Hello!
Sorry for not posting in a while, life's been a bit crazy lately.
I hope this chapter makes up for it!
Once Again, I have to thank imagineXwriter9 for helping me edit and adding suggestions for this chapter!
I hope you all enjoy!
Chapter 12:
Seth opened the book to the correct page before silently reading the chapter title and gave a slight grimace.
"What's wrong?" Armani asked.
Seth closed his eyes to compose himself for a brief moment before dismissing the concern. "It's nothing."
"I was right," Seth thought, eagerly anticipating this upcoming chapter in equal parts dread and excitement. "We finally reached this part."
"We knew it was coming sooner or later," it said back.
"I'm aware," Seth replied, "and it's a moment worth remembering."
Zeus looked around the throne room. "Are we all ready to begin?"
A murmur of agreement echoed in the throne room.
"Very well then," Zeus nodded. "You may begin."
"Yes, Lord Zeus," Seth replied, taking in a breath to begin reading.
"Wait," Cassie said hesitantly, causing all eyes to turn towards her. With an awkward smile, she asked, "Would it be possible for us to switch seats, please?"
"Switching seats?" Seth repeated, trying his best not to appear impatient. They were getting to the crucial part! So why…
"Why now?" Armani wondered quietly, unknowingly voicing Seth's true thoughts.
Predictably, Zeus didn't take too kindly to her request. "Why couldn't you have done this after you returned from break?"
Cassie coughed slightly to clear her nerves. It felt like she was being scolded- no, scratch that, she definitely was being scolded. "W-well," she began nervously, "everyone was in such a rush to return on time that I was unable to bring it up until now."
Zeus stared at her unamused until he felt wife's hand over his. Zeus turned towards Hera in question as she spoke.
"My Lord Husband, perhaps it would be best to let the…" Hera trailed off, unsure what to call the group of future visitors. Children? Clearing her throat, she continued, "...demigods switch seats? It should help lessen the amount of interruptions."
Thalia lightly scoffed at the distasteful way Hera said demigods. Some things never change.
Meanwhile, Cassie stared at the Queen in confusion. She was happy that Hera spoke in her favor but confused about why she seemed to keep searching for the right words.
Zeus considered what his wife had said to him. "Very well, everyone may switch seats if that is preferred. We will begin immediately once it is done."
"If you all would stand up?" Hestia asked with a small smile. "I will alter the seats slightly."
The demigods all glanced at each other, before one by one they all stood up, allowing Hestia to snap her fingers and make the couches and chairs disappear. With another snap, new ones appeared in their place.
There was one L-shaped couch that fit five, on the left, behind the demigods of timeline one. Next to it was a smaller couch that fit three. In the center, instead of two chairs, there were now three. Three that were closer together than Seth would have liked. After the three chairs, there was a large couch that fit six, followed by the hunter's sofa which was left unbothered.
"Sit wherever you'd like." Hestia told the demigods with a smile.
The seventeen demigods glanced around the group before Seth took the initiative as this chapter's reader and moved to sit in the middle chair, shortly followed by Armani, who chose to sit on his right. Their actions prompted the rest of the demigods to start moving, and soon, they saw Luna walking over and sitting next to Seth on his left.
"You're…sitting here," Seth asked, mildly confused. "What about your friends?"
"I wanted to change it up," Luna replied airily, crossing her left leg over her right, and decided to joke. "The others can get so annoying sometimes." Catching Armani's disapproval and Seth's unimpressed look, Luna coughed in embarrassment. "Plus, I figured I could show some…moral support?" she added hesitantly. "We're getting close to the part of the story that was mentioned in the summary, right?" Luna seemed to hesitate as Seth stared at her blankly in silence. "So, is this alright? I can move somewhere else if you prefer?"
"Huh, it seems like our sister isn't so inconsiderate after all," the voice mused.
"She's not my sister," Seth replied back.
"Quit denying it. You know as well as I that she is her daughter-!"
"That's not what I mean," Seth interrupted. "I only acknowledge ONE person as my sister, and she's not here. Luna is also part of another timeline. We're here to get our story read, not make bonds that won't last."
"So you keep saying," the voice said. "Afraid you'll forget it?"
Swallowing back his surprise at Luna's words and ignoring the voice in his head, Seth focused on the book in his hands. "You can do whatever you like," he said, making Luna sigh in relief before she clenched her jaw.
Was giving attitude all Seth knew?
Flipping the book slightly in his hand, Seth discreetly read the summary despite it being burned in his mind since the first time he read the book. Tapping the book on his left hand, Seth nodded slightly.
"I…appreciate the gesture." Seth added, gaze fixed on the cover of his book.
Luna startled at the older boy's words before she smiled softly at him. "Anytime." She said with a nod and a quick glance at Armani who seemed happy at the exchange.
Thea glanced around the room before looking thoughtfully at Dove. "Sooo, I'm guessing we're spreading out?"
Dove turned towards Thea for a moment before shrugging. "I guess so, but only if you want to, of course."
Thea smiled slightly before glancing over towards the demigods from timeline one. "I think I want to sit with the others."
"Well, I'm not going to stop you." Dove chuckled. "I'm thinking of doing the same."
Thea smiled before walking over towards Katie, who was looking unsurely between the larger and smaller couches.
"Do you want to sit together?" Thea asked softly, causing the brunette to startle slightly.
"Uh, sure." Katie agreed before looking back at the couches. "Where do you want to sit?"
Thea smiled before she walked over towards the smaller couch and sat in the middle with a hum. "Does over here work?"
Katie smiled back with a tilt of her head. "Works for me." She agreed before sitting on Thea's right.
Dove snorted slightly before walking over towards Annabeth and Percy, who sat nestled together on the five person couch.
"Hey." Percy grinned. "You decided to join the cool kids?"
Annabeth raised an eyebrow at Percy in amusement as Dove claimed the spot on her left.
"Cool kids?" Dove smirked at Percy in return. "Sure, I guess Annabeth and Clarisse are pretty cool."
Percy clutched his chest indignantly in mock pain. "Ouch."
Clarisse chuckled as she sat down next to Dove. "Glad to know I'm one of the cool kids."
Dove looked at Clarisse like she grew a second head. "Was there any doubt?"
"Most people do run away from me," Clarisse pointed out.
"Can you blame them?" Dove asked with narrowed eyes.
Clarisse just grinned in response, causing Dove to roll her eyes.
Thalia shook her head at the two before beginning to make her way towards the end of the couch when Cassie called out to her.
"Hey Thalia?"
Thalia stopped mid stride before turning around to glance at the other girl. "What's up?"
"Would you want to sit with me and Alessa for this chapter?" Cassie asked.
Thalia regarded Cassie's offer before turning to Alessa for her opinion.
Alessa smiled. "We have room, but only if you want to. No pressure."
Thalia shrugged, "Why not." She quickly made her way over and sat between the two cousins.
Ashlynn glanced around the group of remaining demigods like an excited puppy before skipping over towards Will and Nico. "Oh Will~"
Will blinked before turning back and giving Ashlynn a skeptical look. "Yes?"
"You wanna sit with me?" Ashlynn smiled while swinging her arms.
"Um…" Will turned towards Nico who looked mildly annoyed at Ashlynn's behavior. "I'm not sure-!"
"Hey, Nico?" Thea quietly called from her spot next to Katie, causing the goth teen to turn towards the brunette with a raised eyebrow. "If you want, there's an empty seat next to me. That way you don't have to deal with Ash."
Ashlynn pouted at Thea's words. "Rude."
Nico contemplated Thea's words before turning back towards Will. "What do you think?"
"It's up to you." Will sighed with a side eye towards Ashlynn. "I don't think I'll be able to get out of this."
Ashlynn rolled her eyes. "Oh please, I'm not that bad."
Nico deadpanned at Ashlynn's words before reaching out and squeezing Will's hand slightly. "I am curious about what Thea said earlier. I'll sit with you during dinner?"
Will smiled brightly. "Of course."
Ashlynn smiled endearingly at the couple before rolling her eyes and clapping her hands. "Alright, come on, there's someone else I wanna grab."
Will shook his head exasperatedly before allowing Ashlynn to wrap her arm around his own and lead him in the direction of the Stolls.
