"Fae, you have to eat something!"

Frank poked his broccoli dejectedly. "I'm not hungry."

Across the table his grandmother sighed, looking more tired than normal.

Frank hated seeing her like this. Her skin was pale and taunt. Her eyes no longer sparkled, just sat dimly in the shady light that never seemed to be in the house any more. Sadness washed over the house. The darkness was comforting, so it never looked like anyone was home.

Frank could still hear her musical voice from the weeks she was home. At their house, she would pick him up late from his wrestling matches, or his art classes and the lights would still be on. She'd joke about it swinging her keys in wide motions like she was sucker punching a ninja.

He looked around the dining hall. The candle light glowed in the night, emphasizing the elaborate decor that had always been in the room.

She'd been back for the week. She hadn't even been near the war. Why the Hell did it happen? How could it have happened? Angry tears pricked the back of Frank's skull. He remembered the night the police officers came to his door. He'd been making popcorn, because they'd previously agreed to watch the 10pm to 10am, Marathon of Horror that was showing on their favorite tv station.

They told him what happened. The mall, the panic, the bullets, the Monsters. Everything. It sounded distant. Fake. Stupid. Lies. He wanted to curse at them, tell them they were wrong. His mom couldn't be dead.

But she was.

She never came home. She never came back.

"We'll take you to your grandmother's. It'll be your new home." They said, like that made things better. Any better.

As far as Frank Zhang was concerned this was not his home. Home was were his heart was. And his heart was with his mother.

So his heart was dead.

"Fae," his grandmother said kindly, quietly, "Please...eat something..."

Frank looked up at her. She looked like a scarecrow in the darkness. Pale, defeated, begging him to eat when he didn't want to. Like she was about to drop dead too.

He speared a broccoli and shoved it in his mouth.

He picked up his plate, still filled with food and put the rest in the garbage. "I'm not hungry." He said and then he placed the plate in the sink.

"I'm going for a walk." He brushed past his grandmother, grabbing his jacket and unlocking the front door.

She didn't say anything. She didn't raze him for going out at after eight. She didn't come after him with her broom like she used to when he was younger, yelling curses in Chinese so the neighbors wouldn't understand. When Frank looked back she had her eyes squeezed shut, a single tear rolling down her cheek. Her entire body shaking with the effort to hold back a sob.

The night was bitter cold, but he didn't feel it. The stars sparkled like gems, empty discolorations in the dark sky. The houses were old, the neighborhood gave way to smaller houses, then to park fences, then to the park.

The only lights were from lamps creating circles of brightness on the side walk.

School had sucked. Ms. Iris, sucked. Ms. Iris, Gods, that woman.

Every time he thought of her, his anger bubbled. The woman was chirpy. She was happy. And she talked. All. The. Damn. TIME. Not only that, she thought she was helping him.

"Oh, Frank, it'll be okay. You know I just recently got another cat..."

Frank did not care about her cats. Or her Cousins Romantic interests with the hot, casino owner while she was already married to the guy who drove the ice cream truck. But he still had to spend 45 mind numbing minutes with that woman every day because he "wasn't getting better". Did it ever occur to them that she might be the reason he was so angry all the time?

He kicked a pebble on the pathway. It clattered across the asphalt with a strangely calming sound. The park was empty for the most part. He knew his way around the twisting, branching, paths. He knew where the playground was. He knew where the duck pond was. He knew which path lead to the fountains, or to the sports fields, or...

The cemetery.

His mother had often taken him on adventures in the park when they were together. She'd wear her causal jeans and red top but they'd always be crisp and clean like her army uniform. Frank just to tell her he didn't think she could get her clothes dirty of she tried. She'd smile.

The memory bright another wave of tears that he refused to let fall.

The air had a ghostly feel, a tension that was waiting to be broken. Frank walked along, hands on his pockets.

Then the scream.

