Chapter 2:

Aidon had never liked large crowds. It wasn't the noise or the people that bothered him—he'd lived surrounded by noise most of his life—but the constant hum of expectations, of judgment, weighed on him. And Camp Half-Blood, despite its charm, was no different.

The moment he set foot in the mess hall, his instincts flared. His amber eyes swept the room, taking in the scattered conversations, the laughter that didn't quite reach their eyes, the unease that lingered just beneath the surface. It wasn't the noise that unnerved him, but the way everyone seemed to be sizing him up as if they could sense the difference in him. It wasn't just curiosity—some of their gazes were colder, calculating, as if they were looking for a weakness, something to exploit. And Aidon felt it.

He wasn't sure why, but something felt off. The entire room seemed to pulse with unspoken tension. His eyes narrowed, picking up on the subtle glances thrown his way, some dismissive, others eager to pry. His unease deepened. These were not the same curious eyes that Aria had given him—these were the eyes of hunters, of predators. He didn't like it.

Jade, ever the optimist, nudged him from behind. "Don't let them get to you," Jade said lightly, his grin bright and reassuring. "They're just looking for someone to mess with. You're not their target."

Aidon shot him a skeptical glance, but Jade's smile was infectious, even if it didn't quite reach Aidon's cool demeanor. "Sure," Aidon muttered, his voice barely above a whisper.

Jade chuckled, though his amusement was tempered by a flicker of concern in his eyes. "Come on, I'll distract you. Let's grab a spot."

Before Aidon could protest, a voice called out from across the room, cutting through the ambient noise like a beacon of calm.

"Aidon! Over here!"

Aidon's gaze snapped toward the source, and his eyes met a pair of bright pink ones. Aria was waving them over from a table near the far side of the room. Her dark purple hair framed her face, and her expression was warm and welcoming. Her pink eyes glimmered with the same brightness they had earlier, shining with an infectious energy that contrasted sharply with the tension in Aidon's chest.

"Come sit with us!" Aria's voice was clear, rising above the clamor of the room as she waved them over.

Aidon's brow furrowed slightly. The last thing he wanted was to draw more attention to himself, but Jade was already grinning, his enthusiasm impossible to suppress. Without giving Aidon a second thought, he bounded toward the table.

Aidon sighed, resigned. He followed after Jade, his footsteps heavy, his mind still swirling with the sense that something wasn't quite right. But he couldn't put his finger on it.

As they approached, Aria shifted aside to make room for them, her pink eyes sparkling in the mess hall's fluorescent lights. She gave Aidon a bright smile that was full of genuine warmth. "I thought it'd be easier to talk if we weren't in the middle of the mess," she said, her tone light and easy. "Plus, Soren doesn't bite."

She gave Soren a playful glance, but he didn't seem to notice, his midnight-blue eyes fixed firmly on his plate. His presence was as calm and detached as ever, the kind of stillness that seemed to permeate the air around him. Aria's smile softened as she sat back in her seat, but she didn't press him for a response. She just seemed content to fill the silence with her easy charm.

Aidon sat across from Soren, the stars in his amber eyes flicking briefly toward him. Soren didn't acknowledge his presence directly, but the faintest glimmer of recognition passed between them as their gazes met. Soren gave a small, absent nod before turning his attention back to his pizza. His neutral expression remained unchanged, but Aidon couldn't help but notice the subtle tension in his posture. It was as if Soren were sitting in a space between worlds—calm, but not quite here.

Aria's gaze shifted between them, her smile never wavering. "You're the new kid, right?" Her voice was casual, but there was a glint of curiosity in her eyes as if she was trying to figure him out. "I heard a little about you. What's your story?"

Aidon's gaze flickered to Soren, assessing him for any reaction. Soren didn't flinch, his blue eyes steady, his lips pressed into a faint line. The space between them felt heavy, almost too quiet as if the world was holding its breath. Soren didn't seem to care to start a conversation, nor did he seem interested in sharing any piece of himself.

Aidon's lips twitched, a faint ghost of a smirk that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Not much to tell," he said flatly, his voice devoid of emotion. "I'm just here."

