69Hydrophobia
Chapter Eight: Another Form of Insanity
We camped on the beach that night, under a perfect, cloudless sky.
We had no idea where we were, so Elisabeth and Brian pulled out an old roadmap and tried to figure it out. They weren't having much luck by sunset, so they just gave up.
We built a fire and a makeshift tent out of the tarp Brian had brought. Brian had a small backpack that had some nifty little features; he said it had been a gift from his father. The bag was able to hold anything and everything, but never got heavier or bigger.
It was by far the most convenient thing I'd seen since the Snuggie.
I was huddled in the tent with Kim trying to comfort her, but she was still shaking violently. I wrapped my arms around her but she shook me off.
"Kim, please talk to me," I begged for the hundredth time.
She just stared blankly ahead. Finally, she fell asleep on the soft sand and I walked outside of our shelter. Brian and Elisabeth were eating out of a box of crackers next to the small fire.
I sat next to Elisabeth in the sand and she shook the box at me. "Want some?" she asked.
I dug my hand eagerly into the crackers. "Thanks."
Brian stood up and brushed the crumbs off his lap. "I'm exhausted. I'll be in the tent," he said and waved.
Elisabeth hugged her knees. "I'm worried about your sister," she said quietly.
"Me too. She seems so scared," I whispered.
Elisabeth shook her head and turned so she was facing me. "I'm worried about her father. It's obviously not Poseidon." I cocked my head and opened my mouth but she kept talking. "I can tell. I can read people really well. I knew you were different, Brennan. You were harder to understand though."
I leaned forward a bit, intrigued. "Why?"
Elisabeth smiled slightly and shrugged. "I don't know. You're breaking down stereotypes though," she said and nodded towards the crashing waves. "You and Percy don't have the same . . . I don't even know how to describe it. Aura, maybe? Percy's aura is confident and sure, but soft. Yours is different. Less sure, but less soft. Less fluid. I don't know." She threw her hands up slightly and pursed her lips.
I laughed softly and leaned back. "Good to know."
Elisabeth blushed slightly and turned her body away again. "Don't make fun of me."
"I'm not," I said quietly and reached my arm around her.
She turned her head around and stared at me for a long moment. Then she shifted her body back around and settled into my arms. After a long silence, I glanced down and found her sleeping peacefully. I took her appearance in. Her pale hair was braided and slung over one shoulder, and her face was serene.
She was really quite pretty when she wasn't scowling.
Elisabeth woke up first, and in turn, her slight stirring woke me. I had been leaning against one of the wooden stakes we thrust deep into the sand to tie the pegasi down to, and my back was killing me.
Elisabeth yawned and looked up at me. I smiled slightly at her bed-head and she ruffled my hair up, smirking at her handiwork. I swatted her hand away softly and she sat up off me and stretched.
She stood and unbraided her tangled hair, running her fingers through it. I stood and stretched as she combed the pale ringlets flat.
"Don't uncurl your hair," I said suddenly without thinking.
She turned around and looked at me quizzically. "Why not?" she asked.
I blushed and opened my mouth to say that I liked the perfectly messy spirals, but Brian stumbled out of the tent and yawned. "What's on the agenda for today, quest leader?" he asked, slinging his long arm around my shoulder.
I shrugged, both to show my indecision and to get his arm off me.
"I got an Iris message from camp. Chiron said we need to send the pegasi back," Brian said, untying the ropes that held our three pegasi to the wooden stake. "They've been gone too long."
Kim peeked out of the tent. "Brennan? I need to talk to you," she said calmly. I immediately rushed into the tent and sat down next to her. We sat in silence for a long moment, just staring at each other.
"I don't want to go to this camp without you," she said suddenly.
I shook my head. "This quest is too dangerous for you to be on. You haven't had any training and you don't have a weapon," I said
firmly.
"Brennan you haven't been gone that long. You've had three weeks of 'training', but do you really think that's enough? So far, you've almost gotten yourself killed twice. I saved you from that second monster, and Elisabeth said that she and Brian killed the first one," Kim said angrily. "Face it Brennan, you suck at being a demigod!"
I stood up violently. "Trust me, I'm well aware! I know I can't fight! I know I'm a horrible son of Poseidon! I know I'm the worst demigod in fucking history!" I shouted.
