Monay, here, and I'm back for the second chapter, yay! Okay, same basic thing, Posy Felrose is a fifteen year old mortal girl living in Manhattan who runs into Nico after he saves her from a hellhound. She knows about him now, being a demigod and all. So yeah let me know if Nico seems out of character or anything because I am really trying to avoid that. Srry if it takes me a long time to update, I've got a lot of homework and I want to make sure I get the story down good before I post it up. Read and review, Enjoy :]

Oh and in case it wasn't clear, the ages are as follows: Posy(14), Nico(14), Min(13 - she skipped a grade)

Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson & the Olympians… orEthan Fromefor that matter, I just own Posy and Min Yang and all those other original characters.

Chapter 2

Posy's POV

It had been nearly a week since I had seen that demigod boy, Nico. When I woke up the day after he saved me, I thought it was all a dream, that things like gods, hellhounds, and demigods didn't exist. And then I went to my computer and read the diary I had on a document there and then realize that it really did happen. The rest of the week went on as usual, with my usual classes at Knox Prep, the usual people, and the usual track practice, but it felt different knowing something like greek mythology is real. I felt like some kind of fugitive living among innocent citizens.

On Friday, I would have an English test. We were supposed to read Ethan Frome and write a timed essay in class about Ethan's life of misery, the symbolism behind Zeena's cat sitting at the table, and Mattie's domestic abilities. Boring. Mr. Freeman, the English teacher, had promised us that we would enjoy the book, but I just found myself dreading it. It wasn't my fault Ethan Frome was such a loser.

In class that day my mind kept wandering to that Nico kid. I knew my business with him was over, but something told me that there was more to him than what he told me that day. Like the fact that he was about to disappear into shadows and stuff. I don't know about you, but I don't know many kids who can disappear into shadows and appear out of nowhere, unless they're ninjas of course.

"Posy!" said Mr. Freeman, waking me from my stupor. I shook my head free of those stray thoughts and focused my attention on the teacher.

"Yes, sir?" I asked, not quite sure what he was saying before that. He shifted his weight to his right leg and stood up tall and focused his glassy eyes on me. I fidgeted under my desk.

"Daydreaming, are we?" he said. "In my class? How does that make me feel? Does my class bore you to tears, Miss Felrose?"

The class turned and looked at me, expecting an answer. I gulped, searching for an answer. What's the right answer? What does he want to hear? I have to be careful.

"Um," I began. "No…sir?"

"Hmm," he said. "Well, then perhaps you can answer the question on the board if you'd be so kind."

I looked up on the board and saw what he had written in his neat teacher handwriting: "Explain the significance of the novel's structure as a frame story." Not technically a question, but now wasn't the time to be concerned with technicalities.

I rattled my brain for an answer. I didn't exactly read the whole book; I sort of just found a website about it and read that. I had no idea that the novel was a frame story. It was a mystery how I'd gotten into Honors English with my amazing study skills, sarcastically speaking.

"Uh.." I said. I stared at it, hoping some kind of answer would just pop into my head, like an epiphany or some kind revelation. But sadly, nothing came to me, so I just shook my head.

"Oh, Posy," Mr. Freeman said with mock disappointment. He called on another student, Matt Kidham, a boy who was known for speaking out of turn. The bell rang a little after that, and I hurriedly gathered my books. When I looked up, Min Yang was standing in front of my desk. I stood to talk to her and realized that I was probably a whole head taller than her.

"Hey, Min," I said, fixing the shoulder strap of my backpack. "You need something?"

She shook her head. "I just wanted to say thanks, again for… you know, with Miss Bretner."

"No problem," I said.

"And, um," she continued. "I saw that you needed some help with Freeman's class."

"Oh, that," my cheeks flushed. "Um, yeah, I guess you can say I need a little help."

"I can tutor you a little, if you like"

"Oh, thanks, but are you sure?"

"Sure, I mean, it's the least I could do for the new shoes and all."

"Um, I don't know, I'd have to ask my parents first."

"Sure, go ahead. I'm meeting up with a few friends of mine at Fabrizio's Gelato Shop, and it'd be great if you could come, too."

I winced inwardly. Min wasn't exactly the most popular girl in Knox prep; that honor belonged to one of the junior girls, I forget who. Everyone knew the crowd that she hung out with. Mostly kids from the chess club or the anime squad or the debate team; the kinds of kids that everyone else seemed to avoid. I had been trying to work my way up the school hierarchy for a long time, and I knew being seen with Min's friends would ruin my chances. But then again, I wasn't going up anyway, so why start now. And Min was a great girl, I'd hate to turn down an offer like that.

