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.
The responding sass from Jax was only met with another grin from Espen. They'd been barrack-mates for too long to genuinely insult each other. Everything had always been fun and games; Espen couldn't remember the last time he actually got mad at anyone. The son of Pluto made a move to knock the candy bar out of Jax' mouth mid-bite, deliberately allowing his aim to fall short of actually hitting it. "Yeah, I'm terrified of being caught out here," Espen replied, "actually quaking in my boots."
The third legionnaire in their company spoke, throwing one of her prized candy bars at the barrier, but unsurprisingly, it was also stopped by seemingly thin air. Espen wasn't sure what to make of her words, though - if there was a hole in the protective enchantments, that would probably be a bad thing rather than a good thing, because that would mean there was a literal hole in the camp's defenses. For the first time ever, Espen wished the magician as*hole centurion from the second cohort was on guard duty, if only because at the very least he'd try to force something to make the barriers work again. If only because he was a snob and a know it all who had to prove himself the best every time. Espen didn't like to think he held grudges against others, but a bad run in with Wolf one too many times had caused the son of Pluto to avoid the other demigod more often than not, if only to avoid getting into a fight and splitting the ground under camp.
"Hmm, I don't think there'll be a hole in the barrier," Espen answered, although he still did reach out his hands and begin running them over the surface of the magic again, testing the strength of the barrier in various places. "I trekked around from the Oakland Hills side and it was solid there, too." Questioningly, Espen turned his gaze to the tunnel, direction his question to Iseult. "Is the tunnel entrance open?"
Espen knew not everyone reacted positively to his humour, which was fine as long as it didn't result in a stabbing, he supposed. So he only internally shrugged but let his joke fall flat on the ground between him and the second cohort girl. He pointedly ignored her instant response to reach for her weapons, knowing it was practically ingrained in most of the legionnaires to go for something sharp or explosive at the first sign of surprise. Espen himself wasn't one of those, though, so the familiar tones of his fellow first cohort legionnaire emerging from the shadows resulted in no reaction from Espen. Instead, Espen only smirked to himself and flourished his arm to allow Jax to attempt to go through, grin growing wider when the other legionnaire just bounced off it. Then the girl spoke from behind them and Espen couldn't help the chuckle. He had thought she'd be the quiet type - he was pleasantly surprised she had a sharp wit.
"I'll give you three tries to guess why we're on this side of the barrier, genius," Espen added, grinning at Jax, using the other boy's sarcasm against him but with no real heat. At this point, the son of Pluto felt even less concerned about getting into camp late - at least he wouldn't be the only one in trouble. Turning his attention past the barrier, Espen tried to look through the trees to see if there were any guards close by.
He wanted to be whistling, but only a complete dunderhead would whistle when trying to sneak back into New Rome, and while Espen may not have made all the smartest decisions in his life, he knew he wasn't that stupid. Instead, he kept quiet as he neared the entrance to the demigod city, the comforting brush of Jett's fur against his leg as he eyed his way back in. Irritatingly, though, there seemed to have been some commotion that attracted more guards than usual, and so Espen changed tack, angling his path to the side. He'd have to go the long way around towards the woods to try and sneak back into camp, but it would have to do. A quick run of his fingers through the hellhound's fur and Jett followed him without faltering his step.
As he neared the woods, though, Espen's eyebrows drew together in a confused frown. He knew where he was - he'd done this journey a million times before. He could even hear the Little Tiber's song welcoming him home just beyond the trees, but he couldn't get near it for some reason. Was this some sort of Platform 3/4 sort of situation? But no, even an experimental extended finger did not go through what must have been the barrier: a seemingly empty space in the dark between two tree trunks. More exploring fingers yielded a solid wall that was somehow not letting him back into camp. Morrigan was going to flay him alive if he wasn't in tomorrow's morning drills, which would be in - a quick glance at his watch - four hours.
Surely the tunnel would still be fine, right? At the very least, surely the guards would see him and maybe he could tell them he couldn't get in and to please let Morrigan know this wasn't completely his fault. Shaking his head but resigned to his fate, Espen continued on towards the tunnel. The sight of someone else near the entrance made Espen cautious - the change in vibe sensed by Jett, whose hackles raised at the sight of the other person - but Espen relaxed as soon as he recognised her. It was a girl in the second cohort with a name he wasn't sure how to pronounce, but he'd always pegged her for a more rule-follower type. She seemed to have dropped something on the ground, and Espen reached for one of the objects closest to him. A Snickers bar?
