"Wait," Percy stopped the group, "Before we head to Annabeth's house~"

"My Dad's." She corrected him.

"Right," He rolled his eyes, putting his hands in his pocket, "Before we head to your Dad's house, we have to get Bessie to a safe place."

"Bessie?" Zoë raised an eyebrow, "You do know that the Ophiotaurus is a boy, correct?"

"No way," Percy looked shocked, "She can't be."

"Guys!" Thalia put her hands up, "I swear, why am I the one keeping us on task?"

Harry laughed quietly to himself as he watched the group interact with each other, 'Ron would love them. Hermione would love them.'

Hermione. The word brought a feeling of sadness. What had she endured these past few days? Why was it taking him so long? How could he stand here and laugh when she was possibly being tortured at this very moment.

"It isn't your fault," A male voice in his head said, "You didn't purposefully put her in her position. It is your duty to rescue her and crush your enemies."

"Thank you." Harry said out loud, causing Annabeth to turn around and look at him.

"Who are you~"

Before she could say anymore, Percy clapped his hands, "I've got it! We'll send her~"

"Him." Zoë corrected Percy.

"Whatever," Percy waved a hand, "We'll send Bessie to Camp Half-Blood."

"How?" Bianca asked, causing the rest of them to think.

"Yes Perseus," Zoë nodded, "Explain to us how you plan to guide the Ophiotaurus to Long Island, all the way from San Francisco."

"With this," Percy removed the trench coat, which subsequently turned back into the Lion's pelt once removed from Percy's back.

"Have you lost your mind?" Thalia poked her forehead in a gesture, "What's the jacket going to do?"

"It's the not actual jacket that's going to transfer him," Percy frowned, "It's the thought that counts."

"Huh?" Thalia facepalmed, "Percy, you're making no sense."

"Just watch." Percy dumped the lion pelt in the sea and closed his eyes.

Around the Ophiotaurus, a turquoise-colored light began to swirl and the jacket was sucked into the sea.

"Bessie" mooed at the spectacle and Percy patted his head, "Don't worry. You're going to a safe place."

The Ophiotaurus vanished along with the light.

"What did you do?" Bianca questioned, wanting to know, "And how did you do it?"

"I didn't do anything," Percy explained, "I just offered the lion pelt to my Dad in exchange for getting Bessie safely to Camp Half-Blood."

"I guess the gods do look out for demigods every once in a while." Harry surmised.

"Don't tell me you were actually listening to that Manticore?" Zoë wrinkled her nose, "The gods have always looked out for their human-worshippers. Always."

"Yeah Harry!" Thalia put him a headlock, ruffling his hair, "Weren't you the one that snapped me out of his trance? Don't start telling me anything different."

"Alright!" Harry escaped her headlock, "Now can we leave?"

Annabeth took a deep breath, "Here we are."

They group stared up at the blue two story house, in between houses almost identical to it, except for the paint. It was straight out Full House, down to the slanted side walk.

'Americans really know how to represent their cities on Television,' Harry nodded to himself, 'Remarkable.'

"It looks exactly the same." Annabeth said under her breath, her shoulders sagging slightly, "Like nothing's changed."

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Zoë asked her, "Knock on the door."

Annabeth raised her fist to knock on the door, but faltered, turning around, "Come on guys, can't we just get Thalia to mess with the Mist and convince someone to give their car to us?"

"Annabeth," Harry patted her back, "Although I don't know the whole story, I do know that if you don't talk to your Dad and sort things out, you're going to regret it later."

"I get it," She sighed, her body language making it clear that she did not like being put in this position, "I have to face him."

"No need to rush. Take your time. " Thalia assured her, "But preferably within five minutes."

Annabeth nodded but before she could turn back around and knock, the front swung inward, "I thought I heard voices. How can I help you kids?"

Annabeth's ear twitched, a sign that she recognized the voice. Slowly, she turned around.

The man looked at her and his brown eyes widened as he recognized her, "Annabeth? Is that you?"

Harry could tell she was frozen, so he reached for her left hand and gave her a little squeeze.

"Yeah, it's me," Annabeth came back to her senses, squeezing Harry's hand back as a 'thank-you' gesture, "Can we come inside?"

"O-Of course!" He stepped aside, swiping at his sandy-blonde hair, "Come in, come in! Uh, Helen, Annabeth's hear and she brought some friends!"

