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aiyaar · 3 years

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Nico di Angelo was ten years old when his life went to hell. He never felt so devastated, so ruined. The only person who cared about him, his family, his everything was gone.

Nico hated all of them. He hated sister for leaving him behind, as if he was nothing, just to die afterwards and leave him completely alone. He hated those stupid huntresses of Artemis for taking his sister away from him. He hated Annabeth Chase, whoever it was, for falling off the cliff and making them go on this quest. But most of all he hated him. Percy Jackson. The ultimate hero, so strong and cool. He hated everything about him. He let him down. Percy Jackson let his sister die.

It was already a month since Bianca left this world. A lonely, cold month. Grieve still strangled him. This month has passed in a blur.

Nico passed an empty street, not even bothering to lift up his head. Snow was falling from the white sky and Nico shivered slightly from the cold. He needs to find some warmer clothes.

The city clock struck twelve, sound cutting through the silence. Another day has come. As if Nico cared. Suddenly he stopped, absentmindedly looking at the date on the billboard. 28th January.

Nico titled his head. He didn’t even know his birthday was coming. He always loved his birthday, so excited to modestly celebrate it with Bianca. Bianca…

A lonely tear rolled down his cheek, followed by another. Nico didn’t bother to wipe them, letting them fall.

“Happy Birthday to me.” He said in a shaky voice, sitting in the snow right in the middle of the street. Nico buried his face in his palms, trying to quiet down choked sobs.

Nico di Angelo was eleven years old when he lost himself.

Nico di Angelo was eleven when he started to chase the dream of making his sister come back to life. He was obsessed with the idea, almost going mad in the company of hurt and angry ghosts.

Minos had promised him that he’ll see Bianca again. And Nico believed. What else he could do. He was alone. He was hurt.

Why can’t she talk to him? Why she doesn’t want to show up? She doesn’t want to see him. She despises him. She doesn’t want him.

Nico heard rustling sound under his boots. He picked up the newspaper, catching the date with his eyes. 1st February.

Well, another year passed. Nico didn’t care that he missed his birthday. But a little ache didn’t want to leave his heart as he remembered how Bianca smiled at him the day he turned ten.

And then, months later, she showed up, just to say him that he has to let go. Just to make Nico know that this plan wouldn’t work. Minos was a liar. He used Nico. His only hope was trampled.

Misery was what Nico felt. The weird, nasty feeling crawled up to his throat.

Aside from that, one image didn’t want to leave his mind. His face lived in his head, not wanting to leave. His stupid smile, green eyes, tousled hair. Why Nico keeps thinking of him?

Why did she want to talk to him, not Nico? This stupid guy, with his annoying grin made Nico want to- What?

Nico freezed, trying to finish this though. Did Nico want to kill him? Hurt him? No, it was something else. He felt weird every time he heard his name. Percy Jackson.

Nico di Angelo was twelve when he started to realize something about himself.

Nico di Angelo was twelve when he wanted to rip out his own heart. Abnormal, disgusting. He was sick of himself. He felt nauseous at the very thought of it.

It can’t be true, no. He’s mistaken.

He was lying on his bed at his father’s castle, staring at the ceiling. He couldn’t sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw his face. Those gorgeous green eyes, goofy smile, tousled black hair. His mind was ranting: Percy Jackson, Percy Jackson, Percy Jackson.

Nico felt like he was about to cry. Why is he like this? Is he broken?

He looked to the side, at his night table. A bouquet of red roses stood there. An hour ago Persephone strode to his room with these flowers and a weird expression on her face. She silently put them in a vase and went back to the door. She stopped there, turning her head a little to look at him.

“Happy Birthday.” Was what she said. Then she left.

So it was his birthday. He’s thirteen now.

Nico stared at the flowers, a little bit shocked. She remembered about his birthday. His father didn’t even bother to check up on him.

Hades only cared about their deal. Nico was very hesitant about that. But after all, he agreed.

He just thought that if he does that then maybe Percy would… Like him? But he didn’t.

Percy Jackson hated him. He screwed everything up. It was horrible. He had to fix it.

So he did the best thing he could. He had to prove to Percy, to his father, to everyone that he is worth something. He was just a kid and the battle was scary. He was scared. But he was a hero.

Everyone respected him, some people wanted to be his friends. He even wanted to stay at camp. Nico was happy but only for a moment.

Days after the battle the whole camp started talking about how Percy and Annabeth finally kissed and got together.

Nico left without a warning. Not like he had anyone to warn. Not like anyone cared.

Nico di Angelo was thirteen when his heart was broken.

Nico di Angelo was thirteen when Percy Jackson had gone missing. Annabeth Chase went feral. And Nico promised to help. Of course he did.

He was actually worried. What could happen to him? Nico only knew that Percy was alive. It was somewhat reassuring.

Something bad was about to happen. Nico knew it. New demigods at Camp Half-Blood. One of them is a son of Zeus. That was a bad sign.

