Anci had a lot of questions. She stared at Eustace, who had his back to her, and fiddled with the straps of her backpack. After he had called her a half-blood, he immediately hailed for a cab. Well—Anci looked down at her hands—he didn't exactly say it outright. But he had implied it. She was a half-blood. Whatever that meant.

It was a daunting word, half-blood. It sounded like something in one of those fantasy novels her mother used to read. A taunt the villain would use, except Anci was no hero. And Eustace wasn't a villain. Anci pursed her lip. She wasn't the villain, was she? She had heard the way Eustace had said the word. It was fear. And now, he refused to look at her.

Anci squirmed in her seat. She ducked her head when the driver met her eyes through the rearview mirror. She winced at his dubious gaze, looking down at her white socks. Her shoes, caked with mud, were in her backpack. The driver had made a great deal of not wanting mud in the car. Eustace still had his shoes though, but Anci had thought little of it. His shoes must have been cleaner.

Turning back to look at Eustace, Anci gulped. She watched him, leaning forward to catch a glance at his expression. He must have sensed her because he shifted nervously in his seat. Still, he didn't look at her.

Anci's eyes fluttered up to his hair. It was the same as always, a mop of brown. But now, the longer she looked at it, the more she thought there was something else there. A point. Two points. Anci blinked, rubbing her eyes. When she looked back at Eustace, she found no mistake. They were horns. Her eyes trailed down to his ears. Goat ears. Anci almost peed her pants. How had she not noticed before?

Was she really that bad of a friend?

By the time they reached Long Island, Anci had just about had an existential crisis. She barely noticed the cab slowing into a stop, and she definitely didn't hear the driver telling Eustace the price. She did, however, hear Eustace when he cried in surprise.

"That can't be right!" he said. "Your meter must be off. It's got to be less than that."

The driver shook his head. "No." He crossed his arms. "It's right."

Anci could see the gears turning in Eustace's head as he did the math in his head. It was the one thing he was good at in school. She frowned when Eustace blinked. "No," he muttered to himself. "It's not right."

"Are you paying or not?"

Anci glanced at the price on the meter. Digging through her backpack, she unzipped the secret compartment her mother had sewn. The money was only to be used for emergency situations, and Anci made a note in her head to tell her mother that she had spent it. Anci hesitated when she pulled the money out, stopping her hand midway.

She grimaced. Her mother had no idea what was happening. She must have heard of her absence at school by now, and Anci had no idea how she would react. She'd never missed class before.

The driver snatched the money from her hands, and Anci retracted her hand in surprise. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she quickly pushed open the door. The cab sped off as soon as her feet hit the ground, leaving a trail of smoke behind. Anci covered her nose, coughing as she stumbled off the road to put on her shoes.

"You shouldn't have done that," Eustace said, coming up behind her. "He was trying to scam us!" 

Anci shook her head. "Bit late for that," she said. "Sorry." She paused, biting down on her lip. She turned. "Are we talking again?"

"What?" His eyebrows drew together, and he tilted his head to the side. His green eyes flashed in realization. "Ah." He sheepishly scratched the back of his neck. "I was thinking. You... were distracting."

"Oh." Anci ran a hand through her hair. She flushed, a smile finding its way to her lips. She grinned. "We're still friends?"

"We never stopped."

Giggling, Anci looked around. "Where are we?" she said, stepping forward to better read the sign that sat in the distance. A small path led up to it. Delphi Strawberry Service.

"This is Camp Half-Blood," Eustace said.

There was that word again. Half-blood. Anci frowned, following him deeper in. "So," she started. "What exactly is a half-blood?"

Eustace sighed, his hands flying to his face. He cursed in what Anci recognized to be Ancient Greek. Except she didn't know Ancient Greek. "Sorry. I always forget that I have to explain everything. A halfblood is..." Eustace threw his hands up, his lips forming a thin line. He shook his head. "A half human," he said. "And half god."

Anci froze in her step. Her jaw dropped. "A what?"

"Half god," Eustace confirmed. "A demigod."

"Like an actual god god," Anci said. "A god."

"That's right." Eustace nodded. He made a face. "Honestly, I'm as surprised as you are. I didn't expect you to be one at all."

