17Title: Realism and Romance
Genre: Romance (the name of the story kind of gives you the hint)
Main characters: Piper. M, Jason. G
Summary: She wondered why her mother was not worried about her, she was not ambitious, she was not a brilliant society leader, and she was not quite out for becoming a teacher either like all the others either. Piper McLean could feel all the opportunities in life slipping away, and she didn't know what to do. Maybe a certain person can help her find her way. (Set in early 1900s, AU JASPER)
A/N: Yes, yes, I know I ought to be updating the almost-forgotten stories of mine but this idea has been haunting me for ages! I just had to write it down! As said in the summary, it's an AU set in the 1900s so very old-fashioned. I hope you like it :) Please review!
Piper gazed across the lush green fields of the valley. She had sat herself down on the grass as she watched the sun slowly making its way down. Her hand held a little flower picked up from the brook valley nearby.
"It's been a nice summer hasn't it?"
She looked at her friend, Annabeth Chase, who sat next to her dreamily looking out onto the horizon. Her hair was tied loosely at the back making her golden curls fall over her shoulders.
"Yes I suppose it has been." She twisted the silver bangle on her wrist. "The children down at the school are all such darlings, I shall be glad to come down and teach again."
Piper nodded and pushed a strand brown hair behind her ear. Her eyes shone with a peculiar lustre of brilliancy as she glanced sideways at Annabeth. "Are you going to continue to try and earn enough for college?"
"I am trying, but I suppose it may take another year or so since it is rather a high cost to pay." She said rather wistfully. Annabeth had studied enough to become a teacher throughout the late year. She had hoped to continue on with her education but Mr Frederick Chase could not afford to take her. Piper knew this and would always offer to give in money, but Annabeth had firmly disagreed and told her that she ought to save it for her own education.
"As if I should save it for such!" she had exclaimed. "I still have a year to save up for college and Annabeth, need I remind you that I am not ambitious as you are."
The wise friend only shook her head and sighed. 'Piper you really aren't doing me any favour if you pay this off for me, I want to do this on my own.'
The brunette had muttered something of her stubbornness but decided that if she really wanted to it that way then she should. She shouldn't get in her way.
Piper pursed her lips. "Is Percy going to college as well?"
Annabeth smoothed out her blue skirt and looked up. "No, he hasn't decided what to do yet." Piper had to keep herself from rolling her eyes. Percy was probably not going because Annabeth wasn't. She had her suspicions that the two had strong feelings for each other. However, whenever the topic was brought up about them sweet hearting, they both denied the idea of courting.
Still, she couldn't help but feel that it wasn't the fact that Percy could not decide on what to study, but the idea of not having that intelligent gray-eyed girl beside him.
Piper touched the brim of her hat gently and placed the flower in her hands down beside her. "I think Leo is going next year. He'll go the moment he has the chance since he wants to become a mechanic or something along the lines. I shall go the year after."
Annabeth lips curled into a small smile. "Why not go out for next year? We'll all be there and if you go the one after that then you won't have anyone going with you."
Piper shook her brown locks. "I will not be alone; I will have Hazel to keep company." Annabeth heaved a heavy sigh.
"My dear Piper, what ever shall we do with you?" The brunette had to frown at her response.
"Oh don't look at me in that way Annabeth! It makes me feel like I ought to be ashamed of myself. You surely cannot expect me to go off to college. I will be the only person who shall not know a thing about staying on honour rolls and examinations. I'm not like Katie or any of you lot." She exclaimed. "I do not even know how to do household chores properly! Dear mother had tried teaching me just the other day how to crotchet stitch fabric and I ended up pricking my finger and not just once Annabeth, twice! Twice! Lacy had laughed because she thought I had only been joking. You should have seen her face when she realised that I actually could not offered to help me but do you know how mortified I felt at the thought of my little sister assisting me in something? It's not poor Lacy's fault of course, but if anyone heard that I couldn't do something my younger siblings could then I would never be able to hear the end of it! I'm afraid I am the dunce of the family after all."
Annabeth turned to her friend. "You're only eighteen Piper, you have a lot of time to think this over. And not every woman needs to learn household chores."
Piper crossed her arms and looked out to ahead which made it look as if she were scolding the heavens for giving her such a life. "A decent woman of society has already learnt to do such things from the age of twelve! And think of when I am the mother of the house and I have to look after everything...Oh, dear Annabeth I am completely hopeless."
The gray-eyed had to laugh at the younger girl, but not a mocking laugh, a reassuring one. This pretty, smart girl who was sure to have a string of beaux was worried about not being able to fit in? That she was useless? Annabeth knew much better. "I'm sure Jason would not mind a bit if you were a 'dunce'."
