Winterbranch Camp

[Rye]

The bus slowly trundled thought the motorway, rain was starting to come down lightly onto the windows. Outside was far different than the suburbs and skyscrapers from before. Now it was small shally towns for skiing and outdoors activities , hiking and the like. All around them were huge stone mountains , mist clinging to the tops of them with the faint outline of snow near the top. Trees flanked them at every side , Long thin pine trees with dark green needles colouring them with only darkness and browns visible through them. The bus itself was warm and full of happy campers heading to the camp. The flat tarmac soon gave way to rough gravel as they turned down a different road. Large stone pillars flanked them with a sign up at the front "Winterbranch Estate" was carved up on one of the massive stones. The ground below was a nice golden colour , but was darkening with the rain. The trees continued to follow them at the sides. A iron fence separating them from any further encroachment. Well trimmed and lively grass lined the road, freckled with huge Rhododendrons bushes , fully in bloom with massive red flowers to add some summer colour to the area.

After some more time of driving they came up to a large tall house. Made of grey stone it looked rather regal , with large Gothic windows and wooden decoration. There were even battalments up on the top as well as a few pointed roofs. It didn't look all that fairy tale like , but it looked like a real castle. The Bus pulled up and hauled the breaks. The parents got the children and their bags up and lead them inside. The inside was equally as practical. Cheap wooden floors but well polished met them after the stone steps as they were ushered into a main hall where they were told to sit and wait while paperwork changed hands and they could chat a little to themselves.

The room had the echoes of a formal ballroom. Wooden panelled walls with old varnished wood , tall ceilings with stone arches holding it up, a large iron chandelier held by a chain , no candles though. The only window was shedding in light from the front of the house where they came in, giving them enough to see everything there was to see. A large marble fireplace sat square in the centre with a metal mesh over it to keep kids fingers away from it. above it was a sun stain where a formal painting or picture would hang, but was missing.

Luke obediently sat down to the side near the fireplace and let his bag slip off , sliding down to sit cross legged. He was a rather small boy , not frail , but could do with some overeating. He wore a light powder blue hoodie and dark jeans today. Something comfy for the ride. He had golden hair , cut long so it encompassed his ears. Still a boyish haircut but had the danger of growing on and becoming a girls one. His fringe came down and swept upwards , covering his left eye, some cream peaked through the sides where the strands were thin and showed that it was bandaged up. The other was a deep emerald green , but was lazily looking about , waiting for something to happen. He looked at his phone. His bars had slowly been dwindling , his wifi having given up hours ago and he was now down to emergency only calls. He wondered why he even brought his charger.

[Sundial]

Justin sat on the bus, head leant on the glass, waiting for time to whittle away until they arrived. He’d gone through all the games on his phone, fiddled around with all the settings, tried to frantically send off messages in brief sections of coverage, until his phone had given up the last of its charge lifeless. All the while the bus ride continued, no sign of their destination getting any closer. He knew he had a novel, as well as some stray bits of paper stashed in his backpack. That’s what his Mum would tell him to do. He grabbed the novel and tried getting through the first few pages but quickly gave up. He couldn’t be bother holding his attention span. Not to mention he could feel himself becoming travel sick from looking. Justin groaned, and resigned himself to resting his head on the window, vaguely taking in the scenery. In spite of himself, Justin found himself in awe of the landscape. It looked like something out of Lord of the Rings, but instead of having to walk the whole way, they were just taking a bus. He had never been to this part of the countryside before and it was a far cry from his home in the city.

The bus took a sharp turn, coming onto the bumpy gravel road now. Justin felt his head get rattled along with the windows, and sat back up, rubbing his head indignantly. He looked around again, seeing the pillars and the iron gate move past. “Winterbranch Estate…” He said aloud. He snorted a little. Funny name for a summer camp. He wondered what kind of place would have the name Winterbranch Estate. Sounded fancy, maybe it was really nice. His expectations fell as the main building came into view. It was ancient. Really big, but ancient. His mind was drawn again to Lord of the Rings, except this time it was if all the castles had been owned by vampires.

