Chapter Text
Travis, during his four years here, had never seen a clouded sky at Camp Half-Blood.
But ever since Percy Jackson had been claimed by Poseidon the rain hadn’t stopped falling.
It felt like the clouds were trying to suffocate them; enormous trails of dark gray standing menacingly over their heads. The air was heavy, almost tingly. They could all feel the thunderstorm that was hiding above. It was unsettling enough for a mortal, but it was full-on creepy for a demigod like him who knew who was behind all this: the king of the Gods himself was watching them, impatiently waiting for his master bolt.
The majority of the campers didn’t know the full story, but Travis was good at catching bribes of conversations. The day Percy Jackson left with Annabeth and Grover, a council with all the cabins’ counselors had been announced. After it ended, he had come across Charles Beckendorf and Silena Beauregard going back to the campfire. They were talking in hushed tones about how someone had stolen Zeus’ lightning bolt and his foolish suspicions about Poseidon and his eleven year-old son. Travis had guessed it meant Percy Jackson was the true victim of Zeus’ ire.
Travis felt bad for him. He knew the guy had lost his mother right before coming to camp and now he was being thrown into a mythical world he didn’t know the rules of. Even though Travis was the same age as him, Percy Jackson looked like a little boy, with his small size and frail arms. And for now, his insane powers were completely overwhelming for him.
He had no chance of coming back alive.
Travis briefly wondered if Zeus would really fry them all if Percy failed his quest; and that thought made him shiver. He detached his eyes from the swarming clouds.
The Hermes cabin was sharing the arena with the Demeters this afternoon. A light drizzle was making the weapons slippery and their clothes were sticking to their skin. In the middle of the arena, Luke was still clashing swords with Chris. It was meant to be a simple exercise about sharpening their reflexes or something like that, but the two of them were fighting to death. It wasn’t so surprising to see Luke vehemently slashing and blocking; he was the uncontested god of the Camp’s arena. The other kids, including him, were supposed to analyze the duel but most of them were stealing glances at the menacing sky.
His arm was grabbed and Connor’s silly face came into his field of view.
“Look! Alabaster is flirting with a Demeter girl!”
He was pointing right towards the two campers who were chatting and standing close to one another. Travis couldn’t help but snicker. He didn’t get what was so nice about girls but it was always funny to see other people trying to shoot their shots. Connor was mocking Alabaster with exaggerated winks and weird kissing noise when someone threw a helmet to his chest. Luke was staring at them with stern eyes, his dampened hair sticking to his forehead.
“Congrats, Connor, ” he said and cracked a brief smile, “you’ve just won the right to store all the swords in the armory. Everyone else to the showers. You guys stink.”
The Hermes cabin groaned while Chris objected that Luke was smelling the worst, which earned him a kick in the shin. Following behind, the Demeter cabin was gently chastising the girl who was talking with Alabaster. It was a shame that Katie was stuck in the infirmary– the result of a fall from a pegasus– she would have loved to tease her sister. Behind her sweet act, Travis knew she was a big gossip.
Travis was getting up, ready to follow suit, when Connor nudged him in the arm and tried to look innocent, “C’mon we have swords to pick up.”
“You have swords to pick up.”
Connor dramatically put an hand to his forehead. “Traviiis… Please– Help your poor little brother, he’s gonna die under the weight of all these swords!”
Gods, he's such a drama queen. “Fine– but you owe me moron.”
Luke, who was stashing away the hydra dummies besides them, rolled his eyes and also muttered something about a drama queen.
Little by little, the light drizzle that was falling on his arms became a driving rain and he heard Connor squeal before dashing to the armory.
He wondered if it had anything to do with Percy Jackson's quest.
Travis squeezed the three swords he had already picked up against his chest and turned around, expecting Luke to tell him to seek cover. Instead, he found him standing in the middle of the arena, staring at the rumbling sky. Drops of water were falling down from his hair to his neck, but it didn’t seem to bother him. Travis couldn’t see his face, but his shoulders were tense and his fists closed on his sides.
Time stopped for a few seconds. It was like Travis knew; knew deep down that something was wrong.
