"This is Marcus. He will be showing you around for now since our head of the Hermes cabin is away right now.

Maddie shifted her attention from the tall man next to her. Well, actually, the tall centaur next to her, to look at the young boy who had just appeared. He looked around her age but was already a lot taller then she was, almost towering over her. He didn't look happy. Maddie started playing with her braided red hair in an attempt to stop her hands from shaking.

"Go on now." The man standing next to her gave her a tiny push, one that caused her to stumble forward a bit. She glanced anxiously between the two and quickly stuck out her hand, her arm almost as stiff as a board.

"I'm Maddie!" She exclaimed, nervously.

"Marcus." He didn't even attempt to reach for her outstretched hand, just kept his own hands in his pockets and spun around, walking away from her.

Maddie, unsure of what to do, looked at Chiron who gave a nod down to her. She quickly ran after the boy.

It was her first day at camp. Only two days ago she had been safe at home with her mother. Just as it had always been. That all changed though when a giant beast had attacked their store. Maddie had cried and panicked while her mother desperately tried to protect her. Luckily, a satyr had apparently been watching close by and jumped into action to save them. Maddie hadn't been around for most of the conversation that had followed afterwards, but the way her mother and their savior yelled at each other it wasn't hard to pick up on pieces of the conversation. The satyr had accused Maddie's mother of putting her in danger because she wasn't allowing Maddie to go someplace that was supposed to keep her safe. Her mother accused the satyr of trying to take her precious daughter away from her forever. Along with the conversation, there was talk of a camp, heroes, and gods.

Before Maddie had even gotten the chance to voice her opinion, the satyr demanded she pack as much as she could within the next ten minutes and leave with him. Maddie's mom put up no fight and cried as Maddie's hand was taken by the older boy and she was led away from her home. Maddie then found herself in the rolling hills of what was known as Camp Halfblood. Upon the first sight of it Maddie's breath had been taken away. Her mother rarely permitted her to leave the house, much less the city itself. Seeing the countryside for the first time, with its crystal blue sky, rows and rows of trees in the forest, and the lake! Maddie had never seen such a beautiful body of water before! She had just wanted to run in and splash around forever!

Instead, she was taken to an old man who's front half was that of a human and the other half was that of a horse, who went on to explain that she was a demigod. Her! A daughter of a god! It was so impossible yet...yet so...

"S-so...the gods are real…?" Maddie looked up at the boy in front of her.

"As real as you and me kid. Chiron gave you the rundown I assume?"

Maddie nodded her head but then realized he wasn't looking at her. "Yeah...he did."

"Yeah well, it's a lot to take in at first so don't worry too much-"

"It's so cool isn't it!? The gods who have been around for thousands of years are still alive and kicking today? I wonder if I'll ever get to meet any of them...Do they visit the camp here? Have you met any of them? I just think it would be so neat to ask them about what life was like back then or what their favorite foods are or even what hobbies they enjoy. Do you think any of them like photography?"

"Do you ever shut up?"

"Huh?"

Marcus stopped in his tracks and spun around to face Maddie for the first time dead on. His cold, blue eyes seemed to stare right into her soul. "You know, most kids when they get here are scared or confused. I can deal with that. They're quiet and shy, not loud and obnoxious. If you want me to give you the tour then either shut the fuck up or figure it out on your own."

"Oh...s-sorry." Maddie instantly deflated, letting her shoulders tense and trying to make herself smaller then she already was. Maddie immediately shut up, falling in line quietly behind Marcus as he pointed out random places around the camp. Pavilion. Campfire pit. The lake. Strawberry fields. The cabins. Each place was more beautiful and wonderful than the last. Finally though, it was too much for her.

"Who's your parent?"

Marcus stopped again and glared daggers at her, causing Maddie to shrink under his gaze once more.

"Ugh. Fine. It's Aeolus. God of the wind."

"No way…" Maddie's jaw dropped open and she stared wide eyed at the boy in front of her, as if she was seeing him in a new light. "That's so cool! When you pointed out the cabins I was worried that only the twelve Olympians had kids which made no sense cause obviously there are hundreds of other gods so how is it possible they don't have kids? Gods like Caerus, Nike, and Iris have all been personal favorites of mine. But someone like the god of wind? That's so powerful and cool! He must be super strong, especially down here since it's so windy most of the time...well at least from what I know cause I only really heard the wind rattling around outside, never really felt it much myself. But still! Wind is super powerful so that must mean your dad is super powerful and in turn means you're super powerful and cool!"

Marcus opened his mouth to respond and found that he couldn't. This was a first. Even kids who had been here for a couple of years or so had trouble remembering who Aelous was, much less any other minor god. Yet, this girl just rambled about how much she loved them? That was...different.

"You...how much do you know about the gods?"

"A lot actually!" Maddie brightened and stood up a little straighter now that he was responding to her. "My mom taught me all about them! I never would have imagined...imagined that I...that I could be the child of one of them…" Maddie's eyes glanced up towards the sky where the bright sun was shining happily above them. She couldn't deny it, she had hopes. Her entire body filled with energy when she imagined what the possibilities of her dad might be. The first one that came to mind was always him. If it was him…

"Well...good on your mom then. Most people forget about the minor gods." He gave a small inclination of his head towards the forest. Maddie squinted her eyes as she tried to make out the shape in the distance. A lot of small black dots lined the outskirts of the forest, almost looking like small houses.

