Mornin' Stroll ((Open))

Lars woke up with a start and banged his head on the bunk above him, "Oww..." he mumbled. He didn't know why he woke up so fast except that it was a nightmare, the good thing was, he couldn't remember that. If only every demigod could do that, forget their nightmares, then everything would be fine. He rubbed his eyes and looked at the clock, 6:30 AM. Lars had woken up too early, and he could think of nothing better to do than walk along the beach.

So he stood up, careful not to step on anyone and got dressed in jeans and his aviators jacket, leaving his glasses on the bedside along with the M16. However, he kept the Colt M1911 strapped to his side with an extra clip in his pocket. He also hung a sword on the other side of his hip. Lars then went into the bathroom and brushed his hair flat then headed out the door, making sure to not wake anyone.

When Lars stepped outside he knew immediately he was glad to have the jacket. The air outside was cool and brisk, most demigods could live with it, but it was uncomfortable, though he knew it would heat up later in the day. Lars vaguely notices the sun rising and he walked towards the beach. He wasn't afraid of the harpies because, well, you could wake up early if you wanted too, if he remembered correctly.

Lars eventually got to the beach and started walked down it, the water lapping up a few feet from his feet and he could feel the gentle breeze tug at his face. He looked off into the water wondering, what am I doing here? I should be elsewhere, flying, hanging out with my family, even if they aren't my true family, they still accept me. Yes, I am accepted here and everyone is like me. At least partially. Then his thoughts turned to his parents, who were my parents? Was my mortal parent male or female? Who is my godly parent? Lars quickly pushed those thoughts out of his head, he didn't like to think about his real parents.

He heard some footsteps coming towards him so he looked up towards the sound, which was straight into the sun, so he had to squint at them to see who it was, but he couldn't tell, the sun was too bright, even if it had just rose. All he knew was that a person was there, whether they were an adult or a demigod or male or female, he didn't know. He secretly hoped that it was his parent, but he knew that was too much to ask for, he had already waited 4 years to find out his godly parent, he could wait a little longer.

Lars called out to them, "Hey! Who is it?" He started walking towards them, and a little faster than earlier. Eventually the person came into view, but he still couldn't tell if he recognized them. "What are you doing out here so early? I personally just woke up a tad bit early, but you get the point." Eventually Lars was able to make out what gender they were and if he had met them before, no he had not met them, but they were [insert gender here]. "So, how are you doing this morning? A little chilly isn't it?" he said smiling. "Oh, sorry, I forgot to introduce myself, I'm Lars." He held out his hand to shake theirs as a friendly gesture to show he wasn't an enemy, at least not yet.

Sophie woke up suddenly when one of her sibling's alarm clocks went off. She groaned, and sat up, to see one of her half-brothers shutting off the alarm and pulling the covers over his head. Sophie felt like doing the same. What in Hades was the alarm on for? Apparantly, she was the only one who had woken up, since there was no movement in the cabin, except for her. Sophie checked the alarm clock, and nearly cursed out loud when she saw it was 6:30 in the morning. You can call Sophie a lot of things, but definitely not a morning person.

Well, she was awake now. Sophie got out of her bunk, and looked out the window. It was still early in the day, and the weather reflected that. It looked like a cold day, and there were swirls of fog clinging to the cabins, but it would go soon. The sun was up, but it would probably take time for it to heat anything up. Bottom line, Sophie was not going to get away with t-shirts. With that in mind, Sophie got up quietly, and changed into what she usually wore, which included a t-shirt, and sandals, which wasn't the best choice but also threw on a grey sweater, and jeans. She put on her necklace, which concealed a dagger, just in case. Good enough. She combed her hair quickly, but she hoped not to run into anybody when she went outside.

Sophie exited the cabin quickly, and paused outside the door. Where should she go? After some consideration, she chose the Sound. Sophie was aware that it would be colder near the water, but she wanted peace and quiet, and at this time, it was likely to be deserted. Sophie set out for the beach, hoping it was going to be warmer soon.

She walked quickly, until she made it to the Sound, which was, as she expected, empty. Still, Sophie was a bit on edge. She was a bit jumpy, ever since a scorpion attacked in the woods, which she had barely defeated, with help. She had just gotten her stitches off, and she wasn't in a hurry to replace them, although, monsters couldn't attack camp. Even so, Sophie kept an eye out for trouble.

Pretty soon, after walking a bi farther, Sophie heard someone shouting out. She couldn't see them, though. That was quickly resolved. Soon, a guy came into view, still talking. He commented on the weather, asked why she was out so early, then introduced himself as Lars, all before Sophie could even speak. After that, he extended his hand, for a handshake. Sophie, a bit surprised at his friendliness, shook his hands. "My name's Sophie, daughter of Athena," she said, still processing what happened. She shrugged about the weather. She liked warm places, and sun, and all that stuff. She was from California, after all. She knew it would get warmer, and wished the sun would hurry up and warm everything.

"I would be asleep, but an alarm clock went off, so here I am," Sophie said with a shrug. She didn't know what else to say. Sophie didn't have ADHD, but she still found herself restless, shifting from foot to foot, twiddling with her necklace, and looking at everything.'

An awkward silence dragged on, and Sophie was starting to wish she had gone somewhere else. But she was here now, so she had to say something. "So...is there a reason you brought weapons? Or do you just feel uneasy without them?" Sophie blurted out, seizing upon the first thing that came to mind. She was starting to regret that too. But she had already said it, so she just waited for an anwer, hoping Lars had a good sense of patience.

((kinda died at the end))

Andreana had started to adjust to camp. She had some friends, she was with her schedule, but much of camp had still remained unexplored to the new demigod, and even with her new home she still felt a certain loss from her old home. It was just different. Greek wasn't being spoken (besides the Ancient Greek class), there were no bakeries (not that Camp half-blood was a town). Even the air felt different. All those thoughts kept Andreana tossing and turning. Not wanting to sit still any longer she got up and got dressed and headed out of the Hermes Cabin. 

Andreana stood outside of the cabin with her hand in her purple hoodie pocket. Andreana's internal alarm clock told her it was early, six? Seven? She didn't know but there didn't seem to be much time left before the whole camp woke up, the sun seemed to be coming up. Andreana knew whatever she was going to do she'd have to do it quickly.