And now that Nico knows about romans…

Today was 28th January. His birthday. He already got used to ignore this day. Nico just marked the fact that he was fourteen now.

The door of his room swung open. Nico sat up on his bed, seeing his father in his usual black robes.

He stood there in silence for a minute or so, awkwardly staring at his son.

“Um, did you want something?” Nico said, nervously fumbling with the ring on his finger.

“Yes.” Hades came closer to his bed. “Well, not really. It’s just…” Lord of the Underworld sat on the corner of Nico’s bed. “It’s your birthday.”

Nico blinked, processing what his father was trying to say.

“Yeah, I know. Thank you for reminding me.” He finally said, scowling at his father. Like he ever cared about Nico anyway. “If that’s all you wanted to say-“

“No.” Hades looked strangely awkward. “You made me proud this year, you know?”

Nico’s eyes widened. Was his father trying to praise him?

“I wanted to say that I’m… Grateful. You made me make right choice. And what I said about you before… I’m sorry.”

Nico was more than shocked at this point. He felt awkward and Hades didn’t look better.

“Anyway, I vaguely know that mortals usually make gifts for the day one came from mother’s womb. And I thought that maybe you should spend time with your… peers?”

“What are you trying to say, dad?”

Hades took a deep breath, as if he was nervous.

“I want to give you a present. So that you will be able to go wherever you want, in those places where teenagers usually spend time.”

“You want to give me a car?” Nico asked, puzzled.

“No, you’re too young for that. I’ll give you a chauffeur, he’ll be helping you go to the mall or something. Because, well… I’m not able to do it for you.”

Nico blinked again, titling his head to the side.

“A chauffeur?”

Hades looked embarrassed for a moment. Then he put on a stern expression, standing up.

“Objections are not accepted. You should be grateful.” He strode off to the door. Then he stopped. “Happy Birthday, son.” He closed the door, leaving Nico alone in the dark room.

Nico di Angelo was fourteen when he received his first birthday present.

Nico di Angelo was fourteen when he met him. Will Solace.

It felt like a dawn after long, cold night. Will was his blessing, his salvation. And Nico didn't know what did he do to deserve someone like Will.

They've been dating for a couple of months, wonderful, amazing months. And Nico was genuinely thankful for everything Will had done to him.

Nico woke up at the knock on his door, blinking through the gloom of Hades cabin. He didn't know if it was morning already, because black curtains prevented any gleam of sunshine from crawling into his cabin.

Still, Nico knew exactly that it was early and he knew exactly who was outside, because there was only one person in this world who dared to wake him up.

Nico got out of bed and staggering came to open up the door.

Will Solace stood on the threshold. He was wearing his usual winter jacket and a scarf, a blinding smile on his face. He seemed to be particularly happy today and, judging by the flush on his face, he was running.

"Hey, Neeks." He ruffled his hair and came in, closing the door behind him as Nico shivered from the cold winter air.

"Good morning." Nico mumbled, still half asleep. "What time is it?"

"7 a.m."

"Why did you need to wake me up so early?"

Will looked him in the eyes, taking Nico’s cold hand with his warm one, which is weird, considering Will was the one who had a walk on winter air.

"Do you know what day it is?" He looked excited.

"Um, no, to be honest. I don't pay attention to the calendar." Nico sat down on his bed, wrapping himself in a blanket.

Will looked shocked.

"Are you serious?! I mean... It's 28th January!"

Nico's brain needed a moment to process what exactly Will wanted from him.

"Yeah. So?"

"So?! It's your birthday!"

Nico sighed.

"Guess I'm fifteen now. That also explains this." He pointed to his bedside table, where black envelope was perched on the top of black box. "Probably from my father."

Will looked at him, then at the envelope.

"So, like... Happy Birthday."

"Thank you." Nico got up again, reaching for the box. "Now go so I can change."

"Ok." Will strode off to the door, a strange expression on his face. Though Nico didn't pay much attention to it.

Nico opened the envelope. There was a thick wad of money and an invitation for a dinner. Nico will come, of course, but not today. In the box lay watches and a book in Italian.

The day went by as usual. Nico had a walk in the woods with Will before breakfast, then they were busy with their camp activities.

In the evening, right before they were about to go to the campfire, Will took his arm and told him.

"How about we won't go to the campfire today?"

"But you like-"

"I don't need to go there everyday. Especially today. Come to your cabin in twenty minutes." And he hastily strode off in the direction of the cabin thirteen.

Nico came in after twenty minutes to be met with dozens of candles around his room. Will was standing in front of him, holding a cake with fifteen lighted candles perched on it.

"Make a wish." He whispered as Nico came closer.

Nico looked him in the eyes and didn't know what to say. So he just did what he was told. Will smiled brighter.

"I baked it myself." He said proudly. "Well, Cecil helped me."

