synopsis: percy takes reader on a cute little valentine's day date! đ
word count: 843
percy definitely did not trip while on the way to bring you flowers. they just happened to be a little crushed on one side when you opened your dorm room door.
you opened the door to percy, smiling awkwardly with his face red. âhey,â he started, holding the flowers out for you. âhappy valentineâs day, sweet girl.â
you break into a big smile, taking the flowers from his hand. they were your favorite. âthank you, percy! theyâre beautiful. i love them.âÂ
âi love youâ
âi love you tooâ
you notice they look a little crushed. âwere they stepped on?â
âi tripped. thatâs not important. get your shoes on, weâre going on a date,â he says, inviting himself into your dorm room like heâs done countless times.
your eyes widen. âwe are?â
percy sits down on your couch. âwhat? you think i wouldnât take you on a date on valentines day? what kind of boyfriend do you think i am? now get your shoes on, i wanna woo you all over again.â
you smile.â âwhere are we going?â
a shit-eating grin makes itâs way onto his face. âitâs a surprise.â
he drives you to the aquarium that he works at. it also looks closed.
âis it even open?â you ask, concerned.
ânope!â he gets out of the car and runs over to your side to open the door for you. âmy lady,â he says as he holds out his hand.
you couldnât look more concerned as you got out of the car with his hand in yours. âno?? what do you mean no?? are we just gonna look at it?â
he laughs while he shuts your door. âno, silly, weâre sneaking in.â
âoh. of course.â
he convinced one of his coworkers to leave the side door unlocked.
you canât help but laugh at the whole situation. âyou do know you work here, right?â
âshh. let me be mysterious.â
inside, the aquarium was dark, except for the soft blue light glowing from the tanks, reflecting across the ceilings and walls, while the water hummed quietly through the filters. it was⊠strangely peaceful, and pretty.
you didnât really have words. âpercyâŠâ
he rubbed the small of your back âyeah, so, technically itâs closed, but i figured the fish wouldnât mind.â he looked over at you. âi hoped you wouldnât mind either.â
he took your hand, leading you through the exhibits. sharks glided overhead in the tunnel tank, a sea turtle drifted lazily by, and the ânemo fish,â as you and percy called them, swam quickly without a care in the world.
you guys stopped at the largest tank, the one that stretched from the floor to the ceiling.
âokay,â he said, hyping himself up. âso this is the part where i say something smooth.â
âthatâs a firstâ
he opened his mouth and closed it again.
you waited. âany time today would be nice.â
âwow, you look- i mean, the fish look- not that the fish look better than you-â
you burst out laughing.
he groaned. âi had a speech. i practiced it in the mirror twice,â he whined.
âtake your time,â you nod, reassuring that he doesnât have to be perfect.
he inhaled, then tried again, softer this time. âi donât need a holiday to love you,â he started. âbut i like having one. it gives me an excuse to do something big. you deserve something big.â
the water around you two shimmered while a group of fish suddenly swam by in unison, swirling loosely. it almost looked heart-shaped.
you raised an eyebrow. you knew better than to assume that was natural.
percy shrugged, trying and failing to look casual. âmaybe i asked them nicely.â
âyouâre kind of impossible,â you murmured.
he nodded. âyeah.â he stepped closer, hands settling carefully on your waist like he still couldnât believe he was allowed to touch you. âi know iâm not good at the fancy stuff,â he started. âbut when i look at you, i know i donât need to be perfect. you make up for all that.â the tank light reflected in his eyes. âyou have enough perfect in you for the two of us. iâll keep trying though. i always will.â he looked at you with dilated eyes as he finished. âyouâre my favorite person.â
âyou know,â you said, brushing imaginary dust off his jacket, âfor someone who took me to your place of work for a date, that was smooth.â
he smiled. âso iâm improving?â
âmarginally.â
he kissed you before you could finish teasing him. it wasnât rushed or dramatic, just warm and sure. somewhere above you, a stingray drifted across the glass ceiling like a silent blessing from his father.
when he pulled back, he rested his forehead against yours. ânext year,â he said thoughtfully, âiâm renting out a lighthouse.â
âyou donât even know how to rent a lighthouse.â
âiâll figure it out.â
you believed him, because percy might trip over his own feet and have you sneak into his workplace for a date, but when it came to loving you? he always showed up.
i rlly hope youâre open to reqs like this but iâve just recently gotten knto the percy jackson series and i rlly like nico
i was wondering if youâd be willing to write a nico x reader where reader just really likes nico and is affectionate (trailing behind him, looping her finger i to his waistband to keep herself from being separated from him)
i was wondering if the fic could be about nico realizing that reader might actually like him after overhearing annabeth and percy gossip about how clingy reader was.
maybe ââ§Â°đČÖŒđą
nico di angelo x gn!reader
word count: 663 (this is really short i'm so sorry)
Nico was used to people being afraid to get too close to him. He was used to people giving him weird looks when he walked by. He was used to being alone. What he was not used to, however, was having a walking, talking shadow (and not the kind he can control).
Wherever he went, you followed. Whatever he said, you laughed. Whatever he did, you smiled. It was strange at first, but after being best friends for three years, heâd gotten used to it. The constant trailing behind him, the running of your fingers through his hair when heâs tired, the touching of your thighs under the table at every meal. It was kind of nice, when he thought about it.
He didnât think anything of it. He thought that was just how you were. Thatâs why when Percy and Annabeth were talking about how youâre âso differentâ with him than with others, he was so confused.
âWhat do you mean?â Nico asked. âTheyâre clingy like that with everyone.â
âThey might be clingy, but the way they look at you while itâs happening is what's different. The dilated eyes, the soft gaze⊠you canât tell me you donât see it,â Percy said, not believing Nico could be so blind to your affections.
âNico, friends donât loop their fingers in their friends' belt loops so as to not be far away from them. You canât seriously think nothing of that. Thatâs what someone does when theyâre whipped. Percy did that with me right after we started dating,â Annabeth teased, poking Percyâs chest gently.