“Luke..?” he asked hesitantly and Luke finally detached his gaze from the dark clouds to slowly settle on him.
Travis was one of the few demigods who had a full-blood sibling. Connor and him were an exception in that matter; unlike Castor and Pollux, they weren’t twins. His immortal dad had come back to his mortal mum and gave him a little brother. He felt a weird sense of pride in that regard. But still, there were two or three people in his cabin that he considered family, almost as much as Connor.
And Luke was his big brother, before being his counselor. He had helped Travis unburdened himself from the weight of being Connor’s sole role model. He was funny, nice and caring with all the kids in a way nobody had ever been. He was handsome too– a lot of girls (and sometimes boys) were fawning over him. That was another thing Travis was proud of: they had the best counselor– the most popular at Camp.
He hoped Luke would stay counselor for a long, long time. Nobody could do it like he did.
But ever since his failed quest, Luke was growing more and more restless, in a way that only his close siblings and friends could see. He had trouble sleeping– Travis had heard him get up in the middle of the night more than once– and was training with much more commitment than before. And the situation had worsened in recent months. He was getting up almost every night.
And now Annabeth was gone on an impossible quest with Percy Jackson. She wanted to go so badly– and they were happy for her. But Travis had seen the burial shroud the Athena cabin was embroidering. They were scared she wouldn’t come back. Luke included.
Travis ran towards him, not caring about getting wet but careful not to drop any swords.
“Are you thinking of Annabeth?” he asked and Luke took the swords from him. His eyes– blue, just like his own– were staring at him, so much that it made Travis wonder if he had anything funny on his face.
“I hope she’s doing fine,” Luke finally said. “She’s cautious most of the time but I know she can be reckless. I wonder if you and Connor had something to do with that.” He raised an eyebrow and Travis grinned sheepishly.
A loud thunderclap boomed suddenly over them and Luke’s face suddenly hardened.
“You know what’s happening, right?” He asked, but it was obviously rhetorical.
It was Travis’ turn to raise an eyebrow.
Luke continued, “You’re a smart kid, Travis. And well– You’re always listening around. You know Zeus is looking for his master bolt.”
He hadn’t seen that coming.
Travis glanced briefly at the sky –maybe he was afraid Zeus would fry someone if they talked in any way about what was happening– but no thunder fell on them. His brother scoffed and he looked at him, surprised.
“You shouldn’t be scared of them,” Luke said, and his voice sounded bitter. “They are our family, they made us and yet…” He seemed to hesitate for a second. “Yet– They don’t hesitate to threaten us for something we didn’t do. It’s not fair.”
A pause and then, “I know you and Connor like Hermes but Travis, do you really think he would lift a finger if Zeus decided to punish you for something you didn’t even do? ”
The rain was still pouring on them, but it had nothing to do with the chills that took over Travis’ body. What could he say? He knew Luke and their dad had some bad blood between them– Luke was reluctant to share what had happened but anyone could hear the resentment in his voice when he had to talk about Hermes. He was never praying to him or giving his respects. He cared about keeping cabin 11 a welcoming place but it certainly wasn’t to honor him. The most he did was throw food on his behalf in the brazier and it was more mechanical than anything else.
Luke’s face softened upon seeing Travis deflating and he offered a small smile, his hand coming to rest on his shoulder. “I’m sorry T., I didn’t want to sound so angry. I just want you to know that you’re safe, as long as you’re with me.”
It didn't matter to Travis that his big brother didn't like their dad. Each demigod had their point of view in the matter of their parents. For him, Hermes had given him Connor, half-siblings and an exceptional life that no human could have ever lived.
“You know, Luke…” He hesitantly took his brother’s hand away from his shoulder with his own and squeezed gently. “I want you to be our counselor forever. You’re the best here. So please– be careful.” Be careful about what you’re saying; what you’re thinking.
Luke was making a weird face now– sadness, resignation, gratitude, happiness, frustration– and he seemed to think about what to do. After a few seconds, Travis was engulfed in a crushing hug. They were both soaked from head to toe but he could only feel the reassuring warmth of his big brother’s arms.
