I know in TLH it says that Percy spent one day at camp before he went missing. However, in my story, he was there for much of the winter break before he was gone.

Enjoy :)

DISCLAIMER: RICK RIORDAN AND PEOPLE AT DISNEY OR SOMETHING OWN THE PERCY JACKSON SERIES OF WHICH THIS FIC IS BASED ON. YOU SHOULD READ THE REAL SERIES BTW. THEY'RE REALLY GOOD.

BREAKING NEWS: For the first time in its three-thousand-year-old history, ratings for Hephaestus TV dropped to an all-new low. Television network analysts suspect...

"What?! That cannot be!" Hephaestus exclaimed. He tossed his hammer aside and turned towards his godly wife, Aphrodite. Hephaestus was working on a new project when the love goddess made a surprise visit to his forge in the Appalachians to broke the news. "Isn't everyone still buzzing about the Battle of Manhattan? I recall someone telling me that summer ratings of Hephaestus TV broke records when it happened."

Aphrodite huffed, her eyes focused on her cherry-red nails, scrutinizing the smooth polish. "That was in August."

"So?" Hephaestus took back his gigantic hammer and continued pounding on a magical pocket Swiss Army Sword. CLANG.

The goddess rolled her eyes. Typical Hephaestus. That god could spend an eternity in his tinkering and lose touch the outside world. "Right now it's December. The Battle of Manhattan was so last summer. Olympus would rather spend time with Hades than watch the same old Christmas reruns."

"Impossible," grunted Hephaestus. CLANG. "Who can't get enough of A Charlie Brown Christmas?"

Aphrodite – who secretly abhorred Peanuts – sighed. "Everyone – gods, godlings, nymphs and satyrs alike – are saying that Hephaestus TV needs some fresh new ideas or it's going to be out of style."

With one last CLANG, the blacksmith god put down his hammer and furrowed his singed brows. "Then I suppose you have ideas to increase viewership."

Aphrodite gave him a sly but dazzling smile. "Of course. Why else would I visit your, uh..." She scanned the rocky, dark, cavernous workshop filled with wicked weapons and strange whirring devices. "... charming workshop."

"So I can make you something pretty."

Aphrodite hesitated. "Actually that was another reasons why I came here, except it's part of my overall idea."

Hephaestus sighed. "This better be a good, Aphrodite. The last time I let you have your own reality TV show, we were sued for copying America's Next Top Model."

The goddess of beauty cursed under her breath. "Stupid Tyra! This is how she repays me for making her the minor goddess of fashion models. Ungrateful, narcissistic..."

"Besides," Hephaestus said, unaware of his wife's mumbling, "The Olympians prefer programs about the demigods on earth. Judging by the amount of regular viewers for Demigod Daily, it seems that they all enjoy messing with their tragic heroic lives."

Aphrodite perked up. "That's exactly what my idea is all about. It's going to be fabulous."

No god or goddess has visited Camp Half-Blood since last summer, when Apollo came by like 'Hey everyone, I kinda made Percy's ginger, mortal friend an ultra-psychic Oracle who spews green smoke and delivers possibly catastrophic prophecies every once in a while. Have fun!'

So when Annabeth saw the large huddle of people in the amphitheater after lunch, she had a feeling that some divine being was making an entrance.

However, after weaving through the crowd, she found out that the focus of all the attention was Jake Mason, son of Hephaestus, studying a really shiny iPhone.

"Hey Annabeth," Percy greeted. He stood beside Jake, who seemed to be having an intense staring contest with the golden phone. "Do you think you can figure this out?"

"Sure." Annabeth took the device into her hands. She flipped the mobile device in her palms. Instead of the usual Apple logo, a single Greek letter was engraved on the back of the iPhone. Eta. Instantly, Annabeth thought back to her first quest. She recalled seeing same letter on a Cupid statue in front of a romantic theme park ride that was a bit too thrilling for her liking. No doubt that this was no ordinary Apple product.

Annabeth flipped the iPhone over and pressed the home button. The screen lit up showing an Empire State building background.

From the Fairest, it read. Annabeth scoffed at the thought. Of course she would insist that she won the fairest goddess contest.

She slid her finger along the screen and inputted the four digit password. 0910. Cabin 9 and Cabin 10. Hephaestus and Aphrodite.

Light streamed out from the back of the iPhone, creating a holographic projection similar to an Iris message. Behind Annabeth, the campers all gasped in awe. The image depicted a homely looking man and a ridiculously attractive woman seated on a luxurious couch.

The woman beamed. "Congratulations. If you managed to view this message, that means Chiron has figured the password out."

"Or that daughter of Athena," mumbled the man.

