I'm a WHAT!

Chapter 12

A/N: Okay, I don't own Percy, Grover, Thalia, or Annabeth. I don't even own the places! In fact, the only things I own are the characters below… And possibly the plot line. Depressing, isn't it?

Character Parallels

(This is mainly for the people who were the basis of my characters)

Mitchell Collebri: Ross
Damien Kingsley: Matty
Zoey Reed: Allie
Jay Jones: Zack
Sam Rockwell: Zach (Scotty)
Lucinda "Luce" Sullivan: Me
Audrey Henson: Regan
Clarissa Michaels: Caree Jo
Christopher "Tofur" Williams: Chris
Esme James: Nicole
Alexander "Alex" Price: Jordan
Jamie Corbel: Dylan
Krista Crawford: Lauren
Marie Marin: Errie

I woke up maybe half an hour later with my knuckles stinging. I rolled off of my bed and brushed my hair, absently rubbing my knuckles. I decided that I should go see Sam and get him to check my hand out like Jay had suggested. He wasn't surprised to see me but I was surprised when he gave me a hug when I told him what had happened.

"Why didn't you tell me when it happened?"

"I'm sorry… I just don't like to bother you with those kinds of things…"

"It doesn't bother me. We're friends, Luce. You should be able to come to me with your problems." He smiled and took my hands in his own to examine them carefully. He whistled low in appreciation when he saw the tiny bits of Jamie's teeth that managed to stay lodged in my skin. "You punched the shit out of him, girl." He grinned at me and I grinned back.

"He deserved it, the scuzzball." Sam nodded at me as he began to gently work out the debris from my brief fight and clean the tiny scrapes.

"That he did. So, you're leaving tonight, right." He said it as a statement, not a question. He paused in his work to look up at me, his golden-brown eyes serious, if not slightly worried.

"How did you know?" I asked, keeping my voice low.

"Jay came in earlier for supplies and since he knew I wasn't going to be upset, he told me. He said you wanted me to come with you so that I could help out if one of you guys got hurt." He said, going back to fixing up my hand, smiling slightly.

"Well yeah." I smiled at him. "You're all but my doctor, Sam. I'd never want anyone BUT you to have to patch my sorry ass up." He laughed and smiled wider.

"You get the handgun from Mitchell yet?"

"Right here." I said, smiling and twitching the hand he was working on. He looked at the bracelet on my wrist and pressed down on the oak tree design. Thankfully he caught the compact handgun as it fell from overtop my wrist.

"Unarmed?"

"Would I be stupid enough to carry around a loaded gun when I'm still showing it off?"

"Well look at what you've done today already." He smiled at me and gently tapped my knuckles. I raised an eyebrow at him and shook my head.

"Touché. But no, it isn't even loaded." I said, smiling at him. He nodded and gently let go of my hand to examine the gun. He whistled in appreciation of it and I smiled.

"Mitchell outdid himself on this." Sam said, handing it back gingerly. I nodded and pushed the button to turn the gun into a bracelet once more.

I smiled at Sam as he returned to fixing my hand. I propped my head on my other hand and watched him work. He was done quickly and I smiled again. "Feeling better?"

"Much, thanks." I said, pulling my hand from his, but he grabbed mine again.

"Hey, be safe and take care of yourself. I won't be there to patch you up." Sam said, squeezing my hand for emphasis. I smiled at him and pulled him into a hug.

"I'll try, besides, the guys and I know basic first aid and we have plenty nectar and ambrosia. We'll be alright, Sam." He grinned at me.

"I know. I just wanted to make sure you wouldn't try anything stupid."

"I didn't promise that." I said, winking at him as I stood and walked away. As I walked through the open door, the echoing sound of his laughter made me smile. I ran back to my cabin and changed from my rumpled clothing into something more presentable for supper.

During supper I pulled Alex aside to discuss the trip. "Are you ready?"

"For what?"

"Ugh… Alex, are you ready to go on the quest tonight? Jay told me today that we're leaving as soon as the camp's asleep for the night. What HAS Jay told you?"

"Admittedly, just what you told me and that I should keep this with me at all times…" Alex said, smiling apologetically. He held out his right hand and showed me the glimmering gold ring with the same design as my white gold one on it.

"Figures." I said, turning to smile at Jay and giving him the universal symbol for 'I'm watching you.' "Anyway, when we get back to the cabin, I should help you pack." Alex nodded absently, his eyes on a pretty girl from Nyx cabin.

"Yo Alex, focus on me right now. Not Kristi." I smiled, fussing at him gently. Kristi was his girlfriend and they were a beautiful match. Unfortunately he needed to focus on me instead of her right now.