"Sure, why not," I answered. "It'll be fun!"

"Great!" Min said. "So, um, I'll meet you at the school gate after school. We can walk over there together."

"Okay," I said, going off toward second building. "My next class is this way. See you later!"

Later...

School ended faster than I imagined. My last class of the day was Geometry, and right when the bell rang, I got my stuff and rushed over to my locker to get my books. I was usually in a hurry when I did this and today was no exception. I fumbled with the combination; was it 24 first or was it 8?

Finally it was open and got my stuff. I decided that I probably should organize my locker someday, it was a mess. I had work from fourth grade in there and a water bottle from the first day of school. I was kind of thirsty and considered grabbing a drink from it since it was still half full, but decided against it. Bacteria can grow inside water bottles, especially if they've been sitting there for months. Ew.

I slammed my locker shut and whipped around real fast and I rammed into something… or someone. My books fells and pencils were everywhere. I tried to regain my balance before I looked up.

When I did, I sort of just froze for a minute.

The person I rammed into was none other than Landon Hunter.

For those of you who don't know Landon Hunter, let me explain a little bit about him. He's on student council, the football team, the yearbook committee, and he's also the most popular boy on campus. All the boys wanted to be him and all the girls chased after him like Tom chases Jerry.

Like most of the female population at Knox Prep, I had a huge embarrassing crush on him. I don't remember when I started liking him, but it was probably the time when he sat in front of me in Spanish class, then he turned around to face me and said, "did you know that raisins are just dried grapes?" Then something clicked inside of me, like when you finally understand a math problem. It was magical.

I don't know how long I sort of just stood there and stared at him, but after a while he said "Um," and I started stammering out an apology.

"I am so sorry!" I said, bending down to pick up my things while keeping my head tilted up so I could see him, forcing my hands to grabs books and pens.

"No problem," he said, smiling and bending down next to me and helping me get my things. I couldn't breathe! He was so close to me, I could smell his cologne, mixed in with a little sweat. We both stood up at the same time and he handed me the rest of my books and our eyes locked. I was squealing on the inside.

He smiled a little before talking again.

"Don't I know you from somewhere?" he asked me, squinting his eyes like he was trying to concentrate. He was seriously eyeing me now and I didn't know what to say, so I did the stupidest thing anyone could ever do.

"No!" I said rapidly before hugging my books to my chest and then rushing past him with my eyes directed at the ground. Ugh! Stupid! I wouldn't be surprised if he never talked to me again. That's how stupid I was. I felt like an idiot, like I just threw a stone at the ground and missed.

I felt the red rushing up to my face as I made my way to the gate where I saw Min leaning and waiting for me.

I walked up to her and apologized for keeping her waiting; that incident with Landon must've taken up ten minutes, time was going so slow then.

Fabrizio's Gelato Shop was just a couple blocks away from the school and we got there pretty quickly. Min's circus troupe of friends was there before us and each had their own little cups filled with Italian ice cream and were talking about what sounded like a museum exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art.

I recognized a few of them; Jesse from my Geometry class who wore tape on his glasses. He changed the color of the tape every now and then. Then there was Kathy from my P.E. class. She was obsessed with anime and always wore her hair in a slightly anime-ish style. Then I recognized Dean, Leon, Celine, Daniel, Finn and Min's best friend, Robbie.

Robbie was on crutches but it didn't stop him from doing anything. People say he had an accident and he's been on crutches ever since, but he didn't like being felt sorry for, so we treated him the same as anyone else.

Robbie was sitting at a different table with a kid with black hair who had an ice cream cup in his hand, but wasn't eating.

Min took my elbow and we went over to the counter to get our ice cream. I decided to get strawberry. Min got chocolate mint, and after we paid she took me over to Robbie's table with the stranger.

"Hey, Robbie," Min said. "This is Posy, you know her right?" Robbie looked up.

"Oh, right!" he said. "Hey, Posy!" I waved at him silently, then turned and looked at the kid he was talking to and my mouth nearly dropped.

"By the way, Min," Robbie said. He motioned toward the boy. "This is – "

"Nico?" I said, er, yelled. He looked up at me too, and he was equally surprised to see me.

"You!" he said, standing up from the table.

"You two know each other?" Robbie asked with sincere curiosity.

I tried to explain to Robbie how I knew Nico, but as soon as I started, Nico told me to shut up, and I remembered that I had sworn not to tell anyone. I was sworn to secrecy.

