Book of the Day – The Hunger Games; also by Suzanne Collins. She's a pretty awesome writer. Young adult dystopian. Book one in The Hunger Games Trilogy. It's a really popular series, so I assume most of you have already read it, but it's worth recommending.


III

HAZEL

Hazel shuffled down the deck of the Argo II, head bent, looking at her feet, so caught up in thought that she didn't realize she'd reached the stables until she bumped into Leo.

"Oh! Sorry," Hazel said quickly, backing away from Leo.

"Ah, it's no biggie." Leo smiled at her, which made Hazel feel a little better, less embarrassed. She was here to help, she told herself, not to run into people.

From the close distance, Hazel could see every speck in Leo's wild brown eyes, which made her a little uncomfortable and back away; still, she couldn't help noticing how cute he looked, with his messy, curly hair and suspenders and tool belt. Hazel became lost in thought again, then realized she was thinking about him—Sammy.

Why can't I leave him behind? she thought. Why can't I just forget him?

Because every time she looked at Leo Valdez's face, at his crazy grin and eyes, she couldn't help remembering Sammy.

It was difficult for Hazel, trying to leave the past behind. All the adventures she'd shared with Leo lately, she'd had to try hard and keep reminding herself that he was Leo, not Sammy. The blackout she and Leo had shared helped, though. It was a little easier for her now.

"Um . . . you wanna help me ready the boat?" Leo asked awkwardly.

Hazel nodded and looked down at her feet again. "That's what I'm here for."

"Okay!" Leo brightened. "You can grab that rope over there, and pull it over here so I can tie it around this thing . . ."

His hands gesturing madly in every direction, Hazel almost smile at Leo's behavior. And she was grateful he'd given her a job; quickly, she hopped to the task of untying the thick rope that held the boat to the stable wall.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps sounding behind her. Hazel turned her head a bit and caught sight of Frank coming up toward Leo and her. Even with a slight scowl on his face, and his arms crossed, Hazel's heart lifted to see her boyfriend. Even in his obviously cross mood, he still resembled a big cuddly teddybear to Hazel. An angry teddybear, maybe.

Leo noticed Frank, too. "Hey, you think you can get the statue for us?" Leo asked.

Frank nodded and continued past Hazel and Leo to belowdecks, where the statue was being kept.

"Well, I guess we'd better hurry," Leo said. "Coach Hedge said Frank and Jason are leaving in about an hour."

"Does the boat really take that long to get ready?" Hazel asked, surprised.

"Nah," Leo said, shaking his head. Hazel thought he looked cute when he did this. The corners of his mouth turned down a bit, and his nose wrinkled. "But I thought I'd get some PB&J before we see them off. I'm hungry. Aren't you hungry? I can hear my stomach growling. Not that it doesn't always growl . . . I am a growing boy . . ."

"Not really." Hazel noticed Leo was rambling—something he didn't do—though he did talk a lot—unless he was nervous.

She figured he had something on his mind.

Hazel frowned. "Leo? What's PB and . . ."

"PB&J?" Leo looked shocked. "Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches! Don't tell me you've never heard of them."

Hazel swept a curl behind her ear, which had fallen in her face. "Of course I know what peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are. My mom used to make them for me, when I was younger . . ."

"Well, how about you have some with me after we're done here?" Leo grinned at her. "I know Piper's got lots in the kitchen . . ."

Hazel eyes lit up. "Frank, too?" she asked, excited by the idea.

Leo's face fell a bit. He looked down at his feet and kicked something on the deck. "Yeah. Frank, too," he finally agreed.

Hazel was sorry for upsetting him. But Leo got upset by such little things she said, lately, it frustrated her—one mention of Frank and he practically burst into flame. Of course, the same could be said with Frank. And Hazel had thought the boys were getting along better now . . .

While Leo was still focused on the ground, Hazel finished untying the rope, and gently laid it in Leo's hands.

Leo looked up, surprised. Then he flashed a grin at her—that crazy twist of his mouth that made Hazel feel fluttery inside. He quickly wound it around a nearby post, proceeding to tie it, but Hazel could see he was having trouble. The rope was very thick.

"Do you need help?" Hazel asked.

"Um . . . sure," Leo said, his voice obviously strained.

Hazel went over to him and grabbed part of the rope nearer to the post. She pulled hard so Leo could tie it. But her hands accidentally slipped down the rope and on top of Leo's. Hazel gave a little gasp and quickly released the rope, catching Leo by surprise, so he let his hands go loose—causing all his rope work to flop in a pile around the post.

"I'm sorry," Hazel said, clasping her hands behind her back and looking at the floor.

