Hey guys, Butterlover328 here with the FULL Chapter 14!! I didn't think I would've been able to get this full chapter out to you guys, and I would have to break it into parts, but that is not the case!! However, this is the last chapter you have before you are caught up, which means that there will be long breaks between each new chapter now. I will write when I can, and I will try to get Chapter 15 out before the end of Summer, but that's unlikely. Anyways, you don't want to read an Author's note, so I hope you enjoy the chapter!! Bye!!
~Butterlover328
Needless to say, the next morning, after a weird dream that he could barely remember about a girl ranting about walls and asking him weird questions, Percy wasn't surprised to wake up to see 150 points taken from Gryffindor, glares sent from the rest of the Gryffindors to his brother, Neville, and Weasley, (who had gone back to sitting with Thomas and Finnegan after Percy had gotten mad at him for revealing himself and Hermione had given him a lecture on being polite and respectful to other people as well as good table manners) and Thomas and Finnegan practically shaking in their boots every time Percy made eye contact with them. (He admitted to himself that he felt guilty every time they did that, and promised to himself that he would apologize to them soon.)
Harry had explained to Percy, Draco, and Hermione what had happened after they were caught as Neville sunk lower and lower under the table to avoid the glares directed at him and Harry by Gryffindor, who now were in last place in the competition. Apparently, Filch had taken them to McGonagall, who had been furious that the three of them had "played a prank" on someone, who had given her an anonymous tip about a dragon in Hogwarts. She hadn't given them a chance to explain before taking the ridiculous amount of points and giving them detention.
Harry had honestly expected his friends to hate him and leave him like the rest of the house did, but to his surprise after an admonishing from Hermione and a brotherly nudge and speech from Percy, he found himself in a better mood than he had been in all day, his faith in his friends restored. Neville had stopped lowering himself as well as Percy gave him words of encouragement as well, reminding him that he was part of the group for a reason and they wouldn't leave them. Percy's words had pushed back both of the boys' insecurities and when he finished, a small burst of applause erupted from around them. The three Gryffindor boys jumped in surprise, not expecting an audience, and Hermione and Draco just smirked as their friends took in the large group of students that had also been drawn into Percy's speech. Percy's cheeks became pink at the attention, and flushed into a deep red when the Weasley Twins lifted him up onto their shoulders, however an irate McGonagall scolded them as soon as they started parading him around the Great Hall, threatening them with detention if they didn't put him down. The twins then made a game out of dodging the teachers and spells sent at them as they ran through the halls. When they finally put him down, they were laughing so hard that the twin not holding him was in stitches, pacing back and forth to catch his breath. Percy couldn't see him from the angle he was facing, but the twin holding him walked forward into a small living room and set him down, mirth and mischief alight in his eyes. Percy looked around and saw that while it looked a lot like the Gryffindor common room, there were no portraits and the only furniture that was in the room were two small sofas and a small table with chocolate chip cookies on it.
"Geez guys, now you're making me walk?? You two are such gentlemen." Percy said sarcastically. The twins just smirked and gave him a quick bow.
"Of course we are-"
"Fine gentlemen. How-"
"Could you assume-"
"Anything else??" They replied. Percy rolled his eyes and looked around, not recognizing where they were.
"Where are we, exactly?? I've never seen this room before."
"A special place-"
"A secret place-"
"Where no one will-"
"Find us unless we want them to."
"You two can stop with the twin-speak. You didn't just practically kidnap me out of the Great Hall for no reason. I know you want to confront me with something."
"And where's-"
"The fun-"
"In stopping??"
"I know about the twin bond, so you two can either speak at the same time because you can share thoughts or only one of you can talk for the both of you. I won't answer unless you do." Percy crossed his arms and leaned his shoulder against a wall nonchalantly, his face impassive.
"Fine." One of the twins spoke after an exchange of thoughts.
"We'll speak in full sentences one at a time." The other said.
"First off, how do you know about the twin bond??" The first questioned.
"Well, Fred, you two are smart. Haven't you figured it out already??" Percy shifted, crossing his right leg over his left, still leaning against the wall.
"How do you know I'm Fred??" The speaker asked.
"Your nose and ears are slightly bigger than George's. Not so much that it's noticeable at a glance, but enough to tell a difference if you're looking."
"Damn, you still have a bit of that Shrinking Solution, Forge??" Fred asked.
"Afraid not, Gred. We could always steal a sample from Snape's stock." George answered.
"I wouldn't do that. He might have a ward up to alert him of intruders. Also, you realize you just cursed in front of a wee little firstie, right??" Percy piped up.
"Eh, you're in a boarding school full of teenagers. Pretty sure it's not the first, or the last time you'll hear someone curse." George said, mimicking Percy's position on the opposite wall.
"You got that right." Percy mumbled under his breath, hiding a shudder.
"But we're not here to talk to you about the 'dangers' of cursing in front of the youth," Fred said, getting back on topic. "We've been watching the firsties-"
"Trying to figure out who would be easy to prank and who wouldn't, along with who would make a good partner in crime and who would rat us out-" George interrupted.
"And we've noticed some things. Specifically about you and Harry." Fred's face was alight with a cunning smile that made Percy wonder why the older boys weren't in Slytherin.
"How long were you going to keep it a secret that you were twins??" George finally cut to the chase.
"Hopefully for as long as possible. As I'm pretty sure you've noticed however, the walls have ears and the Headbastard already knows." Percy replied, figuring that they could keep a secret. They had to if they wanted to pull off a prank without being found out. There were some that they did that the teachers still hadn't found out who had done it, since there were other pranksters in the school, especially in the middle Slytherin years. The Ravenclaws even had a couple, using their knowledge of spells and spell creation to make memorable and creative pranks. However, the reason for the twins' notoriety is the fact that they were the only pranksters capable of pranking Dumbledore. Percy had heard stories about it, but unfortunately wasn't at Hogwarts at the time to see it.