"But a god."

"Yeah. Have you ever wondered about your father?"

Anci frowned. "No," she said. "I never asked about him. I figured that if he wasn't around, I shouldn't waste my time. Besides, I've always had my mom. That's enough for me."

Eustace smiled softly at her. They rounded a corner, coming to the field. Anci laughed at the sight. She hadn't been around real nature in so long.

There was a tangy scent in the air, probably from the strawberries. They weren't ripe yet, only pale green in color. Some weren't even fruit yet, still flowers. A white picket fence surrounded the outskirts.

Turning back to Eustace, they continued walking. He led her all the way to the back, to a small gate. Anci peered curiously over it. The whinny of a horse made her jump. She looked back at Eustace, wide-eyed.

"Welcome to Camp Half-Blood," he said. "Those are the stables. Don't worry. The pegasi won't bite."

"Pegasi?"

Eustace grinned. "Wanna see?"

Anci nodded. Hopping forward, she gasped. There was only one word to describe the winged horses: majestic. Anci wasn't sure if it even covered all of its splendor. They were beautiful. Their feathered wings were like flags in the low wind, their manes long and silky.

"Hi!"

Anci spun around at the cheery voice. She looked down to find a girl, who couldn't have been older than nine. Her big eyes were bright blue, her face round. There was a contagious aura around her, and Anci laughed when she bent down. "Hello," she said.

"This is Issie," Eustace said. He smiled widely. "Issie, this is Anci. We were about to head up to the Big House.

Issie gasped. "You're new, then?" she said, squealing. "Cool!"

"Yeah," Anci said. "Are you a demigod too?"

Issie nodded. "My father's Dionysus. He likes to be called Mr. D. He says it makes him sound slick and cool."

"Mr. D?" Anci repeated slowly. She glanced at Eustace, who shrugged.

"Uh huh," Issie continued. "I think it makes him sound stupid. Not as stupid as Dionysus though."

"Don't let him hear you say that," Eustace quickly said. He glanced warily at a building that Anci assumed was the Big House.

Issie snorted. "Oh, I've told him, but he doesn't believe me. He thinks I'm trying to sabotage him."

"I doubt he would give the rest of us the same mercy," Eustace said. He let out a breath. "Okay. Come on, Anci. You need to meet Chiron."

"That sounds fun! " Issie jumped up. "I'll come too."

The Big House was painted sky blue, a white trim lining the edges. Wind chimes hung from the eaves, and they danced when the breeze hit. On the roof, a bronze weathervane spun into dryads.

Eustace held the door open for them. Issie ran in first, her voice drawing all attention. "Chiron! Daddy! Come meet Anci!"

Issie dragged a rather chubby man over by the arm. Her excitement was through the roof, but Eustace, who stood a little ways behind Anci, seemed to tense. Anci glanced at him, not helping the wave of nervousness that came over herself. She took a deep breath and turned back to Issie and her victim. She smiled.

"Hello," she said, holding out her hand. "I'm Anci."

The man scoffed at her, rolling his eyes. "Oh, great," he muttered. "Another hero."

Anci dropped her hand, and the silence drew out longer than anyone would have liked. Luckily, another pair of footsteps joined them. Except, it wasn't a pair.

The newcomer wasn't the strangest person Anci had met, but he wasn't the most normal either. From the waist up, he was an average, middle-aged man with charming brown eyes bordered with lines of wisdom and old age. He had an easy smile and a scruffy beard. His bottom-half was one of a white stallion, fur neatly trimmed and groomed.

"Welcome to Camp Half-Blood," he said. He nodded a greeting to Issie and Eustace. "Isabel, Eustace; hello."

"Hello!" Issie replied.

"And you must be Anci," he said, shaking her hand. "I'm Chiron, the activities director here."

"Nice to meet you," Anci said, nodding. She remembered now. Chiron was a centaur in the myths. He was supposed to be the "wisest and justest."

Anci glanced back at the other man. If that was Chiron, than this must be the infamous Mr. D. Dionysus. A god.

He donned a leopard-spot Hawaiian shirt, which was unbuttoned at the top. His eyes were purple, and so was his hair when it hit the light just right. He seemed to have a permanent scowl on his face.

