Chapter Text
Two days earlier, Nico walked into work without his uniform. He was wearing a gray hoodie, a facemask, and a pair of sunglasses. Nico called in sick as well. Of course he did, he got no sleep last night after seeing what was sent to him. His mind was racing as he lay in his bed, hours of contemplating leading up to this very moment.
Even with the time given to him, he had no plan. He didn’t want to kill Percy, but who did he care for more? His sister, or this guy who he ended up avoiding because there may have been a chance he actually loved him? Nico didn’t like being given this choice, he wanted to give it to someone else.
Which is exactly why he sat down in front of Percy and slipped the sunglasses off, exposing what he knew were eyebags and a harsh stare underneath. He looked Percy dead in the eyes, pushing his feelings for him down to focus on his current predicament.
“Want some chocolate ice cream? You look like you-“
“She’s gone, Percy. It’s all my fault.”
Percy froze instantly, his casual demeanor dropping when he leaned forward. He set a weird blue drink Nico couldn’t even recognize onto the table. “What are you talking about?”
Nico was barely keeping himself together, grateful for the mask hiding the more than likely ugly expressions he was making as he held back from crying. “Hazel was kidnapped. I don’t know what to do.” He cringed at his voice cracking, putting his head on his arm and resting on the table.
“Do you know why they-“
He shot up from his previous resting position, nearly slamming his hand on the table. “Because they wanted you! Some guy named Octavian wants me to kill you, and unless I do what he says Hazel will be fucking dead, Percy. I don’t want her to die. She’s my sister I can’t just let her die-“ He broke down, as he did many times in the last few hours.
Crying on his mask felt awful, and he started to feel the damp fabric against his lips. Finally, he tugged the mask down and hid the lower half of his face behind a hand. Watching Percy’s reaction was interesting because he wasn’t expecting Percy to seem relieved. What about any of this was reassuring to him??
“And you don’t want to kill me?” Nico felt himself tense up, his instant thought was self-centered prick.
All Nico wanted to focus on was his sister’s disappearance, not whatever was happening between them. He needed Percy’s help, but he also hated the idea of killing the man. The thought of seeing Percy bleeding out from his actions was oddly exhilarating but horrifying. Despite what Percy had done to countless people, he still found Percy to be a good person. A delusion, really. They both were terrible, he knew it.
Nico took a small breath, trying to not explode on the person he needed to request assistance from. “No. I don’t. That’s why I’m here.”
Percy smiled upon simply hearing those words, “Thank you, Nico.“
He sounded so affectionate, and Nico barely knew how to react. Looking away, he kept a hand over his mouth. “Fuck you, what do I do?” His anxiety was all-consuming, and he started to bite one of his nails. All the disturbing things that could be happening to Hazel, mainly her demise, rushed into his head.
Nico stared down at the table, obscuring his view of Percy for a moment. So he jumped when the other assassin reached out to touch his shoulder. “Hey, I got this. I’ll help you. I know exactly what to do.” He unceremoniously started fiddling with his phone, then he finished off his weird blue drink and threw it into the garbage bin behind him.
“How??”
Percy sighed and leaned back, his eyes narrowed as he became completely focused on the device in his hands. His mouth seemed to be moving independently from the rest of his body when he responded. “Because I’ve faked my own death before. When you have connections, anything is possible.”
After that, Percy went quiet, and Nico didn’t know what to do with himself. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair, waiting for anything to happen. For Percy to tell him more details, or just anything. Being left in the dark was the last thing he wanted right now.
Percy finally looked up from his phone, “Is something nice catching your eye~?”
Nico scowled, “Fuck off. You may be nice-looking but there are more pressing matters to focus on. My sister is missing.”
At this, Percy quickly backed down, “I was trying to lighten the mood, but I appreciate the compliment.” Nico groaned, why must Percy sound so warm even as he avoids accountability for saying something at the wrong time?
In the next few minutes, he silently contemplated stabbing multiple things and people in the restaurant before being broken out of his trance.
