Magical Spear

   We gathered at the dining pavilions for dinner on my third day. All the cabins were separated to their tables and we began eating. In front of me was a heaping plate of beans, bread, bowls of soup and some kind of meat. The goblet next to the plate automatically began filling with a Shirley Temple as soon as I sat down. I nibbled at my bread and beans but didn't touch the meat. I didn't feel hungry. It was already my third day, and there hadn't been any sign of my godly parent. I didn't even know if it was my mom or dad! 
   I saved my meat for the campfire. We all sat down on benches and began singing and scraping our food into the hot flames, which started changing colors.
   Suddenly, a dull crimson light filled the clearing. Everyone's eyes turned to look at me.  I heard some gasps and... laughs?
   I quickly looked around to see if I was either on fire or transformed into some crazy alien. I lifted my eyes above my head and saw a flaming spear washed in blood red light.
   "Wha?!...." I gasped.
   I heard other people snickering, gasping and I even heard someone whisper "Good luck to the noob."
   Chiron knelt down on one hoof. "Hail, Saffron, daughter of Ares." 
   An awkward silence hung in the chilly air. Then the flaming light faded away and everyone went back to laughing and chatting.
   Levine finds me after only about 10 seconds of me just standing there, shocked.
   "Oh My Gods!!!" She almost screamed. "You're my sister!!"
   "Half-sister." I corrected quietly.
   "You know what I mean. Why are you so down?" She asked.
   "Ares=Clarisse." 
   "Oh..."
   Chiron clapped his hands and everyone turned to look at him. 
   "Time for the campers to resort to their cabins for the night."
   My stomach churned uneasily. I bet Clarisse really liked me after the incident in the woods. 
   I saw the group of Ares campers and Levine pulled me to join them.
   "You!!" I heard Clarisse snarled angrily. 
   I spun on my heel to face her. Something about the counselor made me want to punch something. Or someone. I had heard I sometimes had that effect on people. "Ya." I snapped. "I was claimed by Ares. Did you expect me to go to the Aphrodite cabin or something??" 
   Clarisse scowled and stared me straight in the eye. She had to look down on me, which made me feel small, but I returned the fiery gaze.
   Clarisse turned away. "Everybody go back into the cabin. Nothing to see here, just some scrawny 12-year-old."
   That pushed it. I gave Clarisse an uppercut to the jaw, adrenaline pounding through my veins.
    She snapped her head around to look at me. Her eyes were fueled with hatred. The next thing I knew, there was a searing pain in my jaw and my vision was blurry. I stumbled, almost falling, but Levine caught me and hauled me upright. 
    My vision cleared and I saw Clarisse smirking and towering above me, waiting for me to take the next move. I stomped down on her foot, hard. She gave out a screech and grasped her foot in pain. Then I nailed her stomach, causing Clarisse to double over in pain. Anger pulsed through me, but before I had the chance to give Clarisse another blow, Levine pulled me back. Only then did I realize that everyone was looking at me. I blushed bright red. 
   "Calm down!" Levine hissed in my ear. "You're going to get in trouble with Chiron!"
   Clarisse straightened herself and glared at me. I met her gaze with burning eyes. 
   "Everybody. Back. Into. The. Cabin." Clarisse barely had enough self-control to push the words out of her mouth.
   Everyone stumbled inside, silent. I suddenly felt exhausted. My adrenaline was done. Inside my soul I could feel a swell of pride, knowing that I practically beat an 18-year-old in a fight. It was exhilarating. Levine walked quietly beside me. 
   I realized, as I walked into the cabin, that I didn't have a place to sleep. Gods, this wouldn't end well. I expected Clarisse to put me in some scraggly, dirty, moldy bed (even though a lot of the occupied beds were like that). 
  "Saffron." Clarisse growled through clenched teeth. 
  I gave her a sarcastically sweet smile. "Yes, counselor?" I trilled.
  That only deepened her scowl. "You," she pointed her finger to an old bunk bed in the corner. "Sleep over there." 
   Levine stifled a gasp. She pulled me to the side and whispered. "Do you know who sleeps--" She pointed to the bunk. "There?"
   I gave her a puzzled look. "No.."
   Her face widened into a smile. "Only the cutest guy in the Ares cabin!"
   I wrinkled my nose. "You have a crush on your half-brother?" 
   She blushed bright red. "N-no.. I was just-- I don't.. I just think he's cute!" Her voice was loud, and half the cabin gave her glares. 
    I laughed a bit and walked over to the bed. My bunk was the top one. I laid down on the lumpy mattress and rested my head on the hard, smelly pillow. It wasn't as bad as the orphanage living conditions, fortunately. The rest of the night was quiet, and I fell asleep quickly.