Everybody seems to like Kyle Monroe except Jason.
Jason feels a little bad about it. There's nothing necessarily wrong with the guy. He seems nice enough. He's funny. He gets along well with all of Jason's friends. He hasn't tried putting hair dye in Jason's shampoo like the other children of Hermes (Yes, that's happened more than once. Thank gods for helpful daughters of Aphrodite). He's even been helping out with constructing the Argo II.
There's really no reason for Jason to dislike him. But, gods, does he want to knock that guy's teeth in.
"I dunno, man, he seems cool to me." shrugs Leo, passing Jason another bracket to screw down. Jason accepts the part with a sigh and uses the wind to carry himself about 60 feet upwards to screw it down to the upper section of the mast. Once he's done, he drops back down beside Leo and holds out his hand for the next one.
"There's just something about him that I don't trust." Jason grumbles, eyes flicking over to where the son of Hermes is installing one of the emergency rafts. "I just think we should keep an eye on him. To be safe."
Leo rolls his eyes and passes him the next bracket. Jason shoots back into the air, installs it, and drops back down beside his friend to await the next part. The son of Hephaestus huffs irritably. "Dude, I have no idea what you're talking about. I mean, I don't want to ignore your super-soldier spidey senses, or whatever, but Kyle's been kickass helping out around here. He takes, like, half my to-do list every day. It's great."
Jason scowls and turns back to the demigod in question. The guy is whistling now. Whistling. Gods, that's so annoying. He's nodding his head along to some music that Jason can't hear. He must have earbuds in. Oh, yeah, there's the cord. It's...pink. And leading to a - is that a walkman?
Oh, Jason's seen that before. His irritation with the guy grows even further.
Leo clears his throat impatiently, and Jason snaps his attention back to the task at hand, accepting the next bracket and flying up to install it. This one, he accidentally screws in so fast, he strips the fasteners and has to redo it. Leo does not look pleased when he lands.
"Okay, if you're gonna abuse my poor sweet baby, maybe you need to take a break to cool off." Leo snips, snatching the power drill out of Jason's hands.
Jason winces. "Sorry. I'm not sure what my deal is."
"Yeah, man, me neither. But, you should really get to know him before you go all 'this town ain't big enough for the both of us.' He's a nice guy."
Jason grumbles his assent, and Leo turns away to pick another task to work on instead, leaving him standing by himself on the mostly finished ship. A laugh, cheerful and melodic, echoes from the entrance of the bunker, and his heart soars. He turns with a grin to the direction it came from as Juliette and Piper come skipping and sauntering respectively into the workroom. He raises a hand to wave them over.
Piper gives him a greeting smile and starts to head his way. Juliette beams at him, waving back, but turns and heads for the life rafts. She taps Kyle on the shoulder, and he jumps before turning with a wide grin, pulling the earbuds out and saying something Jason can't hear.
It must have been funny, though. Juliette laughs pretty hard. Jason's never made her laugh like that.
"So, what brand of torture does Leo have in store for us today?" Piper asks from beside him.
Jason's eyes don't leave the coupl-two demigods who are completely uninvolved and happen to be standing on the deck of the ship at the same time for no reason other than helping Leo. "Um..."
Why is Monroe leaning so close to her? It's not like she's talking quietly. Jason can hear her voice carrying from all the way over here. Maybe she's wearing that coconut scented perfume again, and the guy's being a creep. Jason should say somethi-
"Jason."
"Huh?" He tears his eyes from Juliette and Kyle to face Piper, who's frowning at him with her arms crossed. Jason blinks. "Um...what?"
Piper rolls her eyes. "Oh, my gods. This has got to stop."
"What has to stop?"
"This!" groans Piper as she gestures emphatically to Jason. "I thought you just wanted to be friends."
"Wait, what?"
She raises a skeptical eyebrow. "Don't play dumb with me. What, you think we don't talk? She's my sister, Jason. We sleep six inches from each other. Now, stop drooling, you look like Mrs. O'Leary."
Jason chokes on his own spit. Piper watches in irritation as he doubles over coughing.
She crosses her arms and fixes him with an impatient frown. "Are you actually confused, or are you just pretending to be stupid?"
Jason sputters. "Well, that's very rude."
"Awesome. You're just an idiot."
"Hey!"
