Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Percy Jackson.

Wow, done already with this first fics in this series. Halloween feels so long ago… and now it's the Ides of March. Once again, thanks to Mellie Erdmann for editing. ^^

Chapter Twenty-two: The Prophecy Comes True

Since the successful questers had returned and it was the summer solstice, it was a party to remember. Following camp tradition, the trio wore laurel wreaths on their heads at the big feast in their honor. Harry loved it: grapes, cheese, tomatoes, bread, barbeque, and more.

Once the feast was over Annabeth, Clarisse, and Harry led a procession down to the bonfire. There they got to burn the shrouds their cabins had made for them during their absence. Annabeth's was gray silk embroidered with owls. Clarisse's was red with a spear embroidered on it. Since Harry was the only demigod in Poseidon's cabin, the Hermes' cabin had made his shroud- green with a yellow lightning bolt on it.

As the moon rose Apollo's children led the sing-along and passed out s'mores. Annabeth and Clarisse were catching up with their half-siblings while Harry sat by himself, watching. Before they went to bed Dionysus made a lukewarm welcoming speech.

"Yes, yes, so the little brats didn't get themselves killed and now they'll have even bigger heads. Huzzah for that. In other announcements, there will be no canoe races this Saturday…"

So instead that Saturday Harry, Clarisse, Annabeth, and the Stoll brothers skipped stones across the lake and talked.

"How do your siblings feel about you fighting Ares?" Annabeth asked Clarisse curiously.

"Well," Clarisse smirked, "let's just say the number of challengers to being counselor has gone down to zero. I've definitely proven myself."

"No kidding," went Connor.

"Things were kind of chaotic while you were gone," Travis reported. "The cabins got into some fights once it got out about Zeus and Poseidon's fight."

"We heard," sighed Annabeth. "At least we got that sorted out."

"Yeah," agreed Harry. "Hopefully this upcoming school year will be quiet. I'm staying for that, by the way. I don't think I'd fit in, you know, in the Big Apple."

"Excellent," grinned the Stoll brothers. Connor commented, "We can further your pranking education."

Travis nodded, adding, "And maybe sleep over in Poseidon's cabin when ours gets a little too noisy? Eh, eh?"

"And I can give you some… help in learning how to use a sword," Clarisse volunteered.

"You need a lot more tutoring in ancient Greek, Hairball," Annabeth admitted. "But… I might be going to my dad's for the school year."

The others all stared at her in shock.

"I said might," she grumbled. "I could end up teaching Harry ancient Greek and history. So don't give me those looks!"

The others decided not to push the issue.

HPJHPJHPJ

Before Harry knew it, it was Fourth of July. As a British person, he didn't know if he was allowed to celebrate this particular holiday as it was essentially a celebration of Great Britain's impeding defeat and/or failure in retaining the thirteen colonies. In the end Harry decided 'when in Rome' and went down to the beach with everyone else.

Hephaestus' kids put on a spectacular fireworks display. From a barge anchored offshore missile-sized rockets were launched into the sky to explode. His friends, who had seen it in prior years, told Harry that the explosions would be so tightly scheduled that they would turn into moving displays of past events.

Harry sat on a blanket by himself. Sure, all his friends had offered a place with them and their respective half-siblings but Harry felt like being by himself. Lying down, Harry wished he had someone to have noticed his absence in his reality. Percy had his mom and Grover, but he had no one. No parents, no caring relatives, no friends. He was all alone.

Above him the display began: Heracles killing the Nemean lion, Artemis chasing the boar, George Washington (apparently a son of Athena) crossing the Delaware. The finale was a pair of giant Spartan warriors battling before bursting into a million sparks in dozens of colors. Harry stretched out and fell asleep under the stars. That made him feel like being insignificant was okay, was normal.

When he woke up to a cool, foggy morning Harry realized he was under a quartet of blankets- a grey one, a red one, and two patched brown ones. Sitting up, he smiled wistfully at the idea that he had to go to another world entirely to find a place where he belonged.

