Chapter 2 – Family
Now would be a really good time, Dumbledore! Percy thought desperately.
Ever since Voldemort had revealed that Percy was his brother, the Death Eaters as they called themselves (Percy just had to laugh at that. Who would want to eat an extra cold bird/human hybrid who had unimaginable power? But then again, Percy was pretty sure his older brother wouldn't appreciate it), tripped over their own two feet to make sure he was comfortable.
Percy hated it.
All his life he was considered an insignificant bug, (Percy had Gabe, Mrs. Dodds, Sloan and Bobofit to thank for that. Mostly) and suddenly he's considered a freaking Lord with a hades of an influence and all that junk. Technically speaking though, he would be a Lord, what with his relation to Poseidon and Sirius.
Lord Perseus Jackson. Black. Whichever.
Ugh. The name just made him go green and have a sudden urge to empty his stomach in the nearest bowl.
Not that Voldemort let him.
Percy removed his monster-proofed iPod from his, putting the headphones, he tapped shuffle, just for the heck of it. Percy had no idea as to what he'd hear.
'You're too important for anyone,
You play the role of all you long to be.
But I, I know who you really are,
You're the one who cries when you're alone.'
Such a fitting song, Percy mused as he heard Amy Lee pour her heart out. Not that it was a surprise, really, since most of his collection consisted of Evanescence songs. They were depressing, true, but they were also true; the harsh reality of life. Percy knew that the world wasn't all rainbows and sunshines and hated music that insinuated that or was a piece of meaningless garbage.
'But where will you go?
With no one left to save you from yourself?
You can't escape,
You can't escape,'
Like hell he could. He couldn't escape from his reality – both external and internal – any more than he could have an IQ as great as Annabeth's mom. Very unlikely. His demons began to take over since Tartarus, and he was slowly dying. No doubt Voldy-Moldy noticed that.
'You think that I can't see right through your eyes,
Scared to death to face reality.
No one seems to hear your hidden cries,
You're left to face yourself alone.'
Could this song remind him of his dilemma any less?
'But where will you go (where will you go)
With no one left to save you from yourself
You can't escape
The truth
I realize you're afraid (I realize)
But you can't abandon everyone
You can't escape
You don't want to escape'
At this point, Percy was ready to tear his hair out. He might just take up Annabeth's idea of forgetting the person, even if suggested in obvious jealousy.
'I'm so sick of speaking words that no one understands,
Is it clear enough that you can't live your whole life all alone?
I can hear you in a whisper,
But you can't even hear me screaming.'
Percy ran a hand through his hair at the truth of the words. Why did this song out of all songs had to come up?
Where will you go (where will you go)?
With no one left to save you from yourself?
You can't escape,
The truth.
I realize you're afraid (I realize),
But you can't reject the whole world.
You can't escape,
You won't escape,
You can't escape,
You don't want to escape.
That's it. Percy thought furiously and switched the device off. If Percy would continue, he had a sinking feeling that another song that would be the literal definition of his life – like this one – would come up.
Percy ran a hand across his face. What's taking them so long? He thought irritably. If wizards took this much, they wouldn't stand a chance as demigods. Hades, they couldn't even stay in one place (ADHD and fear of being eaten alive by a monster or something equally horrible) and these guys take their time.
Mental Note: Physical training for all Wizards is mandatory.
Yeah, Dumbledore and Sirius explained that they needed help against some Dark Lord (Sirius was glaring at Dumbledore the whole time, daring him to say the name aloud in Dog form. Percy could tell that it scared the shit out of the old geezer) and was to become a Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, since he had a lot of experience in the battlefield. Needless to say, Percy accepted, albeit reluctantly.
And as he did, he could almost hear Annabeth say: Of course you'd be the one with the crazy magical family, teaching people of your age group how to fight.
Annabeth . . . Percy thought with a pang of longing. It hadn't even been a day and already he was missing her. What would he do when the nightmares came?
Did Percy forget to mention the nightmares? They came every day since he escaped Tartarus. And without his Wise Girl . . .
Gah.
Percy was named 'Perseus' after the Greek hero, the son of Zeus. The guy fought the monsters, got a good wife, and had a happy ending. Sadly, Percy couldn't say he was living up to the name as he kept recounting how his world went crashing down. The stupid bolt. The asshole Olympian. The monstrous sea. The Islands. The labyrinths. The titans. The loss. The giants. Tartarus. Gaea. The loss.
It all came one after the other, leaving a Percy in constant problems so yeah, he did not live up to his mom's hope of being safe.
A lot of adjectives could be used to describe Percy Jackson. Loyal. Laid-back. Easy-going. Sarcastic. Insane.
Actually, the only two describing words Percy could safely rule out are sane and safe. Hardly any demigod couldn't.