"Whatever, Romeo," Piper sighs, reaching up to tie her long hair into a messy bun. "I've got work to do. If you stop being a moron and want to talk, let me know."
Jason, sort of offended, watches her strut away to find Leo with a frown.
What was that supposed to mean? Jason's not an idiot. At least, he doesn't think he is. Although, if it's Piper diagnosing him as such, maybe he should at least consider it. Honestly, now that he's settled into camp for a few months, Jason really only has two rules to live by:
1. No price is too high for the safety of his friends.
2. Piper McLean is always right.
Right now, those two rules seem to be in direct conflict with one another. He's not being stupid. He's a battle honed weapon with, if the hashmarks on his arm mean what he thinks they do, over a decade of combat experience. If his instincts say Kyle Monroe is a threat, then that means something.
Another siren's-song of a laugh comes bubbling from the other end of the deck, and Jason looks back over to its source. Juliette is winding the end of a bronze chain through the suspension system for the life boats. Her hair is in a ponytail today. It looks nice when she has it up. It makes it easier to see her face.
Warmth seeps into Jason's chest. He finds himself clenching and unclenching his fists as he watches the two demigods work. He probably looks like a creep, just standing here. He should really move.
Across the way, Juliette leans forward to secure the chain to the raft pulley system, and Kyle steadies her, placing his hands on either side of her waist. Jason is quickly distracted by a sudden bout of seasickness (That's weird. They're on land) and decides it's time for lunch. He makes his escape to the dining pavilion, and it instantly feels easier to breathe.
Rule #2 is too confusing to think about. So, instead, Jason focuses on Rule 1. No price is too high to keep his friends safe.
And there's something fishy about Kyle Monroe.
If you ask Clarisse, Big Three kids are the biggest drama queens you'll ever meet.
Shocking, she knows. Their very name doesn't scream melodrama at all.
She's made it pretty clear over the last five years what she thinks of Percy Jackson. The guy's an idiot, but he has more power in his left earlobe than most demigods have in their entire bodies. She's man enough to admit it. If Jackson had even a single working braincell in that ridiculously large head of his (one not focused on oogling Annabeth Chase), he'd be in a league all of his own, rivalling even the gods on Olympus, she suspects.
He's a good enough leader. He proved himself in Manhattan. Clarisse would never say so, and she'd beat the snot out of anyone who suggested it, but she'd probably follow him into any battle. He did right by her. He protected her home and her siblings. That's not nothing.
He's still a prissy brat, though. And this whole disappearing act is really getting on her nerves.
Nico di Angelo freaks her out. She vaguely remembers seeing him once or twice before his sister bit it and figuring him to be just another annoying Athena kid, always asking questions and being a general nuisance to anyone trying to have any kind of peace and quiet. Then, he showed up at the Battle of the Labyrinth a totally different person, a son of Hades and Prince of the Underworld, and Clarisse had to reevaluate.
He's weird. Kinda creepy. But, he fights like nothing she's ever seen, and he gave Silena and Clarisse's siblings a proper Greek sendoff. Flakey or not, he's earned her respect. She could do without the freaky death aura, though.
Thalia Grace, Clarisse really doesn't give a hoot about. She's always been the camp ghost story, obviously, so it was a big thing when she fell out of the barrier tree like an oversized pinecone. But, honestly, Clarisse was a little preoccupied soaking in the adoration of all the campers she'd just saved the asses of by returning the Golden Fleece.
The girl's tough, though. No nonsense. Doesn't take crap from anybody. Clarisse can get behind that, and it seems Artemis could too.
It's Thalia Grace's long lost brother that's the weirder case.
She doesn't really know what to make of Jason Grace yet. She's gone toe to toe with him in the sword arena and gotten her ass handed to her several times. Normally, that would have been all it took to earn her respect, but the way he fights is strange to her. Militaristic in a way she's never seen in a fellow demigod. In hindsight, that must be the Roman upbringing Chiron told them about, but it still makes the hair on the back of her neck prickle, and not just from the guy's lightning powers.
He's not an enemy. She can see that in the way he talks to the younger campers when he helps them adjust their stances or pick out a sword that's the right weight for them. He's already devoted to this camp, regardless of where he comes from, and he wears his orange shirt proudly. He's never tried to cause anyone harm. He's never caused any problems.
