Shadow Girl meets the Ghost King
I woke up next to Annabeth to the sound of singing. This got me confused. Here I was, in my sleeping bag, in the middle of the woods, and somebody was serenading the trees. I had no clue who it was. The voice was clear and easy, not sounding forced. It didn't sound like a nymph. . . I jolted up when I heard footsteps in the nearby area. Annabeth jumped too, but then realization dawned on us. We forgot Phoenyx. She stepped into view carrying a bow, a quiver slung on her back, and two rabbits hanging from her belt. I noticed she still was limping very heavily.
"Morning," she greeted us.
"Morning," I replied. Annabeth yawned.
"What time is it?" Shadow Girl looked at the sky and squinted in its light.
"About ten till eight. We should get moving fairly soon." Phoenyx unslung her bow and quiver from off her back and unhooked the game she caught. She brought out a hunting knife from her satchel, and started gutting the rabbits. I was really grossed out. Phoenyx went through the whole process of separating the meat, skinning it and preparing it for food like she'd done it a thousand times. She probably had. Once she finished cooking them in a large black cauldron filled with water from the creek, I decided to start getting packed up. I stood up and nearly passed out when all the blood rushed from my head. Luckily, Annabeth caught me. The blinding headache was back.
"Sit down, Percy," Annabeth ordered gently. I leaned against a tree and slid down.
"I think it's my head," I groaned. Phoenyx opened her satchel and handed Annabeth something.
"Here," she said, "Eat some ambrosia." I nodded gratefully and the pain subsided within a few minutes. After the elephants stopped stomping on my head, we set out for Camp Half-Blood. Phoenyx had stowed the rabbit stew she made inside her ring/bag.
"It was a gift from Hermes," she told us. "He's one of the few gods that doesn't freaking hate my guts."
"What gods want you dead? Why?" Annabeth inquired.
"Zeus, Poseidon, Athena, Artemis, and Hera, Aphrodite thinks I'm no fun, Demeter, Persephone, Nike, and the ever annoying Janus. They call me 'Hades' Pet.' I'm too powerful for their comfort. Apollo, Hephaestus, Nemesis, Hestia and Hypnos think I'm okay, and Hermes, Iris, Hecate and Ares actually really like me. Especially Hermes and Hecate."
"Wow," I muttered. "Quite the list you've got going there. What about Dionysus? What does he think of you? He certainly doesn't like me." Phoenyx limped on for a few seconds before answering, watching the ground.
"I don't know," she admitted. "I think he feels sorry for me." Mr. D being sorry for anyone? I didn't think that it was possible for him to pity anybody. At all. On the other hand, I didn't know what Phoenyx had been through. While we were walking(or in her case limping) I finally got a good look at her. Phoenyx wore a gray tee shirt under a darker pullover hoodie. Her weapons were held up by a woven black belt, the free end hanging loose of a loop and dangling like a martial arts belt. Black combat boots were half hidden by slightly faded bootcut black jeans. The only jewelry she wore were her ring that Hermes gave her, and black stud earrings, that at a closer look, showed the symbol of Hades.
Black fingerless gloves were on both hands, but the leather of them only came barely past the first knuckle. Phoenyx's dark brown hair was pulled back into a neat braid down her back. Her face looked blank, as did her eyes, except for a sliver of sadness that slipped through her practiced barrier. Annabeth elbowed me before I realized I was staring. Heat rose to my cheeks and I shook my thoughts clear. We trod on in comfortable silence, except for the sounds of the birds in the trees.
"What are my brother and sister like?" Phoenyx asked as we came to a halt, to allow her to rebandage her injury. I slid my backpack onto the ground and unscrewed the lid to my kanteen. I took a gulp.
"Your sister Hazel is actually a daughter of Pluto. She's a centurion at Camp Jupiter. Really nice. Helped us on a quest to save the world." Annabeth nodded. Phoenyx winced as she poured nectar into the nasty, bloody cut in her foot. Then she relaxed.
