It was an eight-hour drive from New York to Bar Harbor, Maine, and though Kassandra could claim that she dearly enjoyed a good car ride at times, this wasn't it. 

Antsy as the storm that whipped outside, her limbs thrumming with the irrefutable desire to move, she had resorted to bouncing her leg over and over -- incessant and only gracefully unacknowledged because Annabeth was too kind to mention it even if she was sort of uncomfortable in the middle seat. The girl herself was itching with the desire to move, so it made perfect sense why she wasn't liable to say anything.

They took turns switching seats, brief moments where they would up and rotate, and by the time they were getting close to the military-style boarding school, not one of the half-bloods were able to speak a word from the nerved that flooded them -- sparking through Kassandra's veins like Zeus' electric bolts, shattering through her senses to leave her mouth dry and fingers aching for a weapon to press to the palm of her hand. 

When she had first seen the pair, climbing out of that familiar strawberry delivery truck, it was like her heart had nearly leapt out of her throat, like her instincts tensed her up, coiled her into a knot, and set her to spring out at the rush of adrenaline that screamed at her to crush them into her arms. 

It had been only a month since she had last seen Annabeth, but it was like missing a limb, like she had been stripped of something vital after having spent so much time with her during the summer. Never had she felt so sad before leaving camp, even though she cried every year and spent her final days clinging to her siblings and friends (Clarisse always tried to shove her away, but she was always permitting nonetheless, always softer when the summer came to a close). 

And then she had been permitted to meet Thalia, daughter of Zeus, and it was like she was truly struck by the might of Apollo's bow because it had left her gasping and run through with the desire to get to know her more and more. It was like seeing Oriana all over again but not, because they were so different yet so strong and commanding. Having Thalia around was like having that cool older friend that would give you crap advice but  

(And how she missed Oriana, the girl that was her sister, friend, and saviour. The girl that had cared for her that month when she was scared and confused and oh so desperate, that has taught her the basics that she needed to survive. 

The girl that had gone on her last quest and won but never returned home -- taken away on the return trip home in a wicked twist of fate.) 

She hadn't seen either of them in so long -- hadn't even spoken to Thalia since last summer -- but none of them could bring themselves to say anything more than simple greetings at first and basic pleasantries to catch up quickly when they started on their long drive. 

Snow swirled around the car, whipping against the window in a blizzard, and Kassandra was pleased that she had the good sense to braid her hair before they left so she didn't need to worry about it whipping so much into her face. 

Glancing at the other demigods, she wondered if they had dressed warm enough so the weather. They would likely be skipping out into the snow at one point or another, and while she didn't get cold, she brought extra winter gear just in case. 

It was getting dark by the time they arrived, Sally having told them far too many embarrassing stories of Percy to pass the time with her nerves. 

Thalia wiped the fog off the car window and peered outside. "Oh, yeah. This'll be fun."

Westover Hall looked like an evil knight's castle. It was all black stone, with towers and slit windows and a big set of wooden double doors. It stood on a snowy cliff overlooking this big frosty forest on one side and the gray churning ocean on the other.

"Are you sure that you don't want me to wait?" Sally asks, nervously parking the car in front of the school. 

"No, thanks mom," Percy says. "I don't know how long it'll take. We'll be fine." 

"How will you get back?" she continues worriedly. 

Kassandra ducks out of the car, icy wind picking around her in an instant and warmth spread through her chest in response. She pulls her backpack on easily and adjusts the quiver strap around her so that she could reach her arrows over her shoulder without it disturbing much. 

She was trying a new method of wearing her weapon around that might not have been so obvious. She would have stuffed the quiver into her bag and kept it like that, but always packed way too much for the sake of preparedness and had no room to fit the full thing in there. 

Weapons organized on her being, she turned in time to have the others scramble out. Thalia shook her leg jerkily as if her ADHD caught up to her and she had to work out the tension from her limbs. 

"Thanks for the ride, Ms. Jackson!" she calls through the open door, waving thankfully at the woman. 

