Disclaimer: Naruto is Masashi Kishimoto's property, Percy Jackson is the property of Rick Riordan, and Jojo's Bizarre Adventure is the property of Hirohiko Araki. All other references to any other works are property of their respective owners; I don't own this in any way. Please don't sue me.

Chapter 8: Weather Forecast: Bitchy Princess

Leo was on cloud nine.

"The expression on everyone's faces when I flew Festus into the camp?" Leo reflected on what had just happened. "That was priceless! I thought my cabinmates were going to bust a lug nut! Festus, you were awesome buddy, you didn't blowtorch a single cabin or eaten any satyrs, even if you did dribble a little oil from your ear."

"A little?" Festus' voice responded.

"Okay, a lot, but we can work on that later."

"Why didn't you tell them about Bunker Nine or your boat design?"

"I still need time to think about that. I'll tell everyone when we get back."

"If you come back." a darker part of Leo responded.

"Nah, I'll come back. I scored a sweet magic toolbelt from that bunker, plus a lot of cool supplies now safely stowed in my backpack. Then there's Shepherd of Fire and his energy manipulation, and let's not forget I have a fire-breathing, laser-firing, only slightly leaky dragon on my side. What could go wrong."

"Well, the control disk could bust," That dark voice countered. "Festus could eat you."

"Okay, so Festus wasn't quite as fixed as I might've let on." He'd worked all night attaching those wings, but he hadn't found an extra dragon brain anywhere in the bunker. "Hey, we're under a time limit, three days until the solstice. We had to get going. Besides, I cleaned the disk pretty well. Most of the circuits were still good. It would just have to hold together."

"Yeah, but what if-"

"Shut up, me." Leo spoke out loud.

"What?" Piper asked.

"Nothing," Leo replied, "Long night, I think I'm hallucinating. It's cool." Sitting in front, Leo couldn't see their faces, but he assumed from their silence that his friends were not pleased to have a sleepless, hallucinating dragon driver. "Just joking." Leo could tell his joke hadn't landed. "it might be good to change the subject." Leo turned his head so Jason could hear him. "So what's the plan, bro? You said something about catching wind, or breaking wind, or something?"

"First," Jason started. "we need to find Boreas and get some information out of him."

"His name is Boreas? What is he, the God of Boring?"

"He's the God of the North Wind." Piper corrected.

"Second," Jason continued. "We have to find the Ventis that attacked us at the Grand Canyon."

"Can we just call them storms spirits?" Leo asked. "Venti makes them sound like evil espresso drinks."

"Finally," Jason began his conclusion. "We have to find out who the storm spirits work for so we can find Hera and free her."

"So you want to look for Dylan, the nasty storm dude, on purpose?" Leo asked, "The guy who threw me off the skywalk and sucked Coach Hedge into the clouds."

"That about sums it up," Jason replied, "Well," Jason hesitated a bit. "There may be a wolf involved too, but I think she's friendly. She probably won't eat us unless we show weakness." Jason filled them in on his dream; the big nasty mother wolf and a burned-out house with stone spires growing out of the swimming pool.

"Uh-huh," Leo replied, "But you don't know where that is."

"Nope," Jason admitted.

"There are also giants," Piper added. "The prophecy said 'The Giant's Revenge.'"

"Hold on," Leo asked. "Giants, like more than one? Why can't it be just one giant who wants revenge?"

"I don't think so," Piper replied, "I remember in some of the old Greek stories, there was something about an army of Giants."

"Great," Leo muttered. "Of course, with our luck, it's an army. So you know anything else about these giants? Didn't you do a bunch of myth research for that movie with your dad?"

"Your dad's an actor?" Jason asked. Leo laughed.

"Heh. I keep forgetting about amnesia. That's funny. But yeah, her dad's Tristan McLean."

"Uh—Sorry, what was he in?"

"It doesn't matter," Piper said quickly. "The giants—well, there were lots of giants in Greek mythology. But if I'm thinking of the right ones, they were bad news. For starters, they are huge, almost impossible to kill. They could throw mountains and stuff. I think they were related to the Titans. They rose from the earth after Kronos lost the war, I mean the first Titan war, thousands of years ago, and they tried to destroy Olympus. If we're talking about the same giants—"

"Chiron said it was happening again," Jason remembered. "The last chapter. That's what he meant. No wonder he didn't want us to know all the details." Leo whistled.

