Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chapter 1- 

Nico’s P.O.V.

-Friday-

I walk into the Hades cabin, immediately dropping my stuff aside. I rub my eyes, stumbling forward a bit. I’m exhausted, as usual. People have been sending me all over the place today, I haven’t even gotten a chance to be at camp even once…

I drop my hands and adjust my jacket. It’s cold out there, and—

I stop. “Percy?” I say, looking at him. Percy Jackson is walking around my cabin. Damn it. I must have fallen asleep at some point and now I’m dreaming. It better not be one of those this is really happening right now dreams.

He stops where he's pacing and smiles at me. "Hey Nico! How's it going?"

“Are you looking for something?” I ask, “…Did you lose your memories again? Please tell me I’m not going on a quest.” 

I’ve already been OUT all day.

He laughs. "No, no. I just stopped in and figured we could hang out or something. I had to come talk to Chiron anyway."

“…Shouldn’t you be in school?”

"I had the day off, it's fine." He waves a hand at me. "You clearly didn't, though. What have you been up to?"

He had the day off…from school? Is that how it works?

“Today, or in the past four months since we’ve talked?”

"In general! Catch me up, it's been a while." He leans on the pillar beside my bed.

“Uhh…” I don’t know how to answer that question. It would be easy to tell him about today, but thinking about talking to him about Will…? About everything I’ve been doing?

I put my hands in my pockets, standing stiffly and watching him. “Just recuperating.” I manage.

"That's good, a lot’s happened." He nods. "I'm at a new high school, so that's weird. Also my moms gonna have another kid, so that's weird."

“She is?”

"Yeah! She's having a girl and we've been decorating the baby room and everything. I wish I had pictures to show you, but we almost had an argument about what the theme should be."

“You’re going to have a sister?”

"I am. They're torn between a few baby names right now."

I stare at him. I don’t know why he thinks I want to hear this.

“This is a weird dream.” I rub my eyes again, “Even by demigod standards.”

"...?" He tilts his head at me, visibly confused. "This isn't a dream."

“Are you sure? You’re in my cabin for no reason.“

I’ve had dreams like this, but they don’t usually take the turn of Percy excitedly telling me about his family. They’re also way more uncomfortable than this, and usually he has less clothes on.

"I'm here to say hi, didn't I tell you that already, or did I forget?"

“That’s not reason enough. Am I in a prophecy? Again, say no.”

"God's, No. Well... not that I know of, at least. I really did just come to talk to Chiron and decided to pop in."

“Hi. Bye.”

I try to move, but I can’t. I’m worried about this dream becoming…what they usually are.

"Wait! Just hang out for a bit." He frowns.

“I’m tired. It’s the only thing making this not feel like a dream.”

"Because it isn't one Nico..." Percy fidgets with his hoodie strings, glancing at the window. "Just came to check on an old friend."

“FRIEND?”

"Yeah? I thought so at this point...?"

“Are you talking about me and you?” I double check.

"There's no one else in here, so yeah? Is that okay?"

I don’t think we’re friends. 

“Last time you were friendly with me was three years ago.” I remind him.

"Four? It hasn't been that long, right?"

Considering how I’m fourteen now, yes, it has been that long. “Yeah…maybe two and a half.” I decide.

Maybe the last time was when I showed up unannounced on his birthday. After that? I was too dumb and fumbled everything with him. Nothing felt right again. I guess he stopped viewing me as a misguided kid and realized I was a genuine threat to him.

"Shit. Time goes so fast always. I probably should have been here two birthdays ago..."

“…Excuse me?”

"Birthday?" He blinks at me. "It's today, right?"

“Why do you know that?”

"I... ah. Will told me." He says as he stands up straight.

Did I tell Will? Maybe it was on medical records or something. I didn’t know Percy and Will talked to each other. 

I take my hands out of my pockets and cross my arms. “I didn’t know you two were friends either.”

"Oh, he's friends with everyone. Great guy." He nods. "Happy birthday. I did..." He trails off, digging around in his backpack. "I got you something."

“Is this where the dream gets weird?” I muse, staying guarded.

He pulls a zip lock with some blue cookies out, and then a card. "Mom made you the cookies."

Sally Jackson did? But she doesn’t even know me, so how is that reasonable?

“Why? What do you guys want?” I try asking again.

"Nothing? She makes these all the time, I told her I was coming here and she made sure to send them with me for ya." He comes closer, holding the card and cookie bag out to me like an offering.

I take a quick step back, as if the cookies are going to explode. Again, since Percy is being nice, this is usually when something goes wrong in my dreams, when he becomes a demon trying to attack me or he just starts spouting horrible truths. 

I mutter curse words in Italian, either at myself or at him. I’m not sure. If those are cookies, I probably want them.

"..." He backs up and sits them on my counter instead. "Sorry, maybe I shouldn't have come. I didn't mean to surprise you like this. They're for you either way, so... I'll leave them right here. We don't WANT anything, it's a gift."

“You’ve never given me a gift before.” I remind him. 

Again, we’ve known each other for a long time. Even if I’ve been on the run for a good chunk of it.

"I know, but when I'm invited for...." He pauses again, shifting on his feet nervously. "I'm going to spoil something, why did they send me here?"

“Spoil something?” I question. What does that mean?

Who is they ? I grab my sword at my side, but don’t take it out, watching him cautiously.

His eyes go to my hand immediately. "Will's gonna be pissed... just, come to the Apollo cabin with me, you'll see."

“If he’s proposing, I’ll kill him.” I soften up, going back to trying to be sarcastic and aloof. 

Wait… Will knows it’s my birthday. Somehow. He knows about it, and Percy said he was ‘invited’, and… Would they throw me a birthday party with the Apollo cabin? Why did Will choose to get Percy, out of all the people we know?

I keep my expression neutral and stare at Percy. I don’t move my hand. Something is wrong here.

Percy laughs. "He's not. Can you trust me once? Just to the Apollo cabin."

Percy wasn’t ever really the one to betray me. I’m the one who kept doing things to him, maybe that’s why this is making me so anxious. He could try to get back at me at any moment. 

Karma, or…a greater force. 

“We can go to the Apollo cabin. Fine.” I decide, turning to walk back out, before pausing. I reach a hand out to Percy.

"..." He grabs the cookies and card and comes over again, putting them in my hand. "Sorry for spooking you. If someone other than Tyson was in cabin three, I'd poop my pants probably."

From what I’ve heard, it took him a long time to adjust to even Tyson being there. 

“Give me your hand.”

"Are you going to cut my arm off?" He asks, giving me his hand anyway, trusting me too much.

“No.” I hold his hand. It pretty much makes my heart ache, but good thing I’m over him so it’s not too bad. 

I pull him aside a bit and then shadow-travel both of us into the Apollo cabin. The first thing I see is Will, bustling around, adjusting decorations on the few tables that they dragged in here for some reason. 

Chiron and Mr. D are here, and the other Apollo kids, and…hey…

“Hazel…” I realize. 

These people are going crazy here, distracted enough that no one immediately looks over at me. Not that they usually do, but I have Percy with me now. He’s pulled his hand away and has it on his stomach like he’s going to be sick. So dramatic. I guess I surprised him.

Hazel jumps. "Nico! Hi... um..."

"Surprise!" Will says quickly. 

"Percy,  I thought you were going to keep him at the cabin." Chiron scolds him.

"I tried!" Percy complains, leaning on one of the bunkbeds dramatically.

"Nico, there's no reason to shadow-travel to somewhere this close..." Will starts.

It would have been a couple minutes of walking with Percy. I don’t fancy that. 

“I figured I’d show up and scare you.” I tell Will.

"Well... it worked! We aren't really fully ready, but happy birthday! Jason should be here soon." He says, gesturing to the decorations.

One of the beds has presents piled onto it, and there's streamers hanging off all of them, and balloons scattered around on the floor.

“Jason?” 

My hands are shaking. What was he THINKING?!

"Yeah! All your friends are here." He nods. "And there's some cupcakes."

“Come here.” I hold my hand that was just holding Percy’s out to him instead.

He comes over and takes it, looking really concerned as soon as our hands touch. " Alright ? If you need to step out for a second we can."

