the best thing 'bout tonight that's we're not fighting --- [quibs]

Tiberius look at the watch on his wrist as he finished packing, humming quietly to himself before realising he was almost going to be late. He didn’t like being late, but it did sometimes happen to everyone. To be early is to be on time, to be on time is to be late, and to be late is unacceptable. That was what his father had taught him at the age of 2 1/2, and the saying had stuck with Ty ever since, wrapped around the exterior of his brain like tightening vines, binding him to live by it. So hastily putting the last thing in the suitcase and zipping it up, Tiberius went out the door to his cabin and made way to the parking lots. He was immensely excited to be going on a trip with Quinn, and it wasn’t just because he got to spend time with her and laugh with her and smile with her and just be with her. Ty, since coming to camp, had never been outside the borders. Sure, there were a few times where he was tempted to do so, but whatever plans he had made always backfired on him. There was something conceding the cabin that needed fixing. Quinn needed him. He slept too late. So Ty, understandably, was sick and tired of Camp Half Blood and everyone in it. Except Quinn. He could never get tired of Quinn. Tiberius loved Quinn and he knew it. There was no doubt in his mind about how he felt towards one of Apollo’s many daughters. The thing was, he just didn’t show his affection (or at least he didn’t try. Tiberius was an idiot and knew nothing of flirting and holding his tongue). He didn’t know if Quinn was embarrassed by him, or didn’t return his feelings, but Ty wasn’t going to screw up what relationship they had already.

However, when the demigod asked him to come with her on a road trip to see her mother, Tiberius was a little reluctant to go. He didn’t know why Quinn didn’t ask one of her other, more popular friends to go with her. After all, they certainly would have more fun than they would together. Ty knew that he and Quinn were almost complete polar opposites, she was a popular, he was far from it. She was like fire, burning down towns and cities and hearts with her scorching personality. He was like metal, cold hearted and refusing to bend to the will of anything. Except fire, because fire had a tendency to melt metal, shape it to another form even if it wanted too or not. That was what Quinn did to Tibs. She changed him, and he didn’t know if it was for better or for worse. Tiberius had a hunch that he and Quinn would probably argue on the road trip, he didn’t see how they couldn’t. So at first the boy declined, saying that he had far too much work to do around camp and that it wasn’t wise for him to go. Which wasn’t true in the slightest. He just didn’t want to to ruin things between them, because like metal, Ty scratched at the surface of everything he touched, leaving large gaping holes that could hardly be repaired. He didn’t want to do that to Quinn, ruin her. She had a life of her own and the more Tiberius got involved the more he knew she’d change. She already had, in a way, to Ty. So he walked down to the parking lot, still thinking about how he got wrapped up in this stupid adventure. Quinn was persistent, and kept pestering Tibs until one day he just said yes without thinking. Yes he would go with her. Yes he would embarrass himself a thousand times over because that was what he did around the lovely, destructive Quinn Taylors. 

Ty laughed at Quinn as she started to get angry. He wasn’t intimidated, not anymore. He’d seen Quinn angry, and this wasn’t anger. This, at best, was annoyance disguised as anger, and so Tiberius wasn’t scared if he teased her about her talent. She was quite good, and her singing reminded him of home. Charlotte was a great singer for not being of apollo descent, and her voice carried through the hallowed, empty halls of their loft back in New York. Ty hadn’t heard her sweet voice for over two years now, and saying that he missed his little sister didn’t even begin to feel the pain he felt. But Lottie’s voice was more like a bird’s call, soprano and high. Quinn’s singing was more mesmerising to Tiberius, he loved it, just like he loved her. “No, I think you do sing.” Ty said putting his hands behind his head and leaning back into the leather seat. He trusted Quinn enough to relax. After all, she was a better driver than he would ever be, and at 17, Tiberius still didn’t know how to drive. Granted, he was in New York city at the time, and he always took either the subway or a taxi, plus his father didn’t like cars. He trusted her enough not to kill them both in the car, which was saying something. 

When Quinn asked him to grab the directions out of the glove compartment, Tiberius did as she asked. “Uh, yeah sure,” He said as he took out the map. “Where are we headed?” Tibs questioned as he looked at Quinn while she sped down the highway with cruise control. The map was full of green and blue and grey and red, and the demigod studied it profusely. Most of the time, he didn’t understand things like phones or the world wide web. He somewhat understood maps. Ty was really bad a directions, but he didn’t think he should mess this up. So he would try his best to direct Quinn to their destination without too many detours. When Quinn started play some song by a band he’d never heard of, Tiberius closed his eyes and smiled. This song was good, even though he’d never heard it before. It was upbeat and happy and modern, something he never really got into until he entered camp. Soon, she began singing, softly at first, and then louder and louder until she finally said ‘shut up’ to Tiberius. “I didn’t say anything. You're delusional, Quinn.” He said as she continued again. If Ty did say something, then he knew Quinn would stop singing, and he didn’t want that to happen because he loved her voice.

