Chapter 3
AFTER MANY FORGED DOCUMENTS AND TEARS, ANNABETH CHASE AND PERCY JACKSON WERE NOW 7TH YEAR STUDENTS AT HOGWARTS.
Well, Annabeth Malfoy, a distant cousin of the Malfoy family, and Perseus (“Oh, come on! I think Deez Nuts is a perfectly acceptable wizard name!) Ambrose were now 7th-year students at Hogwarts, but technicalities aside, they were in!
Which, if Annabeth was being completely honest, she wasn’t really impressed with it. Sure, the new classes sounded super interesting, but because the school didn’t teach any English, Math, or Science, well… she was pretty skeptical about how good the school must be - especially since most of its students stopped receiving a proper education at age 11.
Annabeth led the group, which consisted of her beautiful boyfriend, and her grandpa’s bitch. Annabeth was nothing if not a practical strategist, which is why she insisted that they shop for their school supplies at a discounted store.
“Are you sure you don’t want to go to this store?” Lucius asked, gesturing to an upscale store that appeared to sell stationery. “Their handcrafted, dragon-feather quills are simply wonderful.”
“Nope,” Annabeth grinned, taking in his horrified expression of having to shop at a ‘poor people’ store. “Besides, Percy found a coupon for this store, so we’ll save even more!”
The man looked ready to throw up. As they stepped into the discounted store, he pulled a handkerchief out of his robes and held it over his nose, as if breathing the same air of discounted and budget-friendly supplies was offensive to his bloodline.
(Which, to be fair, it probably was).
“Make it quick. I simply cannot be seen in this… place.” He spat out, stepping out of the way of a gruff but friendly-looking man, with the scars all over his face, and the soft sweater that engulfed his body. Lucius glared at the man, “It even caters to filthy werewolves.”
Percy gasped, an excited look in his eyes. “Werewolves? I love Teen Wolf! This world gets better and better!” Percy exclaimed, grinning widely. He pushed Lucius aside, ignoring the man when he fell into a discount bin, where he began to cry. Percy held out a hand for the man to shake, “Hi, is it true that werewolves actually play lacrosse?”
The man laughed, his voice warm and low. He grabbed Percy’s hand, shaking it with a smile. “Well, I’ve been known to play some Quidditch sometimes. I’m not quite sure about lacrosse, though.” Mr. Werewolf - which Percy had dubbed in his head.
“Tell me everything, Mr…?”
“Lupin. My name is Remus Lupin.” Mr. Werewolf - Remus Lupin - replied. Annabeth walked over to them, two sets of discounted quills in her hands.
“Your parents named you ‘Wolf Wolf’?” Annabeth raised a brow, grabbing the buggy basket that sat by Lucius Malfoy’s crying form, and placing the quill sets in it.
Remus chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck with a sheepish look on his face. “I think if they knew what it meant, they probably wouldn’t have named me it,” Remus explained, golden eyes trailing over to Percy, who had picked up a pack of exploding ink bottles. “Oh, I wouldn’t recommend that, unless you want your homework destroyed.”
Percy stilled, a new glint in his eyes as he gazed upon the bottles. A mischievous grin crawled onto his face, “Do you know if they come in a ‘cause minor property damage’ size?”
Lucius let out another cry from his spot on the floor.
Annabeth frowned, before pointing at the basic package of robes. “I like this.” She stated.
Lucius grimaced, surveying the cheapest robes that the store had to offer. “Absolutely not. I will not have the dark lord’s granddaughter parading around in such poor clothes.” He huffed, his snake cane pounding against the floor like a toddler throwing a hissy fit after they were told they couldn’t have McDonald's for dinner.
“It’s literally what is on the school supplies.” Annabeth argued with her arms crossed over her chest, “Also, doesn’t your son wear the exact same thing?”
He gawked, looking almost astonished by her audacity to point that out. “No,” He denied, “His uniform is made with only the finest of materials.”
“You mean endangered species?”
Percy snorted, not even bothering to cover up his amusement of the blonde man’s suffering. “They… weren’t endangered when we had his uniform made.” He defended weakly, voice squeaking like a mouse.
“Uh huh,” Annabeth pursed her lips, rolling her eyes in annoyance. “Well, I like my clothes to not be dead animals, so…”
Percy ran back over to the two, holding a large, pink, glittery robe that had enchanted jellyfish swimming around in the fabric. “What do you think about this? Definitely screams ‘cool and mysterious’, right? I think it would look great on me, yeah?”