And when Voldemort sent him to his room – as if Percy had behaved like an impertinent child – infuriated Percy and got him thinking at the same time.
Percy could still hear the words his half-brother had said to Lucius:
'Lucius. Attend to my brother.' Lucius came forward and smiled like a sadist, which was when Percy knew that he shouldn't have broken his son's nose. Voldemort noticed this and frowned at the pure-blood. 'He shouldn't be hurt on your watch, Malfoy, or you will have me to answer to.'
Ah. Percy's lips curved upwards to create a sardonic smile. Speak of the devil.
Currently, he had locked the door of his room and muttered words like 'lock' in Ancient Greek. Surprise, surprise; it did the job. Percy thought as he heard one short rap.
"Perseus!"
Percy ignored him, opting to play his iPod again.
And once again he could hear Amy Lee's 'What you want'.
Do what you what you want,
if you have a dream for better.
Do what you what you want,
Till you don't want it anymore.(Remember who you really are.)
Percy saw the door shake slightly. He didn't mind.
Do what you, what you want
Your world's closing in on you now (it isn't over)
Stand and face the unknown (got to remember who you really are)
Every heart in my hands
Like a pale reflection
The door shook even more. Hello, hello, remember me? Do what you, what you want
I'm everything you can't control
Somewhere beyond the pain
There must be a way to believe
We can break through
You don't have to lay your life down (it isn't over)
Do what you, what you want
'til you find what you're looking for (got to remember who you really are)
The door was torn off its hinges.
"Perseus." Voldemort snarled as his eyes flared a bright red. Percy figured now was the time to remove his headphones.
"Sorry." Not even a hint of apology was in that word. He could see his half-brother glance at the gadgets in Percy's hands distastefully.
Voldemort entered into the room like he owned the place. Which he probably did. Perching himself at the humungous king-sized bed, Voldemort looked at him meaningfully.
"I have a proposition." Voldemort said calmly.
"You and your proposition can go to Tartarus for all I care." Percy spat bitter, long since figured out that his half-brother was the Dark Lord Dumbledore was talking about.
"You might like this one I think." Voldemort smirked slightly.
Percy decided to humor his older, sadistic brother. "Go on."
"The Wizarding world is not it was hundreds of years ago." Voldemort said charmingly. "The noble blood has been corrupted and polluted by muggles," Mortals, Percy thought, "who claim to have magical talents, learning alongside proper children of pure blood. And at their head is a senile man, Albus Dumbledore," Percy hated his half-brother now, "who protects them as if they are our equals."
But they are. Percy thought.
"Now, my loyal supporters and I are working hard to bring back the times when mortals feared wizard-kind. One day, mortals and mudbloods alike will cower in fear at the sight of us! One day, our kind will be purged of the dreaded infestation these mortals are! One day we shall rule!" Voldemort said. "So what say you, Perseus? Will you join me in the name of our father?"
Hypocrite.
Percy raised his eyebrow. "So you're saying that I should use my talents to help you kill these mortals? That as your half-brother, I should support you? Well, I don't think so. Poseidon would never support something like this."
Percy glared slightly at the older half-blood. "As a demi-god, we are supposed to be the bridge between the mortals and the gods. We protect, and nurture, even when the gods can't do it. Gods, mortals, half-bloods. We are all different, with our different qualities. As half mortal and half god, it's our job to keep the peace...You're saying that you're doing this in the name of Poseidon, but father disowned you, you can't know what he thinks! Just because we have divine blood in our veins doesn't make us better! It gives us more responsibilities!"
Percy was cheering internally at Voldemort's shocked face and his stellar speech.
Soon enough, Voldemort narrowed his eyes, glaring at him with shocking ferocity. Percy put on his best wolf-stare, but sadly, Voldemort seemed unfazed.
"So." He hissed. "And you claim to know our father so well..."
"We did just talk about this." Percy quipped.
"Well, if you claim that we are all equal, how is it that father never visited me?"
That question caught Percy off guard. Why didn't Poseidon visit him?
"You said Poseidon disowned you to protect you." Percy said finally, carefully treading on the thin ice between him and his brother. "If he wanted to keep you a secret, he couldn't have visited you." Percy's confidence grew. "He didn't visit me much either, but we have to deal with it. Gods are busy, but it doesn't mean that he doesn't care! He's always watching you, watching out for you."
"Even so, I will honor my father, and this is what I will do-once the wizarding world is under my control, we will conquer the demi-god one too . . . You will stand at the head of my army, Perseus, as my brother."
"I'll never betray my friends like that!" Percy shouted defiantly. Never in a million years.
"You have left me no choice, Perseus," Voldemort said, "Imp –"
He was cut off with a 'stupefy'! to his back. Voldemort spun out of the way as the other man was about to fire another curse, giving Percy a clear view, as hazy as it was with the unsettled dust.
