Cat and Daquiri Talk About Things [Ceru and Jake]

"Absolutely not." The centaur's voice was gentle, but firm.
    "Chiron, we can't just let her get away with my sword!"
    "I'm afraid we must, child. There are many monsters out there, and you don't know where she's gone. It's too dangerous."
    Bending her pick anxiously inside her pocket, Cat tried once more to reason with the teacher. "Chiron. This girl, she snuck into camp, attacked me, took my weapon and took off. Who's to say she won't do it again? How can you claim that this place is safe if we're vulnerable to raids like this?"
    Chiron's gaze grew sad. "The camp is vulnerable, and has gone through much worse than the likes of this. Count your blessings, child. Be thankful she took only your sword, and not your life."
    "Chiron-"
    "We cannot do anything about it now, Catryn. I'm sorry."
    "But-"
    "Miss Greyling." There was an edge in the centaur's voice now, and a warning. "That will be all."
    Cat stared at her sneakers. She felt Chiron's hand on her shoulder.
    "I truly am sorry for the loss of your father's gift." His voice was kindly. "But we can't do anything about it right now. It would be too dangerous to run off after her. In the meantime, you'll have your bow. Do not despair. You have not lost all that your father has left you."
    With that, the centaur trotted out of the cabin , leaving Cat to herself. What was the meaning of that? You have not lost all that your father has left you. As if she cared about that. She didn't. She wanted the sword to fight with. The fact that it was a connection to him had nothing to do with it. If anything, it separated her from him and his legacy of archery. It's got nothing to do with him. Nothing.
    She couldn't let that girl get away with stealing from and making a fool of her. Her pride was at stake. Her act of thievery was not to be tolerated. Yet what could she do? Chiron had told her no. Doesn't mean you gotta listen to him. She snorted at the idea. Yeah, ‘cause you could obviously track her and take her down in a fight. She ran a hand through her hair, feeling so conflicted and angry and helpless, when she was suddenly struck by an idea so odd and foreign and crazy, it might actually help her.
    She ran for the Aphrodite cabin.

    Cat considered herself a polite person.
    She decided to skip out on being polite today.
    She opened the door to the Barbie Dream House without bothering to knock, and found her mark reading on one of the bunks. She marched towards her, trying to block out all the pink and the lingering smell of perfume.
    “You’re probably tired of listening to me chatter on, but I really need you to hear this.”

((Our titles are just so beautiful and descriptive.))

    After leaving Cat in the woods, Daquiri had gone back to her cabin to rejuvenate in some alone time with a book. Interacting with people had always been more on the tiring side, even when most of the "interacting" was her insulting or trying to ignore them. But having actual conversations with people like she'd had with Cat--that left her almost mentally exhausted. She'd never really thought much about the whole introvert-extrovert energy difference scale, it being rather clear that she didn't like being around people, but now she was a bit more aware on how much she really couldn't even handle being around them for extended periods of time. Even people like Cat (or rather, only Cat), though she had to wonder if that would ever change.
    However, it wasn't about to change in the next thirty seconds, so when the cabin door burst open and the one and only Cat appeared at her bedside, Daquiri was more than a little irritated. She was fully prepared to tell the girl to go away and leave her alone for more than an hour, but she raised an eyebrow at the urgency of Cat's words.
    Looking around at the few other kids in the cabin, she gave a sigh and put her book down to get up. "C'mon," she muttered, "If it's so terribly important, you might as well tell me while we're alone." She led Cat back out the door to the little porch of the cabin and leaned against the railing. If this wasn't as big a deal as Cat was making it out to be, she would have to reconsider the "girl talk" part of the whole friendship thing. Or maybe just the talking in general.
    Cat, however, seemed too agitated to assume any kind of similar relaxed position to Daquiri's own. Daquiri listened silently as she told her whole story, her only reactions the slight movements of her eyebrows now and then. When the daughter of Apollo finally finished, Daquiri stayed quiet for a moment.
    Then she spoke up. "Well, that sounds like a load of bullsh*t." She shook her head. "Chiron may be half horse, but screw what he says. I've heard of demigods with much less experience than yours going on quests." She gave a casual shrug. "Why don't you just go after the girl anyway?"

