2002, Kid's Safehouse, Nearby Richmond, Virginia (Harry has seen a LOT of stuff, but this might just be the strangest)
Harry, still trying to get his head around a whole new language (demigods, ambrosia, monsters) and world (Greek gods living in modern muggle America), was listening to Luke's latest idea.
"So erm, as much as we really really like the safehouse you made for us, er Harry, we are finding it more difficult to actually get food, and the monster tracks I've seen -"
"Or the random explosions and rubble the mortal's are talking about in the area." Thalia jumped in.
"And some of the destroyed traps." piped up Annie, wanting to contribute.
"Yeah, all of that." Luke paused, and even Harry could see the teen was trying to find the right words next. "Well, it's not easy living here. We can survive, but to even get our latest batch of soup Thalia had to go out and face those monsters." Luke gestured to the girl who glowered at him, and Annie giggled at the face Luke pulled in return.
Harry pinched the bridge of his nose. He had a few patrols coming up with the Greek delegation, and who knew where Chieff Willams was going to send him next, so he couldn't be on hand to help them travel, even if he did have the time, he didn't know America, and had no idea about how demigods would survive when apparently monster-creatures were roaming around muggle America as bold as anything.
"So, er, we were thinking, maybe of moving out. Probably North kinda, that's where DC is and I bet that's where Olympus and Camp are." Luke finished his plan
"Wait, what Camp?" Harry could, just, wrap his head around another world living alongside the magical and muggle ones (after all, a similar situation happened when he was 11), but he never heard Thalia, or Luke, talk about a camp - probably something like Hogwarts for demigods, he thought.
"Oh yeah, so when my dad visited my mom a few times, he sometimes talked about a camp where halfbloods go and train and learn to survive." Luke eagerly explained.
Harry wasn't too sure he liked the sound of 'survivied', surely survival should be guaranteed? But maybe there was something about gods and dying to get to Olympus? He vaguely recalled that was a belief system that could've been the Greeks.
"Right, so Olympus, where the gods are, is safer, because there will be less monsters?" Harry just wanted to check his understanding, better establish a groundwork. Dwalish was a pain, but he was very good at teaching everyone a 'back to basics' routine that was far more useful than it sounded.
"Yeah." Luke nodded, pleased that Harry had caught on.
"Right, well how far is Washington from here?"
Luke grinned at him, and Harry guessed he'd fallen for something. Thalia muttered something about a 'tourist'.
"Washington state is around 2500 miles, give or take. Washington D.C. is only about a hundred miles, give or take."
"Why the hell are there two Washingtons? That's got to be confusing."
"Not really, they're on opposite sides of the states, so you kinda know if you're going to one or the other."
"So what does the DC stand for?" Harry knew that mere distance wasn't much of a factor, especially for a wizard who could apparate. A split second change, or shift in focus could result in some nasty splinching.
"District of Columbia."
"That's in Canada. I know it is, because my friend went on holiday there over christmas."
"This is a different Columbia."
"So Columbia state?"
"No." This time it was Thalia who butted in. "There are loads of places that sound the same, or are the same but in different states, that's why everyone specifies the state. There's like a million cities called Columbia, and a gazillion called Washington all over America. Everyone knows that." This was said in the condescending manner of a tired teacher - and Harry was more than familiar with that tone.
"Right." This wasn't making Harry feel any better. To make matters worse, he was also convinced there was a town named Washington in England. Originality was definitely not the strong point of the people that named things in America. Thinking of a plan that wasn't terrible, or liable to fail too quickly, Harry shook his head slightly to clear it, and noticed one of Luke's many rucksacks. That gave him an idea.
"I can help you with storage and food for a while, if you want." Harry knew that Luke in particular liked to do things himself, he didn't want to need or rely on anyone outside of his small group, one which Harry was not quite a part of. That was understandable, but it made offering help to the kids something of a minefield at times.
Luke looked to Thalia, Annie was already nodding. Thalia looked at the bag, then Harry's pocket and nodded.
"But only if you show us how you can do that pocket thing."
"Pocket dimension." Luke burst in, giggling, Annie joined in. Harry just shared a look with Thalia, over the two giggling kid's heads.
