Zero to Hero (Percy Jackson Fanfic)

Chapter Three-Malcolm

Annabeth's POV

"Watch, Jackson's going to walk in late again," Piper smirked.

Rachel was doodling in her notebook, not paying attention, and I was putting my text book on my desk.

I chuckled a little, "Probably, but I don't know why you care."

Piper shrugged, adding a new braid to the side of her hair, "I just think it's strange that he's late every day."

"Plus," Rachel said without looking up, "He got Clarisse into so much trouble yesterday."

"No kidding," Piper crossed her arms, "Clarisse may be a little blunt, but she's my sister's best friend, and I intend to stand up for her."

I smirked, "Clarisse fights her own battles, don't you know that?"

Piper grinned as the bell rang and we all took our seats.

Mr. Jordan began his lecture about Ancient Greek civilization. He spoke about the architecture and other evidences in the Minoan ruins that led archaeologists to learn more about how their culture might have been. I smiled knowingly, architecture was not only beautiful to look at, but it helped people remember entire civilizations.

The door swung open to reveal none other than Percy Jackson, late again. Mr. Jordan didn't eve give him more than a second glance. We didn't sit in the back today, so Jackson had to pass between me and Piper to get to an empty seat. As he did, Piper grinned at me and stuck out her leg. Jackson saw it coming, I could see it by the look on his face as he stumbled.

The class sniggered behind their hands and Jackson walked quickly to his desk, his face bright red.

I gave Piper my best, "seriously" look, and she grinned at me. I rolled my eyes and went back to listening to the teacher who had had his back turned to write on the board while Jackson had taken his seat.

The rest of the day wasn't anything special, just the usual highschool drama. Although, when school ended, I did happen to catch Clarrise slam Jackson's locker shut in his face, then stalk away laughing with a couple of her goons that weren't part of our group of friends. Jackson stared after her for a moment, then sighed and redid the combination.

I guess I sort of felt bad for him. I mean, sure he wasn't exactly the school's most responsible student, but that didn't mean he had to be Clarrise's source of entertainment.

He seemed okay though. He closed his locker, shrugged his jacket on, and walked away. I shook away the memory of the encounter as Piper ran up to me.

"You want to go with me to the football game tonight? You can come home with me."

I was already shaking my head, "Sorry Pipes, my brother is supposed to write me today, besides I have tons of homework."

She looked crestfallen for a moment, but then she perked up again. "I'll go see if Luke is going, and if he isn't, I'll make him."

"Good plan," I bid her farewell and headed for my bus.

My house was one of the few on Manhattan that was actually a house and not an apartment. And that was only because my mom needed space for her work, and she had the money to afford it. Granted, it wasn't nearly as fancy as Rachel's place, it was still pretty elaborate.

The exterior was your standard American suburban home; flowers in a bed on the front lawn, a few trees poking up here and there, white picket fence....However the inside was like stepping into a police briefing.

Notes and bulletin boards everywhere. Random papers littered the floor, and the trash bins were overflowing with rolled up scraps. On a white board in the front room was a large 3-D sketch of a four-story apartment building, drawn perfectly to scale, if I do say so myself.

That's right. Most of the notes and stuff belongs to my mom, but occasionally she lets me use her work space for some of my more elaborate ideas. However, at the moment, she was fixing me with her signature owl-like glare that sent the clear message that I was interrupting something important.

Ducking my head, I scurried past the office area, and up the stairs to my right. Upstairs, there were two bedrooms, one was for me, the other was my twin brother's. His room had been empty for the past three years; he only occasionally visited on holidays and such. Today I was supposed to get an email from him. At the educational camp he goes to, each student only gets a limited time on the computer per week.

My room wasn't anything special, although I could pretty much have basically anything I wanted to decorate my room; my mom was always so busy that I would have to buy decorations myself, and I liked less distractions in my working environment. There was a world map on one wall right next to a very detailed calendar, a desk and dresser underneath them, and a twin bed with my favorite sea-green comforter.

I threw my bag down on the bed, which I had neglected to make that morning, and threw myself into the desk chair. The one expensive thing I asked my mom for was a wonderful high-tech PC. I hit the power button, bouncing my leg in anticipation as I waited for it to boot up. As always, I was too impatient to wait and clicked on the browser early, which of course, made it take even longer.

Finally I was able to log into my email and see that Malcolm had in fact emailed me. I was hoping to catch him while he was still online, but I'd apparently missed him. I opened the email, anxious to know how his life at camp was.

Annabeth,

The whole camp is in mourning this week; one of our greatest friends and leaders has been pulled out of the all-year program. He was brilliant in the fighting rink, and he was great in Capture the Flag. The camp kind of feels empty without him.

I took your advice: I finally managed to ask Bianca out. As it turns out, it seems like she really did like the flower idea. Thanks for that. We're planning on coming to Manhattan for a movie next Wednesday. Let me know when you're free and we can meet up afterwards.

You know that map of the Atlantic I was working on? Someone spilled their hot sauce all over it! I spent months working on that thing, the shades of blue were carefully evaluated according to elevation levels, and the islands were drawn perfectly to scale! Nooooooo!

Anyway, Capture the Flag is tomorrow, so tensions are really high around here. When are you going to enroll? I've been telling everyone you'd be coming soon!

Love you,

Malcolm

I couldn't help laughing at his dismay for his ruined project, even though I knew exactly how I would feel if I'd put so much hard work into something that was destroyed like that.

"Finally," I remarked to no one in particular, "He's had eyes on her forever."

Though it was the last few lines that caught my attention the most. I'd wanted to go to Camp Hero; it sounded brilliant from the way Malcolm talked about it. However, I hadn't made much of an effort to join him there because I couldn't stand leaving all my friends behind.

I glanced at the calendar above me. Flicking through it until I hit June first, I discovered I had a lot of room this summer. Maybe I could talk to Mom and put together some funds for a summer session of camp. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach as I contemplated the possibility of sharing an entire summer with my brother.