𝒊𝒊𝒊. 𝐋𝐎𝐘𝐀𝐋𝐓𝐈𝐄𝐒

𝒗𝒊𝒊𝒊.

The group of now five headed out at first light like they planned. Noelle had tried to heal Phoebe with one of her healing arrows, but the centaur blood was too strong. Though, it did help to soothe her pain for a little while.

Zoë decided that she should drive after Noelle's crash landing with the sun chariot and Thalia's inexperience driving. Thalia argued that it would be a problem if they got pulled over, but Zoë said she'd been driving since cars were invented so that was that.

Zoë drove south like a crazy person, and they were into Maryland before she finally pulled over at a convenience store/gas station. Noelle went to use the disgusting public bathroom (they really are nasty) while the other four roamed the store waiting for her to come back.

When she did they exited the store talking about Grover's tracking spell.

"Grover, are you sure?" Thalia was saying. 

"Well... pretty sure. Ninety-nine percent. Okay, eighty-five percent." 

"And you did this with acorns?" Bianca asked, like she couldn't believe it. 

Grover looked offended. "It's a time-honored tracking spell. I mean, I'm pretty sure I did it right." 

"D.C. is about sixty miles from here," Bianca said. "Nico and I..." She frowned. "We used to live there. That's... that's strange. I've forgotten." 

"I dislike this," Zoë said. "We should go straight west. The prophecy said west." 

"Oh, like your tracking skills are better?" Thalia growled. 

Zoë stepped toward her. "You challenge my skills, you scullion? You know nothing of being a Hunter!" 

"Oh, scullion? You're calling me a scullion? What the heck is a scullion?" 

"Quit it," Noelle said sternly. "You guys are acting like five-year-olds." 

"Grover's right," Bianca said. "D.C. is our best bet." 

Zoë didn't look convinced, but she nodded reluctantly. "Very well. Let us keep moving." 

"You're going to get us arrested, driving," Thalia grumbled. "I look older than you do. Like, legal age of driving older." 

"Perhaps," Zoë snapped. "But I have been driving since automobiles were invented. Let us go."

~

Noelle slept until their next stop, which was D.C. The van started to slow down as it crossed the Potomac River into central Washington. They parked a few blocks away from the Washington Monument near some of the Smithsonian buildings.

They all piled out of the car. Grover pointed toward one of the Smithsonian buildings. Thalia nodded, and the five of them trudged off into the cold wind. Thalia and Grover protected from the cold by their winter jackets. Noelle, Bianca, and Zoë almost looking like sisters with their parkas and braided hair.

Finally, Grover stopped in front of a big building that said NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM. Thalia checked the door. It was open, but there weren't many people going in. Too cold, and school was out of session. They slipped inside.

They wandered around the museum aimlessly, Thalia using the Mist to trick the person working the admissions booth into letting them in for free. They followed Grover, all silently wondering why the acorns led them here.

The main part of the museum was one huge room with rockets and airplanes hanging from the ceiling. Three levels of balconies curled around, so you could look at the exhibits from all different heights. The place wasn't crowded, just a few families and a couple of tour groups of kids, probably doing one of those holiday school trips.