❛ Dining Pavilion

@[G] Rosemarie Dragomir As far as Leonidas knew, it wasn't time for a meal yet. So, when he looked towards the pavillion, he expected it to be empty. Yet, there was someone alone sitting at a table. If he counted right, the person was sitting at Cabin Five's table. Or was it Cabin Fifteen's? He visibly flinched when his brain began to hurt from trying to figure out. Nonetheless, there was someone alone at the pavillion.

Chariot races were starting soon, so people were hustling and bustling for that. There were a select few campers who didn't participate though Leonidas strongly believed that if there was an event to join in on, it was chariot races. The chances were hard to predict and even harder to bet on, which made it a very exciting thing to even watch. Ah, that's it. That's what he's going to do. He's going to convince this person to participate with other people; y'know, be one with the camp and all that jazz. It'll be his good deed for the day.

"I heard that a smile has more potent magic than any other spell a witch can dish out," Leonidas said as soon as he stepped onto the pavillion, smiling as brightly as he could, "Other than, you know, true love's kiss. For the record, if you don't smile, I'm going to take it as you want to check if true love's kiss will work."

Okay, so she was cute. He couldn't help but try to flirt with her. Aha, oops.

@[R] Stephen Krause Oh, gods.

For the love of Aphrodite, may she be guided by any existing deity of the kitchen. Kristina couldn't set aside her regrets upon agreeing to the task, but she didn't want to refuse to do it either.

But, dear gods, she's not to be trusted when it comes to kitchen duties.

"Yes! This way, this way," she laughed—although she wasn't sure why she even laughed—sheepishly, walking ahead of him to lead the way to the mess hall. Weird scenarios of her burning off the whole dining pavilion crossed her mind, and she couldn't help but cringe; that would be the death of her—no, it would be the death of the two of them.

As soon as they were in the kitchen, all that Kristina could do was to lean on the counter, staring blankly at the empty sink.

"So, what's for dinner?"

@[G] Kristina Rose Not that it was her, either. Honestly, Stephen doesn't really mind that their paths crossed quite often, though he'd had his share of becoming an emotion roller coaster because of this certain daughter of Aphrodite. The helpless look he gave Kristina probably said it all: this task is so going to be the death of them.

"If you'd excuse us, then, Chiron..." The brown-haired demigod said, nodding his hurried goodbye with a concerned expression before turning to the beauty by his side. "Right. Let's get to it."

Huffing a sigh, he shook his head, massaging his sore arms as they made their way into the hall. To think that it's supposed to be holiday and they don't have any other choices but to work their butts off—not to mention the incoming task that could seriously be a potential disaster.

Oh well.

And to think he didn't have even the slightest idea on where they were supposed to go, having only stayed in the camp for a few weeks.

"Um, Kris? Any idea where the kitchen is?"

@[R] Stephen Krause It was as if their last activity together had not brought them enough discomfort to last them the whole holiday season, Chiron comes trotting over and assigns them with another task. Briefly, Kristina wondered if it was, yet again, another of her mother’s nasty schemes, but shook the idea away. Surely blaming Aphrodite for her every single encounter with her ex-boyfriend won’t do her any good.

Perhaps this time, she might actually just put the blame on the Fates themselves.

Being paired up with Stephen for another activity wasn’t her only problem, though… thing is, Kristina had never been one to be trusted with anything that has to do with kitchen duties. Even without actually starting the task yet, she could already picture it being a total disaster. She had tried out doing the cooking once, when she wanted to impress her father; apparently, she ended up disappointing him instead by causing a mess in their kitchen.

Having to go through the same thing again… she shuddered at the thought. Mr. D won’t be so pleased to discover a child of Aphrodite – and the cabin leader at that – had left the camp’s kitchen devastated and hopeless.

“Oh, yes, I wouldn’t mind as well,” she ended up agreeing anyway, her smile a bit too forced. It wasn’t Stephen, really. It was her own lack of skills. She did say she’d help as much as she could in camp now that they only have a few campers left, both Greeks and Romans combined, so backing out would be too late now.

With a polite nod to Chiron, she turned to Stephen, mirroring the same helpless look he had. “Well, I guess we’ll have to get started now if we want to eat dinner on time now, huh?”

@[G] Kristina Rose Though, if it's a surprise for Kristina, it was obviously Doomsday for Stephen.

The male demigod had just polished the last sword on his queue and threw it on top of the pile of weapons he had cleaned spotlessly already, when the centaur came galloping towards the arena. No doubt, Chiron had came after the archery lesson - possibly just to check up on what everyone else was doing. Stephen honestly didn't pay that much attention to him; that is, until the centaur stopped right by his side.

"Done already?"

"Yeah," Stephen nodded, heaving a deep sigh as he wiped the light sheen of sweat from his forehead. "Anything else you need me to do?"

