Chapter Text
Early Morning Camp Half Blood
It was a foggy morning in Camp Half Blood. Heavy clouds blanketed the small, sleeping camp, where the loudest sound seemed to only be the flapping of the occasional harpy. The demigods seemed to all lay in a peaceful slumber as if Hypnos had given the camp his blessing. But he seemed to forget one awake and fitful person.
Thalia Grace laid in her bed, eyes wide open way before the morning call, all the hunters in the Artemis cabin snoring soundly around her. She, of course, had attempted sleep, but her mind hadn’t shut off long enough for her to doze. It’s not like she had a ton of energy or something, she just couldn’t fall asleep for the life of her. Thalia’s mind was a wild game of scrabble, and one thought wouldn’t stay in one place. After a moment of contemplation, she heaved herself off her bunk with a groan, threw on her signature leather jacket and trudged out the door, only slightly hoping for a harpy on night watch to tear her mind to shreds.
It was winter, and the weather was quite chilly despite the lack of snow due to the camp’s barrier. She stood shivering on the patio of the Artemis cabin, hoping that the lack of snoring from the hunters along with the piercing cold would clear her head. The hunters were only at camp because they were in town, and Thalia wanted to stop by and say hello to her friends. The camp always did wonders for her spirits, and if she was being completely honest with herself, she often grew homesick for the place.
Thalia’s hair, short, choppy, and darker than Nico Di Angelo’s soul, tousled in the biting winter wind that nipped at the pale skin of her face. She didn’t mind it though, it seemed to be bringing her head back down to Earth.
Just when she had thought she finally had peace, she saw a familiar figure approaching her. The person grew closer and the oh so recognizable black aviator jacket, dark shaggy hair, pale complexion, and short stature came more into view. The one and only Nico Di Angelo, son of Hades, and “Lord of Darkness.”
“Hello, Death Boy,” Thalia greeted the son of Hades as he situated himself next to her on the patio. He smiled, a genuine smile, and side glanced at her.
“Grace,” He answered back, “it’s good to see you guys in town. Also, no one calls me that.” He punctuated his last statement with a deadpan look thrown to Thalia, making her snort in amusement. He did look genuinely happy to see her, though, which is an emotion that isn’t seen much on the son of Hades, unless he’s around Will Solace. Thalia had found out about them not too long ago from Jason, and she was nothing but supportive, and also strangely ecstatic about it.
Thalia had also grown used to the wary glances that Nico would send Thalia’s way. This was because of the death of his sister, who had died with the hunters of Artemis. Thalia and him had made amends, though, and bonded over the stupidity of Thalia’s brother.
“Well, I will, Death Boy,” Thalia fired back at him, nudging him just slightly. He gave a small scoff-like chuckle and they fell into a quiet, comfortable silence. They watched as the sun slowly brought light to the camp, and the sounds of animals amplified around them, as if the world was waking up as well.
“So, Thalia, what has you up and about so early? I know you’re a hunter, all early mornings and stuff, but still it’s like 5,” As Nico spoke, breaking their silence and turning to get a better look at the lieutenant, who, to him, looked quite silly in her lightning bolt pajama pants (she matched with Jason) and signature leather jacket that was littered with patches and pins of her favourite bands.
“My mind has been scattered lately,” Thalia said quietly, adding a shrug to her words, “I don’t know why, it’s like my thoughts haven’t been able to set themselves straight for more than a few seconds at a time.” Thalia turned to Nico to see him take in her words with a thoughtful expression. After a moment, he shrugged as well.
“Maybe you could see the Hypnos cabin about that, it’s not good to be getting little sleep. I should know, as an insomniac and a partner of a doctor,” Nico said with a slight chuckle in his voice, but his eyes were still kind of serious. Nico always had this aura about him that could scare any demigod, and Thalia wasn’t an exception.
Thalia turned to look at the colouring sky, “Yeah, maybe. It would be good for me, I guess,” Thalia pondered, fiddling with her hands, “lucky I was in town, then.” Nico continued studying the side of Thalia’s face, not creepily, but more observative. After a moment, he turned to look at the same view as Thalia.