"The Stolls? Really?" Will asked Ashlynn in mock horror.
Ashlynn blushed slightly, "They're not that bad." She murmured with a glance at a random pillar.
Will looked perplexed at Ashlynn's reaction before turning to look at the two brothers.
Ashlynn visibly brightened as they got closer before practically dragging Will the rest of the way. "Oh Connor~"
The younger brother looked surprised to hear his name before turning towards the two blonde demigods.
"Yeah?" Connor responded before turning and looking at Ashlynn doubtfully. "Ashlynn?" He turned to look at the person she was dragging along. "Will?" He asked in mild surprise.
Ashlynn smiled brightly at the elvish looking demigod. "Yep!" She beamed. "I am Ashlynn and Ashlynn is me~" she sang before winking at Connor. "But I do prefer to be called Ash."
Will looked exasperatedly at Connor before glancing towards his half-sister with a raised brow. With a roll of his eyes he turned back towards the younger Stoll. "Hey, Connor."
"Uh." Connor started, sharing a look with Travis. "What's up guys?"
"We were going to sit together," Ashlynn said nonchalantly. "You want to join us?"
Connor seemed far more surprised than Ashlynn expected as he glanced from her towards Travis and back. "Me?" He asked, pointing to himself.
"Well yeah," Ashlynn nodded. "I just asked you."
"What about Travis?" Connor asked skeptically, but before Ashlynn could respond, Travis threw his arm around Connor's shoulders and grinned at him.
"Don't worry about me, bro." Travis reassured him. "I'll just sit next to Dove or Clarisse."
"Clarisse?!" Connor asked incredulously.
Travis just shrugged in response. "Why not?"
Connor looked at his brother like he grew an extra head. "Well….okay man, I guess if you want…."
Ashlynn fist pumped the air. "Alright! Now where should we sit?"
"There's only one spot left, Ash." Alessa called from the six person couch.
Ashlynn twirled around the room in surprise. "When did everyone pick seats?"
"While you were trying to get them to sit with you." Luna deadpanned.
Ashlynn pouted before walking over to sit near Alessa on the large couch, Connor sat between the two cousins and Will took the spot by the last armrest.
"Are you all done now?" Zeus asked in annoyance.
"Yes sir." Cassie agreed. "I'm sorry for the delay."
Zeus glanced at Cassie in consideration. "Now, can we begin?"
"Right away," Seth nodded before opening the book back to the correct chapter.
Chapter 5: Ambush
"Finally! Some action!" Ares cheered with a shake of his fist.
Aphrodite glanced at the war god with a fond smile on her face.
"That doesn't sound good." Hestia noted with worry.
Hades rolled his eyes, and said dryly, "What on earth could have led you to that conclusion." Both Hestia and Demeter gave the god looks of disapproval.
The next few days were relatively normal.
"We're skipping?" Apollo asked in confusion.
"I mentioned previously that the book's been skipping most of what happened," Seth reminded.
Clarisse looked at Seth in shock. "You're telling me what we read so far was supposed to be the interesting parts?"
"We've been reading the parts relevant to the plot," Annabeth clarified.
"How were they relevant? They were boring!" Ares said indignantly, banging his fist on the arm of his throne.
"How childish," Seth noted in disdain before thinking more grumpily. "And unsurprisingly, he doesn't care about the story."
"Maybe he'll get more invested towards the end?" The voice tried hopefully.
"I doubt it," Seth thought. "Not that it matters. I can care less about what that god thinks."
I didn't know what I was expecting.
"Peace and quiet?" Percy supplied.
Nico snorted. "Good one, Perce."
"If only," Cassie sighed.
More monsters showing up?
"That's more likely." Annabeth said. "When the attacks start, they don't normally stop."
"Don't remind me," Thalia groaned.
Mythical creatures in disguise?
"Also probable." Dove noted.
I wasn't entirely sure, but I had a feeling that something was going to happen really soon.
"Always trust your gut instincts." Cassie agreed.
Until then, I could care less.
"Not the mindset I would choose." Annabeth frowned.
"I would." Ashlynn agreed.
"We know," Alessa admonished, "and it normally doesn't work out well for you."
Giselle and I spent the next week or so in each other's company and helped out with the daily housework.
"A week?" Zeus asked with narrowed eyes.
"Perhaps she is a demigod," Aphrodite muttered before glancing back at the screen. Narrowing her eyes at the image of Giselle, the Goddess of Love shook her head. "No, that's definitely Artemis, so how did she get away with spending a week with her demigod?"
Apollo turned towards his sister questionably.
Artemis noticed. "Yes?"
"It seems this Giselle…is quite fond of Seth," Apollo stated.
"So it seems," Artemis agreed, perplexed.
The New Year was arriving, and I wasn't sure what the connection between holidays and adoptees was, but even if I did, it didn't help with the overcrowding and excessive work.
"Some people want to give adoptees a home for the holidays." Dove suggested. "They mean well but…."
"Sometimes it doesn't work out." Alessa said sadly.
Cassie winced. "Or some people just want to seem like a happy family."
Clarisse glowered. "I have one or two cabin mates with that experience. I can't stand people like that."
There was so much to do that if Giselle hadn't decided to pitch in, I wouldn't have been able to complete them.
"Well, that's good," Hestia smiled. "It seems like the two of you are getting along."
Seth considered his answer. "She was a big help," he finally decided.
Giselle…
There was so much I didn't know about her, only that there was something off,
"That's rude." Percy admonished.
Seth shrugged. "I could have worded it better, but that was the best way to put it."
something familiar.
"Maybe she's your twin," Travis grinned.
"Could be," Seth decided to play along.
Apollo frowned at that, if only there was no mental block preventing him from having a read on Seth's inner thoughts.
It kept bugging me, frustrating me to the point that I wanted to just clench my hands into my hair and yell out in aggravation.
"Siblings are like that." Cassie laughed.
"Yeah but…" Thalia started hesitantly. She thought there was something familiar about Giselle, but she couldn't be Artemis. Could she?
Cassie just tapped her shoulder against Thalia's. "Relax." She smiled before dropping her voice to a whisper. "You're stressing, you don't want someone getting suspicious."
Thalia looked at Cassie skeptically, causing Cassie to nod her head towards the three hunters on the other couch.
The answer was only at the tip of my tongue, yet the words refused to form in my mind.
"Twin," Travis called out.
Connor sighed before pulling out his book from earlier. "Any bets for Seth's twin?"
Nico hesitated before raising his hand. "Two drachma?" He offered unsurely.
"Only two?" Travis gaped. "Dude, you can spare more than that!"
"Yeah!" Connor agreed. "How about five?"
Nico shrugged. "Technically it's my dads money." He replied nonchalantly, causing Hades to pale.
"That's true." Thea muttered before briefly glancing towards the rulers of the underworld. With a sly smile she turned towards Connor. "Ten drachma."
Connor did a double take as Cassie barked out a laugh and Luna choked on her saliva, causing Seth and Armani to look towards her questioningly. "Thea!" Luna cried indignantly. "You know your mom won't like that!"
Thea just smiled sweetly in response.
"I don't think it's her mom she needs to worry about." Cassie laughed as Alessa shook her head in disbelief at the entire exchange. "Especially since she's knowingly betting on the losing side."
The whole ordeal was simply irritating.
Perhaps it had something to do with our appearance.
"Most likely." Will agreed.
Thea hesitated. "It is unnervingly similar."
Clarisse scoffed. "Like that hasn't been mentioned before."
"Hm." Travis hummed. "Should we start keeping track?"
Connor chuckled, seemingly able to hear his brother even from the other side of the room. "Perhaps we should."
It wasn't surprising when some of the kids would often just stare back and forth between me and Giselle, trying to find something to differentiate besides our opposite genders.
"It doesn't seem to just be the kids." Athena noted dryly, staring at Apollo and Hermes who were doing the same thing.
The other day, I even asked her jokingly if she was my long lost twin or something.
Thalia scoffed. "That wouldn't be the weirdest thing to see."
"I think that would be pretty tame for us." Alessa mused.
She only responded with a "maybe" and gave a knowing smile.
