Hey everyone, Paradigm of Writing here with a brand new story called Cardinal Stasis. In other terms, I'm calling the story 'Fire Period' but like the fancy sound more, I suppose. This is going to be in essential terms a high school AU and we know there are plenty of those. I haven't written a Percy Jackson piece since Ichor which was a one-shot posted all the way back in January 2015 (good god that was a long time ago). Here, we have an eventual Solangelo story AU... and that's the beginning. If any of you do read my other stories somehow (or have read any of my other PJO pieces...) you'll know that I love twisting canon and I do it quite dramatically. So... prepare for usual canon to be disrupted such as who is related to whom and all of that (pairings may be a little reworked). Some characters will have entire character flips such as our main star, Will, which you'll find soon enough. Three of the seven characters in this story are aged to older ages for adults, but besides that the other four characters are normal teenager age. For this story, there'll be the use of some strong language, but besides that not much else to say. Enjoy the first chapter of Cardinal Stasis, #1: Burst.

Will Solace hates anything that is contradictory. Though that may seem strange, he likes to explain to his students that there is plenty of opportunity to trip yourself up in arguments. Will Solace also hates anything that goes against his favorite school subject. English. At the age of thirty-eight, he's achieved a personal level of sadness given how he's stuck in a deadbeat job teaching 12th grade Literature to AP students who more likely than not only cared about insignificant details rather than all the symbolism in Dante's Inferno or somesuch.

He leans back in his chair, currently examining the empty classroom set before him. It was the end of the day, a prime and sharp 2:15 on a Friday... he should be gone, but he chooses to stay. Will Solace stands at a comfortable height in the middle five feet, with bright blonde beach hair and glimmering diamond eyes which appraise situations as fast as they occur. Constantly dressed in cuffed dress shirts and mellowed out jeans, he examines his watch on his wrist with a delicate frown.

His student was late. Which normally never happened.

He frowns to himself. "Strange. Probably forgot I needed to speak with him. This happens all the time, no problem."

The sun glows on the desks in a discordant pattern of light and shadow, dust particles dancing in a frenzied motion to create small whirlwinds and pollen devils. Will catches a particular wisp floating by the window, ornate shapes spawning from the movement. A low knock comes from the locked door opposite the windows, and the teacher turns, spinning around to see Jason Grace, a seventeen year-old, damn brilliant boy waving sheepishly on the other side of the door.

"It's open!" Will calls out. "Come in."

Jason opens the door, and the teacher now gets a sharper look at him. A chiseled face of eloquent proportions, lemonade hair that is almost too painful to look at, sapphires for eyes, a wide smile, and a handsome complexion. Will wishes he could tell the boy just how good looking he really is, that he's proud of him having a girlfriend or significant other who acknowledges it.

Will clears his throat, pushing himself somewhat back from his desk. "Good afternoon, Jason. Glad to see you finally show."

The teenager fidgets by the door, unsure of whether or not he should walk up closer to Will or stay by the entrance where it's safe. "Mr. Solace." he nods politely, shouldering a bright sky blue backpack.

"Please sit down." Will gestures to a chair placed right in front of him, which he had put there when the bell rang and all of his hooligan students went fleeing for the buses.

Jason chews on his bottom lip, eyes darting to the desks. "Can't I just sit down at the desks?"

"Up here, please." the teacher repeats, fixing his collar. The boy's disobedience and strangeness is odd to Will, he's normally very studious, polite, and responsible... now he's standing skittishly like a frightened dog. Jason lets out a quiet sigh, quiet enough where he thinks Will won't hear it, but he does and now the blonde teacher is staring at the kid, but he's trying not to as that is impolite. Jason sets the bag down by the chair, and sits, his back straight, gaze hard, but eyes completely glazed with fear.

"Whatever it is," Jason blurts before Will can even open his mouth, "Just wanted to let you know that I'm sorry."

Will frowns, rubbing his chin. "You- you don't know why I called you in?"

"No, not really, sir."

