This story is going too slow, if you ask me. Let's speed it up.
A: I'm talking about the legacy, Grandma Zhang, one of the best characters in the Heroes of Olympus.
Listening to – Ma Baker by Boney M
They couldn't find Kreacher. Remus told them that Sirius would be back by noon, but the fact that they'd heard something that neither he nor Sally could, bothered them.
"He's doing this to scare you." Remus assured them. "We've checked the house and all potentially harmful objects are in the attic. We've moved the unwanted furniture to the basement and besides the bedrooms and kitchen, everything else just need cleaning."
"But why couldn't you or mom hear it?" Percy asked.
"It might be part of the trick!" Remus sounded less sure, but he tried to keep an upbeat tone. He gave them a quick smile and looked towards Harry.
"Uh... I'll stay down here and help clean up..." Harry said immediately. He had no wish to talk to an adult.
Sally's frown worried him. It was like they knew something that he didn't. He hated not knowing. Harry cleared his throat and stood straight. "Really, I'm fine. I'll talk to Sirius when he gets back. I just need to cool down."
Even as he said it, Harry wondered if he was really at fault for yelling at Sirius. His godfather had yelled as well. It's not like he needed therapy.
Whatever the others thought.
"Alright." Remus looked towards Sally before nodding. He looked at DJ, Percy and then Nico with a close lipped smile. "I'll be in the office."
He walked out of the kitchen and Harry looked over at Sally. She was in her night gown, her hair in disarray. She'd just woken up, probably from the argument.
"I'm going back to bed. I need to be up in three hours." Sally said, shooting them a grin and leaving as well. "Be careful."
"Always." Percy said, waving her off. The wood creaked and the moment they heard her on the stairs, DJ shot up to his feet.
"We need to find that noise." He said.
Percy looked up at the ceiling and groaned. "Do you know nothing? Rule number 4 of the haunted house survival guide says that you should never ever follow the creepy sound."
"But it's not completely creepy, right?" Nico asked, setting aside his bowl. "We know that the house elf's making it."
"That's what we think." DJ corrected him. "Remus could be wrong."
"But Kreacher said it himself, that he was responsible for it." Harry reminded him. "He can't lie to Sirius."
"Well then..." DJ struggled to find a point. "What do we do?"
Percy dropped the rest of the dishes into the sink. "We clean the common rooms."
"Aren't any of you a little bit curious?" DJ asked when no one moved.
Nico shrugged. "I think Kreacher's the one doing it."
"I'm not in the mood for a mystery, DJ. I just want a peaceful summer." Harry admitted.
"Summer is almost over." Percy pointed out.
"Well, I want to relax for the fortnight."
Percy bounced on his feet. "Yes! Let's do that! Let's relax and clean the house."
"Come on, I'm bored!" DJ complained.
"And you wanna spend time investigating strange sounds?" Percy protested.
"Yeah! What's the harm? We can just find Kreacher. It's not like it could be anything bad!"
Harry could suggest a wild variety of things of what a fake heartbeat could mean. He had a vivid imagination when it came to the macabre.
"I thought demigods are supposed to be brave and stuff." DJ said, frowning.
Percy stared. "Oh, you want to be speciest about this? Fine. We are known for our survival skills as well. Is that part not mentioned in The Modern Demigod?"
Suddenly, everyone froze. Nico, DJ and Percy turned to watch Harry with a bit of trepidation. He blinked back at them. "What?"
There was a three second silence before Nico said, "Nothing."
DJ looked around wildly for a second before attacking Percy again. "So... er, why do you suddenly know about haunted houses?"
Percy exhaled and rubbed the back his neck like he needed to distract himself from the scene. Harry suspected that something had changed the situation, but he wasn't sure what.
"Annabeth ...likes... the slasher genre." Percy mumbled, bowing his head, his face flushing. "We watched, like a bunch of them."
"You watched..." Harry stared. "Is that what you guys were really doing in the Big House?! I thought you were snogging!"
"No, we weren't! Gods, is that what everyone thought?!"
Harry began to laugh. In the aftermath of the battle of the Labyrinth, they had been busy with reparations to the damage caused. Annabeth and Percy took a break of a couple of hours almost every other day to hole themselves up in the Big House. The campers were giggly with the thought especially when Nico, Stanley and Harvey confirmed that they were watching scary movies.
