CHAPTER SIX ━━ MEDUSA'S CURSE

THERE WAS A BEAT OF silence that fell across the group. There was an air of hesitancy the fell within the group as they stared at the woman in cream white. She was wearing a hat, her eyes covered by a veil to obstruct anyone's view from her face. All they saw was the strangely calm's woman's red lips and shining white teeth showing as she spoke. Annabeth looked at the woman in suspicion. "Don't." She warned the group, smart enough to realize the danger they could be in. Medusa didn't seem phased by her suspicion at all. "We all choose who we make our monsters, but right now. That one wants to tear you limb from limb..." She spoke as the group stared down at the ground slightly in caution.

The woman seemed to have an offer for them. "And, I'm offering you lunch. The choice is yours." She said calmly. The group of kids could hear the woman's footsteps receding behind them. They had gone quieter with every step she took, letting them know she was gone. She really hadn't tried to kill them. Which was... interesting to say the least. She really would have expected her to have killed them, maybe out of spite. But she didn't. Which made Eurydice feel a strange sense of sympathy for the woman. "I think we can trust her." Percy muttered as the group looked up from their eyes on the ground.

Annabeth and Grover started at him in outrage. "What?" She yelled in unison. Percy sighed, as Eurydice frowned. "I mean.. I do kind of feel bad for her." She muttered softly as she recalled the two versions of Medusa's story she had been taught. Percy nodded in agreement. "Yeah. I can't explain, I just- My mom used to tell me her story." He explained. "And the point was always that she isn't what people think, and I definitely trust my mom." The other two members of their group went quiet at that. "So I'm going in. You guys do what you want." Percy said quickly, stubborn as always.

As he walked away she needed a second to process him leaving. She blinked as she frantically ran towards him. "Hold on! I'm coming with you." She yelled as she ran over to the blonde, who smiled at her slightly. A couple of seconds later she heard more footsteps, but ignored them as she and Percy walked into the building. There was a sign she saw at the front of the building that read Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium. So, the great Medusa's lair was just a plant shop? Well, she didn't expect that.

As they stepped slowly into the door of the emporium. They were greeted with a large table full of snacks and desserts. She gasped, her mouth watering slightly. She didn't realize how hungry she was until now. She swallowed slightly as she walked in behind Percy, who stared at the lit up candles hesitantly. The room was decorated nicely, and it looked homely. She had to admit that Medusa was a really good interior decorator. She looked up at the stairs leading to the upstairs of the house. The lights almost looked like an orange colour in the darkly lit room.

They heard the clicking of steps as Medusa walked in, Grover joined them a few seconds later still holding the box Percy had been carrying a few minutes ago. "You must be hungry." Medusa said from somewhere near the kitchen. "I left snacks on the table while I get something proper going." She sounded almost excited at having guests. She wondered if she had a lot of guests around here. Probably not, which made her feel a little sad for the woman. She stared at the table hesitantly, she was hungry but she couldn't eat right now. Her stomach couldn't handle it for the rest of the quest if she were to stomach anything now.

Her worries were worsened by Percy's mutter to her and Grover. "You think it's safe to eat?" He asked hesitantly. Eurydice swallowed slightly, her stomach turning at the sight of food. Grover seemed to be feeling the same way. "I'm not gonna lie to you guys, but I'm really hungry and I'm ready to take that chance." He said as stared at the food on the table longingly. She nodded in agreement. "Me too. I'm starving. But I think if I eat anything now I'll just throw it up later." She whispered as she sighed, she always had such a weak stomach.

The bell at the door chimed, signaling another person had just walked in. The three of them turned to look at Annabeth who had just walked in. "Thanks for coming." Percy said to the girl who looked distrustful of the room. "This isn't the same for me as it is for you." She said to him as Percy stared at her in confusion. It took for minute for Eurydice to understand until she remembered. "Oh. Oh." Her eyes widened in understanding, looking apologetically at Annabeth. Athena had cursed Medusa, and of course Annabeth was Athena's daughter. Which didn't sound good for them.

