Hey check me out, another chapter and its only been a day! Thank you for reviewing, I really didn't think anyone would so its so nice to come home from doing GCSEs to see you guys have been reading this! Enjoy the new chapter, its the result of my procrastination and refusal to go to bed at a reasonable time :)
"Morning Chiron" Percy greeted, as his boss passed him in the hallway. The man smiled, giving Percy a warm look. Percy knew he was happy that he was finally working at the museum, he'd been trying to hire him for months- but Percy wanted to try working away from his old high school teacher before getting back under his wing. Like his time in the police department; it was fun, but it wasn't really his thing. He had a different way of fighting crime.
"Good Morning Percy, how was your first day?" Chiron smiled, and Percy rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
"The work was good; the attention was not. Do you know your female employees are like sharks?" He asked, remembering the practically predatory way they had all passed him by, making him nervous to the point of almost dropping the precious artefacts he was holding. Chiron chuckled.
"You're just new, they'll get over it. Have you introduced yourself to my favourite employee? I need to have something taken to her anyway"
"Uh, its not Drew is it? Chiron she wrote her number on my hand in sharpie. It won't come off" Percy said, showing him the black numbers on his palm. Chiron sighed.
"Its not Drew, and I'll have a word with her. Her name is Annabeth, you'll find her on the third floor; Piper can direct you in the right way" He said, handing Percy a huge volume that looked bigger than his head. Percy took it and whistled.
"What's she gonna do with this, lift weights with it?" He asked. Chiron looked amused.
"She could, but no; she's going to translate it. Annabeth is our smartest employee, a specialist in Ancient Greek and Latin and even hieroglyphics to an extent. She'll know what to do, just hand it over"
Percy nodded, trying not to let it show that he thought the book was actually heavy. He went on his way and headed to the third floor, and right on cue he found Piper. Piper had introduced herself the previous morning; she was very pretty and friendly, but Percy had seen his co-worker Jason looking after her so he knew that if there was any girl in the museum he wanted, Piper wasn't her. He'd hate to make enemies on his first day, and he and Jason had gotten along really well.
"Well hello there, what brings you up here?" She greeted, smiling sweetly "Wait, let me guess; that book is for Annabeth"
"You'd be right" Percy replied "Can she really read this?"
"Annabeth is a nerd, but luckily for her she's cute. She'll eat that book for breakfast, she finished the last one in an hour, and that was with me talking to her"
Percy tried not to be impressed, but looking at the book and the fact that it was not in English he couldn't help it. He knew a little ancient Greek, he studied it for a while, but a whole book like this? No way.
"Do you know where the cute nerd is?" He asked. Piper grinned.
"She's right this way. I can't wait to see her face when she sees how right I was"
"About what?"
Piper didn't answer, just led the way down the hallways full of glass cases, filled with artefacts that Percy would be maintaining soon, once he was done with the floor below. Piper hummed, flicking the braids in her hair (how she had time to braid that much was beyond Percy; he barely had enough time to shower and grab a coffee that morning) as if she was about to be in for a treat.
"Annabeth! Hope you're not working too hard!" Piper called, entering a larger area that was lined with cases displaying texts and books, an info desk in the centre where a blonde woman sat scribbling away. She looked up almost irritably, and Percy gaped a little. She didn't look anything like Piper- Annabeth had the California girl look, with her curly blonde hair and tanned skin. However she wore a huge wool jumper, one that made her look completely adorable, and her eyes were an intelligent grey. Percy had had a type, and Annabeth was it.
"Piper this is my job, of course I'm working hard" She said, and Percy chuckled. Annabeth looked to him at the sound, and he came forward with the book.
"Uh, Chiron asked me to bring you this" He said, and she took it from him as if it weighed nothing, placing it on the desk and opening it gently.
"Oh thank God, this is the one I wanted. Thanks, um…what's your name? You're new aren't you?" She asked, and Percy nodded.
"This is Percy; I was telling you about him yesterday" Piper supplied. Annabeth rolled her eyes.
"Yeah and I wasn't listening because I was working. Its nice to meet you Percy" She said, and Percy smiled.
"You too. You must have some muscle if you're lifting books this big all day" He said, and she gave him a small, secretive smile.
