Scopophobia - fear of being seen or stared at
Annabeth led the way back down towards camp, filled with a newfound confidence after letting her emotions show themselves. She marched down towards the central green with a purpose only a child of Athena could match; Aza tried to conceal a smile as she watched Annabeth's curly blonde hair bounce up and down each time the girl's dirty black converse pounded upon the earth, as if the girl were taking all her frustrations out on it. Piper nudged Aza from their place behind the daughter of Athena and whispered, "She certainly looks better."
Aza nodded, a soft smile tugging itself at her mouth. "Sometimes she just... buries her emotions so deeply that it tortures her, and once she lets them out she feels much better."
Piper nodded, tearing her eyes from the blonde in front of them to look at Aza. She chewed her lip, jaw clenching slightly like she was trying to bite her tongue and hold back her words. Aza glanced at her, noting the small flinch that Piper's muscles involuntarily made, and quickly tore them away to find the back of Annabeth's hair very interesting. "What's up," Aza questioned, sighing slightly - she could only expect a question from Piper about her eyes, or her powers, or really anything that Aza wouldn't want to answer.
"Maybe you could..." Piper trailed off, unsure of how to finish. "learn something from Annabeth. Y'know, talk to someone or release your emotions somehow."
A small, sad smile painted its way across Aza's face, and she shook her head, causing her deep brunette waves to lightly hit her pale skin. Piper instantly regretted what she said when she saw the pain that somehow shone through the small smile, and spared a glance at Aza's eyes to see deep pools of russet sadness that shone with vicious images of her greatest fears. "Piper," Aza began, wetting her lips gently. "For some people, like Annabeth, that works great. For others, like me... not so great. Other people's fears are my burden, Piper; mine are not theirs." Piper frowned, her perfectly shaped brows almost touching the bridge of her nose, but she nodded. "And your eyes?" She questioned, her voice growing quiet and raspy as she added, "Y'know, since we're talking about the deep stuff now."
Aza nodded, eyebrows raising slightly. "My eyes are... well, it's a long story."
"It's a long walk," Piper countered, motioning towards the long pathway that stretched ahead of them as they trapeezed the trail down from the oracle's cave. Aza nodded, her lips tugging into a smirk. "Fair point. My eyes are... okay, so my grandfather is Ares, the god of war and bloodshed and all that good stuff, and everyone who meets him have said that his eyes are the most terrifying part of him - and that includes his human-skin motorcycle and his propensity for threatening waitresses with knives. His eyes are pure fire, filled with pure rage - you can see scenes of war, death and blood in them, sort of like a projector. My father, his son, is Phobos. God of fear. So his eyes are sort of the same, but they show people's worst fears, different for every person, and my eyes are the same. When people see my eyes, they see there worst fears, the things that haunt them. What happened earlier, at Leo's claiming, that was what happens when my burden becomes too much for me, however momentarily. It was scenes of the camper's greatest fears - the war."
Piper fell silent, and Aza knew she didn't know the bast way to answer. Luckily, to avoid an awkward prompt from Aza, or an assurance that it was all okay when really it wasn't, the three girls passed a group of campers playing basketball and Piper stopped in her tracks, staring at them.
There were five of them - all were tall and tanned, with bouncy blonde hair that sparkled in even the limited amount of sunlight that shown upon the camp, a trait they inherited from their father. A friend of hers had once compared all of them - and their father - to a bronzed Baywatch lifeguard, and it was the most accurate description Aza could think of. Like their father, each of them had impeccable aim - no shots bounced off the backboard r even came close to missing; instead, each shot went straight through the hoop and barely even touched the net, even when Austin Lake shoved Kayla Gold to the ground as she lined up for her shot.
"Apollo's cabin," Aza said, nodding her head forward as a signal for Piper to continue walking so they could catch up to Annabeth, who had gained a considerable lead. "They love showing off with their aim - all missile weapons go straight towards their target. Y'know, arrows, basketballs, ping-pong balls, any ball, really. Rule two of being a demigod, never play sports with the Apollo kids. They're sore winners and, when they very rarely lose, very sore losers."
Piper nodded, her thin braids bouncing slightly. As she and Aza increased their speed to try to get closer to Annabeth. She took her eyes off the group of Apollo children only as they passed Sherman And and Ellis Wakefield hacking at each other with a vengence; both were fighting to wound, and it seemed that if one managed to land a hit it would cause the other to bleed out. However, Aza knew neither would be able to land a bad hit; they were both wicked good with a sword, and were evenly matched. Aza chuckled under her breath as Sherman got lucky and managed to slam his Celestial Bronze sword down upon Ellis' sheld, sending it spiraling out of his hand and slammed into the dirt. Whilst Aza never had the best hearing, she was able to hear Sherman faintly tasting him ("That's what you get for saying chicken is better than steak, you coward!"). Aza rolled her eyes, chuckling lightly at the reasons people in the Ares cabin got into fights, but she wasn't the least bit surprised. As Piper gasped at a particularly wicked punch sent by Ellis, Aza called out, "Hey, Ellis! You gonna let him talk to you like that? You show Sherman who's boss!"