Lucius’ eye twitched, looking as if he was going to have a brain aneurysm any moment now.
“I should’ve listened to Narcissa when she said inviting the dark lord back into our lives was a bad idea…”
Lucius Malfoy’s nightmare continued on, and with each purchase, the man felt his hairline receding from the stress.
(“Look, all of those books have annotated notes already!” Annabeth exclaimed, holding out the books with a smile.
Lucius winced, clutching his chest as if he was about to collapse. “Do I look like someone who buys discounted knowledge?”
Percy bumbled over to the two, holding a stained book like a dad showing off his fishing catch on his Facebook page. “This one has doodles in it that move around!” He exclaimed, sounding far too excited for Lucius Malfoy’s taste.
“It has stains on it.” The platinum blonde rebuked.
“So? That just means it’s got a cool backstory.”
“That means disease!” The man exclaimed in sheer horror, looking as if he was debating smacking the book out of Percy’s hands, or keeping his hands safe from whatever mysterious stain was on the book.)
So, when it came time for Wands, he decided to throw some galleons at the two and went to a bar to drink his sorrows away.
Percy held out the door for Annabeth, the bell ringing and alerting the shop owner of customers.
The store was… dusty, to say the least.
As soon as the door closed behind the two, Percy let out a massive sneeze. Annabeth grimaced at the snot that had come out of her boyfriend’s nose and almost gagged when he wiped the snot away with the back of his hand.
“I’ve been waiting for the two of you,” an old man stumbled out from behind a wall of boxes, startling the two demigods with his appearance. “It’s not every day the heroes of Olympus walk into my shop… at least, not to your degree of heroism.”
The two demigods tensed, alarms going off inside their heads. “Who are you?” Annabeth asked with her brows furrowed.
The old man raised a brow, lips quivering into a smile. “Didn’t you read the sign outside?” He asked, a playful glint in his eyes. “I’m Garrick Olivander, son of Iris.”
.
.
.
“…What? How? You’re old.” Percy said. Annabeth smacked his arm, giving him a look. “What? I’m not wrong!”
Olivander laughed, a genuine smile on his wrinkled and withered face. “Yes, I am. I am old.” He nodded in agreement. “And to answer your question, not many monsters live here as there just isn’t enough food for them. There is also the fact that wizards, even with minor Greek gods as parents, are far more powerful than regular demigods. Not quite as strong as a child of the big three, but strong enough that many monsters hesitate to go after us.”
“…So, why don’t monsters avoid me, then? I mean, I’m not a child of a minor god or goddess, but I’m not really a witch, right?” Annabeth asked, her arms crossed over her chest.
Olivander smirked, a small chortle escaping his mouth, “Well, you have quite a reputation for angering or being around others that anger monsters, so that’s part of the reason why they don’t leave you alone,” He explained, “And no, you’re not really a witch… not in the wizarding world’s definition.”
“Okay… so, am I like Hecate’s kids? I mean, they can do magic.” She pushed.
“No, not that either. You’re more of a… enhanced demigod. You can’t perform spells in the traditional way of spell casting, but you can make it happen. Think of your magic like… Pinocchio. He wished to be a real boy so much that it eventually happened.”
Percy placed a hand on Annabeth’s shoulder, squaring up with the old man. “And how do you know any of this?” He questioned, his voice full of suspicion.
“Son of Iris, remember? I’m simply passing along a message.” He reminded the two, turning his back to grab two boxes off of the shelf.
“Uh huh, and why couldn’t they tell us in person? Why do they have to have an errand boy?” Percy shot back, huffing out a scoff.
Olivander smiled, shrugging, “Rome wasn’t built in a day. Back when I was a boy, they didn’t even have the common decency to send a messenger until it was too late.” Placing the boxes on the counter, he gestured for the two to come over. “Hecate commissioned these wands for the two of you…. As well as these, she asked me to pass them along.” Next to the wands, he placed down two pairs of glasses.
“Now what?” Annabeth asked, her gaze intense on the wands.
“Now,” Olivander started, opening the top of the boxes, “You pick it up and wave the wand. I don’t think that I’ll need to make any adjustments to the wands; I was very sure of myself when making them for you.”
Annabeth and Percy glanced at each other, and an agreement was found between them. Percy shrugged, picking up his wand from the box and giving it a wave. From out of the tip of the wand, a fish made out of water burst out of his wand, which then swam around the shop for a few minutes before swimming over to an empty glass, which it dropped itself into.
The fish disappeared, and all that was left was a glass of water. Olivander picked it up, taking a sip of the water. “Refreshing.” He said.