"Annabeth?" An Asian woman with black hair and red highlights came down stairs, "Wow, it's been so long! I didn't think you'd...never mind. Please, have a seat."

"Is that your stepmother?" Harry whispered to her once they took a seat.

"Yeah," Annabeth nodded, "She's definitely changed since I've left."

"Bobby! Matthew! Come say hi to your sister!" Helen called two boys.

"You have brothers?" Harry noticed Annabeth hadn't let go of his hand since they'd walked in.

"Yeah. Twins." She nodded.

He thought about bringing it up but ultimately decided not to let go. Even though she was trying her best to conceal it, Harry could feel Annabeth trembling, all the way to her fingertips.

"Relax," He told her, "It's not like they're going to attack you."

"I know," She responded, "I know, it's just...I'm so nervous."

"So, Mr. C," Thalia crossed her legs on the sofa, "Nice place you got here."

Annabeth's Father looked at her and Harry imagined he was wondering how his daughter had ever gotten involved with some chick who looked like she carried around a baseball bat and smashed cars for fun.

"Thank you," He took the compliment with a perfect poker face," You're one of Annabeth's friends, I presume?"

"Yup," Thalia nodded, popping the p, "A real good friend. The type to never abandon her, no matter what the circumstances."

Harry resisted the urge to facepalm. Thalia couldn't get any shallower than this.

Thankfully, Zoë kicked her in the shin before she could go on.

"Right..." Annabeth's Father nodded, "Well, you guys can call me Dr. Chase and feel free to make yourselves at home."

Zoë made eye contact with everyone, silently saying, "We can not stay here."

"Annabeth, say something," Harry encouraged her, "Don't let the moment slip away."

"Dad," Annabeth stopped him, "We kind of have to leave. Like, we can't stay."

"Oh," Dr. Chase stopped in his tracks, "You sure you can't stay for snacks? Helen just put some cookies in the oven."

"We can't," Annabeth persisted, "But the thing is, the place we're going to, we really need a ride."

"Sure," Dr. Chase grabbed his coat, "Where are we headed?"

"No Dad, we need~" Annabeth paused and Harry gave her hand another reassuring squeeze, "We need to borrow your car."

Dr. Chase stopped completely, "You must know how sketchy this sounds. Showing up out of the blue and asking for my car."

'He didn't waste any time,' Harry noted, observing Dr. Chase carefully, 'Can't say I blame him. He hasn't seen his daughter for years and when she does show up, she demands access to his car.'

"I know Dad, and I promise, I promise I'll get this car back to you. We're not using it for anything illegal," Annabeth told him, "But we really need a car to get to where we're going."

Dr. Chase pursed his lips and headed into the kitchen.

"I'm guessing that's a no," Thalia stood up, "Guess we'll have to hitchhike."

But Dr. Chase re-appeared moments later, the keys to his SUV in-hand, "I'm trusting you to get this back to me." He dropped it in Annabeth's hand.

"I will," Annabeth smiled for the first-time since they had gotten there, "You'll probably get it back late at night, but I'll return it."

"And," Dr. Chase added one more condition, "You have to spend a weekend with me. I don't know when, but it has to be within three weeks. And your boyfriend can come too." He turned to Harry.

"Boyfriend?" Annabeth looked down at their intertwined hands, "Oh no! Dad, he's not my boyfriend he's~"

"You don't have to explain it to me," Dr. Chase cut her off, "But make sure to visit, okay?"

Annabeth nodded, "Okay."

"Has she left yet? Oh thank goodness," Helen walked out of the kitchen, throwing her arms around Annabeth, "You still have a home here. Remember that."

Annabeth patted her stepmother's back, dazed at the affection she showed her. Zoë cleared her throat and brought Annabeth back to the task at hand.

"I'll definitely visit," Annabeth promised them, "For sure."

"By the way," Thalia asked Helen, "Do you have the time?"

"It is..." Helen checked her watch, "7:33."

"Thank you," Thalia nodded, mouthing the words, "We gotta speed things up."

"I'd say that went surprisingly well," Harry said once they were in the car, "Would you all say the same?"

"It did," Percy nodded, "Especially with the 'pretending to be her boyfriend' thing."

"Mhm." Harry nodded, faking a smile.

