HP: Monochrome

Silena Beauregard

She had been more than apprehensive, to say the very least, when she heard that they were to host what was most certainly going to be an unwilling guest for the foreseeable future. Ethics aside, Silena had more pressing security concerns. While she had a considerable amount of martial experience, she was still less than comfortable in her abilities to deal with an ancient goddess.

"Shouldn't you be preparing for your mission?" Silena asked as she buttoned up her light blouse after what had been a quite pleasant half-hour distraction from her never-ending chores in Percy's service.

Percy shrugged as he looked up at her. The god was still lying on the deckchair where she had mounted him and shrugged. "Probably," he admitted.

"Well, then get to it," Silena told him off. "I doubt Zeus will appreciate having his divine assignment put on hold."

"What are you expecting me to do? Just take Mrs. O'Leary or Blackjack down to Canada and politely ask Khione not to put up a fuss?" he asked. "Care to come along for that one."

Silena laughed and turned away from Percy. "No, thank you, master. The prospect of becoming an ice sculpture fails to appeal to me. I think I will stick to the domestic duties and leave the sanctioning of renegade goddesses to my glorious overlord."

"Good to know that one so dedicated mans the home front," Percy replied sarcastically and finally got dressed as well.

Silena bowed deeply. "In the meantime, I will arrange our guest's living arrangement, provided you intend to keep her here."

"I guess," Percy replied, and Silena sighed, realizing that Percy hadn't actually thought that far ahead.

"I take it we'll be holding her in the conveniently placed jail?" she asked. She might not be Annabeth Chase, but even she had by now put one and one together. Having Percy conveniently take care of troublemakers had been the plan from the beginning.

When she hurried off, her mind drifted into darker territories. Memories of the war and past loved ones. Silena assumed that it was a side effect of her time in Asphodel, but the pain of losing Charlie was as fresh as it had been when Percy first announced his death. At the same time, the memories that she made with him had already grown distant and faint. She hadn't told Percy, knowing how strange it would sound, but without these memories to feed off, there was only the pain that found her in her quieter hours.

Their affair or arrangement... whatever it was had grown less heated than in the first few days, which suited Silena just fine. While she was nowhere close to ready for a new romantic relationship, she was more than happy to let her strapping young and rather attractive god, whom she was stuck with, take care of her needs. He was a good distraction from having to think.

Silena made her way down to the residence's lowest level, placed her hands on the large vault door, and spun the locking wheel. Having reset the door, she now had access. The large room with the four celestial bronze barred cages lined both sides of the wall with bare cots and restraints secured into the wall in each room.

Silena took a deep breath. She had her work cut out for her. And so, after a short shopping trip, she added a proper mattress to the cot. A small table, chair, and a few books soon joined. Finally, she had Percy set up a television and gaming set. Whatever strife certain parts of the Camp Half-Blood community felt, she was neither in any position to judge nor did she intend to make it her own problem.

When she finished up about an hour later, she returned upstairs only to find Percy watching a movie and sighed. "Just get to it, call that Piper girl or one of your other friends who dealt with her in the past. I'm sure they'd be happy to help," she chided him. She was about to threaten Percy with befriending his mother when someone knocked on their door.

"I'll get it," Percy announced before she could and rose from his chair and hurried to get to the door.

Percy Jackson

When he opened the door, he found himself once again face to face with Thalia Grace. "Hi, Kelphead?"

"Sup, Pinecone Face," Percy replied. Thalia pushed him back a few paces and closed the door behind them. "You're taking down Khione, and I want in," she announced matter-of-factly. "The popsicle incident?" Percy asked. Thalia raised an eyebrow. "Well, duh!" she confirmed.

"I thought I recognized your gentle voice," Silena greeted Thalia dryly.

Thalia smiled fondly at Silena. "Silena! Enjoying life? Your knees look good," the huntress jabbed, and they were rewarded with a light blush. Percy cleared his throat. "Well, Thalia. Want to come in?" "I already am," Thalia replied.

"Long story short, the Hunt still owes Khione payback, and a few of us would very much like to help you catch that witch and drag her back to Olympus in chains. Artemis says she's cool with us coming along."

