The First Attempt of Stealing. Ever. ((Johnnyboy))

Parker couldn’t sleep. She was itching to do something she always wanted to do, badly. And that was stealing. Sadly, there’s nothing worth to steal around these parts. What she meant was the Camp: it was free from anything expensive. She glanced at the Aphrodite cabin for a while; most of their merchandise were knock-offs. And even though they have the real deal, they would guard it with their lives. It was not an option whatsoever. The daughter of Dionysus accidentally touched one of their Armani wristwatch once (not even stealing it; just brushing her fingers so she could authenticate the stuff) and the son of Aphrodite glared her like she just commit a mass murder. Thank goodness she could glare back, and that the boy was not as scary as Ares kids. The second option she had was the Hermes kids. Parker didn’t know how, but they always have the best goods at Camp. Whether it’s just a plain alcoholic drink or anything that would be considered as a guilty pleasure, they would have it. At a reasonable price for the seller, of course. Drachmas or real mortal money, they accept all. However, sometimes they sell knock-offs too. So the choices were not that great. At least, that’s on Parker’s opinion.

So, since she couldn’t even closer her eyes, the blonde girl groaned and kicked her blankets elsewhere, abruptly standing up and paced back and forth, trying to find what she could do to calm her down. Then she decided to ignore Archie’s warning. She would steal tonight, no matter what. Changing to her stealth attire (black on black), the daughter of Dionysus tiptoed outside, trying to catch her surroundings. Since she was a trained thief, Parker could sense even the tiniest movement. That’s how Archie taught her after all; to be careful even though the scenery might seem calm. So as soon as she heard a rustle, Parker slipped to the darkness. She realized that it was a harpie, doing her night rounds. Parker hated those bird-women. They were gnarly in every way, even worse than the beauty goddess’ children, even though she hated them too. Gritting her teeth, she quickly ran towards the nearest cabin that was not guarded so tight. Looking up, she realized that it was Apollo’s cabin.

Now, this brought her some memories. Not the cabin itself, but someone inside. “Johnny.” She whispered his name, but she quickly shook her head afterwards. Why would she even remembered him so vividly? Oh yeah. He was the one person that would help her look around. Besides Rose, it was the only encounter Parker had. She blinked absent-mindedly, but when she heard the harpies getting closer (finally catching up that someone was not in her bed), the blonde girl didn’t think anymore. She opened the cabin’s door slightly, moved in, and closed it without any sound. She ducked when the harpies walked in front of the cabin, their hissed voice echoed at the door. Parker shuddered. She couldn’t afford to get caught. Not only that she didn’t want to be bird’s chow, it would be pretty embarrassing for thief extraordinaire to be caught in action. She adjusted her black tight cap before standing up, seeing that the coast was clear. She was about to go out again when she spotted something shiny.

It was a ring unlike any other. With her mouth wide open, Parker slowly walked to that jewelry, admiring how it glistened in the moonlight. Parker always loved shiny stuff. That, and money. But since she can’t steal them here without getting caught, mostly because demigods didn’t have many cash on them. But as for this… Now Parker’s sense was tingling badly. She slowly picked it up, her mouth formed a wicked smile as she examined the object with sparkling eyes, only to be startled by someone’s movement afterwards. Looking to the nearest bed, he eyes suddenly shot fear. It was Johnny. When she supposed he was glaring at her, all Parker could do was giving away a sheepish grin.

“Hey.” She whispered. “Sup?”

Johnnyboy lay in his bunk; eyes wide open, watching a fly zoom around in the air above him. He found himself quite busy during the day, and night was a time when he would lie in his bunk and think about random things in detail. Most people would scoff, a gang member thinking? In what universe? But it relaxed the boy, especially in nights where he was apprehensive and on edge, never able to sleep. This happened quite a lot nowadays. The boy hadn’t spent nearly enough time with his gang as he wanted to; he could feel himself being separated more and more often. When was the last time he’d sparred with Meatcleaver, or maybe had an actual conversation with his sister? When was the last time he’d even seen Clove? Much too long ago, he knew, was the answer to all three. Shifting slightly, Johnny considered what had replaced quality time with his closest friends. Forming a reputation. Finding some new allies, or sources. Greeting people and being smiles and oozing friendliness. All fine, but nothing could quite compare to the happiness he felt on the streets of New York. So, sitting up, Johnny gave up on the idea of sleep. Once he got to thinking about Manhattan, or Cleaver and Glam for that matter, he knew he’d be up for the night.

Resting his back on the wall, Johnny heard the bunk above him shift slightly, probably as Glam rolled in her sleep. How could it be that she was right there, yet so far away? Running a hand through his hair in frustration, Johnny decided he needed a distraction. Something to distract him from these pensive thoughts, from the silence, and from the dark cabin. He didn’t get up, however, not wanting to rouse any of the other inhabitants (he wasn’t ready to call them siblings yet), or the harpies on patrol. Instead, he glanced quickly at his spear, leaning against the bed frame, and sent another glance to his ring. It wasn’t super important to him, but still. It’d been a gift from Apollo, and its magical properties still amazed Johnnyboy. He wouldn’t let it too far. Resting back against the wall, Johnny closed his eyes again. Perhaps he gave up on sleep, but rest was just fine. And the boy had a high tolerance for staying awake. He’d done it for days before, and coming to this strange camp would not change that. Not at all.

