EFFIE REID HATES PREPARING FOR SUMMER BREAK. Effie isn't a jealous person, they're used to seeing the other campers come and go each summer, staying for two to three months before returning home to their families. Effie's best friend, Hope Tanner, is a summer camper, she comes to camp every summer holiday before returning home to her sister and brother-in-law, Effie isn't jealous but they find it hard to think about Hope during the year, about how Hope didn't just have a family at camp but also one to return to when the godly world becomes too much.

"Effie, are you okay?" Chris Rodriguez, one of the older cabin eleven boys, asked as he realised Effie had stopped moving the beds around the cabin.

Effie nodded, "Just thinking."

"About Luke? Don't worry Eff, he's just having a meeting at the Big House, he'll be back soon."

"Okay," Effie didn't care about where Luke was, honestly they hadn't even realised that he was gone but Effie would rather Chris believe that was what was bothering them than the truth.

Effie looked at the peeling brown paint on the walls, they wondered about the stories Hope would tell them about what they had missed in the last year, about the changes Effie didn't get to see.

Before Effie came to camp half-blood, Effie would spend most of their time watching movies and tv shows but when Effie got to camp, Effie was forced to stop that, electronic devices were prohibited at camp, they attract monsters, a phone is basically a big red dot on a map. Hope, being the daughter of Iris, had a loophole for keeping Effie up to date with their favourite shows. Hope would send Effie an Iris message of the show, which would also act as a phone call for the two to catch up with, Hope hadn't been able to Iris-message Effie lately.

"Did you hear the news?" Connor Stoll asked as he and his older full-brother, Travis, walked up to them. Connor is 10, while Travis is 13, meaning that the two brothers are 3 years apart. Full-sibling half-bloods are extremely rare, it's like winning an extremely unlucky lottery two times in a row, Effie had never heard of it happening before. Sometimes Effie wondered what made Mrs Stoll so important, perhaps he just enjoyed the pun of her name, after all, he was the God of Thieves.

"No, what news?"

"A new camper arrived two days ago-"

"He killed the Minotaur!" Connor blurted out, excited to share the news.

Effie's eyes widened, in the last three years that Effie has been at camp, they've been told a bunch of stories about Greek mythology and the infamous monsters, the Minotaur was one of them. The Minotaur was at least 7 feet tall, half-bull and half-human, a dangerous creature, Effie's mind hurt as they thought about how a demi-god without any training was able to kill such a beast.

"I heard that the new camper killed the Minotaur with his own horn, just like how Theseus did!"

"Was he claimed?"

Travis shook his head, "No, that's why Luke is having a meeting with Chiron and Mr D. He's one of us."

One of us, Effie frowned as Travis referred to himself and Effie as one of the same. Connor and Travis are claimed, they're children of Hermes, Effie is nobody's child, they're not the same, they're not an us.

Chris walked up to the three, "This cabin isn't going to re-organise itself."

"Right, sorry."

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The next day, Connor and Travis Stoll were still talking about the mysterious camper that killed the Minotaur, it was a piece of news that couldn't be kept a secret but it was starting to get annoying.

"I heard that he woke up," Connor told Effie, although they weren't actually listening, "That's why Luke had the meeting in the big house last night."

Travis shook his head, "That makes no sense, I heard that he only woke up this morning."

"And where do you hear that from?"

"The satyrs."

Effie rolled their eyes as they walked away, the two brothers could talk about the new demigod all they wanted, as long as Effie wasn't forced to listen to it. Effie looked at Luke, he, Chris and a bunch of the older Hermes boys were all talking in a corner, Effie didn't mean to eavesdrop but they were naturally curious. "He was out of it-" Luke said before one of the boys pointed at Effie, the older boy turned around and smiled as he saw Effie. "Are you spying on me, Ef?"

"No," Effie tried to suppress the smiling on their face, "I was just trying to get to my bed," they lied as they pointed to the bunk bed which was blocked by the group.

