mastermind - percy jackson

xvii. life and death

"everybody dies"

The rest of the day was just as strange as the beginning. Campers trickled in from New York by car, pegasus, and chariot. The wounded were cared for and the dead were given proper funeral rites at the campfire.

The Ares and Aphrodite cabins both claimed Silena as a hero and lit her hot pink shroud with an electric spear embroidered on it, together. No one dared to mention the word spy and the secret burned to ashes as the designer perfume smoke drifted into the sky.

Cassandra tried to hold back her tears, but couldn't stop them when she saw Drew crying. She put an arm around her shoulder to comfort her, and they cried together.

Lucy's shroud was burned next. Peyton and Nate had done most of the work, creating a light pink shroud with tiny roses embroidered on it.

Even Ethan got a shroud. His was made of black silk and had a logo of swords crossed under a set of scales. Cassandra didn't forgive him, even as his shroud went up in flames, but she hoped he knew that in the end, he had made a positive difference in the world.

They had a low-key dinner at the dining pavilion. The only real highlight was when Juniper screamed, "GROVER!" and gave her boyfriend a flying tackle hug, making everyone cheer. They went down to the beach to take a walk in the moonlight, and Cassandra was happy for them.

Mrs. O'Leary romped around happily, eating everybody's table scraps. Nico sat at the main table with Chiron and Mr. D, and nobody seemed to think it was out of place. Everybody was patting Nico on the back and complimenting him on his fighting.

Slowly, the dinner crowd trickled away. Some went to the campfire for a sing-along. Others went to bed. Cassandra ran back to the Aphrodite cabin to grab something, and came back to find Percy sitting by himself at the Poseidon table watching the moon.

"Hey" She slid next to him on the bench. "Happy Birthday."

She handed him a white cake box with a couple misshapen blue cupcakes in it.

Percy stared at her. "What?"

"August eighteenth is your birthday, right?" She asked. "Please don't tell me I got the date wrong."

"You didn't" Percy assured.

"Well then, make a wish" Cassandra said.

"Did you bake these yourself?"

"Tyson and Annabeth helped me, but Tyson did most of the work" Cassandra said. "Me and Annabeth got into a pretty big flour fight."

"That explains why it looks like a chocolate brick" Percy said. "With extra blue cement."

Cassandra laughed lightly.

Percy took a second to think, then blew out the candle.

Percy grabbed a cupcake and ate it with his fingers. He offered one to Cassandra but she refused, as she was already feeling nauseous. Besides the crickets and monsters making noise in the woods, it was quiet.

She had a million things to tell him. Her curse, the trick she'd played on Kronos, but she couldn't bring herself to ruin the mood.

"Spill it" Percy said.

"What?"

"You have that look on your face" Percy said. "Like you have something important to tell me, but don't know how to bring it up."

"It's nothing" Cassandra said.

"You're lying" Percy said. And then, with a guilty look on his face added, "I feel like you've been lying to me a lot lately."