Artemis
Artemis bolted into her tent, locking the door tightly with a Hermes proof lock and magic before flopping herself down onto bed in an attempt to sleep. Not that she needed it, in fact, she felt great, but she just needed to clear her mind out. Artemis lay there, feeling guilty and ashamed that she had yelled at Percy so harshly, and feeling that she did not deserve such kindness afterwards. Artemis tried to block the thoughts but in doing so, led her to think back to what she had been thinking about before the attack had started. Percy was truly a different person than any man or woman she had met. He was very brave, had a healthy reservoir of courage available, was so kind, so humble, so true, so honest, and always cared about other people. Not to mention the fact that he was extraordinarily loyal and selfless. And his skill with blades seemed unmatched. She would have to ask him to teach her and her hunters how to fight. Artemis cursed. Enough complimenting him, you should find his flaws so you can distance yourself! She scolded herself. Unfortunately for Artemis, all she could think of was that he was impulsive, terrible with a bow, even with her brother's blessing, and had no hunting skills at all. Oh, and he was man. Yeah, that's a great list of flaws… Artemis thought grumpily. Especially the last one. Artemis was seriously beginning to doubt that what she thought of 'man' applied to Percy at all.
But what surprised Artemis the most was just how extreme he'd go to protect the ones he cared about. He didn't seem to care whether he died in the attempt or not. Artemis shuddered again at the image of her wounds disappearing from her body and reappearing on Percy's body. That was going extreme; she highly doubted anyone else would have done something like that. Artemis sighed as she realized that deep down; she was falling for him heavily. It was only a matter of time before it came out into the open, but Artemis fully intended to not let it happen. She prided herself to be Artemis, Goddess of Maidens, Fates dammit, and she made a silent promise to herself that she wouldn't fall for anyone, even one as good as Perseus. He is only a distraction, like Orion. It will pass. But the instant she thought that, she knew it was wrong. Percy was a far greater man than Orion could ever had been, even though Percy was the most powerful son of Poseidon to have ever live, he had not let it get to his head. Percy never openly boasted, and respected the female race. Artemis sighed. I hope I can carry it out. With that thought in her head, she fell into a shallow sleep filled with her thoughts running back and forth.
Artemis woke up what felt like 5 minutes later to someone knocking-no, pounding-on her door. There was so much force going into it, she wondered if Poseidon himself was whacking the door with his trident.
"Mmmmmph. Who is it?" She called out drowsily.
The pounding instantly stopped. "My Lady? Are you alright in there?" A voice called back. It was Thalia. Figures, only she could pound a door with that much force.
"I'm coming." She said. Seconds later, she opened her door to find all of her hunters grouped in front of her. She stopped.
"What's the matter?" Artemis asked, confused.
"Oh, well, it's nothing much, just that, er, well, when was the last time you slept this late, my lady?" Thalia asked.
"Late?... I feel as if I barely slept at all…" Artemis faltered when she saw just how high the sun was in the sky. It was a well past noon. "Oh…"
Thalia nodded. "Pretty late. You almost slept twelve hours, my lady. Was something wrong? Or did anything happen?" Thalia asked smoothly.
If Artemis had been her normal self, she would've instantly picked up on the way how Thalia had asked the last sentence. As it was, she was still distracted from all the thinking she did last night and answered normally.
"No. I was merely tired and thinking about some things last night…" Artemis answered vaguely.
Thalia's gaze seemed to sharpen. "If you don't mind my asking, what things were you thinking about?"
"Nothing…" Artemis murmured. Then she frowned as she realized that everyone was still standing in front of her tent and she was still standing in front of her doorway, almost as if she were hiding something. She also realized that Percy was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's Perseus? Isn't he supposed to be here?" Artemis asked as she walked forward, her hunters following her. Walking forward, she didn't notice many of her hunters taking a quick look inside her tent or see the relief on their faces.
Thalia jogged up next to her. "That's the thing. We can't seem to find him anywhere."
Artemis raised an eyebrow. "Really? I kind of doubt that, considering you and the others are all very skilled trackers. Especially Phoebe. I think it's because you girls also slept late and were too lazy to search for him, so you decided to wake me up. Am I right?" Artemis asked, smiling.
Thalia flushed. "Um… well, we do know he isn't in his tent…" Thalia mumbled.
"And that's called "searching everywhere"". Artemis replied, still smiling.
Thalia opened her mouth and closed it, trying to form words. Artemis laughed. "It's alright, I don't blame you, last night was a rough night after all. But tell me, where was he the last time you saw him?"
"We saw him sitting on the bench that he healed you on, my lady. Afterwards, well, none of us have the faintest idea where he went." Thalia replied.
They arrived at the bench where Percy had "healed" Artemis, and saw a line of dried out blood with splashes of golden ichor. The mass majority of the blood was now a brownish color, which indicated it was Percy's. As trail of it could be seen, winding off into the distance.
Artemis pointed at the trail. "Now, was that so hard to find?" Artemis asked Thalia and the rest of her hunters. They turned red and mumbled some incoherent words. Artemis quickly followed it with her hunters in tow, steadily growing more and more concerned as she noticed the trail of dried blood thickening. Thalia seemed to mirror her thoughts.
"My Lady, I don't mean any offense, but were you wounded this badly?" Thalia asked.
"No… Only some cuts on my upper body and arms." Artemis frowned. Then it hit her with the force of a sledgehammer. The basilisk! Percy had knocked her out of the way, and the scream she had heard had been from Percy when he had been bitten! She knew how poisonous a basilisk was, and she also knew the bite would have been serious.
"Oh Hades…" Artemis swore under her breath as she quickened her pace. She silently cursed herself for not remembering that Percy had suffered a fatal wound, instead, she had merely thought that his scream was a scream of defiance. Stupid me Artemis thought. And he took care of me first…
Everyone froze when they reached the lake. It looked as if someone had dumped several gallons of red food colouring into it. Or blood. Artemis thought grimly. She walked up to the edge of the lake and tried to peer through the red haze.
"My Lady, can you see him? Or shall I try shocking him with a lightning bolt?" Thalia asked, worry evident in her voice.
Artemis shook her head. "Too much water here, and the lake is too deep. It'd take Zeus's master bolt to blast the water strong enough for anyone to feel if they're at the bottom. But, I do have a better way…" Artemis replied. She summoned her bow and quiver and quickly picked out 3 arrows. The arrows would create big air pockets of air when they hit the bottom, easily disturbing anything in the lake and causing a nice blast. She notched the three arrows at once and fired. Barely a second after they disappeared into the water, the lake exploded as if someone had set off a bomb inside it. A huge cloud of water shot into the air, and essentially created a brief but heavy downpour. It more or less drenched everyone in pinkish water. But no Percy.
Artemis growled. She was just about to loose a couple dozen exploding arrows into the lake when a voice called out, stopping her.
"My Lady! Here you are! Where have you and the huntresses been?" A voice called out.
