The Hunted (Completed Thread)

"Come on, we just have a little bit farther." One boy said, stepping over some tree roots. They weren't following a nature trail, so much as they were following tracks. Though Dimitri had now clue how the son of Apollo was possibly tracking anything. He didn't see any footprints. The son of Apollo had a knife in his hand, a 'hunting knife' as one might put it. It was made of celestial bronze, it seemed like the kind of thing that would reflect light more than wanted. Especially if one was attempting to hunt.

"How do you know?" Asked a child of Athena, not far behind. He held a short-bow in his hand, an arrow already notched for just in case. They were a group of four, and even that was stretching it. Enough demigods in one place and the scent would lure monsters for miles. But they were in the wilderness, and Dimitri was hopeful that this forest in particular didn't hold too many nests of monsters.

"The leafs, they're disturbed. Something came through here, and something a hell of a lot bigger than a person. Could have been a bear, but remember, that's not what we're hunting." The son of Apollo replied, he hadn't lost focus for even a moment. Dimitri wasn't exactly sure how he'd been picked to come on this hunt. The son of Athena knew combat, strategy, and survival. The son of Apollo had been hunting for a good portion of his life, his sister was even a hunter of Artemis. And the daughter of Demeter at least held powers over nature, which could be a massive advantage during this hunt.

"Heads up, we're close to a drop." The daughter of Demeter said. "I can feel in the tree roots, one's rooted directly in the drop. It feels like it's probably thirty or forty feet. No clue if it's just one drop or more." She continued on. She was simply armed with one knife, that wasn't even in her hand. In the forest, she was in her element.

"The monster went this way. I know it. We have to move down." The son of Apollo insisted, and with a good amount of aggravation in his voice. He'd taken a few steps closer to the elevated hilltop, to discover the daughter of Demeter was right; it wasn't a hill, but it was a cliff. "Well, what now? We need to find this thing first." He insisted, bluntly. He'd explained the story to them all before, that his sister was with a group of hunters of Artemis and it was their task to hunt this same monster. Whether it was sibling rivalry or something deeper, the son of Apollo wanted this badly.

"Let's keep movin'." Dimitri insisted. "We can't take this way down, but there's gotta be a way down if we take the left or right. We can pick up the trail once we reach the bottom." Dimitri said, his words seemed to only slightly encourage the son of Apollo. However, nobody had time to open their mouths to reply.

Everyone's eyes darted behind them, and they all caught the glimpses of the massive bodies moving towards them. Dimitri couldn't even begin to identify what monsters they were, but they certainly weren't mortal animals. One went for the daughter of Demeter, but a large root raised from the ground and the monster smashed into it. One tackled the son of Apollo to the ground, and that was the last sight Dimitri saw before he felt the sudden impact, sending him sprawling passed the cliff.

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Dimitri awoke on what he could only assume was the bottom of the cliff. He awoke in water, which he assumed he could thank for his lack of injuries. He assessed himself as best he could, willing the water off of him soon after he stepped out of the water. He was dry now, thanks to his powers. He still had what little gear he had on him before. He looked up, and the cliff looked higher than the daughter of Demeter had predicted. There were no signs of his group around, and looking around, nothing looked familiar.

It started to sink in to him, this wasn't a simple walk in the woods. He was in the middle of nowhere and potentially was alone. He took a deep breath, deciding he had to do something. He looked at his surroundings, it looked like it would be night time soon. Traveling alone in the dark would be even less safe, but it wasn't like he'd have a choice if he was alone by then.

Katarina Ziechcinska Wioleta Los daughter of Himeros, she slipped quietly through the shadows moving softly like a lioness on the prowl. She had been separated from the other Hunters, Katy didn't even know if they still lived or had fallen like so many demigods before to these monsters.
She sent off Dimitri her Sparrow Hawk a while back as she couldn't afford to send word via Iris message to her fellow Hunters, so hopefully Katy's beloved Hawk would make it to their camp as soon as possible. Till then she merely had to survive, fight and evade the monsters as required, plus attempt to regroup with her other Hunters if they still lived of course. She would be most upset if her beloved Hunters lay dead, fallen in the Hunt.

Katy halted behind the scant cover provided by the trunk of a fallen oak tree as she scanned the forest environment for any sight or sound of the monsters. At short range, Katy was glad for the familiar form of her Zhuge crossbow. The repeating crossbow was less accurate than a regular crossbow or a bow, but possessed a higher rate of fire. At short range, rate of fire could make all the difference. Silently the Hunter of Artemis moved forward once again, moving as softly as a shadow among the branches. Katy paused hearing the sounds of someone moving. The Hunter counted silently to three before rolling around from behind a tree, halting in a kneeling position her crossbow pointed at the source. It turned out to be a demigod, male.
Great, a boy. Katarina had herself plenty of trouble with boys, not just before she joined the hunter but whilst she was one. Katy looked stunning in the camouflage hunter gear, with her long ginger hair streaked with silver and bright green eyes. "What are you doing here?" She asked him, wondering why there was a lone male demigod here of all places.

