It was just after midnight, and the pouring rain was not improving Peter's attitude. He had been waiting for the sign for over two hours, which would be hard on any kid but especially on someone with ADHD like himself. The blonde nurse who had told him about it had insisted on meeting him at the coffee shop at ten. She'd said they needed to "discuss things", and Peter had reluctantly agreed. What could it hurt? But the shop had closed an hour ago and now he was alone, in the pouring rain, huddling under an old newspaper, again.

Just like old times, Peter thought bitterly, trying to wrap the paper tighter around his body. Where could he go? He had agreed to meet the nurse because she had said she would help him, and if there was anything Peter needed now, it was help. He knew that the orphanage wouldn't take him back after the doctor visit. They had been waiting for an excuse to dump him, and the excuse had finally come. ADHD and Dyslexia? They would certainly find a way to book him as "special need" and never have to see him again. Besides, it wasn't as if he was dying to return to that place. Peter sighed and raised his head to scan the street again.

Suddenly something caught his eye across the street. Had someone darted into that alley? Maybe the falling rain was playing tricks on him. The shape had definitely looked too big to be human. Pushing his wet red hair out of his eyes, Peter grabbed onto the switch blade he always kept in his pocket and slid it out.

"Hello?" He called out in the rain. No reply.

Peter stood up and stepped into the shadows. He tried to tell himself it was nothing, but every inch of his body seemed to be listening, straining, and pulsing with adrenaline, as though it knew something he didn't.

Peter started to sit down again, when suddenly he heard a scream from the alley across the street. He jumped up. What if it was the blonde nurse? He flicked open the switch blade and ran across the street, then, taking a deep breath, ducked into the alley.

At first Peter could see nothing, and then he heard another scream, and a weird hissing sound like a bow being released from an arrow. Instinctively Peter ducked low and crept towards the sound. If the attacker had a bow, he would have to get pretty close without being seen to do any damage. Heart pounding, Peter searched the alley. He could see almost nothing in the poor light, but heard the low raspy breathing of…something he was pretty sure wasn't human, and quick breathing, as though from a cornered animal. Or a girl, Peter thought worriedly.

Suddenly the rain let up, and a strong, cold wind blew from the other end of the alley, bringing a nasty scent of…wet cat fur? The clouds burst open and the full moon illuminated the alley for a terrible three seconds. Peter's heart jumped to his throat. A huge creature, as large a as a big horse but shaped like a lion with a spine covered tail was crouching over a small girl. She looked young, and was certainly not the blonde nurse. Her skin was so pale in the moon light that at first Peter thought she was dead, but then he saw her chest heaving under her blood stained shirt.

All this Peter took in in a second, for then the monster turned towards him, its foul scent of death hitting him full in the face.

"Peter. How nice of you to come looking for me! I'm sorry I missed our date." The monster crooned, in a familiar female voice. Its mouth was filled with fang like teeth, but the eyes were human, a lovely, electric blue. Just like the nurse!

"You…You're a…"

The monster snarled and crouched, but before Peter could rationally gather his thoughts he was slammed to the ground, crushed under a thousand pounds of stinking fur. Thrashing violently, panicking, Peter opened a screwed up eyeball and screamed. He was staring straight into the monsters blue eyes, and felt a drop of saliva drip on to his neck, burning like acid. This is it, Peter thought, absent mindedly wondering if anyone would notice he was gone. Probably wouldn't even look for him.

But then another acidy drop fell on his neck, and another, and suddenly something dawned on him.

It was absolutely silent.

Aside from his own heart, thundering in his ears, he could hear nothing. And as he opened his eyes, he felt the weight lifting, and saw the monster disintegrating into gold dust all over him. Coughing, Peter stood in shock. He looked down to find his now bloody knife still clenched tightly in white knuckles. The clouds covered the moon again, and the alley was thrown into darkness, leaving Peter shaking all over and wondering if he had been dreaming. Had he really just accidentally killed a monster? And right here, in an alley he passed almost every day for school?

A cry from the back of the alley brought him back to the present. He turned, searching for the bleeding girl, hoping she wasn't hurt to badly. Stumbling over something in the dark he tripped and fell onto something warm and wet. It moaned and struggled slightly under him, and he sat up quickly, apologizing profusely.

