[ chapter thirty-nine: hermia ]
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Hermia was lucky enough to shield her eyes in time, but Jason hadn't been so lucky. Once Mia had opened her eyes she noticed her blonde Superman was on the ground. In an instant Hermia ran up to him and pulled him into her lap. His head fill back slightly, but Mia placed her hand under his neck so she could look at his face. He seemed at peace, but it was a peace Hermia wasn't okay with.
"JASON!" She yelled as tears started filling her eyes. She held on to him tightly as millions of thoughts ran in her mind. She couldn't believe this was happening, again. Mia had sadly already given up on her boys. The memory of what Khione had said was still present in her mind and it hurt like hell. Mia didn't want to believe that her dreams were a lie, but Khione had pretty much convinced Mia that her boys were gone.
Hermia had chosen the good side, above her desire to get her boys back. So even if Gaea could return her boys to her, it was too late. But there was still so much she didn't understand. Like how the necklace had glowed when she put it on. It couldn't be a coincidence, but sadly Hermia feared she'd never see her boys again.
She basically lost her boys because she couldn't betray Jason and her friends. Even if there was some hope in the beginning, now it was long gone. But in this moment Mia couldn't lose Jason. She didn't want to lose him. Losing her boys and Stefan had already been enough, and there was no way in hell she was going to let Jason die on her.
"Superman, please if you can hear me wake up." But he didn't and Hermia couldn't help but cry as she called his name out again and again.
The more times she called his name the more she was losing hope. His body was steaming, his eyes rolled back in his head. She couldn't tell if he was even breathing.
"It's no use, child." Hera stood over them in her simple black robes and shawl.
Mia hadn't seen the goddess go nuclear. Thankfully she'd closed her eyes, but she could see the aftereffects. Every vestige of winter was gone from the valley. No signs of battle, either. The monsters had been vaporized. The ruins had been restored to what they were before-still ruins, but with no evidence that they'd been overrun by a horde of wolves, storm spirits, and six-armed ogres.
Even the Hunters had been revived. Most waited at a respectful distance in the meadow, but Thalia knelt by Hermia's side, her hand on Jason's forehead.
Thalia glared up at the goddess. "This is your fault. Do something!"
"Do not address me that way, girl. I am the queen-"
"Fix him!"
"Please, you have to try something!" Hermia pleaded. She didn't want to owe the goddess anything, but Mia was willing to do anything to get Jason back.
Hera's eyes flickered with power. "I did warn him. I would never intentionally hurt the boy. He was to be my champion. I told them to close their eyes before I revealed my true form."
"Um ..." Leo frowned. "True form is bad, right? So why did you do it?"
"I unleashed my power to help you, fool!" Hera cried. "I became pure energy so I could disintegrate the monsters, restore this place, and even save these miserable Hunters from the ice."
"But mortals can't look upon you in that form!" Thalia shouted. "You've killed him!"
Hermia watched the exchange with heartbroken eyes. She couldn't believe they were all bickering while Jason laid dead in her arms. A tear slipped from her eye as she glanced back a Jason. She smiled sadly at him while brushing some of his hair out of his eyes.
Leo shook his head in dismay. "That's what our prophecy meant. Death unleash, through Hera's rage. Come on, lady. You're a goddess. Do some voodoo magic on him! Bring him back."
In that moment Hermia remembered the spell she did on Lysander. For a moment she felt relief, until she realized she didn't have her mother's black magic book. More tears filled her eyes as she weakly place her forehead on Jason's.
Suddenly Mia was barely able to make out his chest moving, slowly, but it was still moving. Piper seemed to notice it as well.
"He's breathing!" Piper announced as Hermia leaned away from Jason. She still kept him in her lap, but she no longer had her forehead pressed against his.
"Impossible," Hera said. "I wish it were true, child, but no mortal has ever-"
"Jason," Piper called. Mia noticed Piper was putting every bit of her willpower into his name. Hermia nodded in encouragement when Piper glanced up at Mia. If anyone could help Jason right now, it'd be Piper. Piper obviously knew Hermia couldn't lose him, so she was going to do everything she could to help. "Listen to me. You can do this. Come back. You're going to be fine."
But nothing happened. Had Mia imagined his breath stirring? God she hoped not.
