reflection ● jason grace

It's Bully Jason day

"And unlike she's inclined to help you," Reyna agreed. "You'll get your head bitten off."

"Daria-"

"Loves me," Dakota finished, a sentence that Jason claimed often enough that they knew when it was coming. "You keep saying that."

"She's still going to take your head off," Clara said with raised eyebrows. "You annoy her, Jason."

"Woah, woah," Nathan stepped in before Clara could, you know, rip Jason's ego to shreds. "What is this? Bully Jason day?"

"You're just as bad," Clara snapped, unable to stop herself from bickering with her mortal enemy. Okay, maybe that was a bit strong, but from anyone else's perspective, it definitely looked like they hated each other.

Jason slinked off while they were arguing with each other in the pews. He ignored Reyna's condescending gaze as he squeezed past her. Daria was never that mad at him; she didn't do that.

She was rapidly arguing with Daniel. Even though he was nearly three years older than her, and the praetor, it didn't stop her from snapping at him. "Listen Daniel, Jason Grace is not my responsibility."

He froze. Daria's back was towards him and she was probably too distracted to notice he was standing a few feet away. Okay...so maybe she was a little angry.

"He absolutely is," Daniel sneered back in his 'Danielesque' way. He was about the same height as Jason, but that didn't stop him from being absolutely terrifying sometimes.

Apparently, Daria hadn't gotten that memo. "I don't understand what you want from me." She all but snarled. "I'm supposed to fight; I'm not a babysitter."

"Nor are you a leader" Daniel retorted sharply. "You're not, Daria. Your job is to think. You are not the ruler of the prophecy."

Daria clenched her jaw, but just as she was about to respond, familiarity flickered in her eyes. She wheeled, staring directly at Jason. "Eavesdropping?" She said dryly.

"I'm not-"

"Whatever," she muttered, stalking off before he could finish his sentence. He looked at Daniel, who shrugged.

"Go talk to her, Grace." The praetor shot Jason something that looked more like a grimace than a grin. He walked towards Mitch talking to himself. "And this is why I'm gay."

Jason didn't know about that (and also, he didn't like her like that. They were best friends), but he raced down the pews anyway. Nathan shot him a confused look and Jason managed to get out a, "tell you later" before he reached Daria by the door.

"You're fast," he commented as they matched pace.

"Maybe you should take that as a hint."

"Come on, Daria," he gave her a crooked grin. "When have I ever left you alone?"

The sky above them was gloomy. A summer storm. Daria subconsciously touched her hair, testing to see if it was frizzing. She looked at him with an eyebrow raised.

Jason shook his head. "Not me."

"Are you sure, Mr. Grace?" Her lip twitched, and not in the happy way. "Son of Jupiter, child of the prophecy?"

"Um," Jason could feel himself getting annoyed too. "You're the one who everyone takes seriously, dude. You're the primus pilus. They just made me centurion because they had to."

Daria glared at him. "Do you really think you should be leading an army? Do you even care?"

"I'm strong, I'm smart," he protested. "Why shouldn't I be leading an army?"

"Because you're not ready!" She raised her voice, causing several people on the Via Praetoria to look at them disapprovingly. "Because it's not my job to train you so that one day you can become praetor instead of me!"

There was a harsh silence. Jason could hear her breathing, but there was a buzzing in his ears that drowned out everything else. This could have been a mistake; when Daria was upset, she didn't think before she spoke. But if she didn't mean it, she would apologize.

She wasn't apologizing.

Daria swallowed, morphing her expression back into something unreadable. "Leave me alone," she repeated. Her voice cracked for one split second, but Jason didn't comment.

"Fine." He said dimly. "But don't write me out of your battle plans just because you're mad at me."

She bit her lip, which he didn't know whether to take as a 'yes' or a 'no'. Then, she left him standing on the Via Praetoria, wishing Jupiter had never created him in the first place.

Oooh, the girls are fighting !