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CASSIOPEIA RAN AWAY IN A FIT OF ANGER,
you know when a kid says they are going to run away from home? Usually they have a bag and can't go past the door, but Cassie was angry she had been forced to move from New York to los Angeles, angry she had been forced to say goodbye to her best friend.
So she grabbed her hot pink hello kitty bag and left, Echidna and his boring ass son soon found Cassie, but lucky her, because Gleason Hedge appeared. An old satyr whose soulmate was a baseball bat.
She, the Dionysius twins and Gleason Hedge went from Santa Monica to Camp Half-Blood.
Just like that Cassie got sucked in a world of monsters and gods.
Cassiopeia wouldn't consider herself dramatic-scratch that, she was dramatic. But, she wasn't an Apollo kid, she didn't have their clear eyes or blonde hair but she was as good as them (or better) in archery- but she couldn't sing for the life of her, she quite literally sounded like a dying rooster.
But the sun god didn't seem to like Cassie, sun usually gave her rashes, miss directed arrows, swan's chased her around (she had to whack them with a book to get them to back of). And in a world of petty gods, when all that happened, you knew you weren't liked by a deity.
She met Annabeth Chase- Annie, depending on how pissed she was, at the beginning they weren't friends, but they bonded over books. She then met the Stolls, with who she helped to initiate a war at camp.
Cassie maybe thought if she was a Hermes kid, she could speak many languages and run fast (specially when she was being chased by angry Ares kids for completely unknown reason ). But she was clumsy as they came, she also couldn't steal shit, it wasn't for lack of trying (the Stolls were good teachers but she was a horrible student). She usually got caught redhanded.
Apart from having a long ass Greek related name she didn't know anything about her godly parent- except that he was a guy- having no dad and all.
That day, particularly hot day of summer, she sat in the deck with Annabeth telling her how she had got kicked out of another school and Anabeth sending her a hopeless look and a high five afterwards. (What could she say? Getting into trouble was her natural talent).
They day so far had started well, her forehead pimple had disappeared (which was such a boost), she had gone very very close to beating Luke, Cassie was really good with a sword, probably best sword woman at camp- but people underestimated her because she cared about her looks and her clothes.
Anabeth braided her hair "have you heard about the boy who killed the Minotaur?"
She lifted her face from watching the water "huh?" She nodded "Oh yeah, he arrived with Grover, didn't he?"
"...I think he is the one" she emphasised the one as if she were a freaky cult leader.
Anabeth finished the braid, "let's go to find him, if I have my way this could be my chance"
She let her friend drag her around camp, she greeted people as they made their way to the infirmary.
The boy was scrawny with black hair, Anabeth expected him to sigh glitter or something while he slept.
Cassie immediately recognised him.
The boy drooled in his sleep a lot, but she snored like a dying hipo so she wasn't anyone to say anything. Annie however did, she would spend the time feeding him, and Cassie would stay while he slept, talking- Cassie talked a lot.
The day finally came when sleeping beauty awoke, she was playing black jack with Travis, Connor and her friend Ethan (skill she had acquired at nun school ironically).
When Annabeth came with Percy. The boy had a Mediterranean thing about him, he was skinny and had a confused and lost expression, messy dark hair, slightly dorky, but the prettiest thing about him were his eyes- sea green eyes.
He had just finished his tour in the Hermes cabin, and talking with Chiron and Mr. D.
She immediately got up, earning raised eyebrows from her friends.
She looked at them, "gotta ditch." She threw her cards against the blanket, she had won.
The other looked at her with the mouth agape, she winked back.
Percy stared at her, he blinked for a second.
Her hair was longer from the last time they had seen each other, straight brown hair, big brown eyes- kind of like a deer, and a shinning smile- the prettiest thing about her was still her smile.
She had white converse, low waist jeans that had a thin pink ribbon in the belt loop, her camp shirt was cropped to reach just above her pants, so only a line of skin could be seen.
She ran and immediately hugged Percy, he hugged her back.
"Percy!"
"Cassie!" He matched her tone jokingly.
"Annabeth!" Annabeth's was definitely of irony.
She looked at the two, not happy. "How do you know each other?"
Percy and Cassie shared a look, she smiled. "From New York."
He felt relive, from seeing such a familiar face. "I'm so happy you're here- they're talking about gods and there's a half unicorn-"
Cassie laughed, "It's kind of crazy but-"
They were interrupted by Annabeth.