Despite her thoughts, Medusa didn't seem very spiteful towards her at all. "You're concerned I would hold a grudge against you simply because you are a daughter of Athena?" She asked the braided haired girl. The demigods all went quiet, but Grover still seemed focused on the food. "You shouldn't be. We're not our parents after all." Medusa said calmly as she filled some glass cups at the table full of with lemonade. The woman really did have a point after all. And that wasn't just because Eurydice really wants that lemonade, she swears. "And you and I might have more in common than you think." Medusa said, metaphorically giving Annabeth an olive branch.

Which was ironic considering that Athena's whole thing is also olives. Medusa had the grace and calmness of an immortal being, but strangely like a protectors as well. Like a kind aunt you trusted to pick you up from school. "Please, sit and eat." She encouraged the much younger group as she gestured towards the chairs. She slowly made her way to a chair beside Grover and Percy, eyeing the lemonade slightly. Annabeth meanwhile was still standing up. still suspicious of the woman.

Percy cut off a piece of chicken. "So if you're not a monster, what are you then?" She asked her in confusion as he started eating. Eurydice took a small sip of her lemonade, it was perfectly made. It was sweet and sour, and not the warm kind of lemonade. So it was perfect. She sighed softly as she took another sip. Medusa answered Percy's question without hesitation. "A survivor." She muttered, to which she stopped drinking some of her lemonade. She stared at Medusa with some sympathy, her story wasn't a fun one to bring up. She was just a mere mortal until the gods got involved.

Percy didn't seem to be getting what she meant. "You must be a little more than that." He muttered as a clack of the utensils continued. "There's a Fury out there that seems terrified of you." He mumbled. The woman hummed. "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 there than they planned for." She smiled hesitantly at the woman in white. "I don't like bullies either." She muttered. "I'd give anything to not be targeted ever again." She remembered what had happened to Percy at camp back with Clarisse. And she wondered if that would happen to her too if they got back to camp alive.

Glory brought a lot more than just a tag to your name. It also brought jealously and hatred. And she wasn't sure if she wanted that or not. Medusa just smiled at the girl, it looked more bittersweet than a happy one. "The gift the gods gave me is that I cannot be bullied anymore." The woman said as she sat down at the front of the table, overlooking the children. She winced in some sympathy for her. Her gift was more of a punishment, but she seemed to be making the best of it. She didn't seem evil like all of the other mythological beings they've met so far.

Annabeth seemed angry at the thought that her curse could be seen as a gift. "What my mother did to you wasn't a gift." She said bluntly. "It was a curse." The older woman went quiet before she spoke again. "You are loyal to your mother." She stated. "Yes." Annabeth muttered. Medusa looked down slightly. "You stand by her?" Annabeth frowned, but nodded. "Always." She murmured. In a moment Medusa's voice went soft, almost questioning. "You love her?" She wasn't sure what kind of answer she was expecting. "Of course, I do." Annabeth said.

Medusa's voice came out all melancholic and soft. "And so did I." She muttered softly. "So did I." Eurydice frowned in sympathy for the woman. She had to live with a horrible curse, so now anyone who ever tried to stay with her would get hurt. It was cruel, too cruel. "Do you know the story of how I came to be this way?" She asked them. Grover nodded. "I do." He said, his mouth full of food.

Eurydice nodded too. "I do too. I've learned.. all the versions." She muttered. "Do you?" The woman in white asked. "Do we?" Grover sounded extremely confused. While Eurydice sighed. "Maybe you don't, but I think I do." She muttered to him in some annoyance, taking another sip of her lemonade. "Athena was everything to me." Medusa started to explain to them. "I worshipped her, I prayed to her. I made offerings..." She trailed off. "She never answered. Nor even an omen to suggest she appreciated my love." She sounded sad just talking about this. Her voice grew louder now. "I wasn't like you, sweetheart. I was you." She looked specifically at Annabeth, where any words she could have uttered died at her lips.

The veiled woman continued. "I would have worshipped her that way for a lifetime..." She looked down into her lap. "In silence." The room was eerily quiet, and even though Eurydice had heard this story and its variations almost a hundred times. She found herself awaiting the woman's next words. "But then one day, another god came. And he broke that silence." She muttered. "Poseidon." Eurydice muttered under her breath.