"Erm, I don't know if you can actually do this, either of you. It's a magic thing, you don't have wands, or the ability to cast spells, I don't think." He was fairly certain they didn't, MACUSA were second to none with monitoring magic usage, and Harry was certain that if demigods could use magic, MACUSA would've found out about them by now.
"Wait, did you say magic? Like witches and wizards, right?"
Harry paused for a second. Surely they had seen him perform spells? But if they thought he was a god or something, they could've passed it off as godly powers rather than magic.
"Erm Okay. How about. Aha. Wingardium Leviosa ." Harry drew his wand, and pointed it at one of Luke's bags, which floated a foot or so in the air, moving with Harry's wand.
"So. Cool!" Luke shouted. Annie clapped and gasped, and Thalia just stared with her mouth open.
2002, The Kid's Safehouse, Near Richmond, Virginia (Thalia will almost be kinda sad that they are leaving this safehouse behind)
"But let's keep this one open as a stop gap, in case we need to come back here or need supplies later on." Luke explained to Annie, when she asked why they were leaving some of their bulkier weapons behind. He and Thalia were determined to leave caches of weapons and supplies scattered all over the US, so that he would never be caught short again. Thalia knew that their previous safehouses had saved both of their lives plenty of times before.
It had taken almost an entire day, but finally her, Luke and Annie surveyed the virtually bare safehouse. The cupboards were still there, locked and with a few celestial bronze weapons in them, but that was it. The travel hob that Harry given them that evening was packed away, as were the sleeping bags, blankets and various photos and toiletries, all inside two backpacks that were incredibly lightweight. Luke looked really jealous at that, muttering how unfair it was that he couldn't do that, when he was a Hermes kid. But he said it with a smirk, so Thalia guessed he didn't feel too bad about it, he was the best out of the three at packing anyway.
Most of the weapons were with Harry, who put them inside a bag that apparently didn't get full, but the demigods had a few small weapons of their own, plus the living accessories and a two man tent. Harry had also given them with a map of the East Coast with various cities and states coloured in red or green, depending on if there were more monsters or wizards in the area.
"Obviously, try and avoid the red, and I would be happier if you chose one of the cities in green, at least it would be safer for you there."
Annie and Luke agreed that Harry was nice, but they had both experiences of adults that were all supposed to be nice and care for them, but didn't. Luke wasn't too sure about trusting anyone based just off of Harry, and Annie had read about the witch-burnings and asked Harry if mortals (or 'muggles' as he called them) were trusted by wizards. Harry said that some witches and wizards distrusted muggles, but it was much better now.
All three demigods were intimately familiar with the phrase '...but it is different now' and almost every variation of it, and none of them trusted anyone that tried to use that in their defence.
Just before moving, Luke quickly destroyed the tiny shrines that depicted Harry and Eos, and that Luke and Thalia had burnt offerings into. Neither of them, they promised each other, would ever mention that to Harry. Ever.
Five days later, the three demigods hadn't found anwyere suitable. Luke was fine, being the son of the god of travellers, but Thalia was starting to get really annoyed at not finding another base. She was not a fan of sleeping in a tent. Even though the tent looked like a house, it really wasn't, and Thalia, and Annie, just couldn't sleep in it the same way that Luke could. But If Thalia was annoyed, that was nothing compared to Annie. She was only carrying on because Luke and Thalia were, but she made sure to let them both know that she 'really hated' the constant moving around and trekking from place to place trying to find somewhere safe, preferably a town or something.
Thalia realised, when she looked into one of the dozen greek books that Harry had given them (Luke had to explain that all demigods apparently got ADHD and dyslexia, it wasn't that Thalia was particularly stupid as her mother had always thought), so Harry had found them books in greek and ancient greek. Some of them were primers and textbooks, but since they were all in modern or ancient greek, Thalia guessed she couldn't be too mad at him, even if she had no idea where in Olympus's name he found them.
Luke knew that they were all tired, and Annie in particular wanted to have somewhere to settle down. It didn't bother him at all. If he was honest though, he told Thalia one night when they were both awake inside the tent, he did miss the security of knowing there was a definite location where they were all safe.
