Thalia's Unforgettable Adventure

"I'm not sure this is a good idea." The old man said, looking over at me from his seat on the other side of the table.

"It's a good idea." I repeated, "I can do it, I know I can."

"Yes, you're strong, that's not in doubt but you're young too, and I don't want to see you get hurt. This isn't something you should rush into just because your mother was chosen before you." He tried to reason with me while I paced around the small kitchen.

"But she wasn't chosen! She was taken away by them!" I shouted, "She had to go through years of training and then they took her when she was sixteen! She never even got to finish school or get married or have kids! And I'm going to do it better than her! They'll pick me instead and then I can be the special one!"

He sighed and rubbed his eyes tiredly, "Thalia..."

"No!" I snapped, stopping my pacing and crossing my arms over my chest as I glared at him.

He looked up at me and sighed once more, "I just don't want you to get your hopes up is all." He said softly, "You're still young. You've been through a lot for someone your age but it's not like the others haven't either and look where that got them!" He gestured around him at our small wooden cabin home.

"That won't happen to me though!" I argued, "They picked me to come here with you so they obviously think that I'm special too. And they told me that there were others out there like us who'd help me train! So if they think that I'm worthy then why shouldn't I?"

He shook his head and stood up before he walked over to where I stood. "You're right." He admitted as he wrapped his hands around my upper arms gently and pulled me into an embrace, "You are more than worthy but... it's hard letting go of everything you know for something you only kind of know about." He said softly as he held me close.

I hugged him back tightly before pulling away from him suddenly. "No! That's what mom did! If she hadn't gone after them then maybe she could've lived here in peace with dad and seen him grow old with her but instead she left him alone here for years without ever telling him why she had to go and now... now he's dead and..." My voice cracked slightly before I continued angrily, "Now all we have of her is these stupid memories which are really just sad ones because they remind us of how much we miss her!" Tears began streaming down my face as the memory of my dad came rushing back to the forefront of my mind.

The old man looked at me sadly again before he reached out and cupped my cheek with one gentle hand as he swept a thumb across my cheekbone wiping away some tears with his thumb. "If anyone can do it Thalia, it's you." He said softly before he leaned forward quickly and placed a kiss on top of my head.