As Artemis and her Hunters part ways, Pearl and Thalia can't seem to avoid confrontation... Who'll come on top?
(Lemon alert)
CHAPTER 3 - what happens in the cabin... stays there?
Pearl looked around the camp, searching for Thalia. She felt guilty and anxious, which infuriated her to no end. After all, it wasn't like she had to justify her choices to the girl who made her life impossible, right?
She found her sitting still at the foot of a large tree. She observed her closely, feeling off for some reason. As if also struggling with something, Thalia got up and began to pace, threading her fingers through her dark hair.
'Should I go and tell her? She probably heard the news anyway,' Poseidon's daughter thought, quite uncertain of her next course of action.
As she looked up, she was met with Thalia's hard stare and took a deep breath before heading towards her. She knew that confrontation couldn't be avoided.
'The sooner the better, especially if they're all too occupied to notice us,' she pondered while walking. Around her some Hunters were breaking camp probably as quickly as they'd set it up, paying her no mind.
"I see that they wasted no time," Thalia commented sarcastically as soon as she was close enough to make herself heard without having to shout over the wind.
"You're one to talk, already accusing me of something when I don't even know what it is that you're talking about!" she replied angrily, shivering from the cold.
"Stop playing dumb, Seaweed Brain. I'm talking about someone joining the Hunters," she spat the name with disgust. "Are the rumors true?" she icily asked.
Pearl nodded, confused, "Well… yes, obviously. Have you not seen the change in Bianca? It's like she's surrounded by a silver haze, and she carries herself more confidently."
"I saw her leaving the tent and being shown around by that stuck-up lieutenant. No, I wasn't talking about Bianca," she replied, growing more and more agitated. "Is it true that Poseidon's only daughter might join the Hunt?"
'Oh. Word travels fast, I guess,' Pearl thought with a start.
She took a few steps forward. "Right. Listen, I don't know what is your fucking problem with them, and quite frankly I don't care. First of all, you're being incredibly rude to them even though they helped us. And now, you want to tell me what to do? Well if you think that you're in any position to make demands you're damn wrong. Unbelievable," she scoffed, shaking her head.
As she spoke, Pearl could see the inner turmoil in Thalia's eyes. Just as she was about to say something to her, Artemis called out Pearl's name.
"This conversation is far from over," she heard Thalia mutter angrily, as she made her way towards the goddess.
'I guess I'll never know what she wanted to tell me then,' she thought, glancing sideways to where Bianca sat off to one side, talking with Nico. She could tell from his gloomy face that she was explaining to him her decision to join the Hunt.
'If I joined, I wouldn't have to explain myself to anyone else,' she reflected, grazing the silver flyer in her pocket with the tip of her fingers. 'Especially not to Thalia.'
"You're waiting for sunrise?" she asked Artemis as she reached the seemingly lost in thoughts goddess.
"For my brother. Yes. He's so lazy during winter."
Pearl frowned in confusion. 'Wait, I thought the sun was a star, not a god. It's impossible.'
"It's not exactly as you think," Artemis said, like she was reading her mind.
"Oh, okay." As Pearl started to relax, there was a sudden burst of light on the horizon. A blast of warmth.
"Don't look," Artemis advised. "Not until he parks."
'Parks?'
She averted her eyes, and saw that the other teenagers were doing the same. The light and warmth intensified, before suddenly dying.
'Holy shit.' Standing before her was a red convertible Maserati, glowing from the warmth it radiated. However, Pearl's astonished look quickly vanished when the driver got out – bright smile and good looks – and winked at a certain someone.
"Wow," she heard Thalia utter from behind. "Apollo is fucking hot."
"He's the sun god," she said, turning around with an eye roll.
"That's not what I meant," the dark-haired girl replied sultrily.
"Now I know why you won't even consider joining the Hunt. I forgot just how much of a flirt you were," she stated pettily, feeling quite infuriated by the situation.
"And I know why you want to join this stupid hunt, darling. Not my fault if you haven't had any luck in the dating field and have given up on finding love."
"Well at least I'm not some little attention-craving girl like some of us here," she said, shrugging off the comment.
"Who knew Jackson here could be such a prude?"
Before things could escalate further, Apollo called out Thalia's name and beckoned her forward with his smile. 'His stupid Colgate winning smile.'
"Thalia, right? I've heard all about you."
Thalia blushed, prompting another eye roll. "Hi, Lord Apollo."
"Zeus's girl, yes? Makes you my half-sister." Upon hearing this, Pearl couldn't help but snicker behind her hand, unnerving Thalia. "Used to be a tree, didn't you? Glad you're back. I hate it when pretty girls turn into trees."