I squeeze his hand once and then shadow-travel him out into the woods. All of those people in there… 

I knew this was a nightmare.

He yelps once we're on solid ground again. " Nico ! We could have just walked out, stop using your powers so pointlessly ..."

“No, that was your punishment.” I glare at him, leaning back against a tree.

He wrings his hands, looking at me worriedly. "Punishment?"

I don’t want to curse at him. He doesn’t know any better. 

“…!? Yes? What the- what were you thinking?!”

"Well, I saw on your file that it was your birthday, and no one should be alone on their birthday... so I thought it would be nice to invite your friends so they could come hang out for a while." He explains himself. "I didn't think it would be a problem."

“…” Don’t scream at him, he’s Will. “I don’t have any friends.”

"You do, all of them were excited to come see you. Hazel really seemed happy about it." He tells me, sitting down on the forest floor tiredly, looking up at me. "All those people care about you, Nico."

“No, they-“ I stop. I still have the stuff Percy gave me in my hand.

"...Did Percy give you his gift already? Everyone brought you something." He says hesitantly.

“His mom…” I trail off. She thinks she’s everyone’s mom, I’m pretty sure. If she could be here for all of us, including me, she would.

"Mrs. Jackson is the best person ever. Lucky you, she makes the best cookies, blue or not." He says softly. "I'm sorry about all this, if I knew it would be a problem, it would have been more lowkey ..."

“I don’t want any of this. I hate these people.”

"...You don't mean that, do you? They all care about you a lot." Will tells me.

“What do you mean, you don’t mean that ?! Why are you being so soft about this?”

"What do you mean? They came here because they care about you, Nico. They could have told me no."

“Maybe they want something?” I guess. I sink down so I’m sitting on the ground across from him before adjusting my jacket.

"I doubt that. I think what they want is to celebrate with you."

“Celebrate what?!” I snap.

"You being alive, and being here, and being born! Have you never had a birthday party before?"

“I don’t remember…!?”

"..." He pauses, biting the inside of his cheek as he decides how to respond to me. "I shouldn't have asked it that way, I'm sorry... and clearly I should have run this by you, I just thought it would be a nice excuse to see everyone."

“I need- Don’t bring people around me again, okay? Especially not Percy.”

"Okay. Why not, I thought you guys were friends now?"

“Friends.” I scoff.

"...He seemed to think you were friends when I Iris messaged him."

“What did he say?” I mumble.

"I asked him what he was up to today, and he told me nothing he couldn't skip then asked why. I explained it was your birthday and I was calling all his friends to see if they wanted to come to your birthday party, and he told me he'd love to come , that he misses us , and would see if Annabeth was busy, she was, and then told me y ou have to invite Jason, Hazel and Coach Hedge ." He repeats the whole call back to me.

“Will, I-“ I stop, I need to think before I say this, “I’ve had a crush on Percy for three years, I don’t want to look at him.” I say anyway. Whoops .

" Oh . Really? I didn't know that, I'm sorry..." He trails off, glaring at the ground. "This is all one big mess, isn't it?"

“ Yeah . And Jason is coming?”

"He's going to be coming later because he's not skipping school to be here."

“Well, guess what .”

"...What?"

“Liked him too. For less time, granted, but still.” I say. 

I liked Jason because he praised me a bunch, and he was so nice and took everything at my pace. It went away once I realized that Will was nice to me too and that I liked him more.

"...Are you avoiding all of your friends because you had crushes on them?" He asks warily.

“First of all, not friends . You’re my only friend. Second of all, I’m not avoiding them, I’m protecting them and myself. Third of all, just those two .”

My other friends are all girls.

"You don't need to protect people from yourself. You get to choose who you let into your life, but you can't be mad at people for liking you." He says, stupidly getting worked up over that, as usual. 

“We also can’t assume people like me and don’t have ulterior motives. Why would anyone like me? For real.”

"The same reasons I like you, Nico. You're cute, we have some similar experiences, we're a good team, you make me smile-" He starts, before I cut him off.

“I don’t know why.” 

"You're a spitfire . I like that about you." He says. 

Maybe I shouldn’t have started our relationship by bickering with him so much, now he thinks I’m wittier than I am. He made a bad impression on me too. Yet, here we are .

“I am not.” I roll my eyes.

"You just were right then!"

“What?! I’m just angry.”

"I know, and I'm apologizing. I shouldn't have made this a surprise, I should have talked to you about it." He admits. 

“Yes, that way I could have stopped you before everyone came here… I guess we have to do it now.”

"If possible. If it's that bad I can tell Hazel to get the party going without us." He suggests.

My party would probably go better for everyone else if I wasn’t there. That might be our best bet. No one wants me around anyway, I can’t imagine why most of them are here. 

“We can go back in a bit, just…” I rest my head against the tree. I’m really fighting exhaustion.

He watches me warily, wanting to argue. Definitely wanting to argue. He always does. "You really need to rest. What do you think about taking a power nap at your cabin, then I can get you up for a little bit of a party later?"

“Sure, let me just shadow-travel back there-“

He gets up quickly. " No , stop exhausting yourself. I'll carry you."

“Don’t touch me.” I say instinctively, forgetting who he is for a moment. I swear, I don’t care if he touches me. 

He nods slowly. "I don't have to, I can get someone else that you're more comfortable with."

Who the fuck would that be? I only want him. I’m only okay with him . 

“I didn’t mean that.” I manage an apology (as much as an apology as I’m capable of). 

"It's alright. Do you want my help or someone else's? You're getting it either way."

I have to bite my tongue here. There’s no point in causing drama and pushing Will away. “I don’t need help, I’ll just…eat a cookie. Want one?”

"..." He sits back down beside me, closer than before but to the point that he's touching me. "Are you sure? Mrs. Jackson cookies are rare."

I rest my head on his shoulder instead, hesitantly, but I think it’s what he wants. I give him one of the cookies. “She gives them away all the time. I think she is obsessed with sending food to camp.”

"She's a mom, she's probably just worried they're not feeding us enough or something." He says as he starts eating the cookie. “That’s what my mom says all the time.”

Lucky him, having someone who cares about him like that. Good thing he has a mom. Also, his dad is way cooler than mine, but that’s a whole other topic. 

“They have plenty here.” I break one in half and start eating it, trying to pace myself. I really should lie down for a while.

"True. That won't stop a parent from worrying. Or maybe she just really likes cooking. Or Percy asked for them for you."

“Maybe. I don’t know why he’d do that,” I say, “If it’s poisoned, at least it’ll poison you too.”

"Good point. I guess I probably shouldn't trust unmarked food from just anyone, hmm ?"

“From Percy? Definitely not.” I agree, for some reason. 

"Why? Has he poisoned you before?"

“Not yet, but I wouldn’t doubt it.”

"Hmm. Luckily for you, someone will come looking for us sooner than later.” He points out. 

People would need him, at least. As for me, I would have to be needed for something. Someone would have to desperately need shadow-travel or an easy way into the Underworld for them to come looking for me. 

“Me? No. You? As soon as someone noticed you were missing.” I say. 

"I'd notice if you were missing. Not that that sentiment applies here." He chuckles, since in this scenario, he’s with me.

“Just you. I like it that way.”

"That's sweet…?” He says, but he doesn’t believe it, “It's not good to shut yourself out, Nico."

“I know that’s what you think.”

"It's a literal fact. It's not good for your mental health." 

“Why do people say things like that here?” I mutter. 

"What do you mean? Mental health is important." He says as he finishes his cookie.

“That too.”

"Because it's just as important as physical health? I don't understand the question."

“Which also isn’t important.” I smirk, lifting my head to look at him after finishing half the cookie.

He rolls his eyes. "You're really trying to make me useless at this camp, aren't you?"

“You have alternative uses for me.” I say, and I’m not sure what I mean. 

"Other than following you around gently scolding you ? I can't imagine what those would be."

“… This .”

"I do like doing this." He sighs softly.

“I’m sorry I never like anything nice you do.”

Maybe…we should break up. I shouldn’t even stay at Camp Half-Blood, I’m getting too comfortable here and forgetting how I need to feel. I’m just pretending. I’m not happy, not even when everyone is here for me. 

"It's alright, it's complicated. Don't feel bad about being yourself, Nico. I'm dating you because I like you."