"Oh I hate it when she does that," Luna muttered.
Seth just raised an eyebrow at Luna while Armani nodded in agreement. Artemis had heard her, and glanced at Luna.
Meanwhile, Thalia snorted from her seat, choosing to remain quiet on the matter.
Then, just when New Years had ended, Giselle suddenly disappeared.
"Hm," Aphrodite huffed. "I wonder why." She mused with a smirk.
Artemis just rolled her eyes.
"That….is strange." Poseidon noted.
"Probably not as strange as you would think." Nico shrugged. "That doesn't really mean anything."
She was gone without a trace.
"Could be the Mist." Percy pointed out.
"It's probably the Mist." Travis agreed.
Seth had a small smirk on his face before he continued reading.
Ms. Lewinsky, naturally, panicked-
"Wait, what?" Connor asked in surprise.
"The Mist didn't cover up her disappearance?" Will blinked in surprise.
Cassie hesitated. "That seems…a little sloppy?"
"Definitely outside of her norm," Luna agreed.
Armani looked surprised. "Really? She just disappears all the time. I'm a little surprised she stayed as long as she did."
Zoe narrowed her eyes at the three demigods. "You three act like you know this…Giselle?"
Thalia seemed slightly perplexed. "Yeah, what's up with that?"
Luna's head fell back as she raised her brow and shot Thalia a look.
"What?" Thalia asked in confusion. "It's not like she's-" the punk girl cut herself off before looking at the screen. "O-oh." She muttered as her eyes widened. "Oh no."
Luna snorted as Cassie snickered at Thalia's reaction. Alessa just looked at the physically younger girl.
"Oh no." The horrified look on Thalia's face as she glanced at Artemis was too amusing for Cassie and Alessa as both girls burst out laughing.
"Guess she figured it out." Luna grinned.
"Wait!" Thalia called as she bolted to her feet, turning around and looking at the two girls next to her in betrayal. "You two knew!? And didn't tell me?"
"We speculated." Cassie grinned, wiping a tear from her eye. "But looking back it was kind of obvious."
"Sorry." Alessa chuckled.
Thalia whipped her head to face the three demigods in the chairs. "You three knew this whole time!?"
"Since I got here." Armani admitted, apologetic.
Seth couldn't help but be amused by Thalia's reaction. "I thought you of all people would have picked up on it sooner."
"Your reaction does not disappoint though," Luna snickered.
Thalia gaped at the three demigods before a thundering voice filled the room.
"Enough!" Zeus yelled, causing most demigods to jump in shock and Thalia slowly turned around to face the deities in the room.
Some, like Apollo and Hermes, looked amused while others, namely Dionysus, were annoyed. Artemis had an eyebrow raised at Thalia while Hera looked disapproving. Zeus, however, looked absolutely livid.
"There are far too many things that we gods need to do for us to be sitting here all day, everyday!" Zeus scolded. "Try to control your outbursts so we can finish these readings in a timely manner! That goes for all of you!"
Thalia looked surprised as she sat back down, her eyes never leaving her father. Cassie quieted concerningly quick, as she stared at the sky god in trepidation.
"I think you got your point across, dear." Hera placated. "However, while I think that is a very good idea, these outbursts seem to be one of the reasons the demigods were sent back. It would be futile to try and stop them, our future selves will make sure of that at least."
Zeus sighed in aggravation before nodding, waving Seth back into reading.
and started making calls to child's services and even made one of those "Missing" posters, pasting one on nearly every traffic pole at every intersection that I had ever come across.
"That seems a little excessive." Percy noted.
"Not really." Annabeth replied thoughtfully. "It seems like the right thing to do when a child disappears."
Cassie snorted. "If the guardian cares enough."
"Or if they're a balding tuskless walrus who is trying to prey on the public's sympathy." Luna added with a roll of her eyes.
"Or you're a demigod." Clarisse scoffed.
Percy blinked in surprise before turning to look at Luna skeptically. "That sounded strangely familiar."
"Did it?" Luna asked absentmindedly. "Weird."
I was somewhat shocked of course, I mean, who ever heard of a girl showing up at an orphanage and then leaving a week afterwards? It was unorthodox, it was…unexpected.
"Honestly?" Travis asked. "There are probably a ton of runaways from orphanages."
Clarisse nodded. "Yeah, I mean there's how many runaways from foster care?"
"True, but those cases are mainly from shitty and abusive placements." Seth argued. "Ms. Lewinsky wasn't like that, her orphanage was probably the best one. It's hard to imagine someone running away from there."
"Even you?" Athena asked.
Seth startled at the goddess's question. "Me? Why would I run away?"
"It seems that the premise of your life in the orphanage involved you being overlooked by potential adopters who favored the younger kids." Athena reasoned. "Surely, that would take a toll on you one day and give you cause to leave?"
"Huh," Seth muttered, thinking it over. "I suppose leaving never crossed my mind. I couldn't do that to Ms. Lewinsky, after everything she did. Besides, where would I go? Why would I give up a roof over my head?"
Athena hummed in thought before turning back to the screen.
'Interesting'
I couldn't help but feel a little sad though, and a bit disappointed.
"Wait, what? Why?" Thalia asked.
Percy rolled his eyes. "Obviously because she was the only one who knew why they looked alike."
"Did she?" Nico questioned.
"When she smiled at his question in the last chapter, it was obvious she knew something." Annabeth clarified.
"Obvious," Armani said, "or implied?"
Annabeth replied. "This is from Seth's point of view. To me, it seemed obvious, but I could be wrong."
Clarisse looked at Annabeth strangely.
"What?" Annabeth asked with a sigh.
"You? Admitting to being wrong?" Clarisse asked in disbelief.
Annabeth narrowed her eyes. "I can be wrong…sometimes."
"That's so weird to hear," Connor blinked.
"It was probably weirder to say." Ashlynn giggled.
I guessed all those questions would never be solved.
"See," Percy said, shooting Nico a look.
"Would you look at that?" Nico smirked. "Percy was right for once."
"Hey!" Percy shouted indignantly, causing Nico to snicker.
I pushed those pondering thoughts out of my head as I tried to fall asleep, but to no avail. It was the middle of the night, and the moonbeams-
"Moonbeams," Ares snorted.
"What else would you call them?" Poseidon asked.
"Moonlight?" Hermes shrugged.
Apollo hummed. "Yeah, but Moonbeams sound more poetic."
…seeped through the cracks in the blinds, casting crooked lines of white directly over the side of my bed. Dark silhouettes of soundly sleeping figures were apparent, and an occasional snore could be heard over the still silence. I slowly got up, and to the best of my ability, soundlessly made my way to the window and creaked open the blinds slightly.
That was when I saw it.
"Saw it?" Travis blinked. "Saw what?"
"I could be wrong," Will said nervously. "But it's probably a monster."
Annabeth hummed. "He does know."
Dove glanced at the surrounding demigods in exasperation. "Is everyone ignoring the ominous glow on the screen?"
Seth shook his head in amusement before continuing the reading.
Normally, I wanted to get a glimpse of the moon on sleepless nights like this one.
"Understandable." Armani nodded.
Luna hummed in agreement. "Sleepless nights are the best for Moon Gazing."
Thalia glanced skeptically at the three demigods, narrowing her eyes in thought. The three seemed oddly familiar with Giselle.
The surrounding foliage loomed overhead, and wherever the moonlight laid down its path, the snow glistened.
"How beautiful," Persephone breathed.
"You've never seen snow before?" Katie asked in surprise.
"I have," Persephone assured. "I don't normally leave the Underworld during winter," Demeter shot Hades a scathing look, "but I have seen snow."
"Then why-?" Nico began with a tone before Thea elbowed him in the ribs and cut him off. "What was that for?"
"They don't know." Thea hissed in a whisper. "You want them to figure it out sooner?"
"Does it matter?" Nico whispered back. "We're only putting off the inevitable."
Thea glared at Nico, causing him to be taken aback. "I didn't realize you were so eager to turn back into a dandelion."
Nico glanced at Thea in surprise before turning to the deities in the room. While most had broken off into side conversations, Zeus and Poseidon had narrowed their eyes at Hades skeptically while said god was looking hesitantly at his wife.
