CHAPTER FIVE - MY FATHER SAYS HELLO

I was plagued with nightmares. Another new thing to me, like the dyslexia and the ADHD.

I was back on the stretch of the country road that the Greyhound had broken down on. The Fates, sitting at their fruit stand, regarded me with their ancient eyes. Their mouths didn't move, but I heard their voices in my head; raspy, yet strong, and full of power. "Your fates are intertwined, child. You must stay with the son of the sea god. Guide him, be his ally. You are the turning point of this war. All of the bloodshed could be prevented, by your hands, and your hands alone."

My dream shifted.

I was standing at the edge of a massive pit. A voice rumbled through the darkness, sounding like metal scraping against stone. I knew that voice all too well, even though I had never heard it before. "Come down, little hero. Your quest is futile. I will rise, and you will be the first to feel my wrath."

I woke up with a start, gasping for breath.

"Oh, my gods! Okay, breathe. Breathe." A voice sounded to my left.

"Percy...?" I asked, still dazed. Light was blinding me, and there was a ringing in my ears. I had the smell of rotten meat in my nose, most likely leftover from the skiff with the Minotaur.

"Um, no," the voice said. It was deeper than Percy's, smoother, like the speaker spent his life sucking on cough drops and drinking licorice tea. But it was definitely a young voice.

I craned my neck, which was stiff, like it hadn't been used for a while. A blonde boy was sitting to my left, bandaging my arm. Or rather, re-bandaging it. He had a stern face, but he looked my age, maybe a year or two younger. There were already worry lines on his forehead and around his mouth, like he spent most of the time frowning, but his eyes had a childish twinkle in them.

I collapsed back down onto the cot I was lying on. My mouth felt unusually dry. My eyes hurt every time I blinked. I slowly took in my surroundings.

I was in a big room, with hospital curtains hanging all around. I could see silhouettes of other kids, lying on cots like mine, behind the curtains. There were about a half dozen others, all wearing orange t-shirts, running around the room, grabbing gauze, crutches, and other medical supplies.

I groaned. "I'm in the infirmary, aren't I?"

The boy to my left blinked, surprise crossing his face. "Um...yeah. You've been unconscious for two days. Most of your wounds have healed, thanks to the nectar and ambrosia, but you're still going to be sore for the next few days. I'm Will–"

"Solace. Yeah, I know who you are," I said. "Son of Apollo, healer, always serious, blah blah blah." I was being rude, I know, but at that point, I was in so much pain and so tired that I really didn't care.

Will frowned. "Chiron mentioned in passing that you knew stuff. I didn't quite understand what he meant, but I guess you just explained it to me," he said. "So, I'm guessing that you already know pretty much everything about camp."

I nodded weakly. Suddenly, I remembered something. I had come here with friends.

I shot up into a sitting position, which made Will start so badly that he fell out of his chair and landed on the floor with a thud.

"Percy! Where's Percy? And Grover? Are they okay?" I demanded.

Will put his hand on my shoulder. "They're fine," he said, his voice soothing. My shoulders relaxed on their own accord. "Grover just took your friend to see Mr. D and Chiron a little while ago."

I snorted. "That's an interesting conversation."

"What do you mean?" Will looked at me quizzically. Then just shook his head, and propped up my pillow so I could remain sitting up. "Never mind, I know what you mean. We've all been there before."

He gave me a glass of water, which I happily took from him. I drained the glass while he looked over my injuries. "Your legs and ankle have completely healed. Your arm still needs a little more time, but it should be okay by tomorrow. You cracked a few ribs when you hit Thalia's tree–"

"You mean when Pasiphae's son smacked me into her tree," I deadpanned. My fingers clenched around my water glass as I remembered Percy's anguished scream, as he watched his mother dissolve into golden light. My eyes sprung with tears, but I pushed them back. Crying was not going to get me any points here.

Will narrowed his eyes. "You're clever, knowing not to invoke their names. I heard that Percy kid talking to Grover earlier. He just flat out said his name."

I nodded. "Yeah, Percy tends to speak on impulse," I said. "Plus, he doesn't really know the rules yet. He'll get better over time."

"Hmm," Will muttered. Then he looked up at me, and managed a small smile. "Well, anyways, welcome to Camp Half-Blood."

*

Will and I talked for a while, about the camp and the various activities offered. I sipped on a small glass of nectar while he tended to other campers. The godly drink tasted like my mother's homemade eggnog. By the time he came back, the glass was empty and I felt good enough to stand on my feet.

"Will, could you do me favor?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Why not? I'm not needed here anymore, anyways."

