SEA GREEN [PERCY JACKSON X HARRY POTTER]

#8

You might have been wondering why Percy was getting special treatment, and honestly, he was thinking that too.

Why had the Sorting Hat spoke openly to him, whereas it talked telepathically to the other students?

"Er... Hi?" Percy said awkwardly, causing a few students to come out of their state of shock and snicker.

"Sorry for invading your privacy in someway, but I think our conversation will be important to some," the Sorting Hat explained. "I hope you don't mind."

"Yeah... No worries," Percy assured, although he minded it a lot. He played with Riptide in its pen form in his hands, chewing his lip unsurely as he watched the various expressions that greeted him.

"Let's go through your memories, shall we?" the Sorting Hat said, not noticing how Percy grimaced.

"Sure... Let's do that," Percy said, clenching his teeth tightly.

It was silent as the Sorting Hat reviewed his memories, bring Percy to bite his tongue or dig his fingers into his skin as he tried to control his rage at the images of the Titans, Giants, Tartarus and Gaia that replayed in his mind.

Finally finished observing Percy's memories, the Sorting Hat gasped.

"No, no, no! Never in my life... How will I sort you?!" it shrieked, bringing Percy to unclench his teeth and rub his sweaty palms against his lap.

"Uh... If you didn't want to sort me, you could've just said so..." Percy said uneasily, looking to Annabeth. She seemed shock herself, not proving to be any help to Percy as she simply shrugged.

"No! Loyal, just like Hufflepuff! Brave, exactly like Gryffindor! Ambitious, perfect for Slytherin! Street-smart, made for Ravenclaw! Where will I put you?!" the Sorting Hat cried, its voice full of desperation.

Everyone around Percy was back in shock, their mouths hanging open and their eyes wide. Even the demigods, who had faced much weirder situations, looked surprised, too.

He wasn't sure, but he swore he had seen the faded face of Nico, lurking beneath the shadows near Katie, watching the scene that unfolded in front of him.

"Look, just choose a house for me."

The Sorting Hat grumbled. "B-but you've gone through so much! You have qualities that perfectly match the founders! The things you went through... Extraordinary! More than any other demi-"

"I'll stop you right there. Annabeth went through as much as me! Just put me in a house!" Percy argued, not liking the stares that were coming his way.

"Yes, yes, very well. Then your house is...."

Students and teachers alike leaned forward, eager to know the Sorting Hat's final decision.

After all, no normal kid could spend fifteen minutes with the Sorting Hat.

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

The Hufflepuff table erupted into cheers, roaring with applause. Percy glanced at Annabeth, noting the disappointed look she was wearing that probably reflected on his features too.

He sat next to Katie, the two of them looking around uncertainly, clearly not happy to be separated from the group and their new friends as Travis was sorted last and into Gryffindor. However, they were glad to have each other at the very least.

"Percy!" a voice whisper-shouted, bringing Percy's attention to the source of the sound.

He and Katie whipped their heads around, finding Nico standing behind Percy, leaving the shadows.

The few students that noticed Nico turned away uninterestedly, assuming that Nico had always been there, although they failed to recognise him. The majority of the students didn't even flinch, not paying attention to the new student that had appeared out of nowhere.

"What?" Percy questioned as Nico slid into the seat next to him.

"I have to leave soon, do you guys need anything?"

"I'm afraid we do, Mr di Angelo. In fact, I'll need all of you."

The three turned around instantly, their reflexes proving to be too good as Percy's hand was already grasping his pen, threatening to poke whoever had spoken to them, though the cheap plastic pen looked like it could barely hurt a fly.

"What do you need us for?" Nico demanded, his eyes narrowed. Perhaps the teacher in front of them had been a monster in disguise? Nevertheless, the three were ready to attack at any given moment.

"No need to fight, I've been a teacher at Hogwarts for as long as I can remember, you can ask the students, and they will confirm my statement. No Mist involved," McGonagall said, raising her eyebrows as if she were daring them to attack. The demigods exchanged looks, wondering how the woman in front of them had known about the Mist. "You will also find your other friends already outside the Great Hall waiting, so I suggest you hurry up."

Percy poked his head past McGonagall, her words proving to be true as Annabeth and Travis were outside the hall, whispering to each other. Annabeth looked up from her conversation with Travis and gestured for them to follow McGonagall.

"Fine," Katie grumbled, pushing herself up from the table, noticing Annabeth's actions. "We'll go."

"Where do you think she's taking us?"

Percy glanced at Annabeth as they followed McGonagall to her office. "Dunno. I don't think she's a monster though."

"I don't think she a monster though," Annabeth mocked him playfully. "I think you're forgetting a certain snake."

"That was years ago!" Percy scoffed. "She seemed nice, okay?"

"She was far from it," Annabeth shuddered.

McGonagall stopped outside the entrance to her office, bringing the demigods behind her to come to a halt.

She entered the office, sitting behind her desk. She left the demigods to stand, though they didn't complain.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," McGonagall started, a small smile resting on her face. Then, she cocked a brow. "I hope your ADHD won't cause trouble for me?"

"How do you know we're ADHD?"

"Demigods. Most of them have it."

Percy didn't know whether to be shocked or not. Exactly how many people knew about them?

"And you know because..." Percy sighed, already feeling tired of asking the question. Weren't them being demigods supposed to be kept a secret for the time being?

"I'm a demigod, of course. Named after my mother," McGonagall said proudly.

Annabeth's eyes widened. "You're a child of Athena?"

"Minerva," McGonagall corrected sternly. "But I will expect you to call me professor just like anyone else. Just because we are somewhat related does not change anything."

"Anyway," McGonagall continued, "I wanted to give you a different welcome speech. Knowing demigods, you guys won't be able to keep out of trouble."

The demigods listened to McGonagall talking about their education in Hogwarts, warning them that she would make sure troublemakers attended detention. She looked specifically to Percy and Travis, who both flashed her innocent smiles. They were to learn with the 8th years, covering the same topic and spells.

"But we've just started! We won't know the spells!" Percy protested.

"You'll find that magic will come almost naturally to you, as your parents are magicfolk, Perseus-"

"It's Percy. My dad's a god, not a wizard, so how is he counted as magic?"

McGonagall nodded. "The gods have the greatest magic of all. Their presence itself is magic. You all already have magic in your blood, and your demigod powers will add to your magic. You have nothing to worry about."

"Okay, may I ask why I'm here?" Nico asked, shifting on the spot uncomfortably.

McGonagall turned to him. "Mr di Angelo, I'm offering you to teach here in Hogwarts."