“I stepped forward. Call me old-fashioned, but I wanted to keep his focus on me and not Annabeth. I think it’s polite for a guy to protect his girlfriend from instant incineration.”

“Call me old-fashioned, but I wanted to be persued, not the persuer.”

“The fact is, the people I want to protect are protecting me. And so I keep finding more things that are different, and I keep on going. Even if they're small, I take one step at a time.”

“I keep hoping some guy with 'Ron' or 'Andy' stitched on his pocket and a gas pump in his hand will step up and tell me where I'm headed.”

“He leaned forward and opened his door, politely standing aside to let me by before following me in. There are some advantages to dating a guy from another era, I thought. Though I am a big believer in gender equality, chivalry scores high in my book.”

“Who wants to kill you?” the guy asked. He was still looking over his shoulder, but his expression was puzzled.“There’s nobody there,” the girlfriend told me.“You’re making them think they can’t see you, aren’t you?” I said to Patch, awed by his power even as I despised his use of it.”