be.

iii - dakota and jason become a target.

III.      DAKOTA   !
⋆ ★
dakota and jason become a target.

              It wasn't the original plan to interrupt a private meeting Chiron had with the new kid — Dakota sort of just walked in at the worst moment possible. She walked through the Big House, unable to see any signs of the centaur who ran camp or the wheelchair he used half the time. She opened the closed door to the sitting room ( a sign she shouldn't have entered ), finding Chiron seated in his wheelchair across from Jason. Uh oh. First day at camp he got sent to the activities directors. Something certainly happened while she and Leo left. Her suspicions were confirmed when she heard Jason speaking in a language which wasn't English— let alone a language which was alive. He didn't finish his sentence when he noticed Dakota walked in.

Dakota was fairly aware of Latin. Between knowing Spanish, Greek, and English she pretty much had a natural sense of it. Yet hearing it from the mouths of Chiron and a new kid, it sounded unfamiliar, strange. She was one of the few people who did understand Latin, and those who did spoke more than just English. Oliver in Cabin Eleven spoke Italian, and he was more fluent in Latin than Dakota was.

"Quis erat—" Jason faltered, seeing Dakota at the doorway. Chiron seemed ashamed to notice her, mostly from interrupting a meeting. Then again, there wasn't exactly a 'don't enter: dead language being spoken' sign anywhere. "Hey. . Dakota." He drew out the last syllables of the words.

"Am I interrupting something?" She felt heat rise in her cheeks from embarrassment. She had a little family issue and now she was standing in the doorway, her crossbow behind her back. She was so focused on finding Leo again, she completely didn't care about the other two who were with him — who were his friends. How stupid could she be?

"Dakota," Chiron nodded her way. She made eye contact with Jason, completely unsure of what to do in the situation. His eyes were so electric, they had to be contacts. "Perfect timing, actually. Someone with your experience in our world is good to have. Is something the matter?"

"My issues can . . . wait. You guys speaking Latin I'm sure can't" she answered. "May I ask why?"

Chiron observed her. "Most demigods recognize a few phrases, of course. It's in their blood, but not as much as Ancient Greek. Jason, Dakota here is one of the very few who can speak Latin. She caught on more than others but not without practiced. Most cannot speak Latin fluently without practice. Have a seat, Dakota."

Jason moved to the side of the couch to make room for her. She took a seat next to him. He handed her a glass of lemonade from the coffee table, but the look on his face was miserable. He seemed . . . terrified. Chiron went into detail of what happened prior — going as far as Jason showing her his tattoo: SPQR and an eagle darkly etched with around twelve lines under. Her dad had a few tattoos. One of a single flower on his wrist to signify their last name: Flores. And a fire on his other to represent his dead sister. But she had never seen a fifteen year old with a tattoo as big as that one. She probably shouldn't have been weirded out. Delinquent! her dad's finance would scream. But Dakota noticed it was more burned into his skin instead of drawn. He burned a tattoo onto his arm — that had to be a power move on Jason's part. But Dakota didn't say a word; she didn't know how to take everything she was hearing.

"Dakota has had first hand experience in everything that has happened." The fire reflected in Chiron's eyes, making them dance fretfully. "I taught your namesake, you know, the original Jason. He had a hard path. I've seen many heroes come and go. Occasionally, they have happy endings. Mostly, they don't. It breaks my heart, like losing a child each time one of my pupils dies. But you-you are not like any pupil I've ever taught. Your presence here could be a disaster."