A/N: Wow. That was quick. Thank you (so much) to everyone who reviewed! Now. I will respond to all of them at the end of this chapter. So read it! :P
Rosalind swung her sword half-heartedly, just grazing the straw filled dummy. after a few more failed attempts to strike it, she dropped her arm and turned to Chiron, who was watching her.
"This one doesn't fit either," she sighed, running her finger over the flat of the blade. IT felt cold and alien in her hand.
"I don't understand," Chiron said. He rolled over in his wheelchair, and took the sword from her. "Nothing seems to work for you." Over the past few days, Rosalind had tried weapon after weapon. None of them had 'worked' for her. They were all either to heavy, to light, too big, too small. She had tried bows and arrows, daggers,swords of many kinds, even discs and javelins. Still, no luck. Meanwhile, she had to watch her sisters master their own weapons. Jane happended to be a very skilled knife thrower. Skye was good with every weapon, but her particular favourite was a sword named Incendia (Latin for fire), named that because in the light, the blade glinted like fire. And even though Batty had been deemed too young to use weapons, it had been discovered that she was an exemplary Pegasus rider.
Rosalind ran her hands through her dark curly hair. "Do you think it's because i haven't been claimed yet?" she asked him.
He rubbed his beard and knit his brow. "No. I don't think so. We used to have many unclaimed children who excelled with various weapons."
"Yeah, back when you had unclaimed kids," Rosalind said under her breath. Then regrettted it. She hated the bittereness that had settled on her since coming here. She used to look on the bright side. Now, she only thought about the negative. which was ironic, because at Camp-Half Blood, it was always sunny.
"Rosy," a voice echoed. She looked up, and saw Connor standing in the doorway. His voice continued to bounce off the high walls of the arena. "Lunch."
"Thanks," she nodded.
"Lunch already?" Chiron said, glancing at his watch. "By gods, how time flies. I better get down there. until tomorrow, Rosalind." He rolled out of the arena, leaving her alone. Well, not completely.
She pulled out Tommy's picture from her back pocket. Actually, it was picture of the two of them. A close up. She had her arms around his neck, his around her waist. Their cheeks were pressed lightly together, and the sun just caught the side of his face. A breeze blew her hair lightly away from her face. His blue eyes shone. It had been taken one day in his garden. Anna had insisted on getting a snapshot of the cute couple. And, of course, because photography was one of her many talents, the picture turned out great.
"Tommy," she moaned softly. "What's happening?" Picture Tommy just smiled back at her. Gods, how she longed to call him. But she knew demigods couldn't use phones. One of their many safety rules.
During lunch, she sat at the Hermes table, and laughed weakly at their jokes. She heard Jane's laughter, and saw Skye's blue eyes light up when someone at her table said something interesting. Batty was sitting at her small table, with a nice nymph named Juniper who simply adored her. Everyone seemed content. So why was she practically blowing up inside?
The head of the Aphrodite cabin, Piper, led her to her next class; Ancient Greek History.
"SO, who do you think your parent might be?" she asked as they passed the volleyball court.
Rosalind shrugged. 'I've kinda avoided thinking about it."
Piper studied her. " YOu know, i think you could be a daughter of Aphrodite," she said. Then, she saw the look on her face. "I don't mean one of those superficial idiots that are most of my siblings. I mean, a nice one, like Silena Beauregard."
"Wasn't she a traitor?" Rosalind asked.
"Well. . .in the end she was a hero. But seriously, you could be my sister." She stared at her for a moment, thinking. "Yeah. I mean, i've seen the way you are around your family and friends. You're so loving and caring. . .and look at you. You're beautiful. You could be a model"
Rosalind blushed and pushed her hair behind her ear. "I don't know. . ." She trailed off when she realized that Piper was staring at someone on the lava wall. She looked up as well, and saw a boy in an orange shirt with blonde hair climbing it with speed. She looked back and forth between the two, and it was clear Piper thought he was beautiful too.
Piper snapped out of her staring when she realized Rosalind had noticed. "Oh gods, sorry." She slapped her hand to her forehead and rolled her eyes. "I'm turning into Drew; always thinking about boys."
"It looks like you really only think of one boy," Rosalind grinned. Piper turned red and looked up again.
"His name is Jason," she said.
"I know," Rosalind replied."He was in the arena this morning. He's very good."
Piper nodded dreamily.
"Are you guys…going out?" Rosy asked slightly awkardly.
Piper's smile faded. "I wish. Sure, we have feelings for each other. Except most of those feelings are coming from me. Plus, there are the people back at his home, and there's this girl named Reyna, but he still doesn't have his memories completely together, so…it's complicated."
"Doesn't have his memories together? What do you mean?"
"You don't know?" Piper exclaimed. "Gods, three days at this camp, and no one decides to fill you in! Alright…do you know who Percy-"
"Jackson is?" Rosalind finished "The guy who saved the world, right?"
"So I'm told. Anyways, Because of the threat of Gaea, Hera…" So Piper explained all about Gaea, and Hera's plan, and how it brought Jason (and her and Leo) to Camp Half-Blood. And about Percy, and where they think he is. And everything else that went along with it.
