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“Percy Jackson of all people!”
Hades was furious. After catching Nico reliving the memory of his mother’s death, and still smarting from the defeat at the hands of a newly invulnerable Percy, he had hauled his son back to his palace for a godly dressing down.
“Then after undermining my authority and assisting that boy, you disobey my direct orders and view that memory! What were you thinking?”
Hades glared down at his son, who, to his credit, was glaring back at the ten foot tall god, chin raised, drawing himself up to all five foot two inches of his height.
“I have a right to know about my mother!” Nico cried. “You don’t get to decide that for me. You already took seventy years and my entire childhood from me. I deserve to know, and you don’t get to stop me.”
“Don’t speak to me like that,” Hades growled. “You ought to learn some respect. No doubt hanging around with Jackson has taught you to speak to the gods in such a way.”
“Percy is my friend,” Nico retorted. “He was the one who rescued me from the manticore at that school. Bianca and I were nearly handed over to Kronos. Is that what you wanted?”
“He’s a meddling child.”
“He’s a hero!” Nico said, face growing red and splotchy with anger. “He’s willing to give up his life and be the hero of the prophecy, for you! For the gods.”
“You could have been the hero,” Hades responded. “I had everything in place for my children to be the saviours of Olympus, and you were to weak to take it. Not only that, but you’re assisting him.”
“Percy is a good guy, you’re just too petty to see it. Olympus is going to be destroyed, it doesn’t matter who’s son it is!”
“Percy this, Percy that,” Hades snapped. “I’m sick of hearing you talk about that boy. Every time you talk to me it’s about Jackson.”
“You’re just annoyed that he beat you,” Nico said smugly.
Hades swelled in anger, eyes lighting with flames.
“You insolent brat!”
Nico simply glared.
“You must have some nerve coming to me expecting me to answer your questions.”
“I did as you asked!”
“Then staged a prison break.”
“You weren’t meant to lock him up!” Nico cried in exasperation. “Why won’t you just tell me about my childhood! I want to know about mom, I want to know about Italy, I want to know about our family, I want to know about my life! Please!” His voice cracked as he shouted at his father.
“No, Nicolò!” Hades roared. “Stop pestering me! I’ve given you my answer already.”
“My name is Nicolò?” Nico asked in a very small voice.
Hades looked down at his son, who was looking up at him with wide eyes, lip wobbling slightly, and all the fight went out of him.
“I-yes,” Hades said quietly. “Nicolò Salvatore di Angelo.”
Nico’s lips moved wordlessly, sounding out the name in his head.
“Your mother wanted your middle name, but you had a little cousin,” Hades said, words spilling out of him. “Around six years old when you were born, his name was Salvatore, so she named you after your grandfather.”
“I have a cousin?”
Hades nodded.
“You used to play together. You, and Salvatore, and-and Bianca. You would run in the street.”
Nico was quiet for a moment absorbing the information.
“He’s probably dead now, isn’t he?” Nico asked.
“I believe so, yes,” Hades said.
“Everyone I love is dead,” Nico said, looking at the ground. “And I don’t even remember them.”
Hades heart broke slightly at the implicit dismissal of himself among those Nico considered his loved ones, though he knew he had done nothing to win his son’s affections.
“I just…” Nico’s lip trembled and Hades watched in alarm as his eyes filled with tears. “I want a family. I want you to be my dad.” His voice broke and a tear spilled down his cheek. He swiped at it furiously, and turned his head away, closing his eyes as more tears trickled out from under his closed eyelids.
“Oh, Nico,” Hades said gently, looking at his son, who suddenly appeared so small, and so young, and so much like the boy Hades used to bounce on his lap, used to smooth the hair of when he fell asleep in his father’s arms, used to swear he would do anything for. “I have been too harsh on you.”
Nico looked at his father in surprise.
“You are so young,” Hades murmured. “I forget sometimes. You’re so strong and capable, I forget you’re just my little boy. I should have taken better care of you.”
“Dad,” Nico said, staring at Hades with so much pain and open affection that it hurt him to look in his son’s eyes.
“Come here, Nico,” Hades said, shrinking down to a regular human’s size, and holding out his arms. Nico moved forwards hesitantly, and Hades wrapped his arms around his son, drawing him close to his chest and holding him tightly. “I have not been a good father to you. I pride myself on being unlike the rest of my Olympian family, but I treated you with as little respect as they treat their children. I…truly care about you, my son, and I hope you can forgive me.”
Nico didn’t say anything, simply sobbed quietly, face buried in Hades’ shoulder, but the way he was clinging to Hades’ robes, as if he was terrified if he let go, Hades would disappear from his life again, gave Hades hope that his little son was still there.