The Beginning of the End (J. Grace)

XVI: Jason gets a history lesson

Jason's PoV:

"Are you sure you want to do this, Lara?" Annabeth was asking while Jason, Leo and Piper couldn't figure out why it was such a difficult decision. She just wanted to see her mum one last time.

"Yes... I think so at least. It's been a while." Elara started walking over to the car and the others all followed: she wanted them to come with her, just in case anything happened and Jason had a sinking suspicion that she didn't mean that in terms of monster attacks.

They travelled in silence, the daughter of Hermes constantly fiddling with the fidget Leo had made her.

When they drove up to a rusty-looking two story house with a swing under an apple tree, stuffed beanbag animals lining the walkway to the front door and windchimes all around the porch making quite a racket, Elara paled.

"Maybe we should head back..." She looked out at the run-down building, her breath hitching in her throat. Jason really didn't like the look of this place.

Argus had agreed to only driving them there, not back. They may as well go in while they were here. Besides, he was sure that May deserved to see her daughter one more time before... well... you know. Apparently, she hasn't seen her daughter since Elara was seven years old.

"Hey, it's alright. We'll be with you." He decided, unbuckling his seatbelt and getting out after Leo.

So, the five walked up to the front door and he noticed that the beanbag animals were in the shape of different creatures: a Minitour, Hydras, pigs, lions, dragons... such a wide range. Some looked hopelessly deformed, yet he felt like they were watching his every move. Why would a mortal have this?

He looked up to see a turquoise front door with the name Castellan written neatly in English and a Greek word below it. Jason really struggled with reading Greek. In fact, he struggled reading everything since that time he looked at Hera in her divine form. Also, looking at her is painful. Did you know she's on his mental list of Gods he hates? Could you tell?

The daughter of Hermes took a deep breath when she reached the door, looked back at the rest of them, then knocked on the wood.

Jason didn't know what he was expecting, but it certainly wasn't for the door to be torn open within nanoseconds of the knock by a scarecrow-thin woman with cloudy grey eyes and white tufts of hair sticking out from her head everywhere.

"Elara!" She cried, taking her daughter's face in her hands and smiling broadly. "Come in, come in!"

Cautiously, they entered the house which was filled with mirrors and candles so that everywhere he looked, Jason could see himself.

Hey, look, there's an ugly blonde guy! He thought to himself, turning to the left. And look to the right! There's the same nightmare fuel! Brilliant! Oh yeah, something else that comes with new memories is re-finding his self-hatred.

As if it wasn't hard enough trying to supress the asshole he used to be so that he wouldn't hurt anyone physically, emotionally or mentally! Thanks for giving that back, Hera!

Above a mantle stood a statue of Hermes and a ton of pictures. One was of a blonde, young-looking boy who was staring at the camera, a scared look in his eyes. That must be Luke. He was defensively holding a tiny baby in his arms... that must be Elara.

He shared a glance with Piper and Leo: what is this place?

It all smelt like peanut butter and burnt cookies; the culprit for that was found quickly. There were stacks and stacks of peanut butter and jam sandwiches in Tupperware boxes, some of them were mouldy. There were sheets upon sheets of burnt cookies on top of the oven and in the sink lay a graveyard of Cool-Aid pitchers. Above that sink, there was a beanbag Medusa and an excessive amount of cut-out pictures of Hermes. Wow. That's gotta make Apollo jealous.