Chapter 5 –

"So, I have a question." I said watching Jillian ring out her shirt. "When exactly do I get to go home?

Jillian laughed. "Percy, this is your home now. This is the only place where people like us are actually safe."

"Oh nice, so I'm at a camp for the mentally disturbed..."

"Oh cheer up!" Jillian grinned, shoving me slightly. "There are tonnes of kids, even adults who are like us. And for those who aren't, I'm sure there are kids out there who would love to be a demi-god."

"Demi-god? I mean seriously, I'm not half-god." I scoffed.

"Your dad's not dead Percy. He's one of the Olympians. Look at the stories. What did the gods do best? Come down from Olympus and fall in love with mortals."

"Okay, so if I am a demi-god, then who's my dad?"

"I honestly don't know." Jillian shrugged. "Until you're claimed, no one will."

"How long did it take for you to get claimed?" I asked.

"About a week." She replied. "My father's Apollo, god of light, music, poetry, prophecy and archery."

"And who is Annabeth's father?" I asked. I tried to imagine which of the gods could have been her dad, when Jillian laughed.

"Her dad, I think is a teacher or something. Her mom though, is Athena, goddess of wisdom."

I sighed. "So that's it then? I'm stuck here forever?"

"Depends. Some kids only stay for the summer, others stay all year round. I suppose it depends on the parent and the child. I mean, some kids don't have a chance when they leave the camp since monsters get them, but there are demi-gods who have managed. Some are even famous."

"So, I can't just leave whenever then?"

"You could," Jillian began. "Though, it'd be suicide. Once you know you're a half-blood, the monsters can track you more easily. So really, unless you're granted a quest, then you might as well make the most out of your summer."

"A quest?"

"I wouldn't get your hopes up. Ever since the last time, quests don't happen quite often."

I could tell by the look that crossed her face that the last quest didn't end as well as they expected. We walked in silence until she brought me back to cabin eleven.

"And back to where you started." Jillian smiled turning towards me. "If you need anything, just ask Luke, or if he's not around, I'm right next door."

"Yeah, thanks." I replied as she walked back towards the gleaming gold cabin.

When I walked in to cabin eleven, everyone was talking and joking around as they waited for dinner. I walked over to my corner and sat down, taking in my surroundings. When I looked around, I noticed a lot of the campers looked alike: sharp noses, upturned eyebrows, mischievous smiles. As Luke walked over, I noticed he had the same features, minus the long scar on his right cheek.

"Found you a sleeping bag." He smiled.

"Thanks."

"No problem. Tough day?" he asked sitting down beside me.

"I don't belong here. I don't even believe in the gods."

Luke laughed. "We all start that way. But once you start believing in them? It doesn't get any easier."

"So your dad is Hermes?" I asked.

I realized once I said it, I shouldn't have. His face grew serious and he pulled out his switchblade. At first I thought he was going to kill me, until he brought it down and scraped the mud off of his sandal. "Yeah. Hermes. The wing-footed messenger. God of messengers, medicine, travelers, merchants, thieves. Anyone who uses the roads. That's why you're here right now, Hermes isn't picky who he sponsors."

"Have you ever met him?" I asked.

"Once."

I waited for him to continue, but instead he looked over and smiled. "Don't worry Percy. The people here are good people, and we all take care of each other."

He stood up and walked over to the front of the cabin. As a horn blew in the distant, Luke yelled for us to fall in. We all lined up outside, along with campers from all the other cabins, except for the first three. I noticed no one came from cabin eight as well, the glowing silver cabin. As we reached the pavilion, there seemed to be at least a hundred campers gathering in. Inside, a central fire burned while each cabin had their own table.

I looked around for Grover when I saw him sitting with Chiron and Mr. D. I spotted Annabeth at table six, with a group of boys and girl that looked just like her, as well as Jillian, who was sitting at the Apollo table with a tanned athletic looking group. Chiron stood up and pounded one of his hooves on the table. "To the gods!" He said as he raised his glass.

"To the gods!" The campers responded, lifting their glasses as well.

Nymphs came around with platters of food: grapes, apples, strawberries, cheese, bread and barbecued meat. I stared at my empty glass and Luke told me just to tell it what I wanted, and that would appear.

"Blue Cherry Coke." I smiled as the glass filled up with a dark blue liquid. I took a sip. Perfect.

A piled my plate, but before I could stuff my face I noticed everyone picking up their plates and walking towards the fire.

"Come on, burnt offering for the gods. They like the smell." Luke told me.

"You're joking." I laughed, though his face told me differently. As we walked to the fire Luke whispered 'Hermes' and then scooped a portion of his food into the fire. I stared into the fire and pushed some of the brisket and cheese in silently. Alright dad, who are you?

When everyone was back in their seats, Mr. D stood up and cleared his throat.

"Hello brats. Our activities director Chiron tells me the next match of capture the flag is Friday. Cabin five currently holds the laurels."

An ugly cheer rose from the Ares table behind me.

"Yes, yes, congratulations. Personally I could care less, but congratulations." Mr. D continued, "Also, I should tell you that we have a new camper. Peter Johnson."

Chiron murmered something in his ear.

"Ah yes - Percy Jackson. That's right. Hurrah. Now run along to your silly little campfire,"

Everyone cheered and headed to the amphitheatre, where Apollo's cabin led a sing-along. I couldn't help but watch Jillian's smiling face as her and her brother Lee led a song about Ares and Aphrodite. If someone told me she was a daughter of Aphrodite, I wouldn't be shocked. She had a natural beauty that you could tell make-up would never be needed. I couldn't help but feel bad thinking all of these things when I was sitting right before her boyfriend, who you could tell was thinking the same thing.

We ate s'mores and cracked jokes, and I felt like I could actually enjoy Camp Half-Blood.

Though that feeling was short lived.

I got into the routine of doing things every day that I wasn't good at. In the mornings Annabeth taught me Ancient Greek, and for the afternoon I went through the outdoor activities, looking for something to do.

Jillian tried to teach me archery, though it didn't take long to learn I'm not very good with a bow and arrow.

Foot racing? No.

Wrestling? Uh, no. Clarisse kindly taught me I wasn't very good at that.

The only thing I was good at was canoeing, which wasn't that heroic.

You could tell all of the senior campers were trying to discover who my father was, though it was clear I didn't make it easy. I wasn't as strong as the Ares kids, or good at archery like Apollo's kids. I didn't have Hephaestus' metal working skills either, or Dionysus' skill with vine plants. Luke told me I could be a child of Hermes, but you could tell that he was just trying to make me feel better.

On the Thursday, my third day at Camp Half-Blood, I had my first sword fighting lesson. Luke instructed us, and I did okay, though I couldn't find a sword that felt right. Luke offered to be my partner as well, and it's safe to say he kicked my ass. Exhausted I poured the ice water on my head, and instantly I felt better and was full of energy. Luke gathered us around for a demonstration, and lucky me, I was the dummy.

"This is difficult," he stressed. "So no laughing at Percy." He showed the move in slow motion, and sure enough the sword fell out of my hands. "Now, in real time"

He lunged at me, and somehow I kept him from getting his shot. The attacks kept coming and coming, but I deflected them all. I tried the disarming maneuver.

Luke's sword rattled against the stones, while my blade was inches away from his chest. As everyone went silent, I dropped my sword.

"Uh, sorry."

Luke just stared at me, until he broke into a smile. "Sorry? Percy that was great! Show me again!"

This time, there was no contest. Luke kicked my ass again.

'I wonder Percy, what do you think you could do with a balanced sword?" Luke smiled, staring me down with interest.