( 002. ) ─── camp tour and bursting pipes
— 𐬿 •. 𖤐
Since the arrival of the new kid, Ivy had been running back and forth between camp activities and the infirmary. She had taken it upon herself to help Annabeth take care of him and inform Grover of his condition when he wasn't around. She didn't know why she felt so strongly about wanting to help him, figuring maybe it was just the fact that her heart was too soft. Or, it could be that she was extremely curious about why he was in her most recent vision. Regardless, here she was.
She spent the past two days changing shifts with Annabeth, alternating between feeding him ambrosia pudding and using some healing magic she had learned. It tired her out, resulting in frequent naps throughout the day. Kali and Kaiden would come check up on her in between camp activities, bringing snacks smuggled into camp by the Stoll brothers.
Today was one of the nicer days at camp. There was no sign of clouds in the sky, contrasting the weather from two days ago. The gentle breeze carried the smell of sun baked strawberries across camp, enveloping it in its usual warm feeling. The sun shone brightly, like Apollo himself was gracing the camp.
Ivy trekked across the the field to the Big House with Roswell by her side, planning to check on Percy when the sound of voices distracted her. Chiron exited the farmhouse followed by a wide eyed Percy who glanced nervously at the centaurs back end.
"Looks like my nursing duties are over now. I'm gonna miss the lovely smell of sterile products and overwashed bedsheets." Ivy called out to the duo, making her way over. "Good afternoon Ivy." Chiron smiled at her. "Percy, this is Ivy Novak. She assisted along with Annabeth in nursing you back to health." he stepped aside and Roswell wasted no time in rushing towards the boy. "Roswell no!" Ivy attempted to grab him, but he'd already made his way to Percy.
The ghost of the molossian hound ran staright through Percy, making him screech and fall to the ground. "Shit, you okay? I'm so sorry he's just-" "It's okay." Percy offered her a small shaky smile, and it eased Ivy's embarrasment a little. She offered her hand to the boy and pulled him to stand. "Thanks." he said, brushing away grass from his pants. Roswell barked in glee, and Ivy glared at him.
"Are you alright?" Chiron questioned to which Percy responded with a nod. "Okay, well- oh." the centaur sighed, his gaze settling on a group of campers who seemed to be in a heated argument. "Ivy dear, would you please do me a favour and show Percy around. I must deal with a, small issue." he looked down at the brunette. "Of course Chiron, it's the least I could do after what Ros did. c'mon new kid." Ivy beckoned Percy to follow her as she started towards camp.
"Alright, so first stop on our tour, the volleyball court!" she pointed towards the pit of sand. The campers stopped their game and watched after the two, nudging each other and leaning in to whisper to one another. Ivy noticed the way Percy looked down at his minotaur horn to avoid their gaze, and Ivy turned to glare at them. She made sure her eyes glowed the way they usually did when she used her powers, and it had the desired effect. The campers quickly looked away, stumbling as they returned to their previous game. Ivy smiled in triumph.
Percy semmed to have noticed their hurried movements and gave her a thankful nod, turning to look at the Big House. "What's up there?" he nodded his head up at the top story of the farmhouse. "Uh, theres really nothing. It's just used as a place where kids store stuff from quests, like your minotaur horn." Ivy said, hoping Percy didn't sense the small lie. It wasn't that she didn't want to tell him, but she didn't know if Chiron would want that. Plus he'd been through a lot the past few days. Having to explain that whole ordeal would be another issue. Percy eyed her suspiciously for a moment before he caught sight of the field ahead of them.
Ivy smiled, thankful for an opportunity to change topic. "These are the strawberry fields! We grow them here at camp to bring in some income, pay for certain expenses and such. Mr. D helps them grown 'cause of his wine god abilities so they're always in season for us." the daughter of Hecate explained. She plucked two berries off of a vine while the satyr involved with bug cleansing duties wasn't looking, tossing one to Percy who caught it unexpectedly. He muttered a small thank you and took a bite.
The two continued their walk through the fields in silence until Percy spoke up. "Grover won't be in too much trouble, will he? What happened wasn't his fault." he asked. "If I'm being honest, I don't know. I'm sure he will be, it's just the Council of Cloven Elders and Mr. D may not agree. It's a complicated topic for a lot of reasons." she responded. That was the wrong thing to say though, only prompting Percy to continue with his questions.
"How is it complicated?" he said. Ivy sighed, coming to a stop and turning towards the boy. "Look Percy, can we please just drop it?" she pleaded. Percy looked conflicted, but after a minute of silence he nodded. "Okay." Ivy softly said, continuing on the tour.
