⋰☆✄♘➶⋱
【𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐝𝐨𝐠𝐬】
ᵍʳᵒᵛᵉʳ❦ⁿᵒᵃ

"He must be the one."

"Hush, Annabeth. He's waking, everyone give him some space."

"Move, Luke. I need to get this reaction on camera. Welcome to camp, Percy Jackson."

"We've been expecting you."

•

"It's okay. You're safe." Grover tried to comfort Percy as he woke up, his voice stayed low.

"He's awake." Noa overheard Grover, pushing into the medical wing with her video camera filming Percy. "Camp Half-Bloods newest addition and the talk of every camp, half-bloods and half-bloods. The minotaur's deathly fate lies in the palm of his hand and the questionable truth of who his parent is still awaits any answer. Tell me, Percy, how did-"

"Hey, Noa?" Grover cleared his throat some and gave her a little look, like he was trying to remain as nice as possible. "He kinda just found out about all this and his mom kinda..."

Her face fell as she quickly shut her video camera, giving Percy a guilty look. "Sorry! Camp Half-Bloods one and only media reporter, publisher of the Half-Blood Daily magazine and broadcast. Just trying to get the scoop. I'll come back-"

She stopped suddenly when the shell necklace she wore suddenly flashed like a camera, grabbing it and tossing it over her shoulder so it didn't face him. "-just gonna throw that over my shoulder. Welcome to camp!"

Percy glanced at the cup she held out, a blue liquid on the inside. Grover looked hesitant, but Percy recognized the smell. It was his mother's blue cookie recipe...but it was in liquid form. He took it from her hands and sucked it down, tasting just as he remembered it with a faint tint to his lips. Grover cleared his throat and gave Noa a frightened look before glancing to Percy again. "This is Noa...how do you feel about her?"

Percy frowned his eyebrows at the odd question, Noa realized what Grover was doing and paired it with a stare of disbelief. Percy shrugged. "She's got nice hair."

He sighed in relief with a nod of his head. "Enjoy your drink."

Percy's eyes looked toward the minotaur horn that rested on the table across from them. "It really happened."

"Well, it's a big deal to kill a monster like that. So, I wanted everyone to know." Grover quickly added in, hoping Percy wasn't bothered by the matter.

"Did you see it?" the blue eyed boy eyed his friend, the guilty look fell over Grover again. "Did you see what happened to my mom?"

"I did." he frowned. Noa felt weird being here in a moment she hadn't witnessed, but how could she just turn around and walk out. "I'm sorry."

Percy turned his head away, Noa frowned at the sight. He looked so sad, almost as sad as Grover's voice. "-my job was to protect you, to get you here safely. Maybe if I had told you the truth a little sooner, your mom would still be-"

"Please." Perry cut him off and rubbed his eyes. "Stop."

"I know this isn't easy, but I want to talk about it." Grover begged. Noa knew Grover was Percy's satyr, he had been plenty of people by now. Noa wished she'd had a Grover when she was starting to understand it all, when she became who she was. She'd been all alone for years, just her mother's voice in her head to try and reassure her. But, even that was terrifying until Camp Half-Blood found her. She could see that Grover really cared for Percy. Not as a spy to get him here...but as a friend.

"I don't." Percy stood up from his bed and found his jacket. "Your job was to get me here alive. Your job is done."

"Where are you going?" Noa asked, shocked how Percy just wanted to stumble out of here with no clue where he even was.

"It was important I get here because my father forget." he paused at the doorway and glanced back at the two of them. "So I'm gonna go find him."

Noa and Grover turned and gave each other a strange look on que. "It isn't that-"

The door shut. "-simple."

Noa gave Grover a sympathetic look as his head hung low, the horns on his head more displayed now. "He'll come around when he gets it, Grover."

"You're not gonna put all that in the magazine, are you?" he gave her a desperate look. "Please?"

She exhaled, knowing this article would have done amazing if she had. "Well, Half-Blood Daily is just really needing some good information. The most interesting thing I've done all week was when my cabin came up with the idea of all changing our hair color to match for the gam-"

She stopped suddenly at the look on his face, the desperation and sadness he was shown. Noa exhaled and nodded her head once. "I won't write about anything that he said. No mom talk, no Grover talk. Just killing an animal that all of us are wondering if you're lying about."

"Thanks." he cracked her a small grin. "I'm not lying though. I saw it."

"I believe you." she rose her hands in surrender. "Well, I don't know if I do, but I'll believe you for the article."

Grover had to laugh. "Fine by me."

"I also wasn't planning on spiking his drink with a love spell, like you were thinking." she pointed out what she knew he was thinking, his eyes widened again when realizing she knew. "You don't have a very good poker face."

"Sorry." he didn't know how to defend himself. "It just crossed my mind."

"No worries." she exhaled with a shrug, messing with the red leather gloves on her hands. "I'm not-"

"Peter Johnson is here!"

Noa and Grover pulled a similar look again. Her eyebrow shot up. "Was that-"

Grover stood up and ran for the door quickly. Noa pulled her necklace around again and unfolded her video camera. "Wait for me, Grover! I need to get this on camera!"

"Wait, Percy!" Grover ran to his friends side when they found him just a cabin over, Noa close on his heels as she aimed her camera and panted for a breath. "This is, Mr.D! Camp director. Mr.D, this is, uh, Percy Jackson."

