Hi! This is our third actual story... CONSTRUCTIVE LLAMAS

Llamas? Don't you mean unicorns..?

Oh, sorry, I mean CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM! YAY!

Oh, yeah... We like that almost as much as unicorns AND CATS

Also, we know that some of our story does not match actually ancient Rome, so deal with it, because it is fitted to make the story work.

The summary space didn't include enough room for the pairings, so they are:

Percabeth
Jasper
Frazel
Caleo

Disclaimer: We are probably horned mythical animals that fly into the sunset... Not Rick Riordan (who owns PJO, if you didn't get the memo)

Chapter 1

Day 1

"Why can only Noble Women be legionnaires? Why? Oh, yeah, the plebeian worker girls are apparently 'not worthy enough'." Sofie moaned to Monica and Hazel, finishing up the hot plate of food.

"And yet, the plebeian men are," Monica replied, setting the table for Mali, woman legionnaire for Rome.

"And you would think plebeian girls could enter, what with Reyna being Praetor," Sofie added, placing the meal on the table.

"You know the Senate wouldn't allow that, what with the word of Mars and 'tradition' and all that," Hazel replied.

"So! We would be really good legionnaires!" Sofie, shouted, attracting the attention of Annabeth and Piper, who are in the entry room to let Mali in.

"Girls, quiet, Mali is almost here," Piper scolded, opening the door.

"Hello girls. Thank you for my food, you are free to go," Mali stated, regally.

"Yes, Mali," The girls responded, backing out the door to the servants quarters.

"Let's practice," Annabeth suggested.

"Could you help me with my dagger strategies? I'm really bad at it," Sofie asked Annabeth.

"Sure. Could you show me that internal stuff you learned when you were with the monks?" Annabeth responded.

"I'll try, it's really hard to teach, and very confusing," Sofie replied, grabbing a dagger.

"Oh, and Hazel, could you help me with cavalry?" Monica asked. "I just get terrified of those big beasts with giant teeth and hooves that could squash me like me a bug." She shivered.

"Yeah, of course," said Hazel. "But it's not the horses you should be scared of, it's the people on them. Horses themselves aren't bloodthirsty, they're just doing what they're told. Only warhorses would purposely hurt you."

Monica huffed. She hated having her fears being called irrational. Her accentuation becomes sharper and her mouth thinner. "Except the horses I may or may not be fighting against are warhorses who have been trained to crush my skull if they find the opportunity. I sincerely doubt that your reassurance of 'they're just trained this way' will somehow help me from being trampled!"

"Whoa, Monica," Annabeth soothed. "Hazel's just trying to help. Are you okay? You not normally this snippy."

Monica shook her head. "Sorry, Hazel, Annabeth, it's just that... It's just so frustrating!" she burst out. "Why? Why can't we join? We are just as good or better than the men! And why just noble women? It's not our fault we aren't rich or important! It's prejudiced and unfair! If-if we had just been born as boys then maybe we could pursue our dreams!" Monica's eyes were shining with unshed tears.

The other girls were stunned. Monica never had emotional outbursts like this, normally it was Sofie who started flipping out and ranting. And here she was with two in one day.

Sofie put her arm around Monica. "We all feel the same way," she said quietly. Monica sniffed and nodded.

"Wait..." Annabeth's mind was churning. "What if we were boys?"

"What?" Hazel stared at Annabeth.

"What if everybody thought we were boys?" Annabeth's voice rose in volume as she gained more confidence. "If we were boys, no one would have a problem with us!"

"Except we're girls," Piper felt inclined to point out.

"Oh!" Monica exclaimed. "that's clever, but so annoyingly simple! How did I not think of that?"

"Okay, stop being so smarty-pants on us! What are you two scheming up now?" asked Hazel.

Monica gestured at Annabeth. "It was your idea."

Annabeth grinned. "So, as Monica said earlier, we would be fine if we were boys. We've got the talent and determination. So, what if we disguise ourselves as boys and enter the competition this year?"

The girls started talking as soon as she finished.

"No way that'll work!"

"We may as well try to fly."

"Reyna's not an idiot! She'll figure it out!"

"If we get caught, we're dead! Literally!"

"It's not that hard..." Sofie mused

"Calm down," said Annabeth. "We won't get caught. And IF we do, they wouldn't kill us. Have some faith. This could mean a new future for us!"

"I don't know, Annabeth," said Hazel. "It still seems awfully risky. We'd need some help. On our own we'd never be able to get in."

"It's really not that hard," Sofie says, fingering her abnormally short, brown hair.

"What do you mean 'it's not that hard', Sofie?" Piper asked, looking at her with interest.

"Did I fail to mention I had to be a boy to stay with the monks?" Sofie asked, pondering her lack of information in her back story.

"Um... Yeah..." Hazel replied.

"Oh yeah! You told me about that a while ago, when you first came to Rome, your hair was a boy's length," Monica remembered, pulling Sofie's chin lenght hair as if to make it grow faster.

"Sorry about that. So, it's really not that hard. Either you cut your hair short or hide it under a helmet, it still has to be short though. You have to focus on lowering your voice and not walk with as much agility and grace you walk with. Be more rooted and strong." Sofie informed the other girls.

"Girls!" Mali called from inside.

"Coming Mali!" The girls called back, walking back inside the house.

"I got new armour from the forges today. Please polish the new pieces, and, if the old pieces fit one of you, you may take them," Mali instructs, a knowing look in her eye.

"Yes Mali," The girls responded, rushing to Mali's armoury.

"Okay, who gets the armour," Annabeth asked.

"Whoever it fits," Sofie replied, pulling the helmet over her head.

"Yeah, it doesn't fit you, Sofie" Monica replied, taking it off Sofie's head and putting it on her own. "It doesn't fit me either, that means I'll have to cut my hair,"

"Oh well, it probably won't fit any of us 13 year olds," Hazel replied, passing the helmet over to Piper.

"Piper, does it fit?" The girls asked, looking at the helmeted girl intently.

"Not quite, you try Annabeth," Piper responded, handing it over to Annabeth.

"It fits," Annabeth replied, pulling the helmet off her blonde princess curls.

"That's probably good, Annabeth has the most 'feminine' hair out of us all, even if she cut it, it would still look girly" Monica commented, tugging on Annabeths curl to make it go Boing!

"Let's get polishing," Hazel said, grabbing Mali's new chest plate.

And that was all. Sorry about the not very special title.

CONSTRUCTIVE WHALE SAUCE!

Criticism... Oh, yeah! Constructive Criticism! How do we keep messing this up? I'm not messing up, I'm just spouting bananas! Nonsense... Not, it's is not nonsense, it makes plenty of sense.