“Out of curiosity,” Percy started. “If our situation wasn’t so dire, would you go on a date with me?” The question was downright infuriating. He really should have driven a knife into the other man’s throat instead of bothering to ask for help. His anger boiled just under the surface, and slowly died out as he realized how meek Percy sounded when he asked.
It sounded like Percy was expecting a no, and normal Nico would have certainly been that predictable. Sleepy Nico was not as rational as however, and he was still desperate for Percy’s help.
“If you save Hazel, then I’ll go on a million fucking dates with you just-” Nico took a moment, trying to calm down. His breath stuttered in his chest. “Do it. I’ll do whatever needs to be done on my end too. Just help me save her.”
Back in the present day, Nico kicked at Octavian’s already stinky corpse with more force than he needed to. The man didn’t move, his eyes stayed open and unmoving. “Yep, he’s dead. You said she’s in the basement?”
Percy nodded, “One of the guards told me before I slit his throat.”
Nico wanted to immediately rush down there, he should have. But his hand hovered over the doorknob to the basement, and he froze up. He noticed his hand tremble slightly before he squeezed his eyes shut. “What should I tell her?”
“The truth?” Percy suggested. Nico winced, he didn’t want to. He knew it was awful to keep lying to her, but he didn’t feel like he could have any other choice. He didn’t want to risk losing her. Percy watched his reaction carefully and seemed to back down a little. “Or don’t. It’s your choice, really.”
All Nico could think about was a potential scenario where she never spoke to him again. Where she was disgusted by him. He wouldn’t blame her for it, but her leaving like everyone else in his life wouldn’t hurt any less.
Taking one last breath, he clutched the doorknob in his hand. He finally answered Percy, “No, you’re right. I have to show her who I really am.” He opened the door and quickly descended down the steps, swiveling his head until he saw another door. This one was locked, so he looked around. Grabbing a hatchet from the wall, he started swinging at the door to break it down.
He wasn’t the most efficient, especially with one hand, but he was able to reach his hand through the hole he made to unlatch the lock. When he opened the door, he was shocked to see not just his sister, but four dead guards. She turned around, ready to attack whoever came through the door before she realized who he was.
Her clothes were marred with blood and so was a knife in her hand, but she seemed to sigh in relief. Nico could bet he himself looked horrified. ”Did you kill that anemic loser already?” She asked. Nico, still recovering from his shock and assuming she meant Octavian, nodded quickly.
“Figures. Man, I would have liked a chance,” She stretched casually before pocketing the bloody weapon. “Well, thank you for coming to save me. I also would hug you but-“ She waved a bloody hand over her bloodied clothes.
“H-How?” Was all he could say.
Hazel went over to him. “When you study the most lethal places to accidentally puncture on the human body, killing becomes easier.“ She smirked slightly, “You really should have borrowed some of my study material if you were going to be a killer-“
Though the stress of admitting his deeds was gone, all-consuming fear came over him. He swore if he felt his own arms they would have goosebumps. “You knew!?”
She stared at him blankly, “Of course I knew. I’m not dense.”
“And you’re fine with it??”
He swore he could see conflict in her expression for a moment before she slowly shook her head to affirm she wasn’t. Maybe that was wishful thinking. “Honestly, no.”
What else would Nico expect? Hazel was dedicating her time in school to learning how to save lives, while Nico was actively destroying them. He wasn’t sure why he expected anything else. She probably wanted to rat him out.
“But you’re my brother, I can’t just report you or abandon you.”
Oh.
“At some point, I was going to try to talk you out of it, but you gotta understand it’s not easy to talk someone out of killing people.”
Nico kept his gaze down to the bloodstained floor, making a poor attempt to ignore the bodies. “Yeah, I see.”
Suddenly, he saw Hazel’s shoes, and then her arms were around his neck. He instantly held her in return while she spoke, “What’s the plan now?”
“Leave the country,” Nico whirled his head to the side to see Percy had entered the basement. He smiled apologetically towards them, “Sorry. I was going to leave you two alone, but you both were taking quite a while and I got worried.”
