Chapter 5
Authors' Note:
Hi guys. This one's shorter than the others, but still fairly substantial.
Please comment. Your reviews last time were simply amazing!
Many thanks to:
WhiteWinterStar - Yes, I thought that would be better. Now they have eyes and ears in all houses, and it's more fun to write :) Thanks for your comment!
Airaha - Thank you; it's worth it to see so many people who like it!
Finwitch1 - Yes, I definitely see your point. I wasn't too sure where to place him either. I decided to put him where he is because he has an outlook on life that sometimes aligns itself with the Slytherin way of thinking, ie: act hostile and uncaring so you don't get hurt any more than necessary, and keep your thoughts to yourself. Have you red FF works like Dumbledore's Army and the Year of Darkness, or the Magic of Torchwood? There are versions of Theodore Nott and Thadius Vance, Slytherins both, who are actually quite similar to Nico. I wanted to acknowledge his bravery and immense strength without putting him in entirely-too-cliché Gryffindor. Plus I wanted at least two demigods in each house, to keep each other company - didn't want anyone to feel left out. I realize it probably wasn't an idyllic choice, but to my mind it was either Slytherin or Gryffindor - after all, he would have made a very dark Hufflepuff. So you see, no ideal placement.
Bookhugs: Oh, wow. You have no idea how much that means to me. Thank you! Yes, I wanted to avoid clichés as mush as possible - as you might have noticed ;)
Guest Guest: I have no idea if you'll realize this message is for you, 'cause there's no way of tracking you, but thanks for your comment. Yeah, I used Google Translate. Problem was, I entered 'do you still understand', and re-translated the result back into English, which translated as 'do you even understand English?' Yes. English. So I took the best option, but now I've done another bit of research, so I'll change it to "Etiamnum agnosco Latin?" But thanks for that bit of nit-picking; it's good for the soul, isn't it? :)
Other Guest: Oh great, thank you so much! He-he, oops... Can we pretend for the sake of the line that she was always much more around in the wizarding world and that, given that wizards live for longer than regular humans, she doesn't know much about technology anyway because she grew up in the early twentieth century?
Yet Another Guest: Oh definitely, my friend. I'm having far too much fun to give up now. ;)
Okay, here you go then:
The whole hall was silent as Dumbledore beamed at the students before him. Percy, who had been starting to feel pleasantly drowsy now that his stomach had something to occupy itself with again, snapped back to full alertness. If Annabeth were here next to him and saw him not paying attention to the man who effectively held sway over their future, she'd smack him upside the head.
"Well, now that we are all digesting another magnificent feast, I beg a few moments of your attention for the usual start-of-term notices," said Dumbledore. "First-years ought to know that the Forest in the grounds is out-of-bounds to students - and a few of our older students ought to know by now, too."
Percy exchanged a look with Jason and Thalia. What kind of idiot would place a magic castle right next to a forest, then tell the students 'Do not under any account go in there', and actually expect them to obey? It was so mind-bogglingly ignorant of the typical behaviour of teenagers that it almost seemed to have been done on purpose. Percy didn't know much about wizards as a whole, but from what he had seen of Dumbledore and his apparent lack of ability to take anything as seriously as someone his age ought to, a tiny slither of his more cynical side suspected that that might actually be true.
Percy wasn't particularly bothered by the notion that his new headmaster could potentially be a slight sociopath with a penchant for aestheticism and dramatic flair. He had, after all, been in a camp alternately headed by an alcoholic and pedophobic deity, a cannibalistic fallen soul who rightly belonged in Tartarus, and a middle-aged centaur who enjoyed seventies music. Thus, Percy was used to deferring to authorities with various degrees of mental afflictions.
Plus the forest in Camp Half-Blood was probably just as - if not more - dangerous than this enticingly forbidden bit of Hogwarts that begged to be explored.
"Mr Filch, the caretaker, has asked me, for what he tells me is the four-hundred-and-sixty-second time, to remind you all that magic is not permitted in corridors between classes, nor are a number of other things, all of which can be checked on the extensive list now fastened to Mr Filch's office door."
Percy made a mental note never to read that list in his life. That way he could always claim ignorance should he ever cross the line - which, in complete objectivity, was bound to happen. Especially when nine demigods got stuck together inside one building. Especially a magical building. Especially one that seemed to frequently display the equivalent of big red buttons that said 'Do not press under ANY circumstances'.
