Do I Look Like a Babysitter?

Altogether, Safe

Chapter 2:

Do I Look Like a Babysitter?

Matilda Rice

-

"... And that's everything? Are you sure there's nothing you're leaving out?" Chiron asked me.

"Honestly, I think that's everything. What does it mean?" I replied mournfully.

"I think it's a message. Someone is sending you these visions in your dreams. I think you should consult The Grove of Dodona and divine yourself a prophecy" Chiron said and began to stroke his beard and pondering the idea.

"Chiron, I'm scared. What if these kids die... I mean, it just scares me!" I said and began to hyperventilate.

"Matilda. Listen to me. You did well bringing this to me. Right now, we need you to go to the Grove. See if there is anything they can tell us. From there, we will draw a plan." Chiron said calmly. "It's our only plan right now. Now, make your way to the Grove and be careful in the woods"

I stood from the table and took a deep breath, making my way towards the door. This began to stress me out. Dad... If you can hear me... Help me find a way to help these kids.

I headed down towards the forest, the direction of the Grove of Dodona. Since Apollo had taken control of the Oracles under his domain, his first Oracle to save was the Grove of Dodona, which was discovered inside the Forest of Camp Half-Blood. Since the discovery of the Grove, it has become the source of Prophecy for the Camp. Chiron ordered the Hephaestus Cabin to manufacture wind chimes. These wind chimes would be placed on a branch in the Grove of Dodona which would then be used to interpret the voices of the Grove. A genius idea made up by Rhea, the Titaness who planted the Grove, from which the power of the Grove resonated.

On my towards the Forest, the faces of the two children began searing in my mind. I couldn't get their faces out of my mind.

"Hey, stranger" said a familiar voice. I stopped dead in my tracks and turned to see a familiar face, propped up against a large mound of rocks, known as Zeus' Fist. The face I saw had a straggly goatee, green eyes, long curly brown hair with two small horns sticking from the top of his head. That was Woodrow. My protector. The Satyr who brought me here, to Camp Half-Blood.

"Hey Woody, it's been a while" I said, wiping my brow. "How've you been?" I asked, coming to a stop.

"Better than you, it looks" Woodrow said looking at me, a wave of concern seemed to emanate from him.

"Oh I'm just going through something at the moment. Bad dreams. Kidnapped kids. Need to go to the Grove of Dodona. Usual demigod stuff, I guess" I said with a little bit of a laugh. Why did I laugh it off? Cause I would have cried otherwise.

"Usual demigod stuff? Wait, what? Kidnapped kids? Whose kids? Where?" Woodrow said, coming over to me. Woodrow has this very unique smell. He always smelled like tree sap. Weird, I know, but it was distinct. Most Satyrs smell like barnyard animals or wet dogs but Woodrow always had a... pleasant smell.

"Woody, I don't know myself. I'm heading to the Grove to see if I can get a prophecy, telling me what to do. All I have is the information in my dream. It's a bit flaky" I replied, wiping my brow again. I'd have no brows left...

"I'll walk you to the Myrmekes' Lair and you can fill me in, maybe I can help" Woodrow offered. "And I won't take no for an answer" He added with a smile. I began to fill him in.

I felt a bit more at ease telling Woodrow. Ever since we left Seattle, Woodrow was my rock as we made our way across the country. Protected me from harm and listened to me whenever I needed someone to talk to. If anyone was a hero in my eyes, it was Woodrow. I was his third ever Demigod to save. He had saved me from my high school. I was a student in Emerson High School for two years. It seemed to be going great! I was part of the Heritage Studies Club and the Horticulture Club. I was a solid B- Student. My mom was enjoying her life in Seattle. She loved her job with the craft store in downtown Seattle. It made her feel at ease. The last Matilda had heard, she was in a relationship with a man named Derrick. Derrick was an engineer for Delta Airlines, my moms former company, and was really making her happy. Which made me happy. Unfortunately, the day things went south, I didn't even get to say goodbye.

