ROYAL CRIES
━━ chapter seventeen

━━ ELISA THUMBED THE edge of a shirt mindlessly as she, Drew, and Beckendorf meandered around their third department store. She let go of the shirt, turning around to see where her friends had walked off to. Drew was walking slightly ahead of Beckendorf, glancing back at the son of Hephaestus to tell him something else.

               They had been doing this for three hours already. Beckendorf brought Elisa and Drew along to help him shop for Silena. Silena's birthday was right around the corner in early September, and as the day got closer, Beckendorf seemed to be getting more and more nervous.

               The son of Hephaestus had asked Drew and Elisa to go with him because "You two can help me pick out something she'll actually like!" ( Beckendorf's words, not Elisa's. ) Elisa tried to tell the boy that he needed to make something for her instead of buying it. She knew Beckendorf wanted to make a big impression on the daughter of Aphrodite, to hopefully gain more of her attention and affection.

               Beckendorf had a major crush on Silena Beauregard, but the irony never failed to dawn on Elisa; a son of Hephaestus had fallen hard for a daughter of Aphrodite, their parents were technically married even if neither one truly acknowledge it, and it seemed like cruel fate to make a son of Hephaestus fall for a daughter of Aphrodite.

               Or—at least to Beckendorf the feelings seemed one-sided. Silena had also fallen for him hard. Silena seemed infatuated. Elisa figured it was some daughter of Aphrodite thing; they fall in love hard and were completely committed to whoever was on the receiving end of their affection. However, Silena was a lot more comfortable with her feelings than Beckendorf was. She reached out to him, she made an effort to have any opportunity to be around him. It wasn't like Beckendorf avoided Silena, he just didn't want to make a fool of himself around her.

               That's what he told Elisa at least.

               The daughter of Dionysus seemed to be the middle-man for Silena and Beckendorf and their required feelings. She was an open ear for both and their problems. And let her be honest, it was horrible—not because she was jealous of them ( she was not, she knew all too well exactly how Beckendorf was feeling ), not because she didn't care, but because she just wanted them to man up and admit it.

               Elisa was self-aware enough to recognize the irony in her wishing Beckendorf and Silena would both man up and admit their feelings.

               Elisa didn't mind helping Beckendorf with Silena's birthday gift, there were just a couple of problems. One; they couldn't find a gift for Silena. The three were coming up empty-handed with every store they went into. ( And Beckendorf was refusing to admit that Elisa was right; he didn't want to "mess up Silena's gift so bad she never talked to me again!" ) And two; Drew had no idea they were on a time crunch, and she felt the need to walk around a store three times, picking up every item to inspect it.

               Elisa was set to head for the Jackson apartment in Manhattan in about two hours. She had obligations to show up for Percy's birthday party. And Drew had no idea, just because Elisa didn't want to face the embarrassment she knew she would feel from all the teasing thrown her way.

               Cowardly, possibly, but smart. Elisa knew Drew, Annabeth, and Silena would never let her live it down. But Beckendorf? Sure, he laughed loudly when the brunette told him what Percy had asked of her, but with one quick glare and a threat to tell Silena everything, the son of Hephaestus would stay quiet with his teasings.

               Elisa glanced up again, finding Drew and Beckendorf making their way back over to her. The daughter of Dionysus fought the urge to groan when the two came up to her empty-handed.

               "Look—Beckendorf," the brunette told the boy, "just make Silena something. She'll love that a hundred times more than anything you could buy her."

               Beckendorf looked positively sick at the idea. "What would I even make for her?"

               Elisa looked to Drew for any answers. "Has Silena said she wanted anything?"

               "A couple months back Silena did say she was thinking about that music box her dad had gotten her," Drew admitted, picking at her nails which were painted to have small strawberries over them. "She talked about the music box like she had lost it or something."

               Elisa brightened considerably. Maybe they would get out of the mall at a reasonable time. "You could make Silena that!"

               However, the son of Hephaestus didn't look convinced. "I have no idea what the music box looks like. Or what song it played. And besides ... don't you think that'll be a little weird? I think it'd be weird to just hang her a music box from her childhood she never told me about."

               Elisa wondered if she sounded this frantic when she talked about Percy. She hoped she didn't—that'd be mega embarrassing.

               Instead of voicing her internal worry about how she sounded when talking about her crush, the girl, "We'll find a way to get her to talk about it. I'm sure one of can get the information out of her with enough time for you to make it—and to your level of perfection."