“You don’t know me.” I insist.

"Not yet . But I'm getting to know you."

I work hard to not seem like as bad of a person as I am when it comes to him. “I’ll never let you.” I tell him bluntly.

"Lucky for you, I am annoyingly persistent."

“You’re definitely annoying .” I sigh.

"Exactly! And persistent and I want to know you better."

“Just stop it,” I say, “…It’s time to go back. I’ll just hang out with Hazel.”

"Are you sure?”

“What is it you think I’m unsure about?” I specify first.

"Are you rested enough to go back already?"

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just walk with me, if you’re not going to let me shadow-travel.”

"Of course." He says, slowly pulling away before getting up. "Don't forget that you can just walk out when you're tired of being at the party." He offers a hand to me.

“Or I could be way more theatrical and just disappear.” I take his hand. He helps me up and I stay leaning on him.

"You could , but you shouldn't." He says, keeping me close as he starts slowly leading me back to the cabin.

“Know where you’re going?”

"I think so? Cabins are this way, right?" He muses, looking around the woods.

“I think so. I was just making sure…”

Mission is; avoid everyone except for Will and Hazel. Hope for the best.

…

Percy is busy walking around and talking to other people, luckily. Everyone else has just sporadically came over and said hi and happy birthday to me, or not. Some of them were smart and just started eating and relaxing with each other. 

Jason isn’t quite here yet. I know he doesn’t have the ability to leave me alone. Maybe I can pin Percy on him and get them both to leave me alone. 

I squeeze Will’s hand, looking at him. He’s chatting with Hazel, Austin, and Kayla. This is nice. I don’t know the other Apollo kids super well, but I like them well enough and they don’t bother me.

Will glances at me, then back at the others.

"-It's been going really well for us. We're all looking into getting a building together, or Percy and Jason are looking into it, anyway." Hazel explains.

"You think you can handle the two of them under one roof? That sounds like a lot of chaos." Will chuckles.

"I'm sure it will be."

"No more chaos than we've got here!" Kayla adds.

“It’s not like you’ll all be home at the same time anyway.” Austin says.

"That's what I'm thinking, it just makes sense from a rental standpoint. It'll be nice when we are all home, though." She muses, looking at me. " It's nice having friends around ."

I raise an eyebrow. What does she mean?

“It is! That’s what’s fun about camp too.” He agrees.

"Exactly. Imagine it like how you get to be in a house with your fellow siblings, but I get to be in a house with my closest friends. That's the hope anyway, once we're all able to move." She says. 

"What about Frank? Isn't he too busy at Camp Jupiter for that?" Will asks.

"More or less, but like you said, we'll be in and out."

“It sounds nice.” I narrow my eyes at her. Having a home in general sounds nice.

"It really does. There will always be a place for you there, Nico. It's really nice to see you." She smiles brightly at me.

“No thanks.” I chuckle. That sounds horrible .

She shakes her head. "Why did I know you were going to say that?"

“You know me.” I claim.

"You're right. But really, come visit me soon, okay? Next time you're near camp?"

“I can come over literally whenever, just let me know.”

Her smile brightens. "I'm going to hold you up on that."

“I’m serious. I can literally be there in like three seconds.”

"Probably faster than I could end our Iris message."

“Definitely faster.”

"I'd say we should test it but that seems like a good way to get exhausted for no reason." Will says.

“It has to happen anyway.”

"Not anytime soon. You can't just wear yourself out all the time..."

"When you're tired, you're operating at a lower capacity too!" Kayla adds in. "You're more likely to make mistakes or get hurt."

“I hate the Apollo cabin.” I decide, and Austin laughs half heartedly but doesn’t argue.

"I knew you'd say that. Maybe dad gave me the power of prophecy as well ." Will muses.

I think of May Castellan. The way she mistook me for Luke, and rambled on aimlessly about so many things, struggling so much to answer our questions. It was all because of seeing through the mist and everything with the prophecies. Her getting mixed up in that stuff makes her just as much to blame as Hermes for the battle with Kronos.

I wouldn’t wish seeing prophecies and spouting them out uncontrollably to anyone. Rachel seems to do well with it. I don’t know her much, but we have some things in common and I think she’s super talented. I love how much she cares about stuff and how hard she works. She keeps up with demigods even though she’s not one of us. She should never face all the pain, fear, and suffering that comes from a life like this, like ours or like hers.

“Better fucking not of.”

"You're not allowed to be good at everything!" Kayla complains to him.

"I'm the son of Apollo , my job is to be good at everything."

“Not everything. Just a couple of the things.” Austin says.

"Medicine, prophecy, archery, the sun, music, poetry, art..."

"Oh my gods, okay." Hazel laughs.

“See? Just a couple of those things!”

“That’s a lot of things! I guess a lot of gods cover more than one thing, but at least they usually make sense together.” Will chuckles.

“I think those all make sense together.” I claim. At least they do in bunches, like music, poetry, and art. Apollo is also viewed as the god of masculine beauty, which…based on Will? Super accurate. 

He got that from him, and the healing, sun powers, and the music. He has no fighting abilities though. Even with all the training he’s had, I wouldn’t send him into battle without someone to protect him.

“ Archery and medicine , though.” Will points out.

“Maybe there’s a connection we’re missing there.”
“There isn’t! But at least there’s a connection between music and healing.” Austin says.

“That’s true, I guess that works, but we can’t sing to arrows to make them fly -- we are not Yondu, and we sure can’t heal other campers by shooting them.”
Kayla giggles. “I wish we could!”

“Healing arrows, go!” Austin says.

I laugh a bit, watching them. I can picture that, for some reason. It’s really funny because the arrow would leave a puncture wound and that wouldn’t be healed necessarily, but everything else could be. I’m sure Leo could have figured something out. Too bad he’s dead or something.

Percy comes over to us, really vibing. He’s pretty good with social events. I figured he’d just leave me alone, but I don’t know why I even thought that. “Hello again.” I say, letting him interrupt the conversation.

He looks particularly spiffy today, or maybe I just haven’t seen him in a while. His hair is so swoopy and falls wherever it wants to, yet somehow, it always works out for him. He has a charming smile, even when I’m mad at him, and the constant look of mischief in his green eyes makes me wonder what he’s up to. He’s a sheik. 

He smiles brightly at me, before looking at Hazel. “Hey guys! Are you telling them about the apartment already?”

“Just a bit! I know we haven't found anything yet, but it's just really exciting.” Hazel tells him.
“She’s inviting everyone to stay.” Austin says.

“Oh my gods, I guess you can. She can invite whoever over that she wants.”
“Thanks for the permission.” Hazel lightly punches his arm. “How's it been for you?”
“Eh, high school’s a bitch .” Percy sighs.

“Did you tell her about your sister?” I prompt. Maybe they’ll walk away and talk to each other.

“Oh! We’re having a baby!” He announces excitedly.
“...?! Your …? Your sister? You mean your mom is having a baby?” She asks.
Percy blinks at her and I can practically see the gears turning in his head before his eyes widen. “Oh! Oh my gods, no. Annabeth isn’t pregnant! That would be nuts. No, and before you can ask, Jason isn’t either.”

Jason ? What does he mean by that? Is it supposed to be funny, because men can’t reproduce with men? Is it a joke against homosexuals?

Will laughs. “I’d be really shocked if he was. Do you need a health class?”
“ Nope !”

“Maybe you do.” I mumble.

Austin pokes my shoulder and I jump, before dragging my eyes away from Percy and staring at the floor. He doesn’t say anything to me, but I think he knows what I’m thinking. I’m going to get in serious trouble for this.

“Y’know, maybe I do. When's the one for twelve year olds?” Percy asks Will.
“Mondays and Wednesdays… I think.” He muses. “I don’t remember that kind of thing unless it's in front of me.”
“Damn, I have class that day.”

“Does that matter to you?” I ask him, without looking up at him again. I don’t like him. It’s everything I thought about him a long time ago that’s coming up again.

“Sometimes. Annabeth is already mad that I’m skipping today, but I needed a break anyway. Senior ditch day.”

“Did it actually work out like that?” Hazel asks.
“I’m a senior, and I ditched, so yes.”

