Camp Half-Blood: Into the Storm - Closed!

[Kveykva]

──── Ａｉｄｅｎ Ｓｅａｖｅｒ
【✦】| Athena Head Counselor | 15 | Male | ➡ The Stables | Tags: Skylar
❝𝚐𝚒𝚟𝚎, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚐𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚕 𝚒𝚝 𝚑𝚞𝚛𝚝𝚜❞

He could almost see the gears turning in Skylar's head as he awaited her response. Would she be receptive to the offer? They were both going on the quest, and that meant they'd have to work as a team. But that didn't explicitly mean they had to get along. We're not invincible. There were a few campers that Aiden felt would have some choice words to say about that statement, but that didn't make it any less true in the end. After a moment, the Hecate head counselor accepted Aiden's hand and shook it, the Athena camper returning her wide smile. "Yeah, it kinda comes with the gig I guess." he laughed. He did have a knack for saying the right thing at the right time, but he wasn't entirely sure that came from his heritage. Most people didn't think when they were frightened, he'd discovered. In response to the nickname, Aiden rolled his eyes and stuck out his tongue. "Yeah, I know how to saddle a pegasus. And not because I'm a child of Athena." That wasn't entirely true, but he wouldn't admit that. "Keep her here for a second and I'll go get the tack." The younger boy darted into the stall, returning with his arms full of saddle and tack. He made short work of dressing the black mare, though he made sure to explain each step to Skylar as he did them. "See? It's not that hard. Just takes some practice is all. I'll teach you properly when we get back." If.

──── ＷｉｌｈｅｌｍxＷａｔｔｓｏｎ
【✦】| Hephaestus | 18 | Male | ➡ Forges | Tags: Kade
❝𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚋𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚜 𝚜𝚘 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚎❞

Hearing Kade sigh in amazement was music to his ears. Even if it was his ma who made the thing, that was his family name Kaden was impressed by. If things went well, eventually Will would inherit the company from her, too. He already helped build some of them, just not this one in particular. "You make a good point, but I wasn't talkin' about no monster attack on my way 'ere." Will said, picking up the weapon from its bed, holding it in his hands. "I need t' get a feel for it, shoot it at th' range. Didn't get that chance 'fore I was on my flight. I oughta test it here a bit, but that'll wait till after the shrouds're finished. Ain't no way they're waitin' on those."

──── Ｌｕｃｙ Ｂｌｉｔｚｅｎ
【✦】| Apollo | 16 | Female | Cabin 1 ➡ Forest | Tags: Orin, Auggie
❝𝚒 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚢𝚜𝚎𝚕𝚏 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝚊𝚜 𝚊𝚗 𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚎𝚗𝚐𝚒𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚛❞

Slowly, as Orin kept speaking, Lucy's confidence in the situation began to grow, her usual demeanor beginning to return. She wasn't the same Lucy, either version that he or Auggie would know, but it slowly crept back into her voice."I wouldn't want her to step down," The daughter of Apollo whimpered. "This has been her life for as long as I can remember, she wants to make a difference. That can't happen if she resigns, there are so many things that would pass without her. And... I doubt that would make the world any more demigod friendly." Not that the world was friendly to their kind anyway, though many of them didn't know. At least, that's how it had been three hours ago. "You don't have to come if you don't want," she offered, cleaning her eyes with a damp paper towel. Lucy looked notably less raccoon-like, but she'd have to redo her makeup later.

"I'm not sure I want to face this by myself is all," a cruel admittance, but perhaps a show of vulnerability would put her in a better light for the other cabin counselors to see. There was some truth to the words, but not as much as she insisted. "It isn't far."

True to her word, the trek into the forest wasn't far; just far enough into the woods to give a demigod a sense of solace and seclusion. The ideal place for an Iris message, a restricted phone call, or a private conversation. The landscape was barren and snow-covered, with the underbrush swallowed beneath evergrowing fat flakes and the still leafed trees drooping from the weight of snow and ice. A strange sight for the deciduous plants. In the midst of all the far older trees stood a young conifer, an eastern hemlock. It stood almost twice as tall as the campers, but it still stood out like a sore thumb from the rest of the flora. Lucy scampered up to the tree, circling its trunk while running her hands over its needle-lined branches. "It's good to hear you haven't had any problems with those hemlock bugs, but the dryads aren't still bullying you, are they?" Her voice was kind and soothing, the tree swaying its branches in response to her words.

