Halley McClain's Story

Halley could have been late, she could have chosen to ignore the blatant buzzing of her phone, demanding her to shut it off and start the day. She needed to do the right thing though, so still tired from last nights hacking frenzy she moaned pulling the blankets that shielded her from the cold away.

The bed Halley lay in was ample, enough room for her laptop to lay and her phone to charge she liked it best that way it reminded her off her bed at home, super large. You see she took up very little of the space leaving more room for possessions of hers. The sheets on her bed were puffy too, like a cloud. She could see the young child in her getting lost in them, unfortunately she was 16 and needed to get going.

The teen girl finally was able to pull herself out of bed, she proceeded to her morning routine. Halley pushed the small smooth buttons on each of the computers and happily listened to the sweet little buzzing of the motors as they actifed. The room was still dark (Halley often refused to open the blinds) and so as each monitor lite up, the room brightened a bit more and the little freak grinned. There was no time for a shower this morning so her hair was thrown into a makeshift braid. Each lock of Halley's hair was chocolate brown, more often than not it was knotted and just a mess, she refused to chop it off though, it could look pretty if she tried. Her looks didn't matter to her that much anyways. Halle chose a simple grey shirt and black pants from her drawer. Maybe they weren't stylist but they were comfortable and well, Halley could always win for most comfortable clothes. She hastily pulled on sneakers, grey again to top off the hot mess she was.

The one thing Halley never leaves her room without, is her OmniSerm. It is her everything, her baby, her most prize possession. She had designed more than half of it herself and her whole life was connected through it. It was simply a sheet of glass with a touch screen providing all the necessary phone functions along with fingerprint ID and 22.3 pixel camera. Without in she felt vulnerable and it's smooth texture in her palm naturally relaxed her of worries of losing it. So as this is put into her pocket she is prepared for whatever chaos the day would bring. Halley opened the door revealing a long narrow hallway of many, many other doors and so out to the cafeteria she went, because food was her third favorite thing, after technology and karate.

As Halley pulled herself into the hallway she breathed in, loving the smell of the carpet and walls. Clean, empty, and warm she began to make her way down the hall and after seeing no one was around she broke into a full sprint, she feet thudding the ground lightly but quickly. Halley wasn't much of an athlete but the wind fell good on her neck so she smiled and the her petite yet muscle filled body kept running a while, until she might find the exit of the dorms to go the the cafe. How could anyone catch her running, most people and already started their day earlier than she had.

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Rosalie woke up to the sound of nothing but the sound of her book, The Great Gatsby dropping to the hard wood ground and as it did the Romanian was up. She rose up so quickly before looking to the ground and seeing the cause of the noise. She breathed out and closed her dark brown eyes to calm her now raising heart. "Goddamn it." she whispered. Now that she was up, Rose picked her book off of the ground and began to walk towards her bookcase. She looked for the proper space to put it right there with the G's. She then knew there was no way she was going to sleep another moment because once she was up, she was up. She walked over the her closet and looked over her numerous pairs of jeans, hoodies, and t-shirts. Before deciding on what to wear for the day. And, with her clothes in her hand, she walked into the restroom to take a shower. And for the next ten minutes Rosalie just let the warm water relax her from the morning scare. After washing herself up Rose turned off the water, grabbed her white towel and wrapped it around her small and thin body before stepping out of the shower and into the steamed bathroom.

She wiped the mirror down to see her reflection before putting the towel around her dark brown hair and reaching for her clothes. She slipped on her white tee and jumped into her rather new black skinny jeans. After doing so, she began to dry her hair and began to watch her small curls return to natural form. Which took about another five minutes with her hair dryer on low. She grabbed towards her teal beanie and put it on before walking out of the bathroom, leaving the door open to let the steam all out. While walking, Rosalie grabbed a pair of her flats and slipped them on. After that, she sat up and looked into her full length mirror. She sighed as she looked herself up and down and shook her head as she grabbed her Edgar Allen Poe book and placed it in her old messager bag and walked out of her room, closing the door behind her. As she walked down the hall, she slipped her headphones in and ignored anyone who might be looking in her direction. Once exiting the dorm rooms, she walked to the lake and took a seat on the grass right under a tree that she always sat under in the morning. As she did so, she looked for a blank page in her notebook and began to continue on a picture of a very blurry photograph of her family with her mother and her father and older brother before being left with her grandparents. She never seen her father and brother but was determine to finish this picture in order to know at least what they looked like. Or if it brought back any memories of her hated past. And as much as she wanted to quit trying, she couldn't. She turned her music lower before keeping her eyes steadily on the picture, stapled to the piece of notebook paper to keep it from flying away.

And the longer she set her eyes on the picture, the more blurry her eyes got. The Romanian rubbed her eyes and blinked once or twice before looking in her brown leather bag for her sunglasses. And when she looked up she saw her friend, Selyse reading a book that Rose already got her hands on a couple of weeks before. Rose was happy to finally see a friendly face seeing that the other around and in the lake, weren't exactly her friends. She gathered her belongings and walked over to her friend before sitting down not too far from her but no too close either. She fixed her sunglasses before looking over to her friend and giving a small smile. "Hi Lysa. Are you enjoying the book?" She asked as she looked at the cover and to her notebook. She reached out her book which was pretty... daunting ad bleak compared to most of the books she read. But, it was by far the most interesting and well, literal of the hundreds of books she owned.

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Arielle was sound asleep in her bedroom right before having her phone go off with a text. She groaned loudly before opening her eyes and rolling them. Who was dumb enough to wake up the ice queen? What kind of person was that big idiot to interrupt her sleep? Looking at who is was from, she shrugged her shoulder. It was from her very close friend, Santiago. And, for him rules were different. He was like her Hawaiian gay brother that she never thought she needed. But, now she was happy she had him. She looked at the text message asking-- well, telling her to meet him in the cafeteria when she was done getting dressed. She rolled her eyes and set her phone on her nightstand before sitting up and stretching her hands over her head with a loud yawn following not long after. "I hate him so much right now." She said to herself with her accent coming out, like it did most mornings. And after a while of just trying to wake herself up, the small Asian girl slipped out of her bed and slipped on her slippers so her feet wouldn't hit the cold floor. "Now to get beautiful." She said to herself as she let her hair out of the high ponytail it was in for the night before. She walked over to her large wardrobe and grabbed a pair of her favorite shorts, a black undershirt and an orange one to go over. After doing so, she grabbed a pair of her brown heels and held them in her right hand as she walked gently to the bathroom.

When she walked into the bathroom, she closed and locked it behind her before turning the cold water on. She tossed her clothes in the hamper by the door before hopping into the rather freezing water. Arielle hated warm water and just loved the cold water even since her birth. She washed her long black hair lastly and then turned the water off. She slipped her soft pink towel around her body and began to dry her body before wrapping it around her hair and began to slip her clothes on along with her heels, adding three inches to her overall height. She then walked out with her heels clacking along the wooden floor. She walked over to her vanity and sat down to do her hair and makeup. She looked at the photos around her mirror of her and her friends. She grinned at the photographs before beginning her makeup. And for the next forty five minutes, Arielle was getting herself ready for the day. With getting two more text from Santiago saying to hurry up. She just shrugged and finished. She then looked at her reflection and her outfit. With a smirk on her baby doll face, she gave a twirl before speaking again. "On a scale from one to ten: fifteenth." She then grabbed her purse and walked out with her phone in hand getting ready to text her best friend, Vanity.

Vanity, meet me in the cafe.
<3 Arielle

She then slipped her phone into her small bag and began her walk to the cafe. She smiled and waved at her friends and then gave smug looks to a few of her targets. Some looked away and at the ground while others gave her the stink eye. Either way, it didn't matter to her, she still got a reaction out of her which is what she always wanted from people. She flipped her hair over her shoulder before walking out of the dorm rooms and walking towards the cafe only to see Halley running to the cafeteria. Arielle would have said something but it wasn't worth her time. She was too easy to mess with and she was near the bottom of her list of people to mess with. Lucky for her but her day will come. Ari just rolled her eyes before entering the cafe to see Santiago at their regular table in the middle of everything. She smiled towards the man and gave a small wave before sitting down and taking a strawberry from her friend's salad and a small piece off of his bacon. "So, one hour later and the queen has arrived." The Asian girl rolled her eyes once more before speaking to the Hawaiian. "Shut up. It takes time to look this nice." She said to him as he chuckled. Looking her friend up and down, she nodded at what he was wearing. And, getting approval from her wasn't easy to do.

When Halley saw Arielle she slowed down her pace to walking. The Asia girl was bound to be meeting friends in the cafe, as she was the social, popular girl type. Halley examined Arielle from a distance, her hair was perfectly straight containing no fly always. There was a chance it was dyed, maybe highlighted. Hmm. Her makeup was done with perfect precision and most likely took up the majority of her morning. Why would Arielle even bother with those heels, this wasn't exactly a fashion show...
She watched Arielle make her way over to Santiago, the dreadlocks and Hades son guy who was already seated.


As she turned away from Arielle, Halley made but the slightest mocking look on her face barely sticking her tongue out, scrunching her eyebrows and tilting her head slightly. This face only lasted a second or two though. To hopefully not be seen by anyone.