But when he heard the door creak open, his eyes were opened quickly again. He made sure to stay absolutely still, however. Most likely someone who’d gone for a walk, and come back now. But the way they’d come in, the way they were moving…suggested otherwise. Johnny considered getting up then, but found he was comfortable enough to just watch. When the door opened, a brief gust of wind broke through, chilling Johnny slightly. The boy was in his pajamas, an idea he’d found different. Wearing clothes to sleep different from what you wore normally. Living on the streets, Johnny could see why. So, maybe wearing shorts and a tank was not the best clothing for wind, and Johnny considered then getting up to investigate. But he was curious, and wanted to see what this person was doing here.

They came closer, but Johnny couldn’t see their face. He noted the black clothing, and began to guess what they were doing here. But when they picked up his ring (his ring!), Johnny knew there was only one person this could be. “Parker,” Johnny stated in a low voice, to avoid waking anyone up. He’d met the girl briefly, on her first day here. After saying goodbye to her briefly after her claiming, Johnny had let the idea slip his mind. He hadn’t seen Parker since, nor had he gone looking. Remembering he had told her not to steal from him, Johnny wasn’t surprised she’d ignored that. Coming back to the present, he glared at her as he watched her picking up and examining his ring. She must have noticed, and was probably attempting to act nonchalant. Well.

Getting up slowly, Johnny made his way over to the girl. He stood a good half a foot taller than her, probably more. And he glared at her to show he was not cool with this. “Hey,” he said darkly, just to humor her. Then, without another word, and without asking, Johnny swiftly removed the ring from Parker’s grasp. “Next time, listen to my warning,” Johnny glowered at her, turning the ring over in his palm. It looked fine; Parker hadn't done anything to it. To prevent her from taking it again, Johnny slipped it on, to the middle finger of his left hand. If he was Cleaver, Johnny could imagine he’d have tried to strangle her already. Or maybe shoot her, if he was Glam. But Johnny only really liked violence in movies, or when he wasn’t the one doing it. So he settled for not hitting Parker, or anything similar.

And since he was already being nice enough, Johnny decided to keep going. “So, what’re you doing?” he whispered back, looking down at her. “Lose a piece of jewelry, perhaps?” he smirked at her. He didn’t honestly mind how she saw him; her problem if she decided to come traipsing into the Apollo cabin at night. “Or maybe you just couldn’t wait to see me again?” Johnny probed. He twisted his ring around on his finger, to make sure she didn’t attempt to steal it again, and to have something to do. And now that that was secure, Johnny didn’t mind having a bit of fun. Maybe this could turn out better than sleep, after all. And maybe something interesting could come out of this. His adoptive mother had always told him not to play with his food. Oops.

Continuing from her subtle greeting, Parker cocked her eyebrows innocently. She wasn’t planning to get caught, but Johnny seemed to have a certain… aura. An aura that she missed completely. For a son of Apollo, he was quite glum. And quiet. But maybe he just inherit his father’s coolness rather that hip. “What warning?” She tried to play innocent, but evidently failed of course. With the ring still in her hand, she bit her lips and sighed. “Don’t tell anyone, please.” Then Parker shocked by her own words. She never asked for help before, or plead. Ever. Apparently, her pride of stealing without getting caught was much bigger than her vow of not pleading for any kind of help. Gulping, the daughter of Dionysus paused for a bit, waiting for Johnny answer.

But instead, the son of Apollo picked his ring back and played it on his fingers as he asked Parker what she was doing there in the first place. The blonde girl’s eyes followed the jewelry’s every move, a small whimper escaped her lips when it moved in front of her, her tiny hands clenched in a fist so she could suppress the urge to catch it. It’s been a while since she saw anything shiny. Parker’s own cabin only filled with grapes and boring stuff. Even practicing her lockpicking trick wouldn’t do any good now, and that’s why she chose to break Archie’s rule. But even that didn’t end very well. “Um, no. I’m just… bored.” But her expression changed to a frowny face after Johnny said his next sentence. “Now why would I see you?” She asked that purely out of curiosity, just because she didn’t have any reason to see him in the first place. While everybody might missed people they talked to, Parker never felt that way. No one ever taught her to be that way, and Archie didn’t pay attention hard enough to tell her how to feel correctly. “I mean, why would I want to be here, at this hour, just to meet you? I was bored. And…” Then she eyed the ring again, biting her lips in frustration. “Oh can I just hold it? For a little while?” She begged with a pleading tone yet again, unaware that she was doing it completely.

((I couldn’t help putting the Gollum reference in there, sorry))

Johnnyboy continued to play with his ring, twisting it around his finger. It had become a habit, and it was entertaining to watch Parker’s eyes follow the ring’s motions. It reminded Johnny briefly of a movie he had seen a while ago: Lord of the Rings. Parker reminded him much in attitude of the one creature obsessed by the ring. And Johnny was going to milk it, for all it was worth. But he didn’t have particularly high hopes. Camp bored the boy; he didn’t find many opportunities to have real fun anymore. And when he did, he didn’t take it seriously. Figured.