               Drew grinned slightly. "Yeah—we all know how perfect you want this gift to be. By the way, are you ever gonna ask her out?"

               Elisa could see the panic fill Beckendorf's eyes. Only she hoped neither of her friends could see the relief in her's; she was glad the daughter of Aphrodite hadn't rounded on her with questions about dates and asking crushes out.

               "I—" Beckendorf gaped like a fish out of water. He even seemed to be almost gasping for air. Elisa and Drew exchanged sly looks, the black-haired girl succeeding in catching Beckendorf off-guard. The son of Hephaestus stumbled for words, struggling between saying 'I' and 'Shut up!'

               "I'm working on it!" Beckendorf finally got out. "We're practically dating anyways."

               Drew tutted. "Have you asked her out? Like—say to her, 'I want to be in a relationship with you?'"

               Beckendorf shook his head.

               "Then, you're not dating," said Drew. "You can never just assume you're dating someone. One of you has to ask the other out. That's like—Dating 101."

               Elisa gave the daughter of Aphrodite a look. "Not all of us have read Dating 101."

               "It's not a book." Drew rolled her eyes dramatically. "I was saying that was an obvious rule."

               Beckendorf looked conflicted over whatever he was thinking about. "Look, you guys, I've been thinking about how to ask Silena out, and I want to do it—"

               "Perfectly," Elisa finished for him. She didn't sound annoyed or angry, instead, the brunette more sounded wistful, as if she wished someone would go to great links like that for her. "We know, Beckendorf. You want to do everything perfectly for Silena."

               Drew gave the boy an empathetic look. The girl had to know what he was going through, her mother was the Goddess of Love, after all. She knew how much contemplating and deliberating Beckendorf did for his crush, she had to know how much the boy wanted to impress Silena Beauregard.

               "You shouldn't put so much thought into it," Drew told him. She held up a hand when Beckendorf gave her an odd look. "I mean—Silena would rather you be yourself than be the perfected, not-you you. Does that make sense?"

               "No."

               "I'm saying be yourself, Beckendorf," Drew said loudly. Elisa and Beckendorf looked at her sharply when some of the other shoppers around them turned to look. Drew, however, didn't seem to care. "I promise you, Beckendorf, Silena li—" She stopped short, on the verge of accidentally revealing her older sister's true feelings for Beckendorf.

               Drew re-worded what she was going to say; "You would enjoy being around Silena more if you didn't spend so much time thinking about the best ways to impress her and just lived in the moment." She leaned forward, clasping a hand on the son of Hephaestus's bulky arm. "You're perfect enough to be yourself around her."

               Beckendorf looked almost bashful at all the praise. The son of Hephaestus seemed to be used to people praising everything he made, not him personally.

               Elisa spoke up. "How about you make Silena something you think of instead of the music box?"

               Beckendorf looked at the brunette. "What would I make?"

               The daughter of Dionysus tilted her head, thinking for a moment. "You could still make the music box. Or—a music box, I mean, just put your own little spin on it."

               Beckendorf crossed his arms. Elisa could practically see the boy's head whirring with ideas. He grinned crookedly, slinging an arm over her shoulder. "Nice pun," he said.

               Elisa frowned, racking her mind over what she had last said. "I didn't make a pun," she pointed out.

               Drew rolled her eyes, trailing after the two as Beckendorf lead them over to the exit of the store. "'Put your own spin on it,'" she recited, as if that would help Elisa understand.

               It did help Elisa understand. She smiled sheepishly. "You two know what I mean."

               The demigods exited the store, heading for the camp van they had borrowed for the day. Beckendorf let go of Elisa's shoulders, digging the car keys out of his back pocket. He was the only one that could drive among the three; Elisa had turned fifteen early that year in March, Drew was nearing sixteen in November, and he had turned seventeen in May.

               Drew got in the passenger side, leaving Elisa to lay claims on the backseat. Beckendorf started the car, glancing back at the daughter of Dionysus. Elisa and Beckendorf hadn't intended on Drew coming along with them when they made plans to shop for Silena's birthday and then drop Elisa off at the Jackson apartment. The two needed a lie to get closer to the apartment; a lie that couldn't raise any red flags in Drew's mind.

               "The van needs gas," Beckendorf said, turning back around.

               Drew frowned. "Do you know a gas station nearby?"

               Beckendorf peeled the car out of the lot, saying, "Not super close by, but yeah."