"Healing is not a power of Aphrodite," Hera said regretfully. "Even I cannot fix this, girl. His mortal spirit-
"Shut up and let her finish!" Mia snapped as she glared at the goddess. Hera sent Hermia a death glare, but Thalia seemed every pleased with Mia's outburst.
"Jason," Piper said again, and Hermia could even imagine her voice resonating through the earth, all the way down to the Underworld. "Wake up."
Suddenly Jason gasped, and his eyes flew open. A deep sigh escaped Mia's lips as a breath taking smile replaced her worry. For a moment his eyes were full of light-glowing pure gold. Then the light faded and his eyes were normal again. "What-what happened?"
His eyes were solely focused on Hermia as she leaned him up to sit properly. Electric blue met sea green as Jason reached up to stroke her right cheek with his thumb.
"Impossible!" Hera said.
But the pair wasn't paying attention to the goddess. In an instant Hermia planted her lips on his. At first he was caught off guard, but he recovered quickly and pulled Mia closer to his body. His lips were dried and he felt warm, but that didn't matter to her. All that mattered was that she had him back.
Hermia never planned to kiss Jason in front of everyone, but she couldn't help it. She was so happy to have him back she couldn't help herself. For so long she's been pushing her feelings for him away because she had Lysander, but in this moment she let all her feelings for Jason out. And she didn't regret it because that kiss alone made her feel so much love.
It was like that piece of her had been stored away because for so long Lysander had been the only one who made her heart race. But as she kissed Jason, she realized she was feeling all sorts of butterflies.
"Well, it's about time." Mia heard Piper say with a laugh.
"Can we give them some privacy so I can go barf in the corner?" Leo asked with a groan.
"My baby brother is so grown up!" Thalia said happily while wiping a fake tear from her eye.
Jason and Hermia smiled into the kiss as they pulled away from each other. The kiss hadn't lasted that long, but it still took Mia's breath away. Hermia leaned back to gaze at his eyes again and found him smiling at her. She smiled back before she wrapped him in a tight hug. He chuckled as he held her, until he groaned, "Crushing me."
"Sorry," Mia said, so relieved, she laughed while wiping a tear from her eye.
Thalia smiled at the pair as she gripped her brother's hand. "How do you feel?"
"Hot," he muttered as his eyes sweept over Mia's face. Hermia hoped she wasn't blushing, but from the look of Jason's smile she obviously was. "Mouth is dry. And I saw something... really terrible."
"That was Hera," Thalia grumbled as Jason turned to look at her. "Her Majesty, the Loose Cannon."
"That's it, Thalia Grace," said the goddess. "I will turn you into an aardvark, so help me-"
"Stop it, you two," Piper said. Amazingly, they both shut up.
Hermia helped Jason to his feet. She kept her arm around him as Piper gave him the last nectar from their supplies.
"Now..." Piper faced Thalia and Hera. "Hera-Your Majesty-we couldn't have rescued you without the Hunters. And Thalia, you never would've seen Jason again-Mia wouldn't have met him-if it weren't for Hera. You two make nice, because we've got bigger problems."
Hermia noticed they were both glaring at Piper and for three long seconds, Mia wasn't sure which one of them was going to kill Piper first. Thankfully none of that happened.
Finally Thalia grunted. "You've got spirit, Piper." She pulled a silver card from her parka and tucked it into the pocket of Piper's snowboarding jacket. "You ever want to be a Hunter, call me. We could use you."
Thalia glanced over to Mia and watched as Jason whipped the small amount of blood from below her nose. He was leaning up against her while watching her with worried eyes. Thalia couldn't help but smile at the sight of them. Here was her little brother worried about Hermia's nose bleed, when he had almost died himself.
Mia whipped the remaining blood away as she glanced back at Thalia. Jason's sister gestured toward the card. "I would give you one too, Hermia but I can already see my brother has won your heart. So there's no way I would want to separate you two." Jason and Mia shared a glanced. They smiled at each other as more butterflies erupted in their stomachs.
Hera crossed her arms as she brought the previous topic back. "Fortunately for this Hunter, you have a point, daughter of Aphrodite." She assessed Piper, as if seeing her clearly for the time. "You wondered, Piper, why I chose you for this quest, why I didn't reveal your secret in the beginning, even when I knew Enceladus was using you. I must admit, until this moment I was not sure. Something told me you would be vital to the quest. Now I see I was right. You're even stronger than I realized. And you are correct about the dangers to come. We must work together."
