Sorry for the delay. I go caught up in other things (like an existing social life with more than my parents). But, here's the next chapter. And I do have an idea of how the next chapter will start. Hope you like.

Deciding

"Okay, ingrates," Clarisse yelled over the din of her siblings. "Elder Stoll is in charge until I get back, so listen to him."

Her siblings chuckled looking at Travis. Clarisse had assigned him a bed for the nights that he would be over-seeing her siblings. He had simply grabbed a book as really lights out was in a few minutes and Chris and Clarisse had gotten permission from Chiron to visit the city for the night.

"Anyone that doesn't listen to him will answer me tomorrow," Clarisse said. There was more chuckling.

"Or worse, become the new subject of my pranking," Travis said. That apparently scared most campers than having to face Clarisse because they all stopped chuckling and a few became pale.

"Don't you have your own cabin to boss around?" one kid asked as soon as Clarisse was gone.

"Oh, Connor is able to control them much better than I can," Travis said, lifting his book. "Now, do whatever it is you normally do."

After a few moments, one girl sat on the end of Travis's bed, smiling at him. He noticed her and lowered his book. "Can I help you?" he asked.

"I want to know about you and Katie," she said. "I think it's just swell how you've fallen for her."

"We keep telling her it's a spell, but she doesn't believe us," one of her brothers said.

"It's not a spell," Travis said, looking out a window. It had a much better view of the Demeter cabin than his own cabin did. A few of the windows were open and apparently Mimis was leaning out one, kissing her Apollo-son boyfriend. Miranda and Omer were talking and Katie was on her bed, already in her flannel pajamas, brushing her long brown hair out.

"I told you," the girl said sticking her tongue out at her brother. She then turned back to Travis with a big smile. "Tell me how it happened."

"How what happened?" Travis asked.

"How you fell in love with her," the girl said.

Travis just shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I've always loved her," he admitted.

"Oh, that's so sweet!" the girl said.

"Yeah, real sweet how he tortured her for years," another said.

"Hey, I had to get her attention somehow," Travis said.

"Wait, does that mean that your brother has loved her for years too?" someone asked.

"Excuse me?" Travis asked.

"Well, it wasn't just you pranking her," the girl said. "It was you and Connor. If he liked someone else, wouldn't he have tried to get her attention?"

Travis blinked a few times, and then turned to look at the Demeter cabin again. He wondered, if it was possible, that Connor had been in love with Katie as long as he had. And if so, who loved her more.

"Are your eyes still closed?" Connor asked Katie as he led her to his latest surprise date.

"Connor, your hands are over my eyes," Katie said. "Even if they were open, I wouldn't be able to see."

"Ah, that is true," Connor said. "Okay, ready?" He sounded very excited and pleased with himself.

"I still don't see why I needed to be blind-folded," Katie said.

"Ta da!" Connor announced, removing his hands from her eyes. They were at the edge of the lake, and there was a rowboat tied to the dock with a rose on the bench.

"You're taking me out in a rowboat?" Katie asked. She eyed him for a moment.

"Indeed, I am," Connor said. He smiled widely. Katie suddenly understood his secret conversation with Mimis. She had wanted to go on a boat for a while now. Granted, she had been more thinking speed boat or a small sailboat, or maybe even a yacht. This wasn't exactly meeting her expectations.

"Come, come, come," Connor said, ushering her down the dock. "This will be the ride of a lifetime."

"Um, Connor, when Mimis told you I wanted to go on a boat ride, this isn't exactly what I had in mind," Katie said.

"Wait, Mimis told you?" Connor asked his blue eyes wide.

Katie shook her head. "I saw you two talking earlier," Katie said. "Bringing me to the lake was kind of a giveaway as to what she told you."

Connor sighed. "So, a romantic rowboat excursion is a negative?" Connor asked, truly down that he wouldn't be able to 'wow' Katie for once.

"I mean, I have nothing against rowboats, but I also have a sparring lesson tonight that I have to prepare for," Katie explained. She shrugged. "So, maybe next time."

"Next time I will have an entire fleet of boats for you to choose from," Connor said, his hands over his heart.

Katie chuckled. "Don't steal any boats, Connor."

"Ah, it's called commandeering," Connor said. "So, steal, I will not."

"No commandeering either," Katie said.

"Then I will have a fun time conning and blackmailing captains of a lot of boats," Connor said. "You will not be disappointed." Katie just shook her head as she walked away.

Katie's sword dropped to the ground. Travis stared at it for a moment, before looking up at Katie. "Come on, Katie, I know you're better than that."

"What makes you so sure?" Katie asked, bending forward to pick up the fallen sword.

