Disclaimer: I don't own HP or PJO, k?

Oh, my. I haven't updated again? Feel free to throw some tomatoes at me. At least summer's coming soon! When's your holiday start? Mine is June 8. :)

Chapter 3 – Beginnings

Ginny took out her wand and muttered a spell. The large trunk she had in front of her shrunk to a small, portable size, and she slipped it into her jacket pocket.

It was the day for their "holiday", as Luna put it, and everyone was getting ready. Ginny was the last to finish packing, only because she had the most to pack.

Luna only brought along two small carry-ons, saying that she had the rest at camp. She informed them that she's been attending that specific camp for years, even before she came to Hogwarts. When asked why, she'd reply a simple, "It's a family tradition" and smile.

"So we're going to Apparate?" Ron asked.

Unsurprisingly, they still hadn't planned it out. Now that they weren't pressured into either saving, rescuing, or any other heroic acts, they became Mrs. Weasley's worst fear—lazy.

Luna shook her head, her blond locks flying. "Of course not."

Ron groaned into his hands. "Great. We're not riding on a Snorlax-thingy, are we? I meant that as a joke."

"Snorkack, Ronald." Luna corrected. "But unfortunately, no. Crumple-Horned Snorkacks aren't meant for riding. We are going to use a port key to a place I know in Long Island, as that is where the camp is, and ride in a muggle car." It's not somewhere you can Apparate to, she added in her head.

"Ride…? Luna!" Hermione gasped. "The car we have isn't big enough! It's not meant for foreign streets—especially not ones for America! How will we be able to send it there if we're just going to Apparate?"

Harry smiled as Ron asked cheekily, "Are you a witch or not?"

Hermione glowered.

"Right, so we use magic to charm the car there. But is that it? Just ride a car and show up? Don't we, I dunno, have to sign papers and things?" Ginny asked.

Neville was the one to answer before Luna, "Luna probably planned all that out already, right, Luna?"

Luna giggled and didn't respond.

It took a while for them to gather all their things (Neville had to go back twice to the house to check if he had all his plants with him and Ginny forgot her diary—not the evil kind), but in the end, they were right in time to use the port key to Long Island, New York. The requesting of the port key wasn't a big deal itself, only it was the accepting that was tricky. They were barely able to have one, thanks to the great Harry Potter and friends.

They found the car already parked and safe when they jumped from their port key. The landing point was a quiet roadside with no one around to see.

And so, they all piled into the car (with the help of an extension charm, they had plenty of room) that Hermione received for her 18th birthday. She never got around to using it, as she now permanently lived in the Wizarding World, but she couldn't decline her parents. It seems she still felt very guilty leading them into forgetting her. She hadn't gotten yelling, but only sad smiles and hugs, which made Hermione feel even worse.

Surprisingly, Harry was the first to get his driver's license (1), which he had earned because the inspector was an older lady who was "absolutely charmed by his good manners and performance". Harry swore he never used magic. Ginny almost believed him, that is, before she saw him wink to Ron behind Hermione's back.

It was too long of a drive and most had become rather bored already. Ron had tried to have his share of entertainment and took out his handy dandy deck of Exploding Snap, which held some of their attention, right until Ginny almost burned Neville's eyebrows off. Their last resort was to just relax and sleep, which they took in kindly.

Harry was in the front seat, having trouble, of course, since the roads were much different from the roads back home. Luna was in the seat beside him, still reading her much coveted magazine. Over the past years, Harry had gotten quite used to Luna. Everyone came to accept her for who she was and loved her. Even if Ron might make fun of her occasionally, it's noticeable once you see him smile at her the way he smiles at Ginny. Sisterly, was the word.

"Luna," Harry started, "you can get a headache from reading while in a moving vehicle."

Luna didn't even lift her blond head when she replied, "That's alright; I've got the wrist charms for those."

Harry chuckled under his breath.

It was about half an hour or so when Harry glanced back to see how his friends were doing.

It was a warm sight. They were all seated and sleeping and snoring as comfortably as anyone could possibly be in a magical charmed British car driving on American streets. Neville was scrunched up at the corner, his head occasionally tapping against the window, otherwise slumbering leisurely. To his right, Hermione was sleeping quietly, with Ginny to her side as she laid her head on Hermione's shoulder. Lastly, Ron was sprawled on the ground of the seat, his constant snores being the loudest noise in the car.

It was Luna that broke the silence. "We're almost there."

Harry looked and saw that they were near a hill. It was simple, but beautiful. At the corner of his eyes, he could spot a small strawberry farm, but as they got closer, the vision changed.

"Why is…?" He murmured to himself.

Luna smiled. This was going to be exciting.

"Percyyyyy," Grover dragged.

"Yup, G-man?"

"They're coming today."

"I could tell," Percy replied. This was obvious.

When Percy woke up that Saturday morning, he felt the atmosphere tense. Camp was less rowdy than usual and everyone did their activities in a deafening silence. Percy shuddered.

Just like before the war.

They were all told at the bonfire the night before that they'd be expecting specific visitors, and they'd have to be on their "best behavior" (which caused a round of laughter, and even Chiron smiled a bit). Everyone was on edge—they we're curious yet on guard. Who were these strangers coming into camp? What do the gods have to say about it? The campers were ripping their hair out because there was so little information.

