Thanks for all the reviews, favorites, and follows. Warning this chapter stretches/tweaks cannon. If you don't like this, it won't really come up again in this story.

Chapter 3 – Departures and Arrivals

Percy glanced at the LED clock on the VHS, 3:17. His mom was curled up next to him, asleep on the couch. He thought she had drifted off at the start of "Finding Nemo." For his last night in New York, they had a movie marathon of all his favorites. Percy wished he could fall asleep too, but there were too many thoughts in his head. In a few hours, he would be on his way to a different country, a different world.

The last two days had passed by in a blur. He and his mom had crammed in as many fun things as they could: trips to the candy store, Percy's favorite burger restaurant, and of course Coney Island. He had also taken Poseidon's advice and Iris-messaged Chiron, Grover, and Annabeth not long after Hermes had left.

It had been great to talk to his friends again even if the news wasn't exactly good. Annabeth had said he might have even worse luck than Hercules. Gods, he certainly hoped not. Grover had wished him luck and reassured him that his mom would be okay. He had also told Percy to try not to be too mad at his father. It always amazed Percy how Grover seemed to know what he was feeling even better than Percy did himself. Unfortunately, it was going to be a while before he could talk to Grover again since his friend was following a new lead on his quest to find the Lost God of the Wild where apparently there was no Iris reception. Annabeth though had made him promise regular Iris messages on the weekends. "How else am I going to hear about all the Gothic architecture you'll get to see over there? Plus, someone has to make sure you stay out of trouble, Seaweed Brain," she had said. Percy would never admit it, but he was glad that Annabeth wanted to stay in touch.

His Iris-message with Chiron though had given him a lot to think about.

"I heard the news. I am sorry this happened to you," Chiron said grimly before Percy could even say anything.

"Did you know?" Percy tried not to sound like he was accusing Chiron, but he was getting tired of secrets, of people keeping things from him.

"No, but it does explain a few things," Chiron admitted.

"Does it have something to do with this top-secret prophecy about me?" Percy asked.

"I do not know, Percy. It might or it might not or it could be about a different one. But mainly it was regarding how quickly you developed your powers. I believe your magical core helped."

"Sure, keep not telling me things. Look how well that's turning out." Percy muttered.

"Percy. . ." Chiron started.

"I know, I know the gods won't let you. But, my father did mention that you could give me some advice about all this wizard stuff."

Chiron nodded, "I can do that. To begin with I think you may actually enjoy Hogwarts. I believe it will be a better fit for you than any normal, mortal school, and there should be fewer Greek monsters in that area." That sounded promising though it was hard for Percy to imagine actually enjoying any school even if it was a magic one. He also didn't like how Chiron had emphasized the word Greek. Like there might be other monsters running around trying to kill him.

"However, it will be even more important for you to not lose your temper and get into fights," Chiron warned in his sternest teacher voice. Unfortunately, Chiron knew that both were things Percy was likely to do from his time as Percy's Latin teacher at Yancy Academy. "And you must only use your sword in the direst of circumstances since wizards can see through the Mist about as well as you can. While some of your abilities can be explained away by accidental magic, a student using a glowing bronze sword cannot. Plus, unlike mortals, wizards can be hurt by Celestial Bronze, so promise me you will only use Riptide in the presence of a wizard in life and death situations and only if there is no other way."

"I promise, Chiron," though Percy really hoped he wouldn't be in any more of those. After this past summer, he was starting to get tired of people trying to kill him. Maybe Hogwarts would be a fresh start. No one would know who he was and hopefully then they wouldn't try to kill him.

"You probably have many more questions," Chiron said. "But I am not the best person to answer them. I am sure Dumbledore or another magic user would be more than happy to."

Percy had so many questions his head felt like it would burst, but one of them bothered him more than the others. And he couldn't ask a wizard this one. "Can you at least tell me what you know about Dumbledore? Both Hermes and Poseidon mentioned him by name. That just seems unusual, two gods bothering to pay attention to a mortal, and they both seem concerned about him for some reason. But, when I met him, he didn't seem bad?" Percy remembered the sadness in Dumbledore's eyes when he had mentioned Gabe hurting his mom, and the kindness he showed when he had given his mom the picture of Elizabeth. But, Percy had thought that Luke was a good guy too until Luke had almost killed him. He wasn't sure that he trusted his own judgement anymore.

Chiron sighed and swished his tail which usually was a sign that he was agitated. "From what I know of him, Albus Dumbledore is not bad, but he is one of if not the greatest wizard of the modern age and also one of the most intelligent."

