A/N] And thus we continue…

Shadows of the Hunt

Chapter 2: The Raven and the Dove

They just had to organize the dining pavilion by cabin. Once I had got myself some cereal I simply slipped off into the shadow of a large tree by the lake to enjoy breakfast. No one seemed to notice. Word seemed to have spread amongst the Apollo campers, as several had glanced over as I passed. None of those stares were particularly appealing and none of the muttering I heard was angry, it just seemed...sad. Or perhaps resentful would be a better term.

I returned the bowl to the kitchen as covertly as possible and nearly ran head-on into Chiron.

"Eating alone, are we?"

I sighed. "I was that obvious?"

The centaur smiled apologetically. "Actually, you were quite subtle. Unfortunately in a camp full of hyperactive half-bloods, that alone made you stand out. I wouldn't worry, only a few actually spared you a glance."

"You were observing me then, I take it?"

He shrugged his broad shoulders. "Yes, from the staff table. You could sit with us, you know. Ms. Dare does when she's at camp."

"Yes, because that wouldn't make me stick out like a sore thumb."

Chiron just sighed tiredly in response. "Very well, follow me." He withdrew a piece of folded paper from his tweed jacket pocket as he turned to walk off. "Here," he said.

"What's this?" I asked, unfolding the paper.

"It's your activities timetable. I'll walk you through today's activities, though" he said happily, and I knew he caught the dark look that flashed across my face as I regarded the paper. "What's the problem?"

"Oh nothing," I said offhandedly as I mentally began ticking off which events I would be skipping. This turned out to be pretty much everything.

"Oh, I feel I should warn you," Chiron said suddenly, "Playing 'truant' from your activities will not be tolerated."

Is this guy psychic?

"I wouldn't dream of it!"

"Really? Well, you had a 'the old centaur's off his rocker if he thinks I'm doing this' sort of look on your face."

"I'll have to remember to control my facial expressions in future, then."

He rubbed his brow and sighed again, "Look, you may think of this as something a bunch of adults have just thrown together to give a bunch of dysfunctional children something to 'redirect their energies on' or other such babble mortal teachers like to rattle off, but it's not. It is practice and training for the future. I've seen too many young heroes die because they lacked the training they needed to survive."

"I think you'll find I'm already quite adept at survival and killing," I responded in a low tone.

The centaur just smiled widely. He was difficult to rattle, I'll hand him that. "Excellent! Then you won't mind proving this proficiency to me. I'm teaching your archery class today at twelve; I expect you to be there."

I heaved a sigh. "Fine…"

"And the lead councilor for cabin five will be leading your swordplay class at two, you remember Clarisse, don't you?"

I rolled my eyes sarcastically. "Great… Give the big crazy girl a large knife and set her on me, eh?"

Chiron sighed, "She's not that bad, and she's really been trying to smooth out her kinks, so cut her some slack, okay?"

The way he asked as if it were a personal favor really aggravated me. "Alright… I'll watch, but I'm not promising anything."

The Centaur just smirked, "Oh I wouldn't worry about needing to promise anything," he remarked in a disturbingly ambiguous tone which I would've questioned had he not spoke up again. "And here we have the climbing wall. You'll have practice here from four until four thirty."

I observed the tall wall and flinched back as a wave of lava exploded upwards, singeing the backside of a camper who was scrambling up at the time.

My jaw dropped. "Just how many parents have sued you people, really?"

He coughed nervously in response. "Anyway, over here we-" He was interrupted by a girl's voice.

"Chiron!" it was a blonde girl with Greek battle armor, carrying a bronze sword.

"Ahh, Annabeth. How can I help you this morning? Oh, Armani, this is Annabeth Chase, she's visiting for the week with Ms Dare. She's head of the Athena cabin and was recently appointed as chief architect of Olympus."

I inclined my head curtly, "Armani Dove. Pleasure."

She nodded back with a smile. "Nice to meet you. New camper?" she enquired of the centaur.

"I'm showing him around. He arrived in the dead of night."

I was still observing the girl. "You look just like your mother, has anyone said that before?" I'm not sure this was a good thing, however; just the memory of the owl lady's stare gave me a chill.

You are aware that was a bad thing to say?

Whatever she was about to say she held onto as she suddenly regarded me, "You've met my mother?"

Why is it that my gut only tells me things after the fact? I sighed, "I ran into her in the woods last night. It was an…interesting encounter."

Her stare became so intense that for a second it was identical to her mother's, and I took an instinctive step back. "What was she doing there?"

"Scientific curiosity, apparently."

The girl just stared at me dubiously in response, "It could be a coincidence, I suppose." Turning to Chiron, she said, "Has Rachel said anything, had any feelings?"

Chiron shook his head. "Not so much as a prediction on tonight's dinner menu."

"Is this the priestess I take it we're discussing?"

Chiron turned back to me. "Ah yes, she had a strong urge she needed to be here. So Annabeth was kind enough to escort her to camp for the duration of their spring break."

"Just the two of you? Have any trouble on the way here?"

She shook her head, "No trouble…and yeah…just the two of us." I noticed she seemed suddenly quite glum. She seemed to force herself to brighten up after a second and suddenly focused on me, "Hmm, let me guess…Hermes?"