               Drew's frown didn't disappear. "I told Silena we'd be back before long. She's worried some monsters are gonna find us."

               "Er—" Elisa leaned forward in her seat to say, "We'll get gas and then head back."

               Beckendorf looked at Elisa in the rearview mirror. He was shaking his head at the idea. "No, it's all good. We won't be attacked. You can just call her. You still have that phone, right?"

               Beckendorf was asking about the phone Drew had pawned off ( she Charmspeaked it, same difference ) from a salesman some months back when she had gone home. It was dangerous to use phones as they only just broadcasted half-blood's voices, making it easier for monsters to catch them, but the three had a good chance of killing the monster before they could cause any damage. ( And they also didn't want Silena raising hell back at camp, knowing her she'd gather up a group to go looking for them. )

               Elisa rolled her eyes silently. Going back to camp would be the easiest way to ditch Drew ( she wasn't starting to sound harsher than she was meaning to ) even though it would make her late to the birthday party

               They made it to a gas station in record time considering the kind of traffic in New York City. Beckendorf and Elisa walked inside the gas station as Drew stayed inside the car.

               Elisa and Beckendorf wandered over to the snacks section, the daughter of Dionysus picking up a candy bar in pink wrapping. She turned it over in her hand before putting it back on the shelf.

               "So," she started, turning to the boy beside her, "what do you have planned?"

               Beckendorf was digging some cash out of his back pockets to pay for the pump. "Planned? For what?"

               "How you're gonna ask Silena out!"

               "Oh—I planned on asking Silena during the fireworks but I got—uh—too nervous. But that was the best time to ask her and I lost it. Now I'm kinda just ... hoping some perfect opportunity smacks me in the face."

               Elisa frowned. "Maybe pray to Aphrodite. I dunno, she might take pity on you or something."

               The son of Hephaestus looked offended at the use of 'take pity.' "I doubt she would listen to me," he said, shaking his head. "I'm Hephaestus's kid, you know."

               Elisa's cheek twitched. "I don't think she cares about that much. I think she cares more about the fact you like her daughter. In fact—I'm sure she's happy about the irony of you being a son of Hephaestus and Silena being her daughter."

               Beckendorf considered what the girl told him with a quiet, "Maybe." He shuffled over to the cash register, a small bag of Skittles in his hands. Elisa trailed after him, looking out the store's windows. Drew was sitting in the front passenger seat of the white van, looking like she was still on the phone with someone. The girl's eyebrows knitted downward as she looked over to the store; then, a grin started growing on her face.

               "Pump twelve?" the cashier asked and Beckendorf nodded. The cashier typed something in and gave Beckendorf five dollars of mortal money back. "You're all set."

               Beckendorf said his thanks, leading Elisa back outside. The daughter of Dionysus was still watching Drew, wondering what that change in expression was all about.

               "Beckendorf?" Elisa asked, tearing her eyes away from Drew to look at the boy beside her. "How are we gonna get me to the apartment?"

               "Er—" The son of Hephaestus looked at the camp van, licking his lips. "We'll think of something, all right?"

               "Well—I don't want to be late," Elisa said, internally wincing at how harsh she sounded. "I mean—that'd be, like, really rude."

               "You'll be on time," Beckendorf insisted, pushing Elisa to get inside the van.

               When she got inside, Drew craned her neck around, grinning widely. The daughter of Dionysus gave the black-haired girl an odd look, sitting down.

               "What's your problem?" Elisa asked.

               "Nothing," Drew said quickly. "Actually, why didn't you tell me?"

               Elisa shifted in her seat. "Tell you what?"

               "That it's Percy's birthday?" Drew said, leaning closer toward Elisa. "And that he invited you. Elisa, that's, like, him basically confessing!"

               The daughter of Dionysus started to scowl. "Who told you?" she demanded.

               "Silena, just now. But Beckendorf told Silena because—it's this really long story. Basically, Silena could tell you two were keeping something from her and she knew it would be easier to get the information out of Beckendorf so she went to him—"

               Elisa crossed her arms. "That asshole ..." she grumbled.

               Drew's grin widened. "Percy invited you."

               Elisa swatted her friend's head away. "I know that," she said.

               "And so you know what that means?"

               "That he invited me?" offered Elisa.

               The daughter of Aphrodite gave Elisa an annoyed look. "He wouldn't just invite his friends, Elisa, that's why he didn't invite Grover or Annabeth. But he invited you, so that's like him basically saying you're more than a friend."

