DownPour

Common Courtesy

It seems that a later date is now.

It was the start of Percy's second month at camp. Though he was only a month into it, Percy had quickly established that he was not a newbie to be bullied. He could and would beat your ass if you tried to touch him or anyone else. No one knew where he had learned his skills from and he refused to tell.

Grover, the satyr that had been watching Percy before his disappearance practically fainted at his arrival. Chiron questioned Percy about where he'd gone and he made up the story of running away after he finally couldn't withstand any more bullying. He said he'd taught himself defence but Chiron knew no one could teach themselves as well as Percy was trained. Someone had obviously trained him. Who, no one knew.

Percy was relaxing in the Poseidon cabin after a long day of training when he heard someone call his name. He opened his eyes and saw an Iris message in front of him with Artemis's face in it. His face brightened immediately. "Artemis!"

"Hello, Percy," the goddess greeted fondly. "Are you enjoying yourself at Camp?"

"Truthfully, not really," Percy sighed. "Everyone, especially the Ares cabin, is an asshole and I've realised exactly why you pledged yourself to maidenhood. They're all too afraid of me to actually be friends with me. I feel like I've been thrown back into my old school, just with more strength on my side."

"I'm sorry you have to be there," Artemis apologised. "You would've had to go eventually, though. At least you got a few years with us beforehand."

"Yeah," Percy replied. "It's made things better. So, why'd you call? You must have a reason."

A smile flickered on Artemis's face. "I do have a reason, one you'll quite like. The hunt's stopping by Camp Half-Blood tomorrow and will be staying for a few days."

"Seriously?" Percy gaped. "You're coming here? To this hellhole?"

"You've survived 'that hellhole' for a month," Artemis pointed out. "We can bear a few days. Besides, the hunt wants to visit their little brother. You weren't with us for long, but I think the girls have missed being able to have a trustworthy male in their lives. To many of them, you've taken the role of a deceased brother and many have missed that feeling. You're important to the hunt, more than you realise."

"Apparently," Percy answered. "So, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Count on it," Artemis smirked. "Oh, and don't be worried about revealing your connection to the hunt. We've already confronted the council about it, and the demigods can't do anything about it while I'm there. If you wish for it to remain secret, it can."

"Oh, no, nothing will stop me from being with my family. I don't give a fuck about the campers," Percy growled.

Artemis smiled. "See you soon."

/.\

After breakfast the next day, Percy found himself sitting on the steps of the Artemis cabin fidgeting with one of his silver daggers. Many campers looked at him warily, wondering why he would dare do that when Chiron had announced that morning that the hunters were coming. None dared approach him, though.

It seemed that a few did dare, actually. Two sons of Hermes; Connor and Travis Stoll, if he remembered correctly; walked up to him. "You do realise this is Artemis's cabin, right?" The taller one asked. He didn't know if it was Connor or Travis.

Percy raised an eyebrow. "I do. Your point?"

"The hunters will kill you if they see you here," the shorter brother said. "Unless you have a death wish, you should probably move somewhere else."

Percy just shrugged. "I'm good. Don't worry about me." The brothers exchanged glances but backed off. Maybe a half hour later, the hunting horn blew. He noticed the Stoll brothers return to check if he was still there and mutter to each other when they saw that he was. Percy just smirked but didn't move.

"Move, dude!" A camper called as the hunt approached their cabin. Percy turned his eyes to the speaker, staring at him for a moment before looking back to the hunt. He sheathed his knife and stood, putting himself into their view. The audience of campers held their breaths as the boy and the huntresses locked eyes.

Then, two of the youngest hunters sprinted forward. Artemis watched them go with an amused expression, continuing to move forward toward the hunt's only male addition. Percy smiled widely at the two girls, catching them both in his arms as they crashed into him.

"Percy!" Lyric yelled, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Hi!"

"Hey, Lyric, Maisie," Percy greeted, ruffling the young dryad's hair. Maisie smiled up at him, gripping onto his leg. She rarely talked, but that didn't mean she didn't show affection in other ways. "How've you girls been?"

"It's been more boring without you!" Lyric complained, skipping in a circle around him. "When are you coming back?"

"He'll be back after summer's done, Lyric, we've told you this," Artemis replied for him, a grin on her face. "Hello, Percy."

"Hey, Artemis," Percy responded, not even sparing her a glance. "Lyric, you can survive a month without me. You were in the hunt without me for decades before."

"Yeah, but I like you!" The daughter of Hermes complained. "Can't you just stay?"

"I wish I could," Percy said sadly. "But you know I can't. I need to learn more, things that the hunt can't teach me."

"You mean like sword fighting?" Lyric said. "Couldn't Zoë teach you that?"

Zoë's lips curved into a half smile. "You think much too highly of my abilities, Lyric. I can fight with a sword, though I am not nearly as adept in it to be a suitable teacher to someone who wishes to learn."

"I don't think I could deal with more of your training, Zoë," Percy commented. "I'm pretty sure half of it was actually you using me as a punching bag." The huntresses laughed at this, Zoë smirking.

"Perhaps I was. It toughened thee up, at least."

"Can't deny that," Percy replied. "Your punches are like a sledgehammer. I wouldn't be surprised if it was your abuse that strengthened me up."

"The perks of being half titan," Zoë said simply. Percy chuckled.

The campers only watching in confusion and astonishment as Percy interacted with the man-hating hunters as if they were simply old friends. Percy took notice of the camper's reactions and a grin appeared on his face. "Everyone," he announced, all eyes instantly locking onto him. His grin grew wider, and Artemis, catching onto his intentions, grinned along with him.

"Meet my mentors; my saviours; my family."