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It was one of those mornings at Camp Half-Blood when the world seemed to conspire to make even the simplest tasks feel like an epic quest. Sunlight sneaked through the cabin windows at just the wrong angle, turning Nico’s bed into a furnace while Will’s side became a freezing tundra. Somehow, they both ended up awake at the same time, despite Nico’s protests that the sun had no right to exist this early and Will’s insistence that he needed “just five more minutes.”
By the time Nico trudged out of the cabin, his hair sticking up in suspiciously defiant spikes, he was already glaring at the sky. “Who authorized this light?” he muttered. Will, on the other hand, had been up for nearly an hour, bouncing around the cabin like a caffeinated squirrel. He was currently balancing a half-eaten granola bar on his nose while trying to get Echo to chase it.
“Will,” Nico groaned, “why are you awake?”
Will grinned, leaning back on his hands and waving a hand dramatically at the sky. “Because the world is full of opportunities, Nico! Pancakes! Sunlight! Pigeons! Maybe even a minor demigod uprising!”
“Or maybe I just want to sleep,” Nico said flatly, tugging on a hoodie that had mysteriously disappeared under his bed last week.
Will’s grin widened. “Come on, Nico. Today’s perfect for a little chaos. Just… little chaos.”
Nico gave him the look that had ended at least three ‘chaotic’ Will Solace plans before breakfast had even been served. “Last time your chaos involved a glitter bomb in the infirmary,” Nico reminded him, “and I’m pretty sure half the campers still have glitter in their noses.”
“Ah, but that was art, Nico,” Will said with a flourish, as if glitter were a high form of Renaissance expression. “Besides, it built character.”
Nico rolled his eyes, but secretly he wasn’t sure if he didn’t kind of love that chaotic streak. It made life here… less monotonous.
By the time the two of them reached the dining pavilion, chaos had already started without them. Chiron was trying to explain something about archery rules to a group of campers, Clarisse was loudly announcing some “battle plan” for capture-the-flag that nobody asked for, and Leo was somehow juggling pancakes on fire without burning anything down… yet.
Will immediately zeroed in on Leo. “Do you need an assistant?” he asked eagerly.
Leo grinned. “Sure! But you have to promise not to burn yourself.”
Will’s hands shot up. “I promise. Maybe.”
Nico, meanwhile, silently took a plate and went for the normal, non-flaming pancakes, muttering under his breath that if he survived this breakfast, he deserved a medal.
They sat together, Nico quietly spreading syrup on his pancakes while Will hovered over him, narrating every small movement like a nature documentary.
“And now, behold, the ancient syrup ritual. Nico carefully chooses the perfect angle to maximize coverage, a maneuver perfected over countless breakfasts…”
“I’m aware of how syrup works,” Nico said, stabbing his fork into a pancake before it could get any more dramatic.
Will leaned closer. “Ah, but do you feel it? The syrup… sliding… into the pancake valleys?”
Nico pinched the bridge of his nose. Will never understood that subtle movements didn’t need commentary. Or maybe he did, and that was the whole problem.
After breakfast, the two of them decided to take a walk around the camp. It was Will’s idea of “getting fresh air” and Nico’s idea of “enduring the torture of sunlight exposure.” They passed cabins, the forge, and the stables, each location a potential source of chaos, but Nico’s attention was caught by a small squirrel darting across the path.
Will noticed Nico’s distracted gaze and immediately got the idea that they should follow it. “Adventure!” he whispered.
Nico groaned. “It’s a squirrel.”
“Yes, but what if it’s an evil squirrel working for Kronos?” Will countered, already crouching to follow it like a tiny, orange-haired shadow.
Nico sighed and followed anyway, because despite himself, he liked being dragged along.
The squirrel led them to a particularly quiet part of camp near the lake, where Nico had to stop and admit (only silently in his head) that the water looked unusually inviting that morning. Will immediately noticed and pulled out a fishing rod from somewhere behind his back.
“Fishing! We’ll catch breakfast… maybe even a trout! Or a mermaid!” he said with a grin.
Nico stared at him. “We’re not eating mermaids.”
“No promises,” Will said, already fumbling with the tackle box.
Nico ended up sitting on a rock nearby, tossing pebbles into the lake while Will babbled about the various ways they could cook fish if they caught one. Halfway through, Percy and Annabeth strolled past, Percy with a knowing grin, Annabeth shaking her head like she’d seen this scene a hundred times before.
“Why do I feel like nothing good will come from this?” Percy asked, voice low enough that only Nico could hear.
Nico shrugged. “I feel like nothing good ever comes from Will Solace planning anything.”
Annabeth sighed, muttering something about ‘chaotic children’ and ‘necessary patience,’ before dragging Percy along. Nico watched them leave and muttered something about sane people being overrated.
Meanwhile, Will had successfully (and somehow miraculously) caught a tiny fish. It flopped around in the pan of his hands, glinting in the sun.
“See! Success!” Will declared. “Now, we cook it. Or… maybe… we let it go, because ethics! Nature!”
Nico snorted. “It’s a fish, not a moral dilemma.”
