"Eurytion! Is something wrong with Nico?"
Ash's face was grim. "He left the ranch before Eurytion woke up this morning and went back into the maze. Orthus tracked his scent as far as the cattle guard. Eurytion said he'd been hearing Nico talk to himself the last few nights. I wish he'd told me; he was probably talking with Minos again, that slimy old–"
"He's in danger," Percy summarized.
"No kidding," Annabeth scoffed, crossing her arms. "Minos used to be one of the judges of the dead, but he's got a vicious streak a mile wide. I don't know what he wants with Nico, but–"
"That's not what I mean," Percy said, although he maybe shouldn't have been cutting the girls off considering the mood in the car. "I had this dream last night..." He told them about Luke, how he'd mentioned Quintus, and how his men had found a half-blood alone in the maze.
Ash pinched the bridge of her nose. At this rate, she was going to give herself an at-home nosejob by reshaping the cartilage there. "Okay, I've gotta ask Uncle Hypnos why we keep having the same dreams, because this is getting freaky."
"This is bad. Very, very bad." Annabeth's jaw was clenched.
"So what do we do?" Percy looked between his two companions.
Annabeth raised an eyebrow with not a little bit of pettiness. "Well, it's a good thing you have a plan to guide us then, hmm?"
₪₪₪
Ash had to excuse herself for a moment when Sally Jackson glomped onto her son after they'd rung the doorbell. She sounded like the weight of the sky had just been lifted off her shoulders, and believe me, all three of them knew what that felt like. Ash had spent a considerable amount of time at the Jackson apartment over the past 15 days, although she wouldn't tell Percy that because it was definitely only Sally who needed the comfort and his mom definitely probably didn't want him to know how upset she'd been, only her, yes, right.
After the initial lovefest, they were sat down at the kitchen table and fed mama's super special blue chocolate-chip cookies while they caught mama herself up on the quest. Ash kept giving Percy the side-eye; he was definitely sugar-coating some parts for Sally's sake.
When he got to the part about the stables, his mom pretended to strangle the air. "I can't get him to clean his room, but he'll clean a hundred tons of horse manure out of some monster's stables?"
Ash laughed and Percy couldn't even be embarrassed. He hadn't heard that sound in a long time; it was music to his ears. Fucking music.
"So," Sally said when he was done, "you wrecked Alcatraz, erupted Mount St. Helens, and displaced half a million people, but at least you're safe."
"Yup," Ash leaned back in her chair. "That about sums it up."
"I wish Paul were here," she said, half to herself. "He wanted to talk to you."
"Oh, right," Percy remembered. "The school. What did you tell him?"
His mom shook her head. "What could I say? He's a smart man. He knows something is different about you, Percy, but he believes you're not a bad person. He doesn't know what's going on, but the school is pressuring him. After all, he got you admitted there. He needs to convince them the fire wasn't your fault, and since you ran away, that looks bad."
Annabeth studied Percy sympathetically, having been through similar issues, while Ash looked at Ms. Jackson, sorry for the mother's distress.
"I'll talk to him," Percy promised. "After the quest. I'll even tell him everything if you want."
Sally lit up. "You would do that?"
"Well, yeah. I mean, he'll think we're crazy."
"He already thinks that," Ash spoke up, having been caught up all the hot goss from Sally over the weeks.
"Then there's nothing to lose."
"Thank you, Percy." His mom laid a hand on his shoulder. "I'll tell him you'll be home..." She frowned. "When? What happens now?"
Annabeth broke her cookie in half, absently handing the smaller piece to Ash. "Percy has this plan."
The boy in question explained with some reluctance.
Sally nodded slowly. "It sounds very dangerous, but it might work."
"You have the same abilities, don't you?" Percy asked. "You can see through the Mist."
His mom sighed. "Not so much now. It was easier when I was younger, but yes, I've always been able to see more than was good for me. It's one of the things that caught your father's attention at first. Just be careful. Promise me you'll be safe."
"We promise, Sally," Ash said, mustering a smile and reaching over to grasp her hand.
"Well, we'll try, at least." Annabeth crossed her arms and glared out the kitchen window. "Keeping your son safe is a big job, though." Percy averted his gaze, picking at his napkin, while Ash's hand tightened over Sally's.
The woman frowned. "What's going on? Have you three been fighting?" She looked between the teenagers, saving Ash as the most likely to crack for last, but nobody said anything.
"I see," she said, and Ash wondered if they needed to say anything. This woman could see through more than the Mist. "Well, remember. Grover and Tyson are counting on you."
"I know," they all said at the same time, making it even more awkward.
Sally smiled. "Percy, you'd better use the phone in the hall. Good luck."
Ash pretended not to notice that he seemed to know Rachel Elizabeth Dare's phone number by heart.