Dancing with Death

Same Song, Second Verse

Ali sat halfway up a hill, staring out over the fields of Camp Jupiter. The air was cool and fresh. A soft breeze caressed her face, tossing her stray hairs. She took a deep breath. The air smelled like freshly cut grass and sulfur, which mixed surprisingly well.

The campers were all down at breakfast, but Ali felt uncomfortable around the Romans. They were half-bloods, but nothing like she'd ever encountered. It didn't help that, whenever she was around them, she was the center of attention. She caught them staring or muttering something about "the Graecus" when they thought she wasn't listening.

Some things never changed. She was always the outsider, the freak, the loner. She didn't belong anywhere. Even among her sisters she was strange. Each of them had one aspect of Artemis' power. Meg could communicate and, to some extent, control animals; Lydia was insanely skilled with a bow, even by Ali's standards; and Lyra was probably the greatest tracker in the world, but Ali had all of those skills... and more. She was more powerful than any of her sisters and she didn't know why, probably never would. It was almost like she was cursed to be alone forever.

Percy's face flashed through her mind. She knew what he would say. "You're not alone." But that wasn't true. Everyone she'd ever cared about was gone. Her father and Mason were both dead; Percy had rejected her; and she'd pushed her sisters away so she could look for him. She didn't have anyone. She never did.

Ali laid back against the side of the hill, staring at the sky as brushstrokes of white clouds drifted across the sky. Her mind filled with memories of all the times she'd spent with Percy - sitting side-by-side on the dock at camp with her head resting on his shoulder, the first time they had actually gone on a date, the feel of his lips pressed against hers.

She squeezed her eyes shut as the ache in her heart made her eyes tear up. She always put on a mask, pretended she was okay, but she wasn't. She missed him... more than anything. She knew she'd never find anyone like him again, which meant her only hope of ever having a boyfriend was gone. No one else understood her. No one else cared.

"You're a strange girl." Reyna's voice pulled her out of her thoughts.

Ali sat up and faced the praetor, pushing down her heartbreak. "How So?"

"Well..." Reyna took a seat next to Ali on the grass. "You seem to go out of your way to avoid people."

Ali sighed and looked out over camp. "People don't usually want me around. I guess I'm just doing them a favor."

Reyna examined her strange visitor. "Do you care that much about what they think of you?"

Ali scoffed. "Of course not, but... that doesn't make it any easier to be around them, when they're calling me freak or whatever else they can come up with." She turned to meet Reyna's gaze.

The praetor studied her quizzically. "You're different, unlike any half-blood I've ever met, Greek or Roman."

Ali chuckled coldly. "I could've told you that."

Reyna thought for a moment then stood. "Come on. I want to show you something."

"What?" Ali teased. "Your armory."

Reyna rolled her eyes. "Nothing like that." She offered Ali a hand up. "Now come on."

Ali hesitated before taking Reyna's hand and following her down the hill.
* * *
Ali surveyed the buildings around her. "So... these are all temples to the gods?"

Reyna nodded. "It's our way to honor them." She stared at one of the temples to there right. "I take it you don't have anything like this at your camp."

Ali shook her head. "No, although we do separate the campers based on their godly parents."

The praetor looked at her strangely. "I suppose that's one way to do it."

Ali chuckled. "Greeks and Romans really are opposites aren't they?"

Reyna cracked the smallest smile. "I don't think they could be much more different."

Ali felt a smirk spread across her lips. "And yet, here we are... not trying to kill each other."

"For now." Reyna said it more as a warning than a threat.

Ali shrugged. "You know what they say about opposites attract."

Reyna shook her head. "Things are never that simple."

Ali's smile fell. "Trust me, I know."

"Well," Reyna finally broke the silence. "I should get back to my duties." She turned to leave. "Will I see you at lunch? Or will you be hiding away again?"

Ali managed a small smile. "Haven't decided yet."

Reyna sighed in exasperation and descended the hillside.

Ali turned back to the temples. "I wonder." She wandered across the hilltop, studying each of the buildings until she found one clad in silver with a symbol of a deer above the doorway. "Mom." She walked tentatively inside.

The temple was small, cold, and empty. A mural of the night sky decorated the ceiling and a silver longbow hung reverently over a squat alter.

Ali felt like an intruder. Diana may have been the Roman version of Artemis, but they weren't the same. Like almost every Roman god, Diana was more war-like. She cared less about balance and more about the hunt. She'd inspired the idea of killing for sport.

Ali clenched her fists at the thought. Hunting was never supposed to be a game, it was a means of survival, a source of food or income. She couldn't imagine killing an animal without reason.

She sighed and stared at the ceiling. "Hey, mom," she bit her bottom lip. "I'm not sure if you're listening, or if you even care about me in your Roman state, but I need to ask you a favor." She waited, half-expecting a lightning bolt to fry her, but nothing happened. "Protect him. Help him get back safely and, if you have any say in the matter, help him remember." She hugged herself. "I may deserve to be forgotten, but Annabeth doesn't." She stood in silence for a moment before taking a deep breath and walking out of the temple.

A/N
Aaaaannnnddd... I'm back!
Sorry, had to update my other story. 😅
Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter. I know it was a filler, but the next one should finish up Son of Neptune and bring us into Mark of Athena. Yay!
Thank you all for the support. We're almost at 1k reads!!
Until next time.
-Cheshire