Daughter of Wine

Callida

I have to keep fighting Leo for the spyglass. 

"Give it to me!" I insist, laughing as he holds it just out of my reach. "Come on, that's not fair!"

Frank easily plucks the spyglass from Leo's hand. Leo might be taller than me, but neither of us has a height advantage on anyone else on this ship. "Children." He mutters, shaking his head. He peers over at Ithaca and chuckles. "I love old Jason."

We're all watching Jason, Piper, and Annabeth climb a hill, where Piper says there's an ancient palace that belonged to Odysseus. Hazel said it's the biggest gathering of spirits she's ever sensed. 

Of course, as soon as she said that, I volunteered not to go. I've never been a fan of ghosts and spirits, but after seeing what they're capable of, how strong they can be, I've liked them even less. 

I take the spyglass from Frank and look point it toward the hill. I find my friends easily. I can't help but chuckle. "Come on, Grandpa Jason. Hobble faster."

Hazel disguised my friends with the Mist, so that they'll blend in at whatever it is that's going on in the ruins. Her disguise is so powerful, that Jason doesn't just look old. He feels old. 

"I wanna see Grandpa Jason." Percy whines, taking the spyglass from me. 

A warm breeze drifts across the deck, and I find myself closing my eyes to enjoy it. Since the House of Hades, my love for the sunshine and the breeze and fresh air has tripled, which I didn't think was possible. I've been trying to find joy and happiness in everything I can, but it's hard to. Everytime I look out at a beautiful hilltop, I see Gaea's face. When I laugh at a joke, I remember my mother's laughter, and how warm it had been in that dark cave. Her laughter is so eerily similar to mine, that I just get bummed out. Even wine doesn't taste as good as it used to. The wine Bacchus had me try had been so good. Not too dry, not to fruity. Hints of stonefruit and blackberries and revelry, with a rich mouthfeel and an afttertaste of oak and tannins and nostalgia. No wine I could ever summon compares to that. 

I look over at Leo. We're back to normal, joking around together, working in the engine room, keeping a positive energy on the ship. But it still feels like he's not telling me something. Sometimes, I don't notce it, but sometimes, when I look into his eyes, it seems like there's something there, just out of my reach. It's unsettling. 

He looks over at me and grins, giving me a wink. "How you doin', mamacita."

"Fantastic." I grin back, lacing my fingers in his. "Never better."

"They're over the ridge." Hazel announces, putting down the spyglass. "Now we just need to watch for flares."

Leo gave each of them a flare he designed. Should there be any trouble, they just have to toss one in the air, and it'll shoot upwards, alerting us that they're in trouble. Then, they'll have a few seconds to find cover before we come in with ballistae blazing. 

Not our most intricate plan, but it works. 

I look over at Percy. He's incredibly anxious. I don't even need to sense his mood. He's biting his thumbnail, pacing the deck. It's the first time he's been separated from Annabeth since their trek through Tartarus. 

"Hey." I call over to him. "Relax. They're going to be fine." 

"I know." He replies, not relaxing. 

I try not to use my powers on my friends. It feels so wrong. Piper feels the same way about her charmspeak. But this feels like it would do more good than anything else. If he keeps at this, his thumb is going to bee a chewed-down nub by the time Annabeth gets back.