Raising an eyebrow at Parker’s oh-so-innocent question, Johnny kept his poker face on. Whether she remembered it or not, the fact that people didn’t take Johnnyboy seriously was always annoying to him. And if she remembered, that’s why he became slightly hostile during their last meeting. So he decided to keep his cool this time. And watching Parker flounder, he decided it wouldn’t be a problem. “Consider this strike two then,” Johnny replied smoothly. He decided to just keep what happened after strike three open; the boy liked to improvise at times. And then she asked him not to tell anyone. “Wow, with a please and everything?” Johnny poked. Of course he wouldn’t tell people. This wasn’t exactly brag worthy, now was it? At least, not right now.

Shrugging at the next part, Johnnyboy opted not to answer. He hadn’t meant anything in particular; he hadn’t been saying anything specific the whole time. Just simple prodding. The boy hadn’t done something mean or cruel in weeks, and he felt like he was getting out of practice. But since Parker was embarrassed enough, or at least desperate enough to ask for the ring, Johnny decided he was fine. Besides, the fact that she asked for the ring was enough to keep him entertained. Johnny pretended to consider it for a minute, pausing in his ring twisting. Her pleading tone was entertaining. “Hm, this one?” Johnny asked. He pulled the ring off his finger, and held it up.

“I don’t think so, sorry,” Johnny replied swiftly, keeping his tone as neutral as he could. He let her see it for a bit, held it slightly closer to her…then pulled it back onto his finger. Not creative in the slightest, but Johnny was starting to get bored again…playing keep away was a trivial matter, especially when it was between two people. Johnny debated just leaving her standing there, and going to bed. He wasn’t in the mood to play anymore.

((Yikes, quality inspection needed >.<))

Now Johnny was just teasing her. Parker’s feet fidgeted vigorously, eyes twitching even though it was dark and Johnny probably couldn’t even see it. But she, the one that experienced it, was frustrated completely. She wanted that shiny thing in her hand, now. Call it crazy, but that was how Parker functioned. Every time she saw something gleaming, and she knew it was expensive or vintage, she would want to have her lanky, thin fingers on them. That’s why Charlie never ask her to accompany him while scouting potentials inside a jewelry exhibition or a store. She almost swiped the entire store once, leaving his trainer in shock.

The son of Apollo was toying with her feelings, which something Parker didn’t like, period. When someone behave like this towards her, usually they ended up with broken fingers or internal bleeding. Despite her petite body, Parker was quite strong thanks to her gymnastics skill. She liked to target fingers because it’s easier to reach and inflicts lots of damage. And now she was eyeing at Johnny’s lean fingers, her craziness started to eat the best of her and replaced her subtle face with a dark, sweet smile.

Thank goodness it was dark, otherwise anyone would’ve scamper in fear. Her sadistic nature emerged, imagining how to snap those beautiful, shaded fingers into pieces. But then, a face of Archie in her mind save her. Control yourself. The senior thief used to say that while stroking her neck, the only body contact she ever allowed. So in the end, the daughter of Dionysus looked down before looking away, crossing her hands. “Then keep it.” She said, rather coldly. “I could search for other options, anyway.” She sighed, started to walk on the front door. However, she hissed and stepback when she heard flapping of wings, unnatural ones. So the creatures were still outside. “When would they leave?” She whispered, ducking down, eyes shot at Johnnyboy as she pleaded for help.

((Sorry for the late reply and crappy post))

Johnnyboy watched Parker’s reaction, to see how she took all of this. Some campers, he knew, would be too timid or scared to really do anything. Parker most definitely was not one of those. Just the fact she was in the Apollo cabin confirmed that (and at this point, Johnny was just waiting for her to leave). The boy kept his eyes on her face, searching for any emotions. And Johnnyboy could safely say he did not like that smile she was wearing right now. Maybe it was the fact it was dark, or he didn’t know her well enough, but Johnny had no idea what she was planning. He followed her gaze down to his fingers, where he was still fingering the ring, and then looked back up again. No. She wouldn’t even try that, would she?

The boy scowled slightly. “Don’t,” he said simply. He didn’t care who she was or what type of training she received; if she tried to steal his ring or hurt him he was gonna hurt her. He knew he wasn’t the one in the gang who resorted to violence straight away. But when it came time to hurt someone, Johnny wasn’t very sorry to say he lost any morals he held in regard before. Parker hadn’t done anything yet, and the entire Apollo cabin was still sleeping, so Johnny just stayed with a scowl on his face. He listened to her last phrases, raising an eyebrow at her first comment. “Oh yes, thank you for your kind generosity on letting me keep my own gift,” Johnny replied back, just as coldly. Why couldn’t he have a civil conversation with this girl? He’d tried twice already, hadn’t he? But, just like the other time, Johnny found himself giving up on being nice. He just couldn’t, not around this girl.