Medusa nodded, looking 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." The story was a sad one. One of the gods meddling in things they shouldn't, just like all of the other myths that come after it. "But then Athena declared that I had embarrassed her. And I needed to be punished." The woman didn't sound angry when she said it, she only sounded sad. "Not him." She stopped. "Me." She could hear her voice crack slightly. "She decided that I would never be seen again by anyone who would live to tell the tale." She muttered. 

Annabeth glared at the woman in anger. "That isn't what happened." She insisted. Eurydice gave the other girl a worried look. "Annabeth—"
She interrupted her, the worry in her tone as a warning. "My mother is just, always." The girl said stubbornly. Medusa sighed. "The gods want you to believe that that they are infallible. But they only want what all bullies want. They want us to blame ourselves for their own shortcomings." Something in Eurydice made her stop suddenly. She clutched the now empty glass of lemonade in her hands tightly.

In a way, she was right. Even if Annabeth didn't want to accept it. But somewhere deep inside of Eurydice, she had a really bad feeling about all of this. Call it paranoia, her just overthinking things. But she couldn't shake it. Something about all of this just wasn't right.

Annabeth just looked even more angry at the idea of her mother being criticized. "That is not what happened." She glared at the veiled woman. "And you are a liar." The whole table went silent. Medusa then frowned, then her lips morphed back into a smile as she shook her head.

"Something's burning." Medusa shook her head again and sighed, shakily muttering. "Would you give me a hand in the kitchen? I think lunch is ready." She looked over at Percy and Eurydice specifically. As soon as the blonde boy got up, she followed him hesitantly. She gave Grover and Annabeth one last look as she took a last sip of her the lemonade.

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SHE COULD HEAR THE SIZZLING of a pan as she and Percy slowly walked into the kitchen. Eurydice honestly wasn't sure what to expect, Medusa had seemed.. off after what Annabeth had said to her. She understood it to some extent, Athena was her mom. But angering Medusa didn't seem like such a good idea even if she was defending her mother's honour. It just doesn't seem worth it. She cleared her throat as she and Percy awkwardly stood at the door. She cleared her throat again as they watched the woman at the stove. "We apologize for her ma'am... well-" Percy finished her sentence for her. "She's not usually like that. I mean, a little bit, she is, but that was a lot." He muttered awkwardly.

Medusa didn't answer them right away. She got right to the point, after a second or two of silence from her. "She's going to betray you." She said bluntly, like a warning as Eurydice slowly realized that this woman might be more mistrustful than they thought. The woman continued, her back never turning away from them. "Sooner or later, people like her, they always do." She sounded so sure of it, like she had experience with it. Percy shook his head at her in disbelief. "I don't think she's like that." He defended. Medusa scoffed. "Then you will be an easy mark for her when the time comes." She muttered. The woman's voice sounded colder now. "It's best for you two to realize this while you can." She didn't like the way the woman said that, as her frown deepened slightly.

Percy stepped towards Medusa bravely. "What do you care?" He stepped towards her slowly. Eurydice anxiously watched, her hand slide again the keychain in her pocket. Medusa answered calmly, like she wasn't accusing their friend of betraying them. Even though the prophecy mentioned a traitor, she finds it hard to believe. A traitor could be anyone, not just one the quest. "Your mother and I, we're like sisters in a way. Targeted by the same monster." Her voice was softer now, more empathetic. She could understand Sally and Medusa's feelings towards Poseidon. Even though Sally never really badmouthed the man in front of Percy. "So I find myself feeling protective of you." The woman in the veil finished as Percy stared at her in confusion.

Medusa stopped cooking for a second. "And, you, daughter of Hades. Remind me of myself. Naive, sweet, quiet. Dedicated as I was to Athena. I don't want what happened to me, happen again. So I'll spare you for your friends sake." She sighed softly. Eurydice frowned slightly. "What?" She muttered in confusion. Percy's voice sounded flat as he spoke. "A monster?" He sounded surprised. "My mom never talked about my dad that way." He went quiet. They heard the rattle of a spoon hitting the pan. "Where is she now, your mother? Is she safe?" She asked him. Percy looked down at the ground, shaking his head. "No, she's not." He admitted.

