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A knock awoke the girl from her deep slumber, an irritated groan escaping her lips at the inconsiderate person who had the audacity to wake her earlier than she needed to be.
Cassia opens the door, a sour expression replacing her usual airy features and glares at the two half-bloods and the satyr who stare back at her with urgency. The daughter of Artemis crosses her arms, jutting out her hip and pursing her lips, "this better be good. You guys just woke me up from my afternoon nap, all three of you should know how I get if I haven't slept at least an hour in between meals."
"The fleece." Annabeth starts, "we're gonna go after it."
Cassia scoffs, shaking her head, "look, Mr. D made his choice, although stupid, his final word goes. I'd rather that spawn of Hades and goat man die in those waters than us. So, my friends, if that's all for today... I bid you a farewell-" the girl begins to to disappear behind the wood, but was immediately stopped by Percy's foot, his piercing blues boring into hers.
"Cass, listen. I-I think this is our mission-" begins the half-blood, "the Oracle said something about grappling the fleece. She also mentioned about you tagging along to destroy.. or save Olympus. This is the prophecy."
The brunette eyes the trio warily, the suspicious scowl never leaving her lips as she remains at war with her conscience screaming at her to turn back and lay down. But, another part of her, maybe her heart, urges her to listen to Percy; to believe in his words and get a grip on reality. Cassia glances down at her bare knee, probing the scar that ran across her cap in a scary reminder of their last quest. Here goes nothing.
The huntress sighs, "alright, alright. Let me pack a bag and make sure my will is written out. Did I mention all three of you will get our mansion back in a California? Yeah. And Grover, you get my dad's old Maserati. Wait- I'm starting to think you only want to bring me along so you can let me die and take my riches-" she narrows her eyes with an accusing finger, "well, too bad. I'll be damned if I let Grover live instead of me!"
The satyr shakes his head with a sigh, glancing at Percy for assistance in dealing with her banter, "do you hear her?"
The son of Poseidon lets out a tired breath, "Cass, no one's dying. Not on my watch. Now, go, we leave at sunset."
—
The trio crouch below the surface of the camp, their bodies shielded behind the thick tree trunks as they eye the warriors protecting the barrier. Cassia sighs, "okay, so, first thing's first: how are we gonna get passed them?"
"I think they're looking for threats trying to come in, not people trying to sneak out, so, I think we're cool as long as we stay quiet-" just as Percy finishes his lecture, a loud rattling startles the trio of half-bloods, catching the attention of the warriors in the process.
Tyson emerges from the trees, an awkward apology escaping his lips as he picks up his backpack from the ground, the cans he packed clanking against each other in a loud ruckus. Cassia rolls her eyes, shaking her head, as Annabeth and Grover shush the nymph angrily. The satyr then pokes up from their secret spot, "uh, sorry... we're um... we're guarding too." He then sits back down, shrugging his shoulders at the annoyed huntress who murmurs a hurtful phrase about how stupid Grover's excuse was.