Dimitri knew it was time to think fast. His dagger was still strapped to the inside of his belt, which could potentially be his most useful tool. He picked up his work gloves from off the ground, they must have fallen out from the fall. They probably wouldn't come in handy, but he'd stuffed them in his back pocket before leaving that morning. He looked through a few other pouches his group had handed him. Flint and steel, a mortal carving knife, a small canteen, and some twine. He opened up another pouch and it was empty, he sighed. He was certain that was the pouch with the spare few drachmas. It looked like the only way to contact them would be to yell, but that was a bad idea. Even if they did hear it, monsters would first. He was on his own here.

He filled the canteen with water, but he already had a strange feeling it wasn't going to be for drinking. He felt guilty, his group was going to need him to be a healer if one of their own got hurt. But at least he had the ability to survive an attack. It was only moments after he started his walk that he heard a noise, but before he could even react he had a crossbow pointed at him. Dimitri eyed the girl, had it not been terrifying he would have considered her to be quite beautiful. His hands were up in the air to show his surrendering nature. He was certain that he'd run into the hunters, however, and so he was relieved.

"I was accompanyin' a group of demigods, we were huntin' a monster that had been sighted around here." Dimitri explained, his southern accent cutting into his voice like always. "We were with a son of Apollo, his sister is a hunter. Her name is Abigail, is she with you?" Dimitri asked, his hands didn't leave the air. He didn't like the look of that crossbow. And looking at her camo, it made him think he should have dressed better for the job. Wearing a blue flannel shirt and blue jeans didn't exactly hide him.

He raised his hands, so Katy lowered her weapon somewhat, standing up. The crossbow however was still pointed at him, Katarina found herself being overly cautious around. She listened to his explanation as to why he was here. Yet Katy's attention was brought home when he mentioned Abigail, she stiffened somewhat. "Abigail?" The tone of her voice said it all, Katy didn't know for certain if she had been slain, but the hit she bore witness too... Katy doubted it highly.
She shook her head. "Lower your hands, we need to move boy." She decided to team up with him, it wasn't preferred yet circumstances really dictated such an action. It made sense to work together rather than survive alone in the face of the monsters.

"Do you have a name boy?" She pronounced the word boy as if it were an insult. Katy's green eyes studied him, as if she just encountered an interesting creature. Katy really wished that she was with the company of her fellow hunters, however a boy demigod beat being completely alone.
It never hurt to have a second pair of eyes out watching her back. Katy seemed wary not just of Dimitri but also because of the monsters which lurked possibly nearby. The two demigods together might draw the monsters to them as their scent would be that much more stronger, Katy hoped that disadvantage would be offset by their numbers. Of course the daughter of Himeros wasn't the greatest tactician, she just hoped that together as a team they might be able to survive better. Even if she had to ally temporarily with a boy.

She jumped at the sudden sound of movement from the forest, bringing her crossbow around, the weapon tracking back and forth like a hound searching for prey as Katy looked for a target. "We need to move, now." Her thick Polish accent filled with with a nervous fear.

Dimitri hadn't ever met Abigail, but he'd heard mixed things about her from the son of Apollo. He talked much more often than one would expect from a hunter. Still, he'd hoped she didn't die. And this girl's expression when she spoke her name didn't make Dimitri feel good about that. Both of the siblings could be dead for all he knew. He hadn't considered it until now, but he did see the son of Apollo tackled. Could they be dead, all of them? The thought sent a literal shiver through Dimitri's spine.

"Dimitri." He replied to her, recomposing himself. "Dimitri Midnight." He said, and for the first time he wished his name didn't sound so cliche compared to other names. The forest had been clear the whole day, save some serpent lady they'd made short work of when they first entered. Dimitri assumed they'd been hunting the whole day, but now he starting to wonder if this had just been a big trap. Separate the groups into smaller groups or individuals, and then take them down when they aren't strong. Not that Dimitri would have survived without the water when he fell.

Dimitri nodded, he didn't want to remain where he was. "What's the plan? I don't think it's safe to travel at night with all the monsters around. And we only have a little while of daylight left." Dimitri asked, quickly following behind the girl. She was a hunter, and she knew what she was doing.

Unless she was a monster. But Dimitri was sure she wasn't. It would have killed him by now.