Medusa sounded like she knew she was right. "No. She's not. And do you trust your friends to help you to make her safe? Will they let you make her safe if it conflicts with their quest? Will one of them not betray the two of you in the end?" Eurydice felt a lump in her throat the more she thought about it. It was a horrible feeling to doubt that Grover and Annabeth didn't possibly have their best interests at heart. But she couldn't possibly accept that, after everything they've gone through so far. If Annabeth had wanted them dead, they would have died sooner.

Percy looked tentative, lost in his thoughts when Medusa spoke again. "I could... help you remove them from the equation, so that you can be free of them. If you ask me to." Her voice sounded slightly less gentle than before. It sounded more horrifying now the more she thought about it. What she was offering them... she was offering to kill Annabeth and Grover for them. Percy quickly grabbed her hand, exiting the room as fast as they could. She would have been rooted at the spot if it wasn't for him dragging her out. She was grateful for him being faster at reacting than she was.

But Eurydice's worries weren't lessened as they left the room. And soon enough they were hiding from Medusa, one look and they'd be goners. She knew that Medusa wouldn't stop going after them once she realized that they weren't going to agree with her offer. The lump in her throat worsened. Her stomach feeling slightly faint as the four of them hid in a dark room. She swallowed heavily as she stared up in confusion as the door to the basement they were hiding in creaked slowly. She blinked in confusion as she watched it, the others staring too.

It was deadly silent, until a fire outlined the top of the stairs, getting close to them with every movement. She swallowed hard as she looked away, jumping slightly when the four of them turned around to see a statue. It was a woman, who had seemed to be screaming before Medusa had killed her. Her body was frozen solid, the stone substance making her look more like a statue than a dead person. She breathed in shakily as she calmed herself down. "It's just a statue." She muttered to herself, sounding relieved.

But as soon as the looked at the rest of the room, her relief was gone and now replaced with shock. The whole room was filled with nearly a dozen statues, all of dead people. The fire lighted the place up as if this was some kind of horrifying museum of statues. The creaked again slightly, telling them that Medusa had walked in. It closed with a loud slam, she could feel her face pale slightly as the realization dawned on her. "Come on." Annabeth ushered them down the maze of statues, everywhere they looked another statue was there. As if it was mocking them.

They sped down the maze. Grover whispered something as they passed a hoard of boxes surrounded by statues. "There's three of us and only one of her. If we split up, she can't be watching us all at once." He muttered, trying to come go with some kind of plan for them to live through this. Eurydice nodded slightly. "That's true. If she can't get us all at once someone could distract her in time for one of us to get her." She offered. Annabeth shook her head at her slightly. "I don't think it'd be that simple." She muttered.
"It could be." Grover insisted.

The four of them stopped for a second. They needed a plan or else they were goners. Grover, ever the idea man cleared his throat. "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..." He gasped, as seconds after he said 'maia' the shoes on his feet started to fly. She stared at him in shock. "Where did you get flying shoes?" She whisper yelled. Percy chuckled. "About that... those are mine." She stared at him in confusion. "What? Since when?" She blinked. Annabeth gave her a look of annoyance. "Look, we don't have time to talk about that—" She sighed deeply.

Meanwhile Grover was freaking out over the flying shoes. His eyes were blown wide in absolute confusion, no thoughts but panic behind his eyes. "Oh, boy! Okay! Um..." He flew off into the distance with a confused yell. "Off. Down." She could hear his voice crack as she watched him fly away screaming. "Okay... so we might need a new plan." Eurydice muttered nervously, as soon as the flying Grover had flown away out of their sight. Annabeth sighed. "Right.. new plan." She muttered, shaking her head.

They were interrupted by the sound of Medusa's voice, now more harder. Angry. She sounded so angry. "We are not our parents, until we choose to be. You two have chosen." They started running as soon as they heard the echo of her voice throughout the maze of a room. She felt her heartbeat quicken with each movement, she could practically feel Medusa's anger. It was horrifyingly calm. "A daughter of a self-righteous mother, who chose self-righteousness for herself." They could hear her snakes hissing from their hiding place beneath the boxes outlining the room. "And you, you could have shown your father what it means to stand up for someone you love." Her calmness in her anger was worse than any screaming that could have surfaced.

