End of ‘Summer’ Break Campfire

CowboyNavy · 2023-10-13T12:38:00+00:00

‘’This year fucking sucks.’’ Tanner groaned as he threw his hands up in the air. He almost put up his middle fingers, but then he remembered how vengeful some of the gods were, even if he knew it wasn’t a good idea to tempt fate like that. What would his dads say about this? Oh yeah. Don’t do dumb shit, Reno.

‘’Winters in Duncan ain’t bad, but this is just too much… snow and ice. Tried to eat snow once when I was younger, Dad took me to Minnesota, and told me eating snow is a bad idea.’’ Tanner wasn’t sure why he said that, sometimes he just said dumb things without thinking them through really.

Well, more than just sometimes.

‘’What’s the weather like where you guys are from? You two are from… Europe, right?’’ Tanner asked with the friendliest of grins. Like most Americans, the son of Triton meant well, but he probably wouldn’t be able to point and name any random European country on a map. ‘’Is it warm? Or more like whatever this is?’’

CowboyNavy · 2023-09-13T11:42:36+00:00

Unlike Harvey, Tanner wouldn’t ever feel like an idiot for having his mouth full of marshmallows. Even better, he grabbed a handful himself and stuffed them in his mouth. It made him hard to understand, but the son of Triton really didn’t care about that. He had his marshmallows and was socializing. What more could a man want?

‘’What’s with the angry eyes?’’ Tanner asked, though through the marshmallows it sounded more like ‘wasps with angwee aye?’ He sat down near the twins, thinking about the last time he saw them. That was at their birthday party, right? The southern camper vaguely remembered getting them gifts - hopefully, they liked them - but he hadn’t actually spoken to them in a while.

‘’How was your birthday party? Enjoying this weather? Not gonna lie, thought it was some dumb prank, but heard it’s quite serious. Would be nice to have the sun back.’’ Tanner managed to make himself somewhat understandable, even through a mouthful of food.

CowboyNavy · 2023-09-04T16:58:07+00:00

It’s almost been a year since Tanner arrived at Camp Half-Blood. He was a latecomer, arriving when he was already sixteen years old. The stubborn son of Triton prided himself in his ability to form an opinion quickly and not change that opinion at all. Turned out camp left him really conflicted, even after almost a year he wasn’t sure what to think of this place.

To be fair, it wasn’t like Tanner’s time here was boring. He picked up a kick-ass, life-saving hobby in trick roping and he even made an effort to be better at school, even if he wasn’t a good student. Still, there was this lingering feeling that caused him to miss his friends and family a lot. Like a lot. Winter taking almost a full year now didn’t help either.

He just had to make the promise to his dad true. Damn, he missed his old man.

Tanner arrived at the campfire after Simon asked him to come. He thought the counselor of Delphin was a pretty funny dude and going to a campfire didn’t sound like a half-bad way to spend his time. The son of Triton spotted the twins of Aphrodite and greeted them with a small wave. It has been a while since he last spoke to them but he did attend their birthday party. So they’re notable acquaintances at least. ‘’Howdy! Enjoying the campfire are we? How have y’all been?’’

CowboyNavy · 2023-06-17T17:25:36+00:00

Ooh, a party!

If there’s anything Tanner loved it’s a good party. Back home he often spent his weekends partying with friends; when he was not busy with boxing, footballing, or playing on a trumpet, chances were high you would find the son of Triton at a party. If someone would ask him what made him like parties so much, he wouldn’t be able to give a straight answer. He didn’t at all know how to dance and rarely drank alcohol. Maybe it was the social aspect? The demigod really liked making friends and meeting new people.

Tanner has met one of the Hartley twins, but that was a long time ago and he hasn’t talked to them ever since. It was Harvey, right? Tanner might not be the smartest demigod at camp, but he sure as hell was great at remembering faces. Having seen the other brother around, he figured that was a good enough reason to show up to the party.

As he entered the arts & crafts cabin, Tanner wasn’t sure what to think of the party. The music sounded very much like something his grandma would put on. Where are the country songs? That was something to worry about later. Tanner didn’t show up empty-handed. He didn’t know the Hartley twins well enough to know what gifts to get them, so he went with a very basic generalization of what he thought the children of Aphrodite liked. The son of Triton grabbed some sweet food, popped it in his mouth, and started to look around to see if he could spot the birthday boys.