Percy gawked, surprised that the wand even worked, but also appalled that his magical fish turned into water and was now someone’s drink.
“W-What?” Percy exclaimed.
Olivander set down the glass of water, looking at the young man with a small smile. “Unfortunately, many of your spells will be water-based, but I managed to put an enchantment on it to allow you to perform basic spells. Nothing too powerful, but enough to convince the world of your legitimacy.” He explained, with a shrug. “Holly Wood, with a seaweed core, 12 ½ inches, with a flexible bend. A wand made for someone destined for great things. I believe you’ll find some common ground with a certain someone at Hogwarts.”
“Huh,” Percy twirled the wand between his fingers, “Question: can this also turn into a sword?”
Olivander shook his head, and Percy drooped in disappointment. After the moment had passed, Olivander beckoned Annabeth forward with a curl of his finger. The blonde stepped forward and stared down at the wand.
The wand was a beautiful, pale gold wood with subtle hints of an ancient marble column. Unlike Percy’s wand, her wand had a smooth and slightly matte finish, giving it a timeless look.
The handle of the wand looked like feathers wrapped around it in intricate patterns. Flicks of Gold, silver, and Green intersected with the feathery base, giving it a luminous look. It looked to be around 12 inches, and was flexible but firm; bending but never breaking its stance.
From the soft glow of the shop’s light, she could see subtle Greek runes carved into the wood, and it seemed to make the wand almost radiate with quiet power.
She was quiet as she picked it up, gripping it firmly in her dominant hand. Just from holding the wand, she felt… different. Not in a bad way, but it felt like she was complete. It was weird. If she had never been exposed to this, she would’ve probably gone the rest of her life not knowing anything different.
But now?
Even if she could, she didn’t think she’d ever want to let go of this feeling again.
Taking into account what Olivander said, she pointed her wand at an unlit candle.
Burn.
It took a second, but the candle lit up - the flame of the candle gently swaying to its own dance. She gasped, mouth parting slightly.
“Holy Styx…” She whispered, shocked. Had she… had she done that? All she did was think of the candle burning, and it just… lit up!
Olivander smiled, his crooked teeth front and center. “Cypress Wood is associated with wisdom, self-sacrifice, and great leadership. I have found that those given this wand wood are destined for a heroic—and sometimes morally complex—path.” He explained, his frizzy, white hair falling to the side as he tilted his head. “For the core, the wand has Owl Feather from your mother’s personal owl. It’s rare and quiet, often associated with intelligence, foresight, and keen perception. A well-thought core for a strategist who strikes before the opposing side even knows there’s a battle. It is 12 inches in length; perfect for someone with a balance of both smarts and confidence. The wand is supple - responsive and quick. It shifts gears depending on the master’s tactics and inner growth, but it never completely strays from its beliefs.” He finished.
Huh.
“…Was that your version of a message?”
He simply smiled, looking far too pleased.
Arriving back at the manor, Annabeth was mentally reconsidering her sanity when she decided that this was a good idea.
Her grandfather smiled, and it just looked painful. “Come, my dear. I find myself curious to see how much Hogwarts school supplies have changed throughout the years.”
Percy pulled out the shrunken chests from his jeans, placing them on the floor. Voldemort waved his wand, and the chests grew to their normal size. “Uh, we got standard robes, secondhand books, a writing kit? I guess regular wizarding stuff? And Lucius got emotional damage. Want to see the receipt?” She shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Yeah, pretty sure we broke your sugar daddy today,” Percy added, smirking.
Her grandfather raised a hairless brow, lips twitching with a subtle smirk of amusement. “Good,” He replied, “I believe it is only fair since he wouldn’t let Nagini eat one of his peacocks.”
Nagini, who was curled up off to the side, raised her head. Her tongue flicked through the air, and if snakes had hair, Annabeth didn’t doubt for one second that Nagini wouldn’t have tossed her luscious locks dramatically.
“The sssstupid bird wassss pecking at my eyessss!” Nagini hissed indignantly. “I had been fattening up that bird for weekssss!”
Her grandfather pet Nagini’s head with a look of solidarity. “She had been giving her extra scraps of prisoners to the bird.”
“Ew,” Annabeth grimaced, looking a little green in the face. “…That’s disgusting.”
“But it’s how nature intended?”
Annabeth chortled, shaking her head in bemusement, “I don’t think nature intended for a snake to pull a Hansel and Greta: human flesh instead of candy edition.” She rolled her eyes, glancing over at Percy from the corner of his eye, where he was pulling out a bunch of tiny hats he had forced Lucius to buy.
