There's no love without pain // Jeyna

18. The Journey

3 DAYS TILL CHRISTMAS

Piper's POV

Piper was bored. Most of the people who hadn't gone to Camp Jupiter went home for Christmas. Her father had invited her to come over but she refused. She still hadn't stopped sobbing loudly every night and she didn't want her father finding out the truth. Or anyone else for that matter. She just wasn't ready...

There were only a handful of campers at this point and Piper didn't like being all alone in her cabin as it was the day after Winter Solstice, so she decided to walk around for the day.

She was shivering from the cold but she kept on walking, deciding that it was better than the chills she was getting sitting inside her cabin. Even Camp Half-Blood's protection couldn't keep out the snow. Piper wondered whether the Solstice had weakened the strength of the barrier.

It wasn't long before she saw another person.

She wasn't that hard to spot. Both because of her long, curly, flaming red hair and because of her bright green and red christmas sweater.

Rachel Elizabeth Dare was standing and glaring at Cabin 2, the honorary cabin for Hera, a goddess who the campers could barely come across without throwing stones at, much less her cabin.

She stood next to the Oracle who didn't show any indication that she had seen her. A few minutes passed without any movement when Rachel suddenly turned towards Piper and said, "Piper Mclean, right? I'm Rachel. I don't think we've been properly introduced. Shall we walk?"

Piper was surprised by her sudden outburst but indicated for her to lead the way. They walked side by side and Rachel started a conversation.

"Is there any particular reason you're not going home for Christmas?"

"You're the Oracle, you tell me." She replied. Rachel chuckled and shook her head. 

"That's not really how it works."

Piper smiled and asked, "Why aren't you at home for Christmas?"

"Why are you avoiding my question?" Rachel shot back. Piper was quite intrigued by her character. She knew that Rachel was a mortal who could see through the mist and she somehow ended up as the Oracle around a year ago. Now, she also realized that she had a bit of an attitude.

She felt the urge to tell Rachel everything. Maybe it was because she was the first person who actually asked her and it was completely irrational but. . . she did it.

She told Rachel about how Jason dumped her for Reyna and told her that she knew it was coming because she wasn't as big of an idiot as people assumed she was. She explained about how her mom was more worked up about it than her and when they finally broke up, Piper was almost glad. Atleast she would have her mother off her back.

It all felt much sadder when she said it to another person. She couldn't hold back the tears that rolled down her cheek as she opened up about everything to Rachel.

They were sitting on the porch of the Aphrodite Cabin and, when Piper was done telling Rachel the whole story, the latter gave her a hug.

"It's all either Hera's or Aphrodite's fault. Take your pick, they're both equally annoying." Said Rachel.

"Yeah, tell me about it." Piper said, smiling slightly and drying her eyes on the sleeves of her sweater.

Suddenly, Rachel pulled away from the hug and sat up straight with her eyes wide. She glanced at Piper with a weird look in her eye, as though she was assessing her.

"What? What's wrong?" Piper asked.

"I... it's nothing, you wouldn't understand." Said Rachel, her shoulders leaving their tensed position and her face adopting a calm yet winded look.

"Why not?" Piper asked, still curious.

"Just. . . Oracle problems. I get these glimpses of the future sometimes, other than the usual foreboding I always get of other people."

Piper wanted to know exactly what she had seen and she would have been more concerned if somebody other than the Oracle had said this to her. But Rachel suddenly got up, gave Piper an awkard pat on the shoulder and a warm smile before moving vaguely in the direction of her cave without another word. It was probably cold in there. Piper didn't know why she would want to go to that place in this weather.

Anyhow, Piper felt better after opening up to somebody. She had kept it to herself for too long.

 When she went back to the warmth of her cabin, a little while later, she was so relaxed and at peace with the world that she didn't even notice that those unusual chills going down her back had stopped.