A Day In The Courtyard

Aaron walked out of his cabin, roughly around noon. He'd gotten out of bed about 20 minutes ago, but didn't have the motivation to actually do anything. A lazy Sundaywas basically what he had in mind, but knowing him, the plans would change drastically. "Oh well.' He thought to himself. Finding a bench closest to the cabin, he sat down.The cool spring breeze felt refreshing, considering it was hot yesterday, and the day before that it rained. That's when Aaron got to thinking. "I haven't seen her since then." He says outloud. Her, being Esto, the daughter of Amphritrite he had met only two days ago. "I should've told her I didn't want her to leave..." He facepalms at his past mistake.

I step into the long area between the cabins. I've just finished a very successful hunting trip. I have a few rabbits and an assortment of other pelts hanging from the belt around my waist, as well as a small coyote on my back that was chasing a deer shot at and unfortunately crossed path with the arrow. Leaves and twigs determinedly grasp my hair, which has almost lost its loose braid. Dirt's probably covering almost every square inch of my face. All of my arrows are either broken or lost, but don't care. I love the smell of rotting leaves, the sound of leaves under my feet. Even my least favorite part, skinning the animals, has become fun.

I usually do it in the woods, but recently there's been too many monsters. I've tried other areas, too, but none have been better than the courtyard. And, as long as I clean the animals behind the cabins, no one really cares.

I would've abandoned hunting the second I made it to this camp, had I not realized the worth of animal fur the Aphrodite and Hephaestus girls. I also didn't trust the magical food in the Mess Hall, so that was an added bonus.

I slip further into the courtyard, ready to step behind the my own cabin to begin the work, when I spot a familiar face out the corner of my eye. I turn to get a better look, and recognize the figure as Aaron. I take th sleeve of my hunting jacket and try to wipe my face clean, using my other hand to pick the leaves and twigs out of my hair. I manage to get as clean and presentable as possible, and continue towards the back of the cabin, not sure if I want him to notice me or not.

After reveling in his shame, Aaron notices a figure about 15 feet away from him. "Is that....It is!" He says aloud. Well, he didn't expect to see Esto today, not that he was complaining or anything. Standing up, and hoping she didn't see him yet, Aaron tries his best to fix his bed head. Finally, with a gust of what almost seemed like courage, or stupidity, Aaron walks over to Esto. "Hey Esto, you look nice." Aaron mutters. He wasn't very good with girls, even if they were friends, having a normal conversation. Well, he needed to get to know a girl, before being...not awkward.

I jump at the noise, almost instinctively reaching for one of my hunting knives inside my coat, but turn towards the voice and restrain myself.

I laugh at the compliment, losing the self-consciousnesses that had a strong grip on me only seconds before. "Well, unless au naturale is back in style, I wouldn't say leaves are the best accessory, but thanks. I was just out hunting for a little bit. I'm about to go skin some of the things I caught, if you're interested in that kind of entertainment. For some reason, though, I doubt you're the kind for blood and guts."

"Natural is good." He says with a small grin. Aaron wasn't too keen on makeup. Aphrodite kids walk around camp covered head to toe in the stuff, so it wasn't something he liked very much. "And why don't you take me for the blood and guts kind of guy?" He asks, a little offended. It's nor that he didn't like hunting, he loved it in fact, but he didn't do it often. There was money to be made behind it too, so that was a plus. The cool air blew seemingly harder and harder. It was crazy, well not for spring, but it was still a bit abnormal.

I hold my hands up defensively, though I can't suppress a grin. "Hey, I just didn't think you'd want stains on your clothes! After all, not a lot of people at this camp enjoy actual hunting more than killing monsters. But, if you want to help, you're free to."

I step around to the back of the cabin, where there's a small faucet where one might attach a hose. I take the belt off my waist, and lay it down on the ground along with the wolf and a couple of knives. I turn on the water and pull my coat around me as the wind picks up. "That's odd...its usually not this windy."

I shrug and kneel down on the ground, picking up a squirrel and cleanly cutting off the head. "I'll remove the fur and meat. Can you wash them, after?"

"Uh...sure" Aaron says to her. This was...pleasant, for a bunch of demigods. Normal people would hate this, but demis didn't mind it. "You know, I was glad I saw you earlier. I was actually hoping to see you." He admits. If he hadn't seen her, he probably would have just gone back to sleep. What a wonderful and exciting life he lived. "I felt stupid the other day. I didn't want you to leave, but I let you anyway." He says, sitting on the ground and playing with a ball of water.

I continue skinning the squirrel, but freeze at his words.

He wanted me to stay?

Get a grip, Yugvi. You've never felt like this. You're getting distracted. I think, trying to shake the thought off. It doesn't seem to go away, however, and I'm left with it haunting my mind. I continue skinning, hoping he hadn't noticed my brief pause.

I toss the skinned animal on the ground relatively close to him, and watch his reaction carefully. I'm almost certain he'll flinch, which'll mean he's uncomfortable with the whole idea of helping me with this.

Aaron looks at Esto when the sound of skinning stops. Shrugging it off, Aaron picks up the skin without hesitation, before dousing it in the ball of water. He felt stupid,. "She probably paused because she felt uncomfortable at what I said. Aaron you dummy!" He thinks. He would facepalm, but there was blood on his hand. Aaron was complete rubbish with girls, and this wasn't any better than before. He hadn't felt like this torward someone before,. "You're getting off task Aaron, just clean the dead animal." He mutters to himself, probably louder than he should have.

I pick up another animal, randomly, and find it to be a large bird. I begin plucking off the feathery down and laying them in a neat pile beside me.

I probably wouldn't have caught his words if it weren't for the precise hearing that comes with hunting. And, to be honest, I'm not sure if I'm about hearing them muttered to himself.

Oh, god, he noticed. Did I offend him? What should I say?

"Oh, no, its not like that. I, um..." I try to think of the right thing to say. Should I tell him how I feel? Do I even know how I feel about him? And then, of course, the normal me jumps in. How do I know I can trust him? Should I lie?

"I felt the same way. I felt like an idiot for leaving."

"Really?" Aaron lifts his head up from the sight of the now clean dead animal. Looking at this girl whom he met a few days ago. "I thought you were just trying to get away from me to be honest." Aaron wasn't sure how he felt about this girl. Well to be fair, he never knew how he felt about the girls who crossed his mind, but this time, he was even more unsure of himself, and of Esto. It then occured to Aaron that he knew very little about Esto.