“Anything else with you? I haven’t seen you in a while, Thalia, something has to be new,” Nico murmured the last bit of his words, knowing that Thalia gives the same old answer every time she’s asked this.
“Ah, ya know. Just hunting. We’ve had a few new recruits, so it was cool to meet them, and My Lady has also been around more often, so that’s been nice as well.” Thalia rambled a bit and told Nico about one of her latest hunts, which involved a Nemion lion, and Artemis acquiring a new bullet proof pelt. After she finished telling her story, Nico still looked a bit unsatisfied.
“Well, that’s cool and all, but have you visited Camp Jupiter? Have you seen Jason?” Nico asked, and Thalia huffed out a breath.
“No… we haven’t been on the West coast in a while, and I miss my baby brother. I also want to see the city, how Ms. Annabeth Chase has made her mark,” Thalia said, remembering back to when she had Annabeth Iris message her about news of her new projects in New Rome. Thalia was so happy for her. She really missed Annabeth, and she really missed her brother who she hadn’t seen in months because of the good hunts being mainly on the East coast.
“I can assure you he misses you as well. And the city is looking great because of Annabeth. She is absolutely loving the work,” Nico told Thalia of a few projects she had worked on, and with each, Thalia’s smile grew a little more. When Nico was done with informing Thalia of Annabeth’s latest accomplishments, he excused himself, saying he needed to get back to his cabin before the breakfast horn sounded. Thalia waved him off and was left to her own thoughts, which were a lot more calm, but still buzzing. Yeah, she should see Clovis.
She hadn’t met Clovis personally, but she knew he was the cabin leader, and that he was great at his stuff if he kept awake. She would see him after breakfast, Thalia decided.
Before the breakfast horn sounded, Thalia went to change into some jeans that were ripped at the knees and had patches on the back pockets, one of a Metallica album cover and another of a Green Day album cover. She pulled on her favourite combat boots, put on a few bracelets and rings, a plain white shirt that said ‘I’ll eat you for breakfast.’ on it, and of course, her circlet. She checked herself in the mirror, adding on some dark eyeliner, and left with a slight ruffle to her raven hair. Thalia had also seen that the hunters were all up and about, getting ready for the day as well.
When the breakfast horn sounded, she led her hunters to the dining pavilion. Chiron had made the announcement that the Hunters of Artemis were visiting, and that they would be holding Capture the Flag on Friday, which the Hunters wouldn’t be there for, much to their disappointment. Thalia had a nice meal of sausage and eggs with a side of sourdough toast, and some carrots and celery.
She chatted with the Hunters and waved at friends at the other tables. She saw Piper Mclean, who was bickering with Drew Tanaka, and she saw Clarisse La Rue, who was chatting with a younger son of Ares, and she also saw Will and Nico sitting together, where Will was trying to get Nico to eat more greens, which was a funny sight. She was happy to see everyone in high spirits, and she had forgotten the feeling she got when she was at Camp Half Blood, a feeling of lightness.
After breakfast, she told the hunters she had business to attend to and excused herself. She walked down to the Hypnos cabin, and when she knocked she was answered with a groggy sounding “Come in.” Upon entering, she was hit with a wave of drowsiness, and she immediately wanted to curl up into a ball and snooze away. She surveyed her surroundings and saw a few campers knocked out on their bunks that surrounded a hearth, snoring away. She also saw what looked to be tree branches hanging over the mantle which were dripping white liquid into little tin cups. She continued scanning her surroundings till her eyes landed on Clovis, the cabin leader, who was nodding off on a pillow in the middle of the Cabin. She snapped her fingers in front of Clovis, waking him up just slightly.
Clovis resembled an overgrown baby with a thick neck and a round body. He had thin arms that heavily contrasted to the rest of himself. His scarce blonde hair was shining in the low light of the cabin to where it looked like it almost wasn’t there.