“Other options?” Johnny repeated. “Who you gonna try and steal from next, hm, my sister? She won’t hesitate to hurt you,” Johnny responded, crossing his arms. “An Aphrodite kid, maybe, who would kill to keep their jewelry?” Parker didn’t respond, instead turning back to the door. The harpies still flying around stopped her. Johnny watched her attempts to leave, giving the slightest shrug at her question. He didn’t move, until she shot him that eye-pleading look again, at which he slowly walked over to peek out the window. One of the harpies stopped to look at him, but must have decided he belonged in the cabin before looking away again. “Guess the great thief isn’t so great after all, huh?” Johnny asked, without looking back at Parker. He turned back, and went to sit on his bunk. “Well, I’m not the one marooned in someone else’s cabin. Good luck getting past the harpies,” Johnny continued. He stayed in a sitting position, but resumed leaning against the wall while sitting on the bunk bed. He could deal with watching Parker try and leave; he wasn’t feeling particularly helpful right now.

Parker’s eyes twitched as she ducked down under the window to avoid the harpies, glaring at Johnny with utmost disgust. Great. That one time she needed someone to help her, the other decided to just watch and possibly laugh inside. The feeling was rather unnerving. When he snapped about maybe stealing other belongings, she sighed. “I think that would be stupid, since you already know what I’m doing.” She mumbled, rolling her eyes though it wasn’t really visible unless she stepped forwards and got shades of moonlight on her face. The Aphrodite comment seemed tempting, but she couldn’t even get out of the flippin’ cabin. What should she do now?

Archie would tell her that there’s several option on this case, when she got caught redhanded; punch the guy cold and run for her sake, tased them down (but sadly this option is unavailable due to the absence of her own taser. Archie had confiscated them.), or persuade. Now, that last one… The daughter of Dionysus couldn’t do it at all. At this time, she wished she’s a daughter of Hermes instead of the wine god. They could talk their way into basically anything, to anyone. They could very persuasive, challenging, perky, sometimes even flirty. But Parker’s social skill was less than zero; it was minus. She stayed quiet in public places, only talked when the situation demands it (which was very rare, according to her and Charlie), and usually communicate with her eyes rather than with her mouth. Odd, even she knew that. But that’s how she was built.

However, Johnny had challenged Parker to the next level. She couldn’t believe she was doing it, but she had literally no other choice. Walking slowly to Johnny, her expression was grim and surrendering. “Please.” Figurative acid filled her mouth, urging to come out but she held it in. “Let me stay here for the night. I can’t go out.” Turned out, her ego of not getting caught was not worth her own life. If Archie was here, he would’ve been proud, big time. Then the daughter of Dionysus said it again, the magic word, hoping that the son of Apollo would understand. It was her last hope, after all.

“Please.”

Johnnyboy lay back on his bunk, eyes trained on the girl by the window. There was a slight smirk on his face, watching Parker and her attempts to escape. And he watched as those attempts slowly fizzled into nothing. The boy didn’t make any attempt to stand up or help Parker. Johnny could be very helpful at times, and he was usually the more approachable one of the gang. But he found that any decent conversation he tried with Parker usually fizzled the same way Parker’s attempts to evade the harpies had. So, tapping his fingers on his thigh, Johnny let his mind wander again, until he heard Parker speak. “Well, you coming here was a bit stupid, so you don’t need to cross my sister off your stealing list,” Johnny replied. He closed his eyes briefly, and took some deep breaths.

The boy could vaguely hear Parker moving around, but he kept his eyes closed. Not much had been happening to Johnny lately, he’d been keeping a low profile lately. So the boy should be feeling more interested than he was now. Why was he so disinterested? The son of Apollo would usually be all over an event like this, but here he was, turning into some boring camper who didn’t want trouble. His eyes shot open with alarm at the thought, and Johnny would have straightened. If, of course, he could actually do that from the bottom bunk. Ceasing his tapping, Johnny sat in silence, waiting for Parker to speak first. And she did. Saying please, again, causing Johnny’s eyebrows to rise up, she asked him to spend the night. “Spend the night?” Johnny echoed. There was so much he could do with that. Johnny mulled some ideas over in his head, when Parker said please again. Shifting his gaze to her, the boy considered his choices. Any decent attempts at a conversation with her usually failed, and Johnnyboy could see this going the same way.

“No empty bunks, hon,” Johnny replied sarcastically, emphasizing the last word. “Not very well thought out, this whole night.” Johnnyboy chuckled quietly. He considered it a moment, before shrugging slightly. Patting the space next to him, Johnny continued. “Get on,” the boy replied curtly. He let himself sit a moment longer, before reluctantly getting up. He stretched for a moment, before scowling slightly at Parker. “Don’t let this happen again.” Without further ado, Johnny took his new position at the foot of the bunk, now leaning against the cold metal. Johnny was never, ever telling anyone about this. He was not going to let his gang think that he was going soft or something. “This remains between the two of us,” Johnny whispered to Parker. If he could see her, he’d probably add a nice glare, but since he couldn’t, he submitted the glare via tone. Waiting a moment, Johnny began to twist his ring around his finger again. The boy should probably say something. “Don’t try stealing from me again,” Johnny reiterated. He paused, and then added one more sentence. “This was a gift from my father.” First time he’d really called Apollo his father. Johnny had mixed feelings about the god, and the majority was negative. The god had never been around, had essentially abandoned Johnny. He wouldn’t take it lightly. But at the same time…there was a certain bond by blood he couldn’t deny. The same way he was tied to Glamour, he was to Apollo. Nothing he could do about that.

