riley doesn't like middle school dances

the giant doors opened with a groan.

"woah." percy muttered.

the place was huge. it was a military school, but really. did they really need all the battle flags, and weapons displayed? there were antique rifles, battle axes, and a bunch of other things. my uncle rhodey would love this place.

a lot of the weapons had plaques under them. i recognized a few names. one of the plaques under a rifle read 'sergeant barnes. wwii.'  there were a few weapons that read 'prepared by stark industries, wwii.' my grandfather must've made them for the war.

there was something wrong with the place. a chill in the air, as if there was a giant shadow cast over the school. i tugged on my dad's brass rat that was on my camp half-blood necklace. 

percy's hand went to his pocket where, his pen-sword riptide was. thalia was rubbing her bracelet (it transformed into aegis). annabeth looked back and forth as if creating an escape plan.

annabeth began to talk, "i wonder where—"

the door slammed shut behind us.

"great," i muttered. "we're in the part of the horror movie where we die soon."

now that the wind was gone i could hear music playing down the hall. maybe there was a dance going on or something. 

we all stashed our overnight bags behind a giant pillar. we hadn't gone very far when we heard footsteps on the stone floor, and a man and woman marched out of the shadows to intercept us.

they both had short gray hair and black military-style uniforms with red trim. the woman had a wispy mustache, and the guy was clean-shaven, which i tried not to comment on. they both walked stiffly, like they had broomsticks taped to their spines. 

"well?" the woman demanded. "what are you doing here?"

"um..." percy stuttered. i realized they hadn't made a plan to get in, and just dragged me along. percy said, "ma'am, we're just—"

"ha!" the man snapped, which made me jump into annabeth. "visitors are not allowed at the dance! you shall be eee-jected!"

he had a french accent. he pronounced his j like in jacques, he was tall, with a hawkish face. his eyes were two different colors. he gave me odd vibes, as if he were the dark shadow that was over the school.

i was about to use charmspeak when thalia stepped forward. she snapped her fingers, and a gust of wind spread out. the banners on the wall rustled.

she was manipulating the mist.

"oh, but we're not visitors, sir," thalia said. "we go to school here. you remember: i'm thalia. and this is riley, annabeth and percy. we're in the eighth grade."

i almost responded saying i'm in university, but i bit my tongue. looks like i'll have to pretend to be dumb for a few hours.

the male teacher narrowed his eyes, then turned to his colleague. "do you know these students ms. gottschalk?"

i raised an eyebrow at the mustached-female. got-chalk, really?

the woman blinked, like someone had just woken her up from a trance. "i... yes. i believe i do, sir."

she frowned at us. "annabeth. riley. thalia. percy. what are you doing away from the gymnasium?"

before we could answer, i heard more footsteps, and grover ran up, breathless. "you made it! you—"

he cut himself off when he saw the teachers. "oh, mrs. gottschalk. dr. thorn! i, uh—"

"what is it, mr. underwood?" said the man. 

he addressed grover the same way professor taliya addressed me (she doesn't like me much. i'm pretty sure her and my dad hooked up before.)

"what do you mean, they made it? these students live here." the man (dr. thorn?) continued.

grover swallowed. "yes, sir. of course, dr. thorn. i just meant, i'm so glad they made... the punch for the dance! the punch is great. and they made it!"

dr. thorn glared at us. he didn't look convinced. no, he looked like he was ready to yeet us off the school's highest tower. starting with grover. 

he probably would've but then mrs. gottschalk said dreamily, "yes, the punch is excellent. now run along, all of you. you are not to leave the gymnasium again!"

we didn't wait to be told twice. we left with a lot of "yes, ma'ams" and "yes, sirs". the others even saluted. i didn't say anything to them, just followed grover.

he took us to the direction of where the music was playing. we stopped outside large doors that read gym.

"that was close!" grover said. "thank the gods you got here!"

annabeth, thalia, and i hugged grover. percy gave him a big high five.

i hadn't seen him for many months. he'd gotten a little taller and had sprouted a few more whiskers, but otherwise he looked like he always did when he passed for human — a red cap on his curly brown hair to hide his goat horns, baggy jeans and sneakers with fake feet to hide his furry legs and hooves.

he was wearing a black t-shirt. it said westover hall: grunt. i hoped that was the motto, and not grover's rank.