Min got two chairs for us, and she took the one next to Robbie, so I seated myself next to Nico. I sort of stayed quiet most of the time, while Robbie, Min, and Nico began a discussion about Broadway musicals. I knew a little about those things, but I didn't want to say something and be wrong and humiliate myself. I had enough of that with Landon earlier this afternoon, and I'm not so sure I want a repeat of that.

Once everyone finished the ice cream, Min suggested we all go for a walk. Most of her circus friends left, so it was just me, her, Robbie, and Nico. I don't know what made the gods want to narrow the group down to us four, but that's how it went down, so I guess I just had to deal with it.

It was three o'clock, so I still had plenty of time until I was needed at home. That gave me enough time to at least pretend I was enjoying myself. Min was much more giddy and bubbly outside of school, away from the watchful eyes of teachers and other students.

Robbie was unusually talkative outside of school, too. We decided to go to central park and just hang out there for a little while. We were in the southern part of the park, near the Alice in Wonderland attraction, but surprisingly today was a slow day for the famous sculpture. It was pretty much empty except for a few kids like us who were taking a stroll, and few mothers with their children.

It looked like something was wrong with the concrete or something around that section of the park. It looked there was construction going on, but the workers weren't there. Out for lunch, maybe. But anyway, all around there was "Danger" and "Caution" signs everywhere.

"Oh, right!" Min said suddenly, as she turned to face me. "I was going to help you with English!"

"Yeah," I answered. She got her backpack and rummaged in there and brought out her copy of Ethan Frome, and flipped to the first page.

"'Explain the significance of the novel's structure to the author's implicit message' was the prompt, right?" She said, pushing her glasses into place. I nodded.

"That's an easy question," Nico said. "The novel's a frame story, so it's like a story within a story. The outer frame is with the narrator and the inner frame talks about Ethan's life. It's significant because it emphasizes Ethan's powerlessness over his own life. He needs a narrator to tell his story, he can't tell it himself."

"That's right," Min said. "How'd you know that, Nico?"

Nico shrugged as he took the book from Min's hands and flipped through it. "I read the book." He looked at me then handed the book to me. "What part are you on?"

"When Ethan and Mattie slam into the tree," I answered.

"Oh." He said. I sensed boredom in his voice.

I hadn't known Nico that long; in fact since the day he saved me from that hellhound I probably knew him for like, I don't know, a day and a half. But somehow I had this weird feeling that I wanted to get to know him; I wanted him to trust me.

He was just such an interesting person, besides the fact that he didn't talk much, nor did he shows signs of wanting to talk to me. Then again, I'd never had a friend like him; a half-blood friend I mean.

Min tucked the book away in her bag. "I guess Nico's got it covered with the whole tutoring thing. Let's keep walking!"

"Yeah, let's keep going," Robbie said, eyeing a hot dog stand, and then taking off. He might be in crutches, but that didn't stop him. He ran over to that stand like a rabid raccoon with scissors was after him.

I started walking, but then I was suddenly jerked backward by a tug at the back of my shirt, and faster than the wind a biker sped past me, and would have run me over if not for Nico pulling me back.

"Watch where you're going!" Nico yelled. I couldn't tell if he was talking to me or the biker. That's the second time he's saved me. I have got to stop owing him.

"Jeez, you're an idiot," he said. Yep, he was obviously talking to me that time. "Can't even walk without being prone to accidents."

"I'm not an idiot!" I said, getting up and brushing myself off. He scoffed.

"Yeah, sure," he said sarcastically. "You mean to get hit by the bike? That's smart."

I sighed. "Whatever," I said. "Guess I should have read the sign."

"What sign?" he asked. I pointed to the "watch for bikers" sign.

"That sign," I said. "Can't you see it? It's right there, in plain sight, duh."

"Well, if it's in such plain sight, why didn't you read it?"

Nico squinted and blinked a few times, and from that, I deduced that he couldn't read it. My initial reaction to this discovery would have been to laugh, but then I knew that this wasn't a laughing matter, it was serious; Nico had dyslexia.

"You're dyslexic?" I asked. Stupid question, I already knew the answer. "But Ethan Frome! You read the book!"

Nico stuck his hands in his pockets. "You know how I said I'm a demigod and stuff?" I nodded. "Well, demigods, our brains are hard-wired for ancient greek, that's we can't read English and stuff. And about Ethan Frome, I read an ancient greek copy at Camp Half-blood."

"Camp what?"

"Oh, right, didn't tell you about that yet. It's like a camp for demigods."

