I do not own Harry Potter or Percy Jackson.

Chapter Seventeen: Sideways Plans

They ended up spending several hours in Black Manor while they waited for morning to come to Camp Half-Blood. Bianca spent most of it napping on Chrysa's lap while the elder demigod played with her godchildren.

Finally, shortly after lunch, Chrysa deemed it late enough to return to New York.

"It's one o'clock here, so it's eight in the morning in New York," she explained to a yawning Bianca, who was being mobbed by her newfound godbrothers. Lily was currently down for her nap.

Sirius took the opportunity to hug her.

"We'll miss you."

She laughed. "Dad, you'll see me again in less than two weeks, and I plan on staying here for all of break."

Sirius huffed. "Well, that's something at least. We don't see you nearly as often anymore."

Chrysa looked down guiltily. "You know I'm supposed to be with Had…" she glanced over towards Bianca and abruptly changed her words, "…him for the summer. And this year, with both Thalia and Annabeth living with me, since Annabeth's mortal family moved to California…"

"Hey, hey, Prongslet, I know you've been busy. I'm just saying, we're wizards. We're magical, you more so than most. It doesn't take much for you to come over here for a bit. This is Teddy's last year before Hogwarts. Come by a bit more, spend some time with him. Soon enough, he's going to be full-grown. You don't want to miss it."

"I remember," Chrysa whispered. "Nico's the same age as Teddy, and Bianca's two years older. I can't imagine them leaving me for boarding school. Which reminds me, I need to talk to them and see if they want to stay at Camp year-round, or if they'd rather live with me. I want them with me. They're my children, they'll be able to shadow-travel. Once they're used to it, I bet I can send them to school from the Underworld."

Sirius laughed.

"I bet you can. I thought you said it was difficult for most people though?"

"If they were normal…" she glanced back at Bianca and whispered, "children of Hades, then yes, it would be very difficult for them. But they're also my children, and even though I wasn't a goddess at the time, their souls recognize that they are the children of the shadow goddess. They will be stronger in shadow powers than any other children of the Underworld, even if they will be weaker than if they were full gods."

"Is that how your immortal daughter is? Melanie?"

"Melinoe," Chrysa corrected with a slight laugh. "I suppose so. I don't really know her. Hades created her by taking the fragments of my mostly-exploded-and-technically-deceased divine essence and combining it with his own. That's how the goddess of ghosts was created: the god of the Underworld made her out of fragments of her deceased mother. It was slightly shocking for her, my turning up again alive. She didn't really know how to react to me. I don't really know how to react to her either. We're polite enough, whenever we happen to meet, but she avoids me for the most part. And I haven't gone out of my way to seek her out."

"Why not? She's your daughter, isn't she?" Sirius asked.

Chrysa sighed.

"She is. But she's also a goddess. She grew up knowing her mother was a destroyed goddess, and she grew up in the time that her father was becoming the least-liked of the gods. Hades was also…not emotionally available, from what I understand, for a long time after I died. Persephone helped, but by then Melinoe was an adult. Her childhood was not happy. But now, suddenly she had a mother again, not just a stepmother, and her mother is not even a goddess, but instead an immortal demigod? She's not really sure what to do with me."

"And you're not really sure what to do with her," Sirius concluded.

"Exactly," Chrysa sighed. "Especially with the coming war…I know she'll be approached, if she hasn't been already.

Sirius wrapped an arm around her shoulders and squeezed her tightly.

"I don't like the idea of you being involved in another war," he said quietly.

Chrysa smiled sadly.

"Dad, I've been involved in this war since I decided to help Queen Rhea save her youngest child from Kronos. It's been more than nine thousand years."

Sirius startled slightly.

"I forget, sometimes, that you're so many years older than me, even though you're still the baby I held the day you were born."

Chrysa smiled sadly at her mortal father-figure.

"I'll always love you," she said softly.

He smiled back at her, equally sad.

"And I you."

Remus interrupted them.

"If you want to get back to Camp in time for breakfast, Amaranth, you need to leave now."

Chrysa sighed.

"I suppose so. Last round of hugs!" she called, and her three godchildren went from mobbing her daughter to mobbing her.

Chrysa laughed as she wrapped her arms around them tightly.

"I'll see you soon, Teddy, James, Albus. Give your sister lots of hugs for me when she wakes up."