"So … giants who can throw mountains. Friendly wolves will eat us if we show weakness. Evil espresso drinks. Gotcha. Maybe this isn't the time to bring up my psycho babysitter."

"Is that another joke?" Piper asked. Leo told them about Tía Callida, who was really Hera, and how she'd appeared to him at camp. He didn't tell them about his fire abilities. That was still a touchy subject, especially after Nyssa had told him fire demigods tended to destroy cities and stuff. Besides, then Leo would have to get into how he'd caused his mom's death.

"No. I'm not ready to go there." He did manage to tell about the night she died, not mentioning the fire, just saying the machine shop collapsed. It was easier without looking at his friends, just keeping his eyes straight ahead as they flew. He told them about the strange woman in earthen robes who seemed to be asleep and seemed to know the future. Leo estimated the whole state of Massachusetts passed below them before his friends spoke.

"That's … disturbing," Piper said.

"About sums it up," Leo agreed. "Thing is everybody back at camp says we shouldn't trust Hera. She hates demigods. And the prophecy said we'd cause death if we unleash her rage. So I'm wondering, why are we doing this?"

"She chose us," Jason said. "All three of us. We're the first of the seven who have to gather for the Great Prophecy. This quest is the beginning of something much bigger." That didn't make Leo feel any better, but he couldn't argue with Jason's point. It did feel like this was the start of something huge. He just wished that if there were four more demigods destined to help them, they'd show up quickly. Leo didn't want to hog all the terrifying, life-threatening adventures.

"Besides," Jason continued, "helping Hera is the only way I can get back my memory. And that dark spire in my dream seemed to be feeding on Hera's energy. If that thing unleashes a king of the giants by destroying Hera—"

"Not a good trade-off," Piper agreed. "At least Hera is on our side—mostly. Losing her would throw the gods into chaos. She's the main one who keeps peace in the family. And a war with the giants could be even more destructive than the Titan War." Jason nodded. "Chiron also talked about worse forces stirring on the solstice, with it being a good time for dark magic, and all—something that could awaken if Hera was to be sacrificed on that day. And this mistress who's controlling the storm spirits, the one who wants to kill all the demigods—"

"Might be that weird sleeping lady," Leo finished. "Dirt Woman fully awake? Not something I want to see."

"But who is she?" Jason asked. "And what does she have to do with giants?" Good questions, but none of them had answers. They flew in silence while Leo wondered if he'd done the right thing, sharing so much. He'd never told anyone about that night at the warehouse. Even if he hadn't given them the whole story, it still felt strange, like he'd opened up his chest and taken out all the gears that made him tick. His body was shaking and not from the cold. He hoped Piper, sitting behind him, couldn't tell.

"The forge and dove shall break the cage. Wasn't that the prophecy line? That meant Piper and I have to figure out how to break into that magic rock prison, assuming we could find it. Then they'd unleash Hera's rage, causing a lot of death. Well, that sounded fun!" Leo had seen Tía Callida in action; she liked knives, snakes, and putting babies in roaring fires. Yeah, definitely let's unleash her rage. "Great idea." Festus kept flying. The wind got colder, and below them, snowy forests seemed to go on forever. Leo didn't know precisely where Quebec was. He'd told Festus to take them to the palace of Boreas, and Festus kept going north. Hopefully, the dragon knew the way, and they wouldn't end up at the North Pole.

"Why don't you get some sleep?" Piper said in his ear. "You were up all night." Leo wanted to protest, but the word sleep sounded really good.

"You won't let me fall off?" Piper patted his shoulder.

"Trust me, Valdez. Beautiful people never lie."

"Right," he muttered. He leaned forward against the warm bronze of the dragon's neck and closed his eyes. It seemed he only slept for a few seconds, but when Piper shook him awake, the daylight was fading.

"We're here," she said. Leo rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. Below them, a city sat on a cliff overlooking a river. The plains around it were dusted with snow, but the city itself glowed warmly in the winter sunset. Buildings crowded together inside high walls like a medieval town, way older than any place Leo had seen before. Leo assumed it was a castle in the center, with massive red brick walls and a square tower with a peaked, green gabled roof.