"Good," I said. "I want to meet up with Percy and Chiron at the Hermes cabin."

He did a double take. "How did you–"

I cut him off, "I know things, remember? They're making their way to the Hermes cabin, to meet up with Annabeth. I want to catch them before Chiron leaves."

Will looked like he was going to protest, but then he just sighed and gestured to the door. "The quickest way to the cabins is through there."

I followed Will out of the infirmary. The camp was beautiful. The strawberry fields baked in the afternoon sun. I saw campers, satyrs, and nymphs walking around, going from the archery range, to the lava wall, to the forges. A few campers were playing volleyball in a sand pit. The canoe lake glistened, and the woods towered over the camp, looking beautiful, but intimidating.

Will kicked a rock down the path. "So, Avalon...who's your godly parent? Male or female?" He asked.

"Honestly?" I said. "I don't know. I grew up thinking my mom and dad were my actual parents. It could be either one of them." I hung my head. In this reality, it meant that one of my parents was a cheater. Unless my parents weren't even married. For all I know, they could be strangers to one another.

Will hummed in response. "Well, what about your interests? Maybe we could try and narrow it down based on what you like. It wouldn't be the first time. So what do you like to do?"

"Archery," I immediately said. He raised an eyebrow. "And I love reading. But, now it's more difficult for me to read."

"Probably because you have dyslexia. Most of us do. Have you tried reading Ancient Greek?"

I shook my head. "Nowhere to try, except here."

We had just reached the cabins. There wasn't anyone in the commons area. Next to the brazier in the center of the cabins, a young girl stoked the flames. I wanted to go and say hello, but Will was already walking away from the fire. I opted for a wave instead. The girl smiled widely, pleased to be noticed.

We were passing the cabins with the even numbers. I stopped at cabin six. A gray building with an owl carving above the door, which was cracked open a little. I could see a library, and draft boards. I sighed.

"What's wrong?" I heard Will ask from behind me.

"I was hoping that I would be a child of Athena," I muttered. "I always loved her stories. And Annabeth is awesome. But, it just doesn't feel right. This doesn't feel like home, to me."

Will put a hand on my good shoulder. "I'm sure whoever your parent it, you'll know who they are. Like you said, you know things." He smirked, and for the first time, I could see a sense of humor in this kid. I could tell we were going to be good friends.

As we passed cabin four, Demeter, I started to chuckle.

"What's so funny?"

"Hm? Oh, nothing. I was just thinking, if my sister were like me, she would most definitely be a child of Demeter," I said, still laughing quietly to myself. "She can grow anything, literally. Even our last name would fit; Green. Unlike me, I manage to kill every plant that I touch."

"You have a sister?"

"Yeah. She's twen– she's seventeen," I managed to catch myself. Technically, in my world, she's twenty-five. But if I'm twelve here, that means that she's seventeen. "Her name's Sierra. And she's 100% mortal."

"Well, I'm glad that you're not a Demeter kid. They can be a little scary at times. Like Katie Gardner. You do not want to get on her bad side, unless you want to find your bunk full of poison ivy." Will steered me around cabins two, and then one, and we started making our way down the male side of the cabins.

I spared a fleeting glance at cabin three, and I smiled slightly. Percy had already been there, I could tell.

I walked quickly past cabin five, hoping that its occupants weren't around. The last thing I wanted to do was go through "initiation process."

As we passed cabin seven, I was nearly blinded. The sun was hitting the golden roof, and it reflected off of the gold, right into my eyes. My body felt warmer, like I was being bathed in sunlight. It made me feel comfortable, safe. Then I heard Will gasp.

I turned around to look at him. Except he wasn't focused on me, but rather what was above my head. I looked up.

"Oh," I said, in realization. My voice was small. Archery. Knowing the future. How did I not see it before?

Floating above me was a golden symbol – a lyre, shining in the sunlight. Then the solar beam left the roof and stopped shining on me, and the lyre disappeared.

"That's...almost impossible," Will stammered. "No one has ever been claimed that quickly before."

I shuffled my feet and ran my good hand through my hair. "Well, I guess I'm just special that way."

Will smiled at me. A genuine smile that ran from ear to ear. He bowed, which I'm sure was meant to be a formal gesture, but he was bouncing from excitement. "All hail, Avalon Green. Daughter of Apollo, god of the sun, patron to oracles, master of archers."

I was pretty sure I blushed. "A little excessive, don't you think?" I asked him.

"Oh come on, it's been forever since I got a new sister," he said, and he grabbed my hand, dragging me towards the end of the commons are, towards cabin eleven. "C'mon, we have to find Chiron and tell him the news, sis."

***