"I get that," he said conversationally as he handed it back to her. "I get snacky at midnight, too." He was still looking at her and smiling conspiratorially when he made to step towards camp - only to be hit again by the solid barrier. Attention now back to his original predicament, he turned so he was facing into camp, once again testing the limits of the barrier. "What the living heck is this?"
Espen wasn't sure what ridiculous hour of the morning it was, but neither was he going to be bothered to check. He was exhausted, not only by his travel but also by the amount of energy he'd just spent cloaking himself in darkness to slip past the guards at the tunnel. They had been particularly vigilant, he guessed ever since the Greeks had arrived guard duty had been more stringent than usual. It would have been fine if Espen wasn't the type to sneak in and out of Camp Jupiter often, and while the guards pre-Greek era may have been more forgiving towards Espen's escapades, they were now far less likely to let him get away with it. More than anything, Morrigan had lost her patience with him and would probably give him a very bad shock - he was going to chalk it up to the stress with the Greeks and nothing with him personally. Probably.
As he trudged into the first cohort barracks, Espen sneaked around the bunk beds, heading in the general direction of his own. Weak moonlight streamed in through the windows, the branches of a tree outside throwing spiders' legs of shadows onto the floor in front of him. Almost subconsciously and despite the exhaustion, Espen's umbrakinesis seeped from his skin, covering his silhouette in darkness as he wove in and out of the silver light, hiding himself from anyone else who might be awake at this hour. To be quite honest, he'd probably be missing marching drills today; usually it wasn't too much of a problem, going into the drills straight after an expedition in the mortal world, but tonight had been different.
It was with a barely-audible whump that Espen practically collapsed into his mattress face first. It was slightly uncomfortable with his face so squashed into the pillow, but he was too tired to change position. The clothes were heavy and thick on his body, and he knew they were dirty from where he'd been, but there were very few things Espen would care about at that exact moment. His eyes fluttered close, already ready to be claimed by the abyss of sleep.
Okay, Espen knew this could potentially look bad, but he couldn't help himself. The girl from the lantern festival had practically melted into the crowd as soon as the stuck paper had been freed from the branches of the tree, and Espen had been unable to catch her name or anything about her. What he did know was that he had seen her go into the gardens before, and once again he found himself lying on a hill, waiting for a chance to accidentally on purpose bump into her again. As long as the other girl didn't magically appear and trip over him again, he was going to be fine; he'd even chosen a different place to relax and absorb the sun, maybe slightly hoping that the girl from the lantern festival would recognise him and be the one to strike up conversation.
As the son of Pluto relaxed again, leaning back on the ground with his eyes closed and his face open to the sky - slightly mindful of his surroundings and ears pricked for the softest steps on the grass in case he got kicked in the ribs, again - he took deep, relaxing breaths. While the main reason he was here was to hopefully cross paths with the girl from the lantern festival, he couldn't help but be grateful and take advantage of the peace and tranquility of the gardens. He'd never been one to really appreciate the gardens before, but now that he found himself in here more often, he could really get into the vibe. On his next travels out of camp, he might need to head towards some other gardens. There were some really pretty pictures of lavender farms that were popular tourist traps and places where people who wanted to take selfies tended to go. Imagining the heavy, heady scent of lavender in the air as he frolicked between the plants only served to relax Espen even further, practically being lulled to sleep by his imagination.
That was, until he heard a soft sound, and Espen sat up, eyeing the gardens and wary of an unsuspecting camper tripping over his body. (That first incident really traumatised him.) There was no one else around that he could see, until he did a second sweep and noticed the top of someone's head behind a bush. They looked like they were hiding or something behind the bushes, and Espen felt his hackles rise a little, a reflexive reaction that often happened because they were demigods and they had long since learned to expect the worst in any ordinary situation. "'Scuse me, you alright?" he called out, his voice low but quite firm, announcing his presence and unwillingness to attack, but also showing some strength in case someone decided they could try to take advantage of him. As always, his powers were ready to respond at a moment's notice, the energy of the earth underneath him taut as though ready to crack open at a moment's notice.
Then he rounded the bushes and came across a familiar silhouette and hair, the reason he'd been in the garden in the first place: the girl from the lanterns. Did she trip into the rose bushes or something? With a little more urgency now but definitely also trying to be even less threatening that he knew who it was, he stepped forward and leaned to the side, trying to get a better look at her face. "Hey, are you okay? Do you need medical help or something?" The sudden urge to care was instantaneous, as it had been that night when he had first seen her precariously perched on a branch, chasing after a stuck paper lantern higher up in the tree.