"We have had two changes in staffing this year. We are very pleased to welcome back Professor Grubbly-Plank, who will be taking Care of Magical Creatures lessons; we are also delighted to introduce Professor Umbridge, our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher." Dumbledore continued.
There was a round of polite but fairly unenthusiastic applause, which Percy, Jason and Thalia only joined in to make a good impression.
"Who makes wizarding names up, I wonder?" Percy whispered to Jason, who smirked and shook his head. "It's like they're begging to be made fun of."
"Tryouts for the House Quidditch teams will take place on the -'
Dumbledore broke off suddenly, because the little pink woman Percy had at first mistaken for a papier-mâché piñata had gotten up and started to join him at the front of the dais. The difference in height between them was so large it was comic, especially since the woman, now that she was on her feet, was revealed to be almost as squat as she was tall, and resembled a Cercops wrapped in candy-floss. Her stumpy, slightly bowed legs added to the effect rather impressively.
Percy disliked her immediately. He had noticed her earlier just before the Sorting because she could not keep still in her seat, and now that she was very deliberately the centre of everyone's attention - honestly, not even Clarisse would've interrupted Chiron or Mr. D like that - Percy suddenly felt the urge to uncap Riptide and watch her close. He had that tense, chilling feeling he got when there were monsters around, scurrying up and down his spine, and he felt like he was walking into a nest of them.
A glance at Thalia and her expression of utter disgust told him he was not alone in his analysis, whereas Jason merely looked affronted that someone could so openly flaunt the headmaster's authority. Once a disciplined Roman, always a disciplined Roman Percy supposed, a little exasperated, even if they had switched to Greek.
The pink woman cleared her throat. The noise she made was a small, girly, breathy 'hem, hem' that Percy instantly loathed. The feeling was so strong he was surprised at himself: he didn't usually judge so much on appearances, rather preferring actions to base his decisions on people. But this woman, even her physical appearance, was so completely and utterly offensive to him that after the initial surprise at his vehemence, he did not feel the slightest guilt in hating her on sight.
Professor Dumbledore seemed rather surprised at being interrupted, but after a second of shock passed he smiled and gestured towards her with an arm.
"May I present, Professor Umbridge!"
With that, he sat down smartly, flicking back his long sleeves and adopting an air of such perfect scholarly attention that Percy was sure the wily old man was using this as a test for Umbridge. What kind of test, he wasn't sure. Probably something to do with handling a crowd of sceptical teenagers.
Percy smirked. Oh, how fun it would be to prove beyond doubt that this pink excuse for a teacher was unable to handle several dozen adolescents. He had to find Leo, and maybe enlist the help of the twins they'd just met... Fred and George? If they put their heads together, knowing Leo's genius and the reputation of the twins, something truly spectacular would come up. He made another mental note to mention it to them as soon as possible.
However, it was clear now that the woman wanted to make a speech. She bowed her head towards Dumbledore with a simper.
"Thank you, Professor, for your kind words of welcome. And I must say, it is lovely to be back at Hogwarts!" She turned to face the students and her vapid, fake smile widened. "And to see such happy little faces looking up at me!"
'Looking up' at her...? Surely she didn't mean admiration...? The thought was so revolting in its unlikelihood that Percy couldn't bring himself to care as his face pulled in disgust. Another exchanged look with Thalia and Jason and he was reassured and somewhat amused to see the same expression on their faces. Judging by the smirks on the Hogwarts' students' faces, this woman was not going to be popular, let alone 'looked up' to.
Umbridge's smile had become condescending, and she leaned a little forward as if she were going to share a particularly juicy secret with the entire hall.
"I'm looking forward to getting to know you all, and I'm sure we'll all be very good friends!"
Percy crossed his arms. That settled it. If she was going to treat them all like children - which they were damn well not, as Annabeth had asserted so fervently in Dumbledore's office earlier - then Percy saw no reason why he shouldn't be perfectly immature in return. After all, if you acted like prey, you had to expect to be treated like prey, wasn't that the saying? Umbridge was treating this teaching post like a job at the nursery school. Percy would make sure to throw as many crayons, dolls, dirty diapers and play-dough at her as possible.
