Ashes, Ashes

chapter 5

-ash-

I stared after her as she exited the room in shock. Then I took a seat at a desk in despair. How am i going to convince her to come to Camp Half-Blood with me now? She probably hates me and all of this now.

I closed my eyes and replayed the scenario in my head. My eyes flew open with horror. Why had i done that? I had grabbed her hand and... and she didn't let go, I realized with wonder, a smile growing on my face. But I quickly dismissed the thought. She was probably too shocked to notice. Or do anything, I recalled, remembering her unsteady walk out the door, the smile fading a little.

Finally I sighed and got up and walked to class. I spent the whole day quiet, musing in my thoughts. I think Chase and Noah noticed, because they kept peppering me with questions and gossip and trying to cheer me up.

"Guys, stop!" I exclaimed annoyed.

"Oh no, did you get rejected? It's okay, that happens to everyone." Noah tried to pat my head but I swatted his hand off. I was about to say more when I heard a crash. Then screams. And a roar. Faint, but a roar.

I looked around. No one else seemed to hear it. I raised my hand and asked the teacher if I could go to the restroom. She said yes. I went out in the hallway and checked to see if anyone was watching. No one was, so I ran down the hallways looking for the source of the sound.

I finally found her outside, trapped by the monster in a corner. My eyes widened and I looked around for a weapon. There! A branch, sturdy enough for a couple hits, angled right. I ran over and grabbed it and stood behind the monster, coming in the sight of Aspen. Her eyes widened, but she said nothing. I poked the monster in the rump.

"Hey, ugly!" I yelled. "Over here!"

The monster roared and turned around, leaving Aspen who stood stiffly, hugging the wall.

I struck a blow at it, striking it in the muzzle. It shook its powerful head that almost titled me off balance. My Camp Half-Blood training kicked in. I whacked and jabbed with the jagged, broken end of the stick. I knew the stick wouldn't last much longer, so I tried to disintegrate it quickly. No such thing happened. At one point, it drove me off balance, my stick clattering out my hands, me tripping and falling. The monster drew closer, zoning in for the kill, crushing the branch underneath it. Well, there goes my plan to crawl away and use it. I gulped. And probably my life too.

"STOP!" Aspen yelled. A blinding white flash made me close my eyes and next thing I knew, the monster was dead. A layer of ashes were whisked up into the sky by the light spring breeze. The monster was dead...

I had certainly not done it. I looked around at Aspen who was looking scared now. She crept forward towards me and extended out a trembling hand to help me up.  I gratefully accepted it while goggling at her. She had done it! She had killed the monster with no training at all! I drew in a sharp breath. This was why I had to bring her to  Camp Half-Blood.

"Do you get it, now? The safest place for you is Camp Half-Blood." I told her gently. She nodded silently, looking down, her face guarded. Why does she keep everything to herself?

"If you need to talk, you have me." I reassured. It seemed to help because she looked up at me and smiled a little. Wow. I've never gotten a good look at her before.

She had pale blue eyes that seemed to give away her emotions, no matter how hard she tried to hide them. Her dark blonde hair was tied into a side braid that had gotten messed up. Her face was streaked with ashes. But despite, that, her entire face glowed when she smiled. She was... Pretty.

a/n:

friendly neighborhood nugget here. if youre actually invested in this story (for reasons unknown) great news!! ive been blackmailed into posting the rest of this godawful story by- you guessed it -my cowriter !!!!1111!!1

i hate you <3

i know its probably been like 4 years but as i get the rest of this story out keep in mind that once again this was written when we were in 7th grade and we're currently seniors in highschool trying to forget the memory of this entire ordeal. free us please.

if youre reading this all in one go, ignore this ig lol have fun

k bye