Apollo then looked at her, and his eyes narrowed. "Pearl Jackson?"
"Yes. Sir" she said, adding the "sir" as an afterthought, all too aware of the immortals' tendency to get easily offended. She felt Apollo study her, but in the end he didn't say anything. 'Charming but creepy.'
"Well!" he said at last. "We'd better load up, huh?"
In the end, they ended up loading a Turtle Top shuttle bus, like the ones used for school basketball games. Apollo wasn't even bothered by the loss of his Maserati.
"Here, sweetheart," he said to Zoë as she picked up her camping pack. "Let me get that."
Zoë recoiled. Her eyes flashed murderously, and Pearl noticed that Artemis's knuckles had turned white.
"Brother," the goddess thundered. "You do not help my Hunters. You do not look at, talk to, or flirt with my Hunters. And you do not call them sweetheart."
'Is it just me or are they getting even closer?' Pearl wondered, taking in the way Artemis was standing right in front of Zoë, shielding her from Apollo's view.
Apollo spread his hands. "Sorry. I forgot. I'll be out of your hair, just be careful sister."
As he headed towards the bus, Pearl realized that it was just her and the two girls left. She faced the goddess, feeling her stare.
"I will see you by winter solstice, Pearl Jackson. I'll be awaiting your final decision," she announced, proceeding to turn towards her lieutenant. "Zoë, you are in charge of the Hunters. Do well. Do as I would do."
Zoë straightened. "Yes, my lady."
Wanting to give them some privacy, she walked towards the bus and noticed Grover waiting for her. As she looked back, she saw that Artemis and her huntress were hugging and softly whispering what probably were parting words.
'Wait a minute, was that a kiss?'
Finally, the goddess sprinted out of the clearing in a silver flash, while Zoë joined them aboard.
From the moment Apollo turned to them and asked, "Who wants to drive?" – jangling the car keys on his finger – Pearl knew they were doomed. The god took his sweet time in choosing their driver, finally focusing on Thalia.
"Daughter of Zeus!" he said. "Lord of the sky. Perfect."
"Oh, no." Thalia shook her head. "No, thanks."
"C'mon," Apollo said. "How old are you?"
Thalia hesitated. "I don't know."
Apollo tapped his linger to his lips. "You're fifteen, almost sixteen. Which means you're old enough now to drive with a learner's permit!"
Thalia shifted her feet nervously. "Uh…"
Pearl decided to tease her a little, enjoying her flustered face. "What? Don't tell me that Zeus's daughter is afraid of heights! If you want me to drive just tell me, honey."
Thalia fixed her with a murderous glare. "I'm not afraid of anything."
"Don't sweat it! Maine to Long Island is a really short trip, and your daddy isn't going to blast you out of the sky."
Apollo laughed good-naturedly, and pushed Thalia in the driver seat while hitting a button on the dashboard, taking away the manual mode.
'Why did I let that happen?' were Pearl's thoughts as Thalia clearly struggled with the velocity of the car, almost sending them crashing into some trees. 'I almost feel bad for her.'
"What's wrong?" she asked her.
"Nothing," she said shakily, gritting her teeth. "I've got it under control!"
But suddenly the bus pitched down and somebody screamed. Now they were heading straight towards the Atlantic Ocean at a thousand miles an hour, the New England coastline off to their right.
"Pull up!" Pearl yelled, as Apollo was thrown somewhere in the back of the bus. "There!" she pointed with evident relief. "Long Island, dead ahead. Slow down."
"I've got everything under control," Thalia chanted. "Everything's fine."
They were only a few hundred yards away, when the sun bus pitched forward and Pearl felt herself lose balance. As it slammed into the Camp Half-Blood canoe lake, she fell onto something soft, eyes closed and holding onto dear life to said soft thing.
As the bus bobbed to the surface, Pearl opened her eyes to the sight of a disheveled Thalia. Turns out she had landed straight onto her lap, and was currently holding tightly onto her waist. Too tightly. Still winded from the shock, it took her some time to stand up and let go of Thalia.
'I'm never ever letting her drive again.'
"You sure about being Zeus's daughter?" she couldn't resist teasing her with a smug smile, as they climbed off the bus.
"Fuck off, Jackson."
It was then that Pearl noticed how Thalia's soaked shirt was sticking to her skin, as a result of landing in a lake. She couldn't help but admire the way her shirt – now basically see through – clang to her abs and revealed the varying lines of her very defined musculature. She also noticed how it showed off the lines of her bra in full detail.
"Like what you see?" Thalia asked sultrily with a raised eyebrow.
Pearl almost jumped back with a start, catching the girl's smirk.
"You wish. You should probably get dried off, though," she replied while quickly getting out of the water.