Giggles were starting to sound across the hall, but Umbridge ignored them and cleared her throat once more ('hem, hem'). When she next spoke, her voice had lost the little-girlish intonations, and her words had quite clearly been learned by heart and were in the slimy, concealing, flowery language of bureaucracy.
"The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be of vital importance. The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instruction. The ancient skills unique to the wizarding community must be passed down the generations lest we lose them for ever. The treasure trove of magical knowledge amassed by our ancestors must be guarded, replenished and polished by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching.'
Here Professor Umbridge paused and bowed slightly to her fellow staff members, none of whom acknowledged her gesture. Professor McGonagall looked positively hawklike, and Percy noticed her exchange a glance with a plump teacher with flyaway hair. Hermione Granger, who despite the utter monotony of the speech was fixated on Umbridge as she spoke, straightened suddenly as Umbridge said 'passed down the generations', and her eyes narrowed. Percy was at a loss as to why. None of this made much sense to him.
Umbridge gave another little 'hem, hem' and carried on with her monologue.
"Every headmaster and headmistress of Hogwarts has brought something new to the weighty task of governing this historic school, and that is as it should be, for without progress there will be stagnation and decay. Then again, progress for progress's sake must be discouraged, for our tried and tested traditions often require no tinkering. A balance, then, between old and new, between permanence and change, between tradition and innovation…"
"This has got to be the most conservative thing I've ever listened to..." Percy heard Alec Malone whisper to someone. "No wonder the ministry chose her to teach here - there's no way Dumbledore picked her..."
"Have you seen the newspapers lately? The Ministry's trying to control what's going on at Hogwarts. Fudge doesn't trust Dumbledore anymore." another student replied at the same volume.
"'Course not. He says You-Know-Who's back, doesn't he? Anyone who believes in that kind of rubbish is a problem to Fudge, because he doesn't want people to think the situation's out of control."
"What situation? The Prophet says it's all lies..."
"Well, obviously. Who's going to believe Harry after what happened last summer? Not many people, that's who, and that's including because the man who campaigned for Sirius Black's innocence is now backing him up..."
Gryffindor table wasn't the only place where attention was starting to wonder. Percy's ADHD rendered him incapable of focusing on only one thing anyway, so he looked around to distract himself. Jason was staring blankly at the Staff table, Thalia was flicking crumbs in the air with her fork, and Umbridge was still droning on and not making much sense to the very much non-wizard demigod he was, so he didn't feel like he was missing out on anything. In fact, Percy noticed that only Hermione was still paying the woman her full attention. No doubt she was trying to appear responsible, grown-up, maybe even respectful, but the small crease between her brows told him she found what she was hearing as distasteful as one of Apollo's haikus.
The teachers were still listening as well, though that was more predictable. McGonagall still looked like someone had liberally criticized her tartan feathered hat, and the whispers and giggling were now running rampart under Umbridge's nose, but still she took no notice and ploughed on with her speech.
"… because some changes will be for the better, while others will come, in the fullness of time, to be recognised as errors of judgement. Meanwhile, some old habits will be retained, and rightly so, whereas others, outmoded and outworn, must be abandoned. Let us move forward, then, into a new era of openness, effectiveness and accountability, intent on preserving what ought to be preserved, perfecting what needs to be perfected, and pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited."
She smiled widely one last, fake time and sat down. The noise in the hall died down a little, as students slowly realized that she had finished. Dumbledore started clapping, but was joined by precisely no-one, and he very quickly gave up. Percy couldn't help but smirk. He wasn't sure Annabeth was entirely correct to so distrust the guy, but he didn't necessarily like Dumbledore either; there was too much shrewdness and clairvoyance in that clear blue gaze.
"Thank you very much. A most illuminating speech, Professor Umbridge." he said to her, bowing. "As I was saying, Quidditch tryouts will be held..."
Hermione started whispering animatedly with Harry Potter and another red-haired boy, who bore enough resemblance to the twins to be held suspect as family. Both boys looked bored and glassy-eyes, but Hermione's eyes were sharp and still narrowed in concern. She glanced once in Percy's direction, and he smiled at her, doing his best Bumbling-Percy impression. Her gaze was guarded, and she held his gaze for a second or two longer before turning away to listen to Dumbledore again.
