Hey there, readers!

This one's going to be long, I couldn't figure out where to cut it off if I wanted to separate it, so I just let it be. She's going to be meeting some people at the Rez, so she's one step closer to learning things that she shouldn't be learning.

After all, watching out for monsters is her way of life- how will this all work out for them to be living in the same area, then?

Any thoughts of what you'd like to see happen?

Anyway, hope you enjoy!

XOXO Ally Layne.

Bad Moon Rising

Chapter 4: Jackholes and Pizza

When I woke up, I knew I needed to get out of here.

And I really, really needed to pee.

I quickly rolled herself out of bed, disconnected my finger from the heart monitor, and snuck through the room to get to the bathroom across the hall while holding a spare drachma and the back of my hospital gown together.

All in all, it was a difficult endeavor while my head decided to host its own mini rock concert without my permission.

After getting myself relatively looking decent and straightened, I turned on the water and with a tug in my gut I created a watery mist to use to get ahold of Annabeth. I tossed a drachma into the mist and asked to speak with my friend, who had a worried look plastered on her face as soon as she saw me.

"Andie! Oh, dear gods- is that… are you in a hospital?!"

"Um… yeah?"

One look at her told me she was sitting alone in her cabin, writing frantically in some notebook while doing some research from Daedalus's laptop. Her curls were sticking out in wayward directions and she had deep dark circles running under her eyes.

I immediately shrunk away, avoiding her nasty gaze. I knew the look of disappointment and concern that she was giving me by heart at this point in my life, so I didn't know if I really needed to look at her to take in the full effect.

"Look at me, Kelpie. I need to see what happened to your face before I decide to steal one of the chariots and hitch a ride to LaPush," Annabeth said. I, of course, listened to her and watched as her stormy grey eyes became darker with her increasing frustration.

I immediately felt my eyes widen and I threw up my arms in surrender. "It wasn't my fault, I swear!"

"Did you get beaten up by some monster? What happened?" Annabeth asked, leaning forward as if she would get a better viewpoint of my features if she did so. "You can't keep hiding things like this from me!"

My mouth dropped open. "I am hiding nothing from you! You just won't let me tell you what happened, Owl-Brain!"

She scowled but immediately seemed to sober from her brief hysteria at my words. "Fine, tell me what happened."

I took a deep breath and explained, "When I was driving back from the airport- by the way, did you know that car-rental guys are seriously rude? It wasn't my fault that I was late to pick it up, I honestly had no clue where they were-"

She waved a hand through the air. "Duly noted. Now, get back to you driving."

I rolled my eyes. "Fine. It was an easy drive, there weren't as many cars on the road so that made things run smoother on the way down to LaPush. But get this, when I was driving near the boarders of Forks and LaPush, I saw something cross the highway that caused me to crash."

Her eyes widened. "Are you-"

I quickly stopped her, "The only thing that was injured besides my pride was my head. Apparently I'm concussed. But besides the annoying ringing in my ear and the ache, I'm all good."

She briefly looked as though she was going to say something else, but she quickly closed her mouth as she gave my body (or what she could see of my body) a thorough inspection with her eyes.

Annabeth tilted her head. "What was it that ran out into the highway?"

A sigh escaped my chest. I wasn't all too sure if what I saw was actually real at this point, given how odd of a sight it really was. It wasn't some sort of hellhound, or a rabid dog, or even a wolf. And believe me, I've seen plenty of wolves with the Hunters of Artemis to know differently.

"It was an oddly massive wolf," I explained. "It had darker fur, but that was all I could make out while driving through a wooded area in the middle of the night."

She nodded slowly. "Are you sure it wasn't something else?"

I shrugged. "It was certainly different from all the other things I've been accustomed to seeing. It was nearly as massive as Mrs. O'Leary, but it was all wolf, no hell or hound."

I couldn't hide the slight tug of my lips as Annabeth rolled her eyes at my description. It was nice to have the banter still going even though we were on opposite sides of the continent. There were a few things that were important to hold on to no matter what, and my friendship with the blonde daughter of Athena was definitely one of them.

