Private to Vina

Mat turned the page of his book, completely immersed in it. Although it was basically a text book, the boy had picked it up for some good reading. Entitled Understanding Humans, it was an introduction to physical anthropology and archaeology, two of Mathieu's favorite subjects. The boy had decided that, in order to escape the ruckus and overly perfumed cabin that he was forced to live in, he would benefit from a little bit of fresh air. He sat, not necessarily by the lake, but a few yards away. His back leaned against the trunk of one of the bordering trees. His knees were propped up, and the book sat comfortably in his lap at the same incline as his femurs. The air smelled of pine wood, grass, and cinnamon.

The pages of Mathieu's book were not as illuminated as he would have liked. This mere fact caused him to look up. He saw the sun slowly seeping down beyond the trees. He could hear the occasional cricket begin to stir, and the blue of the sky was beginning to fade to a deeper and darker color. Mat knew that soon he would have to forfeit the serenity and stomach the nauseating scents that floated within the Aphrodite cabin. If he thought about it, it was kind of ironic that he despised the many perfumes, since he himself gave of a natural sort of scent. But, hey, sometimes he couldn't help it. And the annoying siblings who would not lay off the perfume could definitely help it.

Just as Mat began to shut his book, his eyes dropped from the sky to the edge of the lake. Squinting, he saw that a person who, to his knowledge, had not been there before. Perhaps it was a nymph, but he had not seen many nymphs around at this time. Quickly, Mat reopened his book and feigned reading. His logic was that perhaps if they did happen to catch sight of him, they would not approach. He did not want to stand up and leave because if they caught sight of him, well, that was annoying enough just being watched. So, he stayed still as he could and strained his eyes on the pages of his book.

Mathieu's hand ran over the corner of his book unconsciously as he read. Although his eyes flicked over the words, his mind wasn't doing a very good job of analyzing what they were actually saying. There was a threat afoot. It wasn't an actual threat, and probably appeared a less-than-important problem to normal people. However, Mathieu felt threatened by the fact that a person could possibly have his/her eyes on him right at this moment, and he hated that. He hated the feeling of being watched, possibly judged. The mere presence of this newcomer had set Mat on edge.

The threat of the person was soon magnified. In just a couple of moments, it went from Mat being paranoid to a fireball hurtling over his head, nearly igniting his hair. He froze, the reaction a little late as the fireball had already passed. It smacked onto a spot in the grass just behind Mathieu. The boy quickly closed the book and hopped up. Whipping around to the fire, he began to stomp out the flames. He felt the heat each time his foot struck the ground, but he persevered. Once the flames were out, the grass had turned a dark brown, a few patches here and there exposed dirt and burnt plants.

Mat straightened, gathering himself from his near-death experience. He lifted a delicate hand and touched the top of his head, checking that his hair was alright. Then, he slowly rotated around to face where the flaming ball had come from.

Now, Mathieu's temper is well-known throughout the camp. Sometimes the littlest things set him off on his bad days, but on his good days he was pretty in control of his emotions. Today his life was threatened. There was no doubt that inside his anger was beginning to churn. His face was getting hot, and his jaw became tense. When he was angry, he lashed out. It probably isn't the best idea, considering Mathieu is not exactly powerful when it comes to demigods. But, nevertheless, he can't control himself sometimes. This time was different. Mathieu was aware that whatever was producing fireballs that could easily bring him down in flames shouldn't be messed with by someone without offensive powers. Mat was smart. He did indeed have a power, and he knew exactly how to use it to his advantage.

Upon hearing the newcomer speak, he found himself beginning to seethe. The voice was more than annoying to him. In reality, it probably wasn't, but his perspective was being skewed. He took a step out from under the tree, getting a closer look at this girl. She had dark hair, and dark eyes, from what he could see. The sun was setting and cast a golden glow over most everything, but in regular daylight her skin might've been a tanned hue. He found himself annoyed by every aspect of this girl. Why did she have to have come here of all places?

"Quite," Mat responded, shortly. It was a struggle to keep any hint of anger out of his voice, but he managed. "I'm sure it wasn't you. After all," he spread his arms and turned a little, motioning to the area around the lake, "there are so many other people here."