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Odysseus knew he was of the divine.
He’s known it since he was young. Ever since his parents sat him down and explained him and his step-sister were children of the Greek gods. Since Odysseus first sat down with his mother to cut down his slowly growing wings, biting back hot tears of agony. Since Odysseus grew up wondering why he was so different.
As Odysseus grew up, his parents tried to help him and his sister with their powers, though it didn’t really help much. Odysseus and Ctimene resorted to helping each other, slowly getting better with their abilities. They got better at slaying monsters that would swarm Ithaca in an attempt to kill the two. Hell, Odysseus could even safely safely hide his wings now, no need for cutting them down to ensure they won’t show.
One day, though, is when everything changed. The two were sparring in the courtyard, working on reflexes as the sun slowly set. Odysseus swung at Ctimene as she caught his fist, beginning to twist it in place. Last second, however, Odysseus’s leg swiped Ctimene’s knees, knocking her to the ground as Odysseus regained his grip to use it against her as he pinned her to the ground.
“Do you yield?” Odysseus grinned. Ctimene rolled her eyes, squirming under his gaze, “I yield, you sadist. Get off me!” Ignoring the fact that a seven year old knew what sadist meant, Odysseus let go of her forearm, rolling to the side as he regained his balance to stand back up. Stretching for a moment, Odysseus held out a hand for his sister, his eyes lingering toward the doors to the courtyard as he noticed his parents by the door, seemingly both proud and intimidated by their display. Once Ctimene was off the ground and brushing off her now soiled skirt, Odysseus nodded to his parents, “Mother. Father. What do you two need?”
Ctimene looked up from her skirt, nodding to her parents as well. Their mother warmly smiled, “Kids, come inside for a moment. We have some news before supper.” Once she said that, she beckoned for them to follow her inside. The siblings shared a glance before hurrying inside after their father. Their mother was sitting at the table their family shared in the dining hall, smiling as their father sat in the chair next to her. Odysseus and Ctimene slowly sat down in the chairs across from them, their worry only growing at the amount of suspense.
Dinner was eventually brought in, and the royals thanked their servants, the servants politely smiling back and nodding as they filed back out. After that, the family ate in silence for quite a bit. The queen was the first to break the silence, “So. You two are aware of your godly heritage, correct?” Odysseus silently nodded, “Yes. We suspect I’m a child of Lord Hermes and that ‘Mene’s a child of Lady Aphrodite.”
“Correct,” Anticlea leaned back in her chair, crossing one leg over the other, “And due to that, you two will live in a world full of danger. I know you’ve had this speech many times before, but we just want to make sure you’re safe.” Ctimene’s eyes narrow, “We’re well aware. What’s the news, exactly?”
“Patience, child.” Their father interrupted, in that sweet tone Ctimene allowed only him to use. Her eyes softened as her head slowly bobbed, relaxing in her chair as she took a bite of her food. Their mother continued, “To ensure your safeties, there’s a camp for half-bloods. Half-Blood Hill, with many other demigods like you two.” Seeing their obvious apprehension, she continued, “There’s many different safety procedures in place, and you’ll be safe there, I’m sure. It’s a summer sleep-away camp, so-”
“Sleep-away?” Odysseus sat up in his chair, “What about Ithaca? We can’t just leave!”
“Your mother and I will take care of your duties while you are away. Besides,” The king said, “Your safeties are our first priority. And it’d be something to have for the summer, you two rarely get out nowadays and you’re only 7 and 9!”
“There’s a reason for that, we’re highly wanted demigods in a small island, one step outside of the palace’s borders and we run the risk of being a monster’s afternoon snack.” Ctimene deadpanned. Her father gestured vaguely, “Still.”
“Anyways,” Anticlea gave her husband a look before turning back to the two kids, “It’s a promising option for the time being. I know you guys will have even an ounce of fun, and if you need us, you are allowed visits and to teleport back and forth and Iris messaging is always an option.” Thus far, Odysseus seemed intrigued however Ctimene still remained fearful. “Iris messaging?” Odysseus asked.
“Messaging through Lady Iris using rainbows.” Anticlea explained. Ctimene looked toward Odysseus, then back to their parents. Her food was getting cold, but that was the least of her worries. “Are you completely sure?”
Their mother nodded, “Completely. You’ll be safe. Besides, you might enjoy yourselves.” Ctimene slightly untensed. Odysseus considered the idea before shrugging, “I’d be ok with it.” Ctimene thought about it for a moment as well before agreeing, “Me as well.”
Anticlea clapped her hands together, “Perfect! The first day is tomorrow, so make sure to have your things together by then.” The two kids nodded, only slightly dazed as they finished the last of their food. Once done, they stood up and went to their quarters.
Once Odysseus reached his rooms, he sat down on his bed, thinking about this camp. He hoped the camp would at least be bearable, though it was a camp full of half-bloods, so he highly doubted it. Still, he was intrigued by the things this camp entailed. For one, it’s a summer camp. He’s never been to those before. And maybe he’d learn more combat while he was there?
These thoughts lulled the prince to sleep, all-the-more curious about the next day.
-
“Wake up! Odysseus, come on!” Ctimene shouted, shaking him awake. Odysseus pushed her off of him, slowly sitting up, “I’m up, I’m up! What do you want?”
“You need to pack for camp. Mother said your clothes will be provided and you’re to bring your personal belongings.” Ctimene explained, her bag slung across her shoulder. Odysseus frowned, “And that meant you had to violently shake me awake?” Ctimene innocently grinned, nodding, “Yes.”
Odysseus simply sighed, getting out of bed and walking over to his closet, digging through it for his clothes for the day. Once he got them ready, he put them on his bed, raising an eyebrow at Ctimene still being in his room. “I’m about to change.” Ctimene’s disgust clearly showed as she promptly turned around and walked out of his room, only shouting, “Be ready before lunch!”
After Odysseus changed, he packed his things and slung the bag on his shoulder, excited yet nervous about what camp would be like. Finally, the time for leaving rolled around and Odysseus made his way out of his quarters with Ctimene. “What do you think camp will be like?” Odysseus asked, reslinging his bag onto his shoulder. Ctimene shrugged, “I just hope there’s good food.”
