Camping isn't usually my idea of a fun getaway. Hiking I like, but spending the night in the woods? Not for me. Camping as in a summer camp, like band camp, is cool and all, but still not my idea of a party. I prefer a relaxing hike along the Appalachian Trail or up one of the Peaks ending with a bonfire. The few times I do go camping are with a group of friends who leave me be while they do idiotic things like repelling, leaving me to cook (which I actually enjoy) and do all of the less extreme activities. This night however is being spent on my own somewhere along the Trail in Pennsylvania. I'm surprised I've made it this far without stopping in town, not like I have a choice though, technology makes for amber alerts getting around fast.
I should probably point out that yes, I am a minor, thus the amber alert, and yes I did purposefully run away. I come from a small town called Bedford located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. In Bedford, we're famous for our history in WWII and our many farms, orchards, and vineyards scattered through the mountains. We have lost treasures and mysteries as old as the arrival of the Europeans. Despite all of this, Bedford remains a small county with a close knit community that can trace its history hundreds of years back.
Living in a small town has its advantages and disadvantages, the disadvantages mostly having to do with the fact that nothing is kept private here. Word spreads faster than a wildfire, and if you're not careful, the fire'll burn you real bad. I grew up seemingly normal as a blue-eyed brown-haired girl with a temper rivaling that of her father's. I grew up with two half-brothers, Adam and Colten, both older and sharing Mom. Adam had already left for college as an engineering major, he had excelled through school. Colten however took to the artistic side, preferring his trumpet over textbooks. He left last fall with Adam to major in music, leaving little 'ol Jemima here.
Jemima was the name of a character in one of Mom's favorite plays, and later movie, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Adam and Colten got normal names, probably because Mom and Dad were happy then; my brothers say all the problems started when I was born, so I was given a name that'd make me standout even more. I say even more because my brothers look just like Dad, I don't look like anyone in the family; all we share is the hair color. We all have the dark curly brown hair, but that's about all we share in looks. My brothers have square-shaped heads with thick brows, large mouths, and features you'd attribute to that of G.I. Joe. I have a more rounded face and small thin features.
Adam and Colten say that when I was born, Dad started getting mad at Mom really easily. I of course never saw this, being a baby and all, but even now there's tension in the air when all five of us are together. Problems started with me in my freshman year of high school. I made it through the drama of middle school and didn't manage to make any enemies. The summer before freshman year changed a lot of people though. Rachel, once a friend of mine turned towards drama over the summer and along with a few others, particularly transfers, started the taunts and mocking. I did gain one new friend with the new school year, a transfer from New York, Remy. Remy looked like the average high school guy with a scruffy beard and a bit of a limp. Remy and I met in culinary arts on the first day of school when he almost set fire to the eggrolls. Long story short, we became good friends over the year, adding MJ when the three of us met up in gym.
You may ask, with such good friends, why are you running away from home? I'm running away because the evening I got home from playing with the concert band at graduation I was met with ashes and police. The house had burned down taking everything with it. My parents were missing and neither of my brothers would answer their phones. I snuck off into the trees and a quick text to Remy and MJ telling them what had happened, and I ran. I should mention that the clothes I was wearing, my concert attire, I switched out with the t-shirt, jeans, hoodie, and converse I'd worn to school. I carried my backpack inside of which I had my flute, a couple novels, a journal, and a few snacks. I got a text from Jackson telling me to go to a safe place and stay so he could catch up with me, which I found strange since he has enough trouble walking on a flat surface with that limp. Every time I stopped though I'd hear something in the bushes, probably a rabbit, but I was already scared. One thing lead to another and I found myself traveling north on the only trail I'd ever bothered learning.
This brings me to where I am now, sitting in a tree looking down on the strange sight that is my two best friends sitting by a campfire.
"Hey MJ, pass me the stick next to you" Said Remy as he dug out a can of biscuits from his bag.
Biscuits? Alrighty then. I didn't help the strange sight when Remy put the biscuits over the fire and proceeded to eat the can. Jackson's a strange guy, but I've never seen someone eat a can. They started a thrilling discussion on the many interesting stories in Greek Mythology when I fell out of the tree.
"Jem?" they yelled simultaneously.
"Oh, hey guys. Nice day isn't it?" I awkwardly spit out. Falling out of my tree was the start to a bad day.
We packed up and continued our Remy-lead journey together to wherever it is he's leading us.
"So what have you guys been up to since I left?" I asked
"We had a run in with a hellhound when we went out looking for you" replied Remy with a slightly irritated face.
"Okay, that's strange, but I'm not gonna ask." But seriously, a hellhound?
"It's not strange when you are who you are"
"And who exactly are we Remy?" MJ asked sarcastically.
"What if I told you that the stories we've been studying in history are real? The so called Greek myths, they're real." Remy stated.
"Well, um. I'm not sure how to respond to that, but what does that have to do with us?" questioned MJ.
"Come on MJ dude, you're smart enough to figure it out. You too Jem. You're halfbloods."
"You're not saying we're the long lost friends of Harry Potter are you?" I asked,
"You two are demigods. Both of you have a parent in Olympus."
"I can see that since I've never met my Dad, but what about Jem? She has, er had, both parents." MJ said, handing me the obituaries of my parents. They found their bodies among the ashes of the house.
I tried not to cry as our conversation tapered off. How could I be a demigod if I had both parents? Wait a minute. I shared no traits at all with Dad's side of the family. I got my music abilities from Mom, but nothing from Dad. That could explain the tension between them when I was born. Did Dad know he wasn't my real father? Why would Mom cheat on him though? The questions kept reeling through my head as we walked til dusk.
"We should stop here tonight and rest up before we try to get to camp. I should probably do some explaining now. I'm still Remy and I'm still your friend, I didn't be your friend just to get you to come back with me. I'm a satyr and I find halfbloods like you guys and take them back to camp when they either start high school, get attacked by a monster, or both. We usually just watch over you through middle school unless something big happens. This camp I'm taking you to, Camp Halfblood, is for all demigods to live and learn to defend themselves. I'll introduce you guys and give you camp 101 when we get there, hopefully by noon tomorrow."
Sleep came easy having been walking all day. It was the first night in forever I didn't have a nightmare.
I could say we woke up to a beautiful morning and relaxingly made our way to camp, but then I'd be lying. We woke to the not so beautiful sound of a hellhound that finally found us running through the brush. We had just enough time to grab our stuff before we ran through unfamiliar woods at dawn.
"Come on guys, camp isn't too far off" yelled Remy
"I thought we'd make coffee and sit down for a chat first" replied a sarcastic as usual MJ.
We ran over the river and through to woods to what was most definitely not grandma's house. Past blackberry bushes and towering oaks, we ran behind Remy hoping he knew where he was going.
"Don't worry guys; camp is just over the hill up ahead. Get past the pine and we'll be safe."
And with all my luck and gracefulness, I tripped in hole cleverly disguised as a pile of leaves. MJ turned back to get me to be met with a face full of hellhound as the massive dog tackled him. There was yelling and screaming, some coming from MJ and me, and some coming from Remy and some teenagers who appeared out of nowhere.
I tackled the hellhound hoping to get it away from MJ's apparently delicious arm. It of course didn't like my "hug" and turned on my also delicious, now throbbing, shoulder.
Before the world went black, the hound yelped and I saw the faces of frightened teens above me.