Hey, guys! Innoverse here! First off, I want to apologize for not posting anything the past few days. It's just that with school starting, I have hardly any time for writing now. It's annoying and irritating to me, but I'm trying, guys. I'll definitely post on the weekends, but weekdays... not so much. Expect some sporadic posting Monday-Thursday, since I have time Friday night.

Anyways, this is a story about Chiron pondering the word 'innocence.' No dialog, just thoughts. I was doing this to try out some more poetic writing, since a wonderful reviewer pointed out that they'd like to see more of that. I figured that a Chiron one-shot would be a good place to work that out. I kind of like some of the similes and metaphors in it, actually.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own PJATO.

- Innocence: Chiron's POV -

Innocence.

It was a strange word to Chiron, a novelty, something that he rarely saw in the young people he teaches anymore. Being thousands of years old, he'd seen too many children robbed of it, too many come to face the ugly truth that was their life—whether it be mythical or otherwise. They'd always have the same beaten down look as life crashed onto their shoulders, making them stand a little lower and hunch over under the strain of actuality. When the illusions ended, and the living began. It was a depressing process, but a hopeful one, as well. Chiron saw who embraced their new-found view on the world, and who couldn't.

Innocence was much like the leaves on a tree—it started out bright and green, but as time progressed, it turned yellow, then brown, and then eventually died. And when it died, and all the leaves of fantasies were lying on the ground, you were left with the bare trunk of the truth. Barren, but beautiful in its own way.

But some leaves wilted and died faster than others. They could've been exposed to too much sunlight, or not enough water. So they found the truth faster than others. They lived with it longer—embraced it longer—and became stronger because of it. Chiron had seen many children who had lost their innocence early, who had never really gotten to experience the revery of thinking that the world was perfect. In some ways it was a benefit, and in some ways a disadvantage. Assuming responsibility before they were ready, shouldering the weight of the polluted Earth when they weren't yet strong enough to hold it.

Though, Chiron's pupils persevered. They were a resilient bunch—he supposed it was in their blood—and they never gave up easy. If they couldn't hold it, then they'd find a clever method or a friend to help them. That was the inspiring part. Watching how they dealt with the realities as they came, handling situations people of older ages wouldn't even be able to reason through. Maybe they still were children, and maybe they acted like it sometimes, but the skill of adaptation would always serve them well in the end. It made Chiron proud of his students. Very proud.

Though he didn't enjoy picking favorites, Chiron had taken a liking to one of his particular students—Percy Jackson. From the day he'd first seen Percy at Yancy Academy, Chiron knew that innocence had left the boy a long, long time ago. You could see it in his face, the way he walked, and the way he talked. Chiron knew he'd had a rough childhood (which he never liked to mention, really, child abuse wasn't something that came up in everyday conversation), and it showed. But the fact that he was still a good person and a bright person after all that had been unloaded on him, Chiron saw why the other campers looked up to him.

He'd struggled first through school, learning disabilities, and bullies, and then through quest after quest, prophecy after prophecy, and then even embraced the foretelling of his own death to ensure that some good would come out of it if it happened. He'd clawed his way to the top, fighting through all of the debris to find a path for himself. He'd taken the terrible hand of cards he'd been dealt, and turned it into a winning hand with nothing but sweat, blood, and downright determination.

And won he had. Or, so they all thought.

As soon as he'd managed to find the strength to lift the load off his shoulders, life had dumped another load right onto the pile, and he'd been forced to his knees again. There was another war, another prophecy, a million more struggles to overcome. But he'd gotten up again, and Chiron had been slightly awed at how much of a beating the child could take. Prophecies were like fighting blindfolded—you never knew where the next hit would come from. But Percy took it in stride, not letting ignorance and innocence blind him, and dealt with the truth.

As a teacher, Chiron had learned that a lot of the time, teachers ended up learning just as much from their students as their students learned from them. Adults always passed children off as ignorant because of their age and lack of experience, and thought that the lessons their children tried to convey everyday were meaningless. But Chiron knew better. He knew that sometimes they saw things that they, as adults, couldn't see. They could see past all the meaningless things that older people took into account, and their innocence allowed them to see clearer, rather than foggier. After years of observing young lives, and watching them grown and develop, Chiron had learned a great bit about innocence—even if it wasn't present itself all the time.

It could either be an inspiration, or a discouragement. It all depended on how you looked at it.

Chiron has some deep, philosophic thoughts, doesn't he?

But, as for the poetic writing, tell me how I did! I want to know if it's an improvement, or... a downgrade. I certainly hope not, but you never know. Changing things up can't always work, right?

Thanks for reading! Reviews are appreciated. :)