Hey everyone,
So this will be my new update schedule. I will post one chapter per story at the end of every month, but this does not mean that all of my stories will be updated every month, just that I will update any new chapters that are done at the end of the month. So if you don't see your favorite story get an update, just wait till next month.
Hope that's clear,
Venquine1990
Chapter 06
Growing Suspicions
Harry's POV
The news that I am a son of Zeus, a son of the Lord of the Gods himself, has spread throughout camp like a wind blowing across a large open field, yet while almost all of the Campers that I meet are shocked to meet with me, does this news not scare them off or make them judge me like I had feared that they would.
Feeling amazed that these people aren't even really expecting anything of the supposed Prince of Olympus, do I feel that I have to give my mother right as the possibility for me to feel at home here is much greater than it had been at Hogwarts, where it was mostly the interior and the design that made me feel comfortable and welcome.
The students, the teachers and their opinions however had always been like an electrical shock at the wrong nerve, yet no one here seems in the need to order me around or look at me as if they are expecting me to protect and guard them with my life, as instead of that all of them are much too busy with my other news.
The news that the Gods themselves will be visiting soon, that the reason behind the cancelation of Capture the Flag will be announced and that things might just change for those who are Undetermined seems to have a much larger popularity amongst the campers and while relieved, do I feel I cannot actually blame them.
Especially the brown haired, green eyed boy named Percy, who had actually told me his own little life story after he and I had left Luke behind in the entrance to my own Cabin and while part of me wonders if my father will ever fill that cabin up like the Gryffindor Boy's dorm, do I still feel touched by all his effort already.
I also feel a very strong kindred spirit regarding Percy and I know this is because both of us know what it feels like to lose something, yet the fact that Jackson is apparently hoping to find a way into the Underworld worries me as I personally don't feel comfortable meeting my uncle after what happened at Olympus.
Still, I was able to talk the boy out of this plan as I had told him that Hades too would be coming to Camp tonight and I had told him: "Hades took some kind of dark matter from me when he allowed me to become who I am today. Maybe we can convince him to exchange the Dark matter for your mother's soul when he comes."
The boy had nodded and while some of the Campers had been shocked to hear me use the Lord of the Underworld's name, had Father told me that the rule not to speak the God's names would be adapted and be made so that Thunder would roll through the skies if someone said the Divine Names without paying proper respect.
I had not been fully in agreement with this, but when Father told me it would be able to used as a security measure as those that were disrespectful to the Gods could form a threat to their children, had I agreed, smiling as dad had told me how they would not make people fear their names like Voldemort had done so long ago.
The memory of this had not been easy to explain to Percy and while the lad had understood how all Magicals were actually descendents of those that were actually children or Champions of Hecate herself – bar the Muggleborns as those even I didn't quite understand – was the idea of there being three worlds a little much for him.
We had taken some refuge at the water bank, Percy undoing his shoes and moving his feet under water and while the sight of the water bank so close had not been pleasant for me, mostly because I have yet to meet with my other Uncle, do I enjoy how Percy seems to relax and become at ease once his body comes in contact with the river.
But then, knowing what I have learned in the last few days, do I look at the lad in pure shock, his sea-green eyes suddenly making a lot of sense to me and I whisper: "No way." Making Percy look at me, his gaze catching onto the shock I feel and he asks: "Are you okay?" To which I nod and whisper: "I understand how you're so powerful."
The boy tilts his head at this, yet his story of how he was able to defeat the Minotaur, while this was actually only his second ever monster to encounter, suddenly makes a lot more sense and I say: "I know where the power you felt when fighting that Minotaur came from. I – I know who your actual Divine Parent is."
The boy looks shocked, but then a soft, careful rumble is heard overhead, making us both look up before I hum and say: "Guess father wants the other Gods to claim their undetermined kids by themselves. Sorry Percy, I'm pretty sure I'm right and what's currently happening really helps, but – I won't disobey my father."
The boy nods, but then something I had kind of been expecting since coming here happens as a boy with glossy black hair, who has blue eyes, but who actually wears an eyepatch over his left one, approaches us and says: "Prove it." His tone harsh and loud enough to draw attention of the Campers in our nearest vicinity.