"Hey, it's fine. You do seem pretty jumpy, though, lately," Leo added, jumping on his feet. Hazel didn't point out that he seemed pretty nervous, too.

Just then, Frank came back, carrying the statue. He didn't notice the awkwardness between Hazel and Leo, and set the statue down in front of the boat.

That's when he noticed that Hazel and Leo were looking everywhere but at each other.

"Um . . . is everything okay?" Frank asked suspiciously.

"Oh, yeah," Leo said, brushing off his shirt. He cocked his head at Frank. "Think you can tie a rope?"

"Sure," Frank said. He had the rope tied to the post in less than a minute.

"Now . . . I guess we'll get the supplies for you and Jason and load them in the boat," Leo said to Frank, rubbing his hands together so quickly Hazel was sure she saw a spark. "I heard Coach Hedge and Nico were getting them ready . . . they should be done by now."

"But first—PB&J!" Hazel insisted, putting an index finger in the air.

Frank gave her a curious look as all three of them headed down to the kitchen of the Argo II for a snack.

"Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches," Hazel explained.

• • •

Frank had already wolfed down six sandwiches by the time Hazel was on her second. Even Leo was a faster eater than her, just finishing up his fourth. Peanut butter and jelly had never tasted better to Hazel . . . except for maybe that time when her mother made her and her friend Ruth a couple of sandwiches when she was little . . .

No, Hazel told herself. I am done with flashbacks.

They were all sitting around a small table on stools in the Argo II's kitchen. There was complete silence, except for the sound of munching.

"So were Nico and Coach Hedge done with the supplies?" Frank asked with his mouth full of sandwich.

"Yep." Leo was also talking with his mouth full. Hazel took took a tiny, neat bite of her own sandwich, trying to hide her disgust. Boys. "And Jason's off somewhere with Piper, so we probably won't see them in a while." Leo chuckled, sending little bits of food flying.

Hazel listened halfheartedly as Leo continued talking about everyone on the Argo II, while she just slowly chewed her sandwich. Eventually, Hazel realized he was talking nervously, like when she'd been helping him get the boat ready, and she wondered what was bothering him.

Frank seemed to have caught on, too. "Leo, are you all right?" he asked.

Leo choked on a bite of his sandwich and spent half a minute coughing into his fist. "Oh, yeah," he rasped, when he finally finished. "Never been better."

"Hmm. Well, you seem kinda nervous . . ." Frank said. He scratched his head for a moment, thinking. "Hey, is it about—"

"Uh, Frank?" Hazel asked quickly. "Do you think you could get me a glass of water?" She glanced down at her sandwich and started picking at it. "It's making me thirsty," she muttered.

Frank nodded a bit too quickly, making Hazel feel guilty for using the excuse just to get him out of the kitchen. "Yeah, sure," he said. He stood up and left without a backward glance.

Hazel clasped her hands on top of the table and leaned toward Leo. "Now, Leo, what's bothering you?" she asked quietly.

Leo blinked. Then he sighed. "I can't hide anything from you, can I, Hazel?"

She shook her head.

He sighed again, then began fidgeting with his hands. It was a minute before he spoke. "I guess I'm feeling . . . guilty recently. Real guilty."

"About what?" Hazel asked. "If you did something bad, then you should talk to someone about it. Don't try to hide it. That's always worse." She took a good look at his guilt-stricken face and realization flooded through her. "Oh. Is it about Percy and Annabeth? 'Cause there's nothing you can do to help them, you know."

"No, it's really bad," Leo said. He wouldn't look up from his hands. "I can't tell anyone, because—" His voice cracked and he slumped in his chair, putting his head in his hands. Hazel barely heard his next whisper: "It's all my fault."

"What, Leo?" Hazel asked. She reached across the table and gently pulled one of his hands down from his face. "You know you can talk to me."

"Sure." Leo finally gave a quick, flitting glance at her face. "But I know you won't talk to me if I tell you."

"It can't be that bad." Hazel tried to sound assuring. "Did you mess up something in the engine room? 'Cause I'm sure—"

"What? Annabeth could help me fix it? She's not here, Hazel." Leo's voice was bitter. "And that's not the problem. I'm pretty sure I could fix any minor mess up in the engine room. The problem is that—"

He broke off as they both heard Frank's returning footsteps—then Hazel realized she was still lightly holding Leo's hand, and quickly released it, forcing her hand under the table and into her lap.

Frank came in and handed Hazel a cup of water. She thanked him with a smile.

Frank sat down, and they all resumed eating their sandwiches in silence, Hazel sometimes flitting Leo little puzzled glances, he catching her gaze and looking guiltily away.

