New Camper! Drop off for the big house...

[TJ Gardner]

An exasperated Satyr stumbled on into the camp, a young complaining dragging open the door to the big house. In an odd turn for those turning up at the camp looking bedraggled mentally more than physically. He takes the moment to say to the new recruit  "stay by the door a moment, while I checks in with the main desk".  

The new arrival couldn't have been more than eleven with a camouflage pattern baseball cap, a warm jacket over a 'danger force' t-shirt along with some dark trousers and some stompy boots. He looked around the impressive room at the array of strange pictures and cool weapons across the walls. Within the next few seconds the kid had decided to skip this advice and could be heard talking to the back of the Satyr while dragging his scratched up wheeled backpack, a long BB gun strapped to the side.

The kid had a look at butter couldn't melt in his mouth but the signs of distress from the Satyr pointedly said differently.. "Look Its not my fault I thought you were a girl at first, you're mostly hair and yours is all long and curly from behind.. like a girl." he stuck out a petulant grin "You gotta agree anyone coulda thought it." the innocent face looked up at the face behind the desk for confirmation.

The satyr looked over at the figure behind the desk with a tired look that silently expressed your problem now to them. "I am LeVar, satyr keeping an eye out West. This is TeeJay from out in Ohio, its been a very long journey getting to here so he's all the camps responsibility now." LeVar kept up the introductions but wearily kept eyeing up the door out.

From behind the new campers attention had started to wander, his eyes travelling towards an impressive bronze Xiphos blade mounted on the wall near the fireplace, a quiet "oooh" snuck from his lips.

[James Selway Rare Rare Rare]

James was sitting at the desk as it was his rotation to do so. Playing on his guitar it had already been a rough few days with the campers coming in full force. It was that time of year again which wasn't a bad thing but it was sort of exhausting. So as he munched on a cookie and played. There were voices outside of the big house which then entered inside. Putting his things down he knew it was must be a satyr with another new camper. The satyr walked in and began to talk to him. "WOW rough night?" James asked the satyr who looked like he had seen better days. But it wasn't even a few seconds later a young boy came in who was a bit rambunctious. Laughing he could see what the satyr had to umm handle.

"Got it well, you go get some rest LeVar, i got TJ from here." he nodded to the satyr as he saw the boy look around the room. Walking around the desk, he went to the kitchens to grab the plate of cookies before heading back into the living room. "Sooo TJ, lets talk my friend" he said putting the plate of cookies on the coffee table by the couch. Taking a seat he wanted to figure out what the kid knew. 

[TJ Gardner]

TJ took the time to watch the Satyr head out the big door. He hadn't been bad but was pretty annoying, he had kept on with all the lessons, trying to get him to take in all this information - it just wasn't him. Though the satyr had been there it save him but the big beasts on the farm were a pretty distant memory, one he was happier to leave behind him.

He was just looking over the furniture on how best to get up to the cool sword as James came out from the kitchen. TJ was quick to pull his hands back to his rolling case. "I wasn't touching nothing.." but his attention was quickly distracted by the plate full of cookies that had just entered the room. These were enough to get him to settle down next to the coffee table though still showing signs of moving about even when seated.

He took the time to sniff the cookie for a minute and then ravenously started to eat it. His words just about audible through the sugary goodness "Not moore lessons.. me and school don't get on too good." he then took the minute to chew the 'too much cookie' he had filled his mouth with, giving off a look that mixed stubbornness and curiosity of this weird place he had arrived at.

[James Selway Rare Rare Rare]

James had seen many kids like TJ over the years as he had been at camp for over 12 years now. He had only been a cabin leader for the last few years but it did not stop him from helping out at the big house with the other cabin leaders. So seeing the kids hard reaching for the sword on the wall just made him laugh, as any boy his age would do the same. "Don't worry you will be getting practice with a sword soon enough and you can have all the fun you want with it." He told him hoping this would maybe get him a bit more excited about talking about what his Satyr had been trying to tell him. 

But maybe the cookies were the better distraction as the camper seemed to follow it and him to the couches. "Have as many as you like TJ" he said truthfully as they always had plenty of cookies to spare. "Not a lesson but more of your history......So how about this.....we talk about this together and then later. You and I can sword fight or I can teach you some sword moves" he suggested to the boy to see if he would agree. Whether he liked it or not, he was going to have to know the things about the gods and monsters to survive. 