Tiberius opened one eye to look at Quinn. “Yeah, but I’m your idiot.” He said, grinning as if he had just won the lottery. Her figure was blurred by the sunlight streaming into the car, smudged just enough that it was almost unrecognisable if not for the days and nights he’d spent memorising her face, as if that would be the last time they would meet for a very long time. Being demigods, dying was a common thing for them to do, whether it be heroic or not. Ty didn’t think he’d go out in a heroic way, but he hoped Quinn would. He thought her a martyr while he himself was a coward. Perhaps it were the other way around, he just didn’t know yet. But he had decided a long time ago that if he were to die, he’d die by Quinn’s side, looking into her brown eyes and blonde hair. Tibs shook that thought out of his wreaked mind; this trip was not meant for dark thoughts or fights among friends, it was meant for happy memories and friendships. Although with his luck, something bad would happen on this trip like the car crashing or monsters attacking. This trip would probably end in screams or silent treatments from either of them. It seemed it was already beginning to go south when Quinn told him where her mother lived. “Oh, uh, Albany? Really? That’s actually kind of funny…” Ty began, but then shut his mouth as he buried closed his eyes once more, the pleasant smile on his calm face diminishing a little out of uneasiness, but not because of her driving. Quinn didn't need to know what was in Albany

The demigod soon realised that in order to get to Stella’s house (although when he would meet her he’d call her Mrs. Taylors. It was only right and proper.) he’d actually have to give directions. So Tibs told Quinn where to go, keeping his eyes on the map and not on her because he didn’t want her to ask him about what was it about Albany. The capital made him worried and euphoric at the same time, and if Quinn knew what lurked there it wouldn’t end pretty. The map got easier to comprehend the more Ty read it, and the more Ty read the map and gave directions, the easier it was not to make small talk. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk to his companion, he did. But whatever the subject was would probably always end up back at Albany, which he would avoid if it killed him. Quinn kept talking though.

Ty really didn’t want to talk about Albany. It wasn’t like anything bad happened there, but nothing good came out of it either. He did have some good memories of the place, but if he told Quinn, then she’d probably stop the car with a jerk and probably give them both whiplash. “Forget I said anything, I’m an idiot, remember? It’s not so much funny as it is chance.” Tiberius said, smiling reassuringly despite if Quinn was looking at him or not. There would probably come a time where he’d have to explain to her what he meant, and he hoped that that time would be sometime in the future, when they were both in camp and this trip, this mad, wonderful trip, was just a pleasant memory in their minds. If this journey to Albany was to stay wonderful, then Tibs would keep avoiding the subject of Albany, no matter how much he wanted to tell his best friend. Ty picked the strands of his white sweater that hung loosely off the fabric, as if awkward silence was better than admitting what was wrong and it wasn’t. Tiberius wanted to talk to Quinn about everything that was going on and everything he felt. That’s what best friends were for, right? Complaining and talking and celebrating every little thing that happened to their lives. But Ty was a coward and wouldn’t start off the conversation, he never would. He didn’t even start it when they first met at the dance, that was Quinn. All he did was say hello and that was it, and greetings could hardly be a conversation starter. It was Quinn who had complimented his tie and hit it off. 

With the silence overtaking them more and more, making the friends seem like strangers to each other, Tibs let his mind wander a little bit, mostly with worry about meeting Mrs. Taylors. What if she didn’t like him? What if she didn’t think she was good enough for Quinn? What if he said the wrong thing about her kitchen drapes and she beat him with a broom? The third uneasy thought was probably very unlikely to happen, but Ty still worried about it. “You’re welcome,” He said to Quinn, just as softly. He did truly mean she had a lovely singing voice. In an even quieter tone, Tibs asked, "Quinn, what if your mother doesn’t like me? I mean, what if I do or say something that offends her and she says you and I can’t see each other anymore. Don’t get me wrong I don’t think you would stop seeing me just because she made that rule. I should hope you don’t stop seeing me. Gods, look at me, a nervous wreak just because I’m meeting your mother.” He chuckled weakly and then preceded to run his hands through his thick black hair as if it would calm him down. It didn’t. 