She could hear the click of the woman's heels stop. "And you, daughter of hades. I was just trying to help you realize who and who you cannot trust. That the world will look down upon you if you can't be selfish for yourself." She shakily curled in on herself at the woman's tone. She couldn't panic right now, this was life or death. She needed to focus, ignore whatever she may be feeling right now and that should be enough. Medusa's voice echoed through the room. "You could choose to save your mother instead of doing your father's bidding. If neither of you will help teach these lessons, perhaps you should be the lessons. When I ship your statues to Olympus.." She felt a chill down her spine at that.

The gods would be at war with each other if they were to fail this quest. If they die right here everyone else is going to have a worded fate than theirs right now. She breathes the cold air through her nose as she feels her lungs fill up with cool air. "...maybe that will get my point across even better." Her hand reached for her sword at her pockets. But reaching for it now would make too much noise, but at this point what did she have to lose?

As she was about to take her sword out. Percy had taken his out instead. Medusa's head turned at the sound. "Stand up. Let's have a look at you." She commanded Percy, who shakily stood up from his hiding spot across from hers. Her eyes widened in fear as she watched the boy hold his golden sword tightly, his eyes closed shut for dear life. Right as Medusa was about to reach out for him she bent down with her sword in her hands, ready to swing. Her eyes were down to the ground as she swung at the woman's legs.

Grover's screaming was heard right as she was about to swing. "I didn't really think this through!" He fell to the ground in one swoop, crashing into the boxes she had been hiding near before. She could make out a shuffle of feet she recognized to be Annabeth's as she stared at the ground. "Now!" The girl yelled as she put her hat onto Medusa's head. Eurydice immediately looked up and smirked, slashing at the bottom half of Medusa's body as Percy cut her head off. They could hear the woman's scream as they heard her now invisible head fall off.

She breathed in shakily in relief, not realizing how tightly she was holding her sword. "We did it." She muttered in relief, a slight smile on her face. "Did you hear that?" Percy muttered, suddenly looking sick once he remembered the sound of her head being cut off. Annabeth looked over at Grover in worry. "Hey, are you okay?" She asked the satyr in concern. "Do you have a concussion?" Eurydice muttered nervously as she and Annabeth shared a wince. "Did you say something?" Grover muttered, on the ground completely out of it.

She sighed as she and Annabeth helped Grover to. She patted his shoulder comfortingly. "You're gonna be fine buddy." She smiled slightly. She could hear Percy scoff in disgust as he grabbed what seemed to be Medusa's head. It made a disgusting squelching sound. "Aw, man." Percy muttered in disgust. "You found it?" Annabeth asked in surprise. Percy nodded and gingerly got off the floor to hold it up. "Ugh. Do you smell that?" Eurydice muttered, the smell of death was familiar. But it didn't fail to be the worst thing she's ever smelled. "Yeah, I think this is it. At least I hope so." Percy muttered nervously as the group got out of there as fast as they could.

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Her shoulders relaxed slightly when they made it back upstairs. Now it was less worrying to be up there without Medusa's eyes constantly on them. "Do you want me to hold it instead?" Annabeth asked Percy, who still looked a disgusted by the invisible head. Percy shook his head at her. "No, no, no. I got it." He reassured her. Eurydice frowned a little. "I think if I was the one holding that thing I would have thrown up." She was thankful that she hadn't been the one to chop off her head either. She did cut off her torso though, but that technically didn't count because it was self defence.

Percy snorted slightly. "Yeah, I know. You and your weak stomach." He muttered. Annabeth gave Percy a look. "Hold on, just make sure it's pointing in the right direction before you take my hat off." Eurydice nodded in agreement. "Good idea." She gave the other girl a thumbs up. Percy nodded too. "Yeah, good tip." Annabeth nodded. "Okay." Percy awkwardly held the invisible head gingerly. "My hands are kinda full..." He trailed off. Eurydice gaped. "Oh! Right." Annabeth opened the door before the two of them could talk anymore.