“That should not be your main concern here,” Odysseus said, despite his slowly growing smile. Ctimene smiled in return, “I’m not going to be having trash everyday for the next 3 months.” The two made it to where their parents currently were talking in hushed whispers before their eyes landed on the two siblings, things in hand. Anticlea gestured for them to come over, and the demigods did, standing next to their father. When Anticlea pulled out some kind of device, the two kids paused, watching as the queen pressed something on it and a portal opened in front of them.
A hill, seemingly Camp Half-Blood, was shown within the portal, with dozens and dozens of kids running around the camp. While the two kids watched in shock, Anticlea hugged them both, “I’ll miss you.” The two hugged back, nervous to leave Ithaca for the first time since they were toddlers. Their mother handed Odysseus the device, “Make sure to keep this with you for the summer. On the last day of camp, give it to your camp counselor, they’ll know what to do with it.”
He eyed it carefully before putting it in his bag. Ctimene crossed her arms impatiently, “Can we go now? I want to check out the pink cabin, it looks beautiful.” She pointed to a pink cabin within the formation, glittering with perfume and well, glitter.
“Lady Aphrodite’s cabin. With luck, that’s where you’ll be staying.” Anticlea said, looking at the cabin with slight awe at a goddess’ cabin. “But yes, Ctimene. Have fun, you two.” Anticlea kissed Ctimene’s forehead before turning to Odysseus, “Try make some friends this summer?” Odysseus watched Ctimene skip down the hill before turning to his mother and hugging her, “No promises.”
By the time Odysseus caught up to Ctimene, she had apparently gotten to the cabin in question and had talked to the girls near the cabin about how beautiful the cabin was. The girls were brightly smiling, cooing over how cute she was and they told her about how amazing the Aphrodite cabin was, that she was seemingly an Aphrodite kid already. Odysseus ran over to Ctimene, apologizing as he told Ctimene not to bother random people. The girls luckily didn’t mind, shaking their heads as they giggled. “It’s truly not a big deal,” one girl said. “She’s a cutie. What’s her cabin, if I may ask?”
“Uh..” Odysseus hesitated, “We’re both unclaimed? We arrived two minutes ago.” The same girl nods, unphased, “Yeah, sounds about right. There’s kids here, mainly new, from all different kinds of timelines. That explains the fact you guys are speaking ancient Greek and have an ancient Greek aesthetic going on.”
“..Aesthetic?” Ctimene asked. Another girl shook her head, “Don’t worry about it. You should have got here a little later but that’s fine. We’re sure you’re one of ours anyways.” The last girl looked down at Ctimene, then back at the second girl, “We don’t know yet. Besides, there can be pretty kids who aren’t one of ours.”
“No, no, we suspect she’s Aphrodite’s child as well, just we’re not entirely sure as, well, we never know.” Odysseus responded. The second girl grinned, “Told you, Sara.” Sara rolled her eyes, “Whatever, Alex.”
“Anyways,” The first girl said, silencing the other two. “I’m Madeline, the Aphrodite cabin’s counselor. I’m kinda obligated to give you guys a rundown of camp so.. should we begin?” Odysseus and Ctimene shared a look, before slowly nodding. “Why not? We’re gonna have to know anyway, we’re gonna be here for the whole summer.” Ctimene justified. Madeline clapped her hands excitedly, “Perfect! Sara, Alex, do you guys want to go inside and get the rest of the Aphrodite cabin ready for the newcomers?” Sara and Alex agreed excitedly, rushing inside to get the cabin ready. “They’ve always been heavy decorators.” Madeline commented, watching them hurry inside. Afterwards, Madeline promptly turned back to the two of them, “So! What are your names, before we get started?”
“I’m Odysseus, this is my sister Ctimene,” Odysseus introduced the two of them. Madeline raised an eyebrow, her grin staying, “What, like from the Odyssey?” The siblings’ confusion was obvious. Madeline pales. “Oh shit, like the Odyssey. Uh..” Madeline didn’t exactly know how to continue when the kid versions of Odysseus and Ctimene showed up at camp. “What’s the Odyssey?” Odysseus asked, crossing his arms.
“I’ll explain that later,” Madeline quickly said, continuing before Ctimene or Odysseus could say anything, “Before we start the rundown, I’m going to take you to the big house real quick, this place has a uniform if you couldn’t tell already,” Madeline gestured to her current outfit – an orange tank top with a black pegasus on it, reading Camp Half Blood in a greek style font with a pink skirt reaching just under her knees. “So I need to give you two your shirts. And pants, I presume. Oh, and the big house is basically where the infirmary is and where Chiron and Mr. D are.”
They finally started moving in the direction of the big house, though Ctimene and Odysseus kept asking questions. “Who?” Ctimene asked. Madeline replied, “Chiron is the activities director. Nice guy. He’s a centaur, but what’s new. Mr. D is Dionysus, just call him Mr. D, he’s the camp director. He’s more.. eccentric, I guess? He gets people’s names wrong on purpose, I’m Madison to him 24/7.” Odysseus’ eyes widened in shock, “You have Dionysus as a counselor here?” As they continued to walk, Odysseus noted the amount of demigods rushing around camp, either doing archery, planting, or sword fighting, or getting camp ready.
“Yeah, he’s here on punishment. Apparently he chased an off-limits nymph and he’s stuck here for a century. He’s been here as long as I’ve been here, which says a lot because I’ve been here since I was 6 on early entry.” Madeline explained. “Anyway, here is the main part of camp. We offer many different activities, more than you’d think actually.” The girl pointed toward various areas of camp, explaining each one with detail as they continued their journey. Odysseus was especially interested in the sword-fighting area, so he made a mental note to go there at some point and continued with the two Aphrodite daughters.
After a while, they reached a sky blue house, kids bustling in and out of it as they approached. “This is the big house. There’s a bunch of kids here today because demigods are preparing for the first years.” As Madeline says that, a girl with pink braids runs out of the big house, maybe 10 or 11, carrying tons of sun banners. When she almost drops them, Madeline helps her balance them, fondly shaking her head as she regathers the girl’s braids to let them cascade down her back, “Journey, be careful! How does one cabin need that many banners?” Journey smiles back, shrugging as well, “I dunno. Emmett said we needed as many as we could get, so.. this is as many as I could get!” Madeline giggled, “Alrighty then. See you at campfire?”
