The Hunter Academy

~Çhapter Fįfty-Thręę~

I stared at her with a raised eyebrow. "Artemis? As in Greek goddess of-"

"The hunt? Yes."

I shrugged. "Cool," I opened the door Maria had gestured to and stepped inside, holding it open for Artemis.

She stepped through and I sat down on the bed. She was wearing casual attire, jeans and a t-shirt, but she also had a pair of katanas strapped to her back.

"So... Artemis?"

She sighed. "My parent deemed it an appropriate name however, I disagree."

I laughed. "My parents named me Chase and when I was younger some people asked me if they expected a boy."

She laughed with a shake of her head. "I was meant to have a twin brother and my parents were prepared to name him Apollo."

"Really?"

She nodded. "When they told me I couldn't believe it, that was what? Four years ago?"

I cocked my head to the side. "How old are you."

"Sixteen."

I raised an eyebrow. "But you don't go-"

"To the Hunter Academy, no," she answered sadly, she sucked in a deep breath. "So you're an Energy Manipulator."

I nodded. "Umbrakinesis?" I guessed.

She shrugged. "Photo-Umbrakinesis."

She could control darkness and light.

"I'm a Shielder but I seem to have a problem with making them."

"You're probably more offensive then defensive," she said simply.

I hummed my response when I tried to think of an eloquent way of putting my question. "So... do you know Maria?"

She closed her eyes and softly nodded. "Yeah," she whispered softly. "Thanks for doing that back there, she doesn't have many moments of happiness but you managed to make her smile."

I looked down as I created an energy ball in my hand. "It was nothing - but why is she treated like that?"

Artemis sighed and looked at her hands as a light ball appeared in her hands before it darkened to black.

"Strange question," she looked up and I saw an edge in her eyes. "You aren't foreign since you have no accent, nor even an undercurrent of one, but you don't know how certain things go. Where were you raised?"

I cleared my throat awkwardly. "Well... I don't believe that is the subject of the present conversation."

The corner of her mouth twitched up. "But I'm now making it the subject."

"Who's your parents?" I asked, hoping to veer the conversation away from where I was raised because it didn't feel right to tell people, especially when they gawk at me like I'm some hybrid in a zoo just because I wasn't raised in the same 'conditions' as them.

Her eyes darkened and the silver flecks disappeared. "I'll give you one guess. The not so nice female Councillor." 

"Councillor Camille," it wasn't really a guess since Councillor Lillian seemed nicer - just as broken when you looked closely, but nicer - and Artemis resembled Camille apart from the eyes.