A/N
Hey guys...
I know I've been on a SUPER long haitus. I'm really sorry about that. A lot of factors played into it, and if you want a more detailed explanation, feel free to PM me and I'll be happy to explain. But long story short, I got a terrible writers block. And it wasn't just me not knowing what to write next. I literally lost almost all motivation to write. It felt like work to write even a few words. So I took a long break that turned much longer than I intended and focused on school and other stuff.
But recently, I got the sweetest message from a writer on this site named Cale04evah. Honestly, it was so touching to get such a sincere PM completely out of nowhere. I know it sounds a bit self-conceited, but this message is what pushed me to try to break my writer's block. The break certainly helped a great deal, but this message was definitely the final push. And I was surprised at how easily writing came to me. I expected it to be a lot harder.
Anyways, I AM back and I'm going to try to write more often. I'll be focusing EXCLUSIVELY on this story for now, since I have the best idea of where it's going and it is probably one of my personal favorites. As for my other stories, PLEASE be patient. I'll try to get to them as soon as I can. I may even rewrite a few of them, since I'm really unhappy with a lot of them.
I won't be writing as often as before. You'll probably be able to expect updates about once a month, but don't count on any consistency in my updates. I'll try my best, but I'm still getting used to writing long chapters like this.
So I hope you like this chapter, and what I post in the near future.
Enjoy!
The two demigods stepped out into the cool, refreshing air. Leo took a few seconds to stretch his sore muscles, procuring a few satisfying cracks. It suddenly hit him how long he had been in the Bunker. Maybe he should get out more…
"Come on, Leo! That chocolate isn't going to clean itself!" Piper chirped from several feet ahead of him.
"Coming!" Leo recovered quickly and jogged to meet up with her.
"Seriously, you're like an old man," Piper smirked, slowing her pace to allow Leo to catch up with her, "Need me to fetch you a cane?"
"Oh yes, dearie, thank you kindly," Leo replied, dropping his voice to a low croak and slowing his walk to a crouched hobble, "And while you're at it, grab me my prune juice. No sugar, it messes up my metabolism. And trust me when I say you don't wanna be two licks away from me when my metabolism's messed up."
Piper laughs, and the way she smiles at Leo makes his own smile feel a bit more genuine.
"First chocolate, then prune juice," she retorts. Leo pouts.
"But Moooooom! I wanna eat my prune juice first!" he whines, to which Piper responds by turning to face him with her hands on her hips.
"Now son, you know how that prune juice messes with your metabolism. Eat your chocolate first so you can grow big and strong, and maybe I'll let you have a glass."
Leo snorts, his walk reverting to his usual swagger, Piper walking beside him, and they fall into a comfortable silence. If Leo were completely honest, he missed his friends. While the Bunker acted as a distraction from his depression and self-loathing, it didn't offer him any happiness. Leo remembered himself as a child, when he would run as fast as his tiny legs could carry him to the forge, eager to spend any free time he had to tinker and mess around with the many tools at his disposal, as hyper and excited as a kid in a candy store. Now… the forge didn't hold that magic anymore. It was too packed with painful memories to bring him that kind of joy. This realization caused his smile to falter a bit, something Piper didn't fail to notice. She suddenly stopped, grabbing Leo by the arm and turning him to face her.
"Hey, are you okay?" she asked, her eyes filled with concern.
Leo froze, realizing his mistake. He let his guard down in front of Piper.
Recover recover recover recover hide hide hide hide hide
"Sorry, Pipes," Leo said, smiling brightly in an attempt to negate any thoughts Piper had about what he was really feeling, "I'm just tired, that's all. Maybe it is time I move to a retirement home."
His fake smile must have still looked slightly off, for Piper narrowed her eyes in suspicion, but if she had anything to say about it, she let it go. She offered a comforting squeeze of his shoulder before letting him go and continuing at the same pace they were traveling before. Leo sighed in relief, though he was still slightly uneasy. He had to be more careful. He didn't think he would be able to lie as easily to Jason or Annabeth.
