So, we walked (or more like Lisa dragged me) up the hill to this so-called "Camp Half-Blood". I had no idea whether it was a mental hospital, hippie hangout, or summer camp like the name suggested. It looked like a place hippies would hang out. A few hills rolled in front of us that were covered in bright green grass. A very tall pine stood atop the hill in front of us. There was a forest to the right that seemed to go on for a pretty long distance and strawberry fields grew on the fields below. The farthest away hills dipped into the sea. There was only one building in sight; it was a white, log cabin type building with a wrap-around porch. The lower story windows were open to catch the spring breeze but the upper story windows were either darkened or boarded up.

As we got to the top, Lisa held out her arm in front of her and gestured to the hills in front of us. "See! Camp Half-blood. Isn't it just so green and pretty? Oh I can't wait to say hello to all of the satyrs! I haven't been here for so long."

I didn't know what satyrs were- maybe some family's last name? I didn't have time to ask because Lisa grabbed my hand again and took a running start down the hill. She raced up the front steps to the house and shouted, "Chiron! It's Lisa. I'm back! I found another half-blood! Her name's Raya. She's really nice!"

Yep. Definitely a mental hospital.

A head peered out of the door. It was a guy in his forties or fifties with a goatee. He was in a wheelchair. He wheeled out of the door. I looked into his eyes and saw they were a kind, milky brown. "Lisa. So nice to see you again! This is Raya, I presume?"

"Yes, I'm Raya. And... You are?"

"My name is Chiron. Welcome to Camp Half-blood."

"Um..." I mumbled, "and what is Camp-Half-blood?"

"It's a home for demigods like yourself. You'll train here at least until we find out who your godly parent is. You'll be safe, child."

"Godly parent?" I said a bit too loudly.

"Why yes. Lisa hasn't told you yet?"

Lisa mumbled something I don't think anybody heard. She glanced down at her feet, which were bare.

"You, Raya, are a demigod. One of your parents is a Greek god or goddess. Everyone else here is a demigod, or some creature from what the humans like to call mythology. Lisa, your friend, is a dryad, a tree spirit. I am, in fact, a centaur."

When I stared at him like he was crazy, he laughed. "So you won't take this easily?"

He started to somehow rise out of his wheelchair until he was towering over me. He had an orange tee shirt on, but under that, he had the body of a white horse. I think I fainted (I hate fainting!)

I woke up in what I thought was some sort of infirmary. I had no idea where I was. I was on a bed with a thin, white mattress and loose, white sheets surrounding me. Even the walls were draped in a white fabric that was framed with mahogany wood. On the table next to me was a strange, glowing beverage that smelled of chocolate chip cookies.

Then I remembered, I was in a mental hospital called Camp Half-blood. I had started to hallucinate figures from Greek mythology. I groaned and fell back on the bed. I realized Lisa was sitting on a wooden stool to my left.

"Um… hi," she said, "I see you're awake. Didn't realize you'd faint like that."

"Yeah, what's up with all that stuff about mythology? Am I going nuts or was that a dream?"

She paused for a minute. She glanced down at her feet and fidgeted with her hands in her lap. She brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and said, "Oh. That stuff was real. I know it's hard to believe but… I hope we can still be friends even though now you know I'm…"

I had never heard her be more sincere. I guess I started to believe her, "Don't worry about that! It's just, it seems kind of surreal to me."

"Well, as Chiron said, I'm a dryad. I'm stationed in New York because that's where my tree is."

"You mean the cherry tree in Central Park?"

"Yeah, I don't just like to sit there- that tree really is a part of me. I know it's hard to believe but-"

"No. I believe you," and I actually did.

"So I'm stationed in New York to find half-bloods like you so that I can bring you here to Camp Half-blood. It's not safe for you out in the mortal world because, well, monsters can find you very easily. You saw one today. The Minotaur. We didn't think it would come back any time soon because it's the same monster Percy battled when he first came here. Oh yeah- you don't know who Percy is. I'll fill you in later. Just have a sip of that nectar there and you'll be good as new."

I must have looked confused when she said "ambrosia" because she pointed to the stuff that smelled of cookies. I reluctantly took a sip. For a second, my head felt like it was on fire. Then, I suddenly felt a lot better. I looked up at Lisa. She gave me a shy smile and said, "I'll go get Chiron."

The horse-man (sorry, centaur) trotted into the room carrying an orange tee shirt that he handed to me.

"Sorry about that incident. I guess Lisa and I were a bit too enthusiastic."

"It's fine," I said. I meant it.

"Lisa? Could you take Raya down to the Hermes cabin and get her settled? I have to see to a prank that the Hermes cabin played on the Aphrodite cabin. I hear they sent them some sort of exploding makeup. Oh dear."

"Sure Chiron. Come on Raya."

She helped me stand up even though I really was feeling much better. I was thinking about the whole thing with the monsters and how it explained some certain events in my past. As we crossed the doorstep, she said, "Look. Now do you see more than just hills?"

I looked and I saw a Greek amphitheater in one of the small valleys that the hills created. I saw some sort of a white, marble dining pavilion closer on my left overlooking a shining lake complete with a dock. There was a stable with some giant white bird flying over it. There was a rock wall type thing that erupted lava, an arena area, and a building that looked like a combination of a garage, and a blacksmith's furnace. Down in the valley straight ahead of us, a path led to a strange assortment of cabins surrounding a fire pit. There were a couple of basketball courts and beach volleyball courts, too.

"Wow," was all I could manage to say.