Sunlight | Luke Castellan

V. i get homework at summer camp

   I HEADED TOWARD Cabin Six straight after breakfast. It stood dauntingly in front of me, a tall gray building with a carved owl over the doorway. It was similar to the temple design of Cabin One, but it stood shorter with a red roof.

Ethan had told me to meet him at Apollo's cabin next door closer to ten so he could introduce me to Lee Fletcher and hopefully get my arm healed. It still sat in a sling, though the pain had decreased. Either that or I had grown used to it after tossing and turning during the night.

The girl from the bathroom stood at the front of the cabin, her arms crossed against her chest. "Hi," I greeted her awkwardly, giving a quick wave. "Chiron told me to meet with the cabin counselor to work on Ancient Greek."

"I know," she said. "You're early."

"That's not going to bother them, is it?"

"No, it doesn't bother me." She gestured for me to follow her inside. "I'm the cabin counselor."

"You?" She spun around, her eyes narrowing almost defensively.

"Is there a problem?"

"Not a problem," I answered hurriedly. Despite being twelve years old, she scared me. There was this intensity that hung around her. "It's just... I thought the counselors were normally the oldest ones- not that it's an issue-"

"Cabin Six works based on seniority," she explained, saving me from digging a deeper hole for myself. "I've been here the longest."

The building's bunk beds were crammed against the walls, looking more like a classroom than a living space. There were several work benches and tables, cupboard filled with materials and rolled up paper. Rows of armor were hung neatly in a corner. Bookshelves were overfilled with books and scrolls. A few campers milled around, leaving us from being completely alone. The girl pulled a chair out for me at a table, and I sat down as she marched toward one.

"Are you familiar with Segal?" she asked as she searched the shelves. The girl glanced over her shoulder at me for a response, and I just meekly shook my head. "I assumed so." She pulled a thin paperback out and handed it to me along with a spiral journal and a pen. "The biggest barrier you are going to have in accepting everything around you is reason. Were you religious?"

"Not really."

"Then the idea of the gods might take a bit to sink in." She moved to another bookshelf while I opened the journal. The pages were all empty. "Most mortals rely on physical proof. Segal, though wrong at points, is the best thing for you to ease in. You'll get through it a lot faster than us."

"I thought you were just going to teach me Ancient Greek," I protested. The young camper placed two other books on the table.

"I am," she told me, "but the way to make the words stick is through understanding what they mean. Why do you think I've blocked two hours out of my schedule for this?" She pointed toward the books she had set down. "This is the Iliad. Read that?"

"Twice, but I prefer the Odyssey."

"This copy is in English," the girl said, ignoring my comment to lift up the one on the left. "This one is translated into Ancient Greek." The right copy was much more battered, a self-binded version of Homer's work. Based on the yellow pages, one of Athena's children must have made the translation decades ago. "For half-bloods, we pick Greek up more quickly. Our brains are wired that way. You'll have to work harder."

I wasn't expecting piles of homework when I had walked to the cabin or a dry know-it-all to be my teacher. She sat down across from me, sliding an open scroll over.