Magical Demigods

Somehow, Dumbledore agreed to the school newspaper. Dawn was elected as the head of the newspaper, and she named Colin Head Photographer. She put up a sign-up sheet in the Great Hall when she had sorted out all of the rules. Draco was one of the first ones to sign up.

She was actually really into it, when Nico thought about it. She wrote out the things that they would add to the newspaper, the cost of supplies, and learned how to print it out using charms and all.

Nico was more worried about passing his classes, which he was able to do. He was third best in the year, right behind Draco who was behind Hermione. He counted it as a win. He wasn't going to give up his spot, though. 

He spent his free time wandering the castle, enjoying the peace and quiet. Mrs Norris didn't bother him all that much, which made sense, because animals hated him. Sometimes he'd come across one of the ghosts and would have a conversation with them. It was easy, being able to talk to them.

He was doing this, one day, just walking around and thinking. He didn't have many things that he needed to do, as he'd done all of the urgently needed things. So he was just... Walking, when he heard someone talking.

"I'm Luna, may I know your name?" A girl said. 

"I am Helena. Is there a reason as to why you are here?"

"Oh, no, I was just looking around, and I saw you and decided to introduce myself," the girl, Luna, told Helena. Nico walked around the corner and saw a girl with Helena. The girl had hair that reminded Nico of Draco - so blonde that it was bordering on white. She was barefoot, and was not creeped out by the ghost like many other students were. Nico guessed that the living girl was Luna. Helena certainly couldn't be a person named Luna.

"Uh, hi?" Nico called out. He mentally cringed, but there was no going back now. He had the attention of both people.

"Oh, hello, I had a feeling that I was going to meet you at some point," Luna said. Nico raised an eyebrow.

"May I ask how exactly?" 

"Daddy says that our family is descended from Apollo himself. I have the ability to See, which is normally a gift from Apollo, but sometimes his children or descendants are born with it," Luna explained.

"Oh. That... Actually makes sense. I'm Nico, by the way, Nico di Angelo."

"Luna Lovegood," Luna said. She smiled. "It's nice to meet you."

"You too," he replied. He turned to the ghost that was still there. He smiled at her. "Hello, Helena. How have you been?" He asked.

"I have been well, thank you for asking. How about you?" Nico shrugged.

"Fought for my life this summer, won a war in the process. Managed to get my father the appreciation that he's been wanting, too. Other than that, it's been relatively normal. As normal as it gets for someone like me."

"I am glad to know that you and your friends won. It would not do well if Kronos had won the war instead." Nico nodded. "I must be going now."

"Alright. Bye, Helena."

"It was nice to meet you," Luna said to the Ravenclaw ghost. Nico turned to her.

"So...  You're a first year?" He asked. Luna nodded.

"I am."

"How're you finding Hogwarts so far?" Nico asked. 

"Oh, I quite like it. It's beautiful, isn't it? The castle, that is. It looked as if the windows were glowing jewels when I saw it from across the lake," Luna replied. 

"Yeah, I thought that myself when I first saw the school. It's nice here, too, especially down in Hufflepuff."

"I wouldn't have minded being placed into Hufflepuff. Though Daddy says that because I know a lot about the future, it's only natural for me to be a Ravenclaw." Luna leaned out of one of the windows of the room they were in. Nico joined her, letting the breeze mess up his hair.

"I probably could have been put into Ravenclaw, you know, but I guess that the hat decides to put us into the house that will help us best, and for me, well, I guess it put me in Hufflepuff because of what I'll value most at the end of the day."

"It does do that sometimes, I've heard." Luna looked at him. "By the way, you'll find love in the sun, not the sea." She said it so matter-of-factly that it threw Nico off.

"Huh?" Luna just turned to look back outside. Nico followed her gaze to see the skeleton horses. "Can you see them?" He asked.

"See what?" 

"Those... Skeletal pegasi. Can you see them too?" He clarified.

"Oh, those. They're Thestrals. Only those who have witnessed death can see them. I can see them because I saw my Mum die when I was younger."