"Hey, another nickname for the book!! Write it down Forge!!" Fred pulled a small muggle notebook out of nowhere as well as a pen, and wrote down the name before the items seemed to disappear.
"I'm guessing you don't like him either??" Percy asked, silently wondering why they had a muggle notebook and pen and where they came from.
"Nope!!" The twins chorused.
"We caught him last summer at our house talking to Ron and Ginny." Fred said.
"When he left the two started talking about how they'd be the best friend or wife of Harry Potter." George rolled his eyes at the statement.
"It ended up being more annoying than Prefect Percy."
"Since then, we've been planning another prank on Dumblebee, even bigger than the last one."
"No one messes with our family than us."
"Wait, so Dumblebore caused Weasley, er- Ron, to act so annoying??" Percy asked.
"Not really. He was always annoying, especially about the Cannons, but he got really annoying when it came to Harry after that visit."
"I'll have to tell Harry about that." Percy thought aloud.
"So why don't you like our 'esteemed headmaster'??" George inquired.
Percy's eyes darkened. "He was the one who separated Harry and I the night our parents died and Voldemort attacked us."
"What?!?! That could've killed your twin bond!!" The third years exploded.
"That was probably his intention. He wanted a puppet to control, and thought that separating us would leave Harry weak. My mom kept the letter the control freak left with me and showed it to me before I came to Hogwarts. I mean, why would someone leave a one year old on the front porch of a house in November?? He was either being stupid, or he was trying to kill us, and frankly I think it's the last one." By now, Percy had gotten worked up, and his ADHD was forcing him to move around, so he started pacing the room like a caged animal.
"Don't worry Percy, we won't let anyone harm you. Not even Dumbledore." George said vehemently.
"You can count on us!!" Fred replied, looking absolutely ridiculous by saluting Percy, George doing the same.
"It's not me that you should worry about, it's Harry." Percy sat down on one of the couches and picked up a cookie. "I still don't know how he is so innocent and naive with how the Dursleys treated him. Merlin knows I'm not." He murmured, unaware the twins heard him. They exchanged glances and quickly shifted their attention back at Percy, who chose at that moment to look at the twins as well.
"I want to protect him. He's my little brother, you know?? It may only be by a few minutes, but I still feel that desire to protect him from all the evil in the world, especially Voldemort. I want to protect that innocence in him, his curiosity and his desire to see the good in everybody. It's what makes him special." Percy continued, a determined and mature gleam in his eyes. "And I'll do anything and everything to make sure he is happy and safe, even if it means I won't be." The younger boy thought for a moment, and ducked his head. When he lifted his head up once again he grinned, his serious mood disappearing in the blink of an eye.
"So... when can I leave?? In case you hadn't noticed, we're going to be late to class." He said.
"Never fear Percy!! The Amazing Gred and Forge will save you from the horrors of mad McGonagall!!" The twins picked Percy up once again and ran, leaving a trail of laughter down the halls.
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"So where did you go with the Weasley Twins earlier today, Percy??" Draco asked as the group of first years took a break from studying.
"You mean carted off like a sack of meat." Hermione snorted, keeping an ear in the conversation while reading a passage from Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them for the Defense Against the Dark Arts exam.
"They just wanted to clarify something with me." Percy said, tapping his fingers on the table to the tune of the song stuck in his head.
That sentence made Hermione tear her eyes from her book. "Please tell me you did not pull a prank on Weasley."
"Nope. But thanks for the idea!!" Percy grinned mischievously, which in turn made Hermione groan and turn back to her reading.
"I still can't believe the Twins literally carried you out of the Great Hall earlier today, AND they carried you to McGonagall's class right before class started." Harry commented.
"Aww, don't you worry Harry-"
"If you want a ride we could give one to you."
Percy turned to grin at the Weasley Twins, who had pulled up chairs and sat in them backwards.
"Hey Fred, hey George." He said.
"Hey Percy, hi Harry." The twins chorused.
"What are you two doing here??" Neville asked, slowly moving out of the twins' reach.
"Well we were walking into the library-"
"When we saw our favorite firsties-"
"And decided to pop in-"
"Say hi-"
"And ask what you were doing."
"Studying for the exams. Would you like to join us??" Hermione asked, gesturing to the books on the table. The Weasley Twins took one look at the highly-stacked pile and shook their heads, speaking as fast as they could while still sounding coherent.
"Nah, not really-"
"Wouldn't want to anger Pince, you know-"
"Plus we're accident prone."
"Very accident prone."
"So we apologize sincerely-"
"Because we must decline-"
"Your generous offer."
Hermione huffed at the Weasley Twins while Neville looked cross-eyed from darting his head back and forth as the Third Years spoke like he was watching a muggle tennis match.
"Anyways," Harry spoke slightly slower than normal, not used to the Weasley Twins' speech pattern. "McGonagall gave me a note after her class today. Neville and I have our detention tonight at 11."
"11?? But that's way after curfew!! Why would your detention be after curfew if that's why you have the detention in the first place??" Hermione spoke, aghast at the news. Draco smirked as the Gryffindors all looked at Hermione as if they'd never seen her before.
"I finally broke that habit of hers to always trust authority figures. While it comes in handy sometimes, it got to be annoying." He said.
"So now Hermione only trusts authority figures 99.9% of the time. OW!! Hermione!!" Percy exclaimed as the Ravenclaw smacked his arm with her book.
"Serves you right, prat." She sniffed, mocking a pretentious air as the others laughed.
"Wow, never knew you had a sense of humor, 'Mione." Percy smirked as he dodged another swipe from her book.