Eventually the bus pulled up, and Justin clambered to get out. He had only worn shorts and a tee shirt, so he hurried to get inside, out of the rain. Half of him was glad they had finally made it to their destination while the other half of him felt the sinking feeling in his stomach, knowing he’d be spending another 2 weeks on Summer Camp.

“Do I have to go this year?” He’d whined, when his Mum had told him. She responded like a parent would. “But you love going on camp.” She was right. Justin had complained last year as well but ended up not wanting to leave. But moreso this year, Justin was beginning to feel that he was too old for summer camp. He was 14 now and becoming more interested in ‘hanging out’ with his friends as well as trying to talk to girls. This was reinforced by his recent growth spurts. Still lanky and childlike, but beginning to get taller and broader, or as Justin saw it ‘getting buff’. All this stuff was still new to him, but he liked how it made him feel mature. Summer camp was the opposite of that. The leaders always treated everyone like kids, and there were always rules and schedules to follow.

He continued following the other campers into the building, quickly trying to fix his short brown hair, which he liked spiked up and to the side. Getting older had also come with him beginning to care about his appearance. Now that he was inside, Justin began to appreciate the scale of the building. The place was huge. The ceiling went on forever, and they must have walked past tens of rooms before arriving in the main hall. He quickly grabbed a spot on the ground near the fireplace, trying to sit with people his own age. There were a few people his own age, but the majority of campers were younger than him. He shivered. It was cold in here and his poorly chosen clothes weren’t helping. He sat and waited, as voices and sounds echoed through the vast room.

[Rye]

The murmuring continued for a bit until some adults entered. They were dressed in dark green with the look of a scout about them with the neck tie and colour scheme. The main one who stood up front seemed nice , a big man with greying hair and a beard. He clapped his hands together to achieve shock and silence so he could speak "Hello campers. I assume the journey went well? Welcome to Winterbranch Camp. Or if you noticed the sign ; Winterbranch estate, that's because this camp was formally a royal estate. We acquired it and turned it into a camp for your guys. Much better I think. So , some things you need to know. Older campers and Rangers here will stay here in the big house in the rooms upstairs. Younger ones and parents have the log cabins outback. The mess hall is also in here as well as bag storage , laundry , gear preparation, the common room and other things." he said looking around at them to get a age estimate for numbers , seemed like the numbers checked out

"Now we have schedules , we've mixed you all about to try and split you from anyone you know. Make some new friends here as it's all part of the adventure. But now we have to go one to some rule you've all got to hear. The first is about woodland trails. You will get some downtime and if you want we have some trails you can walk. They're marked with coloured posts. Blue for anyone can go on, Yellow means you need a buddy to go on it. Red is for only if you have a ranger with you, and black is rangers only. On the trails you may see things that look interesting or curious. We cannot stress this enough. Do not go off the path. There is achers of woodland out there with bad terrain that we haven't mapped and the trees make a helicopter useless. So if you're lost there's a good chance you'll stay lost. If you happen to see other coloured posts. Ignore them. They are most likely old routes , emergency routes or ones we're still testing. Next rule is just so everyone knows. Any bedwetters need to tell a ranger ASAP. We don't use plastic covers on our beds , only a cloth cover so it can't be soaked. If you wet the bed or have an accident that's one warning. The second earns you some pull ups and third time is diapers. We don't shame anyone for this it's just to keep laundry down. If anyone is homesick , please tell someone and we have some things we use to remedy this. The next thing is Internet and phone signal. We are a far bit from civilisation and the phone lines do like to fail on us, so you might as well leave them by your bed. It'll only weigh you down. In an emergency we do just run down to the village but you really are in the middle of nowhere out here." he declared

"I think that's all the rules. Aside from the normal no bullying and what not. As for what you will be doing. You will have three activities a day , morning , afternoon and evening. Split by down time , food and what not. You will be assigned a ranger who will look after you and take you and your group to the activities. Now , any questions you think others might need to know. Ask them now. For more personal things , tell your ranger." he said pausing.

