Daughter of No One

"Everybody up!"

All of the Hermes kids jumped up, ready to go. I slowly sat up, exhausted.

Everyone here was a liar. "You'll be claimed in a day," They told me. "Be in your own cabin in no time," They said.

Maybe they just don't know the difference between a year and a day. I came to camp when I was eight, going back to my mom's for the school year. I'm nine now, still unclaimed.

"Get up, Keira." My friend Amy sat on my bunk.

"Do I have to?"

"Yes. Come on. We have archery today!"

"I hate archery."

She dragged me to my feet.

"Let's go!"

"I don't want to."

"Oh, stop being such a downer, Keira. You'll get claimed soon."

"What if I don't?"

"You have to. The gods promised to claim everyone before they turned thirteen."

"Yeah. Right."

"Food!"

I sighed. This was going to be a very long day.

"Keira, finish up!" Amy was jumping up and down.

"I'm not hungry anyway." I cleared my plate.

The Hermes cabin had archery first, and boy was I unhappy.

"No! No!" The Apollo kid teaching the class pulled the bow out of my hands. "Not like that."

I took the bow back and grabbed an arrow.

I pulled back and let it go.

"Really?" The boy asked. "You just broke the arrow."

It had gone two feet before hitting the ground and snapping the tip off.

"Sorry."

"Just… don't kill anyone." He stormed off, leaving me alone with the bow.

Amy looked at me with sympathy. "It's okay."

"Whatever."

The kid got up in front of the targets. "Okay, most of you just need to aim higher up. Once I move try that."

I pulled out an arrow and pulled back the bowstring.

I let go too early.

"Ow!"

It turns out, I was lucky. I hadn't hit him with the sharp end of the arrow.

"Keira, you really need to be more careful." Chiron said.

"I know."

"Are you alright?"

"I don't know."

"It's alright if you can't shoot a bow. Not every hero could. For example…"

"I don't want another lecture about the great Percy Jackson!"

He seemed stunned.

"I'm sorry."

He smiled softly. "Go back to your activities. Damion will be fine."

"I'm sorry, Chiron."

I walked out the door. The Hermes cabin should be at sword practice by now.

"Keira!" Amy smiled at me as I walked in. "Come practice with me."

I picked up a sword. "What are we doing?"

"Just sparring."

Our swords clanged against each other.

"I'm so going to beat you, Amy."

"Are not."

"Already have."

"What?"

I kicked at her legs, knocking her over and put my sword to her throat.

"I win."

"You tripped me!"

"Still win."

"Best two out of three?"

"You're on!"

That night I sat on my bed.

"Lights out!" The Hermes counselor Evan yelled.

I laid down, but I didn't fall asleep.

Sleep meant dreams.

Eventually, hours after the last Hermes kid had pranked their siblings and fallen asleep, my eyes fluttered shut.