My eyes widened. "Woah. Is that…"
"…a centaur?" Christal gasped in awe as the man stood up from his wheelchair.
"Mr. Brunner?" I smiled, recognizing him almost immediately. Who would've thought my GM teacher was a whole freaking centaur? Definitely not me. To be honest, while I acted quite nonchalant the whole time, my brain was practically going in circles.
Mr. Brunner looked almost the same to how I remembered him - fair skin and a thick beard that had grown out. His lower body was replaced with a white stallion's, just like how the centaurs were described in our GM lessons, grayish fur brush out to a shine. I had always thought he was paralyzed, but I guess not.
"Good to see you again, children," He beamed and trotted towards us. "Did you have a good time with Percy?"
I almost laughed out loud at that question but because I was an empathetic person, I didn't. It was… torturous, from what I remembered, and quite fortunate too since I didn't study for the test yesterday.
"Emelie, can I have a word with you? Percy too." He beckoned them over to where he once sat, though, now that the illusion had stopped working, I didn't think he would fit in that wheelchair anymore.
They talked for a while, giving us girls the time of their lives just running around and examining the fields filled with fresh strawberries and the many campers around our age were doing rather… peculiar sports. I had a good time breathing in the fresh air – it didn't smell as bad anymore. When they finished exchanging words with each other, I was left disappointed.
"Ms. Evans," Mr. Brunner guided her up the stairs and onto the porch, his hooves clattering when coming into contact with the wooden planks. "Emelie, the girls. Give them a tour, will you?"
With that, he disappeared from view, entering the building, leaving me and the other two bewildered. I mean, he could've told us why he just abruptly disappeared with Helen. Nebby seemed to get herself together more quickly about Mr. Brunner's sudden "kidnapping" of Helen than I did, returning to her usual stoic demeanor, and directing the attention back to Emelie. I kinda felt bad for her since I could still see the visible bruise on her forehead.
"Giddy up." Christal giggled, completely oblivious to the visible confusion on our faces. "Get it? You know, since you have hooves and everything, like a horse, and 'giddy up' is used by cowboys on horses?"
More confused silence.
"Yeah… that was bad."
I followed them down the pathway, not wanting Nebby to be all folle over me. The route twisted and turned in different directions, each branch leading to multiple areas. They looked impressive, and the architecture was superb. Everywhere I looked, I saw boys and girls my age, or maybe even older. They seemed happy, hanging out together in the sun. And Christy next to me was already making new friends, running off. The atmosphere was upbeat, though I didn't know what was going on with the people. And Em… She's a weird girl. I didn't really question why she just kinda appeared but she seemed smart enough for me to chat with.
"Can I choose my own roommates?" I wasn't quite comfortable with the others yet.
"Of course not. You'll all have a cabin with your half-siblings," Emelie replied, disappointingly.
"Siblings?" I played it off like another joke. "I'm an only child."
"Apparently not. One of your parents is supposedly a god, so you actually have who-knows-how-many siblings."
"What…?" That caught me off guard. Despite how put off I am by that answer, it would actually explain a lot, like the fact that I can speak fluent French although I've never learnt it before and my dad is confirmed 100% American, how people seem to be swayed by my requests and Dad said my mom was to blame. "So… my mom…"
"Esmé, your mother is a goddess. She didn't go anywhere or die. She's immortal, so rest assured."
That wasn't what I thought she was going to say. I didn't really think she died. But maybe some things are better kept secret. Not like I was sad of course. I was used to being neglected my whole entire childhood, y'know.
It was a long walk. Interesting, of course, especially when we reached the area with all the so-called cabins just popping up everywhere, all surrounding a burning fireplace. The biggest cabin was painted a pearly white, with marble gigantic columns on the front porch. Lightning bolts streaked down them, almost glowing, and that paired with those golden doors created a magnificent scene. That was Cabin 1. I first suspected it was Zeus's, and I was correct.
