HUNTRESS OF THE SEA

CHAPTER TWELVE

Disclaimer: I in no way own any recognizable works from the Twilight or Percy Jackson series.

::: ::: :::

Alice's eyes tried to take everything in. For the first time in her life, she felt like she was moving too fast. She wanted to slow down, to stand and stare in fascination at this strange camp. But Bella was all but sprinting through it. She wasn't even pointing out any of the buildings or telling them about the wall that seemed to be spitting out lava.

"Awesome!" Emmett had yelled when he saw one kid fall off, his sleeve on fire.

Alice bumped into Edward's backside while she was distracted. "Oof," she grunted. She opened her mouth to tell her brother off when she noticed why he was stopped.

Standing before them was a half-man, half-horse. Next to him was an older looking guy, who didn't look all that happy to see them.

Bella nodded her head. "Chiron, Mr. D," she greeted.

"Becca," the human mumbled.

"Bella," she immediately corrected.

The half-horse moved forward, his hooves making a clopping noise on the porch.

Emmett let out a childish giggle. "Dude," he said. "You're half-man, half-"

"I wouldn't finish that if I were you, Emmett," warned Bella.

Emmett snapped his mouth shut, looking only slightly embarrassed.

Carlisle stepped forward, moving to stand beside Bella who shuffled a couple of steps to her right. He glanced sadly at her. "Hello, my name is Carlisle, this is my family," he gestured towards his right. To his left he said, "And these are our friends from La Push."

"Yes, we've already been informed of your arrival," the half-man replied.

Bella looked at him quizzically. "You have?"

"You think we'd just let a bunch of vampires waltz into camp, Becky?"

"Dionysus, why don't you go inside and get ready for the meeting."

The man, Dionysus, grumbled but picked himself off of his chair and clambered inside.

"Excuse me," Carlisle said. The half-man turned back to him. "But do you mean to say that that man is-"

"Dionysus, God of Wine," supplied the half-man. "Yes, he is. Though the campers here all call him Mr. D. And my name is Chiron."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Chiron."

"I wish I could say the same for you," sighed Chiron. Carlisle looked at him, puzzled. "If only it were under better circumstances," he finished, not wanting his guests to feel unwanted. "As I understand it, you had the misfortune of witnessing the hunt of Lady Artemis."

"Erm, yes,more or less. We actually were her hunt. It's thanks to Bella here that we weren't turned into animals." Carlisle gave Bella another nod of thanks.

Chiron glanced at Bella who stood with her arms folded and a sour look on her face. His face twitched in amusement. "Isabella, would you mind finding the head counselors and letting them know the meeting is ready to start."

Bella perked up. "Yes sir," she bowed to Chiron before walking away from the farmhouse.

Edward made a move to follow her.

"I request that you stay here, actually."

Edward paused, but didn't tear his gaze off of Bella. "But-"

Carlisle placed a hand on his sons shoulder. "She'll be fine, son. After all, this is her home."

::: ::: :::

The Cullen's and wolf pack stood in the corner of the room, watching the group before them with fascination. Never had they seen a more rambunctious group.

"Conner!" one girl yelled as she stomped into the room with dripping wet hair. "You're going to pay for this!"

Two boys who were seated next to each other burst into laughter.

"It's not funny!" the girl snapped, stomping her foot.

One of the boys stopped laughing long enough to say, "Just thought you could use some help watering those plants, Katie."

Katie shrieked, knocking over her chair to jump over the table at the boy. They chased each other around the room, everyone else watching them in amusement.

"Travis!" another girl yelled, storming into the room. She held up a strange object, "What in the Hades did you do?" Closer inspection showed that various makeup accessories, from brushes to eyeliners, were being held together as if by glue.

The boy who wasn't running around the room, held up his hands. "It's just a joke, Silena," he laughed.

Silena growled. "You want to see a joke?" She lunged at Travis.

"Enough!" Chiron commanded, entering into the room.

Mr. D followed, rolling his eyes. "Bunch of ten year olds," he grumbled as he plopped himself into the seat at the head of the table.

The vampires and pack watched as Chiron, who was mere moments ago a centaur, now wheeled into the room in a wheelchair.

"Now we have some important matters to discuss." Chiron paused and looked around the room. His eyes went from the table to their guests in the corner. "Does anyone know where Percy, Annabeth, Nico, and Bella are?"

Everyone shook their heads.

"Maybe on a double date?" one of the boys offered.

Edward and Jacob both winced. The rest of the vampires glared at the poor boy, though he hardly noticed or cared.

"You want to repeat that, Travis?" Bella glided into the room followed by a boy with black hair and sea green eyes, a girl with blonde hair and stormy grey eyes, and Nico who spared a glance at the vampires.