Andreana jogged off to the beach.

Andreana loved the beach. Living in Florida most her life the beach was like her home away from home. Even if her and her father only went to the beach once a month the smell always followed them home. Andreana almost was tempted to run back and grab a bathing suit but again, she knew their wasn't much time. Looking towards the shore she could see two other people talking, one was Sophie, the daughter of Athena who basically helped her as soon as she had stepped foot in camp. That seemed to be the best place to go if she wanted to kill time.

"Hey Sophie." she said was she walked over to the pair. Looking at Sophie she seemed almost tense, restless, until she finally spoke to the guy.

"So...is there a reason you brought weapons? Or do you just feel uneasy without them?" Andreana looked at the guy and indeed he did have a sword by his side. By now Andreana knew it was normal to have a weapon with you, she herself was still deciding between daggers and a bow, but this was like a morning stroll, why the need for a weapon?

Andreana was wondering the same thing but decided to keep quiet. She would wait to see were this would end up.

((badness~~~))

So she was a daughter of Athena? Huh. Lars wondered if Sophie knew that Karen girl that had gotten murdered, but he quickly pushed that out of his head. He didn't want to get into that, it was recent news which is why he was thinking about it, the murderer had to be someone in camp. But anyways, that was when another girl walked in, though she kept quiet except saying hey to Sophie.

She asked about his weapons, he wanted to snap back if it was wrong to have them, but he just shrugged, "I just like to have them with me, I never know when I'll get attacked or stuff." He was glad that he hadn't brought his M-16 gun with him, he would have a lot of questions about that for sure. At the moment he did not want questions, just a basic conversation.

It sure was warming up, so he pushed his jacket back a little, revealing the holster of his Colt M1911 handgun, but as soon as he did it, he covered it back up. Lars did not want to answer questions about that, handguns weren't the nicest thing to see on a person, even if it was just for self-defense for monsters. "So who are you?" he asked, looking in the direction of the new girl.

Back onto the no questions topic, yeah, he didn't want questions, but if it meant starting a basic conversation he was fine with them. Of course, the conversation would have questions, and he would be fine with that, but things like the first thing said was asking why the other person had weapons, yeah, it annoyed him, but he was rather good with patience, thank the gods, he didn't want to embarrass himself by getting into a pointless fight.

A fight didn't seem eminent at the moment, so he was calm. Lars looked off over the ocean, it was a nice sight, yeah it was. But Lars preferred the air a lot more. He probably looked like an aviator from their point of view, but hey, he was! The only thing he was missing was his aviators glasses. But anyways, the day seemed to be perfect for flying, almost no wind yet and clear skies.

Of course, it was still morning, but still, not to mention the fact that he'd have to head to New York to go fly and he didn't want to make the trip and it was too hard and he didn't want to risk getting killed at the moment. He finally asked them, "So what do you guys do? I fly planes personally." He was mainly trying to start a conversation after what had already started, trying to continue it really.

Before Lars could answer, if he wanted to answer, another person walked up to them. This one Sophie knew. It was Sparks, the young girl Sophie had helped rescue from the woods on her first day here. Andreana, the girl's real name, was still new, but Sophie had intended to see her, check up on her, and make sure she was ok. As far as Sophie knew, Andreana hadn't gotten injured in the woods, but Camp was still a lot to take in. Sophie just wanted to see if Andreana had adjusted yet.

"Hey, Sparks," Sophie said cheerfully to the young girl. She left the introductions to her, Sophie didn't feel like introducing someone who could speak for themselves. Besides, she didn't want to look like she was babying the girl, either. So instead, she focused back on Lars, and the question he had asked. He had asked on what she did, and he said he flew planes. Sophie was a bit confused at that. He flew planes? Did he used to, or does he go somewhere special to fly them? Sophie didn't voice her concerns, though. She didn't want to seem ignorant.

What did Sophie do? Well, work on strategies, train, run a cabin. But he probably meant a hobby. Sophie could really only think of one she'd like to admit, and even that was a bit dorky. "Oh, well, when I'm not fighting monsters and almost dying, I like to draw maps," Sophie answered, trying to at least hide her answer among other things. She liked drawing maps, especially of Camp Half Blood. "That was what I was doing the day I found you," she continued, talking to Andreana now. At the moment, Sophie was drawing a map of the woods, specifically the area used for Capture the Flag. Her work had gotten delayed, with the arrival of the young girl in front of her, but Sophie had started it up again, and was making progress.

Sophie relaxed a bit more now. Being by herself, after a monster attack had set her on edge. But with two other people around, and one heavily armed, Sophie felt a bit better. Something was bothering her, though. She had heard news of a death in camp, and she wanted to know who. "I heard..." Sophie started, trailing off. "I heard someone in camp got killled. Do either of you know who?"

((sorry, having a muse withdrawal))

"Hey, Sparks," Sophie had replied cheerfully to Andreana's greeting.

"I just like to have them with me, I never know when I'll get attacked or stuff." The guys had said replying to Sohpie's comment. He pulled his jacket a bit and showed what seemed to be a gun but fixed his jacket again to where it was hidden. He looked over to Andreana and asked for her name.

"Andreana Papadopoulos, or just Ana for short." she replied smiling.

He looked over the ocean but then looked back to Andreana and Sophie. "So what do you guys do? I fly planes personally." he asked and stated what he did. Fly planes? That was something different Andreana had decided but it was more whatever floated your boat to Andreana. Sohpie answered in a witty way that see liked to draw maps and that was how she had found Andreana. Andreana smiled.

"I like to dance and draw." she said shrugging. It wasn't anything that special, a lot of people could dance and draw but that was something she liked to do. She also would've answered 'being Greek' but her name pretty much gave that away. There was a small silence before Sohpie spoke up again.

"I heard..." Sophie started, trailing off. "I heard someone in camp got killled. Do either of you know who?"

Andreana was taken aback. She knew being a demigod was dangerous but she thought camp was safe besides the woods. This had to be a mistake....

"Are you sure? Someone d-died?" Andreana asked. She would never actually admit it but she was rather afraid of dying, getting hurt. Even the news of someone dying made her sad. Plus Andreana hadn't been here long, it felt like a little shock. Things weren't was perfect as they seemed...