Once questions were done he started sending off the younger ones into groups by reading off their names, letting the file off with one of the adults up front.

[Sundial]

Justin kept mostly to himself for a bit, looking around the room and looking at any other campers who caught his eye. It was a little shady in here, the floors were kinda creaky and there was definitely dust around. He could see it floating through the air in the few beams of light coming into the room. It definitely wasn't an unpleasant place, but it certainly wasn't home either. He looked up at the ceiling now, seeing the iron chandelier. No lights so far as he could see. They would've turned them on if there were. Justin had an awful thought and felt his stomach drop. Would they have electricity here? Oh man... How were they meant to do anything without electricity? Summer Camp was meant to at least try to be fun.

He began looking through the campers now. There were maybe 50 kids in total and then probably close to 20 adults. As far as he could tell, most of them were younger, although he did know there were some people his age. He did notice a slightly smaller, blonde haired boy, fiddling with his phone. This guy had the right idea. Justin went to grab his phone as well, before saltily remembering that it was out of charge. For a second he considered talking to the boy, but wasn't really sure what he would say. Around his own friends, he just talked about things they liked, movies, video games. He had no idea what this other kid liked and decided against it. His mind turned back to home for a second, thinking about all the stuff he was missing out on with his school friends.

He was quickly brought back to reality as the ranger began speaking, half paying attention, half zoned out. Most of the stuff would just be standard summer camp stuff anyway, He'd heard it before. His attention piqued a little as the ranger mentioned that the older kids would stay in the main building, and that this was formerly a royal estate. It was kinda cool, he guessed. He hoped that at least the rooms they'd be in were nicer, and warmer, than the room they were currently in. His interest was piqued again as the ranger talked about, the trails and unmapped wilderness. Justin's imagination immediately went to trekking through mud, clambering over fallen trees and crossing rapid rivers. That was more like it, though he was a bit annoyed at the restrictions. Looking around, some of the rangers still looked to be teenagers, maybe 18 or 19. He was only 4 years younger, so he didn't see why they could do this stuff and he couldn't. He'd even done some hiking before with his parents, so it wasn't like he didn't know anything. He considered for a second whether he'd just break the rules, but in he'd probably just get in trouble and have even less fun than he would normally. Still, it could be fun.

With that, he was interested to hear what the ranger had to say next, but nearly scoffed aloud when started on the next topic. He knew this camp was going to be for little kids. Seriously? Diapers? Usually the leaders were a bit subtle about this sort of thing, but they were just telling this to everyone, like it actually applied to him. He hated just being bunched in with the little kids, who still needed their parents with them on camp. His excitement was back down to ground level and he zoned out for the rest of the speech. It was just going to be more rules for the little kids anyway.

He watched as other campers filed out of the room. He wondered briefly who his ranger would be and who he'd be bunking with. He held onto a small glimmer of hope, that because of the building's size, he might get a room to himself or that his ranger would be cool and let him get away with stuff.

[Rye]

The kids filed out one by one until the last few groups were left Soon enough Luke and Justin were called up. The ranger they were given looked maybe 5 years older than them , if not less. He had dark rosewood coloured hair , a rather young face with a few cuts and what not. His eyes were a warm flint grey. He wore the same green bigged up scout uniform as the rest , but he looked capable , strong even. He assembled his small group and took them up the stairs "Okay , you're up here , first floor , room 14, meaning first floor ,fourth room. The stair way was large , spiral and oak, the carpet was nothing to look at but the walls were nice , decorated with pictures and whatnot. In the bright side it looked like the building had aged in a good way. Lights and lamps hung from the ceiling and sat on tables. "I'm Danny by the way and I'll be looking after you for your stay. " he said as he opened up the room for them to head inside.

The room was simple , three sets of bunk beds , chests of drawers for clothes , two windows overlooking the grounds outside "okay. So kids this is new for you and I bet you're all a bit hungry. Dump your bags and meet me down stairs and I'll show you where the food hall is and you can get some food and I'll take you on your first activity after that" he said leaving them alone in the room.

