Yes. You read that right. Greece has fallen...or at least the camp that has catered to Greek demigods for over three millennia has fallen. Camp Half-Blood had a traitor in their midst. A traitor with powerful allies who quickly burned the camp to the ground. Some were lost, some killed, and the rest who remained began the long trek across the country to the only place where they might be safe: Camp Jupiter.
Chiron banded what campers they had left, told them of the other camp and sent word to Camp Jupiter pleading for shelter. Chaos now threatens the camp daily with the arrival of new Greek campers to this foreign camp. This camp with strange customs and rules. While on the Roman end the Praetors are forced to hold up a balancing act of providing sanctuary while also trying to find the traitor before their home suffers the same fate as Camp Half-Blood.
New alliances are forged, new enemies are made, and these two worlds have to find some way to work together for the future of them all. Which side are you on? Which position will you take? It's time to jump in the fray because Greece has fallen.
ANNOUNCEMENT
Welcome to our site! We are so glad you are here my friend. Pull up a seat, set your weapons down and let's chat. We are a non-canon, percy jackson RP site based in Camp Jupiter. Both Greek and Roman demigods allowed. Legacies are limited. We have a very small word requirement for posting and we're pretty relaxed around here. We like drama but not the RL kind so keep this place nice and friendly. If you've got questions don't hesitate to ask!
GHF is the product of the mind of Addi; inspired by the percy jackson and heroes of olympus series by rick riordian. this is a work of fiction. names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. several beautiful remodels (including mini profile, profile) were designed by deltra of gangnam style and edited by Haya to fit the site's concept and needs. most images and gifs used for the skin are taken from assassins creed, the percy jackson movies and various google finds. all contents are copyright to their original owners. all characters belong to their original creators, and may not be used or replicated without permission. all images are copyright to their original owners. if you see an image/gif which is yours and you would like us to specifically credit you or remove it please do not hesitate to let us know in the cbox with a link.
Morrigan's eyes had found the ceiling of the infirmary before they closed, the world growing hazy. As she opened them, the infirmary's ceiling was nowhere to be seen. In fact, there wasn't much to be seen at all. A line creased between her brows as she tried to figure out where she was exactly. Her senses were slow to wake. It was dark, alarmingly dark, but not enough to hinder her vision exactly. It was almost as if the night wasn't lit by the bright moon anymore, but instead was buried under a haze of murky darkness farther down below it. It was cold, chillingly cold, but her arms didn't have chill bumps. It was a cold that went deeper than mere temperature.
She looked around and that was when she noticed the sounds edging into her hearing. Crying. Wailing. She turned sharply and walked hesitantly towards the noises. A few feet away, she noticed a group of people, sort of. Their forms wavered and changed the more she looked at them. It seemed to be a constant rotation of people. They were getting on a boat, traveling down a murky river that was… Morrigan stumbled forward as her legs gave out. The memories of what happened crashing into her head.
She looked down to where her shirt was torn, the area around the wound a dark crimson. She touched the spot on her shirt but her hand came away fine, no wound to be had anymore. The only thing keeping her from breaking down being that she was corporeal, as corporeal as she supposed one could be down here. Her image was not a flickering mirage of shape and shadow. She was still a solid form.
Morrigan stifled a scream, held back tears before she forced herself to breathe. To breathe and to think. She was in the Underworld, but that didn't necessarily mean she had died, right? She tried to remember all of the heroes in every tale that had ever been told to her about traveling to the underworld but her brain wouldn't cooperate. All she could think about was the legion. All of her thoughts centered on leaving people who needed her. Leaving the very people who she had sworn to protect with her life. A life that had apparently been taken away from her by a bad dream. It didn't seem real. She tried pinching herself but her skin was numb. She tried waking herself up but nothing was working. One of the specters turned towards her and motioned her forward and Morrigan shook her head.
She began walking backwards, refusing to be near the boat, refusing to join the legion of the dead. No. She was a child of Rome, the daughter of Jupiter, Praetor of the twelfth legion fulminata. She would not casually get onto the boat and render her life over. Morrigan backpedaled further and further until she hit something, immediately turning to face what she had ran into sharply. Her eyes narrowed, her hand instinctively going for the spatha that wasn't there anymore.
