I'm going to start differentiating from the story, make it a little more PJO like. I hope you still like it, and sorry for the long delay. I finally got a job, and my sister had a baby and those two things have consumed a lot of my time, energy, and thoughts.

As well, this chapter seems a bit short. But, it felt like a good place to stop off. I hope you all enjoy and once again, sorry for the delay. Reviews make me write faster.

Camping Trip

"You know, I do not like this, Travis," Linda said, following him as he went back and forth loading the truck with the camping gear.

"Look, we're in a tight situation here, Linda," Travis said, looking at her and scratching his head. "It is impossible to tell the two apart."

"That cannot be true," Linda said. "Even identical twins have differences." She held up her hand. "You could fingerprint them."

"And how does that help before we know which is which?" Travis asked.

"You raised her for twelve years and you're saying you don't know which daughter is yours?" Linda asked. She was getting very angry. "I can almost understand it for you, but for that woman..."

"Hold it," Travis said stopping half way back to the camping gear in the garage to look at Linda. "Why should it be different for Katie and me."

"It's just that girls pay attention to details," Linda said slowly.

"Linda," Travis said. "I know my Addy. I really do. And I'm sure that Katie knows Izzy just as well. But the problem is that they each know one of us, and they have planned this... very well."

At that moment, Addy and Izzy came out. They were both wearing jean shots, hiking sneakers, and grey tee shirts with the logo of Addy's school. Travis just gestured to the two. "Are you telling me that you would be able to tell them apart. And it's just a camping trip, Linda. You have nothing to worry about."

"I'm not worried about you getting hurt," Linda said. "What concerns me is that you're going on a weekend long camping trip with your ex-wife and your two daughters that want you two to get back together."

"She's absolutely right," Katie said, walking out of the house wearing jeans, boots, and a yoga tank top.

"Huh?" the two girls looked up in confusion.

"It would not be fair for me to take up this time," Katie said. "After all, in a few weeks, this family will be your family, Linda."

"What are you suggesting?" Linda asked.

"You should join in," Katie said. "There is room, after all."

"Mother," Izzy said.

"No!" Addy continued. "This is supposed to be our time as a family."

"Girls," Katie said. "I think it would be rude to exclude Linda. She's going to be your step-mother, after all."

"Um... I'm not sure that's such a good idea..." Travis said slowly.

"Well, it's a better idea than letting you go without me," Linda said.

Fifteen minutes later had Linda coming out wearing black yoga pants, a white tank top, and white tennis shoes. She dropped her bag of clothes into the bed of the truck. "Let's go," she said, climbing into the passenger seat.

"Hope you all have a good camping trip," Katie said, stepping away from the truck.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Addy asked.

"You're coming with us," Izzy said.

"If she's not going, then I don't need to," Linda said.

"No, Linda, this is going to be your family," Katie said. "I would hate to intrude."

"But, Mother, this isn't the deal," Izzy said.

"Make her come, Dad," Addy said.

"See you," Katie said, waving to them.

After driving as far as the car could take them, Travis got out and began pulling some of the camping gear on his back.

"This is it?" Linda asked.

"No, this is the trail," Addy said. She was helping Izzy get some of the bags onto her back.

"Yeah, we get to hike up into the mountains," Izzy added.

"And," Addy continued, lifting a carrying pack. She shoved it into Linda's hands harshly. "We all get to carry bags filled with all we need."

"Why?" Linda asked.

"Because, as you can see, the car can't go any further," Addy said. She and Izzy turned and began up the mountain trail.

"It's okay, Linda," Travis said. He took the bags Addy had shoved into her chest. He handed her the smallest of the bags, which was, to Linda's relief, actually pretty light.

Travis took the lead after a few meters, because the girls realized that if Addy led, Travis would be able to tell which one was which. However, they were beginning to suspect that he was okay with the current situation. Camping with his two daughters and fiancee; it seemed sort of perfect. Both girls would have preferred their mother.

As they continued up, they were also disappointed that, while Linda did not seem the camping type, she was actually adept at hiking. They both assumed that she must have prepared incase she would ever have been sent on a quest. The two also decided that, while she prepared, there was no way she ever would have been on one.

"Hey, Dad," Addy said. "Are you sure we won't get attacked by monsters?"

"Entirely sure," Travis replied.

"What if we do?" Izzy asked.

"That's why I have a Celestial bronze knife in my bag," Travis said. He stopped and turned to them. "And you two will hide."

"Us two?" they asked in unison. They then turned their eyes toward Linda as if to ask what about her.

"What, just because I'm a Daughter of Aphrodite you think I can't fight?" Linda asked. "I may not enjoy it, but I've got skills." She then rolled her blue eyes and kept on following Travis.

