~Prologue~
I had never really been visible- ever. I was quiet at home, since I was an only child living with a single parent; my dad, Joshua Wilde. I never knew my mom, because she left a couple weeks after I was born. My dad got tears in his eyes whenever I used to ask about her, so I didn't mention her much. All I know is that she was forced to leave and my dad won't tell me why.
Anyway, I was a ghost in the hallways of Northside High School in New York, New York, where I was a freshman. I had my fair share of friends, yes, but I was never really...noticed. I had been really quiet, usually. I was ADHD and dyslexic, and I didn't like to advertise it. I didn't like reading in front of the class because the words just jumbled themselves up and-ugh! What a nightmare!
My friends accepted this about me, though they didn't advertise it either. There was this one friend I had that seemed particularly interested in my dyslexia and Hyper Active/Attention Deficit disorder. Her name was Cassidy. She was in a wheel chair, and she was proud of it. She was out of gym for good, and liked to brag about it to me every time I came out of the locker room sweating like a pig. Though people didn't make a habit of it, whenever I would get teased for not being able to read or sit still for even a second, Cassie would get really protective of me. She once even told me, "I'm here to protect you, VI." At the time, I thought it was just one of those pledges a real true friend makes to you, because, honestly, I didn't see how Cassie would defend me, except with her words.
How incredibly wrong I was about her, about me, about....everything.
CHAPTER ONE
It was a bright, sunny, completely normal day at Northside High in New York, New York. For me, everything was completely ordinary, nothing the least bit unusual. Cassie held my books in her lap while I wheeled her down the long hallway on our way to French class. I had always had a knack for French, ever since I started it four years ago in the 5th grade. How time seemed to pass by....It was one of my best subjects. Well, French and Ancient History. Right now, we were focused on the Greek and Roman gods. There was something about the history behind them that just....drew me in. It was so...fascinating.
Anyway, so I was wheeling Cassie down the hall. She was cracking horrible jokes, trying to make me smile at at least one of them. I smiled alright, but only because they were so bad.
As we entered Madam Shavel's room, she asked me, "What nationality are you when you're in a hurry?" I rolled my eyes and asked, "I don't know, what?"
"A Russian!" Cassie slapped her knee and went crazy with laughter. I wheeled her into her spot and took my books off her lap.
"Nice one, Cass," I said sarcastically, though I threw a laugh in there, just to make her feel good. She smiled at me as I sat down across the aisle from her.
Madam Sheval entered the room at that point. She was a young woman of about 27, with dark blonde hair and green eyes. She had black glasses and always dressed SUPER conservatively. She had a permanent smile, unless you misbehaved in her class. She would occasionally make jokes and give out candy shaped like escargot, but tasted like watermelon. She was my favorite teacher in the whole school, but she knew I had dyslexia and didn't make me read in class. She worked with me on the side at my own pace.
I LOVED her.
"Bonjour, étudiants, bienvenue dans la classe française. S'il vous plaît sortez vos classeurs." I understood every word she said, though, out of the corner of my eye, I could see some of my classmates looking around in confusion. I took out my binder, like Madam Sheval had said and opened it up. I began to wait for everyone to get what she wanted, and, in my boredom, I started playing with the beaded bracelet around my wrist.
Cassie had given it to me a couple months ago, a month after she had first come to Northside and found out I was ADHD and dyslexic. It had an ancient Greek word written on the beads- 'Agápe,' the word for 'love'. She told me to never, ever take it off. When I asked her why not, she told me it was a symbol of our friendship, and as long as I had it on, we would still be friends.
I always wore the bracelet.
Though sometimes, like this time, when I would play with the beads, she would give me a poison dagger look and I would stop immediately. I could only wear it, not play with it, apparently.
Only now I did it because I was an airhead and I forgot that Cassie would kill me with her dagger stare if I didn't stop.
As if on cue, Cassie's pencil flew right in between my finger and the bracelet. But time seemed to slow down as it flew past, and I snatched it right out of the air. Cassie stared back at me like she wasn't surprised, though she was glaring at me. My eyes were wide, but I shoved it off and threw her pencil back. She turned back to her binder, and I turned back to mine.
Madam Sheval had begun speaking in French, so fast that I don't think anyone but me understood what she was saying. She told us she had tests to hand back, and I felt a shock go up my back. This was one of the only subjects in which I could expect an A.
