Alex's Bunk

"Oh. That was different." Jana Kay almost smacked her own head. Alex was new, he hadn't heard of the war against the Titans yet. Or the one against the Giants. He probably didn't know about the Romans either. "There's a lot of stuff we need to fill you in on," she said with an apologetic smile. "As for leaving camp, it depends on your parent and how well-trained you are. I'm a daughter of Demeter so I'm not that much of a threat. I don't attract monsters that much, I'm relatively safe. That's why I'm a summer rounder. But more powerful demigods -- say Apollo or Athena -- they tend to have a strong smell to monsters. A lot of them are year rounders."

"My mom sent me here year-round," Alex told the other demigod. "She said the only reason we hadn't been attacked was because we moved so much, but she's stuck at a site for the next four years. So I'm stuck here." He opened the door, squinting against the light outside. He reached down and went to lay a finger on his new knives, but his hand touched nothing but air. He looked down, praying he hadn't lost them already, just in time to see a miniature dark blue cloud form into the blades. "Ummm, Jana? I think I may have done something to my belt..."

"That's probably because you're powerful," she said. "Children of minor gods can be really powerful demigods too: look at Achilles! He was the son of a sea nymph." She turned around just in time to see the cloud and how it morphed into the knives. Her eyebrows knitted. "Where did you get that belt?" she asked.

"I just pulled it out of the armory, from behind a couple of shields. Do you think it's magic?" he asked, eyes wide.

"It seems so. There are a bunch of magic objects around here. And if it's in the armory, it means it's up for grabs." She gave a big grin. "Congrats, mate! You've got your first magic item!"

Alex couldn't help but grin back at Jana as he looked down at the nondescript belt at his waist. He pictured his knives in his head and there they were, and when he stopped concentrating they were gone. He was so busy doing this he almost forgot about Jana. Mind still on the belt, he asked, "Do you have any magic items?"

"This is really cool," she said admiringly as the knives appeared and disappeared on his belt. Looking back up, she nodded and fished a golden hair pin from her pocket. It was shaped like a delicate ear of wheat. "My mother gave this to me when I turned thirteen." She focused, and the pin grew into a double-sided axe. It was carved with detailed decorations, Minoan style, and looked razor-sharp, but it wasn't that big. Maybe as long as her forearm. Just the right length and balance for a lanky fourteen years old.
Jana Kay flipped it in her hand, studying it. "Mum said it belonged to an Amazon. She didn't say which one, but it doesn't matter. I'm super honoured."

Alex smiled in disbelief, eyebrows nearly to his hairline he had raised them so high, as she took a hairpin out and turned it into a freaking battleaxe! And he could more than believe it had belonged to an amazon; that was perfect for Jana. The ancient-looking designs shined in the sun. "So you've met your mom?" He asked, curious.

"In real? Just once, very quickly." Her eyes started sparkling warmly. "It was after the battle in Manhattan. They had carried the wounded up to Olympus and I was among them. You should've seen me, I had a big gash in my belly and a broken arm..." She mimicked the wounds with her hands, chuckled, then smiled softly. "Mum sat with me and we talked, but I was very weak and passed out. When I woke up, I was back at camp. It took me like a week to fully recover." She looked back up, the soft expression still on her face. "She's a wonderful goddess. I see her sometimes when I dream, or hear her in my head when I'm in danger..." The axe slowly melted back into a needle and Jana Kay slipped it into her pocket. "Have you ever met or heard your Dad?"

Alex chuckled at her miming her injuries, and at the look of joy she got from talking about her mother. "Never seen him," he answered simply, "but every once in a while the wind blows me in the direction I need to go. I always thought I was crazy but I guess that was him." He smiled, thinking of the first time he could think of it happening. "Once when I was about six I got lost at a dig in mexico, and wandered around for a while. I got lost, but I remember the wind kept changing and I would walk wherever it blew, and it took me to our Hotel! I got lost again the next day on purpose to see if it would happen again, and it didn't, but yeah. It was fun." He looked down at the belt around his waist and thought hard. He wasn't sure, but he could almost swear it was a light breeze that had nudged his hand and caused him to notice the belt in the first place. He smiled and looked up, then looked back forwards, not wanting Jana to think he was crazy or something.

"That's really cool," she said. "It's always great to see that, you know... they are watching over us." Suddenly, she grinned. "Come on! I wanna show you the stables."

Alex smiled and sped up to keep up with Jana as she turned and sped up, walking towards a low building smelling like clean hay and feathers. "We have stables?" he asked.