"So, I haven't really decided on who to bring yet. I don't think Piper can stay objective, Hedge and Leo just aren't very reliable, although Leo has fire abilities, which could be helpful. This would probably leave me with Jason, I guess," Percy admitted as he led her back to the inner courtyard. "Haven't seen him in a while."

"Then me butting in makes your choice so much easier," Thalia pointed out sweetly.

"Fine, you and your friends can come along," Percy conceded. "We'll need at least one person who has actually visited the place, though. I'll ask Jason later. I need to make a few calls anyway."

"So, what's the plan?" Thalia asked, sounding a lot more motivated than he felt. Percy shrugged.

"Catch Khione and lock her up in my basement."

"That sounds like a well-thought-out plan. I especially appreciate your attention to the details," Thalia remarked sarcastically, and Percy mockingly bowed his head.

Percy looked over at the pretty daughter of Aphrodite for a long, thoughtful moment with a slightly sinking feeling as she longingly sipped on her expertly made Mojito. He'd need to keep a closer eye on her.

"Let me know when this is going down. I've got a handful of girls that already volunteered," Thalia announced.

"I would love to invite you to stay for dinner, but I do have work too," Percy finally announced.

Thalia grinned. "I wouldn't want to force Silena to spend more time in the kitchen. You know, gender roles and all..."

Percy rolled his eyes. They talked for a few more minutes before he finally showed his cousin to the door.

The next thing on his to-do list was obvious. Percy tossed a golden coin into his fountain. "So, hi, Lady Iris. Show me Jason Grace, please," Percy announced awkwardly, not quite sure how he should address the goddess now that he was a god as well.

The spray turned into a fine mist, and a colorful rainbow started shimmering in the air. A heartbeat later, the all-too-familiar face appeared, hanging in the air. From the looks of it, Jason was in a dorm of some sort, sitting at a desk doing schoolwork.

"Good afternoon, Percy," Jason greeted him with a grin. Percy was honestly happy to be spared any formalities.

"Jason, sup man?" Percy returned the greeting. "Sorry for going silent like that. I've been quite busy."

"So, I've heard," Jason replied. "School has been a complete nightmare. I can't see why mortals even bother to try."

"I feel your pain, my dude," Percy assured him.

"Well, yeah. Anyway, what can I do for you?" Jason asked.

"Remember Khione?" Percy started.

"Hard to forget, not the warmest person out there...pun intended," Jason said, grinning. He looked tired, though.

"Your father, in his eternal wisdom, has ordered me to capture Khione and drag her back to Olympus. Thalia and part of the hunt have already volunteered, but we could really use someone who has actually been to Boreas's residence in that place with the Canadians."

Jason's grin widened. "You kidding me? I've been waiting for an excuse to get out of this place! When do you plan to go through with this?"

Percy shrugged, "Dunno, in a few days, I think. Thalia found out about my assignment quite early, and I don't want to give Khione the time to find a bolt hole or worse, dig in."

Jason pumped his fist in anticipation. "You don't even have to ask. Let me know about the time and date, and I will definitely be there," Jason assured him.

"You going to ask Leo...and Piper?" he asked, hesitating for just a moment.

"I will ask Leo, but I think Piper's feud with Khione might just make this blow up in our face," Percy reasoned.

This seemed to please Jason somewhat, and Percy hid his own relief. Now that he thought about it, Piper and Jason being forced to work together might also make the entire quest blow up in their faces. Not that he was worried about Jason, but Piper might just wake up that morning and choose violence. From a historical point of view, underestimating a pissed-off daughter of Aphrodite was an expedient route to an early grave.

"I don't think...no disregard. You might just be right there," Jason conceded, apparently changing his mind mid-sentence.

"I would love to chat more, but I have some stuff to do," Percy announced. "You definitely need to come by Olympus. It would be nice to hang out again."

"I imagine you do," Jason agreed. "I will be sure to take you up on that. According to Piper, you have a pretty sweet place."

"I do," Percy confirmed. "Looking forward to it. Well, good luck studying."

"'I'll need it. See you."

Percy mock saluted, and Jason swiped his hand through the mist. That left one more thing to do, and so he called Piper.

When the daughter of Aphrodite appeared, Percy immediately realized that Piper wasn't alone. Two other kids her age also looked suspiciously Native American as well. The other kids had their backs to him, and fortunately, Piper saw him the moment she did. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she mouthed, "I'll call you back later!" and hastily slashed her hands through the call.

