Alacrity

IV

Lyra swallowed the urge to punch him in the gut and she said, "Thank you, Cee. I appreciate the gift."

She left the cabin after being hugged once more by Luke, and then taken into a group hug with the Stolls, who were weirdly emotional. She understood; they had lost two siblings the last quest, and everyone was afraid they'd lose another. Deep down, Lyra was petrified herself. She remembered the pain she had felt when she realized Nick would never come back, and she didn't want any of her siblings to feel that way.

She met up with Percy and Annabeth back at the big house. Chiron gave Percy, Annabeth and her each a canteen of nectar and a Ziploc bag of ambrosia squares, only to be used in emergencies and if we were seriously hurt.

Annabeth brought her Yankees cap and a book on famous classical architecture to read when she got bored and a long bronze knife - the one Luke had gifted to her - in her sleeve. Lyra tried telling Annabeth that she probably wouldn't be bored on the quest, but the daughter of Athena wouldn't hear any of it and insisted on bringing the book. Eventually Lyra asked if she could borrow it if she got bored on the quest.

Grover wore his fake feet and pants to pass as human. He wore a green rasta-style cap to hide his horns in case it rained; when it did, his curly hair flattened and one could just barely make out the tips of his horns. He wore a bright orange backpack full of scrap metal and apples to snack on, and he carried his reed pipes (though he could only play a Mozart Concerto and a Hilary Duff song on it, so Lyra didn't really see he point. Then again, she brought several cans of shaving cream, so she couldn't really complain).

The group of four waved good-bye to the campers and Lyra took one last look at her home, from the thriving strawberry fields tended to by the nymphs and Demeter children to the shimmering blue-green ocean that matched her companion's eyes to the Big House that she had many memories in, and they then hiked up Half-Blood hill to the pine tree that was once a friend of hers.

Lyra spotted Chiron and Argus, the head of security, waiting for them. She gave Argus a distrustful gaze, not quite sold on him protecting her. In a past form, her father had killed Argus in order to save Io. Lyra wasn't sure if the man - er, monster - held a grudge because of this. "This is Argus," Chiron explained to Percy, who stared at the hundred-eyed man. "He will drive you into the city, and, er, well, keep an eye on things."

Lyra snorted audibly and fervently apologized to Argus, explaining that the pun was just too funny. Lyra turned around when she heard footsteps behind them, belonging to her brother. Luke was running up the hill, carrying a pair of red converse. "Hey! Glad I caught you!"

Annabeth blushed and Lyra elbowed the girl. "You're being obvious." Annabeth elbowed Lyra harder and glared at the girl. "I just wanted to say good luck," Luke said to Percy. "And I thought... um, maybe you could use these."

He handed Percy the sneakers and said, "Maia!" White bird's wings sprouted from the heels, startling Percy so much he dropped them. The shoes flapped around on the ground until the wings folded up and disappeared.

"Awesome!" Grover exclaimed. Lyra agreed, but something twisted in her stomach; Lyra felt jealous. Those shoes were a gift from her father to Luke. Why didn't she get them? They were from her father, after all, and they were given to her brother. So why did Percy get them.
"Hey, man, thanks," Percy said, but he glanced at Lyra. "But... shouldn't you give them to Lyra?"

"NO!" Luke exclaimed loudly, causing the three demi-gods to jump in the air at the sudden volume. He recovered quickly and shook his head. "I mean, uh, Lyra's already got my old pants and the pocket-knife from Dad. You, uh, don't have any, so I thought it would only be fair."