"Percy." I hear a voice, "Come on Perce, wake up, we're at the museum."

I grumble and turn slightly.

"Come on man, you're drooling on me, wake up."

I reluctantly sit up and rub the sleep out of my eyes, "Man, I had the strangest dream..."

My best friend, Grover, looks at me, "What was it about?" He asks casually.

I think hard, but the more I think, the more the dream slips away, "I'm not sure. I can't remember." I shake my head, then look at Grover's hair, "Is that peanut butter and ketchup?"

Grover hurriedly brushes off his head, "No."

I feel my face begin to darken, "Nancy. I swear, if I ever get my hands on her, there will be Hades to pay."

Grover's eyes widen, "What did you just say?"

I frown, "I said there will be hell to pay, why?" I watch Grover's face as he visibly relaxes.

"Oh, no reason."

I could tell he was hiding something. Grover is a terrible liar. Or maybe I was just tired from my impromptu nap. I don't even remember falling asleep, but then again, I never remember falling asleep.

"Well, whatever man, but if she does anything else to you, she'll have to answer to me."

"No, don't do that." Grover replies, slightly anxious, "You're already on probation, remember? If anything happens on this trip, you know who the principal is going to blame."

I growl but end it there. Instead, I turn around and face Nancy Bobofit farther back on the bus and give the red-headed, freckled girl my best I'll-kill-you-later glare, causing her to involuntary flinch. At that moment, I feel a searing sensation at the front of my head and wince. Red hair and freckles, why is that so familiar?

"Hey Percy, you okay? You don't look so good." Grover is looking at me with a worried expression.

I shake my head to clear it, "Nah, I'm fine G-man. Come on, let's get moving."

We get off the bus with the rest of the class and force our way to the front, where our Latin teacher, Mr. Brunner, is leading the group. The only reason I had any faith in this field trip not sucking like the other Yancy field trips is because Mr. Brunner is leading it. Seriously, the guy is awesome. Sure, he pushes us, but he's got really cool weapons all around his room and his test review games are a lot of fun, like the mythology gladiator duels.

Unfortunately, the other chaperone is Ms. Dodds, the pre-algebra teacher. She's about fifty, wears a leather jacket, and looks mean enough to drive a Harley through your locker, then demand an apology. I'm not sure why, but she has had it out for me pretty much from the first day of school. It also doesn't help that she absolutely adore Nancy.

Mr. Brunner led us through a whole bunch of different areas in the museum, most of which were actually pretty interesting. Sadly, almost everyone else was talking really loudly, making it difficult for me to hear. There was one room that all of this really cool looking Roman legionnaire armor. It was in this room that my left forearm started burning really painfully. I hid my reaction though, and the pain faded as we left that room. Actually, a lot of the things Mr. Brunner showed us seemed really familiar, which make absolutely no sense at all.

Eventually, Mr. Brunner gathered the class around a stele, where a little girl was buried. He began talking about it, but a guy behind me made some stupid comment about the paintings of naked people on it.

At this point, I'd had enough, "Will you just shut up." I say back to him.

It must've come out louder than I expected, because Mr. Brunner looks at me, "Mr. Jackson, did you have something to add?"

I lower my eyes, "No sir."

"Then perhaps you could tell me what this is a picture of?"

I look at the picture and breathe out a silent sigh of relief. I actually recognised the picture, "That's Kronos eating his kids, right?"

"Yes..." Mr. Brunner clearly wanted me to go on.

"Well, Kronos was the king god -"

"God?" Mr. Brunner asks just as thunder rumbles outside.

"Titan." I correct myself, feeling a slight pain on the small of my back, "King Titan. And he was worried that his children, who were gods, would dethrone him, so he ate them. Except for Zeus. Zeus then made his dad barf up the other gods and there was a big war between the gods and the titans." I shrug, "The gods won."

"Accurate, if watered-down." Mr. Brunner nods, "Zeus did indeed give his father a mixture of mustard and wine, which caused him to regurgitate the other five gods, who then sided with their brother against Kronos."

