Down in the burning depths of the center of the earth, a vast black citadel rose out of the fire, surrounded by heat and chaos. Immune to the intense heat, feral demonic guards patrolled the citadel, bloodred eyes constantly watching, teeth and claws sharp and ready. Within the citadel, servant imps scurried here and there, busy at work for their Master and Mistress.
     The Master and his wife, however, were not to be found. In the highest tower, banned to all but their most trusted advisors, they celebrated the hatching day of their son and only child. They called him Nergal Junior, after his Demon father, and they had big plans for him. Master Nergal hurried to pack his son's few belongings, followed by his human wife, Sis, who was frowning worriedly.
    "Are you sure we ought to send him to this camp so soon?" She murmured "He's still so young, maybe it's too much..."
    Nergal smiled confidently "Don't worry, our son is smart and quick to learn, he ought to be fine. Besides, he needs to get used to being near humans at an early age, especially if he chooses to lead a human's life and not a Demon's. He already knows all he needs to about my world."
     Sis shrugged "I know honey, I just worry that our Junior will have trouble fitting in. He hasn't even hatched yet, what if he doesn't look like the other children? You had the same troubles with humans, did you not?"
     At this comment, the Demon winced  "True, but I was alone for a long time, shunned even by my own people" His green eyes clouded with pain at the memory. "But Junior is loved, and he's always known that. Besides, he is half human."
    "All right" She said at last "Just don't show him any doubt, he's already very troubled about our desicion. If we're confident, it'll help him."
     Nergal nodded "Right. Well then, it's time he was on his way."
    Nergal and Sis stepped into their son's room. It was empty but for a single bed, and a strange black egg laying on top.
     "Time to go, Junior" Nergal said, laying down a bag beside the egg. The egg remained motionless, but a telepathic voice came to his mind.
     "But dad, I don't want to go to camp, I wont fit in with all the other kids." The voice protested silently.
     Remembering to be confident, Nergal said pleasantly "Fit in? Why would you think you won't fit in?"
     "Dad" The voice said irritably "I'm an egg"
     "Don't worry son, you'll hatch, you're going to have a blast." The voice sighed and said no more, defeated.
     Nergal shut his eyes, and with a simple jerk of his will, tore open a portal to the outside world, which should lead to the camp, or at least very near to it. Junior's egg, along with the small bag, dissapeared in a flash of light. Sis smiled, the moment bittersweet, her little boy was growing up, and yet Winter Camp still seemed like a mistake.

     Even with the protection of its egg, the being inside was very cold. It was cramped and suddenly uncomfortable, which was strange because the egg had never seemed that way before. The being became aware of itself, of its own little body trapped within the egg's confines, and sqirmed, found it couldn't move. It clawed at the egg, frusterated, and its tentacles writhed and pushed, trying to break free.
     There was a snap, and a tiny crack formed on the shell. The being inside thrust its clawed fingers into the crack, widening it, desparate to escape. 'Winter Camp' It thought disgustedly 'Rediculous. It's freezing" More cracks formed along the egg, and at last, with a final snap, it shattered.
     Five long black tentacles, covered in a layer of protective slime, reached out, feeling the new sensation of cold and air. Junior opened his fourteen bright green eyes and looked around, amazed, seeing for the first time. The world was beautiful, all covered in the glistening whiteness called snow. More snow fell from the sky, and he sneezed as it fell on his nose. For a long time, all he could do was stare. Maybe Winter Camp really would be fun, why wouldn't it be, when the world was so beautiful?
     At last, Junior stood on shaky legs, picked up his bag, and looked inside. There were three things, a teddy bear (His first birthday present), a pair of glasses, and a note. Though he had never actually learned to read, he could understand the script, as all newborn Demons can.

     Junior,
    Good luck at Winter Camp! You will soon discover
    your powers. Don't practice them around the human
    campers, son, most humans don't beleive in magic.
    Anyway, your powers are the reason for the glasses.
    You will soon learn to shape-shift, but this can be a
     nuisance because of the human's noticably weak vision,
     so if you try it, wear these, it should clear things up.
     Hope you make lots of friends.
                                                 -Your loving father, Nergal.

     Junior smiled a little and turned his gaze to the lumps he could see in the distance. Buildings. 'That must be the camp' he thought.

     At the same moment, a girl named Kira awoke from a very strange dream. She fought to remember it, there had been snow all around, and it'd been so beautiful, like she was seeing it for the first time. Her eyes opened and she forgot the dream as she remembered where she was. She sat up straighter in the bus seat and shivered, the bus had no decent heating.
     "Oh boy, I can't wait to get to winter camp!" An enthusiastic boy in front of her cried.
     "Yeah" The girl next to him said, sounding bored. "Winter Camp. I wonder who came up with that one..."
     Kira couldn't remember their names, or anyone else's for that matter. She was new to the school, and had come to camp to get to know her classmates. She frowned and looked out the window, hoping she would make some friends once she got to camp.
     "Hi new kid" A voice interrupted her thoughts.
     Kira turned around in surprise, and looked up a very beautiful red-headed girl. She stared in envy, wishing she could look like that. It wasn't that she was ugly, she just wasn't incredibly attractive.
     "My name's Mindy, and don't you forget it" The girl said "I'm the most popular, beautiful girl you'll ever meet, but I bet you already know that." She fluttered her eyelashes arrogantly.
     "I'm Kira... it's nice to meet you" Kira replied shyly.
    Mindy frowned thoughtfully "Kira is a weird name. You aren't a loser, are you? Losers are so uncool."
     Kira flinced. 'Maybe it's best to flatter her' She thought quickly. "Well, I'm not nearly as popular and gorgeous as you, Mindy, but I'm not a loser, you don't need to worry." She smiled winningly.
     Mindy smiled, delighted by the complement. "You'll never be as cool as me with hair like that" She said rudely "But you're okay, for a new kid. Once we get to camp, I'll tell you about the nobodies you so don't want to hang with. How about that?"
     "Sure, that'd be nice, thanks." Kira said politely. Inside, she wondered whether she ought to be disgusted by Mindy's snobiness, or delighted by making friends with a popular girl. Mindy brushed back her hair prettily and returned to her own bus seat.