To make a long story short, it was a classic tale of modern day demigod. There I was, on my way between classes. If my memory serves me correctly, I was going from Calculus to AP History. Along the way, I got called out to the lunch yard by Ms. Stern. A short woman with short, pixie cut black hair, was in her apparent late 40's and walked with a very prominent limp. She was the Geography Teacher at Emerson. Out in the lunch yard she started out asking about my grade in the previous pop quiz, which I attributed to stress. As I turned to look at her, I realized her face was suddenly on her chest. Which was incredibly disturbing.

"Kill, Kill, Kill, May I kill you please?" said the creature. I backed towards some of the lunch benches. She had taken out a steel baton and was swinging in my direction. I didn't know what I was seeing.

"Help!" I shouted once. Backing further towards the running track. In that instance, Woodrow appeared at the door to the lunch yard. He took out a wooden flute. What good would a flute do against a headless, head-on-body, baton wielding monster! But I watched and heard as Woodrow played an upbeat tune. I fell backwards and just as Ms. Stern was about to pummel my brains out, she was snapped back by large, thick vines. She struggled on the ground. I looked in disbelief at this creature. Out of nowhere, a knife flew down and hovered in front of my face. Dangerous, I thought.

"That's Celestial Bronze!" Woodrow shouted. "USE IT!" I grabbed the knife, just as Ms. Stern snapped out of the vines and lunged at me. I clenched my grip and closed my eyes. I don't know how it happened but I could feel the breeze push my arm with a swift force. Like, the wind manipulated behind the blade. I opened my eyes and saw nothing but a pile of dust on the ground. Woodrow threw my backpack at me.

"Milda, we gotta go. Now". After that and much deliberation, we hit the road which was just the beginning of our journey.

-

We reached a large mount of dirt, built up like an Ant-Hill.

"Here we are" Woodrow said. "I'm gonna wait out here. I see Laurel over there. Her boyfriend, Glenn, a fellow satyr, is on an assignment in Cedar Rapids. I'll see if she's heard anything"

"Alright. I'll be back soon" I said and gave Woodrow a hug. I took out my knives and plunged into the Myrmekes Lair.

The path to the Grove had already been paved by previous demigods seeking quests. They had literally signposted the way to the Grove. With it being similar to an Ant-Hill, new caves opened sometimes and Myrmekes chanced their leg at fighting demigods. Luckily for me, one Myrmeke poked it's head out. It saw the blades in my hand and my readied stance and backed off.

I exited from the Myrmekes Lair on the other side. I looked up and immediately saw the gates and faint whispers. This was the place. I looked around the exit and saw there was a basket. Inside the basket were a handful of wind chimes. So I chose a bright blue wind chime that was simple in design and walked to the gate where I sheathed my blades.

I pushed open the gate and stepped in and immediately took a knee. The voices emanating from the trees began to flood my head. As if a million voices were shouting for attention. I looked up and saw a large oak tree a couple of yards away. I got to my feet and hung the wind chime on the branch. As soon as the wind chime was placed, a rustling began. A breeze swept through the Grove. A smell of honeysuckle. It became incredibly comforting. As if I had been given a hug. Just as the comfort began to ease. The trees, in one unified voice, said:

"Seek out the trumpeter who knows it all,

To save the child who will answer the call,

With the ultimate price to pay,

the Hawks Eye Midwife will help you on your way.

The Shepherds Son, with plenty of baggage,

also never sign for a random package"

The grove went silent and I stood staring at the wind chimes. ABSOLUTELY CONFUSED. What is that supposed to mean? Of course you never sign for a random package... Unless it's expensive or something.

I was quick on my feet and bolted out the gate and back towards the Myrmekes' Lair to camp. I ran. I sprinted. I didn't care if a Myrmeke jumped me, I was full on information that I needed to tell Chiron. What did it all mean?

I ran out the opposite side of the lair, in the forest. I saw Woodrow a few yards ahead with a girl who was having a heated debate with him.

"... well, you get onto him and find out! He's not answering me Woody!" She said and pushed the satyr who stumbled backwards. I raced over and drew a knife.

"Hey, lady. Back off!" I said and stood between the girl and Woodrow. I looked at the girl. Her hair was a pale brown color, as was her skin. Her dress was a mesh of green, brown and orange. Her eyes were a tinted orange color also. She was radiant. She rolled her eyes and folded her arms.

"Milda, it's okay. This is Laurel. She was just concerned about Glenn. He hasn't contacted her in a week or two" Woodrow said, brushing leaves out of his leg hair.

