Hi everyone! GreenWithAwesome (GD) here! Here are the shippings:

Percabeth, Jasiper, Frazel, Leyna. Some one-sided Peyna, Jeyna, Thaleo.

There are no ships for Thalia and Rachel, purely because their roles do not permit men. It's unrealistic that Thalia would leave or be kicked out of the Hunters of Artemis just for a boy. Same with Rachel. Apologies; personal opinion. Hope you enjoy it!

EDIT: The beautiful preview fanart is drawn by the fabulous drawingaddict98 on dA! www . drawingaddict98. deviantart art/The-Vase-and-the-Sleepover-341654433

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"Who even is Rachel? I've never met her."

That awkwardly broke the silence as four girls sat in a helicopter, which was currently soaring over the east coast of Philadelphia. They were all dressed in casual clothes – well, all accept one, who was so particular with her clothing that she had decided to dress formally for the occasion.

The blonde girl looked up, still holding a plain envelope. Her startling stormy grey eyes seemed darker than usual, "Rachel is our Oracle. She is a bit… well, eccentric," said Annabeth. She glanced back down at the envelope – she admitted that she wasn't on the whole excited about sleepovers. It was a gathering of girls, where, for the most part, they talked about celebrities and make-up and boys. Not really her cup of tea.

Not to mention – Annabeth took a peek at the formal girl sitting opposite her: praetor to the Twelth Legion and Roman through and through, Reyna, the daughter of Bellona. She was certain that this girl had made a move of her boyfriend. Of course, Percy had been a pretty valiant and turned her down, but hey, Annabeth still felt a little ill-feeling towards her.

She clutched the envelope a little more tightly. She hoped the daughter of Bellona was good at keeping her feelings on taken guys a secret as she was at running Camp Jupiter.

The girl who asked the question frowned. She swept some of her curly, golden brown hair back.

"But she doesn't know me, either," stated Hazel, staring at Annabeth, "Why would she invite me to a sleepover?"

Annabeth shrugged. Please, inviting strangers around seemed a bit low-key for Rachel, "She probably just wants to meet you, since you spent time with Percy. Plus, like I've already said, she's eccentric."

Next to Annabeth, a girl with choppy brown hair with braids nodded, almost eagerly, "Agreed."

"Well, she certainly knows how to travel in style," said Reyna, after smoothing her dress a little, "A helicopter? I would have been just fine in a boat."

Hazel laughed nervously, "Ahah. I think helicopter is better," she shifted uncomfortably, "Oh, er, not that your idea is bad, Reyna. Just, um, you know, it's faster by air." Reyna nodded, but said nothing. The helicopter approached the New York now, just edging closer to the boundary of it and Pennsylvania. The whole city was alive, even though it was evening time, and the sun was just dipping below the horizon.

"Yeah," Annabeth said, like it was nothing, "Rachel's family are super rich. They own Dare Enterprises, the company that buys land and builds shopping malls." Suddenly, Reyna looked a whole lot more impressed.

"Is that so?" she moistened her lips, but didn't continue her sentence, probably thinking about the sleepover that was going to happen. The group fell silent again as they passed into the island of Manhattan, where Rachel lived.

"Is it just the four of us?" asked Piper, turning towards Annabeth like she knew all the answers.

The blonde shrugged, "I suppose so."

"Heads up; I'm about to land this thing," the driver buzzed over the intercom. The group became quiet again as the helicopter descended on the Dare mansion. It was enormous – a huge white palace with sizeable front and back lawns, doors that could probably squeeze a helicopter with the rotors, and the finest brickwork. It overlooked Manhattan like a jungle over a pot plant. They landed in the back garden, and just in the distance, grinning madly, was Rachel herself, wearing a baggy T-shirt and some cropped jeans. She was holding her afro-like ginger hair as if it was about to blow off. When the helicopter finally stopped, she ran over.

The four girls undid their seatbelts. Well, here they were. When the driver gave the all-clear and opened the door, they piled out and Rachel launched herself into Annabeth's arms.

"Annabeth! So good to see you!" she cried, hugging her friend tightly and swaying.

"Trying to breathe here," she mumbled, to which Rachel let go with a nervous laugh.

"Hahah, sorry. I'm just so excited that you could come! Piper!" she next skipped over to the choppy-haired girl, who was smiling contently.

"Good to see you too, Rachel," she said, pushing back some of her hair.

"And yoooouuu two," the ginger girl turned to a slightly-startled pair of Romans, "You must be Hazel and Reyna! It's so nice to meet you! I'm Rachel Elizabeth Dare!" She stuck out her hand politely, to which Reyna stepped forward and shook immediately.

"I'm Reyna, daughter of Bellona, praetor to the Twelth Legion-" but Rachel was too excited, already shaking Hazel's hand so much her whole body seemed to follow.

"Erm, I'm Hazel Levesque," Rachel was bouncing around like she had just downed three cans of Red Bull at once.

She giggled, "Oh, I'm so glad you're all here! We're going to have so much fun! Don't worry; the maids will take your luggage to our room. C'mon, I'll show you the house!"

Hazel almost did a double-over. This mansion was huge, and she knew that Rachel was very rich, but maids? It was like she was the President or something. Being the youngest of the lot, Hazel was a little nervous about the sleepover. What if she didn't fit in? She'd already had that problem seventy years ago, and she wasn't willing to repeat that part of her life. The mere thought made her want to call Arion and ride far away.

But then she thought about how kind Annabeth and Piper were to her. They wouldn't leave her out. Hazel also couldn't help feeling a little sorry for Reyna – none of them were really her friends. They were just people who had stolen the two most important boys in her life. But that wasn't for Hazel to discuss.

She followed the group inside, glancing back at the skyline. It was dark, so her vision wasn't great, but she admired the way time had moved forward and how pretty New York looked at night. She turned back around, keeping the pleasant thought in her head, and headed down the stairs.