He put the cake on the table, now fumbling in his pockets.

"I have something for you, actually." He said, pulling out a small box from his pocket. "I don't know if you're going to like it but..."

Nico didn't hear what Will was saying as he opened the box with trembling hands. He pulled out a sun pendant on a thin gold chain. The sun looked just like the tattoo on Will's shoulder.

Nico couldn't hold back a tear that rolled down his cheek. Will watched him attentively, stopping his ranting when he saw it.

"Nico, what's wrong-"

The next thing Will knew, pale arms was wrapped tightly around him, Nico's face buried in Will's chest.

"Thank you." Nico said in a small, shaky voice before pulling back. He placed the sun pendant on his palm, watching it glisten in the candle light. Tears still rolled down his cheeks.

Will looked at him, his eyes filled with warmth and understanding. He always understood. His sunshine was so alone, for so long. All Will wanted was to make him happy.

Will moved to embrace Nico in a tight hug, kissing the top of his head and then lifted his head with long, gentle fingers on his chin.

"I love you so much." He said. "You're such an amazing person. You're brave, gorgeous, smart, brilliant. Beautiful." He wiped the tear from Nico's cheek. "I will love you with all my might. I promise."

And with that he gently kissed Nico, making him smile while the tears of joy kept rolling down his cheeks.

"I love you, Will."

Nico di Angelo was fifteen when he found his happiness.

#nico di angelo #heroes of olympus #percy jackon and the olympians #percy jackson #pjo/hoo #will solace #jason grace #solangelo #frank zhang #annabeth chase #piper mclean #leo valdez #hazel levesque #reyna avila ramirez arellano #trials of apollo

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the-ghost-king · 3 years

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wait abt ur tags on my post yes percy and minos broke his trust but even after that hades still tricks him into bringing percy to him in TLO so like nico IS wary of ppl but he’s still always got this natural naïveté to him and i don’t think he realizes it. he’s wary of the wrong people and trusting of the wrong people he thinks percy is out to get him but all these manipulative old dudes are helping him somehow

Hmm, not exactly, I don’t think it’s naïveté so much as Nico is just a trusting person- he gives people the benefit of the doubt (which is good not bad, kindness and naïveté aren't the same) until they hurt him, and then his fatal flaw comes in and he holds an intense grudge.

He was confused by Percy, Percy had hurt him and “lied” to Nico, so he didn’t really know how to trust him again, or necessarily want to do so. On top of that there’s this weird thing internalized homophobia makes you do, which is push away things you like, and unrelated traumas mean you may try to save yourself from a situation by pushing people away. Nico’s constant rejection and turning away from Percy is because Nico likes Percy therefore Percy makes him happy, but all of this makes Nico feel weird- if it’s a crush like feeling, then he probably feels weird and disgusted with himself at that point, if it’s a more casual generally good feeling then he probably feels some form of “I hate him, I won’t forgive him, I can’t forgive him, he lied, I can’t trust him”- which feeds that spiral and the internalized homophobia so it all just keeps building.

He avoids Annabeth, but he doesn’t react so harshly to her, he is slightly more giving when it comes to her... Which I think says something about his feelings towards her vs. Percy. Nonetheless though, Nico is somewhat avoidant of Annabeth as well, and generally everyone- not just Percy.

I also think sometimes people choose to align themselves with what is familiar and comfortable rather than what is right for them; we don't know Nico's past and older strict (and maybe abusive) male role models may have been his norm. I also don't think he ever went into that whole situation with Minos believing it was a great idea, but Nico was getting something out of it, and he's shown before that he can sort of weasel his way around if he thinks it's worth it. Nico was getting trained by him, and no it definitely wasn't perfect at all, but to him it was better than figuring it out himself.

With Hades Nico did go into it "naively" but who wouldn't? It's likely he hardly knew his father (Lethe) and when he knew him before Hades was probably fairly kind to him when Maria and Bianca were still around- but Nico comes to learn Hades never loved him but both of them. He was thinking "my father will help me out, it will be okay" and his father turned around and told him he loved Bianca more and that he wouldn't help him at all. Eventually Nico learns what Hades is like, and uses this to his advantage to get Hades to do things ("the gods will love/honor you if they win because of you") and they do eventually make steps to fix their relationship some. The whole situation with Hades is far from perfect, but Nico seems to have chosen to take him as he is/make amends, which is his choice in canon text. Nobody can really fault someone for choosing how they want to deal with something/someone, it's his choice.

I think there was 2 key factors in Nico not siding with Kronos, and maybe another.

The first two are his feelings for Percy, which I covered a bit above, but we constantly see Nico attempting to "please" people as an act of love (I would go to the ends of the earth for you, I would let you kill me to make you happy, etc). By siding himself with Percy, this would appeal to Percy, making him have appeal.