How long had he been there now? It felt like centuries, and he was starting to lose it. He just wanted to get back to the mortal realm, out of the Underworld, but every time he tried, something was pulling him back. As if the Fates themselves didn't want him to leave just yet. There was a reason he still had to be there, that was what he was coming to believe, but how much longer was it going to be? He was beginning to feel like he was just one of the other shades, making their way through the underworld for the rest of time. The sounds of the wails and screams of the Fields of Punishment were starting to make him think that this WAS his own punishment. Keeping him here, because he wasn't able to save enough of the souls at Camp Half Blood? That he had not been able to fight hard enough? He wasn't sure but it was really something that he had to figure out, and fast, or he was truly going to be lost. [break][break]
He was walking along the Styx when he felt something was off. He thought about the man who had come to him further up the field, the man who had told him he needed his help. What that was, he couldn't be sure but that was before he saw her. That was what he had meant, that Donovan was to help her. She didnt' belong here, he felt that she was still very much alive ,though why was she here? She had to have been teetering on the edge of life and death. Which meant if he could get her out of here, get her back to her body, she just might survive. He headed towards her, and was about to say something when she backed right into him. He gently grabbed her so she didn't fall and let her go just as quickly, not wanting to scare her. Jupiter had come to him, the strongest god there was, and asked for his help. He could not deny that, especially with the promise to help him out of here. [break][break]
Donovan held his hands up, showing her he would not hurt her. " It's alright. I won't hurt you." he could tell she was on the defensive, and he didn't blame her. It was a hard place to be in. " You don't belong here." he could feel something in the back of his mind, a name. Her name? Gods he hated his powers sometime. " You are on the edge of living and death Morrigan. I can help you, I think. We just need to get your away from here before Charon beckons to you again." [break][break]
He knew she was probably very confused, confused as to why this guy who had never met her before knew her name, knew what was going on, and everything else that she could probably imagine. " My name is Donovan Grey, I am a son of Thanatos, but I am not dead. I promise you, I will help you. I think...I think it was your father that came to me, he gave me this." he held out a small vial to her, " He said it would help us on our journey, I think it is to help you get back through the Doors of Death, away from my father." [break][break]
He sighed, " I Know that you likely don't trust me, and I don't blame you, I wouldn't either but look, he held his hand out to her showing her that he was also not a shade, not of this realm, the Underworld, well technincally he was because of his father being Death and all, but that was besides the point, " See? not see through, clearly human."
Morrigan's senses were on high alert. She hadn't felt this way since she had left for camp. So helpless and alone. It was sickening and terrifying, the emotions threatening to pull her under if she allowed them an inch. She was utterly and completely alone. There was no wolf here to guide her. There was no legion behind her. There was no Dareios who had her back. She was alone in the darkness, facing a fate that she refused to give into. Morrigan felt someone brace a hand against her and she had spun to face whoever it was. Fully expecting to see another shadowy figure encouraging her to step towards the edge.
Her hands had grabbed for her spatha and gripped air, the action causing her to swallow hard. She tried to summon lightening and energy but nothing came to her defense. It seemed they too had abandoned her. With her heartbeat racing she met the eyes of the stranger who had approached. Alone. Utterly alone. She was a little taken aback to see not a specter but a guy who appeared as corporeal as herself. He put his hands in the air and she kept her distance, weight balanced on the balls of her feet so she could lunge and fight if she needed to.
He continued speaking and she found herself having a hard time concentrating on the words that he was saying over the sound of her blood pulsing in her ears, the pressure in her chest that was telling her that it was game over. That she had already let them all down, one little step on a boat wouldn't matter much. Her eyes glanced to where the boat had been.
"Morrigan."
Her name came from his lips, cutting through the thoughts that were bouncing around inside her head. She met his eyes, silently listening as he said she was on the edge of living and death. That thought bleakly giving her an ounce of hope.
He gave her his name, mentioning his parentage and offering to help her out of this realm. Morrigan gave a short humorless laugh. Thanatos. Greek. As if there would be another option greeting her in the underworld. Had she truly been so awful?
"Oh I'm sure a child of a Greek god of death has nothing but the purest of intentions in helping a Roman child of Jupiter escape from his father's realm." He didn't make a move against her and she knew she had no real chance of standing against him if he did. If he truly was who he said he was, his powers were very much intact while hers were non-existent. He spoke of her father and she didn't let her guard down until he showed her the vial.
Godly ichor glowed inside the small glass. She might have brought up the fact that it could be from any godly form, including his father, but she could feel her father's power inside. She could sense the blood that called to her own. Her rigid stance faltered, the tightness in her shoulders easing just the tiniest bit. He held his hand up. His solid form that appeared to match her own. Morrigan didn't say a word before she moved, immediately closing the distance and putting her hand against his. Solid form meeting solid form. His hand warm against hers.
She closed her eyes, for just a second, letting the relief calm her. She wasn't alone. She had never been one who enjoyed touching in the mortal world. She shied away from hugs and side-stepped high fives. She wasn't the kind who found comfort in embracing. As she stood in the darkness of the underworld however, with this other mortal her only tether to the mere idea of seeing her world again, she didn't want to pull away. She didn't want to pull her hand from his and risk him vanishing. Risk him disappearing and finding out that this was all some sort of terrible punishment.
She swallowed hard, steeling herself before forcing herself to move her hand from his. He remained in front of her and she sent a silent prayer in thanks, though she didn't dwell on questioning whether any of the gods could hear her anymore. Her voice was skeptic as she watched him. "Why? Why do you want to help me?"