               Elisa's scowl deepened. Her ears burned like they had been set on fire. "And who told you that?" she snapped.

               "Uh—my extensive knowledge about how stupid boys are around their crushes."

               The daughter of madness rolled her eyes dramatically. "We don't exactly know how Percy feels about me," she said.

               She wasn't wrong, per se. Percy had never outright said if he did like Elisa or not but considering how he did act around it, the boy might have had some romantic feelings towards her. ( Or perhaps Elisa was letting Drew and Silena's rants finally get to her. )

               Drew gave the girl an annoyed look as Beckendorf got in the car. She turned her attention towards the son of Hephaestus. "Floor it," she said quickly. "Elisa can't be late."

               Beckendorf gave the daughter of Dionysus a sympathetic look. Elisa figured that was his silent apology for betraying her trust and telling Silena. As they left the gas station, he said, "I'm surprised you didn't say anything about her outfit, Drew."

               Elisa gave the boy an offended look. "What the hell's wrong with my outfit?"

               Drew gave Elisa a once-over. "I know she wouldn't want to change anything about it," she sniffed. "So I didn't even bother this time."

               Elisa rolled her eyes, looking out the car window beside her. "Oh—I feel the love, right now."

               Beckendorf's cheek twitched, his eyes crinkling as he smiled. "I'm not saying your outfit's bad—"

               "I'm saying it's bad," Drew broke in. "Don't you want to impress Percy?"

               "Shouldn't my stunning personality already do that?" Elisa asked scathingly, shoving Drew's shoulder.

               "I was just saying I know Drew," Beckendorf continued. "And I know she would think you're outfit isn't very date appropriate."

               Elisa looked down at the outfit she had put on that morning. She thought it looked fine. A band T-shirt with a pair of wide-leg jeans. A basic outfit, maybe, but it was cute to her. Elisa played with the only clay bead tied around her neck with a leather band. The clay bead was for Elisa surviving a summer at Camp Half-Blood; the bead was designed with an intricate image of the Labyrinth as the beads were always to represent the most important part of that summer.

               "I think it's fine," the girl said. "I mean—I'm dressing up by any means, but it looks okay to me."

               "It's a very 'you' outfit," Drew agreed.

               Elisa figured the daughter of love meant that as a compliment, but she didn't know if she could take it as one. But in the end, it didn't matter because she didn't have time to go and change.

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It took longer than Elisa expected to get rid of Drew and Beckendorf. ( And that was saying something as the brunette already knew it was going to take ages to get rid of them. ) Drew kept promising that she and Beckendorf didn't mind waiting for the birthday party to be over so that Elisa could tell them if anything went down. However, Elisa simply shut the black-haired girl down with a cold stare.

               Ignoring how she knew Beckendorf and Drew would be gossiping the entire time until Elisa called for them to say the party was over, the girl followed Percy's instructions on how to get to his mother's apartment.

               Elisa knocked three times in a row after double-checking that she had the right apartment number. She winced when she heard a loud crash, like a metal pan being dropped, and hurried footsteps. Elisa glanced over her shoulder when the door didn't immediately open after the footsteps came to a halt; then, the door swung open quickly.

               Percy stood in the doorway, grinning widely. Elisa could tell the boy had attempted to brush his hair by the way the dark curls were less defined and more spread out. Her cheek twitched, finding it amusing how the son of Poseidon looked winded.

               "I'm not late, am I?" she asked.

               "No, no," Percy assured her, ushering her inside. "You're on time."

               Elisa noticed how the apartment held a completely different feel to it from the time she had been there before. The only other time she had been to the Jackson apartment was after Percy had been stranded on Ogygia and she and Percy were having their ... issues. Ms. Jackson had been informed of her son's missing status and had let her and her apartment go in favor of worrying over her son. Now, the apartment was clean spotless, and smelled of freshly-baked cake.

               Elisa's stomach grumbled at the smell, being reminded of New Mexico and Callum's bakery. Percy led the girl into the kitchen, informing his mother of who had knocked on the door.

               Sally Jackson was wiping her hands off with a hand towel, her eyes sparkling with unsaid humor. She smiled at her son, as if sharing some secret joke between her and her son.

               However, Percy didn't find whatever the 'secret joke' was too amusing as he said quickly, "Paul's invited, too, Elisa. And Tyson's ..." He looked back at his mother.

               "I asked Tyson to take out the garbage," Sally said. "He really wants to feel useful."