"Of course! Haven't you seen all the pegasi flying above?" she pushed the door open and walked in. The stables was one of her favourite places at camp: it reminded her of Stirling, of her home. Her stepmother An and her aunt Joyce worked at the same riding school together and she spent a lot of time there.
But these stables were different: some horses had wings.

"This is Jinx," she said, "my favourite." She was pointing at a chestnut Pegasus with a splash of white on its head.

Alex followed behind Morgan, eyes wide as he looked again and again at the winged horses around him. There were at least a dozen of them, with regular horses mixed in. They were in all different colors, with tan stallions and grey mares side by side. Jana walked over and patted a chestnut horse, naming him Jinx. "What if we don't know how to ride?" He asked, stroking a grey-feathered one nearby.

"You'll learn quickly enough," she assured him, stroking Jinx's mane. "Most of the pegasi are really sweet. And you're the son of a wind god! I bet you'll get along with them just fine." Generally the best riders could be found in the Iris cabin -- of course there was Percy Jackson, who could talk to any form of horse life -- but she was sure children of wind deities were great fliers. "Have you really never been on horseback before?" she asked, a bit surprised. Probably because it was such a natural thing to her.

"Never," Alex replied, now stroking the pale horses mane. "I've seen other people do it, but never myself. And I'm not sure riding these will be the same as riding a horse without, you know, wings." He grinned as he looked a the pegasus, who turned and nuzzled his sleeve, looking for food. "I can't wait to try, though!"

Jana Kay weighed her options, but she had ADHD so the choice was quickly made. "Do you wanna try now?" she asked. "I've been riding since I was a small child. I know my way around the horses here so I think we can say you're safe with me."

Alex eyed all the harnesses hanging throughout the building like some giant mad spider's creation. He didn't know a thing about horses, but he had always been a quick study. "Where do we start?" he asked conspiratorially.

"Well first of all, you've got the grooming."

Jana Kay showed him the different brushes and how to use them, how to slide a hand down a horse's leg to get it to lift its hoof up - "Feel free to lean against its flank if it doesn't do it the first time" - then how to saddle and bridle the horse. She had gone for a normal horse, a spotted one about the size of a tall pony. No Pegasus. First Alex had to learn how to ride -- then they'd fly.

Alex did his best not to get overwhelmed by the various pieces of equipment he was shown. He had always thought it would be impossible for anyone to have more hairbrushes than his mother, but this horse must have had a hundred.
Once they had the saddle and bridle on, he looked at the leather contraption, then at Jana, then back at the horse. "So how do we actually get on the horse," he asked.

Jana Kay walked over to him and adjusted the stirrup. "Stirrup has to be as long as your arm. Just grab it and pull it back to about your armpit. Now," she moved around, "you hold on there," she patted the top of the saddle, "put one foot in the stirrup, and pull yourself up. Swing your other leg around and adjust the second stirrup from up there. Since it's your first time, it might take a few tries but don't worry. You'll get there." She smiled and took a step back, giving him his space but at the same time close enough to lend a hand if needed.

Alex followed Jana's instructions, first measuring the stirrup and then putting one foot in it. The problem came when he had to swing his other leg up and over. He was agile enough, sure, but the horse was unfamilar with him, and him with it. As he began to swing his leg, the horse took a step forwards, knocking his solid foot out of the stirrup. "Oof," he grunted, hitting the hay-covered floor on his back. Thank the gods for soft landings, he thought to himself. Normally, this would embarrass him, but he was feeling more and more comfortable in Jana's presence. He resolved to come back later and practice until he could do it flawlessly. "Why don't you demostrate first," he suggested, grinning up a her swimming face above him.

She hesitated, then shrugged and nodded. Alex probably didn't want her to check on him, he probably felt embarrassed. Though she wished she could show him there was no reason to.

"Like this," she said, stuck her foot into the stirrup, pulled herself up and swung her leg around. "To get off, just like this." She drew both feet back, passed one leg over the horse's neck, and slid to the ground. "You were almost there! Wanna try again?" she asked with a bright smile.

Alex walked back over to his horse, steeling himself to fall while trying to convince himself he wouldn't at the same time. He stuck one foot in the stirrup and, before he could stop himself, hurled his other leg unceremoniously over the back of the equine menace. He layed bent over the horses neck, ready to hang on should the horse begin to buck. He counted to three in hius head, and relaxed. He grinned back at Jana."Well that went better! "