Well,” I said, “you obviously have some power. You chased off those hooligans with rotten fruit. Perhaps you have banana-kinesis? Or you can control garbage? I once knew a Roman goddess, Cloacina, who presided over the city’s sewer system. Perhaps you’re related…?”Meg pouted. I got the impression I might have said something wrong, though I couldn’t imagine what.

I see you like to study,” I said. “Well done.”Percy snorted. “I hate to study. I’ve been guaranteed admission with a full scholarship to New Rome University, but they’re still requiring me to pass all my high school courses and score well on the SAT. Can you believe that? Not to mention I have to pass the DSTOMP.”“The what?” Meg asked.“An exam for Roman demigods,” I told her. “The Demigod Standard Test of Mad Powers.”Percy frowned. “That’s what it stands for?”“I should know. I wrote the music and poetry analysis sections.”“I will never forgive you for that,” Percy said.

You’re gonna be like Aquaman?” she asked. “Get the fish to fight for you?”“Thanks,” Percy said. “I haven’t heard enough Aquaman jokes for one lifetime.

Meg turned and gazed out the rear windshield, probably checking for any shiny blobs pursuing us. “At least we’re not being—”“Don’t say it,” Percy warned.Meg huffed. “You don’t know what I was going to—”“You were going to say, ‘At least we’re not being followed,’” Percy said. “That’ll jinx us. Immediately we’ll notice that we are being followed. Then we’ll end up in a big battle that totals my family car and probably destroys the whole freeway. Then we’ll have to run all the way to camp.”Meg’s eyes widened. “You can tell the future?”"Don’t need to.” Percy changed lanes to one that was crawling slightly less slowly. “I’ve just done this a lot.

But Percy Jackson has always been reliable. You have nothing to fear. Besides, he likes me. I taught him everything he knows.”She frowned. “You did?”I found her innocence somewhat charming. So many obvious things she did not know. “Of course. Now let’s go up.