"Tell me that's Quebec and not Santa's workshop," Leo said.

"Yeah, Quebec City," Piper confirmed. "One of the oldest cities in North America. Founded around sixteen hundred or so?" Leo raised an eyebrow.

"Your dad do a movie about that too?" She made a face at him, which Leo was used to, but it didn't quite work with her new glamorous makeup.

"I sometimes read, okay? Just because Aphrodite claimed me, it doesn't mean I have to be an airhead."

"Feisty!" Leo said. "So you know so much, what's that castle?"

"A hotel, I think." Leo laughed.

"No way." But as they got closer, Leo saw she was right. The grand entrance was bustling with doormen, valets, and porters taking bags. Sleek black luxury cars idled in the drive. People in elegant suits and winter cloaks hurried to get out of the cold.

"The North Wind is staying in a hotel?" Leo said. "That can't be—"

"Heads up, guys," Jason interrupted. "We got company!" Leo looked below and saw what Jason meant. Rising from the top of the tower were two winged figures—angry angels, with nasty-looking swords. Festus didn't like the angel guys. He swooped to a halt in midair, wings beating and talons bared, and made a rumbling sound in his throat that Leo recognized. He was getting ready to blow fire.

"Steady, boy," Leo muttered. Something told him the angels would not take kindly to getting torched.

"I don't like this," Jason said. "They look like storm spirits." At first, Leo thought he was right, but as the angels got closer, he could see their forms were more solid than Venti. They looked like regular teenagers except for their icy white hair and feathery purple wings. Their bronze swords were jagged, like icicles. Their faces looked similar enough that they might have been brothers, but they weren't twins. One was an ox's size, with a bright red hockey jersey, baggy sweatpants, and black leather cleats. The guy had been in too many fights because both his eyes were black, plus when he bared his teeth, and several were missing. The other guy looked like he'd just stepped off one of Leo's mom's 1980s rock album covers—Journey, maybe, or Hall & Oates, or something even lamer. His ice-white hair was long and feathered into a mullet. He wore pointy-toed leather shoes, designer pants that were way too tight, and a god-awful silk shirt with the top three buttons open. Maybe he thought he looked like a groovy love god, but the guy couldn't have weighed more than ninety pounds, and he had a bad case of acne. The angels pulled up in front of the dragon and hovered there, swords at the ready.

"No clearance." The hockey Ox grunted.

"Scuse me?" Leo asked.

"You have no flight plan on file." The groovy love, god, explained. On top of his other problems, he had a French accent that was so bad Leo was sure it was fake. "This is restricted air space."

"Destroy them?" The ox showed off his gap-toothed grin. The dragon began to his steam, ready to defend them. Jason summoned his sword as his face hardened.

"Hold on!" Leo shouted. "Let's have some manners here, boys. Can I at least find out who has the honor of destroying me?"

"I am Cal!" the ox grunted; he looked very proud of himself like he'd taken a long time to memorize that sentence.

"That's short for Calais," the love god explained. "Sadly, my brother cannot say words with more than two syllables."

"Pizza! Hockey! Destroy!" Cal offered.

"Which, sadly, includes his own name." The love god finished.

"I am Cal," Cal repeated, "And this is Zethes! My Brother!"

"Wow," Leo congratulated, "That was almost three sentences, man! Way to go." Cal grunted, obviously pleased with himself.

"Stupid buffoon," His brother grumbled, "They're making fun of you. But no matter, I am Zethes, which is short for Zethes. And the lady there-" he winked at Piper, but the wink was more like a facial seizure. "She can call me anything she likes. Perhaps she would like to have dinner with a famous demigod before we must destroy you?" Power flared to life for a brief second, and Leo saw Jason's hand twitch out of the corner of his eye.

"What was that?" Cal asked, looking around.

"No idea felt strong, though," Zethes replied. "Way too strong for a demigod."

"Chakra," Cal replied. "Strong, strong like Cal."

"Chakra?" Zethes looked afraid, and Leo was confused by that. "You mean to tell me that one of these kids is Percy Jackson?" Zethes looked at all three of them again.

"No, Chakra not strong enough."

"So," Zethes started turning his focus back to Piper. "About my offer?"