When Tiberius woke up, it was to new scenery, something he never saw. The house was beautiful, and in his mind it would be a cottage in a fairy tail, everything good and pure and sweet going on inside the cream coloured door. He stayed silent for a moment, laying in the seat. The sounds of the New York capital swirled around him, reigning in homesickness and longing. Ty could smell the exhaust fumes from Quinn’s car mingling with the other vehicles. The sky was a pretty lavender, twilight closing in upon them like an ending to a chapter of a book. Fireflies had started to come out, twinkling in the late night air, their glow lighting up both his face and Quinn’s. Tibs got out of the car and placed his feet on the sidewalk, getting used to how solid the cement was. There wasn’t really any at camp, more just mushy, bouncy forest floor that threw off his balance when training. After over a year at camp, Tiberius could say he preferred city over country. It was a lot less work to get the things you needed in the city, and over the year the demigod had grown deaf to the noises of swears and car honks and just everything the city had to offer. Camp was too quiet, like there was something going wrong in the dead of night. “Wow, nice house,” Tibs said, stretching. 


He let Quinn just stare at her home for a while, because this trip was really all about her and Tiberius was just a passenger. She was being generous just letting him come and talk to her mom, because he’d no previous conversation with her, no reason to barge into their lives like a stranger. So Ty checked his face in the mirror as the light was sucked out of the sky by an invisible vacuum on the other side of the big wide world. His bed head wasn’t too terribly bad, just a few chunks stuck out, and it gave Ty a rugged look that he thought looked good on him. For the first time in a week, Tibs actually looked well rested, which was odd because he had slept inside a car for not even two hours and probably snored. Ty knew that he snored, he’d been informed of it by his siblings most mornings, and he wondered what Quinn thought of it. Knowing her, she probably laughed at him. His melted silver eyes look soft and warm, not harsh metal as he had once thought. His high cheekbones were shadowed well in the evening light. All in all, Tiberius Winters looked presentable to meet someone’s mother, and his appearance calmed him down some. Turning back to Quinn, he stood up tall with his chin held high and a nice smile on his face. “I presumed I snored?” Tibs asked her.


There was a long wait of silence as Ty watched Quinn. He wasn’t sure what he should do, whether she needed comfort or a snarky comment he didn’t know, and he really didn’t want to mess this up. “Most people would take that as a good sign. Now go on, get in there and hug or whatever normal families do.” As a Winters, Tiberius was not born into a normal family, and it wasn’t just because of his lineage to the gods of mount olympus. His father was more cold hearted than his oldest son, more cruel like a block of unfrozen ice. He never hugged any of them, not even his own wife, who was a kind blonde woman who took Ty in despite not being her kin. The boy had more respect and love for his stepmother than he did Aphrodite, because as far as he was concerned the goddess had only given him good looks and an insanely high metabolism. Although if it weren’t for her and the dangerous, monster sensing blood she’d possessed him with, Ty never would have met Quinn and he never would had been this happy. So, in a way, Tiberius owed Aphrodite so much. 

Ty laughed as Quinn commented on his snoring. “Very descriptive of you. You could literally be the next Oscar Wilde with that kind of mind.” He retorted, although he wasn’t all to sure she’d get the reference. Wilde was one of his favourite authors, even though he’d only published one novel. Dorian Grey was surely a weird book for Tiberius to be reading, because even though both boys were pretty, Dorian would go through so much lengths to keep the handsomeness he’d possessed as a young adult. Tibs, on the other hand, could care less if his youth faded. It was more of a curse than a blessing to him, because it had gained him such ridicule from his father over the years. Tiberius knew that Bradley Winters was constantly tortured whenever he looked at his eldest sons face because he was reminded of Aphrodite. It was because of that reason that father could never look son straight in the eye and hold a conversation. As a child, Ty always thought he’d done something wrong because Bradley always ignored him, and even when the boy tried to fix their relationship the man refused to change his ways. It truly was heartbreaking, and it made the chess player sad, almost to the point where it made his dashing smile falter, but not quite. Tiberius Winters had an image to maintain, and nothing could tarnish it. 