"A lot of kids here are children of minor gods. The cabins we saw earlier are for those who are the children of the twelve olympians. Most minor god kids just get the short end of the stick so a lot of them have taken to building their own places to live near the forest instead. I wouldn't recommend messing with them, they can be really standoffish, especially if we find out you're the child of a major god."

Maddie frowned at this. Did the minor and major gods not get along? Were they enemies? Did they hate each other? She wanted to make as many friends as possible, she had felt that way the moment she had seen how many campers there were here. She had never known kids her own age and never got to interact with them by her mother's orders. She had always wondered what it would be like to interact with other kids, with other people. This was her chance! But now...Marcus was telling her not to talk to some of them?

"Just keep in line, keep out of trouble, and maybe you'll survive here." Marcus continued walking again and Maddie had to trot to keep up with him and his long legs.

"Where do I live then since I don't know who my parent is?"

"Most of the time the Hermes kids house the new comers, god of travelers, right? However, the gods are a little more lenient nowadays. If you want, you could sleep in any cabin where there's room, even when your godly parent claims you. It's wherever you're most comfortable."

"Where do you live?"

The question was innocent, especially since Maddie was only 12, but Marcus still let the smile spread across his face at how the implication probably went right over her head.

"Kind of wherever. Most of the time in the Aeolus cabin, sometimes in the trees."

"Woah…." Maddie' eyes drifted back to the giant forest, wondering what kind of mysteries it held. This whole place felt like a dream. Up until now she had only known the nature that her mother sold in her flower shop. She could identify any type of flower flawlessly but had never seen a full garden, or a forest, or even a patch of green grass. Things were so new and different. Everything here was so different. From the way her feet sunk into the dirt underneath her, to how the air smelled of strawberries as the wind picked up the scent from the fields and drifted it down over their heads. Her whole life she had known the inside of four walls and that was it. Nothing more and nothing less. Now, it was like the walls had opened up and left her in the middle of nowhere. And it was perfect.

"That concludes the tour. Food is given out at the pavilion in about two hours. I can lead you back to the Hermes cabin to get your sleeping arrangements if you want."

Ever since Maddie had talked about Marcus' dad, his entire persona seemed to change. Sure he was still quiet and had a mean looking face, but his words were not as harsh and now he was even offering to lead her around some more.

"Yes please!" Maddie jumped up with excitement, her smile growing. Had she made her first living friend? She couldn't believe it. Marcus led the way back to the rows of cabins for the twelve Olympians. Maddie's eyes wandered over the cabins one by one, noticing the detail work on each and correctly identifying each cabin in her head. That must be for Zeus cause it's the biggest and has the storm clouds on it. Then that one is definitely Demeter cause of all the plants, mom would like that one for sure. Then…" She stopped walking for a second as her eyes landed on one cabin in particular.

It was light gray, nothing too special about it overall. A few carvings of wild animals and a bow and arrow at the top of the cabin. It was a little smaller than the other cabins and didn't seem to have any activity inside of it. Yet, Maddie knew right away who it was for.

"Artemis…" The word felt magical now that Maddie knew that Artemis was so close to her. So near. For years she had found herself fascinated by the moon and talking to it. The moon had been her first and only friend when she lived at home. Artemis, Maddie knew and hoped, had been watching over Maddie to keep her safe and happy. It's why she could always get the perfect view of the moon from her window each night, because Artemis made sure of it. She knew now it had to be true, right? All her day dreamings of Artemis finding her and treating her like one of her own might finally come true. After all, Artemis felt more like a mother to Maddie than her actual one, so she had to feel the same way...right?

"Hurry up kid!" Marcus' voice called out to Maddie and broke her from her trance, she quickly hurried to catch up with Marcus.

"How do I meet Artemis?" Maddie's eyes stared at Marcus' back with such intensity and seriousness that it was almost as though she was hoping to burn a hold into his shirt with laser vision.

He laughed in response.

"Good luck with that. Artemis has been quiet about gaining new recruits for her hunters ever since one of her best died. Thalia had been one of Artemis' favorites for a loooong time. Ever since her death Artemis hasn't really gathered too many other members."

"Members for what?"

"You aren't listening are you...alright fine. The hunters of Artemis. Artemis doesn't have children right? However, she sometimes hand picks girls to join her on her hunts. They make a deal with one another. The girl chosen becomes immortal and helps Artemis in her battles but the girl must swear off dating and boys for the rest of her life."

"Okay!"

"What?" This time Marcus stopped in his tracks and turned to face Maddie.

"I'm going to do what I can to become a hunter of Artemis! I know I can do it!"

"Look...kid...maybe don't decide that on your first day of-"

"I promise not to date any boy from now on as the first step towards getting Artemis' favor!"

"You're a weird one, you know that?"

"Huh?"

"Nothing…" Marcus smirked at the girl in front of him and gave a noncommittal shrug. It wasn't really his job to tell her what she could and could not do. If she wanted to waste her life trying to befriend a god who probably wouldn't give her the time of day or night, then what did it matter? She'd probably get over it in a few days anyways. After all, Maddie was in her middle school years. She'd probably decide real quick that she would rather be with a boy then some random god.