The Daughters of Miss Dirtface

No one was particularly keen on the new girls at camp.

Emily especially felt strange about them. She soon found out why.

Diane Lerow had green eyes. But not sea-green like Percy's. The green colour of leaves in the shade. Her dark brown hair was streaked with lighter brown. She arrived at camp wearing a shirt that said 'Let Mother Earth be Reborn' and tights with a mountain design. She looked like one of those people who campaign against pollution and stuff.

Her sister Camille had lighter green eyes. Her shirt had delicate floral designs, and her tights contrasted her sister's.

They smiled at everyone. They were helpful. They were… perfect.

Too perfect. Something was not right.

Emily spied on them day and night. But they acted like normal people. Well, normal demigods. They were even ADHD and all, so they weren't monsters. Maybe.

They didn't act like they had something to hide. They didn't clam up when they were asked personal questions. Camille even admitted a crush. Wow, thought Emily, talk about open.

The only weird things?

They didn't seem to have any powers.

Maybe they hadn't been claimed yet?

Eh.

After a week, Emily deduced that they were totally normal. But a nagging voice in her mind still insisted that something was wrong.

'Percy… do you think there's something, I dunno, weird about those girls?'

They were chilling in Cabin 3, looking out at the sea.

'Hmm… I never thought about it. Hey Julie!' He called the only other person in the room, a short girl reading on her bunk. 'Emily has a question.'

Emily asked Julie.

'Nah, I didn' think o' dat. They seem normal to me,' said Julie.

Emily sighed. 'I guess you're right. I'm being stupid. I guess it's just the whole Gaia incident and then a couple girls turning up with all earth themed clothes… well, I'm linking stuff to other stuff and now I'm confused.'

'At least you didn't lose your memory. That was very confusing.'

'Yeah, I s'pose it was. Well, I'll go out for a stroll. That'll clear my head.'

Emily was walking around aimlessly when she saw the two girls lying on the ground. They were murmuring something. Emily crept closer.

'… promise you, Mother. We will.'

Emily frowned. Mother? And they're talking to the ground. Mother… ground… Mother ground… Mother… Earth? Mother Earth? She remembered Diane's shirt. Let Mother Earth be Reborn. Realization dawned on her face.

Gaia?

She burst into the Poseidon cabin and strode over to Julie.

'Those girls are daughters of Gaia.'

'No kiddin'. An' I'm the daughter of Hera. Ge' real, Emily,' she snorted.

'No, really! And they were talking to the earth, like all Mother and all. I swear on my life.'

'Well, if ya swear on ya life. But how...'

'What if Gaia decided to go to some guy and say, 'Hey, bud, I'm a goddess, let's invite some new demigods into the world'? Then travelled all the way to camp'

'I' makes sense...'

'Keep it secret for now. We're not sure.'

'I swear on my life.'

Emily exhaled. 'Well, at least we killed Gaia. There's nothing to worry about.' Almost instantly, she regretted those words. No, Emily, never say that. That makes something to worry about. Great.

Emily expected some horrible monster to come and make her sorry for saying that but nothing happened.

Paranoid as ever.

But she couldn't shake off the feeling that something was about to go terribly wrong.