Until now, that is.
"What are those morons doing?"
Chris looks up from the sword he's sharpening at her question, one eyebrow raised curiously. She gestures over at the pair that's sparring at the other end of the arena, and her boyfriend follows her gaze.
Jason Grace and Kyle Monroe are locked into an intense battle - way too intense for a regular training session. There's a cheering group of younger campers around them, but the voices are starting to get more nervous with every piercing clang of the two swords in combat.
Clarisse rolls her eyes. A dick measuring contest. Great. She's probably going to have to deal with this.
"Oh, boy..." mumbles Chris. He stabs his sword into the sand and hops to his feet, already heading in the direction of the battle. "Let's go save my idiot brother before he gets electrocuted."
She sighs, but follows after him.
Men.
It doesn't take long to figure out what's going on. Monroe and Grace both teach sword lessons. Grace teaches in the morning, Monroe in the afternoon. Both of them are fairly skilled and worshipped by their students, so it was only a matter of time before they got prodded into an instructor vs instructor throwdown. There's no reason for the intensity behind both of their strikes, though. Normally, Clarisse would be watching for blood with anticipation, but that is Chris' younger brother that's about to get himself fried. That'd probably make Chris sad, and that's not acceptable.
She has not gone soft. Shut up.
So, when they finish pushing through the audience, Clarisse picks up a fist full of sand and flings it into the boys' faces.
"Enough!" She barks.
Monroe slips out of his lunge and tumbles forwards, dropping his weapon and viciously rubbing his eyes. "Shit, Clarisse, what the Hades?!"
Grace reacts more calmly, simply closing his eyes and keeping his sword raised in defense.
Yeah, it's clear who would have won here.
She scowls at them. "Why are you idiots trying to kill each other?"
Monroe scoffs, shaking his head as he continues trying to clear the sand from his eyes. He opts to ignore her question. "Gods, are you trying to blind me? What is wrong with you?"
Chris groans in annoyance beside her, turning to address the crowd of gaping children. "Alright, folks, show's over. Go pick your noses, or whatever it is kids do when they're unsupervised."
Grumbling, the audience disperses and shuffles out of the arena. Clarisse, still scowling, trudges up to snatch Monroe and Grace both by their hair. "Let's go. Get your stupid asses to the infirmary. Or go blind, for all I care. Morons."
She flings them forward, and they both stumble. Kyle makes an angry grunting sound. "You're insane." He snaps before stomping off in the direction of the infirmary, eyes still closed and smacking into walls at every turn.
Grace just clenches his teeth so tight that she thinks she hears them cracking. He storms away too, but with more decorum. The only sign he's impaired without his vision is the rack of shields he accidentally knocks over when he misses the turn out of the archway by a few inches. She hears Chris sigh beside her. When she glances at him, he looks sort of amused.
"Do you know what that shitshow was all about?" She mutters, crossing her arms.
He sighs again. "Unfortunately."
She hums. "Will I care?"
"No."
"Then, I'm going for a run. You coming?"
"Sure."
"Cool."
If one more camper comes in with a "headache" to get out of activities today, Will's going to start cutting their nectar stock with kitchen grease. He's had it up to here with these little gremlins and their fake illnesses. Honestly, do they really think lying to the kid of the God of Truth is effective? He can literally sense all of their vitals.
Will tuts irritably as he shoves the new inventory onto the shelves with probably more force than necessary. With Kayla home with her dad for a few weeks, he and Austin have been swapping out shifts in the infirmary every twelve hours, and Will is going on hour #11 right now. He hasn't eaten since yesterday evening. He hasn't slept for longer. One more mild inconvenience, and he's going to start cursing everyone who speaks to him to talk in couplets until they understand the precious fragility of a healer's patience.
Naturally, because Olympus hates him apparently, that's when the door flings open.
Kyle Monroe comes stumbling into the infirmary. He immediately knocks over the shelf of antiseptic that Will just organized.
"Dude!" He shouts in protest.
Kyle winces apologetically and holds up his palms. "Sorry! I'll clean that up, I promise. Well...I will once I can see again."
Will frowns, studying the guy's face. Kyle's eyes are squeezed shut, the area around them inflamed and starting to swell. Mid-examination, another figure enters gingerly, and he spots the same symptoms around the eyes of Jason Grace. The son of Apollo groans.