He could only imagine what might be going through her head as she realized where she was. The first time he had accidentally jumped here it had been terrifying. The screams rang through from the fields, and he knew how awful it was to hear it the first time. He could tell from each of her reactions that she was good at what she did. She was keeping her weight the best way it needed to be in order to attack him if she felt the need to. " You have nothing to fear, at least not from me, but we do need to get out of sight, and fast. I am not saying you have to completely trust me right now, but I am asking you to at least come with me." her heard a screech in the air and he knew exactly what it was. The furies, gods they needed to get away from there, and quickly. [break][break] He had to roll his eyes at her reaction and shook his head, " To be fair, the Romans didn't like the idea of my father, Death is a frightning thing, so they just let the greeks have him. Not my fault that I was born Greek. So please, save me the prejudices. Greek, Roman, Norse, Egyptian, no matter your gods, we all end up here at some point." he gestured towards the fields, and if you looked hard enough you could see the shadow of the great dog Cerberus in the distance. He sighed, " I don't exactly relish the idea of staying here in my father's realm either, and technically its not his, belongs to his boss Hades, or Pluto..whatever you want to call him. " [break][break] She placed her hand on his and his blue eyes found hers. He could feel the warmth of the blood running through her and he felt almost a little tug when their hands had touched, like it was meant to happen. Again with the damm fates messing with him. He kept his eyes on hers, his fingers longed to intertwine with her own but he stopped himself, not wanting to make a tense situation even worse. They stood there like that for what felt like an eternity, but was only mere moments before she pulled her hand away. His breath caught but he kept his baby blues trained on her face. [break][break] He frowned at her question, " because I don't like to have people that deserve to still be living brought down here. You are far too important to the world, to your father, to end up here like this. You aren't supposed to be here yet. Your name wasn't on the list, yet here you are." he held the ichor out to her, " This is your way out, but we have to get to the Doors of Death first. You father still has plans for you Morrigan. The Romans need you, and whether you like it or not, I'm pretty sure the Greeks do too. "his cheeks flushed, " I need your help to get out of here too, because when you open the doors, I'll be able to slip out again too. My father doesnt' want me going back, even though I am not dead yet, and don't need to be here. Though he doesn't think im safe up there." [break][break]
He held his hand back out to her as the screeching grew louder, " Run...come on, Morrigan Run." he held her hand in his and started running, there was a cave he had been using to hide from the furies in on more than one occasion, it wasn't too uncomfortable, and they could rest there for a second while she wrapped her mind around it. " Hurry!"
The stranger began talking quickly, asking her to come with him and Morrigan had tried to collect her thoughts. Unfortunately, she didn't have much time to think about her rational options because a bloodcurdling scream echoed in the air around them. Her eyes widened. She wasn't certain, she currently couldn't actually be certain of anything at the moment. But she was almost sure that she had heard that scream before. She had been eleven and the creature that had emitted that scream had almost taken her life. It had taken the mortal one at least from her, though that hadn't been much of a life at all anyway. This time she had no powers for defense.
Donovan began talking, defending his father's heritage and she was little taken aback. Her encounters with Greeks thus far had been wholly disappointing. None of them had shown any kind of fire in their belly. He spoke about death honestly and earnestly and had she not been a literal mortal teetering on the edges of life and death she might have taken the rant a little easier. Instead she found herself focusing on the fact he brought up about this realm not exactly being his fathers. "Point taken."
As she had placed her palm against his, his eyes met hers. It seemed like an odd thing to do, but she had needed to do it. She needed to feel his skin against hers and know that she wasn't alone, that maybe he was telling the truth. His eyes were earnest, but she had seen enough to know that innocent eyes could hide a whole lot of terrible things behind them.
She pulled her hand away and he frowned. She had thought that he would give her some short answer that didn't truly answer anything, but instead he had spoken things that made her heart feel like it was going to stop entirely. Her eyes had widened again in shock as he spoke about her. Things that she found constricting, terrifying and impossible. The only solace in her trusting him being that without her he was stuck. That made sense to the daughter of Jupiter. The sense of doing something for something in return. The rest of it though? Not a chance.
Morrigan's mind still had not formed a reply as Donovan extended his hand to her, urging her to run as the shriek got closer. She numbly reacted, letting her body take over while her brain continued to process it all. Her hand found his and they began running. A cave broke off, seemingly out of nowhere. Had she been alone she would have missed it entirely. The son of Thanatos led her in and she waited until it was quiet before speaking, her mind running wild. "Look, I'm just a Praetor. One of two. There's a whole legion full of children of Jupiter. I'm not…." she couldn't find the words. "I'm not anything special."
She didn't say the words with pity or heartbreak. No, they were genuine and honest. There was nothing extra-special she brought to the table. Did her heart break at the thought of leaving them all? Of course, but she wasn't their only hope. She wasn't the only one who was powerful or strong. She was a number. Simple as that. There was no search party that needed to come drag her out of here. If she had to put money on it, she would say the camp had already moved on. Filled her position with a temporary Praetor and carried on as easily as if she had died in battle. They literally ran scenarios of this very thing. She hadn't thought she would be here so soon, but as he said before, they all ended up here eventually.
She looked down and realized that she was still holding his hand. She knew she should probably pull hers away, but a much larger part called for her to enjoy the tiniest bit of feeling like a normal mortal again, so she remained with her hand clasping his. "Are you sure you found the right half-dead, half-alive child of Jupiter?" The sarcasm had been as much as she could muster at the moment. The humor not quite reaching her eyes.
