Thanks for the reviews guys, and again, I'm sorry for the massive wait. I keep saying that I'm going to get better, but since summer is coming up and I have no work after the middle of May, maybe I'll just be able to follow through with that for once. Please tell me what you thought!
Start of Season 4!
Look, friend, I know I've already mentioned this, but I think I have to keep telling myself this so… so I don't forget. It's been months since Bianca died but I'm just starting to feel it. I might have been able to keep a hold over myself, but then I think about Zoe and that gets me thinking about Nico and when I start thinking about him, I realise how badly I messed up.
I know that we succeeded in our quest to save Arty, but it feels like we failed, to me at least. I haven't seen Grover at all over the summer and I don't think I'd be very good company anyway.
But what really makes me feel… hopeless is… Annabeth hasn't talked to me once since I woke up. I know that I managed to save her, but losing her like this makes me feel like she actually died on that quest, in the shadow of that mountain. I know I should put this all behind me, but it feels as if I've lost everyone close to me and I'm not handling it well.
"Percy?" Sally asked, staring at him with a concerned expression.
Percy closed the diary he'd been writing in and turned to face her.
"Yeah?"
"Are you okay?"
Percy made to answer before being cut off by Tyson.
"He's just worried if he'll be labelled a retard again!"
Percy scowled. "I was never labelled a retard," he said defensively.
"Yeah, okay Wank Lord."
Sally made an angry face at Tyson, shutting him up, before turning back to Percy.
"It'll be okay. New school, new start! Just try not to get bogged down by what happened last winter."
"Yeah," Percy sighed. "I'll just try to forget all the people who died."
"I didn't mean-"
"I know," he told her quickly. "I'll go check out the school."
Tyson laughed as he climbed out of the car with him. "You've gone all emo! Is that why you let your hair grow out?!"
"No."
"Whatever. Let's just find Dad."
They walked up the steps with the other students and searched through the crowd for Poseidon. They found him facing off against Paul Blofis.
"Well I don't give a damn whether your kid is new, and I'm still going to pump him like a frickin' shotgun if he steps out of line!"
Poseidon moved closer. "How about we settle this outside?"
Paul laughed. "We are outside, moron!" He made a move towards Poseidon who backed off quickly. Percy and Tyson dragged him away as Paul laughed.
"I could have had him if there was water near by," the God told them.
"Sure you could," Tyson answered sarcastically. "When's Percy going back to the Wank Bank he calls a camp?"
"Later today," Poseidon answered absently, still focused on Paul. He took Percy's shoulder. "Be careful about that one, Perce. They call him the Blowfish."
"Wow, scary," Percy muttered.
Poseidon tapped the side of his nose. "No need to thank me. I'm here for you, Perce."
"Did you know he's after Mom?" Percy asked him.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean the Blowfish is trying to get into Sally's pants."
Poseidon straightened up quick and marched off in search of Sally. Percy watched him go before scanning his eyes through the crowd. There were many faces, calling out to each other, spitting and pushing against one and other. Percy and Tyson shouldered their way through to the door.
A guy moved right I front of Percy, pushing him back. Percy made to say something before noticing who it was.
"It's Logan Lerman!" Percy cried in shock. "I have to speak to him!"
Tyson raised an eyebrow. "What? So you can bum him?"
Percy laughed sarcastically before doubling back. "I'll head around the back and block him off."
"Like a stalker?" Tyson asked.
"Like a fan," his brother told him. "Now go find our parents and get ready to go to camp."
"What?!" Tyson cried. "I'm not going back to that dump!"
"Tough," Percy told him. "Mom and dad and shipping you off to Camp Wank Bank, again!"
"But-"
"Now shut up and find them, shitswipe."
Tyson made to say something, probably about nearly being killed the last time he went to Camp Half Blood, before bursting into tears and running off through the crowds. Percy watched him go, the emo cloud descending over his head. Ever since Nico had… exploded, Percy had felt like crap. Then again, that may just be because Annabeth had torn up his heart and spat on it.