"There's this senior half-blood, though she's not really a senior, Thalia, who sometimes stays here. She also had a brother named Jason, but he died," Emelie told us. "Or so I heard."
After a while, we found Cabin 2. "This is Hera's cabin. No one lives there, but you're not allowed to step even one foot inside; it's considered disrespectful to the goddess."
The cabin was gorgeous, with peacock feathers lined up in the front and coated with a beautiful turquoise that seemed to reflect the sunlight. Slender marble columns supported the wooden awning with vines wrapped around it, showcasing a variety of fruit, mostly pomegranate.
The next cabin looked important, despite being smaller. It was low and long, the walls made out of rough stone and above the front wall were carvings of horses, playing with waves, pushing and pulling.
"This is where the legendary Perseus Jackson lives. Although he's technically old and skilled enough to go live in the mortal world, he insisted on staying here, because he said, quote-on-quote, it's 'rent-free'. Cabin 3, Poseidon. Percy's also an important part of the council and the face of the cabin since he's one of the seniors."
"Nice," Christal commented on the building. To be honest, it looked pretty decent to me too. "And… he lives with his other unknown relatives, right?"
"Well, not at the moment. Things are a bit wacky these days, and this was the first search party sent out in a long while," Emelie explained carefully. "And it's not yet summer break so… yeah."
"So… he's the counselor of… himself?" The corners of my mouth turned upwards, and I failed to keep myself from giggling. Mr. Jackson, in charge of himself. That was quite the surprise.
"Doesn't he take after his father? Like, the powers or something?" Christal pressed on. She seemed fascinated by the topic for some reason.
"Uh… did I mention that stuff was a little off these days? I'll tell you later, I promise." Emelie definitely didn't want to talk about that, I was sure of it. I didn't know the story behind why, but I was certain the info wasn't for us to hear. "Oh, and there's also the Hades Cabin… and Athena's…"
"I'm hungry." Nebby grumbled, syncing with her stomach rumbling with discomfort.
"Me too." Christal gave us 'the look' and then tapped on Em's shoulder. "Hey."
"Yeah?" Em spun around and somehow guessed what we were thinking just by the expressions on our faces. "Hungry?"
"Starving." I added on before giving her a pretty little smile. "Please?"
"Okay now. Let's go." Then, she ran off, with us trying our best to keep up, the conch horn sounding in the distance marking the start of the lunch period.
***
"Oh no, I'm allergic to soy," I wasn't. I was never allergic to anything but still, I pushed the plate away from me. It's kind of amusing how I just went from starving to having no appetite. It would be pretty weird to tell Em that, so I didn't. "Don't feel bad."
There was nothing on my tray because my appetite wasn't there. I wasn't that familiar with 'family gatherings'. There was nothing in particular that made me hate it, it was just some certain memories that haunted me. I glanced over at Helen, sitting far away from my table. She looked so… happy.
I forced myself to look away, rising from my seat and escaping this place. A bubbling feeling stayed behind as I took my things and went away. I still had my phone so I still had a choice. I sat myself over on the bench, all by myself.
"Hello."
I flinched, almost dropping my phone before I got a look at who that was. I didn't recognize the person. Blond hair, like it was spun from gold. Emerald eyes, almost morphing, from that to wonderful teal.
"Oh, hi." I let out a relieved sigh. They did not have to spook me like that. "What's up?"
I could tell she was older, maybe 14 or 15 but who was I to judge?
"I'm Calista, nice to meet you." She held up a hand and I took it. Or I tried to. Before we even made contact, she jolted away. "Your hands are filthy."
"News flash; I just murdered somebody." I said in a monotone. But I did come back from a murder, like, just today so I wasn't really lying, except I passed out throughout the whole thing. "Anyways, the name's Esmé."
"Ooh~ And who did you murder?" She asked.
"A manticore."
"Lucky you. I've been training for years and still no quests." She leaned back and rested on the backrest and continued. "Which cabin are you in?"
"I don't know…" I groaned and sank into the bench once again. "You?"