HPJHPJHPJ

Harry crossed down the days until his eleventh birthday. Two weeks after that, his physical body would turn twelve. In the meantime, he helped Annabeth and Clarisse hash out an alliance between their three cabins. Luke had backed out of allying Hermes' cabin with Athena to form the head of a new group, which was soon joined by Dionysus' twins and Aphrodite's kids. The remaining cabins were just waiting to see how this all played out before making any decisions.

Harry got even better at canoeing and started to get the hang of archery. He still avoided the climbing wall, though. One day, however, he climbed up to the roof of the Poseidon cabin. Staring up at the fluffy white clouds Harry found himself wondering about the prophecy he had received from the Oracle at the beginning of the summer, before his quest.

You shall go west, and face the god who turned.

He had certainly done that, going all the way across the USA and facing Ares about his betrayal with some help from Clarisse.

You shall find what was stolen, and see it safe returned.

Both the master bolt and the Helm of Darkness had been found and restored to their rightful owners. Harry half-wondered why nothing of Poseidon's had been stolen, unless maybe who had arranged for the thefts had also caused the switch between him and Percy.

You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.

As near as Harry could figure, this line still referred to Ares since the war god had acted friendly but had been only framing them.

And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end.

Harry couldn't shake the feeling that this line actually meant something he was supposed to do in his world rather than Percy's.

Still, Harry's head kept aching on and off while he found himself looking over his shoulder. For what, he had no clue.

"Oi, Hairball! Sparring time!" Clarisse shouted up at him. Harry jumped down, saluting the older girl.

"Ready, blood brat."

Clarisse just shook her head and dragged him off to the arena despite Harry being perfectly willing to go fight with swords.

On Harry's birthday there was a chocolate cake up at the Big House. Teal balloons and streamers decorated the living room, and to Harry's surprise there was a cluster of presents on the coffee table. All the other cabin counselors were there: Katie, Clarisse, Annabeth, Lee, Beckendorf, Silena, Luke, and both Castor and Pollux. Chiron was supervising, and toasted Harry with his glass of root beer.

"To a brave mortal indeed."
The other counselors raised their glasses as well, making Harry blush. As they ate, Katie suggested, "We ought to decide what this summer's bead should be."

"It definitely has to involve their quest," Lee insisted. "I mean: To the Underworld, Three demigods went on a quest, To find Zeus' lightning."

"Again with the haikus?" sighed Beckendorf, a tall and solidly built African-American teenager. Lee just shrugged, clearly pleased with his poem. Then Beckendorf acknowledged, "But you're right- it should focus on the quest."

All the counselors except Annabeth, Clarisse, and Harry nodded their heads. Silena commented, "The bead itself should be black, to represent the Underworld."

"Good idea," agreed Beckendorf, glancing sidelong at the Aphrodite cabin counselor. As for Silena, she blushed at his approval, making Harry give Annabeth a confused look.

"A bronze trident for Poseidon?" asked Katie.

Harry grabbed a piece of paper and sketched his scar onto it. "No. A lightning bolt like this one- I have a scar like this on my real forehead."

"He kept drawing it on himself like a screwed up version of a security blanket," Clarisse confirmed. "But yeah, this was a quest to get back a lightning bolt. If Percy was really here, maybe a trident, but as it is…"

"Lightning," Annabeth backed up the other girl. "Bronze or gold?"

"Bronze, 'cause that's what our weapons are," Luke said firmly.

"So it is decided then?" asked Chiron to confirm this summer's bead's design. "A black bead with a bronze lightning bolt on it?"

"Yes," chorused the cabin counselors.

HPJHPJHPJ

Before Harry knew it, the final night of the summer camp session had arrived. Everyone had a final dinner together, burning part of their meals for the gods. At the bonfire, the cabin counselors awarded the end-of-summer beads. Chiron gave Harry his own leather necklace, complete with the bead they had previously decided on.

Luke declared, "The choice was unanimous. This bead commemorates the mortal with the son of the Sea God's power at this camp, the first fully mortal camper, and the quest he and his allies undertook into the darkest part of the Underworld to stop a war!"

All of Camp Half-Blood got to their feet and cheered. Annabeth and Clarisse were guided to the front so they could share in the applause. Harry turned bright pink from the attention, finding himself wanting to retreat to the background.

