fandomhigh | BWI Airport | Portalocity Lounge | Saturday Morning

In most instances, no one would bat an eye at seeing a boy and his dog. In this instance, some people might actually run away screaming at the sight of this boy and this dog. Percy Jackson didn’t look all that intimidating on his own. He was average height, dark haired and carried a ball point pen in the pocket of his jeans.

Of course, the huge hellhound sitting behind Percy might have turned a few heads if not for the Mist. Thankfully, most mortals didn’t see Mrs. O’ Leary, Percy’s inherited hellhound sitting lazily in the BWI airport lounge (how the hellhound had fit, Percy didn’t know).

Percy himself didn’t look as relaxed as his dog. His eyes were jumping left to right, almost as if he expected something to attack him or for Luke to emerge from the crowd with that more smirk than smile look on his face.

This was about the fourteenth school Percy had been to since age twelve. He didn’t expect it to last. He wanted to be at Camp Half Blood. Instead, he was waiting in an airport lounge for a shuttle to cart him and his hellhound to a place called Fandom.

Percy frowned. He didn’t think this day could get worse.

[Open shuttle bus! Mrs. O’ Leary is a big ole hellhound that most mortals probably would not see because of something called the Mist. If you’re not exactly all the way mortal, you’d see her though. She’s not going to attack anyone, I promise.]

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"I looked at you," Percy said irritably. "Have you not looked at anyone else ever? That seems like it'd be a little hard since you do have eyes."

At this point, Percy wasn't going to admit that he thought she might attack him because he could only guess what rant that might set off.

"You're more than welcome to look," Elphaba said. "Goodness knows everyone always does."

So much for what her father said about this new school being more accepting, she thought.

She frowned and looked down. "I guess I can't stop you."

"It wasn't like I was staring at you," Percy pointed out with a shake of his head. "I looked at you. Just like I've looked at almost everyone else who's come in here."

After everything he'd seen, he didn't find himself staring so much anymore. There were, of course, things that changed that but she wasn't one of them.

Elphaba didn't look up, not yet. "I guess I was expecting people to be staring," she said. What she could not do was apologize for her reaction. That seemed like admitting it was okay for people to give her funny looks.

"Guess you get that a lot?" he asked, softening a tiny bit.

"I'm green," Elphaba said, but with no hardness in her voice. "I don't think there's ever been anyone who didn't gawk or stare."

Percy almost said he'd seen stranger things but stopped that thought at the last minute. Instead, he just nodded because she was green, yes.

"How did you end up green?"

Percy had relaxed again once he was fairly certain she wasn't going to attack him. If she'd wanted to do that, he figured he would have picked up on something.

"I didn't end up green," Elphaba said. "I was born this way. And not even my father knows why it happened. It's just his any my cross to bear, I suppose."

"Does it hurt?" Percy wondered, curious about the coloring now.

"It's not easy, being green," Elphaba said with no hint of irony or pop culture reference. "But it's not like my actual skin causes me pain, no."

"I guess it isn't," Percy agreed with a slight nod. "There's no like medical cure?"

"I wish there was," Elphaba said. "Maybe I finally wouldn't have to worry about people treating me awful all the time."

"Sorry," Percy said because he didn't really know what else to say. "Maybe it won't be a big deal here?"

"That's what my father hoped," Elphaba said. It was what she hoped, too. She simply couldn't vocalize that hope, because she didn't want to deal with what she thought was inevitable disappointment.

"You haven't even asked my name."

"Uh. Sorry, I forgot." And he had. He'd been caught up in the green skin, the possibility of her being a monster, and then getting defensive at her. "What's your name?"

"Elphaba Thropp," she introduced. "I apologize that I didn't ask for yours earlier. If you'd be so kind?"

"Percy Jackson," he said, returning the favor. "So, nice to meet you. Guess we're heading to the same place, right?"

"It would seem silly for two people our age to be waiting in the same place for different things," Elphaba said. "Fandom High?"

"Yep," Percy said, nodding. "You got any idea what this school's supposed to be like? My mom only got a brief brochure."

"I only know what I hope it's like," Elphaba said, her voice going a little quiet. "I don't know anything about what it is actually like."

"Well, that's me too so you're not gonna be the only one who doesn't know," Percy said, almost sympathetic. "Maybe it's not so bad. Maybe it'll be a cake walk."

"Walking cake doesn't sound like much fun," Elphaba said. "Then again, it is a school. It really isn't supposed to be fun."

"Uh, that's just an expression," Percy said slowly. "It means easy. It'll be easy. Maybe."

School was never easy for Percy.

"I don't think school is supposed to be easy either," Elphaba said. "If it is, I don't think you're learning as much as you can."

"What if you're a genius?" Percy asked just to be contrary. "School would be easy then."

Re: Mingle [NS 08/28]

didntchewgrass.livejournal.com - 2010-08-28 14:50 (UTC) - Expand

BWI Airport | Portalocity Lounge | Saturday Morning | August 28

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