She nods, kind eyes wringing around the corners as she shoots a smile. "Take care and be safe." 

"We will, Ms. Jackson," Annabeth says reassuringly, her blonde hair tucked up into a ski cap and eyes the same colour grey as the ocean. "We'll look out for each other." 

All children of Athena looked different, she knew, they all took after their father's but had their mother's eyes, but sometimes Kassandra liked to believe that wasn't true, that the goddess of wisdom planted little pieces of herself within her children as if it were a silent claim. Looking at Annabeth, she liked to think that was the reason that she was so striking in skill, intelligence and beauty. 

She tore her eyes away, rolling her ankles to dispel some of the pent up energy. Her hands stuffed into her pockets, the string of her bow a familiar weight across her chest. 

Sally Jackson's car drove away, almost instantly out of sight with the growing dark and the blizzard. The others shivered with a gust of wind. 

"Your mom is so cool, Percy," Thalia says. 

"She's pretty okay," Percy admitted. "What about you? You ever get in touch with your mom?"

The mood shifts, going dark as the older girl glowers at the boy, a dark look made all the darker with the punk style eyeliner that she wore around electric blue eyes.

"If that was any of your business, Percy—"

"We'd better get inside," Annabeth interrupted. "Grover will be waiting."

Thalia looked at the castle and shivered. "You're right. I wonder what he found here that made him send the distress call."

Percy turned to the dark towers of Westover Hall. "Nothing good," he guessed.

Sighing heavily, she steps forward behind them, shaking her head at the pressure that built behind her eyes like a pinch. A voice from a nightmare echoes through her mind. 

"Better me than you." 

The oak doors groaned open, and the four of them stepped into the entry hall in a swirl of snow.

She dusts it from her shoulders as she takes a look around. It was impressive, but Kassandra went to an impressive school herself and knew that all this decoration in the main hall was an excessive display -- a militaristic display with the showcasing of flags and weapons. 

Beside her, Percy's hand fell to his pocket where he kept his ballpoint pen. She wasn't a child of the Big Three, she couldn't feel the sense of impending danger as well as they could, but her own senses reacted to his at the movement. She kept her jacket unzipped and stance loose. 

Even if it wasn't her first extraction, Kassandra found herself nervous with the way things were starting to play out. Spooky school and tense children of the Big Three with mystery monsters and young half-bloods, things were not looking to be an easy, simple task. For Grover to have called in for emergency back up, this half-blood must have been strong-smelling for him to have been so worried. 

Annabeth started to say, "I wonder where—"

The doors slammed shut behind them.

"Oo-kay," Percy mumbled. "Guess we'll stay awhile."

She could hear music playing from down the hall, loud as it echoed down the empty stone corridors. Kassandra plucked the string of her bow between her fingers, listening to the twang as it travelled over the space.

"They're having a dance. Everyone is in the gymnasium," she says as they begin to stash their overnight bags into a hidden nook behind a pillar. Her head jerks up, tilting at the sound of approaching feet. "Someone's coming." 

Thalia is next to notice, head-turning up in a slow tilt. Soon enough, they could all hear it just as well. She took up the back, hoping to go unnoticed and unquestioned. 

A man and woman marched out of the shadows to intercept them.

They both had short gray hair and black military-style uniforms with red trim. The woman had a wispy mustache, and the guy was clean-shaven. They both walked stiffly, like they had broomsticks taped to their spines.

"Well?" the woman demanded. "What are you doing here?"

"Us? Uh, well, we, umm," Percy stammers, stuttering over himself for an explanation. "Ma'am, we're just--" 

"Ha!" the man snapped. "Visitors are not allowed at the dance! You shall be eee-jected!"

He had a French accent, drawing out the vowels in his words that made the poet in her twist until it reared its head, warring between appreciation of the language and cringing at the way that the words weren't pronounced quite right. He was tall, with a hawkish face. His nostrils flared when he spoke and his eyes were two different colours — one brown, one blue — like an alley cat's

Thalia stepped forward and snapped her fingers. The sound was loud, sharp, and seemed to ring in her ears as all the air was zapped around them as if electrified, static raising the hairs on her arms. 

