Now the plot starts.
I am really excited where this will go, so I will try to update more often. I am finishing up my school year though with lots of tests and projects, so I don't know how much time I will get to write. PLEASE do not review stating, "I think Storm Rising deserves an update." I'll get there, all in good time.
Review Responses
theAceMT- I know who Hydros is. I use him because he is the primordial of water in my one story, Storm Rising. I did not forgot him. I just chose not to put him in. He has faded in the last children of Chaos.
Ancient Tide- I'M ADDICTED TO THIS STORY TOO!
Guest- Well, I don't know if I consider one week soon, but I was busy.
Deoxys- I actually do have an extremely intricate plot line written by yours truly. This chapter gets immediately into that.
XxBanewolvesLiveAgainxX- Thanks!
aliissa- True AU stories are hard to do because there is a fine line between following the series and making it your own.
Disclaimer: All rights to respective owners.
Timeskip 3 years (the last would be twelve going on thirteen)
Hades' Palace, Underworld
Hades was mad. No, furious, a burning rage would be a better way to describe what he was feeling at the moment. He paced in front of his throne of skulls, running his hands through his oily hair. Alecto, his head fury, cowered in front of him. His black robes billowed out behind him as he stalked back and forth.
"I told you to check the school for monsters before you put Bianca and Nico in it! Did you do what I asked? No! You put them in a military school," He glanced down at the report Alecto had written. "Westover Hall. You are a minion of the underworld! Can't you freaking sense when there are several monsters in the school? I told you to stay there with them. Had you stayed, Bianca and Nico would have better chance for survival. But you left them to the wolves! You even stayed with that daughter of Barnacle Beard for several months and you didn't even bother to stay with MY CHILDREN!"
Alecto was shaking. "I am sorry my lord. I will go back to the school now and enroll as a teacher."
"No," Hades spit with disgust. "You have messed up enough today. These are my children- they will be the children of the great prophecy. No mistakes can be made in this area. Nor will I send any of other sisters. You all share the same trait of messing up," Hades sits back down on his throne, his rage over. He stroked his chin, trying to think of a plan to keep his children safe. They had no weapons, no clues, nothing to help them survive, get to their father or even, Tartarus forbid, that blasted demigod camp.
Thanatos stood in the shadows, watching Hades' rant. Chaos had sent him here, saying, "There will be an opportunity for the children to go to earth." Confused since the underworld wasn't exactly earth, Thanatos returned to the palace of Hades. He wasn't one to displease his grandfather. Catching on to Chaos' idea, he was starting to see how the children could get to earth and get on Hades' good side. Contrary to Olympian belief, Hades was one of the most powerful gods and earning his favor would be a step in the right direction for the trust they needed to win the war.
"My lord," Thanatos said respectfully, stepping out of the shadows.
"What Thanatos? Can't you see I'm annoyed and thinking?" Hades says without looking up.
Smiling to himself, Thanatos thinks of what the last children would say if they were here. Hades actually thinks?
"My lord, correct me if I am wrong, but the problem is that your children are unguarded in a school with multiple monsters, right?"
"What about it?"
"So if there was someone highly trained in the school to protect them, it would be all right?"
The lord of the dead glares at Alecto. "There was supposed to be."
"With all due respect my lord, wouldn't another child be a better guardian? They could easily get close to your children without looking suspicious. Also isn't Westover Hall a boarding school?" Hades nods. "The protector could board with the di Angelo twins to keep them safe."
"But who would be good enough to protect them?" Hades leans forward curious to Thanatos' suggestion.
"You can leave that to me, My Lord," Thanatos bows.
"Before we send this protector to the school, bring them here. I must test that they are strong enough to defend my children at all costs. If you speak the truth, you will be greatly rewarded. Do not disappoint me," Hades adds.
"Do not worry sir, they will be. I will be back in one hour's time," Thanatos walks off into the shadows.
Hades smiles to himself. Oh, I hope they will be.
The Void
Thanatos steps out of the shadows in the Void, just outside Chaos' office. Knocking on the door, he called out "Chaos? I'm back from the underworld."
