A New Generation

The First Day

I woke in the morning at about 7:45, unfortunately, because breakfast was at eight. I had just enough time to throw on some clothes and throw my straight hair up into a messy bun before scrambling out to the pavilion where the other campers were already dishing up. I grabbed a plate and goblet and sat at the end of the Athena table. I had gathered that these people were not very friendly to newcomers, so I grabbed my book out of my bag and started to read. I got so into the book that I stopped eating entirely and another camper had to tap me on the shoulder to get me out of my trance. I packed up my things and headed back to the cabin to shower. When I got there, thankfully no one was inside. I took a shower and got dressed again. I put a book and my sketchbook and pencil into my tote bag, and headed out the door. Chiron intercepted me on my way to the Big House. He had a demigod with him. I recognized him as Simon. "Hey, Anna." he greeted me. "Anna, Simon will be showing you to the weapons shed for you to choose your instrument of war." Chiron explained. I smiled and nodded. Simon started to walk, gesturing for me to follow him. I did, and we came upon a wooden shed that housed hundreds of weapons. I looked around in awe. " I get to choose one of these?" I asked Simon. "Yep! choose wisely." he said with a wink. I looked again, my eyes scanning over swords of all sizes, daggers, and bows. Then something caught my eye, a whip. A gold whip, curled on a hook, just behind Simon. " I like that one." I declared. He turned, laying his eyes on the beautiful weapon. He took it down from its hook and handed it to me. I took the whip and held it by the golden handle. It seemed to fit perfectly in my hand. Suddenly, the whip changed into a long broadsword, the same gold as its other form, also fitting in my hand perfectly. Simon smiled and held the door open for me. I walked out, still admiring my new weapon. Simon led me to the sword practice area and left me there. I sparred with a dummy for a couple hours, and suddenly it was time for lunch. I skipped and headed to the beach. There, I saw Kai, sitting on a rock, reading. I watched her for a little while, and for some reason I felt butterflies in my stomach. I shook them off and took out my sketchbook. I started to draw the waves, and before I knew it, the sun was setting. At some point, Kai had left. I started making my way toward the dining pavilion. After I ate, I went to the campfire with the others. We sang our songs and poems. When the campers started to trickle back to their cabins, I stayed right where I was, on my log. Another person stayed too, a tall boy with dark hair and... violet eyes? No, no they were blue. He noticed me looking at him and got up. He walked over to me and sat next to where I was. "Hey," he said "I'm Jamie. Son of Ares." He smiled warmly. "I-I'm Anna. Daughter of Athena." I stammered. We talked late into the night, staying out of sight of the harpies. When I finally opened the door to my cabin, I felt comforted and happy, for the first time in months. Before going to bed, I stared at the scars on my wrists for a good ten minutes. When I did fall asleep, it was dreamless and blank, but peaceful.