Finally this is posted! (Don't hate me please)
AN 10/30/15: Hello readers new and old! As promised, here is a clip of stuff that is happening between books. If you are new, I encourage you to read the first book, as it will help you make more sense of this. If you don't though you can still kind of get what is happening, but it would probably better your experience of it if you knew the backstory of Book 1 stuff. For the lovely people who have stuck with me in this time between books- Thank you so much friends! You may have noticed I posted a revamped version of Chapter 1 in Book 1, if you haven't seen it you should take a look. I am very happy with how it turned out, personally. I will be, as I like to call it: Revamping, the first number of chapters from Book 1. I feel that I have grown as a writer since I posted those and it would be a more accurate depiction of my writing to let you guys know what you are investing your time in. Book 2 work is still chugging along, albeit not as fast as I would have liked, but I would prefer not to sacrifice quality over posting sooner. I also would prefer not to begin posting, as I did with Book 1, until I have a large majority of the book done so I can update regularly.
This is a clip from Allison and Percy's first day at their new school and their first meetings with the lovable Tyson! Do enjoy it!
I creaked open the door and quietly slipped in, sticking close to the wall. I pulled the shadows around me to help cover my presence. My target was sleeping, sprawled out, drooling on the bed across the room. A smile split my lips, the anticipation of what I was about to do making me bounce slightly. I was told to come in here and wake him up, and I sure was going to.
I crept forward, carefully avoiding the creaky spots in the floor - I had long since memorized them since we moved into this new place. It had only been a couple weeks that we had been living here, but it was already so much better than our last place. I was now beside his bed at his back. I leaned in near his head and took a deep breath, trying not to give myself away.
"PERCYYYY!" I shouted in his ear and dove behind the bed. Percy jerked awake, flailing around. I heard the distinct sound of Riptide turning into a sword and then the blankets got pulled away from where I was and I heard a loud thump.
"Wha- what's going on? Where's the fire?" I climbed over the bed and looked down at Percy. His hair was a bird's nest and he had a bit of drool on his cheek. He was tangled in a mess of blankets, Riptide out prepared to strike.
"Morning!" I greeted, swinging my feet back and forth.
"Wh-Morning? What kind of wake-up was that? You scared me half to death Ally! What time is it - why is it still dark out?" Percy was looking up at me wide eyed - quite similar to an owl actually. He rubbed his eyes with the palm of his hand that wasn't holding his sword, then groaned and sat up.
"Please tell me you had an actual reason for waking me up this early." I stuck out a hand and he took it. I pulled him up and he sat on the bed next to me.
"Oh I don't know, just something called first day of seventh grade. No biggie. Got to start getting ready unless you want to start the year off late."
He capped Riptide and put it in his pajama pants pocket, flopping back down on the bed and let out a groan.
"Come on lazy bones, Sally is making pancakes." His head perked up at that, eyeing the door.
"Blue?"
"Blue."
"You couldn't wake me up, oh I don't know, normally, though? My heart is still pounding, it's too early for this." I slid off the bed.
"But it got you up, didn't it?" He grumbled something inaudible. "What was that?"
"Nothing." He muttered.
"Thought so. You should wipe that drool off your cheek you know." I mimed where it was and he hastily rubbed at the spot.
"Better hurry up or there won't be any pancakes left!" I ran out of the room despite his protests to wait. I wanted to eat my breakfast, he could have set an alarm to wake up had he wanted first dibs.
After a short subway trip to downtown Manhattan and a walk we were at our new school. It was an odd building, it had all these odd little trinkets in the windows. There was a pair of large dice, a mini Volkswagen bug, and even a large squid stuffed animal. That was just one of the windows anyway. I knew we would be in for a treat at this place.
There was a large congregation of students hanging out outside the school but we slipped past them and went into the building. After receiving our class assignments we found our way to our English room.
Upon entering said room I could tell we would be in for an interesting year. Our teacher, a man with wild brown and grey hair like Einstein, who wore ratty jeans and had on a Jimi Hendrix "Watchtower" t-shirt. Now, I was not opposed to ol' Jimi, but to have a teacher wearing a t-shirt like that with his jeans and hair like that on the first day of school, that was peculiar.
"Why hello there, new students! Wonderful, wonderful!" He ushered us through the door and lead us to a collection of bean bag chairs. "My name is Mr. Henry!" I raised an eyebrow.
"Um, are those supposed to be our desks?" Percy asked, poking at a beanbag that had a fabric covered in mailboxes with his foot.
"Why yes indeed, Mr. ?"
"Jackson."
"Mr. Jackson. And you, young lady, would be?" He was beaming - anybody this excited about school this early in the morning was already in my books.
"Allison Cooper." I set down my bag next to a blue bean bag chair and flopped down. Percy chose the green one next to it and we scooted them away from the center of the collection. Mr. Henry was about to say something more, but then some other students ambled in the door. He pounced on them and started welcoming them in, rambling on in own his energy filled way.
A couple minutes and students later, during me and Percy's usual "Start of the School year" predictions, a very large boy came in the door. He was about six foot three by my guess.
Mr. Henry jovially went over and started talking to him.
"Ah, and you must be Tyson! Pleasure my lad, pleasure." He shook Tyson's hand, his own hand dwarfed.
"Yes, I am Tyson. Is this," He looked down at a paper, squinting. "uh, English?" Already I could tell some kids would make him a target. His speech was similar to a younger kid's, and he had this big innocent look about him. His hands were extra large and they had some scars covering them from what looked like handyman type work. When I looked to his face I froze. Is he a Cyclops? What is he doing here in this school?