=#=#=#=

"I'm telling you, we'll be found out and it'll be on your head."

"The only thing that'll be on my head is my hair. Unless you're chicken?"

The Argo II soared in the sky. At night, even without the Mist, mortals wouldn't have been able to see it – it's bronze hull blended perfectly with the darkness. Although it did reflect a bit of the evening sun, but, hey, who was going to notice?

Percy gripped the edge of the flying ship, looking a little dubious of the situation, "It's a girl's sleepover, Leo. We're guys."

Leo rolled his eyes, "Oh, well spotted, Captain Obvious."

"No problem, Sergeant Sarcasm. My point is we're not supposed to be there. I'm serious – if we get caught-"

"-which we won't-"

"-Annabeth and rest of the girls will send us to Tartarus."

Leo waved him off, grabbing the wheel of the Argo II and giving it a good spin to the left, "You're Percy Jackson: mightiest of heroes, slayer of giants, preacher of eternal harmony and you're afraid of your girlfriend?" Percy scowled.

"Don't underestimate her. You remember she judo-flipped me when I reunited with her, right?"

"Ah, details," Leo pushed some buttons on the Argo II's control panel, lowering the ship so that it was a little closer to the buildings and mortals below. Percy was about to retort when Jason bounded up the stairs from belowdecks.

"Hey," he said plainly, glancing over the edge, "Oh? We're in New York already?"

"Not just New York," said Leo with a smirk, "Manhattan. We just need to park this thang-"

"-'thang'?-" Percy commented. It didn't really surprise Jason anymore.

"-in some park then walk a little to Rachel's then boom, instant access to priceless information."

Jason frowned, this time seeing a flaw in Leo's oh-so-brilliant plan, "Er, you said this Rachel girl was rich, right?"

"Yeah?"

"She wouldn't just leave the front door open with signs saying 'hey, boyfriends of girls present at sleepover plus Leo, come right in and listen to our juicy gossip about you!'. How do you propose we gain 'instant access to priceless information'?"

Leo laughed, like, really hard. He strode over to Jason and patted his back.

"Oh, Jason, my simpleton friend,-"

"I resent that."

"-you're talking to the most awesome and brilliant son of Hephaestus you'll ever meet. I can disable all that alarm stuff, then, when they're done with all the gossip, I reset it and we leg it, holding the key to their deepest-harboured secrets."

Both Jason and Percy frowned, "I don't think I want to know their deepest-harboured secrets." It probably involved girl things that they really didn't want to know about.

Leo nodded, before speaking again, "Don't you want to know their dream dates? Their favourite scents, gifts, flowers, clothes, all that? This stuff could make your lives easier."

Jason blinked. Well, it was true. He was dating Piper, and it was all good until he picked her a bunch of lavender, only to promptly find out she was allergic to it. She had put on a nice face, said thank you politely, but it turned a little awkward when rashes popped up on her face like an erupting volcano. He didn't really want a repeat of that.

Percy thought the same. One time, he had bought Annabeth this really nice grey dress that matched her eyes. It was only when he found out that it was two sizes too big that he discovered his girlfriend's mastery of judo techniques.

"Fine," said Percy, after a little while of silence and Leo smirking, because he knew he had won them over, "but if we get caught-"

"-which, like I've said a bajillion times, we won't-"

"-it's your fault."

Jason nodded affirmatively, "I agree. We can all beat you up when we get dumped, okay Leo?"

"Hahah," Leo said, whacking his arm jokingly, "Sure you can." Although the idea of getting beaten to pulp by two children of the Big Three didn't really appeal to him, he knew they'd never go if he didn't give them his word. He returned to finding a nice, cosy spot for the Argo II to land.

Just then, Frank ascended the stairs.

"Hey guys," he greeted casually, shivering a bit in his Camp Jupiter T-shirt, "How far away are we?"

"Just parking the car," said Leo, focusing on a lovely grassy spot, supposedly free of unsuspecting mortals, "Hope you guys are ready to learn more about your girlfriends in one night than you ever have in a year."

=#=#=#=

Piper was totally astounded. She had met Rachel Elizabeth Dare, right before her quest to save Hera, and she had heard about how wealthy she was. She idly thought of back home, and her own mansion, but this really took the cake.

Rachel's house-going-palace had a spacy lobby area with a huge staircase leading up to the next three floors, all lined with gold paint and carpeted with a lush and soft fabric. A giant chandelier hung from the ceiling, lit with twenty plus candles. Piper marvelled at the sight, asking herself how on earth they lit them every evening.

The walls were not spared. They were littered with photos of Rachel and her parents, although most were of Rachel herself. Her parents must love her, Piper thought, and felt a twinge of jealously rush through her. Her father was super rich, and probably super busy, yet he still made time for her. She couldn't help but wonder why her own dad, Tristan McLean, couldn't do the same.

The maids bustled in behind the group, pushing the luggage on a cart of some sort, to a lift and disappearing into the doors. Rachel clapped her hands.

"Well, they've put all your stuff upstairs in our room. There's a shower too, if you feel like you need one. I'll show you up to our room, if you'd like," she offered. As she turned around, you could see her blushing with embarrassment. She probably hadn't often had guests around, touring her house like it was a zoo.

Hazel stepped forward, looking a little red herself, "Er, may I use the bathroom?"

Rachel laughed, "Oh, sure! It's just down that corridor," she pointed to her right, "take a left, then down another corridor, on the fifth door on the right, take that door, then another immediate right in there, then the second door on your left and it should be there."

Hazel looked at her like she'd just imploded. Rachel giggled.

"I'm just kidding! It's right there," she, this time, gestured to a small door almost hidden under the stairs, "I'll get a maid to escort you to the room. Would you guys like to see it?"

