THORNS [heroes of olympus]

2-shotokan spirit

THE STORM HOWLED AROUND THEM, picking up speed and energy. It was so sudden and so weirdly centered above their spot on the canyon that Lydia was seriously doubting what she thought she knew about weather.

       The wind tore violently through the crowd again, ripping away anything that wasn't securely held or worn. Backpacks, loose worksheets, and even jackets were lost to the wind, falling down into the cavern below. Lydia gripped the straps of her bag to keep from losing it to the storm. She figured, although the conversation would be interesting, it wouldn't be fun to explain to a park ranger how she managed to drop her backpack into the Grand Canyon.

       As she and Leo started to make their way towards the building, another furious bellow pushed them backwards. Lydia skidded, wobbling a bit before finding her center, senses kicking in to keep her upright, but Leo wasn't as lucky. He was closer to the railing, and when he lost his balance, he stumbled and almost went over the side. Lydia reached out, grasped his army jacket by the collar, and yanked him back towards her.

       Leo looked back at her, face pale. "Thanks!" He had to yell over the wind.

       Lydia nodded once. "I wasn't kidding. You're not dying on my watch."

       They continued to move towards the building, catching up to Jason and Coach Hedge. Piper and Dylan were holding the glass doors open, ushering frantic kids inside. Lydia tried to speed up, but the wind was fighting her, not allowing her to get any closer to the doors.

       Piper pushed one more kid inside the museum as an angry wind shoved them from behind. The kid made it inside before Piper and Dylan lost their grips on the doors.

       Piper tugged at the handles franticly, but Dylan backed away, a dark smirk growing on his face. Lydia noticed he wasn't wearing any type of jacket over his Dallas Cowboys jersey. He should've been freezing, but he seemed to revel in the storm, his arms lifting outwards to feel the wind.

       Piper turned back and saw that Lydia, Jason, Leo, and Coach Hedge were still stuck on the skywalk. She sent a desperate look towards Dylan. "Help me get them open!"

       But Dylan didn't move, just shook his head slowly. "Sorry, Piper. I'm done helping."

       He flicked his wrist and Piper flew backward into the doors. She slid down to the floor of the skywalk and didn't get up.

       Lydia was shocked at the timing of the wind with Dylan's movement. It almost seemed as if he had controlled it, but she knew that was impossible. Then again, weird things had been happening all day, and that fell right into the book.

       "Piper!" Jason cried out before trying to shove his way forward. He seemed to make a bit of progress against the wind, but Coach Hedge shoved him back.