Artemis turned around to find a slightly limping Percy in a navy blue shirt and jeans walking towards her, worry and relief clearly written on his face. Her first reaction was relief that he was relatively fine and he was alive. That quickly turned into raw fury. Artemis stomped towards Percy, screaming as she did so.
"Are you kidding me? My hunters wake up and realize that you aren't in your tent, they wake me up so we can "search" for you, then after getting down poured on by your bloody-water, you show up perfectly fine and have the nerve to say 'Here you are?'" Artemis screamed at him. She slapped him across the face. "You annoy me, Perseus Jackson!" With a yell of frustration, she kicked-punched him in the chest, resulting in Percy flying several meters backwards and landing with a loud thump.
"Ummmph." Was Percy's response as he struggled to his feet, wincing as he put weight on his left leg. "I'm sorry my lady, it's just that when I woke up, I saw how late it was and didn't want to be any later, in case you, um, turned me into an animal or something… Then I realized that the camp was empty until I used my sense and traced you back here." Percy replied, bowing his head.
"Huh. If you've been asleep in the lake for so long, then how come you're still limping? Don't you heal quickly in water?" Artemis asked. "And make us dry. It's getting cold."
"True my lady, but I got in there rather late so the poison seeped pretty deep into my body. But it's nothing, I'll completely heal in a couple days." Percy said. He clapped his hands, causing all the water molecules from her and the huntresses clothing to instantly evaporate, leaving her clothes wrinkly but dry.
"Yeah, well, if you hadn't been such a stubborn boy, and listened to me, then you could've healed yourself perfectly-"
"My Lady, please, don't take offense. I'm not blaming you. I made my own choices, and I will take the consequences of it. Besides,-"At this, Percy gave her a warm smile. "- For some, only something or someone worth dying for makes life worth living, my lady." Percy finished softly. "Now, may I go and prepare a lunch? I don't doubt that you and your hunters are starving." Percy said.
Artemis nodded absently. "Whenever did you become so philosophical?" She called at him, but it was too late, Percy and her hunters had already run off. She walked back at a medium pace, thinking about Percy's words. She tried to dismiss them as words, meaningless and worthless, but unfortunately, Percy had backed them up with actions first. Artemis ground her teeth together in frustration. Percy was defying every law of what a man was supposed to be in her books: Stuck up, pompous, rude, patronizing, self-sense of superiority, cruel, unfaithful, the list could go on and on. To sum it up, all the bad stuff with no good stuff. She was yanked from her thoughts by the delicious smell that was reaching her nose. She turned her head towards the smell and was quite shocked by what she saw on the table. On it was a literal buffet, with almost anything she would've wanted to eat right there. Nothing fancy, but it looked and smelled great. Her hunters were already sitting there, plates filled, looking at her impatiently. She gave them a quick smile before picking up a plate and quickly picking from the vast selection of food on the table. Grilled meat, fried, deep fried, boiled, small desserts, vegetables, they were all on the table. She was quite surprised that Percy could summon so much until she turned to ask him. He was sitting there, a forced look of calmness on his face, sipping on his flask of nectar.
"Perseus, you alright?" Artemis asked.
"Yes, I'm fine. You should eat." Percy said a little too quickly. Artemis glared at him until Thalia reached up and tapped her arm.
"My Lady, Seaweed Brain isn't unconscious yet, so can we eat first?" Thalia asked.
"Fine. But Perseus, don't think I'll drop this." Artemis said. Percy merely nodded.
Barely had she taken a bite of food before her huntresses attacked their own food with a ferociousness that would've scared the wolves. Truth be told, she was probably stuffing her own face too, since she hadn't eaten much. She kept an eye on Perseus though, and noticed that while he seemed to be watching the hunters, she could tell by his eyes that he was deep in thought. His eyes told many things. A deep green when he was brooding, or feeling a strong emotion, a harsh and poisonous green when he was angry; flaming, boiling eyes when he was furious, pale green when he was shocked, sparkling green when he was laughing or was amused, and the normal, peaceful, beautiful green colour his eyes usually were. Artemis was amazed and pissed at the same time. She had never known any Son of Poseidon to have such shocking eyes, and was quite angry that it was pulling her to him. They also strongly reminded her of Thalia's eyes, which also showed a wide range of emotions. I'm beginning to believe that they were siblings from a previous life… Artemis thought.
Little did she know that Percy was also thinking about her, pondering whether her actions meant that she was warming up to him or whether she was as cold as ever. Percy found Artemis to be the most confusing women he had ever met, one instant warm, and the next instant she could be so icy and cold, she'd make Khione look like a warm and cozy goddess. In all honesty however, Percy found her undeniably attractive in either form. When she was in her "warm" state, she was almost always embarrassed, which made her cheeks pink and her face twist into the cutest and most beautiful expression he had ever seen. When she was angry, her face was red and her stunningly silver eyes glowed with a deep intensity, which made you feel like you could fall into them for eternity.
Enough Percy slapped himself mentally. You didn't agree to be Guardian of the Hunt to pick up a new girlfriend, you joined because you wanted something to do. He quickly wrenched himself from his thoughts and concentrated on his surroundings. He looked around in surprise that his makeshift buffet was almost gone. Artemis and the hunters had eaten almost everything, the only plate that still contained a bit was the plate of apples. They were slowly munching on them, clearly savoring the fact that they didn't need to cook.
Percy caught Artemis's eyes and raised an eyebrow. "I don't think I've seen anyone eat food this fast."
Artemis shrugged." We were hungry, what'd you expect? And Perseus, just because you summoned a nice buffet doesn't mean there aren't any archery lessons."
Percy's shoulders slumped. "Fine, but can you at least make sure that the hunters aren't anywhere near the line of fire? You know, just in case I miss, because I don't want to be shot again…"
Artemis smirked. "Well now, Perseus, do you really think I'd do that? Of course I have to make sure my hunters are all over the place, force you to be careful, no?" Artemis's smirk deepened at the look of horror that crossed Percy's face and the delight that spread across the huntresses.
"Now, go make my girls a bath, they did get dunked in your bloody water after all. They'll do the laundry however." Artemis said. Her hunters looked at her with pouting faces. She ignored them.
Percy gave a weary nod and raised his hands, summoning gallons of water from within himself. After he had hardened it into the typical shape that the hunters liked, and was raising his hands to shoot flames, Thalia interrupted him.
"You know Percy, I've been thinking, since your dad gave you a godly boost in your powers, can't you just boil the water by thinking about it? And vice versa?" Thalia asked.
Percy frowned and lowered his hands. Then he looked at the water and raised an eyebrow. A second later, the water churned and bubbled, steam boiling from it. Then Percy frowned at the water, and it instantly froze solid, so cold that they could feel the cold radiating from it. Percy smiled and the water relaxed.
"Awesome! Thank you Thals, I never thought of that!" Percy said cheerfully, glancing at the water and causing it to steam a bit.
Thalia laughed. "You really are a Seaweed Brain, Perce. I'm a Daughter of Zeus and I can give you tips on your Son of Poseidon powers. Shame on you, Seaweed Brain."