Piper enthusiastically spoke, "Yes, please."

While Hazel visited the little ladies' room, Annabeth, Piper and Reyna headed upstairs two flights, before arriving on a floor exclusively for Rachel herself. When the four of them walked down a hallway, Rachel opened the door on right.

Reyna almost dropped her serious expression she was so surprised.

The room was fit for a god. A humungous king-size bed with four posters sat to the side, with a flowing duvet. The entrance to her en-suite bathroom was just next to her bed. There were four sofa beds and a reclining armchair, all surrounding a clothed table and a wide-screen HD Plasma TV. A book case filled with novels hugged the wall. Right in the corner of the room was Rachel's work desk, littered with paints and colouring pencils. Her easel was nestled just beside it, with a drawing of something that wasn't quite finished. Finally, the window – it filled the entire right wall, overlooking most of Manhattan and the sea. The bright lights were enough to cover the entire room.

Rachel grinned. Annabeth ran to the window first.

"Wow," was all she could say, as she gazed into the outside world, no doubt at the buildings and structure that were within her view. The sun had truly gone down now, and most of the city was blanketed in darkness, but Annabeth was so captivated in the view that she didn't care.

"It's beautiful," she finally said, as Piper and Reyna joined her side to also marvel at the spectacle.

"You can see so much! The Empire State Building, Pomona's statue… even some little parks!" Piper pointed excitedly at a little grassy patch, just hiding behind a building. Rachel smiled.

"Yep, I get a pretty great view here. Well, those tall buildings kinda' obscure half of it, but whatever, I take what I can get," she walked over to the edge of the window, and grabbed the strings to close the blinds, "Anyway, we don't want anyone being a peeping tom, so I'll just close these."

The three of them tore their view from the window as Rachel shut the blinds. Annabeth was disappointed, but she didn't let show.

For the first time tonight, Rachel frowned, "Well, we can't start the sleepover yet. Not all of my guests have arrived."

"What, you mean Hazel?" asked Piper. Rachel shook her head.

"Nope. I asked someone else to come to, but she doesn't like flying so she said she'd make her own way here. I don't think she's arrived yet…"

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Hazel poked her head through, smiling gently.

"Hi, everyone. Er…" she trailed off, stepping aside as another girl – tall, jet black hair, punky black clothes shrouded in a silver cloak, skull earrings, a beautiful silver circlet on her head and a huge smirk – waved the peace sign.

"Hey, guys," said Thalia, strolling into the room and plopping down on one of the sofas, "Sorry I'm late."

=#=#=#=

Leo grunted. Hmm, New York is the city that never sleeps. How was it that this one, old, homeless guy had decided he was going to nap right where he wanted to anchor the Argo II?

It took all three of them – Percy, Jason and Frank – to move him aside. He didn't look particularly happy about it, but when he saw a bronze ship just casually floating above him, he didn't think twice and dashed off. The gods only knew what that guy saw in the Mist.

Anyway, the ship was parked now, and the four of them were headed towards Rachel Dare's huge mansion.

Percy still had his doubts about this whole thing. He felt like he was betraying Annabeth's trust a little. Jason and Frank didn't feel much better about it either (although Frank was curious to hear what Hazel said about him). The only one that was excited was Leo.

To make them feel better, he noted, "Guys, it was either secret and undercover or Coach Hedge waving his baseball bat around shouting 'Die!'" It did make them feel better. Just.

They arrived shortly at the perimeter of the house, just at the front lawn. It wasn't heavily guarded, but the Dare's hadn't taken anything too lightly. Leo was certain they had alarms installed and security cameras at every corner.

"Okie… dokie… lokie…" he said absently, fiddling with his tool belt.

"What are you doing?" Frank asked. Leo tutted.

"Decoy," he mumbled, producing an odd egg-shaped device he had made earlier, "Emits waves that scrambles cameras – cause 'em to loop old footage. I can disable the alarm with this thing-" out from his tool belt appeared a radio-like controller with tons of fiddly-sticks and button-things.

He placed them both on the floor, and set them off. They waited a few minutes, before the devices displayed on their little screens that all was successful.

"And how exactly do you plan to pass those beefy-looking guys?" Percy pointed at the two men frozen at the door, still as statues.

"I don't."

Jason sighed, "Don't tell me you're going to Taser them."

"What? No! I won't need anything like that, just this-" his third and final gadgets jumped out from his tool belt – a metal hourglass-shaped vase with a single flower from the top connected by a wire to a laptop and four sets of headphones. The three of them stared, unimpressed, at the vase.

"You're going to distract them with flowers?" Percy guessed, just before the vase sprouted legs from the base.

"Nope – we're not even going in," he looked smug, glancing at the vase, "His name is Harold."

Percy knitted his eyebrows, "Great, first a table named Buford, and now a vase named Harold. What's next, a washing machine named Walter?"

"Don't tempt me," Leo said, thumbing with the laptop controls, "Hmm, now that I've set this all up we could go back to the Argo II. But, eh, I don't think we'd get quite as good a picture or sound quality…"

The three boys looked at him doubtfully.

"What?"

Jason waved his hand, "Nothing, man. You just sound like a creep."

"I'm not a creep! I'm just curious about the habits of members of the opposite sex, which they perform during large, social gatherings such as this."

"So… a creep," said Percy.

"I call it the science of women."

Jason sighed, "At least he's not peeking through bathroom windows…"

"Well, we're here now, so I guess we might as well continue…" said Frank, hoping no awkward debate would spark. He hoped he wasn't considered a creep, too.

"Good one, Frank. Now, if I fiddle with this ma-bob…" Harold the vase responded to Leo controlling the thumbstick on the laptop around, which was a good sign. It shuddered in motion.

