บท 2: The meeting
"However," he said gaining a hopeful look from the emotional woman, "you may call me Cain."
Sleepily, sea-green eyes fluttered open under a shag of midnight black hair, only to be snapped shut as their owner tried to block out the assault being led on their retinas by the sun shining through the open bedroom window. Groaning, the half awake boy pulled one of the two pillows on the bed over his head, attempting to smother the blotches of light appearing on the back of his eyelids.
Knowing he would be unable to gain any more sleep, the figure lying with their head covered tried to think back to the dream he had been experiencing, before having made the transition from asleep to awake.
Sally, his mother, had been a part of the dream. She had been scared – no, terrified, is what she had been - she had been terrified of something to the point she had attempted all within her power to get both her and the bundle in her arms away from whatever it was that was causing her such panic. Eventually the thing that had struck such fear into her heart had caught up to her, but was stopped by the largest man Sally had ever seen.
'I have got to grow my hair out like his. That feather was freaking awesome,' the boy thought as a goofy grin made its way to his face.
Along with his unusual height and hair style, the giant of a man had the strangest colored eyes he had ever seen. They were a burnt-orange that he had only ever seen in the eyes of a bird-of-prey. Even as the dream turned blurry, as most dreams have a tendency to do, he could still see the intensity in those bizarre colored orbs.
After initially being afraid of the tall stranger, the man had gone on to save Sally and her little bundle, curing her of her fear, but not of her caution. That was where the dream started to become hazy to him, to the point that only bits and pieces were clear enough for the dreamer to decipher.
His arm had turned to ice? Something about a maiden? An offer made to his mother that somehow involved the bundle! A flash of white, followed by a red substance that smelled strongly of copper?
'Weird ass dream,' he thought, shoving the pillow away and catching his first glance of the alarm clock sitting on the night stand next to the bed.
Cursing himself for over sleeping, he quickly rolled out of bed and started getting dressed for the day. He had only just begun sliding on a pair of shorts when a knock sounded at his door.
"It's open," he called, tying his board-shorts.
The door opened just enough for the head of a good looking man to pop in. His hair hung down just past his ears and was the color of salt and pepper; it emphasized his laugh lines, giving him a permanent happy look. His name was Paul Blofis and was the boy's stepfather.
"Perseus, what are you doing being lazy this morning?" Paul asked good-naturedly, his lips quirked in to a smile. "It's time to get up and at'em! Your mother already has breakfast on the table and we all know your skinny butt can't afford to miss a meal," Paul said, just before he was forced to dodge a shoe Perseus had sent his way.
The now identified boy known as Perseus, was as healthy as could be, he ate right and spent almost all of his time outside, being active. However, this did not change the fact that he was both very skinny and surprisingly short for a boy of eleven. His mother had told him on more than one occasion that he was just a late bloomer and that given time he would shoot right up, but Perseus was quickly losing hope of ever gaining any height. He had even seen nine year-olds who were taller than him. It had devastated the boy. Paul only joked about his short stature in order to show Perseus that it wasn't a big deal, but to a boy about to turn twelve in a month's time, it was a crisis above all others.
"Watch it, Blowfish," Perseus warned him, with little heat to his voice. "Skinny or not, I can still kick your butt, old man!"
"Yeah, yeah, you have me shaking, Percy!" The man knew his beloved step-son hated the shortened version of his name and only used it when riling him up. "Now hurry up, or I'll leave to go surfing without you," he called through the door as he closed it behind him.
"NO!" Perseus yelled with wide, panic filled eyes. "I'll be out in a minute." Turning on the spot, he jumped flat footed, with barely a bend of the knee to the other side of his bed. In his haste to get to the dresser holding his clothing, he failed to comprehend what he had done and how it would be outside the capabilities of any normal person to replicate.
Throwing on one of his t-shirts that displayed his favorite band, he started for his bedroom door only to stop in his tracks as his eyes landed on a large, barrel like torso. Scrunching up his eyes in bemusement, his gaze made a slow trek up the frame before him, coming to a stop as familiar burnt-orange pupils met his sea-green ones.
As he took in just how powerful the emotions in the eyes of the man before him were, Perseus couldn't help the mixture of panic and curiosity that was battling inside him. How was it that the man from his dreams, the person who had helped his mother in her time of need, ended up in his room? This and so much more passed through his young mind in the blink of an eye, but what got to him the most was the sheer massiveness of the man.
His head looked to be only inches away from scraping against the ceiling. Perseus had always known that he was short, and had hated his genetics for it, but as he took in the sight of the man before him, he, for the first time ever, truly felt his height was a disadvantage. It was clear to Perseus that if this man chose to, he could easily do whatever he pleased to not only himself, but his mother and stepfather as well.
Perseus looked to be trying to form words, but the sudden appearance of the person from his dreams had left the young boy utterly speechless. And though he was at a loss for words, the way he held himself betrayed how ready he was for a fight with the stranger, who had appeared out of nowhere.
"My name is Cain... and I thank you for giving me peace," he said in a whisper that carried to every corner of the bedroom.