Percy gave a snort. "Yeah, but at least I'm not afraid of the water or something. Unlike you, who's af-"
"Alright! Enough! Meet me at the archery range. We're going to need all the time in the universe to fix your horrible skills. And girls, keep an eye out for friendly fire." Artemis said jokingly before flashing herself off to the archery range.
As she appeared, she began thinking about ways to stop Percy from accidentally shooting her hunters. Aha. She waved her hands and levitated the targets so that they were stacked on top of each other and side-by-side. Three on top, three on the bottom, on top and side by side. Right, if he can somehow miss these targets, I'll be damned. Artemis thought. She heard several twigs snap loudly and then some cursing. Artemis turned around and found Percy covered in dirt, with lots of leaves in his hair.
"Having trouble just walking through the woods, Perseus? And how do you propose to stalk your prey quietly?" Artemis asked tauntingly.
"What? No, just got into a bit of trouble with some traps… And for your second question, how come you never heard me last night when you were taking your walk, hmm, Moon Beam?" Percy replied smoothly, smirking at her expression.
"Shut up and get shooting. Then we'll see who's laughing." Artemis snapped.
Percy was instantly subdued. He cautiously took the bow that Artemis and looked at her hesitantly. It took all of Artemis's willpower to not laugh at his expression. His expression said that he'd rather face Gaea again than fire his bow. So she merely let a small smile across her face and nodded at him to continue.. The instant he swung his bow up and notched it, she knew where it'd go. Everything was wrong. His foot placement, the way he held it, how he held his head, and the fact he was trying too hard. She decided to let him shoot first, since she was quite interested to know where'd it go with him shooting. She waved her hand.
"Try shooting for the bottom middle one. It's the easiest."
Percy nodded and released. It flew straight and true, smacking into a bulls-eye…. On the target above his intended one. Artemis couldn't help it. She laughed while Percy face palmed himself. Finally, Artemis stopped laughing and walked over.
"Well. Congratulations on your first bulls-eye, Perseus." She said, smirking.
Percy gave a grumble. "Go on and tell me how to do it properly."
"Gladly"
She took the bow from him and instantly swung into a perfect before shooting off three arrows, the first one sinking into the bulls-eye, the second arrow split the first, and the third split the second.
"Now, it's impossible to shoot if you're holding an arrow with your thumb and the knuckle of your first finger. Since you're new, try a different finger configuration." Artemis said.
Percy groaned as he pulled it back, but unfortunately, when he swing the bow up, he let the bowstring go. It shot high into the air, traveling in a arc to land who-knows-where.
"Oh gods…" Percy said, staring at the sky as if Zeus himself was going to blast him. Instead, there was a deep rumbling and the earth shook. Seconds later, a huge herd of wild stags burst out of nowhere, charging straight at Percy. Artemis leapt aside nimbly while Percy gave a yelp and bolted at high speed.
"Percy! Get back here, I can tell them to sto-" Artemis stopped and sighed as Percy and the herd disappeared into the forest, shaking her head at just how much she'd have to teach Perseus. She heard giggling and laughs behind her and turned around to find all of her hunters assembled there, laughing.
"Girls, have you been giving Perseus a hard time?" Artemis asked.
"Lady Artemis, we aren't exactly fond of him, you know, so using him for some pranks and entertainment is how we make him useful. It was very funny to see him getting dumped in a pile of compost." Christy replied. Her two buddies, Elizabeth and Diana nodded. The other huntresses started laughing again. Artemis gave a chuckle but shook her head.
"Under other circumstances, I'd allow this and urge you girls to do worse, but Percy's different. He risked his life several times already to save me, and for Zoë also. Technically, we owe him one. And even though I'm not happy about him being my Guardian, I do appreciate that he's actually trying instead of finding ways to chicken out like anyone else would." Artemis said.
The huntresses sighed, knowing that Artemis was right and that they really should give Percy a break, but they were obviously unhappy about it. Thalia had the most disappointed look on her face. Artemis caved in when she saw the looks on her hunters face.
"Ok, fine, maybe you guys can still play around with him, but at least try to be somewhat more considerate, alright?" The hunter's frowns and sad faces instantly turned into gleeful grins. They quickly turned and ran off together, already muttering amongst themselves what types of trick they would do on Perseus. Artemis gave a small smile as she calmly sat down on the ground, waiting for Percy to return. Well, even if they make his life miserable, he'll learn some valuable new techniques out of this experience. And besides, perhaps this'll help me distance myself from Perseus. Artemis thought contentedly.
Percy
Percy ran. He ran like never before, quite aware that no matter how fast he ran, the stags were always right behind him, their hooves pounding against the forest floor. Forest. Percy was beginning to hate this forest, it was filled with animals and the trees grew so close together, he had absolutely no space to spread his wings and fly. The hunters had not helped. Every time he had an opening, he found that the place was covered in a 10 foot high wall with spikes and nasty looking plants. I wish I could run as fast as Artemis… Percy thought, his legs burning. Especially his left leg. Hey, wait, what did Poseidon tell me? Liquid form was faster than running! Percy instantly turned himself into a puddle of water and launched himself forward. He sped across the forest floor at high speed, a streak of black liquid going so fast that soon, the stags were left behind. Percy stopped and listened. Nothing. Phew. And damn, that was some fast travel! Percy thought. He transformed back into his normal form but collapsed instantly. Traveling in water form had been much faster, but it had used muscles Percy barely used. Percy cursed and painfully changed shape again into a puddle of water.I'm going to have to practice those muscles… more.
Damn stags. Who knew they could be that aggressive? Percy peeked through the thick canopy of trees and found, to his surprise, that he had spent an hour running away from the stags. Thinking that his legs had rested enough, he changed back into his flesh form and gingerly took a step. Other than the fact that his legs were dead tired and his left thigh burned a bit, he was fine. Then he realized he was completely lost. He looked around before mentally smacking himself. Of course, just use your sense and locate Artemis. Wherever she is, that's where camp is. He began walking back, following his internal sensor, swatting away bugs and swiping at low hanging tree branches. Walking was much slower than running. He hadn't realized he'd travel such a large distance, and was beginning to really hate stags.
After a couple hours of drawing out Riptide to scare off some animals, using his powers to blow some trees up, tripping on vines, twisting his ankle on several large tree roots, he finally made it back to the edge of the hunter's camp. Ahhhh, at last. I never thought I'd be so happy to see this place again. Percy thought cheerfully. His happy mood didn't last long. Barely had he thought of it when he heard and felt a deep rumbling. He turned and saw the same group of stags charging after him. Oh Hades, this isn't possible! Thankfully, he was near the edge of the forest and it meant he had space to spread his wings. He sprinted 100 yards and leapt into the air, shooting past laughing and shrieking hunters and almost crashing into Artemis. He swerved to avoid hitting her but in doing so, he clipped the edge of his wings against a archery target and went sprawling. He felt the rumbling get closer and braced himself for the impact, but a sharp whistle pierced the air and the rumble instantly stopped. He slowly turned his head sideways and saw Artemis gently shooing the stags away, and they obeyed so nicely and so kindly, you would never have thought they'd be so ferocious. My Hero… Percy thought grumpily.
