↳ Cabin 1: Zeus

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Oh, and yeah, we can move it to the arena ^^' ]

@[R] Stephen Krause Aurora kept sneaking small glances at the man, wondering how anyone could look so perfect. Maybe he was another one of these demigods and he had some kind of charm spell or something, she thought to herself, quickly looking away as he looked back at her. She quickly stuffed her hands into the pockets of her shorts, fumbling with the closed knife to get her nerves away.

"F-follow ye...? U-us? Where?" Aurora stuttered out in surprise as the man looked at her again.

@[R] Aurora Blair "No, I was just... visiting." The male /god/ said, with an easy grin plastered on his face. "Thought I might as well come and see who the newcomer is."

Stephen bowed his head politely at the young man - Apollo was, funnily, his half brother. If one would look at it, nothing made sense in the gods' family tree... then again, he chose not to mull over it for the sake of saving himself from a major headache.

"So that was you - the one Bacchus told me about." Stephen chuckled. "No wonder."

"I know your question, bro." Apollo smirked. "And in order for her to know herself, she first has to know who she truly is." His eyes turned from the boy, to Aurora.

"Will you two follow me?"

[ Am thinking of moving to the arena, btw. xD ]

@[R] Stephen Krause Aurora let out a eep of surprise before she could stop herself, cursing over and over in her head at how uncareful she was. How was she to ever garner any type of respect if she just kept acting like a shy schoolgirl. This was not the time.

Taking a deep breath to steel her thoughts, Aurora stepped forth from behind the door, eyes still facing the floor. But when she glanced up, she was not met with any scary visage as she had expected from the heavy knocks. Instead, she looked into the blue eyes of a charming man, surely not too much older than her. She caught herself from making any new blunders and bowed her head politely.
"I... I'm guessing ye're the one who owns this place..." she carefully worded, making sure not to stare too much at him.

@[R] Aurora Blair "I thought you were already changing?" Upon opening his eyes again and see the other girl still in her old clothes, Stephen huffed. "To think I was buying you time... never mind." The next moment, he pushed the door open, only for it to reveal a young boy - seemingly still in his teenage - with a confident smile, radiating a bright aura... as bright as the sun.

Wait. So /he/ was the one who wanted to see her!?

'...Apollo.' Stephen could only mouth inaudibly in recognition, and the boy gave him a grin before turning to the direction of the door, as if staring straight through the heavy marble doors.

"You, the one behind the door. Come out."

@[R] Stephen Krause The moment Stephen turned around Aurora wrestled of her old shirt and grabbed the camp shirt, giving it a last hateful stare before pulling it on. Orange was not her color. She glanced down at it, studying how it looked before letting out a small gasp of surprise as three heavy knocks rung through the house.

"Y-y-yeah, d-d-done!" she stuttered out, staring at the door as if she had seen a ghost. What could possibly make such large knocks on a door like that? Oh, this was bad... He had opened the door. Hurriedly looking around, Aurora finally settled on balling the fabric of the shirt, doing her best to hide the sudden uncertainty she felt. With careful steps she moved up towards Stephen, until she was about an arm's length from him. "W-who is it?"

@[R] Aurora Blair [ Actually, Apollo happens to be in camp right now, so. xD
Gah, I need my muse back. OTL ]

'Jarring' is such an apt word, now that he thought of it. Stephen chuckled looking at Aurora's expression, nodding at her expression of gratitude. "Sure, no problem," he said, though it really wasn't something worth thanking for—at least that's how it was from his point of view. Perhaps he could help with her wardrobe next time he gets to go out of the camp, but it would have to suffice. Most possibly the children of Hermes could lend her theirs, if anything.

But realizing what his words actually meant, the boy managed a small laugh—hell, he did not even think of it! "Right..." Turning his back towards her, he closed his eyes as well. "Okay. Go change now and tell me when you're done."

It was that feeling of anticipation he had that he disliked - unable to see anything, not knowing what was happening. He took a deep breath to let himself calm, and waited... though a few moments later, three loud knocks at the front door nearly make his heart stopped.

