PANDORA AND PERCY glanced around, warily, they eyed the table that were full of sweets, daphne already sitting down eating some of the food while midas sat next to her, eyeing the food.

Grover entered behind of the siblings, "You must be hungry. I left snacks on the table while i get something proper going." medusa called from the kitchen.

"You think it's safe to eat?" Percy leaned closer to grover to whisper, "I'd hope not. I'll be dead soon if it isn't." daphne spoke with her mouth full.

Pandora glanced behind her to see annabeth and leah walking in, "Thanks for coming." Percy looked at them.

"This isn't the same for me as it is for you." Pandora furrowed her brow as leah sat down next to midas.

"Why?" Percy questioned.

Medusa walked in, the group all dropped their heads away from her quickly, "You're concerned i would hold a grudge against you simply because you are a daughter of athena?"

"You shouldn't be. We're not our parents after all. And you and i might have more in common than you think. Please, sit and eat."

Percy, grover and pandora look at each other before shuffling forward to sit down, Annabeth remains still, shaking her head.

"So you're not a monster, what are you then?" Percy asked.

"A survivor." She answered shortly, "You must be a little more than that." Daphne snorted.

"There's a fury out there that seems terrified of you." Pandora points out, eating the sweets.

"Because she knows what i think of her. I don't like bullies. When one shows up on my doorstep, they end up spending a lot more time here than they planned for." Medusa sat down, looking at them.

"The gift the gods gave me is that i cannot be bullied anymore."

"What my mother did to you wasn't a gift," Pandora glanced at annabeth, eating a piece of chocolate as she stared at the girl with interest.

"It was a curse." Annabeth finished, "You are loyal to your mother." The woman noted, staring directly at annabeth.

"Yes."

"You stand by her?" She asked, "Always." Annabeth made up her face like it was an obvious thing.

"You love her?" Daphne furrowed her brow, "So much questions." the girl mutters and leah nudged her harshly.

"Of course, i do."

"And so did i." She nods, "So did i. Do you know the story of how i came to be this way?"

"I do." Grover nods to himself, "Do you?" The satyr paused, glancing between everyone. "Do i?"

"Athena was everything to me." She started, "I worshipped her, i prayed to her. i made offerings..she never answered. Not even an omen to suggest she appreciated my love. I wasn't like you, sweetheart. I was you."

"I would've worshipped her that way for a lifetime..in silence. But then one day, another god came, and he broke that silence." She glances at percy. "Your father."

"The sea god told me that he loved me. I felt as though he saw me in a way i had never felt seen before. But then athena declared that i had embarrassed her and i needed to punished. Not him. Me." Her red lips curl into a frown as she recalled the memory.

"She decided that i would never be seen again by anyone who would live to tell the tale."

"That isn't what happened." Annabeth retorted. "My mother is just, always."

"The gods want you to believe that, that they are in fallible. But they only want what all bullies want. They want us to blame ourselves in their own shortcomings."

"That is not what happened. And you are a liar."

Medusa purses her lips, then looks over her shoulder and shakes her head, she returns her gaze to percy and pandora.

"Something's burning." She sighs. "Would you two give me a hand in the kitchen? i think lunch is ready."

Percy and Pandora looks to annabeth and midas who shakes their heads, they then look at each other before standing up and following medusa into the kitchen.

"Grover, daphne, leah.." The trio glanced at annabeth who stared at them. "Get ready to run."

The siblings slowly make their way into the kitchen, medusa stands at a stove with her back to them. They stop, looking around.

"She's not usually like that." Pandora stated. "I mean, a little bit, she is, but that was a lot."

"She's going to betray you. And that son of persephone will follow right behind her. Sooner or later, people like them, they always do." The two siblings share a look, furrowing their brows.

"I don't think they're like that." Percy spoke, "Then you will be an easy mark for her when the time comes."

"What do you care?" They step closer, "Your mothers and i, we're like sisters in a way." Percy and Pandora looked at each other.

"Targeted by the same monster. So i find myself protective of you."

"A monster?" They said in sync. "Our mom never talked about my dad that way." Percy said, looking at medusa.

"Where is she now, your mothers? are they safe?"

Percy froze, his mouth opened then closed as he looked down, "No. They're not."

"And do you trust your friends to help you to make them safe? Will they let you make her safe if it conflicts with their quest?"

Percy and pandora looked at each other, before quietly making their way out.

The group looked up as they heard footsteps approaching from above, flames lit up the staircase before braziers erupts, lighting up the dark room.

Percy looks around before turning to a face, he gasped, the group all stared at the stone statue, "That's so not cool." Daphne tilts her head at the statue.

They turn to the staircase, hearing the door close before annabeth grabbed their attention. "Come on."

