Hey all :D

I wanted to try a little one-shot for Reyna and Octavian ^^ I really like Octavian, but in this he'll seem...jerkish? A ass? Yeah, that works ^^

It'll be in Reyna's POV, so enjoy ^^

Alone?

Reyna POV:

Reyna looked at the group of demigods and legacies before her, they're faces downcast, their moods dimmed like the lights of this hotel. All were tired from the long trip from New Rome to New York, all were angry, agitated, and annoyed, and all were wondering: Wheres the enemy? Octavian, the weasel he was, had been consulting the auguries endlessly, but the camp was still hidden from his view.

Reyna knew; she knew exactly where Half-Blood Hill was, what roads to take, where to turn; she knew exactly where to strike. Thanks to her and Annabeths fleeting friendship, the blonde had given her the route in detail as to where to find them. She could tell them, tell them where the enemy was, tell them where they could set up to attack without being noticed, tell them how to strike for the best effect. But she didn't.

She had made a promise to Annabeth- to the whole crew of the Argo ll, that she would hold off the Romans for as long as possible. She had botched the directions, she had gotten them lost several times, and now she was keeping the crucial information of where the camp was from them. She hated seeing her soldiers like this; some were depressed, and some had even decided to leave the legion because of the hidden camp.

Because of her.

She felt guilty; so guilty that she just wanted to ball up and cry like she had been wanting to for the past few months. Ever since Jason left, ever since Percy rejected her, and, more recently, ever since she found out that Jason had moved on, for some Aphrodite girl who spoke with magic. Ever since not one, but two praetors had left her with a job for two and an annoying augury. She should have hated them all, should have led her army without hesitation to destroy the enemy, the Greeks. That would have made Octavian get off her case, would have given her more respect among her brethren, but no. Here she sat, alone in her makeshift praetor chair with an empty one beside her that seemed to mock her own title, debating on whether or not to tell her legion that the enemy camp was only a few miles away from their current location.

Before she could make up her mind, she saw her comrades shifting, parting their ways. Here came the thorn in her side, the bane of her existence with his pale yellow hair and sunken face. His pale blue eyes were no longer hungry for blood; they seem satisfied, as if they had finally feasted and were now filled. Reyna absently thought that he looked more like a lone wolf then ever as her face hardened and she straightened in her chair, waving a hand to silence the buzzing soldiers.

"Romans!" He called, stopping in the middle of the room and standing on a tall table, hands in the air like a squawking bird. He was dressed in a white t-shirt and baggy jeans, three teddy bears on his belt. Over his clothes was a white toga, held by a clip that Reyna could just barely make out; bow and arrow crossed over with a scroll in the middle, the sign of Apollo. Reyna's only close comrades and confidants two dogs named Argetum and Aurum, stood at attention, watching the augury with their murderous ruby eyes as he called the Romans to attention;

"I bring you great news! Now, some of you have heard of the three deserters, yes?" Octavian asked, getting a few nods and boos from the Romans. Reyna's hands tightened on her make-shift chair; what business did he have, bringing up those traitors? How dare he talk of their disgrace with such light in his eyes, as if leaving New Rome were a joke. Reyna hid a snarl, leaning back in her chair and waited.

"Well, let me tell you, they are not the traitorous scum you have all been led to believe." Led to believe? What did he mean by that? Reyna wisely kept quiet, knowing that Octavian was of the scheming sort and had probably cooked up some crack-pot idea while being alone in his lodging, chopping up teddy bears.

"You see, many nights ago me and our honored praetor, Reyna, had a discussion." All eyes landed on her, and Reyna had to keep from visibly sinking back into her chair. Their gazes were unnerves and among them some where hopeful, some angry, and others purely spiteful. Instead of shrinking back, she squared her shoulders with a grim line on her face, watching Octavian with murderous eyes like her two dogs, "We decided that in order to find the enemy, and not rile up the troops, we selected three people, whom we trusted greatly, to go and scout for us."