Perseus' look of confusion amplified as he slightly shook his head.
Cain's face, which had been void of any type of emotion since entering the room, turned to one that spoke of amusement at Perseus' confusion. "Do not worry yourself small one," he said, trying to ease the nerves of the boy he had watched over since the day of his birth, "all you will need to know will come to you in time." Before he had finished talking he was moving.
Faster than Perseus could track, Cain was on a knee next to him. Even as he knelt next to him, Cain still towered over the future of his species. Taking the child by the wrist, he pulled the limb to his lips where upon he sank his canines into the artery, drawing a shocked gasp from Perseus.
Even before his teeth had entered the boy's flesh, the sixth sense that his species possessed that allowed him to know who was worthy of drinking from was screaming for him to partake of the child Poseidon had sired. And once the scarlet liquid passed over his tongue he was not left wanting. The child's blood was easily the best tasting of any of the mortals he had drunk from. This was all the proof he needed to know that he had made the right choice for his heir - Perseus was without a doubt going to be a very powerful being.
Shaking off the want, he continued drawing from the stunned pre-teen; Cain started to push his venom into his blood stream. As more and more of what made him what he was passed into the boy's body, the ancient being could feel Perseus becoming weaker by the second as a cold sweat poured from the young boy.
Having created a small number of his kind in the past he knew what to expect and was ready with an outstretched arm when Perseus lost consciousness.
Draining off the last of what he was giving the boy, he took the now trembling eleven year old in both arms, lifting him as easily as one would expect a man of his size could. Placing Perseus in his bed, the tall man pulled the covers over the boy to lessen the chills he was experiencing as a tender look entered his abnormal eyes.
He may have never had a son of his own, but over the years he had come to see the boy before him as his very own. And how could he not truly, he had been there when he had spoken his first word. He had watched as he struggled on two chubby little legs to stand upright and eventually take his first tentative steps. Witnessed the tears leave his eyes as the heartbreak of losing his first pet had over taken him, and seen him grow to love the man that would become his stepfather. All of the most important moments and every one of the meaningless seconds, Cain had been there, protecting the young boy as monster after monster had come looking for his head.
For the first time in thousands of years, Cain wished that he had more time. Time, so that he could be there to guide his young one through the many hardships that would undoubtedly face him. But his wishes were just that, wishes! He had already given up what kept him alive for so long and as he stood there watching the shudders raking through his body; he could feel his time in this world ending.
Reaching into his pocket he pulled out an envelope with the boy's mother's name on it. Placing the letter on Perseus' chest, he watched in morbid fascination as his hand and then slowly the rest of his body became transparent.
Just as the last of the man simply known as Cain faded away, there came a soft knock at the door.
"Perseus," called a gentle voice that obviously belonging to a woman. "Honey... are you all right in there?"
Still not receiving an answer, Sally felt a small amount of fear enter her. It wasn't like Perseus to not answer her right away when she called him. Pushing down her now rising panic, she knocked on the door with more force than she had the first time. "Perseus, if you're undressed, cover yourself! I'm coming in."
Ignoring the trepidation she was experiencing, Sally lightly pushed open the door leading to her son's room, not knowing what she would find. Much to her immense relief, Perseus was lying in bed, his covers pulled to his chin. Chiding herself for her dramatics, she breezed through the threshold of the room and up to her son's still form.
She had been about to reach out to his shoulder and shake him awake when she noticed the layer of sweat covering his brow. Her eyebrows knitted together, a sign of her confusion at what she was witnessing.
His room had a soothing wind blowing through the window, meaning he shouldn't have been hot at all. She had seen him lie out on the beach just a few feet outside their current housings front door just the day before and he hadn't shown any hint of the then blazing sun bothering him.
Placing the back of her hand to his forehead, she gasped in shock as she fought the urge to pull her hand away from him. His body was alarmingly clammy and she could have sworn she felt his skin ripple beneath her fingers.
Panicking once again, Sally called out to Paul, hoping he would know what to do. As she waited for the arrival of her husband, she grabbed the comforter that Perseus had kick off the bed during the night and was about to place it over him when she noticed the letter on his chest. With what felt like her whole body shaking from her nerves, she picked up the envelope and opened it with clumsy fingers.
This was the scene Paul walked in on.
"Sally, what's wrong? Why were you yelling?" He asked, as he took in the state Perseus was in and the letter in his wife's hands. "Is he all right?" Paul asked, walking to the opposite side of the bed that Sally was on, quickly checking over his stepson.
"Sally, this isn't good, we have to get him to a hospital," he exclaimed. "You go get the car and I'll get Perseus!" He was already attempting to pick up the small boy, when Sally spoke, giving him pause.
"No, leave him where he is," Sally commanded in a small detached voice, her attention never leaving the paper in her hands.
"Leave him," Paul repeated in disbelief, his eyes narrowing at the woman he had married. "Sally, he's sick - we have to get him to a doctor!"
Shaking her head no, she replied, "He'll been fine in a few days time." Paul looked to her as if she had gained a second head. "Until then," she said finally meeting his eyes, "I'll tell you about Perseus' biological father and the deal I made years ago."
