"This is Camp Half-Blood," Connor announced, gesturing to the area below them with open arms as they stood next to the large pine on the hill's crest.
"It's pretty amazing," Madeline said, smiling lightly. She stood there for a moment taking in the scene; there were kids running around, the sound of swords clashing, laughter, and things that didn't exist to her just a day ago, like the strange boys with goat legs. The bright sun created a cheerful background for the great view.
"Yeah. I guess it is," agreed Connor, remembering the first time he saw Camp Half-Blood, years ago when he was only a little kid.
"I was only about seven when I came here. How old are you anyway?"
"I just turned sixteen a few weeks ago. I'm a May baby," she responded, still looking at the view below them.
"I'm sixteen, too," Connor replied, smiling.
"Must be cool being a twin," Madeline offered.
"I wouldn't know," he clarified, used to people assuming that about his brother and him. "Travis is actually a year older than us."
Madeline raised her eyebrows in surprise, considering how similar they looked. "That's one strong gene pool then."
Connor nodded in agreement as he chuckled. "So this is Half Blood Hill. Its name is pretty self-explanatory. And this is Thalia's Pine."
"Oh... Why is it called that?" she asked.
"A while ago, there was a demigod named Thalia, a daughter of Zeus. She didn't make it all the way to camp though. Zeus turned her into a pine tree so that she wasn't, well, gone forever. Now she protects the camp from monsters so that what happened to her won't happen again."
"Oh. I'm sorry that happened," Madeline said, pausing for a moment of silence. "Did you say monsters?" It seemed a little farfetched, but here she was at a camp for demigods. The limits of possibility didn't apply here, apparently.
Connor simply answered, "Yep. Most of us are attacked outside of camp, by monsters. They can smell us. But you're safe inside the borders," he said, clapping her on the shoulder. She gave a small laugh, but still looked confused.
"Is it weird that I haven't been attacked?"
"Maybe your mother is a minor goddess. You were probably flying under the radar."
"I can't believe I had no idea about all of this until now. Thanks, by the way. I mean for not letting me carry on completely clueless," she said with gratitude.
"No problem. I guess we're all just used to it by now," he shrugged. "C'mon, there is a lot of camp to show the newbie."
They walked down the hill, almost everyone they passed waving to Connor and giving Madeline a look of curiosity.
"That is the Big House," said Connor, gesturing to the big blue house. "Counselors have meetings here for important stuff. Quests, business things, yada yada."
"Quests?" Madeline inquired.
"Yeah, quests. They're like missions given out to the campers. They're one of the reasons we train," he explained. They passed the Volleyball Courts, where some kids were playing a very vigorous, intense game of Volleyball. They also passed the Arts & Crafts center, where some kids were carving a larger-than-life size statue of a beautiful women in flowing ribbons. Some Aphrodite girls nearby glared at Connor. She ignored them and continued after the boy.
"They seem friendly," said Madeline in a sarcastic tone.
"They may not be the most forgiving girls you meet. Anyway, this is the Arena," he said as they entered through a massive stone archway. The few kids that were there were taking a break and sitting on the stands, weapons at their sides. They walked to the middle of the large floor and Madeline spun around, looking at the large stadium.
"Wow," was all she could say.
"This is where we have sword practice," Connor told her.
"Sounds fun," replied Madeline in a distant voice. Connor couldn't help but laugh at her. She was so surprised by everything. She gave him a sheepish smile in response.
"Next is the Climbing Wall," said Connor, leading her farther into camp.
"Isn't that kind of... extremely dangerous?" Madeline asked as she looked at the flowing lava. And the two colossal walls of stone rumbling and closing in towards each other, along with the falling boulders and the severe lack of harnesses on the kids climbing.
"Does everyone seriously see this as normal?" she asked, perplexed.
"Like I said, we've gotten used to it," Connor replied. "Besides, the satyrs catch anyone who falls, most of the time," he added, smiling at the disbelief on her face. It was kind of cute. He helped her across the creek, offering her his hand, and they came out next to the mess hall.
"You've already been here. We have all our meals here. You have to sit at your parents table, with all your half brothers and sisters. It's the rules. Since Hermes is the god of travelers and whatnot, we take on all unclaimed demigods."
"Generous," said Madeline with a nod. They continued onto the cabins and walked over to #11.
"This is the Hermes cabin!" Connor said, grinning at the dullest, simplest cabin in the lot. It had plain brown paint, a few windows, and a caduceus over the door. It looked like a normal cabin you would find at any other summer camp. He held the door open for her and she gave a small thanks as she entered.
"Well, this is home sweet home, for now. That's the girls' side," he said, gesturing to the left, "and that's the boys' side." Madeline hesitated as she walked past the small lounge area in the middle and through the doorway to the girls' side.
"How did my stuff get here?" she asked, looking at her few bags on one of the top bunks with surprise.