"So Percy is at the Roman camp?" Rosalind asked.
"Yeah," Piper said.
"I don't understand why the Romans and the Greeks can't just band together. It would make so much more sense than exchanging leaders, and moving around in the shadows. I mean, we all want to stop Gaea for the same reason. Its just stupid not to team up!"
"Well," Piper said. "We've been enemies for eons. Its hard to just throw that aside."
Rosalind shook her head as she walked into the classroom. Piper saw Leo, and went to sit with him, leaving her to find a seat. And so, because she didn't want to sit in a desk by herself and look like a loner, she sat beside a girl that looked her age, with wavy honey blonde hair, and blue eyes.
"Oh hi!" she whispered when she realized Rosalind was there. Her smile was wide and friendly. "I'm Sophie."
Rosalind returned the smile. "Rosalind."
"Oh, Rosalind! Ive heard about you." She furrowed her brow. "You haven't been claimed yet, have you," she said sympathetically.
"No," Rosalind said, disappointed that the conversation had taken this turn.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Sophie exclaimed. She grabbed Rosalind's hands. "I didn't mean to make you feel bad. I know, it can be hard, not being claimed. I had to wait two years."
"You make me sound silly for complaining," she replied as their instructor, one of the satyrs, walked in.
"Oh, no, you're not silly." Sophie adjusted her headband. "I got claimed last summer anyways. I'm a daughter of Harmonia."
"Goddess of Peace and Harmony," Rosalind said longinly, wishing she could be the one to say that.
"Alright class," the satyr said. "Today, we'll be digging even deeper into the conflict between the Greeks and the Romans."
Sophie and Rosalind both sighed. This was going to be a long class.
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"i know! So why can't we just get along?" Rosalind and Sophie were walking along a pathway ran through the camp, discussing the current conflict between, you got it, the Greeks and the Romans. "Its ridiculous," Rosalind said. "I mean, aren't we all kind of connected? The Greeks are children of gods, and the Romans are children of the same gods, just with slight differences! Like you said, about the two Grace children? They're full siblings, even though Thalia's dad is Greek and Jason's is Roman! So aren't we, by fighting each other, and holding this grudge, aren't we attacking and hurting our own family?"
"You're right, of course," Sophie said. "but I don't think anyone else is thinking like that." they stopped infront of the main cabins, at the opening in the almost-circle. People were rushing around, getting ready for cabin inspection. Three people were arguing over something. One girl was singing.
"Speaking of family," Sophie said. "Isn't that your little sister, Batty?"
Rosalind scanned the yard. She saw a small face peeking out of the curtains in the Poseidon cabin. When she met her eyes, Batty smiled and waved.
"She's so cute,"Sohpie giggled. "Percy isn't gonna know what hit him."
Rosalind's heart sank. Right. Percy. For the past few days, she had been reminded that Batty, the sister she had practically raised, wasn't her sister, but someone else's. "Do you think he'll be a good brother?" Rosalind asked.
"Oh, once he get's past the shock, he'll be great," Sophie replied matter-of-factly. "Don't worry though," she added when she saw Rosalind's expression. "He won't be so good that Batty will forget you."
Rosalind smiled weakly. Of course Batty wouldn't just foget her. She was being stupid. "C'mon," she said, grabbing Sophie's hand, "I think she want's us to come inside." They started toward the cabin.
But then they stopped in their tracks.
A low rumbling started, seeming to come from the Earth itself. IT grew into a voice, a voice so powerful and dark that it made everyone fall silent immediately.
"You do not know what you are dealing with," the voice said. It was female, and rich, almost melodic. "You make worthless plans, and build petty ships. But you stand no chance. I am the oldest being, the mother of all, Earth itself. To go against me is to die. Stand down. Or you will face the consequences."
When the voice left, the rumbling continued. It grew louder and stronger. It felt to Rosalind as if the ground were actually moving.
Wait. It was actually moving.
Pebbles bounced up and down and rattled against each other. Vibrations sent campers falling to the ground. They grabbed onto whatever they could find; trees, cabins. Sophie and Rosalind clutched eachother.
The sound of a tree crashing to the forest floor caused some people to scream. All the buildings shook.
As soon as the rumblings started to subside, Rosalind let go of Sophie and stumbled to the Poseidon cabin. Batty's pale, terrified face was the last thing she saw before the building gave one last shake, and crumbled into a million pieces.
######
That's what it seemed like to Rosalind. A Blank. It was only a few seconds. Only a few seconds of shock before she was tearing through the debris to reach her little sister. But in those few seconds, she couldn't see, feel, hear anything.
"Batty!" she screamed, flinging aside board after board. "Batty!" Other campers rushed forward, having come out of their shock too. They worked together to pull the little girl out.
"Batty!" Rosalind breathed, once her head of dark curls surfaced. "Oh my gods, Batty, are you okay?" They pulled boards away until she was fully out.
Batty said nothing. SHe clutched her left hand to her body. It was limp, and bent at an extremely odd angle.
"I think it's broken," a voice said. Rosalind turned and saw that almost the whole camp was gathered there, crowding around. The voice belonged to Jeffery.