"Why yes indeed! Come in, come in." Mr. Henry brought Tyson into the room and lead him to a bean bag chair. As they passed, Tyson looked to Percy in a curious manor. The slight breeze kicked up from them walking past made me stop. Does that smell like how Percy smells? I was distinctly picking up the smell of the sea, and it wasn't just because Percy was right next to me. What's going on here? But he was already past us before I could get a better sniff. I promised myself to look further into that.
Later that day at Lunch Percy and I sat at a cafeteria table, eating our lunches. There had been whispers about Tyson - he also turned out to be in a lot of Percy's classes. Is this going to be like Grover? Some of the kids were talking or giggling about how he spoke, or smelled, or how he was apparently a kind of service project the school took on since he was homeless. I may not have been particularly fond of Cyclopes, one had after all distracted me while Chester took a hold of Nick all those years ago - that was not very flattering for them in my book. Many I had come across also went after demigods, even children of Poseidon. Tyson seemed different though. I stopped mid-chew as that thought passed through my mind. Cyclopes are children of gods and nature-spirits gone wrong, but a majority from Poseidon. Could he be one of Poseidon's? But then that brought up the question of how could he happen to go to the one school the only other known child of Poseidon was going to?
My thoughts were cut short by the sound of a lunch tray hitting the floor and kids "ooo-ing". My head snapped over to where the noise came from, hand tensely hovering over my necklace. Over in the corner of the room sat Tyson alone at a table. He would have been completely alone there, except this kid in sloppy clothes and a mop of black hair and some of what I guessed to be his goons were busy laughing at the tears in Tyson's eyes as he looked at his knocked over lunch tray. His peanut butter sandwich had fallen apart and the peanut butter sides were laying on the ground, a milk carton dribbling out the last of his half-drunken milk.
I looked around for any teachers but there were none. How do they expect a school of kids like this to all be in a room with food alone and not expect mayhem to happen? I really didn't see their logic in that one. This was happening just two tables down from where Percy and I were sitting. All eyes in the cafeteria were glued on the scene, multiple of those laughing along with this jerk. My fist was clenched tightly, fingernails biting into my palm. Percy himself was gripping his fork tightly. I could tell by the way he readjusted his sitting position that he was debating going up. I was honestly thinking of that too, it was infuriating to see someone like Tyson who was really just so innocent being bullied.
"Aw, is the big baby crying about his spilled milk?" The main boy taunted, which caused more snickers.
"You.. you spilled peanut butter sandwich." Tears were threatening to fall.
"How can no teachers be seeing this?" Percy hissed to me as he angrily turned Riptide in pen form around in his hand. I put down my sandwich and put my hand over Riptide, shaking my head.
"Percy, not all problems can be solved with a sword."
The ceiling light above Tyson's table flickered again - it had been doing that all of lunch. Nick would have shocked this punk onto his butt by now. Sometimes I really wished I was able to shock people like he could.
I guess I missed something else Tyson said but the next thing heard was from the lead punk: "So you're a charity project then?"
I forced the shadows not to react to my emotions.
Tyson didn't know how to reply, thus causing more laughter. Looking around I noticed some other students that weren't hiding snickers, making themselves look away, unable to watch. At least they have some decency. Clearly they had experiences with this kid.
Suddenly the kid was behind Tyson trying to give him a wedgie. Percy abruptly stood and stalked up to the scene.
"What's your deal? Why don't you just leave him alone?" He questioned, pushing the kid away from Tyson.
"What's it to you? Are you friends with the freak? So you're a loser too!" More laughter. Do these kids seriously have nothing better to do?
"What's your name?" Percy asked, hand balled into a fist at his side. I started getting up from my seat
The kid suddenly took on a pompous look - one I had seen on enough Yancy Academy rich kids to be able to recognize.
"The name's Sloan, Matt Sloan." James Bond, seriously kid?
"Well, Matt, why don't you take your face and go somewhere else?"
I was only paces away now.
Matt's eyes narrowed, very similarly to dog's when angry.
"What did you just call me?" He raised his fist.
"I said, 'Why don't you take your face and go somewhere else?'"
"Are you calling me ugly?"
"Debatable."
Matt readied his fist and Percy started to raise his hands in defense. Before the punch could make contact with Percy's face I already knocked it aside and slammed my own fist into the kid's face. Kids gasped as Matt stumbled back, falling on his butt. My hand hurt a bit - he had a hard face, but it was so satisfying.
"Gah! What the heck!" Sloan had his hand to his nose to stop the blood.
"Do you think it's funny to pick on people? Well I got news for you, Sloan. Stay away." I pulled what I liked to call my "signature child of Hades glare" and he shrunk back. I turned to Percy and Tyson, who both had their mouths open.
"Come on Tyson, let's get you a new lunch." I took his oversized hand and walked him away from Sloan and his goons, Percy following after a few seconds. Hushed whispers were flying through the cafeteria.
"We won't let him bother you again, buddy." I patted Tyson's shoulder and he gave me one of the most genuine smiles I have seen in awhile while Percy and I fist-bumped. I knew we were on the same page.
Have an awesome time on Halloween tomorrow (even though tomorrow is just 4 minutes away right now for me). I would love to hear about your Halloween costumes too! That is one of the best parts of Halloween for me personally. Have a bunch of fun and be safe out there! Tell me all about it! :D -Tasha