"Sorry… I know… I can't help it." He said, smiling at me as he turned back to me. "You wanna go on back to the cabin so we can pack in peace?"

"Well I've already packed but I can help you with your packing. C'mon. Say bye to Kristi so we can leave." I smiled at him and pushed him towards her table. I walked placidly down the gravel path and sang the last few stanzas of Soul to Squeeze by Red Hot Chili Peppers to myself.

"Where I go I just don't know
I got to got to gotta take it slow.
When I find my piece of mind
I'm gonna give you some of my good time.

Where I go I just don't know
I might end up somewhere in Mexico.
When I find my piece of mind
I'm gonna keep you for the end of time."

"Love that song, chick." a pretty Hispanic girl smiled at me from around a column. She was plump with shiny black hair and shocking blue eyes. She had an I-don't-give-a-shit vibe which I instantly loved.

"Me too, haha." I said smiling at her. "My name's Lucinda Sullivan, but you can call me Luce."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Marie Marin." She said smiling. "So whose kid are you?" She didn't beat around the bush.

"Daughter of Zeus. You?"

"Daughter of Aphrodite. Though you wouldn't know it, looking at me." She laughed at my confused expression. "My dad's originally from Mexico and I grew up in Texas. That's why I have black hair and dark skin."

"Oh. I wasn't really thinking about it." I said smiling. She nodded at me and smiled "I have to leave now, but it was definitely nice meeting you."

"You too Luce." She waved at me as I jogged away and smiled. I started running, loving the burning sensation in my legs and the tightening in my chest. I smiled and bent the wind to my will, using it to help propel me along. I was practically off of the ground by the time I reached my cabin. I blew in through the doors and smiled as all the eagles looked up at the same time, their feathers fluffing up like they were preparing for flight. I ran over and patted Arashi on the head. They all calmed down and closed their eyes once the air settled.

I picked her up and opened the portal on my ring. Arashi cocked her head to one side but placidly flew into the opening when I motioned for her to fly. Just then, Jay waltzed in and plopped down on my bed. "Sup, little girl?"

"Don't call me little girl." I said, smiling at him and chucking a pillow at his head. I missed surprisingly badly for someone with marksmanship like my own.

"Alex about ready?" he asked, stretching out like a lazy cat.

"No. Saying goodbye to Kristi. I'll probably start packing for him soon." I said, thumping down on the bed beside him. I laid my head on his shoulder and he slung an arm around me as I closed my eyes, sighing.

"What's wrong, Lucy?" Jay asked, brushing my hair out of my face and resting his chin on my head.

"Nothing… Everything… I don't know. I just… feel… not good…"

"You sure you'll be able to come on the quest?"

"I'm fine… just kinda sleepy and tired."

"You just had a nap earlier, though."

"I know… I think maybe we kinda over did it a little with training earlier. Maybe that's why I feel like this…"

"Maybe. I'll pack for Alex. You get some rest for tonight." Jay said, his brows furrowed together in worry. He kissed my forehead and laid me down on my bed to rest while he pulled out clothes for Alex and began laying out the things meant for Alex to pack. I nodded off at some point and awoke to someone sliding my ring off my finger.

"Move that ring one more inch off of my finger and you'll know what a million volts of pure electricity does to someone's heart." I said, my voice icy cold and my eyes closed.

"I don't imagine a whole lot when said someone has the same power and can thereby deflect it." Alex said, his voice calm and smug. I smiled and wrapped my arms around his neck happily. "Are you feeling better, now?"

"Yeah. Still a bit sleepy but that'll wear off after some coffee." I said, yawning.

"OH no. You are NOT drinking coffee. You know things like that have a supremely amplified effect on us Half-bloods!" Alex said, frowning.

"Alex, I've had coffee for years and it has never had an extreme effect on me."

"Oh? Is that why your second grade teacher recommended that you be put on Ritalin?" Jay threw in as he sauntered past.

"Ritalin? Just how bad WERE you?" Alex asked incredulously.

"Not bad at all… She just hated me… And I didn't do alot of the work she gave me because it wasn't hard enough…" I growled, launching myself at Jay.

Just then, as I was throttling the smirk off of Jay's mouth, Mitchell knocked on the door. Everyone froze before he stuck his head in the door and walked in followed by Damien. "Yo peoples. What it do?"

"Not much, man. Thanks again for the piece. I love it." I smiled brightly at him as Jay clawed at my arms. I thumped his head once more against the floor and released him to go hug Mitchell.

"Eh, no problem." He smiled at me quickly. After I hugged Mitchell, I lead Damien outside for a word.

