Hello, dear readers.

It has been a very, very long time since I last uploaded any fanfic on this site. I was just too busy with schoolwork and life in general to complete the chapter, but here it is now.

Percy: Hey, guys! Jaso—

Me: Nope. I do not have time nor patience to deal with this right now. Here are some things to be noted:

1. Word Count (without A/N): 3,068

2. I do not own the PJO/HoO series.

3. A BIG thanks to Kicklover109 and Rocketay for adding the story to their favorites' list! Also, special thanks to booknotbookie and Guest for sharing the sweet reviews! I'm glad y'all liked it! Lots of love! Not to forget the awesome followers who are waiting for more!

And finally, enjoy! Never and Smiles: Panic! At The Hotel!

Panic! At The Hotel

If she was being honest (and she was), Annabeth would say that things were getting out of hand now. Had anyone told her before that pregnancy was going to be this hard, she wouldn't ever have even gotten pregnant.

Not that she wasn't excited for Sophia Zoë Jackson to be born. Hell, her eagerness to hold the baby had no bounds. Annabeth was never a day-dreamer, but she would often imagine her little girl speaking gibberish, or wanting to sleep and cuddle with her and Percy, or an older version of Seashell asking her to help tie her ponytail.

She smiled, remembering the nickname her husband had given to the unborn girl.

"Come on, sweetheart," she mumbled under her breath, rubbing her belly. "The world's nice enough for you to come out now."

She sighed as 'sweetheart' performed an unnaturally hard kick to her bladder.

Considering it was Frank and Hazel's wedding reception, Annabeth did not want to wet herself. And she was wearing a dress, which only made the matters worse.

The newly-wedded couple sat at the head of the table, grins adorning their faces. They had just given a short speech, thanking everyone for coming after all the reception-rituals (as the group had come to call the bouquet/garter throw, special dances and cake-cutting) were over, and now the guests were doing nothing but enjoying the six-course meal. Soft music flowed through them all, making the atmosphere relaxing and calm, even with all the gods present there as their Roman counterparts.

It helped that the Olympians were sitting at another table, and theirs only accommodated the Zhangs, Jacksons, Graces, Underwoods, Nico, Will, Reyna, Thalia and (engaged but still not married) Leo and Calypso.

Annabeth had loved the day, but one thing miffed her and that was where the pregnancy part came in: she couldn't even have a little bit of wine, for gods' sake!

"Are you okay, Wise Girl?" she heard Percy ask (who had noticed her scrunched up face). He was whispering though, knowing that she didn't want him to create a scene.

She simply nodded, squeezing his hand she held under the table for good measure.

He went back to laughing at Leo's jokes, but Annabeth could see his eyes weren't laughing anymore.

Yeah, he got worried like that easily; and that made her love him even more than she already did. Maybe to the extent that it was almost unhealthy.

Her train of thoughts went to all the sappy, cry-worthy memories and she chided herself for thinking about those specific instances, figuring Piper would kill her if anything happened to her makeup.

Speaking of Piper, Annabeth noticed that the daughter of Aphrodite's eyes had gone wide. She was sitting beside her, of course, so that she could help if anything drastic were to happen.

Annabeth wondered if the "anything" part was happening right now.

Then she noticed something wet trailing down her legs. For a second she thought that she had peed herself, but then Annabeth noticed Piper motioning towards her belly.

And it all made sense.

Her water had broken.

Annabeth was going into labor.

She tried to stay calm and nearly succeeded as well until she broke the news to her darling husband, who had to take it all to another level.

"WHAT?!" he yelled, making every eye in the room look at him as if he were crazy. "YOU'RE WHAT?!"

He sprung up from his seat and flailed his arms like a fish, which was pretty ironic and hilarious.

Hearing (and seeing) the commotion, Sally and Paul came running through (with a giggling Estelle behind them), having been graciously invited by the bride and groom.

"What is it, Percy?" Paul asked, placing a hand on his step-son's shoulder.

"Annabeth's in labor!" Percy replied hysterically and Annabeth wanted to slap him so bad. They had been getting ready for this moment for weeks, and he still acted like a moron as if he knew nothing.

Considering it was Percy, he probably didn't even pay attention to anything their midwife had instructed.