From the back, I hear Nancy whisper, "Yeah, like we're ever going to need this. A job application isn't going to ask 'Please explain why Kronos ate his kids.'"

"To paraphrase Ms. Bobofit's excellent question, Mr. Jackson, why does this matter?" Mr. Brunner was the only one who ever caught Nancy say anything. He had horse ears.

I think for a moment. Just as I'm about to admit that I have absolutely no idea, a though pops into my head, "Well, these are myths, right? And most myths have some sort of message behind them, right? Like a don't do this, or watch out for this. Maybe...we learn about the myths to learn their message?" It came out more like a question than an answer.

I'm not sure where that came from, but it just kind of appeared in my head, like I'd known it all along. The rest of the class roars with laughter until Mr. Brunner silences them.

"No, Mr. Jackson is absolutely correct. I am glad that at least one student has picked up something from my lessons. We learn about the heroes and gods to learn from them. From their mistakes and victories. Greek mythology is a vast reservoir of knowledge. I'll leave you with that thought as Ms. Dodds leads us back outside for lunch."

Once outside, the entire class goes wild, spreading out everywhere and taking up the entire space. But then again, what do you expect from twenty delinquents and Grover. I sit down on the edge of a fountain with Grover a distance away from the rest of our Yancy classmates. Maybe people will think that we are not a part of that tour group.

"Hey nice job with that answer." Grover says as he sits down, "It was nice for Nancy to be on the receiving end for once."

I laugh, "Absolutely. I mean, is it really necessary for her to do nothing but insult us all the time?"

Grover shrugs, "I guess that's just Nancy for you. Hey, can I have your apple?"

That's Grover for you, always thinking with his stomach, but then again, so am I. I let him have the apple and watch in amazement as he eats the entire thing, including the core.

"How is that even possible?" I wonder aloud as Grover grins sheepishly.

"I guess I have a really strong stomach."

At that moment, Nancy Bobofit decides to come over and start pestering us.. She drops her half eaten lunch in Grover's lap as her little goons start laughing.

"Percy..." Grover says slowly, but I block him out as a wave of anger roars through my head.

I stand up, grab Nancy, and throw her into the fountain. The annoying red-headed girl sputters out of the water, yelling.

"Percy pushed me!"

Mrs. Dodds is next to us instantly. She checks to make sure that 'poor little Nancy' is alright and promises Nancy she'll get a new shirt. My pre-algebra teacher then turns on me.

"Come with me honey." She growls.

Mrs. Dodds grabs my arm and drags me into the museum. I glance back and see Grover nervously cutting his eyes between me and Mr. Brunner. I wince slightly as my head begins to throb a little, then I wince in pain as Mrs. Dodds digs her long nails into my skin, breaking through it.

As soon as we're inside, she lets go of my arm and turns towards me, "You've been a very bad boy. Did you really think you could get away with it?"

"Um...I'm sorry." It sounded like Mrs. Dodds was talking about more than just shoving Nancy into the fountain.

"That's not good enough." Mrs. Dodds growls, "First, you are going to buy Ms. Bobofit a new shirt and apologize to her. Then, when we get back to Yancy, I am confiscating your deck of cards."

Seriously, that's what this is about?

"Oh come on!" I say, exasperated, "They're Go Fish cards!"

Mrs. Dodds glares at me.

"Fine." I mutter and walk into the gift shop. Five minutes later, I come out with a new shirt and an empty wallet.

I then follow Mrs. Dodds back outside and roughly shove the shirt into Nancy's outstretched waiting hands. She smirks in success at me.

"Sorry." I mutter under my breath.

"What was that?" Nancy makes a show of cupping her ear and leaning in closer to me.

"Sorry." I say, a little louder, "Sorry I gave you a much-needed bath."

Nancy's expression turns sour. She removes her hand from her ear and slaps me. Her hand makes a solid smack when it connects with my face. I hold my cheek in pain and glare up at Mrs. Dodds.