“See you!” Journey readjusted her glasses before skipping along to the cabins. Madeline began walking toward the big house again, Odysseus and Ctimene following. “That’s a child of Apollo. Sweet kid, she’s really gifted at sword fighting.” Madeline says, leading them to an office further into the building. “Just how many cabins are there?” Odysseus asks. “35, though we are building more.” Madeline answers.
“35..” Ctimene mouths with slight awe. They finally reached a furnished room with two desks and various boxes around it. A man sat at one desk while a centaur stood behind the other – Chiron and Mr. D, Odysseus thought – doing their own thing. “Chiron,” Madeline called, “We have two new ones here early.” Chiron softly smiles at the two kids before tilting his head in Madeline’s direction, “Could you get them settled? They can stay with you for the time being, once you’re done, leave them with me.”
“That’s actually why we stopped here first.” Madeline said. Chiron raised an eyebrow, “Oh? What’s wrong, child?”
“So..” Madeline looked toward the two kids currently standing there with newfound curiosity, “That’s Odysseus and Ctimene.” She said, looking back toward Chiron. Chiron pauses, looking toward the two demigods. “I see. We’ve had mythology children before, that’s no problem.”
“Mythology children?” Odysseus asked, crossing his arms. Chiron nodded, “See, camp is currently set place in 2019. Meaning, anything under the barriers is stuck in time. While the outside moves in time, we stay on the same day. So, considering camp was made in 56 BC, we have kids from centuries beforehand, whether in myths or not, staying at camp. We call all children from before 56 BC mythology children. It appears you two are in a quite famous myth, currently staying at camp.
Chiron then proceeded to tell the story of their future. How Odysseus went on a twenty year journey. How Ctimene waited for years to get her family back and yet never did. Not everything of course, they were just kids and they wouldn’t want to disrupt the timeline. By the end, Odysseus was sitting in horror, Ctimene was about ready to dissociate, and Madeline was shifting awkwardly, looking between Chiron, Odysseus and Ctimene.
“Ok then. Get extra food, bring Astyanax here, got it.” Odysseus said, finally looking up at Chiron. “Yeah, pretty much.” Madeline confirmed. Ctimene grimaced, “Can we continue if that’s ok?”
“Yes. Madeline, please get them a camp shirt? We’ll take a trip for the new first years to get personal things just in case. We have the funds for it,” Chiron said. Madeline nodded, seemingly excited to have this conversation finally be over. “Got it! You two, follow me, the uniforms are in the other room.” Madeline walked out of the room and down the hall, Odysseus and Ctimene following after her without skipping a beat.
“Down here,” Madeline opens a door to a room that a dozen of kids already were occupying, grabbing as many shirts as they could to bring back to cabins for first years, “Is where we keep uniforms and extra clothes. Here,” Madeline walked over to a box full of the bright orange shirts, tossing one to Odysseus then one to Ctimene, “Try them on, I’m not sure if they’re your size.” Odysseus and Ctimene struggled to get them on, but they did in fact fit.
Madeline then walked to some boxes in the corner, dusty and looking centuries old despite being years old at most. Madeline opened one and tossed a pair of shorts to Odysseus, then opened another and tossed a black skirt to Ctimene. “Best we have for now.” Madeline said, finally getting up and looking toward the two of them. “We have toiletries in the infirmary, and changing rooms, so you guys can change there.”
Once they got to the infirmary, Madeline waved to a medic at the door before walking into a side room, grabbing a pink and blue bag of presumably toiletries, giving the blue one to Odysseus and pink one to Ctimene. She sighed while doing so, “This place is built like, heavily on gender stereotypes to be honest. Whatever, follow me, changing rooms are this way,” She pointed to two big doors, expecting Odysseus and Ctimene to find theirs and change. They did, only taking 10 minutes each to change. When they finished, they came out looking less like they just came out of ancient Greece and more like normal kids.
Madeline squealed, “You two look so good! Better than before, I have to admit. Ok, next, a rule of thumb for camp, we all have camp necklaces. Mainly for figuring out seniority or whatever, but you guys need yours too!” Madeline then walked back out of the infirmary, presumably back to where they just got their clothes. She had a weird habit of just doing things with no warning, now that Odysseus thought about it.
Either way, the siblings follow Madeline back into the room, almost tripping over some children of Poseidon as they rushed past. Madeline gets the necklaces and gives one to Ctimene and one to Odysseus.
“I think we’re good on uniform, so now that we’re done with that, let’s get on with what camp is like.” Madeline said as Ctimene finally clasped her necklace. “Follow me!” Madeline stepped past a boy as she made her way back down the hallway and out of the big house, Ctimene and Odysseus trailing behind.
Madeline then explained where everything was, its purpose, and how they’d use it. Of course, their counselors would go more in depth based on their personal godly parent, but the basics were covered by Madeline. Once they reached the amphitheatre again, dozens of kids were gathered on the benches, some confused by what was going on but others were talking amongst themselves, clearly used to what was going on. Most of the amphitheatre was just a sea of orange t-shirts.
“Dinner is later today to get everyone claimed into their cabins,” Madeline expl ained, “Everyone is in cabin order, the first years sit separately. You guys can sit over there, next to the curly haired kid.” The counselor pointed to a kid sitting on the bench alone, seemingly confused at what was going on. He also was wearing a chiton, which wasn’t exactly out of the ordinary compared to other kids at camp but an indication that the boy was probably also from Greece.
“Good to know.. oh, thank you Madeline!” Ctimene said, brightly smiling as she slightly bowed her head. Madeline gestured vaguely, looking away as she replied, “It’s nothing, really! Well, I have to get my cabin in order, good luck you two!” She then waved and walked over to a group of kids sitting at the top benches of the amphitheatre, either gossiping or looking over the first years. Odysseus watched her get to the kids and then looked over at the kid sitting alone on the bottom bench. “Are you ready?” Odysseus asked Ctimene. Ctimene sighed, “Ready as I’ll ever be.”
Odysseus walked over to the kid, asking, “Excuse us, could we sit here?” The kid, Odysseus really needed to ask his name, looked up at the two and practically lit up, though he quickly masked it as he nodded, slightly moving over to make room for the two. Whether he was excited because another kid seemed to be from ancient Greece or because a kid dared to talk to him, Odysseus was unsure. Still, Odysseus sat next to him, Ctimene next to Odysseus. Odysseus only was able to look over the first three cabins in their groups before the boy asked, “Are you two first years?”