Piper's eyes widened and she leaned back to look at Annabeth clearly, an incredulous expression on her face. "And where on earth did Jason Grace ever come into this topic?!"
"Oh I recall those long-lost school days when you were ever so infatuated by him!" she said with such a suggestive look hinted in her eyes that Piper scolded ever so harshly.
"Ah but the key word in that is long-lost. Miss Annabeth Chase! I do not ever believe I had heard that of you! Jason has never once entered my interest for the last several years and that fancy I once had for him? It was a pure 'crush' as you may call it. I haven't seen him since Percy's summer picnic, and that was when we were thirteen, wasn't it?" She shook her head. "And what do I care for him now? For all I know he's apparently dating Reyna Arellano, isn't he?"
This time it was Annabeth's pretty face that scolded. "Piper that is just a mere rumour, don't ever listen to those old gossips from town. They never know anything. Remember when it was suspected that Percy was Rachel's beau?" She spoke rather bitterly and Piper secreted a small smile to herself.
"Well whatever the rumours, I certainly won't be the one spreading them. Jason can go off with Reyna for all I care because he's hardly a friend of mine anyway." She spoke of nothing but the mere truth and her expression dared her blonde friend to say more.
Annabeth pursed her lips tightly and got up from her spot. "I suppose I should be leaving now since Matthew and Bobby are waiting for me. Bobby has the croup."
"Oh, do tell your mother I said hello and that I hope he gets well soon. I think I should stay for a few more."
Annabeth smiled at the girl before walking away from the beautiful green land as the sun slowly set making the sky's colour turn into something magnificent. Piper watched her retreating figure and sighed softly. Her fingers pull out a green blade of grass as she hummed a little tune that came to her mind.
It was very plain to see that Piper McLean was definitely the odd one of her clan. The McLean gang were all rather handsome, all well-known among social groups and gossip, all frivolous. The offspring of her clan were definitely known for being the frivolous and flirtatious bunch and possessed that certain tone of arrogance as well-something which Piper did not seem to inherit. And rather than being proud of her appearance and worried over being socially successful, she was more interested in...nothing. Absolutely nothing. She wondered why her mother was not worried about her, she was not ambitious, she was not a brilliant society leader, and she was not quite out for becoming a teacher either like all the others either.
She was pretty, very pretty. But then of course all her relatives were, and frankly they were prettier.
Still humming contently, she reflected that she would like to end up as a nice old maid. A little like that woman up the road, Ms Hestia. And it would be out of the fact she simply was incapable of marriage. Yes, she liked that idea. She didn't want to have that life where everything was crazy and tragically romantic.
Then again, being a romantic also was something only to be dealt with by her siblings, as was the art of match-making. And of course, she had neither interest nor a sharp eye when it came to love...-except maybe when it came to Percy and Annabeth. But then their close relationship was completely obvious.
She stopped humming. Piper stared at the horizon and noticed that the sky was a tinge bit darker than before. In the distance, she could hear the sound of birds cawing loudly at one another. Crickets started to chirp signalling that it was indeed getting late. Taking this as a cue, she got up to leave.
The walk home to her household wasn't very long, but she tried to enjoy every moment of the fresh breeze that swept across her face. She enjoyed having evening strolls, and it was nice just to think of all the things to think about when one was alone.
She sighed once more and turned the brass handle of a door, only to be greeted by the loud exclaims coming from every corner of the house, particularly from her older cousin.
Piper found Silena Beauregard as she stared at the letter in her hand with what she could only read as a flushed and flattered expression on her face. The older girl's eyes looked up at her with excitement as she entered the room. Piper never really understood the joy that came to her family about letters, but she assumed that Silena must have gotten it from her beau. She raised her eyebrow questioningly at the excited older girl.
Silena, rosy cheeked and bright-eyed, ran up to her, holding the letter in her hand high up as though it were something precious. She grinned. "Oh honey, you will not believe what I have to say to you! I just received a letter and I'm so excited for this!"
Piper had to smile at the sight of the older girl. "Well what seems to be so important and newsworthy?"
Silena clasped her hands together and thrust the envelope into her grasp. She opened it slowly and began reading through the letter. Her cousin beamed at her. "See! There is going to be a party in a few days time, and we are all invited!"
Piper furrowed her eyebrows as she continued observing the letter. Unfortunately for Silena, the news did not excite her the way she thought it would. Though Silena should have expected the sort of reaction from her because, like that Annabeth-girl, she did not find parties amusing. She'd rather stay at home, her face buried into another one of Shakespeare's sonnets.