"What did you guys do?"
"Hey, it was Clarisse's fault! She flung sand at us." defends Kyle. Jason just continues to frown silently.
Will sighs and shakes his head. "Whatever. Sit down on one of the cots. Together. I'll get the saline."
He turns and stomps to the counter to glove up. Once his hands are covered, he grabs the eyewash and a bucket of water and gauze pads, mumbling in annoyance the entire way. It is ridiculous how often he gets Jason Grace in here. Out of all the Big Three kids, he seems to be the most accident prone. That's a tough record to beat, too. Thalia and Percy end up in here, like, every other day when they're at camp. Nico...Well, honestly Will would be happier to see him in here more often. Because he wants to know the guy's getting treated. He's curious as a healer. That's all.
He turns back to his patients in hopes of a distraction. He is not disappointed.
Never in all his years has Will ever seen two men so incredibly uncomfortable to be seated beside one another. Both of them are flushed (with anger, probably) and have their arms crossed petulantly. With their eyes shut, they couldn't look at each other to begin with, but they have their heads turned away just for good measure. The poutiness of their expressions manages to pull a reluctant snort out of Will as he sets down his supplies and pulls up a stool.
"Do I even want to know what caused this?" He sighs, palpating around Jason's puffy eyes. The boy winces.
"It was nothing," He says in a tense voice. "Just a spar."
Kyle scoffs. "Yeah. Sure, man. A spar." He snaps sarcastically.
Will feels Jason start to grind his teeth and slaps a hand against his cheek in punishment. "Stay still!" He scolds. As Will starts to manually open Jason's reddened eyes to wash them, he frowns in consideration. "I take it, you got into a pissing contest, and Clarisse put you in your place."
They grumble.
Will rolls his eyes. Yeah, okay, he knows what this is about. Are the straights okay? This seems exhausting. He clears his throat pointedly.
"Have either of you considered...using your words? Or is that not a meatbrained enough concept to grasp?" Will asks, voice high and condescending. Jason huffs against his wrists, but Kyle squawks in indignation.
"Hey, I'm not the psycho one! Grace started that fight."
"Would've ended it too." Jason mumbles with a growl. Will swats him on the shoulder as Kyle sends over his best closed eyed death glare.
"Like Hades you would've! I had you on the ropes."
"That's funny."
"Yeah, I'm a funny guy. I was really making a joke out of you, wasn't I?"
"I've seen better forms from a three year old."
"Right, I forgot you trained so many child soldiers."
"We're all child soldiers."
Kyle grunts in annoyance, throwing his hands up. "Dude, what is your problem? I don't know what issue you've got with me, but-"
"Oh, my gods!" Will interrupts, drawing back and looking between them in exasperation. "Yes, you do! Seriously, the whole camp knows by now! So, would you at least shut up about it in my infirmary so I can keep your friggen eyeballs from falling out?!"
They go silent, jaws hanging open, and he relaxes.
"Thank you." Will grumbles. He leans back in to continue cleaning out their eyes and basks in the blessed silence.
Whew. Two more hours, and then he can sleep. Time, please go faster.
Alrighty, Leo's had about enough.
All he wants to do is work on his ship, feed Festus' head some tobasco, and annoy Nyssa when she tries to make him go to campfires. Jason may be his best friend, but Leo's seriously about to whap him around the head with a monkey wrench.
"I love you, man, but I seriously cannot stress how much I do not care." He says flatly.
Jason scowls at him, sweat pouring down his face. They're set up in the boiler room for the night so Leo can weld some pipes together before they move the ship out onto actual water in the morning. It's gotta be close to curfew at this point, and Jason's been getting crankier and crankier the longer he's awake and without dinner.
What a loser. Leo goes without dinner all the time. Guess he's just built different.
"Gee, thanks." Jason snips.
Leo rolls his eyes and extinguishes the fire on his fingertips, turning to glare at his friend. "Dude, you have been complaining about this guy nonstop for, like, a month now. Can't you just punch each other in the face and be done with it like normal guys do?"
Jason looks at him like he's crazy.
Leo shrugs. "What? A good beating or two always makes people less mad at me."
"Okay, that might be one of the saddest things you've ever said." Jason says with a frown. Leo gives him a brilliant smile, and the son of Jupiter shakes his head. "And, we already sort of fought."
