whoa super awks it's been more than a year since an update, welp. to everyone i told, "you made me start working on the new chapter! :)" during the break i apologize profusely if you got your hopes up for a new chapter. in all honesty, i am the worst person, biggest procrastinator, and at least partially garbage. i am so sorry.

anyway, the characterization in this is a little bit questionable, but. it's been awhile. please bear with me, kind reader. 3 feel free to leave concrit, though~ any and all feedback is appreciated; i'm lonely and everyone thinks it's weird i wrote an octavian/oc romcom AND I NEED TO SHOW THEM IT'S COOL AND PEOPLE LIKE IT OKAY. thank you :)

recap: octavian went on a fake date with brynne to make someone jealous, and he saw jose kiss judy's cheek there; we (including octavian) later find out this was not what judy wanted and jose is actually repulsed by the idea of judy as anything more than a friend. judy is so grossed out by the kiss that she asks octavian to talk to jose again so he'll stop being clingy and weird, but while she's making her request, it seems like octavian was about to confess something (hint, hint). ofc, judy tactlessly cut him off and he eventually agreed to talk to jose.


"Hey, Octavian," Jose greets, sliding into a pew. "Judy said you wanted to talk. Did you need something from me?"

I look him up and down. His hairstyle is wild as always, the tips done green rather distastefully, and his brown eyes aren't tinged red from tears or anything. His clothing is disheveled, but it's not as if it's much of a change; Jose doesn't keep himself clean the same way fish don't keep their legs muscled. He isn't even paler, whatever that would imply; as far as I can tell, there are no outward signs of Jose turning into a mess after my abandoning him.

Yet... I do feel compelled to help him if he does need it. And Jose's never been one to allow his weaknesses to show.

"Ah, well... It's the other way around. In the least presumptuous way possible, I think you might need me," I tell him, skewering a bear.

Jose's eyebrows furrow in genuine confusion. "Huh...?" Before I can clarify, his expression relaxes and he says in a smug voice, "You've been talking to Judy, haven't you?"

Judy... that was-

No, no, no. Now isn't the time for that train of thought.

"Well..." I try to think of a way to run circles around the question, but eventually deem the task not worth the effort. "Yes."

Not completely interested, I glance at the stuffing and find nothing important. Sighing, I take another animal.

Jose laughs. "Nah, man, Judy's probably exaggerated everything. I've been bugging her on purpose, you know?"

"I wouldn't put it past you. However..."

"Oh shoot, you saw the kiss. How did I forget about that?" Jose asks himself, exaggeratedly smacking his forehead with his palm. "Look, dude, I totally get you're into Judy, it was a platonic thing, don't even worry about it, man." He pauses for a millisecond. "Whoa! Lightbulb. Idea: I'll totally wingman for you. I'm up for it. Are you?"

I roll my eyes, putting down the elephant in my hands. Is he really trying to play /me/? "Jose, just stop. Are you honestly trying to change the subject without me noticing? Forget your, ah..." I think for a second. "...delusions about me and Judy. We're going to talk about you whether you wish to or not."

Jose low-whistles. "Alright, then, Dr. Phil. Start the therapy."

I pause, not sure how to begin. Glancing at Jose, I realize he's not taking it seriously and sigh. Well, that's to be expected, I suppose. I can't quite recall a time he's ever taken anything seriously.

"For one thing, are you aware that you make everyone you meet hate you?" I ask him.

Jose clutches his heart overdramatically, saying, "That wounds!" Silently, I pray to Amicitia that my attempts at staying a friend rather than an angry acquaintance will succeed. With that, I raise the elephant from the altar to the air. "I mean, gee, why don't you tell me how you really feel?" Jose continues.

"Take this seriously," I command him through gritted teeth. Deciding it would be a good time for it, I slice open the elephant's stomach.

"Whoa, Nellie," Jose replies. I send him a glare. "Alright, alright, yeah, I guess I am kind of aware of that," he continues, his mood remaining mellow as always.

"And is there any reason for that?" I ask him.

"Well," he says, glancing at the ceiling and rubbing the back of his neck. "Nothing that really has anything to do you."

"Excuse me?" I say, putting down my knife.

Jose stands up, brushes himself off, and raises a hand in the air. "You're excused." He chuckles. "Look, I'll stop bugging Judy, alright? I'll see you later."

He zooms out of the temple before I can blink.