Oh not this again...

I sighed, "Nope."

Her eyes narrowed as she rubbed her brow in a way identical to her mother. "Then…Aphrodite, by any chance?"

"No!" I found myself snapping more harshly than I intended.

"S-sorry, you just had that pretty boy look about you some of the Aphrodite boys have…Oh, this is a tough one."

Pretty boy? There's always an annoying blonde one…

Chiron could clearly sense me becoming irritated, "That's enough, Annabeth. I'll let you know if Rachel says anything," he said and turned to lead me away.

"Demeter!" she said, clearly having ignored the Centaur.

"And that's strike three. Good day, Ms. Chase." On that I walked off, forging ahead with enough speed that Chiron had to trot to keep up. "Is she gone?"

I saw out of the corner of my eye as Chiron glanced over his shoulder and waved cheerily behind him, "I'll see you after dinner, Annabeth!" then he turned back to me. "Yes, she is, and looking quite glum. It's rude to be abrupt with people you just met, Armani. You won't make many friends that way."

"I'll be sure to apologize; she was brushing on a touchy subject. Aphrodite child indeed…and what was she upset about?"

The Centaur sighed. "She had other plans for spring break. She had wanted to spend it with someone; he had commitments at school and couldn't make it."

"Misses her family, does she?"

"Ah, not exactly. She has…a certain someone."

"Well, that narrows it down."

I heard the centaur give an exasperated sigh. "You're not much of a romantic, are you?"

I skidded to a halt to regard him tersely, "It's not particularly in my nature, no."

He held up his hands defensively. "I'm just making conversation."

"Sorry… I'm just…not used to having this many people around me. Have you ever met Apollo?"

The Centaur paused. "Once or twice. He is one of the more boisterous gods."

"Well can you imagine having him, and only him, for company for most of your life?"

He did seem to be trying hard to comprehend it as multiple emotions flashed across his face. "There are worse gods to have had as a guardian."

"Perhaps…but my entire social development was pretty much entirely structured on observing Apollo and then doing the total opposite."

Chiron let out a small laugh, "Is that a part of your nature too?"

I groaned, "You have no idea…"

The activities director smiled, "Then perhaps coming here was what you needed after all."

"Perhaps."

I think he could sense I needed time to think for a while, "I'll tell you what, I don't think I need to keep coddling you, so why don't you go explore by yourself, get some sun and I'll meet you at archery practice."

"Yeah, thanks Chiron." The centaur nodded with a smile and trotted off towards the combat arena.

It was strange. I never thought it possible for someone to earn my respect so quickly; this Chiron was truly a breed apart.

-A-

And so I strolled, keeping as much to the shadows as I could; but the camp was pretty much all open, so I spent half the time quelling my instincts to run for cover.

It seemed quite calm, but then I guess spring break wasn't the camp's busiest time of the year. However, it was hardly deserted. From what little I could gather, the cabins with the most campers right now were the ones belonging to Ares and the Apollo. The latter truth was somewhat unfortunate, as I always seemed to sense them watching me whenever I was around. I still couldn't place their attitudes; they seemed to jump from wanting to speak to me to an almost resentful indifference. It was strange; Apollo was far easier to work out, and he was a god for Hades' sake.

After I was satisfied I had seen everything that was worth seeing without actually entering any of the areas, I settled back under the tree I had my breakfast under and observed idly as some Naiads weaved underwater.

Another new sight…

I nodded curtly in response to their waves and beaming smiles.

I heard the horn sound again and realized it was about time to go to practice. As I reached the path, I saw a flash of bronze approaching and recognized the Athena girl from before.

"Annabeth…wasn't it?" I asked as she passed, and she froze dead.

She eyed me inquisitively, "Armani, right?"

I smiled; I was half expecting her to get my name wrong. "As an apology for my rudeness earlier…one more guess."

She hesitated, and then smiled. "I think I'll save it, but if I guess right you have to tell me…"

"Tell you what?"

"What it was my mother was so curious about when she met you."

A small smile twitched at my lips, "Trust me, Daughter of Athena, if you guess right then you won't need me to tell you what she was curious about." Suddenly something occurred to me, "Wait, how do you know I even know who my Olympian parent is? For all you know I was lying earlier when I kept denying your guesses."

She tugged nervously on the hem of her jeans, "I heard about how you said you didn't know if you were claimed or not so I sort of twisted Chiron into telling me about it. Don't blame him though, I was just talking to him about why my mother might've been there last night and the conversation…led in that direction."

I sighed; obviously the centaur wasn't as infallible as he liked to pretend. "I suppose I'll let him off this time. Anyways, I've got to get to archery practice so…I'll see you."

The girl nodded, "Catch you later, then."

-A-

I selected the bow that was the least distasteful. All paled horribly next to my mother's or my own identical version of it, so I selected one with the closest size and draw weight.

It had been a while since I had used any arrows other than the ones that I had formed myself; these felt weak and brittle in my hands, but I supposed they would serve their purpose.

Chiron began his lesson and rattled off some of the basics to the class and then was kind enough to introduce me. I received more scorning stares from the three Apollo children present. There were a few whispered comments from the two Nemesis twins, and the Ares boys just looked like they would rather be elsewhere.