"I will make sure to do some digging and ask Chiron what he knows about giant wolves around Washington," she said, writing something in one of the open notebooks on her desk. "Stay safe, you hear me? Don't do anything stupid. IM me again when you are out of the Hospital."

I nodded but rolled my eyes at the whole stupid part. "I will. You stay safe, too."

She waved at me as I swiped my hand through the mist, making her image disappear.

I was in the bathroom, alone once more.

The next few hours were spent being once again poked and prodded by the doctors and nurses who were making sure that my brain was working properly and my reflexes were all in order before I was able to leave.

Then, true to his word, Cheif Swan came into view and was there to bring me to my new rental home and out of this hell-hole.

"I'm here to bring you to your new house," He spoke right away, and turned to the doctor with a raised brow. "Is she good to leave?"

Dr. Mason nodded but looked at me with narrowed eyes. "Call if you have any issues or experience any symptoms worse than what you are experiencing now. All of your scans turned up well, but if anything happens please get yourself back here as soon as you can, or call 911."

Cheif Swan nodded in agreement. "You shouldn't be driving with a concussion, kid. If you need anything you oughta call 911 or if you aren't in a direct emergency call the non-emergency number."

I blinked. "There's a non-emergency number?"

The two men looked between each other, and I could tell I probably just sounded really stupid just then. Perhaps they might suspect my concussion to worse than they thought, but in all honesty, that's probably not the case.

"I will write it down for you," Chief Swan said with a long-suffering look on his face. "As soon as you're ready to leave, we will head out."

I nodded. "Thank you for helping," I told him, just as I pulled out the small bag of my clothes given to me by the nurses. Luckily, it seems that they have been cleaned. "I'll just get ready in the bathroom."

I hurried over to the bathroom and changed, all the while ignoring the throbbing continuing to echo in my head. Even though the scans looked fine, it didn't mean it was completely healed, I guess.

After signing a few papers, I had to sit in a wheelchair and be pushed out to Chief Swan's cop car, which was definitely an interesting experience. Normally when cops and I are in the same vicinity it means they're chasing me. Not giving me a free ride, but things change.

"Would you like to go to check in on the car?" Chief Swan asked as he slid into his seat and clicked on his seatbelt. His brown eyes scanned my position over. "Will you put on your seatbelt, please?"

I blinked again, slightly shocked that it slipped my mind. Quickly, not to piss him off, I reached over to put it on. "Sorry, I guess I forgot."

His brows raised. "It's the law, Miss Jackson. Please don't forget again."

I pursed my lips. "Will do, Sir."

He let out a grunt and started the vehicle, then took off toward where my house must be located. Or, wait- "Did you ask if I wanted to check in on my car?"

Cheif Swan nodded, then tilted his head as he kept driving down the road. "Would you like to go there?"

"The Black's residence? Is that where it is?"

He nodded, running his hand across his neatly trimmed beard. "Jake Black might be out with my daughter right about now, but someone should be there if you've got any questions."

I nodded. His daughter, Bella. At least, that's what I think the guy named Quil said.

"Sounds good to me."

The ride was quicker than I thought it would be. The roads became unmarked and eventually, we turned onto a gravel path, then onto a driveway. There was a quaint 1-story red house with a large garage right next to it.

This must be the Black residence.

And, sitting in the driveway was an older man with long, graying hair a wheelchair, the guys I met yesterday, and a few others- including a woman with scars stretching across her face.

Besides the woman, they all looked massive.

"Welcome to the Black's residence," Cheif Swan said as he put the car and park and shut it off. "Billy Black is a good man, and these people are good people. I think you will find yourself happy to be here."

I nodded, offering the cop a small smile. "Thank you, Cheif Swan."

We got out of the car, and I watched slightly nervously as the cop went over to greet the man in the wheelchair, who looked past his friend to give me a good once-over. "My name is Billy Black, I am of the Quileute tribe on this reservation." He leaned back in his chair, slightly raising a brow. "For someone with a car as totaled as yours, I would expect you to be far more injured."