               Elisa nodded. "Does Paul know ... like," she gestured between herself and Percy, "about demigods? The gods and stuff?"

               Percy sighed heavily. "No, I haven't told him yet. But all that stuff with Goode? Chiron played with the Mist so my name's been cleared. I'm still set to attend Goode for my freshman year."

               "That's good," Elisa said. "Well—not the school part because school sucks, but it's good that there's not a manhunt for you anymore."

               Percy grinned. "There was a manhunt for us," he corrected.

               Elisa shook her head, heading into the kitchen. "No way. I didn't do anything back at Goode."

               "But there was video evidence of you fleeing the scene with me," Percy pointed out.

               "I wasn't the one that was wanted for potentially blowing a gigantic hole in Goode's wall," Elisa countered. She turned to Percy's mom, asking if there was anything she could help with.

               Sally had a small smile on her face as she handed Elisa two glass cups. She told Elisa to put the cups in one of the overhead cabinets before turning to the stove to check on the cake in the oven. The doorbell rang once and then twice and Percy turned around to go open the door. While he was gone, Sally turned to face Elisa, leaning against the cabinets beside her.

               "You two seem to have gotten over your ..." She trailed off, not knowing what to call whatever what going on between Elisa and Percy at the time she had seen them together last.

               Elisa shut the cabinet door softly. "Our spat?" she offered.

               "If that's what you can call it," Ms. Jackson said.

               "Well—I don't know if that's what I should call it," Elisa admitted.

               Ms. Jackson's eyebrows knitted downwards. Elisa shifted underneath the stare, not knowing whether the woman was regarding her coldly or if it was some motherly look Elisa had never seen before.

               Elisa could hear Percy and a man talking and a lot of shuffling. The man must've been Paul, the man who had started dating Ms. Jackson. ( And had gotten Percy a spot at Goode High School. )

               "Do you remember what I told you before?" Ms. Jackson asked.

               "Remembering things is not my specialty," Elisa told her. "It's an ADHD thing."

               Ms. Jackson smiled sadly. "I told you that Percy cares for you more than either of you realize."

               Elisa fought the urge to duck her head, hoping that her face was as red as it felt. "Right ..." she said quietly.

               "And I think," Ms. Jackson continued, "that you care for him more than you want to admit."

               Tyson was exceptionally happy to see Elisa. He hugged her tightly, saying something about seeing friends again. Paul seemed to be a little wary of the daughter of madness, and Elisa figured it was some mortal thing; Paul Blofis unknowingly catching on to the oddness of the girl, the dark cloud that tended to follow her around.

               Since Tyson had come to Percy's birthday, Ms. Jackson had baked two extra blue birthday cakes. Elisa eyed the blue food dye, turning to Percy's mother for an answer.

               Ms. Jackson grinned widely, tying the end of a balloon. "I've been doing that since Percy was little. His first step-father wasn't ... a kind man."

               Elisa frowned, recalling a conversation she and Percy had long ago. "You married him because he smelled so mortal, right? I think Percy told me something like that once."

               Ms. Jackson nodded. "His name was Gabe Ugliano. He said that it was impossible to have blue food so I decided to prove him wrong."

               Elisa grinned. "I can tell where Percy gets that from then."

ˋˏ [ 👑 ] ˎˊ

As Ms. Jackson finished lighting the last of the fifteen candles, Percy said to Elisa, "I never got to tell you thanks."

               "For what?" Elisa asked.

               Percy motioned to the birthday hat in her hands. "For not making me wear that," he joked.

               Elisa rolled her eyes. "I think it would be amazing if you wore it."

               Percy gave the girl a toothy smile. "I always wanted to say thanks for—"

               Ms. Jackson waved the match out, tossing it into the trashcan nearby. "It's ready!" she announced.

               Percy turned to face the birthday cake, being careful to not blow out any of the candles before he could make his wish. He was just about to blow them out when the doorbell rang.

               Ms. Jackson frowned. "Who could that be?"

               Elisa had to wonder, too. As far as she was aware, everyone that was invited had already arrived. When Percy's mom opened the door, she gasped loudly. The gasp put Elisa on edge and she silently reached for the golden thyrsus stuffed in her back pocket.

