Disclaimer: I only own the plot and my OCs. Anything you recognize as not mine belongs to Rick Riordan, Greco-Roman mythology, and/or their otherwise respective owners.

Author's Notes: Hello again! Hope y'all are doing well. I forgot how much I loved this chapter, rewriting it felt nice. :)

Anyways, as always, hope y'all enjoy and until next week,

~TGWSI/Selene Borealis

~The Finding Home Saga~

~Finding Home~

~Chapter 12: Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium~

In a way, it's nice to know that the Greek gods are out there, because you have somebody to blame when things go wrong. For instance, when you're walking away from a bus that's just been attacked by monster hags and blown up by lightning, not to mention the fact that it's raining on top of everything else, most people might think it's just really bad luck. But when you're a half-blood, at least you have the solace in knowing some divine force out there is just reallytrying to mess up your day.

So, there we were, Katie and Silena and I, walking through the woods along the New Jersey riverbank, the glow of New York City making the night sky yellow behind us, and the smell of the Hudson River reeking in our noses.

"I really shouldn't have agreed to go with you on this quest," Silena moaned as she rubbed her arms for warmth and shivered. "I should've known it wasn't going to be an easy quest. I mean, the last quest a child of Aphrodite went on, he died. Mὰ θεούς, what was I thinking?"

I was in too much shock to ask her what she meant by that. The explosion of the bus windows was still ringing in my ears, and I myself was thinking about calling it the quits and just accepting my fate to become a bottlenose dolphin or incinerated, depending on which god got to me first.

But Katie, now properly de-vined, kept on pulling us along, saying, "Come on! The farther away we get, the better."

"All of our money was back there," I reminded her at one point, when I got annoyed enough at her forced upbeat attitude. "Our food and clothes. Everything."

"But we're still alive," she shot back, her smile as strained as her tone. "At least there's that. Besides, Silena you should be proud of yourself. I mean, it's not everyday a child of Aphrodite kills two Furies, right?"

Silena spun around to look at her with a glare. "That's because we don't fight monsters!" she snapped, before she shook her head and sighed. "I'm sorry. You're right. It's just...I'm scared, okay? I mean, I'm not a year-rounder, and I don't know what my dad would do if something happened to me..."

I blinked. On the one hand, I wanted to voice just how much I was scared along with her. It wouldn't have helped anything, but I still wanted to say it. But on the other hand, she'd just mentioned something I couldn't ignore.

"You live with your dad?" I asked, curiosity seeping into my voice.

Silena nodded weakly. "Yeah. H – he's a painter. Maybe you've heard of him? His name's Jean Beauregard."

I hadn't heard of him, but I nodded along like I did anyways. The mention of something regular and normal, something which wasn't actively trying to threaten my life at that moment, was comforting.

It must've been for Silena, too, because she continued on with, "We live in Queens, not all that far away from where Drew lives – none of us at Cabin 10 are year-rounders, you see. In fact, Drew, Laurel, and I all go to the same private school."

She kept on rambling on after that, about her dad and the school she went to, but my attention quickly started tapering off. Katie, though, gave me a kind look nevertheless, as if she was saying "nice job at averting that panic attack."

I gave her a look back, hoping she could tell it meant "don't thank me, I almost just had one myself."

We walked along for another mile or so, all of us still feeling pretty miserable, but at least no longer at risk of breaking down at any moment. It was towards the end of the mile mark that I started to see light up ahead: the colors of a neon sign. I could smell food. Fried, greasy, excellent food.

I realized then that I hadn't eaten anything unhealthy since I'd arrived at Camp Half-Blood, where we lived on grapes, bread, cheese, and extra-lean-cut nymph-prepared barbecue. This boy was in desperate need of a double cheeseburger.

We kept walking until I saw a deserted two-lane road through the trees. On the other side of the road was a closed-down gas station, a tattered billboard for a 1990s movie, and one open business, which was the source of the neon light and the good smell.

