Searching for trouble | Alex

[Jennifer Kail]

“Chione’s frosted nips it’s cold out here today.” Jen mumbled as a cold gust of winter wind sent her shivering. She tried to pull her coat closer against her body hopping it would do something to block out the wind but she found it didn’t help much. That being the case she walked a little faster and took a quick glance over her shoulder to insure that she wasn’t being followed. Once she was sure she slipped around the side of the third cohort barracks and out of sight.



This was the last time she left her emergency booze supply so far away from her bunk. She had the perfect hiding spot but Zeus’ beard she hated the cold weather. Desperate times called for desperate measures however and considering that this really was Jen’s last hiding spot before she went dry times were pretty desperate indeed. Fortunately once she got her hands on the vodka it would warm her up pretty quick but for now it was a pain playing fetch in the cold.



Finally she reached the end of a short alley and her prize was almost in reach. Turning around to catch one finally glimpse of the area Jen knelt and began to pry away a loose brick from the barrack’s back wall. As far as she knew no one had found her hiding place back here but as she removed the brick and reached a hand into the empty space that it had just vacated there was a heart stopping moment when she couldn’t find what she was looking for. Finally though her hand settled on the smooth metal flask and the girl breathed a sigh of relief.



“Come to momma.” She said to herself as she brought the flask out with a smile. She needed to get back to her bunk quickly. Waiting around out here and freezing to death wasn’t going to do her any good but just a quick nip from the flask couldn’t hurt. Jen quickly replaced the brick in the wall and spinning off the top of the flask she tossed back a quick swallow of the clear liquid. The vodka burned its way down to the pit of her stomach but Jen sighed in contentment all the same. It was just what she needed and so long as no one saw her it was well worth it. Slipping the flask away in the folds of one of the boots she was wearing she glanced around and began making her way back to the barracks thinking she was scot-free.

[Axel Laughlen]

Winter. The only good things about the brick-tit season was that Axel could snowboard and drink absurd amounts of hot chocolate. And his winter wardrobe was pretty dope. The now-pale, usually tanned, white boy sneezed as snow flew up his nose. "Screw this weather..." the boy growled, pulling his beanie further over his ears. Whatever higher up had the bright idea of having a meeting in this snowstorm could go to the underworld for all he cared.

Trudging through the snow back to the Third Cohort barracks, Axel zipped his white puffer jacket all the way up to his nose, so his face was barely showing now. All that was keeping him going was the hot chocolate that was waiting for him back in his bunk. He would sit by the little hearth in the cabin and boil water and defrost his bones. Picking up speed, he saw a dash of color hurry into a small alleyway. He looked around and followed the foot prints with his eyes back to the porch of his barracks. Hmmm, sneaky.


The centurion climbed up on top of the shortest building surrounding the alley to see what this girl was doing. He couldn't recognize who it was behind the heavy winter jacket, but he could tell it was a girl. He watched her dig something out of a brick wall with curiosity, and eventually saw something shiny touch her lips. He sighed. It was definitely Jen. He didn't know of a bigger rebel in his cohort. He had to give it to her though, she was very careful about her little hiding spot. Axel would have never found it had he not seen her slip away.

Calling down to the girl with a tight smile as he climbed back down into the alley to meet her, Axel said, "Oh hey Jen, almost didn't see you there. Nice set up ya got there." He looked down to the flask she had just put into her boot. Axel unzipped his coat a little so she could see who he was.

[Jennifer Kail]

Jen was about to head back inside when she heard it. Gods damn it if she hadn’t been caught red handed. She glanced up towards the sound of the voice and even before he started unzipping his coat she recognized who it was. Her goodytwoshoes Centurion Axel. Great. Just great. Not only was she caught but it was by a freaking Centurion. Juno’s salty cunt this was the worst. If this guy made her give up her booze there was going to be Hades to pay.

