in a sea full of sirens
Will, looking at a siren disguised as Nico: woah...
Silena: CAREFUL, WILL. These here are sirens, they will conjure themselves into any LUSTFUL form in order to lure you into the water
Beckendorf: why's that one look like Clarisse?
Silena: oh... uhh... I dont know... that could- that could be for anyone... anyone here, and we dont have to judge! Lets just avert our eyes- to, uhm- wait, why's that one just a spear?
Clarisse: LET ME GO TO HER
Chris, holding her back: NO-
Clarisse: LET ME GO TO HER, CHRIS-
Pairing: Clarisse La Rue x Fem!Reader (Cabin not specified, but she’s not an Aphrodite kid), Platonic!Silena Beauregard x Clarisse La Rue, Platonic!Silena Beauregard x reader
Synopsis: Seeing her best friends unable to confess their feelings to each other, Silena takes matters into her own hands.
Warnings: Use of y/n. [Let me know if I missed any.]
A/N: Am I aware that Piper doesn’t appear until HOO and she doesn’t meet Silena? Yes. Do I care that this isn’t book accurate and that it’s nowhere near Valentine’s Day? No! Also, guys, come on. It’s the second PJO week already. More Clarisse fics, PLEASE. I’m gonna do a one-shot per week, in line with the show’s release. BUT AGAIN, MORE CLARISSE FICS. WRITERS, START WRITING.
masterlist || previous work
—
Everyone was sick of your and Clarisse’s bullshit, but especially Silena.
Her best friends liked each other. You and Clarisse, Percy and Annabeth. Though the second pair’s love confession was an inevitability, the former isn’t. You and Clarisse were both too emotionally constipated to ever admit anything.
So, Silena rounded her siblings and announced that it was time for a lovely chaos.
Valentine’s Day was coming up and the Aphrodite cabin was, to Clarisse’s interpretation, a nightmare.
The entirety of their cabin was adorned with pink, heart decorations. A giant “Blind Date: Meet Your Soulmate” banner was strung up above the entrance. Below it, there was a note that said: “Free for the first fifty pairs. Sign up now!”
The line grew as Clarisse’s patience shortened. All of her siblings (the ones not taken) signed up for it, leaving her with no sparring partner. The fields were empty as well. There were no new campers to terrorize and everyone was abuzz with exhilaration.
“Stupid. Blind. Date!” You found your friend—though you wish she was something more—kicking a training dummy. Clarisse stopped when she noticed you, her expression morphing into embarrassment. “How long have you been standing there?”
“Long enough.” You say, walking over and picking up the dummy, “I was looking for you.”
“You were?” Clarisse hated how hopeful she sounded.
“Yes,” You reply, brushing a strand of hair away from her face. “Silena wanted to know if you were interested in her booth.”
Clarisse scowls, walking away. “If this is her idea of a joke, it’s not funny.” Silena knew about her feelings for you and now she was suggesting going on a blind date with some random camper that could never replace you. Clarisse would rather let Jackson douse her in toilet water again than do that. She could never like someone else, not even if she tried (and she did, for a while, with Chris, but it didn’t work—surprise, surprise).
“She wasn’t joking!” You quickly caught up with the Ares girl, walking side-by-side across camp, “She said it would be good for you. And me.”
“What do you have to do with this?”
“Silena offered to make mine free if I went to the booth.”
Clarisse stops, “And you think that’s a good idea?”
Your brows furrowed, “Yeah?” You needed to get over your one-sided crush for Clarisse. The best way to do that was to find someone new, Silena said so. You wonder if that truly was the best advice she could give, but she’s an Aphrodite kid. If anyone knows about love, it has to be her, right? “I mean, I’m not exactly dating anybody. Silena said it would be my best bet.”
“Silena’s full of shit.” Clarisse can’t quell the sense of betrayal at her best friend’s actions. Silena was supposed to be on her side yet she suggested you go on a blind date despite knowing how Clarisse felt about you. She should have consulted the Ares girl first. That way, the latter wouldn’t feel a sense of foreboding at the idea that she was beginning to lose you. “Don’t go on that date.” Clarisse says abruptly.
“Why?” Give me one good reason not to and I’ll never go on a date again, you thought. The antes were raised above surface level. The only problem was: the other player didn’t know she was participating.
“I... Just don’t, okay?!”
Both of you ended up disheartened.
You walk away first.
You walk through the entrance of the Aphrodite cabin, the smell of expensive perfume and chocolates blending together to create an inviting atmosphere.
A group of the younger Aphrodite children beckons you over from the side.
“Blind date?” They ask eagerly, gesturing to the seat in front of them.
“Yes.” You answer, “So, how does this work?”
“We’re going to ask you a few questions and preferences, then we’ll select the perfect match for you. But first, we need to know your name.”
“Y/n L/n.”
“Ooh, yes! Silena told us to pay extra attention.” One of the girls says. Other campers in line grumble about favoritism and unfair advantage, so she adds, “But we always do! Each date is special! You won’t regret spending your drachma.”
The group quiets down. The children look back to you, “Let’s begin.”
Meanwhile, Clarisse was scouring the camp for Silena. There was no way she was gonna let enthusiastic Aphrodite kids ruin her chances with you. The former spots her “adversary” sitting on a bench near the lake with her boyfriend, Charles. Clarisse glowers, dragging Silena away.
“Ow! Clarisse, let me go!”