"And my brother?" I shifted uncomfortably and scratched my neck, looking to Annabeth for support. She gestured for me to go on.
"You're brother. . . he's. . . different. Kind of dark and. . .moody. Very touchy. He's been through a lot. Lost his sister when he was ten, and . . .never really got over it." My speech was broken up as I tried to find the appropriate words. You never know when Nico could be listening. Phoenyx said nothing for a few moments.
"Was she a daughter of Hades? My brother's sister?" Annabeth nodded. The former's face turned unreadable. Suddenly, she face-palmed.
"I feel stupid," Phoenyx laughed. "I could easily transport us there using my umbrakinesis."
"Um-" I said, not recognizing the word.
"Is that the best idea, considering your foot?" asked Annabeth with concern. Phoenyx shrugged.
"What's-" I was interrupted. Again. Sigh.
"You don't give me enough credit, if I do say so myself. I've been around the world in one try without even passing out."
"In broad daylight?"
"If you don't mind-"
"No problem."
"For the gods' sakes, what in Hades is 'umbra-ha-blah-blah-blah'?" I yelled, finally heard. Phoenyx and Annabeth looked at me like I was an idiot or something.
Annabeth was kind enough to explain. "Shadow traveling."
"Oh." Now I did feel stupid.
"So how far away is the camp?" asked Phoenyx.
"About five miles," replied Annabeth. Phoenyx gave her signature crooked smile.
"Aw, come on! That's nothing! Here, take my hand." We melted into the shadows.
"Holy Hairy Hephaestus!" Leo yelped, when we materialized. He dropped his hammer onto his foot and hopped around the workshop on one foot like a nervous frog. The rest of Cabin 9 stopped their projects to see what the commotion was about. Jake Mason lifted his mask and wiped his forehead on his arm, leaving a trail of sawdust on his face.
"New recruit?" he asked.
"Um, yeah, I guess," I replied, wondering how long Phoenyx would stay. "Phoenyx, this is the Hephaestus Cabin."
She shook Leo's grimy hand and inclined her head. "Phoenyx, daughter of Hades."
"Arizona?" he asked, a funny look in his eyes. Phoenyx frowned.
"What?"
"Phoenix, Arizona?"
"No. Rubidoux. What are you talking about?" she gestured helplessly.
"You know, like-" Annabeth nudged Leo with her elbow.
"Do you know where Chiron is?" she inquired, changing the subject. Leo looked down at his toolbelt and pulled out a watch.
"Nah. But there's a meeting in the Big House in ten minutes." Annabeth nodded.
"Thanks." We followed Annabeth through the camp. We passed the armory, where a few Ares kids were picking out weapons and shields. Campers stopped their work(or in Aphrodite's case makeup adjustments) to stare at Phoenyx. I could tell she tried to ignore them, but I saw blood rising to her cheeks.
"You little stinker, get back here!" Chuck, Mellie's and Coach Hedge's kid, ran out of the Big house and bleated gleefully as he skipped away towards the arena. Hedge came running out after him.
When we entered the rec room, the meeting was about to start. Travis and Connor were playing with lighters next to Clovis from the Hypnos Cabin's face, and Butch was drawing a rainbow on the wall with sharpies. Lou Ellen had an illusion of a cake floating above Chiron. Chiron was in his wheel chair looking a bit dazed.
"Attention, everybody, we will start of this meeting with a rule refresher. First off, there will be absolutely no TP-ing the Big House. No pillow fights after lights out, and no going into a different cabin without the counsellor's permission." Clarisse scoffed.
"Aw, come on! No raids?" she asked, and Chiron shook his head. "Really? Who here doesn't like raids?" Everybody but Clarisse and the Stolls raised their hands. Clarisse sulked. Chiron sighted, and looked at me.
"Ah. So I see we have a new camper."
"Possibly," I replied. Phoenyx came forward.
"Phoenyx Rubidoux, daughter of Hades," she announced. A murmur ran through the senior counsellors, with references like 'death boy has a sister', and, 'great, another creep.'