Persephone was staring at Nico with narrowed eyes, catching the attitude even though Nico didn't complete his earlier sentence.
"Ooh." Nico said slowly in realization as Will stared exasperatedly at his boyfriend.
"As I was going to say before I was rudely interrupted." Persephone continued with a disapproving look towards Nico. "I have seen snow before but I always take a moment to appreciate how beautiful it makes nature."
Dark clouds spread over the gray heavens and all was eerily silent, the moon still in its regular position in that great dark sky, but the moon wasn't what my eyes were focused on.
"It's monsters, isn't it." Will sighed.
"It wouldn't be anything else," Clarisse huffed.
"Unfortunately." Cassie agreed.
There were glowing lights,
"Shit," Alessa swore, staring at the screen in horror.
"You curse?" Thalia asked in shock.
Alessa just ignored her and turned to Seth in fear. "Please tell me it's not who I think it is."
Seth was taken aback by Alessa's reaction. She usually seemed more composed than this. "Who…do you think it is?"
Luna looked at Alessa in confusion before her eyes slowly widened in realization. Hurriedly, she leaned over her seat, and asked Seth something in a whisper.
Ignoring the sudden breach of personal space, Seth leaned away, and turned to face Alessa. "It is," he confirmed.
"It's who I think it is?" Alessa clarified.
Seth nodded.
Alessa paled slightly before dropping her head into her hands with a groan.
and they were growing ever larger as they moved closer and closer to where the orphanage stood.
Alessa groaned again, causing Cassie to shoot her a sympathetic look, reaching over to rub her back.
Their figures soon emerged, and it took all of my willpower to not scream in terror-!
"Oh gods." Katie whispered in horror.
"Yes?" Apollo and Hermes asked together.
Artemis got up and walked over to Apollo and Hermes slowly, both gods looking at her in confusion and slight trepidation on Apollo's part. When she reached said gods she smacked both her brother and Hermes on the side of their heads. "Not the time."
"Ow." Both gods chorused, rubbing the sides of their heads.
Artemis walked back to her seat like nothing happened, sitting down and turning towards Seth. "Continue."
Seth stared at the goddess in bewilderment.
'What in the…?"
'Let's pretend we didn't see that."
Seth shook his head before turning back to the book.
There were at least a dozen or so giants.
"Damn." Ashlynn noted. "First the Gorgons and now Giants? How bad is your luck?"
Seth thought that question over. "Pretty bad, but not the worse," He glanced at Percy with a smirk. "At least, compared to some demigods I know."
"You're talking about me, aren't you?" Percy asked with narrowed eyes.
Seth shrugged. "Who's to say?"
Annabeth and Thalia tried to hide their snickers, but Percy glared at both of them.
"Traitors," he muttered.
Each of them was holding a torch in one hand, and a five foot long club in the other. All of their illuminated faces were bent up, scarred, and just plain ugly, something like orcs in the Lord of the Rings.
"Huh, you're scared yet still making book references." Nikki noted.
"Movie," Will corrected.
Nikki turned towards him in surprise. "W-what?"
"It's a movie reference," Ashlynn clarified. "Granted it was a book first, but this seems more like a reference to the movie."
"They turned Lord of the Rings into a movie?" Nikki asked in surprise. "Oh, I gotta see it!"
"It was released in 2001, so you still have to wait awhile," Armani laughed.
Luna smirked for a moment before it slowly fell off her face and she glanced uncertainly at the floor. "Maybe…we could watch it on break?" She suggested. "I'm sure we'll be able to find it around here."
Dove nodded. "Yeah, maybe later tonight or tomorrow we could watch it."
Only difference was their height, standing at least three heads taller than me.
"That's tall," Connor whistled.
Worse, they had the place surrounded.
"Do they?" Connor asked. "I mean you can only see them from your window soo….?"
"They did." Seth confirmed. "There were more in the trees."
"Damn." Will muttered.
I stumbled away from the window, gasping.
"Wimp." Ares snorted.
"I'd like to see you react differently in this situation." Artemis said dryly with a raised brow.
"Of course I would." Ares scoffed. "I'm a GOD."
"Dramatic." Hephaestus murmured.
"For a demigod who only had one encounter with monsters, his reaction was justified." Artemis defended.
Seth stared at the goddess in confusion while Apollo blinked at his twin in surprise. "Are you feeling okay, sister? You're not coming down with something, are you?"
"I'm perfectly fine," Artemis waved off his concern. "I simply found Ares' comment unreasonable. You cannot compare a demigod's experiences with our own. If being a god was all it took to solve matters, why would we need demigods?"
Zoe was not appeased by Artemis' dismissal, and asked worriedly. "My Lady?"
"As I said, I'm perfectly fine." Artemis reassured.
A dozen thoughts were going through my head so fast that it hurt,
"Hate when that happens." Percy sighed.
"Not the time." Armani admonished.
and I felt my heart pounding rapidly that I struggled to breathe much less think coherently.
"Yeah, that'll happen." Cassie winced
Why was this happening?!
"Because your a demigod." Clarisse deadpanned.
"Not the time." Luna reminded.
What was I going to do?!
"Uh run?" Ashlynn suggest.
"Seriously." Luna said, throwing up a hand in exasperation. "Not the time."
Should I wake the others?
"Wouldn't work." Connor winced.
No, I decided quickly, it would only make matters worse.
"Maybe not. They would be affected by the mist after all." Poseidon commented.
They would panic, and could end up getting hurt.
"Depends on what they saw." Travis said.
Armani sighed. "Guys, seriously. Can we just read this without the endless interruptions?"
Luna nodded. "It's already hard enough on Seth, and the commentary doesn't help."
A chorus of apologies echoed around the room as Seth shot Luna and Armani a cold look.
"I can handle it," Seth said in a low voice, "I don't need your pity."
"It's not pity," Armani denied.
"We know you can handle it." Luna said with a roll of her eyes. "But just because you can, doesn't mean you should. Didn't you say you wanted to get the reading over with? We don't need to make the process more difficult than it already is."
Seth stared at his two 'half-siblings', his silver eyes widening just slightly in surprise before looking back down at the book. "I see," he said quietly, "it was my mistake. You have my thanks. Both of you."
There was no way all of the kids would stay quiet after seeing these monsters,
"I wonder what they would see." Hermes mused.
Artemis shot the messenger god a look, causing him to chuckle nervously.
"Sorry." Hermes placated, hand reaching up to rub his neck.
and the screaming and shouting would only urge the giants to storm their way inside.
Cassie raised a finger and opened her mouth like she was about to say something but quickly second guessed herself and shook her head.
Should I wake up Ms. Lewinsky? I recalled she had a car, an old van, parked in the back. But that wasn't going to fit all of them!
'Good.' Artemis thought. 'He's thinking of an escape plan.'
Zoe hummed. 'A decent plan.'
'That won't work.' Thalia thought with a wince.
That was also assuming we'd be able to reach the van without alerting the monsters.
'Unfortunately, that would be a deciding factor.' Nikki sighed
I peered through the blinds again, and saw that the giants were now clustered closer together, mumbling to themselves.
'What are they doing?'
'That's not how they normally work.'
Seconds later, all of them started to came back to the front of the building, their weapons raised.
'They're not actually-' Cassie thought before the next line cut off her thoughts.
WHAM!
'-okay, apparently they are.'
The whole building shook, as if hit by a 5.0 earthquake.
"Holy-!" Will shouted in surprise. "They're not normally that strong are they?"
"They're giants." Nico deadpanned.
I glanced at the kids first to see if any of them were awake from the noise.
"Probably." Connor snickered.
"It did seem really loud." Katie agreed.
Some of them shuffled slightly in their sleep, but were asleep nonetheless.
"Damn." Apollo whistled. "Those kids are heavy sleepers."
Ares laughed. "They're sleeping like the dead."
Seth flinched at the comment.
Those things were going to knock the whole building down for who knew what-!
"I'm surprised you haven't caught on yet." Athena mused.
Wait, they couldn't be here for me, could they?
"There we go." Athena smiled slightly.
I suddenly recalled Chiron mentioning the whole 'demigod scent' thing.