"We will," James said, his voice muffled in the fabric of her jeans.

"Will you bring Bianca back with you, when you come?" Teddy asked hopefully. "And Nico?"

"As long as they want to come," Chrysa promised.

"I…I think I will," Bianca said quietly.

Teddy beamed at her.

"Are you ready, passerotta?" Chrysa asked.

"Is this going to make me sick again," Bianca asked uncertainly.

"Probably," Chrysa admitted. "You'll get used to it."

Bianca grimaced, but took Chrysa's outstretched hand.

With one final wave good-bye to her mortal family, Chrysa brought the shadows up around them and transported them to what-was-no-longer Thalia's pine tree.

Once Bianca had gotten over her nausea, she took one look at Peleus and the Golden Fleece hanging from the tree and demanded, "What is that?"

"Golden Fleece," Chrysa said promptly. "And a dragon. His name is Peleus. He's still a baby; only six months old."

Bianca eyed the dragon, which was as thick as her waist and twenty feet long.

"That's a baby?"

Chrysa hummed her agreement.

"Don't worry, he's very friendly to campers. Just don't try to touch the Fleece without Chiron or Mr. D present."

"Who are they?" Bianca asked as Chrysa led her down the hill and into the camp proper.

"Chiron is the camp activities director. Mr. D is the director for the next hundred years or so. He's a god. He made his father mad and got banished here for the foreseeable future."

"What is this place?" Bianca asked, eyes darting between the temple-like cabins, the open-air dining pavilion, and the lava-spewing climbing wall.

"This, passerotta, is Camp Half-Blood. It's the safest place on Earth for half-bloods like you and I," Chrysa explained. "There aren't too many people about at the moment; most of the campers just come during the summer, but there's a few year-rounders, along with your brother and the rescue team. There's only a dozen or so people here at the moment."

Bianca had perked up.

"Nico's here?"

Chrysa laughed.

"Of course, figlietta. Do you think that I would leave him alone if he were anywhere but the safest place on earth?"

Bianca shook her head.

"Where is he?" she asked, nearly frantic.

"Calm down, passerotta. We'll find him. He's probably still at breakfast. Everyone's probably at breakfast, honestly, so we'll probably make a bit of a scene when we come in."

Bianca hesitated.

"But it's the fastest way to see Nico?"

"It's the fastest way to see Nico," Chrysa confirmed.

Bianca squared her shoulders.

"Let's go then."

Chrysa smiled as she wrapped her arm around her daughter's shoulders and led her to the dining pavilion, giving a brief tour of camp along the way.

"Big House, arts & crafts, volleyball court. Strawberry fields, forge, armory, sword-fighting arena, pegasus stables, and monster-filled forest are off to the left. Canoe lake, lava climbing wall, and amphitheater to the right. Showers and toilets are here, cabins are there. Cabins are based on your immortal parent. You won't know that until your father claims you, which he won't be doing until after he and I have words, so until then you'll be in Hermes cabin. Hermes is the god of travelers, so his cabin hosts all the unclaimed. In the summer, it's a madhouse, but there probably aren't too many people there at the moment."

"Nico will be there?" Bianca asked.

"He'll be there," Chrysa confirmed. "I won't, I'll be in my father's cabin with my half-sister, but if you need me for anything – anything – you can come get me at any time."

"Which cabin's yours?" she asked.

"Big white one at the end. Cabin One," Chrysa replied. "Look, we're here."

She pulled her daughter over the crest of the hill and into the dining pavilion. Everyone seemed rather depressed.

"Good morning, campers and Hunters!" she said cheerfully. "Chiron, Dionysus. Good to see you again."

Before she could continue, Nico was on his feet and running to them from the Hermes table.

"Bianca!" he yelled, eyes watering.

Bianca met him halfway, wrapping her arms around him as tightly as his were wrapped around her. Chrysa didn't run, but she did move forward to join them, wrapping her arms around both of them, even though neither was much shorter than her. She knew that as much as she wanted to, she couldn't stay with her children all day. She had to meet with both Hades and her father at some point today. They had to know what she'd learned. The rest of the Olympian Council would be informed at the Winter Solstice, though she should probably warn Apollo and Leto about Artemis before then.

They only had a moment's peace in their family hug before they were interrupted.

