Harry Potter and the Greek Gods

{23} The Hunters of Artemis

PIPER'S POV

Because we were standing towards the back of the group, and everyone was preoccupied watching Umbridge and Hagrid with expressions varying from outright glee to untamed fury, I was the only one who noticed Thalia's arrival. 

She nodded at me with a slight smirk on her face from where she had her hand over Jason's mouth. She stepped back, motioning for us to follow her. I obeyed immediately, but Jason glanced back at the others before following. 

None of us spoke until we were well out of earshot from the rest of the group. 

"What are you doing here Thalia?" Jason asked, studying his sister closely.

Nothing looked off, but her mere presence here was worrying. 

"Wait a second." She replied, slipping between the trees with ease.

Jason and I exchanged nervous glances, but didn't say anything. 

A few moments later, we emerged in a clearing. It seemed like the Hunters had been here for a while, as they had tents set up and a small fire crackling in a pit. Several wolves were circling the area, eyeing us warily as we neared the camp. The Hunters themselves also seemed unusually wary of us. 

"What are you doing here?" Jason asked again.

"We need a safe place to stay for a little bit. Chiron suggested here." Thalia answered briskly, turning to face us. 

Her blue eyes were stormy and guarded, but they had an underlying tone of nervousness. 

"Why here?" I wondered, glancing around the camp and then looking away once I met the eyes of a particularly aggressive-looking Hunter. 

"There are magical wards on the boundaries like the ones at Camp Half-Blood." Thalia explained.

"Why didn't you just stay there?" Jason asked, "I mean, it's good to see you, but this is Europe. Aren't you guys based in the US?"

"We travel." Thalia shrugged, "And as for Camp Half-Blood, how well does that usually work? We don't know how long we'll need to stay, so it's better that we have our own space." 

"Why do you need a safe place?" I asked, concerned for their safety. 

Thalia glanced around and flicked her wrist, which seemed to be a nonverbal command for the Hunters to stop staring and get back to whatever they were doing. All except for the Hunter I had noticed before, who made a beeline straight for us, her wavy brown hair falling over her face as she did so. 

"Several Hunters have vanished over the past few weeks." Thalia replied, "We have no idea who's behind it, but they're ruthlessly effective. Usually we would have had Lady Artemis to help, but she's still busy dealing with Apollo on Olympus."

"Pompous twat who doesn't deserve her help." The other Hunter- having reached us- declared, before Thalia could do so. 

The daughter of Zeus nodded in agreement. 

"Who are you?" I asked, shifting slightly as I felt her piercing gaze land on me. 

"Storm." She replied shortly.

"I'm Piper." 

"I'm Jason."

"I know." 

When we stared at her in surprise, she shrugged it off.

"You're legends." 

"Storm is the reason we got permission to stay here." Thalia explained. 

"Wait, Dumbledore knows you're here?" I asked in surprise.

Storm rolled her eyes, a look of distaste flitting across her face. 

"Unfortunately." She muttered.

I frowned at that. There was clearly some sort of history there. Maybe they had known each other when they were younger? But that would make her... 

"You're a witch." I realised.

"I was. I guess I still am. I just haven't done magic in decades." 

I studied her more carefully now. She didn't seem like a witch. She looked younger than me, maybe fourteen or fifteen. She had light olive skin and grey eyes which were probably how she got her name and was wearing jeans, black boots, a white t-shirt with a faded image on it, and a leather jacket. She also had a quiver swung over her back, and although there wasn't a bow in sight, I had a sneaking suspicion that it was hidden in the bow-shaped charm on her necklace. 

If she had gone to Hogwarts in her youth like it seemed, her accent had either faded over time or she was remarkably good at hiding it. 

I glanced from her back to Thalia. 

"Why are you telling us this?" I questioned, wondering why they had chosen now to make themselves known.

"As a warning, I guess. I know you haven't had any contact with Chiron, and you should know about what's going on. It might be limited to the Hunters, but, I don't know, it feels like it's bigger than that." Thalia cautioned them. 

"We'll keep an eye out," Jason promised.

"Good. Now, get back to class before anyone notices you're gone. The last thing we need is someone poking around the forest." Thalia ordered. 

"Yes ma'am." I joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Thalia rolled her eyes playfully.

"Scram." She smiled for the first time. 

We bid her farewell and vanished back into the forest. I could feel the Hunters watching us as we left, even after the clearing was out of sight. If I looked carefully I could see the flashes of colour and subtle noises the hidden Hunters made. I wasn't sure if they were supposed to be watching us, in order to make sure we got back safely, or if they didn't trust us. 

It was only once we had slipped back into the crowd of students in the clearing- earning several pointed looks from some of the other demigods, who had clearly noticed our disappearance- that I felt them retreat back into the relative safety of the dense forest.

A/N: Finally. So, Storm will become kinda important later on, mostly in Book 2, and you'll learn more about her backstory then.