Sadly, as she walked back to the front of the room with a large stack of test papers, at there was a gigantic CRASH! My only thought was 'Dang it, I won't know my test score!'
I looked around wildly, noting the gaping hole in the side of room with the windows on it. Glass had flown everywhere, though no one appeared hurt. I also noted the gigantic troll that was now standing in the middle of my French class.
Madam Sheval's eyes opened wide.
"Class! Evacuate!" She threw the door open and began shepherding people out the door. I was almost to Cassie, about to grab the handles of her chair to wheel her out, when she grabbed my wrist. She looked deep into my eyes.
"Fight it, Violet." I wasn't sure I heard her right, so I began to move the chair forward. She gripped my wrist harder. I looked back down at her.
"Fight it, Violet! You can do it!" She grabbed my bracelet from my wrist and twisted a bead. From the bead, a sword appeared. The rest of the beads from the bracelet decorated the hilt. It was sparkling in the lights from the ceiling, a beautiful bronze color. I gaped at it as Cassie thrust it into my hand.
"Fight it!"
"Are you crazy!? It'll squash me like a bug!"
"Vi, you can do it!"
"NO, I CAN'T!" I screeched, as the trolls tossed over some desks. Papers flew in every direction, making it hard to see.
Madam Sheval stood in the doorway, waiting for us.
"Violette!" She cried my French name, "Come quickly!"
I grit my teeth, and said, "No! I got this! Go, Madam! Protect the other students!"
She looked me up and down, before nodding and running out of sight, with something sparkly sliding down her cheeks.
The door slammed shut behind her. The troll roared. "HALFBLOOD!" He-at least, I think it was a 'he'- said, screaming in my face, his foul breath making my senses catch fire.
"C'mon Violet!" Cassie shouted. She groaned as rose from her chair. Suddenly, her legs began to grow, and her wheelchair disappeared. My eyes widened to the size of quarters, but I snapped back to reality as the troll through another desk.
I grit my teeth harder and slashed my sword at the troll. A large cut appeared on its torso. It roared in pain and almost hit me, though I dodged out of the way at the last minute. The sword felt....right in my hand. It felt like I had literally just become one with the sword, even though that sounds like something Yoda might say.
I slashed again, but the troll was weary of me now. It swatted me like a fly over to the other side of the room. My head hit the wall with a loud SMACK!
My eyes went in and out of focus, and I could feel blood dripping down my head. Cassie ran over to me and handed me a hair pin. She smiled at me and opened it.
Now in front of me was a large, bronze shield with images of warriors and monsters on it.
"You can do this. I know you can," she said softly.
"How do you know?" I asked, as the troll lumbered over in my direction.
"Because..." Her face looked conflicted for a moment before she spat out, "Because you're a Demigod, Vi."
Now, since I was so good in Ancient History, I knew that a 'demigod' was the term used for a person whose parents consisted of one god and one mortal. And the so-called 'demigod' had special powers based on their Godly parent, blah, blah, blah.
And....this means...me?
"Yeah, Vi, you're a demigod. Your mom, the one who you say was 'forced' to leave you? She was forced to leave because she's a goddess, and she can't stay in the mortal world for very long."
"Wh-what? I-I-I....N-no...." I stuttered intelligently.
"Less stuttering, more monster destroying!" Cassie said, and tugged me to my feet.
"GO!" She shrieked, and pushed me towards the troll. 'Well,' I told myself, 'Might as well....'
I ran at the troll and slashed and cut and whacked. It did the best it could to deflect my hits, to throw me off, but I was a blur- way too fast for him.
"NO-ONE-INTURPPTS-MY-FRENCH-CLASS!" I shrieked, hacking at the troll between each word.
"Sorry! Sorry!" The troll screamed, but I didn't let up.
I continued slashing away like a weed-whacker until I couldn't move anymore. I stopped slashing and fell to my knees five feet from the troll.
It was covered in slashes and cuts, and it was oozing blood the color of vomit.
"Uh oh," it said, before evaporating on the spot.
I think I blacked out.
When my eyes re-opened, I was laying on the ground with my head in Cassie's lap. She was holding something to my lips and was ordering me to drink. I obliged. A warm liquid entered my mouth. It tasted like the macaroni and cheese my dad and I always used to make whenever he brought home a movie from Red Box. He used to make it for me and we'd sit in front of the TV and eat until we were stuffed. He also made it for me when I was sad, or if he had to break some bad news to me.
