Chapter One: The New Teacher

Percy played with his pencil, rolling it back and forth on his desk, waiting for Mrs. O'Hara to come in. Usually, she was there before he was, but she was late today for some reason. It was the first day back after Christmas break, and he was already missing his mom. He missed watching movies with her and eating cookies fresh from the oven. He didn't miss his stupid stepdad, Gabe. It was the first Christmas that the stupid guy was there for, and he made it so bad. He was always complaining, and he smelled like moldy cheese and garlic, and he was always asking his mom to do things, taking time away from him spending time with her. He was the worst.

Suddenly the door opened, and the principal walked in, followed by another man. Immediately the class settled down.

"Good morning kids," the principal said, and after we all said good morning back he continued. "Unfortunately, Mrs. O'Hara is not able to teach you for the rest of second grade. For the rest of the year, Mr. Ithas will be teaching you all. Mr. Ithas, would you care to introduce yourself?"

The man behind the principal stepped forward. He wore a three piece suit, and his long black hair was tied back down his head. He was tall, maybe 6 foot. But most strikingly, several deep scars lined his face, like something had scratched him over and over again. But he smiled warmly at us. "Hello class. My name is Mr. Ithas, and I can't wait to meet all of you over the course of this year. I have a deep love for humanity, and I hope that by teaching the youths of today, I can enlighten the minds of tomorrow. I look forward to getting to know each and every one of you this year."

Although he was addressing the class, he was looking at Percy.

"Thank you, Mr. Ithas. I'll leave you to it. Behave for him, children," the principal said, and he was looking at Percy too. Percy scowled at that. He wasn't a bully like Jake or Cameron!

"Alright kids, let's get started. Before the break, Mrs. O'Hara had asked you to ask your parents about their jobs. Do you all have that paper for me?" Mr. Ithas asked.

Percy reached into his backpack and passed it to the kid in front of him, facedown. He didn't want anyone else to see it. The whole half of the assignment that asked about his dad's job was blank. Percy's dad wasn't here, and Gabe wasn't his real dad, even if he had lived with them since September.

"Thank you. Now, let's get started," Mr. Ithas said.

Mr. Ithas had a way of teaching that Percy liked. In most of his classes, Percy couldn't pay attention for longer than 10 seconds. But for some reason, Percy found that his attention has captured by Mr. Ithas. He really was able to really listen to what he was saying. Before he even knew it, the lunch bell rang.

Percy followed the other boys out into the hall down to the lunchroom. He had his lunch box that his mom packed for him, a pb sandwich, some chips and apple slices. Percy found an empty table in the corner of the room and sat there. As he was eating his sandwich, a splash of something hit him in the back of his head. Percy heard laughing from behind him, as he pressed his fingers to the back of his head. Someone had thrown a pudding cup at him. A roar filled his head as he turned to find the person who threw it. But when he turned around, everyone was pointing and laughing at him. Tears welled up in his eyes as humiliation washed over him.

"What is the meaning of this?" A loud voice boomed. Instantly the laughing died as Mr. Ithas stormed into the lunchroom. He inspected Percy's head, seeing the pudding splatter all in his hair. "This behavior is unacceptable! You do not throw food at your classmates! Ever! Whoever did it, step forward!"

The whole lunchroom was looking down, averting their eyes. No one stepped forward.

"Fine then. If no one steps up, no one is having recess today. After lunch, you will all go back to your room and sit silently. Am I understood?" Mr. Ithas asked. After the lunchroom moaned a collective yes, he turned to Percy. "Alright kid, let's get you washed up. What was your name again?"

"Percy, sir," he answered. "Percy Jackson."

"Well then, Percy Jackson, let's get you washed up. And there's no need for any of this 'sir' nonsense. Call me Prometheus."


Over the next several months, the trend would continue. During class, Percy tried to pay attention to what Mr. Ithas was teaching. But despite the fact he was better than every other teacher Percy has had, he could only hold his attention for so long. But Mr. Ithas would never get frustrated with Percy for being slow at math problems, even if the other kids made fun of him for it. He would always patiently explain to Percy how to do it, and congratulate him when he figured it out.

He ended up spending most lunches with Mr. Ithas, though his teacher would always send him out for recess. Percy would try and make friends, at Mr. Ithas's insistence, but every time the other kids would call him names, like 'teacher's pet' or 'loser'. Sometimes he would get so angry that he punched the other kids and he'd get in trouble. Mr. Ithas always seemed disappointed in him when he fought, and he hated that, so he tried to be good, he really did. But the other kids hated him, and it was hard not being angry at them. He felt like a weirdo and an outsider. At least Mr. Ithas kept him company.