──── Ｍａｘｉｎｅ "Ｍｏｘｉｅ" Ｂｉｓｈｏｐ
【✦】| Mars | 29 | Female | ➡ San Francisco hotel | Tags: Laika
❝𝚑𝚘𝚗𝚘𝚛 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚠𝚊𝚛𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚐𝚒𝚟𝚎❞

Moxie felt a slight warmth in her cheeks. "Right, ah... Military's done a hell of a lot to straighten me up since we last spoke." In fact, she was a wildly different person since she'd last been to Camp Jupiter, she was amazed Laika even recognized her. Moxie cleared her throat. "I don't know if the Hunters keep up with the news, but I imagine you've heard by now. Malcolm Kingston." She paused to let the name sink in. "I couldn't say I believed him at first, but I'm in San Francisco right now and... and it's true." a second pause. "Camp Jupiter's completely surrounded. I wouldn't have been able to get through if I tried, so I haven't been able to reach either of the praetors. It's not the national guard and MCRD sanctions them to be there. There's nothing I can do besides, well, this." Maxine sighed, massaging her temple with her free hand. "Please tell me you can get in touch with those bloody Greeks, at least. There's─Malcolm isn't working alone. I know he's got divine aid, but I don't know who's working through him. And there's another─there was another god. I... I killed it. Him."

──── Ｎｉｃｈｏｌａｓ Ｓｔｏｒｍ
【✦】| Horseman of the Apocalypse | 56 | Male | ➡ Mount Marcy | Tags: Vivienne
❝𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚜𝚊𝚝 𝚘𝚗 𝚒𝚝 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚗𝚊𝚖𝚎 𝙳𝚎𝚊𝚝𝚑❞

Nicholas waited calmly for Vivienne's answer, sipping his chosen drink as he sensed a buzz of emotions from the young demigod. Her answer would arise soon enough, there was no sense in prying. "I figured as much," he spoke knowledgeably, meeting her gaze. "I doubt it would surprise you to hear me say I saw it coming. I could tell you lost someone; you practically ooze the emotion." he took another sip, lips lingering on the edge of the cup. "Your bond with her was strong, and that makes the memory strong as well. Still, there's only so much I can gather from something so small." the horseman admitted. "That isn't to say she was significant; your actions here, your feelings now, it's all validation for the life she lived. Her significance to you and the role she played in your life. I may not know her name, but her life touched yours, and a thousand others through it. It did mean something because you wouldn't be here otherwise." Nicholas took a moment to study the demigod. Her emotions on the matter were turbulent, like the snowstorm her family was known for. It pained her.

He could grant it to her; not what Vivienne wanted, but what she needed. "Closure." Nicholas did this often for those in grief, to give them the goodbye they never had the chance to say. Usually, it helped settle the spirit as well. Once both parties were at peace, they were free to go their separate ways. The same applied for Vivienne, though mass homicide isn't something he'd consider therapeutic. Everyone grieves differently, I suppose. "You're wanting closure after her loss. I—" he stopped himself. He could. And normally, he would. Then Khione loses her handhold on Vivienne. Power aside, if he and the snow goddess were to be allies, Nicholas couldn't be working against her. The horseman felt a tightness in his throat, but he cleared away the guilty feeling. "I understand," he said reluctantly, masking the hesitation under a veil of agreement. "To your vendetta," the death god raised his cup for a casual toast. "May their blood stain your sword and their tears freeze in their eyes, but do not weep for them." He hid a growing smirk behind another drink. "You're better than that."

