Looking for a weapon...

Rose exited the Hermes cabin, ready for a new day. She had been at the camp for a couple days now. She had a sword-fighting class. Rose didn't love the sword, but it wasn't so bad either. But that was all. She hadn't studied a single weapon besides the sword... and the knife if you counted the times Rose had been in a kitchen. The first day, she was being introduced to being a demigod. The second day, she was, well, learning how to use a sword. Rose did think, sometimes, how slow a learner she was. Some fast-learner kids would have learned what she learned in a couple of hours. But that wasn't important, at least not yet. Because she was thinking of this now, Rose thought of how kids normally carried weapons here... (and only here.) I need a weapon... Rose thought. So she walked over to the armory to pick out her weapon.

The armory was huge. It was divided in sections by different weapons. She could see all of the daggers in one area, the swords in another, etc. If Rose had to kill at all, she preferred to do it at a distance as to avoid getting injuries. So, she went over to the bow and arrows section. There were so many bows, that Rose started to count, but lost track after 20. Too much trouble counting the arrows, too. With every bow, there was at least half a dozen arrows in each quiver... and there were at least 20 quivers. Rose looked around, wondering if she could pick up one. After a couple of minutes, Rose decided that she could pick them up. The first bow she had seen and liked was chocolate brown, and very smooth. Rose lifted it to see the weight and then looked it over... It's a good bow. But I'll keep on looking.

There were so many choices, so many bows, so many quivers! Rose looked at an ash-black bow, a mahogany brown bow, and so many others. Rose looked at one and then another, unable to choose. At first she decided on one, but then saw another she liked. Then her eyes strayed towards all the other weapons: daggers, swords, axes, guns, hunting knives... It seemed impossible to choose! Rose decided to rule out daggers and knives. Rose didn't have much tolerance for pain, but she suspected that would change soon. No axes... too bloody. Rose also guessed that hunting knives were like daggers. She didn't like guns... all that crouching so that she could get aim, and then the trouble of having to reload only after a couple of rounds! You'll also have to reload with the bow and arrow... said a voice in her head. And much more than a gun. But Rose didn't take this into account. It doesn't matter, she thought. "Could someone help me?" Rose said it outloud, but didn't expect anybody to respond.

Sophie had deemed herself the main person to ask for weapons. Why? Well, you either asked a Hephy kid, or an Athena kid for a weapon. And overall, Sophie was the most asked. On top of helping her friends, Sophie just helped random people in the armory, who tended to turn into her friends. From there, the web of helping just increased, until Sophie could walk into a crowd of people, and point to every weapon she had helped pick out for someone. The best part was, Sophie enjoyed doing this. She liked watching someone try out different weapons, she liked seeing the person's face when they found the right one, and she liked the satisfaction of knowing she helped someone else.

Sophie needed to take measurements of weapons today. Yesterday, she had wanted to take inventory, and she had helped someone new, Jamie, help get some knives. She liked that girl, she wasn't an airhead, like some campers, and she seemed really nice. Sophie wondered if someone was going to be in the armory today, and if so, what they'd be looking for. Well, she'd find out. Sophie changed into her usual outfit, and rummaged through her stuff until she found a clipboard, with all the measurements Sophie had been taking lately. Sophie picked it up, then left the Athena cabin, heading towards the armory.

There was already someone else there, like Sophie suspected, but they seemed to have taken matters into their own hands. Instead of standing around, or waiting, they had already been trying out different bows, which Sophie approved. She didn't like other people just taking weapons, but she didn't like people who needed help with everything. Sophie examined the person from the back, noting that it was a girl, that she was younger than Sophie, and that she had brown hair. "I suppose, if you said please," Sophie joked, stepping forward so that she was next to the girl. She also started looking at the bows, noting all the different types, and very happy at how organized they were.

"It looks like you're already interested in the bow. Have you ever used one before?" Sophie asked, running her hand along the row of bows. There was oak, mahogany, ash, beechwood, everything. Sophie wasn't a weapon fanatic, but she was the daughter of a war goddess, and she knew how to appreciate weapons. "Sorry, I don't think I've introduced myself," Sophie said with a smile, turning to the girl. She could see electric blue eyes. "I'm Sophie, daughter of Athena. And you are?"