"So how about you show us what you can do. Is the target okay, or would you like it a bit closer?" he asked. A pair of nymphs were still adjusting it as he spoke; it was about twenty meters away.

My eyes burrowed into the blue and red target, imagining a grazing deer in a field under the night sky. "Move it back…" I said in a low tone.

I saw him raise his eyebrows out of the corner of my vision, "Very well…" He waved a hand forward in the air and the two nymphs lifted the target and moved back about five meters.

"Keep going…" I muttered, keeping my concentration focused.

I saw him hesitate, but he waved them back, maybe thirty meters now.

Without even a crosswind…no.

"Further…" I muttered again.

I noticed him shake his head and he raised both arms and waved them forwards, the nymphs looked exasperated and moved it back until they were bordering on the lake edge. "Is this far enough, or would you like the girls to go swimming?"

"That'll do." I slowly slid an arrow from my quiver and nocked it, drawing the string back. Everything had gone oddly silent. I pulled back until I heard the bow start to creak with the strain.

Such poor craftsmanship… THERE!

I clenched my teeth and loosed the arrow, it was flung forward with such brutal force that when it struck the target it went clean through the straw, even at this range.

I lowered the bow and narrowed my eyes; the arrow was embedded near the top of the target.

I heard a scoff from one of the Nemesis twins, a pair of dark-haired boys. "After all that build-up you could've at least gotten a bulls-eye!"

I didn't take my eyes from my target as I spoke. "I wasn't aiming for the bulls-eye." As if on cue, the sound of straining wood filled the air as the damage the arrowhead had done to the target's support frame kicked in. With a crash the entire structure collapsed into a jumbled heap, the arrow still embedded through the half-severed support plank.

I said one word over the silence that descended. "Dead."

"What…was that?" Chiron asked after a moment.

"I took down my target…in a somewhat literal sense."

The centaur groaned at my archery pun. "But was that really necessary?"

I inclined my head, "I've never met prey that's been kind enough to stand and let me paint a blue and red circle on its side. You gave me a target, so I aimed for the weak spot."

"Fine, but you're putting up the replacement target by yourself. To be honest I'd be impressed if you hadn't just destroyed camp property."

I dug the bow in my hand angrily into the earth and headed off into the equipment shed while the others took up positions and began firing at the targets.

I dragged a replacement out and just as I turned about an arrow skimmed my shoulder and embedded itself into the target behind me. A chuckle came from the three Apollo boys, and the one holding the bow called up, "Sorry, new guy! Didn't quite see you there."

My eyes widened as my instincts kicked in, and I felt myself walking slowly towards him. I'm not sure what look I had in my eyes but whatever it was the smiles had suddenly died. Only the leader had a small smirk on his face but by the looks of it he wasn't even aware he was still wearing it. I had stopped dead several meters away, and my breath was coming in short enraged bursts. I had no weapon and he did, so I was almost screaming at my instincts not to react as I normally would…and it was a battle I was losing.

Don't! I'm telling you, DON'T!

I wanted nothing more than to wipe the smirk of his face and make him pay for all of his cabin's scorning looks. I was confused at what I had done to upset them so much and was simply angry.

I saw Chiron trot up out of my peripheral vision, he opened his mouth to speak but his voice died, as did the other campers'.

I knew why: my entire body was glowing an eerie white, and, more importantly, a silver orb was pulsing in my slack right hand; every time my fingers twitched two lines of silver would emerge up and down then retreat back as my hand relaxed; my subconscious alone was trying to form my bow, and I was inches away from snapping like an overstretched bowstring.

Just breathe! Deep breaths…calm down!

I closed my eyes, raised my head and began inhaling deep cool breaths of air. Slowly I felt my anger abate and my body cool. I opened my eyes; everyone was still staring. I glanced at my hand to confirm that the light was gone.

Chiron was first to speak. "Armani…what was that?"

I narrowed my eyes at the boy in front of me. "That was someone who was inches away from committing murder."

The centaur tried to laugh in good humor, but he was clearly shaken. "Come now, James is one of our best shots. If he wasn't aiming for you then you were in no danger."

I turned my eyes to Chiron, "I wasn't talking about James." By the widened eyes I could tell he got my meaning.

Without another word I began walking off the practice field, I stopped few feet beyond Chiron but didn't turn back as I spoke. "I'm done…"

I heard Chiron call after me, but I was already gone.

-A-

If I was scarce before, as the days went on I became nigh on invisible. I went to practice but did only what was asked of me; in sword fighting I would come out, face my partner, and, as coldly or as brutally was required, would render them unable to fight. Anyone assigned to be my partner after a few days did so with extreme trepidation and once I had performed my task I would sink into the shadows like a good hunter and be gone.

In archery I would stand and mutely fire arrow after arrow into the centre of the target, each arrow splitting down the shaft of the next. Once my quiver was empty I would simply leave. Chiron would try to stop me but I merely walked on as if deaf to the world.

It wasn't just Chiron. The head councilor of cabin five would occasionally attempt to make me stay behind during melee training, but by the time she had finished saying my name I would already be leaving. As for breakfast, I stopped coming altogether and remained in the woods to hunt for food. Even the wood nymphs could sense something wrong. I could feel them melt out of their trees to watch me leave each time.