IDC: LT
"Perseus," called a dark skinned boy as he pulled on the sleeve of the taller boy sitting beside him, on the faded and cracked leather seats of the school bus, heading to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The boy, still not having his call answered, pulled the ear bud of Perseus' iPod out of his ear, finally gaining the attention of the preteen.
"Did you need something Grover," Perseus asked, as a yawn fought to over take him.
"I wanted to know where you sneaked off to last night." The boy known as Grover glanced around them looking for any eavesdroppers. Leaning in toward his best friend, he lowered his voice as to not be over heard, "Last night I came to your room, but you were out. I waited as long as I possibly could, but by the time curfew rolled around you had yet to show up and I wasn't about to chance Ms. Dobbs finding me out of my room after hours."
Perseus nodded, he wouldn't have risked the old bat finding him either. "After classes ended yesterday, I sneaked off campus, caught a cab and went and got something done I've been wanting to for a while now." Turning off his music player, he wrapped his ear buds around it and pocketed it. "Do you notice anything different about me," he asked smirking.
Grover looked to his friend giving him a once over, the boy next to him had changed a lot in the year he had known him. When he had first sat next to the shaggy, raven haired boy, Grover had been more than two heads taller than the frail looking boy. Perseus was now a head taller than him, standing at an impressive height of 5'7 with a frame lined with lithe, corded muscle, his hair cut neatly on the back and sides. While the top was nowhere near as long as it had been before, it was still longer than the rest in a just-rolled-out-of-bed look that girls just seemed to love to gently run their hands through.
As Grover looked him over once more, he saw what he had failed to see when Perseus had his ever present ear buds in. "You got your ears gauged," he gasped. "What are your parents going to think? What are you going to do when Ms. Dobbs sees them?"
Perseus shrugged, looking nonplussed. "What can the old bat say - it's my body. As for my parents, well I don't see them being too upset. My mom and stepdad both are pretty cool about letting me do my own thing, and it's not like these are like those huge ugly looking gages. These are small and will heal without surgery if I ever choose to take them out."
Grover calmed as Perseus explained and ended up nodding in response. "I would have brought you with me man, but I could see you having a panic attack on me if I had told you where I was going!"
"Just be careful Perseus - what in the gods was that?" Grover shrieked, bringing his hand up to his black hair, pulling away with a hand full of peanut butter-and-jelly. "Who the hell did that," yelled the black boy, turning to those who were laughing and pointing farther back on the bus at a redheaded girl with a smattering of freckles.
Gritting his teeth Perseus flipped her off as Grover turned back around. "It looks like Strawberry Short Cakes drunken mistake strikes again," he said, earning a laugh from Grover.
"Don't worry about it," Grover said, trying to act like it didn't bother him as he slid down in his seat in order to present less of a target to the girl. "Nancy's just wanting attention, pay her no mind and she'll eventually give up."
"If all she wants is attention, I'd be more than willing to spend some time with her under some bleachers," Perseus said, getting a distant look in his eyes as he thought about the girl's developed figure.
Grover smiled, shaking his head at his friend. "Good luck! Her looks aside, she's not my type, I don't do bitch."
Coming back down from his daydream Perseus gave his best friend a thoughtful look. "If you want her to leave you alone, why not show her you're not to be messed with!"
"How?"
Perseus tapped his friend's crutches with his knuckle. "Next time she tries something, give her shin a good rap with one of these babies."
Grover's crutches had made him a big target for bullies during his time at Yancy; this coupled with how small Perseus had been when they had first arrived had made them band together in their struggles against those who wanted to mess with them. This had all changed as Perseus had grown. After putting an eighth grader in his place (violently), he had gained both him and the crippled boy a reprieve from troublemakers, bar Nancy who would stop at nothing to mess with them. The girl just didn't know when to quit! Perseus secretly thought she had crush on one of them. It would certainly explain why she would always seek them out.
The crippled boy looked to be thinking about doing just that before his shoulders slumped and he shook his head. "I'd just get caught... or beat up," Grover muttered pessimistically.
Perseus was about to chide the boy for letting people push him around when an interruption came in the form of a glob of jelly hitting Perseus in the back of the head.
Grover went completely still, his sandstone brown eyes doubled their normal size as he watched his buddy slowly bring his fingers up and wipe the bits of sandwich off the crown of his skull. He had been expecting for him to blow up, but was left, at first, surprised, then scared, when Perseus grabbed the bag holding his own packed lunch and pulled out an apple that he somehow managed to make look dangerous in his hands.
Without thinking about the consequences, Perseus whipped the fruit at the freckle covered girl.
He cursed his lousy aim when it missed her by inches and hit the window behind her, leaving spider web like cracks in the glass.
"Honey," a gravelly old voice called from the front of the bus.
Paying no mind that he had heard the call from his math teacher, Perseus looked to the roof of the bus and started mumbling to any god that would hear him out, asking them to smite the old bat for him. He was broken out of his theatrics by the same old voice as before. Knowing that if there was such a thing as god or gods, they wouldn't give him the time of day, he turned to face her.