“Isn’t that a specific day?” Austin points out.

“It’s also today! Because-” Percy points at himself. “ Senior -” then he gestures at the cabin. “ Ditch .”

I want to laugh, but I don’t. I’m demonstrating amazing self-control skills today and no one even knows it.
“I’m pretty sure you can still get in trouble for that.” Hazel tells him. 

“You definitely will.” Kayla agrees with her. 

“Ehh~ yeah, what else is new?” He shrugs dramatically.  

“Do you just like it when teachers hit you or something?” I ask. 

“That would be a lawsuit? Teachers yell at me sometimes, but most of them are pretty chill.” He says. 

“ A lawsuit , really? That’s pretty dramatic.” 

“You can’t just hit people’s kids, Nico. Last teacher that tried to do that to me was Mrs. Dodds, and she was literally a fury.” He tells me. “Good thing there aren’t any campers under you, huh?” 

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about.” I tell him honestly. 

“People don’t hit kids to correct them anymore and haven’t for a while… Well, good people don’t anyway.” Will explains. 

“Ohh. Hmm. I’ll have to ask Frank.” Hazel muses.

That’s weird. I don’t even think about how times have changed, I just assume demigod camps have weird standards. I’ve been around enough in the last few years, but I still have no idea…

“Hey guys!” Jason says, walking over to us.

" Jason !" Percy cheers, before fully jumping up onto him.

He acts completely casual about it, because of course he does. He doesn’t care about that sort of thing. “Hey, it’s been a minute. How’s everything right now?” He asks, I’m not sure if it’s to all of us or to him specifically. 

I stare at them. How are they so casual around each other after everything, really, though ? How close are they?

"Awesome. We're decorating the baby room, and picking out names. And it's Nico's birthday and he didn't want a party but is here anyway, and he and Will are dating." Percy says quickly.

“Oh! Nice! Happy birthday, Nico,” Jason looks at me, “How old are you?”

I’m hit with how much he doesn’t know me, which is weird, because there was a point for a month or so that he was the person who knew me the most. “…Fourteen,” I say, “Or, seventy-eight.”

"Seventy-eight is so much more badass." Percy says, moving off of Jason.

“That’s what happens when you’re frozen in time.”

"Good point. I can't wait for your hundredth. We gotta do something really big." He says. "Same for you, Hazel."

"That would be funny, I'm eighty-two, so it won't be too long."

She won’t live that long. She’s already cheated death once at my hands and there’s no way I could do it again. Our father wanted me to this time, it was her fate, but she can’t keep getting out of it now that she has fulfilled her true destiny.

“Whoa! You’re older than Nico that way.” Austin says, “Big sister.”

"Kind of! I'm also fourteen, so it's complicated."

I don’t know who is older. I want to be older. I’m going to keep saying she’s my little sister. Her age got so skewed because of being frozen in time and popping out at a random date, same for me. Her body turned fourteen years old some time during the whole Gaea thing. I have no idea how old I am physically. 

"That's very complicated." Will chuckles.

I shake my head. “No thanks. I’m not thinking about that.” I say. 

“You guys look so good for your ages!” Jason says, changing the subject only slightly.

"Seriously, do you moisturize or something?" Percy chuckles.

“I don’t moisturize, ever.” I say. 

“Yeah, you look a little tired. But no wrinkles, just the same pretty face as usual.” Jason says.

I scream. Luckily, it’s internally, not out loud. I look tired because I am. And what does he mean pretty ? 

"Exactly! Nothing prettier." Percy agrees with him for some reason.

"He's so pretty, you guys are right." Will gushes, joining it on it.

I pull away and smack his hand lightly. Crying isn’t on my list of things to do today, and them saying this is going to stress me out beyond breaking point. I can barely handle when Will treats me like a normal human being. “ Don’t encourage them .”

"Sorry! Stop calling him pretty !" He says instead. Good boy.

"Should I lie and call him ugly?" Percy asks.

"Well, no."

“You can say I’m ugly .” I glare at him. It doesn’t have to be a lie. It isn’t like I’ve tried once to be appealing to anyone.

"I don't wanna lie to you, though. I don't lie to my friends."

“I don’t have friends.”

He gestures to the room. " Friends ."

“Half are strangers who are just socializing with each other.”

"Well, us seven..." Percy pauses. " Six are your friends. Annabeth wanted to make it."

Hazel looks sadly at the floor for a second. "Mmm. So did Reyna and Frank. They sent gifts, at least."

“Do I need to look at those?” I ask. 

“I thought we were friends…” Jason mumbles, miserable because I said that. Idiot…

"We can go through them after." Will tells me. "Don't worry about it right now... we do have cupcakes, if you all wanted to get some."

"Here, Jason, I haven't gotten one yet." Percy offers his hand to him.

He takes his hand, intertwining their fingers. My eyes zero in on their hands. “Yeah, sounds good.” He says. 

What are they doing?! 

I feel Will grab my hand. Is he jealous? Did he catch my staring, or does he just think he’s off the hook and can hold my hand again now.

"We'll pop back over. Nice talking to you guys." Percy says, glancing at me before pulling Jason away and talking quietly with him as they go over to the cupcakes.

"...The cupcakes do look good." Kayla muses.

“No thanks.” I say even though I wasn’t offered, tapping Will’s hand a few times. Maybe now is a good time to take a break.

"Hey, why don't you guys go grab some? We should step out for a second, it's getting loud in here." Will tells me.

"Okay, c'mon guys." Kayla says to Austin and Hazel.

“Are you guys okay?” Austin asks us. 

Am I exuding a more horrible energy than I usually am? I feel sick.

"Yeah, we'll be okay." Will smiles at him, gently squeezing my hand back. "We'll just be on the porch."

“Okay. Let me know if you need anything.” He says before walking away with the others. 

I don’t really want to be alone with Will either. I want to be alone entirely so I can freak out as much as I need to. Am I insane? If Mr. D wasn’t having a blast, I would ask him if I’ve gone mad in the past few years and why it is showing its effects so badly right now.

"Step out for a second?" Will asks, keeping ahold of my hand and starting to guide me in the direction of the door.

“I really should.” I agree with that part.

He leads me to the door immediately, guiding me out the door and shutting it behind us, sighing. "Sheesh. I'm so sorry about all of this."

“It’s alright. It’s not your fault.” I tell him, whether I believe it or not.

"I should have asked you, it was really stupid." He shakes his head. "I just wanted to do something nice for you."

“No, seriously. This was a nice idea.”

"Just bad in theory? Should we just do something one on one next year?" He suggests.

“You want to plan next year ? I can’t even guarantee either of us will be alive next year.”

"We'll be alive next year! Unless you want a do over birthday next week?" He offers, stuffing his hands into his hoodie pocket.

“No, I don’t want any birthdays. I don’t want to think about this. There’s way too much going on in there, on top of it.”

"Yeah... are Jason and Percy always that... weird? With you? Calling you pretty I mean?"

“They’ve never done that before? I’ve only talked to Jason a few times though,” I say, “I don’t know why they’re holding hands.” I lower my voice into a whisper.

"Huh?" He asks, leaning in closer.

I consider getting angry and saying ‘nevermind’ , but Will is deaf or something . He does this all the time. “They were holding hands.” I say simply instead.

"Oh, right. Percy was all over him too. Do you think they're... together?" He asks quietly, but not really whispering, watching me closely.

“They both have girlfriends,” I shake my head, “They’re trying to mess with me.”

He frowns. "You think so? I doubt that, that's really mean."

“Jason seemed nice…” I agree.

"Maybe it's something else. Do you want me to ask?"

“Ask them? What, why they’re holding hands?”

"I guess that might be a little weird? Do you think Hazel might have more information?" He muses, leaning on the front of the cabin.

“I love Hazel, but she never has more information about anything than anyone else. She just came back to life a year ago.”

"Good point. I guess if they do something that seems too far, let me know? I don't think that's what it is?"

“What do you think it is? Guys don’t do this stuff.”

"Unless they're together, which they could be."

“No? I mean…Annabeth.”

"They could be open or cheating." He furrows his brow.

“Percy? Cheating?”

"It doesn’t seem right, but you never know. Or open, like I said."