Percy dodged past the crowds and made his way to the fire exit because he's bohemian like that. He ran into a couple of smokin' cheerleaders, just hanging out the back for plot reasons.
"Excuse me," Percy muttered, pushing his way past. His looks caught the attention of the girls instantly and they scurried after him.
"Hey," the blonde one simpered. "My name's, like, Tammi and this is Kelli," she gestured at the other cheerleader, this one African American, with frizzy hair.
"Whatever."
"The bad boy act is so sexy," she smiled, running a hand down his arm. "Are you a fish?"
Percy looked at her like she was mad. "No, I'm human."
"I mean, like, are you a sexy freshman?"
"Err, I guess," he replied, trying to find his way to the gym.
Kelli matched his step, thrusting her chest out. "Why'd you come by the back door?"
"Because I'm a hipster," Percy replied curtly. "Anymore stupid questions?"
"You don't look like a hipster," Kelli insisted. "You look like a skater."
"Sure."
"Because your hair is long and you don't give a shit."
Tammi pulled Kelli back. "Hey, I dibs him! He's totally my boyfriend."
"No uh!"
Percy walked on as they started fighting among each other. He turned the corner, joined the crowd and made his way into the gym. Sighing, he found a seat next to some red haired girl with ripped up clothes.
Once everyone had gotten settled, a band played a bad tune and then the principal started going on about how great Goode high school was.
"Jesus," Percy muttered. "Give me another Annabeth goes to Goode Fanfiction any day instead of this rubbish."
The red haired girl turned and raised an eyebrow at Percy. "Who do you think you are?"
"Percy Jackson," he moaned. "But I might have been someone different once."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I don't know. I've been having a rough time recently."
She nodded as if she could understand this. "Yeah… I'm Rachael, by the way."
"Whatever," Percy replied.
"What's wrong with you?" she said angrily.
Percy continued to look absently into the distance. "Oh, it's just because of a girl."
"What did she do?"
That was the wrong thing to ask: "What did she do?!" Percy started. "What didn't she do would be the better question! She took all my love, and my devotion and she shat on it. She took a dump on my face, literally."
Rachael raised her eyebrows. "Literally?"
Percy finally focused on her. "N-, no, of course not. That's disgusting."
He was cut off as a figure moved past him and sat down next to Rachael. Percy gave him a casual glance and saw…
"Logan Lerman!" Percy cried excitedly.
Logan smiled at him quickly, before realising who he was.
"You're that guy from the dam!"
"Yeah, I am," Percy replied. "I can't believe you remember me!"
"Well, it's pretty hard to forget some crazy skeletons. What happened to those anyway?"
Percy waved a hand. "Oh, they got written out."
Logan nodded. "What about your girl?"
The demigod soured immediately and didn't reply. Rachael answered in his stead.
"She took a dump on his face."
"Literally?" Logan looked disgusted.
"No, that's disgusting," Rachael replied.
They stopped talking and looked at the stage again, where Tammi and Kelli were speaking about how the kids of Goode could contribute to their school. Both Rachael and Logan gasped and looked around.
"What's wrong?" Percy asked.
"Don't you see them?" Rachael asked.
"See what?"
"The cheerleaders," Logan pointed. "How can you miss them?"
"So Tammi looks like she overdid it with the spray on tan, but that's a bit rude," Percy replied. "It's not that bad."
"No, there is something seriously wrong with them," Rachael said shakily.
Logan stared at Percy. "You said you were something last time we met. A demi-something?"
"Demigod. Or half-blood," Percy sighed. "It's not as cool as it sounds."
"Why can't you see those monsters then?"
"Oh, demigod eyes are fooled all the time," he replied casually. "That's how most of us are killed," he added.
Rachael looked like she was going to be sick as Percy went on.
"Yeah, so mortals like you can see through the Mist, which is like a special curtain that stops normal people from seeing the truth. You can see bullshit and stuff." He thought about it. "Why haven't you commented on this story yet, then?" He shrugged. "Anyway, I found out I'm part of ancient order, called the Three. We were a failsafe to destroy the Giants, enhanced by Hecate, goddess of magic, but they got by fine without us. Nico's been one ever since ancient times. It's a long story, but I'm one and there's another one out there. Mark Sue knows a lot more about it than I do though. Anyway, one of our powers is to become almost invisible to monster's senses. We don't stand out like other demigods. Probably why I'm still alive."
