I get talked about behind my back
After that, I asked some of the Athena campers if I could borrow some books about Artemis and they ran into their cabin, threw out some books, and slammed the door shut. I picked up the books and headed to my cabin with them. Cedar had showed me how to choose my own schedule. The kids in the Demeter cabin had built a new table in the mess hall straight from the ground voluntarily. They said their mom had always been close to Artemis.
I took archery alone, with Chiron teaching me. I was really good, but I suppose that's because my mom is the goddess of archery. Nobody seemed to want anything to do with me, even Cedar, so Chiron taught me most of my skills, except basket-weaving and canoeing. Apparently, Artemis had done a huge favor for the naiads and they decided they'd better repay her. Ares' kids hated my guts even more, if that was possible. The only person who really liked me at all was Zack. He helped me to read Greek and explained most of my questions.
"Why does everybody here have ADHD and dyslexia like me?" I asked, one day after we'd finished an entire book of Homer.
"The attention deficit disorder is your battlefield reflexes. In a fight, they would keep you alive. You can see every good thing about a fighting strategy and every bad thing about and enemy's proportions. Dyslexia is because your brain is made to read Ancient Greek, not English." Thunder overhead boomed and interrupted his next words.
"Shouldn't we go inside? I mean, the books would get ruined from the rain."Heh, heh. The camp has magical borders that keep out monsters, mortals, and storms. Nothing gets in unless we want it to."
"Then, what's up with the storms? I mean, if Zeus is the god of the sky then couldn't he just, like, calm it down?"
"I think he's causing the storms."
"Why?"
"He's probably mad at your mom."
"What? Why would he be mad at her?"
"She swore never to marry, love, or have kids. You kinda broke that promise. But, come on. We'll go down to the lake and try out some of your powers." We walked down and the moon had just risen into the sky, so my powers would be able to figure out easier. We figured out that I can heal things, maybe because my uncle is the god of healing. That could be why the Apollo kids were being kind of nice to me. Also, I'm pretty much invincible when the moon is out. Zack is a really good swordfighter, but I beat him down within the space of about two seconds. I doubt that would've happened in the daytime, though.
The sun came up a while later, while I was waiting for Zack to get some energy back, and I stayed out in the forest because I really didn't want to go back out and face every one's whispers about me. So, I waited for a while, skipping rocks in the creek. A young woman walked out of the forest on the other side. I figured she was a dryad, but she wasn't as small-boned as they are. I pulled out my staff because the next likely thing she could be was a monster disguised as a girl. She just smiled at the sight of it, like a long-lost friend. And then she spoke, her voice sounded like a cool night breeze sweeping over the earth.
"Please, put that away. It wouldn't work on me anyway. I am Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt, and your mother." When she said the last two words she smiled. I lowered my staff and said, "Mother?"
"Yes." She walked through the creek and looked me over. She took a lock of my long black hair and said, "Just like I thought. Dark skin, dark hair, never liked a boy in her life. Sort of like me." She blinked and I think I saw a tear form in her blue eyes. "I wanted to give you a gift. But, you already have one of them. That staff, used to belong to me, but if it came to you, then it is yours. Also, if you whisper my name to it, it will transform into a bow that will never fail you. The other gift you will receive is this." And she pulled out a diamond bracelet. "There are twelve diamonds that represent the twelve Olympians. When you will it so, it will, also, transform into an impenetrable shield." I took it from her and admired it. I put it on and thought this, Um…Turn into a shield? And it did. The bracelet melted until it was the shape of a coat of arms, and then pictures began to engrave themselves on the front of it: drawings of gods and goddesses in their greatest moments. Then, I remembered what she said first: that my staff could become a bow. I whispered to it, "Artemis", and in a flash of white light, it was a bow and a quiver full of silver arrows. I aimed for a pine cone swinging in the wind and released. After the whistling of the arrow, the pinecone burst, and fell to the ground. That pine cone was at least a hundred yards away. "Wow." I said.
"Yes, pretty cool, isn't it?" I'd almost forgotten about the goddess standing next to me, "Do you want to try those weapons out in front of your fellow campers? I believe that the other campers might be a little more willing to take classes with you. That should be a good time to show off to your friends in cabin 5." Her eyes sparkled as she said good-bye. "I'm sure I'll see you soon." She walked up to me and hugged me. I was getting hugged by the all-powerful, immortal goddess Artemis. Whoa. She let me go and said this, "I love you." And then she walked over to the forest's edge and disappeared.