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chapter twenty-four. ☄︎. *. ⋆
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I TOOK MY ANGER OUT on Will's teddy bear. Its name was Theodore, after me, but it went by Teddy, much unlike me. When we got back to the cabin after dinner, I picked up the stuffed animal, stared into its beady black button eyes, and punched it square in the face.
"Stupid Tantalus," I muttered, punching Teddy in the gut. "Stupid Clarisse. She's gonna have no idea what to do on that quest."
Will pursed his lips. I could tell he was trying not to say something. When I raised my eyebrows and drew back my fist to punch Teddy again, Will sighed and shook his head. "I just don't think you should sneak out of camp, Theo. You're just gonna get caught—and you can bet Tantalus is just itching for a chance to kick you guys out of camp."
"Will's right," Michael said, unhelpfully. "But," he added, helpfully, "if you really do want to sneak out, you've got a bunch of the best archers on your side."
"Archers are sneaky," Lee said, like he was trying to help me understand what they were insinuating. "Sneaky people can be sneaky. And th—"
"Okay, I get it," I said loudly. Lee may not have been the brightest son of Apollo—pun unintended—but he was right. Our cabin was filled with skilled archers who had been trained to keep from being noticed. "Maybe you guys can help sneak us out tomorrow night. I'll talk to Aquaman in the morning."
Will snorted, grabbing his bear and hopping off my bunk. "Yeah, sure," he laughed, shaking his head. "Talk to him. Try not to get too distracted."
Michael and Lee laughed along with him, but I didn't get the joke.
I began to try and ask what they thought was so funny, but I stopped suddenly, picking my head up and peeking out the window. They slowly stopped laughing.
Will said, "What's wrong?"
I twisted my lips. "I thought I heard—"
There it was again. I could've sworn it was Percy yelling for help, but it was well past curfew. He was smarter than to be out so late, right? Then again, this was Percy we were talking about. I slid out of bed and grabbed my bow and quiver. "I'll be back."
"Theo," Will called before I could make it through the door. He gave me a worried look. "Stay safe."
"Yes, sir." I saluted, then dashed off in the direction where I'd heard Percy yelling from. A small part at the back of my mind told me to stop looking for him, that the harpies would find me first and enjoy a nice midnight snack, but I didn't listen. I figured I could outrun a harpy or two.