"Listen to me, Woody. Either you tell Grover, or tell him to come here and speak to me himself" Laurel said. She turned swiftly and just... melted into a tree.

"I'd love to stay and chat, Woody. But I need to go to Chiron right away" I said and started walking.

"Okay let's get going then!" He replied and we raced through the forest to get back to the Big House.

-

We jogged through the pavilion, campers looking at us with a panicked look. But we continued.

"Well?" Chiron said, greeting us.

"I got the Prophecy. I don't get it but I got it" I replied, standing at the porch.

"Come inside and let's discuss it. By the way, our substitute director will be joining us" Chiron said and led us to the Rec Room.

I walked in the Rec Room and was surprised to not see what everyone was describing. I was expecting a plump, red-faced man in a leopard shirt. I was expecting the God of Wine to be sitting at the head of the table. Instead, sitting at the head of the table was a woman. The woman sat in a chair of different flowers. Roses, Tulips, Daffodils, Orchids and many other types of flowers. Her dress was shimmering in different colors and seemed to somehow bloom. As if the colors were producing flowers. She had long blond hair swept to one side. The most striking feature was her eyes. They were electric blue. As if peering into the sky.

That was Persephone. Goddess of Springtime, Flowers and Vegetation. Wife of Hades and Queen of The Underworld.

I looked in awe. She turned her head towards me and smiled.

"Welcome, child. Please sit down and join us" said Persephone.

"OH MY GODS" I heard scream behind me. "IS THAT REALLY-?" I turned. And expecting to see Woodrow standing in the doorway, he was actually passed out on the floor.

"Why can't they bow? Satyrs always seem to faint" Persephone said and smirked. "Now, Matilda. Please join us" she said and gestured to a seat beside her. I walked forward and took a seat. I was too enthralled to see Persephone, I forgot to even notice the other girl sitting across from me, to Persephone's left. The girl had reddish brown hair, striking green eyes and a sword strapped to her side. She wore a breast plate and sat staring at me as I took a seat.

"This is Gwendolyn" Chiron started. "She is an ambassador to Camp Half-Blood on behalf of Camp Jupiter" he stated.

"Hi, I'm Matilda" I said and outstretched my hand. "Daughter of Zephyrus and Legacy of Triptolemus" I said, as if to be impressive. I don't know why but this girl seemed like someone I needed to impress.

"Gwen. Ambassador on behalf of Reyna, Praetor of Camp Jupiter. Daughter of Mercury" said Gwen, shaking my hand.

"Now that the pleasantries are over. Lets get down to business shall we?" Persephone asked.

"Matilda. Can you relay to Lady Persephone your dream and then tell us about the Prophecy?" Chiron said, taking a place at the opposite end of the table.

I began to tell Persephone about my dream. She looked at me. Directly at me. She made me feel all warm. The kind of warmth you get after sniffing a rose. It was soothing. And made me comfortable telling the story. As I got to the part about the evil man torturing the children, she arched her eyebrows in concern. Then as I got onto the part about the Prophecy, she and Gwen sat forward to listen.

"I see" Persephone said and looked to Chiron and then back to me. "My dear, I am so sorry you're going through this" which actually really did seem to calm me. "Chiron. I look to you. Can you make head or tails of this Prophecy?"

"The price to pay could mean anything. The Hawk Eye Midwife? I... can't be sure. As for the Shepherds son? We don't have any sons of Triptolemus or Karmanor here... So I have no idea who's child that could be! Maybe he isn't found yet. But there is one part I think I have figured out" Chiron said, stroking his beard.

"The first line?" Persephone asked, arching her eyebrow. "I think I do too"

"Well, it would seem right. Maybe she knows some information" Chiron said.

"I don't trust her. I never have. I have as much time for her then I do with that INSUFFERABLE Britomartis" Persephone said as she grew angry, cracks began to form on the floor and I began to hear groaning.

"Lady Persephone, the prophecy is clear. She must know something" Chiron said, calming down. Persephone relaxed a bit.

"I'm sorry. But who are we talking about?" Gwen asked, leaning forward again.