"Honey, next time I call, you will listen," the leather wearing granny ordered with heat in her voice. "Now then, since you're going to act like a small child, I'm going to treat you like one! And we all know that small children should not be left unsupervised, so why don't you come up here and sit with me," she said trying and failing for a sweet tone of voice.
Gritting his teeth again, he grabbed his things, all the while muttering to himself. "I guess, I was wrong," he said, gaining the attention of Grover who had been shooting Ms. Dobbs nervous looks. Seeing the boy's questioning look, Perseus elaborated, "I thought that if there was a god out there he wouldn't pay me any mind. I was so wrong," Perseus said, as he stepped across the crippled boy's legs, not seeing the shocked look his words had earned him. "There is a god - and he hates my guts!"
Making his way to the front of the bus, he ignored the snickers and random feet sent his way. Taking a seat beside the smelly old woman, he tuned her out as he wondered what he had done to piss his parents off so much, to end up in a hell hole like Yancy Academy.
All he knew was that he had woken up feeling like shit after catching some kind of 72 hour sickness, not remembering a thing that had happened the day he had gotten sick. Then his mom and dad dropped a huge bomb on him! Instead of going to a school in a state where one of their many homes were located, they would be moving to New York for the first time since Perseus had been a baby and he would be forced to go to a school for crazy ass kids.
Perseus couldn't help the resentment he felt for both Sally and Paul dropping him like they had. He knew they more than likely had a good reason, but that still didn't change the fact that he felt as if he had been betrayed.
"Honey!" Perseus was pulled out of his thoughts and about gagged when he looked up into the saggy skin of his math teacher. "I asked what you thought about that."
She had obviously been ranting while he had been lost in thought. Meaning he had absolutely no idea what she had been talking about.
"I'm not sure, but this jacket is just to die for," he gushed, as he rubbed her leather gear. "Where did you buy it, I have got to get me one!"
IDC: LT
"What did you say to piss Dobbs off?" Grover asked, as they passed the water fountains outside the Greek and Roman gallery exhibit.
"What makes you think that little old me, did anything to upset that kind, little old lady?" Perseus asked, giving his best impression of what he thought innocence looked like.
Grover laughed so hard at the look that Perseus wore that he sounded like a barn animal.
Hands in his pockets, Perseus came to a stop at the back of the group listening to Mr. Brunner before speaking again. "She's going to make me pay back the school for the window I destroyed," he said remorsefully.
"Well, that's not so bad," Grover said reassuringly, giving his arm a pat. "Your family's loaded. It should be no problem for you to pay for the window."
Perseus scoffed, drawling a raised eyebrow from Grover. "Ms. Dobbs knows about my family's wealth." Biting the inside of his cheek, he shook his head at his luck. "She says that I won't learn anything if my mother pays for it. So instead of her writing a check," Grover could tell from the badly done impersonation, these had been Ms. Dobbs' words, "I'll be working at the academy until they have been reimbursed for damage to school property," as he finished his face set into an uncharacteristic scowl.
Grover didn't know what to tell his friend so he settled for patting his shoulder once more.
"I get that I broke the window and should pay for it," as he spoke his eyes became unfocused, showing he was deep in thought, despite the fact that he was holding a conversation. "It's just her that I can't stand! Had it been Mr. Brunner who had punished me, I don't think I'd be anywhere near as upset as I am now."
"If that's the case Mr. Jackson maybe I should do just that for talking while I am," Mr. Brunner announced from the front of the group. Though he had every right to be upset, there wasn't a hint of anger in his voice.
Perseus had to resist the urge to groan as the group was once again laughing at his expense. None found his plight more entertaining than Nancy and her horse faced friends.
"Aw, the dork and the cripple are in trouble again," Nancy mock whispered to the renewed giggles of her friends.
"Watch it ginger, it would be awful if you were to trip into on-coming traffic," he whispered to her causing the parts of her that weren't already to turn red. "Sorry sir, it won't happen again."
"See that it doesn't," Mr. Brunner ordered kindly.
IDC: LT
The rest of the tour leading up to lunch went rather smoothly for Perseus and Grover. When it became time for them to have lunch, Ms. Dobbs lead the group out to the front steps where they would be eating. As the two friends lagged behind the rest, Perseus joked how great their arrangements were.
"Smart planning by the academy," Perseus told Grover as he dug into his pocket for his music-player. "Putting a huge group of mental-case kids in a place where they can get at tourists."
Grover shook his head at how messed up and yet true his words were. "Look at the bright side," he said, following Perseus toward the fountain and away from their school group. "After Nancy steals whatever she can get her hands on, maybe she'll be happy enough to leave us alone."
Both took a seat at the edge of the fountain pulling out their packed lunches. In silence the two ate, Grover sending nervous looks between Ms. Dobbs, whom was throwing Perseus dirty looks, while said boy looked to be lost in thought as he watched traffic pass by.
"Would you like to meet my mom and dad?" Perseus asked suddenly, his attention never wavering from the cars speeding past.