Oh well there was nothing for it now. Best try and turn this situation around and she wasn’t out of the game yet. “Hey Axel.” She said as she looked up with all the sweetness of an arsenic laced cake. “Didn’t know you were part spider monkey. Careful now or your tight little centurion's ass will get frozen up there and I’m not climbing up to get you.” Jen had never had a great fondness for her Centurions. Most were too serious by far. The fourth seemed to have their heads on straight but she was not so lucky here in the third.

“Well you have fun up there hun. I’d love to stay here and chat but I think Mars needs me to eviscerate a trainee or two before lunch. You know places to go, things to do. See you around Axel.” Smiling to herself Jen spun on her heels and began walking away. Hopefully he would be stuck up there for a while trying to get down. In the mean time she could find a good place to hide and could deal with whatever consequences the little centurion could think up later.

[Axel Laughlen]

Sometimes the centurion was just a tad bit jealous of the regular legionaries. They didn’t have as much of a good conscious as he to get away with things at camp. Axel liked a drink every now and again, but he would be stripped of his position and possibly be moved to the fifth cohort or… Well he didn’t really know, but it wouldn’t be good. So Axel usually played it safe and just had other people get him stuff and he’d do something for them.

Axel scoffed at Jen’s asinine comment. “Part spider monkey, possibly. Tight ass, absolutely, it’s squat szn. Stuck, never.” Axel said as he backflipped off the last rung of the ladder and down into the alley. He landed it cleanly, and raised an eyebrow to Jen as if to say 'So there, bitch.' Jen may have been a pain in his sculpted ass, but he did enjoy her witty sense of humor. It matched his own in a way, and it definitely kept his cohort interesting to say the least.

Standing in the way of Jen, axel wagged his finger at her. “Not so fast, I know what you have in your boot. The Ares kids can wait, you monster.” Axel sprouted a smirk on his face. “Between you and me, I could use a drink too. No one has to find out.” Raising an eyebrow, he didn’t see how Jen could say no. She knew he could tell on her, not that he would anyway unless Jen did something stupid while she was drunk, but he kept her in the dark about that one. She seemed to be a pro when it came to controlling herself, but you really never knew what you were getting with Jen.

[Jennifer Kail]

Jen shouted and jumped back as Axel surprised her by landing in front of her and blocking her escape. “Dude are you trying to join the circus now or just give me a heart attack?” This guy was like some kind of Mercury kid tripping on unicorn draught jumping around like he owned the place. Good gods how was she supposed to escape with him doing all that craziness and that was before what he said about a drink sank in.

When it finally did Jen gave him a suspicious look. It was a trap. It had to be. The centurions didn’t go around drinking while they were on the job and in her experience they definitely didn’t let you get away with it if they caught you. Jen wasn’t sure what this guy’s angle was but she wasn’t falling for it. He could try sweet talking her all he wanted with that Venus charm she knew he had but it wasn’t going to work. “You must have shook something up in your brain Axel. I don’t know what you’re talking about but the infirmary could probably fix that right up for you. If you keep jumping off of buildings though old Pluto will have you down in the underworld slobbering his rotted knob before too much longer.”

[Axel Laughlen]

Alright, so maybe showing off his backflip was a little much. He’d worked hard on learning the skill, so he figured why not use it when he could. Chuckling at Jen’s shout, Axel retorted, “Giving you a heart attack wouldn’t do me any good, would it?” At least it was effective in preventing Jen from escaping the alley way. But Axel had the girl right where he wanted her.

The girl gave Axel a look he didn’t blame her for. The two hadn’t particularly interacted that much even though they had been in the same cohort for a while. It didn’t come as a surprise to the centurion that he hadn’t earned trust yet, and he should have held back on asking her to share a drink. Axel just shook his head when Jen suggested he rattled his noggin around. He guessed he’d just have to get on her level and reveal what he was hiding. Breaking his gaze with Jen, he looked around the alley, trying to remember which brick he hid his treasure behind. Smirking, Axel walked over to the side of the alley and pulled a loosened brick just as Jen had done. One had to get creative too when their job was at risk. Walking back to Jen with part of his stash sticking out of his jacket he cocked a brow with a slight smile, “Well I’m off for the day, and like I said, I could use a drink. Come on, we’ll keep each other company.” He motioned back towards the barracks where it was warmer and he could start a fire.