               But when Elisa looked past the kitchen and to the front door, there wasn't any monster standing there. Percy's dad was standing there; Poseidon, God of the Sea. He was wearing Bermuda shorts, a Hawaiian shirt, and a pair of black Birkenstocks. His black beard was neatly trimmed and his sea-green eyes twinkled. He wore a battered cap decorated with fishing lures. It said, Neptune's Lucky Fishing Hat.

               "Pos—" Ms. Jackson stopped herself. She was blushing right to the roots of her hair. "Um—hello."

               "Hello, Sally," Poseidon said warmly. "You look as beautiful as ever. May I come in?"

               The woman made a squeaking sound that might've been either 'Yes' or 'Help.' The god took it as a yes and walked inside.

               Paul was looking between everyone, trying to read expressions. Finally, he stepped forward and said, "Hi, I'm Paul Blofis."

               The God of the Sea raised an eyebrow as the two shook hands. "Blowfish, did you say?"

               "Ah—no. Blofis, actually," Paul corrected.

               "Oh, I see," Poseidon said. "A shame. I quite like blowfish. I am Poseidon."

               "Poseidon? That's an interesting name."

               "Yes, I like it. I've gone by other names, but I do prefer Poseidon."

               "Like the God of the Sea?"

               "Very much like that, yes."

               Elisa looked between the god and the mortal man. She let her hand drop by her side, wondering if she could find the situation amusing or not. The conversation between Poseidon and Paul was funny, absolutely, but part of her was worried Zeus would figure out and throw a fit about the god breaking the code and visiting his mortal son.

               "Well!" Ms. Jackson interrupted, shutting the front door. "Um—we're so glad you could drop by. Paul, this is Percy's father."

               "Ah." Paul nodded, though he didn't look very pleased. "I see."

               Poseidon smiled at his demigod son. "There you are, my boy. And Tyson, hello, son!"

               "Daddy!" Tyson bounded across the room and gave Poseidon a big hug, which almost knocked off his fishing hat.

               Paul's jaw dropped. He stared at Ms. Jackson. "Tyson is ...?"

               "Not mine," she promised. "It's a long story."

               "I couldn't miss Percy's fifteenth birthday," Poseidon said. "Why—if this were Sparta, Percy would be a man today!"

               "That's true," agreed Paul. "I used to teach ancient history."

               Poseidon's eyes gleamed. "That's me. Ancient history. Sally, Paul, Tyson, Elisa ... would you mind if I borrowed Percy for a moment?"

               The God of the Sea slung his arm around his son before steering the two into the small kitchen.

               What was left in the wake of the God of Earthquakes was suffocating silence. Paul frowned heavily, turning to Percy's friend who hadn't exactly introduced herself.

               "Elisa?" he asked.

               The girl's back straightened, not expecting to be addressed. "Uh—yes ... sir," she added as an afterthought.

               Paul looked amused by the girl's attempt at respect. "No need for such formalities. Paul is fine."

               "Oh, well ..." Elisa started but trailed off, not wanting to ask what the man wanted.

               "I only asked for your name as I heard Percy call you Grape Girl earlier," Paul explained. "I thought that it was such a weird nickname."

               "Oh!" Elisa looked to Ms. Jackson, trying to think of some lie she could tell the mortal man. She couldn't tell him the real reason why Percy called her Grape Girl; her father, Dionysus, was the god of grape harvest.

               "Percy calls me that because ... I love everything that has the flavor grape," Elisa lied poorly. She scratched the side of her arm, fighting the urge to wince at her lie. "He just finds it funny, I suppose."

               "Percy?" Sally called, saving Elisa from continuing the conversation. "The candles are melting!"

               The son of Poseidon left the kitchen without his father in toe. The boy kept looking back to the kitchen, trying his hardest to convince Paul that Poseidon left through the fire escape. But eventually, Paul believed it, mainly because he had no other choice but to believe it.

               They ate blue cake and ice cream until they couldn't eat anymore. Then they played a bunch of cheesy party games like charades and Monopoly. Tyson didn't get charades. He kept shouting out the answer he was trying to mime, but it turned out he was really good at Monopoly. He knocked Percy and Elisa out of the game in the first five rounds and started bankrupting Ms. Jackson and Paul.

               As Percy left the game, beaten, he stopped next to Elisa. "Can I talk to you? Alone?"

               He scooped up a plate of uneaten cake, taking it with him into his bedroom. Elisa followed after him, taking a bowl of ice cream with her. The bedroom looked like a typical teenage boy's bedroom—or what Elisa assumed a typical teenage boy's bedroom would look like.