[WitchHazel]

|♡|Mirabelle Everhart|17|She/Her|Aphrodite|Head Counselor|Location: Outside Stables --> Stables|Tags: Dahlia, Aggy, Jamie, Aiden, Skylar|Mentions: Laurel's Pegasi|

Mirabelle whipped around to see Jamie, admittedly a bit startled by his approach. She was about to greet him herself when his foot skidded on the snow and he tumbled to the ground in an unceremonious heap.
"Oh my goodness! Jamie, are you okay?" She bent down beside him, extending a gloved hand. "Here, let me help you up." Though she didn't look it with her willowy physique, Mirabelle was surprisingly strong. She pulled Jamie to his feet in a swift, graceful motion, being careful to make sure he was solidly standing before she let go of him. "You're not hurt, are you? I have a first-aid kit and some ambrosia in my bag."
Her protective fussing was interrupted as two pegasi came strutting out of the building, heading in the direction of the cabins area. She instantly recognised the equines as Laurel's stallions - Thunder and Bolt, respectively. It didn't take a genius to guess that they were headed in Laurel's direction. Laurel must not be far behind us. She cast a quick glance over her shoulder, but she didn't catch sight of the daughter of Zeus.
Turning back from her moment of distraction, she caught sight of Aggy's short red hair disappearing behind the stable door. Mirabelle followed suit, holding open the door for Jamie and Dahlia before she entered herself. Aiden and Skylar were already inside, she noticed. They seemed to be engaged in conversation, however, so she simply greeted them with a small wave and a smile.
With Laurel presumably on the way, that only left Karter, Ash, and Teilo. That reminds me; I should probably chat with Teilo seeing as he's going to be the driver. Perhaps see if I can snag the front passenger's seat. Sitting up front would be a way to help mitigate her motion-sickness, she reckoned. It would be ideal if she could avoid being sick if at all possible. It was definitely no fun for her, but she was more worried about subjecting the others to that. Not to mention what they might think. Getting carsick would certainly ruin the image of perfection she held herself to. However, if any of the others got motion-sick as well, there was no question - she would rather face the possibility of her own discomfort and embarrassment than wish that upon anyone else.
Aggy's awkward interactions with a pegasus - Spicy, Mirabelle noticed - distracted her from her thoughts. She nearly chuckled at the sight, though resigned herself to a warm smile of amusement instead. "That's Spicy," she informed the younger demigod. Ophelia's favourite. She was about to say more when a familiar whicker caught her attention; emanating from a stall towards the end of the building. Firefly had evidently noted her entrance. "I'll be right back."
As she approached, Mirabelle could see that the mare's eyes were wide, her ears flicking forward and back in an anxious motion. "Shhh, it's alright," she murmured, slipping her hand out of a glove. "It's just me."
Firefly took a step back at first, exhaling in a swift a puff of air.
"I know there are a lot of people in here right now," Mirabelle soothed, holding up her hand. "It's okay to be frightened."
The dapple grey slowly approached Mirabelle, obviously having recognised the gentle voice. Her ears swiveled forwards, though wariness still lingered in her big brown eyes. Nonetheless, she pressed her muzzle into Mirabelle's palm.
"There's my girl."
Firefly seemed to calm at the simple touch. She blinked slowly, meeting Mirabelle's compassionate gaze as if to say 'I trust you.'
"How about we go for a ride? Would you like that?"
Firefly snorted softly, though made no move to leave. Mirabelle took that as an agreement.
"Alright. Let's get you out here and all tacked up."


|⟡|Juliet Pratten|16|She/Her|Hermes|Location: Cabin 3|Tags: Hu, Caspia, Sa'd|

"Uraeus? Now that's more of a Greek-sounding name." Juliet snorted, shifting on her feet. Her eyes lit up at the mention of Egyptian gryphon feathers, however. "Oh, totally! If you wanna give some to us, I'm sure we can get them to the Apollo kids to make into arrows, no problem." Well, that and take a bunch for themselves, of course. And perhaps sell them to the Apollo kids instead of just giving them. Or trade them, for that matter - if anyone had anything interesting to offer.