Instinctively, he reached for the handle, pushing it so that whoever was in front of the door wouldn't barge in - all the while still with closed eyes (and yep, lucky he was actually standing near the door).

"You done yet?"

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Damnit, I just lost all I had written up as a reply T^T
No, telling her would be fine. She just has to find some way to deal with it. It's probably a lot to find out so suddenly. ]

"Hm? Yeah~" Aurora answered him, smiling as she rustled her wet hair. "I figured it would probably be better to have it short again. After all. I did tell ye that I thought it was a bit on the long end." The corner of jutted up just a tad more when he complimented her. "T-thanks."

"Oh, so this is the infamous Camp Shirt~" she giggled, quickly closing the distance between them and grabbing it from his hands. Running the orange fabric between her fingers, she closely studied it, an eyebrow arched high. "Uhm... I... I get what ye mean by it not being very... fashionable," she mumbled, turning it over and reading the text. "Quite... Jarring. Oh well, better than nothing." She smiled up at him before bowing her head. "Thanks~"

"W-wait... Change? H-here?" Aurora's eyes were wide as she looked at him. "T-then ye s-should at least turn away while I do so..." she mumbled, jutting out her bottom lip, a stubborn trait she had never managed to get rid off.

@[R] Aurora Blair [ Actually, but I think it will feel weird writing Apollo outside of his character. xD I may switch to Apollo actually, later. For now, somehow, he's the only one who can shed light to her origins. Unless you want it to remain unknown to her? xD ]

"Oh, you're here—" Stephen began, only for him to blink at what he saw the moment he turned around. Aurora waved at him - it was her - but her hair...

"You just cut your hair yourself?" He asked, tilting his head. "It looks good on you. The length, I mean." Throwing her a grin, he then grabbed the shirt he put on top of his bedcover and handed it to the female. "Here," he said. "The camp shirt."

The letters 'Camp Half-Blood' was written across it, almost in Greek style at first look. "Get changed, then we'll head out. Someone wants to see you."

He didn't know who it was, truthfully; Chiron hadn't been in the Big House, but Bacchus himself had told him to do it; trusting the god of madness was a bit weird even for him, but then again he's literally his cousin. And it doesn't seem like he's lying...

@[R] Stephen Krause [ We'll you /are/ Apollo too, so godmodding him should be allowed for you, no?~ ]

Aurora finally felt awake when she stepped out of the showers, damp hair sticking to her forehead. She quickly walked back towards the cabin she had slept in, trying her best to follow the path Stephen had showed her. She could feel eyes on her as she walked, making her speed up and look down. Why were they staring? Was it so weird with a new kid?

She tugged the bag better onto her shoulder, quickly checking that she hadn't left anything by the showers. More than anything right now, she wished people would pay her no attention, but no such luck was to be had. For a moment, Aurora felt like sprinting; just dashing back to the cabin and hiding from the weary eyes, but she didn't. She walked slowly, trying her best not to seem as frightened as she was be the onlookers.

It wasn't until she saw the large doors of the cabin that she felt some relief. With a small sigh, she burst into a sprint, quickly making the few steps up to the cabin and pushing the door open, practically tumbling inside the building. Stephen was there, humming to himself, seeming a little preoccupied with making the beds. Not wanting to disturb, she quickly got to her feet and stood there, waiting for him to finish.

"H-hey, Stephen," she called out, waving her hand slightly before it went to her hair, still dark, but now reaching just an inch below her jawline. She smiled slightly, running her fingers through the damp hair.

@[R] Aurora Blair [ I'm glad you like it ;u; and yep I was intending to timeskip, no worries--
Haha, we'll have to move into Cabin 11 pretty soon. xD I wonder if I'll have to godmod Chiron or Apollo for this... ]

The camp was awake when Stephen walked out of the shower, his beige hair slightly wet and overall refreshed by the cold water. All traces of his sleepiness were gone, and because he only took more or less ten minutes in the shower, the boy had then quickly made his way to the Big House, intending to search for the centaur before he went back to his cabin.

