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"hold me and don't let go"
ONE THING WAS FOR SURE—ARIADNE WAS GOING TO HAVE TO TAME AN ANGRY PERCY.
To say her boyfriend was pissed was an understatement. Percy was ready to rip Leo to shreds. She understood, as the Romans were their only allies in the war against the giants, and now Leo had gone shooting them, destroying any last hope of mending their bond.
But it wasn't like him. Ariadne had known Leo for months. Yeah, he was eccentric at times, and yes, a little higher on the ADHD scale, but he wouldn't purposefully harm someone, especially another camp full of demigods.
Ariadne stood talking to Leo with Annabeth. She crossed her arms. "One more time," she said. "Exactly what happened?"
Leo slumped against the mast. All found them, the ship was in shambles. The aft crossbows were piles of kindling. The foresail was tattered. The satellite array that powered the onboard Internet and TV was blown to bits, which had really made Coach Hedge made. Their bronze dragon figurehead, Festus, was coughing up smoke like he had a hair all, and judging from the groaning sounds on the port side some of the aerial oars had been knocked out of alignment of broken off completely, which explained why the ship was listing and shuddering as it flew, the engine wheezing like an asthmatic steam train.
He choked back a sob. "I don't know. It's fuzzy."
Too many people were looking at him: Annabeth—who scared him completely—was the one asking the most questions. Ariadne had a stony look, one that she only ever saved for someone who made her frustrated, Coach Hedge with his furry goat legs, his orange polo shirt, and his baseball bat, and the newcomer, Frank.
Annabeth crossed her arms. "You mean you don't remember?"
"I..." Leo felt like he was trying to swallow a marble. "I remember, but it's like I was watching myself do things. I couldn't control it."
Coach Hedge tapped his bat against the deck. The old satyr glowered. "Look kid," Hedge said, "you blew up some stuff. You attacked some Romans. Awesome! Excellent! But did you have to knock out the satellite channels? I was right in the middle of watching a cage match."
"Coach," Annabeth said, "why don't you make sure all the fires are out?"
"But I already did that."
Ariadne gave him a side eye. "Do it again.
The satyr trudged off, muttering under his breath. Even Hedge wasn't crazy enough to defy the combined effort of Ariadne and Annabeth.
Annabeth knelt next to Leo. Her gray eyes were as steely as ball bearings. Her blonde hair fell loose around her shoulders. She was no dumb, highly blonde, Ariadne had determined that the moment she had met her.
