Oh my gods. It's been so long! I'm so sorry guys! But I'm back now, wisdom-teeth free and ready for the Superbowl. (Go Chiefs!) This is one of my longest chapters yet, if not the longest. And I think you'll like it! At least, I hope you'll like it. Enjoy!

Percy's POV:

It's hard. Protecting Harry, while at the same time trying not to get too attached. It's like trying to eat an entire batch of blue cookies, without gaining five pounds. Practically impossible.

I usually try not to think too much about, like, deep stuff, but staring at the ceiling, unable to sleep, I couldn't help it. I was just going over everything in my head, trying to make sense of it all. The bit of prophecy Hecate had given me was playing on an endless loop. Neither can live while the other survives. It's not like I haven't heard prophecies before, Hades, I've been in at least eleven. But watching Harry live his life, with almost no idea what was coming, was torture. And I'd only known him about a week. This must have been what Annabeth felt like all those years she thought I was going to die at 16.

My brain hurt. I really wished that Annabeth were here; she'd know exactly what to do. But for now, it's just me. I have to give Harry credit though- he jumped into the lake to save that other boy, just like I did. He's brave, and he was good friends. According to Dumbledore, Voldysnort has been trying to kill him for a while now, but he's not dead yet. He must be pretty stubborn.

I looked over at Harry's bed, feeling sorry for him. I grew up with an absent dad, not a dead one. And I still had my mom. All he got was an overweight cousin and a cartoonishly villainous aunt and uncle.

As if on cue, Harry started yelling in his sleep. I sat up as fast as I could and jumped out of bed, trying not to trip on anything as I went over to him. He was holding a hand to his head, where his scar was.

"Hey, hey, calm down." I said, grabbing his shoulders. His eyes snapped open, and for a second, I saw sheer terror in them. It scared me, and I don't scare easily. But being scared also makes me angry.

I swallowed down my emotions, at least for the moment. Harry sat up in his bed, shaking his head. He put his glasses on and leaned back against his headboard.

I got up and walked back to my bed, sitting on the floor with my back to the mattress. We sat in silence for a while, until I broke it.

"What were you dreaming about?"

Harry shrugged, clasping his hands. "You probably wouldn't get it, you haven't been here long, and-"

"Try me," I said.

He looked at me warily. "Alright."

He glanced around, looking unsure of where to start. "It's usually the same. I'm… this man. It's an old man, and he's walking up the stairs of an old house. I can tell because the boards creak."

I nodded at him to go on.

"I get to a landing, and there's a door that's cracked open. I can hear voices. They're talking about the Cup, the Quidditch Cup." Harry closed his eyes, as if he were imagining himself back in the dream. His voice dropped to a whisper. "And now they're talking about me. Voldemort wants to kill me, he has a servant inside Hogwarts that he's going to use to kill me. Wormtail is there. He doesn't want to kill me, but he will."

Harry opened his eyes again and looked at me. "Then they kill him. The old man."

"That's a lot of killing," I said.

"That's not all," he replied.

"It changes now. It's different every time, but… there's a boy." He shook his head. "I never see his face. But ever since I started dreaming about him, my dreams are more real. Scary real."

Alarmed, I leaned forward. I thought Hecate wiped his memory, but I guess he's a more powerful wizard than she thought. He's fighting it.

"When did those dreams start?" I asked, trying not to sound too interested.

Harry squinted, then said, "Actually, it was right after you got here."

I lowered my voice. "What happened in them?"

"Well, the first one started out as kind of choppy. There were just a bunch of things happening all at once. First I saw a pine tree." Thalia's tree. "Then I saw a boy standing in a creek, with something glowing above his head." That was me.

Harry kept going; describing different events in my life. It was really weird, hearing everything I'd gone through during the Titan War compressed into a few sentences.

Then he stopped. "What happened next?" I asked quietly.

He hesitated. "Then… I was somewhere dark. It was hard to breathe. The ground was really sharp, and there was some kind of red fog."

I sucked in a breath. Harry saw Tartarus. How was that even possible?

He kept going. "There were some demons with wings. They called themselves The Curses." Harry was just staring at his bedspread, unwilling to meet my eyes. "They said I wouldn't escape this time, that I'd pay for what I'd done. But they weren't talking to me. The guy from before, in my other dreams, he was behind me. They had his girlfriend. She was unconscious, bleeding from a head wound."

I remembered this dream. I had it a lot. It scared me every time.

"I don't know what happened next. I woke up, I think, but I don't remember what happened that night." Harry clenched his fists on top of his knees in frustration. "I had another one," he said through gritted teeth, "today. I was unconscious, I thought I was dead. But I woke up in this place… it was amazing. It was like here, but more dangerous. And with sword fighting."

