charm(less)

quīndecim

—— q u ī n d e c i m ——

WAKING UP, KOREY couldn't remember where he was or how he got there, only that his forearm was burning up enough to shake him from his sleep. He couldn't remember his dreams but they left him tense, at odds with the warm pillow and soft mattress below him.

He struggled into a sitting position and clamped an arm against his mark with a grimace. He had always been aware of it, like an itch at the back of his mind, but it was prickling with tiny needle stings that he couldn't ignore now. It all came back to him in a rush — falling into the sea, Lorelei the nymph saving Park's life, being taken through Camp Half Blood and left to sleep in the Big House. That's when he noticed the girl sitting on an armchair someone had pulled up to Park's bed, spooning what looked like golden syrup into his mouth. She had wildly curly hair which was pushed out of her face with a faded blue bandana and a keen shrewdness to her gaze, as if considering how best to punish someone who crossed her.

"Who are you?" Korey wondered out loud.

She turned to appraise him with clear blue eyes. "Oh, you're finally awake. I was wondering whether either of you would wake up," she said. "Your friend seemed a little worse for wear but I would've given you some nectar too if you hadn't woken up."

Korey eyed the bowl, which know looked too solid yet sticky to be syrup which he now knew was nectar, and glanced out of the tall windows. The sun was blazing high in a blue sky and he could see further down the slope, the camp was bustling with life. Teenagers varying from twelve to eighteen roamed about the grass in pairs or groups, chattering and laughing and carrying weapons as if they were commonplace. A camp for demigods, he reminded himself. Weapons were commonplace here.

"What time is it?" Korey asked.

"Just past noon," she replied. "You missed breakfast but you woke up just in time for lunch. Is your arm okay?"

Korey realised he was still clutching his arm against his body and removed his hand, alarmed to see the edges of the thick black lines forming his mark were beginning to glow red. No wonder it hurt so badly. He clamped his hand back over it as if to pretend it didn't exist and looked up to see the girl already watching him expectantly for an answer.

"Er, no. Not really. I don't think nectar can fix this," Korey said, when the girl held out the bowl towards him. "It's actually kind of the reason we came here."

She narrowed her eyes. "Aren't you both demigods?"

"Yes?"

"Then that would be the reason you came here," she said, not quite a question.

"Again, not really." Korey rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I didn't actually know I was a demigod until four days ago. Then I was marked — "

"Marked?" she interjected. "What does that mean?"

"It's kind of a long story," Korey admitted, not sure how to explain what had happened to some random girl he had met five minutes ago. He felt he needed to save this explanation for Chiron who could help him. "Is Park going to be okay?"

It took her a moment to realise Korey meant the boy in the bed beside her. "I don't see why not," she shrugged, which wasn't all that reassuring. "I'm not child of Apollo, so I couldn't tell you for sure, but the main issue seems to be bringing his temperature up. He's so bizarrely cold. The ambrosia and nectar should help with that, along with plenty of blankets to keep him warm. Park, huh? And what's your name?"

"Korey," he answered, feeling a little intimidated by the brusque and no-nonsense manner of this girl. He was usually great when it came to making conversation with someone he'd just met but he got the impression she was perfectly happy steering the direction of the discussion and wouldn't appreciate any stupid comments from him. "And, uh, what's your — "