The small roman girl made her way to the breakfast food. Fruits, cereal, dairy and wheat products were spread across a long narrow table. Twinkling her fingers over the food she was unsure which to choose, everything looked so fresh and delectable. She settled on an orange, blue berry muffin and chocolate milk. Which would fill her small stomach until lunch.It was completely natural for Halley to not care what she ate. She was born with high metabolism keeping her tiny no matter what she consumed.


So she took her food to an nearby empty table and plopping into the seat she pick at the muffin pulling the blueberries out and eating them individually while she occupying herself with her OmniSerm.


After she'd fiddled around a while on her phone she glanced up to find the cafe's population growing in number. Not only had Emmett Meade sat down with Arielle and Santiago but, her older brother Thayer and his friend Nolan, whom Halley knew little of, had entered the cafe. Lastly she noticed Abby Jarvis at the buffet choosing out her breakfast. Halley actually liked Abby, mostly because she liked karate too. But also because she seemed like a nice person to be around. After Halley finished her examination of the cafe she went back to her phone.

Halley pulled out a white and shiny blue tooth from her navy blue, fine cloth back pack. She inserted it into her ear. Not only could in receive calls, which Halley never got anyways, but it also was able to pick up any nearby conversations (With tweaking for the tech girl herself). You see, if a person had a phone around Halley could use that phones speakers, transmit it to her earpiece and well, thats spytech for you. To be honest Halley didn't own much of this equipment but it certainly could be good in eavesdropping times like these.

Brandon, as he always did, woke before the sun. He got up, stretched, made his bed, got changed into heavy sweats, and tossed his workout gear into a simple bag that he threw over his shoulders. His gear included two well worn muay thai hand guards, a pair of shorts, and a gallon jug of water. Brandon then started his day.

Brandon liked to start his morning workout with a three mile run around campus followed by stair sprints. The feeling of being up before the sun was great. The sky was a fantastic violet that was slowly breaking into lighter blues and golds. It was a beautiful scene. As much as he'd like to share it with someone, not everyone was willing to wake up as early as he did. Throwing away such distracting thoughts, Brandon ran on, effortlessly. He had always been a good athlete, so he finished his run in about twenty minutes he wasn't too surprised; that was pretty average. His path had taken him to the school's sports stadium, and there he ran five sets of stairs in another fifteen minutes before jogging back to the school's gym in another five. By the time Brandon had made it to the gym, it was roughly 5:40 am. Brandon set to his cardio first, as it made a better warm up for his weights. Brandon jumped rope for ten minutes and then did box steps for another ten, bringing him to six o'clock. Once he'd finished, he had really started working up a sweat and decided to remove his heavier hooded sweatshirt and sweatpants. He tossed on his shorts and set to weights. Today was chest and back. Brandon did bench, military, and angled presses followed by lat pulls and push ups. Once he was finished, Brandon could finally get to work on his real training.

Instead of making his way to the punching bag, which his half-sister Abby was using, Brandon made his way to a wooden cylinder, set on a rack, with a few wooden bars sticking out of it at odd angles, a training dummy. Approaching the dummy, Brandon took his stance and took a few deep breaths. Brandon allowed the sweat to roll off his forehead and down past his eyes and chin. He stood for what seemed like ages, waiting for some unknown signal. A drop of sweat, grasped tightly by gravity, succumbed to the Earth's pull and began to fall. Suddenly, like an alligator snapping at unsuspecting prey, Brandon began. He rained a hail of blows on the dummy, perfectly deflecting its built in counter strikes and using the machine's rotation to create even more combos. Brandon looked like a human blender, his hands moved so fast that it they appeared to be invisible. Loud cracks of hard bone on wood rang out through the gym, and intensified as Brandon upped his pace. Though the sweat stung his eyes and the strikes hurt his wrists, Brandon kept going until twenty minutes at the dummy had passed. He slowed and eventually stopped, making one last strike at the heart and neck targets. Brandon tiredly walked over to a bench and sat, wiping the sweat from his eyes and taking big gulps of water. He looked up, only to find Abby gone. Breakfast must be soon. Brandon looked at the clock, 7:10 am. He had a little time and there was still practice to be had. Brandon walked over to his bag and pulled on the heavily worn Muay Thai pads and made his way over to the punching bag. It had been worked pretty well by Abby, and there were still a few deformations in the pad from where the foam hadn't sprung back yet. Brandon placed his hands on the pad, mirroring her strikes. He smiled. "She's got a hell of a cross." Brandon whispered to himself, admiring the solid dent on the upper left side of the bag. "My turn." He whispered, and at that, he began.

Muay Thai doesn't just focus on using fists and feet like traditional kickboxing. It uses every part of the human body. Elbows, knees, fists, shins, feet, forearms, and the heel of the palm were all utilized by Muay Thai. Further, from practicing Wing Chun, Brandon had learned to flow between strikes, opening up opportunities for effective combos. As such, Brandon's personal style was fierce and relentless. He pounded on the bag, setting it rocking in rhythm with his strikes. Brandon's fights with his imaginary foe began with more traditional boxing strikes, a few quick jabs, followed by a right hook and a left upper. Once he had drilled his fists into the soft pad and gotten a good feel for pacing, Brandon grappled the bag and sent a loaded knee into the vulnerable ribs of his imaginary opponent. Following his enemy's blind strikes, which were deflected with elbows and forearms, Brandon set to attacking his opponent's limbs, to keep them from striking back. A flurry of blows rained on the left arm, shattering the forearm and breaking the elbow. Afterwards came a devastating low kick to the right knee, setting the foe off balance and into Brandon's waiting elbow. Once the jaw was broken, the right leg was broken at the shin, followed by the right arm, at the elbow, as the desperate, wild haymaker was thrown. His enemy completely immobilized, Brandon's final strike sent a powerful knee into the forehead of his now kneeling enemy. The skull fractured and his imaginary foe was dead. Brandon's strikes were brutally efficient and more than a little gruesome, but war was war. The sooner one was down, the sooner the rest could follow.

After that, Brandon quickly gathered his things, showered in his own room, dove into some clean clothes and a jacket, tossed his dirty clothes into his hamper, put his school supplies in his backpack, and left for breakfast. He jogged across the quad, waving to Harry, Ken, Rose, and a few others as he made his way to the cafeteria. As he walked, he noticed that Rosalie and Selsye were sitting under a tree near the lake, Selsye's nose was buried in her book like usual. Brandon smiled, she had a voracious appetite for books. As Brandon walked he noticed that Rowan Tinne was there too, talking with Rosalie. He wanted to go straight to food, but he could always grab something later; further, the temptation to talk with Selsye and his other friends was too great. He diverted from his path and walked over to the two girls, a big smile on his face. "H-hey!" He fumbled, addressing the group and tripping over a root in his anticipation to talk with Selyse. "What's everyone up to today? Mind if I join you?" He asked, genuine interest and care showing through his slight stutter. Rosalie's presence was making Brandon a bit nervous, but she was a friend, so his usual awkwardness was mostly forgotten. He kneeled down, then sat next to Selsye, on the opposite side from Rosalie, not too close, but not too far away either. Once he was seated, he continued. "Or would you prefer I left you guys alone with your books and your private conversation?" Brandon asked.

Bacon was a beautiful thing, and it’s presence on the buffet this morning made Abby a very happy camper. Free food was unquestionably one of her favorite things about the school for demi-gods, and something she took full advantage of. Abby mostly liked to stick to protein in the morning, as she learned it was best for supporting her hyper metabolism, though sugary foods gave her a quick, if unsustainable burst of energy too. Enhanced speed, demi-god or not, had to be fueled somehow. By the time she’d come through the line, her tray was filled with bacon, scrambled eggs, sausage, and a bowel of fruit salad along with two cartons of milk. She’d seen Thayer sitting at a table with Nolan when she’d come in, and had considered sitting with him, as he was one of the few people here she actually counted as a friend. When she turned back to look at his table however, the sight before her made Abby change her mind. The table was pretty full to begin with, and as she watched Gwen Swann lay her head on Thayer’s shoulder, an strange uncomfortable feeling churned in her gut, so she looked away. They didn’t need another person worming in at their table, and other than Thayer she didn't really talk to any of them, so she walked away. Besides, Nathaniel had just joined their table too, and no one wanted to see an outburst like the last time they’d come into close proximity.

So instead Abby walked on by, and claiming a table of her own after grabbing one of the newspapers off the far wall. She turned straight to the comics section and began reading Garfield as she ate. Being alone was something she was both accustomed to and comfortable with, so the arrangment didn't bother her. Occasional she observed the other occupants of the Cafeteria, like Halley who was clicking away on one of her high tech gizmos, and Xavier who sauntered in and grabbed a muffin after tossing a set of clothing into the garbage. Her eyes narrowed at the latter, knowing his reputation, but with no victim present, and no clue as to who the clothes belonged to, her interference would be pointless, so she let it go. A rather intent look followed the arrogant son of Khione to his table though, before she found the eggs, and Jon’s sudden lack of lasagna to be more interesting.







