"you could be the king, but watch the queen conquer"
-
Rosalyn Carter is the daughter of Aphrodite and the last thing Percy expected to find at Camp Half-Blood.
But he wouldn't want to fight deadly battles with anyone else.
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The last day of the summer session came quickly. One last big meal was served with all of the campers present, but that night many of them would be heading to their respective homes.
Percy's mother had written to him and told him she'd found a private school in the city for him, if he wanted to come home. After all the insanity he'd seen, he wanted to.
"The choice was unanimous," Luke grinned. He stood in front of camp, announcing the summer's bead. "This bead commemorates the first Son of the Sea God at this camp, and the quest he undertook into the darkest part of the Underworld to stop a war!"
Everyone stood to their feet and clapped loudly for Percy, even the Ares cabin. Athena's cabin pushed Annabeth towards Percy, and she blushed at the attention.
Percy looked at the faces around him, searching for the long red hair of his friend. When they locked eyes, she shook her head slightly and smiled at him in reassurance.
The night carried on with a campfire and some songs. It was like a normal camp, if for just a moment.
-
The next morning, Rosalyn went to the sword fighting arena early to distract herself. After ten summers, it didn't get any easier for her to watch campers go home to their parents.
Luke was already there, hacking away at dummies.
"You up for a moving target, Luke?"
He startled slightly at the sound of her voice in the otherwise quiet arena. It was just after 6:45 in the morning, so he hadn't been expecting anyone to be around.
"Always. Think fast."
He lunged toward her in an instant, huffing when she spun out of the way and retrieved her hair pin sword. It transformed in her hands, and she went on the offensive.
"Heard you're going home for the year?" Rosalyn asked, slashing downwards at the boy.
Luke blocked her blow and took a large step back, grunting, "Something like that."
They continued to match blows for a good ten minutes before Rosalyn managed to disarm him. Chests heaving, they shook hands.
She opened her mouth to speak, but Luke interrupted her.
"Percy."
Rosalyn turned to see the dark haired boy standing against the wall of the arena. He stammered, "Uh, sorry. I just—"
"It's okay," Luke waved him off. "Just doing some last minute practicing."
Looking between the two boys, Rosalyn elected to take her leave.
She pulled Luke in for a tight hug, tucking the gold pin back into her messy ponytail. He squeezed her lovingly, like she was his little sister.
"I'll see you, okay? Take care of yourself," Rosalyn smiled at him.
