ACHILES HEEL ━━𝐏. 𝐉𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐒𝐎𝐍

III.

ACHILLES HEEL. | III.

( 'WELCOME TO CAMP HALF-BLOOD' )

Oh.

So this was the infamous Percy Jackson.

Caroline had to admit, she'd been expecting someone a bit older. Luke had told her that Percy was the same age as her, but she was expecting him to look more...capable.

Perseus Jackson looked like every other boy her age, with messy hair, bad posture, and certainly not capable of ruining Kronos' plans. Twice.

But she could tell from the way he'd charged in to save her, a stranger, that he had guts. And from what she'd seen, he was pretty good with a sword. His fighting style was identical to Luke's.

"What is your name?" the leader of the Hunters asked.

"Caroline Calvin," she answered, lip quivering. "What just-What were those things?"

"Dracaenae," the girl with the punk outfit stared over the hill, her gaze cold. "And a Cyclops."

"Aren't those things myths?" Caroline feigned incredulity as she glanced between the three people gathered around her.

"Not really," Percy Jackson rubbed the back of his neck, searching for a better explanation. "I think Chiron might be able to explain it better."

"Who?"

"The activities director," Percy stood up and dusted some snow off his knees before holding a hand out to her. "Come on."

Caroline gave him a questioning look but took his hand nonetheless, hoisting herself up. The leader of the Hunters led the way as the group trekked down the opposite side of the hill from where Caroline had come from.

Soon enough, they made it to a large house. It was baby blue with white trim, and the sheer size served to impress Caroline. Its design was rather old; like something out of a movie from the sixties. She thought Luke had been joking about its strange color.

The group walked up the steps and into the main room of the house. Caroline had to take a moment just to process the interior.

The walls were painted a neutral beige, with vines strewn about. A tiger head hung hissing at them from above the fireplace, which encased a flame that illuminated the whole room . The rest of the place was decorated normally though, aside from a strange rug with an open eye on it and the miscellaneous leopard print items scattered about.

A man in a wheelchair sat beside the couch, blanket laid over his legs and a book open in his lap. He glanced up wearily when he heard them walk in.

"If there was another fight about basketball, I believe that's a matter for Mr. D," he said. His accent was of a vague, Shakespearean variety. He spoke eloquently, even when telling the kids to go away. Caroline could respect that.

"We found a new half-blood at the edge of camp," said the punk girl. "She was being chased by two dracanae and a cyclops."

"Look, I'm just a little lost. I don't know what kind of camp this is, but I have to get home. My dad's probably looking for me," Caroline rambled, furrowing her brows in frustration.

The man in the wheelchair pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed tiredly. The wheelchair shimmered away to reveal the lower half of a horse.

"My dear, you are not lost," he said kindly. "You have found your way to the safest place there is for you."

Caroline glanced incredulously between the centaur and Percy, who just rubbed the back of his neck and gave her a sheepish smile.

"Uh, try not to freak out," he said. "But you're a demigod. We all are."

"You're kidding, right?" Caroline scoffed. She glanced around the group, but they all had grim looks on their faces. She pursed her lips. "Well, that does explain the monsters."

"We should get you healed and settled into Cabin 11," said Chiron. "Percy and Thalia can explain more as they show you around. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood, dear."

Caroline turned unsurely to Percy and Thalia. The boy looked to the older girl for guidance, to which she rolled her eyes and began to leave. Percy and Caroline followed suit.

She limped slightly behind the other two as they made their way down the hall and into a large room lined with cots. A blonde boy with curly hair greeted them with a kind smile. His eyes landed on Caroline and he asked, "New to camp?"

She nodded meekly as he went to grab a jar from a shelf to the side of the door. She watched him take out a square of ambrosia. He held it out to her and she stared at it skeptically.

"Ambrosia. It helps heal for us demigods," the blonde boy explained.

I know, she thought. She picked it up with furrowed brows and slowly brought it to her mouth, taking a small bite. She'd had ambrosia before, so she knew what to expect as it melted on her tongue. The taste of pistachio macarons came immediately, reminding her of a distant memory with her father.

When she was very young, maybe 5 or 6, back when her father actually tried to spend time with her, he had taught her how to make macarons. He was good at baking, something she always remembered fondly about him. She could remember the pride in his eyes as she piped out the cookies all by herself. His laughter as she accidentally spilled flour all over her face and into her open mouth when she was pouring it out. It was one of the few memories she even had with him; his work absorbed more and more of his time as she grew older. Until she wasn't even a part of his life anymore.

Not that I'm complaining, she thought. I'm better off anyway.

Now she had Luke, and the other demigods on their side. She had a purpose, and a mission, and most importantly: an opportunity. An opportunity to find out who her mother was and to make her pay for leaving.

"What do you taste?" Percy interrupted her thoughts.

"A pistachio macaron?" she faked confusion. "Why do you ask?"

"It tastes different for everyone depending on what you like," the blonde boy said. "I taste lemonade."

"Oh," she turned to Percy. "So what do you taste?"

"Blue chocolate chip cookies," he answered.

"Blue?" she raised her eyebrows.

Percy looked like a deer caught in the headlights. "It's my favorite color, so my mom makes everything blue."

"Well, yeah, but does the color change how it tastes?"

There was a pause.

"Well, I think so, yeah."

"I'm not really sure that's-"

"Alright, time to get moving," Thalia finally spoke up. She had been quietly watching the entire exchange from against the wall. "Let's just get this over with."

She kicked off the wall and stepped out the door. "Come on, Percy."

"Alright, jeez," he made a face but followed anyway. "Bye, Will."

"Yeah, bye," the blonde boy waved. "Welcome to camp!"