"Um ..."

 

I can't pretend I hadn't thought about Rachel. She was so much easier to be

around than . . . well, than some other girls I knew. I didn't have to work

hard, or watch what I said, or rack my brain trying to figure out what she was

thinking. Rachel didn't hide much. She let you know how she felt.

 

I'm not sure what I would have done next — but I was so distracted, I didn't

notice the huge black form swooping down from the sky until four hooves landed

on the hood of the Prius with a WUMP- WUMP-

 

C PUNCH!

 

Hey, boss, a voice said in my head. Nice car!

 

Blackjack the pegasus was an old friend of mine, so I tried not to get too

annoyed by the craters he'd just put in the hood; but I didn't think my stepdad

would be real stoked.

 

"Blackjack," I sighed. "What are you — "

 

Then I saw who was riding on his back, and I knew my day was about to get a lot

more complicated.

 

" 'Sup, Percy."