"Chrysa, I see you've returned safely. I presume this is Bianca di Angelo?"

Chrysa closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She opened them and released her children from her embrace, straightening up and looking at Chiron.

"You would be correct. This is my daughter, Bianca di Angelo, and you've obviously met my son already."

Chiron looked confused. Dionysus looked bored, though she could tell he was actually paying close attention.

"May I ask how this is possible?"

Chrysa glanced around the open-air pavilion. Everyone was shamelessly eavesdropping.

"Later," she said. "It's a long story."

"Did you find Annabeth?" Percy asked, rising from the Poseidon table. Thalia rose as well.

"I know where she is, but I did not see her," Chrysa said. "I would not have left her if I could have saved her. I have information, but I cannot share it with you yet. There are others I must speak to first."

Chiron gestured toward the tables.

"Sit down. You must be hungry."

"We just had lunch, actually. Bianca will stay here. I have others I must speak to." She looked around the room, making eye contact with Thalia, Percy, Zoe, and Rhanis.

"I trust that your promise of protection extends to my daughter as well as my son?"

Zoe bowed her head.

"Of course, Lady Chrysocomê."

Rhanis, Thalia, and Percy nodded in agreement.

Chrysa bowed her head in thanks.

"You're leaving already?" Bianca asked in a small voice.

Chrysa smiled sadly at her daughter and laid one hand on her cheek and one on Nico's.

"I have to, my darlings. Your rescue, Bianca, while the main purpose of my trip, was not the only thing I accomplished. I must report to others. In addition, I need to go yell at your father. He was supposed to tell me when it was time to get you. I was not supposed to find out accidentally from a satyr."

"You know who their father is?" Chiron asked in surprise.

Chrysa gave him a dry look.

"They weren't simply delivered by the stork, you know. I'm no blind mortal. Of course I know who their father is. It's a bit difficult to disguise the fact that you're a god when you're sleeping with someone on a regular basis, especially when the someone in question is an immortal demigod."

Chiron winced at her rebuke, even as Dionysus snickered and Thalia, Percy, Nico, and Bianca made faces at the thoughts of her sex life.

"I trust you with my children, Chiron. Make sure that they are not harmed, or my father's wrath this past summer will pale in comparison to mine," she said ominously.

Chiron bowed his head in acquiescence.

Chrysa nodded once, hugged her children once more, then turned on a heel and Apparated away.

She didn't go far, only to her cabin, so that she could shadow-travel to the Underworld. She had a lover to yell at.

She arrived in the Underworld in her office. It was dark and spacious, the only illumination being green fire from torches mounted on the walls. They cast deep shadows all around the room, only deepening the blackness. The walls and floor were of black marble, though there was a large rug covering most of the floor, in a black-on-black map of Tartarus. The large desk that dominated the room was carved from ebony, with elaborate depictions of suffering souls carved into it. The office chair was the most modern thing in the room: it was a black leather chair that Chrysa had found online and bought, deeming it much more comfortable than her previous chair. Plus, this one had wheels, and she could spin around in it while she was thinking if she so chose.

There were a few files in her inbox. It had been three months since she had gone through her paperwork, and it would probably be three more before she actually went through it. There were always some papers that ended up with her over Persephone, simply because – despite her long absence – she still had more experience than Persephone as the Lady of the Underworld and the darker deities. However, if it was urgent, someone would have contacted her directly – Angelos served as the messenger deity for the darker deities, and was always willing to carry messages to Chrysa when she was outside the Underworld.

There was no time for that now, though. Chrysa had a conniving, secret-keeping lover to put in the dog house. Persephone would most likely help.

She glanced down at her outfit. Emerald skinny jeans and a black, flowy top wasn't the most intimidating of outfits, but she was probably scary enough without it.

The ancient Greeks may have given her title of Brimô to Persephone, but she was the original 'terrifying one.'

She left her office and stormed down the hallway to Hades' bedchamber. It was only five o'clock in the morning in California. And neither Hades nor Persephone was an early riser.

Chrysa moved quickly through the halls, passing through doors instead of waiting for the skeletal staff to open them. They shrank away from her as she proceeded on silent feet.

She paused outside the door to Hades' bedchamber. She took a deep breath, then slammed the door open.

Both figures on the bed startled out of their sleep, looking up at her with bleary eyes.

