A/N: Thank you for all of the wonderful support! I really appreciate it. I would also like some reviews on how you like the story so far. Am I making things interesting enough? Constructive criticism, please... not destructive. :)

Rising Storms

A Harry Potter and Percy Jackson crossover

Chapter 35:

Percy

Their ship slowly came up beside the lavish yacht-like ship, keeping out of immediate view. They snuck onto the Princess Andromeda, leaving Gleeson Hedge behind to watch over the crew and ship. Percy led the way through the ship as he wanted to protect his fellow questers. He kept his ears open as his eyes swept over their surroundings. Voices from the deck had the group ducking into a side room. After a few moments, where no one came down to the hull, Percy snuck to the entrance of the hull and took a glance around. Families of mortals were enjoying themselves on the deck, and Percy thought that was it... until he saw first one monster and then another making their way across the deck, talking.

"What's going on?" Clarisse asked. "It's like a weird movie out there."

Percy snorted out a laugh. "It does, doesn't it? I don't know what's going on. But, we need to figure it out soon, before we get killed by the monsters."

"How about we go up to the top of the yacht?" Annabeth asked.

Clarisse nodded. "Sounds like a good plan. That way, we can look down and see if we can find out what's going on."

Percy said, "I agree. Let's go with that. Thanks, Annabeth." They stepped out onto the deck and slowly started to make their way up to the top of the ship, when they came to a closed door.

Tyson stopped the others from walking past the door. He started to mimic the voices he heard.

"The tree's dying like you planned," said one voice.

"Not like I planned," Luke said. "Like 'he' planned. The crooked one will rise again and the gods will be defeated."

"What will happen when the gods are defeated?" came another recognized voice, but Percy couldn't place it. Clarisse's eyes widened as she realized who it was.

"Kronos will take over, and we will be rewarded generously." Luke's voice was filled with glee.

A monster said, "Someone's outside."

They only had a few seconds to react, but they were unable to leave before they were captured. Luke smirked at the Demigods and cyclops. "Well, well, well," Luke said. "If it isn't my dear cousin, Percy. I thought I killed you."

"Not like you could ever kill me," Percy said. He looked around at the other demigods and monsters. "You won't win, Luke. We'll stop you."

Clarisse looked at one of the demigods. "Chris," she said. "How could you join Luke? The gods won't be defeated, and if they were, Kronos wouldn't reward you for it. He's more likely to kill you."

Chris looked at Clarisse sadly. "I have to," he said. "Our parents don't even really love us or even claim us for years."

Clarisse shook her head. "I thought you liked me since we were dating." Her eyes started welling up with tears, something she hadn't let happen often.

"I do like you," Chris assured her. He reached towards her, but Clarisse stepped backwards. "Clarisse," he said, sadly. "Whoever my father is, he hasn't acknowledged me in all of my seventeen years."

"So you're giving up?" Clarisse asked.

"Chris," Percy asked. "If your dad was to claim you right now, would you still turn your back on him and your girlfriend?"

Chris looked between Percy and Clarisse worriedly, saying, "I... I don't know..." The symbol of Hermes appeared above Chris's head, making him look up and nearly weep. "Dad?"

Clarisse looked desperately at Chris. "Will you turn your back on me or come with us?"

Chris looked at Clarisse. Then he looked at Luke, his brother. Back to Clarisse and he said, "I choose you, Clarisse, as all I wanted was recognition. I'm sorry, so sorry."

"No!" Luke yelled out, stepping forward. He moved through the crowd.

Percy grabbed Chris and pulled him away from the angry swing of Luke's blade. He uncapped Riptide to fight his old friend, but Chris threw a smoke bomb at the room and got Percy and the others out. He led the way back to the deck as they all coughed from the smoke. "Thanks, Chris," Percy said, patting the other guy on the shoulder.

"Well, you pulled me away when Luke was going to kill me." Chris looked at Clarisse then. "I'm so sorry, Clarisse. I just wanted to be recognized by my dad."

"I understand," she said. "I'm not happy with you, but I understand."

Percy heard Luke and the monsters getting closer, and he said, "Time to go. Hold on."

"To what?" Clarisse asked.

Percy smirked and a wave came up to the side of the ship, grabbing them and pulling them over the side and down to the ship Poseidon lent them.

"PERCY!" Annabeth screamed. "HOW DARE YOU DO THIS!" When they landed gently, she reached out to hit him, but Tyson stopped her.

"No hitting my brother." He said.

"Let go of me, cyclops," Annabeth said with a scowl.

"Don't talk to him like that." Percy stepped up beside Tyson.

