Beginning Notes

Sorry for not updating in a while. I decided to enjoy the last few days of my holliday, and then school started again, but it's fine. I'm back with another update, and I hope y'all enjoy. OC's belong to sketchywolf, the rest to Rick Riordan.

Maximus

It was a pretty miserable night in Maximus's opinion. Since all their food had been blown up, they had to take some food from the back of Aunty Em's- Medusa's really- house, but there wasn't that much seeing as they were with five people.

They camped out in the woods, but it wasn't really warm either, because starting a fire might attract attention, and they'd had enough of monsters for one day.

'I'll take first watch,' says Percy.

'You sure?' Cassie asks.

'Yeah, I need to clear my mind a bit. Besides, I don't think I'm in the mood to sleep.'

Maximus didn't need to be told twice, he was exhausted.

'C'mon, Cassie,' he says, leads her to a big tree.

They sit down together, their backs against the tree's trunk, their heads resting together.

Maximus puts an arm around his sister, hoping to keep her warm, and also wanting to feel her presence in the dark.

His eyes slowly droop shut, until sleep takes over his body.

In his dream he is on an island, surrounded by beautiful flowers. In the midst of it all, sat a girl.

He walks over to her, and at first he thinks it's Cassie, with her long auburn hair woven in a braid. And when she looks at him, she has Cassie's round, silver eyes. But then she smiles, and it's not like Cassie's smile. She also has a bow and quiver lying at her side. A weapon Cassie has never even touched before.

Then it suddenly comes to him:

'Mum?' he asks.

'Maximus, my darling, you've grown up so handsome,' Artemis says.

'Why are you here? What are you doing in my dream? My dream that feels so real...'

'Sometimes this is the only way to contact our kids,' Artemis explains. 'And there was something that I wanted to tell you.'

'Wait, but if this is the only way you can contact me...' Maximus couldn't finish his sentence, for his throat felt tight. He'd thought that since discovering who their mother is, he could maybe see her in person, talk to her, and spend some long-lost time with her if he was lucky. That maybe he'd finally have a mum. Even if she wasn't there at all times, she'd be there when he needed her.

'No, no, at some certain times, is what I meant. Like now, I can't just leave my Hunters and tell them I'm going to see my son, so I have to contact you through dreams.'

'Why, what was it that you needed to tell me?'

'Just a few tips that might help you on the way,' Artemis says, with a soft smile.

'Such as?'

'Those hair clips your father always made you wear. Do you still have them?'

'Yes,' Maximus says. Obviously they still have them. It was something that Dad had given them as a birthday present when they turned seven.

'Thanks Daddy, but these are just ordinary hair clips,' Cassie had said.

'Yes, but they will protect you, and as long as you have them, nothing could ever happen to you,' Dad then said.

'Good,' says Artemis. 'Because they are special Hunters bows, and it would be very dangerous to let them fall into the wrong hands.'

It took a moment for Maximus to take in what his mother just said. 'Wait, bows? As in...?'

'Yes. Just like that pen that that Jackson kid keeps in his pocket. Unclip it, and it will turn into a bow, it's matching quiver magically appearing on your back. The arrows will always return, but not immediately, so don't think you have an infinity of arrows. There will be a point where your quiver will be empty,' Artemis warns him.

'Wow! But why are you only telling me this now? Why not the night before we were attacked? We could definitely have used something to protect us then.'

'Because it wasn't the right time.'

'Wasn't the right time? It's not even a week later! And now Dad is either lost underground, captured, or worse! You could have at least helped us you know. Dad might be dead!' At that last part, Maximus break down, tears falling from his cheeks. Saying it out loud finally made the sink in.

'Maximus...'

'No!' You could have saved him! You loved him didn't you?'

'Maximus-'

But he didn't hear what she was going to say, because someone shakes him awake.

'Max, are you okay?' It's Cassie. 'You were shaking, and trembling really bad.'

'Yeah, I'm fine,' he says, even though he can still feel the tinge of anger at his mother, for leaving them, burning in the back of his throat.

'You sure?'

'Yeah, just a bit shaken from yesterday.'

Cassie nods like she understands.

'Where are the others?' Maximus asks.

'Annabeth's taking watch, Percy is sleeping over there, and Grover is in that tree, but I think he's awake.'

A figure floats out of the tree, making a soft flapping noise.

Grover lands in front of them and says: 'Yeah, I'm awake.'

Suddenly a creature jumps out of the bushes, and Maximus jumps back with a yelp. The dark always makes everything a lot more scary than it really is, Because the creature is a poodle.

'Yap!' it barks.

'Hi,' Grover and Cassie say back.

Maximus frowns. 'What did... wait... can you guys...?'

The poodle yaps a bit more, and Grover and Cassie nod, as if they're listening to it telling them a story. Only then does Maximus notice that it's not just any poodle. It's a pink poodle.

'Max, this is Gladiola. She ran away from her family,' Cassie explains.

'How do you know that?' he asks confused.

'Because she just told us. Didn't you... Couldn't you understand?'

'Um... No? When have I ever been able to talk to pink poodles?'

'Oh... I thought maybe you could do it too. At camp, I discovered that I could talk to animals. I thought it might be an Artemis thing.'

'Maybe. Maybe I just didn't get it, but you did.'

'C'mon guys, Gladiola's going to help us go west,' Grover says, following the poodle to were Annabeth is keeping watch.

Maximus looks at Cassie, who shrugs, so he shrugs back, and they walk over to the others.

'You found a pink poodle?' Annabeth asks quizzically.

'Well, Gladiola found us,' Grover says.

'You named her Gladiola?'

'No, she told us her name,' Cassie explains.

Annabeth frown at them, and Maximus puts his hand in the air, trying to tell her that he doesn't get it either.

'Yap yap!'

'She ran away from her family, and there's a two-hundred dollar reward for anyone who finds her,' Grover translates.

'Yap!'

'And she wants us to take her back, so we can get the reward.' This time it's Cassie who explains it. 'Wait didn't you run away because you didn't like your owners?'

'Yap!'

'You'd do that for us?' Grover asks.

At this moment, Maximus has no clue what the conversation was about, so he asks: 'So, what's the plan?'

'We take Gladiola back to her family, receive the money, and go west,' Grover explains.

'Maybe we should wake up Percy first,' Annabeth says.

Then Gladiola waddles over to Percy, who is lying on the ground, snoring, and starts yap-yap-yapping right in his ear.

Percy jolts up immediately, his hands clamped over his ears.

'Ah, what the heck? What was that?'

'Our ride west,' Grover says amused.

End Notes

Isn't it wonderful when pink poodles jump out of nowhere and help you get two-hundred dollars? Wish they'd do that more often, it always makes me so happy to see them. Okay, just kidding. I mean, it would be dope if pink poodle just did that on a regular basis, but I guess you can't have everything. (Besides, it's not like American dollars are any use in the Netherlands...)

So, since I haven't been active lately, I've decided to make a compromise: I'm going to be naming the chapters! I can't guarantee they'll be as perfect as Uncle Rick's, so if you disagree with me on one of the chapter names and have a better idea, let me know, and I'll see if I'd like to change it.

Anyways, go check out my beta lovelylittlelion on Archive Of Our Own, and I'll see y'all in the next chapter. Hope you guys have a great day, byeee :)