"so what's the emergency?" percy asked.

grover took a deep breath, "i found two."

"two half-bloods?" i asked in disbelief. "here?"

grover nodded.

finding one half-blood was rare enough. this year, chiron had put the satyrs on emergency overtime and sent them all over the country, scouring schools from fourth grade through high school for possible recruits. 

these were desperate times. we were losing campers. we needed all the new fighters we could find. the problem was, there just weren't that many demigods out there.

"a brother and a sister," he said. "they're ten and twelve. i don't know their parentage, but they're strong. we're running out of time, though. i need help."

"monsters?"

"one." grover looked nervous. "he suspects. i don't think he's positive yet, but this is the last day of term. i'm sure he won't let them leave campus without finding out. it may be our last chance! every time i try to get close to them, he's always there, blocking me. i don't know what to do!"

"right," thalia said. she had seniority on this mission. "these half-bloods are at the dance?"

grover nodded.

"then let's dance," thalia said. "who's the monster?"

"oh," grover said, and looked around nervously. "you just met him. the vice principal, dr. thorn."

i've never been to a school dance.

i mean, i've been to social events and gatherings, but never a school dance. 

let's just say, this was not what i was expecting.

i mean, i guess i thought they'd be more civilized. guys would probably ask a girl. some girls would go together in groups, as friends. there'd be people dancing. drinking the punch. socializing.

this was insane.

there were black and red balloons all over the gym floor, and guys were kicking them in each others faces, or trying to strangle each other with the crepe-paper streamers taped to the walls. (what is wrong with these people?) 

girls moved around in lots huddles, the way they always do, wearing lots of makeup (kind of like my more girly siblings) and spaghetti-strap tops and brightly colored pants. they all wore high heels. i thought i saw a few name brands, but i couldn't be too sure. 

every once in a while they'd surround some poor guy like a pack of piranhas, shrieking and giggling, and when they finally moved on, the guy would have ribbons in his hair and a bunch of lipstick graffiti all over his face. 

some of the older guys looked uncomfortable, hanging out at the edges of the gym and trying to hide.

"the next time i see my dad remind me to thank him for homeschooling me," i muttered, looking around.

"there they are," grover nodded toward a couple of younger kids arguing in the bleachers. "bianca and nico di angelo"

"the angel," i muttered.

"huh?" grover asked.

"their last name. di angelo is italian for the angel," i explained.

grover nodded.

the girl wore a floppy green cap, like she was trying to hide her face. the boy was obviously her little brother. they both had dark silky hair and olive skin, and they used their hands a lot as they talked. the boy was shuffling some kind of trading cards. his sister seemed to be scolding him about something.

she kept looking around like she sensed something was wrong.

annabeth said, "do they... i mean, have you told them?"

grover shook his head. "you know how it is. that could put them in more danger. once they realize who they are, their scent becomes stronger."

"so let's grab them and get out of here," percy said.

he started moving forward, but thalia put her hand on his shoulder. the vice principal, dr. thorn, had slipped out of a doorway near the bleachers and was standing near the di angelo siblings. he nodded coldly in our direction. his blue eye seemed to glow.

i was pretty sure he hadn't been fooled by thalia's trick with the mist after all. he suspected who we were. he was just waiting to see why we were here.

"don't look at the kids," thalia ordered. "we have to wait for a chance to get them. we need to pretend we're not interested in them. throw him off the scent."

"how?"

"we're four powerful half-bloods. our presence should confuse him. mingle. act natural. do some dancing. but keep an eye on those kids."

"dancing?" annabeth asked.

thalia nodded. she cocked her ear to the music and made a face. "ugh. who chose the jesse mccartney?"

grover looked hurt. "i did."

"oh my gods, grover. that is so lame. can't you play, like, green day or something?"

"acdc would've been nice too. led zeppelin," i muttered.

"green who?"

"never mind. let's dance."

"but i can't dance!"

"you can if i'm leading," thalia said. "come on, goat boy."

grover yelped as thalia grabbed his hand and led him onto the dance floor.

annabeth smiled.

"what?" percy asked.

"nothing. it's just cool to have thalia back."

she looked at me and got a mysterious glint in her eyes.

i narrowed my eyes at her.

"i'm going to get some punch. you guys... do whatever." annabeth ordered.

before i could react, annabeth walked away.

