Tori
As Tori walked away from the new kids, she couldn't help but wonder what Percy had meant by "Aphrodite." The name seemed familiar to her but she couldn't place it. Tori just hoped it wasn't an insult.
She stepped into the janitor's closet to find Beck sitting on the floor, his head in his hands. He didn't even bother to look up when she walked in. Tori just silently sat beside him.
"Why are you here?" Beck croaked, his voice hoarse as if he'd been crying. Tori knit her eyebrows.
"What do you mean, why am I here? I'm your friend. I'm here to comfort you," she said. Then Tori grabbed Beck by the hair and lifted his head up.
"That's not comforting," he pouted playfully.
"Now tell me what's wrong with you," Tori demanded. Beck sighed and sat up against the wall.
"I don't know. It's just, Jade has been so obsessed with the new kids all day. She's convinced there is something off about them. I've never seen her this way before. It's scaring me."
"Jade is always scary," Tori pointed out. Beck gave her a look.
"Okay, but this is different. It's almost as if she's threatened by them."
"I still don't get why this made you so upset."
Beck waited for a little before answering. "I feel some kind of connection with them. I can't explain it."
"I understand. I actually do too. It's weird. Like I'm drawn to them." Beck nodded.
"When I hear Jade talk bad about them, there is something in my mind that is making me lash out. Making me angry." Tori didn't understand that part. That wasn't happening to her.
"That's super weird. I don't have that. But I think we should get back to lunch. The bell is probably about to ring." As if on cue, Tori and Beck heard the bell ring, signaling the lunch period was over.
Percy
Lunch was interesting. Percy, Annabeth, and Thalia ate at the table with Jade, Andre, Cat, and Robbie. Apparently Tori and Beck were sitting there too but they never came back.
"Do you guys know anything about Hercules?" Jade questioned them just as they sat down at the table. Percy stifled a laugh and glanced at Annabeth.
"A little. Why?" Percy responded.
"Just a project for class. Wasn't he supposed to be a demigod? What is that anyway?" Annabeth tilted her head to the side. She knew something was up.
"It means one of his parents was a god. His father was Zeus. What class is this project for?" There was a twinkle in Annabeth's eye that only Percy noticed. She was trying to catch Jade in a lie. Although Percy was confused about how Jade knew anything about demigods.
Was it possible that she knew about what they were? Percy pushed the thought from his mind. They'd only been there a day and had only talked to Sikowitz. There was no way she knew about them being demigods.
"Oh, World History. We are learning about Greece which means learning about their religion and myths," Jade explained. Though Annabeth had caught her. She could read anyone like an open book. No matter how good Jade was at lying, Annabeth would know. But aside from that, she could just wait until her World History class and see if they were actually learning about Greece. Annabeth almost hoped they were. That would be an easy class then.
"Oh, well I can't wait for that class. I love Greek mythology," Annabeth said, playing along. Jade raised an eyebrow but changed the subject.
"So, where did you guys use to go to school?" Jade asked.
"Well, I've been to various schools in New York," Percy explained.
"As have I," Annabeth interjected. "And I also went to school here in California."
"I went to a couple of schools in New York," Thalia explained. This is what she had to say considering she stopped going to school after she joined the Hunters.
Everyone at the table looked shocked.
"How many schools have you been to?" Andre asked in bewilderment.
"Uh, I think this would make about ten or eleven for me," Percy concluded after silently counting on his fingers.
"I'm not really sure although probably a couple less than him," Annabeth explained.
"Not very many," Thalia stated blatantly. Andre, Jade, Cat, and Robbie just stared at the three demigods for a while, not daring to ask the question that was bubbling at the surface of each of their minds. Finally, Cat cracked.
"So why have you been to so many schools?" she asked, oblivious to the weight of the question. The three demigods glanced at each other.
"Family problems," Percy stated vaguely. Cat was about to ask more but was cut off by the bell ringing, signaling lunchtime was over.