Heroes of Olympus: The Aftermath of War

FRANK

*Rick Riordan owns all of the characters*

FRANK WAS GROSSED OUT when he saw the chocolate fondue, milkshakes, doughnuts, and ice creams at the lobby, which was okay...except for the fact that it made him want to puke.

A crystal chandelier hung by the reception area, its glistening form a little bright but also very noticeable and beautiful, somewhat like an aura. Reyna and Hylla had claimed to have booked a hotel in advance for their overall comfort. It was very nice of them, not to mention knowing that this had been personally arranged by the queen of the Amazons herself. Frank just couldn't picture Reyna's sister clicking random Internet sites and rummaging through hundreds of optional auberges to find the perfect place. A 5-Star caravansary (he was out of synonyms) was really too much. Mars, they'd have to thank them a lot when they got back. Sending a letter to the Amazons would be taken as a good suggestion too.

"Pluto's shoe," Hazel said, awestruck. "Is Reyna this rich?!"

"Uh, I'm going to pretend I didn't hear the Pluto-shoe-part," Frank replied. "But yeah, I guess so. Her father was a wealthy man, though it's Hylla that claimed to be taking possession of the money at the moment. Reyna despised her dad and refused. So, it's obvious, they're both rich."

"Wouldn't argue with that," Hazel nodded.

Frank, being the other praetor, had learned a lot about Reyna and her family, which was pretty harsh, though halfbloods never got it easy anyway. He himself lost his mom, his [strict] grandmother, and his close blood relatives all while growing up to be who he was today. No one---not a soul---had reached both camps and stayed innocently unconcerned with Death. He actually met Death, but that's another story.

See, no matter how people would dream about it, life was really hard being another struggling demigod kid. ADHD, dyslexic, or lactose intolerant, you'd get this 99% chance of dying everytime you encounter a monster in the local mall or town. Kindly insert Alaska as well, by the way.

Usually, normal demigod conversations would be like:

"Hey! Have you been to the city lately?"

"Uh...no. Why?"

"Because I just killed a cyclops there!"

You get it. Not. Ordinary.

Jason and Piper were talking with the bored receptionist, who was peculiarly a weird look alike of the one in Home Alone 2, as they gave him copies of the booking papers, an envelope, and some additional information regarding the 3 rooms, which had already been paid for.

It wasn't, Frank thought, necessary at all, since the man was obviously distracted and had just kept nodding throughout the whole duration of explanations. So much for the hotel's highly acclaimed 'hospitable' staff. Maybe it was the fact that his friends were teenagers?

Yeah, teens that just saved the entire world from total mayhem.

Jason rolled his eyes, annoyed, while Piper shot the receptionist with a warning look and snatched the provided keys in his hands.

"I swear to loving Jupiter..." Jason said, shaking his head. "That dude is worse than Hera!"

"Don't curse Hera," Hazel reminded him. "You might get tabooed. You are her 'chosen' hero, right?"

"Yeah. And it's just so fun to be used as bait!" he replied sarcastically. "Try it some time!"

"You're just angry with the receptionist, bro. Chill for a bit." Frank inserted before Hazel could reply.

"Okay---you...you're right," he sighed. "Sorry, Hazel. Temper's like the weather."

"Nah. I guess I do deserve it," she said, grinning. "Payback for the teasing stuff."

"Hmm...I guess." Jason agreed, grinning too.

Piper led them to the large metal elevators and gestured to follow her inside with their luggages, which was, by the way, very cool. The floor was made up of polished white marble, its texture smooth and cold to the touch. The pure golden ceiling was shined perfectly, the walls silver, and the buttons were complete and packed with card-swap security.

They had access to the pool, buffet, and sports complex for the whole day, which led them inserting these activities to their made-up plan. Jason wanted to check out the sports complex, Piper and Hazel talked about visiting the pool, and Damasen and Bob decided to try zumba, but Frank announced to pass. He, on the other hand, yearned for sleep. Praetor duties had taken its toll on his body.

Jason was particularly taken aback, but Frank offered to take the luggages for them instead as they took time looking around the rather dashing hotel. His friends hesitated for a moment, then shrugged and gave their things to him after losing the argument.

Damasen and Bob were empty-handed, so they decided to wait for the others and ask for assistance regarding the zumba activity. Turns out, a session was scheduled at the sports complex, so Jason accompanied them there. Piper gave a room key to Frank, thanked him, and ran to Hazel's side. The two of them jutted off the 5th floor and went within the elevator before entirely disappearing from sight.

Meanwhile, Frank started walking three lefts and a right, remembering the daughter of Aphrodite's directions in his head. Seeing a large suite labeled '537', he turned the key clockwise and went inside. First and foremost, he dropped the girls' baggages by the door, knowing that they would come back for them later. Second, Frank put his and Jason's things inside the wooden oak cabinet, exhausted, and looked around the spacious, cozy room.

There were two king-sized beds facing a modern, flat-screen television hanging from the cream and white wallpapered wall. The silk curtains, surely in cream as well, were soft and would freely let in air outside the now-shut windows. Maybe he'd open them later. A centralized aircon filled the entire flat with a sweet kind of smell that made him want to sleep even more. And so he did.

Landing face first on the bed to his right, Frank dozed off.