Hunter fired another explosive arrow and the empty arena erupted in sound once more. Out of the corner of his eye, Hunter saw Mrs. O’Leary finally waking up and looking at him. Hunter looked over and sighed as the large hellhound trotted over and nuzzled his shoulder with his nose. Hunter closed his eyes a moment before dismissing his bow. “Hey, girl.” He said quietly as he scratched the dog behind the ear. She let out a little whimper almost as if she could tell that Hunter was bothered by something. Hunter was always reminded of Orion when he looked at Mrs. O’Leary. The way she tilted her head into your hand when you pet her a certain way. Her eyes that almost seemed human at times. “I’m sorry. Did I wake you up?” She blinked and shook her body into a stretch before letting out a yawn. She sniffed at his wrist and he looked down to see the dog tag that he had worn on his wrist ever since he died. Or passed on, at least.
“Yeah. I miss him too.” He said with a small nod. He fidgeted with the tag for a moment before sitting down on the ground. The large hellhound curled up behind him and let Hunter put his head against her back. He closed his eyes and listened to the steady and deep breaths of the now sleeping dog. He felt like he could fall asleep right now. He wanted the day to be done. He wanted to be doing something. As much as it was nice to be around his only friends, he needed to be doing something. He was becoming restless. He almost wanted to stay at camp while the others, including Philippa went. That way he wouldn’t miss Capture the Flag.
“I’m glad I found you here. I didn’t want to go hunting around the woods.” Hunter looked up and felt Mrs. O’Leary stir at the sound of Chiron’s voice.
“Hello, uh…Chiron.” Hunter said with a sigh, rubbing his eyes a little. “What can I do for you?”
Chiron looked at him with a penetrating gaze and smiled gently. “I’ve been watching your interactions with Philippa.” Hunter was a little surprised when he called her Philippa. He usually called everyone by their last name, but he was reminded that Philippa had forgotten her last name. That was one of the ways that Hunter felt connected in some way to Philippa. He felt a closeness to her that he didn’t feel with other people. He needed that small reminder. “I would advise using caution in this situation, Hunter.” He said, sounding genuinely concerned.
“I know. I know.” Hunter said, standing up due to the sudden disappearance of his pillow. “If I go too far, I lose my oath. Them’s the rules.” He said with a shrug, his voice coming off a little bitter. Chiron paused for a moment.
“That, of course, is one reason, but not what I was thinking.” He said, glancing toward the exploded part of the arena. “For the sake of our arena and because I care for you, Hunter, I don’t want to see you get hurt.” He said, gesturing for Hunter to walk with him. The quiet clip-clop of his hooves was a sound that Hunter knew very well and ever since he was a kid, it was a sound that made Hunter feel comfortable. “There was a Huntress that I had the privilege of meeting several…several years ago.” He began. “Her name was Vanessa. She was a daughter of Hephaestus, I believe. She never really fit in here at camp. Not to say that she didn’t have anything redeeming about her. She was very intelligent. One of our more capable forgers.” He said with a nod.
“Sir? Where are you going with this?” Hunter said with a quiet chuckle. Hunter had known Chiron long enough to recognize an anecdote. And if there was an anecdote, odds were that Chiron was going to ramble a bit.
“Yes, my apologies.” Chiron said as they entered the Big house. “Vanessa joined the Hunters and she loved it. She felt like she fit in again. After a while though, she became bored. There was one visit to camp when she befriended a boy named Jack. Son of Hermes, if memory serves.” He sat down in his wheelchair and folded his hands across his lap. “She mistook this friend relationship for infatuation. She was willing to give everything up to be with him.” He said, giving Hunter a look that made Hunter feel awful. “In fact, she did. She renounced the oath. She came back to camp. She left what she had. I watched as she ran past the pine tree and straight to the Hermes cabin. Jack came out and she threw herself into his arms. He hugged her back, but it wasn’t until she kissed him that things went wrong. He rejected her. She was heartbroken.” He said quietly. He hung his head slightly and sighed.
“You think that I’m going to give everything up, throw myself at Philippa, and she’s going to reject me?” Hunter asked cautiously. “Or am I Jack? She mistook our relationship and I’m going to reject her?” He asked with a shrug. “Sir, that’s not-“
“From our friends and allies, enemies and rivals, past, present, future, dead, or alive, do we learn our greatest lessons and our biggest blunders.” Chiron said with a sigh. Hunter looked up at him.
“Who is that? Shakespeare? Jonson? Whitman?” He asked with a raised eyebrow. Chiron chuckled quietly.
“That one was a Chiron.” He said with a smile through his thick beard. “Remember Vanessa and remember Jack. Both of them teach valid lessons to be learned.” He said, patting Hunter on the shoulder. Hunter lightly put his hand on the rough and aged hand of the only father he ever knew and nodded softly.
“Thank you, sir.” He said finally before walking out of the Big house