Then Artemis turned towards him with that enchanting little smile on her face, her silver eyes glowing as they danced with laughter. Ah hell, I really have to stop myself from looking in her eyes. Percy slowly struggled to a standing position, wincing at how sore his feet and legs were. He let his wings droop down, too tired to retract them.
"My, my, Perseus, but I've seen you in better condition, even after yesterday's battle, you seemed to be better than this." Artemis said, pointing at his shirt and pants.
Percy looked down and was quite unsurprised to see that his shirt was badly torn, he was bleeding a little and his pants had big rips in them. This was his second shirt and jeans destroyed in so many days.
"Well, what do you expect? Those stags are awful, they chase you at such high speed, you don't have any time to take notice where you go. And those tree branches! Terrible! I swear that the dryads hate me. And why do you even pick a deer as your animal? They're so violent." Percy complained.
Artemis opened her mouth to offer a retort but was cut short by Thalia and the rest of the huntresses.
"Hey Kelp Head, how was your walk in the park?" Thalia asked cheerfully.
Percy glowered at her. "Fine. Just fine. My legs hurt and I'm beat."
"Then take a break. Sit on a log or a bench, and after a while, you'll have plenty of energy." Phoebe added in.
"Yeah, good idea…" Percy mumbled, limping towards a log and promptly crashing on top of it. Artemis knew instantly that the moment Phoebe had told him to sit down, something bad would happen. And she was right. The instant he sat down, all of her hunters burst out laughing. Percy looked at them, thoroughly confused.
"What's so funny…?" Percy asked, staring at them as if they'd gone mad. In response, Thalia pulled sat down on the log next to him and gave him a light shock. Percy instantly jerked upwards, but found out he couldn't. He was stuck to his seat.
"What the…" Percy muttered as the hunters shrieked with laughter again. Percy felt the butt of his pants and realized they were completely stuck to the log.
"Thalia…." Percy growled.
Thalia's response was more laughter. "Whatcha gonna do, Seaweed Brain? You're stuck to your log!" Thalia laughed again, bent double.
Percy glared at her and called on his powers. An instant later, there was a strong burning smell and a thick cloud of smoke. Artemis and the hunters coughed and swatted the smoke away. When it cleared, they saw a Thalia sitting in a pile of ashes, her clothes and face streaked with soot. Percy was guffawing.
"Take that, Pinecone Face. I may be your punching bag, but I'll punch back. I've known you for too long to be Mr. Nice Guy." Percy said, still chuckling.
Thalia looked as if she wanted to blast Percy with lightning but then seemed to think about it. Then she smiled. That in itself scared Percy more than any lightning attack. Thalia was usually the angry, "act first think later" type of person, not someone who'd think before attacking.
"I may be sooty and dirty, but you, Perseus Jackson, are still stuck to your seat. And don't think I'm going to let you go anytime soon." Thalia said, giving Percy a sickly sweet smile. However, Percy returned it, equally as sweet and sick.
"No problem. I'll get myself free easily." Percy replied.
"Oh yeah? How do you plan to do that? Unless you have nail polish remover?" Thalia asked tauntingly.
Percy smiled. A heat began emanating from him as he set himself on fire. The wood began smoking but then stopped. He calmly stood up, brushing some ash off his pants and shirt. He cocked an eyebrow at Thalia.
"You were saying Pinecone Face?" Percy asked triumphantly.
"Fine. But that reminds me, yesterday, you said that you'd tell me something about Jason after you were done with your patrol but you and I forgot. What did you want to tell me?" Thalia asked curiously.
Percy turned red. "Um, it's nothing. Nothing to worry about."
"Percy. You're a bad liar, so tell me."
"No. It'd be an intrusion on his privacy and he doesn't even know I saw it."
"I'm his sister! I'm supposed to know any big things that happen to him! Now tell me now, or I'll blast you with enough lightning to fly to Olympus." Thalia warned.
Percy snorted. "That might've been possible when I was still a demigod, but not when I'm part demigod and part immortal. Last time you tried, I completely whipped your butt."
The air around Thalia started to crackle as she drew her twin knives. "Yeah? Except I've been practicing. You, you've been laboring about, not much time to practice, so I think the odds are pretty good." Thalia growled.
"Are you sure about that? How do you know I don't have new tricks?" Percy asked, grinning slightly.
"Bring it on Seaweed Brain, I'm always ready." Thalia challenged.
Percy gave a nod. Then he transformed into his liquid form, shooting across the distance between him and Thalia in a nanosecond. Thalia toppled as he slammed into her and Percy wrapped his liquid form around Thalia, twining around her legs, binding her arms tighter than a straightjacket and covering Thalia's mouth. Thalia struggled, so he hardened a bit of his form into several sharps points and rested them on Thalia's neck. She froze.
"Defeat?" Percy asked.
Thalia gave a slight nod. Instantly, Percy unwrapped himself and reformed himself into his flesh-and-bone form. Percy fought back a grimace as his muscles ached again. Instead, he turned towards Thalia with a forced grin.
"So, who won?" Percy said triumphantly.
Thalia gave a grumble and muttered. "You. Again."
Percy's grin widened and he cupped a hand around his ear. "I'm sorry, but what did you say? Didn't quite catch that."
Lightning started jumping across Thalia's skin. "Shut. UP." Thalia said through clenched teeth.
Percy smirked. "Sure. No problem."
"Perseus, whenever could you change your form into a liquid? I know Hestia gave you the ability to transform into a crane but did Poseidon give you the ability to change your body into water molecules?" Artemis asked.
Percy nodded. "That's correct, my lady. I can travel much faster in liquid form, but it tires me. Makes my muscles ache."
Artemis laughed. "Little wonder. You seem to move almost like a snake in that form, so you'll have to work on it."
Percy gave a groan. "Great. Archery, wilderness training, and water traveling. Huh. Fun." Percy grumbled. "May I go and change my clothes my lady?"
Artemis nodded. "When you're back, we'll start eating. No matter how tired you are, you still have to make dinner." Artemis called after him as he limped towards his tent.
"I wonder what Percy saw Jason do?" Thalia pondered out loud.
Artemis was about to answer when a flash of light and a strong puff of perfume indicated a god's arrival. In this case, Aphrodite.
"I believe I can answer that question for you, Thalia." Came Aphrodite's throaty voice.
"Aphrodite. What are you doing here in my camp?" Artemis asked stiffly. They both knew what she meant. They never worked well together. The only time they had worked together was during the fight with Typhon.
"Look, I would rather fuck a old dirty man than ask you for help, but I suppose circumstances change. I need your help. More precisely, my daughter needs your help." Aphrodite said.
