MELANCHOLY [1]

ONE

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September 2009 (Three months to The Lost Hero)

VIA WASN'T SURE WHY Chiron had summoned her to the Big House, but she knew it couldn't have been a good reason.

After Will had told her that Chiron had called, she had taken a minute to think about anything she might have done to warrant a summon to the Big House. Pranks? None. Sneaking out of camp? Not in a long time. Puzzled, she walked into the Big House.

In the main room, she saw Chiron, tall and intimidating in his centaur form, and standing next to him was a satyr. The satyr was short, and couldn't have been more than five foot zero. He was shorter than Via, which saying something. He had small beady eyes, a frown, and was leaning on what looked like a club.

"Hello, Olyvia dear. I apologise for the sudden call." Chiron greeted, polite as always. "Have a seat."

"Hey, Chiron. What's up?" She asked.

"First, let me introduce Gleeson Hedge. He's one of our satyrs that we sent to look out for half-bloods after the war."

She held out her hand and smiled politely. "Nice to meet you, Gleeson."

"Good to meet you too, cupcake. Let's get to the point, yeah?" He said, looking impatient.

Chiron nodded, his face not betraying anything. "A few months ago, I had stationed Gleeson in a school in Nevada, to look over two demigods."

Via raised her eyebrows. "Two demigods in the same place? That's impressive."

Gleeson continued for him. "They're powerful, these two. Maybe not The Big Three-tier, but powerful. There's a monster in the school, but it's strong enough to mask its scent that I can't figure out who it is. I'm a coach, so I can't get close enough to the kids to protect them. As much as I'm pretty sure I'm capable of this myself," he grunted, "Chiron here insisted on giving me help."

Via processed this. She looked at Chiron. "I'm assuming you want me? Why not send another satyr, though?"

Chiron nodded. "If these were normal times, I would be inclined to agree with you. But after the war, satyrs have been placed all over the world, and as of now, we cannot spare even one. It will be easier for you to connect with these demigods since you're the same age. You can say no, if you wish."

Via had never been on a quest. As eager as she had been to prove herself at first, the opportunity had never presented itself. Now Chiron was sending her out of camp for the first time for this?

She hesitated. Maybe this was a good chance to show that she could do something by herself. Besides, it was one monster. How many of those had she faced in the past five years?

She nodded. "Alright. I'll go. When do we leave?"

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

"You done yet?" Percy poked his head inside the cabin and groaned. "I could pack six suitcases in the time it's taking you to pack one."

"No one asked you drop me off, Percy." Via rolled her eyes as she closed her suitcase and slung her backpack over her shoulder. "I'm not a baby."

He grinned and rubbed her hair, messing up her long braid. "Sure you're not. Come on then."

She smacked the back of his head and ran ahead with her suitcase, leaving him in the dust. Near Thalia's tree, Annabeth, Gleeson Hedge and Will were all waiting.

Annabeth gave her a hug. "I know you're supposed to be looking after the other half-bloods, but take care of yourself, all right? Have you got everything?"

"Yep."

"Your books? Drachmas?"

"You fuss more than my mother, Annabeth." She grumbled, but gave her a reassuring smile. Even for demigod standards, Via was extremely dyslexic, so she only carried books which were translated into Greek.

Will hugged her tight. "Good luck. Message when you get there. Don't be a stranger."

"I won't. Thanks." She grinned.

Percy squeezed her shoulders as they both walked side by side to the chariot lent to them by the Apollo cabin. "Good luck. You're going to do great. Try not to blow up the place."

"Hey!"

"I'm kidding! You'll be fine. Now shoo."

Gleeson Hedge snorted. "Come on, cupcake. We'd better get going or we won't get there in time."

She got into the chariot and waved Percy, Annabeth and Will goodbye, not realising that the next time they'd see each other, they wouldn't be this cheerful.

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

Via stood in front of the room that would be her home for the next couple of months, if not more. She took a deep breathe and and knocked. The door swung open, and a girl roughly about Via's height stood in front of her. She had uneven brown hair with small beaded braids, and her face was tilted sideways, confused.

"Oh, sorry, I'm Via, I transferred today. This is room 401, right?" Via asked, though she already knew the answer.

The girl smiled. "Yup, you've got the right room. I'm Piper. Let me give you a hand with your suitcase."

Piper lifted her suitcase and Via entered the room. It was pretty nice room, with two beds. Something moved in the corner of Via's eyes, and she jumped.

There was a boy sitting in the corner, tinkering with small nails and rubber bands. He had brown curly hair, and fell of his chair when he saw Via.

"Oh, shit. Sorry. Wasn't expecting company. You scared me." The boy ruffled his hair and grinned, holding out his hand. "I'm Leo Valdez. You're Piper's roommate?"

Via smiled. And there was demigod number two. She shook his hand. "Yeah, I transferred today. Via Jackson."

"Jackson? Why does that name sound familiar?" Piper asked, putting Via's luggage on her bed.

Percy had been all over the news when he was twelve, known as the delinquent boy who had set a couple of buses on fire. And blowing up a national monument. (She was pretty sure his name had been cleared of all that, though.) "Common name, I guess."

"Yeah. Sorry about Leo, by the way. He's a natural klutz."

Leo protested, and Via let out a small smile. Percy's done this so many times, she thought. So can I. I can do it.