Clarisse looked up when she heard a sound. Luke had his people firing on them. "No fighting now, we're under attack. Let's get out of here."

Percy glanced up and agreed. They all separated to different parts of the ship, and Percy took a turn steering. The ship zoomed across the ocean, leaving the Princess Andromeda far behind. They slowed down slightly when they were far enough away and Percy was able to take in his surroundings a bit more. Looking at the water, he was surprised to see lines appear and numbers... He gasped when he realized he was seeing longitude and latitude! He felt a slight tugging sensation and a small dot appeared on the sea, moving in one direction before stopping and waiting... almost as if it wanted Percy to follow it. "Guys," Percy said. "I think we are being led to the Sea of Monsters."

"What?" Chris asked.

"How do you know that?" Clarisse asked, curious.

"I'm apparently seeing the latitude and longitude lines on the water, and a dot that is heading due South from here." He pointed off the Starboard, or right, side of the ship.

"Sounds like a power the son of Poseidon would have," Annabeth nodded.

Apparently, she got over the sudden ride by sea water. Not his finest moment, Percy supposed. He probably should have warned them a little more than just 'hold on'...

"Well, if your powers are leading you there, then let's go." Clarisse nodded at Percy, having seen the look on his face at Annabeth's previous actions. She watched him turn the wheel to follow the dot that only he could see and then she looked at Annabeth with disapproval. "He didn't mean to scare you with the water. He even warned us in a way. There was no reason for you to try and hit him."

Annabeth scowled. "But," she said.

"No buts. Percy got us away from there as quickly as he could, as safely as he could." Clarisse raised an eyebrow. "Unless you wanted to jump?" While Annabeth thought about that, Clarisse turned to explain their quest to Chris. "So, since Luke poisoned Thalia's tree, Percy and I decided to grab a prophecy to force a quest. We knew that Tantalus wouldn't approve of a quest to save the tree, so this was the only way. We were told to bring Annabeth, Tyson, and a satyr with us, so we did. Now we are heading to the Sea of Monsters to find the Golden Fleece, which is said to be able to heal anything."

Coach Hedge came up from below decks just as they saw a whirlpool on one side and cliffs on the other. They had reached the Sea of Monsters. As they approached the entrance to the Sea of Monsters, the atmosphere grew charged with anticipation. The area, known for its treacherous nature, lived up to its reputation. Two colossal monsters guarded the passage—a serpentine whirlpool lashing out with furious currents, and a creature lurking within the cliffs, shadows coiling around its hidden form.

Percy, standing at the helm, gripped Riptide as he surveyed the impending challenges. "Hold on, everyone. We're about to face the guardians of the Sea of Monsters." He was wary about these new monsters.

The ship pitched and rolled with the waves as the whirlpool roared, its dark waters swirling menacingly. From the cliffs, the monstrous silhouette emerged, its eyes glowing with an otherworldly light.

Tyson, his massive form towering over the others on the ship, cracked his knuckles. "Sea monsters not good. Smash, Percy?"

Percy nodded, his sea-green eyes flashing with determination. "Smash, Tyson. Clarisse, prepare to unleash the zombie Confederates if needed."

Clarisse, at the ready with the ancient soldiers courtesy of Ares, grinned wickedly. "These soldiers are itching for a fight."

As they neared the monsters, the ship trembled under the assault of the whirlpool. Coach Hedge bellowed, "Brace yourselves, demigods! We're diving in!"

The ship plunged into the churning waters, Percy tried manipulating the currents to navigate the perilous dance with the whirlpool. The ship twisted and turned in the relentless onslaught.

Meanwhile, the creature in the cliffs unfurled itself, revealing a grotesque form of claws and shadows. Annabeth, her gray eyes sharp, unsheathed her celestial bronze dagger. "We've got company."

Tyson charged at the cliff-dwelling monster as it lunged at the crew on the ship, his club raised high. Clarisse signaled the Confederates, who ran forward and yelled, swinging their swords at the creature.

Coach Hedge twirled his baseball bat, his eyes narrowing at the monster snatching confederate soldiers and throwing them. "Monster, meet the fury of Coach Gleeson Hedge!" He yelled, running forward to hit the monster.

"Watch out for Scylla," Clarisse cried out to her soldiers. She thrust her spear at one of Scylla's scaly heads.

On the other side of the ship, the whirlpool, Charybdis, was still trying to pull the ship into her mouth. What looked like shark fins before, turned out to be her teeth. As the waters of the sea flowed into her mouth, Percy saw sharks and other sea creatures getting sucked in. Those poor creatures. He tried harder to control the flow of Charybdis's water, feeling the tug in the pit of his stomach strengthen just a little bit more... just as Chris blasted a flaming cannon ball into her mouth.

