Chapter 30

Alex was hunched over the again-lit campfire when he heard the sound of someone rustling in their sleeping bag. The morning had come already, and the sun brightened everything around their little hideout: the colourful grass, the lush trees in the distance, the bright blue cloudless sky. He got to see a pretty awesome sunrise just a few minutes ago. 

The smell of eggs slowly cooking and bread toasting over the fire filled his nostrils. Luke and Thalia had conveniently stolen some cheap steaks, eggs and bread from a supermarket on their way here. He didn't have much to work with, so he had to improvise with some herbs and berries he found nearby. At least, it wouldn't be bland. 

Life was too short to eat tasteless food. 

"Morning..."

Cracking another egg into the skillet above the campfire, Alex looked to his side. Thalia was sitting, her legs still inside the bag. She rubbed her eyes to remove that morning gunk before giving Alex a proper look.

"Uhh... hey?" Alex awkwardly waved his hand. He'd put on a T-shirt when the cold breeze of the night became too uncomfortable, but his new scars were still very much visible in his arms. 

"You're awake. Nice," She said in a sleepy tone. Reaching for a bottle of water, she tried to wash her face the best she could before leaving the sleeping bag and taking a seat beside the fire. "What's for breakfast?"

That was it? Not even a pat on the back or a congrats or something? He had been on the verge of death! He even got flashbacks and everything. Though... he supposed they didn't know each other that long.

"Eggs and toast," Alex muttered, flipping a thick slice of crustless bread on the skillet. "And I'm doing some bacon jerky for the road."

As he'd said, their strips of bacon were hanging on a makeshift rack above the fire, half drying with the smoke, half with the sun. The smoky smell coming out of it blended so well with the rest of the food it made the girl's mouth water. Not that she would say it, though.

"Smells better than anything we've had in days," she admitted. Alex was about to be offended when he remembered he had been unconscious for the last three days. Thalia watched Alex work for a moment before adding, "You sure you're okay? You know, after everything that's happened?"

Alex chewed on his lip. She was talking about the cabin and the injuries, right? Maybe Annabeth told them who the cabin belonged to first, and that he had to leave most of his family memories there. It was true, sure, but Alex didn't like people looking at him like he was some poor little boy who spent his nights in sorrow. He was past that. 

Still, her question lingered in his mind; a shift from her initial nonchalance. Was she doing it out of necessity, or was she actually having a flicker of concern for Alex's well-being? It was hard to tell with Thalia. 

"Yep," he answered curtly, popping the 'p'.

Thalia nodded, seemingly satisfied with the answer, and turned her attention back to the fire, watching the eggs and toast being made, while the bacon finished drying. 

When he, again, heard the sound of someone leaving their sleeping bag, he turned his head to look. Annabeth was on her feet; she staggered, trying to find some balance. She was still wearing the varsity jacket, though it was a bit muddy from sleeping outside, he supposed.

Her eyes, red and swollen from crying, locked onto Alex. A "Yikes," left Thalia's lips, and Alex was about to ask her why when the kid rushed towards him. Annabeth wrapped him in an embrace so tight Alex actually felt like he couldn't breathe. Her body was trembling as she cried silently.

Alex was caught off guard, so he hesitated for a moment before he did something. He returned the hug, pulling her closer, trying to offer whatever comfort he could. "Hey, hey... it's okay, pipsqueak. I'm here," he whispered softly.

Annabeth's response was muffled against his shirt. Still, the intensity of her grip already spoke volumes about what she was feeling, "I thought... I thought you were dead. I dreamed that all the monsters got you and you were gone," she managed to say between sobs, her grip tightening as if fearing he might disappear if she let go.

He rubbed her back, trying to console her. "I'm not going anywhere, Annabeth. I'm tougher than those monsters, remember?" he said.

"Yeah, he's like a bad penny, Annabeth. Always turns up," Thalia quipped from the side. "Actually, he's more like a stubborn stain; you can't wash him out no matter how hard you try."

"Where did you get those from?" Alex arched an eyebrow. "Shittiest jokes of the twentieth century?"

"W-what? Of course not!" She half-shouted half-said, trying to hide something behind her.

Annabeth pulled back slightly, looking up at Alex with wide, tearful eyes, searching his face for reassurance. She managed a shaky childish chuckle at Thalia's comment. "Promise you'll stay?"

Alex nodded, wiping away her tears with a gentle thumb. "I promise, kiddo. We're a family, right? We stick together," he pretended to whisper something, covering his mouth with his hand. "Even Thalia."

The little girl giggled again, and the mood was uplifted.

"Yeah, and Alex here is our knight in shining armour, minus the armour... and the horse... and the flowing blonde hair... actually, he only has the sword going for him," Thalia said with a smirk, managing to get another laugh from the kid and a mock glare from Alex.

"Shut up, Sparky."