|❀|Chuck Oakes|He/Him|Satyr|Location: Outside Dining Pavilion|Tags: Yuno|

"Like, thanks, man!" Chuck bleated, breaking into a grin. "You have like, no idea how relieving it is to hear that, you know?" He watched as Yuno jotted something down, absently chewing on his sleeve. Always organised, that one. They reminded him of Mira in that sense - though Mira tended to have a mental checklist rather than a physical one. He absently wondered if Mira's mental checklist was colour-coded and had little sticky notes all over it.
"Uh, so like, where do we even start?" Chuck shuffled his hooves in the snow. "We can totally like, get the other satyrs to help and stuff, most of them are like, trying to anyways, I think." He'd seen a few fellow satyrs out in the woods, mostly consoling dryads and attempting to offer help, though they had seemed a bit confused as to how exactly to do so.

|⊙|Zahra Al-Amin|217/Looks 32|She/They|Magician; Eye of Sekhmet|Location: Cabins Area --> Dining Pavilion|Tags: Jay|

Zahra followed the young magician to the stately building, again silently admiring the soaring Greek columns. The sound of many voices rang out as she crested the hill. It seemed the demigods were in some kind of meeting - most likely concerning the troubles they were dealing with, she reckoned. Amidst the crowd, she could sense Set's chaotic energy somewhere close by. "I thank you for your aid, Jay," Zahra whispered, at loathe to interrupt the proceedings. "Now, if you could kindly point me in the direction of the Host, I would be most grateful."

|❄|Vivienne Isole|18|She/Her|Khione|Location: Mount Marcy Caverns|Tags: Nicholas|

Vivienne stiffened when Nicholas mentioned her emotional state. She hadn't been aware that sensing emotions was part of the Horseman's ability set. Yet, it made sense. Death, loss, grief - they were all connected after all. A sea of bitter rage threatened to overtake her as he spoke of her, though he did not mention a name. She wanted to snap, to shout, to shoot shards of ice at the god. But instead, she perched rigidly in the wingback chair, one hand tight around the iced coffee and the other clutching the Dickinson anthology. She didn't even notice that her coffee had frozen solid.
His next phrases dampened some of her anger, though there was still a dangerous edge to her energy. You don't know the half of it. The words Vivienne wanted to say, but she did not dare speak them aloud. She was too controlled for that.
Audra was the one person who had never given up on her. Who had stood up for her; protected her, even against less-than-kind foster parents. The one person who had loved her so much that they had run away together at the prospect of being separated. Audra was truly the only family Vivienne had ever known. Well, before Khione... but there was something different with Audra; something more.
The way her smile lit up and made those periwinkle blue eyes shine. Her laugh; pure, wild, and unrestrained. And even as Audra had made new friends after they arrived at Camp Half-Blood, she never excluded Vivienne. Never. Even when Vivienne's callous personality threatened to alienate both of them, Audra hadn't left her. She was the only person who didn't leave. Well, again, before Khione. Though the goddess had threatened a few times over the years. But Audra was nothing like Khione. She had been... warm; gentle even. Kind and supportive, regardless of the circumstances. Her anger, however, that was similar. Vivienne had only seen Audra angry a few times, and all had been in defence of Vivienne. Still... it had scared her to see her like that. But it had been a rare occurrence. Typically, Audra was chatty, passionate, and a bit moody at times. All qualities Vivienne had cherished. Even Audra's occasional snark hadn't gone unvalued.
The one thing that had never ceased to amaze Vivienne was Audra's continued appreciation of the world around her. Even after the world had been so cruel to them both, Audra never lost the ability to see everything with new eyes. The way she found beauty in the most miniscule of things... To retain such childlike wonder given what she had been through was something Vivienne could never accomplish. It was... beautiful.
And all too soon that beauty had been taken from her. The spark of life had faded from her eyes. A candle snuffed out just as it had begun to burn. To lose someone who had only just begun to live; a flower that hadn't had the chance to bloom... it was tragic, to say the least. But to lose the only person she had ever truly loved...
Vivienne's vision blurred, a rude reminder that she wasn't the emotionless machine she pretended to be. She softly cleared her throat, blinking as she turned away from Nicholas. I cannot allow him to see me like this.
Tears are weakness. She had no idea how many times that had been drilled into her head. And Vivienne was not weak. Rather than shy away from her pain, she focused on it; hardening it into a sharp edge. Closure. She supposed it was what she wanted, in a sense. But no. What she really wanted was for them to suffer in the way she had suffered. To take the one thing they loved most, and crush it beneath her foot. Her agony and grief slowly shifted into a dark, brutal anger. Her brow furrowed, expression hardening. "I will have my vengeance."
What Vivienne couldn't feel was the ghastly hand upon her shoulder. What she couldn't see were the forget-me-not eyes that stared painfully up at Nicholas, nor the soft and gentle shake of a head. She was none the wiser when the spirit vanished, her face still set in grim determination.