"Care to help me out of my shirt, darling?" she inquired seductively, pulling Pearl closer to her by the waist.
Blushing and stuttering, the girl quickly distanced herself and dried Thalia's shirt with a waving hand. 'I can't believe she caught me staring,' she thought, troubled. 'Fucking Grace.'
After Chiron's warm welcoming, Pearl quickly made her way to Poseidon's baby blue cabin. 'I can't believe how sore I am from this trip with the Hunters. A nap would be more than welcome,' she reflected, letting out a long sigh as she entered her cabin. Just as she began to change her underpants, she was gently shoved into a wall. She turned back, drawing riptide in her hand, but it was slapped off her hand.
"Grace? What the hell!" She asked, frightened.
"Ouch. And here I thought that you wanted me to give you a little visit, after our crash landing. And this is the treatment I get?" Thalia asked, feigning pain while pressing her right hand to her heart.
"Oh come on. I have given you and Annabeth free access. If not, you wouldn't have lasted long in my cabin," Pearl smirked, still pined to the wall.
"Hmm. You may have a point," she shrugged. "So… did you like watching how my shirt got soaked?" Thalia asked innocently, moving closer to her.
Internally, Pearl was panicking. 'What is she doing?'
"As if!" She retorted. "Why would you ever think that?"
Thalia snorted. "For real. You're such a prude, Jackson. You can't even understand these kind of things."
"I don't know how many times I will have to tell you Grace, but I. Am. Not. A. Prude." She looked away from Thalia's mocking gaze, blushing under its intensity. "If you really must know, I have seen better boobs than those." She finished lamely.
"Oh, have you now? I don't think you can handle mine, darling," Thalia whispered seductively. "Show me what you got, oh mighty daughter of Poseidon," she teased her.
'Is she daring me to touch her now? Who does she think she's messing with?'
Pearl huffed, then squeezed Thalia's breasts through her shirt, which prompted a sudden squeal from a surprised Thalia. Pearl then cupped her palms around them and slowly caressed the round flesh, making Thalia moan slightly despite her attempts not to.
"I will do it. I hate losing a challenge. Especially to you," Pearl whispered in a hushed voice. "Now, are you sure about what you ask? What if someone barges in?" she wondered, hands stilled on Thalia's shirt.
Electric blue eyes met sea green orbs, both quite darkened by lust.
"I don't care," Thalia roughly groaned, pining Pearl onto the wall by her hands. She lifted her knee, pressing onto Pearl's crotch. Pearl left out a soft moan.
"Liking this already, are you?" Thalia smugly asked.
"You wish," Pearl replied. She tried to say something again, but Thalia captured her lips with her own.
Plump lips met in a rough kiss, crashing against one another and sometimes catching against teeth, as their tongues fought for dominance. Orange and salty mint mixed together, shivers running down their spines.
Their bodies heated up as the kiss was deepened. The leg pressed onto Pearl's crotch went down sub unconsciously.
After a few minutes, they broke up for air and Thalia whispered, "You can yield any time you want, Jackson." Pearl shook her head. Thalia's tongue ghosted across the girl's lips for nothing more than a moment before they parted and hot breath mixed together as tongues flicked hungrily across teeth.
Thalia then leaned in and huskily whispered, "You're too bold for your own good." She teasingly ran her tongue on the fold of Pearl's ear. Pearl tilted back her head while closing her eyes, giving Thalia free access to her neck, which she eagerly took.
Thalia's tongue glided down towards Pearl's neck, sweeping her right cheek, which made Pearl's eyes snap open. After a few licks and nibbles, Thalia trailed her lips along the curve of a strong bronze colored jaw line. She enjoyed the faintest taste of salt she found there.
As she reached her shoulders, she nipped at sharp collar bones, causing a sharp intake of breath from Pearl.
"Oww!" Pearl yelped, in a lower voice.
"Can't take a nibble?" Thalia mocked.
"That wasn't a nibble. You bit on my shoulder!" Pearl weakly complained, her breath coming out in pants.
"Poor girl. I'll make you feel good," Thalia murmured.
Pearl rolled her eyes as Thalia's tongue hovered over the hickey. Her eyes closed on their own. She was enjoying the feeling, her head turned towards the dark-haired girl.
'What is happening to me? She's a girl, I can't be enjoying this…' were Pearl's last coherent thoughts.
Thalia grabbed Pearl's neck, this time her tongue trailing lightly down its length, calling forth goosebumps. It ended its journey at Pearl's purple T-shirt's neckline.
"Let's get you out of this, Jackson," Thalia said, releasing Pearl's hands only to pin them again with one hand, the other one rolling Pearl's shirt upwards. Tossing the garment aside, she revealed Pearl's tanned torso and nice, perky breasts, concealed in a red bra.