It wasn't loud. It wasn't panic. Maybe a surprised yelp, just enough to get Frank's attention. He stopped looking around. The path broken into three up ahead. To the left Frank knew was the cemetery, the gloomy dark place that know held his mother prisoner. To the right was an exit that led to another housing district.

And up ahead was an angel.

She was gorgeous. Stunning. For a second Frank couldn't comprehend. Her hair was down in frizzy, curly, cinnamon ringlets. Her skin was almond that glowed in the lamplight. She wore a simple T Shirt with a wind breaker, and skinny jeans with converse. Frankly wasn't fooled by her appeared, she had to be an angel.

Around her were three guys. Dark clothes demons. Frank couldn't get a good look at any of them and he wasn't sure he wanted to. One seemed to nudge the girl roughly. They were talking and laughing, but the girl was stiff and her hands were shaking.

Sometimes even angels needed some saving.

Frank stared at the the paths, as if deciding his destiny. He could follow his plan to see his mother and talk to her tonight. Or he could barge recklessly towards the guys harassing the girl and possibly end up possibly end up joining his mother in the afterlife.

Then the girl tried to run. Frank watched as one of the guys grabbed her hair and yanked her back. She let out another yelp and the guy threw her backwards onto the path.

Frank was moving before he could even process was he was doing.

"Hey!" He yelled, "Back Off!"

As if in sync they all turned to look at him. They guys couldn't have been that much older. They regaurded him like it was he was a joke that none of them actually got. The girl's eyes widen, saddened like he'd just signed his own death warrent. 

And then the guys laughed. They guy who'd pulled the girl, he was wearing a red cap backwards like he was some type of wannabe gangster, doubled over. Another guy, he wore a biker jacket waved him off.

"Get lost, babyface." He snorted.

If possible that made Frank want to leave less. Yes he was completely terrified, but he hated people making fun of him. He hated people picking on others. And he hated people who thought they could get away with it even more.

They turned back to the girl. She'd backed off trying to as quietly as possible get away. She didn't get far. The third guy, who had a slight goatee thing going on, blocked her off with a smile that was as distrubing as it was predatory.

"Where you going, Pretty Girl?" He asked slyly, "You still owe us that shiny gold necklace." He reached out and tried to stroke her cheek.

"I said, BACK OFF." Frank said louder shoving him back. 

Red Cap whistled, almost mockingly, "Tough guy are we?" He grinned, but his beady eyes showed that it was not anywhere near a friendly joke. It made Frank want to turn around and forget he was ever there.

"Whatcha going to do?" Goatee snickered, he shoved Frank to the side. He closed the distance between allowing the girl to be unblocked. He shoved Frank, harder this time. Frank backed up. 

For a second his eyes flickered back to the girl, she tipped back into the darkness, in the edge of the path and the grass parkway. Her hand gripped her necklace like it was a good luck charm. She had an intense look of uncertainty, trying to decide whether to rbing the attention away from Frank before he got pounded or escape back down the path she'd just come from. 

"Come on, where's your courage now, Babyface?" Gaotee muscled him back again. Frank balanced himself. He did his best to keep their attention on himself. Let the girl go... Let her get away...

The girl looked at him one last time and then she let the necklace locket drop against her shirt. Then she truned and disappeared into the darkness beyond.

"What? You afraid now?" They grinned. Frank took another step back, hoping they couldn't see how terrified he actaully was. "Come on, You said to back off. Carry it out!" 

Then Frank bumped into Red Cap, who had cornered behind him with Biker Jacket. Frank tried to take a calming deep breath, but his hands were getting calmmy. He was trapped and they were smiling like sharks before they ripped him apart. 

"Wimp." 

Frank barely saw the punch coming. His head slammed backwards his entire body shocked by the jab throw itself back into the awaiting arms of the other two. Pain flared in his face. Another punch was coming before he could react.

His stomach forced out a breath, and Frank doubled over. His arms got pinned behind his back heavily. He brain registered things way too slowly. Blood dripped down his face tainting his siliva. The taste was metalic and cold. 