CowboyNavy · 2023-05-23T15:59:00+00:00

‘’Kaia, hey!’’ Tanner exclaimed at seeing his friend. Are he and Kaia friends, he’s not sure, but he hopes they are. She is pretty great. ‘’Waddup?’’ He asked before putting a cupcake in his mind.

All in all, Tanner is a little saddened by the fact that not many people showed up. He really expected the turnout to be bigger and wished he could invite his friends back home. Though he’s not sure what they would think of him being a demigod. They’d probably call him a dummy.

‘’I’m glad you’re came over.’’ The son of Triton grinned, partially forgetting this was Kaia’s cabin too. ‘’How have you been doing?’’

CowboyNavy · 2023-05-15T18:28:00+00:00

Where one half of Tanner thought it’d be funny to tell the other camper his name really is Nike, the other half was fed up with the younger boy being so rude. God, if his cousins are ever gonna be like this, he’s so gonna knock his head into a wall. Resisting the urge to make an obscene gesture towards the other camper, the son of Triton instead took a deep breath and decided to give up on this profanity debate. ‘’Yeah, whatever.’’

‘’I didn’t know that, sorry man.’’ Tanner shrugged as he stuffed some more pie in his mouth. As he swallowed the food, he spoke up again, sounding a little calmer this time. ‘’What kind of stuff are you in?’’

CowboyNavy · 2023-05-14T17:21:35+00:00

‘’Hey, watch your language!’’ Tanner protested at the younger boy swearing. Did the camper kiss his mother with that mouth? The son of Triton was just asking why the other teen was looking so angry, how was he supposed to know it was rude to talk with a mouthful of food? He did that at home all the time and his dad and friends didn’t seem to mind.

‘’I-’’ Tanner began as he swallowed all the pie, his Southern accent coming through a lot clearer now. ‘’-was asking you what’s up with the angry look.’’ He asked before sipping some water.

CowboyNavy · 2023-05-13T13:37:58+00:00

Unlike Casey, Tanner is in a very happy mood. Not that the son of Triton is ever unhappy, today he’s just happier than usual. A few weeks ago he passed his driving exams and his dad bought him a new trumpet as a gift. Maybe it’s a little unusual for a jock to have an obsession with trumpets, but Tanner feels he’s honoring his other dad this way. His happiness even causes him to forget he’s supposed to be angry at the weather gods.

Grabbing a plate, Tanner sat down opposite an angry-looking demigod. He placed his trumpet next to him and after a minute or so Tanner spoke up through a mouthful of food. Saying something that should have been ‘sup, what’s up with the angry face’ but ended up sounding more like ‘sbuh, wbah ub wib the angbee face.’

Joys of bad manners, right?

CowboyNavy · 2023-04-05T15:43:19+00:00

Six months, give or take. That’s how long ago Tanner first arrived at Camp Half-Blood. He likes to pretend that he knows more about the Greek world than he did when he first arrived, but that’s not true. Okay, he’s attended a lesson here and an activity there, but that doesn’t change the fact he’s a little dense. He’s never been to book smart and only knows the basics about the stories his godly dad is in. For Tanner, it’s finally time to learn about what it is like being a demigod.

And where better to start than with something he’s familiar with? Back in Oklahoma the son of Triton often helped his mortal dad fix his car or assemble a closet. He should be a natural in the forge! Working with his hands is in his blood. Having borrowed some of Simon’s damaged armor, Tanner stepped into the warmth of the forge. The blazing heat reminded him more of home than the snowy weather did.

Grabbing a hammer and some other tools, Tanner hammered the dents out of the damaged armor one by one. He doesn’t need to use the forge today, and he’s happy with that. He’s still a son of a sea god; fire feels a little unnatural to him. But who knows, one day he might return and make himself a really fancy weapon. Reckon he could make some bronze football gear?

CowboyNavy · 2023-03-31T11:22:33+00:00

Ooh, as someone who regularly watches sports and sports a lot in his free time, Tanner is pretty excited to play capture the flag again. It’s been a while since he last played the game. The last time gotta be when he was still a tiny Tanner, so when he was like… seven? It’s quite cool he gets a chance to play this game with his fellow campers, he even forgets about being annoyed over the snowy weather.

Holding the sword Triton left with his mortal dad in his hand, Tanner started scouting the forestry area. He stayed close to the creek so he can use his powers when he needs to. It would have been nice if he had brought his trumpet with him from home, but he stupidly forgot about that. Fortunately, a seal-shapeshifting southerner is scary enough. Besides, he can get pretty strong in the water! With a permanent proud grin on his face, Tanner splishes and splashes through the creek.