"You were just watching the movies?" Nico asked cynically.
"Yeah! What did you think we were doing?"
Nico and Harry shared a look. The word 'naive' came to mind, but Harry thought better than to say it out loud.
"Well then. We have an expert." DJ surmised. "Next time we hear it. We follow it and find Kreacher, if he is the one doing it."
They cleared up their plates and went straight up to the landing of the fourth floor. There were only two doors, both of which were locked. One of them was, undoubtedly to the loft that had been especially designated off limits to them. The other door was a mystery. DJ had an expression of curiosity by Percy gave him such a dramatic flourish of waving his hands that he gave up.
Nico and Percy proceeded to sweep and mop the stairs, while DJ cleared the cobwebs off of the railings and the banisters. Harry used a cloth to catch anything they might have missed. It took longer than expected, but then they started humming the Ghostbuster theme, followed by Batman and Superman. Percy did most of the singing. He could never hit the right notes, but it wasn't too bad. They laughed every time he added a high octave to the music.
By the time they reached the ground floor and proceeded to clean the staircase that lead to the basement, it had been nearly an hour. They heard Sally listening to 'Boney M' in the kitchen. She was on a retro roll.
They were nearly done when they heard the sound again. It was louder. Each thump hit Harry's chest and he grabbed the cold wall. Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub. It was the strangest thing he'd ever heard. It felt inorganic as though it could have been a machine trying to be alive, trying to outlive everyone.
Percy dropped the mop. Nico and DJ froze, eyes wide from the beats. Harry knew why this round affected them the most. The beat was forceful, hammering at his own heart with its rhythm. It was issuing from the basement.
The sound stopped and Harry breathed in, relaxing a little. Whatever Kreacher was playing at, he had to know.
He stepped forwards to reach for the door handle when Percy grabbed his wrist. "What?!"
"We're not barred from the basement." Harry reminded him.
"Since when did you get curious?"
"Since when did you get cautious?"
"It sounded like metal." Nico whispered, staring at the door. Harry tried to remember what Sirius had said about it. They'd dumped a bit of the furniture down there, all broken and unused. It was probably Kreacher's hideout.
"This is ridiculous." DJ muttered and grabbed at the handle and turned it. It didn't budge, so he took out his wand and said, "Alohomora."
The door still remained locked. Percy shrugged. "Oh well, we tried."
Harry rolled his eyes. "You can't possibly think we'd give up now."
Percy folded his arms. "Fine. Open it. And I won't say a word."
"If we unlock it, you're opening it." DJ smirked.
Harry looked up, wondering if Sally had left the kitchen, but all he could hear where the lyrics to the song – Ma Baker, she had her four sons...
He took out his wand and pointed at the door handle with a small flick, "Aberto."
There was a click and the handle shifted a bit. DJ looked towards Percy with a smug grin. Percy frowned, looked at all of them and then sighed. He turned to face the door fully, opening and closing his fists, reaching hesitantly for the handle, pausing every now and then.
"Percy?" Harry whispered. "We're actually not in a horror movie. Just open the damn door."
With a burst of energy, Percy grabbed the handle, turned it and pushed open the door. It swung with quietly and what shocked them was not a strange sight or sound, but a smell. Something was rotting in the room, filling the air with a noxious, sick worthy stench.
Nico gagged, clapping a hand over his nose. DJ recoiled and Percy choked. Harry grimaced. The only image he could get was that of a decomposing body.
But the basement looked as normal as a muggle's cellar. Sunlight filtered through the small glass panes that were on the wall, touching the ceiling. Dust floated aimlessly, settling down on the four large shelves that were stacked side by side. A broken table, larger than the one they had in the kitchen, covered more than half the room. Harry wondered if there was a corpse of a creature under it.
"Bugger, that looks like mould!" DJ hissed, pointing to the wall opposite them. Harry spotted a greenish fungus like growth, the size of his palm, on the cement.
Percy wrenched out his inhaler from his pocket and took a hit, breathing through his mouth.
"It's moving!" Nico yelled. Harry jumped. The fungus did look like it was shifting in its place.
