Brats and Delinquents
"There's a new boy at camp," Chiron informed Mr D. The god had mourned the start of summer, as per his usual tradition, by not showing himself until lunch was served and then moping through The Big House while avoiding sunlight as best as he could. He was in his office making a house of cards on the desk that didn't have any other use, unless you counted holding soda cans. The flimsy paper structure was already two stories high.
"Goodie," the director replied. "Another brat I'll have to keep an eye on."
"Dionysus, I'd like to remind you that you barely even glance at the campers." Chiron said. "His name is Percy. You know, the boy I told you about? That Grover Underwood was in charge of?"
"Doesn't ring a bell."
No, of course not.
"Well, he's arrived. And he just lost his mother. He's in the infirmary for the moment, but maybe you'll want to be gentle when you meet him."
"I'll see if I can remember," Mr D said more concentrated on his house of cards.
"A satyr got lucky today," Chiron informed him as he put another can of Diet Coke on the table.
"Caught a wood nymph?" The god grumbled.
"No, found a demigod. Her name is Kayla Duchannes. She was claimed by Apollo right when she got here."
"Brilliant."
"It is, actually." Chiron said. "You, of course, know how hard it is to recruit half-bloods in these times…"
"Yes, yes, Kronos is up to something, I know," Mr D said shuffling the cards. "Are we playing pinochle or bullshit?"
Chiron's nose crinkled. The latter was not a very elegant game. "Pinochle," he said.
"Oh, right," Thalia said understanding that this was her chance to save Percy's butt from certain incineration. Cousin love took on a whole new meaning when you added all-powerful immortal genetics to it. "Come on, Percy."
She hauled Percy, his cheeks still an angry red, out of the room. Eventually Chiron found an excuse for Grover to escort Nico away.
He turned to Dionysus.
"The girl's name, as Percy so tactfully reminded you, is Annabeth."
"Fascinating," Mr D said drumming his fingers on the table.
Even Chiron was getting annoyed with this now.
"She has been at camp for seven years. For half of her life." Chiron said. "She is one of the strongest strategists we have, the counsellor of her cabin and she has done many great favours to this camp. If I were you, I'd start thanking her. She is one of the demigods whose extreme devotion to this establishment that makes up for your lack of care."
That was the first time that Chiron had gotten mad at him... Dionysus watched the old centaur walk away squinting.
These brats did seem to matter after all.
"Our numbers are spiking," Chiron observed. They sat on the porch. Dionysus' leg was propped up on another chair- it was still healing from his unfortunate run-in with Typhon.
"So they are," Dionysus said. "Do you have any kings?"
"Go Fish," Chiron said shaking his head. Dionysus picked up a card. Another useless card made him sigh. What good could he possibly have with a three?
"Cabin 20 has decided on a counsellor," he said.
"Refresh my memory: whose cabin is that?"
"Hecate."
"Oh yes. The goddess' torment upon my immortal soul does not cease or restrain itself to while I'm on Olympus for counsel meetings. Now I'm plagued with her brats too."
"The new counselor's name is Lou Ellen Henri. She's about Will's age- that'd be eighteen or so she thinks. She has a complicated back story."
"I'm sure it'd be very interesting if I cared," Dionysus said.
"She has various memories of her past lives," Chiron kept saying. They seem to have blurred together in her mind and so she has trouble distinguishing things about her past. Therefore she has a very strong bond with her father."
"Well isn't she a special snowflake? I love when they have something other than their raging hormones to make my life a pain."
"Mr Henri might drop by camp every now and then to provide help or details, and he's also a big supporter and supplier of the children of Hecate in all things magic. I'm still not sure what that means, but they say that they have everything arranged."
"I don't care about her father, or who comes through the borders." Mr D said.
"She's from Rochester New York," Chiron said.
"What did I say about my interest in this girl?"
"I think it's there. I think you're lying as a way of pouting about your father's decision to exile you."
"I think you're so used to dealing with children that you're treating me as one," Dionysus said.
"Just remember her name," Chiron said softly.
He was on Olympus, which was a hallelujah. He usually came up twice a year, but like all the other gods he'd been called back due to his father's excruciatingly haughty temper. The others were complaining –Athena and Zeus had, in fact, gotten into an excitingly heated debate in the morning- but Dionysus felt like a million bucks. Spending extra time away from the snotty and sassy half-bloods? Why not?
Suddenly a voice filled his mind.
Screw that! How unusual too. Someone was praying to him. Had he not put up a 'do not disturb' sign?
There are three new kids today. They all came together. Leo was claimed on his way in, and I have a sneaking suspicion that Piper's the daughter of Aphrodite.
No.
No, he refused to be going through this. He absolutely, completely and undoubtedly refused. This was a vacation. This was a vacation. Why was Chiron praying to him with yet more information on the useless brats that had been so unfortunately made his wards?