They continued in silence like before, only this silence was much less comfortable. Piper kept glancing uneasily at Leo, as if afraid he would suddenly collapse. As much as Leo appreciated Piper caring about him, the constant glances irritated him. The last thing he wanted was pity. He didn't need it. Their time and energy were much better spent on someone or something else. He could take care of himself…
The silence was broken by a sharp note slicing through the air. The two stopped suddenly, Piper's hand resting on the handle of her trusty weapon Katoptris. Leo too instinctively took up a battle stance, one hand resting on his magic tool belt and the other outstretched at his side, ready to conjure up flames should the need arise.
"What was that?" Leo asked, looking around anxiously for the source of the sound.
"I-I don't know," Piper stuttered, her hand not moving from Katoptris, "I-it sounded a bit like… a bird?"
"That was no bird," Leo replied, "It didn't sound like one. It sounded more… artificial? Like it was someone trying to mimic a birdcall."
It took everything Piper had to keep her current expression. Honesty, when she gets back there she is going to-
"CAKAW! CAKAW!"
Leo's expression went blank, and Piper struggled against going up to the nearest tree and hitting her head against it. At least the first attempt was slightly convincing!
"What is that?" Leo said, looking bemused, "Is… is that a camper?"
"Um…" Piper struggled for a response. "Maybe? Or maybe it's a monster?"
Leo looked at her in disbelief.
"What kind of monster sounds like that!?" he asks incredulously, "They must be braindead if they think that's going to convince any victims to go near them. Do you think they're trying to mimic a bird, or are they mimicking a camper mimicking a bird?"
"No idea," Piper said, allowing herself to relax slightly. Leo hasn't completely bought into the story, but she's convinced him enough for her plan to work. "I'll go check it out."
"I'll come with you," Leo offered, relaxing from his battle stance and retrieving a hammer that hung from the side of his belt.
"NO!" Piper screeched, causing Leo to jump and the birds resting in the trees above them to burst into flight. Leo gave her a bewildered look.
"U-um…" Piper started under Leo's gaze, but recovered quickly. "I-I mean, you wait here! I can handle it. Obviously this monster is pretty stupid. I'm sure I can handle him on my own."
"You sure?" Leo asks uncertainly, his hand still gripping his hammer, "He may be stupid, but we don't know how big or strong he is. It's probably safer for me to go with you."
Okay, I can't logic my way out of this, Piper thought at she stared Leo down, I have to take a different approach.
Piper adopted a smug expression and crossed her arms, and her sudden change in stature was so sudden it caught Leo by surprise. Perfect.
"Aw, you're so eager to play the hero. How sweet." Piper accentuates this by patting Leo on the cheek in a gentle mannered way, like a mother would a small child, "But I can handle this on my own. Wait here, I'll only be a moment."
She doesn't even wait for his response before running towards where they last heard the noise, praying that Leo didn't see how panicked her escape was.
It took Leo an embarrassingly long time to comprehend what just happened.
"…Well, okay then," Leo shrugged, plopping himself on the forest ground and leaning against a tree trunk. He pulls out a few parts from his belt and begins to tinker, a smirk making its way on his face. Honestly, he loved how much Piper tried, and she could be a pretty convincing actor. But she would have to try a little harder than that.
He just hoped that whatever surprise Piper had for him was worth the hassle.
It's been ten minutes already, and as Leo suspected, there were no telltale signs of a fight. But Leo was not a patient person.
"Piper?" he shouted into the forest. There was no response.
"Seriously, Pipes, I don't appreciate being left here. If you've got some big surprise for me, can you just get on with it?"
No response.
"Here, I'll even pretend to be surprised!" Leo offered, rising from his spot on the ground and placing his half-baked contraption back into his belt, "I'm a pretty decent actor. I mean, unlike the idiot who was pretending to be a monster. Or a bird. I really have no idea what he was going for."
Still no response. Leo frowned. Surely it wouldn't have taken this long for Piper to prepare whatever surprise she had waiting for him…
"Okay, Piper, you're seriously starting to worry me here," he called out, "Can you at least respond so I know you're alive?"
He was greeted only by silence.
What if it was a monster? Leo's thoughts suddenly interrupted, What if she's in trouble?
Leo started walking in the direction Piper took off.
You should have gone after her, Leo scolded himself, She could be in danger with no one to help her. What if she's seriously hurt?
What if she's dead?
Leo hastened his pace to a jog.
Idiot! Did you seriously think that she had some kind of surprise waiting for you? How self-conceited could you get!? Don't you care about your friends?