“Yes? We are sitting over here for a reason,” Odysseus replied, and then immediately regretted how rude that sounded. The other boy’s cheeks flushed red before he awkwardly smiled, “Sorry, I’m not really sure what to say. Uh..”
“You’re ok. My bad, that sounded rude if I’m honest. I’m Odysseus, you?” Odysseus tried to make small talk. Maybe this kid could be his friend? And a plus, when he got back, his mother wouldn’t pester him about what friends he made. “Polites. Nice to meet you!” Polites replied, straightening as he grinned. Polites’ smile was so bright Odysseus smiled in return.
“So.. how’d you get the Camp Half-Blood shirt?” Polites asked, looking over it with newfound curiosity. Odysseus trailed Polites’ gaze before explaining, “I came earlier for some reason, so the Aphrodite cabin’s counselor gave us a tour and gave us our shirts early. You should be getting yours too once you’re claimed.”
Polites blinked. “Claimed?”
“Were you told anything before you got here?” Odysseus asked. Polites shook his head, “I killed my first monster last February. My mother told me about camp and everything, but I had to wait until June. So, here I am. Though, we were all rushed here so I’m not even sure I’m in the right place.” Polites slightly fidgetted, looking over the amphitheatre. Odysseus tilted his head in consideration, “That tracks. I think they’ll explain everything in a minute. But basically, currently we’re being claimed I guess?” Polites confusedly looked toward Odysseus before Odysseus added, “To figure out your godly parent, I guess.”
“My parents are both mortal though.” Polites acknowledged. “How can I be a demigod? I’m still confused about this whole thing.”
“True.. could you have a divine ancestor or something?” Odysseus considered. Polites paused for a moment to think it over before nodding, “My mother seemed to know what was going on pretty well. Maybe she is a demigod or something and the genes passed down to me?”
“Sounds like it.” Odysseus replied. “Maybe-”
“Shh!” Ctimene held a finger to her lips, slightly shoving Odysseus as she hissed, “The ceremony thing is starting.” Odysseus lightly pushed her back before he looked toward the middle of the amphitheatre where Mr. D and Chiron were standing, next to a roll-in table with various needles and safety machinery.
“Welcome campers, to Camp Half-Blood!” Chiron cheered, warmly smiling at the campers in the amphitheatre. Campers began to clap, some simply smiling, others – the Hermes cabin – were whistling and chatting excitedly.
“Now,” Chiron began, silencing the crowd of kids, “First-year campers. Each of you will be called up one by one to be claimed by your godly parent. This blood test,” Chiron runs a hand over the various equipment, “Will determine your divine heritage. You will get some of your blood sampled and this machine–” Chiron put a hand on a big, metal box with a screen on the front of it, “–will put the blood through its system, and through your DNA, will give you your godly parent.” Murmurs sounded through the amphitheatre. Even Odysseus muttered, “Woah.”
“Once you are claimed,” The amphitheatre grows silent again, “you will find your cabin and sit with them. Staff,” His voice raised in volume as he turned from the first years and toward the claimed cabins, “You will welcome all campers and treat them as your own. Many of you have only recently graduated to higher positions. I trust that all counselors, workers and caretakers will be respectful.” Odysseus saw a teenager from almost every cabin nod.
“Now, for claiming.” Chiron glanced over at Mr. D and he magicked some list into thin air, passing it to Chiron.
“Who do you think is your godly parent?” Odysseus whispered to Polites. The boy shrugged in response, “I’m not really the best with Greek Mythology, you know? I’m kind of being thrown into this.” Odysseus straightened, “That’s fair.”
“What about you? You know more about this than me.” Polites questioned, almost exasperated. “Son of Hermes, probably.” Odysseus answered.
“Aaliyah!” Chiron roared. A shy girl sitting on the bench behind them climbed over Polites and Odysseus, trudging up to Chiron. She wore skirt overalls with a pink shirt, and she had a necklace she was picking at while she walked. Her messenger bag was far too big for her, yet she’d push it behind her as many times as she needed. Chiron gently picked up her hand, taking a needle on the table and pricking her index finger. Aaliyah gave a slight flinch, but stayed strong, rubbing the access blood off and looking toward the tablet-sized screen on the machine. ‘Hades, Cabin 13’ it read, in a cursive font.
Chiron handed her a bandaid and pointed toward the Hades cabin’s section. Aaliyah’s lips slightly upturned at the following applause as she made her way to a taller girl sitting in front of six kids, Chiron looked back at the list, reading the next name on it.
This continued for quite a while. A son of Poseidon. A child of Ares. A daughter of Asteria. A descendant of Thanatos. A daughter of Zeus. A child of a minor goddess, in the honorary cabin with kids powerful enough to need to stay at camp but not enough to have their own cabin.
Ctimene got claimed as a child of Aphrodite. Odysseus was sure he cheered the loudest and Ctimene grinned as she proudly skipped to Madeline, giggling as Madeline hugged her and helped her to a seat in the Aphrodite cabin’s section.
Names sped by. Kids got claimed into their cabins, and Odysseus slowly got a read of what cabin belonged to which god. Finally, after ages, Odysseus’ name got called. As Odysseus stood up, Polites squeezed his shoulder, giving him reassuring eyes. Odysseus grinned back, and made his way to Chiron. Chiron took a new needle, pricking Odysseus’ finger and giving him a bandaid once the process was over. The demigod instinctively looked at the tablet melded into the machine.
‘Hermes, Cabin 11’
Relief flooded Odysseus as he secured the bandaid around his fingertip and followed Chiron’s directions to a dozen kids sitting near the Aphrodite cabin. Odysseus waved hi to a laughing Ctimene and walked up to the Hermes cabin counselor, who was smirking as he held out his hand. “Welcome to Cabin 11!” He declared. “Take a seat next to Lucille, I’ll explain how camp works in a bit. Oh, and I’m Matthew.” Odysseus nodded, climbing over conversations and sitting next to a girl with blonde hair tied up in a ponytail, with green eyes and freckles. The girl seemed about 15, with 6 beads on her necklace. She patted him on the back, smirking as she said, “Welcome newbie!”