As Jose leaves, I think about what I just did.

I just… did something just to help Judy. Out of the goodness of my heart. I had nothing to gain from it; Judy has no social status, no power, and she can't really do me any favors, but… I did it nonetheless.

I think about what happened yesterday. How she came in, and… what happened? I…

What does she mean to me? She's a nuisance, and I dislike her, but… She's kind, and her constant happiness can be infectious, at times. Despite this, however, I don't like her. I have no reason to, and I don't need to be dealing with this right now. What I did – or, rather, what I tried to do - was a complete mistake.

Well, I've helped Judy. For now, I'm done with her. And I think I'll try and make this "now" last as long as it possibly can.


I keep like this for about a week. Honestly, I haven't really encountered Judy all that often, and after I've made some excuse for her to leave me alone, she's done so with next to no problem. I suppose she didn't have as many misperceptions as to our relationship as I thought; in retrospect, most of our interactions over this summer have only really happened by chance or my initiation.

But it's not as if that's a wounding revelation. I do want her out of my life, at least for now.

And it's been working. I'm starting to focus on what's truly important; I'm-

"Octavian!"

I groan.

And the prodigal son has returned.

But does that even make sense? He did leave unappreciative of me and my kindness earlier, but does that still make it an appropriate example? I'm not exactly welcoming him back with opening arms, so I suppose I don't fit into the metaphor, but do I really need to? I called him the prodigal son, not myself the father of the prodigal son. The prodigal father?

What am I even saying? The question is pedantic at best; I should discard it.

Allow me to cease my digression.

The prodigal son in question is Jose, and while I'm not thrilled to see him, conversing with someone simple like him is kind of refreshing, what with all the politicians I've been working with recently. "Wasting camp funds…" I'd like to tell them all these stuffed animals haven't come from the budget, but I'd have to reveal the method with which I did obtain them, and that's unsavory. I'd really rather not. I'd honestly rather not deal with them at all, but I do have my ambitions to think about.

"Hey! What are you doing, man?" Jose interrupted. "You haven't reacted for, like… a solid minute. Maybe two solid minutes." He throws up his arms and laughs. "I have zero perception of time."

When he throws up his arms, a Mickey Mouse watch glints in the sunlight, the strap looking to be faux leather and the edges of the watch face being silver. Mickey Mouse stands in the center of the watch, his arms twisting in what would be painful positions if he were real to be the hands on the clock. I've never seen him wear it, but it's not especially important to me whether or not he's gotten a new watch, so I don't bother asking about it.

"Did you need something?"

"Once again, no hello. Cold, dude," he comments, and he seems like he'll say something else, but I cut him off.

"I don't exactly appreciate how you ran out of the temple the other day." I think a second and add something else before Jose starts thinking too highly of himself and his actions. "Not that I find it of that much importance."

He chuckles to himself. "Yeah, you really drove in your point with that last comment." He pauses a second, but I don't grace him with a reply. "Look, I need to talk to you. Can you come with me?"

"We can't do this here?" I ask. "Is this a particularly long conversation?"

He nods and tries to grasp my wrist, but I shake him off easily. "Just follow me, okay?"

I want to say I'm busy, but I'm honestly not; all that's left for me is really just a couple of hours in the temple spent fruitlessly. I have time to spend humoring Jose; the question is, do I really wish to?

Well, it's not as if I've got anything better to do.

Somehow I find myself in a rather secluded area, off at one of the edges of the camp grounds. Is this one of the faun hangouts? I'm not surprised Jose's friendly with the fauns; they both share the same grating, annoying tendencies.

The area is grassy, if a little dark. We sit behind a bush, as if we aren't hidden enough already.

"Why is it necessary we go all the way here?" I ask Jose. What could he possibly have to tell me that warrants this much seclusion? Does he… actually wish to open up to me? Talk to me about his feelings?

I think about that for a moment.

It's interesting. Jose does seem to have hidden depths… but those depths are hidden beneath layers and layers of irritating personality. If the depths happen to be just more irritating personality, perhaps of a different kind, the entire effort will turn out to be fruitless. How deep can Jose be, anyway, truly?

In the end, however, I don't feel as if it's much of my business. I'm keeping away from Judy; I have little interest in doing what she asks of me. I don't need to be Jose's friend, and it's honestly quite a bit of work. Am I ready to commit to that once more?