Tomorrow the number of campers would decrease drastically, but Harry would like the time to try to be a normal camper. After waking up early the next morning, Harry went down to the sword arena to practice more with Riptide. The sword still felt wrong in his hands; it was clearly intended for Percy Jackson, not Harry Potter. Everyone seemed to be inside, packing up and/or cleaning up for final inspections. Argus was hauling some fancy suitcases for the Aphrodite kids over the hill, where the camp's shuttle was waiting to take the summer demigods back home.

Luke was already training when Harry arrived, his gym bag at the edge of the stage. He was working alone, slicing off battle dummies' heads and jabbing their straw-stuffed shirts with a sword Harry didn't recognize. His orange T-shirt was dripping with sweat, and Luke's expression was intense like he was really in battle. Harry watched from the arena's outskirts as Luke disemboweled all the battle dummies in a row, reducing them to piles of straw and armor. Harry gulped, re-realizing just how good of a fighter Luke was. And Harry didn't even have a sword that felt right in his hands.

Quietly Harry approached with a mild, "Hi."

"Hey. Just doing some last-minute practice," Luke explained, lowering his sword.

"I noticed," Harry replied, eyeing Luke's sword. It was strange- one edge was bronze but the other was steel. Luke saw Harry looking.

"Oh, this? Yeah, new toy. This is Backbiter."

"Odd name."

Turning the blade so it glinted dangerously in the sunlight Luke told Harry, "One side is celestial bronze. The other is tempered steel. Works on mortals and immortals both."

Harry recollected that harming mortals ought to be avoided but instead commented, "I didn't know weapons like Backbiter existed."

"It's one of a kind," Luke acknowledged. As he slid Backbiter into its scabbard he offered, "Listen, I was going to look for you. What do you say we go down to the woods one last time, look for something to fight?"

Harry thought it over. Luke had been a little distant since he had returned from his quest, so maybe he was trying to make up for that. "Okay."

"Great, I got Cokes," Luke told him, tugging out a six-pack of the red cans from his gym bag. "So drinks are on me."

Together they went down to the woods and walked around looking for a monster to fight. But it was too hot, and most monsters must have been tucked away in their cool caves. Luke found a shady spot near the creek where Harry and Clarisse had fought during Capture the Flag. They sat on big rocks, drank their Cokes, and watched the creek gurgle by.

Out of the silence Luke asked a question. "You miss being on a quest?"

"With monsters attacking every day? Impending doom? Not really," Harry sighed. Then he amended, "But it was fun. You?"

A shadow crossed Luke's face, making him appear weary and angry. His blonde hair looked faded and grey in the light, and his facial scar seemed to deepen. Softly he told Harry, "I've lived here year-round since I was fourteen, since Thalia… well, you know. I trained and trained and trained. I never got to be a normal teenager, out there in the real world."

"Being normal isn't all it's cracked up to be- trust me, I know that from my time with the Dursleys."

Luke snorted. "Yeah, but I got one quest and when I got back it was all 'have a nice life'. The heck with laurel wreaths- I'm not going to end up like those dusty trophies in the Big House attic."

He crumpled his Coke can and threw it into the creek. That got Harry a little worried about how nymphs really disliked littering, but that wasn't the important thing right now. "Are you leaving camp?"

With a twisted smile Luke informed him, "Oh, I'm leaving, all right, Harry. I brought you down here to say good-bye."

He snapped his fingers. A small fire burned a hole in the ground at Harry's feet. Out crawled a glistening black scorpion the size of Harry's hand. When Harry reached for his pen Luke cautioned him, "I wouldn't. Pit scorpions can jump up to fifteen feet. Its stinger can pierce right through your clothes. You'll be dead in sixty seconds."

Harry felt cold as he figured it out- Luke was the betrayer from his prophecy. He asked in a distant voice, "Why? Why did you do it?"

The teenager stood up and brushed off his jeans calmly, the scorpion ignoring him. Its beady dark eyes were focused on Harry, clamping its pincers as it crawled onto his sneaker.

