"Percy, I told you, hold you're head down you could choke yourself like that," Percy sighed and held the white (slowly becoming red) cloth tighter around his throbbing nose and lowered his head.

"That's better isn't it?" Will said, pointedly not mentioning that they were 2 weeks into school and it was Percy's 4th bloody nose.

"Thanks again Will," Percy whispered while Will applied a bandage to the small cut on his forehead, wincing at the stinging from the alcohol.

Will rolled his eyes, "Just, tell Coach Anderson about this," He pleaded his blue eyes illuminating all the worry Percy asked him not to have.

"I can't Will, you know that. Coach Anderson picked me, a Junior, to be on the Varsity Hockey team. I can't disappoint him by being intimidated by some regular high school hazing," he explained laying the red and white cloth on the cold bench beneath him as he wiped his nose with the damp Kleenex.

"Percy this, isn't hazing anymore," Will scoffed.

"You don't get it Will," Percy said shaking his head, his messy mop of raven hair falling into his eyes.

"Your right I don't get it Percy, why don't you explain it to me," he said crossing his arms across his chest.

"I have reasons," Percy murmured.

"Well, when you're ready to share those reasons, I'll be with Nico," Will said gathering his kit and walking away from the rink.

Percy sighed, tiredly rubbing his face with both hands, expertly avoiding the bandage. He got up quickly, not even noticing the twinges coming from his nose. He changed in the locker room and walked home, thanking that he lived so close to the school as he reached his apartment.

He opened the door, the familiarity of his mother's laughter greeting him as he walked inside. She gave him a large smile and he returned it while heading into his room. He sat his Hockey equipment on the end of his bed. His eyes wandered toward the poster covering his barren walls. The sunshine blond hair, the electric eyes, the golden boy smile. Percy sighed, Jason Grace the MVP of the New York Rangers. The man was his inspiration and no way he was going to disappoint one of the only men he looked up to in his life. No, Way.

The bell rang shrilly as Percy slammed his locker close, math algorithms and test dates swirling in his head as he walked to Art. He skidded inside just as the bell rang, verdant green gleaming at him with approval and steely gray looking at him with irritation, "Hey Annabeth, Rachel," he greeted sliding in between the polar opposites.

The teacher clapped her hands together bringing all attention to her, "Today I would like you all to show me what we you completed so far on your people portraits I'd like to see how your proportions and life like sketches are coming so get them out and let me see them!" she ordered.

Percy skimmed the pages in his sketch book until he found the correct page. He flipped it open and was met with the meagre scrawls of Nico di Angelo, Hazel Levesque, Frank Zhang, and Leo Valdez. Rachel elbowed him sharply and gave him a thumbs up, her bland portrait of her mother and father gleaming in her arms.

His portrait of his 4 friends with squished faces and bright smiles (more awkward in Nico's case) took the selfie a few days ago so he could draw it. From Hazel's curly hair to Leo's mischievous brown eyes. The teacher, Mrs. Arthur, came up behind him as he noticed all of his miniscule mistakes. Her eyes widened and she patted Percy's shoulder approvingly, starling him so badly he almost dropped the sketch pad. With a chuckle, Mrs. Arthur said, "Great job Percy, I can't wait to see your other work through out the year, even incomplete this looks almost like a picture," she complimented before gliding over to Annabeth's very anatomical drawing of her identical twin half brothers, Matthew and Bobby.

Percy noticed a small gap in Nico's eyebrows and quickly filled it in, rough draft didn't have to mean rough draft. He the quickly scribbled his signature onto the picture, not his well known pseudonym but his actual signature. Percy sighed rubbing in the graphite over Hazel's lips to make it less forced.

The bell rang startling him into rubbing the pencil over Hazels cheekbone. "Damn it," he hissed under his breath, the gray smeared across Hazel's cheek ruined the lighting over her dark skin.

"Don't worry about it Percy that's an easy fix, besides don't you have somewhere to be today?" she said her smile curling toward the verdant twinkle in her eyes.

"Thanks for reminding me Rach, now keep it down." He whispered.

Annabeth rolled her eyes with her sketchbook hugged against her chest, "Come on Percy, I wish you'd just get out there, stereotypes aren't real, you know that right?" she said teasingly.

