AN: This is (finally) chapter 5. I couldn't think of what to write, but then I got an idea from some music I was listening to. This chapter is dedicated to "Ashes" who asked for more. Please read on:

We Go Rafting During the Storm of the Century

I would've stood at the waterfall staring all day, but soon enough, my comrades came back for me, Isis and Maria shooting nasty looks at Abigail, Scott, and Julian. I could only assume that the first two would rather've left me behind. "Whatcha waitin' for? We have a tight schedule," admonished Isis. "Let's go."

"Do you even know where we are?" I asked, pulling out a map from my backpack. It showed the whole USA in detail, including where we were.

"Now I do, Smart-Ass," growled Maria. I was getting on her nerves. Good.

Abigail broke in. "There's a town up ahead on the map. Should we go into it or avoid it?"

"How big?" That was Julian.

Maria opened her mouth, but couldn't come up with an answer, so I interceded. "It's a smallish city. There is a small college and a university. We could easily pick up supplies and pass through virtually unnoticed." Maria scowled at me.

"Don't go swimming unsupervised, or an accident might just happen," she threatened through clenched teeth.

"Hope you drown!" laughed Scott, breaking the tension that had gathered.

Isis took control. "So, we're going to this- what's it called, Smart One?"

"Bethlehem, home of Lehigh University."

"Bethlehem, as in Jesus and Christmas?" asked Abigail, puzzled.

"Nope. That one's in like, Israel or something. This one just copied the name."

"Anyway," said Isis, picking up the thread of the discussion, "If we follow this road, we'll get there. Smarty, can you guide us?"

"Ah sure can," I said in a Southern cowboy accent. Don't ask me why, but those words sound good like that.

"We'll be picking up food and change clothes. Then we split. Got it?" We nodded. "Good. Any questions?"

"Yep. Can we hitchhike?" asked Scott.

"This isn't funny, Joker. This is a serious mission." But Abigail was giving Maria bunny ears as she said that, making it feel very un-serious. "Quit it, Zombie Queen."

"Well, aren't we grouchy today? Someone wake up on the wrong side of her sleeping bag?" I saw the twinkle of mischief in Abigail's eye. She mouthed Roadkill in her boots. I grimaced internally. I would not want to be the subject of one of their grudges. "Isis? Is hitchhiking permissible?"

"Only if you have a death wish, O Zombie Queen," replied Isis.

"But I, Queen of Death, have nothing to fear. I control Death. Mwahaha!" cackled Abigail demoniacally.

"Let's move on," suggested Isis. We agreed and fell into loose formation. Isis and Abigail led, Scott and Julian took flank, I was surrounded in the middle, and Maria was our rear guard. We followed the highway, and although we stuck out our thumbs to every car, none of them stopped for us. I wonder why. I mean, why wouldn't anyone stop for six rugged kids with sleeping bags and backpacks who looked like they lived in the woods and were probably very dangerous?

By logging a lot of hours, we made it to Campus Square, Bethlehem, right on the edge of Lehigh University, just as the thunderstorm started. Okay, I thought, surveying the area, where do we go now? "Let's find a bathroom somewhere and clean up so that we don't scare people away," said our All Mighty Leader. So that was how we found ourselves buying new clothes in the university bookstore. "Now we change into this stuff." We met in the patio about ten minutes later, looking all clean and neat. We were all supplied and dressed for whatever the quest would throw at us. After stopping in a few of the little cafe's and bagel places that dotted the area for lunch-slash-dinner, we headed out through the town of South Bethlehem towards the Lehigh River. I cast an anxious glance at the ominous sky.

"Think it'll storm?" said Abigail, panicked.

"Feels like it," answered Julian as if it were the most natural thing in the world to "feel" the weather.

"I don't like this. Let's keep walking," suggested Isis anxiously. There was no joking around now. This was potentially serious. I certainly hoped not, but since when have the gods listened to me? We made it to the river's edge before the cloudburst. Let me tell you, it was the most water I'd ever seen at one time, and I've been in nor'easters in New York. This was absolutely torrential, pouring; it was buckets, cats and dogs. And the thunder was deafening. It was probably the loudest noise I've ever heard, including the Ares campers' war cry and victory yell, and I could've sworn it made the ground shake. Or maybe there was an earthquake, too. But that's not the point. The lightning came at the same time, and pretty nearly damn blinded me. We were soaked within seconds, except Maria, who looked like the cat that swallowed the canary. Even she was miserable after a few minutes. Julian, on the other hand, looked rejuvenated. "What did you say?" shouted Isis over the rising wind. I could barely hear her, and she was right next to me.

"I said, do we try crossing the bridge?" screamed Abigail.

Isis shook her head, though the movement was blurred to us. "Too risky. I'm surprised it's still standing in this." She gestured to our predicament. It was swiftly becoming difficult to see through the sheets of driving rain. Premature night had fallen upon our travels, with the black clouds swirling overhead. I looked away at the city, then turned back to the river.

"Julian!" I shrieked. With a mighty roar, the river overflowed its banks, and the wall of water swept him away. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw flash of green, moving toward him. I realized too late what Maria meant to do.

"Maria, NO! Come back..." ordered Isis, then sighed, "We shouldn't get separated like this. Two of us lost."

"Maria will be fine. She's a daughter of the sea. She'll keep Julian safe. We should worry about ourselves. This isn't natural." Abigail shivered.

"Daughter of the sea, yes. But a cursed one." Isis adopted a leader-like stance. "Everyone stay back from the edge. We'll walk along the river slightly inland." It was a good plan, but alas! one we would never carry out. Right then, another huge wave came up, dragging the rest of us into its cold depths. In the chaos that followed. I grabbed a hold of a hand, I didn't know and didn't care whose. I saw Isis yell "Stay togeth-" before her head went under. The hand slipped from my grasp. A wave tossed me up, and I slid back down, being thrown around like a doll.

The next thing I knew, strong hands were tugging my arms and an urgent voice was saying in my ear, "Hermione, wake up. Are you alive?" and then I was on a raft. It was rubber, one of the ones commercial rafting companies use, with three tubes in the middle. I was so exhausted from my struggle with the river that I passed out. When I awoke again, Maria was pouring nectar down my throat. "Oh, good. You're awake. We have to rescue the others." The storm hadn't abated, and the boat pitched violently, nearly throwing me off. "Anchor your feet under the middle tubes. Sit on the outside."

"The outside?! Are you you crazy?"

"This is no time to argue. Just do it!" I did, and she tossed me a paddle. "And whatever you do, don't let go the end with the T." I didn't need to ask why, because I could see that if that end hit anyone, it could definitely break a nose or some teeth.

After many stressful and dangerous episodes with the raft, we collected everyone. Maria steered somehow, and I, along with whoever else was able, pulled people in. At least they were all conscious except for Scott, who'd hit his head on a boulder. The wound was swelling and oozing blood. We could only feed him nectar and ambrosia and try to stem the flow of blood with our shirts until the storm stopped. And Zeus only knew when that would be...

AN: The end of chapter 5. I used Bethlehem, PA and Lehigh U. because my brother just graduated from there and I think it's a really cool place. This chapter was written mostly from my experiences rafting on various rivers (Lehigh included) and touring Bethlehem with my brother. Please review, because reviews and fanfics are like Oreos in milk. )I 3 Oreos, by the way.)