"Of course she does-" The twins piped up, not wanting to be ignored.
"If she didn't, she'd be like Percy-"
"And no one wants to be like Percy."
"Our brother of course, not you Percy." George said, clarifying it for the first years.
"We may as well call him Percival while you're here-"
"Or else this will get bloody confusing."
"Maybe we should just call him Prefect Percy??"
"Indeed brother, we should."
"But we may not, because we like chaos."
"Not the bad kind of chaos, of course-"
"But the good kind."
"Hey guys?? Maybe we should get back to studying. We don't want Madam Pince to get mad at us and kick us out." Neville interrupted nervously, being the poor soul sitting next to the Weasley Twins. He silently prayed to whoever was out there watching that he wouldn't end up pranked because of this.
"You're quite right Neville. I still need to review the 23rd Goblin Rebellion in 1853. Thank you." Hermione smiled at him.
"Hermione, if you can remember that there were twenty-three goblin rebellions, and the year of them all, then you're farther along than most of us in History of Magic." Percy said. Hermione closed her book.
"What is with you?? You've been acting like this since you got back from your conversation with 'them'." She demanded, tilting her head towards the redheaded twins.
"It's nothing, okay?? I'm fine." Percy said, trying to calm her down. This did not have the desired effect, as she instead turned to the Weasley Twins.
"What did you say to him?? I have half a mind to turn you into Professor McGonagall for bullying-"
"HERMIONE!! They didn't do anything wrong. Today's just been a bad day, okay??" Percy exclaimed, blocking her from the Weasleys. She looked into his eyes, ready to tear into him too, but when she saw his expression her anger melted.
"Fine. I won't pester you today, since I don't want to get kicked out of the library right before exams, but if I find out you are bothering him again I won't be afraid of giving you a piece of my mind!!" The Ravenclaw threatened. The twins looked successfully cowed by the scary first year girl while Harry and Neville connected their gazes and shrugged their shoulders simultaneously in a moment of camaraderie.
"Remind me never to piss off Hermione, lest she remember she is actually is a witch." Draco murmured to Percy. The green-eyed boy nodded, storing this memory away for nefarious purposes.
"I'm totally going to use this to blackmail the twins." He told the blond haired boy.
"How utterly Slytherin of you, Jackson." Draco said quietly, looking at the other boy with intrigue.
"Never judge a book by it's cover, Malfoy. You never know when someone is misleading you." Percy never looked at Draco throughout their conversation, instead he watched the Weasley Twins as they quickly took their leave after they angered Hermione, catching the triumphant smirk that was on the girl's face as the Gryffindors turned tail.
"You're paranoid."
"It's not paranoia if they are really out to get you." Percy said with finality, ending their side conversation by opening another book from the stack and directing most of his attention to it.
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Harry, Neville and Weasley slipped out of the Gryffindor Common room at 10 minutes to 11, unaware of Percy sneaking out underneath the invisibility cloak. He had a bad feeling about tonight, and wanted to make sure that his brother and friend were okay. They walked quietly to the Entrance Hall, which was where they were to meet Filch for their detention, none of them dared to make a sound as they didn't want to get another detention.
When they meet up with the grouchy caretaker, he grunted and gestured for them to follow him as he started to walk outside. Mrs. Norris was at Filch's heels, taking great pleasure at trying to nip at the three uncloaked boys' feet.
Filch was delighting in telling the boys about the punishments they used to use, going into great detail about the pain and the screams that used to pierce the halls. Neville looked close to fainting as he described in great detail his favorite punishment; hanging students on the ceiling by their thumbs. Harry almost wished Hermione or Draco were there, because he would've loved to be assured by one of the two that Filch was just exaggerating, if he had been.
They finally stopped when they got to Hagrid's hut, where the man had come out with another lantern and Fang connected to his leash in one hand, as well as a crossbow in the other. Weasley and Neville gulped, and twins felt shudders run down their spines. They really didn't like where this seemed to be going.
Harry decided to speak up for the group. "Hagrid, what are we doing for detention??" He asked, surprised when Hagrid adopted a stern expression and faced Filch.
"Yeh mean yeh 'adn't told 'em?! Why not??" The large man asked the caretaker warily.
"It was my job to bring the brats to you, nothing else. I didn't have to tell them anything." Filch sneered. Mrs. Norris, as if sensing her owner's disgust, hissed at the others.
Hagrid rolled his eyes at his coworker and turned to face his charges for the night. "We're heading in to the forest to check on the unicorns. I found a dead one last week, and there's another injured. We'll split up and-"
"Split up?? In the Forbidden Forest?? Are you mad?? There are things like werewolves in there!!" Weasley interrupted.
"Yer gonna be fine, you'll have Fang with yeh. Besides, it's not eve' a full moon." Hagrid said, holding up the hand that was holding the leash.
"I'll be back for what's left of them at dawn." Filch stated, then turned back to the castle without hesitation.
Weasley turned to Hagrid, fear clearly on his face. "I'm not going into the forest." He said, voice coming out in a higher pitch than normal. Percy was perversely pleased that he was quivering in his boots.
"If yeh want to stay at Hogwarts, yeh are." Hagrid said, turning around and heading into the forest. The first years followed, not wanting to be left behind in the dark. Hagrid stopped once again once they were at the edge of the forest.
"A'right, listen closely now, cause the forest is dangerous, and I don't want none of yeh to get hurt." He said, before pointing to a plant coated in a silvery liquid that dripped to the ground slowly.
"Do yeh see that shiny stuff on the ground?? That's-" Hagrid said.
Harry gasped. "Unicorn blood." He said, drawing the attention of the others, including his invisible twin.
"Yeah, Harry. How'd yeh know that??" Hagrid asked.
