~The Beginning of Life~

«-WILL-» Chapter 31 ; R.I.P. Cake and Stolls »

WILL'S POV

Date: June 5th
Time: 3:15pm A.C. (After.Cake.)
Place: Strawberry Fields

I groan and do a face-palm. I was worried this would happen again. Not the cake catastrophe, the Stolls getting on the Ares kids' bad side again. Well everyone saw it coming.
Frank sighs as Hazel rushes towards him. A few other campers help him back to the Ares cabin to clean up.

I look around for the Stolls, ready to drag them to the infirmary in case their hasty emergency pranks backfire, but they've already disappeared.
Suddenly, Clarisse shouts.
"WHERE ARE THOSE DIMWITTED BRATS!? NO ONE DESTROYS THE CAKE!"

The other Ares kids rally together and start looking.
Knowing the Stolls, they'd go to one unique safe place...

----------------------------------------_-

I stumble through the forest, following shredded strips of thread hung from the branches of the dark trees. I illuminate my hand to see further and finally I reach a small bronze square built into the floor. Thanks to my enhanced hearing, I could hear laughter coming from below.

Fortunately, there was a back up cake (Nico had planned the food for who knows why so that was his idea) and in my hurry, I think I told Travis to hide it. Or I think he offered...

I knock on the slab and pull it open before jumping down. It reseals itself.

"That was a really bad idea!" I shout at the Stolls.

They were staring at me in surprise. They must've forgotten I knew about this place.

I sigh. "Remember when one of you got hurt down here and needed me to 'heal' you? You had to bring me here." I'm not sure who I'm talking to...

The Stolls still don't seem to remember.
I wait for a moment.

Connor blinks, only just realizing I was waiting for a reply. "Oh. Okay," he whispers simply.

"Why are you whis-"

Travis hushes me. "Don't. Turn. Around."
"Slowly walk towards us," Connor says quietly.
"Not back, not sideways, not forwards," Turner says as I raise my eyebrows. "Whichever way we are," he finishes.

"Look, I'm not going to fall for that trick, now, where's the back up cake?"

Travis frowns. "There's a back up cake?"
Conner nods at him.
"Oh, that back up cake."

"What do you mean by that?" I ask.

"By that I mean the cake I'm giving to someone else," Travis replies.

"You mean were giving because you're going to hand it over in trade for your lives," I say firmly.

"Our lives in exchange for a cake? Seems worthy, but no."

Connor chuckles. "Aww, so you're saying that girl is worth losing your life for!"

"No!"

"Yes! Not giving the cake means we die, so you'd rather give her the cake and die then not and live! I thought you'd know about links like that... wow, she must really mess up your mind."

"No!" Travis repeats. "I just- I- I don't even know h-"

A... Travis wants to give a cake to a girl?
"Exactly!" I cut in. "You don't know what you're talking about, so give me the cake!"

Suddenly, something hard jumps against the roof and everything shakes.

((( So I like got my numbers wrong so to fix it I had to merge the next chapter into this)))

Cake 2.0

The Stolls are unwavered. They keep bickering.

"Hey! What was that?" I ask.

Connor pauses for a second and shrugs. "Some monster I guess."

"Okay, hold up- what monster? And what girl? And where's the cake!?"

Travis answers quickly. "The Cakeless La Rue Monster, a girl, and somewhere."

I scowl at him and turn to Connor for a better answer.

"Katie, and somewhere."

I stifle a laugh. "Wait, Travis-"

"No! Not Katie!" Travis shouts.

Connor curses. "Aw man."

"Oh my Gods, guys, just get me the cake!"

Travis rolls his eyes. "It's behind you, just take it."

I turn around and see a red box and in it is a huge, square shaped, chocolate and raspberry cake decorated with sugar weapons. They were probably trying to hide that from me.

Clarisse's voice comes from above.
"There's nothing down there except mud, keep looking!"

I carefully pick up the cake and once I'm sure the people outside are gone, I get out and the Stolls help me bring up the cake. Somehow it fit through the small opening.
Together, we head back to the fields.

Carrying the cake was definitely easy for the Hecate kids.
After 20 minutes, we safely get out of the forest. By the time we reach the fields, the Ares kids are already gathered there, and those stubborn brutes don't give up on a Stoll search rather easily... so we've been gone for long.

I confidently walk on, casually holding up the cake that has prevented a war. "Guys, chill! That was a joke, this is the real cake!" I set it onto the table and everyone cheers. Nico shoots me a knowing look and I nod in thanks to him.

Imagine if I had dropped the cake...

Clarisse growls, but the sight of the huge cake has calmed her. Hazel brings Frank over, and he grins gratefully at me.

Leo lights the seventeen candles and Frank blows them out. The campers cheer and arrows are shot into the sky. I wonder where they'll land...

Percy does his best to cut the cake evenly with Clarisse and Annabeth looking over his shoulders. All in all, it's not bad.

And the cake ish gud.

After the party, I corner the Stoll brothers.
"I can tell you destroyed that cake on purpose, why?"

"How'd you know?" Connor asks.

"Apollo kids are good with people. But why did you?"

"Because the Demeter kids made it," Travis says simply.
"They're terrible. Too doughy," Connor explains.

"Oh. I see your point, but-"

"The second was store bought," Travis says.
"Don't tell anyone," Connor says. "Nico will kill us."
"And he's worse than Clarisse."