FINDING A HOME | PJO

/ five /

Nancy shuddered at the sight before her.

Percy had left her with the inhabitants of the Hermes cabin, and she was not impressed. There were sleeping bags littering the hard floor, and people were everywhere. It was like an anthill, crawling with misfits.

Shamefully, she realized she was one of them.

For now at least.

A boy who looked slightly younger than Nancy herself approached, and she frowned. He adorned the now familiar orange shirt and a small smirk. Endless curls sat on top of his head, and he gestured proudly at his surroundings.

"Welcome to the Hermes cabin," he told her. "We've been called many things - the cool cabin, the reject cabin..." he trailed off. Then, a happy grin spread across his face. "Mostly the cool cabin."

Nancy stared at him.

He sighed. "I'm Connor. Head of this bunch of weirdos. Watch your pockets, your belongings, basically anything you value or don't want taken." Connor rubbed his hands together and screwed his face in thought. "I think that's about it! There are some extra sleeping bags over there, and if you need anything, you can come to me, I guess."

Nancy tried for a smile and glanced to the nearest corner, where a couple sleeping bags were leaning against the wall. "Um..."

Connor pat her back. "Don't worry, you shouldn't be here for long. As soon as you get claimed, you'll move out into a cabin with your siblings. Unless, of course, my dad is your dad. In that case, get comfy, it'll be a while till any of the bunks are vacant."

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Nancy woke the next morning tangled in the slippery fabric of her sleeping bag and with a bad case of bed head, briefly recalling the events of the previous day.

She opened her eyes to a bustling cabin. Kids were everywhere, and they were loud. She was tempted to yell at them to shut up, but bit her tongue when she remembered a camper she had seen last night - all muscle, sword, and hair. Most of the kids she could see around her were either scrawny or scraggly, but she wasn't going to take any chances.

She sat up and ran her slim fingers through her tangly copper curls, sighing at the thought of another day of her life. And even though she had been aware of her surroundings since she'd woken up, her mind was only just clearing, and she looked around.

Halfblood. Gods.

Nancy took a deep breath and looked around. This wasn't going to be a usual day, and there was no reason not to make the best of it. She pulled the sleeping bag off of her legs and stood.

The only things she'd brought with her last night was her school bag and herself. So, basically, a bunch of useless textbooks with her tears laced throughout the pages (summer homework wasn't her favorite), her phone, and a change of clothes.

She began to dig through her backpack for the clothes when she noticed the neatly folded shirt at the foot of her sleeping bag. Nancy stared at it for a few moments, eyebrow raised, before picking it up and holding it out in front of her.

Connor stood from where he was casually thumbing through some cash, pocketed it, and gestured to the Camp Halfblood shirt in her hands.

"Annabeth dropped it off this morning," he explained. "She came excessively early, because she's Annabeth, so I told her to go away."

Nancy realized she hadn't really said a word since she'd gotten to the Hermes cabin, and that it was totally unlike her. "Where can I change?"

Connor glanced over his shoulder. "I don't think our bathroom will be empty for a while," he said, indicating the swarm of bodies crowding the bathroom door, "and I've learned to just go to the showers. I assume Annabeth showed you where that is?"

"She did," Nancy said, surprised at the lack of venom in her voice. "Anything else I should know?"

Connor pursed his lips. "Breakfast starts in a half hour. Be back here before then."

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Nancy emerged from the showers wearing her new shirt. She absolutely despised the bright orange, as it completely clashed with her disturbing hair. But if this was what was required to fit in here, she'd suffer the fashion felony hanging off her shoulders.

She estimated it had only been ten minutes since she'd left the Hermes cabin, and that she had time before she had to be back.

Nancy had constructed a list in her mind before falling to sleep the night before. She had started calling it her Making Amends List, and number one was mentally scrawled in all capital letters.

FIND GROVER. TALK.

Nancy smiled, satisfied that she was on the right track. She did not want to confront Grover Underwood at a meal, when there would be an audience to watch her humble herself. No thank you.

But she was prepared to do it if he wasn't in the forest. Percy had made it sound like he spent time there, so Nancy figured she could catch him and get it over with. All without being late to breakfast.

She turned away from the bathroom without looking up. Consequently, she ran headfirst into someone.

"Ouch!" Nancy rubbed her forehead and glanced up.

"Whoa, are you okay?" It was a boy. His chestnut hair was falling into his brown eyes, and his hands had flown out of his pockets to attempt to steady her, but Nancy was fine.

He looked so completely utterly normal, Nancy found it strange to see him in a place like this. He looked...so boring.

"I'm fine," she muttered.

"Oh," he said after a moment of silence, in which Nancy stared at him pointedly. He stepped out of her way. "Where you headed?"

Out of habit, Nancy didn't answer him. She only realized it when she was halfway to the forest.

Oops.

what do you think grover's reaction will be ? →