𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐄𝐈𝐋¹ || 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐂𝐘 𝐉𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐒𝐎𝐍

𝐋𝐈𝐕

✦ 𝐒𝐌𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐀 ✦

"TELL ME WHEN IT'S OVER," THALIA SAID, HER EYES WERE SHUT TIGHT. The statue was holding onto them so they couldn't fall, but still, Thalia clutched Percy's arm like it was the most important thing in the world. Just then did Aurora noticed that the daughter of Zeus was afraid of heights but she didn't point that out. Clearly, Percy knew and kept it a secret for Thalia's sake.

"Everything's fine," Percy promised.

"Are... are we very high?"

Aurora and Percy looked down.

Below them, a range of snowy mountains zipped by. Percy stretched out his foot and kicked snow off one of the peaks.

"Nah," he said. "Not that high."

"We are in the Sierras!" Zoë yelled. She and Grover were hanging from the arms of the other statue. "I have hunted here before. At this speed, we should be in San Francisco in a few hours."

"Hey, hey, Frisco!' their angel said. "Yo, Chuck! We could visit those guys at the Mechanics Monument again! They know how to party!"

"Oh, man," the other angel said. "I am so there!"

"You guys have visited San Francisco?" Percy asked.

"We automatons gotta have some fun once in a while, right?" the statue holding them said. "Those mechanics took us over to the de Young Museum and introduced us to these marble lady statues, see. And–"

"Hank!" the other statue Chuck cut in. "They're kids, man."

"Oh, right." If bronze statues could blush, Percy swears Hank did. "Back to flying."

They sped up, so they could tell the angels were excited. The mountains fell away into hills, and then they were zipping along over farmland and towns and highways.

Grover played his pipes to pass the time. Zoë got bored and started shooting arrows at random billboards as they flew by. Every time she saw a Target department store – and they passed dozens of them – she would peg the store's sign with a few bullseyes at a hundred miles an hour.

Aurora, however, found herself growing increasingly restless. Being held by a rigid bronze statue was anything but comfortable, and she needed to stretch her limbs.

"Hey, Hank– can you please loosen your grip just a tad bit," Aurora politely asked the statue, to loosen his grip, Aurora then expressed her need to move.

"You'll fall, little miss," said the statue.

"I'll be fine!" Aurora reassured Hank before turning to Percy who was already staring at her. Aurora winked at the boy, a smirk was forming on her face, her amber eyes glinting mischievously.

Hank hesitated, clearly concerned about her safety, but eventually relented and loosened his hold.

Seizing the opportunity, Aurora slipped down and found herself free-falling through the sky, much to the shock of the angel statues, her friends however, watched her in amusement, except for Thalia who had her eyes closed.