At times, crossword puzzles were lamentingly easy, and today was one of those days. The New York Times was usually very reliable in their quality of word puzzles, but Wesley supposed that even his city’s home paper had its off days. The Sudoku had at least proven to be a bit more challenging, but even that had only proven to last a measly ten minutes before the entire puzzle too was solved. Wesley had never been able to sleep for long periods of time, and though the young son of Hades had always been a bit of a night owl, he also tended to be up soon after the sun. Wesley did work out, but he wasn’t quite the fitness nut that some of the other men at the academy were, and he preferred to do his workouts a night regardless. In combat classes his physical strength couldn’t compare to that of the children of Zeus or Ares, though he could hold his own, so he preferred to refine his geokinesis for effective combat purposes. That wasn’t really where Wes shined though, as he’d always been more of a ‘behind-the-scenes’ kind of combatant. Psychological and covert warfare was his specialty, and he was a firm believer in working smarter, not harder.

Impeccably dressed as usual, Wesley left his dorm with his messenger bag over his shoulder and a cup of gourmet coffee in hand. Wes didn’t have the palate for cheap coffee, so he made a point of keeping his own machine in his room, that way he could brew what he wanted and how he liked it. Breakfast wasn’t really his thing, though the knowledge that a certain blonde with an endless pit for a stomach would undoubted be there tempted him to head toward the cafeteria. Abby was still angry with him, and though he seemed to have under estimated her ability to hold a grudge, he still found her stubbornness on the matter frustrating. Despite what she insisted, Wes had never lied to her, simply presented half-truths in a purposely ambiguous light. It wasn’t his fault that she filled in the blanks incorrectly and felt compelled to open up to him in an attempt to ease his perceived pain. He honestly wasn’t used to such fervent rejection from women, especially women he was actively pursuing, and while he had found the challenge entertaining at first, he was beginning to become more annoyed by it than anything else. Persistent goading had become his currently strategy, and he’d almost decided to head that way when he ran across a small group of students who included his sister and, in many respects, his closet friend.

“Getting an early start today Colton?” Wes remarked with a knowing smirk toward his friend before turning his eyes toward his sister. “Good morning Tarren.” Wes said politely toward his more fragile sister. Wes tended to keep his distance for Tarren’s sake, as her friends generally didn’t tend to like him, but Wes made a point of keeping an eye on her, and blacklisting those who distressed her. “Rose…Harry.” Wes said in acknowledgement, thought the mutual tension between Harry and Wes was pretty common knowledge. He was however, willing to stay civil for Tarren’s sake if Harry returned the favor.

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As Rose pulled out her notebook and returned back to the drawing, shading the face of who she believed was her father. Again, she had to remind herself that the blurry man in the picture was her father, not her dad. There is a difference to the Romanian. She froze for a minute hearing someone speaking to her. "Very nice drawing," She looked to her side to see Sage. They weren't good friends, but they had no problem with each other. So, whenever they saw one another they were friendly. She looked back down at the pencil drawing with a small smile of accomplishment on her pale face. "The shading is stupendous. It must have taken you a while to draw that." She gave the girl a nod before letting out a small thank you. She watched as the girl walked away and breathed in deeply before going back to the drawing. And before she knew it, she could hear someone else coming up behind her and begin talking to her. And when the person began to speak, she knew exactly who it was. "Woahhh," She turned to look up at her friend, Rowan. When she saw the look in his brown eyes filled with wonder which made her smile towards him. "That IS a nice drawing." She nodded before speaking towards the younger boy.

"Thanks Rowan. I've been working on it forever." She said as she looked back at the photograph before the boy asked her a question. "Rosalie, is that your family?" She looked down at the grass before shrugging. "More or less of a 'family'. I think of them only as the ones that brought me into the world. Nothing more really." She told him before closing the notebook and putting it back in her bad before looking back up at Rowan. She looked at him and only seeing one arm, she raised an eyebrow before standing up and looking in the distance to see Brandon coming towards them. She gave a smirk as he tripped over a root from the tree the girls were under, knowing he was nervous around Selyse. "Hello Brandon." She said giving him a small wave. "What's everyone up to today? Mind if I join you?" "And by join us, you mean join Selyse." She said in her head with sarcasm. Not that she would say it out loud. She didn't want to embarrass her friend, especially someone who couldn't go a day without tripping or stuttering around people. Even Rose herself had better social skills... And she rarely talked to people unless she knew them closely. Which weren't many people. When he knelt down to Selyse, Rose picked up her bag and put it on her shoulder. "Or would you prefer I left you guys alone with your books and your private conversation."

"Actually, I was just about to go to the cafeteria to get some breakfast before class starts." She looked at Rowan before speaking again. "Rowan, do you want to come with me just in case Arielle and her followers are there." She asked darting her eyes in the way towards the cafeteria telling him to go with her or go somewhere that wasn't there.

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As Santiago and Arielle talked about their plans for the weekend, probably including their other best friend, Vanity in their plans. They planned on going into town with a group of friends, hoping to pick up guys for the night. But, the whole time they were talking with each other, Arielle could tell that Santiago was looking for someone. And she knew exactly who that 'someone' was; Nolan Yarley. Someone the Asian girl didn't know a lot about except that he was a Zeus kid and that Santi had eyes for him. Which made her be nice to the baby doll faced boy and for that reason only. She whistled towards the Hawaiian, getting her attention before pointing to a table not too far from the two. "Earth to Santiago. Why do you like him so much, I mean he's... the complete opposite of you and it weird to think of you two together. I mean, it was weird enough knowing you slept with Reuben." She said to him as he rolled his eyes. "Look, I don't need to explain my reasons to anyone but myself. Thank you very much and besides you said you would never bring that up again. I have my reasons for everything I do." He replied before smirking and taking a sip of his black coffee before finally looking in the direction that Arielle had pointed. Showing him where Nolan was sitting. He gave a small smile to the table before returning his stare back to his friend who had a smug look on her face. "Oh what?! What's with the face, Elle?" He asked as the girl simply shook her head before fixing a piece of hair behind her right ear.

"Oh, who are you to talk about romance? You don't like chicks and you make most guys cry themselves to sleep every night. The only guy that might be able to handle you is--" Was all he said before Emmett sat down next to Arielle and spoke. "Good morning fellow students. I hope you're both feeling well on this fine day." With that said, Santiago looked back Arielle who now had a smirk on her face as she looked at the man had just joined them. "Emmett." Ari looked at her best friend before speaking to him, "Shut up, Santiago." She looked back at the man next to her and gave him a charming but sarcastic smile. "Hello Emmett. I don't remember inviting you to sit at our table. But, since you're already here." She said in sarcasm, doing her best to hide her accent, knowing it wasn't most... popular thing to have when you already stick in school like a sore thumb. "You're looking as radiant as ever Ari, made anyone cry yet?" She gave him a smile before flipping her black hair over her shoulder and answering him. "Why thank you very much, It's take effort to be this gorgeous. And sadly, no. Not yet, knowing me it should be anytime now." She told the two males at the table before see Halley, who seemed to have slowed down her pace once seeing Arielle when they were walking in. When she saw the girl looking. Arielle gave the gave a sarcastic wave and smile to match before giving her an eye roll. She watched the girl turn away and go to a table on her own.

Arielle grabbed a small piece of toast off of Emmett tray before nibbling on it and seeing Xavier sit down and speak to Emmett. "Morning." She gave a small smile toward her half brother before speaking to her best friend who had been trying to learn Chinese so they could say things about anything without people knowing exactly what they were saying. "Yánzhòng de shì, zài zhèlǐ wǒmen shuō duìfāng de liǎng gè jiāhuo zhǐshì huá'ěrzī yǐwéi tāmen yǒngyǒu cǐ biǎo." (Seriously, here we are speaking to each other and two guys just waltz up thinking they own this table.) Looking back up from his breakfast, he looked at Xavier before looking to Ari. "Hēi, wǒ bù bàoyuàn de kànfǎ. Érqiě, bù cǎiqǔ xíngdòng, rúguǒ nǐ hèn tāmen ó zhème duō." (Hey, I'm not complaining of the view. And, don't act as if you hate them oh so much.) She scoffed before looking at the two boys at her side. God, Santiago was smart sometimes. Shockingly, but she did enjoy having both Emmett and Xavier around. Xavier was her half brother for gods sakes and Emmett was... Emmett. She always enjoyed having his company. "I guess you're right, but seriously never say that first part again. Do you hear me, Williams? I will end up making you less popular then Rosalie and her little friends." She threatened with her head tilted and a fake sweet smile on her face.

Halley banged her hand lightly on the table as Arielle had just began speaking chinese or something. There was nothing to listen to now. She pulled the earpiece out of her ear gently and placed it back into her backpack. That was enough of that for now. The roman sighed and packed up her things, taking the orange she stuck it in her backpack as well. It would be a good afternoon snack. Across the cafe she could see Thayer, her older half brother. Did Halley dare to walk over to them and sit by Thayer and all his older friends? She didn't feel she had the guts to and it was kind of depressing to be sitting in the cafe by herself. She did see someone else who had always seemed nice, Sage Fitzgerald, she was talking to Xander.

Slowly and nervously Halley packed up her things and began to weave through the tables to Sage, in hope she would be friendly. Halley only saw Sage as the girl behind the book, as she was always reading. Halley wondered what Sage was doing talking to this group of people. By the time she got there she regretted her decision. Talking to people was difficult, to easy to mess up and spend the rest of the day regretting what you said. Talking to machines was easier, they had no emotion or opinion. Yet somehow Halley always enjoyed using the machines. The small girl took the last few steps of her approach to Sage by fixing her wavy, poofy hair. It was a mess at the moment but there wasn't much she could do now, she was only a few feet away from Sage. What if she turned around? What if she tripped? What if she forg-

"Hi Sage..." Halley said quietly wondering if she even caught the girls attention.