He nodded as she seemed to accept what he was saying, or at least was pretending that she did. He could handle that, but right now all that mattered was getting her, not to mention himself, to safety. First, he had to get her to understand that he wasn't going to push her into the river or something insane like that. " Good." he just had to let her know that he was not just some Greek, as he knew most Romans had it out for his people. He was Greek, but that wasn't all he was. He looked down at their hands, the way hers looked so small next to his, but he knew how powerful those hands could be. If she was as strong as he assumed she was, those hands could be the hands of a killer. [break][break]
The shriek of the fury had made him want to cover his ears but he had to help her first, had to get her out of there. He had made a promise and he was going to fulfill it. "this way." he cried to her and lead her into the cave. When they were far enough inside he let out the breath he felt like he had been holding and looked back at her. Her hand in his was making him feel anchored to life once more, and he wasn't willing to give it up not just yet. It would seem that she didn't want to either as her hand stayed clasped with his. [break][break]
Donovan's blue eyes turned to hers as she said she was nothing special and he frowned deeply, " No...don't you dare say that. If you weren't special do you really think that your father would have come and sought me out here? No. He wouldn't have. Besides, every life is precious and special. That is coming from the son of death himself. Think about that." he knew she was going to be stubborn, she was a Roman Praetor for the gods sake. She was born to be stubborn. He sighed and the screeching in the air had set his teeth on edge. Though at least it was gone now. [break][break]
A small smile crossed his lips at her try at humor and he shook his head, " I'm pretty sure I found the right one." he gently squeezed her hand, " I guess I probably should have told you my name. Donovan Grey." he let her hand go for a moment so he could relight the fire that he had had going off and on when he had hidden out here lately. It lit up the little cave showing a few things he had stashed there. A sleeping bag and bed roll, some food he had managed to find which was not easy, as well as some water. " Had to bargain with the ferry man to get a lot of this stuff, he is not the most understanding of sort." he gestured for her to join him and sit on the sleeping bag near the fire. The cave was a little chilly, surprising being where they were, but all the same it was hidden away. He thought, though he couldn't be sure, that this all had something to do with his own father. Keeping him as "safe" as he thought he could be. [break][break]
Morrigan glanced once and only once at his eyes as they got in the cave, as the two of them both seemed to notice that they were still holding hands. She never made an effort to pull away and he hadn't either. She slowly let the breath that she had been holding out. Thankful that she wasn't the only one needing some reassurance from another mortal. And it was just that. She had read books about ancient leaders and fighters. There were countless entries of ancient journals that recorded how generals and soldiers survived while captured by the enemy. Nine times out of ten it was because someone else was there with them that they knew. They had a tether to their old life and that bit of companionship, no matter how small the exchange that they were afforded was, could keep a person sane. She didn't know him and he wasn't even of the same roman lineage as her, but he was a mortal and down in this awful realm of shadows and suffering, it was enough.
The guy began speaking and Morrigan listened silently, opening her mouth to retort as he brought up her father but closed it again when he answered his own question. He ended his speech by saying every life was special and she gave a short humorless laugh. "Maybe on your side of the fence but the harsh reality on mine is that no one is special. There are countless demigods out there with a thousand similar gifts and there will be countless more when they are gone. Are people unique? Sure. Special? Not a chance." She lived in the world of black and white. Numbers and assets. She protected the legion not by getting close to others and becoming their best friend. No, she protected them by weighing odds and making choices that were for the betterment of all and she couldn't do that if she let herself think or focus on the needs of one.
She let her eyes focus on the floor as she collected her thoughts. "If my father came down her personally I can only imagine it was because my life wasn't supposed to end like this. At the end of a friend's blade because of some nightmare."
Morrigan had made peace long ago that she would more than likely die in service to Rome. Praetors didn't usually have to worry about retirement funds. She was fine with that kind of ending. She was not fine with dying from a stupid mistake. She wasn't mad at Kade. It wasn't the girl's fault. If anything it only instilled that she shouldn't have bothered her. She shouldn't have intruded and placed her hand upon the other girl. She had thought it was helping, but clearly she was not meant to be one of those emotionally vulnerable people. Take this as a lesson, she told herself.
Her thoughts were pulled away as the guy's lips tilted upwards in a small smile. He replied in her same tone about finding the right one and she found herself about to retort something back when he gave her hand a gentle squeeze. The act was an intimate gesture, a small act of comradery that she wasn't exactly used to. Hugging was not a thing in her family. Even when she trained with her siblings there wasn't a whole lot of friendly physical touching. The act was foreign and yet not wholly unwelcomed.
Before she could even begin to sort out the feeling that it brought up though, her brain was very quick to remind her about that lessons being learned thought that she had previously established. Morrigan was pulling her hand away as he had removed his as well. She cleared her throat, "Well, I would say nice to meet you, but I don't think there's anything nice about this place."
He lit a small fire, the room alight from the flame and she glanced around as he spoke. There was a sleeping bag and a few other things. She found herself wondering how long he had been here. He motioned for her to join him and she slowly walked over. Morrigan sat across from him, the small fire giving off a nice heat. She found herself instinctively flexing her hands to cause the wind to pick up, the fire to get larger but of course nothing happened. She tried not to show how unnerved that made her, putting her hands in her lap. She instead moved her attention to him, sincerity in her features as she spoke. "Thank you. For helping me out there." She was quickly reminded of his part of the exit that they were hoping to accomplish and she tilted her head slightly, "How long have you been down here?"
