Quick note: This piece is based on Atalanta being Atlanta's ancestor, not Artemis. Apparently, the people behind the show were thinking of Atalanta when they created Atlanta's character.

Accusations

Checking to see that the corridors were clear, Archie nodded in satisfaction. Everyone would still be in class, so he wouldn't be seen. He crouched down in front of the Janitor's office and took his golden pendant key from his back pocket. He fit the shining disc into the plate, the chain hanging down and clinking against the steel door.

Surprisingly, the hand did not align itself as it usually did; in fact the key stayed exactly how Archie had placed it. Frustrated, he removed the disc and fogged it with his breath, then carefully wiped it with the hem of his shirt. He fit it back into its slot, and in his frustration, almost ripped the chain from the pendant when it still did not work.

Trying to calm himself down, Archie took a brief moment to analyze the key, and weighed it with his palm. It was heavier than it appeared to be, and a fancy 'A' was engraved right in the centre. There was a wreath of what looked like laurel bordering the circumference of the disc and he flipped it around to see an embossed lightening bolt on the other side.

"Why won't it work?" he wondered aloud, almost violently. Hermes had contacted him not thirty minutes before, indicating that Ares wanted to set a time for training tomorrow. Archie sank to his knees and began pounding the disc into the plate when someone yelled at him, "Hey Arch!"

Archie stood abruptly, cursing whoever it was that had shouted at him. It turned out to be one of the guys that sat behind him in chemistry, and Archie clutched the key behind his back, leaving a circular imprint in his palm.

"What're you doing?"

"Oh, just looking for the…janitor," Archie replied lamely, scratching the back of his neck with his free hand. "I spilled some…water in the library, and I needed a mop."

"You spilled water in the library?" his classmate repeated disbelievingly. "I'm surprised the librarian didn't have your head – there's no food or drinks allowed."

"Uh, yeah, I guess I was lucky," Archie agreed, his back pressed against the door, "Anyway, see you in class."

"Yeah," his colleague said curiously, but disappeared around the corner. When he was safely out of sight, Archie resumed his pounding on the door, but to no avail. His shoulders slumped in defeat – he would have to tag along with one of the others for now, until he talked to someone about the malfunction. Stuffing the chain back into his pocket, Archie turned on his heel and headed back to the dorms.

Upon entering, he found Herry watching TV and Theresa reading the newspaper. Archie fell back onto the couch beside the descendant of Herakles, and pulled out his Hephaestus whip. He idly twirled it between his fingers, when Atlanta bounded down the stairs, looking as enthusiastic as usual. She paused for a moment at the bottom of the staircase, and then slapped her forehead in frustration.

"What?" Theresa asked her, frowning as she folded up the newspaper.

"I just remembered…I was supposed to go see Ares this afternoon! I was studying for my world history exam tomorrow…I totally forgot," she sighed, and looked briefly at her watch, "I guess I'd better go see him now."

Archie jumped up from the couch and offered eagerly, "I'll go with you, Atlanta. I was supposed to see him earlier, but I couldn't get into the Janitor's office."

She shrugged and they left together, just as Jay walked in. They made their way back to the school, meandering through several hallways until they found themselves in front of a charcoal coloured steel door. Atlanta looked at him, as if asking him to open the door, and he shook his head, "Mine isn't working…I've got to ask Hera what the problem is."

Again, Atlanta shrugged, and then crouched to fix her disc into the slot. She expected the grinding noise of the hand moving, but she was disappointed. Nothing happened. "What the…?" she murmured, and then stood to face him, "Mine's not working either!"

Archie frowned as he tried to come up with plausible reasons, while Neil just happened to waltz by. He looked at them with raised eyebrows and questioned, "Why are we just standing around? I haven't got all day, you know."

They looked at him, their mouths agape as he slid his pendant key into place, and the hand aligned like it always did. "Well, enjoy yourselves," Neil called to them over his shoulder as the door opened, "I would stay and chat but I've got a new line of skin care I want to discuss with Aphrodite."

The door shut behind him before either of them could say a word. Atlanta held her key in her right hand, and Archie could feel the weight of his in his pocket. "Hey!" he cried, after a few seconds of silence, and things clicking into place, "You stole my pendant key!"

"Excuseme?" Atlanta questioned dangerously and narrowed her eyes, but like everything else, Archie was immune to her scowls. "I stole your key?"

He nodded impatiently, and brought his key from his back pocket. "That's the only thing that makes sense! Neil's works and ours don't! They look exactly the same, but they won't work with the wrong person. You must have stolen mine."