Shocking how many people would try and reach out to you. Annabeth had attempted to stop me twice in passing, and even the boy James from the Apollo cabin seemed to have attempted to stop me at one point. But I paid no heed; I simply drifted on by and left them wondering if they had even seen me in the first place.

Why? Because it was best for them and for me. If the Apollo kids kept pushing I didn't know what I might do. If I snapped and did hurt someone seriously, I'd never be able to forgive myself, and furthermore my cover would be blown and then I'd have a real Pandora's Box of a situation to handle. So I thought it best not to interact with anyone at all.

I used to just feel numb inside…why does it hurt now?

This I contemplated as I leaned back in the shade of the archery equipment shed. Suddenly my heart nearly leapt into my throat. "It's not working you know…" came a smooth and eerily cool voice, like oil running over ice.

For some reason I reflexively went for my sword, but of course it wasn't there, and after calming myself I turned to the side.

A boy stood leaning against the same wall I was, looking oddly relaxed and smiling slightly. He was shorter than me and possibly somewhat younger, with dark eyes and pitch-black, oily hair. The boy stood with his arms folded, wearing a black pair of jeans and dark leather coat.

No one had approached; it was as if he simply appeared out of the shadows right behind me, "I beg your pardon?" I asked after taking a second to collect myself.

"I said it's not working," he replied smoothly.

I narrowed my eyes cautiously. "What isn't working?"

"Nobody hides in the shadows better than me, and trust me, you're not doing it well enough. Your heart's just not in it. If anything you couldn't have attracted more attention if you had tried."

I stared at the boy with rising frustration. "I didn't catch your name."

He inclined his head round to me; his smile widened a bit. "Nico, Nico Di Angelo, son of Hades."

Hades?

I fought a shudder as I finally placed the odd scent of decay around him, "A son of the Big Three, eh? I do hope you're not expecting me to bow"

"Not at all," he replied, his smile not faltering.

He seemed to be waiting for me to speak, so I introduced myself. "Armani-"

"- Dove, son of unknown, yes, I know. The new problem child of Camp Half-Blood…that used to be my title, you know."

I leaned back against the wall again. "I do hope you're not too disappointed."

"Hardly; it's not like you'll hold it for long, anyway."

I felt an eyebrow peak up curiously. "Oh? And why is that?"

Nico sighed, "because you don't belong here."

"Tell me about it."

"No, I don't mean Camp Half-Blood. I mean here; you may want to hide yourself away for some reason, but you don't belong here in the shadows."

"And why is that?"

"Simple…because you don't enjoy it. You'll try, but sooner or later they'll get to you and you'll end up back in the light where you belong and do yourself a favor: don' t fight it."

"Are you talking about the other inmates of Camp Bedlam?"

His smile widened even more. "Of course, the crazies out there are better than the crazies you'll find here."

It was odd; this was the longest conversation I had had with anyone in days, and for some reason I couldn't stop talking to this Nico. "And what of you? Do you enjoy it?"

His face froze, and I could tell he was holding his smile in place, as it didn't reach his eyes. "It's who I am…I accept that."

"Is there no one else?"

He blinked, "What do you mean?"

"Family. Or are you like me; the only one?"

I could hear his teeth grit in his mouth and I realized I had touched a nerve. "I did once, but now she's gone."

And now it was me feeling sorry for him, what a reversal of fortunes. "I'm sorry… How did it happen? You don't have to tell me, of course."

"She died. Artemis convinced her to be a Hunter and she was killed during her first mission." I noticed the undertones of sorrow and deep-rooted anger in his voice. And suddenly I felt very uncomfortable; three guesses why.

I really had nothing to say; I had no right to say anything. "I'll leave your shadows for now, I'm sorry I brought it up."

He smiled sadly, "Don't be…and thanks."

My brow furrowed in confusion, "why?"

His smile became a bit more genuine. "It's occasionally nice to share a dark corner with someone. Just don't make a habit out of it."

And I would have responded had he not just disappeared into the shadows. And I don't mean figuratively speaking, I mean literally disappeared.

The power of Hades? Impressive.

As I walked off I dwelled on the words the strange demigod had left me with and I kept coming back to one thing.

And you thought YOU were lonely?

-A-

As I walked past a group of Apollo boys I couldn't help but notice the three from my first archery lesson (if it could be called that) among them. I drifted by and could've sworn I saw one of them hesitate as if wanting to shout out to me, but I had already passed them. I idly realized that whatever conversation they had been having had abruptly died.

I spared a glance at the campers in a window reflection. There were no looks of anger and scorn, they were just mulling about now looking…sad. And something inside me suddenly told me he was probably trying to apologize…

-A-

I was still dwelling on these things the next afternoon at sword practice. My normal cold intensity to defeat my opponent was nowhere to be found and my body was just moving on auto-pilot. In fact I wasn't even looking at my enemy.

Parry, deflect, strike, deflect, block, thrust…

The Iris girl who I was fighting, a short thing with cropped brown hair and sparkling blue eyes, had worn a look of abject terror to begin with, but now appeared to be marveling at the good fortune that I wasn't simply swiping at her legs and striking her in mid air or some other quick-defeat tactic and was now even delighted to be pushing me back.

