Carry On My Wayward Child (PJO Imagine)

Part 2

You proceeded to go to the kitchen just in time to find the kettle finished boiling. You scoured the cabinets to find some other things, from hot chocolate to tea, cookies, and finally a med kit and some Tylenol.

The wind blew and suddenly you remembered about the jar of honey and honeycombs that you were told about in the house; harvested from the bee colonies that your distant aunt raised. Compelled, you grabbed it and set it with the other mountain of things.

As you were assembling them together, you remembered the old storage room. You went inside and found the boxes that had some clothes they could change into for a moment (if they wanted, it could not be that comfortable to sleep in old dirty clothes), something about your distant aunt keeping some clothes from kids she helped. You pulled out an old relic of your teenage years and found a "death to barbie" shirt you had and felt nostalgia take over-

"Why do you have children's Tylenol? You don't look like you have kids around-"

"OH, CHEESE AND CRACKERS BY THE GODS-" you screeched, fumbling with your items as you were spooked. You whipped your body around and looked at Luke, who had his arms up like he was a kid who got his hands caught in the cookie jar-

"DO. NOT." You stared, placing a hand on your chest and pointing to the boy, "Do not, do not scare me like that alright?"

"I'm sorry," he stammered, surprise turning to curiousity. "You said, by the gods-"

You waved your hand and took out the box of old clothes, closing the door with your hip.

"Yeah yeah, not very common, I get it. It's an old habit from my aunt, you remember? Anyways, I grew up in this house and I guess I picked that use of words from her, cause of her beliefs and stuff which I respected. Anyways, the reason I have children's Tylenol is because I have side gig where I babysit some kids around here so you can never be too careful when they eat the wrong dirt-"

"Beliefs?"

You turned to him with a raised eyebrow, "That's what you're focusing on?" you asked and he had the decency to give a sheepish look.

You scoffed and grinned, gesturing to the rest of the house. "I thought you guys saw when you snooped around the house."

"We...really didn't snoop," he said and you stared disbelievingly and he caved. "-yet."

You nodded as if all was right in the world while readjusting the box. You went past the darkened living room that contained all the herbs, memorabilia, totems, the shrine-

You felt like you should warn them so they wouldn't get spooked when they eventually went snooping, lest they touch something and its actually cursed buuuuuuut-

"My distant aunt is what you call pagan" you started, "well, by most other established religions."

"Oh" said the boy, lamely.

You didn't know if you should feel disappointed or what at that reaction. You thought about it before deciding on something and moving on cause you had more pressing matters to attend to. Like kids.

You approached their designated room and you gestured to Luke to open the door with a nod of your head. He seemed to hesitate but you held up the tray of goodies before he did as he was told. He opened it and you opened it further with a stretch of your leg.

You saw something glint and you saw Thalia holding what you could only see was a bonafide spear. A very familiar spear that you know your aunt has somewhere in the house-

She seemed to stare at you with what you could only say was instinct and survival skills, and it took all you had not to drop the tray in your hands with whatever nerve you had left.