Disclaimer: I don't own anything Percy Jackson, or the musical Hamilton. Here are some songs mentioned in the chapter: Alexander Hamilton, the first song of the musical, and Helpless, that's the song where Eliza and Hamilton fall in love. Italicized text means that those are direct lyrics from the musical.
A/N: Hello, my lovely readers. Merry Christmas, Happy (early) New Year's and happy holidays. I've given you an earlier update (by one day) for a couple reasons. One, to celebrate Christmas, and two, because I'm going on a break for a couple weeks. I'll be traveling, so I don't know what the wifi will be like, or how often I'll get to use the computer. I will try to write as much as I can, but I'll be doing that to get a couple chapters ahead of what I post. Anyway, this chapter will be a little more exciting. Lyric: "My name is Alexander Hamilton. There's a million things I haven't done. Just you wait." , Alexander Hamilton
Percy POV:
Percy showed up to rehearsal 5 minutes late. He had thought Luke would at least wake him up if Luke could see Percy was running late, but apparently not. Honestly, Percy was annoyed, but maybe this was just Percy not understanding how being roommates worked.
Percy skidded into the auditorium, panting.
"Hi, guys. Sorry I'm late," He apologized.
"About time," Annabeth complained.
"Geez, it's only been about five minutes," Percy responded.
"Well, before we start rehearsal, I've got some important news for you," Chiron announced, silencing all the talking, "Recently, I was invited to the White House for An Evening of Poetry, Music, and the Spoken Word. They said that something about American history would be nice. As you know, this whole musical is American history, so I thought we could present the first song, Alexander Hamilton. Unfortunately, that means that only people in that first song will be able to perform, although we could arrange for everyone else to come watch. Now, after we do a regular rehearsal, we will really double down and work hard to nail that first song."
After Chiron finished talking, the room was quiet for a moment, then erupted into chaos. People were displaying every reaction known to man (and woman), from anger to disappointment to excitement to happiness.
"When is this happening?" someone called out.
"In two weeks," Chiron responded, "Right, well, let's get started. In this rehearsal, we'll be working on the blocking, in Alexander Hamilton, wait on stage."
There was a great shuffling of feet as everyone moved up onto the stage, or found better seats in the audience. Luke, Percy, Annabeth, Leo, and everyone else in Alexander Hamilton waited onstage.
"Alright, Burr, you start out by walking on stage. You wait there for a count of seven, and then you start to say your lines, which go, "How does a bastard, orphan…" you remember? Okay, good. After Burr says the word scholar, then Laurens, you walk out. As you're walking, you start talking. Stop walking once you're right where Burr used to be. That means Burr needs to walk away as you come out. Now, you do the same thing with Lafayete and Mulligan. By the time Mulligan is talking, Burr, Laurens, and Lafayette should be in a diagonal line behind him. Got it? Let's go from there," Chiron instructed.
The lights dimmed, and the spotlight shined in the center of the stage. Luke began to walk out. He stood in the spotlight for a few seconds, and then started to say his lines.
"How does a bastard, orphan, son of a whore and a scotsman…" Luke kept on singing. As he said the word scholar, everyone waited for Grover to step forward. After a moment, Grover came rushing forward, looking flustered.
"Sorry, I forgot," Grover apologized.
"That's quite alright," Chiron assured him, "Now, continue."
"The ten dollar, founding father without a father…" Grover said, walking forward, as Luke moved out of the spotlight. After Grover finished his lines, Chiron nodded to Leo, who was standing on the other side of the stage.
Leo walked forward, singing, "And everyday when slaves were being slaughtered and carted across the waves…" As Leo finished his lines, Frank came walking out. Leo scurried backward.
"No, Leo, do you see where Laurens and Burr are? Be a little more forward," Chiron instructed.
"Got it," Leo nodded. He moved a little more forward, so that he, Grover, and Luke were standing in an uneven diagonal line.
Frank started moving again, and started his lines.
"And then a hurricane came, and devastation reigned. Our man saw his future drip-drippin' down the drain…" He sang.
"Great job everyone," Chiron complimented as Frank finished his lines, "For the next scene, when Burr says, "Well, the word got around," then Laurens and Burr, you need to lean to the left, and put your hand by your mouth, like you're talking to someone. Mulligan and Lafayette, same thing to the right. After Burr finishes his lines, then you all step back. After that, we have the ensemble come in, so we'll stop after that scene and explain the next scene in more detail. Sounds good?"
