Thanks for reading, but I do have something to say. I only had a few reviews on the last chapter. It's always nice to get even a simple, "I love this," review because despite how short, I absolutely love to read them. My goal is that I will get to 100 reviews after this chapter. I don't think I'll update until I've reached that. If it takes too long, I guess I'll eventually update. I really am sorry I kind of checked out on all of you, but I really was busy. I lead a busy life, and sometimes, I just can't update. Trust me, I update whenever I can. I don't want to lose reviewers over something I can't control. Please, I beg of you, just give me a simple review. They really brighten my day, as cheesy as that sounds.
Now, enough with the heavy. Prepare yourselves... a cliffhanger's coming!
*Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson. I believe it's safe to say that nobody on fanfiction owns the object of their stories...
Percy Jackson & The Case of the Missing Campers
VIII
The night passed on, and after they all were full and satisfied, the Rook sisters' uncle sent them off to their chambers. Elysia was amazed by their size. She almost felt uncomfortable being in a place alone. It felt like she needed someone to be near her, after spending so much time with her newfound friends. The room she was given was too large for her, but she enjoyed it. Her uncle told her to look into the wardrobe for something to wear to bed, and she knew it would be some nightgown or something, but she chose to wear one anyway. After laying her eyes on a dark blue silk gown, she could hardly say no. She went to shower, then dressed down to go to sleep.
All the girls did the same, and the guys found that what they were to wear to bed was… nothing like they would usually wear. It was cotton pajama bottoms and tops, all white. It made them feel uncomfortable, but it was better than jeans and their other dirty clothes, so they wore them anyway.
The next morning, the sunlight streamed through the open window of Elysia's bedroom, waking her up. Her hair was sprawled all around her face, and she felt so peaceful. She didn't want to get up, but a loud banging on her door told her that someone, probably her uncle, wasn't going to let her sleep in. She rolled over and lazily stood from her bed.
She opened her bedroom door, surprised to find someone else. "Jay?" Elysia asked, suddenly self-conscious.
"Hey, you're uncle wants everyone down for breakfast, um, once you get dressed," he said shyly. She was always the first up, he thought she would have been today, but he'd guessed wrong.
"I'll be down in a little while," she said, nervously playing with her necklace that her father had given her. She still had no idea what he meant by it, and honestly, she wasn't sure if she ever would. It didn't seem to have the ability to turn into anything that would help her fight against monsters or anything, nor did it seem to have protective magic or healing of any kind. She still couldn't pinpoint the power that radiated from it.
"See you later," Jay said before turning to walk down the hall.
Then, Elysia raced to the wardrobe to find something. All of her normal clothes were being washed today, and she needed something nice to wear. After all, her father wouldn't settle for anything less. Today, he'd want her to look nice.
She pulled out normal but nice clothing, unlike what she wanted to wear. She just wanted her combat boots, jeans, and her Evanescence shirt, but… of course her uncle wouldn't allow that. Her last resort was to wear anything girly. The gods only know what he was planning for her to wear tonight, so she grabbed out a blue button-down blouse, some dark denim jeans, and some brown flats that showed off her toenails, which would have been better if she had them painted. Because she knew her uncle would criticize her for not doing anything nice to her hair, she braided it. Then, she felt ready to go downstairs.
Walking down seven flights of stairs was tiring enough to do, even without her flats. She walked at a brisk pace, not wanting to show up to breakfast too late. After finally reaching the last step, she made her way to the dining hall. Not everyone had come down yet, thankfully, but she was still one of the last. The only other person missing was Rhea.
"Hey," she said as she sat down, taking her place next to Lucie and Jay. "Good morning."
"Where is your other friend?" Uncle Mason asked.
"She should be down soon," Reyna said. "I already told her to come down."
"Well, I hope you girls know that today, you all must prepare for the masquerade ball. The men should help me decorate. I suppose they'll have to do it the old fashioned way."
The rest of their day way busy to say the least. The girls were all forced to start getting ready. Mason had two women with each girl, and apparently they were there to help do hair and painting nails and stuff.
They went to Elysia's room, all of them, to get ready together. "Elysia, I'm your makeup and hair specialist. Sit," she said, sitting her down in front of a vanity. She began to unweave the braid she put in not too long ago.
She glanced around the room out of the corner of her eye and saw that the other girls were annoyed at being stuck here all day. Rhea looked ready to smack the person trying to mess with her hair. Annabeth just looked uncomfortable. Reyna looked slightly annoyed. Lucie, of course, had dealt this this before, so she just relaxed and played a game on her iPod.