Nico shook his head. âIt doesnât mean anything. Just because they wrap their fingers in my belt loop doesnât mean they like me.â He canât even fathom the possibility of you liking him. Someone like you, the life of the party, loved by everyone, beautiful soul, liking someone like him? A broody, angsty boy with no redeeming qualities? Yeah, no chance in Tartarus.
Percy sighed. âYou can keep telling yourself that, buddy, but when the love confession comes, donât be surprised.â He took Annabethâs hand when he saw you approaching, the look of love in your eyes apparent as you singled in on Nico. âDonât be stupid,â he said with a smirk as he walked off with Annabeth.
Nico jumped slightly when hands wrapped around his waist and a face pressed to his shoulder. He knew your scent. âHi,â he said, unravelling your arms from around his waist and turning around to face you. âWhere were you? You werenât in the mess hall for breakfast this morning. I saved you pancakes.â
You smiled and ran your fingers through his hair. âI was cleaning my cabin. It was messy and I got motivated.â You look into his eyes with adoration. âSorry I didnât tell you.â
âItâs okay. I just got worried, is all.â He moves his hands to wrap around your waist. The pancakes are in my cabin, if you still want them. I put powdered sugar and strawberries on them just how you like it.â
Those words make you smile as you wrap your finger in his belt loop. âTake me to them,â you say dramatically as you start leading the way to his cabin.
He wonders how he didnât see it before. The way you look at him should've been clear enough, but everything about the situation glared at him. Maybe Percy and Annabeth were right. Maybe⊠you did like him.
But what really hit him like a bus was the realization that he felt the same. He didnât feel that way for any of his friends, just you. He didnât look at any of his other friends that way. He didnât save them pancakes, or wrap his arms around their waists, just you.
Maybe he can admit his feelings to himself. Maybe thatâll lead to him admitting them to you. Maybe he can allow himself to be happy with you.
.àłàż I just can't come in between them, they got their own thing or 6 times people thought they were dating + the 1 time it was actually true.
"So, you're dating?" the new camper looks between her and Percy after they gave him the tour around camp.
Ah, the long awaited question.
And the answer never changes. "No, we're friends, why?"
Once again, the camper looks between her and Percy, who's standing just behind her with his arms wrapped around her shoulders, her head comfortably resting back on his chest. "Oh, nothing, I just thoughtâ"
Yes. Everyone just thought. Everyone just thought they were together, and everyone was always shocked when it turned out they were merely friends.
Percy and her couldn't understand it at all, because it was totally normal for friends to act the way they acted with each other. Right?
âËđđËâ the ponytail incident
It is, obviously, totally normal for friends to want to help each other out before combat. So, of course Percy knows exactly how to tie her hair into a perfect ponytail.
Shouldn't everyone know that?
Who can blame him if he knows his best friend so well that he can easily notice her discomfort with her hair falling on her face when she's sparring? And who can blame him if he wants to help? That's what best friends do.
So he doesn't see anything wrong with standing behind her after she calls for time out, his fingers gently carding through her hair, gathering it into a ponytail, twisting it with practiced fingers and securing it with the hair tie that he just happens to have on his wrist.
"Thanks, Perce." She says, as if it's nothing out of the ordinary.
"Dude, how do you even know how to make a ponytail to begin with?" Leo asks when he hangs back and she goes back to sparring.
"She hates when her hair falls on her face." He shrugs, like there's no more explanation needed.
Leo doesnât understand, he doesn't know if he wants to, "You do realize you're in love, right?"
But Percy isn't even listening, his eyes already fixed on her and his smile growing when he sees her more relaxed without her hair bothering her.
âËđđËâ the necklace and hairtie
Yes, it's completely and totally normal if she wears a necklace with her best friend's initial around her neck.
It isn't even that noticeableâ just a small, golden "P" that rests on her collar bone. Cute and meaningless. She just likes jewelry. This one she especially likes, since she wears it every day.
Clarisse has never noticed it before, but now that she stands in front of her while they drink water after training, the gold necklace manages to catch her attention, sparkling under the sun tauntingly.
Clarisse squints her eyes at it. "Is that... a 'P' on your necklace?"
She lowers her water bottle and smiles, and ohâ Clarisse already knows what's coming just by the silly smile on her face. "Yes, for Percy."
"How is thatâ" Clarisse stops herself with a sigh. "Nevermind."
She's tired of questioning it.
Meanwhile, Percy carries a hair tie on his wrist. Because friends should be prepared for when their best friend needs a hair tie, of course. Thereâs nothing else to it.
People don't notice at first, it's a simple black hair tie, nothing to question.
But Percy fiddles a lot with it during meetings, snapping it against his skin when he's bored. And he doesnât let anyone take it or borrow it from him, "anyone has an extra hair tie?" and he's silent because he's sure as hell not giving his.
Nobody really understands why until he ends up losing it and he's frantically looking around for it as if it's such a precious object he just lost and not a simple hair tie.
"Hey do you know if I left the hair tie in your cabin last afternoon?" He asks her when they sit together for breakfast.
"No, but you can have this one if you want." And it's that simple. He nods. And she takes it off her hair to give it to him.
This one is not even a black hair tie, but rather a lilac scrunchie that definitely clashes with his orange camp shirt. But Percy is grinning like a child opening christmas gifts, and you best believe he won't lose this one.
"Is that her scrunchie on his wrist?" Katie Gardner squints at him when he walks past her table.
"Yes, and he's wearing it like it's a promise ring."
âËđđËâ the kiss on the cheek
And of course it's normal for her to greet him with a kiss on the cheek every time.
Hi? Kiss on the cheek. Bye? Kiss on the cheek. Training? Kiss on the cheek. Breakfast? Kiss on the cheek. Seeing him after capture the flag? Kiss on the cheek. It was simply her way of greeting. Him. Only him.
So when she was late for a cabin meeting and rushed past him with a distracted, "Morning, Perce!" without a kiss?
Percy kind of freezes. His eyes follow her as she walks away, looking like a kicked puppy.
He proceeds to spend the rest of the day sulking. No sign of her around. No kiss on the cheek. By dinner, he's still weirdly quiet.
Grover asks first. "Dude, are you okay? you look like a child that got his candy stolen."
"She didnât kiss my cheek today." He mumbles, more to himself than to his friends.
