Cabin 7 One-Shots

Wounded

Melody hobbled in the Apollo Cabin; her left arm wrapped tightly around her right shoulder. She walked to a cabinet and took out some first aid supplies. She slumped on the couch and pulled up her blood-stained sleeve. Her shoulder stung more than she wanted to admit. It was just a slight cut, not even deep enough for stitches, but it still stung. Worst of all, it reminded her of her failure and how she couldn't even block a simple attack during her sword fighting practice. She laid out her supplies in front of her. With a deep breath, she began to work. Tending to other campers' wounds was no issue for Melody; she had been doing it for years. Bandaging her own arm, now that was a challenge. She worked quickly, not wanting anybody to see her failure. She cut a strip of a bandage and wrapped it on her arm. She even had to use her mouth to tighten the cloth. She was struggling more than she wanted to admit. She kept throwing glances at the door, worried somebody would come in.

The door creaked open. In a panicked frenzy, Melody yanked her sleeve down and chucked the bandages across the room. Will walked in amongst the chaos.

"Hey, M," he greeted. He flashed her a warm smile, but concern washed over his face when he spotted her on the couch. Her hand immediately flashed to her arm, trying to cover her bloody arm. Will was too good for her lies.

"You good?" He asked, his eyebrows twisted in concern.

Melody tried for a smile. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you're covering a bloody shoulder," he sighed, shaking his head at his little sister. He sat down next to her. Melody let go of her arm; she knew Will was going to insist on helping her. Stupid concerned older brothers. She revealed her orange blood-stained sleeve.

Will picked one of the cotton balls scattered around the lampstand and dabbed a cotton ball with disinfectant. He gently rolled up her bloody sleeve, revealing her pathetic bandage work. "Did you seriously try bandaging your arm?" He asked patronizingly. He unwrapped the bandage and began inspecting her wound.

"Shut up," Melody snapped as he dabbed her wound with disinfectant. She tried not to flinch as the cold cotton ball touched her exposed cut, but it was more painful than she was willing to admit.

"What were you doing?" asked Will. His tone was casual. He was used to this type of thing. Of course, he was, but it still baffled Melody how calm he always was.

Melody hesitated before answering; she knew he would laugh at her. "Sword practice," she said, her eyebrows scrunching together, embracing herself for Will's reaction.

Will laughed, giving her a quizzical look. "But you hate sword practice.'

"Well, I can try."

"You could try more." Will laughed playfully. It was only a joke, but the words sliced her like a sword, stinging more than the wound. Melody stayed quiet. Her eyes fell to the floor. She lost her voice, and she didn't know what to say.

Will's eyes opened up in concern, and he noticed her reaction. "No, M, that's not what I mean. You know that."

"But you're right," she whispered, the words stung too much to say out loud. A few tears betrayed her and trickled down her cheeks "I couldn't even block Percy's simple attack. He accidentally sliced my arm. He was pretty mortified. He offered to help me to the infirmary. I told him I knew the way. He didn't expect me to fail at such a simple task. Obviously, he doesn't know me well enough," she laughed, but her usual warm humor was dry and cold.

Will stretched his arm around her and hugged her tightly. "But why did you hide? It's okay to need help, you know?'

"Yeah, I know," she sighed, wiping her tear-stained cheeks.

"Question tho, what's with the newfound interest in sword fighting?"

Melody didn't answer. She didn't want anybody to know her big fears. But, she couldn't lie to those pure blue, concerned eyes. "I want to improve, just in case..." Melody paused and took a shaky breath; her words struggled to come out.

"Just in case what?" Inquired Will, his interest peaked.

Melody took another shaky breath before responding. '"Just in case there's another war. I need to be ready. I can't..." Her voice broke. "I can't lose more family." She couldn't keep it together anymore, and tears streamed down her face as she buried her head in Will's warm chest. Images of monsters and wounded campers flooded Melody's mind. She shut her eyes tightly as she tried to fight the haunting images, but she couldn't. They were just so real. Panic flooded her chest, and she broke into more sobs.

Will hugged her tighter. "Hey, it will be all right. I won't let anything happen to you. We fought two wars, and there won't be a third," he promised, but Will sounded like he was reassuring himself as much as Melody.

"How can you be so sure, Will? The gods seem to have lots of enemies and...."

Will caught her off before she could voice more of her fears. "Shush, just have some faith," he whispered, rubbing her back. "And Melody?"

"Yeah," she responded, looking up at her brother.

"You don't have to be ashamed. I'm pretty bad with a sword too."

Her usual glow returned to her face, and a faint smile shined through the tears. "Oh, trust me, I know."

They both laughed together. For once in a long time, Melody laughed. A warm feeling filled her chest. She didn't know what future the Fates had planned for her, but she knew she could face it if she had her source of light: Will. 

A/N I hope you enjoyed it. I had a lot of fun writing this. Please comment and vote if you enjoyed it. If you didn't, let me know why. Also if you have any ideas for any scenarios or stories you want to see the Apollo cabin in let me know.