Leo was running now.
She could be dying right now! She could have been ambushed with no one to help her. You're the only one who knows she's in this forest. You're the only one who could help her.
But you didn't.
Useless.
"Shut up…" Leo muttered to himself, forcing himself to run faster.
You can't save her. She's dead. It's too late.
It's too late…
Too late…
Too late…
…
You killed her.
"Stop…" Leo growled, struggling to catch his breath as he ran even faster.
Just like you kill everyone you love.
"Stop it!" Leo whimpered. His lungs burned.
You MONSTER.
"GAAAAH!"
Leo broke through the trees, and for a moment he was blinded by the bright sunlight. He rested his hands on his knees, struggling to breathe and keep his composure. When his eyes finally got used to the light. He looked up.
"SURPRISE!"
Leo fell backwards, nearly hitting his head on a rock. He groaned, the sound lost among the laughter and cheers coming from the dining hall. Because of course he was at the dining hall, and unlike Piper's initial claim, the only thing decorating it were streamers and balloons, along with a banner hanging above the entire scene with the words HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEO! painted on it in bright colors. Hazel's doing, most likely. Leo stared at the banner blankly, and a few of the kids from the Apollo cabin wondered if he had hit his head.
He had completely forgotten his birthday.
Had I really been in the Bunker for that long?
He wasn't given another chance to fully comprehend what was happening, for he was suddenly lifted to his feet by two strong hands, and Leo looked up to find his shapeshifting friend grinning down at him.
"Gotcha, didn't we?" Frank said, smiling.
"Y-yeah, I mean… wow!" Leo kept looking around at the rowdy campers, occasionally gazing back at the banner as if the words donning it would change to sport a message that made more sense to him.
"Please don't tell me you forgot your birthday," another voice said, and Leo turned to find Annabeth raising an eyebrow. Leo shrugged, sheepish, and Annabeth sighed and rolled her eyes.
"Figures that the only person who didn't know it was your birthday was you," Annabeth said, walking up to Leo and taking a place next to Frank.
"H-how did you guys even know?" Leo asked, gaze switching between his two friends, "I didn't think anyone knew."
"You wound me, Repair Boy."
Leo turned and found his two best friends, Piper and Jason (the former donning a smug grin), walking to meet them.
"Piper? You told everyone?"
"Of course!" she exclaimed, as if the prospect of not doing so never occurred to her, "It's a special day! We had to celebrate somehow."
"You really didn't have to…" Leo muttered, the situation driving him out of character and leaving him stunned.
"Of course we did!" an additional voice piped in, Leo turned (he would look back at this moment in a few hours, his neck throbbing, and wonder why everyone had to approach him from completely different directions except to add dramatic effect) to find Hazel and Percy jogging to meet them.
"We all care about you, and we're so glad that you were born," Hazel continued, "Why wouldn't we celebrate a day like this?"
"And besides," Percy added, "It's an excuse to throw a party. Why would we pass that up?"
Leo couldn't speak.
Don't cry don't cry don't cry
He was sure that he resembled a shriveled tomato with how scrunched up his face was in an effort not to tear up, but he didn't care. Just when he was thinking that they would be better off without him…
They're glad you were born. They care.
"G-guys…"
Hold it in. Not in front of all these people…
"Piper, Jason…"
Piper and Jason stood with their arms wrapped around each other, looking immensely pleased with the work they'd done.
"Annabeth, Frank, Hazel…"
Frank gave him a thumbs up that would have looked incredibly awkward if anyone else had done it, and Annabeth smiled at him in a way that seemed unusually timid for her. Hazel beamed so brightly Leo considered summoning some sun glasses from his belt.
Don't cry…
"Percy…"
Finally, he mustered the courage to look up, and the smiles his friends were wearing vanished. His face was still scrunched up in an effort to prevent tears from falling, which worked… partially. His eyes were as large as dinner plates, glistening from the water Leo mentally forced to stay in place. His body shook from the effort of containing his emotions, looking about to break down like an old, collapsing building. The sudden mood change coming from the group caught the attention of the rest of the campers, and they all went silent as they stared at the son of Hephaestus, wondering if they should do something.
"P-Percy…"
Said demigod looked at Leo with a mixture of concern and confusion, and a few of the other onlookers glanced at Percy as if he held the answer to this entire predicament.
