Forest Sisters

Another bet

Helena's POV

It had been a few hours since the match, and people were still talking about it. I kept my head forward as I walked towards my next activity. History. Most people hate history, but I rather like it. I had been taught the Greek and Roman history and could easily read either dialect, plus had learned just about every language, some long forgotten from the mortal world. What else would you expect when I'm taught by Artemis herself and her buttressed who had been alive for generations. Some had even lost count of how old they were. They had taught me to hunt, to defend, to survive, and how to make a delicious omelet and pancake. Mmmm. I miss those pancakes.
I find where I'm supposed to be, in a covered pavilion by the lake, and sit on the ground. I glance around and see a couple other people have already arrived, all of them either socializing or stuck in a book. There's one obnoxious group in particular that really gets on my nerves. Two girls lean on a tree, all show no brains, chatting with about five guys. All the guys are staring at them, some trying to impress them while one's in a cold sweat, shaking at the knees. The girls are pretty I guess, but I've been around beautiful huntresses all my life, their outer beauty only matched with their inner beauty. Me, I don't really care how someone looks. I had been taught that outer looks can be deceiving. Many monsters will look pleasant in the outside, but will rip you to spreads the moment they get their hands on you. These girls remind me of those monsters, goading boys in just to rip them to shreds in the end.
I look down at the grass, thinking about some of the things I've learned, reciting every constellation by name. After I get board with that I start thinking about the hero's of the past and different battles won, and lost. The ones that they lost are some of the most important. They can guide us into the future and tell us what not to do. I had just been stating (in my head of course) how many casualties in the demigod war when someone sits next to me.
I had been so lost in thought that I didn't even see them coming. I look up and let out a frustrated sigh. Jack sits next to me, looking around like this is perfectly normal. I decide that I've had enough sun and get up to go sit in the shade. I sit down under a nice tree branch and lean my back up against the trunk. I let my eyes slowly close and let out a sigh. Get it together, I tell myself. Your a trained huntress, don't let some guy unravel you.
I feel someone sit down next to me and don't have to open my eyes to know exactly who it is.
"What do you want Jack?" I say in a tired voice. "Nothing, Ell, can't I just sit by you?" I let out another frustrated sigh. "We're not friends, and please don't call me that."
"Would Ell Bear be better." He says in a sarcastic voice. I let out a snort. He chuckles beside me. "And besides, you didn't win our little bet." He says.
My eyes fly open and I turn to him. "It was a tie!" I shout. Some people glance over at us, some whispering behind their hands. I lower my voice. "It was a tie and you know it." He gives me a smile. "Exactly!" He says, much too happy in this situation. "You didn't win, so I don't have to leave you alone." He says. He has a point, but I don't care. I open my mouth to continue, but am interrupted by someone clapping their hands together once to get our attention.
Everyone looks up at the blond kid with huge glasses that make his grey eyes look even bigger, kinda like the lenses were microscopes instead of glasses. He sits down on a stool and begins the lesson.

-thirty seven minutes and twenty three seconds later-

I stand at the bottom of a massive rock climbing wall and look up. I'll admit, I'm impressed. It towers above us, and as I watch it seems to shift around, trying to through off the climbers. Every once and a while lava shoots out randomly or random things fall off it. I watched as a bolder takes out one camper, a snake is dropped on another, a goat comes flying down, and I even saw a toaster hit a guy in the face. I smile at the challenge ahead.
I was about to climb up when someone strides up besides me. I look over, and once again Jack is there. He looks up at the massive wall and smiles as well. He glances at me with a mischievous glint in his eye. I know that look all too well.
"New bet." He says. My back stiffens, but not from anger but excitement. I find that I'm actually excited for another bet with him. He looks at me with one of his signature smiles. "First one to the top wins." I nod. He looks up in thought. "This time, let's change the prize. I win, I get to sit by you and call you whatever I deem fit." I nod, pulling a frown over my face, but it seems more forced this time.
The Nick name was starting to grow on me, but him sitting by me still annoyed me. I look up and think about it for a moment. "If I win." I say. "You owe me a favor." I say. He raises an eyebrow at me, but trust me, I've found that having someone owe you a favor comes in handy in a lot of situations.
He hold out his hand and we shake on it. I start to run up to the wall, but someone in armed stops me and Jack. I look at them, some girl I armed and a tight pony tail holding her hair back, holds her arm out, blocking our path.
"Standard procedure." She says in a dry voice. "This is a warning of the new United plan. Since the camps now can go as they please, the leaders thought it would help to also train together. This does not apply to every training exercise, this will not happen often, but today we will be doing air drops over the wall. The goal is for the Romans to try to get the Greeks off the wall. They will drop from the eagles overhead and each of them have been assigned a target. Your job is to try to avoid them if possible, which it's not, or to make sure they do not get you off the wall. Each of you have already been chosen at random for a Roman target."
I raise an eyebrow. Enemies dropping from the sky, sounds fun! She moves her arm. "You may go now." She says. I dash to the wall and grab onto the first hold I can. I start to climb up and focus on the goal at hand. Stay on the wall, beat Jack, and don't get hit by falling toasters. I smile at the challenge and start climbing faster.
Let it begin.