It felt like he had achieved something, quite truthfully, with Avery clearly cheered up by his dramatic posing. He wasn't usually the type to poke fun at himself, although he of course wasn't above laughing at himself if he did something stupid. He just wasn't usually the class clown, but if it meant making Avery laugh some more, he most definitely would not mind getting into more funny shenanigans like that. Espen's smile was wide as he briefly turned to meet Avery's eyes, her clap gleeful and even doing a little bow. It actually felt natural for Espen to flutter his fingers at Avery as though batting away her praise, and it felt good and warm to joke around with the Greek girl. Had anyone told Espen a few days ago when he met his first Greek girl - a memorable experience, let me tell you - that he would meet another that would completely flip any and all expectations he had of their camp, he would have laughed in their face. And yet, here he was completely at ease, in fact a lot funnier than he usually was with his own friends. All within less than an hour of being with Avery. She was definitely quite the breath of fresh air.
"Pshaw, you're just teasing," he replied, his voice in a falsetto as he pretended to blush at her words. He chortled in his natural timbre before turning to the last task. He was definitely going to pass on those arrows. The son of Pluto was half bent over as he moved some heavy boxes around to straighten them, grunting as he moved them into place, and straightened just in time to catch Avery's last words. He rolled his eyes at her playfully, but wisely refrained from making a joke about seeing if the Greeks could do better. Considering how their camp had been burned down to the ground, Espen felt it might be in poor taste if he did bring it up, and look ladies and gentleman he was maturing right in front of everyone's eyes. He might even ripen at the end of the season. He was pretty sure the first Greek girl he'd met would be flabbergasted at all this tact he was displaying right now.
It seemed that Avery hadn't noticed Espen skipping the arrows, or maybe she did but chose not to comment on it. Either was fine with Espen as he moved out of her way, instead now choosing to lean against the wall next to the spears as he watched her work. He wasn't going to leave in the middle of such an interesting conversation, and besides, he had committed himself to wait for Avery until she finished. There might be something they had both missed and if a centurion came in and caught them, Avery might be stuck in here until late in the evening. At least if he was still here, he could help in case someone came along. Besides, she was fun to talk to, and his friends would hardly miss him anyway.
Crossing his arms, Espen shook his head slightly even though Avery couldn't actually see him. "No, it was what I was used to, I guess," he answered truthfully. He had never known any other life than the one he'd been raised in, and it had never bothered him that they had moved around a lot. All he had ever needed in his childhood was his mother, as the son of Pluto was quite an unattached person. New schools, new neighbourhoods, new friends - none of that had mattered much to him at all. "I think I ended up liking moving around. A bit freeing, you know. You're not really defined by where you live or where you're from." He supposed that was the easiest to define reason why he liked moving around; Espen had never needed to belong anywhere, and couldn't understand people who needed to live in one static place or have a solid place to call home. For him, home was wherever he was.
The East Coast wasn't really a place he'd been to often, though, considering he and his mother had stuck mostly to the western side of the country. "That's pretty neat," Espen replied, actually genuinely interested to hear more about where Avery used to live. He'd never been much of an ocean / beach / sea kind of guy, so it was quite interesting to hear about someone whose life revolved around it. "Are you a child of Neptune then?" When Avery asked about his favourite places to visit, Espen thought hard about it for a brief minute, before shrugging his shoulders. He had always wandered, never travelled with a specific destination or goal in mind. He'd been to a fair few places, but none that really stuck to him. "Not really. I don't think I've been anywhere really interesting - I like small towns and the country, you know? Places people wouldn't really visit as a first choice." Not only was it more interesting to see the lives of the people in those areas, it also meant he was less likely to run into monsters. Not that he was scared of them or anything, but it just felt like a more logical thing to do. Besides, Espen was not unnecessarily extroverted. "How about you? If you had to pick one place to visit next, where would you go?"
Espen had never carried anything as stiff or as uncomfortable as the girl on his back, and he had practically hauled a supplies box on his back once during a quest. The son of Pluto gritted his teeth, resisting the urge to adjust the girl by shaking her upwards so she would settle into a more comfortable position. That would most likely result in dislodging the peace and silent truce between them, so Espen decided to just get down to business and get moving. She wasn't heavy in the least - he had carried heavier packs than her for longer, so it didn't bother him much - and there was nothing but the relief that they could finally move at a decent pace. Finally, they'd be able to make it back to camp and he could dump her in the infirmary and he could return to his freedom. Never before had Espen been so desperate to be alone, just to be away from her.
