"blah blah"- Speaking Greek
"blah blah"- Speaking Amestrian
'blah blah'- Thinking
***** - Begin/end flashback
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, Fullmetal Alchemist, or Percy Jackson. Good thing too, or they wouldn't be nearly as good as they are now. They belong to J.K. Rowling, Hiromu Arakawa, and Rick Riordan. Just to be safe, I also don't own the song 'This is War' by Thirty Seconds to Mars.
Percy
'Do not change the past. Do not change the past. Whatever you do, do not change the past.' The mantra repeated in Percy's head over and over, Chiron's warning echoing inside his skull as if it would somehow change what had happened.
'This is our fault.' Percy thought despairingly. 'The whole reason we were sent here was to make sure nothing like this happened. And now because we failed, two people are dead.'
From the looks on Thalia and Nico's faces, they were thinking along the same lines. Thalia's eyes burned with anger, and Nico's presence seemed even darker than usual.
Dumbledore was saying something about putting aside differences, but Percy was too distracted to pay attention. The only thing he could think about was the two children who were now dead.
'If Susan hadn't helped us; if we had insisted that she get to safety; then she wouldn't have died. And Luna–what's going to happen now that she's dead? Luna can't die…she's important.'
Percy winced, instantly feeling guilty for thinking about Luna's 'importance'. Who was he to insinuate that Luna's death was more tragic than Susan's simply because Luna was 'important'? Luna wasn't just 'important', she was an innocent girl who shouldn't have died, regardless of her 'worth'.
But as much as he hated the thought, it was true. Luna was an important part of Harry's journey. Now she was gone, and it was their fault. They were supposed to stop the Time-Jumper, and they had failed. And because of their failure, two innocent young girls were gone forever.
Percy bowed his head, trying to shut out the desperate, mournful whispers and sobs that carried through the Great Hall. And as he did so, he couldn't help but feel as if he were hiding. Hiding from the guilt of his failure. He closed his eyes, but that didn't stop the tears from falling.
~o~O~o~
The fire that burned in the common room seemed cold; if that were possible. The crackling of the fire, usually comforting, now seemed to be mocking laughter. The flames, usually entrancing as they danced together, now seemed to be reaching out, hungry for more than wood. The light that the flames cast, usually an oddly beautiful pattern of shadow and light, now seemed only eery and not bright enough. A log fell from the fire, as if eager to break the stifling silence.
Of the six figures huddled around the fire, none seemed willing to be the first to speak. They were lost in their thoughts, thoughts of guilt, of what if, of despair, of confusion, of shock, of–
"It's the prophecy." Hermione's voice was barely audible, but still loud enough to disrupt the silence.
Thalia's nod was barely visible in the firelight. "Yeah. 'The martyr, the victim'; it must have been them."
"But–" Harry hesitated, then spoke again. "Why was Sirius Black looking for you three? I thought–I thought that it was me he was after."
The demigods didn't need to exchange any glances. They were all thinking the same thing, and they knew it.
Percy spoke, struggling to keep his voice even. "I don't know."
They couldn't tell them. They couldn't risk changing anything else. When Harry met Sirius Black at the Shrieking Shack and found out the truth, they would come up with something to tell him. But for now, they couldn't tell anyone that Sirius Black was not the culprit.
Crookshanks leaped onto Hermione's lap, rubbing his head against her arm. He let out a mournful mew; as if he understood the situation. Ron spotted him and frowned.
"Hermione, make sure he stays there. I've got…" He trailed off, his hand over his pocket. "Wait a minute–where'd Scabbers go?!"
Thalia sat up, alarmed. "When did you last see him?" Her voice was calm, but Percy could detect the undertones of urgency.
"I had him in my pocket when Black attacked, but I was too distracted to pay attention after that. He could be anywhere by now!"
Thalia's eyes widened. Percy knew why she was worried.
'Pettigrew wasn't supposed to run off yet. And him disappearing at the same time that Alex attacked can't be a coincidence. What is she planning?'
As Ron fretted over the fate of his pet, the demigods worried over a much bigger problem. It wasn't until the fire had burned down to embers and their friends were in bed that the three time-jumpers could discuss their failure.
"Let's go over what we know." Thalia took charge immediately, not allowing the silence to grab hold again.
Nico began. "Alex attacked Hogwarts to get to us, disguised as Sirius Black. She…killed Susan White and Luna Lovegood."
Percy picked up after Nico when he halted. "Luna said it was a woman. We know that about Alex now."
"And the rest of what she was saying," Thalia added. "What did all that mean? And how did she know it?"
"Luna said she was planning something in a graveyard?" Nico questioned, leaning forward. "And she said something about 'the three great powers' coming together; what did that mean?"
"Myths, magic, and alchemy," Percy confirmed. "I remember. And she said it would end in destruction." He paused, considering. "I guess we already knew that."
"The graveyard…" Thalia tapped her fingers together, thinking. "Do you think she's talking about next year? The end of tri-wizard tournament?"
Nico nodded in agreement. "That must be it. She must be planning to use Professor Elric for something when Voldemort returns."
"What about Pettigrew leaving?" Percy reminded them. "He must have left with Alex, right?"
Thalia furrowed her brow, staring into the dying embers of the fire. "If he did, then she must have revealed who she actually is to him. He obviously wouldn't have left with her if he thought she was Black. In fact, he might have just run off because he thought Black was actually here."
"Right. I didn't think of that." Percy drew his knees up to his chest. "So what do we do now?"
Thalia growled in frustration. "That's the thing. There isn't really anything we can do. We have no idea where Alex is hiding; and even if we did, we have to stay here. The only thing we can do is wait until she shows herself again."
"Alex has the advantage here," Nico said glumly. "She knows where we are, who we are, and what we're going to be doing. We know next to nothing about her and her plans."
