Helen Brave and The Sun Titan
Chapter 7: Date Night

The next week passed quickly with me balancing out school, forge commissions and my friends. Achilles and Amanda came around less as we got closer to the festival and by the time the festival rolled around, I hadn’t seen either for two whole days. “Excited for the festival?” Birdie asked as she placed her things away. We were packing up early so we could go to the festival grounds around the same time as the others. I nodded and put my tools up then turned, frowning when Dragon and some of the other Hephaestus students headed over, Dragon leading them.

“Tell your girlfriend to back off of us,” he snarled. The others nodded and I scowled, glaring up at him before raising an eyebrow. The others looked angry and Birdie grumbled lightly from behind me, but kept mostly out of the way.

“I’m going to assume you’re talking about Achilles. One, we’re not girlfriends and two, I can’t control her so don’t ask me to help you,” I said before wincing when he grabbed my upper arm roughly. The others look uncomfortable suddenly and I glared up at Dragon in irritation.

“I’m not asking. I’m telling you. Tell her to back off. We’re not getting any commissions and her stupid vulture has been stalking the Forge,” he growled out.

“Let go of her,” Birdie snapped, moving over and forcefully removing his hand before shoving him back. He stumbled and two of his friends quickly caught him as she moved between us, her fingers twitching madly. “You have no right to touch her Dragon. You messed up and now you have to suffer. I’m surprised she didn’t declare war on you sooner. You’ve always been a jerk to her. You guys better drop him like a bad habit before you can’t support any of your own,” Birdie hissed out.

“I’m not talking to you-,” he started, but a large student marched over and shoulder checked him and his friends, the group wilting at the look the boy tossed them.

“Better stop talking Dragon, you’re going to end up with a foot in your mouth and it won’t be your own,” the boy growled out. Dragon snarled slightly before glaring at us once last time then stalking off with his friends following us, the group sneering and snorting at us. The boy snorted himself then turned to us, concern on his face. “Sorry about that. Birdie, you okay sweetie?” He asked, gently taking her still twitching hands in his. Her face was red and she was trembling, shaking slightly in his arms. He gave her a gentle smile before pulling her close and hugging her slightly as she huffed.

“I can’t believe him! Men don’t grab women like that,” she hissed, the boy nodding before lifting her hands and kissing her fingers, the digits slowly relaxing as Birdie did.

“I know honey. It’s all right. I’ll talk to Hephaestus about him and maybe he’ll back up,” the boy said before looking to me. “You must be Helen! I’ve been meaning to meet you,” he said with a smile. Birdie blinked then laughed extracting herself from his grip and roughly patting my shoulder and grinning.

“Sorry about that! This is Helen. Helen, this is my boyfriend, Guppy,” she said excitedly, looking between us anxiously. I gave him a smile and he returned it, his bright brown eyes flashing excitedly. He ran a hand through his long black hair before nodding to the Forge door and grinning slyly. He looked charming and winked slightly, before wiggling his eyebrows.

“So gossip of the day! Achilles was seen at the festival grounds dressed nice! Like killer nice! Word around the school is she has a date tonight for the festival,” he said excitedly. Birdie laughed and I flushed before nervously fingering the material of my uniform skirt.

“Oh?” I said, trying not to sound interested.

“Yup. She looked really good. Not as good as you Birdie, but pretty decent,” he said before putting an arm around Birdie’s shoulder. Birdie laughed and I grinned before nodding to the bathrooms and shifting from foot to foot.

“Alright. I’m going to change really fast,” I said before scurrying off and into the bathroom, sighing when I got into it. I quickly changed into a pair of black dress slacks, a white short-sleeved button up and red vest. I smoothed out the material before pulling my hair into a high ponytail and exchanging my usual glasses for a thinner pair momma had ordered for me. I fiddled around with my hair for a little before putting on a brown bow tie and grinning at my reflection. I actually looked halfway decent! Totally got this. I had been on a date before, but it had ended awkwardly for both of us and we had sworn ourselves into secrecy. Then again I never expected the captain of the cheerleaders to be a lesbian. After a moment, I headed out and back to Birdie and Guppy, Birdie squealing while Guppy grinned and threw me thumbs up.

