Percy
Easter arrived and brought with it warmer weather. Percy now dared to venture outside without his cloak and in the wake of the Second Task, he found himself wandering the grounds more and more often. Within the castle's walls he was met with whispers and stares wherever he went. His classmates smiled as he passed but the expression never reached their eyes, full of awe and, some of them, fear. It was exhausting, and Percy found himself dreading the Third Task, for his first time in the Tournament afraid of what might happen.
He couldn't put it off forever, though; one sunny afternoon in Transfiguration, McGonagall asked the two Gryffindor champions to stay behind after the lesson. Across the classroom, Harry grimaced at him – they both knew what was coming.
"You two are to go down to the Quidditch pitch at eight 'o'clock, tonight," she told them as the rest of the class flooded outside for break, "Mr Bagman will be explaining the final task."
"I heard it's a treasure hunt," Hermione mused when they told her, "In which case, you could always ask Hagrid for a Niffler."
They were in the library, watching Ron and Hermione study for their end of year exams. Percy and Harry were excused for the Tournament and, after Nico melted his fourth cauldron in Potions, Dumbledore quickly made the executive decision to exclude the rest of the demigods as well.
"I wish I had Hazel's powers," Percy grumbled, thinking his friend would come in handy when searching for gold.
"I think your powers are terrifying enough on their own," pointed out Ron.
Annabeth looked up from where she was shuffling through Hermione's neat stacks of flashcards, "You'll find out tonight, anyway." She said, handing the witch a pink card crammed with writing on Summoning Charms, "Whatever it is, I'm sure you can handle it – even you, Seaweed Brain."
So, after dinner that night, Percy and Harry left the Great Hall and set off across the grounds. Golden light spilled over the darkening horizon and Hagrid's chimney smoked cheerfully in the distance. The flags on the Quidditch Pitch flapped in the breeze.
Percy had never watched Quidditch, but he knew from Harry that the game was played on broomsticks. He hoped the Task didn't involve flying, or he would have bigger things to worry about than Voldemort… Namely, his least favourite uncle blasting him out of the sky.
They were passing through a tunnel beneath the stands when Harry asked in a low whisper, "Are you nervous?"
Percy thought about it. "Yeah," he admitted, "I guess I am."
"Me too, I-" he stopped abruptly. The tunnel ended at the edge of a large field like a soccer stadium but where the pitch should be, dark lines criss-crossed the grass.
"Is it supposed to look like this?"
"No!" Harry hissed furiously, bending down to examine one of the low walls. His brow furrowed as he poked it with his wand, "They're hedges… Oh, no. It's-"
"A maze." Percy felt his heart sink, "We have to find our way through."
"Right you are, boys!" Bagman grinned, jogging over with Fleur, "And you won't just have to find your way through it - you'll have to fight, too! Erm, not literally," he added hastily, probably remembering Percy's experience with the dragon, "The maze will be home to any number of creatures and enchantments provided by your very own teachers!"
"Oh, joy," Harry muttered sarcastically, and Percy cracked up.
"Now, now, this is no laughing matter," Bagman said seriously, "You have from now until the 24th of June to prepare and may I advise you make the most of your time. This will be no children's maze at a muggle summer camp!"
Percy suppressed a grin. He had a feeling activities at Camp Half-Blood were a lot closer to the Triwizard maze than a mortal summer camp's.
"Harry, if I could have a word before you head back to the castle?" Bagman rubbed his hands together hopefully.
"Erm, okay," Harry agreed reluctantly. He turned to Percy, "You go on, I'll catch up."
"You sure?"
He nodded and so Percy turned and began trudging up the hill to the castle, alone. Night was falling quickly, now, and the Forest was a mass of black on the horizon. He sped up, eager to sit by the fire in the Gryffindor common room with Annabeth and ask her advice on the upcoming Task.
A shout punctured the evening's quiet, so brief Percy wondered if it was his imagination. He froze. Was it just a couple of kids messing around in the Forbidden Forest or someone in real danger? He had to check. Uncapping Riptide, he plunged into the shadow of the trees.
Branches tore at his face and legs as he raced toward the source of the sound. A flash of pale skin urged him onwards, into a clearing where a body lay crumpled on the ground.
"Hello?" He approached slowly, "Are you okay?"