Luke said, "I saw a lot out there in the world. Didn't you feel it, Harry: the darkness gathering, the monsters growing stronger? Didn't you realize how useless it all is? All the heroics- being pawns of the gods. They should have been overthrown thousands of years ago, but they've hung on thanks to half-bloods. And you, you who should have known better, sided with them."

"Like destroying everything they've done will fix anything?" demanded Harry, not daring to move anything except his mouth.

"Please, their beloved Western Civilization is a disease. It's killing the world. The only way to stop it is to burn it to the ground, start over with something more honest."

"No."

His eyes flashed. "If I had time, Harry, I could explain. But I'm afraid you won't live that long."

Harry watched the scorpion climb onto his pants leg. He needed time. "You serve Kronos, don't you?"

The air chilled.

"You should be careful with names," Luke warned Harry.

The words spilled out of Harry as it all fell together. "Kronos got you to steal the master bolt and the helm of darkness. He spoke to you in your dreams."

"He spoke to you as well, Harry. You should have listened."

"He tricked you like he tried to trick me." When Luke opened his mouth, Harry overrode him. "How did you steal the items? Why didn't you just give them to Kronos?"

"I just snuck into the throne room and took them. The Olympians are so arrogant; they never dreamed someone would dare steal from them, so their security stank. I got halfway across New Jersey before the storms started rumbling from Zeus learning of the theft."

The scorpion was climbing up Harry's leg towards his knee but he ignored it as Luke continued his story.

"I- I got overconfident. Zeus sent his godly children to find the stolen bolt, and Ares caught me. I could have beaten him, but I wasn't careful enough. He disarmed me, took the items of power, threatened to return them to Mount Olympus, and burn me alive. Kronos stepped in then, told me what to say to convince Ares to hide the items while his father and uncle fought. I returned to Olympus before anyone noticed I was gone."

Luke gulped as he drew Backbiter and stared at the blade as if mesmerized. "The Lord of Titans punished me with nightmares afterwards. I swore not to fail again. He foretold your arrival and how you could be used."

Harry gave Luke a baleful stare, deliberately ignoring the scorpion on his knee. The burning anger at Luke's betrayal was even worse. Luke had sent the hellhound after him and must have cursed the shoes to drag him to Kronos.

"Thalia gave her life to protect yours and Annabeth's. Is this really how she would have wanted you to act?" questioned Harry.

Luke snarled at him, "Don't speak of her to me! Her death is one of the matters the gods will pay for. I must go- my lord is waiting, and he's got plenty of new quests for me to go on."

"Then go," spat out Harry, meeting Luke's eyes. "Just go."

Slashing his sword in an arc, Luke vanished in a ripple of darkness. Then the scorpion lunged, making Harry trip backward, throwing his left arm up as he used Riptide in the other to slice it in half.

Already feeling a bit woozy, Harry stared at his arm, which had a huge red welt. It was oozing and smoking with yellow goo. His vision blurred, as when he took off his glasses back when he was himself, and his body throbbed in pain. Stumbling, Harry made his way to the creek.

He tumbled into it, but the pain only got worse. Harry tried to think of a way to get back to camp before he collapsed and died- they had to know the truth. But he felt woozy when he stood, clinging to a nearby tree for support.

Curious nymphs emerged from their trees. Harry begged hoarsely, "Help me… please…"

Two took his arms, pulling him along out of the forest. Harry could barely realize that they had made it out, with Silena shouting for help and the sound of a conch horn. Seconds later, everything went black for him.

HPJHPJHPJ

When Harry woke up, he was drinking treacle flavored nectar. He was propped up in a bed in the sickroom of the Big House, his left arm wrapped up in bandages. Clarisse was standing guard in the corner, leaning on a new electric spear. Annabeth was the one holding the glass of nectar, sitting on a chair next to Harry's bed.

"You moron," she told him. "Harry, you were green and grey when we found you. If it wasn't for Chiron's skill at healing…"

Annabeth gulped and shared an anxious look with Clarisse. Harry didn't like the reminder of how close he had come to death.