Letting go of Hazel, he realized how extreme of a jump that was. He didn’t like the idea. Leaving the country would likely mean they would be safer but- “Hazel needs to finish her degree.”
Percy crossed his arms. He looked sympathetic but was still stern. “It would be dangerous for her to stay now, she’s directly related to you. No degree would be worth her life, we have to go.”
Nico didn’t want to uproot Hazel’s life because of his recklessness. This was the last thing he wanted to happen. He could be uprooted, he could take it, but he never wanted to drag Hazel into this. Taking Hazel’s aspirations from her was the complete opposite of his original intentions.
His mouth felt dry as he made an attempt to speak to them, but then Hazel nodded. “I’ll be fine.”
Still, his mind supplied him with plenty of memories of her expressing this passion, but how much money it would cost to go to a good school in a good area. He remembered when they were kids and she would play a doctor no matter what game it actually was. “But what about what you wanted to do?? You always said you wanted to be a doctor-“
He was grabbed by the shoulders while he internally spiraled. Forced to look Hazel in the eyes, he felt his hands go to his face. He didn’t want to cry in front of her. “Nico, listen. My school will let me finish my studies abroad. I’ll still be able to graduate just fine, okay?”
The firmness in her voice that was supposed to be reassuring instead made him feel ashamed. He ducked his head, pulling away. “Okay, I’m sorry. This is stressful.”
“It’s okay. I’m happy you care about me. We just have to do what we have to do,” Hazel took his hand, leading him out of the basement before letting go. Left behind on his hand was blood, and he made a face before wiping it on his pants.
As they walked out of the house, Percy finally acknowledged Hazel's appearance. “Hazel, why are you covered in blood?“
She opened her mouth to respond before Percy looked around, seeing a car in the distance. He waved them over, opening one of the backseat doors before getting in the driver’s seat. ”Nevermind actually, doesn’t matter. I have a jacket in the back of the car you can use. Let’s go!”
Nico piled into the backseat with his sister, trying to figure out what to even say to her now that his secrets were out in the open. “It was hard for me to tell you,” He tried starting with. “You may be my sister, Hazel, but you’re also a good person. I thought you would turn me in.”
He watched his sister shift uncomfortably, almost like the seat was made of bricks rather than leather. Picking up a jacket that was laid on the space between them, she put it on over her bloody clothes. Hazel kept her gaze trained on the outside world, maybe she was watching to see if anyone noticed her appearance, Nico wasn’t sure. “What made you think I was a good person?”
His eyebrows furrowed, “You’re literally studying to become a doctor. You’re nice to everyone. You have friends!” Nico couldn’t help but fault himself for the fact Hazel was going to leave them behind, but he tried to push down the guilt for now. “How could you question if you’re a good person??”
Hazel continued to stare out the window, and she started fiddling with the zipper on the jacket. “Awful people sometimes need medical attention after their deeds. Doctors are supposed to take care of them anyways, but I never believed in that.”
It made sense what she was saying, but Nico wasn’t sure where she was going with it. He listened on quietly, not wanting to interrupt her line of reasoning.
Looking a little pained, she leaned back in the seat, finally making eye contact with Nico. “I was planning to bring justice through killing them. I believe I am a good person too, but some may disagree with my morals.”
“If you were going to kill too, why were you going to try talking me out of it?”
“Because you were risking your life, and I care. I don’t want my brother dead.”
“I don’t want you dead either!”
Hazel frowned, “There would be no immediate risk to my life if some patients just so happened to end up dead.”
She was right. His job required him to face immediate danger. A doctor making a ‘mistake’ wouldn’t be treated in the same way. However, there would still be intense backlash and maybe punishment done to her in return for her plans. Even if Nico didn’t mind what she was doing, others would not feel the same.
“I’m just not…” He wasn’t okay with this. He wasn’t comfortable with this. Her explanation made sense, but he still didn’t like the idea of her being criminally prosecuted. “Let’s make a deal. Percy, you too.”
Percy glanced over his shoulder after his name was mentioned, “Hm? Alright, what is it?”
