fans self* we're getting into the thick of it girlies

PERI'S POV

"Ready, Peri?" Piper asked, her voice already laced with that familiar honey and sweetness that made it so hard to think straight.

Although I had yet to master resistance, I'd learned to at least be able to detect when charmspeak was being used against me. It was subtle to say the least. A myriad of factors came into play when deciphering Piper's tells. The almost musical tone her voice took; the way that her colorful eyes sparkled; sometimes she'd tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. It was like Piper had been reading from Aphrodite's playbook of how to be a dangerously beautiful woman all her life.

"I'm ready," I responded with gritted teeth.

"Slap yourself," she told me.

My palm twitched, then there was a loud smacking sound as flesh connected with flesh. I yelped and rubbed the reddened spot on my cheek in failure. Once again, I was unable to resist her charms.

"A-are you sure you don't want to change the command?" Piper asked tentatively. "I think your cheeks are swelling up."

"No!" I shook my head roughly. "Pain is a reminder. It's the best way I'll learn."

"Okay, maybe we should take a break," Hazel tried. "Go back to the Mist?"

My face was hot to the touch and stung badly, so I eventually agreed. We had been at this for hours now and although some progress had been made, I still wasn't satisfied. Somehow I was better at fighting off Hazel's Mist than I was at ignoring Piper's charmspeak. The three of us couldn't tell if this was due to the differences in their experience level or some other personal factors. Personally, I didn't care. All that mattered was coming out on top.

"Okay, Peri, you're a lot better at fighting the Mist now," Hazel began. "So this time Piper and I will leave the room and see how you do on your own. The goal is to escape the room."

My cells buzzed excitedly at the challenge. "Alright! I can handle this."

The room appeared to dim as the illusion began to take hold of me, and I tried to focus on Hazel and Piper exiting through the door in an attempt to keep a grasp on reality. In previous trials, Hazel was able to make me see snakes, spiders, and even a doppelgänger of my own likeness. Or at least she was able to make me thinkthat I saw those things. Her control over the Mist seemed to grow with each practice session— which was the goal of course, but it also made me wary as to what horrors she would conjure in this illusion.

My eyes darted around Piper's room, examining each corner for anything that didn't belong. All seemed normal. I carefully touched my feet to the floorboards. No quicksand floor. My head whirled to my reflection in the mirror. I wasn't sprouting a second head or missing limbs.

"Ha!" I boasted. "I must be getting good! I'm seeing right through her illusions now!"

My task was to simply escape the room, and with a lack of opposition on all fronts, I hopped up from Piper's bed eagerly. I had only taken a step when the door handle began to jiggle like someone was trying to enter the room. My body froze in place, and my senses were on high alert. This must be the true illusion! My stupid brain began to suggest all kinds of outlandish scenarios of what could be on the other side of that door. Just as the thought of a giant horsefly with a flyswatter popped into my head, the door opened. My breath got caught in my throat as the figure entered the room, shutting the door behind them.

"L-Leo?" I asked in disbelief.

The curly haired boy grinned, and I knew it had to be true. The smell of him, motor oil and pine trees with a hint of that intoxicating male deodorant, washed over me. His eyes glinted mischievously as they trailed up and down my form. He wasted no time in closing the distance between us and planting a kiss on my lips that only worsened my breathlessness.

"I've been looking all over for you," Leo groaned into my neck, squeezing me tightly against his lean body. "You smell so good."

"Thank y— mmf!" I was silenced by another desperate kiss as Leo's hands moved on their own accord, one holding onto the small of my waist, and the other tugging slightly on my hair to expose my neck.

"I like your hair," Leo confessed between kisses along my neckline. "I can pull it like this." He punctuated his sentence with a rougher tug of my locks that Piper had so carefully braided into two plaits, making me gasp sharply. "See, you love it too, huh?"

"Yesss," I sighed in pleasure as he lowered his other hand to slap my ass a few times.