"Now, now," Chiron said as he rolled into the room, back in his human disguise. "Percy's constitution deserves some of the credit. Or should I say Harry's?"

"Percy's; this is his body," shrugged Harry.

With a concerned smile Chiron asked, "How are you feeling?"

Harry thought it over. "I'm not dead."

Clarisse snorted in amusement at that. Chiron gave her a severe look. "That was pit scorpion venom. Now tell us, if you can, what exactly happened."

Harry told them between sips of nectar, taking the glass into his good hand. Afterwards, there was silence for a long time.

"I can't believe that Luke would, would…" Annabeth tripped over her words. Then her expression hardened. "Actually, yes I can. Curse him… he was never the same after his quest."

"This must be reported to Olympus," Chiron muttered. "I will go at once."

"We need to go after Luke. Let's go pack," demanded Clarisse.

"No," frowned Chiron. "We must not rush out for vengeance. We are unprepared, blast it all. Steps must be made to halt any more plots of the Crooked One."

Quietly Harry asked, "Is there a prophecy about Percy I'm going to have to do in his place?"

Chiron looked exhausted. "I cannot tell you, the gods have forbidden it. Knowing too much of your future is never a good thing."

"All right," went Harry quietly, aware he couldn't argue with that viewpoint. "So what can we do?"

"For now, I must report to Mount Olympus," sighed Chiron, rolling towards the door. "Later? You shall train, Harry Potter."

But before going he told Annabeth, "And, my dear… whenever you're ready, they're here."

"Who?" wondered Harry and Clarisse as the sounds of Chiron's wheelchair faded away.

Annabeth didn't meet their eyes for a while. "I'm going home for the year. When we got back, I wrote him a letter saying I was sorry and I'd come home for the school year if he still wanted me. He wrote back the same day he got the letter. I'm- we're going to see if my dad and I can work things out."

"You should," said Harry. "Because trust me, I'd give anything to have my parents back."

"You two won't get up to anything stupid while I'm gone, right?"

"Can we do stupid stuff if we team up with the Stoll brothers?" joked Clarisse.

"Trouble finds us rather than the other way around," grumbled Harry. "And can I leave this bed now?"

"That's not such a good idea…" began Annabeth but Clarisse overrode her. "He can use Maimer here as a cane. Hairball is a tough little guy."

Fighting the nausea Harry made his way to the front porch using the electric spear heavily, Clarisse and Annabeth at his side. Near Thalia's tree was a family: a woman, two small children, and a tall man with blonde hair. Harry guessed they would be Annabeth's dad, her stepmom, and her two little half-siblings

Clarisse punched her in the arm. "Let us come visit sometime if things get bumpy, all right?"

"All right," Annabeth agreed, rubbing her arm. "Next summer- even if we don't get a quest, let's go out and find Luke."

"I like that plan. But then, you always do have a good plan, huh, Annabeth?" snorted Clarisse. "See ya, bird brain."

"See ya, blood brat. Bye, Hairball," Annabeth said her good-byes. Then she walked up the hill to join her family. She gave her father an awkward hug, gave the valley one last look, touched Thalia's pine tree, and then let herself go down the other side of the hill to the mortal world.

Clarisse sighed heavily. "Capture the Flag is going to be so dull with so few players now…"

"Eh, we'll think of something to do until next summer," Harry grinned as he handed her back Maimer. "I mean, we are demigods, after all."

"We are, aren't we?"

"Yes, yes we are. Now come on, blood brat," Harry told her. "Let's start preparing for battle."

Preview for Harry Potter and the Sea of Monsters:

The past year has been surprisingly quiet for Harry Potter. So of course he uses this time to go find a sword that actually works for him. But when an ugly gang of cannibals decide to play a deadly game of dodgeball things get… ugly. And the unexpected arrival of his friend Clarisse brings more bad news: the magical borders that protect Camp Half-Blood have been poisoned by a mysterious enemy, and unless a cure is found, the only safe haven for demigods will be destroyed.

In the sequel to The Lightning Thief, Harry and his friends journey into the Sea of Monsters to save their camp. But first Harry must learn that the Greek gods might not be the only immortal players in this world…