((ugh, this post= poop. Hopefully it'll be better next time~))

Sparks? That was a rather interesting name, it was more than likely a nickname, and she confirmed that by saying she was Andreana or Ana, which sounded Greek. If she was Greek, that would be really ironic, since she is a demigod, her parents were discovered by the Ancients, will, you get the point. The daughter of Athena said she liked to draw maps, made sense. While Ana said she liked to dance and draw.

It was nothing abnormal, of course, flying probably wasn't the most common either. Mainly because you have to leave camp to do it and such. He noticed Sophie seemed confused by that, and he understood, he would be confused too. But hey, if he had time he could explain it later, it wasn't that difficult, and the flying part wasn't difficult either, you just had to learn how. It had taken him what? 2 years to get his private pilot license with all of the hours required and stuff. It helped though that his adopted family was huge in aviation, flight simulators everywhere and such. He wasn't exaggerating on that, and the fact that everyone of age was able to fly, whether for an airlines or for fun.

"Oh, that's some neat stuff. I come from an adopted family huge in aviation, I am glad they were though." he said, responding to their answers of dancing and drawing. Also to the map creating, that would be hard to do from the ground, because, well, you couldn't see everything and it was hard to judge size and shape from the ground, now the air was better than that. He thought he could take her up sometime to help her, as a friend. He quickly pushed that away, it would seem like more than that. But hey, whatever floats your goat on what you do.

"I heard someone in camp got killled. Do either of you know who?" Sophie said, well, there was getting rid of not saying who got killed, so he just sighed, taking a deep breath, "I know, but I don't know if you knew her, I didn't know her, just know her name and cabin. Her name was Karen Westbrook, daughter of Eros." He looked at them sympathetically, she hadn't been killed, she had been murdered, and it had to be by a camper.

Whoever killed her was going to get into huge trouble if they were ever caught, yeah, he had his suspicions, but he didn't state their names. The trouble would be worse than cleaning the stalls for sure, maybe even turn them in to jail and they would stay there for life. But he didn't know, "I heard it was pretty gruesome too, whatever the person did that killed her, they liked to bloody her."

Lars didn't want to talk about that topic anymore, so he quickly looked for any good topics to switch too. Flying? No, that would confuse them. The morning? Nah, it happened every day. The ocean? It was here all the time. He finally decided on a topic, and it wasn't the past, that was often touchy for people, it was just random things, "So, off that topic, where are you guys from? I'm local. Oh, and I don't mind if you guys ask the questions too." he said, trying to get them asking stuff as well.

He waited for an answer from both of them, then said, "How long have you guys been here? I have been here for 4 years since I was 12, though I'm 17 now." They didn't seem to be helping getting a conversation going, he was always the one keeping a conversation going, he hoped they chimed in now asking questions, coming up with a topic to talk about could be a hard thing to do, as he often found out.

((Sorry for the crappiness))

((don't worry, found my muse, posts will be longer))

It was amazing, that you could know someone, but not really know them. Sophie had saved Andreana from a monster, helped her find a weapon, and generally became friends with her. But at the same time, she didn't know what hobbies she had, where she came from, or what she was good at. Well, that was going to change. Sophie resolved to know all her friends better, even if it annoyed them to the extent of killing her. Speaking of which, she should listen to the answer.

Lars seemed very nervous about his answer. He sighed, took a deep breath, and informed them that it was Karen. Well, that was impossible. Karen couldn't be dead. Sophie had just seen her a while ago...But she couldn't be. Karen would defend herself. Sophie knew Karen, and knew Karen wouldn't go down without a fight. But if the person really wanted to kill her...Sophie could only think of one person. "Clove..." Sophie said, through gritted teeth. She felt a surge of anger swell up, because she thought Clove was better than that. Obviously not. Sophie kept her anger in check, because she wasn't one to let her anger get out-of-control. Once the anger subsided, Sophie found tears in her eyes. She quickly wiped them away. She'd cry about this later, right now, she has to stay in the conversation, with perfect control.

She heard Lars ask where's from, with him answering that he's local. "Yeah, I hear New York has good flying schools," Sophie said, trying a smile. Thankfully, it came out alright. "I'm from California. There's this little town called Shasta Lake...it's really nice. But I'm never going back," Sophie continued, with more confidence. There was nothing left for her in California, so she had resolved to stay in Camp Half Blood, and later, New York. She thought about Lars second question, thinking about when she had arrived. It had been late May, just a couple months ago. It was..what, July? "Um, maybe two months? I'm not sure, I haven't really been keeping track of time..." Sophie said, trailing off. She straightened. Now was the time to ask the questions she had, to get to know people better.

"You said you were from an adopted family, right? So, did you have any siblings?" Sophie asked Lars. Leaving him with that one question, she thought about Andreana. "Sparks, I don't think I ever asked, but who's your mortal parent? It might help limit options on who your godly parent is...Is there a reason you were left in the woods?" Maybe she was asking too many questions now, but she didn't care. She wanted to know as much as she could about the people she talked about, even if some of the questions were kinda nosy.

While they had been talking, the sun had come up. Sophie, who was desparate for warmth, decided it was warm enough to take off the jacket, even if it still was a little chilly. She took off her sweater, and tied it around her waist. It was warm enough for her, even though her arms were still kinda cold. But if she thought about something else, that feeling would go away. So she thought about her day, and what she was going to do, and what map she was going to draw today. Sometimes, she drew other places, comparing her work to maps she found in the Athena cabin. It didn't turn out as well as the ones she drew of places she knew, but well enough that you could still use it. It did take longer, though. Sophie resolved that she would try drawing California, just where she came from. Maybe she remembered enough to make a usable map. If not, it would make good scrap paper for other work.

Realizing that she had totally wandered off to other topics, Sophie focused back on Lars and Andreana. She didn't want to miss what they replied. What was the point of asking a question if you didn't listen to the answer? Besides, Sophie was curious. She also had a few more questions, so she settled for one, that could be asked to anyone. "Are you guys year-rounders, or just summer campers?" Sophie asked, curious. She decided to answer, so that they couldn't throw the question back at her. "I'm a year-rounder, but I haven't been here long enough to really have done it, yet," Sophie answered. She fell silent, and waited for some replies.

((long enough?))