"Urgh!" Percy leaned to reach for the door handle and pulled it, slamming it shut. "There! Happy?!" He asked, furiously. "We almost died from the smell alone!"
"What smell?" Sally asked, scaring the wits out of the four boys. She was looking over them, leaning against the railing on the ground floor. She was already dressed in her sky blue blouse and smart trousers, hair piled up neatly in a bun, ready for the office.
"Um... you look pretty, mom." Percy said immediately but she raised an eyebrow at him.
Nico rushed up the stairs to her, strangely excited. "We saw this slime and it smelled like a dead body!"
"What?" She looked flabbergasted.
That was the end of their adventure. By the time Remus had it checked out and Sirius was back, Harry had forgotten about the strange heartbeat. Apparently, the cellar had a small infestation of Bundimun, a creature that reeked of corpses and destroyed houses by multiplying and feasting on rotting wood. So, it was a good thing after all that they'd decided to investigate the basement. Bundimuns were dangerous since they could actually spray poison that could eat away any surface it landed on.
There was nothing else of note in the room and after noon, Tonks had reached back, with a bushy haired brunette in tow.
Harry couldn't help his grin. It had been too long since they'd seen each other. Hermione had been in France for most of her vacations and owl post was sparse in between. The moment she saw him, she let out a happy yell and rushed to him, throwing her arms around his neck.
Harry laughed at her enthusiasm. "Hey, Hermione. How have you been?"
She pulled back, a bright smile flitting across her face. "Forget about me, what happened to you?! I had to find out in the paper that you were kidnapped! Ron only knew so much and you hadn't mailed anything –"
"I was in the hospital for most of the time." Harry reminded her. They separated and she turned around to hug DJ.
"Oh, hi Percy." Hermione said in surprise when she saw the demigod. Percy grinned. "Hi, Hermione. Wanna hug?"
She simply chuckled. Then she spotted Nico, lurking behind the couch. "Hello."
"Um... hello."
Percy clapped a hand on Nico's shoulder. "This is my cousin, Nico di Angelo. Nico, this is Hermione Granger, Harry's best friend."
Nico didn't move from his spot, just giving her a shy smile. Hermione tried to keep up her jovial mood, but Harry could see the tell tale signs of her trying to deconstruct the boys. He knew that she'd figured out that they weren't wizards or muggles.
"Let's get your trunk upstairs." Harry said, nodding at DJ. He wasn't supposed to do any heavy lifting. DJ looked around. Remus, Sirius and Tonks were in the kitchen. He then placed a hand on Hermione's trunk and it lifted itself off of the floor, hovering by their waists. Hermione stared at him.
"You've been practicing." She accused him, good-naturedly.
"Kind of." DJ winked and headed for the staircase. Harry gestured her to follow him. Percy and Nico remained in the hall.
"So..." Hermione began as they reached the third floor. "How many secrets are you keeping?"
Harry and DJ let out a sigh. If only she knew...
"I know there's something different about Percy. And Nico looks the same –"
"Hermione, we'll tell you." Harry said patiently. The bedroom that was closest to the stairs was the one assigned to Hermione and Ginny. He opened it and DJ directed the trunk inside.
She shut the door once they were in and folded her arms. Harry wondered when she had perfected the McGonagall glare because she was delivering a proper rendition of it at the moment.
"It's complicated." DJ said, setting the trunk down next to one of the beds. Hermione huffed.
"It's actually not that complicated." Harry revised the statement. "But it is a long story."
"I'm all ears."
"You must be hungry, though."
"I just had lunch."
"Well, I'm hungry."
"You ate lunch twenty minutes ago, DJ." Harry said, frowning at him.
DJ blinked. "Oh. I thought we were stalling."
"Just tell me." Hermione said again. She stood in front of the door like the ultimate barrier and Harry relented.
"Fine. We were actually going to announce to the Order once they were all here. Percy and Nico are demigods."
Hermione's expression didn't change. For a moment, Harry wondered if she had already figured that part out, but then she said, "I'm sorry?"
"Demi-gods." DJ said slowly. "Half humans and half gods."
The strangest look took over her face. Harry had never seen her so confused. He stifled in the urge to laugh.
"Breathe." He told her. "Come here, sit down."
