Heart Pierced - Kayla Knowles (1)

XIV. Travis Brings Me A Present (And I Get To Use It)

(A/N: There's this one scene from a different AO3 fanfic, this time from A03 user "grumpylia" titled "hold on to the memories (they will hold on to you)", which is a Tratie centered around Travis and Katie's relationship between Sea Of Monsters and The Last Olympian. Specifically, a scene where some of the campers get sent fleeing to their cabins because two hellhounds have somehow gotten in - most likely through the labyrinth. It honestly felt like something that would be perfect to do an alternate version of, in which a gift of Travis to Colton ends up being used on the two hellhounds - to devastating effect. Plus, this is me abusing the skills of Hermes kids being able to steal everything - including, and this is true, live land mines during BoO - so why not? Anyways, here's the chapter. Apologies if this is a mammoth long one if it becomes that.)

Mid February
Excerpt from Colton Reynolds' manuscript "Experiences Of A Demigod And Lessons Learned From It"

There are four types of gifts/presents one could receive at Camp Half Blood and two ways you could get them. One category of this was that you would get a gift that was a prank from someone, most often the Stoll brothers. Other times, you could get a gift that turns out to be worthless later on down the road, and might get you killed in the process. But most of the time, one might get something they like that helps them pass the time at camp or something along those lines or similar.

The rarest category of these is when someone gets a gift that turns out to be crucial later on, saving the life of the user, the group, or maybe the whole camp.

Sometimes your gifts/presents are given to you by your godly parents, other times they are given to you by other campers, family, or other mortals.

Why exactly am I taking the time to explain this? Well, my birthday and the day after it recently highlighted the part about the rarest category and how it sometimes could be given to you by other campers perfectly.

- Flashback into Colton's memory -

It was a typical morning in January, at least for Camp Half Blood. A light carpeting of snow on the ground, plants still more or less in full bloom given the mild, warmer temperatures inside camp, and..

"STOLLS!"

That. It isn't a normal morning at Camp Half Blood at any point of the seasons without Katie Gardner shouting the last name of the brothers Travis and Connor right after she wakes up, and wakes up almost everyone else in camp in the process. The morning of my birthday was no such exception.

To be honest, I was honestly excited for my birthday. Everyone could see in the days leading up to it. While it could very well be my last normal birthday - or my final birthday in the living world at all for that matter, a birthday was still a birthday.. and I awoke after Katie had woken up everyone else with her loud voice to a smiling Kayla, making me blush.

"Wonder what those devious little buggers have done to the Demeter Cabin now.." Chris said as he and my sister got up out of bed, shortly followed by me and Kayla a few moments later. Walking outside our cabin and seeing me and Clarisse' siblings looking at Cabin Four, I don't think Chris and I could help but laugh our asses off, me more out of amazement than anything else.

Somehow.. I can't explain how in the world the Stolls managed to pull this off.. they had changed the clothes of every single Demeter camper from their normal sleeping clothes into their swimwear. It's a good thing I wasn't immature like them because I wasn't going to ask how, that's for sure.

Travis and Connor, as well as most of the Hermes Cabin, thought it was funny too, though the siblings were somehow keeping their laughter in check. Turning to look at my siblings, Sherman couldn't help but just stare at Miranda as she came out, entranced. It could be that he was interested in her.. he did have a blush on his cheeks when he saw her and she blushed and looked away when she saw him looking at her.. but I don't know.