"Marcus!"
Maddie ran and waved over at her friend as he stopped and looked over his shoulder at her.
"Oh, hey there Maddie. What's up?"
"You're going to go train right?"
Maddie saw the slight tensing of Marcus' muscles as she asked her question and as he turned away from her.
"Uh, yeah. Kelly, Hunter, and I were going to practice for a bit I guess…"
"Can I join you!?" Maddie bounced up on the balls of her feet excitedly. "It's summer again so I should probably start getting used to fighting again cause we didn't really get the chance to do it over the past year and I need to be able to help you guys during capture the flag as well as show Chiron that I've improved even a little bit!"
"Maddie…" Marcus continued walking as Maddie followed closely behind him, his eyes glanced at her and he sighed.
"I...just...don't think today is a good day. Next time"
Maddie stopped and pouted, "you said that all during the fall, winter, and spring. When is next time? I need to train eventually...I need to…" her words fell apart.
"I need to show Chiron and my mother that it was a good idea for me to stay...if not...they may…"
"I...I know. It's just...ugh nevermind. I'll tell you later."
Maddie watched Marcus turn his fast pace into a quick run and head off to the battle grounds. Maddie felt her stomach twist into knots as she watched his retreating back. Had something happened? The entire past year Marcus was always willing to hang out and spend time with Maddie but every time Maddie brought up training he would shoot her down or say "next time." Chiron had made that rule that she wasn't able to train unless it was with Marcus or he was at least nearby. Yet, Marcus seemed to hate the very idea of such a thing, preferring to just let her spend the past year studying about the gods and about other helpful demigod tricks and lessons. But every demigod knew training was the most important aspect of their life here. It was the only way to defend oneself against creatures, monsters, and other evil beings. At this rate even the new campers who had never held a weapon before would be leagues above her. So why? Why wouldn't he help her?
He must find me annoying. Or I'm so bad that he can't even stomach the thought of trying to train someone like me. Or he's still mad that I almost broke his arm.
Her thoughts continued to circle and swirl as she slowly walked over to the training grounds. She had found that even though she hadn't gotten the chance to train she could at least watch her fellow campers to try and learn that way. It wasn't helpful that none of her close friends used a spear so it was hard to learn tactics for that. But she could at least observe what did and did not work.
She sat down at the stands, anxiously playing with her hair that had begun to grow out once again. It wasn't the same as her long hair but it was a comfort that she could still play with the small strands.
She watched Kelly and Marcus walk out to the grounds. Kelly looked over at her and waved, to which Maddie responded with a wave of her own. She watched Kelly turn to Marcus and start talking with him. She seemed upset or concerned about something and Marcus kept shaking his head. Maddie let out a small sigh and stared at her feet as she playfully swung them.
"Hey Maddie. What's up."
Thomas' voice was like music to her ears and she perked up, looking at him.
Oh, hi Thomas! What are you up to?"
"Hm? Nothing much. I saw you and Marcus headed over here and figured I'd watch how much you've progressed. Are you waiting for them to be done?"
Maddie deflated and went back to staring at her feet. The sinking pit in her stomach returned. "I...well...that's what I was hoping for too but Marcus said that I can't today...he's been saying that pretty much all year long too...I guess I'm just really bad or he hates me or-"
"Wait , wait, wait. Marcus hasn't let you fight all year? The newest and greatest fighter, the child of Ares hadn't been able to fight all year long!? Is he nuts? This entire camp will suffer without your amazing power!"
Maddie looked up at Thomas with hope shining in her eyes. Did he really mean it? Was she the most powerful demigod in camp?
"Do you mean it?" Maddie asked, her voice hitching on the words.
"Duh. C'mon, let's show Marcus how much of a fool he's been."
Maddie hopped up and out of her chair and ran quickly after Thomas as he grabbed his bow and led her off onto the field. Maddie glanced at Marcus and Kelly and stuck her tongue out at them. Too bad they were in the middle of a battle and weren't paying attention to them.
"Alrighty then, do you know simple battle stances?"
"Huh? N-not really...I kinda just do whatever. When I'm holding a weapon everything just kinda-"
"Damn Marcus, you really are the worst instructor. Okay, mimic everything I do."
Maddie and Thomas spent a few minutes making sure that Maddie's feet and arms were positioned properly. Maddie tried to keep herself focused, but her body was itching to grab the spear riding on her back.
"Okay. Pretty good start. Now try doing so with your spear in hand to get used to the weight of it. Oh, and please don't go full psycho on me, I rather not end up like you know who." Thomas winked at her and Maddie anxiously grabbed for her spear which had never left her side since she got her harness. It felt like a limb had been reattached to her. Her body buzzed with excitement but she tried to breathe and hold herself back.
Just do the movements he just taught you. Nothing else.
Maddie's hands shook as she slowly copied the movements she had just learned with her staff in hand. She felt awkward, like a child learning how to walk. It was even worse that Thomas was staring at her to make sure she was doing so perfectly.