"Not exactly the color of the sea. Clarisse will love to hear all about your bra's color."
Pearl giggled at the dirty joke. However, her jaw went slack when Thalia unclasped her bra.
'Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god.' She couldn't think straight, feeling very vulnerable topless.
"My my. Don't they look ravishing… mind if I taste them?" Thalia inquired while caressing each of her breasts.
Pearl rolled up her eyes again, "Of course you will." Thalia smirked, leaning towards Pearl's torso, and breathed on her body.
"Smells of sea. Hope those taste salty," she murmured, her breath coming as hot puffs on the other girl's skin and sending shivers down her spine. Pearl was glad that Thalia's eyes never met her flustered cheeks.
"Your nipples," she ghosted her fingers over them, which made Pearl shiver slightly.
"Yeah, what about them?" Pearl asked in a challenging tone.
"They're so hard… for me? You shouldn't have."
Without warning, Thalia began to suck on her breast. Her tongue was dancing around the rosy nipple, her free hand kneading the other mount, pressing and cupping it. Her lips were tightening around Pearl's already hard nipple, making the girl moan, not letting out any words.
Thalia nibbled on her nipple making Pearl gasp and arch into the hot mouth that worked against sensitive skin. "You like this, don't you?" Thalia asked, feeling smug when Pearl didn't reply.
Thalia continued to work her assault on Pearl's breasts, her right hand drifting down to her muscular abdomen, and the daughter of Poseidon felt butterflies erupt in her stomach. Thalia's fingers pressed onto Pearl's belly button. "A piercing would do wonders," she thought out loud as her hand swept her abdomen once again, pressing against Pearl's abs teasingly. Pearl shuddered at Thalia's fingers, her body shaking rhythmically.
Thalia's hand found its way onto Pearl's belt. "Hmm. Undoing the belt or unzipping the trousers? What do I do?" she asked slowly, leaning back from the girl's breasts.
Under different circumstances Pearl would have been embarrassed by the disappointed whine that clawed its way from her throat, but here and there she couldn't care less about it. She looked at the brunette – eyes glassy and unfocused – pupils dilated by lust.
"Whatever Grace" she replied, quite unnerved by the girl's teasing.
Thalia rolled her eyes at the comment, running her fingers across her pelvis, brushing her upper thighs, then sneakily repositioning themselves onto her zipper. Thalia slowly and teasingly undid the zipper, never looking away from Pearl's disheveled state.
"Red thong. You're not exactly as innocent as I thought. Dirty girl." Thalia hoarsely whispered. Pearl tried to appear indifferent, as Thalia's fingers brushed against her clit through her thong.
"Hmmn!" She let out a long moan as Thalia's fingers began to rub her clit.
'It feels so good,' Pearl's hips buckled with pleasure.
"You like this don't you, you dirty slut?" Thalia asked smugly. Pearl tried to keep her mouth shut, not wanting to satisfy Thalia, but eventually, "Ye-yes!" Came the breathless reply.
Thalia smiled smugly, "Hmm. So wet for me. Tell me to stop, and I will."
She released Pearl's hands and continued rubbing her clit, harder and harder, Pearl's hands tightening on Thalia's waist. The sharp sting of nails digging lightly into pale skin was followed by a low hiss of pleasure from the daughter of Zeus.
"Fuck you Grace!" Pearl panted. Thalia's smug smile never wiped away from her face. "No, fuck you Pearl," she whispered, electric sparks going off in her hand. Literally.
"Oh fuck!" Pearl's moaning grew, just like Thalia's smile. "Yes! Make me cum! Please make me cum!" After a few rough strokes, Pearl arched back as her body jerked and she squirted, juices flowing everywhere.
Thalia's words fell in a husky whisper against the shaking girl's ear, "I made you squirt, didn't I?"
Pearl panted, still recovering from the orgasm, "That's just a daughter of Poseidon thing. I can have much more multiple orgasms and squirts without draining." She shrugged it off .
Thalia smirked mischievously, looking quite proud of herself. "Whatever Jackson. Turn around and hands on the wall."
'Why am I even agreeing to this?'
Pearl turned around and she kept her hands on the wall, just as Thalia asked.
"I still think you're a prude, Jackson." Thalia said with a naughty smile, giving her a hard slap on her butt. "See you later, sweetheart." She then left Pearl and exited Poseidon's cabin, a spring in her step.
'I can't believe that fucking bitch did this to me,' Pearl thought. She was left alone, shocked and angry at herself for enjoying what happened with the dark-haired girl.
'I thought she was straight,' was the thought that plagued her mind, leaving her more confused than ever.