It wasn't a fast food restaurant, like I'd hoped. Instead, it was one of those weird roadside curio shops which sell lawn flamingos and wooden Indians and cement grizzly bears and all sorts of other shit like that. The main building was a long, low warehouse, surrounded by acres of statuary. The neon sign above the gate was impossible for me to read, though, because if there's anything more horrible for dyslexia than regular English, it's red, cursive, neon English.

To me, it looked like: ATNYU ME'S GDERAN GOMEN MEPROUIM.

"What the hell does that say?" I asked, squinting up at the sign.

"I don't know," said Silena.

"Me either," agreed Katie.

We spent a good few minutes just standing there, trying to make sense of it, until we were finally able to get the translation of: AUNTY EM'S GARDEN GNOME EMPORIUM.

Sure enough, flanking the entrance, as advertised, were two cement garden gnomes – ugly bearded little runts, smiling and waving, as if they were about to get their pictures taken.

"The lights are on inside," Katie noticed. "Maybe it's open."

The suggestion was all the three of us needed to cross the street, following the smell of hamburgers and fries and milkshakes.

The front lot was a forest of statues: cement animals, cement children, and even a drunken cement satyr playing the pipes.

"I can't believe the level of detail," Silena whispered as we reached the warehouse door. "They look even more realistic than the people my dad paint..."

Just as we stopped in front of the door, it suddenly creaked open, and standing in front of us was a tall, Middle Eastern woman – at least, I assumed she was Middle Eastern, because she wore a long, black burqa-like outfit that covered everything except for her hands, leaving her head completely veiled. Her eyes glinted behind a curtain of black gauze, a strange yet beautiful golden-green hue, but that was about all I could make out of her face. Her coffee-colored hands looked old, but also well-manicured and elegant, which made me think she was an old woman that had once been an incredibly beautiful lady.

"Children," she said, and I couldn't help but notice that her accent sounded vaguely Middle Eastern as well. "It is too late to be out all alone. Where are your parents?"

"We're orphans," Katie said, the half-lie slipping off her tongue easily – she was practically an orphan herself, after all. I was, too.

"Orphans?" the woman asked. The word sounded alien in her mouth. "But, my dears! Surely not!"

"Our parents died and we all got sent to an abusive foster home, so we left and decided to live out on the streets," I interjected, trying to do my best to make the lie sound as believable as possible. "But we got lost while trying to get to New York City. Is that food I smell?"

"Oh, my dears, the streets are no place for children. Most of all, the streets of New York," she gasped. "Please, come in, poor children! I am Aunty Em. Go straight through to the back of the warehouse, please. There is a dining area."

We thanked her and went inside.

Silena muttered to me, "Runaways living on the streets?"

I shrugged. "Hey, whatever gets us food, gets us food, right?"

Inside, the warehouse was filled with even more statues – people in all different poses, wearing all different kinds of outfits and with all sorts of expressions on their faces. A small part of me was thinking how you'd have to have a pretty huge garden to fit even one of these statues in it, because they were all life-size.

But mostly, I was thinking about food.

And yes, I realize that was probably – no, most definitely – an idiotic thing to do. But, sue me: I was hungry. And Aunty Em's burgers smelled so heavily, so I couldn't think about much outside of sitting down and getting to eat one. Thus, I barely noticed the way that the statues' eyes seemed to follow me and Katie and Silena, or how Aunty Em had locked the door behind us.

All I cared about was finding the dining area. And, sure enough, there it was at the back of the warehouse, a fast food counter with a grill, a soda fountain, a pretzel heater, and a nacho cheese dispenser. Basically it had everything you could want, plus a few steel picnic tables out front.

"Please, sit down," Aunty Em said.

"Awesome," I breathed. My stomach rumbled in agreement.

Our hostess disappeared behind the snack counter and started cooking. Before we knew it, she'd brought us plastic trays heaped with double cheeseburgers, vanilla shakes, and XXL servings of French fries.

I was halfway through my burger before I could even remember to breathe, and I'm pretty sure Katie and Silena had the same problem, judging by the looks of pure satisfaction on their faces.