Travis quickly shook his head. "No, ma'am."

Bella smirked at him. Her smirk turned into a frown when she saw the only seats left were the ones directly in front of the Cullen's and wolf pack. She sat down nonetheless, the three people who walked in with her following her lead.

"Now that we are all assembled, there are some issues we need to discuss about the war," Chiron said.

Immediately, the table went silent. The happiness and laughs from the previous jokes already a distant memory. Only one girl had a smile of anticipation on her face. She sat up straighter in her seat.

"Charles and Percy, how is it going with taking out the Princess Andromeda?"

The boy seated beside Bella nodded his head. "We're all set, all we need is the… " he paused, almost embarrassed. "…Princess Andromeda."

The scary girl snickered.

Chiron continued. "Good. Now some of you may have noticed that we have some guests with us."

Conner pretended to look around the room. "I don't see them." The girl who was chasing him, Katie, reached over and slapped him on the back of the head. "Ow!" he protested, rubbing his head.

Bella tapped her fingers against the table nervously. Percy reached over to still her hand. She sent him an apologetic look.

Edward almost growled at the sight. His vision was practically red. Jacob's thoughts cut through his own. The despair at seeing Bella so nonchalant about that boy laying his hand on top of hers when she wouldn't let either of them so much as hug her. When he managed to calm himself down, he found that Chiron was in the middle of talking and he had missed the first of what he was saying.

"-here to help. Any questions?"

Immediate protests broke out around the table.

"We don't need any help!"

"My dad would never accept help from anyone!"

"Umm, why are they freaking out?"

But it was when Travis said, "Why is my monster radar tingling?"

"For the last time Travis, monster radar isn't a real thing," Katie said.

Travis turned towards her. "Oh yeah, Miss smarty pants? Then how do I always know-"

"Hey!" Clarisse roared. The talking quit and everyone turned to look at her. She thrust a finger in the direction of their 'guests.' "We've got trouble."

Sure enough, the Cullen's stood in the corner of the room, nearly vibrating out of their skin. Each of them had a sour look on their face, their fists clenched; everyone except Carlisle that is. He looked from his family members to the room of children in concern. Jacob, Seth, and Leah backed away from the vampires, their faces full of uncertainty.

Mr. D growled, his eyes squinting together. "They're hungry."

Silena squeaked. "Please tell me they like bananas, too." Even as she said it, she slowly rose from her chair.

Jasper let out a growl through clenched teeth. That was all it took. In the blink of an eye, the girls of the room sprang out of their chairs, daggers, swords, and bows appearing in their hands. They quickly formed a half circle around the boys. The boys of the room stood behind the girls, their own weapons at the ready.

"Empousai," growled Clarisse.

"I've never heard of them as being guys," Annabeth worried.

Bella shook her head. "They aren't Empousai. They're vampires."

"Well, that's not much better," Conner said.

Percy glared at the vampires. "You traveled here with them?" he furiously whispered to Bella.

She cast him a quick glance. "Like I had a choice," she huffed back. Speaking louder so that everyone could hear she continued, "They call themselves vegetarians, because they only drink animal blood."

Clarisse barked out a laugh. "You sure about that?"

"It's your scent," Carlisle offered. His eyes caught Bella's, pleading with her to understand. But she simply stayed poised to strike.

"What do you mean?" Chiron demanded. He wheeled himself between the children and vampires.

"Normally we are able to able to ignore the smell of blood. If we keep ourselves fed with animal blood, it's easier to live amongst humans. But your blood," he paused, closing his eyes. "Your blood is much sweeter than any of us have ever encountered. We learned how to handle it with Bella-"

Several pairs of eyes cut towards Bella.

"-but with so many people in one room with the same sweet smell of blood, it is much harder to resist."

"Why do you seem fine?" Clarisse jabbed her spear.

Carlisle opened his eyes. The room scrambled back. They were pitch black and looked to be pulsing almost.

"Good job, Clarisse," mumbled Travis.

Chiron sent Dionysus a look. Dionysus rolled his eyes before waving his hand. Around the Cullen's neck appeared a little pine tree. They each took in a deep breath, their bodies relaxing with each breath after.

Conner squinted. "Is that a car freshener?"

"It will stop them from smelling the blood of you pesky children." Mr. D said in response.

Carlisle's eyes slowly turned back to a golden hue. He took in another breath. "I smell disinfectant."

"Victoria Secret: Bombshell!" cheered Alice.

Rosalie smiled faintly. She could smell motor oil and while anyone else would hate it, she felt at ease.

The children eased their stances as the vampires relaxed completely, though they did not let go of their various weapons. Jacob, Seth, and Leah begrudgingly moved back to stand next to the Cullen's. While they weren't friends, at Camp Half-Blood they weren't enemies either. They were the outsiders.

