Umbra

Chapter 25

Percy was happy for her.

This reaction also could've been to the fact they were in the dining hall. Leo had outdone himself designing it. The cupboard was lined with magic cups and plates from Camp Half-Blood, which would fill up with whatever food or drink a person wanted on command. There was a magical ice chest with canned drinks, the chairs were cushy recliners with thousand-finger massage, built-in headphones, and sword and drink holders.

There were no windows, but the walls were enchanted to show real-time footage from Camp Half-Blood– the beach, the forest, the strawberry fields. Percy had fixated on those immediately, almost to the point where Emilia wasn't sure he was listening.

But even if he hadn't been happy for her– and it was Percy they were talking about, of course he was happy– it wouldn't have changed how she felt about herself. Emilia felt accomplished and most importantly, satisfied. Still, it was nice to have him smile and nod as she explained her quest, learning to be part of a team, learning to trust, fighting all sorts of monsters and ultimately reuniting with her family and meeting Hylla.

Percy had seen her recently. She was doing perfectly fine, having killed Otrera twice, just as Emilia said she could. Her new nickname was Hylla Twice-Kill. Emilia couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

"So I guess," she finished, "I want to say thank you."

He blinked. "Thank you?"

"Yes. To you. You vouched for me, a year ago. You were the only one patient enough to deal with me when I was still having tantrums and breaking the ground open with dark energy I didn't fully know how to control. You told me your weaknesses so I could recognize mine and be prepared for someone to do... what Gaea is trying to do. Exploiting them. Thanks to you I taught myself to trust. I didn't know it at the time but I trusted you first. Then Annabeth. Then Pollux. Now Leo, Piper, and Jason. Soon Hazel and Frank. We're still working on Coach Hedge."

"And Hylla," added Percy with a gentle smile. "And your family. That's... it's really great news, Emilia. I always knew you were good. I never doubted that. You just needed the right environment to help you see it for yourself."

How could someone be so sweet? Less than an hour ago, she thought he was about to kill Leo. Emilia could only hope to do for Hylla what Percy would do for Annabeth.

"And now the task is to convince my mother of that," said Emilia, wincing. She paused as Leo announced their arrival at the Great Salt Lake over the speaker– they needed to prepare themselves for a rough landing in the next few minutes. "Rhea spoke to me."

She told him about Rhea invading her dream and the task she'd given. Percy narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, just the way Annabeth had when she found out. The two of them were some of the smartest people Emilia knew when it came to deciphering dreams. Percy may not have thought himself intelligent, but the way he split the cabins during the Battle of Manhattan had been one of the heaviest hints that he was brilliant. Emilia figured that maybe he'd heard Kronos say something to him in this manner, or maybe Rhea had reached out in some bizarre form to warn him about her husband.

"The way you describe it, it sounds... familiar," said Percy. "The whole cat café, I mean. I feel like I remember images of that... just before my dreams would turn to you."

"To me?"

"Yes. I'd see you in my dreams and I never understood why. I didn't seek it out, I mean, I didn't know who you were in the first place. Somehow you just started appearing. I think Rhea made you appear in my dreams, she made me recognize you. Helping your friends where you're weakest or strongest... It sounds literal. And I don't think that bodes well."