It wasn't suppose to be a horror movie. Jason didn't like horror movies. The blood and the guts and the flashy explosions were never his style.

But even as Leo grabbed his arm and Piper screamed and Hazel grabbed onto Frank like they were connected, Jason had a terrifying epiphany. His life had just become a horror story.

It started at about six o'clock. Jason headed to the school parking lot. The walk was long and slightly cold. He hushed in his jacket annoyed that he could see his own breath in the air.

The parking lot was mostly empty, except for his car and a couple of the teachers cars. When he got there a funny noise was coming from the front of the car.

He was supposed to see Leo whistling and working under with the hood up. The small kid didn't seemed to mind the cold happily whistling away. The weird, half burned Dragon thing was clipped to his shoulder. Leo had grease smeared on his face and his mechanic goggles on his forehead almost like a head band.

"Oh hey." He said without looking up he tapped something inside the car with his screwdriver and smiled.

Jason's lip hurt still. Annoyingly. Piper had told him that's what he got from trying to steal from the impish Latino with a stapler.

"You know usually when you need a car fixed, you leave the keys with the mechanic." Leo said pulling a towel from his waistband, tool belt that always seemed to wear cleaning his hands.

"Sorry." Jason said.

"Would you like to do the honors?"Leo motioned to the drivers door. Jason nodded and he opened the side door. He inserted his keys and turned the ignition. The car purred to life, and Jason let out a grateful sigh. Leo let out a "Whoop!" and did a small victory dance.

"Still got it!" He yelled. And Jason couldn't help but frown.

"Thanks, Leo, seriously." Jason said, "but can I ask you a question?"

"You just did, but whatever." Leo said picking up his assortment of tools from off the ground.

"Why do you need a train ticket to Canada?"

Leo froze for a moment weighing a wrench in his hand, almost as if debating whether or not to use it to hit Jason in the face again. But finally Leo sighed and dropped the tool in with the rest his equipment in his tool box.

"I'm not comfortable here." Leo said, "This place just isn't my style. It's not like anyone would miss me anyway."

Jason frown deepened. "What about your family? Friends?"

Leo laughed, though it was painfully forced, "My dad hadn't shown his face to me in like...ever, and my friends are non-existent."

"What about your mom?"

It seemed to be a sore spot for Leo. His forced smiled dropped off entirely. "She's dead." Leo looked away for a second and a grim smiled appeared, "but my foster Parents though, I'd like to see their faces when I don't come home for Christmas. Stinking Bastards don't even care a little bit..."

Jason's fingers tightened a little over the steering wheel. He opened his mouth to say something, but got cut off by the weirdest noise ever. Leo raised an eyebrow.

"It's not the car." He said.

Jason dug his phone from his pocket, a text message lighting up the screen. His phone vibrated once more and the engine ended abruptly.

"How did she even get my number?" Jason asked quizzically. He opened the message from Piper, sighing a bit.

Movies tonite? You game? Just Me and a friend and you? Eight or nine-ish?

Jason glanced at his cars clock. He leaned his head on the steering wheel.

"What's up?" Leo asked.

"Piper wants to hang out at the movies."

"Like a...date?" Leo grinned cheekily. "Aren't you two a couple already?"

"Uh no." Jason looked up at Leo, "Why would you asked that?"

"No reason." Leo whistled innocently, "What's the problem?"

"I've got work in ten minutes. I don't get off until seven tonight. After that, movies is the last thing I want."

Leo whistled pulling out a wrench, "that's a lot of hours. Hope your getting paid for all of them." Leo raised an eyebrow again when Jason didn't say anything. Then he went back to his wrench, pulling out a towel to clean it, "Then don't go."

"But I really like Piper. She's nice and funny and I don't know, she makes me feel funny inside."

Leo sighed dramatically, "Other people are weird. Girls especially. See, Festus here?" He motioned to the Dragon on his shoulder like it was a real thing, "Festus gets me. He understands when I talk about mechanics and doesn't have those strange, unpredictable emotions."

"Festus is a statue." Jason said lamely.

Leo shrugged, as if the subject of his Dragon didn't really matter. Jason wondered if Leo actually knew the Dragon was a statue. "I don't know what to tell you, man."

"Then how about you come with me?"

Leo dropped the wrench. "Come again?"