She followed Percy outside. "So, moral support, am I right?" He muttered to her as they slowly walked outside. Eurydice laughed slightly under her breath. "Yeah, yeah. Alright. Let's hurry this up before she gets any angrier." She muttered to him as Alecto, formally known as Mrs. Dodds flew out in front of them angrily ready to kill them. Eurydice smirked as Percy stared at her expectantly. "Would you like to do the honour Eury?" He asked the girl with a slight dramatic bow of his head.

She smiled, chuckling slightly. "Of course I would." She hummed and quickly pulled the hat right off Medusa's head. Percy held the head out towards Alecto, who immediately turned into stone in a second. Eurydice sighed in relief. "Thus ends the reign of Mrs. Dodds." Percy saluted with his free hand dramatically. She was relieved at the fact that they wouldn't ever be targeted by their former teacher anymore.

A few minutes later they reunited with Grover, who has found his Uncle Ferdinand. "Grover, are you okay?" Eurydice asked him in concern, his intent was staring at the statue that used to be his uncle. "Uncle Ferdinand." Grover answered sadly, staring at the statue. Percy frowned. "Oh, no." Annabeth stared at him sympathetically. "Grover, I'm so sorry." She whispered as the three demigods came to their satyr friend's side.

Grover shakily spoke. "This is as far as he got on his quest. We aren't even to Trenton. But look at him." He chuckled softly, the pain was clear in his eyes. "He's not like the others, he... He doesn't look afraid." He sounded like he was going to tear up into he cleared his throat awkwardly. He looked at her and Percy. "You- used the, um, you used the head to get rid of Alecto?" He asked them. She nodded at him, exchanging a look with Percy. "Yeah, we did."

Grover swallowed slightly. "That was the right move. Uh, we yeah probably should get going. It'll be dark soon." He wiped his eyes slightly. She rubbed the back Grover's shoulder comfortingly. "It's okay, at least we didn't end up like he did. He would have wanted you to survive. Wouldn't he?" The satyr really looked like he needed to hear that. "Yeah." He muttered out softly. "Thanks Eurydice." He smiled at her, looking less choked up now. Percy cleared his throat. But what are we gonna do with the head?" He muttered in confusion. Eurydice sighed deeply. "Right... If anyone finds it. They'll be dead within seconds." She winced at the mental image in her head.

Percy looked like he was trying to think of something. "We just took down a Fury with it, and we weren't even trying. She's right, we can't just leave it for someone to find." He then got an idea. "Leave the hat on and bury it in the basement, that oughta keep it safe. Sure." He shrugged slightly. "Sure." Annabeth agreed quickly. "Now, can we talk about the bigger issue here?" They stared at her in confusion. "What bigger issue?" Percy asked. "You could have saved your mother." She said as if that was obvious.

Eurydice nodded her head. "Ah, right that." She rested her hand on the side of her face slightly. It seemed like Annabeth and Percy were going to start fighting again, and she did not have the mental energy to deal with that anymore without passing out from exhaustion. Annabeth stared at Percy intensely. "That's what she said to you, like you discussed it already. Is your mother still alive?" She asked him in concern. "She's with Hades." Percy answered casually. "But I appreciate your concern." He shot back in frustration.

Grover and her shared another uncomfortable look. "Are you kidding me? Again?" She said to him with a shake of her head. Grover frowned deeply. "Guys, just please stop." He begged them, and she had to agree. They wouldn't survive on this quest if they all can't get along. "Oh, I'm concerned." Annabeth muttered angrily. "What are you actually doing on this quest? And why did I have to hear about this from Medusa?" She glared at the blonde. "Okay, while we're at it, 'You should have accepted my offer?' What's that about do you think? And why did we have to hear it from Alecto?" Eurydice could feel her patience finally running out.

She glared at the two of them in frustration. "Cut it out!" Grover yelled at them then too. "Seriously. This is Enough!" Their fighting was wearing out at this point, and Eurydice couldn't help but wonder why they couldn't get along. Percy and Annabeth immediately stopped at the other two members of their group yelling at them. Grover, ready to spill his frustrations out started on a rant. "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." He angrily explained to Percy.

