Chapter 6: You gotta Earn your Spot

Recap: SCOWL is certainly making me scowl because who decided I was even going?!

You know that saying about letting sleeping lions lie? Well I may not be a Gryffindor but this lion isn't gonna lay down and let a stranger decide my year.

"Now…" I narrowed my eyes and had my arms crossed while oozing disappointment, "What have we learned from today?"

"That it's not good to assume things without confirming all the facts beforehand."

"And?"

"...I should properly hear the other party without cutting them off."

"And?"

"...and, err, I shouldn't, err, believe every rumor I hear?"

"What else?"

"...I'm sorry."

"You should be," I huffed. But relented my anger after seeing Lily properly reflecting on her behavior.

"But Percy… are you sure you never heard of this Ochi girl at all? She did sign your name to be in the same team as you."

"If I knew her, I wouldn't be this troubled." I pulled my hair in frustration, just thinking of this random person getting me involved without even a word. Questions won't get me anywhere, so I'm gonna have to search for her to pry some answers.

"But how are you gonna find her among the Ravenclaws?"

"Don't you know, Lils? When there's a will, there's a way."

By the time lunch came and more than half the students had occupied the Great Hall, I took one glance at the whole room before taking a step up on the table. Ignoring the annoyed grunt and the startled gasp, I took a deep breath and yelled out with enough to put magic to shame.

"ANY RAVENCLAW NAMED NAYELA OCHI COME OUT AND RAISED YOUR HAND!"

Was this necessary? No, not really. Was I exhausted to the point of not caring? Yes, exactly.

If the Fates isn't going to give me one year for me to chill, then I might as well raise hell while I'm at it.

Even as I had the Ravenclaw table within my sight, I took note of the way Lily had her hands halfway up, too late to stop me, before palming her face. My fellow Hufflepuffs, who are edging away as if to pretend they don't know me (Except for Gwen, she's just eager to know what's what). A few of the teachers from the high table were a mix of bewilderment, scandalous, or curious over my next course of actions. Though I bet one of them will start screaming like a banshee in three… two… one…

"PERSEUS JACKSON, GET DOWN FROM THERE RIGHT THIS INSTANT!"

Yup, good ol' McGonagall never fails me.

But I ignored her while still keeping still. The Ravenclaws were uncomfortable by the attention I was bringing them as well as my stubbornness to stare down until I got answers. My effort bore fruit as one of the blue-tied students slowly raised his hand up after much hesitation– wait a minute, a guy?!

Either this guy had unfortunate naming or the name doesn't agree with his gender.

I jumped down and headed over to her almost instantaneously, "Are you Nayela?"

"Err… No, just her classmate actually. If you're looking for Ochi, you won't find her here. She never eats in the Hall."

I raised an eyebrow, "Never?"

Him and the rest of the Ravenclaws nodded, "She never went to class either except for quizzes and exams, so no one actually knows where she is most of the time."

Another piped up to give his two cents, "But aside from attendance issues, she's always the top of the class so it's not like she needs to go to class to graduate."

The girl beside him suddenly giggled, "No wonder everyone calls her Ghost Girl, she's like… A ghost… but the opposite of Moaning Myrtle."

"Oh, definitely. Barely anyone sees her that we sometimes forget she exists."

"Oooh, what if she's an actual ghost? That would be a plot twist!"

"That's mad!"

Before I could ask for more information on this mysterious girl, Lily started tugging my robe harshly. I knew why before feeling the looming presence behind me.

I turned around and put my best innocent smile on McGonagall, "Any chance you'll let this slide?"

"Detention with me, Jackson. And 15 points off Hufflepuff."

"Aye, ma'am."

The Transfiguration Professor practically shove me back to my table and had Lily eat with the Gryffindors, before making a point of watching me so I was warned to behave.

The thing about being mentally 21 and having had the world's weight upon your shoulder is that you realize there are more terrifying things than an old lady's anger.

But before we split, Lily leaned in by my side and whispered, "So… what are you gonna do?"

"What else? Find the ghost girl and talk to her."

"But you heard what they say. What are the chances that you had an actual specter who signed you up for this conference and can't resign because of some ghostly regret?"

