Collision (PJO/HP Crossover)

Chapter 3

Percy

I stared at the two goddesses for a few moments, processing what they told me. I looked between the two of them, studying their faces for something saying, Psych! You totally fell for it. Witches and wizards, ha! As if they are real.

But no.

"Witches and wizards? Magic? Abracadabra? It's all real?" I asked, still wrapping my head around the concept.

"Yes," Hecate answered simply.

I tapped my foot, pondering that. Finally, I said, "Okay, so why didn't we know this before? They could have helped us in both wars, hell, they could have helped us rebuild Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter. Why am I just now learning this? And you expect me to tell everyone that and have them believe me?"

"No!" Hera hissed, startling me. "No one else must know. We have kept this secret hidden for eons, for the same reason that we kept Roman and Greek demigods separate. You fought against each other. We had to wipe everyone's memory and separate you. Only a select few demigods and wizards know of the other's existence. It has been our most closely guarded secret. You cannot tell anyone else, not even your little girlfriend, the daughter of Athena."

I sighed. It would be a hard secret to keep. I figured Annabeth would draw out the secret from me eventually, so when I had the chance I would tell her. Better sooner than later.

"Fine," I lied. "So why are you telling me, and why now?"

"Recent events have been brought to our attention. The two wars we went through—" my eye twitched when Hecate said "we" as if she'd been at the front lines fighting in both wars instead of killing only one giant—"and the war that the wizarding world just finished."

My brow furrowed. "They went through a war?"

"A nasty one, many people died," Hera said. "A wizard your age was forced into a similar position as yourself in your first war. But because of these wars, we have come to realize how powerful the two species are. We plan to send you to interact with the witches and wizards for some time. We hope that you can work together with the wizards and form a lasting alliance in case we need to join forces in the future."

My eyes narrowed. "You mean in case I need to join forces with them, along with the other demigods. Not you."

Hera returned my glare. "You are on thin ice, Perseus. You should watch yourself." My gaze didn't waver.

Hecate continued. "We have reason to believe you will work together well. The first witches and wizards were demigods, my children. At that time, the gifts we passed on to our children were much stronger than they are now. There weren't many monsters then so the witches and wizards weren't hunted much. They lived to adulthood and married and had children, passing on their magic. Several of them established schools of magic. The witches and wizards today are all my descendants, so we believe that you can work together.

"Of course, because there are not many direct descendants of me anymore, your blood is more godly than theirs. That is a blessing and a curse. Their magic will not affect you too much, no matter who your godly parent is. In turn, demigods are too godly to do their magic. That is why my children at your camp perform their magic the way they do, they don't need wands. The wizards use wands to channel their power. That is why my children can affect you with magic but the wizards will not be able to very well.

"For example," Hecate pulled an intricate-looking stick—a wand—from her sleeve, pointed it at me, and yelled, "Imperio!"

A burst of rainbow light shot toward me. I reached for Riptide but the spell was too fast and hit my head. Immediately, I felt disoriented and dizzy. I heard a voice in my mind, sounding like Hecate's, telling me to cap Riptide and throw it far away.