But a much bigger equally ever present aspect of Nico, is his want to belong. While obviously there's a chance for that in Kronos' army, there's two reasons he wouldn't take it, the above bit with Percy, and his desire to prove everyone wrong. If Nico were to have joined Kronos's army, he's proving what everyone already "knows"- children of Hades are bad. Nico doesn't want that, he shows time and time again he doesn't like being boiled down into that- he is better than that- it's a matter of convincing everyone else to see it too. (I get into this idea, albeit not perfectly, a bit more here)

The other other reason which is possible but don't have canon evidence because we don't follow Nico around enough in series, is that he could have started having some sort of memories returning from the Lethe. It's possible his amnesia was decreasing at this point, and he grew up during a war, I'm sure he was taught about it.... This could very easily have been another reason if he noticed patterns in the armies, or if he kept thinking something like "what would Mamma do?"

He has a questionable characterization, "bittersweet", and it means that he makes a lot of questionable choices but still comes out looking like a hero figure at the end. Nico's arc points just ever more so to the gods over titans because of his need to please, and his idolization/love for Percy. Nico is stubborn, and if everyone is saying he's x and he knows that's not true, he's going to want to prove them wrong. It could possibly be argued that Nico's hero arc is some form of revenge arc, "I'll show you."

#i think it's also possible Nico might have tried to stay neutral for a long time #and then realized that wasn't possible for him #so when he started having to chose his want to prove people wrong and attachment to Percy kept him to the one side #i don't think he wouldn't have considered joining Kronos #I just don't think he would have ever made any serious steps to do so #his brain would go ''I'll show that stupid Percy Jackson what I can do #and the second part would be like ''to help him''#asks #gayleafpool #also I mean #you guys have fun over there #I just don't see it #long post #pjo #nico di angelo #meta

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sippingdaisies · 3 years

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I love that au idea. Like, imagine if Bianca just barely survives the junkyard (with a few ugly scars) and is picked up by Luke’s agents. He goes on his spiel about how much the gods suck and twists her recollection of joining the Hunters in the least-flattering way possible; Artemis manipulated a 12 year old girl into abandoning her brother for selfish indulgence. Obviously, that’s treating the situation at face value, but it would have been SO EASY to goad Bianca into that interpretation.

EXACTLY!!

If she somehow lost her Hunter’s immortality instead of dying and made it back to camp she’d soon start building up resentments. After realising that while she was willing to sacrifice her life for these new friends and their quest, why should she have to? Why should kids like them be forced to carry a hero’s burden? Why should she help the gods when they’re the reason she and Nico no longer have a mother (thanks to Zeus) and they can barely remember her (thanks to Hades).

It would set up this great contrast with Percy - a 12 year old newly found big three kid goes on their first quest and instead of returning unscathed, she comes back with a visible scar (now who does that remind us of??!) and instead of having a solid group of friends she finds herself isolated from the Hunters who were supposed to be her new sisters. Maybe Thalia tries to encourage her to retake the vows but after what she went through in the desert Bianca just can’t, that life doesn’t hold the promise of freedom and adventure for her anymore, as far as she’s concerned it’s just another way for the gods to manipulate you.

And at this point she and Nico are still unclaimed!! So she’d probably have to move into the Hermes cabin. Bianca definitely has an idea of who their father is, and after having just spent a quest with Percy and Thalia of course she knows about the prophecy. So all the pieces start to fall into place in her mind, how her memories span across 2 different centuries, how she can’t quite picture her mother’s face, how the sight of Thalia playing with lightning makes her feel ill. And how suspiciously convenient it is that she and Nico turn up in a boarding school as soon as the Great Prophecy is coming to pass. She comes to the (correct) conclusion that Hades put them there intentionally, that he wants one on them to end up the prophecy child. Of course at this point Bianca wouldn’t know that Hades put them in the Lotus Hotel for their protection or that Hades kids are treated notoriously badly or even be able to remember how much he truly did care for Maria. All she knows is that she can’t trust her father or any of the gods.

And being in Cabin 11 only cements that, the cabin that’s overcrowded even in winter, the place where all the unclaimed kids go, the place where kids whose parents aren’t important enough to be recognised are sent because there is simply no other place for them.

And maybe she comes to the decision on her own or maybe she has a few pointed conversations with other campers, but Bianca decides she hates the gods and that they have to pay for everything they’ve done.

If there is one thing children of Hades are good at it’s holding grudges.

So instead of Nico, it’s Bianca who runs away, Bianca who has the confrontation with Percy, and ends up on Luke’s side of the war.

I genuinely think that Nico would remain at camp rather than go with her purely because without her death there isn’t really a reason for him to resent either Percy or this new home. Throughout the first part of TTC Nico is seen having a good time and adjusting really well, if my memory serves the Stoll brothers in particular make friends with him. I don’t think that would change after Bianca runs away, after all who knows better than the Hermes cabin how it feels when your older sibling who you love and trust goes off the deep end. They probably make Nico feel even more at home because they know exactly what he’s going through!!

