CHAPTER THREE: ARTEMIS GIVES NARI ADVICE

Naturally, after Percy received the news that the girl who looked thirteen years old was a goddess, he stared dumbly and said, "um... okay."

Nari rolled her eyes in amusement.

Grover, being Grover, was the exact opposite. He gasped, kneeling at the goddess' feet. "Thank you, Lady Artemis! You're so... you're so... Wow!"

"Get up, goat boy!" Thalia snapped. "We have other things to worry about. Annabeth is gone!"

"Whoa," Bianca held up her hands. "Hold up. Time out." Everybody looked at her. She pointed her fingers between each demigod, her brows furrowed and her eyes squinted. "Who... who are you people?"

Only the coolest characters in the Percy Jackson universe thus far.

Artemis' expression softened, her eyes falling to the girl out of time. "It might be a better question, my dear girl, to ask who are you! Who are your parents?"

Nari was suddenly reminded that she had knowledge of the future and past far more shocking than any of them could imagine. She could easily answer the question for Bianca. She knew her mother and father... but she knew better, and kept her mouth shut.

Bianca, however, glanced nervously at her brother, who was still staring at Artemis in awe. Nari really loved The Titan's Curse Nico. She hoped she would be able to save him from his harsh future, if she could.

"Our parents are dead," Bianca said. "We're orphans. There's a bank trust that pays for our school, but..." she faltered upon seeing the looks on everyone's faces. No one believed her. "What?" She demanded. "I'm telling the truth."

"You are a half-blood," Zoë Nightshade informed the emotionally confused girl. "One of thy parents was mortal. The other was an Olympian."

"An Olympian... athlete?" Bianca frowned. Nari struggled to hide a smile. She wasn't completely aware of it, but she had come to terms with her strange situation quite fast. Was she scared? Absolutely! She was losing her mind. But she knew that panicking wasn't going to bring her home.

"No," Zoë said. "One of the gods."

"Cool!" Said Nico.

"No!" Bianca's voice quavered. "This is not cool!" Bianca then looked to Nari, looking rather alarmed. "You don't believe this, do you, Nari?"

Nari was left dumbstruck, unable to form any proper sentences. She found her eyes scanning over the characters—people around her. They had looks of understanding on their faces, clearly assuming her silence was shock... which, technically it was, but not for the reason they thought.

She looked to Artemis. So far, the goddess was the only one who knew what was going on with Nari. She wasn't sure how Artemis knew, but she was a goddess—if anyone would know, it would be her.

Neither Artemis nor Nari got the chance to speak.

Nico was buzzing with excitement, bouncing on the tips of his toes. "Does Zeus really have lightning bolts that do six hundred damage? Does he get extra movement points for—"

"Nico, shut up!" Bianca put her hands to her face. "This is not your stupid Mythomagic game, okay? There are no gods!"

Nari winced.

     The anger in Thalia's eyes dulled, "Bianca, I know it's hard to believe. But the gods are still around. Trust me. They're immortal. And whenever they have kids with regular humans, kids like us, well... Our lives are dangerous."

     "Dangerous," Bianca said, "like the girl who fell."

     Thalia turned away. Even Artemis looked pained.

     "Do not despair for Annabeth," the goddess said. "She was a brave maiden. If she can be found, I shall find her."

     "Then why won't you let us go look for her?" Percy asked. He always put Annabeth first. Maybe it was his fatal flaw, maybe it was because he liked her—maybe it was both. Nari admired it regardless.

     "She is gone. Can't you sense it, Son of Poseidon? Some magic is at work. I do not know exactly how or why, but your friend has vanished." Artemis said honestly, her voice as calm as ever.

     Then, she looked to Nari. Nari's eyes widened; not only did Artemis know she was from a different world, but she knew that Nari knew their future.

     "Oo!" Nico raised his hand, bringing the attention to him once again. "What about Dr. Thorn? That was awesome how you shot him with arrows! Is he dead?"

     "He was a manticore," Artemis said. Nari liked how she was patient with the boy. "Hopefully he is destroyed for now, but monsters never truly die. They re-form over and over again, and they must be hunted whenever they reappear."

     "Or they'll hunt us," Thalia said.

     Bianca di Angelo shivered, her mind wandering momentarily. "That explains... Nico, you remember last summer, those guys who tried to attack us in the alley in DC?"

     "And that bus driver," Nico said. "The one with the ram's horns. I told you that was real."

     "That's why Grover has been watching you," Percy said. "To keep you safe, if you turned out to be half-bloods."

     "Grover?" Bianca stared at him. "You're a demigod?"

     "Well, a satyr, actually." He kicked off his shoes and displayed his goat hooves. Nari figured it would've been best if he hadn't done that, because Bianca looked like she was ready to faint on the spot.

     "Grover, put your shoes back on," Thalia sighed. "You're freaking her out."

     "Hey," Grover sounded incredibly offended, "my hooves are clean!"

