TONGUES & TEETH; Luke Castellan [ 1 ]

< GREEDY >

SLAM.

Darkness filled her pupils as she drew an arrow. Bullseyes.

SLAM.

She drew another. Bulleyes.

SLAM.

The bow fell from her fingertips, a small inhale from her lips. She had grown bored of shooting, walking across the camp. Without the company of her friend's she was bored often wandering the camp aimlessly. Avoiding the dirty looks sent her way.

SLAM.

"Pandora." Annabeth's voice beckoned, the young girl a few metres away. "Are you okay?" Pandora noticed blood had begun to seep from her nose, the back of her hand quick to wipe the substance.

"Yeah, must of happened from sparring." Pandora gulped, wiping her face desperately as Annabeth took a step closer to her.

"You haven't been sparring today." Pandora sent Annabeth an confused glance, exhaling softly.

"Must've happened shooting then Annabeth, merlin." She cursed walking off, unable to continue with Annabeth standing in front of her. "Annabeth, I'm fine." She gripped the younger girl's shoulder. "Don't you have practice or something?" She shook her head walking beside Pandora.

"Nope, thought I'd stay with you. Besides dinner will be shortly." Pandora paled, Annabeth was relentless in ambition to follow Pandora. "You're hiding something." They continued on the path walking past the lake. "What was your father like." Annabeth was curious more than anything. She'd met a few of the other gods, never Hades. Not many demi gods met Hades.

"Like death if he was a person I suppose." Pandora huffed dryly, "Angry, angry at the gods, his brothers, the world." Annabeth listened intently. Stopping their conversation, the horn sounded across camp indicated dinner.

Annabeth gave her a sympathetic smile as she went off to join her cabin. Dinners were for cabins. Seperated from the others. Sometimes Chiron made exceptions allowing Pandora to sit with Hermes' table.

She hadn't needed any exceptions since she got back. She watched as table by table, campers burnt food for the parents. When it was her turn she remained still. Hades didn't care for food sacrifices, blood however.

"Your turn death." Ares table snickered at Clarisse's words. Pandora ignored her picking at her finger nails aimlessly. "I don't think you heard me." Dishes clattered to the ground as Pandora jolted forward sizing up Clarisse. The rest of the Ares table jolted from the seats eager to murder the child of Hades.

"Enough!" Only at Chiron's words did Pandora take a step back. She exhaled angrily ignoring the harsh mutters from the Ares table, "Return to your seats." She didn't him the luxury storming off. She was running out of time.

Her feet swayed back and forth in the lake as she watched the naiads of the camp interact back and forth. She'd never paid much attention to them. She'd rather stay away from the ocean. She was sure Poseidon wasn't a huge fan of the forbidden child.

She flinched when beside her a plate appeared, almost slid over to her. She tilted her head slightly viewing the tall teen standing across from her. "Hungry?" Luke kept his distance sitting a few feet away from her, dipping his own legs in the water.

"No." She mumbled the plate sliding further towards her as he leant over. After a few moments of silence she reluctantly picked at the food he had brought her. All her favourites, cheese and fruit. Strawberries off to the side.

"You'd think after a year, she'd of gotten over it already. Clarisse." He laughed dryly, Pandora continuing to stare into lake. She didn't want to make it harder than it already was, "She's always been like that, I guess." He shuffled closer.

"Leave me alone Luke." Her hand dropped back to her side. Her voice was soft, strained with the weight of her situation.
"..please." Her eyes were half lidded. She wished to sleep more than the very hours a night.

"What happened when you were away Pans." In the distance teens begin to filter back into their cabins. Curfew would be enacted within the hour. Pandora sure as hell didn't want to be caught by the Patrol Harpies.

"Loads of fun. Parties, balloons, cake. The dream." She managed a small smile in his direction before her expression was serious once again, "Death. Lots of it. I watched her you know. Watched her walk pass Cereburus. Face the judgement. I didn't watch far enough to see where she went." She didn't need to speak her name for Luke to know it was her mother.

"I don't regret killing her." She paused exhaling shakily, "I know you think I do. I don't. Those scars that brand me. I could only return the favour." The felt the soft touch from him. First on her palm face down on the soft ground beside them.

Then over her fingers. She didn't oppose the action relaxing as their fingers interwined, "I'd kill him if I could." Hermes. "He abandoned me, let my mother kill herself." Pandora froze retracting her hand dramatically. As if he had burnt her with his words.

"You don't know how she died." Her eyes were wide, filled with fear. Luke mirrored her expression, rather confusion than fear.

"What- What do you mean—" He scoffed scanning her eyes for the answers. "She went crazy Pandora." He had never told her before, Hades had told her himself, "Killed herself, spoke of atrocities. Prophecies that didn't exist." He laughed covering the pain in his tone.

"How'd she go insane Luke." Pandora cautioned, avoiding the tears pooling in her eyes. He stuttered for words standing to face her, Pandora standing. "She went looking for the Oracle of Delphi. Hades knew Delphi was trapped inside its current host.. because of a curse he created." She watched his face drop, almost as if his heart had split, "Your mother couldn't hold the host, because of Hade's curse." Her lip quivered, if he didn't already hate her, he did now.

"That- That.. scar I got.. from asking him to bring her back." The long white line etched on her leg made sense. Asking questions she couldn't have. Seeking something that made her weak. Love.

"But- that can't." He inhaled shakily. She knew he was trying not to cry. She left before he had the chance.