There was a chorus of "yes" from around the room.
"Great," Chiron continued, "Now, Burr, get started." Luke nodded, and began to say his next lines.
"Well, the word got around, they said this kid is insane, man," Luke and Grover leaned out to the left, acting as though they were talking to someone, while Frank and Leo did the same thing to the right.
"Good, very good everyone. Now, ensemble, please step forward. Shel Williams, stand there, yes, turn around a bit. Good, now bend your knees slightly… good, very good…" Percy zoned out as Chiron continued to give detailed instructions.
"Now, Hamilton," Chiron called. Percy's head jerked up. That was him!
"Amidst all of this, you walk forward into the spotlight, saying, "Alexander Hamilton," Got it?" Chiron instructed.
"Oh, um, yeah," Percy agreed.
"Very well, now you may start," Chiron said.
Luke began to sing. "Took up a collection just to send him to the mainland…" As he sang, everyone began to do some weird turny twisty thing. Percy was so caught up in watching them move he didn't realize when the lights dimmed, and Luke said, "What's your name, man?"
" ?" Chiron called.
"Yes?" Percy answered.
"It's your time to step forward and say your line," Chiron informed Percy.
"Oh, um, sorry," Percy apologized. Percy stepped forward, and said, "My name is Alexander Hamilton."
They finished the song, and several more after that, when Chiron called for a break.
"Take five, everybody!" He called.
Percy sat down and got a drink of water. Luke walked over to him.
"I noticed your little slip up in the beginning," Luke said.
"Oh, um, yeah…" Percy responded unsure of how to answer.
"Well, I'm sure it'll be fine. Of course, being in a Broadway production is always pretty competitive, so you've got to make sure it's always clear you're a good actor, and are always putting in the effort. But I'm sure you'll be okay."
"Okay… I guess…" Percy answered. Luke took a sip of his water bottle, and walked away. Way to make me feel better, Percy thought. Luke was honestly pretty mean sometimes, and not the way Annabeth was. This wasn't the first time. There have been a couple little comments here and there.
"Alright guys, let's keep going," Chiron called. Everyone moved back up to the stage, and they kept rehearsing for the next four or so hours.
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Annabeth POV:
"Great job, guys, now before you go, one of our producers, Hera, would like to speak," Chiron informed everyone.
A woman with long brown hair walked up to the stage.
"Hello, everyone. As you have probably guessed, I'm Hera, a producer of this… wonderful musical, which is progressing so… well. Now, before you guys get into super serious rehearsals, I'd like you all to play a game, as some cast bonding time. Said game will be some good ol fashioned truth or dare. If you don't know what to make someone do or tell, just ask me to come up with one for you. Got it?"
Everyone nodded.
"Alright then, Annabeth, truth or dare?" Percy called from across the room.
Annabeth thought for a moment. Percy was likely to have her do something embarrassing either way, so it probably didn't make too much of a difference.
"Dare," Annabeth responded.
"Well then, , I have quite the dare for you," Percy said. He leaned up to her and whispered in her ear, "Meet me outside the building at 10:30 tonight. Wear dark clothing."
Annabeth looked at him, confused. "What in the world are you planning on doing?" She whispered back.
"Well then, if I told you it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?"
"Seaweed Brain," Annabeth said, and walked away.
"What did he ask you to do?" Piper asked.
"I'll tell you later," Annabeth told her.
"Percy Jackson, truth or dare?" Annabeth asked.
"Dare," He answered confidently.
"Alright then. I dare you to sing as much of Helpless as you can remember."
"What? Um… okay, I guess," Percy agreed.
"Any day now would be fine," Annabeth said.
Percy took a deep breath, and (nervously) began to sing.
"Ooh, I do, I do, I do, I do (hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey)
Hey! Ooh, I do, I do, I do, I do (Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey)
Boy, you got me helpless
Look into your eyes, and the sky's the limit
I'm helpless
Down for the count, and I'm drownin' in 'em,"
Annabeth raised an eyebrow. He was surprisingly good at hitting the high notes, and he actually knew most of the words.
After he'd taken a pause, Annabeth commented, "Wow, Jackson, you should just go and play my role now, huh?"
"Shut up, Chase," Percy answered, his ears reddening.
