Drowning in the Siren's Song

Chapter 30

A lot of things happened in the past several months. 

To put in in simple words, he studied. Happily. 

From how to use a potato peeler to learning how to wield a spear, he learned several things under the tutelage of the Hunters of Artemis. It was hard and he often felt like quitting, but his determination ran too deep. And the fact that he had scary teachers. 

"Patch me up, please?" He scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, avoiding Celyn's glaring eyes. 

"I've told you to be more careful a hundred times already, Percy!" She scolded him. "Go sit there." She pointed to the wooden stool inside the tent, flicking her eyes over his scratched and bruised arms. 

Celyn was always like that. With her soft heart she could never really stay angry at anyone. With a stern facade and layered kindness and concern for her patients, she was doctor through and through. 

"What is it this time? Swords? Monsters? Arrows? Zoe?" She inquired, taking his wrist and placing her fingers over one of he nasty cuts. He giggled lightly, shaking his head. "Fell of a tree." He said simply, wincing when she poked a bruise. 

"Would it kill you to walk?" She rolled her eyes, not waiting for a response. "Have you had any ambrosia?" Her hands glowed yellow as she gripped his arm gently. 

"Zoe gave me a some nectar." He looked at his own hands in fascination. No matter how many times he saw it, her power always amazed him. He could make good medicine, but even that couldn't compare to the daughter of Apollo. 

"Yikes. If you're like this after drinking nectar, then you must've hurt yourself pretty badly..." She glared at him again, smacking his head lightly. "I won't heal you again if you get hurt like this again!" 

"Yes ma'am!" Percy laughed, hopping off the stool and waddling out the door. "So you later, Celyn! Thanks!"

He could see her shaking her head, her golden her swaying like water behind her. He waved a goodbye and left quickly, excited to relax with the hunters. He'd just come from training with Zoe and was ready for some rest, but since he'd come all the way to get treated by Celyn, he figured that he should at least greet the other hunters as well.

He wandered around their camp, lost in his thoughts. The hunters were required to travel often and went to places farther than his comprehension, but whenever they visited him, they always made their camp, that is, the layout, the same. It didn't take him long to memorize whose tent was whom and which places were strictly off limits. 

"Percyyy!" Correy spotted him and came over, slapping his back in greeting. She was in the middle of wresting with her hair, a tedious task which she often complained about. 

"Help me," she whined, skipping he pleasantries. Though they left for long periods or time, they were familiar enough to be comfortable around one another. 

Percy sat her down and fiddled with her hair, beginning the exhausting process of getting the shiny bobby pins out. Correy's hair was curly, short and stubborn, a stark contrast to her sister, Celyn's shiny long hair. 

They both were the twin daughters of Apollo with bright blonde hair and olive green eyes. But that was where their similarities ended. Celyn had long, smooth hair while Correy had bouncy curls (on a good day). Celyn had inherited the medical skills of her father and Correy had his musical talents. 

Celyn was the healer of the group, one of the only maidens with the power. There were a few other girls who worked with her, but they used medicine instead of glowing hands. Meanwhile, Correy took care of the animals, using her affinity with music to train them. She would use different whistles to summon and send their birds and low tunes to call the wolves. It was absolutely stunning to watch. 

They were the first ones he'd easily befriended after bonding over his knowledge of medicinal plants and his singing ability. It was smooth sailing since then because he had them by his side. Correy was extroverted and bubbly making it easier for the hunters to talk to him and Celyn was well- respected in the pack making it easier for them to accept him. 

It took him some time to get used to the hustle bustle of people. The difference in behavior hit him harder though. Everything which was done, from the littlest of things to the important missions was divided equally between people. No one did anything by themselves and asking for favors was normal. 

There were people who took care of the animals, feeding the wolves and training the birds and there were people who took care of the weapons, polishing and even creating them from scraps of shiny metal. People wo were good at tracking and girls who exceled at making traps. 

Everyone had a job and when all their duties came together could they function flawlessly. How exactly could they work so well together? 
After observing them for weeks did he finally realize what glue held them together. Communication. 

Each and every hunter, whether old or new never hesitated to express themselves, criticizing and complimenting at every turn. They talked with each other for hours at an end, chatting about trivial matters which provided no actual substance or help. 

He wondered for hours at an end why they spoke so much. Yes, he was surrounded by nature spirits, but they were just that- spirits. 

Their thoughts and lives were leagues different from his own. He was closer to them than an average human, but it didn't mean that they were what the hunters called friends. They had no concept of human emotions except for their own humor styles. Even the pain they felt was far different from his own. 

 But then after spending time with the hunters did he notice the true importance of simply speaking. But unfortunately, he was hopeless at it. 

It was a bit ironic that he, being a siren, was bad at communicating.

Of course, the few weeks in which the hunters or Artemis dropped by did give him practice, he was still painfully aware of how secluded his life truly was. 

Surprisingly, Artemis had even offered to let him tag along as they went for their missions but Percy had declined, knowing that he would simply be a burden. If he'd went along with them, it would've been like a loose nut shoved inside an efficient working machine.

No, he was first going to find a place for himself, making sure that the loose nut would finally find a place which would not bother the machine but instead make it smoother. 

He would find the perfect place for him to fit.