Amaurosis

IV: What's Your Problem?

Words buzzed in my ears and my mouth moved quicker than a Leviathan. I felt like a kid lying to their parents about a report card, explaining as fast as possible so they'd ask zero questions and just think I was crazy. Maybe I am. Who knows?

"And that just about sums it up..." I finished and glanced around at their various expressions. They ranged from absolute confusion to complete bewilderment. And their voices said it all.

"Huh?"

"What?"

"That sounded like one long word. One never-ending, really, really, really long word. Or maybe a different language." Percy's face contorted into something similar to constipation.

Only Percy, I thought.

A boy with wildly curly hair entered the room with a bucket nearly the size of him, his hands ablaze as stray corn kernels flew across the room. "Hey! You told me to get some popcorn! Now you're all talking without me? That's messed up, amigos. Really messed up." He plopped down on the couch and chomped away, shoving handfuls into his abnormally large mouth.

"Wait, wait, wait. Hold your pegasi." Jason stood up and swatted the air with his hands. "That didn't make any sense. None at all."

"Yeah," Percy agreed, though I couldn't tell what his reaction was. He always appears to be in a late stage of mental disorientation. I don't think I nor anyone has ever looked at him and said, "Gee, he looks intelligent." And Percy's next line only solidified my original argument. "Like, that story made as much cents as a homeless man living outside the shops in Times Square."

"Um, Percy?" Annabeth spoke to him as if he was a five-year-old. If you ask me, his brain capacity is much smaller. A normal five-year-old asks 'Why?'; he asks 'Why not?' "Percy, that is cents as in money, not sense as in common sense."

"Which you have none of," Nico whispered from behind me. I couldn't help but grin and laugh, though against my own will, of course. I'm not that insensitive. Okay, maybe I am, just a little.

"There's a difference?" Percy asked quietly, leaning down toward Annabeth to ask her separately from the group, trying not to make the others think any less of him. His eyes were wide open as if his brain was just blown.

I, on the other hand, couldn't think any less of him. Come on, it's Percy. He just whips out a pen and starts fighting, then magically ends up winning. Sounds fishy to me, and not just because he's a son of Poseidon.

She nodded disappointingly and Leo slapped him on the back. "It's okay, buddy. We all have our moments."

"Some more than others," I grinned. Then all of their attention was back on me. Uh, oh.

"Can you repeat your whole story one more time?" Annabeth asked nicely, taking a seat beside Leo. "A little slower this time, though, please."

"Fine," I dragged on, slouching my shoulders. "I had this dream-"

"When?" Percy asked.

"A couple of hours ago," I answered honestly, hoping no one would question it. I didn't exactly dream like the average teenage girl.

"Wait a second," Nico intervened and shook his head violently. "How were you dreaming when I was with you the whole time? You seemed pretty awake to me." He had an almost unreadable expression, accusing and suspicious.

"Why does it even matter?" Piper questioned and he shrugged in response.

"Can she just get on with the dream?" Annabeth nearly shouted.

"Anyway, so in this dream, Apollo was speaking to this woman. She was gorgeous with light brown hair and green eyes, I think. He was speaking in this weird verse, but that's not the strange part yet."