As soon as each of the vampires had the golden color back in their irises, the protests started.

"I'm not fighting alongside vampires!"

"What if we start bleeding?!"

"I don't feel safe with them."

"They're going to gnaw on my arm like a piece of candy."

"Silence!" roared Chiron. Everyone immediately shut up. Mr. D, who Carlisle had thought was sleeping, chuckled. Chiron spared him a glare. "It was by the wish of Artemis that the Cullen's were sent here. She believes that they will be of help to us. We will teach them as much as we can before the war." He looked around the table, daring someone to speak up. When no one did, he said, "Good. Dismissed."

Everyone scrambled out of the room, giving the Cullen's and pack a wide range. Just as Bella, Percy, Nico, and Annabeth were about to leave, Chiron appeared in front of them. "I require a couple of volunteers to give our guests the tour of our camp."

"I have to contact the Hunters," Bella said, scrambling out of the room. The Cullen's watched her go in despair.

Annabeth spoke up next. "I'm in charge of the climbing wall today." She then strutted out of the room, leaving Nico and Percy behind. Chiron watched her go in good humor. He turned his wheel chair around, moving to leave the room.

"Take them on the tour you two," he calls over his shoulder. "And I believe they'll be bunking with you tonight, Percy."

With a resigned sigh, Percy and Nico turn around to the group.

"So," Percy stalled. The Cullen's were staring at him expectedly. "Er, should we get going then?"

Nico snickered.

Percy punched him on the shoulder. "Do you want to lead?"

Nico shook his head. "I only came back here for my jacket. Suddenly I'm caught up in a meeting."

"Fine," Percy grumbled. "Let's just get going."

::: ::: :::

Percy and Nico walked them around the camp. Well, more Percy than Nico. Nico walked right next to Percy but managed to say as little as possible. Percy could understand. From what Bella had told him, Nico had to deal with the thoughts of the vampires in his mind. Tough break if you asked Percy.

As soon as Chiron had let her go, Bella had made a beeline for the Poseidon cabin. Along the way she ran into Charles Beckendorf of the Hephaestus cabin and told him that a meeting was being called. He ran off to gather the other head counselors. At the Poseidon cabin, she quickly greeted Annabeth and Percy before dragging them to the amphitheater. There they ran into Nico, who jumped with surprise when he saw Bella. At the edge of the amphitheater, Bella delved into what she had been up to for the past couple of days.

"And this is the armory," Percy said, waving his hand at the building to their left.

The Cullen's and wolf pack looked at it in awe. They could make out the sounds of hammers hitting what sounded like metal inside.

"Are the adults in charge of making the armor here?" Esme asked.

Percy snorted. "I wouldn't trust Mr. D to make me anything that is supposed to be protecting me."

A couple of children ran out of the armory, swords in tow.

"Hey Percy!" they called, waving at him as they passed.

"Where are they going? They shouldn't be running with swords," Esme fretted.

Percy moved on. "They're most likely headed to the arena. I hear Clarisse is challenging anyone who is up for it."

"You mean that scary girl from the meeting?"

Percy and Nico look at each other before breaking out into laughter. "Yeah, that's Clarisse."

"The arena," Percy indicates the upcoming coliseum. The group gapes at it in awe. Only in days long past had they seen a coliseum like the one before them. Cheers from the inside can be heard, deafening roars of laughter and taunting ringing out. Kids were running inside excitedly. Percy continues, "This is where we have our battles."

"For what?"

"To train of course."

"Are you going to challenge her?" Everyone spins around at Bella's voice. She stands behind the group, looking expectantly at Percy. Percy smiles at her.

"Not today. I have a tour to give."

Bella laughs, walking to stand beside Percy though she makes sure to give a wide berth to Emmett and Jacob who stand on the outskirts of the group. "It's your own fault," she says.

Percy bumps into her with his shoulder.

Bella walks inside the arena, laughing.

It's silent amongst the group until Nico grunts. "Stop thinking so fast," he exclaims, his hands moving to rub his forehead. He rips his hands away from his head and looks to Percy. "You have to tell them."

Percy holds up his hands. "Tell them what? I didn't do anything."

Nico rolls his eyes. "They want to know why Bella won't let any of the males in their group make contact with her, but why she'll allow me and you to get close to her."

"Oh," Percy replies. He rakes his hand through his hair nervously. Pleading, he looks at Nico. "Do I have to? She'll beat me up for telling them something like that."

Nico glares back at him. To anyone else it would cause them their death, but Percy was used to it.

"Fine," Percy huffs. He starts pacing in front of the group. The Cullen's and La Push pack lean in closer, though they don't need to. "So, uh, you know that Bella is a Hunter of Artemis, right?"