Aria's smile softened as if sensing the guardedness in his words. Her pink eyes sparkled with a warmth that seemed to extend to the entire room, but she didn't press further. Instead, she chuckled lightly, her tone more relaxed. "You don't have to tell me everything. But it's a little strange for someone like you to just show up without making a scene."

Her eyes glinted with amused curiosity, but Aidon sensed a subtle edge to her words, a careful observation hidden behind her lighthearted demeanor. She wasn't prying, but she was keen, and that made him hesitate. Aria's perceptiveness unsettled him in a way that few others did.

Aidon glanced at Jade, who was already digging into his food with his usual enthusiasm. Jade didn't seem bothered by the tension that clung to the air around them. The difference between them was stark—where Aidon felt like the walls were closing in, Jade felt like the room was just another place to be himself.

The silence stretched between them, awkward and thick. Then, Aria broke it again, her voice like a soft bell. "So, Soren," she said with a teasing grin, "are you going to keep brooding all day, or are you going to talk to our new friend here?"

Soren didn't respond at first. His eyes never left his plate, his movements slow, deliberate. Finally, he set his pizza down. His voice was steady, and flat, his tone almost monotonous. "I don't talk much."

Aria laughed softly, shaking her head in an almost affectionate way. "That's Soren for you," she said to Aidon with a small shrug. "Don't take it personally. He's just... like that."

Aidon wasn't sure if he should be relieved or more wary. It wasn't that Soren was rude—he was just detached. The kind of person who preferred to keep to himself, only engaging when necessary. There was something about him that felt distant as if Soren had drawn a clear line between himself and the world around him. Aidon could respect that—he understood it—but it made the air between them feel like a gulf, something that could never quite be crossed.

The quiet lingered again, and it was Aria who filled the silence this time, her voice warm and persistent. "So, tell me about yourself, Aidon. What made you come here?"

Her eyes locked onto his, and for a moment, Aidon felt something shift in him. Her gaze was too open, too welcoming. It made him want to pull back, to hide the things he'd been keeping buried. But something about the way the others had looked at him—their cool, assessing gazes—made him hesitate. He didn't want to reveal too much. Not yet.

"Just passing through," Aidon replied, his voice clipped, his amber eyes flickering between Soren and Aria. He glanced at Soren, his distant presence almost comforting in its neutrality. "Thought I'd stop by."

Aria didn't push further, though her smile faded slightly, which dimmed the brightness in her eyes. She looked between Soren and Aidon, her expression contemplative before she spoke again. "Well, I hope you find what you're looking for here. It's... a weird place, but it has its moments."

Before Aidon could respond, a presence approached, large and imposing. Aidon felt it before he saw it—a looming shadow that filled the space with a subtle but undeniable tension.

Aidon's instincts flared, his golden eyes flicking upward as a pair of green eyes locked onto him immediately. The massive guy walked toward their table with purpose, his broad shoulders and aggressive posture unmistakable. The air shifted, and Aidon could feel the weight of the challenge before Igor even spoke.

"So, the new kid's slumming it with the table of misfits, huh?" His voice was cold, biting, and filled with barely contained hostility.

Soren didn't even look up from his plate as he replied, his voice flat and dry. "It's not like you have a monopoly on tables, Igor."

Igor's eyes flicked from Soren to Aidon, a sneer curling at the corner of his lips. "No one's impressed by you, kid. Don't think showing up here makes you anything special."

Aidon didn't flinch. His amber eyes locked onto forest green ones, his expression cold and unreadable. "Not trying to impress anyone," he said quietly, his voice betraying no emotion. His gaze didn't waver, offering nothing for Igor to latch onto.

Igor narrowed his eyes, clearly annoyed at being ignored. "You sure about that?" he sneered, stepping closer, his presence heavy and threatening.

Jade, sensing the sudden change in the air, finally looked up from his food, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Igor, give it a rest," Jade said, his voice casual and unaffected. "The guy's not here to start problems."

Igor shot Jade a venomous look but didn't respond. Instead, he turned on his heel, his boots thudding heavily as he stalked away, muttering something under his breath.

The tension hung thick in the air, but Aria broke it with a quiet sigh, her pink eyes flicking back to Aidon. "Welcome to Camp Half-Blood," she said lightly,