It was a whole twenty minutes later when Hermione finally realised that they were telling the truth. She kept mouthing the word 'gods' to herself once in a while, her eyes glazed. DJ looked worried till she exclaimed, "Like Heracles?"
"Yes." Harry latched on to it. "Hercules was a son of Zeus. Percy is a son of Poseidon and Nico is a son of Hades."
"Please take note of the present tense." DJ added.
Hermione's hands fluttered across her mattress till she caught the handle of her trunk. She unlocked it and yanked it open. Harry and DJ peered in. The only things they could see where a mound of books, that seemed impossibly stuffed inside. She rifled through them, pushing each tome aside till she grabbed one that looked about as old and damaged as Grimmauld Place itself. It had a worn moss green leather cover with barely legible gold symbols in Latin.
They waited patiently for her to find whatever she needed to ground herself back into her reality.
"Read this!" She shoved the book into Harry's hands, poke at the page on the left. There was rudimentary old artwork of a black figure tied to a stone pillar with a large bird poking at its chest. Harry couldn't read Latin fluently, but it took him only a few seconds to understand the image.
"There are stories of Prometheus rooted in Sorcery culture." Hermione whispered excitedly. She indicated the passage below the picture. "It talks about how Prometheus knew he would be punished by ... Lord Zeus, but still brought down fire and all its knowledge for the Paleolithic humans. There are other books that talk of different mysterious properties of the fire itself that he gifted mankind."
Harry stared at the page. Something slowly clicked in his mind.
"Wait!" DJ sprang up to his feet. "Are you saying that it was Prometheus who brought down magic for us?"
"Shush!" Hermione and Harry hissed. He looked towards the door. He couldn't see a shadow beneath it, but didn't want to risk it till there was evidence.
"It's an educated guess." Hermione said nervously. "The timing would make it right, because about a hundred years after this, the first recorded spells were invented. There are two existing Grimoires from that era."
"We thought it would have been Hecate." Harry told her, turning the pages. If this was true, then Zeus would definitely not trust wizards and witches. He had punished Prometheus for centuries till Hercules came and freed him.
"Hecate... the goddess of magic... of course... maybe..." She began to mutter to herself again. Then she shook her head. "No, I think he is the more likely choice because this book states that there were secrets in the fire that he gave away. I think it was Fiendfyre."
The word was hushed. Harry shuddered. He had never encountered it but had had Snape explain to the class in his third year when he had been threatening them as usual. Hermione had read up on it and had explained to Ron and him about how Fiendfyre was one of the most destructive forms of magic ever created.
"Are you talking about cursed fire?" DJ asked, frowning at the book. Hermione nodded and DJ exhaled, looking stunned.
"Well... let's not tell this to anyone." DJ said. "At least... not yet."
Harry handed the book back to Hermione. "That's easier said than done. Once we tell the Order, they're all going to do their own research. Dumbledore will surely figure it out."
"I don't want to tell them that Percy and Nico's uncle, who happens to hold all power, actually hates the person who gave us magic in the first place!" DJ whisper yelled.
"I don't want to let them make wild conclusions from this. The best thing to do is to just tell them."
"Wait, just wait." Hermione said. She stood up, a calculating look on her face. "We don't have concrete proof of this. This is a theory that has been debated for years. It may not even be true."
"But you think it's relevant." Harry pointed out.
She frowned. "It's the most convincing myth I've come across. But I'm no scholar. I don't know enough about the origins of magic. There are professionals in the matter who are still unsure of this. We're nowhere to that level."
"Alright." DJ hopped on the spot. "So we're not telling them?"
Harry looked at Hermione carefully. It was obvious that she would start a secret year long project on the subject. They had the time so why not use it?
Before he could say anything, there was a loud crash from downstairs. Even though they were thirty feet up, they could now hear the screaming of all the portraits in the cold hallway, loudest of which was Mrs. Black, screeching all possible verbal abuse – red haired demons, destroying the sanctity of my home...
Once the Weasleys were settled in, it was a full house. There were still empty rooms on the second floor, but it hardly mattered. Grimmauld place was suddenly far more lively and comfortable especially with Molly Weasley scolding Fred and George for their multitude of strange sweets, Ginny and Ron yelling about misplaced socks and Percy annoying Percy on the similarities of their names.