[TJ Gardner]

TJ had been messing around and expected to be in some form of trouble for being bored or getting stuck with a talking to. The idea that he could get to do sword fighting and all sorts seemed to take him aback. he was a little suspicious but took the time to finish the cookie. He tried to cast his mind back to what this camp manager had asked.. he couldn't even remember if he had said his name.

He decided to play it cool, he picked up another cookie from the pile and took a small nibble from it. "Swords seem pretty fun, though I've got my BB gun if any more monsters come." he said with a slightly proud mischievous grin.

He realized at that point he didn't actually know what this adult was actually wanting to talk about, his history was not really all that interesting; the farm - boring, school - urghh, all those lectures LeVar had been spouting didn't really have much to do with him... "So what do ya want to talk about?" he nibbled a bit more on the cookie not sure what to say, a bit confused by a grown up might want to listen to him.

[James Selway Rare Rare Rare]

James watched the boy who finished his cookie. He wanted to show that he could be trusted and be a friend. Bringing up the sword as an idea he felt the boy might be a bit more interested in than some classes. "Ahhhh I see" he said with a smile "Has your BBs saved you from a monster before?" he asked him trying to engage TJ in more of a conversation. James was just relaxing on the couch as this was just another say at camp for him. James was trying to make sure he kept the boys attention. "Well my name is James Selway and I am a cabin leader here at Camp Half Blood. My mother is Tyche goddess of luck." Saying this he watched the boys reaction. 

He didn't know know how he would take it all "So you too are a umm half blood like me, one of the gods is your parent. Which we will find out one day as they will claim you" he finished saying wondering if TJ would be curious or find this boring. "The God's that LeVar told you about are real and live at the top of the empire state building. They come down from time to time and fall in love....well that is how you were made." 

[TJ Gardner]

TJ let out a sigh of relief when it didn't sound like he was going to be given a class or some kind of pop quiz.

"My BB is pretty cool and I used a rifle when hunting hares with my pa, but he said i couldn't get my own proper gun till I was older. something about laws and stuff" he said with a pout. "But when it was the big dog things it was the harvester that got it, I just managed to turn it on. Gave me and LeVar enough time to get out of there and into the shelter at least." he seemed to be talking quickly, remembering things he seemed to have been putting off. "Sounded like there were lots of them but they went away after a while at least. Didn't want to see them again, they had big claws and smelt really bad".

When James introduced himself TJ took a minute to realize.. "Luck like winning the lotto? That sounds cool, you could get all the things you wanted with that. Ma keeps buying them but they dont win much." he then thought about it and went for a full introduction "I'm Thomas James Gardener, from the Gardner farm in Fletcher. We grow some big ass pumpkins."

He took another cookie and paid attention "Like the big pointy building we saw when we were travelling here." he began to nibble at the cookie, his eyes starting to wander when gods and love get mentioned.  Guess the gods all have cooties then...

 

[James Selway Rare Rare Rare]

James could not help but smile as he listened to TJ talk as it reminded him so much of himself at that age. The boy seemed to like his BB gun but what boy did not like that sort of thing that ended up here at camp half-blood. Well maybe the Aphrodite cabin boys were not the most excited about swords and stuff but hey they have their own stuff they like! James was curious about the attacked as TJ explained it in full detail about how he had used a piece of farming equipment to take out what sounded like hellhounds! "Well it was good you thought fast on your feet." James said a bit impressed that a boy his age was able to save both him and a satyr. "Just know there are a lot more monsters out there" he pointed towards the boundary line "but we are safe in the camp from them most the time." He added that part to just warn the kid as you could never be too comfortable as a demi-god.

James could not help but let out a laugh when TJ asked him if it was luck like the lotto. Nodding his head yes he then waited for the young camper to finish. "Well it is nice to meet you Thomas James Gardener. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood" James knew this might not mean much now but soon enough he would explain all the things. "We sort of have a farm here too but we grow the best strawberries which we sell to get money to fund the camp." 