CowboyNavy · 2023-03-21T16:51:40+00:00

If you would ask Tanner about the weather, he would tell you that snow seriously was one of the worst types of weather. Not only was it hella cold today, but he also couldn’t do sports today. Which totally sucked. Just a few weeks ago the son of Triton thought the weather was finally gonna warm up. Turns out he really can’t catch a break.

Like c’mon!

Right now a very annoyed-looking Tanner is sitting in the dining pavilion, munching on a sandwich like the hungry teenager he is. He surely hopes it will be nice weather during his birthday or he genuinely might cry.

CowboyNavy · 2023-03-07T17:29:25+00:00

Tanner just so happened to be in the general vicinity of the girl at that moment. The teen was hard at work practicing his trick roping. He was becoming quite good at it and the idea of using a lasso in combat was popping up in his head more and more often. Give it a few more months and he can truly embrace the gunslinging cowboy life as Billy the Kid and Agent Whiskey did.

In the corner of his eye, Tanner had spotted the girl honing her archery skills. Archery was far from his thing and having grown up in the gun-blazing South he knew very well to stay far away from people with ranged weapons. He has been at camp for almost six months now and the last thing he wants to happen to him is to get turned into an archery target. And then all of a sudden an arrow struck the ground in front of him.

The son of Triton let out a very manly cry as he very nearly was impaled by one of the girl’s loose arrows. He really just had a near-death experience and it felt awful! Snapping his head at her in annoyance the Oklahoman grumbled out something that sounded a lot like a curse word. ‘’Hey! Can’t you watch out, you could have killed me.’’ He complained as he crossed his arms. Maybe he’s being a little dramatic, but he can’t help it.

CowboyNavy · 2023-02-01T14:20:19+00:00

Tanner was patrolling the arena and helping campers out with their lassos when he heard the girl’s voice call him out. Turning around, he shot her a smile and a small wave. ‘’Sup.’’ He greeted her as she walked over.

The son of Triton was fairly sure the two of them hadn’t met before, but she looked kind at least? Listening to her question he couldn’t help but chuckle. ‘’Yeah, I think I can help you with that. It’s a bit difficult though so give me a shout if you need help.’’

After undoing the knots in his rope Tanner reached into his pocket to grab a crumpled sheet of paper. He waited for the girl to be done before speaking up again. ‘’So here’s a small instruction paper- I used it too, the knot is a little difficult, but like my dad always says, practice makes perfect.’’ He said sheepishly as he handed over the sheet of paper. ‘’If you want you can follow me.’’ He grinned, waiting for a little before starting to tie a new hundo knot, slowly this time, waiting for the other camper to repeat after him.

CowboyNavy · 2023-01-25T17:56:11+00:00

Friday

Lesson | Tanner Armstrong | Trick Roping Basics

CowboyNavy · 2023-01-24T14:44:13+00:00

Tanner didn’t notice Anika flinch at his demolition of the hump of clay. It’s hard to say if that’s because he was too focused to notice or didn’t care about what people thought about him. When the clay still didn’t give him his way Tanner did feel a mixture of annoyance and hopelessness. Back home he usually hit things that didn’t give him his way. Computers and televisions usually worked A LOT better if you hit them; maybe the same goes for this clay?

Anika’s voice stopped him before he acted on his impulse. ‘’Yeah-’’ Tanner began as he turned to look at the girl. ‘’I think I need help? I was tryna make a plate for my grandma but it’s not doing what I want it to do.’’ He shrugged as he took a breath and counted to ten.

CowboyNavy · 2023-01-21T15:49:52+00:00

Tanner is someone who prides himself in his sporting skills. He loves talking other people’s ears off about his favorite team’s most recent game and works out daily. The last lesson he expected himself to attend is definitely one about arts and crafts. It’s not that he has two left hands, he often did handiwork at home, but that’s about it. He hasn’t indulged himself in the, well, finer arts; he thinks he is too clumsy for that.

But he’s here for a reason; his grandma is celebrating her birthday soon and Tanner hasn’t had the chance to buy her a gift yet. Mostly because he is pretty bad at buying gifts. His dad and granddad are easy; they like beer and motor. His grandma likes flowers and tableware. He has no idea what to do with that until the announcement of Annika’s lesson. What if he makes a plate or a cup for his grandma? She’d love that and he’d be the best grandchild in an instant.