"Cabin 10." She winked at me and patted my back. "Aphrodite."
"Oh. Okay." I wouldn't say I didn't like that, but it didn't really have an effect on me.
"Did Em update you about… la disparition?" She purred into my ears, her voice softening into almost a hasty breath.
"What?"
"Ya don't say… Well, let this little missy do her job then, shall she?" She muttered and then scooted closer to me, taking up almost all of my personal space. "The magic is just in a situationship with us right now, just this week. One moment it's as good as new and one moment it's just poof. There's been a rumor going around camp saying that cabin 9 was the curse-maker."
Hold up. This girl said that cabin 9 was the curse-maker. Who's cabin 9?
"Ah, cabin 9 is Em's cabin. To be honest, we've been suspecting it was her side of the family who weaved the curse. Their abilities didn't do a cliff-hanger on them, did they?" She arched her back and stretched, her hands waving in front of my face and one finger poked my left eye. Did she have no manners? She eyed my Nokia and continued, "Also, keep your phone. Everybody here uses them. Anyway- ALEX~!"
I swear, her eyes went from flirty and cute to full on googoo gaga. Her eyes widened and her eyes, from a deep green, to a light teal that complimented her hair. She smiled sweetly at the group of boys approaching us and suddenly, I wasn't there anymore. So I excused myself from the group of kids, with my phone clutched in my right hand, my other reaching for my headphones in my pockets.
"No phones allowed, rookie." A voice called in my direction and the shadows were just behind me, looming over. "Call your mum to pick up the phone and come back here instantly, got it?"
This reminded me so much of my elementary school. No electronics and blah blah blah. But this was better, since now I could just cut off that Calista or Clarissa something because she is now certified fake. I hope I didn't end up with the same godly parent that she has, because that will probably soil my perspective of my own damn mother. Hold up, that perspective has been soiled ever since she left my dad without me.
I spun around to look at the dude and, seriously, why are they so tall? Like the lead guy could easily be the boogeyman in my dreams, but the way lovesick Calista danced around him ruined the vision. His eyes are a mix of a pale, icy blue and a rich gold. Chocolate brown hair tied back in a low bun, just enough to pull back the loose strands of hair. Something about him just made me wanna tease him but nuh-uh. At least not until he pisses me off. "Where?"
"The tree. If you're too scared, you can just call Percy." That guy -Alex- or so I thought, meant 'calling' by name. Now, before you start throwing shade at me for being a total biatch, let me explain. I got a bit too fired up, but don't worry—I just acted like I was a total drunk and managed to get away with it, even though I'm way underage.
"Okay. What's his number?" I pulled out my phone and deliberately tossed it to him which he somehow caught effortlessly. "Go on. Or are you afraid I was going to use your fingerprints and try to hack into your phone at your parent's house and then try going into your c.ai chats and then blackmail you? I assure you, I won't."
"Sarcasm. Really?" Alex said it like it was a bad thing. But was it? Depends. Right now, it's the definition of fun. But nothing else came out of his mouth as he turned away.
"Nope. It's called humor, darling."
Calista's mouth gaped open, staring at me with a sort-of did-you-just-try-to-flirt-with-my guy? expression, of which I got a somewhat satisfying feeling from. Was it weird I got over my depression in under 2 minutes? Yeah. Who even cares?
Oh wait. But which tree?
"HEY!!! WHICH TREE?!" I yelled at him but there was no answer so Mr. Jackson it was.
***
Mr. Brunner insisted that I call him Chiron instead of his disguise name when I got to the big, sky-blue building that everybody calls the "Big House". Like, it is big, but just why?
"Mr. Bru- Chiron, where's Mr. Jackson?" I asked, my phone peeking out of my pocket. Oh, how the name felt on my tongue was indescribable.