Will grinned. “Everything is a moral dilemma if you think about it hard enough!”
By mid-morning, the two had wandered back to the pavilion for a snack. Hazel and Leo were there, arguing over something that sounded suspiciously like a toaster versus an air fryer. Will immediately joined in, turning it into a full debate that drew in a few campers who didn’t know whether to laugh or run for cover. Nico quietly observed the madness, wondering why he voluntarily spent time around this chaos.
Then there was the incident with the pancakes. Leo had left one unattended on the counter, which Will immediately declared “a danger to society” and tried to rescue. In the process, he tripped, sending the pancake flying… directly into Nico’s lap.
Nico froze, looked down at the sticky mess, and Will panicked.
“I—I’m so sorry! Here, we can fix this! We’ll—uh—get napkins! Or—wait! Syrup!”
Nico stared at him, syrup slowly dripping down his hoodie, and a small, unintentional smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. “You really can’t ever just let things be, can you?”
Will flopped down beside him. “Where’s the fun in that?”
Nico sighed, pulling off his hoodie sleeve to wipe off the syrup. “I suppose some people actually enjoy your kind of chaos.”
Will grinned. “That’s me! Full-time chaos distributor!”
By lunchtime, the day had devolved into its usual chaotic splendor. Will had somehow managed to convince a small group of campers to stage a mock “Olympics” in the meadow, which Nico ended up officiating because somebody had to keep order—or at least attempt to. The events were ridiculous: three-legged races with combat boots, dodgeball using pinecones, and a sprint where participants had to balance a sandwich on their heads.
Nico, despite himself, found it amusing. Watching Will narrate each event with the dramatic intensity of a sports commentator was… honestly, pretty entertaining. There was a certain charm in his energy, the way he made everything feel urgent and important, even when it involved flinging pinecones.
At one point, Will got tangled in a ribbon during the “sandwich head sprint,” and Nico couldn’t help but chuckle. “You always find a way to make a simple thing… complicated,” he said.
Will looked at him, eyes sparkling with amusement. “And you always find a way to make a simple thing… amusing. Don’t pretend you’re not enjoying this.”
Nico looked away, shoving a hand in his hoodie pocket. Maybe he was enjoying it. Maybe.
The afternoon drifted lazily by, with Nico and Will sprawled in the grass, watching clouds drift lazily across the sky. Will was talking about absolutely nothing in particular, Nico’s favorite kind of distraction. Somehow, amidst the chaos, the noise, and the ridiculous antics, there was a kind of peace.
“Think anyone else will join us for cloud-watching?” Will asked, waving a hand vaguely at the sky.
Nico snorted. “Only the sane ones would, and most of them ran screaming at your Olympics.”
“Ah, but sanity is overrated,” Will replied, already pointing out a cloud that suspiciously resembled a unicorn-bat hybrid.
By late afternoon, the camp seemed to calm down. The sun was no longer cruelly glaring through the trees, and Nico and Will were quietly walking back toward the cabins. They passed the lake again, this time with the water catching the sunlight and turning it into liquid gold. Nico paused, taking in the sight.
“You know,” he said quietly, “some days aren’t so bad.”
Will glanced at him, eyebrows raised. “Some days?”
“Even with the chaos,” Nico said, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Even with… everything.”
Will grinned, linking his arm with Nico’s. “Then it’s a good thing I’m here to make things chaotic.”
Nico rolled his eyes, but his smile betrayed him. Some chaos, he decided, wasn’t so terrible—especially when it came with Will Solace by his side.
And as they walked back to the cabins, laughing at some ridiculous story Will was telling about an imaginary Pegasus relay race, Nico silently admitted that, maybe, just maybe, a little chaos was exactly what he needed.
By the time the sun dipped lower toward the horizon, the camp had taken on a golden, lazy glow. Most campers were winding down after their afternoon adventures, some trying to reclaim dignity after Will’s impromptu Olympics, others nursing minor injuries from rogue pinecones or overly enthusiastic three-legged races. Nico and Will, however, were still wandering near the forest edge, entirely oblivious to the rest of the world.
Will had decided that a “perfectly safe” trek into the woods would be the ideal way to conclude their chaotic day. Nico, naturally, was skeptical.
“You say it’s safe, but everything you touch somehow becomes… mildly dangerous,” Nico muttered, brushing past low-hanging branches.
Will spun around, hands raised in mock defense. “Mildly! I prefer the term ‘adventurously enhanced.’ Danger is subjective, Nico.”
Nico didn’t respond, but the twitch of his mouth suggested he was suppressing a smile. That, Will decided, counted as a victory.
Their wandering eventually led them to the cliffs overlooking the camp lake. The water below reflected the fiery streaks of sunset, and a flock of birds took off in synchronized chaos, startled by the pair’s approach. Nico leaned on the railing, arms crossed, enjoying the quiet hum of nature that somehow managed to exist alongside Camp Half-Blood’s usual madness.
Will, of course, could not let the quiet moment last. He crouched dramatically at the cliff’s edge, as if preparing to jump into a completely imaginary river of lava.