In fact, it had been Chiron himself who told him to began cleaning works in the arena - it makes for a better training spirit, he said, and the male demigod couldn't disagree, though his arms felt as if he couldn't even lift his own weapon anymore. Somehow he wondered whether it was just him, or was Chiron simply assign the heaviest tasks for the cabin counselors to do... well, no point in thinking about that, he thought.

"Come," was the centaur's answer, and so Stephen was led to the dining pavilion - only for him to be surprised when he waved for Kristina to come over. Certainly, their encounters so far hadn't left a very good impression to each other... though honestly if they couldn't go back to what they were, he wanted to at least be friends with her.

But with how the situation was, Stephen knew he shouldn't hope too much...

"Alright, you two will do," the centaur began. "I need you to help with the dinner preparations. I'm sorry, but there's just not enough manpower to handle the works. As you know, most of our campers are enjoying their holiday, so..."

Stephen could only gave his ex-girlfriend a helpless look.

"Well, I don't mind helping..."

Today must be a really busy day at camp.

Everyone seemed to be more occupied than usual. Kristina wasn’t really an exception; she had been running errands for the camp director since this morning, at the same time checking if some of the camp’s facilities were functioning properly. It wasn’t something a child of Aphrodite should do, but well… when she had decided to stay at camp during the holidays, she did consider the fact that even the year-round demigods would want to spend their holidays outside camp. Plus, she had nothing much to do. Doing a favor won’t hurt.

After having finished delivering the last of the list of weapons to the blacksmiths in nine, Kristina intended to rest in their cabin for a while before the feast begins; but much to her surprise, as she passed by the mess hall, Chiron gestured for her to come over. Had it been a few years ago, she would have still been startled by the Centaur’s real form. Half the body of a man, and half the body of a horse. But through her years at camp, she had grown to get used to it.

Judging by how he had his bow on hand and his quiver on his back, he must have come all the way from his class. Which, by the way, Kristina had failed to attend last time—and momentarily, this made her wonder if he was going to reprimand her for missing Archery class.

But the surprise came when he told her about the task he was giving her.

@[G] Noir Drocellie Keinz Fighting skills, eh...

That was Stephen's reaction as he only blinked at the daughter of Mars who towered by the wine god's side. Murmurs started to spread - among the other cabins, no doubt - but more or less he had already guessed how the pairings would go.

The ones with mediocre fighting skills would have their partner being on-par with them at least, so they'd advance further. The ones with lesser abilities, though, would often find themselves being paired with the 'experts' so as to make the ones who were better the mentors. It encourages growth in a good way, though it has its downsides as well - but he was generally accepting of the idea, contrary to a lot of demigods present.

Until he nearly choked on his iced lemon water due to his name being mentioned.

Really now, he and the daughter of Pluto - who had just mistook him as someone she knew and... okay, let's just not go into that. Stephen nearly did not believe his rotten luck, apparently, but the almost evil smirk the daughter of Mars gave him certainly said that he didn't just misheard her.

Looking on the thirteenth table, he caught Noir's - Noelle's, as he now knew - eyes for a moment, though he quickly looked away. She was nervous, he could tell, though he doubted he didn't look nervous all the same. Who wouldn't when it comes to a child of the Underworld?

Well, he'd see how good she was when the actual training commence. There's no need to sweat it, right?

Wrong.

@[G] Bijou Roux Pompeii's smile slowly disappeared as more and more campers were being rude to her, looking at her with strange looks. She could see the question in their eyes: why have a pet crab? She didn't know, she was looking for the owner. She didn't care whether or not the pet was a bumbling blue-butted baboon, pets are friends. The owner still must be worried sick.

She was just about to walk out of the dining pavilion. She can conjure up some food for herself later on. She's got enough potions to do so. With the oncoming curfew, she should really be keeping the baby crab out of harm's way. Perhaps tomorrow would bring more luck to finding the crab's owner. However, as she was thinking this, she bumped into a stranger.

Pompeii's eyes twitched considerably as she looked at the young teenager. "I would ask you if you owned a baby crab, but I cannot handle another strange look today, especially since all this little creature needs is a home. I don't have enough restraint to deal with you campers," she snapped instantly, not even pausing to take a really good look at the young woman. She then continued on her way, putting her other hand over the baby crab so it'd receive some heat. Pompeii knew that crabs needed warmth, as they are cold blooded. With the night arriving, the crab's going to need constant heat if it were to survive. She continued to stalk off, whispering encouraging things to the crab and even heating up her hands in the slightest with a spell of hers. She was glad she knew how to control her magic so well - she didn't want to cook the poor thing, just warm him up.