“Hey, Clovis right? I’m Thalia Grace, and I was hoping you could fix a sleeping problem I’ve been having,” Thalia wrung her hands while she talked, moving to sit in front of Clovis because she felt uncomfortable being the only one standing in the room. Clovis gave a slight shake of his head before giving Thalia a once over.
“Hello, Thalia. It’s a pleasure. What seems to be your issue?” Clovis asks the lieutenant, swaying as if he was about to topple over into a deep slumber. His words were also slurred with sleep, like he just now woke up, which he probably did.
“Well, I haven’t been able to sleep, duh , but it’s because I can’t quiet my thoughts. It’s a wild game of Roman spoons up there,” Thalia informed Clovis, nervously rubbing the back of her neck as she talked. Clovis took in this information quietly, closing his eyes in thought. Or he was falling asleep. After a moment, though, he opened his eyes.
“Here, sit next to me,” Clovis said, gesturing to a soft looking pillow that sat beside him, and it looked very inviting to the tiring hunter. Thalia did as told and Clovis turned to her, and she noted he smelled of warm milk. “Close your eyes,” Clovis instructed in a calm voice.
Thalia hesitantly closed her eyes, and she felt herself sinking into unconsciousness, her mind falling quiet for the first time in a while. She felt as if she were sinking into a lake.
Moments later, Thalia’s eyes snapped open and she jolted. Clovis still sat where he had been before, and the campers still snored in the same position they were in when she closed her eyes, but it felt as if she just got a full night's sleep. She groggily took in Clovis’s expression, which was thoughtful.
“How interesting,” Clovis murmured, moving a pudgy hand up to rub his chin. Thalia sat in confusion, unaware of how long she had been asleep.
“How long…” Thalia began to ask, her voice scratchy as if she had just woken up from a deep sleep. Clovis answered her before she could finish her question.
“Only a few minutes, you were nowhere as bad as your brother when he came to me. He almost dissolved, you know. Amnesia, tough thing,” Clovis slightly began to ramble off topic, but he seemed to snap back to reality. “Seems like a god is messing with your head. Also a tough thing,” Clovis said.
“A god? What do you mean?” Thalia asked, confusedly. What god would want to be messing with her head? And why? She had many questions.
“I’m not too sure. What do your thoughts seem to be pointing to the most lately?” Clovis asked.
“Ah…” Thalia had to think about this. So many thoughts flew in and out of her head, she had a bit of trouble remembering what exactly they were about. She did have one occurring thought though, not a super significant one in her opinion. “I keep having this flashing… image, I guess? Of dark, almost obsidian black eyes, surrounded by mocha coloured skin. There’s always a hard scowl to them it seems, eyebrows all furrowed and such,” Thalia waved her hands as she explained, trying to recall the images that would often pop into her mind when she was trying to sleep.
Clovis hummed in thought. His mouth seemed to curl into a small, sleepy smile as he came to a theory.
“So… a person, you would say? Any other prominent thoughts?” Clovis continued to interrogate Thalia, and she tried to think harder. Purple…? Purple was definitely a prominent colour that would flash in her thoughts. Oh! And a symbol… a symbol that Thalia couldn’t remember at the present moment. It was like the image was at the tip of her mind, as if it were words at the tip of her tongue. Ugh.
“Yeah, I mean a person would make sense… the colour purple seems to be associated as well,” Thalia said with a confused tone. Why would her thoughts be focusing on a person?
“Purple, hm? Perhaps a Roman. Also, if it were to be a person… maybe you’re dealing with Aphrodite. Everyone knows she loves her games,” Clovis said his last words in a hushed whisper, as if someone were listening in on their conversation. Or he was falling asleep.
“Aphrodite? What would she want with me… I’m a hunter! Sworn off romance!” Thalia exclaimed, her voice raising slightly. A camper that laid in one of the bunks shushed her, and she quieted down. Why would Aphrodite of all the gods be messing with her?
“I dunno, man. All I know is that I’m getting more tired by the moment. I’d suggest going to see Piper, perhaps,” After saying his last words of advice, he knocked out, and Thalia sighed through her nose.
