The Seven In High School

We Split

JASON

So this was what a school looked like.

That was the first thing that ran through Jason's mind when he walked into Goode. Tiled brick walls, narrow metal lockers, colorful bulletin boards along the hallway. He had never been to a school. And somehow he didn't think the Wolf House counted.

As Jason and his friends walked to the principal's office to get their stuff sorted, a brown haired girl fell in front of them. She shrieked shrilly, her books dropping and scattering across the floor. The girl scrambled for her books as the boy who had tripped her laughed.

"Nice fall, Emily?" the burly boy mocked.

"Knock it off, Vincent." a blonde girl said, scowling at him. She was dressed in a cheerleaders' uniform. "You should know better than to mess with my best friend."

The boy sneered and ran off, presumably to find another target. Leo offered his hand to Emily. She took it, her green eyes wide. Emily smiled hesitatingly at Leo, her smile eventually blossoming over her face.

"Thanks." Emily said softly.

Leo winked at her. "Anytime." Jason could've sworn the girl melted a little.

"Percy, you sure this is the way to the office?" Annabeth asked.

"No, even though I've been here for years. And of course, there's no sign that says 'Office This Way'."

"Oh, shut up, Percy." She smiled at Percy as she said it.

***

"Right, hon. Here's y'all's schedules. Have a Goode day!" the secretary drawled. Her long nails scraped on the desk when she slid the pieces of paper over.

"Thanks, um, Ms George." Piper said, looking at the woman's shiny nametag.

She giggled, putting a hand on her teased blonde hair. "Oh, pish. Don't call me that, it makes me feel old. Call me Kathy. And have some M&Ms before you go." She pointed a shiny red nail at the tall glass jar sitting on her desk.

Ms George was old enough to be their mom, but somehow Jason felt compelled to call her Kathy. His gut twinged uneasily. Percy chewed his blue M&M thoughtfully, his brow furrowed.

The glass doors swung open behind them, and Gwen Harper strolled in casually, chomping her gum.

"Gwen?" Leo choked. "What're you doing here?"

Gwen smiled lazily at them. "I'm going to study here. My uncle owns this place, after all."

Kathy giggled and patted her hair again. "Well! Y'all know each other! So cute."

The principal's office door opened and a slender gray-haired woman in a suit and pearls came out. Principal Donner smiled kindly at them.

"Welcome to Goode. I trust that you'll all enjoy learning here." she said. "And now if you'll excuse me, I've got to go. Have a Goode day."

Kathy giggled. Again. "Now, darlins'. Your student guides should be here any minute now."

"Hi! Am I late?" A blonde girl said breathlessly, bounding into the office. She skidded to a halt in front of the desk. "Yes. I am."

"This is Diana. She'll be your student guide."

Diana beamed at them, her blue eyes sparkling playfully. "She already said my name, Diana."

"I'm here. I'm here. Sorry. Didn't mean to be late, but I was practising and lost track of time." The speaker had her hair in a ponytail, glasses and a light sprinkling of freckles. "Hi. I'm Laylah."

"Uncommon." Gwen commented.

"Yeah, I know right? Sometimes I wish I had a normal name, but mostly I'm glad I'm not mainstream." Laylah smiled, tucking a strand of curly dark brown hair back behind her ear.

"And I'm here." another girl drawled. "You can now tell Philips to knock my detention off." Her navy blue hair was definitely the brightest color Jason had seen all day.

"Oh, Emile. You bad girl. What did you do this time?" Kathy asked, her lips open in a pout. She was applying some bright pink lipstick on her already bright lips.

"Kathy, it's Em. Or Emmy. Anything but Emile." the newcomer groaned. The multiple piercings in her left ear sparkled.

A bell rang.

Kathy squealed. "Oh, my! First period's already startin'. Y'all better hurry along. Ta-ta now!"

***

They compared their schedules in the hallway. Percy had nearly all the same classes as Annabeth. Since they were seniors, their classes were different from the others. The rest were juniors. Even Hazel. She was technically fourteen, but according to her file, she was born in 1991.

"I'm taking Percy and Annabeth-you guys are dating? Aw! Mind if I call you both by a name that combines both of your names? How about...Percabeth? Okay? Okay." Diana gushed.

"Geesh, Goldilocks. Cool it, would ya?" groaned Em.

"Only because you asked so nicely, Em. Or should I call you Maddy?" Diana asked, arching an eyebrow.

Em turned red.

Laylah smiled a little apologetically at them. Jason noticed a streak of red paint in her hair.

"Like what Kathy said. Class." she told them.

"Guess this is goodbye. Till we meet again, that is, lunch?" Percy asked.

"Yep. Off to class we go!" Leo said, attempting to be cheerful.

As he was leaving, Jason touched his gladius for reassurance, and also luck.