He finally met my eyes. "I got dragged into some kind of cabin. I saw a girl sleeping, and it was her, from my other dream. Annabeth."

I did not like what I was hearing. If I can get sucked into his dreams, and he can get sucked into my dreams, then he'll be able to figure out who I am. Hecate said that's against the rules. I hate her, and I hate the rules, but the more I follow them the faster I get to go home. So I have to find a way to stop Harry from dreaming about me. A way that doesn't involve any of the gods. Or magic. Or acupuncture.

Harry continued, watching my face for a reaction. "She was really scary. If you can die in a dream, she would almost have killed me." I resisted the urge to smile. "She didn't, though, and told me her name. I hardly had time to tell her mine before I woke up."

Harry locked eyes with me. "Something's happening to me," he whispered. "I keep forgetting things. Little things. I think I already knew you had a girlfriend before today. I know it wasn't a current that knocked me out in the lake. But every time I think about it-"

He gestured with his hands in exasperation. "I don't know. But it's bloody annoying."

I wasn't sure what to say other than, "I know the feeling."

Harry nodded, but I could tell it didn't help. I stood up and got back into my bed, changing to subject to who I thought was stupid enough to put their names in the cup, minus the Weasley twins. We already knew they had screws loose.

Harry suggested a couple Gryffindors who'd been talking about it earlier, plus a very confident Slytherin and a few Ravenclaws. The conversation slowed after a while, though, and I stared at the dark ceiling until Harry stopped talking altogether.

The anger I'd felt when Harry first woke up washed over me again, making me grit my teeth and turn over on my side. I shut my eyes and concentrated, daring the magic goddess to bring me to her crazy dream-world again. And it worked.

The white light burned the inside of my eyelids, but I forced myself to keep them closed. I saw trees, grass, and the Disney landscape again.

I was standing in the same place as before, in a clearing with singing birds and stuff. "Can we just skip the theatrics this time?" I yelled at the sky.

Hecate materialized in front of me, looking very miffed.

"What, no weasel?" I asked. She glowered at me, and the air started to thicken. But she took a breath and didn't kill me on the spot.

"Do you require my assistance?" She asked emotionlessly. I crossed my arms.

"Look, lady. You're the one who kidnapped me and dropped me in Scotland, all by myself. YOU need MY help. Not the other way around."

Hecate opened her mouth to retort, and probably to smite me, but I held up a hand, tired of her games.

"Don't bother. We both know you can't kill me yet. Now listen, I have a bone to pick with you. First of all, can people at Hogwarts see through the mist or not? Some British monsters must've smelled me or something, and I still don't know if wizards can be hurt by Celestial 'magical blessing' conveniently left that out."

Credit where credit is due; Hecate swallowed her pride and gave me a straight answer for once. "Most can. There is enough godly blood in their veins to allow for that, but certain wizards have clearer sight than others. They call themselves pure-bloods. The same concept applies with Celestial Bronze weapons. All will be affected by them, to different extents."

Well, as straight an answer as she can give.

I nodded, but I wasn't finished. "Second, your memory spell didn't work. Harry is more powerful than you thought, or maybe just more stubborn. Either way, he's starting to remember things, dreams mostly. But the gaps in his memory are hurting him. You've got to stop wiping his mind every time he learns something new about me."

Hecate nodded in grudging agreement. I just had one more thing to say. "Third." My eyes narrowed. "Was it your idea to put all of this on him? He's fourteen, and both his parents are dead. He lives with an abusive family who don't care whether he lives or dies, there's a prophecy about him having to defeat a wizard that everyone's afraid to even say the name of, and the weight of the world is on his shoulders." I reconsidered the last part. "Well, figuratively." I glared at the magic goddess.

She drew herself up haughtily, reverting back to her 'foolish-mortal-I-am-all-powerful' stance. "Of course not. I do not meddle with the Fates' decisions-"

"You created this whole world!" I interrupted. "What are you even talking about? The Fates wouldn't have anything to decide about if you hadn't done anything in the first place!"

Her eyes flashed, but I snorted before she could say anything. "You gods are all the same. You never think about how your actions impact the world. Do you know how much good you could do? How many problems you could fix, if you stopped farting around and creating entire hidden worlds for all your kids to worry about?"

She didn't answer, and I just nodded. "Yeah, I didn't think so. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a wizard to protect."

I woke up early, and watched the sun come up through the treetops as I changed. I made my way down the stairs quietly, since no one else was awake yet. Or so I thought.

The common room was empty, except for a girl sitting in one of the chairs by the fire. I walked over, and she glanced up. It was Hermione.

"Hey," I said, sitting down in the chair opposite her. "Hi," she replied, looking confused at why I was up so early.