Luke put his bag down on a bottom bunk and looked around. He spotted Justin and walked over to him "hey" he said striking up a conversation with him "mind if I hold onto you heading down the stairs , I tend to trip and walk into things alot in new places" he said with a smile , always a good way to break the ice was to ask for help with his coordination "I'm Luke by the way , what's yours?" he asked trying to be friendly

[Sundial]

Justin followed the ranger through the house, taking in the layout of the building, and also sizing up the ranger that was taking them around. On one hand, he was kinda young, and could be cooler, more relaxed on the rules and all that. But on the other hand, he resented that he would be bossed around by someone not much older than him. Justin didn't realise this, but his boy like features were much more apparent standing next to the older boy. His features were still round and soft, and his brown eyes were still bright. Still, at least he'd be sharing a room with someone who looked kinda interesting. He also breathed a sigh of relief seeing that there was indeed electricity here. He might of overacted a little bit.

He looked around the room as he was let inside, tossing his bag on one of the top bunks. It didn't look so bad. They had a view, a bit of sun and a fair bit of room. Could even be kind of nice. He looked around the room for a bit, and had a sudden realisation. "Hey uhhh... Where's the bathroom here?" He asked as Danny began walking from the room.

Justin was busy rummaging through his bag for a jumper when Luke started talking to him. "Oh hey." He said. The next sentence took him off guard and his face pulled to a confused frown. "What? You want me to-" He said, turning around to face the boy. He was cut off as he noticed the bandage running over the boy's eye. He quickly tried to turn his expression neutral, but internally kicked himself and groaned. He felt bad for the kid, he really did, but also wished that it didn't have to be him that dealt with it. But what else was he going to do? Let him tumble down the stairs every morning. He looked away and scratched his head a little. "Um yeah... I guess that's fine." He said. He wondered exactly what the other boy meant by holding on and hoped nobody would pay too much attention to it. Subconsciously, Justin's embarrassment was partly due to the other boy's slightly feminine features.

"I'm Justin." He said, jumping down from the bunk. "Ummm... I was going to head down now, so if you're ready to go." He said uncomfortably. Would he have to follow the boy every time he wanted to get up some stairs. Just another great thing to look forward to on summer camp.

(Just to clarify, is it just them in the room?)

[Rye]

Danny stopped at the door "Oh right , down the hall , boys one is down the hall , the girls are up one floor so no need for you to go up. It's a communal bathroom but it's got showers with curtains so no need to worry about modesty" he said and then headed on his merry way.

Luke smiled "Aww don't look so worried , just a cripple asking for an arm. Don't worry. Once I get my distance right I'll be fine. Just the first few times in a new location can be difficult. Unfortunately I asked you first and it's hard to say no" he said with a knowing look. He was pretty nice about the whole thing either way "So , what do you think of our caretaker? Seems a little young for me" he observed , he hoped to try and get a conversation rolling with him but was having trouble trying to come up with topics "what did you think of the place on your way up?" he asked , looping his arm around his "walk me into a doorway and I won't be happy" he chuckled and walked with him towards the stairs. He used him for support using his other hand to hold onto the balcony as he descended "what do you think they'll have made for us?" he asked

(hm , don't know , up to you I guess)

[Sundial]

Justin nodded as Danny explained everything though he cringed a little at the idea of communal bathrooms and showers. He wasn't too concerned about cleanliness or hygiene but he didn't like the idea of just being covered by a shower curtain, no door locks or anything. And then getting changed with only a towel to cover up. He'd feel, well, naked. He'd just have to shower before everyone else.

"Oh... uhh, yeah I guess..." Justin said, replying to Luke. The boy had read his mind pretty well and it made Justin slightly uncomfortable, but also reassured and relaxed. The other boy understood the situation and knew that it would be a little awkward for him. He gave Luke a little nervous smile, before beginning to walk with Luke out of the room. "I guess he is young" Justin replied vaguely, referring to Danny. He had of course, had similar thoughts, but wasn't sure if Luke shared his annoyance at this fact. "I hope he's cool." He said, staying neutral.

