Till Sunrise┊Luke Castellan

12 .·:· Kaleidoscope of Colours

Alma-Tadema, Lawrence. 'The Roses of Heliogabalus'. 1898. [Detail] ⋆.ೃ࿔*:·

Words:  1,528

╔═*.·:·.✧ ✦ ✧.·:·.*═╗
five days before the summer solstice

Phoebe walked down the hallway of the Big House, her steps echoing softly against the carpeted floors as she made her way to Chiron's office.

For days, Phoebe had been meticulously combing through her medical supplies, piecing together the puzzle of inconsistencies that had plagued her. Now with her findings clutched tightly to her chest, she could let Chiron know.

As she approached his office, the familiar oak door loomed before her and inside she heard the faint sounds of shuffling and rummaging from within. Taking a deep breath to steady her nerves, Phoebe raised her hand and gave a gentle knock, the sound echoing through the corridor. She expected to hear the deep voice of Chiron from within, instead, the room fell silent.

Frowning, Phoebe gently pushed on the door, causing it to creak open. To her surprise, instead of the towering figure of the centaur, her eyes met the unexpected sight of Luke hunched over the desk.

"Hey," she greeted slowly, her brow furrowing in confusion as she stepped into the room.

"Chiron wanted me to grab something for me," Luke explained quickly, offering her a tight-lipped smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

"Oh, cool," Phoebe said, shrugging off any confusion as she entered the office and approached the desk. Placing her papers on his desk, she grabbed a sticky note and pen, quickly jotting down a message before sticking it onto the paper.

Luke leaned over, his curiosity piqued as he tried to catch a glimpse of the note. "What up?" he asked.

Turning her head to him, Phoebe offered him a weary smile "It's nothing interesting. Just some missing medical stuff." she replied, shaking her head, trying to dismiss the importance of it. However, she couldn't shake the gnawing feeling that something was off.

Luke's eyes subtly widened, a knot forming in his throat at her words. "Damn, that sucks," he managed to say evenly.

"Tell me about it, it's super annoying," she frustratedly muttered. Suddenly her gaze was drawn to something behind him.

A luminous, swirling light began to materialise behind him, its vibrant colours casting a prism of hues across the room. The light reminded Phoebe of the way sunlight dances through a sun catcher, creating a kaleidoscope of colours. In awe, she pointed towards it, causing Luke to turn and catch it in his peripheral vision. Before he could get a proper look, a familiar voice echoed through the room.

"Phoebe? Luke?" Percy's voice called out, his and Annabeth's figures gradually materialising in shimmering light before them. Relief instantly flooded Phoebe's heart at the sight of them, the tension in her shoulders easing. They were still alive.

"Annabeth? Percy! Are you okay?" Luke rushed out.

"Where's Grover?" Phoebe interjected, worry etched on her face.

"Grover's fine, we're fine," Annabeth reassured them, "Where is Chiron." her brow furrowing in confusion.

Phoebe looked away at the question. They didn't know what camp was like since they left

"Chiron's holding camp together with both hands. Everyone thinks we are going to war, so the cabins are taking sides" Luke replied. Phoebe glanced up at him, subtly nudging him with the side of her body to try and tell him to stop talking. They didn't need any more stress on their young shoulders.