Camp was almost in sight, and the girl had not softened at all on his back. It didn't matter; Espen could have run the rest of the way if it didn't jostle her and hurt her ankle more. Single-minded determination kept Espen going, and he was so focused on his task that he nearly jumped out of his skin when he felt her brushing dirt out of his air. This was officially the weirdest thing he had ever done, and he was so over it. He was so surprised by an unprompted act of kindness - which he didn't even know she was capable of giving - that he merely grunted his thanks. What was he supposed to say to that, anyway? It felt strangely and very uncomfortably intimate, and Espen wanted this girl out of his hair, metaphorically and literally.
Finally, they rounded the last corner, and if the Greek girl had been blessed with telepathy, she would have covered her mental ears at the loudness and sheer enthusiasm in Espen's mental voice. He had never been so glad to be home, which said a lot considering he often enjoyed getting out and just wandering about. The son of Hades was not particularly attached to having one place to call home, but he was suddenly and very loudly so happy about seeing the familiar buildings. Home. Infirmary. His boots made soft thudding noises on the floor as he entered, trying not to show the desperation to get her off him.
Gently but with firm fingers, Espen leaned down to set the girl on a bed, his hands on her arms so she didn't slide completely off him. "Twisted ankle on this one," he called out conversationally to the medic on duty as he finally let go his grip on the girl's arms. Turning around, Espen genuinely felt no emotion upon seeing her on the infirmary bed. She looked... smaller, somehow, even though he knew she wouldn't appreciate the sentiment at all. He kept his electric blue eyes on her face as the medic bustled between them. She really did look alright, at least, the dangerous flash in her eyes had disappeared and she no longer looked completely furious with him. Running fingers through his hair another time - trying very hard not to think about who else's fingers had just touched it - he pressed his lips together to give her the smallest flash of a smile. "You'll be in good hands here. Anyway, I'm gonna--" And with those graceful words, Espen tilted his thumb towards the entrance. What was he going to say to her, goodbye it was a pleasure to meet you? The son of Hades had never been much of a liar, and he wasn't going to start now.
Espen had never been the most serious legionnaire - much to the constant consternation of his Praetors. He wasn't very much into pranks or practical jokes, but he'd always been one to do his own thing, never been one to really be pushed to do things he didn't want to do. It wasn't that he was rebellious; he was just very self-aware, and grounded, and confident in himself. His personality could be like a mountain - steady and heavy and comforting in its size, but not exactly moveable. He was like his affinity, which only made sense considering his parentage. So when the girl had suggested he strike a pose instead of recite poetry, Espen only shook his head and laughed, before doing as she asked about five seconds later.
It was only for a grand total of three seconds, of course: Espen's face wiped clean of its humour, instead looking proud and regal and maybe a little constipated as he twisted his body and face to look up in a generic upwards and to the side direction. His left arm was pulled up in front of him, bent at the elbow and wrist curled forwards and inwards, while his other arm was pulled up more towards his right shoulder. Both hands were in fists, facing in the same direction as the rest of his body. His legs were strong and solid, his feet a foot apart as he rested his weight lower on his body. Even his chest was puffed slightly, trying to put in a bit of drama and pizazz in his pose for the hilarity of it.
Despite the short duration of his posing, Espen was glad to see it made Avery smile a little bit. The son of Pluto didn't usually think of himself as the comedic relief in a group of friends - although he did find himself in that position more often than not, because he tended not to take too many things seriously - so it did please him a bit that she could appreciate his humour, too. And while Espen wasn't usually in the habit of trying to cheer up people he didn't know, he was quite glad that this Greek girl was at least having hopefully a little bit more fun than she'd expected while having to deal with her punishment. Espen could only imagine what it would be like to be dealing with a new camp and new rules then getting punished with the most droll chore in his opinion. At least washing dishes or doing laundry could devolve into a water fight. What would demigods do to make cleaning the armoury fun, throw shields at each other?