{Closed for Bijou.}

Pompeii didn't want to join everyone else for dinner. She despised crowds, especially when she had no one to even remotely speak to. That's why she skipped dinner and gathered her food at a later time, rather than enduring such an unofficial social event. If she had to withstand that, there would be probably be a heart ripped out every other day. So, to appease the gods, she let herself become lonely. However, she spotted a small creature scuffle past her legs as she walked into the dining pavilion.

It was a baby crab. A sweet, innocent little crab. Probably running away from one the harpies to avoid becoming a midnight snack. Hesitantly, slowly and gently, Pompeii picked up the tiny little. Although she didn't think it would react to her, the crab managed to express gratitude and happiness towards the young woman. It had to be a pet of sorts, considering it was smart enough to run away from the kitchen. She looked around - there weren't much campers around. For that, she was glad. She had to find this crab's owner. She owed it to this crab. As it was the first thing that made her smile during her entire visit at this camp.

Thus began her small journey of finding the baby crab's owner. Some of the campers replied rudely, which made her want to grind their hearts into dust. She didn't do so for sake of protecting the small crab's eyes. Others politely said no, although they were rather fearful of Pompeii. She couldn't care, she had a life in her hands. There had to be someone that this wonderful, tiny crab belonged to.

The way the crab shuffled back and forth made her feel warm inside. It was as if it was looking for its owner with her. With a small sigh, she wished she could have her own pet. Perhaps now, she could, now that she's away from the criminal underground of London. There'd be no one to force her to watch the brutal death of her beloved, over and over and over again. Pompeii quickly shook her head, trying to be rid of those horrible, scarring images. Those poor pets. Dead, because she loved them... she smiled at the crab. At least, she could appreciate this tiny little fellow and not have to worry about gangsters killing it. They were long gone and the crab did not belong to her.

@[R] Stephen Krause Inside her head, Noir hoped for the same thing. And by 'come back'; meaning his memories.

There was an awkward silence between the two as they walked back to the pavillion. As expected, the demigod went to Zeus' table, far from where she is sitted. Her eyes followed him but immediately looked away before he could notice her stare.
I /will/ get your memories back, Stephen. I can't let you forget, she thought.

"Now that everyone is present, I can finally make my announcement." Mr. D gestured to a rugged looking, female half blood he assigned for doing this job.
Judging by the tenacious aura she's emanating, it was clear that she's a daughter of Ares (or Mars, for the romans). Noir recognized her, she's known for being one of the toughest kids of Ares, and their cabin leader.

The girl walked to the center and started reading a scroll of some sort with their names written on it. "We have tested the new campers' abilities --including the ones from Camp Jupiter, and we found out that a few of you, despite being seniors, are ranking below some of the new comers when it comes to certain abilities. So we decided to group you into pairs depending on your fighting skills." She started to assign everyone to their respective partners after that. A few oohs and ahhs can be heard from the crowd, some are happy to paired and some looked like they wanted to protest but Ares' daughter gave them a 'no buts' look before they could even talk.

"...And lastly, Stephen Krause shall mentor Noelle Keinz in swordsmanship."

Unlike the chattering noise from before, everyone seemed to fell into silence when they heard to two names. The girl rolled up the scroll after reading the last statement. "I know some of you are not very happy with your partners but do understand that we picked them for a good sake. Get to know each other and learn from your partners. That's the purpose of this. Goodluck."
With that, she went back to her table and the dinnder continued.

Noir might have been more shocked than the rest of them because her jaw hanged for seconds until her brain processed what was said.
Did she heard it right?
Her being /under/ Stephen's /care/?

So much for watching him from the shadows. Looks like she doesn't have to keep distance after all.

Noir can only nervously look at Zeus' table for her partner's reaction.

@[G] Noir Drocellie Keinz Something doesn't feel right, that's for sure. Stephen might not be the brightest demigod around (that part was for Minerva's kids), but even he realized that it was practically impossible to mistake him as someone else - unless he had a twin without knowing it. Plus, she knew his name...

Returning her grin with a guilty one (though not really knowing why he felt guilty, really), he nodded. "I hope he comes back soon."

At least, that was dealt with - for the time being. Or so he thought, for the appearance of the demigod startling them both had been the prelude to more confusion. Mr. D and Chiron, looking for them both? Announcement to be made?

He'd wanted to ask, but then he figured it was not necessary. Whatever the announcement would be, he was going to hear it from the god himself, probably. Or the centaur. Silently, Stephen followed the demigoddess back to the pavilion, walking slightly behind her. He separated from her when he took his seat by his table. A child of the sky god and a child of the god of the Underworld would never sit together in Camp Half-Blood, though he /had/ sat with her before. He could feel that something was wrong, but he had no idea what it was.

And looking at the wine god, he wondered what was about to be announced.