"Come in Thanatos," The voice inside the office called. The god of peaceful death pushed open the heavy wooden door and walked inside the office.
Chaos sat at his desk, looking carefully through what looked like reports. His black hair still had the silvery grey streaks, but they were less visible because the man smiled more. His skin was more tan from being outside with the children.
"So, did Hades accept them?" Chaos asked, lacing his fingers together.
"Yes, the selling point was that they would be able to always be with his kids," Thanatos said, a grin slowing growing across his face. "Who were you going to send?"
"Percy, of course. He is their leader and the leader should go first. The other should be a girl so both genders are covered. I have this gut feeling to send Imogene along with them," Chaos replied.
Thanatos raised his eyebrows but said nothing. After eons and eons, Chaos had learned to trust his gut feelings which were usually correct. "I promised them back to Hades in an hour."
"Then I will call them here right away," Chaos summoned his ipad and went to the monitoring camera. He quickly located the last children in the arena. Holding the intercom button, he projected his voice. "Percy and Imogene, please come immediately to my office. You may say good bye to your siblings before you come though," He clicked it off and the two waited patiently for the siblings to come.
They did not have to wait long. Soon Percy and Imogene appeared in the room. "Hello Uncle Thanatos," They greet. "Father, you called?"
"Yes, sit down. You too,Thanatos," Chaos waited till they were settled to continue. "Remember the great prophecy of the greek gods I showed you? Well, the current demigod in line for the prophecy is Bianca di Angelo, a daughter of Hades. She and her twin brother Nico have been in the Lotus Casino for over seventy years, ever since their mother's death by Zeus' bolt. Recently, Hades instructed his fury, Alecto, to move them to a school. He instructed her to search the school for possible monsters and then stay with them. She got careless and did neither."
"Where do we come in?" Percy asked.
"I'm getting to that. I sent Thanatos to convince Hades a child protector would be better and offer two of you guys to fulfill the job. He accepted and in less than an hour, you will be first travelling to the underworld where you will be tested by Hades and then Westover Hall where you will go to school until Hades sees fit for you to bring the children to him. I have a list of what you need to bring, the school has uniforms, and copies for both of you of the di Angelos information," Chaos hands them each a manila folder. "Go and meet Thanatos back here soon. If you need a refresher, there are instructions of the assignment."
Percy opens the folder as he heads to his room. The first page is an instruction sheet like Chaos said. Since he had just heard what he needed to do, he turned the page. Next page was the packing list. It was short as they would be getting school uniforms.
Packing List
- weapons (knives, sword, axe, etc)
- light weight armor
- hiking backpack with unlimited camping supplies
- bag of drachmas
- bag of denaris
- mortal cash
- 3 changes of clothes in case you go into the mortal world (includes shoes)
Quickly, Percy grabbed his hiking backpack, checked that his weapons and armor in shrunken forms were in his pockets, and his money was in the backpack too. He pulled out his green duffel bag and stuffed three t- shirts, some jeans, and sneakers into it. Slinging both bags over his shoulder, he left his room.
As he walked over to Imogene's room, he heard his name being called. "Percy!" His mother ran down the hall.
"Are you really leaving?" She asked sadly. Her green eyes looked him over with the care only a mother could possess.
"Yeah, mom, I have to do a mission," He replied. "For a few months," He added.
She murmured something like I knew this day would come before engulfing her son in a hug. He was taller than her, enough for her to lay her head on his shoulder. "Be safe," Thalassa kissed his forehead, standing on his tiptoes.
"I will," He promised. "Love you mom."
"Bye Percy," She called before he walked into Imogene's room. Imogene was neatly folding her clothes with the help of her sister Willow. Her backpack was already on the floor beside her bed.
"Almost ready to go?" He asked her.
"Yup," Imogene replied as she carefully placed her clothes into her duffel. She zipped it up and then checked her pocket for her fan. All of the last girls could summon their weapons, but they had them also stored in an old fashioned chinese fan, with the exception of Nyx's girl's chain which were in small boxes.