As Avery nodded, the disproportionate helmet on her head swung heavily, and Espen watched it flop in amusement. The Greek girl wasn't bothered in the least by it, though, instead continuing on with her chores with the helmet still on. "No, you're right," Espen replied, turning away to get started on propping up bows. This was the least messy section, mostly because legionnaires didn't use bows very much - archery was the least prioritised combat skill. "Camp Jupiter was built in three." His tone was very matter of fact, although after a few seconds the son of Pluto shrugged. "Or at least, that's what they say. The whole of Camp can be disassembled and reassembled in three days. We haven't ever needed to the whole time I've been here, so I'm not sure how accurate that is."
To be quite honest, though, Espen didn't doubt it in the least. All the legionnaires had had duties digging up trenches or on latrine duty, and they often ran drills in breaking parts of camp down as quickly as they could then building it back up. It was usually termed a 'team-building exercise', which Espen could admit did tend to work considering anyone who was lazy tended to get stuck with the worst chores if they didn't pull their weight. That would mean if the Greeks didn't start pulling themselves together, they would be stuck on the dirtiest and smelliest tasks. Espen would feel bad if they had practice sessions with the Greeks - he'd hate to see Avery stuck on latrine duty.
The son of Pluto glanced up from the last bow, glad to put off sorting out the arrows a bit. He'd rather deal with bigger and heavier weapons than sorting out toothpicks. He might leave that one for Avery completely. "Not really from anywhere," Espen said easily, shrugging casually as he spoke. He'd never belonged anywhere else, really; Camp Jupiter had been the longest home he'd known. Even when he'd been a kid, his mother had always moved them around. It was only when he'd gotten older and into camp that she'd told him it was because things had always happened around him - things that he knew by then were related to his parentage. "We always moved around when I was younger. How about you? You guys are from New York, right?" Belatedly, Espen remembered that Camp Half-Blood had burned down, and he winced internally. He hadn't been the most sympathetic to the other Greeks, but it felt strange bringing it up with such a sunny and sweet person like Avery.
Espen grinned and tilted his head slightly as he arranged the broadsword properly so it wouldn't topple over. "That's me," he responded to her joke about having Wheaties. Really, he'd had what every other Roman had had for breakfast, but apparently that still had greater sustenance or maybe protein than anything the Greeks had. This girl was tiny, being a whole head shorter than him, and practically waif-like despite her big personality - Espen briefly wondered if she was the smallest in their own camp. Although, the Greek girl he'd seen with the dark hair and blue eyes in the gardens was probably shorter; she probably didn't get up to his shoulder. A small smile briefly appeared on his face as he imagined her height against his, before he refocused on the present events in the armory.
The son of Pluto had moved on to arranging the swords closest to him, if only to make it look less like a mess from the front, laughing at the girl's words despite not looking in her direction. "I think you overestimate how much we like writing sonnets," he said over his shoulder, bending down to pick another sword off the floor and putting it with the others. "Isn't poetry more a Greek thing?" From what he'd heard, the Greeks were more into arts and crafts and poetry and pottery; all pretty useless things in Espen's opinion. But hey, if that was what made them happy, then all power to them. It would be a shame that they wouldn't be able to practice it here, and they had to replace all those fun things with actually attending combat training or drills in the morning, but it was what it was.
He'd just turned around to glance at her and make sure she hadn't been flattened by a falling chest plate when she'd pulled a centurion helmet over her head and peeked out at him through the eye slits. The disproportionate size of the metal over the small Greek girl's face had Espen wheezing, laughing so hard at the image that he had to lean on his knees to stop himself from falling over. The hilarity was so sudden and so strong that Espen actually felt tears coming to his eyes, and when he'd finally controlled himself, he had to swipe a finger at the corner of his left eye to clear his vision. "Tartarus, that was hilarious," he said as he shook his head and turned back to his task, body spasming slightly as he fought to keep the giggles down. If he laughed at everything she did, he was sure they'd both be here until well past bedtime.
The shields were next to the swords, and this one was a bit more to tackle. They were heavy and made of solid metal, meant to be able to withstand many kinds of weapons. Espen had to put a bit more elbow grease into this one, and his lips parted as he bent down and began rearranging them. "Yep, and marching drills every morning." He looked up as he put a shield away, trying to give her a reassuring grin. The helmet on her head, while still somewhat funny, had just reminded Espen of the level of responsibility and duty the Greeks now had to learn to fill. "You'll get used to it. It's hard at first, but eventually you'll settle into a rhythm."