"Is it bad I keep forgetting about that?" Travis chuckled.
"Yes!" Annabeth said, appalled.
"It's an essential survival tip," Percy agreed.
"You're still alive, how?" Connor asked dryly, which made Travis scowl at him.
I never imagined it could be this strong as to attract a dozen giants at once.
"This isn't normal," Hephaestus noted.
"Not unless the demigod in question is especially powerful," Zeus agreed, eyeing Seth skeptically.
Hera side-eyed her husband with equal skepticism. "Even worse if it's a forbidden child."
"Is it normal for a forbidden child to get attacked by so many giants?" Poseidon questioned.
The deities glanced at each other with uncertainty. Did anyone know the answer to that?
Mildly curious about the answer, Seth waited to see if someone would speak up, but when no one did, he turned back to the book.
Was I the reason they were here?
"Yes," Dionysus said boardley.
W-what about that Mist they were talking about?
"Only works on mortals." Ares yawned.
How come it wasn't working anymore?
"You know too much." Hephaestus said sadly.
Speaking of Chiron…
Percy asked Seth. "What are you planning?"
"I'm getting to it," Seth replied.
I sucked in a breath as I got up quickly and found my coat on the hanger, the same one I wore the day I made that errand upstate. I fumbled through the pockets, finally finding the drachma coin that the centaur had given me in what seemed like ages ago. What was it he had said again? Toss it into a rainbow?
Athena raised a brow. It was a smart idea but help wouldn't arrive in time.
What rainbow?!
"Make a rainbow." Clarisse grumbled. "It's not that hard to figure out."
Cassie snorted, causing the other demigods to look at her in shock. "Yeah, like you knew how to do that right after learning you were a demigod."
Clarisse deadpanned. "Were you not taught how to do that in elementary school?"
"You were taught how to throw a coin into a rainbow in elementary school?" Cassie asked, raising a brow in an all too familiar manor to some.
Clarisse just rolled her eyes at Cassie's retort.
Thalia narrowed her eyes at Cassie in confusion. Why did that look familiar?
I wanted to scream in frustration.
"That seems hardly productive," Hera noted blandly.
It was the dead of night! It wouldn't be sunrise for hours. Chiron had also mentioned how he and Grover were at that academy, but how was I supposed to reach them and expect to come back with everyone unharmed?
Alessa grimaced. "You're not," she whispered sadly.
WHAM!
Several people jumped at the noise from the screen.
I pressed my hand against the wall to steady myself, checking again to see if anyone was awake.
"I hate giants," Alessa groaned, keeping her head pressed against her hands.
Cassie winced, shooting Luna a look as she reached past Thalia, and placed a comforting hand on Alessa's shoulder. The sight made Luna uneasy. If she knew this chapter involved giants, then she probably would have stayed near Alessa as a source of comfort. She'd have to count on Cassie to fulfill that role.
Miraculously, none of them were, but how long would that last?
'Hopefully it will be a while.' Katie thought softly. Who knew what the Mist would make them see.
I had to find a way to stop the monsters from destroying the orphanage too.
Percy grimaced. That was easier said than done.
We were already low on funds, and if this building gets destroyed, then we'd be left homeless and all of us separated and forced into foster care.
Cassie and Alessa shivered at Seth's words.
I shivered at the thought, that inevitable outcome scaring me more than the monsters outside.
'Rightfully so,' Cassie agreed.
Focus, I admonished myself.
"Yeah, Seth, focus." Travis repeated with a laugh.
Standing around and doing nothing wasn't going to help.
Artemis narrowed her eyes at the screen with a slight inclination of her head. The boy seemed to have a decent amount of level headedness.
I knew the monsters were here because of me, so in order to get them to leave, then logically…
Ares scoffed before mimicking the word logically.
I would have to leave too, wouldn't I?
Athena nodded in approval. It seemed the demigod was catching on quickly.
The plan was reckless.
"Extremely." Artemis grumbled under her breath.
It wasn't foolproof,
"Not at all." Annabeth noted.
"You don't even know what it is yet," Seth protested.
"I have a good idea."
Thalia snorted. "It's not that hard to guess."
and there were too many uncertainties that I didn't have the time nor energy to account for.
"To be fair." Armani said, glancing at Seth supportingly. "I would do the same."
'I did the same.' Armani corrected mentally.
Still, once I got the idea in my head and started to work through it, I realized it wouldn't be too much of a hassle to lure the monsters away.
Apollo's eye twitched. "A hassle? You're more worried about it being a hassle?
"Did you not consider that these things could kill you?" Artemis asked skeptically. "Or did you just not care?"
"It wasn't my priority at the time." Seth replied.
I knew these woods well.
"Home field advantage." Dove murmured. "That definitely helps, but you're still untrained."
It wouldn't be difficult to lure these giants to where I wanted them.
"Perhaps," Athena agreed. "However, as Dove said, you are still untrained. Even if you did manage to get the giants to 'where you wanted them', what would you have done once you achieved your goal?"
"Honestly, Lady Athena?" Seth replied. "My biggest concern was getting them away from the orphanage, what came after…was a spur of the moment."
"Noble," Athena commended, "but extremely foolish."
Seth lowered his head before turning back to the book.
I didn't like the idea, but it was the best I got.
Hermes grimaced. "Unfortunately, it does seem like it's his only choice."
Carefully, I made my way to the window again, trying to count how many giants there were. Turned out, there were a dozen of them.
"Didn't you already say that?" Clarisse grumbled.
A dozen, I thought faintly. It was just a dozen of them. C-couldn't be worse than those two gorgons, right?
Nico raised a brow. "Really?" He asked dryly, staring at Seth unamused. "Two Gorgons vs twelve giants."
"Did winning your only fight give you an ego boost?" Nikki asked uncertainty. "Because-!"
"What?" Seth questioned Nikki incredulously. "No! Why would you…?" Seth blinked before turning back towards the book and rereading the last line. Letting out a sigh, Seth shot the huntress a deadpan stare. "I was being sarcastic, didn't you all get that?"
Charlotte looked between her sister and Seth. "No, not really." she murmured quietly. "It seemed more were being… over confident?"
Seth frowned. "I assure you that couldn't be farther from the truth. I merely felt overwhelmed by the situation and tried to crack a joke to alleviate some of that."
I felt myself trembling as I hastily put on my coat, and slipped into my sneakers, moving as discreetly as possible. If even one of the kids woke up, then the success of my plan could easily go from a chance to nothing.
"Plus it would put them in danger," Hestia reminded.
Hera hummed thoughtfully. "Considering the summary, I would say they're already in danger."
"It is a bit strange that no one woke up yet." Persephone agreed.
Annabeth looked thoughtful. "Considering how Seth has been quiet, it's really not that strange. If anything it's more surprising that they haven't woken up from the giants."
Once I was out in the hall, I paused in front of Ms. Lewinsky's bedroom.
"Um, why?" Travis asked, confused.
Ares snorted. "Running to mommy isn't gonna help, punk."
I debated whether I should wake her up, but ultimately decided against it.
"Probably best if she doesn't get involved," Percy said.
Nico stared at the screen for a moment before glancing at Seth. "Don't think it'll matter much."
Percy turned to Nico in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"You'll see," Thea whispered with a wince.
If I woke her up, then my guardian would be aware of my plan.
'That's the least of your worries.' Cassie thought. 'At least with the Mist involved.'
If Ms. Lewinsky knew of my plan to leave and lure the giants away, she would fight tooth and nail to keep me here with them, regardless of my reasons. She cared too much to let me risk my life for them.
"What a wonderful guardian," Hestia smiled softly.
"She really cared about you guys, huh." Alessa noted, raising her head just enough to glance at the screen and Seth.
Seth smiled softly, suddenly feeling nostalgic. "She was the best."
Luna's face softened, thinking of her own guardian. "I understand."
"I wish I had someone like that," Armani sighed.
Seth regarded Armani curiously. "What about your mortal parent?"
Armani winced. "I was originally in an orphanage too. It's…well, it's a long story. You'll see once it's my turn."
I went out the back door, the banging got even louder when I opened it.
"Holy shit, you're actually doing it." Travis breathed.