There weren't that many abandoned buildings that didn't already have people, or monsters, already hiding in them. Some nights, the buildings that were abandoned either had lots of things that Luke definitely didn't want to sleep next to, or had massive rats and bugs already there. Usually that wouldn't be too bad, Luke and Thalia were more than happy to go and clear them out, but Annie was deathly scared of spiders, so even the suggestion of an insect nest or spider web and she wouldn't go near the place.
Their initial plan of heading straight to Washington from Richmond had to change very quickly. On the second day of travel, they found so many monsters, and barely survived thanks to Thalia calling down lighting - something she had promised herself she would never do - and Luke later that day praying to his dad that they found another route, which led them to a national park.
They tried camping in a forested area, somewhere in Shenandoah National Park, but dryads, and a feral satyr in a different area of the park, drove them away. The group decided not to risk camping in any national parks if they could help it, Luke grumbled that his dad had set them up, and that evening, on the very edge of the national park, inside the tent, he quietly ranted about 'his deadbeat dad trying the sink or swim parenting style'.
Luke decided it was much safer to stick to small towns, since it was the opposite of what his dad had directed them to, Annie preferred towns to forests (the first feral satyr really really scared her) and he could sort-of drive. Hewas very good at hot-wiring cars at least, that was half the battle, he assured Thalia.
Thalia, that same evening after Annie eventually got to sleep, tried to remember if her or Luke had ever met a feral satyr, or dryads that were so territorial and mean. She couldn't think of any other time that something like that had happened, and her and Luke had been exploring and surviving all across America for two years together.
The fourth day was slightly better, they found an empty log cabin in some place called Lydia that Annie and Thalia were both happy to sleep in. There was just something much more comforting and solid about actual walls around you that Luke just didn't understand. Thalia guessed it was either a Luke-thing, or a boy-thing.
Every evening, Thalia would dutifully take out the mirror, repeat Harry's name, and talk to him. Her and Luke decided that she was the best person to talk to Harry, since Luke was in charge of setting up the tent, and Annie was in charge of setting their direction and giving them updates on monsters and any specific counters that Thalia and Luke later practiced. That left Thalia with the task of informing Harry of their movements. He kept on trying to persuade them to go to a wizarding area, there was one in Richmond, a few in DC and around the older Masonic lodges in large cities, and there was also one in a place called Buckland just outside D.C.
But Luke always disagreed, saying that maybe not all wizards were like Harry. Thalia agreed with Luke, who had been kicked out of loads of schools, and had run away at an earlier age, so knew a lot more about survival than her, even if he did now look to her for some decisions.
It was on the sixth day, when they had stumbled across an abandoned apartment in Centreville, and after they had fully stocked up on almost all the supplies they would ever need, that things changed.
Another satyr had found them.
A/N:
So a few time skips here (I was taking too long writing out each day of Annie/Thalia/Luke's journey - I might put these in a separate series of oneshots, my own mini Oddyssy - to speed up the pace of my main story, so we can get to Grover/CHB and the actual PJO stories)
And yes, Olympus IS NOT in the U.S. Capitol, or anywhere in Washington D.C. but Luke and Thalia are working off of their own logic, that the Olympians would obviously be in the most greco-roman looking city (and also the most important place) in the USA;
The Capitol DOES have a LOT of eagle symbols around it, so you can see where this logic would come from; And Luke has heard of Camp Half Blood vaguely from Hermes (when he used to visit May, throughout Luke's childhood, (but never long enough to actually talk to Luke)) and logically CHB would be close to Olympus, so must be in/around D.C. somewhere, right?
Harry and Annie have no reason not to believe this, so both just go with it (although Harry does want them to head for more wizarding areas, he can't exactly force them to go, and Annie is 7 and looks up to Thalia/Luke too much to disagree with both of them at once)
And yes, poor British Harry is confused at the Americans having no sense of originality and having far too many places named the same thing, makes planning any travel very confusing for the first-time visitor - I am only slightly projecting here :P
Any thoughts, comments or whatever, reviews are always appreciated!
