Chapter 19
The snow had almost completely melted and Percy was beyond confused.
Dear Harry,
You remember me writing to you about Mrs. Dodds? Well apparently she never existed. There's a new defense teacher, Professor Johnson. She seems really shaky so I don't think she'll last long. How is it over there? I hope you're not too bored without me.
Percy held the quill over his piece of parchment for a moment and narrowed his eyes at it for a moment before groaning and slamming the quill down on the table and taking new parchment.
"You started writing in Greek again?" Cedric asked calmly from his chair by the fire in the Hufflepuff common room where he was reading the assigned transfiguration pages.
"Yes." He growled.
"Why don't you take a break then?" The brown eyed boy put the book down and turned to look at the other. "Percy, you haven't stopped since Christmas. You're running yourself ragged."
Sea green eyes scanned the page again. Before it was rolled up again.
"Well, what do you suggest I do then cause I need to do something."
"I don't know, go hang out with the giant squid or something, I still have to read another chapter."
Percy sat there for a moment as his housemate returned to his homework. With a shrug, he got up and left the common room. As he walked towards the stairs to the entrance hall, he thought of his situation.
Literally every time he even mentioned Mrs. Dodds it was met with confusion. Every once in a while he'd try and spring a reference on one of his friends or classmates. It never worked. Honestly it would've started to make him feel like he'd finally lost it, gone off the deep end. If it weren't for the fact that he could see a faint glimmer of guilt in Annabeth's eyes when he brought it up. Then there was the slightly sad look his older friends shot him when they thought he wasn't looking.
The biggest tell however, was that Beckendorf slipped up.
Four nights earlier, the older Hufflepuff boy had been talking with Selina (who he had taken to some secret room on a date for Valentines day, seeing as Selina couldn't go to Hogsmead) about DADA when he mixed up Professor Johnson with Mrs. Dodds. The Slytherin girl had instantly corrected him with a warning look, glancing over at Percy who was pretending not to listen.
The black haired boy sighed as he crossed the grounds. He just wished his friends would be honest with him. He knew what he saw.
The black lake was calm. The water a smooth reflective surface. Percy sat by the water's edge for a moment before a slow smile spread across his face and he started taking his shoes and socks off. He also took off his sweater, leaving him in just jeans and a t-shirt. He made sure to keep his wand in hand, he didn't trust other kids not to come steal it.
With one last deep breath, he dove into the lake. The water was dark. Seemingly void of life.
The boy started as voices started speaking in his head and a bunch of fish and other water creatures swarmed him.
I must be going mad, he thought to himself.
Lord!
Lord!
My lord!
Realizing that the fish were talking to him was a shock to say the least. Enough for him to gasp and panic for the five seconds it took for him to realize that he wasn't drowning. Shooting back up to the surface, he floundered for a moment, trying to regain control of his breathing before he hyperventilated.
"Hey! You alright, Perce?" Luke called from the shade of a tree nearby. He was wearing a blue t-shirt matching his eyes and cargo shorts with flip flops, despite the fact that most students still often wore light sweaters even in the castle
"Uh, yeah. Yeah I'm fine. I just- yeah."
The third year Slytherin smirked and raised an eyebrow at the disoriented boy.
"Heads up! he yelled before running towards the lake, jumping in with a splash, despite Percy's cry of protest.
The blonde came up and shook his head almost violently to get the water out of his hair, spraying Percy in the process.
"Luke! Watch it!" Percy cried, half whining and half laughing.
"What, you don't like the water?" Luke asked in a teasing way before hitting the water with his hand in such a way that it soaked the other boy more than he already was.
Caught up with the water fight, all thoughts of Mrs. Dodds and the others keeping things from him flew from his mind.
<><><>
The rest of the school year seemed to pass quickly, between classes and studying for exams he didn't have much time to think of all the odd things happening. At the end of exams he was fairly confident that he did well, especially with Annabeth right next to him every time he entered the library, lecturing him on the importance of pronouncing spells correctly and what ingredients/plants had what properties.
She had distanced herself for a little while after the whole Mrs. Dodds thing that "never happened" but as Percy stopped vocally focusing on it things returned to normal. At the end of the year she, Cedric, the Twins, and Percy all grabbed a compartment together while their friends in older years got a different one.
Percy smiled faintly as he heard the typical shouting match between Oliver Wood and Marcus Flint out in the hall, as well as the familiar stumble of Tonks, another Hufflepuff, as she and Charlie Weasley (both in their sixth year) went to find their own compartment.
The five friends spent a pleasant train ride eating magical treats from the trolley and playing exploding snap. They exchanged information before getting changed, the black haired boy going to the washroom so they wouldn't all stare at his scars.
As the train started to slow, he stared out the window, knowing that Harry will be there waiting for him. However, as his eyes scanned the platform, they caught on a strange sight. Behind the crowd of families waiting eagerly for their children to arrive off the great scarlet steam engine, three old women sat side by side on a bench.
The one on the left was holding a basket of yarn, the one on the right was knitting a pair of socks, and the one in the middle held a pair of comically large scissors.
"I wonder who they're here to pick up." Percy mused aloud, gaining the attention of his friends.
Fred, George, and Cedric laughed as the smallest of them pointed out the old ladies but Annabeth let out a horrified gasp.
Despite the glass, Percy heard the sharp snip of those scissors cutting emerald green yarn.
"Percy," Annabeth snapped, "get on the platform and wait there while I go get Luke. Don't leave without us. We'll be right there."
"Wait, what? What's going on?!"
"We'll explain later, just wait on the platform." she ordered before turning to the other three. "Have a nice summer, hopefully I'll see you in September."
With that she swept out of the compartment, leaving the four boys to exchange perplexed looks.
Shrugging it off, they said goodbye to each other and exited the train. It didn't take long for Percy to find his little brother once everyone cleared away. He was accompanied by Binky as Aunt Minnie was still at Hogwarts. Looking around, he couldn't see Annabeth or Luke so he turned to Harry and the house elf.
"Come on, let's go home. I promise to tell you all about school over lunch." he said with a smile before the three of them disappeared with a crack that was lost amid the loud noises of families reunited and promises of communication between friends.
A few moments later, two blond children emerged from the smoke with a middle aged man in a wheel chair.
"Dammit Perce." Luke muttered.
"You're sure it was the fates you saw?" the man asked in urgent tones.
"Of course I'm sure, we watched them cut a string."
The man sighed.
"Well, we'll have to find him. Soon."
"He'll be staying with Professor McGonagall. He'll be safe." Luke said though he was partially trying to convince himself.
"For now maybe but you can't expect the boy to stay in one place all summer. We must be ready for when he emerges."
The children nodded and the man passed one more gaze around the train platform.
"Come, we must return to the others."
"Yes Chiron."
Luke turned back to search the crowd once more before turning away.
Stay safe Percy.