The silence between them lasted about a minute before Percy spoke up again. "Ivy?" he said. "Yeah?" Ivy glanced at the boy. "If the gods and Olympus and all that are real........does that mean the Underworld is real too?" Ivy hesitated, wondering how to word her response. She wished Chiron would appear and do the talking for her, it was getting tiring deciding how much Percy should know.
"Yeah. There is a place spirits go after, well, you know. But I'd prefer if we don't talk about it for now. It's just, not a topic I really wanna discuss." Ivy answered honestly. Percy sighed and nodded like before, growing tired of his questions being evaded.
The two stopped by the forest, and Ivy smiled in relief at the opportunity to switch topics. "These are the woods. They're stunning once you get to walk around them a bit. Though I'd suggest you go in armed." She said.
"What do you mean armed?" His blue eyes widened with confusion and slight panic. "You'll just have to find out on Friday. It's Capture the Flag." Ivy smiled wickedly. Percy blinked at her, totally confused. Ivy hummed, turning around and clapping her hands together. She continued on with her grand tour, showing Percy the archery range, the canoeing lake, the stables, the javelin range, the sing-along amphitheater, and the arena where they held sword and spear fights.
"Sword and spear fights?" Percy said. "It's mainly just for cabin challenges and stuff. Nobody really gets hu- well thats a lie. People do get hurt sometimes but at least nobody's died!" Ivy said. Percy stared at her, and Ivy just shrugged.
"And over here we have the Mess Hall!" Ivy pointed to an outdoor pavilion framed in white Grecian columns that sat on a hill, overlooking the sea. There were a dozen or so stone picnic tables. It had no roof or walls.
"What do you do if it rains?" Percy questioned. Ivy blinked at him, remembering he probrably didn't know about the lack of weather in the camp due to the magical borders. "Well, we still have to eat right?" She said.
Part of Ivy enjoyed messing with the new kid. She knew she should probrably be nicer to him, and explain what she could about how things worked. But she did find his eternally confused expressions quite hilarious.
Finally, Ivy got to show Percy the cabins. There were twelve of them, nestled in the woods by the lake. They were all arranged in a U shape, with two at the base and five in a row on either side. Even with the symmetrical organization, it did nothing to explain the bizzare designs of each cabin.
Cabin nine (Hephasteus) had smokestacks, like a tiny factory. Cabin four (Demeter) had tomato vines on the walls and a roof made out of real grass. Cabin seven (Apollo, if that wasn't obvious) seemed to be made of solid gold, which gleamed so much in the sunlight it was almost impossible to look at.
The cabins faced a commons area about the size of a soccer field, dotted with Greek statues, fountains, flower beds, and a couple of basketball hoops. If Ivy wasn't in the meadow, she loved to be here. Reading or beading together some bracelets with stolen crafts.
In the center of the field was a huge stone-lined firepit. You could feel the heat from the fire even through the warm afternoon. A young girl about nine years old was tending the flames, poking the coals with a stick. Ivy waved to the little girl, and she enthusiastically waved back.
The pair of cabins at the head of the field, numbers one and two, looked like his-and-hers mausoleums, big white marble boxes with heavy columns in front. They were Ivy's least favorite cabins, for a variety of different reasons.
Cabin one was the biggest and bulkiest of the twelve (unsuprisingly). Its polished bronze doors shimmered like a hologram, so that from different angles lightning bolts seemed to streak across them. Cabin two was more graceful, with slimmer columns garlanded with pomegranates and flowers. The walls were carved with images of peacocks.
"Zeus and Hera?" Percy guessed. "Isn't it obvious?" Ivy snorted, giving the boy a dramatic eyes roll. The boy snickered in return, his gaze returning to the cabins. "Their cabins look empty." He said.
"Several cabins are empty. One amd two especially." Ivy said. Percy turned to his left, stopping infront of Cabin three. It wasn't high and mighty like Zeus's cabin, but long and low and solid. The outer walls of the building were of made with rough gray stone studded with pieces of seashell and coral, as if the slabs had been taken straight from the bottom of the ocean floor. Ivy always considered that one to seen more like a home than the other two. Even though the cabin was permanetly empty, it had beds and a more welcoming atmosphere than Zeus's.
Percy peeked inside the room, and Ivy quickly grabbed his arm. "I wouldn't do that! We're not allowed in the empty cabins." Ivy rushed out. Percy had managed a look anyways, and he seemed upset as they walked away.
The duo walked down the line of the cabins, passing infront of Ares's cabin. It was bright red, the color painted on carelessly. The roof was lined with barbed wire, almost like a prison yard. A stuffed wild boar's head hung over the doorway, and its eyes seemed to follow the two as they hurried away from the cabins.