I placed my hands in my jean pockets and shrugged. "I guess I just got lucky, sir."

He nodded. "Good for you. My son is the one fixing your car up, but he's out with Charlie's daughter for the day. He told me he should be done in about two weeks. Don't worry too much, if you need something, these knuckleheads are able to give you rides."

Billy gestured over to where the others were standing, the ones I know who are waiting with smiles on their faces. A few of the other massive dudes looked slightly hesitant, but I couldn't blame them.

Sam was standing with his arm wrapped around the beautiful scarred woman, who had a calm smile upon her face. I instantly knew I was going to like her. Embry and Quil were standing next to two other guys, one looking completely unbothered, but the other was wearing a small smirk that guaranteed would piss most people off.

Luckily, I'm not most people.

"You've met Embry and Quil," Sam spoke, before squeezing the shoulder of the woman next to him. "This is Emily, my fiancée," he started, gesturing to the woman, before turning to point to the stoic man, "this here, is Jared, a member of our pack," again, why do they refer to themselves as a pack? "And this is Paul, who you should most likely ignore any offensive word he says."

I nodded. "That's normally what people say about me, so I think I'll be fine," I joked.

Paul's smirk widened. "Sounds like we'll get along just fine."

I raised a brow, but looked over to the others with a small, cautious smile. "My name is Andie Jackson-"

"Don't you mean Andromeda?" Embry asked, making Quil snicker and the other two guys look slightly shocked.

"Yes. But I prefer to go by Andie, thank you very much for the clarification Embry," I said, narrowing my eyes at my interrupter.

Before he could say anything else, the woman, Emily, walked up toward me with a smile gracing her face. "I took the liberty of packing the things you had in your car for you in Sam's truck, so we can bring it to your new home," she said, before reaching out and pulling me in for a hug that I was so not ready for. "It will be nice to have another young woman on the Rez."

I stood awkwardly with my arms stuck to my sides. "Uh, Em, it doesn't look like she's into the whole hugging thing," Embry called out, snickering at my reaction.

Emily quickly retreated, and I noticed a faint blush tint her olive skin. "Oh, I am so sorry-"

I held my hands up, immediately stopping her words. "No, no, it's not you... I swear. I really appreciate everything everyone is doing for me, it's just…"

"A bit much?" Sam asked as he walked forward to wrap an arm around Emily's shoulders. "Seems like this place is a bit different from what you're used to."

I rubbed my neck sheepishly. "That obvious?"

"You're from New York, right?" Quil asked as the group made their way closer to where we were now standing. "The big city?"

I nodded. "I'm from New York City. Born and raised."

Emily looked at me knowingly. "This is a change of pace, it seems?"

I sighed, looking around at the forest landscapes around me. "It's… well, this place is just so… green."

Paul chuckled. "You ain't seen nothin' yet, kid."

I pursed my lips. "Just so you know, I'm not a kid. I rent a house on my own, after all."

Emily looked at Sam with raised brows. "She does?"

He nodded, looking at me curiously. "Did you say you were a reporter working on a case with the disappearances near Seattle?"

This made the others stop in their tracks.

"Uh, yeah."

Emily placed a hand on my shoulder. "Your car is completely wrecked, so if you need anything, any of these boys will be able to help you."

I felt a blush come across my cheeks. "Thanks, that's really kind of you guys."

Paul looked at Emily with his dark eyes narrowed. "That's news to me."

Sam glared over his fiancée's shoulder. "Don't talk to her like that."

He only glared up at Sam. "Well, as I said, this is all news to me, so don't be dragging me into something I never signed up for."

I gulped, itching to my wrist where I held my shield in case things got messy…

But Emily quickly placed a hand on Sam's chest, and he seemed to calm down in a matter of seconds and looked down at her with eyes so loving I was seriously shocked to think this was real. I've never seen someone look so devoted to a woman before, even Percy.

And I thought he and Annabeth were sickening.