"Oh. So, did you lose, and that's why you're whining?"
"Of course I didn't lose."
"Then, why are you still on this?"
Jason puffs up his cheeks and looks away. Leo loses interest quickly and goes back to melting two of the pipes together. After a few minutes of silence (well, partial silence - Jules was blasting Ariana Grande at breakfast this morning, and Leo's earworm has been everyone around him's problem since), Jason takes in a breath to speak, but is interrupted by the door of the bunker clanging open in the distance.
"-so, I just took them." Julie's voice says happily.
A laugh that definitely belongs to Kyle from the way Jason's face sours rings out as footsteps start climbing up onto the deck of the ship. Leo hears two heavy thunks, like crates being set onto wooden planks, and Kyle sighs in fond exasperation. "Butch is gonna be pissed when he sees they're missing."
Julie hums. "Aww, waah waah, boo for him."
Leo almost laughs, but the instant any sound comes out of him, Jason's hand is across his mouth, and he's being pulled back into a loose headlock. He glares up at his friend, struggling, but the blonde's eyes are trained on the staircase up to the deck.
"What's your issue with that guy, anyway? I mean, aside from the unicorn tattoos."
"Actually, I find those to be his only good quality." Julie sighs wistfully. Then, she scoffs. "I dunno. He talks to me like I'm ten years old. Maybe I just don't like guys who think they're smarter than me, but aren't."
"So, if they think they're smarter than you and actually are, that's okay?" asks Kyle with a laugh.
"Oh, totally. I'm a dumbass sometimes. But, at least I see that, y'know? I'm not going around talking down to people."
Some of the shuffling around slows to a stop, and Leo hears Kyle clear his throat nervously. Jason's hold tightens uncomfortably around Leo, and he starts obnoxiously licking at his palm to get him to let go. His efforts go ignored as Kyle speaks up again.
"I don't want to sound...condescending here, but...you really aren't dumb, Julie. You're kidding, right?" The guy asks hesitantly.
Julie is silent for a moment, but her shuffling continues. There's some light clanks echoing down like she's organizing something metal.
"I'm kidding." She confirms. Her voice has less amusement to it now, though. Kyle seems to pick up on this too, because there's a scraping sound like a chair is being pulled closer to where Juliette's sitting. Jason's face is like stone when Leo glances back.
"I actually..." Kyle trails off into a nervous laugh. "I think you're pretty amazing. Really smart."
Julie's shuffling stops. She seems to pause awkwardly. "You do?"
"Yeah!" The guy says more confidently.
Ohhh, Leo sees where this is going. Jason must too, cause he releases Leo to start creeping towards the stairs.
Oh, they're bad. They're gonna eavesdrop? Ohhhh, Piper is gonna kick their asses for this later. But, Leo will never pass up an opportunity to practice his ninja skills. And, he likes gossip just as much as the next girly. Sue him.
"You're always coming up with these incredible ideas. I mean, look at what you're doing right now! Why didn't we make these years ago?"
Julie snorts. "Yeah, no kidding. Once it hit me, I was like 'Oh. Duh.'"
"But, no one came up with this idea until you." Kyle reasons. The chair scrapes a little closer. The two of them must be side by side. Leo follows as Jason creeps up the stairs and peeks around the corner.
Leo's too short to see over the banisters, but the way Jason's face drops makes him even more eager to know what naughty naughty behaviors their princess is up to on his ship. What if they're...holding hands?! Gasp!
"I guess."
"No, seriously. Give yourself some credit." Kyle says softly. His voice drops in the way the Ares boys' always do whenever Piper walks by. Leo rolls his eyes and fake gags. It fails to pull a smile from Jason. The guy is ghost white, tinged a bit green. Leo shuffles back a step in fear of being yakked on.
"Thanks." Julie mumbles. There's a little bit of shuffling, but it stops suddenly. Leo thinks Kyle must have grabbed her hand after all. That sly dog - tempting their little angel into pre-marital thumb wrestles.
"Yeah." Kyle's voice breathes out.
Then, Leo's eyebrows shoot up at the unmistakable sound of a kiss.
It seems to be over quickly. Juliette makes a surprised muffled sound, and there's a kinda gross smacking noise that makes Leo cringe as their lips disconnect. "Woah, woah, woah-"
"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to-"
"No, it's okay."
