Hey guys, I'm hoping my story isn't getting too boring, but things are about to get interesting. I think people are finally starting to notice my story, so things are getting better… Anyway, I am so sorry this took so long. I have been super busy with school, swimming, family, and other things too crazy to mention. But I'll try and make this good.

Chapter 7

BANANA

I stare at the target in wonder. Did I really just do that? I fell to the ground, shaken by the sudden vision. "Are you okay Dahlia?" Grover yelped, rushing over to help me back up. "Yeah, I just…. Do demi-gods get visions?" I asked wearily. Grover smiled and it instantly took away my fear. "You bet, they get them all the time! Did your vision involve any danger or violence?"

"No, it was just really sudden and it went away really fast. I don't know what it means."

"Well, what was it about? Maybe I could help you!" he said excitedly, like he always wants a shot to do something good. I told him about my flash of a vision and he had a surprised look on his face. "Wow, Dahlia! This hasn't happened for centuries! Your vision was an image of Lady Artemis, you know her right?"

"Yes, of course I do! We studied about greek gods at my school."

"Well, the fact that you saw her image means that you two might cross paths very soon. I don't know much about images, for they are very rare. Most demigods just have disturbing visions of their teammates being mauled by monsters, or creepy voices telling you disturbing information from the pits of Tarturas..." Grover seemed a little shaken by that last sentence, like he knew about those kinds of visions all too well. "C'mon, we should probably head back to the main cabins so I can show you where yours is."

"Oh, okay," I said, trying to act calm. But on the inside I was dying to see which cabin was the Hermes cabin. Jacen had told me about it. I slung the bow and a full set of arrows and we walked back to the cabins. The wind rustled the autumn leaves and a shiver went up my spine. Once we got back I began to study each one, trying to guess which one might be his. But half-way through looking, I was staring at other cabins, mesmerized by the intricate details on them. "So you see that cabin over there?" Grover asked, pointing to the one that looked like a regular old cabin you would see at camp. It had a lovely little porch with an overhang and it looked very woodsy. "It's that one right….there," Grover said, spinning me so that I was directly facing the cabin. "It's okay Grover, I see it!" I laughed.

"Jacen will be here in just a second with your things, so just stay here! I gotta get ready for my….date." Grover yet again seemed to push the word out like he couldn't believe he was saying it.

"That's fine, go ahead. I'll see you later Grover!"

"Bye!" he yells, already running back into the woods. I begin to walk around the perimeter of the cabins. I love to just stare at each one, and each time, I find something new. I always end up staring at one for, like, ten minutes. It's crazy to say it's kind of fun staring at them. "Dahlia!" I hear Jacen yell. I'm standing in front of what looks like the Hera cabin, when I turn around to see Jacen running towards me with a bunch of supplies in his hands.

"Here, let me help you!" I insist, taking the backpack and t-shirt.

"So, which weapon did you find?"

"Oh! I got a bow and arrow; turns out I'm really good at it."

"Cool! Let's find you a spot in your cabin." I nod at him and we stroll up to the cabin. I put my hand on the doorknob, excited to see the inside. I open the door and I am amazed. It looks like one of the camp cabins I used to go to. It's packed with kids who are hanging out. There are six bunk beds, three on each side of the cabin. Then the floor is covered with sleeping bags, books, toys, and other stuff. There are some kids crammed on the top bunk of a bed playing cards. Kids are playing with mini fireworks. Others are jumping from one bed to the other. A girl walks to the center of the room and opens her mouth. This should be good.

"BANANA!" she screams and the whole room goes silent, and lay on the ground or a bed. They then put their hands in a streamline position and lift their legs off the ground, somewhat resembling a banana. What the heck? "Split," she whispers and everyone begins talking again, sitting back up and resuming their previous actions. I give Jacen one of my best 'What in the world?' looks and he just shruggs, trying not to scream in laughter. "Okay," Jacen says walking over to a small little corner where there is an empty space.