"Yeah I know that Annabeth, but does the rest of the world?" he questioned walking away from Art class to head to the locker rooms.

He stumbled into his change of clothing, his hair still slightly damp as he limped home to get ready, he was going to be late if he didn't hurry. A quick shower, a dab of concealer, he was ready to go. A quick kiss to his mom and the hurried excuse of studying with Annabeth and he was out the door.

He whistled his New Yorker born taxi caller and got in, "11 west 53rd street," he chirped to the driver. The driver looked back at him.

"Isn't that the Modern Museum of Art?" he questioned bewildered. Percy nodded, the driver gave a double take before sliding back toward the wheel and driving past the building. He got there in a surprising 10 minutes and paid the cab driver.

He tied his jacket around his waste, and entered through the door. He zeroed in on the piece that had been hanging in the museum for a few days, the contrast in the black of the tail in the equestrian based painting keeping most of his interest. He inwardly jumped as a new voice interrupted his internal critiquing, "It's an amazing piece isn't it?"

Percy tightened the jacket at his waist, "Yeah it is, why do you think so?" he asked, internally cringing at the most likely response of, 'I like horses.' or his very favorite 'it just speaks to me.'

The man responded with, "The contrast in the horses tail, especially how the more lighter tones tend to blend with the wind to make the painting seem much less forced, almost like a real picture, Peter Johnson is one of my favorite artists," prompting Percy to take a much better look at him appraisingly.

His jaw almost hit the ground on who was standing next to him, from the blonde military style haircut to the blue eyes, was Jason Grace his all time most favorite hockey player, "Oh my-" abruptly with his well known quick reflexes Jason Grace grabbed him and tugged him out of the building. The crisp air sobered Percy slightly from his crazy fanboying.

"Your Jason Grace," he squeaked. Jason Grace sighed.

"Yeah, that's me I'm Jason Grace but please, it's just Jason," the blonde said while running his hand through his hair.

Percy struggled to get a hold of himself, he didn't need to make a total fool of himself in front of this god. He took a deep breath and let it out, "I'm sorry it's just that you are amazing and I love hockey and your my freaking inspiration, I just can't believe this, I'm your number one fan seriously," he babbled.

Jason slowly turned red with every word Percy spoke, when Percy was done Jason could win first place in a costume contest for best vegetable…or fruit. (Tomatoes are so controversial!)

"Thank you…" Jason prompted,

"Percy, Jackson" Percy answered enthusiastically. "What are you doing here?" Jason asked. Percy swallowed nervously, "Um I justreally wanted to see that new painting by Peter Johnson, I don't really tell a lot of people this because of the common stereotype but I love paintings and hockey," he said quickly.

Jason smiled and nodded, "Yeah I understand the feeling," he said quietly.

Percy looked up at Jason's blue eyes and noticed the specks of yellow that gave his sky blue eyes more of a electric feel. The cars rushing by knocked him out of whatever he was feeling as it started pouring rain. "Oh no," Percy breathed, the rain soaking him too the bone,.

"Crap," Jason breathed he glanced at Percy and in a split second said, "Come on lets go."

After Jason dropped Percy off he slipped him a card and drove off, glancing at the business card Percy flipped it over to see what Jason wrote, give me a call xxx-xxx-xxxx, Percy's cheeks burned with embarrassment and nervousness, he never did tell Jason he was a Junior in high school….Percy quickly rushed into his building, he only had 5 hours to sleep now.

~*~
After another 8 hours in the daily grind of high school Percy laced up his skates, the slippery ice feeling like solid ground, but instead of hockey all he could think about was Will and the argument they had, why couldn't he understand the importance of hockey to him?

He had finished with his practice gear and was skating toward the goal when he was checked against the barrier from behind. Slightly dazed he looked up towards who had hit him in the hip. He was met with the brown eyes of Matthew Ruttingham, "Come on little Percy, are you too much of a baby to handle a little ice hockey hazing? Maybe the little baby should just go back to junior varsity?" he said causing most of the team to laugh along with him.

"Come on Percy Jackson, you know you don't belong, why do you continue to crawl back?" he asked viciously before sliding into his position in the left side of the rink. Percy's eyes burned but he still skated toward the goal and got into position. Like he said there's a reason for everything and his teammates wouldn't make him back down, nothing would.