"Works well. Alright, camera…" he typed a combination of letters into the laptop, and the screen focused on the grass right in front of the vase. A small camera was attached to the front of Harold. The display on the laptop wasn't exactly HD, but it did the trick.

"Okay. Put on your headphones," Leo instructed, and the four of them did as they were told.

"Hello?" Leo spoke, talking straight at Harold. The sound replayed in his ears very loudly, and he nodded affirmatively while his friends' ears buzzed.

"Works. He's all ready to go," his grin turned devilish, "Ready?"

His friends turned to each other, each looking a little reluctant. Finally, Percy said, "Go for it."

In his final act, Leo unplugged Harold from the laptop and controlled it's motions, making it walk right into the driveway. Being dark grey and slender, it didn't attract the attention of the guards as it sidled against the wall, dodged their rather chunky legs and waddled up to the door.

"Good job, Harold!"

"How are we going get in? And once we've done that, how are we going to find where they are?" said Jason.

"This… is where we improvise."

=#=#=#=

After a heartfelt reunion and meet-and-greet with Thalia, the lieutenant of the Hunters of Artemis, the group changed into their pyjamas, grabbed a whole load of pillows and blankets and plonked themselves on the floor. They were all arranged in a circle, legs crossed like it was Circle Time back at elementary school again.

Rachel giggled. Her hair was roughly tied back, and her pyjamas looked mostly like her day clothes – baggy green T-shirt and green holey trousers splattered with an assortment of dried paint. She hugged her pillow which she had stolen from her bed.

"The toilet and shower is just that room over there-" she pointed to her en-suite, as if someone missed it, "-in case any of you need it. The maids will be bringing up some food that we can snack on all night. Shall we see if we can pull an all-nighter?"

Thalia laughed, "Please, I pull that off on a daily basis."

"Good, then it's all settled."

"Hold on," interrupted Annabeth, who started looking a little concerned, "There are five demigods here – do you know how many monsters we'll attract?" Rachel looked particularly smug at this point.

"I know, and I took precautions. While my father was away, I had the whole house lined with charmed Celestial Bronze. I got some help from the children of Hecate, of course. And the bodyguards didn't really see the point of it, but don't worry; you're completely safe here. If not, I hope you brought your weapons."

The group laughed nervously. They had brought their weapons, of course, but they'd only use them in an emergency. And they didn't really want to joke about that.

"Anyway, Thalia," said Annabeth, trying to relieve some tension, "How did you get permission to sleep over? I don't think Artemis would warrant it."

Thalia stretched out her legs. She was wearing, naturally, all-black tank top with shorts, the back of which reading 'I'm not a morning person'.

"She didn't really want me to. When my second-in-command, Phoebe, said I'd been working really hard, she seemed more inclined to let me go. Then, when I told her no boys would be here, she was totally swayed," she grinned sheepishly, "At least, I don't know about any boys, right?"

Rachel nodded, "Nope. No boys. It's just us girls, having a good ole' gossip and maybe a pillow fight. You're allowed to talk about members of the opposite gender, right?"

"Of course."

"Good, so am I," Rachel pulled out a magazine from seemingly nowhere, with a familiar actor posing on the front, "Soooo, who's excited for the newest Twilight film?!"

There was a collective groan in the room.

=#=#=#=

"You can't drive."

"I know that. I'm only fifteen."

"No, I mean, you can't drive Harold."

"Yes I can!" Leo protested, as Harold promptly bumped into a wall, "Oops, sorry Harold!"

"It can't hear you."

Leo gasped like he had just insulted Hephaestus, "Hey, Harold is clearly a dude's name. Don't refer to him as 'it', please."

Percy almost smacked his forehead, "Leo, hand me the controls."

Leo grumbled, pushing the laptop in Percy's direction. He had managed to navigate Harold the vase right into Rachel's home by using the spring-legs to jump into a slightly ajar window. Then, about five maids had walked into the foyer, all bustling with what looked like lots of delicious food.

"Quick, Harold, incognito mode!" Leo had said, tapping a button. Harold's legs retracted in like a plane's landing gear. It looked really measly amongst all the larger, taller, beautifully displayed vases but no-one seemed to notice.

Once they were gone, Percy took the thumbstick with a sheepish laugh.

"I have no idea how to work this thing," he pushed it upwards and Harold the vase obeyed, sprouting legs again and moving forward, jumping off the window sill in the process.

"Hang on," said Jason, pointing at the maids, who were now halfway up the stairs, "They might be going to where the girls are. I think we should follow them." Percy nodded in agreement, making Harold stealthily sneak around behind them. At the bottom of the stairs, the inconspicuous grey vase followed Percy's instructions to jump every little step.

"We're losing them!" said Leo desperately, clutching his headphones to his ears. This was too much to bear. What if Harold the vase was caught – or worse, stepped on?

Percy was in operative mode now, his hands flowing like a river over the keys that made Harold conform to his commands. Eventually, the vase had scaled two sets of stairs and the maids had disappeared.

"So," Leo said, scratching his non-existent beard, "We know they went up here, but we don't know which room-"

"What the-?" The four boys froze in terror, but not before Percy mashed the key for the legs to go away. He recoiled from the laptop, staring uncertainly at the screen. They were busted.

Well, not quite. One of the maids, who was lagging behind with a small tray of sausage rolls, picked up the vase and studied it curiously.

"Flora!" she called, her babyish face staring directly at the camera, outlined with short cropped light-brown hair. Just then, out from a room door, a tall maid with tied back curly blonde hair and glasses tiptoed out of the room.

"What? You need to be quieter, Lumina," she whispered, peering hesitantly at the door she came from, "Rachel's guests are here."

"Sorry," Lumina mumbled, looking sheepish, "But do you know where this vase belongs?"

Flora scowled, muttering, "Just because my name has something to do with flowers doesn't mean I know the exact look and location of every single vase. Does Muffy know?"