"I did not steal anything from anybody," she defended, crossing her hands over her chest. She had to admit that they looked identical, and she wondered how this hadn't happened before. "Maybe we got them mixed up by accident, moron."

Archie offered her his key, and she did the same, but looked pointedly in the other direction. When he reached down and pressed his rightful key to the plate, the hand aligned, and the door swung open. "See?"

"Yes," she said with irritation, tapping her foot, "I see."

"So how are we going to prevent this from happening again?" Archie asked her, raking a hand through his purple hair and pushing his key into his pocket. Atlanta wrapped hers around her wrist like a bracelet for the time being. "I thought parents usually taught their kids not to steal."

"I didn't steal yours!" Atlanta told him fiercely, pointing a finger at him. "And how do I know it wasn't you who stole mine?"

"I don't steal things from other people," Archie insisted, looking down at her.

"Well, neither do I!" she yelled up at him, "So stop accusing me of doing so!"

"Fine," he snapped back. "Just make sure it doesn't happen again."

"I have an idea," Atlanta seethed, absolutely livid. Archie could feel the heat radiating from her body, and he knew he was in trouble, "How about we change the initial on yours to 'M'?"

Archie scoffed, but a teacher walked by, forcing them into silence. Archie discreetly pushed Atlanta into the office, and closed the door firmly behind him. He yanked on the overhead chain, flooding the room in dim light. He glared at her and snarled, "Okay, I'll bite. 'M' for what?"

"Oh, I don't know," she answered mockingly, but her tone was heated, "What about 'M' for 'Mel' as in 'Meleager' or 'Melanion' since you're always trailing after me?"

"I am not!" he cried in rage. He reached for his whip, searching for something – anything – to clutch in frustration. It was then that she realized they were really quite close. She could feel him shaking in anger.

"You are!" she fired back, "God, you're so maddening!"

To her surprise, he became instantly calm, and smirked at her. Archie was sure he looked a lot more confident than he felt. When he spoke, she noticed his voice had dropped an octave, "So what if I am 'trailing after' you? Have you forgotten the endings to both those stories?"

Atlanta shook her red head, even though she did know their conclusions. She was too busy mentally berated herself for finding him attractive, especially in their current situation. She was too distracted by their close proximity to answer; he smelled like clean laundry and a bed just slept in.

"Well," Archie pretended to recall, "I remember that Meleager was in love with Atalanta, but she was just as much in love with him. In fact, she might have even given him a son. As for Melanion, after he beat her in a footrace…hold on, I can't quite remember…"

Atlanta was caught between wanting him to say it, and wanting to run. It was the former that won, so she stayed rooted to the spot as he continued, "Oh, right…they ended up screwing their brains out in one of Zeus' temples."

She swallowed hard, and watched him finish with a smirk, "So, if you want to change my name to 'Mel', it's fine by me…really. Just don't steal my pendant again."

Atlanta snapped out of her trance at his words, and fisted his shirt in one of her hands. The other reached for the bolas that she kept on her belt. "We already discussed this," she said brokenly, her chest heaving in anger, and she really thought she might hit him, "I did NOT steal ANYTHING!"

Archie grinned as he leaned down to press his mouth against hers. She was stunned, and when he pulled away, she felt surprisingly cold. He was already fumbling for the door, and just before he took off, he teased, "…I'm fast."

Curving her mouth into a slow smile, Atlanta started after him and growled, "…I'm faster."

- - -

Notes:
God, you're so maddening: I know what you're thinking, "Who says maddening?" Well, actually Homer does a couple of times in the Iliad. I guess I couldn't resist.
Atalanta and Meleager: Myth about the Calydonian Boar Hunt, where Atalanta was part of the team. She struck the boar first, though Meleager killed it. Because she was the first to draw blood, he gave her the hide. No one else on the hunt liked this, especially his two uncles. Meleager killed his uncles, but in turn was killed by his own mother, who wanted to avenge her brothers.
Atalanta and Melanion: After Meleager's death, Atalanta's father wanted her to get married. She struck a deal: whoever could beat her in a footrace would win her hand in marriage. If they lost, they would die. Melanion (also known as Hippomenes) prayed to Aphrodite before the race, and received three golden apples. During the race, he dropped them one by one to distract Atalanta, and won. After the race, they had sex in one of Zeus' temples, and Zeus (or Aphrodite) turned them into lions. It was believed at the time that lions could not mate with their own species.

So: Hope this all made sense. I don't own Class of the Titans, never will. If you've read this far, why not review?