Grover took a big bite out of one of the carrot sticks he had brought with him for lunch before he responded. "I'd like to meet them..." He was unsure of whether or not his dark haired friend could even hear him with his ear buds in. "Are they coming to the school for something?"
Instead of speaking he simply shook his head in the negative. "I was thinking of sneaking off to their condo," Perseus sighed.
"W-we can't - you can't, it's too dangerous," Grover panicked. He tried to do so without Perseus seeing it, but the sharp eyed boy caught him sending Mr. Brunner, who had parked his wheelchair on the other side of the group reading a paperback book, hopeful looks.
"You wouldn't rat me out, would you G-man?" He asked, sounding upset at the thought, his face though was unreadable.
"Of course not man," Grover replied, sounding as upset as the other boy had, the difference was that he allowed his emotions to show. "You know me, I worry about everything, but I'd never betray my best friend!"
"Yeah, I know that," Perseus admitted, sounding ashamed of himself. "I'm just really missing my parents and the temptation to sneak off and see them has my emotions running high. Sorry if I upset you!"
Grover was about to tell him he understood and that he forgave him, when he was once again assaulted by a sandwich. This time it hit him on the forehead, where it slid down his face and tangled in his few short strands of chin hair he possessed.
"Oops girls, looks like I ruined the love birds' moment," Nancy said to her friends flanking her sides, in a mock apologetic voice. "Maybe you should go wash that off."
Perseus was never one to be known for his anger control, but the fact that he had never given in to his want of punching the girl was amazing. However, this time she had messed with him and his friend at the worst possible time. He was too upset about being so close to his parent's place, to let even the smallest thing go, let alone what she had pulled this time.
"Like you're one to talk about taking a bath Nancy," Perseus said, handing Grover a napkin to clean himself off with. "I mean look at those freckles, you look like you were standing behind a horse that had diarrhea." He stood up as Nancy gaped like a fish at what he had said to her. "Let me help you see if water will get rid of those shit stains."
Stepping forward, he grabbed the girl by her shoulder and ass, making sure to give her little squeeze on her nicely shaped bottom, before hefting her into the fountain.
As the fair-haired girl floundered around like a fish, those who had seen what had happened laughed full out at the girl. The only ones to not find the scene funny were Grover who was in shock at what had happened, Nancy's friends, all three of which looked horrified at what had happened, and the two teachers who were converging on the small group at that moment.
At once there were two voices calling out at Perseus, one for 'Mr. Jackson', the other for 'Honey'.
He knew he was in 'it' deep at the moment, but the smile on his face couldn't have been knocked off by anything. "Yes?" The self satisfaction in his voice was abundantly clear for all to hear.
"Why," Mr. Brunner said, louder than was necessary, cutting off Ms. Dobbs before she could start, "would you do that to Ms. Bobofit?"
"She looked like the heat was getting to her," Perseus joked. "I thought she might like a nice swim, so I helped her out," he stated innocently.
"You pervert," Nancy growled as she stood up, her soaked clothes plastered to her skin. "He grabbed my as- butt," she corrected herself at the last second.
"Ms. Dobbs, will you please take Ms. Bobofit to dry off and buy her some dry clothes from the gift shop?" He left the older woman no room to argue as he pulled fifty dollars out of his wallet and handed it to her. The leather wearing woman nodded reluctantly, taking the money and helping the 'poor dear' out of the fountain, making sure to send Perseus a poisonous glare as she left.
"As for you Mr. Jackson, even if the reason you gave me was acceptable, which it is most certainly not, the weather itself is hardly what I would call 'hot'." The Latin teacher fixed him with a look that somehow made him feel a little bad for what he had done to the girl. "So, please, inform me the real reason you saw it fit to throw her in to the fountain?"
"Because if I had thrown her into traffic it would have killed her," as soon as he said this he regretted it. Mr. Brunner was as good at giving that disappointed look as his mother was.
"Fine," Perseus sighed. "I was getting tired of her pulling crap and no one ever making her pay for it. So I figured I'd teach her a lesson myself!" He felt a small portion of hope that he wouldn't get into any trouble as a look of understanding crossed the man's face.
"And the reason behind the... 'behind' grab?"
Perseus shrugged his shoulders, "Happy accident?"
Grover finally getting over his shock, snorted as Mr. Brunner ran a hand tiredly over his face and through his hair.
"What would your parents think, Perseus?" He could see that the question had brought Perseus up short and decided to push his point. "How would you feel if someone were to treat your mother the way you did Nancy?"
Perseus felt his anger rise at the thought of someone touching his mom. "Dude, you're such a buzz kill," he told Mr. Brunner in a whiny voice.
"So I've been told a few times," he said as his lips quirked. "Promise me next time she starts something to come to me!"
"Promise," Perseus huffed, crossing his arms.
"Good! Now then, for the remainder of the trip you will stay by my side, and in the morning you will come to my office to talk about a suitable punishment for your actions," he informed his favorite student, earning a groan in return.
IDC: LT
After being forced to stand by the wheelchair rolling professor for the remainder of the trip, the rest of the time spent in the museum passed without incident.
