It was the hottest day of the year so far. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail while waiting for the bus. I had a weird feeling that my neighbor Cassandra- a "mean girl" if ever there was one- was shooting dirty looks at me every times I blinked. Cassandra and I don't talk much, even though we're the same age. Her parents are divorced, and her dad is really rich and her mom is pretty normal, the typical neighbor, sort of friendly, sort of backstabbing. Cassandra is more backstabbing. Or more like just stabbing. I swear she's some kind of monster. I bet she'd even have her own category of monster. The bus screeched to a halt in front of us. Cassandra pushed me out of the way to get to her seat faster. I rolled my eyes.

I scooted into the seat next to my friend Delaney. Within our circle of friends, Delaney is the closest to normal. She's not, though, because she hangs out with us. By "us" I mean Alana, who has anxiety issues. Then there's Ronnie, who has scoliosis. And Mineete. Mineete's just… weird. By choice. And also me. I am diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia.

But that's not all. Actually, that's not the problem. While I'm diagnosed with this stuff, I have a secret. I'm a demigod. Greek. Daughter of Athena. Nobody knows. Of my friends at school, I mean.

Not even Delaney, who I could tell someday, and know she wouldn't spill. It's good to know I have her on my side, I know she's my friend no matter what. If I had sixteen heads but only one eye total, she'd still be my friend. It kills me every day that none of them know.

Ronnie maybe I could tell, but she gets easily flustered, and she'd blurt it out and then have to live with it. I couldn't do that to her.

Alana, is just, well, no. She might get a little offended that I didn't tell her earlier.

As for Mineete, I don't think she'd believe me. I really don't.

I don't know what the others think of me. I wonder if Delaney sees all us as dysfunctional freaks she hangs out with because she nobody else likes her.

Never mind that. I'm sure she doesn't. That's thinking like Lorraine. Who's Lorraine? Oh, just my stepmother, who has made my life miserable, and the reason I ran away at six (long story.). Her two sons are obsessed with Legos and making me go out of my mind. My dad is a professor.

I'm getting off track. The main point it that I sat with Delaney. This is actually a key point, unfortunately.

When Ronnie got on the bus, she looked around for a second, ignoring Cassandra's friends' insightful comments about her brace, saw us, and rushed over to our seat- or as much as she could. Her eyes were shining. "School dance tonight! I can go!"

"Yes!" Delaney's face lit up.

"So all of us are going?" I asked happily, knowing the answer.

"As long as Alana doesn't change her mind at the last minute." said Delaney.

Two bus stops later, Alana got on the bus. She stopped right at our seat. "Can I sit down?"

"Well…" Delaney was using that patient voice she uses when she doesn't want to accidentally offend Alana, "you see, these seats are only made for three people-"

Alana interrupted, "But the popular girls sit all together! Are you excluding me? What did I do, huh? Was it something I said? Or are you too embarrassed to be seen with me?"

Part of that was true. Cassandra and all her friends were crammed six, seven, and eight, to a seat.

Delaney continued, still in that patient voice, "They'll get in trouble when we get to school. Plus, none of them have scoliosis, like Ronnie."

Ronnie blushed, but didn't interrupt Delaney. "So maybe I could move to the seat behind us and you could sit with me."

Alana was considering this when the boy behind her said gruffly, "Hey, dorks, you're clogging up the line." and pushed Alana into Ronnie's lap.

He wasn't going to get away with that. I had my knife in my pocket... If only I was allowed to use it on mortals... It would be the end of him. I stood up and shouted, not a care in the world, "Hey, you!"

He turned. The bus grew silent. "Yes?" He asked, mimicking Alana's voice, "Does she want to sit with me?"

"NO!" I yelled. "Don't judge! She may look like a freak to you, but to me, she's a friend! It's not my fault or hers or anyone's that she's different from you! She's sensitive! How would you like it if somebody did that to you? You would be running home to Mommy and Daddy!"

I looked down at Alana. She was curled into a ball at Ronnie's feet with her hands clamped over her ears. Without making eye contact, she muttered, "Thank you."

The bus driver stood up. "You two!" she pointed at the boy and me. "It'll be the principal's office once we get to school."