No wonder Dumbledore had all those fancy titles after his name. "So that's why the gods are worried about him? Because he's powerful?"

"Yes and no," Chiron said cryptically. "Despite his power, he would not be a direct threat to the gods, at least not the Olympians, maybe a minor god. However, the gods do worry about what might happen to demigods if Dumbledore and the wizarding world in general ever found out about your existence, especially considering Dumbledore's ah previously close friendship with Gellert Grindelwald."

Percy frowned, "You're still not making sense Chiron."

"Gellert is the reason gods no longer have relations with wizarding-kind."

"Oh, that son of Apollo that Hermes mentioned."

Chiron nodded, but his eyes looked sad, like he had known Gellert. "He rose to power around 1940 and became one of the most powerful Dark wizards of all time. Gellert could be rather charismatic." Chiron smiled then like he was remembering a good memory, but the sadness quickly made it disappear. "He gained many followers both among magic users and demigods and most of those who were both. He wanted to reveal wizards and demigods to the mortals, so they could rule over the mortals as the superior beings." Percy wrinkled his nose in disgust at that idea. "As you can imagine all those wizards and demigods who thought that they were better than mortals flocked to him, and he amassed quite a formidable army with the combined strength of demigods and the magic of wizards. Gellert had also secretly allied himself with the sons of Hades who were leading the Axis powers at the time. While Gellert conquered the wizarding world, the Axis conquered the mortal."

"Wow, seems like the 40s was a bad time to be a demigod," Percy muttered. "And Dumbledore was involved in all of this?"

"No, Dumbledore and Gellert had a falling out many years before then. After the loss of Dumbledore's companionship, Gellert was never the same. In the end though, we secretly worked with a demigod-wizard who helped us coordinate our attacks with the European wizards and discretely targeted Gellert's demigod soldiers. The war ended when Dumbledore personally defeated Gellert in a duel that has become a legend."

Percy wondered if he would ever be able to do that. It would be like having to fight Grover or Annabeth. Even if they did disagree and end up on different sides, he knew part of him would always care about them. He didn't want to think about that, so instead he asked, "All that happened, and the wizards still don't know about demigods?"

Chiron shrugged, "I'm sure some of the old families who had ties to the Olympians might, but they know better than to say anything. As for Gellert's followers who knew the truth, the gods made it our top priority to silence them." Sometimes Percy forgot just how bloodthirsty and cutthroat his family could be. "In their defense, the gods wanted to make sure it would never happen again. We lost too many demigods from that conflict. The gods will never admit it, but they need you. Demigods are their strongest link to the mortal world."

"So Dumbledore. . ."

"Never knew," Chiron stated. "Most think Gellert never trusted him enough."

"But you don't?"

Chiron sighed for once looking older than even Dumbledore despite that Chiron hadn't aged in like a million years, "I like to think that Gellert never shared his heritage in an attempt to protect Dumbledore from the gods."

"The ancient laws?"

His mentor gave him a small smile. "I see you are learning. Yes, as long as Dumbledore was never directly involved, the gods could not touch him without dire consequences. I have never met Dumbledore, but I believe he brought out the best in Gellert while Gellert brought out the worst in him. After Gellert's defeat though, others have tried to discover the secret of his unstoppable warriors. You will quickly realize that physical prowess is not a strength of most wizards, and the success of Gellert's army did point out the usefulness of combining magic with soldiers skilled in combat. One of Gellert's favorite tactics was simply placing a powerful shield charm on demigods before they attacked the wizards. It unfortunately led to some Dark wizards doing terrible experiments on mortals because they thought Gellert had magically enhanced them somehow to make his super soldiers. Even Dumbledore started investigating Grindelwald's warriors in the 70s. Probably to give him an advantage in another war with a Dark wizard. Being smarter than most, he got closer than the gods would have liked, and that is why you must be careful around him. Sometimes the most dangerous people in the world are those that believe they are doing good."

A knock on the door woke Percy the next morning. He wasn't sure when he had drifted off, but a glance at the clock told him it was 9:00. It was too soon. He wasn't ready yet. His mom stretched and yawned beside him. "Go get ready, honey. I'll let him in and make some breakfast."

"Mom. . ." He didn't know what to say. There were too many words.

Somehow his mom managed a smile. She ran her fingers through his hair and then gave him a playful push off the couch, "I know Percy, Now, go on. It's rude to keep guests waiting."