“I don’t know what that means. Wait, Jason , cheating?”

"Possibly! Seems more likely than Percy, but maybe its because I don't know him."

“Jason is, like, the goodest good boy. He could never break any rule, or promise, especially not with people he cares about, but not even with me.” I explain to him.

"Then they're messing with you or in an open relationship . We might not ever know."

“What does that mean?!”

"...! It's when people date more than one person at a time, and everyone consents to it and it's chill." He tells me.

“That’s outrageous. They would never. And they’re not gay, if Jason would, he would have…” I trail off.

He raises an eyebrow at me. "Would have...?"

I look at him, and I start to feel really cold for once. I mess with my jacket, then with my ring. Maybe I need gloves. 

Jason would have told me. If not right after he found out about me, it would have been within the next couple months. Definitely by now, definitely if he was in a relationship or if he liked Percy. 

“…I guess he just doesn’t like me.”

"He just said you were his friend and looked disappointed when you didn't agree, Nico."

“That’s not what I meant.”

"You mean why wouldn't he have dated you then?" He guesses.

“I mean, kind of?” I say, but I can’t describe what I’m thinking, even if I tried. At the very least, he could have told me. “Like, when I found out about you…” I trail off. 

I was attracted to Will, always, since I saw him, even more since he first touched my hand. Something about him not being straight tripled that, though. Is that not normal? Am I bad for pouncing on my first option and falling in…love with him?

"Hmm. Maybe they haven't been together long, or you're too young for him... if I'm understanding you."

“I’m not too young for any of you, didn’t you hear me? I’m in my late seventies.”

He grins. "Maybe too old for him? Either way, timing does have to do with it."

“Timing. Six months?”

"Maybe? Maybe him and Percy have something new."

“…They’re messing with me.” I say more firmly to him.

"Okay. Then tell them to stop."

“…Forget about this. I’m done.”

"You're done?" He asks worriedly. "What do you mean...?"

“I don’t want to argue with you, or think about any of this. Is there anyone else I need to hang out with in there before I can leave?”

"No, you're okay, I don't think you need to do anything else." He shakes his head. "...Do you want me to bring your presents over later?"

I shouldn’t do that. He’s supposed to be my conscience and the one who makes me nice to people. 

“I probably shouldn’t leave.”

"Well, did you talk to everyone? I'm pretty sure we did. Unless you want to go grab cupcakes, there's nothing else on the list." He says.

“I’m pretty sure I only talked to Austin and Kayla and glared at everyone else.”

"Do you want to go back in? You don't owe them anything, if you're tired you don't need to press it."

“Is that what this is? You think I’m just tired?”

"No, you're also upset. This party is for you, there's no reason for you to make yourself do it if you don't want to."

“I’m not upset.” I scowl.

"You're not? Really?" He deadpans.

“…” I huff, crossing my arms, “No, I’m not upset. I’m going to go talk to…everyone. And you’re coming with me.”

He shrugs. "Sounds fine to me."

He couldn’t trick me. I figured it out, and I’m going to do one good thing today and hang out with everyone. Whether they want me to or not.

End

Chapter Text

Chapter 2-

Will's P.O.V.

-Friday-

I'm impressed that Nico managed to get through the whole party, even if it was just a couple of hours before everyone went their separate ways. I sensed how tired he was when he shadow-traveled me away… it’s like his life was slipping through my fingers and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

I feel like a major ass for planning the party in the first place, but now I know to just ask instead of surprising him, for the most part.

I shift the bag of gifts that I've put over my shoulder as I walk Nico back to Cabin 13, watching him intently. He's exhausted and has been the whole time. It would help if he'd quit using his shadow-travel like it's nothing, especially after coming back from probably using it all day on top of it...

I'm worried about him, but I'm learning that I probably always will be.

"Do you want me to just leave your gifts in your cabin, or do you want to open them when we get back?" I ask as we get closer to the dark Hades cabin. Compared to the white and gold Apollo one, this looks like it came right out of the set of some scary horror movie, with black ornate... well , everything.  I can't imagine staying in here full time, it seems depressing.

“If they need to be opened, we need to open them now.” He says, walking with his hands stuffed in his pockets.

"Okay, we'll go through them when we get inside, then," I tell him. There's a pretty fair amount of gifts in here, everyone at least brought a card, so I guess he'll get something out of this, even if he doesn't want it. I don't know if he'll even accept gifts, he's so particular about everything . 

I hope he likes what I got him...

“Works for me.” He says, “…Did you have a good time?”

"I did! It was nice seeing Hazel again, she's really nice." I tell him.

I think he felt the same about that at least, they're really close.

“She is awesome.” He agrees.

"We should try doing something with her and her boyfriend." I say as we head up the steps of the cabin. I watch him, not sure how tired he is. He needs a good meal and a really long nap, but… story of his life .

“Frank? Yeah, he’s cool. That would be nice.”

"I think so too." I say, reaching out and opening the door. I blink into the dark mausoleum that is the Hades Cabin .

He walks in. “Bedtime?”

"Can be. Open my present at least, I'm nervous about it." I admit as I follow him inside. We take the step down into the cabin, just another reason the big three cabins aren't as nice, they're not made for campers, there's no ramps, multiple levels... is it always this dark in here?

“What would you have to be nervous about?”

"I don't know if you'll like it!" I say as I walk in, sitting the bag on the black couch. This is the only furniture in here, other than the bed and dresser. The kitchenette was added in the corner, I think…? This wasn’t meant to have kids in it at all.

“I don’t know if I like gifts at all.”

"I was just wondering that myself." I agree with him. "I guess this is a good way to find out, yeah?"

He's probably going to think it's stupid, what I got him.

I shake my head to push out my self-doubt and start getting the various gifts and cards out, putting them on the couch beside the bag. "Come sit, we'll go through these."

“Nothing about this is a good way to find out anything.” He sits on the couch and watches me.

"I know that now ." I say, staring at a can shaped present that's from Mr. D.

I should have known about his aversion to group events earlier, but it's too late and there's no reason to keep beating myself up over it.

“Yeah, I’m sorry.” He says.

"Don't be, Nico. I'm sorry." I say as I get the last gift out, the very carefully wrapped one that i have for him, in black paper with a white bow of course. I hand him that one first, the necklace I'm wearing borderline burning against my chest as I think about him opening it.

I nod, standing in front of him because I put presents on the seats. "...If you don't like them I kept the receipt, so be honest."

I put a hand on my necklace that's under my shirt. It's a dainty gold chain that has a little skull on it. It hangs a bit lower than the camp beads we wear, I made sure of it. The necklace I got him was a silver Rod of Asclepius , the medical symbol with a single snake wrapped around it.

I wanted him to have a bit of me with him wherever his journeys ended up taking him... thinking about it now makes me feel stupid. He probably hates all that mushy stuff .

He looks at it, “Oh, I see now. It says from the prettiest blond ever on it.”

I grin, feeling my face getting warm. "I totally should have wrote that. I will, next gift."

It just says from Will with a heart drawn on the tag.

“My mistake. It actually says from the cowboy. ”

" Yeehaw ." I say with a thick southern drawl, tipping an invisible hat. "...C'mon Nico. I'm dying here."

My blood pressure has got to be through the roof right now, I'm so nervous. I take a deep breath and assess myself. It totally is high, but otherwise I seem to be fine. It’ll pass.

He glances at me. “No, you’re not. I would be able to tell if you were.”

"I'm being dramatic. If you want to feel my heart racing you can." I offer, putting a hand on my own chest.

“No,” He rolls his eyes and opens my gift. He stares at the black box inside. “…Please don’t ask me to marry you.”

I laugh nervously. "That would be a huge ring if it was a proposal. I don't have that kind of money."

“Yeah, right, that would be the issue with it.” He opens it and stares at the necklace inside instead.

"..." I take the one out from under my shirt. No going back now. "It's the um, Rod of Asclepius , the medical symbol. I got myself a little gold skull. I liked the idea of having a little bit of each other." I explain.

“You-“ He reaches out for my necklace for a second, before relaxing and taking his out, “This is so…sweet, I don’t know what to do.”

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. He likes it, yes !

"Probably let me put it on you." I offer, scooting the gifts so the seat beside him is open. I sit down, watching him closely.