Very soon, Dumbledore fell silent and it was time to leave. Jason yawned and stretched before turning to look back at the Slytherin table. Piper caught his eye, waved and gratefully got up and made her way over to them as the rest of the student body started to stand up and leave the hall. Nico wasn't far behind her, and the scowl on his face was deeper still than before the Sorting.
Piper looked relieved as she joined her boyfriend, and nearly flung herself into his arms, to his surprise.
"Hey, what's up Pipes?" he mumbled, his voice muffled by her hair.
"Thank Zeus that's over." she muttered. "Most people in our house are like snotty, stuck-up versions of the Aphrodite kids, with Apollo's arrogance and none of his...nice-ness."
"They all have interesting political views, too." Nico muttered. "Did you know being a pure-blood - having at least three wizarding grandparents - practically makes you royalty here?"
"Well, all societies have a hierarchy." said a familiar voice. Percy turned around and smiled as Annabeth came up to him and hugged him. "It's probably just a way of classifying people, a bit like in our world."
Nico eyed her sceptically.
"Annabeth, the first question they asked me when I joined them was whether I was a pure-blood. The first question they asked Piper was whether her family was well-off, and if so, had they arranged a betrothal for her."
Piper groaned and buried her face in Jason's neck.
"Don't even talk about it. Most awkward moment in my life."
"What did you say?" Annabeth asked, curious despite the clear disgust in her expression.
"I told them betrothals were considered archaic in America, as indeed they are in most of the world." Nico supplied smoothly. "Piper was too busy blushing, so I - well..."
Jason hugged Piper with one arm and lightly punched Nico on the arm.
"Thanks, dude." he said. "I owe you one. No-one takes my Piper from me - unless she wants to."
Piper gave a tiny humourless laugh and shook her head.
"Usually I like it when you say things like that, but I'd rather we just forget all this."
"That's gonna be hard when politics and blood purity are all what Slytherins seem to talk about at dinner." Nico intoned darkly. The others glared at him. "What? It's true."
"It was probably just to impress the first-years and us newbies." Annabeth shrugged. "Honestly, how many teenagers do you know are truly interested in politics? According to Dumbledore, Slytherins are ambitious and clever - it makes sense they want to get a feel of your views before they try anything with you."
By then, Hazel, Frank and Leo had joined them as well. Piper raised her head from Jason's chest. She looked a little upset.
"I don't really understand why the Hat put me in Slytherin." she said. "I was being careful not to think too much, about - you know... But he just laughed a bit and told me that was quite a manipulative gift I had. But I'm not. Manipulative, I mean."
"He could sense your powers?" Hazel asked doubtfully. "I don't think he could sense mine."
"Piper's is more to do with House criteria, though." Annabeth pointed out, looking thoughtful. "The Hat probably recognised it as a tool to use people."
Piper looked even more upset.
"But I don't want to use people! I mean - I know I've used it in the past to do that, but it was never serious, it was just... And then we were on a quest-"
"McGonagall coming." Thalia warned sharply, and they fell silent just as the teacher reached them. She still looked peeved, but at least her ire wasn't directed at them (Percy saw her glare at the squat pink form waddling out of the hall through the staff door).
"Well," she said, her nostrils still flaring wide. "If you'll follow me. Professor Flitwick has informed me your dormitories are ready."
She led them out of the hall, through several corridors and up a few flights of stairs - all of which Percy had no doubt he would be incapable of finding again the next day - until they finally reached what looked like a dead end. However, Percy and his friends had seen enough of Hogwarts by now to know that much of it was not what it seemed, so they hung back a few steps behind here, slightly wary. McGonagall halted in front of the portrait at the end of the corridor. It depicted three women sewing together, and as McGonagall approached they looked up expectantly.
"Necessity." the professor enunciated clearly.
The three women nodded as one, and the portrait swung loose from the wall, revealing a hole in the wall. Ignoring the few gasps that came from the group of clustered demigods behind her, McGonagall lifted her skirts with the air of someone determined to retain their dignity, and stepped through the hole through the wall. She made it look so easy that the demigods rushed to follow her, but none of them - not even Hazel or Piper - managed to do so without stumbling or wobbling as they awkwardly climbed through.