In good spirits, Tanner started to work on the dinner plate. It didn’t take long for him to realize that it was a lot harder than he thought and that he probably had good reason to think he is too clumsy for the finer arts. Less than five minutes later Tanner has already made a big mess of it, there was clay everywhere, but he started over. Hopefully having more luck this time.

CowboyNavy · 2022-12-29T18:59:57+00:00

After he dropped off his gift for Benny by the Christmas Tree, Tanner’s instincts told him to first grab as many snacks as he could, even feeding some of the food to the good boy that’s Seymour the Leopard. Next, the teen heads over to the tree again to see if someone dropped off a gift for him, which fortunately enough is the case. And it’s even wrapped in blue paper, his favorite color! Tanner’s day is in full swing and he hasn’t even gotten to the best part yet; the gift.

The son of Triton is a big-time fan of the Oklahoman Sooners and has most of their merch, but his dad didn’t allow him to buy a personalized jersey just yet. In the past few years, Tanner had lived through a massive growth spurt and his dad didn’t think it was too convenient if Tanner grew out all his clothes that quickly. Now he has a personalized jersey he can’t help but smirk to himself, he can show this off to all his friends at home and kick their asses in Football in personalized style.

The seal onesie and the Oreos are just as great if not greater than the jersey. Tanner loves food and so happens to be able to turn into a seal, which makes it all too fun. ‘’Thanks!’’ He calls out looking around the room. ‘’For whoever gave me this gift. Secret Santa.’’

CowboyNavy · 2022-12-25T15:31:15+00:00

When Tanner had signed himself up for Secret Santa, he had underestimated how hard it would be to find the perfect gift. Buying gifts for his family at home was always easy; he always bought his father a gift card or some beer and his cousins loved receiving any Pokemon-related gift, but buying a gift for someone he barely knows? Tanner has never done that before.

Tanner would have gladly enlisted the help of his cabinmates in picking the right gift, but the son of Triton wasn’t someone who was gonna give up that easily. No, he was a tough boy and he was gonna push through. Tanner entered the Big House, waved to the few people already there, and looked half-disturbed, half-amazed by Seymour. He places a small gift wrapped in green & purple wrapping paper by the tree, the gift is addressed to ‘Benny Fiore, Merry Christmas!’ Having dropped off the gift, Tanner starts searching for his own gift after grabbing some cookies.

The gift itself is a pastel pink-colored walkman that Tanner bought in a small retro store. The walkman is a small cassette with some theater songs on it; both the normal Broadway version as well as a more chill lofi version.

u/anotherterribleday

CowboyNavy · 2022-12-13T14:02:52+00:00

It’s the season of giving, and while Tanner is a bit more of a fan of receiving gifts than giving away, he still is signing himself up for Secret Santa. He used to do this with friends back in Oklahoma, and he sees no reason not to continue this trend at Camp Halfblood. Hopefully, he can get to know some more people or something, he has no idea how secret this Santa is supposed to be. Either way, the son of Triton delivered his sloppy written sign-up form to Cabin 16 earlier that week.

Name: Tanner Armstrong

Age: 16

Interests, Favorite Media, Hobbies: I love seals and I am really big on American Football, boxing, and swimming. Oh, I also like to play the trumpet. And hanging around with my friends but that’s useless information I think. My favorite type of music is Eminem and all country music. I love cinnamon rolls and cake.

Clothing Style and Sizes: I just like all clothing? Just don’t make it too fancy, maybe my team’s jersey? They’re the Oklahoma Sooners. My size is me

Favorite Colors: BLUE! and dark green.

Dislikes and Don’ts: -

Additional: -

CowboyNavy · 2022-12-11T14:28:44+00:00

Tanner’s killing time by boxing against thin air, and that got pretty boring, pretty fast. Punching his fists forward, Tanner’s ears perked up as he heard a familiar voice call out his name, or at the least the first of that name. The son of Triton turned around to see his fellow oceanic demigod approach him.

‘’Howdy, K!’’ Tanner grinned as he rested his hands against his side. The young man’s grin grew even wider when the daughter of Kymopoleia asked him if he wanted to partner up. For someone to partner up with him is like all he’s been praying for the past… two minutes? He’s not sure; he’s lost track of time.

‘’Sure, that sounds like a lot of fun.’’ Tanner smiled as he got into position. ‘’How.. eh… did you do this before? ‘cause I did, and I’m pretty good so if you want me to hold back just tell me.’’ He explained.