Reyna would have let herself pale if it hadn't been for the eyes on her. If Octavian was suggesting what she thought he was...

"Marissa, Alexander, Eric, please enter." Octavian waved his arm towards a door and the three deserters- one girl and two boys, entered. The reception they got was not a kind one. The room erupted in jeers and taunts, hate callings and insults. Octavian tried to silence them, and Reyna had to smile slightly; his plan might not have been working as well as he thought it would. She lifted a hand to silence her soldiers with a sigh, annoyed. She knew if she didn't that it would probably come back to bite her in the ass.

"Let him finish." She stated with vice, glaring at Octavian. The weasel cleared his throat, giving her a sinister grin before speaking again:

"Yes, I understand that their presence is not welcome but please listen. When myself and Reyna talked, Reyna had decided that it would be prudent to send three scouts under the vise of deserters to find the enemies. Thankfully, it worked, and we have now secured the whereabouts of the Greeks!" The room went quiet, and this time Reyna did pale as every eye turned towards her, filled with reverence and awe, but Reyna didn't like it. She felt more alone now then ever, felt the sharp pain of being the ony leader when there should be two as she tried to sum up the courage to speak.

Octavian had gone behind her back, sending three scouts to go find the camp without her consent. She could feel her throat close, her eyes wide. She knew she couldn't disprove him- if she spoke out, it might have labeled Octavian as a liar, but it would also show that she didn't have control over her troops and that her leadership was easily swayed. If she let it pass, she might have their support and awe, but if anything went wrong it would rest completely on her shoulders. Octavian had put her in between a rock and a hard place, while he himself just stood to the side, free of any responsibility. Argetum and Aurum growled at her sides, ready to tear out his lying hide, but she held her hand for them to settle.

She glared at Octavian, and he glared at her, like he was waiting.

Oh.

Reyna stood with a fierce look in her eyes that a few of the Romans close to her shrank back a little, and she cleared her throat.

"I am glad that the party has succeed. Let us welcome back the three scouts with a feast proper, and then we plan for war." A cheer went up as the whole room erupted into blissful chaos and gathered around the three, who were beaming. Reyna sent a look around, trying to locate Octavian and give him a good verbal slap across the face when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"We need to talk." Octavian stated simply before walking away and gesturing for her to follow.

"That was," Reyna started, arms crossed as she walked back and forth in Octavians room, not taking in the calm cream curtains or the plush green carpet under her bare feet, " the most, " She stopped moving and faced Octavian, who was smugly sitting at the foot of his bed and watching her with amusement. His eyes and smile only infuriated her more, and she reached for the sword that wasn't there, "infuriating, uncalled for piece of bullshit that I have ever heard! What were you thinking, sending out scouts behind my back? How dare you, Octavian!" She wanted to slap him, cut his throat, take his head between her hands and crush it, but she settled for giving him her best and well-practiced instant-death glare. He laughed at her, standing up with his hands behind his head, staring at her as if she were the most amusing thing in the room.

"I was thinking of giving them hope, Reyna. They were flogging, thinking we were on a wild goose chase and loosing hope of ever getting back their honor. I decided to take matters into my own hands. Would you have sent out a scouting party if given the option? Sure, I went across your back and lied a little, but aren't you glad? Your troops are happy now. To them, you have done well, Reyna. You should be thanking me."

Inside, she knew he was right; she knew, if given the choice, she wouldn't have sent out a private party. She would have lost more men for real instead of just a set-up, but she was still angry as ever. And she would not be thanking him for giving her false honor.

"Why didn't you just stick to your auguries? Were the Gods hiding their will from you?" She shouted instead. His amused smile faded, and Reyna knew she had hit a soft spot; Octavian hated anybody dissing his abilities, and she had done just that and felt proud of it. He let his hands drop, and Reyna could see the muscles in his arms tightening as his hands balled into fists.

