'll leave the door unlocked."

Another chunk of the mansion fell into the sea. Percy breathed out a sigh of relief when he saw two of the helicopters get taken down, supposedly by Tony in his suit. His relief, however, was short-lived as the rest of the mansion (the one that Tony still hadn't escaped from, Percy thought anxiously) collapsed into the water.

Everyone held their breath, waiting for Tony to reappear. After a couple minutes had passed, the news feed switched, talking about previous Mandarin attacks.

Tony still hadn't reappeared.

"Okay," Percy breathed slowly. "Steve, try calling Tony and see if he or JARVIS pick up by chance. Annabeth—"

"I'll call Pepper." She said, already up and walking off to the kitchen.

Steve took his phone out. "Who are you going to call?"

"My dad. He should be able to sense whether Tony's down there or not."

Ten minutes later, Percy collapsed back onto the couch. His dad hadn't given him much (Percy had interrupted an important meeting between his father and his board of advisors), but Poseidon had told Percy that he couldn't sense Tony, just the ruins of his mansion. Steve also came up empty-handed, his calls going straight to voicemail.

Luckily, Pepper had picked up. Annabeth relayed to the other two that Pepper was okay (as okay as a person who just watched their boyfriend/boss/whatever-they-were be presumed dead) and that Tony hadn't been in contact.

Percy's heart sank.

"Hey, he managed to get out, otherwise Poseidon would've said otherwise. Maybe he's just laying low," Annabeth mentioned at the sight of the heavy frowns on both Percy's and Steve's faces. "He did just threaten a terrorist."

"Gods, I hope you're right." Percy didn't even want to think about the other possibilities.

"I usually am," Annabeth tried to tease, but her voice sounded tight. "Come on, there's not much we can do right now. The best we can do is be ready if Tony manages to reach out."

Percy nodded, hating the fact that there wasn't more they could do. Judging from the tension in Steve's shoulders, he was feeling the same way. Their abandoned UNO game remained on the table as the three trudged off to bed, no longer in a good mood.

Sleep didn't come easy that night.

\~*~/

Percy had just finished tucking Estelle to bed when his mom called for him, saying there was someone on the phone for him.

It was Christmas Eve and he and Annabeth had traveled to Sally's apartment to spend Christmas with the rest of the family. Estelle had been so excited for Santa to come that she demanded that Percy put her to bed right away so that Santa would come faster. Sally, surprised to hear the two-year-old who usually threw a tantrum at the mention of bedtime saying she wanted to go to bed early, eagerly dumped Estelle into Percy's arms and shoved them into Estelle's room.

Unfortunately for Percy, it hadn't been as easy as his mom had hoped. Estelle declared that she still needed a bedtime story. After tucking in the covers as Estelle instructed him, Percy told her a quick story about a princess who lived in a far off castle who, coincidentally, shared the same name as Estelle. Eventually, Estelle's eyes started drooping and Percy was able to sneak out.

Sally was waiting for him.

"One of your friends just tried calling." She informed him. "The phone is in the kitchen."

Percy frowned. It was late at night, who'd be calling him at this time? He hurried to the kitchen where Annabeth had the phone to her ear. There was a smile on her face. "It was nice hearing from you, but I'm going to pass the phone over now."

"Hello?" Percy asked.

"Water boy, hey."

Percy nearly dropped the phone. "Tony? Oh thank gods." A large smile appeared on his face and the small knot that had been in chest unraveled. "You had us all worried."

Tony laughed. "Yeah, I know. Sorry about that. I figured with a terrorist on my trail, well, it was safer for no one to know I was alive."

"You're not alone, Tony. Any of us would have been more than happy to deal with that orange man for you. We're a team."

There was a moment where Tony was silent. "Thank you. I'm, uh, not used to having people offer help. Truly help."

"Any time."

Jumbled voices came through the phone. Percy could make out Pepper's voice telling Tony something. After a second, Tony said, "It was nice talking with you. I gotta talk to some people so I can spend Christmas with Pepper. Actually, seeing as all my gifts got blown up, not sure how much celebrating we'll be doing. Hey Rhodes, any idea how fast overnight shipping is?"

Percy laughed. "Alright, I'll let you go. Probably for the best to keep it short anyway if I don't want monsters knocking at my door."

Tony hummed, which made Percy curious, but before he could ask, Tony said goodbye and hung up. Percy set the phone on the table. Over on the other side of the kitchen, the microwave's blue LED lights showed that it was just a few minutes shy of eleven. From the living room, there was a small thud and the sound of Paul swearing, just soft enough to not wake Estelle.

Percy left the kitchen to help with the mass of presents that 'Santa' had delivered, the tension from his shoulders gone as he looked forward to the next day.

\~*~/

Estelle's shrieks of laughter filled the apartment as she rode around on her new yellow tricycle, Paul chasing after her. Percy watched Estelle ride around the coffee table from the couch, wearing his new Led Zepplin shirt that his mom had gotten him.

Annabeth settled down next to him, holding a mug with what looked like hot chocolate, completed with a few mini marshmallows sprinkled on top. She sent him a smile before turning her attention to the scene in front of them. Percy was suddenly reminded of the final gift that rested in his pocket, weighing heavier than it had before.

Percy shifted, adjusting the small box. He had carried it for a while, but it seemed that there had never been a better moment until now. Of course, his throat decided that that was the moment it wanted to become dry. He cleared his throat. "Uh, Annabeth? Can I ask you something?"

She faced him, frowning at the nervous face. "What's wrong, Percy?"

"Nothing's wrong. Actually, things are great. I wanted to, uh, there's something I've been meaning to ask you." Percy pulled out the box, watching as Annabeth's eyes went wide and her jaw went slack. The sounds of Estelle quieted as Paul carried her away into another room, giving Percy and Annabeth some space. "We've known each other for nearly ten years and dating for half of that. You're my best friend, I'd do anything for you. So what I wanted to ask is, Annabeth Chase, will you marry me?"

A/N: Hey-o! This chapter title was going to be the first in a four part series of chapter names, none of which are going to be used anymore, but I figured I's share them anyway because I thought they were good. It would've been:

Tis' the Season to be [and then an emotion I never figured out that fit the song rhythm], fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

Don We Now Our Battle Armor, fa-la-la, la-la-la, la-la-la

Troll the Ancient Greek Centaur, fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la

Yeah, it's a shame I couldn't end up using them. But, I think you'll like the other chapters better.

So, how is everyone? I've only got 3 more weeks of school (including the rest of this week). Two of those weeks, however, are filled with AP tests. My first test is Friday (all my fellow apushers, give me a woo-woo (and then cry over the fact that they chose a DBQ)), and then I have 3 more tests next week (Biology, Music Theory, and Language). At least one good thing has come out of this virus-I'm no longer taking two of those tests today. I would've hated to take my theory and lang test today, especially considering today's actually my birthday. Happy birthday to me. In all honesty, I'm really sad that they cancelled school for the rest of the year, considering I won't get a chance to say goodbye to all my senior friends before they head off to college.

I've taken to re-watching the Harry Potter series as it has been way too long since I last watched the movies or read the books (a year at least on both fronts). Me and my mom just finished Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 and I just have to say how much I dislike Snape. Draco totally should've gotten the redemption arc instead of Snape. Does no one remember the time Snape said he was going to poison Neville's toad to test Neville's cure and was angry when Neville got it right? That's messed up.

Also, I know many people know UNO, but does anyone know how to play DOS? I've looked up a couple tutorials but a couple of them contradict others, and the rules aren't that clear. I think, at this point, my family my just make up our own rules for it.

I do hope everyone is safe and healthy right now.

Until next time!