Parker scowled when Johnny decided to throw back her sentence. But it can’t be helped; it was like writing her own death sentence. It was stupid of her, following her desire rather than her brain. However, when he mentioned a sister, the daughter of Dionysus frowned. “Who is your sister?” But to be polite, she decided to shut up. Who knows what the son of Apollo decided to do later, if she ended up mocking the other person, which she sometimes do without knowing.

When Johnny get the message that she wanted to spend the night here, Parker nodded rapidly with hopeful eyes. Maybe there’s a chance yet, and maybe she didn’t to beg again since it was as painful as a poker to her eyes. However, the blonde girl rolled her eyes and hugged when Johnny replied sarcastically. Scanning her surroundings, she glared at him while pouting. “I can see that.” She murmured, looking at several sleeping campers nearby. Somehow, their pillow seemed inviting… Maybe Parker should snatch that instead for now…

But when Johnny suddenly patted the space beside him, Parker’s pupils dilated. What, he wanted her to sleep with him? Her natural instincts quickly shot up as her body tensed quickly, but when he climbed down… She realized what he was doing. Did johnny really gave up his bed for Parker? Before she could say anything else, the exceptional son of Apollo threatened her not to talk with anybody else about this. The girl couldn’t help but roll her eyes. Yeah, like she would talk about her failed attempt to steal. “I won’t.” She mumbled as she slipped out of her shoes, took off her socks and climbed up to his bed. There’s an annoying feeling blooming in her heart now… guilt. “I won’t.” Parker replied to another sentence from Johnny, that she would not steal from him ever again. So it had sentimental value. The daughter of Poseidon had no idea. She only got a biting bag from his father, and even though she adore it, Parker never really see its value. “What does it do?” She whispered back, her eyes didn’t leave the jewelry. But now she didn’t want to steal it anymore, she was just curious.

Stifling a yawn, Johnnyboy leaned back on the cold hard metal. The boy couldn’t perceive what he was doing on the floor, since when was Johnny chivalrous? Maybe he’d be nice; maybe he’d grant favors, but nothing like this. This had crossed a line of sorts for him. So Johnny distracted himself with Parker’s first question. Rolling his eyes, Johnny thought for a moment before answering. “Her name’s Glam,” Johnny replied. He used her nickname, as he was sure Glamour wouldn’t appreciate him handing out her full gang name. The son of Apollo pointed up, to indicate that she was in the top bunk. “She’s pretty awesome,” Johnny continued, sighing a little. He slouched a little more and exhaled a long breath. The boy loved his sister, he really did. He just didn’t have much to say about her. Especially to people like the daughter of Dionysus in his bunk.

Rubbing his arms slightly, Johnny shifted his position again. Maybe someone should put a request in for carpeted floors that were heated. That’d be nice. Johnny sighed again, a small sigh of satisfaction, of thinking about heated floors. The boy felt calmed down, now that he was in a more comfortable position, and it was almost easy to ignore Parker. Until she spoke again. Hiding his head in his hands, in an attempt to block out the faint light of the moon, Johnny peeked through and looked up. Resuming an almost bored position again, Johnny set his face into a hard set. “I wasn’t aware I signed up for a history lesson,” he crossly replied. The boy crossed his arms and shifted his position again. Gods, he could imagine heated floors all he wanted, but it didn’t make the situation any better. Johnnyboy wasn’t comfortable right now, physically, and mentally. He didn’t like giving out details to just anybody. But since he’d already given up his bunk, might as well tell about the ring. Unless she was planning to steal it again. Johnny just might break her hand if she tries that.

Biting his lip, Johnnyboy rubbed his head slightly, shifted his position again, and spoke. “It lights up red when monsters are nearby,” the boy lowly replied. “And it can produce sunlight, I guess.” Johnny made sure to whisper, and avoided eye contact with the girl. He began to twist his ring around his finger absentmindedly again. The boy slouched some more, thinking fleetingly about his claiming for a moment before returning to the present. Crossing his arms, Johnny tilted his head back a bit so he could see Parker. “When’d you start stealing?” he asked. More to fill the empty silence than anything. If the girl had been Hermes’ kid, Johnny wouldn’t have bothered to ask. But considering who she was…well, the boy didn’t quite understand that logic. Johnny tilted his head back forward, and closed his eyes briefly. Parker could talk now, and Johnny was fine with just listening.

Parker nodded thoughtfully when the son of Apollo mentioned his sister’s name. “Reminds me of obnoxiousness. And fashion show.” She admitted bluntly. Parker never really fond of fashion and all that jazz, mostly because the glittery fabric would set a motion detector from a mile away. The girl rolled her eyes as she shifted her body slowly, so she was laying on her front torso as she crossed her petite legs on the back of her body. Her head was near Johnny’s, forcing the daughter of Dionysus to sniff the boy’s scent. Hmm. Slightly sunburned, in her opinion. “Cool if she’s awesome.” She commented before turning around, facing the ceiling.

