Annabeth's POV

As soon as the start of the term banquet is over, Percy and I along with Frank and Hazel follow Ron and Hermione to the portrait of the fat lady while the rest stay behind for a bit longer.

"Password," she says.

"Devil's Snare," Hermione states clearly.

"Devils what now...?" Sadie asks.

Immediately Hermione starts to answer willingly or out of habit, I didn't know. "Devil's snare: a snake-like magical plant, it likes the dark and the damp-"

She's cut off by Sadie interrupting with, "Blah, blah, I got it, Ms. Wikipedia. You'll get along with my brother. You can tell him about the devil's snake and everything else."

"Snare," Hermione corrected. "Devil's Snare." She walks through the portrait hole while Carter glares at Sadie and walks in behind Hermione. Sadie rolls her eyes and follows after her brother. Once everyone is inside, Hermione leads the girls to the girl's dormitory, and I see Ron and harry

leading Percy and the other boys to the boy's dormitory.

I can never have a moment of peace. The moment my head hits the pillow I drift off into a place that seems like a forest. I scan my surroundings looking for immediate threats. I've almost concluded that the place was abandoned when I hear someone's footsteps. Instinctively, I hide behind a tree as I see a person move towards the clearing. I pause, waiting for the man to cross the clearing before I begin following him.

I quietly crawl towards him. Due to the light of the moon, I can see his silhouette is small and scrawny, not much taller than me. He rummages around in the bushes as if looking for something. After a while, he seems to become tired of the job, so he gives up and starts walking back to where he appeared. He is inches away from me when I suddenly hear a whooshing sound.

"Well, well. Someone seems a little impatient," a female voice speaks. I sharply intake a breath of air as I instantly recognize that it is the same voice I have heard in my nightmares of Tartarus. It's the primordial goddess of the night, Nyx.

"I wouldn't be here all night if someone would have helped," the man snaps, still shrouded in shadows. "I still don't understand why we need the stone. I feel that we are strong enough on our own."

"Puny magician, use your brain. Together the three of us can conquer all three realms!"

"But why do we need that upstart vol-"

Nyx stops him. "I sense the presence of a demigod... One who I have met before..."

I hold my breath as my brain cells go into overdrive trying to think of ways to escape. Both Nyx

and the man are staring at the tree I have been hiding behind. Suddenly, I hear a girl's voice calling out my name in the distance.

I wake up with a start. "Are you okay?" Hermione asks.

"Fine. It was just a nightmare, happens all the time with demigods, so there's no need to be worried," I explain.

"Alright. I'm used to it, thanks to Harry," she laughs lightly. "It's time for breakfast now, so hurry up! We're already running a bit late."

I glance around the dormitory, noting it is in fact deserted. "Just how late am I?" I ask slowly.

"Well, everyone else is almost halfway through breakfast?" she responds, looking guilty.

"What?! Why didn't you wake me up sooner!"

"I didn't have the heart to wake you up!" she raised her hands innocently, handing me my robes. After a marathon of dressing, we sprint towards the Great Hall.

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Hope you all enjoyed the first new chapter by SadieRubyKane and wavesofstars with a little bit of my editing! Tell us what you thought of it (I personally think they have much better storytelling skills than I do).

Oh, and don't forget! Don't forget to eat something blue for Percy today (it's his birthday if you were unaware).