They staggered inside the room and looked around with varying expressions of embarrassment, awe and pleasure. The room was small and cozy in spite of the stone walls, well-lit and furnished with many little armchairs. Two doors on either side of the room led off to what Percy assumed to be the dormitories. A couple of low tables stood amidst a few chairs, and a larger one stood in the corner. The room was brightly illuminated with the light of the fireplace - for there was of course a fireplace, Percy noticed, with a mixture of amusement and exasperation at wizards' determination to scream old-fashioned! at every opportunity.
"Professor Dumbledore mentioned he expects you to spend time with your respective housemates in your House common rooms, but as you can see, circumstances also call for slight rule-bending." McGonagall said briskly, going to stand near the fireplace to face them all.
"Usually the common rooms reflect the traits of the House, including House colours and motto, but in view of the...ah, mixed selection it was simpler to keep this room bare."
She eyed them beadily, the firelight flashing off her spectacles.
"No doubt you are all tired after today's trials. Toiletries are provided for now, though you are expected to purchase your own soon. Your uniforms will be cleaned anew for tomorrow. I wish you a good night, and welcome to Hogwarts." she gave them a small smile - the warmest one so far.
With that, she picked up her robes and clambered through the portrait hole again and closed the door behind her.
The demigods looked at each other. Most of them were grinning.
"Well." Thalia said. "I think this is better than what any of us were expecting."
"You can say that again." Hazel said, laughing slightly. "Private dormitories, private living quarters - even a room where we can say what we like without having to worry!"
"We're sure it's not bugged, then?" Frank said cautiously.
Hazel laughed, but Annabeth nodded gravely.
"We'll make sure it isn't. I don't know how yet, but we'll get rid of anything that could be spying on us."
"Oh, come on." Percy scoffed. "Is this the whole Dumbledore-suspects-us thing again? Annabeth, he's a teacher. He only cares what students do when they're in his class."
"According to Chiron, he's also the greatest wizard in this century." Annabeth said grimly. "I wouldn't put much past him. I'm not taking any chances."
Percy shook his head at such folly and put an arm around her.
"Come one," he said. "Let's check out the dorms."
They made their way to one of the doors and pushed it open, whereupon they had to walk up a small flight of stairs and they reached another door. Once opened it revealed a similarly-sized room to their common room, furnished with five four-poster beds, matching night-stands and another door that no doubt led to a bathroom.
"Nice." Percy declared, looking around.
The curtains around each of the beds were slightly drawn, so that they looked a little like tents on legs. Percy grinned and threw himself on one of them, crossing his arms behind his head and stretching lazily.
"I could get used to this." he announced.
Annabeth smiled, but then frowned and pushed off his feet from the coverlet.
"No shoes on the bed."
"Well, it's my bed, I'll do what I want on it." he replied, rather petulantly for a twice-saviour of Olympus.
"Well you won't be doing that on mine." she said. "Speaking of which, let's go see the girls' room. This one is for the boys, obviously, 'cause there are five beds."
0o0o0o0o0
After exploring the perfectly functional bathroom, which they were already planning on using as an easier way of contacting Chiron, they went back down to the common room, where the others were still talking.
Piper, Hazel and Thalia joined them as they crossed their small common room. The girls went up the stairs, wondering aloud if there would be any portraits inside, and how awkward - not to mention politically incorrect - it would be to constantly have someone watching them. Suddenly there was a cry of shock, and the four girls turned to see Percy stumbling back from the door way, a look of complete bewilderment on his face.
"Percy! Are you okay?" Annabeth called, clearly worried and hurtling down the stairs again.
"Yeah, 'm fine." he mumbled, rubbing his chest. "Woah. That was intense."
"What happened?" Jason asked, extending a hand to help his friend up. Percy grabbed it and pulled himself up, shaking his head.
"I don't really know... I was following the girls to see their dorm, then I got shocked. It felt like one of Thalia's zapping bolts, but without the pain."
"I can remedy that, if you like." Thalia offered, a slightly evil smirk on her lips.
"Not necessary." Percy mumbled. "I don't think boys are allowed in the girls' bedroom, though."
"Ah. That explains it." Hazel said, nodding sagely. "It's a bit like at Camp, isn't it? Not everyone can go in every cabin."
