chapter 11 (interlude)

Dumbledore.

All these years of careful planning RUINED because of one hiccup that he couldn't have foreseen.

Albus Dumbledore huffed under his breath as accusations flew around the room (including at him ), Minerva and Severus were fairly screaming at one another across the room and Molly Weasley's most strident voice was at a particularly acute pitch.

But, really? How was anyone supposed to know that that would happen if the boy was exposed to too high a dose of phoenix tears? Or that Lily was related closely enough to Her for the phoenix tears to latch onto bloodline traits?

Honestly, he would have more expected those oddly necromantic or geomantic traits the Black family routinely bred into the family to rise foremost.

Then there was the matter of Tom's Horcruxes. Harry was now an Immortal. A monster, yes, but still an Immortal. Not only would the Horcrux have been expelled or subsumed, but he no longer fit the Prophecy since young Harry had by far outstripped anything Tom could have been and so was no longer his 'equal'.

Still, a lot of effort had been placed into the boy, and he was going to get his due, even if he had to enslave the monster and use it as a weapon.

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Medusa

Medusa had only known the child for a month, but she already adored the boy.

He was rather laid back and docile for a monster, but she supposed it was only natural what with his close relation to Hades, who was, for a God, rather passive and unaggressive, if intense, despite his tendencies towards brooding and holding a grudge.

She supposed that the brightly coloured garter snakes suited him, being mostly harmless to humans in nature, so the strength of their, and so his, venom was really quite startling. Though not so much when one considered his besting of the King of Serpents in mortal combat, which was very impressive for even a powerful demi-god, not to mention an untrained mortal child.

And he was such a good boy. Already her garden and yards were tidy and idyllic, despite her rather startled looking statues (and Medusa really could have done without those sad looks when he found a particularly young one. He was making her feel guilty. She hadn't felt guilty for centuries!).

He was also had a right knack for working with anything metal or gemlike. Medusa made a note on the pad beside her hand to send him to classes to cultivate those talents as soon as she was able.

His desire to create was an interesting counter balance to Greek monsters' usual tendencies towards destruction, but it really just added to his charms.Harry-dear also appeared to take quite strongly after Poseidon and Hades around the cheeks, jaw and nose, but he got the eye-shape, expressive eyebrows and neck from Eris.

As such, he was, without a doubt, going to be devastatingly handsome.

Medusa sipped her tea and continued with her untangling of her dear boy's finances.

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Nereids

The Nereids knew about the monster that had moved into Montauk months before any of them knowingly saw him.

Well, they didn't know that he was a monster per se, but they knew that the Mist swirled around him and that he was a powerful Immortal.

It was only after they had known Harry for a few years and he had begun collecting demi-gods for his 'Home' project, after Apseudesand Callianassa had followed him when he went to assist a group of adolescent demi-gods running from a trio of Roman centaurs, that they got a hint of what he really was.

Harry baseball skidded between the two groups from a dead run and lifted his sunglasses to the centaurs.

Apseudes swore that his braids flared up in a momentary wreath around his head like they were alive and Callianassa noted he had used Celestial Bronze claws to arrest his momentum. Both agreed that his skin had gone from a nice tan to a solid stone-pale, that there was a sound like hot water being thrown on a hot pan, and that the charging centaurs literally froze mid-movement and the momentum threw them into a pile of snapped Imperial Gold limbs and body parts where Harry had been standing a moment before.

After that, the sisters all made sure that he always wore his sunglasses and hissed softly at anyone who started to question them.

Still, few of the Nereids were overly put off by the fact that he was, apparently, a High Monster/Immortal. Not even Amphitrite could find fault with him, and she was by far the pickiest of all of them.

He was powerful, attractive, kind…

And he made those Brownies.

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Hestia

Hestia couldn't help herself.

She fell in love.

There was nothing sexual about her regard, and had everything to do with who he was as a person, but she still felt indescribable guilt for her love, now empathizing with how Apollo and Poseidon must have felt when she not only rejected their attentions, but also took a vow of chastity.

… It's just… she saw him every day, helping people no one else was willing to do more that throw a bone to. He was a near full-time father to more than a hundred children and was in a near constant state of movement to help anyone who asked or needed, either to help them himself or set something up for them.He was selfless, responsible, kind if a little brisk, committed and downright ferocious in defense of his people.

He was a Home Protector; the perfect complement to her Home Keeper, so it was little wonder she fell for him so quickly.

She loved Harrier for everything he was, but she had her Oath.

The questions were, which did she cherish more, and would he want her if she offered?

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Hades

Sometimes Hades forgot that Poseidon hadn't spoken to him, as a brother, in thousands of years.

Sometimes Hades forgot he only had two brothers.

