CHAPTER 2: SOMETHING STRANGE
PLEASE READ! THIS IS IMPORTANT!
In the days after it first came out the first chapter got changed a bit, some of which was important so I'll say it here. Now, the Callahans have been in New York for one school year, and Mariana's school is about to be out for summer. The important part is over now, you can get to the story.
Hey all! Its SuzuBells again, back with a new chapter! First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who checked out my last chapter. I even got a couple of followers! Fangirl squeal! Wait. I'm fangirling over my… fans? Hmm… Anyways, I'll keep this short. DISCLAIMER: I am not Rick Riordan and lay no claim to any of his works.
And now….. Lights! Cameras! Aaaaaction!
It was a Friday like any other, until it wasn't.
My brother Hayden had finished school the week before (lucky kid!) and I was walking home from Goode High School. I still can't believe that's its name, by the way. I know my mom was looking for a "good school" but really? Really? Not to mention, everything is ridiculously cheesy. They milk that name for all it's worth. Wait a second. Milk? Cheese? Oh no, what am I thinking? But back to the story. I was waiting to cross a busy intersection, staring at the ground (my thousand-ton backpack makes it hard to stand up straight), when a flicker of movement caught my eye. I glanced up, and lo and behold! A monster! Well, this one was more on the humanoid side, but the bottom half of her body was reptilian. A group of five teenagers around my age brandished swords, daggers, bows, and all manner of dangerously sharp, definitely not allowed in school weapons. Eh, nothing special. I turned my head to look away. Then I saw something that made my heart stop. Well, almost. Not really. But I was pretty shocked when I saw my one and only little brother amongst the group of fighters.
Allow me to stop time and introduce Hayden Callahan. He's my twelve year old baby brother, and he's just adorable. I mean, he tries to act all serious and mature. I just want to ruffle his hair all day! In fact, he's actually my half-brother, but I never knew his dad. After all, I was, what, two when he was born? But Hayden's father left shortly before he was born, so I'm told. My mother wasn't married to him, after all. I feel bad for my mom, having to cope with two losses and two kids at the same time, without anybody to rely on. Ever since I was young, I had to help out with taking care of my brother while my mom worked. But we managed. In fact, we even moved because of her job. Which brings us to the very moment you've all been waiting for.
In that instant, I threw caution (and my backpack) to the wind. "HAYDEN!" I screamed, sprinting across the street just as the light turned red. Hayden turned to look at me, and the monster took the opportunity to attack. But one of the others sliced her in half before she could do anything and she disintegrated into golden dust (ouch!). Meanwhile, I, still shouting like a maniac, tackled my brother to the ground, huffing and puffing (there were no houses to blow down). "What was that? What happened? Are you alright?" are all the things that I managed to get out before I noticed he was saying "Mariana. Mariana. Sis! Get off of me!" I realized I was crushing him and stood up, taking deep breaths and dusting myself off. I offered him my hand, pulling him up, and then I realized that people were staring at us. The five teens looked at me disbelievingly, clearly wondering if I was sane. Then one of the boy's eyes widened, like he suddenly realized something. He had blond hair and stormy gray eyes, looked to be about sixteen, and carried a sword. He whispered something to the others, and they all started nodding. The boy stepped up, handed Hayden something that looked like a business card, and said "Hayden, we've got to go now. Remember what we said, okay?" Hayden nodded putting the thing into his pocket, and then the group blended into the crowd before I knew it. "Mariana, let's go home" he said. I frowned and began drilling him with questions. I asked him if he knew what had just happened, who those people were, if he could see the monster, why it attacked him, and more questions of the sort as we walked to the apartment. Hayden just shook his head and didn't speak. I had a feeling that he wasn't denying anything, though.
Later that night, once I had fixed dinner for Hayden, I snuck into his room (I care about him, okay? I might be just a…little…bit…overprotective, but it's normal, alright?) to see any clues as to what had transpired that day. His bed was made, his backpack on the floor. There was nothing on his bedside table, or on the shelves. I even opened some of his books and shook them, but stopped when a bookmark fell out of one. That made me feel guilty, so I tried to put it back in. Wait a second. Wasn't Hayden ADHD and dyslexic? What was he doing reading books? Well, there would be time to think about that later. I looked at his jacket, draped over his chair. The pockets were empty, except for some change which I quickly put back in. And then I saw it. On his desk.
Hooray! Chapter 2: officially done! This one is longer, but I promise the next one WILL be over 1000 words. I want to cut down on my A/N's until I add more story...but there's just so much to say! Oh well, what can you do? Once again, I just can't thank you all enough. Virtual brownies for everyone! Except for you, Octavian. No, not you either, Umbridge. You know what? I might as well just put them away now. Goodbye, please review, and remember: Sharing is caring, unless it's your homework.