The sun, that was once high, began sinking lower and lower until all their hair was done. It was a good thing that they had a huge breakfast, because they didn't get much time to eat anything. The stylists just gave them fruit and water occasionally. Once the others' hair was finished, hers wasn't. Since she had such long hair, they were trying to do something dramatic with it or something. From what she could see of it, it looked pretty, but if a monster were to attack, they'd laugh at her and call her a daughter of Aphrodite. She guessed that'd be a good way to kill a monster: making them laugh to death.
"Oh my gods, Ely, your hair is amazing so far," Lucie said, finally getting her break to stand and walk around. Her hair was very simple looking, but it took a few hours. It was a traditional Greek hairstyle, straight down to the laurel in her hair, only it was one silver headpiece that wasn't a head band.
"I like yours," she replied.
"Whoa, Elysia…" Annabeth said, staring at her through the mirror.
"Apparently, it's amazing."
"It better be," mumbled the woman doing her hair. "After all, once I'm done, I'll have spent four hours on your hair alone."
The second woman shooed away Annabeth and Lucie. She began to buff Elysia's nails and do things to them she didn't care to watch. After an hour, she looked down and saw that where her once uncared for nails were, was fake nails with a black base and a purple design. She decided her dress was probably purple, one of her least favorite colors.
Lucie's nails were being painted a dark, dark blue with a silver design. Rhea's were being painted white with an orange design. Annabeth's nails were being painted a deep burgundy that faded to black. Reyna's were being painted light green with a dark green flower shape being painted. All of them had on fake nails that felt uncomfortably long.
Using their swords would feel weird with their nails digging into their palms.
Anyway, Lucie and Rhea were sitting there while their makeup workers started applying. You could literally feel the awkwardness in the air for the demigods who weren't used to dressing up like this.
Elysia's hair was finally finished, and she didn't get a break. She was told to tilt her head back so the woman could work on her makeup. By then, it was late afternoon, and Elysia was starting to get sick of the apples she was given to eat.
She didn't complain, though, because that would only make matters worse. She knew dinner was coming to them at five. The ball would start at seven and end at midnight. That was about five hours long, traditional for such a large event. Everyone Uncle Mason knew was invited, along with anyone rich enough to wear an extravagant gown or suit from surrounding villages and cities. She couldn't wait to see if Ryan decided to come.
Time dragged on until all of them got to eat their dinner. After that, the makeup artists checked to make sure that the lipstick hadn't smudged. Apparently, Aphrodite/Venus had her own cosmetics line with permanent makeup.
They all were a little worried, but they were assured it would come off with magical makeup removal wipes, also from Aphrodite's line. That was when they all relaxed.
Finally, it was about six, and they were all about to get into their dresses. None of them had seen the dress or mask they were going to wear. The only hints they had about it was their makeup and nails.
"At last," one of the workers said. "They're ready."
Everyone except Elysia was shooed out of the room, to their own.
When she saw the dress, she froze. This was the very dress she'd dreamed about wearing when she was six. Next to it was the matching mask, and she loved it.
Maybe this won't be so bad after all, she thought.
:;:;:;:;:;:
Okay, Jay was extremely bored. As far as he could tell, none of the girls had come out yet, and mingling with people he knew from New Rome and stuff wasn't fun. It was mostly just older people who were gossiping to him about the missing campers.
According to rules, you weren't supposed to give out your name. It was supposed to be mysterious, and you were supposed to have a great time, wondering who it was you were talking to. The only thing that all of the people there had in common: they all were Greek or Roman, descendant or demigod.
If he was being honest with himself, he was looking for Elysia. He wanted to believe that he'd be able to find her in the crowd, but it was almost seven thirty, and he hadn't found her yet. So, he decided he'd dance with random people who seemed similar to her. One girl with long dark hair and pale skin walked by wearing a grey mask and a silver dress looked like it could be her, but when he stopped to talk to her, she didn't have the right color of eyes.
Then, the doors opened, and more guests came in. He knew instantly that one of them was Rhea, but he couldn't believe the dress and shoes she was wearing. He half wondered if it was even her until he saw her walk up to him and say, "Hey. It's… um, you right?"
"Yes," he said, knowing she would hear his voice and know.
"Have you seen Z?" she asked, scanning the crowd. He shook his head no.
"Have you seen E?" he asked. She shook her head no, too. "By the way, what made you wear an orange dress?"
She looked down and blushed. Her dress was orange, of course, and it was floor length, but it cut open in the front, showing the skin just below her knees. Her shoes were silver and about three inches tall. The top of the dress was strapless and fringy. The hairstyle she wore was very cheerful, curly in small curls and tied up and back. The mask she wore had a big flower off to the left side, fading from different shades of orange.