When Johnny sneered, the blonde huffed in exasperation, determined not to roll her eyes (mostly because she just did that) or groaned, since it would wake the whole cabin. “Just tell me.” She whispered impatiently. When the boy did, she nodded some more, slightly pursing her lips while pulling out her pocket knife. She loved how the blade glistened in the moonlight, but she only put it out for a split second. The light might distract the harpies or worst, the sleeping campers. “Sunlight and a warning device. Cool.” She muttered again, cocking her eyebrows briefly before his next question threw her off-guard. She shuffled on the blanket, but stopped when the sound was too loud. She gulped and glared at Johnny, even though he couldn’t see her. Now, in normal circumstance the daughter of Dionysus could knock the person’s cold on the ground, preferably with a taser or something heavy. But as the seconds went by, her glare got softened, and so did her body language. Johnny did help her now. The best she could do was… tell him a simple truth about her. About when she started stealing.

“When I was little.” She answered in a monotonous tone, rolling back so she could look at the ceiling again, imagining it was starry night instead of wooden one. “I start with boosting cars and little pickpocketing, but then I got caught. After I serve my time, I got back in the street. Stealing again. That’s all I ever know. Until someone helped me from the street only to teach me something more… upscale.” Parker shrugged afterwards, saying all of that like it was something usual. Which it was, for her. “I’ve stolen just about anything, really. But I rather go for something shiny.” She said the last word with a husky tone and a grin, waving her hands like a magician in the air. “So. Good enough for you? How did you get here?”

After some time of Johnnyboy’s eyes closing, colors started to swirl in the blackness. It wasn’t uncommon; the boy found it occurred a while after his eyes closed. So the boy watched (with his eyes closed?) the colors swirling and changing. The only interruption was when he cracked open an eye to tilt his head back and give Parker a warning look. Nobody calls his sister obnoxious. But besides that, Johnny had a relaxing 30 seconds before his imagination flickered and died. Crossing his arms, eyes locked on a random point of wall in front of him, Johnny continued to listen. Much easier than talking, anyway.

The boy raised an eyebrow when Parker answered his question. Honest opinion? Johnny had been expecting to get a snobby remark, perhaps a glare or eye roll. A shaky relationship at best (but he really didn’t consider Parker a friend), the last thing the son of Apollo had been expecting was her to actually talk to him. But considering the circumstance, Johnny could see why she had responded. Not having spoken yet, Johnny had just shrugged at Parker’s comment on his gift, but he spoke now. “Good enough for me,” he quietly replied. The boy gave a small sigh. He couldn’t say Parker’s way of life wasn’t relatable; on the contrary, he had done something similar. So, yeah, he could understand where she was coming from. “I would say too bad, but…” Johnny trailed off, and gave another small shrug. He paused for a moment, and then moved on.

“I walked,” he dryly remarked, when Parker asked how he had come here. Quietly exhaling through his nose quickly, Johnny didn’t speak for another moment. The boy didn’t know if he should answer, what he should answer, or how much. Finally, after some silence, Johnnyboy continued. “Used to live in New York. With my gang.” The boy stopped, and continued to twist his ring. He kept his eyes locked on the patch of wall, not caring what Parker had to say about that. She came from a shady enough background, she shouldn’t judge him. So he went on. Not mentioning any specifics (he was pretty sure one of the others would kill him if he handed out their names), so Johnny stayed vague. “We were pretty happy. Time of my life.” Another small sigh, and then Johnny shifted his position on the ground and continued. “Then suddenly, one day, one of the gang leaves. She had to come here, because she was, well…yeah. And we were alright for a while. It wasn’t the same without her, but…we were alright.”

Shaking his head slightly, Johnnyboy thought back some more. The boy had spent a lot of time thinking about why things had changed. When had Clove decided to leave? He’d never asked that question before, and he’d never considered it. But he ruminated upon it now, and stayed in silence for some time, before continuing. “Then circumstances changed again. And I was sent to track her down,” Johnny continued. Was that bitterness in his tone? The boy wasn’t sure. “Well…I found her.” And that was it. The gang had traveled towards Long Island, ended up in the woods (Johnny didn’t spend too much time on that part), and then later come into camp at Johnny and Glam’s claiming. “The end,” Johnnyboy sarcastically finished, making a ‘ta-da’ gesture with his hands. He stayed quiet for a moment, before deciding to ask another question. What else was he going to do all night? Once morning came, Parker would be able to leave, and the rest of the Apollo cabin would wake up. Maybe Johnny would sneak a nap in after breakfast. But for now, the boy could play 20 questions the rest of the night. After sifting through a few ideas through his head, the son of Apollo tilted his head back to make eye contact with Parker again. “Is Parker your real name?” he asked simply. When he said real, he meant first. Hopefully that'd be insinuated. He realized how it must sound, coming from him, but then again, maybe not. Parker only knew him as Johnny, and that was a simple enough name. He kept his head back, and stared the girl down. “Is it?”

Parker sensed something changed with Johnny when she mentioned obnoxiousness, but it was her true opinion. He said his sister name was Glam, right? Glam is the abbreviation of glamorous. And glamorous usually connected with fashion show and well, the word she just mentioned before. And even though she didn’t mean to offend the son of Apollo, Parker said nothing. Hey, it wasn’t her problem, right? So she continued on.