"Same name as my Sparrow Hawk bo.. Dimitri." She corrected herself, as she moved quickly through the forest at a decent pace but on where she hoped that the boy might be able to keep up with her. Katy didn't really have much of a plan other than survive.
"I'm Katy." She introduced herself glancing at him and gifting him a wink. The Hunter looked away again swiftly, being a daughter of Himeros seemed to make her much more flirty, even with the other Hunters. It greatly annoyed Katy because Hunters weren't meant to be like that, or at least in her own mind they weren't meant to be flirting with anyone. She struggled against her nature sometimes, but it was something which the Hunter could not really fight against only deal with. Katy mentally kicked herself for giving him a flirtatious wink.

"We need to find somewhere to set up camp." Katarina eventually suggested to Dimitri however her suggestion was more like an instruction. Despite being overly flirty Katy still wasn't very good at talking to boys, just like every Hunter really. She hadn't really been around them save for missions which unfortunately resulted in male involvement. Though mostly that was because of Katy drawing attention by just being there. She always appeared stunning, people wanting to talk to her, be with her. In a way her special power of the paralysing kiss proved itself to be very valuable, many an irritating male had been dealt with by giving them one of her kisses.
Katy still got a kick out of it as they found themselves unable to move, their eyes wide with mute terror. Okay so it wasn't the best action, however it worked as a method of getting into places or dealing with an annoying male or female.

Katy entered a clearing, the light was fading so it would really have to do as their camp for the night. The pair of them could move on in the morning to either find their friends or eliminate the monsters. "Okay... Here will do... I guess." She muttered quietly, through out a small packet which swiftly unfolded itself into a tent.
She dived in through the tent flap, for a moment forgetting that the boy had not tent or shelter of his own. The Hunter stuck her head back out of the tent. "Come on in handsome." Katy looked pained for a moment before she vanished inside, hating her over flirty nature. If she ran into her fellow Hunters tonight this would be awkward to explain. Katy hoped that she would sleep okay with a boy sharing her tent. He had to share it with her though, if he didn't he might sleep poorly so would be no used to her tomorrow, he might get ill from the cold so would be no use or worse alone outside he might prove himself easy prey to the monsters.
She had no option then.

Dimitri hadn't ever seen a sparrow hawk, this was his first time hearing about one in depth. Had the situation not been so dire he would have asked many questions on the subject. But for the time being he kept himself in check, and kept pace behind her. "'Sgood to meet you, Katy." Dimitri replied as he followed her. He noticed her wink, but it didn't phase him. If anything, it had him wondering exactly what it was supposed to mean. Dimitri hadn't exactly ever flirted with anyone, it wasn't a natural part of his life. The few girls that had been around his age in his old home he rarely spoke to, and even when he did, he felt no romantic connection. And so Dimitri never learned that aspect of life.

Dimitri nodded in agreement about starting up a camp. He didn't have trouble matching her pace, but he couldn't help but compare it to the pace his own group had been moving earlier. Katy was moving much faster than he had been earlier in the day, it almost made him feel as though they might have avoided the monster attack had they been moving faster. Dimitri watched as a whole tent came from something that fit in her hand, perks of being a demigod, he supposed. Dimitri nervously looked around, it would have been nice to find a cave or a rockslide wall. Monsters could come from all four directions. But Dimitri supposed the monsters must sleep too, and hopefully, they wouldn't be spotted. Although monsters could only go one direction into the cave, it also meant there would have been no escape besides battle. At least in this area fighting wasn't the only option if they got ambushed.

"Come on in handsome."

One of Dimitri's eyebrows raised as he heard this, but it was too dark for the hunter to notice anyway. Dimitri wasn't used to receiving affection or attention this way, it made him uneasy in a way. He wasn't able to tell if she was serious or not too, but still, she was helping him survive. Dimitri reluctantly entered the tent, he usually didn't have social barriers, but he oddly enough felt a sense of nervousness when he entered the tent. He saw pretty girls often and thought nothing of it, so how was it that this one was able to keep him so on edge?

"Thank you." Dimitri whispered, once he was in the tent. "I'm not really that experienced with this whole hunt thing." He admitted, as he attempted to ease his nerves.

With Dimitri in the tent, it was quite cramped due to it being designed to hold accommodate a single Hunter. Yet she could not very well leave her only current ally and comrade in arms to spend the night alone in the cold embrace of night. Katarina struggled to contain her nervousness at being in such close confines with someone who happened to be a boy. If other Hunters came along now they may well assume things that would be incorrect.
Even so, she didn't want anything to risk her place as a Hunter. Katy did not want to go back to her life at the Camp before she became a Hunter of Artemis. She lay down her bedroll before realising a new problem. There was only one bedroll which meant either Dimitri or herself would be sleeping on the floor. Or there was an alternative they could share, the environment was slightly cold, but it might not be cold enough for sleeping together for warmth.