As he headed to the bathroom, he heard his mom open the door and say, "Hello Professor Dumbledore, please come in. I'll have breakfast ready in a few minutes if you would like some."

Percy quickly showered and changed before dropping his packed bag in the living room and heading to the kitchen where he could hear his mom and Dumbledore talking. As soon as he walked into the tiny room, he had to pinch himself to make sure it wasn't some crazy dream. If he had thought Dumbledore's clothing choice was weird the last visit, he didn't know how to describe the electric blue robes and matching pointed hat complete with a tassel. It just didn't belong in their completely normal kitchen.

He took his seat at the table which was across from the one Dumbledore was comfortably sitting in with a few papers and one of those old-fashioned feather pens. His mom placed three plates on the table and sat in the chair next to Percy. Dumbledore carefully slid the papers and quill, that's what it was called, into his robes before those x-ray, blue eyes focused on him. Percy also studied Dumbledore, trying to match the wizard in front of him with what he knew from Chiron, but all he saw was a kind but weird old man. "Your mother says that you have chosen to attend Hogwarts?"

"Yes," Percy replied. He tried to not sound bitter, but it really hadn't been much of a choice, and he would rather not talk about it.

"And that you were encouraged by your father and uncle?" Dumbledore added. Percy just nodded as he shoved eggs into his mouth even though for once in his life he didn't feel much like eating. "As happy as I am to have you at Hogwarts, I want to make sure that you and your mother are both safe. Were you threatened?"

"We'll both be good as long as I go to Hogwarts, and it probably would be best if I left today," Percy answered as he buttered his toast, once again trying to avoid Dumbledore's eyes hopping he would get the hint and drop the subject.

"That is what your mother said as well, but you avoided my question, Percy," he could hear the concern in Dumbledore's voice. "If your family did threaten you, there are actions we can take. Please, you must tell me."

Percy finally met Dumbledore's gaze. After everything Chiron had said, he couldn't have Dumbledore snooping around the gods even if he was just trying to help. That would just get everyone killed or endanger his friends at Camp. "Just trust me on this, please. Any confrontation with my father's family will only make everything much worse. This is the best way, and both my mom and I will be safe."

"Very well," Dumbledore sounded resigned. "I believe you in this matter, but I hope one day you will in turn trust me with the full story." He pulled something silvery out of his pocket and handed it to his mom. "I would like you to take this, Sally. It is one of a pair of two-way mirrors. If you ever are in danger, simply say my name into it, and you will be able to contact me. I will do my best to help in any way that I can."

Percy starred at Dumbledore, stunned. A weight that he hadn't realized he had been carrying around was finally gone. This man was offering his mom protection, something Percy was extremely grateful for. "Thank you," his mom replied.

"And now since Percy will be going to Hogwarts, I would be happy to answer any questions you have," Dumbledore said with a smile that made his eyes twinkle.

His mom started asking questions first. Percy knew that she was trying to make their last meal together fun, so he played along. After a while it wasn't too hard because Hogwarts did sound extremely cool. How many schools had their own giant squid! Percy wondered if he could meet it. But by the time he was helping his mom clean the dishes, he was tired of pretending and the kitchen felt less lively than Hades' throne room. Finally, Dumbledore broke the tense quiet, "If you really want to leave with me today, Percy, we should leave soon. That way we can stop by Diagon Alley to purchase your supplies. I believe it will be best if you stay at Hogwarts until the term starts, so the faculty can help you catch up with the other second years."

Great, Percy thought, summer school. "Isn't that exciting dear," his mom said with a smile that only seemed a little forced as they moved to the living room. "You'll get to buy spell books and your very own magic wand soon."

The wand would definitely be cool. The books, not so much, unless they magically fixed his dyslexia. He still tried to smile for his mom though it came out more of a grimace, "Yeah, should be fun."

"Might I use your bathroom before we go?" Dumbledore asked.

"Oh yes. It's the first door on the right," his mom answered.

As soon as Dumbledore left, his mom hugged him so tight he thought his ribs would crack. "Promise me that you will at least give this place a chance. It sounds like it will be good for you."

"Yes, mom," he managed to croak out.

"And promise that you will try hard in your classes and at least try to stay out of trouble."

"Can't breathe," he gasped.

"Oh, sorry honey." His mom loosened her arms just enough, so his lungs weren't crushed.

"Of course, I'll try my best."

"And you'll write to me or IM every week?" she asked finally releasing him, so she could look him in the eyes.