Logan nodded nervously. "Right, I think we should just get out of here."
"If you're scared," Percy smirked.
Rachael and Logan dragged Percy out of the hall and along a corridor, trying to find a way out.
"So what'd they look like?" Percy asked them. "What type of monster are they?"
Rachael held up her hands. "What are you saying? That these Greek myths are true?"
"You don't know the half of it," the demigod replied.
Logan ran a hand through his hair. "What are you saying?"
Percy made to answer, but footsteps behind him made him turn around. Tammi and Kelli stood at the end of the corridor.
"Hey," Percy raised a hand. "We were just talking about you! Don't worry, all good things."
Kelli flexed her hand. "Hunters… so arrogant."
Tammi smiled. "But they die just like any other demigod." She batted her eyelashes and moved closer. "Don't worry, we're not going to hurt you."
"That's great," Logan smiled happily and moved forward before Rachael grabbed him and held him back.
Percy suddenly realised how much Tammi looked like Annabeth. Blonde hair falling in waves, a dazzling smile. He smiled happily as she moved closer but something felt off. He could feel his mind rebelling.
"What are you?" He asked, trying to stall her as he tried to figure out what was wrong.
"Why does that matter?"
He shrugged as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Curiosity."
"Empousa, but don't let that bother you."
"Okay," Percy nodded, grabbing her head and slamming his own into it. She fell backwards, stunned.
"Annabeth talked about you… Empousa." He smiled at Kelli. "But your mind tricks don't work on me," he tapped the side of his head. "Hunters perk."
Kelli snarled and transformed into her full form. "White skin, red eyes and flaming hair," Percy noted. "Vampires, just like my ex." He smiled back at Rachael and Logan. "Get it? I was talking about Annabeth."
Tammi and Kelli charged them, running on their mismatched legs.
"Run!" Percy cried, sprinting after Rachael and Logan. Rachael grabbed Logan, pulling him into the band room, Percy jumping in after them and slamming the door closed. He held his weight against it as the Empousa tried to get in.
"Gods, they're strong," Percy gasped as he struggled to hold the door. He used every ounce of his enhanced strength but he was thrown back as the door was pushed back off its hinges.
The demigod scrambled to his feet as Kelli jumped through. He reached for Retard but the sword wasn't in his pocket. He reached for his other, where Retard had gone for lols, to make it harder but it was too late.
Kelli pounced on him, throwing him to the floor. The rolled over as Kelli tried to rip at Percy with her claws, but the demigod pushed back on her face and got his legs underneath her. He pushed her with all his strength, throwing her against the wall, which crumbled slightly under the force.
Percy scrambled to his feet, pulling out Retard and slicing at Tammi as she got closer. She ducked under one swing and dodged another as Percy brought it back around. The swing threw Percy off balance and she ripped at his sleeve with her claws.
"Argh," the demigod cried as the blow threw him off his feet. He tried to ignore the pain in his arm and stab at Tammi but she grasped his wrist and kicked Retard out of his hand.
The Empousa turned back to laugh with her Mistress at how pathetic Percy was but that was her mistake.
The demigod lunged backwards and grasped Retard from the floor. Tammi turned back, her grin fading as Percy hurled Retard with all his strength. The sword spun through the air gracefully and impaled Tammi, throwing her backwards and pinning her against the wall. She gave a small cry of surprise, before falling to dust and leaving Retard imbedded in the wall.
Percy climbed to his feet as Kelli glared daggers at him.
"Whoops," he said, brushing himself off.
"Percy," Rachael breathed, "that was awesome. I can't believe you did that!"
"Yeah, it was pretty cool," Logan admitted.
"Thanks, Logan!" Percy beamed, ignoring Rachael.
"She was just a trainee. No-one cares about her," Kelli snarled. She crouched, claws extended.