Piper looks like she wants to throw her fork to his head. "Is this whole thing just because she didnât kiss your cheek?"
"Why didnât she? Did I do something wrong?" And he's pouting, dramatically sad about it.
Grover raises an eyebrow at Annabeth, but before any of them can say anything elseâ there she is, rushing to the table to take her usual seat beside Percy.
"Sorry guys, had a busy day today." She excuses herself and, like it's second nature, she leans to press a kiss against Percy's cheek. A greeting.
And every single one of his friends is able to witness the change in Percy's expression, the way his whole face just brightens. Long forgotten is the sadness and the sulking.
"How is this normal?" Annabeth shakes her head, going back to her food.
âËđđËâ the picture on the wallet
Percy, as a good friend would, has memorized her usual order. "Chicken sandwich with no tomatoes and fries on the side, add honey mustard for those please."
"Does it change anything if I point out that you hesitated with your own order but not with hers?" Jason asks, looking at him as if he's simply ridiculous.
"That's what friends are for." Percy shrugs, taking out his wallet.
"So you know all your friends orders that way? I don't think-" Frank's words trail off when Percy opens his wallet. "What is that?"
Percy pulls out a few dollars before he realizes Frank is talking to him, his eyes fixed on his wallet. "Hm?" he looks down and he smiles at the photo. "Oh, that's y/n."
He proudly opens the wallet wider to allow both Jason and Frank to see the picture of little five year old y/n squinting at the camera with a wide grin and a bandaid on her nose. "Doesnât she look cute?"
"Iâ uhâ do you just carry it on your wallet?" Jason asks, genuinely taken by surprise.
"Well, yeah? She gave it to me ages ago." And he turns to pay, like he doesn't understand why they're so surprised about it.
Frank and Jason exchange looks and shake their heads in disbelief, meanwhile Percy is already distracted. "Hey do you have those chocolate chip cookies with the colorful little sprinkles on top? She likes those."
âËđđËâ pink lilies and cherry-minted lip balms
Friends get each other flowers, right? At least, Percy will if he casually spots flowers while grocery shopping with his mom.
It's not his fault that he finds a bouquet of pink lilies, her all time favorite flowers, right when he's walking past the flower stand. They are basically calling for him.
When Sally Jackson looks up from her cart and finds his son holding a bouquet, she smiles knowingly.
"Is there any special dates coming soon?" She teases, knowing exactly what this is about.
"Oh?" He looks down, as if he just realized he's holding flowers. "Oh these? they just remind me of y/n, so I might aswell get them for her."
Sally nods, she doesn't question it, she doesn't try to understand it. Because she already knows.
Except sometimes it really is unbelievable that his son is so oblivious, Sally gets to realize this when she takes a lip balm from the racks by the cash register. "Maybe I should get y/n one of these, she likes them, doesnât she?"
Percy hums, distracted by placing the groceries on the checkout belt. "Yep, just make sure to get the one that tastes like cherry-mint, you know? the one in the little pot with the silver lid, it's her favorite."
"Percy, how can you know how it tastes?"
Silence.
Percy stops mid-putting the bread down and realizes what he just did.
"I guessed." he replies simply.
Because he's not about to confess to his mother that he knows that's the lip balm she has been wearing since he kissed her for the first and only time when they were twelve.
So what? they had just been friends who had never kissed anyone before. It just seemed fitting at the time that they should share their first kiss with each other.
And it's totally normal if maybe he simply made a mental note not to ever forget her favorite lip balm. Because he's a good friend.
"Perseus, you are unbelievable."
âËđđËâ the date
Percy felt as if it was perfectly normal to be worried about his best friend going on a date, but worried to the point of sulking the entire day? completely normal.
Yes. She has a date. With some guy Percy didnât even bother learning the name of. Percy had only focused on the sheer audacity of this guy to be charming enough to get her flowersâroses, seriously? and ask her out.
But it's normal for him to be a little protective over his best friend. That's all it is. He just doesn't want her getting hurt by some dude that didnât even bother trying to get her favorite flowers.
That's the only explanation for the way he felt something inside him twisting when he saw her before she had to leave for the date, looking all pretty and smiling brightly to go out with some other guy.
That's why he doesnât do much the whole day, he can't be bothered with training or joining his friends on their impromtu day at the lake. And by the time the night falls, he has been on his cabin for hours, glaring at the ceiling for more time than he'd like to admit.
It's past lights out when thereâs a soft knock coming from his door. And before he can even react, she opens the door and slips inside, still in that dress that looks like it's been made just for her, her heels clicking as she holds them in her hand.
Most of the times, she lingers on the door to wait for Percy to give her permission to step insideâ as if he would ever tell her to leave. But not this time, this time she walks quickly and doesnât even stop at the edge of the bed or sits like she always does.
No, this time she simply crawls into bed with him.
"Hey, how didâ" He gets cut off when she suddenly wraps her arms around him, burying her face against his chest.
"Missed you." Her voice is muffled against his chest, but he's able to understand. "So much."
Percy wraps his arms around her waist almost instictively, pulling her closer to him. "You saw me this afternoon."
"Still missed you." She replies. "Especially after that date."
He chuckles softly, his fingers carding through her hair, her fingers curl slightly against his shirt, and he tightens his hold around her. And it feels right.
"Was it that bad?" He asks, keeping his tone light, as if he didnât spend the whole day brooding.
"So bad." Thereâs no hesitance. "He talked about himself the whole night, barely asked anything about me. And when he did, and I brought you up, he got all weird."
Percy's hands stop on her hair for a second, his eyebrows raising slightly. "Weird?"
She shifts slightly, nuzzling her face against the crook of his neck. "He told me that we should probably distance ourselves a little because people thought we were dating and he almost didnât ask me out because of you."
"That's ridiculous." Percy laughs, but it even surprises him how forced it sounds, how his stomach twists.
She pulls away now, barely really, just enough to look at him. "Yup, ridiculous, right?"
They both look at each other, her fingers still curled in his shirt, his arms still securely wrapped around her waist. And neither of them moves.
After a moment, he whispers, as if he couldn't allow himself to speak any louder because it might break the whole thing. "Have you ever thought that maybe... it isn't so ridiculous?"