[Jennifer Kail]

Jen watched as Axel made his way down the alley and then like her proceeded to remove his own brick from the wall. She gawked a little as he reached inside and then proceeded to pull out his own bottle. Right. In. Front. Of. Her. He was hiding his own booze stash right under her nose and she didn’t even know about it. She had always suspected the centurions weren’t as squeaky clean as they tried to make everyone else be and here Axel was proving it to her.

The centurion returned with the bottle sticking out of his jacket. Jen still didn’t trust him but if he was going to play this through to the very end she supposed she might as well humor him. At the very least she had some incriminating evidence of her own to take Axel down with her if he tried any funny business. “Alright.” She said still giving him a suspicious look but without as much venom this time. “I’ll bite so long as we come to an understanding. We don’t talk about this to anyone got it? So help me if you get me in trouble for this I’m going to bust your ass to the Praetors so fast you won’t know what hit you.” She may have been getting herself in a mess of trouble but she wouldn’t have been a daughter of Fortuna if she wasn’t willing to take a few risks. “Where do you propose we imbibe? Your place or mine?”

[Axel Laughlen]

What Axel did in that moment was probably the single most stupid thing he could have done. Although, he couldn’t think of anything else on the spot what would gain at least a little trust from Jen, now that she had some leverage on her centurion. If she went down now, he would fall with her. Hard. Guess some things were just worth the sacrifice, or at least he hoped so. Honestly, Axel was surprised the boozy girl hadn’t sniffed out his stash, it being so close in vicinity to her own.

Upon walking back to Jen, he could tell he still had not quite convinced her. Shrugging, he sighed, “I don’t know what else to do to get you to trust me, literally no one knows about this.” Axel gestured to his bottle. There was an innocent look in his eyes. Even his friend Aubin didn’t know Axel kept his own personal stash in camp. The demigod didn’t even know quite sure what prompted him to put everything on the line for this girl. Something was just intriguing about Jen that he felt the need to explore.

Smirking, Axel nodded. “Good. My lips are sealed.” The centurion turned and nodded his head back to their barracks. Zipping up his jacket to hide his treasure, he replied to Jen. “Your’s, can’t have my room smelling like booze. Never know when I’ll get a surprise visit by someone important.” Axel had no idea how this venture would end, but with the amount of alcohol the two had together, it would definitely end in a heavily drunken state.

[Jennifer Kail]

Jen supposed she could trust him just this once. Besides, it stood to reason that not all the centurions were so bad. Maybe she was being too hard on the guy if he really did know how to loosen up when he was off the clock. Jen still had her doubts but she was willing to give him a chance even if he did show he was still at least partly concerned about the rules when he suggested her room instead of his. “Alright I may end up being Fortuna's bitch but I guess it’s more fun when you you’ve got somebody to drink with. Come on fuzz, you’ve got a deal.”

She would probably tease him about smelling of booze later but for the most part she was just happy to get back on the way to getting drunk. Jen led the boy out of the cold and back into the barracks. She didn’t speak much to him on the way because it was already noticeable enough for her to be heading back to her room with the her centurion in tow. They could save the drinking and the talking until they were safely out of the public eye.

They made it back to Jen’s room and she let them in holding the door open for Axel until he was inside and then closing it behind them. The room wasn’t anything fancy. A few denarii scattered here and there, Jen’s legion armor and weapons on display and ready to be grabbed if needed and a few war trophies were on display, the largest of which was a kraken scale which she had taken after giving the one that had attacked camp a flaming ballista bolt enema. The room wasn’t particularly clean or messy but in either case Jen didn’t appear to really mind him seeing how she lived.