"This is your spot, I made sure you weren't surrounded by… total thieves." He grimaces, looking at the girls around my little spot who were pretending to be insulted by the comment. It was pretty funny. There are a couple of the girls, all of them on a huge blanket with magazines, candy, and cards sprawled across it. Gambling for junk. Gotta love it.

There's a girl with ivory skin, but her red hair that seems to flicker like flames and brown eyes light her up. Her freckles dance on her cheeks. She has a fun attitude and I hear her cracking hilarious jokes. She takes out a rubber band and begins to strum it, making upbeat pop music with that stretchy thing of cheap rubber. I am amazed. Another girl, with lovely caramel skin and warm brownie eyes takes out a giant paper clip and begins to bend it, until she makes a butterfly. When she smiles at her work, the whole room seems to light up. She looks very pretty, even though her hands are covered in burns and scratches. They cover her arms too, and I even see a coal smear on her forehead. Then there are two blondes, probably twins for their features are very similar. They both have icy blue eyes and one of them has rectangular blue glasses. The girl with the glasses is drawing a picture of a forest, with beautiful snowflakes falling everywhere. The other is eating grapes, staring at her cards in determination, then throwing them down in satisfaction. "Four kings! This is surely a win!" she exclaims in victory. The girls look up at her in disbelief and look at their own cards. "Hmm," murmurs the girl with glasses. "Actually, Gene, I beg to differ." With that she throws her cards to reveal four aces. The other girls groan and I chuckle.

"Here, take your prizes, Chione," Gene mutters.

"Oh, I don't want that junk, you guys keep it. You know what I want," Chione states. The other two girls begin to eagerly divide the items, fighting over a candy bar or two.

"What could you possibly have that we have?" Gene asks, clearly annoyed by her defeat.

"You have what I want."

"I don't have anything of yours!"

"My book."

"What?"

"My. Book."

"Oh gods…" Gene sighs. She digs through her bag and takes out the book. Chione grabs it and immediately flips to a page and begins to read. I totally respect that.

I realize I've been listening them for quite a while and turn to see Jacen doing the same thing. We both exchange looks and he lies my sleeping back out and we throw my stuff onto it. "Well, that's about it. You'll stay here until your parent claims you, so make friends. Not like you don't have any," he smiled, winking. What a doofus. "I'll see you at lunch! And if you're not in one piece, don't worry. I'll beat up the bullies!" He says putting his arms up and flexing in a super-hero fashion. Again, the same word flashes across my mind. "You doofus," I mutter, but loud enough for him to hear.

"Hahahaha!" he laughs, probably for the billionth time today. The world isn't that funny, you know? "So you have everything you need? You need me to show you around anywhere else?" He asks sincerely. "If you need anything just-"

"Oh shut it, Jacen!" The girl with red hair sputters, exasperated. She's looking up with an expression on her face like she's really sick of hearing him talk. "I've seen you following her all day, and I've heard you telling her about the silliest things! Give her some space!" she scolds.

"Well, believe it or not, Dahlia likes my company!" Jacen says matter-of-factly.

"When pigs fly," Gene mutters.

"Actually," says a boy with shaggy brown hair who comes up from behind and leans on Jacen. Then another who looks exactly like him appears from the other side. Probably brothers, I bet. "That can be arranged!" he says excitedly, completing his brother's sentence. "Thanks Conner," Jacen sighs. "Travis. But I'm just gonna get ready for lunch. Bye Dahlia." He waves, walking to the door with his head down. "Bye Jacen," I call after him.

"Dahlia, huh?" says Conner.

"Lovely name, really," states Travis. The two brothers stand there trying to find out what my name could rhyme with when the red-head shoots them a death glare. They both straighten up and just walk away, but not before throwing a firecracker at us. I sit down on my sleeping bag and stare out the window, admiring the sky while brushing debris from my shirt. The girl with black hair then turns to me, "My name is Rose! How are you?" she asks.

"Lovely, thank you," I say.

