Change is a Good Thing (Part One)
Virginia
Virginia walked along the cobblestone street, a strawberry ice cream in her hand. It hadn't been long since Gaea had been defeated, and life at Camp Jupiter was on its way to getting back to normal. For the most part. The various stores and restaurants had reopened, campers were training in the arenas, and the mess halls were packed with hungry teens. Still, something was different. Virginia could sense it, and she knew everyone else could too.
Reyna had tried her best to act like everything was back to normal, but Virginia doubted it ever would be. Everyone had lost friends, some even family, in the war and it seemed as if everyone was fighting so hard to get back to normal that they were forgetting what had happened.
Those few days camped outside Camp Half-Blood had been nerve-wracking. Virginia remembered the catapults and the fire, but most vividly of all- the monsters. She couldn't believe it when Octavian had brought them in, what had he been thinking? Every night, Virginia prayed they wouldn't turn on the Legion, but inevitably, they had.
At least she didn't have to worry about Octavian anymore. As much as she hated to admit it, she would be eternally grateful to the Greeks for getting rid of him. Maybe they had their uses after all. Still, Virginia preferred the Legion to the rag-tag army of Camp Half-Blood.
She found a table and sat down, still wrapped up in her musings. She looked up to find Sabrina Everette, her best friend, seated in front of her.
"How was fencing?" she asked. Unlike Virginia, who was decidedly uncoordinated and preferred magic, Sabrina was a natural at weapons of pretty much any kind, which was rather surprising for a daughter of Ceres. Although, she usually preferred her double daggers to a bulky sword.
"I got stabbed," Sabrina answered with a groan.
"That sucks," Virginia said. "Do you need to go see the medics?"
"Nah, I'll be fine. Oh, and by the way," Sabrina stood up from her chair, "Reyna wants to see us. Something about a new job."
"Okay…" There had been lots of "new jobs" since that Valdez kid had destroyed the camp. Most of them included fixing up the buildings. Virginia herself had been using her magic to lift boulders from the road and construct new buildings for weeks now. All the same, something in Sabrina's tone led her to believe that this "new job" would be different.
They reached the principia, and were immediately met by Reyna and her two dogs, newly repaired since the war. Reyna wore her standard austere look that made Virginia both admire her and maybe even fear her a bit.
Reyna cut right to the chase, "Chiron from Camp Half-Blood and I have been talking." She paused briefly, probably feeling the apprehension that had settled in the room. Virginia remembered her father using those exact words after he had been discussing a problem in the household with her older brother.
"We have decided to start a new program," Reyna continued. "An exchange program where Camp Jupiter and Camp Half-Blood exchange students for a few months out of the summer. For now, we are going to start with two students, but we hope to eventually move onto greater numbers. The goal of this program is to establish more flexible relations between the two camps should another danger present itself." Reyna uttered the word "danger" carefully, as if she didn't want to tempt the Fates into waking up new monsters. Virginia didn't blame her.
"And...you want us to be the exchange students?" Sabrina sounded slightly incredulous.
"Yes," Reyna said, "Normally, I would have sent someone of higher rank-" Virginia tried not to bristle at that, it was a perfectly logical point, "-but our centurions are needed to bring the Legion back to its original routine and order."
"So, you're sending people who aren't as important or noticeable?" Virginia had learned to master the art of keeping her tone light and innocent while simultaneously implying something much darker.
"Essentially," Reyna clearly didn't like admitting what she was doing, and Virginia didn't like admitting that Reyna was right. The camp did need its routine back, but at the same time it also needed better relations with Camp Half-Blood. This was the best way to get both.
Virginia glanced over at Sabrina, trying to figure out whether she was going to do it not.
"We'll think about it," Virginia said finally, reluctant to give a definite answer.
Reyna seemed to accept that and she nodded, "I need to know your decision by tomorrow." She sat down behind her desk, a clear dismissal.
Sabrina waited until they were clear of the principia before exploding, "How does she expect us to just pack up our bags and go to Camp Half-Blood for a month? To stay with those Greeks? I mean, Reyna said it herself, we need routine, not something completely foreign to us."
Virginia was inclined to agree with her, but she couldn't help seeing the fruits of going, "True, but the camps are evolving. We can't just ignore each other's existence anymore. We need to know the campers on both sides, in case we end up fighting side-by-side again. We need collaboration, and I think this is the best way to get it."