At this Percy tries to say: "Ethan, what –." But I had already expected for there to at least be one person who won't believe what I told Luke, Percy and Chiron and simply silence who could very well be my cousin with a single hand, while keeping a calm gaze as I look the boy named Ethan right in the eye and stand up.
"How?" I then ask, making sure to make my voice as loud as his own and the boy glares at me as I ask: "How do you wish me to prove it? To prove that I am a Son of Zeus. To prove that the Gods are planning to change things. To prove that they will be here tonight to explain why they cancelled the annual Capture the Flag."
"Swear on the Styx." The boy retorts and many of those around us now gasp, but I remain calm, having already been told by my parents what it means if someone swears on the Styx and while remembering what my father said about choosing one's words carefully when making such an oath, do I strongly say:
"I, Harrison Juno Black, swear upon the river Styx that my father of Divine Nature is the Lord of the Skies and Thunder, Zeus, that he bonded by Destiny and Heart to my mother, Sirius Orion Black and that all those of the Divine Twelve of Olympus plan to present new rules and plans to all of Camp Halfblood this very evening."
And while more and more eyes widen as I speak, my voice not wavering once or gaining any strength as I remain calm thanks to my own self-confidence, does a gigantic roll of thunder surge through the skies at the end of my oath, proving the power behind it and making several Demigods around me take a step back in shock.
Everyone looks from the skies to me and I keep my gaze on Ethan as I ask: "Anything else?" The boy shaking his head before I shrug and ask: "So what's your name?" Not feeling like making an enemy out of this kid as just the thought of doing this reminds me too much of my first day at Hogwarts and my meeting with Malfoy.
The boy seems shocked that I am even asking and he says: "E-Ethan Nakamura. I'm still Undetermined, but – but I –." And with that do I smile, hoping that I have given the boy some of his own hope and faith in the Gods back as I say: "But you're hoping things will change once those from Above show up, right?"
The boy nods, his eye now shining with a new light unlike the relentless determination it had within its gaze earlier and I turn back to the Long Island Sound as I jokingly ask: "Care to join us? I'm not actually allowed to, but I think I figured out who Percy's actual father is. Care to see if you can figure it out too?"
And while the boy quickly spares another look up, obviously afraid that he'll be struck down if he tries, do I laugh and ask: "Come on, there's nothing wrong with guessing, is there?" And the silence that remains above the Sound seems to give the boy new confidence as he smiles and sits down besides us as we start to talk.
Luke's POV
"The Son of Zeus. The actual Son of the Lord of the Skies. How am I supposed to follow Lord Kronos' orders if I have a child of the King of the Gods around me? And what's with Jackson and Nakamura? I thought Jackson was too traumatized by his mum's death and that Nakamura saw things my way. What happened here?"
I ask myself mentally, staying in the shadows of some of the trees near Black, Jackson and Nakamura as the first and last of the trio seem to have figured out who's Jackson's so-called Divine parent could be, the two of them laughing as Jackson is trying to get them to reveal it, yet the two seem adamant to follow Lord Sky's orders.
Still, I just know that the lad that is sitting all the way on the left of the trio is not one to always be as easy-going and gentle as he is currently showing the world as I can almost sense a really strong aura of Darkness and Pain coming off of the boy, making me wonder if the Lord of the Skies could be cause of this, but disregarding it.
This I do mostly because I am trying to think of a way I can use tonight's so called meeting to – if nothing else – get a firmer grip on my new situation and my remaining goal; to get the Lightning Bolt from Zeus and make it look as if either Hades or Poseidon did it, so the Big Three would go to war and destroy each other.
This plan I had, at first, felt to have even more of a chance to succeed when I had first sensed the darkness that came from the Black boy, but when he had revealed himself to be Lord Sky's son, had I felt dumbstruck and discouraged, making me decide to check out what Black was really made of and using Nakamura to do so.
I had, however, not expected for Black to actually swear on the Styx to prove his heritage or to confirm to everyone around that the Gods would be coming tonight or for Nakamura to actually accept the lad after hearing this oath and to befriend him as I know that Nakamura has a lot of personal issues revolving around loyalty.
Of course, it doesn't take a cow to see that Black has some kind of power within his own heart that actually draws people to him and makes them want to befriend him, a power I feel is slightly gifted to him by his father's power station and partly thanks to something that just makes the lad be who he is, yet I don't like it.