His heart is pounding, his gaze glued to her, waiting for a response. "Yes, maybe it isn't ridiculous, maybeâ"
Percy doesnât let her finish her sentence, he can't. Because the moment she confirms what he has been thinking about, it's like his body moves instinctively, his lips suddenly crashing against hers.
Cherry-mint lips welcoming his like they've been waiting for this for a long time, his hand brushing over the delicate chain around her neck, fingers pausing just for a second on the tiny gold letter that hangs on it.
And it's exactly what it should be. Soft. Sure. Familiar. Comforting. And even better than that first time they kissed back when they were twelve year-old kids convinced that all they could ever be was friends.
âËđđËâ the kiss
The next morning, nobody notices the changeâ because there has not been any evident change in the way they act. Everyone just thinks that the clingyness, the kisses on the cheek, the hugs, are just part of the routine already.
Until they're getting ready for capture the flag and, as usual, Percy helps her with her ponytail. It isn't anything that people haven't seen already, No. So everyone just rolls their eyes at them, mumbling about how oblivious they are.
"How many more months do you think will take them to finally realize?" Clarisse mumbles, putting on her helmet.
"Who knows? It could be years, theyâ" Grover's words die on his mouth when Percy suddenly leans to kiss her.
Kiss her. Percy is kissing her. In front of everyone.
He doesnât even realize that people have stopped to look at them, because as he pulls away, the only thing worth his attention is her smile as he says. "You'll do great out there, angel."
"I swear if you tell me you're only friends after that, Jackson." Leo tells him after she runs off to go find her spear.
Percy chuckles, his smile bright, his eyes still fixed on her. "Friends? No, that's my girl."
IN WHICH - percy disarms luke and gets claimed by poseidon, but not before ghost gets hurt during capture the flag in between.
contains: luke x fem!reader, blood
word count: 3,761
I was in the stands of the arena watching cabin elevenâs sword fighting lesson. The sea of bright orange t-shirts wouldâve given me a headache if I hadnât watched this lesson every week. Everyone knew I was only here for Luke. I always was.
This specific lesson was special, however, because it was our new friend Percyâs first sword fighting lesson with Luke. I had told Luke earlier to go easy on him, since, by the looks of it, he barely knew how to hold a sword. He agreed, saying he was going to go easy on him anyway, not wanting to hurt him on his first attempt.
Every lesson, I make it my mission to embarrass Luke as much as possible. Heâll say one word and Iâm out of my seat cheering. He, however, got a big head about it every time. For example, he rolled his sleeves up to be a DIY tank top and I cheered. Can you blame me? The answer is no. Percy was the only one who looked over at me, the other campers were used to it by now. I enjoyed it way too much.
They started with basic stabbing and slashing at dummies dressed in Greek armor, as they always do. It was clear Percy was struggling with finding the right sword, since he couldnât seem to hold any of them the right way no matter how many times Luke stopped the lesson to help him. I loved watching Luke be all influential and helpful and- you get it. Despite Percyâs difficulty holding the sword, his reflexes were good and he knew what he was supposed to do, and that was better than most campers on their first attempt.
Things got exciting when Luke announced that theyâd be splitting into pairs. Luke made Percy his partner and I could almost feel Percyâs stomach drop. I had told him (more like gloated to him) earlier that day that Luke was the best swordsman camp has had in the last three hundred years. I never thought he would have to spar with him on his first lesson.
Luke showed him basic thrusts, shield blocks, and parries, and with every swipe of a sword, I could tell Percy was getting more battered and bruised. Luke shouted commands at him, telling him to âkeep his guard upâ followed by Luke stabbing at his ribs and shouting âNot that far up!â It was⊠a little hard to watch, to be honest. It was only Percyâs third day at camp and I already took a liking to him, so watching my boyfriend beat him up was both good and bad; bad, because watching your friend get beat up sucks, and good because watching your boyfriend beat someone up is hot. By the time Luke called for a break, Percy was sweating and panting, and after watching Luke pour ice water on his head (Iâll spare you my thoughts on that,) Percy did the same. It was almost as if that water rejuvenated him in a way I couldnât describe yet.
âOkay, everybody circle up!â Luke shouted. âIf Percy doesnât mind, I want to give you all a little demo.â
Percyâs face fell.
Everyone in cabin eleven circled around the two of them, but I could still see them from the stands. I could see some of the campers smirking, thinking they were about to see Percy get torn apart by Luke. I, however, was terrified.
âWhat Iâm going to show you is a disarming technique. Youâre going to twist the enemyâs blade with the flat of your sword so that they have no choice but to drop the weapon,â Luke explained. âItâs difficult. Iâve had it used against me. No laughing at Percy, now. Most swordsmen have to work years to master this technique.â He demonstrated the move in slow motion for the campers, and sure enough, the sword clattered out of Percyâs hand.Â
âNow in real time. We keep sparring until one of us pulls off the move. You ready, Percy?â Luke asked. Percy nodded, and they began.
I watched while holding my breath, but when Percy seemed to gain a newfound confidence and disarmed Luke on his first attempt? I shot out of my seat and cheered like I would usually do for Luke.Â
âYEAHHH!! SHOW âEM, PERCY!!â I cheered, clapping and jumping up and down. Luke looked at me and then back at Percy with his mouth agape, a smile tugging at his lips. Percy looked down, embarrassed at the fact that he disarmed Luke and that I cheered for him.
âUm, sorry,â said Percy.
âSorry?â Luke broke into a full grin. âShow me that again!â
When they tried it again, within seconds, Percyâs sword was clattering on the floor. âBeginners' luck?â someone called, and everyone agreed.Â
âMaybe,â Luke started. âBut I wonder what he could do with a balanced sword...â
The sparring session continued for about twenty more minutes before he announced that everyone should prepare for capture the flag after dinner. When everyone cleared out, I approached Luke who was sweaty and tired from the lesson. âHey cutie,â I said, rolling his sleeves down from where he rolled them up into a tank top earlier. âHow about Percy? That was insane.â
âIt really was,â Luke said. âI wasnât expecting that from any of them, let alone Percy. I mean- on his first day? The kidâs got talent.â He was smiling a kind of smile Iâd never seen from him before. It would have looked genuine to anyone that doesnât really know him, but I do. I didnât say anything. I decided that Iâd pick his brain later.