Chiron covered up for the impolite gestures by continuing.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, I'm sure." he eyed everybody in the room. "Phoenyx, this Lou Ellen from Hecate, Will from Apollo, Butch from Iris, Clovis from Hypnos, Clarisse from Ares, Piper from Aphrodite, Travis and Connor Stoll from Hermes, Leo from Hephaestus, Mitch from Nike, Kevin from Tyche, and of course Annabeth and Percy." Nervous nods were directed at Phoenyx. Leo cleared his throat.
"Where's McDeath?" The Stolls snickered.
"Who?" asked Will, frowning.
"You know, Death Boy? The Zombie? Di Angelo?"
"Oh. Oh, yeah, where is-" Nico appeared in the doorway.
"Sorry I'm-" he muttered. Nico froze. Phoenyx turned chalk white. Her eyes were wide with alarm
"Nykolas?" she said softly. "What-the-Hades?!" Chairs toppled as she backed up. Phoenyx shut her eyes. "No. No. You're dead. Nyk is dead! Styx, this can't be right." I noticed her breathing was shallow, and she was shaking. Nico looked aghast.
"I'm not Nykolas," he whispered hoarsely. Phoenyx shook her head violently.
"No," she gulped, "You can't be him. He's dead. I've felt it. I've talked to his ghost. He's dead!" She started to regain control of herself as she stared at her long lost brother. Her eyebrows furrowed.
"No. No, it can't be," Phoenyx muttered, stepping closer to him. The daughter of the lord of the Dead ran her hands down the side of Nico's aviator jacket. She finally looked him in the eye.
"Where. . . did. . .did Hades give this to you?" Phoenyx managed and a tear rolled down her cheek. Nico shook his head.
"I talked with Nyk's ghost soon after he died. He wanted me to make sure it got to its rightful owner. I guess he meant you." Nico carefully took the jacket off and held the inside of the wooly collar out. In black permanent marker were the initials N. E. R. Phoenyx started crying.
"Nykolas Emidias Rubidoux." The younger owner of the jacket held it out to her. She smiled sadly and shook her head.
"You are the rightful owner. Nyk would want you to have it. It will never wear out or age." Phoenyx gave a half smile. "Besides," she said, "It wouldn't look right on anyone else. You look too much like him." She reached into her back pocket and took out one of those photo booth pictures you see at theme parks and near tourist sights.
Nyk Rubidoux looked like an older, way taller version of Nico di Angelo, his unknown younger brother. They wore the same aviator jacket, for one thing, but the similarities didn't end there. Nyk's face looked more mature and longer than Nico's, but anyone would mistake them. Compared to Nico, Nyk's hair was slightly shorter, curlier and lighter, but the just-rolled-out-of-bed look was the same. While Nico tended to remain stonefaced, Nyk looked rebellious and very much alive. A casual smirk played on his lips. His eyes were the same shape and color of Phoenyx's, but a little wider. Nyk was devilishly handsome. Altogether, in that picture, the Robidoux's looked happy sitting next to each other.
In the next few pictures, Phoenyx and Nyk were acting crazy, and generally having a good time. In one, Nyk was doing a handstand with his tongue sticking out, his sister doubled over in laughter. Another showed Phoenyx being held like a baby with both arms in the air.
The fifth photo showed Nyk and Phoenyx looking grim. Dark hair fell over his eyes just like Nico's did. Phoenyx looked bitter, a miserable half smile on her face.
The very last photo on the strip was torn in two. The brother and sister embraced contently. On Nyk's shoulder rested his little sister's head, and his cheek on her crown. Both looked like they could stay there forever. It seemed like just the sort of thing Hazel would do with Nico. The rip in the paper separated the Rubidoux siblings. Phoenyx looked sadly at the pictures, before meeting Nico's eyes.
"That was a week or so before he died," she told him.
