[Third Person Pov]
"Ughhh," Thalia groaned in mild frustration as she pushed his face away with her palm, stopping Lucian from continuing to pepper her with kisses.
Lucian immediately paused and looked at her apologetically, his earlier enthusiasm fading into something more sheepish as he said, "I'm sorry about missing our date. I honestly had no idea it meant that much to you."
Thalia studied his face for a moment, easily seeing the sincerity written all over his expression. The irritation she had been holding onto softened, and she gave a quiet, resigned sigh as she decided to let the matter go.
"It's fine," she admitted after a moment. "It's mostly my fault anyway. I was expecting something without actually confirming anything and ended up disappointing myself. Not to mention you were off training, so it's not like you were just ignoring me."
Lucian still looked a little guilty despite her words and rubbed the back of his neck before saying, "I still feel a little bad about it. So how about this? After Annabeth's birthday I was planning to go out and check out the church. It was honestly something I was planning to do alone, but… why don't you come with me?"
Thalia blinked in surprise at first. "The church—Oh." Recognition clicked in her mind and a faint smile quickly replaced her earlier annoyance. "Oh I'm definitely coming with you. There is absolutely no way I'm going to miss something like that."
Seeing her smile again made Lucian grin in relief. "Now that we've made up," he said, raising an eyebrow with a teasing, slightly seductive smirk, "don't you think I deserve a reward?"
Thalia glanced around the room out of habit before remembering that this was her own personal training room and no one else was around to see them. She hesitated for a quiet moment, her cheeks coloring slightly before she muttered, "Fine… just one though."
She spun lightly within his arms and pulled him down, their lips meeting in a brief but warm kiss.
"There…" she sighed afterward, though she didn't bother putting any real distance between them.
Lucian chuckled softly, clearly not satisfied yet as one of his hands settled comfortably against the back of her waist. "I also never got my welcome back greeting either, don't you think?"
"Hmm… fair point," Thalia admitted, sliding her arms up and around his shoulders. She tugged him a little closer and whispered near his ear, "I suppose we should fix that. Let me welcome you properly."
Their lips met again, this time with far less restraint. The quiet sound of their kisses echoed faintly within the confines of the training space as Thalia was gradually pressed back against the wall, her back touching the cool surface while Lucian leaned into her.
She closed her eyes, savoring the intense sensation of being wanted so strongly as their earlier restraint disappeared. Their tongues brushed and tangled as they lost themselves in the heat of the moment, neither of them particularly concerned with anything outside the small world they had created between them.
The only times they separated were brief moments to catch their breath before leaning back in again.
"Maybe I should be gone more often if this is how you welcome me back," Lucian teased between breaths, his voice low and slightly rough.
"Just shut up and keep doing what you were doing," Thalia replied in a soft, breathless sigh, her words brushing against his lips.
Lucian certainly didn't need to be told twice and happily continued enjoying the moment for as long as it lasted.
By the time they finally pulled apart for the last time they were both breathing heavily, trying to steady their racing hearts and catch their breath. Their lips were slightly red and sore from the enthusiastic abuse.
Thalia awkwardly fixed her hair and cleared her throat, suddenly looking a bit embarrassed by how carried away she had gotten.
"Let me go and get changed…" she muttered bashfully before quickly turning and speed walking away from the room.
Lucian watched her retreating figure for a moment before closing his eyes and exhaling slowly.
'I am so unbelievably hard…' he thought to himself.
…
After changing into more comfortable clothes, Thalia stepped out to meet Lucian again. The two of them began walking through the camp together, Lucian's arm resting casually yet intimately over her shoulder as he guided them along the path.
"What are you planning on doing right now?" Thalia asked once she realized he was leading them back toward his cabin.
"Start preparing early for Annabeth's feast tomorrow," Lucian replied. "Want to help?"
Thalia shrugged lightly. "Sure. It's not like I had anything planned anyway."
By the time they reached the cabin they headed straight toward the kitchen, already thinking about what needed to be cooked and baked ahead of time. Lucian began pulling out ingredients and setting them on the counter while Thalia grabbed a knife and started preparing the vegetables.
"Anything interesting happen while I was away?" Lucian asked curiously as he began organizing the ingredients in front of him.
Thalia stood close beside him with her own stack of ingredients, casually peeling potatoes as she spoke. "Not really."
"It's been relatively calm, all things considered," she continued. "Everyone has mostly just been doing their own thing. Annabeth is neck-deep in her books and research like always, Bianca and Nico have been training and getting stronger, and Markus—well, as far as I'm aware he's still spending the summer with his mother."
Lucian nodded slightly as he worked, listening while slicing ingredients with practiced ease.
"Well," Thalia added after a moment, "I suppose the only thing that's really different is that Percy finally managed to advance."
She let out a small sigh as she remembered how she had ultimately decided to be the one to help Percy advance his sequence.
"About damn time," Lucian muttered, rolling his eyes and shaking his head in mild exasperation. "What was his next sequence again? The Sub-mariner or something like that?"
Thalia snorted and chuckled. "No, just Mariner. As for the abilities he managed to gain… let's see if I remember correctly."
She paused for a moment as she recalled them.
…
Strength: Animal Empathy → Marine Telepathy — Capable of communicating with and commanding marine sea creatures through their thoughts.
Wind Guidance — A Mariner can subtly influence wind currents around them. This power is often used to adjust sails on ships or create favorable wind conditions for travel. In combat situations they can redirect gusts to destabilize enemies or accelerate their own movements.
Water Weaponization — Even simple splashes of water can be enhanced with spiritual energy, allowing them to strike with surprising force.
Rope and Rigging Mastery — They can weaponize ropes, nets, and rigging with incredible precision and control.
Surface Skimming — By releasing controlled bursts of force downward, they can move across the surface of water with rapid steps.
Wave Impact Strike — A Mariner can channel the momentum of surrounding water into their attacks. When striking an opponent near the sea or even during rainfall, their blows carry an additional surge of force, similar to being struck by a crashing wave.
…
"Ha! So he basically turned into Aquaman now," Lucian said with a laugh.
"Who?" Thalia asked, tilting her head in confusion.
Lucian groaned dramatically and shook his head. "Oh my god. You and Annabeth are both killing me here. You're both so uncultured."
He waved the thought away with a dismissive gesture before continuing. "Anyways, I bet he was pretty happy about those abilities."
"Heh, ecstatic would be more accurate," Thalia said with an amused chuckle. "He trained until he nearly collapsed from spiritual energy depletion."
Lucian laughed quietly at that as he continued mixing ingredients together in a bowl.
The two of them kept talking and joking while they worked, moving around each other in the kitchen with an easy familiarity. The quiet clatter of utensils, the chopping of vegetables, and their relaxed conversation created a warm, cozy atmosphere.
Anyone walking in on the scene might have easily mistaken them for a married couple preparing dinner together.
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