6-seeing a friend you haven't seen for months
Leo ran a hand through his hair, trying to tame the messy, short curls that seemed prone to spilling over his forehead and sticking straight up in the back.
Butterflies fluttered in his stomach. He felt like he was about to burst into flames at any moment, which technically would be a fire hazard.
He, Piper, Jason, Reyna, Percy, Annabeth, and Rachel were waiting for Thalia to arrive. They were waiting just inside Camp Jupiter's boundaries, above the sparkling Little Tiber.
The view was amazing, Leo had to admit. Campers swarmed like ants over the Field of Mars, and the size only enhanced the similarities. Two seemingly-impenetrable walls had been constructed in the mere 4 hours they'd been standing there.
Leo loved watching the construction. It provided a healthy distraction from the long wait. He'd already gotten yelled at for messign around, by Piper, Reyna, and Annabeth. Those girls were scary.
A lonely breath of wind pulled at Leo's curls half-heartedly before giving up and settling for ruffling the carefully-tended hair up. He carefully fixed it again, wanting to look good for Thalia.
Reyna looked tenser with every passing moment. She was staying far away from Jason and Piper, looking betrayed.
"Where is she?" The praetor finally barked out impatiently, giving Jason a scornful glare that would've killed small animals.
"I'm sure she'll be here soon." Jason said tersely.
The sun rose higher, shining in Leo's eyes. Reyna fiddled with her purple cloak edgily. Rachel, Percy, and Annabeth were talking in hushed tones, casting glances at the entrance and at the Field of Mars. Piper comforted a worried looking Jason, saying that Thalia would be fine.
Leo spent the time watching the construction, hearing the distant commands and confident taunts toward the other team. He didn't dare attempt to start using the fire-using abilities.
"They don't know about fire-using." Percy had told him when he'd arrived and explained about it.
"They'll think we're even weirder if they know about it." Annabeth had added, her hand gripping Percy's hand so hard Leo thought it would cut off the circulation. "They won't trust us."
So, that led to his current boredom. Thankfully, it was shortly over. Well, not shortly, considering the amount of time they'd spent waiting, but it wasn't that bad.
"Thalia!"
Leo whipped around. There she was.
Thalia Grace grinned at him; well, actually, she was grinning at Jason, but he was close by!
She was clad all in silver, down to the silver circlet on her spiky, inky-black head. A big smile showed sparkling white teeth.
"Hey Jason!" Thalia embraced her brother first. He hugged her fiercely, looking like he was about to start chastising her like he was the older sibling and the younger had come home too late.
"Hi Annie, Piper!" Annabeth scowled playfully at the nickname, but she allowed Thalia to wrap her and Piper in a hug before Thalia approached Reyna.
Leo saw Jason visibly tense, as if worried about Reyna's reaction to his sister. By the apprehensive look on his face, Leo guessed he hadn't told Reyna about having a sister.
"Who's this?" Thalia asked rudely, staring at Reyna with one eyebrow arched questioningly. Leo grinned; Thalia was the same as ever.
"Reyna, praetor of the Twelth Legion and daughter of Bellona, a goddess of war." Reyna said, looking affronted and a little insulted.
"Oh." Thalia held out her hand. Reyna shook it, an uneasy look on her face.
"Leo! Rachel!" Thalia hugged then both; she smelled like crushed pine needles, like she was still a tree. Her skin was cool and smooth as silk, and she seemed to radiate silver light.
"Nice to see you Thalia." Leo felt his cheeks burning, and he wondered distractedly if his hair had burst into flames.
"Yeah, yeah." Thalia turned back to Jason quickly, and Leo caught Piper smirking at him from behind the Hunter's back.
He stuck his tongue out at her.
"Mature Valdez." Piper laughed. Everyone looked at him, and he blushed again.
"C'mon, we have to talk about the war games tonight." Reyna said, waving her hand at the two walls.
"What are the teams?" Percy and Jason asked at the same time. They blinked at each other, and everyone laughed. Even Reyna cracked a smile.
