σɾɳιƚԋαʂ (ρʝσ x ɱαʅҽ σƈ)

The Permission of a Parent

New York City
Percy's POV

Suddenly, I was home. Nico, Theo, and I were sitting on the couch in my mom's apartment on the Upper East Side. That was the good news. The bad news was that the rest of the living room was occupied by Mrs. O'Leary.

I heard a muffled yell from the bedroom.

Paul: Who put this wall of fur in the doorway?

Sally: Percy? Are you there? Are you alright?

Percy: I'm here!

Mrs. O'Leary tried to turn in a circle to find my mom, knocking all the pictures off the walls. She's only met my mom once before (long story), but she loves her.

It took a few minutes, but we finally got things worked out. After destroying most of the furniture in the living room and probably making our neighbors really mad, we got my parents out of the bedroom and into the kitchen, where we sat around the kitchen table. Mrs. O'Leary still took up the entire living room, but she'd settled her head in the kitchen doorway so she could see us, which made her happy. My mom tossed her a ten-pound family-size tube of ground beef, which disappeared down her gullet. Paul poured lemonade for the rest of us while I explained about our visit to Connecticut.

Paul: So it's true.

Paul stared at me like he'd never seen me before. He was wearing his white bathrobe, now covered in hellhound fur, and his salt-and-pepper hair was sticking up in every direction.

Paul: All the talk about monsters, and being a demigod...it's really true.

I nodded. Last fall I'd explained to Paul who I was. My mom had backed me up. But until this moment, I don't think he really believed us.

Percy: Sorry about Mrs. O'Leary destroying the living room and all.

Paul: (laughs) Are you kidding? This is awesome! I mean, when I saw the hoofprints on the Prius, I thought maybe. But this!

He patted Mrs. O'Leary's snout. The living room shook—BOOM, BOOM, BOOM—which either meant a SWAT team was breaking down the door or Mrs. O'Leary was wagging her tail.

I couldn't help but smile. Paul was a pretty cool guy, even if he was my English teacher as well as my stepdad.

Percy: Thanks for not freaking out.

Paul: Oh, I'm freaking out. I just think it's awesome!

Percy: Yeah, well, you may not be so excited when you hear what's happening.

I told Paul and my mom about Typhon, the gods, and the battle that was sure to come. Then I told them Nico's plan.

My mom laced her fingers around her lemonade glass. She was wearing her old blue flannel bathrobe, and her hair was tied back. Recently she'd started writing a novel, like she'd wanted to do for years, and I could tell she'd been working on it late into the night because the circles under her eyes were darker than usual.

Behind her at the kitchen window, silvery moon lace glowed in the flower box. I'd brought the magical plant back from Calypso's island last summer, and it bloomed like crazy under my mother's care. The scent always calmed me down, but it also made me sad because it reminded me of lost friends.

My mom took a deep breath like she was thinking about how to tell me no.

Sally: Percy, it's dangerous. Even for you.

Percy: Mom, I know. I could die. Nico explained that. But if we don't try—

Nico: We'll all die. Ms. Jackson, we don't stand a chance against an invasion. And there will be an invasion.