Co-workers ((Laurel))

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One would think that, as a child of Apollo, Vince Upton would be incapable of getting sunburns. The reddened skin on the back of his neck proved that theory wrong, and Vince was not very happy about the annoyance of having tender skin on his neck. Several hours spent outside, training in the sun with bow and arrow, had left Vince in his current state. He'd been unaware of his current situation before stepping into one of the camp's showers to get cleaned up. As he dried off with a towel, trying to avoid his neck, Vince thought through the events he was about to go through. Another Taxiarhos had been appointed to work beside Vince in their common duties on the battlefield and off of it. Vince wasn't particularly excited about his new peer as much as he was relieved for the appointment of the new Taxiarhos. Making decisions for an entire military was tough work, even more so when Vince was alone in his job. Every error and minor slip-up ended up placing more and more blame on his shoulders. Vince felt as though another Taxiarhos could help lift some of that blame and help carry the weight of the current job that Vince held. The council meeting, held in half an hour or so, would be Vince's first time even meeting his new co-worker,  supposedly a daughter of Athena from what he'd been told.

The young son of Apollo finished drying off and stepped into jeans and his Camp Half-Blood shirt before stepping out of the showers and into the cabin commons. The day was a beautiful one, warm and filled with enough sunshine to make up for the past week of drizzling rain and dark clouds hanging over the camp. Vince smirked slightly, seeing all of the campers out and about, enjoying their days. It was days like this, Vince thought, that made the impending conflict with New Rome seem to disappear from everyone's minds. Camp Half-Blood became an average demigod summer camp again, and New Athens seemed to be alive with a certain energy that could rival the glory days of Greece. Vince returned his worn clothes back to the Apollo cabin before setting off to the Big House. A spot at a large ping pong table awaited Vince, most likely surrounded by the New Athenian strategists and the occasional cabin leader. Today, of course, the newest addition to the council would also be seated at the ping pong table with Vince. His curiosity about the newer Taxiarhos settled into Vince's head as he opened the screen door to the Big House and worked his way inside.

A flight of stairs later, and Vince found himself standing alone in the rec room of the Big House. Off in the corner, a vintage Pac-Man machine was glowing gently, Pac-Man floating about inside his maze, avoiding the multicolored ghosts chasing him. A Foosball table had been pushed up against the wall next to a miniature air hockey table. The ping pong table that would host the Greek council meeting stood proudly in the middle of the room. A war map had been folded up messily and left atop the table. Grabbing it, Vince unfolded it, working out any creases, and laid it out flat across the table. Grabbing a few chairs stacked against a wall, Vince set them around the table in a fairly neat fashion. Heading back down the Big House stairs, the son of Apollo grabbed a box of Cheez-Its and a pitcher of Kool-Aid. Why the Greek council insisted on eating and drinking foods Vince hadn't consumed regularly since the third grade, Vince had no idea. He set the Kool-Aid and Cheez-Its out on the ping pong table, covering up a large chunk of the Midwest on the Greek war map. Vince took a seat, waiting for the other members of the council to arrive, which the surely would in the next minute or so. Pouring a glass of Kool-Aid, Vince kicked back in his chair and took a sip. He was settled in for a long council meeting that would, most likely, accomplish nothing for the Greek cause.

[Laurel Greystone]

Pulling an all-nighter was a normal occurrence for Laurel. Pulling an all-nighter the night prior to an important war council where she would also debut as the new Taxiarhos was just plain stupid.

Of course, Laurel never intended to stay up all night. In fact, she planned to head to bed earlier than usual, opting to be energized and optimistic for the next day’s task. However everything went downhill the instant Laurel set her hand on a book. She was well aware of the possibility of getting carried away and vowed to only read a chapter or two, but by the break of dawn the next morning, Laurel was half-asleep and struggling through a passage of 'Northanger Abbey’. Next to her bed was a stack of twelve other novels. It wasn’t long after her siblings fled to breakfast did Laurel finally fall asleep with a book still clutched in her hands.

A few hours later, she stood on the porch of the Big House staring at the door that was coated with a peeling layer of unpleasant blue. The night before, she'd imagined herself in the same position but with a mood that mimicked the weather of that day—positive, convivial, and pleasant. Instead, her green eyes were framed with dark circles, her petite torso donning a baggy fluorescent camp sweatshirt, and her disobliging russet hair tied hastily into a ponytail. To top her 'College student during Finals week' look off, Laurel clutched a large cup of coffee. It was her third one so far that morning.

