Chapter Text
Nico
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Even Nico was starting to grow irritated with the weather.
It was approaching mid-May and not a single tree had begun sprouting their signature green foliage. Thalia’s pine tree stood on Half-Blood Hill, naked and ghostly with dead pine needles littered about its base. Most days, Nico would walk by the camp fire and see it blazing in the middle of the afternoon, with packs of campers huddled around it to keep themselves from turning into a bunch of demi-sicles. The winter weather had dragged on for so long that the Demeter cabin had organized daily prayers to their mother for relief from the tight embrace of 30 degree temperatures. Something about this felt strangely close to home for Nico. He understood that the balance of the seasons was ordained by the cycle of the goddess of Springtime, Persephone, traveling between the mortal world and the Underworld. Her visits to the land of the living marked the beginning of the Spring season. If the winter was persisting like this, that meant that Persephone had not returned to the mortal realm yet, which meant something was terribly wrong in the house of his father, Hades.
Nico didn’t pray to his father very often. Something about dedicating that sacred time to someone who had done nothing but terrorize and neglect him made his skin crawl. But he saw, every single day, how the harsh weather struck the moral of everyone at Camp Half-Blood. Campers weren’t as engaged in their daily activities, and almost every outdoor game had been suspended due to the frigid climate. Will Solace, Nico’s boyfriend and son of Apollo, was so busy treating campers suffering from cold and flu symptoms that he hardly had any time to spend with Nico anymore. So, Nico decided to pray to his father.
Before climbing into the bed of the Hades cabin he lived in alone, Nico knelt at the edge of the mattress and fiddled with the skull ring on his finger. He sighed and closed his eyes.
Dad, he swallowed. This already felt so ridiculous. I can feel that something is wrong. I’m not asking you to fix anything, just tell me what I can do. Persephone hasn’t come to the mortal world to bring Spring and winter has gone on for too long. Nico chewed on his lower lip and twisted the silver ring around and around his boney hand. Anyways, sorry I haven’t prayed to you very much. I guess I’ll try and do that more often.
A chill seemed to flutter through Nico’s aviator jacket. He was pretty sure it was just the cool wind seeping beneath his door, but he couldn’t be sure. He opened his eyes and pushed himself to a stand. With a groan, he rolled into bed, keeping his jacket on for the extra warmth, and fell asleep.
Demigods always have nightmares. Sometimes, they see visions of the future or messages from companions. That night, Nico’s dreams took him to the Underworld. He was standing in his father’s palace, the black and silver walls mirroring the pained hues of the faces glistening against Hades’ cloak. The faces of lost souls, their expressions grim and horrified. Hades lifted his head, his black eyes devoid of their usual mischievous sheen. Looking at his father, Nico could feel the sadness weighing down upon him, his shoulders slumped and his frame frail, almost like his son.
“Ah,” When Hades spoke, his voice was thin and hoarse, like he could really use a glass of water. Seeing his father look so weak and pathetic somehow made Nico feel even more afraid than he normally did when he stood in the presence of the lord of the dead. Whatever did this to him, whatever force was behind this sudden deterioration of power, Nico did not want to mess with it. His father continued to speak: “You look worse since last I saw you.”
“I could say the same to you,” Nico hissed.
Hades furrowed his brow, “You are bold, Nico di Angelo. I would save your rebuttals for later.” He jerked his head towards his right shoulder. “Do you notice anything missing?”
Nico’s eyes drifted to the space beside his father’s throne. Nothing but black emptiness stood in place of his step-mother, the goddess Persephone.
“Persephone,” Nico murmured.
“Yes,” Hades sounded so dejected, it almost made Nico feel sorry for him. “My beautiful wife…she has been taken from me. I am sure you noticed that winter still drags on in the mortal world…her powers have been quenched.”
“Who did this?” Nico insisted. He didn’t have much affection for his father, but Persephone had always been kind to him. And if her absence could reduce the lord of the Underworld to nothing but a sunken skeleton, Nico knew he had to find a way to get her back.
“I do not know for certain, I only suspect,” Hades’ eyes drifted back to meet his son’s gaze. The black circles around his eyes were so dark, they seemed to swallow his irises whole. “But I am in no state to retrieve her, and I do believe a friend of yours owes me a favor. I should like to see him return her to me.”
Nico frowned, “A friend of mine?”
