Restored (A Caleo Selection)

14 ~ A Task So Daunting

   "The Council is split into two main groups of politics. Lord Poseidon, Lady Demeter, Lord Ares, Lady Aphrodite, and Lord Dionysus make up one, and Lord Zeus, Lady Athena, Lord Apollo, Lady Artemis, and King Hephaestus fall into the other. Lord Hermes and Lady Hera do not take a side in the matter. The royal family, including Prince Leo and Queen Esperanza, have chosen to support King Hephaestus in the matter." Hebe continued droning on for what seemed like hours, though in reality couldn't have been very long.

   Piper leaned back and rolled her eyes at me as the discussion turned to famous dates in Illéan history. I stifled a laugh.

   "Ladies." Hebe frowned at us. "Do you have a question?"

   Piper raised her hand. "Actually, I do. If I remember correctly, the queen's birthday is coming up soon. I'm curious, are we going to be doing anything for her?"

   Hebe brightened. "Actually, yes. I was going to speak about that next. There will be a large costume party on the eleventh of September, the queen's birthday. Two weeks from now. And, it will be planned by all of you!"

   A burst of flurried conversations filled the room, and Hebe held up her hand. "This will be a test of your skills as a lady. But there is a catch. We will be having ambassadors from not one, but three foreign countries coming: Indonesia, England, and Spain. It is up to you girls to make them welcome. Indonesia and England are already our allies, but Spain has not yet made a decision. Prove to them what we can do, and you could gain us a useful ally."

   "But how will we know what to do?" asked Regan from across the room.

   "I will assign you tasks in groups of four or five. You will work together to complete the task you have been given. These are the teams." Lady Hebe cleared her throat.

   "Sarah Clerk, Enna Barnett, Lavinia Asimov, Eliza Phillips, and Angelica Baker, you five will plan the menu." The five girls shifted their desks together to begin discussing options.

   "Juniper Green, Alice Miyazawa, Drew Tanaka, Piper McLean, Nyssa Barrera, and Lou Ellen Blackstone will design the costumes for the Selected girls."

   Piper made a face at me. I smirked at her.

   "Skye Hawthorne, Julia Feingold, Valentina Diaz, and Ella Harpy will create the invitations."

   I saw Skye shift uncomfortably, and wondered how she was faring. Surely she was still rattled from her encounter with my family.

   "Hazel Levesque, Khione Benson, Reyna Ramirez-Arellano, Calypso Nightshade, and Echo Drannen, the five of you will plan the music."

   Music. I could live with that. I glanced at Hazel and Reyna, waiting for someone to make a move.

   "And Thalia Grace, Samantha Allen, Holly Victor, Jade Winters, and Kayla Knowles will design the decorations."

   "It's Sam," the girl sitting in front of me muttered. I stifled a laugh.

   "You girls have two weeks to create this perfectly. The girls with the lowest score after the party will be prime candidates for the next elimination, so choose wisely," Hebe warned us. "You have an hour of class time to discuss your options. I will be available for any questions."

   Reyna beckoned me and Hazel over to a corner, and Echo and Khione joined us. "Alright. We should have a wide variety of music, since the guests will be from all different places," Reyna stated.

   "But if we just get a bunch of Spanish or Indonesian music, they might be bored; they're here to see what our country is about. Shouldn't we have our own classic music?" Hazel countered.

   "She has a point," Echo added.

   "Fair enough. But if they don't know our dances, they might be left out," Reyna argued.

   "Most of the dances are simple. We could agree to partner with them and teach them. We probably shouldn't put in any complicated waltzes or anything," I suggested. "If they're game, we could even teach some of them a few dances before the actual event."

   Reyna nodded. "That could work."

   "Unless they see it as an insult that we think they need to be taught." Khione studied her white nails.

   Reyna considered this. "No, I don't think they would. The Indonesians, especially, are known for being friendly and enthusiastic, and I doubt the Spaniards would see it as an insult, either. British dances are quite similar to Illéan dances, so they would not need to be taught."

   "I still think they wouldn't like it."

   "Let's take a vote," Echo offered. "All in favor of teaching the foreigners the simple dances, raise your hand."

   All of us except Khione raised our hands. "Guess it's settled then."

   Khione shrugged. "Whatever. You guys are making a big mistake." She sat back and ignored us.

   Reyna sighed. "I'll ask Lady Hebe if our idea is possible." She got up and hurried to the front of the room.

   Hazel and Echo began discussing which dances were the best options to use. Khione leaned toward me and whispered, "Just because they happen to like your idea doesn't mean anything will change. You're still beneath the rest of us, except for Hazel. You two are on exactly the same level."

   I folded my arms over my chest, unwilling to engage in a fight, either physically or verbally. I knew when to keep my mouth shut. Glancing around the room, I spotted Piper trying to calm Nyssa and Drew, who were arguing. She caught my eye and mouthed help me!

   I shot her a sympathetic look. I may have had to deal with Khione, but things could certainly be worse.

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A/N:
Today I pulled nails out of siding for four hours and then finished a chapter of fanfiction. Ah, duality.

See you around, hypothetical friends.