Sea Green Eyes

Trials of Apollo - Part Two

Sally and Cressida had done a great job of cleaning up Meg. Meg's dark pageboy hair was glossy and brushed. Her round face was scrubbed clean of grime. Her cat eyeglasses had been polished so the rhinestones sparkled. She had evidently insisted on keeping her old red sneakers, but she wore new black leggings and a shirt with different panels of green. Cressida had clearly braided her hair back as well to keep it out of her face.

"Well," Sally Jackson said with forced cheerfulness, "how about I make some lunch while you four... talk."

"We'll be ok," Cressida promised but that was also forced as she kissed Sally's cheek and the woman disappeared into the kitchen.

Meg sat on the edge of the sofa. "Percy, your mom is so normal."

"Thanks, I guess." He picked up a stack of test preparation manuals from the coffee table and chucked them aside.

"You're picking them up and acing every one of them when we get back," Cressida said as Percy plopped down on the sofa and propped his legs up, something his mother would not be happy about had she been in the room, but given present company and problems, he would get away with it.

"Deal. But after our rain check," Percy said as he tugged her to sit next to him, the two of them snuggled together as his arm settled over her shoulders.

"I see you like to study," Apollo remarked. "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. Do even get me started on the fact that all Cress has to do is get her GED, pass the SAT's and her DSTOMP to get her scholarship."

"That's literally just as difficult," Cressida remarked.

"Yeah, but you're you. It doesn't count."

Cressida laughed. "What does that mean?"

"It means you make everything look easy even when you haven't done it before."

"What is the DSTOMP?" Meg asked.

"It's -"

"An exam for Roman demigods," Apollo told her, cutting off Cressida. "The Demigod Standard Test of Mad Powers."

Percy frowned. "That's what it stands for?"

"I've only told you that like 14 different times," Cressida said but Percy waved her off.

"I should know. I wrote the music and poetry analysis sections," Apollo said and Percy gaped.

"I will never forgive you for that," Percy said.

"Ah, but if you pass all the tests, you get your birthday present all over again," Cressida said.

Percy closed his eyes, seeming to be in pain as he took a breath. "Don't taunt me with that. Unless you-"

"I swear on the River Styx that I will give you the second present I gave you for your 17th birthday again if you pass all the tests needed to get into the University of New Rome."

Percy bit his lips as if he was bursting with excitement, but with present company, all he could do was nod as he held her body closer to him. "Ok. Ok. I'm going to ace the crap out of those practice tests when we get back."

"That's my man," she said proudly as she kissed his cheek, and he beamed like a kid on Christmas.

Meg swung her feet. "Are you guys really demigods? Like me? You seem so normal."