"what's wrong with her?" i asked.

"i don't know. girls are weird."

i made a face at percy, before laughing in agreement.

"so..." percy trailed off. "how's m.i.t. going for you?"

"oh!" i exclaimed. "it's actually a lot of fun. for the first month or two it was kind of boring because it was too slow for me. they had to place me in a fast track program. i technically finished my first year already. i completed the projects and work. now, i'm working on second year stuff. i created a mini dum-e to help me with my projects. i named him 'butterfingers'. and i still have a lot of free time so i actually worked with J.A.R.V.I.S. and i began creating a simulation for the labyrinth." i went on about some of the projects i did at school. 

"yeah, uh, cool." percy said. "so, you're going to stay on-campus all the time?"

"for the first year, it's a requirement. but for my other—"

"hey!" thalia called. she was slow dancing with grover, who was tripping over himself. "dance! you guys look stupid standing there."

percy looked at me, then the groups of girls that were wandering around.

"well?" i asked.

"um, who should i ask?" he said stupidly.

i gave him a looked, and punched him lightly, "me, seaweed brain."

"oh. oh right," he said.

"wanna dance?" he asked holding out his hand.

he looked so nervous i almost laughed, but i decided not to embarrass him anymore. "sure." i said taking his hand.

he led me to the dance floor, and looked at thalia and grover. following their lead, he placed a hand on my waist, and i held his other.

percy was literally shaking.

"you're looking at me like i have three heads. i don't bite," i told him. "don't you guys have dances at your school?"

he didn't answer. 

i grew taller, and was now the same height as percy. we danced for a few minutes. well i danced, percy tried not step on me.

"what were you saying earlier? about campus?" he asked.

"oh! for your first year it's a requirement to stay on-campus. after that you can live off-campus, but my house is too far. i'm still going to live on-campus." i told him. 

"annabeth told me something earlier. about her moving to san francisco?" 

"oh, yeah." i muttered. "her dad took this offer in 'frisco to research for a world war i book."

"so he wants her to move with him."

"to the other side of the country." i told him. "and half-bloods can't live in san francisco. malibu isn't the best choice either. but my dad's pretty stubborn."

"what? why not?" percy asked.

i looked at him, "you know. it's right there!" i said, referring to the mountain.

"oh." percy said.

i took a deep breath. 'now or never' i told myself. 

"i should probably tell you.." the confusion in percy's eyes made me look away. but what i noticed was worse. "they're gone."

"what?" percy asked.

he followed my gaze. the two half-bloods were gone, and dr. t was nowhere in sight. the door next to the bleachers was wide open.

"we have to get the others!" i said, looking around frantically. "where'd they dance off to?"

i ran through the crowd. they were probably on the other side.

plucking my way through people i got through the crowd. i looked around for annabeth, thalia, or grover. 

i found annabeth talking to some guy (he was talking to her. she looked like she was trying not to kill him). 

i went over, and pulled her away.

"thanks. the guy was a self-conceited prick. some people just don't understand the meaning of no." she said.

"what are friends for?"

"hey — where's percy?" she asked.

i looked around. "dammit. he was right behind me. he's either lost in the crowd, or went after thorn." 

she looked at me, "why'd he go after thorn?"

i told her the kids were missing along with dr. t. we began looking for thalia.

"there!" i pointed out a girl in her punk outfit. 

we ran over to thalia, and grover and pulled them away from the dance floor. in a hurry i explained what was going on. we left the gym looking for percy, when grover gasped.

"thorn!" he said. "thorn kidnapped them.  he's outside." grover told us.

"let's go."

when we got there we saw percy and the di angelos standing at the edge of a cliff with dr. t in front of them.

thali began explaining the plan, "here's the plan: annabeth, you go and push percy and the di angelos to safety wearing your invisibility cap. riley, you and i, we attack. use your powers. grover, keep your reed pipes ready."

we nodded. "got it."

annabeth put her cap on, and i created a giant barrier, effectively hiding the rest of us. i didn't practice my powers as muc, this year, but i could still control the energy pretty good.

annabeth plowed into them, right as dr. t sent a volley of... were those some sort of spikes...  which flew over their heads.

i dropped the barrier, and thalia and i rushed into battle.

imagine your deepest darkest fear. (ceiling fans [long story, don't ask] ) now multiply that by seventy. you still won't be as scared as you would if you saw thalia rush into battle.