"I didn't choose this. Elysia's uncle did. Oh, look, I think I see Per… I mean, P. We should go talk to him," Rhea said, gesturing to the guy in the crowd, staring at the entrance, clearly waiting for someone.
They walked over and said, "Hey."
"Hi, guys. What are we supposed to do until everyone arrives?" he asked. Percy was wearing a simple black tux, like almost all the men here, and his mask was grey and it covered half his face. It had silvery details.
The symphony that played was amazing. They were playing some kind of elegant music from the early eighteenth century or something.
That's when Jay decided to take in his surroundings. He'd decorated it earlier, yes, but only minor things. It was completely finished, and the ballroom was amazing. Bright colors decorated the large walls, banisters hung all around. A large golden table held food of all sorts, plates, and waiters with trays of wine. Some waiters had sparkling cider, too, for the younger ones.
He pried his eyes away from the food and looked towards the entrance again. A short girl with dark hair and a pretty blue dress, which flowed like water, by the way, and wearing an extravagant mask walked in, and he knew it must be Lucie, Elysia's sister. Her eyes landed on the group, and she made her way towards them.
"Hello, everyone," she said, smiling at Jay. "Have you seen my sister?"
"Nope, not yet," Percy replied. "Now, if any guys look at you, I'll need to beat them up…" he said, his brotherly side coming into play.
Lucie rolled her eyes. "Oh, you're as bad as Ely!"
"I love your mask," Rhea said, looking at the blue detail. It was pale blue, and on the left side, the mask extended up, curling around the top, looking like frozen blue fire with silver in it.
"Oh my," Lucie said, looking at Rhea. "You look… unlike yourself. But very pretty nonetheless."
"Thanks, but orange isn't my color. I tried to change it with magic, but…"
"Let me guess… there was a spell preventing you?" Lucie asked.
Rhea nodded. "I couldn't change it at all."
The doors opened again, and a bunch of unfamiliar guests came in. None of them looked to be a part of their group, so they went back to their conversation. "Well, where is Annabeth, Reyna, Jason, and Zayne?" Lucie asked.
"I don't know," Percy answered.
The doors opened once yet again, and a sea of people walked through. A girl wearing a striking slim red dress and gold strappy heels walked through. She had her long blonde hair curled in lose waves and tied back. A red and gold mask veiled her face, but Percy said, "No way," before nearly running to her.
"Hey," she said, looking to Percy. "Wow, you clean up nice, Seaweed Brain," she said sweetly. "What do you think?"
Percy was speechless. The dress showed off her figure flawlessly, and he felt like Aphrodite just zapped him or something, because he was enticed by her beauty that had always been there, but it was like it was unveiled or something right then and there. "You look… wow."
She smiled and laughed. "Come on, dance with me," Annabeth said, grabbing his hand.
They began to waltz to some old song, and he was really glad his mom forced him to go to a dance class.
"I can't believe you know how to dance!" Annabeth giggled, laughing as she twirled. "I like this side of you."
"I love this side of you, but don't you dare do it too often or I'll die."
"I wouldn't want that, now would I?"
"Let's just enjoy tonight."
They danced like they would in some cheesy romance novel. Or maybe a fairytale, like Annabeth was Cinderella, ready to vanish at midnight.
Jay wondered if he'd ever have a relationship like that someday. His mind immediately went to Elysia, but there was no way she could possibly like him. Plus, they had way bigger things to worry about, like the end of the world. There wasn't enough time to start a relationship like that.
Once yet again, the doors opened, and two girls stepped out. He caught his breath as he realized that the one in the light purple ball gown and magnificent mask was, indeed, the girl he'd been looking for. A dark mane of loosely curled black hair spilled around her shoulders, almost reaching her elbow. The top part of her hair was weaved onto her head. The mask she wore was silver, and it was, by far, the most beautiful mask he'd ever seen. It was like it was made of threads of silver. The sides extended out and loosely curled around the top, and in the center, the mask pushed upwards, and it nearly looked like a mask and tiara. In the center top part, it was hard to see, but there was a heart embedded in the silver. It wasn't solid, it was just like the rest of it, made of thin strands of silver, but he couldn't take his eyes off her as she walked to him.
"Jay," she said, blushing slightly. She knew she wasn't supposed to use names, but she forgot when she said it.
He could barely speak. She was breathtaking. He just stared at her eyes, they looked smokey, and her dark blue eyes sparkled. He stared at her lips, so perfect and light pink. Then, his eyes drifted back down to the dress. The beautiful purple gown was like a satin bell. The top part was halter, and the torso part was like a corset, but the lower part spread out beautifully, ruffling out on the sides, while in the front, smooth, and he couldn't see her shoes, but he imagined they were tall and silvery. She wore a small silver necklace that held a light blue gem, and she wore matching earrings and other accessories.