"Language," Hera admonished.
Artemis gripped the armrest of her seat as she watched the events play out. Why did that bad feeling grow?
A harsh breeze hit my face as I rounded the corner and crouched down into the nearby bushes. From what I could see, a pile of broken bricks had started to form and water was squirting out rapidly.
"Holy-!" Travis started again but immediately stopped himself after Hera sent him a look. "U-uh I mean…yeah there's no other way for me to say it."
"How did no one wake up?" Katie asked in shock.
Dove hummed. "It is strange that no one has woken up after so much damage was done to the building."
Annabeth stared skeptically at the screen. "I doubt The Mist would be able to hide such a disturbance."
Alessa stared at her hands for a moment before clenching her fists and taking a deep breath, she sat up in her seat, ignoring the others and kept her eyes glued to the screen. Thalia noticed how pale she was though and shot Cassie a questioning look.
It seemed like they had located our water supply.
Annabeth winced. "That's not good."
"It doesn't look too bad." Dove noted softly before amending her statement with a wince. "Yet."
It was time to act. Any minute wasted, and the building got closer and closer to becoming a pile of ruins. I made my way quickly to the other side of the woods,
Connor let out a whistle. "You're going pretty fast."
"Do you normally run so fast?" Annabeth asked.
"I suppose," Seth said, thinking nothing of it.
moving as low as I could until their backs were to me.
"Don't tell me you're going to attack from behind?" Clarisse deadpanned.
"There seems to be too many of them for that." Ashlynn mused, before turning to Dove. "Right?"
"It probably could be done," Dove answered. "It would probably be easier with a bow, but it could be done if Seth was quiet enough."
Katie seemed uncomfortable as she turned towards Seth. "But since he's trying to lure them away…"
With a deep breath and a burst of courage I didn't know I possessed, I stepped into the clearing.
"Hey, Uglies!" I yelled, waving my arms.
A loud groan filled the throne room.
"What a wonderful idea." Hera said blandly.
Thalia turned towards Annabeth. "And I thought Percy was great at antagonizing monsters."
Percy pouted slightly before grumbling. "It's not like I try to antagonize them."
All the giants turned to me,
"Mission accomplished, I guess." Nico attempted to joke.
their faces scrunched up in bewilderment. The smashing ceased, at least for the moment. "Over here! Come and get me!"
Luna stared at Seth in bewilderment. "Seriously? That was your plan?"
Seth's face reddened in second-hand embarrassment. "...I was thirteen."
I noticed some giants were looking at each other, but they didn't move away. I gritted my teeth before taunting, "What, you stupid idiots deaf or something?! Or is your brain too small for your too big of a head?!"
Alessa groaned as she heard what Seth said.
"Are you alright?" Seth asked the physically older girl.
Alessa gave a weak smile. "I'll be fine, it's just Giants…they are my least favorite monster to come across."
"I'm not sure anyone has a favorite monster," Seth deadpanned, which caused Alessa to laugh.
"That's a good point," she agreed, turning back towards the screen, her head started to feel a little lighter.
"ROARRR!"
Alessa twitched at the sound, but managed to keep her composure.
Good, that got their attention.
"I'm…not sure that's a good thing," Artemis mumbled under her breath.
Luna shook her head. 'And the others say I have a death wish.'
Soon, I was running for dear life with a dozen giants hot on my trail.
While several people wanted to comment on how that wasn't a good thing, they were all too caught up in what they were watching on screen.
Okay, I succeeded in luring them away from the orphanage. Now, for the next step of my plan, I had to make sure they would never return.
I ran like I never ran before: dodging every branch, stone, and anything else in my way.
'At least his evasion is good,' Armani sighed internally.
Hearing the sounds of rustling branches and trees snapping so closely behind me made me increase my pace.
"As it should." Artemis noted.
I was able to see everything clearly,
"Oh?" Athena mused before whispering under her breath. "How interesting."
and I knew these woods like the back of my hand. I knew where I needed to go, what shortcuts to take, and where to avoid.
There was a steep cliff-
"A cliff?" Percy said in surprise. "In Brooklyn?"
Alessa shrugged. "Well, a cliff is just a steep rock face."
Seth sighed before moving to the next part.
…up ahead in only a few more meters, located between the forest and the corners of the downtown area. Apparently, it was a construction site-
"Oh," Percy mumbled. "That makes a lot more sense."
that some company had instigated a year ago, and they have managed to make quite a pit in the process with a nice, good pile of broken, jagged points of old debris left over from a demolished house.
Annabeth's eyes widened realizing Seth's plan while Luna grinned in anticipation.
Almost there, I pushed myself. After a couple minutes more of running, I finally found what I was looking for.
As expected, the construction site didn't change. In fact, it didn't have much work done in the last month, and for once, I was grateful for the work lag.
"I would be too." Katie agreed. "That's practically a gold mine in this situation."
It was still dark out, and I had to hope and pray that giants didn't have great eyesight.
"They don't." Alessa said with a wavering smile. "Thankfully."
I caught my breath as I stood nervously between the forest and the cliff's edge, waiting inevitably for the giants to arrive.
"It's like a movie scene," Connor snickered.
The first appeared, its face distorted in frustration, with a large broken nose and hairs sticking out of its nostrils. Its eyes widened when it saw me. It yelled and charged, club raised and all. Before its club found contact against my face, I quickly leaped to the side, hitting my right side hard as I fell to the ground.
Will winced. "That'll bruise."
The giant ran right past and fell to its demise.
"Nice." Travis grinned.
Clarisse shrugged. "I prefer a more hands on approach, but if the tactical approach works, then good for you."
"I worked with what I had," Seth said, not looking up as he turned to another page, "if I had more time, more knowledge of the situation, even a weapon - it might have turned out differently,"
"Still, it was cool how you pulled it off," Percy said.
I soon discovered that giants, although strong, weren't fast.
"That's actually really good to know." Dove muttered at the same time Annabeth said:
"So evasive maneuvers are best. I'll have to write this down."
The next two followed suit, screaming all the way down with a resounding poof! But the fourth was not as careless, he screeched to a halt, his feet nearly over the cliff,
"Great." Thalia groaned. "They're learning."
but the ones behind it paid no heed and blindly charged forward, pushing the giant over the edge.
"Good." Thalia said, relieved.
I knew there were more coming, so I quickly climbed up a nearby tree and observed the scene.
"Smart." Connor noted with a slight smirk.
A couple more giants approached, but unlike the first few, they didn't come up charging like bulls. Instead, they scattered around, and started sniffing.
"They're looking for his scent." Thea gasped.
Clarisse rolled her eyes. "Obviously."
They're trying to smell me out, I realized as I hid myself in the leaves of the trees. It was so dark out that I doubt they could even see what's in front of them without those torches. Some of the giants discovered the cliff, and were pointing frantically at what's below.
"There goes that idea." Clarisse grumbled.
There went Plan A - it was effective while it lasted.
Ashlynn hummed. "Five isn't bad, but you still have seven left."
Now with all these giants lured here and away from St. Clair's, it was time I focused on getting out of this unscathed.
"Good luck with that."
As I sat safely secluded in my hiding spot, I managed to overhear some of their conversation:
Travis grinned. "Eavesdropping? Niiice.."
"No, it's not." Hera scolded.
Hermes looked flabbergasted. "Of course it is! How else would you know when's the best time to plan pranks?"
"When?" Travis asked in mock-surprise.
"It's always the best time!" Connor grinned.
Hermes looked surprised as Katie glared at the Stolls. "No, it's not!"
"Where is he?!" one of them shouted, holding his club out in offense.
"Maybe he escaped?" Another suggested, before the giant behind him whacked its head.
"You fool!" another giant admonished, using only one burly hand to pick up the offender and threw him against a nearby tree. The tree snapped easily into two parts.
"He is here! The goddess' scent is strong! Do you not feel it?" the leader bellowed at his underlings.
"Goddess?" Hermes asked.
Several heads turned towards Artemis, who secretly squirmed under the unwanted scrutiny.
Goddess?
When none of them said anything, the lead giant's face got even redder. "Search the area! Anyone who finds that hunter-
Artemis felt her heart skip a beat. So she was right.
