Umbra

Chapter 27

Emilia was nervous.

Iris-messaging Hylla had never been this nerve-wracking. It was just a call, nothing more. It wasn't like they could talk for hours– they both needed their sleep and Coach Hedge's nightly duty involved walking up and down the halls demanding lights out and quiet. Emilia was sure she'd go ballistic trying to maintain a conversation while simultaneously avoiding the noise level necessary to make the satyr bang his baseball bat against the cabin door.

She propped up the Iris-message once she was in her pajamas. It was an hour earlier in Seattle, which hopefully meant Hylla wouldn't be asleep just yet.

"Hi!" she said brightly as she connected, setting aside a book as if she'd been reading. "You're okay."

"I am," said Emilia with a shy smile. "I'm glad you're okay, too, Hylla Twice-Kill. Percy told me."

She blushed. "A minor thing." Her brows furrowed. "Reyna did call to tell me about what happened. But I want to hear it from you. Even she sounded doubtful... whatever it was, it wasn't your fault, right? She said she saw... something on the ship."

Emilia told her her own version of the day's events, making sure to emphasize Eris's presence– something Octavian had seen. He'd either have already mentioned it to show that Emilia and Leo (and the rest of the Greeks) were dangerous, or he'd omitted it to insist it was all on them.

Hylla remained calm. "Well, I knew I'd believe you before you started saying anything. I'm sure my sister will not be swayed by rumors. She's smart. Would you like me to tell her?"

"No, that's alright," said Emilia. "I don't want to turn you into a messenger. I leave that choice up to you." She half-smiled, the familiar quirk of Hylla's lips bringing warmth. "I miss you."

"I miss you, too," whispered Hylla. "Do you have any idea how long you'll be gone?"

"Our current deadline to figure things out is... six days. After that, I don't know where we'll go. I'd very much like to Iris-message you each night if that's alright. I won't risk giving details of where we are in case Octavian can somehow track us this way– really, I've never been sure if it's possible, but Kronos once told me that Iris-messages are very insecure and that's why he never liked using them. I'm also not sure if my mother can see into them."

Hylla frowned. "She hasn't come back, I hope?"

"Not yet. I'm not sure what I'd say to her if she did. I hope my words moved her in some way. It's hard to know what to say to her. You know, some gods can be so mature about things and others aren't, it doesn't matter how long they've been alive. I'm not sure if I should approach her as a daughter or as... just another magical being."

"You'll know it," said Hylla. "You're better at reading people than you think, Emilia. You are also brave and good with your words. It's a great combination."

She tilted her head. "I wish I was as perceptive as you, though. You seem to know things about others before they've had a chance to tell you."

Hylla shrugged, a small smile playing on her lips. "I've had a lot of practice. Running a kingdom isn't easy when you can't sense things about people. I'm not the best at it when it comes to situations where I'm more emotionally involved. Gods, sometimes I still feel shy talking to you even though we've established our feelings. It's like, my palms still sweat, my tongue feels tied. I see you and my heart stops. All thoughts fly out the window. I can only look at you and hope to find my words again when I give myself a moment to readjust when gazing upon your beauty."

Emilia glanced at her feet shyly. "Who was good with words again?"

"Shh. You are still good with them. You spoke up first, didn't you? You forged connections with your family. I... can't claim to have that courage. I don't think I'd want to reopen old wounds. You are willing to step past that. It's what I admire about you. You have a warrior's heart. I still think you'd make a great Amazon."