[ the second book in the drops of sunshine series ]
As much as she ended up loving her first one, AJ Hood never wanted to go on another quest. But somehow, she ended up on one anyway. And this time, it's not going to have a pretty ending... but at...
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~ ☼ ~
Iawoke in a flurry, like there was moss all over me and I need it off.
But there wasn't - it was just a dream. I wasn't in a labyrinth or black hole, I was laying haphazardly in a sleeping bag next to Kiera and Aria. Outside our tent, I could hear the sounds of early morning: the stream rushing, the birds chirping, the leaves rustling. It would almost be peaceful, if it weren't for how weird I felt.
I'd been dreaming of that woman off and on for months. I hadn't seen her since last June, but even with that amount of time, I still hadn't been able to figure out who she was. And she wouldn't freaking stop acting like I knew what she was talking about! All her "make good choices" BS made no sense to me. It was ticking me off.
I think I needed to get some air. Or IM my siblings. But I needed a drachma, which I did not have.
So I unzipped my sleeping back as quietly as I could and made my way outside. The sun was just rising (meaning, it was early enough that not even the Hunters were up yet), but... Lucas was awake, of course.
He was sitting on one of the logs next to the now-dead fire, lost in thought. I cleared my throat softly, and he looked at me.
"Oh!" he exclaimed. "Uh, good morning."
"Morning." I walked over and sat down on the log next to him. "Here we are again, the only ones up."
"To be completely honest with you, I've kind of been up all night." He rubbed the back of his neck and yawned.
"I'm sorry." Now I felt bad; I was really just here to get a drachma from him. But I swore I would want to talk to him afterwards. So, trying to not feel bad, I asked "Do you have a drachma? I want to talk to my siblings over Iris Message."
"Oh!" He blinked, and I winced. But he fished in his shorts and brought out a drachma, to my relief. "Here you are."
"Thank you," I said. "I'll be right back."
I walked down to the river bank quickly, finding a quiet spot where nobody could see me. Then I threw the coin into the river, hoping it was misty enough, and said, "Oh, Iris, Goddess of the Rainbow, show me Alec Thompson and/or Riley Brown at Camp Half-Blood."
It was likely I'd find either of them; both of them were early birds, to my long-lasting chagrin, because by early birds that meant they got up at the crack of dawn to be productive, not at random times to complain about how tired they were. Like Lucas and I did.
Indeed, to my relief, both of their faces showed in front of me. Alec was on the right, in his pajamas - a red and gray baseball tee and flannel pants - and Riley, lovely Riley, already fully dressed. They were both gaping at me.
"AJ!" said Riley-
"Artemis Julia Hood," said Alec, frowning. "Where in Hades are you?"
I held my hands up defensively. "I'm on a quest!"
They both gasped, and I added, "Are you both in the bathroom?"
"It's the men's bathroom," said Alec. "She was waiting outside for me, and I called her in."
"No one else is in here!" Riley said, just as defensive as me.