Things at home weren't doing well either. Ever since Gabe moved in, their apartment always smelled. Gabe left all his trash on the floor, and the stench of cigarettes, grease, sweat and beer stunk up the place. Gabe hosted these gambling parties where he'd get a couple friends and play cards, getting greasy pizza stains on the couch, playing obnoxiously loud, and farting. Worst of all, his mom had to get another job to provide for them, so he didn't see her as often. Sometimes the only time he would see her was early in the morning before he went to school, and she wouldn't come back until after Percy went to sleep. Those days, Gabe was the worst. He would sneer at Percy, and make fun of him, calling him names, or laughing at him from the couch. Percy would often get home from school and run to his room, slamming the door before Gabe could demand he get him another beer. Sometimes, Gabe would get angry. He would pound on Percy's door and bust it open, stumbling and smelling like alcohol. He would yell at Percy, face red, half the words incoherent, and punch him, or shove him around, so much harder than the bullies at school did. Percy hated Gabe.

Mr. Ithas was the only one who looked out for him. His mom tried, and Percy loved his mom for it, but she was just too busy to be around often. He wished she was home more, and that he didn't have to stay at home with Smelly Gabe or sneak out. He wished he could stay after school with Mr. Ithas, but his mom couldn't pick him up, and Gabe wouldn't bother. Mr. Ithas had tried to have parent-teacher conferences, but his mom was too busy, and Gabe was too drunk to remember. Or care.

One day, after reading the story of Theseus and the Labyrinth, Mr. Ithas loved all the greek myths and had been reading them to the whole class at least twice a week, Mr. Ithas asked him to stay back before getting his lunch.

"Percy," he said. "I've been noticing you've been walking with a bit of a limp for the past couple of days. Are you feeling alright?"

Percy felt a lump in his throat. Gabe had hit him in the leg on Monday, and left a big bruise. But Percy nodded his head anyway.

"I've been noticing you're quiet, too. Is everything alright at home?" Mr. Ithas asked.

Percy nodded, wincing suddenly at the pain in his leg. Mr. Ithas looked concerned. "Why don't we take you down to the nurse? Would that be alright?"

Percy frowned, but nodded. Mr. Ithas took Percy's hand and led him to the nurse's office, where he talked quietly with the nurse while Percy sat outside. Then he and Mr. Ithas switched spots, his teacher waiting outside the nurse's office while Percy sat inside with her.

"Mr. Ithas tells me you've been limping a bit lately," the nurse said. "Which leg has been hurting you?"

Percy gestured to his left leg.

"Can you tell me where it's been hurting you?" The nurse asked.

Percy put a hand over his lower thigh, and the nurse frowned. She pressed her fingers to where he pointed. "Does it hurt when I press on it?"

Percy nodded, and she frowned again. "Would you mind if I took a look at it?"

When the nurse saw the bruise on his leg, she got upset. Percy wasn't sure what he did to upset her, but he was afraid she was going to suspend him. She called the principal, and the two of them had a long talk with Mr. Ithas. At the end of it, the principal and Mr. Ithas came out to talk to him.

"Hey buddy," Mr. Ithas said gently. "We're going to call some friends to come talk to you, and we're going to call your mom too. Why don't you wait right here for them?"

An hour later, it was just him, the principal and the nurse, Mr. Ithas and the other teachers went home, when his mom rushed in with two people behind her. Percy jumped up and ran to her, hugging her closely.

"Oh my sweet baby," his mom cooed, trailing her fingers through his hair. "My boy."

The principal cleared his throat. "Mrs. Jackson, Percy's teacher has reported that your son displays the telltale signs of abuse. It was brought to our attention that Percy had been limping recently, and when examined by the nurse, she found a rather large bruise on his lower thigh."

"Hello Percy," one of the men said that came in with his mom. Percy hugged his mom's leg closer. "My name is Charles. I'm from Child Protective Services. Did you receive that bruise from your stepfather, Mr. Gabriel Ugliano?"

Percy nodded.

"Has he hit you before? In other places?" The man asked. Percy nodded again. "Can you show me where?"

Percy pointed to a few spots on his chest and his upper arms.

"I see. Thank you Percy, you're being so brave. Does Gabe drink alcohol a lot?" The man asked. Percy nodded. "Does he swear a lot? Does he yell at you?"

Percy nodded for each question. "I see. Thank you Percy."

The man straightened up and addressed his mother, who held him protectively. "Mrs. Jackson, I'm afraid that your apartment is not a safe place for your son. As a result, we'll be taking custody of your son for the time being."

"What!? You can't do that!" His mom cried.

"Yes we can. As you are not present enough to be a caretaker, and your spouse is physically harming your son, we cannot leave him in your care. Should your circumstances change, we can reconsider your care, but at the moment we have to take him into our care," the man said. What? Were they taking him away from his mom? No! Percy hugged his mom tightly.

"Come here Percy," the man said. Percy refused, burying his head in his moms legs.

His mom knelt down and looked him in the eyes. "Hey now Percy, don't worry. This isn't goodbye. I will see you soon, I promise. I'm going to kick Gabe to the curb as soon as I get home, and I'm going to make some calls. I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you come home to me as soon as possible. I promise you Percy, I'll get you back. But right now, you have to go with the man. Can you be strong for me?"

