Daughter of Hera
A/N: Aha, another chapter quite early! This is so your lucky time, I never update that fast. At least, not anymore… anyways, RAINBOWS AND BUNNIES AND DEATH TO BARBIE! Sorry, I just had to say that. So, this chapter is frankly going to be one of my favorites. I don't know why, but… I got a feeling that I'm going to sooooooo enjoy this one! There are also going to be some making-out scenes here so don't read if you mind it too much. Anyway, no more talking! On with it. (I'm not going to bother with a bloody disclaimer anyway; I don't have half the talent Rick Riordan does!)
Flying. That was all they'd done for the past two days. First to Acadia national park, then Lake Baker, Baffin Island and they were now over Greenland, in one of the colder areas. They touched down for the night in a sheltered cave in the rugged landscape. They covered the Pegasi, who for once were reluctant to fly about. The hard work kept them warm during the day but they knew they'd have to depend on each other's body warmth in the big cave to keep warm.
Jayda and Jeff, who was recovered fully, set up a thick curtain to keep out the wind and built a large fire. Annabeth got dinner ready and set up all the sleeping bags. They huddled together to eat and then Jayda spoke up, "I'm taking up guard duty first." No one bothered to defy her, knowing her stubbornness and being too tired to do so anyway. She grabbed blankets, more this time, and layered herself with sweaters and a thick coat they'd picked up at a store earlier. That still didn't prepare her for the icy blast that hit her face every time she stepped out.
She made herself comfortable, making sure not to get drowsy and stay alert. She was scanning the barren landscape when she noticed some movement behind a few bushes. It was slight but it caught her eye nonetheless. She leapt up and sword and shield at the ready, crept to the spot and parted to the bushes slowly to find a… a wolf?
What was this, some kind of joke? This was no threat. It was a small wolf cub, licking a hurt foot. It made her heart melt to see an innocent creature in distress like that. She slowly made her way to it and knelt down beside it. It really was hurt, anybody could see that clearly. She picked it up gently and the cub didn't even protest. She noted that it was a slivery-white color with emerald-green streaks on its fur and emerald-green eyes.
She bundled it up and went back in to the cave, pulling in the blankets and pillows she'd left outside. Annabeth glanced up and saw what she was holding. "Gods Jayda, we have to treat it. Bring it here." Annabeth let it lay down in front of the fire and ground together a paste of some herbs and nectar. She mashed it together with water, strained it and soaked rags with it. She bound its foot with the cloth and put the rest in a jar.
The wolf fell asleep from relief and Jayda leaned against the wall and rested. Annabeth got up and went out for guard duty and Jeff was resting for his shift after a few hours. Both of them knew not to ask Jayda to go for duty, she'd been working twice as hard as them for the past few days, taking up guard and training and sparring with the others.
"So, you found a wolf cub, huh?" Jeff grinned.
"What can I do? I'm just awesome that way." Jeff beckoned to her and she plopped down beside him. She turned to look at him and he noticed how the flames made her face look more beautiful than that of Aphrodite herself. He couldn't help himself: he leaned forward and placed his lips on hers. Jayda froze for a moment and then melted, kissing him back with passion and vigor. She'd been having weird feelings for him for a while, and it had finally culminated in this.
He bit her lip and she gasped, allowing him to push his tongue into her mouth, exploring. She clutched at him and they rolled down, Jayda beneath him. They were in a frenzy of passion, Jayda sliding her hands over his toned torso and Jeff roaming his hands all over her. He pushed a hand under her shirt and she moaned as he stroked her breasts. She sucked at his neck, covering all the delicate points.
An astonished cry made Jeff and Jayda break apart and rush out, weapons at the ready. "What happened?"
Annabeth pointed to a silvery arrow stuck on the walls of the cave, with a note pinned underneath it.
Demigoddesses,
Lady Artemis asks for your presence at the camp of the Huntresses. She invites you for dinner and wishes to talk to you. You shall be expected to reach in ten minutes' time.
Till then,
Lieutenant of Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt, moon and wild,
Thalia
The said girls glanced at each other and with mutual consent, headed in to collect their things. "Jeff, you must stay here with your pack and Porkpie. I'll send you an Iris Message when we are finished. We are leaving with our things and the Pegasi. He nodded and they collected their things quickly. Waving goodbye to him, they jumped on the Pegasi, Jayda pulling the cub covered in blankets into her lap, and took off, not knowing how long it would be till they met again.
The demigods flew hard, with an alert eye. They spotted the camp and landed swiftly, sliding down gracefully.