"Couldn't go back to sleep." I explained, and she nodded, staring at the fire. We were quiet for a minute, until she looked up at me again.

"I never properly thanked you," she said. "You know, for saving Harry's life."

I smiled. "It wasn't a big deal. I was just in the right place at the right time."

She studied me critically, like Annabeth would if she knew I was lying. Thankfully, she didn't push it. "Well, thank you. I don't know what I would've done if…" she trailed off, not wanting to finish the thought.

"But it didn't," I said firmly. "And it won't. I promise."

She looked at me funny, but before she could respond, Ron and Harry came tromping down the stairs.

"Oh, hello." Harry said, surprised to see us both up. "Hey," I replied. The four of us made small talk until it was time for breakfast, when we headed through the portrait hole with Neville, Dean, and Seamus.

Later that day, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and I were sitting at the Gryffindor table eating lunch. The Great Hall was fairly empty, and there were no teachers in the room. I guess everyone was enjoying the nice weather. A few minutes later, I wished I was too, because the Weasley twins were walking in the aisle between the tables, heading straight for the Goblet of Fire. I felt like something should be guarding it, or something.

"Ready, Fred?"

"Ready, George."

"On three, then."

"One,"

"Two,"

"Three!" They said in unison, dumping the contents of two small vials into their mouths. Hermione shook her head in disbelief. "I can't believe they actually went through with it." she said.

Ron just had an exasperated look on his face. "I can."

Fred and George both grinned, and they stepped through the age line. They stood in the circle, smiling like madmen, and high-fived. That's when things started to go wrong. Their hair grew out, turning long and white. They got beards and stooped backs, then were blasted out of the circle. All anyone watching could do was laugh. I looked at Harry in the middle of a fit of giggles, remembering yesterday when we'd told them the potion wouldn't work. He was apparently thinking the same thing, and neither of us could stop our hysterics for twenty minutes after that.

After Fred and George were safely in the hospital wing, the four of us went back to the common room, where Ron said he'd teach me to play something called Wizard's Chess.

"I don't get it," I said for the fifth time. All my pieces started yelling at me, which I thought was unfair.

"Alright, alright, you lot," Ron scolded. The pieces quieted down, and he explained what all the numbers and letters meant, also for the fifth time.

"Just give it up, Ron," said Harry with a smirk. "He's almost as bad as Hermione."

He snickered as Hermione faked a hurt gasp, but then she hit him over the head with her book. He stopped making fun of me after that.

After another hour of struggling with the names of the pieces and the positions on the board, Hermione looked at the clock on the wall and announced that we should head down for dinner. It felt like we'd just eaten, but lunch had been late, so it was understandable. And I would never turn down food.

We were met with excitement in the Great Hall. Tonight was the night, when the champions would be chosen. Unfortunately, none of them would be Fred or George, who were still in the hospital wing as eighty year-old men.

The noise was deafening; everyone was talking to their friends about who would be chosen. Even the Beauxbatons students were socializing. It seemed to take forever for Dumbledore to give his speech and make the food appear, but I was glad when he did. I was hungry.

"Tho," I asked with my mouth full. "Any latht minute beths?"

Hermione just stared at me, then looked at Ron for a translation. He swallowed. "'So, any last minute bets?'" he said, like it was obvious.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Boys," she said.

Harry shrugged in response to my question. "I dunno, maybe Angelina?"

I nodded thoughtfully. We discussed some others, passing the time until Dumbledore stood up again, causing whispers and nervous talking among some of the older students. I thought he'd never reach the podium, he was walking so slowly.

Finally he did, and he seemed to sense the tension in the room. He drew on it, waving a hand at the floating candles to dim them. He didn't have to call for quiet, because the hall was already dead silent.

"Students," he said in a hushed voice. "The time has come. This week, if you were seventeen or above, you were given the opportunity to become the champion of your school. If you are chosen, you will compete in the greatest test of magic, bravery, and wits, that there has ever been. The Triwizard Tournament!"

Dumbledore's voice rose at the end, causing cheers and applause as the Goblet of Fire sparked next to him.

"I believe the Goblet is almost ready," he said. We all waited in silence as the sparking became more and more frequent, until the cup was suddenly filled with green flame. I inhaled sharply, along with everyone else, but not because it was pretty. That was Greek fire, one of the most dangerous substances in existence. This stuff must have been bewitched or something, though, because the next second it changed colors and started sparking again.

The flames turned blue, crackling loudly in the quiet. The entire crowd held their breath as it finally spit out a tiny, charred piece of paper. Dumbledore snatched it out of the air, peering into the mass of students as he unrolled it.

"And the champion of Durmstrang will be," he paused, reading the tiny words. "Viktor Krum!"

