The Quest To Nowhere | Completed | PJO HOO TOA

Flatulence Is Not What Attracted It

The three of us walked down the street of mansions with spirits that weren't quite high and moral that was not, not low. (Caprice says I'm too negative. I'm just trying to be honest!)

In other words? We were not in the best of moods. We felt sucky. (How you like them apples?)

As we were making our way (down town) past all the houses, a few gardeners and older couples having afternoon tea in their front yards gave us some dirty looks. We didn't exactly qualify to hang around this kind of neighborhood.

At one point an old guy with a cigar in his mouth and a nose the color of a raspberry told us to beat it. I told him to suck it. Caprice apologized on my behalf. Apparently I was rude.

Eventually after what felt like forever, we were no longer in the firing line of the mansions and were closer to a bunch of liquor stores and a coffee shop.

"How much longer?" I asked, trying to keep my feet from dragging on the ground as we walked. I didn't want to sound whiny, but my body was aching and I desperately wanted to sleep on a real bed.

"A little while." Caprice promised. It was seriously hot and we were all sweating. She shed her purple lacy thing and put it in the bag of food. My black leather jacket was in Zephaniah's tiny car and at that moment I was slightly glad.

"That's the seventh time you've said that." Alister complained.

"Well, it's the seventh time you guys have asked!" She exclaimed. "Look, I know it's hot. Just stay calm. We'll turn the A/C on, kill a bad guy, maybe even sleep. Chill out."

Chill out. Ha. That was easier said then done, my friend. Especially when you know you could be walking to your doom. Apparently we had to fight someone, right? Who said we'd even live through that?

A group of kids wearing designer clothes walked by giving us dirty looks. I took a snickers out of a string bean looking boys back pocket.

"Where did you get that?" Alister asked, referring to the chocolate I was eating.

I pointed with my thumb in the direction of the kids and Alister laughed, shaking his head.

"Slick." He commented.

"Don't encourage her." Caprice said as she took the tote bag from Alister's grasp and tugged it onto her shoulder. The bag was pretty heavy so we'd been taking turns carrying it. "Her sticky-finger-itis is not okay."

"I don't have sticky fingers. It's called theft. I literally, purposefully reached into his back pocket and stole his food."

"You little criminal." She murmured as we trekked on. "Are you sure you aren't descended from Hermes or something?" She asked.

We came to a run down old hotel covered in weeds and Caprice stopped us.

"This is the one I saw on the way here. Wow this place looks seriously old." She looked around for a second before turning to us. "Now, since our pals left us with no money I'm going to have to cover us in some mist. Could you guys help me out and focus on being invisible?" She asked us seriously.

"I can focus on whatever you want me to, as long as I am freed from this heat." I promised.

Alister snickered and muttered something under his breath that sounded like, "You nasty."

Caprice have him an irritated look and closed her eyes, holding out her hands, one moving around us and one towards the hotel reception.

I closed my eyes and focused on my first day at new schools. Little me, being shoulder barged and run into by other kids that seemed to not see me or care to try, teachers that never bothered learning my name and in each class would ask me if I was a new student, being ignored by my father three hundred and sixty four days a year before finally being spoken to.