Catch Fire || P. Jackson

𝟏.𝟎𝟓

"Ah, so I need to befriend you then?" The son of Neptune settled himself into one of the golden couches, balancing his dinner on his knees.

Lea forced out a laugh, busying herself with eating her yoghurt so she didn't have to reply. Hazel took the seat next to him, so both demigods were sitting opposite Frank and diagonal from Lea who was still settled onto her bed.

"Lea?"

"Nope." The daughter of Apollo shook her head. "Frank, you can't have yoghurt."

"But it looks so tasty!" he whined.

"You're lactose intolerant."

Percy grinned. "Seriously?"

Frank's shoulders slumped. "And I love ice cream, too...."

Percy laughed. Hazel couldn't help joining in. This only made Frank sulk harder. Lea threw a granola bar in his direction, hitting him squarely in the chest. Frank shot her a sarcastic smile before picking at his food.

"Okay, so tell me," Percy said, "why is it bad to be in the Fifth Cohort? You guys are great."

The compliment made Hazel's face burn "It's... complicated. Aside from being Pluto's kid, I want to ride horses."

"That's why you use a cavalry sword?"

She nodded. "It's stupid, I guess. Wishful thinking. There's only one pegasus at camp—Reyna's. The unicorns are just kept for medicine because the shavings off their horns cure poison and stuff. Anyway, Roman fighting is always done on foot. Cavalry... they kind of look down on that. So they look down on me."

"Their loss," Percy said. "What about you, Frank?"

"Archery," he muttered. "They don't like that either unless you're a child of Apollo. Then you've got an excuse. I hope my dad is Apollo, but I don't know. I can't do poetry very well. And I'm not sure I want to be related to Octavian."

"Can't blame you," Percy grimaced.

"I'd like to be related to Lea." His comment was quiet enough that the blonde girl didn't hear him. She was more than content in picking at her yoghurt, she didn't even seem to be listening to the other demigods.

"But you're excellent with the bow—the way you pegged those gorgons? Forget what other people think." Percy complimented, glancing between Frank and Lea.

Frank's face turned as red as Dakota's Kool-Aid. "Wish I could. They all think I should be a sword fighter because I'm big and bulky." He looked down at his body like he couldn't quite believe it was his. "They say I'm too stocky for an archer. Maybe if my dad would ever claim me..."

"And even if he doesn't, it's not worth mourning him."

Lea's words seemed harsh to Percy, but Frank cracked a smile at them. "I know, I know. I'm more than my parents."

"You're Frank."

"I know. And you're Lea."

"They do this a lot," Hazel whispered to Percy, blowing on her gumbo. "It sounds a little weird but it helps."

Slowly, Percy nodded.

He could understand why Frank would need reassurance about his self-worth. He figured it was hard losing his only parent and having his father refuse to claim him. But Lea knew her dad. From the whispers he had heard, Apollo had escorted her to camp. His sea-green eyes stared at Lea. Every time he thought he understood something, she slipped it out of his grasp. Like catching smoke with bare hands. She was magnetic. Even if she didn't realize it, Percy was determined to figure her out.