They all nod their heads. Nico waves his hand for Percy to go on. Percy sends him a glare of his own.

"Well, to become a Hunter of Artemis, you have to take a vow," Percy winces as he remembers the time he thought Annabeth was going to take the vow. Taking a deep breath, he rushes forward, "The vow, um, oath states that the person will pledge themselves to Artemis –"

"We got that," Rosalie quips.

Percy grins sheepishly. He rubs the back of his neck. "Well, to do so, they must accept eternal maidenhood and turn their back on the company of men –"

"What?!" Alice shrieks loud enough for Percy to have to cover his ears. Even Nico winces at the decibel. "Bella did what?!"

Percy nods. Jasper reaches out and grabs a pacing Alice. She squirms in his embrace until she realizes that he won't let her go. With eyes full of unfallen tears she looks up at him. "Why would she do that, Jazz? Why?" She buries her face in Jasper's neck and let's herself sob.

Edward is letting himself be held up by Rosalie. Jacob being held up by Seth and Leah. Neither of the two boys can stand on their own at the moment.

"Why do you two get to be so close to her then?" Leah asks, staring at Nico and Percy.

The two boys look at each other and then shrug.

"We'll let Bella tell you that herself," Percy replies. "I'll probably be in enough trouble as it is."

Percy looks around at his tour group. Each of them is falling to pieces. The big guy in the back has to be held up by his two companions and one of the dudes in the front isn't any better off. Three of the women are sobbing and at least two of the other men look frozen in shock.

Percy turns towards Nico. "So, anything happening in the Underworld?"

::: ::: :::

Percy and Nico continue the tour. They show the group the Cabins, the Volleyball Courts, the amphitheater, and the mess hall all without a hitch. At the climbing wall they watch kid after kid try to make it to the top. When one falls off, severely burned, Esme gasps in horror.

"Are those kids being punished?" she cries.

"Not at all," Percy replies. His eyes watch Annabeth as she yells at a couple of stragglers.

"Come to think of it," Carlisle starts. His hand finds Esme's. "With the exception of Chiron and Dionysus, I have not seen a single adult here."

Emmett, Rosalie, Alice, Jasper, and Seth nod their heads in agreement. Concern laces each of their features.

Percy tears his eyes away from Annabeth. He walks away from the climbing wall. "That's because there really aren't any here."

Esme and Rosalie stop in their tracks. "What do you mean?"

Percy doesn't stop walking. Only when he makes it to a beach does he elaborate. "Not many demigods make it to adulthood."

Esme gasps.

"Why?" Edward asks. He has to clench his fists at his side to not shake the answers out of Percy.

Percy shrugs. "Didn't Bella tell you this?"

Everyone shakes their heads.

"Oh. Well, with monsters hounding us at every turn, it's hard for some to survive."

"But aren't you trained in monster fighting?" Seth asks.

"If you can make it to camp, then yes, but a lot of kids just aren't that lucky."

Esme, Rosalie, and Alice fall into their respective others embrace. Percy glances at them sadly, knowing that the information he was giving them was cause to be sad. Though he didn't completely understand why a bunch of vampires were so heartbroken about it.

Jacob gulps. "And if they are?"

"Then if you aren't a child of the big three, there's a shot."

"What's the big three?" Seth moves to the front of the group, pushing past a few vampires. Rosalie hisses at him, but he hardly cares. Though Leah does. She moves forward with her brother, growling at Rosalie in return. Seth sits beside Percy his eyes wide and eager to learn.

Percy smiles at him. "Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades make up the big three."

Seth's expression tells him to go on.

Percy sighs, staring out at the lake. "Children of the big three have a stronger scent than most demigod children. Which means that monsters are attracted to them more. It's a tougher life for them if they choose to leave camp."

"How many children of the big three are alive today?"

"Four."

Everyone falls silent. Nico, who had wandered to the edge of the trees, shuffles his feet.

"Have any of those four made it into adulthood?"

Percy turns to look straight at Edward. "No. I'm just about the oldest of the four," he turns back around, his eyes catching Nico's. "physically at least."

"No, I'm sorry," Rosalie interrupts. She moves to stand in front of Percy, her arms folded. "But isn't Bella supposed to be turning nineteen in three months? You can't be more than sixteen."

Percy looks at her in confusion. His hand twitches, almost as if he's playing with a pen that isn't there. "Bella isn't eighteen," he looks at each of the vampires and wolf pack, each of them showing confusion. "Bella's only fifteen."

::: ::: :::

Yes, I did.

Two chapters. Ba-bam. That will (hopefully) keep you guys satisfied for a while. Maybe.

Let's all be surprised that I got this out so fast. Huzzah and Hoorah.

Now onto my homework.

Tell me what you think and leave me a review! Please and thanks. Review, review, review!