I've never seen anyone stand up to Drew that quickly, she's going to be an outgoing one. I fear that one of them is Lupa's, his name is Jason.
"What am I supposed to do with that information?" Dionysus asked exasperated.
Ares turned around.
"What did you say, punk?"
"Nothing of your concern you brute," Dionysus said disdainfully.
He and Chiron were walking down the arena. He hadn't seen the foolish centaur in a long time and had to admit that nobody on Olympus was quite as good at cards –or at enduring him- as he was.
Although now was not the time to suggest games. The arena was lined with bodies hidden behind shrouds. Small cards were at the foot of each body, with a name and the names of both parents.
Some shrouds were covered in purple shrouds, and Camp was waiting for someone from the Fort to come and identify the bodies of Romans just as the praetors were waiting for a camper to come and identify bodies under orange shrouds. It was a mess.
Dionysus stopped at the end of a body.
"Mark Sheppard," he read. "Son of Ares. I hope his mother's not deployed. It would be easier for her to find out that she's lost him if she were in Chicago than if she were overseas."
Chiron turned around and looked at him.
"His mother is a soldier," he said softly. "I didn't think you..."
The centaur cleared his throat. "I hope so too."
He didn't smile or anything, it was too grim a day for that. Too much loss and sacrifice was weighing the world down. But Chiron's heart was a bit lighter. At least now he knew that he hadn't been talking to the walls all these years. His hunch about his unusual friend seemed to be right after all.
It was the last day of summer, and all of camp was in a commotion.
"Is there a battle being prepared or something? What's got all the delinquents up and about?" Dionysus asked lazily. He'd appeared in the Big House's front door, stirring his glass of diet coke with his straw.
"It's the last day of summer."
"Oh, thank Zeus. Time flies when you lock yourself in the Big House, doesn't it Chiron?"
"The kids are simply saying goodbye to each other, and to the camp itself for some."
"I hope a lot of them leave," Dionysus said turning around. He reappeared a few seconds later.
"Is it Perry and Annabella's last day of camp too?" Mr D asked.
"Yes, most likely. At least as regulars." Chiron said. "Annabeth's got her studies, and Percy's probably going to stay with her."
Mr D cocked his head to the side.
"Ah."
"They're just packing if you want to say good-"
"Why would I need to say goodbye?" Mr D asked quickly. "I think I'll actually go cut myself a piece of cake. Maybe I'll even light a candle on it."
"You'll miss them."
"And their trouble making? Please."
Ten years later
Chiron sat down at the breakfast table with a smile on his lips.
"I have some good news," he said.
"Maybe I'm not interested in hearing it." Mr D grumbled. "Maybe the solstice meeting yesterday was more horrid than most solstice meetings."
"It was not so bad, I've talked to Iris recently." Chiron said. "Do you want to hear it?"
"No."
"Percy and Annabeth are parents now," Chiron said anyways. "He just IM'ed me this morning."
"Wonderful. As if they hadn't caused enough trouble, now their genetics return to us except combined now. Joy. This child is going to be a pain in the neck."
"Dionysus, you do know that they had twins right?" Chiron said.
Mr D got up and walked back to the Big House, massaging his temples and complaining about how his punishment would still end too late for him to avoid this new plague of Chase-Jacksons.
Chiron smiled.
He didn't see the god for most of the day. He made one grumpy announcement at the camp fire that if he heard another word about Lawrence and Olivia or Laura and Oswald, or whatever these twins were named he'd set fire to every single cabin on the grounds. He didn't even stay for marshmallows.
Chiron did see him once more, while he was in his office, sorting letters that parents had sent to their kids. About once every two weeks the kids woke up to bundles of letters at their doorsteps, for the counselors to distribute.
There was a knock on his door, and he looked up expecting to see a harpy holding a demigod by the ear. Or –most likely- holding in their custody a couple who'd tried to sneak out. Something had gone horribly wrong in the information and tricks transfer from generation to generation: half-bloods had gotten horrible at sneaking out of their cabins.
Instead it was Dionysus.
"What were the names of those new twin brats again?"
Chiron smiled.
"Even after all this time, you still can't admit that you care about the demigods that come through to this camp?" The old teacher asked.
"Surely you're wrong. I'm filling in bad behaviour reports in advance: putting in their names and parentage already. I'm sure they'll cause enough trouble in twelve years: might as well get a head start." Dionysus said.
They hadn't used those sheets in ages- since the eighties at least. They were hopeless and stupid and pointless. Chiron thought that they'd gotten rid of all of them, as a matter of fact.
"Laurel and Oliver," Chiron said with a smile still lingering on his lips.
"Yes, I thought so. Well, goodnight Chiron."
"Goodnight Dionysus," he said.