11:30 am, Monday, February 1st, 2011

Sydney Lise leaned back in her chair, absolutely enjoying the show.

Lilith looked about ready to burst, with a face as red as a tomato. Piper was talking in low tones to someone on the phone, away from the group. Annabeth had her feet on the table, and every time Lilith made an argument, Annabeth picked it apart.

"You can't do this!" Lilith cried.

Sydney noticed Percy pull out his phone, and taped something on it, before setting it on the table. She could have sworn she heard a beep but dismissed it.

"What, make sure justice is served? Yeah, we can," Annabeth commented, twirling a fork.

Lilith made a sound, and Sydney couldn't help but think she was acting like a toddler. Sydney snorted at the mental image that popped up.

Lilith whirled, and shouted at her, having heard the noise, "Oh you think this is funny, don't you Lise? You're just a blind follower of these idiots!" She gestured wildly towards Annabeth and co.

Sydney was taken aback, but luckily Annabeth cut in. "How 'bout you shut up for once in your life and take a vacation to, I don't know, a remote island in the pacific and never come back?"

Lilith spun to face the blonde, and the two girls glared for a moment. Annabeth had a poisonous grin on her face, while Lilith looked beyond furious.

"You'll pay for this," Lilith hissed.

"Stop trying to intimidate me, Van Wes. It's pathetic," Annabeth replied.

"I'll call my lawyers," Lilith said, stepping closer to Annabeth, jabbing her finger at the other girl. "I'll make sure you get arrested, and thrown out of this school, no matter what I have to do." Lilith stepped back and grinned.

"I would leave this school now if I were you."

"Actually," came Percy's drawl, his New York accent heavy as he spoke lowly, "I would suggest you leave now Miss Van Wes." He lifted up his phone to show the screen, a recording app.

Percy gave a lopsided, knife-like grin, and Lilith's jaw dropped. "You-you can't do that! That's unfair, I didn't know I was being recorded!"

"Awww, the big baby thinks I can't record her without her permission when I feel unsafe or think what she says could be used in court. How adorable!" Percy mocked, putting his feet on the table.

Someone in the cafeteria, which had fallen silent, laughed. "Aww is Miss Van Wes afraid of the big bad lawyers isn't she!" Someone called, eliciting laughter from the school.

"You'll all pay!" She screamed.

"Still recording," Percy said in a singsongy voice.

Lilith lunged, but a hand wrapped around her arm, stopping her.

Piper had been the one to grab her arm, and she now stood tall, her hand the noticeably shorter girls upper arm. "Hands off!" Lilith cried wriggling out of her grasp.

Lilith managed to but lost her footing and fell to the floor. Piper used that chance to lean over her, and with eyes that seemed to burn red, told her, "I just got off the phone with the NYPD." Liliths eyes widened. "Hope you like courthouses, Miss Van Wes."

Then, Lilith did something unexpectedly bold, she spat in Pipers face. Piper hissed as she wiped away the spit and she stood up, and stepped back, glaring even harder.

Piper McLean seemed inhuman at this point, with her burning eyes and her grin that was just a bit too sharp. Her words seemed smooth and cold, yet persuasive all the same.

Sydney looked around and the entire group seemed the same way.

For the first time, Sydney noticed how everything about Annabeth Chase was sharp and angled. Even her curls, which would look soft and round on any other person, seemed harsh and sharp. Her eyes were the sharpest thing about of her, with stone-cold steel in them.

Jason was tall, taller than everyone else a the school, save Percy. His eyes seemed to flash with bolts of lightning and the tattoo on his forearm radiated danger and distrust into Sydney.

And Percy, he was the most eldritch of them all. Green eyes that seemed to green to be human. Cold smiles and knife-like grins, and a presence filled with danger and destruction.

Power radiated from all of them, so much power. Sydney could practically taste it. It washed over her whenever they were nearby, and most times it was a gentle current, soothing and warm, matching their moods. But they were riled up now, and the power was like a blade, and ozone seemed to fill her lungs.

That's why he didn't fit in.

It's not because of his stare, or the way he seems to watch and analyse people. It's not the scars and bruises. It's not the dark looks that he gets or any of that.

It's the pure, unfiltered power, that's why he's so strange.

And Lilith, displaying that she has some cognitive faculties, noticed this. She's gotten up from where she was on the floor, but has lost her glare and looks awkward.

They hear sirens outside the school, and Lilith curls her lip but doesn't say anything. The doors to the cafeteria open about three minutes later, and a handful of officers and Mrs Childs walks in, obviously flustered.

The officers walk over to Lilith and she comes with them, seemingly having given up. Mrs Childs raises an eyebrow when she notices who they are taking, but she knows it is not her place to stop the officers.

Lilith does send a glare over her shoulder as she walks out, but it's weak. Lilith raises her head as she walks out, but manages to maintain her pride.

The room is silent for a moment, but the shrill bell snaps them out of it. People chat and murmur with each other as they pick up their bags, and walk out.

Annabeth grabs her bag and asks Sydney, Piper and Kate if they want to join her in the library. Kate declines, but Sydney and Piper go with her. The boys separate out, and the girls head out.

They managed to find a table in a quiet place in the library, and Annabeth seemed frustrated. She was holding the sides of her book in a white knuckle grip and her textbook.

"You good?" Sydney asked, grabbing her books from a bad.

Annabeth groaned, slouching in her chair and slamming her book onto the table. She rubbed her hand over her face and told Sydney, "I'm stressed as all hell. My dyslexia's being a bitch."

Sydney gave her a sympathetic look, "Why are you stressed?"

Annabeth gave a deep sigh. "I'm not sure. The whole thing around Lilith just now really got me on edge. I don't want to go to court, and I know we have to, and Lilith will get what's coming to her, but still," she groaned.

Piper nodded along. "Don't worry, I dropped Mellie a text." She sat down and opened her book. "She's working on lawyers. At least we don't have to worry about that."

Annabeth nodded. She read through her book and continued to read. The girls sat in silence for a few moments, studying when Sydney looked up and grinned, "So you gonna wail on the office about Mrs Thomas?"

The girls laughed. Annabeth shrugged, "Who knows. I mean we're already going to court, why not add more."

Sydney shook her head and smiled, before turning back to her book.

One of my favourite headcanons ever is the one about demigods being offputting and almost inhuman so I had to include it here.