After Sophie and Andreana gave their thoughts on what they liked to do, Lars responded by complimenting their activities and stating he was glad his adopted family was big on aviation. Andreana was glad a family was all interested in one activity. She had come from a half baked family of just her and her dad. Unless you counted the countless cousins and Theos (uncles) and Theas (aunts) and the good friends you knew well enough to call theo and thea. Then it might be a family were everyone had a similar hobby, being loud, proud, and Greek.

Sohpie shifted around a bit before asking the two if they heard about the camper who died. Andreana responded in shock while Lars responded with an answer.

"I know, but I don't know if you knew her, I didn't know her, just know her name and cabin. Her name was Karen Westbrook, daughter of Eros."

Andreana's mouth hung open in shock. Karen? The Karen that had helped her in the woods? It couldn't be! The boy didn't make it any easier by adding in that her death was also pretty bloody. Like Andreana needed all the facts. Andreana heard Sophie murmur a name but she barley heard it. In her mind all she could think about was how a girl she barley knew risked her life to save her and try to save Sohpie, while ending up with some pretty bad injuries, that brave girl from the woods... Dead. Andreana bit the inside of her lip to try and control her emotions. She could've sworn she was like a leaky faucet just waiting to burst any moment, and talking about her least favorite subject didn't help the matter. She looked to Sophie who seemed to be wiping tears from her eyes.

Lars finally tried to lighten the mood by switching subjects. Andreana was almost furious that someone could be so calm after what happened. Plus it didn't help that the three of them had just been gossiping about it! Andreana's emotions were all over the place but it wouldn't help them right now. Instead she would just go with it.

The guy started off a simple question. Where were they from? He informed them that he was local and told them to ask questions. Sohpie responded by commentating that she had heard about good flying school in New York then went on to state her previous home in California.

"I'm from Tarpon Springs, Florida." Andreana said rather proudly. She was as to so what confused by Sohpie wouldn't want to go back to her hometown. On the other hand Andreana loved where she lived and up till now was still thinking about what was going on around home. But she shrugged it off when Lars asked howling they'd been at camp, himself here for about 4 years and Sohpie around two months and admitting to not keeping track of time. Andreana nodded it the statement, she barley even knew when she arrived.

"I haven't been here long... A couple days? A week? Two?" she said guessing herself.

Sophie turned to ask Lars a question then turning to Andreana as well to get her talking.

"Sparks, I don't think I ever asked, but who's your mortal parent? It might help limit options on who your godly parent is...Is there a reason you were left in the woods?"

Andreana was still confused as to why Sohpie called her Sparks. Nicknames didn't bother her much but why that particular one? She'd have to ask after answering her question.

"My mortal parent is my father." She said almost trying to ponder who her godly parent was as well. "I was left by the woods because.... We had driven from New Jersey..." Andreana said slowly as if trying to piece together the memory. "Plus I don't think he knew where to drop me off." she finished chuckling. Her dad was rather funny and like most Greeks they both ran on Greek time. Showing up an hour late to almost everything. Andreana was usually better about keeping track of time then her father but it got to them both every once in a while.

Andreana had been at camp long enough to know that coming through the woods wasn't your standard way of finding a new demigod, most came up a hill with a giant pine tree on it with a dragon guarding what was supposedly the golden fleece. That would be something Andreana would've liked to see when she arrived, not a giant scorpion and bandages a couple hours later.

Sohpie brought Andreana out of her thoughts by asking wether or not she was a year-round or just summer campers and stating she was going to be a year-rounder herself. Andreana wasn't up-to-date on all this camp terminology but she figured by the terms it meant you stayed for the summer or you stayed here like a boarding school. She thought about the question unsure if she was going to stay year round or not. Andreana knew she would be staying for the summer at least but a lot of her knew it would miss her life back home. Just thinking of missing dance in the coming school year almost made her feel sick to her stomach.

"I don't know yet..." Andreana shrugged trailing off. It was a lame response but true. She shifted a bit listening for the guy's answer before she decided she should ask at least one question herself.

"So, have you gotten claimed yet?" she asked turning to Lars. It seemed most people introduced their parent as well as themselves when they met someone, maybe he forgot? While waiting for a response Andreana turned to Sohpie to ask her a question like she had done to Lars and Andreana. "How many maps do you have so far?" she asked rather cheerfully. Andreana had thought Sophie's hobby to be cool even if they had moved on from the subject. Andreana enjoyed drawing and would've liked to see what she had done.

((died at the end...))

"Yeah, I hear New York has good flying schools," Sophie said, she seemed to try to wipe away tears. Andreana's mouth was open as well after the news. So they must have known Karen, he just let her comment on the schools, it really wasn't school, more of instructors, but nonetheless. She then said she was from California but she was never going back, typical for demigods, not wanting to go back home, though he never understood that, his life in New York was great, yeah, he was technically Canadian because he was born there, but he later moved to New York, so now he had duel citizenship.

"Sorry, correction on my part, I am actually from Canada, I was born in Toronto and lived there in foster homes before I was finally adopted and lived in New York at like the age of 7. So now I have duel citizenship," he explained, he always found it neat that he was Canadian, yeah, Canada was awesome, but so was the United States, except for the current president, but that was a whole different matter and he didn't want to talk politics, he had a feeling they didn't either. He then nodded at the answers they gave of how long they had been there.

"You said you were from an adopted family, right? So, did you have any siblings?" Sophie asked, and the answer was yes, he had two. "Yeah, I had two of them, all younger than me." She then directed a question at Andreana, so Lars stayed silent as they conversed. Since it was getting warmer he took off his jacket revealing the handgun, yeah, he didn't want it to be seen, but it might as well be now then a few months from now. He didn't even know if they would notice, but most did.

Sophie then asked if they were year-round or not, Lars said, "I'm only summer at the moment, I like my adopted family in New York and I don't know if I'm powerful or not, if I'm super powerful, I'll be year round to only go out to visit every once in a while. The whole family knows who I am, so they wouldn't be surprised." Andreana then asked if he was claimed, "No, unfortunately, not yet. You'd think after 4 years my parent would have claimed me, but things can hold them back."

