"So, how long is this quest?"

"Uh...don't remember. About a week or two. Though we kind of lost track of time somewhere in between the quest."

"How?"

"I'll get to that."

"Fine."

"Okay...where was I?"

⊱ ──────ஓ๑♡๑ஓ ────── ⊰

Out of all the places we could have been, somehow a dark forest is more safer.

It was quiet, though it was a good type of quiet. No monsters or poisonous snakes. All that needs to be done is for us to complete this quest so I don't have to worry about all of that.

Percy and Logan were talking to each other while Grover was trying to play something on his reed pipes. I didn't know whether it was a nature song or Mozart. Either way it was bad.

Annabeth and I were the only quiet ones, which neither of us minded since we prefered the quiet to either sleep or work.

Somehow I zoned out again and started seeing other blue (took me a while to realize they were dead) people. They passed by us, going through the trees and just talking to other dead people.

This time some of them were eyeing me and most were waving at me. I waved back and they would go back to talking with their friends like they just met Jesus. Weird.

What really caught my attention was the three women I noticed. Onc of the women had dark, almost black, hair with brown eyes and fair skin. Another woman had dark skin and curly brown hair. The woman had a younger girl beside her who looked no more than thirteen. The last woman, however, was the one who caught my eye the most. She had dark brown hair, pale skin, and light brown eyes. She was singing to the other women, playing a Lyre. I could hear her voice so clearly and it sounded so serene and calming. The younger girl leaned towards her mother, putting her head on her chest, smiling.

I smiled as well. She had such a soothing voice that it rivaled that of a siren's. Once she finished the women started to compliment her, giving her praise on her voice and also teasing her for it, which made the woman laugh.

The younger girl must've noticed me watching cause she looked my way and smiled at me. I waved at her, smiling as well. Two of the women were talking to each other while the third one was just playing with her lyre. She was looking at the young girl when she finally noticed me. At first she looked like she was trying to figure out who I was, but when she did her eyes widened and she covered her mouth with her hand. She stood up and she tried to walk towards me, but someone grabbed my shirt and pulled me away.

"What the-" I looked behind me to see Annabeth dragging me to the boys. "What are you doing?"

"I need someone to help me with these boys," she said. "They are insufferable."

I looked ahead of me to see the woman looking at me from afar. When I was too far she vanished, which I was disappointed about.

Once Annabeth and I were with the boys, she let go of me, finally.

"What is going on?" I asked. "It's been three minutes and you're already trying to tear each other apart?"

"Uh, it's actually been about an hour-"

"No one asked, Goat Boy," I interrupted.

"You zoned out again," Logan told me. "What was it this time."

"You sound annoyed."

"I'm not."

"You voice isn't making me believe you."

"I'm not annoyed."

"You sound like it."

"Heather's kinda right."

"Shut up, Goat Boy."

"We are getting no where with this," Percy groaned.

"You're the one to talk," I told him.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"You know exactly what that's supposed to mean, Spongebob."

"Stop comparing me to Spongebob!"

"Uhhh...no."

Percy groaned once again, which satisfied me.

"Can't we just call someone for help?" he then asked. "We obviously need it."

"No we can't 'just call someone for help'," Annabeth told him. "And we don't need help. We can do this on our own."

With that, Annabeth and I started walked again and Grover and Logan followed us. But Percy couldn't just let this rest.

"And why can't we?" Percy asked. "I mean, obviously my dad and I aren't on speaking terms right now, but you can call your mom, right?"

I groaned. Annabeth was right, he is insufferable.

"And what if we did have the means to call Athena?" I asked Percy. "I mean, if we did have something like a phone, or some money, we left it on the bus with our bags, both of which exploded with all our valuables inside."

Grover shuddered. "All those tin cans...lost."

"Our clothes, our toiletries, everything," Logan muttered.

Percy was quiet, but I knew that meant he was going to say something stupid afterwards.

"I'm hungry," he said suddenly. He then sniffed the air. "I smell food."

Grover then sniffed the air. "Hmm," he hummed with a satisfied grin. "I do too!"

I was confused. "This is weird," I said.

Annabeth nodded. "What is a smell like this doing in a forest?"

I shrugged but we kept on walking, ready to see what kind of problem we're gonna be dealing with this time.

After a few minutes of walking, we came across a house with a lot of life sized statues. This just gave me a weird feeling.

Annabeth, Percy, and I walked towards a sign. It was a neon sign with huge green letters. To me it looked like: MANTY ME RADENG NOMEG POIERUM. Gods, this was giving me a headache.

"Do you know what this says?" Percy asked Annabeth.

Annabeth shook her head as Grover walked over to us.

"Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium," he translated.

I looked at him. "Thanks," I told him.

Grover smiled at me as we moved away form the sign. As we passed by the different statues I felt myself getting another headache and this time it wasn't because of my dyslexia.