Percy frowned. "Okay, but how are we gonna make sure this thing is safe?" He asked him accusingly. Eurydice gave him one of her best glares. "He's getting there Percy." She gritted her teeth. He pales slightly at the look of pure anger on her face. It wasn't often that she got angry at him, and whenever she did he knew not to mess with her. Grover smiled slightly at her standing up for him. "She's right. I'm not up to that yet. I am not done!" He yelled. She was really proud of Grover for standing up for himself. Annabeth and Percy were getting exhausting to be around.

Grover stared at Annabeth in disappointment. "And you, really?" He shook his head at her. "His mom's alive. Can you imagine how confusing that must be for him? Feeling like he may have to choose between the fate of the world and the fate of the only person who's ever cared about him?"
He ranted intensely.

Annabeth stared at the satyr in confusion. "Why are you talking like this?" She asked him. Eurydice answered her question for her with a look of disappointment. "Because, all day he's been trying to keep this quest in track without upsetting either of you." She shook her head at the two of them. "I'm really disappointed in the two of you. I expected better." She sighed. She could see the way their faces fell underneath her disappointment. Grover shakily nodded. "But maybe things need to get a little upsetting before they move forward." He seemed to have calmed down a little, but not enough to fully stop this conversation from happening.

Grover then looked at Percy. "She asked you a question back in the woods, and you never really answered. What are you so afraid of?" She remembered the look on Percy's face when Annabeth had asked him that. The thing he was afraid was who would betray them in the end. There was a guarantee that Eurydice couldn't betray them, but not Grover or Annabeth. The boy in question defected. "What are you talking about? You heard me. I don't know." He didn't sound convincing at all. Eurydice stared at him knowingly. "Percy." She warned him, the look in her eyes saying that she'd tell them about the prophecy if he didn't.

Grover was oblivious to what she insinuated. "I think you do. You've been fighting with Annabeth, you've been fighting with me. But not Eurydice?" He sounded so upset that Percy just had to tell him. "Because the Oracle said one of you would betray me. Okay? Eurydice doesn't count because she was the second demigod to lead this quest. I know I can trust her. I just..." He went quiet. Eurydice finished his words for him. "You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend, and you shall fail to save what matters most in the end." She recited it perfectly, a sigh at her lips.

Percy snapped. "I chose Annabeth because I couldn't imagine we'd ever be friends. And I chose you, Grover because I thought if I can count on anyone to be on my side, no matter what, it was you. And now, I'm feeling so alone." He breathed in shakily. "I don't know what to think or who to trust. Except Eurydice, who's been keeping me sane this entire time. And I'm still not sure why she's so sure that the prophecy won't come true." He ranted shakily.

Eurydice frowned deeply at that, she didn't realize how much Percy was holding in. Her blind faith that they would figure all of this out was keeping her from thinking the worst. She didn't realize that it had bothered Percy so much, but now she realizes she should have seen it with the amount of times Percy looked like he wanted to say something he shouldn't. She stared at the boy apologetically, she had been trying to hold off her worried about the traitor and ignore it entirely. Where he was trying to cope with it, already assuming the worse.

Annabeth and Grover stared at him, with hurt and worry in their eyes. Percy sighed. "I didn't mean it that way.." He muttered softly. Annabeth cleared her throat with a a sigh. "Alecto offered to help our quest if I gave you up to her." Percy stared at her in surprise. "What did you say?" Eurydice chuckled. "I think that's obvious." She muttered. Annabeth nodded. "Yeah, I killed her sister." She answered. The two of them finally seemed to be coming around to tolerating each other. Which she was relieved at.

Eurydice hit Percy's arm, motioning him to say something to Annabeth. "Medusa offered to help me save my mom if I turned on the two of you. She would have spared her." He motioned towards Eurydice. "But you two would have been goners." He muttered darkly. "And what'd you say?" Annabeth asked him."I cut off her head." Percy said, rubbing his arm in slight pain from Eurydice having hit him.

Grover seemed relieved that the two were finally starting to understand each other. "You three didn't choose to be demigods. We didn't choose this quest. But we can decide that as long as the four of us are together, none of us are gonna be alone." Eurydice smiled at that, it would be nice to know she wasn't alone. It was comforting to know the others would have her back like Grover said. The satyr continued quickly. "And if we can't do that, we might as well just head back to camp right now. Cause we won't make it." He muttered seriously.