"I'm sorry," Piper replied, "but that's not going to happen."

"It is no problem." Zethes wiggled his eyebrows. "We are very romantic people, we Boreads."

"Boreads?" Jason cut in. "Do you mean, like, the sons of Boreas?"

"Ah, so you've heard of us!" Zethes looked pleased. "We are our father's gatekeepers. So you understand, we cannot have unauthorized people flying in his airspace on creaky dragons, scaring the silly mortal peoples." He pointed below, and Leo saw that the mortals were starting to take notice. Several were pointing up—not with alarm, yet—more with confusion and annoyance, like the dragon was a traffic helicopter flying too low. "Which is sadly why, unless this is an emergency landing," Zethes said, brushing his hair out of his acne-covered face, "we will have to destroy you painfully."

"Destroy!" Cal agreed, with a little more enthusiasm than Leo thought necessary.

"Wait!" Piper said. "This is an emergency landing."

"Awww!" Cal looked so disappointed. Leo almost felt sorry for him. Zethes studied Piper, which of course, he'd already been doing.

"How does the pretty girl decide this is an emergency, then?"

"We have to see Boreas. It's totally urgent! Please?" She forced a smile, which Leo figured must've been killing her, but she still had that blessing of Aphrodite thing going on, and she looked great. Something about her voice, too—Leo found himself believing every word. Jason was nodding, looking absolutely convinced. Zethes picked at his silk shirt, probably making sure it was still open wide enough.

"Well … I hate to disappoint a lovely lady, but you see, my sister, she would have an avalanche if we allowed you—"

"And our dragon is malfunctioning!" Piper added. "It could crash any minute!" Festus shuddered helpfully, then turned his head and spilled gunk out of his ear, splattering a black Mercedes in the parking lot below.

"No, destroy?" Cal whimpered. Zethes pondered the problem. Then he gave Piper another spasmodic wink.

"Well, you are pretty. I mean, you're right. A malfunctioning dragon—this could be an emergency."

"Destroy them later?" Cal offered, which was probably as close to friendly as he ever got.

"It will take some explaining," Zethes decided. "Father has not been kind to visitors lately. But, yes. Come, faulty dragon people. Follow us." The Boreads sheathed their swords and pulled smaller weapons from their belts—or at least Leo thought they were weapons. Then the Boreads switched them on, and Leo realized they were flashlights with orange cones, like the ones traffic controller guys use on a runway. Cal and Zethes turned and swooped toward the hotel's tower. Leo turned to his friends.

"I love these guys. Follow them?" Jason and Piper didn't look eager.

"I guess," Jason decided. "We're here now. But I wonder why Boreas hasn't been kind to visitors."

"Pfft, he just hasn't met us." Leo whistled. "Festus, after those flashlights!" As they got closer, Leo worried they'd crash into the tower. The Boreads made right for the green gabled peak and didn't slow down. Then a section of the slanted roof slid open, revealing an entrance easily wide enough for Festus. The top and bottom were lined with icicles like jagged teeth.

"This cannot be good," Jason muttered, but Leo spurred the dragon downward, and they swooped in after the Boreads. They landed in what must have been the penthouse suite, but a flash freeze had hit the place. The entry hall had vaulted ceilings forty feet high, huge draped windows, and lush oriental carpets. A staircase at the back of the room led up to another equally massive hall, and more corridors branched off to the left and right. But the ice made the room's beauty a little frightening. When Leo slid off the dragon, the carpet crunched under his feet. A fine layer of frost covered the furniture. The curtains didn't budge because they were frozen solid, and the ice-coated windows let in weird watery light from the sunset. Even the ceiling was furry with icicles. As for the stairs, Leo was sure he'd slip and break his neck if he tried to climb them.

"Guys," Leo said, "fix the thermostat in here, and I would totally move in."

"Not me." Jason looked uneasily at the staircase. "Something feels wrong. Something up there …" Festus shuddered and snorted flames. Frost started to form on his scales.

"No, no, no." Zethes marched over, though how he could walk in those pointy leather shoes. Leo had no idea. "The dragon must be deactivated. We can't have fire in here. The heat ruins my hair."

"Not happening!" Festus growled and spun his drill-bit teeth.