He had really expected her to rip her hand away from him. See him as the monster that he saw himself as. He was the son of death, he was something to be feared, or so he had been told in the past. She was the daughter of the king of the Roman gods himself. She was all lightning and storms, he was darkness. It was quite the polar opposites. " You really think that little of yourself? You think that you are not special to someone, to anyone? No friends? Lovers? Family? No one thinks of you as special? I find that highly hard to believe Morrigan. You are not realizing how much you are truly worth to people. I hope that one day you will learn." he swallowed, feeling like he was maybe pushing her too far, but the truth was, she needed to hear it. [break][break]
" It was a friend that stabbed you? That, well, that is awful. I am so sorry but I will get you back to your camp. With the help of the ichor, you will get out of here. I promise." he only wished his father would let him leave. He looked into the flames, watching them dance, the light throwing shadows on the cave walls. Letting go of her hand hand not been something he had wanted to do by any means. He was enjoying the contact. Enjoying the feeling of the warmth. He hated letting it go, as it was the first contact he had had in a very long time. [break][break]
He looked over at her and smiled, " Well it is still nice to meet you, even if its here." he watched her, seeing how she looked in the firelight as she sat next to him. He was struck by how she looked with that light on her face, she was beautiful and he had to look away quickly, not wanting her to feel uncomfortable or anything along those lines was not something he would want. He grabbed a stick he had been using to stoke the fire and poked at it, trying to make it a little higher to make sure she was warm enough. [break][break]
He noticed the movement of her hands and then the way she put them in her lap. " Your powers will work again as well, but only when you get out of here. But here, to make you feel better..." he scooted over a bit and moved to grab a backpack he had there and grabbed a dagger out of it. Holding it out to her hilt first. " You might feel better with a weapon. I know its not much but at least it is something." he sat back in his place and looked over at her, "Are you warm enough?" Concern dripped from his lips as he looked her over, he couldn't imagine what was going through her mind. [break][break]
Morrigan's question threw him for a loop. He wasn't really sure how long he had been down there, it felt like ages but also like minutes. The curse of the underworld. " I, I really don't know. Camp Halfblood was attacked, and when that happened I brought a lot of the souls here, and after, my father would not allow me to leave. I do not know how long I have been here." he admitted it softly and looked to her, " Do you know anything about that? I imagine it has even come to the Roman ears." he ran a hand nervously through his hair, afraid to know how long it had been that he had been here.
Morrigan had fully expected Donovan to let it go. It seemed like the only logical thing in her mind. There was no refuting the practical viewpoint that she had based her entire life upon. She loved her camp. She loved New Rome. It was the only place that she had ever had, the only family that she had ever know. She had been shown that sacrifice, loyalty, and honor was the only thing that held it all together and she had gladly signed her name on the line. Emotions complicated things. Romantic relationships complicated things. Her family was her legion and her duty to them was to do whatever she had to do to keep them safe. If that meant she was sometimes on the outside looking in, then so be it.
Morrigan cleared her throat, having to swallow down the lump that was trying to form. "I have half-siblings but I'm not exactly close with them." She trained with them of course, oversaw their first few weeks of arrival, but there were none who she spent time with outside of the legion. Certainly no family dinners or late-night chats. Her mind drifted to her co-praetor. "Dareios is as close as I've got to a friend. He knows my weakness, like I know his and I'm sure there will be a part of him that misses me, but he is a Praetor and his first duty is to the legion, not to mourning me." She wasn't sad at the thought. She felt guilt for leaving at the most paramount time that she was needed, but no sadness that she would not be mourned. "And lovers?" She gave a small chuckle.
There had been a few males over the years, before she was made praetor that she had spent a night or two with but nothing more. There were no love letters or sweet nothings whispered in ears. "Do you honestly think a lot of guys want to hit on the most powerful female in camp?" It wasn't a flex. She and Dareios occupied the single most authoritative and powerful seats in camp. Occasionally, New Rome as well. In her experience, guys tended to find her position and godly power intimidating and as far as appealing as one could get.
Donovan brought up Kade and Morrigan shook her head. "She didn't do it on purpose. She's our Auger. Since the arrival of the Greeks she's been plagued with visions. I foolishly interrupted one of them and well…here we are." She didn't want to think about Kade. She didn't know her as well as she should, but she knew enough to know that the girl was kind and caring. She was probably drowning in guilt, an idea Morrigan couldn't let herself think of. She only nodded in response to the ichor. She hoped he was right, that he knew what he was doing. She didn't want to think about what would happen if he didn't.
He gave a soft smile, remarking that it was still nice to meet her despite their surroundings and she found herself meeting his gaze. How he could remain so positive in a situation so clearly uphill was beyond her. She found herself wondering if maybe it was due to his parentage. The fire cast shadows upon his features and she let herself find his blue eyes for just a moment more before looking away.
Her hands felt useless in her lap and she tried not to think of it too much when his voice cut through her thoughts. "Oh, I…" She didn't quite know exactly what to say as he spoke about her powers returning. She had hoped she wasn't that easy to read and felt a small tinge of heat coming to her cheeks. She hadn't felt powerless in a very long time and hated the feeling of it creeping in now. She watched him move to a pack and pull something out, her eyebrows raising as he brought out a dagger, holding the hilt out to her. She met his eyes as he said the words so nonchalantly, "at least it's something."