Willow walked over to Percy and gave him a sisterly kiss on the cheek. "Be careful and watch over Imogene for me."
Imogene glared playfully at her sister. "Whatever," The two girls hugged one last time. Percy shouldered Imogene's hazel duffel, being the nice gentleman brother he was, while Imogene grabbed her backpack. "Get out of my room, Willow," She called teasingly as they left.
They arrived back in Chaos' office to be informed by their father they still had twenty five minutes before they would leave for the underworld. He recommended they finish reading the reports since it would impress Hades that they knew so much already. Percy flopped onto Chaos' lounge chair in the corner of the room while Imogene claimed the couch. He flipped past the instructions and packing list to the reports on the di Angelos.
A picture of a girl with silky black hair was pinned at the top. Percy began reading.
Name: Bianca di Angelo
Date of Birth: 8:16 am August 13, 1924
Place of Birth: Medstar Washington Hospital Center
Age: 13
Gender: Female
Father: Hades
Mother: Maria di Angelo
Places lived: Washington DC, Lotus Casino
Siblings: Nico (13)
Hair color: Black
Eye color: dark brown
Skin color: pale
Ethnicity: Italian
He continues reading through the report before flipping to Nico's which is basically the same as Bianca's except for the gender difference, picture, and a few other things like hobbies.
"Imogene, Percy, come here. I have some final instructions," Their father beckoned them from his desk. The two got up and watched over to the chairs they sat in earlier.
"Before Thanatos takes you to the Underworld, I have some last minute instructions. They are in the folder on the instruction page, but I'm guessing you skipped that page since I told you your mission," They smiled sheepishly at him. "The first is that you are to use your middle names instead of your first names as a precaution. Thesis and Eros are currently at the school, setting things up for you as Jackson and Fern Last."
Percy nodded, understanding the logic. All of the last had middle names that could act as first names or last names. He was Percy Jackson while Imogene was Imogene Fern. They also used Last as their last name.
"Even when you are with Hades, you are to introduce yourselves as Jackson and Fern Last. That brings me to Hades. Hades is one of the most powerful gods, save Hestia of course. You will be respectful to him and do anything he asks immediately. Do not fail in the mission. His children are meant to be the prophecy you are at school with the di Angelos, stay close to them. Eros and Thesis are getting you to board with them so it is easier to watch over them. Do not let them know anything about the Greek gods until it is absolutely necessary. Use the mist if you must. There will mostly be a satyr at the school, trying to get close to them. Do not let him. He will try to take them away to the half blood camp, the exact opposite of where Hades wants them to go. Lastly, when doing physical activities, push them hard so they will be ready for the world of the gods. Thesis and Eros will be acting as your aunt and uncle at the school, helping you get settled and getting your uniforms and supplies," Chaos pauses for a breath. "Any questions?"
The two shake their heads. Chaos smiles at them. "Don't worry, you will do fine. And now, I have two gifts and something to change," He reaches into his desk and two small black packages made of a water repellent cloth. Handing them to them, Percy unfolds his.
The package is actually a raincoat folded into it's back pocket. The majority of the fabric is a black color while the zipper is green. Imogene's is the same except hers is a hazel green where Percy's was sea green.
"They have special properties that you will unlock as you journey. Use them well," Chaos says as he hands them each a similar device. "This is a smaller version of my ipad. Last thing is I'm removing the silver swirls from your eyes for a while. They will make Hades curious and raise too many questions. Also, I'm dimming your aura," He slides his hands over their eyes, leaving them pure hazel green and sea green.
The children say their thank you's before slipping the items into their back packs. Thanatos strides into the room. "You guys ready to go?" He asks. "I think it would make it a good impression on Hades to be early."
Chaos stands up from his desk and wraps both of his children in hugs. "Be safe," He whispers.
"We will," They assure him.
"Contact me anytime you have a question or want to talk," He said, letting go of them.
Thanatos places his hands on the children's shoulders before they disappear into the shadows. Percy only has a moment to feel a little bit excited and nervous for his upcoming mission before they reappear in the throne room of Hades.
