The cliff face yawned before me. I drew closer and my breath caught in my throat. I was afraid. I paused at the very edge, staring at the space below. I drew a large breath in, preparing myself. I jumped. The ground plummeted towards me. At nearly the last second, my wings unfurled. It was almost like they had a mind of their own. I had wanted to jump. My wings had other ideas. I was supposed to survive, according to my wings. Something important was about to happen. Maybe sooner, maybe later. All the same, it was greatly important for me to survive. Why?
The feeling I got, I will never forget. Flying is different than anything you've ever experienced before. It was amazing. Why had I never done this before? The wind whipped my hair around, and I didn't care. My loose clothing was thrown this way and that, clinging tightly to my body. I soared up, out of the canyon. The sun scorched the land below me, reflecting off the dry sand into my eyes. I turned my eyes to the sky, the beautiful, blue diamond above me. It went on forever. I could follow it for ages. The clouds drifted lazily above me. I could drift with them. I flipped onto my back, my wings holding me aloft. The wind brushed against my face, gently caressing my cheeks. I smiled, enjoying my experience thoroughly. My wings began to ache, clearly not used to the exercise. I would have to rest soon. Exercising my wings more often would be a must. I spotted a large lake nearby. Lake Mead. Perfect.
I landed gracefully, the concrete hard beneath my feet. Hoover Dam. I had never been before. It was massive. I hoped you didn't have to pay an admission fee. I tucked my wings into the safe folds beneath my skin. No one had seen me. I strode confidently towards the entrance. A sign on the door proudly proclaimed there was no admission fee. I pulled open the door and stepped inside. It smelled like disinfectant, strongly. I smelled food and followed my nose. I must have looked really hungry, because nearby a man gestured to me and held out a basket of fries. I sat down, across the table from him. "Do I know you?" I asked him. He shook his head. "I don't think so. But I'm a school teacher, so it's in my blood to take care of starving children. I'm here with my step-son and some of his friends," he gestured at a group of teenagers talking nearby. A couple hot guys, a few super model girls. They were laughing and joking with each other. One of them stood out, his dark hair and beautiful green eyes drew my attention instantly. He waved at the guy across the table from me. "That's my step-son, Percy" the guy said, waving back. Percy turned back around, draping his arm over one of the girl's shoulders. She wasn't bad looking either. "I'm Paul, by the way," the guy thrust out his hand to me. I shook it. "Juliet," I replied. I slowly placed a fry in my mouth. The salty taste felt good against my tongue. I chewed and swallowed. "Are you here alone?" Paul asked. My internal alarms went off, but he looked genuinely concerned. "Yea," I said, hesitantly. He nodded. "Here," he handed me the fries, "Go make yourself at home with the youngsters." He led me towards the group of teens. "This is Juliet," he told them, "Be nice to her," he warned.
I have never seen anything get quieter quicker in my life. I pulled up a chair and sat down cautiously. Percy examined Paul's face, asking silent questions. His arm wrapped tighter around the girl's shoulders. Paul gave him a stern look and walked back to his table. A girl next to me with flaming red hair stared me in the face. Percy looked at her. "Nothing," she told him, "We're safe, for now." One of the guys at the table looked at me then spoke, "I'll bite. I'm Leo." The girl next to him threw a fry and he caught it in his mouth. "I'm Calypso," she smiled. She was beautiful. Percy spoke, casting a glance at the girl next to him, "I'm Percy. That was my step-dad you talked to." I nodded. The girl next to him pushed a few blonde curls out of her face and smiled, "I'm Annabeth." She had a remarkable beauty about her. The girl with the flaming hair spoke next, "I'm Rachel Elizabeth Dare." She winked at Percy. He laughed. The girl on the other side of Percy spoke, her voice was quiet and timid. "I'm Hazel," her smile was a nervous one. Her gold eyes were piercing as she tried to decipher if I was a threat or not. The guy next to her had a bulky frame and the tiny chair wasn't holding him very well. He fumbled with a pouch tied to his waistband. "I'm Frank," he said without looking at me. The blonde guy next to Leo spoke up, "I'm Jason. Hi." He gave a little half-hearted wave. The girl between Jason and Rachel flicked a tiny braid in her choppy hair idly. "I'm Piper," she smiled nervously. Suddenly, Rachel straightened. "Don't turn around," she whispered to those at the table. Percy pulled a pen out of his pocket and slowly threw it into the air, looking casual. Frank placed a hand on his backpack. They all tensed. Annabeth slowly turned, pulling something from her belt as she did. She froze. Percy turned his head, ever so slightly. He glared out of the corner of his eyes. "You'd better go," he told me. "This could get rough," Leo agreed. He pulled a box of matches from the tool belt around his waist. Percy stood and walked over to Paul's table. "Mom, Paul," he said, "We need to go. Now." He motioned to the table and everyone stood up at the same time. Time to fly, I thought. I grabbed the basket of fries I had set on the table. I ran, dodging tables and throwing apologies behind me. The doors got closer and I had to shove through the crowd to reach them. I pushed out the doors, the sunlight slapping me in the face. The fresh air was much needed.