@[R] Stephen Krause For a moment there when their eyes locked, Noir thought she saw faint recognition in his eyes. Almost as if she had finally break through him. But it changed all too fast she wasn't sure now if what she saw was just her eyes playing tricks on her.
However if it was real, there's only one explanation for his missing memories. It's not a simple amnesia, it's much more than that. Like something powerful is blocking his memories from coming back --magic. And it's one that a mere half-blood could not cancel easily, let alone escape.

Her fist balled in rage. Whatever kind of divine entity did this to her friend is what Noir has to find out first. (and he or she better have a good reason prepared or else someone's gonna get buried halfway in the ground).

For now, all she can do is watch him from afar.

She still wasn't sure about the whole magic thing but having a possible reason is better than having tons of questions flooding your mind endlessly, taking your sleep away.

She let tonight slip away with a sigh. "It's alright. It's probably my fault for mistaking. I got too excited after seeing you that perhaps happiness clouded my vision." Noir tried to hide the ache with a grin. Stephen not remembering even her name still felt like there's a thorn stuck in her chest.

"Shall we go back now?"

Just as she said that, another demigod stepped in from the shadows of the forest, startling Noir.
"Hey, you two done talking?" He said as if not caring whether he interrupted the conversation or not.
"How long have you been there?"
"Not long enough to hear anything. If you're done, Mr. D and Chiron's looking for you two. Said he has some announcements to make."
After saying his message (sloppily), the guy left them, while yawning.

Noir looked at Stephen for a moment as if waiting for him to move. She remembered how Stephen's hand would pull her from her lonesome work and drag her to the dining pavillion when it's time to eat then secretly laugh at some of Dionysus' rants. He does that all the time so she wouldn't be alone or skip dinner. Now, he probably won't take her hand even if she offered it.
"C'mon. Let's go back." Noir shrugged, looking disheartened and turned back towards the dining pavillion.

@[G] Noir Drocellie Keinz Stephen felt a painful pang in his chest just when Noir averted her eyes, and though he still stood firmly as if there was nothing, he felt as if something was ripping his heart apart. Even his eyes went blank for a moment as the magic took control of the situation again - it had taken a very powerful magic to make a demigod such as him forget, and even then, he'd almost break through the edges of the confines; had it been stronger, it would've been dangerous.

Your pain is my pain.

Those were the words he'd said to her, once; it was part of the promise he'd given her. In truth, what he had towards her had been more than attraction. Setting his personal feelings aside, he'd owe her his life, his soul. It was ironic how he was standing in front of the very female who had given him his very existence... and at the same time, not knowing who she was.

But as he stood there listening to her words, doubts had clouded his judgment again. True, it only confuse him more, and he tried to ignore the pang in his chest, only to have it intensified tenfold as she locked their gaze - he couldn't look away. There was no denying the bitterness in her voice, but it was impossible. How could it be that he knew someone, but at the same time, doesn't? Not to mention that the person was on top of his list of the people he would want to stay away from? Had there been /two/ Stephen Krause?

One who knows, the other who doesn't. His thoughts answered it quite easily. But the truth evaded him, the truth that the two was one.

And as fast as the blink of his eyes, the blank look on his face disappeared, replaced by a firmness - though honestly he wasn't so sure anymore.

"I'm really sorry, but... I really don't know you."

@[R] Stephen Krause There it was. The answer she did not hoped for. She averted her eyes as pain and anger swell up inside her. He made it clear that not only had he forgotten about their promise but also everything they've been through and everything about her. Up to what extent was his memory loss? She wonders. But before she could even ask more, Stephen threw a question at her in which Noir let out a short, ironic chuckle.

Does she know him?

Ofcourse she does. She knows all that is needed to know about him since they spend a lot of nights talking alone. They were quite inseperable in the past. At least that's what she wanted to say, but if she did, how much would he believe about it?

She decided not to force-feed memories into him for it might scare him away rather than bring back the old feeling. You know, he might end up thinking she's some sort of delusional underworld kid. It's enough that he's already being wary of her because of their parents' relationship. She didn't want their distance to grow further than where it is now. If one day it happens that even him gets uncomfortable with her presence, Noir won't know the purpose of her existence.

"I do know you. Well.. maybe. --That's what I thought until now." She played her words so it wasn't all truth but it wasn't all lies either. "You perfectly resemble someone I knew. And even he is a son of Jupiter as well. But unlike you, I don't think he'll forget me that easily." Her words were smiling but bitter at the end. "Maybe I got the wrong person." Lying about what you truly want to say wasn't all easy, especially if it's to the person you don't want to hide anything with. "Or perhaps not." She paused. "Because you two felt exactly /alike/." With the last word spoken, her dark orbs met Stephen's eyes again, this time wanting to make a connection.

Noir didn't gave a definite answer, it would probably make him more confused but at best, it wouldn't frustrate him as much if Noir blurted out scenes unwritten in his brain.