"Not my nephew, Voldemort!" he said, making Percy's heart soar. Sirius!
"We meet once again, Black." Percy could see Voldemort grin from the corner of his eye as he stood up. "Tell me," his half-brother taunted, "where's James and Lily?"
Percy could see Sirius' stiffen.
"That's right," Voldemort said with a sick grin, "they're dead, aren't they?"
"I'll kill you!" Sirius screamed through his tears. "For what you did to them!"
Percy saw Voldemort fire a curse at his uncle and reacted out of instinct.
"πάγωμα!" Percy shrieked and was pleased to see Voldemort's curse stop in thin air. Both wizards were frozen in shock. It felt like the spell froze them instead of the curse.
Percy quickly grabbed his uncle and vapor-travelled them out of there to the only place he could envision in London.
Voldemort nearly screamed. He had to get the boy at his side.
- X -
"What did you do?" Sirius clutched the shoulders of his nephew who nearly tore Sirius' hands off.
"I vapor-travelled us to Buckingham Palace." Percy said coolly.
When Percy first found out he had this power, he nearly tore his hair off. How useful that could have been in the two wars!
But now? He was thankful beyond belief because if he had taken a second longer, Percy was pretty sure that Voldemort would have his uncle's head.
Sirius looked at him blankly. Percy sighed, rubbing his hand on his face in exasperation. "I converted our body to vapor, then sped all the way here."
"Oh." Sirius said, looking at him strangely. It made Percy self-conscious.
"What?" He demanded. "Is there something on my face?"
Sirius shook his head. "It's just that . . . without a wand you casted a spell . . . in Greek . . ."
Percy gave him a lopsided grin. "I know. I put Dumbledore's theory in action."
"You need a wand." Sirius insisted.
"I don't." Percy deadpanned, ready to show his maternal uncle some more of his power
"Not for power, dummy," Sirius said, "For the wizards. They'll think you're a threat. Can you speak Latin?"
"Yeah," Percy was confused, "Why?"
"All the spells are in Latin," Sirius explained to the half-blood, "So just speak in Latin while casting the spell."
Percy nodded.
"Buckle up, Perce," his uncle said mischievously, "I'm gonna take you to the wizards."
Percy was dumbfounded. "Wha-" was all Percy got out of his mouth when an arm reached out and grabbed him, whisking him away, into darkness.
And here's a tip regarding that experience.
Don't. Just . . . Don't do it.
Because, as soon as Percy's feet touched solid ground, he nearly vomited. It was like shadow-travel, but not as exhilarating. Percy removed his arm from the other man's grip and looking around, dazed. It appeared to be that Percy was in a living room of some a sort - a cozy one, with a crackling fire and several plush armchairs. Though the room was big, it was warm and comfy, and Percy wondered who lived here. Looking up, Percy saw several more wizards appear in the room, popping into existence beside Sirius.
Percy glared at his uncle, who held his arms up in surrender. "Explain." Percy demanded. Sirius complied and explained what 'Apparating' was. Percy was horrified to know that it included flying and Percy gave Sirius his deluxe I-will-murder-you-if-you-put-me-through-that-torture-again glare because Percy had no desire to fall from the sky by the hands of his other uncle.
Satisfied when Sirius looked ready to panic, he softened the glare and stared at the wizards. He could see Dumbledore with his twinkling eyes, letting Sirius introduce him to the rest.
There was tall guy named Kingsley Shacklebolt, the one with the moving eye Alastor 'Mad-eye' Moody (Percy could smell the nickname and its creator a mile ahead), a red-head named Arthur Weasley, and Percy zoned out, just shaking hands with them.
Judging the way Sirius had snarled at Voldemort, Percy was never going to reveal his secret. Ever.
Then Sirius began to explain the events to the others, who looked shocked beyond belief. Questions were thrown everywhere and it was total chaos till Moody screamed at the wizards to shut up. They all complied, and Percy was fairly sure that they respected the guy and were scared of him.
"What's your name?" Moody asked.
"Percy Jackson."
"How old are you?" That was the stern woman with glasses.
"Seventeen. And you?"
"Sixty." Percy nodded. Fair enough. He had seen thousand year old centaurs before.
"Do you work for Voldemort? Or Tom Riddle?" That was Moody again.
"No."
"Then what were you doing in Malfoy Manor?" Malfoy manor? Where Draco lived?
"I was brought there. By some wizards. Death Eaters."
"Why did they try to capture you?" That was a middle aged, red haired man, with a slight potbelly. Arthur Weasley
"They thought I was someone else...A potter." There was some shuffling among the group, and suddenly, two identical red haired males popped out.