"Don't see why she should. You know how clueless she is to those sorts of things," the two looked at Harold, eyes fixated on its plain design.

"It's kinda' ugly."

"Hey!" hissed Leo, from the other end of the camera.

"Well, it might belong to Rachel. Should we ask her?"

Flora shook her head, "Nah, she's already got a lot to deal with, being a first-time sleepover host. If we just leave it here we can ask her tomorrow morning."

Lumina nodded in agreement, placing the vase on the nearest window sill.

"Now, quick, go into Rachel's room and leave the tray on the table. Celia's offering everyone food and Muffy's serving the drinks. Go, go, go!" And with that, Lumina the maid plopped Harold the vase on a window sill out looking the front garden and rushed off into Rachel's room, almost dropping her tray of goodies.

All four boys sighed in relief. That was too close for comfort.

"Okay," said Percy, who was sweating like he had just run a marathon, "Right, so, at least now we know where Rachel's room is."

Frank gulped. He didn't like his chances anymore. Was it really all worth just finding out more about Hazel? Maybe it was better just to ask her.

"W-well," he stammered, "How do we get in? We can't just push the door open."

"Already thought about that," even Leo sounded a little shaken up. He told Percy to get Harold to the door, and if all was going to his plan, they would be in the room in no time.

=#=#=#=

"Would anyone like a sausage roll?" A maid with short bob-style brown hair bustled into the bedroom, looking a little flustered and holding out a silver tray. Reyna's interested piqued.

"Don't mind if I do," she said, taking once delicate packet of meat from the tray and popping it in her mouth. Piper looked a little repulsed.

"Thanks, Lumina," Rachel said, also taking one, "You can leave the tray there." Lumina the maid set the tray down, bowed slightly, and made her way out of the room.

Thalia was standing up, surveying the goods laid out on the table, "Everything looks delicious," she said, licking her lips. The blonde maid behind the table was pouring out drinks into a cup.

Hazel didn't seem particularly interested in the buffet table. She was too busy staring at the magazine Rachel had.

"The last time I remember vampires didn't sparkle," she quipped. Hazel was dressed in a simple indigo nightgown with matching slippers. It looked adorable.

Annabeth sipped at her glass of apple juice, looking very satisfied, "They don't in myth and legend, but they do in this book series for some reason." She shrugged, placing the glass down and fiddling with her shirt. Annabeth's blue pyjamas consisted of a T-shirt and baggy shorts, just like a typical Californian girl. It really showed how tan she was.

"I see…" Hazel didn't look all that impressed, but she flipped though the magazine anyway to have a gander.

Piper shuffled, making herself cosy in her blanket. Her pyjamas were a subtle yellow with long sleeves. Her hair was thrown into a bun, with only a few locks and her braids falling out. It was a like beautiful mess.

"I met him once," she inputted shyly. Rachel's eyes widened like she'd seen a monster.

"You met thee Robert Pattinson?!" Her mouth formed a perfect 'o' shape as Piper nodded nervously.

"Yep. My dad took me to the New York premiere of New Moon. He seemed… nice." Well, actually, Piper hated the Twilight films with a burning passion and didn't have much a higher opinion of its actors, but, hey, he did seem like a nice guy.

Rachel practically frothed at her mouth, "You're so lucky! Maybe I can convince my dad to get some tickets to Breaking Dawn Part Two…" she scratched her chin, like she was concocting a very bad plan inside her head. Annabeth chuckled.

"You have fun with that." Lumina the maid entered the room again, holding a bowl of crisps.

Reyna, the only one in a dressing gown and who had kept indescribably silent this whole time, finally said something, "What is 'Twilight'? I thought it was a time of day."

And that set Rachel off, explaining the whole saga to poor, unsuspecting Reyna. Piper and Hazel decided to go grab some of the potato snacks – well, it was better than listening about sparkly vampires.

=#=#=#=

Percy jerked the thumbstick forward. As Lumina entered the room, Harold the vase stealthily followed inside, darting away from the door before it had time to bang into the back of it and send it flying into Rachel's hair.

"We're in!" said Leo excitedly. The boys shushed him to be quiet, as the girls were already in conversation. Percy spotted Annabeth, stretched out with a glass of apple juice and idly listening in to whatever they were talking about. Percy didn't care. He was too focused on how wonderfully smokin' his girlfriend looked in his favourite colour.

"-and then, they have a vampire-human-baby-thing and she grows up to eighteen and she and Jacob live happily ever after. The end!" Rachel, in all her green glory, clapped her hands together and beamed like the world was roses and daisies. A girl with raven-black hair looked far less impressed.

"That's it?" She said, clearly apathetic.

"Woah, that's Reyna. Didn't think she'd be there," muttered Jason, concentrating on the screen like it was going to go somewhere.

"She's pretty hot," Leo said casually. Percy snorted, inching Harold slowly around to get a better view of everyone, not just Reyna. Pillows and blankets became visible as did the feet of multiple people. Frank's eye widened.

"Those are Hazel's slippers," he said.

"'Must be getting food," Leo murmured, as Percy edged Harold into the best position he could, retracting Harold's legs and edging the camera upwards slightly.

Just then, a girl with cropped black hair slipped onto the floor, on Annabeth's left, with a whole plate-full of sweets, cakes and savoury snacks. Thalia munched on a cheeseburger. Leo was about to pass out on hotness, but then he remembered this gal was Jason's sister, and decided better against voicing his thoughts.

"Eh, not really interested in Twilight, to be honest. I much prefer the Saw and Paranormal Activity movies," she said, taking a very un-lady-like bite. As she did so, her head turned in the direction of Harold, and she stopped chewing, "What in Artemis' name is that?" The four seated girls on the floor all turned to stare directly at Harold.

The four boys' hearts stopped.