Morrigan leaned over and took the weapon carefully. The weight was solid. It wasn't as sharp as she liked to keep her pugio but to her, in that moment, it was worth more than all of the gold in New Rome. She didn't have the words to say. She had never had someone do anything like that before. See her insecurity, her fear and address it without judgement, rebuke or turning it into a lesson. He had…taken care of her. No one took care of her. She didn't need anyone to take care of her. She and Dareios would occasionally do favors for one another of course, grab a muffin for the other, small little things but nothing as deeply personal as this. Not only had this boy seen how uncomfortable and dammingly afraid she was without her powers or protection but he corrected it while the action put him in a more vulnerable spot. She met his eyes, a very unfamiliar softness in her face, "Thank you."
He asked if she was warm and she was thankful to move past what had just happened. She nodded, "I'm fine." She was cold of course, but that had never bothered her. She was used to training in the night, in the freezing cold and rain. The worst the conditions, the better the training would be. Little things like discomfort didn't matter much to her any more.
She moved her attention back to him as he spoke of his camp. He asked how long that might have been and she put the tip of the blade into the ground, next to her crossed legs so she could grab it immediately if she needed it. "Camp Half-Blood was attacked four weeks ago. We began receiving your campers at our borders not long after that." She looked over him, he didn't appear to be running down so to speak which she couldn't fathom. She had been here a mere hours and felt like she was already losing her grip. "Are any of your half-siblings here?" She hadn't thought about any of the children of Pluto possibly being down here. She wasn't even sure how she would go about reaching them or if they even came to the shores.
Donovan listened quietly as she explained herself. Explained why she didn't have the connections in her life that she so clearly could use. He felt terrible for her, but he completely understood it. That was his life to lead as well. Not having anyone really in his life had been his burden to bear, but Morrigan was a strong, capable woman, and she deserved to love and be loved in return. His blue eyes searched her as she spoke of her friends and family at camp, of her co praetor, of all of these people that clearly meant something to her, but it didnt' seem to be enough for her to think that people would miss her. " Morrigan, you know I don't know you from any of those specters out there, but I can assure you of one thing. The people at your Camp, especially this Dareios, they clearly will miss you. As far as lovers go, well, any man that can't handle having a strong, beautiful woman in their life is just an idiot." his cheeks flushed a little as he complimented her but it was the truth. IF they could not handle someone who might be stronger than they themselves were, then they were not good enough for her to begin with.
As she spoke of the augur he frowned, " So the greeks coming to your camp caused this." he glanced at the bloody spot on her shirt and frowned, " Has anything like this happened before when she's had visions? or was it just one of those wrong place wrong time situations?" he looked over at her as the light of the flames danced across her face making her look like some ethereal creature. She was beautiful, he could not deny that, and he had to swallow back some of the nervousness he was suddenly feeling. It had been quite some time since he was alone with a woman, and this was pretty nerve wracking. Not that she had any interest in him whatsoever. He was the son of death for one, and Greek for another. Plus, they were in the underworld of all places. Not exactly your romantic getaway.
He couldn't get past the fact that their eyes kept meeting over and over. It was as if they were magnets, drawn towards one another, and it was starting to make him feel a warmth that he had not felt since being in his fathers realm. She made him nervous, but not in a bad way by any means, just in a haven't been in this type of situation kind of...situation. Gods. He felt like an idiot. Handing off the dagger to her, he had not expected her reaction. To him, it was just giving her something that might make her feel a little more safe, to her, it clearly meant a lot more. The softness in her face made him melt a little and he looked away, trying to hide the tint that had grown in his cheeks.
" You're welcome." he smiled at her and as she said that she was fine and shook his head. Pulling off his leather jacket he didn't even wait for the ok and placed it around her shoulders. " we are in the underworld Morrigan, you don't have to keep your walls up at the moment and you don't have to lie. I know its cold here, that's why we need the fire, and if you are still cold, I promise to be a gentleman but I will move closer if you need the extra heat." oh gods, again with the unintentional flirting. He really was making himself out to be a total idiot. He bit his lip and looked back at the flames, holding his hands above them to warm up.
His lips parted as she said it was a month since the attack. He had been down here for a month? He tried not to lose it there in front of her, but it was a lot to take in. " Four weeks....I've been down here for four weeks..." he shook his head at her next question, " I haven't seen any of them." he swallowed hard, and buried his face in his hands. A month of his life spent in literal Hades. A month he would never get back. His heart was thudding in his chest, thinking that maybe he would never even get out of here. Anger began to boil inside of him and he had to choke it back. " I've lost a month of my life down here...and I..." he frowned and shook his head, wiping his face with the back of his hands, not wanting her to see him upset, not wanting to look weak in front of the Praetor of the Roman Camp. That was the absolute last thing he wanted.
Morrigan listened silently as Donovan spoke about the people she left behind missing her. A part of her didn't want to think about the prospect that he could be right. That there were people who were grieving her death, or rather, half-death. She was having a hard time swallowing down the knowledge that she had left them, let them all down. The idea that she was also causing them pain was like a stab in her chest to match her gut. Thankfully he had moved right past that with a mention of her being beautiful and it had all but shut down her brain.