The game continued for another 15 minutes or so, until Jason Grace and Piper were the only ones left, and it was Jason's turn to dare Piper.
" ?" Jason asked.
"Call me Hera, Jason,"
"Mi-Hera, could you give me a suggestion?" Jason requested.
"Of course," Hera walked over and whispered in his ear.
Jason blushed.
"Are you sure?" He asked.
"Go ahead. Do it," Hera answered.
Jason walked over to Piper.
"Piper, truth or dare?" He asked.
"Dare,"
"I dare you to go out with me tonight," Jason said. Piper blushed.
"Sure," Piper agreed, grinning.
Annabeth smiled. Piper had been gushing about this particular cast member since rehearsals had started. It was definitely far more than a little crush, but Piper would never admit it, no matter how hard Annabeth tried.
"Well, that just about wraps it up. See you guys on Monday!" Chiron called.
After they all went home, Hazel and Piper grilled Annabeth for details about what she was doing with Percy.
"What did he say to you?" Piper asked.
"He told me to meet him by the theater at eleven thirty tonight," Annabeth answered.
"Oooh, I wonder what that's about," Piper commented.
"Why did you call him a Seaweed Brain?" Hazel asked.
"Because he was acting like one," Annabeth responded.
After that, Annabeth and Hazel took their turns at questioning Piper about her date plans later that night.
"What time is he picking you up?" Annabeth asked.
"At seven," Piper answered.
"Where are you going?" Hazel wondered.
"To a restaurant called The Acropolis. It's a Greek restaurant," Piper informed them.
They kept talking, until it was six and Piper ran upstairs to get ready. After a long debate, Piper chose a white dress with spaghetti straps, and she brushed out her hair, so it was hanging loosely by her shoulders.
At seven, Jason knocked on the door and Piper ran downstairs.
"See you later!" Piper said, waving goodbye.
After Piper left, Annabeth and Hazel talked late into the night, until Annabeth had long since been wrapped up in the world of Hercule Poirot. At 11:15, an alarm she had set on her phone went off. Annabeth was abruptly pulled back into her apartment in New Rome.
She set the book down, put on a dark coat as it was chilly outside, and left the building. Annabeth got into her car and drove to the theater. She parked her car outside the building and waited there. Annabeth shivered in the cold. Hopefully, Percy is planning to show up. I swear, if he made me come out here just to freeze all night, I'm going to kill him, Annabeth thought.
Just then, she saw Percy waving to her in the darkness. She ran over to him, and asked, "Will you finally tell me what we're doing right now?"
"Nope," He answered, "But I'll show you." Percy grabbed her arm and led Annabeth to a back door. Percy reached out, and put his hand on the doorknob.
"Oh Percy, no, come on. We'll get in so much trouble!" Annabeth hissed.
"What, are you scared?" Percy asked.
"No, just smart," Annabeth retorted, "Smarter than you, I might add." With a glare at Percy, she swung the door open, and ran down the hallway.
"What, are you scared?" Annabeth mimicked.
"You wish," Percy responded. With that, he came running down the hall after her. Percy led Annabeth into the theater, and sat down on the stage. He pulled out a bag Annabeth hadn't noticed before, and produced two bags of chips and a container of blue cookies.
"Fancy a midnight snack?" Percy offered.
"Blue cookies?" Annabeth questioned in response.
"Inside joke. It's a thing me and my mom do," Percy responded. Annabeth smiled, trying not to think about her own mother, who probably didn't know Annabeth existed, or her stepmother, who never wanted to see Annabeth again.
They laughed, and talked, and slowly worked their way through the bags of food Percy brought. Annabeth was standing up, and dusting the cookie crumbs off of her when there was a knock at the door.
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A/N: Yes, I really am that evil. Yes, you will have to wait a while before seeing what happens. *Evil laugher* First of all, I've also written a Christmas one shot titled, "All I Want for Christmas is You," so go check that out. Second of all, I've got some plot points to discuss. So, Percy is starting to dislike Luke, which is going to play a bigger role in the story later on. This chapter, Chiron dropped some big news that we knew from chapter 3 or 4, since Annabeth discovered the letter. Who knows how it's going to go? Now, Piper is going on a date with Jason, and we don't know how that went. Good? Bad? Something else to note is that their relationship was sort of set up by Hera.
Book recommendation:
The Big Four by Agatha Christie