I handed him his water bottle that I keep with me when heâs teaching, watching as he downs half of it. âRemind me to never get on your bad side,â I laughed. âYou fight like youâre always thinking three moves ahead of everyone else.â
âI am.â
âIâm convinced you enjoy watching all the other campers know they canât beat you. You love teaching and winning knowing they never had a chance.â
âObviously. Iâm not stupid. Teaching the others is just a good forty five minutes of my ego inflating,â Luke said. He put his water bottle down and put his hands around my waist and pulled me into him. He kissed my right collarbone.
âI like watching you. You look happy while teaching them and fighting the dummies.â I lean into him. âI like you like that. Thatâs one of my favorite versions of Mr. Luke Castellan.â
Luke smirked. âWhat are the other versions?â
âHmm⊠when weâre on a date and youâre being all sweet, and when weâre at our spot and weâre laughing together. Or when weâre in your cabin making out and I get on top of you and we-â
âThatâs enough.â Luke put his big hand over my mouth. Naturally, I stuck my tongue out and licked his hand, but he didn't move. âYou act like youâve never licked me before and Iâll find it gross.â
I shoved his hand off. âYou don't know where my tongue has been,â I retort.
âYes I do.â
âFine.â I took the hand that was over my mouth (and that I just licked) and intertwined our fingers. âCome on,â I said. âIf youâre done scaring twelve year olds, Iâm stealing you for dinner.â
At dinner, Luke filled me in on the plan Annabeth had hatched for capture the flag later. It involved Percy, Clarisse, and maiming. It seemed a little harsh, especially since it was only Percyâs third day at camp and we were already throwing him to the wolves (well, Clarisse, but the Ares kids are all pretty much wolves). I didnât question it, however, because somehow I trusted a twelve year old with my life, let alone a game of capture the flag. All was cutesy until Luke threw a fry at me, laughing.
âExcuse you. That couldâve killed me,â I responded, feigning horror.
âIâm sorry, Ghost. I didnât consider the very harsh consequences of gently throwing a soft fry in your face.â
âI couldâve come out of that exchange with one eye.â
âDo you want to throw one at-â Heâs cut off by about 10 fries hitting him in the face. He just stares at me with a straight expression. I start laughing.
âSee, I donât see whatâs so funny about throwing a billion boiling hot spears at my face,â he says.
âMaybe I should make an appointment with the infirmary to get you an eye test, then, because I see everything thatâs funny with that situation. And youâre still standing!â
âSitting.â
âShut up,â I say, trying to hide my smile.
âDonât hide that pretty smile. I still want to see it, even if itâs at the expense of my life.â
I fully smile and kick his foot under the table.
Luke smirks and kicks me back. âOh, so weâre playing footsies now? Letâs go, pretty girl.â
We were so distracted by laughing that we didn't finish our dinner in time for capture the flag.
âHeroes!â Chiron announced. âYou know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!â
All the campers grabbed their weapons from the tables that they were displayed on. There is where I met up with Luke again, sword and shield in hand. Percy was there, too, holding a shield that looked way too heavy for him. I bumped Lukeâs shoulder with my shield to alert him that I was there and I was ready. I did the same to Percy.
âYou ready for your first capture the flag?â I asked Percy. âAfter you totally obliterated Luke during practice today, Iâd be super confident,â I said, mainly taking a dig at Luke for letting a newbie disarm him in front of his whole cabin.
âI⊠donât know how I did that. Honest. I donât really know what Iâm doing in this game either,â he admits, clearly nervous.
âYouâll do great, Percy. Annabeth has big plans for you.â
As if on cue, Annabeth yelled âBlue team, forward!â and we all assembled near her. Everybody cheered and broke up into their own little groups. I went with Luke to wait until the campers defending the flag we were after were distracted. We waited behind a nearby tree.
Luke moved me so my back was against the tree and his arms were on either side of me. My eyes widened. âWhat is this new position weâre in?â I asked quietly.
âOh, itâs not new, Ghost, and don't act like you donât like it.â He pressed me into the tree at an angle that the bark dug into my arm a little. I sucked in a breath.
âIf I get a splinter, itâs your fault,â I complained dramatically. âAnd I will be telling whoeverâs in the infirmary that itâs your fault.â
âPlease. Youâd trip over air and say itâs my fault,â he defended. Heâs not wrong. âAnd you complain every time we hide anywhere. Youâre a complainer.â
âThatâs not true.â
He raised a brow. âYou complained when we hid in the canoe shed, you complained when we were behind the Hermes cabin, you complained in the strawberry fields, you-â
I cut him off. âOkay, but those were all objectively bad hiding spots.â
âYou picked two of them.â
I elbowed him. âI was under spells.âÂ
He laughed, his shoulders shaking. He looked genuinely happy. It made me smile.
âYou tripped on the way here,â he said, a stupid smile on his face.
âLiterally what does that have anything to do with what weâre talking about?â The ridiculousness of the statement made me laugh quietly.Â
He moved his hands down to my hips innocently. âI want something to make fun of you for.â
âAnd for the record, I did not trip.â
âYou absolutely tripped.â
âI stumbled. Thereâs a difference.â My answer made Lukeâs smile widen as he moved his hands from my waist up to my face to caress my cheeks.
âYou apologized to the ground, sweetheart.â
I glared at him. âIt startled me.â
âThe ground scared you?â
âStartled. Not scared.â I poked his armor. âJeez, you need to learn the difference between words. Running away at thirteen and missing school is starting to catch up to you,â I teased, knowing we ran away together at the same age. I hoped he wouldnât use that against me, because if he did, I had no counter argument.Â
He didnât. âYouâre unbelievable, you know that?â he said, the look of love in his eyes apparent.Â
âAnd yet,â I whispered, shifting myself to my tippy toes so we were pretty much level, âyouâve voluntarily chosen to be stuck with me.â
âTactically. Youâre a solid cover.â
I scoffed and managed to get out from under his arms that were trapping me against the tree. âYouâre so romantic.â
He tilted his head, his eyes flicking over me, but before he could say anything, an arrow grazed my arm. It all happened so fast, but by the time I was looking up, an arrow was shot directly into my right collarbone. I fell back, my hand instinctively coming up to touch where the arrow lodged itself in my collarbone, my blood pouring out onto my hand immediately. I looked up at Luke in horror as he was instantly on his knees checking if I was okay.
