Ashes, Ashes

chapter 14

-ash-

I pointed out some common areas, and we got as far as the volleyball pit when Daphne bounced up to me on her spotless white athletic looking sneakers.

Actually, her whole outfit was athletic looking: Short nylon black shorts with white lining, a floaty white tank top hanging on her lithe frame. Her Camp-Half Blood necklace was tied around her throat and her hair was escaping in little wisps from her ponytail, framing her red-cheeked and hazel eyed face. I had to admit, she was pretty.

"Hey Daphne," I said, glancing around Camp. Aspen was looking around in wonder at everything I introduced to her on our now-interrupted way to the Big House.

"Oh-Em-Gees, Ash, babe, you're back!" She squealed. "I'm so glad you're safe here now," she said, her arms snaking their way up to my neck to clutch me tightly as if I'd been gone for years instead of a couple weeks. My cheeks flamed up and I awkwardly patted her back. She released me, one of her hands running down my arm to close around my wrist and the other to smoothly bend down and tuck her volleyball around her arm.

A shout came from one of the volleyball pits, and Daphne hollered back, "Coming! Sorry Ash, gotta go finish a game," she jerked her head in the direction of the pit and gave me a wicked smile. She leaned up on her toes, and bracing her hand on my shoulder for support, kissed me lightly on the cheek. Then, turning back, sprinted down to finish her game. My face flamed. I stood there, stunned for a moment.

I guess one of my buddies had heard I was back, because he came trotting up to me just then, talking a mile a minute, obviously excited to see me. Hey, I was too to be back. I turned back towards Aspen who had distanced herself and now was staring at me, wearing her usual I-am-invisible look. I was so used to not seeing that face, it came as a shock to me that she had gone into her shell again because of me. I opened my mouth to speak but she beat me to it.

"I-I guess I'll just show myself around. You have fun with your... f-friends," she said quietly, her eyes flickering for a second towards the volleyball pit. Then she turned on her heel stiffly walked towards the Big House, leaving me staring helplessly after her.

-aspen-

I walked without knowing where I was, unsure of why I felt like crying. I took a deep breath and slowed my pace when I got closer to see a big blue house. This is an unfamiliar place just as it is familiar from Ash's descriptions, I realized. I looked up at it as I was entering, and bumped into someone.

It was a pretty girl with some beads and a feather in her brown choppy hair that looked like she cut it herself, an orange Camp shirt tied at the waist, and jean cuff shorts. Her eyes were kaleidoscopic, changing from brown to green to blue and on. She looked about one to two years older than me.

"Sorry," we said at the same time. She smiled at me.

"Hey, are you new?" She asked. Not waiting for an answer, she said, " Yeah, you are. Here let's go to Chiron's office. I was just there." A beat passed. "Oh, I'm Piper by the way. Piper McLean. And.." she looked at me pointedly.

"I'm Aspen Iver," I said shyly. She gave me a warm smile and I smiled back. She really has a way to make you feel comfortable about yourself. I think I'd like to be her friend.

-ash-

I hung around the volleyball pit for a couple minutes after Aspen left. Then, deciding I was hungry, started walking towards the strawberry fields. Hopefully, I could find enough to satisfy my hunger until dinner. Then maybe take a nap. I yawned.

Jogging up to the fields and breathing up their scent made me feel happy and like I was back home. Which I was. I heard a pair of feet nimbly running up behind me and slowed down to turn around.

"Hey Ash," Daphne said, only slightly out of breath from the long run here.

"Hey. Did you win your game?" I asked. She raised an eyebrow. "Never mind, knowing you, you probably did." She was a daughter of Victory, super competitive like satyrs.

"You know it," she exclaimed, bumping my shoulder. I smiled, despite how awkward I felt.

I looked around for ripe strawberries and grabbed them, stuffing them into my mouth whole. Red juice dripped down my mouth, but I went on the hunt, not bothering to wipe my face. 

"Um, Ash, you've got a little something–" and here Daphne reached forward and wiped my chin with her thumb. My cheeks flamed up again and I stared at her. She wiped her hands on her shorts, and crouched down, calling out,

"I'm going to toss some strawberries and you have to catch them. If you miss one, I win. If you don't, you will win. Which, if I don't say so myself, never happens. Ready?"

I had barely enough time to nod my head. Me and some other satyrs did this all the time. With anything. I was practically a pro. I smirked confidently.

She plucked a few and tossed one in the air. I caught it easily. She tossed another one in a different direction. Oh, boy, too easy. This time, she tossed two in the air. I just about missed it. She kept tossing, two or three at a time once she saw the single ones were too easy. But she wouldn't have had any sympathy on me anyways if I missed the single ones.

She tossed them in different directions- up, down, left, right, fienting, at my clothes as well, but I caught them well. One, she threw up in the air, right above her head, feet from where I was standing and I ran and jumped to catch it. I did, but when I landed, I landed on her, and we both grabbed each other instinctively, me on her shoulders and around her waist, and she bracing herself against me. It obviously didn't work. We landed on the ground with a thud and a slight grunt, the strawberries squished between us, the red pulp staining my shirt.

We were so close together, we were almost nose to nose. I could see little flecks of gold light in her hazel eyes and smell her demigod scent mingled in with a honeysuckle scent and wet dirt after a rainy day. I rolled off her, unwrapping my arm from around her and she from around my neck. After a moment, we both laughed, breathless, a little nervous.

"Are you okay?" I asked, nervously running a hand through my curls and helping her up.

"Yeah. And I think you actually won. I don't have any strawberries left!"

"Wow. Hey, are you taking it alright?" I asked with mock concern. She rolled her eyes and we laughed again. She punched my arm and we headed off chatting, frequently popping a strawberry or two in our mouths with our shoulders frequently brushing together.