"With my luck? Not unlikely."

But even when I said that, I was skeptical. Surely Flitwick or Albus wouldn't have allowed a ghost to participate in a big event like this?

I went to my next History class, watching Professor Binns floating past his table as he lectured the class about the Goblin Rebellion and reconsidering how screwed I was.

Now, for my next course of action; how am I gonna find the girl who has questionable existence?

. . .

"So…"

"So?"

"Heard from a few birdies that you were signing up for the conference after all."

"You're not angry, Sevvy?"

He shrugged and huffed, "I thought you might have a reason. Never imagine someone would put your name on without you knowing. Are you sure it's not some kind of an elaborate prank?"

"It's a stupid prank if that's how it is. I searched for this mysterious Ravenclaw these past couple of days and I'm starting to question if she's a real student or not."

"So you end up braid-moping because you can't find her."

I gave a stink eye at Severus even as my fingers kept a steady rhythm in arranging Lily's red locks into a braid. It's a leftover habit from the Future whenever I wanted to hang out with Annabeth but she was too engrossed with her book to bother, leaving her bored ADHD boyfriend accompanying his stone-focused girlfriend and deciding to braid her hair for the hell of it. It sort of became a thing for the two of us that even I was surprised at how good my braiding was.

Now, I mostly braid when I'm a bit upset and Lily was always eager to have her hair spoiled. It's also an excuse for me to have Riptide within my sight.

Sev was off the side, throwing a couple of rocks and counting how many skips he could make over the lake.

"Have you tried searching her spot? Surely someone knows where she's often seen hanging out or studying."

The thing about studying in Hogwarts, or any boarding schools really, is that you really got to find your "spot."

And if you're thinking of 'study spot', sure you're not wrong, but it's more than that. The spot is where you carved your very existence into the area. It's the place where you put your legs to rest, take in the comforting scenery as you down your favorite drink, and clear your mind in your lonesome or have a roaring time with your tribe.

Even in Yancy Academy, me and Grover had a spot we would always meet up by the Frog Pond pond. Yes, while other schools have koi ponds, we have a frog pond. Why? Nobody knows. All the local frogs just decided to converge there and nobody did anything about it. No one else wanted to be near the Frog Pond except for us, which cemented our status as weirdos even further.

For us, Disaster Trio, often found ourselves by the lake without question. Maybe it started with me often brooding near it, but it's where we ended up finding each other. I lost count of how many times we would practice our spells by the lake or just simply lay on the comfort of the prickly grass while being at peace with each other's presence as we drink the smell of the fresh water.

"That's the thing," I answered, "Only the third year Ravenclaws seemed to know her. Or at least remember her face enough to match a name for it."

"Then you might actually be facing a ghost," Sev said with his usual sardonic tone.

"Please don't joke about that, I can't have you jinx me."

"I wouldn't be surprised if anyone wants to jinx your ugly mug, Prissy."

The three of us groaned at the intruder of our peaceful time. One catch of having your very own spot is that it's easier for people to find any of us together. Like a bunch of annoying boys who couldn't leave us be.

"What do you want, Potter?" Severus practically spat the question, "You're not welcome here."

"Ooooh, did you hear that fellas? Apparently, Snivellus and his friend owned this area, I didn't know that."

"How rude of us to step into other people's property. My mistake, I didn't see your name on it anywhere."

I rolled my eyes at the childish potshots James and Sirius make, but Severus and Lily don't seem to have the same patience as me as they shot the kids the same glare as they would any monster coming for my life.

Ha! Imagine that. Me. Patience.

Peter was there, snickering at their side. Remus didn't say anything, shifting uncomfortably while he was looking anywhere but at us.

"Sod off!" Lily cried, "We don't want to see your face while we're here."

"I agreed, the view doesn't have the same appeal with you in it."

Sev's remark was not especially appreciated because James barely made a pause before he had his wand in hand and shot an expulsion spell, throwing the Slytherin right into the lake.

I was too taken aback to react in time the spell, different from the usual pranking jinxes and curses we often exchanged.

"SEV!" Me and Lily yelled.

I already had my feet deep in the water and helped him out. Other than being wet and out of breath, he doesn't have a scratch on him.