Charybdis acted like she was about to throw the cannon ball back, but then there was an explosion underwater, and Charybdis's waters shuddered before calming completely.

Percy fell to his knees at the sudden release of pressure. He panted as he pulled his powers in. Looking up at the hand in front of his face, he grabbed it and was pulled up. "Where did you find the cannon, Chris?" he asked.

"Below deck," He said with a grin.

They turned to Scylla and saw that Clarisse and Tyson had that in hand. A poke to the eyes, and Scylla quickly retreated with a roar. Percy lightly used his powers to get them past the area before stopping the ship and gathering the rest of the people on the quest. "How is everyone?" Percy asked worriedly.

"A few cuts, but I'm okay," Clarisse said, nodding at Percy. "Tyson's good too." She looked over at the Cyclops that was taking care of Coach Hedge's right arm that had a cut on it where one of Scylla's teeth had scraped him.

"Coach is okay," Tyson said.

"If they come back, I'll kill them," the older satyr promised.

Percy smiled slightly. He turned to Annabeth, who had a small bruise on her head. "Are you okay?"

Annabeth nodded slightly. "I'm okay. Just slightly bruised from where I hit the deck when Charybdis got her bellyache."

Percy turned his gaze to Chris, who was sitting on a box, when the son of Hermes spoke, "I'm okay, too. No cuts or bruises. Just a little out of breath." He grinned.

"Good," Percy said, relaxing. He looked around. "Come on. We need to keep going."

One of the Confederates went to the wheel and started the ship's forward movement. As they sailed, they discussed the quest and how things had been so far. They couldn't believe the struggle they had to go through to get the Golden Fleece. As they were talking, a dove flew over to the mast and dropped some leaves.

"Land is nearby," Annabeth said, looking at the bird as it flew off.

"But we didn't send a bird out to check," Clarisse said, shaking her head. "It's most likely a trap."

"Definitely a trap," Chris and Percy chorused, looking at each other and laughing.

"What's the plan?"

"How about Gleeson and Tyson wait below deck while we check it out?" Clarisse asked. "That way, we don't immediately start a fight."

Percy thought about it. "That sounds good." He nodded, turning to his brother and the satyr. "Please wait below. If we need help, we'll holler."

Tyson nodded, walking past Percy with a "Be careful, brother." Coach Hedge grumbled, but followed.

They came upon a harbor, where a woman was holding a clipboard. "Welcome," she said with a bright smile. "Is this your first time with us?"

"Yes," said Annabeth, looking confused.

"First-time-at-spa," the woman said, writing it down.

Clarisse scowled. This didn't seem like it was genuine. What kind of spa was in the middle of the Sea of Monsters? Her eyes widened. A Monster spa. She whispered her suspicions to Percy and Chris as they were led onto the island. "This is a monster spa. It has to be, since we're still in the Sea of Monsters." She looked around. "That's from WW2, and that looks like a pirate ship, and that's a news helicopter."

Percy looked around as well, feeling the magic of the land trying to grab hold of him, but focusing on the ships around him. "You're right."

The woman led them through the spa, past all of the female guests and animals, and into the main area of the spa. There was another woman sitting at a loom. She was a beautiful woman, but Clarisse gasped when the woman turned to look at them. "Hello," said the woman. "My name is C.C."

"You're Circe," said Clarisse. "I recognize your description from the stories my dad told me."

Circe frowned at Clarisse. "Your father is Ares, yes. I can see the family resemblance." She pointed to the cage in the room. "Your half-brother is in there. Nasty pirate."

Clarisse looked over at the cage and saw Guinea pigs... "You turned Blackbeard into a Guinea pig?!" She was mad, and turned back to Circe.

Percy had a crazy idea to get out of there, and he whispered it to Chris, who seemed a little uneasy about it but nodded his agreement.

"Of course, dear," Circe said. "Hylla, please take these two ladies to be beautified."

Percy snatched Hylla when she got close, while Chris grabbed the girl that had stood next to Hylla, and said, "Sorry, Circe, but we're not staying. You will let us leave, or these two girls will be hurt. You wouldn't want that, would you?"

"Percy, what are you doing?" Annabeth asked, shocked.

Clarisse looked between the two boys and their captives, and touched Annabeth's arm. "Let's just follow them," she said. She glanced back at the cage with the guinea pigs. There was nothing she could do for her brother.