âHey- hey, look at me.â His voice was steady but it was clear he was freaking out. His eyes were flicking between the arrow, my blood, and my face. It was clear I was in pain and he hated it. âDonât move. Donât you dare move.â He frantically looked for anything he could wrap around the wound but couldnât find anything. He resorted to ripping a part of his t-shirt off and wrapping that around the wound, the arrow still lodged in my collarbone.
His hands shook as he wrapped it awkwardly around my collarbone with the arrow still lodged inside, not wanting it to be too tight or too loose. He looked into my face, wanting to see if Iâm okay. I forced a smile at him.
âGods, I was right here. You were right next to me. I should have-â
âNo. Donât do that. Iâll be okay. Iâm a tough cookie, remember? Iâve had worse,â I attempted to joke, but Luke knew I was only saying that stuff to ease his mind.Â
âSave it.â His voice cracked. âYou can yell at me later. For now⊠Iâm gonna find the douchebag that did this to you and make them pay, okay? You stay here. Donât strain yourself.â
He kissed my forehead while caressing my cheeks, his hands soaked in my blood, that blood getting on my face. I didnât care.Â
âI love you. Iâll be back.â
He was gone before I could say it back.
I didnât listen to his order to stay put. Mainly because I was bored, but partly because I got scared at the noise of huffing in the distance. I managed to stand and stumble away with my sword and shield held by my good arm, that is, after ten minutes of struggling with the pain. I go in the direction of the creek where I hear metal clanking.Â
To my surprise (or not, since I knew the plan the whole time,) Clarisse and Percy were in a heated battle. I saw the top half of Clarisseâs electric spear on the sand and my jaw dropped slightly. Percy had snapped her spear in half and she was pissed. Her other cabin mates, the ones she recruited to maim Percy, I assumed, were lying on the sand, battered and bruised. Percy did this. I watched as Percy smacked Clarisse between the eyes with the butt of his sword and sent her stumbling back into the creek.Â
The battle came to a halt when elated screams broke out from the forest as Luke raced towards the boundary line with the flag of the opposing team. My blood was still on his hands, so I was a part of the victory in some way. I smiled. Thatâs my man.
Clarisse screamed angrily, like sheâs always doing, but I paid no mind to that. I walked over to Luke as he celebrated his victory. He didnât look as happy as I wanted him to. His eyes were wide and he kept wincing. I attributed this to the fact that he thought I was still in the woods in pain. I cheered and his eyes met mine.
I got to him and wrapped my good arm around his waist and side-hugged him the best I could. âYay!! Iâm so proud of you!â
âI thought I told you to stay put, Ghost, what are you doing? You could get hurt.â He was less happy to see me than I thought.
âI got bored,â I admitted. âAnd I wanted to see you win us the game, silly. Iâm okay. Iâm going to the infirmary as we-â
I was cut off by a huge black hound the size of a rhino with red eyes and fangs emerging from the woods with a howl. A hellhound. Campers screamed as it charged Percy, who fell back in the water. It ripped through his army but was killed by an abundance of arrows shot by campers before it could do any serious damage to Percy. I grabbed onto Lukeâs arm.
âSomeone summoned it,â Chiron said. âSomeone inside this camp.â
Quiet gasps rung throughout the camp. Luke took a step forward, the victory forgotten. His five seconds of glory were gone.Â
Of course, Clarisse blamed Percy. It took everything in me to not seriously hurt her right then and there. I blamed the fact that I didnât on the arrow still lodged in my collarbone.
I looked back to Percy and saw Annabeth ushering him into the water. Camp watched as all his wounds were instantly healed. However, camp wasnât looking at Percy five seconds later; they were looking above his head. Everybodyâs jaw was on the floor. Everybody kneeled.
A floating blue-green trident floating above Percyâs head.
âIt is determined,â Chiron announced. âPoseidon. Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God.â
The infirmary was quiet at that time of night. The curtains were half-drawn, the smell of nectar was strong in the air, the quiet buzzing of the dim light above. Luke was sitting on a chair that was way too close to the bed that I was sitting on, one of his elbows on the bed as he held his head up with his hand, his other hand holding mine. He had been in this position ever since I woke up from my little nap a few seconds ago.
I shift with a groan and catch the look he gave me. âDonât âdonât moveâ me again. Iâll throw something at you if you say that again.â
He huffed, clearly tired but trudging it for me. He would never leave me alone in the infirmary. Ever. âWelcome back to the land of the living. I thought you died.â
âIf you thought I died, you would've burned down camp by now,â I joked.
âTrue,â he said. He was a lot more serious than I was.
âSo⊠Percy,â I started.
Lukeâs jaw clenched instantly. He leaned back into his chair, his eyes moving to the ceiling. âClaimed,â he said emotionlessly. âJust like that. One little trident in the sky and suddenly everythingâs supposed to make sense. Weâre just supposed to accept it.â
I watched him. âYou donât sound happy for him.â
âI am,â he started. âI just⊠I hate the timing.â
I hummed. âI mean, he almost died. Thatâs pretty on brand for the gods.â
His lips twitched, like he wanted to say something but held back. âYeah,â he said bitterly. âThey wait until a little kid bleeds for them before they bother to spare them even one look.â He shook his head and looked down, sighing softly. âPercy spent his first three days thinking he was nothing and the gods just let him.â
Itâs silent for a moment. I didnât know what to say. Luke looked up and immediately his eyes locked on my collarbone where the arrow had been.
