Flaming Hearts (a Leo Valdez Fanfiction)

I

WILLOW

"Hey, everyone, look! Annabeth and Butch are back!"

Everyone ran for the river in time to catch a glimpse of the golden chariot hit the water.

SPLASH!

"Bring them towels!" someone yelled as the five teens crawled onto the shore. I tried to push my way to the front, but I was kind of scrawny, especially for a child of Ares. I gave up pushing and decided to jump to try and see them.

I caught a glimpse of my best friend, Annabeth. She was my age, sixteen, and we were the same height. She had blonde hair and grey eyes like the rest of her siblings from the Athena cabin. I also caught a glimpse of Butch, a huge, buff dude with a rainbow tattoo. The tattoo looked really out of place, but most of Iris's kids had rainbow tattoos.

I looked around for my other best friend and Annabeth's boyfriend, Percy. He wasn't among the shivering, wet teens. Instead were three kids about my age that I'd never seen before.

One was blonde boy with blue eyes; handsome, I guess, but not really my type. He was tall and muscular, with tanned skin and a little white scar above his lip.

Another was a brunette with short, choppy hair. She was definitely pretty, but she tried to hide it. She was also tan, with brown eyes. She looked vaguely familiar, kind of like she had some features of a parent I would recognize. I decided it was because she was a demigod, and I'd memorized what all of the gods look like.

Then there was the third. He definitely was scrawny, but after about two weeks here, that would change. He was Hispanic with black curls and breathtakingly beautiful brown eyes. He played with something that looked like machine parts absentmindedly. Then he cracked a smile. He had an amazing smile, his teeth perfectly white, perfectly alined, just overall perfect.

Then the flaming hammer appeared over the Hispanic boy's head and he freaked out. I held it a laugh, covering my mouth with my hands, my shoulders bouncing up and down.

After Will took him to the forge to meet his brethren, the crowd dispersed and I went back to the arena to practice with my daggers with my sister, Clairsse . The entire time, though, my mind kept wandering back to the three new campers. Clairsse noticed this. She stops me mid swipe, just as I'm about to take a training dummy's head off.

"What's up with you, Will?" she asked, using my preferred nickname. "Where's your head?"

"Sorry," I apologize. "I'm just thinking about those new kids."

"What, THOSE new brats? They won't last through their first quest."

"You're probably right..." I agreed, but not convinced.

"Of course I am! When am I ever wrong?" she asked. As I began to reply, she held up a calloused hand. "Don't answer that. Point is, you can't be distracted, especially when fighting a monster! Now go!"

I began slashing through the monsters, taking the advice Clairsse kept spatting out at me. Yet I couldn't stop thinking about the three new "brats."

•~~~•

Author's Note:

Please tell me what you thought! I want to know what you guys think of Willow and this chapter. Also, did you enjoy the prologue? Did you like how her first monster was her sister? Please comment your thoughts!

~Michal Anna Fox