¹𝐂𝐑𝐔𝐄𝐋 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑 ━ 𝗽. 𝗷𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀𝗼𝗻

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⋆ ˚｡⋆ʚ 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘-𝐒𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍 ɞ⋆ ˚｡⋆
─── ❛ heartbreaks and love stories ❜ ───

THEY ARRIVED TO LONG island just after clarisse, thanks to the centaurs' travel powers. isabella rode on chiron cousin's back, they talked almost all the way to new york. the centaur did most of the talking, but isabella continued the conversation with jokes. she noticed how percy seemed troubled, even when getting a ride from chiron.

when they got to camp, the centaurs were anxious to meet dionysus. they'd heard he threw some really wild parties, but they were disappointed. the wine god was in no mood to celebrate as the whole camp gathered at the top of half-blood hill.

the camp had been through a hard two weeks. the arts and crafts cabin had burned to the ground from an attack by a draco aionius (which as near as isabella could figure was latin for "really-big-lizard-with-breath-that-blows-stuff-up"). the big house's rooms were overflowing with wounded. the kids in the apollo cabin, who were the best healers, had been working overtime performing first aid. everybody looked weary and battered as they crowded around thalia's tree.

the moment clarisse draped the golden fleece over the lowest bough, the moonlight seemed to brighten, turning from gray to liquid silver. a cool breeze rustled in the branches and rippled through the grass, all the way into the valley. everything came into sharper focus-the glow of the fireflies down in the woods, the smell of the strawberry fields, the sound of the waves on the beach.

gradually, the needles on the pine tree started turning from brown to green.

everybody cheered. it was happening slowly, but there could be no doubt-the fleece's magic was seeping into the tree, filling it with new power and expelling the poison.

chiron ordered a twenty-four/seven guard duty on the hilltop, at least until he could find an appropriate monster to protect the fleece. he said he'd place an ad in olympus weekly right away.

in the meantime, clarisse was carried on her cabin mates' shoulders down to the amphitheater, where she was honored with a laurel wreath and a lot of celebrating around the campfire.

nobody gave annabeth, isabella or percy a second look. it was as if they'd never left. in a way, isabella thought that was the best thank-you anyone could give them, because if they admitted they'd snuck out of camp to do the quest, they'd have to expel them.

later that night, as they were roasting s'mores and listening to the stoll brothers tell them a ghost story about an evil king who was eaten alive by demonic breakfast pastries, isabella glanced at travis, his eyes wide as he told them about the king's death. he even scared a couple of little kids from apollo's cabin.

she hadn't given much thought to the gift that travis' father gave her. was it a way to tell her that his son was the one? that she and travis should be together? it was so confusing.

okay, top secret: isabella had a teeny-tiny crush on percy. i know, her best friend! the horror. it all started after their first quest, and she confirmed it after percy saved her from the sirens. but she and travis had history, they've known each other for so long, and they know about each other's feelings. he even wrote her letters-handwritten letters. and yeah, travis' grammar was horrible, but it still gave her a heart attack every time she read them.

she grabbed the small silver rose that hung on the necklace. the heat from the campfire let her relax and not think too much about her personal conflict. the universe will tell me if he's the one.