"Your welcome." She whispered back trying to avoid looking at his eyes. "Er... It is quite cold at night and we have only one bedroll." Katy didn't quite propose that they share it, she believed it may feel quite awkward cuddled up to a guy, even if they were only sleeping and to help conserve heat. She set her crossbow down nearby, unhooking her silver daggers from her belt and taking off her quiver of bolts. "It is okay your not a Hunter so you wouldn't be." Katy thought he meant the Hunt which she and all of the other Hunters of Artemis were part of.

Dimitri was becoming increasingly aware of how close he was to this girl, and for the first time ever, he was glad it was dark. Because he could feel the red on his cheeks and he had no clue what that met. He was fairly sure it was embarrassment, but what if it was something else? He could be sick, or maybe the fall actually did effect him. Was he possibly bleeding? He wasn't sure, but the sensation didn't feel painful at all. His face simply felt warm, and he considered saying something because Katy might know what it was. But in the end, he couldn't figure out how to word it properly. And for the first time ever, he avoided saying what he felt he should.

"You take the bedroll, Katy." Dimitri insisted with no hesitation. "You lettin' me sleep in the tent is more than kind enough. Not to mention that I might not be alive if you hadn't found me. Sleepin' on the floor of this tent is worlds better than sleepin' on the ground out there." Dimitri whispered, as he had been. The last thing they needed was to be attacked. Dimitri had to admit, it was slightly chilly, but he was okay with it. He grew up with the intense southern heat and it had grown on him. Snow still made him feel odd, and so he wasn't always the most comfortable in the cold. Still, the temperature surely wasn't enough to cause hypothermia and so Dimitri was willing to rough it out for the night. Manners and courtesy came first. His mother taught him that well, to the point where he would have given the bedroll to Katy even if it was his instead of hers.

"Is Katy your whole name?" Dimitri suddenly asked in a whisper, as he adjusted his body so he was laying on his back. It sounded like a shortened name, and Dimitri always seemed to call people by their whole name. He didn't know for sure, of course. He raised his hands to his cheeks to rub them. The sensation was ebbing away, thank God.

"Okay." The Hunter replied, secretly pleased that he didn't wish to share the bedroll with her. Yet, part of her could not help but feel slightly disappointed that he didn't. It might have been a nice novelty to cuddle up next to someone who was male, or it might have been intensely weird and she would have spent the night trying to avoid physical contact with him, just in case her fellow Hunters turned up. "I'm sure that you may have been still alive if I hadn't turned up." She soothed thought part of Katy silently considered if there was any truth to his words.

At his question, Katarina did not answer her companion immediately as she settled herself down on her bedroll. "No, but most call me Katy instead of Katarina." She preferred her nickname to her full name, she disliked being addressed by her full first name, it reminded the Daughter of Himeros too much of her life before she became a Hunter or knew that she was in fact a Demigod. "I'm a Daughter of Himeros." Katy also decided to add as he probably would not have known who her godly parent was or rather happened to be.

OOC: sorry it is short but I didn't have enough time to write a long post before I had to go to work. Sorry.

Dimitri imagined what his shelter would have looked like. Stick and twigs for a bed and some shotty fire in a cramped cave somewhere. Or would the smoke elevate? Or maybe the fire would ignite the twig-bed? Maybe the fire would ruin the oxygen intake and suffocate him until he left. Or maybe the fire would contain perfectly and he'd last the night easily. But Dimitri doubted that, his luck outside of safety never really ran long. His expression turned somewhat grim at that thought, but he found a glimpse of happiness in himself. The hunter did find him, after all. And that was a good thing.

"Katarina. That's a nice name." Dimitri said in his same whisper, they'd only spoken in hushed tones so far. The night was quiet outside, and it made Dimitri uneasy. It was like living in a nightmare, and it frightened him how he was able to keep thinking instead of being afraid. Dimitri always called people their full names over nicknames, it was a habit he was hardly aware of. "Himeros is a god of love, I think, right?" Dimitri asked, trying to remember his lessons from camp. "Cymopoleia is my mother." He replied, almost with a hint of sadness. "How did you become a hunter, Katarina?"

She shrugged her cheeks flushing with colour, it made her green sparkle like emeralds. "It is alright but I prefer Katy." Katarina hoped that he would address her by her preferred nickname instead of her full first name. She shook her head at his question. "No... He is the god of sexual desire." She whispered the last part as if it were quite difficult for her to admit.
"I joined." She began to explain. "Camp life was not easy for me so sixty nine years ago I became a Hunter and never looked back."
To most people attracted to her, Katy became the ultimate forbidden prize. After all she was now ageless and incredibly attractive. Everything she did seemed to make people want her, something which the Hunter hated both before and after she became a Hunter of Artemis. "It is tough being a daughter of Himeros." She confessed to her male companion, perhaps he might understand. Some of her fellow Hunters did yet it was difficult for Katy to fight her true nature. She loved being a Hunter but even so it often became a challenge for her to remain in their ranks.