“How did you think of this?”

"I just...I wanted a way to feel close to you when you're gone." I explain to him. "I like to think you want that sometimes, too."

Or, at least, I hope he does. I don’t really know how he thinks about me, or if he thinks about me at all. I think about him all the time either way, so I guess it doesn’t matter.

“I…I’m here for a reason. I try not to be away from you.” He looks at me. 

“But if you are, you won’t be .” I tell him, taking the box from him. “Here. I’ll put it on you, you can see if you like it.”

I start getting it out of the box for him, making sure not to tangle it.
“I already know I like it.”

“Yeah? That’s good, I was hoping the symbol with the snake would be closer to your vibe then some of them I was looking at. I wasn’t sure though.” I admit as I get it out. “Lean forward a little bit?”
“It is. Nice,” He says, scooting forward, “My hair’s going to be in the way, watch out.”

“I won’t snag it or anything.” I assure him, scooting closer and putting the necklace around his neck. I carefully brush his hair away from the nape of his neck, making sure it’s not in danger of getting caught in the clasp as I clip it on him. “ There . Looks good.”

When we touch, I do what I always do and check on him again. He’s still exhausted, nothing new there. It’s fading a bit, at least. I’m sending him straight to bed when we’re done here.
I spent all my remaining money on these necklaces, I’m glad he likes them. I fix his hair so it’s back where it was, before making myself pull away from him. I like being close a lot more than he does, so I try not to push stuff.
His dark eyes stay locked on me. “You’re…insane.”

“Huh? I am?” I as, tilting my head a bit at him. “Why's that?”
I can’t tell what the meaning was behind that. Insane? In a good way or a bad way?
“I don’t understand how you’re so sweet with me.”
“You’re my boyfriend, of course I’m going to be sweet with you . I’m sweet on you.”
He’s so cute, and I can’t imagine why anyone would be mean to him. I think maybe I should talk to Jason and Percy about being mean to him. I don’t know, they’re terrifying. The first time I met Percy he was killing Kronos , if that puts it into perspective for you. 

Well, I guess I’m dramatizing it a bit, because Kronos’ death was caused by Luke Castellan, but it would have never happened if not for Percy.
Nico is still staring at me, but now he looks even more confused and also concerned. I’d assume he said something that I just didn’t hear. I got a little lost in my head there.

“...” I blink at him. “Sorry, what?”

“Never mind, I didn’t mean to say what I said. Let’s keep opening presents?” He suggests, not looking at me anymore.

I narrow my eyes at him for a moment, before relaxing. I guess he doesn’t have to tell me if he didn’t mean to say it in the first place. I look at the present pile and pick up one that’s in a blue wrapping paper with a card on top. “It’s got a card on it, so I don’t know who it's from.” I put it in his hands.

“A card? Gross. Think it has money in it?”

“Maybe! But usually when it’s hooked to a gift it doesn’t.” 

“Maybe this is from someone who agrees with the you get as much cash as how old you are thing and I’m about to be rich.”

“If we’re going off your birth year, yes.” I laugh. “There’s only one way to find out~” By opening it, obviously. I take the bow off of the top and stick it to the front of his jacket, on the collar of it. “ Oh , the best gift.”

“My jacket? Yeah.” He says as he opens the card.

“No, you . You’re the gift.” I say, looking at the front of the card.  It’s got a cute drawing of a black cat on the front that’s wearing a party hat, and it says Happy Birthday on it.

“I’m my own gift? Is there a gift receipt? Can I return it?”

“No refunds, no exchanges.” I tell him as he flips open the card. It takes a moment of staring at it, but after a second I realize the text inside says Wishing you a pawsitively meowgical birthday!, and then it’s signed by Hazel and Frank, along with a really long message from Hazel on the right side of it.
“What does any of this say?” He questions angrily, handing it to me.

I take it and stare at it. “Wishing you a pawsitively meowgical birthday . It took me a minute. You want me to read you the message?”

I think as far as reading goes, his dyslexia is worse than mine for the most part. All demi-gods have different levels with their respective diagnoses.
“If you could.”

“ Nico, happy birthday! I just wanted you to know how much I miss, love and care about you, and I can’t wait for your 80th birthday, because we’ll need to do something big. Don’t be a stranger, we need to plan something all together soon. Make sure to call me when you can, XOXO, Hazel .” I read it off the card. “Oh, that’s sweet. I love her.”
I know her and Nico have a really close bond, not just from how he pulled her from the underworld or whatever, but I think they just really care about one another. It’s good for him to have a sibling relationship like the other cabins get from their cabin mates.
“Me too. It’s nice having someone who understands me so much.” He says.

“I’m sure. That’s why I love hanging out with the people in my cabin, it’s a shame she’s at Camp Jupiter and not here.” I agree with him, sitting the card aside. I’m not sure what he’ll do with those.
“Honestly, I like Camp Jupiter way more.”
“Really? It seems so strict , I don’t think I’d like it.” I muse. Probably because I’m not a warrior like all of them are, though.
“It doesn’t have to be. People just do what they want there. They have more of a focus on leadership and following rules there, though…since…”

“Since they’re little warriors ?” I question. They follow a lot of Roman rules, from what I've been told. I’ve never been there.
“They are, they’re Roman, and they have a focus on Jupiter. Camp Half-Blood would never associate with Zeus, he’s almost as disliked as Hades by now.”

I nod in agreement. “Yeah, true. I just can’t imagine it either way. I like how it is here… open the gift.”
He’s just been holding it while we’ve been talking. We have a lot to get through for us to keep getting distracted.
“Sorry, maybe it’s best to do a few at a time.” He says before opening it. “Haha, look. Cute.” He shows me.

It’s a black and white striped scarf, with a little skull patch on one end. “Oh, that’ll be adorable on you.”
“Yeah, I don’t think it’ll look the best with my jacket.”

“Really? I think it’ll be fine. It's for keeping warm anyway.” I point out. “You could wear it with a sweater or something.”
He’s always in the jacket, though. I don’t think they’d clash or anything.
“I don’t have any sweaters. I’ve just worn the same clothes for the past seventy years, for the most part. I got a couple t-shirts I guess, but that was needed.”

“Maybe you need a sweater if you don’t get one out of any of these.” I suggest.
“If anyone gifts me more clothes, I’ll explode.” He puts the scarf aside.

“Hmm. I don’t know what other people got you, but you might want to be prepared to explode.” I warn him, grabbing the present shaped like a can and giving it to him. I doubt this is clothes.
“I always am,” He takes it from me, “ Mr. D … Maybe this is alcohol.”

"It better not be. He'd have had to have gotten it from a demi-god, and if he did? He'd have drank it."

“It would just change as soon as he tried.”

"Is that how it works?" I question. I don't know him as well as Nico does.

“I’d think so.”

"I guess I didn't know that. I avoid him when I can, he's mean ." I sigh. "Open it and find out."

He opens it. “Not alcohol, Diet Coke…not the best soda.”

"What soda do you like?" I ask as I grab the next gift. It's in a bigger box but it's really light...?

“Eh, probably root beer. I’ve already tasted all the flavors at McDonalds a hundred times but I haven’t gotten any anywhere else.”

"Root beer is good. I like orange soda more than anything." I say. Or a good sweet tea, but not the one from McDonalds, way too sweet, even for my blood.

I grab his next gift, a deep purple gift bag that reminds me of the color that the Camp Jupiter kids wear. It's got a little tag on the handle, so I read it for him before he can ask. "From Reyna."

“Reyna? Really?”

“Yeah, I guess more specifically it says Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano .”

He chuckles. “Nice.” He takes it and opens it. “Ah! Dogs .”

I look at the items as he pulls them out. There are two metal dog… figurines? One looks like Cerberus with the three heads, and the other looks like Mrs. O'Leary. “Those are adorable. You’ll have to find a good spot to put them.” 

“Yeah. To clarify, she has two metal dogs like these…except they’re alive.”

I eye the dogs warily. “Are these ones alive?”
“I sure hope not. I can barely keep myself alive.”

I don’t think he needs more things to worry about, he’s right on that part. I don’t really like the way he said it, though.
“Hmm. You’re right, those ones probably cost less to feed.” I point out.
“Not sure if they eat?”