When Daquiri suggested that she go after the blonde girl anyway, Cat felt the slightest, strangest bit of relief, as if the redhead's comment was a validation of some sort. But that was silly. She wasn't actually thinking of going, it was crazy.
     "Do those inexperienced demigods come back alive?" she muttered. Louder, she added, "I wish it were that easy, but how would I find her? And if I did track her down, she's a strong fighter. There's no way I could take her." That last part kinda hurt, but Cat couldn't avoid the truth. She had Heliakos, and she could actually use the darn thing properly, but archery wasn't for close quarters. What was she going to do, shoot her from a distance, run in, grab the sword, and run away again with arms flailing? Yeah, right.

.

    Daquiri shrugged at the mention of Cat's first problem like it was no big deal. "You were in the middle of the woods. Just ask the nature spirits which direction she went in. Then travel by sky, get an advantage on her. Pegasi are probably your best bet." She narrowed her eyes as she considered the inexperience issue, though. She looked down to stare at the wooden panels of the porch. Out of her peripheral vision, her eye noted Bloodbeauty still hanging at her side. She hardly ever took it off anymore. Then she blinked as a thought hit her.
    Oh, no. She was not doing that.
    Then again, Cat would probably end up dead if she went alone.
    Ugh. She was going to regret this.
    Trying to repress a sour face, Daquiri raised her head again. She drew her dagger and tapped Cat's shoulder with it lightly. "Pick up a practice sword and I can..." she tried not to sigh, "...teach you on the way." She leaned her arm against the railing again. "Then it'll be two against one."

Daquiri made it all sound so easy, firing out a good plan of action pretty much instantly. Why didn't she think of talking to the dryads? Because you're ridiculous. Cat shushed the negative voice in her mind.
She tried not to look too surprised at the redhead, who, hesitantly, resigned herself to teach Cat... Along the way.
Her first reaction was to reject the idea. She didn't want to drag her into this. But... she did need the help. If Daquiri was willing to offer... 
"Thank you," she said seriously.
With the daughter of Aphrodite on her side, she had a much better chance. But they still weren't exactly seasoned warriors. Was it really wise to try this? Chiron had told her that a number of the senior campers were going on their own quests to set up a network of nodes in order to keep track of monsters and the movements of that Titan Army group, so they wouldn't have any experienced demigods to escort them on Cat's intended rescue mission. Although... Cat's mind started racing. Maybe... Well, they had to make sure it was on the way first...
"I'm going to talk to the dryads," she said abruptly. "Then... I think I got a better idea for transportation."

    "No."
    She had not agreed to this. She was already putting herself out there for someone for the first time since...well, ever, and there was a fair possibility of being fatally wounded in any number of ways. Ripped apart. Stabbed. Petrified. Squashed. Numerous. Practically infinite. Still, she'd volunteered. Since when had she ever been intimidated by anything? Never.
    But she had not signed up for this.
    "You've got to be s***ting me, Cat," she growled at the daughter of Apollo as they stood in front of Cabin 9. Hephaestus. Daquiri jabbed her finger at the boy still oblivious to their presence. "I am not, ever in a million years, going anywhere with that. Boy." She crossed her arms. "Was it not just a couple hours ago that I relayed to you just how much I despise Jake?"
    For it was none other than Jake Arin that stood several yards away from them, seemingly talking over something with that over-sized bronze lizard of his, Aga-what-something, as he prepared the last things for his trip.
    Nope.
    Nope.

Jake tugged the last of the thick straps so that the cargo was fastened securely.
"Alright, that's the last of it," Jake said aloud to Agamemnon. All the equipment for setting up the three major hubs and a few other necessary supplies were secured on the back two saddle-dents, as there wouldn't be any passengers other than himself on this journey. It was a bit easier to get the weight balanced right on places that were built to carry weight anyway.  
"Maneuverability good?"
The automation stood, jostled for a bit, mimicking a few common or important motions, then settled down again with a definite click.
"Good. Looks like we're just about ready to head out," Jake said. He checked his pocket watch for the time. "Looks like we're even a bit ahead of schedule. That's something."
Agamemnon rumbled.
"I'm not always late for things."