"You look beautiful," he finally said.
"Thanks. You look great, too," she replied.
He knew the gentlemanly thing to do was to ask her to dance, but he was still recovering from being dazed by her appearance. "Would you… um…" he tried.
"Like to dance?" she asked him. He nodded sheepishly. "I would love to."
He didn't have much of a clue how to dance. He expected she would, but he wanted to impress her. The symphony began to play a pretty and mysterious song. The lights dimmed, out of nowhere, and it grew quiet except for the song. The spotlight was on a flute soloist, playing a beautiful and ominous tune before everyone in the symphony began.
Elysia grabbed his hand, and he hoped it didn't feel sweaty. Venus, help me, he pleaded inside. She actually must have, because they began to dance fluidly, beautifully, perfectly in time with each other.
They twirled and spun, feeling the beat of the music as if they were the only ones there. With his hand on her waist, she felt butterflies that wouldn't go away. She wondered if Aphrodite was playing tricks, but if she was, Elysia honestly didn't mind. She liked it that she felt so safe around him. She was impressed he was such a great dancer. She loved it that he looked great tonight, wearing a mysterious grey and black mask that covered half his face.
They ended up dancing longer than just that song without realizing it. It must have been forever by the time they actually began to realize that fact.
After a twirl, she ended up getting really close to him. With these shoes, she matched his height. They were only centimeters apart, but someone tapped her shoulder.
Elysia moved away from Jay, wondering what would have happened next. "Hello?" she asked as she turned around.
"Hello," he said. "Do you remember me?"
Elysia looked to his eyes, easily the least difficult way to identify him. Her eyes widened as she realized just who it was. "Aviander?" She threw her arms around him.
"Hi, El. I haven't seen you in ages!" he said as he patted her back.
Jay, of course, couldn't help feel jealous. Once she pulled away, he was a little relieved. "I've missed you a lot. I can't believe you're a demigod, too! That's just crazy. Anyway, Aviander, meet Jay, a friend of mine who's helping me on a quest."
"Really?" Aviander asked, looking to Jay. "I'm Aviander Tosolo, son of Khione, the snow goddess. She's Greek, but when I was twelve, I was taken to Camp Jupiter. Now, I know that the Greeks and Romans exist." He extended a hand, and Jay reluctantly shook it.
"I'm Jay O'Connor, son of Nox, but the Greek version is Nyx. I'm a child of Rome," Jay said, frowning.
"Nice to meet you. Now, if I may, could I steal El away for a while? We have quite a lot of catching up to do."
He couldn't really say no, so he just shrugged. "See you later," he told her, trying to keep bitterness out of his tone of voice.
He watched as they walked away, near the table.
"How've you been?" he asked her.
"I've been good. It's so nice to see you! You look incredibly handsome tonight."
"What's with your boyfriend over there?" Aviander asked.
"What? Oh, no… he's not my boyfriend. I mean… um…" she trailed off. "I am not sure about that thing yet, okay? Right now, he's a great friend of mine. We share a similar connection. I'm a daughter of Hades, he's the son of Nox, as he said earlier. Hades isn't so different from the goddess of night. We just have a lot in common."
"Well, he sure is protective of you. I thought he was going to kill me for talking to you."
She half-heartedly smiled. "He isn't that protective."
"You should have felt how tightly he squeezed my hand," Aviander said, grabbing a plate for food.
"Um…" Elysia wasn't sure what to say. "He just doesn't know that you and I are old friends. Almost like brother and sister. Anyway, have you seen Lucie?" Elysia asked, trying to drop the subject. It was too awkward for her.
"Yes, and can I say she's stunning? That dress suits her so well. Is she a daughter of…"
"No, not Hades, actually. She's a daughter of Poseidon."
His mouth fell. "That's unusual. I had no clue that two gods would fall in love with the same mortal. Anyway… what's your quest about?" he asked nonchalantly, adding strawberries to his plate.
"We're flying northwest to try and stop c—" she caught herself. She didn't want to say that anything until she was sure. She'd only had one nightmare about it, and she wasn't just going to tell it to Aviander, old friend or not. "We're on a quest to stop campers from disappearing," she said, proud of her cover story.
"How many of you are there on this quest?" he asked her.
"Nine, me included, and we're all flying towards northern Canada. This is just a stop along the way. We leave tomorrow to continue on our quest."
"Well, what's the prophecy? I heard the Greeks had an oracle from your uncle," he said, looking to her with curious eyes.