The shuttle bus holding the group pulled into a set of high, iron gates that kept intruders out and students in, the grounds of Yancy Academy. Sitting once again by Ms. Dobbs, Perseus watched as the many trees lining the graveled path up to the school passed him by.
As the old, brick covered building that housed many of the school's classrooms came into view, the teacher beside took him by the wrist, squeezing it with a strength that almost made him cry out in pain.
"Meet me in the gym at six," she ordered him as she took pleasure in his obvious discomfort. "Once there, you will start your payments back to the school, by doing what we can find for you to take care of." Having said her peace, she shoved him into the aisle of passing students where he was forced off the bus by the stream of excitedly talking children.
Perseus was still fuming about the old bat touching him as he untangled himself from the mass of students. Looking around, he found Grover standing by the stairs leading to the entrance of the school and quickly made his way over.
"Nancy didn't give you a hard time during the ride back, did she?" He asked, taking a seat on one of the steps next to the still standing Grover.
"Nah," he answered, watching people pass them by. "I think she was still too upset to function, let alone really try anything." Perseus watched as his friend popped something into his mouth that caught the light just before his friend bit in to it, making the sound of a soda can being crushed.
He raised an eyebrow at his friend, wondering what he could be eating to make such a noise, but thought better than to ask the boy.
The two passed into a comfortable silence as they watched Mr. Brunner being lowered from the bus. Perseus was trying to decide if he should just skip out on Ms. Dobbs, when a strange sight showed itself to him.
Two very attractive girls that Perseus had never seen before came strolling out the woods. Even from the distance they were at, he could still take in all of their details.
The taller of the two was a wavy haired blond, whom looked to have quite the athletic looking figure and beautiful storm-grey eyes. Perseus would have thought of her as the princess type, but the way she dressed showed she knew how to rough it. If what she was wearing wasn't enough, then her intense and intelligent eyes made it clear that she was as smart as she was beautiful.
The second girl only came up to the first shoulder. Short spiky black hair hung just below her chin, making the scattering of freckles across her nose and her electric-blue eyes pop in a way that Perseus had never seen before. And while she was nowhere near as athletic looking as the older girl beside her, she had a look that spoke of power and respect, even if she was dressed like she had just walked off the stage of a punk rock concert.
Perseus was focused on the two young beauties to such a degree that it took Grover punching him in the arm to grab his attention.
"Ow - what?" Perseus snapped.
"I asked what you were spacing out for," Grover informed him.
"Two of the best looking girls I've ever laid eyes on," Perseus said, as he rubbed where he had been hit.
Grover following the direction his friend was staring at, let out a deep gasp before screaming, "Annabeth, Thalia!" Perseus could only watch as Grover took off, stumbling towards the two girls as at the same time said girls' heads swung in his direction in unison.
Unnoticed by all was how Mr. Brunner was looking between the two girls and boy running toward each other, and Perseus who was slowly following behind the crutched boy.
Perseus had to give his crippled friend some props, for a kid that could barely walk he had flat out booked it to the girls, both of whom were at the moment hugging the boy in a friendly manner.
As he drew near to the small group, Perseus felt a strange sensation run through him as he watched the two girls. The only way he could describe the feeling was that something was telling him they were worthy of acceptance. But there was something else besides the feeling of acceptance for the two. It was almost like he felt a deep hunger pass over him as he watched them.
"Grover, you going to introduce me to your pretty friends?" Perseus asked, as he came to a stop next to the boy. Right away both girls locked eyes on him, the blonde looking as if she was taking his measure, while the other scoffed at being called pretty, before giving him an amused look. If the way the blue eyed girl was dressed was anything to go by, she didn't buy into the whole prissy girl thing.
"Perseus!" Grover exclaimed. For some reason, his voice had taken on the same nervous pitch it always did when he was lying, or trying to hide something. "Uh - um - yeah, this is Annabeth Chase, and Thalia Grace," he said pointing to the blonde haired girl, then the one with black hair. "They're-"
"My nieces," Mr. Brunner said, as he rolled up to the group. "Girls, this is Perseus Jackson. He is one of my students I teach here at Yancy Academy."
"Hello Perseus," the girls named Annabeth greeted him evenly.
"Sup, pretty-boy," Thalia greeted casually.
Perseus gave Thalia a light glare making her snicker, which in turn made him chuckle. "It's nice to meet the two of you," he said, as he looked between the girls and his Latin teacher. "So you're both his nieces?"
"Yup," Thalia confirmed, as Annabeth nodded in agreement. Neither gave Perseus a reason to not believe them, but the way Grover stiffened as he asked them about their relation, told him something was up.
"You know, now that I look at each of you properly, I can see a resemblance between the three of you," he said grinning, a small hint of sarcasm in his voice. "Well, I'm sure there was a reason you've both come here... from inside the woods that are surrounded by a huge iron fence," though his tone was light, the four around him could tell he didn't believe what he had been told.
"Grover, I have to meet up with Ms. Dobbs later, so I don't know when I'll be in my room." Perseus informed him, getting a nod that looked almost painful from the force he had used behind it. Perseus then turned to the other three. "It was great getting to meet you two, and Mr. Brunner I'll see you in your office in the morning."