Before they had gotten into the car, Annabeth pulled Harry off to the side and asked him specifically not to tell the others that he had held her hand. While Harry felt telling them would clearing up any misunderstandings, Annabeth believed it would cause more.

And since he didn't want to waste time arguing, he simply kept his mouth shut.

"I'll have to clear that up with him." Annabeth shook her head.

"I don't know," Thalia turned down the road and started climbing up the mountain, "You and Harry make a cute couple."

"Harry already has a girlfriend." Percy chimed in.

"Wow, you do?" Thalia gasped like it was such a shocker.

"I don't," Harry pinched Percy's shoulder, "You'd have to be insane to date me. It's like asking for death."

"If you think about it, this car has 5 demigods, including you," Percy added, "We're basically a moving magnet for death. So don't worry about it."

"Perseus, are you saying you want Harry and Annabeth to court each other?" Zoë asked him.

"I didn't say that," Percy denied, "But I'm just saying, if his reason for not dating is because he lives a dangerous life, I'm just saying we all do. It wouldn't be anything new."

"Stop the car." Bianca suddenly said, sitting straight up.

"What? Why?" Thalia looked at her through the rear-view mirror.

"No time for questions, everyone get out right now!" Bianca unbuckled her seat belt.

Harry's scar tingled and he followed Bianca's actions, hopping out of the car and scrambling to the sidewalk. A second after the last person, Thalia, got out of the car, a lightning bolt hit the vehicle, causing it explode.

"Holy~" Percy looked at Bianca, "How did you know?"

"I just...my body responded to the feeling. Like I had felt it before..." Bianca trailed off, looking away.

"Huh?" Percy said, clearly unsatisfied with answer.

Thalia patted out a small fire on her sleeve, clearly seething.

"Do not be deceived," Zoë told her, "This is the work of a Titan. Your Father, would never kill you."

"He's abandoned me before hasn't he?" Thalia muttered, leaving Zoë with nothing else to say, "Whatever, let's keep going. Lead the way Lieutenant."

There was an awkward silence. Thankfully, Harry decided to break it.

"Annabeth, how are you going to return this to your Dad?" He asked, trying not to laugh at her expression.

Annabeth just sighed, "I'll ask Chiron to help me out."

Percy laughed aloud, "I don't think Chiron is going to be able to help with this."

"Would you shut up Percy?!" Annabeth told him.

They argued while walking, much to Harry's entertainment.

'And they say Annabeth and I would make a good couple,' Harry rolled his eyes, 'Percy, you're more naive than I thought. Can't you see Annabeth's the one for you?'

Harry felt someone tap his shoulder and turned to look. It was Bianca.

"What is it?" He asked her.

"Is Thalia mad at me?" Bianca whispered, as if she was afraid someone would overhear.

"No," Harry assured her, "She's not mad at you. Why would you think that?"

Bianca tugged at her black turtleneck, "Because I told her about the lightning bolt."

"Are you kidding?" Harry questioned, "If you'd kept quiet, we would've been dead by now. By the way, you said you'd felt something like that before. How is that possible?"

"I'm not sure," Bianca admitted, "I think Zoë's right about this being a Titan's work though. It felt much more deadly than what my body remembered."

"Slow down," Harry put two hands up, "A god has tried to strike you with lightning? Why?"

"I don't know," Bianca rubbed the back of her neck, "It just...it feels like it. It's like, when you know something but you can't really picture it. Like amnesia. Am I a danger to you guys? Maybe the bolt was for me and it missed. Maybe I should just~"

"Enough of that," Harry put his arm around her, giving her a hug, "Even if the bolt was for you, there's no way we would just leave you on your own."

Bianca closed her eyes and hugged him tightly.

'Even if she's become an immortal huntress, she's only 10,' Harry told himself, 'A 10 year-old shouldn't have thoughts like these.'

"Yo!" Percy called from up the road, "You guys coming or what?"

"We're coming!" Bianca told him, smiling at Harry, "Thank you."

"Not a problem," Harry smiled back, wrapping his Gryffindor scarf around his neck, "It's just what Gryffindors do."

Bianca left him by himself and that's when he heard a chuckle.

"She's so innocent. That's going to get her killed." The deep male voice said to him.

'Shut up!' Harry told the voice, 'Who are you?'

"Really Harry? You don't know your own voice?" The deep mysterious voice lightened into his own, "Did you honestly believe another voice had come to attack you?"