"I still don't like the DOA," Addy said when Izzy looked at her. "I feel she's pure evil... and at the very least, way too young for Dad."

"I guess you're right on that account," Izzy agreed. "Plus, he and Mother would be perfect for one another."

"Time for a little more fun?" Addy asked.

"Oh, definitely," Izzy said.

-0-0-0-

"Ca-coo! Ca-coo!"

"What are you doing?" Linda asked, looking at Izzy, who was 'ca-coo'ing upwards, hands cupped around her mouth. She was doing it loud enough that there was a slight echo.

"Oh, I'm making sure that cougars stay away," Izzy said. "That call is proven to scare them. Some ancestral instinct. But, hey, whatever works, right?"

"Well, why isn't your sister doing it?" Linda asked.

Izzy turned to Linda, rolling her blue-green eyes. "She, like our father, would prefer to wrestle any cougars. That's why she's hiking up by our father, annoyed with me for scaring them off." She cupped her hands around her mouth again. "Ca-coo! Ca-coo!"

Linda gave Izzy an odd look as the girl continued on. She followed, a few steps behind. After a few moments, she lifted her hands up. "Ca-coo!"

Up ahead, Travis looked down at his daughter hiking nearer to him. "What is your sister doing?" he asked.

"Oh, it's a bird call, apparently," Addy said. "We learned about it at camp, and she wants to see if she can see one of these really pretty birds up here."

A moment later, Linda was doing the same thing. Addy resisted the urge to smile too much. "Well, it's nice to see at least one of you is getting along with Linda."

Addy just smiled and kept on walking, not getting ahead in case she should give herself away too early.

Upon arriving at the campsite, Addy, Izzy, and Travis all got to work setting up the site while Linda had to take a moment to sit down and catch her breath.

"Is it time for dinner?" Linda asked, after setting up her tent. She then noticed that Travis had a fishing rod and a net. "Please tell me that is to catch tomorrow morning's breakfast."

"Nope," Travis said. "Out here, we catch our food."

"You did bring something else though, right?" Linda asked.

"Well, there's always the salt and pepper we brought to season the fish," Addy called out as she and Izzy each worked a worm onto the hooks of their fishing lines.

"But, I would suggest that you not eat just that," Izzy said. She smiled a bit. "Wait, do you not like fish?"

"I don't dislike it," Linda said. "With a good marinade fish can be quite good. But... how are we even going to cook them?"

"Over a fire," Travis said. "Speaking of which, would you mind starting one so we can get to cooking as soon as we have enough fish?"

Linda stared at Travis for a few moments, but then sighed. "Fine. Where is the wood?"

"Look around you, Linda," Addy said. "We're in a forest. I'm sure you can find some wood somewhere." Izzy snickered then pulled Addy to the lake to start fishing.

"Okay, remind me why we dug up a few worms when Dad brought leeches?" Addy asked quietly as the two girls sat fishing.

"Oh, I have better plans for the leeches," Izzy said with a smile. She then got up and walked to where Travis was, cast her line again, and took a seat on a rock next to him. Addy did the same on his other side. Travis smiled down at his two daughters, content to be out in nature, fishing, with both his daughters.

-0-0-0-

"And, you're sure this isn't poisonous?" Linda asked. It was a few hours later and they had caught enough fish for the next day. They had been cooked and the four were now all seated around the fire eating.

"Safer than Sushi," Travis said.

"Which we noticed you seem to like," Izzy said. Addy nodded, but was chewing.

"Okay, that has to be the one that has been staying with you," Linda said pointing at Izzy. "Izzy, right? Not Addy. Addison hasn't seen me eat anything."

"Oh, look, you caught us," Addy said. She pointed at the night sky. "You really think it's a good idea to hike now? There's barely any moonlight."

"Tomorrow morning," Linda said.

"Oh, come on, Linda, let's stay a couple of nights," Travis said. "Camping is good for the soul."

"Anyway, by tomorrow morning, we'll have made ourselves enough alike again that you won't be able to tell us apart," Addy added with a wide smile.

Linda turned her head to Travis. "You know, that's the one you raised," she said. She then stood. "Well, I am exhausted. It has been a long day. I will see you all tomorrow." She began toward her tent. "Ca-coo! Ca-coo!"

"Uh, Lynn..." Travis began. She turned around to face him. "Why are you doing a bird call at night? The bird is probably asleep, not to mention that it's way too dark to see any now."

"Bird call?" Linda said. "But they..." she pointed at the girls, then her voice darkened. "There aren't any cougars out here, are there?"

"Sure there are," Travis said. Linda went stiff. "And that call will only attract them. But you're not in any danger."

"How do you know?" Linda asked.

