DAYLIGHT ↬ leo valdez x reader

22. in my head

"You are free to explore. We will return your boys to you soon." Bythos said calmly.
"What?" I stammered. Why trap me if this is how they felt?
"You are easy to read, daughter of G/P. Our people feel as though they can trust you already."
So I floated out of our little prison and my jaw dropped in shock. Wherever I was, it was phenomenal.

I floated through the town, admiring the architecture and the roofs were tiled with mother-of-pearl. The gardens were filled with coral and sea anemones. Hippocampi grazed in a field of seaweed. I found myself in a beautifully oceanic courtyard that was filled with dozens of mermen and mermaids. They flashed me curious looks and smiles of welcome but it seemed like they were baring their teeth, preparing to eat me. Their eyes glowed yellow and they sported leathery skin in colors ranging from coral red to ink black. 

One approached me with a glimmer of awe in her eyes. She had flowy hair that reminded me of the pink, spiky seaweed that would wash up on beaches. Her skin was a darker shade of pink, like a soft magenta. Her eyes widened in excitement.
"Hello! Welcome to Camp _______" she blew out bubbles in a foreign sounding way. I smiled back, trying to hide the terror in my eyes.

"It's so beautiful here." I said, spinning around. The water around me swirled in a lyrical movement that seemed like a hurricane. "I'm Y/N." I held my hand out to shake the mermaid's hand. She flicked it away and instead kissed my cheek.
"I am Doria. May I show you around?"

She held my hand as we traveled around the town. People here trained just like at Camp Half Blood. I seemed to be popular among the groups because as we explored, groups of mermaids and mermen approached and asked for me to visit once more. They said my friend had promised to as well, which I presumed was in reference to Hazel. They wrote their phone numbers on my forearm with blue and green markers. I didn't have a phone but if I declined they started to hyperventilate with thousands of tiny bubbles in a panic so I just obliged.

"You are a child of G/P?" They all asked as I explained my life story. I became the talk of the town! They would get all tense when I explained my battles and quests that I went on but once I had finished they would be relaxed and ready with a thousand more questions. One of the mermaids even whispered in my ear with a fit of giggles that I had caught some of the mermen's eyes. I shook my head with an embarrassed flush, but apparently my kind of beauty was rare in the depths of the ocean. 

I wasn't completely sure what that meant but it was flattering all the same. Doria and another friend I made whose name was a compilation of underwater blubber found ourselves racing around a kelp forest. I would convulse each time a piece of kelp stroked my ribcage, letting out airy laughs that were muffled in the water. There we bumped into Hazel and two escorts. I said goodbye to my friends and the escorts took us back around the forest before we emerged and saw Aphros standing with Leo on a ridge. He looked worried when he saw us but his expression softened when Hazel continued to talk with our escorts.

"Leo!" Hazel paddled toward him as I followed in suit. "Isn't this place amazing?"
The other merpeople went to fetch Frank, leaving us three floating above the hill and gazing down at the underwater camp. Hazel told us how the mermaids had warmed up to her right away. Aphros and Bythos had been fascinated by her story, as they had never met a child of Pluto before. 

On top of that, they had heard many legends about the horse Arion, and they were amazed that Hazel had befriended him. Hazel had promised to visit again with Arion. I explained that apparently I was the talk of the town. When I mentioned what the merpeople said about my beauty being uncommon in the ocean, Hazel shot Leo a knowing glance. I pretended not to see it and showed my arms being littered in waterproof written phone numbers. Hazel pointed hers out too and we compared them, sharing what friends we had both met.
"Hey Y/N, do you mind?" Leo pointed suggestively between him and Hazel. I blinked and nodded.
"Oh, of course." I floated away to a reasonable distance, furrowing my brows. What was that about?