Dimitri had an odd sense of empathy. Sometimes he knew and sometimes he didn't know when something was bothering someone. In this case though, her tone of voice was enough for him, her godly lineage clearly bothered her. He wondered if it was simply the stigma of having the title or if it was something she was legitimately shamed for. Of course, Dimitri avoided asking about it. He didn't want her to feel any worse than she did having to talk about it.

"So, you're in your eighties then?" Dimitri asked, it was an amazing thing to him. She grew up in a completely different era of time. She'd watched massive wars take place and countries shift powers. He wondered what Camp Half-Blood was like in the early 1900's. "You've taken good care of yourself." Dimitri joked, which was sometimes quite rare. He couldn't get her last statement out of his head, however. It was almost as though she was asking for help in a strange foreign way. And he couldn't bring himself to ignore someone who wanted his help.

He wasn't sure exactly how to soothe her difficulty, after all, she'd had so many more experiences and so much more knowledge than he did. But as always, he stuck to his morals and the path he'd always believed in; just do the right thing. "I'm sorry to hear that." Dimitri said softly, empathy gently ran through him. "If it makes you feel any better, the longer the struggle and difficulty, the better it all feels at the end. I used to think I'd be dyin' before I found any sort of happiness at camp. Keep tryin', and you'll find your happy endin'."

"I guess so but I don't age as a Hunter so I've kinda stopped bothering celebrating my birthdays." Katy no longer saw the point as she would stay the same age forever, until well she died. The most likely cause of death being the various monsters which she hunted. "Of course I have bo.." She stopped herself, having at first taken offence to his comment before realising he meant it as a joke. "Perks of being a Hunter of Artemis my charming companion." Her voice sounding lighter as she joked and flirted with him. Yet such an action made the poor hunter kick herself mentally, she couldn't afford to flirt with him.
"I don't know Dimitri." She said with a quiet sigh. "Come on, we must get some sleep before dawn rises." Katarina intended fully to have an early start so that they could track the monsters, regroup with any of the surviving demigods and Hunters before slaying the monsters and leaving.
That was her plan anyway. It wasn't a great one, perhaps Aria or a daughter of Athena might have been able to come up with a better one, since she currently possessed no alternatives that to Katy seemed to be the best option. Retreat wasn't an option as she would not and could not leave her fellow Hunters alone in the field, especially when they might still live. Katy survived after all, maybe with the luck of the gods they too have managed to evade the monsters. She shuffled over on her bed roll trying to get comfortable. For Katy, it felt incredibly awkward to be in such close confines with him, a boy and she a Hunter sleeping together in the same tent, just separately.

Dimitri nodded, although it wasn't likely she could see. "Sweet dreams." He remarked, simply but with meaning. He was certain that she must be used to these odds and situations. Camping out with the potential risk of a monster ambush. Dimitri ended up adjusting on his back, and staring at the barely-visible top of the tent. Their bodies weren't touching, but they were close. True to his beliefs, Dimitri didn't want contact with her body for any reasons involving pettiness or lust. But he couldn't help but think it would feel assuring to have another human being close to him. He'd never felt a sensation like it besides hugs. Not that Dimitri would ever ask this of Katarina, he was already far too grateful for her help so far.

His eyes became fixed on the roof of the tent. Dimitri's thoughts went rampant, as he accepted he wasn't going to get any sleep for a little while. His ears became his primary holders of sense, as he payed attentions to sounds more. His own and Katarina's breathing were very quiet, but they were about the only thing he could hear. Occasionally he would hear leafs rustle in the distance, and his heart would drop further than it already had. Even hearing the crickets made him nervous. There were beasts out there that would love to taste demigod, if not, the glory of killing them instead.

Dimitri's mind wandered as he stayed in position. His expression slowly became more and more grim as he thought about what it was to be a demigod. This was the first time he'd spent a full night out of safety. Behind the safety of the walls of Camp Half-Blood, the thought had never dawned on him; was this all life could ever be for him? His whole childhood had raised him up to be ready to have a family of his own and work in life. To enjoy life to the absolute fullest. His expression changed to a confused look, though it didn't matter, he was certain Katarina was asleep. The thoughts haunted him, that he didn't have the world to choose from, but rather two choices: The hunter or the hunted.

(OOC: Feel free to time skip to morning or have a monster attack at night or whatever feels right. Dimitri is a wicked big early bird, so even without sleep, he'd be up with the sun. Side not, I'm SO proud of myself for using the title in a post so well!)

