I can't really think of much to say except thanks for the reviews and cash registers should all be made the same, or come with a set of instructions if they're different from standard. I seriously don't like the percent off set up that the register I work on has.
So far the inspiration's going strong with reviews and art making me a happy writer, so updates should continue along at a good pace for the next while. I just need to make it to Monday night/Tuesday, and I'll have all the time in the world for two days to write. I'm looking forward to it.
Disclaimer: I do not own Class of the Titans. If I did, the opening credits for the heroes would feature Atlanta as the descendent of Atalanta, not Artemis. It's completely obvious that she's meant to be related to the mortal runner, not a goddess known for being extremely chaste.
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Bad Timing
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Neil was the first one to leave the dorm and head to school, promising cheerfully to see them after school in the janitor's closet for whatever exercises Hera was planning for them. He whistled as he walked, swinging his bag and flashing smiles to the other students he passed along the way. At the main doors he met Pam who offered a tired smile in response to his bright one and handed him a small bag as they entered the school.
"You're all right, aren't you?" she asked, leading the way through the halls to the art room. She fished out a small silver key and unlocked the door, ushering him in before making sure the corridor was empty and slipping in herself. Once the door was closed again, she locked it.
He brushed invisible lint from his shoulders and examined his nails. "I admit it was rough having to sit through it, but I persevered."
She hid a smile in her sleeve, guiding Neil to the back alcove and her work. "You're quite perfect," Pam said as she helped him up onto a small platform and moved his arms until they were in the right position. "I'm a bit impressed."
"Of course I'm perfect," he said haughtily. "Why wouldn't I be?"
Once he was in the right position, she fetched some clay and a bucket of water, sitting behind her work board with a sigh. "Once we're done here, I'll only see you in art class and then, well, you're on your own." The statue forming under the ministrations of her fingers was limp, sad. Pam glanced up at Neil through her bangs and asked softly, "Did you see him?"
"Don't worry," he assured her, ignoring the question. "It's almost over."
--
"Hey guys," Odie said, plunking himself down with a tray of food in the cafeteria next to the others. "Having as much fun today as I am?" He tucked into a tuna salad sandwich and patted the bag at his side that contained his computer. "They finally let me take a look into upgrading the school computers."
Jay patted him on the shoulder. "That's great Odie." He took a bite of his own meal. "I don't think Math quite measures up to that but at least someone's into the ordinary high school thing. It doesn't really measure up to what we do after school, though, does it?"
"Of course not," Atlanta said. "The closest we ever get is probably in English." She groaned as a sudden thought struck her. "And I have an essay due next week." With hurried apologies and goodbyes, she gathered her things, half a sandwich and sped off toward the library for some quick research before the weekend.
Archie watched her go, only turning back to his tray when Atlanta had completely left the room. "Wouldn't it be nice if we could be excused on the basis of needing to save the world all the time?" he mused. "I know a few classes where it would come in handy."
"Has anyone seen Neil since this morning?" Theresa asked suddenly, looking up from her macaroni. "He was going to talk to the girl who gave him the melting flower, right?" She kept her strange morning conversation with the blonde to herself, still uncertain if it meant anything or if she was just blowing something out of proportion. His reason had certainly seemed valid enough.
As the faces around the table all shook their heads, Odie broke in, "Well, he has art after lunch and the room is on the way to my Physics class. I'll swing by and see if he's found out anything new, and then we can fill you and Miss Hera in on it later." He shrugged casually. "I'm ahead in my class anyway, so I can always use the time to think about what it all means." He received a nod from Jay, and everyone turned back to their meals and happier topics of conversation, such as what Herry might be planning for his turn as strategist that afternoon.
--
Neil felt completely exhausted and more than just a little stiff as he lay stretched out on the bed, staring hazily at the ceiling. But no matter how tired his body was, and it was a strangely delicious sense of fatigue, his mind would not let go and let him fall asleep. So he lay in a sort of doze, not terribly coherent or aware of his surroundings but not gone to the realm of the unconscious. It was a strange sensation, and although he wanted to drift off and regain some of his energy, he reveled in the feeling, knowing what had happened to make him reach this state.
"You must be getting hungry by now. It's almost one o'clock, you know," Galen's distant voice broke into his thoughts. It brought a warm glow along with it and for a moment Neil just basked in the feeling before lazily rolling his head to meet his own gaze. Galen chuckled. "Since you look so relaxed, what say I go upstairs and see what's lying around in the fridge?" He leaned in and captured Neil's swollen lips in a tingling kiss before extracting himself from the sheets, grabbing a stray pair of pants and heading for the door.
"Nothing rich," Neil called after him with a yawn. He attempted to adjust his position with floppy arms but stopped when a twinge of pain reminded him just what he had been up to most of the night. A dopey smile lit up his features as he considered that out of all the aspiring couples and romantic situations he knew and had run into being a modern hero, he was the one who had gotten anywhere first.
Poor Jay and Theresa, he thought to himself smugly. I would have thought they'd be more perceptive. He laughed airily as another pair of faces came to mind. Archie and Atlanta. I wonder if that will ever work out, giving her ancestor's distaste for men. Maybe he should try beating her in a race sometime. That might help. Neil had taken the time to read up on some of the mythology behind their adventures while waiting between photo shoots, so that he wouldn't appear totally clueless every time something new popped up. And Odie with his nymph, he mused. I'd like to see how that turns out.