"You okay, buddy?"

"Aside from an aching chest? Yes, I'll be fine."

I distinctly felt the absence of a third of our trio before noticing she was being held by a smoldering-looking James— Oh, for the love of Cupid— Is he seriously flirting with her at a time like this?

"—think about it, Evans. Nothing ever good happens from their sorts. You'd be doing yourself a favor by staying away from their lots."

"I don't need your advice, Potter."

James was becoming just as frustrated as her, "I'm only trying to protect you. Why can't you see I'm looking out for you?"

"I don't need looking after." She shoved him aside and helped keep Sev warm when the chill autumn weather did not help. "Not from you anyway."

We left, but not without hearing James's last parting shot.

"You'll regret it!"

Severus still looked like the wind was knocked out of him while escorting him to the medical wings. Normally, Sev would raise a word out from getting checked up but he must have been too distracted with Lily pressing close to him.

Ah, young love.

"Any chance you know a spell that could have you dried out in an instant?"

"There's no convenient spell like that, Perce. I don't always make a spell at the top of my hat."

"You do a good job fooling me that way."

He looked better by the time we reached Madam Pomfrey and left him in her capable hands. That left me and Lily facing the unanswered mystery.

"Any idea where we might find my mysterious teammate?"

Lily scrunched her eyes, thinking hard for an answer, "Did you search the library?"

"Of course I searched the library. She's a Ravenclaw, that's the first place I search–" Wait. I am positive that I checked the library. I'm sure I visited it. I looked back and found myself checking the aisles there and everything.

But now that Lily asked, I was starting to wonder if that was from last week's memory of me searching for a good reference book for Transfiguration that doesn't make my head spin from the outdated explanations.

Now, I'm doubting myself.

"You know what, let's check it out once more. Maybe I missed something."

Lily hummed in agreement, but her lips curved into a smug, knowing look. She better not say anything. Her curiosity must have gotten the better of her since she decided to follow me along.

The weekends aren't usually the days you'd find the library crowded, meaning you'd only find the regulars around that might actually point out some useful stuff.

"So who are we going to ask?"

Lily hummed in consideration before snapping her finger, "Why not Madam Pince? She's the librarian. If Ochi comes here often, surely she knows."

I made a face, "Do we have to?" The librarian isn't exactly the most pleasant person.

My ginger best friend made a pointed look that would have made both her and my mom proud.

"Alright, I'm going. Though don't expect too much because I doubt that girl will be that easy to find." I went over to Madam Pince. "Excuse me, Ma'am. Do you happen to know a third-year Ravenclaw named Nayela Ochi? We believe she made a routine visit here."

"Oh, Miss Ochi? You won't find her here. She frequents the Forbidden Section."

Well, that was easy.

"Is it okay for us to look for her there?"

The older woman sniffed and regarded us with a sharp gaze. Like she's deciding whether to throw us out of her domain. Well, mostly me than Lily. I think it's more accurate to say she's considering whether Lily could manage to keep me out of trouble.

"As long as you don't take out and read the books there, I'll allow it. And especially DO NOT use magic there, the books get agitated otherwise, understand?"

"Yes, Ma'am!" We agreed straight away.

The Hogwarts' librarian led us to the back of the library where the Forbidden Section was. It was closed off with a simple rope from one side of the pillar to the other. It was by coincidence that we have a show of a student being dared to jump over the threshold, only to have the ropes unwrapped itself and trapped the student in place in a tangled mess.

Madam Pince sighed in exasperated breath like she had enough of dumb students tackling the ward of the library. "The Headmaster himself had put on the protection ward here, you know. Traps anyone in sight who puts a toe out of line."

Pince released the dumb kid with a flick of her wand. After giving a stern glare, she pulled the rope off from one pillar and ushered us in. We were advised not to take too much time around this section before me and Lily were off with our search into the labyrinth of books. .

"Hmm… She did say 'agitated' before, did she? Aren't these just books?" Lily expressed her dubiousness from the previous warning.

"Magic books, Lils. Who knows which one might try to bite our nose off."

"Avoid the magic books — Got it."

