This Isn't Home (A PJO fanfiction)

Chpt 1 On My Way

        CRASH. A tree fell behind me, followed by a scream, sounding like it came from a young girl. I couldn't afford to turn around. It was chasing me. I didn't know what it was, but this thing was right behind me. As I was running, sprinting even, to get away from this creature, I ran into an invisible wall. It rippled blue when I hit it, and it seemed to stretch endlessly in either direction. I banged my fist on the unseen barrier, screaming for someone to let me in. The monster closed in on me. It pounced. I had just enough time to decode a sign. "Camp Half-Blood?" I muttered. Then everything went black.

        I woke up in a cold sweat.It was a chilly and cloudy day in Chicago. Snow was gently falling, and it was still dark out. The best kind of weather. My cropped blonde hair stuck out at all angles. I slowly stepped out of bed. The walls of my room were stark white, just the way I liked them. I changed out of my (surprise!) white pajamas. After untangling the seemingly endless knots in my hair, I put on my favorite outfit for cold weather. A white tank top, blue jeans, and my snowboarding jacket, along with my lucky shark tooth necklace I got when I was 6 or 7 at the aquarium. My dad got it for me to calm me down after I saw fish get fed to the sharks. I threw a huge tantrum and kept yelling "Save the fishies!" I wear it everyday, one, because it's familiar, but also to remind myself to never eat anything that was a living creature.

        I walked down the stairs to greet my dad, sitting at the kitchen table, reading the paper, sipping his tea.

        "Morning, Dad!" I said, leaning over to kiss his forehead.

        "Morning, darling." He smiled briefly, before burying his face back in the paper. He's been like this since I started my freshman year. Very distant, always lost in his own thoughts. He always made sure I carried his Swiss Army knife, and that he saw me get on the bus in the morning. I grabbed my backpack and an apple to go. Dad stood up and faced me.

        "You have my knife?" I nodded. "And your cellphone?" I nodded again. "Very well. Have a good day honey." He seemed reluctant to let me leave. He stood by the window and watched me board the bus. I was taking in the view and earing my apple when I heard a voice I hated.

        "Hey sexy!" It was Armadillo, or as the world called him, "Luke the Playa." I hated him with a burning passion. He slid into the seat and tried to put his arm around me. I pushed him away. "Oh, come on babe! I know you looooove me."

        "Shut up, Armadillo." Luke was a sophomore, and thought he could pick up any unsuspecting freshman with his "good looks" and "charm." I wasn't into attractive guys. I tended to lean towards the nerds and outcasts. They just understood me better.

        "Ooh, girly-girl getting sassy. " I took a deep breath to keep from punching him in the face.

        Luke, please leave me alone." He put up his hands in mock defeat, and went over to talk to his friend. He immediately started talking about how I was "playing hard to get." I just shook my head and put my backpack in the seat next to me. At the next stop, my favorite face bounded onto the bus.

        "Oi! Bitch!"