“Maybe they eat gears and motor oil .” I suggest.
I don’t even know how her metal dogs are alive, so I can’t really answer that question for him.
I look at the pile. There’s a few more boxes, and a pile of cards.
“I’ll go ask her.” He says.

“Now?” I question. “Why don’t you wait and save your energy like you’re supposed to?” I suggest. “You can Iris message her later.”
Instead of shadow-traveling multiple times a day for no reason .
“I don’t have any energy. Don’t worry, she is used to me being asleep.”

“That doesn’t mean you need to exhaust yourself. Doesn’t it make more sense to just wait and hang out with me?” I point out, partially to try and convince him to stay, but mostly because I actually don’t want him to leave. I wish he was at camp all the time.
“Why? Do you like me or something?” He asks, messing with the necklace I just gave him.

“Look, don’t tell my boyfriend , but yeah . I like you a lot.” I tell him, leaning in a bit more. 

His eyes widen and he glares at the floor. “I’m definitely going to tell your boyfriend.” He sets the dogs aside.

“ Aw , darn it.” I grin, grabbing one of the cards and passing it to him.

He opens it, looks at it for a moment, takes the two drachma out, and then hands the card back to me. “What’s it say?”

I don’t think he even tried that time. I take a moment to look at the front, which is just some colorful birthday balloons. On the inside, it just says Happy Birthday ! Then it's signed by Chiron.
“It’s from Chiron, it just says happy birthday .”
No long, hard-to-read message like in Hazel’s, which is nice. That being said, it looks exactly the same as the one I got last year, to the point that he might just buy the same card for each camper. I wouldn’t blame him, there’s a lot of us.
“Does it?” He looks over at the card.

“Yep. Short and to the point. I’m pretty sure it’s the same type of card he gave me in August.” I tell him. “I even got two drachmas.”

“Maybe he keeps a stock of them then.”

“He probably just orders like, two big bulk boxes of them or something. It’s the thought that counts.”
Again, the idea that he does that for everyone, which I know he does, is the nice part about it.
“Not much thought, since they’re all the same. Not that any of us are special anyway, since we’re all just random demigods who don’t actually matter to the gods or to anyone who works at camp…”

“...” I blink at him. “I think we do, the gods wouldn’t be able to send just anyone out to do their quests, and we do matter to the people at camp. Chiron loves all of us.”
I do know that much. Do we matter a lot? No . We matter to one another, that’s all that matters.
“Why do you think that?” He asks me. 

“He wouldn’t do this job if he didn’t care about us in one way or another. It’s only a good job if you find it rewarding.” 

“I’m pretty sure he’s here to do the deed with Mr. D.”

I laugh. “ What ?”

Some of the stuff he says cracks me up and actually reminds me that he’s seventy years old.

They’re not doing that… I’d know by now, right? Not that I want to think about that, because, ew . 

“I know, it’s nasty.”

“Very. Never say that again .” I shake my head, sitting the card with the others and grabbing another box, so I check the sticker “This one’s from Jason, and it’s a little heavy.”

“Jason too? I feel bad for not talking to him much.”

I think he made him mad when he said he wasn't his friend . "I think he brought it with him, yeah."

“He’s too much of a good guy. There has to be something messed-up about him, right? I mean, look at his sister…”

"I don't know. I think there can be good people. Unless he bought you something that's going to explode." I shrug.

I don't have much of an opinion on Thalia. Nico does, though.

“Maybe he did. I’d believe it.” He looks at it warily.

"Want me to open it?" I offer. If it exploded we'd both be hurt either way.

“Sure.” He chuckles.

I start unwrapping the gift, and it's in an unmarked box. "Again, kinda heavy." I say as I push the wrapping aside.

"Mhph, maybe it's bricks ." He mumbles, rubbing his face with his hands.

"It could be...?" I open it and gasp as I pull out the little model. It's a miniature version of the Hades cabin, and it's so detailed... "Did he make this?"

He has the spooky vibe of the place down pat, with the dark, dirty brick on the outside, the minimal landscaping, nothing sitting on the porch...

He turns to me again, dropping his hands. He blinks a few times, obviously tired. “Yeah? Oh my gods, that looks fragile.”

He needs to lay down as soon as possible. Maybe we should wait to open these later... He didn't seem to like that idea when I proposed it a little bit ago. " Really fragile . This is so cool... maybe we could sit it on your dresser...?" Will that be a safe place for it?

“Maybe we need to put it in, like, a locked box wrapped in styrofoam .”

"Then you can't see it, though. Maybe a glass case?" I suggest instead.

“More breakable stuff?”

"Good point. It should be fine somewhere... right? It's too cute to just hide away."

“It’s incredible, but I don’t know where to put it,” He sighs, “…He’s probably still here. I should go apologize.”

"You could, but you're tired. Maybe it's better to call him later?" I try. 

He needs to relax here, then go to bed.

“What happened to you being the angel on my shoulder?”

"I think you should apologize… you definitely need to apologize, but you're exhausted." I explain to him. I reach out and put a hand on his arm. He’s not dying any more than he was the last time I checked on him. He needs sleep, badly.

“Am I?” He says, swaying a bit.

"Lean back. We'll open a couple more and save the rest for later." I instruct, carefully sitting the mini Hades cabin to the side.

“Be careful with that.” He warns me, watching it like it’s going to shatter.

"I am, don't worry. Do you want me to put it somewhere?" I ask, trying not to take it personally. I'm not going to break it.

“You can put it on…whatever surface, I don’t know. Just somewhere that looks secure.”

I get up, taking it over to one of the two only spaces that are free, deciding on the bedside table that's against the wall. I make sure it's safe, before returning to sit next to Nico. "It should be alright there for now."

He’s leaning back now. “Perfect, thanks. I really appreciate it.”

"Of course, don't worry about it." I say, sitting back down with him. "Maybe we can just plow through a couple of cards and then be done for now. I'll make sure you actually open the others." 

I'll write it down on my calendar so I don't forget. I go ahead and grab a blue birthday card.

“I’m up, don’t be like that,” He says, “We can get everything done and over with.”

"Okay, I won't make you stop." I decide. If he wants to be half awake for it , he can be.

I don't know why he's trying to convince me that he's not half asleep, because he definitely is... so I give him the card to open and check for money.

“You’re really still handing me cards? I can’t read.” He sighs.

He can, he just won’t, like most of the kids here. 

"I figured you'd want to check them for money." I remind him.

He raises an eyebrow. “Would you steal it if I didn’t?”

I shake my head. "No? You just seemed excited for the drachmas, so I was going to let you open your gifts?"

“Sorry? Does it matter that much?”

"As long as it doesn't matter to you, it's fine."

Unconventional? Yes . But fine? Absolutely .

“Yeah, when it comes to cards, you can manage those. Don’t steal my money though.”

"It'll go right to you." I promise, opening the card. "This one's got a sloth on the front, and says.... why party when you can nap." I read off to him.

I'm not sure if that's insensitive or funny.

“I can nap and party all at the same time.”

"Definitely..." I open it, handing him the gift card. "From Annabeth and Percy."

“ Yay .” He fake gags.

I sigh. "What's the gift card...?" I glance over. " Hot Topic ! That's perfect for you."

“Why? What is it?”

"You've never been?" I question, surprised. "It's a store in the mall with a ton of emo stuff."

“Oh, really? That’s probably really cool then.”

"I think you'll like it. Maybe we can go together and make a date of it." I suggest. We haven't planned anything like that yet, we're taking things super slow.

“A date?” He repeats, “I guess, maybe...” He trails off.

"Or just to hang out." I shrug. "I think you'll like it."

“Isn’t that the same thing?”

"It depends. Some people really define dates a lot. It's kind of whatever you want it to be."

“How do you think of it?” He asks softly.
I know he’s got a lot of problems surrounding his sexuality. Being raised in the era he was makes him a lot more afraid of coming out, either from internalized homophobia, or something else, I’m unsure. I do know that I want him to be happy, healthy and comfortable. Do I want to pick him up and scream across the rooftops this is my boyfriend! ? Absolutely . I want him to feel safe and loved more, though, and that’s okay.