After a brief moment dedicated to a silent pep-talk, Laurel finally entered the Big House and bounded up its prehistoric steps while trying her best not to spill a drop of coffee. Eventually, the girl found herself in the Rec room where the council meeting was said to be held.

What surprised her the most was not the red-skinned boy that sat by that ping-pong table nor the 80’s themed room (though both were quite worrying). It was the emptiness of the room that startled her. She expected it to be teeming with fed-up Greek council members yelling at each other about battle strategies and army statuses. Instead, there was only a boy occupying one of the many chairs situated around a ping-pong table that held a North American map with a Cheez-its and Punch filled pitcher paperweight.
Holding a council meeting in a room that suited a group of rebellious teenagers rather than the subject of war was definitely odd. If Laurel didn’t know any better, she would’ve questioned the mental state of the Greek Camp Leaders, but she had been in CHB long enough to know that questioning a Greek’s sanity also meant poking at their huge ego—something that more often than not led to conflict. So instead, Laurel made her way to one of the chairs opposite to tomato-boy and sat down, shamelessly eyeing him between sips of bitter coffee.

It didn’t take Laurel any time to conjure the boy’s name since his was plastered all over the informatory folder she’d been given several days before and was whispered about amongst her female peers. Some would gossip about his accomplished diplomacy, most about his attractive looks. “No one told me that the Taxiarhos was a tomato,” was the first thing that came out of her mouth. Was it rude? Incredibly. Did she regret it? Not as much as she should.

Laurel took another sip of her coffee, withholding the laugh that was caused by her embarrassment. “I’m sorry. I promise that I’m not normally as rude.” An apologetic smile. “You must be Vince Upton. I’m Laurel Greystone, the newly assigned Taxiarhos.” She reached over and relocated the juice pitcher and the accompanying cracker box to another spot on the table. She examined the map for a brief moment. “Where are the others?” Laurel questioned with her gaze still locked on the piece of paper. “…Or is it only us?”

((my goodness this took too long. Sorry! >.<))

[Deleted]

Vince's eyes followed the daughter of Athena across the room as she sat down directly across the table from him. The coffee cup in her hand and bags under her eyes led Vince to be concerned. He hoped that the girl sitting in front of him now had simply gotten an inadequate amount of sleep because of a nervous feeling or set of demigod-style nightmares. Vince wanted his new partner to take her job seriously. In fact, he doubted he could work alongside someone who didn't. Partying late into the night or participating in other late night activities was alright every now and then, but the duties of being a Taxiarhos were stressful enough without having sleep deprivation to deal with.

Despite her tired appearance, Vince was immediately pleased with his new partner's way of handling herself. The two of them sat in a comfortable silence, Vince drinking his Kool-Aid and the other Taxiarhos drinking her coffee. The new Taxiarhos seemed to be sizing Vince up and choosing her words with a consideration that impressed the son of Apollo.

When his new partner broke the silence between the two of them, the daughter of Athena brought up Vince's reddened skin. "Yes, well, I was going for the whole Veggie Tales look. I feel like I missed tomato red by a few shades." Vince said with a small grin.

Laurel, as the new Taxiarhos introduced herself, apologized for being rude, which confused Vince at first. He'd come to expect such comments to be flung around the table at meetings and had been called far worse things than a tomato. "Well, Greystone, you might need to step it up a little bit if you'd like to compete for the rude award on this council." Vince grinned a little more, "I mean, when we had meetings talking about appointing you, I think I learned several words I didn't need to know."

Vince paused before getting up and refilling his cup with some more Kool-Aid. Laurel was studying the map, but Vince had seen it enough times to have it's layout memorized. "I'm really happy that there's finally another Taxiarhos to work with. It can get lonely doing a two-person job." Vince began as he poured his drink, "Also, if you have any questions, don't be afraid to ask. I'm here for whatever you need."

Vince sat back down as Laurel questioned where everyone else was, which was a good question. Vince hadn't noticed the absence of the other council members quite yet, but he wasn't torn up about their current lack of attendance. "I thought they were coming, but something might have happened along the way. Who knows? Since you and I are both here, though, do you want to try and start laying ideas out there? I'd be interested to hear your point of view on our current situation." Vince sat back in his chair and waited for Laurel's answer.