Piper blushed a deep color of red. Mia could tell Piper wasn't sure how to respond to Hera's compliment, but Leo stepped in.
"Yeah," he said, "I don't suppose that Porphyrion guy just melted and died, huh?"
"No," Hera agreed. "By saving me, and saving this place, you prevented Gaea from waking. You have bought us some time. And you chose well, Hermia."
Mia foze. She didn't want to talk about this again. She kissed Jason because she had feelings for him, but talking about her boys would just make her heart break again.
"I know how badly you want to see your boys again, but you have to know that Gaea never had the power to give you your boys or your old life back."
Mia pulled away from Jason as she stared with broken eyes at the goddess. From beside her Jason watched her in worry, his happy gaze long gone.
"What are you talking about?" Hermia asked as she felt tears fill her eyes again.
"I know Gaea promised to give you back the life and the ones you lost, but you can't turn back time. Your old life is gone and so are your boys."
Mia took a deep breath as a sob escaped her lips. She couldn't believe Hera had just confirmed that her whole deal with Gaea was fake. Gaea never wanted to give Hermia her old life back. She just wanted to use Mia for her powers and Gaea had basically used Lysander and Demetrius to get to her.
"Hermia?" Jason asked as he took a step closer to her.
Mia shook her head and took a step away from him. She could feel her powers wanting to surface, but she wasn't going to let them. She had to find a way to control herself, just like Jason had said. So instead of letting her emotions out the powerful way, she broke down crying.
It broke Jason's heart to see Hermia suffer so much, but he didn't know what to do to take her pain away. There friends watched as Jason pulled Mia into a hug.
When Hermia's cries got less loud, the goddess continued there serious conversation. "Porphyrion has risen. He simply knew better than to stay here, especially since he has not yet regained his full power. Giants can only be killed by a combination of god and demigod, working together. Once you freed me-"
"He ran away," Jason said as he held on to Mia tightly. By this time Hermia had stopped crying, but her face and eyes were still filled with heartbreak. "But to where?"
Hera didn't answer, but a sense of dread washed over Hermia. She remembered what Porphyrion had said about killing the Olympians by pulling up their roots. Greece. Hermia glanced over at Thalia and noticed her grim expression. Mia guessed the Hunter had come to the same conclusion.
"I need to find Annabeth and Helena," Thalia said. "They need to know what's happened here."
"Thalia ..." Jason reached over with one hand and gripped her hand. "We never got to talk about this place, or-"
"I know." Her expression softened. "I lost you here once. I don't want to leave you again. But we'll meet soon. I'll rendezvous with you back at Camp Half-Blood." She glanced at Hera. "You'll see them there safely? It's the least you can do."
"It's not your place to tell me-"
"Queen Hera," Piper interceded.
The goddess sighed. "Fine. Yes. Just off with you, Hunter!"
Hermia pulled herself away from Jason as Thalia gave him a hug. Mia whipped her eyes quickly as Thalia said her good-byes. Once the Hunters left, the courtyard seemed strangely quiet. The dry reflecting pool showed no sign of the earthen tendrils that had brought back the giant king or imprisoned Hera. The night sky was clear and starry. The wind rustled in the redwoods.
Memories of old happy times were playing in Mia's head. Hermia couldn't help but think back to the night when she, her boys, and Stefan had spent the night in the Salvatore Estate. That night they stayed up watching the stars in the yard and Hermia was even able to catch a glimpse of a shooting star. That memory felt so old in her mind now. Instead of it being a happy memory all she felt was sadness.
Hermia pushed the thoughts away when she saw Piper turn toward Jason and ask, "Jason, what happened to you here? I mean-I know your mom abandoned you here. But you said it was sacred ground for demigods. Why? What happened after you were on your own?"
Jason shook his head uneasily. "It's still murky. The wolves ..."
"Much like Hermia, you Jason were given a destiny," Hera said as Jason glanced over to Mia. "You were given into my service."
But this time Hermia didn't meet his gaze. There was still so much pain in her heart and she didn't know if kissing Jason had been the right thing. She basically had just broken up with Lysander-even if they never really broke up-and already she had kissed another.