It was something Espen himself had to remind himself of. They'd all been probatio once, even the ones who had grown up in New Rome. They'd all had to go through Lupa, they'd all had to adjust to legion life. Some of the legionnaires themselves were still learning to adjust, or were dragging their feet - if they hadn't, they wouldn't be getting in trouble, and then who'd be washing the dishes or doing the laundry? It was hard to remember the Greeks were new, too, despite many of them having been demigods for years. Espen would have to try harder to be considerate, he supposed, but if they were actually like this Greek girl and willing to pull in their weight when it mattered, he'd find himself far more accommodating.
As the girl double checked if he'd be okay with it, he waved an errant hand over his shoulder as though it hadn't mattered. Truly, though, it didn't; Espen could be mean at times, but he'd always tried to be nice first. This girl hadn't done anything to offend or insult him - of course he was going to lend a hand. "Espen," he replied as he arranged the last shield. She'd have to clean it, of course, but at least it was easier to get to and she wouldn't trip over them. The sound of the spray interrupted the brief silence, and Espen turned again to look at the girl - Avery - and make sure she hadn't done come across any complications just yet. He grinned and nodded at the helmet on her head. "You should definitely wear it during a War Game. It'd suit you." The mental image of Avery yelling a battlecry, dragging the broadsword behind her and with the huge helmet over her head, trying to keep it from falling off - Espen had to turn away to smother his giggles.
A laugh. By the gods, she had graced him with a laugh, and it didn't even sound sarcastic. If he'd been feeling particularly waspish, he'd have made a comment about checking her for a fever because he hadn't been expecting that at all. As it was, he just focused on his task of helping get her moving forward, not bothering to respond, instead keeping his mind on the mental image of Dareios and the camaraderie speech. Espen idly wondered if he should be in the vicinity while the Praetor - or more likely, someone else - crafted the speech. The son of Pluto could come up with a few nice superlatives and metaphors to really juice it up, really make the speech worthy of being remembered in the annals of Camp Jupiter. Not that Espen really had a way with words, but he reckoned he could do it considering the incentive: Dareios' expressions while giving the speech.
At least the girl wasn't petty enough to ignore the rock chair he'd roughly hewn together. In fact, she hadn't really been petty since they'd left the garden. It was a relief not having to constantly walk in eggshells around her, not knowing what to say that could trigger a landslide of insults. Despite that, though, Espen felt as though having an actual conversation with her was still too far off into the distance. As he worked the kinks out of his strained calves and wrists and back, Espen turned his back on her, using the environment and the view unimpeded by the grumpy Greek to ground himself and refuel his depleted patience.
It was only when the girl started to reply that Espen turned back to face her. It took a supreme amount of effort to keep his eyebrows at their place on his face, not allowing them to climb higher up in disbelief. She could have just let him when this all began, they'd probably be at camp by now and well out of each other's hair. But no, she had stubbornly held on to her pride. And now, now, she had decided she could be carried after all. It took the same amount of effort to not tell her I told you so, nor to call out to the heavens demanding why on earth he'd been the one saddled with this situation. All in all, Espen was about to explode, and it took a mountain-load of willpower to not take it out on her.
Shrugging casually as though the myriad of infuriated thoughts hadn't just passed through his brain, Espen responded, "I don't have to carry you like a princess, you know. You can just piggy back." He was trying to be considerate, he was trying to be considerate. The son of Pluto repeated the sentence like a mental mantra, trying to put goodwill in his tone and in his vibe and in whatever else the Greek girl was reading about him. She had been the one scared of what people might think if he carried her into camp - he figured riding on his back would gain less gossip than being carried bridal style.
Espen didn't like hearing that she couldn't continue. Not because it irritated him that she'd made her own life harder - although that was part of it - but because he had always disliked being around a kicked puppy. That was what he was getting from her right now. He'd always been one for fair fights, for attacks from the front, for no sabotage and no sneak. He'd never been a politician, and the kind of advantages he liked were ones that still allowed for a fun challenge, not an automatic win. Despite how much he was truly irritated by the Greek girl, he'd never actually wanted to see her hurt to this point. He gritted his teeth in indecision, not knowing what to say or how to respond to her last words. Instead, he decided to just walk towards her, face serious and eyes hard, before leaning down in front of her and turning his back to her. "Come on," he said, voice low, "let's get you up."
