Mathlide and the Heroes

Ch 7 The Introduction

That night, Mathlide couldn't sleep. She thought about everything she'd ever read. All the suffering and all the pain that people she once thought were fictional had to suffer through. It was much more real than she wanted it to be. She thought about Leo. How did Rick know he was alive? Did anyone else in the camp know he made it back to Calypso? She didn't know. She remembered how Leo didn't know how long he was dead for. 

He might never return in time for them to see him again, thought Mathlide. It bothered her so terribly that she stayed up all night. When she got up in the morning, she felt like a zombie. 

"Hey, Matti, what's wrong? You look tired," Lou Ellen noted. 

"Long night," was all Mathlide said. She didn't feel like explaining. 

"Well, the Hecate cabin, which really is just you and me, have activites to do everyday. Actually, every cabin does. Here's our schedule. There are some free hours that you can do whatever you want in." 

8 am- Cabin Inspection and Breakfast

9 to 10am - Weaponry and combat with the Ares Cabin 

10 to 11am- Monster Education 

11 to 1pm- Winged Horseback riding with Demeter cabin, lunch at 12

2 to 4pm- Free choice

4 to 5pm- Magic Practice

5 to 6:30pm- Dinner and Cabin clean up

6:30 to 8:30pm- Capture the flag 

8:30 to 9pm- Bonfire and Sing along

9pm- Prepare for bed, lights out by 10pm. 

"The first thing in the morning is Combat practice with the ARES cabin? I could die first thing in the morning," Mathlide exclaimed. 

Lou Ellen gave her a look. "You're not going to die. On purpose that is." 

"Do any other cabins have the same scedule as us?" 

"Well, we're pretty small. So they usually group us with a smaller cabin. Like we have horseback riding with the Demeter cabin. The three cabins next to us are Nike, Hebe, and Tyche. The counselors usually put Nike, the victory kids, with Tyche, the luck kids. They make a great team, victory and luck. They never lose. But anyway, we get left with the Hebe kids. She's the goddess of youth and Aphrodite's assistant. Her kids are major "people people." They literally live to please," Lou Ellen answered. 

"What about me and you? What's our reputation?" Mathlide wondered. 

"Us? Mom- she choose the wrong side a lot. Our magic can twist around on us easily. So we're the dangerous, mysterious sorcerors. Children of Hecate can be unpredictable, and we're not socialable."

"Agreed."  

They tidied up their cabin and left, heading to the mess hall. Breakfast was a blur. Mathlide sat with Lou Ellen at table number 20, just like their cabin. Her cup automatically filled with grape juice, her favorite breakfast drink. She ate waffles with strawberries on them, and Lou Ellen had Lucky Charms. Mathlide looked around the room. She got up to go dump her tray when she bumped into a girl with choppy brown hair and a feather braided into it. The girl turned around and Mathlide nearly had a heartattack when she saw her kaleidoscope eyes. 

"Oh my gods I am so sorry. Sorry," Mathlide apologized profusely. 

"Not a big deal. I'm a demigod like you, too," the girl answered. 

"Yeah but-" 

"Yeah, yeah, I'm Piper McLean, big star," said Piper, grinning. "You're the girl who passed out, right?" 

Mathlide was immediately embarrassed and nodded. "Does the whole camp know about that?" 

"Kinda. It's fine though. Jason once blurted out how hot I was in front of the entire camp when I was claimed. Every demigod has their story," Piper added. "Aphrodite should find another way to claim her kids." 

"I have to ask you-" Mathlide began, but Chiron appeared at the end of the room. 

"I have an announcement to make, please take your seats," he commanded. 

"Later," Piper said to Mathlide, and they sat down at their own tables. 

"As most of you know, there are new campers here at Camp Half Blood. We'd like to welcome them. Missy Ortiz, daughter of Hebe, please stand," Chiron called out. A thin Hispanic girl with big brown eyes and long brown hair stood up and waved around to the crowd. They clapped and she sat down. 

"And Mathlide Viola, daughter of Hecate, would you please stand," Chiron spoke. 

Mathlide stood and slightly waved. 

"Do you need a stretcher? Are you faint?" a voice rang out. 

"No. But it does look like someone needs a lesson in manners," Mathlide shot back. She saw Piper give her a thumbs up and the rest of the camp clapped. She tried to find where the voice was coming from, but she couldn't tell. She sat back down. 

"Oh, you are going to get it," Lou Ellen whispered. 

"What? Why? I defended myself," Mathlide whispered back. 

"That was an Ares kid. They are the only ones who do that. We have combat with them, remember?" 

Crap, was all Mathlide could think.