It would be so interesting to see how Nico’s powers would develop without grief as his motivator. Instead he’s allowed to explore his limits with shadow travel in a safe environment and with some proper training (Chiron has to be good for something) he would be less likely to overexert himself. I can see him going to the underworld to confront Hades about his shitty actions and their relationship would probably develop play out in the same way as the books. But rather than having all these insecurities because of who his godly parent is Nico would be fully invested in saving camp because it immediately becomes a home to him.

Meanwhile Bianca has all of her worst traits and impulses indulged by Luke (and Kronos). I can’t imagine the training methods in a Titan/Monster army are in any way healthy or safe. She would be 14/15 at the time of the battle of Manhattan (we don’t actually know when her birthday is). It would be interesting to see 2 full siblings on different sides of the war, they love each other but are utterly convinced the other one is in the wrong.

I do think that ultimately Bianca knows no matter what dark things she’s capable of, she could never bring herself to harm her brother. I think she’d make the right choice in the end but she’d probably find it really difficult to adjust to life in camp after the war and no doubt she and Percy would have a lot of unresolved tension.

I have more ideas about what her role would be throughout HOO but this is already so long

#thank you anon #dark!bianca is something that can be so personal 😌#12 year old girls should be allowed to command the dead actually #pjo au #dark!bianca #asks #anon #pjo #hoo #bianca di angelo #nico di angelo #percy jackson #thalia grace

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gayfrogs03 · 2 years

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A random Nico di Angelo rant, once again getting heated of fictional characters. It's a long rant.

I hate it when people sit there and fun of Nico because, "he thinks even hates him for no reason, hahaha, such a emo!" And excuse me?? No reason?? I'm not sure we read the same books.

No one has given him a reason to believe other wise, always making it clear that they don't want him around.

Even before Bianca died, people were continuously telling him to shut up, ignoring him, and not wanting to be with him.

You can sit there and argue, "Oh, he was super annoying!" He was a fucking confused ten year old, who just woke up in this hotel with no memories of anything before waking up, told that his mom was dead and he and his sister have to stay in this hotel for awhile. Right after that they are thrust in the modern world and into this weird strict military school, only to be attacked by some weird monster, and saved by these strangers who take them away and tell them that they're demigods.

So on top of being ten years old, he's also probably very scared and confused, so of course he's going to talk a lot and ask a lot of questions!

Right after that his sister (the only thing he has in this world) decides to join a bunch of strangers on their life long thing leaving him behind we another stranger they just meet, who makes it pretty clear he doesn't want him around. Bet that just made him feel so very loved and wanted. (I understand why Bianca did it, but we all know that hurt him.)

When he runs away after learning about his sisters death they don't alert people that an actual ten year old is missing, instead keep it hidden and only looked for him for like a few months before deciding to give up and assume he's dead (assume he's dead with no burial, or any acknowledgement of his life, or that they would have grieved him). If it was Annabeth, or even someone else that Percy was loyal to, that went missing we all know Percy wouldn't have stopped looking, even if he thought he was looking for a body. And we've seen Annabeth look for Percy for six months.

When Nico is tricked by Minos, and fought his own way out of the situation, no one stopped to think, "this man took advantage of and used, this grieving and hurting boy to do his dirty, he's the bad guy, not this innocent boy that needs help!" No they all just assumed it was Nico who was the bad guy, and put all the blame on him.

Whenever he did go to camp, campers would avoid him, whisper and giggle about, said that he was scary and didn't want to be with him.

When he took Percy to Hades (because he genuinely believed that Percy wouldn't be hurt and Hades just wanted to talk to him, then they can do what he originally told Percy they'd do, helping Percy save the very people who don't care about him) he was hit with the realization that he was lied to and used, again.

In that same part part he was by Hades, his own father, that his dead sister was perfered over him, it was kinda implied that this wasn't the first time something like this was said.

Percy seriously chokes a 11 or 12 year old who came to save him, threatening to kill him. The only reason he doesn't was because Nico was his only way out of there. I repeat, the only reason he didn't kill a child was because he could use him.

Bianca ignores every single one of his calls, only to answer the very second Percy calls, ignores Nico to talk to Percy, then when she does talk to Nico it's to tell him to stop calling her and forgive Percy.

He risk his life to convinces Hades and two other goddesses to help them in the war, which is a big part on why the won the war, and people continue to treat him like he's the dirt beneath their feet.

He goes through literal hell for them and gets kidnapped right after and they debate on whether or not to save him, Hazel the only that that wants to save him because she's cares about him, and not just because he has information for them. Again, just using him.

Then when they get their information they continue to treat him like dirt, Leo watched him slam his head on the table, getting knocked out and did not care at all. Frank blamed Nico when Hazel got hurt.

The only one of the seven (other than Hazel of course) that started to care a little bit about how Nico was is Jason after Nico was forced to come out to him by Cupid.

