Disclaimer: All characters, settings, or story components taken from the Harry Potter, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Heroes of Olympus, or Trials of Apollo series belong to J.K. Rowling and Rick Riordan, respectively. I do not own any of the aforementioned. I do not intend to use this story commercially.

A/N: Hello, again! Here is, as promised, the third installment of The Worlds Before Us. I apologize for this chapter being shorter than the rest. This chapter contains minor spoilers for up to the House of Hades and Philosopher's Stone. I am aiming to get the next chapter published by next weekend (6 and 7 May) but again, I might not be able to. Please read and review!

The world around us is dark, dark as the deepest night. There's a wind whipping past me, and I shiver, although I don't know why. As a strand of my hair jerks loose from behind my ear, I hear a trail of ghostly voices, eerily echoing the wind. Is this some foreign sort of Apparating? I wonder apprehensively as Liliya whimpers anxiously.

Someone's hand jerks in mine, almost causing me to let go. I tighten my grip on their hand, knitting my fingers through theirs. On my other side, Liliya's leash pulls taut around my hand, and I squeeze both of the hands I'm holding. A sensation of chilling trepidation sweeps over me. With a palpable certainty, I know this isn't Apparating at all. Something is happening, I reckon as the person on my left is flung into me. Something is going undeniably wrong.

When the hand to my right jerks again, I snap out loud, "Oi! Stop letting go!"

My voice sounds tinny and far away and is immediately swept away by the wind. I assume no one heard me, but someone answers.

"I'm not trying to!"

"I know you aren't tr - oof!"

The person to my left suddenly slams into me again, knocking me into the person to my right. I stumble back a step as the person to my left loses their balance and knocks into my shoulder.

"Ow!" a girl says in my ear. "Your dog's leash - hey! Percy!" She tries to move away but something catches her, sending her off balance.

The person to my right is pulled away from me again. Spitting hair out of my mouth in irritation, I brace myself on my heels.

"Hold onto my sleeve for a moment!" I snap to the person to my left as she regains her balance.

"What?"

"Please?"

She lets go before fastening her grip to my sleeve. After deciding that fumbling for my pocket will be useless, I flick my fingers in the only wandless spell I know.

I scrunch up my eyes for a moment as the bluebell flames flare above my palm, but my eyes adjust in moments, allowing me to look beside me.

To my right, a boy with curly black hair is being tugged by someone in the unilluminated shadows. He seems to be having trouble keeping his grip. On my other side, the blond girl has crumpled my shirt in a fist. Upon noticing the light she turns to me.

"Sophy!" she calls, her voice almost swept away by the wind. "I … my grip … Percy's hand slipped out of mine and I let go!"

I stare at her. Does she expect to do something? I don't even know who this Percy is.

I take a deep breath. Although I know this isn't my fault, although I have absolutely no idea what's going on, I vow to get these strangers out of this fix. Even as I think, however, only one vaguely feasible idea is coming to mind. You've never done this before, Sophy, I remind myself. You don't know. Maybe this will work differently in this weird shadow space and you won't end up killing everyone. You never know.

"Right, then," I say, almost to myself. Then, to the boy, "Oi! You!"

"Me?" He asks, turning toward me and noticing my flames. "Hey, how'd you-"

"I need you to let go of whoever is on your right!" I interrupt.

He blinks. "But Hazel-"

"DO IT!" Some of my urgency flashes out in my words. I can feel the wind becoming rough, whipping my hair, throwing off my balance.

A moment passes, the bluebell flames flickering out in the wind. Suddenly, I feel him latch onto my arm with his other hand. His touch is surprisingly warm.

"Thank you," I say, strained. Doubts are filling my mind, and I need to concentrate. "Now. You. On my left."

"Yes?" I hear her respond, more edgy than before.

"Sorry," I get out quickly before continuing. "Could you please grab Lil's collar with one hand?"

I feel her bending down, and I bend with her until I feel fur between my fingers. We're forming an awkward circle-triangle-thing, half crouching to grab Liliya.

"Okay." My voice is calmer than I am. "Everyone imagine, er, that place you're trying to get to. Somewhere specific."

"Thalia's pine," the blond girl suggests uncertainty.