And it snapped him into the present , someone had just cleaned off an extremely dirty window and he could suddenly see. The next hit was aiming for chin, his jawline. Frank automatically shurgged to the side. His arms might have been pinned but he dropped his knees, knocking Red Cap and Biker Jacket off balance with surprise.

The punch went sideways hitting Biker Jacket in the cheek. He let go crying a mix of curses and pain. Goatee howled shaking his fist as if he punched an anvil instead of his friends jawline. Red Cap was distracted.

Frank easily rotated from his hold elbowing the guy in the face for extra confusion. Frank jerked from the group. He remembered all of his years of training in wrestling, all of the point scoring moves, how to predict what move his opponent was going to make next, how to escape from a pin. And what sucked is he couldn't do anything like that here. Those years of training were made for one-on-one combat. Frank was toast if he stayed any longer.

He tried to run. Goatee lunged after him yanking his shoulders so hard pain spiked down Frank's back. The gang guy threw him behind into a thick, wide tree.

The bark was rough and he hit heavily enough to be jarred for a second. Then Goatee was punching him. White hot agony exploded after every attack, Frank didn't even have time to scream.

"That's...what...you...get...for...messing...with...The....Monsters!" The guy shouted slamming harder with every word.

His fist came back covered in blood. Frank wanted to retch. His stomach hollowed, and the sight off blood made him queasy. The pain was almost over whelming.

Frank gripped his nose, were most of the bleeding was moaning in intense pain. The three guys laughed, having a grand old time.

Red Cap pulled out something metal from his pocket. He grinned particularly delighted, his swollen eye from Frank's elbow looking rashed and irritated. In his hands the metal object caught the light off the nearby lamp.

An unmistakable click of a switch blade.

Frank struggled to move, the tree blocked him, and Biker Jacket and Goatee were standing in either side.

There was no escape.

Oh gods.

At least the girl got away. At least she didn't get hurt.

Red Cap held the knife like he was performing a sacrificial ceremony. Then he brought his arm up to slash...

The pain never came.

Frank watched as a figure leapt from the dark night knocking Red Cap to the side. The knife skidded away lost in the jungle of the grass. The new guy, wore a dark navy blue hoodie. The hood was up so Frank couldn't tell much else other than that.

Biker Jacket let go of Frank and he fell to the ground heavily.

He didn't know what happened really, his brain groggily registered a couple punches, a couple curses and things hitting the ground. Frank brushed his fist against his nose trying to stall the bleeding. His left temple hurt and his right eye was probably swollen.

When he looked up, the navy blue guy had twisted from Goatee's hold like a pro and flipped him to the ground. Red Cap grabbed his shoulders viciously snarling like a rabid dog. Biker Jacket attempted to throw a punch but he missed as the guy ducked swiftly.

Red Cap hooked the guys arm and pulled a forearm across the guys neck.

Frank didn't think the guy could get out of that hold. But he managed twisting and tugging. His hood fell down.

He had dark hood-hair, sticking up in places with static, and strange sea green eyes.

Then the weirdest thing happened. The three guys went into shock. Liked they'd seen a ghost. Terrified, petrified with horror. Red Cap stumbled back.

"Percy Jackson." Was all they mumbled then they turned and ran for their lives. No joke. Biker Jacket was running so fast he pushed Goatee out of his way. Red Cap let out an echoing yelp.

Frank steadily got to his feet. They guy, Percy Jackson, helped him, though he looked distracted, horrified as much as the gang members were.

"Thanks," Frank grunted.

Percy looked at him pale against the coal black surroundings. "Don't thank me." He said quietly.

"Why?" Frank mumbled confused. The guy had just saved him. Even if it involved some really weird showcase of his face.

Percy's voice was hollow, Frank could sense a whole lot of fear radiating off of him. "I might have just made everyone's lives worse."

~~~~~~~~~

(A/N) Sorry this is so overdue! And really, really sucky. I owe you guys something though! Sorry!