He hadn't made me macaroni and cheese in a while- and I didn't blame him. A few months ago, he'd divorced his first actual wife since my mom, since they weren't technically married. Her name was Charlotte, and she was nice on the exterior, and even while my dad was around. She was nice to me at first, but once my dad and she got married, she started beating me. She would cut me, swear at me, and abuse me. And she said if I told my dad, she'd kill me.
It went on for about five years (from the time I was six up until two years ago) until my dad came home from work early and found her holding a knife to my wrists, blood dripping like crazy from them.
I still have scars.
He made me macaroni and cheese that night. Then he kicked her out.
So when I tasted this weird liquid, tears came to my eyes, as I remembered how long it had been since I had tasted my dad's macaroni and cheese. I was full on sobbing when Cassie removed the bottle from my lips.
"I'm sorry, Violet...so sorry," she said, crying hard herself.
"No, it's okay..." I said, trying to compose myself. "What now?"
"Now?" She sighed. "Now we get you home."
*****
Cassie and I found ourselves a few minutes later in a cab. The driver didn't seem to find it funny that we were both covered head-to-toe in monster dust, and in my case, blood.
New York is a weird place.
"Okay," I said, "its explanation time!"
She sighed and shut the window between us and the driver so we wouldn't hear our conversation.
"Okay...Violet, you're a Half Blood. That means, your mom, well, she's a Greek Goddess. And you are a demigod- half human, half God. And that monster, I guess he detected your smell. You were probably starting to realize who you are, without noticing it," Cassidy started.
I waved my hands wildly, trying to make her slow down.
"Wait, wait, wait! Do you mean to tell me that the mother I NEVER KNEW is a GREEK GODDESS?!" I yelled. Cassidy cast a dark look at the driver.
"Keep your voice down! Yes, but I'm not exactly sure who it is. I mean, you're plenty pretty, so you might be from Aphrodite, but you're also very smart, so your mom might be Athena. I'm stuck here. I've got no clue," Cassidy said, with a desperate tone to her voice.
"And another question, why the heck are you one day confined to a wheel chair, the next helping me defeat some monster?" I asked, and she smiled like she was expecting this. "I told you, Vi. I'm your protector, except, I'm not one of those scardy-cat satyrs."
"Well, if you're not a satyr, then what are you?" I asked, almost afraid to know the answer.
"I'm a naiad. Actually, the only naiad protected ever. I don't have legs; I only have a tail, which is why I can't walk around much. But, if I save up my energy, I'm able to walk around for about three hours using these enchanted legs before I need to go back to the wheelchair. Since I haven't stood up for like, three days, I think I'm good until tomorrow," Cassidy said, like it explained everything. I simply stared at her, open mouthed.
"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked feeling a little stung that she hadn't trusted me with this secret.
"Because then I would need to tell you what you were. And when you find out you're a Demigod, your smell gets stronger, and it's easier for monsters to find you," Cassidy said. I sat back in my seat, dumbfounded. I couldn't believe it....demigod....me?
After about five minutes of silence, we arrived at my apartment building. We paid the driver and ran up the steps. I buzzed the button for my house.
"Hello?" It was my dad. He sounded like he had just woken up from a nap.
"Dad? It's Violet. Can you let us in?"
"Us?" He asked.
"Cassie's here too."
"It's an emergency, Mr. Wilde. It’s concerning Vi's mom."
My dad's voice sounded half strangled when he answered after a moment.
"Come in- quickly."
*****
I took the steps up to my apartment two at a time, Cassie struggling along behind me. I had to see my dad. I needed him to give me a giant bear hug and tell me this is all a dream....
I pounded the door with all my might when I got close enough. It took my dad exactly three seconds to answer the door. He took in the ruined sight that was me, his daughter, Violet. He took in the blood, and the monster dust, and the tear tracks still glistening on my face. He didn't care that I was covered in grime; he swept me up into a tight bear hug- which was exactly what I needed.
"Are you okay, Violet?"
"Yeah, dad, just a little...tired," I replied, despite the fact that my head was still bleeding where I had hit it on the wall. My father released me from the bear hug and pulled Cassie and I inside.
"Sit down," he said, "I'll make something for you to eat."