"Y-you… You…"
Everyone waited with bated breaths as Leo finally gathered enough composure to form comprehensible words. He looked up at his friends, face resembling a raisin, snot dripping from is nose, but wearing the sincerest smile he has worn in months.
"You really need to work on your bird calls."
The entire hall was left dumbstruck. And then the spell was broken by Annabeth erupting in laughter, the rest of the camp quickly following suit and Percy sputtering indignantly.
"Hey! It wasn't that bad!"
"S-seriously!" Leo wheezed through bursts of giggles, wiping his face on his sleeve, "Were you even trying? Even Jason's impression was somewhat believable!"
"Wait, hold on," Jason interrupted, "What do you mean by "somewhat believable"?"
"Exactly what it sounds like," Leo retorted, causing the others to double over from another wave of laughter.
"You are so mean!" Percy whined, "And after everything we did for you! Maybe we should just call the party off, since you obviously are totally ungrateful towards your friends, who toiled for hours on end to prepare this for you!"
"Okay, that's a bit of an exaggeration," Annabeth said between giggles.
"Okay, I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Leo said, hands raised in surrender, "Please forgive my ignorant blubbering. I certainly have been neglectful towards the horrible torment you have overgone for my sake. I am indeed not worthy."
"Have you considered writing poetry?" Frank suggested, looking half sincere.
"How do you know I haven't been writing poetry?" Leo responded with a grin, leaving Frank temporarily stunned, before responding with his own smile.
"You've got to show me some time," Frank said, "I promise I won't laugh."
"…You know I was joking, right?" Leo asked, looking at Frank in amusement.
"Um, y-yes! Of course!" Frank stuttered, before turning away, looking troubled.
"CAKE! HERE COMES THE CAKE! CAKE COMING THROUGH!"
Leo and the others turn towards the new voice, and Leo can't help but gasp at the culinary wonder that was being carried towards him. Towering several feet above the demigods and smothered with icing, the cake was gently lowered in front of the shocked demigod. The two cake bearers sighed at being relieved from the heavy burden before turning towards Leo.
"Happy birthday, Leo!" Will exclaimed, eagerly embracing the shorter boy, "I hope you like the cake!"
"Yeah, did you know that Will likes to bake?" the younger demigod, Nico, said, to which Leo responded with a shake of his head, "By now, I wouldn't be surprised if he crocheted as a hobby."
Will turned on Nico, smirking at his boyfriend.
"I wouldn't be one to talk, Mr. Mythomagic."
Nico, taken aback, scoffed and looked away, face red. Will laughed at his response and kissed him on the cheek, causing Nico's face to turn an even darker shade of maroon.
"It's time to cut the cake!" Hazel piped up, turning to Leo expectantly.
"Finally!" Percy exclaimed, and Leo could have sworn that a thin trail of drool was making its way down Percy's jaw, "I've been forced to smell this thing for hours. It's about time I actually had a slice!"
"And just for that, you're getting a slice last," Annabeth teased, receiving a look of betrayal from Percy.
After a few minutes of delay (Clarisse, with the best intentions, had handed Leo a knife to cut the cake with, though it was obvious from the multiple stains coating it that the knife had already been used to cut other things. A replacement was eventually found, and Clarisse was persuaded into not using the knife for its original intended purpose), Leo stood in front of his cake, ready to cut in. He hesitated, and then turned to the other campers. His friends. His family.
"Everyone, I…" He stumbled over his words, trying to figure out what to say, how to convey what he was feeling now.
"I know that I can be… annoying, sometimes. And that I cause more trouble than I'm worth. But… this really means a lot to me. These past few months… They have been really hard on me."
His friends looked at him solemnly, and Leo considered dismissing what he said, but instead chose to continue with his speech.
"But… you guys have all really helped me. I'm not sure if I'll ever be as okay as I was before… but I'm definitely on my way, because of you guys. So, thank you. Really."
Finally, he sighed, and raised his knife, grinning wickedly.
"Now let's cut into this bad boy, huh!?"
The campers roared in approval, and Leo finally turned towards his cake. He examined it thoroughly, searching for a good angle to cut into, and then took his knife and sliced into the cake.