"See, the conversation I'm about to have with you..." I watch him rub his neck as he puts down the backpack he's been carrying with him and see him take a seat. "It's… super secret. Like you-can't-even-comprehend super secret."

"But… if I can't comprehend it, why are you speaking with me about it?" I ask him, genuinely confused.

"See, you're already not comprehending it!" Jose notes, as if I've proven his point completely. His trademark grin sits upon his face, and I groan. Leave it to Jose to be proud of making a nonsensical point.

"What did you even wish to speak with me about?" I ask him.

"Okay, so see, it's like this…" He waves his arms about in grand motions, and I can't make any sense of them. "You know how I was talking to you the other day?"

"How could I not?"

"Well-" Abruptly, he pauses. His watch seems to have caught his eye while he made his ridiculous gestures; maybe he stole the watch by accident? Though I suppose it's unfair to assume that; for all the time I've known him, Jose has never proven to be a thief.

Unlike someone else I know.

I shake the thought out of my head, not realizing how strange it looks until I've already done it. Luckily, Jose seems to be preoccupied with his own issues.

"Aw, shit. I mean, shoot. You guys are all weird about that cursing and stuff, right? It's like I'm surrounded by geezers… Anyway, I'm actually running late, I have to go meet Taylor about something. Can't keep that kid waiting, he might cry while I'm not there." Jose chuckles to himself.

"What?" I ask him, incredulous. This is far by the biggest inconvenience he's ever done me! Well, perhaps that statement shouldn't be said so lightly, but this is ridiculous. "You took me all the way out here. It was a fifteen-minute walk! Let the boy cry!"

Jose smirks. "Watch out, I could've gotten that on tape and ruined your entire political career. You realize what you just said, don't you? But anyway, just wait around here for me, the talk is still really important." He makes his expression neutral and continues in a German accent, "I'll be back."

"Don't be ridiculous; I'm not going to sit around waiting for you. I'm a centurion; I don't have time to be sitting behind bushes waiting for a descendant of the goddess of gardening." See? Even his title sounds unimportant.

Jose places his hand on my shoulder in a friendly gesture, not allowing me to shake him off. He meets my eyes and – I never realized how… brown his eyes are… They're so… "Look, Doc, can you be a friend just this once? I promise I'll return."

He moves his face an inch closer to mine and all I can do is stutter out a frazzled "okay." I end up leaning so far back away from him that I find my back against the grass.

"Thanks, man!" Jose says, getting up and picking up his knapsack. He burrows through his bag and pulls out a book. "Look, I even have that dumb play you're so obsessed with." He tosses the book at me, and I catch it, though I was initially caught off guard.

I examine the book; it's old, but whoever owned it didn't take as good care of it as I took care of my copy. They're not even the same edition. "This… isn't my copy. Where did you get this?"

"It's mine, dude. Where else would I get it? Speaking of that, I can't say I really understand what you love so much about this play; I had you pegged for a Julius Caesar kind of guy. You know, because… Julius Caesar. This is just some dumb comedy about love and stuff. Isn't that pretty much everything you hate bound into one book?" Jose asks.

"I…" I hesitate, never really having considered what he's saying.

"There's just nothing about this play that really screams 'Octavian!' you know? I kept meaning to talk to you about this, but it never came up."

"Well-"

"And there's the whole thing that, like, it's not that good? I liked it back when I thought Shakespeare was hot shit – stuff – like everyone says he is, but he's not. It's more tolerable than some of his other stuff, but… it's still not that amazing. I mean, the binding of your book is totally shot; it looks like you read it a million times. I read it twice, and I'm totally good for the rest of time."

I examine Jose's copy. The cover is half-ripped, and it looks like he spilled an entire pot of coffee on the novel. He only read this twice?

Jose looks down at his wrist. "Shoot, I totally forgot about Taylor. He's probably sobbing right now. I'll see you later, dude."

Much like he did in the temple, Jose jets off.

I pause a second and consider what Jose said to me.

And then promptly shrug it off, get comfortable in the grass, and open the book.

It's not as if I have anything else to do.

If music be the food of love, play on…


I hear rustling from somewhere behind the bushes in front of me, and I close my eyes and pray that it's only the wind and not a faun here to harass me. I did suspect this was a faun area before… However, a voice proves me wrong, but despite the lack of fauns, I still need to hold back a groan.

"Hey, thanks for coming all the way here with me."