"The harpies must've done it," he said, standing in the doorway. "They're like the unseen maintenance workers of Camp Half-Blood. You'll wanna stay away from them though. They like the taste of demigods." She smiled at the joke and climbed onto the bunk.
"I'll let you set up for a bit," Connor said, leaving the cabin out the front door. She peered out the window and saw him talking to a small groups of girls, standing confidently and flashing that bright smile of his. Madeline observed, shaking her head with amusement at his flirting. She checked that all her stuff had made it and then walked to the front door. She waited, leaning on the door frame, while he spoke with the girls.
"Hey, Madeline! Come meet a few friends of mine," Connor waved her over. The girls all smiled, turning their heads to each other and whispering.
"This is Madeline. Madeline, this is Lindsey, Jessica, and Megan," he said, introducing them all. She was caught off guard when they each took turns pulling her into a hug.
"It's so nice to have a new girl camper," Lindsey said.
"It would be totally awesome to have a new sister," added Jessica in a sweet tone.
"There are just so many guys around," said Megan, looking over at Connor. He winked at her.
"I'm glad to be here, too," was all Madeline could think to say. She wasn't used to interacting with groups of girls, and had to admit she was nervous. Seeing how playful Connor was with all of them also didn't help.
"Well, we gotta go. See you later, ladies," Connor said smoothly. Madeline let out a laugh at his flirtatiousness once they were out of earshot. Connor looked over as she smiled and shook her head, and he noticed that she had dimples. He watched her while she looked around and couldn't help but smile too.
"So," he said as they passed by a large field scattered with sparing partners everywhere, "as you can see, campers train pretty much anywhere there's space."
"More weapons," she said, raising her fists into the air without much enthusiasm.
"Don't worry. It's really not bad. What, are you scared of swords?" he teased, picking up a nearby stick and pretending to fight against an invisible opponent. Madeline turned her palms up and shrugged with an innocent smile. "I'm a lover, not a fighter."
"Well then you'll love this place. This is the armory," he told her. Inside were many rows and shelves of all different kinds of weapons that Madeline couldn't even name.
"This is…quite the collection," Madeline said.
"It's kind of necessary when you need to know how to protect yourself from big, bad monsters," mused Connor.
"I guess they would come in handy every now and then," Madeline joked.
"Everyone has a weapon. Let's see if anything catches your eye," Connor suggested, leading her to the back of the shed.
"How are going to find the right weapon for me, in all of this?" she asked, looking at the extensive rows of sharp, deadly dangers with awe.
"It'll happen," said Connor. "Maybe you're good with a broadsword. But that's a heavy weapon and you're small," he said, mostly thinking aloud rather than talking to her as he walked down the aisles, searching the shelves of weapons. Madeline blushed at his evaluation.
"We'll find out during archery if you're good with a bow and arrow," he added. Madeline, trying to hide her blush, pretended to be occupied with a peculiar weapon; it was a ball on a chain with small curved blades all over it connected to a handle. She reached out for the handle of the strange weapon and pulled on the handle, which happened to be caught on something else, causing all the sharp, dangerous weapons in the shelf above her to begin sliding forward.
Connor, turning around at her silence, noticed just in time and ran forward, pulling her out of the way. They both cringed at the loud clatter the metal made as it crashed against the ground. They both stood there, frozen for a moment. Connor was suddenly very aware of her body against his and the fact that he was holding Madeline tightly to his chest. He quickly released his grip on her and backed away.
"I don't even know how I did that! Thank you. I'm so sorry," she pleaded, looking at the second mess she'd made that day, but this time it was deadly weapons and not harmless fruit.
"Don't worry about it," Connor assured her. "It happens all the time. Er, not all the time. But don't worry about it, really," he continued, ushering her out the front door before someone came to inspect the loud mess.
They walked around the area a little more and talked and laughed and enjoyed the free time.
"The only places left are the forest, the beach, and the stables. You've already been to see the horses and Pegasi, right?" Madeline nodded with a smile to his question, remembering back to this morning when she saw the winged horses. They were beautiful, like a fairytale.
"Good. The beach is down there," he said pointing in the direction of the mess hall. "It doesn't exactly require a tour, and the forest is a little tricky to give a tour of, seeing as it's a bunch of trees and dryads."
"Well, that was a lovely tour then. And thanks again, Connor. Really," she said, admiring the wonderful camp around her. It was a nice day; there were fluffy, white clouds in the sky, a warm breeze, and the cheerful sound of the lively camp all around.
"It was my pleasure, " he said, laughing silently to himself as he remembering how nervous he was when Travis left him alone with the new girl. It wasn't like him. Just then, a horn was blown again.
"Time for Archery," Connor prompted, enjoying the look on Madeline's face he led her off towards something that was bound to be interesting.