"Yeah, why don't you come with me? Piper's bringing a friend, why can't I bring one, too?" Jason smiled warming to his own idea.

"No way!" Leo said, "I don't do movies, or friends or popcorn-"

Thirteen and a half hours later Jason dragged Leo in through the glass doors of the movie theater and he was still complaining.

"-or candy, or soda, or stupid movies with obnoxious meaningless explosions-"

"Hey Piper!" Jason couldn't help but grin, despite his feet hurting like crazy. Dakota had called out again, leaving just him and Katie against hours of people at the diner. Jason didn't understand it. Piper could just make him feel different by smiling.

"Hey, Jason!" She said, "and Leo!"

"Hi." Leo said grumpy. "Can I go now?"

"You guys just got here! Besides were just waiting on Hazel and she'll be here any minute."

Leo turned a pale white, even with his tanned skin. "H-Hazel?"

"Hey guys!" Hazel appeared, looking more or less exactly the same as she had the first day Jason had met her. She let her hair down, and wore a purple SPQR shirt from the Rome trip Reyna had gone on. Interesting. She also wore a black leather jacket and was smiling widely.

Or at least was until her eyes landed on Leo.

A bigger guy was following her, a Chinese Canadian guy, with an uneasy smile. That turned to a frown when he also saw Leo.

"Leo?" Hazel asked which came out as a whisper.

"Hazel." Leo said stiffly.

"Your that guy that ran out of the Science room, leaving me to do the entire project!" The other guy accused.

"Alright I'm going." Leo said, "Nope, nope this is not happening, tonight!" Leo tried to leave but Jason grabbed his hood and yanked him back. Leo letting out a choking moan and turned back rubbing his neck.

"Well, it's a small world." Piper said cheerfully. "How about we go pick out a movie?" She clapped her hands together like she didn't notice the tension in the air. But Jason could see she was just trying to stop a fight before one actually broke out.

The guy running the ticket stand barely noticed they were there. He was busy watching some girl getting popcorn at another counter.

"Uh, hey?" Piper snapped he fingers in front of the guy and he broke out of his trance.

"Uh, huh? Oh hey, I'm Chris how can I help you?" The guy asked, his eyes flickering back to the girl getting popcorn.

"Yeah we were wandering what movies were playing?" Piper said.

"Night of the Living Undead seems to be a popular one right now." Chris said, "and The Christmas Seasons Over, comedy."

"We'll take the Christmas Season comedy." Piper said looking back at the rest of them, "That okay with the rest of you?"

Everyone nodded uneasily. And Hazel stepped forward to pay but Piper pushed her back lightly.

"Nope I've got this!" Piper said, she handed Chris a credit card and leaned in slightly with a smile.

Chris's eyes went huge when he read the name after scanning it.

"Say anything and I might have to hurt you." Piper said still smiling, which made it seem all the horrifying. Chris nodded superfluously.

"Of course, Miss. Anything you say Miss." He said

Jason frowned. What could've made him act like that so suddenly?

Piper turned back to them with the tickets, handing one to each of the people in the group. Leo looked at his and frowned even more.

"Why does mine say child, five and below!?" He asked. Jason couldn't help but laugh, as well as Piper, and Hazel and the other guy.

"I don't know!" Piper laughed. "Cause your short?"

"Haha, really funny guys!" Leo huffed though he was shaking with an effort not to laugh, himself.

"Okay so guys, I wanted to introduce, Frank." Hazel said, "I kinda invited him along, duh. Sorry about that."

"No problem." Piper grinned, "The more the merrier!"

Frank smiled and waved at everyone, except Leo. It was almost pointedly that Frank didn't look at Leo.

"Oh my Gods!" Hazel cried, "It's that new poster for the new movie Spartan! With the lead actor Tristan McLean!" She pointed at one of the bazillion posters in the store.

Piper stiffened, and her eyes went wide. "Uh...hehe...Yeah, does anyone want refreshments?" She seemed incessantly eager to change the subject.

"Tristan McLean is like one of my favorite actors!" Hazel said excitedly, "He sounds like a totally awesome person. I read he goes skiing in the Alps in the winter, and sandboarding in the summer. Plus he spends a fortune giving to charity and orphanages! I almost wish he was my dad..."

