FRIENDLY REMINDER - Percy Jackson changed his name to Pierce (pronounced like the verb pierce EX. the fork pierced the piece of cheese), but he couldn't bare to change his last name, so he kept it. But no one but Chaos even remembers it...
Pierce stared out at the snowflakes that danced past his glass window panes. They floated with joyous abandon, as happy as innocent children.
But the only thing on Percy's mind was his past.
'It's going to be our one-year anniversary as Elementals of Chaos soon...January fourth, I think Chaos said. I wonder how my family is doing...'
His thoughts eventually drifted from Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter, Paul, Sally, and Poseidon to his fellow Elementals. He had spent almost a complete year with them now, and they were starting to bond. He knew for a fact that Fiorella and Amy had gotten very close during their short year together - it sometimes seemed to Pierce that girls have a special talent of getting comfortable with other girls quickly. He was having a hard time letting Axel in, after the betrayal of Camp Half-Blood. Axel told Pierce that it was okay, and he understood the reasons behind his trust issues, but Pierce felt guilt stab him every time he turned down another one of Axel's invitations to hang out. Overall, they were becoming a close and hardworking group, though. Chaos had explained that their workload this year was being kept to a minimum, and now that they were settled in, their real challenge would start. Yaaaay. But Pierce couldn't really complain. He did enjoy working with his fellow generals. Even if Pierce and Fiorella's leader-like personalities would sometimes clash, the arguments would always end in laughter.
Pierce's head gradually began to sink, as if his deep thoughts were weighing him down. He slid lower and lower until he was fast asleep on his desktop. (A/N Wow...typical Percy)
The first thing Pierce registered was the alarm.
The alarm which hung just above his bedpost, was one of many in the building. There was one in each of the four Elementals' bedrooms, just above their headrests. Chaos had informed them that only he could sound this alarm, and if he did, it meant that dire events had taken place, and they were to report to the throne room ASAP.
So, of course, Pierce's first instinct was to leap up sharply.
Which, also of course, caused him to fall over.
Percy peeled himself off his sandy-yellow carpet, slammed his door open, and rushed out as fast as his legs would take him.
He met Axel, as he dashed down the hallway and nearly collided with him.
"What's happening?" Pierce panted.
"I dunno. It must be urgent - Chaos has never raised this alarm before!" Axel gasped in reply.
The two boys met up with Fiorella, then Amy, exchanging grim looks with each other as they ran. Together they virtually flew down the secret hallway and threw open the hidden throne room door.
"Chaos! What's hap..." Pierce started to shout, but his words sputtered and died when he drank in the sight before him.
And what a sight it would have been, if you walked in on them at that very moment! Four teens with power rolling off them in waves, all with their weapons drawn or their hands ablaze with their element, looking as if they were expecting the worst. (A/N Which they were!) Their expressions slowly morphed into ones of complete and utter shock that were absolutely hilarious to look at. For what they saw was no battle, no horrid monster, no captive Chaos. Sprigs of holly were scattered across the shining marble, and the throne had a large wreath dropped upon the top, like a lopsided crown. Oversized ribbons made of velvet hung from the handles on the inside of the door hey had just barged in through, and at haphazard angles on the walls. And on the right of the throne was none other than Chaos, decorating a pine tree with tinkling bells and gleaming balls of every color imaginable.
"Ah! Why hello, my dear Elementals! My my, so quick! And your faces, children! So amusing! What has brought this about?" Chaos cried, with a twinkle in his eyes that hinted he knew exactly what was happening.
"Wha...but...where's the emergency?" Fiorella sputtered, crushing the spike made of hard earth in her hand.
"Where did you find bows that big!?" Amy gasped, her mouth hanging open.
"Why, Christmas, my dear! It's extremely urgent that we begin the festivities right away!" Chaos chuckled.
"You woke me up to sing carols and dance around a Christmas tree?" Pierce said disdainfully.
"Wait. I thought God doesn't exist. Y'know, because of the gods and stuff?" Axel asked, scratching his head and accidentally lighting his hair on fire.
"Well, Axel, he does exist! Have I never told you this? God created the universe, the people, the gods, etc. Then he left me in charge of this solar system as its co-leader, while he helped out with the other galaxies. He does drop in to visit often, though!" Chaos chirruped, as if he were discussing the weather and not the workings of the universe.
"I...see..." Fiorella mumbled. "But Chaos, sir, like I asked you - what about the alarm? Is there really no emergency?"
"And like I told you, my dear, there is a true emergency," Chaos replied evenly, his dark eyes going serious.
All four Elementals leaned forward in grim anticipation.
"Yes?"
"I want you to run upstairs...and put on your best Christmas clothes!" Chaos exclaimed, breaking into a cheeky grin.
Axel stumbled and fell.
Fiorella smacked her forehead. (A/N FACEPALM FRIDAY!)
Amy broke out into a fit of giggles.
Pierce cracked a small smile. For caretaker of the planet, he could be a pretty happy-go-lucky guy.
"Go, now! All of you!" Chaos cried, shooing them away.