"Your daughter? She wants to join the Hunt?" Artemis asked incredulously.
"You know this isn't the first time Artemis. And the last couple times my children joined, they followed you faithfully." Aphrodite said, glaring at Artemis.
Artemis gave a grumble. It was true. She had expected the Aphrodite kids that had joined her hunt to drop out almost immediately, but they had stayed true to their oath, never once even coming close to breaking it. There was always the first time though.
"Fine. If she wants to, then I'm not stopping her. But at least tell me why." Artemis commanded.
Aphrodite nodded. "You see, the Hunt is actually the only place she can go, she can't go to Camp Half Blood, because there are men there. She's very sensitive to men, because ever since he father died-a wonderful man by the way- she has had to stay with her two uncles and her aunt. And you know what that means." Aphrodite said angrily, her rainbow eyes flaring. "She's still a virgin thank Zeus, but she's beaten up and bruised. I'm helping her hide and evade her relatives and the monsters, but it's getting increasingly hard with those stupid laws. Also, her relatives and the monsters are closing in. That's why I need your help."
Artemis knew what she meant. The Ancient Laws forbade the gods from meddling or interfering with mortal affairs, which unfortunately meant their own children. However, as a goddess of maidens, she could use it as a loophole and help demigods more than the other gods. Then she remembered what Aphrodite had said. The young girl was being chased by her relatives, who were completely mortal. She cursed.
"What is it?" Aphrodite asked. "You agree to help, don't you?"
"Yes, I agree to help, but I don't think I can. She's being chased by her relatives, who are mortal." Artemis explained. "And you know what that means."
Aphrodite's face fell. Then it brightened. "Wait, you can tell Percy to fetch her! He's a demigod, not a full immortal, so he can do it, no problem at all."
Artemis raised an eyebrow. "Right. You tell her that my Hunt is a female only group, and a boy shows up to fetch her." What she didn't say was that she was reluctant to send Percy because he was so tired.
Aphrodite shrugged. "I don't see the problem with it. She's going to have to know about it later, and besides, Percy is such a wonderful man…" Aphrodite said dreamily.
Artemis had a intense urge to smack Aphrodite's face. "Let's ask him, shall we?" She managed to force out.
Aphrodite nodded. "Where is he anyways?"
"He's changing his clothes because he had a… incident and his clothes got ripped."
At exactly that moment, Percy walked up to Artemis, ready to ask her for further "instructions" but stopped short when he saw Aphrodite.
"Aphrodite? What are you doing here?" Percy asked, disbelief etched all over his tired face.
"My, but you don't look so good, Percy." Aphrodite said, walking up to Percy with a swing to her hips. "You sure I can't tempt you with a massage?"
Percy raised an eyebrow. "I highly doubt that's the reason why you're here, Aphrodite. What do you want?"
"Well, I was wondering whether you could save and fetch my daughter?" Aphrodite asked, batting her eyelashes.
"No. I'm tired, and besides, I'm not helping that Camp. They can send their own satyrs to get her and protect her." Percy said in a monotone.
"Look, Percy, I need you to help the girl. She's being chased by a group of monsters and her nasty relatives, and she also wishes to join the hunt." Artemis explained, motioning to Aphrodite to stay quiet. Aphrodite snuggled up to Percy but he took a step backward to avoid her.
Percy sighed. "As you wish, my lady. Any information on where I can find her?"
Artemis looked at Aphrodite. "Well, I've been helping her hide and run, but it's kinda hard to keep up with her thanks to those stupid Ancient Laws. However, I do know she's somewhere in Manhattan."
Percy rolled his eyes. "Oh thanks, that's useful. Manhattan is pretty darn big, in case you didn't know."
"Well, here, take this ring, the closer you are, the faster that red light will pulse. If it's a steady light, then you'll know she's somewhere very near." Aphrodite said, pulling a ring off her finger.
Percy looked at the ring warily. Aphrodite caught the look and quickly reassured him. "Don't worry, I swear on the Styx that this ring will not make you do stupid stuff and it will help you in locating my daughter."
Percy nodded and took the ring, sliding it onto his ring finger. "So what's her name?"
Aphrodite shook her head. "Can't tell you. Besides, if she tells you herself, it'll be better for you and her, since she'll be able to know you and will know that you're part of the hunt."
Percy nodded slowly. "So all I do is just fly around Manhattan until I manage to locate her."
"Yes. Please, will you do it Percy?" Aphrodite practically begged. For a god, just one 'please' was more or less equal to groveling at one's feet.
Percy sighed. "Fine. But you owe me one."
Aphrodite instantly cheered up. "Sure! No problem, here, I'll toss this in for free." She snapped her fingers and Percy was instantly engulfed in a cloud of white smoke. A "Hey!" was heard and then the smoke cleared.
"Oh wow." Aphrodite breathed. "Even better than I expected…"
Artemis looked at Percy with a mix of horror and admiration. "Perseus… what are you wearing?"
Percy was wearing a midnight-black t-shirt with a hood that had a faceless and featureless figure on the front with black bat wings spreading from behind him. The figure was lined in green and was surrounded by a halo of light, making it look like the black figure on the shirt was standing in front of a sun. Above and below it were the words 'GUARDIAN ANGEL'. On top of his shirt, he was wearing a pitch black leather jacket and matching leather pants, the shoulders of his leather jacket flaring out slightly, heavily reminding Artemis of what Thalia liked to wear. Both were lined with sea green lining and they also had slits in the back for Percy's wings to slide out. He was also wearing polished black shoes that were flat soled, good for running and fighting.
But what surprised her the most were the amounts of chains on his jacket and pants. There were long chains, short chains, and medium chains; there were several running parallel on his forearm, a chain circling the cuff of his jacket, chains on his shoulders, chains attached to the front of his jacket, all over the place. Then Artemis turned her attention to his pants. His pants had even more chains, running from top to bottom and side to side. But what Artemis noticed was that these chains seemed deadlier. Thinner, more flexible, and they had a shiny sheen to them. They were also tight against his clothes, not hanging loosely. Artemis had to admit, he looked good.
"I have no idea my lady. I must say, I actually like the shirt. But what is with all these chains? This is Thalia style!" Percy exclaimed.
Aphrodite smirked. "There's a reason for those chains. Just in case you meet her relatives, I would greatly appreciate it if you could, ahem, send them to the Fields for me. Those chains are made of titanium, not celestial bronze." Aphrodite said with a meaningful look.
Percy picked it up. It meant that Aphrodite wanted him to strangle them. And the chains also meant that he would be protected from monsters and mortals, where he went. He grinned.
"I get it. Thank you Aphrodite." Percy said.
"If you want, I could always offer you something more…intimate." Aphrodite said in a sultry voice.
"And you'll forgive me, of course, if I say that I'd rather sleep with my first stepdad." Percy said in a sardonic tone.
Aphrodite gasped while Thalia choked back a laugh. "Why don't you like me, Perseus? Aren't I beautiful enough? Everyone else likes me." She pouted.