@[G] Noir Drocellie Keinz Without so much as a glance to the other demigods who threw him curious looks, Stephen followed the demigoddess out of the dining pavilion, not really knowing what was waiting for him. He put both of his hands inside the pockets of his grey hoodie and kept his eyes on her; it was not a plausible thing that she'd attack him in camp, but he was born with a strong instinct for self-defense.

They stopped when the chatters grew faint enough from their distance, and he shivered all of a sudden. It wasn't the wind, he knew - it was something else. Something he just couldn't get a grasp of.

Yet.

Not until she finally stopped dragging the opening of her speech.

"Do you remember me?" She asked, and though he didn't think he knew her at all, there was a strange feeling bubbling up inside him as he looked into her eyes. Noir - the word he easily recognize for its origin, Film Noir... his mother talked about it sometimes, and it /should/ have meant danger.

Even then, he quickly realized that there were only two possibilities regarding the situation they were in.

Noir is a daughter of Pluto. Perhaps they were misjudged, or no, but with the cold, lifeless aura hanging around them, he had never felt safe being near one, even more so being /friends/ with one. And now she's saying that she's his 'mega friend', whatever that is?

It has to be either a very sick joke (the possibility of which he ruled out immediately), an attempt to trick him, or the truth... and even if a part of him secretly suspected that it /might/ just be the truth considering how she called him by his nickname, the second possibility would be more likely. He'd been away from camp for quite some time, and who knows what might be happening with Jupiter and Pluto in the meanwhile...

Stephen swallowed soundlessly; the smile she gave him wasn't anything familiar, but something in his heart ached as he looked at her - yet he chose not to go into it first.

"Erm, I'm afraid I have no idea what you're talking about..." he trailed off, but before he could stop himself, he asked curiously. "Do you know me?"

@[R] Stephen Krause Noir waited as the male demigod went to his table. She can feel the curiousity of everyone eyeing her but she could care less about that now. It made her worry that he didn't react like he usually do, instead he only looked at her with caution.

"Yeah, outside is fine. Follow me." Noir replied turning back to walk away from the dining pavillion, not sure what to really feel about their long-awaited meeting. It played on her thoughts that maybe he's mad at finding the truth about her and now purposely acting strange to get back at her.

Once they're far enough from everyone else, Noir stopped on her tracks and faced the guy, ready to speak. "Sorry I called you out all of a sudden. I just want to talk to you about something.." She dragged her words while looking down at the ground, hoping that if this conversation fails it will unfold and swallow her whole. She felt nervous about this and scared of the response she'll get from the person infront of her. The way he didn't recognized her earlier already caused a stab of pain in her chest, what more if she finds out that he had entirely forgotten her?

"Steve... do you remember me?" Noir looked up to meet his gaze as she asked him directly to the point. "I know I look a bit different from before but it's me, Noir, your mega friend." The brunette continued in case her name and the special call sign jot down something in his memories. Although his former actions implied that she is now completely foreign to him, Noir wanted to assure her hypothesis --but it was more like she didn't want to believe that he had forgotten her.

"I wasn't really expecting us to meet again but... I'm glad I saw you again." She smiled a bit hoping it would lessen the tensed atmosphere between them. Even if he has no memory of her now, she would at least still want to let him know that she's delighted to see him. "Do you remember the promise we made?" Noir stared at him expecting the answer that would determine whether he really forgot or not.

@[G] Noir Drocellie Keinz "Stephen Krause, the son of Jupiter."

The young male bowed to the other demigods present in the dining pavilion of Camp Half-Blood; he'd come just in time for dinner, though honestly he didn't feel like it. Realizing what happened to Camp Jupiter was a blow which he still had no enough time to recover from, and now - to think that he'd have to settle with the children of the Greek gods... and with a fair warning at that.

His electric blue orbs scanned the room; there were people he knew, but some was missing as well. With a heavy heart, he let his worries rest and continued to the food waiting to be taken from the banquet table. The offering he offered were simple; to his dad as a form of his thankfulness, to Juno as a form of respect and acknowledgement, and the last-

"Mars."

And he poured parts of his food into the fire without words, knowing that the war god probably understood his wishes, to never let the same mistake happen again. It was just when he was heading to the Zeus table that the trail of his silent thoughts were disrupted by a tall, long-haired girl with a disconcerting aura.

Somewhere... more private?

Stephen could only look at her at first; there was something about her that unsettled him in more than just one way, but he quickly realized what it was. A child of Hades, wanting to talk to him in privacy? This would be on top of the list of the things he'd have to be wary about.

"...If you insist," he said finally, deciding it was no harm because he didn't know her - or so he thought."A moment, please."

With a firm nod, he only headed to his table to set the almost empty plate on it before coming back to where she was.

"Is outside okay?"

And while there should have been, no recognition was in his eyes.

None at all.

