"Who's reading now?" Percy asks again after no one answered.

"How can you just move on after that?" Hazel asks, color coming back to her face.

Percy shrugged. "It's not the worst thing that's happened to me."

Everyone stared at him. He looked back at them.

"Y'all don't remember Mount Saint Helens?"

The eyes of the demigods who were there at the time widened.

"So, who's reading?" Percy asks with a smile.

"I'll read." Aphrodite volunteers.

Clarisse hands her the book and she opens to the correct chapter.

I BECOME A KNOWN FUGITIVE

"Of course, you did." Clarisse rolls her eyes.

"It's not a quest if I don't." Percy smiles.

"You got that right." Grover chuckles.

"Sounds fun." Ares sneers.

I'd love to … et cetera.

"Did you?" Travis asks.

The truth? My only thought was: Aaaaggghhhhh!

"I'd take that as a no." Connor laughs.

"Like you would think any better." Percy says. "It was a long fall."

The river …my lungs.

Percy coughed and gasped a little. Definitely a weird sensation when you're not actually falling over six hundred feet into a river.

Steeples and … Flaaa-boooom!

"Didn't that hurt?" Hazel asks.

"Son of Poseidon." Percy explains taking a deep breath now that he was 'in the water' so to speak.

A whiteout of bubbles…into the gloom.

"That's a big fish." Grover says.

"Yes it was."

Clouds of … around me.

Grover, Artemis, Demeter, and Poseidon frown. The rivers shouldn't be this polluted. Human should be taking better care of their planet.

At that point…which was good.

"It's very good." Annabeth says, leaning into Percy's side.

"Of course, it is Wise Girl." Percy says, kissing the top of her head.

Second realization: … it felt perfectly dry.

"Does that transfer to objects?" Frank asks curiously.

"You'll find out." Percy tells him.

I looked at … bottom of the Mississippi.

Leo's eyes lit up as he looked to Percy. Percy looked back, his own eyes lighting up after a moment.

"No!" Thalia says. "Whatever you're thinking. No."

"You can't stop me." Percy tells her.

"Chiron will." Nico tells him.

"You can't tell me he wouldn't be curious." Percy shoots back.

There was a moment of silence.

"We're doomed."

I grabbed a soggy … breathing normally.

"That's the last thing to occur to you?" Dionysus snorts.

"Yeah, yeah it was." Percy tells him.

I stood up, thigh-deep in mud. My legs felt shaky. My hands trembled.

"Ohhh still don't like this feeling." Percy says, clenching his hands.

"Better than poison." Annabeth points out.

"Better than poison." Percy agrees with a nod.

I should've been … what do you say?

Poseidon cringed. Maybe his future self wasn't the brightest, sending a nymph that sounded like his lost mother.

"Um ... thanks… you ... Father."

"You're welcome." Poseidon says.

Percy flashes him a smile as Aphrodite continues to read, her own small smile on her face.

No response… color of butterscotch.

"Sounds pretty. If there wasn't so much pollution." Piper says.

Why had … the bottom feeders.

"Percy no." Annabeth says looking to her boyfriend worried.

Percy just shrugged, not looking at anyone. He didn't like the fact that his friends were getting a glimpse at his self-deprecation.

The others looked to each other with frowns. Just how badly did Percy think about himself. After a moment of silence Aphrodite continued reading.

Fump-fump-fump. … water like dolphin sonar.

"That's cool." Travis and Connor say.

"It really is." Percy says, glad the topic has moved on from his thoughts.

"Where are you… I said, "Mom?"

Poseidon cringed.

"Not the best move there, brother." Hades says.

"I'm sorry Percy."

"It's alright." Percy says. "It was nice to pretend for a moment."

No, child, …for my presence.

"The rivers really need to be cleaned." Demeter says.

"They are not the sea, I don't have a say there." Poseidon says regretfully.

"But ..." I was … trust the gifts...

"Never trust gifts." Leo says, eyes dark.

"Leo?" Piper asks.

Leo waves his hand, dismissing the question.

Her voice faded…, I had lost her again.

Percy sunk down in his seat.

Annabeth held his hand tightly, stroking her thumb over his knuckles.

I felt like drowning myself. The only problem: I was immune to drowning.

The room was silent.

"Percy?" Annabeth whispers.

Percy didn't answer, eyes turned away from everyone.

He missed the glances his friends were sending each other and the determined looks they gained.

Aphrodite continued reading after a moment of tense silence.

Your father …floating McDonald's.

"Disgusting." Artemis sniffs.

"McDonald's is great!" Most demigods called back.

"It's a gift." The Stolls said practically drooling.

A block away, …out of the river."

"Children are always so clear sighted." Athena says. "A shame they lose that as they get older."

"Some things just aren't meant to be known." Hephaestus tells her.

Athena nods. "Also true."

"That's nice, dear," … for the camera:

"That's never good." Katie says.

"Hence how I become a fugitive." Percy tells her.

"Probably not … Grover were okay.

"Everyone was okay." Grover says.

"For the most part." Annabeth adds.

I tried to push … confirmed fatalities ..."

"You're only twelve." Jason shakes his head. "The things you manage to get into."

"Absolutely wild isn't it." Percy says with a chuckle.

I backed away…Hades the hard way!"

"Wouldn't it technically be the easy way?" Leo asks.

"Yes." Hades says. "Definitely the easy way into my realm.

Annabeth …"I sort of fell."

"Sort of?!" Was the general exclamation.

"Percy! Six hundred and thirty feet?"

Thalia shivered. That was really high.

Behind us, a cop …fire-breathing Chihuahua-"

"Oh dear, she was clear-sighted." Athena sighs.

"Okay, ma'am," … That's the boy!"

"Hopefully one of my kids notices this at the hospital." Apollo says. "Does no good when a clear-sighted mortal gets marked as crazy."

I turned … underwater lady's message.

"You did not tell us the whole story!" Grover and Annabeth yelled.

Percy smiled bashfully. "You would have just worried."

"As if we weren't worrying anyway!" Annabeth exclaims.

"Whoops?"

"Whoa," said Grover. … of Percy Jackson."

"Time to run." Connor says.

"Run very quickly." Hermes nods.

"Get outta dodge." Apollo finishes.

We ducked around … skyline behind us.

"That ended well." Aphrodite says closing the book.

"Not as fun." Ares grumbles.

"There'll be fun chapters later." Percy says.

Poseidon slouches. "Oh dear."