Chapter 3: I Meet the Cupbearer of the Gods.

We spent the next two hours exploring all of camp. The arena, the dining pavilion, the stables, and the forges and armory. I thought it was neat, like a town of half-bloods, ready for whatever weird creature attacks. Finally, we reached the cabins. They were all distinct, and seemingly newly renovated.

"A past demigod decided to redesign the cabins to be more efficient and less.. Tacky? Really, it was like a mess of buildings, but now it just looks like a neighborhood with a lot of personality," she explained as we walked. 

Coming from the dining pavilion, the first cabin we saw looked like a witch's cottage. Strange plants and glowing things surrounded the place, and it looked a bit lopsided. On the door was a worn iron plate with the number 20 engraved on it. 

"Hecate," Sephora pointed out, "Goddess of Magic. They're actually pretty nice people, just don't get on their bad side…"

The second cabin we passed was cabin nineteen. It looked like a modern house, complete with a pompous looking waterfall fountain near the glass door. It was in shades of white and dark grey, with some copper tones in it. 

"Tyche. Her kids are… Interesting. They're cool, sure, but they're very finicky and hard to get along with. I wouldn't recommend getting on their bad side, unless you want bad luck."

Then there was cabin eighteen. It looked like a nice, italian style villa with a flourishing fountain near the door. Statues of people were positioned, as if dipping their hands into the fountain, and it dawned on me. Each statue resembled a different point in life, from childhood to the elderly stages. 

"Hebe?" I guessed, earning a nod from Sephora. 

"Goddess of Youth. A good place to go if you want a spa day, I'm not even joking," Sephora pointed towards a sign. Greek letters spelled out 'Hebe Cabin Spa Day! 50% off Saturdays Only!' How I could read it? I couldn't tell you. Maybe it had something to do with being a demigod.

The next cabin reminded me of pictures I saw of favelas. It looked like three buildings pressed into one, in bright colors of green, yellow, and orange. A dirt basketball court was right in front of the cabin, with the one hoop connected to the second story of the cabin. In graffitied letters, the words 'Cabin 17' were painted in bold blue, green, pink, and orange. 

"Nike, Goddess of Victory. Her kids are natural athletes, and they aren't really ones for camp games. Which is cool by everyone here, since they always win," Sephora snickered, gesturing to the path that was opened up, into a semi-circle courtyard. In the middle, there was a platform with a burning brazier. Campers sat around it, chatting or polishing their weapons. "You'll be claimed tonight, so we'll figure out which cabin is yours." 

Starting from the right side, there was a very stereotypical cabin building. It had two floors, and an market-like awning around the front, where different carts and crates were stored. On the door, two silvery metal ones stood- the number 11. I could guess from the caduceus carved into the door that it was Hermes. 

Then there was cabin nine, a heavy stone building with a smokestack on one side, and a metal roof. Outside, a camper was hammering a piece of iron into the shape of a circle. Hephaestus, I presumed. I began to get the hang of it. 

Cabin seven was a yellow house that looked like it belonged in the suburbs of California. All around, yellow plants grew, surfboards were displayed, and an orange sun was painted near one of the second story windows. Around the side, near the porch, a small 'Medic' sign was hanging, gently rocking in the breeze. Apollo.

Next to it was something that made me nearly laugh out loud. Changing from sunny and bright, cabin five looked like an old spanish fortress. The top was styled like a castle, with battlements and barbed wire lining it. A small watchtower was on one side, armed with a large crossbow. The door was made of heavy wood and metal, and must've been a workout to open. I assumed it was for Ares, the God of War.

Then there was cabin three. It was a quaint cottage, that reminded me of the old bay cottages out on the islands in Maine. It was a sort of greyish-blue concrete on top, with a foundation made of smooth, gray stones that had seashells embedded into them. The roof looked like patchwork, and displays of fake, ceramic and metal fish appeared to swim across the concrete walls. It couldn't be anything other than Poseidon's cabin. 

Finally, we got to cabins one and two. They were almost complete copies of one another, and the only ones to look like temples. Cabin one was the largest, with marble columns rising up and holding an intricately carved roof. Lightning-like carvings wrapped around the columns. The King of the Gods himself, Zeus. 

Cabin two was almost exactly the same, but it was less sharp, and had peacock feather designs all around the columns. The top of the door frame was shaped like a peacock's tail on display… It was quite beautiful.