Parry, block…WATCH IT! Swerve, jump…strike… HEY ! STRIKE!

There was a huge gap in her guard and I could see it easily, but I couldn't stop thinking if Nico was right about me.

What is WRONG with me? I was never like this before…what am I so afraid of?

I idly thrust out my left fist and heard a squeak of pain from my opponent followed by the twin sound of a small body hitting the ground and a sword clattering to the floor.

Deep in thought I sheathed my sword and turned to walk out of the arena's back entrance, aware of every eye following me.

"Oh that is it!" came an enraged shout from behind me. A second later a spear flew by my right arm and embedded itself in the earth directly in my path. Now that snapped me out of my reverie.

Abruptly all the sound ceased; the other half-bloods had halted their fight. I turned around to find Clarisse glowering at me from across the arena and strapping on a pair of greaves that matched her shin guards and breastplate.

"What? Is there a problem?"

"Oh, there's a problem all right, and I'm looking at it!"

"I don't follow. I've broken no rules, I've bested my opponent, there is nothing more to do and so I'm done."

"Do you see anyone else leaving?" she asked tensely, indicating the area around herself.

"I don't."

"Okay, then what makes you so special?"

"Does it really matter? I'm finished, aren't I?"

"As a matter of fact, not tonight you're not," she said with a nasty smirk.

"If you wish for me to clean up at the end-"

"-Oh no, this has nothing to do with chores! You do know who I am, don't you?"

"You're Clarisse, Daughter of Ares and head councilor for cabin five," I replied simply.

"That's right, and this isn't a disciplinary issue; it's a counseling one!" On that she drew her sword from her sheathe.

I blinked. I was suddenly feeling nervous. "You're going to…council me?"

She inclined her head, that viscous smirk widening, "I don't know what suddenly convinced you to turn yourself into a category-one jerk, but I intend to snap you out of it even if I have to council you into a bloody pulp in the process!"

I considered running, but immediately dismissed it, partly due to the spears within easy reach of the girl and partly because I felt that this time I had to stay.

I drew my sword.

"This is propost-" I was brutally cut off, however, as I was forced to suddenly defend as Clarisse interrupted with a swing of her two-handed bronze sword.

"So let's talk!" she said as she pushed me backwards with the blade.

"We have nothing to talk… about!" I snapped back, pushing her sword back and staggering out of her reach.

She immediately swung her sword around and would've left a nasty gash on my leg had I not leapt up over it. "Oh, I think we do!" she shouted back and blocked my own strike with her armored cuff. Her hand grabbed my sword arm and yanked me to her, "What is your problem?" she demanded, and I was idly aware of a crowd gathering at the entrance of the arena. The other sparring half-bloods had formed a circle around us. "You think you're better than all of us, that it?" she shouted after shoving me back several feet and striking me with the flat of her blade.

I gasped in pain. She was on top form and I, to say the least, was not. "You know it's not that!" I spat.

"Yeah? Well why don't you share it-" she punctuated this by swinging her sword and missing my chest by inches, "-with the rest of the class! Is it your parent not claiming you? Is that what's getting you down?"

I paused to catch my breath, "Don't presume to psychoanalyze me, Clarisse! That's one strength you don't have!" I snarled angrily.

She attacked again, her blade narrowly missing me; thankfully I still had the agility edge. "Maybe, but I've at least learned that closing yourself off and existing in your own little world and snapping at anything that tries to get in is a bad way to live!"

Her words gave me pause for a second; it was the second she needed to hit me with a side kick and send me skidding on my back for several meters. She advanced on me, stopping a meter or so away. "Trust me, I've lived a good part of my life that way, and it didn't get me anywhere. So until you learn to stop taking your problems out on the rest of us and let us help you, I'm sure as Hades not letting your sorry butt off the ground!"

She was oddly open about her feelings for someone so tough, especially since I could see a substantial crowd of campers watching.

I suppose this is what Nico meant when he said they'd finally get me.

I stared straight up at the sky. A thick bank of clouds covered where I knew the moon hid itself from me. My will to fight had disappeared, and I knew why.

It's because she's right, and so was Nico.

So what was wrong with me?

I was afraid. Afraid that through interaction with other people I might be inviting back the pain in my heart I had only shaken when mother accepted me. It was only when I faced up to the negative side-when I had the altercation with the Apollo kids-that I finally realized there was a flip side of the coin in relation to interacting with other people.

And what did I do?

I hid… I'd hidden for most of my life, after all. It only hurt now because I realized I now had something to lose.

So what is it you want to know? Ask her!

I wasn't sure how long I had remained silent, staring up at the cloudy sky, but Clarisse was still waiting patiently and silence had fallen around the entire group. So I spoke, "And how does one go about changing?" I asked, glancing at her.

"You start by opening up, just a bit, even if it's to one person. It could be someone you just met and don't know, or it could be… a special person." I noticed her eyes draw into the crowd and small blush form on her cheeks, and I wondered who it was she was looking at. "And then when you've opened up for the first time, took the risk and exposed yourself, things start getting a little easier."