Percy gave her a grin. "Sure, you're beautiful and all, but you use too much make-up. You want natural beauty; go take a look at Artemis and Calypso." With that, Percy extended his wings and shot into the air.
Aphrodite stared at Artemis with a mix of shock and outrage. "Did he just say Artemis?" She screeched incredulously.
Artemis fought back a grin and composed her face. "No, I distinctly heard him say Calypso though."
Aphrodite glared at her, then disappeared with a huff, leaving a such a strong scent of perfume, it smelled like the entire Fifth Avenue shops were here. Artemis waved her hand in front of her nose and turned to her hunters. All of them were gagging and coughing, except for Thalia, who was smirking at her.
Artemis glared at Thalia. "What is it?" Even though she knew just exactly what Thalia was smirking about.
Thalia quickly wiped the smirk off her face. "Nothing, my lady. Do I have you permission to make a batch of hot chocolate whilst we wait for Percy?"
Artemis nodded. Thalia walked off, taking a couple of hunters with her. She turned her thoughts back to what Perseus had just said. Percy thinks I look better than Aphrodite? Artemis thought wonderingly.
Percy flew high above Manhattan, breathing in deep breathes of the cold and crisp air, in an attempt to clear his head. He seriously hoped that Artemis, or more specifically, her hunters, wouldn't beat him up for letting slip that he thought of Artemis as a natural beauty. Percy mentally smacked himself again. That was one of his flaws. He was impulsive and always spoke before thinking. He had only meant to say that he thought Calypso was more beautiful than Aphrodite, but his brain had added in Artemis before he could stop it. Come to think of it, Artemis really was impossibly beautiful. She always had a silvery aura around her that enhanced her flawless skin, and she was lean and fit, tall for a female at around 5'9". And her eyes, her eyes were the most spectacular he had ever seen, a deep and bright silver that changed with her moods. She also had a temper which Percy found impossibly endearing. Percy could've continued to list off the things he found amazing, but he was wrenched from his thoughts by a flashing red light. It was the ring. It was pulsing steadily, faster and faster.
You're getting near her, Perseus. A voice spoke in his mind. It was Aphrodite.
How the hell can you get into my mind? I thought you had to be able to see me? Percy asked. At least, that's what he thought, considering the last few times he'd had a mental conversation with a god.
Well, there's another reason I gave you the ring, you know. Aphrodite replied. Even though Percy couldn't see her, he was ready to swear on the Styx that she was smirking. And did you really say that Artemis is more beautiful than me?
Aphrodite, shut up. I need to rescue your daughter, right? Well, help me find her.
I can't do much from here. But stretch out your senses for any monsters, and you should be able to find her. Gotta go, I have…business to attend to. Aphrodite said.
Percy gave a mental snort. Yeah, and what type of business is that? Traveling across the states and finding another person to bed with?
Silence. Percy sighed and decided to try what Aphrodite told him. He stretched his sense to its maximum and discovered a group of monsters almost right below him. Excellent. Percy transformed into a crane and shot straight down, landing lightly in front of the group of monsters. Dracaene. Easy peasy. He reformed back into his original form and whipped out Riptide, not bothering to go dual blade. In a flash, the group was all dust. Percy capped Riptide, pulled up his hood and slowly walked around, listening at alleyways for cries of help or footsteps. The rings was glowing a steady red now, which meant he was very near. On a whim, he took a right into a small alleyway and followed the tight and twisting route. Then he heard voices.
"…finally found you, you damn bitch. You've led us on a merry chase, Tracy, and while I don't know what those explosions were or how the hell you managed to enter a Givenchy store and not get noticed, but whatever, we found you. We're taking you back home and going to give you a lesson that should stick in your mind on not making us angry, understand?" A man's voice snarled, harsh and cruel.
"You three aren't my family! You-you're liars and cheaters! I'm not going back to that dump!" A girl's voice shrieked back. However, Percy could sense fear in it. He rounded a corner and found two enormously fat males and a corpulent female, all holding baseball bats, standing over a little girl who was bruised and bleeding from several cuts. She was also dressed in a worn out and dirty shirt and pants. Percy gave a growl of anger as he unhooked a chain from his jacket and held it between his hands. It reminded him of Gabe Ugliano and he felt hatred boiling in him.
"Oh? Well then, perhaps we should teach you a lesson right now and some more when we bring you back then!" the female yelled. She raised her bat and was about to bring it down when Percy threw the chain. It whipped through the air and slammed into the baseball bat, wrapping across and wrenching it out of her hands. The female gave a shriek as it flew out of her hands. Percy stepped out, letting his shoes crunch against the gravel loudly. All three instantly whirled around on him, the fat female cowering behind the two fatsos. Percy decided to name them Fatso Number 1 and Fatso Number 2, with the women as Fatty the Female Fatso.
"This-thi-This is a private matter! Back off and we'll let you live!" Fatso Number 1 stuttered out.
Percy didn't offer a verbal reply. Instead, he unhooked another medium chain and idly swung it about.
"This is the last warning kid! One more step and I'll hit you!" Fatso Number 2 warned. Percy rolled his eyes, even though they wouldn't be able to see it with his hood on and the low light. Fatso Number 2 leaped forward with a cry, swinging the bat as badly as Matthew would swing a sword. As the bat swung down, Percy raised both of his hands, the chain forming a bridge in between. The bat landed right on the chain and Percy tightened it as he wrenched it out of Fatso Number 2's hands. He flipped the bat over, caught it by the handle and bashed Fatso Number 2's head into the concrete wall with it. Without pausing, Percy whipped the bat in a overarm swing, letting it fly and smash into Fatso Number 1's oversized belly.
Fatso Number 1 flew backwards, the wind knocked out of him as Percy advanced on Fatty the Female Fatso. She cowered for a second, then launched herself at Percy like a cannonball. Percy sidestepped, and as she flew past him, he whipped his foot around, smashing it into her back with enough force to snap her spine in half. She flew forward and landed face first with a loud crash, limp as a rag doll. Percy turned around as Fatso Number 2 stumbled after him, the left half of his face a messy red paste and the right side of his swollen.
"I'll kill youuu…rrr" He said in a slurred voice, shuffling towards him like a zombie. Percy gave a snort and whipped his chain around the man's thick neck and tightened it. He instantly began choking, soon, white foam began spilling from his mouth. Percy squeezed the chain even tighter with a single merciless move, cutting into the man's neck. Percy heard footsteps behind him and turned around, choking Fatso Number 2 with one hand holding the chain. Fatso Number 1 raised his bat and brought it down in a smashing motion. Percy leaped aside and pulled Fatso Number 2 forward, right into Fatso Number 1's line of fire. There was a loud crack as the bat slammed onto Fatso Number 2's head, cracking the skull. At the same moment, Fatso Number 2 gave a final twitch before stilling, his face black from oxygen starvation.