Sage was already talking to Xander so Halley waited patiently behind the bookworm and waited for her to finish. Perhaps maybe later Sage could suggest a book for Halley to read. But until then she was stuck next to Sage listing in on whatever Xander had began to say. Halley looked around, many many people Halley did not quite like were there. She felt vulnerable and to show it she fiddle with her fingers and listened to the conversations around her.

"What's that all about?" Emmett asked.

Xavier barely had time to shoot his a small "You'll see," with a smirk before Sage came over.
Turning to face her, Xavier smiled broadly, entwining his fingers and placing them behind his head, waiting for her to speak.
"Just out of curiosity," Sage began, "why did you throw those clothes in the garbage? I walked in, and I saw you dumping them in the dustbin over there. I'm just asking because they looked like girl's clothing, and i was intrigued."

Deciding to ignore the fact that she had the cheek to call him Xander, Xavier studied the girl for a minuet, taking a bite from his muffin and leisurely taking his time to reply.
"Lovely to see you too, Sage," He beamed, pushing aside her question for now - Why on earth should he tell her?
Instead, Xavier continued, "how are you this fine morning?"

Another bite of his muffin and he could tell Sage was agrivated, Xavier loved to wind people up, and seeing as it was so easy for him to do, why shouldn't he?

While waiting for her response Xavier barely heard Halley's greeting to Sage.
"Halley!" He exclaimed, as if they were long-time friends,"How are you? Do join our delightful conversation - I was just saying how much of a fine morning it was, don't you agree?"
The sarcasm dripped from his words as Xavier fixed his favourite fake smile onto his face, oh how he loved this.

Eyeing Halley, Xavier could tell the girl was intimidated even before she had reached the table, and so she should be, anyone of the people on this table could burst her pretty little bubble in a second - Damn, Xavier loved reminding himself that he could do that.

---

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Saiorse Zuri Marisabel Smyth

"Marisa"
Was that Sybil? Saoirse turned her head to see a small figure calling for her - Had she drifted that far out in the water?
Diving under the water to maximize her speed as she swam through the sea.
Re-surfacing, Saoirse turned to Sybil and smiled, greeting he friend she asks,"What's up, you sounded urgent?"

While saying this, she looked around for her clothes, frowning when she realised they had gone, how could they have just 'disappeared'.
Someone must have taken them, but who would be so mean and petty? Saoirse thought, knowing the answer immediately.
"Xavier," She hisses softly, looking at Sybil, "it was him wasn't it?"

Without waiting for a response Saoirse scrunched up her fists; beginning to marching toward the library, water dripping off her skin as she went - Would he be in here?

On the way, she noticed Leo and smiled at him, a small greeting before she ran past and into the building, her hands still tightly balled, she would not hesitating in punching that, that, that ass!
As she stormed into the Library, she suddenly became aware of her predicament - She was standing in the library soaked and everyone staring at her, brilliant.

Shaking it off, Saiorse looked around a little before deciding that he wasn't there, leaving, she made a bee-line for the food-hall, she wouldn't change, no, this way she'd show Xavier that she honestly didn't care (even though she most obviously did).

Before entering the hall, Saoirse hesitated a little, thinking about how humiliated she'd be, but soon Saoirse's fury enveloped her again and she walked calmly but determinedly through the doors, spotting Xavier and walking over to him.
Taking a deep breath, she looked him straight in the eyes, ignoring everyone around her, and asked him simply, "where did you put them?" Never once taking her eyes from the boy.

Maddie had been up long before the sun with her feather duvet curled around her slender frame. The young daughter of Hecate suspected there might be a pop quiz in Mr. Guess's history class this morning and refused to fail. Of course, it was only a rumor that a test would actually be handed out. In any case, Maddie didn't want to take the chance. She would know all the material he'd assigned front to back before stepping foot into that classroom. Occasionally she would curse herself for how irrational she was being when it came to schooling, but Maddie feared falling behind and had vowed to never let it happen. Sure, that meant more study hours and less time with friends, but school came first.

Suddenly, the Tinkerbell alarm clock stationed on Maddie's desk sounded, breaking her trance with the textbook. If she didn't get a move on, she'd be late and then, it wouldn't matter if she was prepared for the possible quiz or not. The vintage-patterned, black and white duvet fell to the floor as Maddie scrambled from bed. She, being anything save for routine, had no idea which outfit she'd be wearing or how her hair would fall, but she knew she better pick up the pace and decide soon. Her closet held an array of colors and fashions. Maddie, though she'd hate to admit it, took pride in her closet and enjoyed mixing and matching different styles. She wasn't one of those girls who took the easy, comfortable route. No. Instead, Maddie always dressed to the nines.

With the realization that she was wasting even more time by just standing there staring, the brunette took off in a flurry, piecing together different articles until she finally stumbled upon an outfit she liked. The aqua colored pants would make her eyes pop and the black overtones would mesh quite well with her hair. Maddie was satisfied with her choice and worked overtime to pull her hair into a low side ponytail. Within moments, she was checking herself over in the mirror ultimately content with her reflection.

A grumble of her stomach reminded Maddie that she hadn't yet been to get breakfast. Inwardly, she cursed herself. She knew she should start managing her time better, but she lacked the discipline to do so. Life wasn't supposed to be planned out down to the last second. After all, time was merely an abstract invention created by man. In a true sense, there was no such a thing as time. Maddie wished more people had the same outlook as she, but didn't dwell on the fact too much as she set out for the cafeteria.

As luck would have it, as soon as she stepped outside the dorms, Maddie spotted her good friend, Austin. Austin took Maddie for who she was, never tried to change her, and always lent an ear should she need one. In the true nature of friendship, Maddie did the same for him, though Austin didn't need her as much as she tended to need him. It was a friendship, nonetheless and she was very proud to have someone as gentle and caring as Austin in her life.

"Austin!" Maddie called from across the way. "Austin, over here!" she yelled out a second time.

Finally, the son of Hypnos spotted her and started towards her. "Good morning, Maddie." Austin told her quietly. His nature was to say only as many words as were necessary to convey his point. Maddie was actually surprised that Austin had ever opened up to her, but now their friendship seemed so natural.

"And to you too." she returned. "I'm headed off to the cafeteria to get something to eat before class. Want to join me?" she questioned. A simple nod of the head was all Austin offered up in return. Maddie took that as a sign that he didn't really want to talk this morning, and so the two walked in silence in the direction of the cafeteria. What Maddie hadn't expected was the scene before them when they arrived. A dripping wet Saoirse stood in front of a crowd, clearly angry. Scanning the group of people, Maddie put together the fact that Xavier had no doubt pulled another prank. While she liked Xavier and thought he was a pretty alright guy, she didn't find this amusing in the slightest.

"Will you go grab me a banana and blueberry muffin, Austin? I'm going to try to help Saoirse." she told her best friend, but carefully left out exactly how she planned to help. Another nod of the head, and Austin was gone. Maddie really did appreciate the fact that he never butted his way into places he didn't belong. If she didn't want to offer up details, he wasn't going to ask for any. She liked it that way.

A table sat empty a row or two down from where the group had gathered. Arielle, Santi, Emmett and a few others were gathered at their regular table and Sage, Halley, and Saoirse all stood in front. Maddie chose the empty table giving her a direct line of sight to Saoirse. With a quick, almost inaudible incantation, the water that dripped from Saoirse dried up. Her swimsuit and hair began to dry as well. In a matter of seconds, there was no more water left on the girl. Maddie knew she was breaking the rules, but she was also helping. Besides, it wasn't like anyone could pinpoint the mystery drying to her. A child of Poseidon could do the same exact thing.

After catching Emmett giving her a vivacious wink as she had predicted, Sage was surprised to find that he looked as curious as she had been when she had questioned Xavier about his actions. With a playful and deceitful look on his face, the child of Khione took a bite out of his blueberry muffin, and took his time to respond, as though the question meant no significance. To say the least, Sage was disgusted by his attitude.

"Lovely to see you too, Sage," he said, a wildly insolent grin on his face, "how are you this fine morning?"
He took another bite of his muffin. Clearly he wasn't in the mood to give her a direct answer.
"Dandy." she replied, a dark smirk on her face, "Although, I've been better."

"Hi Sage..." said a soft, monotonous voice behind her. The voice had belonged to a girl's, and it was awfully quiet, as though a mouse had just learned how to speak. Slightly turning her head and casting her eyes as far to the right as they could go, Sage glanced at none other than Halley McClain, a daughter of Hephaestus.

"Hello, Halley." she greeted, matching Halley's sweet-sounding tone. Although Sage respected Halley and had absolutely nothing against her, she couldn't help but wonder why the girl had even bothered to approach her. Just from the way her voice slightly trembled, it was evident that Halley had been reluctant to approach the table. So why did she? In the midst of a battle of sarcastic remarks, it was almost a foolish decision to approach her at that moment....

