Just a reminder, the underlined bits were taken straight from the book. Hopefully as the story progresses there will be less of these moments as it diverges more from the original. I should also apologise for thaking so long to update. Sometimes I suddenly realise that I haven't written anything in two weeks. Please enjoy this story.

AN I had to make a small edit because I had to add a small detail in and that just caused a cascade of changes but most don't affect you. Just start reading from the underlined bit and you'll get everything you need.

In the morning, the others woke up to find me preparing our breakfast. I'd managed to 'scavenge' some bacon from the cafe before we'd left and it was now cooking in a pan.

"So, Percy," Luke began, "did you get a prophecy?"

Reluctantly, I nodded.

"Let's hear it, then."

I sighed. "It said I would go west and face Hades-"

"What did the Oracle say exactly," Annabeth interrupted. "That's important."

"She said, 'you shall go west and face the god who has turned.'"

"That's Hades. The entrance into the underworld is in Los Angeles."

"You shall find what was stolen and see it safely returned."

"I knew it!" Grover cheered. Thalia glared at him.

"Anything else?" she asked.

I couldn't tell them. What friend would betray me? And why was I going on this quest when I would fail anyway? "No, that's it."

Annabeth looked at me, unconvinced. "Ok, but remember, the prophecy doesn't always mean what it appears to at first. That's why the wording is important."

"Ok then," Luke said. "Now that we've got that sorted out, it's time to figure out who you're taking with you on this quest."

"What? You mean, you're not all coming?" I asked. "This is a big quest; we need all the help we can get."

"I'm sorry, Percy, but that's the way it is. Three go on a quest. That's enough to watch each others' backs but don't attract too much attention."

"But there's more than three of us now and we've been fine," I complained.

"We're not on a quest. It's dangerous us being together all this time and we're really lucky to have survived this long. We can't risk that on a quest, especially not this one. I'm sorry, Percy, but you can only take two of us with you."

I thought for a moment. I remembered Grover's searcher's license. "Grover, you're coming with me."

"What?" he asked, shocked. "Why would you want me with you?"

"Of course I'd want you with me. You're my best friend and you tried to take on a Kindly One for me."

Luke smiled. "Ok, Grover. Who else?"

I looked at the people surrounding me. Who would I want on a quest? Luke was nice; he looked after me and trained me, but I just didn't feel like I would want him on the quest. Thalia was strong and liked to make fun of me as if I was her brother, but she was also quite stubborn. We clashed often and I didn't want that to happen on a quest. Tyson was very sweet and strong and could definitely be useful on a quest, but he was also like my baby brother and I couldn't bare to see anything happen to him. Finally, I turned to Annabeth. She had a very strategic mind and always knew what to do. She was strong, confident and we had developed a nice friendship.

"Annabeth? Would you like to join me?"

"Thought you'd never ask, Seaweed Brain."

I pouted at the nickname and she laughed.

"Ok, guys. I think we should agree a meet up place," Luke suggested. "We will wait there until you've finished your quest and if it goes horribly wrong, you can come sooner. That way, if all goes well, you'll know where to find us and we can meet back up again."

Thalia nodded. "That sounds like a good idea. Where should it be?"

"How about the cave?" I suggested. "You know, the one we used when Grover and I first joined you."

Annabeth nodded in agreement. "Close to Olympus so we don't have far to go once the quest is finished. However, it would be a long way to go if something were to go wrong on a quest."

"But it is a good landmark and I know exactly where it is. I haven't memorised a lot of your bases and if you were to go missing for whatever reason I need to be able to find my way back," I told her.

She nodded. "That is a good point. What does everyone else think?"

"I think the cave is a good idea. It's a memorable point and Percy does need to be able to find it," Luke said. Thalia nodded in agreement. "It's decided then. When you take off on your quest we will head to the cave. We will wait their until after the summer solstice. Then you'll know where to meet us."

We finished making our plans and began packing for the quest. Luke and Thalia set aside a significant amount of food and gave us the largest backpacks we had. I packed a set of spare clothes, some deodorant Luke had stolen for me and Riptide in my pocket. Annabeth packed her dagger, a set of spare clothes and a couple of books plus a notebook I'd found for her. Grover just packed lots of tin cans into his backpack.

As we were about to leave, Luke pulled me to the side. "No matter what happens out there, know that we will be by your side. Metaphorically, of course. No matter what the gods do to you or Sally, we are your family too. And family always looks after one another. I promise." He smiled at me, warmly.

I smiled back gratefully. "Thank you, Luke. For everything." He nodded and led me back to the group and I realised I'd never told him, or anyone for that matter, about the dream I'd had. Why had he said that if he didn't know?

Thalia gave us money to pay for bus tickets and I said goodbye to Tyson. He was very sad to see me go and he almost cracked a couple of my ribs when he hugged me.