"Hunter..?" Zoe muttered in shock.
"Wait, what?" Nikki asked, turning towards Seth.
Seth's hand twitched as he turned the page. "What's with the surprise? Hunter is literally my last name."
-can get first piece!" All the other giants roared in delight.
Alessa groaned, looking a little green.
"How does a demigod taste?" Travis asked.
The others turned around and stared at him in disgust.
Katie said incredulously. "Why would you even ask that?"
"I'm just curious!" Travis defended before he huffed. "I'm sure you've asked weird questions like this before."
"I imagine it's not good," Percy humored him.
"Probably like how a human would taste," Nico shrugged.
They knew I was here. They were never going to leave. Not until they found me, and tear me to shreds.
Apollo hummed. "No, they want to eat you."
"He obviously didn't realize that at the time." Artemis sighed.
I was a sitting duck in the company of at least seven man-eating cannibals.
"...I take that back," Artemis corrected.
"He's still right though," Ashlynn said, tilting her head slightly.
Clarisse scoffed. "They wanted to tear him apart to eat, not to shreds."
"Why are we even discussing this?" Annabeth asked, rubbing her hand over her face.
The whole situation made me want to puke in fear and disgust.
"Same," Cassie nodded.
Despite the dire predicament, I still wondered if the kids were okay.
"Awe." Ashlynn cooed.
"That's sweet," Alessa said with a smile.
Katie nodded in agreement. "You really care about those kids."
Maybe the loud banging woke them up and caused them to get out of the building safely, and if they were indeed awake, then Ms. Lewinsky would definitely call for the police when she saw the wreckage.
"That's…not good," Will said hesitantly.
She would notice how I was missing and probably request the police to locate me, and then all of this would end like a bad nightmare.
"They would probably blame you." Thalia sighed sadly.
Yeah right, I thought, scoffing. Unless the police were at least seven feet tall with pro-wrestler bodies, that ending wouldn't be happening.
A few chuckles echoed around the room.
A sudden sound of shuffling leaves snapped me out of my delusions. They were near my tree.
The demigods, Apollo and Hermes all sat on the edge of their seats as Athena raised a brow, the deities showed slight intrigue and Artemis held her breath.
I tried to calm myself to the best of my ability, and leaned forward, glancing through the branches. I saw that two of them were at the trunk, the top of their heads dangerously close to where my occupied branch was. So close, that they only needed to look up to see where I was.
Armani looked shocked. Were giants really that tall?
It was definitely time to move.
"Yeah." Apollo said slowly. "That might be a good idea."
I stood up slowly so as to not alert them, and quietly made my way to another branch slightly higher than the previous.
"You're going up the same tree?" Annabeth asked in confusion.
Luna narrowed her eyes slightly, taking in the image on screen. "No, I don't think he is…"
With my arms stretched out on either side, I walked nimbly across the branch, and jumped.
Armani grimaced. "You're not going to make it."
My landing was anything but pleasant. I ended up crashing against a bunch of branches that threatened to flip me back had I not grasped onto it tightly for dear life.
Artemis started tapping a finger against the armrest of her seat. His mishap would alert the giants.
My leap also alerted the two giants, who were now telling their friends of their discovery.
"Great," Thalia sighed.
I was back at square one. Only this time, I didn't have a plan.
Athena frowned. "One should always have a plan, if not at least two back up plans."
Seth looked up at the wisdom goddess, his expression unreadable. "I assure you, Lady Athena, that exact advice is one I will always keep in mind after this."
Going back to the orphanage was out of the question.
"Yeah no, that wouldn't be good." Clarisse agreed.
Whether they were asleep or awake, going back would only endanger them, and the last thing I needed was for the kids to play twenty questions about why giants weren't just fairy tales.
"While it's a good thing you're keeping the children in mind." Hera started, staring at the screen. "Perhaps you should focus more on yourself."
Where could I possibly go?
I leaped from tree to tree, running across each branch quickly as I landed onto yet another sturdy branch.
'Sloppy form, but he'll get better with training,' Artemis thought, trying to reassure herself.
I slipped a few times, but forced myself up before any of the giants had a chance to gain up on me. I was soon nearing the edge of the forest, close to the city, and seeing those city lights gave me some hope.
'Is he doing the same thing I did?' Armani asked himself, remembering his previous experience in the city.
There were more opportunities, more places for me to hide and find help than staying here in this desolate forest playing hide-and-seek with these man-eating giants.
Zoe snorted. "Hide and seek?"
"An interesting outlook," Hera noted with amusement.
Thalia blinked. "Seems like a very Percy way to view it."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Percy demanded.
I could try to find a convenience store and ask for their phone to call the police, and then come up with a convincing story of why the police needed to send all their available personnel to St. Clair's.
"Ummm.." Percy said. "I doubt even all their available personnel would be enough."
Before I could even carry out my newfound plan, an arrow flew right past the left side of my face, killing the giant behind me.
"I'm sorry ...did you say an arrow?" Thalia asked skeptically.
Percy hummed. "You know that entrance seems familiar."
Thalia snorted. "I wonder why."
Another arrow followed soon after that, and another, and another.
"There's no way all those arrows are from the same archer," Nikki muttered.
Charlotte tilted her head, "but they do look familiar."
All of them aimed at the giants and just barely missed me.
"It was really close." Luna muttered.
I heard shuffling in the trees, and whispered orders being exchanged.
Nikki blinked. That voice sounded like Zoe.
A figure moved past me quickly. A glimpse of silver glimmered briefly in the still darkness, and the figure swiftly took out two identical hunting knives, landed on the shoulders of a giant, and stabbed them into its forehead, gliding down gracefully as the giant dissolved into a thousand pieces.
Charlotte studied the screen. She looked like Zoe.
I scrambled down from the tree as fast as I could, and once my feet hit the ground, I finally had a good view of the cloaked figure. When the figure turned around, I could tell that it was a girl.
"That is Zoe!" Nikki gasped in surprise.
"What's Zoe doing there?" Charlotte said next.
Thalia was stunned. "Zoe saved a guy?"
She was tall, perhaps a few inches taller than I was, with light brown skin and dark-colored eyes.
Zoe tensed, as if readying herself for some sort of comment.
She had a silver circlet around her head, and if I wasn't seeing things, her eyes seemed to narrow once she saw me.
"Why art thou hindering here, boy?" she replied coldly. She said 'boy' like it was supposed to be an insult.
"To her it is," Nico said. That girl was definitely Zoe Nightshade.
I had been about to thank her for killing the giant and saving me, but her misandrist attitude turned me off.
"Misandrist!?" Zoe shouted indignantly.
Thalia rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't even try to deny it."
Luna glanced at Artemis for a moment before chuckling at Zoe, "She kind of has you there."
"I could ask you the same thing," I retaliated.
Thalia grinned. Oh, she was going to love this.
"You're antagonizing her?" Annabeth asked in shock. "Do you have a death wish?"
"I do not," Seth said plainly. "But I was in a hurry, and she, frankly speaking, really pissed me off."
She tensed up as I walked closer to her, giving her a better view of my face. "I live around here, and this is my first time ever seeing you. I'd say you're the trespasser."
"Technically-!" Percy started but Annabeth cut him off.
"Hold that thought. I think we're getting to a good part."
Good? That's one way to describe it, Seth thought.
"Is that so?" The girl said with narrowed eyes.
Zoe watched her onscreen counterpart intently, even matching her exact expressions.
Her companions joined us on the ground after dealing with the giants, each of them watching me warily, "and where exactly is thy abode?"
Armani snorted. "Thy abode?"
"Is there a problem with the way I speak?" Zoe said back.
"Nope." Armani said, raising his hands placatingly. "Not at all." And I thought Apollo was pulling my leg.
I was about to answer, when I heard another being walking up behind us.
Annabeth and Dove sat on the edge of their seats. They had a feeling that this was the interesting part.
The girl was startled for a moment, before kneeling down on her knees.
"I wonder who that could be." Dionysus said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.
Artemis barely gave him a look before she stared at the book in Seth's hands. What did she agree to? Her earlier feeling of dread had been getting worse as the chapter went on and now? Now she wasn't sure and that made her uneasy.