Then despite truly believing everyone hates him, he risk his life, again, shadow traveling across the world with a 70 foot statue and two extra people, it is then someone other then Hazel starts to show him kindness, quickly becoming like a big sister to him, only after she proved that she cared about him.

After all this, how is anyone surprised that when Will shows that he cares Nico doesn't believe him? How is anyone surprised that Nico believes everyone hates him? Only two people in the entire world have shown him that they care, that leaves a scar that nobody can see. So when Will shows Nico that he cares and Nico thinks this is weird behavior because everyone hates him, I'm not surprised at all!

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sophiexwrites · 4 years

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Solangelo Notes and Headcanons (1?)

(this is for @pjobroadwayslut14 because I saw via my main blog that they needed a pick me up <3)

Nico is in a state of gay panic the first time he sees Will in shorts, and Will never stops teasing.

Will and Nico re-met in BOO when Will had just delivered a baby and was probably lacking in sleep, right? So, they restart their friendship after the infirmary days. It begins with getting to know eachother with basic questions, before they reach a particular topic (idk what though) and just talk about it. With Will’s busy schedule healing since the war he didn’t get to see Nico as much, and Nico hasn’t had time to simply talk and rant to someone since Bianca - and evening she wouldn’t listen. So, they spend all night talking, and they love it. (Maybe fall asleep under the start, that’s optional.)

Pet names (though Nico won’t admit it) include sunshine/shadowling, light lord/ghost king, sweetheart, darlin’, mi amor, mon cher (Will totally knows a little French), loverboy, doc, and the infamous significant xyz.

Jason, Percy and a reluctant Frank give Will the brotherly violence talk... Little do they know, Reyna gave him a mostly-aggressive-but-a-tiny-bit-passive far before them. And Will was scared.

Apollo ships Solangelo so much, he even visits Hades to talk to (at) him about it. In all honestly, Hades doesn’t mind: he likes to know his son is happy.

Will has a slight southern accent, and Nico has a slight Italian one, so they sound amazing when they (shyly) sing around the campfire together.

The campers were shocked to find Solangelo dating at first, except from the ones that knew Nico well enough (aka Hazel and Reyna called over iris message absolutely and completely fangirling, and Jason was the same). But soon, they realised the two were perfect for eachother, and almost-calmly explain why they are the otp to anyone who believes otherwise. Nico and Will never find out.

“William!” “Nicolas!” “That’s not even my name!!!”

Yes, Will usually hates his full name, but when Nico says it he suddenly adores it.

Hazel is super supportive of Solangelo, and she took Will out for lunch one day early into the relationship. Will though he was going to get another warning, but he just got tips on how to made Nico smile more. The two stay intouch.

Solangelo prank wars... they get wild and dangerous, but Will would never dream of cancelling them because mischief makes his bf so happy.

Nico helps Will understand that the patients he couldn’t save don’t hold it against him, that they are only glad he could help others. It’s a start.

Mutual teasing in public to see their bf’s beautiful blushes instead of pda, because Will respects and adores Nico’s boundaries (it only makes it more special).

Sunset and sunrise walks and dates.

(I recently re-read the final chapters of BOO, and Nico pointedly felt upset that Will was busy in the infirmary. Will in turn was upset that Nico didn’t come and see him, shocked that Nico though no one would want him in a place full of healers. Hc starts here.) So, Will uses the days in the infirmary to show Nico how useful and wanted he is. They discover that it’s wise to know the balance between life and death, because a healer can’t know exactly how close their patient is to death as a child of Hades can. Nico stays after his 3 days, and soon he’s with Will through all his shifts.

Will and Nico like running their hands though each others hair.

Hades invites Will and Nico for dinner in the Underworld. It starts awkward, but they end after a game of monopoly that Will definitely lets Hades win.

Persephone approves. So does Demeter, because Will likes cereal.

#solangelo has my heart and always will #solangelo #will solace #nico di angelo #pjo #hoo #toa #headcanons #headcanon #sophiexwrites #sophiexwritesheadcanons #otp

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incorrect-riordanverse · 4 years

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Happy birthday! 🎉

Nico and Will hcs please

Thank you and sure thing:

they paint each other’s nails. Nico likes dark colours and Will likes more lighter, sunny ones

Will doesn’t mind getting verbally romantic with Nico, and can and will tell him just how much he means to him at any time of the day, whether they’re by themselves and being intimate, or in the middle of a capture the flag duel.

Nico, on the other hand, gets quite shy and flustered and has more difficulty putting his feelings into words. But he will tell him how wonderful an impact he’s made on his life late at night, when Will is fast asleep, and in Italian so Will has no idea what Nico is saying

Will learns mythomagic so he can play, collect and trade with Nico. He’s terrible at it (always going along with whatever deals Nico offers, no matter how terrible), but Nico appreciates the effort.