"What are you looking at?" he said.

"Nothing." Anci cleared her throat. "I just didn't expect this."

Dionysus narrowed his eyes, but Anci wasn't done yet. She laughed as she continued. "It's just that Issie said that you liked to be called Mr. D because you think it makes you look cool, so I wasn't expecting you to be wearing animal print and gym shorts." Anci paused, thinking for a moment before adding "sir" to the end.

Anci didn't need to look to know that Eustace had hid his face in his hands, his cheeks flaming. She smiled, ducking her head down to her shoulders at Dionysus's reaction. He looked like he was about to explode, but Issie's sharp giggle seemed to stop him. He settled for crossing his arms.

"Is that so?"

"Yes, sir."

If Dionysus was surprised that she didn't fall into submission, he didn't show it. He pursed his lip. "Issie," he said.

"What?"

"What is it that Pollux and Castor say when they fail cabin inspection?"

"I don't care, Daddy."

Dionysus looked at Anci. "I don't care."

Issie howled with laughter, and even Eustace had to crack a grin. Chiron, also chuckling, gave Dionysus a pat on the back. The laughter still hadn't left his voice when he spoke.

"Eustace, would you go to the Hermes Cabin and tell them to prepare for Anci?" he said. "Thank you. And Anci, if you'd come with me."

Anci followed Chiron into another room, where a small retro TV sat on a table. She blinked and sat on the couch, eyeing the VHS tape that Chiron put on. Her eyebrows knitted together, and she opened her mouth. "What exactly is this?" she asked.

Chiron chuckled at her surprise, knocking on the video player with his knuckles. "Our orientation video," he said. "How old are you?"

Anci bit down on her lip. Her face went red, and sucked in a breath. "I turned thirteen today," she whispered.

"Just in time." He smiled. "The film is PG-13."

Anci half-laughed and half-winced. With all that had happened, she had forgotten about her birthday. She readjusted her backpack on her shoulders and watched the orientation video load up.

Anci jumped at the loud music that started the whole thing, blinking at the flashing lights. Her eyes barely registered the text that popped up. Camp Half-Blood Orientation Film, featuring Apollo. Apollo's name took up the whole screen, leaving the title in a corner. Anci choked at the absurdity.

Then the lights suddenly dimmed, and the music stopped. A lone spotlight was cast down, shining on a person that stood in a dark alleyway. Anci assumed it was Apollo. He cleared his throat, dramatically holding a scroll.

"Are you a half-blood?

"Confused and wishing for help.

"Never fear, 'cause Apollo's here!"

The silence drew out for a second too long, and Apollo frowned. He stared at his scroll. "No, that isn't right," he muttered, a pen materializing in his hand. "There's supposed to be five syllables here. Isn't there a better word for..." Apollo scrunched up his nose, looking up. "Cut!" he shouted. "Are we still rolling? Hey, stop that!"

To say that the rest of the film was better would have been a lie. And that was exactly the reason Anci loved it. The musical numbers were obnoxiously loud, and there were a few too many bad poems. The demigods that were interviewed didn't seem too thrilled, and the game show in the middle was too cheesy. When it was all over, Anci had a hard time believing Apollo was the god of music and poetry. It was too much of a stretch.

"Any questions?" Chiron asked, his face stoic.

Anci looked at him, waving her hands around as she struggled to find words. She laughed, leaning forward as she covered her face with her hands. Drawing in a breath, she mumbled to herself. She didn't really learn much from the video. Only that the Greek myths were real and that it was incredibly dangerous to be a demigod. But she had already gathered all that from Belinda.

When she finally got her laughter under control, Anci lifted her head and nodded. "Yeah," she said. "I think I have a few questions." 

---

I probably had way too much fun writing Dionysus and Apollo. After this, I think they've become a part of my top three favorite gods. Poseidon is number one, but only because I absolutely ADORE the way Rick Riordan portrays him. It's just *chef's kiss*. 

Who are your favorite gods? 

Goddesses? 

My favorite goddesses are Athena, Artemis, and Hestia in no particular order. Am now realizing that they're the maiden goddesses. Does that say something about me, lol?