Note: I DO NOT own anything from the Percy Jackson series, only my own original character, Pelagia Taylor
Prologue
Pelagia sat on the warm sand of the Palm Beach coast line. Her green eyes followed the motion of the tide. In, out, in, out. She smiled as the warm salt water tickled her toes, and she began to recollect what had occurred earlier that day. Her brows furrowed as she thought about her step father sneering at her about her grades starting to slip, that she would end up as nothing more than a common street whore or strip girl if she continued to not take school seriously. Didn't he understand that her dyslexia and ADHD severely handicapped her? That having a C average was not bad despite these crippling attributes of hers? Probably. Did he care? Hell no. She smirked at her own sarcastic tone, continuing to enviously watch the water that lay as far as the eye could see, twisting and churning; doing whatever it wished. Pelagia sighed softly, yearning for that kind of freedom. She didn't even realize she was crying until her vision momentarily blurred and she felt a warm trickle of tears fall onto her lap. Instinctively heaving a soft sob, she angrily rubbed her eyes and reminded herself that tears wouldn't change anything. Tears won't make her life happier or raise her grades, nor increase her chances of getting into a decent college, so there was no point to them. Suddenly, she heard someone clear their throat behind her. Pelagia leaped to her feet from her seated position in the sand and spun around to see a man wearing bermuda shorts and a Hawaiian shirt smiling at her.
"Hello my dear," the man with dashing green eyes and jet black hair said. "It's nearly midnight, and yet you're here weeping by your lonesome, won't your parents be worried about you?" as the stranger posed his question to her his eyes widened slightly, as if producing evidence of his genuine concern. After getting over her moment of awe for the handsome wanderer that seemingly came out of thin air, Pelagia barked a laugh.
"Well, seeing as my mom is six feet under, and I've never met my real father, I don't think they mind a bit." The man's eye brows grew heavy in compassion and the small smile that had been on his lips, surrounded by his well trimmed beard, instantly faded; not expecting such a negative retort.
"Oh, my..I'm..I'm so sorry for your loss..Do you not have any family at all?" Pelagia stared at the man for a moment, debating on how to answer his question. Do I dare be straightforward? Or should I sugar coat it all? She chewed her lower lip as she rolled these thoughts around in her mind over and over again. But before she could come to a decision, the stranger interrupted her.
"Well, how about this, why don't we start off with introductions first? Maybe then the words you are so obviously searching for will come easier. "the man said, green eyes twinkling as he regained his smile back. Pelagia blushed and looked away; she had no idea that she had been so obvious; like an open book that this man could thumb through and read at his leisure. The handsome stranger made the first move, stepping forward and extending his hand.
"I'm Poseidon, and you are?.." Pelagia extended her hand to match his more out of reaction than actually wanting to get to know him. After all, she still had her suspicions about him. His hand engulfed hers, and instantly Pelagia was overwhelmed with a tingling sensation that sped its way through her body, instantly warming her. Immediately she felt her guard drop, and oddly knew that he was a safe presence. Shyly glancing up at him through her long, dark eye lashes, she murmured a name that only someone with superior hearing could have discerned. The man allowed a large, dazzling grin to spread across his face at the mention of her name.
"Pelagia!? Well, that is quite a pretty name for a pretty girl." Pelagia allowed herself a small smile to spread across her lips, the tears that she had just previously shed still glistened in her eyes, catching the moonlight and making them seem to glow a light green. If I could have had a chance at knowing my real father, I would have wanted it to be someone like him she thought. Her silent wish was interrupted by a fierce, cool wind blowing through the beach that seemed to pass right through her. She shivered violently, and silently cursed to herself for not bringing a light-weight jacket. The man named Poseidon released her hand and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, turning her towards the street and making his way deeper in land with her at his side.
"It's not always safe for young girls to be out alone on the beach so late. Go home my dear and come back when you are not so vulnerable." At his last word the arm he so affectionately had placed over her shoulders disappeared with a wisp of sea air. Pelagia turned around, perturbed by the last statement he told her, but saw no one there. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion, and she began to question herself. Had she hallucinated it all? But glanced down at the tracks that her feet left in the sand, noticing another pair of foot prints that had walked with her own. And then she realized something; he said that his name was Poseidon! As in God of the sea? She swiveled her head around, scouring each nook and cranny of the beach with her eyes, hoping to catch a glimpse of him. Finding nothing, she turned back towards the street and started walking away from the beach, heeding Poseidon's advice. One thing was definite, if she ever met this Poseidon again, she needed to get some answers about who he was. She smiled to herself at the thought of him being a Greek god. And somehow, she knew that he would run into her again.