Percy Jackson and the Incarnate- 1: The beginning

CHAPTER 8 POV: Hariharan Sivakumar

A week passed since I joined the college. It was a good first week. We met the teachers. I had my major in Medicine and minor in Psychology. I had my first set of friends, Percy and Annabeth. The whole college knows them as 'the couple'. I know less about them, so I couldn't care more. But they were nice to me and included me in their lunches and discussions.

I had a small competition against Percy. The first day we had our lunch, he was inhaling food. He could have given Bhima a run for his money. I was also no less of a glutton. I gulped down so much food and had the loudest ever belch in my entire eighteen years of existence. The whole mess turned around. I was a bit embarrassed at the start. But Percy belched and we laughed our hearts out. Annabeth shook her head in disbelief, "Boys!", she exclaimed.

I also had a competition with Annabeth. This started with the fourth day when we had Advanced Mathematics class. She wanted to be an architect as Percy said and I chose Maths as a filler subject because I loved maths. (A/N: Yes! There are people who love Maths. Don't comment on the ingenuity of the statement.) We had a literal hand raise race and tried to tell the answers before the other. She huffed when I found out the answer to a difficult Calculus problem before her. Percy smirked in amusement. But after the class, we agreed to a friendly competition.

I was never good at athletics or something that requires a lot of energy. I was more of an easy-going calm type. That is what made me love Yoga. It calmed my mind and cleared it of unwanted thoughts. But Percy and Annabeth were as fit as top-rated sportspersons. It would be no surprise if Percy had a six or even eight pack.

It was Saturday. The next day being a holiday, Percy promised to introduce me to his friends. I was excited but scared. I did not do the things these kids do. I could not rap, or breakdance. I didn't know the babes and dudes. I didn't have a girl in mind while they are literally 'shipping' couples at such young ages. Heck! I was just an orthodox Hindu who found their lifestyle unpleasant. But I was not complaining. For they gave me my space to do what I did back in India. It would take a long time to adjust, I would accept them but never copy them.

Percy and Annabeth were keen listeners. When I told them about my culture and traditions, they were so excited. I guess being a child of Athena made Annabeth want to know more about everything, and I obliged. They were shocked when they found out that I was a multi-lingual. Come on! You could not survive in India without at least being bilingual or Trilingual. I knew Tamil, Hindi, Sanskrit, English, Greek, and Latin; the last two I discovered I could understand for being a demigod. When I expressed my concerns over their ways of life and how I would not be able to fit in them quickly, they giggled and reassured me that they would like me as I was, which I was fine with. And Annabeth started her yoga classes with me while Percy just refused; stating them as 'boring'. I was a bit offended, but I didn't care. It took me a year to understand and appreciate the beauty of Yoga, so it was fine.

The friendship between me and the duo grew slowly but steadily. Outside the couple, I had Pranjal. Come on! Indian and Indian in foreign lands connect the majority of times. I would speak to him in Hindi and English mixed which would confuse the others and would have a small laugh. I started to help him whenever I finished my homework and had no other job to do. Being a medical student, we talked a lot about it. We also talked about Ayurveda, for my father was practicing it. We spoke about other random topics, but more about medicine and healing in general. And I learned a lot. And the hands-on experience in the infirmary would help me greatly in the future.

Saturday ended without any incident. I heard the sounds of horns from a distance, meaning the war games had started. Percy took me and made me watch the games and I was terrified. I didn't know whether I could survive.

The only time I ever fought is when I had my classes in Kalarippayattu and Silambam. It was before entering Yoga. But I lost touch. Maybe it was time to revive them. It may be useful in the games.