Lars decided to ask about nationalities, mainly because he knew if you lived in the US, you weren't necessarily American. "So what nation are you guys? Like I get full American, more than likely, but you never know, I'm Canadian." He knew it was a stupid question because they were probably both full American, but there was a chance with Andreana, that name sounded Greek. Of course, they probably would have never guessed he was Canadian unless he told them so. He could feel the emotions getting lost from Karen for later. If he had a choice, he wouldn't have told them. He wondered what they thought of his height, since he stood at like 6'5", and they were around the 5'1" and 5'6" area, short to him. It was awkward to him, because he felt like a skyscraper next to them and the fact that he might have been able to cover them with his shadow. Sometimes he hated his height.

Andreana seemed just as surprised as Sophie about Karen's death. Her mouth opened, and Sophie could almost see the gears in her brain grind to a halt, then start up again. That amused Sophie, and she almost commented on it. Almost. She didn't think Andreana would want her to joke about something like that, especially since Sophie had had her own reaction to it as well. So Sophie left it alone, and listened to Andreana reply to all the questions that had been thrown out by Lars and her.

Sophie listened to Andreana say her mortal parent was her father. She thoughtfully began to reconsider possible parentage, except now they were all female. But Sophie still didn't know enough about Andreana to solidly say so and so could be her godly mother. Drawing and dancing... Well, that could be anything. Or there could be something else she didn't say, that was going to make it obvious who her parent is. Sophie would have to think about it. But, even if she came to a decision, she didn't think she'd tell the young girl. In Sophie's opinion, it was nice when the parent came and told you themselves.

Andreana, after asking Lars if he'd been claimed, and him responding no, asked Sophie about her maps, going back to what she'd said earlier. "Well, not very many, cause it takes time to make a really good one. And they're mostly of New York and Camp Half-Blood. I also really like making plottages of the woods, you know, for Capture the Flag," Sophie said, trying to explain that while she did make maps, lately she'd been working a lot with maps already been made. Clove-the Ares cabin in general- didn't like it when Sophie didn't have anything, and they had to re-use an older strategy. While it usually worked, they lost the element of suprise, which didn't really matter to Sophie, but apparantly to the others, it did.

When Sophie asked her question about staying year round or not, Andreana answered that she wasn't sure yet, and Lars said he was a summer camper. Sophie wondered exactly how many people stayed year round, and whether all her friends were just summer campers, or if she'd actually see them longer than a few months at a time. Sophie drifted back into the conversation and heard something about nationalities. Was he asking what nation she was from? "Um...I don't know. Probably American. I never knew my dad, and my mom is obviously...well, a god," Sophie answered. She felt a little uncomfortable, talking about the dad she never knew. Some kids had a foster family, or something like that, so they called them their parents and siblings. Others knew their mortal parent, and either stayed with them, or had known them for a time. Sophie wasn't either of those, so when people asked things that had anything to do with family, Sophie tended to circumvent the question, and ask another in it's place.

Sophie looked for anything to distract her from this embarrasing answer. She noted that Lars looked a little uncomfortable, so Sophie looked around. She noticed for the first time exactly how much taller he was than her. You might ask how Sophie could miss something like that. Well, she was good with details. She could see the small things, that led to bigger stuff. As a result, she tended to miss some of the more obvious things, which also tended to make her look...well, weird. "Oh, I'm not worried," Sophie said, trying and failing to keep the amusement out of her tone. "It's not like you're going to step on me," she continued, giving a small laugh. Oh, it'd be funny to see him try. But he'd have to catch her first.

"I'd be more worried if you pointed the gun at me," Sophie said, noting the gun when Lars had removed his jacket. She didn't make any more comment on it, and focused back on Andreana. "Still, don't let Sparks catch you on fire...The monsters could see THAT from a long way away," Sophie said. She wasn't sure if he'd mind her cracking jokes like that, but honestly, Sophie was trying anything to stop the tears from coming again. If it meant making jokes at someone else's expense, hopefully they'd understand, unless they wanted to see her freaking out at her friend's death.

"Sorry, correction on my part, I am actually from Canada, I was born in Toronto and lived there in foster homes before I was finally adopted and lived in New York at like the age of 7. So now I have duel citizenship," Lars explained to them after they had both stated where they were from. Andreana nodded a bit. She had never been to Canada but she had a friend who had relatives there. She'd always talk about them when they were both on the subject of Greek families...

Sohpie asked Lars about his adopted siblings and he replied by just stating how many and that they were younger then him. Afterwards Sohpie replied to her question.

"Well, not very many, cause it takes time to make a really good one. And they're mostly of New York and Camp Half-Blood. I also really like making plottages of the woods, you know, for Capture the Flag,"

Andreana smiled. She would like to see a game of capture the flag in action, even take part. There seemed to be some quiet and Andreana would have just replied with a "Cool" or something lame when Lars had replied to Sophie's question wether or not they'd be staying year round. After Andreana gave her answer Lats went onto explain he was a summer camper answer Andreana's question from before in the process. So he hadn't been claimed. She felt rather bad for him, Lars coming here for four years. Even if the gods didn't have time for them the least they could do was claim them. Not even worry about a present, just simply give them a home.

Lars then asked them about their nationalities. Sohpie replyed unsure of what she exactly was but just stated she was American.

"Greek, and now that I know I'm part Greek god that makes me 100% Greek." Andreana said with a rather proud smile. Growing up in a Greek community pretty much taught her to embrace her culture and she did. She loved the fact she was different in even a small way. Andreana just loved everything about being Greek, the way the yiayiathes and papaouthes yelled at each other, the smell of fresh baked goods, the music, the language. All of it just made her happy to know that she belonged to more then just a cultural group, to her being Greek was a way of life.

After the conversation ended there seemed to be yet again another small silence. Looking towards Lars she noticed that he had taken off his jacket as it was getting pretty hot. But what seemed weird was that he was carrying a handgun. Not your average something you saw on a person but let it slide a little. She wouldn't use it unless he had to. Right? Rolling up the sleeves of her hoodie Andreana started to take into account their sizes. Andreana was the youngest and therefore the shortest but she seemed to be really short right then. Even Sohpie seemed to be a foot taller then her from Andreana's perspective. Looking at Lars again she just fully noticed how tall he was and Sohoie seemed to notice as well.

"Oh, I'm not worried," Sophie said in an amusing tone towards Lars and was wondering why she did so. "It's not like you're going to step on me," she added before Andreana finally got what she was getting at and grinned a little bit.

