Chapter 6

“I’m… I’m gonna guess you’ve just been claimed.”

Well no shit, Smart ass.

“Yeah, uh- something like that.”

The pain had subsided, although the slightest of movements made it rather difficult to forget about. Kayla loosened her grip on the dirt floor, groaning.

All prior arguments and bickers went unfinished as the sight and experience for the both of them had them roped in on something new. A claiming. And definitely not your regular one.

“Who?” Clarisse asked, coming closer out of curiosity, the two of them both seemed to forget their duel with eachother, or for now, atleast. “That’s not uh… very Aphrodite-like, is it?”

Kayla disregarded her comment. “I don’t know who,” She said, closing her eyes out of tiredness. She groaned as she tried to move, quickly relaxing herself back on the ground. She wouldn’t be surprised if her back was broken. “Definitely not Aphrodite.”

Clarisse cleared her throat, nodding.

“So you’re not supposed to be out here either?” Kayla asked, and she looked at Clarisse confusedly. They needed a plan if no more detentions were to be dished out.

“Either? What did you do?”

“I told you, I thought you got me back with your battle horn, everyone thought you were sleeping. Me and Malcolm got the blame.” Kayla didn’t mean to have snapped as much as she did (scrap that, she did) but Clarisse gave her the same attitude anyway.

“Oh,” She replied with a discusted look on her face, regaining her posture before making her way towards Kayla slowly, trying to get a better look at her wings. “My siblings wouldn’t ever touch my stuff. It wasn’t any of us.”
She told her, somewhat preoccupied, then her eyes widened. “Hang on- someone stole my horn?”

“God, you’re slow, h- hey, stop touching-“

Listening around the woods, the game still sounded to be going on, although there was alot more commotion from Athena’s side for some reason. Slashing swords and arrows could be heard soaring even from such a distance. Maybe a little louder than usual, which didn’t go unnoticed by either girls as they looked to the direction of the sound before turning back to their current situation. She huffed, as if she was dissapointed she wasn’t apart of it.

Meanwhile, Clarisse seemed to still be prodding at the black feathers Kayla now had, she even had the nerve to pinch one out, which (and she never thought she’d experience) hurt.

“Ow! Do you mind?”

Clarisse disregarded her complaint, examining the feather she now had in her hand. “They’re really big.”

As much as she didn’t want to agree with Clarisse on absolutely anything, she was right. The feathers- when in light- contrasted dark purples, blues and greens, and were around the size of a large stick.

“Are you supposed to be in the medical wing still?” Kayla asked, trying to plan how atleast she could get out of here unseen. She didn’t plan to have been claimed down here. She didn’t even want to know what Dionysus had in stock for her if he found out.

“yes. Actually, I should get back. Before they know.”

That was a lie. Not the medical wing part, the part where she sould get back. Ares kids were known for walking out of there before even being cheked up on. Clarisse went back to her tough demeanour rather quickly, turning her back and stomping away like a five year old who had been refused a bag of candy. What was Kayla to do now?

“Hey! Don’t leave me here!” She shouted, trying to get up from the ground, a little to fast. “Ow- uh, look, now we both know the reason I made you pass out?”

She stopped and turned back around, scoffing and rolling her eyes along with her head. “How do you know that was the reason?”

“What other reason would it be?”

She paused, thinking. The black feather was still in her hand, even if it was now messed up and dirty.

“Get up.”

There was no time to answer, she had already jolted Kayla up by her arms. She didn’t have time to decide wether it hurt or not, either.

She stumbled, falling back onto the floor from the sudden weight that accompanied her body. Needless to say it was rather embarrassing.

“I said get up.” She did the same thing again, ragging Kayla by the arms.

“Yup, that didn’t hurt,” Kayla commented, more to herself, for reassurance. “What do they look like from the back?”

She stepped behind Kayla, only gone for a few seconds. Turning back with a scowl that looked rather forced, even for the daughter of war. “That’s alot of blood.” Clarisse replied with a shrug and an amused snort. Typical.

“Feels like it.” Kayla nodded, accepting the answer and starting to walk, groaning. Kayla had to admit, her camp T-shirt- or what was left of it- felt wet, and she wasn’t sure if majority of it was sweat or not. The ‘lot of blood’ answer Kayla got from Clarisse made her pick the latter.

They walked in silence, Clarisse seemed to stop every few minutes with an annoyed look on her face, turning around to see how far behind Kayla was. Snapping twigs off trees along the way, one which seemed to upset a tiny, olive green tree nymph a little too much. She scattered off on the verge of tears. As much as they both must had hated the turn of events, they were both not supposed to be down here.

“Why’d your parent have to claim you now of all times?” She mumbled, scuffing her boots up with wet mud and leaves as they tried to navigate what they figured would be the way to go.

“Gee, thanks.”

“Just asking.”

Kayla swallowed. In all honesty, Clarisse’s question was a fair one. Why did she get claimed now, of all times? Sure, it definitely wasnt one of the twelve, but Kayla just couldn’t quite pin point why that mattered. Her father was still as godly as any other. Still a god, just like the rest. And Kayla had still been in need of claiming- just like other demi-gods. “I… don’t know.”

Once they finally reached the clearing of the woods- which didn’t go without Kayla falling one way or another atleast three times and the rude girl infront humiliating her for doing so- she planned on what to do. Going to the medical wing seemed accurate, but Chiron may have been more appropriate first.