Morrigan's cheeks immediately radiated heat and she was certain they were as red as the scarlet on her shirt. She found herself self-consciously tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, an awkward chuckle coming from her lips as a distant voice in her head screamed that she was acting like an idiot. She had never once, not in the entirety that she had been alive, cared what any variety of the male species thought of her. Now, in the pits of the underworld a Greek demigod was making her blush. It was maddening, frightening and caused an irritating flutter in the center of her chest that she tried very hard to ignore. "And they told us the Greeks weren't bold." She gave him an amused grin, her eyes glancing over his red cheeks, the sight forcing that fluttering feeling into overdrive.
Conversation turned to the Camp and Morrigan shook her head at the question he asked. "No. It's never happened before. I wouldn't say the Greeks are to blame. My guess is that her father is trying to warn us, to protect our camp from suffering the same fate." She thought back to the moments that led to her being where she was. "It was an accident. She was in the middle of a nightmare or a vision and I had tried waking her out of it. She clearly must have been fighting something though." Her eyes unfocused as she recalled the glint of the blade before it made contact. The feeling of the metal going in and then out, her face giving a small wince in memory. She blinked a few times, forcing herself to come back to the present. To focus on him.
Those blue eyes of his that kept meeting hers. She wasn't one to usually notice physical attributes but she couldn't stop her eyes from meeting his. They were like the sky after a storm. Blue with the barest touch of gray. It eased the homesick feeling, just a bit. She had put her eyes back to the flame when he moved, getting up and walking towards her. Morrigan didn't move a muscle as he took his jacket off, placing it over her shoulders before she could protest. Her mouth did open to protest, her hand hovering to take it off as he spoke again, effectively shutting her brain down once more.
Her hand fell, her mouth closed. If anyone had ever before noticed that she had walls up, they never had the sheer audacity to comment on it. He was utterly and completely right though. They were in the literal underworld. There wasn't a point anymore to keeping her walls up, to guarding her emotions in strict regiment form. They were half-dead, there wasn't too much she needed to be concerned about.
She cleared her throat, "Noted." His jacket smelled like him and she would be lying if she said it wasn't comforting. It was still warm from where he had been wearing it and she felt slightly guilty that he had put it on her instead of using it himself, his hands warming near the flame of the fire. "Thank you. I don't need to have it though. We've trained in colder weather than this, I can take it, if you want it back." That certainly was the truth, she and Dareios liked to train in magically altered conditions, it kept you on your toes, kept you strong.
The conversation turned to how long he had been down here and she watched him carefully. His mouth parted and she watched as he answered her question numbly. A small line appeared between her brows as she watched him put his head in his hands. She was never good at this. Comforting people had never been anything that had come naturally to her. The last time she tried it, the action had sent her to this place. He spoke about losing a month of his life though and she reacted, letting her instincts take over.
Morrigan moved to where he was, sitting down directly next to him. One hand moved to take his hand into hers and the other she softly placed on his cheek to make him look at her. She met his eyes, blue matching blue, "Look at me. Take a deep breath in and out." The hand that she had placed on his cheek moved to his chest, right over his heart, feeling him breathe in and out. "You did something heroic and honorable. Something that not many people could stomach doing. You did it and you are still alive. There is still air in your lungs and the cost was one month." She kept her hand over his heart, "One month is a very small price to pay for the amount of comfort and security that you have given your fellow campers in their last moments." She squeezed his hand gently, "One month, but not another day more. We're going to get out of here. Together, okay?" She leveled her gaze, her eyes all but demanding that he listen to her, "Together."
" Well, I can't speak for all Greeks, but I do try to be as honest as I can. Everything I said I meant Morrigan. I just hope that you can accept it as the truth." he smiled shyly at her, his cheeks just staying that flushed color, he couldn't help it. She just brought out something in himself that he never would have expected. It was crazy, he had just met her, and yet here they were. A Greek and Roman in the underworld, it sounded like the punch line to a terrible joke. He let it roll off his back though, not wanting to think things he shouldn't. She was needing to get back to her Camp, and he had to figure out his next move. It wasn't like this was more than that. Or was it? It felt very much like the beginning of some Shakespeare play. Two households both alike in dignity blah blah blah.
As she explained about her friend he nodded slowly, " Maybe he is. I mean, that's her job right? She's like the oracle we used to have at Camp Half Blood, kind of, I think right? Get's visions for quests and what not?" he wasn't entirely sure how the Roman camp did things, but he was aware of what the children of Apollo sometimes could do. " I'm so sorry that this happened to you, but I will do whatever it takes to get you out of here. You shouldn't be here, you have so much life ahead of you." he smiled at her, trying to make sure she understood that he was being very much sincere in his words to her. He was going to get her out of here, whatever it took.
He sighed, looking over at her as she tried to give the jacket back, " No. You keep it, I'm fine, really. I just want you to be comfortable. At least, as comfortable as you can be in the Underworld." he sighed, running one of his hands through his hair as he looked over at her, " I know that you are trained for it, but just try to accept the helping hand for a moment. YOu don't always have to be so strong." he wasn't trying to tell her she had to be weak by any means, but he also wanted to help, in any way he could. That included keeping her warm so she didn't freeze in this cave with him. That would be one Hades of a mess to explain.
Finding out that he had been down here for a whole month had been a shock to his system, and trying to wrap his mind around it was not really working. Morrigan moved to him and her hand was in his and then her other on his face and he looked at her, a little shocked at the closeness. She did not seem the type to be the one to do this kind of thing. To be someone that tried to be a comfort to others, yet there she was. Making him feel like he could actually be ok. That he was able to get out of there, with her. Together. That word was a strong one in that moment, and his blue eyes met hers.