"Isn't Neville here yet?" Percy Weasley asked, desperately trying to find salvation from Percy Jackson's queries.
"Neville's coming here?" Hermione asked in surprise.
"Yeah!" Ron said, excitedly. They were mostly packed in the hall in front of the hearth where red flames tickled the chimney walls. Hermione, Fred and Harry were on the couch while, Nico was showing his Mythomagic cards to Ginny and George and Ron and DJ were snickering at Percy J. hindering Percy W.
"Dad says that Neville and his parents will reach before dinner. They have to leave discreetly, because no one else knows about them." Ron explained.
"Neville's parents?" Hermione asked. She was frowning. Harry realised she didn't know the story.
"Alice is mum's younger sister." Fred told Hermione. "She and her husband Frank were in the first Order too. Mum hated that she joined especially because of what happened afterwards."
"What happened?"
It seemed as if the fire dimmed. Harry looked at Ginny whose shoulders were tense. He knew she had moderate control of fire. It was her Core magic. He found himself idly wondering if she could produce Fiendfyre. There was no way she would be able to control it, though. Even grown-ups could barely conjure it let alone control or even extinguish it.
"They were attacked by the Lestranges." Percy W. said softly. "Driven insane. For fourteen years."
Hermione clapped a hand over her mouth. Nobody said a word and Harry felt the weight of his silence press him into the couch. Dionysus had taken barely a minute to remember the names and fix their minds. Completely healed. The Longbottoms had lost fourteen years but had gained a miracle.
Nico's voice rose over the crackling of wood in the hearth. "But they're okay, now?"
George sat up. "Yeah! It's unbelievable, 'cause the healers always said that they'd never wake up. But a couple of weeks ago, they just got up and started walking around, asking what date it was."
"Cor." DJ said, stunned. "That's amazing."
"It is." Ginny said quietly. "You should have seen mum. She started crying when she heard the news. Neville's been sending loads of letters. He's so excited."
Harry saw Percy J. looking at him. They didn't say a word, but looked away. He couldn't know. No one did. Harry and Rachel were the only ones. Or did Dionysus tell someone? He could have. He had no obligation to keep it a secret.
He looked back into the fire. It grew warmer after Fred said, "So, how was your summer?"
Harry purposely kept his mouth shut. Hermione told them about her trip to France and DJ talked about the cricket match he'd been to with Aunt Rosalie and Colin Creevey's family.
"Harry?" Sirius called from the doorway. Glad to get away before his turn came, Harry left the room and entered the kitchen. He stopped just inside the entrance, jaw dropping when he saw who was sitting at the table, eating a sandwich.
Severus Snape looked even surlier and pastier than before summer. How was that possible? He sat in his usual black robes, long hair falling unflatteringly over his head. His skin had a grey tinge as though he'd visited Azkaban, recently.
Sirius let out a long sigh. He looked carefully at Harry and explained. "Harry, do you know what Occlumency is?"
Crap.
"Yes." He said immediately. He could see where this was going. "I know what it is and I practice –"
"Did you have a tutor?" Snape asked.
"No –"
"Proper Occlumency training requires an actual trainer, Potter. Unlike what Granger tells you, you can't learn everything from a book."
There it was. Harry hadn't missed the loathing filled voice one bit.
"Put a cork in it, Snape. He knows the basics. That's a start." Sirius snapped.
Snape finished his food and sat up, black eyes sneering at Sirius. "If you'd rather not need my assistance..."
Sirius raised his head as though pleading for a higher power's blessing. "No. You're one of the best at this."
"Correct. Potter, it has been decided by the Headmaster that you will need extensive preparation for the forthcoming year. He plans to conduct singular classes with you to improve your knowledge on what is to come."
Harry gaped. For a second, the words simply made no sense.
"Wait, singular classes? Dumbledore's going to teach me?"
"Professor Dumbledore had seen it fit –"
"Why couldn't he tell me this himself?"
"Harry." Sirius said, guiding him to the table. Harry pulled out a chair for him to sit, facing Snape. Sirius sat next to him. "Dumbledore's been very busy. You've seen the papers. You'll meet him later during the meeting."
"Are you doing this because I didn't want to talk to Mantis?" Harry asked hurriedly. Sirius looked a little surprised.
