Space Address: 1A - Sun
Word Count: 2,811
Warnings: Children having to face danger without adult supervision
Challenges: Gryffindor MC; Ravenclaw MC; Hufflepuff MC; Short Jog; The Real MC; Ethnic & Present; Neurodivergent; Quiet Time; Phoenix and Basilisk; Creature People (Y); Wise Seaweed; Old Shoes; Interesting Times
~o0o~
September first came too quickly. Cedric placed his, Harry's, and Luna's trunks into the truck and said his last goodbyes to the animals. Luna had already said goodbye to her father and was crammed into the back seat with Harry.
"Where's Dad?" Cedric asked Belphoebe.
"He had an emergency at work," she said, gripping the steering wheel. "I'm sorry, habibi."
Cedric suppressed a sigh. "Work comes first."
"To an extent," said Belphoebe. "Work comes first to an extent."
The drive to London was quiet at first. Luna was humming lightly until she broke into song. Cedric looked back at her with a grin and harmonized while Belphoebe kept time on the steering wheel.
Harry found himself mesmerized. He bobbed his head and wiggled his fingers. The song was slow, yet light. He didn't know what they were singing but it must've been Greek. Luna had mentioned her mother was from there.
He dozed off from their song. When he woke, they were at King's Cross and Belphoebe was yelling.
"Absolutely no parking!" she growled. "I'm sorry, do you think you three can get to the platform."
"I'll get them there, Mum," said Cedric.
"Okay. I'll drive around until the train leaves just in case anything happens." She kissed her son on the head and reached back to take Harry's hand. "Do not hesitate to write me, habibi. If you have any trouble or you just want to talk."
"I will," he said.
Belphoebe patted his cheek and squeezed Luna's hand.
"Goodbye, Auntie Bel," said Luna. "See you for Yule."
"See you at Yule."
Cedric unloaded the trunks and animal cages onto trolleys that were conveniently left by the curb, and the three of them entered the crowded station. Luckily, the entrance they were dropped off at was very close to Platform 9 and 3/4.
"You first, Luna," said Cedric.
Luna skipped along and disappeared into the third pillar.
"Go on, Harry," said Cedric, looking over his shoulder. "I'm right behind you."
Harry, worried that he would be barred, chose to lean against the pillar. Relief flooded his chest when it gave way and he was on the platform with the scarlet engine of the Hogwarts Express.
Cedric appeared moments later.
"You have something on your shirt," said Harry.
Cedric brushed off the yellow dust. "Just some dirt."
"Are you sure no one will see…" Harry tapped the scales on his temple.
"Positive," said Luna.
"You two should go find a compartment," said Cedric. "Prefects have to meet in the first car. I imagine I'll need to find you after. Oh, and Harry—" he gave Harry a chocolate bar. "— you'll need this."
"Er— thanks." Harry put the chocolate into an outside pocket of his book bag.
"Harry!"
Harry's vision became obscured by a mass of brown hair.
"Oh, I was so worried when I hadn't heard from you," said Hermione. "Ron thought you might have—" she held him at arm's length. "Harry… are you alright?"
Luna snapped her fingers and it was like a ripple went through the air. Anyone who looked at Harry didn't seem fazed. Except for Hermione; she was still studying him with a curious expression. She opened her mouth, then closed it.
"Er— let's go get a seat," she said. "Don't want to miss the train. I saw Percy, so Ron must already be on board."
They ended up in a compartment occupied by a sleeping man.
Harry wasn't sure why Hermione was able to see past the illusion charm Luna had obviously cast. No one else saw anything out of the ordinary. They didn't even comment on the blue tint of his glasses.
Hermione didn't comment either, but as she told him about Greece, she kept giving him curious glances.
"Oi, there you are," said Ron. "Been looking all over for you."
"Hey, Ron," said Harry, giving his best friend a hug. "I'm sorry about not writing, things were just hectic."
"Yeah, I hear you," said Ron. "With petrifying your aunt, I imagine the ministry was breathing down your neck. Brilliant work by the way."
"It certainly was not," Hermione admonished. "He was lucky enough to not have been expelled."
"Oh, he had every right to," said Luna pleasantly, as if she were discussing the weather. "If someone insulted my parents, I'd put them six feet under. You understand."
Hermione faltered and looked at her hands. "Well, yes, I suppose I do."
"Who are you?" Ron demanded.
"Right," said Harry, mentally kicking himself. "Ron, Hermione, this is Luna Lovegood. We became friends when I, er, ended up at the Diggorys' home."
"I could never replace you, Ron," said Luna. "Harry and I are just close good friends."
Harry shot her a smile. Luna had a knack for responding to what a person was thinking and making the situation totally awkward. He found it endearing.
"You don't mind if she sits with us do you?"
"No," said Hermione, shaking her head.
Ron shook his, but crossed his arms and looked out the window.
Harry sat on the same side as Luna. Luna took out the latest copy of the Quibbler and read it upside down.
"What are you reading there?" Hermione asked, tipping her head.