"Hey, how come we haven't seen any other centaurs here?" Percy questioned. "Chiron's kinsmen are......interesting creatures. But you're not gonna find any here. He's the only one of his kind at camp." Ivy amswered.
"That seems like a lonely life doesn't it? No family around." He said. "Maybe, but Chiron's always busy with camp activities anyways." Ivy said, and not a moment later Chiron appeared. "I'm sorry children, resolving the issue took a bit longer than expected." Chiron sighed, seemingly exhausted. "It's okay Chiron. I was almost done with the tour anyways." Ivy smiled.
"Thank you dear girl. You can go back to your camp activities if you'd like, I think Kali's at the arena now." Chiron said. Everyone at camp knew that where one of the girls was, the other would follow.
Since being claimed at the age of nine, Ivys clung to Kali and her brother. They were the most welcoming to her at first, taking the girl under their wings and helping her settle in at camp. And now, three years later, the trio had become family. They'd spent holidays and birtndays together, amd were attached at the hip during camp.
"Okay, thank you sir. And it was nice getting to officially meet you Percy." Ivy held out her hand to the boy, and he took it within his own and shook. "It was nice meeting you too Ivy." He smiled. Ivy bid her goodbyes to the two and jogged towards the arena.
When she arrived, Kali was in a battle with another camper, one Ivy recognized from the Hermes cabin. Their swords clashed with one another, their movements fluid satisfying to watch. Ivy took her place beside Kaiden and began to cheer for Kali.
"Where've you been? I haven't seen you since breakfast." Kaiden said, raising his voice over the loud commotion. "Chiron had me take the new kid on a tour of camp. He was taking care of something earlier, but now he's done and I've been relieved of my duties." Ivy said the last sentence dramatically, faking a sad expression.
"How tragic. Whetever will you do with your life now?" Kai played along, making the younger girl smile. "I don't know. But the new kids gonna get put in our cabin for now, so I might as well make a friend." She said. A loud cheer sounded, and the duo turned to see the Hermes kid on the floor, his hands raised in surrender and a gleaming sword pointed at his neck.
Kali grinned, pulling the kid up to stand a giving him a friendly pat on the back. She walked over to the two smiling. "Hey Vee." She gave the girl a side hug. "Hey Kals, you were great." Ivy said. "You didn't even see half of the duel." Kali narrowed her eyes. "Yeah but I know you did great." She shrugged in response. Kali playfully pushed Ivys head away with a smile, the younger girl mirroring her expression.
A loud sound errupted from the cabin area, drawing the attention of several campers including the trio. Ivy saw a blast of what looked like water and took off in its direction. The siblings along with a crowd of campers ran towards the bathrooms, stopping short to avoid the water spilling out. Clarisse and a few of her siblings sat spluttering in the water.
Percy exited the bathroom followed by Annabeth who was soaked. Percy was the only one who remained completely dry, not an inch of water on him. "You are dead, new boy. You are totally dead." Clarisse spat, glaring at Percy with a look of absolute hatred. If looks could kill Ivy was sure the boy wouldn't even be standing anymore.
"You want to gargle with toilet water again, Clarisse? Close your mouth." Percy snapped back. Ivy quickly placed a hand over her mouth to hide a snort. Kaidens brows raised and Kali didn't hide her grin. Clarisse began to stand up but was stopped by her siblings. They hauled her off to their cabin, her limbs flailing wildly as curses spewed from her mouth.
Ivy took this chance to walk over to Percy, careful to avoid the pool of water. "What happened?" She questioned. "I-I don't even know." Percy responded quietly, his voice tinged with disbelief. "Clarisse tried to push my head in the toilet and all of a sudden-" he make an explosion motion with his hands. Ivy nodded, but she still felt totally confused. How had he been able to burst a pipe and stay totally dry?
Percy suddenly turned on Annabeth who'd been staring intently at him for the past few minutes. "What?" He demanded. "What are you thinking?" Percy looked defensive. "I'm thinking," Annabeth responded, "that I want you on my team for capture the flag."
AUTHORS NOTE‼️ / IM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG 😭😭 ive been really busy and with school it's only taking up more of my time. I'm gonna set a goal/a schedule for myself and start writing more often for this book.
I wanted to give Ivy and Percy a bit of interaction so i replaced Chiron for a little bit 😭 but i hope it was worth it again bc PERCY AND IVY CONTENT <333
Anyways i hope u guys enjoyed this chapter and lmk what yall think!!