The creaking of stairs brought his wandering mind back to reality as Galen appeared in the doorway with a plate of food and a glass of water. "I hope you don't mind some leftover spaghetti," he said, settling himself back onto the bed.
"Sounds good," Neil replied, ignoring his sore body in order to pull himself into a sitting upright. He reached for the plate and nestled it in his lap but his attempt for the glass of water was off as he was suddenly taken by a large yawn. It slipped from both their hands, dumping itself onto Galen with a quiet splash. "I'm sorry," he said, staring down at Galen's wet stomach and pants.
"No problem," was the response as Galen stood, searching for something that could be used to dry himself off. He found a box of tissue and took several, dabbing at his skin carefully. As Neil watched he saw what almost looked like makeup coming off on the Kleenex, a patch of grey being exposed underneath. Galen caught his eye and winked. "It's just a little cosmetic problem," he assured the blonde. He stripped off the black pants and continued drying. A few moments later and he was as good as new, slipping back into bed beside Neil with not a speck of grey on him. "I'll get you something else to drink when you're done."
Neil nodded a little sheepishly and tucked into the meal before him as Galen watched. Halfway through, his head suddenly snapped up as he realized something. "Did you say it was one?" he asked. "That means I missed school." Hera, not to mention his family, was going to kill him.
"Don't worry about it. I called your friends and told them that you had a late night at a friend's and that you didn't think you'd be coming in today. Jay, I think it was, said he'd take care of it, but I don't think he was very happy." Galen smiled apologetically. "So I'm afraid you might get a bit of a lecture later."
Relieved, Neil shrugged. "Why not? It's worth it for your methods of cheering a person up." He blushed and mumbled, "Thank you."
Galen tilted Neil's face toward him and kissed him hard. "Anytime," he said as he broke away to put the unfinished plate of food on a nearby table. It was about to be forgotten.
--
The lunch bell rang just as Odie finished his sandwich. He had been struck by a few ideas for some new gadgets not long after sitting down and had gotten lost in typing up notes and specifications for them on his laptop. By the time he'd gotten back to his lunch, the break was almost over and the conversation had switched to talk of upcoming tests in their regular lives. Apparently, Jay had to battle the dreaded Transformations beast in Math next Wednesday.
He packed up his computer, waved a temporary farewell to the others and left the cafeteria, heading to his Physics class and the art room along the way. The teacher for the class he was about to visit, a woman Odie knew only by her reputation as a free-spirit and the occasional glimpse in the library when she was there to sign out reference books, swept past him in the hall, a gaggle of students trailing behind her. As Neil's face was not among them, he continued on to the room, sticking his head inside. It was empty, as he had been led to expect. But as Odie was about to skirt off to avoid being late himself, figuring he had just missed Neil in the crowd, a familiar laugh caught his attention.
"Neil?" he called, stepping inside the room. There was a moment of silence and then the blonde appeared, dusting his hands off. "You're not going to wherever it is that your class went?" Odie wondered now that he had confirmed Neil's absence from the other students.
"They're going to sketch things outside in charcoal." The model suppressed a shudder. "No way would I go anywhere that grass could stain my beautiful clothes, let alone where charcoal could have its dirty way with me." He have Odie a look. "It's simply unthinkable."
Odie only smiled. "But with fighting Chronus, I would've thought at least one article of clothing had met with some unfortunate speck of dust." Even if it was only a handkerchief or a sock.
"Yeah, but those were sacrifices for the greater good and all that. Rolling around outside is hardly necessary."
"I see," said Odie, trying not to roll his eyes. "I just stopped by to ask if you'd found out anything in regards to the melting flower. Any luck?"
As if on cure, a girl with short brown hair and what appeared to be a well-used art apron stepped out from the cluttered back area, holding her hands in much the way a surgeon would before an operation. Noticing the glisten of slip on her fingers, Odie could understand why. "Neil," she asked, "Who's your friend?"
Odie held up a hand in greeting. "Hi," he said. "I'm Odie. Just seeing how things are going with Neil."
"About the flower, Pam here is the one who gave it to me," Neil cut in. Pam, beside him, seemed a bit startled but quickly turned it into a shy smile. "It turns out she was in my art class the entire time. Neat, huh?"
"Uh, yeah." Pam brushed her bangs from her eyes with the back of her hand. "It was a gift," she said, thinking quickly. "In the hopes that Neil would agree to model for me." She seemed to remember something. "Did you say it melted?" she asked.
Odie nodded. "I'm afraid so. Another friend of ours thought it was real and put it in some water. It didn't last long after that."
"Oh, that's too bad. I'll have to make another one sometime soon." Pam nudged Neil with an elbow. "But right now, we need to get back to work. I don't have much time left to finish my project."
The descendant of Odysseus nodded, needing to get to his own class anyway. He had other questions, such as why the flower had been unfired and how she had made it so realistic, but he figured they could wait, or that Neil was already in the process of interrogating her. "Sure," he said. "I'll see you after school, Neil." He turned to go but the exit was blocked by the last person he wanted to see.
"Nonsense," admonished Chronus, miniature scythe in hand. "You can't leave now. Not when things are going so well."