SANITY; heroes of olympus

02.6

[act two; chapter six      -     rainbow goddesses and gross, blind, stinky portland men]

Zara wasn't exactly liking the way her day was going.

As they trudged up the hill, she almost wished that she could pass out like Hazel—just go into a trance and experience some other time, but then she shook away the thoughts. She shouldn't live in the past because there's nothing she can do to change it, so she moves forward, she moves on and keeps going.

She had slung her bag back across her body—it was one of those bags that hung at an angle, so it was diagonal on her body. She looked down at her shoes, her classic Reeboks providing the perfect amount of support for her on what was definitely going to be a long journey. She was glad that she hadn't worn thick clothing because she was already sweating in her dark blue leggings and white tank top. She could feel it pooling on her back—yeah, she knows, it's absolutely disgusting (she has an irrational fear that she could sweat to death due to Andromeda telling her it was possible when they were little). Every time a gust of wind hit them, Zara wanted to throw her arms out and let it carry her away, but that wasn't possible so she kept walking behind Hazel to make sure she didn't pass out again.

As they got closer (to what, she does not know), she got worried that the store might burst into rainbow light and vaporise them, but the building stayed dark. The snakes Polybotes had dropped seemed to have vanished.

They were twenty yards from the porch when something hissed in the grass behind them and Zara let out a yelp of surprise.

"Go!" Frank yelled.

Percy stumbled. While Hazel helped him up and the older girl tried to shuffle the two away, Frank turned and knocked an arrow.

He shot blindly. At first Zara thought he'd grabbed a normal arrow—as one does—but it was only a signal flare. It skidded through the grass, bursting into orange flame and whistling: WOO!