               Percy placed the uneaten slice of blue care on the wooden dresser next to him. He untied the leather band around his neck, throwing it down next to the plate. There were three beads on the band, representing the three summers at camp—a trident, the Golden Fleece, and the newest: An intricate maze, symbolizing the Battle of the Labyrinth, as the campers had started to call it.

               Elisa frowned at the bead, pushing around some of the melting ice cream with her spoon. Percy patted his pockets and cleaned them out. He had the ballpoint pen that was actually Riptide, a tissue, an apartment key, and strangely enough, a small clipping of a plant wrapped in cloth. Percy closed his hands around the plant, looking over at Elisa.

               "What?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

               "Nothing, just—" Percy stopped his sentence short, taking the bowl out of her hands and setting it on the dresser. Elisa's expression turned aggravated, giving him a What the fuck? type of look.

               "Just follow me," he told her.

               The boy opened the window next to him and stepped out onto the fire escape, leaving Elisa to follow him curiously. Sitting out there was a planter box filled with dirt. Percy planted the sprig carefully and sprinkled a little nectar from his camp canteen.

               Nothing happened at first. Elisa gave the boy beside her an unimpressed look.

               "What was this for?" she asked, sounding annoyed. "My ice cream is all melted now, I'm sure."

               Percy gave her a vexed look, shoving her shoulder lightly. "I just planted it! Give it some time."

               Elisa huffed and resumed her watch of the plant. Soon enough, a tiny silver plant sprang out of the soil, glowing in the warm summer night.

               "Great," she drawled, "I'll call you Green Thumbs from now on."

               An amused snort of laughter came from the shadows. The girl flinched, taking a step closer to Percy. Out of the darkness, the thin form of Nico di Angelo appeared.

               "Sorry," the boy said, still grinning. "I didn't mean to startle you guys."

               Elisa brushed off her legs, standing up taller. "What are you doing here?"

               Nico had grown about an inch taller over the last couple of months. His hair was still a shaggy black mess. He wore a black T-shirt, black jeans, and a new silver ring shaped like a skull. His Stygian iron sword hung at his side.

               "I've done some exploring, Elisa," Nico said. "Thought I better share that Daedalus got his punishment."

               The daughter of Dionysus raised her eyebrows. "And what is it?"

               Percy placed a hand on Elisa's shoulder. "You saw him?" he asked.

               Nico nodded. "Minos wanted to boil him in cheese fondue for eternity, but my father had other ideas. Daedalus will be building overpasses and exit ramps in Asphodel for all time. It'll help ease the traffic congestion. Truthfully, I think the old guy is pretty happy with that. He's still building. Still creating. And he gets to see his son and Perdix on the weekends."

               Elisa didn't want to say it, but the idea of Daedalus getting a good ending after all he had done didn't sit right with her.

               "That's good," Percy said for the both of them.

               Nico tapped at his silver ring. "But that's not the real reason I've come. I've found out some things. I want to make you an offer."

               "What?" Elisa asked, sharing a look with Percy.

               "The way to beat Luke," Nico said. "If I'm right, it's the only way Percy will stand a chance."

               Percy took a deep breath. "Okay. I'm listening."

               Nico glanced inside Percy's room. His eyebrows furrowed. "Is that ... is that blue birthday cake?"

               He sounded hungry, maybe a little wistful. He and Bianca had never talked about having a proper birthday party before, it made her wonder if the kid had ever had one, or if he'd ever even been invited to one.

               Percy let go of Elisa's shoulder, pointing to his bedroom. "Hey—come inside for cake and ice cream," Percy said. "It sounds like we've got a lot to talk about."

               He looked at Elisa. "Do you want to head back?"

               Elisa gave him a shocked look. "What?" she asked.

               Nico shuffled closer, rubbing his arm nervously. "It's best if I tell Percy—alone."

               A betrayed sort of look appeared on Elisa's face. "You're kidding, right?" When neither boy said anything, she let out a quiet laugh, pushing past Percy and entering the bedroom.

               "Fine," she said. "I'll see you guys whenever. Happy birthday, Percy. I hope you enjoyed it."

👑  JAN. 16TH, 2023  /  that's a wrap?? botl is finished??

i'm this close *fingers are literally touching* to losing my mind rn

i don't like this game anymore

elisa's in for a world of hurt in the 3rd act

and let's not even talk about the 2nd book either

this chapter is not edited at all so if things are messy that is why

anyways,, thoughts?? opinions??