Persephone looked pursed her lips and didn't move her eyes from the one single spot on the wall as she spoke "Pheme. The Godly Gossip".

-

When you think of gossip. You think of people sitting, whispering in each others ears. Dirty looks. Destroying careers. People being pregnant. Celebrity news.

You wouldn't imagine gossip to be CONTROLLED by a divine being.

"Oh please, she's anything but divine..." Persephone said.

"Lady Persephone. If you wouldn't mind. We would very much appreciate it if you summoned Lady Pheme here"

"Alright. But be warned. She's a talker" Persephone said and in a sigh of disapproval, she waved her hand.

In a wave that smelled very much like roses stood a woman. Not just a woman. But an angelic woman. She stood with wings the size of white Shetland Ponies. She wore a striped black business suit, held a clipboard in her hand and wore three earpieces. Her hair was pulled back in a flowing black ponytail. Her eyes were spheres of gold. A very striking feature of hers was her mouth. Or should I say MOUTHS. She was speaking so fast down the earpieces, she appeared to have three to five mouths. I could just stare at the winged woman.

"Pheme.......Pheme....PHEME!" Persephone said, raising her voice. Looking at this situation, if the Queen of the Underworld says your name, you listen.

Pheme stopped and her mouths unified to make one mouth. She looked around as if not aware of her surroundings. She saw Persephone and bowed her head.

"My lady! A pleasure as always" Pheme said. "I hope you're well"

"Lady Pheme. We have brought you here today because we have a bit of a predicament. Two children are being held captive by a maniac. We need to know if, on your travels and through your reports, have you come across anything that could lead our young demigod here to help save them?" Chiron asked the Goddess.

"Hmm. Let me see" Pheme said and began flipping through her clipboard. "Demeter... Aceso... Janus... Kratos... Ah yes, I have heard something" Pheme stated and began reading "There was some trouble in Cedar Rapids recently. APPARENTLY, some monsters began attacking the school. So if I were you, I'd get on that. However. In terms of tortured children. A name was thrown around but there is no cited sources or anything... Ehm. The word on the street is that Nephalion, the son of Minos has been seen in different cities across the country Where he is now? I can't be sure" Pheme said and began scribbling on her clipboard.

Chiron looked at Persephone. "Nephalion? I haven't heard that name in the longest time"

"He slaughtered those chickens, right?" Persephone asked.

"A lot more than that. He slaughtered Hera's Sacred Peacocks in in Milos. Hera destroyed him for it" Chiron said pondering the tale.

"But it doesn't make sense? Does he want to get back at Hera? Did he just kidnap some random demigods?" Persephone asked.

"Two things" Woodrow said, beginning to make his way up by holding the door frame. "My friend Glenn is serving as protector in Cedar Rapids. If you say a school was attacked, then it would be at his school. Secondly. If you think of the Prophecy, "the Hawks Eye Midwife". Isn't Iowa considered the Hawkeye State?" Woodrow stated.

"That is very true, Woodrow" Chiron said. "And this midwife, it says she knows the way" Chiron added.

"Pheme, you've done us great service today" Persephone said "You can go now" she said.

"I, myself, have a request of you" Pheme said, addressing the table.

"Yes?" Persephone said, retracting back in her chair. She really did look like a Queen.

"I need your help..." Pheme said and lowered her clipboard. "My child. My half-blood child. He is in Henry Clay High School in Kentucky. Please. He is in danger. I heard some rumors that Theia is sending monsters after him because I spread a nasty rumor about her" Pheme said, beginning to weep. "I only CONVEY rumors" she stated.

"Okay. Okay. We will sort a way to help your son. I promise you. A Demigod's safety is important" Persephone stated.

"Your daughter Laura is in her cabin, in case you want to see her" Chiron told the Goddess. Pheme wiped her eyes and began to smile. She vanished in a blink of an eye.

"So we have two demigods, two children and a satyr to save. An evil Prince to kill and infiltrate two schools?" I asked the table.

"It looks like you're going to be doing a lot of babysittying, girl" Gwen stated. "Best get yourself a good team"

"We must begin to prepare. Chiron. Gather the counselors. We'll need every idea we can get" Persephone said, waved her hand and a goblet appeared in front of her. "Sunflower Ale. We're gonna be here a while".

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