the first huntsman || percy jackson

i let the dogs out

CASPIAN

My day was going pretty well until every law enforcement agency in the state of New York was out looking for me.

Up until then, I was having a wonderful afternoon. There's no better way to spend an early summer day than picnicking in Central Park with your family. No more school, no more burdens, no more worries. I don't think I could've taken another minute of sitting still: ever since classes let out I've been jumpier than a rabbit in June. My classmates have never been thrilled with my constant ADHD movements, but the tolerance level was getting so low even I couldn't stand being around myself anymore.

Central Park was decently busy. Lots of tourists were walking around, a pop-up pet adoption booth was set up nearby, and it looked like there was an ultimate frisbee tournament game being played near our picnic blanket. To celebrate the start of the summer, my mom raised a plastic water bottle for a toast;

"To the start of the best summer ever," she said.

"May we experience wonderful things and learn something new every day," my step-dad, Gary, chimed in, raising his bottle.

"Cheers," my younger brother and I tapped our water bottles to everyone else's, and we all took a sip.

"I can't believe my baby's about to start high school!" My mom said, looking expectantly in my direction.

"Mom, please," I begged, "We just ended the school year. Can't we take a break from talking about more school for a little while?"

I spotted a flash of brown darting about fifty yards behind where my mom was sitting. A little brown rabbit, almost too far away to see, halted abruptly as soon as I fixed my eyes on it, like it somehow knew it had caught my eye in that exact moment.

I cocked my head to the right, still staring intently at the rabbit. After a few seconds, it copied my movement, his tiny eyes not breaking contact with mine.

What in the world? I thought. How are you doing that, and why aren't you scared right now? There are probably a million people walking around here and you're staying perfectly still.

Almost in response to my thoughts, the rabbit twitched its nose at me and hopped away, like it was offended that I didn't stop what I was doing to get up and chase it. I've always had a soft spot for animals, especially rabbits. I'm surprisingly good at catching wild animals, too. Point at the nearest one and I'd bet you any amount of money that I could nab it in less than sixty seconds flat.

It hadn't been easy adapting to my overwhelming connection with animals. I thought I was just imagining it when I was little, but as I've gotten older, I've become more and more aware of it. Especially during those instances when it couldn't possibly be overlooked – when other people noticed it too.

"Caspian, did you hear what I just said?" My mom asked impatiently.

"Uh, no, sorry," I blinked a couple of times and shifted more comfortably into my spot on the blanket, trying to establish a better connection with the ground.

"I said I hope your new school knows better than to bring in any more petting zoos," she repeated. "They'd better look at your transcripts to see why you've been expelled from your other schools."

"I'm surprised this one took you," my younger brother Josh added, "if they are reading your papers, they definitely think you'll turn into some kind of serial killer."

I frowned. "I'm telling you, I would never purposely hurt an animal! They just get nervous around me for some reason. I don't do anything to rile them up."