The comfortable silent companionship he had found with this new person, this Harrier, was unfamiliar, but, at the same time, called up long-repressed memories of five young gods curled up together in their father's stomach in a tangle of limbs and skin-comfort.

Sometimes he was able to forget that the other Immortal was covered in glamours to hide his not-so-human aspects, that he wore glasses even in the dead of night to hide his eyes, that he wasn't Hades' brother for all that he looked more like Rhea's child than Zeus did…

He enjoyed the nights where it was just himself and Harrier (though he didn't mind when other Gods joined them. He hadn't realized he shared interests with Eros before, and Loki was more amusing than his nephews), but he truly loved the way the demi-gods easily interacted with him as he followed his many-greats grandson/nephew around Home, occasionally asking the God's opinion as they went from place to place or went over reports in his office in the Town Hall.

As he breathed in the crisp morning air, watching as his Chosen-Brother interacted with his Blood-and-Metal children while Vashti's lava-foal, Harkin, now nearly a yearling, curled trustingly beside him in sleep under the tree, Hades could already feel the bubbling personality taking form at the back of his mind as perceptions shifted towards him, birthing a new Aspect from his Core Self like Pluto had been when the Romans took over. Only it had only taken nearly two years for this God-Mask to form, while Pluto had taken nearly a century.

Perhaps, the King of the Underworld mused, it was because he didn't resent these people like he had those who attacked his parishioners so long ago.Sliding his black eyes to the side, Hades could already see that Hestia, his beloved older sister, was already on the cusp of becoming a Mother Goddess. Could see that she hadn't noticed that she was taking on the form of a tall young woman with long, loose brown locks with flares of auburn in the light, wreathed in veils and long, loose dresses. She was even likely to take an interest in the very young demi-gods these days, picking them up and wandering around with a child on her hip, where before, as both Hestia and Vesta, she was inclined to act distantly to them, an awkwardness in how she interacted with them.

And she wasn't the only one.

Nemesis was now the go-to for arguments and disputes, Persephone's laughter as she played with the children frequently rang out from the gardens and playgrounds, and Hecate was in the schoolhouse every weekday afternoon to teach all-comers magic and Mist manipulation.

Even Eris was being rather motherly, her strife more mischief and teasing than outright trouble.

Peering through the Mist and glamours, Hades admired the glinting of sunlight off the blue and scarlet scales as the serpents swung docilely past his hips, a lovely contrast to the almost pearlescent white of his skin and his wide laughing smile.

Peripherally, Hades was aware that some of the demi-gods would take the presence of a monster near them badly, but, as a God, he found it a shame that the man hid the depth of his beauty from the world.

Sighing, he turned his attention back to the financial records, Harrier's one true weakness. Apparently, he never quite got the hang of money keeping since he had none as a child.

Hades, as the Wealthy God, was willing to lend him a hand every so often as thanks for making his world brighter.

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Luke Castellan

He'd been prepared to be disappointed.

Every adult in his life had disappointed him at some point, so why would this man be any different, he asked himself.

But Thalia was injured and Annabeth exhausted, and the clearly Immortal mare swore by the Darkness That Consumes All Things that she would take them somewhere safe. It wasn't an oath he was familiar with, but there was a definite weight to the words, so he had agreed, clinging from the back and holding the girls on as they swayed and dipped with exhaustion, hands knotted in the small tuft of hair at the shoulder.

It wasn't long before he, too, fell into a daze only coming out of it when the mare's hooves clunked on wood and there was a blast of dry, warm air.The careless display of power from the tanned man with long black braids and reflective glasses, even late at night, was worrying, but he gave them food and a room that was easily defensible.

Even after overhearing the man's conversation with the women he learnt were Nereids in the morning, he only began to relax when the man brought back Nathan and Daniel's group and the group of demi-gods plus Callie got together late that night and shared information and agreed to wait for the group of adult demi-gods on their way.

Richard Ryder was everything he wanted to be and feared becoming; strong, fast, cunning, intelligent, ruthlessly practical, bitter, stressed, kind, terrifying, a rock alone in a crowd, too scared of getting attached because he'd been burnt too often.

Still, the demi-gods who followed him were almost fanatically loyal and more than half feral, and he did promise to protect the younger demi-gods if it was a trap.

Things became even more stressful, while, at the same time, all of the demi-gods relaxed as more joined their ranks.

Then, Home opened up and suddenly there was a safe place to hide from the monsters, the humans and the Gods.

He had a little cottage he shared with Thalia, Annabeth and the toddler, Danny, whom Thalia had very aggressively claimed as hers. An older demi-god, Tania of unknown Godly parentage, checked on them every other day, but mostly left them to it.

And, by the end of the first month, they were all in school again with teachers who taught them in ways that kept the students' ADHD from distracting them, with books and a blackboard that were subtly spelled to help with their dyslexia. Danny spent the day in a preschool crèche with other children his age, many of whom also had scars, though few as bad as his.