"A strong magical barrier hid the camp from my sights, but not from the sights of three half-bloods. I did what needed to be done, Reyna. Can't you see that?" He demanded, walking up to her til they were a few inches apart. He stood a good 5 inches taller then her, and his breath, she noted, smelled slightly like peppermint. She ignored this and glared up at him, poking him in the chest, "It doesn't matter! You went behind my back! If word got out that it was all a front, I'll be to blame. I'll be the one who failed and be labeled a liar. You ass, you knew this would happen, you planned it out so that it would all fall on my shoulders alone!"

It wouldn't be all on my shoulders, She thought with disgust, If Jason and Percy hadn't left me in the dust.

Octavian leaned close, and for a dreadful moment she thought he was going to kiss her. Instead, he got closer until his was whispering in her ear;

"You don't have to be alone, you know." He said quietly before pulling away. Reyna growled with disgust and turned to leave the room, done with him and his schemes. She wanted to go set it straight, tell them it hadn't been her idea, but it was too late: she had confirmed Octavian, and now anything said would cause her to loose the trust of the people she cared about the most. To her surprise, Octavian gripped her wrist to stop her. For a moment, they were still as Reyna turned to look at Octavian with fierce eyes. He seemed confused and a bit surprised himself, until he seemed to decide for himself what he was doing.

Quickly, he pulled her closer and leaned in, giving her a kiss before letting her go and leaving the room before she could process what had just happened.

Now she stood alone in his room, trying to decide what to do as she wrapped her arms around herself, feeling a cold breeze filter through the room, trying to decide what to think. Thoughts of Octavian kissing, her, tricking the legion and laying everything down on her, of being left alone to run two spots filled her as she felt herself sit down on the floor, crawling into the fetal position. She should have left his room immediately, should have slapped him, retaliated, anything. But she couldn't bring herself to move as she laid on his floor, squeezing her eyes closed as tears threatened to trickle down her face.

Dammit Jason, Percy. Why did you leave me all alone? Why did you leave the fate of New Rome on my shoulders? Don't you care what happens to them, to Camp Half-blood, to me? Bitter thoughts ran through her mind as she decided to glare at the floor, until one thought surfaced;

You don't have to be alone, you know. Octavians words whispered to her, suggesting a multitude of things, some she would have never considered until now. Slowly, she picked herself off the floor, standing and straightening her jeans, her shirt, her praetors robe. She dried her eyes, face set in a grim line as she made her way to the door, hearing the celebration of a successful scouting go under way. She must have been out longer then she had thought.

When she stepped out of the room and headed towards the gathering hall, a few Romans smiled at her and congratulated her. It was all she could do not to break down in tears over a victory not hers as she finally pushed open the doors into the gathering hall.

Her eyes sought out Octavians until they found his thin, sickly form, silently watching the celebration in a corner. He noticed her, and a small smile replaced his frown, his eyes light.

Not Alone. A voice seemed to whisper in her as she stood, arms crossed as the Romans noticed her, cheering her as their leader, their downcast faces and dimmed moods changed into those of happiness and gladness. She would have been happy too, if it hadn't been for the fact that their happiness meant destruction, and their praise falsely given. Somebody started clapping, and soon the whole room was filled with it. She nodded at them all, and soon they went back to their own chattering. Nobody seemed to notice her red and puffy eyes or her defeated expression.

She looked for Octavian, and she caught his gaze again. It was soft, happy as if to say 'You see? They're happy. Good job' She scowled slightly.

They were happy based off a lie, they were excited because of trickery. And for a moment Reyna wished they would go back to their old, depressed ways.

At least she wouldn't be feeling as guilty, even more so then when she had been withholding the truth, then she did now.

That was fun to write :D How do you think I did Reyna? Poorly? Good? And what of Octavian?

If you want me to continue, then go ahead and leave a comment. If I do continue, I'll make sure Octavians true colors shine ^^