"It's okay, boy." Leo turned to Zethes. "The dragon's a little touchy about the whole deactivation concept. But I've got a better solution."

"Destroy?" Cal suggested.

"No, man. You gotta stop with the destroy talk. Just wait."

"Leo," Piper said nervously, "what are you—"

"Watch and learn, beauty queen. When I was repairing Festus last night, I found all kinds of buttons. Some, you do not want to know what they do. But others. Ah, here we go." Leo hooked his fingers behind the dragon's left foreleg. He pulled a switch, and the dragon shuddered from head to toe. Everyone backed away as Festus folded like origami. His bronze plating stacked together. His neck and tail contracted into his body. His wings collapsed, and his trunk compacted until he was a rectangular metal wedge the size of a suitcase. Leo tried to lift it, but the thing weighed about six billion pounds. "Um … yeah. Hold on. I think—aha." He pushed another button. A handle flipped up on the top, and wheels clicked out on the bottom. "Ta-da!" he announced. "The world's heaviest carry-on bag!"

"That's impossible," Jason said. "Something that big couldn't—"

"Stop!" Zethes ordered. He and Cal both drew their swords and glared at Leo. Leo raised his hands.

"Okay … what'd I do? Stay calm, guys. If it bothers you that much, I don't have to take the dragon as carry-on—"

"Who are you?" Zethes shoved the point of his sword against Leo's chest. "A child of the South Wind, spying on us?"

"What? No!" Leo said. "Son of Hephaestus. Friendly blacksmith, no harm to anyone!" Cal growled. He put his face up to Leo's, and he definitely wasn't any prettier at point-blank, with his bruised eyes and bashed-in mouth.

"Smell fire," he said. "Fire is bad."

"Oh." Leo's heart raced. "Yeah, well … my clothes are kind of singed, and I've been working with oil, and—"

"No!" Zethes pushed Leo back at sword point. "We can smell fire, demigod. We assumed it was from the creaky dragon, but now the dragon is a suitcase. And I still smell fire on you." If it hadn't been like three degrees in the penthouse, Leo would've started sweating.

"Hey … look … I don't know—" He glanced at his friends desperately. "Guys, a little help?" Jason already had his gold coin in his hand. He stepped forward, his eyes on Zethes.

"Look, there's been a mistake. Leo isn't a fire guy. Tell them, Leo. Tell them you're not a fire guy."

"Um …"

"Zethes?" Piper tried her dazzling smile again, though she looked a little too nervous and cold to pull it off. "We're all friends here. Put down your swords, and let's talk."

"The girl is pretty," Zethes admitted, "and of course, she cannot help being attracted to my amazingness, but sadly, I cannot romance her at this time." He poked his sword point farther into Leo's chest, and Leo could feel the frost spreading across his shirt, turning his skin numb.

"I wish I could reactivate Festus. I need some backup. But it would take several minutes, even if I could reach the button, with two purple-winged crazy guys in his path."

"Destroy him now?" Cal asked his brother.

Zethes nodded. "Sadly, I think—"

"No," Jason insisted. He sounded calm enough, but Leo figured he was about two seconds away from flipping that coin and going into full gladiator mode. "Leo's just a son of Hephaestus. He's no threat. Piper here is a daughter of Aphrodite. I'm the son of Zeus. We're on a peaceful …" Jason's voice faltered because both Boreads had suddenly turned on him.

"What did you say?" Zethes demanded. "You are the son of Zeus?"

"Um … yeah," Jason said. "That's a good thing, right? My name is Jason." Cal looked so surprised; he almost dropped his sword.

"Can't be Jason," he said. "Doesn't look the same." Zethes stepped forward and squinted at Jason's face.

"No, he is not our Jason. Our Jason was more stylish. Not as much as me—but stylish. Besides, our Jason died millennia ago."

"Wait," Jason said. "Your Jason … you mean the original Jason? The Golden Fleece guy?"

"Of course," Zethes replied, "we were his crewmates aboard his ship, the Argo, in the old times when we were mortal demigods. Then we accepted immortality to serve our father so that I could look fabulous for eternity and my silly brother could enjoy pizza and hockey."

"Hockey!" Cal agreed.

"But Jason, our Jason, he died a mortal death," Zethes continued. "You can't be him."