Rose whipped around, startled. She didn't think that anybody would be around to hear her, much less answer. Rose tried to move her lips, but just like her first day, nothing came out. She carefully placed the bow she was holding back where it was supposed to be and again tried to answer this girl. She had blonde hair and grey eyes, and was roughly 16 years old. But she still couldn't move her lips. Finally, Rose muttered, "No, I've never used a bow before, but I know how to hold it." Rose paused a moment before saying, "I'm Rose Drasi, from Florida. I was thinking a little earlier today of how I needed a weapon, so I came here to check some weapons out." She looked down at the floor, having nothing else to say. Rose wondered what to do now, but she did nothing. Rose was not one to do much action, unless it involved her garden. These days, Rose was slipping back into her past, thinking how lucky she was to find this camp. Now, while she waited for Sophie to answer, Rose slipped back to one of the days she was wandering around Georgia, struggling to feed herself:

Rose got up from her temporary home, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She rummaged through her pack, but Rose remembered she had eaten the last bit of her food the day before. But she still had a little bit of money left before she had to start stealing. Rose started walking to a town that might have a supermarket. After a bit over an hour she wandered into a small, poor town that had a small, cheap shop that sold some food. After buying some crackers and fruit, Rose left and ate a small handful of crackers for breakfast. She was just leaving when a male voice called out for her to stop. Wondering what possibly could be wrong, Rose turned around to see a man jogging to her. Rose looked around and found that nobody was looking outside through their window or walking down the street. Then, she noticed that the man had no pants on. Instead of feet, he had hooves. Instaed of flesh, there was fur. Maybe goat fur.

Rose came back to the present to look around the armory again. There were so many weapons, she wasn't sure that she wanted the bow and arrows anymore. But then Rose stared back at the bows made out of so many different woods, maybe metal, or was she just imagining it? So many arrows, perfect to Rose's eyes, or maybe it was just because she was an unexperienced person with arrows. But again, Rose had a mental debate about all the different kinds of weapons she could have. You might not want a weapon because you don't know how to use it, said a little voice in her head. But no, she wanted the bow and arrows, not something else like an axe. Rose shivered at the thought of having to get close to kill someone... or something. No, if she had to kill a monster or something like that, she would kill at a distance. Rose confirmed in her head that she wantted the bow and arrows. Coming once again back to reality, Rose turned back to Sophie. "Could you please help me choose a bow and arrows?"

The girl seemed to have problems speaking. It didn’t seem like a disorder, or an illness, just nervousness. Sophie nodded at the girl’s answer, not many people knew how to use weapons when they first came to camp. The part that interested Sophie was that the girl already knew how to hold a bow. Yes, it wasn’t that hard, but still, interesting. Sophie didn’t say anything about that, but continued listening to the girl. She introduced herself as Rose, and said she was from Florida. Sophie nodded again. She’d drawn maps of Florida before, but they hadn’t been very good. You had to go to a place to really be able to map it out. She kept listening to Rose, until the girl seemed to run out of things to say. She finished with her asking Sophie to help.

“Well, Rose Drasi from Florida, I’ll see what I can do,” Sophie said, patting Rose’s shoulder. She didn’t know the girl very well, but she reminded her of one of Sophie’s other friends, who’d gotten claimed recently. “Alright, bows, bows,” Sophie said, looking at her clipboard. She needed to find a bow small enough for this girl, but big enough to shoot an arrow. Since she was a beginner, it would have to be flexible, so Sophie decided to try ash and beechwood first, then some other types, if they didn’t work. Sophie pulled a black bow down, and a white bow. She held one in each hand.

“Alright, so the black bow is made of ash. It’s very flexible, and looks to be good for your size,” Sophie said, holding up the black bow. She then held up the white bow. “This is beechwood, another springy bow. They’re both good for beginners,” Sophie continued. She carefully put the white bow down, and notched an arrow on the black. She handed it to Rose carefully. “Try shooting it, but not at me,” Sophie said, stepping back. Hopefully, they wouldn’t take too long, Sophie had a lot of things to do. And while she enjoyed doing this, she also wanted to succeed, since she hadn’t failed yet on getting a person a weapon.