______________________________
Percy Jackson came back to Camp, alive, three days later, with Annabeth and Grover in tow.
The whole place was in a frenzy. The Apollos and Aphrodites were trying to organize a campfire gathering to celebrate the successful quest– while the Ares were training even harder and monopolizing the arena. Some campers were trying to get to the infirmary and congratulate the three survivors. Some still couldn’t believe that a scrawny little guy like Percy had the nerve to prove Zeus wrong.
For his part, Travis was busy scrubbing platters and pots with Connor in the underground kitchen when Annabeth came strolling down the stairs, hands on her hips and grinning deviously. “Punished as always, Stolls.”
She looked like a tiny goddess with a laurel wreath on her head and the beautiful shroud her cabin had made on her shoulders. But she was also arboring bandages, from her head to her legs. It looked painful.
Connor let out a small cry of surprise and dashed towards her, uncaring of his asbestos gloves full of lava. “You’re alive!”
Annabeth dodged the gloves but still briefly squeezed Connor against her. “Of course. Told you this would be my year and my quest.”
Travis let the plate he was cleaning fall back into the lava and went to hug her as well.
“More like Percy Jackson’s quest,” he joked.
“So what did you do?” Connor asked. “We’ve heard people talk around Camp but some of it must be bullshit.”
“Language”, a harpy lectured from across the kitchen and Connor offered a sheepish smile.
“Well…,” Annabeth sat down on the stairs, and put her cheek on her closed fist. “First we fought the Furies in a bus, then we fought Medusa– now that was scary– then Percy fought a chimera and fell down the Gateway Arch in Missouri, then Ares– the god of war– brought us hamburgers and led us to a pool trap made by Hephaestus, then we went to Las Vegas and we were almost stuck for eternity inside a casino and finally– we went to Hell.”
If it had been any other person than Annabeth, Travis wouldn’t have believed that. But one– he could feel when someone was lying, surely a gift from his godly parent– and two, Annabeth was not a liar, although she was a bragger.
He whistled and Connor slowly clapped. “I can’t decide if this makes me want to do a quest or kill myself before going on one.”
Annabeth snorted and Travis saw her eyes glint. “Honestly? I thought I’d die about twenty times during those ten days but… It’s nice being out of camp. I’ve learned a lot.”
“Yeah, I wouldn’t go outside to learn–”
“Oooh, what about a heist?”
“Con, you’re a genius.”
“I know T.”
“I’m never taking you guys on a quest.”
Annabeth tried to look annoyed, but Travis knew it was fake. She had been a constant in their life ever since he and Connor had arrived at Camp. She was of Travis’ age and only a year older than Connor. A few hours after they had arrived at Camp, Luke had made the presentations and soon enough Annabeth was the Stolls’ favorite person to annoy. She was fierce and quick-witted– never backing down from their tauntings.
“And Percy?” Connor asked. “How did he do?”
Annabeth’s mouth curved into a subtle smile. “Honestly..? It was nice to have him around. He was clumsy at first but he’s got what it takes to be a great hero. And he’s funny. I think… No, I know he’s become a friend. I call him seaweed brain, it suits him.”
Connor nodded enthusiastically, “And his powers?”
“They’re unbelievable. He can breathe underwater, talk to river nymphs– manipulate water of course– and besides all that, he’s really skilled with swords.”
“He did manage to disarm Luke’s sword once.”
“ Yeah, I’d forgotten about that…” She seemed to ponder about that for a few seconds– then checked her watch. “The feast starts in thirty minutes. I’ll see you there?”
Travis looked at the pile of platters that were still floating in the lava and grinned maliciously. “You won’t help us with this, Annie belle of the ball?
Annabeth’s eyes darted quickly to the harpies– still busy with the cooking– and gave him the finger. “Your punishment Stolls. Not mine.”
______________________________
The bonfire was one of the best they’d ever had.
All the campers were happy to celebrate a successful quest. The fire was tall and bright coloured, the atmosphere was warm and everyone was singing. Nymphs and satyrs had been invited to join the celebration– Grover was showing his brand-new searcher’s license to anyone who wanted to see. Percy was showing them the ugly shroud the Ares had done for him. He didn’t seem hurt or disappointed– on the contrary, he looked smug about the whole thing. “A loser who still managed to stand up to their father, uh.”