"Oh!" said Rachel, looking pleased, "It's so pretty!" she jumped up and picked up Harold like a lost puppy.

"She thinks it's pretty?" Jason mumbled in disbelief, watching as Rachel took the vase and popped it on her bedside table, with a perfect view of everything and everyone.

"There, that's juuuust right. Did you guys get me this?"

Annabeth and Thalia shook their heads. Reyna cocked an eyebrow – it was the ugliest vase she had ever seen; no way would she buy it as a gift for anyone. She also shook her head.

Rachel turned to Piper and Hazel, "You guys?"

Piper turned around and smiled, "Nope."

Jason felt a little tug on his heart. Piper looked ridiculously cute in her pyjamas, and she was always cute, so you can imagine this took the cake.

Or, er, cupcakes. Piper's plate was stacked with vegetarian-friendly bakes, all topped with vanilla icing. It made Jason's mouth water. She took her seat next to his sister, wrapped herself in a blanket and settled with her assortment of cakes.

"Hazel?"

She followed suit, taking a seat next to Piper and crossing her legs like she used to do at school.

Frank smiled. Hazel looked very pretty today. Well, she did every day, but he was far too shy to say that out loud.

"Wasn't me either," she said, glancing around. Rachel shrugged, studying Harold like it was a foreign object, before grinning.

It had to belong to someone, "Lumina? Muffy? Celia? Is this yours?"

The three maids, who were about to leave the room, stopped and shook their heads. Lumina looked particularly distressed.

"I thought it was yours, miss," she said, wondering how the heck it went from the window sill to Rachel's room. The red-head looked back at the vase, cocking an eyebrow.

"Oh, well, It's sitting here… maybe it is mine but I forgot," Rachel shrugged and sat herself down, nestling between Hazel and Reyna with her back to her bed. The maids quickly left, and the group munched heartily on their snacks.

"This is a bit awkward," said Leo, narrowing his eyes as if Harold's camera would zoom in. Percy shifted uncomfortably.

"Yeah, well, considering Hazel and Reyna have never even met Rachel or Thalia before, you could see why."

"I just want them to get to the good part," Leo said.

There was silence for a few moments, before Frank asked, "What 'good part'?" Leo regarded him as if he'd just asked where the Status of Liberty was.

"Obviously the part when they talk about us – you know, boys," he added the emphasis of 'dude, isn't it obvious?' before turning back to the screen. Thalia had taken the magazine away and melodramatically chucked it aside. Although Rachel didn't really approve, she looked particularly complacent.

"Soooooo," she began, glancing at Annabeth and waggling her eyebrows, "Is it true that you karate-chopped Percy when you reunited with him?"

Piper and Hazel stifled a laugh as Annabeth blushed.

"I might have," she said, shoving her nose in the air.

"'Might have'? You put his foot on his chest and threatened him!" said Piper, who was giggling now. The group chuckled as Annabeth turned darker than a beetroot.

"Aw, it's okay, Annabeth," said the red-head, "You two make such an adorable couple!"

"Yeah, well," said Annabeth, pursing her lips, "He can be a bit reckless… and naïve, and moronic…!"

Percy felt like he had been stabbed with her knife.

"But," continued Annabeth, and she looked down at her plate, "He's cute, brave, strong… It was painful when he lost his memory…" she caught herself, fighting back her embarrassment.

The group cooed. She allowed herself a small smile before clearing her throat and shoving her nose in the air again. Percy smiled earnestly – alright, he wasn't perfect, but at least Annabeth respected that. He allowed himself a satisfied smirk.

"He is a bit of a troublemaker," Piper said, nodding understandingly. Love was her element, and so everything that Annabeth said made sense to her. Although Percy wasn't her type, she could see why Annabeth liked him so much.

Hazel giggled, "And he's smarter than he looks."

Annabeth picked up a crisp from her plate of goodies and scrutinised it, like she was looking for mould, "Oh, yeah. He acts pretty dumb, but he's secretly harbouring intelligence. I don't know how he does it… I don't know why he does it."

There was an affirmative nod amongst the girls.

"Maybe it's a battle tactic?" said Hazel.

Annabeth's eyebrows furrowed, "Well, jeez, he doesn't have to play it all the time." Percy grumbled. He couldn't help that he was so endearingly cute that he fumbled from time to time… or often.

Rachel had her face cupped in her hands, eyes twinkling, "Ah, that's so cute!" She fell over to her side in a mini fit of giggles, "I always knew you two would end up together."

"Well, no kidding. The amount of missions you went on together it'd be hard to believe that you wouldn't date him," added Thalia, who expertly threw the last chunk of her burger into her mouth, "I'm sworn off boys, but I do occasionally see one that's good-looking."

"Really?" asked Rachel incredulously, "Like who?"

"What's with the face? I can find boys attractive if I want to."

Jason looked away from the screen, "Do we really have to watch this? I don't want to find out what kinda' boys my sister's into that she's not allowed to have."

Leo's interest piqued, "Noooo," he said, waving them to be quiet, "Keep watching!"

Jason grumbled. He knew Leo was only watching for his sister.

Rachel smirked, "What about Leo Valdez?" Leo's ears pricked up like a dog hearing a call from its pack, "I heard he was flirting with you. Do you consider him 'good-looking'?"

Thalia's face darkened. Her mouth thinned, her eyebrows furrowed and her electric-blue eyes turned stormy. It almost sounded as if thunder rolled in the sky.

"That boy…" she began, barely letting the words escape her mouth, "Just… no." Leo's face whitened until he was like snow. His hands, for once, weren't clammy.

"I thought she was going to say how spectacularly awesome-afying I am," he said, barely louder than a whisper in the wind, "How she was on Team Leo…"

Jason patted his back, "Sorry, man. The way she looked at you at the mountain cave… You have lesser a chance than a bridge troll."