Hazel finally glanced at a clock on the kitchen wall. "Well," she said, breaking the silence, "we should get back to the stables. It's been an hour."

• • •

Everyone looked a bit sad and dismal—even Nico, who barely knew Frank or Jason.

Hazel, especially, was having her own hard time. She tried to put a cheerful face, to make Frank feel better, but instead ended up trying not to cry. Frank stood next to her as Leo carelessly swung Jason and Frank's supplies (which Coach Hedge had packed neatly into two backpacks) in the boat. Coach Hedge was standing near Jason, who was holding Piper's hand, giving him some lecture about who to fight and who not to—though most of it was who to fight, and he gave lots of advice on that.

"All right, enough wasting time," Coach Hedge said finally. "Get in the boat, you two."

Neither Jason or Frank immediately followed Coach Hedge's order. Jason whispered something in Piper's ear, and a smile lit up her face. She gave him a quick peck on the cheek before he climbed in the boat. Frank turned around to face Hazel, and Hazel found her breath caught in her throat.

"Frank—" she started, tears springing to her eyes.

Frank cut her off by roughly pulling her into a hug and kissing her. Hazel was so surprised, and Frank pulled away so quickly that she almost thought she'd imagined it.

Except for the fact that when she turned around, Leo was steaming behind her.

"Bye, Hazel," Frank muttered.

Hazel couldn't speak.

Then Frank gave Leo a sharp look and said, "Take care of her," before nodding to everyone else and climbing in the boat.

Leo looked surprised, but Hazel saw that after Frank's back was turned he gave one, jerky nod. Then Leo hurried forward and untied the rope that held the boat to the stables, and gently pushed it off the side of the ship, where it started to float away in the air.

There were cried of "Bye!" and "See you soon!" and "Beat up some Romans for me!" (from Coach Hedge) and "No, Coach, they're going to stop the fighting" (from Piper) and a disappointed mumble: "Oh" (from Coach Hedge). Frank and Jason waved until the boat sailed out of sight.

Hazel hadn't said anything. Just waved until her arm ached.

Nico turned to face everyone. "I think it's time we had a talk," he said in his raspy voice. "About Percy and Annabeth, and what they face in Tartarus."

"Lunch in the kitchen?" Piper suggested.

Coach Hedge nodded. "Yeah, I feel like some PB&J!"

Hazel's stomach groaned.

• • •

Nico was waiting for them all to get comfortable in the lounge (Hazel had finally convinced Coach Hedge that it was more comfortable than the kitchen, though he'd still insisted on bringing in sandwiches). Hazel's brother sat with his hands clasped on his knees, watching them with his dark, intense eyes.

Everyone was deadly quiet, waiting for Nico to speak, but the son of Hades seemed to be taking his time.

Well, everyone was deadly quiet except for the annoying munching of Coach Hedge, as he chewed down his peanut butter and jelly sandwiches—two or three whole ones at a time.

Finally, Nico cleared his throat. When he spoke, his voice still sounded raspy. Hazel's own throat clenched in sympathy; she'd always had trouble with sore throats, as a child.

"I've been to the Underworld." Nico paused a moment, as though to let this sink in, but it was no surprise to anyone. "My father's palace—that's where Percy and Annabeth will go. That's the only way to get out of Tartarus—if you were lucky enough to even get close to it, that is."

"Why?" Piper asked worriedly. "What dangers do Percy and Annabeth face traveling through Tartarus?"

Nico thought a moment before he answered, rubbing a few knuckles over his throat. "First off, there's Gaea's minions. We all know how bent Gaea is on keeping us from closing the Doors of Death. She'll do everything in her power to send foes to Percy and Annabeth—not to kill them, exactly. Probably capture them. But who knows if she'll even care when they get to the Doors; she might kill them anyway. She wouldn't be out of demigods, after all. There's still us to capture.

"So, Percy and Annabeth will be up to their elbows in monsters—not to mention the regular ones in Tartarus. And that's another thing—say Percy and Annabeth ran into one of the old monsters they'd killed. Percy killed the Minotaur, right?"

Most of them just shrugged, but Leo nodded. "Yeah, twice. I heard about that at Camp."

Nico laced his fingers on his lap. "Well, what if they ran into him? The Minotaur would no doubt remember Percy. I'm not sure, but I think monsters might be stronger in Tartarus—it takes a lot out of them when they come back to life, years later."

Hazel shifted uncomfortably. She didn't like the sound of Percy and Annabeth's odds so far.

"Then, even if they can somehow get past all those monsters, there's still the rivers they'll have to go through."

"Rivers?" Coach Hedge snorted. "Don't sound so bad. Those monsters are more what I'd be worried about."