"How old was he?" Chiron's eyes were closed in despondency. Clovis was the only person in the room who remained unaffected by the scene, and that was because he was asleep. As usual. Phoenyx struggled to remember.
"When he died? Three years ago? He was. . . two months away from turning sixteen. I was twelve.
"So you're fifteen?" I asked. Phoenyx nodded.
"In a week." She wiped her eyes and looked at Nico with a rueful half smile. "Now, how about that. I don't even know my own brother's name."
"Nico di Angelo," he said hoarsely.
"Phoenyx Rubidoux," she answered. "Are you Italian?" Nico sniffled and nodded.
"And you're French?" Phoenyx looked confused, then caught on. She grinned a little.
"The slightest bit. Mostly English, though." Leo still didn't get it. He stepped forward.
"Time out, people. How did di Angelo know the chic is French? Is it some Underworldly connection or something?" Valdez asked.
"Or something," Phoenyx corrected. "Rubidoux is a French surname." Realization dawned on Leo, and he went back to messing with the project in his hands. Clarisse quickly got out of her seat and ran out the door muttering something like, if I don't destroy something soon, I'll explode. It was probably better that she left. Chiron sighed and looked around.
"Well, the meeting is over, I suppose." Almost everybody left, except Nico, Phoenyx and Chiron, as well as me and Annabeth. Nico and Phoenyx sat in silence, just looking at each other. Then Phoenyx asked,
"What about our sister? Hazel?"
"Right now she's at Camp Jupiter, in California," Annabeth explained.
"We can arrange a meeting there in a week or so," Chiron assured. Phoenyx shifted uncomfortably.
"I've had. . .bad experiences with Camp Jupiter and New Rome," she said carefully. I frowned. She mentioned having problems with the gods. . .
"We'll sort it out," I promised. Phoenyx didn't look convinced, but nodded. She sighed and stood up, almost immediately turning a sickly shade of gray, past white. Nico caught her before the rest of us could even stand up.
Phoenyx moaned, "My foot. . . blood loss. . ." she passed out. I carefully lifted her off the ground. Nico caught my arm as I turned.
"Actually, if you don't mind, I think I'll take her to the infirmary." His look told me he didn't care if I minded or not. He would carry his sister to the infirmary. The guy held her in his arms, her head lolling against his shoulder. I'll have to admit, I was a little surprised Nico could carry her weight. Nico was what most people would call. . .well, scrawny. But I guess he was stronger than he looked. Carrying Phoenyx was like lugging 150 pounds of solid muscle and bone. She probably outweighed him by thirty pounds or so. Chiron followed them out.
Annabeth had a guilty look on her face. I took her hand.
"Annabeth," I told her, "it wasn't your fault. You acted in self defence." She shook her head.
"It was a dramatic course of action, considering I used it against another demigod, Percy."
"Phoenyx at the time was a threat. You didn't know what her intentions were. She could have killed you. And me." She was about to argue, but I stopped her with a kiss. Her resolve melted, and she drew in a shaky breath and sighed.
"I don't know. I still can't help feeling bad about it." I took her hand.
"I know. Don't worry, Wise Girl. I forgive you." Annabeth's stormy gray eyes were incredulous.
"Forgive me? You were the one who walked into a trap and almost got killed, Seaweed Brain. You should thank me for saving your scaly hide!"
"Whatever. And . . . How did you find out about my scales?" We laughed.
"You are helpless." I shrugged.
"Maybe, but that's okay as long as I've got you."
Chiron returned looking grim. "It must have taken strong magic to conceal her, considering her strength."
"How is she doing?" Annabeth asked worriedly. Chiron looked up.
"Phoenyx will live. Its a painful, very messy wound, and she lost a lot of blood, but she will live. Nico is still with her." I stood up.
"I'm going for a swim in the lake. I guess capture the flag is a no?" Chiron shook his head.
"Lunch is in an hour and a half." I nodded, and followed Annabeth outside. "Oh, I almost forgot," the centaur called, "Jason is coming tomorrow." I brightened.
"Great. Thanks."