“Hello,” Odysseus replied, settling on the bench. He picked at the light blue bandaid donning his fingertip–
“Oh, no, don’t pick at that dude,” A kid a bench down, brown hair with hazel eyes, 3 beads on his necklace, warned him, “It’s there permanently now.”
“What?” Odysseus worriedly muttered, his eyes darting to the bandage about to tear it off, only to realize both ends had melded into the bandage, now too tight to cut off. Lucille grinned, letting go of Odysseus as she looked at his finger, “That’s normal, no worries. The bandaids are enchanted, so they get stuck into your skin.”
“Why?” Odysseus groaned.
“To show you’re truly one of the gods. Essentially–”
“The ceremony’s still going, you guys can talk afterwards.” Matthew had turned around, now whispering to the dozen kids. Lucille rolled her eyes and the boy was putting up his hands in a placating gesture, looking toward the 10 year old getting claimed by Demeter.
Odysseus finally paid attention to the kids getting claimed, watching a girl get claimed by Psyche, then a boy by Khione. He wasn’t really paying much attention.
Well.. wasn’t.
Her name was Penelope. She strolled up to the machine, no nervousness, no fear. All courage.
She was gorgeous. Her dark hair was tied up in a ponytail, some strands slipping out. Her eyes were full of life, intelligence, beauty. She wore a long ashy red dress, her bag slung across her shoulder. She stood with confidence, an aura Odysseus admired.
“Oh you’re blushing!” Lucille drawled out, smirking as she teased him. Odysseus finally looked away from Penelope, glaring at Odysseus without malice, “I am not!”
“Wow, it’s your first day and you’re already in love.” The boy spoke with a teasing grin. “I’m not in love, I’m watching the ceremony.” Odysseus crossed his arms, now ignoring the teasing giggles of his siblings as he looked back at Penelope. Once she got the bandaid around her finger, not right when her cabin flashed on the tablet, she looked at the screen.
‘Ares, Cabin 5’
‘Poseidon, Cabin 3’
“Wait, what does two cabins mean?” Odysseus shifted to look at Lucille. “The first cabin is your godly parent, second is the god you’re a descendant of. If it’s in second position, you’re just a descendant of a god.”
“That makes more sense,” A girl with curly hair and light blue eyes commented as she sat in an empty seat on the bottom bench. She was probably claimed by Hermes as they talked.
Penelope was already sitting with the Ares kids, laughing between them. “Say Odysseus,” Ctimene grinned from behind him, “I’d say you’re definitely making more than friends this summer.”
“Ctimene!” Odysseus swat at her as she dodged and hid behind an older Aphrodite daughter, 3 beads on her necklace. Once he was done and Ctimene was giggling up a storm, Odysseus turned back toward the ceremony, watching a son of a nymph get claimed, leading to Polites being called next.
Polites hesitated standing up, though still walked to Chiron and held out his hand. The needle cut his finger, he wrapped the bandaid over the cut, and looked toward the screen.
‘Apollo, Cabin 7’ in second position.
Polites gave a small smile, following Chiron’s direction to a girl with bright eyes standing with a clipboard in front of the Apollo children, patting Polites on the shoulder as she told him to sit right behind her.
The rest of the ceremony went by without a hitch. Odysseus counted 18 other children who got claimed before Chiron finally put the list on the table, announcing in a proud tone, “And that concludes this year’s claiming ceremony.”
Hundreds of kids whooped and hollered. Counselors clapped, and Odysseus could register the Zeus counselor telling an older son of Zeus to stop jumping up on the bench of the amphitheatre. Chiron held up a hand, and the amphitheatre quieted immediately.
“I’m so proud of the first years we’ve got here today. You all did an amazing job with today’s ceremony. Counselors, you 35 have 30 minutes to give a rundown of camp, we’ll see everyone at dinner.” Chiron finished, dismissing everyone.
“Hermes campers!” Matthew had turned around by now, holding up a hand to silence the Hermes cabin. “Most of you know the drill, this way to the dining pavilion. Odysseus, Phoebe, try to keep up.” The rest of his cabin began to get up and file out of the amphitheatre, Odysseus waving to Polites before losing him in the crowd of kids.
“So Odysseus,” Lucille was walking beside him, “who are you?”
“..Odysseus?”
“No, like how’d you get here? You’re a new camper and you already have the camp shirt.” Lucille commented, giving him a once-over.
“Oh, I came early. Madeline, the Aphrodite cabin counselor, I think? Showed me around. Me and my sister, Ctimene, she’s also Aphrodite’s daughter.” Odysseus clarified. Lucille nodded in understanding, though once she fully understood what he said, she paused. “You’re a child of Hermes and she’s a child of Aphrodite?”
“Our parents married when we were little.” Odysseus said it casually, unphased by the concept. “We were already born and well, demigods by the time they married.”
“Makes sense, it’s just very rare.” Lucille replied. “You rarely see demigods with siblings. Maybe step-siblings, or half siblings, but two demigod siblings? Practically unheard of.”
“Do you have siblings?” Odysseus asked calmly.
“Besides Cabin 11? Nope. Only child.” Lucille answered, toying with her necklace. A beat of silence passed, Odysseus looking over the many cabins walking with them.
Cabin 11 reached a huge pavilion with 35 tables under it, one for each cabin. On each table was a portion size of dinner for each camper. How they knew the exact number of campers before they were all claimed, Odysseus had no idea. Cabin 11 wasn’t exactly big, but it wasn’t small either. In the summer, when it would have the most kids, in total, there were 13. Odysseus sat on Lucille’s right and a kid with black hair and pink highlights’ left, 2 beads on their necklace. Everyone at the table was chatting idly, eating their food as they caught up with what everyone did in the year they were gone. Odysseus kept to himself, taking a bite every once in a while but mainly looking over his cabin.
“Oh, Odysseus,” Lucille broke away from the conversation to look toward Odysseus, “The goblets are voice activated. Say whatever drink you want, non-alcoholic, and it’ll give it to you.”
“So, you know how camp is currently in 2019?”
“And how outside of it, it is 2025, yes.” Lucille responded.
“Yeah well I’m not, what kind of drinks do they have in modern-day?”
Lucille was intrigued now. “A mythology kid? I knew you weren’t just named after Odysseus. I’m not sure what you’d like though.. try coke, that’s what I have.”