"She took a huge risk killing two people," Percy realized. "That's a major change to the course of history. Two deaths at Hogwarts–that's more than enough to have some parents keep their kids at home, at least until Black is caught."
Thalia sat up so quickly that she almost fell out of her chair. "But he won't be caught!"
Nico shot her a puzzled glance. "Yeah, of course he won't. What's your point?"
"Don't you get it?" Thalia hissed in frustration, tightly gripping the arms of her chair. "Everyone thinks that Sirius Black broke into Hogwarts and killed two people just to get to Harry! When he escapes at the end of the year, it'll be an even bigger deal! How do you think the ministry will react?"
Percy felt a familiar sense of dread creep over him as he realized what Thalia was saying. "You're right. They might keep the dementors here, or install extra security, or do who knows what else! Whatever they do, the changes won't be good. What are we supposed to do?"
"Fake his death?" Nico suggested. "If the ministry thinks Black is dead, they won't worry about him."
"But that could cause all sorts of problems," Thalia groaned. "Remember, the fact that Black is being hunted but isn't dead is important later! How is Voldemort supposed to lure Harry to the Department of Mysteries if he thinks Black is dead?"
"Maybe we could mist everybody so they don't think Black killed the students," Percy offered. "After all, the mist has done bigger things."
"Good idea, but who would we pin the murders on?" Thalia asked.
"I hate to take a page from the ministry's book," Nico began hesitantly, "but maybe we could make their deaths look like an accident?"
Percy bowed his head. "I'd hate to do that," he muttered. "They were murdered because they were brave enough to help us. I'd hate to make their sacrifice look like nothing more than an accident."
"I know," Nico said. "But you have to admit that we don't really have another choice."
"Yeah, it's just…" Percy clenched his jaw, trying to regain control of his shaking voice. "It's not like I knew either of them very well. But Susan–she saved us. She didn't know why we were being hunted, or who we were; she might not have even remembered our names. But she still saved us. And if we make it all look like an accident…neither of them deserves that."
Nico sat silently, listening to Percy with a blank expression. But Percy knew Nico well enough to tell that the son of Hades felt conflicted as well.
"Believe me, I want them to get the credit they deserve." Nico glared at the wall. "But we can't. We have to look at the bigger picture. We need…to be smart about this."
"That's not the only problem," Thalia added tiredly. "I don't know if I can manipulate the mist that much. If Hazel were here…" Thalia shook her head. "But she's not. I could try, but no guarantees on how effective it'll be."
"We don't even know for sure if that's what we're going to do," Percy reminded her. "Just prepare in case we decide on that option."
Grey light began to seep into the common room, alerting the occupants to how late (or rather, early) it was.
"If we want to get any sleep at all then we should continue this tomorrow," Nico warned.
Percy wholeheartedly agreed. The three demigods quietly slipped into their rooms, falling into sleep for a few precious hours. A sleep that was not peaceful, but plagued with strange and meaningful dreams. Dreams that twisted and dissipated like smoke, leaving the dreamer confused and disturbed. Dreams that left Percy trying to remember what a restful night's sleep felt like.
~o~O~o~
When the sun had risen fully in the sky, most of the population of Hogwarts had departed. The train that bore them away to safety had also brought the grieving families of two brave students. The father of Luna Lovegood, and the parents and brother of Susan White. As Percy watched them exit the castle, bearing two bodies in white, he wanted nothing more than to tell them how brave their children were.
He wanted to tell Luna's father that she was special, even though her peers didn't recognize it. He wanted to tell him how his daughter had a hand in saving the world, how her bravery had saved thousands of lives. He deserved to know how truly incredible his daughter was.
Percy wanted to tell Susan's mother that she had raised her daughter to be a wonderful young woman. He wanted to tell her father that his daughter had died to save the world. He wanted to tell Susan's brother that he must have been a great role model because his little sister was kinder than almost any girl her age. And Percy wanted to take the baby being cradled by that same older brother and tell her what an amazing person her older sister was.
But he couldn't. Luna's father would never know about the knowledge that Luna had carried, and how it would save so many people. Susan's family would never know that their daughter's bravery and selflessness in saving the three of them had saved the world. And that baby, unaware of the grief surrounding her, would never even know her older sister's voice.
"They know."
Percy started, noticing Thalia for the first time. She was watching the families leave, standing so still she might have been a statue. Only her lips moved as she spoke again.
"We can't tell them everything their children did, and they may never know exactly why they died. But they know that their children were incredible." Thalia turned her head to face him, and Percy could see tears gathering on her otherwise emotionless face. "Because they're family. They loved them. And a family that loves will value each other more than anyone else."
Thalia retreated back into the castle, leaving Percy alone in the biting wind, watching as the two mourning families departed from the castle, greater in number yet smaller in size than when they had come.
'A family that loves,' Percy thought. 'I guess part of my family loves me. The other part sometimes wants to kill me.' He smiled humorlessly. 'Maybe Thalia's right though. If they loved their children, then they know how special they truly were. Even so, they deserve to know about their children's sacrifice.' Percy straightened up, a hard light in his eyes and his mouth set in a determined line. 'If I can't tell them what their children did, then the least I can do is make sure their deaths were not in vain.'
"Susan, Luna," Percy whispered to the gray winter sky. "I swear on the River Styx that we will catch the woman who murdered you." Though his voice broke over the words, the dead seriousness in Percy's tone was evident. "I swear it."
Thunder rumbled in the distance, sealing Percy's oath. The thunder came twice more after that, but the rain never fell. For once, Percy was glad for the lack of water. The depressing atmosphere would have only been heightened by a downpour.
'After all,' he thought. 'It's a terrible day for rain.'
