Chapter 1: Kicked out

Natalie Cox was siting in the back of the Math room in her desk, studying for her Geometry final; or at least that's what the teacher thought she was doing. Natalie was actually planning, but not planning how to study, she was planning a heist. Hey this wasn't the first time, maybe the twelfth, for this school. She has been in four different schools over her eight years. She started the pranks and stealing around second year of school, in fourth grade when she was about eight. Natalie was never really sure why she did it, she was just glad she found something she good with. She was never good in school, she had dyslexia and ADHD so she never did well in classes, and how she got this far she wasn't even sure.

"Perfect." Natalie said softly to herself.

"What was that Ms. Cox?" her teacher Mr. Lopez asked.

"Nothing." Natalie said. Somehow Mr. Lopez heard every soft whisper. Maybe he took vitamins for his ears or something.

Natalie had the perfect plan for a prank and theft. She was going to get sneak into the head masters office and change her grades from D's to A's. While in there she was going to steal all the suckers he kept in a jar. Yeah why steal those, but he never shared them and he was always telling Natalie to get her grades up or he will be contacting her parents. Yeah right she thought.

Natalie liked to think of herself as the best prankster/thief ever. She could do stuff with out ever getting caught. She was actually caught only about three times out of what was it now 50? Only those times because some kid insisted that they helped and always did something stupid that lead themselves to be caught. And of coarse the always squealed and busted her.

As the bell rang to signal the end of class and of the school day Natalie ran back to her dorm. The school was a boarding school called Yancy Academy, even saying the name made Natalie want to vomit. Once in her dorm Natalie got changed. She changed into a black T-shirt and sweat pants, even though it was near the end of May. She put on her black baseball cap and pulled her short auburn hair into it. She also put in these special contacts that made her blue eyes seem brown. This was why Natalie was never caught. She also always wore gloves. The staff usually left the office around 4:30 and it was 4 o'clock. Perfect and all the students would be in their rooms studying for their finals.

At 4:26 Natalie left her room. She changed into tennis shoes she never wore and tucked the bottoms of her pant legs into her socks. Sure it looked stupid but it wouldn't allow for anything that would lead the prank/crime to her. She also put on some gloves as to avoid fingerprints. The office was locked of coarse but not a problem, Natalie could pick a lock easily. Once in the office it was easy enough to get on the computer and change the grade. But once she grabbed the suckers everything went wrong. Some kid must have got in trouble cause through the translucent window Natalie saw the shadow of the head master and a boy.

"Oh snap!" Natalie thought. She looked around for any place to hide, there was nothing. Then she saw a closet. "Good enough!" she thought. She jumped into the closet and closed the door, not a moment later Headmaster Shay opened the door to his office and lead in a kid.

Natalie couldn't see anything but could hear everything.

"You know why you're in here Mr. Cashman?" Mr. Shay asked.

Mr. Cashman, it must have been James, he always got in trouble for attempting basically everything Natalie did, accept he got caught.

"I stole the toilet paper from all the restrooms." James said like he was proud.

"Who wants to steal toilet paper?" Natalie thought to herself.

"You know what the punishment for stealing is?" Mr. Shay asked.

"Detention?" James asked.

"Yes. Take this to the Library." Mr. Shay said. He must have handed him a detention slip. Natalie heard the door to the office open and shut.

"Get out of the closet." Mr. Shay said

"Uh-oh" Natalie said softly

"Come on I don't have all night." Mr. Shay said.

Natalie came out of the closet. She saw the headmaster. He was this kind of cool, normal looking middle-aged man. He had a neatly trimmed brown beard and curly brown hair. His eyes, oh man his eyes, they seemed to see everything and have seemed everything. I guess the main thing to know was that he was in a motorized wheelchair.

"Um, hi sir." Natalie said.

What else was she supposed to say? She was hiding in his closet wearing black clothes and gloves. It would be quite obvious that she was up to no good. "Have a seat Ms. Cox." Mr. Shay said. So Natalie sat down in the chair across from Mr. Shay. She also had that looked she hated. She had upturn eyebrows and slightly pointed ears so she was usually marked as a trouble maker and she kind of lived up to the expectation by sometimes causing trouble in class. It also didn't help her record that she was kicked out of three schools.

"What are you up to?" Mr. Shay asked.

Natalie didn't know how to answer that she didn't even look up.

"Natalie, you were clearly on my computer, what were you doing?" Mr. Shay asked.

Natalie never admitted to anything so she had no idea what to do. She remembered hearing a saying, 'the truth will set you free.' Maybe if she told the truth she wouldn't get in trouble. She was wrong. "I was changing my grades, my mom thinks I'm stupid. I want to show her I'm not by getting A's on my report card."

"So cheating." Mr. Shay said.

"Well not cheating per say. I mean I have to be pretty smart to get in here and figure out how to get on the locked computer and change the grade." Natalie said.

"I'm afraid I'll have to expel you, and you won't be able to take your final's" Mr. Shay said.

"So I'll get and F on my finals?" Natalie asked.

"Yep." Mr. Shay said.

"Ugh." Natalie groaned and hit her head against the desk.

"Natalie, is there a pacific reason you do what you do?" Mr. Shay asked.

"I guess, I want someone to be proud of me, I don't know who, but no one can know what I do." Natalie said.

"What's your family situation?" Mr. Shay asked.

"I live with my mom during the summer. She works ten hours a day. We don't get along that well." Natalie said.

"What about your father?" Mr. Shay asked.

He never asked these kinds of questions.

"I never met him. He and my mom weren't married, I assume he's dead, or once he found out Mom was pregnant he left. Maybe it was an affair." Natalie said.

"Hum." Mr. Shay said. He handed her a small card, like a business card. "I want you to come see me this summer. Here is my address."

It took a while for Natalie to decipher what it said. 'Half-Blood Hill, Long Island, New York.'

"What's this about?" Natalie asked.

"This is about who I think your father is." Mr. Shay said.

"I never knew him, how could you?" Natalie asked.

Mr. Shay was quite for a while. "Natalie, have you ever heard of the Greek gods?"

"Like, Zeus, Hera, and Hades?" Natalie asked. Thunder boomed outside.

"Names are dangerous, you would be wise not to use them, but yes. Well, the gods they are real. They are still around, and currently they are in the United States." Mr. Shay said.

"And if they are still around, they still have kids with mortals?" Natalie asked.

"Precisely." Mr. Shay said.

"You think my father was…is a god?" Natalie asked.

"I have a feeling that is true." Mr. Shay said.

"Are the monsters still around too?" Natalie asked.