Will also learns Italian phrases to impress Nico, but Nico just finds his horrible accent hilarious

Nico spends a lot of time at the hospital with Will. He even picks up on some healing hymns and medical procedures. A lot of the other Apollo cabin members befriend him as well from how much he’s there

Every time some camper comments on how lovely a couple Will and Nico make, Nico gets flustered and defensive about it, but let’s be honest, he likes it.

On the anniversary of Bianca’s death, Will will refuse to leave his side. At first, Nico hated the idea of not being left alone, but slowly, he learned to accept Will’s unwavering support. It’s nice to have a hand to hold and guide you through tough days.

Nico tells Will that Bianca would’ve really liked him.

Those two become an established thing at chb. Kind of like percabeth. They will be seen bickering at any time of the day, Nico will just sit at the Apollo table at the pavilion, or be with Will in the infirmary, or Will would just be seen lecturing Nico about taking care of his health for the 2293819th time, and no one thinks anything of it anymore. They’re just an item of two now. Want to know where Nico di Angelo is? Try finding Will, they’re probably together. Want to assign Will to tour new campers around the camp? Better know Nico will be there to distract him. It’s time to clean out the cabins for cabin inspection? You better bet that Will is working overtime to help the Apollo and Hades cabin out. He can’t have his boyfriend on kitchen patrol when he promised to take him out to the strawberry fields!

Every time Hazel visits chb Will would tell her really embarrassing stories of Nico and she would laugh her ass off. Nico hates it so very much, but Will insists it’s payback on how much he tells Kayla and Austin about him. No matter how mortifying, Nico’s at least happy to see Hazel and Will getting along so well.

Will can be seen sometimes wearing one of the many goth rings Nico owns and Nico can sometimes be seen wearing one of the many colourful bracelets Will owns.

Will is the more of the social butterfly of the duo. Nico tries not to get too protective of him, but if he witnesses someone getting too friendly, well, he’s got an impressive glare saved just for these situations to scare them off.

I see this fandom talk a lot about how Will helps Nico through his insecurities, which is definitely true, but Nico will also be the first person to return that support whenever Will gets insecure anything (most of the time it’s about his combat skills). Nico will be the first to assure him that he isn’t useless just because he’s not the best archer, he’s not useless just because he doesn’t have the prettiest singing voice, and will not hesitate to remind him about all the lives he’s saved, his included. It never fails to work on Will.

#this was really fun to do 🥺#riordanverse #rick riordan #heroes of olympus #hoo #solangelo #hcs #will solace #Nico di Angelo #ask

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achillesmonochrome · 2 years

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4, 8, 12, 16, 20, 24, 28, 32, 36, 40, 44 and 48. No I don't know what any of those questions actually are 😂

Awww you are a sweetheart.

Ok lets see,

4. Percico or Percabeth?

Percico, I don’t even really like that ship but percabeth is something I really hate.

8. Did Luke deserve Elysium?

No, no he didn’t.

Listen I don’t care if he did the right thing at the end, that doesn’t change all the mess up shit he did in the past. Also is the Greek gods we are talking about, are you telling me they are forgiving him? Bitch they had sent people to Tartarus for less (From what I remember, the fields of punishment don’t exists in the myths, is Tartarus)

12. Favorite book?

House of Hades, because not only for that scene, but Hazel is BAMF, Piper learning how to use charmspeak is cool, Percy going nuts is something I enjoy- look I know the book has issues (like all this saga) but still.

16. Cabin you’re in?

I change my mind a lot about it, I would like to say Hades, but I feel that is giving me too much credit in terms of power; the pjo quiz in told me my godly parent was Apollo, which kind of makes sense since I write and I do other artsy stuff, but is funny considering I had a vendetta against the prick since my dear Jason is dead and for his asshole of a son.

…I kind of want to make a self insert with all of this.

20. Leo/Hazel or Frazel?

Both? I ship frazeleo so yeah that answers it.

24. Jeyna or Jasper?

…Neither?

If I need to choose, Jeyna, because I love both of them anyways; but honestly after how horrible Jason was to Reyna in HoO, I cannot ship it. And I already hate Jasper so what you want me to say.

28. Who would you want on your team for Capture the Flag?

Probably Nico and Jason lmao, aside the fact that I love them, they are powerful as fuck. Nico could just shadowtravel to the flag, and Jason could fly to it.

32. Best demigod parents?

You mean like, immortal god? Or mortal parent? Because I don’t remember any demigods being parents, yet.

I will say for mortal parent, Esperanza, because despite knowing all the god deal, she was an amazing mom. And immortal one Hecate, because when she saw her kids trying to kill each other she made sure neither of them would die.

36. Cinnamon Roll demigod?

Um, Lacy I guess? Others would say Hazel but nah she is too badass for that.

40. Most “WTF” moment in the series?

I think when Bianca died, for me at least.