"What, you're not going to bag her for that?"

"You deserved it." My pre-algebra teacher grins evilly at me as Nancy smirks triumphantly.

"Just let it go Percy." Grover pulls me away, "You apologized. It's over."

"I know." I sigh, feeling my anger recede, "I just don't like to watch them pick on you."

"It's no big deal." My friend assures me.

At that moment, it begins to rain. Mrs. Dodds look up at the sky, then glares at me as if I'd caused it. But that's crazy, I can't control water.

Just as that thought passes through my brain, I feel the now-familiar throbbing start up again, but just as before, it eventually goes away. I shake my head and follow the rest of the class back onto the bus, grabbing the seat next to Grover as I try to ignore the rest of the students.

***A Few Months Later***

The weather has been getting worse, but I seem to be the only one who notices it. Now that I think about it, it's been getting bad since just before Christmas. If I didn't know any better, I'd say that the sea and sky are fighting. Unfortunately, the weather has to take a backseat. Finals are next week and I am royally screwed. I've pretty much accepted failure in all of my classes at this point. Except Latin. I just have this overwhelming feeling that all the gods and monsters and myths are very important. I just can't figure out why.

After about fifteen minutes of studying, my ADHD gets in the way and I get up and start pacing. No matter how hard I study none of it is clicking. And to top it all off, my stupid dyslexia is making it even more difficult to read. It's like English just isn't my language. I pause to let the annoying throbbing disappear.

That's another thing I don't understand. I had gone to the nurse during English class to see if she could fix it. We were talking about deja vu in class when my head really started hurting. The nurse said everything was fine and after I got back, Nancy made comments the rest of the day.

But I digress. Eventually, I sat back down on my bed and stare blankly at my textbook. Maybe I should ask Mr. Bunner for help. I'd never gone to a teacher for help, but if I do this, at least I'll be able to apologize for the big fat F I was about to score on his test.

I pick up my textbook and walk down the hallway.

I stand in front of the door to Mr. Brunner's office. The light is on and I can hear voices from inside, though I can't make out what they are saying. Eventually, I knock on the door. There's some shuffling and the door opens, revealing Mr. Brunner.

"Percy?" He looks confused for a moment, then notices the Greek Mythology textbook, "Ah, I see. Come in."

I enter Mr. Brunner's room and look around. It's filled with ancient Greek and Roman artifacts. I then notice Grover sitting at the table with a cup of tea in front of him.

"Oh, sorry." I say quickly, "I didn't realize I was intruding."

"Don't worry about it Perce." Gorver says, standing up, "I was actually just on my way out."

"Alright." I frown slightly, "Later man."

"Yeah, see ya." Grover calls back as he leaves.

I look down at the table and notice an unopened book.

"The Odyssey." I translate, surprised I could do that.

"Yes." Mr. Brunner seems surprised as well, "I find that the Greek version does far more credit to the story than any English translation."

"Oh. Okay." I'm not quite sure where to go with that.

Mr. Brunner gestures to a seat at the tabla and wheels himself over to the other side, "Now, what can I help you with, my boy?"

***

The next week was bad. I'm pretty sure I failed all of my finals. Except maybe Latin...if I'm lucky. I also felt like I was being watched. As if someone was waiting for me to make a move. It was unnerving.

Latin was the last test of the day. I hand it in to Mr. Brunner, who wishes me luck wherever I go to school next year.

Did I forget to mention that? Yeah, I was kicked out of Yancy Academy. Apparently, I'd caused too many fights and problems.

The instant I step out of the Latin room, Nancy is standing in front of me.

I'm not sure why, but I notice that she's wearing the shirt I was forced to buy her at the museum. It was a cheesey t-shirt with a blue and yellow swirley. 'The Metropolitan MEuseum of Art, you're Van Goghing to love it!