OOC: I am going to time skip till morning because I have an amusing idea for it :P and awesome and yes the title is brilliant!)

BIC:
"Likewise." Katarina replied before trying to get some sleep. Initially the Hunter feared that she might not be able to rest but as soon as she closed her eyes and shuffled a bit to get more comfortable, Katy fell fast asleep. Her dreams were the usual demigod mix of dark and disturbing but they weren't weird enough to wake her up. Perhaps her mind knew that her body needed rest and a chance to briefly recover so refused to let her dreams rouse her from her slumber.
Both demigods had been very fortunate that nothing decided to either kill or eat them, though the monsters would no doubt be looking for them both.

As the sun slowly rose, its warmth and light banishing back the darkness for another day Katy was still asleep. At some point during the night the Hunter must have rolled over and put her arm around Dimitri so that the pair were now cuddled up together. As she stirred Katy cuddled up to him, yet in her mind something seemed wrong she opened her green eyes to see herself cuddled up to a boy.
Immediately her cheeks turned redder than her hair with embarrassment, but weirdly enough she didn't move away. Katy couldn't risk it just yet because he might wake up. She would give it a few minutes, make sure he was asleep then move away. She wondered how she ended up cuddled up to him.

The minutes slowly went by, with only sounds to greet Dimitri. His eyes would flicker from place to place as his thoughts went rampant with corruption to what they once were. He couldn't tell if he was angry or afraid at the world. Mortals lived in relative peace and happiness, at least, they had the ability to. Let alone the gods, who lived in utter paradises of their own and could indulge in whatever they pleased. Somehow demigods got stuck in a place that certainly wasn't in the middle of those two lifestyles. Demigods lived in the real world, and the real world wasn't pretty. Dimitri couldn't help but feel helpless at that moment, imagining the rest of his life laying on forest floors alone. Thr thought was nearly enough to alter who he was.

It was at that moment he felt a sudden pressure on him, his breathing became rapid as his body jerked. But before he could react to reach for a weapon or dodge, he realized it was just Katarina's arm. His breathing became soft and stable once more, shortly after. His mind was still dying down from the spike of dark thoughts as he layed still. Shortly after, she moved even closer into him. And Dimitri suddenly felt a strange sense of assurance. He wasn't alone.

He drifted off nearly instantly after the relief. In his tired and overthought state, he hadn't really put any effort into thinking about what was actually going on. The relief was something he needed, to know another body was there that wanted him to live. As the sun took its first look at the landscape, Dimitri's eyes began to slowly open as they almost always did with the sun. His thoughts had returned to normal, not corrupted by fear for the moment. It was then that he suddenly registered it into his mind that Katarina was cuddled up to him.

Dimitri wasn't really sure how to react. He hadn't done anything wrong with Katarina, had he? He wasn't entirely sure, no one had ever explained that one to him. Kissing a stranger was wrong, and anything beyond that was oh-so-wrong. Was this? Dimitri wasn't the sharpest when it came to these sorts of bonds, he didn't really know. "Good mornin'." He said simply, unsure of what he could say in this situation.

As soon as Dimitri said good morning, Katy jumped moving her arm away like she had just been struck by a snake her face turning scarlet. She sat up swiftly, pushing stray locks of ginger hair from her face. By Artemis how had that happened? She must have rolled over in the night and cuddled up with him. The Hunter could not recall cuddling up to him before she fell asleep, so the only logical explanation she rolled over in the night and ended up cuddled up to him. Unless her godly parent had anything to do with it. Thank the gods none of the other Hunters were around currently to find them like that.
Such a thing might have cost Katy her role as a Hunter, particularly if other people believed things to have occurred which didn't.

"Come on we need to move." She said stiffly grabbing her weapons and hastily undoing the tent flap to emerge into the dawn forest. Katy could not hide among her fellow Hunters here to escape from him. What was it about this boy? There was something about him that left Katarina feeling flustered around him. Maybe it was because he seemed to have no interest in the Hunter, which wasn't something Katy happened to be used to. Out of the Hunters, it was usually the daughter of Himeros that drew the most attention. She stood stiffly before stretching each of her limbs in turn and then stretching her back luxuriously.
Okay apart from her trail of though the Hunter was ready for whatever the day might throw at them. Katy decided rather reluctantly to part with her repeater crossbow, instead Dimitri could use that leaving the Hunter with a pair of silvery daggers. She hoped that would be the right call so that he would be able to defend them both from attack. Assuming he was of course any good with such a weapon, well today was for quick learning.