The girl in Chris's arms cried out to Hylla as he stepped towards the exit. Hylla's eyes were wide in fear as she looked past Percy at her sister. "Don't worry, Reyna, we'll be okay as long as we're together."

Percy kept his eyes on Circe as he spoke to Annabeth and Clarisse, "You go next." Clarisse nodded and ushered Annabeth out of the room. Percy stepped backwards, pulling Hylla with him. Once he was out of the spa, he turned to look at Clarisse, noticing the glare that Annabeth was giving him. "Clarisse, take Annabeth and go to your brother's ship. He won't need it, but we might. Chris and I will take the girls to our ship. Follow behind us away from here."

They split up, and Percy and Chris made their way back to the ship with their captives and boarded. Percy had the ship move away from the dock and they met up with Clarisse's ship as cannonballs from other ships came their way. Percy was surprised when each cannon ball hit the water and kept coming until it should have hit the side of the ship.

His confusion must have shown, because Chris laughed. "There's a huge chunk of the ship missing from the right side, and a small portion missing from the bottom. I guess your dad made sure that the ship would stay afloat."

Percy nodded. "That makes sense." He led the way away from Circe's Island, and finally let Hylla go. "Stop," he said when she was about to hit him. "We only kidnapped you so that we could get away, and it seemed like I had to get you two away from there. It's strange, but I just had a feeling that you two would be important elsewhere." Percy shrugged at their bewildered expressions. Chris let Reyna go and she glared at him.

Percy motioned for Clarisse to come alongside them, and he called for Tyson and Coach Hedge. He turned to the sisters. "We'll let you use this ship to get somewhere ship should get you wherever you want to go that's safe, and then it'll sink back to the ocean. Please don't go back to Circe, unless you want the gods to punish you when they punish her." He noticed Chris coming back to the deck with their bags. "Oh, thanks, Chris. I didn't even see you head in."

Chris smiled. "Well, we can't leave them behind." He tossed Percy's bag to him, handed Tyson and Coach their bags, and called up to Clarisse, "Please lower a ladder or rope." He put Clarisse's and Annabeth's bags over his shoulders.

"Come on, Jackson," Clarisse called.

A rope was thrown down to them from the taller ship, and Chris was the first one up the side of the ship. Coach Hedge was next, and then Tyson. Percy looked at the two girls. "I'm sorry that I had to treat you two so badly, but I hope you can find a new home soon. Good luck."

"Thank you, Percy Jackson," said Hylla, holding onto her sister.

Percy nodded to them and then climbed the rope to the Pirate ship. It was time to go.

"The Confederates left to go back," Clarisse told him when he was aboard.

"Oh, well, at least they got us through until here." Percy smiled.

The ship sailed further into the Sea of Monsters, bringing Percy, Clarisse, Annabeth, Tyson, Coach Hedge, and Chris closer to their destination—the island where the Golden Fleece awaited. As they approached the island, a dense fog enveloped the ship, and the air crackled with tension.

Percy, his grip tight on Riptide, scanned the misty surroundings.

"Keep your guard up, everyone. Polyphemus is no pushover," Clarisse said, adjusting her grip on her spear.

"Polyphemus?" Percy asked.

"A cyclops," Annabeth answered, trying not to glare at Tyson.

The ship docked at the island's shore, hidden by the fog. The demigods disembarked, their eyes darting warily in search of the Cyclops. In the distance, the towering form of Polyphemus emerged, a single eye glaring menacingly.

Clarisse brandished her spear. "Time to give that Cyclops a taste of demigod wrath."

Tyson clenched his fists, fury burning in his eye. "Polyphemus is a bad cyclops."

As they advanced, Polyphemus roared, his massive club swinging toward the intruders. Coach Hedge, never one to shy away from a fight, charged forward, his baseball bat ready. "You're in for a lesson, Cyclops!"

The battle unfolded with a cacophony of clashes. Percy engaged Polyphemus, dodging the swings of his club and striking with Riptide. Clarisse, Tyson, and Coach Hedge fought alongside him, each contributing to the coordinated effort.

Grover slipped out of the cave on the island, thankful to see his friends. He hadn't been sure that they would come to find him. He waited, leaning against the outside of the cave and trying to catch his breath. He rubbed his ribs.

Meanwhile, Annabeth and Chris snuck through the fog, making their way toward the towering pine tree where the Golden Fleece shimmered in its branches. The tree, with its protective carnivore sheep, was a formidable challenge.

Annabeth whispered to Chris, "We need to get that fleece and save Grover. Stay close, and be ready."