"I don't know. It just popped into my head." He said, curiosity showing in his voice. Hagrid looked at him in silence for a long moment, making Harry fidget before continuing.
"Anyways, we're gonna go in, and follow the trail to find the unicorn. We may have ter put it out of it's misery if it can't be healed. There's blood all over the place, so it must've bin staggerin' fer a while." He stood up and faced the kids.
"You two," He pointed to Neville and Weasley. "Are gonna go with Fang. Harry, yer with me. If anyone finds the unicorn, we're gonna send green sparks, a'right?? Red sparks will be sent up if yeh have trouble. Practice it now." The three kids did it easily, Harry quicker than the other two since he had been taught by Percy how to do so before Hogwarts.
"Good. Be careful, you two. And don't forget, green sparks if yeh find the unicorn, red sparks for trouble!!" Hagrid called, before sending Neville and Weasley off.
"Come on, Harry. Best find it early, so yeh can get some sleep." Hagrid called, before taking off as well. Harry had to jog to catch up, Percy not that far behind under the cloak.
The three continued this way for a while, following the silvery-blue blood when it shined in the moonlight in silence. The silence ended when a thought struck Harry.
"Hagrid, could a vampire be killing the unicorns??" He asked.
"Not fast enough. They're about as fast as werewolves, but nowheres near fast enough to get near a unicorn. Powerful magic creatures, yeh know. Never knew one ter be hurt before now."k
Passing a mossy stump, Harry relaxed at the sound of running water. A stream was nearby, and Harry had the urge to swim in it, but was able to force it down when he remember the injured unicorn.
Help me young lords. A faint voice whispered.
"Did you hear that??" Harry asked, looking around for the owner of the voice.
"Hear what??" Hagrid replied, shouldering his crossbow.
"Nothing." Harry was confused. How didn't hear the voice?? Maybe it was just too soft for him.
"Harry, get behind that tree. Now!!" Hagrid whispered sharply.
"Yes sir!!" He whispered, diving behind the tree. Percy invisibly followed Hagrid's orders as well. The twins watched as Hagrid pulled a bolt out and placed it on the crossbow, loading it back and aiming towards a bush with rustling leaves. The three were silent, not daring to make a move until the rustling had left. Once it had, Hagrid waited a few moments to put down the crossbow, which the twins took as a signal to come back out.
"What was that??" Harry asked. Hagrid eyed the bush once again before shooting the bolt at the ground next to it to discharge the crossbow. The twins started in surprise, the cloak slipping off Percy's foot. He covered it back up before either of the others could notice.
"Somethin' that shouldn't be here." Hagrid growled before collecting the bolt and continuing.
They walked for a little longer before they saw something move again. Hagrid quickly reloaded the crossbow before aiming it where the movement was seen.
"I'm warning you, I'm armed!!" He shouted, putting his large body in front of Harry, Percy doing the same.
Two centaurs came out into the clearing, along with a half-man, half-goat thing. (Harry soon realized it was a satyr, while Percy thought it was half-donkey.) Hagrid soon relaxed, once again discharging the crossbow into the ground.
"Ah, Ronan, I should've known." The gatekeeper said in relief. "How are yeh??"
The red-haired centaur spoke. "Good evening, Hagrid. Were you going to shoot me??"
"Er, sorry 'bout that. Can't be too careful though. There's summat bad loose in the forest, yeh know." Hagrid put his massive hand behind his head and scratched his neck.
"And are you going to introduce us to your friend, Hagrid??" The other centaur asked, white tail flickering as an American accent leaked through his voice.
"Right, this is Harry Potter. He's a student up at the school. Harry, this is Ronan, and I don't suppose you two can introduce yerselves?? I don't recall seeing yeh here before."
"Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Chiron, and this is Grover. We're visiting from the US."
"It's nice to meet you." Harry said politely, not sure what to make of the others.
"So, you are a student at the school?? Do you learn much there??" Ronan asked.
"It depends on the teacher, really. " Percy fought the urge to snort at Harry's response, but managed to keep his cover. Grover seemed to be sniffing the air towards him and Harry, and Percy was ready to tackle Harry to the floor if he tried to attack. Grover's eyes widened as he stopped mid-sniff, and he looked right where Percy was standing.
"At least that's something." Ronan muttered under his breath. Hagrid didn't seem to hear it, but the other occupants of the clearing did. He looked up at the sky, worry slightly crossing his features, before looking at Harry with a grave expression.
"Mars and Neptune are bright tonight." He claimed. Percy his bad feeling that led him to follow the boys into the forest come back with a vengeance. He could tell the statement was important based on the reaction of the Americans, who had paled, but to what extent he didn't know.
"Yeah," Hagrid said, glancing up as well. "There's a hurt unicorn in the forest. Yeh wouldn't happen to know where it went, did yeh??"
Ronan remained silent, watching both Harry and the sky once again. He heaved a great sigh, and the twins could tell Hagrid was getting impatient.
This time, it was Chiron who spoke, sorrow coloring his voice. "The innocent are always the first victims," He said, as if speaking from experience. "So it has been for ages past, so it is now, and so it will be until the end of time." Grover gave a sharp bleat at that, before looking nervously at Chiron and whispering in his ear. The centaur had a look of surprise on his face before looking where Percy stood as well. Hagrid cleared his throat, and everyone's attention reverted back to him.
"Yeah, but have yeh seen anything strange in the forest perhaps??" He asked again, impatience starting to show in his expression.
Ronan looked at him this time, giving off an air that said the man should take this seriously. "Mars and Neptune are bright tonight." He said. "Unusually bright."
"So, yeh haven't seen anything in the forest then??"
"The forest holds many secrets, as Grover and I are discovering." Chiron answered, trying to sooth the man's ire. It surprisingly worked, and Hagrid quickly settled down. Harry, who had seen the man's temper first hand, was impressed.
