Percy Jackson, Son of Olympus, The Titan's Curse

| Chapter XIII || Ghosted by a Spirit |

*December 16 XXXX*

*Percy's Point of View*

***

I found Zoë exactly where I was expecting her: at the archery field. She wasn't shooting, but the other Hunters had taken over the field leaving no room for any campers to practice. Those poor Apollo kids would just have to wait until Chiron started lesson later, I guess. Zoë remained at the sidelines, deep in thought with worry marring her royal face. (She'd probably slap me for calling her royal, because it's a running joke between us that she looks like a Persian princess or something, so good thing she can't read my thoughts.)

"Zoë! Hey, Zoë! I need to talk to you!" I called out, running down the hill. I was wearing the parka I got from Artemis to keep warm, so I might've just looked like another one of them.

She didn't look up, but the other Hunters noticed me, and stopped shooting. They all turned to me, completely confused.

"What are you doing here, bro? Is something wrong?" It was Phoebe. Immediately the rest of the Hunters all started talking at once, gathering around me and blurting questions upon questions.

I tried to sidestep, but she just mimicked my movements, not allowing me to pass. She frowned. "If you're just trying to distract us from tonight's match, it won't work. I know all your tricks, bro."

"No tricks, I promise. I just really need to talk to Zoë. It's about Artemis!"

At this, Zoë looked up. "What about Lady Artemis, brother?" she asked. She stepped toward me, hands gently on her sisters' shoulders. They just kept crowding us, all wanting to know what was going on at once.

"I had a dream last night! I think she's in danger!"

"Please, sisters! Give us space to speak. I will inform you of the developments later."

The Hunters groaned. I had an idea about what it was like to be disclosed, but I couldn't feel bad about that. For now, I had to tell Zoë about my dream. Artemis was in trouble, I just knew it! Maybe not yet, but she would be – Luke would find a way to chain a goddess. I was worried this would happen, especially after our last quest foiled his plans.

The other Hunter filed away from Zoë and me.

Zoë planted her feet in the snow, standing in front of my with crossed arms. "So, tell me about this dream thou speaks of."

Thus, I began to relay the dream to Zoë, not leaving out any detail, as she was far better at interpreting demigod dreams than I was – probably for the reason that I hadn't had too many in all my thirteen years of being alive (being raised on Olympus and all). I'd never really had dreams until I started coming to camp because if a god wanted to talk to me, they could easily just walk down the street and knock (or better yet, just teleport right outside of my father's temple). They were far lazier when it came to making house calls down in the mortal realm, so dream messaging became the go-to, I assumed.

By the time I finished, her eyes were clouded with anxiety. She nibbled on a fingernail – a habit I thought she'd given up decades ago. "I...I had a similar dream, brother. My lady was climbing a mountain. She was overrun by monsters. I think Apollo was there, too, but he was quickly removed from the fight by...the General. That boy - the one thou spoke of - had the chains. I did not see as much as thee, however I could feel my lady's distress. She has found trouble too great for her to handle, and I fear the consequences."

"So what do we do?" I asked. Just thinking about it made me want to rush across the country again – even though I had no idea where to start looking.