Confessions

Jack and Helena sat at the Apollo table, their fingers threaded through each others, holding hands. Jack's left arm was in a splint because the Ambrosia was low and Jack could fight through the pain. They got strange looks from the other campers. The Demeter kids were sticking their tongues out at them and giving Jack and Helena death glares.

Jack just mumbled something under his breath and shoved more food into his mouth. Apparently having near death experiences made a person hungrier than a satyr. It was harder, with one hand in a splint and the other holding Helena's hand, but Jack managed. Chicken over rice was his favorite meal, and he ate just that, though it wasn't as good as Grandmother's homemade chicken over rice.

He felt a pang of guilt at the thought of her. If she had known what happened... Well, Jack would not hear the end of it. Suddenly the food had become hard to chew and swallow. Jack managed with one more bite. There was more than half on the plate, but could not eat anymore. He stood up, smiled at Helena, and walked to the fire.

He dumped the remaining food into the fire, offering it to his father.

"Hey, dad. I don't know if you can hear me, or if you even care. But I want to tell you that I appreciate what you did back at the strawberry fields. I thought I would die from the fall, but I didn't." Jack said, mumbling at the flames that flared up and down. "I thought I'd be taken away from Helena." He looked back at the Apollo table. Good. She was still there. "And uh, between you and me, dad. Don't tell anyone this, but I think I love her."

Thats when I felt a light touch on my shoulder. I turned around. There was Helena.

Standing behind Jack, Helena hadn't heard anything that he said and she didn't want to enroach on his personal space. But it was lot more difficult to deflect the evil eyes from Demeter's children when she didn't have someone beside her to bare them with her. And when Jack left the Apollo camper's were all staring at her like she had just flew in on a broom stick. Maybe people took strawberries and angry campers a lot more seriously than she expected.

But that light touch on Jack's shoulder banished all of the turmoil in her mind. "Sorry. I just thought that I had better give him something too. I owe...Dad." She said the word like it wasn't natural. And it wasn't. "I just hope he does not hold me to the movie promise. Although I will keep it." She smiled lightly and then took her place to the braizer. She had half of everything there, neatly cut and seperated. Slipping it into the fire, Helena stared at it for a good long time. Thinking...

"You gave him back, did you not?" She thought to Apollo. "If you gave him to me, then please make sure you do not take him away. This camp is miserable without Jack..." Helena watched the flames, looking for something, any sign that Apollo had heard her. "...Just protect him; for me."

Looking back at Jack, Helena smiled and led him over so that the two could leave their plates to be cleaned.

Standing at the enterance to the The Mess Hall and leaned on the doorway. "I think we must watch our things. I would not be surprised if your drum sticks started to grow flowers after the looks those Demeter campers were giving us." Helena giggled a bit at the image it conjured in her head and then shook her head no. "At least we did not land on the grapes; Monsieur D. would not be pleased."

Jack laughed, a true laugh that no one could bring out of him. "If they do that, I'll burn their pretty grass covered roof down. Those drum sticks have Billie Joe Armstrong's signature, and no one messes with those drumsticks." He smiled at the thought of burning a house down.

The sky was dark with silver stars scattered upon it. Apollo's sister, Artemis, had taken over the night.

"You know, I'd always liked the night better than the day time. I guess thats why Apollo always ignored me. Or hated me. I guess the night just suited me better." He jumped from the deck of the mess hall, twisted in the air, and landed, right in front of Helena, holding out his hand to her.

"What say you and I go back to our cabin, I'll grab my drumsticks, and we can play some music out in the deep, dark, scary wood?" Jack said. "Savvy?" He added, just to make Helena laugh.




ooc- I'm actually watching Pirates of the Caribbean right now, so if Jack acts more piraty than usual, thats why.

Helena was in awe that Jack's drumsticks had such a terrific signature on them, she would have to take a good look at that. "His signature...that is tres magnifique!" She laughed a bit at herself for slipping into french so natrually, but it was a pretty simple phrase that most people at heard and didn't really need any explination.

Looking up at the stars, Helena sighed in understanding. "Yes, I would always stay up watching the stars. I love them, I never wanted the dawn to come. Maybe...maybe that is why Apollo would not claim me here and instead did on my way. Do you think I hurt his feelings? ...Or does he have feelings at all..." The words flowed natrually but Jack brought a smile to her face yet again.

Watching as he made his 'escape', Helena looked cheered and took his hand, climbing over the deck with less grace than Jack had and landed in front of him with a little stumble.

She blushed when he started to copy Captain Jack and gave him a smark little smirk, a mysterious one like Tia Dalma would have. "I says, I will bring my lyre and we shall scare the other campers with melodies coming out of the woods." Her accent mixed with a bit of pirate sounded funny but it was an earnest attempt.

"I have been waiting to hear you play..."