"But still… We've been at it for a while and this place is larger than we first thought. How are we gonna—"

A soft, unsettling groan breezed through the empty paths.

"Did you hear that?"

"Nope," Lily answered quickly. Too quickly.

hheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

Lily jumped and clung to me from the very creepy moaning noise that was getting louder. I thought she was supposed to be the opposite of Moaning Myrtle?!

"Oi, relax Lils. It's, it's probably just a ghost, remember? We've met plenty of them already. They can't hurt us."

"Yeah, the good ones. What if we're about to face a vengeful one? Or worse… what if it was the devil waiting to possess someone?!"

...huh, maybe having a witch experiencing a Summer Horror Night might not be the best idea.

The moaning only grew louder, even a bit desperate to my ear. Lily and I exchanged glances before we wordlessly drew out our wands. Our stands shifted so we'd be ready to have each other's back. Inch by inch, we edged closer to the source. Back tensed and knuckles whitened. We braced ourselves at the edge of the bookshelf where there is a fork in the aisle. I evened my breathing before leaping out of the corner, wand pointed out, and faced a mountain stack of hardcover books in front of me.

"What?"

Lily seemed to be just as confused as me.

The moaning came from the scattered books. More accurately, within. And it all started to make sense when an arm started sticking out of the book pile–

"He… help…"

Di immortales, someone is under the pile!

"Lily, drag her out! I'll try digging the books off."

"Right!"

We moved as one. Lily took a hold of the flailing arm and I threw the books aside, careful not to dislodge the one that would let the books bury us alongside the poor guy.

"Percy, I'm not going to… err… pull a detached arm, right?"

"This isn't the Addams, Lils — now pull!"

Nodding, she put her back into it and pulled with all her strength. Emerging out from the pile was a girl around our age, maybe on the younger side. The momentum had her fall on top of Lily, before she got her head up to heave a lungful air.

"I thought I was gonna die."

You and me, both.

Lily immediately detached herself to check on the poor girl, "Are you okay?"

"Oh yeah, I'm fine. More importantly, we should run. I made the book angry."

"You made what angry—?!"

And as if summoned by the God of Jinx, the book at the top began to float. I swear, never before had a book looked that menacing as it just suspended over us as if judging us for having personally offended it.

It started opening itself into a random page. Then, a sword popped out like the one scene of Excalibur emerging out of the lake. The hand was as black as ink and the sword had a bone-white longsword that looked flimsy, but I had a hunch that getting hit would hurt like a paper cut.

"What on earth did you do?!"

"I… may… have… insult the author of that book."

"Why did you do that for?" Lily asked what I was thinking.

"Hey! It got what's coming. What kind of psycho decided the heart of a virgin would make a good ward against vampires?"

"Someone who thought stabbing its critic is a good idea apparently!"

The book swung the weapon, back and forth, and made an impressive noise.

I pressed my lips and decided then, "Looks like there's only one way out of this."

"Right, let's run–"

I placed a hand on my best friend's back and pushed her to the front, "Lily, go wreck 'em!"

"WHAT?!" Both girls cried, but neither got the chance to protest before the swords-book lunged.

Lily reacted — from years of life and death experience — pulled her hairpiece to summon her sword, and blocked the attack.

The book, however, was not deterred before relentlessly striking back with a fierce swing from one side to another. It was pretty easy to read that Lily had no problem keeping up.

"Percy! What's the big idea?!"

"You won't improve sparring with me all the time. You've got a sword-wielding book ready to fight, take that chance!"

"I've already fought off beasts."

"You don't need sword skill to beat them, you only need survival skill and dumb luck to stab big, pointy creatures." That's why I still handle the cunning sentient ones instead of them, "Now put your back into it!"

"I hate you so much, I swear–" She dodged a stab that almost took her face. She leaned into its guard and counter attacked with an upward strike.

The book had a good reflex and floated back, but now the sword was pointing at my Gryffindor friend, directing its hostility it judged to be the immediate threat before they started clashing once more.

Meanwhile, I was at the side, examining the fight. Lily has come a long way; her swings aren't so wide anymore that she'd leave part of herself vulnerable, she kept the blade pointed at her opponent at all times, she's not losing her breathing as she kept the flow of her strikes without pausing and not letting the swords-book get an inch while she parried every blow.