Because doing so was much more romantic than joining all her chums at a marvellous conference.
After studying the paper for quite a while, Piper pursed her lips tightly and looked at her cousin. "I don't think I shall go."
Silena's bright smile immediately disappeared and she stopped jumping up and down with glee. "Why not?"
The brunette wrinkled her nose as if the whole idea seemed strange to her. "What use is it to go out in the cold night? You haven't heard? It may rain for quite a while, and I don't want to risk the chance of becoming ill because I stayed up all night with flirtatious young men." She sniffed daintily took off her coat before hanging it up on the hook nearby. "I think it's scandalous, really."
Silena huffed and crossed her arms. "Why you sound just like that Miss Diana up the road!" she exclaimed. "'Scandalous' or not, everybody deserves having a good time. You of all people should get up and have some delight in life!"
Piper only sighed and passed the note back over to her. "Your definition of a good time and mine is very different. I think I am content sitting in my nice warm bed sleeping. Don't make such a face! Yes I did say it Silena, I would rather sleep."
She turned and started to make her way up the stairs to the bedrooms. Silena went off for her hurriedly, along the way crying out 'You sure you won't change your mind?' and 'I could change your mind!' But Piper was simply not interested at all. A party? Of all things it had to be a party! She would've loved to see Silena changing her mind, what of that!
The older girl tugged on her sleeve and made Piper turn her way. Her brilliant blue eyes looked up at her pleadingly, her mouth pouting. She had only ever done the act as a child, but it seemed necessary at that moment.
She sighed. "Lena..."
"Please, please, please! I really want to go with you, and I can dress you up and you can wear that new dress of green-blue that mother brought you and I could do your hair up in that new style. It would look very becoming of you, oh please let me try it!"
"You can dress up Lacy."
Silena scolded. "And of course, Lacy is not coming. She is too young, the whole town would love to look over that-imagine a twelve year old gallivanting with young adults! Oh yes Piper dear, I can surely do that!" Piper wrinkled her nose at the sound Silena's voice which dripped with sarcasm. She turned back towards her doorway.
"And," Silena added, still attempting on convincing her. "And, there will be many other classmates and students from other places and you can surely be influenced by them since you cannot think about what to study!"
This had some affect to Piper, who had to admit her desire of finding something to keep her life stable. The idea of a party was looking a little more appealing, and she could not hide the fact that she was a little tempted to go.
But even so, Piper had only been slightly tempted. The latter shook her head and remembered what parties were really about: dancing and simply gossiping. Sheer gossiping about who went out with who, what they were wearing, how one had taken the other's escort and started a little feud between couples...What use was gossip to her?
So there, Piper had set her mind that she was not to go. Silena could nag as much as she wanted.
"You should have seen it coming, honey. I told you she wouldn't go." Drew said as she walked up the stairs to the both of them. Piper frowned slightly. She told her? What on earth did she mean?
Drew Tanaka was Piper McLean's second-cousin from her mother's side. Like all the family, she was beautiful and charming, and she could come up with the most agreeable tone ever heard. Drew was rather outspoken which tended to make her the least favourable relative in Piper's eyes. Her velvety brown eyes looked upon her haughtily, a small smile playing at her lips much to Piper's own irritation and indignation.
"Why wouldn't I go?" she said. Drew, however, did not acknowledge her in any way.
"Well I suppose it is all too flashy for her, she never really liked socialising now did she?" her tone was spoken with so much innocence that it seemed to Piper that she was simply taunting her.
She wasn't a socially failed person! She did not like parties, but she did like the company of people. How dare that cousin of hers say such a thing! She'd show her, she would.
If Drew had said that she should've gone to the party, the girl would have still not gone-her determination only stronger. But she had not said that, and instead Piper felt the immediate urge to defy the snooty cousin of hers. Such insults cannot be made and left like that, you know.
Piper clenched her hands into tight fists and she glared at Drew with burning resentment. "I'm going to the party! I'm going; I do get along with people! I am going no matter what you say!"
She stormed off with a huff, muttering under her breath of how she would show everyone who would be there that night. Silena stood there with a mixture of emotions written on her face-surprise, glee, excitement-at the series of events that happened right in front of her. She let a happy sigh at the thought of Piper finally being there-and she would surely let her make her up this time!
Drew gave Silena a smile as they watched Piper's retreating figure shut the door to her bedroom. She crossed her arms and said
"I told you I could convince her."