"Yes, mom," Percy said not caring if he was the only one who wrote weekly letters to his mom. She nodded, finally satisfied.

"Oh, I almost forgot this," she reached into her bathrobe pocket and pulled out a check for $1500. "This is money for your school supplies, plus a little pocket money for the year. Don't worry about converting it. Professor Dumbledore said he would take you to a bank."

"Mom are you sure? This is a lot of money."

She gave it to him. "Yes, I'm sure. It might be more money upfront, but it's less than the tuition of the school I had signed you up for."

"Thanks," he tucked the check into his pocket and gave his mom another hug.

"I love you so much," she murmured.

"I love you too, mom."

They heard the bathroom door opening, and his mom let go. She quickly wiped her hands against her eyes, trying to hide her tears. "Please be careful, Percy," she whispered.

"I will," he replied.

Dumbledore re-entered the room, "Are you all ready, Percy?"

"Yes," he hoped he sounded braver than he felt. He reached to pick up his bag, but Dumbledore stopped him.

"I think we should make your luggage more travel friendly," Dumbledore pulled out his wand and pointed it at Percy's bag. It started shrinking right in front of his eyes.

Before Percy could completely panic, Dumbledore said, "Not to worry, nothing will be damaged, and I will return it to its normal size once we reach Hogwarts." With another wave of Dumbledore's wand Percy's duffle bag, now about the size of a wallet, floated in the air straight towards his hand, and he grabbed it. "There much better. Now, it is pocket size."

Dumbledore tucked his wand back into his robe and winked at Percy as he slid his bag into his pocket. "Now, that is taken care of, I believe it is time to depart. Goodbye, Sally and thank you for a delicious breakfast."

His mom nodded, clearly not trusting her voice anymore. Percy gave his mom one last hug and tried not to think about when he would be able to hug her again. Then he turned around and followed Dumbledore out of the door.

Neither of them spoke until the elevator door blocked Percy's view of his front door. "Thank you."

"For what, my boy?" Dumbledore asked in a light tone.

"For giving my mom that mirror and offering her protection. She shouldn't need it, but I feel better knowing that she has it," Percy replied.

"You are very welcome then," Dumbledore's voice was serious now. "No one should have to live in fear, especially of their family."

Percy didn't know what to say to that. It struck a little too close to recent experiences. "Regarding your father's family," Dumbledore ventured. Percy tensed wondering how he could possibly keep deflecting Dumbledore's probes. "Do you think they might know who your maternal grandfather is?"

"I don't know," Percy shrugged relaxing. "I don't think they knew about mom being Elizabeth's daughter until you came here, but some of them might have looked into it by now. If they do know though, they won't tell me. They never tell me anything." The elevator dinged as the doors opened on the ground floor. "Why?"

"Oh, I just thought with their obvious influence that they might have a better idea at who your grandfather is than I do," Dumbledore stated. "Is that why they want you to leave now? Because your mother is Elizabeth's daughter."

"Something like that." Percy knew he needed to change the subject away from the godly side of the family, so he asked, "How are we getting to England? Please say we aren't taking a plane."

"Not to worry," Dumbledore answered with a chuckle. "We will not be using muggle means of transportation. We will be using a wizarding one."

As they exited the apartment building a man across the street caught Percy's eye. He had black hair, tanned skin, a tropical shirt, and sea-green eyes, Percy's eyes. It was his father. Percy froze in shock. Poseidon was here on 2nd Avenue, right in front of his apartment. Poseidon acknowledged him with a nod. Before Percy could react, a large delivery truck drove past. When Percy could see the other side of the street again, his father was gone, but the scent of the sea lingered on the breeze.

Dumbledore turned back and looked at him in concern, "Is everything all right?"

"Yeah," Percy answered. "I thought I saw someone I knew, but I don't know him." Technically, it wasn't a lie since Percy still didn't really know his father, not in any way that mattered. He didn't know what to think of the sendoff either. Surely, it meant something that Poseidon had bothered to see him before he left. Then again all he did was nod. No 'Good-bye,' or 'Have a good school year,' or 'Sorry, son for sending you off to the other side of the world.'

They walked down 2nd Avenue and turned onto 72nd Street. Dumbledore got a few strange glances, but it was New York City, where you could see a clown, a drag queen, and someone dressed up as Spiderman all sharing a subway car. So blue robes weren't too far out there.