The figure's hair seemed to glow in the darkness and as the face came into view, Percy's stomach plummeted.
"Will?"
Nico
"C'mon, it's this way," Will said, grabbing Nico's hand and pulling him deeper into the forest.
"What is?" he asked warily.
"I found something I want to show you!" Will's enthusiasm was infectious and so Nico allowed himself to be led away from the path.
The sun was setting rapidly, cloaking the trees in shadow, and Nico couldn't squash the feeling of unease in his stomach. He wasn't afraid of the dark but the monsters it hid, and he'd left his sword back at the castle…
"Will…" Let's go back, he wanted to say.
"There!" Will's face lit up. He squeezed Nico's hand, pointing out a nearby clearing where several horse-like creatures grazed in the twilight. Together, they crept closer.
"Thestrals," the name escaped his mouth, though he'd never seen them outside the Underworld before.
"Is that what they're called?" Will didn't flinch as he ran his hand down one Thestral's bony flank and, as always, Nico was amazed by his boyfriend's ability to find what most people would call frightening beautiful.
Like him, for example.
"Yeah, they hang out in the Underworld, mostly," A foal nudged his legs and Nico reached down to stroke it's muzzle, "They're the only animals that can stand me."
"That's not true! Mrs O'Leary likes you."
Nico rolled his eyes, "That's cos I feed her,"
Will chuckled, "You-"
But something moved behind him in the trees and Nico, cutting him off, grabbed his boyfriend's arm and pulled him around.
"What?"
"Will," Why hadn't he taken his sword from the dormitory? "Do you have your bow?"
"Where? In my pocket?" he joked but the edge in his voice said he knew something was up, "Besides, you know I'm terrible at shooting."
Nico gestured for him to be quiet, preparing to shadow-travel himself and Will back to the castle. Next moment a man staggered out from behind an oak tree, face grey with exhaustion, his robes ripped and bloody. Even more worrying was his behaviour, talking and gesticulating wildly to someone apparently only he could see.
"That's Mr Crouch," Will gasped, "He was a judge."
"Isn't he the one Sirius told us about? The one who sent his son to Azkaban?"
Will approached slowly, "Mr Crouch?" he stretched out his palms, "My name's Will Solace. I'm a healer."
Crouch continued to talk to a nearby tree, "And when you've done that, Weatherby, send an owl to Dumbledore confirming the number of Durmstrang students who will be attending the Tournament, Karkaroff just sent word there will be twelve…"
"Will-"
Will shushed him, "Mr Crouch? Are you alright?"
"Dumbledore-" he seized Will by his robes. Nico lunged forward but he didn't have his sword and, anyway, he couldn't exactly attack an old man for touching his boyfriend, "I need… see… Dumbledore."
"Mr Crouch," Will said calmly, "If you get up I can take you to him."
"I've done… terrible thing," each word seemed to cost him a great effort, "Must… see… Dumbledore. The Dark Lord... Voldemort..."
Will looked up at him, "Nico, go get Dumbledore. Shadow-travel to his office – you know where it is."
Nico stared at him, dumbfounded by the request, "What?"
"You heard me," said Will unhappily, "Go."
"What about you?"
"Go! I'll be fine."
Reluctantly, he stepped back and let the shadows swallow him. He felt his consciousness slipping away but he clung onto the image of Dumbledore's office and, slowly, the howling wind of the ether was replaced by the whirring noise of the headmaster's various instruments as he materialised inside the castle.
"Di Angelo," an unpleasantly familiar voice growled – Snape.
"Dumbledore-" he stumbled as a wall of exhaustion slammed into him, sliding to the floor beside the headmaster's desk.
The spots in his vision cleared and he found himself caught in the gaze of Dumbledore, Snape and a few dozen very disgruntled portraits. The two professors appeared to be in the middle of a meeting and the Potions' clearly wasn't happy about the interruption, glowering at him in contempt.
"Apparating into the headmaster's office?" a particularly stern-looking oil painting tutted disapprovingly, "disgraceful!"
"Nico, what is it?" Dumbledore asked urgently, bending down beside him.
"Crouch is here, from the Ministry – he's down in the forest, he wants to speak to you!"
"Headmaster," drawled Snape, "Clearly, this is nonsense."