"I'm not," Jason agreed.

"So, destroy?" Cal asked,

"Clearly," Leo thought as he watched the back and forth between Jason and the Boraeds, "the conversation was giving his two brain cells a serious workout."

"No," Zethes replied regretfully. "If he is a son of Zeus, he could be the one we've been watching for."

"Watching for?" Leo asked. "You mean like in a good way: you'll shower him with fabulous prizes?' Or watching for like in a bad way: he's in trouble?"

"That depends on my father's will." A girl's voice, Leo looked up the staircase, and his heart nearly stopped. At the top stood a girl in a white silk dress. Her skiing was unnaturally pale, the color of snow, but her hair was a lush mane of black, and her eyes were coffee brown. She focused on Leo with no expression, no smile, no friendliness. But it didn't matter.

"I'm in love. She's the most dazzling girl I've ever seen." Then she looked at Jason and Piper and seemed to understand the situation immediately.

"Father will want to see the one called Jason," The girl said.

"Then it is him?" Zethes asked excitedly.

"We'll see," the girl replied. "Zethes, bring our guests." Leo grabbed the handle of his bronze dragon suitcase.

"Not entirely sure how I'm going to lug this up the stairs." Leo thought, "but I've got to get next to that girl and ask her some important questions. Like her e-mail address and phone number." Before he could take a step, she froze him with a look, not in the literal sense, but she might as well have.

"Not you," She spoke frostily, "Leo Valdez."

"How does she know my name?" Leo pushed that thought into the back of his head as he was more focused on how crushed he was feeling. "Why not?" Leo had to fight the urge to groan. "I probably just sounded like a whiny kindergartner."

"You can not be in the presence of my father," The girl replied, "Fire and Ice, it would not be wise."

"We're going together," Jason insisted, putting his hand on Leo's shoulder. "Or not at all." The girl tilted her head like she wasn't used to people refusing her orders.

"He will not be harmed, Jason Grace." She replied, "Unless you make trouble. Calais, keep Leo Valdez here. Guard him, but do not kill him."

"Just a little?" Cal pouted as he asked.

"No," The girl insisted, "And take care of his interesting suitcase until Father passes Judgment." Jason and Piper looked at Leo. Their expressions were asking a silent question: how do you want to play this? Leo felt a surge of gratitude.

"They are ready to fight for me; they don't want to leave me alone with the hockey ox." Leo thought as his eyes filled with tears. Part of him is seriously tempted, bust out his new tool belt, bring out Shepard of Fire, and see what he could really do. "But the Boread guys scare me, and that gorgeous girl scares me even more, even if I still want her number." Leo sighed. "It's fine, guys," Leo smiled, "No sense causing trouble if we don't have to, you go ahead."

"Listen to your friend," The pale girl said. "Leo Valdez will be perfectly safe. I wish I could say the same for you, son of Zeus. Now come, King Boreas is waiting."

(Character switch)

Jason didn't want to leave Leo, and every instinct in his body was screaming, 'go back, grab him and get out of here.' He took a second to close his eyes and was slammed with a wave of sensations. As usual, Piper's presence was the most announced to his senses. Leo was just as he felt on the bus, like a sun burning under the surface. Calais below was like a cold wind, as was Zethes behind him. Jason had to fight the urge to bundle himself. A third presence was just above them. It was colder than anything he'd ever felt before, as if it was the personification of cold itself. The fourth was the girl leading them up the stairs. She was almost just as cold as the third presence, but he felt darkness, Hate, and malice just under the surface.

"What is this feeling?" Jason wondered to himself. "She feels just like Dylan did on the bus. Is she evil?"

"Not bad instincts, Jason." The voice in his head spoke. "Keep an eye on her, I don't trust her, and remember what I taught you."

"If it seems too easy, it probably is," Jason responded automatically. As they climbed, Zethes was keeping behind them, his blade drawn. Jason's eyes flickered around, and he made eye contact with the Ice Princess. She smiled at him, but there was no warmth in her expression. She was regarding him like he was a fascinating science specimen, one she couldn't wait to dissect. "If these are Boreaes' kids, I don't want to meet daddy. Annabeth told me that Boreas is the friendliest of the wind gods. Apparently, that means he doesn't kill heroes quite as fast as the others do." Jason couldn't shake the feeling that he had unintentionally led his friends into a trap. "If things go south, ugh, bad pun, I'm not sure I can get them out alive."