Kim glared up at me. "You always did get too angry," she said quietly. She threw open the tent door and stormed out of our makeshift shelter.
I glanced around the tent and realized our things had been shaken up. I walked out of the tent and Elisabeth rushed forward. "What the hell did you do?" she yelled, whacking my chest with the back of her hand.
I looked around, and everything seemed fine, but Elisabeth and Brian looked slightly unnerved. "What are you talking about?" I asked innocently.
"I'm talking about the damn stunt you just pulled! Do you honestly think the mortals will react well to an earthquake that wasn't along a major fault line? They're gonna freak!" Elisabeth yelled.
"There wasn't an earthquake," I said with surprise.
"You made one!" Brian explained.
I just stared at him.
Elisabeth hooked her arm into mine and pulled me towards the woods. "Get on. You and I are going to find the nearest town and get directions while Brian and Kim clean up camp," she said briskly.
"I don't think it's a good idea to get separated," I said carefully.
Elisabeth scowled. "No one asked you."
We ended up getting hopelessly lost, smack dab in the middle of the woods.
"Well this is just great!" Elisabeth groaned sarcastically.
"I kinda like it," I said, turning away from her. A pinecone whizzed past my face. "You missed!" I turned around just in time to be nailed by another one.
Elisabeth unfolded a map and studied it closely. I quietly walked up behind her and looked over her shoulder. "You've got it upside down," I said.
She jumped slightly and elbowed me. Nevertheless, she turned the map right side up, and nodded.
I sat down on a tree stump and sighed. "This sucks," I mumbled.
"You suck," Elisabeth said without looking up.
"Your mom sucks," I yelled.
Elisabeth rolled her eyes and pushed me off the stump, taking my spot. She ruffled the map, and the forest was quiet again, except for the sound of running water.
A light bulb went off inside my head. "Elisabeth! If we can find the creek, we can follow it back to the ocean!" I said, standing up and throwing my hands up.
She stood with me and threw her arms around my neck, and I wrapped my arms around her waist. "You're a genius!" she cried.
We stood like this for a moment, embracing each other, until she backed up awkwardly.
"Let's go," she said quietly. I nodded in agreement.
Finding the creek proved to be more difficult than we'd imagined. Neither of us had exceptional skills concerning navigation, and our ears led us in different directions.
"It's this way, I swear!" Elisabeth exclaimed, pointing into a thick patch of trees.
I sighed. "We've already been that way!" I argued.
Elisabeth put her hands on her hips. "Uh, earth to retard? Who's obviously smarter than you?" she snarled.
I rolled my eyes. "Uh, earth to bitch? Who's obviously smarter than you? That tree!" I shouted, pointing to a willow tree.
Elisabeth glared at me and shoved me into said willow. The branches shook and the bark cut my arm.
"Ow!" Elisabeth exclaimed.
"What did you say ow for? You weren't the one who got shoved into a tree!" I said angrily.
Elisabeth rolled her clear eyes. "I didn't say anything, stupid. You're imagining things now. What, have you broken into my LSD?"
"Oh yeah, definitely. Because I'm such a freaking pot head," I said sarcastically.
"Pot isn't LSD, you dumbass. Pot is weed," Elisabeth corrected me.
"Well ain't it great that you know so much about drugs," I snapped.
"Shut up!" Elisabeth yelled, getting in my face for the first time since camp.
"Back the hell up!" I warned her.
"Oh you two are just absolutely adorable!"
Elisabeth and I looked up at the same time and immediately she pulled her hair clip off, and I tugged on my bracelet string.
With our weapons at the ready, we backed away from each other, when a girl dropped down from the branches of the willow tree and landed in front of us.
"Bows? Swords? Hah! Against an immortal, you have no ground!" she laughed. Her hair was a strange shade of gold, and her eyes were crystal green.
Elisabeth strung a golden arrow. "Who are you?" she asked boldly.
The girl smiled and the sun glinted off her eyes. Carefully watching her, I lowered my sword.
"I'm Willow," she said sweetly, gingerly touching the tip of Elisabeth's arrow, gently nudging it down. Elisabeth thrust it back up, aimed at the girl's throat.
