Conflicted Times {Josh}

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Felicity sat on top of the temple half embedded in the hill side. The top was littered with bones and jewels from past descendants of Pluto, no one ever bothered them. They were seen as offerings to the God of the Underworld, if someone moved them or kept one they were often killed tragically, or so the stories go. Felicity stared down the hillside at the camp below. About now her cohort would be enjoying their day off of training. Perhaps following the camp gossip or, she hoped, training on their own with friends. However, Felicity sat on top of this temple with her legs pulled up to her face. She wanted to scream, cry, or something. Her feelings have been driving her insane.

After that incident last summer she figured no one at camp would ever want to be her friend, let alone like her in a romantic manner. Now here she was, a year later, and having two suitors. The bad thing was was that she liked both of them. She had hung out with Remus a few times and knew how he acted around her. While some call him a robo-cop she knew he had feelings. He was just timid about showing them to people, if you were praetor of the entire camp wouldn't you feel obligated to remain forever neutral? Though, whenever Remus and her would hang out their was always an awkward tension in the air, yet they were always able to speak openly to one another. Then the other suitor, Josh. A fun-loving, adventurous son of Mercury. He would be able to match Felicity with sneaking outside. Plus he was hilarious to be around. Josh resembled the type of guy Felicity would daydream about. Though, if that were so simple why would she be questioning herself right now?

Perhaps Felicity should talk to the original Remus, brother of Romulus. He was always able to give her good counsel, though she was afraid he would be a bit biased because he is a son of Mars and so is the now Remus. Plus, the last time she summoned the lare he reminded her that he wanted her to branch out mroe at camp and have more living friends. "Don't be so eager to be with the dead. Enjoy the living. You only get one life as Felicity Weingarten, daughter of Pluto. Make it worthwhile.". What he said that day stuck with Felicity. Though, with all the branching out she did she was now left with a conflict. Felicity didn't feel like it was a fair trade.

Felicity glanced down the hill again, watching the camp. She wondered what those two would be doing, if they were even at camp. Remus would probably be working in the Principia. Josh, well Felicity wasn't sure if he would even be in the camp. Perhaps he had gone on another adventure. Even though she also chastised him for going out she was also jealous and wished to join him on many occasions. Perhaps if the fates desired it they would be able to.

outfit: HERE
words: 565
notes: Awe poor Felicity. My muse might be crazy in this thread. just projecting the Felicity feels.

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The Camp was sort of in calm that day. Cohorts were training in different places and disciplines. Specially the First and Second Cohorts, they were always training until the last one of their members fell to the ground and even then the Centurions pushed them a bit more to squiz the last particle of strength that those poor demigods had in their body and soul. The Third Cohort was waiting to get their time of training in the fields of Mars, but after the Centurions of the third and the fifth cohort talked about it, the Third cohort got there and the fifth Cohort finished its training. It seemed that the fourth cohort didn't have any trainings that day, maybe Felicity, who was their Centurion with Cassandra, had something to do.

The members of that cohort went to New Rome to spend some of their free time, it wasn't easy to get spare time from their centurions. the members of the fifth cohort were free to go and do whatever they wanted to do after the light training that their centurions gave them. Some of them went to New Rome, others to the lake or just walking around throught the Camp's grounds. Few of them went to get some extra training. those few knew that they needed to make a bigger effort to become better romans, so they worked hard for it.

One of those few was joshua Rogers. People used to think of him as just a sneak thief, a rebellious son of Mercury who enjoyed breaking the Camp's rules and in a way they were right! but he also wanted to be a better Roman, someone that his father, and brother would be proud of. So he knew that it didn't matter if others thought he wasn't worth a pebble, he still was working hard to be that roman in his mind. After the extra training, he went to the Showers and got a nice one, then he got dressed and went out. He still had some free time and he wanted to do something useful with it.

He walked around and looked at the people there. Friends, couples... he smiled and thought of Felicity, what would she be doing in that moment? would she be outside, sneaking away again? Maybe she was in New Rome! or maybe he was with Remus... That thought made his stomach filled with acid and the blood in his veins boil for a second. He thought that maybe he should go outside, anyplace but the Camp would be good in that moment. But then he remembered Lance's panicked face when he got injured by those scorpions, also the face of his brother Rick when he went to visit him in the infirmary. He didn't want to worry them like that again, so he decided not to go outside so soon.

Then he thought that maybe going to the temples and pray to his father, only to say hello, would be good. even when his father's temple wasn't there, he thought the temples' hill was a sacred place and that his father would listen to his voice much better up there. He walked right to the temples looking to the pebbles on the ground while he did so, he didn't notice that Felicity was by her father's Temple.