Rose was stunned. She had never been asked to do something before so quickly. But she had seen a couple of movies in which people had used bows. She knew it was hard, but it was pretty simple. Hold the bow right, notch an arrow, pull the arrow back, and shoot at your target. Hopefully she wouldn't miss. Rose carefully took the bow and arrow from Sophie and took aim at the wall. She was so hopeful that she didn't hit Sophie know. Rose thought that Sophie liked her arms connected to her body. Rose took a deep breath and released the arrow.

Rose stared at the arrow she had just shot into the wall. Okay, so maybe it was a few feet away from where she was aiming at. Okay, it was five feet away from where she was aiming at. Rose hoped it wasn't bad for someone who had never shot an arrow before. She took a shaky breath, glad she hadn't hit anything that was alive. "I hope that wasn't bad for a person who never shot an arrow before," she said to Sophie. She examined the black bow Sophie had given her. Rose was going to look at it right when Sophie came in. It was very smooth, and black. Didn't Sophie say it was ash? And it was a little flexible. Rose also wondered how much more easier to break it. "It's pretty good, but it's not one of my favorites," Rose added. She hoped that this didn't make Sophie's job a lot more harder.

Now, Rose thought of the arrow in the wall and strode to it, meaning to take it out so that they wouldn't waste an arrow. It might be easy to make another one, or maybe not, Rose didn't know, but all she thought of was how bad it was to waste an arrow. She knew it was difficult to take one out without damaging the arrow, but Rose wanted to try. If she did have a bow for a future weapon, she would have to be doing this a lot, so she carefully started wedging the arrow out of the wall. After a couple of minutes, Rose had managed to carefully get the arrow out of the wall without damaging it. She handed the bow and arrows back to Sophie, wondering what she would have to do next.

Sophie watched as Rose shot the arrow into the wall. Sophie was impressed, she couldn’t use a bow, and for a first try, that was good. “No, that was amazing,” Sophie replied, responding to Rose’s doubtful remark. Ash was a good wood, and flexible, and good for beginners, but it didn’t seem like Rose’s type. Rose apparently agreed, as she voiced what Sophie had been thinking. Rose strode over to the arrow in the wall, and after a few minutes, pulled it out. Sophie was just thankful she didn’t break it. Making arrows was not a fun job for Sophie, and definitely not one she had time for. She was still trying to organize the Athena cabin’s armory, and plan strategies, and have an actual life, and making arrows did not fit into the equation. Rose walked back over, and handed the bow and arrow to Sophie silently, not saying anything else.

“Ok, ash is not for you,” Sophie said, as she put the bow back on the rack. She stuck the arrow with the others in its quiver, and then picked up the white bow, made out of beechwood. “Alright, now try the beechwood,” Sophie said, notching an arrow in the white bow, then handing it to Rose. Maybe the beechwood would be better. It was more springy, and better for people who were smaller. Rose would probably get bigger, being so young, but this would be a good bow to start with.

“Aim for the door,” Sophie said to Rose, a hint of a challenge in her voice. The door was farther away, and less of a target than the wall. Hopefully, this was a girl who liked challenges, or at least, one who didn’t back down from one. Sophie liked people who could talk the talk and walk the walk. Sophie talked a lot, but she could back up what she did. Maybe this girl was the same. If so, she would earn Sophie’s respect. If not, well, Sophie could tolerate her, if she saw her around camp. She gave Rose a smile, if only to reassure her. If Rose tried, and got it, it’d be good. If she tried, and failed, it’d be good. But if she gave up, well, that’d be bad. Sophie stepped back again, and waited for Rose to shoot.

((sorry it's so short))

Rose silently accepted the beechwood bow from Sophie and aimed for the door. Maybe Sophie wanted to challenge her, to see how good she was with the bow. Obviously, Rose was pretty good with the bow, even though Rose didn't. She aimed for the door and the bow felt all right. It was better than the ash one, anyway. Rose shot and missed the door by a few inches. All right, she wasn't very good. Rose bit her lip as she went over to the arrow to pull it out. It took longer than the first time, but Rose managed to successfully to get it out. Rose walked back to her original spot and nocked the arrow and pulled it back, hoping she would hit the target.

