The Secret (Percy Jackson AU)

Chapter 1 ~ The new kid

Annabeth woke up, yawning as she blinked the sleep out of her eyes. "Ugh, Mondays," she groaned, blowing the hair out of her face. Still half-asleep, she rolled out of bed and got dressed. She tossed her barely-brushed hair into a ponytail, giving her comic books a longing look.

   Annabeth put on a thin jacket over her gray t-shirt, slipping on socks and shoes as she got ready for school. Her mom had left a note on the table saying that she had to go to a modeling shoot early, so she wasn't able to be there for breakfast. Annabeth just rolled her eyes, grabbing a PopTart and eating as she scrolled through messages on her phone. It was technically her first day of school, but Annabeth wasn't too worried. She already had friends there like Thalia and Piper, even though she was transferring in halfway through the year.

  "Hey, Beth!" Annabeth looked up, mildly annoyed. "What do you want, Dylan?" Her older brother rolled his eyes, holding out a familiar helmet to her. Annabeth sighed, a smile finally appearing on her face. "Okay, okay. Fine, let's go." Dylan grinned at her and walked out the door, grabbing his own helmet and putting it on.

"My bike or yours, Beth?" He asked, glancing back at his sister. Annabeth hummed, thinking, then responded that they were taking hers. Dylan grinned, nodding as he hopped onto the bike. "C'mon, I'm driving!" Annabeth sighed, smiling at him, and slipped on her dark grey helmet as she settled onto the motorcycle.

The two blonds laughed as the wind snatched their voices away, exposed hair blowing wildly. Eventually they arrived at school, both getting off the bike as they tucked their helmets under their arms. "See ya, Dyl," Annabeth called, walking away to meet up with Piper and Thalia. A few people whispered, confused on why one of the more popular kids, Dylan, would arrive to school with someone else who no one knew.

Eventually Annabeth caught up to her two best friends, calling out their names as a greeting. Both turned and grinned. "Hey, Annabeth!" They called, walking over. "Ready for your first day as a sophomore?"

The blond rolled her eyes. "No, definitely not," she said, cocking an eyebrow, "it's not like my best friends are here and I've been excited for at least a month!" Thalia grinned, laughing, and bumped shoulders with Annabeth. "Nope, definitely not," Piper chimed in, smiling at her best friends. "Oh! Look, it's Percy and Jason!" She mentioned, her attention grabbed by the pair of boys. Thalia glanced over, noticing her brother and cousin. "Oh, yeah! Hey, want me to go get them?" Piper turned red while Annabeth just shrugged. "Yeah, sure, do what you want," Annabeth said, winking at Piper. "Hey- wait!" She cried, but it was too late.

    "Percy! Jase!" Thalia called, jogging over to the pair. "Hey sis!" "Hey, Thals," The two boys greeted her, pausing as Dylan walked up to the trio. "Dylan!" Percy cried, slinging an arm around his shoulder. "How's my best bro?" Thalia laughed as her brother gave Percy an offended look, which was met with a slightly apologetic one. Dylan rolled his eyes, a slight smile tugging at his lips. "Alright, alright. I'm good, Perce! Beth just transferred here today, actually. Make sure she's settled, okay?" Percy nodded his head, but looked confused. "Yeah, sure. But how come I didn't know she was transferring?"

   At this point, Thalia wormed her way into the conversation. "Doesn't matter! I actually came over to drag you and my little bro over to see Pipes and Beth. You coming, boys?" She said, turning to walk away. Jason flushed, quietly following while Percy just rolled his eyes and tagged along. Dylan sighed, following the other three with an affectionate shake of his head.

   "Annabeth! Piper!" Percy called when they got closer, sea-green eyes lighting up. The two girls turned towards the boys. "Percy! Jason! And my idiot brother!" Annabeth replied, cocking an eyebrow. "I didn't expect you guys to actually come over here." Percy grinned at that, mischief glinting in his eyes. He paused, suddenly, as someone reached out and tapped Annabeth's shoulder.

"Hey, I'm John. I'm supposed to show you around. Hurry up, blondie, I have better things to do," he sneered, disgust thinly veiled in his voice. Annabeth closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, before smiling tightly at him. "Sure. Sorry, guys, guess I have to go." Thalia and Piper bristled. "Hey, why can't we show her around? We're her friends!" Piper demanded, poking John in the shoulder. He looked at her and his eyes widened. "Holy hell, you're Piper McLean! Hey, wanna go on a date? I heard you're great in b-" Piper's disgust had been building with each word and, before John could finish, she decked him. "Shut the hell up. Don't even try and touch any of my friends, or me. If you do, or if you report this, I will come for you," she hissed, eyes narrowed.

John put his hands up, obviously unfazed. "Yeah, sure. Whatever. What can you even do besides throw money around? You're just a girl, even if you can punch. It's not like you can actually fi-" This time, he was cut off by Percy grabbing his collar. "I know none of my friends need me to stand up for them because all of them can be terrifying. However, if you want someone to beat some sense into you, how about me?" John seemed to actually consider this. "Fine, have it your way," he snarled. He grabbed Annabeth's wrist, his grip tightening on it. She yanked her hand away, but he just grabbed it again. "No. I'm supposed to show you around, so I'm going to. You will not fight me on this, alright?" Annabeth glared at him, ripping her hand out of his grip again. "Do not touch me. Ever. I will let you show me around, but you will not come in contact with me after. Understood?" John huffed, and stalked away without saying a single word.

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Hello! Sorry, this is still... not great, but I wanted to at least get the first chapter out. Only a thousand words, so it's pretty short, but... oh well. A few plot points are going to be changed and just the overall writing will be at least marginally better. Anyways, hope you enjoy! :)