BY fates design

The date

When Cassiopeia reached her cabin, it was 9:40, she still had twenty minutes before Percy would be there. Sitting down on the end of her bed, her fingers went to Poppy's necklace that was twisted around her wrist. She wondered what Poppy would have done now, how she would have helped her get ready for the date, or perhaps gone and threatened Percy. Either way, she knew the moment felt just a little bit empty without her first sister there.

"I wish I could have met her." Percy whispered into Cassiopeia's hair. "She sounds remarkable."

"She was." Cassiopeia nodded. "She was an incredible person and an even more talented hero. She would have liked you."

Time seemed to both fly and drag by, twenty minutes stretching and warping into an indistinguishable period of time. For the most part, she stared at the antique Greek vase that sat on her bedside, blue flowers blooming in its hold. The vase had been a gift from Dionysus for her 10th birthday, and was an original piece from Ancient Greece (or so he claimed) that depicted the Odyssey. Authentic or not, she treasured the gift.

Soon enough, she could hear the sound of snapping twigs approaching her cabin before an unsure knock tapped against her door. Taking one last deep breath, she stood up and pulled the door open.

On the other side, Perseus Jackson stood, bouquet of blue hyacinths and light purple lilacs in hand. He was dressed nice, black trousers, white T-shirt tucked in, black shoes, yellow socks, and a varsity jacket with yellow accents.

"Blue hyacinths, a symbol of sincerity and loyalty. Purple lilacs, a symbol of new love. Excellent choice." Walburga commented. Sirius and Regulus stared at their mother for a moment, trying to work out when or why she had learnt flower language, ultimately drawing a blank.

His mouth was agape, eyes wide and cheeks flushed. For a moment, she felt incredibly shy under his gaze.

"You look- you look... wow." He stuttered, "you look beautiful." He reached out with the flowers, allowing her to take them from his hands.

"Thank you." She whispered, "let me just put these in a vase." Quickly, she span round, a smile spreading across her face as she found a little glass vase for the flowers to sit in, filling it with water from her bathroom tap.

"Oh my gods." Achlys squealed, "you two were just so cute!"

When she came back, Percy was stood waiting, watching her drift around the room, garb her hand bag and come over to him. "Ready, Miss Potter-Black?" He asked, grinning while offering her his arm.

"Indeed, Mr Jackson." Cassiopeia giggled, slipping her hand around his elbow. From there, they headed back through the forest and up Half Blood Hill to where Argus was waiting for them. He had promised to drive them to their date and pick them up afterwards.

They drove for about an hour or so until Argus pulled to a stop. They had made it into a city, cars honked as they passed and pedestrians chatted loudly on the sidewalks. Thanking Argus, they got out the car.

After looking around for a moment, Cassiopeia realised where they were. "New York?" She raised a brow at Percy.

"You took her to New York, home of the gods, on a first date?" Kira asked, raising a brow at the blonde boy.

Percy shrugged, "there's more to do there than visit the gods."

"Yeah, I figured we could go for an early lunch then do some sight seeing." He shrugged nervously, "I guessed you hadn't really seen much of New York before, outside going to Olympus."

"You're right." She smiled at him, "I'm hardly ever here. So lead the way." She took his hand apprehensively, not wanting to get lost in the crowds but also not wanting to make him uncomfortable.