'I don't know what to think anymore.' Harry said to himself.

"Haven't you ever wondered why that goddess stopped talking to you?" His inner voice asked him, "That's because I've blocked her. After all, a god can't enter another god's mind without permission."

'But I'm not a god,' Harry argued, 'So how can I...'

He remembered his merging with a dying spirit.

'You mean because of that I'm a god now?'

"Not fully. Slowly, his powers are situating themselves with your body. You could call yourself a god host."

'What do you mean by that?' Harry didn't understand the explanation.

"The Greeks most hated enemies next to the Romans, the Egyptians, believed they could act as mediators and their gods could posses a human body."

'Beliefs aside, is it actually possible?' Harry need to know.

"No Greek god has ever attempted it, maybe because they know they won't be forgotten. But in this case it worked and you not only hosted, but merged with the Titan of destruction who fathered Hecate, the goddess of magic. Do you know what that means?"

Harry kept quiet, waiting for the voice to continue.

"You, Harry Potter, are a Host. Under normal circumstances, your body should've burst into flames during the transition. I don't believe these demigods would be able to handle it. You're definitely a special one."

Harry's mind drifted back to when the unknown goddess had spoken to him once again. She had mentioned something about his soul. Could this be it? Was that what she had been trying to say before she was cut off?

'I need to know one thing,' Harry told himself, 'Are you a part of me, or a foreign object in my spirit.'

"Silly wizard, we are one and the same. Two halves of a coin."

"What can we expect to see up here?" Thalia questioned Zoë.

"The Hesperides will be there. Hera forbade them to leave because they were in charge of guarding her golden apples," Zoë filled them in as they entered the garden, "Although, they are not exactly the reliable type. The real threat is the dragon."

"Dragon?" Annabeth chimed in, "Like, Hydra or one headed?"

"Picture a Hydra with 100 heads," Zoë described it, "That is what it is."

"Di immortales," Annabeth muttered, "Can we sneak past it?"

"If the Hesperides don't wake him up, we should be fine." Zoë sounded sure.

"But what if~"

"Halt," A female voice stopped them in their tracks, "Zoë? Why have you comeback?"

"Sisters," Zoë acknowledged the four beautiful girls in front of them, "I would sincerely appreciate it if you all made this as easy as possible."

They looked very much like Zoë, right down to their skin tone. The only difference was Zoë was wearing dark, huntress clothes while they wore white dresses

"You are a fool," One of the sisters said to her, "Turn back now while you have the chance. What will going against Father do for you?"

"Wait, Father?" Thalia turned to her, "Zoë, what is she talking about?"

"I had hoped to tell you all on my own," Zoë glared at the girl who had spoken, "But yes, Atlas is my Father."

Harry grabbed her by her jacket's collar, "Then what was all of this for, huh?"

"Harry!" Annabeth exclaimed, "Let her go."

He paid her no mind, staring Zoë in the eyes, "Answer me! Did you know about all of this? Was this just some game for your immortal entertainment?"

Percy grabbed Harry's arm, "Back off Potter. She's not our enemy."

"That reaction...you knew! Didn't you?" Harry let go of Zoë, disgusted.

"I knew, but it wasn't my place to tell anyone," Percy told him, getting in between Zoë and Harry, "Does it really change anything?"

"Yes!" Harry shouted, "It changes everything! She is the daughter of the Titan who kidnapped my best friend."

"Just like you're the son of two Aurors who opposed Voldemort and I'm the son of Poseidon!" Percy yelled back, "Did you choose who your parents were going to be?! No! So don't make it any different for her!"

"I~" Harry clamped his mouth shut, 'What in Tartarus? It's not in me to yell like that. And for something so stupid...that wasn't like me at all!'

"If you fools continue yelling, the Ladon will be attracted to the noise." One of the Hesperides warned them.

In response to that, Zoë cupped her hands to her mouth and yelled, "LADON! DRAGON GUARDIAN OF HERA'S GOLDEN APPLES! AWAKEN!"

"Are you insane?" Thalia looked at her, tugging at her arm, "How are we supposed to~"

The Ladon's terrifying roar cut her off as it stepped into sight. It was unlike anything Harry had ever seen. It was enormous standing higher than they could ever imagine with one hundred heads.