"I don't know... It feels like it's out of a history book. I mean, it's pretty old. I wonder how old it is?" He said, thinking on it for a moment. "I guess it's kinda neat. Uhhh... So what do you think?", he asked trying to continue the conversation.

He let out a slight laugh at Luke's comment as the two began to walk down the stairs. He still felt uncomfortable about the whole thing and a little self conscious. He kept looking around, checking to see if anyone saw him walking the other boy down the stairs. Of course, people did see, but nobody paid any mind. Occasionally, he also took a quick glance at Luke, quietly checking the boy was managing alright with the stairs.

He sniffed the air a little trying to see what they were having for lunch. Mostly, he could just smell the musty interior of the building, but their was definitely some kind of food smells. Some kind of meat, maybe? "I don't know. I hope it's good though. And lots of it." He hadn't eaten since breakfast and was getting hungry.

(Let's just keep it simple, with the two of them. Are you enjoying it so far? Any issues?)

[Rye]

(Fair enough , I am yes , don't let my timing throw you ,I'm just dealing with life stuff)

Luke slowly descended the stairs, one careful step at a time "Dunno , we might get a history lesson about the place if we ask. Although depends what we're doing first. Hope the rain clears up" he said looking out one of the windows as he reached the bottom of the stairs. Once he got to the end he split from him "Thanks for the help , hopefully won't need you again. No fun babysitting the one eyed kid no matter how charming they are" he laughed.

The blond saw Danny standing by a room with some other rangers and made his way over to him. He peered in the room as he passed. A big room with long tables running down lengthways with stools lined up to them. He thought it looked a little military like. To the right was the kitchen with kids lining up with trays and what not to get their food. Up at the front was one table raised up on a platform set length ways with rather fancy looking wood chairs. He imagined that's where important guests would sit. He assumed the parents and other caretakers were off again , not wanting to spend another minute isolated from civilisation.


Danny looked up as they approached " hey guys , so lunch today is grilled chicken salad, and fish substitute if vegetarian." he informed them "We'd better head in and get fed , I've got us booked on a bit of a mountain walking thing for the afternoon. I think it will be a good opportunity to point out some landmarks , some history of the place and a bit of a Q and A session" he said leading the way inside "So grab a tray and move up the line , they'll serve you a portion , if you're still hungry , come up and do it again"

[Sundial]

Justin let out a quiet sigh of relief as the two reached the bottom of the stairs, Luke letting go of his arm. He definitely felt more relaxed now that the two were just walking next to each other normally. "Haha. It's alright." He replied. He was initially a bit put off by the bandage on Luke's eye, but seeing Luke joke about it made him feel a little more comfortable. He found Luke's comment about being charming a bit funny. He wasn't used to people being so openly confident. Justin sometimes thought of himself as charming, but he never said it aloud. He had to admit though, he definitely did find Luke likeable.

He followed Luke into the dining hall, taking in the size of it all. He wasn't sure if school cafeteria's existed a hundred years ago, but if they did, this was what he guessed they would look like. Most of the other campers hadn't come into the room yet, so there was still plenty of space. He wasn't even sure they'd fill up the entire room. This was good news in Justin's book. He didn't want to spend any more time than he had to grouped in with a bunch of 8 year olds. He listened to Danny explain how getting food worked and then what they'd be doing for the afternoon. He nodded and went to line up for his lunch. He wasn't overly excited about chicken salad, but he was hungry and they were allowed seconds, so that was definitely a plus.

He turned to Luke as the pair waited in line. "So... are you excited for the bush walk? I hope we get to do one of the red tracks..." Just then a thought occurred to Justin. "Hey umm... Are you going to be alright hiking? I mean, just with your eye and all..." He asked awkwardly. He was genuinely concerned for Luke but he also didn't want to have to go on the hike without the only person he'd met.

(That's all fine. Real life is a bit more important than internet roleplay.)