"Are you excited?"
Percy shrugged his shoulders in response. He didn't really feel anything at this point because they'd moved around so many times.
Sally pursed her lips and sighed as she parked the car. "Percy, sweetheart, I love you, but try not to get into too much trouble on your first day, okay? This is a nice town, and I think we have a real chance to start over here."
"Trouble finds me mom, not the other way around." This, atleast, elicits a laugh from Sally, who ruffled her son's hair affectionately before he stepped out of the car, waving one final goodbye.
There wasn't anyone in the world Percy loved more than Sally. Even though it probably wouldn't make a difference, Percy would try his best to stay out of trouble, if only for her.
Percy stepped through the doors of Half-Blood High. Luckily, the principal's office was right by the doors, and he stepped through. The assistant handed him his schedule and showed him a map of the school, so that he knew where to go.
Finding the class was easy. It was going inside that was the hard part.
"Breathe, Percy. Just breathe."
A girl walking down the corridor gave him a funny look, and he felt like retorting, "Yes, I talk to myself when I'm nervous. Don't judge, you know you do it too."
He opened the door and hesitantly walked into the classroom.
Okay, so you haven't completely embarassed yourself yet. So far, so good.
Of course he chose that exact moment to trip on his shoelace and fall flat on his face.
Because if there was anything that Percy Jackson knew for sure, it was that the universe hated him.
Snickers filled the room as Percy picked himself up from the floor, face flushed in embarassment. "Are you alright, Mr. Jackson?" The teacher in the wheelchair rolled over, but he managed to pull himself back up. "Yes, Mr... Brunner?" Percy said questioningly.
"Well, it looks like we have a new student. Everybody, this is Percy Jackson. Percy, welcome to Greek Mythology. You can take a seat next to Grover over there."
Percy nodded before taking a seat. The boy next to him had a bad bout of acne but he smiled, and he had a friendly face.
"Hey, I'm Grover. Here's a textbook. Don't be intimidated by the size; Mr. Brunner's a really chill teacher, you'll like the class."
"Thanks."
It turned out Grover was right. Percy's favorite part was when Chiron grabbed a sword that looked like he had pulled it straight from the textbook and challenged every student to write a mythological character on the chalkboard at swordpoint. He could feel other students staring at him curiously throughout the class, but he figured it was probably just a new-kid thing.
Grover and him had the same class next block too, which turned out to be kind of a relief, and the other boy ended up inviting him to sit with him at lunch.
They were the only ones at the table, but Percy didn't mind. As long as he got along with atleast one person in his school, he was okay, especially since Grover and him seemed to have identical schedules.
Of course, his good luck didn't last for long.
Percy asked Grover if they could get to class early, and he readily agreed. They turned a corner, and what happened next made Percy's blood boil.
A tall, blonde boy slammed a smaller figure into the wall. A couple boys formed a circle around them, all of them laughing and wearing jerseys similar to the blonde boy.
"You're such a freak, Nico. Go back to the hole you crawled out of."
"I'm the freak? Have you talked to your mother lately, Luke?"
Percy couldn't help but admire the kid's fierceness. However, his smile faded when Luke pulled his hand into a fist.
Without thinking, Percy leapt forward and tackled Luke to the ground, catching the boys all off guard.
"What the hell?" Luke yelled before punching Percy in the stomach. "Just what do you think you're doing, new kid?" He didn't get to say anything else before Percy landed a blow on his cheek.
"Beating you up?" Percy said sarcastically. He knew he shouldn't have gotten involved, but the situation reminded him too much of Gabe. How his former stepfather would take pleasure in beating him up when he was young and Percy couldn't fight back. He remembered feeling helpless. em Never again. I'll never feel like that again.
Percy still had the scars, and he was pretty sure Sally did too. If there was anything that Gabe had taught him, it was that Percy emreally/em didn't like bullies.
A sudden yell caused both boys to look up. "Luke! Stop it!" An older girl with stormy blue eyes and spiky hair, the color of midnight, stepped into view. For some reason, Luke pulled back his fist, but he didn't stop glaring at Percy.
"Mr. Jackson! Mr. Castellan! What on earth is going on here?"
Mr. Brunner looked at both of them sternly, and the boys seperated guiltily.
"Mr. D's office. Now."
Mr. D was the strangest principal Percy had come across. And that was saying something. For one thing, he dressed in a Hawaiian shirt. For another, he was drinking something from a glass that Percy knew was alcohol. He had seen plenty of it when Gabe was around, and he unconciously leaned away from the man.
Then again, if Percy had to handle a bunch of angry, hormonal teenagers for a living he might be hitting the happy juice more often too.
"Look, Johnson, I'm guessing you already know that an infraction on your first day doesn't look too good. Stay for afterschool detention for an hour today, and don't let this happen again, understood?"
Percy nodded and didn't bother to correct the principal as he left the room. He didn't regret getting into the fight.
He regretted having to explain it to his mom.
"Percy..."
"I know, mom. I'm sorry."
Sally pursed her lips and nodded. "It's okay sweetie. I know you tried. Besides, you were sticking up for what you thought was right. Just try not to be so confrontational next time, okay?"
Percy nodded. "So how were your classes?"
"They were alright. I met someone too, his name's Grover. He's pretty nice, I think we'll get along."
Percy hesitated before continuing, "Mom? Is there any specific reason you wanted me to go to Half-Blood High?"
"Nope. Why do you ask?"
"No reason, just... curious. I mean the school's alright, but everything felt... off, if you know what I mean."
"I'm sure it's just the new school jitters. I'll make you some blue cookies, how about it? Should take your mind off things."
Percy kissed her on the cheek. "Sounds great."
When Sally left the room, Percy sighed and opened his backpack. Half-Blood High really hadn't been that bad compared to the other schools Percy had went too, but something was just weird about the entire place, and the student body.
Not to mention the strange student that had stopped Luke's fight with him. For a second there, when Percy had looked in her eyes, he had emseen/em something in them. Lightning. And the entire atmosphere had shifted, like the calm right before a storm.
Deciding to ignore it, Percy flopped onto the couch. He didn't plan on flunking out of this school, and this homework wasn't going to do itself.