"You have no idea"
Piper looked like her cheeks were going to burst from beaming.
"Well" She said brightly "I'd better be going. Be nice to the newbie Annabeth, he isn't used to your crankiness yet!"
She left and Percy turned back to Annabeth, wondering how anyone wearing a fuzzy jumper could be cranky.
"So, Annabeth; you don't look like the cranky type" He said, and she rolled her eyes.
"I'm not, Piper just tries to annoy me" She said, and began scanning the front page of the book, scribbling on a notepad beside her.
"I'll bet. I'll uh, I'll see you around?" He asked hopefully. She shrugged.
"Maybe"
And Percy left, because he knew that if he stayed any longer he'd say something real stupid and he caught Annabeth looking at the number on his hand, probably assuming he was some sort of player or something. He would, if roles were reversed.
"Hey man, where have you been?" Jason asked, once Percy returned to the second floor. Percy didn't actually know what Jason did; it was something to do with Roman stuff, and he worked pretty close with the woman named Reyna who scared Percy a little bit. Other than that he just seemed to hang out with other employees, and it was a miracle he hadn't been fired. Percy had a feeling he'd be saying that a lot.
"I was taking a book to Annabeth upstairs" Percy said, opening a nearby display case to clean an old sword. The description named it Riptide, and so far it was the worst sword he had come across.
"She didn't bite your head off?" Jason asked. Percy frowned.
"No? Why would she?" He asked.
"Annabeth is…troubled. She's not really all that good with people after- well, I'm just surprised you came back in one piece. She almost punched Connor a week ago"
Again, Percy couldn't match the description to the face. It was just all wrong. He wondered quietly what made Annabeth so annoyed all the time, even if he hadn't actually seen her like that.
"Hey, watch out!" A voice called, and Percy was almost knocked flat by a guy wheeling a box down the hall far too fast.
"Leo, slow down!" Jason scolded. Leo grinned like a mad-man.
"Can't Jason, I'm on fire today, if you know what I mean!"
Percy didn't. Apparently Jason didn't either. Leo just laughed at their silence.
"Nevermind! I'm just in a hurry to get started on this Ancient Greek war catapult Hazel managed to get for me, its huge!" He cried joyfully, running with his box down the hall. Jason chuckled at Percy's expression.
"I don't understand either, don't worry about it. Hey, what are you doing tonight? I was thinking you, me and a few others from downstairs could go out, get you friendly with everyone so you're not just the new guy on the second floor" He said, and Percy sighed.
"Sorry man, my roommate Grover and I are going to my mom's tonight, we've had it planned for weeks"
That was a lie, but Jason bought it, and just smiled graciously.
"Its okay, maybe another time, yeah?"
"Yeah. Thanks for offering"
"Hey, we're friends now, and friends get their friends hideously drunk so they embarrass themselves in front of their co-workers"
Percy laughed, and Jason clapped his shoulder before telling him he'd be back later; he had to go and talk to Reyna about a tapestry. Percy began to work on the sword, admiring the dull blade and liking the way it fit in his hand. Riptide; something about the name was comfortable on his tongue. Percy silently vowed to return it to pristine condition.
"Yo G-man, you going to meet your sweetheart later or finally going on patrol with me?" Percy called into his apartment when he entered, tossing his keys onto the kitchen counter and grinning as he found Grover on the couch playing video games and eating enchiladas.
"Percy, I'm retired; I put the pipes down. And yes, I'm going to see Juniper" He said, and Percy rolled his eyes. Grover insisted he was retired to be with his fiancée, but Percy knew he loved the whole 'running across rooftops and fighting crime' get up they had. He left him all alone, and he had to go and get friendly with some of the big-time heroes who were celebrities in Olympus. He picked up a magazine the other day and saw that the front page was all about the Shifter and The Centurion's dynamic duo and how they were in love. Percy had worked with them a few times; he felt like a third wheel the moment he showed up and saw the chemistry they had. It was so awkward, and he cursed Grover's retirement all the way home.
"Come on man, once more for old time's sake?" He pleaded, using his baby seal eyes that Grover couldn't resist.