Of course, it wasn't long until the hawk started to claim its prey. "Halley!" Xavier sarcastically greeted the girl,
"How are you? Do join our delightful conversation - I was just saying how much of a fine morning it was, don't you agree?"
A simple polite question was now turning into something else. Sage was never one to have a short-fuse, but it was the mocking of the weak that she couldn't stand, even if the victim was being taunted in a subtle manner. As she stared at the arrogant boy with intimidating and chilling eyes, the feather attached to the chain around her neck started to glow, as if supernaturally. The expression on her face became intense with anger.
"She wasn't ta-..."

Sage had lost her focus when out of the corner of her eye, she saw a girl furiously sauntering into the food hall, her wet bathing suit dripping water onto the floor. At first, Sage was confused by Saoirse's entrance, but after recalling that the girl was a child of Poseidon, everything instantly clicked in her head. Xavier had stolen the clothes from Saoirse while she was swimming. It only made sense.

"Where did you put them?" she said simply. With the enraged glimmer in her eyes, the plain words came out ferociously. Sage watched as Saoirse stared at Xavier. The two seemed to shoot daggers at each either as their gazes interlocked.
"Saoirse, are you talking about jeans, a tee-shirt, and a red and white cardigan?" she said calmly to the infuriated girl. It was that moment that Sage noticed Madison Bridle, a daughter of Hecate, standing next to Saoirse, using mystokinesis to dry the soaked girl. Madison was someone who Sage had always consistently shown recognition to. She always seemed to have her head on straight.

The child of Athena briskly walked over to the garbage can, pulled the clothing out, and gently handed it to Saoirse.
"I'm assuming these are yours? I discovered them while I was entering into the cafeteria. Someone was propelling them into the trash when I arrived."
She didn't mention Xavier's name. She was well aware that Saoirse already knew who had committed the devious crime.

Looking at the table in front of her as well as the three girls standing behind her, Sage crossed her arms and let out a half-smile. She didn't want to wage a war, nor did she want to attract anyone else to the table, so she decided it was best to leave.
"Right, well, I best be off to my first period class. Don't want to be late for the bell. Antío."
As she ended her sentence in a heavy Greek accent, the blonde gave a small wave, and disappeared into the hallway.

"Ti éna MALAKA." she cursed Xavier under her breath.


(ooc: @PatchworkHeart AAAACK!! Sorry about Xavier's name!!! :( Looking back, I realize that I had confused his name with a character named Xander from a different roleplay. I would tell you to change the post, but I think i'm going to keep it. It'd be kind of funny for Sage to know everyone else's name at the academy except for Xavier's, and have her mess up his name throughout the roleplay. :D)

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As soon as he showed his arm to the group of three, Rowan noticed that Selyse was the first one to react. Then again, she would be the first one to react. She was a daughter of Tyche, the goddess of luck. Crazy things NEVER happened to her. Embarassment did not exist. By the way Selyse Hendrickson dressed and acted, she knew she didn't have to worry about getting bad grades, losing games, or being harassed. With luck, the world could be handed to you on a silver platter. Rowan wondered what his life would have been like if his father would have met Tyche instead of Hecate...

"It will fade, though, won't it?" she said with concern. This threw him off guard, as he was expecting all three of them to laugh at him. "Yeah, I should be fine." he said, "The girl I bumped into was one of Iris's daughters, so I don't think it should last long..." He then twisted and turned his arm in the sunlight, and a smile crept onto his face, "In fact, I think it's starting to grow on me. I might use it to scare people or something..."

Selyse then turned to Brandon, who was still sitting, and asked if he wanted to come to breakfast as well. Rowan looked out across the lake, watching people as they wandered and socialized. Having the guts to approach Rosalie and Selyse, Rowan realized that he wasn't as small as he thought he was. Everyone on the campus was different and made their own pathways in life. He looked down at his blue opal bracelet. Maybe he would find courage after years of waiting. Coming back down to earth, Rowan waited for Brandon's response, and then decided he would follow the group. He wouldn't have much to talk about, but at least he wouldn't be getting breakfast alone.

As Halley was able to catch Sage's attention she unfortunately caught Xavier's as well. And when he said her name in an over the top voice she jumped a little bit, startled. "How are you? Do join our delightful conversation - I was just saying how much of a fine morning it was, don't you agree?" Halley looked from Sage then back toward Xavier, making sure to avoid all eye contact. He was asking her a question? Why? It was a stupid question anyway, he'd said it out of fun, just to see what she'd do. It was kind of like a messed up game in away. However Halley took it a little bit too seriously, she didn't know what the morning was like, the weather that is. She hadn't been outside at all day. So as a response she panicked and mumbled the words "fine I guess" But to most people it came out with no diction, leaving a wordless murmur. The Hephaestus girl adjusted her backpack straps and went back to playing with her fingers.

But Halley hadn't came to talk to Xavier, she only wanted to talk to Sage, hoping to make a friend. Sage was about to make it clear that Xavier shouldn't be involved in their conversation and she was getting awfully angry. When Sage turned to the cafe entrance and Halley followed her gaze. In walked two girls, one sopping wet the other Halley recognized as Maddie Bridle, an older girl and child of Hecate. Halley was simply confused by the situation. She was glad however that the attention no longer rested on her. Instead lye on Saoirse, Child of Aphrodite who was now marching over to the garbage can and retrieving dry clothes.

For some reason Halley found it mildly funny at how angry the girl was, never in her life had Halley pulled a prank or tried to upset anyone. She let out a small giggle and was trying not to smile, though it was shown on her face. While Halley had been trying not to laugh she heard Sage close the little ordeal by saying "Right, well, I best be off to my first period class. Don't want to be late for the bell. Antío."Assuming the word Antio meant goodbye the child of Hephaestus looked over to Sage who was already halfway out the door. Halley took out her phone and began to walk in the same direction hoping 'Xavier and friends' would say nothing else.

Sybil Nolan

Saoirse emerged from the water, her eyes already casting around for her clothes. When she saw that they had gone Saoirse took little time to realise who had done it.
"Xavier... it was him wasn't it?" Her words came out as a hiss, her growing anger was evident.
Sybil nodded and Saoirse marched off before she could reply. Sybil didn't know that Saoirse could move so fast, she was quickly gone from sight disappearing around a bend. Sybil followed at a slower pace, unsure whether she wanted to watch the confrontation with Xavier.
In the end she decided to follow Saoirse, Sybil would enjoy seeing Xavier face an angry Saoirse.

Although she quickly lost Saoirse it wasn't hard to follow her, there was a trail of water from where she had dripped onto the ground. The trail led into the library and Sybil had just reached the door when Saoirse stormed out. Apparently Xavier hadn't been in there. This time Sybil managed to keep closer to Saoirse and followed her into the cafeteria.

It was crowded, a multitude of students were gathered at tables eating their breakfast and chatting. But it was towards one table that Sybil's attention was drawn. It was the table that Saoirse headed towards, stopping beside Sage and Halley. Saoirse didn't even seem to realise that she was still dripping wet as she stared down Xavier. Beside Xavier sat Emmett, a grin on his face as he watched the drama. Sybil had never understood how he could be friends with Xavier, or even Arielle. She knew that Emmett's personality appealed to a lot of different people, but he didn't go in for the same mean pranks as Xavier and he was never as bitchy as Arielle... or at least he wasn't towards and around Sybil.

Sybil stopped just short of joining Saoirse at the table, given that Sage and Halley were already there and she didn't want to overcrowd the area. She could hear and see everything fine but Sybil prefered to avoid Xavier's attention, which was much better achieved by staying a safe distance away.
Sybil tuned in to what was happening. Sage appeared to be questioning Xavier on what he had done. When Saoirse arrived Athena's daughter seemed to quickly connect the dots. She walked over to a rubbish bin and pulled out the discarded clothing.

The clothes were handed over, a relief to Sybil, and Sage said her farewells to the table, Halley following quickly after her. Crisis averted. Sybil decided that, given the number of people in the cafeteria, her presence was hardly needed and she slowly made her way over to the spread of breakfast food where she grabbed an apple for her breakfast.

Emmett Meade

Emmett watched the drama unfold, a grin spread across his face. Honestly, he couldn't have thought of a better way to start his day. As Saoirse appeared, dripping wet and wearing nothing but her swimming suit, Emmett clapped Xavier on the back. The man was a genius and this was a masterpiece. Emmett sat back in his chair, arms over his head and gazed appreciatively at Saoirse.

It had become apparent, at the girl's arrival, what Xavier had done. That was why he considered Xavier one of his good friends, he had a way of making entertainment such as this happen.
Sage returned Saoirse's clothing, much to Emmett's disappointment and then left with the final parting words:
"Right, well, I best be off to my first period class. Don't want to be late for the bell. Antío."
At the reminder of class Emmett felt his enjoyment of a moment ago sink. Class, what a bore.
Well, first he would have to finish his food.

Emmett dug into his food, scraping the last few items of his plate. As he ate he kept an eye on those gathered around the table. He hadn't failed to notice Sybil, standing back a bit from their table. The quiet Hephaestus girl had come and gone too, bringing out a sweet looking phone as she left. Emmett's eyes had immediately latched onto the item. His fingers itched. He stood up abruptly, gave a nod of farewell to those around the table and then ran to catch up with Halley.

A friendly smile spread across his face as he fell into step with the girl. He had never had much to do with Halley. The girl was quiet and he had rarely had reason to talk with her. He most likely would have ignored her completely if not for the treasure trove of technology that she possessed.
"Halley, how are you?" His tone was friendly, casual as if he were catching up with an old friend. His eyes darted from her face to the phone in her hand and then back. Of course he wouldn't steal it right out of her hand, there was no skill in that, only brute force. No, he wanted to see exactly what the phone could do before he tried to nick it.