She's much wiser than she likes to let on…That's the sort of wisdom that only comes from someone who really knows what it's like to be hurt by others.

She breathed out a sigh, "Now then. Are you going to stop being a jerk and claw your backside out of the dirt, or am I going to have to leave you down there all night?"

I couldn't help but smile, "Given the choice…I think it's about time I thought about getting up"

"Gee, you think?" she asked, but I could see she was grinning.

How about that…another one that earned my respect…

And I suddenly realized I owed this violent girl a large debt of gratitude for beating me senseless and berating me in public, which just goes to show you how truly surreal my life is. But how does one say 'thank you' to a child of Ares? I mean say thanks properly. Something tells me words weren't what got to them.

I suppose there's only one thing I can do.

I leaned back into my shoulders and sprang onto my feet. I grasped my sword out of the earth as I brought myself back up to full height.

Clarisse had begun to turn and walk away but had paused, staring at me. The entire crowd seemed to be holding its breath. "What?" I asked her and she narrowed her eyes. "Are you finished already? I would've thought the favorite child of Ares would've had a lot more in her than that." I punctuated this by twirling my blade over in my hand and switching into an offensive stance.

A playful but vicious smirk spread across her features as she gripped her sword hilt and entered her own stance. "Have some camper's spirit after all, do you?"

"I suppose" I sighed; a warm bubbling feeling was starting to well up in the pit of my stomach. Looks like the old fighting spirit just got a rude awakening.

Guess this makes me one of the crazies after all…Sorry, Nico.

"Ready?" Clarisse asked and her foot shifted. I inclined my head in response. She suddenly pointed her blade at me the same way a professional pool player would point at the pocket he was about to sink the black into, and bellowed into the night air, "For Ares!" A roar of approval erupted from at least a dozen campers and soon even the others were cheering just for the fun of it. She retook her stance, waiting for me.

Instead of repeating the action, I raised my blade up at the heavens; it wasn't like I could say it,but…

For Artemis.

Suddenly my eyes went wide as a huge gust of wind swept through the area and the clouds above seemingly exploded in a burst of air pressure. I suddenly found myself bathed in a brilliant shaft of moonlight. A surging force shot through me and I could feel myself reflecting the moonlight through my skin. A wild exultation was swimming through every cell of my body. I pointed my blade which was also glowing, at my opponent, who was now staring at me wide-eyed. "What," she gasped, "Is that?"

I smiled, really smiled, for the first time in too long. "I believe the colloquialism is…that it's on."

Shock and awe again gave way to cheering; I guess they knew a good fight was in the air.

The power of a Hunter and my power as a half-blood were cascading together like a storm in my blood and a song in my head.

Looks like it's Ode to Joy time…

With a blur of white light, I charged, leaping a meter into the air with blade raised, I brought it down and Clarisse barely managed to guard; she pushed up with clenched teeth and both hands to keep me back.

She still managed to smirk though as we grappled with our blades. "Oho? And where did you find this strength?"

I smirked right back. "Ask me again someday, I might just… tell you!" I swung around, striking her blade with a backhanded strike and knocking her guard slightly. I kept the motion going and carried straight on into a roundhouse kick that sent her skidding backwards and leaving a nice sized dent in her breastplate.

She stared down at the indentation and then back up at me as I twirled my sword over and over in my hand. I'm sure it looked taunting and all, but in truth it was my equivalent to a nervous twitch, as she really looked serious about this now.

"Not bad…" She charged again, this time straight through me, slamming her shoulder into me, pressing my blade flat against my chest, and slamming me right into a pillar, knocking the wind out of me. I could see her smirking viciously and was reminded in a perverse way of the time I had knocked my mother into a tree with a very similar attack. That was, of course, right before she retaliated with a… hang on…

That might work…

A small smile worked on the edges of my mouth as I grabbed hold of my opponent's shoulders. I pushed her back slowly, multiple wild animal snarls overlapping as I grunted with the strain. My growl must have shocked her, as she went slack in surprise for a moment. I took the chance and swung a hand up, flicking her between the eyes.

She staggered back a step. I grasped hold of the pillar for leverage, raised a single foot up to chest height and…

…And let this be a lesson that I probably should've considered in advance: Sparta Kicks are all well and good, but attempting one on the daughter of the god of Sparta, a daughter who happens to bear his blessing, is not such a good idea. No matter how humorous or ironic an idea it may have seemed at the time, as it may invariably turn out as follows.

I struck, only to find my entire foot suddenly enveloped in the large hands of my opponent. She held my entire ankle in an iron grip and raised her face to meet mine, blowing a lock of hair out her eye in the process. "Hey, guess what?" She asked, straining to hold my leg,

"What?" I asked, a nervous edge in my voice.

"That happens to be my favorite movie!"

"Yeah… Had a feeling it might," I practically squeaked, and on that I found myself lifted right off the ground by my ankle as she swung me completely round shot-put style and loosed me into the wooden weapons rack, which exploded into splinters as I struck it and crashed down around me.

I was dimly aware of the sound of cheering through the wood and my ringing ears as a hand plunged into the rubble and yanked me free, slamming me against the arena wall, a blade against my throat.

