Chapter Text
It’s hard being a Half-blood. It brings monsters down on you. It causes your brain to be fucked in various ways. Sure, you get cool powers, but then you have to deal with the fact that your ‘missing parent’ is a literal deity. That’s fun. Of course, having even weirder heritage also causes additional stress. Let’s go back a bit… to my first year of High school, to be exact.
*****
*****
Percy Jackson sighed in annoyance and foreboding as he got off the bus to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan. He was going on a field trip with the boarding school he was at- Yancy Academy. It was a high school for the troubled offspring of influential children. Why they accepted him was beyond his ability to understand. Of course, they knew of his… history regarding accidents that occurred on the trip, so the principal had threatened in-school suspension if anything out of the ordinary happened. Of course, that had terrified Percy, just like any other student, especially with one with his track record. He was brought out of his musings on his threatened punishment, when his friend, a guy named Grover Underwood, tapped him on the back. “Percy? You’re holding up the group,” he stated.
Percy looked around, and sure enough, he was. It was to be expected. He was rather intimidating. For some reason, people would just get a deer-in-headlights look when he glared at them directly. He moved aside, and the rest of the class went ahead, as Mr. Brunner, the Latin teacher, continued his lecture on the Ancient Greeks. Percy was actually alright in that subject. His step-father was rather into Ancient Greece for some reason. He shook the thought out of his head when he heard Nancy Bobofit, one of the girls (who had one hell of a case of kleptomania) muttering something. “Like we’re going to use this in real life. It’s not like a question on our job interviews is going to be ‘Please explain why Kronos ate his kids’ right?” she mocked. Percy spun around and glared at her, full force. Nancy immediately shrank away from him.
The Latin teacher cleared his throat. “Mr. Jackson? Would you like to answer Miss Bobofit’s excellent question?” he inquired.
Percy looked around, confused. What did his teacher mean by that? “Sir?” he asked.
“Would you like to explain how knowledge of Greek Mythology will serve you well in life?” the wheelchair-bound teacher inquired.
Percy racked his brains. He knew that Mr. Brunner, for some reason, expected him to actually do well in his class. He didn’t understand why this teacher, of all of the teachers, thought so highly of him. He knew for a fact that the teachers had betting pools on which test he scored the lowest on. It wasn’t that he was stupid- far from it, in fact. It was just that with his dyslexia and ADHD combined made studying damn near impossible! “I… I don’t know, sir…” he admitted, hanging his head.
“A pity. Very well.” With that, the teacher continued his lecture for another half an hour, before calling for lunch. As Percy left, he felt a hand on his shoulder. “Mr. Jackson?” It was Mr. Brunner.
“Yes, sir?” Percy politely asked. Out of all the teachers, Mr. Brunner was one of the only ones he respected. All the others thought he wasn’t trying, or in Mrs. Dodds’ case, actively loathed him.
“You never answered my question. I was hoping you’d know the answer,” he softly explained, his stare seeming a thousand years old. Percy just stared back, although his stare was in confusion. “What you will learn from me, Percy Jackson, is far more vital then all of the rest of your studies combined. They may very well save your life,” he explained, voice as serious as the grave.
“I- I’ll try harder, sir…” Percy stammered. Mr. Brunner gave a soft smile.
“I do hope so, Mr. Jackson. I do hope so.”
*****
Percy decided to sit next to Grover, as was the norm for him. While he was intimidating, Grover, for lack of a better term, was not. From what Percy could tell, he had been held back several times. He wasn’t the only ninth grader with acne and facial hair, but his hair had obviously had more time to grow . He cried when he got frustrated, and was crippled. Seriously. He literally had a note that excused him from PE for LIFE! Of course, this made him a target for bullies of all sorts. Thankfully, that had changed. In spite of Percy having ADHD and dyslexia, he wasn’t a target. It was his eyes. With a glare, he could (and has) made bullies wet themselves in terror. And right now, he was giving that glare to Nancy, who had been walking towards his friend with a cruel look on her face. She paled, and went in another direction.
“Did you get detention?” Grover inquired.