"Having to meet a teacher later, then one first thing in the morning," Thalia listed off in a smug voice. "It sounds like someone is a trouble maker!"
"You got me Barbie," he took great joy in seeing the girl's freckled nose scrunch up cutely in disgust at what he had called her. "I'm just all kinds of trouble," he called over his shoulder as he walked away from the group missing Thalia's muttered threats.
Unknown to the group of four, Perseus strained his above average hearing to its very limits to hear what was being said as he sauntered away.
"Is he the one you were informed about, Chiron?"
"Yes he is," answered Mr. Brunner tiredly, surprising Perseus that the man answered to a name that wasn't his. He was sure that he had heard it somewhere before, but where, he didn't know. "Let me tell you, it hasn't been easy keeping those who would harm him away."
Hearing this Perseus slowed as much as he could without drawing attention to himself.
"Chiron is right," Grover said, sounding even more nervous than he usually did. "Why monsters hadn't started hunting him down before, I don't know. Whenever I'm around him, his smell overwhelms all others, even more so than yours Thalia!"
A wide eyed Perseus, walked through the entrance to the academy as Grover said the girl's name.
What had they meant by 'those who would harm him'? And his smell, what the hell was Grover talking about? 'Do I stink or something?' He thought, grabbing the collar of his shirt and taking a deep whiff. He shook his head as if answering his own question about him stinking. All he could smell was the light amount of cologne he had used earlier that morning. 'Then what had he meant?'
But the weirdest part of the whole conversation hadn't been the group talking about his smell, or those who wanted to hurt him, not even the part where Mr. Brunner answered to a name that wasn't his. No, the part that got to Perseus was when Grover had started to talk about monsters. What would cause them to even bring up something like that?
Perseus was still pondering over what he had heard as he had eavesdropped on the group, when he reached his dorm room. Unlocking his door, he could only come up with one solution as to why they would be talking about what they were.
'I'm such an idiot,' he thought, lying down on his small bed, covering his head with a pillow as had become habit for him over the years. 'They must have known that I was listening in and thought they would mess with me.' Pushing all thought of monsters and bad smells out of his mind, Perseus drifted off to sleep, thinking about Mr. Brunner's two hot 'nieces'.
IDC: LT
Perseus dashed through the front entrance to the gym with reckless abandon. Panting lightly, he squinted his eyes as he tried to see around the dark gym.
He had awoken from his nap at ten minutes to six. Without stopping to change out of his school uniform, he had taken off for the gymnasium like a bat out of hell, causing more than one person to jump out of his way in his attempt to not be late.
"Ms. Dobbs," Perseus yelled, as he walked further into the wide open gym. Balls that had been forgotten to be put away laid all across the basketball court, the bleachers that held spectators for games were folded up against the wall and out of the way, the bittersweet stench of sweat fermented the air, seeming to become stronger the farther into the gym he walked, but nowhere to be found was Ms. Dobbs.
Letting out an audible sigh, Perseus ran a hand through his shortly cut hair. He was guessing that Ms. Dobbs had either forgotten about their meeting, or she was enjoying a good laugh as she imagined him showing up and waiting on her for hours on end. Feeling his anger start to rise he turned to storm out the gym, but came to a stop as he saw the old woman standing in front of the door, her small beady eyes focused on him.
"There you are," Perseus snapped, his irritation showing as he placed his hands in the pockets of his slacks. "Now that you're here, we can begin whatever it is you have lined up for me."
Perseus had always known that when the old woman would smile, it meant bad things for him, but the way the evil looking smirk slowly made its way across her face as she stepped toward him, he could have sworn her teeth looked to be as sharp and pointed as a shark's.
"What we're going to be doing this evening, honey, is finally getting some truth out of you!" As she spoke her voice seemed to change with each syllable, until it sounded like her throat was raw and damaged. "Now tell me, where - is - it?"
Something in him told Perseus that showing the fear that he was feeling right now would be a very unwise thing to do. "What are you talking about?" He asked, keeping his panic out of his voice better than he had hoped he would be able to.
"Do not lie to me boy," she hissed. Perseus was now sure her teeth were sharp points. "You will tell me where you've hidden it, or I will get it out of you... forcibly!" The way she said the last part left no doubt in his mind that she would enjoy nothing more than to force him to talk. What she wanted him to talk about, he didn't know.
"If you're not going to talk any sense, I'm going to go back to my room." Perseus made to walk by Ms. Dobbs, but was brought to his knees as a long talon hand wrapped around his forearm, squeezing like a vice.
"Honey," she said, as his gaze traveled up the arm attached to the talon hand, past a pair of leathery bat like wings jutting out of her back, before finally coming to a stop as his brilliant green eyes met a pair of molten pools of lava. "That was the wrong answer!"
Perseus didn't know what happened next as he then woke up on the other side of the gym, his entire body screaming in pain. Pushing himself up on shaking arms, he had just enough time to see the – thing - that was Ms. Dobbs take flight.