The place reminds Percy of a bronze and black version of the Mount Olympus he has seen in pictures. Skulls hang everywhere along with several skeletal guards. Since Thanatos works for Hades in a sense, he does not have to go through the whole palace before arriving in the throne room. Hades lounges on his throne of bones like a lean panther beside an empty throne covered in dark flowers. Percy looks to Thanatos to see him sadly looking at the flowery throne of Persephone. He barely has time to think about the story before Hades jumps to his feet.
He scans the trio carefully. "Thanatos, you have returned."
The son of Nyx and Erebus nods his head. "I have my lord, and I have brought the children with me."
"I thought you said you were only bringing one child," Hades said.
Imogene and Percy exchange fearful looks, but Thanatos remains cool. "It would be even better protection if a boy and a girl watched over your children."
"Now I have to change the arrangements," Hades sighs.
"Some, uh, friends of mine are taking care of the school arrangements and such. They will ensure that the children are settled in."
The Lord of the Underworld exhales in relief. "If they pass the test."
"I am confident they will, my lord. They have been well trained."
"Speaking of which, how do you know these children? From the look of the boy's eyes, he is a son of my lying, cheating bastard of a brother, Poseidon, but I smell no sea on him."
"They are family friends, descendants of powerful gods," Thanatos replies simply. Hades raises his eyebrows. "Sir, test them before you make any judgements."
"Very well," Hades stands up and walks over to them, beginning to circle around them like a cat and it's prey. The children stand tall, posture perfect. "What is your name?" He asks Percy as he stalks by.
"Jackson Last, sir," Percy says.
Hades gives a small smile at the sir. "And you?" As he passes Imogene.
"Fern Last, my lord," She replies.
"Any affiliation with the Olympians?"
"No, sir," They replied together.
"Do you have weapons?"
The children silently draw their weapons out. Percy holds his sword in one hand and his axe in the another, while his knifes are strapped to his waist. Imogene does the same except with her staff in her left hand. Hades inspects the weapons carefully before clapping his hands four times. The sound resounds throughout the palace, echoing on. Out of the shadows walk several hooded figures.
"Meet some of finest heroes of Elysium," Hades says proudly as the heroes lower their hoods. "Achilles, Odysseus, Theseus, Jason, Jason, and Houdini. They will be testing you on many skills to see if you are worthy."
First a man with pale green eyes and long black hair stepped forward. He wore greek armor and sandals with a bloody arrow sticking out of his ankle. "May I know the honor of who I am fighting?" Achilles asked.
"Jackson, Jackson Last," Percy replied after Hades motioned him forward. "I will be fighting with my axe."
Achilles nodded before drawing his spear. "May the best man win," He charged Percy with the speed and grace he had obtained when he was alive.
Hades had been expecting the poor boy to be pierced by his servant's spear rather quickly. So he was completely surprised when Jackson evaded the strike. Achilles narrowed his eyes before pressing the boy harder. Though the hero of the Trojan war was good, Hades could see Jackson was gaining the upper hand. Good, he thought. Perhaps I judged them a bit too quickly. Maybe they will be strong enough to save my children.
Imogene watched carefully as her brother duelled the master of spears. He was holding back, she could tell. It wouldn't be good for Hades' pride or trust of them for Percy to defeat Achilles in several seconds. She spotted several openings in the Trojan war hero's fighting right away, but Percy took his time following them through. After a half a minute of fighting, she got bored and decided to send Percy a mental message. Percy, you don't get a reward for fighting Achilles for longer. Just beat him! You've wasted enough time as it is!
Well, isn't someone impatient today? Percy replied. Imogene could hear him laughing a little in his head.
Shut up and just beat him already! She shot back.
Fine. Percy waited for an opportunity to end the fight. He didn't have to wait long. Lifting his axe a little to high on his swing, Percy was practically holding up a sign saying, Hey look! My rib cage is unguarded. Achilles dove for the chance. Hades shook his head, fighting back the urge to sigh out loud. The boy didn't even last two minutes.
