"What happened?" Piper demands as soon as we step foot on solid land. "Leo, why are your clothes smoking?"
"I got a little heated." I gasp, finally releasing my death grip on Theo. "Sorry, guys. Honest. I didn't-"
"It's alright." Jason grimaces. "We've got less than twenty four hours to rescue a goddess and Piper's dad. Let's go see the king of the winds."
"Where's Thalia?" Theo asks, looking around.
"The bridge melted." Piper explains. "She was on the other side."
"Oh." She bites her lip. "Sorry, about that, I didn't mean to get Leo all worked up."
"No, it works out." Jason insists, though he doesn't sound happy. "She knows where the Wolf House is. She's going there."
We climb up a staircase embedded in the cliffs silently. Everyone seems to be lost in thought. I'm still reeling from what just happened. My adrenaline was pumping hard. I thought I was about to die. I kissed Theo. And she liked it! What does this mean now? Was that just the adrenaline? Holy smokes, if she actually likes me, man, I'm the luckiest guy alive.
I turn around and she gives me a nervous smile, just for a moment. God, she looks beautiful. Her hair is a crazy mess, and she's got grease wiped across her face still, but it's perfect. I'm glad I'm not smoking anymore. I mean, that's not okay. I can't just spontaneously combust every time I get excited. Or, if we kiss again. That would get really old really quick. Oh god, are we going to kiss again? I want to.
We finally reach the top of the island. There are bronze walls all the way around, reminding me of Midas's mansion a little too much. The twenty foot high gates open right up for us, where a road of polished purple stone leads up to the main building. It looks plucked right out of Ancient Greece, except for the multiple satellite dishes sitting on top.
"That's bizarre." Piper notes.
"Guess you can't get cable on a floating island." I shrug. "Dang, check out this guy's front yard."
The grounds are, in fact, amazing. They're enormous, and the circle is divided into four sections, each one in a different season.
"One section for each of the four wind gods." Jason guesses. "Four cardinal directions."
"I'm loving that pasture." I can practically see Gleeson's mouth watering. "You guys mind-"
"Go ahead." Jason says.
It's probably smart. We don't need him telling Aeolus to die.
We reach the end of the walkway and climb up the steps to the palace. Inside the white marble foyer are huge banners that read "Olympian Weather Channel," and some that just say "Ow!"
"Hello." A woman floats up to us out of nowhere. Her hair floats around her, as if she's underwater. "Are you from Lord Zeus? We've been expecting you."
Jason stares at her for a few moments before speaking. "Are you a ghost?"
Oof. Right away I can tell she did not like that. "I'm an aura sir. A wind nymph, as you might expect, working for the lord of the winds. My name is Mellie. We don't have ghosts." She spits out the word.
Piper immediately jumps in. "No, of course you don't! My friend simply mistook you for Helen of Troy, the most beautiful mortal of all time. It's an easy mistake."
That was a bit overboard, but Mellie blushes nonetheless. "Oh, well, then. So you are from Zeus?"
"Uh, I'm the son of Zeus, yeah." Jason offers.