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---

As she finished talking to Santiago, she looked to the side to see someone else join the table. Paige Harrison, a girl who was somewhat of one of Arielle's friends, she could roll with the punches. Which was a giant plus for most of Arielle, that means she wouldn't cry and boo hoo about the comments that came out of her mouth. She looked to the side to at least acknowledge the girl who had just sat down. "Hey Paige." which was followed with a small wave. All the while, Santiago was throwing away his tray before sitting back down at the table across from his friend. She was about to say something before closing her mouth and turning her attention to Sage. She quickly lose her joy and the cold look that was always in her eyes, came back. And, earlier than usual.It at least returned right before going to class. She wasn't complaining through. Santiago looked to his side and looked her up and down as Sage began to speak to group. "Excuse me," She tilted her head to the side in sarcastic politeness, waiting to hear what was oh so important that she had to come up to them now. "Sorry to infringe your conversation, but I have to ask Xander a question." She watched as the girl's eyes go on to Emmett for a while which infuriated her even more and Arielle couldn't even explain why. But, whatever the reason, just Sage's presence truly annoyed Ari. She looked at her half brother with a raised eyebrow, wondering just what the hell he did now. "Just out of curiosity, why did you throw those clothes in the garbage? I walked in, and I saw you dumping them in the dustbin over there. I'm just asking because they looked like girl's clothing, and i was intrigued." She looked toward the dustbin and looked back at Sage. Right when she was about to say something, Santiago said the same thing on her mind. "Oh c'mon. From the looks of the clothes. They needed to be in there any way." He told the girl with a serious face and a shrug of his shoulders. Arielle turned towards Xavier as he started his sarcastic act.


"Lovely to see you too, Sage, how are you this fine morning?" Before anyone knew it, Halley had walked up behind Sage, again infuriating the small girl. "Hi Sage..." Arielle let a small scoff out before rolling her eyes. Halley, at least to Arielle was just one of the pesky bugs that wouldn't go away. She always felt the need to be around people mostly when people came up to either talk to or confront Arielle herself or one of her friends. "Halley! How are you? Do join our delightful conversation - I was just saying how much of a fine morning it was, don't you agree?" She let out a small smile before speaking. "It was anyways before you two came over here." She told them as she turned back to the two girls standing up on the other side of the table near Santiago. And before anyone knew it all the eyes were on the front door as Saiorse walked in and stormed to the table to Xavier. "where did you put them?" Oh, so they were the mermaid's clothes. "Huh? I could see that now." Then again Xavier would pull a prank on anyone or anything... other then Arielle herself. She didn't want to do something drastic to her half-brother because of an idiotic prank. After a moment, Saoirse somehow got dyed out of no where. And, Maddie walked next to the daughter of Posiden. "Saoirse, are you talking about jeans, a tee-shirt, and a red and white cardigan?" Now, Santiago and Arielle were just watching the now boring conversation. When Sage walked to the bin and back, showing the other girl the clothes. "I'm assuming these are yours? I discovered them while I was entering into the cafeteria. Someone was propelling them into the trash when I arrived." Arielle just rolled her eyes once again with the fire in her eyes now dulled down in boredom. "Right, well, I best be off to my first period class. Don't want to be late for the bell. Antío." She watched Sage exit, leaving Saoirse and two overly nice and nervous girls at the table.

"Great now that you have your rags back, you can leave now. Seeing that your guys' little leader has left. And Halley, what was the purpose of coming up here if you were only to give off this nervous vibe to us?It's pathetic." She told them with a fake smile on her face before watching Halley walk off without another word. She waved the girl off before looking back to Emmett who was surprisingly quiet. When he got up and gave them a nod for goodbye. Arielle just gave him a scoff that ended with a small laugh. "Go get your girl, Emmett." She told him in sarcasm as walked out of the cafe and to Halley. Arielle looked at Santiago who was just rubbing his temples from being so irritated. Something he did everyday. "I need another coffee, want one Elle?" She nodded, knowing he already knew how she liked it. She playfully pushed him as he watched past her. She felt someone kick her seat, knowing it was he best friend who had a smirk on his tan face without saying another word. So, with no one left other than Paige and Xavier. She turned her attention to the two. "So, Santi and I are thinking of going out to two after the classes let out. Wanna go with my new big brother and new friend? She asked, knowing it wasn't really an option.

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OOC:I will do Rose later today, I'm in a hurry.

Halley was determined to catch up to the bookworm and she had almost reached a fast walking speed. But Emmett Meade had other plans. He was suddenly walking in step with her and eyeing her phone. He began by asked "Halley, how are you?" in a quite similar tone Xavier had asked how her morning was. She couldn't quite recall what God Emmett's father was but to be sure she pulled her phone closer to her chest casually just incase he went for it. Her OmniSerm Phone was her life. It would never leave her site, ever. As she pulled it to her chest she quickly tapped the bottom corner on the back of it which caused it to completely shut down, left looking like any other iphone size sheet of glass.

"uhh fine..." Halley mumbled in her small voice, she was nervous around Emmett, always. He was smiling at her, But not in the warm friendly way she would have liked. It was in a way of slyness, it even made her palms slightly sweaty. 'Why can't people just leave me alone, this is why I don't talk to people. It attracted other people, whom I wasn't intending to talk to.' The child of Hephaestus thought to herself shaking her head just slightly.

"I'm just trying to catch up to Sage." She spoke a little louder this time but kept her eyes to the ground. There was no use looking at him, that would make things worse. As she stared at the ground she only thought 'If I don't look at him he'll go away...' surely this would be a solution as she had no other strategies. Halley waited for whatever obnoxious thing Emmett might say next which anything he said at all would be classified into the obnoxious category.

Leonard's room was his haven. The small room was where the boy spent most of his time; reading, studying and hiding from the other students. Lenny was shy and he knew it. It didn't help that he was reasonably new to Mount Olympus either. The odd few who he had managed to talk to were still more acquaintances than anything. Of course there were one or two that he would consider a friend, but unless he was alone with them he rarely spoke.

Lenny thrust thoughts of friends out of his mind as he gently placed his pile of books on his desk. The desk was already strewn with books; novels, textbooks, biographies and even the odd magazine. Thick notebooks stood pressed against the wall, the book ends at either side of the collection barely keeping them standing. Carefully Lenny selected one of the notebooks, the most recent, and flicked it open to a bare page.


The neatly formed words introduced Lenny's most recent topic of interest. Pulling out his desk chair Lenny sat down. He grabbed one of the books he had brought with him and opened it to the desired page. While his eyes scanned the text his hand reached for a pen, finding it in the usual place. He uncapped it with his teeth before setting it down on his notebook page. Flicking his eyes between the book and his blank page Leonard began to make notes, adding to the information the book provided when needed:


It wasn't until Lenny's stomach gave a weak growl that he put the pen down, shaking his hand out softly. He took a moment to reread over his work before, satisfied, he placed the notebook back in its designated place. He stood and stretched before glancing at the time. Lenny gave a sigh, almost time for class. The boy loved learning and so would usually have been excited for the beginning of the school day, only it also meant interaction with people.
"Another day of stuttering and awkward silences.' He said quietly to himself. His stomach gave another growl, as if trying to remind Lenny of the real issue: food. Lenny knelt down beside his bed and pulled out the box of snacks that he kept under it. He usually did eat in the cafeteria but since he often studied late into the night he had thought it a good idea to keep a personal supply of food.

He selected a muesli bar and began to nibble on it as he opened his wardrobe. He hadn't actually changed out of his clothes from the previous day since he had fallen asleep late last night at his desk and then raced to the library when he woke in the early morning. Lenny stared at his clothes and pulled out one of his usual outfits. Simple, plain and not likely to draw much attention. Once changed Leonard collected his bag and slung it across his back. It was heavier than it looked, containing a plethora of books, pens and whatever else Lenny thought he might need for his day.

Once outside his room Lenny made his way quickly towards his first class. The bell hadn't actually rang yet and he would most likely be the first student to arrive, but that was the way he preferred it. Arriving early would mean that he could pick his seat and avoid any awkward late entrances. He hated the thought of walking late into a full classroom and have everyone stare at him as he tried to find a seat.

As he had hoped the classroom was empty and Lenny quickly made a beeline for the back window seat. He placed his bag on the desk, pulled out a book and began to read.



Despite the fact that Emmett had greeted her with his friendliest smile - or perhaps because of it - Halley clutched her gadget a little closer, tapping the corner quickly to turn the screen off. Emmett hid a smirk, she might have thought that that was enough to hide the phone from Emmett but Emmett's eyes were sharp and he had easily seen all he needed to catch his interest before she hid it.

Emmett most likely would have left her then had not her nerves at his presence made him hesitate. She was obviously anxious having him around, her mousy voice barely managed to get out the words, "uhh fine..." .
Emmett often walked a fine line between teasing and bullying. Most people that he playfully insulted could either throw one right back at him or brush his off without much effort. The meek, quiet types like Halley would be more inclined to find that his sarcastic comments fell into the bullying category.

