English with Annabeth:
Thank the gods it's Friday. I have been counting down the hours since first period this morning after Percy called and said he was going to be picking me up for a surprise visit to the beach. Its not like him to just randomly call me up and say hey lets go to the beach, but for once I'm not complaining. So finally it is last period, English, which would be unbearable if it went for my half sister Elaine who is in that class with me.
So class starts relatively normal, I sit down next to Elaine, have some small talk with Maxim and Garret, get all my books out before the teacher walks in, you know the usual. So Mrs. Lyn tells us to quite down and passes around a hand out that Elaine and I don't even bother to look at, were too busy discussing out weekend plans.
"So you're going out with Percy this weekend?" she asks with an evil glint in her eyes.
"Yes, but stop making such a big deal out of it! It's just a trip to the beach!"
"Oh what ever, it's JUST a trip to the beach with your BOYFIREND and his FAMILY! It's really no big thing." She says in a mocking tone.
"Whatever. It's not like YOU won't be going out with Tommy tonight anyway!" I say with a smirk. Her boyfriend Tommy takes her out every Friday night.
"Oh, I will, just not to the beach for the whole weekend."
I was about to say a smart comment back like, "Oh you wish." When our teacher decides to spare me and start the class.
"So dear 8th period, today we are going to get into our new reading project and to understand that we need to learn about the stages of a hero's journey. So if you will please look onto the hand out I just gave you, we can begin."
I looked at the worksheet, not really thinking anything much of it at first, but apparently Elaine found it hilarious.
"What?" I asked honestly interested in what she found so funny.
"Doesn't this remind you of anyone? Like a particular black haired HERO we know?" she said with a smirk on her face.
"Oh that's just mean! He saved the world and you're comparing Percy to a hero in a story book?"
She just looked at me and said, "You wait, let's see just how many 'stages' of the hero's journey Percy actual went through. "
I just rolled my eyes, "Whatever."
"So class, stage number one of a hero's journey is his birth. A hero always has fabulous circumstances surrounding his conception, birth and child hood that established the hero's pedigree."
"Score one for me!" says Elaine.
I wanted to fight back but as I thought about it Percy did follow all of the requirements. His father is a god, he was a forbidden child not even suppose to be alive and his childhood wasn't exactly normal.
"Fine, I'll give you this one. But don't expect to get any more. "
"Stage number two is the call to adventure. This is where the hero is called to adventure by some external event or messenger. He can either go willingly or reluctantly."
"I say that Hades sending a fury after you as your math teacher is a pretty extreme external even. Oh and don't forget he had a messenger too, Grover."
"Alright this could be an interesting class after all." I decided.
"Stage number three is the helpers/Amulets. These are the protective figures that give aid to the hero in the early stages of the journey. You normally see them as wizards or supernatural figures. The helpers normally give the hero some sort of magical amulet or weapon to help them on the journey."
"Well Riptide is definitely the amulet, but who is the helper?" asked Elaine.
"Chiron maybe?" I said, "He seems like he fits the description."
"Yea, he was definitely a protective figurer and I guess a helper can come in the form of a centaur."
I laughed, "Why not!"
"Stage number four is crossing the Threshold. Upon reaching the threshold of adventure, the hero must undergo some sort of ordeal in order to pass form the everyday world into the world of adventure. This trial may be as painless as entering a dark cave or as violent as being eaten up by a whale. The important feature is the contrast between the familiar world of light and dark, the unknown world of adventures. "
"Wow. These are strangely…"
"Accurate?" finished Elaine for me.
"Yea."
"So what do you think his crossing into the Threshold? Finding out he is a half blood?"
"No definitely his mother dying. That is way more violent and a bigger ordeal."
"True."
"Stage number five, the hero's tests! The hero travels through the dream-like world of adventure where he must undergo a series of tests. These trials are often violent encounters with monsters, sorcerers, warriors, or forces of nature. Each successful test further proves the hero's ability and advances the journey toward its climax."
"Must we go into that one? I mean come on, how many quest did you two go on?"
"Four together and he went on one without me. The funny part is we faced all three of those, monsters a sorceress and the god of war, which counts for a warrior." I replied.
