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The Lightning Thief - Penelope's Story
~In the Beginning~
It wasn't like I had a choice.
I mean, how many options do you have when you're fighting your principal in a life-or-death situation?
I should explain. My name is Penelope Shan. I'm twelve years old, dyslexic, and have ADHD.
It all started something like this...
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My hands tapped impatiently on my desk. I could never sit still my classes. That's what got me in trouble. Amazingly, I'm able to stay in one private school.
This school is called Trenton Academy. It's a school for the arts. I'm in the masterpiece and stage-training sections. Masterpiece is the section for artists. We get to make sculptures, paint, and draw. It's your basic stuff at a more advanced level. As for the stage-training, that's pretty much self-explanatory. We're taught how to work stage lights, put our acting skills to the test, and sharpen our drama.
Right now I was in my masterpiece class. Our teacher, Mrs. Raymond, always had it cut out for me. She wouldn't leave her scary-sharp blue eyes off of me.
"Does everyone have their homework?" she asked the class in her nails-on-a-chalkboard voice.
I reached into my folder and pulled out my self-portrait. We passed them forward and she plopped them on her desk.
My gaze drifted around the room. My fingers started tapping impatiently. I hated how I couldn't sit still.
"Hey," someone said. I turned my head and saw Jared Taylor. He loved to get me into trouble. He knew which buttons to press and when to push them.
"Not now, Jared," I mumbled and turned. I slumped in my seat. My stomach growled.
"Hungry?" he whispered.
"Shut up," I replied in an angry whisper.
Mrs. Raymond cleared her throat. "Is there something you would like to share with the class, Mrs. Shan?" she asked. The whole class was staring at me.
I felt my ears go hot. "No, ma'am."
"That's what I thought." She turned, and I caught the eye of the student-teacher, Mr. Targo. Mr. Targo was a rather quiet, smart man. He was paralyzed from the waist down, so he'd naturally be in a wheelchair. He had a scraggly beard and neatly trimmed hair. He was a really fun guy when you were on his good side.
Finally, it was time for us to go to lunch. I stood up, gathered my stuff, and left before Jared could talk to me.
At Trenton, we were supposed to eat outside. I grabbed my packed lunch and sat on the edge of the fountain. Being near the water always soothed me.
"Hey, Penny," said Thomson. Thomson is one of my greatest friends. He was my only friend at Trenton, actually. I didn't really mind. I was here for the art, not for the friends.
"Hey, Thomson," I said. He sat down next to me. Thomson had a leg condition. He had something wrong with his joints. He studied music. It was good for him. I think he played the piccolo for the band.
After a few minutes of silence, I sighed.
"Something wrong?" he asked me.
"It's nothing." I shrugged and drank the last of my water. "I'm gonna go for a walk, 'kay?"
"All right."
I stood up, dusted my pants free of crumbs, and walked off.
I wandered around the perimeter of the school. Everyone was in the courtyard. I didn't have anything to worry about.
"Hello, Mrs. Shan."
I whipped around, startled, and found Headmaster Helm. He was pretty strict about everything. He had black cropped hair and always wore a brown suit and red tie. He gave me the evil-eye.
"Good afternoon, Headmaster," I said. He scowled at me.
"Please, follow me."
Confused, I expected him to lead me to his office. No--we ended up in the gym.
He stopped right in the middle. I stood by the door.
The door slammed shut behind me, causing me to jump a few feet.
"Uh...sir, what are we doing here?" I asked.
"Tell me, what are you, Mrs. Shan?"
This was an odd question. "I'm...uh...a human being...?"
"No, what are you! WHO are you!"
I rubbed my arm uncomfortably. "Uh...I'm Penelope Shan--"
"Ugh! Ignorant girl! That's it! I'll SHOW you what you are."
Suddenly, Headmaster Helm's eyes went blood-red. His pants and shirt were torn away. Replacing his pants were...were...the legs of a bull. His torso was now bare and tan. Finally, out of his head were massive horns.
My mind searched for a reference. This was...this was a minotaur. The one from the old Greek myths. But those were stories, right?
Right?
Helm charged at me. My legs found strength and moved themselves before he could hit me. Instead, he plowed the door down. I stared at him as he turned and charged at me again.
I dove to the side and ran to the other side of the gym. I was horrified, terrified...what was going on? I had to be dreaming!
The loud clop of hooves against the gym floor alerted me. I whipped around but was too late.
I felt a horrible pain explode from my left shoulder and then a huge force from behind me. My vision cleared and I was in a pile of rocks. They gym wall. I felt liquid running down my arm. Was my shoulder bleeding?
Dazed, I finally found Helm. He was scrapping his hooves against the ground.
"Penelope!" someone shouted. Something skidded across the floor and stopped next to me.
A...pocketknife?
I picked it up and stared at the knife. I flipped it open, wondering how a pocketknife would help me. The pocketknife suddenly grew into a three-foot long celestial bronze sword.
I blinked a few times before I realized Helm was only a ways away from me.
I did the natural thing: I swung the sword and heard the howl of the minotaur. I pulled the sword back and swung again.
The minotaur exploded in a cloud of golden dust. My legs were shaking. What had just happened?
I felt dizzy and my vision began to swim. I stumbled back and fell. I fought to keep my eyes open, but blackness rimmed my vision.
The last thing I remember was hearing Thomson shouting my name and a pair of cloven hooves right in front of me.
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