"So that's where you go in the summer?"

"Yeah,"

"What do you do there?"

"Train, learn to use our powers, and regular camp stuff."

"You have powers?"

"You ask a lot of questions."

"Well, maybe I wouldn't ask if you would tell me."

Nico's POV

Jeez, what did I do to get myself into this? Sure, Posy was a mortal who could see through the Mist, but deep down she was just like other mortal girls, curious and annoying. She just wouldn't shut up!

"Yes, I have powers," I finally just said to make her shut up. I sure hoped she wouldn't ask me to demonstrate them. That would not be cool at all.

I kept hoping she would just leave, disappear, and just leave me alone. I was never much for opening up to people or making friends, and I didn't feel like starting now, especially with Posy, she was just about as friendly as a wasp trapped in your car while you're driving. In fact, I wasn't good at making friends with living people in general. I am a son of Hades, after all.

"Like what?" she asked. Not exactly a good question to answer, especially with mortals all around the park. I grabbed her wrist and pulled her aside where I could whisper to her.

"OK," I started. "You have got to stop asking demigod questions in public. People could hear us and they'd find out about me."

"I'm sorry!" she said, whispering. "I've just got so many questions that I want answered, and it's killing me! I've never met a half-blood before, this is a first for me."

She crossed her arms across her chest.

"OK, fine!" I said. "We can talk, but you have to keep the half-blood stuff on the down-low! The last thing I need right now is for a mortal to find out about me. Well, besides you, of course, since you're already all up in my business."

I think she was about to say something again, but that moment some crazy lady just burst out of the forest part of the park and came rushing towards us. She grabbed onto Posy's arm and started yelling something in Italian. Luckily, I understood her.

"Help me!" she said in Italian. "My little boy! He's stuck! Help me!"

Posy, of course, being an American girl, didn't understand what the insane lady was saying.

"I'm sorry," she said soothingly, trying to calm the lady. "I can't understand you, can we get you some help?"

"Idiot," I said to her. I placed my hand on the lady's shoulder and told her not to worry in Italian. "She said her son's stuck in a hole near the construction site."

"What?" Posy said wit panic in her voice. "We need to call the police!" she whipped out her cell phone and started punching numbers in.

"No time for that!" I asked the lady where the hole was, and she led me it. It was deep hole with steam or smoke rising from it. It looked dangerous alright, and who knew what poisonous chemicals were in there.

I listened closely, and I could hear the muffled screams of a little boy down there. It was dark, too. Too dark to see anything. The lady was tugging on my sleeve begging me to help him in Italian. I told her not to worry.

I took off my jacket, it was hot down there.

"Nico!" Posy yelled from behind me. "You can't just jump in there! It's too dangerous!"

I shook her statement off. "I'll be fine," I said before taking a deep breath and jumping into the hole with the intent to save the little boy.

It was darker than I had expected in that hole. I couldn't see my hand in front of me. I might as well have been blind.

"Hello?" I yelled. I listened, and I heard whimpering. I moved my feet, but then saw that I just ran into a concrete wall. The floor was wet, too, and rats were everywhere. It was dunk and musty, and the air felt thicker.

I smelled something slightly acidic, and I pulled my shirt up to cover my mouth and nose. If there were poisonous toxins in here, I didn't want them in my lungs.

"Hello! Anyone here?" I yelled again. The thick air and dank smell was starting to make my eyes water. Steam and smoke was building up everywhere, and I knew I couldn't stay in here too long.

I heard a cry, and I moved in that direction. Suddenly, my foot was blocked and I tripped and created a splash in the musty water. It got in my mouth and I quickly spat it out.

I suddenly felt the air above me getting thicker, hotter, and stickier, like something was breathing on me. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end, and sweat began to trickle down my forehead. Something alive and breathing was definitely behind me.

I didn't want to turn around. I knew what would wait for me if I did. Slowly, so slowly, I reached toward my hip and touched my sword. I would need it soon, and time was of essence now. If I stayed too long, the chemicals could get me. And there's the kid to worry about. But suddenly I heard the crying stop, the kid going silent, and that's when I knew that there was never a kid who fell in a hole in the first place.

Footsteps. Heavy footsteps, I could hear them, but I couldn't see. It was still too dark. I heard a loud menacing roar, and I didn't have to see it to know what it was.

Behind me, or rather above me, stood the Nemean Lion.

I heard a low, rumbling growl, so loud I had to cover my ears or they would bleed, and the ground began to tremble. I couldn't see it, how could I fight it? It was getting closer and closer and closer still.

