CLARION

The Wilderness School was nothing compared to camp, and that was a fact. The troubled, ruffian kids on the bus had nothing on the children of Ares. There were twenty six human teens, a satyr/coach, the driver, and four demigods on board (three of which were unaware).
Clarion Park sat in front of a two people, reading a book on the Grand Canyon. She didn't get out much, so she was excited to see the national park. Leo Valdez was seated next to her, best friends with the couple behind them. Piper McLean and the boy beside her were a quiet pair, both insanely attractive despite Piper's negligence of her appearance. Clarion's legs dangled daintily over Leo's lap, an action that had caused him to blush furiously over for about half an hour, but he eventually got over it.
"Jason, you okay?" Piper's voice piqued Clarion's interest and she turned her head microscopically to be able to see them in her peripheral. 'Jason' let go of Piper's hand, clearly disoriented. The Park girl knew that he was just going to spice up her quest, as he had not been there when the bus departed.
"Um, I don't--"
At the front of the bus, Coach Hedge cut him off, "All right, cupcakes, listen up!" The baseball cap was a signature piece of the satyr's outfit, including the whistle around his neck. He probably could've been your standard gym teacher if he wasn't five feet tall. When he moved to stand in the aisle, a student yelled, "Stand up, Coach Hedge!"
"I heard that!" Coach looked around the bus to see who had said such a dreadful thing, eyes pausing on Clarion briefly before turning to Jason, his scowl deepening. The blond boy seemed to shrink in his spot next to Piper. Coach cleared his throat and continued. Clarion was sure that Coach's thoughts were similar to her own.
Where had he come from?
"We'll arrive in five minutes! Stay with your partner," he looked at his clipboard, "Or in one case, a group of three. Don't lose your worksheet. And if any of you precious little cupcakes causes any trouble on this trip, I will personally send you back to campus the hard way." He mimicked smacking a home run with his bat. Coach always had a bat, the thought making Clarion fiddle with her ring, her trusty weapon.
Jason looked at Piper. "Can he talk to us like that?"
Clarion watched Piper shrug. "Always does. This is the Wilderness School. 'Where kids are the animals.'" She noticed that it must've been a joke between the two, Piper's expression waiting for Jason to laugh along with her.
"There must be some kind of mistake," Jason said, his blue eyes wild with confusion. "I'm not supposed to be here." That would be correct, considering Clarion's mission was to help Coach retrieve two halfbloods, not three.
Leo turned his neck to face them and laughed. He didn't want to disturb the small girl whose legs still lay over his lap. "Yeah, right, Jason. We've all been framed! I didn't run away six times. Piper didn't steal a BMW. And Clarion-" he paused, giving her a confused glance "-I don't even know why you're here, Clarebear."
She grinned, not having expected the conversation to turn to her. "Asian parents, silly," he nodded as if that provided all the answers he needed, but Jason was still befuddled.
Piper blushed. "I didn't steal that car, Leo!" The Latino's fingers drummed absentmindedly on Clarion's legs, but she didn't really care, if he had to get his energy out some way, she rather it be on her legs than in her ears.
"Oh, I forgot, Piper. What's your story? You 'talked' the dealer into lending it to you?" he raised his eyebrows at Jason and Clarion in disbelief. "Anyway, I hope you guys have your worksheets, 'cause I used mine for spit wads days ago. Why are you looking at me like that? Someone draw on my face again?" The questions were directed at Jason, who was looking at Leo like he'd grown a second head.
"I don't know you," Jason said. Clarion's eyebrows shot up. He didn't know his own best friend or his girlfriend? Perhaps this was more serious than she thought. "Or you," he said, this time to Clarion.
"That's okay, I've only been here three days. And it's not like we were put in a group of three with Leo or anything," her tone was teasing, but she realized the situation was not good. How did Leo and Piper remember him when he literally appeared out of thin air? It must be some trick of the mist. Who had the power to do that? At this point she had more questions than answers.
"Yeah, I'm not your best friend. I'm his evil clone."
"Leo Valdez!" Coach yelled from the front. "Problem back there?"
Clarion and Leo both turned, but not before Leo told Jason to 'watch this.' "Sorry, Coach! I was having trouble hearing you. Could you use your megaphone, please?" Rolling her eyes, Clarion had a good idea of what was happening next. Coach seemed pleased with Leo's response, but when he went to speak in the megaphone, a Darth Vader voice over played, and "The cow says moo!" The kids on board howled with laughter, Coach yelling at Leo.
Piper stifled her laughter, Clarion not really finding it all that funny. "My god, Leo. How did you do that?"
The Valdez held up a tiny Phillips head screwdriver. "I'm a special boy."
"Guys, seriously," Jason pleaded. Clarion felt bad for him, sensing the signs of amnesia. It wasn't all that hard to distinguish, in all honesty. "What am I doing here? Where are we going?"
Piper knit her annoyingly perfect eyebrows. "Jason, are you joking?"
"Maybe Leo's sarcasm is wearing off on him," Clarion pitched in, knowing she wasn't helping. She would have to talk to Coach, but she wasn't sure how much help he would be. He would most likely recommend a good whap on the head with his trusty old baseball bat.
"Aw, yeah, he's joking," Leo said, still drumming on Clarion's leg. "He's trying to get me back for that shaving cream on the Jell-O thing, aren't you?" Clarion and Jason both gave him blank looks, unaware of what he was talking about. Shaving cream with Jell-O? Disgusting.
"No, I think he's serious," Piper tried to grab his hand again, but he yanked it away. Clarion registered the hurt on the other girl's face.
"That's it! The back row has just volunteered to clean up after lunch!" Coach yelled from the front. The kids around them cheered, and Clarion sent the satyr a nasty glare.
"There's a shocker," Leo muttered. The girl next to him nodded in agreement, not wanting to clean up after these hooligans.
"Did you hit your head or something? You really don't know who we are?" Piper seemed to be deciding between being hurt and being worried.
Clarion connected eyes with Jason, his terror and blatant uncertainty clear. "I think it's worse than that, Piper."
The blond shrugged helplessly. "I don't even know who I am."