Even in our most heated moments, Leo had never been this rough with me. I loved it so much that I planned to avoid him even more if it meant that I'd get this response from him again. Leo spanked me harshly, whispering in my ear how he planned on punishing me for making him wait for what we both wanted before shoving me backwards onto the bed. I watched with bated breath as Leo peeled his shirt off of his body, my eyes glued to his abs. He wasn't sweating, but his body glistened in the low light all the same.

Leo layered himself on top of my body, and I wrapped my legs around his waist naturally. He began to grind his hips into mine, causing the growing pit of desire in my core to swell even more. My wetness was surely evident by now, but I'd long since abandoned being ashamed of that thanks to Leo. His jeans were rough against the thin cloth of my shorts, and I moaned softly at the delicious friction as he built up a steady rhythm.

"Come on, Peri," Leo groaned into my ear. "I want to hear you moan my name like you did when you were in my bed."

His words made me shudder, and I closed my eyes to focus on the sensations building up inside of me. "Mmn... Leo."

"Fuck yeah, say my name just like that," Leo's pace sped up, and he rubbed himself more furiously against me.

Gasping and whimpering his name, my hips bucked up into his involuntarily. What used to be so foreign had become a familiar feeling as I felt myself rapidly approaching the peak of climax. My legs were trembling, my body set ablaze with excitement, my eyes rolling back—

"ENOUGH!"

Was that... Hazel's voice?

My eyes flew open, and that's when I thought that I might literally die of embarrassment. Sitting on either side of me on the bed was Hazel and Piper, the former looking completely flustered, and the latter fanning herself vigorously. Leo was nowhere to be found, but my legs were wrapped tightly around one of Piper's pillows. The wet spot on the silky pillowcase was enough evidence for this jury of my peers to lock me away for good.

"I-I-I know what this looks like—" I stammered for something, anything to justify myself.

"Wow Hazel, you really stopped at the good part," Piper shook her head in disappointment. "That's messed up."

"ME?!" Hazel screeched.

"You could've at least let her finish if you're gonna magic up a sexy scenario—"

"I did no such thing!" Hazel cried. "I-I felt bad that you were making her slap herself for an hour straight, so I created an illusion to let her see what she wanted. I thought she'd see puppies or pancakes or swords—"

"Oh, something's telling me she saw a sword alright—"

"Gods!" I screamed and buried my hot, reddened face in my hands. "Please just stop."

"Ohh no, no, no, no," Piper pried my fingers from covering my face up. "Girl, you better spill or my charmspeak will make you spill. We couldn't see what you saw, but we heardeverything you said."

My eyes darted to Hazel's golden orbs for confirmation. She nodded her head timidly, and I wailed, "Gaea, kill me now!"

"I knew there was somethinggoing on with you two," Piper grinned, clearly pleased with herself, "but Hades himself wouldn't have guessed you two were porking it just a few doors down—"

"Porking what?" Hazel asked in bewilderment.

"We are not porking it!" I said firmly.

"Yet," Piper whispered loudly, and it took all my strength not to tackle her.

"S-so things have really heated up between you and Leo since we were all trapped underground in Rome?" Hazel asked, squirming slightly.

"Wait, what happened in Rome?" Piper asked cluelessly. "How is the daughter of Aphrodite the most out of the loop when it comes to the love affairs on this ship?!"

The three of us laughed, and I realized that the girls weren't judging me for what they'd witnessed. They weren't about to beat the hell out of me (ha, they can try) and tell me that I'll be burning for all eternity for my actions. Hazel and Piper actually made me feel safe, kind of like how I felt with Leo, but definitely different.

So this is what having a sisterhood is like.

I opened up to the girls about what happened in Rome after Hazel and Frank were knocked out by the taser ball. When I described my first kiss with Leo and the way my body tingled all over, the way it felt so right, Piper squealed in a way that only a daughter of Aphrodite could. I confessed that Leo and I would sneak away to the Engine Room most nights to be together while sparing the more vivid details, much to Hazel's appreciation (although I could tell Piper would grill me for the juicy tidbits later).

