Demigods at Hogwarts | the rescue mission ✔

2| Demigods Reunited

Percy's POV

  I knocked on the door of Chiron's sleeping quarters. The wise centaur usually went to bed even earlier than I did, except when he was working on a project. I hoped that this was one of those times.

  A few minutes passed, and nobody answered or came out. I was about to leave when the door creaked open, revealing Chiron in his sleepwear—a faded and oversized Camp-Half-Blood T-shirt. As he rubbed his eyes with his hooves, I noticed he had a look of annoyance on his face. "What brings you to me at this hour, Percy?" he said, sounding exhausted and weary. I didn't blame him—I would be cranky if someone woke me up at 12:30 am.

  "Annabeth's missing, nightmares, help help HELP!" I blurted out, waving my hands in the air frantically. Chiron looked confused as I buried my face in my hands, trying to stop the tears that were threatening to roll down my face. I couldn't even remember the last time I had cried.

  Chiron signalled for me to stop talking. "I didn't quite get that," he said calmly, a concerned expression on his face. "Can you say it all again? Slowly?"

  I managed to pull myself together enough to explain everything thoroughly, down to the shape of the necklace the girl with the green eyes had been wearing. Unfortunately, my memory was fading, and the details of the dream were becoming blurier by the second.  After I had finished, Chiron stroked his beard, frowning. "Alas, this sounds like a serious situation. Either Annabeth has been magicked away by the gods, but that would be highly improbable, given the fact that they had already done that to you once. Or...."

  "Or what?" I asked anxiously.

  "You see, Percy, there is only another force in this world which could possibly overpower us. That force is mainly made out of good-willed souls, but a minority of them can cause much more harm than our monsters or Titans can." Chiron said as I detected a hint of reluctance in his voice. He didn't seem happy to share this information with me.

  I gulped. To me, there was nothing worse than Kronos and his army of Titans. To imagine a force that could easily outwit us...

  "What is it?" I asked, genuinely curious this time. "The force, I mean."

  Chiron sighed. "You must not tell anyone about the force, do you understand? It is a secret that not even the all-knowing gods know about. A secret that was bestowed upon me by an old friend of mine. On your mission, you must trust no one except Albus Dumbledore."

  I snorted. "Albus Dummydor?"

  Chiron looked at me sternly. "He is a man of great wisdom, Percy."

  I nodded, trying to look like I fully respected this Dummydor guy. "What force? What mission? Tell me!"

  Chiron sighed for the second time. "Call your friends—Nico, Thalia, Jason, Leo and Piper. They might want to listen in on this one."

+++

  "You will be going to Hogwarts, the school for witchcraft and wizardry in Britain," Chiron told us. "Based on what Percy described to me, Annabeth is being held there. By who, and why, I do not know. But what I do know is that Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster, is the only person you can trust. The demigod who kidnapped Annabeth is using concealing magic so strong that even Albus cannot track her down. It is entirely up to you to find them and bring Annabeth home safely.

  Your identity must be kept a secret, no matter what happens. If you manage to capture the Annabeth's kidnapper, interrgoate her for any information she might know. Albus suspects that she might be trying to harm a fourteen-year-old boy in his school as well, but you don't have to worry about that for now. Got it?"

  We were gathered around the Ping-Pong table in the Big House. Thalia, Nico, Leo, Piper and Jason had immediately rushed here after they had heard the news. In fact, the whole camp was up, mainly because Leo had accidentally set fire to the Hephaestus cabin when I shook him awake.

  "When do we leave to this so-called school of magic?" Thalia asked, a hint of contempt in her voice. I knew that her cool facade was only there to disguise her worry—she and Luke had been the ones to save Annabeth and bring her to Camp Half-Blood, and they were practically sisters.

  Chiron looked grim. "Today is the last day of August, and the school starts on the first day of September. Later, Hecate will come and give you the equipment you need. You do not need to be granted the ability to perform magic as magical blood already runs in your veins, stronger than any wizard. You leave for London tomorrow."