They walk deeper into the shadowy chamber, they maneuver through various crates and stone statues.

"There's seven of us and only one of her. if we split up, she can't be watching us all at once." Grover stopped in front of them.

"I don't think it'd be that simple."

"It could be. Here's the plan. I'll get in the air, i'll draw her attention. As soon as you hear me say, 'Maia,' you guys start—" They watched as grover started floating in the air. "Oh, boy! okay! um.. off. Down." He screamed.

"There's six of us now." They all looked at daphne who shrugged, "So, we're gonna need a new plan." Percy and the others nodded in agreement to annabeth's statement.

"We are not our parents, until we choose to be." They all looked to each other before hiding.

"You three have chosen. A daughter of a self-righteous mother, who chose self-righteousness for herself."

"And you two, you could've shown your fathers what it means to stand up for someone you love."

"At least she didn't say—" Midas covered daphne's mouth, as he, daphne and leah hid behind a crate.

"You could choose to save your mother instead of doing your father's biddings. If neither of you will help teach these lessons, perhaps you should be the lessons."

Percy and Pandora looked at each other before slowly pulling out their swords, percy's emitting an orange light and pandora's emitting a blue light.

"When i ship your statues to olympus..maybe that will get my point across even better. Stand up. Let's have a look at you."

Percy and Pandora looked down before standing up slowly, with their eyes close they slowly walked to medusa, who looked at them with a smile and reached for them.

"I didn't really think this through!" Grover yelled, crashing into a crate.

Annabeth puts her cap on medusa, "Now!" Both Percy and Pandora aim for medusa's invisible head, "Did we get it?" They looked at each other.

"Hey, are you okay?" They both walk, checking the ground with their foot, "Did you say something?" Grover asked as annabeth and the others stood over him.

"Eugh." Pandora grimaced, feeling medusa's invisible head in the ground, her sword changed back into a ring and she slides it on her finger as percy lowers his sword, dropping to his knee and picking up the head.

"Aw man." Percy grunts in disgust, handing it to pandora who glares at him, "Can i hold it!?" they all turned to leah in surprise.

"Let her hold the head." Daphne winced when midas cuffed her head.

"I'm sick of you." The girl cursed under her breath.

Then, pandora and annabeth walk through the dining room, "Want me to take it from here?" The daughter of athena questioned.

"No, no, i got it." Pandora shook her head as they approached the door, "Just make sure it's pointing in the right direction before you take my hat off." The girl instructed.

Pandora nods, "Imagine it's facing me and i just turn to stone?" She snorts and annabeth stares at her, "Not funny? oh.. wrong crowd." She looks off to the side.

"Good tip." She added, the two eye each other awkwardly before pandora cleared her throat.

"My hands are kinda full.." She trailed off, "Of course." Annabeth opens the door and pandora steps outside with a sigh, still holding medusa's head.

Annabeth closes the door, her chest heaving as she watches pandora walk up to alecto who unfurls her wings and lunges towards her.

Pandora pulls off the cap, revealing the head to the fury, making her turn to stone and drop to the ground.

The two join percy, leah, midas, daphne and grover back down in the basement, grover staring at a stone statue.'"What is it?" Annabeth asked.

"Uncle Ferdinand." Grover answered. "Oh, no."

"Grover, i'm so sorry." They all stared at the statue in front of them.

"This is as far as he got on his quest. We aren't even to trenton. But look at him." He chuckled softly, tears getting ready to fall from his eyes before he wipes it.

"He's not like the others, he.. he doesn't look afraid." He cleared his throat. "You used the, um, you used the head to get rid of alecto?"

They all looked at pandora and annabeth, "Yeah." She nodded slowly, looking at grover. "Good. That was the right move." He wipes his eye again.

"Uh, we probably should get going. It'll be dark soon."

Percy and Pandora nodded. "But what are we gonna do with the head? I just took down a fury with it, and i wasn't even trying. We can't just leave it for someone to find. Leave the bat on and bury it in the basement, that oughta keep it safe."

Annabeth drops her gaze, "Sure." Daphne sighed, feeling another argument brewing, "Now, can we talk about the bigger issue here?" She questioned.

"What bigger issue?" The siblings glanced at midas then at annabeth, "You could have saved your mothers.' That's what she said to you, like you discussed it already. Is your mother still alive?"

"They're with hades." Percy said, "But we appreciate your concern." Pandora rolled her eyes, "Guys, just please stop." Leah nodded in agreement.

"No. no, keep going." Daphne shook her head, crossing her arms and watching the scene unfold in front of her.

"Oh, we're concerned. What are you actually doing on this quest?" Midas narrowed his eyes at the two, "And why did we have to hear about this from medusa?"

"Okay, while we're at it, 'You should've accepted my offer?' What's that about do you think? And why do we have to hear it from alecto?" Percy argued.