No response.

Terror filled Peter. Had he come too late? He didn't even know the girl, but she was the reason he had come to this dark alley in the first place. Gently Peter lifted her head onto his lap and leaned his ear over her lips, using the hand that wasn't cradling her to check her pulse. Both her breath and pulse were weak and shallow, but they were still there. It's alright. I've got you now, it's going to be ok, Peter thought, rocking the girl gently in his arms, silently begging for the smallest whimper, the tiniest flicker of life to come from her.

And suddenly it happened. The girls eyes opened and the moon slid out from behind the clouds, illuminating large grey eyes full of pain, but fully conscious and aware. Beautiful eyes, Peter thought, licking his lip nervously.

"Are you ok?" He said, helping her sit up next to him. She moaned again, and gestured to a knapsack a few feet away.

"My…my bag. Get my…" Her voice was full of pain, low and husky. Peter reached for the brown bag and placed it in her lap. Her eyelids fluttered, so he begun digging through it himself. Was there some medicine or something? Peter pulled out a zip lock baggy of lemon-square looking things, and the girl moaned and nodded her head.

"um, you don't happen to have some bandages or something here, do you?" he said, and started to put the cookies back, but she reached for them feebly.

"Whatever you say." Peter opened the packet and pulled out a lemon square, holding it up to the girl's mouth. She took it, eating the whole thing, then fell back into his lap.

Peter stared at the bag of squares. What were they, healthy cookies or something? He didn't think they'd be much help.

Suddeny the girl opened her eyes and sat up in his lap quickly. She slid off, and, leaning against the back wall, stood up. Peter gasped. What had been a huge gash on her arm was only a small white scar. Though he could not see her chest, no more blood was dripping down her shirt. But…how?

She reached for the bag and ate another cookie, then reached into her knapsack and pulled out a thermos, which she took a long draught from. She was now standing up, looking, besides the torn bloody shirt, none the worse from her fight with the monster.

Having apparently sated her thirst, the girl turned to him, looking him over, her view coming back to the knife in his hand again and again.

"Who are you?" She said, with a hint of fear in her voice. "Did you kill the Manticore with that knife? How?" Suddenly she stepped closer to him and grabbed the knife, turning it over and over in her hands, inspecting it in the moonlight,

"How did you get this? I thought you were…mortal." She said the word mortal in a whisper, looking straight into his eyes with her big grey ones, as though trying to read the answers in his eyes.

"I…I…I have no idea what you're talking about. Manticore? Is that the monster thing? I guess when he fell on me he must have fallen on the knife…" Peter stuttered, squirming under her gaze.

"Its certainly celestial bronze. But since you don't know that you're a half-blood, where could you have gotten it?" Peter shook his head, completely clueless as to what she was talking about.

"I'll have to take you to camp, immediately." She said, more to herself. Then she rummaged through the bag and produced two blankets.

"I call the blue one. We'll take a taxi first thing in the morning. Now you lie down there, and I'll put this pipe between us, say, you don't kick in your sleep, do you? Oh well never mind it can't be helped. I'm Eve, by the way. Its short for Evelyn. What's your name?" she stopped her chatter and turned to him.

"Uh…Peter. Um, why are we sleeping here? Where are we going? Camp?" He knew he looked like an idiot, but he couldn't think straight. A wave of tiredness washed over his body, and he reached for the red blanket.

"It's…oh, I'll explain in the morning. You look ready to pass out." She laid two pieces of cardboard on the ground and a PVC pipe in-between them, then spread her blue blanket down, lay on top of it, and tucked the edge around her as though she slept in an alley every night.

"Goodnight." She said cheerily, and closed her eyes, her black, wavy hair spreading like a pillow beneath her.

Peter awkwardly lay down next to her and pulled the blanket over him, sure he wouldn't sleep a wink.

"Hey Peter?" Eve said beside him.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for saving my life."

"Uh…no problem." He said, surprised. She smiled, and then Peter felt he could barely keep his eyes open any longer.

He rolled over on his side, and drifted off to sleep.