Dear Secrets, Please Fly Quietly

9) A Neon Pink Pigeon and A Sob Story

So after that craziness, I inhaled deeply. Percy still looked at me with concern, and I tried to reassure him. "After a few years, I left. Ran away. I think I was maybe 10."

"10?! All alone... on the street?" The sad, pitiful expression returned.

"Not really." I said, trying to make him stop making that face. My sob story was sad, needless to say, but I don't want sympathy. My life was better now, even grand. Well, it used to be. "I never would have run in the first place had I not had something to run to. And that was, believe it or not, a neon pink paper that turned into a pigeon of the same color."

"What?" Percy raised an eyebrow. The same Percy who had literally been to Tartarus and back, child of one of the Big Three, couldn't believe I chased a neon pink pigeon that was actually a letter.

"The papers I didn't let you see were letters. Every night, Melissa would write to someone on neon pink paper. She would fold it up into an origami bird, go to the window, and watch it fly away. It came to life, and a letter would return to her every morning at dawn in the same fashion. When I discovered this, I was fascinated by the process. One night in summer, when the sun had finally set, the bird flew from the window. I knew it had something to do with me, so I decided to follow it. It was one of those things you just know. Get what I mean?"

Percy nodded in silence.

"Anyway, I ran after it from miles, frequently running into things because I was looking up at the bird. By the time the bird, my nose, mouth, and chin, were all red with blood. Keep in mind I was a human. Capable of dying. I was also hungry, thirsty, and very tired."

"Where did the bird land?"

I frowned. I had been bloody, exhausted, hungry, and thirsty and Percy was asking about the pigeon?! With a huff, I answered his question. "The pigeon landed at some random beach on the New York coast. I stopped too, grateful for the break. I must have fallen asleep and the next thing I know, I was flying through the air. The pigeon has significantly grown and I was riding on its back. Over the ocean. I turned around and saw New York slowly disappearing over the horizon. I said to myself 'What the heck am I doing on the back off a pink pigeon/letter flying away from home?' Then I said 'I did run away, didn't I?'

Then someone else said 'You ran away?' I nearly jumped out of my skin, but there was no one there. I thought I was delusional from hunger or something. 'On your right.' the mystery person said. I knew it was girl, but then I saw her. She was flying next to the pigeon kind of like- what's that kid's name?"

Percy looked at me. "What kid?"

"The flying Roman who gets hits by mysterious bricks."

"Jason Grace?" Percy laughed. "I didn't know you know about the bricks."

I smirked. "I know much more than people think I do. Back to my story. This semi-transparent lady was flying like Jason Grace. Her voice was kind of far-away and airy, but anyway, I thought she was a ghost. She told me she was a very much alive wind nymph. Her name was East, and she was not a wind goddess. East said the pigeon was taking me to Greece. I had always wanted to travel the world, but I never thought I would do so via pigeon. I asked why. East said I had to meet someone. I asked if she had food or a tissue. East said no, but we were approaching the Current. I asked what that was, and East said 'This.'"

I paused, not sure how to describe the next part. "Okay, Percy, imagine a tornado. Over the ocean."

"A hurricane?" he asked.

I shook my head. "No, a tornado. But it's not touching the water. It's just hovering there, and it's turned on one side, so the widest part is closest to you."