Percy nodded, tears streaming down both of their faces as they hugged. His mom kissed him on the forehead and whispered to him, "I love you baby boy. I'll see you soon."

"I love you too mom," Percy whispered back.

"Come one now Percy," the man said, holding out his hand. His mom stood up and gestured for Percy to take his hand.

"Percy is a difficult child, he doesn't get along well with other kids his age, according to his teacher. Despite encouragement, he doesn't seem to be able to make friends very easily. I'd advise against putting him in foster care if you can. He and his teacher have a good relationship though," the principal told the man.

"Thank you, I'll keep that in mind. We'll be in touch," the man said. "Come along now, Percy."

The man began leading Percy away from his mom. Percy looked back at her, tears running down both of their faces as he walked away, until a set of doors closed behind him and he could no longer see her.


Percy chomped happily on a bowl of doritos, entranced by the television. They were showing the disney movie "Hercules" and he was loving it. He especially loved the flying horse. He was so cool.

After the man from CPS took him away, they called Mr. Ithas, and told Percy he could stay with him for a while. They dropped him off at Mr. Ithas's house and drove away. The first thing that Mr. Ithas had done was to tell Percy to stop calling him Mr. Ithas and start calling him Prometheus, because they were family now. It was hard calling a teacher by their first name, it was weird, but Percy liked Prometheus. It was cool.

Prometheus was very nice to him. He told Percy that it was a lot for a young boy to handle, and that he could not go to school for a week to recover. Prometheus was home with him most of the time, reading stories, playing games or watching movies with him, but every now and again he'd have to leave for an hour or two for some 'business'. It was weird, because he didn't have a car, so Percy didn't know how he was getting places.

Percy was able to talk to his mom once over the phone. It was nice to hear her voice. He missed her. She asked him if he was doing ok, how everything was, if he was sleeping and eating alright, all mom questions. She told him that she had kicked Gabe out right after she got home. She told him she had called someone named 'Chiron' who would talk to CPS about bringing him home. They talked for a while, and before his mom hung up, she told him she'd take him to Montauk when he got back. She talked with Prometheus for a little while too, but weirdly enough he sounded like Mrs. O'Hara, his old teacher, when he was on the phone with her. Weird.

As he was eating doritos contently, he heard a low growl from outside the window. Percy paused. Silently, he crept over to the window and peaked out. There was nothing there.

Prometheus was away right now, and Percy was scared. There was something outside, and it sounded big. Like huge big. And evil.

Percy crept over to the door and made sure it was locked. Then he pulled all the blinders down on the windows. Then he crept back to the couch and wrapped himself in the blanket. Monsters couldn't hurt him if he was in his blanket, right?

Right?

The walls exploded as something huge crashed through them. Percy screamed, his doritos flying everywhere. An enormous dog, bigger than a car, with eyes glowing an evil red roared in the living room. Percy screamed again, throwing his bowl at the dog. The bowl hit it in the eye and it howled, glaring at him hatefully. It lunged for him, and Percy dove between its legs, the creature sailing right over him, smashing through the couch and wall behind him. Percy stumbled to his feet as the dog whirled around to face him again. As the dog crouched, readying to pounce, Percy screamed, "Prometheus!"

The dog roared and leapt forward, but there was a blinding flash of light. Prometheus appeared out of thin air between Percy and the dog. Prometheus grabbed the dog's massive jaws, and with a grunt, threw it away. It got up, shaking, and snarled at Prometheus. Prometheus held out his hand, and a spear appeared in his hand. The dog lunged, but Prometheus stabbed it with his spear. Instead of dying normally, it disappeared into a shower of golden dust.

"Percy! Are you alright?" Prometheus asked, rushing over to him.

Percy stared up at him, eyes wide. "What was that?"

"A Hellhound, my boy. Are you sure you're not hurt?" Prometheus demanded, looking over him. Percy nodded, silently relishing in the fact that he had someone care enough to check if he was ok.

"I'm sorry my boy, I didn't realize they'd come for you so soon," Prometheus muttered.

"What? What are you saying? What's a Hellhound?" Percy asked.

Prometheus sighed. "I didn't want to tell you this so young. But Percy, all those myths and stories I've been telling you about the Greeks, all the gods, heroes and monsters? They're all real. Every single one. That Hellhound was a monster. Monsters hunt people like you. Demigods. Your father was a god, Percy."

Percy's head was spinning. "A god?"

"Yes my boy. A god. And you see, children of the gods have a certain scent that attracts monsters. I didn't mean to leave you alone for so long, but it seems you won't be safe here anymore," Prometheus said. He stood up and reached out his hand to Percy. "Here. Take my hand."

Percy took it without hesitation. Instantly, he felt the world warp and change. He stumbled, and fell to his knees. The ground was cold beneath him, and he looked at it. Stone. Percy looked up to the broken stone palace before him. It was in ruins, debris lying everywhere. But Prometheus looked upon it with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Welcome, Percy Jackson, to Mount Othrys."