The daughter of Dionysus started to tell Johnny about her true story; she started with cars then with things, preferably shiny trinkets. Why? Just because it’s shiny. But Charlie, her mentor, loved art collection better than treasures and jewelries. So that was one of the rare clash between the two thieves. She didn’t care much when Johnny said her story was so-so, mostly because Parker never really told stories. She probably boring with it anyway. However, the boy’s answer on her question was even more… usual. “Walked?” She repeated, trying not to look so dumb when she said so. Not that Johnny could see her, though. The daughter of Dionysus kept her eyes on the ceiling as she talked. Parker listened carefully to his story now; a little bit amazed by it. “So you tried to track someone but eventually came here because of it.” The blonde tried to sum up everything, but she didn’t expect any response in return. “Well, at least you got happiness. In normal circumstances.” She admitted. The only time Parker felt that kind of happiness was when she got the loot between her fingers.

Then Johnny decided to ask the million dollar question: about Parker’s name. The blonde tilted her head softly, trying to guess how many starts were there. In the sky. That’s just how complicated the origin of her name was. “I wish I knew.” She admitted while pursing her lips, her tone was innocent and pure. Parker had been called that way ever since she was little, back when she still lived in an orphanage. Even when she blew her foster parent’s house, she always called as Parker and nothing else. Not even ‘honey’ or ‘love’ or ‘kid’. “It’s the name on my birth certificate. Or just how people called me. I don’t know.” Her answer was somewhat obscure, but so did her life. “How about you? Is Johnny your real name?”

((Sorry for the lateness))

Why was Johnnyboy doing this? The boy could have just gotten comfortable on the floor (somehow), then just tried to fall asleep and stayed quiet. This conversation wasn’t racy, or weird in any way, but the boy still felt uncomfortable talking about his past. Especially with someone who wasn’t part of the gang. All this talk was making Johnny miss Glam and Cleaver, even if one was on the bunk above and the other was a stone’s throw away in the Hermes cabin. Crossing his arms, Johnny couldn’t help but smirk slightly at Parker’s surprise when he said he walked. “Got a problem with that?” he replied. Try as he might, some hints of amusement crept into his tone, and the smirk stayed on his face.

But when Parker mentioned happiness, Johnny just slouched and didn’t reply. Was he happy? Being in this camp, having lost Daggerdeath and Brawler, was he happy? He still had his sister, yes, and he knew that wouldn’t change. But Johnnyboy couldn’t honestly say he was happy right now, with the gang split up and off the streets of New York. He just shrugged, and let that convey the message instead of his words. Ignoring the topic for now, Johnny decided he’d think more about how he was feeling later, when he was alone. Johnny always thought better alone. So instead, he listened to Parker talk about her name. “Hm,” Johnny replied to her first comment about it, just to continue being part of the conversation. Choosing your own name was one thing, especially if you knew and didn’t like your old one. Johnnyboy could understand that. “But you’re okay with Parker? You didn’t decide to change it?” Johnny asked. He could understand her reasoning on keeping it, he supposed, but still. Why not just choose what people call you? This brought Parker to her question in this game of 20 questions. Shifting slightly at her question, Johnny debated lying. Just say it was, and end the subject. But why not add a little mystery?

“No,” he replied simply, resting his head back. Johnnyboy thought back briefly, to how he had gotten his nickname. Glamour had officially dubbed him Johnnyboy, but the boy remembered Meatcleaver’s first suggestion. But of course he didn’t want a normal name, so that was how this was made for him. “Johnnyboy’s my gang name,” Johnny continued slightly. He didn’t look at Parker, not wanting to know how she’d react to finding out she’d been calling him by his shortened gang name the whole time. Not like she should care, anyway. Giving a sharp exhale through his nose, Johnny sunk down a little more, and closed his eyes briefly. He rapidly opened them again, however. “Guess it’s my turn to ask the next question,” he joked, using a deadpanned voice.

Thinking slightly, Johnny decided just to ask a simple question. “How’s camp going for you?” The boy paused for a moment, before continuing in a joking tone. “I mean, I know meeting me was the highlight of your time here, but is everything alright?” Of course, he knew how she would respond to that, anyway. Just take the whole thing seriously, and not find it funny at all. But whatever. Johnny waited for her answer, closing his eyes again for a brief respite.

Parker snorted when Johnny stated that he was walking to the Camp. Surely, such bogus trivial must be a lie. But when she thought about it, the girl was living on the streets as well, not being able to afford nice things such as vehicles and decent foods... Except if she stole them. So maybe that's why the son of Apollo was walking, and after hearing what he had to say next, Parker's thoughts were coonfirmed. The girl simply rolled aside to gaze at Johnny, judging him from head to toe. If he behave this way all the time, maybe they could be friends. Even though the daughter of Dionysus wasn't sure what 'friends' mean. She never had any, after all. As the boy explained about his 'gang', Parker titled her head to the side, trying to absorb everything that he told him despite her lack of understanding. There's no 'gang' in thievery. Okay, maybe there was, but not like what Johnny told her. According to his words, this 'gang' was something intimate; like a family. While in the real world, Parker's so-called 'gang' was cold and very counting on what they do. Her hands ran through her blonde hair as she watched Johnny's facial expression, a bit surprised at how upset he was when his story came to an end. “So this girl was like your rock or something? She hold the base? I mean, about the group?” If one thing Parker knew about groups; they will crumble without their base. In some heist cases, it would be the mastermind. If he/she disapppeared under any circumstances, the whole team would crumble. So maybe this person that Johnny told her was that base; the one that hold everything and everyone together.