"Welp, might as well make yourself at home. I've got some tumblers in the drawer over there if you need one." Jen didn't seem overly concerned about it herself. Instead she dropped her coat with a sigh and went to crash on her bunk. Reaching into her boot she retrieved her flask and brought it out for another drink as she watch Axel. "So my goody-two-shoes centurion knows how to relax. Color me impressed. Whatcha drinking over there anyways?"

[Axel Laughlen]

Finally Jen had loosened up. That in itself was an accomplishment. Just by being Jen’s centurion, he was fully aware about how much she hated the authority of Camp Jupiter. Although for today, at least, Axel seemed to be the exception. Rolling his eyes and shaking his head, he reluctantly followed Jen back to their barracks as she called him ‘fuzz’. It was odd for the girl to be leading him back, although in a weird way she was almost doing him a favor. He didn’t want anything to spill in his room, and he didn’t need anyone suspecting suspicious activities going on in his. He looked around a bit nervously as they made their way back, making sure no one saw the pair go back together, and more importantly, into Jen’s room.

Stepping through the held door, Axel inspected the girl’s room. It looked similar to his, with his armor and weapons out and easily accessible, and the trophies he’d acquired over the years. There was nothing that he could get in trouble for one of his legionnaires for having, so Axel didn’t particularly care that it wasn’t very neat. Once the door was securely shut behind them, the demigod unzipped his jacket and hung it on her bedpost. She did say to make himself feel at home, after all, and seeing as their rooms had the same setup, it wasn’t very hard to. Bottle in his hand, he plopped down on the bed next to Jen, leaning against the wall behind it. He wasn’t about to sit on the floor.

Axel chuckled. “Nah, the bottle is already chilled, and I drink it from here anyway.” He unscrewed the cap and brought the bottle to his lips, taking a long swig. He sighed, enjoying the sensation of the alcohol slightly burning the back of his throat. It had been a while, Axel hadn’t had an early day in at least a month where he could do whatever he pleased.

The boy felt Jen’s eyes on him as she took a drink herself. Cocking a brow, Axel listened as she called him a goody-two-shoes. He let the insult roll over him, just as his did with most of Jen’s “jokes”, since he rarely had a good comeback to match her. Of all the people Axel bullshitted with, Jen was definitely the best of the best. Axel held up the bottle so Jen could see the label. “Well I’m glad I left an impression on you. Capt. Morgan’s Spiced Rum. Goes down smooth.” He took another long drink of the dark liquid, starting to feel a slight fuzziness in his head. “What’s in the infamous flask, huh?”

[Jennifer Kail]

As he mentioned drinking from the bottle she gave him a little tip of her flask when he came over to stretch out beside her. "Didn't take you for the piratey type fuzz but I can respect that." She said with a chuckle and then added with a little shake of her flask. "Vodka, Chopin, the good stuff that they only make in Slovak counties. You should try some. That is if you think you can take it. I can guarantee that it's just as smooth but it'll burn like Vulcan's piss on the way down. There's nothing better for warming you up on a cold night though."

Jen wondered just what Axel's angle was. Centurions didn't just come out drinking with their cohort members, at least not to her knowledge, but if he wasn't here to get her in trouble what was his deal? Was he trying to get in her head? Make nice? Something weird like that? With all the trouble she usually got into Jen wasn't really looking to make besties with the brass. The rules were even tougher are the top and she wasn't about that life. She supposed that they could have this neutral ground at least, so long as Axel kept it neutral.

"So why're you out for a drink cent? Long day at the office? I'm not exactly sure what it is you guys actually do aside from riding my ass harder than Jupiter when he’s horny." Jen sighed and took a drink from her flask. Non-drunk small talk was weird but she supposed things could be worse. At least she was starting to relax a little even with her centurion here.