A Place to Call Home

Losing my mind

I waved goodbye to my "friends" as I left the school. But of course they weren't even looking at me. I sighed and turned around, wishing for the hundredth time that I could get some real friends.

I had walked about four blocks from my school when I heard a loud barking sound coming from an alley. I turned into it, to see what the sound was, and immediately wished I hadn't. Standing in front of me was about the scariest thing I had ever seen: a giant black dog the size of a bus.

I nearly screamed, then thought better of it. I tried to slowly back away, but, of course, the creature turned and locked it's red eyes on me. This was not how I imagined my day was gonna go.

---

Leo flew around in circles, not knowing where to land Festus. "You sure this is where Chiron said they were?" He asked, looking back at Percy who was behind him.

Percy nodded, "I'm sure, but I don't see any--,"

He was interrupted by a loud scream beneath them. The two demigods looked at each other then dived down on Festus.

I screamed and started running away from the gigantic hound, which was not a very good idea. The dog ran towards me and jumped over my head, cutting me off from the street I had come from.

"Ok," I said to the dog, "we can work this out. If you let me live, I will give you..." I looked around. "This stick," I said, picking up a stick, "I will give you this stick and you will let me live, okay? What do you say?"

The dog looked at me for a second, and I thought it might have actually understood me. Then it lunged.

Something that I can not explain happened. The world seemed to go in slow motion. I saw the dog lunge, I saw it come right at me. I instantly tumbled and rolled out of the way. I stood up, not knowing how in the world I had done that. It couldn't have been instincts cause I had never been in gymnastics or anything. I was so caught up in my thoughts that I didn't realize the hound coming at me once again. I slid under the beat, with that unknown talent once again, but I was too late. The monsters claws scratched my right shoulder, leaving three long cuts. I cried out in pain. I wanted to just lay on the ground, knowing that any movement would hurt. But the ginormous dog was still there and would likely pounce again.

I stood up, wincing from the pain in my shoulder. I, being very stupid, faced the beast, no gun, no knife, nothing. Just me, a fifteen year old girl, and a bus sized dog.

That's about the time I saw a golden dragon land on the ground right behind the black dog. I was sure I had gone crazy. Two boys jumped off the dragon. One started to lure away the dog while the other ran to me. I wasn't sure what to do so I just stood there, looking like an idiot.

"Are you okay?" The boy said when he was close enough to me.

I came to my senses, "what the heck is happening here? It's a giant lobo!" The boy looked at me, crap I had started speaking Spanish like I did when I got scared or nervous. "Uh, I-I mean wolf. Why is there a giant wolf that wants to eat me?"

The boy scratched his head, "yeah, that's a little hard to explain." He gave me a sideways smile. He was probably a few years older than me, ​with brown curly hair and dark brown eyes. He wore a dirty white shirt with jeans, suspenders and a tool belt, his face was covered in dirt and oil.

"I'm Leo, and I speak Spanish too, by the way." Leo looked at my shoulder, "looks like you got cut, I think I've got some ambrosia in here​ somewhere," he started digging through his tool belt.

"Umm, shouldn't we do something about that," I said, pointing to the other boy now fighting the hound.

"Nah," Leo said, barely looking up,"Percy's pretty good with hellhounds." And just as he says that, the boy named Percy slashed a sword through the hellhound and it turned to dust.