Percy shook his head. “From Mr. Brunner? No way. It’s not his style to give detention for not knowing stuff,” he responded. “He… expected me to have an answer to Nancy’s question. I… I didn’t know. I don’t know why he seems to think Greek Mythology is so darn important!” Percy sighed, slumping. “I try so hard in his class, you know? It’s nice to have a teacher who’s patient, caring, and doesn't take part in the betting pool- or at least, hasn’t tried to bribe me to intentionally do as terrible as possible,” he grumbled. Grover let out a weak chuckle at that.
“Y-yeah.. I wonder why…” he stammered, going back to his meal.
Percy looked at the cabs near where they were eating lunch. He was homesick. He missed his mom and stepdad. He wondered what they were doing at the moment. “I hope you’re proud of me, Dad,” he said wistfully. Suddenly, Percy felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around, and saw Mrs. Dodds, smiling down on him, like he’d just said something that she was waiting for. Grover’s eyes widened, and Percy saw him limp towards Mr. Brunner.
“Inside. NOW,” she ordered, leaving no room for argument. She pulled him into the Museum forcefully. As she was, Percy’s mind raced at what he could’ve done wrong. Was it the candy stash he had? The principal had given him a pass after he had nearly bought him out for his son’s birthday party. He knew it wasn’t because he had listened to an audiobook of Tom Sawyer for his book report. It had been one of the few Bs he’d gotten in his school year! The thoughts were broken when she threw him in front of her- literally. He was thrown back several yards.
“I’ve been waiting for your confession!” she cackled at him.
“W-what are you talking about!?” Percy stammered in shock.
“You admitted your crime! And now, I get to punish you for it!” With that, the math teacher shifted . Her eyes began to glow. Her jacket turned into a pair of bat-like wings. Her manicured nails turned into talons that looked more than capable of tearing him in half. “DIE!” she shrieked, lunging at him. Percy yelped in shock, and dodged. One of the talons managed to catch on his arm, slicing a cut into it. The… thing … shrieked as its talon hissed and bubbled, as if it had been submerged in acid. “WHAT IS THIS?!” she howled.
And then, as if Percy wasn’t freaking out enough, he saw Mr. Brunner wheel himself in. “What ho, Percy!” he called, flinging something at him. Percy caught it in his left hand, and found himself holding one of the bronze swords Mr. Brunner had in his collection.
“DIE!” Mrs. Dodds howled. Percy did the only thing he could think of: He swung the sword. It passed clean through her, leaving no trace. Instead, she just went rigid, and poofed into ashes. These ashes then scattered, leaving Percy alone, holding a sword. To his shock, he saw the sword shift into a pen again. Dazed, he stumbled out to the group. Mr. Brunner looked like he hadn’t moved at all.
“Ahh, Mr. Jackson. Next time, please remember to bring your own writing equipment. I’m the only chaperone here, so-”
Percy cut him off. “What about Mrs. Dodds?” he inquired. His Latin teacher looked confused.
“Who?” he asked.
“The math teacher? She just led me into the museum?”
“Percy? There’s never been a math teacher, or any other teacher, with that name. Are you feeling alright?”
*****
“YOU DID WHAT!?” Hades roared at Alecto in fury. “I gave you the order to PROTECT him, not kill him!” he shouted.
“M-master… he a-asked his father if he was proud of him… surely-”
Hades facepalmed. “He. Has. A. Stepfather,” he growled, grinding his teeth. “Perseus does NOT know who his biological parent is, fool! I am going to catch SO much flak for this…” he grumbled. “You are not to seek vengeance. Your sisters are not to seek vengeance. You are to hold no ill will towards him,” he ordered. The Lord of the Dead then went to a fountain for Iris-messaging. “Show me Poseidon,” he grumbled, tossing in a drachma. The image cleared, showing the brother he respected. “Greeting, brother,” he said, annoyance on his face.
“Ah! Hades! What seems to be causing you trouble today?” his laid-back brother inquired. “How is my son? You told me you sent Alecto to guard him, correct?”