"Oh, before you go-" Luke reached into his bag and pulled out a pair of shoes, "-you're going to need these."

When he handed them to me he said, "Maia," and they sprouted wings, startling me so much I dropped them. They flapped around on the ground for a bit before the wings folded up and disappeared.

"Awesome!" I said. "Thanks, Luke."

"They served me well on my quest. They were a gift from Dad. I don't use them much anymore, though. Thought you might get some good use out of them." I nodded while admiring them. I hugged Luke and Thalia goodbye before giving Tyson one final hug and we set off.

The streets were a lot busier than last night and in the shop I'd managed to find myself an intact set of clean clothes for the first time in months. I was wearing a bright orange T-shirt and a pair of jogging pants. We drew hardly any stares and I felt almost normal. Almost.

"I can't use these, can I?" I asked Annabeth while holding out the shoes.

"Luke meant well but it would probably be best to stay out of the air."

I nodded, sadly. "Hey, Grover. I've got a gift for you."

I handed him the shoes and he grinned at me before taking them. "Thanks, Percy." He slipped on the shoes and said, "Maia." The wings sprouted and the shoes hovered above the ground slightly before racing off down the street with Grover in tow. Me and Annabeth started laughing hard as he frantically screamed, "Maia! Maia!"

"You just need more practice!" Annabeth called to him through her giggles. I'm not sure what the mortals saw but it mustn't have been anything special because they just moved out of his way, some throwing a dirty look as he flew past.

He finally got the shoes under control and waited for us to catch up. "Those things were trying to kill me," he muttered as we continued laughing at him.

We arrived at the bus depot and booked our tickets. After a while, we got bored and started to play Hackey Sack. Annabeth was incredible: she could bounce the apple off her elbow, her knee, her forehead, her chin, anywhere really. I wasn't too bad. About halfway through the game, I had an idea.

"Hey, Annabeth?" I said as I bounced the apple off my foot.

"Yeah?" she asked as she bounced it straight off Grover's head and back to me.

"Didn't you once tell me that throwing an apple to someone in Ancient Greece counted as a marriage proposal?" I said, grinning as I bounced the apple back towards her.

She blushed bright red as she lost concentration and the apple landed in her hands. "Wha… Percy!" She chucked the apple at me furiously and I barely had time to duck before it splattered on the wall behind me.

Grover frowned at the apple. "If you were going to do that you could have given it to me. You've wasted a good apple," he moaned.

When the bus arrived, Grover started sniffing the air.

"What is it?" I asked.

He shook his head. "It's probably nothing," he said but I still began looking around nervously.

As we finally got on the bus and sat down, I breathed a sigh of relief. The fates were probably thinking, "LOL, Noob!"

"Percy," Annabeth hissed while pointing. I looked up and I saw an old woman walking onto the bus. She had a red dress, a cardigan and a harsh face that looked all too familiar. It was twenty or so years older but I'd recognise it anywhere. "Mrs Dodds," I grumbled. Behind her came two more identical ladies. Triplet demon grandmothers.

"Come on, all three?" Grover moaned, looking upwards.

The ladies sat down in the front row and stuck their legs out creating an X in the aisle. It seemed an innocent enough action but it sent a clear message to us: nobody leaves.

"It's fine," Annabeth muttered to herself as the bus set off. "We're just stuck on a bus with three of the worst monsters we could ever face." She looked like she was thinking hard.

The bus carried us away from the depot and through New York. The demon ladies didn't move for a while.

"We could go out the windows?" Annabeth suggested.

"They don't open," Grover told her.

"The emergency door at the back?"

"There isn't one." The bus suddenly turned black as we plunged into the Lincoln Tunnel.

Then, in a flat voice as if she'd rehearsed it, Mrs Dodds stood up and announced, "I need to use the restroom."

"So do I," her sister chorused.

"So do I," the third echoed.

They began to make their way up the bus.

"Quick, Percy. Put this on." Annabeth handed me her invisibility cap.

"No, I can't leave you two behind."

"They're after you, Percy. There's a small chance they may miss us. Your scent is so overpowering they might not notice us."

Reluctantly, I put on the cap and began making my way down the bus. I slipped into an empty seat just in time for the demons to walk past me. Mrs Dodds paused, sniffing the air. She turned towards me but apparently didn't see anything so she continued on.

I was free. I reached the end of the bus. All I had to do was press the emergency button and I was home free.

"Where is it?" I heard the hissing from behind me and I turned round. The Furies were no longer in disguise. They were in full, hag-demon-bat form holding flaming whips in their hands, which they cracked at Annabeth and Grover.

"He's not here," Annabeth cried desperately. The demons raised their whips and Annabeth drew her dagger as Grover prepared to throw a tin can.