However, Hagrid's temperament did not stay that way for long. A movement in the trees made Percy and Hagrid retake their previous positions; in front of Harry, with Hagrid loading and aiming his crossbow at the trees. When the being stepped in to the clearing it turned out to be another centaur, this one darker and more wild-looking than the others.
"Hullo Bane." Hagrid greeted.
"Good evening, Hagrid. I trust you are well??"
"As well as I can be. Look, I'd just bin askin' Ronan, but have yeh seen anything odd lately?? Or maybe a unicorn, there's ah injured one around here somewhere. Would yeh know anything about it??"
Bane looked at the sky and made the same observation as Ronan did, twisting Hagrid's temperament so that he looked visibly displeased. "Mars and Neptune are awfully bright tonight."
Suddenly, something clicked for Harry and Percy. It was if the meaning of the warning had been on the tip of their tongue, but yet just out of reach. However the meaning was now crystal clear for the twins, and it did not bode well for them.
'Mars?? Neptune??' Harry thought. 'Mars is the Roman name for Ares, the Greek god of war, while Neptune is the Roman name for Poseidon, the Greek god of the Sea. I'm not sure of that significance, but if Mars is bright, war is coming!!' He paled, making his face look sallow in the moonlight. Chiron nodded, looking as worried as Harry felt. Percy felt like panicking as he reached the same conclusion, but managed to take several deep breaths and shove his panic behind his slowly forming occlumency shields.
"We've heard." Hagrid said grumpily, irritated that none of the centaurs seemed to be helping. "Well, if any of yeh do see anythin', yeh'll let me know, will yeh?? 'Right, we'll be off then." With that, Hagrid beckoned Harry to follow him and continued on. Harry gave him a slight wave before hurrying to catch up with the large man, Percy running off as well, nearly tripping over the cloak, not noticing the two American visitors excuse themselves and warily follow.
Once the boys had caught up, Hagrid gave them a piece of advice that they weren't sure how to deal with. "Never try an' get a straight answer out of a centaur. The ruddy stargazers aren' interested in anythin' but the skies."
"Chiron seemed nice, though." Harry said, inwardly wondering why he automatically felt a connection with the centaur.
"They're not mostly like that. They keep to themselves mostly, they don't really like wizards that much. Don't really like sharing information with anyone else, either."
Harry and Percy kept looking over their shoulders, both feeling like they were being watched by more than one thing. Their hands kept twitching to their custom wands, though they held their Holly wands in their left hands. They had been practicing casting left handed when they got a spell early in class, and were able to do some low level spells that way, mostly the knockback jinx and the disarming charm. Harry wished that his brother was here so he could have backup in case of an attack, and Percy was glad that he had trusted his instincts. Hagrid seemed to have the same feeling as them and loaded his crossbow, waiting for a sign of a follower so he could shoot.
Suddenly, Harry noticed red sparks in the distance. "Hagrid, the others are in trouble!!" He exclaimed, pointing towards the sparks.
Hagrid shouldered his crossbow, looking indecisively towards Harry and the sparks. Finally, he made a decision and turned to Harry. "Stay right here!! I'm going to check on them, but I'll be right back!! Keep your wand out in case you see anything!!" He said before bounding off towards the sparks.
Percy wondered whether or not he should let Harry know that he was there, but decided not to so he wouldn't lose the element of surprise if whatever followed them tried to attack Harry.
Please young lords, I need your help. The voice whispered again, closer this time, yet weaker. Harry considered staying where he was, but whatever was calling for him seemed to be fading fast, and in a rash decision he ran off to where he could sense the voice had been. Percy would've cursed his brother for acting like a Gryffindor if he hadn't been curious as well, and he took off as soon as he found his brother in the woods again.
They ran for a while, until Harry ran out of energy and walked the rest of the way. The voice kept calling out to them, allowing Harry and Percy to track it. They finally reached a clearing covered in silver blood, and the boys were surprised that they had found the unicorn. It was breathing shakily, a large puncture wound on it's side, the blood spilling on the ground. The twins were surprised that it was still alive, but were grateful all the same.
Harry knelt down and concentrated, not wanting the beautiful creature to die. He pushed down, trying to stop the blood from leaking out of the unicorn's body. Harry was getting a bit frustrated, wondering why nothing was happening, when he felt a tug in his gut and water started rushing towards him. Not taking anytime to be shocked that it worked, he quickly bent the water to his will and had it surround his hands and the wound. It started to close slowly, and Harry was so focused on healing the creature that he didn't notice the dark figure creeping towards him.
Fortunately, Percy did notice and was ready, aiming his custom wand at the figure and using the knockback jinx on it. The figure was caught off guard, and managed to be knocked off it's feet and landed a few feet back from where it had stood. It pointed it's wand at where the spell had come from, but Percy had already moved. He shot another spell, but the figure was ready and blocked it, quickly shooting another spell where he was hidden. Percy cursed as he barely dodged the spell aimed at him, and spun away from another spell as he took off the cloak, throwing it behind a tree before stepping into the clearing again and calling out another spell.
"Percy?? What are you doing here??" Harry asked, his focus broken by the battle going on behind him.
"Not now. I'll finish off the creep, you heal the unicorn!!" Percy yelled, rolling under another curse, grateful that everything seemed to be in focus for him. Harry's eyes widened as he berated himself for losing focus, and quickly got back to healing the unicorn, beads of sweat running down his face.
Percy knew he couldn't defeat whatever he was facing with his wands, so he put his custom wand away and felt a twist in his gut, the water on the ground sweeping the creature out of the clearing. Percy felt the tug in his gut lessen and waited for the creature to come back.It didn't after a few minutes, and Percy dropped his guard slightly, exhausted.