“Yes,” Hades grimaced, as if the thought of Nico’s unknown companion disgusted him. “Leo Valdez, the young demigod who cheated death.” He stroked the arm of his chair and readjusted his seat, groaning with the effort of simply moving his body. “I will not be made a fool, my son. The son of Hephaestus must make amends. He should find Persephone and bring her back to me.”
“Leo is dead,” Nico insisted. “I felt him die.”
“Ah, and that is where you are wrong,” Hades managed a smirk. “I believe the Naiad, Minthe, is responsible for stealing away my darling Persephone. She holds a deep grudge against her…” Hades hesitated, as if he were deciding whether or not to continue. Nico gave him an eager look, and he sighed and continued. “Minthe and I once had a…brief affair.” He waved his hand nonchalantly. “Anyway, Persephone turned Minthe into a mint plant as revenge for her actions. Now, the rise of Gaea has restored that pesky Naiad, and she has sought out vengeance.”
Nico blinked hard and tried to focus his mind, which began swirling at a thousand miles an hour, “You’re saying that Leo is alive?”
Hades rolled his eyes and planted his forehead in his hand, “Gods, boy! Do you not listen? Yes, your idiot demigod friend lives. But that is not the point!”
Nico gulped and took a step back, “Where do we find Minthe?”
Hades sighed and shifted in his seat again, “That, I wish I knew. She used to inhabit the River Cocytus here in the Underworld, but now, I fear she has taken hold of a new body of water in the mortal world. Where, I cannot say.”
Nico’s fists balled. He wasn’t sure if he was more mad at Leo for being alive all this time and not telling a soul, or at his father for knowing that he lived and never once thinking to tell Nico until he needed them to do something for him. Sure, Nico didn’t mind helping Persephone, but he sure did mind his father’s attitude about the whole thing.
The ground seemed the shake beneath Nico’s feet. His eyes darted down to his feet, and then back up to his father’s black gaze.
“Good luck, my son,” Hades muttered, as if the shaking didn’t bother him in the slightest. “Do not disappoint me.”
Nico woke up to the sound of kids screaming. He sat up, his aviator jacket falling off of one shoulder. His neck and back were sweating even despite the cold. Through the windows of Cabin 13, he could see that it was the dead of night, and yet, he had not imagined the voices outside his door. He slipped from beneath the blankets and dipped his socked feet into his shoes before bounding through the door. He didn’t take a moment to process his dream, and if he were honest with himself, he didn’t really want to.
Will Solace stood outside, as if he expected Nico to have been disturbed by the noise. He was wearing plaid green pajama pants and a Camp Half-Blood tee shirt with faded letters, a winter coat thrown sloppily over his shoulders. Even with his messy blond hair and groggy expression, Nico gulped hard when he saw him.
“What’s going on?” Nico asked.
Will nodded his head towards the beach, where every demigod at camp was running excitedly in a giddy swarm. “You won’t believe it.”
“Try me,” Nico beckoned.
Will uncrossed his arms and began following the group, Nico jogging to match his pace.
“You know how Harley has been working on the homing beacon to help Leo find camp?” Will asked as they walked.
Nico’s stomach did a somersault. He could see exactly where Will was going before he finished his thought. The young demigod who cheated death.
“You mean—“ Before Nico could finish his thought, Nyssa from the Hephaestus cabin brushed past him, her eyes wide and fiery as she led a group of her brothers and sisters ahead of the rest of the campers.
As Nico and Will drew closer to the beach, Festus came into clear view. The water of the Long Island Sound lapped at his massive golden talons. Atop his back, a scruffy Latino boy sat with a triumphant grin across his face, the arms of a caramel-haired girl wrapped around his waist. Nico didn’t think he could be any more enraged after his interaction with Hades in his dream, but when he saw Leo Valdez, his chest ached with fury. He balled his fists and pushed through the crowds of campers, Will calling his name behind him and scrambling to keep up.
He watched Leo climb down from atop the bronze dragon and offer a hand to the mysterious silver-skinned girl. As their feet hit the sand, Harley was the first to engulf Leo in a mighty hug. The little boy sobbed and gripped Leo’s shirt with the desperation of someone who hadn’t eaten in three weeks and just stumbled upon a slice of pizza. Nico ripped through the line of Hephaestus kids and reached Leo just as Harley released his embrace. In one swift motion, Nico grabbed the sleeve of Leo’s shirt and jerked him back. Leo yelped and made eye contact with him, his brown eyes wide with alarm.
“We need to talk,” Nico hissed. “Now.”