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Recent conversations filled her head. When Felicity was with Remus at the Valentines Event it was filled with awkward, but not a bad awkward. It was still easy to talk to Remus, plus his laugh and smile, the things he only saved for rare moments. It made Felicity smile just thinking about him. Plus, they discussed perhaps leaving camp soon. Going to the magical world of McDonalds and then Felicity told him about amusement parks and they agreed to go to one together. It would both be their first time.

Then Josh. Felicity worried about him and wanted the best for him. She was worried sick when the idiot was in the infirmary. If he didn't make it out alive Felicity was willing to go down to Hades and totally pull an Orpheus move and beg that Josh return to the land of the living. Also all the times they would flirt with each other. Granted, Josh did most of the flirting and it took Felicity awhile to catch on and she soon joined in. However, despite all that Remus was still on her mind. So, if she didn't see Josh in that way, wanting to be with him forever, then how did she see him? Perhaps as best friends. Granted, it could be more then that but the best word for it was best friends. Why though, why when Felicity thought of Josh that way did she want to curl up and cry?

Felicitys concentration was broken when she heard footsteps. She glanced behind her at the path leading to all the temples. She smiled, her favorite son of Mercury was meandering about. Felicity stood up on top of the temple. "Hey Josh!" Felicity called out to him as she tried to maneuver off the temple roof. She jogged over to him, still with a smile on her face. "What brings you to temple hill? I thought Mercury didn't have a temple?" Felicity asked. She thought it was bit rude how their wasn't any temples for some Gods. Sure, the Romans did choose favorites and it was a somewhat miracle that Pluto had a temple here. Most people ignored the God that was her father. Probably the reason Pluto had a temple was due to the fact he was one of the main three Gods.

outfit: HERE
words: 428
notes: Sorry that its a bit shorter

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Josh kept walking up hill when he heard a voice, he looked up and saw that someone was on Pluto's Temple. He frowned and then opened widely his eyes when he noticed that it was Felicity and that she could fall at any second. "Felicity!" he walked up to the temple bit faster, but relaxed when he saw that she had managed to get down by herself. He smiled widely at her not really thinking on what Felicity had been doing up there. Maybe she was just trying to talk t her father like he was going to do before running into her.

"Well... yeah..." she was right, there was no temple for Mercury in te Temple hill, but that wouldn't make him give up on talking to his father. "I know there is no Temple for Mercury, which I think is despective from this camp considering how much my father cares about it, but..." he smiled widely again. "even when there is no Temple for him up here, I came to talk to him, I think that maybe being this a sacred place, he could listen much better up here." he shrugs and then keeps walking closer to where she was.

"and you? also came to say hi to your father?" He asked and stood right in front of her. He looked into her beautiful eyes and smiled a bit more, her skin was as white as the snow and the curls of her hair fell so gracefully around her face that he couldn't do other thing than smiling. "what were you doing up there?" smiling and then frowning a bit. She didn't look completely happy as always. something was wrong and he couldn't figure out what was it exactly. But looking into her eyes he could feel something wasn't peachy as always.

For some weird reason Josh knew in the back of his mind what was going on. He had seen the way Felicity looked at Remus and how she talked about him. He knew that she cared about him, but not in the way that she seemed to care about the praetor. She had tried to be with him in the infirmary but even if a pet got sick it would be expected for the owner or any moral person to be by the cot of it, right? but those were just ideas in the back of his mind, ideas that he tried to bury in the depth of his mind and heart.

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She smiled as she watched him run a bit faster to her as she tried to get off the temple. Yet she felt guilty, he still cared. Gods, this was probably all Cupids fault. Perhaps if she was nicer to him things would have turned out differently. However, due to her being such a brat to the God she was now faced with a love triangle and no matter what decision she made she was going to be depressed for a long time.

She nodded as he spoke. He made a point. "We should try to convince the camp to erect some new temples. This isn't Ancient Rome. We love some Gods more then others." Felicity said as nodded in the direction of Jupiters temple as thunder clashed in the distance which was met with an eye roll from Felicity. Like she honestly cared what her uncle cared about. He was just an arrogant, selfish, baby. Of course, Felicity was smart enough to not verbally say that, she didn't think electrocuted was a good look on her. "Well, I'm sure your dad enjoys that. Probably better than praying to him next to the garbage." Felicity said teasingly.

She frowned slightly but forced the smile to reappear as she shook her head. "No, I was just thinking. Sitting atop of the roof at my Dads temple gives a nice thinking atmosphere. You can just sit back, relax, and watch the campers scramble about like ants. I was in the need to think about an important decision." Felicity ended softly. She didn't want to worry Josh so she kept smiling, trying to look like her prior cheerful self. In truth she just wanted to cry because of what she was probably going to do.