"You wouldn't think that way if you lived with him!" Piper snapped. Jason and everyone looked shocked at her sudden outburst. She glared deeply, before retaining her happy-go-lucky state, with a smile.

"Refreshments?" She asked stiffly.

And that was when two people ran through the doors. Chris yelled out, but the two didn't stop. The girl wore a gray sweatshirt, and the boy a blue one. It looked like the girl was mostly carrying him. Jason could see a giant bruise sporting on the boys cheek, his dark hair restless like he'd just been wearing his hood.

What were they running from?

Hazel screamed, pointing towards the doors. Jason felt his heart stop for a moment. The street was filled with screaming people wearing red and black shirts. The red eye logo. The Monsters. The boy collapsed to his knees gasping.

"We're going to die!" Chris yelled, jumping over the ticket stand and backing away from the doors.

Then one of the doors opened and something rolled in, a small baseball sized thing.

"GET DOWN!" Leo screamed he shoved Jason to the side, knocking over Piper and they both toppled to the ground. Before Jason could protest, the entire room was bathed in a heat flash. Jason yelled out, he could feel Piper scream under him. The sound of explosions filled Jason's ears until he thoughts they were going to explode. Fire leapt around the room.

"Chris!" The girl that the ticket stand guy had been watching dropped her popcorn. Jason gasped. The ticket stand guy was laying his body covered in nasty burns and he didn't move. Leo had been knocked into a column he was slumped into a heap moaning. Frank and Hazel crawled warily from behind an arcade game inside the arcade they'd been standing by.

Jason got up,to his knees looking around. The fire was filling the air with smoke. He looked back at Piper.

"We need to get out of here!" He said, "There should be an exit in the back! Get Leo! I'm going to go get everyone else!"

Piper had tears falling down her face, but she nodded. Jason hadn't realized but he did, too. Then she did something incredible. Piper grabbed his collar and slammed her lips onto his.

It wasn't the best kiss ever. Amazingly. But as far as first kisses, in burning buildings, while the air was filling with toxins and crazy gangs were yelling outside, it was spot on.

Piper pulled away, giving him once last look something that said something along the lines of please don't die. And she ran over to Leo, helping him up with Frank and Hazel. Jason was suddenly very happy he brought the short elf with him, because if not Piper and him would be really terrible art paintings on the wall.

Jason leaped over to where the girl and Chris were, at the edge the fire, smoke fumed right his face. The girl was coughing loudly. She was slowly dragging Chris away. Jason covered his mouth with his shirt, he grabbed Chris's arm, the poor guy moaned.

"No!" The girl yelled over the crackling fire, "I've got him! Help the others!"

Jason didn't argue. Gunshots echoed through the fire. The sound of glass smashing caused Jason to hurry a little more. His eyes watered extensively.

The girl was tapped against the wall behind the counter, the boy was laying unconscious in a pile of popcorn. Someone was towering over the girl. With a gun pointed at her and the red eye logo on their shirt. Jason tackled the figure to the side causing the shot to go wild, cracking against the tiled wall. The girl made a look that was like screaming but no sound came.

"GET OUT OF HERE!" Jason yelled at her.

The figure under Jason reached for his gun but Jason slapped it into darkness. The figure screamed, a girly scream. She kicked him off of her sending Jason's head slamming into the counter.

His head blurred, everything flung sideways. Jason forced himself back up. He coughed the oxygen sending thinner now. The girl found the gun pointing it at the other blond girls retreating form, weighed down with the unconscious boy. Jason kicked her in the side.

She hissed as him, a growl of frustration. Then she the herself at him kicking his head against the counter again and again.

Jason yelled out. The girl growled, her they abnormally sharpened like she was part demon. She looked like she was going to tear him apart limb from limb...and enjoy it.

"Kellie! Come on!" Someone else yelled, the girl slammed Jason's head into the counter one more time throwing his body onto the ground before disappearing into the smoke.

Jason coughed wildly. His vision was dimming. Everything growing black. He could feel the heat of the flames just beyond the counter. His head had the ground, his eyes closed and despite everything he tried, Jason couldn't get himself up.

Someone yelled out, something lifted him up. Jason fell into darkness, and he wasn't sure he would ever wake up.

"No no no, Jase!" Some one said in his ear, "come on! Lil' bro! Stay with me!"

Then Jason blacked out entirely.