30 days of riordanverse pride! 🌈✨

the second

02/06/2021

Reyna bit her nails anxiously, waiting for the Iris Message to go through. Recently, Thalia had shown her how they worked, and now, as a last resort, Reyna was desperately trying to contact her. Yesterday, Thalia had blown her off because of some Hunters thing that had popped up.

"Hey," Thalia's voice came through the shimmery mess that was now the air in front of her.

"Hi," said Reyna, looking up. "Uh, listen, I was wondering if you wanted to come down to camp today? We could get coffee, take a walk through the gardens... I- I just feel like I haven't seen you in ages."

"Oh, Rey, I can't," frowned Thalia. "I'm sorry. We're en route to Camp Half Blood right now. We were supposed to be there yesterday, but..."

"Why? What's up?" Reyna asked, a little hurt under her perfect mask of indifference.

"Annabeth asked me to be there. Something about something special happening that I had to be there for," Thalia said vaguely, not exactly looking Reyna in the eye.

Don't be silly, Reyna, she thought to herself. That's probably just connection issues. Probably.

"Oh, okay. Well, can I see you sometime next week, then?"

"Yeah, of course," she grinned. "We're coming back up to California after today anyway, provided we get there soon. I don't know what Annie wants, but it better be important."

"Yeah, okay. I'll see you soon, then."

"Laters, Rey." Thalia grinned again and swiped her hand through the IM before Reyna could even think to say 'happy pride'.

seven hours later

Reyna sighed, staring at the sunset. There had been an emergency Senate meeting called to discuss plans for Temple Hill. Jason wanted to expand the actual hill, so that they could also build shrines to the Olympians, who were getting temperamental over the minor gods' new-found recognition. The council has agreed that it was a good idea, but denied him the right to expand. In the end, they had given him a plot of land on the edge of the city, so that the citizens could go and pray easily and the 12 Olympians could be appeased without sacrifices being made. That wasn't to say, however, that it hadn't been extremely trying to come to such an outcome.

In the most heated parts of the meeting, when it was just yelling that Reyna had to duty to or interest in listening to, she had found herself thinking of Thalia. Although she was prone to overthinking, and so usually dismissed all products of it, Reyna couldn't help but wonder if Thalia was cheating on her. There had been no 'I miss you', no 'happy pride', and no indication that they were anything more than friends. Reyna hadn't allowed herself to think about it, but now she couldn't stop. What if, what if, what if...

There was a knocking at her office door, and Reyna stood up to open it, momentarily recalling the days when Aurum and Augentum would have been there with her, following her to the door, barking at the slightest hint of an ill wish. But they had been too badly damaged at Pompeii, and now they were all but rotting in Reyna's basement, where she didn't need to see them and, consequently, didn't need to think about them. It was too soon for that. Reyna didn't think she could face the disappointment of another mechanic telling her they were unfixable.

She pushed the door open to see Hazel.

"Reyn- praetor," she said, a little breathlessly.

"Reyna is fine," the praetor assured her. "What's the matter?"

"Thalia is here with her Hunters. She wanted to come and see you, but I thought you might want a little warning."

"Thank you, Hazel," Reyna said, the cogs turning in her mind. "Are they waiting close by?"

"Sort of. The Field of Mars."

"That's alright, then. Walk with me?"

Hazel nodded, and Reyna pulled her door shut behind her, the pang of missing her dogs hitting her again. They made small talk as they walked the two minutes to the field, but Reyna's mind kept coming back to the thought that Thalia might be here to break up with her. But then why would she lie about being at Camp Half-Blood?

"Thalia?" Reyna wasn't surprised - she trusted Hazel, of course - she was feeling more confrontational than surprised - but she had somehow assumed that Thalia wouldn't be there.

"Reyna! Hey," Thalia grinned.

"What are you doing here? You told me you were on Long Island," Reyna said harshly, an accusative note in her voice.

"I'm sorry, but I couldn't think of a way to make it a surprise," she admitted.

"Make what a surprise?"

"A... picnic? For pride?"

Reyna melted - literally melted, almost dropping to the floor with relief that her relationship, the one good thing that had happened to her over the past year, was intact.

"Geez, Rey, it's okay if you don't like it," Thalia joked.

"No! No, of course I like it. It's just... well, I thought you were cheating on me," Reyna admitted.

Thalia laughed, and then looked over at her. "Hey, you know I would never, right? I would never cheat on you."

"I know now," smiled Reyna. "Hey, Thals?"

"Yeah?"

"Happy pride."

"Happy pride, Rey."