"The Quibbler," Luna replied. "My father is the editor in chief. You would think it's nonsense, but that's because you need to accept that some things just can't be learned in books and other things don't need hard evidence to be true."
"Anything can be learned in a book," Hermione insisted. "And I was taught that if you can't prove it then it's not true."
"That's sad," said Luna, turning to look out the window. "We'll have to fix that."
Harry had never seen Hermione speechless before. She waggled her jaw and finally closed it and hid her face behind a book.
"Oh, and Hermione." Luna began moving her hands purposefully around.
Hermione's eyes got as big as moons and she moved her hands as well, though, she spoke.
"You speak sign language?" she asked.
"Not very well, I'm afraid," said Luna.
"You can do sign, Mione?" Ron asked incredulously.
"I didn't know you knew another language," said Harry.
"Well, you never asked," said Hermione. "I speak French and I know sign language."
"Where did you learn?" Luna asked with interest.
Hermione flexed her fingers before placing them in her lap. "My… my twin sister. She's deaf."
"Your twin sister," Ron echoed looking as if he were just meeting Hermione for the first time.
"What's her name?" Harry asked.
"Paulina," said Hermione.
"Anything else we should know?" Ron asked.
"Don't get all high and mighty with me Officer Overshare," Hermione replied indignantly. "You never ask anything about me! You just assume the only thing I like in this world are books!"
"Shh!" Harry pointed to R.J. Lupin.
While they bickered, Luna went back to her magazine. She must've had a reason for starting it. Harry did realize that he didn't know anything about Hermione's home life. She never told him or Ron much except for the first time they met, but they never asked.
"I'd like to hear about your sister, Hermione," said Harry. "You're right, we never asked."
Luna smiled. That's what she was aiming for: Communication.
~o0o~
Percy must've been droning on for forever. Seriously, all they needed were their schedules and a list of rules, but Percy sure had a way of dragging out "you need to be responsible and there for the younger years" in the most complex way possible.
Cedric paid attention for the first fifteen minutes before turning his attention to the window.
"I thought this was just supposed to be twenty minutes," Tabatha St. Vincent of Slytherin whispered.
She and Cedric had been friends since first year. They were often desk mates in class since she was left-handed like him. She was also the only other student in his year taking all twelve available classes. They usually found something to talk about. She was cool.
"He's probably preparing for a political career," Cedric replied.
"Excuse me," said Percy, "I am still talking. If you have a question, please, raise your hand."
Cedric raised his hand. "Yeah, uh, I'm hearing a whole lot about the rule side, but what about the part where we're there for first years. They're in a new place and, let's face it, boarding school kinda sucks. Shouldn't we also be focusing on being there in case someone needs to talk and to stop bullying?"
"That's a good point," said Angelina Johnson.
"Well, of course, this is part of the job," said Percy. "That goes without saying."
Cedric hummed. "You sure about that?"
Before he could class clown the situation, the train screeched to a stop. Cedric slammed into the table and felt the wind knock out of him.
Oh no… not now. What was it this time?
He peered out the window, saw a dark shape, and stood.
"I'm going to make sure no one got hurt when the train stopped," he said.
Before Percy could stop him, Cedric hurried through the cars, checking in every other compartment if everyone was okay.
Then the lights went out.
Cedric pulled off his leather bracelet. The bow grew full-sized and his backpack became a quiver full of arrows. The faint glow of the Celestial bronze lit the hallway. He notched an arrow as a wave of despair washed over him.
He felt as if he'd never be happy again.
He got like that sometimes.
A sound like the drain of a bathtub alerted him. He turned and fired an arrow into a cloaked figure. It placed a bloated hand on its chest before dissipating into yellow dust. Behind it, Cedric saw ten more. They must have been causing the feelings of despair because people began crying.
That's right… these were dementors. They were born with agriculture in Mesopotamia. With civilization came disease, and with disease came despair. They could be defeated with Celestial Bronze or by a spell. Mum hadn't taught him that one yet.
A white doe passed him, chasing a dementor down the hallway. Cedric looked and saw a middle-aged man.
"Uhh, I can explain?" said Cedric.
"You don't need to," he said. "We need to see if the Trolley witch will distribute squares of chocolate. They're the best cure for contact with Dementors."
"I take it you're our new Defense teacher," said Cedric.
"Professor Lupin."
"Cedric Diggory. I should go check on my friend Harry."
"He and his friends are in there," said Professor Lupin pointing back.
Cedric thanked him and slid open the compartment door.
"Harry, Luna, are you okay?"
"Oh, he has a weapon, too," said Hermione Granger. He knew her from Harry's stories.
"What, you mean the bracelet?" said Ron.
Luna snapped her fingers and Ron slipped into a trance. He kept nodding as if he were hearing a conversation.
"Hi, Cedric Diggory," said Cedric shaking her hand.
"Hermione Granger," she said. "Do you make a habit of carrying around archery equipment?"
Cedric looked at Luna.
"I think she can see through the Mist," said Luna. "It would explain how she can see Harry as he is."