The idea that Lord Sky himself has such an attractive and loyalty-inducing son, someone who has probably been blessed by Love Lady herself as I like to call Aphrodite, is not a fact that I like as it will make my secondary goal to make other Demigods see things my way and the way of Lord Kronos a whole lot harder.
And the idea that I would have to either fight someone like that or disappoint the only Divine Being that ever held an active interest in me is not a pleasant one and while keeping to the shadows, while lurking near the trio, while hating how Black is drawing Nakamura closer into his heart, do I scowl at the idea of my Lord's plans failing.
Ethan's POV
I had fully agreed with Luke and disagreed with most of those that had excitedly whispered about there actually being a Son of Zeus on Camp, part of me hating these people as there has already been a Child of Zeus on Camp Grounds for the longest time, yet this new kid seems to have made everyone around me forget about this.
The idea that the Gods would actually come down and show themselves to us for the first time in what I know is centuries if not millennia had been what drew me to accept Luke's proposal of testing this new kid, yet when he had proven true had there been something about him that made me wonder why I disliked him in the first place.
The lad is definitely strong and his personal strength alone definitely proves that he is a child of a powerful deity, but I hadn't fully believed that he was a son of the Big Three until the Oath had been taken. Yet while he has a strength to himself that proves his heritage, was it more the way he switched natures that drew me in.
The lad had been firm, determined and self-confident – the nature of a true leader – when meeting my confrontation head on, yet after proving himself to me, had he taken an almost childlike innocence to himself, becoming a happy and friendly kind of guy that seemed to have a great sense of humor and a need to keep people friendly.
Wondering why he didn't just wave me away and brush me off after how I openly showed my disrespect for his Divine heritage, do I decide to keep a closer eye on the lad as there is something about him that I cannot place as either part of him being the Son of Zeus or him being the natural leader that he seems to be.
Deep under that self-confidence, that strength and that kind soul that seems to draw in people's friendliness, is a dark power growing, one that seems born out of a whole arrange of dark and painful emotions and the strongest of them even seems to be quite recent, the dark emotions almost visible to me as they have always been.
Knowing that I got this power from my Divine parent, but also knowing that it can't be Hades for multiple reasons – one of them being that I never felt comfortable when going underground, do I wonder if perhaps, I am a child of a Lesser Divine Being and this thought saddens me as it means I might not get claimed.
Then, while Harry and I are trying to get some humor out of how Percy is trying to convince us to tell him his Divine parentage, does Harry apparently notice my somber thoughts as he asks: " Knut for your thoughts?" Making me look at him strangely, which makes him cringe and say: "Sorry, old habits die hard."
I nod, as Harry and Percy had already told me all about the world of Hecate's descendants and Champions and Harry says: "But really, what's on your mind, Ethan?" And while trying not to draw everyone's attention like I did when confronting Harry, do I whisper: "If my parent isn't one of the Olympus twelve, does that mean –?"
And while I leave the question hanging, does Harry catch onto my fear and mutter: "That you won't get claimed?" I nod and while pressing his lips together, does Harry turn from me to the rest of camp, his eyes roaming over all of the Campers that are busy with activities around us and just by looking at him, do I get his worries.
I am not the only one who might be a Child of a Lesser God and it's only the Olympus Twelve that will be visiting, so I probably won't be the only one that might get excited over being claimed, only to get disappointed when they realize that they won't be meeting their actual parent. Then determination flares in Harry's eyes and he says:
"I'll take care of it. One way or another, I'll make sure all those Unclaimed living in the Hermes Cabin will get their parent to acknowledge them. Trust me, I'll make sure of it." And while I don't know if it's the determination in his eyes, the strength of his voice of the aura of a natural leader that he excludes, but somehow - I believe him.
Okay, that's it.
Sorry that this chapter's only 3 pages long, that might sometimes happen due to the actual subject of the chapter, but I still think I brought out some characters and their personalities and thoughts quite well. Also, Harry encountered a new problem, right after proving the whole Camp that his words are truth.
But who says that Ethan is the first to realize that he might be the Child of a Lesser Divine Being. If the Gods plan to have all Demigods be claimed, doesn't that mean that they have a trick up their sleeve regarding this little problem? Well, they do have the brightest of the bright among their group, namely Athena soooo – yeah.
Enjoy next chapter,
Venquine1990
