BRENDAN'S POV

I wake up and expect to be in my Man Cave, but I realize that I'm not when I notice my eyelids caked in dirt. I feel something on my lap and I look down to see a familiar face. Her purple hair is messy across my legs and her eyes are shut tight. I notice my dagger a few inches away from her hand, which is bleeding from a large gash in her palm. I pick up my dagger and cut the cuff off my shorts leg. I tie it around her cut. I feel her stir and dart my eyes away. I don't want her to know how much I like her. "Oh, hey, Brendan," she yawns, lifting herself up. "Hey. What happened to your hand?" She bites her lip and says, " I, uh, cut myself while training." I know she's lying, but it's none of my business why, so I leave it be. "Where are we?" I ask instead. She stands up and looks around. "Well, I wouldn't know, exactly. Looks like a desert." "Feels like one, too." Ashley gasps and runs. "Uh, hey, wait." But it's too late. I run after her. By the time I catch up, she's talking to Aiden and Micha. They look confused. Aiden's dark hair is crusted in sand. Micha's clothes are torn and dirty, but she actually doesn't seem to mind too much. Speaking of clothes in bad condition, mine are, too, even before I cut off the cuff of my shorts. Ashley has stayed mostly unscathed, except for the cut, which I'm guessing happened before this. Ashley turns to me and waves her hand at me, the universal sign for, 'get over here!' "We have to figure out what happened. You're the smart one, we'll need your help." Aiden's facial expression shifts slightly at this. I try not to blush, and I succeed. I'm in better control of my body than most. Still, I can't believe she thinks I'm smart. Me! "Well, what was the last thing we saw before we fell asleep?" Ashley purses her lips and says, "I think I saw something, but I don't know what. It was... it was... something.... green! It was green! That's a start!" "Well, there's nothing green in my Man Cave, and that's where you were. So it must have been outside." "Right. What did you guys see?" She asks Micha and Aiden. "I saw something green, too," Micha recalls. "Slithery." Ashley nods. "Exactly." "I remember, like, fog. I'm about 38 minus 2 percent sure it was green," Aiden says. "Oh, did you hit your head?" Micha asks, biting her lip. "I'm absolutely sure," Aiden says before promptly collapsing onto Micha. She shifts under his weight, but eventually she sets him down on the sand and wipes sweat from her brow. "Where are we?" She then asks. Ashley and I shrug in unison. "No idea," she says. "Well, I see something over there. Do you guys think we can carry Aiden?" Micha nods. We eventually hoist Aiden up off the ground and walk towards where Ashley pointed. She's right! When we get close enough, we can tell that it's a little cafe, with a little town behind it. My stomach rumbles. "Should we go in?" Micha asks. "Yeah. There are people. People might be able to help Aiden." Ashley says. Micha nods and attempts to open the door with her shoulder. I use my shoulder to knock on the door. An older lady with dark skin and grey hair turns to the door, shocked. Ashley frantically mouths, "He's hurt. Can you help?" The lady opens the door and nods. "I can take him in the back. What happened?" "He passed out after hitting his head pretty bad," Micha answers. "I have just the thing, in the back. Anybody want to stay back there with him? I'd do it, but I've got customers." Ashley opens her mouth to speak. "I'll do it," Micha says firmly. "One second," Ashley tells the lady. She turns to Micha and whisper-yells, "He's my brother." "Just go with it," Micha whispers back. The lady nods and she and Micha carry Aiden away. Ashley and I stand in silence for a moment. "I'm starving," I pipe up. "Do you have any money?" She nods. We order, then sit down in a sticky blue and white booth across from one another. We sit in silence as she fiddles with a straw wrapper. "What are you thinking about?" She asks. Oh, darn. She knows me better than anyone. She knows the look on my face that says the wheels are turning. "Just, my dad," I tell her. She scoots forward in her seat. "You've never talked about him. What happened?" I look right into her eyes. I'm not sure I want to tell her. But, I suppose... "My mom, she brought him nightmares, ever since his first good invention. She was sloppy. He saw her. He wanted to find her. She let him, just because of what would happen to him once he did." This story makes me angry. I'm the product of a goddess using an innocent man for her own gain. "What?" "He went mad, all right, Ashley? Bradley Scott is dead." Her face contorts in sadness. "Brendan..." "I don't want to hear it, Ashley. I don't care if you're sorry. It hurts. That only makes it worse." "Brendan, let me finish. My dad...." "What?" "Mine's gone, too, ok?" This hits me like a knife. She'd always told me that he was alive and well in New York City, saving the lives of animals every day, the heroic Thomas Peters. "Ashley, how long has he-?" "Even before you came. Ever wondered why I was at Camp when I was five years old? Well, it's because my house went up in flames, ten whole years ago, and I had no choice but to run. Run there. Someone found me, all ripped up and bloody in the middle of the night." "My dad started going mad as soon as I was born. He died in his sleep when I was six. I hid from the police for a year. Then, some kid with hooves and horns found me and sent me to Camp." I heave in a large breath. This is tiring. "And the worst part is, I know exactly what happened," Ashley mumbles, staring hatefully at her glass. "What? What happened? Are you talking about your house?" She nods. "Ashley, come on. What happened? You can tell me. I'm your best friend." Her cheeks go red. "I - I can't," she says after a long pause. I'm about to say something when our waitress comes up. "Your food is here," she says cheerfully. "Thank you," I say, taking the tray from her and passing Ashley her food. Ashley looks only at her food, not me, and only picks at it. I'm still starving, but I can't bring myself to eat. "What happened?" I ask her finally. "Fine. It had something to do with your mother. She was trying to stop me from going to Camp Half-Blood. I just happened to escape," she says, all while still looking down. "Why won't you look at me, Ashley?" "I, uh.." I put my hand on top of hers. I'm going out on a major limb here, so this had better work. She finally looks up. I look straight into her beautiful frosty blue eyes. "Are you scared of me because of my mother, Ashley?" "No, I -" before she can finish, Micha comes running towards us. I move my hand and control my blush. "Guys! You've got to get back there! It's Aiden!" Ashley and I exchange glances, hop up, and run after Micha.