𝟎𝟎𝟒.𝟓
Percy didn't recommend shadow travel if you're scared of:
a) The dark b) Cold shivers up your spine c) Strange noises d) Going so fast you feel like your face is peeling off
In other words, he thought it was awesome. One minute he couldn't see anything. He could only feel Mrs. O'Leary's fur and his fingers wrapped around the bronze links of her dog collar.
The next minute the shadows melted into a new scene. They were on a cliff in the woods of Connecticut. At least, it looked like Connecticut from the few times he'd been there: lots of trees, low stone walls, big houses. Down one side of the cliff, a highway cut through a ravine. Down the other side was someone's backyard. The property was huge—more wilderness than lawn. The house was a two-story white Colonial. Despite the fact that it was right on the other side of the hill from a highway, it felt like it was in the middle of nowhere. He could see a light glowing in the kitchen window. A rusty old swing set stood under an apple tree.
He couldn't imagine living in a house like this, with an actual yard and everything. He'd lived in a tiny apartment or a school dorm his whole life. If this was Luke's home, Percy wondered why he'd ever wanted to leave.
Mrs. O'Leary staggered. Percy remembered what Nico had said about shadow travel draining her, so he slipped off her back. She let out a huge toothy yawn that would've scared a T. rex, then turned in a circle and flopped down so hard the ground shook.
Nico appeared right next to him, as if the shadows had darkened and created him. He stumbled, but Percy caught his arm.
"I'm okay," he managed, rubbing his eyes.
"How did you do that?"
"Practice. A few times running into walls. A few accidental trips to China."
Mrs. O'Leary started snoring. If it hadn't been for the roar of traffic behind them, he sure she would've woken up the whole neighborhood.
"Are you going to take a nap too?" he asked Nico.
He shook his head. "The first time I shadow traveled, I passed out for a week. Now it just makes me a little drowsy, but I can't do it more than once or twice a night. Mrs. O'Leary won't be going anywhere for a while."
YOU ARE READING
𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐗𝐈𝐑, 𝐏𝐉
FanfictionIn which Percy Jackson finds himself tied up with the mischievous daughter of Apollo. or In which Juliet Alexander would do anything to make the son of Poseidon smile.