The banging from the trunk turned out to be a cat, and as Quinn brought out the small grey feline, Ty felt a rush of emotions. Anger, love, worry. The boy cared for cats more than he cared about most people, even though he never had one as a child. Gabriel was allergic to those kinds of pets, and they probably all would have stopped feeding it except for Tiberius. “You had a cat in the trunk? Gods Quinn, do you even know how dangerous that is? It could have been dead, it’s probably scared to death and half starved. When was the last time you fed it? You named is Susan? What kind of a name is that?” He started walking toward the pair, arms extended to take the cat and make sure it was okay. All the while he was still ranting about the kitten and how sorry he was for its mistreatment. Quinn handed him the cat as her mother walked out, and Ty took it in his arms, stroking the top of Susan’s head softly, saying things like ‘Shh, it’s okay. She can’t hurt you now.’ and ‘Tiberius has got you, you’re going to be fine.’ Later, perhaps in a more private setting, he would take to Quinn about her treatment of her pets and that arrangements would have to be made even if it was her cat. 

Tiberius didn’t realise how hungry he was until the mention of food was brought up. He hadn’t eaten anything all day except for half an apple he had grabbed at 4:30 this morning while packing. Needless to say he was ravenous, and he never thought to ask Quinn if she’d brought snacks along for the trip. So he eagerly went up to the two girls after getting his bag from the back of Stacy, all the while being a perfect gentlemen about  it. He knew Quinn probably thought he was acting more strange than ever, but it was only because Ty was raised this way. He had to be a passive person in someone else’s home, quiet and proper and perfect like his father had taught him. It had been worse at home, as they had practiced doing this almost everyday, and so their loft was always deathly quiet. In retrospect, Quinn’s house seemed full of life, and Tibs still saw it as a fairytale he’d want to live in. Quinn was lucky to have a mother like this, and she was also lucky to have a cat that didn’t murder her (Although Ty might have to murder her himself, the treatment of leaving it in the trunk was completely unacceptable). “Oh yeah, Susan’s fine. Sure she is. Please, remind me, because it has seemed to slip my idiotic mind, but your definition of fine would be?” Tiberius said in a hushed voice, but nonetheless sparking with coldness and attitude. Immediately his features softened. “I apologise, I don’t actually mean that. I, uh, yeah, sorry.” He finished lamely, not really wanting to drag on about how he cared for the feline he’d only known for not even five minutes. The heart inside Tiberius could handle people dying before his eyes, but it couldn’t handle little kittens being locked up in a trunk of a car for two hours. 

“Yes, sounds lovely, Mrs. Taylors. Thank you.” Tiberius said, smiling warmly. Quinn took away Susan from his arms and the cat when from purring to hissing, and Ty had to repress a laugh, although an ever bigger grin showed. He’d never thought his friend as the animal type, per say. Tibs didn’t actually think Quinn as a pet lover, but for a cat to absolutely hate her guts was quite amusing to the young chess player. He knew there was a soft side to fire that could warm your chilly bones, and Ty thought that had side of her would show towards Susan, at least a little bit. Maybe, if Quinn and Susan had time to reconnect and sit with each other, the cat wouldn’t try and scratch her pretty brown eyes out. If it did, Tiberius would stop it because he really did like Quinn’s eye colour. Even so, he sounded let down when Susan was taken from him. “No, wait, don’t…” Ty said, frowning as the cat ran into the house.

Sometimes, Tiberius wished he could be like Quinn, brave and amazing, all the qualities of fire wrapped into a golden haired, brown eyed beauty. Like fire, she burned with a bright intensity that seemed to burn off any emotion she might have felt, and Ty could tell she was holding back. How could he not? She was the first face this face he saw at camp that he cared about and studied. So it wasn’t that strange that he knew when she was hiding her emotions from people. Of course, Tibs couldn’t blame her this time. He blamed her a lot of times, because he felt like he didn’t matter to her. Most of the time the chess player felt unwanted by the popular girl, like she was mildly embarrassed by his actions. Yes, that was the case sometimes, but not this time. Tiberius didn’t know what it was, but he knew it wasn’t him for once. Still, he wanted to tell her that it was okay if she wasn’t okay, that she could actually come and talk to him in private and not worry about what others might think because really, who was Ty going to tell? He literally had no other friends that he could gossip to. “It’s nice to know you’re doing better than Susan,” He said softly as she took his arm. Ty was sure that her mother hadn’t heard a word of this conversation, and he’d keep it that way, for his sake and Quinn’s. “because honestly I don’t know if that cat is going to be okay, and I kinda want you to be okay.” She wouldn’t look him in the eyes for what ever reason, and Tibs didn’t want to do anything to make her mad at him, and so he refrained from tipping her chin up and having her look at him or hugging her. With a small, almost painful nod, Ty slipped his arm out of Quinn’s hand. “Yeah, whatever you want to do Quinn. Your wish is my command.” Then he smiled as she smiled.