[indigo']

[✩] Augusta Reynolds|17|she/her|Hades|Head counsellor|Cabin 1|tags:Orin, Lucy

August watched as Lucy seemed to regain her composure listening to Orin speak. It’s safe. And we’re gonna keep it safe. She wasn’t a fan of that. Nobody could promise anything. The world was harsh and unpredictable, there’s no way he could know that both Lucy and her mother—or any of them for that matter—would be safe. It was a blatant lie, but it seemed to calm the girl down, so she held her tongue.

As the daughter of Apollo began to wipe off her makeup smeared face, Auggie was hit with the sudden realization that she still looked like a disaster. Her mind had been too full of the impending doom, the problems piling up one after the other, that she hadn’t really taken a moment to think about the state she was in. She hadn’t actually seen herself, obviously, but she could only assume it was quite evident that she’d been crying. And for some reason she hadn’t done anything about that. She was lucky to have enough of a reputation that nobody would challenge her, but the longer she walked around looking like an emotional little kid the more that reputation was going to disintegrate.

She wasn’t really paying attention anymore, barely hearing Lucy’s admission that she didn’t want to face contacting her mother alone—not that she would’ve cared anyways. She didn’t have room for sympathy. She let herself fall apart for one second and now everything was crumbling down.

“I’m gonna…” She gestured away vaguely as they stepped out of cabin one. She was avoiding both of their gazes when she spoke, but hoped that her shame would pass off as carelessness. She was known for being cold, it would make sense for anyone to assume she was leaving because she didn’t want to be a part of Lucy’s emotional reconnection with her mom. In all honesty, she was grateful for the excuse, unsure she wanted to witness a call to a mother who was actually going to answer—and actually cared about her child—right now.

“You don’t need me for this,” she said in lieu of an honest explanation before breaking off and heading towards cabin thirteen. Her hands were shaking again, only serving to make her more irritated by the betrayal of her body as she shoved them into her pockets, quick steps bringing her to the door of the Hades cabin without a glance back.

[✿]Jamie Wallace|16|he/him|Iris|Dining pavilion|tags:Mirabelle, Aggy, Dahlia

Through the haze of moisture on his glasses, Jamie could make out the shape of Aggy being harassed by a horse that she didn’t seem too comfortable to be near. He felt his face heat up at her comment, but he broke into a sheepish grin regardless. “It is actually. Very important to check these things once in a while, you know.”

His gaze turned to Mirabelle, clearly quite concerned by his fall. He took her hand, allowing the girl to help pull him to his feet. “I’m fine,” he replied with a grateful smile. “Seriously, I’m okay,” he laughed at the mention of first aid and ambrosia. “Happens several times a day. I’ve got strong bones.” That probably wasn’t true, but at least he wasn’t weak enough that the frozen ground would give him any worse than a few bruises.

He muttered a quick thanks to Mirabelle when she held the door open, stepping through into the warmth of the stable. He followed her gaze to Aggy, tentatively making contact with a pegasus. He wasn’t really nervous around the equine, he got along pretty well with most animals—actually riding them was an entirely different story, however, and not something he was looking forward to.

“Have you ridden before?” he asked Aggy. Judging by her nervous reaction to the creatures, he was assuming she hadn’t, but he’d learned already that assuming anything with Aggy was not a good idea.