The hall exploded into cheering as Krum stood from the Slytherin table and walked up to the teacher's table, where Dumbledore directed him into the same side room that I'd gone into my first night here.

"No surprise about that one!" Ron shouted above the noise, clapping along with everybody else.

The room eventually quieted down, just in time for the flames in the goblet to turn blue again. The suspense hung in the air like mist, thick enough to cut with a sword. The cup crackled, and another piece of paper flew up from the fire. Dumbledore grabbed it and began to unfold it.

"The champion for Beauxbatons is," he looked up and paused. "Fleur Delacour!"

There was more cheering, especially from many of the boys in the room. "Look, Ron," said Harry. "It's her! The one you fancied when they arrived."

Ron blushed, but clapped loudly anyways.

The apprehension buzzing through the crowd of students as Fleur made her way up to the podium was intense. The Hogwarts champion was next.

The sparking of the goblet was met with complete silence, and when the flames turned blue, there was an audible breath from everyone in the hall. Dumbledore reached out and snatched the last piece of paper from the air.

"The Hogwarts champion is…" he said, unfolding the paper. "Cedric Diggory!"

Ron groaned, but it was covered up by the fantastically loud cheering coming from the Hufflepuff table. Most of them were on their feet, jumping up and down. Some were shrieking like they were at a concert as he got up and walked down the aisle, grinning. It continued even after he disappeared through the side door, and Dumbledore had to gesture for quiet multiple times.

"Well!" he said, beaming, as the Hufflepuffs finally sat down. "With our three champions chosen, I must ask all of you, including students from our visiting schools, to show your support for them through cheering and visual representation, you will-"

He stopped speaking, and it didn't take the rest of us long to figure out what he was staring at.

The Goblet of Fire had turned blue again. In a split second, I locked eyes with Dumbledore, and we reached the same conclusion. It was happening. This was it.

The Goblet spat out sparks, and with them, a piece of paper. As if by instinct, Dumbledore grabbed it out of the air. He unfolded it without the theatrics this time, and looked out at us as he read the name.

"Harry Potter."

Instead of cheers, there was a hushed silence. Next to me, Harry paled.

"Harry Potter, please come forward," Dumbledore said. Harry stood up robotically, and people started to whisper. Ron and Hermione looked shell-shocked as he walked up towards the podium. So did he, for that matter. Dumbledore directed him to the side room with a calm look on his face, but the teachers behind him were anything but. Karkaroff and Madame Maxine were practically purple with anger, probably because their odds of winning just decreased by two. McGonagall was sitting perfectly still, struggling to gain control over her twitching eyelid. Flitwick and most of the other teachers had their jaws on the table.

This isn't good. How do I protect him if he's in a deadly tournament as an underaged wizard? I can't just jump in whenever I feel like it to keep him from getting hurt, right? I mean, I'm pretty sure that's cheating.

Dumbledore looked only slightly troubled as he addressed us. "Quite an interesting turn of events, I daresay. But it will all be sorted out-"

For real? This was too much.

The Goblet was spitting flames again. They were blue, and a little darker than they'd been before. Dumbledore's shoulders sagged.

The crowd started to whisper again, louder this time. There was going to be a fifth champion?

The Goblet erupted into a two-foot tall tower of flame, surprising everyone even further. A small piece of paper fluttered down, and I had a horrible feeling about who's name was on it.

Dumbledore unfolded it slowly, and read the name out loud.

"Perseus Jackson."

It's like 4 in the morning, so I'm sorry for any mistakes. I can hardly see the keyboard. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it! Updates should be more frequent from now on, but probably only on the weekends.

Reviews:

: Thanks, I'm glad you liked it!

surya25addanki: Happy late Christmas and New year!

Tempest218: Thanks, I'll be sure to check google translate next time or something. Let me know if you find anything else! Thanks for reading!

JustMe: So true! The gods are annoying that way. But I have a feeling that Annabeth will be joining him sooner rather than later...

akisabookworm: Yeah, my updates are pretty few and far between, unfortunately. I'll try to get better about it, but school is so unpredictable, it's like every time I finish something I get two more things!

ThunderSphinx: I'm sorry you feel that way, and I agree, Harry is a powerful wizard. I have no intention of downplaying that.

Fe0910: Thanks, I'm glad you're liking it so far!

Zara Bennle: Thanks! Happy New Year! I'm glad you like it so far!

Somebody: Okay, you seriously made my day when you wrote this. Thank you so much! I never imagined that people would actually be invested or even interested in anything I wrote.

Guest: Sorry! I hope this long chapter was enough to make up for my very long absence?

Okay! Now I'm finally going to bed. Hope you enjoyed, don't forget to favorite, follow, and review!

Peace out,

LadyHW