The Gift of the Lethe

A Shock in the Mirror

Nadia twists her hands together as Percy fiddles with the door, a small metal object in his hand. The door makes a clicking sound, pulling a flinch from Nadia. Percy looks back at Nadia and gives her a reassuring smile.

"It's just the door, Nadia. It won't hurt you."

She can't explain that it wasn't just the shock of it, although it was that. For a moment, it wasn't the sound of metal against metal, but of metal against stone, sending a jolt of fear through her. Percy pulls the door open to reveal a house. At least, Nadia thinks it's a house. It's certainly something like it, but she doesn't think houses are structured like this, in a building full of many stacked atop and beside each other.

A young woman with pale hair is sitting at a table inside the . . . dwelling. Nadia will call it dwelling until she knows what this place is. The girl has a device in front of her, with her hands in a flurry of motion in front of her. A writing utensil is stuck over her ear. She looks up at the sound of the door and beams, standing from her seat.

"You're back!"

Nadia catches a glimpse of Percy's wide smile and he steps forward to hug the girl, his arms easily wrapping around her. He pulls back after a moment and motions towards Nadia, drawing the other girl's attention towards her.

"Annabeth, this is Nadia. My sister."

Nadia waves, not completely sure of what to do. "Hello."

Annabeth grins. "It's wonderful to meet you, Nadia. I'm sure this all must be very new."

Nadia nods. "It is. I'm not even sure what this place is called. I thought it was a house, but how are houses put together like this in a group?"

Annabeth bursts into laughter. "Don't worry, Nadia. We'll get you up to speed." Nadia blinks. Up to what? Annabeth continues. "This is called an apartment, it's kind of like a collection of houses. Let me show you how things work."

Annabeth gives Nadia a small tour of the apartment, demonstrating how to use the various instruments, all with unfamiliar names. The microwave, stove, fridge, those are all completely unfamiliar, and that's just the kitchen. The only thing that was familiar is the oven, and just the concept of it. That causes a moment of confusion for Nadia, how does she know how ovens work?

Annabeth takes Nadia into the bathroom next, only for Nadia to freeze at the people she sees inside. One of them looks just like Annabeth, but who is the other girl? She has blue-green eyes like Percy's, but lighter. Her dark hair is almost perfectly straight and her pale face has a softness to it. Where's her strength? She looks like she wouldn't be able to hold a spear, let alone use it. Nadia quickly shakes her head, confused by her own trail of thought. What is a spear? She points at the strange girl.

"Who's that?"

Annabeth stares at her. "That's you, Nadia. You're seeing yourself in a mirror."

Nadia shakes her head. "No, my hair is curly, even more so than yours. And I have a strong face, nothing like this softness. My skin is darker than that too."

"Nadia, look at your hand." Nadia looks down. What's wrong with her hand? "Do you see how light your skin is?'

"It's not that light."

Annabeth sighs. "It is, actually. And look-" She tugs at Nadia's hair, pulling a lock of it into her field of view. She releases it, and instead of springing back into a curl, it just drifts to lie against the rest of her face. "This is what you look like."

Nadia shakes her head, electricity running through her blood faster than the beat of her already racing heart. "No, it's not. This isn't me. This isn't me!"