"Yeah, except we don't zap people if they attempt to go inside in complete ignorance of that rule." Percy muttered. He truly was vexed about the whole matter.
Annabeth just laughed and ruffled his hair. He swatted her hand away.
"Guess I really won't be putting my shoes on your bed, then." he said, giving her a small and slightly sad smile.
Thalia scoffed.
"I, for one, couldn't be happier that boys are forbidden to get in here." she said. "What would Lady Artemis say if she suspected there was a chance of mixed quarters?"
Annabeth couldn't be sure, but she suspected there was a faint trace of sarcasm in her friend's words, which surprised her a fair bit. Thalia had never shown an interest in boys, which had greatly facilitated her enrolment in Artemis' Hunters. But if that was still the case, then what was this about?...
"I'm dog-tired." Piper said, yawning to prove her point. "I'm going to bed. 'Night all."
She kissed Jason's cheek and made her way up the flight of stairs. Annabeth was just thinking she should soon do likewise when they all heard another exclamation, this time coming from the room Piper had just vanished into. A second later, the girl herself reappeared, nearly tumbling down the stairs in her haste. She caught herself just in time and straightened, slightly breathless.
"Look what I found." she breathed. Her cheeks were high in colour and her eyes sparkled with excitement as she held up what she had in her hand.
It was-
"...A stick." Leo said, in an unconventionally neutral tone. "You're excited about a stick?"
Piper threw her hands up in irritated impatience and waved the stick around.
"A wand." she said. "An actual wand. Oh, my Gods- Leo, this could be the answer to your questions about magic. And as for the rest of us, we don't have anything to worry about for tomorrow in class, do we?" she beamed and waved the wand again, looking like a little girl who'd discovered flying ponies were real if you happened to be a demigod.
"But... Where did you get it?" Annabeth blurted, trying not to sound jealous. She wasn't, not really, but now that she saw her friend holding an actual magic wand in her hand, she felt a rush of desire for one of her own.
Piper held out a piece of parchment (not paper, parchment. Annabeth suspected she would definitely take some time to get used to things here).
"This came with it." she said. "I think... I think it's from Hecate."
Annabeth took the slip of parchment and turned it the right way up. The elegant, spindly handwriting on it read: I see you have succeeded in the first part of your mission. Well done. I believe this may be useful for the near future. Your wand is made of rosewood, and the core is a single hair from the eldest veela the world has known. Use it well.
It wasn't signed, but at the bottom of the note the paper starkly showed a sigil of three flaming torches fanning out. It was from Hecate, all right.
"Now that," said Leo, who had been reading over her shoulder, "is seriously cool. What's a veela?"
"I have no idea." Piper said, examining every inch of her new wand. There were faint carvings on the thicker end of it, like deliberate groves to keep the grip steady. The wand was long, fine, and prettily carved, but rosewood was known for its toughness. No doubt it was stronger than it looked, much like Piper herself.
"I'm gonna see if I've got one!" Leo declared, sprinting up the stairs to the boys' dormitory.
Percy grimaced and called after him.
"Er... Leo, I don't think you'll find one, we've just been up there and there was no sign-"
He was interrupted by a whoop of delight, followed by the sounds of Leo running down the stairs, losing his balance and crashing in a tangled heap on the flagstones at the bottom. The demigods rushed to his side to see if he was all right, but before anyone could reach him Leo's thin arm rose above his crumpled form, triumphantly holding a wand of his own.
"I've got one!" he crowed. "And a piece of paper. Love a piece of paper; never know when they're useful. Well, I guess if it's the only thing left in the world then it's not too useful, unless it tells you how to get to another universe." he picked himself up and dusted off his combat trousers. "And paperwork, paperwork is fun too. The stuff you can make with it! Snowballs! Planes! Party hats! I swear, Nyssa made an admiral's hat once, with, like, twelve sheets of gas bills her Mom wasn't too happy ab-"
"Leo, did you knock your head when you fell down?" Hazel asked cautiously.
Leo shook his dark curls out of his eyes.
"Course not. Why would you think that?"
"Cause you're more excited about a piece of paper than a magic wand." Jason explained, as though he were explaining to an depressive Empousa that humans generally weren't considered dinner.
Leo grinned.