As soon as his knife sunk the cake, a piercing cry ripped through the air.
The hall went silent, and a few demigods (including Leo) looked towards the cake, as if the noise had been ripped from its nonexistent throat. The wiser members of the group, however, turned towards the sky.
"There!"
All eyes were drawn towards Katie Gardener, who was pointing towards somewhere among the clouds. Sure enough, a tiny pinprick was just visible in the sea of blue. A few demigods drew their weapons.
"Guys, calm down!" Annabeth shouted, grabbing Percy's arm, which held the newly summoned Riptide. "It's just a bird! There's no need to go into fight or flight mode!"
"We don't know that!" Clarisse countered, followed by murmurs of agreement from the rest of the Ares cabin, along with many of the other campers, "It's too far away to tell. It could be a dragon for all we know!"
"Don't be ridiculous," Annabeth scolded, "Unlike Percy, I can clearly tell what a bird is supposed to sound like-" An outraged cry came from a certain son of Poseidon. "-and that's definitely a bird. Also, if it were something dangerous, the first thing that would provoke it to attack is any sign of danger, and I'm pretty sure that thirty armed demigods fall under that category."
At this, most of the group lowered their weapons, looking disappointed.
"I'm not saying that it's not a threat. I'm saying that we should look at this rationally before we do anything stupid. For example, we shouldn't attack until we are sure that it is going to attack us."
"Um, what would qualify as us knowing for sure that it's going to attack us?" Percy asked, his eyes glued towards the sky.
"Well, maybe it would be heading straight towards us, instead of leisurely gliding overhead," Annabeth said matter-of-factly.
"Oh, so like that?" Percy said, pointing towards the sky, his gaze remaining upward. Annabeth and the other demigods looked up.
The bird (for it was now close enough to determine its general appearance, and it was, in fact, a bird) now had its wings locked, diving at a steep pace towards the ground.
And it certainly was making a beeline for the camp.
"Oh," Annabeth said quietly, reaching for her sword, "Okay, maybe we should be worried."
"You think!?" Clarisse shouted, lifting her sword in preparation for the encounter. The other demigods also raised their weapons, some moving to stand guard in front of the cake (because priorities). The bird let out another shriek, this one much louder than the previous.
"Um, is it me, or does it seem like the bird moving much faster than should be considered normal?" Hazel said, her eyes focused in a manner Leo recognized as her preparing to manipulate the Mist.
"You're right," Jason confirmed, "and the wind currents are behaving… strangely."
"What do you mean?" Piper asked, dual-wielding Katoptris and her trusty Cornucopia.
"Well, I don't know exactly how to explain it, but I can feel a kind of… pressure, when certain things, like birds, are flying near me. Kind of like an invisible weight. If the object is small, then it feels really light, but if it's really big, then it feels really heavy."
"Okay, that kinda makes sense," Piper said, though her expression indicated otherwise, "So what makes this wind pressure feel weird?"
Jason looked uneasy.
"Well, to be completely honest, I've only felt wind pressure like this once before."
He looked at the rest of the group as if he was about to deliver terrible news.
"It was when Leo, Piper, and I were flying on Festus."
One by one, the other demigods' eyes widened, and they tightened the grip on their weapons.
"So, what you're saying is…" Percy said, eyeing the approaching creature warily.
"That thing is at least as big as a dragon," Jason finished.
The bird let out a third screech, and this one was so loud that a few of the demigods dropped their weapons and clawed at their ears in an attempt to block out the unearthly sound.
"What do we do?" Hazel asked.
"We have no choice but to fight," Percy answered, his face losing all traces of fear and adopting a stern determination that reminded Leo with a start that Percy was a skilled warrior, despite how he acts otherwise. The others silently agree and hold their weapons at the ready. Leo clenches his hammer and prepares to summon his fire.
A fourth screech, and before the demigods know it, the beast is upon them.
Jason's prediction couldn't have been more on the nose. The bird was almost the exact same size as Festus, though Leo definitely would have taken on his friend in a fight in place of this creature. Despite its size, the bird appeared to be a normal bald eagle, adorning white and brown feathers and a yellow beak. However, there seemed to be a dangerous air around the eagle. Its beak and talons looked horrifyingly sharp, able to cut through flesh with ease. Its wings were long and powerful, as if it could summon a tornado with only a few powerful thrusts. And its eyes… they seemed way too intelligent for a mere animal.