Her companions copied her example. I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do, so I remained standing. When I saw who the respected person was, I was shocked to say the least.
"Well, that answers that." Travis sighed.
Conor hummed. "Maybe not. Depending on how she responds, the bet might still be on."
"G-Giselle?" I said incredulously. There was no mistaking it. Even with her hair tied back in a ponytail, and a dramatic change to her apparel, there was only one other person that had the same color eyes I did, and she was standing right in front of me.
She simply gave a brief nod in my direction. "Hello, Seth.
"What!?"
"H-how….?"
"Damn." Connor sighed as Travis groaned. "Who bet on it being Lady Artemis?"
"That doesn't mean anything," Zoe denied with a huff. "She can know his name without being Giselle."
Armani blinked. "You know, denial doesn't suit you."
"It's pointless to argue," Poseidon muttered. "She responded to 'Giselle'."
"Why are you not asleep?"
I stared at her blankly, her nonchalance left me stunned.
Ashlynn blinked. "Yeah…you would think she didn't realize she just got up and disappeared…"
"She probably didn't care enough to," Nico said with a yawn.
The silver circlet girl noted our exchange with confusion.
Luna raised a brow. "Zoe doesn't know what's going on?"
Zoe bristled. "Just because I'm lieutenant, it doesn't mean I'm privy to all information."
"My Lady, if I may ask, do you know who...?" I felt her gaze on me as she trailed off.
"Yes, Zoë." So that was her name. Before Zoë could say anything, Giselle continued,
Zoe's shoulders dropped at the confirmation.
"Do not worry. This child before you is different.
Several eyebrows raised at that statement as Zeus turned towards his daughter.
Make sure you and your sisters treat him well. There is nothing to fear or hate about him."
"Well, that's new," Hermes muttered. Apollo could only nod.
"If…if you say so, My Lady." Zoë replied quietly, still reluctant.
"Who are you really?" I said carefully.
Armani raised a brow. "You didn't have any guesses?"
Seth paused, as though contemplating what he should say, before he decided to just read the next part:
I always knew there was something off about her,
Artemis raised a brow as Armani and Luna snickered.
but none of my suspicions came close to this.
"I doubt they would." Demeter mused.
Will hummed. "You'd have to be pretty paranoid to consider this."
She seemed to have sensed what I was thinking, and gave me an awkward smile.
"I haven't been completely honest with you, Seth," Giselle answered. "My name really isn't Giselle."
Hermes gasped dramatically. "It's not?"
"What? Then, what is your-!" I was forcefully interrupted by the appearance of yet another distraught figure.
"Phoebe!" Zoe yelled in surprise. "Don't tell me she…."
Seth instinctively gripped the book tighter after hearing the Lieutenant's outburst. Taking a deep breath, he continued on.
"Phoebe!" Zoë exclaimed, running frantically over to her comrade, who I finally noticed, was suffering from severe injuries. "What has happened to thee?"
Artemis gasped as Apollo pointed at the screen. "She does not look good."
Ares' eyes narrowed. "Isn't she one of mine?"
"You don't know?" Aphrodite said in disbelief.
"We were attacked…came for backup… There was another group-!" Phoebe coughed violently, blood seeping out of her mouth while Zoë held her close.
Another group? What group?! She couldn't be talking about more giants, could she?! I thought I had lured all the giants away! If she's right, then the orphanage-!
"I thought you said there was more in the back?" Annabeth asked in concern.
"I didn't know at the time," Seth said quietly.
"Where are they?!" I said frantically. Phoebe flinched at my outburst, her eyes widening in surprise when she saw my face.
"So-o," Hermes started tentatively, "are we admitting that he is Artemis' kid or…?"
Hera was unimpressed. "It's rather obvious at this point."
"Are you talking about those giants? Please, I need to know where they are!"
After what seemed like forever, Phoebe finally answered, "Y-yes...it's the Laestrygonians. They were near a building… in the woods…"
"Oh shit," Percy said, mouth agape.
For once, Hera didn't scold him. Even she was too busy watching the sad scene.
"Those poor children." Hestia sighed.
That was all I needed to know. I started to head out towards St. Clair's, but Giselle, or whatever her name was,
Apollo snorted. "'Whatever her name was', love it."
Artemis glared at her twin. "This is not the time, brother."
stopped me.
"Where are you going?" she said, keeping a firm hand on my shoulder.
Zoe wanted to stay mad at Seth, but her curiosity and confusion were overpowering her anger. Why was her Lady bothering with this boy? Touching his shoulder and…appearing so concerned over his well being?!
"Isn't it obvious?" I said impatiently, trying to shake off her grasp, but she wouldn't let go. "I'm going to help them!"
"Bare-handed?" Athena questioned. "That would be futile."
"Really? What weapons do you have to fight with?"
I faltered, "I..."
"Here, take this," 'Giselle' said. She made a silver bow and quiver of arrows appear in thin air, and handed them to me. I gaped.
"Cool!" Connor and Travis yelled.
Armani hummed. "So you can't summon it on your own?"
Luna turned to Armani. "You can?"
Armani nodded.
"At the time? Obviously not," Seth answered belatedly. Not yet.
"…How did I not know that it was possible to do that…?" Luna muttered under her breath.
"How did you...?"
"It doesn't matter," she said sternly. "Do you want them or not?"
"You'd be crazy not to." Will noted.
I looked at her briefly, and then I took the bow and arrows hesitantly.
"B-but I never used a bow before," I said quietly. I carefully slung the quiver of arrows over my shoulder.
"Something tells me that won't be a problem." Zeus said unimpressed.
Apollo laughed. "Of course it won't!"
"Do not worry, Seth. It should come naturally to you," she said.
"Of course it should." Thalia sighed, remembering the amount of time it took her to learn how to use a bow. Even with Artemis' blessing.
I remained skeptical. "Now that you're properly equipped, how about guiding us there?
Hephaestus looked confused. "Don't you remember the way?"
I can see you understand this forest and its terrain very well. Surely, you didn't think you could defeat a whole group of monsters by yourself?"
"Please tell me you weren't?" Katie asked nervously.
Seth considered his words. "My priority at the time was getting back to the orphanage. Whether I did that alone or not didn't cross my mind."
Thea sighed. "I'm sensing a pattern." Turning to Armani she asked. "Please tell me I'm wrong."
Armani held up his hands. "I'm not even sure what the pattern is!"
I was startled by her generosity and kindness.
"Why?" Charlotte asked, confused. "It's not that surprising, is it?"
"Maybe not for you." Nico grumbled.
"Y-yeah, I will. Thank you," I said graciously.
With that said, I headed towards my destination, only this time I had help on my side. For a moment, I thought I would have to slow down in order for them to catch up,
Zoe snorted. "Don't underestimate us, boy."
Seth's eyes narrowed. "Only a fool would do so."
but they were able to maneuver through the trees just as easily as I could, if not better. Up ahead, I could make out an outline of St. Clair's, growing ever clearer as we approached.
A bloodcurdling scream greeted our arrival.
"That can't be it!" Percy exclaimed when he saw Seth abruptly close the book.
"For this chapter it is," Seth said before getting up and walking over to Artemis.
Artemis looked at the book offered to her by Seth, who she always treated with a suspicion that this latest chapter had more or less confirmed. With conflicted thoughts that she was barely able to conceal, the goddess of the hunt finally accepted the book.
"I…" Artemis started before stopping herself, struggling to keep her eyes on Seth's face. "It appears there will be a lot to discuss between us soon. Is this why you insisted on having me read this next chapter?"
Seth thought carefully before he answered, "That's right. Whatever questions you have about me, the next chapter will not keep you guessing for long." Then, he gave a slight bow in courtesy, surprising her. "Thank you for your continued patience and understanding. I'm sure…it has been difficult for you to sit through all this. I hope that whatever happens after…will come to benefit both of us."
Artemis paused, the dread in her stomach was growing ever, like a nagging itch. But now, after hearing Seth's words, there was also a sense of anticipation of finally being rid of that feeling.
Without further adieu, Artemis opened the book to the next chapter and began to read.
And that's chapter 12!
I hope you all enjoyed it!