Sisters of Opposition

We left home six months ago, finally done with our mother. She was always making it clear to us that she didn't actually want us. She thought we could make her happy, but we didn't. So, one day I grabbed Kylie and we hid until our mother left for work. We snuck back into the house and grabbed anything we could carry. When we walked out that door we never looked back.

I couldn't believe everything that happened. Since Kylie and I had run away from home a few months back, we'd been running for our lives. It seemed that every mythological creature we'd ever heard about in school was real and out to get us. We were both hurt, me slightly more than Kylie because I was older and tried to keep her out of sight of these things as much as I could, but she wasn't in great shape either. I had a gash down my right leg that sent searing pain up and down every time I moved my leg, which I had no option not to. Kylie had a cut on the side of her head that was bleeding since Jersey City. We both had other cuts and bruises, but we couldn't stop anywhere. Every time we did, something would find us.

There was a huge dog on our trail, a hellhound. It was gaining on us, but we couldn't slow down. I grabbed Kylie's hand to keep her at my side. I ducked into a clearing that led to a wooded area, hoping that we could get into the woods. We weren't that lucky. The hellhound caught up to us and went to pounce. I kept it focused on me.

"Kylie! Run to the woods! I'll catch up!"

My sister hesitated, but when the hellhound knocked me to the ground with its paw, she ran. I got up, my head spinning and in even more pain. The hellhound charged at me again, but this time, when it went to hit me, I slid under it and started towards the woods, after Kylie. When I found her I tried to keep her as quiet as possible as we kept going.

We reached the top of the hill in the wooded area and I was about to feel relief because it looked like there were places to hide in the valley, when the hellhound caught up to us again. I pushed Kylie behind the pine tree we were near, trying to figure out what to do. It wasn't as if I could tell her to run for help. Who would we turn to?

"Kylie, go hide! I'll come find you in the valley as soon as I can."

"I can help you fight," Kylie said, arguing with me for the first time since her head injury.

"You need to get out of here and find some way to take care of your head. Go! I'll find you," I said, not taking my eyes off of the hellhound that was looking at me as if I was dinner.

It was about to attack me again. I wasn't sure I could handle another attack. It got up on its hind legs, as if it was ready to squash me, when all of a sudden a volley of arrows flew past me and into the hellhound. Someone grabbed me from behind as I watched the hellhound turn to dust. When they turned me around, I saw they were holding Kylie too.

"Who are you?" demanded a blonde who was wearing ancient Greek armor.

"My name is Carina Montrose and this is my younger sister, Kylie. Who are you?" I asked her.

"Annabeth Chase. I'm a counselor here. How long have things like that been after you two?"

"We ran away from home six months ago," Kylie said. "It started then."

"How old are you two?" Annabeth asked.

"I'm sixteen and Kylie is fourteen."

"Percy!" Annabeth called.

A guy who looked about my age with sea green eyes and black hair made his way over from where he was scouting. Apparently he wanted to make sure it was only the one hellhound that had followed us.

"I think we need to take these two to Mr. D and Chiron," Annabeth said.

"Why?" asked Percy.

"Just help me, Seaweed Brain! Carina looks like she's hurt," Annabeth snapped at him.

I didn't want to let him help me, but it was easier to walk with someone helping me. Annabeth helped Kylie and the rest of crowd started to go back to whatever they had been doing.

Notes