Charmolypi

Chapter 118

The screen turned black for a few seconds before Annabeth's voice was heard.

"Thea! Percy! Wake up!" she called. When the picture returned to the screen, Percy and Thea were seen waking up in a jolt after being splashed in the face.

"Was that really necessary?" Thea grumbled, obviously not liking being woken up, especially that way. Instead of answering, Annabeth just pointed.

"She's not a morning person I take it," James winced, knowing that she got that trait from him. The rest of the Marauders gave him a knowing look, having experienced what it's like dealing with James Potter in the morning.

Euphemia slightly pinched her husband, because she knew that his son, and now their granddaughter shared that trait.

In the distance, the sun was setting behind a city skyline. They could see a beachside highway lined with palm trees, storefronts glowing with red and blue neon, a harbor filled with sailboats and cruise ships.

"Miami, I think," Annabeth said. "But the hippocampi are acting funny."

Sure enough, their fishy friends had slowed down and were whinnying and swimming in circles, sniffing the water. They didn't look happy. One of them sneezed.

"What's going on?"

"Aren't they going back to camp?"

"Why would they be in Miami if they're supposed to go to camp?"

"It's because of the pollution, right?" Thea asked, apparently having snapped out of her bad mood when she saw land.

"This is as far as they'll take us," Percy said, nodding his head to Thea's statement. "Too many humans. Too much pollution. We'll have to swim to shore on our own."

No one was happy about the new predicament, but they reluctantly thanked the hippocampi for the ride. Tyson, being the big softie that he is, unfastened his makeshift saddle, which contained his toolkit and other things he had salvaged from the wreck. The young cyclops hugged Rainbow around the neck and gave him a soggy mango that he had picked up on the island before saying goodbye.

"His relationship with the hippocampi is amazing!"

"This proves, without a doubt, that he's the son of Poseidon."

Once the hippocampi's white manes disappeared into the sea, the group swam for shore. The waves pushed them forward, and in no time we were back in the mortal world. They wandered along the cruise line docks, pushing through crowds of people arriving for vacations. Porters bustled around with carts of luggage. Taxi drivers yelled at each other in Spanish and tried to cut in line for customers.

Now that they were back among mortals, Tyson's single eye had blurred from the Mist. Grover had put on his cap and sneakers. Even the Fleece had transformed from a sheepskin to a red-and-gold high school letter jacket with a large glittery Omega on the pocket.

"We should get jackets like that for the Quidditch teams," the captains agreed with James. It was a nice way of showing their involvement with the team.

"I think that's a wonderful idea," the new Quidditch coach, Madam Hooch, said, smiling as the headmaster nodded approvingly.

"I have to admit, I really like the Fleece like that," Thea commented, looking down at the Fleece, rather impressed. Her actions made Percy chuckle silently as he watched his friend admire her appearance.

Annabeth ran to the nearest newspaper box and checked the date on the Miami Herald. She cursed. "July eighteenth! We've been away from camp ten days!"

"Ten days?"