The Extra Olympian

Chapter 1

I sigh. Aquamarine Onyx Jade. Whoever my parents were, they had a bad taste in names. Kids at my boarding school have normal names, like Sasha, or Loren. I’m stuck with Aquamarine. I pretend I don’t hear the kids laughing behind their hands at lunch, or accidentally bumping into me and saying, “Oh whoops! Sorry, AQUAMARINE.” They leave me to pick up my fallen notebooks all by myself.

I’m thirteen now. I suppose I should feel like a teenager, but I don’t. I doubt I ever will. Thirteen, and no sign from my parents. They left a letter to me, or so the director of the school says, that one of them would send a sign when I turned thirteen. Nothing. I even bought a premade cake from one of the stores down the street, and lit a candle, and sang happy birthday to myself in my lonely dorm room. Now I sit here, glaring at the blown out candle.

I massage the 12 permanent scars on the back of my right hand. I’ve scraped and picked at them over and over but they never go away. I stuff a piece of the chocolate cake into my mouth and I sigh. Then I hear a banging against my window. I roll my eyes. Ever since I turned 5 I’ve had to put up with the banging. It comes and goes at it pleases. I’m pretty sure it might be wild dogs or whatever, because my room in on the ground floor. Funny thing is, wild dogs are never spotted near here. My parents left me here at the age of one.

I don’t even know if they loved me. They must’ve. I lay down on my bed. I close my eyes tight to drown out the banging, and as it stops, I fall into a restless sleep. The first thing I feel when I wake up, is a burning feeling on the back of my hand. I sit up sharply, and let out a yelp. One of my twelve scars has turned hot pink. I massage it roughly, which is kind of stupid because that only adds to the pain. I calm down, and I press my hand against my forehead, whose warmth dulls the pain a bit. As the pain from the back of my hand dissipates, I notice something peculiar.

A cooling sensation spreads from my toes to my legs and up. I stand up in front of the mirror just in time to see a lock of my hair being untangled and rested onto my shoulder. My face is spotless. My wavy dark brown hair is flowing down my back, unknotted. Even my lashes have grown, bringing out my dark blue eyes. Suddenly, I rock my 3 year old penguin pajamas. I turn around, to find a dark blue sweater and black skinny jeans I’ve never seen before laying on my dresser. I dark blue knife is resting on the sweater. A knife? A knife, of all things? Who would do this? How could someone instantly transform me into someone beautiful? My body is shapely now, nothing like my other self, who slouched without thinking. Now the thought of it disgusts me.

I dress quickly, not bothering to style my hair because it looks pretty enough as it is. I tuck my knife into my belt. I hear a banging against my window. I let out something between a groan and a sigh through my lips. My eyes dart down to my knife which is gleaming innocently in my belt. Time to get rid of some wild dogs.  But, before I can exit, I notice something. A thin, dark pink streak being burned into my hair. So small that you wouldn’t even notice if you weren’t looking for it. Oh great.

**Somewhere on Mt. Olympus**

“Aphrodite! What were you thinking?!” My voice booms through the big, empty, glistening walls of my home.

“I thought it was time. We did make a promise you know.” To Aphrodite’s credit, she stays confident. “She’s thirteen now.”

“Next time I’ll chuck you off of Olympus myself, and NO ONE will be able to stop me.” I threaten.

“Zeus…” Aphrodite sighs. “You’ll see sense. I know you love her too. We all do.”

“Well we shouldn’t. She shouldn’t be here. She was never supposed too.” I say softly, turning my back on her. “She’s too powerful. Like the scent of a flower. Too empowering. Imagine a flower blooming in the winter. It’s practically impossible.”

“Flowers have to bloom sometime.” I hear her whisper behind me, and I turn around to see her dissolve in a wisp of pink smoke.