Annabeth and her cabin had been anxious, especially. Why was Luna, their half-sister, doing this? Who was she, really? There was so little facts that they knew about her—only that she went to some British boarding school and that for the past few years, she'd been coming to Camp bruised and damaged. And also that she had a fetish for owls and strange radish jewelry, but they knew that information was useless.

"Perce, I gotta go—Juniper wants to hang out for a while. We're going to—"

"Okay, ew. I don't think I'd like to hear any details, alright?" Percy grimaced.

Grover blushed furiously. "Perrrcy!"

The son of Poseidon just chuckled. "Go ahead, Grover."

And Percy was left alone to think and wander.

Percy sighed and continued walking. He had just come from the fighting arena and had come to the lake to cool off. No one was really there; only a couple water nymphs and some satyrs playing free-style on their flutes (sadly, Percy had to admit that they were quite better at playing Hilary Duff than Grover). He sat at the ledge and let his bare feet feel the water.

"Hey," A voice rang from behind. Percy jumped. He smiled as he saw who it was.

"Hey yourself," He replied. Annabeth sat down beside him, mimicking the way he sat. They didn't talk for a while, but it wasn't awkward. They had both gotten used to each other's presence that they didn't even need words to communicate anymore. Nico always said it was creepy.

"You can cut the tension in this camp with Riptide," Annabeth finally spoke.

Percy grinned. "Right. It's like the calm—"

"—before the storm, yeah." Annabeth finished. "It's kind of scary, actually. Do you know how much my cabin is freaking out? They've been muttering how much it's, quote and quote, 'a mystery beyond magical proportions'."

Percy let out a laugh. "To be completely honest, I really don't see what the big deal is. I mean, it's not like some humans are going to, what, use some bazookas on us or something."

Annabeth rolled her intimidating grey eyes. "Percy, the big deal is that mortals aren't meant to come here. And since Luna Lovegood must know that, these are probably not just mere school friends."

Percy was silent for a moment.

"Annabeth?"

"Yes, Percy?

"Was Luna with us last year during the war?" He asked, completely curious.

"Of course she…she was." Annabeth hesitated. Her eyes widened. "Oh, gosh!"

Percy looked at her in surprise. "What?"

"I just remembered when she came to camp last year!" She exclaimed. "It was the beginning of June and not much people were here that early; she was one of the first ones in my cabin. I remember because I had just come from the archery area and when I entered, she was there. She had bandages, all over her arms and face—and I know that wasn't from some cruel British physical education practice—it was from fighting, probably. Once I came in, she hid something behind her. I could have sworn it was a stick of some sort—"

"Woah, woah, wait," Percy interrupted. "A stick? As in, from branches and stuff?"

For the second time that hour, Annabeth rolled her eyes (she seemed to do that a lot when near Percy).

"Yeah, a stick, let me continue," She replied. "Anyway, I ask her about it and she just replies in her vague way and I just drop the subject completely. I then see that she hadn't unpacked yet, which is weird, because in all the year's I've known Luna, she'd always unpack the fastest out of everyone in our cabin. I saw a weird coin on the top of her trunk, too. It was somewhat bigger than a drachma, but it definitely wasn't for sending IM's."

Annabeth glanced at Percy to see if he was still listening. He was staring at the water below them. Immediately, she knew he was listening. So she continued.

"There have been… rumors, floating around about her. And you know how I don't really care about that sort of thing, but now that I think about it, it's kind of strange. Weird glowing objects, strange appearances, friends that aren't part of our world or the mortal world; it just doesn't add up. Honestly, I don't think I even know my own sister, even if she is half."

Percy stayed silent for a while. This was a sign to Annabeth that he was thinking—she had learned before that Percy, although he may act goofy and silly sometimes, is actually really observant, and even smart.

Then he finally spoke, and Annabeth had to take back her previous thought.

"Gang, it looks like we have a mystery on our hands. Let's split up and look for clues!" Percy joked. (AN: Scooby Doo, anyone?)

Annabeth sighed in resignation and stood up.

But it was true, she thought. This really was a mystery waiting to be solved. And maybe, just maybe, they'll find the answer once Luna Lovegood comes back to camp.

"Luna," Harry called, breathless as he stared. "What is this?"

Luna giggled. "I'll tell you; only, we need to wake the rest up first."

Harry parked the car below the hill. Gradually, the wizards woke up, some groaning as they did.

Ron yawned. "Are we there yet?"

"Yes, Ronald," Ginny answered for them. "It seems we are. I—what in Merlin's name is that?"

"That's exactly what I wanted to know." Harry commented wryly. They were all still in the car.

"Friends," Luna began saying as she unlocked her car door. "I hope you're all ready to meet my other family."

(1) I've always imagined Harry to be the first to get his driver's license and Hermione the first to have her own car. I don't know why it turned out like this.

Oh, gosh. I'm so evil—THEY DIDN'T MEET! Hohoho. I'm sorry, it's just that I feel like I have to clear some things up before their worlds collide, you know? (It was short, too. Ugh.) The good news is, it's almost summer break, and I'll have more time for writing! Hooray! (But I need to get through finals first, of course.)

Anyway, review if you liked it! And if you didn't, well, you still need to review!

-TN