Halfway through October came their first Hogsmeade trip. Hogsmeade, as Percy had been told, was a village on the outskirts of Hogwarts.
Before allowing them to leave the castle Professor McGonagall had asked them for their signed consent forms if they wanted to visit Hogsmeade.
Percy had a vague image of him bursting in Mount Olympus and asking Poseidon to sign his form when Annabeth conjured three pieces of parchment from Dumbledore allowing them to visit.
Sleet was raining outside heavily and layers of snow covered the ground. Percy yearned for the s'mores and fire at camp half-blood where the weather could be magically altered.
At a day like this he would have preferred to stay indoors but they were to meet Grover near the woods.
"One day I'm gonna make four-dimensional- transparent- full length- sleet repelling-umbrella box" mumbled Leo as he walked occasionally melting snow in his way to make the passage clearer.
"I'm booking the order in advance" Percy said.
As they neared the woods which were just behind a haunted house (Annabeth said it was called the shrieking shack. Percy did not found that name any more admirable than the haunted house), they saw a something rolling towards them from the woods at a speed faster than a falling meteor.
"Why is a fur ball rolling towards us?" Percy asked.
"Hey, wait! The fur ball has a torso!" Leo said squinting.
"Don't be stupid. That's Grover running towards us but... he's not wearing his pants! How will we explain the goat fur to the wizards?" Annabeth said.
"Also, why is he running? We were told we have plenty of time to spend here" Leo said.
Now, Percy could easily make out Grover and he seemed to be screaming something. Something like.. 'Gee, pizza'? Percy had never been much of a lip-reader. Now, Grover was close enough for them to make out the panda on his Tee.
"Are you sure he's not going to run into us? Otherwise 'Leo Valdez, the seventeen year old - bad boy supreme dies as a screaming satyr ran into him' would be the latest headline. Hopefully, the authorities would take this hit-and-run case seriously" Leo said.
"Something's wrong. He's slowing up but still screaming. I can't make out the words" Annabeth said furiously.
As Grover ran at full speed dodging the trees in the woods like an obstacle race, Percy and Leo parted in case Grover's momentum left them spinning. He indeed ran past them but they were close enough to make out what he was screaming.
"CHIMERAAAAA", Grover was screaming.
"What?" Annabeth and Percy said simultaneously.
"Chimera- in the woods- near lake- told you- border weakening- greek monster", Grover tried to explained heaving all the time.
Percy's personal experience with Chimera five years back (which was at that time disguised as a chihuahua named Sonny) had been at Gateway Arch and had involved a 500 feet fall down into the river. Thank the Gods Percy was a son of Poseidon otherwise right now he would have been waiting for his underground trial in the palace of Hades.
"I hate it when monsters just don't stay dead" Percy groaned, "I already have fought minotaur twice"
"We'll have to fight him. At least for the safety of wizards." Annabeth said.
"As much as I want to run away, I think we have to fight it" Leo said.
"Right, and he's blowtorching the woods. No respect for wildlife! That guy has to die!" Grover said still recovering from his long run.
A daughter of Athena, a son of Hephaestus and a satyr agreeing on the same thing. Today was not Percy's day. He fished out riptide and uncapped it. It cast an unusual glow in the receding sleet. "Let's go kill this blowtorching butt" he said.
YOU ARE READING
SON OF MAGIC
ФанфикAfter fighting a bloody war with Gaea, the demigods at camp half blood get issued a prophecy asking them to bring back a son of Hecate who was mistakenly taken by the ministry of magic to be a wizard. Their time at Hogwarts is full packed as their p...
