Chanel Hastings & The Treasures of Aphrodite Book 1: The Magic Girdle

Chapter 17: Our Holiday Flight Gets Super Emotional

OOTD: Same as before.

Makeup: Nothing (I really should have put on extra gloss; my lips feel dry!)

Hairstyle: Still wearing it loose.

Fragrance: Whatever the sky smells like.

Dear Diary,

Who knew that flying on rooster horses could be so therapeutic?

I mean, I spent the first half-hour feeling nauseous and holding on to the horse's mane for dear life, but once I realized that I wasn't going to fall to my death, I actually started to have a little fun.

We kept a low-ish altitude (Mikhailo had mentioned some stuff about dangerous air pressures), but we were high enough to cruise above most buildings. As the occasional car passed on the highway, I couldn't help but wonder if we could be spotted from below.

"Probably not," Tharika answered. "The Mist would disguise us."

"The Mist?" I asked. "Why does that sound familiar?"

Mikhailo said, "You probably remember it from that dreadful orientation video. It's the magic that disguises supernatural things from mortal eyes, but it can deceive demigods too."

I tried to recall what I'd heard about the Mist from the video. Unfortunately, my first day at camp felt like ages ago. However, I remembered something else from our time at Burger King.

"When we first walked into the restaurant, I thought the hippalectryons were just regular toy horses," I spoke. "But when I looked closer, I saw a sort of...shimmer around them. Was that the Mist?"

When Mikhailo nodded, I asked, "But how come it tricked me now? Why not with the Astomoi or the cynocephali?"

"The Mist can be a fickle thing," he explained. "You can be more susceptible to it when you're tired, hungry, or have your guard down. Sometimes, monsters can learn to manipulate it and disguise themselves. There's no hard-and-fast rules to how it works."

"That's why demigods always have to stay alert," Tharika chimed in. "We never know what might be a monster in disguise."

I sighed. "Great. So I guess I should assume that everything around me wants to kill me?"

Tharika laughed. "No, no. You'll drive yourself crazy thinking that way. Just be prepared for anything to happen, that's all."

I nodded, and we continued to fly on in a comfortable silence. Despite the gleam of the afternoon sun, the air became kind of chilly. Mikhailo didn't mind it at all, but I was shivering, and Tharika's teeth were chattering beside me. Thankfully, she still had the extra scarf I'd lent her, and she wrapped it tightly around her neck.

I chuckled lightly. "You really don't like the cold, huh?"

"Not at all," Tharika murmured. "Cold weather is one of the things I hated most when I moved to the States."

"When did you move to the States?" I questioned her.

"Not that long ago. I was a few days shy of turning ten, I think."

"Oh yeah? Did you move with anyone?" I asked.

When my question was followed with silence, I glanced over at Tharika, and saw that familiar tense, expression.

I gulped. "Um, never-mind," I said quickly. "None of my business. We can talk about something el—"

"My mother," Tharika said at last.