"Batty?" he said gently. He touched her shoulder, but she jerked away. Tears made streaks down her dusty face.
"Batty, let Jeffery see your arm," Rosalind pleaded. Batty seemed to remember that these people were her family. She stepped closer to Jeffery.
"I need you to be brave," he said to her. "This will hurt." She yelped when he touched her wrist. "Skye," he said. Rosalind looked around, and saw both SKye and Jane hovering behind Jeffery. "Go get Will. He's our head healer. Jane, go make sure Chiron is on the way." THey both nodded, and sprinted off.
Rosalind turned her attention once again to Batty. SHe was covered in dust and dirt, and splinters rested in her hair. She had multiple cuts and scrapes. We are so lucky, she thought. She could have had a concusion, or a fatal wound. At least it's just a broken arm.
Will arrived and put Battys arm in a sling, giving her various herbs and potions to ease the pain. Chiron surveyed the scene gravely. He and Annabeth whispered to each other heatedly. They seemed to be arguing.
The voices of the other campers gradually came back to Rosalind.
"She's right. We don't stand a chance."
"She'll crush us. She could bring down our cabins on us with a snap of her fingers."
"Does she even have fingers?"
"Who cares, she'll beat us anyways."
Hearing this, Rosalind rose to her feet. Something in her lit up. SHe felt the need to lead these people,and show them that they could win, that they would win.
"Don't think like that," she said softly, but her voice reached all the campers. "If you think like that we will lose." She followed a weird impulse, and stepped onto the pile of rubble. Now, everyone was listenting. "So she mangaed to knock down a building," she said, louder this time. "So what? I don't know much about Gaea. But i do know that anyone who tries to scare us by hurting a defenseless child clearly doesn't have the guts to really fight this war. Clearly doesn't know us well enough to win. If there's anything this should show us, it's that she fears us, and wants us to fear her. Let's not give her that satisfaction."
There was a moment hesitaion. Then, the whole camp cheered. Rosalind smiled modestly, marveling at her own confidence and daring. Sure, she had always considered herself a leader. But a quiet leader. Not one who lept up infront of people she hardly knew, and gave impromtu speeches. She wasn't sure which one she liked better.
Suddenly the cheering stopped. The campers stared at , above her, to be more exact.
'Am i being claimed,' she thought frantically. 'I wonder who it is.'
"Aphrodite?" Annabeth said skeptically. She glanced sideways at Chiron, who was studying the sign above her head. Rosalind cranned her head back, and looked at the image.
It was three people holding hands in a circle. Well, the arms of three people. Their faces and bodies were our of the frame. One set of arms was shorter than the others, and pale. Definietly a childs. Another was dark and tanned, with large, callused hands. The other set was long and elegant. Both of the adult hands had wedding rings on.
"Aphrodite's more of a. . .romantic love," said Justin, a child of Aphrodite. "If it was her, the child wouldn't be in there."
"What about Harmonia?" Sophie said. "The people in the picture seem to be peaceful, don't they?"
"No, Harmonia's sign is always the peace sign," Annabeth said, her eyes still on the image.
Rosalind stood there while they debated what her parentage could be, her heart beating wildly.
Chiron suddenly gave a soft gasp. His eyes were wide, and they were fixed above her.
"What?" Annabeth said, desperate to know."What?" Chiron didn't answer. "Oh," she said softly, realization dawning on her. Her face was screwed into a distasteful frown."You don't think. . ."
"Yes," Chiron said gravely. "It makes sense. The sign, her natural leadership and love of family..."
He stepped forward. The campers looked on, eagar to hear his verdict.
"All hail Rosalind Penderwick," he said. "Daughter of Hera, Queen of the Gods."
A/N: Okay, okay. I know, it happens in fanfics all the time, it goes against Hera's character. ..i know. But I didn't make her a daughter of Hera just for the sake of it. I did it because it fit. Rosalind loves her family, just like Hera, and she is a leader, just like Hera. I don't know, she seems kind of queenly, don't you think?
I am so sorry for not making her a child of a minor god. You're right, i should have made at least one of them a minor demigod. But i had already picked their parents. But don't worry, i'm going to include many minor god children, like Sophie.
AngelinaRoss: I agree, the beggining is boring. I hate begginings. I tried to make it have more action in this chapter, but to be honest, this isn't really a action sort of story. Sorry. . . but i do value your opinion! I'll try to make it more exciting!
DaughtofTheia3: Thank you! I love Batty too!
rocketManrocks: Haha, thank you! I love your name, by the way.
Livie Jackson1: I will include your character. But I might not use her the way you want. ..sorry, i just can't picture Skye being corrupted. And sorry about Rosalind :/
Lollapalooza'nWithKatyAndNicki: Thank you! And, like i said before, i will include more minor god children.
can i get a what what: Thank you. . . is Rosalind's parent cool enough?
c00l st0ry br0: yes! Penderwicks forever!
Okay Readers! After reading this chapter, do you still want me to continue? If you do. . . give me. . .ten more reviews. Please? I'm not being too greedy am I? Whatever, just REVIEW!