"Oh, my bad, Effie," Luke moved to let Effie get to their bed, the other boys stood there, waiting for Luke's instructions. Luke is the cabin counsellor, he's also the eldest. Luke is 19 and one of the eldest demigods at camp, most demigods don't reach 18, let alone 19.

Effie nodded, climbing up the ladder and to their bed, once Effie was on the bed, they felt more comfortable, "So, what are you guys talking about?"

"I-"

"Everyone!" Chiron's deep voice rang throughout the cabin, the centaur is the camp's activities director, although you may know him as the famous trainer of some of the most awesome heroes such as Jason and Achilles. Next to Chiron is a blond boy maybe a year or two younger than Effie. "Everyone! Your attention, please. This is Percy Jackson, I trust you will see to whatever he needs."

Effie hopped off their bunk bed and looked at Luke, he nodded, a sad but familiar smile on his face, it was the same smile Luke had given them a million times before, the first being when Effie had first arrived at camp. Percy is unclaimed.

The boy looked like a kicked puppy, he walked up to a sleeping bag that Luke had laid out on the floor. "That's the kid who killed the Minotaur," one of the boys told Chris. Luke rolled his eyes before approaching Percy, Effie followed behind.

"Look if you want to give me a hard time, just do it tomorrow," Percy told Luke, "I can't do anymore today."

Effie played with their Camp Necklace, the three beads moving between their fingers as they watched Luke interact with Percy. Effie has never been good with empathy, of course, Effie feels bad for Percy but they have no words to express it, so they just left the talking to Luke, he's always been better at that.

"I heard about what happened to you on the hill, I just wanted to say I'm really sorry. I know what you're going through. Believe me. I'm Luke."

"Percy."

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Sneaking out at night is one of Effie's most common routines, so when they saw the new kid do it, Effie was glad to find a kindred spirit. Effie hadn't planned on following Percy but he kept walking to Thalia's tree and when he stopped walking, Effie let their curiosity get the best of them. Effie watched as the blond-haired boy picked up firewood and made himself a fire, Effie wanted to leave but they were too invested, what is so special about this boy? How did this boy manage to kill the Minotaur?

Percy sat down next to the fire before grabbing a bag of blue candy, Effie's mouth watered at the candy, it had been so long since Effie ate something other than what was served at camp, it had been so long since Effie had a piece of candy or a bar of chocolate.

Percy grabbed a piece of candy and threw it in the fire, Effie's eyes widened as they realised what he was doing, he's making an offering. Effie took a step back, their curiosity finally gone and their guilt began to creep in. "Hey, Mum-"

Effie's heart dropped, they really shouldn't be listening to this.

Crunch!

As Effie took another step back, they stepped on a leaf. Percy whipped his head away from the fire in seconds and to Effie, "Who's there?!"

Shit.

Percy put his hand in his pocket as he stood up, the boy was small but still managed to be taller than Effie. "I said who's there?!" Effie sighed as they raised their hands, walking out of the trees. "You're the girl from today! Why are you following me?"

"Not a girl-" Effie corrected Percy, "And I wasn't following you."

"Really?"

Effie nodded, crossing their arms as Percy glared at them, "Really! I sneak out every night, I'm not sure if you've realised this yet but sleeping is more than a nightmare for half-bloods."

Percy frowned, "Yeah, I've picked up on that," he grumbled as his glare disappeared. "That still doesn't explain why you were following me, Stalker."

Effie shrugged, "I don't know, I was bored? There's not a lot of things to do after curfew." Percy sat down next to his fire as he looked at the flames. Effie felt awkward, they knew they were interrupting something important for Percy because he looked lost, and bored, he refused to continue his prayer while Effie was there. "You know," Effie looked at the fire, impressed by how a camper was able to make such a perfect fire on his first day, "This is really good technique. Where do you learn to make fires?"

Percy smiled a bittersweet smile as if he was remembering a fond memory that he wished he could forget, "My mother would always take me camping, on one of our trips she taught me."