“Let’s all agree to not kill people in the future,” Nico sighed. “For what it’s worth.”
“That was already my plan, so I’m good with that,” Percy smirked, his intense gaze reflected in the rearview mirror. “Anything for you.”
Hazel looked back and forth between the two of them, “Did you two get back together?”
Nico’s face flushed, “Not the topic at hand. Hazel?”
His sister took a moment before nodding, “Yeah. I promise I won’t commit any medical homicides.”
“There. I promise I won’t kill anymore too,” Nico leaned back in his seat. “We’ll just be average people.”
He caught a strange look on Percy’s face, almost like he was conflicted. With Hazel safe and sound though, he finally let his head fall back as his mind similarly fell into darkness.
Becoming ‘average’ felt incredibly difficult at first. Not having the assurance of a high number in his bank account and jobs lined up made him feel a bit ill, but he managed. Especially with Percy’s money in his corner. After spending a while in the new country they moved to, he finally felt stable enough to go do mundane activities with his sister and boyfriend.
Yes, boyfriend. He hadn’t exactly called Percy that yet out loud, and Percy didn’t call him that, but they truly acted as a couple now. It was surreal. At this point, he accepted he wasn’t exactly a rebound. Sometimes the feelings would come back, but then Percy would give him a hug and the thoughts would retreat due to his happiness. He didn’t want to be negative in such positive moments.
At some point, they considered changing their appearance to be less identifiable. This led to the ‘fun’ idea of dyeing their hair. Nico didn’t really like the plan. He liked his hair color, and the one time Hazel dyed purple all of the pillows in the house turned a bit more colorful. After a promise that she would be more careful this time, he relented and they headed to a hair salon.
Hazel was excited and instantly struck up a connection with her barber, who introduced himself as Frank. While Hazel knew what color she wanted, a bright red, Nico and Percy ended up being much more indecisive.
“What do you think of this?” Percy asked while coming up to Nico, who was sitting in the waiting area since there was no hair stylist available yet with his phone. Percy’s hair was now dyed blonde, and a bit longer since it had last been cut. Nico snorted at it, it didn’t suit Percy at all in his eyes.
“No. Honestly, it makes you look like Will,” Nico responded bluntly. He set his phone down in his lap. Will was a neighbor of theirs who brought them sunshine-shaped cookies when they moved in. A nice guy, so Nico truly wouldn’t mind if Percy and him looked similar, but the comparison couldn’t help but be drawn.
Percy looked a little frustrated, “What color should I get then?”
Nico shrugged, staring at Percy's face for a moment. The answer hit him in an instant, “Blue, maybe? That would look nice on you.”
“You’re just saying that because you know I like blue,” Percy smirked down at him, still standing in front of Nico.
“Uh huh,” Nico said. It wasn’t as if Nico was going to deny it. After considering what he could dye his hair color to for some time, he tugged on his own black locks, carding them through pale fingers. “Think dark red would work for me? Similar to Hazel but, y’know, darker?”
Percy smiled, “That sounds poetic in a way, I say go for it. And I could get dark blue to match you in a way! That could be cute.” Percy plopped down in the seat beside him to give him a kiss on the cheek. Before Nico could even make a sarcastic remark and push him away, Percy was going back to talk to the hairstylist about dyeing his hair from blonde to blue.
Nico was finally able to go and sit down on the seat next to Hazel to get his hair dyed after seemingly hours of sitting on an uncomfortable small plastic chair. What proceeded afterwards was an argument between him and Percy over who should pay while Hazel stood there looking embarrassed.
On the way home, Nico couldn’t help but glance away from the road to see Hazel beaming at her phone. It made him happy to see her so excited over something, and this feeling continued as she quickly retreated upstairs upon their return to the house. Her phone was tightly clutched in her hands as she said she was going to call Frank. She truly was the social one of the three, managing to get someone’s number that quickly.
Nico heard her door click shut and then turned to Percy. “What are you going to do now?”