“Thanks, I guess,” Thalia murmured uselessly, getting up from her sitting position next to Clovis and exiting the cozy cabin. She didn’t want to touch around love as a subject at all, it was too much of a risk in her position. She would never betray her Lady Artemis.
Reluctantly, she trudged over to cabin ten, the Aphrodite cabin, which was too pink for her to really enjoy. She really wasn’t looking forward to talking about this, if love was even the case. By the time she arrived at the cabin door, she was having second thoughts. What if Clovis was wrong? Why should I even be pulling at this thread? I can go without sleep.
Just as Thalia went to turn back and retreat, the door opened and revealed Piper Mclean, love extraordinaire and ex of Thalia’s little brother. Thalia huffed. This was going to be a long day.
“So Clovis thinks my mom is messing with your head? How so?” They had swapped greetings and pleasantries, and Thalia quickly jumped to her matter, wanting it all to be over with as quickly as possible.
“Well, I’ve been seeing flashes of a person’s eyes when I try to sleep, and purple. I don’t know why purple is involved but I just know,” Thalia said, wringing her hands nervously. Piper gave this a thought.
“Hm. Definitely a person,” Piper chuckled, “do you have any idea who this person is? Purple almost always means Roman.”
“Uh… dark eyes, almost as dark as obsidian… they’re always in a scowl with dark furrowed brows, like a look of hard determination. And they have mocha skin,” Thalia informed Piper, trying to pick out all the details she could see in her head. Piper nodded as she talked, humming in acknowledgement.
“Well, that’s a fitting description for any loyal Roman, I would guess. Besides the mocha skin and colour of their eyes, that is,” Piper pondered, her kaleidoscope eyes holding a thoughtful look. “It may be my mother. Really depends, though. Maybe this other person is having the same problem?” Piper said, spitballing. Thalia huffed in irritation. She wanted answers.
“So do I just… wait and see if it goes away?” Thalia asked. She wanted a solution, because not being able to think straight was getting to annoy her.
“Well you could do that and it may never go away. Knowing my mom, she would want you to play into the game. Maybe you should go find this person?” Piper said, shrugging her shoulders. Thalia looked at the ground and swallowed. How could she do this? She’s a hunter, sworn off romance, of course it’s the Goddess of Love who decides to play with her.
“There’s a problem, though,” Thalia was really disliking these ideas now, “I’m a hunter, sworn off romance and all that, ya know?”
Piper hummed and her expression said “oh that’s right.” Piper bit her lip in thought, an Annabeth-like thinking gesture. “My mother is really playing her games huh…” Piper pondered further, Thalia standing awkwardly waiting for her to continue, “are you strictly sworn off only boys?”
It’s like a mic dropped in Thalia’s chest. Oh. She had never thought about that. Was she allowed to be romantically involved with girls? She didn’t know. What she did know was that there were those two old, old demigods that had left the hunt and got into a relationship. Hemithea and Josephine.
“I… guess girls would be open? I would need to talk to Lady Artemis,” Thalia said, nervously rubbing the back of her neck. The last thing she wanted was to be turned into a deer and kicked out of the hunt. Piper nodded her head.
“Okay then, you should do that. Now I need to get to the archery class, and I don’t want to be late. Last time that happened, I almost got my head shot off,” Piper shuddered at the memory.
After bidding Thalia one last goodbye and a goodluck, Piper walked off into the direction of the archery range, and Thalia was left alone to her own thoughts. This was such an unnecessary situation. Why her? Why did it have to be Thalia?
As Thalia made her way to cabin eight, a rustle of leaves caught her eye. She turned toward the disturbance, where on the edge of the woods she saw a deer staring at her, willing her to follow. Oh dear, she was not at all ready.
“Lieutenant Grace,” Artemis greeted Thalia as she stepped into the clearing where Artemis sat, criss-cross applesauce on the grassy ground. They were surrounded by trees, and the deer that Thalia was chasing had vanished into thin air as soon as she entered the clearing. Thalia immediately dropped down onto one knee, bowing her head, as soon as she was addressed.