Sabrina sighed, "Fine. Let's do it. But I'm blaming you if anything bad happens to us."
Sabrina
Reyna looked decidedly relieved when Virginia told her they would go to Camp Half-Blood with the exchange program. Sabrina still didn't like the idea of going to a strange new camp, but at least Virginia would be going with her.
Reyna told them they would be leaving for Camp Half-Blood in three days and would be staying there for two months. Sabrina had no idea what they were going to encounter there, what kind of tasks they would be facing, or what kind of training they would be going through. She assumed there would be training; the Greeks couldn't be that haphazard, could they?
For the next few days, Sabrina managed to shove Camp Half-Blood out of her mind, but before she knew it, it was time to leave for Long Island. She had briefly wondered what sort of transportation they would be using to get there, but that question was quickly answered by the descent of a large chariot pulled by two pegasi.
Sabrina recognized her former praetor, Jason Grace, as he climbed out, and she assumed the dark-haired girl behind him was Piper McLean. Two other campers piled out behind them: a tall, broad-shouldered girl and a smaller, much more energetic boy that looked like her younger brother. Reyna came out to greet them, a friendly hug for Piper and a more awkward (but no less friendly) hug for Jason. Reyna then turned to the brother and sister, shaking the girl's hand and smiling warmly at the kid. Sabrina was surprised, she didn't think Reyna smiled at anyone.
While Reyna was speaking with the older sister, Jason caught sight of Sabrina and Virginia.
"Hey Virginia, Sabrina," he said, grinning at both of them, "Are you two going over to Camp Half-Blood?"
"Yeah," Virginia answered, "For the exchange program Reyna and Chiron have set up."
Jason noticed their edgy demeanor and his grin grew wider, "Camp Half-Blood's not that bad," he said, "It's very similar to the Legion, but a lot less restricting."
Virginia nodded, "Is there anything we should know before we get there?"
Jason thought for a moment, "Try to stay away from the Ares Cabin for your first few days and don't ever challenge anyone from Apollo's Cabin to a basketball game."
Sabrina raised her eyebrows at the last statement, but didn't say anything.
"You'll have fun at Camp Half-Blood," Jason said, turning to leave, "Don't worry."
….
The ride to Camp Half-Blood was long and awkward, though not as long as it would have been if they had taken mortal transport. Their chariot driver, Butch, was practically silent, and Virginia and Sabrina were too anxious to talk much.
"So…" Virginia began awkwardly, "How long have you been at Camp Half-Blood?"
"A few years," Butch grunted.
"Cool...Who's your godly parent?"
"Iris."
"Oh," Virginia had no idea what to say to that and Sabrina had to fight back laughter. Butch looked far too muscular and bulky to be a son of the hippie rainbow goddess, but as she looked closer she could see a tattoo of a rainbow on his bicep.
Virginia seemed to give up talking to Butch after that, and they flew the rest of the way in silence. Sabrina brought her daggers out of her bag, flipping them in her hand from handle to blade and back again. Virginia had her hand outside the chariot, golden sparks flying from her fingertips. Sabrina used to think that children of Trivia had it easy. They didn't need to learn how to use a weapon, all they needed was magic. She soon found out that magic was just as difficult to master as any weapon, and equally tiring if you weren't used to it.
Sabrina glanced down at her own hand. She supposed if she really tried she could turn her dagger (or someone else's) into a flower, but what would be the point? Her magic wasn't powerful enough to make much of a difference and Sabrina soon went back to flipping it back and forth.
They finally touched down on the beach of Camp Half-Blood. Sabrina had barely gotten out of the chariot when a short girl with blonde pigtail braids came running up to them excitedly.
"Hey guys, welcome to Camp Half-Blood! Over there you'll find the strawberry fields, and there's the-"
"Brigid!" Two more girls ran up. They were both taller than Brigid, and the one who had called out her name had a pixie cut with the ends dyed a dark blue. "What have we told you about talking to random people?"
The other girl beside her continued, "It's dangerous! They could be monsters in disguise or something, you don't know!" She played with her tight blonde curls, shifting her weight from one side to the other.