"Perfect! You're a natural. But I guess we all knew that already." Thomas chuckled. "Alrighty, that's good. So...we all know you're good at up close and personal fighting. But we need to make sure you can handle anything. So! Let's see what you can do against my bow here."
Thomas stood a few feet away from her and readied his bow. "Alright, so I'll try shooting at you. See if you can dodge them and get to me. Your best bet would be to close the distance between the two of us if the long ranged fighter is on the ground, like I am."
"Maddie?" Maddie glanced over her shoulder as she saw Kelly and Marcus standing at the opposite end of the field, cautiously watching after finishing their own match.
"What are you-?"
"Maddie! Focus! Do you want to learn or not?" Maddie snapped her eyes back to Thomas and tried to ignore Marcus' eye barring into her soul.
"Sorry! I-I'm ready!" Her hands were shaking like crazy and her focus was slipping, but no. She could do this. It was dodging, not attacking. Nothing dangerous.
"Okay!"
The first arrow narrowly missed her face but she shifted out of the way on instinct. She could feel the wind from the arrow brush against her cheek and her heart pounded against her ribs in retaliation. She barely had time to process it before Thomas released another arrow at her, calling out to not be distracted.
"Maddie!"
Right. Focus. The arrow that almost hit her wasn't her concern and neither was Marcus. Her concern was the next arrow and then the next and then the next.
Maddie charged forward, using her spear as a shield against arrows, knocking them aside with reflexes that reflected that of an action movie star. Her breathing intensed and her pace quickened, tightening the space between the two with more efficiency with every felt herself slipping, barely holding onto the thread of sanity. Her eyes narrowed, locking onto the target that was Thomas, desperate for his blood just as he was for hers. Another arrow narrowly missed her leg and she faltered for a split second before continuing on her war path. She zig zagged across the field, her target becoming closer by the second until-
Thomas stared up at her with shock in his eyes, holding his arm out in front of himself for protection. Her spear was inches away from his neck, midswing for the fatal blow. Marcus stood beside her, breathing hard, his hand firmly placed against her head. He ripped the spear out of her hands before letting go of her.
"What the hell were you thinking!?" Marcus turned to face her full on, his eyes seething with rage. "You know you're not allowed to fight without me, Chiron said so himself. You almost killed your friend! This is why I didn't want you fighting dammit, it's dangerous and not something you should take lightly!"
"W-what?" Maddie's mind reeled, both trying to comprehend what had just happened and also what Marcus was saying. "Y-you don't want m-me to become strong?"
"I don't want you to fight! You're a wild card! This curse Ares gave you is a danger to everyone including yourself!"
"B-but I need to become a powerful demigod! I can't do that if I don't train!" Maddie exclaimed back.
"You can't do that if you're dead or on a fucking war path every moment of the day!"
Thomas had stood up by this point and stepped in between the two of them, his eyes narrowing at Marcus. "She's a demigod just like all of us, Ares involvement or not she needs to become stronger. She can't spend all day knitting sweaters."
"Who in Hades gave you the right to think you have any say in this. Who gave you the right to let her train? I'm the only one who has been permitted to do so cause I'm the only one who can snap her out of her mind."
"You're not her parent! Are you just going to leave her out of everything for the rest of her life? You have no right to her. I'm just as much as her friend as you are."
Maddie felt sick to her stomach, the two boys' yelling got louder and louder, overlapping each other. She wrapped her arms around herself, bracing herself, flinching at every swear, growl, and raised fist. She was waiting for the moment they would strike against her. Her mother's yelling blended into their voices, filling her head with more terror. She just wanted it to stop.
"ENOUGH!"
Kelly's voice screamed through the grounds and both boys stopped mid sentence and stared at her glaring eyes.
"Neither of you are in the right here. Maddie is welcome to her own choices and feelings. Neither of you have any right to police her. You're both acting like children fighting over a toy. She's a human being for gods sakes. Just fucking shut up." She sounded like a disappointed mom, her words hanging in the air. Without another word she walked up to Maddie and gently took hold of her arm, steering her away from the madness.
"You alright?" Kelly asked her quietly.
Maddie managed a small squeak and nodded her head.
Kelly sighed. "Boys. They're so annoying sometimes. Don't take it personally, okay? Marcus is just protective. After what happened last year he doesn't want to see you risk getting hurt. It's a thing of his, it took us forever to let him allow Alicia to ride another pegasus after the great Flying Accident of 2175. He means well, I promise. Honestly, today might've helped kick him into gear, seeing you train with someone else and he was just barely able to stop you in time. It'll work out, I promise."
Maddie gave another little nod but she felt a little better. Marcus didn't hate her. She wasn't annoying. He just wanted to help her and make her happy and safe. And maybe now….maybe now he'd finally see that she was worthy of being trained.