"Oh... Sorry to hear about your mom. I... Actually saw my Mom die, as well." Why was he telling this person he'd just met about this? Why? Was it because she was easy to approach? Probably.

"Mine died in an accident with one of her Potions. It went wrong, see, and she died because of it. How about yours?"

"Hah, funny story. Not really. Well, you know about the Greek gods, right?" Luna nodded. "Yeah. I'm a son of Hades, and I had an older sister. Our mother died because Zeus struck the hotel we were staying in with lightening and Father could only protect Bianca and I, so Mama died. I was... Bathed in the River Styx afterwards, but my memories have been slowly coming back."

"Oh. I'm terribly sorry to hear about that."

"It's fine, really. I'm trying to move on from that."

The two of them were silent for a while, just enjoying each other's company. It was nice to be around her, just as it was to be around Dawn. Neither of them really expected Nico to talk about anything and everything like others did. 

It was a mutual agreement when they left that they would hang out together again, whether or not they actually said anything about it was irrelevant.

Nico went to see where his friends where.

"Hey, Fred? George?" Nico called out, running up to the twins.

"Oh, hey, Nico. You're looking for the others, right?" Nico nodded.

"Down at Hagrid's hut."

"Thanks." He hurried down to the Gamekeeper's hut. He knocked on his door. "Hagrid?"

Hagrid opened the door for them. Nico was greeted by Ron vomiting something into a bucket. It didn't sound like what vomit normally sounded like, but rather like something heavy was being forced up his throat and into the bucket.

"What the hell happened?" He asked.

"Tha's what I'd like ter know," Hagrid replied. He walked over to the fireplace and started on some tea.

"The Slytherin Quidditch team decided to interrupt the Gryffindor's practice time to train me because my father bought me my way onto the team," Draco said. He screwed his face up at that. "Barlow was with us and decided to try and taunt the others. He... He called Hermione a mudblood."

"Oh. Wait, that doesn't explain why Ron's throwing up slugs oh gods, how did you do that to yourself?" Nico asked when he saw that his friend was puking up live creatures.

"Barlow pushed him and he fell and accidentally broke his wand, which backfired and uh... he tried to tell Barlow to 'eat slugs' and he made himself start throwing them up," Harry explained. Dawn was fussing over Ron, a displeased look on her face.

"Good thing that it's not bloody Barlow throwing up slugs. If he was then we'd probably never hear the end of it," she said. She sighed and sat down next to Hermione, who was next to Draco, who had his arm around his half-sister.

"His father has no real power. The Barlow's don't actually take part in politics and they have no power over the school board, so that's good. The most his father can do is complain and try and get Father to convince the school board to expel Ron," Draco explained.

"I still don't know what mudblood means, by the way," Harry said.

"It's a slur against the Muggleborns. It means dirty blood."

"You'd think that Purebloods would have come up with something worse than dirty blood. Anyway, blood supremacists are the mudbloods here. They're the ones who don't understand the rules of gifts and curses, or the fact that who does and doesn't have magical abilities aren't within their control. It's stupid!" Dawn sighed at that. 

"Not everyone cares about that," Hermione said. Nico finally sat down. 

"Or everyone is STUPID because the only way for something to be passed down is through GENETICS."

"When an Apollo kid gets pissed off because of something illogical," Draco commented. Dawn glared at him.

"Your mother would be pissed off because of people not understanding basic logic," she told him. 

"Human mother or godly mother? Because I told mother about that and she said that Athena hated my father and so had me with my mother. If, I was even born... Which I probably wasn't."

"Now isn't the time for a midlife crisis. Have that when you're actually at the halfway point in your life."

"Got it," Draco agreed. Nico sighed. Why were his friends so weird?

"The main point here is that Barlow's an idiot and he doesn't understand that having seemingly Muggle parents doesn't mean anything," Nico said, directing it at Hermione. She smiled at him.

"Thank you, Nico," she said. Ron vomited another slug. Nico tried to ignore the sound of the creature hitting the bottom of the bucket.

"Nico's righ', Hermione. Look at Lily Potter! Muggleborn, bu' the brightest witch o' her age!" Hagrid said.