"This place feels strange," I said. "Maybe we should leave."

"I agree," Annabeth spoke. "Maybe we should keep a close eye on this place."

Percy looked at us. 'What are you talking about?" he asked. "There are nothing around here then statues and restaurant food."

I walked towards one of the statues. It looked very realistic. From the facial structure and the eyes and hair. I felt a chill run down my spine.

"So," Logan spoke behind me. "Again, why did you zone off earlier?"

I shuddered once I glanced at the statues again and decided to turn away from them. "I just saw some more dead people."

I never thought serious was an expression Logan could make, but once I saw it in his face I was surprised.

"Who did you see?" he asked.

"Just three women with a young girl our age," I answered. "One of them looked familiar."

"Familiar?"

"Yeah, like..." I tried to think about her face but for some reason I couldn't. "I can't remember."

"Do you remember what she looked like?"

"Yeah...brown hair, same colored eyes, pale skin..."

"Heather."

"Hmm?"

"Think."

"I am thinking."

"No, like seriously, think. Who does that description really make you think of?"

I thought of it for a moment, but still couldn't wrap my head around it. "No one," I said. "She tried to talk to me but then Annabeth pulled me back and she just...vanished when she was far away from me."

"Like a really distant memory," Logan muttered.

I didn't want to think about it anymore. And luckily I didn't have to since Annabeth called us over with her, Percy, and Grover.

So apparently Percy and Annabeth wants to go inside the creepy house. I can see Percy thinking of something like that, but Annabeth must be spending too much time around Percy.

"What?" I questioned. "Why would you want to go in there?"

"There is food, Heather," Percy protested.

"And?" Logan asked. "This place is creepy and not one we should be in."

The four of us looked at Grover, who was usually our voice of reason, but for some reason he stayed quiet.

"Uh..." he spoke. "I...am honestly really hungry."

Percy gave Logan and I a prideful smirk. I just wanted to rip that mouth off his face. But before I could, the door to the house opened and a woman stepped out. She had pale skin and was wearing a black dress and a similar colored veil on her head.

"Oh dear," she said once she saw us. "What are a couple of kids like you doing out here alone?"

Annabeth and I glanced at each other as Percy spoke.

"Uh, we're circus performers," he lied. "We got a little lost on the way to the circus, ran from our ringmaster."

I glared at Percy. Ringmaster? Circus performers? What the hell is he on?

"We're orphans," Logan joined in. "that's why we're...in the circus..."

I gave Logan a look. He gave one back that said 'just go with it.' I just groaned.

"Oh wow," the woman said. "You children must be hungry being this far from home. Come, let me treat you to a little feast."

The boys thanked the woman as she urged us inside, closing the door behind her and locking it. She then motioned to a table where five plates and seats were already prepared for us.

"Oh wow," Percy gasped. "You must've already been expecting people?"

The woman smiled. "I always expect people to come here."

"Into the woods?" I asked. "Why?"

"Lost of travelers end up in the woods, darling," the woman told me. "I pity them, really. They can stay with me forever but chooses to go. What a shame."

The five of us looked at the food for a moment before Logan, Percy and Grover started walking towards it. I grabbed Logan by his shirt and turned him towards me.

"Logan, what are you doing?" I asked him. "We learned the hard way not to trust a random lady with food."

Logan looked back at the food for a moment before looking back at me. "This looks safe."

"And you came to that conclusion because?"

"Come on, Heaths, she seems nice, and what's the harm if we're only staying here for a little while?"

I started to talk but he just pulled my hand away and walked towards Percy and Grover.

Annabeth walked beside me. "We're surrounded by idiots."

"It's true what they say," I started as Annabeth looked at me. "Their is nothing in their brains but kelp."

The two of us walked closer to the table, but we didn't sit down, just watched as the boys downed their food in under a minute, neither of them remembering how to breathe. This is just unbelievable.

Percy looked at the two of us while he was sucking the life out of his smoothie. "What are you doing?" he asked us. "This food is very good!"

"Yeah, for an idiot," I told him. Percy gave me a look but just said nothing.

"What's the matter, dears?" the woman finally spoke. "Not in the mood for fast food?"

That rhymed. What? No, stop! "We're uh, just not hungry," I lied.

Annabeth nodded. "Yeah, uh, as a matter of fact, I think it's best if we leave."

"Leaving so soon?" the woman's voice was almost sympathetic. "Come on, Heather, not without a bite?"

I froze in place as I looked at her. How did she know my name? I looked at my quest mates, but only Annabeth seemed to noticed the abnormality.

"You know..." she started. "It's nice to have friends. I used to have friends. Two sisters."

The woman locked eyes with Annabeth and smiled at her. "My, my, Annabeth, you have such pretty grey eyes. Reminds me of someone I knew."