Percy started circling with her, looking for an opening to try and get to Retard. He cursed himself for not having brought any of his other monster killing tools. He considered using his crossbow ring, but it was too big. It'd just hinder him.
Suddenly, Paul's voice rung out:
"What thickness do you think these lockers are? The school program states them to be 1.5 inches and these are clearly 1.7!"
Kelli looked around at the noise and Percy moved forward. The Empousa tried to intercept him, but Percy slid under her attack and pulled Retard off the wall. He swung it at Kelli with all his strength but the Empousa screamed, bursting into flames.
The explosion blew Percy back through the air and into a wall, the flames hitting the side of room and overtaking it.
Stunned, the demigod could only groan as someone helped him to his feet.
"Thanks, Logan," Percy said.
"I'm Rachael"" Rachael corrected him angrily, taking her arms off him.
Logan moved forward and gave them a 'totally wicked face'.
"You don't believe how cool that was! I mean, I still don't know what happened! But I'm freaking out about it!"
Percy shrugged, his shoulder aching. "I'd be glad to try and explain it all."
"Here, have my number," Rachael told him, reaching for his arm.
"Get off me!" Percy cried, pulling away.
Logan looked between them. "Guess you don't want my card then.
"No, I'd love it!" Percy cried, taking it off a confused Logan. "Does this mean we're friends now?!"
Logan looked kinda weirded out now. "Sure, we can be friends."
Percy made to reply, but then the door slammed open exposing Paul and a group of freshmen.
"What- how- this place is on fire!" He spluttered.
"I forgot about that," Percy muttered as a piece of the ceiling came crashing down.
"What happened?" Paul moaned.
"Errr… Logan and Rachael tried to light some spliffs and started the fire!" Percy grassed.
"No we didn't!" The responded angrily.
Paul blanched. "To the whole room?"
Suddenly, the fire flared and Percy took the chance, dropping Retard (maybe he'd finally lose it) running and jumping out of the window into the hall. He didn't look back as he tore his way down the corridor and out the fire escape.
He looked back to check where he was going and ran straight into a fist. He collapsed on the ground and blinked back spots as Annabeth loomed over him.
"What do you think you're doing?" she cried.
Percy rubbed his face. "Why'd you punch me?"
She looked abashed. "You surprised me."
"What are you doing here?"
She held out a hand and pulled him to his feet. "I was… actually, I was looking for you. I know this summer has been rough, and we've both said things we…," she trailed off as she suddenly noticed the fire and the sound of voices coming closer.
"Percy… what did you do?"
The son of Poseidon brushed himself down before visibly thinking up a good excuse.
"Well, I showed them your heart and they just couldn't handle the evil," he told her.
Annabeth glared at him, shaking her head. "We need to get out of here."
Suddenly Rachael and Logan came out of the door, coughing from the smoke.
"PERCY!" Rachael cried. "You just left us!"
"Yeah, that was the intention," Percy muttered, before smiling. "Yeah, well, I've got to get going-"
"Who's this slut?" Annabeth whispered to Percy.
"I don't know," he lied.
Annabeth suddenly noticed Logan and blushed. "Oh, hey there. Are you- no that's silly, forget it."
"Hey, I'm Logan Lerman," Logan said, smiling charmingly at her.
She giggled as Percy took her hand angrily and started leading her away.
"I swear I'll explain everything later!" Percy told them as he dragged Annabeth away from the school and tried to hail a taxi.
"Take it easy," Annabeth flared, pulling her hand away.
"Talk about easy," he muttered. "Flirting with Logan, going to add him to your list of boys wrapped around your finger?"
Annabeth shook her head. "I thought you'd have gotten over that now! I want us to be friends, Percy."
Percy forced a smile. "We're friends!" He agreed, wanting to end this topic as the taxi approached.
She didn't look convinced but she climbed into the taxi, Percy following after her.
Don't worry; Percabeth will be coming to a more stable point by the next chapter. Again, sorry for the titanic wait, but my exams are over and Uni's finished until September, so I really hope to release some more chapters far more quickly. Please review and tell me what you thought.
