Demigods at Hogwarts

Chapter Twenty-Two: Annabeth Chase

My last cliffhanger was GOLD, don't you agree, Hazel?

Nevermind.

I know I didn't up date in a while; I had writer's block. On a happier note, I'M HOME FROM TURKEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, I have so much planned for our dear Annabeth and company, like, say... Ya know what? I'm not gonna tell you!

Warning: This chapter might be upsetting for some, as it includes a prophecy, dreams of Tartarus, Frank's firewood burning, Leo fainting, and Nico completely unaware of his boyfriend's arrival.

So, enjoy!

~Annabeth~

That night, I had my worst dream yet.

It started where all my dreams started: in Tartarus.

Percy and I were back to back, facing down a horde of monsters. Percy clasped my hand.

Then the dream strayed from usual.

Two voices echoed in my mind, raspy whispers of ancient words.

One kind of, shone murky blue-gray, like the water after a thunderstorm. I know you can't see voices, but this wrapped around my mind like a deadly fog.

The other, misty green, spun and coiled into the shape of a snake.

The blue one started to speak.

When a time comes of the exchange of the descendants and casters, the descendants shall not reveal themselves, but the casters will not be their enemies. The half-blood caster will take the form of a giant, and her father will bring forth an army greater than those known before. But of descendants and casters, neither can win while one is defeated. To set the sands spinning again, a blood sacrifice will be needed.

The blue voice vanished and I was torn out of the dream.

"Annabeth!" Percy hissed. I sat up.

"Hmm?" I said sleepily.

"Demigod meeting. Come on!"

Everyone was gathered in the common room. Nico was shuddering in front of the fire, and Frank was alternately eating ambrosia and yelping at small noises.

"Frank!" Hazel said in horror. "You'll burst into flames!"

Nico flinched as Reyna put a hand on his arm.

And Leo... I hadn't noticed before, but Leo was being violently sick into a bucket.

"What is going on?" I said. My knees buckled and I sank down to an awkward position, pulling Percy's hand down with me.

Ugh. I felt like the silly damsel in distress in a horror movie.

Piper was playing with her braid. Her lip was quivering.

"A bout of demigod dreams," Jason said. His eyes were bloodshot.

"It got Frank, Nico, Leo, Jason, Piper, and, from your position, you." Reyna stood up. "Nico needs help. He's not responding to anything I say. And Frank..." She trailed off.

Piper burst into tears.

The situation was absolute chaos. Leo had spilled into a dead faint on the floor, and Jason sat down with a thump.

"Reyna, Percy, and I are the only ones unaffected," Hazel mused. "What's the connection?"

"You didn't have the dreams?" I made my way to an armchair and collapsed into it.

"Nope," Hazel said. "Can everyone recount their dreams?"

Piper managed to describe her dream of falling far down, into a pit of monsters controlled by a giant.

Frank's dream had apparently been him slowly watching his firewood burn while he was jeered at by all of us. I winced.

Jason's dream was of him watching, unable to help, as a giant swept through ranks of sword-bearing legionnaires, killing them.

Leo had revived long enough to give the most horrible, worse than mine. A girl and a giant, standing together, as they murdered wizard and demigod alike.

I stumbled through my dreams, telling the lines of what could only be a prophecy.

Nico was still catatonic. He shuddered and bit his lip so hard he drew blood.

***

At lunch that day, only Leo and Nico were still in the hospital wing. Piper was making a great effort to be her normal happy self. She loaded everyone's plate with a mix of potatoes, mushrooms, eggplant, and red bell pepper covered in cheese.

"What is this?" Percy asked.

"It's guvech," Piper said indignantly. "It's very good. Frank, I gave you a portion without cheese."

I tasted it. It was great. "It's good," I said.

"Duh," Piper said. Her eyes were still red at the corners.

McGonagall walked up with Leo in tow and said, "If any of you would like to greet Miss Atlas and Mr. Solace, the train will be arriving in ten minutes."

We all burst out of the Great Hall. I felt a bit sorry for Nico, not being able to greet his boyfriend, but then I remembered that Will was a healer. If he couldn't help Nico, no one could.

Calypso was the first on the platform. She wore a denim jacket, a dark blue tank top, and white pants. Her face was red.

"Ugh!" she yelled, not even bothering to say hello. "Leo, I need you to set Will on fire!"

She kissed Leo and rounded on Will, who had descended the steps with a grin.

"Hi," Will said. His wrist had a bandage wrapped around it.

"Good, someone's polite," Piper grumbled.

Calypso rolled her eyes and went back to hugging Leo, who whimpered, "Ow. Ribs."

We explained about the nightmares, and Will promised to see what he could do. Then he raced up the steps to the infirmary.

Then I noticed that Reyna wasn't with us. As I turned to look for her, she appeared next to us. She shuffled her feet and looked down, like she was embarrassed. Praetor Reyna, embarrassed? I opened my mouth to ask her about it, but she nudged me in the ribs.

"Later," she mumbled.

And then Luna walked up to us, beaming, with a blonde woman in tow.

"Girls," Luna said. "This is the woman who will help us get ready for the Midnight Ball in a few days, Aphrodite."