I was going to suggest macaroni and cheese, since I missed it so much, but Cassie beat me to it.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Wilde, we don't have much time. I need to get her to camp before any other monsters pick up her scent. She's in no shape to fight another monster today, so that's the last thing we need."
My dad frowned, but nodded.
"I'll help you pack," he said, taking my hand and walking with Cassie and me down to my room. He pulled a suitcase out from under the bed, and then we all went to work.
My closet was not very large, so we packed everything. I packed toothpaste, my toothbrush, my hairbrush, shampoo, all the usual stuff you'd need. I stuffed several pairs of shoes in wherever I could fit them in.
"What even is this camp for?" I asked Cassie as she whizzed around my house, barely visible, packing nearly everything in sight.
"It's a camp for Greek demigods. It trains them how to fight and survive."
"Oh....lovely...."
******
"Dad," I asked, when Cassie was in the bathroom grabbing me more toiletries, "What exactly do you remember about mom?" I was feeling adventurous, what can I say?
As usual, Dad's eyes sparked with tears at the mention of mom.
"Well," he sighed, "I remember that she was completely gorgeous. Just like you. She really cared about me. She also loved you, Violet. You should have seen the look on her face when she left you. She was heartbroken to leave, she didn't want to. But, sadly, she had to. And I know that to this day she's sorry that you've grown up without her around. But always remember that she's right here," said my dad, picking up my hand and placing it over the place where my heart would be.
"Okay," I said softly, "Thanks dad." He smiled, and then pulled me into another hug.
At that moment, Cassie came back with more stuff. She pushed it into my bulging bag and zipped it up.
"C'mon, Vi, we gotta hit the road," she said, slinging it over my shoulder.
I adjusted the bag and smiled once more at my dad. He smiled back, his sea-green eyes and white teeth sparkling.
"Have fun, darling. And, please, don't be surprised when you find out who your mother is," he said, rubbing my arms.
"Okay," I said, "I love you, dad."
"I love you too, Violet." With that, Cassie pulled me out of my room.
The last image I had of my father was him standing in my room, tears slipping slowly down his cheeks.
*****
Once outside, Cassie and I hailed a cab. When finally one of them pulled up next to the curb, we quickly got inside, way too paranoid for our own good. We settled in, and as I lay my over-packed bag down at my feet, Cassie told the driver we wanted to go to Long Island Sound. He groaned.
"Do you know how FAR that is?!" He moaned, tossing his head back.
Cassie reached into her pocket and brought out a hundred dollar bill and a fifty.
"Is this going to be enough?" She asked. He nodded, not taking his eyes off the money.
"If you step on it, you can keep the change."
She seriously should not have said that.
But in all honesty, it was the smartest thing to do because I definitely think we got to Camp faster.
After a long time, we came to a bare hillside. Cassie seemed to be watching for something, and then finally screamed, "STOP!" The car screeched against the pavement as the driver hit the brakes hard.
"Here we are!" The driver said cheerily, not caring that our destination was in the middle of NOWHERE. He just took his money, and drove off.
"Okay, Vi. Do you still have bracelet? I think I put it in your left backpack pocket," she said, hoisting her own bag over her shoulders. I reached into the pocket she said and found my bracelet waiting for me there. I smiled, held it up, and then slipped it on my wrist.
"Okay, good," said Cassie, "You still have to always keep it with you, you know. Now, come on. Let's march our butts up this hill and get you to Camp Half-Blood!"
Cassidy and I marched up the hill and reached the camp in no time, with no problem. Except for the one time Cass tripped. We entered the camp, she told the first camper she saw to go get someone call Chiron. She smiled at me, told me she'd see me in a little while, and then ran off.
I stood there alone for a moment, feeling totally out of place and confused.
Finally a boy with dark hair and green eyes walked up to me and smiled.
"You're new I'm guessing?" He asked, his eyes sparkling.
"Yeah....Are you new as well?" I asked him. He nodded.
"Got here a couple days ago..." A dark look came upon the boys face, but he shook it off, and then brightened his smile. "I'm Percy by the way."
"I'm Violet. It’s nice to meet you, Percy," I said, returning his smile.
A new voice from my left suddenly came. "Are you Violet Wilde?" I turn to see who had said my name, expecting a man. Well, before me stood a man...who wasn't entirely a man..
Pic of Violet on the side!! Hope you like this story, lovelies!!