When Rose missed for the fifth time, she wanted to scream. This time, it was only by an inch, and she was lucky that she hadn't destroyed anything in the armory... yet. But still Rose's patience was ceasing. Rose took a deep breath as she pulled the arrow out of the wall. One more time, Rose thought. She carefully aimed for the door and shot, watching it fly as if it was in slow motion. Rose breathed again when it finally hit the door. Finally, Rose thought again. It took like, six tries to get it! Slowly, Rose let the tension and anger in her muscles release as she strode to the arrow and pulled it out for what seemed like the 20th time. At least I'm not that bad with the bow and arrow, Rose reminded herself. "That felt all right... I like that bow," Rose told Sophie. Rose couldn't tell if Sophie was relieved or not (it was hard to read her expression) but if it were Rose, she would be. Rose thought about it a little bit. If Rose hadn't decided to take out the arrow, Sophie would have had to spend her free time making more. And if Rose had decided that she didn't like it, Sophie would have still had to spend even more time trying to find a good weapon that suits her.

Rose shifted uncomfortably. "Do I just take it or is there a form to fill out or something like that?" she asked Sophie. She didn't know what to do now that Rose had picked her weapon. Rose's mind was blank. It was like her brain was saying, "What to do, what to do?" Up to now, Rose always had something to do: read, do homework, harvest the fruit, or something else. But now, Rose was so new to Camp Half-Blood that she didn't know what happened after she picked her weapon. I hope all new kids aren't this clueless, Rose thought quietly. Like her first day, Rose waited for Sophie to answer her question. Rose had never felt so stupid before.

Rose seemed to take Sophie’s challenge seriously. She took the bow, and aimed for the door. It missed, but that didn’t stop her. Rose walked over, and pulled the arrow out of the wall. Sophie was about to say something, when Rose shot again, missing the door again. Sophie kept watching silently as Rose shot the bow again and again, and watched as she missed the door again and again. Sophie didn’t want to say anything, because Rose seemed very focused, and Sophie didn’t want to break her concentration. But after Rose missed for the fifth time, Sophie decided she should speak up. “It’s okay, I don’t expect you to get it,” Sophie said, but Rose didn’t seem to hear her, or care. She aimed again, and fired, shooting the arrow into the door. Rose seemed relieved, and finally lowered the bow. She told Sophie it felt alright, and asked what to do now.

“No, there’s no form,” Sophie told her. She scanned the clipboard for the bow Rose had used. “I’m just going to write your name here, so I know where the bow went, if I need to find it,” Sophie told her, carefully writing Rose’s name on the paper. “Now, there are a few options from here. You have a long range weapon, which is good, but you don’t have anything for when your opponent is right in front of you. You can learn hand to hand combat, but what happens if your enemy has a sword, or if it’s a monster? I’d suggest getting a dagger, or some knives, or a sword, or something like that. I can help with that,” Sophie offered. “In fact, why don’t we start now? If you don’t want anything, at least you can use it for backup,” Sophie said. She started thinking about what would be right for Rose. Of course, she knew something that would work. Daggers were good for smaller people, and knives as well. But Sophie wanted to try swords first. It was amazing how few girls used swords, and Sophie was trying to change that. She wasn’t going to force the girl to use a weapon she didn’t want to use, but she could try first.

“Let’s try some swords,” Sophie told Rose. She began walking down the rows of weapons. She passed the axes, the guns, and the spears, before finally reaching the section full of swords. “Alright, let’s try some. I’m going to give you one, and you’ll try it out. I like to have someone try at least two of each weapon, to make sure they can use the general weapon, and not a specific one. Also, the more you try, the better chance you have of finding the right weapon,” Sophie told Rose. She turned, and started scanning the swords, before finally selecting one. “This is called a longsword, also known as a ‘hand and a half’ sword. They’re known for their length, obviously. It’s kind of light, but still a little heavy. Try it out,” Sophie said, handing Rose the sword, offering her the hilt. It might be a little big for someone of her size, but Sophie had a few swords planned out, so she wasn’t worried. And if swords didn’t work, there were always the daggers and knives.

Rose loved the bow and arrow and didn't want to get another weapon, but Sophie was right. If a monster charged and a bow and arrows didn't kill them, she would be screwed. Rose didn't want to do a sword, she liked nice and short things, but Sophie suggested a sword, and so Rose took the longsword and held it up. The first thing Rose registered was how heavy it was. She could barely lift it. Rose had seen a movie, or maybe read a book on one of those rare occasions she did read that a sword was supposed to feel like an extension of the arm. This felt like she was holding a bowling ball. "I don't know," Rose said. "It feels too heavy and long." She didn't like it. At all. But Rose didn't say anything else and waited for Sophie to give her another one when one sword caught her eye.

