1Chapter One – Homecoming
There was no moon and an eerie glow shone from the lake as a boat bumped against the shore. One person inside the boat stood, jumping lightly from the boat to the shoreline. Water splashed up around their ankles and they tossed a metal stake into the ground, then a cry as the boat slipped free of the rope and drifted towards the lake's center. A second person jumped from the boat, landing in the water, up to their waist as they helped the first person on land pull the boat towards the shore.
"Grab onto the bow Annabeth," the second person instructed, pulling their long, loose hair into a loose bundle at the base of their neck. They leaned forwards, lifting a rucksack from the bottom of the boat and tossed it asides besides the stake. Reaching back, she pulled a girl about eight years old from the floor and swung her lightly to the shore. The girl giggled, holding tightly onto her mother's shoulders, her curling auburn hair swinging in the light of lantern Annabeth had lit. She settled herself in a woolen blanket from the rucksack and leaned against a tree, curling the blanket tight around her shoulders.
"Mum, give me Ariana, I'll take her," Annabeth said as her mother lifted a bundle from the boat, cradling her in arms. The woman turned, handing her six-month old daughter to Annabeth, "Hold tight to her, Annabeth Kendra." She slung the rucksack over her shoulder and took Morgan's hand, leading them towards a small hut-like shack that was half-hidden in the shadows.
The hut itself had two rooms, a main room and a small bathroom. Along the entrance wall, there was a dresser, table with three chairs and a bunk bed with woolen blankets and thick black sheets. The bed mostly took up the wall but a small crib, also with a woolen blanket and the black sheets, occupied space at the foot of the bed. Besides the crib, there was a door leading into the bathroom. Opposite the door, there as a small fireplace, cupboard and a second bed, exactly like the bunk bed. At the foot of the second bed, there was a small trunk, filled with scarves, hats, mittens, outer cloaks, and sweaters – all with the same peculiar crest on them.
"Mum…?" Annabeth lay Lindsay in the crib, wrapping the woolen blanket tight around her, "do you think someone knew we were coming?" She sat on the bottom bunk besides Morgan, who had burrowed under the covers, "I mean, you only had Lindsay a few months ago, how would anyone know that?" Her mother turned, tears were glistening in her emerald eyes, as she sank into a chair.
"Annabeth," she paused, "I used to work here. When I discovered I was going to have Lindsay then I began fixing this place up. It was originally made for you, Morgan and Lindsay. But when I left here, then I made sure that when I came back, I could live here with the three of you. Now," she rose, pulling a small bag from the rucksack, "who's ready for bed?" Morgan jumped up, throwing the blanket against the wall as she ran towards her mother.
"Me!" Her curls bounced joyfully as she raced into the bathroom, her toothbrush clattering in the sink as she tried to reach the sink knobs. She turned back, "Annabeth! Help me puhweez!" she whined, waving the toothpaste over her head. Annabeth shrugged, somewhat reluctantly following her sister's complaints and followed her into the bathroom, totting her own toothbrush.
Their mother watched sadly as her two middle children carried on about who was going to have prettier teeth when they were done brushing. It pained her to see them grow up in her world without any clue on whom their father was. Her eyes sought the lakeside opposite the tiny boat they had used to enter the grounds, and at an even closer look, a white marble tomb. Tears began to make their way down her cheeks and she twisted a golden band on her finger, the ring was a promise, sealed with two gemstones, one emerald and the other blue, and it was her life.
Annabeth came from the bathroom, toothpaste coating her upper lip, she looked at her mother then wiped her lip on her sleeve, leaving a white strip of toothpaste there. She wrapped an arm around her mother's shoulders and sighed, "Don't cry mum, we're here."
Her mother turned, placing a hand on her daughter's, "I know dear, and we are home, safe – forever."
"Not to be rude mum, but where are we?" Annabeth looked confused as her mother's eyes twinkled slightly - something she had never seen happen in her ten years of her life.
"Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," she smiled, "my home since the day I married your father."