Thalia volunteered in the afternoons at the vegetable greenhouses three times a week, taking Danny and Annabeth along.

He chose to part-time at the stables two of those days, learning to ride and muster, and attended lessons on fighting and survival once a week with Ryder's group.

And Harry still swung in to check on them every few days, even if he'd seen them earlier that day.

The man had said he would, but he hadn't actually expected him to follow through, what with how busy he was.

Then, one day, he had answered the door to find Harrier standing there with a blond boy Annabeth's age with Thalia's blue-blue eyes.

He'd never seen Thalia break down like that before, but she was so happy…

… she didn't even notice that she called Harrier 'Dad' when she trapped her brother, Jason, between them as she desperately wrapped her arms around them, the man not appearing overly bothered by two bawling children smearing tears and snot into his t-shirt and flannel over-shirt.

And there was something distinctly parental about the way he ran his hands over their hair and rocked them and crooned.

And that was the moment, standing awkwardly in that room, that Luke Castellan began trusting an adult for the first time since he knew what trust was.Hermione Granger

Hermione Granger, aged twenty-five, walked away from England and, specifically, the European Wizarding World, with nary a backwards glance.

When Harry had asked, she hadn't hesitated to leave everything behind with only a word to Neville about where and why she was going, and a letter of resignation to Hogwarts.

The world was a cruel place and she had literally no one else left, her parents and sister having been killed in the crossfire between Death Eaters and Aurors when she was fifteen. It was never determined, to her knowledge, which side collapsed the building they were in with a dozen other non-magical people, but there was always a nagging suspicion Dumbledore had something to do with it, with how quick he was to try to throw her Guardianship to the Weasleys. Had Neville not demanded his Grandmother taken her on as a Ward, Hermione was very aware she would have been forced into a marriage contract to Ronald like so many other orphaned muggleborns and half-bloods had been sold to families with flagging bloodlines as 'new blood'. Even orphaned purebloods weren't spared.

Many of the 'Death Eater Murders' were actually suicides by those who found their lives unlivable as they were sacrificed for the 'Greater Good'. Others were done by the prospective spouses.

Neville had been making noises about leaving Britain for a while now, taking some of those who 'escaped' their marriages with him. He had wished her well before she left.

Dumbledore, however, had tried to stop her from leaving, presumably because he thought she knew where Harry was, regardless that Voldemort had disappeared more than a year ago.

She didn't.

Regardless, the last she saw the old man was when he burst into the travel chamber just as the Portkey whisked her away.

Harry had just sent her a Portkey number and time that would take her somewhere and she would be given an envelope with a number and destination by a woman waiting for her and sent off again.

Seven hours and twelve jumps later, Hermione staggered out of the New York Ministry and met a violet-eyed brunette woman who introduced herself as Endia, Hermione's new boss.

When she saw the little antique shop she would be living and working in, Hermione Granger fell in love.

Harry had come through for her, even if it had taken a few years.Richard Ryder

Richard Ryder was born to a barmaid who worked at a seedy bar in Los Angeles.

Alexia Ryder had been a calm, motherly woman beloved by the regulars for her laid-back humour, trustworthy nature and her ability to keep her patrons' secrets.

She had been beautiful, once, before a jealous ex-fiancé had thrown burning oil on her face, blinding her in her left eye and leaving a trail of burns down her face, neck and chest.

Richard never found out how his mother met and caught the attention of Dionysus, but he grew up happy and protected in that little bar, taught things by the semi-retired bikers and rough-nuts who came by regularly and were willing to humour the barmaid's kid.

Until he was ten and his mother was caught in a gang shoot-out in the bar.

The turn-out to her funeral was surprising for the sheer number of people who turned up. It was a beautiful service paid for by donations from her patrons. The police and social workers were uncomfortable with the presence of so many criminals and lowlives. They ushered him away before he could even attend the wake and took him straight to his new foster family.

The foster parents were literal monsters; the authorities didn't really question it if a few low-class foster kids 'ran away'. They were in a prime position to catch any demi-gods thrown into the system because of their experience 'dealing' with children with 'learning disabilities'.

An older foster sister caught the signs of what he was within a few hours of his arrival, packed him food, bedding and money, broke into the 'father's' office for his paperwork, and shoved Richard out of the bathroom window, telling him to run and not look back.

That the 'parents' would kill and eat him like they had the others like him.

He had heard her screaming in pain and terror before he made it to the end of the long farmhouse driveway. He spent the night in a cramped, stinking storm drain while the 'mother' snorted around the area above him, the mud from the previous day's storm covering his scent.

He was picked up two days later by a roving pack of Maenads who, after an initial mistake in his identity, they determined he was a demi-god son of their beloved patron and took him along.

