Won't Say I'm in Love [Pertemis]

32- After Parties

Percy

The rest of the day was a blur. It was as if the entirety of heaven was telling me: woah dude, you just got married.

Artemis and I joined hands as we walked out of the wedding hall together. The crowd rose and clapped to see us out. As we neared Olympus's gardens, Hera dismissed the viewers' row by row.

Before we could be surrounded by the crowd, Artemis grabbed my other hand, forcing me to look her in the eye.

"I wouldn't want this with anybody but you." She said.

I squeezed her hand. "I'm here."

The reception and afterparty were absolutely legendary. All of Olympus celebrated our union, and Dionysus' alcohol restrictions were even lifted for the day. Within a few hours, he was drawling everywhere, cursing Zeus and Camp Half-Blood and heroes, and eventually ended up face down in a fountain. It was a good thing he was immortal because otherwise he definitely would've drowned. However, Dionysus himself created the wedding wine, and although Artemis and I don't drink much, we enjoyed ourselves a lot. We danced, spinning each other around, in between eating pastries, dining, and laughing. The cake, a ginormous five-foot-tall vanilla tower with silver icing highlighted in sea green was absolutely to die for. The party went late into the night, and it was still hopping at 5 am the next morning. My social battery had died about 12 hours earlier, and I finally saw an opening to slip into the hall of the Gods away from the crowd. I snuck around the corner and quickly passed through the doorway into the huge throne room. 

Finally alone, I inhaled deeply, removing my crown of laurels and glancing around the throne room. I remembered the first time I had looked at this room, so long ago when I was only 12 years old. Now age didn't matter. The years were like minutes, and the centuries would be like hours. How much time had passed since I was a demigod? 2 years. So much had changed.

I walked around slowly, drinking in the sights. My footsteps echoed off the walls. Standing in human form, merely the size of a regular man in front of the 10-foot-high thrones, made me nostalgic for the days when I was a hero. I remembered standing here on many occasions with Annabeth, and that one time when I was 14 when I thought she was going to become immortal and leave. I sighed. It's not that I cared much. Annabeth and I were okay, and I had accepted it and moved on. We were friends. Still, I wondered where she was now.

I thought about all the adventures that Artemis and I had had, and I couldn't help but smile. Behind me, I heard the loud thud of the throne room door opening and a shaft of light arched across the room. I turned and found Artemis. 

"Hey," I smiled. 

"Hey, Percy," she said shyly. "What brings you in here?"

"I needed some quiet. I've never been great with big crowds and parties and people."

"Understandable," she said as she walked toward me. 

"Still going out there?" I asked.

"Oh, you know it," she laughed, rolling her eyes. "Olympians sure know how to party."

"It's a special occasion," I shrugged. "Always special when I get to be with you."

She touched my face. "Dionysus is back up, knocking them down one drink at a time. The man has incredible tolerance."

"He didn't stay down long," I marveled. 

"No," she agreed. 

"They'll be here for days," I shook my head.

"Probably," Artemis yawned. "But I'm tired, and I've been told that a marvelous honeymoon is waiting on me at a magical paradise island that Poseidon raised from the sea. How about... we make one final appearance, and then the stupid boy whisks the girl away and takes her home."

"I couldn't agree more." I offered her my arm, and we walked back out into the crowds, bidding everyone farewell and receiving an Olympian level send-off, full of fireworks, sparklers, wine, cheers, music, and dancing. As far as I know, the party raged for many days after we had gone.

Though we were technically leaving heaven, the only heaven I needed was right there with me. And even though the future would surely be full of danger, I was thankful that I would be spending it with her. For a little while, the war could wait.