"Chrysa?" Persephone asked warily, even as Chrysa opened her mouth.

"AÏDÔNEUS NECRODEGMON, YOU ARE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE!" she yelled.

Persephone yawned and climbed out of the bed.

"Tell me what he did at breakfast," she offered sleepily as she grabbed her robe and wrapped it around herself. "I'm going to my chambers and going back to sleep."

Chrysa waited patiently for the half-asleep goddess to leave the room, before taking a deep breath and yelling, "HOW COULD YOU BE SO STUPID?!"

"Chrysa, love," Hades started, but she pointed angrily at him.

"You don't get to talk," she ordered. "After what you've done…if it weren't for the fact that your asshole of a father is trying to start a new war, I would tie you up and throw you into Tartarus. Better yet, I'd tell my trophós and dump you on her front porch and let her deal with you.

Hades still looked confused, but he shivered at the thought of being sent to the House of Nyx so that the primordial could 'deal with him'.

Chrysa glared at him.

"You haven't even figured out what you've done, have you?"

Hades winced.

"I…forgot our anniversary?"

Chrysa blinked.

"Well, if you're talking about the day that you first met Amaranth Potter, than yes, you did forget our anniversary, it was a week and a half ago. But that's not why I'm mad."

She was right beside his bed now. She leaned over him, her nose mere inches from his.

"You released our children from the Lotus Hotel and sent them off to boarding school WITHOUT TELLING ME!" she exclaimed, her voice starting off as a hiss and ending as a yell. "Bianca almost died, Hades! She was kidnapped by a manticore working for Kronos! It took me twenty-four hours to find her! If I'd been less than half an hour later, she would have been tortured by Atlas. Atlas! Our twelve-year-old daughter was almost tortured by the Kronos' chief enforcer! I rescued her from the dungeons of Mount Othrys! Mount Othrys! We were so close to losing her – to losing them both – and it could have all been prevented if you'd simply told me that they were free!"

Hades had shut his eyes in a grimace.

"I couldn't!"

"Why not?" Chrysa begged desperately. "They're my children!"

"Lachesis told me not to!" Hades exclaimed.

Chrysa froze. It was rare that one of the Fates stooped to tell the gods something now. Usually, warnings like that would be distributed through Apollo or one of his Oracles. For the Fates to personally tell Hades…

"Personally, or did she send a messenger?" Chrysa asked skeptically.

"She texted," Hades stated.

Chrysa blinked.

"Lachesis has a cell phone?"

"An iPhone 3GS," Hades confirmed with a nod. "Clotho is still stuck with the 3G. Atropos already has the iPhone 4."

"It hasn't even been announced yet," Chrysa said, bemused.

Hades shrugged.

"Past, present, future," he said. "But I got a text saying…actually, let me show you. You're going to have to see it to believe it."

He pulled his iPhone out of his nightstand and opened up his messages. Scrolling through, he found the one he was looking for and handed it to Chrysa.

The message read, 'dnt tel ur gf wen u rm ur kdz frm lh&c. nEdz 2 hpn dis wa. Its f8! 3 Lachesis.'

Chrysa stared at it for a long moment.

"I really don't know what to say to this," she finally said. "I barely know how to read this."

Hades sighed and rubbed at his face with one hand.

"I didn't either," he replied. "And so I spent the next two weeks trying to track her down before finally giving in and doing what she said. She came back after that. Turns out that she was on a cruise in the Caribbean."

"I can't imagine the Moirai on a cruise in the Caribbean," Chrysa said.

"It was just Lachesis, actually. Apparently, it was a seniors' singles' cruise," Hades deadpanned.

They stared at each other for a moment before they both burst out laughing.

When they'd calmed down, Chrysa fixed her gaze on Hades and said, "I'm still mad at you."

Hades sighed.

"I'm mad at me too. Can you explain everything now?"

Chrysa sighed and sat down on the bed.

"Get ready. After I tell you, I then need to go tell Zeus."

Hades made a face, but got out of bed to get dressed anyway.

Once he was up and moving, Chrysa started talking.