She remembered the one time Felicity was being picked on and ran off in tears and the only person there was Josh. Why was he always there for her. Why was she picking the wrong person. Granted, Remus has been seen watching Felicity from afar making sure that no one was having another 'pick on Felicity' party. Still, bother were equal honest and caring people. That's what made it so hard.

She hugged Josh tightly as tears started to stink her eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Felicity said. She just wanted to hug Josh, not only for her benefit but for his. She didn't want to lose him. She still cared about him, but she wasn't the best person for him and somehow she knew that all along, thats why she was so unresponsive to his flirtation. He deserved someone better then the daughter of Pluto. She was a murderer. She killed people. Her hand were stained with blood. Josh didn't need someone like that. Yet, she couldn't bring herself to say that. All she could do was hug Josh and repeatedly say sorry.

outfit: HERE
words: 529
notes: Oh Gods... Felicity

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Josh nodded at Felicity when she agreed with him that they needed new Temples but frowned when she said it was better to pray to his father on th ehill than next to the garbage. he would never pray for him in such dirty place! He respected his father very much and would love to make others even gods respect him too, they sometimes treated him just like the errand boy, well he was much more than that. "I would never pray to him next to garbage..." said smiling but part of his voice had a hint of hurt in it.

"But definetely we need to make that Principia notices the importance of more temples in this place." He said and looked around, only war gods had a temle there ot the big ones, but not the ones that made life worthy to be lived! What about Venus or Mercury or some minor ones, Maybe rhia would like to have a place t go and ask stuff directly to her mother! then he looked back at Felicity and smiled again at her, how could he stop smiling at those eyes, innocent like child's.

he tilted his head when she told him she was on top of the temple trying to think, trying to make up her mind about something. What could she have been thinking about to make it so difficutl for her to find a solution on her own, why she needed to come to the temple hill? He looked up to the top of the temple and figured that if he ever tried to get on that place, Pluto would send a harpy to kill him. he looked back at Felicity and smiled again at her. "what was so important that you needed to be up there, knowing you could fall at any moment due your clumsiness?" he winkes at her joking.

Deep in his heart he knew what was it about, but he didn't want to see. for a son of mercury, that words were something that came natural, Felicity's words weren't as straight as Josh would have wanted them to be and at the same time they were the right ones. Suddenly Felicity just wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. he was glad the wounds that the scorpion inflicted on him were already healed, he would have to thank Jason about it... later.

Felicity was apologizing to him, but why? she hadn't done anything wrong... right? "Felicity... wait... why are you..." he sighed and wrapped his arms around her. Maybe she had another accident with dead soldiers, maybe she finally killed that victoria's daughter, who knew! "calm down... I hate to see you crying, you know that..." he held her closer to him and kind of smiled, maybe Remus had never been so close to her, maybe this wasn't a bad thing!

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Felicity frowned. She didn't mean for him to actually pray next to a trashcan. He misinterpreted it. She only meant that this place had a more divine significance and so his reasoning that he would best be heard was probably correct. "Well no, I would never think you would. I just meant that, it makes sense to pray in a more divine place then any regular place. I am sure he is proud of that fact." Felicity explained. She didn't meant to hurt him, that's one of the things she never wanted to do yet she was here and was probably about to hurt him. Felicity nodded in agreement. "Really, it seems like all of the funds go for Jupiter and Mars temples." Felicity said with a sigh. It really wasn't fair, even if they were the main Gods of Rome.

Felicity smiled. "I am not that clumsy." Felicity replied. True, she has been known for falling out of trees and spraining her arm, one day she was going to end up breaking it thats for sure. She ignored his first question though. She didn't want to lie to him, but she also didn't want to reveal her thoughts either. Stupid teenage tendencies, they were going to drive her insane. Perhaps it would have been best if humans weren't given emotions, then they wouldn't have to worry about stuff like this. However, they would also miss out on a lot of stuff too. Like happiness and excitement, those were two of the emotions Felicity enjoyed the most yet the ones that were more common with her were sadness and regret.

When Josh wrapped his arms around her Felicity couldn't help but continue crying. Why did he have to care about her? Why couldn't he have been one of the guys that despised her existence, then it wouldn't be so hard to do this. At his words Felicity tried to calm down. She took a few deep breaths and pulled away from the hug. Yet, she held her head down. She couldn't look him in the eye. Not when she said this. She didn't want to be the cause of peoples pain. At least when she raised the dead army last year she didn't know a majority of the people it affected so she didn't feel too bad. That probably made her sound like a more horrible person then she was. However, she is a daughter of Pluto and an outcast of society. However, watching pain in Joshs eyes would cause her to hurt too much. It would have been the same if she choose Josh over Remus. However, Felicity was able to open Remus up so there had to be something special between the two then with Josh were it was just teasing flirting.

