𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐊𝐄𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 •| ⊱ Jason Grace¹

•| ⊱ THIRTY-ONE

[ chapter thirty-one: hermia ]

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Hermia woke up sitting at a table in a sidewalk cafe. For a second, she thought she was still dreaming. It was a sunny morning. The air was brisk but not unpleasant for sitting outside. At the other tables, a mix of bicyclists, business people, and college kids sat chatting and drinking coffee.

She could smell eucalyptus trees. Lots of foot traffic passed in front of quaint little shops. The street was lined with bottle-brush trees and blooming azaleas as if winter was a foreign concept.

Her friends were all sitting in chairs around her-all of them with their hands calmly folded across their chests, dozing pleasantly. And they all had new clothes on. Hermia instantly thought Piper's mom had something to do with this. Mia hoped she wasn't wearing anything new, but before she could take a look at her clothes she jumped in her seat when she heard Piper yell, "Mother!"

Mia covered her ear and sent a glare Piper's way. Piper obviously didn't mean to yell out that loud, but she still managed to make Jason flinch. Which just caused him to bump the table with his knees, and then suddenly all of them were awake.

"What?" Hedge demanded. "Fight who? Where?"

"Falling!" Leo grabbed the table. "No-not falling. Where are we?"

Hermia rolled her eyes while she let her head fall on the table. A bang was heard as Jason blinked, trying to get his bearings. "Everyone shut up! It's too early for this." Mia sighed as she leaned up in her seat.

From what Mia could see, Jason was focusing on her and made a little choking sound. "What are you wearing?"

Hermia really tried not to blush. She had hoped Piper's mother would leave her be, but maybe she hadn't. Mia looked down and saw she was wearing a floral embroidered romper, with see-through black tights and black leather boots. Her purple crystal was hanging with pride around her neck and on her fingers she could make out a couple of rings. Surprisingly though her leather jacket was gone, but Hermia prayed Aphrodite had left it in her backpack.

Suddenly Piper was pulling out Katoptris as she passed it to Mia. Hermia gazed at her in question, before grabbing the blade and bringing it up to her face. Judging from the reflection in the blade, she'd gotten her hair done and even had some makeup on.

"What the hell am I wearing?" Hermia asked as she gave Piper her blade back. Jason still hadn't taken his eyes off her and it made Mia blush more than she wanted. "Am I going on a date or what?"

Jason cleared his throat. "You look gorgeous." More heat rose on Hermia's cheeks as she bit her lip to hide her smile. The group watched in silence while Leo sent a smirk to the pair.

"Thanks." Mia replied as she let a deep breath leave her lips. She desperately wanted the attention off her so she looked at Piper and said, "It doesn't look like I'm the only one with a makeover. I never thought I'd see you in a dress again, Piper."