Jack sprinted back to his room, grabbed his drumsticks and his electric bass. Oh how he loved sneaking out past curfew, and he did it often, back in Orlando. He often got a punishment from his grandmother the day after, but it was fun while it lasted. He also put on a new green shirt as his old one had berry stains and grass and dirt stains. Not to mention it was almost ripped to shreds. Shrugging on another leather jacket he headed out of his cabin, Helena waiting outside for him, the wind pushing the hair into her face. Jack smiled, and jumped down the steps. He did that a lot now. But he tripped and fell on his face.

"BUGGER!" He yelled, getting up and dusting himself off. Luckily none of his possessions or his bones were broken. "Shall we?" He hooked arms with Helena and they walked off into the forest.

After a couple of minutes of silent walking they reached a clearing. Jack sat on the dirty log and positioned his bass so he could play magnificently.

"So I thought about playing you a green day song. But you might not know them. So I thought, we both loving Johnny Depp, that I'd play something more... Familiar." He started playing perfectly, not missing a single note. But the real magic began when Jack started to sing.

We're rascals, scoundrels, villans, and knaves,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
We're devils and black sheep, really bad eggs,
Drink up, me 'earties, yo ho.
Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me.


Even the crickets stopped singing to hear Jack weave stories from music. He would continue, but he could not remember the words.

"So, mate, how'd you like it?"

While Jack went and changed and got his things, Helena slipped into the cabin and changed into a new camp shirt. Her jeans were stll strawberry stained but that was alright, she just didn't like having a messy shirt. Grabbing her lyre, Helena was the first to leave, waiting for Jack. She laugehd as he made his exit, he was charming and funny all at the same time. She wanted to be like that...She wanted to make people laugh and be happy.

But for now she was just so happy to be spending time with Jack that none of that mattered. Linking arms with him she didn't mind that they were breaking any rules or doing something that Chiron would have frowned upon. After all it was only harmless fun.

Sitting down on a fallen tree trunk across from Jack, Helena held onto her harp and listened to him play, singing along in her sweet little voice. She was actually much better at catching onto the song and the way it was sung becuse she had heard it before and the rousing pirate tune came out more like the childish Elizabeth from the opening of the first film.

"Drink up me hearties, yo ho..." She smiled at Jack as he finished and then placed a hand on her lyre. "And we are black sheep." She giggled a little bit and then started to play something for Jack. It was a little different than it should have sounded sine it was on a hard like instrument but the tune was clearly Green Day's 'Wake Me Up When September Ends'. It was clearly mourful as the sond was meant to be but it was still innocent and genlte like Helena.

"Summer has come and past,
the innocent can never last...
Wake me up..when September ends..."

Jack thought Helena's voice was lovely. It was like water rushing down a stream. He closed his eyes and thought of a time when it was simpler time. A time before he knew he was a half-blood.

Then gently, Jack started to strum his bass with one hand and tapped the wood of the log with his drumsticks. Playing one instrument perfectly was easy, Playing two was harder, but Jack still managed it.

Like my father's come to pass
Seven years has gone so fast
Wake me up when September ends.

Jack sang along with Helena, the lyre, the bass, and the drums putting in their own melody. It was beautiful. Jack thought things could not get any better.

After the song had ended, they just sat there. Jack with his eyes closed and Helena leaning against his legs.

"Did I ever tell you you're an amazing singer, Helena?" Asked Jack.

Helena had always felt a special connection to this particular song and the way Jack sang it, it was like he understood too. Like he knew what the words meant from personal experience and it made Helena smile up at him softly. They were so much alike that it was amazing.

How could two people from so far across the word be so in tune with each other? Especially considering that they had been searching for someone like them for so long.

Helena was mystified...

"You make my heart feel like you are the music..." Helena said gently, looking up at Jack.

She was just about to say something else, complimenting how charming and funny he was. How he was able to make her laugh like no one else and how she could always sing for him...

But instead when she opened her mouth, Helena shrieked and hopped up onto her feet, jumping next to Jack and grabbed onto him. She was covered in white power and so was he. Her hair, her face, her clothes and ever inch of Helena was covered in white.

Coughing out some of the baby power, Helena was too nervous to look back up and see who had done that to them. Instead she just held onto Jack.

"W-What just happened...?" She mumered, looking up at him.

Jack yelled out with fury and anger as white power fell on him and Helena. He looked up and saw the leaves rustle, and nothing more. He'd get revenge on whoever did it. It was most likely a Demeter camper, getting payback for smashing their strawberries.

Jack felt Helena grab onto him, holding on to him. He didn't mind in the least. He honestly didn't know what had happened either, but he was going to find out. They were not 'lovebirds', or were they? "I don't know, Helena." Said Jack. But then he heard a boys voice shouting something and then laughter.