"Here, let me help." Percy said, rolling up his sleeves and preparing to kneel in front of the unicorn.
"Maybe you should keep an eye out in case anything else tries to attack us?? It wouldn't do for us to both be caught off-guard." Harry asked. Percy did see the sense in this and reluctantly agreed.
"Don't worry, you'll be fine soon." Percy spoke softly to the unicorn, somehow knowing the reassurances would help.
Thank you Young Lords. The voice whispered, stronger than it had previously had been.
"So you can understand us?? Do you know why??" Harry asked.
You are the Young Lords. All the creatures of the sea and equines will bow to you. Harry and Percy exchanged confused glances at each other, but neither seemed to have any idea about what the unicorn was talking about.
Suddenly, there was a rustle in the woods behind them. Percy turned towards it, trying to call the water back to him. He pulled out his custom wand as well, ready to strike at a moment's notice...
Until Madam Hooch had come out of the clearing. Percy sighed in relief and put away his wand, but still ready to call the water. "Madam Hooch!! What are you doing here??" He asked, subconsciously edging towards his brother to guard him. He hadn't forgotten the vicious glint that had been in her eyes at their first (and only) flying lesson.
"Don't play games with me, Jackson!! Did you really think you could escape us and get away with it??" She growled. Percy's eyes widened in surprise.
"I have no idea what you're talking about." He said, getting into a defensive position and fear starting to paralyze him.
"Stop lying, boy!!" The paralyzing fear turned into heated anger when Percy noticed Harry flinch at the corner of his eye. "We are not fools, demigod. Confess, and you will suffer less pain."
"I'm telling you, I don't know what you're talking about!!" He exclaimed, getting sick of being accused. "I haven't done anything to you!!"
"For the last time Jackson, where is it?? We know it was you that took it!! I should've killed you before you had the chance!!"
Percy was now panicking slightly, wondering why the water wouldn't appear. He couldn't think of a plan B, at least not without doing something that could hurt his brother and the unicorn as well.
Madam Hooch hissed. "Your time is up!!"
Percy was shocked still, watching horrified as Madam Hooch changed into this thing with talons, leathery wings, and glowing eyes. If Percy wasn't scared out of his wits, he would've called her a shriveled hag with bat wings, however at the moment she looked like she wanted to slice him into ribbons.
She leapt down from the tall branch she had transformed from and flew quickly towards Percy. It was only due to his ADHD morphing into sudden awareness once adrenaline flooded his system that he was able to dodge the initial attack. In a last-ditch attempt to survive, knowing he would not last long against his attacker and needed to protect Harry at all costs, tried to call the water one last time as the thing was about to pounce again.
Suddenly, Chiron appeared and shouted, catching Percy's attention before throwing an uncapped pen at him. When he caught it, Percy was surprised that a glowing sword had appeared in his hands, feeling right, like it belonged there.
Noticing he was distracted, Hooch tried to leap at Percy once again, but the boy did something that would awe even the most experienced warrior. He dropped to his knees right as the monster attacked, feeling the air pass him as talons clipped the air less than a foot from his head. As she passed over him, he did what he felt was natural, and swung the sword, slicing through her body like it was butter. Percy watched in surprise as it connected, his teacher dissolving into golden dust right before his eyes. In a few seconds, all that was left of Madam Hooch was a small spray of dust and an ear-splitting scream of pain and fury that echoed throughout the night. Percy, once he got over his shock, would liken the incident to blowing a sand castle apart with a power fan.
Percy breathed heavily, trying to calm down and accept the fact that he just killed a teacher with a freaking sword. He turned to his twin, as if to check that this wasn't a crazy dream. Seeing the younger boy in a sweat-soaked shirt and his eyebrows pulled together in concentration as he used his own considerable power to heal the unicorn seemed to convince him that it was real. He still rubbed his eyes several times at the sight to make sure, of course. Rub, blink, still there, repeat.
As Percy was doing that, Harry finally pulled away from the unicorn and wiped his forehead, panting as he examined his work. The pure being had been fully healed, although both horse and human were weak, and try as he might, Harry had not been able to prevent a thin scar from appearing on the animal's underbelly.
'Thank you, Young Lords.' The unicorn whispered.
"You're welcome. If you or anyone else needs our help, you can just tell us and we'll be right on it." Harry said.
'I will do so. The forest will provide you a sanctuary, should you need it, Young Lords.'
"Thank you. You're very kind." Percy said, pretty sure that he was going into mild shock because even his ADHD riddled mind could not comprehend everything that was happening.
The unicorn bobbed it's head, and in a show of strength, lifted up his head and touched the tip of his horn to the scar on Harry's head. The boy gasped as memories flooded him, showing the pathways in the forest, the creatures living there and where their habitats were, as well as knowledge of whom they should avoid and whom they should trust. Among the latter were the centaurs, most notably were Chiron, Ronan, and another centaur they had yet to meet. Grover was pictured as well. Harry was so overwhelmed that he almost did not notice his brother receiving the same touch and knowledge.
When the barrage of knowledge and memories finished assimilating themselves in the boys' minds, the unicorn shakily stood up and faced an empty space in the clearing.
'You may come out now.' He said as both boys stiffened and instinctually readied themselves for an attack.
Out from the shadows came Chiron and Grover, arms out and hands open to show they were unarmed. The twins put their hands away from their pockets, where their wands hid, but they were still ready to pull them out at a moment's notice.
"Why did you follow us??" Percy asked. Chiron lowered his hands and relaxed.
"Child, I apologize for startling you. May I ask what your name is??" The centaur said in a soothing tone.
The unicorn faced the twins, sending a reassuring message to them. 'Don't worry, you can trust them. With everything.'