"Percy got an SOS from his satyr friend three days ago. Two days ago, I drove Percy, Annabeth, and Thalia up to Westover Academy in Maine to meet the satyr. I was supposed to distract the administration while they got information from the satyr and extracted the demigod. I didn't find out that there were two demigods until later. There was a manticore there trying to kidnap – yes, kidnap, not kill – the two demigods. Percy got himself capture and the manticore took all three of them to a cliff. Thalia, Annabeth, the satyr, and I pursued them there. We were all bundled rather heavily, it being winter in Maine. I didn't realize who the demigods were. The manticore ended up jumping off the cliff with Annabeth and the female demigod attached to him. It was only then that I realized that it was Nico and Bianca with us. Oh, and Artemis and her Hunters showed up to fight as well. I released Nico's memories and revealed that I was his mother to those gathered. Artemis and I conferred about some troubling things the monster had said. We then sent off the Hunters and campers with Apollo to get back to Camp Half-Blood. Artemis left to hunt down the monster the manticore spoke of. I went to find Bianca. I destroyed one of Kronos' bases. I found troubling information. I found Bianca in the dungeons of Mount Othrys. I overheard Luke Castellan speaking with Atlas. He's out. They've captured Artemis. I rescued Bianca. I was not very subtle. We need to talk to my father."

Hades grimaced, but didn't argue her point as he smoothed his hair out into something acceptable.

"I'll go tell Seph we're going out," he said.

"And that you're on the couch for the next week," she called after him. Hades groaned, but nodded in agreement.

"I'm going to tell Father. Meet me at the Clinton Street Baking Company in New York," Chrysa instructed before stepping into shadow.

She stepped out in an out-of-the-way hallway on Olympus.

"Ganymede!" she called, recognizing the blond cupbearer in the hall ahead of her.

He turned to face her, and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Lady Chrysocomê," he greeted with a shallow bow. Like Dionysus, Ganymede was too young to remember her as Leuke, and did not have the same respect for her the elder deities did.

"Where is my father?" she questioned. "I must speak with him."

"Zeus and Queen Hera are in their private dining hall," her father's lover reported. "I am to attend them now."

"Lead me there," Chrysa ordered. "I have news that my father must know."

"As you wish," the god replied, before resuming his walk.

The rest of their trip was silent, Ganymede easily guiding her through the unfamiliar halls of the palace on Mount Olympus. Though this palace and Hades' were quite similar on the outside, they had vastly different interiors, in both design and layout.

When Ganymede finally entered the double-doors that led to Zeus and Hera's private dining room, he announced, "Lady Chrysocomê is here, Your Majesties."

"Come in, daughter," Zeus called, not that it was necessary, as she was already halfway across the room.

Instead of exchanging pleasantries, she barely waited until the doors were closed to bluntly state, "Kronos is on the move. Mount Othrys is rising. Atlas is no longer under the sky. Artemis has been kidnapped. They plan to put her in Atlas' place, if they haven't already done so. Oh, and Kronos' army has the names and locations of every demigod above the age of ten in the United States – and some in Canada."

Zeus choked on his nectar. Hera dropped her goblet. Ganymede looked faint.

"How do you know this?" Zeus demanded as soon as he'd recovered his composure, rising from his chair.

"My daughter was kidnapped by a manticore working for Kronos," Chrysa replied. "I found her on Mount Othrys. I managed to overhear Atlas speaking with Luke Castellan to hear what they planned for Artemis and my daughter. As for the other information, during my search for Bianca, I came across one of the bases used by Kronos' forces. I cleared it out and managed to copy most of their files. They had a list, a list of every demigod and their location. They didn't have most of the younger ones, but they have most – if not all – of the demigods above the age of ten."

Zeus sunk back into his chair.

"We will need to bring this before the council on the Solstice," he said heavily.

"Indeed," Hera said, looking grave. "If Father has risen so much as to contrive Atlas' freedom…"

"He can't rise yet," Chrysa reminded firmly. "He doesn't have his heart."

"You've checked? You know it's secure?" Zeus asked.

"Yes," Chrysa said firmly. Not only was the heart hidden, it's hiding place was also enchanted. There was no way to remove it without her knowledge. "Hades is waiting for us at the Clinton Street Baking Company," she stated. "We have more planning to do."

Hera sighed and Zeus grimaced, but both stood up from the table, their outfits changing to something much more appropriate for December in New York.

"I'll tell Ganymede we're leaving," Hera told her husband. "That way you can get your pre-meeting quarrel with Hades out of the way before I get there."

Zeus grimaced again.

"Yes, dear."