What I did next was probably the most reckless, impulsive thing- it should have labelled me the ADHD poster child.

I looked into the driving cabin and my eyes locked on the steering wheel. Before I could even consider my decision, I jumped forward and yanked it in one direction. The driver grunted in surprise as he lost control of the bus. It careened into the side of the tunnel, throwing sparks behind it. Behind me, I heard the shrieks of passengers and Furies alike as they were thrown around the bus. The driver fought for control, causing the bus to swerve around the road as we both pulled back and forth.

The bus rocketed out of the tunnel and down a side road. It continued on until it reached one of those New Jersey roads where you can't believe there's so much nothing just outside of New York.

I pressed the emergency stop button and the bus screeched to a sudden halt by the side of the road, throwing some passengers forwards. The driver was the first off the bus, closely followed by the other passengers, stampeding past me. I stood in the driving cabin to avoid being swept away.

After everyone had left, it was just me, Grover, Annabeth and a trio of angry demon grandmas. I pulled off Annabeth's invisibility cap and smiled at the Furies. "I'm over here," I taunted and they snarled at me.

The Furies turned, baring their yellow fangs at me, and the exit suddenly seemed like an excellent idea. Mrs. Dodds stalked up the aisle, just as she used to do in class, about to deliver my F- math test. Every time she flicked her whip, red flames danced along the barbed leather.

Her two ugly sisters hopped on top of the seats on either side of her and crawled toward me like huge nasty lizards.

"Perseus Jackson," Mrs. Dodds said, in an accent that was definitely from somewhere farther south than Georgia. "You have offended the gods. You shall die."

"I liked you better as a math teacher," I told her.

She growled.

Annabeth and Grover moved up behind the Furies cautiously, looking for an opening.

I took the ballpoint pen out of my pocket and uncapped it. Riptide elongated into a shimmering double-edged sword.

The Furies hesitated.

Mrs. Dodds had felt Riptide's blade before. She obviously didn't like seeing it again.

"Submit now," she hissed. "And you will not suffer eternal torment."

"Nice try," I told her.

"Percy, look out!" Annabeth cried.

Mrs. Dodds lashed her whip around my sword hand while the Furies on the either side lunged at me.

My hand felt like it was wrapped in molten lead, but I managed not to drop Riptide. I stuck the Fury on the left with its hilt, sending her toppling backward into a seat. I turned and sliced the Fury on the right. As soon as the blade connected with her neck, she screamed and exploded into dust. Annabeth got Mrs. Dodds in a wrestler's hold and yanked her backward while Grover ripped the whip out of her hands.

"Ow!" he yelled. "Ow! Hot! Hot!"

The Fury I'd hilt-slammed came at me again, talons ready, but I swung Riptide and she broke open like a piñata.

Mrs. Dodds was trying to get Annabeth off her back. She kicked, clawed, hissed and bit, but Annabeth held on while Grover got Mrs. Dodds's legs tied up in her own whip. Finally they both shoved her backward into the aisle. Mrs. Dodds tried to get up, but she didn't have room to flap her bat wings, so she kept falling down.

"This won't bring your mother back!" She screeched and I froze.

"My… mother?"

She smiled slyly as Grover and Annabeth watched confused. "Yes, Percy. That wasn't a dream. Your mother is in our realm now."

I felt tears begin to prick my eyes as I heard Annabeth gasp in the background. "Ire in gehennam!" I yelled.

I wasn't sure where the Latin came from. I think it meant "Go to Hell!" Thunder shook the bus. The hair rose on the back of my neck.

"Get out!" Annabeth yelled at me. "Now!" I hesitated and looked at Mrs Dodds. I swung my sword and she wailed as she crumbled into yellow dust. I took much more pleasure in her screams than I did the first time.

"Percy, now!" Annabeth screamed again and I rushed out of the bus just as it exploded behind me.

I was thrown forward and sprawled on the floor. My whole body was wracked with pain and my back and arms were covered in glass. I heaved myself up as Annabeth ran up to me and hooked her arm around me to help me limp away quickly but not before a Hawaiian-shirted tourist with a camera snapped my photograph. The rest of the passengers were hidden behind cover and were just starting to peek over.

"We need to run," Annabeth said. "That last scream was for reinforcements."

I nodded and began limping along as fast as I could. Grover quickly followed and took my other arm.

We plunged into the woods as the rain poured down, the bus in flames behind us, and nothing but darkness ahead

AN: really sorry it's been so long since I updated this story. I just lost track of time during the summer holidays and when I got back to school I kept forgetting to ask my parents to proofread it. I know this isn't what you were hoping for but there's an update coming in a minute. Hopefully the issue with proofreading has been solved as I've found a proofreading app but in order to test it I need you to nitpick every tiny detail in my story. Be ruthless and enjoy the story.

thank you

-Bdarwin85