He looked at his bass. Crap. It was covered in baby powder as well. It had damaged the strings and made it impossible to play. His face was red as a tomato with fury.

He gently set his bass on the log and put the drumsticks in his pocket. You don't like Jack when he's angry.

"I'm going after that little git. He ruined my bass!" He said. Jack didn't care if it was april fools. He was going to get pay back. Then he turned to Helena, smiling apologetically. "If, uh, you don't want to stay here and wait for me, you can go back to the cabin. I'd understand completely. Or you can come and help me track down the little idiot and help me get revenge, seeing as I only have one available arm." Jack said, gesturing to his arm in a splint.

Jack rushed through the trees, following the mysterious laughter. Apollo kids were not meant for tracking, that wasn't their gifts. But Jack knew how to find a person that didn't want to be found.

Thats when he saw it. It wasn't much, just a flash of neon orange in the brown and green background. Jack picked up his speed and crashed into a boy wearing all black, minus his camp t-shirt.

Jack awkwardly pinning him with one hand.

"I don't bloody care if it is april fools day, mate. You don't mess with Jack Cyrus Byrne and get away with no punishment. Plus, you ruined my bass. Thats double offense, which means double the punishment."

"WE ARE NOT BOYFRIEND AND GIRLFRIEND!" Yelled Jack, now not only covered in powder, but in glitter as well. He chucked pinecones in their direction and managed to hit them with more than five each. Jack would stay here, just because he really did not feel like getting hit with more stuff.

Helena actually looked nice, covered in glitter. It made her look like a golden ray of sunshine. Jack thought he looked like a glittering ghost. He crushed more pinecones in his hands, since the other campers were to far out of range. He left imprints on his hands, which made some stress leave his body. He would not go all anger issuey with Helena. That'd scare her away, and she was his only friend in this entire camp, the only one he could talk to about his problems. And lets face it, Jack had a lot.

So instead of exploding in a rage ball of anger, he trudged back silently to his bass. Jack hoped that Helena was not mad at Jack for not talking to her. He picked up his bass and plucked a string. White powder flew up from the vibrations. Glitter had gotten into the grooves, making the bass sound horrible, not at all what it sounded like just five minutes earlier. Jack wanted to throw the bass down in defeat. But maybe it could be fixed, but that was a very unlikely possibility.

He looked at his drumsticks. They were still perfect. That was the only one of his possessions besides the bass that he truly cared about.

Jack laid down on the forest floor and admitted defeat. After all, a son of Apollo could not beat the son and daughter of Hermes.

Helena had always been considerd the 'good girl', her mother never had to suffer because of Helena for even a second. All of the elderly people in her town had thought that she was very respectful and never got into any trouble what so ever. Even if they were a little superstituous about her ability to do things that normal people couldn't...

But here Helena was out in the forest after cerfew, covered in baby power and worried about Jack who was absoloutely furious. She couldn't blame him, her own cheeks were blazing red from her own frustration. She didn't like anyone making him feel that way and on top of that their moment had been ruined.

What if they got caught though? What then? She didn't want Jack getting into a fight when he was already hurt. Swallowing hard, Helena didn't have much time to decide. Leaving Jack's bass on the rock where it wouldn't get further damaged, Helena chased after him with her lyre still in hand. Stumbling through the woods after Jack wasn't exactly the perfect end to their night but being covered in baby power had started the whole ugly chain of events.

"Jack! Jack!" She shouted after him until he stopped, pinning the camper who had pranked them. Coming up beside Jack, she looked at the young man who spoiled their evening and recognized him from the Hermes table at Dinner that evening.

"...You are not a Demeter camper..." Helena said in shock, but then her shock turned to rage. "You have no reason for doing such things to us...you...you mongrel!" She wasn't sure how effective the prhase was in America but in France it would have gotten the job done. But before she could say more there came another assault. Screaming for the second time that evening, Helena was covered in sticky, gluey, glittery stuff that stuck itself in her hair, on her clothes and worst of all in her lyre.

Looking at the instrument in her hands, Helena's eyes watered immediately. She had made that lyre back home when her mother couldn't find one to buy for Helena. She had crafted it with her own two hands and now the instrument was ruined. She wanted to say more, to scream and yell and shout curses at the escaping Hermes siblings but she couldn't. All she could do was follow Jack back to their spot as she sobbed at the sight of her ruined and the sudden thought of her destroied quiver of arrows and bow.

Jack got up from his spot on the ground, leaves and glitter still stuck to his hair. He shook his his, and golden rain showered upon the floor. He heard shouts and yelling from the camp and his green eyes got big and huge. He scrambled up as fast as a rabbit and grabbed his bass and drumsticks.

"Quick, Helena, we've gotta go." Jack said urgently. He knew what was coming. First the Hermes cabin would come and play even more idiotic jokes on them. Then, Mr. D would come and punish them for many reasons, to many to count. He grabbed her hand, not waiting for her to grab it this time, and ran through the woods as fast as he could.