[sammy,]

╔xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx╗
𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚗 '𝚕𝚘𝚏𝚝𝚢' 𝚐𝚘𝚛𝚖𝚊𝚗
cabin 1 - forest
zeus - counselor
mentioned: auggie,
lucy
╚xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx╝

orin was thankful when lucy began to pick up a little. it wasn't much, but it was something more than the all-encompassing distress that had been assaulting her senses. it was especially good considering the fact that he had felt entirely responsible - the stress that he had explained to auggie about taking the burden of sharing the news had been solidified by lucy's reaction - it had felt like his fault, despite only being the messenger. "we're just theorising now. best to figure it out. she'll know what's best for her, right? no use in catastrophising it." it was a catastrophe. it was a cataclysm of massive sorts, but acting as such felt unreasonable.

auggie seemed to have a change of heart. he didn't really blame her - the concept of tagging along for a call home was not one that he was too invested in, but the guilt that he had put on himself made leaving lucy to her own devices less of an issue. "i'll come," he said to lucy, then to the quickly shifting auggie, a quick - "i'll - i'll see you later, yeah?"

as promised, he followed lucy out of the cabin and toward the woods, noting that he had been in this area before. a while ago, he thought - a couple of years? it was fuzzy, unclear, but the faded scene was still present. he did note, however, as she began to talk to one of the trees, that her tone was much kinder when she addressed the plants. everyone had their quirks, he supposed - and trees didn't tend to have good debating skills.

he stood a few feet away, watching carefully - unsure exactly what to do with his hands, so shoving them into the pockets of his harrington. at least it protected them from the aching wind.

-

╔xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx╗
𝚕𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚍𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚛𝚎𝚣
the cabins
ares
mentioned: n/a
╚xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx╝

the morning had been rather fruitful for activity. the clamour of the mess hall meeting had been narrowly avoided through means of dipping in, scarfing a bowl of mid-tier cereal, and dipping straight back out, heading for the arena to get a bit of energy out, a bit of warmth to muscles that burned in the cold. if there was anything that leo hated, it was cold weather. though the prospect of the quest was rather daunting to many, the concept of getting rid of the vile snow was one that he welcomed with open arms.

after pummelling a poorly-crafted gorgon, he ventured back to the cabins. another layer of clothes was necessary after the post-workout shower - as buzzing as his body was from the activity, it wasn't enough to protect against the brutal gusts of wind.
that was how he found himself standing outside, testing whether or not he would become hypothermic after prolonged exposure, unsure of whether he would need a long-sleeve to go under the t-shirt that was under the hoodie that was under the jacket. maybe it was his hands. a pair of gloves might have done him well - shame he didn't have any. in lieu of the article, he pulled the sleeves of his hoodie over his hands, bunching them at the fists as he looked around.

there weren't many people about - and if they were, then they looked as though they were on a mission that had absolutely nothing to do with him. good, he thought. he had avoided conversation for a while, only speaking to those who spoke to him - which didn't amount to many people, in the end. if anything, most of the campers appeared to go out of their way to avoid him. leo liked it like that. hopefully, it would last.

[indigo']

[➳]Caleb Thomas|18|he/him|Athena|Cabins area|Tags:Leonidas

Caleb wandered back from the lake slowly, hands stuffed in his pockets and head in the clouds. He didn’t want to think about what he was doing, but the more he tried to push those thoughts away the more intensely they seemed to claw their way into his brain. The only thing tying him to his sanity was the thought of his sister, of her kind, caring ways, her vivid, imaginative stories and uncontrollable laughter. The memories made the weight of guilt in his chest feel a little less heavy, but at the same time it tore him apart.

He didn’t pay much attention as he walked, expression uncharacteristically solemn as he made his way towards the cabins. Unfortunately, he wasn’t looking where he was going, and didn’t see the person standing outside the Ares cabin until he had walked right into them.

“Sorry,” he stumbled back, eyebrows raising as he took in the son of Ares he had nearly run over. He didn’t know the boy very well, he seemed to keep to himself a lot, but he didn’t think any child of Ares would take very well to being walked into. He offered a small smile, hoping it would appear as more of a peace offering and not cocky or patronizing. He took in Leo’s appearance in a quick glance, noting the way he stood with his hands bunched in his sleeves, clearly not enjoying the strange weather they’d been having. Though, really, who was? “I think my brain must be frozen from all this snow. Really sorry about that, man.”