Unfortunately, there's a sequel to his story. One that was even more confusing than the first one. Parker's thin brow intertwined as the son of Apollo explain a bit more, being vaguer than before which was getting to her nerve. “So did you find her?” Thank goodness for his answer. At least there's a bit of happy ending... right? Johnny's tone was mixed up, sending all the wrong messages to Parker's brain. She wished he could be clearer, for Parker only able to digest his not-so-vivid gesture partially. She was smart, but to small things like this, her IQ would be useless. But then Johnny decided to ask her something; something that even she couldn't answer.

Parker didn't have any birth certificate. The name 'Parker' just popped somewhere in her life, probably because her first foster parents called her like that. It could be her last name, it could be her first. But she always insisted to be called Parker. For her, the word describes who she was: simple, with no beginning or end. Maybe Dionysus knew who her real name was, but she didn't bother to ask. “I don't know.” Her body shifted to the side so she could look at the ceiling again, feeling contemplative. “I really don't. It's how people call me and that's how I like it; Parker. I don't want any other name, and I never even think to figure out my past.” Then she shrugged, furrowing her eyebrows. “I don't think it's that big of a deal; it's just a name. It's how people call you, and since I'm not good with people... Why should I put more effort on trying to get more names? It'll confuse everyone. Heck, it'll confuse me.”

Johnny slouched down some more on the floor, and tried not to get annoyed when he heard Parker snort disbelievingly at his story. Perhaps it was in a different context than Johnny expected, but it hadn’t been the first time something like this happened. Of course, Johnnyboy never told anybody his “story”. He kept that private a grand majority of the time. If nothing else, the son of Apollo could keep a secret. However, at the moment, it didn’t seem right to just leave it out, considering what Parker had told him. While it had occurred to him that she could be lying, he dismissed that idea.

So this whole exchanging stories thing was kind of new for the boy. He always heard about other demigods, of course, as he made it his job to stay informed. Watching fancy cars pull up to the hill, or hearing rumors of a rich demigod always irritated Johnnyboy. It wasn’t like he had nothing, no, that wasn’t the case. He had rejected it, though. Dismissed the idea of spending money loosely, and living a sheltered life being shielded by a high status. The idea hadn’t appealed to the boy, and he had instead chosen to live on the streets, with others who felt the same way (or maybe had their own reasons for rejecting society). Being with the gang felt right to Johnnyboy, because they accepted who he was, based on his skills and…just being himself. They didn’t care about his background (although Glam certainly liked to live up to it). So anyone who laughed at the idea of being in a gang also irritated Johnny, and he didn’t respond to any of Parker’s statements for a bit.

When she asked about details for the gang, Johnnyboy didn’t elaborate. He was a secretive person by nature, although he could appear open and charismatic when the mood struck him. The boy wasn’t particularly interested in revealing any more of his gang, considering Parker just didn’t seem to understand it. This made Johnny wonder idly if she had ever had that opportunity, or if she had just been alone. He shrugged at her questions on Clove, and didn’t answer the question on Clove’s role. He instead imagined what part of him she’d cut first if Johnny told Parker anything about her. Of course, Clove threatened violence a lot, so it wasn’t as terrifying whenever she’d threaten Johnny. And she usually didn’t spend much time with him anyway. Frowning slightly to himself, the boy had no trouble remembering these events, even though they had occurred…what? A year, year and a half ago? Gods, how long it’d been since the gang had been reunited.

Tilting his head up to glare at Parker at her next question, Johnny maintained the gaze for a moment. “Of course I found her. I’m here, aren’t I?” He paused for a moment. “But she’s gone. She’s probably dead now…and she’s not coming back.” The boy lowered his head to stare at his hand, nervously twisting the ring around his finger. A year or so ago, Johnny had come to this camp for the first time. He’d brought the gang, and had been told Clove was gone. He’d thought, at the time, that it’d just be temporary. Clove was going to come back, and he told himself this. Then a month passed. Then six. After a whole year, Johnny had finally admitted to himself that she wasn’t coming back.

After another slight pause, Johnny spoke again. “I told my gang I’d find her. I tracked her here…and then I lost it. I lost the trail. I failed.” Meatcleaver had given him a very clear instruction. Find her. Probably the first time Johnnyboy hadn’t been able to track something. So maybe it was his fault, why the gang wasn’t together. Brawler might have disappeared, but it was Johnny’s fault that he couldn’t find Clove. The thought didn’t make him feel better.

Parker finished talking, explaining that she didn’t need a new name. Johnny shrugged. “Names are power,” he said simply. “That’s why I don’t tell anybody my real name. You let people control you when you let them decide your identity. Don’t let them.” He stopped twisting his ring, his thoughts still wandering around the subject of his gang. “You could choose your own name, if you really wanted.” At that, the boy stopped talking. He slouched more, if that was possible, then let everything sink in.