"It's about the paper you turned in on Monday. Finally got around to grading your class... and I have to say, I was disappointed primarily with how you performed."

Jason stirs in the chair uncomfortably, scratching his right arm and looking elsewhere. "I'm sorry."

"Nothing to apologize about, Jason, I just wanted to know if something was troubling you." Will puts his hands back on his desk, sitting up, a stern gaze marring his features as he leans in.

For the past week, his six periods of AP Literature and Composition had been furrowing through the book Metamorphosis by Frank Kafka, a contemporary piece of literature about a man being transformed into an insect of sorts and how his transformation completely destabilized his family home. A rather peculiar book from the 1930's, it withstood seventy plus years of being renown for exemplary tastes. Will particularly did not like the book, but he had a curriculum to teach. At the very end of dissecting it, the assignment was that the students were to pick a character from the story and write an essay as if they were that character. Being able to use either Gregor, the main character, his sister Gretel, or their father, the essay had to include underlying thoughts on what the characters were feeling at specific moments throughout the tale with what wasn't mentioned.

Needless to say, Will expected amazing results and soon became rather let down at the minutia being given to him counting as essays. One of his top students, which he has no shame in ever admitting, is Jason Grace, until his paper crossed his desk and there was essential word vomit on the paper that accounted for nothing.

"Bottom line, Jason," Will began to speak, "Is that your paper was insufficient in displaying the true skill you have. Either you didn't want to do this assignment or throughout this whole school year you've been giving me this false sense of actually having interest in what you're doing."

"Sir?" Jason frowns, unsure of exactly what to respond with given the bitterness of his teacher's statement.

"As you know, currently sitting in the grade book, is a zero. But since you did turn in the paper, I can't give you a zero. While you wrote about the prompt I issued, it missed its mark by more than tenfold," A pause, Will shifts himself in his chair, his face becomes sterner. "I'm only going to ask you this once, and then it'll be out of hands forever. What grade do you think you deserve on that paper?"

He takes a moment to let this sink in the kid's head, hoping for the real answer he's been waiting for. Leave it where it is. I failed at what I know how to do. Except, he doesn't get that satisfaction. Far from it. "I think I deserve... better." Jason answers after a moment of silence, his expression deep in thought, eyebrows furrowed together with a sense of pensive action.

Will almost brays in his throat at the response. "Would that be suitable then? There's no number in the system for 'better', Jason. I can write on your paper that, Do Better, but it certainly isn't enough and does not qualify as a grade."

"Mr. Solace-"

"Would you rather prefer a seventy, or an eighty, or a ninety? I can't give you a 'better'," to accentuate his point, Will moves his fingers to resemble air quotes. "How does an one hundred sound, then? To get a perfect score on your worst paper, ever? Would that be easier for you?"

"No, it wouldn't be. I don't want a grade I never deserved, which certainly isn't an A+," Jason argues, his hands tightening to fists. "Mr. Solace, I don't need you to insult me. If you want to talk about my grade, let's talk-"

Will sneers at his student, this is being supremely unprofessional, but screw it... he's an adult and he's going to act whatever way he aspires. "Good, you're being mature. Asking the teacher if they can talk. So, Mr. Grace, let's talk. You chose the role of Gregor in the Metamorphosis, correct?"

This is a yes or no question, nothing in between, where there's a wrong answer. Will has no idea why he decides to pinpoint a scowl at Jason as he speaks, but the kid's lack of acknowledging his blunder is really digging deep into his skin. "Yes." Jason nods, curt and quick.

The teacher smirks slightly, before continuing. "You titled your paper... 'A Bug's Life- The Worst Disney Creation'..."

Jason laughs to himself, though he quickly shuts up by clamping a hand down over his mouth, blushing heavily. "Y- yeah."

Will sighs, leaning back into his chair. "That, automatically, Mr. Grace, suggests to me that you aren't taking this paper or this class very seriously. For being such a studious student in your other classes and in mine at default, I hope you can see why this is rubbing me the wrong way. It's a complete 180 from your usual self."

