The Hunt for His Heart

Ana: Part two

                                                                    II

                                                                  Ana

        Poor Leo, Ana thought. He was searching so long for this beautiful girl that she kept on hearing about, and when she finally saw her, she was crying for help. She could see why Leo loved her, she was gorgeous, and he could tell he cared about her a lot by the look in his eyes. Thalia asked Ana over to the side when they were eating dinner, and she walked over to her, slowly, nervous because Thalia was like Ana’s idol.

        “Hi, I saw your shooting today, great aim,” she said to Ana.

        “Oh, thanks.”

        “I have been watching how you handle situations and I have been more than impressed.”

        “Thank you, but I haven’t done much...” replied Ana, unsure of where this conversation was headed.

        “You have much to be proud of, and I have an important question for you,” said Thalia with a serious face and her eyebrows furrowed. “would you, Andromeda, like to become a Hunter of Artemis?” Ana gaped at Thalia, and said stuttering,

        “Y-yes, it would be an honor.” She was beyond happy and honored that she was even considered by anyone except Leo and Gabby.

        “Are you sure you are ready to accept eternal maidenship and devotion to the goddess Artemis?”

        “Y-yes I am.” Ana knew that she would pledge maidenship, and she was only a little skeptical because Leo was so kind to her after everyone turned their attention to Gabby. As much as she cared for Leo, his heart belonged to the daughter of Atlas.

        “Then read this aloud in full confidence,” Thalia said, handing her a scroll.

        “I pledge myself to the goddess Artemis, turn my back on the company of men, accept eternal maidenhood, and join the Hunt,” Ana said, then felt a wave of energy and looked up at a smiling Thalia.

        “Welcome to the Hunt, Andromeda.”

        “Thank you, I’m honored, lieutenant Thalia.” Thalia chuckled and led Ana to the Artemis table. At the corner of her eye, she noticed Gabby staring at her, with a puzzled look, and with a huge smile she silently told Gabby that she would explain later. She looked at Leo to see if he was paying attention and they locked eyes unexpectedly. She turned away quickly, but he already saw her smile.

 

                                                                     ...

 

        After dinner, Gabby and Leo came up to Ana.

        “Hey, what happened  back there?” asked Gabby.

        “Yeah, you looked really excited about something,” said Leo.

        “Ok, so Thalia called me over and asked me if I wanted to be a Hunter!” said Ana, a little louder than she wanted. A few people looked her way and she blushed.

        “YOU’RE A HUNTER?!!?!??!” shrieked Gabby, removing all doubt that Ana was now an immortal follower of Artemis. Leo looked at her skeptically, and she explained how it happened and what Thalia said.

        “Wow. My best friend is a Hunter...” Gabby was still trying to process it and Ana laughed. Leo looked at her, smiling and said,

        “Finally! Ana, that took you forever to laugh.” Ana smiled again, and laughed at the goofy face that he pulled after. Suddenly, Leo’s face fell.

        “What happened?” Ana asked, concerned.

        “My... Calypso is still out there somewhere and her life is at risk,” Leo said.

        “You do know she’s immortal right? Like, she’ll still be alive after you die,” said Gabby. Ana hit her arm and Gabby yelped. “What was that for?” she said to Ana, and she tilted her head to Leo’s saddened face. “Oh.. We should go look for her!” said Gabby, trying to redeem herself. Ana grinned at her and Leo looked at her hopefully.

        “Yeah, not a bad idea! Calypso hinted that you are familiar with the place and we could start there,” said Ana, raising his spirits even more. His face fell again and said,

        “Guys, we would need a quest for that. Chiron is still rebuilding the camp after the Roman-Greek fight and I don’t think he’ll agree,” he said.

        “Oh come on party pooper, give it a chance. I mean, when I really wanted something from my parents, I’d just give them my puppy eyes and they would give in,” said Gabby.

        “Yeah, plus you’ll have a Hunter and a daughter of Apollo by your side so there is no way we won’t find her. I can run, you can build, and Gabby can...”

        “Hey!” Gabby replied and returned Ana’s arm slap. Leo chuckled and looked gratefully at the two girls.

        “Well, Gabby can gather medical supplies, arrows, food, and other necessities,” Ana corrected. Gabby seemed satisfied with the answer. Ana laughed again and Leo looked even sadder when she did.

        When Ana said she would call it a night and walked away to Cabin eight, she wondered what it would be like away from the Hermes family. No Stolls playing pranks, no contraptions that would cut her hair off if she moved a certain way, no missing belongings. Just fellow Hunters that all pledged to the same thing.

                                                                ...

 

        Ana enjoyed eating carrots before she went to bed because it calmed her nerves and made her feel somewhat better. As she nibbled off the last bit of the carrot, Thalia came up to her and said

        “Ha! I thought I was the only one who ate carrots before bed. Anyway, I didn’t come here to talk about carrots. I came here to ask you another important question.” Ana braced herself for the worst and Thalia continued. “There has been a massive loss of Hunters, including my fellow lieutenants.” She had a grave look on her face and continued looking Ana in the eyes. “Will you be a lieutenant?” She looked hopeful and Ana gaped at her once again. First, I become a Hunter, and now I am being asked to be a lieutenant?! She thought.

        “Yes! I would love to! I’m honored,” Ana replied. Thalia looked relieved, and said,

        “Ok, I have to get something for you.” She walked away to her bunk on the corner. “Here.” Ana looked at the little silver halo looking band that Thalia placed on her head.  Ana had a huge grin on her face until she fell asleep.

        This was her first night of vivid demigod dreams. She always had them, but they weren’t as bad as this one.

        She was alone in a house of fire, but she was freezing. Leo was screaming her name, but she couldn’t respond. She saw frost appear of her hands, but the fire grew. She heard a maniacal laugh that sent more chills down her spine. It was beautiful, like a song, but it was so evil. She heard another voice, laughing at Leo and Ana regained her senses, and charged at the cold air, and Leo kept screaming her name. She knew she was going to die, but the two people were going to hurt Leo and Gabby, and she was nowhere to be found. She saw a cold face briefly and woke up with a start. She was drenched in sweat, probably from the dream, yet the dream seemed so icy and frigid, like... something cold, or someone cold.