"Are you sure??" Harry asked, neither twin noticing the shocked look on Grover's face and the accepting yet worried expression on Chiron's.
'I am.' The unicorn responded. Percy sighed in resignation.
"Fine." He straightened up his posture, shifting his shoulders back unconsciously and showing a hint of the man he will become. "I am Percy Jackson-Potter, twin of Harry Potter."
Grover interrupted with a nervous bleat. "Twins?!"
"Hmm...interesting. May I ask whom is older??" Chiron asked.
"Why do you want to know??" Harry asked, his eyes narrowing.
"It is merely a matter of prophecy." Chiron answered.
The twins locked eyes, accessing their mental connection.
'Do we tell them, or keep it to ourselves??' Harry asked.
'Keep it. We shouldn't take the chance that they'll pull a Dumbledore and separate us if they find out.' Percy immediately answered. Harry nodded in agreement and returned his focus back to the others in the clearing.
"I'm dreadfully sorry, sir. But I'm afraid we don't know." Harry said politely.
"I see." Chiron said thoughtfully.
'That was a bit much, don't you think??'
'Slytherin tactics, my dear twin. If one of us acts politely, they'll be more trusting, and thus reveal more information.'
Percy's lips quirked up into a smirk for a split second. 'I like the way you think. I can still be overprotective though, can't I??'
'Of course, brother. Whatever suits your fancy.' Harry inwardly smirked.
'Alright, enough with the act. You'll miss something important.'
'Gladly.'
"In that case, it would be prudent to inform you both. Have you ever heard of the greek gods??" Chiron asked.
"Of course, who hasn't?? We even have an owl named Athena." Harry answered.
"Granted, she hates us. But it counts." Percy muttered.
"Well, despite the fact that many think they are myths, the gods are alive and well today, and one of them is your father."
The boys gaped, lost in thought as they stared, but in reality they had retreated once again into their minds to discuss the probability.
'I can't believe it!! James Potter was our father, not some crusty old god!! Mom would've told us, even if it couldn't have been before our shields started forming, but she said they were coming along well enough during the holidays that she could've told us then!!' Percy paced in his mind as he tried to come to terms with this new revelation, but no matter how much he turned it in his mind it would not stick.
'She might not have know, Percy. After all, as awesome as Sally is, she's not our real mother.' Harry pointed out.
'I know, but don't you think this god, whoever he is, would've sent at least something to us??' Percy asked.
'He did though. Remember those shells we got on our birthday?? And the note that said he was proud of us??' Harry pleaded. Percy's eyes widened in recollection.
'You're right. I forgot all about that. Oh, I'm sorry Harry. I didn't meant to argue with you.' Percy's face fell in shame and he ducked his head. He lifted it once again when Harry reached over and touched his shoulder.
'Don't worry about it. We're siblings, we're going to fight sometimes. We still love each other in the end.' Harry placated. Percy gave a small smile before their minds drifted back to their bodies.
"Alright, let's say we believe you. What happens now??" Percy asked Chiron.
"Grober and I will stay with the centaur herd here in the forest for the rest of term, and then we'll meet you in Kings Cross Station in disguise so we can talk to your relatives about you staying at a summer camp for demigods-" Chiron started to explain, only to be interrupted by Harry.
"What are demigods??" He asked inquisitively.
"My apologies. Demigods, or half-bloods, are the children of gods and mortals, which occur when they partake in certain activities-"
"I think we get it, sir. " Percy said, knowing that both he and his brother's faces were red from embarrassment.
"Erm, yes. Of course." Chiron responded slightly awkwardly, noticing the boys' flustered expressions. "Anyways, your guardians will be asked about your stay at Camp Half-Blood, where you'll learn how to fight the monsters that threaten you."
"Monsters?? Like Madam Hooch and the thing that's attacking the unicorns??"
"Yes. While I don't know what attacked the unicorns, your Madam Hooch was what we call a 'Kindly One'."
Percy snorted and rolled his eyes. "Right, because she was kind to us while she tried to kill us. Very kind, in fact."
"Names have power, Mr. Jackson. To call something by name in our society draws attention to you, and it may not always be friendly." Chiron chastised gently. Percy nodded sheepishly, realizing he was being rude.
"Now, the Kindly Ones are the tormentors of Hades, and they only follow him. The fact that there was one here worries me."
"Why??" Harry slightly cocked his head to the side in confusion.
"Hades would not normally send one of his most devoted employees somewhere without a reason." A slight frown marred the centaur's features.
"Maybe it was just coincidence??" Harry suggested. "I mean, she's been here all year, and we only had one class with her because she tried to kill me, but other than tonight she hasn't tried anything since. In fact, we haven't seen her since she last tried to attack us."
"That is interesting. She might not have know what you were, then. Although I suspect with all the children in the UK that have the blessing or bloodline of Hecate, it would be too tempting for at least one monster not to try to breach it." Chiron looked thoughtful for a moment.
"There's that Cerberus on the third floor as well." Percy said, before realizing what he said. His eyes widened and he clamped his hands over his mouth.
"Percy!!" Harry groaned in frustration, currently cursing his brother's inability to keep his mouth shut sometimes, often in the face of injustice or authority, which had labelled him as a troublemaker in muggle schools.
Chiron's eyes narrowed in thoughtfulness and worry as Grover released a loud, nervous bleat. "Hmm, this is quite troubling. Your scent must be more powerful that I had assumed. Of course, with you two most likely being sons of 'him' on top of having the bloodline of Hecate, it's no wonder you're powerful." Chiron mumbled, the boys only able to hear a word or two.
"I'm sorry sir, what was that??" Harry asked. The centaur was about to respond when a shout echoed through the forest.
"'Arry, 'Arry!! Where're yeh??" Hagrid yelled. By the sound of crunching footsteps, he was close.