At the command, coke filled Odysseus’ goblet. Odysseus eyed Lucille warily before picking up the goblet, “If this is poison, I’ll never forgive you.”
Lucille chuckled, “It’s not poison. Fizzy, sure, but not poisonous.”
Odysseus held the goblet to his lips, taking a sip. Once done, he put back down the goblet. “It’s.. not terrible, I guess.”
“Coca-cola is a masterpiece!” Lucille insisted.
“It tastes like chemicals.”
“Yeah, because you’re from like 3000 years ago.”
“I’ve been meaning to ask about that, how does everyone speak the same language? I would’ve thought.’ language has evolved since my time.” Odysseus asked, puzzled.
“Oh, that’s because it has. Everyone here just speaks ancient Greek because it’s hard wired into our brains, so no matter what time you came from, you’ll understand everyone here.” Lucille explained. Odysseus mouthed “Oh..”.
“Camp offers English classes, though usually it’s just for mythology kids, which I know you are one, but still.” Lucille took a sip of her drink, “It’s probably not going to be useful though, considering you’re just a summer kid.”
“I might take it anyway.” Odysseus shrugged, “If camp is too boring, why not.”
“Oh camp is not boring. Camp was so fun on my second day,” Lucille sighed, smiling fondly, “I remember it like it was yesterday.”
“The yesterday in question being 6 years ago?” The kid with pink highlights spoke up, smirking as their eyebrows rose. “Shut up El,” Lucille rolled her eyes without malice. El raised their hands in innocence, “Just stating the obvious.”
“Anyways,” Lucille continued, “You’ll find out more in due time.”
In lieu of response, Odysseus nodded, going back to eating his food.
Dinner went by fast. It didn’t take long for Odysseus to finish, and once he did, he was able to join his cabin’s conversation. But after a bit, dinner came to a close, and campers were told to go back to their cabins until campfire.. whatever that entailed. Matthew led all 17 of them to Cabin 11, the only ones phased at how huge it was being Phoebe and Odysseus. One girl, one bead on her necklace, immediately jumped onto the couch in the cabin, burying her face in a pillow, but Matthew told her to get up because “she knew what came next”. Annoyed, the girl got up and joined the rest of the cabin making a group circle. Lucille saved a spot for Odysseus, and he ran over to the open spot awaiting whatever they would be doing next.
Matthew spoke, “Welcome to camp, everybody.”
“Welcome, like there’s not only two of us that are new.” A boy said. “Lucas, you just got here last year. And many things changed from last year so listen up,” Matthew reprimanded. “If you stand there and tell me they got rid of Just Dance I’m replacing Mr. D’s coke with rat poison.” A girl, 4 beads on her necklace, snarled. “So Mr. D would actually murder you if you even attempted that, and no, there’s still Just Dance.”
“Did the black markets in camp get taken down? I still have an order of granola bars that hasn’t been delivered from the Iris kids.” El lamented. “Let me speak and you’ll find out.” Matthew crossed his arms. El rolled their eyes, letting Matthew continue his speech.
“So, same as last year, everyone’s going to go around and say their name, pronouns, and a fun fact about yourselves.” Matthew explained, a small smile on his face. “I’m Matthew, this summer’s camp counselor, pronouns are he/him, and my favorite color is green.”
“I’m Liz, the worker of Cabin 11, my pronouns are she/her, and I love archery.”
“I’m Lucas, pronouns are he/him, and I don’t want to be here.” Lucas said with a grin.
“So real, but I’m El, pronouns are they/them, and I’ve committed a total of 71 felonies since I started coming to camp.”
“I’m Lucille, pronouns she/her, and I’ve committed 72.”
“Kill yourself, Dawson.”
“You first, Parker–”
“Ok!” Matthew clapped his hands together. “Odysseus, you’re next.”
“I’m Odysseus, pronouns are he/him, I guess? And-”
“Like the Odyssey?” Phoebe interrupted, looking at him with curiosity.
“Yeah, exactly. And that can be my fact.” Odysseus said.
They continued to go around the circle, each listing things about themselves, until they got back around to the last camper.
“I’m Eli, pronouns he/they, and I’m the caretaker of the Hermes cabin.” Eli introduced himself. That circled back to Matthew, who was grinning ear to ear, “I believe that’s everyone. So! I’m the counselor, meaning I’m in charge of all of you. If any of you have problems, you guys come to me first. If I’m not available, Eli and Liz are the next best options. Got it?”
The other campers nodded in varying degrees.
“Eli is the caretaker, meaning they will be taking care of all of you. Considering the gods are, well.. the gods.. they’re not exactly going to be present. So, Eli will be essentially you guys’ main guardian for the summer.” Matthew pointed at Eli before pointing at Liz as he spoke, “Liz is the worker, meaning she’ll be taking care of the tasks this cabin has at camp. Chores, deliveries, sometimes pranks if needed, she does it all.” Matthew put his hands down at his sides, continuing his speech, “As every year, everybody needs to get their schedules. They’re over on the coffee table, Tucker?”
Tucker, a 5th year who was closest to the schedules, picked up the pile and began to hand them out. Odysseus got his basically last, reading through it with slight confusion. However, the other campers (minus Phoebe) were visually annoyed, cursing at the schedule’s words.
“These are just for the week, as is every year. You guys get way too worked up,” Matthew rolled his eyes.
“We have lake first. First, who wants to swim at 9 in the morning?” Lucille asked, exasperatedly.
“Yeah, and archery last? I blew up the arrows one time,” The kid with brown hair from the claiming ceremony, Conan, spoke up, crossing his arms with clear annoyance.
“Conan, that’s kinda valid, you need to stop blowing up the archery equipment. And you’ve done it like five times since you got to camp,” Liz commented. Conan shrugged, “5, 1, it’s all numbers in the end.”
“Can we talk about specialized lessons being right before lunch? I’m gonna be super tired and then eat food, let’s find out what happens,” El cheered.
“Everybody can last a week, you’ll all be fine.” Matthew said. “Anyways, it seems you all have everything figured out. Odysseus, Phoebe, if you guys have any questions, we’re here for you two.”
“Wait, what changed from last year?” Lucas asked cautiously.
“Specialized lessons, Odysseus and Phoebe that’s basically lessons to help with your powers, are now going to be by grade.” Matthew confessed. “Oh, and the vending machines don’t work anymore.”