"Mr. Solace, I am taking this class very seriously."

"No, Jason, you're not, evident by-"

"I am!" Jason yells, pounding a fist on the desk. Will repulses back, out of shock. Jason's warm gaze burns under a raging expression, before it falls lax suddenly, the azure glow returning, the boy's voice becoming impossibly soft, his hands shaking. "I am, Mr. Solace. I've just had a lot on my mind lately. My course load is quite heavy... and there's Piper... and I can't focus on everything everyone wants me to do."

Will scowls, and he's mentally kicking himself under the desk as his response is even more heartless than he imagined it could've been. "I understand that, Jason, but do you have any idea how much I have on my mind?"

"A lot?" the boy suggests weakly, shrugging.

"A lot," Will confirms, nodding, hands curling into fists, clenching and unclenching. "I have nearly two hundred students to keep track of here, let alone household bills, other problems with the teachers and friends and family I have. It's a problem with being an adult... you're plate is never cleaned. But, despite all that I find time to do my work. I still find time to grade these abhorrent papers which make me want to scratch out my eyes. Pile into the equation that some students get the gall to complain to me about what they're receiving based off their work makes everything turn into one pile of shit," Jason winces reflexively at the swearing. "And, Mr. Grace, this may come as a shock to you, but I just can't start grading everyone differently based on what is or what is not on their mind. That's a form of special treatment. Favoritism. You're an excellent student, so you above all else cannot have special treatment."

"I don't want special treatment." Jason whines, then he grimaces, a hand instinctually going up to his forehead, sensing a headache.

Will's anger lessens, he feels the boiling of his skin simmer some, and he's relaxed and calm once more. "I'll look at it again, if you'd like. I am more than likely going to give you a sixty, just like what nearly everyone else is getting with their meager intelligence levels. I hope that I never see this type of slop from you again, do I make myself clear, Jason?"

"Yes, Mr. Solace." the boy replies, rubbing his forehead. He stands, slinging a bag over his shoulder, and suddenly bowels over somewhat, hissing, fingers plaiting his forehead.

"You alright?"

"Yeah." Jason rights himself, taking a step for the door.

"Too much on your mind, son? Giving you a headache?" Will asks.

"I imagine so. I'm going to head." Jason steps forward, his feet crossing the threshold.

"Jason?" Will calls.

"Yes sir?" he stops and turns, his face evidently displaying the emotion of pain.

"Sorry if I seem to you that I'm being very mean and hard on you. A lot of potential I just can't see get put to waste," Will apologizes, making a sympathetic face. "See you tomorrow."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow." Jason nods, heading out the door.

Will goes back to his desk, looking at his watch, when he hears another loud hiss from the doorway. The man leans over his desk, frowning. Jason is standing in the hallway. Suddenly there's an agonizing scream that emits from him. The boy tips over as if he's been struck by a silver bullet, and Will races forward, his heart is speeding a mile a minute. Will reaches the boy, and barely makes it as a resounding bang echoes all over the halls. There's so much red pooling from the boy's forehead, so much copper. Will looks down helplessly, unable to move. This cannot be good.

Will can feel the vomit reappearing.

Something's burst.

There we are you guys, that was Chapter #1: Burst, of Cardinal Stasis. Will is going to be the main character of this piece, and eventually we'll see how the other characters shall start to come in, as I mentioned Piper, and you can see that Nico is in this piece as well by the main pairing. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter... there'll be more to come. This story won't be too long, I think somewhere in the low teens chapter wise, maybe even less. I have a lot planned for this piece, and it means so much that you decided to read this. Please review and let me know what you thought. What happened to Jason? Did he pass out? Was he shot? More answers shall be revealed next chapter, which I'm hoping to do at least one update a week if not more. I shall hope to see you all again with Chapter #2: Discredit. I love you all so much, and thank you for reading. Have an amazing day! Bye!

~ Paradigm