Omens on the Road
Sirius pulled his motorcycle into a service station halfway down the road, where they stopped to grab something to eat. It was one of those places where buses full of passengers stopped constantly to rest, so they sold all kinds of things. Among them were hot dogs, which the three of them ordered, before sitting down on one of the benches outside the store, watching a bus that had just arrived as people poured out in numbers, rushing to the bathroom or to buy food, just like they had.
“So,” Sirius said as he took a bite of his hot dog. “What exactly is that so-called Half-Blood Camp? Is it something like a camp for the children of Muggles and wizards?” he asked.
Harry and Percy, who still had mustard on his cheek, looked at each other for a moment, realizing that Sirius did not even know where he was taking them.
“Didn’t Mom tell you?” Harry asked, looking at his godfather with a slightly surprised expression.
“Well… I think she did, but I was a bit distracted,” Sirius said without a hint of shame.
“Distracted by what, that you missed something so important?” Percy said, rolling his eyes while chewing his hot dog.
“Your godmother,” Sirius replied.
That immediately earned him a look from both boys, with a hint of suspicion and amusement.
“No. It’s what you’re thinking. I mean, yeah, she’s very sex— beautiful. Way too much, honestly. But… don’t you feel absolute terror being near her? Not even when I was face to face with… that guy… did I feel that much fear. So she walked into the room and I couldn’t help getting distracted, trying to figure out how to escape,” Sirius said, letting out a forced laugh.
Harry and Percy looked at him, confused.
“Aunt Mor just feels like Aunt Mor,” Percy said casually.
“She only gets scary when she’s mad at Percy,” Harry added.
“Oh. Well… yeah, that’s true. She’s scary,” Percy said, nodding quickly.
Sirius looked at them and let out an amused smile. “I suppose that’s fine, then. She is your godmother, after all.”
“According to Grover, Half-Blood Camp is a place where demigods train to become stronger and protect themselves from monsters,” Harry explained seriously.
“Mom said we have to go there because Europe isn’t safe for the two of us right now. Because we’re demigods,” Percy added, still chewing his hot dog.
Sirius listened while nodding. “I see… demigods,” he said, as if he understood, though his look suggested he was more like playing along. “Still, it’s true that England isn’t safe for you right now, so it’s fine if you have some fun around here,” he added.
Harry rolled his eyes at his godfather, who very clearly did not believe them at all.
“Alright. Anyway, as long as you have fun and don’t get into trouble… again… that’s what matters most,” Sirius said before tossing the last piece of hot dog into his mouth and chewing quickly. “So, now that we’re full, we can keep moving,” he added as he stood up.
Harry nodded seriously while quickly eating what remained of his hot dog. Even though he was a bit more worried about traveling as fast as possible, since the Knights were not there to protect them, hunger won out.
Percy already had his mouth full, so he could only nod as the two of them followed Sirius toward the motorcycle parked not far away.
When they got on, Harry and Percy felt several gazes on them for a brief moment, so they turned in that direction. There, across the street, they saw what looked like three old women, with a basket full of yarn, knitting what seemed to be a sock for a giant. Maybe someone like Hagrid could use it. One of them held a pair of enormous golden scissors, which she lifted gently before cutting the thread with a single motion. The sound was so clear that even Harry and Percy felt like they heard it echo inside their ears.
And for some reason, it gave them a very bad feeling.
Sirius noticed they were not putting on their helmets. “What’s wrong?” he asked, before looking in the same direction.
Just then, a bus passed by, and when it finished crossing, there was nothing on the other side.
“Uh… no, nothing,” Harry said, looking at the spot where the women had disappeared. “Maybe they were witches from around here,” he added.
“I see. It’s normal for witches and wizards in this country to hide themselves even more than in ours. Their laws are much stricter when it comes to the Statute of Magical Secrecy,” Sirius said as he picked up their helmets and placed them on their heads. “They even forbid wizards from marrying Muggles or having any kind of communication with them,” he added.
Harry looked at Sirius. “Isn’t that how everything got worse in England? With the Death Eaters?” he asked, knowing the history thanks to Hermione, who loved to read.
“Yes, but it’s different at the same time. At least over here they’re not a bunch of deranged psychopaths and terrorists obsessed with blood purity. Here, it’s more about fear. About what happened in Salem and all that,” Sirius said with a look full of contempt.
“What happened in Salem?” Harry asked with interest.
“That… well, this isn’t the time for such a long story,” Sirius said with a slightly forced smile before putting on his own helmet. “If you have time, you can look up a book on magical history in the United States. Even if their magical history isn’t as old as Europe’s, they still have plenty of interesting things to learn,” he added.
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“I didn’t take you for the type who likes learning,” Percy said in a slightly teasing tone.
“When you’re trying to win over girls, looking smart sometimes works really well,” Sirius replied with a grin before starting the motorcycle and getting back on the road.
…
The motorcycle ride was fairly calm, the wind hitting them gently from the front. Sirius drove with a smile, enjoying the moment. Percy pulled out a small lunchbox his mother had prepared and calmly ate some blue gummies, humming softly to himself.
The only one who seemed more serious was Harry, who kept watch over the surroundings, constantly on guard, gripping the seat in front of Percy tightly.
Percy noticed and turned slightly, lifting the visor of his helmet to look at his brother. “You should relax a bit more, Harry, and enjoy the ride,” he said, seeing how tense he was.
“No… mmm… it’s just that those women left me with a bad feeling,” Harry said, unable to properly explain what he felt.
Percy remembered the three old women and could not help feeling the same unease for a brief moment, but he quickly shook his head, as if trying to brush it off.
“You worry too much, it’s not like— mmm”, Percy suddenly shut his mouth as he tilted his head slightly, as if searching for something. “Do you hear that?” he asked abruptly.
