Ok...this is a one chapter story. I will try to update my other stories but this one goes with the BoO story contest held by Beth! DO NOT READ UNLESS YOU READ BLOOD OF OLYMPUS! Anyway...this story has to do with what Reyna, Nico, and Coach Hedge dealed with in Albania. Please R&R!

" Holy Jupiter!" cursed Reyna clutching at the harness.

Coach Hedge cursed and Nico bite his lip to keep from crying out in fear. Nico had shadowed traveled them to the top of a hill overlooking a town. However they were tittering at the edge of the cliff. The Athena Parthenon groaned as it started to tip over.

"Nico! Do something!" snapped Reyna.

Nico took a deep breath, lifted up his sword and said, "Serve me."

The ground rumbled behind them and skeletons erupted from the soil. They were covered in the tattered remains of Roman armor. Together they yanked the statue back. As soon as Coach Hedge's hooves (or feet ever since he was wearing sneakers) touched the ground he dropped to the ground and started kissing it.

"I thought you like heights," said Reyna untangling her arms from the harness.

Coach glared at her and said, "Listen cupcake...I do as long as I have a grip on something."

"Um...you do realize you are kissing Gaia," said Nico dismissing the skeletons.

"That's not the point!" grumbled the coach getting to his feet.

Nico opened his mouth to say more but his eyes rolled up in his head and help slumped forward. Reyna undid the harness on him and dropped him gently on the ground. He was snoring as soon as his head hit the ground.

"Well...I'm guessing we are not going anywhere for awhile," said Reyna.

Coach Hedge nodded and together they dragged Nico into the shade of a tree.

"Where are we?" asked a Coach Hedge.

Reyna shrugged and glanced at a red flag flying above a church steeple. It had a black two headed eagle in the middle of it.

"If my geography is correct...I think we are in Albania," answered Reyna shielding her eyes from the sun.

A rustling sound startled her. A patch off bushes shook. Then a dog bounded out of the bush and wagged it's tail at Reyna. It was was covered from head to tail in spots.

"DIE!" screamed Coach Hedge lifting up his baseball bat.

Before he could bring it down on the dalmatian's head someone shouted " Wait!"

A dark haired boy with freckles scooped up the puppy in his arms and backed away his eyes wide. Coach glanced down at the bat and hid it behind his back grinning.

"Heh...nothing to see here," he muttered.

"You American?" asked the boy in broken English.

The Dalmatian puppy squirmed out if the boy's grip and bounded toward Reyna. Smiling she picked it up and cuddled it. After dealing with attacking monsters she couldn't help herself. She wanted something to cuddle that didn't involve a maniac half-goat man or a creepy boy that shadowed traveled.

"Yeah," she answered.

Coach scowled and said, "Dalmatians...evil."

The boy cocked his head to one side and said," Dog no evil."

Reyna laughed as the puppy (which had wiggled out of her grasp) jumped up and licked the Coach's face.

"Gah! Dog slobber!" growled the Coach.

The puppy panted and ran to his owner.

"Tourists?" asked the boy scooping the dog up in his arms.

"Um...yeah," said Reyna.

"Hey kid? Any thing dangerous around here?" asked Coach gesturing around.

The boy made a face and said, "Yes...big giant bird. Eats you."

Reyna felt a icy finger trace down her spine.

"Do you mean a Roc?" she asked.

"No...two heads on bird. He is...um...terror of home," said the boy drawing a sloppy drawing of a two headed bird in the dirt.

"Let's just hope we don't see it," muttered Hedge.

A screech ecohed across the town. A large black blur flew toward them.

"Me and my big mouth," grumbled Coach Hedge getting his baseball bat ready.

"Kid...get out of here," said Reyna drawing her sword.

"But..."

"I said go!" Reyna snapped.

The boy grabbed his puppy and ran. Reyna made sure the boy had disappeared before saying

"Coach...watch Nico. I want to make sure you get back to see your kid."

"Na...I'm good," said Hedge.

Then the bird landed on the edge of the cliff and let out a cry. It looked like an eagle but it had two heads with glowing red eyes. All four were trained on the statue.

"Styx...it's huge!" cursed Reyna.

Coach charged at it before Reyna could stop him. The bird effortlessly smacked him to the side. He hit the statue and was knocked out. Reyna yelled and charged at the bird. Before it could react she had sliced off its heads. The headless body toppled to the ground and exploded. Reyna swept her hair out of her face and sheathed her sword. Then she made a mistake of turning her back. A claw smelling strongly of bird poop pinned her down. Reyna twisted her head and caught a glimpse of the bird which now had four heads all that snapping their beaks angrily. Before it could lunge at her a stone sailed through the air and struck it in the chest.

"Bad bird!" screamed the boy.

His puppy was tethered to a tree with its head cocked to the side. The bird started after the boy all four mouths agape. Reyna flung her sword and sliced off all it's heads. She covered the little boy before the bird exploded.

"Your'e stupid kid," said Reyna panting releasing him.

"No...you are. Bird come back when head gone. Only when it come back it has twice as many heads," said the boy.

Reyna looked at the little boy incredulously. No one had ever called her stupid except for Octavian. He had never called her that again after she tied him a sack with a rabid weasel.

"What is this thing called?" she asked.

"No idea. But in myths it is killed by special iron" said the boy.

Reyna looked at Nico's sword and grinned. But before she could reach it the bird picked her up by her cape. This time it had six heads. Reyna thrashed around but couldn't free herself. She saw the little boy pick up Nico's sword.

"This is for parent!" he screeched as he drove the sword into the bird's chest.

The bird exploded into a pile of feathers and dust. The feathers turned into little versions of the bird and flew off screeching.


"Good job kid," grinned Coach Hedge later (at sunset) He had Cooper (the boy's puppy) sitting in his lap.

Both had as asked the boy how he could see through the Mist. He had explained everything to them. The kid who had introduced himself as Leon grinned.

"You not bad yourself," he said.

Reyna asked, "Are you a demigod?"

Leon shook his head and said, "No...grandson of one."

Nico groaned and sat up.

"What did I miss?" he asked.

"Oh nothing...just your average hydra bird," snorted Coach.

" Hydra what?"

"Never mind," sighed Reyna, "You ready to go?"

Nico nodded and gathered up the harness. After saying goodbye did the threesome slip into the growing shadows.

"Hey Coach? Did you get over your Dalmatian phobia?" asked Nico before they disappeared.

"Shut up DeAngelo!"

Leon watched as his new friends disappeared. The rays of the setting sun turned his brown eyes a silver color. He looked at Cooper who got up and stretched like a cat. The puppy flickered displaying a saber tooth tiger for one second.

"Come on Small Bob...let's go find friends," said Leon.

Cooper/Small Bob purred and together they disappeared into the hills.

And done! Please enjoy trying to figure out who Leon is :D