"Dai, can you keep Mitchell busy for tonight? We're leaving on the quest and he wanted to come along. Please? If you love me you'll say yes…." I knew that was a bit low but I really needed Mitchell out of our hair.

"Hmmm… Okay. But if he thinks I'm coming on to him, I'm blaming you." Damien was openly gay and knew Mitchell might have stupid moments about it if he was in the wrong mood.

"Deal. I loves you Dai!" I smiled brightly at Damien's stern, but loving expression and his flawless mocha face rearranged itself into a mirror image, showing off his pearly white teeth.

"I love you too, honey." He hugged me and patted my back. "You so owe me, dear. Oh, did you hear? Audrey, Zoey, and someone named Kayla got sent on a quest while you were recovering! They should be back to…" Just then, a dozen campers came thundering past. I managed to stop Tofur as he ran by.

"Tofur, what's going on?"

"Some campers just got back from a quest. I think someone's dead." As Tofur ran back into the crowd, I felt my body freeze. Even though Audrey and Zoey had both become more than a little high and mighty since they got claimed, I still considered them friends.

"Oh honey, c'mon. Let's go see if we can help Sam. I'm sure he's got his hands full." Dai said, pulling me in the opposite direction, towards the Apollo cabin. Sure enough, the cabin was a hive of buzzing activity and Sam desperately needed help.

"Luce, come here. Charge your fingertips a bit and do chest compresses on her, Damien, dude, go get Alex. I don't think any other children of Zeus have mastered the electro-kinesis." He motioned me over to one of the too-still campers lying on a table. It was Zoey. Her face was gray and her eyes were glassy. I knew Tofur's father had taken her away, but if Sam still gave her a chance I would, too.

"How long has she been gone?" I asked, gathering the energy in my hands. All the hair within a five foot radius was standing on end and small crackles could be heard from my fingertips as I started the compressions like my CPR training had taught me. I didn't feel anything beyond the electricity at this point.

"Two minutes. Kayla said they both passed out just before they got back to camp. They were ambushed on the way back. I managed to stabilize their wounds just before they went into cardiac arrest." He was watching me as the zaps I gave to Zoey's heart grew more aggressive.

"She could still come back and be fine then." I gritted my teeth and upped the voltage, causing several overhead lights to flicker violently. Alex had arrived a moment ago and was working on the other camper. "Who's the other one? I'm not really in the right place to remember who's accounted for."

"It's… Um… Luce…" I saw him fidgeting in my peripheral vision.

"Spit it the fuck out, Sam." I snarled at him, a quick breeze blowing back my hair and cooling the sweat on my forehead as I upped the voltage again.

"Luce, it's Audrey." He said it quickly, like he was ripping off a Band-Aid. I froze; my eyes wide as I looked at him full on for the first time since I started working on Zoey. He took a step back. "Luce, your eyes..." He shook his head and gestured to Zoey again. "Luce, up the voltage as high as you can without cooking her." His eyes were starting to get red, like tears were threatening, but his voice didn't waver and no moisture pooled in them. We'd all grown up together and if we just let Zoey slip away without trying anything, it would kill us.

"I can't." I shook my head, tears pooling in my eyes. I wasn't as strong as Sam. "She's going to start smoking soon if I keep it up… I've already burned her… I upped it twice and I couldn't feel any neural electricity respond to anything... She's… gone to Elysium…"

I saw Alex stop over at the next table. Tears ran freely down my cheeks and Alex folded me into his arms as I started to sob. Next thing I know, Damien is there, pulling me from Alex and comforting both me and Sam, crying with me as Sam made low, painful noises. Somewhere, in an alert place in my mind, I heard the other Apollo campers call TOD on both of my friends…

Hey guys! So, I know it has been forever and a month since I last updated, but I'm gonna try and do better! (I say that after every hiatus and they still happen :/) I'm gonna start my senior year in highschool here in the next two months and if things work out, I should have alot more free time since I only need two credits to graduate and I might be taking college classes the rest of the day. Hopefully I can work on my other main story more too. I've had kindof a rough time, deaths and fights and boyfriends and break ups etc, and all my stories got put on the backburner for a while. I'm so sorry for the terrible delays. I promise I love you guys! With my new inspiration and sudden dislodging of my writer's block, the story should be jumping in no time. I may even put some others I was working on to help with my emotions during my tough times on here, though if I do, I shall miss the kitty face (:3) that comes up next to my name on the author search dearly. Anyways, I give you all permission to pm my pants off if I'm running behind on stuff! You guys know the drill, read and review!

Love and Rockets,

Maiden of the Silver Fires
AKA Savvy