"Josh..." Felicity started sadly, still looking at the ground. Where was her confidence when she needed it? She took a shaky breath. How did people say stuff like this. What was she even suppose to start with. Did he even know about her liking Remus? It would make sense if he did. Remus was the first one she liked, and then, once Remus started to get really busy and Felicity barely say him, Josh appeared. Gods, was that really how Josh was to her? Someone to distract her lonely feelings from Remus away? That's cruel. No, she did care for Josh, but, since Remus started to become less busy Felicitys feelings for Remus only grew stronger. Perhaps only three words would help with telling Josh. Straightforward and now cutting corner. Felicity continued to look at the ground as she said this, tears still rolling down her cheeks. "I choose Remus."

outfit: HERE
words: 675
notes: Oh Gods... Felicity [/quote]

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Josh chuckled when she said she knew that he wouldn't go near a waste place to pray to his father. He knew Felicity couldn't be so evil, people said so, even Jason had told him once about it, but well, he never believe on the words of the campers. Yes she murdered a lot of campers in the past, but he would never accept she was evil or wanted to hurt others just for the fun of it. "I know, I'm sorry it's just that I don't like the disrespect to other gods, they must have their own temples."

No matter what she said, she was clumsy, at least before, younger she had been a lot. so maybe now she was still like that. He only wanted to protect her and take care of her, she was his crush and he would never leave her alone. "yes you are..." but then she cried and he held her closer, he didn't want her to cry, her tears and pain were breaking his heart. "please, Felicity don't cry..." he said and kissed the top of her head, why was she so sad? He couldn't understand that.

Suddenly she pronounced his name, her voice was sweet, but broken, she pronounced his name with pain, he could feel it in her tone and volume. "Yes?" he asked worried to be the cause of that pain, then after some seconds she pronounced the next words...

"I choose Remus."

Josh didn't move after those words, he knew that he had just heard the worst words he would have heard in his life, well maybe not the worst, but really close to be the ones that would break his heart and the ones that would haunt him for the rest of his life. "Remus..." he said and let his arms get off Felicity. He knew he needed to stay away from her, he shouldn't even ask why she had chosen him. "Perfect Robo-Remus..." he smirked, his poker face was working in that moment, but he was so hurt that his eyes and his voice showed her how hurt he was.

He pulled back and walked a step back, he showed her his fake smile, that smile that he used as a mask to cover his feelings from others. "I knw you would choose him, it was a smart choice. who would pick the thief over the perfect praetorian?" shrugs and smiles, then stretches as if he had been just too tired to keep going with a charade. "well... then it is good to know. I won't make you lose your time with a filthy thief."

Smiled and looked around he wanted to go away, to run far where no one could ever find him! But his brother was still in the camp, and Rhia. He sighed and then looked at Felicity once more. "Now I know the advice you came to seek... it was a productive one, right?" Smirked with a common poker face.

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All Felicity could hear for a few moments was the fat beating of her heart. She had held her breath after she uttered those three words and tensed her muscles. Felicity had no idea what to expect, she was scared and nervous and afraid all at the same time. This was the Josh she knew though, maybe he would take it okay? She doubted it. She probably just crushed his heart. Felicity really was a horrible person wasn't she.

When he spoke and let his arms drop from her she glanced up to look at his face and hugged herself. He smirked? But his eyes and voice were telling a different story. Why was his emotions contradicting themselves? When he stepped back Felicity stepped back away from him too. She didn't know why, it was just out of instinct. Something inside her told her to. "He's not perfect." Felicity said, her voice coming out as a squeak, all her confidence seemed to have gone away. As his body language kept giving off signals saying he never cared about her Felicity felt something in her drop. She wanted to be angry, but still cry at the same time. She didn't want to lose Josh over this. Why was he acting like this? It didn't make sense. His actions and words were hurting, but Felicity could see the hurt in his eyes. She took a step forward towards him. "You're not a filthy theif Josh." Felicity said. She bit her lower lip and knit her eyebrows together. "I really did, no, do, like you Josh. It was hard, but..." Felicity said, unable to finish her sentence.

When he turned around, Felicity looked at the ground. Then she heard his statement and looked back at him. "Josh, don't be like this. I know I hurt you." Felicity said as she pulled up and amount of courage left in her. "I can see the hurt in your eyes. I'm sorry. I really am. Don't destory our friendship over this. You'll find someone better than a daughter of Pluto. You'll see. Please don't hate me Josh." Felicity said. She really didn't want this one guy who cared about her when no one else would, to hate her. Felicity doesn't know what she would do. No matter what, she would always remember the happiness she felt when she was with Josh. He held a special place in her heart, even if she was with Remus now.

outfit: HERE
words: 470
notes: Oh Gods... Felicity [/quote][/quote]