My heart was pounding and I had to force myself to stop breathing so loud or I'd give myself away. I stated crawling, hoping to get away from it to give my eyes time to adjust. That's when I heard Posy yell my name into the hole.

"Nico!" she yelled.

The lion growled and bounded forward and landed on top of my small form, its paw just inches away from crushing my face. I whipped my sword out and swung it with as much strength as I could muster from my position underneath it.

"Agh!" I yelled as I tried to stab it, but it leapt up off me and to the side. I quickly got onto my feet, and got ready. It could strike from anywhere, and it had the advantage. Lions can see in the dark, but I can't.

It was silent again and I listened closely for any sign of movement. Nothing. Just then, I heard a splash, from my right side, but before I could react, the lion had jumped at me and knocked me off my feet and my sword out of my hand.

I giant cat had its paws on my elbows and had me pinned to the floor. It was staring me right between the eyes and had its teeth bared. Its breath stank like death. And trust me, I would know.

It was just about poised to claw my face in or tear me to shreds with its teeth. My heart was pounding even harder, I was afraid it would burst through my chest.

Just as it was about to lean down and bite my head off, someone fell in the hole and landed right on top of it. Posy, that stupid klutz.

The lion roared again, even more fiercely this time. I kicked its stomach with my leg and it hissed and got off me. I sped over to where Posy fell.

"Nico! What's going on?" I grabbed her elbow and pulled her up and around a corner, I covered her mouth to keep her from screaming. "Shut up!" I said.

"I can't see!" she said, panic in her voice.

"I know! Just stay quiet!" I told her. I had to find my sword. That was the only way I would be able to kill it. But it was too dark and I couldn't see it. I tried to stand, but I realized that I had twisted my ankle. I could walk, but it hurt. I listened closely for the lion.

It made no noise, but from the corner of my eye, I saw a little coming in from the hole at the roof. And I saw the lion's shadow, and it gave me an idea.

"Posy, stay here," I said, before going off and standing in the light. I wasn't sure about this idea, but it was better than nothing.

Just as I thought, the lion came into the light, too. It roared into my face. After holding my ground a bit, I ran. Then I closed my eyes, and focused on the shadows, the darkness as a whole. Shadows were basically made up of the same material.

If I could somehow focus on the shadows as a whole, maybe I could figure out which parts weren't shadow. I focused on it, groping around in the dark with my mind. And then I found it; my sword. It was lying right beside Posy and she didn't even know it.

I ran faster, and the Nemean Lion chased me, with every step the ground shook.

"Posy!" I yelled. "The sword! It's right next to you! Get it!" I ran past and around the corner. I heard Posy fumbling around, feeling for the Stygian iron blade. Hurry up, damn it!

"I got it!" she yelled. Finally.

"I'm coming around!" I yelled back. "Get ready!" I ran around the corner, and just as the lion was about to bite my arm, I heard Posy come from around the corner and handed me the sword at last minute.

But then I turned around, and the lion caught the sword in its teeth and swung me around. I let go of the sword, and the lion spat it out, and was about to jump on me, but I rolled away, and hit my head on the wall.

I quickly felt around in the dark with my mind, frantically looking for the sword. It was lying near my foot. The Nemean Lion started running at me again, and in the last possible moment, I kicked the sword up, grabbed it, and plunged it straight ahead, without looking, into the lion's mouth. It felt like stabbing a coconut, only more difficult.

The last thing I heard was an effervescent roar, perpetually resounding in the darkness, like an echo in the hills. It's roar blasted into my ears, like when the music in a car is too loud. I shut my eyes. And then total silence.

When I opened my eyes again, it was gone. The hole was quieter, but still dark as before, but somehow I was able to see. I could sense where everything was, even in the dark.

I sighed in relief, and I sensed Posy falling to her knees, making a splash in the dirty sewer water. I felt my ankle throbbing in pain, but chose to ignore it, a smile pulling the sides of my face.

Posy stepped forward toward me. She was little shaky, but otherwise unhurt. That was good, it would be a hassle for her to explain things to her parents if she werehurt.

"What just happened?" Posy asked breathlessly. "What was that?" Her hair stuck to her sweaty face.

"I think," I said. "we just killed the Nemean Lion." I took my sword and put it away.

"Does this kind of stuff," she asked, pushing her hair back. "Always happen to you?"

"Yeah," I said. "Sort of."

TBC...

Okay so there's the second chapter. This one was actually really fun to write! Okay, well, review please!