Remember when we were happy? (OPEN)

Malcolm was shaken for weeks after the zombies dissipated. They were there one day, and then gone the next. Most of the people Malcolm knew were dead or broken beyond repair. Malcolm wasn’t good with people, never was, so he just sat there. And watched their hearts fall from their bodies. His siblings were pretty torn up, no matter how much ambrosia and nectar they drank. A broken leg here, a lost arm there, a sibling accidentally killing another sibling over in the corner.... The list was endless.

Being pretty much useless in every way, Malcolm buried himself in books and tried to forget. He did not want to be around these broken people, mainly because they had a sense of helplessness that Malcolm himself wanted to forget. And partly because Malcolm felt apathetic towards them. That isn’t to say that he was apathetic, just that he did not suffer the way they had, no matter how shaken he was. He had not lost anyone so important to him that he would not be able to live without them.

Malcolm crossed his legs and curled himself into a tight ball over his book in one of the bean bag chairs in the corner of the library. His grey sweatshirt was pulled up over his head, letting only part of his straw colored hair show. Malcolm ignored the small noises around him, making sure that all he heard were the voices in his head. He was vaguely aware of a presence coming his way, but over the past week, Malcolm had gotten very good  at ignoring people. He always had been, but this necessity to be alone in another world at this time forced Malcolm to refine his skills.

Just his luck. Another camper had come to bother him. He gave a barely audible sigh and tried to ignore her. He let the polystyrene pellets inside the chair come up around him so that he was almost sitting on the floor and tried to look as inconspicuous as possible as he watched the girl attempt to read over the top of his book.

Malcolm was the kind of person that needed to know how he should approach someone else before he actually did. He could tell from her curious expression that she was new. She did not understand the terrors that had swept through his home days before. Which is why Malcolm was not surprised in the least when she turned to him and asked about the zombies. He raised his eyebrows, but did not condemn the girl for asking. Malcolm knew that he would have, given he had been in her situation. ”Zombies.... There were some children of Hades who summoned them. They’re all gone now.” He said, just loudly enough so that the girl could hear him. Malcolm’s voice was hoarse, as if he hadn’t spoken in days (which was true).

Malcolm shrugged as the girl apologised for asking about the zombies. Normally he was the wrong person to cross, but as the days had gone by, Malcolm learned that he was one of the nicest campers. Most of the people who had been there over the summer were too beaten up to even bother trying to be nice, but Malcolm did not suffer a substantial loss and found himself sought out more than usual. Perhaps it was because compared to other, Malcolm was not doing badly, or perhaps it was because of the uncalled for attention, but Malcolm seemed to be a lot more helpful and nicer. He decided, then and there, that he was going to try to be more helpful around camp to people who asked. Malcolm generally prefered being alone, but that was because it gave him time to think. His brain was constantly working (often he was doing complex math inside his head), and Malcolm got very frustrated when people interrupted him, ruining whatever train of thought was passing through his brain. Malcolm’s brain was a little bit like a powerful computer that hadn’t been backed up. It worked quickly and very well, but until Malcolm finished the thought or calculation, he could not remember it if he was interrupted.

Malcolm was half listening to the girl, and therefore did not notice her grinning at him. He frowned back, barely catching the words that came out of her mouth. A daughter of Aphrodite... Malcolm normally got annoyed with the shallow children of the god of love, but this girl seemed alright. ”I’m Malcolm. Athena.” Malcolm lifted the book off his lap so the girl could see. It was about the middle ages, in the reign of Henry XIII. The book had a bright red cover with bold letters that read Wolf Hall. Malcolm liked this book very much and he grinned from behind the large book that covered his face.