So quickly only Imogene could follow, Percy changed the direction of his axe, an admirable feat because of the momentum. Whirling the axe into a blur, he swiftly chopped the spear into three neat pieces. Achilles mouth fell open as he was left with two broken sticks and one on the floor. Had he not been so stunned at the fact the boy had disarmed him, Achilles could have regained his composure and taken Percy on in hand to hand combat.
Instead, the legendary son of Thetis and Peleus stood there stunned while Percy placed his knife at his throat. Hades looked stunned that a person- a young boy at that, could recover so quickly to defeat anyone. Imogene and Thanatos smiled. They had both known Percy would win all along. The other heroes from Elysium had wary looks on their faces, curious of the powerful young children.
Astonished was the only thing Hades could think of. Here he had thought Jackson would last less than two minutes, when it was Achilles he should have been worried about. How would the rest of the challenges turn out?
"Jackson has won against Achilles," He stated. Jackson dropped his weapon to his side, he wasn't even breathing hard. "Fern will be fighting against Jason next."
The man with brown hair and brown eyes stepped forward, a bit wary. His tanned skin was outlined by a dark brown beard. He wore leather bronze plated armor and had a stocky build with strong muscles bulging. Approaching Imogene, he still has no weapon drawn.
"Have you heard my story of my voyage with the Argonauts?" He asked. Imogene nodded. "On the journey, we had to use different strengths and senses to survive. Now as your task, I am going to take away your main sense used for fighting. Sight. If you can survive two minutes of me attacking you or manage to disarm me, you win."
He produced a small black bandana, made specially for blinding the subject. Jason tied it tightly at the back of Imogene's head. Stepping back, he drew his broadsword.
"You may use whatever weapon you have," Jason said as he silently began to circle the girl. Imogene didn't even move. She relaxed her muscles, relying on her natural senses of the earth from her mother and the universal skills from her father. Jason was almost directly behind her, a little to the right though.
Instinctively, her muscles brought her sword up, twisting it. Imogene could sense the blade being parried away from a direct blow. Jason was looking at her, intrigued, trying to find a way to defeat her. A plan began to form in his mind. Suddenly, he charged her, bringing his sword in a destructive arc.
The daughter of Gaia and Chaos spun like lightning to intercept the strike. If Hades didn't know any better, he'd say she could see right through the blindfold. But it wasn't possible. Just to check, he passed shadows over her eyes. Nothing.
For every stroke Jason attempted to hit Fern with, she pushed it away. As she began to grow more confident, she threw in a few thrusts of her own. Becoming more daring, Imogene stepped forward, fully engaging Jason. They fought furiously. Even with the handicap of a blindfold, Imogene was beating the retriever of the golden fleece. With the moves of a master, she flicked her wrist ever so slightly. Jason's blade flew out of his hands, impaling into the wall. In a moment, Imogene had him pinned to the floor.
Like Achilles, Jason was too shocked to fight back. Hades looked down at the stopped stopwatch in his hand. It read 1:33. Fern had managed to defeat a great warrior in a little more than a minute and a half, blind folded! He struggled to keep from grinning at her success.
"You may take off your blind fold now," Hades interstructed. Fern obliged and got up. Jason, never one to quit, pulled his hidden knife from the sheath and quietly snuck up on Fern. Without even turning around, she pulled a dagger from her belt and threw it point blank.
The knife snared on Jason's armor straps, pinning him to the stone wall of the throne room. Fern acted like nothing had happened, walking over to hand Hades the bandana. Shaking off the stunned feeling, Hades continued the tests. Percy fought Theseus in a battle of strength and force, winning in record timing. Imogene excelled in fighting in odd situations against Perseus. Houdini concocted a different trap that should have taken hours to break out of at a god level, but it took Percy less than ten minutes. Easily, Imogene defeated Odysseus in strategy and tactics.
At the least, Hades was very impressed with the children's performance. Turning to Thanatos, he spoke.