"Of course not. Harry, that was your decision and I won't force you on it. But this is directly vital and I really think Occlumency lessons will be very helpful."
Harry looked back at Snape. "Why does it have to be with him?"
"Your subtlety in accusations are commendable, Potter." Snape drawled. "Do you plan on baffling me for the entire term?"
"Don't make me regret this, Snape." Sirius warned. "I'm agreeing only because you are the best option we have for now."
"It must have killed you to consider me."
Harry saw a muscle twitch in Sirius' neck. He knew that the two of them had less than civil interactions at school. He also knew that Sirius had once pranked Snape and nearly got him killed. Snape may have loathed James, but he was dead and Sirius was not.
"So, you're teaching me Occlumency?" Harry jumped in, feeling goosebumps on his arms.
Snape turned back to him. "Yes. On the second of September, eight o'clock sharp, we will have our first session where I will lay out the groundwork for the rest of the classes. No one must know of the reason and we will spend exactly one and a half hours to reiterate the basics and test them."
"Eight o'clock is dinner time." Sirius stated.
"He can have a light meal at seven. The second is a Sunday."
Sirius leaned forwards. He suddenly lost all humour and grace. "You'd best remember that if Harry suffers anymore from under your tutelage, I'll drop by the castle for a little visit, Snivellus."
Snape's entire body went rigid at the last word. "Haven't found any new insults? I guess an old dog cannot learn new tricks."
"I don't have to because the old ones work just fine."
Harry angled back. He could feel the energy in the room along with the growing tension. He thought he heard a noise from the hall but the door muted it and he had no choice but to be subjected to the scene in front of him. "Um... what about my lessons with Dumbledore?"
No one answered for a tense moment but then Snape said, "Dumbledore's schedule has to overcompensate for your sessions but they will take place. Expect the first meeting to happen sometime around the middle of the month."
Harry tried not to make any sudden movements. Sirius and Snape were still glaring at each other and he felt very much caught in between. All his instincts were screaming at him to get away from the confrontation.
"I gather that you were unsuccessful from your meeting with Umbridge?" Snape's question confused Harry. Sirius clenched his fists.
"That's none of your business."
"It will be if the Order gets dragged into it. You've never been discreet, Black."
"And you could never keep your nose out of other people's affairs."
"At the very least, I am still able to keep a cool eye on my godson."
Sirius seemed to have exploded. His wand was out within a millisecond and Harry ducked down from his chair as Snape too withdrew his wand. There was a bang and the house seemed to rock, but it was only Harry's sense of equilibrium. The noise shocked his ear drums and struck him disoriented for several seconds.
The door flew open and a horde of people burst into the room.
Harry kept his eyes shut, hands tight over his ears, face tucked on his knees. He stayed that was till the inside of his eyelids brightened. He opened his eyes.
Percy and Sally were looking at him in concern. He was under the table and Percy lifted the tablecloth for him to crawl out.
"Really, Sirius?" Molly reproached him. Harry stumbled to his feet. The kitchen looked normal, but there was an ugly burn mark on the tale and he could smell smoke in the air.
"Oh my god." Someone whispered. Harry looked up at the doorway were at least ten people had to be standing. He recognized everyone except for two of them, who stood on the top step, right at the entrance. He guessed they were a couple. They stood close to each other, with expressions of shock on their fatigued faces. They were grey haired, but still had a young parlour despite the physical exhaustion, similar to Sirius.
The woman was short, almost as short as Molly. She had short hair and her round face was so stark in resemblance to Neville that Harry was speechless. The man next to her was tall and lanky, not as tall as Ron, though. His gaunt face had slightly sunken cheeks but his eyes glistened in happiness which made up for everything.
The woman stepped forward and pulled Harry into a tight embrace, bursting into tears.
Harry knew who it was. Neville was there too, standing next to his father and DJ. He'd never seen Neville look so complete. The constant feeling of lost that had usually accompanied him was gone.
Alice Longbottom looked at him. Her eyes and cheeks were wet. "Harry, you look just like them. You're so beautiful!" She hugged him again.
Okay, hopefully, I can finish the Grimmauld segment by next chapter. Stay tuned!
Q: Who is Grandma Zhang based on?
Cabba.