"I'd really rather not talk about it," she said, stealing a strawberry from his plate and dipping it in whipped cream. "It's terrible, really. And it makes no sense."
"You can tell me anything, Ely, you know that, right? I still am your best friend." He now looked to her with kind eyes and a small smile. He never smiled, so she felt the need to tell him.
"Fine. The daughter of death shall lead the group of nine, up north and to the west, enclosed in endless pine, where the evil stirs, for only sacrifice to save, to bring those back from beyond the grave, and despair without a hero's hand, to be lost in unfamiliar land. There, that's the whole prophecy," she said, feeling slightly more comfortable, as if telling him was releasing all the fear she had.
"That's awful! It sounds like two people aren't coming back. A hero and a sacrifice. I guess it could be the same person…" he trailed off, giving her a sympathetic look.
"I know, and that scares me. We have plenty of heroes in our group. It could be so many people. For one, it could be Percy, or maybe Annabeth, or Jason, or Reyna or…" she sighed.
"Or you," he said, finishing the thought he guessed she had.
"It can't be me, though. I'm no hero. For the gods' sake, I'm wearing a ball gown, high heels, manicured nails, perfect hair, and a Venetian mask. No hero is like that."
"Then at least you can get through this alive," he offered, trying to make the best of this.
"No, because that could be worse, knowing I couldn't save everyone."
"Elysia, I believe you'll make it through this and no one has to die in this quest. It never says death. Sacrifice doesn't mean death, and it doesn't mean it'll even be one of your group. The hero thing could be that you get split up and find your way back or something. Try to look on the positive side. I know how hard that can be, especially for a daughter of Hades, but try. Nobody has to die."
"I guess you're right," she said, but she wasn't convincing.
"Anyway, why don't we dance together? I love Vivaldi," Aviander suggested.
She took his hand and they walked to the dance floor.
:':':':':
Lucie was politely dancing with a random stranger. He was about a foot taller than her, but she didn't mind. She figured her uncle would meddle and send boys her way, but she wasn't much into the whole "dating" thing. She'd heard stories of the Hunters of Artemis, immortal maidens who hunt for eternity, no boys. If she were better at archery, she'd have gone a while ago. She wasn't sure if she could even join, being the daughter of Poseidon, but she'd have to try. It seemed like it suited her situation.
"I am Ray Jones," he said.
Lucie raised her eyebrow. "I thought we weren't supposed to name names, Ray," Lucie said. "You've broken a rule."
"Who said that was my real name?"
"Nonetheless, it's still a name," she said as she twirled under his arm.
"Well, I'm sorry, then," he apologized. "You're just too pretty."
She wanted to turn him away, but she was naturally polite. If it had been Elysia, she probably would have told the guy to go away, if the positions were switched. But Lucie wasn't her sister. She stood by being more polite than her sister.
"Thanks," she answered, "but I'm not looking for a relationship. I've been a little busy… travelling, actually. I'm journeying across Canada with friends of mine."
"You don't have to lie. I'm from the Greek camp, I know all about the quest, Lucie."
She started to get a bad feeling for some reason. While they were dancing, she just felt something bad was happening, and she didn't know why. She didn't feel like she was in danger, she felt like someone else was.
"Please, excuse me," she said, starting to look around for any sign of danger.
"Okay," he said, letting her go.
Lucie decided to check on her sister first. While looking for her sister, she saw the others all perfectly fine; Jay, Zayne, Jason, Reyna, (both of whom she hadn't seen enter), Percy, Annabeth, and Rhea, but she couldn't find Elysia.
She went to Jay first. She kind of expected them to be together because they clearly both liked each other. "Jay," she said, breaking the rule of not using names. "Have you seen my sister?"
"Not for a while. Why do you sound so panicked?"
"I just have a bad feeling about this whole situation… I can't put my finger on it," Lucie said, feeling a disheartening feeling creep into her heart.
"I saw her last over at the table talking to Aviander Tosolo."
She whipped around, looking to the empty table. While storming over there, she scanned the crowd again. Why did she have such a bad feeling? She reached the table, hoping to see them at a distance she couldn't before.
There was only nothing. The clock in the ballroom chimed that it was now eleven o'clock, and her heart was pounding for a fear she did not understand.
Don't you just love a good cliffhanger? Lucky for you, I plan on updating soon. Thanks for reading!
Who likes JayxElysia? Personally, they're my favorite "couple" that I've ever written before that was with two OC's. Those of you who like them, you'll be happy for the next chapter.
Oh yeah...
OC's in this chapter...
Aviander Tosolo, Raymond Jones.
REVIEW, pretty please!