After taking off, I had flown to the cliff face above. I perched out of sight where I could watch the goings on. Shortly after my mad dash for the exit, the group came running out the doors. Percy was leading, everyone else very close behind. He climbed into the driver's side of an old white van. Annabeth climbed in the other side, and everyone else filed into the back. It was kind of amusing from this angle. They drove away, about as fast as possible with all the foot traffic. I followed them from the air.
After several painstaking hours of flying, I was getting exhausted. I briefly pondered landing on the roof of their van and riding to their destination, but I vetoed the idea quickly. They only stopped once, to switch drivers. After that, they continued their mad dash. I was getting tired, the sun was setting, and I was hoping they would stop soon. Tough luck. It was so long before they ever stopped. I nearly dropped out of the sky with exhaustion.
A Holiday Inn in the middle of nowhere is not the best place to spend the night. There was nothing around. This "town" consisted of a McDonalds, a stoplight, and a Holiday Inn. So fun. I was exhausted, though. I'm not picky when I'm tired. I just regret my decisions later. I woke up, panicked. As I sat up, it all came back to me. I dashed for the window. The old van was still outside. I breathed a sigh of relief, then quickly dressed. I rushed down the stairs, totally neglecting the elevator. They all sat in the lobby, eating breakfast. I tried not to look suspicious as I snuck past them and grabbed quite a few muffins. I was starving. I wolfed them down, avoiding looking over at them. I could hear Percy's voice from here. "I told you guys it was a bad idea to come without Rachel. We could have died." He checked a watch on his wrist, "I need to go wake Mom and Paul. I'll be back." He glanced around nervously. Annabeth stood. "I'm coming too," she told him. They strode, hand in hand, to the elevator. Leo got up and walked directly towards me. Oh no, I thought, looking away, He's caught me. But he went directly to the muffin bar, brushing my shoulder as he passed. He turned, winking at me. I barely caught it, it was so quick, but the message was clear. He recognized me, and he knew I was following them. Oh, dear.
I waited outside. I waited until Leo managed to slip away. They had stayed in the hotel all day, something about Percy's mom not feeling well. I stood under the window of the room Leo had said he was staying in. I picked up a tiny pebble and threw it at the window. It barely made a tap. A face appeared. Leo's, thankfully. He smiled and held up one finger, the universal sign for wait. I strode to the entrance, doing just as he'd said, waiting. I was getting impatient. The bird inside me wanted to fly away. The doors opened. Leo stood there, a funny look on his face.
"Why are you following us?" he asked. We were safely away from the hotel, where no one could see us from the windows. "I'm curious," I managed. He waved the subject away. "You're not normal," he looked me in the eyes. I looked away, "Neither are you." He grinned, "Naturally. But you are more special than me. There is something definitely different about you." He draped his arms across the back of the park bench. Can I trust him? I wondered. He looked safe enough. But you never know. I decided to trust him, against my greater interests. I stood up stepping away from the bench. "Do you really wanna know?" I asked him. He nodded. "You have to promise not to tell anyone," I said, dead serious. "I swear on the River Styx," he vowed. Whatever that meant. I looked around, you can never be overcautious. Then, I let my wings stretch out. Leo gasped. I smiled, I would never forget the look on his face.