"I'd be more worried if you pointed the gun at me," Sophie said pointing out the handgun and leaving it at that before turning back to face Andreana. "Still, don't let Sparks catch you on fire...The monsters could see THAT from a long way away," Andreana gave a good laugh at the joke even if it wasn't that funny. She kinda liked how Sophie was trying to lighten the mood and in fact Andreana wanted to help.

"You're accusing me of setting him on fire?" She asked in mock surprise acting out the part by placing her hand over her mouth before falling into a fit of laughter. Andreana probably wasn't the best person at making jokes (or even taking a joke) but she could sure try. Plus it was fun to just let go and laugh considering the sad subject they had been on before hand.

"Well, not very many, cause it takes time to make a really good one. And they're mostly of New York and Camp Half-Blood. I also really like making plottages of the woods, you know, for Capture the Flag," Sophie said, he wondered when the next one would be, of course being there for so long meant he had been in a lot, and they were a lot of fun. It was about the only time he used a sword because, well, a gun wouldn't work for that, he didn't want to kill, unless he somehow managed to switch it to paintballs.

Sophie said she was probably American, which made sense, like he guessed. Though Andreana was full Greek she said, he surprisingly wasn't surprised by this, probably because of the name. She looked good though, but he shook that away, she was rather young for him. "I guess your like me then Sophie, I never knew any of my real parents, I can't figure out if my mortal parent was male or female." It really sucked for him, he couldn't even narrow who his godly parent was by gender. The best he could do was wait.

They seemed to notice his height when he noticed how short they seemed. Sophie made a comment about how he wouldn't step on her, and he laughed, "I guess I get that a lot, I am tall, that has its advantages and disadvantages." Talking about it made Lars seem taller than usual. Lars couldn't stop looking at Andreana, she was pretty, he tried to ignore it, but that was hard, he just wanted to hug her. He kept telling himself she was too young.

He finally got rid of that thought and paid attention, "I'd be more worried if you pointed the gun at me." And in come the gun questions... "Don't worry, I won't, at least not yet. If I did, be glad it isn't the M16 I have back in the cabin." Sophie continued, "Still, don't let Sparks catch you on fire...The monsters could see THAT from a long way away." Andreana said something about accusing her of setting him on fire. "Wait, WHAT? Why would she set me on fire?" he asked, totally confused now.

((Lost muse with all the replies I had to catch up on...))

Terpsichore, Muse of dance and dramatic chorus.

Terpsichore was shuddering in pure horror, still. She'd been to a disco for the first time in a long time. She prefered other kinds of dancing but had once again taken to the disco. What she had seen there was shocking. Not even Terpsichore could call what went on in there dancing and she was fairly free in calling something a dance. After all, the more people who were dancing, the more joy there would be in the world. Maybe the entire discoscene as it was needed a terrible make over. She'd talk to some of the Gods about it, trying to see if a revolution in dance was still possible. She didn't need everything to change, just return some actual dancing to the disco's. That would be a very good thing. Perhaps some Jazz mixed with breakdancing? Terpsichore could be picky but she had to admit that some of those new dancing styles were just marvelous! She couldn't get enough of them and simply didn't find enough time in her days to keep up sometimes.

Suddenly Terpsichore remembered she still had a daughter dancing around somewhere. Was she still at home or had she made it to camp by now? Terpsichore didn't want to bring trouble to her daughter but if the girl was at camp, it was time the girl got to know her mother. Terpsichore concentrated and send her thoughts out to her daugther, finding that Andreana was indeed at camp. She was actually on the sound with two other demigods at that moment. Well, in that case Andreana could try out that lovely gift Terpsichore had brought for her. She smiled and got ready to meet her daughter, which just meant she put on some more traditional clothes than her currently work out clothes. In a second she was dressed and standing on the beach at camp, in front of her daughter.

Terpsichore was instantly proud. Her daughter had grown up so lovely, not matter how much she still had to grow and learn. Tears almost welled up in the eyes of the muse but she held them back. She didn't want the moment ruined for her wonderful girl. "Andreana, daughter of Terpsichore." The muse said with a gentle smile. "My daughter. I am so proud of you! You are a wonderful girl and I thought it was time for you to know who that elusive mother of you was." Terpsichore said with a wink at her daughter. She reached into a robes and pulled out a coin. It was made from pure gold and had a lyre on the one side, a couple of music notes on the other side. She put the coin in her left hand, the side with the lyre up and closed her hand. A lyre appeared in her hand. "This lyre, when played, produces music that can inspire anybody to dance, even monsters. Makes it rather hard for them to attack." Terpsichore explained. She held her hand in the exact same position as earlier and opened it, the lyre transforming back into the coin.

"The other side of this coin holds a magical note, which can blast monsters to pieces when they hear it. Yet be careful my young daughter, it will effect you too. Don't use it too often because it is very bad for your health." Terpsichore warned and handed the coin to Andreana. With a smile she spoke to the three demigods present. "Have a lovely day and don't forget to keep dancing!" Terpsichore said enthousiastically before disappearing again, back to planning a disco revolution. She never wanted her daughter to get old enough to see what the current teenagers called 'dancing'.

((congrats Sparks, this will be short, so that Ana can reply as soon as possible))

What Sophie said really hadn't been that funny, but Andreana was cracking up. She'd seemed to understand what Sophie had been trying to do, and she had probably been trying to help, but maybe this was taking it a bit too far. Still, Sophie appreciated the gesture. Sophie also saw Lars looking at Andreana, but maybe not the same way Sophie was. That made her uncomfortable, so she quickly looked away, scanning the sand for anything interesting.

She looked up when she heard her name. Lars had said something about...being like him? Doubt it. It was true, neither knew about their mortal parent, but it was more than that. Lars had a family. True, they weren't his real one, but they loved him just the same. Sophie had spent 14 years in an orphanage, and nobody had even tried to adopt her. It was hard, living with yourself knowing no one wanted you. When Sophie had run away, she was still alone, but it was more peaceful for her. Sophie didn't say anything, though. No need to ruin the mood.