"Don't stress it, Jason. You're stronger than this."

"Thanks."

"You know," The voice replied, clearly trying not to laugh. "If you keep this up, you're going to give that Piper girl some very serious mixed signals."

"Huh?" Jason looked down and saw he had subconsciously grabbed Piper's hand, Piper was looking at him, and there was a blush on her face.

"It will be fine," Piper promised, "Just a talk, right?" At the top of the stairs, the Ice Princess looked back and noticed Jason and Piper holding hands. Her smile faded, Jason felt a flare of chakra, and he felt his hand turn ice cold, so cold it burned. He let go and saw his fingers were smoking with frost, and so were Piper's.

"Warmth is not a good idea here," the princess advised, "especially when I am your best chance of staying alive. Please, this way." Piper gave Jason a nervous frown like, 'What was that about?' Jason couldn't answer. Zethes poked him in the back with his icicle sword, and Jason and Piper followed the princess down the hallway decked in frosty tapestries. Freezing winds blew back and forth, and Jason's thoughts moved just as fast.

"I had plenty of time to think while we rode Festus north, but all that thinking left me with more questions than answers." Jason shook his head, trying to make sense of it all. Thalia's picture was still in his pocket, though he didn't need to look at it anymore. Her image had permanently burned itself into his memory. "It's bad enough I can't remember my past, but knowing that my sister is out there somewhere, who might have answers, yet I have no way of reaching her. It's just driving me nuts." Thalia's picture flashed in his mind again, and Jason realized she looked nothing like him. The only thing they had in common was blue eyes. "And yet Annabeth said she could see the family resemblance and felt it in our chakra. But then again, she acted surprised to hear that I am her brother. Did Thalia never mention me, or did she not even know that I exist?" Jason shook his head. "Hera took my memories, she'd stolen everything from my past, thrown me into some strange new life, and now she expects me to save her just so I can get back what she has stolen. It pisses me off, and I just want to walk away, let Hera rot in that cage."

"But you can't," Jason's ever-present voice in his head spoke. "She's got you on her hook, and there is no way she's letting us get away from her." Piper's touch brought Jason out of his thoughts.

"Hey," She said, "you still with me?"

"Yeah," Jason replied, rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry." Jason smiled a bit. "I'm insanely grateful for Piper, I need a friend, and I'm glad she's started losing the Blessing of Aphrodite." The makeup was fading, and Piper's hair was going back to its old choppy style with the little braids down the side; it makes her look more real. "And in my opinion, more beautiful."

"Elevated heart rate," Jason's second voice injected his opinion, "Reddening of face," as the voice said it, Jason felt his face heat up. "Sweating in the palms. Diagnosis you, my dear descendent, are in love."

"WHO ASKED YOU?!" Jason shot back, his face turning a darker red.

"There's nothing wrong with admitting it."

"It's just not fair to her. I have no idea what is waiting for me back in my life or who might be waiting."

"You can't control who you fall in love with." Jason didn't respond, and the group of four soon found themselves in front of a set of oaken doors carved with a map of the world. In each corner was a man's bearded face, blowing wind.

"I'm pretty sure I've seen maps like this before." But what made this one different was all the wind guys were winter, blowing eyes and snow from every corner of the world. The princess turned. Her eyes glittered, and Jason felt like he was a Christmas present she was hoping to open.

"This is the throne room," she said. "Be on your best behavior, Jason Grace. My father can be…. Chilly. I will translate for you and try to encourage him to hear you out. I do hope he spares you. We could have such fun."

"Uh-oh." Jason's inner voice spoke up. "I'd be careful if I were you, Jason. The last time I heard a woman say that, let's just say it didn't end well."

"Uh, okay," Jason managed. "But really, we're just here to talk. We'll be leaving right afterward." the girl smiled.

"I do love heroes. So blissfully ignorant." Piper rested her hand on the hilt of her katana.

"Well, how about you enlighten us?" She growled. "You said you're going to translate for us, and we don't even know who you are. So let's start with getting your name." The girl sniffed in distaste.

