Chapter Three

Hope had been hanging with her brothers for six months when she got the call.

It was eight, and they were heading out to do some research at a local library, when Hope, the demigod in the room, got an Iris-message.

She accepted the message and saw Chiron's grim face staring out at her, which was more than a little awkward with the two mortals in the room. It had been determined that both Sam and Dean had been granted the ability to see through the Mist. Nobody knew who exactly had done this, but it came in handy.

"Chiron! How lovely to see you." She drawled in fluent sarcasm. "What do you want? Last time we spoke I, uh, actually broke your desk. Guys, this is Chiron. He hates me for reasons unknown to all except himself, and I couldn't be called his biggest fan."

"Kronos has risen! We need to know if he's got to any minor demigods like you." Chiron announced.

"Because obviously I would tell you if I was working for Kronos, which I'm really not. Anyway, we have to go figure out some stuff, like how to stop these seals breaking and letting Satan out of Hell. Adios. Tell Emma hi for me."

She cut off the Iris-Message with a wave of her hand. "All joking aside, I need to get to camp. I have a few suspicions about this Kronos business."

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Dean had never been to Camp Half-Blood before. He'd seen Hope fight off an assortment of monsters ranging from the Hydra to a Cyclops, but this… this was bordering on totally terrifying.

Hope passed the border, being a half-blood, but she had to grant him and Sam permission to enter. The atmosphere in the camp was tense and only made worse by their presence. Even Emma, who had proved to be a smart and lively child, much in Hope's own vein, looked at them with deep suspicion.

A brutish-looking girl sporting armour and a spear yelled out "What's with the mortals, Underworld freak?"

Dean was prepared to bash her head in for that, but Hope managed it well enough, answering "I'd tell you, but I don't think you have enough brain cells to understand the answer, Clarisse."

Several other comments in this vein were defused by a cheerful answer from Emma, who was clearly less easy to provoke.

Emma Carlisle was of average height and build, with skin the precise colour of chocolate milk and a mane of dark ringlets that actually suited her better than straight hair.

"Hope, you know I'm not one to judge, but are you sure it was a good idea to let them in? People are already spooked, you don't need to act even more suspicious than you already do. For Tyche's sake, Hope, half the Athena cabin think you're a government spy!"

"Aren't they supposed to be smart? Do I look like a government spy? Although I suppose that's kinda a requirement for a spy."

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They entered a large house, which the two demigods referred to as the Big House and knocked on a door marked "Chiron's Office".

Sam supposed that this was the office of the guy who'd called Hope. They hadn't really seemed to be on the best of terms, but his sister wasn't a particularly agreeable person, especially if she got harassed like that a lot. Maybe 'Underworld freak' wasn't the worst insult he could think of, but it had to hurt, and Hope was only eleven, even if she acted a lot older.

The door opened to a man in a wheelchair who immediately asked why he and Dean were here. Hope performed several expert eye-rolls and snarky comments before they got to the actual point.

"You might have heard about how we're trying to stop Lucifer from busting out of his cage? Anyway, I figured that Kronos getting out of his coffin might be related. Maybe they're allying, I don't know, but there is no such thing as a coincidence."

Sam agreed with that.

Chiron seemed to be mulling this over, which gave Sam an opportunity to see what he could make of him. He seemed like a regular guy in a wheelchair, with salt-and-pepper hair and a tweed jacket, but Chiron was the name of a centaur, a trainer of heroes, and he had to ask "Are you the Chiron from the myths? The centaur?"

He answered to the affirmative, and resumed his thinking. Sam was trying to figure out the logistics of that, but eventually gave up, as no logical answers were forthcoming.

After about five minutes, a conch horn sounded and Emma asked "So, uh, can we go eat? I'm kinda hungry."

Chiron said they could, and that he would come too. He told Sam and Dean that they could sit at the Hermes table with their sister and Emma, and Sam remembered Hope grouching about having to squash into the Hermes cabin with, as she put it, the rest of Olympus' rejects.

Sure enough, an argument broke out about five minutes into dinner, which began with Chiron asking the Hermes table to please settle down. That was difficult, seeing as there was nowhere near enough space for everyone there, and the two guests weren't making anyone particularly happy.

Anyway, a large Hermes demigod answered that "Maybe if we didn't have to put up with all these little unwanted freaks, we wouldn't be so loud!"

Hope straightened up like she'd been electrified and spat back "You think we choose to be stuck in your damn cabin?"

The brute looked Hope straight in the eyes and answered "I don't think you should even be here."

And everything went to Hell. Unclaimed and minor demigods all drew an assortment of weapons there and then and practically lunged at him. Both Emma and Hope had plunged into the melee with gay abandon, brandishing a short sword and a massive mediaeval broadsword respectively. Sam was pretty sure he heard a cry of "You son of a bitch!" in what sounded like his sister's voice.

The battle was pretty one-sided, too. Both Sam and his brother were careful to stay out of it, although they were firmly on Hope's side, and apparently most of the cabin felt the same way, even most of the children of Hermes.

It was quickly put an end to when Chiron bellowed out "Everyone sit back down!"

Sam watched as people untangled and put away their weapons, Hope sliding the massive sword into a sheath on her back.

"Ms Winchester, Mr Robben, you will come to my office immediately after dinner. We are all servants of the gods here and I will not tolerate petty infighting."

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In Chiron's office, again, Hope listened as he gave both of them the punishment of a month of washing up. To her surprise, he dismissed Daniel Robben and told her he had something to say to her.

"Hope, I have known a few pantheon hoppers in my time, and you all seem to have the same personality type. You're all easily provoked, hot-tempered and you've all had that same rebellious streak, to varying degrees."

Hope raised an eyebrow "So you're telling me I have a problem with authority? I'd noticed, thanks."

"No, I'm saying you have to calm down. You're important, Hope, and you can't do what you're supposed to do if you keep acting on base instinct."

Hope felt the aforementioned easily provoked hot temper flare and struggled to not repeat the Desk Incident. "I ain't going to deny anything you just said, but one thing's for fairly sure. I don't like sinister plans that talk vaguely of stopping Apocalypses, with no actual detail provided. I don't like cryptic prophecies. I don't like gods or angels, and I am going to do my damn job and do the best I can to stop people dying. I should never have come to your camp, and I'm leaving. Oh? And you know something? I used to like my life, before I met you."

The preteen hunter-slash-demigod swirled out of the room with her usual verve and managed to make it to Thalia's tree before she started crying.

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I'm too hard on Hope, I know. She's younger than I am, and she's stuck in some weird plan that she don't like. But whatever. Anyway, please tell me what you think and thanks to Shinigamidemidragonslayer99 (that took me some time!) for their follow and favourite of both the story and myself and Guest and jody black (guest) for their reviews. jody, I'll try to be more descriptive, but I genuinely hate writing all that adjective-y stuff and I like to leave stuff to the reader's imagination. Also, happy new year to you all!

-threelittleclouds