Now Annabeth finally caught on. No one said her name, or mine yet she knew it like it was obvious.

"You had two sisters?" Logan asked. "What happened to them?'

The woman sighed. "Oh, they passed long ago. You see, there was this woman, I loved her very much. I worshiped her daily and would give her my best offerings, though she never reciprocated that love. Even when I was wronged in her own palace. I prayed to her, begging her for forgiveness, but she didn't do anything to help me. Instead she punished me and my sisters to eternal torment. They stayed by my side, my poor sisters. They helped and loved me until they passed, faded into nothing. Now it's just me."

Annabeth and I glanced at each other once again. That story is so familiar...could it be?

Grover gave us a nervous look and began to get up. "Uh, I think Annabeth and Heather are right, we need to go back to our ringmaster, we don't want him to worry about us that much."

Annabeth and I grabbed Logan and Percy but neither of them wanted to move.

"Awe!" Logan whined. "But just one more nugget please!"

"Nope," I told him. "We have to go."

After some struggling we finally got the two knuckle heads out of the chairs and towards the door.

"As much as this was a...welcoming gesture, we have to go," I said and began to unlock the door.

The woman got up rather quickly. "No, don't go yet!" she called out. "I want to take a picture of you all."

She then motioned us to a small bench. It was pale with two stools which were about six and four inches respectively. I am not getting on that.

"I don't think we have time for a picture," Grover said sheepishly. "We really need to go."

"Well it won't take long, children," she told us. "Just a quick picture."

Percy grabbed my arm. "Yeah, guys," he told us. "It's just a picture, what's the harm."

Logan was out of his 'drunk' state so he was just as confused as the rest of us were when we heard Percy's words. He just pulled us over to the bench as the woman got in front of us.

"Okay," she said. "The girls on the first bench, the boys on the second. And smile big now!"

Logan leaned in towards me. "Uh, she doesn't have a camera."

"Yeah, I can see that."

"Then how is she gonna take a picture?"

"She isn't."

"What?"

I just looked at Percy, who looked really sleepy. Grover then looked behind us at one of the statues.

"Bah ha ha!" he bleated. "That kind of looks my uncle Ferdinand."

Logan looked around to what Grover was looking at and was confused at what he was seeing.

"That looks really realistic," he commented. Grover nodded in agreement.

The woman gave them a disappointed look. "Turn around please," she ordered.

"But you don't have a camera," Logan mentioned as he turned around. "How are you going to take a picture?"

"Don't worry about that," she told him. "Just stand still for me and don't blink."

I felt someone's hand on mine and I looked in the corner of my eye to see Annabeth looking at me. "On three," she whispered.

I nodded as we looked back at the woman, who was slowly taking off her veil.

"One..."

Grover was still looking at the statue I presumed cause he and Logan were still talking to each other about it.

"Two..."

I looked at Percy and he looked like he was snapping out of his state. I grabbed his hand and gave me a confused look.

"THREE!"

Annabeth and I pulled the boys down once the woman removed her veil completely. Luckily we didn't look at her. We all hid behind the benches while Annabeth put on her cap and went invisible. Lucky.

Percy glared at me but I covered his eyes. "What are you doing?"

"Well excuse me for not letting you get turned into stone!" I snapped.

"What?"

I looked at Grover, who was crouched behind Percy. "Grover, you okay?"

Grover nodded. "That was Uncle Ferdinand," he said sadly.

I reached around Percy and patted him on the head. "That woman. She's Medusa. I didn't think we'd encounter her again. Especially like this."

Percy looked at me. "What?"

Logan, who was crouched in front of my feet, shushed Percy. "No time to explain. We have to kill her before she kills us."

Annabeth appeared in front of Logan. "I have an idea," she looked at Grover. "Grover, do you have those shoes still?"

Grover nodded and lifted his hoof up to show us the flying shoes Percy gave him.

"Good," Annabeth sighed. "Grover will distract Medusa and once she's too busy trying to get to Grover, Percy will slice her head off."

"What?"

"Why me?" Grover asked.

"You're the one with the flying shoes," Logan told him.

"Yeah but..." Grover started but his face went serious and he nodded. "For Ferdinand."

Annabeth smiled at him. "Stay down until I say go."

We all nodded, but Percy was still confused about everything.

"Maia!" Grover whisper-yelled. Suddenly, his winged shoes came to life and he suddenly was lifted up by his feet in the air, his eyes closed shut.

"Woah!" he screamed. "Maia! Maia!"

He crashed into several statues until he managed to grab a bat.

Logan put his hand on my shoulder. "Do sunglasses help to block out Medusa's stare?"

"I don't know," I said. "Why?"

Logan didn't answer me. He just put on some sunglasses, closed his eyes, got up, and charged at wherever Medusa was. He yelled out loudly, which startled Medusa so it gave him enough time to knock her down. He then ran towards then bench and dove behind it, crawling beside me.

