I woke up to hear Sophia and Leo talking in hushed tones.
I arched an eyebrow. This could get interesting. I listened in on them very closely, but didn't stir or they'd immediately stop. I was able to catch a few words.
"She likes him," said Leo.
"Of course she likes him!" came the sharp whisper of Sophia. I furrowed my brow. Who could they possibly be talking about this time?
"It's just getting them together. That's the hard part." She stated.
"We could send them out on an errand together. A good, long one. They'd come back holding hands or something."
"There's no way Percy would let them go alone. We'd have to make up some sort of distraction, one that lasted a good while."
"Well, we can't take his pen sword, throw it into a pond and tell him to find it. It'd come right back to him."
"True."
There was a pause.
"Shipping is so hard," Sophia went on. "You wish you could just glue them together but they won't accept that they're in love!"
"Yeah, and I'm realling shipping Nicthwen right now." Leo muttered.
Nicthwen. That sounded like.. oh, gods, no.
"Hey!" I protested, finally sitting up. Leo jumped back with surprise.
"Oh, you're awake." Sophia greeted. "Were you dreaming?"
"No -" Well, I had been dreaming, but it wasn't quest-related, so I didn't feel that it was too important. "Well, I mean -"
"You think we were talking about you and Nico? You're wrong." Leo stated. Sophia punched him on the arm, making him wince.
I glared at them. "There's nothing between us. We're just friends."
"That's how they all start," Leo responded. "I mean, look at Percy and Annabeth. You can't beat that."
"Ugh!" I cried in frustration. "You guys are impossible."
"Just like Nicthwen." Leo sighed. Sophia made a thumbs down gesture.
I groaned under my breath. "I need a minute." I marched off into the woods, letting my Poseidon senses lead me wherever they wanted to. I needed to think, anyway.
I started to wish that Phillip was there with his inner ease and calmness. He always had this gift of easing my thoughts with his optimism that he didn't know he possessed.
My Poseidon senses, this tugging feeling in my gut, led me to a stream bubbling up in the middle of a trail. So much was going on right now. We'd goofed off too much and I'd lost track of how many days my mom had left. For all I knew, Enceladus could have gone ahead and barbecued her because I'd lagged past the deadline. Some daughter I was. At least we were close. That mattered.
My eyes lowered to a small rainbow that had formed by the water and a shiny object on the ground. Maybe Phillip was still alive, and could answer an Iris Message.
I had by doubts. But it was worth a try.
I dug around for a drachma, and brought one out. "O' Iris, goddess of the Rainbow, accept my offering," I recited, and tossed the drachma toward the rainbow. It disappeared, and a shimmery haze appeared before me.
"Show me Phillip Coates.. please," I murmured, on edge.
The haze was still for a minute, then showed an image. The image zoomed across an ocean, and to a small but luxurious island. I arched an eyebrow.
The image entered a cave. There I saw Phillip, grinning and looking at someone whom I couldn't see. His eyes were full of an unreadable emotion, but I'd seen it from somewhere. His hair was strewn across his shoulders freely, and he was barefoot with only a white shirt and jeans. He looked the happiest I'd ever seen him. His eyes then lowered, and he seemed to finally notice me. His mouth fell open. "Amath?"
"Phillip! You're alive!" I grinned like a madman but didn't know why. Seeing him again made me overjoyed.
"You thought I was dead?" He arched an eyebrow, looking confused.
"Well, yes. We couldn't find you anywhere. We assumed that the explosion killed you. But it didn't, and that's all that matters. Where are you?"
Phillip opened his mouth to speak, when the voice of Sophia interrupted. "Oh, no. The canon comes into play."
Both she and Leo strolled over. "You're alive?" Leo mused.
"Uhm, I think so?" Phillip touched his arm, as if making sure.
"Stop blowing holes in our ship." Sophia stated.
I was going to reply, when another voice broke in. It was the voice of a female, a soft voice like wind chimes in a light breeze. "Phillip? Who are you talking to?" A girl looking to be around my age looked into the haze. She had brownish hair and eyes that appeared a mix between amber and green. Leo instantly backed away. The girl's eyes widened. "Leo?"
"Leo, who is this?" Sophia asked.
"Guys, this is Calypso," Phillip answered. "I - I live with her now.. immortal."
My mouth fell open. The peaceful, calm friend of mine, Phillip Coates, was immortal. Forever. Eternal. I couldn't speak for a moment.
"We have to go," Calypso butted in. "Thanks for calling. Call sometime other." She muttered.
"Bye," I said, my voice barely audible. Calypso smiled slightly. Phillip waved. I sliced through the haze, still in shock.
"No more holes in our ship," Sophia stated. "Good." She grabbed my hand and pulled me to my feet. "Let's go back." She dragged me off, and I had no idea why I felt so numb.