Espen grinned at the promise of violence and sneaky tricks at the chariot race. Usually he wasn't one to really enjoy it, but considering it was all supposed to be in the spirit of friendly rivalry, as well as the fact that this was the chance for some of the Greeks to put their money where their mouth was, the son of Pluto was looking forward to it. Some of those Greek Mars kids talked big game; he'd like to see them go up against a real Roman warrior. Most of the legion had been holding themselves back in most - if not all - areas involving the Greeks, now they had full excuse to operate like they would have done to any other Roman. Espen wasn't particularly vindictive, but considering how often he'd seen the Greeks antagonising the legionnaires despite the Romans being the one to open their home to the refugees, well. Espen wasn't feeling as charitable as he had been when they'd first arrived.
"Looking forward to it, then," he said, pointing his weapon at the girl before stepping towards the starting as his name was called. Time to half-gluteus maximus the situation so he could go on and have fun for the rest of the day, before he had to spend his evening bored out of his mind standing at one spot for hours staring into the darkness. No monster or demigod would have the guts to attack Camp Jupiter, regardless of whether the barriers were up or down, but if it got him out of the lantern festival then it was fine. "I'll see how you go, but I might put money on you, so do your best."
With another grin, he made a saluting gesture to the girl before turning around and walking towards the starting line. The kid who'd been spinning his spear nonstop was in this line-up, and Espen smirked to himself as he watched the other demigod's stance. Entirely too showy and eager, that one. It would actually be fun to watch him win, if only because it would be so funny. As the countdown began, Espen finally turned towards the other end of the track, hefting the spear in his hand as he'd done hundreds of times before. With a sparkle in his blue eyes and a knowing smile, Espen pulled back his arm and let the spear fly.
It didn't surprise Espen all that much that Claire wasn't headed for the lantern festival. It was a weird thing for any Roman to go to, or so Espen felt. He suppose he could see Romans going out of respect for the fallen Greeks, he supposed, but Espen personally felt weird about going himself. Guarding the Greeks sounded like a better way to pay tribute, and a better use of his time, too. Did that sound callous? He certainly hadn't meant it to be so. He just didn't know how he could be somber and take part in that event sincerely when he hadn't actually known any of the fallen.
Espen nodded easily at Claire's reply about guard duty not being too bad, and only grinned good-naturedly at the female demigod's admission that she would be as ready as she could be for the chariot race. It did sound like a lot of fun - despite Espen's laidback attitude, at the end of the day he was still a Roman demigod and he could appreciate the violent beauty in chariot racing. He didn't know if or how the Greeks did their chariot races, but there nothing quite like the Roman way of doing it. Then again, perhaps this was the one area in which both camps reveled in their shared disregard for injury and love for violence. It might be the one place where a Greek might actually be able to hold their own. Espen was looking forward to that idea, but he wouldn't dare say it out loud, especially not to a fellow Roman.
"It's going to be a bloodbath," he said lightly, a bright grin on his face as he thought of the event. "I think I'm going to need good seats to be able to see it all." That, and he needed it to be able to place a good bet. If the Greeks ever had any tricks, the chariot race would be the place to see them. He turned appraising eyes to Claire, wondering if the third cohort girl would also bring something entertaining to the hippodrome. "Any tricks up your sleeve?"
The girl looked down at him from her position up in the tree and Espen forgot to breathe for a second. Which was not something he appreciated, because that had never happened to him before. Girls had never been a big importance in his life; he didn't exactly look for those things because he'd never needed them. Friends had been plenty fine for the son of Pluto, and besides, he wasn't sure if he'd like a girl who asked him where he went at night - he'd heard horror stories about jealous girlfriends demanding to know where their boyfriends went and Espen didn't think the trade-off of losing his independence was worth it. And so he'd never particularly cared enough about anyone of the opposite gender aside from as a friend or as an ally - or as a powerful demigod who could shock his gluteus maximus with a bolt of lightning. Looking at you, Morrigan.
But this girl was different. Espen didn't know if it was because she looked so small and fragile, or if it was the way her eyes were luminous and soft but also slightly aloof, all at the same time, or the way her lips moved when she talked, or her hair as it curled around her face - or all of these things at once. Even though she was a bit of a distance from him, he could tell that she barely reached his shoulder, and maybe it was just some sort of long-buried protector instinct in him because no one had needed it at Camp Jupiter. Everything about her told him to care.
Blinking as he gathered his scrambled thoughts, Espen smiled apologetically at her, his eyes flicking to the lantern she pointed at before returning to her face. "No, not me," he told her. He was just about to offer to get someone else to help - unsure if he should leave her up there or ask her to get down before he went - when the girl started shaking the branch and Espen felt a previously unknown anxiety creep over him. These danged Greek girls were making Espen feel a range of previously untapped emotions, and he wasn't sure if he was a fan of this at all.