"Because I've seen you fight before," Travis said. "In real battle. In Manhattan. If you had fought like that then... well..." He didn't want to say it. He wouldn't imply that she could have easily been killed with the fighting skills she was showing. "You're not even trying."

"I am," Katie said. "I'm just not-" She stopped when Travis came at her without warning, sword swinging. By instinct, whether it was forgotten or just natural, she lifted her sword to defend herself, deflecting several of Travis's moves before he stopped. "What the Hades, Travis!"

"See what you just did?" Travis asked. Katie, who was getting mad, suddenly realized that she had, effectively, blocked Travis. "You're not good in practice, but when you're acting by instinct, you do well enough."

"So, I'm actually doing pretty good?" Katie asked.

"I might not go that far," Travis said, looking away from Katie's eyes. "I mean, I was still going easy on you."

"Travis," Katie pouted. Travis looked at her and smiled a bit. But he went to the topic at hand again.

"Now you have to learn how to do that during practice and sparring matches," Travis said. "That is, if you ever want to be allowed to go on a quest."

Katie stared at Travis. It was every camper's wish to be picked for a quest. But they were dangerous, so one had to be efficient at several things before allowed to go, unless they were chosen by the oracle. "You do want to be able to go on a quest eventually, right?"

"I do," Katie confirmed.

"So, we know that you have the skill," Travis said. "And the instinct. Now, we just have to figure out how to show that you do when you are supposed to display your skills in practice."

Katie looked down. "That, I don't know," she said.

Travis took a couple of steps closer. He touched her chin and turned her head up to look at him. "Don't look so sad, Katie," he said softly, rubbing his thumb across her cheek. "We will figure something out, I promise. It just might take a little time." He then leaned forward and lightly pressed his lips to hers.

"You're supposed to be sparring with your swords," Clarisse said, having entered the arena with a few new campers that needed their first 'sparring lesson.' Clarisse usually scared them shitless by nearly slicing off their heads, stopping so the sword was just lightly pressing against their necks. Katie remembered that first hand. "Not your tongues." She placed her hands on her hips. "I could always assign you a different partner."

"We're working on the reward system," Travis said as Katie blushed furiously. "She does well, I give her a reward."

"She must be getting worse then," Clarisse said. At that, Travis just laughed.

"Oh, believe me, I know you don't like Chris for his sparkling personality," he said, causing Clarisse's cheeks to get a little pink. "I'm guessing certain skills just run in the family."

"Oh, can he be my sparring teacher?" One twelve-year-old asked, smiling.

"Trust me, you do not want him focusing any of his energy on you," Clarisse said. She then gave a glare at Travis and Katie. "You can 'reward' her or molest her all you like after the lesson or I'm giving her a new partner. Like younger Stoll."

"Gotcha," Travis said, taking a good step away from Katie, who was so mortified that she couldn't move.

"You know, eventually you have to choose one of them," Mimis said to Katie. Mimis had a pseudo date with her Apollo son boyfriend that night, and she had kidnapped Katie to help her. Therefore, Katie was stuck brushing Mimis's hair out while the girl applied some make-up.

"It's not easy," Katie said.

"Yeah, well, the end of summer dance in only a week away, and then, two days later, you leave for Hicksville," Mimis said. "That's, like, nine days. You have to either choose one or, well, you know."

Katie's shoulders slumped. She hadn't even realized how late in the summer it was. Then again, maybe it wasn't fair to either of them if she did choose one. It would only break a heart. As it was, she was just over a week away from leaving for a whole school year. She already knew that she wouldn't be back over the winter break, as some half-bloods took their break at the camp; Katie would be in Hawaii for her break at a pineapple farm. To choose one only to then be gone for almost ten months would just be cruel.

"You can stop brushing my hair now," Mimis broke through Katie's thoughts.

"Oh, sorry," Katie said, handing the brush back to her half sister.

"So, any idea who you'll go to the dance with?" Mimis asked. "And how you'll let the other down?"

Katie's mouth became a thin line. "Well, one idea," she said. But she didn't like it.

"I am sorry to hear that, Katie," Chiron said. Katie had just gotten off the phone with her father.

"Thank you for allowing me to use the phone, Chiron," she said with a quick nod. "I'll be out of your hair now."

With that, she left his office, then the Big House. She made her way quickly through the camp to her cabin. She knew where each of the Stoll brothers were, so she easily avoided them.

She then sat on her bed, quickly writing out a letter, addressing it to both Travis and Connor. And then she packed all her belongings. She knew it was the only fair choice. She couldn't decide who to pick, and she didn't want them both to wait for her and pass a better opportunity.

Remember to review. Also, if you like romances and action and Original Characters, check out Touched By Love. Thanks!