thalia has this spear, that is disguised as a mace canister. her shield is modeled after one her dad zeus uses — also called aegis — a gift from athena. the shield has the head of the gorgon medusa molded into the bronze, and even though it won't turn you to stone, it's so horrible, most people will panic and run at the sight of it.

even dr. thorn winced and growled when he saw it.

thalia moved in with her spear, "for zeus!"

dr. t swiped thalia's spear aside, turning his hand into a giant paw. he slashed at thalia, but she blocked him with aegis. she managed to roll backwards.

i flicked both my arms outwards, and two whips made out of energy appeared. i wrapped one around the orange paw of the monster. he hissed, and pulled his paw back. i stumbled forward, and let the whips disintegrate.

dr. t launched a volley of those spike/missile/thingys at us. thinking instinctively, i allowed a wall of pink energy launch up from the ground, shielding me. they shattered against my wall of energy, but the force sent me stumbling back.

grover came forward. he put his reed pipes to his lips and began to play — a frantic jig that sounded like something pirates would dance to. grass broke through the snow. within seconds, rope-thick weeds were wrapping around dr. thorn's legs, entangling him. 

i put my palms against the snowy ground and let energy flow through the ground. it began wrapping itself around the monster's legs the same way the grass was.

dr. thorn roared and began to change. he grew larger until he was in his true form—his face still human, but his body that of a huge lion. his leathery, spiky tail whipped deadly thorns in all directions.

"a manticore!" annabeth said, now visible. her yankees cap had flown off her head.

"who are you people?" bianca di angelo demanded. "and what is that?"

"a manticore?" nico gasped. "he's got three thousand attack power and plus five to saving throws!"

"mythomagic!" i blurted. then i shook my head. how did i know that?

the monster clawed grover's magical weeds, and my pink ones, to shreds.

he got ready to launch another volley of missiles.

"get down!" yelled annabeth. she pulled the di angelos into the snow. percy pulled out his bronze wristwatch/shield-gift from tyson (percy's cyclops half-brother) at the last second. the missiles from dr. t dented the metal so badly, i wasn't sure if it would last another attack.

grover ran forward, and thwacked the monster with his reed pipes. the manticore swiped his paw, and grover flew next to percy with a thud.

i created some throwing knives with energy. running at the manticore, i threw one knife. when he swiped it with his paw, i threw my second one. it lodged in his paw, and he roared, swiping his tail at me. it knocked into me, knocking me aside.

with a thud, i landed next to the younger di angelo.

"yield!" the monster yelled.

"never!" i heard thalia yell.

she charged the monster, and for a second, it looked like she would run him through. but then there was a thunderous noise that i recognized and a blaze of light from behind us. a helicopter appeared out of the mist, hovering just beyond the cliffs. 

it was a sleek black military-style gunship, with attachments on the sides that looked like laser-guided rockets. the helicopter had to be manned by mortals, but what was it doing here?

it meant that the mortals were working with a monster? the searchlights blinded thalia, and the manticore swatted her away with its tail. her shield flew off into the snow. her spear flew in the other direction.

"no!" percy ran out to help her. he parried away a spike just before it would've hit her chest. the spike came dangerously close to the di angelos, and i raised a dome of energy surrounding us. percy raised his shield over thalia and himself, but i knew it wouldn't be enough.

i couldn't protect them unless i left the kids. if i left them, dr t could attack them and annabeth didn't have a shield to protect them. 

dr. thorn laughed. "now do you see how hopeless it is? yield, little heroes."

we were trapped.

then i heard a clear, piercing sound: the call of a hunting horn blowing in the woods.

the manticore froze. he must've been in shock like the rest of us. for a moment, no one moved. there was only the swirl of snow and wind and the chopping of the helicopter blades.

"no," dr. thorn said. "it cannot be—"

his sentence was cut short when something shot past percy and thalia like a streak of moonlight. a glowing silver arrow sprouted from dr. thorn's shoulder. i scowled. i can't believe they were here.

he staggered backward, wailing in agony.