"Enough!" Leah groaned, they all turned to her and grover, "The hat was a gift from her mother. It's the only thing she's ever possessed that connects them. That oughta matter to you." Leah stated.

Pandora looked away, fiddling with her ring, "Okay, but how are we gonna make sure this thing is safe?" Percy asked.

"I'm not up to that yet!" Daphne stepped back, fearing the tone in leah's voice, grover turns to annabeth and midas, "And you, really? Their mom's alive and so is their other mom. Can you imagine how confusing that must be for them? Feeling like they may have to choose between the fate of the world and the fate of the only two people who's ever cared about them?"

"Why are you talking like this?" Annabeth looked at grover, confusion written on her face.

"Because all day we've been trying to keep this quest on track," Grover gestured to him and leah, "Without upsetting either of you."

"But maybe things need to get a little upsetting before they move forward." He looked and percy and pandora then at annabeth and midas.

"She asked you a question back in the woods, and you never really answered. What are you so afraid of?"

"What are you talking about?" Pandora huffed.

"You heard me." The girl paused, looking down, "I don't know."

"I think you do. You two been fighting with them, you've been fighting with me."

"Because the oracle said one of you would betray us. Okay?" Percy said, his eyes sparkling with tears, they all stared at the siblings. "You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend, and you shall fail to save what matters most in the end.' That's the rest of what she said to us."

"We chose them because we couldn't imagine we'd ever be friends. And we chose you because i thought if we can count on anyone to be on our side, no matter what, it was you. And now, we're feeling so..alone." His chest heaved, his voice cracking.

"We don't know what to think or who to trust." Grover glances at annabeth and midas who sighs.

"Where exactly do i fit in this..?" Leah whispered, daphne looking at her with a snort.

"I didn't mean it that way." Percy said, noticing the looks on their faces.

"Alecto offered to help our quest if we gave you up to her." The siblings looked at each other before looking back at annabeth and midas. "What did you say?"

"Beth killed her sister." Midas gave a small smile.

"Medusa offered to help us save our moms if we turned on you guys." Annabeth tilts her head.

"And what'd you say?"

"We cut off her head." Pandora shrugged, looking ay the girl.

"You don't choose to be demigods." Daphne made a sound of agreement. "Damn right. I should've been a god instead."

They all looked at the girl, "What? can you guys stop looking at me like that. This is the third time!"

"Maybe if you didn't say stupid stuff all the time we wouldn't." Midas countered.

"We didn't choose this quest. But we can decide that as long as the seven of us are together, none of us are gonna be alone." Grover continued.

"And if we can't do that, we might as well just head back to camp right now. 'Cause we won't make it."

Percy and his sister shared a look, "I think i've got a better idea what to do with this." Pandora smiled and walked away with percy.

They find their way to a desk where a book was, pandora flipped through the book as percy read the pages, the others finally followed after them, standing in front of the desk.

"Hermes express, she ships these things all over." Leah came around the desk and looked at the book, "Some of it goes to olympus." The daughter of hermes glanced at the siblings who nod.

"Percy, Pandora, you can't ship medusa's head to olympus." The two looked at annabeth in confusion.

"Why not?" They said in sync, their eyebrows furrowed slightly, "Because the gods won't like it." Midas said, giving them a look of disbelief. "At all. 'At all' at all."

"Why? that's what you do with dangerous stuff. Like batteries, you just send 'em back where they came from."

"Okay. Look, this is a bad idea. They will see this as impertinent."

"They are impertinent." The siblings nod to daphne who walked around the desk, "I'm in." she grinned, "Of course, you are!" Leah rolled her eyes.

"Yes, but we're not." Midas gestured to him, annabeth, grover and leah. "Really, very not."

Pandora sighed as she grabbed the box medusa's head is in from the ground, "Look. Medusa tried to derail our quest. She's got serious beef with your mom. When you look at it that way, this seems kinda like tribute or something, doesn't it?" They all stared at the two.

"And besides," Pandora added, she removes the cap from medusa's head, then hands it to annabeth, "This way, a part of your mom's still with us."

"Thank you." Pandora smiles at her before taping up the box with the help of percy, "So this isn't exactly what i meant by choosing each other. There are actual dangers involved here that cannot be.."

Percy and Pandora shared a look before they started clapping slowly, daphne snorted as leah started clapping with them for the fun of it.

"You're gonna sing the song, aren't you?" The trio started clapping faster. "Okay."

"Oh, golly. The road's gettin' bumpy. Consensus."

"Dude, that's not the lyrics." Leah glared at percy, "So what?" the girl rolled her eyes. "If you're gonna sing, at least get the lyrics right."

"Okay, party pooper." Percy frowned.