âAnd you got hurt,â he added. âAll because they were busy making an example out of Percy.â He squeezed my hand. âI got the guy. It was an Ares kid. He wonât be coming near you again.â
I reached out with my good arm, grabbing his wrist gently. âLuke.â
He sighed again. âI know. I know itâs not fair to take all this out on you, or Percy, or that random Ares kid. I justâŠâ he trailed off. âI donât like them. I never have. Seeing them claim Percy like heâs a gift felt cruel.â
I squeezed his hand. âYou donât have to like them, Luke.â
He looked at me and his expression softened. His eyes and touch got gentle almost immediately. âBut I like you, so Iâm trying to keep it together.â
âI appreciate the effort.â I smiled. He smiled back.
His smile was short-lived, however, as his eyes went back to my collarbone, the scar now forming under the bandage. âYou knowâŠâ he said quietly. âThatâs right where I usually kiss you.â
I looked down and realized that he was right. He kissed me there today, right after his sword practice. I looked back up at him. âThatâs so romantic,â I joke.
âIâm serious.â He reached out before retracting his hand, not wanting to hurt me. âI kiss you there before and after sword fighting practice, when we wake up, right before bedâŠâ he trailed off. âNow thereâs gonna be a scar there.â
My eyebrows raised. âAre you gonna avoid it now?â
He tried to fight a smile, but failed. âNo. Iâll just have to kiss the scar now.â
âLuke-â
He leaned in stupidly carefully and pressed the softest kiss on planet earth underneath my bandage. His lips barely even touched me, but when he pulled away, he was smiling. It made me blush.
âProof,â he murmured, his forehead coming to rest against mine, âthat you came back to me.â
âI always will.â
He kissed my nose before looking in my eyes. âI know you will, Ghost.â
if you are seeing him sending ice agents out, killing innocent people and ripping families apart, and think âyeah thatâs good, i support that,â rot in hell.
a two year old was ripped away from her father, and deported against judges orders. a four year old, deported alone. a man, an icu nurse may i add, tackled to the ground and beaten before getting shot. all because he was defending women on the street from ice agents. these events happened in the past TWO DAYS.
âitâs getting rid of criminals!â you think children are the criminals? you think innocent american citizens are criminals? you put a criminal IN OFFICE. you put a PEDOPHILE in office.
IN WHICH - percy comes to camp and brings up a touchy subject to luke. ghost is tasked with calming him down.
contains: luke x fem!reader, lots of exposition
word count: 2,048
All the heads turned when Percy tripped walking into cabin eleven for the first time. Everyone knew he was the kid that killed the Minotaur on the same day he found out he was a half-blood. Some envied him, some hated him, some didnât know what to think of the kid. Annabeth introduced him to the cabin despite everyone already knowing everything about him.
âRegular or undetermined?â one camper asked. Everyone braced for the âundeterminedâ answer from Annabeth, so excited for another random kid to take up more space in the already too-crowded cabin.
Percy felt super welcome. That is, before a tall, curly-haired, muscular guy came forward from the crowd. He wore the same bright orange âCamp Half-Bloodâ t-shirt that every other camper had on along with a similar beaded necklace to Annabeth, minus the gold ring in the middle. The only thing that really distinguished him was the white scar that ran from just beneath his right eye to his jaw.Â
âNow, now, campers. Thatâs what weâre here for. Welcome, Percy. You can have that spot on the floor, right over there.â He pointed to the Minotaur horn on the floor in Percy's designated spot.
âThatâs Luke. Heâs your counselor for now,â Annabeth clarified.
âFor now?â Percy asked.
âYouâre undetermined. They donât know what cabin to put you in, so they put you in the Hermes cabin. Hermes is our patron, the god of travelers, so naturally he would take in all the undetermined campers,â Luke explained. He seemed like the first genuine person Percy had met at camp so far. Well, other than Grover and Mr. Bru- Chiron. He didnât miss, however, how Luke happened to forget to mention that Hermes is also the god of thieves. That explained why half of the campers in the cabin looked like they wanted to pick Percyâs pockets. He was used to that look, though. Heâs a New Yorker.
Percy frowned slightly. âHow long will I be here? In this cabin, I mean.â
âGood question,â Luke asked. âUntil youâre determined.â
âHow long until that happens?â
The other campers snickered, but Luke didnât. Before he could explain that you get claimed on the godsâ time, Annabeth started dragging Percy to âshow him the volleyball courtsâ before he could embarrass himself further, muttering something along the lines of âI donât care that youâve already seen them, youâre gonna see them again.â
Later that same day, after Luke had managed to get a sleeping bag from storage and steal some toiletries from the camp store from Percy, he greeted him at his spot on the floor. âTough first day?â Luke asks, sitting down next to him while plopping down the new stuff he got for Percy.
âI donât belong here. I donât even believe in gods.â
âYeah,â Luke began. âThatâs how we all started. Once you start believing in them? It doesnât get any easier. Their world is⊠complicated.â The words came out surprisingly bitter. He spoke with venom in his voice, something Percy hadnât heard from him thus far.
âSo your father is Hermes? The wing-footed messenger guy?â Percy asked, trying to lighten the mood. It didnât work.
Luke pulled out a switchblade from his back pocket and scraped some mud off the sole of his sandal. Percy thought he was gonna gut him. He made an internal sigh of relief.
âThatâs him. Messengers, medicine, travelers, merchants, thieves, anyone who uses the road, really. Thatâs why youâre here, enjoying the lovely hospitality that cabin eleven has to offer. Hermes isnât picky about who he houses,â Luke said, equally as bitterly. Clearly his dad was a touchy subject. Percy decided to ignore the fact that Luke basically just called him a nobody, as well.
âYou ever meet your dad?â
âOnce.â
Percy didnât push it.
âDonât worry about that, Percy. Itâs almost time for dinner. You must be starving.â Luke stood up, offering me his hand. We began to walk out when Clarisse, the mean Ares kid that tried shoving Percy in the toilet earlier, catches Lukeâs eye as she shoves past a girl with a braid in her hair and a smile. You. Luke stiffens.
Within seconds of you being shoved, Luke is there, pulling you gently behind him. He gets in Clarisseâs face and wordlessly makes her back off and fall in line with the rest of the campers in her cabin getting ready for dinner. She snickers before muttering to her siblings, âShouldâve known heâd come to her rescue. Itâs like he thinks sheâs glass.â
Luke turns around to face you, but you look unamused. âI donât need you to come to my rescue, Luke. I couldâve handled her on my own. I couldâve tested out my swordsmanship in a real world scenario rather than training with you,â you say.