Aunty Em ate nothing. She hadn't taken off her headdress, even to cook, and now she sat forward and interlaced her fingers and watched us eat. It was a little unsettling, having someone stare at me when I couldn't see her face, but I was feeling satisfied after the burger, and a little sleepy, and I figured the least I could was try and make some small talk with our hostess.

"So, you sell gnomes," I said, trying to sound interested.

"Oh, yes," she replied. "And animals. And people. Anything for the garden. Custom orders. Statuary is very popular, you know."

"A lot of business on this road?"

"Not so much, no. since the highway was built...most cars, they do not go this way now. I must cherish every customer I get."

Suddenly, my neck tingled, as if somebody else was looking at me. I turned to see who it was, but it was just a statue of a young girl holding an Easter basket. Like Silena had said earlier, the attention to detail was incredible, much better than what you see in most garden statues. But something was wrong with her face. It looked as if she was startled, or even...

...Terrified.

"Ah," Aunty Em said sadly. "You notice that some of my creatures do not turn out well. They are marred. They do not sell. The face is the hardest to get right. Always the face."

"You make these statues yourself?" I asked.

"Oh, yes. One upon a time, I had my sisters to help me with the business, but they have passed on, and Aunty Em is all alone. I have only my statues. That is why I make them, you see. They are my company." The sadness in her voice sounded so deep and so real that I couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

And yet, at the same time, there was a distinctive itch in the back of my mind. A hint of recognition. I looked at Katie and Silena and noticed they had also picked up on whatever it was that I had, because they were no longer eating, instead sitting forward with anxious faces.

"How many sisters did you have?" Silena questioned nervously.

"Oh, just two," Aunty Em replied. "And it's a terrible story as to what happened to them. Not one for children, really. You see, Silena, a bad woman was jealous of me, long ago, when I was young. I had a...a boyfriend, you know, and this bad woman was determined to break us apart. She caused a terrible accident. My sisters stayed by me, despite it, only to be forced to share my bad fortune. Eventually, they passed on they faded away. I alone have survived, but at a price. Such a price."

Katie and I shared a look.

None of us had ever told Aunty Em our names.

"I think we should get going," I said. "I mean, even if the streets of New York are as bad as you say, they're still better than going back to our abusive foster home if the police find us."

"Please, dears," Aunty Em pleaded. "I so rarely get to be with children. Before you go, won't you at least sit for a pose?"

"A pose?" Katie asked warily.

"A photograph. I will use it to model a new statue set. Children are so popular, you see. Everyone loves children."

"I don't think we can, ma'am," I apologized. "We really should be going."

But Aunty Em had already stood up and was making her way towards the front door, gesturing for us to follow her.

I turned to Katie and Silena nervously. "Do you see any other way out of here?" I asked under my breath.

"Besides the windows, no," Katie whispered back. "And I think if we try to escape that way, she'll be even worse to deal with. I say we just follow her for now."

"I second that idea," Silena said.

I nodded. "Okay. We'll follow her. Just...stay alert, got it?"

The three of us followed Aunty Em outside of the warehouse and to the garden of statues. She directed us to a park bench next to the stone satyr. We all sat down, which she seemed to be happy about, because she then said, "Now, I'll just position you correctly. The young boy in the middle, I think, with both of you fine young ladies on either side."

We shifted into the positions that she wanted us to be in.

"Not much light for a photo," I remarked.

"Oh, it's enough," Aunty Em replied with a wave of her hand. "Enough for us to see each other, yes?"

"Where's your camera?" Katie asked.

Aunty Em ignored her and stepped back, as if to admire the shot. "Now, the face is the most difficult. Can you smile for me please, everyone? A large smile?"

She still had no camera in her hands.

"I will just be a moment," Aunty Em continued on. "You know, I can't see you very well in this cursed veil..."

She reached up to undo the wrap around her head.

Immediately, Silena, Katie, and I sprung into action. We all jumped off of the bench, but we did so at the same time and in the process I somehow managed to trip and fall to the floor. Like an idiot.

"Oof!" I grunted as I slammed against the ground.