"No Perce, I said I'm retired. Plus, you're teamed up with Night Owl now, so stop trying to make me guilty about abandoning you"
Percy huffed.
"She hates me"
"She doesn't, you just annoy her all the time" Grover corrected, jerking the console as if physically trying to move whatever he was playing in the game. He tended to do that; he gave Percy a black eye during Mariokart once. It was intense, and they didn't speak for three days afterward.
"I do not-
"Your head inflates when you put on that suit and you know it; you annoyed the hell out of me when I teamed up with you" Grover cut in.
"Wow, that cut me deep" Percy said, placing a hand over his heart and pulling a pouting face. Grover didn't even look at him. He was no longer affected by Percy's guilt trips.
"Go and get changed, find your superhero girlfriend and stop looking at me like that, Its creeping me out" Grover ordered, and Percy rolled his eyes, heading for the kitchen.
"I'm having some grilled cheese first; I am not crime fighting on an empty stomach anymore, not after I got distracted by the smell of French fries and got knocked out by that dude and his lizard tail"
Percy heard Grover chuckle at his misfortune and he scowled, making himself a killer grilled cheese whilst thinking about what he would do when he went out as Typhoon tonight. Since he started working at the museum he was expecting Chiron to try and put him in with the others, make him an official part of the team, but until them he could do as he wished.
Well, he could, until his phone rang.
"That's your mom's ringtone, you better answer it" Grover yelled, and Percy sighed, fishing his cell from his pocket and answering it.
"Hey mom, what's up?" He asked.
"Percy, get your suit on and come to the shop; we've got trouble"
And in the end he didn't get to eat his grilled cheese.
Percy ran to his room, phone jammed to his ear.
"What happened, who's hurt?" He demanded.
"Its Inferno; he was attacked and- well, he's been revealed. Percy you need to help before everyone sees him"
Percy gritted his teeth and shed his normal clothes, grabbing his black and blue hero suit (he liked that name, because 'Spandex nightmare' seemed a little extreme)
"Who attacked him Mom?" He asked, shoving his arms through the sleeves roughly.
"I don't know, but I've called Night Owl, because she's the most likely to work it out"
"Right. I'll be right there, tell me where he is"
Percy's mom gave him a location and Percy jetted out of the window on the crest of a wave, controlled by his own body. His powers were from the water; he didn't need to fly, because he could use the water to carry him. It was a quick way of getting around town. Within minutes he was there, on the corner of a wide street where a body was lay on the floor, a man standing over him with a knife.
"Now, where's your fire little hero? Where's the spark?" He mocked, raising the blade to thrust down into the man's neck, which was exposed. Percy growled, knowing that it was Inferno on the ground, beaten down and looking hurt. Already a crowd was forming, hands holding cameras aloft to record the scene unfolding before them. Percy thrust out his hand as the man plunged the knife downward, and the water became an extension of his arm, wrapping around the man's wrist and pulling forcefully. The knife clattered from his hand.
"I can't give you fire" Percy called, the water bubbling around the man's wrist "But I know a lot about heat"
The man screamed, his face hidden under the hoodie he wore, as his wrist turned red and burned. Night Owl swooped in as the crowd cheered, a mass of charred black feathers and her orange eyes glaring.
"Typhoon, let the cops handle him!" She ordered, hitting the floor forcefully and shoving the water away, not realising how hot it was.
"He beat up Inferno, you think the cops could deal with him?" He snapped back, and the man laughed.
"For once, he sounds smart"
"Shut your mouth" Percy said, though he was a little smug.
"Oh come on, all I did was offer you a compliment. But I guess I've outstayed my welcome. I'll be seeing you, Night Owl" The man said, and he vanished as if he was just a mirage, but he seemed perfectly solid not a moment ago. The crowd gasped, their cameras swirling to fix on the point he disappeared from.
"Inferno" Night Owl said, and that was enough to remind Percy why he was here. He hurried to his side, kneeling down to turn the guy over. He frowned when he saw the curly hair and elfish look; he had seen this guy before.
"Oh my God" Night Owl breathed, and Percy looked up at her. She recognised him. She knew who Inferno was.
"What? You know him?" Percy demanded.
"I work with him. His name is Leo Valdez"