It was already twenty minutes before seven when the son of Jupiter pulled his old camp t-shirt out for the first time in weeks. Aurora hasn't came back yet, so he put the orange t-shirt on his bed and proceeded to make her bed, aiming for neatness. He had no idea who would be doing the inspection today, so might as well do what he could - humming to a certain song playing on his iPod while at it.

"I think I'll try defying gravity..."

His moves were precise and forceful; in no time, the bed was made and ready. Satisfied with his handiwork, he looked at his watch - there's still time, luckily.

Now where's Aurora?

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Oh, don't worry. Rusty or not... This RP (even for how short it has been) is really nice~ ]

"Y-yeah!"
Aurora smiled, about to wave after him until she realized that they no longer were alone. Around her she could see the first signs of other life in this camp; people stepping out of the various buildings around the clearing. Some looked awake and ready for a new day, while others looked more like her, still a little sleepy and with hear sticking everywhere.
Hair...

She glanced over at the showers, biting her bottom lip as she fumbled through her bag. It didn't take long before she found the thing she was looking for, pulling out a knife that was too large for her to wield in any useful sense. But it would work for this. Nodding determinedly to encourage herself she stepped forwards towards the shower.

[ Oh, maybe we should skip back to the cabin? Like a small time skip to avoid the semi-awkward "Hey, I'm describing myself singing in the shower" scenes? ^^' ]

@[R] Aurora Blair "Not everyone does," Stephen gave a small shrug - he belonged to the category that doesn't wear the camp shirt unless he /really, really, really/ has to. But admittedly, he wondered just since when the atmosphere between them turned that strange... as if she was shy around him all of a sudden.

And though he laughed at Aurora's remark, it quickly stopped; he knew he should always keep a safe distance from people, and that included her. Sporting a knowing smile, the male demigod spared a glance at her - just as the showers finally came into view.

"Well, here we are - and I'm going to take that as a yes," he said, grinning. "Okay, before I'm late - I'll be rushing. Let's see each other back in the cabin later, alright?" With a wave, the male went into one of the showers.

[ my gahd I feel so rusty ;; ]

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Again, don't worry with /when/ you reply~
I can wait ^^ ]

Aurora frowned slightly at the mistake she had made, but wasn't slow on making a retort. "Okay, ye're superheroes. But still... I get that ye need clothes and all. But... I mean.." She sighed and shook her head. "Just sounds a little borin' if everyone wears the same, no?" She glanced over at him with a thoughtful expression. "Maybe I should buy a shirt. A souvenir of sorts."

Her eyes widened as she heard his offer. "N-no, I couldn't.. I mean... It's yer t-shirt. I wouldn't want to take anything from ye," she hurried to answer, waving her hands frantically. But she stopped when he looked at her, shyly blushing as she saw his eyes looking over her body. "T-trust me... A s-size too large wouldn't be an issue," she mumbled before feeling a little more confident. "Plus, I'd probably need a size or so larger if I were to use a man's shirt. I have these you know." She grabbed at her chest before blushing again, throwing her hands down. "Oh god, what the bloody crap am I doin'....?"

@[R] Aurora Blair "We're /demi/gods, Aurora." Stephen emphasized. "I mean, most of us got here without preparations. It'd be a wardrobe disaster if we don't have clothes being sold here."

In fact, he himself had been a part of those; it was on short notice that he'd flown to this camp while sporting an injury. No doubt, his mother was worried like hell, but thankfully, there was no harm done. Except that he eventually had to go back himself to take his clothes because he just doesn't like the orange camp t-shirt.

"No probs," he said. "Or I can give you mine. The camp t-shirt, I mean. I don't use it anymore. Though..." Trailing off, he then eyed her, frowning a bit. "It might be one or two sizes too large..."