Brigid crossed her arms stubbornly, "Actually, if they were monsters, they wouldn't have been able to get through the barrier surrounding the camp."
The girl with blue hair rolled her eyes, "The point is: we don't know who they are. Monsters aren't our only enemies, you know."
"You know what-"
Just then, a man in a wheelchair came up behind them. "Callie, Phoebe, Brigid; you can welcome our guests later. For now, let's try not to overwhelm them too much."
Brigid rolled her eyes at what Sabrina assumed were her two friends and followed them to the ampitheatre.
Sabrina had seen Chiron before, after the battle, but it had been from a distance. Up close, he seemed much older, although there were no tell-tale wrinkles on his face.
"Welcome," he smiled warmly at Sabrina and Virginia from his wheelchair, but then turned to Butch. "Thank you for driving everyone, it saved us quite a bit of time."
Butch nodded and shambled off, unhooking the pegasi from the chariot and bringing them with him.
Chiron turned his attention back to the girls, "I suppose we should see to sleeping arrangements first. You have both been claimed by your godly parent?"
They nodded.
"Trivia," said Virgina.
"Ceres."
"Good," he said. "That makes things much easier. You'll be given a tour of the camp by your cabin's counselors. Virginia, your counselor will be Lou Ellen Blackstone from Cabin Twenty and Sabrina, your counselor will be Miranda Gardiner from Cabin Four. I hope to see you both at the Mess Hall tonight for dinner."
He went off in his wheelchair and Sabrina and Virginia glanced at each other, unsure of what to do next. They didn't have to wait long as soon two girls came jogging up to them, both in Camp Half-Blood t-shirts.
"So, which one of you is Virginia?" The one with dark hair asked.
"I am," Virginia replied.
"Awesome. I'm Lou Ellen, your counselor for the Hecate Cabin." She led Virginia over to the cabins and Virginia waved back at Sabrina, grinning eagerly.
"I'm Miranda," the girl introduced herself.
"Sabrina."
"Nice to meet you. I guess we'll just start the tour here. This is the fireworks beach and up there is the climbing wall." Sabrina raised her eyebrows as she watched the rock begin to smoke profusely. Miranda caught her look and grinned, "Yeah, if you don't get to the top fast enough, lava will come pouring down on you along with a few large boulders. Not fun." She sounded as if she had been caught in that position one too many times.
"Anyway, that's the mess hall, where we eat, and that's the amphitheater." She pointed to her left where the three girls from before were sitting. The blonde one with curls was playing guitar and singing with the one with the pixie cut. The shorter one appeared to be their audience.
Sabrina pointed to the shorter one, "She came up and tried to give Virginia and I a tour before we even got out of the chariot."
Miranda laughed, "Yeah, that's Brigid for you. She's pretty popular around the camp-knows almost everyone and takes pride in it. Just don't get on her bad side," she added meaningfully.
"Phoebe's pretty well-known too," she nodded towards the girl with the guitar, "but Callie pretty much sticks to herself. I don't think I've ever seen her with anyone that wasn't that group. You friend will probably meet her though," Miranda added as an afterthought, "since they're both daughters of Hecate."
She continued with the tour, finally stopping by a lake with canoes moored on the shore.
"That's obviously the canoe lake," she pointed to her left. "And those are the bathrooms and the cabins. The cabins are arranged by godly parent and each one is assigned a counselor. I'm the counselor for Demeter's cabin, at least when our other counselor is away."
They walked up to the circle of cabins and Miranda opened the door to a light brown one with grass of the rooftop and plants arching up the sides. Inside, there was a soft grassy floor with a tree trunk directly in the middle, its branches making up the ceiling rafters. To Sabrina's left were bunk beds and chests for the camper's belongings, but to Sabrina's right was one of the nicest kitchens she had ever seen.
"Most of us really enjoy cooking," Miranda admitted, "The majority of our ingredients are freshly picked from outside. Or inside," she added as Sabrina's gaze swept across the copious amount of vines growing on the walls.
"So...how do you like it?"
Sabrina's gaze switched back to Miranda, "I think I'll like it here."
AN: Welcome to my second fanfiction! Special thanks to my friends who are both my editors and my characters in this set of short stories. I am not discontinuing my Marvel fanfic in case you were wondering; I have just had these characters in my head for a while and wanted to share them with the world.
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