You might as well have told him he was going to live the rest of his life as a hermit, living in a taxi with ten cats selling shoe shines. His jaw dropped open and his pupils dilated into almost nothing. For the boy on fire, he felt very cold. Percy and Frank looked at Jason uneasily. Way to put it lightly.

Frank awkwardly patted Leo, who had stiffened, "Don't worry. There are plenty of other fish in the sea." That's what his grandmother would say, at least.

Percy wondered how it was possible Jason could be so seriously stupid. He didn't in the slightest detect the fact that he had mortally wounded Leo's pride. In fact, he continued to sit, listening in to the girl's conversation, which had already moved on from the subject of Thalia's forbidden men.

Even though Rachel's hair was tied back, the curly locks of ginger hair fell loosely on her shoulders. Her eyes scanned the room looking for her next victim. So far, Annabeth and Thalia had been checked off the list.

"Piper," Rachel spoke, attention swayed to the choppy-haired girl, "Now you and Jason are hot together."

Both Jason and Piper blushed. Heavily.

"I don't know about me being hot…" she commented, swirling a braid in her fingers, "But Jason's hot – if you, er, don't mind me saying, Thalia."

The punky girl smiled with a shrug, "I don't mind. As long as you treat him right, Piper. He's been through a lot."

She shifted uncomfortably, "I know that."

"Done any kissing?" Rachel asked giddily.

"W-wha-?" was Piper's reaction, using her hand to cover her face, "M-maybe." Thalia's face hardened a little, but she said nothing. It must have been a bit awkward to know someone who had made out with your brother.

Percy smirked as he caught a glimpse of Jason's face. It pretty much matched Piper's.

"Getting nitty-gritty?" he joked.

"You can't talk, Jackson," Jason said, red, but smirking.

"If you don't mind me saying, Piper and Thalia," said Annabeth, "But Jason is really dense."

"Dense?!" Jason repeated in disbelief. Well, it was clearly karma playing its cards here. Percy and Leo snickered, and even Frank couldn't resist a wry smile.

Piper frowned, as did Thalia. The latter spoke up, "Yeah, well, I haven't seen him much since I last met him. I don't know how he grew up like that. I'm not dense."

Annabeth smirked, "She says."

"Hey," Thalia playfully whacked her friends arm, and they grinned at each other.

"Well, he can be a little… uh…" Piper wasn't sure what to say.

Reyna spoke up and helped her, for the first time today, "Thick? Opaque?"

Piper stared at the ground, "Hahah, yeah, I guess he is. Even when my mind was manipulated by the Mist he still wouldn't kiss me properly. He's not exactly smooth."

"Hear that, Lover Boy?" Percy nudged a very red-in-the-face Jason, "You're not smooth and you can't kiss properly."

"Shut up," he was trying very hard (and failing very hard) to cover his blush.

"B-but," Piper protested, "He's good now. I think. I don't know."

Then it was settled, Jason decided. The minute he saw her next, he was going to snog her face off. Then she'd see who was smooth and a great kisser.

Everyone was in fits of hysterics – even serious-gal Reyna seemed to be laughing. The air seemed to lighten as they became more comfortable with each other. They were just a group of friends have a gossip – with a group of boyfriends-of-friends secretly listening in.

Now that they had settled, Rachel continued to comb through her party guest list, "Reyna," she said elegantly, a smile slipping onto her lips, "Got anyone in mind?"

Reyna looked up, all lightness gone. Her face was hardened but her eyes told a different tale. After a silence, only broken by the munching of crisps, Reyna spoke.

"No."

Rachel frowned – that was a first, "What? No-one? Not even any crushes or something?"

Reyna felt uncomfortable. Yes, of course she had crushes, but the boyfriends of those crushes happened to be sitting right in front of her. She couldn't do that to them, and it certainly wasn't within her morals to do so.

"None at all," she replied, with a perfectly straight face. Reyna turned away, avoiding Annabeth's steely and calculating gaze. The blonde couldn't tell if she still fancied Percy or not, and it was driving her nuts.

The four boys, through Harold, watched intently. They (well, except Leo) knew about Reyna's feelings towards her fellow praetors.

Rachel was doubtful, "Aw, c'mon, there's gotta' be someone. Let's see…" she was about to list the two people that came to mind first – Percy, Jason and Frank – but naturally they were already involved with three girls present.

Hazel shifted too, "If you don't mind me saying… What about Octavian?"

Reyna looked absolutely horrified, and Hazel shrunk into her blanket a little.

"Oh, gods, no," she said quickly, almost gagging in disgust, "Octavian is the last person I'd want to date."

"Hank? Larry?"

"I've seen dogs that fight better with a sword than the two combined."

"… Dakota's a nice guy?"

"Yes, but he's already involved. I'm sure him and Kool-Aid are getting along marvellously."

There was a giggle within the group, and back outside. Even Reyna cracked a smile. So, she did have a sense of humour.

"What about Leo?" Hazel piped in, "He's funny."

In contrary to how Thalia reacted, Reyna raised her eyebrows. She pursed her lips as silence swept both environments – Leo was holding his breath. He hadn't even considered Reyna before – and she was totally out of his league so it was perfect.

"… Indeed he is."

Leo fist-pumped with a huge, devilish grin, and almost shouted, "She digs me!"

"Well, jeez, you recovered quickly."

"-And he's really sweet, too," Hazel said, smiling genuinely. Frank couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealously. His girlfriend was selling someone else – it was like the Sammy incident all over again.

Reyna's black eyes studied her closely. She was going to say that he was Greek, but figured that would only provoke offense within the group, "He is younger than me."

"Ah," said Rachel pretentiously, sneaking into the conversation, "Age is but a number."