[ I may disappear during this weekend too. orz will try to reply still, though. Thanks. <3 ]

@[R] Stephen Krause [ No worries, just reply when you can~ ^^ ]

"Y-yeah, I just... Didn't really think about it," Aurora mumbled hesitantly, blushing as she checked her bag again. Surely, she had packed enough clothes, but no. No shirt. Not even a t-shirt or a top. "Camp shirts? Ye have camp shirts...?" Aurora arched a brow, glancing at him with sceptical eyes. "Didn't ye say this place was for... Uhm... Gods?" She shook her head. It was close, but she was sure it wasn't completely right. "I m-mean. Ye even said people couldn't get in here. Isn't shirts... a little counteractive?"

She kept walking next to him, trying to note down all the small details so she would remember the way back. The place was a lot larger than she had expected, definitely not something she had seen from far away, as one would think to be able with a place this size. At one point, so almost instinctively went for his arm, but quickly stopped herself from doing so.

"Ye... Ye'd lend me yer shirt...?" she asked, her voice puzzled and confused. "I g-guess that could work~" She smiled shyly, giving him a small nod of her head. "T-thank ye..."

@[R] Aurora Blair [ LOL. I'm going to reply slowly now. Sleepy and I have 3 other novella replies to do. Reread this one 3 times before I send... making sure I did not accidentally write Sunggyu again... orz xD ]

Easily, Stephen surrendered the bag to her, smiling knowingly at her words. One tends to get lost in the camp due to its sheer size; sometimes he did wonder himself whether all the humans see from outside the barrier was strawberry fields.

"You could've told me sooner, then you can probably borrow one of mine," the boy pursed his lips. "I was thinking of getting you the camp shirt myself, but the store is probably still closed now. We can go there later if that's okay with you." They were already halfway; Vesta's fire was beside them, and going back would only waste more time.

"...I'll lend you my shirt when you get back later. How's that?"

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Yeah, I remember that now *facepalm* I'm dumb >___< ]

Aurora looked around at the different buildings. Smaller structures, but they all looked ancient. Far older than what she had thought the night before. The sun was just peeking over the edge of the woods on the opposite end of the clearing, painting the sky a light tint of orange. She was about to gasp at the sight again as a small puff of wind hit her in the face, blowing her hair everywhere.

She looked around for her bag, finally spotting Stephen a little bit away carrying said bag. She burst into a sprint and got up to him, quickly grabbing the bag from his hand. "I'll... I'll try my best to remember," Aurora mumbled shyly, embarrassed about having been so transfixed a moment ago. She glanced back, trying her best to remember the white marble building from the others.

Turning back and walking with Stephen, Aurora quickly checked her pockets for everything needed. She followed it up by checking her small bag. "U-uhm... Stephen... There aren't any clothes I could borrow here... Right? I can pay you guys if you need..." she asked, pulling out a small stack of $20 bills. "I just need a shirt really... I've got underwear and all but... Uhm.. Yeah. I just need a shirt."

@[R] Aurora Blair [ I read back and I did mention he slept in pajamas xD LOL. The fails we kept doing. xD ]

"It is," Stephen nodded. Before he could answer, Aurora had been transfixed at the view—he could only smile. At first look, the camp did look awesome with the ancient beauty; eventually, he had gotten used, though. Locking the door behind them, he then grabbed the bag she dropped and continued towards the shower after wearing the sandal in front of the cabin, figuring she'd catch up to him eventually anyway.

"We can do the bed after shower. I'll be quick. Just make sure you remember the way back," he said, holding out the bag while he walked so she could take it whenever she wanted to. The morning wind had ruffled his hair again, a morning greeting.

A new day had begun... and most probably it was about to be hectic.

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Well, if he was getting dressed? Or did he sleep in his clothes and I was just being stupid? >____<
And you should sleep more. You need sleep (although that is not coming from the right person considering how little I ever sleep).
You know what. Now that I read it back, I see that he was picking up a fresh set of clothes for after he's showered and I'm just being a big dumb dumb! >___< Sorry. I should sleep more before RP. ]

"I d-don't think I need hours... Maybe half an hour tops," Aurora answered as she picked up what little she had been carrying the night before. Most of it was already in her pockets, and what little wouldn't fit was in a tiny bag thrown over her shoulder. "A-are the showers enclosed?"

