Scaring the mortals

Extra 1: Estelle's 1-year-old birthday

Paul's parents, Julie and Anthony (Tony), had met the stepson of their son only five times.

The first time was when Paul and Sally had just started to date seriously and their son had taken the girlfriend and her son to lunch at their house, so he could introduce them. They had loved the boy immediately, seeing that he clearly loved his mom and was polite, even if he had the aura of an indomitable rebel.

The second time was at the wedding. It was when they heard him call Paul "dad" for the first time. Percy had said that his biological father wouldn't care as he was never around anyway.

The third time was when Percy had finally managed to scape his kidnapper, after months missing, together with his girlfriend. Their heart had broken when they had seen the teenagers. They could barely leave each other side without panicking. Julie and Tony had partake in the searches and were happy with the return of their grandson (even if they had only met other two times, they had exchanged letters, since the lad didn't like electronics for some reason).

The fourth time was when Percy broke a Mundial record in swimming and the family had got together at Paul and Sally's apartment to celebrate (since Sally couldn't leave the bed due to the pregnancy). Now, a picture of Percy with his medal and the beautiful and extravagant laurel crow that he had won from his friends was proudly framed in the living room of their house, and Julie and Tony would always brag about him to anyone who would visit them.

The fifth time was some days after Estelle was born. The couple had watched with admiration as the teenager held his baby sister as if she was the most important thing in the world, eyes shining with happiness every time he looked at her. He never complained about having to change diapers and volunteering to give the baths. A typical boy of his age would normally resent staying home to take care of his baby sister, but it seemed like all that Percy wanted to do was to take care of the girl (and their mother, always making sure that Sally was able to sleep, eat, and rest).

After that, they had only seen each other by video calls (Percy had finally gotten a cellphone, three months after graduating High School), but they knew that he still helped take care of his sister, despite having started to help with his father's business (something about a maritime trade conglomerate). They knew that the boy and that side of his family had gotten close between the wedding and the graduation, especially after the kidnapping.

Anyway, they were happy that they would see their grandson personally again on Estelle's birthday. What they didn't expect was his aura to have changed so much.

He was even more handsome than before if this was even possible, but his aura had gotten even more... restless, but also with a feeling of safety and comfort.

- Grandma! Grampa! Welcome! – said the boy, approaching them as they entered the Central Park, close to one of the lakes. The sun seemed to be celebrating too, so it was a perfect day for a picnic.

- Hello, sweetheart – Julie said, hugging him.

- Hey, Percy – Tony hugged him too.

Percy hugged them back with enthusiasm.

- Come on, everybody is already here, only you were missing – said Percy, leading them to the picnic area.

At some point, Julie thought she saw Percy give a tree a death stare, but as the expression vanished quickly, she figured she imagined things.

During the path, the three talked about what Percy had done this last year.

Reaching the picnic area, the couple noticed that there were more people there than just Sally, Paul, Estelle, and Annabeth.

There was also a man very similar to Percy, side by side with a beautiful woman surrounded by four young adults (a man and three ladies) with very different styles, but they were obviously related. Besides some other teenagers, one of them is enormous and with a weird appearance.

One of the ladies, the one that was wearing surfer clothes, held the birthday girl, smiling and talking to her.

- I thought it would be a picnic only for the family – said Julie, it sounded like a question.

Percy gave an embarrassed smile and explained:

- The lady holding Telle is one of my older sisters, Bethy. The lady with fancy clothes is Rho, the one with black clothes is Kym, they are also my sisters. The man with the fancy clothes is Tri, my brother. The man with beach clothes is my dad, and the lady by his side is my stepmom. Telle has all of them around her little finger – he points to the group of teenagers – They are my friends, but are also family. The big guy is Tyson, my baby brother, the Chinese Canadian is Frank, the girl he is holding hands with is Hazel, my cousin, the one that looks like Santa's little helper is Leo, the blond with glasses is Jason, my cousin, and he is holding hands with Piper, the boy with a skull T-shirt is Nico, also my cousin, the boy with the rainbow T-shirt he is holding hands with is Will. The boy with the Rastafari hat and crutches is Grover and the girl by his side is Juniper. The ginger is Rachel.

The couple was surprised by the fact that the boy's paternal side of the family knew their granddaughter and that his friends (and cousins) were there too.

- I didn't know your family knew her. Nor your friends. – Tony says, surprised.

- My family, excluding Tyson, met her at my graduation and immediately fell in love with her. My friends met her later. Most of them are orphans or live away from their families, so mom kind of adopted them.

- That sounds like her – Julie smiles – I'm happy your family is so close.

It's at this moment that Estelle notices them.

- Nana! Papa! – she says, she says calling her grandparents and gesturing to them – Pecy!

This attracts everyone's attention to them.

Sally and Paul immediately come to greet them, together with Annabeth, whose aura had also changed. The lady called Bethy came right after, with Estelle, who was more than happy to go to her grandma's lap.

The rest of the family also approached to introduce themselves.

Percy's family, except Tyson, had weird auras, untamed and dangerous, but the care they had for Percy and Estelle was visible, so the couple tried not to be bothered by it.

The teenagers were weird too and Julie, always the observer, noticed that they looked at Percy and Annabeth with admiration, even if they treated them normally.

The food was amazing and when Tony asked where they had brought it, Percy laughed and said that he had cooked it with his mom.

Tony and Julie couldn't believe it, that was the best food they had ever eaten. When they said that, Percy blushed a lot, but thanked them, embarrassed.

At the end of the day, when saying goodbye, Julie, quietly, tells Percy:

- You changed a lot since we last saw each other in person.

- Oh?

Percy seemed to panic with this, so the elder lady explained:

- Nothing bad, darling. You seem more comfortable in your own skin.

- Whatever happened to you this last year, was good for you – assures Tony.

Percy smile was hesitant, but he thanked them.

The couple didn't understood why the hesitation, mas one thing was certain: he seemed happier than they had ever seem him and they wished for the boy to stay like that every time they met.