"I'm just trying to catch up to Sage." Halley's words came out stronger this time, much to Emmett's surprise. However her eyes were still staring resolutely at the ground, as if by not looking at Emmett he might disappear. Emmett was reminded of the 'Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal', a monster from the book 'The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy'. Emmett had never finished reading the book but he had read enough to find out about this fictional monster. The Ravenous Bugblatter Beast assumed that if you couldn't see it, than it couldn't see you.

He couldn't help but laugh, the girl was obviously no monster but she also had little idea of how to deal with people like Emmett. However, since there was no chance of him procuring her phone just now, he saw no point in sticking around.
"Well, run along Hal. You don't want to lose her." Emmett remarked, shortening her name. He mimed blowing her a kiss before peeling off and marching towards the dormitories. He thought that he should probably shower before he made his way to class. He didn't know how much time he had before class actually started but he was determined to have a long, luxurious shower. He was sure there was plenty of time anyway and if he was late to class, so be it.

"Well, run along Hal. You don't want to lose her." Was all Halley heard before Emmett was on his way again. He'd shortened her name too, which she won't have minded except it was Emmette, not one of her good friends. The quiet girl scrunched her nose in distress, hoping that would be the last time he'd come in contact with Emmett though knowing very clearly it would not. Before running to catch up with Sage, Halley turned her phone back on, seeing she had no new messages or updates the girl ran to catch up with Sage. She also decided that this would be the last time she'd try to be social, it was so much harder than she'd expected.

There was only a few reasons Halley would even approach anyone. In this situation she simply felt lonely and homesick. Sage seemed nice and she always used big words, okay maybe they weren't that big but, she always sounded so smart. Obviously the last thing The girl of Hephaestus want was to be a burden to Sage. That was how she felt to mostly everyone. Which made her start to think. Maybe Sage didn't like Halley. Maybe she was running away from her. Why would the bookworm run away though. Did Halley smell? Was she annoying? Did Sage find Halley's naturally quiet voice obnoxious? There was so many thoughts that made the little girl finally slow down her walk. That was enough socializing for today. She was at her classes room anyways. She walked into it, the air smelled like pencils, paper, and desks. That clean class smell, every room started with at the beginning of the year. As Halley came into the room Low and behold, the opposite of that really sitting in the back of the room was Leonard Moreland. He was completely kept to himself though. So Halley pretended not to see him and sat in the middle of all the desks. Her navy blue backpack swung over the shoulder of the chair she quietly tapped away on her phone. Just waiting for the bell to ring, or the teacher to come in...anything.

After copying the twenty tests that he would need for his second period class, Raymond Guess confidently breezed through the hallway, whistling a tune as he passed the various classrooms. So far, the year at Mount Olympus Academy had gone relatively well. There had been no problems in any of his classes, (save for a few rambunctious students here and there) and he could see another smooth year of teaching approaching his way. One thing that surprised him about the classes he taught this year were HOW WELL the students could keep up with their studies. In fact, most of his classes were comprised of Franklins, Einsteins, and Edisons. He barely had to stress about the kids learning the material. Even if they didn't grasp the key concepts of history as fast as others did, all the students in his classes were intelligent in their own unique ways.

208...210...212.
Mr. Guess entered his classroom. The brightness of the sun that glimmered through the window highlighted the red pigments in the carpet. Because of the luminous interior, the teacher never had to turn on the lights. The bare white walls were covered in a plethora of posters, shelves, and artifacts. On one side of the wall, a brightly colored African tribal mask hung with pride. On another side, different vases with Greek battles depicted on them stood quaintly upon black wooden shelves. With all the stuff in his room, combined with the scribbles of dates and ancient peoples and places on the white board in the front of the accomodation, one could get easily lost in the museum-like learning space that was classroom number 212.

Mr. Guess placed the blank tests on his gray desk. He moved them far to the side, and then pulled out his attendance sheet from the drawers below. He nonchalantly checked the board, making sure it was clean. He was just about to leave, when he caught a mysterious figure sitting just out of the corner of his eye. He swiftly rotated his head to welcome the student with a wide grin.
"What's up, Leonard?" he energetically said, "How's it going? I'll be right back after the bell rings. Just going back to the teacher's lounge to get some coffee."

With that, he strolled out of the room, opening the door a little bit wider, as classes would be starting soon.

---

As she rushed to her first-period class, Sage quizzed herself on the Battle of Thermopylae in her head. Random names and dates swirled around like a whirlpool in her mind. The Battle of Thermopylae occurred in 480 B.C., Xerxes commanded the Persian troops. The pass where the Greeks led the Persians controlled the only road between Thessaly and Central Greece. Ephialtes was a traitor who led the Persians through the Anopaea path, allowing the large Persian fleet to attack the Greeks from behind...

Behind...

Someone was behind her.

Sage glanced backward, her eyes widening when she stared upon what seemed to be her shadow, Halley McClain. Of course, there was nothing suspicious about Halley being in the hallway, but with her eyes locked on Sage from far away...was she following her? Awkwardly approaching her in the cafeteria merely wanting to say 'hi'...it was probable. But why? Why would Halley McClain be following her? Did she have a question she needed answered? A task she needed fulfilled? Sage would question her motives later if the stalking continued. She hoped that the hushed girl actually had a purpose in following her. To the child of Athena, people who approached her with no purpose or goal in the conversation were only considered a waste of her time.

As she made her way towards room 212, Sage happened to pass Mr. Guess as he sauntered out of the classroom towards the direction of the teacher's lounge. Although it had been a short period of time, she already knew his mind. Mr. Guess always came to his classroom after the bell in order to have a fresh cup of coffee with him as he taught.
"Hey, Sage."
"Hello, Mr. Guess."
She momentarily watched him walk past her, and then proceeded to enter the classroom. Taking a seat at the front of the class, Sage pulled out her history notebook and textbook, as well as various folders, writing utensils, and historical books. It was amazing how the girl could cram an abundant amount of stuff onto such a tiny desk. She opened her notebook, and started to jot down the date on the top of the page while also keeping a lookout on the entranceway. Eventually, Halley came, taking a seat at one of the desks in the middle of the classroom. For some reason, Sage had expected her to come into the room faster than she did. She glanced back once again, catching a familiar figure hunched over at the back of the class: Leonard Moreland.

Like Sage, Leonard Moreland was a talented student, and a child of Athena. He was also the only person who could beat her to class. (On average, he had managed to come into class thirty seconds faster than her. Sage still wondered how he was able to do it.) She stared at him, knowing that there were so many questions she needed to ask him. Maybe he knew much more about the goddess of wisdom than she did. All Athena had ever revealed of herself to her was essentially an owl, and a golden blanket. Like many students at the academy, perhaps he had met the goddess himself. Sage found herself determined to ask the lanky boy these questions right away. Besides, he was her brother, and she hadn't even told him her own name yet.

Maybe her attempt to start a conversation with him would even inspire Halley to socialize with others instead of following Sage around for no apparent reason...

She stood next to his desk, and put a small, polite smile on her face.
"Sorry to interrupt you from your reading," she gently started, "but I feel the need to properly introduce myself to you. My name is Sage Fitzgerald. Like you, I was born to the goddess of wisdom, reason and battle strategy: Athena. Your name... it's Leonard Moreland; correct?"
She firmly extended her hand toward him, but she made sure not to block the book that was extended upon his desk. It was his choice to respond to her actions or completely disregard her existential presence.



OOC: Will post for Rowan very soon

With his hands in his pockets Emmett lazily made his made towards his dorm. He was whistling a tune to himself, anyone hearing it would not be able to place the song since it seemed to change with Emmett's fancy, altering from that new song he'd heard the other morning to an olden goldie that his grandparents liked.

His whistling quietened as his eyes cast over the face of the dorms, alighting onto the many open curtains and the rooms beyond. Most people were getting breakfast or on their way to class. Most people would have left their rooms blissfully unguarded. Emmett's eyes darted from window to window, the seed of an idea forming. He spotted one window that showed life, he could see curious shadows moving behind the curtains and it took him a moment to realise that the room belonged to Miles and Adam. Emmett's mouth twitched into a smile, no 'borrowing' from that room today. He made a habit of checking Miles' fridge for goodies. Recently the boy had started to lock his fridge, a waste of time given that locks opened for Emmett without the need for keys. Just one of the perks of being Hermes' son.

He was jolted out of his thoughts by the sudden appearance of his half-brother. Quentin looked horrified, not at almost running into Emmett but at the idea of losing a moment of sleep.
”What day is this? Is it Saturday? Does that mean I can go back to sleep?... It can't be Saturday, because that means yesterday would have been Friday, and I definitely do not recall getting wasted last night.” His words tumbled out, not giving Emmett enough time to reply. Emmett waited for Q to finish, a smile on his face as he watched his brother talk. Finally Q stopped talking, his face splitting into a grin.
”So where are you headed then? Up to no good? Need a wing-man? ... Holy fuckballs, I need some coffee."

Emmett pushed a stray curl out of his eyes, letting his own smile grow to mimic Q's grin.
"I was just on my way to have a shower, but I think I'll stop by and... pop into a few rooms. I've gotta check that no one's brought illicit substances into the school." Emmett knew that his brother would understand what he meant, it was obvious that Emmett's interests lay in breaking the school rules, not protecting them. He gave a lazy shrug before continuing, "What can you do when you live with a bunch of deviants? Someone's gotta keep 'em in line. You're welcome to join me."
Emmett liked to work alone, preferring not to be slowed down by the clumsy attempts of others. That is unless it was Quentin. Q was the only person that Emmett would even consider taking with him. But, as Emmett looked at his half-brother, he wondered if he would join him this time. As Q had mentioned, he needed a coffee. Emmett wouldn't hold it against him if he decided to pass on this particular adventure.