"Look, jackass, I don't need your help anyway so get over yourself," I told Paul, who was still slightly fuming a few feet away from Emily. "Plus, she just wants to help."

He looked down at me, feral and shaking in rage. I saw the others stiffen to our sides. Maybe he really was that dangerous.

"Paul, stand down." Sam's order seemed to overwhelm the man, and immediately he stopped shaking, letting a smooth look of indifference take over his face.

"It doesn't matter, anyway," he said. "As long as she doesn't come crawling to me for charity."

I ignored his dig, and looked to Emily and Sam with the calmest body language I could muster. I was sure my hands were still shaking, but not necessarily from nerves or fear. "You said my things are in Sam's car?"

Emily nodded kindly. "They're in his truck, ready to go to your house whenever you are."

I rubbed the silver ring on my right middle finger. It seemed like I wasn't getting rid of these people as easily as I'd hoped. "Cool. I'll just go say goodbye to Chief Swan and you're going to bring me there?"

Paul snorted, but Emily and Sam expertly ignored him.

I flicked him off without looking at him, something that made the others snicker.

"We'll bring you and help you set up the home," Emily said. "There were movers there earlier, and I saw they brought a bunch of furniture. Hopefully, these massive men can come in handy if we tell them where to put it all?"

I blinked, cursing my lack of planning. I had completely forgotten about having to move all the crap to where it was supposed to go. I looked over the massive bodies in front of me, even the asshat Paul. I suppose they'll be good for something rather than annoying me.

"That sounds delightful."

After saying goodbyes to Chief Swan and thanking Billy Black profusely for letting me get my car fixed free of charge, I rode off with my new acquaintances to my new house. Being only a few minutes away by drive, when we pulled up I looked out the backseat's window and my mouth dropped at how massive and how great of condition the place was in.

"This is nice," I mumbled to myself, ignoring the look of confusion Emily sent me from the passenger seat.

"You've never seen it before?" Emily asked curiously.

I shrugged as Sam put the truck in park. "I just needed a place to stay. I've had to stay in some bad places so I was just looking at the price and this came up," I lied.

She nodded, hopping out of the truck and walking with me to the front door. "The key is under the mat," I told myself, remembering what I had heard in a phone call a day ago about this same place.

Looking down at the black mat beneath my feet, I crouched down to grab the key, then opened the door to a massive entryway that led into a large open space full of furniture.

Boy, was I glad the others came along.

"I had a feeling this would be a bit much for one person to handle," Emily commented from my side. "Don't worry, we'll get this finished in no time."

In the end, I really didn't have to lift a finger or really add too much advice. Even with my enhanced strength as being a demigod, I didn't think I would hold a candle to how strong these men were, which slightly freaked me out.

What were they, gods?

Emily helped me come up with a decent floor plan that was comfortable and cozy for me and anyone who came over. Seeing how Quil and Embry launched themselves on the couch after everything, I had a feeling they'd be over quite a bit whether I liked it or not.

"What does your mom think about all of this?" Emily asked as she helped me dish up some pizzas with paper plates I had ordered for everyone for their help. "Surely she's not a fan of you moving out all the way here."

I shrugged, taking a bite of the pepperoni pizza. "She's okay with it, I guess. I think she's more worried about my brother," I said, immediately cursing myself for the slip of information.

Her eyebrows shot up. "Your brother?"

I heard some of the others walk in the kitchen and lean against the counter or sit down at the island on some stools the furniture company had dropped off. "You have a brother?" Embry asked.

I nodded. "A twin brother," I explained, twisting my ring nervously. "His name is Percy-"

"Wait… I think I've heard that name before… Percy Jackson?" Emily asked, her eyes slowly widening. "Andie Jackson?"

I gulped. "Uh… yeah?"

"You were fugitives once nearly five years ago, right?" Emily asked, before looking at Sam. "Do you remember when there were two kids on the television from New York that had become fugitives and couldn't be found?"

He nodded, his eyebrows furrowing. "It was curious considering how many people were looking for you," he told me. "It even reached us over here."

"Wait… you've been a fugitive?" Quil asked. "That's so cool!"