[sammy,]

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𝚕𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚍𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚛𝚎𝚣
the cabins
ares
mentioned: caleb
╚xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx╝

it didn't last.
in fact, almost immediately after he had the thought, the hope that the silence would remain unfettered, someone's body weight was slamming into him, making him step slightly back. his hands clenched into fists, searching for the source of the incursion that came in the form of a son of athena that he had not yet had the grace of speaking to.

his hands relaxed when the apology came, the brief shock becoming confusion becoming nonchalance once more. he was apologising, talking about the weather - as though he hadn't noticed the weather, as though this man was reading the thoughts that would have laid curses on any creature that dared have him shivering in its wake - and it all felt rather mundane. "uh," he murmured, looking the awkwardly standing man up and down. "you're alright. don't worry about it." leo chose, not quite looking for a fight. he'd exerted any of those energies out on the faux-gorgon, and causing any more havoc just sounded like effort that he wasn't quite willing to make.

for whatever reason, the opposite seemed to occur. his mouth ran without his mind's permission, and before he was able to hold his tongue, he was asking the dreaded question."are you alright?" the worst part was that he wasn't even sure why he was asking. the last thing that he anticipated was an honest answer. the last thing he hoped for was an honest answer - the kind that would have had him sit down and listen to this glorified stranger's deepest thoughts, but it seemed right to say it. the kind of thing that people normally said when someone was in their own head enough to walk into someone standing completely still. "you look sort of... crap." it was blunt. honest, though. "unless that's what you were going for. no judgement."

[indigo']

[✩] Augusta Reynolds|17|she/her|Hades|Head counsellor|Cabin 13|tags:Orin, Lucy/open

Auggie just barely glanced up to meet Orin’s gaze at the question of seeing her later, giving a short nod before she turned away and headed back towards her cabin. She felt a little guilty abandoning the situation, especially considering he had just as much reason to be uncomfortable with witnessing a call to a family member as she did. And the fact that he’d been so worried about telling anyone about the Kingston situation in the first place, then telling Lucy really had blown up in their faces. She shoved the thought back, they’d both be fine and she didn’t really know why she cared anyways.

She reached cabin thirteen and pushed the door open roughly, crossing over to her bunk and pulling open a drawer, rooting around for a moment before pulling out a small mirror and a package of makeup wipes. She sat down cross legged on the floor with the mirror propped up against the wall, nearly flinching when she caught sight of her own face.

She scrubbed at her face with a wipe, removing all the traces of the smudged black from her cheeks. She didn’t bother redoing it once she’d gotten it off, not having the patience or steady enough hands at the moment. She tossed her things haphazardly back in the drawer before sitting back on the floor with her back against the bunk.

There was nobody else in the cabin, and as far as she’d seen outside, there hadn’t been any of her cabinmates heading in this direction. Feeling secure enough that she wouldn’t be interrupted, she reached under the bed and pulled out the beat up old guitar that she kept there. She cradled it gently, picking out a familiar pattern on the strings quite softly.

She was quiet enough and far enough away from the door that if somebody did come, she’d hear them and could easily stop before they entered. If she’d started humming the tune to the song softly, she wouldn’t really have noticed, but the melody consumed her, protecting her mind from any intruding thoughts and giving her a sense of calm, however brief.

[➳]Caleb Thomas|18|he/him|Athena|Cabins area|Tags:Leonidas

Caleb visibly relaxed when the response came, relieved that the son of Ares wasn’t going to pick a fight with him. He had his weapons on him, and could fight back if it was necessary, but he really wasn’t big on unnecessary confrontation—or messing up his hair.

He was surprised when the question came. He wasn’t used to being anything but put together—on the outside at least—and Leo was the last person he expected to express some form of concern. However, he asked it awkwardly, as though he wasn’t really asking for an answer, but simply because he felt that he should. Not about to open up to somebody he barely knew, and not being able to confess what was worrying him to anyone at camp whether he wanted to or not, Caleb feigned a look of surprise and indignance, as though he were taken aback by the mere concept of him being anything less than alright.