(*couldn't be more wronged. Sorry, typo.)

(Starter for Stephen)
The day had passed peacefully in Half-blood Hill. No monster attacks, no immature camp fights. Although having the romans together at camp didn't work out in the first place, they have became less hateful of the greeks as time passed by. Probably because mr. D said everyone will have extra work if they don't learn to cooperate with each other last week. It made everyone contain their hatred for the other race, especially the Mars and Ares kids. How long will this go on? Noir wondered.

That however, was answered when a familiar face showed up on the dining pavillion. She had spent the whole day tending the pegasi stables so she wasn't aware of the new comer. "No way.. S-Steve?" She spoke solemnly, frozen in her seat as the camp director introduce the new demigod. The now boring and quiet life of Noir Keinz was disturbed by someone from her past. "Huh? You know this guy, Noelle?" A roman guy beside her nudged her arm, unfreezing her from the sudden shock. "Huh? Ah.. No, maybe. Well mr. D just introduced him so I know him /now/." She replied with sarcasm earning a snort from her friend. She turned her attention back to the latest member of the camp who was now gaining a lot of attention from the campers. It wasn't jealousy or anything of the sort that made her stare intently at him, although maybe that's what the others are thinking since a dark aura was starting to surround her, it was because she was examining the way he behaves and every feature of him. She couldn't more wronged, it was him. The very same Stephen Krause she brought back to life four years ago, her friend and the only demigod who piqued her love interest, she isn't planning to hint about her feelings though. Even his soul felt the same, still strong and courageous like a leader's but seemingly lost. However, something felt off about him. How come he doesn't recognize her despite being infront of him already? Maybe it was time's fault, perhaps her appearance had changed over the years or he just needed some recalling. There was no way he would forget about her, right? After all, they promised.

Noir stood up after gathering all her courage to stand out in the crowd. "Excuse me, Stephen Krause? Can we have a talk? Somewhere... more private." She spoke, hoping he would say yes or at least recognize her already. Her actions would definitely start a commotion later; A child of Hades wanting to have a private talk with the new comer son of Jupiter. Yep, definitely smells like trouble.

@[G] Do Kyungsoo After finishing his early field training, Jongin decided to take a break and decided to pass by Cabin 6 as promised. But sadly, Kyungsoo wasn't even in his Cabin opposing his expectations. "He woke up earlier than I expected." The remaining Athena siblings were muttering, looking at him suspiciously as he asked where his friend was. Obviously, They didn't know. He then proceeded to the Dining Pavilion to pass by.

The mere memory from yesterday still remained with him even though it somehow felt like just a fragment of his imagination. But then again, He didn't know how he would act if he saw Kyungsoo today. A little bit worried that he was wondering around alone within the camp. I mean, He could've wait for Jongin to accompany him around. Right?

As always, The area was packed with campers. Who doesn't love to eat anyways? He walked around the area and met a few of his comrades. They were asking him to join and eat with them, But he didn't feel like eating at the moment. Jongin was more watchful of his surroundings today, Maybe because he was looking for someone that he wanted to see. He kept on walking around and looked from left to right, Identifying everyone that passed by him.

Then from a far, He spotted him by the line of people. He looked little from the distance and Jongin could see he was a bit tense about the people around him. He then slowly approached his way for he wasn't looking. Jongin stopped beside him, Kyungsoo not fully aware for a second. He then gently his arm over Kyungsoo in a friendly manner. "Need any help with surviving this new experience of yours, Kyungsoo?" Jongin greeted him with a cheeky grin plastered on his face.

@Jongin

Waking up the next morning was an experience for Kyungsoo. He had vague memories of Mina and Jongin, but after he began to convert into being little, those memories became blurry images in his head that he could barely recall at the moment. The poor demigod had woken up confused as he surveyed his surroundings, and when images of him holding Jongin and whining for him came to mind he felt himself drop into a pit of despair because 'Oh God... I did not just do that yesterday.'

To say Kyungsoo was afraid to face Jongin would be an understatement.

He had arranged his room that morning and noticed there were nice clean and crisp sheets on his bed. He had a vague idea who was responsible for it, and the image made him smile subconsciously. He had put away his clothes and things and had taken a quick shower paired with a change of clothing. He felt refreshed enough now to know that he had gotten himself into a mess with the first person who had ever hugged him. Unbelievable.

He was able to momentarily meet his siblings that morning as well, but he was very aloof with them. He didn't know what to feel by having a family and although he was excited, he was also weary. The people who have been close to him up until now haven't really been good people... well except Jongin that is.



Kyungsoo knew he had to attend camp activities so begrudgingly, he put on some sneakers and made his way out of his Cabin and towards the Dining Pavilion.

Being new was a terrible experience. Kyungsoo didn't know what to expect when he found the area filled with tables and food and magic cups that were never empty. He didn't know what food to eat or where to sit and his siblings weren't much help either.