Rose was not an expert of swords, but this one felt right. It wasn't as heavy as the longsword, but nice and light, sort of like an extension of her arm. The sword was beautiful, like she could wear it into battle and it would look like she was ready to go to a ceremony. But of course, this sword meant she had to kill up close... it meant Rose would have to sustain a lot more injuries than with a bow and arrows. Rose could stand the pain, but the attention it would cause... Rose loved to be in the background, just to be invisible and not noticed. If she sustained more injuries, she would have to have more medical attention, and everybody would be asking her if she alright left and right... it's just a mess. Stop it now, Rose thought. Injuries here are most likely very common. And she put the thought out of her mind. "What's it called?" Rose asked Sophie. "I like it... I'm not sure why, but it feels right. Does that make any sense at all?" Of course, Rose would have to learn the art of swordsmanship, which could take a lot of time and pain, but Rose thought it was definitely worth it. After all, she was a half-blood. The pain would either have to come sooner or later. And the sooner, the better. Rose hoped she could have it, it was the best sword she ever saw. But then again, when has she ever looked at a sword?

Sophie handed the sword over, and both she and Rose could tell it was too heavy and long for her. Rose was barely able to lift it, much less swing it. Sophie took the sword back from Rose, being careful not to let it drag on the floor. The metal might be special demigod metal, but it wasn’t impervious to scratches and such. That’d be mixing some Harry Potter into a demigod world, which wouldn’t be a good idea. Sophie carefully placed the sword on the rack, and turned back to Rose. At least, where Rose had been. Now, she saw Rose handling another sword, coincidentally the one Sophie had been about to try next. Rose seemed to like it, so Sophie headed over to where Rose was standing with the sword, in time to hear Rose’s question.

“That sword is called a rapier,” Sophie began, thinking about how best to continue. “It’s a pretty fancy sword, but it does its job. It’s light, which is good, but still strong. It’s the sword you see in all those fancy movie duels, for example, Pirates of the Caribbean. They use it all over the place,” Sophie stated. “May I?” she asked. She took the sword, and examined it. Sophie didn’t know how to use a sword, but even she could tell it was very well made, and would last a while. She handed the sword back to Rose, and she didn’t need to tell her to try it out, it was obvious Rose liked it. “It’s normal, to feel that when you find the right weapon. So, you’ll be taking this as well?” Sophie asked. She took the clipboard, and found she hadn’t written this particular sword down yet. Sophie quickly started jotting things down. Most rapiers had the same measurements, so Sophie assumed it was the same. She then wrote Rose’s name down, and tucked it under her arm again.

“Ok, we have a few options from here,” Sophie told Rose. “I don’t know how to use a sword, or a bow, so you’ll have to find someone else. I could teach you a bit of hand to hand combat, or show you how to take care of your sword. Which option works for you?”((short, sorry))

Rose was delighted that she could keep this sword... Sophie said it was a rapier, right? She carefully thought over the two options. That was a hard one. Hand to hand combat is good to know, but how to take care of the sword is also another thing to know. "I guess-- I guess I want to first learn how to take care of my sword," Rose said slowly. She had also noticed that Sophie had been careful not to drag the sword on the ground, probably not to get scratches on it. Rose made a mental note never to drag her sword on the ground. She carefully put the sword away thinking how lucky she was.

While she waited for Sophie to react, probably for maybe a second or two, but to Rose, it felt like five minutes, so in that time she reviewed what she knew about swords... which wasn't that much. You don't drag them on the ground, you probably want to polish them after a fight so you can get the blood off, and... that was all Rose knew. It was so little information, Rose was impatient to start. Rose took her sword out and examined it. "So what's the first lesson on how to take care of a sword?" she asked. "Never to drag it on the ground? Always polish it?" Whenever things got too quiet, Rose would always speak up, to break the silence. It might not be funny, but it still got people talking. Rose frowned. "How do you polish it?"

((sorry it's really short))

((Ok, I am super sorry, but I'm just out of muse, and I won't be able to reply for a while anyway. Can we just end the thread?))

((It's okay, I don't mind that we have to end the thread... it was fun!))