Thalia met them, flying into Annabeth at a huge speed, nearly knocking her over. "Annie, Annie, Annie, it's so good to see you. Come on, come on, come on, Lady Artemis wants to meet you. Oh, who is this?" she said, looking at Jayda.
"I'm Jayda, daughter of Hera." Thalia sucked in her breath and looked at Annabeth. "She's the one Chiron was…?"
"Yes Thals, that's her." She turned to Jayda. "Nice to meet you Jayda, now come on, my Lady is waiting for you." She led them to a tent larger than the others. On entering, Jayda saw a bed, a desk and silvery-white wolves similar to the one she found lying about the room. Sitting on a chair was a girl who looked about twelve with auburn hair and silver eyes. Annabeth and Thalia bowed and she followed their example. "Rise, my Lieutenant and brave demigoddesses. Jayda, it's been so long since I've seen you last."
"M-My lady?"
"You do know that you've been blessed by the Goddesses of Olympus? Well, I was one of them. We had been entrusted with your safety. Almost always, one or the other of us was looking out for you. After all, you are as much our child as your mother's."
To Jayda, it felt weird that a Goddess who looked so young would refer to her as a 'child'. "Thalia, Annabeth, could you please wait outside? I wish to talk to her alone." The two reluctantly backed out of the opening and walked off together.
"My child, show me the cub." Jayda was surprised at how she knew but she brought out the cub she'd wrapped in blankets and tucked in her coat. Its leg seemed to be healing nicely. "This is the same breed of wolf we keep with us, a female but a cub. I am glad you have helped it so. Give it to me."
The pup made a contented noise as it was passed to Artemis' hands. She stroked its fur and all wounds closed up immediately. She handed it back. "She has chosen you. You may name her."
"May I… may I name her Kyra? And those streaks and her eyes…"
"They are the color of your eyes." Jayda looked astonished at this and Artemis chuckled.
"There is something I wish to discuss with you child. I have an offer to make you."
Fifteen minutes later, Jayda walked out of Artemis' tent with pale skin, pursed lips and worried eyes. Annabeth saw her but decided against interrogating her. "Jayda we should get going. Jeff'll be waiting for us and we need to sleep. We're going to have an early start tomorrow."
Jayda nodded and they got ready to leave. Waving to Thalia and the others, they took off and flew fast and hard back to the cave. They burst in to find it empty. "Jeff? Jeff, where are you? JEFF?" Jayda began panicking. She saw the scattered objects he had in his pack, as well as his sword and traces of blood. Only Porkpie was there, the stupid Pegasus, whinnying and snorting and kicking till she calmed him down. Even then you could tell he was terrified.
"He's been taken." Annabeth confirmed Jayda's suspicions, kneeling down to look at something.
"Well, let's go get him!"
"Jayda, it's not that simple. We're tired and can't fight; their hiding place is surely in the Riphean Mountains, a day's flight from here. It'd be like giving them our heads on a silver platter. Wait the night and I promise we'll go in the morning. For now, we should sleep." Jayda nodded tersely, seeing the logic in her words without an argument. She rolled out the sleeping bags and slipped in quickly. She watched curiously as the young wolf took up place in front of the entrance, near the Pegasi.
She was too tired to watch any further and she fell into a dreamy sleep.
She was standing somewhere but everything around her was white. The only color in the room was a tall, handsome boy. Her heart fluttered in her chest and she felt a sudden urge to grab his face in her hands and kiss the life out of him. A rosy blush spread out on her cheeks as she studied his features: messy raven hair, twinkling se-green eyes a completely different shade from hers, and laughing features.
He walked over to her slowly, a smile playing on his lips. He embraced her gently and whispered, "I missed you Jay." He leaned down and closed the gap between them, pressing his lips to hers. They kissed passionately, lips moving in synchronization. He held her tightly to himself.
They pulled away and he chuckled at her face, leaning forward and putting their foreheads together. She smiled and ran a hand through his hair. Suddenly, a force began pulling him back. He began shouting and clawing his way towards her. She did the same but it seemed like a huge invisible hand was pulling her backwards. She watched as the guy she loved was taken away from her. Sobs tore out of her and at the same time she had a realization.
She knew this boy, the much talked-about Hero of Olympus: Perseus Jackson.
She woke up in a sweat and could swear that for a moment, she smelt the ocean breeze before it was swept away by the wind.
A/N: YEAH! I liked that last part. I originally planned to leave it till 'Perseus Jackson' but decided it would look weird if I put that in the next chapter. Anyway, review, review, and review!