The two sons of Ares turned to Aza, both glaring with a fiery temper that would make their father proud and would make any sensible person turn and run in the opposite direction. Sherman's mouth opened and he snapped, "Shut up, Malin, or fight me!" Aza glared back, lifting her head and clenching her jaw in a defiant manner; she quirked her left brow and pursed her lips. "Gladly, Yang! I'll kick your ass with my eyes closed."
"Yeah, you do that, little niece," Sherman yelled back with a roll of his deep blue eyes, giving her a rather unkind finger. Aza stuck her tongue out in return, shaking her head slightly and turning back to Piper, who looked appalled and greatly scared. Annabeth appeared next to them and chuckled lightly at Piper's expression. "Aza's father, is Ares' sson, so Aza and the Ares have a..." Annabeth trailed off, unsure of how to finish - it was a rather complex relationship after all. So, Aza filled in, "We have a special relationship. They're my aunts and uncles, and when I'm around them my more aggressive side shines through. Ares is my grandfather, after all, and his genes are pretty strong."
"Uh-huh," Piper nodded, but Aza could clearly see they had confused the girl. She understood; the first day of learning your true heritage led to a lot of necessary adjustments, and it would feel incredibly overwhelming for her for quite some time. Instead of processing the complex relationship of demigods, Piper pointed towards the blades that Ellis and Sherman were using to hack at each other and asked, "Are those real blades like the ones you used to scare off the venti? Isn't that dangerous?"
Annabeth nodded. "That's sort of the point." Aza snickered under her breath, nudging Annabeth's arm and asking, "Pun intended?"
Annabeth frowned, thinking for a moment. "Yeah, pun intended. But bad pun aside, there's my cabin over there. Number six." She nodded towards a grey cabin, with a carved owl over the door. From her countless times visiting Annabeth, Aza had practically memorized the inside. The Athena cabin was decked out - their walls were lined with bookshelves that were crammed to the absolute brim with books (each child got one bookshelf for themselves and there were several communal ones as well), weapon displays (meticulously organized, of course), and even a SMART board that schools used. Aza craned her neck to see two girls, though she couldn't identify them, drawing a map that appeared to be a battle diagram, but Aza could've sworn it was drawn over Middle-Earth (the Athena kids had a tendency to create battle plans for fictional or hypothetical battles).
"Speaking of blades," Annabeth said, motioning Piper to the side of the cabin. "come here."
The daughter of Athena led the two other girls to the weapon shed, unlocking it to reveal the Camp's extensive weaponry supply. Lining the walls were weapons of all sorts - bows and arrows, knives, swords, shields, double-bladed spears, double-bladed swords, clubs and even a few guns with a supply of celestial bronze bullets. "Every demigod needs a weapon," Annabeth explained, cracking a smile at Piper's stunned face and sharing a mischievous smile with Aza, who was in love with the wide array of weapons. "Hephaestus makes the best, but we have a pretty good selection, too. Athena's all about strategy - matching the right weapon to the right person. Let's see..."
Annabeth disappeared into the shed, and Aza could faintly hear various clanks and thuds. There was a particularly large thud after a moment, and Aza chuckled as she heard various ancient greek curses stream out of Annabeth's mouth. The blonde returned seconds later, holding a massive sword with some difficulty. She held it out, handle-first, to Piper, but the latter only managed to hold it in the air for about three seconds, before her back folded under the weight and the sword clanked to the ground, dragging Piper's upper body with it. She let out a surprised 'oompf!' And let go of the sword.
"No," Aza shook her head, leaning down and picking up the sword rather effortlessly (she was descended from Ares, after all). "Not this one. Annabeth, maybe pick something reasonably sized?"
Annabeth gave her a look that Aza couldn't decipher - she figured the girl meant to both taunt her and show her lack of appreciation for here comment, but the daughter of Athena just scrunched her entire face together and gave her a pointed glare. "Okay, Ares-spawn," Annabeth taunted, unscrunching her face and rolling her storm grey eyes. "Don't get picky about weapons, now - I saw you wielding a branch the last Capture the Flag game."
"Yes," Aza smirked, flicking her eyebrows upwards tauntingly. "and I still won. Me and my big-ass branch won Capture the Flag, so I'll use whatever weapon I please, thank you."
Annabeth shot her a glare, but disappeared into the dark of the shed without another word none-the-less. Thee were several more clunks and thuds heard, and the girl returned only a moment later, carefully holding a shotgun in her hand. She pumped it effortlessly, as though she were a regular hunter. Piper's kaleidoscopic eyes widened, sliding from a hazel brown to a brilliant sky blue, and she asked, "Is that a shotgun?"