     "Bianca," Percy said, "we came here to help you. You, Nico and Nari need training to survive." What? "Dr. Thorn won't be the last monster you meet. You need to come to camp."

     "Camp?" Bianca asked, while Nari's mind began to spiral once again.

     "Camp Half-Blood," Percy explained. "It's where half-bloods learn to survive and stuff. You can join us, stay there year-round if you like."

     "Sweet," Nico's smiled widened, "let's go!"

     "Wait," Bianca shook her head. "I don't—"

     "There is another option," Zoë shrugged, her arms crossed.

     Thalia was quick to shut down the suggestion, "no, there isn't!"

     Thalia and Zoë glared at each other for a few moments before Artemis interrupted.

     "We've burdened these children enough," Artemis announced. "Zoë, we will rest here for a few hours. Raise the tents. Treat the wounded. Retrieve our guests' belongings from the school."

     Nari was glad she didn't have any belongings to begin with. She didn't want to make the Hunters' jobs harder, despite the fact that they could grab a few bags with ease.

     "Yes, my lady."

     "And, Nari," Artemis turned her powerful gaze to the girl who didn't belong, "come with me. I would like to speak with you."

     It was shocking to hear her name rather than Bianca's. It wasn't the line she was used to reading.

     "Only Nari, please." Artemis added. Nari got the feeling that she didn't want to talk about joining the Hunt.

     Once a tent was put up (which was done rather quickly), Nari followed Artemis inside. The Hunters followed Artemis' orders, just as the others did. Only Artemis and Nari were allowed inside at this time. Nari found herself feeling more comfortable than she had since she's arrived in this universe—she almost laughed at the thought. In this universe. It was such a hard thing to believe.

     The books did a good job at describing the layout of the tent—fantastic, really. There were silk rugs and pillows covering the floor. In the center, a golden brazier of fire burned without fuel or smoke. Behind the goddess, on a polished oak display stand, was her huge silver bow, carved to resemble gazelle horns. It was a beautiful weapon. Nari stared at it for a long moment.

     The walls were hung with animal pelts: black bear, tiger, and several others that Nari couldn't be bothered to name. As Artemis sat down, a deer with glittering fur and silver horns came forward, before resting its head in her lap.

     Artemis gestured to the seat just in front of her, and Nari sat. There were a few seconds of silence as Artemis gathered her thoughts. Nari also figured it was meant for her to gain her composure. This was all so new, despite the fact that she's read about it time and time again.

     "You're a long way from home." Artemis finally said. Nari met her eyes, unable to speak. She felt a frown pulling at her lips, and only when someone brought it up did she realize how scary this was.

     She had been panicking the entire time, but she'd never really thought her situation through. Now that Artemis was saying it, she realized how badly she wanted to leave. She was perfectly fine with this world remaining as a fictional one.

     Nari slowly nodded. Artemis took that as her sign to continue, "I'm not completely sure why you're here. The Fates wouldn't tell us." Nari knew that by us she meant the gods. "But they did tell us this: you're meant to rewrite history."

     Artemis let those words sink in. And deep down, Nari always knew that. During her short time here, she realized she could change things. Fix things. It was terrifying to be given so much power.

     Still, it was interesting how they used the word history. It was true, that to Nari, it had already passed. The Titan's Curse was released quite some time ago. But it wasn't their history, it was their future.

     "Why me?" Nari found herself asking.

     Artemis seemed amused. "You quite like these stories, don't you?" Nari flushed in embarrassment. There was a glint in the goddess' eyes. Trust? "But I don't see anyone better."

     Nari frowned. Artemis trusted her with the fate of a world that wasn't even her own. At the end of the day, she could leave (if she figured out how) and forget of all her of troubles. This world could become fictional once again. Nari would face reality one more time.

     But Nari couldn't do that. The guilt would eat her alive. She grew up with these characters. She loved them like friends, laughed with them, cried with them. These stories were everything to her.

     Nari didn't have much. She didn't have friends. She didn't have money. She didn't have a father. But the things she did have meant more to her than most people could fathom.

     Her mother meant the world to her. These stories brought her more joy than most people could understand, despite how terrifying and insane they could be.

     It was as if Artemis could read Nari's mind. She said, "that's exactly why you were chosen." Nari didn't miss the smile on her lips, and she frowned in return. "You have compassion. Empathy. You understand that these are more than just stories. The characters," Artemis sighed thoughtfully, "they're more than that to you. You're here for a reason."

     Nari stared at her for a long moment. Soon, she gathered her thoughts and spoke the first question that came to mind. "Am I allowed to tell anyone?"

     Artemis hummed, "yes, I suppose. But be careful what you speak. Your knowledge can be very dangerous here." Nari gulped nervously. "My brother would understand that well. Perhaps I could get him to have a chat with you. You both would have much to talk about."

     Nari frowned. There seemed to be a hidden message in Artemis' words.

     "I would, however, wait until you arrive at camp to tell anyone of where you come from. It would be best." Artemis decided.

     One final question rolled off Nari's tongue. "Why do Nico and Bianca think they know me?" She asked. Her voice was softer than she expected it to be.