"Aww, little Percy couldn't cut it. Now he's not gonna be here next year." Her false sadness disappears, "Good thing for the rest of us. You're useless Jackson."

I'm too worn out to to trade sarcastic one-liners, "Don't you have somewhere to be, Nancy."

The light goes out in the Latin room and Mr. Brunner wheels his way out. Nancy puts on a fake smile.

"Keep out of trouble you two." He says, eyeing Nancy suspiciously. Nancy just waves.

"You got it Mr. Brunner!"

The moment he turns a corner, Nancy's smile disappears, "Oh, don't worry about where I have to be Jackson. I find annoying you far more entertaining. But you already knew that, you coward and loser."

I don't know why, but the coward comment really got to me. I take a deep breath and try to control my anger. Count to ten. One...Two...Three...Four...Five...Six...

The sprinkler system goes off.

The sudden rush of water surprises Nancy, causing her to slip and stumble forward, grabbing onto me.

"Let go of me Bobofit"

"You let go of me Jackson!"

"I'm not even holding you!"

At this point, the water has completely drenched the hallway. Except for a circle around where Nancy and I are standing. I finally free myself from Nancy and step back. The dry spot follows me.

"Okay, how in the world are you completely dry?" Nancy demands.

"I...I don't know." I reply. This entire situation feels familiar. Almost as if I'd done this before.

The sprinkler system. Water. A dry circle. The most intense headache yet strikes my head. I actually fall to my knees, clutching my head in pain.

"So Jackson, you've finally revealed yourself." I turn and see Mrs. Dodds smiling demonically, "I wasn't sure at first, but thank you for confirming my suspicions honey."

My head instantly clears as Mrs. Dodds approaches Nancy and I.

"Care to explain Jackson?" Nancy mutters from behind me.

"Once I know what's going on, I'll let you know." I mutter back, instinctively reaching for my pocket as I do so. It's empty.

"You're time's up honey!" Mrs. Dodds hisses and begins to change. Nails elongating, teeth lengthening, and most surprisingly, a pair of large, black wings burst from her back. Instant nightmare fuel.

"Alecto." I say quietly, not quite sure where the name came from.

The demon pre-algebra teacher tilts her head slightly, "So you recognize me? Good. That'll make killing you all the sweeter."

Strangely, I feel calm. My brain is telling me to freak out, but my body is acting like seeing a math teacher transform into a giant demon bat is completely normal. I glance left and notice a glint of bronze from inside Mr. Brunner's room.

"Go in Mr. Brunner's room." I mutter to Nancy.

"Yeah, sure." I notice Nancy staring in fear at the creature that was our math teacher.

I follow her in, grabbing one of the swords out of a display as I do so. It feels light in my hands, but I don't have time to worry about that. Nancy slips in the water and falls just as Mrs. Dodds appears in the doorway.

"Ready to die honey?" She hisses as I point the sword at her.

I'm about to make a sarcastic comment when she hisses again and lunges towards me. Inside, I'm freaking out, but outside my body acts like it's done this before. I spin to my left and deflect the claws off the flat of the blade. In the same motion, I spin the sword around and cut clean through Mrs. Dodds. She lets out a wail of pain then bursts into golden dust, which is quickly blown away.

I drop the sword and stagger back, "What just...?" I don't finish the question.

"Mrs. Dodds just turned into a...a demon." Nancy says, "And you just killed her."

"Good." I mutter, "You say it too. I'm not going crazy."

I turn around and hold out my hand. I guess after what just happened, I can't be mean to Nancy. She pauses a moment, then grabs my hand as I help her up.

"Oh my God, you just killed a teacher. A winged...giant...demonic...math teacher." Nancy mutters again.

"Let's...not...mention this to anyone." I say quietly. Nancy nods in agreement.

"Yeah. people would probably think we're crazy."

Together, the two of us exit Yancy Academy as thunder rumbles overhead.

Boom. There, done.
Remember to vote, comment and as always,
Keep being awesome,
Leonidas_son_of_Nike