"So?" a slightly breathless Clarisse began. "Any smart words?"

I shook some splinters out of my bangs. "Does ouch work for you?"

"Is that a submission?"

I sighed. "I yield." A cheer went up at my words and the councilor held her blade up triumphantly as she put me down, but only letting me go once she was sure I wouldn't collapse straight away. Which I suppose was nice of her.

The cheering died down as her cabin mates patted her on the back in congratulations and she turned to me. "Since you lost, clean up this mess," she said with a smile, and I idly noticed the masses of debris around me.

I suppose I had it coming…

But I was thankfully saved by the horn, as everyone immediately obeyed the call of their stomachs, only now noticing the smell of barbecue in the air.

"On second thought…" Clarisse said, tapping her chin in thought, "You can either stay here to clean up…or you can go and sit down for dinner. I'll leave you to think about it." With that and a slight limp, she strode off.

I leaned against a pillar at the entrance of the arena and stared out at the dining pavilion, then back at the hell I had left the arena in. "I suppose it's about time I took Chiron up on his offer…"

-A-

A blanket of very uncomfortable silence swept the pavilion as I strode in. But I hid my nerves well, as teenagers, like many animals, could smell fear. So with as much dignity as my aching muscles would allow, I strode up to the staff table wordlessly and settled down at one end, next to Chiron, who was dressed in a different tweed suit.

The murmuring and speech came back after a moment and I idly caught sight of a small nymph running up to the table. "So, finally decided to join us, have you?" said Chiron.

I heard the red-haired girl giggle. "One of us, one of us" she chanted in a mock drone and I nearly choked on the chilled goblet of Coke that had somehow materialized in front of me, lime wedge and all.

"Rachel, be nice," Chiron scolded lightly.

I stared down at the beverage, "Enchanted drinks? I'm impressed."

"You're welcome," Mr. D muttered around a chicken leg.

"I'm glad you chose to come, although I thought you'd hold out for at least another two days. Mr. D, what was your wager again?"

"Hmph! I'd hoped he'd give me at least a week of peace and quiet. Looks like he's another one born to disappoint me."

Wait… They were betting on how long…oh, never mind.

But I had to know. "Who won?" The redhead giggled again. "Oh…"

"Are you sure you've not had any prophecies?" Mr. D asked suspiciously.

"Mr. D, I'm hurt! How could you possibly believe me, a mere mortal girl, could possibly cheat a great god like yourself?"

By Zeus, that had to be the best double bluff I've ever seen…

Dionysus merely grumbled some unprintable Greek curses in response. Suddenly Chiron nudged me. "Ah, Armani-" I noticed him indicating something to my side.

I glanced around and found a nymph waiting with a plateful of food. I recognized her as the one who I had found staring in my face one morning. I noticed she was looking quite sad; I guess having me around in a moping mood for days had affected her. She turned to walk away and I spoke up. "Wait…"

She stopped and turned around, looking tense. "Y-yeah?"

I breathed a sigh, "I'm sorry… for being such a jerk for the past few days, I'll tell you what; if you promise not to overdo it, I'll let you rebraid my hair tonight, but only you, okay? I don't want to wake up looking like a Rastafarian." She let out what I can only describe as a delighted squeal as she hopped once and dashed off, laughing happily.

I'll never understand nymphs…

I suddenly realized Chiron was staring at me with his mouth hanging open as Mr. D spoke up. "Why Armani, you dog," he said with a chuckle. For some reason hearing him laugh was extremely disturbing.

"What? I was just being friendly… Or did I do something wrong?"

Chiron spoke up this time and I could swear he looked like he was blushing somewhat. "You let a wood nymph braid some of your hair?"

My brow knotted in confusion. "Yeah, I'd normally undo it and whichever Nymph's tree I happened to be sleeping in would redo it by morning, but lately I've just been leaving it. I don't see why it's important; they've done it at least a dozen times."

Mr. D spoke up again, "Oh, you heartbreaker!"

Now I was getting annoyed. "What in Hades are you on about?"

"You mean you really don't know what it means when a nymph braids a lock of your hair?"

"That she likes playing with…oh, I don't know!" I replied in exasperation.

"It means-" began the Centaur.

Mr. D was still laughing, "No, no, Chiron, you let the boy figure it out by himself. But if any of you happen to see his face when he does, make sure you describe it to me."

So this is what it feels like to be the center of a joke you just don't get. I was sure it wasn't important, for now at least…although I did have a slight sinking feeling in my gut, the exact same one I had right before Apollo sent me here. I satisfied myself that I'd worry about it later. I then noticed something odd out of the corner of my eye. I indicated with my goblet, "What are they doing?"

Chiron glanced around towards the hearth and back again, "Oh, it's traditional to always honor your parent by dedicating the best-looking piece of your meal to them by throwing it into the hearth."

I shifted nervously. If I did do this I'd practically be screaming hey, look at me, I know who my mother is! "Is it…mandatory?"

The centaur inclined his head, "It's rather taboo not to." He leaned in closer and lowered his voice, "but I suppose you could just choose which piece now and do it later when it's a little less…crowded."

I nodded my head and began scrutinizing my dinner, wondering just what exactly mother would like.