"Blimey! He looks-" The first one said.
"Just like Harry!" The second one finished. Percy frowned.
"Do you know this Potter?" The wizards looked at me, shocked.
"You don't?" The purple haired witch said. Tonks, probably.
"Umm . . . Not where I come from."
"And where do you come from?" That was Kingsley Shacklebolt, his thoughtful eyes on me.
"America."
"Ahh."
"And you don't work for Voldemort?" Percy shook his head.
"Nope," Percy said, popping the 'p'.
"How is it that you stopped the curse?" Percy sighed.
"I spoke the spell in Greek."
"What!" Confusion all around.
"Okay! That's enough! This boy doesn't work for Voldemort, he can curse without a wand, in Greek! Who are you?" Percy sighed again. Here came the explanation. Percy just hoped that whatever he did would not come to bite him back later.
"I'm a demigod."
"A what?"
"Um. You hear of the ancient Greek myths about all those gods and monsters that mortals have?"
"You mean the muggle tales of Zeu-"
"Don't say his name!" Percy shouted at the purple haired witch.
"Why not?"
"Names are powerful things, you never know whose listening." Percy warned, but ended up sounding crazy.
"Blimey, this guy's more paraniod then ol' Moody here." One of the twins muttered.
"Anyhow. The gods and goddesses and monsters - they're real." Everyone exploded in a cacophony of protests and arguments. Only Albus looked thoughtfully at him.
"What?" Percy demanded. "You're wizards and you don't believe this?" That quieted them down.
"But didn't Zeus and everybody die, like millions of years ago?" Percy winced as thunder boomed overhead.
"Don't. Say. The. Names." He hissed at the offender.
"Sorry, Sorry," the redhead murmured.
"But in answer to your question, no they did not. You see, they moved Mount Olympus to America, and are still up to their old habits- having kids with mortals. There's quite a few of us, actually. We usually survive the monsters."
The whole room burst into a huge argument again. Suddenly, the shaggy black haired man spoke up.
"So, you're saying that you are the son of one of the gods." Percy nodded his affirmative. Percy now knew what Chiron felt, explaining all this to people who don't believe. He was never going to irritate his teacher on the topic again.
"Then who's your mom?"
"My mom is a writer. Who happens to love blue food." Percy said fondly.
"Okay," the man nodded. "Your dad, then?" Percy hesitated a bit, before answering.
"Poseidon. God of the Seas, Earth-shaker, Storm-bringer, Lord of Horses."
Everyone raised an eyebrow at this.
"No way," One of the red heads said.
"Yes way." Percy snapped.
"Show us one of your tricks, then." The purple haired witch said eagerly. Percy concentrated on the room around him. There, outside the room, a tap. Percy beckoned the water from it and coaxed it out, into a roaring wave. It came through the door way to the living room, in a huge, six feet tall wave that sloshed over everyone. There were a few shrieks, including an angry glare from the stern women with glasses. Although the water had splashed Percy, he was the only one dry. No one else had been spared.
Percy grinned cheekily up at Albus, who annoyingly enough, wasn't miffed. He smiled at Percy, and with a wave of his wand, dried everyone off.
"Well." He said. "I do believe that we are in the presence of the divine . . ."
"So you're just going to believe him like that!" Moody shouted. "Where's your dad then, boy?"
"My father doesn't come at the beck and call for mortals." Percy replied coldly. Normally, Percy hated when pulling the "Divine Father" card, but Moody was annoying him, so . . .
"Well, how did Voldemort find out about you?" Moody asked.
"He's a demigod too. Or he used to be, before his father disowned him. Now he's just a wizard." The room breathed a sigh of relief that their enemy didn't have the power of the gods behind him.
"So, who is dear old Tom's real father?" Great.
"I don't know." He lied. The wizards accepted it, but Sirius looked wary, catching the lie. Though he didn't voice it.
Albus looked thoughtfully at Percy.
"Amazing how your world managed to keep hiding from us wizards."
"Yes. And we should keep it that way." Percy said, worried. Albus might be a bigger problem than Voldemort if he wished to exploit the demigod world.
"There is a prophecy-" Albus began.
"Albus, should we really tell him?" The stern woman demanded.
"Relax, Minerva. There is a prophecy that states that a young wizard will have to battle Tom. Only one of them will win. Now, this young wizard is inexperienced-with magic and with fighting, even though his power is great." Percy nodded, taking in the information. He was about to ask Sirius where the bathroom was and thinking it over, Percy asked one last question.
"By the way, what's this kid's name?"
It was the shaggy haired man that spoke.
"Harry Potter."
There's the second chapter. I'm amazed as to how many hits this story received! Thank you so so so much! I will not be scrapping this story now. Thank you for your support!
R&R
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