Percy calmly withdrew the chain and hooked it back onto his jacket, bloodstained, deciding to wash it later. Besides, it was titanium and it wouldn't rust. He advanced on Fatso Number 1 with slow, deliberate steps. Fatso Number 1 cowered and begged for mercy.
"Please, spare my life good sir. Please, have mercy." He groveled.
Percy's hand shot out and grabbed the man by the throat, smashing him into a wall, pinning him there. The fat man's legs dangled a foot above the ground.
"Did you have any mercy on that poor girl when you were beating her with baseball bats?" Percy hissed harshly.
"Please, please, I repent all I've done, please my friend, my good friend, please spare my life…" Fatso Number 1 whispered.
"I would spare you if you were my good friend… But I'm not your friend." Percy hissed. Fatso Number 1's eyes widened a split second before Percy squeeze with all the strength in his hand, snapping his neck and crushing his blood vessels and windpipe into a messy pulp. Percy released his hand, letting the man fall to the floor like a marionette with his strings cut.
"All three of you will meet your rewards in the Underworld. Rest in the Fields of Punishments." Percy whispered. He walked over to the trembling girl, who flinched back from him. She looked at him with pleading eyes.
"Don't… don't hurt me please." She whispered.
Percy pulled back his hood. "No problem. I'm not here to hurt you, your mother sent me to rescue you and bring you to a… safe place."
"You mean the hunt?" The girls asked.
Percy looked at her in surprise. "Yes. How did you know? And your name is Tracy, yes?"
Tracy nodded. "Yeah. Tracy Beach. My mother has been helping me these past few days after I ran away. You have to understand, I normally wouldn't run away, but my uncles and aunt are horrible. I had to run away, it was just-" She stopped as Percy raised his hand. Percy knelt down beside her so he was at eye level with her.
"Don't worry. I know how it feels. Trust me, I do. How old are you?" Percy asked, gently putting a hand on Tracy's shoulder. Tracy flinched slightly as Percy put his hand on her shoulder. Percy quickly pulled back.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to, um, make you flinch." Percy said.
"It's alright, just that I'm afraid of people like you, males I mean, because my uncles were the worst. My aunt was a little better, she usually yells at me instead, but she still hits me. And are you sure that the hunt is a safe place? And I'm 9 years old by the way." Tracy said in a very fast, machine gun like way of speaking. It was obvious she was nervous and scared.
"I'm not the person to answer those questions. But first, we need to get you there. Can you walk or are you too tired?" Percy asked kindly.
"Um, well, I'm kinda sore and my legs hurt…" Tracy mumbled shamefacedly.
Percy shrugged. "No problem. I'll carry you instead. And take a sip of this, it'll make you feel better." Percy said, handing her his flask of nectar. "Remember, just a sip, too much and you'll get a fever or burn up."
Tracy instantly flinched backwards from it. "No thanks. I'm-I'm fine, just need a couple days to rest."
Percy smiled. "Fine. But eat this, it'll help you." Percy said, trading his flask of nectar for a square of ambrosia. "It's safe if you eat a piece like this. Trust me."
Tracy looked at him warily. "You'll have to forgive me if I don't trust you…"
Percy laughed. "You remind me of Piper. A different Aphrodite child, that's good. And I can swear on the River Styx that this piece of ambrosia won't hurt you."
Thunder boomed and Tracy hesitantly reached across and put the piece in her mouth. She chewed on it and many of her bruises instantly disappeared. Her face lit up with a grin, making her dirty face look surprisingly beautiful.
Percy turned around and picked up the chain he had thrown at Fatty the Female Fatso's bat, hooking it back onto his jacket. The chains were pretty useful, and they looked cool. Perhaps I will thank Aphrodite for this after all. Percy thought. He turned to find Tracy looking at him, with big puppy eyes. Uh oh.
"Can I have another piece of ambrosia?" Tracy asked.
Percy couldn't resist the big eyes. "Fine. But this is the last piece, because too much, and you'll burn too." Percy explained, giving her another chunk. She happily took it and munched, the colour returning to her face.
"Yeah, I know, mom told me. She also told me about being a demigod and stuff. I personally think that being a demigod sucks." Tracy said.
Percy smiled. Only a few moments ago, she was a afraid and scared little girl, and now she was much bolder. "So, ready to go to camp?" Percy asked.
"I suppose so… How are we getting there?" Tracy asked.
"We fly."
Tracy stopped. "Fly? How are we supposed to…" She stopped as she saw Percy's wings spreading from his back.
"Oh."
After several screams, whoops of delight, loop de loops, flying upside down and near misses with some buildings, Percy finally spotted the hunters camp. He was dead tired. Not from the small fight with the mortals, but from the things Tracy had "asked" Percy to do after she got over her initial shock that he could fly. Right now, Tracy was perched contentedly on his back, her legs wrapped across his chest and her head and hands on his head.
"Is that the hunter camp?" Tracy asked, pointing towards a group of lights.
"Yup. That's where you're new home will be, if you're willing to accept the "terms"." Percy said.
"Terms?" Tracy sounded nervous.
"Don't worry, since you don't like men, that's absolutely no problem."
"But what about you?"
"Well, I'm the guardian of the hunt, so I won't be going anywhere." Percy said, amused that Tracy thought of him as some sort of plaything.
"Oh good." Tracy said. She sounded relieved.
"Alright, hang on tight." Percy said. He angled his wings downward, keeping a tight grip on Tracy's legs while she gave a shriek of delight. He landed with a slight thump and bent down to let her off.
"Jackson Airlines thanks you for flying, our destination has been reached so can you please get off so I can stretch my poor back." Percy said. He heard some light laughter.
Tracy got off and instantly clung to his leg. "Percy… who are they?" she whispered, tugging on his pants.
Percy stopped his stretching and looked to where Tracy was looking. Artemis, in her 18 year old form, and the hunters were gathered there, watching.
Percy smiled. "It's alright Tracy, they're your new family." Percy said, gently disengaging Tracy's fingers from the chains on his pants. He led her to Artemis. "Mission was successful, my lady. The relatives are currently in a… judging stage. Hopefully, they will get what they deserve." Percy said.
"If not, I'm sure you dealt out a reasonable enough punishment for them when they were alive, yes?" Artemis asked, chuckling.
"Well, not really. I mean, ok, yeah, broken spines, a black face and a broken neck, plus some bruises. If I'd had time, I would've done a lot more. Poor Tracy got beaten up, but I patched her up with some ambrosia." Percy replied. Artemis nodded and turned her attention to Tracy, adopting a motherly face and tone while she spoke.
"Hello Tracy, so that's your name? And what's your age?" Artemis asked.
Tracy looked up at her nervously. "Tracy Beach, my lady. And I'm 9 years old."
Artemis nodded. "Rather young. You'll be the youngest in my hunt if you're willing to join. We'll have a quick talk in my tent and then we'll have dinner, alright? And Perseus, go prepare dinner."
"Your will, my lady." Percy said, doing his special bow. He turned to Tracy. "Don't worry, everything will be alright. And I suggest you follow Artemis's words, she's quite a bit wiser than I am in matters like these. If you want tips on sword and knife fighting though, then I'm always available." Percy said, grinning.
