So hey! This is my first fanfiction!
Don't hesitate to tell me what you think, because I like constructive criticism. (But please, constructive is the key word. Please please please don't be mean for no reason.)
Another thing to note: I don't have an updating schedule. Don't expect me to update regularly, because I've got a SUPER busy summer ahead of me.
Anyway, tell me what you think of the story so I know what to change. I'll try to keep Author's Notes short, but I would like you to read them. You'll probably understand more in later chapters.
So without further ado, on to the story!
Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson. I do, however, own my OCs. Which may or may not make an appearance.
Chapter 1
Annabeth
Ever since she married my dad, Frederick, and moved into our house, I've never mattered.
It's always, "Oh, Frederick, what should we have for dinner?" "I don't know, let's ask the kids." "Okay!" "Bobby? Matthew? What do you guys want for dinner?"
Never "Annabeth".
In this household, Annabeth didn't exist.
I mean, sure, I existed, but they refused to acknowledge my existence. Bobby and Matthew would occasionally talk to me, just a couple words, but they were kind of weirded out by my differentness. Helen and Frederick didn't speak to me at all.
It seemed that nobody would ever understand me. They simply couldn't understand how my brain worked. I had been diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia at a very young age, but somehow I excelled in school and possessed an Intelligence Quotient (IQ) of 146.
I would have skipped two grades, but my parents wouldn't allow it. They wanted desperately for our family to be normal, and my step-mother Helen didn't approve of anyone in our family being more noticeable than she. She was so self-centered that she tried to stop me from reading. She didn't want me to get any smarter. She didn't want me to become noticeable.
She hid all my books, but I found them. I stole them back and hid them somewhere else. She never found them again.
Then came the worst phase of all. When I was around seven years old, Helen began drinking. I remember, every night, I would hide under my bedsheets to try to escape her. On the best nights, Helen would only drink a little bit and go to bed before she made any bad decisions.
But some days, she wouldn't stop herself from pouring another glass, and she'd get drunk. Frederick was always tired and went to sleep early, and the twins were too young to be awake for too long, but I was always up reading.
On those few days when she got really drunk, she would come into my bedroom and scream at me for no reason at all. And she would hit me. She abused me for a year until Frederick found out and made her stop. He sent her to therapy to stop drinking. She's over her alcohol problem now, but I was left scarred with memories.
When she couldn't figure out how to get rid of me, Helen decided to just remove me from her existence. Because Frederick wouldn't let her abandon me, his only daughter, Helen just began ignoring me.
As a child, eight years old, I was already smart enough to see what was happening. I had realized the situation within the first day of being ignored.
She somehow brainwashed Frederick into ignoring me too. He he used to send me pitiful glances now and again, but not anymore. He's given up. He's given up on our family, on the hope of ever being normal.
It's been ten years since then, and I've somehow managed to survive to seventeen years old without help from my so-called "parents". It's partly due to my real mom, Athena Minerva Pallas sending me money each year. She left a long time ago, but she still tries to ensure that I'm okay.
I can get by with sneaking leftovers from the fridge after dinner (only four table settings: Susan, Frederick, and my twin brothers, Bobby and Matthew. I don't get served dinner.) or occasionally buying microwavable chicken dinners or Ramen noodles.
I think of it as practicing for college.
Speaking of which, I still don't know how I'm going to afford college. I don't get that much money from Athena each year, just enough to get by. And I'd be delusional if I thought Frederick and Helen were going to pay. I'd just have to find a job.
Although, I don't suppose it'll be difficult. I have been valedictorian each year in school for all my life, with straight A's all year. Pair that with an IQ of 146 and being able to speak three languages (I learned French and Italian from a computer program, $8.99 downloaded online), and it's an impressive resumé for anyone.
But before college, there's one more challenge for me to face.
High School.