It's Brynne Ramsey… After what happened three weeks ago, I thought I was done with her. Her complaining, her rudeness, her entitlement… That woman is vile. Well, perhaps my wording is a bit strong, but I can't sya I like her in the least.

Hm… but it doesn't sound like she's moving anymore. Perhaps she has no intention of going deeper into the forest? That makes sense, as Jose brought me ridiculously far in… Where is he, anyway? What could he even be doing this long with Taylor?

"No, it's no problem… I mean, I should be thanking you, for calling me out here!"

Ah, but that's irrelevant to the current situation. Brynne… If I stay silent, she'll have no reason to move further into the forest, and I won't need to make her acquaintance once more. As well as that, eavesdropping on her conversation could give me blackmail material, which is far more effective than "owing a favor." However, there's still one question begging for answer in the back of my mind…

What is she going to do that she had to isolate herself and whoever else is with her so thoroughly?

And one answer stands out from the rest, but… she can't be…

"You know, just because I'm pretty doesn't mean you need to thank me for spending time with you, which I asked you for. You don't need to be so nervous; I'm really just like you, another human in this strange, unpopular restaurant…"

No, no, no, no… Brynne is classy, isn't she? She wouldn't… not in the middle of the forest… it's too public! But then again, what's less public than here, the barracks? That's even worse!

I close my eyes, get on my knees, and pray to the gods that what I think is happening isn't happening.

"Actually, I'm half god, so… haha… I mean- Wait, do you hear that rustling? Do you think someone's over there? You said we needed to be alone for this conversation, I wouldn't want-"

Wait… the person Brynne is talking to, she said "conversation"! Which means they're only talking… Perhaps the gods know mercy, after all. Though I do suspect… though I was caught up in my thoughts earlier, I realize now… the other person she's speaking to? It's… Judy.

It's Judy, and judging from all the noise I'm hearing, she's going to come over here!

Before thinking of all the noise I would make, I scramble up the tree I was leaning on in fear of being found.

This is the worst situation I could be in… I am going to flay Jose alive for leaving me here. I'm sure Taylor wouldn't have minded if he brought me along… Not that I particularly want to see Taylor again, either, but anything but this! All the girls that torment me most are gathered here… well, excluding Susan, but her opinion is so unimportant that she probably wouldn't make the list anyway.

"No, you don't need to worry. No one ever comes out here… It's my own little secret space."

Brynne's stopping her? Perhaps she isn't as vile as I thought. But at the same time… her
secret space"? She only ventured about ten minutes into the far forest; she shouldn't feel so special about it.

"Are you sure? I really think there's someone there; I mean, the noise just got louder! I think I'll just-"

I look down from my tree and realize I left Twelfth Night at the base of the trunk. I contemplate going back down to get it, but Judy's becoming a larger threat by the second. It's Jose's copy, anyway, and I don't think she'd put it past him to eavesdrop on two teenage girls.

…If I'm doing something no one would question Jose for doing, what does that make me…?

"Judy, really, sit down, it's no issue. If anyone's listening, it doesn't really matter. I just don't like the chatter around us on the main grounds, you know?"

I look around from my tree and find that I can see Judy and Brynne from the angle I sit at, if I squint past the leaves. I see Judy starting to stand up, while Brynne pulls her down. Looking at Brynne's hand, I shudder. That girl has a monstrous grip; I would know.

Judy sits down again and starts to speak.

"Well, you know, that's kind of funny, considering you, uh, pulled me out of my, you know, empty barrack for this? I mean, not to be rude or anything, but-"

I see Brynne put a hand her shoulder and smile. With that smile, I notice that she looks much nicer than usual today, which does mean a lot. Did she work harder on her appearance? She didn't bother to look this nice for our fake date… Should I be offended?

"Judy, Judy, Judy, Judy," Brynne repeats, placing one hand on her shoulder and gesturing grandly with the other, "nature."

That… made no sense! It was completely irrelevant to what Judy was saying! What is Brynne playing at?

"O-Oh! I- understand you…" Judy… stutters? I peer closely at her all-too-familiar face, and realize her cheeks have been colored a light pink… Is she blushing? Why is she blushing? She's not even pointing out the stupidity of Brynne's response! "U-Um, so what did you call me here for?"