After they crossed 3rd Avenue, Dumbledore headed to one of the sketchy scaffoldings. This one had been up for as long as Percy could remember. Everyone usually just walked on the other side of the street., but Dumbledore walked right under it and towards a small space in between two buildings.

"Umm, where are we going?" Percy asked.

"To get our portkey of course," Dumbledore answered like it was the most reasonable thing in the world.

Before he could ask what in Hades' underpants was a portkey and why it was in the sketchiest part of the Upper Eastside, a man stepped out of the shadows. Percy wrapped his hand around Riptide in his pocket because this man definitely didn't seem normal. He was wearing a puke green sweatshirt with dress pants and rain boots and carried a clipboard. "Ah Professor Albus Dumbledore, right on time, I see," the strange man said with a huge grin. "I am Bryce Woodwin, and I will be managing your portkey today. I must say it is a pleasure to meet you in person, sir. No one in the office will believe me."

Dumbledore smiled kindly, "Thank you, Mr. Woodwin."

Mr. Woodwin's gaze fell to Percy, and he frowned and checked his clipboard. "I wasn't aware that you were traveling with someone, Professor."

"It was a last-minute change," Dumbledore calmly stated. "This is Perseus Jackson, and he will be attending Hogwarts."

"What Hogwarts and not Ilvermorny!" The man looked like a Yankee fan would if someone shouted 'Go Red Sox' right in front of them.

"Yes," Dumbledore said with a smile. He reached into his robes and pulled out a few papers. "I believe this is all the necessary paperwork including consent from his mother who is a descendant of a Hogwarts founder."

"I suppose you can be forgiven then young man if you have family ties to Hogwarts," Mr. Woodwin conceded with a wink at Percy. He took the papers from Dumbledore and examined them. "Well, everything seems in order then, Professor Dumbledore. I'll make sure the State Department gets these."

"That is much appreciated, Mr. Woodwin," Dumbledore stated. "Please tell them, I will be in touch to coordinate Percy's return for the holidays."

Assuming his uncle was over his temper tantrum by then, Percy mentally added.

"Of course, Professor." Mr. Woodwin jotted a few things down on his clipboard before looking back up at them. "Very well, off you go. Your portkey is right there." He pointed at an empty soda bottle in the alcove behind him. "It leaves in precisely 70 seconds. Safe travels and thank you for your visit to the United States of America. We hope to see you again soon."

Dumbledore walked over to the alcove and stood over the bottle. Percy looked from Dumbledore to Woodwin wondering if they both were insane. Then again, he had a pen that was actually a sword, so maybe this plastic bottle was more than it appeared to be. "A plastic bottle?"

"Yes," Dumbledore replied and motioned for Percy to join him. "It is necessary to use objects that would not draw the attention of muggles."

"So, what does it do?" Percy walked over and stood on the other side of the bottle.

"A portkey transports anyone who touches it to a predetermined destination," Dumbledore answered.

"Oh, that's pretty cool." Instant transportation would have been extremely helpful this past summer.

Percy glanced around, but nothing else seemed to be around except trash and an old refrigerator box a building over. It might have been his imagination, but it seemed like that refrigerator box was shaking, like there was something moving inside of it.

"Now, you just simply grab the bottle," Dumbledore instructed as he picked up the bottle and held the base in his right hand. "Do not try to let go until your feet hit the ground again."

Percy nodded and grasped the neck of the bottle. "Ten…nine…eight," Woodwin counted down to their departure, using an old pocket watch.

Percy heard a rustling noise, and his head snapped back to the refrigerator box. "Three…two…" He saw a big brown eye staring at him below a mop of brown hair. "One."

It was like Percy had been hooked behind his bellybutton and pulled forward. His feet left the ground, but he still felt the bottle in his hand. His surroundings became a whirl of color and the roar of wind. The closest thing Percy could compare it too was the pearls his father gave him to escape from the Underworld.

Suddenly, Percy's feet slammed into the ground, and the bottle fell from his hand as he struggled to regain his balance. It felt like he had just gotten off the world's craziest spinning ride.

"Are you alright?" Dumbledore asked.

Percy grinned, "Wow, that was fun! Can we go again?"

Dumbledore looked at him in surprise, "That is not the usual reaction for a first-time portkey traveler."

Percy shrugged, "What, I love thrill rides, the faster the better."

"I think you will adapt quite well then to most means of wizard transportation," Dumbledore chuckled. "May I be the first to welcome you, Mr. Jackson, to England."

The next chapter is already written, so it will be posted much sooner.