She got up from the bed, glancing back at the mess before pouting. "Ye s-sure I should do anything about that first?" she asked and pointed to the bed, covers thrown aside and the pillow drained with sweat. She bit into her bottom lip, glancing over at him with unsure eyes.

But as he pushed open the doors she seemed to forget the problem at hand. Her eyes widened, the bag dropping off her shoulder as she stared out over the clearing. "I-it's... so pretty..."

@[R] Aurora Blair ( this isn't even proper I just slept for 4 hrs orz
Actually wondering myself how did I manage to wake up...
Lucky we do not have points deducted for stupid mistakes like these /shot
Btw... undressed? )

"I'll just show you," Stephen nodded, deciding he'd be wasting more time trying to explain the way, which was needless anyway. "There's no time limit, not that I know of, but it may be unwise to stay for hours there."

Having his folded clothes in his arm, he grabbed his towel and a small bag containing soaps and stuffs. "Let's go," he said, motioning to the door. The girl was acting really strange - and yet, he had seemingly more important things to dwell upon, like how was he even going to alert the wine god. And that cabin inspection--

"A cabin counselor checks the, uh, rooms, everyday in the morning. We took turns. Luckily today's not mine," the male shrugged, pushing the door open, revealing a blanket of green grass on the ground and almost ancient structures, Greek style, scattered around the place.

"Welcome to camp."

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Ai, you should rest up properly *hits your head lightly* ]

@[R] Aurora Blair ( lmao. I was typing that in a state of pure sleepiness. orz ok wait I do not want to repeat the same mistake, I just woke up xDD )

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Heh, I guess so. Although she's been haunted by those images for a lot longer than a few months ^^' Oh, btw, careful with the names there, Sunggyu~ ^^ ]

Aurora followed where he was looking and spotted a larger structure out in a clearing. "Is that where the s-showers are?" she asked, brushing some strands of damp hair out of her eyes. She hated when it would stick to her forehead. "Uhm... Is there some timelimit people enforce here...? Cause I might be a bit," she mumbled, and shook her head.
"And I wouldn't mind if you showed the way." She smiled a tad shyly. She wanted to be alone, but she wasn't sure of the way. It was better to just let him show her and then she could be alone from there.

"By seven?"
Arurora rubbed her eyes, shyly glancing away when she realized how undressed he really was. "U-uhm... W-why so early?"

@[R] Aurora Blair [ That kind of explains Aurora... xD ]

Those hands of hers...

Sunggyu gave Aurora a doubtful look, but he chose not to pursue the topic. Lightly throwing the folded blanket on top of his pillow, the male huffed and glanced out of the window; from there, he could see the Big House, still devoid of any activities.

"The showers are outside," he replied. There's no shower inside the cabins, indeed. "If you go out the door, there'd be a campfire on your left—just go straight past the cabin to your front, you can't miss it. Or should I show you the way?" The male asked, heading towards the dresser where he'd put his clothes in and pulled out a clean shirt as well as jeans; the cabin inspection was going to be held shortly.

"I'm going to shower too, anyways. We have to be ready by seven."

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Oh, I envy you... I can never get the images out of my mind when they're first there... ]

Aurora had been in an almost trance like state when Stephen finally moved. She had almost not noticed at first until he spoke, making her flinch slightly, breaking out of her trance.
"Mh, yeah... G'mornin'.." she mumbled quickly, not even giving him a second glance. Her eyes were still on her hands, shivering almost as bad as they had done when she woke up.

"Hm? No, I slept fine," Aurora lied, glancing over at him and putting on a fake smile. "It's just a little warm. T-there's no shower around here I could borrow, is there? S-somewhere I can clean up and all?" The place didn't look like it would have running water, not even close. In her mind, she could only imagine that there was a pond or something nearby that could work just as well. What she needed right now was just to get clean, dunk her head under cold water and hope the shock would clear out her mind a little.

