Child of lightning-Percy Jackson x reader-Book one

My world gets turned upside down

I had super weird dreams full of barnyard animals. Most of them wanted to kill me for some reason. The rest just wanted food.

I must have been out cold because if I did briefly wake up I don't remember.

When I finally came around for good, there was nothing weird about my surroundings, except that they were nicer than I was used to. I was sitting in a deck chair on a huge porch, gazing across a meadow at green hills in the distance. The breeze smelled like fresh strawberries. There was a blanket over my legs and a pillow behind my neck. All that was great and all, but my mouth felt like a scorpion had been using it for a nest. My tongue was dry and nasty and every one of my teeth hurt. I looked around and saw Percy sleeping in a chair next to me. I almost woke him up but then decided it would be best not to.

On the table on the other side of me was a tall drink. It looked like iced apple juice, with a green straw and a paper parasol stuck through a maraschino cherry.

I didn't have a problem with apple juice and at that point I wasn't even worried about getting Percy gears if it was actually his drink. I reached out but my hand was so weak I almost dropped the glass once I got my fingers around it.

"Careful," a familiar voice said.

Grover was leaning against the porch railing, looking like he hadn't slept in a week. Under one arm, he cradled a shoe box. He was wearing blue jeans, Converse hi-tops and a bright orange T-shirt that said CAMPHALF-BLOOD. Just plain old Grover, Not the weird goat version of him.

So maybe I'd just had a nightmare. Maybe Sally was okay. We were still on vacation, and we'd stopped here at this big house for some reason. And ...

"You saved my life," Grover said.

Suddenly I looked over and saw Percy's sea green eyes begin to open.

"Percy your awake!" , Grover exclaimed, "oh I went back to the hill. I thought you might want this."

Gently, he placed the shoe box in Percy's lap.

As he opened It, it revealed a black-and-white bull's horn, the base jagged from being broken off, the tip splattered with dried blood. It hadn't been a nightmare.

"The Minotaur," I said slightly dazed.

"Urn, Joey, it isn't a good idea—"

"That's what they call him in the Greek myths, isn't it?" I demanded raising my eyebrow.

Grover shifted uncomfortably. "You guys have been out for two days. How much do you remember?"

Percy stamped, "My mom. Is she really ..."

He looked down.

I stared across the meadow. There were groves of trees, a winding stream, acres of strawberries spread out under the blue sky. The valley was surrounded by rolling hills, and the tallest one, directly in front of us, was the one with the huge pine tree on top. Even that looked beautiful in the sunlight.

Sally was gone. The whole world should be black and cold and horrible. Nothing should look beautiful.

"I'm sorry," Grover sniffled. "I'm a failure. I'm—I'm the worst satyr in the world."

He moaned, stomping his foot so hard it came off. I mean, the Converse hi-top came off. The inside was filled with Styrofoam, except for a hoof-shaped hole.

"Oh, Styx!" he mumbled.

Thunder rolled across the clear sky.

As he struggled to get his hoof back in the fake foot, I thought, Well, that settles it I'm crazy.