“Nice! Hot date?” He asked as he began leading us to the Forge door.

“So I’ve heard,” I mumbled before nodding. “Yeah. So what happens at the festival?” I asked, trying to take my mind off of the looming date.

“Tons of fun! Theirs like tons of games and the gods mingle with the crowd! I noticed your parents are still around, what’s that about?” Birdie asked curiously. I shrugged and looked forward as we followed other nicely dressed students towards the grounds. Ma and momma had taken jobs as teachers and I saw them more than I cared for at times, but I knew they were happy here. It was really all that mattered.

“Oh shit! She really looks good!” I heard. I looked up and blinked when I realized all of us were now at the opening of the festival grounds and the student Pantheon was on a stage, the gods seated behind them. The leader, Jason, was dressed in a tux and calling for order, his voice carrying over us. I looked around and choked in a gasp when I saw Achilles looking bored on stage. She was dressed in a long form fitting red dress and her long black hair was braided down her back. She was wearing minimal make up and I groaned softly before rubbing my face and looking at her through my fingers.

“Oh no she’s hot,” I whined softly. Birdie laughed and roughly patted my shoulder before pulling me in close.

“Don’t worry about it! You clean up good and she’s going to love you!” She said lowly while Jason droned on about the gods and how well we all were doing.

“Have fun and remember your offerings,” he called before the festival was open for the rest of us. All of us cheered and the Pantheon waved, Achilles eyes swept over the crowd before locking onto mine and she smiled widely. She quickly moved off stage as the students began to walk towards the festival and I followed, searching for Achilles and yelping when someone wrapped an arm around me from behind. I looked up and grinned at Achilles, who was blushing slightly and smiling down at me.

“You clean up well. Ready for some fun?” She asked, an excited grin spreading across her face. I nodded and she slipped around me, taking my hand and pulling me towards a ticket counter. She bought us a group of tickets before looking around then at me, excitement dancing in her eyes. “Where to first?” She asked, shifting in place. I looked around before noticing a ring toss stand and pointed it out. She grinned and grabbed my hand tugging me over and grinning at the shifty eyed girl running it. The girl pointed to a rule board before holding out her hand, looking more at her nails than us. I frowned at her rude attitude, but Achilles laughed before passing her the tickets. “That’s my third in command, she’s deaf and tries to keep social interactions to a minimum,” Achilles explained. She waved in a jerky motion and the girl’s head snapped up.

A large smile appeared on her face fore she began rapidly moving her hands and arms, grinning at her before winking then looking to me curiously. Achilles blushed prettily before shaking her head and making a few motions of her own then laughing and shaking her head. The girl silently snorted before looking to me and tossing me thumbs up then jerking her head towards the game. Achilles grinned, split the rings with me and began spinning one on her finger almost cockily. “I’m pretty good at this game,” she boasted before turning and tossing the ring, her smile falling when the ring bounced off. I snorted and grinned at her, her face coloring as she tossed one then another before growling when both bounced off. “Gimme a moment,” she grumbled. I smiled and shook my head before lifting my own ring and narrowing my eyes. I took a moment then tossed the ring, beaming when it when right onto the red one. “Oh come on!” she cried, pouting when the other girl laughed quietly before waving to get my attention.

She pointed to three large stuffed animals and I pointed at the large husky that almost dwarfed me and she nodded before passing it to me. I gave Achilles another grin and she rolled her eyes before tossing her last ring halfheartedly and winning a smaller prize. “Really?” She whined, taking the smaller stuffed cat from her grinning friend before waving goodbye. The girl made a few motions then a kissy face and Achilles colored before shaking her head roughly and tugging me towards a strong man game.

“Ignore her,” she grumbled. In the end, Achilles ended up being much more successful at the strong man game, winning a large stuffed hammer and trading me for my dog. We walked around for a while, playing an assortment of games and winning each other different things. She won me a box of crafting supplies and I managed to win her a week free of work, which irritated Jason. We ended up in the food area, eating some corn dogs and laughing together when I noticed a tiny child off to the side. He was looking around and eyeing another student’s bottom, which I found was weird and mentioned it to Achilles. She glanced over before rolling her eyes and grinning a bit, looking back at me and grinning. “That’s Autolycus. He’s a cutie, but he has a thing for shiny things. He was picked up when he was three. Excellent thief,” she said before getting up. “Excuse me for a minute,” she said before stalking over.