Harry frowned. “Hear wha—”, but before he could finish the sentence, the sound Percy had noticed became impossible to ignore.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The noise came from the side of the road, so both of them turned their heads in that direction.
The treetops split open toward them, violently and at an alarming speed.
Then, from deep within the forest, something completely black leapt straight onto the road, charging directly at them.
“Graaaargh!” the creature roared as it lunged, clearly aiming for Harry and Percy.
Sirius, who was driving, turned his head and widened his eyes in brief surprise, but pure reflex took over and he accelerated the motorcycle. The engine roared louder as they narrowly avoided the beast, though it still managed to strike the rear end, throwing the bike off balance for a moment and causing sharp screeches against the asphalt and a brief loss of control.
“Aaah!” Harry and Percy screamed, while Sirius twisted the handlebars sharply to stabilize them, something he managed thanks to sheer experience.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
The pounding sounds returned, and all three looked back. That massive thing was chasing them.
Now they could see it clearly.
It was a gigantic black bull, even larger than Hagrid, its body packed with pure muscle. Its ruby-red eyes burned with bloodlust, steam-like vapor pouring from its nostrils with every breath. Two razor-sharp horns jutted forward, easily capable of piercing metal, as it charged on all fours straight at them.
“What the hell— a minotaur? Those things actually exist?” Sirius said, recognizing the shape as he pushed the motorcycle to its maximum speed and quickly pressed a button near the center. “Tsk, that thing broke flight mode,” he added with a scowl, pulling his wand from his pocket without slowing down.
But the beast was nearly as fast as the motorcycle at full speed, if not faster. It kept closing the distance, slowly but relentlessly.
Percy touched his pendant, and a silver sword burst forth from it, while Harry frantically dug through his bag for his magic tome.
“Stay still,” Sirius told them sharply as he twisted slightly and fired several spells at the creature. They bounced off its hide. “Fuck, its skin is tougher than a troll’s,” he growled, then aimed his wand at the road beneath them as the motorcycle sped forward.
The asphalt began to warp, and chains erupted from the ground, swirling around the minotaur as it charged after them. They shattered like plastic under its strength, but they were not entirely useless. Each new chain slowed it just a little. Eventually, the entire beast was wrapped in chains, holding it in place for a brief moment, even as they kept exploding with every violent movement it made.
Sirius took advantage of that opening and sped away at full throttle.
His expression was caught somewhere between shock and grim focus as he looked at the boys. “Are you okay?” he asked quickly.
Both nodded, though they were still reeling from how violent the attack had been. Even the troll back at Hogwarts felt almost harmless compared to that rampaging minotaur.
Sirius could not help glancing at them several times, thinking about what they had said earlier, but he decided this was not the moment for that. At least not until they were somewhere safer.
“Well, that was really surpris—”, before Sirius could finish the sentence, his gaze snapped forward.
A massive black dog, nearly the size of a grizzly bear, was charging straight at them.
“Oh, fuck,” Sirius muttered as he yanked the handlebars, the motorcycle skidding slightly while he pointed his wand at the ground.
“Levanto!” he shouted.
A section of the road shot upward, forming a small wall in front of them.
It did not help much.
The wall exploded into fragments as the enormous dog smashed straight through it without slowing down or showing any sign of pain.
Sirius cast another spell immediately. “Converto!” he shouted.
The rocks still suspended in the air around the beast rapidly transformed into serpents, lions, badgers, and eagles, a clear manifestation of Hogwarts’ animals. They lunged at the creature from every direction.
But Sirius realized almost instantly that, aside from distracting it slightly, they were doing no real damage. Claws, beaks, and fangs shattered upon impact with its hide.
Then, once again, the sound of heavy footsteps thundered behind them.
The minotaur reappeared, now fully visible, charging on all fours like a maddened bull.
“Great. Just great,” Sirius muttered as he jumped from the motorcycle and grabbed both boys from the sidecar. “Get ready for an emergency Apparition,” he said immediately.
But it was not necessary.
Sirius heard the sound of a car approaching, just behind the dog that was tearing apart the transfigured animals, and recognized the people inside.
A silver flash shot past them at full speed, straight toward the minotaur.
A massive explosion echoed behind them, and when they turned, they saw the minotaur being blasted through the air.
There stood a woman clad in fully silver, feminine knight armor, designed for swift movement. In her hand was a blade so thin it was clearly a rapier. She stood firm as the wind tugged at her blond-silver hair slipping free from beneath her helmet.
At the same time, a man in full armor wielding a massive sword crashed down onto the enormous dog, cracking the ground beneath the impact. The blade did not pierce it, but the beast roared in pain from the sheer force. Before it could react, it was smashed sideways by a shield held in his other hand. The shield, along with the rest of his armor, flared brightly for a moment before sending the creature flying several meters away.
It was Adrien.
He looked at Sirius with faint irritation in his expression. “I believe Sally told you very clearly that you were supposed to wait for us. I am not convinced that taking the children through unfamiliar territory was the most responsible decision,” he said with disapproval.
He glanced at Harry and Percy, still held under Sirius’ arms, and after seeing that they were unharmed, he gave them a brief nod before turning to face the massive dog.
Meanwhile, from inside the car, Harry and Percy could make out Grover sitting in the back seat, visibly nervous and confused.
“Lady Elara, I will inform the others to move toward our position,” Adrien said as he readied his sword to face the beast, while at the same time touching an object on his chest that looked like a medallion.
“Hm… though they might arrive too late to join the fun,” Elara replied, her gaze locked onto the minotaur, her excitement for battle palpable even from a distance.
She raised her rapier and pointed it at the beast as it pushed itself back to its feet. The minotaur glared at her with fury, its hooves tearing into the ground as if gathering all its strength for a charge.