It was hard to say how Reyna was feeling, because she wasn't too sure on the class clown. She had had conversations with him before, and they were mostly pleasant (very, in fact). She was fond of him, but… unsure.

"Well, he certainly doesn't see me in that way," she countered.

"You don't know that," said Piper finally, "I've known Leo for ages, and he always picks girls that are out of his league."

The group chuckled. Reyna turned the lightest shade of pink and a small smile escaped her mouth.

"Hmm. We shall see."

Outside of the party, Leo was frothing at mouth. There was actually a potential girl for him in the world – for him! He always thought he'd be that odd-one-out – the unnecessary, unneeded, seventh wheel. But hearing that someone like Reyna would actually 'think about it'? He thought Hephaestus may be playing tricks on his ears. He gawked at the laptop screen, undistracted by Percy, Jason and Frank – who were nudging each other and giggling like children – and might as well have grabbed a bucket of popcorn since he was so engrossed.

"At least someone has the hots for me," said Leo, adjusting his greasy Camp Half-Blood T-shirt and feeling pretty proud.

Percy was going to retort, but he decided not to ruin his thunder.

Frank smiled – that was good for Leo. He felt a little tense now because the only girl left to speak was Hazel, his girlfriend. He wondered what kinds of things she would say about him – maybe he played dumb, was dense or out of her league? He anticipated, feeling clammy.

"And to finish the circle," said Rachel with pep, "It's Hazel! You're dating Frank, aren't you?" The eyes in the room turned to her, and suddenly she felt very self-conscious.

"Erm, yes, I am," she smiled, "I can tell you that he's the sweetest, loveliest guy I've ever met. There's nothing wrong with him."

Rachel almost doubled-over in adorableness.

Jason scowled, "Aw, c'mon, we get put down by our girlfriends and yours says you're the nicest guy ever? I call unfair."

"I second that," said Percy nonchalantly.

"I third it, and I don't even have a girlfriend," added Leo. Frank only grinned sheepishly.

"Heheh, sorry," was all he could say. Secretly, though, he couldn't help but feel a little smug. Just a little.

"He's like a big teddy bear," continued Hazel, who had closed her eyes and was hugging her legs now, "I wouldn't trade him for the world."

Piper grinned, "You two are cute together."

"Mm, I agree," said Annabeth, as Hazel blushed, not knowing what to add. Frank felt like someone had shot an arrow into his heart – all warm and fuzzy and gushy. It was weird, but… pleasant.

Suddenly, Rachel shuddered, grasping her blanket. She threw her head upwards, first at the ceiling, and then back at her friends, turning white as a sheet. Annabeth gasped, quickly jumping over to her.

"She's about to have a prophecy!" Annabeth said, with wide eyes, "Now, of all times!"

Indeed, Rachel's eyes seemed to loll backwards, and when she opened her mouth, the voice was not hers.

"Four demigods watch whilst you speak, betrayed by an object whose owner you seek.

On a bronze ship that flies and sails, under the cover of the darkness veil.

Disabled and looped is the vigilant eye, which protects from invaders and those that pry.

Find them you shall on a grassy plain, eager for information that you pertain."

When Rachel was finished, her upper body just buckled, falling onto the floor. Seconds later, she whipped upwards again, blinking hard and rubbing her head.

"Ouch. That wasn't a normal prophecy," she grumbled, just as bewildered as the rest were.

"No, that wasn't," said Annabeth, "It was more like a message that rhymes."

"'Four demigods watch while you speak'," quoted Piper, looking horrified, "Does this mean… someone's watching us right now?" A wave of terror passed through their faces, as they realised the deeply laced words of the message.

"'On a bronze ship that flies and sails'… it must be the Argo II," contributed Hazel, biting her lip. A thought passed through their heads – who was the only guy who could control that ship and live to see another day? Who were the only three demigods that the control-man would dare take on his ship?

Outside, the four boys suddenly started sweating buckets.

"Was that…" Leo said, utterly gobsmacked.

"That prophecy was about us," said Jason, who gulped in guilt.

Percy bit his lip, "… We're going to Tartarus," he stated, as they watched six female heads, after reciting the first line again, turn agonisingly towards Harold the vase, "I think it's time to bail."

"Agreed," said Frank, whose fuzzy feeling of rays of sunbeams was replaced with desperation. He had his hands on his headphones, ready to take them off.

"Wait," said a voice, through the laptop, stopping them in their tracks. Piper was staring directly at them, even though she could only see a grey and plain flower container, "Four demigods of the prophecy, come into the house – third floor, second door on the right. Rachel, inform your security guards about them." Her charmspeak flowed through her words, brainwashing the four boys (and even Rachel) to follow her exact orders.

"I think we should go into the house," said Percy, although he really didn't want to, removing the headphones and standing up. The three boys agreed and followed mechanically.

The guards looked at them suspiciously, but did nothing, on the words of their mistress, Rachel Dare. They passed Lumina, Muffy, Celia and Flora the maids, who gave them an odd look, but again, didn't do anything about it. Once they arrived in the room, in person, they came face-to-face with six very serious girls in pyjamas, all standing up.

Annabeth looked horrified once she spotted her boyfriend, "P-Percy?" she stared at the other three, "Jason? Leo? Frank?"

Thalia stood up, her eyes narrow and glaring (most especially at Jason), "You were listening to us?"

The charmspeak had worn off, and the four boys looked very agitated.

"Annabeth," Percy laughed nervously, pushing back some black tousled black hair of his, "I can explain-"

But he was cut off when all six of the girls brandished their weapons from behind their backs. Rachel crossed her arms.

"You know, we were only going to use these in an emergency… but I think this is an emergency… What do you think, girls?"

They nodded, glaring at their boyfriends plus Leo. Rachel smirked.

"Get 'em."

Fin.

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I appreciate all reviews/ favourites/ follows!

Thanks for reading! :)

~ GD