"That worked."

"You just closed you eyes," I told him. "Just-just stay here and wait!"

I could see Grover anywhere so I think he just got knocked out. We all went silent as we heard footsteps getting closer towards us.

"Bastard children," Medusa snarled. "You are just like your parents."

Percy went to say something but I glared at him to be quiet.

"Athena was always stubborn," Medusa continued. "She made me like this. I loved her, I was her most devoted priestess, but even then she didn't try to protect me, she just made me into a monster, forced to roam the earth until some grand hero came to slay me."

"Wasn't she always like this?" Logan whispered. I slapped him with the back of my hand, making him wince.

"Shut up!" I said through gritted teeth. "Is that the only thing you're worried about right now?"

"That and food," he whispered back. "And it was just a question."

"Maybe ask them when we're out of here."

Medusa came closer. "You are just like her, Annabeth," she continued. "Stubborn...stuck up...it's a shame how much you look up to her only for her to not pay any attention. We are not as different as you think."

I looked at Annabeth, who looked like she was going to burst with anger, though she didn't say anything about it.

"Poseidon..." Medusa's voice was closer. "He's the one who started all this. With his ego, he knew he wasn't going to get away with this, and as you'd expect, he did, and with everything him and Athena faced, you'd think she'd be on my side. She wasn't."

Logan winced. "Why is she monologuing?" he whispered to me.

I opened my mouth to say something to him, but he wasn't wrong.

"I don't know," I said honestly.

"We should get out of here," Annabeth said.

"I have an idea," Percy told us.

"Where's Grover?" Logan asked.

We all crawled together and closed our eyes as Medusa came closer. I could hear the hissing of her snakes about three feet away from us.

"You all can stay with me," She told us. "All you have to do...is look."

I held Logan's hand tighter as he brought me closer to him.

"Just...look."

I didn't know how what happened happened the way it did, but the next thing I knew I heard Grover yelling, Medusa screaming, and then a slicing sound. We then heard someone breathing heavily.

"Okay," Percy's voice sounded. "You can open your eyes now."

I slowly opened my eyes only for someone to cover them.

"Now what the hell?"

"The head is still there," Logan told me.

"What?"

"Annabeth, can you hand me your cap?"

I guess Annabeth handed Percy her cap and he put it on the head of Medusa. Logan then uncovered my eyes and the first thing I saw was Percy holding something invisible with Annabeth helping up Grover.

I just stood there. "How?" I asked.

"I don't know," Percy said. "But Grover did all the heavy-lifting. I just sliced off the head."

I sighed. "Well, at least that's done," I said.

Logan nodded. "Good, now can we get out of here? These statues are starting to creep me out."

Annabeth nodded. "Yeah, let's get out of here."

We tried to leave, but Logan paused, making the rest of us stop.

"Wait, what are we going to do with the head?" he asked. "We can't just carry the thing with us."

I shrugged as everyone looked at Percy, who still had the head in his hands.

"I think I know what to do with this."

⊱ ──────ஓ๑♡๑ஓ ────── ⊰

Do you want to know what he did with the head? Probably. Do I want to know? Absolutely not, but I'm probably going to find out anyway so let's get this over with.

We followed Percy to a desk where we found a large box. He carefully put the head in the box. He then started filing out a stamp for Hermes Overnight Express. Once it was finished it said:

The Gods

Mt. Olympus

600th Floor

Empire State Building

New York, NY

With best wishes

Percy Jackson

Once he was done with the stamp, he turned it around and showed it to us. Once we all saw it, Logan snorted and started laughing.

"Percy, what are you doing?" I scolded him. "Do you know what the gods will do once they see this? They will kill us!"

Percy looked at me for a moment before picking up the marker once again and started to write something else on the stamp. He then looked at me once again.

"What is your last name again?"

"Why?"

"Just tell me."

"Agulera."

"With or without an 'I'?"

"Withou- what are you doing?"

Percy didn't answer me, he just kept writing and when he was done he showed it to us. Once I got a good look at it, my face was red with anger.

"You fucking wrote my name on there?" I yelled at him.

"Yes."

"Why the fuck would yo-" I groaned. "You know what? If I die, I am haunting you from the grave until your last breath, you hear me? And when that happens I am torturing you in the Underworld for all eternity!"

Percy just grinned at me. "Looking forward to it, grave popper."

With that he suddenly grabbed a random drachma and put it on top of the box. After a moment it disappeared with a pop. after that he smiled at me before he just walked away. I completely resisted the urge to punch that shit-eating grin off of his face.

Annabeth just grabbed my hand. "Come on, the faster we get through with this quest the faster we can stop spending a moment with him."

We walked out of the house finally and I wanted nothing more than to complete this quest now.