"Greeks, Hunter of Diana, and Fifth Cohort against the First, Second, Third, and Fourth Cohorts." The praetor said, inspecting her nails casually.
"We're so going to own them!" Leo cheered, jumping up and down excitedly.
"You're an idiot." Piper said, but she grinned at his enthusiasm as well. Annabeth peered at the walls and immediately began to tell Rachel about weak points and supports or something like that.
"Is that a little unfair?" Jason worried.
"Nah." Percy said proudly. "You underestimate our abilities in battle."
"Believe me, I know." Jason laughed. "I was asking for them. They don't know about Greek tactics."
Percy paused, as if thinking about it, and then he burst into laughter. Annabeth and Thalia soon joined in. Leo pouted at not being included in the inside joke, and Piper slapped him upside the head. He glared at her.
The wind picked up as the group started down the hill toward the Little Tiber. Leo gave up on fixing his hair; it's not like it would matter. The sun sparked in their eyes and reflected off the river.
Rachel suddenly dropped to the ground, her eyelids fluttering half-closed over her brilliant emerald eyes. Acid-green smoke issued in abundant amounts from between her lips as if she were puking up a green-colored fire.
"Ah, damn it." Leo muttered as he caught her before she rolled down the hill and drowned in the Tiber, which would probably be the saddest death ever.
"What-" Reyna started, but she was cut off.
The snake-like voice, like wind rustling through brittle and dry grass, began to speak.
Roman and Greek are united at last
Enemies feuding over things long past
Twin blessings of Hades and of fire
Life and death hanging on a wire
The gamble's price remains to say
And death unleash in a game of play
Rachel rubbed her temples, groaning under her breath. She rolled over and sat up, looking dazed.
"What was that?" Reyna asked, giving Rachel a look of horror.
"Our oracle, um, spews smoke." Leo explained as he helped Rachel up.
"She channels the Oracle of Delphi." Annabeth described, more quickly and much better than Leo could.
"Right..." Reyna was paler than usual. Leo recalled that Octavian was their oracle-thing.
"What does it mean though?" Percy asked, looking worried, biting his lip.
"Romans and Greeks united at last...That's pretty self-explanatory. We're here." Thalia said, and Leo nearly jumped a foot in the air; he'd forgotten she was there.
"Enemies feuding over things long past..." Annabeth repeated cryptically. "Same thing, self-explanatory."
"Twin blessings of Hades and of fire/Life or death hanging on a wire." Piper's eyes were wide as she glanced at Leo; his own eyes were huge with confusion.
"The gamble's price remains to say," Reyna said, not noticing the two exchanging horrified looks. "And death unleash through a game of play."
"You don't think?" Jason asked, sweeping his hand regally toward the Field of Mars, where warriors still scurried around. A competitive, apprehensive feeling seemed to linger over the field, illuminating the warriors not as fearless Romans, but as humans – teenagers, children – that lived and breathed and could die just as easily and painfully as a mortal.
"I don't know." Reyna said ominously, her eyebrows bunching together anxiously. "I just don't know."
Alright, excuses for why I didn't update: my computer decided that it was the perfect time to get a virus. Stupid, I know. And I was depressed, it happens a lot. And I had to reduce the amount of chapters because there was no way I could do 55. And I can't do prophecies worth crap. Please don't be mad. I am alive, don't worry.
Yeah, this chapter sucks. Like hell. Oh well, it just leads up to the next one, which will be better, mark my words! And I added a bunch more detail than before, it was like a page less!
Speaking of the next one, can I do updates on Fridays? Please? It will make my life so much easier since school and stuff is already making my life a living hell *sigh* and next chapter we finally get to see my theory for Leo!
And I decided to give this story an actual plot! Yay for me! *throws confetti* And Octavian doesn't use the Spirit of Delphi, so I assumed Reyna would be a bit freaked by Rachel.
Okay, for Octavian: Reyna or Rachel or Neither? And Jason: Reyna or Piper or Neither?
the "glare that could kill small animals'? That's my glare XD
Good? Bad? Review please?