As they went up to the house, Tibs felt Quinn hold his hand again, which was strange because she normally never did that. A long time ago, probably around the time of their fight/breakup, whatever you wanted to call it, Ty had learned not to be overly affectionate towards her. So he never made the first step in the relationship, which was quite odd for him. All his life he’d been taught that men made the choice to whether or not the relationship should go full speed ahead or come to a screeching halt. This girl was changing everything that Tiberius Winter believed, and he wouldn’t change that for all the chess opponents and feather pens in the world. The contact was brief and short, ending before they came to Mrs. Taylors again. Ty merely nodded at her instructions, giving a short sweet smile and a muted ’thank you' her way before following Quinn to the basement. He was grateful for all she was doing for him, he was, but Tibs was more concerned with his friend and how she was handling mother’s new boyfriend. 

The spawn of Aphrodite didn’t get out as much as other children his age. Granted, it was because of his father. Bradley didn’t like the public schools, and he didn’t trust private schools to get his son ahead in life, and so Ty was homeschooled from age 4 to the time he went to camp. It wasn’t even normal school, more like Manners, Chess Playing, and Calligraphy 101. Tibs did know how to do math and read and write obviously, Lucy had taught him that. Even though he was homeschooled, he never actually went to the homeschooling events that were set up for kids like him to get out more and become social. Bradley didn’t like kids Ty’s age, thinking they were idiots and unruly and just overall not the type of people he wanted to make a lasting impression on his children. Tiberius could respect that, except for the fact that once he had tried to go and make friends, his father had refused and had almost basically locked Ty up in his room for three hours. The boy didn’t dare try escaping, even though he had memorised the entire city of Albany by heart and could probably navigate just fine on his own. So never, in his short and dangerous life, had Tiberius had anything close to a sleep over. His siblings each got their own rooms, even though Lottie’s and Gabe’s were connected because they were twins. He’d never had to share a bed with anyone and frankly, the idea of sharing it with Quinn freaked him out a little. 

“Umm,” Ty said softly, trying his best to answer this without screaming his head off or upsetting Quinn. He didn’t want to make a scene, that was all, and if she had proposed this idea at camp he’d’ve started ranting and screaming all throughout the grounds until his throat was sore. “Shouldn’t you have your own room? I have my own room. It is a wonderful bedroom, and I don’t share it with anyone.” Tibs didn’t exactly know what he was trying to accomplish by dancing around the question like it was fragile eggshells. It was probably his way of saying I am really not comfortable with this idea. “What happens if your mother walks in? Wouldn’t she think some unwanted thoughts? I mean, come on, to err is human and she’s a human so she’s going to probably think some incorrect thoughts about us.” His voice was getting quieter and quieter, as if he was lulling a child to sleep and didn’t want to wake it. “Je crois même que certaines pensées incorrectes sur nous ...” The last sentence in french was barely over a whisper, he wasn’t even sure if Quinn heard it and he hoped she didn’t. Shaking his head and running his hands through his hair, Ty sat on the bare mattress. Come on, Winters, this is sleeping arrangements, not diffusing a bomb or rocket science. 

Ty tried to stop the blush from creeping up further into his face. He hated blushing, he hated the effect that Quinn had on him that caused him to turn red in the face. Why did she do these kinds of things to him? Probably just to playfully tease, but even so Tibs felt really stupid when he blushed over things like this. It was just sleeping together, nothing more. The boy thought of the same scenario if it was their last night on earth, and if he had one last chance to be with her, would he sleep with her. The answer was yes, without any hesitation on his part. But this wasn’t the apocalypse, and they weren’t going to die. Tiberius just thought this occasion should be saved for something special. He looked at Quinn. “She’s your mother. Isn’t her first thought about you and how to keep you safe?” That’s what mothers were for, to worry and care about you. At least, that’s what Lucy did for Ty. “I’m just saying, this plan isn’t exactly well thought out. There could be complications.” Still, if it was the only way, he’d do it.

When Quinn said great, it wasn’t mischievously, like when Ty gave in her evil plans could go forth. Which made TIbs even more uncomfortable. Did she want to share a bed? Never in a million years did he think that she wanted to be with him. Ty always thought their relationship was built on the fact that they were both stubborn and refused to leave the other alone even though it would be better if they did.  “No.” Tiberius said, shaking his head and finally making up his confused and muddled mind. “I would not want to trouble your mother with other sleeping arrangements. This is fine. Fantastic, actually.” He smiled a reassuring smile, as if everything in the world was good and right and just. The idea of sleeping together was finally settling into Tiberius’ mind as something that was okay to do, and he found that the more he thought about that and the less he thought about all the bad things that could happen if he did, his bright red blush went away. Just in time too, because they had to go to dinner. “Yeah, alright.” Ty agreed as Susan climbed down the steps, hissing up a storm. 