But either of those things meant she’d be busted. She just decided to go with the latter. More and more hope was being lost along the way of hoping they wouldn’t be busted.

“You’re supposed to be in the medical wing to begin with, can’t you just help me get there?”

Here, Kayla had trapped her. Because if she said no, she’d have to leave Kayla right now, and once someone finds her here, on the floor, not moving, pleading for help- which, with how stubborn she is she would happily do if it meant it got Clarisse in trouble. Kayla could make up a good few dozen different plots on the spot of why she’s on deaths door in the woods- all which could include Clarisse.

She stumbled in her words, groaning while tipping her head back and clearing her throat, she looked to be trying to readjust her spear, then remembering she didn’t have it yet again.

“You think I want to be there? I’m not going back,” The girl then reconsidered her choices: there were none. “You keep your mouth shut, got it?”

Kayla imitated zipping up a pocket with her hand up to my mouth, dropping it lazily back to her side and continuing to stumble behind her. She wished she hadn’t gone on an aimless hunt now, and she definitely had alot to apologise for when next seeing Malcolm.

Kayla supposed for every unclaimed child was the fear of getting claimed at awkward times, a rumour that went about was that it was common to get claimed on the toilet- new comer, eleven year old Kayla thought that was destined to happen for the first few months.

Ofcourse, this definitely didn’t top that in her books, because she’s pretty sure if she got claimed while on a toilet she’d attempt to flush herself down it straight afterwards. Atleast she had someone with her for what Kayla would consider the worst, most painful claiming ever (she didn’t know claiming could be painful) even if it was an impertinent, steaming hothead of a girl.

Clarisse continued in her bad mood, both their Camp Half-Blood T-shirts had been ripped up, dusty and somewhat bloody from rolling around on sticks and spikey peices of bark- although if it were a competition, Kayla would have won by a mile, she thought.

The black avian wings that had forced themselves through had left a pratical piece of orange cloth hanging on to Kayla. Her jeans didn’t go unnoticed to be either, as they were now awfully ripped and covered in thick mud, along with her hair and boots. If anyone were to see her like this, then they would probably blow the battle horn a second time as an intruder alert.

But thank the Gods above, there seemed to be no sign of anyone. Which was good, because that meant less chance of Kayla or Clarisse getting busted. But bad, because then that also meant everyone was still in the back of the woods, including Chiron and anyone who she could’ve gone to for help. Excuses for when they all got back? None. She was covered head to toe in blood, mud, sweat and at this point on the verge of tears due to sheer annoyance. Maybe Chiron and Dionysus would believe her if she told them she tripped on the way back the Hermes cabin. It was around a thirty second walk from where she was supposed to be cleaning the dishes, but- it was worth a shot?

Kayla suspected Clarisse didn’t have any excuses either, but then she figured she usually looked like that anyways, so no one would really find it suspicious.

As they entered the medical wing, Kayla took slow, dragged steps up ti the doors before pushing them open. Clarisse snickered at how hard it had been for her to open the doors in her current state. Yes: she had stared and watched before walking in behind her.

Kayla took herself to the cabinets, deciding she’d take charge if no Apollo healers were present. She rummaged through them sith a struggle on her tip toes, yet a few seconds later Clarisse seemed to put no effort into reaching her hand in for the ambrosia strips Kayla had been searching for, before lobbing the little packet at her head with a hidden amused look.

“Just no need, is there.” Kayla mumbled with an unamsued look, looking down at the packet aimlessly. Bending down to get it meant she may aswell sit. Was this how cammels felt? Kayla made an attempt to reach for the ambrosia strips in the end, which did indeed result in plopping herself down on the floor, a little bent forwards for her wings to have enough space. She couldn’t recline them.

“Wow, you’re really useless now.”

Clarisse intervened with a sarcastic look, her arms crossed as she looked down at her. This was not going to plan.

“I can’t move.” Kayla replied. Her face was stoic. She was serious. Without retractable wings and no current sense of proper balance, she couldn’t move from her position. Sat on a floor like an idiot with a packet of ambrosia in hand.

“You better figure it out, dummy.”
Clarisse rolled her eyes, shrugging as she went to take a step away. Kayla’s eyes widened. She was not getting caught by someone else looking like this. On fhe floor, shirt ripped in half and wings probably more than half her size? Not up for debate.

“I will seriously blame every single thing that’s happened on you if you walk away-”

Clarisse paused in her steps, her back still turned. She shrugged before continuing walking.

“I’ll give you another concussion-migrane thingy.”

Clarisse paused, her head slowly turning. Her boots clacked against the infirmary floor as she made her way over, huffing and jolting Kayla up yet again by holding her wrists. Once up, she let go and pointed to a med bed, tilting her head. “Just sit on there until someone comes in. There’s probably not even that long left.” She commented, before giving Kayla one last look. No snarkyness, no grimace or upturned nose. She peacefully took her leave, the doors squeaking open and slamming closed behind her. Silence. She looked around, rubbing her arm at the eery feeling.

Her mind was full of questions. She’d been claimed. She couldn’t be anymore happy. Shaking with adrenaline even and she hadn’t even realised it until now. She wasn’t let down that it wasn’t one of the twelve. In her eyes, a god was a god. Some were just more well known that others. But the pit in her body still remained: all this time. Only just claimed. What a rip-off, she thought. That was one way to put it.

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