Dimitri took her quick moving away from him as a sign that the cuddling was likely a negative thing for the two of them to have shared. It confused him in a sense, though it was nothing like he'd felt last night in the tent. It was a confused that he didn't quite understand. Her presence against him made him feel accompanied and not alone, which was typically a hard thing to accept for him, as a demigod. He hadn't meant for it to offend her, it made him feel almost a little guilty in a way. She brought some foreign sense of belonging to him in this hellish forest, he was hoping he at least didn't leave a bad impression. Still, that was nothing to be able to dwell on. She was right, staying anywhere too long was a bad plan.

"I'm, uh...." Dimitri rarely paused or stuttered in his speaking, but in this case he was looking for the words. "I'm so sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable or did somethin' to offend you." Dimitri said, his voice rang of sincerity. Dimitri followed behind her as they walked. He wanted to think about what the other demigods had told him in hunting advice. But this deep in, there wasn't even a trail to follow, at least not one Dimitri could figure out. He kept his pace to her, with this foreign weapon in his arms. He couldn't tell if she wanted to be away from the campsite or him. He hoped it was the former.

"Katarina." He silently called out for her. "I'm really not sure how to use this weapon at all." Dimitri admitted, having finally had a chance to let her know. It had only been a few moments, but they'd more than cleared their former campsite. "More importantly," He began, holding the crossbow in one hand and pulling out his canteen of water. "It's important that you drink. I don't think we're close to dehydration at all, but it's good for keepin' up. And it's much better safe than sorry."

Katy halted suddenly. "Its not that I'm a Hunter... Boys are forbidden, we're not meant to kiss, cuddle or love you." Which was why some Hunters were so hostile to any boy that they encountered. What had happened both scared and startled the Hunter somewhat, after all waking up cuddled up to a boy wasn't exactly a good idea.
She sighed suspecting that he had no idea how to use the crossbow but slightly glad that he changed the topic for her. "What about daggers as you need to be armed with something?" She held a dagger for him to wield, holding it out for him handle first.

Since he couldn't use her repeater crossbow, Katy decided that she might as well take it back and wield it herself. Sure it lacked the punch of a regular crossbow as well as the accuracy of a bow but for rate of fire, there were few weapons better. The Hunter sheathed her other dagger so that she possessed a hand free to take his canteen. "Okay Dimitri." Katy wanted to call him boy, yet found herself unable to be deliberately mean to him. Gods why could this boy not be mean, cruel or otherwise easily to hate?
Katy was quite shaken up by the fact that they'd woken up cuddled together, Artemis knows what might have happened if Dimitri decided to kiss her. Would she have been able to push him away? Might she have used her paralysing kiss power? Or worse, perhaps she would have kissed him back? That last thought sat heavily like a stone in her stomach, Katy couldn't think of anything else other than being a Hunter going back to being a regular demigod would be agonising for her.

Dimitri decided to stay silent regarding their little incident. Him staying silent on subjects was becoming too popular for his own liking, but in this case, he was more than okay with it. She'd accidentally crossed a near-forbidden line and he hadn't even attempted to stop her from doing so. At the end of it, nothing had happened, and Dimitri was grateful she was understanding of that. She didn't want to talk about it, and that was perfectly okay with Dimitri. He knew last night was just some miracle, and that if he wasn't back at camp by tonight, he'd have to face his demons for real. He didn't look forward to that potential possibility.

Dimitri flashed his own dagger, made of celestial bronze. The silver one looked much more refined, and even more shiny in a sense. "'Sokay. I have my own." Dimitri insisted. It was the only weapon he'd brought with him, as he was around more for healing purposes for his old group. He took his canteen back when Katarina handed it back to him. He took a drink also, and was happy to see there was more than a considerable amount left. "I can control the water. At the very least, the whiplash will stun a monster, even a big one. I can also heal wounds, but, I'm hopin' it doesn't come to that." Dimitri said. The thought of Katarina dying made him shudder. He'd be alone in the forest. And he also couldn't just leave her out there to rot, he'd have to bring her poor body back to the hunters. If he survived himself, that was.

He shook his head from those thoughts. They were dangerous and Dimitri couldn't risk losing himself again. "The hunters, they're alive. And so are my friends." Dimitri said aloud, at first it was to convince himself. But as he said it, he found the heart to believe it. He stuck close behind Katarina. He wasn't sure if chit chat would be cut soon, for the sake of silence. He was understanding of that fact, if not disappointed that he wouldn't be able to ask questions.

Katy sheathed her own dagger nodding. "Okay." She twisted the lid off of his canteen and drank a few gulps of water before handing it back to hit taking up her repeater crossbow. Katarina enjoyed the familiar weight of it in her hands, such a weapon was perfect in her eyes, the repeater crossbow contained everything that she desired in a weapon.
"Hmm." The Hunter said as he informed her of his ability, she decided to keep her own a secret. It wasn't something she happened to be proud to admit. "That will be quite useful, particularly if we find ourselves out numbered." They just probably needed to be near water in order for him to use it. Katy's power well would not be that useful especially as she didn't plan on kissing any monster any time soon.