"Christal had just the same problem with her phone and because of it, Percy had to run some errands." He tapped on the heavy book settled on the table and stood up from the chair he was sitting in. It was still something I wasn't familiar with and maybe never will be in the future but at least he didn't slice off his legs and then attach them back on whenever he stands. That would've been horrifying. "And so did Nebby so we had to double the security."
"Why?" I was certainly curious about the topic but I certainly wasn't happy with the fact that we had to give up on our phones like that.
"There have been some issues that I suppose the kids have told you about." His eyes gazed into the distance, into the horizon. I didn't even realize the time had gone by so fast. I can see shadows dancing in the sun, shadows of my friends, of my only family. They seemed so… in place. No, no, no, E, you can't get jealous that someone has a better life than you.
"Come on, I'll drop your phones off at your parent's house when I've got the chance. Now, the most important thing is your training."
That snapped me out of my trance. "What training?" I arched a brow and leaned my back on the column.
"As a demigod, you need to learn survival skills and I know exactly the person to do the job." He smiled and warmth flooded me. After all, maybe he was still my old GM teacher.
He walked me into the Big House, just like he had with Helen. Inside, the worn-out wooden floorboards reminded me of Auntie's vacation home in Oklahoma, where the wind blew through the windows and the fire was always lit. Here, the couches were tucked away in the corners and a middle-aged man sat by the coffee table.
"Mr. D! Where did that wine come from?" Mr. Brunner galloped over to the fireplace and grabbed the small little basket located on top of the stone top. "Beauregard, please put your phone here."
I dropped my Nokia into the woven basket and took the opportunity to peer into it. Just as expected, phones were placed neatly, some were cracked and others weren't.
"Mr. D?" I tilted my head to the side and blinked at him. Black hair with a blue hue, shaggy and his curls bounced everywhere, covering his forehead completely. His eyes were bloodshot and droopy with a sense of inhumanity that I couldn't describe. In his hand was a wine glass, filled halfway with bubbling champagne.
"Let me correct you, Chiron, this is not wine," With one swift move, it was gone and in its place was a can of Diet Coke. "but champagne. Did Father forbid me some champagne? I don't think so, but for safety purposes, I have sent it back to Olympus."
I narrowed my eyes. "Champagne is nothing but wine."
"Oh great. Another smart little brat." He said it like he had seen a couple of 'smart little brats' before. I figured he was an addict based on his overall composure. "That girl Helium was enough trouble, and now this?"
Helium? Helen? "Who?"
"You know, the Athena girl. I knew it the moment I saw her." He popped open the lid and dumped the whole can down his throat. "And who is this?"
"This," Mr. Brunner said as I felt hands pushing me forwards. "is Esmé Beauregard."
"I bet you ten bucks that she's Aphrodite." was his only answer. "And Chiron, please, do no-"
"Esmé, Mr. D. Mr. D, Esmé."
"Thank the gods…" A clang rang as the scrunched up metal can hit the ground and echoed through the whole house.
"Are you Dionysus?" I gave it a try, since we seemed to be in a betting game right now.
He let out a groan and grumbled something under his breath and I knew for sure that I was right.
"He is the camp's director and a god, yes." Mr. Brunner confirmed my suspicion.
"If I were you, young lady, I wouldn't be going around spouting names like that," Mr. D scoffed disdainfully.
"Ahem. She is here to be trained, or at least learn some survival skills." Mr. Brunner cleared his throat. "Would you request an instructor?"
"Mhm… I've already got one in mind." He croaked and from the looks of it, he had once again devoured another can of Coke. "And then Capture the Flag on Saturday. Bam. Also, do we really have to add the no-killing rule, Chiron?"
I stood there, utterly confused, as Mr. Brunner sighed and said something that was completely drowned out by my buzzing thoughts. What game were they even talking about? I didn't have to join, right? I doubted it was going to be something normal though; my life is hella messed up. I couldn't even use my phone.
***
Of course I had to be paired with Alex of all people. If he weren't looking upon me like I was a rat merely intruding on his presence, I would be actually quite okay with spending extra time with him, if he wasn't so rude, mostly because he was hot as heck.