Cat grimaced. She had been expecting this reaction from Daquiri, but she really didn't see any better way. "The dryads saw her fly west on a griffin. He's going west. And he doesn't have any companions on his quest. Well, yet. He's taking a mechanical dragon, which means we'll be able to travel further with fewer stops, as it doesn't need as much rest as the pegasi would. And he's got experience, he can help. It could be three against one. Just - look at it this way. We're manipulating him, just using him for transportation. Obviously, we can't tell him we're not authorized to go along with him, so you get to lie to his face, too.  Good plan?" 
     She didn't have the time to debate this with Daquiri, nor did she want to, so she marched over to the senior counselor of the Hephaestus cabin, hoping the chance to manipulate Jake would be enough for the strawberry blonde.
     "Hey, Jake!" she called to the blond demigod cheerfully. She looked admiringly at his bronze dragon. There was only one seat on its back left open - the other two had been saddled with supplies.
     "I see you're all packed up and ready to go on your quest," she said, letting a strained note enter her voice, hinting that there might be a problem. But she put on a forced smile, and patted the dragon's side. "What's this guy's name?" When Jake answered her, she repeated, "Ag-uh-mem-non. Interesting." She was quite for a short moment. "So, listen," she said, rubbing the back of her neck in a show of awkwardness. "I heard this quest is just setting up those nodes, right? Not a dangerous sort of quest, real simple. So..." She paused for a moment, eyes flickering to his before looking away, as if unwilling to break some bad news. With a grudging, sheepish sort of tone, she finished, "Chiron thought it would be a good idea for you to bring two inexperienced campers along." She looked at the bundles, secured to the seats. "You, uh, might have to... rearrange some of your stuff."

((Here's a pissed Daquiri you can react to. Yay.))

    Daquiri was anything but appeased by Cat's plan. She really didn't care what good reasons her friend may or may not have had to use Jake's own route for transportation. She had very specific reasons for resenting the guy, and she'd always held grudges like a b****.
    Perhaps because she basically fulfilled the meaning of the word in almost every sense. But that was irrelevant.
    The point was, no amount of any kind of deceit towards the jerk could make her want to--aaaand there Cat went.
    Daquiri crossed her arms and didn't budge for a stubborn moment. So what if she got to free-rein manipulate Jake? She would have to be within 10 feet of him on a regular basis. She'd have to breathe the same air as him. She didn't put up with normal people--why would she make an exception for him?
    She watched the daughter of Apollo as she talked to Jake.This wasn't about Jake, though. This exception would be for Cat. Oh, godsd***it. This was why she wasn't friends with people.
    Daquiri grudgingly walked up next to Cat, catching the last part of the conversation she was making with Jake. "Yeah," she growled, her teeth practically gritting as she stared straight at Cat, "it was Chiron's idea." Her expression was nothing short of glowering, though she hardly even looked at Jake.

(Skipping intro/reaction/whatever I had before this because I don't remember it)

Jake's smile faded as Cat mentioned bringing people along with him, and he might have made a slight face. He definitely made a face when it was apparent Daquiri was supposed to be coming along.
"But I just..." He glanced back at the supplies he had just finished loading.
And... Chiron said so? It would have been nice if the centaur mentioned it earlier, like when he first mentioned he'd be taking the automaton alone, or in the several interactions after that. Should he double check? It seemed like dragging along new campers would make it a lot less convenient.
Gah, but he that would take time to track Chiron down, and then asking and/or convincing and then he might have to move things anyway, and he really needed to get moving.

"Fine," Jake said, waving it off. "You better be ready to go, because we've got a schedule." He turned to start unstrapping the supplies. Agamemnon rumbled. Jake ignored it.
"If you don't have everything, go grab it now."