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised you don't recognize me. Even in ancient times, the Greeks did not know me. Their island homes were too warm, too far from my domain. The Norse, however, knew me quite well. I am Khione, daughter of Boreas, goddess of snow." she stirred the air with her finger, and a miniature blizzard swirled around her, big fluffy flakes as soft as cotton. "Now, come," Khione commanded. The oaken doors blew open, and cold blue light spilled out of the room. "Hopefully, you will survive your little talk."

"Okay, forget the entryway being cold," Jason thought as he shivered. "This is fucking freezing." Jason's breath steamed. Along the walls, purple tapestries showed scenes of snowy forests, barren mountains, and glaciers: high above, ribbons of colored light, the aurora borealis, pulsed along the ceiling. A layer of snow covered the floor, so Jason had to watch his step. All around the room stood life-sized ice sculptures, some in Greek armor, some medieval, even some in modern camouflage. All of them were frozen in various attack positions, swords raised, guns locked and loaded. "At least, I hope they are statues." Jason took another step between the two Greek spearmen, and they moved with surprising speed, their joints cracking and spraying ice crystals as they crossed their spears to block Jason's path. From the far end of the hall, a man's voice rang out in a language that sounded like French. The room was so long and misty, Jason couldn't see the other end. Whatever the man said caused the ice guards to uncross their spears.

"It's fine," Khinoe reassured them, "My father has ordered them not to kill you yet."

"Wonderful." Jason rolled his eyes. Zethes prodded him in the back with his sword.

"Keep moving, Jason Junior." The Boread spoke.

"Please don't call me that."

"My father is not a patient man," Zethes warned, "and the beautiful Piper, sadly, is losing her magic hairdo very fast. Later, perhaps, I can lend her something from my vast assortment of hair products."

"Thanks," Piper grumbled, clearly not interested. They kept walking, and the mist parted to reveal a man on an ice throne. He was sturdily built, dressed in a stylish white suit that seemed woven from snow, with dark purple wings spread out to either side. His long hair and shaggy beard were encrusted with icicles, so Jason couldn't tell if his hair was gray or just white with frost. His arched eyebrows made him look angry, but his eyes twinkled more warmly than his daughter's as if he might have a sense of humor buried somewhere under that permafrost.

"At least I hope he does." Jason silently prayed.

"Bienvenu," the king said. "Je suis Boreas le Roi. Et vous?" Khione was about to speak, but Piper stepped forward and curtsied.

"Votre Majesté," she said," je suis Piper McLean. Et c'est Jason, fils de Zeus." The king smiled with pleasant surprise.

"Vous parlez français? Très bien!"

"Piper, you speak French?" Jason asked. Piper frowned.

"No. Why?"

"You just spoke French." Piper blinked.

"I did?" The king said something else, and Piper nodded. "Oui, Votre Majesté." The king laughed and clapped his hands, obviously delighted. He said a few more sentences then swept his hand toward his daughter as if shooing her away. Khione looked miffed.

"The king says—" Khione started.

"He says I'm a daughter of Aphrodite," Piper interrupted, "so naturally I can speak French, which is the language of love. I had no idea. His Majesty says Khione won't have to translate now."

"Yikes," Jason's second voice spoke up, "Given the cold shoulder by your father, that's just cold."

"Bad pun," Jason groaned.

"Yeesh, chill, Jason."

"Stop it."

"Cool off."

"I will hurt you!" Behind them, Zethes snorted, and Khione shot him a murderous look. She bowed stiffly to her father and took a step back. The king sized up Jason, and Jason decided it would be a good idea to bow. "Your Majesty, I'm Jason Grace. Thank you for, um, not killing us. May I ask, why does a Greek god speak French?" Piper had another exchange with the king.

"He says he speaks the language of his host country." Piper translated. "He says all gods do this. Most greek gods speak English, as they now reside in the United States, but Boreas was never welcomed in their realm. His domain was always far to the north. These days he likes Quebec, so he speaks French." The King said something else, and Piper turned pale. The king says." She faltered. "He says-" Piper evidently couldn't finish her sentence.

"Oh, allow me," Khinoe said. "My father says he has orders to kill you. Did I not mention that earlier?" Jason instantly tensed. The king was still smiling amiably as if he'd just delivered great news.