They kept talking for a little while; Alex kept an eye on the conversation and the other on the slow-cooking breakfast and bacon jerky. When the first was finally done, he divided the eggs and toasts into different metal deep plates and gave one each to Annabeth and Thalia. He set one aside for Luke and began eating his.

It wasn't long before Luke stirred, the noise and the smell of cooking food finally waking him up. He yawned loudly, stretching before getting out of his sleeping bag. "What's with the noise? Did I miss the apocalypse or something?" he said, adding a groggy voice to the mix.

"No, just your turn to wash the dishes," Thalia retorted without missing a beat. Luke eyed the dirty metal plates before sighing. He then looked at Alex. 

"You okay?" he asked. Alex noticed his eyes were tracing the large scar on his arm. 

Alex nodded, "Good as new."

"Awesome," Luke clapped his hands together, "Because we have a lot to discuss. Plans to make."

He sat with them around the campfire, finishing his breakfast as he laid out the large map with the various markings in front of them. As Luke explained where their hideouts were and what he and Thalia usually did to stay out of the path of monsters while they were on the run (even if it didn't always work), Alex interrupted him.

"It's pretty cool that you two have this sort of strategy," he admitted. "But there's something I have to tell you that might change them... by a lot. Do you know what a satyr is?"

Thalia tilted her head in questioning, but Luke looked down in thought before he spoke.

"I... I read somewhere that they're these half-goat half-human nature spirits, right?" he asked uncertainly. "Followers of Dionysius...? I'm not sure..."

"I don't know either about the last part, but you got their appearance right," Alex said. "Now, you might not believe this, but..."

For the next twenty or so minutes, Alex told them all about camp — or at least, what he knew. He didn't forget to explain what Grover and Gleeson were supposed to do, and how he guessed it had to be around the state of New York the way they spoke about it. He told them how he had planned to wait out in the cabin until another satyr found them and took them there, but that option had already left the table.

"So," Thalia started. "A camp made by the gods to protect their children?"

Alex nodded. "Not sure. They did say it was camp for 'people like us', so at least there must be other demigods there," he turned towards Luke, who had yet to voice out his opinion. "What do you think?"

He noticed the Son of Hermes tightening his hands into fists. "Who knew the gods could be so giving," he said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "But... it does seem to be the safest place for us. I'd say they have even stronger protection than the cabin, and while we could maybe survive without their help... we have to think about our companions," he gave Annabeth a sideways glance so Alex and Thalia would understand. 

Alex then got up. "Then it's decided," he said walking over to one of the boxes that contained some of their stuff. "We go north and start our search... what about in Pennsylvania?"

"What about in Delaware?" Thalia suggested. "From there we could slowly move northeast and check each state."

"That's probably too far," Luke commented, holding out the map. "I'd say we start in New Jersey and move in a semi-circle until south New Hampshire. Maine also feels too far. Then we go back in another semi-circle, this time a smaller one until we've checked everything,"

"Sounds good to me," Alex said. He placed the box on the loading floor and pushed it as far as he could. "What do you say, pipsqueak?"

Annabeth cleaned her tear-smeared face and nodded in agreement. 

Thalia and Annabeth helped Alex load the rest of the boxes into the pickup while Luke did his best to hide the hideout in case someone got too close. They refiled their ambrosia and nectar; Alex gave each some strips of bacon jerky for the trip and, five minutes later, the four covered the boxes with the tarp and got in the truck. Annabeth had become the copilot, so Thalia and Alex sat in the backseats. 

Luke started the car before hitting the pedal in first. The pickup held strong as they went up and down the grassy hills, and the sound of the tyres flattening the bushes and wildflowers reached their ears. Eventually, they reached a small gravel road that went on for about a mile before they finally felt asphalt underneath the truck. 

"Where are we going next?" Thalia asked, peering at the map in Annabeth's hands. 

"Kentucky. It's not as bad as it sounds," Luke answered after a while. "We made another hideout there before Virginia, remember?"

Thalia groaned. "Yeah... how long until Kentucky?"

Annabeth traced her small finger before doing the math. She looked at the punk girl "Six hours and a half."

Leaning back on her seat, Thalia groaned.

"It's not that bad," Alex said. "It's 400 miles to Kentucky, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's bright, and we're wearing sunglasses. Hit it!"

""What?""

Alex laughed but didn't say anything. He closed his eyes and opened his window, feeling the breeze on his face. He hadn't thought about it before but wasn't this pretty much a road trip? He had always wanted to do one of these, and honestly? He couldn't think of better company.

**********

A/N: Timeskip coming next chapter. I know some of you would've liked to see the full extent of this small "Roadtrip" Arc, but I feel like we should move on, seeing as we're still pretty much in the prologue. 

Also, another thing. I don't know where this misconception came from, but a lot of people seem to think Camp Half-Blood is some sort of disguised prison for demigods (????). That's not the truth, at all. Most half-bloods only go to the camp during summertime, with some staying behind because they have nowhere to go or just like to stay there. And it's not like it's mandatory.

Anyway, as always, review, comment, and leave some stones!