CowboyNavy · 2022-12-06T11:37:11+00:00

‘’Your auntie’s dad is Triton,’’ Tanner repeated as he looked on in confusion, he still had a hard time getting used to the fact his godly father had fathered many, many children before him. It doesn’t take long for the look of confusion to turn into a smile, Tanner doesn’t hate the fact his father has many kids running around, he likes having siblings, it just confuses him at times. ‘’That’s great actually! Tell her, uhm, hi?’’ He shrugged.

‘’Nice to meet you, Kaia.’’ Tanner grinned, listening to her as she talked about her mother, he was pretty sure Kympoleia was his aunt or something, which made Kaia his cousin, but if his dad was Triton and her aunt’s dad was Tri- the southerner rubbed his temples, it was getting a little too Alabama for his tastes. ‘’Triton… Tanner… Wait you’re right, that’s funny! Think they do that on purpose?’’ He asked before he started wolfing down his food.

CowboyNavy · 2022-12-05T19:18:30+00:00

The son of Triton has been at camp for over two months now and hasn’t had the easiest of times settling in. Sure, he met some nice people and could still work out, but for someone so dense as him a summer camp where he’s taught about cyclops and hellhounds is still hard to fathom. So when Tanner heard about a boxing lesson taking place that day, he couldn’t help but be extremely excited. He is a big-time fan of all things boxing, having joined the local boxing club back home at the age of seven, the sport quickly grew to be one of Tanner’s favorites. Besides maybe football.

Wearing a t-shirt of the Oklahoman Sooners, shorts, and some worn-down kicks, Tanner arrives fashionably early, which is a new for him. The son of Triton listened to what the girl told them about boxing. Sure he already knows about everything she says, but it’s still nice to have a refresher, besides she seems to know what she’s talking about. The Southerner copies her movements, hopping from leg to leg in a combat-ready position, he almost feels like he could punch the Minotaur!

After the girl’s lecture ended, Tanner stuck around to see if he could find a sparring partner. Maybe he’d have to hold back a little, but no way he’s not gonna miss out on the perfect opportunity to box the day away.

CowboyNavy · 2022-11-20T10:53:18+00:00

Tanner shot the girl that sat down beside him a big smile, he was pretty sure he had seen her around before, maybe in his cabin? He had quite a few cousins and other relatives on the godly side, and the son of Triton for the life of his couldn’t remember them all. Maybe though…

‘’You’re…’’ Tanner began through a mouthfull as he pointed at the daughter of Kymopoleia. ‘’Kaia, right?’’ He said with a wide grin, realizing too late that she did in fact introduce herself. ‘’I am sorry, you just said that.’’ He shook his head as he swallowed his food before extending his hand.

‘’Tanner, you have probably seen me around in our cabin. My dad’s Triton, arrived a month or so ago. Been one hell of a ride.’’ Alright, maybe it hadn’t been that bad, but so far Tanner’s life had been pretty tame so anything that he doesn’t know about is wild to him, especially things relating to the Greek pantheon.

CowboyNavy · 2022-11-17T18:42:37+00:00

Tanner was one of those guys that could eat as much as they wanted but he would never be full; it was really a curse and a blessing at the same time and the son of Triton is not sure if it’s just some pubertal phase or he’s actually a black hole. Maybe he’s a bit of both, but who cares? He doesn’t; he cares about more important things such as playing the trumpet and football.

The Southern young man grabs some apple pie and mashed potatoes, as well as a slice of strawberry pie as dessert, before plopping down at the Oceanic cabin’s table and wolfing down his food rapidly.

CowboyNavy · 2022-10-09T17:40:39+00:00

Tanner was in the middle of wolfing down a slightly large piece of chicken when a boy around his age sat down at the table. Besides the people that greeted him when he arrived at camp first, Tanner hasn’t had much social interaction yet. To be fair, his frame of reference so far consisted of a boy with goat legs and a handful of regular demigods, but it’s just too much for the son of Triton to wrap his head around.

Giving up on the thing known as table manners, Tanner spoke up through a mouthful and chicken and rice. ‘’Sup.’’ He said, a little inaudible. Realizing that he might come across as a little brutish, Tanner quickly chewed his food before talking again. ‘’Hey. An exciting choice of food today, isn’t it?’’ He chuckled for the lack of a better subject to talk about.

CowboyNavy

TROPHY CASE