"Oh, yeah. Wand. Right, then." He unrolled the piece of paper he was holding and read it out loud. It was the same message overall, but his wand characteristics were- "ash, and the core is a phoenix's feather."
Leo looked up, and suddenly he looked like one of Santa's elves on a sugar high.
"This is so cool. It's ash. As in ashes, get it? 'Cause I can do fire?" He was so excited he was waving the paper around but not realizing that smoke trailed from it like an Aphrodite camper after Adonis.
"That's it." Annabeth declared. "I want one."
She pivoted and returned to the room Piper had come from, eagerly wanting to see if she too had been gifted with a similar tool. Usually, she would feel suspicious, even fearful that it was a trick, but this time something in her gut told her this was real, and incredibly important. She rushed to a random bed in the girls' dorm, knowing whichever one she chose Hecate would have anticipated it and placed her wand there accordingly.
On the pillow, as she had suspected, lay a long wand of fine wood, carefully displayed next to a folded sheet of paper that was identical in every respect to the ones Leo and Piper had read out. Annabeth reverently picked the wand up, tracing the slight groves in the wood, examining the delicate carvings on the grip. As she looked closer, she realised that the patterns carved into the handle were in fact owls. She beamed in delight, running her fingers over the symbol that meant so much to her and her mother. Owls were the symbol of intelligence, intuition, wisdom… knowledge. Annabeth found herself wondering if her mother would be proud of her if she knew she had been sorted into Ravenclaw, or if she would care at all. Mortal matters had never really been very important to Athena, Annabeth knew. Her mother usually preferred to stay away from matters that involved humans, unless it concerned some of her favourites, like Odysseus. Anyone who had read the Odyssey would know she couldn't keep out of the man's business for more than five minutes.
After thoroughly examining the wand – her very own wand – she unfolded the paper, wondering what kind of materials it was made of. She hoped she would know what they actually were; Piper's wand-core hadn't sounded at all familiar. Hair from a veela? No doubt veela were powerful magical beings, though what they looked like or did Annabeth had less than no clue.
The reasoning behind Leo's wand had been easy. Ash and a phoenix feather; it made sense. Phoenixes were symbols of fire and regeneration, just like Leo could control flames and he had come back unharmed (or, as Annabeth had suspected from the moment his eyes shifted as he told the story, re-vivified) after the whole Gaia-destruction affair.
The paper read: This wand is made of willow, with a core of unicorn hair. The finesse of its make renders it excellent for Charms, though power in the form of magic lies not in the wand but in the wielder. The wand chooses the wizard, Annabeth Chase, but it is only ever as good as the one who uses it. No doubt you will also discover that wands are not the only form of magic wizards use, especially in times of need. Nevertheless, use it well.
Annabeth traced the triple torch sigil at the bottom of the page, wondering if she was imagining things or if Hecate was trying to pass on some kind of message to her. Leo and Piper's slips of paper had been almost identical in content. Why had Hecate chosen hers to convey whatever vague message was written here?
Power lies not in the wand but in the wielder...
Well, that widened horizons, Annabeth thought wryly, but at least she knew one thing about wands now, as opposed to two minutes ago when she'd known precisely nothing about them.
Not the only form of magic wizards use…
That was more informative, though Annabeth was sick of trying to guess and speculate her way around the wizarding world. She made her mind up to visit the library as soon as possible. Surviving in this world would be impossible without doing some research first. Before they'd left Camp Half-Blood she had begged Chiron to let her do some reading on where they were going first, unable to bear the idea that they would be landed in a place where everything they knew - battle-skills, mythology, archery, machinery – would suddenly be of next to no use. But of course, not only had Chiron refused out of urgency, but the wizarding world was a subject of such secrecy that nothing written about it was within her reach to consult.
Annabeth swallowed. It still pressed down on her, like a heavy cloth constantly dragging her down underwater, that her only true weapon had been taken away from her. Her knowledge, which she'd spent her life accumulating, fine-tuning and updating, was suddenly useless. Annabeth supposed that was how coal miners had felt at the discovery of electricity, to see their whole life's work blown away in a few weeks and months – years, if they were lucky.
