CHAPTER 1 : WHIRLPOOL EYES

Hera had not slept well the last night. Her foster father, Kronos (who really didn't behave like a father should), had been in a drunk rage yet again. Bottles were hurled repeatedly, splattering strong scented amber liquid on the walls, along with some of Hera's blood. One of the shards had dug into her elbow, leaving a deep, ugly gash that had to be thickly bandaged. Poseidon, one of the other foster kids, had to eventually knock Kronos out by slamming his 1000 page Physics textbook (Gods, all the useless information in there, though) on the back of his head. After he had collapsed, Rhea, the foster mother, called for one of the servants to drag him back to his room. Then, she apologized repeatedly, as she did for all the wrong done by her husband. Hera, Poseidon, and the other 3 kids; Demeter, Hestia and Hades, had hugged her and told her it wasn't her fault.

"Thank the Gods you will be away from him from tomorrow- this school will do you good, my children." she had said, speaking of Olympus High, the boarding school they would be attending from the next day. Hera could just nod mutely, for as much as she would miss Rhea, another day in the same house as Kronos would have driven her mad.

So here she stood, along with the only friends she had ever made, at the entrance of the first school she would attend. Rhea kissed them all goodbye, her soft lips pecked Hera's cheek first, and left, for she was not allowed to go past the tall ivory gates.

"Well then." Demeter ended the silence. "Let's get going."

Her voice broke the spell that had frozen them to the spot. The 5 of them started forward, Hera in the lead. They stepped off the perfectly mowed green lawn onto the white marble steps that led into the main building, climbing up the short flight of stairs into the gorgeously decorated palace.

The first thing Hera expected to see when she got inside was golden trophies on shelves that lined the walls, or an elaborately spiralled marble staircase, or perhaps a banner that hung off the railings that read GO OLYMPIANS!

All that was there, yes, but that wasn't what caught Hera's attention. Her gaze was drawn first to the boy climbing down the stairs. Oh, good Lord, that made her sound like a cliche romance novel character: The second she noticed the hot boy, she was instantly in love with him!

But it wasn't because of his looks. It was more to do with the fact that he was holding a goat. His arms were wrapped tightly around a sleek furred, white kid, which was kicking its hind legs weakly, as if meagerly accepting the fact that he couldn't escape. The boy skipped lightly down the steps, but when he looked up he realized he had company. His face broke out in a guilty grin, like one a mischievous child would give when caught in an act.

"Is there any way that I can convince you that this isn't what it looks like?"

Poseidon put a finger on his chin. "Hmmm, well, that really depends on what it looks like to us. Right now what I see is a boy trying to secretly smuggle a goat out of a school. Is that close enough?"

The guilty grin widened. "Ding ding ding. Spot on. And first try, too. Yes, you're right, I was dared to bring Amy into class and then take her out after the bell."

"Amy?" Hera asked, and immediately realized what a stupid thing that was to say.

The boy looked at her, his gaze amused. "The goat. Short for Amalthea, but you can see why we prefer Amy."

"I see." Hera had the oddest feeling, like a fire was burning right in front of her face.

The boy shrugged casually. "Oh, and, in case you were wondering- I'm Zeus."

Zeus. The name rolled off her tongue, the ooh breathed through a small pucker of her lips, and the sss was a light hiss. She loved the sound of his name. Also, now that the goat business had been cleared up, Hera couldn't help but notice that the boy was actually really cute.

His eyes were the most beautiful combination of beachy colors; swirling summer sky-blue flecked with gray and gold, like the sun's gleam on deep turquoise waves. The longer she looked into them, the more Hera felt as if she were drowning in those whirlpool irises. Zeus's thick hair was chopped off at the ear, and was different shades of metallic silver, some locks darker or lighter or shinier than the others- it stood out vividly against his tan skin.

He was about a head taller than Hera, and built much leaner than her. His arms looked rock hard with muscle, and the shirt he wore clung to his torso, indicating that he had abs. Lots of them. All in all, he was possibly the hottest boy Hera had ever seen.

She flushed angrily when she saw Zeus's smug expression, like he had been expecting this reaction from her. As she looked away, her face still hot with embarrassment and anger, Zeus said, "Well, I should probably get going. Sir Hyperion is going to be wondering where I'm at."

He slipped through in between Hera and Demeter; it was quite an odd sight- a tall, handsome boy sprinting away with a goat.

Demeter let out a low whistle when he disappeared out the entrance. "Great Heavens, that kid was some sight."

Hera looked over at her, annoyed. "First of, Dem, he's no kid to you- you barely reach his shoulder. And second, he's hardly some sight. Quit hitting on boys in the first 5 seconds we're here."

Dem rolled her eyes. "He's no more than a few inches taller than me. And you're just annoyed I'm hitting on your hot crush."

Hera's face felt hot. "Not a crush, Demeter." she said through gritted teeth. The other girl simply laughed, flipping her long wheat-blonde hair over her shoulder.

"Well then." Hades said, his voice tinged with amusement. "I think we should get going to class now. Who do you have first? I have Sir Oceanus for Marine Biology"

Hestia pushed her glasses up her nose. "I have Madam Themis- Court Law." she sounded happy enough, but everyone knew Hestia would never oppose or contradict anything.

"The same as Zeus- Theia. She teaches Geology. " Demeter's grass-green eyes twinkled.

Hera peered at her schedule- a white sheet. "Same as you, Dem." she groaned as she found the words next to First Class. Demeter grinned crookedly.

"Don't pretend like you don't like that." she teased. Hera shot her a glare.

Poseidon made a face at his schedule. "I have Philosophy. With some dude named Koios. What the hell kind of name is Koios?"

Hera laughed. "Oh great Poseidon, do share your useless wisdom with us poor folks. I have always wanted to know how to cut my toenails with a pair of tweezers."

She yelped as Poseidon kicked at her shins, but didn't stop giggling. After the fighting finally ceased, the 5 of them made their way to their classes, each still smiling.

Oh, this would be an interesting year.