Nico shook his head. "Oh, no, the rivers are by far more treacherous. I'm not sure, but I think they have a way of tricking you, each in their own, cruel way. There's the Phlegethon, which leads into the depths of Tartarus. It's huge, so Percy and Annabeth can't miss it. My father likes to think of it as "the river of fire;" how Percy and Annabeth will counter it, I don't know. Then there's the Acheron, the Pyriphlegethon, and the Cocytus rivers, which flow throughout the Underworld, and come to a meeting point at my father's palace, which is called the 'Necromanteion' or the 'House of Hades.' The rivers translate as 'Joyless,' 'Burning Coals,' and 'Lament.'"

"And what of this temple of your father's? Tell us more about it," Piper said.

Nico shifted in his chair and rubbed the head of the giant skull ring on his middle finger. Hazel could tell he was worn out from talking, so she decided to take over. Besides, she figured she knew as much as Nico about Hades's palace.

"The Necromanteion means 'Oracle of Death,' though it mostly goes by the name the 'House of Hades,'" Hazel said. "It's a palace devoted to Hades and Persephone, located on the bank of the Acheron river, the 'doorway to Hades' a.k.a. the Doors of Death. It's also a meeting place for the living and dead. See, there's a top and bottom floor of the palace, for the living and the dead, and then a 'Temple of Adis' nearby, which is where the living and dead can meet. What happens is the living visit the House, eat a meal of beans, pork, barley bread, and oysters, go through a cleansing ritual, sacrifice a sheep, then descend into the cave system below the temple. There Minos, the judge of the Underworld, poses a series of questions for them before they can continue on to the Temple of Adis. But first, to get to the temple, there's a series of tunnels they have to go through, which are very tricky, created by Athena herself, who agreed to design the tunnels after Hades helped her with assisting Perseus in his quest to kill Medusa."

"Hmm, that's interesting; I've been reading up on my Greek Mythology lately, but I haven't heard that bit about the tunnels," Piper said.

"People rarely do," Hazel said. "I guess you could say Nico and I are 'fortunate,' being children of Hades."

"But none of this has to do with Percy and Annabeth, right?" Leo asked anxiously. "They won't, like, have to go through the tunnels, right?"

Hazel shrugged. "Not necessarily. I'm just giving the background information of the House of Hades."

"You don't know that Hades will even agree to let them in his palace," Piper said. "Then how would they meet us at the Doors of Death and help us close them?"

"We'll have to find some way to convince Hades to be agreeable, before Percy and Annabeth reach the palace," Nico decided. He rubbed his throat again. "They have to be allowed inside—it's their only way out of Tartarus. Maybe I could make a quick trip to the Underworld and talk to Dad . . ."

"No, no," Hazel said quickly. "You're still weak from your encounter with the giants. It's not a bad idea, but I wouldn't jump down to the Underworld so soon."

Coach Hedge grunted and smashed his baseball bat on the ground, for no reason, making Hazel jump. "So, basically, Percy and Annabeth have to defeat Gaea's minions, their old, dead foes in Tartarus, counter the rivers, escape some creepy ritual and tunnels at the Temple of Adiwhatsit to make it to this House of Hades, not even sure if Hades is in the agreeable mood lately to let them in to close the Doors and get out of Tartarus?"

"That about sums it up," Nico rasped.

• • •

All the uplifting talk in the lounge left Hazel feeling a little weary. So after a bit of an awkward silence, with everyone sitting quietly and staring down at their laps, Hazel finally stood and stretched her arms, announcing that she was going to lie down for a bit in her room. After that everyone quickly stood and resumed their normal activities (Nico, new on the boat, was persuaded by Coach Hedge to a tour of the Argo II, though he managed to quickly pull Hazel aside and admit that he was a little tired, too, and would rest soon).

But back in her room, stretched out on her cozy bunk, with its thick wool blankets and soft, downy pillows, Hazel found she couldn't sleep. She was just too preoccupied with her thoughts: of worrying for Percy and Annabeth in Tartarus, wondering how they would find their way to the Doors of Death down there; worrying for Frank and Jason, now on their quest to Camp Half-Blood, to stop the Romans and Greeks from fighting; worrying for herself, Leo, Piper, Nico, and Coach Hedge (well, not really worrying for him—Hazel was pretty sure that crazy old warrior faun—Satyr, she reminded herself—could take care of himself) on their quest to find the Doors of Death, and save Percy and Annabeth.

But not all of Hazel's thoughts were worries . . . she'd been thinking about Leo, too.

Hazel couldn't help it. His messy, curly hair, wild eyes, and crazy smile filled her dreams. She caught herself thinking about him in little bits all the hours of the day.