"But sir, what are you talking about?" Thalia says suggestively, manipulating the mist to work around the adults. "We go here, remember? We aren't visitors. I'm Thalia, and this is Annabeth, Kassandra, and Percy. We're in the ninth grade." 

She wiggles at the lie, resisting the urge to roll her shoulders at how clear and obvious it sounded in her ears. 

The man's eyes narrowed and he looked at his colleague. "Ms. Gottschalk, do you know these students?"

She blinked as if in a daze, the suggestion taking hold slowly. "Yes, yes, I believe I do. Thalia, Annabeth, Kassandra and Percy, why aren't you in the gymnasium with the others?"

The footfall was a loud warning before he made his appearance. Grover came skidding up to them, speaking before he was even seen them, "You guys made it! You--" he stutters over his words. "Oh, Mrs. Gottschalk. Dr. Thorn! I, uh--"

"Mr. Underwood," Dr. Thorn spoke as if he detested the satyr, his dual-coloured eyes filled with disgust as he turned to him. "What do you mean they made it? These students live here." 

Grover stammered, "Right, of course, what I meant was that they made the punch! For the dance! The punch is so great and they made it!" 

Biting her tongue, she cringed at how lame the excuse was even if she knew that she would never be able to outright lie like that -- even if it was very bad lying. 

Mrs. Gottschalk says dreamily. "Yes, the punch is excellent. Now run along, all of you. You are not to leave the gymnasium again!"

Leaving with a series of affirmations, they trudge in the direction of the gymnasium with Grover leading even if they could have been able to find their way due to how loud the music was alone. 

The pressure behind her eyes returned, a brief zap as it felt like her skin was crawling with a terribly drawn sense of foreboding. 

Once they were far enough away that she was sure that they weren't going to be overheard, she relaxed her shoulders, closing the space around them into silence so that they could speak as they entered the gym. 

"What's the emergency?" Percy asks his friend immediately. 

Grover sighs, wiping a hand down the side of his face. "I found two."

"Two half-bloods?" Thalia asked, amazed. "Here?" 

Grover nods.

Her gaze whipped around the room, searching hopefully for a sight. With the imminent threat of a war on the horizon, the satyrs were kicked into overtime to search for nay half-blood that they could, hoping to bring them into camp before Luke could get his hands on them. 

They were children being recruited for a war that their parents started, but they would still fight if they needed to, to defend western civilization, and if it meant dragging more children into the mess then it was the only chance they had. 

(Besides, being at camp would be much better than whatever Luke had planned out for them surely.) 

"A brother and a sister," he said. "They're ten and twelve. I don't know their parentage, but they're strong. We're running out of time, though. I need help."

"Monsters?"

"One," he said. "But he's suspicious, I'm sure. Everytime I try to get close to them, he's always there watching me. It's the last day of term! He wasn't just going to let them go without finding out for sure." 

She casts an eye around the room. "So, are we getting them out before the monster notices, or do we take out the monster first?" 

Annabeth makes a curious noise at her side, shaking her head as she watched the silent debate between Thalia and Percy.

They were sort of like their parents, the pair, unable to get past whatever differences they had to become close. It was like they didn't know who would be in charge automatically because of parentage -- which Kassandra thought was ridiculous because Annabeth had technically been at camp longest and had the best plans and strategies, and the daughter of Apollo herself simply didn't care about leadership and the gods when she had the most experience when it came to extractions between all of them and thought she could be a pretty good leader when it came down to it. 

"These half-bloods are at the dance?" Thalia asks

Grover nods.

"Then let's dance," Thalia says. "Who's the monster?"

"Oh," Grover says, looking around nervously. "You just met him. The vice-principal, Dr. Thorn."

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unedited

written: 2021-02-02

posted: 2021-03-29