Travis stood and walked to her. "Because, they like easy prey, and getting past me will be impossible." With that he kissed her lightly.

"Oh, Dad, come on, we don't need to see that," Addy said.

He turned to the two. "Be nice," he said to the girls.

With that, Linda crawled into her tent for the night and Travis and the twins finished their dinner avoiding all topics of Travis's love life.

-0-0-0-

"This was a genius idea," Addy said, trying her best not to laugh or make too much noise. "She is going to flip out."

It was a few hours later. Travis had taken to his own tent, believing his daughters to be asleep. Luckily for the girls, it was a warm night and Linda was sleeping mostly out of her sleeping bag.

"She'll kill us if your laughing wakes her," Izzy hissed. She had the tub that had the rest of the leeches. She opened it up the tub and grabbed a leech. Addy did the same. They distributed some of the remaining leeches on the woman's arms and across her stomach. They left just enough to use as bait the next day, if needed.

Neither were surprised to be woken by an ear-splitting scream the next morning. They clamped their hands over their ears, but smiled and laughed.

"What is it," Travis burst out of his tent, shirtless, holding his Celestial bronze knife.

"Get them off me!" Linda yelled, pulling a leech off her arm, and whining about how slimy it was.

Travis sighed, glad it wasn't a monster attack, stabbed the knife into a tree stump, and went to help Linda with the leeches.

"Oh, come on, Linda," Addy said. "They're harmless."

"Except for the blood-sucking part," Izzy said. "You could think of them as a bunch of small, slimy Edward Cullens. I'd have thought you'd be into all that vampire stuff."

"Girls, this is not funny!" Travis said, having collected several leeches into his hand and grabbing the tub to put them where they belong. Linda was still searching her body frantically to make sure they were all gone.

"Sorry Dad," Izzy said. Addy mumbled something, almost like an apology.

"You girls need to apologize to Linda," Travis said.

"And that's not happening," Addy said. She crossed her arms and stomped off into the woods.

Izzy watched her sister go. "She just needs some alone time," she said. "And Linda, putting leeches on you was mean, insensitive, and immature."

"I didn't hear an actual apology in there," Linda said.

"I'm not sorry we did it," Izzy said before crawling back into her tent.

-0-0-0-

"Yeah, that's a nice one," Connor said to Katie as the two were looking at a photo album on Addy. Katie wanted to see all she had missed, as well was being a mother all the way. She had already managed to clean the entire Stoll household. Connor had found her the night before detailing Travis's room. He suspected that something more Addy centric would likely keep any tears from the daughter of Demeter's eyes.

"She must have been seven there," Katie said.

"Exactly," Connor said. "How'd you know?"

"Oh, that's when Izzy lost her front tooth," Katie said. "I still can't believe how much they look alike. If someone handed me this picture a week ago, I'd wonder when Izzy had posed for it."

Connor laughed. However, he stopped when he heard Jessie outside the house, barking. It wasn't her usual joyful bark at meeting someone. It was a guard dog bark, one that she only used when there was danger.

"Katie, get upstairs and grab a sword," Connor said, kneeling down and reaching under the coffee table where a quick sword was stashed.

"What's wrong?" Katie asked, following Connor despite what he had said. However, a moment later, she saw what was up. A creature, fiery hair, one bronze leg and one donkey leg, was coming at the house, and fast.

"I thought Travis had killed her," Connor said, a sudden recognition and a bit of fear coming to his eyes.

"Half-Blood, we meet again," the Empousa laughed, coming in range of speaking.

Katie was shocked how quickly she had come. She finally took Connor's advice and made for the stairs. Before she even reached them, she heard the sounds of swords meeting and a crash.

Because of her cleaning the night before, Katie knew exactly where the weapons were kept. She grabbed a few throwing knives and a long sword. She wanted to stay as far from the creature as possible.

She got back downstairs just on time to see Connor crash land on the coffee table. Katie threw the first of the knives, which skimmed the creature's side. She yelled, but was uninjured.

Katie threw the second, which impaled the creature's arm. She yelled and pulled the knife out, throwing it back at Katie. The daughter of Demeter reacted quickly enough, knocking the knife away with the sword.

"Leave," Katie said. "Now!"

The Empousa yelled, but then smiled. "The one I'm looking for isn't even here," she said. Before Katie could ask what that meant, the monster had turned and was gone.

"What was that about?" Katie asked.

"That Empousa attacked me earlier this summer," Connor said. "But I thought Travis had destroyed her."

"So, it's probably going after Travis?" Katie asked, a panic coming to her eyes.

"I guess," Connor said. "You don't have to worry, he's capable of defending himself."

"What if it goes after the girls to get to him?" Katie asked. She was already walking out the door. "Hurry up, Connor. I need a guide."