"Calm down, Percy," Piper whisper-shouted and it had an immediate effect. Annabeth knew she had laced her words with charmspeak. "And stay calm for the rest of this process, thank you."

Just then, the first contraction hit, making Annabeth wince.

The wincing didn't go unnoticed by Percy.

"Are you okay?" he was sitting beside her again, holding her hand. "Wise Girl? Was it a contraction?"

"Time it," was Annabeth's only reply, her eyes shut, trying to focus on not screaming out loud. Because the contractions hurt.'

"It's going to be alright, dear," Annabeth's mother-in-law said, rubbing her back.

She slowly opened her eyes, searching for the newly-wedded couple.

"Sorry, guys," Annabeth managed to let out, looking at Frank and Hazel apologetically.

"There's no need to be sorry, Annabeth," Hazel replied, smiling at her. She motioned towards the lady's belly. "This is more important right now. Are you comfortable enough?"

Annabeth nodded, taking in deep breaths.

She watched as Frank and Hazel thanked the leaving guests one by one and her eyes teared up once more, thinking how great friends they were, choosing to end their wedding reception three-quarters of the way in, just so that they could be with her, even though they'd be outside the delivery room when the time actually came.

Soon, the reception hall was near-empty, the only ones there being the Jacksons' close friends and family, including the gods and goddesses.

She could feel Percy shaking beside her, taking in deep breaths himself.

Poseidon and Athena (who were their Roman counterparts moments ago) came rushing, too, pushing aside the small group of beings.

Everyone was quiet for a moment, so much so that Annabeth almost found it too peaceful, when someone's phone rang.

"It's mine, it's mine," Jason confirmed and went away to take the call.

"Stay strong, Annabeth," Athena mumbled, hoping no one would hear her motherly side come into play.

Annabeth simply nodded once more.

"There's too much traffic in the way, guys," Jason reported, done talking to the demigod who had called. "Allen said it is nearly impossible to reach any hospital in time."

Silence filled the room once more.

"Apollo will help, won't you?" Athena suddenly exclaimed, looking at the said god pointedly.

"No can do, sorry," he replied, shaking his head following his answer. Annabeth figured it was because he was intimated by Zeus, who also happened to be the king of the gods and his father.

"The less we interfere in a mortal's life the better."

"Artemis?"

She nodded.

"I can," Artemis said. "I helped deliver my brother, after all. But interfering with a mortal's life . . . Not a good idea."

Annabeth, still in pain from a particularly strong contraction, felt like rampaging the whole venue. She was in labor and no one seemed to care enough to help her give birth to her daughter.

"I-I can help," came a voice from behind. Annabeth craned her neck to find Will Solace rubbing his neck nervously. "I-I mean, I've done a course for this situation before and even though I specialize in the pediatric area . . . I-I think I can do this."

All eyes turned towards him.

"Will, that's—" Percy's words remained strangled in his throat. "You feel comfortable with this, right?"

Will chuckled nervously.

"Am I fine with delivering an actual live baby and not inanimate dolls? Nope," he said. "But I-I'm trained for such specific situations. And I have delivered Coach Hedge's son."

Annabeth could feel her husband's gears rotating in his head, but she was the one in labor here and she was losing patience.

"JUST DO IT, SOLACE!" she yelled, although not meaning to. "GET HER OUT! YOU HAVE MY PERMISSION."

She could see Nico bob his head affirmatively through her peripheral vision and she wanted to hug him then and there.

"Alright. Percy, take Annabeth to the groom's suite. Nico, bring my emergency kit from the car. And someone call the midwife and tell her to reach us as soon as possible." Will spoke, getting in doctor-mode. "Frank, Hazel, you guys can go home if you's like. It is your weddi—"

"We're not leaving without seeing Sophia," Hazel said, looking up at her husband.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Frank replied, smiling.

Annabeth's eyes teared up once again, partially due to the pain of another contraction, and partially because of the adoration and care of the family she had learned to love.

Even the gods and goddesses; who were going to wait too, by the looks of it.

As Percy picked Annabeth up bridal-style, Annabeth couldn't help but wish that their daughter be born in a hospital, like normal babies. But, well, it was fitting for Sophia to come into the world amid the panic.