There it is, jealousy, Effie wished they could kick themself for the pinch of jealousy they felt when Percy talked about his mother. "Oh- Um... Your mother sounds really tough."

"She was," Percy looked at the blue candy in his bag, "The Minotaur, he-" Percy's voice got caught in his throat, it was too dark for Effie to see Percy's face but they had no doubt that the boy was crying.

"Again, your mother sounds really tough."

Percy laughed dryly. "Thanks."

Effie nodded.

"I never got your name."

"It's Effie."

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When Effie woke up the next morning, they wished they could have gone back to sleep. The Hermes cabin was completely empty which meant Effie had woken up late for their lessons. Effie got out of bed and brushed their hair into a high ponytail, Effie had always hated their long hair but it's never been cut and a part of Effie liked to think that maybe their mother had once brushed her hand through it. Effie didn't bother to change their clothing because the night before Effie had put on a brand new camp half-blood shirt instead of their pyjamas, it's a bad habit but one useful for days like this.

Effie left the cabin and looked at the sun, the sun was just a bit east of the middle, meaning that it was most likely 11 am, so everybody would be in archery. Effie walked to the Archery practice field. The field is near the strawberry field, which is managed by the campers in the Demeter and Dionysus' Cabins, Effie tries to avoid the strawberry fields, the last time Effie went there, they turned into a big, itchy balloon, Effie had the biggest allergic reaction, but consequently realised that they were not the child of either Demeter and Dionysus.

As Effie reached the Archery practice field, they saw Chiron, Luke and Percy. Effie's eyes focused on the blonde boy as he aimed his bow and arrow at the target, he looked small holding a bow, Effie couldn't imagine him killing the Minotaur.

Percy tripped, the arrow releasing from the bow and firing into a group of campers.

Definitely not Apollo, Effie thought as they reached the group, "That was embarrassing," they said as Percy remained sitting on the floor.

"It's my first time."

"You should stick to building fires," Effie chuckled.

Luke raised his eyebrow, "What?"

"Nothing."

Percy stood up, the bow still in his hand, "Should I go again?"

"No!" The group of campers cried as a few of them ducked, worried that they might not be as lucky this time.

Effie laughed, "How about you practice something less dangerous? I know the Apollo cabin needs some help in the infirmary, although I doubt they would trust you with a needle."

Percy glared at Effie, the kid shrugged, "I'm just saying."

"Thank you, Effie, that's a good suggestion but we're going to try Cabin 9."

"Cool, I'm coming."

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Effie took a bite of her food, it was a chicken sandwich with lettuce and mayonnaise on it, nothing special but Effie was savouring every bite of it. Luke, Percy and Chris were also at the table, although their places were empty, Luke and Chris' appetite was gone from watching Percy fail all day.

Effie chuckled, "I still can't believe you lit cabin 9 on fire," a smirk was on their face as they thought about Percy's attempt at blacksmithing.

"Thanks, Smiles, hearing you say it makes me feel a lot better."

"Don't worry about them, Percy. We'll find the thing you're good at, it just takes time."

Percy sighed, "Is there a Greek God of disappointment? Maybe someone should ask him if he's missing a kid."

"Oizys... but she's a goddess. And her whole thing isn't really disappointment, it's more like failure.

A loud voice catches the group's attention, Chiron pulls out his watch, "Heroes, it's time. The game begins!"

"Game? What game?"

"Capture the flag! You're gonna suck at this," Effie teased before eating the last of their sandwich.

"Let the games begin."

AUTHOR'S NOTE

chapter one is finally here! and i'm sure you've realised that the scenes are all jumbled up, i'm really sorry about that, i wrote this chapter when i didn't have access to my laptop (which has disney+) so i wasn't able to check the episode.

i would also like to say, important scenes like where annabeth and percy meet and when percy exploded toilet water on clarisse all happened, my oc just wasn't there for them.

this hasn't been proof-read yet, so it would be helpful if you could point out any mistakes i made, i don't mind constructive criticism :)

anywayssssss, don't be a ghost, heart, comment and tell me what you think so far!

2450 words