For as long as he lived, Richard would be grateful to the Maenads who taught him how to fight and survive in a world that was against those like him.

It was when he was sixteen that he paused and looked around, recognizing the place as where he had first met the Maenads, that he decided to go back and kill the monsters posing as 'foster parent'. Sometimes he could still hear the older girl's screams in his nightmares.

He went to the little, quaint farmhouse and beheaded the two creatures, roux-ga-roux or rougarou, that is, dog-headed people who had a taste for human flesh, especially that of demi-god. In doing so, he saved a little girl with grey eyes.

Her name was Jackie and she had been picked up from the streets after two years on her own. She had been in the process of trying to run away again when the monsters had shown their true selves and dragged her into the basement.

From there, Richard parted from the mad but kind Maenads to seek out other demi-gods.He had no desire to enter the Camps, but he knew where they were and was willing to lead others to them.

It was a further decade before a giant metal songbird found his nomadic tribe and referred them to a safe haven.

Harrier was definitely a monster, Richard decided within a few minutes of interaction, but no more so than the Maenads had been. A Hearth-Keeper, he thought they were called. Like the Lotus Eaters, he ruled a set Territory and would allow no harm to come to those within it, but, unlike the Lotus Eaters, he was willing to allow those he had claimed as Territory to leave.

Richard had met a few gods and goddesses in his time. Lesser ones who could pass off as human or were incapable of it, but not both, not really.

Meeting the Nereids was an experience, but it was the Dark Primordial who doted upon the Ruling Monster that called his attention, called his Madness and Wild Nature.

Eris was dangerous and doting and fierce and possessive, but she was on their side, which was a relief.

Richard could admit to himself that he didn't really know how it happened, but he thought it might have been when her twins, Tynan and Talon, joined the daily combat lessons while their older sister watched on.

Only she wasn't their sister.

She had introduced herself as Eri, and things had progress from short talks to sort-of dates until they were rolling around in a bed by the half-year celebrations.

Richard met Asher when Harrier called for them.

He was as light as Eri was dark, equally beautiful but in different ways, and Eri was fond of him, so it wasn't a hassle to go back for him when the wolves nearly killed the winged man.

When Eri revealed herself as herself as Eris at the Gate in her rage at the damage the wolves had done to her Priest, Richard couldn't bring himself to be surprised; it was, after all, a good way to find lover who wouldn't want to bed the deities for bragging rights.

So, while Eris/Discordia plotted her horrible, horrible revenge, Richard, and so Jackie, spent a few weeks getting to know Asher better, with Harrier swinging in an hour or so a day to check on the man and update him on the functions of the Eros/Cupid children, as well as to bring in a newly-arrived younger brother by Eros named Darien to meet his new primary caretaker.

Things seemed to be going well, all things considered. Asher hung around Richard's pack and proved himself to be a swordsman of note in the arena, Jackie was feeling out a son of Mars and wrangling some of her more troublesome younger siblings, 'Eri' was coming around again, Harrier wandered around Home with a sense for when he was needed…

… And Richard was setting up a nursery room in the small, two-bedroom cabin he'd moved into from his little one-room.

He was pretty happy about having family again.Chaos

The world was like a river, divergent points were forks in the banks, catalysts were boulders and everything was in a constant state of motion, even that which was 'stationary'.

Catalysts could be anything from a pebble that momentarily rippled, a fallen tree branch that snagged in the rocks to divert the flow, only to eventually give way to momentum as it rotted, or it could be a boulder that permanently diverted flow, though the introduction of a boulder big enough to affect the flow was rare.

Harrier was a landslide that dammed up the river and completely diverted the flow into a completely different direction.

Chaos was of the opinion that that was Eris' bloodline's fault.

Not that He minded.

It got a bit boring when you knew how the story was going to end, or not end as it so happened, since very little actually ended permanently.

And Eros, the only one of His kin to seek him out these millennia, had good things to say of both the Prophecy Childe-turned-Monster and his Metal Progeny.

So Chaos had watched for a time before interacting with the young being, becoming fond of this pretty breathing thing that was driven to Create. It had been a spur-of-the-moment thing to being turning the small parasite dimension into a fully-formed world of its own. Whimsy had Him reaching out into the thought and dreams of sentient imagination for new things to add.

Soon, Chaos was fully immersed in building this new world as He hadn't been in anything else for Ages, until Eros came to him with a lascivious smile, hand sliding over the skin of his starlight form as the other's body fitted itself between his dark wings, pressed against his back.

"Do You wonder what We could make for this world if We came together again? Do You remember what came about the last time?"

Chaos remembered.

Chaos laughed and turned to the embodiment of Desire.

Many were those who had forgotten that Eros was amongst the First of the Primordial Beings.