As if the gods agreed with her, a figure suddenly appeared in front of Andreana. Sophie, who had had a vague idea who it was, nodded when the woman said she was Terpsichore. Sophie had suspicions when Andreana said she danced, and they'd been solidified when Andreana said her mortal parent was her father. But Sophie had kept quiet. She knew Andreana would want to know, but Sophie always thought it was fun when your godly parent told you. Or in this case, a Muse. After Terpsichore claimed Andreana, showed her the present, explained it, and disapppeared, Sophie gave Andreana a big hug, lifting her a few inches off the groun. When she put her down, Sophie gave a big smile. "Congratulations Sparks! I knew it!" Sophie said with gusto, happy for this little girl Sophie had been through so much through. Lars would probably want to congratulate her too, so Sophie went back to looking away, scanning the sand for anything interesting.

Well, she did. It was looking at her. Hairy, and eyes that were glittering with malevolance. Big for it's kind, it was creeping across the sand, getting closer to Sophie. Stupid spider. All Athena kids had arachnopobia, since that fued with Athena and Arachne. Sophie was no different. Turning white, she backed up a few steps. "Sp-sp-spider," Sophie said, stuttering on the word. If you think this is funny, you should have been there when there was a spider in the Athena cabin a few weeks ago. Imaine 12 of Sophie, then you have a good idea on what happened. The spider was getting closer, and Sophie realized exactly how stupid she must look right now. "Can someone just kill it, please?" she whispered, keeping her eyes trained on the spider. The sooner it was gone, the sooner Sophie could get back to normal, and continue congratulating Andreana on her claiming.


((i had this planned out, and i wanted to do it anyway))

((Yay thanks Sophie!))

Sophie had replied to Lars's question and as had Andreana. He looked over her for a second and Andreana did as well making her stomach do a small flipflop. Shruging it off Lars turned to Sophie to speak. She decided to stay out of the conversation.

Sophie had started talking about Lars's height and he replied simply that being tall had it's advantages and disadvantages. Andreana was sure whether he knew Sophie was trying to lighten the mood or not. Sophie went on the crack more jokes and Andreana was in a fit of laughter cracking up like a total dork. The other two we're probably looking at her like she was a little crazy but in truth Andreana did feel a little loopy. It was early and she wanted to keep her mind off of what they were discussing before hand. Andreana's laughter finally subsided when a lady had appeared before her in what seemed to be a traditional Greek outfit. What did this goddess have to do with her? Andreana had a hunch but didn't want to say anything too soon.

"Andreana, daughter of Terpsichore." Terpsichore said with a gentle smile. Andreana stood there almost dumbstruck. T-this was here mother? "My daughter. I am so proud of you! You are a wonderful girl and I thought it was time for you to know who that elusive mother of you was." she said with a wink. Andreana gave a small laugh of happiness as Terpsichore went to get something from her robe. Terpsichore pulled out a small golden coin with a lyre on one side and music notes on the other. She placed the coin in her hand, lyre up, and closed her fist. A golden lyre appeared in her hand. "This lyre, when played, produces music that can inspire anybody to dance, even monsters. Makes it rather hard for them to attack." She explained then reopened her hand to show the coin, lyre face up again, back in her hand. It was as if the lyre never existed.

"The other side of this coin holds a magical note, which can blast monsters to pieces when they hear it. Yet be careful my young daughter, it will effect you too. Don't use it too often because it is very bad for your health." Terpsichore finished explaining the gift not daring to use the other side and handed the coin to Andreana. Terpsichore turned to be able to include Lars and Sophie. "Have a lovely day and don't forget to keep dancing!" she finished poofing out.

Andreana stood there almost dumbstruck holding the coin with two fingers as if scared to touch it. What had happened? Her mother... she had come? And left her with a sweet present no less. Andreana felt a kind of joy welling up inside of her.

"Thank you..." She whispered just low enough to where Lars nor Sophie could hear her. Just then Sophie had caught her off guard, wrapped her in a bear hug, and picking her up a few feet off the ground before setting her back down. "Congratulations Sparks! I knew it!" Andreana laughed. Looks like she wasn't the only excited one. Andreana flipped the coin in her hand a couple times as Sophie's gaze was trained on the sand. I felt almost ironic she would get this gift. Why, when Andreana was back home she had practically been begging her father for a Pontic lyra but this was even better. Andreana's thoughts had been interpreted when Sophie stuttered "Sp-sp-spider," Andreana turned her head to see one crawling across the sand. Andreana had never liked spiders either but Sophie seemed to be acting ridiculous!

"Can someone just kill it, please?" she said practically frozen in fear. Andreana slipped the coin into her pocket for the time being so she could go over and step on the sorry creature.

She walked over and started stamping at the sand over and over again trying to kill it as it scuttled around trying to avoid Andreana's off white sneakers. She finally stepped on it with a grin of satisfaction but as she lifted her foot to check and see if it was dead it just got back up and scuttled around some more.

"Here we go again..." Andreana sighed as she tried to step on the spider again.

While they were talking a random goddess appeared out of nowhere and turned to Andreana, "Andreana, daughter of Terpsichore. My daughter. I am so proud of you! You are a wonderful girl and I thought it was time for you to know who that elusive mother of you was." Terpsichore pulled out a small golden coin with a lyre on one side and music notes on the other. She placed the coin in her hand, lyre up, and closed her fist. A golden lyre appeared in her hand. "This lyre, when played, produces music that can inspire anybody to dance, even monsters. Makes it rather hard for them to attack." She explained then reopened her hand to show the coin, lyre face up again, back in her hand. It was as if the lyre never existed.

"The other side of this coin holds a magical note, which can blast monsters to pieces when they hear it. Yet be careful my young daughter, it will effect you too. Don't use it too often because it is very bad for your health." Terpsichore finished explaining the gift not daring to use the other side and handed the coin to her daughter. Terpsichore turned to be able to include Lars and Sophie. "Have a lovely day and don't forget to keep dancing!" she finished poofing out.

"Congrats Andreana!" he said meaning it, though he wasn't much of a music person or dancer. Lars was jealous, she had been claimed mere days after arriving, but he still hadn't been claimed after 4 years, and it could probably could be seen on his face, but he wiped the thought away, whoever his parent was was busy and could do it in good time. He smiled at her then was disrupted when Sophie screamed spider. He turned, he didn't really care for spiders.

