The ghost drifted toward them. He pointed at Apollo, then gestured for his Magic 8 Ball again. He stopped on the opposite side of the coffee table.
" 'Sup, Cheese?" Leo asked.
Via snorted. "Cheese?"
"Yeah, he's orange," Leo said. "Why is that? Also, why is he headless?"
"Leo," Calypso chided. "Don't be rude."
"Hey, it's a fair question."
Emmie studied the ghost's hand gestures. "I've never seen him this worked up. He glows orange because...Well, actually I have no idea. As for why he is headless—"
"His brother cut off his head," Apollo supplied. "Agamethus was the brother of Trophonius, the spirit of the Dark Oracle. He..." The former god trailed off uncertainly.
"His brother did what?" Calypso asked.
"How did you know that?" Emmie demanded.
Apollo, apparently, had no answer. But the ghost pointed at me as if to say, This dude knows what's up, or possibly, It's your fault. Then he gestured again for his Magic 8 Ball.
"He wants the Magic 8 Ball," Jo interpreted. "I'll be right back."
She jogged over to her workshop.
"The Magic 8 Ball?" Leo grinned at Emmie. "She's kidding, right?"
"She's dead serious," Pat said. Via smacked him. "Sorry. Bad pun."
"We might as well sit," Emmie suggested.
Calypso and Emmie took the armchairs. Leo hopped onto the couch next to Apollo, bouncing up and down with such enthusiasm that Via wondered whether he was hopped up on caffeine or if it was just the standard demigod ADHD. Pat sat on Apollo's other side, and Via, not wanting to sit anywhere near her dad, just sat criss-cross-applesauce on the floor. Pat gave her one of his incredulous Seriously? looks, but Via stubbornly remained on the floor.
Jo trotted back over after a few moments, carrying Agamethus' Magic 8 Ball.
"I love those things!" Leo said. "Haven't seen one in years."
Apollo scowled at the sphere like it was a bomb. "What does it do?"
"Are you kidding?" asked Leo. "It's a Magic 8 Ball, man. You ask it questions about the future."
"Impossible," Apollo said. "I am the god of prophecy. I know every form of divination, and I have never heard of a Magic 8 Ball."
Calypso leaned forward. "I'm not familiar with this form of sorcery, either. How does it work?"
Pat laughed. "It's supposed to be just a toy, my guy. You shake it, turn it over, and an answer floats up in the little plastic window on the bottom. It's not really a form of divination." He laughed again and shook his head in amusement at Apollo. "Boomers."
"Boomers," Via agreed.
"Hey, now," Jo warned them, but she had a small smile on her face, so Via knew she wasn't actually offended. Then again, she wasn't actually a boomer. Judging by what she knew of her past, Via was pretty sure that Jo was part of the Greatest Generation. "I made some modifications to it," Jo informed the newcomers. "Sometimes the Magic 8 Ball picks up on Agamethus's thoughts and conveys them in writing."
"Sometimes?" Leo repeated.
Jo shrugged. "Like, thirty percent of the time. Best I could manage."
"Wouldn't it be faster if Agamethus simply wrote down what he wanted to say?" Apollo asked.
YOU ARE READING
Anti-Hero || Leo Valdez
Fiksi PenggemarVia knows she shouldn't be thinking about Leo Valdez. He has a girlfriend whom he literally died for, a girlfriend who is so much better than Via in practically every way. Unfortunately, Via never had much self-control, and after saving her sister f...