âI know, Ghost, but-â
âNo buts, Castellan, weâre late for dinner and theyâre serving enchiladas today. Grover will be so excited!â You take Lukeâs hand and then turn to Percy. âYou must be Percy! Everyone at camp was talking about you today.â You introduce yourself to Percy with a bright smile.
On the way to the mess hall, Percy brings up the question thatâs been on his mind all day since the toilet incident. âEarlier, Clarisse joked about me being âBig Threeâ material. Then Annabeth⊠twice, she said I might be âthe one.â She said I should talk to the Oracle. What was that all about?â
Luke squeezed your hand. âI hate prophecies.â
âWhat do you mean? Why?â Percy asked, but you shot him a quick look that almost said âtouchy subject.â
âLetâs just say I messed things up for everyone else. The last two years, ever since my quest to the Garden of Hesperides didnât turn out how Iâd planned, Chiron hasnât allowed any more quests. Annabethâs been dying to get out and see the world. She pestered Chiron so much that he finally told her that he already knows her fate. He had a prophecy from the Oracle. He refused to tell her the whole thing, but he said that Annabeth wasnât destined to go on a quest yet. She had to wait until⊠somebody special came to the camp. Now she wants to think that every new camper is the omen sheâs been waiting for.â Suddenly, Lukeâs bitterness towards the gods was clear to Percy; Luke had failed a quest and blamed himself for Chiron not allowing quests, thus resulting in a weird relationship with the gods.
You spoke up from the other side of Luke, âDonât worry about it too much, Percy. Quests are dangerous. If any of us go out into the real world, monsters will find us almost instantly.â It sounded like you were trying to convince Luke more than you were trying to convince Percy, and you squeezing Lukeâs hand as you spoke solidified it. That didnât matter now, however, as they arrived at the mess hall for dinner Percy was ready to inhale.
After dinner, Luke walked hand-in-hand with you to their spot in the woods, the smell of campfire smoke still on their clothes as crickets sung. Luke is relaxed here, away from the eyes of people expecting things from him. You guys sat down on a log that you had carved your initials into when youâd first gotten to camp all those years ago, well before the two of you were a couple.
âYou didnât eat a lot at dinner,â he starts, not looking at you.
âYes I did.â
âYou had half of your sandwich.â
âDid you see that sandwich? It was giganormous! I couldnât have finished that if I was Connor.â
âYouâre dramatic.â
âAnd youâre overprotectiveâ
âOf course I am, Ghost. Youâre my girl. Canât have anything happening to you,â he says quietly, like a promise that heâll always protect you.
You know what heâs thinking. He had to talk about the Garden of Herespides today, the dragon⊠it mustâve brought back memories of-
âYou didnât even know how to hold a sword,â he says, which confirms your suspicions. So weâre talking about it.
âI knew you wouldnât let me quit.â
âI wouldnât let you die. The gods were going to and I just-â you cut him off before he can continue.
âIâm here, Luke. Thatâs behind us. That was so many years ago, weâre older now. I know how to fight. You trained me. Weâll never be in that situation again, but in the universe that we are, I can take it. We can take it.â
âHave you ever noticed how the gods never help when it gets bad for their children?â he starts, the venom creeping into voice like how it does whenever he talks about the gods. âEven for mortals, they donât care. Theyâre selfish. When we do all the hard work, they expect us to be grateful to them for surviving. All camp does is teach us how to die in a way that will serve the gods, not how to survive. Every demigod meets an awful fate. Theyâre selfish for bringing demigod children into the world knowing theyâll meet the same fate as every demigod prior.â
âLuke-â you start, looking at him with a frown
âDonât look at me like that, Ghost.â
âSomeone has to look out for us.â
âI have you to look out for me. I donât want the gods. I donât need them. Theyâve done nothing for either of us.â He sounded desperate, like he needed something (or someone) to keep him grounded. He put a hand up to his temple. You grabbed that hand and squeezed it tight.
âAnd I will look out for you, Luke. You know I will. Iâd follow you anywhere,â you reassure, which seems to calm him.
âI was hoping youâd say that.â
You get up and hold your hand out for Luke to take, wanting to lighten the mood. âDance with me, Luke.â
âWhat?â
âCome on, don't be a Debbie Downer! We can hum or something!â you say with a bright smile on your face as you pull Luke up from his spot on the log.
His face lights up. This is the woman he fell in love with. He places his hands on your waist as you place yours on his shoulders as you begin to sway back and forth.
âWhat should we hum?â you ask, looking up at Luke who was already looking down at you.
âYouâre the daughter of the god of music, sweet girl. Surprise me.â
That was just the answer you were looking for. You start humming the tune of âPretty Boyâ by The Neighbourhood, a song you two loved listening to quietly in your cabin late at night when the others were sleeping. You can feel him smile into your hair. You stay like that for a good ten minutes before you hear the harpies begin their night time patrol around the perimeter of camp for any campers out past curfew
Luke sighs. âI wish we could stay like this forever. Just us.â
âMe too, Luke,â you say before squeezing him tight and pulling away, your hands on his biceps. âOooh, you been working these out?â you tease with a smirk, squeezing them.
âJust for you, baby. Always for you. Need to be strong to protect my girl. Anyone sees these guns, theyâll run away terrified,â he gloats, flexing his biceps with a smirk. He knows you love this. He takes your hand when he hears the harpies getting closer. âCome on, Ghost. We don't need to be food for the harpies.â
He walks you back to your cabin without being caught. You stop in front and turn to Luke, a smile on your face. âIâll see you tomorrow.â
He takes your hand and kisses your knuckles. âYes you will. Big day tomorrow with capture the flag. Annabeth has a great plan, weâre almost guaranteed a win.â He caresses your face and kisses your forehead sweetly.
âYou missed,â you say.
âOops.â And then he kisses you softly on the lips. When he pulls back, he whispers, âGood night, sweet girl. I love you.â
âI love you more.â
âNo you donât. We do this all-â heâs cut off when your lips meet his again, and suddenly he canât argue.