“Excuse you.” He ran a hand through his hair, though it didn’t really do much. “I never look crap,” he stated, one eyebrow raised. “It’s against my beliefs. Against the laws of nature actually, I don’t think it’s even possible. Never happened before.” He finished with his typical charming grin, though it quickly faded as he realized who he was talking to was probably not the type of person to appreciate such a look.

“You know, I appreciate an Ares camper who doesn’t immediately pick a fight upon contact,” he said, deftly changing the subject—or so he thought. He was aware the other boy may not be so keen to hear his opinion, but he shared it anyways. “One of your half siblings once took a swing at me just for glancing in their direction.”

[sammy,]

╔xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx╗
𝚕𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚒𝚍𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚛𝚎𝚣
the cabins
ares
mentioned: caleb
╚xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx╝

at the confrontation of his appearance, caleb seemed to scramble to regain his composure. hiding something, then, leo thought. that was fair enough. he didn't mind. he wouldn't have had a leg to stand on if he did care, but the attempt was enough to draw a half-hearted, pursed-lipped smile out of him. "right. sure. i don't think the laws of nature apply anymore," a little, pointed glance around at the snow. "and it's not your... look. just -" was he being rude? was it rude to say the next words? "your face." it turned out that he wasn't quite bothered. "you looked like you'd been sucking a lemon." not anymore, clearly, as the mask appeared to have returned.

the commentary on his demeanour had him raising his eyebrows just a little. "i meditate," leo said, as though that explained anything. "and it's not worth the effort. you looked like you'd just seen a car crash. thought i'd save your grievances." there was a twinge of humour in there somewhere, but he wasn't sure whether it would translate through the monotony. he would have claimed that he knew when to pick his fights - but that wouldn't have been true. he simply hadn't been pent-up enough to boil over in wake of the accident. "thought i'd learn your name before spinning your jaw. just in case you forget it."

[Galeslash7]

Skylar Kakitid, 16 years old, Female, Daughter of Hecate, 7 year camper, Location: Stables, Tags: Aiden, Mentions: Mira, Aggy, Jamie, Dahlia

Skylar laughed as he stuck his tongue at her from the nickname. She then blushed in embarrassment to herself as he said that the reason he could dress a horse was not because he was a child of Athena. Almost every senior at camp knew how to dress a Pegasus because of all the games that happened at camp. And she had been here for what? 7 long years? And she still couldn't? But unlike some of the other campers, Skylar didn't like to use her spare time riding the Pegasi. During the games, she preferred to use one of the already dressed Pegasi or have another member of her team do it. She realized now that that was probably a skill she needed to learn, so she paid extra attention as Aiden dressed Void. She noticed several other questers come in, including Mira, that new person Aggy, a new-ish Iris camper Jamie, and Dahlia. She didn't pay them that much attention, though as she was trying to focus.

After he finished, she looked at the black mare with amazement. The Pegasus looked fierce and battle-ready. Aiden had done a great job. He said that he would teach her how to do it when they got back, and for the first time Skylar realized they might not make it back. This quest would be dangerous even with all these powerful demigods, especially if all these rumors about the gods were true. She might have just left Cabin 20 forever, something she had just realized. She had been on small quests before, but this was different. She was here to be the power of the group, the magical "muscle" and those guys always went first. But she smiled sadly, "Thank you so much. I'll take you up on that, if you don't mind." Nope, Skylar did not like this sad mood. So, with a mischievous look in her eye, she studied Void dramatically. "Hmmmm, something is missing..." With a dramatic flick of her wrist and closing her eyes briefly, she added some Mist to the black mare. She used the Mist to illusion some vibrant swirls and splatters of white, blue, light purple, and light pink to create a space or galaxy look on the Pegasus' flank and neck. Now the Pegasus seemed to fit its space-themed name. But the illusion paint looked kind-of ridiculous. Yet, Skylar didn't change it. Maybe they needed some ridiculous-ness on this trip. It would be a grim one. "Done!" She exclaimed before bursting into laughter. Skylar definitely wasn't an artist."Now I am ready," She attempted a serious look, but the corner of her mouth was twitching in amusement.

[KestrelTheFirecat]

Jay tags zahara

Jay nods and says “I actually don’t know where they went” she scratches the back of her head and looks around spotting the host of set and points to them “there”