"Oh... I just wanted to speak to you," Brynne replies smoothly as she stops leaning on Judy. "You've caught my attention, you know. You always seem to be so happy; I think that's very... nice." Slowly, she covers Judy's hand with her own.

Is she...? I peer at the two girls, and take note of Brynne's attempt to intertwine their fingers.

She's seducing her! And what sort of seduction is this? Brynne should really be good at this sort of thing! What strategy is she even using, violate her prey's personal space until she feels so embarrassed she falls in love? That's ridiculous.

But why is she seducing Judy? Judy has no standing in Camp Jupiter; there's no way she would have "caught Brynne's attention"! Smiling doesn't make up for messy clothing, messy braids, and no effort in her appearance at all! She may be charming, but she never brings herself to use it unless she just wants to make friends with someone or needs to get herself out of a mess. Judy is so... normal. There's nothing interesting about her!

Somewhere in the back of my mind, a voice asks why she caught my attention, but I dismiss it. I can't be thinking about that right now. I...

What's important is that Brynne doesn't have genuine interest in Judy; it just doesn't add up. And what's truly important is that, because of that, Judy might get hurt. It really doesn't affect me, but... Brynne is right; she is always smiling, and... Well, she's one of the few, I suppose, and I don't think I would gain from her being part of that group no longer. And... she is sort of fun in her own right. Being with her makes me happier than being shut in the temple all day, and I do enjoy that escape. I know I've said I'm getting too close to Judy, and I know I've been avoiding her, but... I don't think this should happen to her when I can stop it, I suppose. It's another thing I'm doing for Judy... but it will be the last. I swear.

So I decide I simply cannot allow Brynne to break her heart, for whatever reason she has, but I can't reveal myself here and now. Judy might not like that, and she'll trust me less. That the last thing I'd like to happen; she's one of the few that trust me genuinely and completely. Chalk it all up to naivety, I suppose.

I sigh as I look down at Brynne and Judy, knowing there's nothing I can do but watch.

I'll... figure something out.


After watching their conversation for a while, my mood quickly goes sour. There's something about this that just makes me want to… I don't know, go to the temple and slaughter the stuffed animals, regardless of what their stuffing reads. Dig up dirt on Brynne and spread it around campus? I am just… very unsettled and very unhappy because of this sight.

Though, try as I might, I can't exactly put my finger on why. I don't like Brynne, but it's more than that. There's something that feels inherently... wrong about this. It's the same way I feel when I don't win elections, when I hear someone make an unsavory remark about my methods, and I dislike it completely. Judy is falling for every one of Brynne's tricks (To put it charitably; there really does not seem to be any rhyme or reason to what she's doing.) and I'm getting annoyed at the sight of her bright red cheeks and the sound of her ridiculous stutter. Don't even get me started on how I feel about Brynne.

However, this train of thought is quickly interrupted by the sound of more footsteps. Judy and Brynne stop talking and look for the source of the noise, which, after a moment, is revealed to be... Taylor? Isn't he supposed to be with Jose, who I'm waiting for? What's Jose doing?

Tsk. I should've known he'd forget about me.

"Judy! You're here! We really need you!"

Judy moves away from Brynne and eyes Taylor. "Taylor? How'd you know where I was? This place is kind of... remote, you know?"

Taylor rubs the back of his neck. "Well, I knew you were with Brynne, and... Venus intuition!"

Judy looks at Brynne questioningly, and Brynne sighs. "Yes, that's a thing."

"Anyway, it doesn't matter! We really need you, there's an emergency!"

"What's the emergency?" Judy asks, looking genuinely confused.

"Well, you know, Susan... and Jose!"

Judy scrambles to her feet. "Oh my gods, she's finally snapped and killed him, hasn't she?" Looking at Brynne, she tells her, "I'm sorry, I really have to go. Thank you for... talking to me."

Brynne stands up as well, kisses Judy on the cheek, and says, "It was my pleasure. I'll see you tomorrow?"

Her face the color of a tomato, Judy stutters out, "Y-Yeah!"

Taylor grabs Judy's hand. "Come on!"

And with that, Judy runs off.

I sit in silence, waiting for Brynne to leave, but… Just for a second, very subtly, I swear I see her look right at me, a smirk on her face.

Before I can decide what to do, she turns and walks away.


"Oh, I've got no right to lay claim to her frame; she's not my possession. Get your hands off my woman, motherfucker." - Ben Folds, "Get Your Hands off My Woman"