“You know,” Nico said, arms still crossed, “you have an incredible talent for making everything unnecessarily dramatic.”
Will jumped up suddenly, flailing his arms. “And you have a talent for acknowledging my genius with zero enthusiasm!”
Nico just smirked. “Acknowledged.”
Satisfied with the banter, Will suddenly decided it was time to climb down a nearby tree for “exercise purposes.” Nico watched silently as Will attempted the maneuver, which ended with him dangling upside down from a sturdy branch, one foot caught awkwardly on a lower limb.
“Call me if you need help,” Nico said flatly, though he was already stepping forward.
“No help needed,” Will replied cheerfully, ignoring the fact that gravity had very different plans. “I am the master of my—”
“Will!” Nico grabbed his arm just as Will’s flailing foot finally gave way. He yanked him upright and off the branch, both landing on the soft grass with a thump. Will sat up, brushing dirt off his shorts and grinning sheepishly.
“See? Adventure survived! And barely a scratch. That counts as heroic, right?”
“Barely,” Nico muttered, helping him to his feet.
They walked back toward the camp, shadows stretching long across the meadow. Dinner was underway, the smell of roasted meats and baked vegetables wafting through the air. Will immediately got that “hungry but also we need chaos” look, and Nico sighed. Somehow, he was roped into Will’s energy again, even as his stomach grumbled in agreement.
Inside the pavilion, they ran into Leo, who had somehow rigged a small contraption that was simultaneously a drink dispenser and a confetti cannon. Will’s eyes lit up instantly.
“This,” Will announced, “is mandatory chaos inclusion! We must test it.”
Nico groaned. “Mandatory chaos inclusion? Really?”
“Yes. Really. There is no choice in the matter, Nico.”
They spent the next ten minutes dodging spurts of soda and bursts of colorful paper while trying not to knock over half the food trays. Nico, despite his protests, laughed. Something about Will’s unrelenting enthusiasm made even sticky situations endearing.
After dinner, Will insisted they take a “casual evening stroll” to digest. Nico’s idea of casual was silent and strategic, while Will’s was loud and meandering, narrating their every step like it was a nature documentary.
“And here we have a rare sighting of the nocturnal camper,” Will said, pointing at Nico. “Notice the stealthy movements and the subtle glare aimed at yours truly. Fascinating behavior!”
“You’re insane,” Nico said, shaking his head but smiling anyway.
Will grinned. “Thank you, thank you. I prefer the term ‘brilliantly unconventional.’”
They wandered near the stables, where Blackjack grazed quietly. Will immediately began attempting to teach Nico how to mimic horse calls. Nico’s version sounded more like a distressed gargoyle, which made Will laugh so hard he fell backward into a pile of hay. Nico stared at him, shaking his head, but the corner of his mouth twitched with amusement.
“See? Chaos can be educational!” Will said between laughs.
“It’s… highly unconventional,” Nico admitted.
Later, when the camp had mostly quieted down, Nico and Will found themselves sitting on the dock by the lake, legs dangling over the edge. The water shimmered under the moonlight, rippling gently with the occasional leap of a fish.
Will skipped a stone across the water. “Bet you can’t do better,” he said with a grin.
Nico accepted the challenge, lifting a small rock and sending it skimming across the surface. It wasn’t perfect, but it skipped three times before sinking. Will clapped dramatically.
“Three skips! Impressive!”
Nico rolled his eyes, but smiled faintly. There was a comfort here, amidst the chaos of camp, amidst Will’s relentless energy. It was grounding.
Will, sensing the mood, nudged Nico gently. “Hey… you know, this is nice. Just… quiet, just us. No chaos required.”
Nico glanced at him, a small smirk tugging at his lips. “You say that now, but tomorrow you’ll find something else to make chaotic.”
“Maybe,” Will admitted, grinning. “But for now… we just sit.”
They watched the water together in companionable silence, punctuated only by the occasional splash of a fish or the distant hoot of an owl. For Nico, it was rare—a moment that felt completely calm and safe. And he realized he didn’t mind that Will had dragged him through a day of absurdity and mild peril.
Sometimes, chaos was good. Especially when it was shared.
Eventually, they headed back to the cabins, the moon high in the sky. Will flopped onto his bed dramatically. “And thus concludes a perfectly ordinary day at Camp Half-Blood! Filled with adventure, chaos, and, I daresay, minor heroics.”
Nico rolled his eyes, but the smile on his face betrayed his amusement. “Minor heroics?”
“Yes! We survived the squirrel chase, the Olympics, and the pancake incident. That counts as heroic.”
Nico shook his head, pulling the covers up. “You’re insane.”
“And you love me for it,” Will said softly, just before Nico’s eyelids began to droop.
Nico didn’t reply. He didn’t need to. The warmth of the day, the ridiculous adventures, and the steady presence of Will were enough. Some days were crazy. Some days were calm. But with Will, even the chaos felt… right.
And for once, Nico let himself relax completely, knowing that tomorrow would bring more chaos, more laughter, and more of Will’s unrelenting energy—and he was ready for it.