A/N: Credits to Rick Riordan for the PJO and HoO series, and also the characters Percy, Annabeth, Grover and Blackjack.

Um...what?'
'A demigod,' Percy said. 'It means you're half god, half mortal. Like us.'
'Ohhhh...kayyy...that clears it up then,' Dawn said sarcastically.
Percy sighed. 'I stink at explaining stuff. I'm usually the one who sits and listens while Annabeth explains. She'd better do the honors now.'
'Smartest thing you've said since I met you,' she told him. She turned to Dawn.'What do you know about Greek mythology?'
Dawn frowned. 'I think we did an assignment on it last year, in sixth grade. I think.'
Percy looked like he was suppressing a grin. Annabeth looked like she was trying to figure out whether to laugh or to sigh. Grover had lost interest in the conversation and was munching a tin can he had pulled from his pocket. Munching tin cans? Okay, why not?
'Well, the Ancient Greeks believed in a bunch of gods like Zeus, lord of the sky, Poseidon, god of the sea, Hades, god of the Under-the dead. You get the idea.'
Dawn didn't really but she said,'Okay.'
'Well, those gods are real.'
She stared at Annabeth. Now she knew these people were nuts. She wanted to leave with a 'Nice meeting you' but her shoulder hurt so badly she wondered if she could even walk.
'And sometimes they meet up with mortals and have kids, and those kids are called demigods. I'm a daughter of Athena, goddess of wisdom, Percy is a son of Poseidon, and Grover is a satyr.'
Dawn didn't know what to say, so she said,'Is that why he's eating a tin can?'
This time Annabeth really did laugh.
'Yeah. Anyway, monsters are attracted to these demigods and we spend a lot of our time-like 90%-fighting them. Which is why we need training. And the place to get that training-'
She gestured to her orange T-shirt where Dawn could make out the letters'Camp Half-Blood.'
'-is Camp Half-Blood. It has these cabins according to your godly parent. Like I'm in the Athena cabin. And it trains-'
'Wait a sec,' she interrupted.'That's all well and good but why are you telling me this?'
'We told you,' Annabeth said. 'Because you're a demigod too. Grover can tell from your aura. It's powerful-not like an ordinary mortal's. And you could see my dagger and Percy's sword and those birds. Ordinary mortals wouldn't have been able to see them. See, there's this thing called Mist which turns unusual objects into something ordinary which mortal minds can understand-'
'Annabeth, I think that's enough,' Percy interrupted. He could see that Dawn's brain was close to exploding point as it was. 'We'll tell her the rest later. Right now, we have to feed her some ambrosia and then get out of here. The police will be here soon.'
Right on cue, the thud of footsteps echoed through the mall. It came from the floor below and it sounded like a whole bunch of police officers. Their voices resonated up to them.
'You're right,' Annabeth quickly decided. She rummaged in her backpack, took out a square of food and shoved it into her hand.
'Eat it. Quick!'
She stared suspiciously at the square.
'Just eat it!'
Dawn decided to take a risk and stuffed the food into her mouth. Immediately, a warmth spread through her entire body. The pain in her shoulder disappeared. She could taste cinnamon rolls-the ones she and her mom used to share in the café right across from the flats. It reminded her of her mom's smile, the flowers on the table in the corner where they always sat and Lacy, the waitress who had worked at the café one summer and become their fast friend, even giving then free cups of coffee.
'Dawn!' Annabeth's voice shook her out of her happy daydream. 'Come on,  we have to go!!'
She looked around and gasped. Two winged horses-one black, one caramel-were in front of her, pawing the ground impatiently.
'How-' she spluttered.
'Percy summoned them,' Annabeth told her. 'The lift isn't working and the police will be using the escalator.'
Percy was already on the black horse-weren't they called pegasi?-and Grover on the caramel one. Annabeth climbed on behind Percy so she climbed on behind Grover.
Dawn screamed as they took off into the air, through the hole in the roof, into the sky. She grabbed the pegasus's wing so tightly it whinnied in protest. 
She loosened her hold, gasping, her heart still thundering. She hoped she wasn't going to puke.
She squinted, her eyes stinging in the rush of the wind, and spotted the orphanage, a tiny dot far below her.
The sight stirred a mixture of emotions inside her-resentment, uncertainty, worry-and then excitement. She was leaving the place she had always hated, the place where she had never been happy.
Then a jolt brought her back to reality. What was she doing, going off with some strangers she had met only half  an hour ago? Strangers, moreover, who old her there were Greek gods, a camp for their kids and that it was right here in New York where someone would've discovered it long ago?
'This one is called Blackjack!!' Percy shouted to her over the wind. 'The one I'm riding. And your pegasus is Caramel, a new recruit to the stables in Camp Half-Blood. But she prefers to be called Carrie.'
The pegasus whinnied.
'How do you know all that?' Dawn shouted back.
'I'm a son of Poseidon. Poseidon created horses. So I can speak to them.'
'Oh.'
'Listen, Dawn,' Annabeth said. 'Percy and I have to go. The whole reason we came to Brooklyn was to find and get rid of the Stymphalian birds. They've been bothering the mortals, to say the least. Of course they just see them as pelicans escaped from the zoo or something. We know better though. We have to get rid of them.'
'Or what?'
'Or-did I mention they're man-eating? And you've seen those feathers, haven't you? To top it all off, they've got poisonous dung.'
Percy snickered. Annabeth glared at him.
Dawn suddenly felt queasy. 'Okay.'
'So Grover will be taking you to Camp Half-Blood.'
'O-wait what?' She cried.'I'm supposed to go off with some guy I met half an hour ago, to a camp for 'demigods', assuming this place exists? I'm sorry, but no. I'm still, like,worried about your sanity.'
Annabeth's eyes sparkled.
'I like this one,' she remarked. 'Blunt and straight to the point. To answer your question, look at the pegasus you're riding on. Is that real?'
'Um-yeah.'
'And did you believe pegasi existed before you met us?'
'Well, no-'
'If pegasi can exist, if birds with feathers as sharp as arrows can exist-and they can, just look at the wound on your shoulder-why can't Greek gods be real?'
'You've got a point,' Dawn admitted.
Annabeth turned to Percy. He seemed to understand, and took out his pen, uncapped it and handed her the sword. She showed the hilt to Dawn. 'Look at the engraving.'
She looked and to her surprise, read it easily.
'Anaklusmos. Riptide.'
'Exactly,' Annabeth grinned. 'You just read and translated Ancient Greek.'
'Wha-'
Annabeth showed her the hilt again.
The words there were in a language Dawn had never before heard or read.
'It's because your brain is hardwired to Ancient Greek.'
Her mind reeled. She gasped.
'I know it's a lot to take in,' Annabeth said sympathetically. 'You'll soon get used to it. But you do believe me now?'
She nodded.
'Well then, Grover will take you to Camp Half-Blood. He'll answer all your questions. How's that?'
'Fine,' she almost whispered.
The older girl did something unexpected then. She leaned over from her pegasus and gave her a brief hug. Percy grabbed her waist. Dawn was startled but the gesture warmed her. No one had hugged her since her mother died two years ago. She hugged her back.
'See you!'
The two demigods flew away. Grover finished his third or fourth tin can.
'That was yummy.'
He looked at Carrie.
'Camp Half-Blood!'
The pegasus was happy to carry out that order. She zoomed away from Brooklyn, in the direction of New York, both Grover and Dawn clinging to her and screaming so loudly their voices probably carried to Camp.