@[R] Aurora Blair [ LOL. I forgot the images once I watch something else, like play games that has bright environment and such. They come back whenever I try to remember so I just throw them out of my mind and be done with it xD ]

The sunlight woke him up, the light entering through the glass panels blinding him momentarily the moment Stephen opened his eyes. Cabin 1 looked more like a marble hall than anything else when it wasn't dark, only with beds and dressing tables. For three whole seconds, the male demigod stared at the clouds on the ceiling - before he glanced towards the other side of the room, where Aurora had slept (or not).

"Good morning," he said, stretching before going out of bed and folded his blanket swiftly in a set of trained movements. It was only on taking a second look at her that he realized how... haggard she was actually looking. Then he remembered that she'd been awake when he stirred some time at dawn; it was no wonder.

"Can't sleep through the night?"

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Oh, I'm not gonna say . Horror movies are hell for me. I can see as little as three seconds and have nightmares for the next four weeks. ]

The next few hours whizzed by as Aurora sat there staring at her hands. They were shivering beyond anything she had experienced earlier. She hadn't been this bad since... that day. It was first when the early rays of the morning sun flashed over the enchanted ceiling that she looked back up, realizing she had probably been sitting there for hours now. She felt exhausted, a fact she attributed to the nightmare and lack of sleep. But there was something else too. Like her whole body was drained of her usual energy.

Maybe this place really was as he said. A place of the gods. Maybe this was their way of punishing her for what had happened; what she had done. She hugged the covers a little closer for warmth, glancing over at Stephen. She wondered if there was a shower nearby; somewhere where she could clear her thoughts, but she didn't dare wake him. After the horrible images she had witnessed that night she dared not touch him. Who knew what could happen.

@[R] Aurora Blair [ The net I use is kind of the cheapest net available in my country, so yeah. I'm safe when on tablet but my tablet lags so much lately e.e
And your post just gave me goosebumps. I hate horror movies. LOL xD ]

When he stirred awake, Stephen still felt he didn't get enough sleep as is - it felt as if he'd just slept for a few hours, which wasn't probably wrong. The sun had barely risen when the male opened his eyes once more, the ceiling still dark but slightly brighter than how it was when they went to sleep. Somewhere along his slumber, his blanket had been pushed to the edge of the bed, with one edge of the fabric touching the marble floor.

Yawning widely, he had almost decided to go back to sleep - if it weren't for the female sitting on the bed some distance from his. He wondered why, and yet, he didn't call her or anything - he just laid there and watched for he didn't know how long, until he drifted off to sleep again.

Unknown to both, it had been a vision similar to how he'd gotten into that camp - fatally wounded, and there was that instance where he'd been thrown against a wall by the empousa who had been targeting him. But it possibly wasn't the explanation to what she was seeing. He wouldn't know.

No one there would know, actually, unless they dared to ask the Spirit of Delphi...

@[R] Stephen Krause [ Ah, well, that would explain it. My home network is pretty too, but mostly because of the modem given to me by the NP. though, but I'm trying to fix something better right ]

Aurora didn't know how many hours had passed when she jolted up in bed. Large beads of sweat were running down her forehead, her arms and legs shivering despite being terribly warm. It had merely seemed like a few moments ago that she had been talking to the inhabitant of the cabin, laughing heartily along with what they talked about.

She glanced around, her vision still a little hazy. It was hard to distinguish what was real and what was just lingering flashes off her nightmares. And then she saw him. Laying still on the other end of the room. She could feel her heart suddenly speeding up before a large flash crackled over the ceiling, lighting up most of the cabin.
And she saw blood.
A large streak of blackish red smear against the stone wall behind the boy.
She wanted to scream, but her vocal chords wouldn't make a sound. She just stared at the wall, wide eyes about to brim with tears. Then another flash crackled over the fictive sky, lighting up the room again, but the walls were bare. Just the polished stone that had been there before.

Aurora jolted upright in bed, gasping for air. Cold sweat was running down her forehead, her palms damp and uncomfortable. She quickly glanced around, spotting Stephen sleeping soundly at the other end of the room. The young girl sighed, lowering her head into her hands. What was that dream...?