"They are worthy," He said simply. Thanatos exchanged smiles with Fern and Jackson. "You are dismissed," Hades told the warriors of old. They bowed before walking into the shadows, back to Elysium. Quickly, Hades briefed them on their mission, not wanting his children to be left alone for any longer than they had to be.
"Thanatos will take you there," Hades finished after carefully explaining every detail. They nodded. "Lastly, I need you to swear your loyalty to me so that I can know that you will not try and take my children to the Olympians."
"We swear an oath of Loyalty, upon the river Styx, to Hades and the mission to rescue his children," Percy and Imogene finished. Thunder boomed loudly, since they were so close to the river.
Hades nodded in satisfaction. "I will expect reports through dreams."
They nodded before Thanatos transported them away.
Westover Hall looms in front of them as the trio like a evil castle made off all black. Even though it's early September, the air is chilly in Maine. Cold wind whips off the freezing harbor. Percy shivers once despite his jeans and sweatshirt. Thesis and Eros spot them before hurrying out to meet them. Thanatos strides over to them.
"Everything set up?" Thanatos asks.
"Yes," Thesis replies. "We can handle it from here. It's the official day before the start of term, when everyone new comes in. We won't look out of place."
"I'll scout around the school, look for monsters and find hiding places," Thanatos says before disappearing. Thesis and Eros walk towards the huge black doors. A woman in a freshly pressed suit stands just inside the doors.
"Welcome to Westover Hall," The brunette says brightly. "Are you here for student drop off?"
"Yes," Eros says.
"Walk down the hallway and take the first right. There will be signs on the walls directing you to the Main Office. My name's Ms. Gottschalk, by the way."
"Thank you m'am," Eros says and the children salute.
As they walk down the huge hallway with ceilings at least fifty feet above, Eros whispers to his cousins. "Ms. Gottschalk?
The two smile behind their sleeves. The banners on the walls saying Westover Hall: Grunt and Welcome students! flutter gently in the light breeze rippling through the hall. They follow the directions and soon arrive at the office.
A woman with blonde hair in a neat bun on top of her head sits at a secretary's desk. She doesn't even look up as they approach. "Name?"
"Jackson and Fern Last," Thesis replies. The woman, whose name is Chelsea Kirkman from the gold plated name plate, clicks a few things on the computer, types rapid fire fast with long red fingernails, and impatiently waits for the papers to be printed out. She hands them across the counter.
"There are your schedules and information. Head to the seamstress next. She's the second door on the left," Chelsea adds before looking expectantly at the next group of people in line. As they are leaving the main office, Percy catches a glimpse of a man with grey hair and different colored eyes staring at him. He only has time to read, Dr. Thorn, Vice Principal, before they leave the room.
Next they arrive at the seamstress who takes their exact measurements for their uniform. For the girls, the uniform is a white collared shirt with a navy jacket, three buttons lining the sleeves. A plaid grey and white skirt and grey just below the knee light gray socks are to be worn along dark grey flats. A dark blue tie tops it off.
The boy's uniform is grey pants, a white shirt, and navy blue jacket. The shoes are black dress shoes and the tie is mandatory, like with the girls. All of the clothing has Westover Hall's emblem on it, crossed sword and gun with a big WH in the center.
"You get six uniforms, one for each school day of the week, and then one to wear while your other ones are being washed," The seamstress informs them. "All shirts must be tucked in. You may wear your other clothes when you are relaxing in your rooms, but the moment you step into public congregation, you must have your uniform on. You get one set of physical education uniforms and a backpack to carry your school supplies around in. Formal dress code rules can be found in the rule book, located several places around the school," She turns back to her table, obviously done with them.
"Where do we go now?" Imogene asks as they stand awkwardly in the hallway. Thesis opens her mouth to reply, but she's cut off.
"Hello!" A cheery voice says from behind them. "Do you need any help?"
A girl wearing the uniform they just received walks over. Her red hair looks like someone made fire into hair, but she manages to keep it back neatly. Her brown eyes aren't mimicking the smile on her face.