"Stage number six would be the helpers. The hero is often accompanied on the journey by a helper who assists in the series of tests and generally serves as a loyal companion. Alternately, the hero may encounter a supernatural helper in the world of adventure who fulfills this function."
I looked at Elaine, "Do we even need to talk about this one?"
"No, I think we both know this one is true." She said with a smirk.
I had to admit it; this one was my favorite so far.
"Stage seven is the climax or the final battle. This is the critical moment in the hero's journey in which there is often a final battle with a monster, wizard or warrior which facilitates the particular resolution of the adventure."
This one we didn't even need to talk about. We both knew the answer to this one, the second Titan war. I looked over to see Elaine putting a check next to the little number seven on the sheet Mrs. Lyn had given us.
"Are you checking these off?" I asked
"Yea and writing down our proof. I'm going to give it to him just to show him how cliché his story really is."
I stated at her and then burst out laughing, which earned me some weird looks from my classmates and a "Quiet down" form Mrs. Lyn.
"Moving on, almost done dear 8th period. Number eight on our stages of a hero's journey is the Return. The hero must once again cross the threshold of adventure and returns to the everyday world of daylight. The return usually takes the form of an awakening, rebirth, resurrection of a simple emergence form a cave or forest. Sometimes the hero is pulled out of the adventure world by a force form the daylight world."
"Alright so is that when he went home? But then what is the 'awakening' part of that?"
"Or how about when he went back to camp and the 'awakening' part is the fact that he isn't going to die?"
"Alright, you win I like yours better." Elaine concluded.
"Stage number nine, the Elixir! This is the object, knowledge or blessing that the hero acquired during the adventure is now put to use in the everyday world. Often it has a restorative or healing function, but it also serves to define the hero's role in society."
"So the elixir is the gods promise to claim all their kids before they reach 13. But what is Percy's function in society?"
"To be a seaweed brain? I don't know, honestly I don't really think he has one."
"Annabeth, that's so mean he is your boyfriend!"
I laughed, "Yea well that doesn't change the truth."
"And last but not least, 8th period, we have the final stage of our hero's journey ending with Home! The hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man."
Right then the bell rings and everyone rushed out the door ignoring Mrs. Lyn's frantic shouts about the vocabulary test on Monday and how we all need to read the first chapter of our new reading book and so on so forth.
Outside the class room, on our way up to the dorms Elaine and I are cracking up.
"Percy, having power to bestow boons on his fellow man? O my Zeus that is a good one!"
"Well at least we can say that he isn't as cliché as the story book hero's." I mange to say between my fits of laughter. Just the thought of my boyfriend having the boons to bestow on his fellow man makes me erupt into laughter.
"On the contrary my dear sister, your boyfriend is very much like a hero form the story books; you just don't want to admit it!"
"I would give you the satisfaction but remember Percy has no boons." I manage to say with a straight face but as soon as the words come out of my mouth I am laughing so hard I can't breathe.
As we go to the floor that held my dorm I was finally able to get some control over my breathing again.
"So are you really going to give that sheet to Percy?" I asked Elaine.
"Yea, even though he probably won't be able to read it, I will know what it says and forever use it as blackmail."
"How is being a hero blackmail?" I asked.
"Because Percy Jackson, the great son of Poseidon who stopped the Titan Lord Kronos, beat the Ares, went to the underworld and back and is now invincible, has the same basic story line as Superman."
"How am I related to Superman?" asked a very familiar male voice that I knew instantly as Percy's.
It didn't take long for the whole day's events to catch up to me, and next thing you know I am crying from laughter right alongside Elaine with a clueless Percy standing with a bewildered look on his face.
"Wha… what are y-you doing here?" I manage to ask as I catch my breath.
"Picking you up?" he responds making it sound like a question. "And what did I do this time? I really don't remember doing anything to bad this week…"
Before I can respond Elaine hands Percy the sheet from English with all her marks and comments on it.
"What is this? The stages of a hero's journey?" he asks obviously confused to what is going on.
"Just sit out here and read it while Annabeth packs." She ordered him as she dragged me in the room.
I laughed the whole time I packed my stuff. About 5 minutes later I opened the door to see my boy friend standing with his arms crossed over his chest and a unreadable look on his face.
"Tell me one thing." He said, "What are boons?"
Let's just say he never got his answer because between my laughter and our kiss there wasn't much room for talking.