Jack didn't care about getting in trouble. Anything that camp would dish out he would handle it. It was Helena he was worried about. He knew she was a kind and quiet girl, not the kind who would get in trouble like he would just for the fun of it.

He found a tree that was high enough and well concealed so that they would be hidden from view. Jack helped Helena up, looking back every so often to make sure the others had not picked up on his trail. After she was up there high enough, he clambered on as fast as he could with one useless arm. He sat beside Helena, not daring to breath. Jack hugged his knees closer to his chest. All they had to do was wait. He put an arm around Helena, more for his sake than hers.

He heard chattering behind him. He turned around. There was a small chipmunk behind them. Then the woodland creature threw an acorn at Jack. He growled savagely and blew into the chipmunks face, making it flee.

Jack really hoped no one would find them here. Please Apollo, thought Jack. I know I've been asking a lot of you. Just don't let Helena get caught. I don't mind it. But don't make Helena suffer along with me, please.

When noises started to come towards the woods, Helena suddenly forgot about her lyre and quiver. She was petrified like Medusa herself had given the girl a stare. Thankfully Jack was there, grabbing her hand and running. The young woman felt like she couldn't even breath and this being the first time she tried to climb a tree, she nearly feel back and landed on Jack at least ten times. Thankfully she managed up the tree but only felt safe when Jack was able to join her. She scooted closer to him and tried to stay balenced without letting her legs hang off of the branch.

Looking at Jack, Helena's eyes still had tears in them but they had stopped coming down onto her cheeks and she took the liberty of wiping them away on his shirt shoulder. Which managed to get more glitter on her face.

Watching Jack in the silence she sunndely realized just how magical he looked in the moonlight with all of that gold on him. He looked more like a child of Apollo than anyone ever had and that was without being arrogant or stupid like their father could be sometimes.

Leaning over and whispering very faintly in Jack's ear, Helena didn't sound sad anymore.

"...You look like a real demi-god." She told him. "LIke you are a piece of the sun..."

"We know you're out there, children of Apollo." A chorus of voices yelled. Jack moved Helena closer to him, protecting her from the campers down below. Led by Mr. D, a bunch of angry Hermes kids in orange camp T-shirts were behind him.

"Thank you, Helena. But you outshine me, I am not as glorious or as brilliant as you." Whispered Jack into her ear. He moved away from her, trying to make the least amount of noise that was humanly possible. He put a finger up to his lips, telling her to be quiet and stay put.

Jack then jumped out of the tree, hit the ground and rolled. He looked up at the dark tree to make sure that Helena was still there and out of harms way. For her, Jack would do anything, and give up anything, just for her to be safe.

Mr. D's face was a rich purple. "You! You're out past curfew! Whats your name?" He asked.

Jack was still furious from getting glitter and baby powder thrown at him. He saw the boy that he had beat up and smiled very deadly. The son of Hermes had a black eye and a bloody lip. "Jack Cyrus Byrne. Son of Apollo."

"Mr. Byrne. I think you know what the consequences are if you stay out past curfew."

Jack looked up past the tree tops to the moon. "No."

"Well, then, let me take you to my office and we can explain the rules." As Mr. D led Jack away from the tree, he looked back. Please Helena. I did this for you, so you would be safe. Don't do anything stupid and go searching for me. I promise. I will find you. He thought before turning his head foreword again.

He hoped this was what Captain Jack Sparrow would do in a time like this.

(OOC: I checked into it, we're not allowed to play cannons but I don't think they'll get mad about that small section. Just thought I'd let you know; we wouldn't want to get in trouble for real. lol)

Staying up in the branch, Helena held her breath and tried not to move so that the glitter wouldn't shake off of her and down onto the campers below. Her heart sank as Jack was led away. She felt like a coward and like she had betrayed Jack, but she could see his shimmering form far beneath and bit her lip. Those tears were risking to fall again and she didn't want to act like a child or a baby.

"...He is a good son..." She thought softly to Apollo. "He did not want to do anything wrong." Helena looked down at her hands as the last words Jack said to her rang in her mind.

"He is a hero..." She thought, wishing she could shout it after Jack and tell him how thankful she was for his friendship. Her heart ached for Jack and she held onto her Lyre, waiting for the crowd to die down so she could sneak to the lake and wash off all this glitter and baby powder so no one would suspect her once she made it back to the Apollo Cabin.

(I think we'll need to continue this after. Maybe we could move it to wherever Jack's punishment is and Helena could come and help or something? Or maybe he comes after her at the cabin?)

ooc- lets continue it at our cabin, I'll send the link.

https://camphalfblood.forummotion.com/t13234-we-are-troublemakers#261287

The link!