The four Elementals trudged out of the room, confused and a little angry.
"So?" Amy asked, breaking the tense silence.
"So what?" Pierce echoed, frowning.
"So should we do what he says?"
"I'm not sure..." Fiorella trailed off, muttering about duty.
"Come on, you guys! Christmas doesn't come every day! Chaos is right - we need to loosen up and have some fun!" Amy enthused, spinning around to look all of them in the eye.
"I can't believe I forgot it was Christmas," Pierce muttered.
"Well..." Fiorella stammered, and it was obvious she had a weak spot for the girl.
"S-sure. Why not?" Axel whispered shyly, rubbing the back of his neck self-consciously.
He was rewarded with a blazing smile from Amy, turning his cheeks red.
"It's settled, then! See you guys later!" Amy cried, taking Fiorella by the hand and dragging her down the girls' hallway.
Pierce caught Fiorella's desperate 'Save me, I beg you' look before she was just a smudge that hung limply next to the racing Amy.
Pierce turned to Axel and caught his eye.
"Bet I can beat you to my room," Pierce jeered playfully.
"You're on!" Axel exclaimed, and off they went, tearing down the hall like madmen with wild smirks on their faces.
Pierce couldn't figure out for the life of him why girls liked to get dressed up. In his opinion, sweaters and jeans worked for any occasion.
As Pierce pulled his blue sweater with white snowflakes raining down all over the cerulean cotton over his green t-shirt, he glanced at Axel, who sat beside him. He was shrugging into a red santa coat lined with white fur over his black muscle shirt. (Their closests were enchanted to produce any article of clothing they want.)
Since Pierce and Axel had decided that Pierce's navy skinny jeans (the men's skinny jeans are different from the woman's) and Axel's black jeans were perfectly fine for the party, they were simply changing their shirts in the same room, no big deal.
Another thing Pierce couldn't understand was why girls shared rooms and had sleepovers and stuff. Don't they want privacy?
"Ready to go?" Axel inquired, as he finished lacing up his tan waterproof boots.
"Yup," Pierce replied, slipping on his black sneakers.
"Then let's go."
Pierce and Axel walked down the hallway, down the hallway and through the door, following the same path they had taken that morning. Chaos was still at work decorating the healthy green pine tree on the right of the throne.
"Good, good! Very nice!" Chaos praised after giving the two boys a once-over. "Now we just need to wait for Fiorella and Amy."
After but a few minutes, the door blew open with a gust of wind ('Most likely Amy's doing' Percy thought) and the two female Elementals walked in, and suddenly Pierce understood why they had taken so much longer than the boys.
Both girls sported matching velvety Santa dresses, with white faux fur lining the wrists and hem of the skirt. A leather belt wrapped around the midsection, with a shiny buckle in the middle. A hole in the shape of a snowflake was cut at the bottom of the scooped neckline. The only difference was the colors. Fiorella's velvet was green, while the belt was an earthy brown, with a gold buckle. Amy's velvet was white, while the belt was blue with a pink buckle. No surprise there, every Elemental's favorite color had converted to the color of their element when they were granted their powers, except for Amy. She had clung to her love of pink like a leech. Their legs were bare, down to their shoes (Amy's pink flats and Fiorella's usual combat boots).
The good news? They looked seriously cute, making both boys suddenly self-conscious. The bad news? The gusts of air that always surrounded Amy reflected her emotions. Ergo, because she was excited, the breezes were zipping winds, which lifted the girls' knee-length skirt about an inch up. It made Pierce go red as ketchup to the tips of his ears, and Axel's cheeks were on fire.
Literally.
The way Fiorella hid her face behind her side French-braid suggested she knew exactly what was happening, but if Amy realized, she gave no indication. Maybe she was just used to being followed by breezes wherever she went.
"Let's get this party started!" she shrieked, throwing her fists into the air.
It wasn't until Pierce was stuck with a loooong roll of ribbon in his hands that he thought, 'What did I get myself into?'
The ribbon had been made by him (courtesy of his powers), and were cerulean with emerald green waves swirling and dipping across the soft fabric. Navy blue glitter lined the edges.
"Um...what are we supposed to be doing again?" Pierce asked nervously.
Axel and Amy looked up from where they were crouched on the floor, making their own glass ornaments (Amy cooled a round ball of fire made by Axel) and Fiorella turned away from her pine tree with the deepest, healthiest green needles Pierce had ever seen.
"Did you space out?" Amy asked sympathetically.
"We're supposed to be competing against Master Chaos in a tree decorating contest. We have to make all our decorations from scratch, though. Even the tree," Fiorella explained.
"That's a nice ribbon you made there," Axel put in helpfully.
"Thanks...?"
And soon Percy was attacking the tree with his ribbon and a devilish grin, with Amy and Axel soon following suit. Cheerful laughter echoed across the room as four teens who had been through too much for their lifetime finally let themselves be just that - teenagers.
"It's not fair," Chaos pouted and sulked.