Jason scowled at the goddess. "Because you forced my mom to do that. You couldn't stand knowing Zeus had two children with my mom. Knowing that he'd fallen for her twice. I was the price you demanded for leaving the rest of my family alone. "
"It was the right choice for you as well, Jason," Hera insisted. "The second time your mother managed to snare Zeus's affections, it was because she imagined him in a different aspect-the aspect of Jupiter. Never before had this happened-two children, Greek and Roman, born into the same family. You had to be separated from Thalia. This is where all demigods of your kind start their journey."
This comment seemed to get Hermia's full attention. Mia didn't know what kind of demigod Jason was, but she knew she was about to find out.
"His kind?" Mia asked as she glanced at Jason in question.
"She means Roman," Jason said. "Demigods are left here. We meet the she-wolf goddess, Lupa, the same immortal wolf that raised Romulus and Remus."
Hera nodded. "And if you are strong enough, you live."
"But ..." Leo looked mystified. "What happened after that? I mean, Jason never made it to camp."
Hermia had a feeling Jason had made it some place else. It was the only way for him to survive for so long.
"Not to Camp Half-Blood, no," Hera agreed.
Mia felt as if the sky were spiraling above her, making her dizzy. "He went somewhere else." Hermia replied as they turned to look at her. "It makes sense. That's where Jason's been all these years. Somewhere else for demigods."
"But where?" Piper asked as Hermia shrugged.
Jason turned to the goddess. "The memories are coming back, but not the location. You're not going to tell me, are you?"
"No," Hera said. "That is part of your destiny, Jason. You must find your own way back. But when you do... you and Hermia will unite two great powers. You two will give us hope against the giants, and more importantly-against Gaea herself."
This was honestly to much information for Mia. She did remember her father telling her something about this. But if it really was true, then did that mean Hermia was the bridge? Why would she even be the bridge? She had just arrived at Camp Half-Blood and she had nothing to do with wherever Jason came from. She didn't know what being the bridge meant.
"You want us to help you," Jason said, "but you're holding back information."
Hermia nodded in agreement. "Important information as to why I'm a part of Jason's destiny."
"Giving you guys the answers would make those answers invalid," Hera said. "That is the way of the Fates. You two must forge your own paths for it to mean anything. Already, you four have surprised me. I would not have thought it possible..."
The goddess shook her head. "Suffice to say, you have performed well, demigods. But this is only the beginning. Now you must return to Camp Half-Blood, where you will begin planning for the next phase."
"Which you won't tell us about," Jason grumped. "And I suppose you destroyed my nice storm spirit horse, so we'll have to walk home?"
Hera waved aside the question. "Storm spirits are creatures of chaos. I did not destroy that one, though I have no idea where he went, or whether you'll see him again. But there is an easier way home for you. As you have done me a great service, so I can help you-at least this once. Farewell, demigods, for now."
The world turned upside down, and Hermia almost blacked out.
When she could see straight again, she was back at camp, in the dining pavilion, in the middle of dinner. They were standing on the Aphrodite cabin's table. Mia laughed when she noticed Piper had one foot in Drew's pizza. Sixty campers rose at once, gawking at them in astonishment.
Whatever Hera had done to shoot them across the country, it wasn't good for Hermia's stomach. She could barely control her nausea. Leo wasn't so lucky. He jumped off the table, ran to the nearest bronze brazier, and threw up in it-which was probably not a great burnt offering for the gods.
"Jason? Hermia?" Chiron trotted forward. No doubt the old centaur had seen thousands of years' worth of weird stuff, but even he looked totally flabbergasted. "What-How-?"
The Aphrodite campers stared up at Mia and Piper with their mouths open. Hermia sighed as she pulled her leather jacket closer to her chest. She figured she looked awful, but she honestly didn't care.
"Hi," Piper said, as casually as she could. "We're back."
Wow I can't believe I finally finished the whole quest part and they're finally back home now! :'(
It feels like it was just yesterday when I started the book and now I'm so close to finishing it...
So Mia and Jason kissed...
Don't think it will be smooth sailing though. Hermia still has a lot of heartbreak to deal with. So expect her to try and ignore Jason until he corners her and convinces her to talk to him lol.
Thank you for reading!!
Don't forget to comment and vote!