Twas the 19th of December, and…

Jason was relaxing in his cabin when Jake Mason knocked on the door. "Jason," he called. "We got a meeting in the Big House. Hurry up!"

Jason was a bit confused as to why Jake was bringing this message and not Leo, but he came out anyway and followed Jake to the Big House.

Inside, Drew (Aphrodite), Clarisse (Ares), Annabeth (Athena), Pollux (Dionysus), Travis and Connor (Hermes), Clovis (Hypnos), Lou Ellen (Hecate), Miranda (Demeter), and Butch (Iris) sat around a table, all arguing. Will Solace (Apollo) stood in front of a whiteboard, evidently trying to keep order.

Jake slid into a seat in between Lou Ellen and Clovis. He greeted Lou Ellen with a very long open-mouthed kiss, while Travis and Connor looked on with fascinated horror.

Jason took the seat next to Annabeth and Pollux, since it was the only open seat. He turned to Annabeth and asked, "Why are Drew and Jake here? Leo and Piper are the counselors."

Annabeth nodded. "But this'll be their first New Year's here. So Drew and Jason are stepping in. Unofficially, of course. And don't tell them anything about this, got it?"

Jason nodded weakly. He'd never admit this, but Annabeth scared him a bit.

Drew stood and pointed a finger at Jason. "He's a firstie! He can't be here!" she shouted.

Miranda Gardiner was apparently on Drew's side. "Rule number thirty-seven clearly states that first-time attendees cannot know about it. We were all subject to it, why shouldn't he be?"

"Rule number ninety-three," Pollux said quietly. Everyone turned to face him. Pollux spoke rarely, but when he did, it was important. "Rule number ninety-three says that if the firstie is the only member of the cabin, or if only firsties are in the cabin, they get in early. It was added because of me and Castor."

Will heaved out an old thick book onto the table. The book bore a resemblance to the Code of the Pirates in At World's End, which was probably the point. He flipped the pages until he reached Rule Ninety-Three. "Pollux is right. Jason's in."

"Um…in what?" Jason asked.

"Every year we sing mutilated Christmas Carols on New Year's. They're supposed to be about camp, the past year in camp, or the Gods, but there was a particularly memorable one about four years back, about Harry Potter," Miranda explained.

Annabeth smiled. "Athena. Jingle bells, Draco smells, Norberta laid an egg. Harry's broom went zoom-zoom into a Chevrolet, hey. Tribute to Deathly Hallows and our sister across the pond."

"And now it's time to pick," Will said. "Hermes is up first."

"We want Frosty," Travis and Connor said in unison.

Will turned and wrote Frosty the Snowman next to Slot 1 on the whiteboard. "Aphrodite."

"Winter Wonderland," Drew said immediately.

Winter Wonderland was written in Slot 2. "Iris."

"Deck the Halls," Butch said.

Deck the Halls went in Slot 3. "Hypnos."

Clovis jerked awake. "What?"

"We're picking songs, Clovis. Now pick," Annabeth said angrily.

"Away in a Manger," Clovis said.

Away in a Manger filled Slot 4. "Ares."

"Jingle Bells," Clarisse said quickly. "But only because somebody took Deck the Halls."

"Save it, Clarisse, we've all been there," Will said irritably. "Dionysus."

"You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch," Pollux said.

"Zeus."

"Um…" Jason had no idea what he was supposed to choose. He couldn't even think of any Christmas songs. "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer."

"Athena."

"Rockin Around the Christmas Tree."

"Hecate."

"Do You Hear What I Hear?"

"Okay, everyone's picked? Good. Dress rehearsal on the twenty-eighth, everyone."

And with that, everyone left the Big House.

Great, thought Jason.

Now he had six days to find a Christmas gift for Piper, nine to write a parody of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, and thirteen to somehow get over his crippling stage fright and perform.

It's times like this he wished he stayed with the Romans.