The Veiled Legacy | PJO - Book Two

seven

GIRLS TRIP
(TEA AND MONSTERS!)

That night, Ariana sleep without nightmares, which just made her uneasy when she woke up - like the calm before a storm.

Leo docked the ship at a pier in Charleston Harbor, right next to the seawall. Along the shore was a historical district with tall mansions, palm trees and wrought-iron fences.

Antique cannons pointed at the water.

By the time Ariana came up on deck, Jason, Frank and Leo had already left for the museum.
According to Coach Hedge, they'd promised to be back by sunset.

Annabeth, Piper and Hazel were ready to go, but first Ariana and Annabeth turned to Percy, who was leaning on the starboard rail, gazing over the bay.

Annabeth took his hand. "What are you going to do while we're gone?"

"Jump into the harbour." he said casually, like another kid might say, I'm going to get a snack. "I want to try communicating with the local Nereids. Maybe they can give me some advice about how to free those captives in Atlanta. Besides, I think the sea might be good for me. Being in that aquarium made me feel ... unclean."

His hair was dark and tangled as usual, but Ariana thought about the streak of grey he used to have on one side.

When the three of them were fourteen, they'd taken turns (unwillingly) holding the weight of the sky.

The strain left them both with some grey hair. Over the last year, while Ariana and Percy had been missing, the grey streaks had finally disappeared from both of them, which made Ariana sad and a little worried.

She made a mental note to re dye the strand soon, it was one thing the three of them had in common.

Annabeth kissed him. "Good luck, Seaweed Brain. Just come back to me, okay?"

"I will." he promised. "You two do the same."

"Don't drown." Ariana pulled Percy into a quick hug.

Ariana tried to push down her growing unease.
Annabeth turned to Piper and Hazel.

"Okay, ladies. Let's find the ghost of the Battery."

Afterwards, Ariana wished shed jumped into the harbour with Percy. She even would've preferred a museum full of ghosts.

At first, they had a pretty good time walking along the Battery. According to the signs, the seaside park was called White Point Gardens.

The ocean breeze swept away the muggy heat of the summer afternoon, and it was pleasantly cool under the shade of the palmetto trees.

Lining the road were old Civil War cannons and bronze statues of historical figures, which made Annabeth shudder.

Charleston Harbor glittered in the sun. To the north and south, strips of land stretched out like arms enclosing the bay, and sitting in the mouth of the harbour, about a mile out, was an island with a stone fort.

The park wasn't crowded Ariana imagined that most of the locals had gone on summer vacation, or were holed up at home taking a siesta.

They strolled along South Battery Street, which was lined with four-storey colonial mansions. The brick walls were blanketed with ivy.

The facades had soaring white columns like Roman temples. The front gardens were bursting with rosebushes, honeysuckle and flowering bougainvillea.

It looked like Demeter had set the timer on all the plants to grow several decades ago, then forgotten to come back and check on them.