"I'm Kelli, what do you need help with?" She asks. Percy feels himself being drawn in, then quickly snaps himself out of it. She's a monster, an empousa. Eros, Thesis, and Imogene have all come to a similar conclusion.
"No, it's fine," Eros insists. Being the primordial of love makes him immune to silly monster tricks.
Kelli will have none of it. "Nonsense, I'm happy to help. Let me see your schedules. Oooo, you have Linda Sahiner and Marley Voss as your head dormers. Okay, so head down that way, and after like, five hallways you should arrive at their offices. It's the last ones," Kelli says.
"Okay, thanks," Thesis says half heartedly.
"No problem! Bye!"
Each office of head dormers is on the main hallway with their respective hallway branching off. Eros leads them up flights of stairs and down hallways until they reach a dead end, except for the huge windows and library. Inside the office of the head dormer sit two brown haired people, a man and a woman. Both look up as they come in.
"Names?" The woman, Linda Sahiner asks tiredly.
"Jackson and Fern Last," Percy says. Marley Voss opens a file cabinet and searches through the folders while Linda places her head in her hands.
"Long day?" Thesis asks kindly.
"You got no idea," Linda rubs her temples. "It's crazy here for the first week."
"Here," Marley holds out to large envelopes. "These hold your keys to the dorm, don't lose them, a map of the school, and the rule book. I would recommend reading them before tomorrow morning. Your room numbers are the hallway, the side of the hallway and the number. Jackson, you're in room GL15 with Nico di Angelo while Fern is in the room across from you, GR16, with Bianca di Angelo."
"Remember, lights out is at 9:45," Linda reminds them. "Official meals don't start till tomorrow, but you can get some food there tonight. The dining hall closes at 7:30."
They thank the two head dormers before heading down the hall to their rooms. Outside their rooms, which are at the end of the hallway, Thanatos meets them. He hands them each a rolled up paper before disappearing. Thesis and Eros hug them good bye before walking out like normal people.
Imogene looks at Percy one last time before pushing the dorm door open and stepping inside.
Bianca's POV
As far as Bianca was concerned, her day was far from good. She and her brother Nico had been taken out of the comfy hotel they had been staying in for the last three months by a lawyer. The lawyer had brought them to the school, paid for everything, got them to their rooms, then left.
Official registration was a few months ago, meaning dorm rooms had already been picked. Nico and Bianca had gotten rooms to themselves. Even though they were siblings, school rules said opposite genders couldn't share a room. That was stupid!
So it was easy to say Bianca was surprised when a knock could be heard on the door. She had already unpacked her bags, chosen one of the beds in the room, and hung up her uniforms. Was it Nico?
"Come in," She called.
A girl with pitch black hair much like her own opened the door. The girl had a backpack on her back and was carrying a duffel bag. Her hazel green eyes locked on Bianca's onyx ones. Strangely, Bianca felt comforted.
"Bianca di Angelo, right?" She asked.
"That's me," Bianca stood up.
"Hey, I'm Fern Last. I guess we'll be rooming together for the semester," Fern shook Bianca's hand.
Bianca smiled. "Good, I was afraid I was going to have to sit with my twin brother Nico the whole time. He's my brother, but sometimes he drives me nuts."
Fern smiled. "I know what you mean. My brother, Jackson, who's rooming with Nico, I love him to death, but, god, he's so annoying sometimes."
The two girls smiled, knowing they would become good friends. "Do you mind taking this bed?" Bianca asked, gesturing to the bed opposite hers. "I didn't know anyone else was coming."
"It's fine, I love to look out the window, anyways," Fern's fingers traced the bottom of the large window above her bed. Bianca helped the other girl hang up her uniforms in her half of the closet and her other clothes in the drawers. As they worked, they talked about lots of things. Bianca found Fern loved to be outside in nature and was turning thirteen that March. She herself talked about her love of dark colors and how she had celebrated her birthday less than a month ago. They packed their backpacks for the next day with the books they were instructed they would need. Fern looked around the room, poking her head in the bathroom and glancing at a few of the books on the bookshelf. Both girls changed into the 'approved comfy wear', a westover hall sweatshirt and pants found in the closet.