"Oh, hey, that's really cool! Harry's mother was smarter than he was!" Harry hit Draco over the head, but there was no malice in Draco's tone or in Harry's actions.

Dawn looked at Nico and mouthed the words 'they like each other' to him. Nico grinned at that.

"Moral of the story: Purebloods are idiots, Half-Bloods and Muggleborns are smart, and the Weasleys are one of the only Pureblood families that should exist because they are really cool."

"I was offended there for a bit but then you added that part, so now I'm not," Ron said. Then he threw up another slug. Dawn screwed up her face.

"As gross as that may be, you're going to have to wait for the hex to wear off," she said. Ron groaned as he threw up a couple more slugs.

"Can't wait," he murmured.

_______________________________________

Unfortunately, because of what had happened, Ron had detention. He had to polish trophies without magic, all while be burped up small slugs. At least it was getting better.

Nico decided to wander the castle that night. He stuck to the shadows, keeping himself hidden from the living beings. Why would the ghosts he came across want to snitch on him when he could touch them and very well drag them down to the Underworld and have them punished?

Not that he'd ever do that, and the ghosts knew that, but they respected him and wouldn't snitch on him, anyway.

Being the Ghost King was an advantage in this giant castle that housed ghosts.

He ran into Sir Nicholas.

"Oh, hello, Nick," He greeted the ghost.

"Mr di Angelo, it is lovely to see you. How have you been?" Nick asked. Nico shrugged.

"Getting by, you know. Going to classes, doing homework, wandering the castle. And you?"

"Oh, I've been good. Though the Headless Hunt won't accept me. Imagine, your head was butchered when you were beheaded and hanging on by merely a thread, even in death, and they don't accept you..."

"I can try and negotiate with them, if you like," Nico offered.

"Oh, no, you don't have to do that."

"I think I will." It was decided.

"Oh... Thank you." Nico shrugged.

"It's really nothing," he said.

"Oh! Right, my Deathday party, it's on Halloween, and I'd be honored to have you there."

"I'll be there. Any particular time?"

"Around the time of the feast." Nico nodded.

"Alright. I'll be there. Maybe make sure that there's food for living people to eat? Because eating moldy food would be bad for any living guests you might invite."

"Of course! I must go now, letters to write, I shall let the Headless Hunt know that you would like to talk to them. Have a good evening, sir." Nico nodded. 

"You too, Nick, and please don't call me 'sir', it's just wrong for me." Nick chuckled.

"Of course, as you wish. Well, goodbye!" Nico waved goodbye to the ghost and continued on his way.

And then he bumped into Harry.

"Why are you out of bed?" He asked. Harry whipped around to look at him.

"I heard a voice in the walls. It was talking about blood and killing," Harry explained. Nico frowned.

"A voice in the walls?" Nico asked.

"There! Can you hear it?" Harry asked. Nico listened. He couldn't hear a voice, but he could sense something... Moving inside of the walls. Nico walked up to the walls and put his hand on it.

Yes, there was something inside the walls. And it was huge. Whatever it was, it wasn't good. Nico could sense the thing moving. 

"I can sense it," he whispered. Harry frowned.

"You... Can't hear it?" Nico shook his head.

"Nope. I can only sense it. I can sense life if it's dangerous. I didn't sense it last year, probably because he wasn't a part of Quirrell until towards the end... But this isn't good. I can sense it in the walls, and it's huge. I don't know how big it is, but I know that much." Harry swallowed audibly.

"This isn't good," he whispered.

"No, it's not," Nico agreed. He focused back on the walls.

The thing was moving away, to some other part of the castle.

"I'm taking you back to Gryffindor," he decided. He grabbed Harry by his wrist and walked in the direction of the Fat lady. Harry didn't try to fight him. 

"Thanks, Nico. You should go get some sleep," Harry said when they arrived.

"I will. Goodnight, Harry."

"Goodnight, Nico." He watched as Harry gave the Fat Lady the password and climbed through the portrait hole. Then he turned around to head back to his own common room. All the while, questions ran through his mind. Why did Mr Malfoy say that stuff about something concerning a snake that year? Why could Harry hear a disembodied voice in the walls, and why had he felt a giant, dangerous presence in the walls?