“And for that, we’re eternally grateful,” Travis laughed and some campers nodded in agreement. He was sitting between Connor and Chris, in the circle that was formed around the son of Poseidon– mainly kids from cabin 11, but also some Athenas and Hephaestus.
The Ares were the only ones sitting on the opposite side of the amphitheater. They wanted to look bored and threatening but everyone could see they were also enhanced by the bright atmosphere. Even if seeing Percy triumphing was a pain in the ass, they couldn’t help but feel relieved the clouds weren’t trying to suffocate them anymore. Everyone was. Even Mr. D seemed in a better mood than usual. The sun had taken back its rightful place above their heads.
It was almost midnight when Lee Fletcher, who had led the chants and chorus, announced the end of the party. Everyone knew that meant it was bedtime for the youngests and sneaking time for the oldests. The head counselors gathered (in a sort of weird organized chaos) their siblings while Luke waited for all of them to leave. It was easier that way to regroup all the Hermes– determined and undetermined. Percy also stayed behind and Travis guessed he didn’t want to be left alone in his cabin just yet.
“And Annabeth actually managed to play ball with Cerberus,” Percy was walking next to him and Connor, his laurel wreath dangling from the side of his head. “I thought she was about to become the world’s largest dog biscuit but all three heads started fighting for the ball! And then…”
Travis had to admit that Annabeth was right– Percy wasn’t the lost and grieving boy he had met ten days ago. It was crazy how much he had grown in such a short time, but he supposed going on a quest was the best way to get used to all the magic that was surrounding them.
“So it wasn’t Hades who stole the bolt, in the end.”
The three boys turned around to see Luke following them, casually drinking from a can of Coke. Not unusual coming from his big brother.
“We were mistaken,” Percy admitted. “The god who has turned was Ares. But he only wanted war for the sake of it. Someone else told him to do this. It talked to me–”
He suddenly stopped himself and pressed his lips together.
“You heard him?” Luke asked alarmingly.
“I didn’t want to!” Percy’s eyes widened and he lifted his hands above his chest. The poor boy looked ashamed. “I’ve heard it in my dreams and it was horrible. I talked about it with Zeus and my father, I swear that they know about that!”
Connor turned to Travis, who nodded meekly. He’s not lying.
“And I don’t know who it is.”
That was a lie, though. For a few seconds, Travis thought about confronting Percy about it– but he guessed he must have had his reasons. He suspected Zeus, Poseidon or even Chiron had forbidden him to say anything.
“It’s okay, Percy.” Luke was trying to reassure him as best as he could. “Deities and spirits like to use dreams to communicate with us. And it’s almost impossible for us to get away from those.”
After some more reassurances that no, we don’t think you’re a freak because you hear voices, Percy left them to join his cabin and the Hermes went to their own. It took Luke almost thirty minutes to have all the youngests ready to sleep in their bed– as usual– and Travis bid his little brother good night by smacking the back of his head from his top bunk.
Two hours later, he briefly heard the oldest campers sneaking back into the cabin– Luke, Chris, Alabaster and two or three more– and fell back asleep almost immediately.
Travis was dangling somewhere between sleeping and dreaming when he heard someone gasping for air, rather loudly. He lazily got up, half-closed eyes searching for the origin of the noise.
Someone moved away from their bed and hurriedly scrambled to the bathroom. The frantic breathing continued, although muffled, and Travis swore he heard pleading. He was halfway on the ladder of his bunk-bed when the door opened and he turned around.
Luke was there, arms against his bare chest, hands jammed into his armpits– rooted to the spot. He looked lost.
“Are you okay?” Travis asked, lowering his voice to a whisper and tiptoeing towards his big brother. He could see through the light of the moon how white his face was.
“Just a bad dream, T.” Luke was clearly trying to regain some composure, but Travis could hear the tremors in his voice. “C’mon– Back to bed, you little snoop.”
______________________________
Luke was gone two months later, at the beginning of September, betraying them all.