I had a nice view of Aunty Em's sandaled feet, as well as Katie's and Silena's retreating figures. They were both running in opposite directions, which I was kind of glad for. It would make Aunty Em all the more confused when she tried to fight us.

As I got up, my head positioned so that I was still staring at the floor, I heard a strange, rasping sound above me that caused me to freeze. Nervously, I looked at Aunty Em's hands, which had turned gnarled and warty, with sharp, bronze talons for fingernails.

I almost looked higher, but didn't, suddenly realizing who Aunty Em realy was – because she wasn't just some monster I vaguely recognized for no apparent reason.

She was Medusa.

Think, I told myself, as I heard the rasping of dozens of tiny snakes from above me. How did Medusa die in the myth?

"Such a pity to destroy a handsome young face," Medusa crooned softly. "Stay with me, Percy. All you have to do is look up."

Her voice was hypnotic, mesmerizing, so that even though I knew who she was, I still had to fight the urge to obey. Wildly, I looked to one side and saw one of those glass spheres people put in their gardens, a gazing ball. I could see Medusa's dark reflection in the orange glass; her headdress was gone, revealing her face as a shimmering pale circle and the snakes that made up her hair writhing like jade green noodles.

But that was not the only thing I saw. I also saw a fountain, something I hadn't noticed when we'd first walked into the gardens. It was one of those fancy, elegant fountains, but its appearance wasn't what I cared about.

No, all I cared about was the water I could both hear and see gushing inside of it.

Desperately, I tried to remember what it had felt like that night during Capture the Flag, when I'd controlled the water to subdue Clarisse and her five half-siblings. I remembered I had felt angry, extremely angry, but also the tug that had pulled at from just behind my navel.

Taking in a deep breath, I tried to imagine that feeling happening again.

At first, I felt it only sparingly, and watched as the water in the fountain began to move in a way that definitely wasn't natural. I'm going to have to remind myself to practice with this, I thought, while feeling like I was about to have a panic attack from my plan not working like I wanted it to as well.

But then, Medusa said, still with that crooning stone, "And what fine statues you and your friends will make, Percy. Just think. None of you need suffer on this quest, or be pawns of the Olympians. Instead, you can all be with each other, and me...for eternity."

Abruptly, anger boiled in my stomach. I had made myself a promise I wouldn't let anything happen to Silena and Katie on this quest, and I would be damned if that promise was going to be broken.

The tug from behind my navel increased in volume.

The water in the fountain began to move violently. Slowly, it rose out of the fountain in one, giant tendril. It moved towards Medusa and, just as she turned around, presumably hearing how the fountain stopped gushing, attacked. It wrapped around her head, forming a bubble, which caused her to shriek and scream. But the effect was muted, and as I watched, a few bubbles rose up in the water at her struggle.

I didn't care, though. All I had was one thought in my mind as I got to my feet.

"Percy!" Katie shouted, suddenly appearing in the garden and looking at me with wide, green eyes.

"I'm okay," I replied, but I didn't turn to focus on her.

Instead, I kept my gaze on Medusa, who was thrashing around and trying to get out of the bubble of water. The distortion of it prevented her eyes from having any petrifying effect, which was good, because we sort-of made eye contact just as I uncapped Riptide.

She started to freak out and thrash more, and I realized I couldn't keep the bubble of water on her head for much longer. It was starting to wear me out.

So, without much further ado, I ran at her and slashed at her neck with my sword.

A sickening shlock! was heard as my sword passed through her neck like a knife cutting butter, then a hiss like wind rushing out of a cavern – the sound of a monster disintegrating, which I could see was exactly what she was doing when I turned around to look at her.

At the same time, something fell to the ground next to my foot. It wasn't that hard to look at it, despite the hissing sounds it was continuing to make, because suddenly, I felt waves upon waves of exhaustion hit me.

"Oh, shit," I said as the tug from behind my navel vanished. "That was a lot harder than I thought it would be."

The last thing I remembered was Katie screaming and the blurry outline of Silena rushing over to us as my knees gave out from underneath me.

Then, the world turned black.

Word Count: 3,383

Next Chapter Title: We Spend Some Time Hitchhiking Pt. 1