Nico was worried about what the year held. He didn't want to see any more people die. Maybe they wouldn't?

He prayed to all of the gods that no one died that school year, and that they were all as safe as possible from what might go down.

He really hoped that the Fates wouldn't kill any of the students.

_______________________________________

Time went by, and soon they were in October. Nico hadn't felt the presence in the walls again, but he was hyper aware of the life around him. He was on edge about people dying, but he tried not to think about it too much.

Of course, as what always seemed to happen in a situation where one was trying not to think about something, it was all that he could seem to think about.

Harry and Nico had told the others about what had happened. Draco had immediately gone to his book about snakes to try and figure out what it was. Dawn muttered to herself in that strange language frequently, either looking spaced out or thinking hard about something.

"Whakaaturia mai he aha ka tūpono, whakaaturia mai he aha te utu o te kura i tēnei tau... Āwhinatia ahau, Matua." She said those words over and over again when she had nothing to occupy her until it got to the point where Nico could repeat them, even without knowing what the hell they meant. He didn't even bother to ask her.

The weather seemed to know his mood, and took it on itself. Rain lashed at the windows often, and it was rare to see the sky clear.

Nico wasn't too upset by how he'd agreed to go to Nick's Deathday party. Everyone was incredibly eager for Halloween, but Nico was more looking forward to being around the ghosts of Hogwarts and to not be around a large amount of living people.

On Halloween, he woke up and got ready, the smell of pumpkin strong in the air from the Hufflepuff common room being so close to the kitchen.

Nico had to take Dawn through to the kitchen to look around and see what the elves were making for the feast. Nico mostly sat at the side, watching the tiny creatures run around with objects larger than them and whipping up a feast for more than just the Hogwarts students and teachers - it was enough to feed an army of about three thousand.

When Dawn was satisfied, they left, and went through the day's paces. Breakfast, lessons, lunch, lessons, and then it was time for the feast. 

Nico had invited Dawn, but she had politely declined, saying that she didn't fancy the idea of hanging out with a bunch of ghosts. Nico had shrugged.

He changed into something more comfortable than his uniform. A black shirt, black pants, and his aviator's jacket. He made his way down to the dungeons.

"Nico?" Ron asked. Nico raised an eyebrow.

"I can understand why I'm going to Nick's Deathday party, but you three?" He said, looking at Harry, Ron and Hermione.

"Nick invited us along, and I couldn't say no," Harry explained.

"Alright, then. Let's go." He turned to face his friends. "Be polite. If a ghost talks about how they died, let them, and don't ask about the food. They can't eat, but they like to phase through moldy food in order to remember what it tastes like. I did request food that we can actually eat, so don't worry about that." He set off, his friends behind him.

"I'd ask why you know so much, but... Well, you're the Ghost King," Hermione said.

"That's the reason why I'm attending. Nick invited me, I accepted, and now here I am."

The passageway had been lined with green torches, which Nico was used to from how his father used said green flames to light up his palace. The temperature dropped as they walked, but Nico didn't pay any attention to it. The faint smell of mildew, decay and dust filled the air.

"What's that smell?" Ron asked.

"The same smell you'd find if you went to visit the Underworld. In other words, for me, home." He continued on. 

Sir Nicholas was standing by black velvet drapes. 

"My dear friends," he greeted them, sounding mournful. "Welcome, welcome. So pleased that you could come."

"Thank you for inviting us, Nick," Nico said. 

"You do not need to thank me. Please, head on in." Nico nodded and led the other three into the room. 

The room was filled with hundreds of ghosts, all of which floated about the room. Some were on the dance floor, dancing together, while others were on the sidelines, talking to each other. There was music that sounded like nails on a chalkboard, which was coming from the orchestra that was playing musical saws on a black-draped platform. There was a chandelier that was filled with black candles alight with green fire, which cast a ghostly green glow about the place. It was so cold that the other's breaths were visible in front of them. 

Nico could have easily blended in as a ghost if he wished.

"No walking through anyone if you can help it," he whispered to Harry, Ron and Hermione.