Screams ripped out from the demigods as the abomination soared feet above them, passing overhead before circling back. It appeared to be searching for a place to land, and sure enough, its eyes landed on one of the picnic tables. The bird stretched out its sharp talons, rapidly flapping its wings to further slow its descent. It latched onto the table, and under the combined pressure of both the creature's weight and the force of its grip, the table snapped easily. Leo felt a wave a sympathy towards the picnic table; they really do have it rough.
Indifferent towards the damage it had wrought in the ten seconds since it arrived, the eagle lowered its wings as it settled down onto the ground, letting out a final cry that seemed almost triumphant, as if it were proud of itself for successfully landing. Then, once it had finished with its victory screech, it turned towards the armed demigods. No one moved as the bird scanned the crowd, as if its beady eyes were stiffening their muscles and gluing their feet to the ground. Leo too stood frozen, arm still outstretched at his side, ready to attack at a moment's notice (though he wasn't sure he would be able to act under the eagle's powerful gaze). The bird's eyes passed over the Seven, before whiplashing back, its eyes tearing into Leo like one would a delicious meal. Leo swore his heart stopped beating.
And then the bird burst into flames.
There were cries of alarm from the demigods, and many seemed to be broken out of the spell the bird left them in. The fire surrounding the bird licked playfully before the group, nearly burning the few unlucky enough to be closest to the beast. The sad remains of the picnic table were consumed by the flames, reduced to ash within seconds. The bird, on the other hand, seemed completely unharmed. Its feathers didn't singe, and the bird didn't seem to be in any kind of pain. Then, the bird suddenly disappeared, as if it had been consumed entirely by the flames with the picnic table. Before the demigods could even begin to question this sudden disappearance, the pillar of fire began to shrink. A few of the kids turned towards Leo, wondering if he was subduing the fire, but he was just as confused as the rest of them.
What is happening?
The flames kept shrinking, and soon rose only a few feet higher than the tallest demigod in the camp, and then even shorter than that. Finally, the flames stopped shrinking, though the change didn't stop there. The flames began to morph, forming a humanoid shape. Flames curled to become arms, legs, a head full of hair, and suddenly a being made entirely of flames stood in front of the demigods.
The being raised its arms, and the flames were diminished.
In the fire's place stood a girl. She had skin the color of coffee with a heavy dose of cream, maniac brown eyes that still held a hint of beast within them, and wild brown hair that curled its way down her back and stopped a few inches below her shoulders. She wore ripped black leggings that clung to her legs and a baby blue tank top that exposed her thin, but lean figure. Her feet were left completely bare.
Her eyes remained on Leo, and he found that he couldn't stop staring at her as well. Now that she had adopted a human form, her eyes were beginning to soften and regain some form of humanity. They seemed to glow, as if reflecting some unseen light. Then, the light began to ripple.
Wait… was she crying?
She wasn't crying… at least not yet, but she seemed very close. Her lip trembled, and it seemed to take all of her strength to continue standing. Despite everything, Leo was extremely tempted to try and comfort her, like some hidden instinct Leo didn't know he possessed was suddenly opening its eyes and yawning to greet the new day.
"I found you."
If Leo's eyes could have gone any wider, they would have.
"You're here," the girl continued, and suddenly she smiled, looking like the happiest person alive despite her previous near-breakdown, "You're really here!"
She whooped, leaping into the air and spinning around like a child on Christmas, and the demigods were once again dumbfounded. After about a minute of dancing on the remains of the recently deceased picnic table, she stopped and turned once again to Leo.
"Leo…"
Leo didn't think he had any more room to be more shocked over the fact that this stranger knew his name.
"It's time to go home."
Okay, Leo definitely had room to be more shocked.
As suddenly as it happened before, the girl burst into flames, though this time she reverted to her previous form within seconds. No one had time to react before she raised her wings and lifted herself off the ground.
And Leo certainly had no time to react before the creature lunged towards him, and he was whisked into the air.
Thanks again to everyone who reviewed, and if you've stuck with this story after so long, you have no idea how grateful I am, and again, I apologize for the hell I put you through. I'll try to be better in the future.
YOU ARE AWESOME!
Cat :3