Its heads look like strings of confetti, if confetti could hiss and each individual strand was as thick as a truck. When the light hit his copper scales, they shimmered, partially blinding Harry.

When the effects subsided, he noted that the Hesperides had disappeared, most likely because they had no intention of getting caught in the battle that would soon ensue.

"How are we supposed to fight this thing?" Percy tightened his hand around his sword, "Zoë? Any ideas?"

"You all go on, I'll face the dragon." Zoë stepped forward, drawing her bow and arrow.

"Are you kidding?" Bianca threw a fit, "First, we find out that your Dad's the enemy. Okay, we're not going to hold that against you. But now you call the dragon out and tell us to go ahead?"

"Zoë, what exactly do you take us for?" Annabeth crossed her arms, "Weaklings? We're demigods for Olympus' sake, and we're not going anywhere without you."

Zoë shook her head and smiled, "I hate to admit it, but it seems you all are rubbing off on me."

"You're losing the accent," Percy joked, "Maybe a few more hours and you'll start sound like a New Yorker."

The Ladon roared again, reminding them of its presence.

"First of, we need to know," Thalia's canister of mace turned into her spear and the bracelet on her arm expanded into a copy of the famed aegis shield, "Can we beat that thing?"

"From the myths, even Hercules couldn't beat it, right?" Annabeth questioned.

At the mention of Hercules, Zoë's demeanor changed.

"But we aren't Hercules," Percy placed his hand on Zoë's shoulder, "Now what's our plan of action, Lieutenant?"

Zoë straightened her posture and nodded, returning to her serious mindset, "Even with all of us working together, there's only a 30% chance of us beating it."

"Damn," Harry shut his eyes, "So we have to run for it."

"Exactly," Zoë nodded, "I will act as the decoy and you~"

"There it is again!" Bianca pointed, "Do you still not trust us to do anything?"

"It isn't that, it's just, I'm immortal!" Zoë tried to explain, "I can take whatever it dishes out, but for you guys, one bit and you're dead."

"Speaking of bites," Percy slashed at four of the heads as the Ladon came charging at them, "Look out!"

Harry barely managed to get out of the way as two head snapped at him. They were close enough for him to get a whiff of its breath and it was something Harry would rather not experience again. Just to inhale its acidic breath made his eyes water.

It was as if a rat had crawled into its mouth, died, been brought back to life just to die again.

"Any spells Harry?" Percy questioned, covering his nose with his left arm.

"If your dragons are like the dragons in my world, it should be resistant to most spells except..."

"Except?" Percy pulled Harry out of the way as one of the Ladon heads tried to grab him.

"It can be stunned, but only if the caster is a wizarding genius or if multiple wizards cast the spell."

"Pray to Hecate!" Thalia yelled in their direction, while fending off a couple of heads with her shield, "She might be willing to help you."

"But how do I~?"

"You have the knowledge. As a Host of Hecate's father, this should come naturally to you."

Harry's other half was right. He found himself reciting the prayer from memory:

"O Hecate, I pray to thee. When I doubt, show me my strength;

When I am wrong, show me the right path;

Light the crossroads before me, that I may see my way.

Queen of Transitions, Guardian of Doorways, Hecate, bless my journeys.

Through dark and dawn, day and dusk.

Help me to bring into balance the forces within myself - Light and dark, above and below.

As a coin cannot have only one side, I am not whole, one without the other."

Harry couldn't feel himself 'power-up', but as Percy and Thalia had demonstrated many times before, you just had to have faith in the Gods.

He raised his wand, pointing it at the Ladon and reached deep down into his gut to call up whatever power he had, "Stupefy!"

The Ladon seemed to stumble back, looking around slowly, in a dazed manner.

"It worked!" Percy threw his arm around Harry, pulling him into a brotherly headlock, "You did it Harry, it worked!"

"It won't last forever. We have 50 seconds, maybe less." Harry told him.

"This way!" Zoë pointed, "The Ladon won't leave the tree! Once we get past here, it'll leave us alone!"

"Don't have to tell me twice." Thalia was right behind her and Annabeth followed suit.

Bianca was all teeth as Harry reached them.

"What are you smiling about?" He asked, genuinely interested.

"Nothing much," Bianca skipped, "I just think we've become like a real family."

"A real family?" Harry looked up at the sky, sunset approaching, "Yes, I suppose you're right. We are like family.