𝒎𝒊𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒓𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒍 - 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒄𝒚 𝒋𝒂𝒄𝒌𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒙 𝒐𝒄

‧⁺˚*･༓𝑭𝑰𝑽𝑬༓･*˚⁺‧

Word of the bathroom incident spread immediately. Wherever Percy went, campers pointed at him and murmured something about toilet water. 

Or maybe they were just staring at Phoenix and Annabeth, who were still dripping wet. 

They showed Percy a few more places: the metal shop (where kids were forging their own swords), the arts-and-crafts room (where satyrs were sandblasting a giant marble statue of a goat-man), and the climbing wall, which actually consisted of two facing walls that shook violently, dropped boulders, sprayed lava, and clashed together if you didn't get to the top fast enough. 

Finally, they returned to the canoeing lake, where the trail led back to the cabins. 

"I've got training to do," Annabeth said flatly. "Dinner's at seven-thirty.Just follow your cabin to the mess hall." 

"Annabeth, I'm sorry about the toilets." 

"Whatever." 

"It wasn't my fault."She looked at him skeptically and Phoenix stood there silently once again with her arms behind her back balancing on her tip-toes, and Percy realized it was his fault. 

"You need to talk to the Oracle," Annabeth said. 

"Who?" 

"Not who. What. The Oracle. I'll ask Chiron." 

Percy glanced around and noticed the Naiads staring at him. They smiled and waved as if he were a long-lost friend. Percy didn't know what else to do. He waved back. 

"Don't encourage them," Annabeth warned. "Naiads are terrible flirts." 

"Naiads," Percy repeated, feeling completely overwhelmed. "That's it. I want to go home now." 

Phoenix frowned. "Don't you get it, Percy? You are home. This is the only safe place on earth for kids like us." 

"You mean, mentally disturbed kids?" 

"I mean not human. Not totally human, anyway. Half-human." 

"Half-human and half-what?" 

"I think you know," Annabeth said bitterly.

"God," Percy said. "Half-god." 

Annabeth nodded. "Your father isn't dead, Percy. He's one of the Olympians." 

"That's...crazy." 

"Is it? What's the most common thing gods did in the old stories? They ran around falling in love with humans and having kids with them. Do you think they've changed their habits in the last few millennia?" Phoenix asked.

"But those are just—" 

Percy almost said myths again. Then he remembered Chiron's warning that in two thousand years, he might be considered a myth. 

"But if all the kids here are half-gods—" He said instead.

"Demigods," Annabeth said. "That's the official term. Or half-bloods." 

"Then who's your dad?"Her hands tightened around the pier railing. 

Percy got the feeling he'd just trespassed on a sensitive subject. 

"My dad is a professor at West Point," Annabeth said. "I haven't seen him since I was very small. He teaches American history." 

"He's human." 

"What?" Annabeth scoffed. "Do you assume it has to be a male god who finds a human female attractive? How sexist is that?" 

"Who's your mom, then?" Percy rolled his eyes while Phoenix stifled a laugh.