"Yeah, Grover. I heard him the first time." Mr.D threw his glasses on the table and rolled his eyes when he saw Noa zooming in on his face. "Oh! You're getting my bad side again, Evangeline!"

"Sorry, Mr.D." she hurried to circle Percy so she was on the other side, dropping her voice for the joke to only be heard by the new boy. "I wasn't aware he had a good side."

"Did you actually hear my name the first time?" Percy mocked Mr.D, referring to how he messed it up.

"Okay." Grover pulled Percy back, Noa's eyebrows shut up as she took a few steps back and circled the boys with her camera. "You really don't want to start with this guy."

"He's starting with me." Percy argued.

"Percy, the D is for Dionysus." Grover gave him a wild look, Noa zoomed onto Mr.D again to go along with Grover's voice. "That's Dionysus."

"Ugh, Grover, your voiceover for this clip is gonna be so cinematic." Noa gushed as she kissed her fingers like a french man, hoisting it up into the air.

"What do you mean, Dionysus?" the boys paid her no mind, getting their photo taken with the shell necklace again. "The- like, the god, Dionysus?"

"Yes." he gasped.

"Grover." Noa lowered her camera and grabbed his arm. Grover's eyes widened as he gave her a double take. "Could you wait a few seconds before saying yes? Build up the suspense a little more? From the top, boys. Percy...your line."

Percy eyed her oddly for a second before he awkwardly looked to Grover. "Like...the god, Dionysus?"

Grover waited a little longer than natural, his eyes widened as he leaned forward. "Yes."

"Actually yes or just yes for her?" Percy whispered when Noa lowered the camera and began to try and cut the footage from the last take.

"Actually yes." he repeated back.

"No way." Percy gaped, nodding toward Noa now that she'd sat down at Mr.D's desk and was out of ears reach. "Who is she then? Is she...Medusa?"

"I heard that!" Noa looked back with an offended look, Grover winced. "Do I look like Medusa to you?"

"No, I just couldn't think of-" he began but stopped, remembering back to how her hair was pink when he barely started to wake up when he first got here, to now being a bright red. She changed her appearance quickly. "You're Aphrodite."

"Aphrodites daughter." Grover corrected as Noa rose her eyebrow to Percy, still offended at what he'd said.

Percy glanced to Mr.D again. "Excuse me, Your Highness?"

"Oh." he scoffed in disbelief. Noa hid a laugh behind her fist.

"I think my dad may be around here somewhere." Percy went on with a hopeful look. "I don't know how to ask for him. I don't-I don't even know his name. But I think I should see him. I just...I think I really need that right now. Can you help me?"

Noa adjusted the flower crown on her head and poked her bottom lip out in a sad manor. Mr.D leaned forward. "Actually...I think I can. Son."

"Oh gosh." Grover and Noa spoke on sync.

"Dad?" Percy gaped.

"Yes, Peter." Mr.D agreed with a nod of his head.

"It's Percy." he shook his head.

"Exactly." he leaned back in his seat some. Percy wondered why this wasn't something Noa wanted to got on video. "Now, before we get to know each other, there's something very important I want you to do for me, okay? In the galley, there is a bottle of 1985 Cháteau Haut-Brion. Will you go fetch that for me?"

"Is that really all you have to say to me?" Percy fell offended as he took a step back.

"Hey, um, Mr.D, even if Percy was-" Grover tried to step in before matters could get worse.

"Uh, uh, uh, bup!" Mr.D shook his head to silence him. "Grover, quiet, please. This is a nice moment, don't ruin it. The galley is right down that path. Grab that bottle and I'll talk to you about whatever you want. You know, uh...you! Me...who cares."

Chiron's hooves clicked as they got closer, Percy stared up at him. "Mr.Brunner?"

"Uh, Mr.Brunner's real name is Chiron." Grover's own hooves echoed as he walked a little closer, Noa gave a guilty look from the chair. "Camp activities director, immortal trainer of heroes, he is-"

"Grover, thank you. I'll take it from here." Chiron cut him off as he glanced to Noa. "Miss Evangeline...I don't remember asking you to help Grover. Have I been mistaken?"

"No, I was just leaving." Noa stood up quickly. "I was just-"

She was looking for a lie but exhaled in defeat. "-leaving."

Noa hurried away, Percy glanced to Grover in questioning. "There's cameras here?"

"Just hers. She keeps everyone entertained with the magazine about camp gossip and usually a broadcast at the end of the week." he further explained Noa's lingering presence. "Cabin 10, Aphrodites daughter. Not Medusa. She's a thousand years old."

"A thousand years old?" Percy gaped. "But she's so-"

"Beautiful? I know, right?" Grover exhaled with raised eyebrows.

"I was gonna say young looking." he corrected.

"Well, it's because that's the age she began to start dying every day." Percy gave him a crazy look, Grover realized maybe it wasn't his place to talk. "You know, maybe you should talk to her about-"

"Noa was cursed by her mother in her early life to begin dying each night, pausing her at that age until she found her one true love in order to begin to age normally again." Chiron further explained for Percy's sake, nodding once. "Aphrodite is the Greek Goddess of love and beauty, she does not see it as a curse."

Noa did, she always did. She died everyday for a thousand years, never once finding her one true love to break her curse with a kiss.

•

kylie speaks

we root for nover rights
in this cabin🤚🏼