HOUSE OF CARDS. percy jackson & olympians

i. Sticky Fingers (Don't Trust Genna Archer!)

house of cards
❛ i. sticky fingers ❜

━━━━━ "YOU HAVE STICKY FINGERS, GENNA."

              Genna gave the boy an offended look. "Rude! My hands are clean!"

              Percy Jackson frowned at her. "I meant because you're always getting into trouble. Always taking things."

              "Oh. Well — not always, just a lot." She shrugged. "I can't in trouble all the time, otherwise, I'd never have time to get into said trouble."

              The black-haired boy shook his head. "No wonder you have so many detentions."

              "That you have with me," she countered, nodding her chin at him.

              "How about neither of you gets detention for this school trip?" Grover Underwood offered, his big, brown eyes pleading with Genna and Percy.

              Genna shrugged. "'Suppose I could try. No promises, though."

              "As long as Genna" — Percy jabbed a finger in her direction — "keeps me out of her shenanigans, I'll be fine."

              Genna rolled her eyes at the accusations. "I'm not the only reason you get in trouble, Jackson! It's mainly because you have a blabber mouth and don't understand volume control."

              Percy's ears flushed red, knowing what she was referencing. In previous months, the two had started a candy ring at the boarding school, Yancy Academy. It was going well, and the two were practically rolling in money — for twelve-year-olds, that is — until Percy opened his big mouth and said something in front of some teachers.

              Genna nearly killed him for that one. And she would have, if Grover hadn't stopped her.            

              "Besides," she started, shrugging, "we're just going to look at a bunch of old stuff this trip. There's not much to get in trouble with there." She thought for a moment. "Unless I steal something, 'course ..."

              "You're not stealing a whole fucking statue," Percy hissed, eyes wide with shock.

              "I couldn't steal that — maybe." Genna shook her head. "No, I meant trinkets from the gift shop. Why pay, like, twenty-five for an ugly T-shirt, when I could just steal an ugly T-shirt?"

              "Guys ..." said Grover nervously.

              Genna waved her hand dismissively. "I'm just joking!"

              She really wasn't.

              The only thing that seemed to be a joke was this field trip. Taking twenty-nine mental-case kids and two teachers on a yellow school bus, heading to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to look at Ancient Greek and Roman stuff in Manhattan.

              Sounds like torture and a bad idea. One of those things Genna was great at!

              "Mr. Brunner" (who really wasn't Mr. Brunner) was leading the trip, so maybe Genna should've had some hope — but she didn't. Besides, it was going to be boring. She just to see Ancient Greek stuff all the time, until she got booted off to Yancy Academy, that is.

              Mr. Brunner wasn't really Mr. Brunner because that was just a persona for the mortal world. The mortal world would have a hard time understanding why a guy with a horsie bottom half would be trotting around, answering to the name Chiron.