"I hope that you are right." Katy didn't sound too certain that their friends would still be alive. She of course didn't write off the chance that they might still be alive, she just didn't want to get her personal hopes up. Katarina had unfortunately lost far too many friends over the last few weeks. Well they had been more like sisters even if they always quarrelled. Still, their loss shook her deeply.
She was not ready to deal with the losses of further friends. Katy decided to move out shortly afterwards falling silent as she moved elegantly through the undergrowth searching for any fresh monster tracks.

Dimitri fell silent for the time being, there were things to talk about, but oddly enough there was more things to be silent about. The moment they'd shared and their friends, along with the situation they were in. Suffice to say, talking about these topics wouldn't bring up good thoughts. Dimitri had found his faith again though, and he held on to it tightly. Sure, he wasn't smiling brightly, but his hopelessness had been replaced with a new sense of determination. Katarina was with him, and that was enough to bring him to be the the positive thinker that he always was. They were going to make it, he just knew it.

Still, he had curiosity about the hunter. Apart from his curiosity of the Hunters of Artemis as a whole, he was also curious about Katarina. He wondered what had her make the choice to become a hunter in the first place. Was it the agelessness? Dimitri couldn't imagine what it would be like to stop aging. He wanted to live his life and then move on, and hopefully, if he found the right person, he'd have an eternity with them in Elysium. That is, if heaven wasn't a reality. Living forever though, watching everyone you care about pass on, what was so attractive about it? Perhaps it just wasn't for him, which he supposed was a good thing, he couldn't physically be a hunter even if he wanted to be.

They traveled in silence for some time, which might have been for the best. The last thing they wanted was for a monster to sneak up on them and attack. Dimitri suddenly felt something at his foot, as he stepped on some leafs. "Hold on a second." Dimitri called out to Katarina in a whisper. He reached down, picking it up. He picked up a ball-chain necklace that held two gold rings on it, and he looked towards Katarina. "This belongs to the son of Apollo I with yesterday. They must've came this way." Dimitri said, with a sense of enthusiasm in his voice.

Katarina hadn't been enjoying the silence, the forest itself seemed to be silent, no birds sung in the trees or insects buzzed. It was almost as if the entire forest was holding its breath. Somehow this failed to ease Katy's nerves, for all she knew the pair of demigods could right now be about to enter an ambush. Dimitri's whisper shattered the silence like a brick through a window pane.
"Then they must be close." She scanned the undergrowth around them, half expecting monsters to burst out at them. The monsters could be lurking anywhere, they might have set up all manner of traps to catch the two demigods. Katy really didn't want to end up visiting some monsters for dinner. Katy wondered if many or if any of their friends still lived. Part of her wished for them to be dead just in case the monsters had been inflicting suffering upon them. She would not want her friends to be in pain, yet at the same time if they weren't suffering then she wished for them to be alive so that she might be able to rescue them. She decided to see if she could find the tracks, then if she found some the pair of heroes would simply follow them, slay all the monsters and rescue their friends.

Assuming of course it all went to plan, Katy's plans never appeared to go according to plan so she didn't have much hope in it all following her mental plan. There was never a daughter of Athena around when you needed one was there?

Dimitri held the rings in his hand, the chain now draping downwards. "I don't think he would have left this behind willingly." Dimitri spoke, he was aware that there was some sort of sentiment between the son of Apollo and the two rings, but he wasn't sure what. "The chain is still fastened... so it wasn't hangin' from his neck when he lost it." Dimitri concluded, storing them safely in his pocket. He kicked around the leafs a little more, but it didn't look like there was anything else to find. Dimitri sighed at that thought, but at least a sign was a sign, and they had that to go off of. The rings had no blood on them, which meant at least the son of Apollo must have made it off the cliff.

Dimitri had the idea to mark the location, just in case they needed to go back. He looked around at a couple sticks, picking up the one that looked the most stable before stabbing it into the ground as though it was a spear. "Alright, we should leave this planted here. Just in case we decide we 'oughta start backtrackin' for some reason or another." Dimitri said, his southern accent still as abundant as ever. He turned his back to look at Katarina once more. Catching a glimpse of her ginger hair, he suddenly felt distracted by it. It did look beautiful, he had to admit. And that was after spending a day in the forest.

Dimitri ignored the oddly placed thought, instead pushing forward the positive that they had progress. "At least this means somethin'. It means we ain't alone down here. What do you think we should do, Katarina?" Dimitri asked, deciding she would know the best way forward. "It's your area of expertise." Dimitri said with a nod.