Magic Meets Might

Chapter 13

Written by Moh (jasongrace567)

Harry Potter

            Harry missed Hogwarts now more than he thought he ever would. Admittedly, he should’ve been enjoying himself more during his first ever trip to America, but he just couldn’t bring himself to enjoy this when his accomplice was Percy Jackson instead of Ron and Hermione, like it always had been.

            He was relieved when Percy and him Disapparated outside of a hotel. With all his worrying and conflicted feelings, Harry had worried he’d end up Splinching one of them with his reckless Disapparation, and he knew Percy wouldn’t thank him if they left his leg behind. He’d never been very good at Apparition himself – that was Hermione’s area of expertise.

            “That,” said Percy, stuffing his fingers in his ears and wiggling them vigorously, “was a nightmare. Some warning would be nice, you know.”

            “You get used to it after a while,” Harry said. He understood how Percy felt right now; the sensation of being squeezed through an incredibly tight rubber tube still made Harry dizzy, and a bit light-headed. During his adventures with Ron and Hermione to hunt for Horcruxes, however, he’d finally gotten used to the awful sensation. He no longer felt the intense need to vomit after Apparating, which was a great accomplishment in itself, he thought.

            “Hang on,” Percy said, frowning at the map in his hands. He stared at it for a moment, looked up at the hotel they stood before, and groaned. “This isn’t it! We’re three streets away from where Simon and Ajax are staying.”

            Harry swore very loudly. Behind him, a pair of little old ladies gasped and gave him reproachful glares as they hurried away from him and Percy. Harry grabbed Percy’s arm in a tight grip, and muttered, “Hold on.”

            He squeezed his eyes shut, spun on the spot, and pulled Percy into the darkness with him. The rubber tube closed his ears, and sucked all the air from his lungs. Harry felt as though he were being folded into a box much, much too small for his body mass. He concentrated harder upon their destination, trying not to mess anything up.

            That was when it all went wrong.

            Something yanked Percy’s arm out of his grip suddenly. Something else ripped Harry off course, bringing him to a different destination than the one he’d been taking Percy and himself to.

            Harry gasped when he fell to his knees on plush, white carpet. He groaned and clutched his stomach, trying to stop his ears from ringing so much. Very slowly and unsteadily, Harry staggered to his feet and tried to figure out where he was.

            It looked like a hotel room, he realized. The furniture was mostly unused and pristinely clean. The drapes and walls were a very bland shade of beige. The whole room smelled like complimentary soap and window cleaner. He spun slowly on the spot, looking for Percy.

            “Percy?” he said, struggling to keep his lunch inside of him. “Hello?”

            “Ah, Harry,” said a silky smooth voice from behind him. It reminded him strangely of Lucius Malfoy, but this man’s voice was much deeper. Harry turned very slowly and drew his wand instantly when he saw who stood before him.

            The man had dark black hair, and electric blue eyes. His lips were turned up into a smirk that was much, much more sinister than anything Severus Snape could ever have pulled off in the seven years Harry had known him. He didn’t think any Death Eater could ever smirk the way this man smirked now.