"Okay..." Percy muttered to himself. "People have private lives..."

His third call went to Leo Valdez. He was somewhat surprised to find Leo welding something on some machine in his workshop at Camp Half-Blood. "Yo, Leo!" he called out.

Leo didn't react, fully immersed in his craft.

"Leo!" Percy yelled.

"Leo!" a deep male voice yelled from the other side of the call.

Finally, Leo turned off his torch and looked up, realizing that he had company.

"Oh, Percy," Leo greeted him, shuffling around awkwardly.

"You doing alright?" Percy asked.

"Yeah, fine so far. No major complaints," Leo replied after pulling up his face shield and scratching the back of his head.

"So listen, I've got a quest coming up. We are supposed to track down Khione," Percy started.

Leo looked at someplace out of Percy's view. "Hey, I would love to help you, but I don't think I really can," he started, and Percy grinned. "I understand, man," Percy said quickly, already having been on the fence about Leo and happy to avoid further snags down the line.

"I am really sorry, but this is a really bad time for any quests," Leo repeated himself apologetically.

"Don't sweat it," Percy assured him. "What are you up to?"

Leo shrugged. "Spending time at Camp, following up on a few projects. Caly is apparently off exploring the mortal world." He didn't seem too happy about it, and Percy couldn't really hold that against him. "She's kinda worried that the Olympians might suddenly decide that her presence on earth is undesirable..."

"I understand," Percy assured him. "No apology needed."

They talked for some more, but Percy's business was concluded. When he finally returned to Silena, he was feeling quite good about himself. Unfortunately, Silena didn't seem overly impressed by his labor, and then he remembered that she spent most of her time playing his maid.

A short swim followed by the almost obligatory round of sitting in the sun next to Silena later, an ambient female voice greeted him. "Lord Perseus, the daughter of Aphrodite, Piper McLean, wishes to converse with you. Will you allow this?" the familiar voice of Iris greeted him.

"So this is like an Olympian spam filter," Percy mused and then turned his attention back to the call.

"Sure," Percy replied, and a moment later, the familiar face of Piper McLean appeared hovering over his feet.

To his mild surprise, Piper blushed slightly and lowered her gaze. "Put on a shirt, Percy," she ordered, and Silena snorted in suppressed laughter.

"Oh, shut up," Piper snapped at her half-sister, blushing even more.

Regardless of how much this exchange amused Percy, he chose to comply with her wishes and put on a shirt.

"You were trying to call me?" Piper finally asked, her face straightening. "Sorry, I was working on a school project earlier...exams are approaching."

"Everything is cool. I did kinda pop in on you, so..., anyway, you sent me a message?"

"Oh, the prayer?" Piper asked, her cheeks taking on an adorable pink tone again. "You got that?" Piper nervously ran her hand through her hair.

"Ah, yes," Percy replied.

"Sweet, so yeah. My flat fell through, and finding a roommate is a bitch. I would have asked Annabeth, but I heard she lives in this tiny apartment."

Percy smiled generously. "I got you, Piper. If you really need to crash at my place, you are always welcome for as long as you need it. I'd be happy to help you find a place, of course. It turns out I am somewhat well-connected among the Demigod community."

Piper smiled gratefully. "That would be amazing. I kinda don't want to have to crash with strangers. I would like to keep my kidneys. With mortals, someone might figure out who my dad is..."

"You have to be careful. I got stuck with some weirdo roommate and now can't get rid of her," Percy announced and nodded over at Silena, who raised her eyebrows but said nothing.

Something told me he would be paying for that comment.

"I am sure you are suffering horribly," Piper replied dryly.

"I am. She makes me do disturbing stuff too."

It was a lie, but one meant as a joke, and Piper sniggered.

"Are you alright, Silena?"

Silena rolled her eyes. "You have no idea, darling."

"Back to business," Percy announced. "If you need a place to sleep, you can do it here. We'll have to come up with a fair chores plan. Otherwise, Silena will murder us in our sleep."

Piper smiled, clearly relieved.

"It would be our pleasure to have you here," Silena assured Piper as well, officially giving her blessing on the matter.

"I swear, I won't be a burden."

"I know," Percy assured her.