Lars was amused by the two girls trying to kill such a simple animal. "Cover your ears." he said, mainly showing off at what he was about to do, and he didn't want to get his sword out, guns were much funner. They moved out of the way and he pulled out his M1911 and aimed. He pulled the trigger with a loud boom and the spider disappeared, leaving a blown out hole in the sand, which he covered with his foot. He picked up the empty bullet shell and tossed it away, it was biodegradeable. Lars then cocked the gun and readied it for another shot when needed. "Sorry about that, guns are just too fun to use." he said laughing a bit. Anyone who had ever shot a gun understood that it was fun, though of course you had to be safe.

((Sorry, I just wanted to shoot the spider, lol, and sorry for the crap post))

Sophie stayed frozen, watching the spider scuttle around as Andreana tried to step on it. Sophie could imagine what was running through her mind right now, not to mention Lars. Sophie was acting ridiculous, and she was very embarrassed that she was acting like this in public. But when a spider gets near her, that stuff flies out of her mind, until she’s sure it’s not an immediate threat. Sophie wished Athena hadn’t gotten offended at Arachne. If she hadn’t, the spider problem wouldn’t exist. But these types of thoughts didn’t do her any good. It certainly didn’t kill the spider.

Sophie had had this fear of spiders for as long as she could remember. One of her earlier memories was a spider crawling on her hand while she was reading, and little kid Sophie freaking out. Her caretaker had run in, saying it sounded like someone was trying to kidnap her, and asking what was wrong. Then came the very awkward task of explaining that the problem was a spider. Needless to say, Sophie had been bothered about it for years after. She was determined to get over her fear someday, but for today, she’d just have someone else kill it, until she had the guts to.

Lars seemed very amused by everything that happened, and he offered a solution of his own. “Cover your ears,” he said, and Sophie was wondering what he was planning to do. That question got answered when he took out his gun. He can’t be serious, Sophie thought in her mind. He wasn’t seriously going to…Yes, he was. Sophie covered her ears quickly as Lars shot the spider, leaving a smoking hole in the sand, which Lars quickly covered. Sophie breathed a sigh of relief, then straightened, to try and justify her reaction. Well, it couldn’t be justified, so maybe just explain it.

“Sorry…” Sophie said, quite unsure of what she was going to say next. “I’ve got arachnophobia, like all the other Athena kids,” she started, a little more confident. “There was that whole thing between Arachne and Athena, about the weaving contest. Athena turned Arachne into a spider, and they don’t exactly get along. That got passed onto their kids,” Sophie said, still very embarrassed. She managed not to turn red, and not to stammer, but still, this wasn’t exactly normal.

To busy herself, Sophie looked around for anything interesting. The sun was coming up more, and it was definitely getting warmer. Soon, it would get hot, like it always did in Camp Half Blood. It also meant time was passing, and Sophie would have to leave soon to wake her cabin up and get them to breakfast. Sophie half considered leaving now, to save her the embarrassment of listening to their replies. Well, maybe she could leave, but not leave leave. She’d be here, but not close enough to continue this awkward conversation. Besides, she was having suspicions about something, and she wanted to see how they acted without her.

Sophie headed towards the water, since it was the main feature here. The water was calm, and there were only small waves lapping against the shore. Sophie took off her sandals, and untied her sweater, putting them all in a neat pile near the water. She stepped ankle-deep, and shuddered at the cold water. Then she gave a sigh of contentment. Since she had lived in California, she was used to warm air. But since she lived near a lake that was always cold, she got used to adjusting quickly. In a few moments, the water started feeling better, and soon, it would be better.

Sophie bent down and put her hands in the water. She started groping around for anything her hands could feel. After straightening, she examined the rocks in both hands. Nothing. While she started throwing them back, Sophie kept one eye on the rocks, and the other on Andreana and Lars. She bent down and started searching again, trying to look busy, but watching them carefully.


((it's still so short...))

Both Sophie and Lars congratulated Andreana on her claiming. Sophie in a more... Exciting way but she could feel they were both happy for her. Andreana was too, and greatful for their congratulations. Before she could say anything else Sophie started screaming about a spider. Andreana had started tried to kill it but didn't. Stepping away from the spider Lars told them to cover their ears. Andreana did so once she saw his gun aimed at the spider.

Andreana's heart felt like it had jumped to her throat when the gun went off. Thankfully the spider was gone and thankfully that gun wasn't pointed at her.

"Sorry about that, guns are just too fun to use." Lars apologized laughing a bit. Andreana finally took a breath. Talk about a scary cat...

“Sorry…” Sophie apologized as well. “I’ve got arachnophobia, like all the other Athena kids,” she started, a little more confident. “There was that whole thing between Arachne and Athena, about the weaving contest. Athena turned Arachne into a spider, and they don’t exactly get along. That got passed onto their kids,"

Oh so thats what it was about. To Andreana it made more sense now. She like reading about Greek mythology back home and it didn't surprise her now that the story was actually true. Heck, she had just been claimed by Terpsichore herself! The sun was just starting to come up And Andreana figured today's activities would start soon. She rolled up the sleeves of her purple hoodie, feeling a little hot in the cotton jacket...

Sophie headed down to the actual water, taking off her sandals and standing ankle deep. Andreana was tempted to go join her, she loved the water but if she did go over she knew she accidentally end up soaking herself. So for now she was lone with Lars. It wasn't a bad thing, Lars seemed like a good person, it was just there was an awkward silence now. What should she say? Andreana hated small talk sometimes.... Maybe she could make an excuse to leave? After all she would need to move to her new cabin soon. Meet her half siblings or something. That seemed like a good idea but exactly how would she do that? Andreana did want to be rude and just leave Sophie and Lars. Plus it seemed rather odd to say bye to one person then run over and say bye to the other. Maybe Andreana was just being stupid. Then another idea crossed Andreana's mind. She had just gotten claimed but Lars hadn't and hear she was gripping her gift and glowing in pride. Maybe she was missjudging him but Andreana knew she would be a little jealous after four years...

"I'm sorry." She whispered. It might have been a little stupid. Lars couldn't have moved on and hated Andreana for feeling sorry for him or giving him a little pitty. She didn't want to come off as that though, she truly felt a little bad. Just didn't seem right in her opinion for herself to get claimed so soon.

((Still sucks but whatever.... Sorry ^^; ))