Hazel sighed. She wasn't exactly sure what she thought of Leo. He seemed nice enough, he was funny, he was, Hazel admitted, cute . . . And she'd been starting to get to know him, and liking him, when she learned that Sammy—her Sammy, her old boyfriend from the 1940s—was Leo's great-grandfather. That made everything weird and complicated—or more complicated. Hazel had already been fixed on trying to think of Leo as just a friend (she was Frank's girlfriend, after all), when all that changed.

She wondered if showing Leo the flashback—if seeing the flashback herself—had been wise.

Eventually Hazel sighed and sat up. She knew she wouldn't be getting any sleep. She swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up, stretching her stiff arms and legs—she hadn't been lying down too long, but after all the action she'd been apart of lately, even lying down for a half hour made her body feel like she was over-resting.

She went out of her bedroom and tried for a peaceful stroll down the deck of the Argo II. Leo's ship was truly magnificent. Hazel couldn't imagine even being a part of building something so great . . .

She went up to a rail and leaned against it. Hazel caught her breath. The light was fading. The orange-and-purple sky looked magnificent, spotted with white clouds. Then Hazel looked down. Even though she wasn't afraid of heights, the sudden idea of how high they were up made her legs feel a bit wobbly.

She steadied herself and pushed away from the railing a bit. No, she told herself sternly, I already get sick on boats, that's bad enough. I won't get airsick, too.

Sudden footsteps behind her startled her. Hazel swung around. She caught her breath when she saw Leo. He was totally unaware of her, walking hurriedly to a door which led to the lower deck, rummaging in his tool belt and muttering to himself.

Hazel slowly exhaled. She couldn't help noticing how well the sky's sunset colors reflected off Leo's skin.

There must have been a loose board or something under Hazel's foot (or maybe it was Festus, a couple yards off, though he'd been quiet enough lately), because she heard a squeak, and Leo's head whipped up to look at her. She saw a serious expression on his face for once, and suddenly Hazel could totally imagine him in command of building this ship. Then his usual impish grin came back and Hazel's legs felt more wobbly—and not from the heights.

"Hey, Hazel!" Leo called cheerfully.

"Hey," Hazel answered quietly.

Leo came over to stand by her. "Do you think Jason and Frank will be all right? I'm pretty sure Jason can handle himself, but . . ."

"Yes." Hazel's shoulders slumped. "But I'll miss Frank . . ."

"Yeah." Leo scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "But, you know, we can't waste too much time dwelling on them—we've got our own quest to worry about."

Hazel nodded. "Do you think you can get us to the Doors of Death?"

Leo grinned and pointed his thumbs at himself. "Girl, do you know who you're talking to? This is Bad Boy Leo here, Supreme Commander of the Argo II! Of course I can get us to the Doors of Death. Will it be easy? Probably not. Will we get attacked by monsters? Most definitely." Leo shrugged and started pacing, muttering to himself. "Hmm . . . maybe I should actually install that chicken nugget smoke screen . . . Might save us a couple of monster fights . . ."

"Leo," Hazel said gently. "You're rambling."

Leo looked up, startled, as though he hadn't known she'd been listening.

"You were going to tell me what was bothering you, in the kitchen," Hazel reminded him.

Leo nodded, but his eyes looked distant. He shoved his hands in his pockets and cleared his throat. "Well, we're alone, and I guess you're the best person to tell . . . I admit it's been bothering me for a while, and it'd be nice to tell someone. . . . I can't promise you'll like it, though," he warned.

Hazel nodded for him to go on.

Leo sighed. "Remember when we went to the Great Salt Lake in Utah, to get the lime and Celestial bronze? Well, remember we—"

Just then a roar sounded nearby and the deck shook. Hazel stumbled and lost her footing, and found herself caught in Leo's arms. He helped her up, but they just fell at each other again. The whole ship was shaking; there was another giant roar, and Hazel thought she saw a dark flash of something on the other side of the Argo II.

"What the—" Leo began, stumbling once more, and grabbing onto Hazel's arm for support.

Hazel sucked in her breath. "I think it must be a—"

"MONSTER!" Piper's voice shouted from the other side of the deck near the roaring.

Then there was Coach Hedge's shouts: "YEAH! BRING IT ON!"

Hazel turned to Leo. "You got any useful weaponry in that magic tool belt of yours? I left my dagger in my room."

"Uh . . ." Leo fumbled in a pocket of his tool belt and pulled out two giant wrenches. He tossed one to Hazel. "Think you can manage this?"

She eyed the weapon in her hand before nodding. "Yep. Hope it's the right kind of monster."