Chiron turned back to the twins, gesturing to the sword still in Percy's hand. With a whispered word, it turned into a bronze, cheap-looking ballpoint pen. "I don't have much more time. When you uncap the pen, it will become the sword. It's made of Celestial Bronze, and can only injure or kill monsters like the Kindly Ones or other immortal beings. It will not hurt mortals, or muggles as you call them. It will also not harm most of your classmates, even with their bloodlines dating back to Hecates. It's too diluted for that/ the sword's name is Anaklusmos, if I had time Harry I would give your weapon, but this should work for you as well until then. You won't lose it, as it will return to your pocket. We will see you two at the station. Do not return to the forest for now!! It is too dangerous!!" Chiron said urgently.
"Wait, why are you leaving??" Percy asked. Harry grabbed his shoulder and turned him away from the two Americans as they urgently left the clearing.
"Don't you see?? They don't want to be interrogated by Dumbledore if Hagrid found us with them. Their behavior has been noticed as strange but we can't add more suspicion on them by being seen with them!!" Harry explained in a loud whisper as understanding flooded Percy's face.
"Oh, okay. So we never saw them besides when we were with Hagrid??" Percy asked for clarification.
"Yes, and put the cloak back on!! Do you want to get caught??" Harry said in distress.
Percy's eyes widened. "Oh, right!!" He ran to where he had thrown it before ambushing Voldemort, grateful that he had found it quickly, and covered himself right before they heard a closer shout of, "'Arry!!"
"Are you good, Perce??" Harry asked before watching as half an arm appeared out of thin air and formed a thumbs up. He shivered, finally realizing where Neville was coming from. "Wow, that is a lot more disturbing than I thought it would be." He said.
"If you think an arm is creepy, try seeing only a head floating the first time. That freaked the crap out of me." Percy said.
"Yeah, whatever. I'm going to signal Hagrid, so you better be ready!!"
"I am, I am!!" Percy grumbled as the arm disappeared. Even though Harry knew he was there, he hadn't realized until now how absolute the cloak made them invisible. No matter how hard he tried, he would have never been able to tell anyone was there if it hadn't been for the mental connection the twins shared. Harry made a note to himself to find a way to detect invisible people before taking a deep breath.
"Hagrid!! I'm over here!!" He bellowed, waving his arms frantically. He heard a snicker coming from Percy's direction.
'You look ridiculous.' He commented.
'Oh shut up. It's getting us out of here, isn't it??' Harry rebutted. Percy went silent after that, unable to come up with a better argument.
The yelling had drawn Hagrid closer, and after a few minutes of shouting back and forth between the Gamekeeper and First Year, he had entered the clearing where the twins were with Neville and Weasley in tow.
"'Arry!! Didn' I tell yeh to stay put??" He scolded upon setting his eyes on the green-eyed boy. Harry flushed a little in embarrassment, the ping tinging his cheeks.
"Yeah, but I found the unicorn!!" Harry exclaimed with an innocent expression on his face.
"Really?? Well then, where is it?? Or did it run off after seeing your ugly mug??" Weasley sneered. Harry rolled his eyes and ignored the jab, partly due to the nervous look Neville was giving him and partly due to gaining satisfaction from Weasley's angry flushed face at being ignored. Harry turned around only to see an empty space and crushed clumps of grass where the unicorn had been laying. The only evidence of it having been there was the massive amount of silvery unicorn's blood that was collecting into small pools, their shapes based on the depressions in the ground.
"Huh, it must have left after I healed it." Harry said nonchalantly, not wanting to betray the trust the American guests had given him as well as telling the truth. He hadn't noticed when the unicorn left, he and Percy had been too busy talking to Chiron or to each other mentally to notice when the being had departed.
"You actually healed it, Harry??" Neville asked, his eyes wide in awe. He gestured to the hand that had been bitten the week before by Norbert. Harry nodded faintly, catching the concern in his friend's eyes. Neville nodded as well, and returned his hands to his sides.
Weasley, not noticing the silent conversation nor the significance in it, snorted. "Yeah, right. I'll believe that when Kneazels fly."
"Don't you mean when pigs fly?? And what's a Kneazle??" Harry inquired.
"A Kneazle is a magical cat, and that's the wizarding version of the phrase, since there are rumors around Greece and Italy about a huge pig that flies, hence the muggle version of the phrase." Neville explained.
"Oh, that makes sense." Harry responded, grateful for the explanation and the distraction it caused.
"Well, we should probably 'ead back teh the castle now. It's late, and yeh should be 'eading teh bed soon." Hagrid said, before leading the students back to the castle much like they entered. Harry and Neville were talking, each with new grass stains on their clothing, while Weasley scowled for being ignored. (Harry knew it was immature to give him the silent treatment, but he really didn't care right now. It was late and he was becoming irritable.) Percy was following diligently, keeping a close eye on his friends and rival, while trying not to trip over something (namely, the cloak and his own feet) and end up getting caught by Hagrid.
When they returned to their dormitory, Percy hurried to his bed, taking off the cloak and stashing it in his bedcovers before throwing them on himself, mere seconds before the door opened again, allowing the other three boys in. Harry had distracted them by the last hallway, pretending to trip and fall. He claimed it was due to his untied shoelaces, and that they needed to stay together so they wouldn't lose more points for being up after curfew. It had surprisingly worked, even though Harry was sure it was the worst performance of his life, and the time had been long enough for Percy to return safely.
Now content that everyone was asleep, Percy's eyes opened and he laid awake, considering everything that had happened that night. He hoped that what the centaurs were wrong about the planets, and the hidden meaning of the planets' alignments. Turning to a more comfortable position, he continued to be restless throughout the night, even when his mind calmed enough for him to finally fall asleep.