"So he does have scales," Hermione whispered placing a hand on her cheek. "Oh, I thought I was going mad."
"You're just as sane as I am," said Luna.
Cedric looked back and closed the compartment. He sat next to Harry.
"Do you still have that chocolate bar?"
Harry nodded and took it out of his bag. Cedric broke it up and passed it out. Ron just held it. He didn't know what Luna was making him see, but it must've been interesting.
"I think you're ready for the truth now, Harry," he said. "Hermione definitely needs it."
"I'll let you explain it," said Luna.
"Explain what?" Harry asked.
"What do you know about Greek gods?" Cedric asked.
"I've read all about them," said Hermione. "I also play Mythomagic. It doesn't say much on actual legends, but it's a useful starting point." She dug a deck of the cards out of her pocket and fanned them out.
"No way!" Cedric gasped. "Is that the holograph set?"
"You play it too?"
"It's my favorite game! We should play. My friend Tabatha plays it as well."
"Cedric," Luna reminded him.
"Er — sorry." Cedric rubbed his neck sheepishly. "Er, Greek gods… well, gods in general. I once saw Hathor in concert. Not sure about God, capital G, I think that depends on religion. With the gods come demigods." He gestured to himself and Luna. "Demigods are pretty much beacons for tragedy and monsters. Witches are like a different genus of human and can see a bit more, but they can still be swayed by the Mist which is how everything stays hidden from muggles."
"Wizards aren't exactly discreet," said Luna.
"So… cyclopes are real?" Hermione asked. "And women with one metal leg and one donkey leg?"
"That's specific," Cedric noted. "Those are empousai."
Hermione's brown skin became ashen. She wrapped her arms around her stomach.
"My first year teacher in primary school," she whispered, "had a metal leg and a donkey leg and her hair looked like fire. Everyone said I was crazy. Not even Paulina believed me. All these years… birds with metal wings… men with one eye… dogs the size of tanks… I thought magic could explain them, but when I found nothing…" She pressed her fingers to her temples and moaned.
"So… who's your dad?" Harry asked.
"Apollo," said Cedric with a grin.
"Apollo? Like… the guy who drives the sun?"
"God of music, art, archery, medicine, knowledge, and good poetry," said Hermione. "I take it you're good at all those things, Cedric?"
"Mm… Dad's just the god of poetry," said Cedric. "Whether it's good or not is debatable."
"And I thought life couldn't get weirder," said Harry. "Are you two really cousins?"
Cedric wiggled his hand. "Well, gods don't have DNA like we know it, but Luna and I grew up together, so I still consider her my cousin."
"My mother is Persephone," said Luna. "Goddess of springtime, Chaos bringer, and change-maker. Queen of the Underworld. Hades was mad when I was born, but mum just told him he should have married her properly."
"Anyway," Cedric continued, "we don't see our parents, and it's actually rare to get claimed by your godly parent. I think witches are more likely to be claimed, but I don't know any other demigods. I hear there's a camp in New York. Mount Olympus is above the Empire State Building."
"Of course it is." Hermione had buried her face in her knees. "Why are they there and not, I dunno, Greece?!"
"The Greek gods follow the heart of the West," Luna explained. "It was at England during the height of Imperialism and there are still things here, but it's most prominent in North America. Even so, we're not allowed to go to Rome and Greece for complicated reasons."
"I'm sure you have lots of questions," said Cedric. "I know it doesn't all make sense."
Hermione straightened up and took a deep breath.
"Cyclopes and empousai? Fine. Gods surviving for millenia by attaching their spirit to the West? Alright… but demigods who battle constantly regenerating monsters? Mist that hides it from muggles? No! Sometimes, you have to ask yourself what you're willing to accept and this isn't one of them!"
"Ah, there's the request for proof," said Luna. "I hope one day you'll learn to accept things without needing it right in front of your nose."
"What do you think, Harry?" Cedric asked.
"I have Phoenix and Basilisk blood running through my veins," said Harry with a wry laugh. "I got killed by the rooster and was a baby. At this point, I'll believe anything."
"Cereal?" Luna offered. "People think Gran is the goddess of wheat, but it's actually Mum who is."
Harry took the bowl. Luna procured another and gave it to Hermione who was gawking.
"Is there anyone else here who's like you two?" Harry asked.
"Not that I know of," said Cedric. "Demigods are even rarer than wizards and most don't make it to adulthood. One in every ten humans is magical. The percentage of demigods is smaller. Although, Blaise Zabini of Slytherin is a veela, so he can probably see through the Mist. Mind you, even demigods can still be swayed by the Mist."
"He won't tell, will he?" Harry asked anxiously.
"Nah, I met him once," said Cedric. "His mum and my mum play bridge once a month. He's cool."
"This is too much," said Hermione.
"You don't have to accept it right away," said Cedric. "Hey, how about a round of Mythomagic after I tell Percy what was up?"
She nodded and mouthed, "Okay."
Cedric passed Professor Lupin when he left. Cedric's bow turned back into a bracelet and his quiver became a book bag once more.