She looked down at her new wand. She couldn't wait to use it, to prove that she could make the best out of any situation. But there was also fear among the excitement. If she couldn't use it as well as she wanted, that would point out even more blatantly that they weren't from here. Or if on the contrary, her status as a demigod meant her magic was too strong, that would surely be a beacon for any monster around, like yelling I'm here and I'm tasty, come and eat me!
Annabeth thought of her dad, her step-brothers, the goddess who was her mother… She even thought of Hecate and her misty words on magic and power and free will. None of it made sense, that what was scared her. If wizards and demigods were meant to be separate, then what in Zeus' name what were they doing here? She missed her home already, her family, her books – she hadn't even been allowed to take those with her – and Annabeth suddenly felt like she was seven again. Lost, clueless, and getting scared at what fate had in store for her.
Wallowing in her gloomy thoughts despite the thrill of excitement at finding her wand a few minutes ago, it was a moment before Annabeth realised she had entered the woeful realm of self-pity again. She shook her head firmly. She was done worrying. Or, at least, she was done feeling sorry for herself because of the injustice of it all. The life of a demigod was never meant to be easy, and even in the hardest times of her life Annabeth had still had friends, people who cared for her, people she cared for in return. There were so many exciting aspects of her life many ordinary people would pay for. After all, who usually got to fight monsters, learn to sword-fight or fly on pegasi?
And this time, she wasn't alone. She had never been alone, not since the dopey black-haired twelve year old had turned up in her life and become her best friend, her boyfriend, her soul-mate.
Was it her imagination, or was her wand getting warmer to the touch?
The thin stick wood in her hand seemed to pulse with a new power, one that she realized had been there since she first touched it, but low enough so that it had only felt like a very hum in the back of her mind.
She examined her wand once more, drawing it to eye-level. The power she could feel nearly pulsing in her hand was almost alien to her, like something else was controlling it. But on the other hand, it felt right. Like she was doing this without knowing it but without particularly caring either. The wand felt so warm in her hand, so at home, it almost felt like an extension of her arm.
Curious, and feeling the excitement bubbling away in her stomach again, Annabeth rose the wand slightly higher than her head, cast a look around for anything to modify, spotted the plain white pillow and brought the wand down in a wide arc, focusing all her willpower on turning the stark white cotton a Ravenclaw blue.
The wand swished down, and she was delighted to see it leaving a trail of sparks in the air, as well as a faint fragrance of rain...
But the pillow stayed white.
Annabeth's arm returned limply to her side as she stared at her bedding in disappointment. She'd been sure, in that moment, that she would be able perform some sort of magic. Clearly, wizarding power came with much more than just wand waving and wishing for something to happen.
Curiously, something about that actually reassured Annabeth. Sure, it would be harder to learn, but when there was a method to something, it usually meant that steps and logic could be applied to it, like a formula. If learning to do magic was like learning to solve formulae by applying certain rules, she felt certain she could manage it. There was something endearingly familiar and consoling about maths and logic, she thought. Always the right answer, which always eventually made sense. Much more predictable than wishing for stuff, anyway. Flashes of memories from a long-forgotten film came back to her as she dwelled on the potential dangers of wishing something into existence, and she smiled faintly. The Genie in Aladdin could certainly tell you that wishes could be dangerous.
Yes, she decided, far better to learn the method properly, even if it meant long hours of study and a grumpy Percy.
Annabeth heard her name being called from downstairs. Apparently the other boys had found their wands too and wanted to compare.
She looked down at her wand again. The smell of rain was faint, but still there, like mist clinging to the shadows of trees at sunrise.
She grinned. This was gong to be one hell of an experience.
CHALLENGE (Warning: not for the faint-hearted): Two tasks for you, my loyal and most esteemed followers.
One: There were several references to various pop-culture works in all the chapters so far. Can anyone find the one concerning Doctor Who?
Two: Can anyone take an educated guess at one of the plot threads I have introduced and will be elaborating on shortly? If so, do you think they will have a major impact on Golden Trio events, and if yes, how?
REWARD: Anyone with a correct or worth-considering answer will be introduced as a character in this story. The more impressive the answer, the more major the character will be. Details of how this will happen will be sorted out via PM, as I have no doubt privacy is not only expected but desired, for both parties.
Once again, words cannot express my gratitude to you all for reading/favouriting/following/reviewing this story. My heart goes out to you all!