Harry Potter and the Norse Gods

{27} Fiery Ruins

PERCY

The air was thick with smoke, the sky clouded and grey, with no sun in sight. I couldn't see more than a foot in front of me. Even Jason, who had only been on Annabeth's other side, was nothing more than a silhouette through the smog. 

I tightened my grip on Annabeth's hand, pulling her closer. Her nails dug into my palm as she gripped my hand even tighter. She looked at me, her eyes wide and momentarily full of fear and confusion before they hardened, turning to steel. 

I knew that look, and I had never been happier to see it. 

"What happened?" someone - Alex, I think - yelled. 

"Someone left the smoke machine on?" someone else - I was 99% sure this was Leo - yelled back. 

"Stay together," Annabeth commanded, "Grab onto each other - each other's hands, Leo, before you can say anything." 

"Your lack of faith in me is disheartening," he called back, "I would never go for such low-hanging fruit." 

"Come on, dummy," Calypso told him. 

Despite the fact I couldn't see her - or anyone aside from Annabeth, really - I knew she was rolling her eyes at him. 

Slowly but surely, everyone became more and more visible as we huddled together, Annabeth still gripping my left hand, and Will now holding my right. 

"It was a diversion," Storm started, her eyes cold with fury, "Gaia tricked us." 

"This feels like the time for an I-told-you-so," Nico muttered. 

"Maybe she was tricked too," Magnus suggested. 

"I'm not willing to give her the benefit of the doubt," Annabeth said darkly, the look in her eyes suggesting that she very much disagreed with her cousin, but wasn't yet willing to rule out the possibility entirely. 

Others weren't so subtle in their disagreement. Both Storm and Nico were glaring at Magnus, and I could feel the tension rising within the group. My skin prickled, but it wasn't from the stifling heat. Before anyone - namely Storm, Nico, and Magnus - could say anything to make the situation worse, I jumped in. 

"We can figure that out later," I declared, "For now, we need to focus on helping them." 

"Helping them? I can't even tell which direction the Burrow's in," Nico snapped. 

"Well, Storm's a huntress, right?" I suggested desperately, "You must know how to navigate in the dark." 

She looked at me, her eyes narrowed and expression unreadable, for several long moments before answering. 

"We used the wolves and constellations to find our way at night," she began, and my shoulders sagged. "But," she added slowly, "I have a... practised sense of direction." 

"So, you can point us in the right direction?" I asked hopefully. 

"I can make a guess," she answered, "An educated one, but unfortunately the school was kind of crap, so..." 

"Better than standing here," I determined, looking towards Annabeth. 

She nodded her agreement. 

"We'll follow your lead, Storm," she said. 

"Do we still have to hold hands?" she asked distastefully, "You people sweat a lot." 

"You people?" Leo asked incredulously from where he was standing next to her, "You're one of us too, you know? We adopted you. We do that sometimes."