𝐦𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫. ── 𝐣𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐞

𝐢𝐢𝐢. 𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐜 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝, 𝐤𝐢𝐦𝐜𝐡𝐢, 𝐧𝐚𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐲

ANDROMEDA COULD BE IN A FATAL SITUATION, but she would always be hungry, and gods, the Romans knew how to eat.

Sets of couches and low tables were carted into the forum until it resembled a furniture showroom. Romans lounged in groups of ten or twenty, talking and laughing while wind spirits—aurae—swirled overhead, bringing an endless assortment of pizzas, sandwiches, chips, cold drinks, and fresh-baked cookies. Jason grinned at her. "I can't believe I don't have to hold you back from the plate of cookies."

Andy pouted and punched him. "I have some self control, lightning boy."

He smiled and put his head on hers, using her as a sort of stand. Andy could see Percy's glaring eyes from all the way across the forum, but he quickly turned back to a very miffed Annabeth.

Drifting through the crowd were purple ghosts—Lares—in togas and legionnaire armor. Around the edges of the feast, satyrs (no, fauns, she thought) trotted from table to table, panhandling for food and spare change. In the nearby fields, the war elephant frolicked with Mrs. O'Leary, and children played tag around the statues of Terminus that lined the city limits.

Her eyes widened. "Is that an...?"

As if reading her thoughts, Jason laughed. "Yep, that's Hannibal. Our war elephant."

The whole scene was so familiar yet so completely alien that it made Andy dizzy. All she wanted to do was be with Jason—preferably alone, without all these eyes staring at her. It was clear at he was a leader here, like some sort of celebrity politician, like a hot, blonde Justin Trudeau.If their quest was going to succeed, they needed these Romans, which meant getting to know them and building some goodwill, which also included not making out with irritatingly attractive boyfriends in public. 

She looked over at Jason, who was stretching a flexing his arms to hold his head, like he was relaxed and at home. He had on a lazy smile, and shot Andy a wink, like she should be thrilled to be here. Her heart sunk. This was his home, how could she say anything bad about it?

Reyna and a few of her officers (including the blond kid Octavian, freshly back from burning a teddy bear for the gods) sat with the Argo II crew. Percy joined them with his two new friends, Frank and Hazel, and still was shooting glances at Jason and Andy. 

As a tornado of food platters settled onto the table, Jason leaned over and whispered, "Hey, Robin Hood, I want to show you around New Rome. Just us, and maybe we could sneak in a few kisses?"

Andy should've been thrilled. That was exactly what she wanted, right? But there was a pit in her stomach, something that wouldn't allow her to enjoy herself here, among the large spreads of garlic bread and kimchi. At first, she thought it was hunger, and even though she was the only Greek person chowing on naan bread and curry, she nodded. But it wasn't hunger. It was... dread.

Along with the curry, she also swallowed back some snarky comments, most of which involved words like 'bloodthirsty, they want to kill us, and are you out of your damn mind?'. "'Kay," she said, unenthusiastically, pursing her lips.

Jason's face fell ever so slightly. "I've been thinking," he said nervously. "I had this idea—"

He stopped as Reyna called a toast to friendship, raising her glass of... wine? Apple juice? She didn't know.

After introductions all around, the Romans and Greeks began exchanging stories. Jason explained how he'd arrived at Camp Half-Blood without his memory, and how he'd gone on a quest with Andy, Piper, and Leo to rescue the goddess Hera (or Juno, take your pick—her face was equally punchable in Greek or Roman) from imprisonment at the Wolf House in northern California.