DESTINY ↳ WILL SOLACE

15. A God Buys Us Cheeseburgers

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

A GOD BUYS US CHEESEBURGERS

I don't own Percy Jackson.

When their train rolled into Denver the afternoon after Percy's brush with death, Percy couldn't help but cheer silently. They hadn't eaten since the night before, and they hadn't showered since camp, which she was sure was obvious. Even Will's usually sunny attitude had taken a hit.

"I want to contact Chiron," Will announced as soon as they had gotten off. "I want to tell him about your conversation with the river spirit."

"But we can't use phones, right?"

"Right." When he saw her confused expression, he explained, "I'm going to use I-M."

He didn't bother explaining what I-M was. Maybe he thought she already knew, or didn't think it was important, or just had too much on his mind. He had never ignored Percy before just for the sake of ignoring her, and she didn't think he'd start now.

They wandered through the city for almost half an hour, the air dry and hot, the sun beating down relentlessly on them; being in the middle of the country when she was so used to the sea breeze was a strange feeling. The Rocky Mountains loomed in the distance, like a tidal wave about to crash, though it wasn't a tidal wave that Percy actually enjoyed.

"Where are we going?" she finally asked.

"Someplace for a rainbow." He suddenly pointed. "Like that."

It was an empty do-it-yourself carwash. Will went for the stall furthest from the street while Grover and Percy kept an eye out for patrol cars; not only were they three adolescents hanging out at a carwash with no car, but Percy's face was currently being broadcasted to every national news as the newest and youngest criminal mastermind.

"Seventy-five cents," Grover said as he took out the spray gun. "I've only got two quarters. Will?"

Will shook his head. "I spent everything on the dining car."

Percy managed to dig out a quarter, leaving her just two nickels and a drachma. "Is anybody going to tell me what we're doing?"

"I told you. I-M'ing."

"Instant messaging?"

"Iris messaging," Will corrected. "She carries messages for the gods, and if you know how to ask, she does the same for half-bloods."

"And you summon her with a spray gun."

"We summon her with a rainbow. And right now, the spray gun is our easiest way."

Grover pointed the nozzle in the air and water hissed out in a thick white mist. Sure enough, the light broke into colors; a pretty sight that almost made Percy feel better for some, strange reason. Being so close to water and feeling the mist... it made her feel a little less miserable.

"Drachma, please," Will said. Percy handed it over, and he raised it over his head. "O goddess, accept our offering. Half-Blood Hill."

He threw the drachma into the rainbow, and it disappeared in a golden shimmer.

For a moment, nothing happened.

And then suddenly Percy was staring at the strawberry fields she found herself missing so much, with Long Island Sound in the back. Their message seemed to have opened on the porch of the Big House, and standing with his back to them was a familiar sandy-haired guy in shoes and an orange tank top, holding a bronze sword and staring intently down at something in the meadow.