The boy rolled his eyes and sat down with one of Cassandra's friends. Delaney pulled me down. Alana stood up, climbed over Ronnie, and hugged me. That's me, the friend that yells and loses it at random people who insult them.

Delaney moved to the seat behind us so Alana wouldn't sit alone. That's Delaney, the friend that'll do anything for us.

Ronnie cast a glance at the boy, flirting with one of Cassandra's friends. She checked to see if the bus driver was watching, and made a rude hand gesture at the boy. That's Ronnie, the friend that carries out revenge quickly and silently.

When we got to school, I made my way toward the office. The boy wasn't in there, so I had to wait in the main office until he came. The secretary looked at me funny. "You aren't late."

"I know." I explained. "I took the bus. I'm in trouble."

"Oh?" The secretary looked vaguely bored.

"I shouted at a boy who did something mean to my friend."

"Okay. Just wait for the others, then you can go into Mrs. Trifle's office."

"Um, OK."

"Oh and what's your name? I need to file this sort of stuff."

"Annabeth Chase."

"Your friend's name?"

"She's not coming down, or at least the bus driver didn't tell her to. But her name is Alana Rollozo."

The secretary was silent after that. Her fingertips tapped away on an old computer. I stared at the clock, still waiting for the boy. Five minutes... Eight minutes... Ten minutes... The bus driver burst into the office. "Oh, good. You're here," she said to me. "What about the other boy... his name was Mike?"

I shrugged. I didn't care what his name was. All I knew was that he was a jerk.

The bus driver left. Two minutes... Five minutes... Ten minutes... Fifteen minutes... Twenty minutes... The bell rang for first period. The secretary looked at me. "Oh, you're still here," she said, a distinguishable note of boredom in her voice. "You wait here. I'm going to talk to Mrs. Trifle."

She stood up and walked into the hallway toward the offices of the principal, vice principal, and guidance counselors (our school has a few of them), and came back out with Mrs. Trifle just as Mike walked into the office. Mrs. Trifle did not look happy. "Both of you," she snapped. "My office. Now."

Mike and I shuffled into her office. She made us both recount the story from our perspectives. Then she called Alana down to the office.

As Alana entered the room, saw Mike, and rolled her eyes in disgust.

Alana sat next to me. Mrs. Trifle made her recount the story. She stuttered about four times. Not bad at all. Mike, however, had a different opinion. He muttered something about Alana not understanding the concepts of having a life, and that was it. I turned to him, making a fist, and said, "One more comment like that, and I'll-"

"ENOUGH!" Mrs. Trifle yelled.

The next part of our meeting involved the three of us each going to a different guidance counselor, and getting a lecture on peaceful conflict resolution (me), and acceptance of others (Mike). As for Alana, I honestly don't know. Then the secretary said something incoherent (at least in the guidance office) over the PA and next thing you know, Mike, Alana, and I are being herded back into Mrs. Trifle's office as a mildly confused Delaney is being ushered in, along with a not-so-mildly-confused Cassandra, a tired-looking Ronnie, a moody looking Jayla (one of Cassandra's friends), a very surprised (I was surprised at this one too) Mineete, and an extremely ticked-off Brianna (another one of Cassandra's fiends- sorry, I meant friends). Witnesses. And I'm not quite sure what Mineete was doing there.

Mrs. Trifle had each of them recount the story, except Mineete, whom she asked if I had "pulled anything like this before."

The odds looked just about in my favor, but Cassandra had to mess things up as usual. Mineete was just saying how I was a good person, and Cassandra, after rummaging around in her purse, flicked a breath mint at Alana. I closed my eyes and counted to ten. I opened my eyes. Instead of me jumping out and shouting at her, I was surprised to see Delaney jump up and roar at her, "Just lay off for once!"

Every pair of eyes turned to her. "Really, she should," she said. "She and her friends are always doing mean things to Alana."

Mrs. Trifle looked interested. "Mean in what way?"

"Like always shouting at her and just making her upset!" Ronnie piped up.

"Just because she's different!" Mineete added.

"And Annabeth was just sticking up for her!" Delaney continued.

"Annabeth shouted at another student," Mrs. Trifle plowed on, "And I suppose Alana was upset at the shouting."

"Yes, but-"

They were running run out of ammunition.

"So how does that make Annabeth any better than them?"

My friends, all awesomeness aside, were speechless and staring.