(“Do you think Nagini would look good in a bonnet?” Percy asked, holding a miniature bonnet in his hands.
Lucius blinked, then blinked once more for good measure. “What?” That was all he managed to say, his energy drained completely by this point in the trip.
“No, wait, I think you might be onto something. She’d totally look better in a bedazzled bonnet!”)
While her boyfriend attempted to be Steve Irwin, Annabeth sat down across from her grandfather.
The room had gone quiet, and the lights in the room dimmed ominously. Outside, you could hear the wind howling violently through the closed window. A peacock bumbled through the air outside, slamming into the window and inciting Nagini’s fury.
The two of them didn’t blink, and Annabeth refused to back down even when her eyes began to water uncontrollably. Apparently, he saw something that he was pleased with, and he leaned back into his chair with a pleased smile, breaking their staring contest.
“Good. Even in the face of pain, you refused to back down. You truly are my granddaughter.” He complimented (?). Sure, it was a little narcissistic, but… Annabeth couldn’t deny that she wasn’t displeased by the compliment.
She swallowed, pursing her lips into a thin line.
“That is important when seizing power. It is not built through force alone. You must build it slowly. Quietly. Even when it becomes painful, you must never back down from it. Societies aren’t built in a day, but they can certainly collapse in one if you aren’t careful.” Her grandfather twirled his wand between his fingers, sounding completely normal for once.
He sounded… sane.
It was disturbing.
“Huh,” Annabeth hummed, rubbing a hand over her mouth. “…That was weirdly insightful, coming from you.”
He snorted, thankfully not offended by the comment.
“I happen to try.” He dryly replied.
A knock on the door interrupted them, and Voldemort gave permission to enter. Lucius and his wife, Narcissa, entered the room. Narcissa gave a polite curtsy, while Lucius stiffly bowed.
“My lord, dinner is about to be served. If you wish, Lucius and I would like to invite you, as well as your granddaughter and her partner to eat with us.” Narcissa began, her head held high and her body confident.
He paused, looking over at Percy and Annabeth for a moment. “Yes, I believe that is fine.”
“Cool!” Percy exclaimed, drawing everyone’s attention to him. “Can Nagini come? I got us matching hats!”
After a very intense and awkward dinner, Annabeth found out three things:
- Narcissa was definitely the top in the relationship.
- Nagini had her own space at the dinner table.
- The ministry was a complete disaster.
Before Lucius could run off, Annabeth cornered him, with the excuse of wanting to know more about the wizarding world, considering he was “so well versed” in everything.
Out of self-preservation (and a desire to impress the dark lord’s granddaughter), it was quite easy to get him to start talking.
“…So the Department of Magical Games is bigger than the law enforcement?” She asked, her words slow and low. Lucius nodded, looking slightly embarrassed by that.
“Yes, well, ever since the ‘fall’ of the dark lord,” He rolled his eyes, fingers bending into air quotes, “There wasn’t much of a need for such a large law force. There is also the fact that Britain is the founder of many magical sports, so wizarding communities across the globe are constantly asking something.”
She tilted her head to the side, letting out a considering hum. “Okay, well… How are the political sides of things?” She continued, changing the subject.
“Well, they say money can’t buy happiness, but I disagree.” He shrugged, tossing his long locks over his shoulder, his nose pointed up. “The truth is, as long as you have the money, anything can go your way.”
“Do you guys have term limits?”
He scoffed, sounding amused by the question. “I suppose we do, but we’re allowed to run for reelection as many times as we want. If you throw enough money at it, the position is yours as long as you want.”
“So… Do you guys not have any voting?” She questioned the man.
“We do, but we don’t count the votes of those with lesser blood. Of course, they don’t know that, but they fought so long for equal voting that we just gave in. It keeps mouths shut, and keeps the pure in the office.” He explained, seemingly not noticing every stage of grief Annabeth’s face seemed to go through.
The blonde gulped, a vein on her forehead looking ready to pop at any moment. “So, you’re telling me that the magical government is a nepotistic playground, which is held together by hope and prayer, gossip, racism, and magical Elon Musks’?” Her voice cracked.
Lucius smiled, smug and pompous as ever, “Yes. And I benefit greatly from it.” He replied.
“Cool.” That was all she managed to say before turning around to walk away.
I’m going to burn that place to the ground and build it back up again.
“Percy, grab the whiteboard! It’s time for me to fix things for these incompetent, dimwitted, assholes!”