Percy Jackson: Searching to be a Hero (A Percy Jackson Fanfic)

Chapter 16

***Atlanta's POV***
I doubled over, gasping for breath as we stood in front of a huge building that looked like a school.
"Well, judging by the soccer field I think we have reached a torture palace right in a city called 'Ventnor'" said Leo with his trademark smirk.
"A school," said Nico.
"No, duh." Leo rolled his eyes.
I walked around the school to find an entrance. I tried to open it but it was locked. I turned to see that the other two had followed me.
"We need to get in," I said.
"What? Why?" Leo looked baffled. "It's a school."
"Maybe someone can tell us where said maze is," Nico offered. He hit the nail on the head.
I kept walking up to the front of the school. A sign said "Ventnor Elementary School."
"It's an Elementary School." I said, frowning. "No one can help us here."
I turned to walk back the way we came when something small caught my eye. I picked it up to find it was an ID card.
"Joe Smith, grade 7" I read aloud.
Leo and Nico came up next to me and Nico picked up the ID card with his metal arm, it's hand still missing a finger. I felt the cold hard surface brush against my skin as he took the thin plastic from my grasp.
"He has blue eyes, like you." Nico said smiling.
At that moment, I had an idea.
"Stay here, guys." I said as I walked up to a buzzer at the door.
A muffled voice answered my call after I buzzed about a million times.
"What do you want?"
I hesitated before responding. "I need to pick up my younger cousin, Chris Pallante."
For a moment there was silence before the lady responded. "Your name?" She asked.
"Uhm . . . Johanna Pallante." I said.
Another pause. "There's nothing here that says a girl named 'Johanna Pallante' has permission to take the kid out of school."
"Well there should be!"
"Okay, okay, calm down its okay."
"HELL NO ITS NOT OKAY I NEED MY COUSIN."
"Mam, please-"
"NO!"
There was a small pause and the door in front of me opened.
"Go to the middle school office to get him picked up." The lady said.
"Thank you." I said.
I walked down to where some old lady with glasses told me to go and I reached a glass door. I pushed it open to see a blonde woman at a desk staring at me wide eyed.
"I'm here to pick up my cousin, Chris Pallante." I said.
The lady blinked then handed me a few papers. "Yes, yes. Uhm, how old are you?"
"Twenty one." I say. No I not. I think to myself suppressing a smirk.
The lady picked up a phone and spoke softly. "Chris Pallante to the office with his things."
I stared at the paper and filled it in quickly and subconsciously. When I finished a kid with a goofy grin came in and the lady shot him a dirty look.
"Hey Jo-" he began but I had already punched him out the door.
"Your not Joe." He said though he didn't seem to care.
"No, I'm Johanna." I said.
He thought for a second then looked up at me. "Who?"
"Your cousin, silly!" I said flashing a grin. There are security cameras here. I have to play it cool.
"Okay . . ." He looked confused.
"Let's go!" I say as I push open the door.
We go outside and I walk Chris around the curb where Nico and Leo were waiting for me. Chris turned around to face me.
"Your not my cousin. What do you want?"
"Drugs," said Leo.
"No!" I shot Leo a look to kill. Nico just stood there suppressing and laugh.
"Well I could take some weed from my brothe-"
"We don't want drugs!" I yelled. "What do you know about the closest corn field maze or something like that."
"Dude, look it up." Chris said, grabbing his phone out of a pocket and typing in something once it was turned on. He showed us the address.
"Okay, well, goodbye." Said Nico, waving with his metallic hand.
Chris wasn't the least bit fazed by the bronze structure replacing my friends arm. He was about to turn and walk away when Grover came running down the street breathing heavily.
"I . . . Smell . . . Demigod . . ." He huffed.
"Grover its us." Nico said.
"No! Not you!" Grover walks over to Chris. "You smell like . . ." Grover leaned in close to Chris. "Athena? No, wait-" He took another wif-"Ah, Demeter."
Chris looked scared. "Dimitri?"
"No! Demeter! Your a demigod, kid!" Grover patted Chris on the back. "Your going to camp half blood. Call your dad and let him know."
"Wait what?" Chris says, but he was already following Grover as they went down the sidewalk.
Nico, Leo, and I didn't skip a beat. I memorized the address and found the closest bus stop. To the jersey devil we go.