"I was going to head over to my brother's room to check on how he is doing and get some dinner. Want to come?" Fern asked.
"Sure," Bianca followed the other girl across the hallway.
Inside their brother's room, a guy with black hair and sea green eyes was laughing at her brother's joke. Their room was identical to the girls, just mirrored. Both boys had also changed into the sweatshirt and pants. Nico sat up from his laying position on his bed, his dark brown eyes laughing.
"Hey sis, this is Jackson," Nico introduced his roommate.
"And this is his sister, Fern, my roommate," Bianca chuckles as his mouth opens.
"You didn't tell me you had a sister," Nico said.
"You never asked," Jackson shot back, shrugging.
"Anyways," Fern cleared her throat. "We were planning to head down to get some dinner, it's almost five forty-five now. Do you guys want to come?"
"Yup," Jackson stood up, Nico following him. "Does anyone know how to get to the dining hall?"
"Nope," Nico said. "Let's go!"
The four of them headed down the steps to the main floor. After several dead ends and near wall punching experiences, they finally reached the cafeteria.
"I'm going to get so lost in here tomorrow," Bianca said as she placed her tray on the table before dropping her backpack to the floor.
"Speaking of tomorrow, do we have any classes together?" Jackson asked. They all opened their backpacks (they had brought them with them so they didn't forget their keys or cards to buy the food) to dig out their schedules.
"I don't know," Nico said as he took a big bite out of his chicken nugget.
"Nico! Chew with your mouth closed!" Bianca reprimanded with Jackson and Fern laughed.
"Sorry, B," He replied.
Bianca rolled her eyes before handing her schedule to Fern. "What do I even have tomorrow?" She looked over Fern's shoulder.
Name: Bianca di Angelo Age: 13 Head Dormer: Linda Sahiner Home Room: Litty
Schedule
6:00 - 6:55: Morning roll call and morning workout
7:00 - 7:35: Breakfast
7:45 - 8:30: First Period (Algebra, Litty)
8:35 - 9:20: Second Period (Science, Smith)
9:25 - 10:10: Third Period (English, Hartright)
10:15- 11:00: Fourth Period (Study Hall, Nelson)
11:05 - 11:50: Fifth Period (History, Walker)
11:50 - 12:10: Return to rooms and drop off/ pick up books
12:15 - 12:50: Lunch (dining hall)
12:55 - 13:40: Sixth Period (Greek and Latin, Sherman)
13:45 - 15:00: Afternoon workouts
15:10 - 17:20: Study time and Activities (rooms and library)
17:30 - 18:05: Dinner
18:15- 18:45: Evening announcements
18:55- 21:30: Study time and Prepare for bed
21:30: Lights out
"Do you and Nico have the same schedule?" Fern asked after glancing over Bianca's, Jackson's and hers.
"Yes?" Bianca looked to a nodding Nico for confirmation.
"Then we have all of our classes together," Jackson stated.
The di Angelo twins smiled. "We'd better start heading back upstairs. With Bianca and my luck, we'll get lost again," Nico suggested. They left their trays on the cart and began the long way back to their rooms.
While Fern takes a shower, Bianca begins to read the rule book. She reads things she had already learned, lights out time, uniform protocol, dormitory condition, and new things like the morning drills and being on time for classes. Once Fern is done in the bathroom, the two switch. Bianca never knew why, but she never liked being in water. That included the shower.
Shrugging it off, the girls talk until Linda walks down the hall, checking that everyone is turning their lights off, since it's nine forty five.
"You two should try and get some sleep, morning exercises come early," Linda says before continuing on. Before falling asleep, Fern turns off the lights. Bianca lays in the dark thinking.
Tomorrow we begin school, Is her last thought before she falls asleep.
How was it? I hoped you like it. I never saw someone go deeply into Westover Hall before, so I wanted to try it. Tell me what you think.
Remember to review!
Thanks!
~Snow Wolfe6631~