Cat had filled her backpack with a few extra snacks she had gotten from the camp store, as well as a couple of bottles of water, toiletries, and other basic necessities. The practice sword she had taken from the arena was in a sheath at her belt. She had Heliakos too, and she had fit a dozen arrows into her quiver (hopefully she wouldn't end up having to use them all). She stuck a hand in her pocket, which she had mostly emptied out of the usual random junk, like a small pack of tissues, a bookmark, a small pen, her old iPod Nano and earbuds, and her guitar pick - she definitely did not want to lose that on the quest - and all that was left was some quarters, a single drachma (she had blown it all on the snack foods - not that she had much to begin with) and... For a second, she panicked a little - where was her pocket knife? Then she remembered. Right.
     "We got everything already," she told Jake, relieved that he wasn't going to question them. "Sorry again. Here, let me help you move this stuff."

*********

Once everything was secured into place (again), Cat stretched and looked up at the now-empty saddles.
"Well then." She tilted her head towards Jake, glad they could get going now. They had delayed the boy enough. "After you, Sir Jake." She glanced at her red-headed friend from the corner of her eye. "And, uh, I think I should sit in the middle."

Daquiri had gotten her own things together while Cat had been talking to the dryads back in the woods. She rolled her eyes at Jake's orders. "Why would we be ready? You must know I've got like, five trunks of clothes I need to bring," she drawled in a stupid Valley Girl voice. She scoffed. "What do you think we are, idiots?" she grumbled.
    Truth be told, she had changed into a more appropriate outfit than from earlier. She was still wearing her matelot jeans, but she'd changed into her brown combat boots and out of her belly shirt. As often as she tended to wear them, baring her midriff didn't sound like the safest idea in the world when it came to going on quests. Plus, it was going to be a lot colder outside of Camp--they'd be in the north the entire trip, so there'd most likely be snow. Ugh. Her favorite thing. Ergo, she was wearing a fitted grey turtleneck under her brown leather jacket, with her strawberry blonde hair plaited neatly down her shoulder in a French braid. She might still value style, but no one could say she couldn't be that and practical. Everything else she needed was in the satchel at her side--backpacks weren't really her thing--including some extra clothes, a ziplock baggie of ambrosia and flask of nectar she'd gotten from the Hermes boys--they were still suckers--some regular travel food and water, and the essentials like a nail file, hair brush, and some makeup. No way was Jake seeing her without any. Then of course, she had Bloodbeauty and her pepper spray at her side, like always.
    Yeah. She was definitely ready for this trip luggage-wise.
    Mood-wise? Not really so much.

    Daquiri watched Cat and Jake reorganize the equipment on the bronze dragon with a bored expression, refusing to make a move to help. She'd agreed to go on this quest-thing, not be nice. When they were finally done, she practically wanted to gag at Cat's attempt of lightening the mood to Jake. She didn't know why Cat even bothered.
    Daquiri glanced at Cat at her suggestion, and she snorted. "Like I'd want to," she said sharply, before pulling herself up onto Agamemnon after Cat took her place. It was sort of a weird feeling sitting on the dragon; its metal plates generated a lot more heat than she'd expected, and its shifting below her was a lot different from the feeling of a horse shifting its weight. She wasn't all that sure that she liked it.

Outfit:

Jake smiled at Cat's comment, reminding himself not to act like a jerk just because of the inconvenience. ...or because of traveling with a girl that hated him and everything else in the universe.
He settled into the front seat of the dragon, right behind the neck. He murmured a few things, checking the feel and sounds of the movement with three campers and a whole lot of gear. He had done weight tests, but this would be the first long distance flight with actual passengers. He wasn't concerned about Agamemnon being able to do so, he was graded to carry at least twice this weight, but he was just double checking the system.

"Right," Jake said aloud. "Hold on, kids," he said over his shoulder with a cocky grin.
"Let's fly."

And on cue, Agamemnon gave a mighty leap into the air, pumping its wings to generate the massive thrust required to get the load off the ground. And in a few seconds, they were wheeling upwards and away.

(Okay, reaction or topic shift, because that's my last post here.)