"But are you guys going steady or...?" Hazel trailed off.

"Nobody says that anymore Hazel," Piper informed her. "But for real are you guys dating or just messing around?"

"I... I don't really know," I admitted. "I've never had a boyfriend before. This is all new to me."

"Well, we don't know what the future holds," Piper said with a sudden seriousness. "I say, if you want something then take it, and don't ever let it go."

"Easy for you to say Ms. Charmspeak," Hazel said with a playful smile.

The two exchanged a giggle, but I mulled over Piper's words for some time. I wanted Leo. In every sense of the word, I wanted him. There was no telling how much time we had left with each other, and whenever I thought about the Prophecy of Seven, it seemed like our future was even more uncertain. So maybe we shouldn't sneak and hide anymore. Maybe it was time to take that leap before it was too late. I felt ready, but I wondered how Leo would feel about it...

"Plus, you're smokin' hot, Peri!" Piper laughed, getting my attention once again. "Leo would be a fool not to cuff you!"

"I-I don't know why he'd place you in chains," Hazel began, "but I agree, you're pretty— and the best female sword fighter I've ever seen! He'd be lucky to have you as a girlfriend."

"Ladies, please," I grinned uncontrollably. "You know I can't say no to outright flattery!"

In the midst of our laughter, there was a knock at Piper's door. The three of us exchanged a confused look, and ultimately Piper hopped off of the bed to open the door a crack.

"Yo?" She questioned.

"Hey, Pipes," I recognized Leo's voice immediately. "Is Peri in there?"

"Is this another one of your illusions?" I hissed at Hazel.

She shook her head profusely. "Don't look at me."

"Maybe she is, maybe she isn't," Piper responded to Leo. "What's it to you?"

"What are y'all doing in there?" Leo's southern drawl slipping out in his annoyance. "Plotting the demise of the men on this ship?"

"Oh, Peri hasn't made you a man just yet," Piper replied teasingly.

"Piper!" I exclaimed in disdain, shooting up and tossing her back onto the bed. I stepped out into the hallway, closing the door on her evil laughter.

"What was that about?" Leo demanded.

I shook my head. "She's a wonderful pain in my ass—"

"Did you tell them about us?" He whispered furiously.

His tone caught me off guard. "I— No, well yes, but—"

"Fuck!" Leo punched the wall. "Dammit, now the whole ship is going to know in like five minutes. Great job."

My eyebrow twitched in a sudden burst of anger. "Yea because gods forbid anyone find out that you'vebeen messing around with me.That'd be fucking awful, right?"

"You don't understand," Leo griped. "It's a small ship, and people talk. Everyone's going to be all up in our business. Not to mention if this gets to Coach Hedge, then I'll never get to touch you again!"

"Sooo you're embarrassed to be seen with me in public, and you only care about being able to touch me with no consequences. Am I missing anything?"

"What?!" Leo pinched the bridge of his nose. "You're impossible sometimes, you know that?"

"And you're a prick sometimes, you know that?" I spat back at him. "How about I do us both a favor and say fuck it all right now?"

"Fine!" He yelled. "I'm so sick of your attitude anyway. You think just because you're so cute and you always smell good with your stupid shiny hair... what was I talking about?"

"Hell if I know!" I cried in frustration.

"You fucking—!" Leo put his hands on either side of the wall behind me and leaned in just a few inches from my face to whisper, "I'm not the best at explaining how I feel, but I fucking tried with you, okay? So don't come crawling back to me when you want someone to rub away all your troubles from that greedy little pussy of yours. Because I'm done."

Leo punched the wall mere inches from my face once more before storming off. I uttered a last pathetic "fuck you" after him, but it was nothing compared to what he'd said to me. I'd never been so angry, hurt, and undeniably aroused all at the same time in my life.