Something tells me the Goddess of the Hunt doesn't like pizza...

-A-

I hung back until nearly everyone had gone. I noticed a small girl around the other side of the fire, who appeared to be stoking it, but she seemed to not be paying attention. I scraped off the lamb chop from my plate and muttered as quietly as I could under my breath, "For Artemis…"

I staggered back; I could've sworn the fire blazed white for just a second.

Odd…

I jumped again, as I realized that girl was suddenly leaning around the side of the hearth, staring at me with wide, bewildered eyes.

Did she hear me? No…but why do I get the feeling she sensed something I would rather she hadn't?

I noticed her eyes were now fixed on a point just past me; she nodded her head to indicate that direction and then turned away to tend to the flames again.

I turned about and saw what she was indicating: a small girl was standing by herself several meters away, staring at me. She couldn't have been more than eight or nine years old. She had curly blonde hair and large, frightened blue eyes, and was gripping the hem of her blue skirt, shuffling from foot to foot. She was either really scared or really needed to use the bathroom.

I suddenly noticed a group of blonde children mingling not far off and doing their best to appear nonchalant. They were failing miserably, and I immediately recognized them as Apollo children. There was trepidation in their eyes, and I realized their odd feelings towards me hadn't abated. I immediately felt a wave of resentment. If I had done something to wrong them then couldn't they at least have the decency to say it?

"Yes?" I asked the small girl. She flinched back a step, and before I could even begin to think about just walking off she seemed to gather her courage and said in the smallest and most timid voice imaginable four words that immediately made me feel like the biggest fool in all of creation.

"What's my dad like?"

I took in a sharp breath and stared at the little girl in shock.

How could I have been so stupid?

Here was a beautiful child who had been claimed but had probably never even met her father. I glanced up at the other children, who were all looking quite solemn now, and I realized that most, if they were lucky, had probably spent less than a minute with their father. And here was me with the gall to moan about how I was forced to spend years in his care, when they would probably give everything they had just to spend a day with him.

It takes more than a glowing symbol to be a parent. I stared wordlessly at the girl, who stood there terrified and alone, waiting for me to speak. She was actually trembling slightly.

Bravery deserves its rewards. I took a deep breath. "How best to describe Apollo?" I wondered out loud. I cocked an eyebrow at the girl. "This may take some time; I hope you're comfortable there."

She nodded nervously, but had stopped shaking.

And so I began mending this bridge. I told her everything. The smallest details I could remember; the bad jokes; the constant rhyming; his odd 8-track nostalgia phase; all his words of wisdom (though I hesitated to use the word) that I could remember.

I got a thrill out of this, as I guessed a lot of the stuff he did around me he did because he thought no one would ever find out, so it was difficult not to give an evil laugh as I reiterated every last one of his embarrassing moments.

Payback really is a…what's the word again?

I told the girl how he had saved me, but didn't elaborate, as it might give me away; how he taught me archery. Even his ridiculously irresponsible idea to teach me to ride a motorcycle at twelve, although I suspected that as the god of prophecy he knew I would need it someday.

I could see out the corner of my eye that the other Apollo children had all but given up on appearing to simply mingle and hang back and appeared to be paying as rapt attention as the girl.

I could see it in her eyes, what she was doing, trying to live some of the experiences they had probably only dreamed of through my words alone. It was a pale substitute, but I expect it was the closest these children had ever gotten.

You're such a fool, Apollo.

Curfew had come and gone and I wasn't even nearly finished. I realized, despite how wide the girl's eyes were and how rapt with wonder she was at my words, I wasn't actually answering her question.

No, I was just rattling off the sort of things he did… But what was he like?

What did I feel about him? Why was I hesitating about just saying what was in my soul? Then suddenly I knew what it was I had to do, as a certain someone's words still rang fresh in my ears:

You have to open up.

"What's Apollo like?" I wondered out loud. Slowly, I approached the girl and dropped down onto my haunches until I was at eye level. Meeting her curious blue eyes with my own, I spoke in a thoughtful tone, "Have you ever had one of those days that's so cold and miserable that you just don't see how it could be possible for there to be any warmth left in the world?"

The girl nodded glumly. I rested a hand on her small shoulder.

"And then as you stand there something happens. It could be a gust of wind, some change of air pressure, I don't know. But then suddenly the clouds part, and you find yourself bathed in the beams of the sun, and you suddenly feel so warm that you know that no matter how cold and dark the world is outside of that spot you know as long as you're in there...in that one place, in that one amazing second, the cold can't ever get to you..." she was just staring at me with the most entranced expression, and I gave her a small smile. "Well… that's what Apollo's like." Her face melted into a small, sweet smile as I stood back up and stretched. "Sweet dreams…" I said, patting her head as I walked past her.

"M-Maria!"

I halted as she suddenly called out, "My name's Maria!"

I paused and inclined my head back. "Armani Dove, good night Maria." And with that I walked off past the Apollo campers, who just stared at me in silence as I passed. "'Night campers," I said, and then headed off back to the forest.

To be continued…

-XA-

[A/N] If you've stuck with me so far I bid you thanks and shall endeavour to get the next chapter up soon.

Catch you in Chapter 3: Winning the Battle but…