Collision (PJO/HP Crossover)

Chapter 29

Percy

Thankfully, Professor McGonagall canceled classes the next day since no one had gotten any sleep. Instead, most everyone slept through the day, Annabeth and I included. Using so much of my power last night had drained me, and by the time we got back to the Gryffindor dormitory, I could barely stand.

I vaguely remembered a conversation I'd had with Harry before I fell asleep. As we were all settling in bed (even though it was about 8:00 am), Harry said, "Percy, I'm—" it had sounded like he could barely speak. "I'm sorry for everything I did. I should have believed you. I shouldn't have done everything I did. You didn't deserve it. I'm sorry."

"It's fine," I had replied. "I would have reacted the same way."

He'd snorted. "Really?"

"Are you kidding? I would have gone crazy if I saw something that could be evidence of Gaea or Kronos returning."

"About that, you guys have certainly lived crazy lives. Going to the Underworld at twelve years old? Traveling through the Labyrinth? Fighting Kronos at sixteen, and Gaea at seventeen? I was seventeen when I fought Voldemort and defeated him, I can't imagine going through what you did at your age."

"Don't sell yourself short, Harry, I can't imagine doing any of the stuff you did."

"Well, that's because I'm a wizard and you're a demigod." He'd laughed. "That's still weird to say. There are Greek and Roman gods in our world, and I know two of their children."

"I know, it was a shock for me, too, when I found out." I'd yawned and the conversation drew to an end.

"Sleep well, Percy. And again, I'm sorry."

"And again, I don't blame you." And then I'd fallen asleep.

It was true, though. I didn't blame Harry for what he'd done. I understood completely. Of course, I wished he hadn't reacted the way he had, but I couldn't fault him for it. It was more or less what I would have done if our roles were reversed.

When I woke up at 4 o'clock in the afternoon, most everyone else was awake. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Annabeth were waiting for me when I went downstairs. When I came down, I saw that Annabeth was in the middle of telling them a story.

"So of course I have no idea where Percy is, and I'm in a room with Circe, and then I turn and see a cage of guinea pigs. Circe leaves and I go to see which one is Percy, and every single one of them starts to squeal, so I have to dump Hermes's vitamins in the cage and release all of them, including Edward Teach, son of Ares, whom you might know as Blackbeard."

"Ha ha, very funny, Annabeth," I said as I plopped down on the couch next to Annabeth, slinging my arm over her shoulders.

She continued with the story like I'd never come in. "So then I face this idiot," she jerked her thumb at me, "and he just goes 'Thanks . . . I'm really sorry.' " The group burst out laughing and I couldn't help but join in.

"Annabeth was just telling us more about all of your quests," Harry said. "She was in the middle of your second one."

"Continue," I said, excited for my wizard friends to hear about my real life.

So she did. Annabeth told them all about Grover's wonderful plan to pretend to be a lady cyclops, and how Clarisse almost ruined everything. Then she went on to recount Thalia's resurrection, the discovery of the di Angelo siblings and her capture (at which point I took over the story since she hadn't been there for any of it), and then the fight at Atlas's mountain and the revelation of Nico's father. Annabeth moved on to the discovery of the Labyrinth and Rachel Dare and Daedalus and the Battle of the Labyrinth.