“I think it doesn’t matter what label we put on it. I just really like being with you, Nico.”

“ Good .” He says, “Read, you master…reader .”

“ Master reader .” I chuckle. “I’ll take it. Next one is a card…” I sit Percy and Annabeth’s card to the side, grabbing another from the pile. I open it and look at it. “Pretty generic, just some gifts and a happy birthday on the front…”

I feel Nico shift farther back into the couch beside me, and I open the card. “This one’s from Austin, and it has one dollar in it.”
I pull it out and wave it over to him, but when he doesn’t grab it immediately, I peer down at him. He’s out, cold and starting to fall against me. I prop him up against the couch again and sit the card with the money on top so he can find it later, before getting up. 

I make sure to put the gifts we opened all together, then the ones that aren’t open I take a moment to put back into the bag to look through later. After cleaning up, I just reach down and pick him up into my arms, taking him over to his bed. I pull his sneakers and jacket off, before putting him under the covers. 

Once he’s tucked in and sleeping soundly where he should be, I put a hand on his head, checking him one more time. Just exhausted, he’s going to be okay.

I glance around, making sure there’s nothing else that needs done before leaving the cabin. Nico can come find me once he’s up, if he wants that.
I make sure the cabin door is shut before walking down the steps and back toward the Apollo cabin. I stop in my tracks when I see Jason and Percy walking hand in hand ahead of me.
I should let them know that Nico is sorry, even if Nico will later. 

I also need to make sure that they’re not messing with him because he’s gay.
“Hey, wait up!” I call out before running up to them.
“Hi Will.” Percy says as they slow down to walk with me.
“Hi. Um , I wanted to let you know that Nico said he’s sorry. I overwhelmed him with all of this.” I explain.
Percy frowns a bit, looking at Jason. I think Jason took it harder than Percy did, based on the look on his face at the party. 

“It’s fine. I know how he is by now.” Jason says, but his eyes are still sad. 

“He looked like he was going to cry when he opened your gift.” I add. “...And obviously, you guys don’t need to tell me, but I wanted to let you know that if you’re doing this …” I gesture to their hands, “To mess with Nico? That’s really messed up.”
Percy laughs. “Oh my gods, no? Can I tell him, Jason?”
Tell me…? Are they actually together? I don’t know what to do with that information, especially if their girlfriends don’t know. I don’t want to know about it if that’s the case.
“I don’t care. I don’t even know this guy, but I’m assuming you do.” Jason says to him. 

“Kinda! I owe him, he did save Annabeth after she got stabbed in the battle of Manhattan.”
Why does that feel like a lifetime ago, but also yesterday? I’ve never been more scared in my life, but I’m glad that made a lasting impression.
“I did, right.” I nod a bit. “I won’t say anything to anyone else, either. I’m good at keeping secrets.”
“It’s not really a secret. We’re just both in open relationships with our respective girlfriends, and also dating one another.” Percy says. “We’re not trying to mess with you guys, that would be fucked up. I’m happy Nico found someone like you.”
Oh. Thank the gods that I was right…. Wait, what did he say? Someone like me ? What’s that mean?

“He’s a good kid, yeah…be good to him.” Jason tells me. 

“Of course. I’d never be anything else.” I promise them. “Sorry for accusing you, it’s just what Nico was worried about.” I explain as I keep walking with them. I’m not sure where we’re heading, but we’re heading somewhere.

“I’m sorry about that.” Jason sighs.

"Don't be! I didn't want to assume the worst, that's why I asked." I assure them. "I didn't think you two were like that."

"I think Nico just sees the worst in people." Percy says.

That's an understatement.

"It sounds really bad when you say it that way." Jason says, shaking his head, "So don't say it that way."
“It’s true. I don’t blame him, when you can’t trust anyone it makes stuff difficult, I’m sure. I just hope he can figure out that I’m not against him…” He sighs deeply.
Things are way more complicated between Nico and Percy then I ever thought they could be.
“I hope so too. He needs more friends.” I agree with him.
“It would be easier for him if he’d let anyone in.” Jason says.

I don’t know if he’ll ever be able to do that, but this is already feeling a little bit like we’re gossiping about him and I don’t think I like it. These are his friends though, despite what he first said out of anger.
“I’m hoping the more I’m around, the easier of a time he’ll have with that. Are you two hanging out at camp for the rest of the day then?” I ask as we keep walking past cabins. I’ll just leave when we get to Cabin 7.

“We are, is he not going to come back out?”

“He started opening gifts then passed out.” I explain. “I think the party’s very over.”
“I’d say. That’s alright, we’ll just bother Grover, he’s at camp right now and I haven’t seen him in ages .” Percy says.
Grover Underwood is the satyr that brought him to camp, and probably his best friend? I don’t know him other than seeing him around camp occasionally. He’s usually off being lord of the wild, but he stops in sometimes.
“That sounds like a good plan on your part. I hope you have fun. I’ll probably just see if they need any help cleaning up from the party.” I tell them as my cabin is in sight.
“Let us know if you need anything…” Jason says, “Oh, and hey, we’re working on apartments in New Rome, and you guys are always welcome to come live in one after you graduate.”

I widen my eyes at him. “Oh? Yeah, we’ll have to see, I can’t imagine living anywhere but here right now, but…” Maybe that won’t always be the case, though. Who knows? I wouldn’t leave Nico here alone though… so he’d have to come with me. I don’t know, Nico and I really only started dating a month ago, too. That feels like the very distant future.
“Just keep it in mind, man.” Percy pats my back as they slow down and stop in front of my cabin. “You and Nico always have a place there.”

“Make sure to let him know that, hm? And also let him know that we’re friends whether he likes it or not.” He laughs, seeming a lot more relaxed. I’m glad I got a chance to talk to them.
I nod, going up the steps of the cabin. “I will. Y’know you could just Iris message him, right?”

“Last time I tried that, it was a bad time apparently.”

I stop on the porch, raising an eyebrow at him and waiting for an explanation.

“...What?” He asks me, looking concerned now.

“What happened last time?” I prompt him, relaxing my face since he seems worried. 

“Oh! Don’t worry about it, it wasn’t anything weird. He was just having a hard time at that moment and we didn’t talk about anything I called him about. I actually immediately forgot what we were supposed to talk about…”

“Honestly? He’s usually not having a good time. Sometimes it’s just best to just talk with him anyway.” I tell him. 

“No, I think he was having a panic attack, so…not very helpful to try to talk.” He chuckles halfheartedly. 

I nod slowly, leaning on the railing. “Good point. I’m sure it means more to him than you know.”
I hope it does at least, I might be leading them down the wrong path with this.
“I’ll have to drop him a call at some point then.” Percy says.
Oop. I really hope that I was right, then.

“Yeah, me too. It worked out honestly, he was embarrassed but calm. It isn’t like when I tried to call Frank and he was…indecent.” Jason says.

I chuckle. “Oh no! I’m so lucky that hasn’t happened to me.”
“One time! One time I called Grover and WOW. I did not need to know that much about what him and Juniper get up to.”
That’s alarming, I’m really glad he didn’t go into that more.

“Alright. I’ll let him know for you guys. Thanks so much for coming and for the gifts.”
“Of course, dude. Have a good rest of your day.” Percy tells me, before starting to pull Jason along with him again.
“Bye Will! Thanks for letting us know about…everything.” He says.

I wave. “You’re welcome! See you later!”

I don’t bother waiting for them to leave, I just stand up straight and go into the cabin. It takes me a moment to process the change in scenery, but after a moment, I see that Austin and Kayla are working on cleaning up from the party. Austin is on top of one of the bunks taking streamers down and Kayla is sweeping the floor.
“Hey guys.” I say, sitting my messenger bag onto my bed.
“...!” Kayla looks up from sweeping and at me. “Will! I thought you’d be gone longer.”
“Nah, Nico had to get some sleep.” I wave a hand at them. “How can“ I help?”
“You’re tall, get some of these streamers for me.”
“I can do that.” I say, going over to them. I go ahead and start pulling them down, glad to help somehow.
I think that now I know not to do any more surprise parties for Nico. It might be better to keep communication pretty wide open with him, actually.

I guess I’ll add it to my how to help Nico list that's ever growing in my head.

End