"curse you!" thorn cried. he unleashed his spikes, dozens of them at once, into the woods where the arrow had come from, but just as fast, silvery arrows shot back in reply. they shot his thorns in half. they had better aim than the apollo kids at camp.

the manticore pulled the arrow out of his shoulder with a howl of pain. his breathing was heavy. percy tried to swipe at him with his sword, but he wasn't as injured as he looked. he dodged his attack and slammed his tail into percy's shield, knocking him aside.

then they came from the woods. 

they were girls, about a dozen of them. the youngest was maybe ten. the oldest, about fourteen, like me. although i was sure they were much older than they looked. they wore silvery ski parkas and jeans, and they were all armed with bows. they advanced on the manticore with determined expressions.

"the hunters!" annabeth cried.

"what are they doing here?" i muttered with a scowl on my face. 

i didn't have a personal enmity with them. it was just their vows, and how they viewed love as worthless. don't get me wrong, i believe in the right to have an opinion. they just didn't need to look down upon those who believed in love.

one of the older archers stepped forward with her bow drawn. she was tall and graceful with coppery colored skin. unlike the other girls, she had a silver circlet braided into the top of her long dark hair, so she looked like some kind of persian princess.

i recognized the silver circlet as her rank. she was the lieutenant. i believe thalia called her zoë nightshade (along with many other names.)

"permission to kill, my lady?" the huntress asked.

i couldn't tell who she was talking to (i knew it was lady artemis, but i wasn't sure who exactly that was), because she kept her eyes on the manticore.

the monster wailed. "this is not fair! direct interference! it is against the ancient laws."

"not so," another girl said. 

this one was a little younger than me, maybe twelve or thirteen. she had auburn hair gathered back in a ponytail and strange eyes, silvery yellow like the moon. her face was beautiful, but her expression was stern and dangerous. i realized that must've been lady artemis. 

"the hunting of all wild beasts is within my sphere. and you, foul creature, are a wild beast." she looked at the older girl with the circlet. "zoë, permission granted."

the manticore growled. "if i cannot have these alive, i shall have them dead!"

he lunged at thalia and percy, knowing they were weak and dazed.

"no!" annabeth yelled, and she charged at the monster.

"get back, half-blood!" zoë said. "get out of the line of fire!"

but annabeth leaped onto the monster's back and drove her knife into his mane. the manticore howled, turning in circles with his tail flailing as annabeth hung on for dear life. i shifted the dome, and was looking for an opening to attack the manticore.

"fire!" zoë ordered.

"no!" percy screamed.

"annabeth!" i called out. 

but the hunters let their arrows fly. the first caught the manticore in the neck. another hit his chest. the manticore staggered backward, wailing, "this is not the end, huntress! you shall pay!"

and before anyone could react, the monster, with annabeth still on his back, leaped over the cliff and tumbled into the darkness.

"annabeth!" percy yelled.

"no," i muttered, going to run after her.

i didn't make it far because there was a snap-snap-snap from the helicopter. a sound i was all too familiar with — the sound of gunfire.

most of the hunters scattered as tiny holes appeared in the snow at their feet, but lady artemis just looked up calmly at the helicopter.

"mortals," she announced, "are not allowed to witness my hunt."

she thrust out her hand, and the helicopter exploded into dust — no, not dust. the black metal dissolved into a flock of birds — ravens, which scattered into the night.

the hunters advanced on us.

the one called zoë (nightshade) stopped short when she saw thalia, confirming my suspicion. she was definitely the one thalia was telling me about. 

"you," she said with distaste.

"zoë nightshade." thalia's voice trembled with anger. "perfect timing, as usual."

i lifted the dome from around the kids.

zoë scanned the rest of us. "five half-bloods and a satyr, my lady."

"yes," the younger girl said, looking directly at me. the way she looked at me, as if she was trying to say she's sorry about something, made me want to squirm. "some of chiron's campers, i see."

"annabeth!" percy yelled. "you have to let us save her!"

lady artemis looked away from me, and turned to percy. "i'm sorry, percy jackson, but your friend is beyond help."

percy tried to get up, but a couple of the girls held him down.

"you are in no condition to be hurling yourself off cliffs," lady artemis said.

"let me go!" percy demanded. "who do you think you are?"

zoë stepped forward as if to smack him. i facepalmed. percy just loves getting gods mad.

"no," lady artemis ordered. "i sense no disrespect, zoë. he is simply distraught. he does not understand."

the young girl looked at percy, "i am artemis," she said. "goddess of the hunt."

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