"So. Dahlia. Jacen isn't annoying you, is he?"

"Just a little bit…"

"It's okay; I think he just likes you. That's all," she giggles.

"If you need someone to… take care of him… Sam's your girl," says Gene, pointing to the red headed girl.

"You know it!" Sam excitedly exclaims. Everyone laughs, even me.

"Here," says Rose. "You can have this, I've made countless others." She hands me the butterfly, so delicate and intricate, I'm afraid to break it. It looks so fragile.

"Thank you," I whisper, stunned. "It's beautiful."

"Thank you!" We all begin to shoot each other questions, from what our favorite color is to who we think our godly parent is. Rose: Pink. Sam: Red. Gene: Purple. Chione: Light Blue. Me: Rainbow…. :) :) Our godly parent… I don't have a clue. Neither do the others though, how funny.

From that point, the day goes by in a whir. Our cabin goes for lunch and afterwards we all walk along the beach, skipping stones and talking about the camp. We go back to the cabin where we play cards and read magazines someone got from Olympus. Of course, we don't understand any of what it talks about. By the time dinner has gone by, we've almost run out of things to discuss. We go to a campfire where we all sing campfire songs. Though I'm mortified when no one knows the lyrics to the "Campfire Song Song." Really, people! I even meet more campers and I feel like things might not be so bad after all. Like maybe I will survive whatever is going on. Everyone is sent back to their cabin and I suddenly realize that I don't feel scared. When I slip into my sleeping bag, the floor doesn't feel so hard anymore. I sleep soundly.

The next weeks go as fast as ever. In the morning I have Greek with Rose, then archery, swimming, defense against monsters, horseback riding (I feed Ricky apples when I can), climbing wall,…etc. I can't believe I make so many friends and I feel as though I'm part of the family. Though the hole in my heart still burns from missing my family. My friends. My old life. But I survive. Things are still fun. I learn that the banana thing was just something made up years and years ago. No one remembers the point behind it, just that if someone yells "Banana" you must get on the ground and put yourself in a position that resembles a banana. You have to stay like that until the person who yells banana, whispers "Split." Weird, right? I guess it's just something fun to do… Don't ask. Seriously, just don't ask.

I am walking through the woods. It's November now. The eleventh. Eleven, Eleven, Eleven… won't have a day like this in a millennium. I don't know how I should make this day last, for a rare day like today. But it's also Veterans Day, so I think of how grateful I am for them. For those who serve our country. I sit on a large rock right next to the river. I hug my jacket close to me, trying to keep warm.

Not making my shoes soaking, I dip the tips of my feet into the water. Watching circles forming but disappear as they are carried away by the flow of the river. The leaves have all fallen, and the cold wind rustles them along. I watch the fish in the river, going slowly, but surely against the strong current. As I breathe, I watch the little white puffs, resembling smoke, appear. Then quickly disappear a couple seconds later. I sit there and throw crackers into the creek. Watching the fish spin towards them and eat them up. I don't know how long I've been sitting there. I see the sun setting through the trees so I get up to leave. I don't want to get lost and if I do, it will be so cold I doubt I'd be able to survive the night.

I walk back through the leaves, weaving between the trees. The wind is really picking up and I look around to see hundreds of tiny leaves falling from them. I begin to run, jumping over logs and ducking over branches. The sun is setting fast, but I can see the lights from the cabins. I finally emerge from the woods, relieved. I begin to walk downward from the hill, the small leaves falling very fast and in great numbers now. Why are there so many of them? I thought all the leaves had fallen from the trees. I run up to the door of my cabin, where it radiates warmth and I can hear the chatter of other campers inside. I turn around to try and catch one of the tiny leaves. I finally do, but it disappears in my hand. But I swore I caught one… There's one right next to my arm and it lands there. It disappears and leaves a little wet spot. I look up and see them all swirling down from the sky. I open my mouth and stick out my tongue. One of them lands on my tongue and melts.

Snow.