The woman continued cheerily without a hitch, "As you all may have guessed by my extraordinary beauty, I am Aphrodite. That's right my darlings, I am the goddess of love, beauty and all other sorts of wonderful things."

"And I'm Hephaestus," the man said with a wave.

Aphrodite beamed. "Have you ever wanted to be on TV? Well, this is your chance! In a few weeks time, all of you in Camp Half-Blood will be on TV! Though not on your amateur mortal channel, but Hephaestus TV! Yes that's right, HTV, the number-one network of Mount Olympus!" She clapped her perfectly manicured hands in delight.

At the moment, the campers began whispering among themselves, many expressing their nervousness. Two gods, parents of a bunch of campers, wanted to make a television program out of Camp Half-Blood. Great.

"In fact," Hephaestus boomed, "We want all of you in our reality Christmas special. I'll let Aphrodite take it from here since it was her idea."

Aphrodite's idea? Annabeth thought, Oh gods this can't be good. In her mind she could already see all of the possible ideas. Project Runway - Camp Half-Blood Edition. The Demigod Bachelor. The Real Half-Bloods of Long Island. America's Next Top Model Hero. Well perhaps not the last one. Hephaestus TV already ripped off Tyra Banks.

"This Christmas, Camp Half-Blood will be hosting a beauty pageant!" Aphrodite squealed, "With you campers as the contestants!"

Annabeth exchanged looks with Percy. A beauty pageant? The only contestants that Annabeth was sure would be willing to partake in such a debacle would be the Aphrodite's kids. Annabeth glanced at Drew Tanaka and her gaggle of Aphrodite girls. Already it seemed that the members of Cabin 10 were already planning the designs of their evening gowns.

Still smiling, Aphrodite went on. "Unfortunately, we know you campers would obviously complain that my children would dominate in such a pageant. Which, I might add, is absolutely true. Thus, we decided to shake things up a little. Each cabin will nominate one contestant."

Moans came out from the Cabin Ten kids. To Annabeth's dismay, she could see her siblings staring at her pointedly. She turned to Percy to see him smirking at her. If each cabin selected a contestant, then Annabeth's cabin would pick...

Ugh. Sometimes it sucked being the cabin counselor.

"However, we also know that a few campers, namely children of the Athena or Ares, may object to this competition, calling it unfair, absurd, insane, sexist, objectifying, a hindrance in the progression of the women's equal rights movement, blah blah blah. So we decided to make this a co-ed competition for both boys and girls!"

Annabeth could not help but grin as she observed the expressions of horror on many of the male campers. Half-bloods around her glanced at one another, trying to guess which person from each cabin would be nominated. A couple of Hermes guys playfully punched Connor Stoll on the shoulder, snickering.

"That is so unfair! I'm practically the only Poseidon kid around!" Percy complained.

Nico, who Annabeth did not notice was standing at her side, muttered, "Looks like it's the perfect time to visit the Underworld."

"Can I come?" asked Percy.

When Hephaestus finally spoke in his thunderous voice, everyone quieted down. "But before any of you happen to mysteriously disappear, we would like to inform that there are, ahem, fabulous prizes for the winners. Uh, for instance, the winner of the pageant will receive this scarf." The god held up a shimmering woven garment.

Aphrodite sighed dramatically. "It's a shawl. A shape-shifting shawl."

"Fine, a shawl," Hephaestus grumbled, "With a little help from Athena..." Thunder boomed in the background of the projection. "All right. Athena helped a lot. Moving on, this shawl, as Aphrodite mentioned, shape-shifts. It can transform into any piece of clothing you wish it could be."

"Your dream winter formal dress, a warm coat to wrap around your sweetheart's shivering shoulders, a fashionable bulletproof vest..." Aphrodite suggested, "There's no need to wash it too."

After Hephaestus mentioned Athena's assistance, the campers' conversations took on serious tones. If the goddess of wisdom herself was involved, then the pageant must have the support of the Olympians. Furthermore, the options with the shape-shifting shawl were endless. Casual wear, formal attire and battle armor all in one? That was a pretty sweet deal. Plus, Hephaestus mentioned it was not the only prize...

"For now, each cabin must select a contestant," Hephaestus instructed, "We will send a messenger tomorrow morning to finalize the contestants. Tomorrow we will also establish the rules of the pageant."

"In addition we ask that no camper should leave from now to the end of the competition," Aphrodite simpered threateningly, "Even if you are not a contestant, we need everyone to contribute their talents to ensure that this pageant will be the best first Demigod Pageant in history!"

With that, the projection along with the golden iPhone, vanished.

Haha - get it? Golden apple... Golden Apple product... Oh, I'm so lame.

This is my first time writing fanfiction so don't be surprised if it's a little horrible.

Please provide any feedback. I'd love to hear your thoughts!

-Spec