The Lost Fleece

chapter 2 - adelaide

A new kid. That's what's been going on around camp. It's not unusual for new campers to show up, but this one was different. Apparently, she was the half-sister of the oracle. I wasn't sure if it was true or just gossip.

The oracle had changed over the years. The one before this one was an old lady in an attic; it scared the guts out of all the campers, including me. As time changed, so did the oracle, and I am so grateful. I'm actually friends with this one; her name is Rachel, and she's really sweet. It just gets weird when she makes prophecies, but other than that, she's great!

Rachel has been so excited since she found out she has a sister. I guess that's what being an only child does to you. She sits at a far table away from my friends, but I see her legs bounce with excitement and a smile plastered on her face. She fit right in with the other campers; almost all of us had ADHD, and maybe it rubbed off on her.

I listen to my friends chat as we eat lunch. Kade goes on about how annoying his half-sister Clarisse is. She snores and thinks she's the boss of everyone, and the thing is, she's kind of the boss of everyone in their cabin. As head counselor, she has to make sure everything goes smoothly, but she has a special way of keeping her cabin in check. It drives Kade insane; he likes to do his own thing, and if you get in his way, he won't hesitate to start a fight. He's the best fighter at camp, but it gets him into all kinds of trouble.

One time he punched one of his own half brothers, and he lost dessert privileges for two weeks. Another time, he got into a fight with Clarisse, and that didn't go well because she's the head counselor. We've been trying to help him become the counselor of the ares cabin by noting all of her slip-ups and preparing him for a the duel.

Maddie tells him to calm down as she eats some corn. She has got to be the most positive person I know. She was very organized, and she loved nature; she got that from her mother, Demeter. She was also vegetarian and didn't make a huge deal out of it, that's what I loved about her, she was a genuinely good person and she never wanted to make others feel bad.

Kade just rolls his eyes at her. Alex just thinks the whole situation is funny, but I can tell he's trying to figure out a solution. He liked to build things, like a true son of Hephaestus.

I could tell something was on his mind by the way he fiddled with his cutlery and the look on his face.

"What's wrong?" I asked him.

"I just have a bad feeling about the new camper. It hasn't been like this in so long."

He was right. It's been a long time since the whole camp was bustling with new camper news. I wonder if someone would get to go on a quest. Quests have been rare since Kronos got defeated, and the camp has been quiet, but that's how we like it.

Normally I would be sitting with my half brother Nico, but on weekends at camp, we get to sit with our friends, no matter the cabin. Nico still wanted to join in with me, but I encouraged him to make new friends. I guess he's like me in a way. I was pretty antisocial until I came to camp, I hope he'll find a good friend.

Alex steals some of Kade's BBQ chicken, just to get a reaction out of him and it works. Kade and Alex started stealing each others food and stuffing their mouths. Maddie and I just laugh. They were always having competitions but right now I'm concerned if one of them is going to choke. 

Before I could tell them to knock it off, I see the new camper. She had red curly hair, just like Rachel and the same features. You would think they were the same person at different ages.

She followed Jasper, the satyr and served some food. I just know that she's starving. The journey to camp is always tough.

Everyone looks at her, not because she looked like a clone of Rachel or because she was new. Everyone was looking at her because of the glowing sun on top of her head, she was being claimed by her father, Apollo.