𝓕𝓲𝓷𝓮 𝓛𝓲𝓷𝓮 // Clarisse La Rue

𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂 𝓢𝓲𝔁

It's already dark when Florence arrives at Phoenix. She didn't really like airports, they were stuffy with way too many cameras and too many people, which meant it was harder to spot the monsters lurking in the shadows. So after salughtering a pack of dracaenae, giving a food cart a very unfortunate fate and using her charmspeak to convince a very suspicious officer that nothing was amiss, she hopped on a cab.

The driver looked human enough but gave her an odd look when she told him the address she was heading to, which she read out from a neatly folded piece of paper Chiron had given her before she left.

When they arrived Florence understood. The house was not at all the typical southern residence Florence had expected, it was almost like someone had taken it out of some Spanish love novel and placed it in Phoenix. It was far from the kind of place Florence would have pictured a young Clarisse running around, not that she had been imagining what Clarisse's childhood looked like for a good amount of the plane ride to distract herself from the mission or anything.

Florence rings the doorbell and Clarisse answers looking tired, both physically and mentally. Her hair is messy, there are dark bags under her eyes and she doesn't look nearly as tough and brave as she usually does.

It's odd how they interact, it's not like with Florence's other friends. There's no hug, no small talk, no "Hi, how are you?",  just a simple "Hey." and a nod for her to get inside. 

Florence tries to pretend it doesn't bother her and walks in.

"So, why'd you call me?" Florence asks. "Chiron didn't give me too many details."

Clarisse sighs "I found a boy wandering the desert, in full armor and blabbering about string. C'mon let's go, he's upstairs, just don't be loud my mom's already asleep."

"So he's a demigod." Florence points out as they begin to make their way up the stairs.

"Yeah, Chris Rodriguez," Clarisse says. "And I have no idea what he was doing in the labyrinth."

"The labyrinth?" Florence asks, becoming pale.

"Yeah." Clarisse nods.

"Like daedalus' labyrinth." Florence asks, still unsure.

"That's the one." Clarisse says.

"Oh, shit."  Florence curses.

"Yeah, oh shit." Clarisse says when they reach a wooden door. "Here he is."

They open it to show a small and narrow room, with a twin bed beside a dresser with a window hanging over it. There is a sword leaning against the wall and pieces of armor clattered on an empty corner of the room along with a small wooden wardrobe.

In the twin bed was a boy who seemed to be in some sort of trance, his gaze a million miles away. Florence recognized him, Chris Rodrigues, from the Hermes cabin. He had always been the definition of a fun guy, he couldn't have joined Luke. Could he?

"What is he doing here?" She asks, worry evident in her voice as she kneels beside the bed.

"I told you-" Clarisse begins in frustration.

"No I mean, what is he doing with Luke..." Florence's voice is sad. She feels guilty to some extent, for not having noticed his absence. Now that she thinks about it he should've been first in line for the head counselor position, not the Stoll twins. Gods, how long has he been gone?

"I don't know, but we have to find out what he was doing in the labyrinth. If Luke's trying to navigate it, it can't be good." Clarisse says solemnly.

Florence swallows dryly and closes the door behind her.