I jumped off the chariot, Vanessa and Jake following me. My mom had dropped us off not that far from camp, that I was glad. I grabbed hold of Jake's hand and started walking towards Camp. Vanessa lingered awkwardly behind us.
As I walked to Camp, I grew more and more excited. I had never been a participant in a quest before, and I was really looking forward to burning my shroud. The attention on the other hand, I could probably do without. I was positive I got that trait from my father. Having Jake next to me was calming, though.
I entered camp borders nervously. I didn't know how people would react. Would they miss me? I didn't think so. All I was to them was a sign that the gods were hypocritical, corrupt, people.
They wouldn't care.
I was dead wrong.
The second I walked into camp, I heard cheering coming from the Aphrodite girls who stood around talking. Hayden's the loudest. She had always been my favorite Aphrodite kid.
Skylar from the Athena cabin, another one of my favorites grabbed me and pulled me in one of the tightest hugs ever. I grunted. She laughed and let me go. I laughed too, from the relief that I wasn't hated by the people here, like I used to be.
The ceremony that followed was just as fun(and awkward) as I imagined. The burning of the shroud though, was the thing I was looking forward to the most, simply so I could see just how badly the other cabins did it. Dad told me once that when he went on his first quest, the Ares cabin made him once so dreadfully horrifying...never mind.
When I saw it though, it was beautiful, covered completely in silver, decorated in moons with arrows through them. It reminded me of the mockingjay pin design, sort of. It was really cool-looking. It was almost a pity to burn.
Just, almost.
Thalia, who was there, told me she made it, that I was glad for. I was extremely close to the hunters. They were all like family, well, technically, most are, but it only counts if it's a child of Apollo or the big three in my mind.
The next morning was irrelevant to anything I actually cared about, and was somehow both a blur and couldn't go by any slower. Major paradox, I know. But you know how it feels when you're impatient and just want something to happen and it seems the time your awaiting would never come and it's all you really care about? Yeah, that's what it was like.
I had been told the day before that Chiron had called a counselor meeting. I really had no clue what it was about. No one else did either. I followed Arribeth, daughter of Nyx there. She was a nice girl, but we weren't close.
Chiron, once we were all there, said the big news we all were so anxious to hear, news that almost made my heart stop.
"Well, guys. Go tell your cabins that I just got news the Architect of Olypmus is coming."