"Jackson, you have to do better than that" she said crossing her arms.
"Annie, he has just arrived here"
"Yeah Annie-"
"You can't call me Annie" she glared at him "only Cassie does"
"What's your problem?" Percy asked angrily. "All I know is I kill some bull guy-"
"Don't talk like that!" Anabeth scolded. "Do you know how many kids at this camp would like to have that opportunity?"
"To get killed?"
"To fight the Minotaur! What do you think we train for?"
"To not get killed" Cassie answered quietly.
Percy shook his head. "Look, if that thing I fought really was the Minotaur, the same one from the stories.."
"Yes," Annabeth said, as if that was obvious.
"Then there's only one."
"No, there are five hundred" Anabeth answered with irony.
Percy ignored her "And he died, like a gajillion years ago, right?Theseus killed him in the labyrinth. So..."
"Monsters don't die, Percy. They can be killed, but they don't die." Cassie said
"Oh, thanks. That clears it up." He rolled his eyes.
"What Annie means," Cassie spoke, "is that they don't have souls like us humans do. They are achetypes, primal forces, they leave for a time and eventually reform, if you are lucky you don't need to confront the same monsters twice in your life"
"You mean if I killed one, accidentally, with a sword--"
"The Fur... I mean. your math teacher." Anabeth said.
Cassie shrugged. "I would kill my math teacher if I got the chance too. But she's still out there. You just made her more mad."
"How did you know about Mrs. Dodds?" Percy asked Annabeth, Cassie already knew, from their phone calls.
"You talk in your sleep,'" was Annabeth's nonchalant response.
"You almost called her something. A Fury? They're Hades' torturers, right?"
Cassie glanced nervously at the ground while Annabeth made an odd gesture, like a three-fingered claw pushing out from her heart.
"You shouldn't call them by name, even here," Anabeth said. "Names have power. We call them the Kindly Ones if we have to speak of them at all."
"Look, is there anything I can say without it thundering?"
"Pretty much nothing" Cassie added, "you can say Cassie is the best."
He raised his eyebrows with an almost smile.
"Why do I have to stay in cabin eleven anyways? Why is everybody so crowded together? There are plenty of bunks right over there."
Annabeth turned pale while Cassie's expression darkened, looking away. Clearly he'd said something insensitive but didn't know what.
"You don't just choose a cabin, Percy," Annabeth explained. "It depends on who your parents are.
Or... your parent."
"My mom is Sally Jackson," Percy deadpanned.
"She works at the candy store in Grand Central
Station. At least, she used to"
"Anyways, that's not what I meant. I'm talking about your dad," the blonde girl said.
"He's dead too. I never knew him."
Both girls exchanged a glance and the blonde sighed, as if they'd had this conversation many a time before.
"Your father's not dead either," Cassie said as if she were ripping a bandage quickly.
"How can you say that? You know him?" He snapped.
"Yes, I have lunch with him every Tuesday" Annabeth looked at Percy's not amused at all look "no I don't know him"
"Then how could you possibly-"
Annabeth cut him off. "Because we know you. You wouldn't be here if you weren't one of us."
Percy scoffed. "You don't know anything about me."
"No?" Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "I bet you moved around from school to school. I bet you were kicked out of a lot of them."
"How-"
"Diagnosed with dyslexia. Probably ADHD too."
Percy tried to swallow down the embarrassment and frustration he was feeling. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"Those are signs" Cass pipped in.
Annabeth nodded. "The dyslexia? That's because your mind is hardwired for ancient Greek, not English. The ADHD? That's your battle reflexes. In a classroom, it makes you antsy, but in a battle, it keeps you alive. As for the attention problems, that's because you see too much, Percy, not too little. Your senses are better than a regular mortal's. Of course the teachers want you medicated. Most of them are monsters themselves. They don't want you seeing them for who they really are."
Percy looked between the two girls. He already knew about Cassie's dyslexia and ADHD. "You sound like.. you went through the same thing?"
Anabeth nodded. "Most of the kids here did. If you weren't like us, you wouldn't have survived the Minotaur, much less the ambrosia and nectar."
"Ambrosia and nectar," he repeated.
"The food and drink we gave you to make you feel better," she explained.
