a/n- sorry about the before, i don't how i posted the programming,but its fixed now.
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The metropolitan museum of art : where history is alive-literally

Chiron led the tour again.

He rode up front in his wheelchair, guiding us through the big echoey galleries, past marble statues and glass cases full of really old black-and-orange pottery.

I used to find this place amazing, before I saw the relics at the camp

He gathered us around a thirteen-foot-tall stone column with a big sphinx on the top, and started telling us how it was a grave marker, a stele, for a girl about our age. He didn't mention for who, but I had seen it before, princess Andromada.

He told us about the carvings on the sides. I was trying to listen to what he had to say, because it was kind of interesting, but everybody around me was talking, and that made it very hard to listen, if I moved even a bit, the fury, Alecto would give me the evil eye.

I wondered how long I go without seeing Annabeth. This was going to be hard, especially since with all the time travel, it would be a year's gap between every time I saw her. At least I brought Leo's phone with me, so I could contact mom, whenever I wanted.

Speaking of contact, could I iris message myself, I should try that once I have reached camp Jupiter.

Mr. Brunner kept talking about Greek funeral art.

Nancy Bobofit snickered something about the naked guy on the stele, and I sighed, how can someone be so stupid and annoying at the same time.

"well they could be you" commented Chronos

"first of all that was a rhetorical question; second, I'm not stupid; third, if anyone's annoying it's you and last if I'm gonna be called annoying you better add a -ingly handsome behind it "

Chronos just snorted before going silent.

"Mr. Jackson" Chiron pointed to the picture of kronos on the stele" perhaps you can tell us what this picture represents"

"That's Kronos eating his kids, right?"

"Yes," Chiron said, obviously not satisfied. "And he did this because ..."

"Well...Kronos was the king titan , and he didn't trust his kids, who were the gods. So, um, Kronos ate them, right? But his wife hid baby Zeus, and gave Kronos a rock to eat instead. And later, when Zeus grew up, he tricked his dad, Kronos, into barfing up his brothers and sisters and so there was this big fight between the gods and the Titans," I continued, "and the gods won."

Some snickers from the group.

Behind me, Nancy Bobofit mumbled to a friend, "Like we're going to use this in real life. Like it's going to say on our job applications, 'Please explain why Kronos ate his kids.'"

"And why, Mr. Jackson," Brunner said, "to paraphrase Miss Bobofit's excellent question, does this matter in real life?"

"Busted," Grover muttered.

"Shut up," Nancy hissed, her face even brighter red than her hair.

I suppressed the urge to smirk." The story is a lesson, kind of, like this was the ancient way of saying look before you leap"

"yeah" came a voice behind me. "the moral of this story was, check the expiration date before you eat your kids"

The class snickered

"I see." Chiron beamed, ignoring the kid. " full credit, Mr. Jackson. Zeus did indeed feed Kronos a mixture of mustard and wine, which made him disgorge his other five children, who, of course, being immortal gods, had been living and growing up completely undigested in the Titan's stomach. The gods defeated their father, sliced him to pieces with his own scythe, and scattered his remains in Tartarus, the darkest part of the Underworld. On that happy note, it's time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us back outside?"

The class gathered on the front steps of the museum, where we could watch the foot traffic along Fifth Avenue.

Overhead, a huge storm was brewing, with clouds blacker than eve, the fight for the lightning bolt was getting worse. Nobody else seemed to notice, except Grover whom I saw glancing towards the sky nervously.

Grover and I sat on the edge of the fountain, away from everyone else.

I watched the stream of cabs going down Fifth Avenue, and thought about my mom's not-so-old-anymore apartment, only a little ways uptown from where we sat. I hadn't seen her in weeks. I wanted so bad to jump in a taxi and head home. She'd hug me and be glad to see me, but she'd send me right back to Yancy, because she wouldn't remember my other life and she would think that school was more important than spending the little time we would have together.

Just as I was unwrapping my sandwich Nancy appeared with her ugly friends-and dumped her half -eaten lunch on Grover's lap.

"oops" she grinned at me with her crooked teeth.

Well, I guess it's time to dunk her in the fountain. I wouldn't want to change the timeline too much or it would change and I would lose my advantage. Plus this gave me a chance to mess with Nancy.

I concentrated, there was a familiar tinge in my belly and suddenly Nancy was inside the fountain screaming "Percy pushed me".