Thankfully, though, the girl didn't fall from her precarious perch, and Espen ran a hand at the top of his head to brush off any errant leaves that may have landed there. "C-could you maybe, get down?" he called up, voice unsure as he watched her step carefully on the branches. Could she actually get down? Espen for sure wouldn't have been able to see a way down himself if he'd been up that high. A bit of a nervous smile appeared on his lips as he tried to reassure himself that she wouldn't fall; if she'd gotten that high, she could get back down. Right? "Just don't want you to fall right now. When you're back on solid ground, we can find someone who can set the lantern free again." All this over a lantern that wasn't even hers, just because someone else was paying a tribute with it? Espen didn't know if that was stupidly endearing or endearingly stupid.
The amused expression on Espen's face only deepened further as the Greek girl tried to defend herself and tell him she was fine. He didn't even know if she was being sarcastic or was trying to be genuine about 'being in her element', even though they both clearly knew that wasn't the truth at all, but that in-between tone only had him laughing some more. She was a tiny thing, so short and skinny that Espen was pretty sure she could get blown away by a breeze. For the first time, Espen actually felt sympathy for a Greek demigod for having to live in Camp Jupiter. The son of Pluto had the sobering thought that this girl wouldn't be treated with any difference by the legion - she would be expected to fall in line like all the demigods who had been trained for this life.
The girl calmly took the first spear he'd collected, no longer with that flash of worry that he'd first seen on her face when he'd walked in. Espen was glad for that - he was a warrior, not a monster that scared girls. He wouldn't have liked it very much if she'd continued to be nervous around him. Apparently, she had completely negated any sort of threat he might have presented with his appearance, because she instantly started talking a mile a minute, and Espen grinned again as he listened to her. He didn't even need to respond as she went from one thought to the next, defending herself and her lack of control over her powers, picking up spears and somewhat contentedly carrying out what she was doing - her punishment(?) - while chatting on, her flow of words uninterrupted.
Disregarding her instructions not to help, Espen continued to anyway, strangely content with helping this girl with her chore. He'd just finished picking up the last spear when the girl - still talking - moved on to another weapon. Of course, that weapon just happened to be a broadsword that Espen was pretty sure no one used at all. He smirked and stood a little ways off with his arms crossed, his eyes alight with amusement as he waited for her to give up on the weapon and maybe move on to something else. Hilariously, she began talking to it as she dragged it along, and Espen laughed again before moving forwards and finally helping her as she stopped in her Herculian task to pump her muscles at him.
"Gods," he chortled almost to himself, easily picking up the broadsword and propping it up against the wall. His eyebrows quirked at the girl as the smile remained on his lips, entertained by her flex, and assured her, "Yeah, you'll be a tank in no time." He glanced around the room, connecting the dots of her punishment himself. If he was right, she was going to be in here into the night without help. "You're on spittin' and shinin' duty, huh? You're going to miss dinner if you don't have help. Seriously. Why don't you do the actual cleaning part and I'll help you move this stuff?"
Espen only grinned at Claire's disbelieving question. Yeah, he'd gotten that a couple of times already this morning. It was hardly very Roman of him to only take on one Game, and Espen didn't tell anyone but he was already not planning to win. He was fully expecting to fall flat due to his sheer lack of effort, be counted out early on and not make it onto a second round, then pretend to shrug his shoulders and call it a day. He'd have much more fun watching and laughing with his friends, or maybe making some bets. He'd heard one of the Greeks had a little betting pool - he might get in on that action just for the fun of it.
"Yeah, just the one," he replied breezily, the shrug implied in his tone even as he flashed his pearly whites at Claire. "I pulled the short straw and got guard duty tonight for the lantern thing. Don't want to tire myself out too much." Technically speaking a white lie; yes, he was on guard duty, but he'd actually signed up to do it when the legionnaire with the roster came knocking. The idea of being part of the festival when he had no business mourning with the Greeks... well, it just sounded horribly awkward. Espen would rather be standing and staring into the darkness for a few hours than face that.
It didn't really surprise Espen any that Claire told him she'd signed up for combat and chariot racing. Those would undoubtedly be the most competitive Games in the lot. "Good deal," he told her, flipping his spear once as he talked, hands needing to fiddle with something as usual. "You ready for the chariot race? No limits on magic and weapons, right?" That would be a chaotic bloodbath - Espen already couldn't wait to be a spectator for that show.
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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