"Here, come in. This is where I stay, Hera's cabin," Sephora smiled fondly, looking up at the doors of the cabin. "Come in, I'll show you around." She motioned for me to follow, and I did- going up the stairs and inside. It looked like a temple, a large center room with a statue of the goddess gazing down upon whoever entered the cabin. It was a bit colder in here than expected, the white marble walls and floor not doing much to help. Off to the side, however, were a set of white stained glass doors, feint silvery light seeping through. 

"Hera allows me to stay here, and as tribute, I make offerings to her at supper, or when I can, and of course take care of her cabin. She's been rather kind to me, honestly, though she isn't so friendly towards demigods," stated Sephora, as she headed for the glass doors. 

The glass was too milky to see into, but the light still came through, illuminating the cold, marble room. She pushed them open, revealing a bedroom. Of course, the walls, floor, and ceiling were the same white marble, but there was a white desk, a bed covered in all sorts of soft blankets, a lamp, and a window that had a fake view of a garden at night time. It was like an instagram blogger's dream room. 

"This is my room… It was originally a cleaning supply closet for the harpies, but they moved that stuff to the attic of the Big House" she explained, picking a book up from her desk, "Oh, and our activities director should be around soon. The Apollo kids are hosting a slam poetry night, and it gets pretty funny. They do these things where they bring up random campers, and pit them against one another. Man, the Ares kids are pretty great at it!"

"Apollo? Isn't he the god of the sun, and stuff like that?" I rose a brow. I knew he had a few more things, like archery, and healing. 

"The sun, healing, poetry, music, archery," Seph began, counting on her fingers as she did, "prophecy, dance, plagues-"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it. He's got a lot of stuff he's the god of. Dang, he's pretty well-rounded," I mumbled, "Or, the Greeks were just lazy with giving Gods their jobs?"

Footsteps echoed through the cabin, the main doors creaking closed. 

"Not necessarily. They needed someone to take the mantle," a soothing voice echoed behind me. I turned, meeting eyes with a tall, tan, lean young man with curly black hair and bluish-green eyes. There seemed to be a soft glow emitting from him, almost like Atalanta's aura. "Hello, Ren. I'm Ganymede, the Camp Activities director."

"You're Ganymede?" I was shocked. I expected something… Different. "Like, the god's cupbearer?"

"Mhmm, I was offered the job of taking care of demigods during the summertime. You see, Hebe and Iris aren't very fond of me, so whenever I can, I take the chance to show my worth. So," Ganymede gestured around, "I'm here. I'm also a minor god, but nothing says a minor god can't overlook camp stuff!"

"So it's like a vacation for you?" I tilted my head, trying to think. If he lives in the castle of the gods, on Mount Olympus, is this like torture, or is this a vacation? Which was worse?

"Kind of, I'm still expected to return when called on, and I can't really directly interfere with things such as quests or prophecies, so I suppose it's just a second job- unpaid, of course," Ganymede rolled his eyes, looking over his shoulder at the statue of Hera, "Hera advocated for me, and for my position down here. I've spent countless years watching heroes, telling stories, and reading the stars, so I know a thing or two."

"The stars?" I couldn't help but ask.

"He's also the constellation of Aquarius, Ren. The waterbearer? Yeah, that's him," Sephora answered, her tone of voice in the 'matter of fact' way she always spoke, when being sarcastic.

"Exactly. Granted, the meaning behind it was a bit questionable, it was an honor. When I was fetching water, Zeus came down from Olympus disguised as a giant golden eagle. He lifted me up, and brought me with him, and the rest is ancient history. I became the cupbearer, then eventually a minor god." Ganymede spoke with such fondness, despite describing what I'd like to call 'Greco-Typical Kidnapping.' 

"Yeah, that's…" I began, but Sephora grabbed my hand, cutting me off.

"Oh, that reminds me! You haven't met some of the other campers yet! Is Lark around, Ganymede?" She asked, her smile brimming brightly.

"Oh, Lark? He is, but he's currently off preparing for satyr scouting. He told me to let you all know when he would be back, which is… In a week. There's a new demigod in Baltimore that needs help reaching camp," said Ganymede, who was now twirling a finger in his hair, "I'm sure he'll be back soon, though. He's never gone for too long."

"So, I'm a half-god, you're a god, and my friend is a half-goat?" I summarized, earning nods from both Ganymede and Sephora. 

"Let's go, there's a lot of camp left for you to see."