“About that… apparently Alecto decided to go rogue,” he grumbled. “She attacked him after he asked if ‘his dad was proud of him’, thinking he stole the bolt, and my helm.” Hades held up a hand. “I’ve already disciplined her, so please don’t make my work harder than it is,” he groaned. Posedeon’s face went from furious to grumpy.
“I will trust you on this, brother. If you need me, I’ll be on Olympus… Zeus is holding another emergency meeting…” With that, he brought his hand through the mist, severing the connection. Hades sighed, and walked to his bedroom in his palace. There, he had a calendar, counting off the days until the Autumn Equinox, when he could spend more time with his lovely wife…
*****
The last part of the semester just got worse for Percy. Sure, Mrs. Dodds was gone, but everyone seemed to think she had never existed. It freaked him out. Everyone seemed to think that her teaching assistant, a nice lady by the name of Mrs. Kerr, had been the math teacher this whole time. Now, Percy had nothing against her. She had always been supportive, caring, and patient. She was a better math teacher in every sense of the word… but Mrs. Dodds was the math teacher. She had been the math teacher, despite almost everyone seeming to forget that she ever existed. He referenced her a few times to random people, thinking they were playing a prank on him, but they always looked confused… except for Grover. He’d hesitate, and ask Percy who he was talking about. That, and that alone, made him realize something was up.
*****
With Mrs. Kerr as the new math teacher, Percy’s grades there improved. His dyslexia didn’t stop him from reading math equations, which was nice. However, his grades slipped even further in the rest of his classes. Finally, when his English teacher snapped at him for not trying in his class, Percy locked eyes with him and told him that maybe he would if he knew that the betting pool was shut down. That was the final straw. The principal called his mother and told her that he wouldn’t be accepted back next year. Another school, another expulsion. At least he could try to do well for his Latin and Math finals…
*****
Percy growled in frustration at his Latin book. His stupid dyslexia was making the letters utterly incomprehensible. It took everything he had to not chuck it across the room. He knew he would utterly mess up the spelling no matter what, but at least he could try for his teacher! Sighing, he got off of his bed, and went to Mr. Brunner’s classroom. He could at least ask for help, or explain why he was going to bomb the final. He grabbed the mythology book as well. As he approached the classroom, he saw that there was light in there, and two figures. Curious, he moved towards the door.
“...Worried about Percy, sir,” one of the voices said. Percy stopped short. That was Grover! “We can’t leave him alone this summer! There was a Kindly one in the school! We know it, so they must know it-”
“Grover, the boy isn’t ready for that. He needs to mature more before he can step into this,”
“But the summer solstice deadline-”
“Will be completed without him. Let him enjoy life and his innocence,” Mr. Brunner explained.
“Sir, with all due respect, he saw her, and… there’s something off about him-”
Percy dropped the mythology book. The loud noise it made caused the two to stop. Percy quickly picked up the book and sprinted away from the door. As he reached his dorm, he heard the clip-clopping of a horse- following him.
“...Nothing. My nerves have been on end since the winter Solstice,” Mr. Brunner stated.
“Same here, sir,” Grover agreed.
“Now then, you need to go to sleep. You have a lot of exams tomorrow,” the teacher instructed.
“Don’t remind me,” Grover sighed.
*****
Percy was still on edge during Finals. He knew he did all right in math, but everything else… no dice. As he walked from the Latin classroom, head swimming with the numerous Greek and Roman names he misspelled, Mr. Brunner put his hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry you’re getting expelled, Percy. I do hope we can meet again,” he said softly. Percy nodded at that, wondering if his teacher knew of his eavesdropping.
*****
Percy hadn't really bothered saying goodbye to any of his fellow classmates. They were all rich kids, who would most likely be going on expensive vacations. The one person he really dreaded saying goodbye to, however, was Grover. He knew he should mention eavesdropping, but couldn’t bring himself to do it. As it turned out, however, they were on the same bus heading back to Manhattan. Grover spent the entire time glancing nervously at the passengers, and constantly sniffing for some reason. Finally, Percy couldn’t take it anymore. “Looking for Kindly Ones?” he deadpanned. THAT caught Grover’s attention.