"You got a weapon yet, kid?" He said, a permanent scowl on his face.
"Huh?" I scratched my head blankly and then remembered the blade gripped in my hand. "Oh, this? Yep."
I glared down at the baggy orange shirt I had changed into, which made my torso look longer than the sword in my hand. Bold letters wrote 'CHB' and below the thing was a full-blown pegasus. Wow. Just how much have I missed. It was almost… I don't know, unbelievable? It was like a game, but all the sensations are too vivid to be just simply that. It was also truly marvelous, how this place allowed underage kids to wield actual weapons. Heck, they even let us choose, though I just grabbed the most decent-looking one and fled the armory.
"A sword? Really?" He asked, analyzing my chosen weapon. "Eh."
"What?"
The rude ass moron didn't even flinch and just kept ignoring me, but then had the nerve to snatch my sword and toss it to the ground. Seriously rude. "30 laps. Now."
"Are you kidding me?" I shot back, raising my eyebrows. "How am I supposed to do that?"
"C'mon, show me some stamina," He said with a smirk.
The running wasn't that bad but the thing is he was just staring at me the whole entire time. He's probably having the time of his life watching me embarrass myself right now.
Sweat trickled down my chin as I glared upwards at the sun.
I am so irritated right now, I thought while Alex walked over, one hand gripping the hilt of my weapon, the edge dragging on the grainy dirt. But like, how did I go from being a straight A student in a boarding school to suddenly finding out my most beloved teacher was a horse-man to having to be here with this random guy? How would I, of all people, know?
"How do you feel? Water?" He said even though I can taste the smugness in his words. Still, I snatched the gourd dangling from his fingers by a thread and began gulping down the delicious water.
After emptying the gourd, I gave him another menacing (or what I hoped to be menacing) glare. It didn't have the same effect I hoped it had, because I immediately started choking on air right after.
"Now what?" I coughed while literally trying to shuffle away as another useless attempt to save my dignity. "Long jump?"
"Hold on," He ran a hand through his hair, now loose and all 'pwetty'. "How old are you anyways?"
"3 years and a ¾ ." I joked sarcastically before adding to my sentence, "plus 9 more years."
"So you're 12?"
"Turning 13 this year."
"But 12."
"Fine." I hissed, my sword now back in my hands again. "If you say so."
"So… still not claimed yet?" He asked the most obvious question possible and I groaned. "I'll be damned if you did."
"Yes. And now if you don't mind, I'm going for a stroll." I gritted my teeth and turned away. Out of the corner of my eye. I could see him trailing behind me. But soon, his shadow was gone. Out of sight and out of mind.
Finally, I felt free again after all that time.
"I hate my life." I mumbled to myself, my hands on my hips as I tried mimicking the cat-walking models on TV. "Why is this scrap of metal still here anyways?" I stabbed the sword tip deeply into a moist piece of dirt, still fresh. My hands had started to sting from gripping the thing too hard and I had to let it go.
I was so excited the moment it stood on its own, I thought I was going to go all cray-cray.
Minutes went by, I was still on the move, going further and further into the wild. It wasn't as boring as when you take a quick route to the 7/11 down the street to get some ice cream in the middle of the night. This was different. I could feel the magic around, bubbling and floating in midair.
Gurgle. Gurgle.
I whipped around and a small little pool appeared by my feet. I could see the waves rippling at the surface of the water, clear and serene. By the bed, amongst the sprouts and sapling, laid a… bow.
A string strung through, Greek letters engraved into the wooden riser and I could make out the words.
I read the words aloud: "From Marie," and carefully picked up the item. "Who's Marie…?" I yawned, then shrugged. "Oh well."
I slung the bow over my shoulder and glanced at the sack lying nearby. A single turquoise arrow glinted in the sunlight, its soft azure glow pulsating with an almost magical light.
A grin spread across my face as I grabbed the sack by its leather strap. "Thanks, Marie."