     Artemis sighed. "The Mist is a powerful thing, as I'm sure you're very aware of now."

     She didn't need to say more. Nari recalled the beginning of The Lost Hero, where Jason woke up on the bus and Piper and Leo were so sure that they knew him... but their memories had been tampered with. They were fake.

     She realized that someone had messed with Nico and Bianca's mind to better fit Nari into the equation. She suspected it was the Fates' doing.

     "Oh." Was all she could say. She had never been good with conversations before, so of course her people skills didn't improve while talking to a goddess.

     Artemis understood, though. "Yes." She said, briefly glancing to the door of the tent.

     "I take it you wanna talk to Bianca now?" Nari asked. It was nice to have someone to understand her as well as Artemis did. She was liking her more and more as time went on.

     Artemis' eyes beamed, her gaze meeting the girl's as she nodded. "Yes, I would."

     "I can go get her for you, if you'd like." Nari offered. She thought on getting Percy as well, but she knew that Zoë would end up doing that anyway, so she brushed it off.

     Artemis nodded, "please."

     Nari nodded back, smiling softly. She got to her feet and began her search for Bianca. By now, the camp was completely set up. Seven tents around a fire. Wolves guarded the borders of the camp, while eagles guarded overhead. The weather was being controlled by Artemis, leaving no wind or falling snow, therefore, it was much more tolerable than before. It was pleasant.

     She found Bianca speaking with Nico and Percy, who's wound was being tended to by Grover. Nico was speaking in rushed sentences and Percy was growing more annoyed by the second. She knew what they were saying, having read the book, but Bianca wasn't there originally. She wondered what the girl was saying.

     Nari made her way over. Immediately, everyone looked to her aside from Grover, who was more focused on Percy's wound. "Hey, Nari." Nico beamed.

     Nari couldn't help but frown. She wondered what memories he had of her. "Hey, Nico." She smiled back as well as she could, and thankfully Nico seemed to buy it. Neither Percy nor Bianca did. Nari turned to the older di Angelo, "Artemis would like to speak with you."

     Bianca's eyes nearly popped out of her skull, "me?" She asked.

     "Mm-hmm."

     Grover tried to hide his excitement, and slight jealousy, but ultimately failed. "You shouldn't keep a goddess waiting." He said. And under his breath, "especially Artemis." He said dreamily. Percy sent him a weird look.

     "Oh—okay." Bianca nodded. She looked unable to think of anything else to say, so she went to the tent that Artemis was residing in, and left the others behind.

     "So, Nari," Nari turned to face Nico, who was absolutely beaming. "Percy told me all about his sword, which can turn into a pen." Nari slowly nodded, completely forgetting to fake surprise at the 'news'. "And I was just about to ask him about camp and—" he gasped, "oh! Who do you think our godly parents' are? Wouldn't it be so cool if we were siblings?"

     Nari doubted she was the daughter of Hades, but her smile was genuine. It would be cool to be Nico's sister—as well Bianca's and Hazel's. "Yeah, Nico, it would."

     Despite Percy being in a sour mood (and understandably so), he smiled.

     Nico began to spew questions out of his mouth faster than Nari's brain could handle. He would pause every once in a while to share his excitement with Nari, before turning back to Percy. The son of Poseidon looked like his brain was going to explode from all the questions, and Grover was just amused.

     "Percy Jackson."

     Nari looked in the direction of the new voice, and just as expected, Zoë stood there with her proud expression and slightly judgemental gaze that was directed towards the boy in question.

     "Come with me," she said. "Lady Artemis wishes to speak with thee."

     Percy sighed and followed Zoë to the tent.

     It was silent for a moment, before Nico leaned closer to Nari. "What do you think they'll talk about?" He asked.

     Surprisingly, Nari found herself feeling amused. She knew exactly what they would be talking about. Every line, every thought in Percy's head. She knew it all.

     Still, she shrugged. "Not sure." She muttered, "maybe they'll tell us later."

     Nico frowned, but nodded anyway. "Yeah."

     Nari was mostly silent as Nico spoke to Grover. Thalia. Nari noticed, was (still) pacing at the edge of camp, weaving around the white wolves that guarded the borders without fear.

     She didn't bother thinking on what Bianca, Percy, Artemis and Zoë were talking about. Not much, anyway. Rather, she focused on the future, and what was to come.

     She thought over the major events. The upcoming quest, the Ophiotaurus (Bessie), and other more stressing matters. Bianca and Zoë... no. She would worry about it when she needed to, but right now she had to keep her head straight. If she thought too deeply, she was sure to lose her mind. She would be useless, too lost to fix the things that needed fixing.

     She didn't realize how much time had passed when she was lost in her thoughts, but when the Hunters began to pack up camp, she knew what was next. Apollo, god of the Sun, was on his way.

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lizzie speaks...

yeah, i've decided updates will be at random but there will always be at least one update a week :)

don't forget to tell me your thoughts on this so far <3