Percy got an idea. "I think I've got a better idea what to do with this." He said. A few moments later he was flipping through a book. "Hermes Express, she ships these things all over. Some of it goes to Olympus." Eurydice's eyes widened. "You want to ship Medusa's head to Olympus?" She asked him in shock, it took a lot of guts to do that. And in all honestly it was a huge insult to the gods, as if they didn't deserve that. Annabeth stared at Percy in shock. "Percy, you can't ship Medusa's head to Olympus." She insisted with shake of her head. "Why not?" He asked. "Because the gods won't like it." Annabeth answered. "At all. 'At all' at all." Grover finished her words for her.

Percy frowned in confusion. "Why? That's what you do with dangerous stuff. Like batteries, you just send 'em back where they came from." Eurydice nodded in agreement. "If you think about it. It's really not that bad. Plus... technically it's kinda like a... homage in a way." She shrugged slightly. But Annabeth and Grover still seemed uneasy. Annabeth sighed deeply. "Okay. Look, this is a bad idea." She muttered, a frown deepening on her face. "They will see this as impertinent." She argued. "I am impertinent." Percy rationalized. Eurydice attempted to hide her laugh behind her hand.

Annabeth looked worried. "Yes, but we're not." She motioned towards herself and Grover. "Really, very not." Grover muttered nervously in agreement. Percy had already packed away the head in the box at this point, "Look. Medusa tried to derail our quest. She's got serious beef with Annabeth's mom. When you look at it that way, this seems kinda like tribute or something, doesn't it?" He asked. Eurydice smiled. "Exactly. She'll see it as a trophy for us defeating someone she doesn't like." She rationalized, like it made perfect sense in her head. And it did, but she also found it funny that the gods would receive that box taped up with Medusa's head inside of it in a few hours.

Percy shrugged. "And besides..." He trailed off and took the hat off Medusa's head. Passing th hat to Annabeth. "This way, a part of your mom's still with us." He smiled at her hesitantly. Annabeth looked surprised. but thankful as she took the hat. "Thank you." She muttered out softly. "See? Isn't this much better than you two fighting all of the time?" Eurydice asked the other two demigods with a smug look on her face.

Percy chuckled slightly. "I guess." He muttered, as Annabeth nodded slightly. Grover sounded nervous as he watched Percy finish sealing the box up with tape. "So this isn't exactly what I meant. By choosing each other. There are actual dangers involved here that cannot be..." Grover has strayed to rant in worry. As suddenly Percy started clapping his hands suddenly. Eurydice almost burst out laughing, in solidarity she started humming along to the song. Grover blinked in confusion. "You're gonna sing the song, aren't you?" Percy started clapping his hands together faster in response. Annabeth smiled, hiding her laugh slightly.

Eurydice bopped her head slightly as she clapped her hands together now too. "Okay." Grover finally relented, done with trying to stop them. "Oh, golly. The road's gettin' bumpy." Percy sang. Grover rolled his eyes at them. "Whatever." He tried to hide his amusement. "Consensus!" Percy sang. She could hear Annabeth's and Percy's laughs as the boy finished annoying Grover. She could get used to this if her friends would laugh like that all the time.

The parcel that had been delivered to the 600th floor that day had been penned by none other than Percy Jackson and Eurydice Ramirez, with their best wishes to Olympus.

█⠀⠀⠀. ˚◞♡ ⃗ *ೃ༄ RAI SPEAKS!! . . .
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Guess who's back! That's episode 3 done! This is the last week of school until semester change for me so you guys will be getting more updates soon! Hope you enjoyed this chapter cause I love writing it. This is probably the highlight of my week, working on this. The pjo fixation just keeps getting worse lol.

We got some Percaeurybeth bonding this chapter, plus Grover standing up for himself ‼️Anyways hope you guys enjoyed this! Here are some complementary memes if you made it to the end of the chapter! Hope you enjoy them. I hope you're all excited for chapter 7 cause I know I am.