Intertwined || Percabeth Hogwarts AU

Chapter 68

Defense Against the Dark Arts was easily Percy's favorite class.

It was the one he had the most fun in after all. Harry hadn't returned to teach this year and a small part of him felt guilty for wishing he did. Because that would mean Chiron would still be sick, bedridden at St. Mungo's. And he certainly did not wish for that. No one had been given any explanation as to why he was hospitalized, but when he returned, Chiron was in a wheelchair. The ever present grandfather smile on his face had dimmed much like the twinkle in his eyes.

But before Percy could ponder his teacher's wellbeing any further, he was forced to roll to the side to avoid a spell that would've definitely sent him to the infirmary. Despite that, he couldn't help but laugh. This was what he loved most about this class.

Dueling with Annabeth.

"Close one," Annabeth panted, tired but still smiling at him. "Don't make it too easy for me now."

"Oh, don't worry about that, Wise Girl," Percy returned with a grin, breathing just as heavily. "You haven't seen anything yet."

Percy stood up from where he was crouched and they circled each other, vying for the other's misstep. But, of course, there would be none. They were too familiar with this dance. That was how everyone else watching saw it too.

A dance.

A flirtatious one at that.

Each movement, each spell and counterspell they performed were executed with flawless measure. A crescendo rising and falling, never known to be static. The students should've gotten used to it by now, having seen these two duel over the years, but each was never like the last.

There was a lulling hum in the air as the class watched the two looking at each other, taking steps in a slow prowl, watching, studying each other once more. Percy wore his troublemaker smirk, his eyes shining as Annabeth matched his every move, baring a playful grin of her own.

"Confringo!"

Percy's destructive blasting curse forced Annabeth to jump back, cratering the ground where she once stood as debris and dust flew up. And they were off again, their magic clashing together in a way that would be hazardous if not for the protective ward around them whenever the two went at it.

Chiron made sure to never forget it after their third year. Poor kid didn't even see it coming.

"Stupefy!" Annabeth bellowed, snapping her wand at him.

The stunner shot towards him much faster than Percy expected, forcing him to dodge or else be rendered out of commission. She'd definitely been practicing at home. Looking up, Percy momentarily froze; there was something about her stance that was eerily familiar.

It was like Annabeth read his thoughts. "This remind you of anything, Seaweed Brain?"

Then beside the gorgeous form of his girlfriend, Percy saw the silhouette of a younger Annabeth. One with chubbier cheeks, princess curls tied back in a high pony that inevitably became low, and an unmatched curiosity in her gray eyes as she fired the same spell at him. The silhouette disappeared and he looked back at her sweaty and beautiful face, glowing gold from the sunlight streaming through the windows.

"Our first ever duel," Percy recalled, his lips twitching upward. "Second year."

Her smile told him he'd gotten the answer right.

"That was a while ago," he said wistfully.

She nodded. "It was."

"Hey, can you two go down memory lane some other time?" Clarrisse interrupted irritably from the sidelines. "Some of us have better things to do than listen to this."

A few laughs rose from the crowd as Percy gave her the middle finger. Her little temper tantrum was drowned out when Chiron laughed along. He was always the coolest teacher.

"Ready to go?" Annabeth asked, getting back into her stance.

"Always." Percy mimicked her motion and with a practiced flourish of his wand, he sent a devastating reductor curse straight for her. "Reducto!"

Annabeth's eyes widened as she scrambled to conjure a Protego Maxima. The silver shield was only partially formed when Percy's spell collided with it, the momentum forcing her to skid back against the far wall. She let out a choked gasp at the impact, pain flaring at the base of her spine, and thanked Merlin for the barrier softening the blow. That could've been a lot worse.

The sheer force behind Percy's spells never ceased to amaze her. Dueling her boyfriend always required her maximal effort and thensome, exhausting both her physical and magical reserves like nothing else, but she wouldn't have it any other way.

"You okay, 'Beth?" Percy called out, eyebrows furrowed in worry.

Annabeth tried to suppress a fond smile, but it won out. "Worry about yourself! Incarcerous!"

The magical ropes slithered toward Percy, ready to wrap around him like a bandolier of snakes. He was rather glad Annabeth didn't like snakes all that much despite being in Slytherin. Too slimy for his liking.

"Ventus!"

The wind charm battered the ropes away but Annabeth was quick to strike again.

"Rictusempra! Depulso!"

Percy deflected her spells, rippling the barrier dangerously, and smirked. The duel had been going on for a while now. Sweat ran down his face and his feet ached, and he was pretty sure he had strained a muscle that he couldn't feel just yet. And he loved every adrenaline pumping moment of it.

"Heads up, Seaweed Brain!"