"It's not. I should've asked-"
"I mean, yeah, you should've."
"Gods, I'm so sorry. I thought we were - not to say that you were -"
"Kyle!" Julie laughs. The guy shuts up so fast he might've actually died of embarrassment. Leo would've if he were in his shoes. Which he wouldn't be. Ever. All the ladies want Leo Valdez. "It's okay! I promise, I'm fine. It's just..."
A beat passes. Leo takes the opportunity to look over at Jason. A bit of his color is back, but he's still frowning, hyper-focused in on the scene around the corner like it's a matter of life and death. Jeez, is seeing this guy get rejected really that important to him?
"Just...what?" asks Kyle nervously.
Juliette sighs. "I guess, I'm sort of spoken for?"
"Oh...Oh, gods, you have a boyfriend? I am so sor-"
"No! I don't! It's okay, really, you didn't do anything wrong. I'm just," She groans. "This is going to sound really pathetic."
Footsteps start thumping across the deck like she's pacing. Jason leans a little further out of the stairwell to follow her with his eyes, but Leo just crosses his arms in annoyance at not being able to see. Being short is so annoying. He'd be able to do so many more things if he were a little taller. Like reach for things. And see over banisters during super secret spy missions. But, alas, if he were even average height, his raw sex appeal would just be too overpowering for woman-kind. Society would crumble. The earth would quake. Cities would be torn apar-
"It's Jason Grace, isn't it?" asks Kyle.
Leo's jaw drops. So does Jason's. His eyes are wide and afraid now, more so than Leo's ever actually seen. The guy looks like he's gonna bolt. He even starts inching back down the stairs towards the boiler room, but Juliette's response freezes him in his tracks.
"Yeah."
Oh...OH, SHIT!
Oh, shit, he owes Piper twenty drachmas.
"Well, damn. I was hoping that was in my head." Kyle sighs.
Julie seems to wince. "Yeah, sorry. I'm, uh, taken? Well, not really, but...He's pretty much had me locked down since we were, like, twelve." She laughs a little. It's a sad sound, though. It bums Leo out. "He's not...He's happy being friends, so that's all we are. But, yeah, I couldn't...Not with someone else. My heart wouldn't be in it."
"Gotcha..."
"I'm sorry-"
"No! No, don't apologize. I can respect that." A heavy sigh echoes down the stairs. It sort of turns into a laugh by the end of it. "For the record, though, I don't think he was whaling on me in the arena 'cause I was flirting with his friend."
"What do you mean?"
Kyle chuckles. "Ah, don't worry about it. That dumbass will figure it out eventually. I'm gonna head back to the cabin and lick my wounds, if you don't mind. Goodnight, Julie."
"Oh...okay. Goodnight."
Kyle's footsteps fade out of the bunker, followed soon after by the click of the door. Julie lets out a shaky breath. Like she does when she's about to cry. Leo grimaces awkwardly and turns to suggest that they stop being weird and give her some privacy, but the words won't come out once he sees Jason's face.
The son of Jupiter looks hopelessly confused. His eyes are wide and shining, unfocused but still glued in the direction Juliette's footsteps stopped in. He looks, for once, like an unsure sixteen year old kid. One that could still snap Leo like a toothpick, but still...Leo swallows down the lump in his own throat and creeps backwards himself.
Jason wasn't really helping, anyway. Leo can probably let him off early for the night.
He backs up slowly and disappears into the boiler room.
Julie's had a weird couple of days.
First, there was the whole thing with Kyle. She's never had to actually turn someone down before. Usually, she gets asked out on a dare by the Hermes cabin or by some sleezy mortal thinking her cute skirts are an invitation to harass her. Percy's mere existence or Nico's thousand yard stare have always been enough to deter guys in the past. She supposes with neither of them here in camp, Kyle figured it was prime time to shoot his shot.
She doesn't mind, really. Julie knows she's attractive. It comes with the Aphrodite territory. She's kind of hurt by how little he's been talking to her since she rejected him, though. She guesses he was really only in it for a date. He wasn't interested in being her friend.
She's trying not to be bitter about that.
