Post by Penthesilea Jones on May 6, 2010 9:54:25 GMT -6
"Hi, sir!"
The pair of them stood looking in, Danny just behind her. Chiron's familiar jazz music filled the room, reminding her of the time she and Danny had given him an ACDC cd and begged him to play it instead. He looked up from the task he'd been working on, restringing his bow, and instantly his face was transformed into something very much like a grin.
"Well I must have done something right," he remarked, moving towards them slowly, "to have you both come all the way back." He bent and put an arm around each of them, hugging them, much to their amazement. Chiron had always been pretty much awesome, but affectionate? Yeah right! And Mr D was sunny-tempered. "Daniel, Penthesilea," he released them and indicated some of the benches, "sit down, and tell me how you are."
It was bloody impressive that he'd remembered their names, and as they dumped their bags and sat, Penny felt herself relieved, so glad to be back. No matter what went on in quests and outside the boundaries, here it was safe. When you were beside Chiron, nothing could ever touch you. And though he'd been guardian to heroes for thousands of years, he still remembered them.
"We're fine, sir," she answered, and he raised a hand, until she changed it, a little reluctantly, to "Chiron. We, er...well I guess we got homesick."
Then it all came out. How hard they'd fought over the years, the monsters they'd vanquished, the hardships they'd faced. Danny told him about the way the world was changing, how the Mist had been at first inclined to start favouring monsters, so that he'd been declared a fugitive and a murderer, and eventually that it had started to fade.
"And we didn't know what to do! We've not seen a hero in so long, so many of our contacts turned out to be dead or in prison," Danny shivered as he spoke, and she felt the cold cross her back too. To be incarcerated, with no outlet for the boundless energy they all felt as half bloods. It was unthinkable.
"So we came here," she finished for him. They'd been partners so long, it wasn't so much 'finishing each others sentences' as much as merely thinking the same things. "Because if anywhere is going to know what's going on, it's here."
"And we want to help," Danny picked up. "With all of this. And with...you know...the training. We've picked up a lot these past years, and it seems right we pay some of it back."
Chiron looked thoughtful, and eventually he sighed, his right rear hoof stamping the ground distractedly.
"We don't know," he told them, and Penny leaned forward in surprise. "We don't know why the mist is fading, and the gods are divided as to whether or not they should do anything about it."
Chiron never judged the gods, and never would he speak out against any one in particular. He was wholly supporting of them, and wholly neutral. That was why he was the guardian of their children, and the best man, or centaur, for the job.
"And I have young men and women," he smiled ruefully, "children, who will have to bear the brunt of that indecision."
Or maybe he did. Wow. Suddenly being an adult, and not a camper, meant a hell of a lot.
"Listen, I admit that I could use your help. Dionysus and myself have much to do. If you could help with training, look out for them, and perhaps be someone they could talk to. These are dark times, and no one will go to a teacher for help unless they are desperate. Would you be willing to be a sort of...segway between the campers and myself?"
Penny and Danny exchanged a glance, but their decision was made the moment they came back to camp, and felt the warmth of the sun and smelled the endless, musty sweetness of the strawberry fields.
"Of course we will," Penny replied. "It's the least we can do. After all, the training we got here was what kept us alive! These kids will be in our shoes soon enough."
"Poor sods," Danny muttered, having picked up a lot of british slang from Penny.
The pair of them stood looking in, Danny just behind her. Chiron's familiar jazz music filled the room, reminding her of the time she and Danny had given him an ACDC cd and begged him to play it instead. He looked up from the task he'd been working on, restringing his bow, and instantly his face was transformed into something very much like a grin.
"Well I must have done something right," he remarked, moving towards them slowly, "to have you both come all the way back." He bent and put an arm around each of them, hugging them, much to their amazement. Chiron had always been pretty much awesome, but affectionate? Yeah right! And Mr D was sunny-tempered. "Daniel, Penthesilea," he released them and indicated some of the benches, "sit down, and tell me how you are."
It was bloody impressive that he'd remembered their names, and as they dumped their bags and sat, Penny felt herself relieved, so glad to be back. No matter what went on in quests and outside the boundaries, here it was safe. When you were beside Chiron, nothing could ever touch you. And though he'd been guardian to heroes for thousands of years, he still remembered them.
"We're fine, sir," she answered, and he raised a hand, until she changed it, a little reluctantly, to "Chiron. We, er...well I guess we got homesick."
Then it all came out. How hard they'd fought over the years, the monsters they'd vanquished, the hardships they'd faced. Danny told him about the way the world was changing, how the Mist had been at first inclined to start favouring monsters, so that he'd been declared a fugitive and a murderer, and eventually that it had started to fade.
"And we didn't know what to do! We've not seen a hero in so long, so many of our contacts turned out to be dead or in prison," Danny shivered as he spoke, and she felt the cold cross her back too. To be incarcerated, with no outlet for the boundless energy they all felt as half bloods. It was unthinkable.
"So we came here," she finished for him. They'd been partners so long, it wasn't so much 'finishing each others sentences' as much as merely thinking the same things. "Because if anywhere is going to know what's going on, it's here."
"And we want to help," Danny picked up. "With all of this. And with...you know...the training. We've picked up a lot these past years, and it seems right we pay some of it back."
Chiron looked thoughtful, and eventually he sighed, his right rear hoof stamping the ground distractedly.
"We don't know," he told them, and Penny leaned forward in surprise. "We don't know why the mist is fading, and the gods are divided as to whether or not they should do anything about it."
Chiron never judged the gods, and never would he speak out against any one in particular. He was wholly supporting of them, and wholly neutral. That was why he was the guardian of their children, and the best man, or centaur, for the job.
"And I have young men and women," he smiled ruefully, "children, who will have to bear the brunt of that indecision."
Or maybe he did. Wow. Suddenly being an adult, and not a camper, meant a hell of a lot.
"Listen, I admit that I could use your help. Dionysus and myself have much to do. If you could help with training, look out for them, and perhaps be someone they could talk to. These are dark times, and no one will go to a teacher for help unless they are desperate. Would you be willing to be a sort of...segway between the campers and myself?"
Penny and Danny exchanged a glance, but their decision was made the moment they came back to camp, and felt the warmth of the sun and smelled the endless, musty sweetness of the strawberry fields.
"Of course we will," Penny replied. "It's the least we can do. After all, the training we got here was what kept us alive! These kids will be in our shoes soon enough."
"Poor sods," Danny muttered, having picked up a lot of british slang from Penny.