“Well, I would love to spend time with my boyfriend. If he’s willing to give me the time of day, that is.” Nico snorted, looping his arms around Percy’s neck. Percy in return put his arms around Nico’s waist. He was honestly happy to finally hear that word spill from Percy’s lips, he didn’t even know he needed to hear it until he did.
They rocked back and forth slightly while Nico gazed up at him, “Depends on what you mean by ‘spending time’ with me.”
“How about this?” Percy backed up till his feet hit the couch, and then he pulled them both down. He rolled to position himself on top of Nico, connecting their lips as soon as they settled on the cushions.
After some time, Percy kissed his neck mercilessly and Nico couldn’t help but breathlessly laugh. The touches tickled a bit, and he still wasn’t used to affection. “Attacking unprovoked isn’t like you.”
He moved his head back up, their foreheads nearly touching. “You always provoke me.”
Nico rolled his eyes and shoved at Percy’s shoulder playfully with a hand. Taking Percy’s flirtatious remarks seriously was difficult for him. He barely took the mutual attraction between them seriously at first too, so it wasn’t out of character for him.
“What a romantic thing to say,” he quipped with sarcasm etched in his tone. Nico let Percy kiss him some more before he grabbed him by the hair, pulling the man up from his neck. He started to kiss the other’s skin as well. All the attention being on him made him feel undeserving. In his mind, love was conditional. So he needed to make sure he wasn’t taking too much, or pay his debts so to speak.
As he kissed Percy’s cheek, Percy smiled softly. “Wanna get married?”
“What!?” Nico yelped in shock, letting go of Percy’s hair. The dye from Percy’s hair mixed with his on his hand, creating a dark purple color that nearly looked black. Nico looked at Percy with a perplexed expression and Percy seemed to instantly backtrack.
“Wait, not actually-! Well- Sort of?” Percy sat up, “My job gives financial benefits to married couples and I think yours does too. So it’s only reasonable that we take advantage of the system.”
It felt too soon to make such an important decision, but Percy’s reasoning made sense to him. Since they weren’t assassins anymore, they were going to be relying on regular jobs more. Marrying was a legal thing, he didn’t need to call Percy his husband if he didn’t want to. They could just ignore it otherwise.
This was fine with him, but he wasn’t sure how Percy would feel about how detached he was from the emotional aspect of marriage. “For such a romantic guy, you sure are popping this question at a random time.”
Percy put a hand on Nico’s cheek, brushing his thumb right under Nico’s eye. The action made Nico shiver slightly, since intrusive thoughts yelled in concern. What if Percy poked his eye? He knew such thoughts were unreasonable, merely leftovers from his time being afraid of Percy. He wasn’t anymore, this was the man he loved.
“We’re safe,” Percy remarked. “I feel safe with you, and I’ve always found the idea of proposing to you iffy because you would be scared away by such a large gesture.” He’s right, I would be.
“Besides, we won’t need to have like- A wedding or anything, we can save it for later. Plus it kind of defeats the point of financial benefit if we do one of those.”
When Nico didn’t instantly react, still thinking the idea over, Percy pouted. “C’mon, I know you love straying close to the sun. Let’s manipulate the government.”
“Fuck it- Sure. I could win the money in the divorce, or if I kill you.”
“I’d like to see you try, Niccolò!” Percy’s face broke into a smile. It almost came off as sinister when he pulled out a pocket knife, placing it on Nico’s chest. He then brought out another, a blue variant of the first. It was almost charming how much his boyfriend liked the color blue.
Nico shoved Percy off of him and attempted to flip on top of him on the floor. Percy rolled to the side, dodging the strike. His green eyes flashed dangerously as he tried taking a stab at Nico’s leg. Seeing what he was about to do, Nico pulled his legs up and underneath him.
They both were sitting up now, waiting to see who would make the first move. Nico was the first to become impatient, grabbing a fluffy pillow and throwing it at Percy’s face. Percy, surprised, batted it away, but now before Nico pushed forward and was able to pin him down. The pocket knife he was given was held up at Percy’s neck, a grin overcame his face.
“Finally,” Nico smiled with the satisfaction blooming in his chest.
Percy merely grinned up at him, “I let you win.”