sweet dreams • leo valdez

18

The prison break out was legendary.

Delilah was slightly scared of Hazel now, but they had been able to easily work as a team. It must have been their Underworld demigod comradity.

Through a combination of fake illness and demigod abilities, Otrera's guards were either left hanging from a catwalk by golden bracelets, or snoring on the floor of said catwalk.

Hazel impressed her even more with how she tamed Arion, allowing the two girls and newly freed prisoners to crash through the Amazon Headquarters, and right out of there.

Arion really was as the myths described - the fastest horse alive. He ran even over water, and quite honestly it scared Delilah, though she did appreciate how he got them to safety. Hazel seemed to be having the time of her life, laughing at the adrenaline and sheer speed at which they were going. Frank ended up throwing up twice out the back of the chariot. She would have laughed had she not been so close to throwing up as well. Percy seemed more at ease than the rest of them probably because of the whole water and horse part of the ride, though even he seemed overwhelmed.

Arion managed to get them all the way to Canada in the Amazonian chariot until it finally gave out and the wheels started to smoke and they were forced to stop. The demigods and their feathery companion stumbled out of the chariot, swaying and spluttering. Ella was even flying around in circles, hitting into trees and muttering, "Tree, tree, tree."

Hazel, in comparison to the rest, looked better than Delilah had ever seen her before. "That was fun!"

"Yeah." Frank gulped, his face looking slightly green. "So much fun."

Arion made a noise in reply, to which Percy translated, "He says he needs to eat. No wonder. He probably burned about six million calories."

"Thanks for that by the way." Delilah said to Hazel before turning to Arion with an appreciative smile. "Really saved our asses."

"I'm not sensing any gold around here..." Hazel muttered, looking at the ground beneath her feet. "Don't worry, Arion. I'll find you some. In the meantime, why don't you go graze? We'll meet you-"

Arion was gone in the blink of an eye, leaving Hazel to frown sadly. "Do you think he'll come back?"

"I don't know. He seems kind of... spirited." Percy said hesitantly.

"Oh, he'll be back." Delilah confirmed, remembering her vision. Arion's fate was intertwined with Hazel's. She didn't need to be a demigod to know that he'd be a help in the future.

Hazel, Percy and Delilah started to take stock of what belongings they had left, as Frank took a step back to get his bearings. She was glad to see that she still had all of her bags. There was a brief moment where she couldn't find her locket, but she managed to find it at the bottom of the back pocket. She resorted to putting it around her neck so to keep a closer eye on it.

"I'm practically home." Frank said in realisation, squinting at a hill across the park. "My grandmother's house is right over there."

"That's lucky." Delilah snorted slightly. It really was lucky that they ended up there. It made her think of her own grandmother who was back in California, far away from the quest, and who she hadn't seen in a few months now. Gods knew when she'd see her next. "How close is 'practically'?"

"It's just over the river and through the woods." Frank answered, his voice heavy with emotion.

"Seriously? To Grandmother's house we go?" Percy raised an eyebrow, a humorous edge to his voice.

Frank just cleared his throat awkwardly. "Yeah, anyway."

Hazel turned to the son of Mars. "Frank, please tell me she'll let us spend the night. I know we're on a deadline, but we've got to rest, right?? And Arion saved us some time. Maybe we could get an actual cooked meal?"