"Back into the tree, nymph," Elisabeth snarled.
The girl smiled. "My name is Willow. I love sunlight, water, and long walks on the beach."
Elisabeth lowered her bow carefully. "She's harmless," she muttered. I tugged my bracelet again and my sword returned to its compact form.
Willow continued to smile at us. "You two are fantastic. Just darling, really," she said giddily.
Elisabeth gagged. "Him? No. I have―"
"She has a boyfriend," I finished.
Willow frowned. Elisabeth gasped. "That's not what I was going to say! And James is not my boyfriend!" she said huffily.
"Could have fooled me," I mumbled.
"James is obsessed with me, Brennan."
"I think it's a mutual obsession, Elisabeth. Besides, you two are just picture perfect." I snarled, walking away from the two girls.
Willow was at my side in a flash, holding onto my arm. "You should go for it," she whispered. "If she says she's not with the other boy, why not?"
I laughed. "That's funny. See, she's kinda sorta insane," I stated simply.
"Love is another form of insanity," Willow said, and let go of my arm.
I stared at her for a second, and then walked back to a bewildered Elisabeth. "Let's find the damn creek," I muttered.
"Creek?" Willow said. "Oh, it's right over the hill." She pointed to the slight ridge that her tree was on and popped back into the willow with a puff of green vapor.
We climbed up and Elisabeth smiled at the gushing water. "Told you it was this way," she said smugly.
"You're insane," I said.
"You love me though," she countered.
I nearly choked. "Love?" I said, blushing bright red.
"Sarcasm, Brennan. Don't lose your lunch. Though it's lovely to know that I repulse you," Elisabeth said, rolling those clear eyes.
"You don't repulse me," I said quietly.
She looked at me carefully, analyzing me. "Good," she finally said.
We followed the creek a bit until we hit a fork.
Elisabeth threw her hands up in exasperation. "What now?" she exclaimed.
"Now, we chill," I said and sat down on the bank. I pulled my shoes off and stuck my feet in the freezing water.
Elisabeth glanced at me and sighed. She sat next to me and leaned back, lying down. "How do you do it, Brennan? Stay so calm all the time?" she said softly, rolling over to face me and propping up on her elbow.
I shrugged. "I don't. You saw me this morning. I was furious. How do you do it? Be so good at being a demigod?"
Elisabeth laughed, a loud genuine laugh. "I don't. None of us are good at it. We just have to try our best and hope we don't die. It's really all luck."
"That's what my note said," I mumbled absently.
"What note?" Elisabeth asked.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out the crumpled note. Elisabeth scanned the lines and shrugged. "I dunno who sent it," I said.
"It's true, you know. All of it. We're probably going to die," she said simply.
I laughed weakly. "And what would you say if I told you I didn't care?"
Elisabeth sat up. "I'd say you were very brave. And very stupid. But very, very brave."
I had a sudden urge, an urge so random and so impulsive that it just might work . . .
"I am brave," I said boldly, challenging her.
"Oh yeah?" Elisabeth smirked at me. "Prove it."
I stood and pulled her up with me. "That's easy. But you have to close your eyes," I commanded.
Elisabeth arched an eyebrow. "But then I won't be able to see just how brave you are," she said skeptically.
"It's not something you need to see," I said confidently.
Elisabeth walked a slow circle around me. "You've changed," she said carefully. "Your aura is brighter."
I smiled. "Close your eyes."
Elisabeth widened her clear gold eyes carefully, and then shut them gently. "Make it quick," she said softly.
I mustered every bit of strength I had, then, very slowly, I leaned towards her . . .
. . . Just as a hellhound pounced into the clearing.
A/N: A reviewer told me Brennan should be a girl. I'm not changing anything, but do you think he should have been a chick? Tell me.
I gots a beta! My first beta ever. This is quite the accomplishment for me. The Midnight Doe is my beta, guys. She's super awesome and a great writer. So I figured she'd make a good beta, and I was right. Thanks, Doe :D
Gah. This is moving too fast. Problem? I think yes. REIN IN THE ROMANCE, GURLFRANND.
Brennan + Elisabeth = ?
ψcamille elisabethψ