---

Head down, nose in his book was how Leonard spent most of his time when he was trying to disappear. Today, sitting alone in the classroom, he found that he was readying himself for the arrival of others. His back was hunched over his desk, the book as close to his face as he could get it without actually hitting him.
The book? A stunning work on the string theory. The physics of the idea was breathtaking and Lenny was completely absorbed in its depths. His brain was absorbing and playing with the ideas as he read, his eyes flying across the words.

It wasn't until footsteps sounded, and close, that Lenny's attention was diverted. His eyes flicked up above the pages of his book to see Mr Guess, son of Poseidon and the History teacher, placing papers on his desk. It took him a moment to spot Leonard, all the way at the back of the room and when he did Lenny quickly ducked his head back behind his book. Then Lenny thought perhaps it was rude to ignore him, Mr Guess was a teacher after all. So, hesitantly, he looked back up.

"What's up, Leonard?... How's it going? I'll be right back after the bell rings. Just going back to the teacher's lounge to get some coffee."

The words sent a wave of relief through the shy boy, he wouldn't have to struggle to think of something to say now. However his relief was short lived because a moment later a girl walked in. Leonard recognised her immediately as Sage Fitzgerald, his half-sister. His eyes widened and he hunched further down in his seat. He was shy around everyone, Sage was no different. Only his shyness stemmed from a fear that, as her half-brother, he would somehow disappoint her. He also spotted the arrival of Halley and was pleased when she sat down in the middle of the room, not attempting to converse with him.

It seemed that Sage had no such problems with approaching him. With a polite smile on her face she thrust out her hand and introduced herself.
"Sorry to interrupt you from your reading... but I feel the need to properly introduce myself to you. My name is Sage Fitzgerald. Like you, I was born to the goddess of wisdom, reason and battle strategy: Athena. Your name... it's Leonard Moreland; correct?"
Lenny took a slow breath, steeling his nerves. Among other things Athena was the goddess of Courage and Lenny, as her son, would have to take a leaf out of his mother's book. Only... only the words stuck in his throat as he tried to answer Sage. His hands fumbled as he marked his page and put the book down. He managed to take Sages hand and give her a quick shake before withdrawing his hand.

He took a gulp, then a deep breath and then another gulp as he calmed his nerves.
"You... you can call me Lenny." His voice came out surprisingly strong, despite the initial stutter. Then his mind started to race. Perhaps he was being to forward? Or not friendly enough? As a fellow child of Athena was Sage also scared of spiders? Was she, unlike him, a warrior? What weapon did she favour? He knew she was smart, perhaps he could ask her to compare notes? Or would that also be too forward. In the end he bit his tongue and waited for Sage to make the next move.

The boy looked up at Sage with slight anxiety in his intense greenish-blue eyes. Both of the demigods' eyes were similar. Sage's had more of a gray hue to them, but compared to Leonard's, they had a corresponding light shade of colors. Noticing this, the sixteen-year-old girl realized that light-colored eyes must have been a trait of Athena's. Her father possessed dark blue eyes, nowhere near the color of Sage's. Perhaps it was the same case for Leonard. Just by approaching him, she was already learning about her godly parent.

She watched as his hands trembled as though he had been electrocuted. She was expecting him to be shocked or annoyed, but not frightened. His hands managed to mark the page where he had stopped reading, and as his book dropped to the surface of the desk, it made a faint echo in the classroom. He grabbed her hand, and briskly shook it. He looked as though he was choking on his own words. Finally, he calmed down, and although he stuttered, his voice came out oddly powerful.
"You... you can call me Lenny." he said after he initially removed his grip on her hand. It was the quickest handshake Sage had ever received in her life.

Contemplating the fact that this boy seemed to move rather hastily in everything he did, Sage continued the conversation.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Lenny." she said, taking a quick glance back at Halley afterwards. Would the daughter of the god of blacksmithing and crafting join the conversation? It was hard to predict. To Sage, Halley had a certain complexity about her that was quite complicated for her to understand. Children of Hephaestus always had questionable qualities that down-to-earth children like Sage just couldn't comprehend.

She placed Halley in the back of her mind and turned to face Leonard again. It was then that she caught sight of the title of the book he was reading. A certain spark of excitement lit up in her head and spread throughout her body.
"Jeremy Sanshone, "The String Theory; A Brilliant Branch of Theoretical Physics". That's what you are reading, correct? I picked that one up exactly one week ago for a bit of light reading. His definitions are prodigiously coherent, aren't they?"
She spoke fluently, yet utterly fleeting that someone with poor ears would have a hard time understanding what she was saying.
"Believe it or not, Jeremy Sanshone was actually a demigod himself! A child of Momus, in fact. I would continue reading more of his works, but I've been awfully caught up with circle constants and tau that, well...I've almost forgotten to go to the library and pick up more of his books!"
She gave a slight chuckle, and then the raised lines on her face dropped into their original positions as she calmed down.
"Well, it was nice meeting you, Lenny. I hope we can chat again sometime soon. I have many questions to ask you, but I'll hold them until classes for today are over. Just wanted to give you a warning."

She gave him one last polite smile, and then promptly walked over to her desk located towards the front of the classroom. She sat and wrote notes until history class began.

---

---

It was interesting to see that Rosalie and Brandon had different reactions when inspecting Rowan's eerie green arm. They made light of the situation instead of making it darker and more serious. "Nice going, buddy." Rosalie said in playful sarcasm. Brandon, on the other hand, had a reflex of burly laughter. It brought a smile upon Rowan's face to see at least SOMEONE laugh about his condition. After a while, though, he seemed to contain himself. He then apologized, confusing Rowan. What Brandon was apologizing for was exactly what the son of Hecate wanted to happen.

"My buddy Jayce is a child of Hecate, just like you, he's been here a while and is pretty good at minor magic like that. If you like, I could talk to him about helping you remove it. He's always looking into some pretty goofy stuff, so I bet he's got a seal for that."
What Brandon had said threw Rowan off guard a little. "Jayce?" he asked. Rowan knew Jayce. He was his brother. Like Rowan, Jayce knew how to cast spells. He could perform magic, and quite well to say the least. There was only one thing about Jayce that Rowan was simply perplexed by: his multiple personality disorder. He knew that if he did it right, he would be able to remove the pigment off of his arm without the help of Jayce. But then again, that was if he DID IT RIGHT. With his bad luck, he'd probably cause the pigment to become permanent on his arm. He didn't want to risk it, and so Rowan knew that Jayce, being better at spells, would probably be the one to cure his condition. Although the thought of Jayce curing his arm, of all people, was a bit worrisome, it was also intriguing.

"Alright, sounds good." Rowan replied to Brandon. What was the worst that could happen? It would be rude to turn down the offer. Afterwards, Selyse helped Brandon up onto his feet, and he accepted Rosalie's invitation to the cafeteria. As Rowan walked with the group, breathing in the fresh scent of the late-summer air, a nerve struck in him as Brandon spoke yet again.
"So Rowan, Arielle's been picking on you again? Why not stand up to her and her pathetic little friends? You're such a nice guy, and there's nothing wrong with that, but don't let her step all over you like that. You can always come to me or one of our teachers if you're feeling bullied."

The fifteen-year-old could feel his face turning red and a tiny trickle of sweat building up upon his forehead. Arielle Liu; he hated that name. The girl was so pathetic, so arrogant, and so....powerful. It made the boy furious that snotty whores like Arielle could get whatever they wanted. Unfortunately, whenever he was in a room with the child of Khione, he was forced to take cover, as he was always the target for her constant criticism and bullying. Not wanting to talk about the subject, Rowan gave a fainthearted, "Yeah, you're right." to Brandon as he walked through the door that Rosalie had so kindly held for the group. "Thanks," he said as he slipped into the cafeteria, not even noticing Ray Chami and his guitar, as he was too focused on his thoughts about the ever so stupid Arielle Liu.

As Brandon was always so popular at the academy, the four found themselves being called over by one of his friends; Nate Sterling. Nate was an exception to the rule that children of Aphrodite were always so air-headed. As Rowan took a seat at the cafeteria table, he glanced at who was around him. There was Thayer Hendrix, a sarcastic child of Hephaestus who took pride in his witty remarks, Gwen Swann, another child of Aphrodite who had her head on straight, (and undoubtedly the most attractive out of the Aphrodite kids) and Nolan Yarley, a son of the all-powerful Zeus who seemed more like an Athena kid. Rowan wondered why he hadn't talked to these people before, as they seemed to be in his crowd. Noticing Rosalie with her cup of coffee, he excused himself from the table, and went to go get his own. He never drank coffee, but he figured that with his new green arm, he might as well become a different person for the day. After pouring the hot beverage into his own foam cup, he grabbed the biggest bagel he could find and balanced it back to the table, taking a glance over at Arielle before sitting down. Hopefully she wouldn't notice his arm. As the demigods around him conversed, Rowan took big bites out of his second breakfast. Once he finished, he would make his way over to his first period class.