She was a Jackson, after all.

The next thing Annabeth knew, she was being set down on the bed by Percy. The son of Poseidon gently kissed her knuckles.

"I'll be right here, love."

The next long hours into the process of dilation (without the much wanted epidural) were just filled with screams and shouts directed at her seaweed brained husband. Will had had a long conversation with May - their midwife - and she advised him against waiting for her to reach them, as the traffic on the road to the venue hotel was "simply ridiculous".

Just their luck.

So, when Will told her to push, Annabeth almost breathed a sigh of relief.

And push, she did.

Annabeth held her breath for twelve seconds, her grip on Percy's hand tightening with every passing second, and then tiredly collapsed on the bed, panting.

"You're doing so good, Wise Girl," Percy whispered from his seat on the bed beside her. His back was faced towards Will and Annabeth knew that he was apprehensive of looking at Will, Piper, and Thalia, afraid of their disappointed or sad expressions, if present.

He was worried about Seashell's health, with her being born in a hotel suite rather than in a fully equipped hospital.

Taking a shaky breath, Annabeth pushed again.

Yet, nothing.

"I can't do it!" Annabeth screamed at the top of her lungs, grabbing Percy's hand tighter if that was possible.

"Come on, Annabeth," Piper urged from her position of holding her legs apart along with Thalia. "Please, push."

"I CAN'T!" Annabeth yelled, tears now streaming down her cheeks. "PERSEUS JACKSON, I HATE YOU! YOU DID THIS TO ME!"

From the corner of her eyes, Annabeth saw Percy flinching from her verbal assault.

"I'm sorry, love," he said, attempting to kiss her forehead (an attempt she rendered unsuccessful). "But Annabeth, think of baby Soph. You have to push."

Still crying, Annabeth took in a strangled breath.

And with all her might, she pushed again.

A split second later, her screams were replaced with the sounds of Will screaming profanities, something that rarely happened.

Of course, Percy sensed something was wrong, too. He pried her fingers open and scrambled to where the son of Apollo stood.

His eyes widened.

"Are those—"

"L-Legs," Thalia mumbled, but in the dead silence of the room, everyone heard her crystal clear.

"It's a breech birth," Will confirmed, worry etched on his face. "She's coming feet-first."

It was Percy who swore this time and Annabeth's stomach dropped.

Will wasn't prepared for this.

She wasn't prepared for this.

Sensing her distress, Percy resumed his perch near her and held her hand once again.

"Annabeth, listen to me," he said. "You-you have to push again and get her out now. Please, love. Listen to me just this once."

"You don't think I want her out?!" Annabeth's tone was accusatory, but she couldn't help it. "Percy, I'm trying! It hurts!"

"I know, baby," Percy replied, his eyes tearing up. "But we need you to push. Seashell needs you to push."

"I wanna hold h-her," Annabeth whispered, sobbing.

"I wanna hold her too, Wise Girl." Percy nodded, smiling. "One last time, Annabeth. Push."

And Annabeth pushed, screaming.

The next thing she knew, her screams were yet again replaced not by Will's curses, but by the loud cries of their newborn. Annabeth's head finally flopped down on the pillows with relief washing over her mind.

"Piper, get the warm water and towel," Will instructed and Annabeth felt her legs being lowered down by her two best friends.

She couldn't place a finger on what had happened next, except that Thalia had disposed the towel from underneath her butt as Will cut the umbilical cord and Piper tended to the baby, probably wiping her clean.

She felt Percy's hand slip out of her own and managed to open her eyes to look at him rubbing his eyes, a clear sign of his tiredness. The birth itself had taken almost a full day (during which the midwife hadn't been able to reach them; with their streak of luck, it was no surprise though), but they were awake for the most of the day before for the wedding.

Suddenly, the door burst open and May surged inside, looking frantic.

"Is it over?" she asked, checking her wristwatch.

"It is, May," Percy replied, standing up to greet her. "Although you need help us adjust to all of this for the moment. And we also need your help in getting the birth certificate approved by the hospital."

May smiled and hugged Percy and then Annabeth, congratulating them. Then she proceeded to take a carbon pad, weighing machine and a piece of paper that looked like an incomplete birth certificate out of the giant bag she had apparently hauled in behind her.