I rolled my eyes. "No, it wasn't cool," I deadpanned, before turning back to Emily. "You realize we were kidnapped, right? Not actually guilty of anything?"

Emily laughed. "Don't worry, I'm not accusing you of anything-"

"But I still think that's a bit suspicious," Paul cut in, his eyes narrowing in on me once more. "Why were you in that position to begin with?"

I glared at him. "Why don't you google it? I'm pretty sure there are some decent explanations out there for what happened. I don't need to waste my time to suit your curiosity."

He raised a brow, before letting out a grunt. "Seems like you're deflecting to me."

"No, more like not wanting to relive some bad experience, jackhole," I snapped.

Emily looked at me worriedly. "I'm sorry for bringing it up, it was just such an odd coincidence, that's all."

I nodded to her with a small smile. "Don't worry, happens more than you'd think. But my twin is missing, so my mother is more into looking for him than being worried for me if you'd catch my drift."

Her eyebrows furrowed. "I doubt she's only focused on him-"

I shook my head. "Everyone is looking for him," I explained. "Me included."

Sam tilted his head. "Is that a reason why you're here?"

I shrugged. "It doesn't hurt to report on something that could have connections back to my brother, so yeah."

They all looked between each other. "Well if you need anything, let us know."

I smiled at Emily. "Thank you guys, it was nice to meet you all and get to know you a bit better," I voiced, wincing at how fake it sounded.

I just wanted to go IM Annabeth and go to bed. I had enough of the company and people for a day.

They started to leave, but Emily stopped for a moment. "What's your phone number, in case you need something?"

I paused. "I, uh, don't exactly have a phone."

I swear I could've heard a pin drop. "You don't have a phone?" Paul asked, snickering. "What kind of reporter doesn't have a phone?"

I blinked. "An awesome one." I started to shoo them out of the house. "Now get out, I need my beauty sleep."

When they finally left and I heard the truck engines fade off into the woods, I locked the door with a sigh. This place was going to be a challenge, that's for sure. Nosy residents were not going to help me stay low on the radar, and too many monsters and godly beings know my name to be too safe.

I quickly made my way to the bathroom and IM'd Annabeth, hoping that she'd be able to give me some help.

But, when I saw her face, she looked way too frantic for my liking. "Annabeth?"

She was sitting at her desk, again, and her blonde hair was pulled out from the french braid it was pulled back in. I could tell the loose parts were from her running her hands through it, as that was what she was doing currently.

Her grey eyes flickered toward my image. "Kelpie?"

I nodded. "Uh… you okay?"

She huffed out a breath. "Rachel came up with something about a boy with one shoe, and I think that could help lead us to Percy… but there's literally nothing to go off of. It's a huge mess, and I'm starting to think I can't keep control of all of it."

I gulped, so not in the practice of the calming stuff. "I think it will all be okay, Annabeth. You just gotta keep working hard, something'll show up."

She nodded, but I could tell what I said definitely didn't help. "Anyway, I learned some things about the Residents of LaPush," she started, looking down at some notes in front of her. "Apparently, legend has it that the local tribe, the-"

"Quiluetes?"

Annabeth nodded, eyes slightly wide. "You know them?"

I shrugged, looking around me casually. "They have been mighty welcoming, but I know they're hiding something. I just don't know what it is."

"Well, I think I have something for you," she started, and I perked up at the news. "Apparently, the local legends claim that the Quileute people are closely tied with shapeshifters and are the descendants of wolves themselves."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, like that's likely."

Annabeth gave me one of her looks. "Andromeda Jackson, you are a daughter of a Greek God. Care to be more open-minded?"

I blinked. I suppose she had a point there.

"There's a possibility they're keeping something from you like you even said, and if the legends are true…"

I licked my lips. "I might be surrounded by monsters."

Her own lips pursed as she nodded. "Make sure to stay safe, Andie. I'll keep you updated on my end."

I waved goodbye as she swiped her hand through the message, instantly turning it to regular mist once more.

Yep. This was so not going to be easy.