"Mossberg 500," Annabeth responded, studying the weapon in her hand carefully and biting her lip ever-so-slightly, the way she always did when she concentrated. "Din't worry, it doesn't hurt humans. It's modified to shoot Celestial bronze, so it only kills monsters."
"Um," Piper hesitated, as though scared to critique the girl (she probably was, Aza assumed, since Annabeth was rather scary and was holding a weapon). "I don't think that's my style."
Annabeth nodded, examining the shotgun once more. "Yeah, you're right. It's too flashy." She put the shotgun back and began to poke around the rack of crossbows towards the entrance of the shed when Piper suddenly pointed towards the back corner and said, "What is that? A knife?"
Annabeth sauntered further into the shed, dodging various racks of swords and spears and scattered weapons across the floor. She stopped where Piper was pointing, digging a sheathed knife from the mound of dirt it was lying in and blew the dust off the scabbard. Aza moved closer to examine the scabbard, which looked absolutely ancient - it was covered in old cobwebs and dirt that smelt vaguely acidic, like it hadn't seen anything but the musty old shed for centuries. "I don't know, Piper," Annabeth said uneasily after thoroughly examining the knife. "I don't think you want this one."
"Yeah," Aza nodded. "Swords are far better by far - better range, much safer for you, and do more damage. They're the right way to go." Piper pointed towards Annabeth's knife, which was strapped to her belt and said, "You use a knife." The girl in question shrugged and said, "Yeah, well... just take a look if you want."
Piper moved forward, cautiously taking the knife from Annabeth and carefully holding it on the palms of her hand as she examined it. Aza leaned over her shoulder, taking in there wooden handle and the triangular blade - it was eighteen inches long, gleaming brightly even in the dim lighting of the weapon shed. She could see Piper's reflection in the blade, looking just as gorgeous, if not more, than she did in real life. It took Aza a moment to recognize it, but once she realized the original owner her eyebrows flew upwards.
"It suits you," Annabeth admitted, sighing lightly - Annabeth hated being wrong, but even she had to admit that she was. "That kind of blade is called a parazonium. It was mostly ceremonial, carried by high-ranking officers in the Greek armies. It showed you were a person of power and wealth, but in a fight it could protect you just fine."
"I like it," Piper said, still examining her reflection in it. "Why didn't you think it was right?"
"Well," Aza exhaled, tilting her head as she considered the best way to answer the question. "First off, swords are much better and easier to use than knives. But secondly, and more importantly, the blade has a long and complex story; most people wouldn't touch it with twenty-foot pole. Its first owner... well, let's just say, she didn't have the best life and things didn't turn out for her. Her name was Helen." Aza let it hang in the air, waiting for Piper to catch on to what she was saying. It took several seconds, but then she let our a choked cough, her kaleidoscopic eyes widening in realization. "Wait, you mean the Helen? Helen of Troy?"
Aza nodded wordlessly, her eyebrows raised in a 'I know, right?!' manner. Piper's face twisted, and she suddenly looked like she regretted her decision in choosing the blade, like it would suddenly move as if possessed by the ghost of its former owner and kill her. "And this is just... sitting in your toolshed?" Aza chuckled; where else would it be?
"We're surrounded by Ancient Greek stuff," Annabeth explained, shrugging her shoulders gently like it was no big deal. "This isn't a museum; you don't just look at the pretty weapons. They're meant to be used. They'e our heritage asa demigods. That was a wedding present from Meneleus, Helen's first husband. She named the dagger Katoptris."
"Meaning?" Piper asked.
"Mirror," Annabeth said. "Looking glass. Probably because that's the only thing Helen used it for. I don't think it's ever seen battle."
Piper looked at the blade again, peering curiously at its glow that seemed to sparkly and shine even in the dim lighting of the shed. But then her face twisted, her eyes widening. Aza began to feel waves of fear radiating from the girl, rough and strong like the waves during a storm, and Aza was the rock they crashed and foamed against. Piper went deadly pale, matching the pale quartz that the majority of the Camp Half-Blood buildings were made from. "Piper?" Aza asked, placing a hand on her shoulder. She didn't mean to, but Piper's fears were so surfaced and so wild that Aza accidentally peered into her mind, seeing flashes of images - a grotesque face, chiseled and carved, flames, malicious laughter. She saw posts, a man tied to them. Aza could faintly hear a clattering noise, but it wasn't enough to tear her from Piper's fears no matter how much she tried. It took several moments, and Aza viciously tried to pry herself from Piper, but she was absolutely frozen, forced to watch the horrific scenes. She could hear Annabeth shouting for a medic, and soon Piper managed to tear herself from Aza's grasp and fell to the ground, shaking and panting.
All Aza could see was the same images playing over and over again on a loop; the haunted face, the flickering fire, the malicious laughter. She could see the man in closer clarity, a handsome man she was sure she had never seen before. And Aza began to piece everything together.
Then everything went black.