Shyly, he made his way towards the line. He kept his head down and made sure his glasses covered his shaky pupils. He was completely anxious to be in a place with so many unknown people and he could feel his heart beating faster with every scrutinizing gaze directed at him. He gulped audibly as he could feel the awkwardness seeping through his skin and he just wanted to go back to his cabin and crawl under his sheets and cry because he didn't want to be there anymore.

@[G] Park Sunyoung “Don’t blame me sis, you’re adorbs.” He laughed as well, dragging her inside the pavilion at the process. The male grinned as she complimented his name; well, it wasn’t much of a big deal but he seriously had no clue on how or why was he named that way. But as of what she had said, ‘Chanyeol’ really did sound cool. He chuckled at the thought.

Being able to discover rather sensitive facts about the female somehow got Chanyeol nodding at her in understanding—it was very hard, having those evil witches as a step mom or sister or whatever their relation is to her, he could tell by the look in her eyes. Smiling softly, he paused from his tracks and faced her. “Hey hey, let us not be dramatic. Everything happens for a reason, okay? Don’t think that there won’t be a prince charming for you.. You’re awesometastic. There’s no way that someone won’t fall for my lil’ sis’s charms!” He pinched her cheeks with a cheery grin, before continuing to drag her inside.

“Better yet, we should dig up so we’ll have enough energy to lurk around camp, aight?” The tall male nudged her, taking two plates for both of them. “Pancakes? Wow, this looks yum.” He then grinned impishly as he stood in front of the platter filled with layers of pancakes and forked two pieces into his plate, along with the syrup and butter and all. Not to mention the scrambled eggs and fried bacon at the other side of the table—gods, was he excited to eat all of those.

Chanyeol then started to pick out almost everything from the platters. Oh, what an appetite he has.

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@[G] Kim Myungsoo Amber sat down on one of the chairs at table number 13 and waited for the food to arrive. She started to fiddle with her fingers and checked the time.

'6:45' Should have dropped by at the temple before going here. She thought and tried not to feel hungry but then her stomach growled and then there right in front of her was a goblet. "Thank the Gods..." she whispered and grabbed it, whispered earl grey vanilla tea, and then she started gulping down the warm liquid and instantly felt relief. She checked her watch once more.

'6:59'

Children from all cabins started filling up their seats and tables but none of her siblings were there. Perks of being a child of the God of the Dead.

Food was served by a nice nymph she never knew (and will never know) and still none of her siblings were there. She looked at her plate and felt her stomach rebelling because of hunger and then she started consuming half of the cheese and bread, which she was okay with.

Everybody from the first three tables started piling up to offer their food for their godly parent and still no sibling? Really?

She only sighed at the thought and waited for the nth time till it was her turn.

(at last!)

@[G] Park Sunyoung “Well sorry if I ain’t like those Athena dudes to think fast, you know.” He scrunched his nose in fake irritation, shooting playful glares towards the other. “But the concept of your name really is cute. I don’t even know why I was named Chanyeol for crying out loud!” The male laughed, his left eye twitching instinctively as a fit of chortles escaped his lips, sheepishly ruffling Luna’s hair once more.

Hearing her short backstory, Chanyeol couldn’t help but to feel the curiosity dawn on him. “Why not? Did you cousins made you feel out of place or something?” He inquired in a surprisingly serious tone, evidently not trying to hide the fact that he had grown to feel concern towards his sister. “You’re lucky, at least you had strings attached to your other relatives.” The lad flashed a small smile, mindlessly recalling the times in which he was abandoned by his aunts and uncles—foreseen as a nobody to the once most favored nephew before. Gods, was he traumatized.

It was a good thing that Luna still had someone to lean on before. He felt relieved that she did not encounter such rough times unlike him.

Until then, they finally reached the dining pavilion. Chanyeol nudged the female and grinned sheepishly as he pointed his eyebrows towards the platters of scrumptious delights lined up in a table at the far corner of the area. “Guess we’re a bit early, huh, sis?” He commented, now his lips at the sight of food nearby.

@[G] Kim Jongdae That moment, Krystal knew she was supposed to snap at the other, probably telling him to shut the hell up and how she doesn’t care about what he actually thinks. But the thing is, of all the other demigods—including those who were already staring at their direction; which, by the way, was almost more than half of the half-blood population in the hall—only his opinioned mattered. She didn’t mean it in an overly romantic way, because obviously he was just another stranger to her as much as she was to him, but there was something in the way he approached that piqued her. She wished she could have been a different person, and by then she could have given him a better reaction. He was interesting in a way that she no longer had the urge to /actually/ snap at him, nor do something stupid to veer him away. “So you’re saying you have a strong desire for trouble, then?” and she just had to ask the obvious; of course he does. He wouldn’t be saying those words if he doesn’t.