"We need to measure little Sophia's weight and then get her foot's carbon print," May explained like she already had before and rushed to where Will and Piper were.

Annabeth sighed, itching to hold her baby.

"Percy?" she spoke up, her voice raspy due to all the screaming. "Where is Sophia? I wanna hold her."

Percy walked over to her and placed a kiss on her forehead. But before he could reply, Will came forward with a little bundled up baby in his arms.

"Here she is," he announced, grinning, albeit the tiredness etched on his face seemed to beg for a nap.

After Percy had helped her to sit propped up on pillows, Will handed the newborn to Annabeth and she started tearing up again.

Finally.

"F-Finally," Percy voiced her thoughts, his voice shaky and choked up.

Annabeth motioned him to sit next to her and he obliged wholeheartedly.

"Sophia Zoë Jackson," Annabeth whispered as she looked at their little girl. "Seashell, it's mommy."

Sophia, just then, decided to start crying again. Her squirming resulted in the towel on her head to fall off, revealing dark tufts of hair.

Panic overtook Annabeth and a part of her mind went through all the knowledge she had acquired from the pregnancy books. Meanwhile, another part told to just go with her maternal instincts.

"Shh . . . Shh, sweetie," Annabeth spoke to the baby, gently rocking her in her hold. "I'm right here. Daddy's right here, too, you know. We've waited a long time for you, Seashell. We love you."

Sophia slowly began to calm down, her sobs muting down to sniffles and she fell asleep, but not before gazing with curious eyes at her parents doting over her.

"Hi, Soph." It was the first time Percy had said anything since Annabeth began holding their baby. "I'm your dad."

His words were exceptionally simple, yet Annabeth's heart fluttered with adoration for the love of her life.

Silence overtook the small family and Annabeth took the time to notice that Will, Piper, Thalia, and May had left the room, possibly to give them much wanted privacy and to notify others.

It seemed like hours had passed before the daughter of Athena broke the hush, her eyes boring into Percy's.

"She has your hair."

Percy grinned and threw his head back with a laugh.

"I know. But she has the eyes I fell in love with," Percy retorted playfully, kissing Sophia's tiny nose. "I'm sorry, Wise Girl, but you have a strong contender to fight against for my attention."

Annabeth couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"You think I would mind?"

"Nope. Never."

Annabeth chuckled as Percy snuggled up against her and began caressing Sophia's fuzzy hair with his fingers.

Peaceful silence enveloped the three yet again . . . before their truly insane family — gods and demigods alike — barged through the door, making Sophia start crying, evidently not happy with her sleep getting disrupted.

"PERCABETH BABY!" Aphrodite squealed as Ares tried (and failed) to calm her down a bit. Hera and Zeus congratulated them curtly before leaving the room for more people to enter. Percy's parents had decided to inform Annabeth's parents (who could not come to the wedding due to Helen's work and the twin's school) about the birth and were missing from the scene, but Annabeth figured it wouldn't be too long before they were thrown into the mix, too. All the gods and goddesses blessed the new parents and Sophia (whom Annabeth had managed to get to sleep again). Athena and Poseidon had only began to squabble over who must hold the baby first, when it became apparent that the Stoll brothers, Leo, Grover, and Jason had managed to buy two dozen balloons, a cake, streamers, and banners saying 'A girl is born!', and were now the instigators of an inevitable party.

Thus began the party that was bound to last at least a couple of hours.

A part of her wished that they would all just leave the couple alone with their child, but Annabeth knew that she would never have it any other way.

Not in a million years.

Looking at Percy's excitement shine through his exhaustion, Annabeth couldn't help but smile.

And done! Liked it? Loved it? Didn't? Tell me in the reviews! There's always room for improvement (besides, I couldn't spell check this chappie, so go a little bit easy, guys).

Aphrodite: Aww, we need real Percabeth babies, though! Hera! Can we make this happ—

Hera: Ugh, but the insolent blonde gets on my nerves! She's so disrespec—

Me: Oh. My. Gods! Why do I have to put up with this?! Aight, I'm gonna just sign off now, before my head bursts! REVIEW/FAVORITE/FOLLOW, lovely readers! Until the next chappie!