"Hush, Severus," Dumbledore said gravely, "Nico, can you walk?"
"Yeah, I think so."
"Lead the way," he said promptly. Nico dragged himself to his feet and the headmaster swept after him, leaving Snape alone in the office, his face puckered in an ugly scowl.
"What did Mr Crouch say, Nico?" Dumbledore asked as they walked swiftly down the marble staircase.
"Said he's done something terrible... said he wants to warn you... he mentioned Voldemort - he's the one who killed Harry's parents, isn't he? What does it mean?"
"Something strange... something very strange indeed," said Dumbledore and he quickened his pace as they left the warmth of the Entrance Hall and strode out into the pitch darkness.
"He's acting weird," Nico hurried to stay beside him, "He keeps talking to someone but there's no-one there. Will's with him now but-"
"He is?" the headmaster said sharply, lengthening his strides so Nico had to jog to keep up.
"Dumbledore," a pit grew in his stomach, "Is Will in danger?"
The headmaster didn't reply but Nico, sensing the answer, doubled his pace, leading Dumbledore past the Beauxbatons carriage into the forest.
"Where are they?" asked Dumbledore as they emerged into the clearing where he'd last seen Will. The Thestrals had vanished but their hoof prints were visible in the damp earth – the same spot where they'd joked about Mrs O'Leary.
"They were here," Nico said, panic rising in his throat. It was definitely the right place... It hadn't been that far past the Beauxbatons carriage and there was evidence of the Thestrals... But where was Will?
"Will?" he shouted.
No one answered.
"Will?"
"Nico?" a voice came from the darkness – not the voice of Will, but someone else familiar.
"Lumos!" Dumbledore cried, striding toward the source of the sound.
The shape of Percy emerged, his face pale in the white-blue light of Dumbledore's wand. He was crouched over a body - Will's body. Nico's heart plummeted.
"Nico!" the son of Poseidon gasped, "He's alive. I don't know what happened, though. He was already unconscious when I got here."
He fell to his knees beside Percy, "Will? Will, can you hear me?"
"He's not waking up," Percy whispered, horrified.
Dumbledore reached down and gently lifted one of Will's eyelids, "Stunned," he whispered softly, half-moon glasses glittering in the wand light.
"What does that mean?" Nico hissed. Percy raised Riptide, staring warily at the surrounding trees.
Dumbledore raised his wand in the direction of the grounds and sent something silvery streaking off through the trees like a ghostly bird. Then he bent over Will again, pointed his wand at him, and muttered, "Rennervate!"
The son of Apollo stirred. Nico clutched his hand as he struggled to sit up but Dumbledore laid a hand on his shoulder and made him lie still.
"He attacked me!" he cried disbelievingly, "I closed my eyes to heal him and he attacked me!"
"Who attacked you, Will?" Percy asked, confused.
Nico gritted his teeth, "It was Crouch," he guessed, and then, "I'm going to kill him."
Guys - it's been way too long, I know. I hit a real wall writing this chapter and then I let things get on top of me for a while but I'm back and really enjoying writing again! Because I was so eager to get a new chapter out there may be a few more spelling/grammar issues than usual but I hope you enjoyed it regardless! It's been a long time coming! As always, I appreciate all your feedback so let me know what you think and remember to favourite/follow the story. This story will probably end around Christmas this year and I would love to get 100 follows by the end!
anonymous - glad you think so, I hope you continue to enjoy the story! :D
b31nobody - thanks for some more great feedback! The physical activity thing is something that's bugged me since I became a teenager and realised I actually had to exercise to stay healthy so I couldn't resist joking about it in this story! ;)
EvilPieceOfSh*t - Honestly, I don't know what I'm doing but I'm glad it comes across that way! ;) keep reading - I've got some cool stuff planed for this story that I hope you'll enjoy!
vapourtrailreads - I'm glad you're still enjoying the story, keep reading!
aRTsyisAwesome - Thank you for continuing to help me improve my writing! As always, your review really spurred me to think about the story and I'm currently thinking about subplot ideas to incorporate in the future (Any ideas?) I think the ending I currently have planned is bittersweet so hopefully you'll enjoy it! As for uploading soon, that didn't happen :p but I hope you like this chapter all the same!
Have a great week,
Lileaf, xoxo