"Damn, I knew she was an old bat, but this is ridiculous," Perseus moaned, as he pushed himself up the rest of the way.
"Tell me where it is!" She roared, as she dived at him from above.
Perseus barely had enough time to roll out of the way of the creature as it flew through the spot he had been standing in just seconds before. Getting back to his feet, he made for the entrance only to have something hit him in the back that sent him flying through the air and crashing into a set of bleachers. He felt an explosion of pain in his spine and ribs at the same time the wood he rocketed into buckled, before breaking from the force of his crash.
"Have you had enough yet," she asked, in a sweet voice that she knew the boy hated. "This is nothing compared to what I can do, and will do, if you do not tell me what I want to know!"
"Listen you giant turkey looking bitch," Perseus spat, as he rose up on to his knees. "I don't know what you're talking about, but I'm going to kick your old, wrinkly ass for that!" Pushing himself up the rest of the way, he was able to sneak a piece of the splintered wood that had broken off after he had been thrown into the bleachers, intent on using it as a weapon. He didn't know what good it would do him, but it was better than nothing.
"Aw," Ms. Dobbs said in a sickly sweet baby voice, "Does the young hero think he can beat little old me? Then let's see what you're capable of, shall we?"
Faster than she had the first time, she dove at Perseus, but before she could reach him, a spear covered in lightning flew through her wings sending her crashing harshly into the floor, where she rolled and tumbled until she hit the bleachers coming to a stop.
Perseus gaped at what he had seen, looking to see where the weapon had come from he saw both Thalia and Annabeth standing in the threshold to the gym.
"Barbie and the valley girl, to the rescue!" Perseus announced, sounding like a Saturday morning cartoon. Everything that was happening was starting to get to him.
"It's not over yet," Annabeth said in a business like voice, paying his words no mind as she pulled a Yankee's cap from her back pocket, slipping it on and disappearing.
Perseus didn't have enough time to say anything about her disappearing act as the monster nimbly jumped to her feet and charged at him, letting out a howl of rage.
Time slowed down for Perseus, from across the room he could hear both girls yelling for him to move, and could see each step Ms. Dobbs took, bringing her closer and closer to ripping him too shreds with those knife like talons of hers.
As he took in his surroundings, he could feel the ground just below the surface of the gym floor. It felt as if the world itself was telling him that it would be alright, that it would protect him. Ms. Dobbs chose that moment to unleash her loudest scream yet, as if she wanted him to know he was only a few feet away from his death.
Wishing for anything at all to stop her, he felt a shift in the earth below. Before he could fully register the feeling, he suddenly wasn't the only one to feel a shift, as the entire building had started to shake and groan as if the soil below them all was answering his very call.
Perseus, Thalia, and Annabeth, watched as the now off-balanced Mrs. Dobbs was pierced by multiple spikes of earth that had shot through the wooden floor, turning her to a fine golden dust that disappeared as quickly as she had.
The room turned completely silent, the only sound coming from a car alarm outside. Perseus was sure the earthquake that he had caused had set it off.
'Wait!" He thought nervously. 'Earthquake I caused? How could I cause an earthquake? It's just not possible! But if that's true, then what did cause it?'
Perseus was brought out of his mini panic attack by the sound of Thalia whistling.
"Damn, now that's what I call power," she said grinning, at the same time as Annabeth reappeared then took off her cap. Perseus didn't know if the look she was giving him was good or not, but he could see the spark of something that he guessed was the beginning of respect.
"Which do you think, Beth, underworld, or sea?" Thalia asked, giving Annabeth a look he couldn't read.
"I don't know, it could be either one. Both of their children have been known to be able to control the earth." The blonde pocketed her cap, turning to face the other girl, finally taking her eyes off the unspeaking boy. "Is it wrong that I hope it's underworld," she asked in an aggravated voice? Thalia didn't answer her; instead, she laughed, causing the blonde to scowl lightly at her.
Perseus having had enough of being left out took a hasty step forward, but regretted his actions immediately as his body reminded him, of how he had become the bats hacky sack.
Gritting his teeth, he walked up to the girls, causing the light bickering of the two to come to a stop. "What the hell is going on," he demanded. "What was that thing and why the hell don't either of you seem surprised that the old bat, turned into an actual old bat?"
Both girls shared a look that seemed to say that this wasn't the first time they had to clue someone in. Annabeth turning her attention on him, gave him a pitying look and was about to answer him, when the sound of voices from outside could be heard heading towards them.
"There's no time for answers right now," Annabeth told him, as she grabbed his hand and started dragging him toward the back exit. "For now, we have to get out of here. Thalia, hurry up!"
Glancing over at the dark haired girl, Perseus saw her pick up the spear that had brought Ms. Dobbs down to earth. He felt his eyes widen as the weapon turned into a small canister of mace that the girl pocketed right away.
Perseus shook his head as he let himself be dragged. "Yup," he muttered to himself. "God hates me!"
AN: Just to clear it up, Perseus is 12, Annabeth is 13(both like canon), and Thalia is 12. Why Thalia isn't a tree might be shown next chapter, if not it will be shown in the one after it.
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