Cassie tied her hair in a high ponytail. "That stuff would've killed a normal kid-"
"It would have turned your blood to fire and your bones to dust," the blonde butted in, sounding a little too pleased with the imagery. "Face it. You're a half-blood."
A husky voice interrupted them before Percy could ask any more questions. "Well! A newbie!"
A mean-looking girl sauntered towards them, flanked by three others that looked equally as big and mean looking.
"Clarisse," Annabeth sighed. "Why don't you go polish your spear or something?"
"Sure, Miss Princess," the big girl said. "So I can run you through with it Friday night."
"Erre es korakas!" Annabeth cursed, which translated to "Go to the crows!"
Cassie stood up straighter with her arms crossed and a frown looking at Clarisse.
"You are going to lose" Cassie stated, as if it were simple maths.
"We'll pulverize you," Clarisse replied with a menacing smirk.
Then she turned to Percy. "Who's this little runt?"
"None of your business." Cassie snapped, she was rude but she didn't want Clarisse near Percy.
"Percy Jackson," Annabeth sighed, "meet Clarisse, daughter of Ares.
Cassie knew what was going to happen and didn't like it one bit.
Percy blinked. "Like... the war god?"
This kid is definitely getting premium treatment from Clarisse, she thought.
"You got a problem with that?" Clarisse sneered at him.
"No." Percy looked her up and down. "It explains the bad smell."
Cassiopeia openly laughed flashing a smile at Percy.
Percy grinned, but the smile was quickly wiped off his face when Clarisse literally growled.
Cassie blinked. Does this girl think she's a dog or something?
"We got an initiation ceremony for newbies, Prissy."
"Percy."
"Whatever. Come on, I'll show you."
"Clarisse--" Cass began.
"Stay out of it, ribbons."
Cassie glared at Clarisse with everything she had.
Percy rolled up his sleeves and handed Cassiopeia his minotaur horn, but before he could even think about preparing himself, Clarisse had him by the neck. She dragged him towards the bathrooms while he kicked and punched unsuccessfully. Cass darted after them, tugging Annabeth along by the hand.
Cassie tried moving Clarisse's arm, but Percy sent her a look, she understood, he had to do it for himself.
"Like he's 'Big Three' material," Clarisse said as her friends laughed around them. "Yeah right. Minotaur probably fell over laughing, he's so stupid looking."
Monsters drop dead of your meanness Clarisse,
The two other girls stood in the corner, Cassie worried and Annabeth with a challenged face.
Clarisse bent Percy over on his knees and started pushing his head towards the toilet bowl. The plumbing rumbled and water shot straight out of the toilet and directly into Clarisse's face.
The toilets continued to explode and then the showers joined in on the fun, blasting the daughters of Ares back before they could recover their wits. They were swept right out of the bathroom and out onto the grass.
Percy looked around him as the water shut off. The entire bathroom was flooded, and Annabeth hadn't been spared. She was dripping wet and looking at him in shock; he was sitting in the only dry spot in the whole room.
Cassie had run out of the toilet's door before getting wet and appeared a second after.
Percy stood shakily, glancing at them nervously whilst waiting for their reaction.
And then Cassiopeia burst into laughter, she snorted at a point which caused Percy and her to laugh, it definitely was being a great day.
Except for Anabeth who was gawking with her mouth open.
"That was great Percy!"
He smiled, her laugh was contagious
"Oh gods! Clarisse definitely didn't expect that!"
"How did you--" the blonde girl began.
"I have no idea," Percy said.
Cassie stopped laughing and tried to help Anabeth with how wet she was.
Clarisse and her friends sprawled out into the mud.
"You are dead, new boy," Clarisse spat. "You are totally dead."
"Clarisse you're a bit wet" Cassie giggled, Clarisse growled at her.
What is it with this girl and growling?
"Shut your mouth."
Percy smiled at Cass, she grinned right back.
Annabeth was staring at the two like they had grown two heads, she glared at Percy silently.
"What?" he demanded when he noticed. "What are you thinking?"
"I'm thinking," she said slowly, "that I want you on our team for Capture the Flag."
Cassie's smiled, happy her two friends were getting a long, she thought of what a great group they would be, she was totally oblivious of Annabeth's plan.
Cassie grinned. "We are so going to win"
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- i'm so excited!!!!
- thoughts on them??
flo<3