☾ The Child of Artemis ☾

19. Ohhh, Halfway There. Ohhhhh, I'll Make It (No Swears)

           After dinner, we played Capture the Flag. Instead of one half of the camp vs. the other half, it was campers vs. Hunters of Artemis. Before we started, I cracked my knuckles in front of Nigel to tell him, I'm a winner, you're a loser.

          Nigel cracked his knuckles back at me, then we started. "Nicole, you're on defense!" Thalia demanded. I stayed near the flag, looking around for intruders. Faith, I just realized, was on the Camp Half - Blood team instead of the Hunters of Artemis team. I was confused, but left it at, Faith is only shadowing, and she's the daughter of Poseidon. Though I'm a camper too, I have to say I was unclaimed and joined the Hunters of Artemis team.

           Faith was on offense, unlike me. She barged in on our border and grabbed the flag. I grabbed it back and tugged it as hard as I could. Faith let go, then quickly grabbed it again, startling me. I was about to grasp onto the flag again, when Thalia ran back to our side with the other team's flag. "Yes!" she cheered. "We win!"

           All of us cheered and some of my teammates chanted, "Girls are strong like King Kong! Boys are weak! Throw them in the creek!"

           Chiron quieted everyone down. "Good job to everyone! The Hunters of Artemis win!"

          Everyone had a chance to rest for five minutes before the campfire sing along. "Nicole," some of the Hunters, including Thalia complimented, "you are great at defense!"

          "Thanks," I replied.

           "Have you thought about it yet? Do you want to join the Hunters of Artemis?"

          My smile disappeared. "I'm still thinking about it..."

          "Aww!" the Hunters groaned.

          "Girls, could Nicole and I speak alone for a while?" Thalia requested.

          "Sure," they said and all left, single file.

           "Nico, when are you going to tell Artemis that she's your mother?" Thalia asked.

          "On the last day. When Mum asks if I want to join or not."

           "You know, that'll be really risky. You could die."

          "I know. I'll die in honor."

Thalia stared in astonishment. "You will?"

          "I'll die knowing I did the right thing. I'll know I told the truth."

          "Good luck. I can help you explain if you want..."

          "No, I have to do it myself. I'm the son of Artemis."

           "Okay. Please be careful. Please don't die."

           "I can't guarantee the last one." I laughed a little.

          Thalia smiled and started laughing, too.

          Nigel walked past me and gave me a glower. I shrugged, and walked over to the campfire for the dumb singalong. As always, we sang total gobbledegook. I headed straight to bed (and unfortunately couldn't jump on it.) I fell asleep within a few minutes.

          I woke up on a beach with the Hunters. They were all having fun. Faith was swimming in the ocean, while the others were playing volleyball. I was lying down in the warm sand. I got up and saw Faith running out of the water. "We should go now," she says, "or else we're in for a wild ride."

          The Hunters laughed as if my best mate was crazy. "When the water disappears like that, a huge wave is coming!" she warned.

          The others shook it off and continued to play. I walked toward the water and kept following it. "Don't!" Faith yelled.

          I turned back to run, but the wave devoured me. The water rushed backwards, slamming my head on the sand once every second. I couldn't see anything and my eyes stung terribly. I stayed there, with no one to help me. I died because of a huge wave.

          I was back at Camp Half -Blood and my name had been carved in a stone. Everyone wasn't really sad though, and one camper joked, "This is what happens after little children of Artemis are born."

        Almost the whole camp erupted with laughter. Faith looked down at the stone sadly. "I'm sorry Nico. I was way too late in saving you."

       She placed a beautiful blue seashell on my grave. di Angelo said, "Will, he's being judged now I can sense it."

          Will looked sad, a look that was almost impossible for him to make. "Nico McAngelico," di Angelo sighed, "I hope they have a McDonald's in the Underworld just for you...and me when I die."

          di Angelo pronounced my last name wrong. The 'g' in my last name makes an 'h' sound, not a 'g' sound. I guess all Mexicans get their last names mispronounced, sometimes. Instead of mourning, there was constant laughter at my funeral. I was really upset about all the disrespect.

          I woke up the earliest, as always. My dream bothered me really horribly. I opened the cabinet drawer with my diadem and lasso inside. I had to tell Mum that Uncle Apollo gave me them when I told her that I'm her son. I decided that I would tell the whole truth without leaving anything out, so I could die in one hundred percent honor.

          I stayed in the cabin until brekkie. We had pancakes and toast. I guess it was good enough. Faith was at our table this time, and sat next to me. The first thing she said was, "I got some more Oreos. Would you like some?"

          I looked at the pack. There were four pieces inside. "I'll take two."

          "Try dipping them in milk. That'll make them taste really good."

          I walked over to the brekkie table to get some milk. I poured it in a glass. Milk was white and tasted pretty good. I think I will love Oreos in milk. I took an Oreo and dropped it in. Faith laughed. "You're supposed to hold the Oreo when you dip it in. Now, you have to dig for it."

         Instead of digging, I drank all of the milk and scooped the Oreo into my mouth. "This choccy biccy with milk is beauty!" I declared.

          Faith ate her share of Oreos with milk and threw the wrapper away. "I heard that you like French fries from Maccas," Faith said. I was glad that she called it "Maccas" not "McDonald's." "If you like Oreos, you will love Oreo McFlurries from Maccas."

          "There is such a thing as Oreo McFlurries?!"

          "Yeah. They're really good."

          "I love Maccas!"

          "I enjoy Maccas, too."

          Today was a free day, being a Saturday. Mum decided to take us to the beach. I was shaking in my boots, even though I had no shoes on.