Oh, the dancing mischief within the lad’s eyes confirmed that in no other circumstances will he back down, even if she tries to push him away. With him around, made Krystal realized how she had always been for the past few days—for the past few years, even. She refused to believe so, but she had been an ‘emo’, as so what the others deem her as. What, with sulking on a corner and whatnot. Which, she had also came to realize, she should not be.

“And you really want to know how?” a smirk dons her previously dull expression as she straightens up in her seat.

@[G] Kim Jongdae [ sorry for the late reply! omf- a child of Hades or Hermes? XD ]

Propping her elbows on the table, she rests her chin against her left palm, looking at the other with her brows still arose. “Really? How so?” she challenges, although slightly hoping he’d provide her more ounce of information and reasoning as to why the others were wrong about their presumptions of her whole existence. With her years at Camp Half-Blood knowing whose offspring she is, she had always seen it part of her insane normalcy that people see her as someone different—someone rather dangerous.

Krystal bit her lower lip and shut her eyes. She was /just/ so close to laughing, that she had to resist the urge to just do so. How strange that he had such an effect—oh, maybe because as mentioned, he’s a child of Hermes. Children of Hermes, as far as she knew, had always been the ones who could make your day brighter, although not as literally as the children of Apollo or Apollo himself. They had always been natural jokesters. Although so far, the only child of Hermes she’d known better was no other than their cabin counselor, Choi Jinri. Albeit being childhood friends with her, with the years they’ve been separated, they had been… well, kind of awkward around each other.

“It’s alright,” she breathes out a sigh, nodding her head. “It’s really alright.”

@[G] Kim Jongdae “How are they wrong, then?” she raises a brow. Krystal had gotten used to what she hears about her long enough not to care—but honestly, she couldn’t avoid such times when she’d just believe what the others speak of her. How she seems so gothic and emo, how she looked so thin and frail yet dark and intimidating, how she seemed like a psychopath with her wayward hair, how she seemed out of date with her not-so-stylish taste with the clothes she wear, etc. Some of those were plainly obvious, what, with her outer appearance. What she couldn’t just get was what among those rumors could be wrong. How she wasn’t grumpy, maybe? Eh. But of course, everyone knows how she’s got her own anger problems. And socializing problems, too.

She didn’t really expect for him to notice how she made a pun out of his name—but oh, he did. And when he suddenly burst out of laughter, she swore she would have done the same. Not because she found it funny as well, but have you ever gotten that feeling when someone’s laugh could be funnier than the joke itself? And for some reasons she cannot quite decipher, the way he laughed made her want to do the same—to just laugh. Weird enough that she chose to frown instead, her lips pressed into a thin line. He’s a weird man, he’s a weird man, don’t laugh, don’t laugh… yes, she had been reciting that mantra again and again in her own thoughts. There’s even this weird part when a voice in her head says: be pissed off.

“You’re one lunatic man.” Again, she fought the urge to slam her face in the table, but this time, not because of the man himself. But because of herself.

@[G] Kim Jongdae “What’s so funny?” Krystal snaps, swallowing down a chunk of meat. The way the other seemed so cool about how she seemed so irritated made her frown deeper. Was the way she reacted to how he pestered her really funny? Weird. Not her, but him. Because usually, he other half-bloods (not unless a half-blood of Nike or Ares) would have veered away just by the sight of her so-called ‘grumpy’ face. By that, they were already aware that sooner or later, she’d probably go berserk—which is not a very pretty sight, despite yet unseen.

Krystal groans, pushing her half-eaten plate of food away a little, fighting the urge to literally slam her face on the desk. “I am pleasured to be graced by your demigodly presence, Jong-day,” she says through muffled voice, “please just call me by the name Krystal.” It was her field of specialty—sarcasm. But of course, she doubted sarcasm works with the other. “I told you, I’m not being grumpy!”

Okay, she was being grumpy. Obviously, she was. But really—people like this Jongdae guy… rare. Very.

@[G] Kim Jongdae “… shut up,” was all Krystal could make up as a reply, looking at anywhere but the latter. It wasn’t that she wanted to avoid trouble by pretending he wasn’t there—when in fact, she almost desired for trouble right at that very moment—but because she had no idea what could possibly the reason as to why, of all the other campers present in the hall, he chose her to be a target to pester.

“I am not grumpy,” she denies, although it was indeed obvious that she was. “Stop answering me with questions, you.” She pointed her fork at him before using it to stab another piece of meat. His wit was amusing, alright. But among the crowd of demigods, he just had to bug her. If he was new, shouldn’t he be fed up with some rumor circulating the camp about her, and decided it would have been better off if he avoided her? Huh. Maybe he doesn’t know. Or maybe he simply does not care.