I would have advised Lily to keep her distance for a breather but let's see how she'll do on her own purely with her own skill and judgment. Since Lily isn't fighting against a human, she'll have to get creative on how to beat it.

"Err," the girl we saved tugged my robe, "Shouldn't we help her?"

I waved off her concern, "It's fine, Lily can beat that amature."

"YOU MALEFIC— MOTHERFREAKING— SQUAREFACE— SORRY EXCUSE TOME OF A WANKER—"

"She doesn't sound fine."

"Oh, trust me. She's fine with that degree of cursing."

As if on cue, Lily wrapped Riptide around the book's blade and had it thrown off its grip. She made an added measure to use the flat of the blade to bat the book to the floor.

The fighting ceased as a celestial bronze gleamed. The blade pointed with barely any space toward it. Lily heaving with bated breath while her whole stance was still tense, not ready to call out the fight.

"Surrender or get shredded. Your move."

The heavy-looking hardcover book shuddered, the black-ink hand produced a white flag to wave before closing on itself. The swords-girl finally managed to relax.

I clapped, the sound echoed in the empty corridor. "Nicely done, Lils. You've made progress."

"Don't go there– I'm still angry at you."

I grinned apologetically but didn't miss the underlying giddiness in her scowl. The rushing thrill of accomplishment of having won your first fight after months of training without the shadow of death looming at the edge from the smallest mistake you made.

I turned to the girl I shielded behind, made sure she wasn't overwhelmed but instead saw her brown eyes practically shining in awe.

"That. Was. Amazing!"

Lily was flushed from the rush of the battle. But if it's possible, her face reddened even more from the praise, "Thanks… uhh… sorry, we didn't get your name."

"Oh, I'm Nayela. Nayela Ochi. Nice to meet you."

She offered her hand in greeting while leaving the both of us boggling at the girl like meeting a unicorn for the first time.

She exists!

AN: Be honest guys… how many of you did think that Percy was going to get a ghost teammate?

Finally I got to finish this chapter. Thank you for waiting for a while. I hope you like this because, come on! Lily gets to be a badass magic swords-girl. Also, JKR really underutilized magic books. The forbidden section should be the place where there would be screaming and Madam Pince would not shush them XD

As I write Percy overtime, it becomes obvious that Percy has turned from a worn out soldier that wants to avoid attention into giving off a DGAF vibe. At least therapy seemed to improve his attitude?

Percy is so done XD XD XD

Time for the QR&A :)

WildMan98: Thank you! I'll be sure to keep it up :D

Patolemus: You'll know the reason by next chapter. And Damilene is certainly a unique coupling I didn't know would be loved. Also, Regulus will be coming your way soon. Be patient, my dear friend.

Theseus-Theo: Thank you again for the comment, I hope you like this small twist and enjoyed this chapter as well

Scl04: Percy is so completely done with his life that he'll start getting bolder and start to careless about the attention he's given himself. Meaning… more crazy stunt by our favorite mad demigod.

Worldbuilding is one of my favorite things when writing so imagining the kind of changes before the war was pretty fun, including the headline (though it pains me since I base it on reality).

One of the hardest aspects of this chapter, nailing Nayela Ochi. An OC I literally came up on the pot and decided "what the hell" might as well go all out. Let's see how the readers will feel after the next chapter.

Thank you for the luvs as always.

Darkanaklumos70: Yes, like GoF drama. Except with less drama because Percy doesn't have time with anyone's BS

Black 'Victor Chat: My beta wanted that dope slap in. Thank him for that XD

Thank you for the luvs and comments as always. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.

The monarch 12: I'll be changing Trelawney to fourth yet because it has come to my attention divination was supposed to start as a third-year thing and has now become a plot hole :p

Thanks for the luv by the way.

Jujp: Oh, steady my heart. Thank you for your kind reviews. I work hard to make them enjoyable while keeping the characters and narrative with the same essence as canon. Please keep supporting me by continuing to enjoy my work :)

Gabe1234: Thank you for the luv you're sharing in your review. Hope I kept you just as excited for this chapter.