“W-what do you mean?” he stammered.
“Well… I was going to ask for Mr. Brunner’s help with the final the night before… and I sorta started eavesdropping…” He admitted.
“How much did you hear?” Grover immediately asked.
“Not much, honestly. What’s happening on the summer Solstice?” Percy inquired. Before his friend could open his mouth, Percy added, “And by the way, you’re a really, really bad liar, so don’t bullshit me on Mrs. Dodds. I know what I saw,” he growled. Grover gulped.
“Well… the truth is… I’m supposed to p-protect you…” he stammered. Percy just gave him a look. Protect him? Hadn’t he been the one making sure Grover wasn’t bullied?
“What… exactly… are you protecting me from?” Percy inquired. And then, there was a bang from the front, followed by cursing from the driver. Smoke started to pour out of the engine. The driver, with another curse, limped the bus to the side of the highway, before telling everyone to get off. Percy pulled out his phone. “Hey Dad. Yeah, I’m on my way home. The bus broke down. Yeah, Grover and I are on it, and that’s where we are. Do you think you could come pick us up? You will? Thanks, and yes, Dad, I love you.” With that, Percy hung up.
As Percy stood in the heat, he noticed something. Across from the highway, there was a fruit stand. The stuff over there looked delicious, but there weren’t any customers. The only people there were three old ladies, sitting in the shade of a maple tree. They were knitting socks. Now, these weren’t ordinary socks. They were gigantic- easily the size of sweaters, but they were socks. They looked up as one to him. One of them temporarily paused to reach for something. Percy went from confused to embarrassed when, without taking her eyes off of him, she held up a box of condoms. “Uuuuuhhhhh…” Percy got out, watching them. For some reason, he couldn’t stop. And then Grover came over. For a moment he was confused, before all the color drained out of his face.
“Percy… let’s get back on the bus,” he suggested. Percy ignored him, eyes still locked on the three. One of them held up a piece of string. It was electric-blue, and connected to a spool the size of a globe. She then pulled out a pair of scissors. They were silver and gold, and looked very ornamental. She pointed at the string, and snipped it. Percy heard the snip from where he was. At the snipping sound, Grover gasped. “Oh no oh no oh no…” he stammered.
“Dude, they’re just knitting,” Percy said, putting his hand on his friend’s shoulder.
“Were they looking at you?” he suddenly asked.
“Directly. They wouldn’t take their eyes off of me. Is that bad?”
“Very.”
Percy just got even more confused. “It’s just string, Grover,” he deadpanned.
Grover looked at him like he was debating what type of flowers to bring to Percy’s funeral. “I wish that was the case, Percy,” he sighed, before perking up.
And then, an old car came up, and pulled over by the bus. A man stepped out of the car. He looked to be around 35, with an obvious Turkish appearance. He was a bit tall, being 6’4. “Percy!” he called, walking over to him.
Percy responded by giving him a hug. “Hey, Dad,” he said.
The man embraced his step-son, before turning to Grover. “Do you need a ride as well?” he inquired, smiling.
Grover had been nervous when he smelled a monster. Now, monsters, like demigods, have a scent different from humans. The more powerful the monster, the deeper the scent. What had worried Grover was that Percy, while obviously a powerful demigod, had the scent of a monster on him from somewhere. He had told Chiron, of course, but they couldn’t place it. And now, here was the source. The smell of monster rolled off of him in literal waves, nearly causing him to pass out. The man’s smile suddenly became a lot more sinister in his mind. “N-no thanks…” he stammered. Percy shrugged, and loaded himself in the car. The man then walked over to Grover.
“Now then…” he said, smiling evilly. “I do hope you make it home safely,” For a fraction of a second, his eyes became slitted, his skin turned scaly, and his teeth sharpened, before he turned, and walked back to the car. The car started, and they drove away. Grover let out a nervous “Blaa-ha-ha” before hurriedly running to the nearest car wash. Chiron had to be told immediately!