Percy told me about the conversation between Zoë and Bianca, and scaring little Nico out of his wits.
The prank from the Stoll Brothers worked its magic a bit too well. Phoebe was in the infirmary, and unable to go on the quest, which left Zoë with four people, not five. Zoë refused to bring anyone else along, saying that they had to go with who they had ... blah blah blah, all of that. If anything, I'm more worried for Nico who nearly wet his pants when Percy just 'appeared' behind him.
It was very awkward sitting behind Percy on Blackjack as they flew. As the son of Poseidon, Percy could understand what the pegasus was saying. I couldn't, so I would just randomly hear Percy's side of the conversation, and out of context, it sounded very troubling. There also wasn't a saddle, so I was also in an awkward position, sitting rather close to Percy and holding onto him for dear life otherwise there would be no room and I'd fall off. This was better than swimming and going on a boat, but even then, the ground was a long way down.
We lost the van twice, but Percy picked up their trail easily. He was a New York native, he knew where they would most likely pass through, and he easily found them again in Manhattan. It was so slow too--they didn't reach Manhattan until mid morning. Percy landed Blackjack onto of the Chrysler Building and together, we watched the white camp van, thinking it would pull into the Greyhound station, but it kept driving.
"That's weird," I muttered. "Argus always stops people there."
Percy frowned. "Where's Argus taking them?"
I went to say, Well, how would I know when I realised he was talking to Blackjack, and I couldn't believe I was being pushed to the side by a horse with wings.
"Which girl?" Percy continued, his eyes on the horse's face. Blackjack snorted. "Zoë?" Blackjack neighed. "No, we can't go through drive-through for donuts. You're a pegasus, remember, Blackjack? You'll freak everyone out."
I'm really third-wheeling here.
"Well," Percy fixed up his hold, and checked to see whether I was good. I nodded. "Let's get after them."
We were about to leap off the Chrysler Building when Blackjack whinnied in alarm and kicked his back legs. We went forward, and I gasped and threw my arms around Percy desperately trying to stay on. Something was slithering around our legs—a snake. Immediately, I pulled my legs up with a small squeal, only making things worse for Percy who was trying to reach for his sword. It was then I realised that it wasn't a snake. Vines—grapevines—had sprouted from the cracks between the stones of the building, wrapping themselves around blackjack's legs and entangling around Percy and I's, making us unable to move.