"Life's not fair," Pierce teased
"Your tree doesn't have enough color variation," Fiorella pointed out, failing to hide a smirk.
It was true. While Chaos' tree was indeed beautiful, the only color the decorations seemed to come in was black black black and black, with silver crystals here and there. The Elementals' tree, on the other hand, showcased Pierce's majestic ribbons, and twinkling glass ornaments of every color of the rainbow, with cute designs such as smiling faces, snowflakes, elves, and gingerbread men.
"Fine, you won," Chaos grumped, crossing his large arms.
"Was there any doubt?" Fiorella quipped. Pierce and Axel laughed, as Amy jumped into the air and cheered.
"I declare a rematch!" Chaos roared. He pulled out a sword and pointed to the grand front doors.
"To the kitchen!"
The Elementals, of course, had no clue what was happening. But being so caught up in the spirit of the moment, they whooped and charged after their commander, the five of them spilling out of the room and down the hallway.
The scoreboard went something like this:
Battles Won By Chaos:
-Sword fighting contest
-Gingerbread house making contest
Battles Won By Elementals:
-Christmas tree decorating contest
-Snowman making contest
-Ice-cream eating contest (Pierce won)
-Ice-skating contest (Amy stunned everyone)
-Survive the candy cane maze (Fiorella's logic earned them the victory)
-Make the coziest fireplace contest (Axel's was an instant smile-inducer)
"We win!" Amy exclaimed joyously.
"By a landslide, might I add," Fiorella put in.
"She means we creamed you!" Pierce cackled.
"Without a doubt," Axel agreed.
"You kids are supposed to respect your elders," Chaos complained.
"I'm sorry, I can't hear you over the roaring sound of our victory!" Pierce teased. He promptly went broke into peals of laughter, and ended up on the floor holding his stomach.
Thwshap!
He was quickly silenced by a ball of cold watery sludge to the face.
Now the other three Elementals laughed at their comrade's stunned face, covered in icy snow.
Thwshap!
Thwshap!
Thwshap!
A roar of laughter erupted out of Chaos' mouth as the angry Elementals wiped the frigid material off of their faces.
"You wanna play, Chaos?" Pierce challenged, scooping up his own snowball from the snow on the ground (which had miraculously appeared). "Then let's play!"
Chaos took one look at the mischievous expressions the four youngsters' wore and swallowed hard.
A barrage of snowballs rained down like a sheer wall of ice, effectively burying Chaos in the pile. Fiorella and Pierce high-fived, and Amy stuck her tongue out at the pile. But their victory was short-lived, because the mound immediately erupted, with an armed Chaos rising from the ashes - er, snow.
Small balls of icy pain flew fast and furious across the room like rapidfire, teasing threats and taunts flying as fast as the projectiles. Axel lit his hands on fire, and melted any snowball that dared approach him. Pierce concentrated on the liquid in the snow and crashed a mammoth wave of snow and ice down on Chaos' head. Amy created a funnel of wind that stirred up the snow around her, giving anyone within a foot of her an icy painful slap. Fiorella's leadership was something to behold, as she led her team to ultimate victory. Together, they were a virtually unstoppable team, and if Chaos wasn't the (co)master of many planets, he would have stood no chance whatsoever. But as it was, he held his own fairly well against the adrenaline-pumped teenagers.
For the most powerful being on this planet and the next, Chaos could be a sore-loser (although sometimes it could be endearing). Even so, the match ended with the four children wrapped in one large purple blanket in front of Axel's enticing fireplace, with Chaos gazing at them in heartwarming fatherly affection. There were mugs of hot cocoa with marshmallows for all (Axel's-orange, Amy's-white, Fiorella's-green, Peirce's-blue) and the feeling of comrary in the air was almost tangible. The rosy cheeks and content smiles only confirmed that it had been a very merry chaos Christmas indeed.
Me: MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! I know it's a little late, but I'm a proud Roman Catholic, and Christmas is an important holiday to me. And so, I have Christmas cookies for every one of you who reviewed. (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) (::) I honestly wasn't expecting any reviews - I just wanted to try my hand at this. After the idea sprouted in my head, I just knew I had to put it down. Thank you to all of you who were nice enough to take an interest in my story. I'll try my hardest not to let you down. This is the start of 5 one-shots about the Elementals' life with Chaos. They're just fluffy little stories, but I would appreciate it if you would read them. The plot will progress after they're done.
Annie (WeepingTARDIS1): She originally had Percy refferring to himself as 'Percy' in the story, but everyone called him 'Pierce'. Believe me, that was super confusing.
Me: Says you, you evil beta.
The Elementals: MERRY CHRISTMAS~!
CURRENT SCOREBOARD (including previous reviews):
Annabeth: 4
Fiorella: 11
Amy: 2
Zoe Nightshade: 3
Jason: 1
I was really surprised by how many people liked Fiorella. I was actually very worried that you would reject her because she's an OC. I was also surprised by how many people became angry at Annabeth. Don't forget to send in your votes!
And for all those who asked, any questions about Nera/empousa will be answered in upcoming chapters.