Percy Jackson's Sister

First Horses, Now Snakes? Just Pass the Soda.

   I protested that Percy and Annabeth were the ones who had saved all our butts from being ripped to shreds.

  That just earned me punishment along with them.

  Percy was so upset he told Tantalus to go chase a donut, which didn't make it any better.

  Later that evening we had to wash plates. I didn't think that was so bad, until I saw the chicken ladies.

  There were four or five women with chicken feet and colored wings. They were plump and didn't look very friendly.

  I turned to look at Annabeth, who was trying to ignore the fact that Tyson was gaping at the chicken ladies.

  "Harpies," she told me.

  Instead of washing with water, you know like normal people would, they cleaned the plates with lava. I guess water didn't give it that extra shine.

  Annabeth passed me gloves that went up to my armpits and a huge apron.

"I'm hoping these are lava proof, if not you're just slightly delaying my death."

  Percy cracked a smile but Annabeth gave me an exasperated look. I guess she wasn't in the mood for jokes.

  I washed plates while Percy and Annabeth discussed some dream that he had had last night. Tyson didn't pay much attention, he didn't even need gloves, he washed away with his bare hands.

  "Mental soda," Tyson said, not taking his eyes off the plates.

  "Excuse me?" I said, assuming he was talking to me since Percy was still recounting his dream.

  "The state. Said it was called Mental Soda. Saw you on street. Cold." He spoke in broken sentences but I got the gist.

"Minnesota?" I asked. A shiver went down my spine as I remembered staying on the same freezing street for three days. "Are you sure it was me?"

  He nodded and turned to look at me.

"Eyes."

  I looked down. Vaguely, very, very, barely, remembering a tall kid, looking at me from across the street. He approached, but jerked his head all of a sudden and ran off to the right. I never thought much of it.

  "I'll give you a hint," Annabeth was saying to Percy. "What do you get when you skin a ram?"

  "Messy?" Percy answered.

Annabeth looked like she wanted to plunge Percy's head in with the plates.

"A fleece, Percy. You get a fleece," she sighed.

"And if that ram happens to have golden wool-"

  "The Golden Fleece?" Percy interrupted. "You're kidding, right?"

  "The Grey Sisters said they knew the location of the thing you seek. They also mentioned Jason. Three thousand years ago they helped him find the fleece. You do know about Jason and the Argonauts, don't you?"

"Yeah, the old movie with the clay skeletons."

  "Oh my gods, Percy!" Annabeth put away her last plate and threw down her gloves. "You're helpless!"

  "What?" Percy looked genuinely confused.

  "Just listen. The real story of the Fleece: there were these two children of Zeus, Cadmus and Europa, okay? They were about to get offered up as human sacrifices, when they prayed to Zeus to save them. So Zeus sent this magical flying ram with golden wool, which picked them up in Greece and carried them all the way to Colchis in Asia Minor. Well, actually it carried Cadmus. Europa fell off and died along the way, but that's not important."