I'm sorry I'm so late! I know I promised it over a month ago, and so I hope it is to your satisfaction! Thank you all for reviewing! Your support has been most appreciated!

"The dragon fight is a freely transferable motif; the name and even sex of the dragon are variously recorded; the version which eventually gained currency named the serpent Python, a son of Earth and Lord of Delphi until killed by the arrows of Apollo." - Greek Religion, Gods, part 2: Individual gods, Walter Burkert

It was strange, the words he used. He told me that this was a place for half-bloods, or children of the gods. When I told him my father was a healer and why I was here, he was silent for a moment before he switched the subject. He said we should be safe here, and that usually no monsters entered that were not meant to.

"Now, normally, you would sleep in the cabin of your godly parent, but as your father has not claimed either of you, you'll be sleeping in the Hermes Cabin. He's the god of travelers and hospitality, after all." I almost corrected him, wanting to tell him that while they thought themselves god over something, there was actually only one true God who controlled everything; but instead, I stayed quiet, feeling that this would be the wrong person to say that to. I had never felt such a thing before, but I decided not to question the feeling.

He led us to the cabin with a hospital sign on top, and I pointed it out to Elijah, asking if Hermes was also the god of healing. He laughed, making me blush, but said no, that was just a sign of hospitality that clinics and such adopted. It was weird. Then, as I was walking in, I heard something that was definitely something I'd heard before:

"Come on, Clarisse. Let's get the new kid." The words echoed in my head as I froze on the stoop, tingling with the knowing of what was about to happen. There would be a fight, and I would lose. I would struggle, and get in one good hit, and then it would be over. It would start with a hand on my right shoulder.

As if one cue, a hand fell into place on my shoulder, and I whirled around, striking out with my gloved hands and landing my one solid blow to the malicious-looking boy who touched me. That was it. I was down and out.

When I woke up, I was hurt all over, and I was alone. Well, except for the sleeping girl. It seemed that everyone else had left, and when I looked outside, I saw them all up at what the boy had told me was the dining pavilion. I considered going up there to join them, but I decided after a while to just stay put. After all, I was in pain, and I wasn't very hungry. I could last until morning without food. I would be fine.

Instead, I stood, and checked myself for injuries. My head was bruised from my run-in with the snake-monster-lady, my stomach was bruised all over from my beating earlier, and my arms and legs were smattered with black, blue, and brown spots. I felt my right cheek, and it was swollen, and my left eye was slightly bruised, itself. But it wasn't quite swollen shut. Overall, not life-threatening, though I'd never been beaten like that in my life. It would take a while for me to heal.

"Ah. So you're awake." My attention snapped to the door, where a blond girl with green eyes looked in at me. The sudden movement hurt, and I flinched, but she just walked in and started feeling me over, making the bruises hurt worse.

"Hey! Stop that!" I cried, trying to escape her firm grip as she sat me down.

"Be still or this will hurt more. I'm trying to heal you." I stopped struggling the moment she said that. Heal me?

"Can you heal sickness?" I blurted as the pain in my arms and legs lessened.

"Be quiet," she ordered as she moved to my face, touching the wounds with such a gentleness that I couldn't speak, even if I'd wanted to. Eventually, she pulled back, and I felt much better.

"Thank you." I said after a moment of silence.

"You're just lucky I was here in camp instead of home with my mother. The monsters don't usually target me, but now they're going after all of the healers, trying to make them switch sides. It's really annoying, but I have to stay here, so I guess I'll deal with it." She tossed her long hair out of her face, and moved to sit in front of me.

"Could you cure my mother? She's sick somehow and I don't know how to fix her. That's why I came here. To find a healer. So can you fix her? Please?" I needed to know. Could she fix my mother? Could she help her?

The girl blinked a moment, and seemed to think.

"Is she nearby? If she's in New York, I could probably help. I've never taken on anything more than the common cold, but I could at least try…?" I was excited at first, but then her condition sunk in.

"Um, we live in Pennsylvania. Is that too far?" I asked, biting my lip. This girl was my only hope of making my mom better, unless I decided to go back and try to find my father again. The memory of the snake-lady came to mind, and I shuddered. No. The city was off-limits. Her face mirrored mine.

"Yeah. That's way too far. We couldn't get that far without being attacked by monsters, and even if you could offer protection, we probably couldn't get permission." she said, and I saw that she was sorry. I tried not to be angry with her.

"Well, is there anyone else who could go? Isn't there any way my mom can be saved?" I asked, standing up and starting to pace.

"No, you couldn't get permission even if you had willing healers and warriors." she told me. I punched the wall, ignoring the pain in my hand as I did.

"My mom needs help! She's dying! And it's my fault if no one saves her! There's no one else who will! She needs a healer!" I yelled at her, losing my temper and trying to avoid hitting her. She didn't need to suffer the same fate as my mom. But then, perhaps if I did she would understand how much my mom needed help? Maybe…?

The girl was quiet for a while, before she finally said, "I'm sorry." She stood, and grabbed my hand, pulling splinters out and healing with her touch. "I would go with you, but you'll have to get permission from Chiron and Mr. D. If you can do that, we'll see if I can heal your mom." I frowned, but didn't yell anymore, and I wouldn't cry when it wasn't over yet. As she left, she paused, looking at something.

"Where'd you get that snakeskin?" she asked. I looked at the souvenir from the snake lady, and picked it up.

"This snake-lady attacked us on the way here. Yoom and I killed her, for now." I told her, gesturing to Yoom with my head. The girl bit her cheek, and I saw the greed in her eyes.

"That would be very valuable in my cabin. Our father, Apollo, is called the Python Killer. He freed a city from the terrible Python with his bow." she informed me.

"Well, this one wasn't Python. I think Yoom called her Lamia, or something." The girl's eyes flashed, and she smirked and rolled her eyes.

"Did she complain about Lady Hera?" she asked. I furrowed my brow, thinking.

"No. But she did call someone a peacock-lover, which I thought was weird." The girl laughed, and smiled at me.

"Yup. That was Lamia. She never forgave Hera after she killed her children." I gasped.

"Why would she do that?" I was shocked. Why would anyone kill the innocent?

"Because Hera is Zeus's wife, and they were Lamia's and Zeus's children." My jaw dropped. No wonder they hated each other. So much sin surely leads to corruption of the soul! That must be why it's so important not to do it!

I prayed to God that I would never do that to Him, or to my husband. No, I definitely would not do that, and I swore I would never kill the innocent. I would defend them and pray for all of them. God, forgive them.

After she left, I laid down, thinking about those women and Zeus, the husband. Why would he not be loyal to his wife? Didn't he love her? Or was he like my mother, just in the wrong place at the wrong time?

I prayed to God that all of these questions would be answered tomorrow, and then I drifted off to sleep.