They set off around the edge of the dancefloor. Ghosts greeted Nico, and enquired about Harry, Ron and Hermione. Nico introduced them, talked to the ghosts for a bit, before setting off again.

"Oh, no," Hermione whispered.

"What is it?" Harry asked. 

"It's Moaning Myrtle," she explained.

"Who?" 

"Myrtle, she haunts one of the girl's bathrooms. She's been rather easily upset this year for some reason, so the bathroom is nearly always out of order," Hermione explained.

They found the food. The stuff that people could eat was on a separate plate from the food left for the ghosts to phase through. It was in perfect condition.

"I asked the house elves to send some of the food for the feast here, just as you asked," Sir Nicholas explained. Nico smiled.

"Thank you, Nick." One of the ghost guests went through a plate of salmon.

"So... Can they taste it if they do that?" Harry asked. 

"Barely. We let it rot so that it has a stronger flavor," Nick explained. Nico helped himself to some non-moldy food. His friends followed suit.

"That's interesting," Hermione commented. She seemed unsure of herself. If it was because she was only one of four living people in the room... Yeah, Nico could understand that. He'd been like that when he'd first went down to the Underworld.

Ghosts continued to come up to them, talking to Nico. He fulfilled his duties that he'd literally stolen from Minos, which the ghost probably wouldn't have come to this Deathday party if he was invited.

Peeves appeared in front of them.

"Nibbles?" He asked. Nico sighed, done with the poltergeist and his antics.

"No thank you, Peeves. Now could you please leave us alone." Nico phrased it as an order, so that the being had to leave them alone.

"You could do so much with that sort of power over Peeves," Ron said, in awe. Nico shrugged.

"Maybe."

"How are you not cold? Or grossed out by the smell?" 

"I'm used to it. As a son of Hades, I'm able to be in colder temperatures as long as they're not too cold that I'll freeze. Besides, I spent most of my time between Bianca's death and the battle of the Labyrinth in the Underworld, so I've grown used to it."

"Oh. Right."

They stayed by the food that they could eat, which, thankfully, had been placed farther away from the moldy food meant for the ghosts. 

A group of ghosts appeared on horses. Nico sighed.

"Headless Hunt. Nick wants to join, but they haven't replied to me yet. I'm going to go see if I can get their leader to talk to me. Stay here, okay?" His friends nodded.

Turns out, he didn't have to go over.

The leader, Sir Patrick, walked over to Nick and talked to him.

"Live 'uns!" He exclaimed.

"Sir Patrick, right?" Nico asked.

"Yes, that's me! Heard of me, eh?" Nico nodded.

"Yes, I have. I'm Nico di Angelo, son of Hades," he said. The ghost paled - if that was even possible, as he was already like that.

"I didn't think-"

"I would like to arrange for a time to talk to you about that one particular thing," Nico said. His voice left no room for arguing.

"Yes, of course. When do you want to talk?"

"Saturday, after breakfast. I expect to see you there." He raised an eyebrow.

"Of course, of course. I can do that," the ghost muttered. he went to go talk to some other ghosts.

"You didn't have to do that," Nick said. 

"I did. I'd like you to be there, too, by the way." Nick nodded.

"Of course," he said. 

Nick went to make his speech, but the Headless Hunt... Were being stupid. Nico decided that it would be best to go, so when Nick made his way back over, Nico apologized for having to leave so early and left with his friends.

They were going to go to the Great Hall, but Nico and Harry froze. Nico could feel that presence in the walls, the one that Harry could hear. They looked at each other and started to follow the sound.

They ended up on the second floor before the thing left, back to wherever it came from. Hermione and Ron were confused. 

They rounded the corner, only to be stopped by a giant puddle and words on the wall. 

The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of heir, beware.

People pooled into the hallway only to see the four of them standing there, in front of the writing on the wall and what appeared to be... Mrs Norris. So she wouldn't be getting anyone into trouble any time soon, seeing as she was as still as a statue before the ones in Manhattan turned out to be automatons. 

"Mudbloods beware!" Barlow crowed in obvious delight. 

"My cat!"