Alecto materialized next to us. And I allowed myself a small smile in anticipation of her temporary demise.

She made sure sweet Nancy was okay and promised to buy her a new shirt, before turning to me with a triumphant look, which now that I think about it was probably because the fountain thing confirmed that I was a child of the big three. Oops.

"now honey-"

"I'm sorry" I said. "it was an accident- I swear"

"come with me" Alecto said.

"wait." Grover yelped." It was me, I pushed her"

Sweet Grover. She's a monster, she won't let a powerful demigod go just because someone asked her to.

"I don't think so Mr. Underwood" she said

" But –"

"You-will-stay-here" she said.

Grover looked at me desperately.

"it's ok man " I told him.

Nancy Bobofit smirked.

I glared at her. And watched with satisfaction as she shivered.

"honey" Alecto barked. "now"

I turned to face Alecto, but she was already standing at the museum entrance, way at the top of the steps, gesturing impatiently at me to come on.

I went in after her.

Halfway up the steps, I glanced back at Grover. He was looking pale, cutting his eyes between me and Chiron, it seemed he didn't want me to notice he was going to go to Chiron.

I looked back up. Alecto had disappeared again. She was now inside the building, at the end of the entrance hall.

I followed her deeper into the museum. When I finally caught up to her, we were back in the Greek and Roman section.

Except for us, the gallery was empty.

Alecto stood with her arms crossed in front of a big marble frieze of the Greek gods. She was growling.

"You've been giving us problems, honey," she said.

. I said, "ma'am?"

"don't play dumb with me "She tugged on the cuffs of her leather jacket. "Did you really think you would get away with it?"

The look in her eyes was pure evil.

I said, " get away with what, ma'am."

Thunder shook the building.

"We are not fools, Percy Jackson," Alecto said. Debatable. "It was only a matter of time before we found you out. Confess, and you will suffer less pain."

'play dumb' I reminded myself

"Well?" she demanded.

"Ma'am, I don't..."

"Your time is up," she hissed.

Her eyes began to glow like barbecue coals. Her fingers stretched, turning into talons. Her jacket melted into large, leathery wings. She turned into a shriveled hag with bat wings and claws and a mouth full of yellow fangs, and she was about to slice me to ribbons.

Chiron, who'd been out in front of the museum a minute before, wheeled his chair into the doorway of the gallery, holding riptide in his hand.

"What ho, Percy!" he shouted, and tossed the pen through the air.

Alecto lunged at me.

I dodged and felt talons slash the air next to my ear. I snatched the pen out of the air, but when it hit my hand, it wasn't a pen anymore. It was a sword – my sword.

Alecto spun toward me with a murderous look in her eyes.

I pretended to shake, almost dropping my sword in the process

She snarled, "Die, honey!"

And she flew straight at me.

focusing on making it seem unpracticed and awkward, I swung the sword.

The metal blade hit her shoulder and passed clean through her body as if she were made of water. Hisss!

Alecto was a sand castle in a power fan. She exploded into yellow powder, vaporized on the spot, leaving nothing but the smell of sulfur and a dying screech and a chill of evil in the air, as if those two glowing red eyes were still watching me.

I was alone.

There was a ballpoint pen in my hand.

Chiron wasn't there. Nobody was there but me.

I shoved riptide in my pocket.

I went back outside.

It had started to rain.

Grover was sitting by the fountain, a museum map tented over his head. Nancy Bobofit was still standing there, soaked from her swim in the fountain, grumbling to her ugly friends. When she saw me, she said, "I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt."

I said, "Who?"

"Our teacher. Duh!"

I blinked, I forgot about the mist. We had no teacher named Mrs. Kerr. I asked Nancy what she was talking about.

She just rolled her eyes and turned away.

I asked Grover where Mrs. Dodds was.

He said, "Who?"

But he paused first, and he wouldn't look at me, I really needed to teach him how to lie.

"Not funny, man," I told him. "This is serious." These people really need to come up with better excuses for the mist, someone might think that they were turning mad and lock themselves up in a mental institution.

Thunder boomed overhead.

I saw Chiron sitting under his red umbrella, reading his book, as if he'd never moved.

I didn't go over to him this time, he would only ask for riptide back.

I just sat next to Grover trying to look confused and panicked