"Perfect," I say through gritted teeth. I've only Apparated twice before, from one end of the barn to the other while my eighteen-year-old neighbor gave me confusing whispered instructions so Matt wouldn't hear. Like most eccentric things I do, I use what I know and bank on the fact that I might end up fine. "Thalia's pine. On three. One, two, three!"

I twist into a compressing darkness, the others holding tight to my forearms as the shadows constrict around us.

One, two, three seconds of unbearable pressure go by before the three of us and Liliya fall, sprawling, onto a green hill. A huge pine tree looms a few feet behind us, and some sort of camp is laid out in the valley below. I think I see the ocean over a hill, but I don't care at the moment.

"Is everyone okay?" I demand, pushing myself to my feet. A quick examination proves that no-one is Splinched, although the boy is wheezing and the girl looks a bit green. Liliya sits up and lopes closer to me, trailing her leash behind her. I push my hair back, letting out a whooshing breath.

Merlin. I did it. I actually did it!

In the shade of a nearby tree, three figures twist into being. I see a dark-skinned girl, who has a firm grasp on two boys. One, the blond boy, sits up first, eyes wild.

"Piper?" He starts, turning in a circle, before launching to his feet. "PIPES!"

The other boy tries to reach for him, but he twists away. "We've got to go back! PIPER!"

The girl is shaking her head violently, tears spilling. "I can't go back, Jason, we can't go back, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

The blond girl pushes herself to her feet and is racing over to them. "Jason! Frank! Hazel! What's going on?"

Hazel is gasping through her tears. "When you and Percy split, we all got clumped together, and then Leo let go too," she gets out, "and Nico was unconscious, and I wanted to take everyone back, I said I could, but Percy and Thalia told us to go, and leave them, and I was taking us and Piper, too, but she must've gotten separated before, before…" She collapses into more tears.

The blond girl looks as if she's fighting to remain calm. "If they don't make it out, if we can't find them," she starts to pace. "We can't go back, but we have to-"

"I can," I interrupt, wishing I'm right. "I'll find them, as long as you stay here."

The blond girl whirls. "You can't! It's impossible, it's too dangerous, you don't have any experi-"

"I told you, I can." I drop my messenger bag next to Liliya. "Just watch my dog."

I twist on my heel. The shadows, with Nico, I repeat in my head. The darkness tightens for a moment, nearly suffocating me, before I'm released into a different sort of shadow.

In the weird shadow-travel realm, the wind is rougher than before. I flail an arm out, finding an arm.

"Nico!" I scream. He's the only one I remember who was wearing a jacket. "Can someone hear me?"

So much for that. Raising my arm, I flick my fingers for more bluebell flames. Nico is deathly pale under his shock of black hair, and the light from my flames doesn't stretch past his other arm.

"Bloody heck," I mutter under my breath. Lovely. Now I sound like Ron. This day keeps getting worse and worse. "We've got to get you out of here."

Something makes my neck prickle, and out of sheer instinct, I lunge to my left. My hand is met with a flailing arm, and, bracing myself against Nico, I pull Piper toward me. She's white and shaking, hair tangled beyond mercy.

"S-Sophy!" she gasps. "Fire, and - Nico, what's going on?"

I shake my head. "Don't ask me." Raising my voice to a shout, "Percy! Thalia! Can you hear me?"

"Sophy?" A faint call comes, and Percy's head appears over Nico's shoulder. "Sophy! We thought you left-"

"I did," I say grimly. "And now, I'm back. What's more, I'm getting you lot out of here, so hold on!"

Percy frowns, but reaches around Nico for my arm. He pulls the spiky-haired girl behind him. I seriously doubt I can safely take four people back in one trip, but by the way the wind is increasing, I doubt I'll have time to make two trips. All or nothing, Sophy, I remind myself.

"Everyone imagine Thalia's pine tree!" I call out, heart racing. "On three! One, two, THREE!"

On three, I turn, pulling the rest of them in a whirl. For a moment, I feel my power weakening, but a memory throbs at the corner of my brain, pushing me forward. I let the memories surge, up and over - the strength I masquerade is gone. As hallucinations flicker in and out like clouds, I see Мама, pushing me down the alley, shadows looming behind her, a hand in the darkness. Run, little lion! she screams. Run like the wind!