The boy seemed so distracted that he didn’t notice Achilles, until she crouched and jabbed him in the shoulder with her finger, the boy squealing and spinning around before pouting. She laughed and he pouted more before holding out his arms and she scooped him up before returning and hiking him up against her hip. “Say hello to Helen,” she said, grinning when he waved enthusiastically. I grinned and waved back while Achilles set him down, the boy taking her food and beginning to eat. “Hey you little,” she growled out playfully, roughly rubbing his head and drawing a laugh from him. I grinned wider and offered her the rest of my food, Achilles taking it with small thanks before she looked at the boy. “So what are you doing here? I thought Amphiaraus would still be watching over you,” she said, the boy scoffing and swallowing his food before giving her a grin.

“I ditched Amphiaraus at the fish game and went looking for some money for food,” he said before shrugging and beginning to eat again.

“I knew you ran off idiot,” a young voice squeaked out, Autolycus grunting before coughing hard and looking to his right. An annoyed looking long brown haired boy glared at him and he groaned before slumping into the table.

“Amphiaraus,” Autolycus whined before pouting at him. The boy rolled his eyes before taking the seat at the other boy’s right and waving to Achilles.

“Hi Elei, hi miss,” he said, waving to me after a moment. I waved back and Achilles rolled her eyes before rubbing both their heads.

“Remember your offerings,” she said before looking to me and jerking her head to a large bowl of fire near the exit to the food area. “Come on let’s toss in our offerings then head back out. Where do you want to go next?” She asked as we got up and headed over to a small line. I was about to say something when I bumped into someone and glanced up, frowning when a nervous looking man looked down at me. His face was covered in fire like tattoos and he his blood red eyes widened as he recoiled away from me.

“Oh I’m sorry,” I began, but he rushed off and I frowned after him, looking back at Achilles and replaceing she was pale and her eyes were red.

“Oh course. Now he would escape,” she hissed before tossing her things in when we got into the front of the line. I did the same and stumbled after her as she rushed back towards another game that was being run by Zeus. The older man had long a flowing grey hair that was pulled into a high ponytail and he was laughing when several students missed their targets. “Sir!” Achilles called, catching his attention. He gave us a smile before frowning a bit and excusing himself to speak with us, moving around the game and over.

“What’s wrong Achilles?” He asked lowly. Achilles spared me a glance before moving in closer and mumbling something softly under her breathe. Zeus suddenly went stiff and his eyes narrowed before he lifted his head and looked around, thunder rumbling overhead for a short moment. “Get the twins and head back to the last place you saw him,” he ordered before giving me a small smile. “I’m sorry to cut your date short, but Achilles and the student Pantheon are needed,” he said. I nodded and watched as Achilles frowned while Zeus walked over to the booth, giving the students a bright smile.

“Damn it,” Achilles grumbled. I waved off her look before giving her a smile and hugging the hammer close then jerked my head off to the side.

“You should get going,” I said, watching as she sighed and nodded before rubbing her head.

“I’m sorry we had to cut this short,” she said before shaking her head roughly and passing me the wolf. “Hold onto this for me okay?” She said with a smile. I grinned and nodded, watching as she hesitated before giving my cheek a quick kiss and headed off into the crowd. I blushed brightly before beaming and sighing softly then heading towards the exit of the festival. I wasn’t too invested in being here if she wasn’t going to be with me, but as I headed towards exit I found that some of Dragon’s friends were following me. I scowled slightly and sped up, leaving the festival quickly and groaning silently when I got far enough away and found Dragon was blocking my path.

“Leaving pretty early huh?” He taunted before swinging himself over and glaring down at me. “Now I’m telling you one more time that if you don’t get Achilles to back off I’m going to make your life a living hell,” he growled. I snorted and glared up at him, feeling more confidence in myself than I used to.

“Look. If you want her to stop just apologize or something,” I growled back, watching as he snarled before pushing his face almost into my own. His friends were shifting about behind me and I stiffened as Dragon glared down at me through narrowed eyes.