Juliette sighs and presses the heels of her hands into her eyes to block out the sun. There's a pleasant warmth on her skin, but the joints in her fingers are aching. She's spent the last week bending and unbending tiny little wires around pieces of crystal that she stole from Butch's cabin. She's about halfway done. Her little project should be finished by the time the Seven load up next week (well, the Eight, technically, but only Leo knows about that).
So much has been weighing on her.
It's been six months since she last saw Percy. Since she last saw her brother.
No dreams. No note. No calls. Nothing. Even Iris can't seem to find him.
It's been two months since her last contact with Nico. He showed up just briefly on her walk from the campfire one night, scared the bejeezus out of her, let her know Hazel got her first hash mark (cool?), informed her that Percy is still missing, and then disappeared. He's declined every message since. He could be anywhere.
The thought sends a jolt of fear down Julie's spine that has her snatching the gem and pliers back up off the dock. Five down. Four to go. Nine in total. Because everyone is going to be alive to use them. Everyone.
"Hey."
Julie looks over her shoulder. Jason's standing hesitantly at the shoreline, foot still raised like he can't decide if he's stepping onto the dock or not. She gives him a smile. "Hey, Soldier Boy."
His foot stays hovering. "Are you...Can I join you?"
"Sure." nods Juliette, patting the boards beside her with the hand clutching the pliers.
Jason finally lets his sneaker drop and approaches. He plops down at the end next to her and crosses his legs so he can pull off his shoes. He nods at her hands. "Are you making something?" He asks.
She grins and holds up her supplies. Spread out around her are various quarter-sized cuttings of translucent crystal. Half of them are encased in a spiral of celestial bronze wire that Julie has bent into the right shape over many hours of sore joints and chipped nail polish. She hands one to Jason and lets him inspect it.
"I'm making them for everybody going on the quest. A little going-away present."
Jason brings it up to his eyes. "They're pretty." He mumbles.
Juliette smirks. "Oh, you ain't seen nothing yet." She reaches out and guides Jason's hand up so that the crystal catches the summer sunlight. She hears the boy gasp as a vivid array of rainbow light emits all the way down the deck. When Julie glances away from the colors, wonder is sparkling across his face.
"That's amazing!" He exclaims. Blinking dazedly, he looks back at her with an impressed little grin. "They're for Iris messages?"
"Yep," She nods, releasing his wrist. He lets his hand drop back down to the deck, and the rainbows disappear. "I figured we may not always have water with us. And, it's more efficient, anyway."
"Us?" He asks, raising his eyebrow. She holds his gaze defiantly, and he chuckles, looking back down at the charm. "They're awesome. You're-" He glances at her, looking suddenly nervous. "You're really smart, Juliette."
Julie's heart stutters. Her fingers and toes start to feel tingly, and her cheeks are getting hot. She drops her gaze down to where her hands are now frantically tugging at a loose string on her cutoffs. "Thanks." She squeaks out.
Jason doesn't put her out of her misery by changing the subject, so she's forced to look back up at him and do it herself. She tries not to look too far into the smug, pleased smile he's giving her. Maybe he just really likes the charms.
"They, uh, go on the camp necklaces." She explains. She nods at the one in his hand. "You can keep that one. Y'know, if you want."
Jason's eyebrows shoot up. "Oh! Really?"
"Yeah, I mean, I was gonna give you one anyway, so-"
"Oh, yeah, of course. Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Now, neither of them can look at the other. Great.
If this friendship is going to pan out, at least one of them is going to need to get better at eye contact.
"Can I help?" Jason blurts out.
Julie blinks in surprise. She glances between him and the partially finished charm in her palm. "Seriously?"
He nods, looking unsure of himself. Juliette shrugs.
"Yeah, sure. Here, take these pliers-"
Turns out, bigger hands make jewelry making even harder. By the time the sun is setting over the lake, Jason's dropped so many pieces of wire into the water that the nymphs start pelting them with them from below, and they're forced to evacuate back to the cabins for the night. They make it back just before curfew covered in tiny scratches, out of breath, and laughing so hard they have to lean on each other to keep from toppling over.
Her siblings threaten Jason back to his own cabin on threat of permanent makeup, but spend the next hour giggling as Julie tells them about their completely platonic evening on the docks. Piper's smirk as she disappears under her covers for the night makes Julie's face burn.
But, when Juliette goes to sleep for the night, everything feels a little bit lighter, prophecies and all.
Huh. Wonder when that happened.