It was always a bit hard explaining things to the younger campers as they might have a bit harder time to understand. TJ however had no problem keeping up with knowing the building he was talking about. "Yes they live above it at Mount Olympus. Most know them from Greek and Roman times but they have been around for a long time. They move from country to country where power is held." He took a cookie himself to nibble on as he wanted to let it sink in. You could never go too fast as it would all go over their head and could put them in more danger. 

[TJ Gardner]

TJ seemed to be relaxing a little more, nibbling away at his cookie and hearing James talk with warmth of the safety and familiarity of the camp. 

"Wait, we went by the big pointy building on the way travelling here and there wasn't no mountain on top of the pointy bit?" he said a little confused.. he was sure it had been a little cloudy but he would have seen a mountain.. plus you couldn't balance a mountain on a spike, just wouldn't make sense..

"So if my real ma and pa aren't my actual folks.." he said running through a bit of what LeVar had explained and the details James had been trying to get across "then that means my legit ma or pa was actually one of these god folks then?" he said slowly, making sure he had it right.

He took the time to nibble as the piles of changes that had come to him since the farm attack had been more than a bit to take in, adopted, hunted and now at a half camp. but it was comfy and pretty warm in the big room after all that travelling so he didn't mind too much as he tried to follow all the details James was trying to pass over.

[James Selway Rare Rare Rare]

James could not help but laugh "You are right, you can't see it because of the mist. It is a magical thing that hides most of the things from mortal as they would not be able to understand it...it could make them go insane." He said hoping this helped a bit with why he did not see it. "But if you go in and take the elevator, for a demi-god there is a different stop that mortals cannot take. To Mount Olympus!" James had been there just a few times for different missions and such but it was not too often they got to go where the God's lived!

James was one that worked with a lot of campers in his time so as TJ was putting the things together it seemed he was getting the main point across. "You are right. One of the God's is your immortal parent which fell in love with your mortal parent which made you." It was a strange thing to think about so he was happy that TJ was getting the point of this. It was what lead to all the other things they would learn about here at camp over the many years that TJ would be here. 

Knowing most of this might be going over TJ's head, he knew the boy would ask later about some of the things they did talk about and that was going to be okay. "Well TJ camp is only for the summers which then you have the option to go home to your family. Monsters can come get you there but that is what we train you for. But there is an option for you to stay here too....year around like me." He pointed to himself as he smiled. "You will be claimed by your 13th birthday but until you are claimed will you will be staying in the Hermes cabin. Do you have any questions?" 

[TJ Gardner]

TJ seemed to be taking his time listening through and nodding away, whether or not he was caught up in James storytelling style of explaining all of the divine features. Only when it as getting towards the end of the description did he come up with a point he didn't quite know. He scraped the side of his nose for a moment and then asked "Which one of them was Hermes again?" 

And then one final question after the updates "And I still get to play with the swords right?" with a grin.

Edited October 3, 2022 by TJ Gardner

[James Selway Rare Rare Rare]

James was happy to do this as a Cabin Leader, even though it could be tough at times. Trying to get all this information in about 15 or more like 10 minutes so the kids don't lose interest was a trick he was good at. Most of their attention spans only lasted so few with the ADHD. So as they were finishing their conversation about all the Greek God's and our part in it all. TJ seemed to have a question about Hermes which would be the cabin he would stay in until he was claimed. "Ohhhhh Hermes is  the ancient Greek god of trade, wealth, luck, fertility, animal husbandry, sleep, language, thieves, and travel. One of the cleverest and most mischievous of the Olympian gods" he finished saying with a smile. 

Then hearing the last question he nodded and got up "Come on, let's take your stuff to the cabin and then we will go sword fight!" 

[TJ Gardner]

TJ looked up, happy to hear this hadn't been the start of a lesson or all the rest. He quickly got up and settled his bb gun on the backpack and then dragged it on. He had dreaded more learning as he hadn't done well with those in the past.. the letters always swam about like.. it was about then he realized the words under some of the nearby bits on the walls swam around a lot less. That was kind of cool at least but reading was for losers anyway. 

As he started to pull the big backpack out of the door he started his line of questioning once more.. "Cool.. So what kind of awesome swords do you folks have....?"

(fin)