Immediately the cabin was in an uproar, which what did Matthew expect, before Matthew silenced the cabin, “This wasn’t my decision. You guys are just going to have to deal with it.”
“Those vending machines were the only things getting me through the day last summer and now they’re gone?” The girl who had four beads, Harley, who was apparently a twin, asked with a tinge of anger. “Some new Ares kids in the winter broke them, I don’t know what to tell you.” Matthew responded.
“Wait, winter? I thought this was a summer camp?” Phoebe asked. “It is. Basically, in dire circumstances, campers stay year-round.” Liz explained. “It’s a thing you apply for at the big house.” Phoebe hummed.
“Any other questions?” Matthew asked. The cabin stayed silent. “Great. You guys can go pick your bunks and well, decorate them. Tomorrow there’s going to be a field trip for new mythology campers as always for new belongings, so Odysseus that would be you, but otherwise follow all of your schedules accordingly. Oh, and Odysseus and Phoebe,” Matthew pulled two electronics from his pocket, giving one to each of them, “These are phones made by the Hephaestus cabin so you guys can use them in camp without attracting monsters.”
Only after Odysseus got an in-detail explanation of what a phone was did he understand, and he was excited to use it afterwards, putting it in his pocket. Phoebe was also given a camp shirt by Liz, and the former immediately put the shirt on. It was a little oversized, but fit the girl just fine.
Once everything was said and done and the cabin was given the go ahead from Matthew, they immediately darted to the bunk beds all aligned in a separate part of the cabin. Considering the Hermes cabin was known for speed, they went fast. Some campers even spread wings and flew up to the top bunks, which made Odysseus feel 10x better about explaining his own appendages.
In the end, Odysseus was on the top bunk over El, who was very excited for Odysseus to have the top bunk considering apparently, they all had the usual same bunks from last year and El was alone, but now that Odysseus and Phoebe were there, they had someone on the top bunk. Phoebe was on her own in the corner, but apparently liked the corner so she was left alone.
“I love this bunk, it’s so comfy.” El stated, lying back on it.
“Well, that sucks, because we have campfire in.. ten minutes.” Cori, or Cordelia, 5 beads on her necklace, said smugly as she checked her watch. El groaned, sitting back up and getting out of bed. “Alright, let’s head out. Eli’s going to come in and do a head check any minute now.”
As expected, they did, counting 13 of them total. The Hermes cabin piled together in a mock-line – which honestly was just a cluster of kids – and left Cabin 11, chatting between themselves as they followed other cabins down to campfire. Once back at the amphitheatre, the only difference being the huge fire in the middle replacing the claiming machine thing, the Hermes kids dispersed into their friend groups, and Odysseus was left standing alone. Not for long though, as he quickly found Polites sitting by himself on a bench, and he walked over to the boy now donning a Camp Half-Blood t-shirt and blue jeans.
“So an Apollo kid huh?” Odysseus teased, sitting next to Polites. Polites shrugged, “I didn’t know it was in me. Still, that explains a lot.” Odysseus tilted his head, “True.”
“Odysseus!” Ctimene rushed over to the two of them, holding a girl’s hand in hers as she came over. Dizzy, the girl let go of Ctimene’s hand, taking a moment to breathe. “Gods, I love my cabin, but they’ve been around me for the last 4 hours.” There was a beat of silence.
“Oh, Odysseus, Iphthime, Iphthime, Odysseus,” Ctimene introduced, gesturing between them vaguely. Odysseus nodded toward the other girl, and Iphthime did the same to Odysseus. Ctimene continued, “Odysseus is a child of Hermes, Iphthime is a child of Eros. Who’s the sunshine kid?”
“Polites, descendant of Apollo.” Odysseus replied, pointing to the kid in question.
“Good to see you’re making friends! I never knew you had it in you.” Ctimene cheered. Odysseus rolled his eyes, “Not making friends is a choice, and besides, we had limited options. One foot outside of the palace’s borders and we could get snatched up, no wonder I didn’t have any friends.”
“Yeah, and I had the same problem, yet I made friends.” Ctimene bickered. “You met one girl when you were six.”
“That’s one more than you’ll ever make.”
“So you admit it?” Odysseus smirked.
“..Goddammit.” Ctimene crossed her arms. “Whatever! Besides the point. Also, give me your phone, I’m putting in my number.”
Odysseus shrugged, pulling the device out of his pocket and giving it to his sister. Ctimene grabbed Iphthime’s hand again, the other occupied with keeping the phone in its grasp, this time pulling her down with her as Ctimene sat on the bench next to her brother. Once Ctimene was fiddling with the device, Odysseus turned to Polites, “What’s your schedule?”
“It’s– hold on, let me get it out.” Polites took a folded up piece of paper from his pocket, giving it to Odysseus. The child of Hermes opened the paper up, taking out his own schedule to compare.
“Ok, not terrible.. we both have lake first, I have archery when you have arts and crafts, we both then have specialized lessons, lunch 1, you have sword fighting when I have arts and crafts, and apparently we have to just show up at a subject for sixth hour to get added to the roster.”
“What subjects are there?”
“Language, there’s tons actually, math, english, social studies, the general things.. there’s psychology, that sounds cool. And.. no that’s it.”
“Woah..” Polites thought it over, until he decided, “I’m probably taking psychology.”
“Same honestly. Or maybe social studies, I’ll decide tomorrow. You think we can transfer if we want next year?” Odysseus wondered.
“I’ll talk to Sadie..” Polites responded absentmindly. At Odysseus’ curious look, he clarified, “Sadie’s the Apollo counselor.”
“Oh, ok. Matthew’s my counselor.” Odysseus continued to look over their schedules, “Seventh hour is free choice, eighth is sword fighting for me and arts and crafts for you, ninth is free choice but we all have to go to the lake and either play volleyball, study, or if you need to do something, you do it ninth hour, and then dinner, sparring or capture the flag, campfire and lights out.”
“That’s not bad, 4 out of like 7 classes together?” Polites pushed his glasses up, “Better than nothing.”
“True.” Odysseus gave Polites back his schedule, and as he did Ctimene grabbed his hand and put his phone in it, “Done! I added Iphthime’s contact too and made a groupchat.”
“O..k then,” Odysseus slowly said, handing the phone to Polites as he put his schedule back in his pocket, “Put in your contact, I’ll put you in the groupchat.” Polites hummed, doing promptly that.