“Not until you tell me why you convinced Y/n to enter your stupid blind date booth.” Clarisse asserts.
Silena, much to Clarisse’s dismay, looked far too smug for someone who was ruining her so-called best-friend’s life. “It would be good for her.” She says, trying to yank her arm away. “You should try it.”
“No,” Clarisse snarls, “You’re going to get her out of that booth or so help me gods—”
“You want my help, you’re going to have to play by my rules.” The Aphrodite girl stares Clarisse down despite being a foot shorter. It would be comical if Ares’s daughter wasn’t five seconds away from throttling her.
“Fine. What do I need to do?”
---
After a brief chat about your type, the Aphrodite kids lead you to a secluded table in the corner. On it were two blindfolds and a voice changer. Your eyebrows raise in question upon seeing the latter.
“What’s this for?”
“A precaution,” Piper explains, “We have a voice changer in case your best match is someone you know. It’s best to start in the beginning.” – whatever that’s supposed to mean.
You take a seat and Piper puts the blindfold over your eyes. You start to feel on-edge, perturbed by the lack of sight.
“You’re okay.” Piper assures you, “We’ll be back with your partner shortly.”
You wait (not your strongest suit) for a couple minutes, anxiously bouncing your leg up and down. Does it usually take this long? What if they can’t find you a partner? Or worse—what if you and your partner don’t click? Even worse: what if it’s Clarisse?
No.
She wouldn’t be caught dead in a blind date booth. Besides, she doesn’t see you like that. She sees you as a friend, nothing more.
You hear the chair in front of you creak as your partner settles in.
“Alright, rules: Don’t say your name until it’s over. You get to know each other for five minutes. After which, you hold each other’s hands for two. If you wish to keep seeing each other after the seven minutes, one of our teams will assist you with date planning. If not, the two of you will be given new partners. If, at any point, you wish to stop, just tap the table twice and we’ll come get you. Any questions?” Piper asks.
“No.” You and your date say simultaneously, the voice changer coming into effect.
So it is someone you know.
“Five minutes starts now.” The brown-haired girl announces before walking off.
“So... what cabin are you in?” Your date questions.
You tell them your cabin. They hum, unsurprised. It was your turn to ask, “You?”
“Ares.”
Oh.
Maybe it’s one of Clarisse’s siblings. You assume that that won’t end well for everyone involved. Clarisse would skin them alive. Just yesterday, she shoved one of the campers for “looking at you funny”. You can’t imagine what she might do if one of her cabinmates took interest in you, which was unreasonable, seeing as the two of you weren’t anything.
The person in front of you clears their throat, “What do you like in a partner?”
“Physical or personality-wise?”
“Both.”
What did you like?
“Tall-ish, curly hair, eyes that melt into a pool of gold underneath the sun.” You found yourself saying, unknowingly stating Clarisse’s attributes. “But it doesn’t really matter. Personality’s more important. Like... strong, protective, and someone who’s sure about what they want. Someone who’s loyal.”
You hear their breath hitch, “Oh.”
“What about you?”
“I don’t have a preference for physical appearance,” They state, “I want someone who doesn’t treat me like I’m stupid or incapable of doing tasks—someone who understands that I can’t— I don’t know how to say things most of the time. I’m working on communication, but it’s difficult when everyone expects you to just punch everything out.”
Communication.
The word hit you like how the end of Clarisse’s spear did the one time you were on opposite teams during Capture The Flag. Communicating is what you should’ve done in the first place. You’re going into a date not being truthful. It wasn’t fair to your partner. You were using them to try to get over someone else. Clarisse didn’t know how you felt. Before you move on, you should at least tell her. You may regret not doing so.
With a sigh, you tap the table twice.
“Did I do something wrong?” Your date asks, almost wounded.
“No,” You say softly, “But I’m in love with someone else and you made me realize that communicating is what I should have done all along. You sound great, but she’s... she’s the one I want to spend this time with.” You move to take the blindfold off, but your partner stops you.
“Y/n.”
The voice changer was off.
That tone...
Your breath hitches.
“Clarisse?”
“I told Silena this was a bad idea.” Clarisse huffed, pushing the chair back.
You hear her footsteps retreat. Taking off your blindfold, you chase after her. “Clarisse, slow down!”
Clarisse makes it to the pavilion before you catch up to her. She whirls around, looking at you with a mixture of hope and longing.
“IloveyouandthatswhyIhijackedyourblinddate.” She mumbles in one breath.
“Huh?”
“I said I love you, okay?!”
That wasn’t what you expected, which said a lot about how oblivious you were to Clarisse’s feelings for you. All this time, you thought your crush was one-sided. When in reality, Clarisse was pining all the same.
Gods, both of you are idiots.
“Well? Say something!” Clarisse demands, crossing her arms, attempting to be defensive in lieu of being vulnerable.
Your gaze softens, “I meant what I said earlier. I love you. And I can’t believe it took us this long to admit our feelings to one another.” She laughs ruefully with you. “If you’ll let me, I would like to take you out on a proper date. Sure, it’ll still be inside camp, but I want to give us a try.”
For once, Ares’s daughter lets her guard down. Her shoulders relax and she regards you with a gaze that was more honest than anything she said these past months, letting go of her denial. She takes your hand in hers, “I want that too.” She says.
A few feet away, Silena Beauregard cheers, shaking the hands of her nearest siblings, claiming victory for a successful day at the booth.