“I’m not going to apologize for telling the truth about her. That’s the only reason why she got into Elysian. She killed someone when she was a kid,” he said with a sneer on his face. I scowled up at him and he snorted before shoving me back roughly and off of my feet. I grunted as I hit the ground and glared up at him, watching as one of his friends rushed over and grabbed my prizes. The others began laughing and tossing them towards one another while Dragon smirked down at me and waved his arm. “If you’re not going to help me then I’m going to show her what happens when-,” he began before looking up when someone yelled. He frowned deeply before flinching and paling drastically, throwing himself to the side. I flinched when fire passed over me and twisted, gaping when a large man dressed in long black robes marched toward us, his hands on fire. He was abnormally tall with short brown hair and blood red eyes that were narrowing as he drew closer to us. His face was covered in tattoos and he was panting while Dragon and his friends rushed off in terror. That was the guy from the festival!

“Filthy,” the man snarled as he got in close before he looked to me in concern. “Did they hurt you?” He asked. I shook my head and he helped me up before rubbing my head and giving me a tender smile. “Child of Hephaestus…I should have given your father a gift,” he said before wringing his hands together. “I need your help child. I didn’t recognize you when I bumped into you earlier,” he said before bowing his head.

“Who are you? My father isn’t Hephaestus,” I said, but he shook his head before looking around nervously.

“You were never told?” he said lowly before shaking his head. “You must take me to see your father. Something is wrong in Tartarus and he is the only god that won’t instantly lock me away. Please,” he begged.

“Who are you?” I asked in confusion, frowning deeply. What was he talking about? Hephaestus wasn’t my father…unless he was…then I was going to have to have a serious talk with my parents.

“I’m Prometheus. Please take me to your father,” he hissed before shrinking into himself. I looked up and around him, watching in shock a boy stopped and pointed, turning his head and yelling. “Oh no…please forgive me,” he hissed out before roughly pulling me to his chest.

“Let go!” I snapped, trying to push him away, but he turned me harshly before locking his arms around my neck and lifting me off of the ground. I gagged and clawed at his hands kicking my good leg in hopes of hitting him. He turned and I winced, watching as three gods, rushed out and froze.

“Prometheus!” Zeus roared, appearing just a few feet from us in a flash of thunder and lightning.

“Zeus…please you need to listen to me,” he said desperately, his grip tightening around my throat. I wheezed and kicked again, sucking in a deep breath when he loosened his arm. Zeus scowled at him and his hands began crackling with energy while Prometheus lifted one of his hands and flames erupted in the palm. “If you try anything I’ll kill her. I know about Hephaestus and his child,” he grumbled lowly. Zeus’ eyes widened before he looked to me while the energy dissipated from his ha

“What do you want?” He asked, almost reluctantly. The fire instantly disappeared from his palm and he calm down before nervously leaning forward.

“Gaia and Uranus. They have made a pact with the new leader of the Titans,” he said lowly, Zeus flinching back before scowling.

“What? What of my father?” He asked, Prometheus giving him a humorless smile.

“After the last time my uncle tried to escape, he realized his punishment was pretty relaxed. The other titans think of him soft and have chosen a new leader, Atlas. He, along with Helios, Thetis, and Selene were given the means to escape Tartarus by Gaia and Uranus and they are back in the mortal lands. With the last of their last strength, Cronus and Rhea helped me escape so I could warn you all,” he said in fear before slowly lowering down. His grip loosened and he hugged me tightly, shivering against my bad and causing pity to go through me. “They’ve been twisted cousin. I fear for our lives,” he said weakly. Zeus scowled down at him before marching over and kneeling quickly, grabbing Prometheus roughly and shaking his head.

“Get ahold of yourself. They must be weak so they couldn’t be too far. Come with me to my domain and we’ll call a council. How much did you tell her?” He asked, looking to me briefly.

“About her heritage? I just mentioned her father…did she not know? Was she not supposed to know?” He asked, allowing Zeus to help him up.

“She wasn’t,” Zeus said with a sigh. “Come along Helen. We have to talk,” he ordered.