Ty walked up the steps towards dinner, wondering what he was doing here. He knew his initial purpose, because Quinn had asked more than once, and he’d do anything for her (even kill a man, if it came down to it) if it meant her happiness and well being. But other than that and the fact that Tibs was hopelessly head over heels for Apollo’s daughter and followed her around like a lovesick puppy, it made no sense whatsoever why he was here. Tiberius Winters was not, under any circumstances, a family man. He leaned everything he knew from Bradley, who’d avoided his kids as much as possible, but mostly Ty. His father was a coward, and so was his eldest son. Quinn had a family, and Ty didn’t know how to act normally around them. He was always going to be a stranger to everybody. Still, the skinny demigod went into the dining room without too much difficulty. It was weird trying to learn a new house and not having somebody guide you around, and Tibs wished Quinn had stayed with him so he didn’t look like a fool, but that couldn’t be helped, both the staying and the fool part. “I’m here.” Ty announced just as Quinn said he was coming. 

The smells of dinner were really pleasant, and Tiberius, being a typical teenage boy with extremely poor eating habits but extremely good posture, was starving. However, he wasn’t going to just dig in before everybody else. His younger brothers would probably do that, but certainly not a sophisticated person such as himself. When Mr. Burke said something about Quinn’s beauty, Ty wanted to voice his agreement, and was about too, but stopped himself. For one, Tiberius knew that Quinn knew she was beautiful, and they weren’t exactly in the stage of their relationship where they could openly say those things to each other. Plus, Tibs didn’t think that Quinn wanted  Mr. Burke to say that too her, and he couldn’t blame her. If someone lady had started dating Bradley when Ty was this age, he wouldn’t like her to talk to him and barge in like she owned the place either, no matter how charming she seemed to be. 

“Well, I’m sure it will be amazing anyways, whoever cooked it.” Tiberius smiled as he just looked around the table as he served himself food, monitoring the people around him. No one had asked him any questions about his life or anything yet, and so he stayed silent. This was Quinn’s night, and he wouldn’t ruin it for her, even if she did feel uneasy about meeting her mother’s new boyfriend. Honestly, Ty didn’t see what was so bad about Mr. Burke. He seemed like a nice guy, not at all the type that would kidnap children (and Tibs would know, he’d been kidnapped before, but no one but his parents and Charlotte knew that). But then again, he wasn’t attached to Mrs. Taylors like Quinn was, so he wouldn’t know. He sat quietly at the table like a good boy, his posture impeccable and perfect. Ty knew that he didn’t have to act on his best behaviour for Quinn, but he needed to be liked by her mother for whatever reason, like this was like life or death for him. Tiberius took the pale plate from her, putting his thin, cool fingers on her shaking hand as if to tell her it was okay, that everything was going to be fine though brief contact before putting a small amount on his plate. Sure, he was starving, and compared to Quinn’s amount of food it was a feast fit for a king, but he didn’t want to overload himself with things he didn’t eat and then seem ungrateful to Mr. Burke and Mrs. Taylors. He’d’ve taken more to sacrifice to the gods and goddess, but he didn’t think that the adults in the room knew a lot about greek mythology, or not enough to consider putting perfectly good food into fire as normal. Tibs didn’t even think it was normal when he first came to camp, so he didn’t blame them. 

So there the chess master sat, quietly chewing on his meat and mash potatoes as Quinn and the adults talked. He wondered how this was going to play out, whether the storm would pass without any damage, or if a hurricane came and smashed everything to pieces. If a big thing was going to play out, Tibs wanted to be fully concentrated on stopping that. It felt like his job, stopping every bad thing that Quinn was going to do or about to do, when she had made it fully clear time and time again she didn’t need protecting. Well, Tiberius Winters didn’t listen to her. Behind closed doors and drawn curtains, he worried about her and what she was up too. Usually it lead to sleepless nights pacing back and forth, trying to figure out how to save her from herself. Sometimes it seemed hopeless, but Ty never gave up because he loved Quinn, and he hoped she loved him back enough to let him help her when the time came. The boy stopped mid bringing his fork to his mouth, which was laden with food, when Quinn faltered on her question.