Disclaimer: Everything belongs to R squared. Set prior to TLH.

They fit together perfectly, as if they were made for each other.

She almost has to physically restrain herself from slapping herself in the face. Of course they do, and of course they were, for whom else in the world would be willing to put up with either of them for the rest of their lives other than the other? They are like interlocking pieces, so much so that sometimes she isn't certain where she ends and he begins.

It totally helps that they are very much physically intertwined as she is thinking this.

Still, even as his arms run up hers in a caress smooth enough to make angels – or Aphrodite girls – cry, even as he pulls her closer to him like he's drowning – unlikely, he's the son of the Sea God – and she is his only lifeline, even as his lips – those warm, gentle soft lips – press closer to hers like he intends to die kissing her (not that she'd be complaining), she cannot help but marvel at how precisely they fit together.

His lips leave hers for a moment, and attach themselves at the base of her neck. He whispers her name, like a prayer, in a tone so intimate and full of love and wonderfully Percy. Her heart melts, and her mouth opens softly in ecstasy.

She can't believe she even considered joining the Hunters. This is better. This – lying down on Percy's bunk in Cabin 3 on a lazy summer afternoon, him hovering over her as though scared she might break, kissing to their heart's content – is so much better.

This is everything.

Some things will never change. She is still his Wise Girl, and he is still her Seaweed Brain, and anybody who even thinks about calling either of them by either of those names is very likely to be faced with either a celestial bronze knife at their throat or a celestial bronze sword at their chest. He still acts before he thinks, and she still does all the planning – most of which goes out the window because he decides at the last minute he's not going to follow her plan. They still fight like there is no tomorrow, charging at each other in the arena with his sword and her knife clashing against each other until one emerges victorious and pulls the other into something of a celebratory and apologetic kiss, because hasn't everything they've ever been through proved that life is just too short to be mad at the ones you love?

Some things have changed, though. For one, her and Rachel get along swimmingly these days. No more jealousy and anger and bitterness, only nostalgia to days long gone when they were competing for Percy's affections and comfort and joy in finally having found a friend who really understands what's happening in their life – even if Rachel is a mortal.

For another, she finds she quite likes having a boyfriend. She loves him, she really does, but she can't help it when she smirks in satisfaction after kissing him in front of those idiot Aphrodite girls (the ones who don't 'ship Percabeth' – as far as she knows, that means the ones who don't support her and Percy being together, which is ridiculous for so many reasons) and those idiot newcomers that think he'll break up with her for one of them. She likes looking up every once in a while at dinner to catch him staring at her with a vacant look on his face (never mind that she often does the same thing). Although she couldn't care less about the way she looks, something that just about gives the Aphrodite girls a heart attack when they find out that 'Percabeth' is going on a date and Annabeth's just wearing shorts and some old singlet shirt, it's nice to know that her boyfriend wants her that way.

She likes that he can be so very spontaneously romantic, like the time down at the beach when the hippocampi had interrupted their moonlight stroll and had asked for Percy's assistance in rescuing a dolphin from fishnets. She'd insisted on him going, and insisted again on coming along and helping him, something she was congratulating her past self for wholeheartedly when they came across an underwater valley of beautiful flowers that had just rendered her speechless. They'd ended up spending about an hour going through the valley, and when they came up to the surface she turned to thank him for the lovely night only to find a bouquet of her favourite ones from the valley.

She likes the way he looks at her – both in the time they share together alone or in the middle of day, he's been known to completely lose sight of what he was supposed to be doing and end up watching her instead – like she's the most beautiful thing in the world. And, as corny as it sounds, when he looks at her like that, she can't help but feel like she is the most beautiful thing in the world.

She likes how he never pushes her in the physical part of their relationship. She's still got some trust issues, something they're both aware of, and she loves him without a doubt, but she's certain they aren't ready for that. Not just yet, anyway.

She likes how protective he is. Of course his fatal flaw comes into play, but it's more than just that. It's the way he is. There is nothing more natural in the world than watching Percy teach the newbies sword fighting in the arena (she also thinks there is nothing sexier in the world than watching Percy work up a sweat in the arena to such a point where he strips himself of his shirt and pours water all over his wonderfully toned body – why isn't she surprised that she finds violence a turn on?).

She likes how unique they are as a couple. Sure, they fight about the stupid things – Annabeth being more focused on her Olympus designs than on him, Percy blowing her off to hang out with Nico – but as soon as a monster gets involved, it's like their problems have dissolved into nothingness and their primary focus becomes dispatching the monster and doing it quickly. She doesn't think anyone else is quite like this. Clarisse spends too much time fighting everyone else to fight with Chris, and he spends too much time calming her down and stopping her from killing everyone else for him to fight with her. Grover and Juniper certainly fight, which mostly consists of Juniper shouting at Grover for not IM-ing her about his new assignments and Grover begging on bended knee for her forgiveness. They don't have the monster factor to deal with.

She likes how seamless the transition was from best friends to dating-couple. Before, he'd just do something stupid and she'd either roll her eyes or laugh; now, she does both and then kisses him. Right at the beginning, it didn't seem like it had taken a considerable amount of effort for them to quit being best friends and start dating. She supposes this is because they haven't stopped being best friends at all. She imagines she is one of the lucky people in this world who happens to fall in love with their best friend. Sure, they stumble around from time to time, neither of them really knowing what they're doing, but the best moments are when they aren't trying to be all cute and romantic. The best moments happen when they're together – because there is never a dull moment when you're dating the son of Poseidon and the Saviour of Olympus.

(She also likes that they're living in the same city and can manage to meet up at least once every two weeks, but she'd never admit it if there is even the slightest chance her mother can hear.)