Out In The Open

|Chapter 1| The Art of Lying

If you asked most demigods what their greatest tool was they would probably say their weapons. And they're not really all too wrong. It is important. But you ask Percy Jackson what it was he would simply say; the art of lying.

A demigod needs to know how to lie. Lie and say no that wasn't me who blew up that school it was John. No, I didn't have a sword in my hands it was a stick.

If you're a demigod and you can't lie? Well, you're gonna get your ass shipped off to prison. Too bad!

Now not every demigod can lie. Grover for better or worse can't. He just can't. The Stolls are good liars, which makes sense due to their new title of gods of lies, pranks, and jokes. But Percy Jackson is a very good liar. He was playfully called 'The lord of lies' by the Stolls. But it's really no joke. He can pull a smooth lie out of nowhere and it's almost scary.

And it is lying that has gotten him through Goode High. He's strung an intricate web of lies that have created a completely different person. Here he's the fastest kid in school, he's the kid who sits in the back of the class. He's the kid who twirls a bronze pen over and under his knuckles, making it a barely noticeable flash of bronze. The kid who always says with a grin that no one understands, that he is perfectly normal.

Lie one: Percy Jackson is normal

The kid who presses his mouth into a thin line of anger when they discuss wars in class. Who's eyebrows furrow in anger when he hears about child soldiers. Who when they discussed the Ancient Greek gods his face darkened at the mention of Kronos. Whose eyes glazed over in anger at the mention of Zeus, Hera, and Ares. Who stood a bit taller when Poseidon was discussed. And when battles are talked about he slumps in his chair eyes far away and dark, tired and old. Not that anyone noticed him, or cared enough to even to spare a glance at him.

Lie two: Percy Jackson has seen no war

The kid who scowls at lovers in the hallway. Who turns away when people are asked out. Who says nothing of love.

Lie three: Percy Jackson knows nothing of what love is

But they don't see. They don't see how every class he takes out a small photo of a beautiful blonde and caresses her cheek. They don't see the love that fills his eyes. They don't see the dark nights where he calls for her over and over. They haven't seen the bloody bandages from wounds that are still healing. Once stained with blood but now has ichor staining them a brilliant gold. And he is a god, he has ichor and the sea in his veins but he still is healing. The burns across his back. The scars that decorate his body, a twisted canvas.

They don't see.

But when Percy Jackson returns the first day of school of his final year people notice things. They notice the white streak of hair that is obviously not dyed. They notice how his eyes sweep the hallways, once, twice, three times. They notice his tense muscles.

And in class only some notice how he is off in his own world, a world they can not see. A world that's hopefully better than the new twisted reality they live in. Where the gods reign supreme and monsters lurk in the shadows. Where children younger than them are killed and fight for their lives every day because of their parents.

Roll is called and only a few of the most observant students notice how when the teacher calls "Jackson, Perseus" his eyes narrow slightly. But everyone hears how he snaps at the teacher to just call him Percy then sinks back into his seat.

Perseus. It's a strange name for him. A name that means to destroy and is the name of an ancient hero. Is that on purpose? Is this a sign of his heritage and his power? No one can agree on the answer.

But when they watch the weekly broadcast from the gods something clicks in the back of a few of their minds. Poseidon, the god of the sea, gives a small threat about dumping things into his sea, and when one of them turns to his left to look out the window and get a glimpse of Olympus hanging over the Empire State Building he sees Percy. Something clicks. Percy and Poseidon look so similar. The same sun-kissed skin and black hair. The same green eyes and tall builds. The same brooding look.

And it hits him. Percy Jackson is related to Poseidon. Percy Jackson is the only living son of Poseidon, making him a god. They did say he was a god right? Yes, yes Percy Jackson is the god of Swords, Loyalty, Sword fighting, Protection, and Cunning. A mortal boy, Tyler Green, looks back at the screen eyes wide and face pale. This makes everything so much more different.