“My lady,” Thalia respectfully replied, “if I may ask, why have you called me here?” Thalia could feel a droplet of sweat trickle down the back of her neck. She knew full well why she was called here.
“Rise, Thalia,” Artemis said, and Thalia did so. Thalia tried to get a read on the goddess, who was in the form of a woman in her twenties, which was a rare sight. This only made Thalia more nervous. “I sense that you have words for me, Lieutenant,” Artemis said, and she was completely unreadable to Thalia.
“Ah… yes, my lady. I have been unable to get sleep due to… my thoughts, ma’am. I haven’t been able to think straight and it’s driving me crazy,” Thalia explained to the goddess before her, making sure to be nothing but respectful. “I have consulted a child of Hypnos, who told me to go to a child of Aphrodite because he suspected it might be her work. I’m having flashes of a person, my lady,” Thalia finished her words looking down at her boots, unable to meet the goddess’s eyes. She heard a shuffling noise and looked to see Artemis was now standing.
“Is it a boy?” Artemis asked, and Thalia could tell she was on the edge of seething. Thalia was quick to shake her head no.
“No, my lady, I do not think so. I suspect they may be a woman,” Thalia hoped that it would be more forgivable if it was forgivable at all. Thalia kept her head down, so she was unable to see the expression on the goddess’s face.
“Meet my eyes, lieutenant,” Artemis commanded, and Thalia immediately did so, scared of what would happen if she were to disobey direct orders at the time. Artemis still remained unreadable, beside the hint of anger Thalia could see in the goddess’s eyes. “Would you ever betray your vows, the hunt, and me?”
“No! Never in a millennium, my lady,” Thalia responded immediately. She would never want to let down her found family, and Lady Artemis. “These thoughts are put upon me, Lady Artemis, I have no control.”
Artemis studied Thalia long and hard, and the moments that passed felt like hours to the hunter. After a minute, Artemis seemed to come to a conclusion.
“I believe you, Thalia. I believe you would never betray me. I will allow you to play this game of Aphrodite’s. But, this is only because it is causing you grief and it is out of my hands. We cannot afford more quarrels between the gods. We are unstable enough as is,” as Artemis said this, she could feel her physically loosen from relief. She wouldn’t be punished. Thank the gods.
“Thank you, my lady, I am forever grateful,” Thalia put a fist to her breast and bowed in thanks. Artemis smiled slightly.
“You are dismissed, Lieutenant Grace. Do not disappoint me,” Artemis bid farewell. She waved her hand and before Thalia knew it, she was waking up in the Artemis cabin with a heavy feeling of vertigo. Phoebe, who was facing the opposite bunk from Thalia, turned around and jumped in surprise.
“Thalia! Where in the Hades did you come from!?” Phoebe exclaimed, the half folded t-shirt in her hands forgotten by the hunter. Thalia sat up and pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes, groaning.
“Phoebe. I'm gonna be traveling to the West Coast tonight, mind helping me pack?” Thalia asked Phoebe as she removed her hands from her eyes to look at the ginger woman. Phoebe, confused, nodded slowly.
“Oh… alright. What for?” Phoebe asked as she set down her half folded shirt to help Thalia start to pack a small pack for the trip to the West coast. Thalia had already gotten up and started stuffing needed materials into a patchy pack that she used often.
“Ah… that’s more private. I’ve gotten permission from Lady Artemis, though,” Thalia informed the hunter, who hummed in response. Thalia always liked Phoebe, she respected people’s boundaries. Phoebe handed Thalia a small square of silk, one of their tents. Thalia hummed in appreciation and stuffed it into the pack. She would have to ask Will for some emergency ambrosia squares. As a daughter of Zeus, you could never be too careful.
After finishing her packing and telling Phoebe to inform the other hunters of her absence, she turned to leave and find Chiron, in hopes he would lend her a pegasus for her travels.