Tracy nodded and followed Artemis to her tent. The rest of the hunters dispersed to the dining area, while Thalia hung back to talk with Percy.
"Damn, I like your clothes." Was the first thing she said as they walked.
Percy smiled. "They're quite useful. Especially the chains. I could teach you how to use them if you want to wear your old clothes again."
"You're going to have to convince Artemis to let me wear them."
"No problem. I'll just tell her it's good for self –defense against mortals and such, and she'll probably listen. I hope so, anyway." Percy said.
Thalia shrugged. "I hope so." Then she turned towards Percy with a sly grin on her face. "Did you really say that Artemis was a natural beauty? Better than Aphrodite?" Thalia smirked as Percy's face reddened.
"Thalia, shut up. I was just, um, trying to piss Aphrodite off." Percy mumbled.
"C'mon Seaweed Brain, you can tell me." She bumped him with her shoulder. "So, did you really say it? Did you really mean it?"
Percy ignored her question, which caused Thalia's smirk to deepen. To their surprise, when they arrived to the dining area, Artemis and Tracy were already there, the latter dressed in hunters clothes with a silvery aura glowing around her. The other hunters were welcoming Tracy to the family.
"Thalia! There you are. C'mon, welcome our newest sister to the family." Artemis said. Thalia smiled and walked straight to Tracy, who looked nervous and was rather stiff. She gave her a big hug, followed by a "Welcome to the Hunt, Sister."
"Thanks." Tracy mumbled. "You're the Lieutenant?" Thalia nodded. "So you're the oldest?" Everyone laughed.
"Nah, I'm the middle one. Not the youngest, since a lot of us came after the Titan War. You're currently the youngest, in real age and time spent in the hunt. Phoebe, Elizabeth, Diana and Christy are among the oldest." Thalia explained. "Now come on, let's eat." Everyone sat down, and, unsurprisingly, Tracy chose to sit next to Percy.
Percy approached his chair with a cautious look. "Don't worry Percy, I didn't prank your part of the bench." Thalia reassured him. Percy had a relieved look and promptly sat down… and hit the ground hard. The hunters shrieked with laughter and even Artemis had a smile on her face.
"What the- Thalia! You said you didn't prank it!" Percy said indignantly, glaring at her.
Thalia had a innocent look on her face. "I didn't prank it. One of the others must've pranked it."
Percy gave her a last good glare before walking off and pulling a stool over in place of the big hole where his bench space had once been.
"What do you guys want to eat then?" Percy asked grumpily.
Thalia turned to Tracy. "So, what do you want to eat then? You're the new one, so you get to make the choice today. No need to be frugal about it, Percy can make whatever you want. As long as it's not like shark fin soup or something fancy like that."
Tracy blushed as everyone looked at her. "Um, macaroni and cheese, two grilled chicken legs and a bowl of mashed potatoes and gravy?"
Percy smiled. "No problem." He clapped his hands, causing the food to appear in front of each huntress. Tracy's eyes almost bugged out.
"How-how'd you do that?" Tracy asked in amazement.
Percy grinned. "A little trick of mine. Ok, no, it's a ability that I got from my patron Lady Hestia. Awfully nice and kind goddess. So, dig in." He invited them.
The huntresses attacked their food with their customary enthusiasm. Percy also began eating quickly, since he was starving from all the things he'd had to do today. After a while, he noticed that Tracy was only eating her food half-heartedly. He gently lay a hand on her shoulder. She flinched and looked up at him.
"Anything wrong, Tracy?" Percy asked. He sensed that something was bothering her, and it was a big something.
"Um, nothing. Just kind of nervous." Tracy said hastily, avoiding Percy's suddenly sharp and piercing gaze.
Percy gave her a warm smile. "Now, I may not be the brightest person in the world, but even I can tell something is bothering you. And one thing I've learned from my experiences as a demigod is that everyone has their own fears. And they have to face it, they can't always hide it underneath. If you try to hide it, it'll destroy you." Percy said warmly.
"I-How'd you know?" Tracy asked.
"I've had my own share of fears. I fought Phobos, that damn brat of Ares, and he showed me what was my greatest fears." Percy sighed. "It was a picture of Camp Half-Blood burning, with all my close friends asking me for help, to make a choice, a choice that would save them…or destroy them. And while Phobos may be a stupid git, he showed me what I feared most, and what I had to face down. It's about time I let it go now anyways, since that camp has left me. Most of it, at any rate." Percy said bitterly.
The entire table was silent. Artemis watched with admiration at how Percy was trying to get Tracy to let go of her tension and fears. She too, had sensed something, but she had put it down to nervousness. But Percy, being a hero who had suffered his own share of good times and bad times, was wiser than she was on this subject.
Tracy looked at Percy with trembling lips. Then she started talking very fast. "It's-it's just that when my dad died after being sandwiched between a semi-truck and a tanker, they put me with my only other relatives, which were my uncles and aunt. They welcomed me at first, with s-smiles and all great stuff. And I thought that I had a family. But then… the next day they revealed their true c-colours, they beat me and forced me to w-work and treated me like a sl-slave." Tracy began crying a little. "And, well, this camp reminds me of that. I just don't know whether I'll meet a permanent home." Tracy whispered.
Percy gently wiped her tears away with the cuffs of his jacket. "You don't need to worry, the Hunt is quite fun, and it's the safest place on Earth for females. And I promise you, that the Hunt will be your permanent family."
Tracy looked at him with pleading eyes. In those eyes, Percy saw that Tracy desperately wanted a family, someone dependent to talk to, to confide herself to. "What about you?" Tracy asked.
Percy smiled. "Of course I'll be here. I'll be here long as my lady Artemis allows me here."
"You promise? You promise that this'll be a permanent family? This isn't some trick or anything?" Tracy asked.
Percy looked her straight in the eye. "I promise."
Tracy smiled a little. "Thank you." She said meekly, before returning to eat her food with a vigour. The other huntresses looked slightly uncomfortable, but returned to eating their food without saying a word. Percy smiled slightly before he too, returned to eat his food. Once they finished, Tracy had requested that Percy bring her to her tent.
"Is that alright with you, my lady?" Percy asked Artemis.
Artemis nodded. "And don't forget that you still have archery lessons with me tomorrow, Perseus!" Artemis called after the disappearing forms of Percy and her huntresses. She distinctly heard a groan in response. Artemis shook her head. Perseus was so damn intriguing. She was deeply touched at how kind and understanding Percy had been, using his own experiences to relate to Tracy. Artemis could also tell that Percy fully intended to keep his promise, it was so obvious in his eyes. He fully intended to keep his word, unbreakable oath or not. And that just made him ever more endearing. Artemis cursed as she walked back to her tent. He was making it so hard for her to pull herself away from him. But she would.
She would find some way to distance herself. But in the meantime, Damn you, Perseus Jackson. Damn you.