" Together, yeah. Ok." he swallowed down his nerves and before he even realized what he was doing He leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. Though just as quickly as he started it he pulled back. " Crap, I am so sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I...gods Morrigan I am so sorry." his cheeks flamed as he looked into her eyes, not sure if he should be expecting to be stabbed, slapped, or any other number of horrible, painful reactions for his boldness. " I got lost in the moment, I swear im not normally that guy..."
Morrigan found herself studying the Greek boy. He seemed to earnestly and honestly be speaking the truth, or at least what he believed to be the truth. There was no hint of un-honesty in his features. Her eyes paused on the slight hint of red that grew on his cheeks. It looked so oddly out of place on him. He was tall, handsome. What he had to be embarrassed about she couldn't fathom. The idea that it could possibly be due to her escaping all avenues of reason in her mind.
The conversation moved to things she could actually talk about without feeling like she was suffocating. She knew that was probably very telling, but she didn't allow herself to dive into that little piece of self-internalization. She nodded when he asked about the Greek Oracle and their Auger position. "Yes, they're very similar. Your camp's Oracle has not made it to Camp Jupiter yet. At least not before I came down here. So we're assuming Kade will continue to receive the visions until they both arrive." She hadn't thought about what might happen when the two were placed in the same camp. If she had to wager on it though, she'd say that Kade would more than likely still be the one receiving visions, they were after all, in Camp Jupiter not Camp Half-Blood.
Donovan spoke about her life not being over, that she shouldn't be down here and she almost challenged him. Then she remembered who his father was and realized that he more than likely did know precisely how much life she had ahead of her. A thought that she couldn't imagine enduring. She didn't bother asking him how he survived the burden. She knew better than most that sometimes there simply was no other option.
When something was handed to you, you either handled it or you didn't. She didn’t pity him, he was strong, clearly a fighter and he even somehow managed to keep his sense of humor intact. She didn't fear him either. After all, she was already dead. Her eyes moved to his, blue meeting blue and she realized that perhaps what she was feeling was a mutual understanding. If there was another person who could understand the loneliness and pressure that a life of such responsibility and expectation brought it would be him.
A thought crossed her mind then and she let the words come out before her brain could stop her. Opening up to a Greek stranger in the underworld was a glaring red flag. Though it would be one of a million since she had died so she supposed none of that really mattered right now anyway. "Can I ask you an absolutely ridiculous question?" She moved closer to where he was. "When I arrived at the Wolf House there was a child of Pluto there. One night she had sworn to all of us that she could read our life lines in our palms. I, of course, found the notion ridiculous but had challenged her to read mine." Morrigan opened her hand, palm side up between the two. She touched the third line, "She said that this was my life line and that it was long, but that it intersected with this one which apparently was very bad." She touched the line in the middle before looking up at him, a small grin on her lips. "She said that was my love line and that the intersection was confusing but overall meant almost certain catastrophic doom."
Morrigan couldn't help but give a soft laugh, "I never believed her of course. In fact at the time I remember thinking that if she thought that something as stupid as that would rattle me she was more of an idiot than I had guessed. Now though, I wonder if she had been onto something." She held up her hand to him, a grin still on her face, "So, can you see anything? Am I truly doomed? Although I suppose being down here should have been my first clue that maybe she was right." She didn't honestly and truly think that the lines in her hand meant anything. Sure she technically had something terribly dooming happen to her, but both lines continued after they intersected so she mused that it couldn't be all that bad.
Donovan had assured her that he was fine and she only nodded in return. When he told her that she didn't have to be so strong she truly didn't have the words. Of course she had to be strong. What else was her purpose if not to be strong? In all of the ways that mattered. She had people who relied on her strength. Asking her not to be so strong was like asking someone not to breathe.
Then he had found out how long he had been down here. A whole month gone in a blink of an eye. She had placed her hand on him, reacting instinctively and she felt a small amount of relief as he repeated the words back to her. Good, that was a good sign. She nodded, her eyes still on his, affirming the words. They would get out of this together. They had to. Then without warning he had leaned forward, pressing his lips to hers.
There were rarely moments that passed in Morrigan's life where she wasn't in control. That just wasn't a thing she allowed. Ever. She had never had a boy kiss her without some inkling of an idea that it was coming. Whether they feared her retaliation, which was justly so, or whether they simply found her un-kissable she didn't know but that action had never taken her by surprise.
He did though. Her eyes had closed, her body utterly still. It was a soft kiss, gentle. His lips barely a brush against hers before he moved from her, apologizing profusely. Morrigan opened her eyes, her thoughts running wild in her mind as her brain tried to regroup. She, again, tried listening to her gut. The same gut that usually told her when to instinctively duck or attack. He was apologizing again as her mind was made up. She moved forward, leaning towards him, pressing her lips back to his. No light butterfly softness. No barest of touches. Like to like. His lips to hers.
Ave, demigod! Over the next month, all new threads created may be attacked by the Fates at any time, unless specified in the subheader. All random events will be based on prompts from the randomizer. Please refer to the event guide #2 for further and more detailed information about your character's possible fate.
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