“Also, I heard the whole thing, we have the same schedule, probably because we’re siblings. Minus subject, I’m taking French.” Ctimene said. Odysseus nodded, “What about Iphthime?”
“Same as her, except I have arts and crafts for second hour, lunch 1, then archery, and different subjects because I’m taking math.” Iphthime replied, talking around Ctimene. Odysseus put a thumbs up, “Nice.”
“Iphthime!”
Iphthime shrunk from the shout, and as Polites gave Odysseus his phone back, he saw three girls running up to them. Penelope, who he did not have a crush on, he was just acknowledging that she was pretty. And two other girls Odysseus didn’t recognize.
“You can’t be running off– oh, hi.” Penelope stopped her spiel to look at Odysseus, awkwardly waving. “Hi,” Odysseus replied, smiling.
“You can’t be running off, I know you have friends but it’s dangerous.” The blonde caught up to Penelope, reprimanding Iphthime. Iphthime shrugged unapologetically, “Sorry.”
“It’s whatever, you’re with the Laertides siblings, it’s not like you got abducted into a cult.” Another girl said next to the blonde. Seeing the other three, she nodded to them. “I’m Clytemnestra, Iphthime’s cousin. This is my twin sister, Helen,” The blonde, Helen, waved to them, “my cousin, Penelope,” Penelope smiled awkwardly, “And that’s Iphthime, Penelope’s sister.” Clytemnestra gestured to Iphthime.
“Me and Helen are children of Zeus, Penelope’s a daughter of Ares, Iphthime’s a child of Eros.” Clytemnestra explained.
“They’re siblings and have two different godly parents?” Ctimene asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Like we can talk.” Odysseus snickered.
“Our mother’s a piece of shit.” Penelope deadpanned.
“Ohh, makes sense.” Ctimene commented.
“Can we sit here anyways?” Helen questioned. The benches were pretty filled up, but the bench in front of them was empty. “We don’t really have anywhere else to sit and we were planning to sit near Iphthime anyway. First day and all.”
“Oh us too,” Odysseus mentioned, “We got here earlier today, we have no clue what we’re doing.”
“Agreed,” Polites said, “And yeah, go ahead.”
Immediately, the trio sat in front of the four, spinning around to face them. Despite their bench being considerably lower than Odysseus’, they managed just fine.
“So Odysseus,” Helen grinned, “I heard you were a mythology kid? Ancient Greece?”
“Yeah, all four of us.” Odysseus said, “You guys too?”
“Yep, apparently my mother registered us here and when I asked how, no answer,” Penelope mentioned.
“Do any of us know how we got registered into camp?” Ctimene offhandedly asked.
“..Oh my gods, no, we don’t,” Clytemnestra replied, a shocked look on her face. She giggled at the concept, which led to the rest of the group laughing.
“Camp is honestly fun though,” Polites commented with a grin, “I wouldn’t mind staying here.”
“Agreed, that strawberry field? So excited to go there for free choice,” Iphthime added.
“Wait, you three,” Odysseus got out his phone, “add your numbers, we’ll add you to the groupchat.”
“Alright!” Helen smiled, grabbing the phone and going to messages.
“This is campfire, you’d think it started already,” Penelope looked behind her at the evergrowing fire. “The Apollo cabin is apparently preparing something, but I was able to go to campfire on account of being a first year,” Polites explained, following Penelope’s gaze before looking back at her. Penelope hummed, “Interesting.”
“Done! I added Clytemnestra and Penelope too,” Helen beamed, handing the phone back to Odysseus. He put it in his pocket, “What’s–”
The group heard a guitar playing from below them, signaling campfire starting. The cousins turned around on the bench, and the group turned their attention to the Apollo cabin sitting together on the ground floor.
“That,” Lucille shut the door of Cabin 11 behind herself, “was awesome.”
“I love campfires on the first day, the Apollo cabin really stepped it up,” El commented, walking to the bunk beds. The cabin went to the bunk beds clustered in an area of the cabin, kids unpacking their things and getting ready for bed. Most of the girls and some of the boys ran to the bathrooms, while others did their own thing within the area.
After they all had changed into their pajamas and generally got settled, they had tried to fall asleep.
But of course they couldn’t.
“So,” El spoke from the bottom bunk, “what’s everyone most excited for tomorrow?”
“Definitely volleyball, I need to practice with Hailey.” Harley said, who was currently throwing a tennis ball up to Hailey’s, her twin, bunk above her and letting Hailey throw it back to her, this going back and forth.
“I need more sword practice so probably weapon fighting,” Tucker responded.
“I honestly wonder how lake’s going to go tomorrow,” Lucille commented idly.
“Is it because you want to kiss your girlfriend from Cabin 3?” El teased.
“Kill yourself.”
“You first.”
“Can you guys go to sleep? It’s so late, I’m so tired.” Cori sleepily complained.
“Whatever Cori, you and your eight hours.”
“Me and my healthy sleep schedule.”
Odysseus didn’t hear the rest of the conversation as he slipped into Hypnos’ domain, unable to listen.
it won't let me put it in the end notes so it's here now
You can actually tell when i locked in, if you read closely. Also pretend ancient greece is more modern, i tried to make them less modern and failed, that’s my bad </3
“This is a small one-shot” i said, “it’s not gonna be 10k words”, i said. They slipped from my hands idk what to tell you.
-in order:
Cabin 1-20: same as canon
Cabin 21: Khione
Cabin 22: Morpheus
Cabin 23: Persephone
Cabin 24: Nyx
Cabin 25: Helios
Cabin 26: Selene
Cabin 27: Eris
Cabin 28: Asteria
Cabin 29: Psyche
Cabin 30: Eros
Cabin 31: Eos
Cabin 32: Melinoe
Cabin 33: Amphitrite
Cabin 34: Thanatos
Cabin 35: Honorary
things coming next:
-athena finding out about odysseus' adventures </3
-more iliad/odyssey characters!!
-odypen developing
-more worldbuilding/dynamics in developed chb!! oh yeah
Hermes cabin:
Odysseus
Phoebe
Lucille
Liz
Eli
Matthew
Lucas
Tucker
Conan
El
Harley (twin 1)
Hailey (twin 2)
Cordelia (Cori)