The duo reached the base of the tree, where the fleece hung just out of reach. Annabeth, utilizing her cunning, devised a plan to distract the sheep. The sheep looked like normal sheep, but she could see pieces of meat and blood around their mouths. She shuddered. Chris, his dagger at the ready, stood guard.

Back in the fray, Percy and his companions continued to battle Polyphemus, exploiting every opportunity to weaken the Cyclops. The clash of weapons echoed across the island, a symphony of demigod resilience against the Cyclops' brute strength.

Annabeth, with a swift move, distracted the sheep by gaining their attention and running towards the cliff, allowing Chris to snatch the Golden Fleece from the tree. Annabeth dove behind a rock, hearing the sheep scream as they fell off the cliff.

Polyphemus, seeing the sheep fall to their death, roared in frustration. Percy seized the moment, delivering a blow with Riptide. The Cyclops stumbled, and Tyson, with a mighty swing of his club, sent Polyphemus crashing to the ground.

The battle temporarily won, Percy approached Annabeth and Chris as they came over the bridge, the Golden Fleece draped over Chris's arm. The magic of the fleece radiated a healing aura. Percy sighed happily, knowing that they could now save Thalia's tree.

"Percy!" Grover called out.

Percy turned around. "Grover? What are you doing here?"

The young satyr sighed before wincing. "I was searching for Pan, but found myself here. It was the fleece. It lures satyrs here for Polyphemus to eat."

"What happened to your ribs," Annabeth asked.

Grover shook his head. "I've been hiding from him for about a week, but yesterday, he threw a fit and threw a chair. It hit a pile of junk and the pile collapsed on top of me. I'm okay, though... just bruised." He looked at Annabeth. "You didn't tell Percy that I was missing?"

"No. It never came up." She shrugged

"You could have brought it up," Percy said, upset at the fact that his best friend had been trapped for a while with a satyr-eating cyclops... and Annabeth hadn't bothered to let him know. He turned his back on her. "I'm glad you're safe, now, Grover."

"I am too," Grover replied, grinning.

"Let's go!" Clarisse cried out. "We don't want to be here when he wakes up."

They made their way down to the pirate ship and took off. They only knew when Polyphemus woke, when huge rocks started falling through the air... missing the ship. "Well," Percy said, looking back. "At least he isn't able to see much at all. Nice hit to the eye, Tyson."

Tyson grinned. "Thanks, brother."

Sailing safely out of the Sea of Monsters, they were shocked to see Florida in the distance. "Florida?" Percy asked, confused. "Huh, well, that's not that far from camp... sea-wise." He turned the ship North, and noticed that Luke's ship was at a port in Florida. He was thankful that they still had their own ship and could avoid Luke.

"The Sea of Monsters always lets out near Florida," Annabeth said, watching Luke's ship.

Percy put on a bit of speed, trying to get home just a little quicker. He hoped that Luke didn't notice them. They sailed down the coastline, looking forward to seeing if the fleece would heal Thalia's tree. The next few hours were full of anticipation as they got closer and closer to their destination. Percy steered the ship towards the shore, and through the hidden portal that only half-bloods could find... which connected the sea to the lake at camp. The camp came into view and Percy docked the ship. Mr. D and Tantalus were watching from the top of the hill, and Percy and Clarisse led the way up to them.

"I see you found a wayward demigod," Mr. D said.

"He was lost," Percy said, shrugging. "We found him and decided to take him along with us until our quest was over."

Mr. D nodded warily. "So I see. Do you have the fleece?"

Clarisse pulled the fleece out of her bag, where it was protected, and she held one half to Percy. She smirked when he looked confused. "We led the quest together, so we put the fleece on the tree together." Percy smiled and they lay the Golden Fleece on the lowest branch of Thalia's tree.

The whole camp celebrated that night around the campfire, and Percy threw a piece of paper into the fire, while saying, "For Zeus."

"What did you just send him?" Clarisse asked, raising an eyebrow.

Percy smiled. "I just wrote down that Luke is the one who poisoned Thalia's tree, not Chiron, and then I wrote about Circe and her actions."

She smiled in response. "Nice."

"Percy! Clarisse!" They turned to see Annabeth running to them. "Something's happening with Thalia's tree!"

Percy and Clarisse immediately got up and ran after Annabeth to the pine tree. Percy skid to a stop when he saw what had happened. There was a girl lying amongst the roots of the tree, and Percy slowly stepped closer. The girl's eyes opened when he stood over her. "Hey, it's okay. You're safe." He reached down. "What's your name?"

She placed her hand in his and was helped into a standing position. The girl looked into his sea-green eyes. "I'm Thalia Grace."