When I was reading the series at first, I really didn’t think someone would died. Sally came back, so did Tyson, and the prophecy said “lost in the desert”

The fact that she died for real took me by surprise.

If you mean something more odd than depressing, hmm, Percy convincing two rivers gods to participate in the war with a sand dollar? Idk a lot of shit is odd but it becomes normal after being in this fandom for a while.

44. Metalest way a demigod has killed something?

C’mon you cannot say Metal and don’t think of Nico turning someone into a ghost.

48. Least favorite part of BOO?

The travel the people in the Argo II did, like I remember wanting to go to the Reyna and Nico’s part back already.

Thank's for asking Bro!

#ask meme #ask game #percy jackon and the olympians #pjo #heroes of olympus #hoo

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my-apollo-gies · 3 years

Text

Rachel, Bianca and Octavian never really did anything wrong, so please stop hating on them for one second.

(Although it's nice to see white characters getting hate for just existing rather than poc characters, for once.)

Rachel:

You have no clue how much this one annoys me, and it's amplified by the fact that 90% of Rachel hate is from Annabeth stans. She literally just had a crush on Percy, then went out with him?! Y'all Annabeth stans get crushes on Percy all the time, then hate on her when she does? If you can't stand on one side of a line, then don't draw it in the first place. It's that simple.

In addition, when you look at her relationship with Annabeth, Rachel rarely (hell, maybe not at all) is the one to start arguments or insult her. Rachel seems pretty chill in her relationship with Percy, and then when Annabeth starts dating him instead, do you know what she does? She gets on with her life. Considering the amount of hate Annabeth gave her for dating Percy, she 100% is entitled to do the same, but she doesn't. She knows when a fight isn't worth having. And it's not like she doesn't like Percy, anymore, either. The way she acts suggests she doesn't really get over him until toa, meaning she goes more than an entire series suppressing the urge to bite back.

Bianca:

The main reason people give Bianca hate is because she 'abandoned' Nico to join the hunters. First off, let's be real, 90% of us would've done exactly the same thing. Joining the Hunters of Artemis is an opportunity she probably would've never gotten again, and she wasn't exactly given much time to think it over. She clearly wanted it, too. A younger sibling weighing you down shouldn't be the reason you deny your dreams (no matter how much of an avid Nico stan I am).

Because she was a few years older than Nico, Maria's death would've had a lot more of a negative impact on her, and not knowing who she was mourning would've made it ten times worse. From the way she acts before she joins the hunters, she was genuinely still mourning her, but suppressing it for Nico's sake. It's little details you can pick up on such as the fact that she is very quite and a little uneasy around people besides Nico. By comparison, Nico is very excitable and enthusiastic. When Greek mythology is mentioned, Bianca becomes very uncomfortable and is very quick to deny it's existence. I suspect this triggers her memories slightly of Hades, and she obviously would not like him very much after he essentially abandoned them when Maria died (that's what abandonment actually looks like). I like to think that Nico hadn't completely registered the fact that his mother was genuinely dead before their memories were wiped, hence why this doesn't affect them.

Bianca probably is going to try to isolate herself from her parentage, and one of the quickest ways of doing this is to join the hunters. If you're an older sibling like me, then you'll also know that a younger sibling's very existence can be embarrassing at times. Of course she'll want to isolate herself from her entire family. Not to mention the fact that she has been single parenting Nico since Maria died, again, thanks to a Greek God, the likes of which she already doesn't want to associate herself with. Before you complain that Artemis, too, is a Greek God, her whole thing is not needing men? Oh, would you look at that: the whole reason Maria is dead is because she fell for Hades, and Zeus was a dick about it. Joining the hunters is most definitely going to help her cope with the fact that Hades and Zeus are arseholes (Hades not so much, but Bianca will see him as more of one, considering she was essentially betrayed after Maria died).

Lastly, Bianca wasn't abandoning Nico. They had both just been told if a safe place they could go due to their parentage, and therefore Bianca had just been told that Nico would be safe. She wasn't to know that he would run away. Whilst he had a kinda valid excuse, it was still on their hands. Bianca had no control over that. It's not like she wasn't looking out for him, either; she literally went out of her way to collect the Hades statue for them, which was penultimately the reason she died (sorry). She knew the risks, and outright sacrificed her life just to make Nico happy.

Octavian:

You're all going to hate me for this one, I know. Just hear me out.

The only reason you all hate him is because he stabbed Percy's pillow pet, and was a bit of a dick to Hazel. Whilst neither Percy nor Hazel should've had to put up with this, when you consider what we can assume about his past, and that it actually makes sense. Straight away, he's a year round camper, so there is a high chance that he's lost one or multiple parents (remember that he's a descendant of Apollo, not than a child of Apollo). He probably hasn't had much of an opportunity to grieve them, strikingly similar to Nico's reaction at the end of ttc, particularly when you consider how strict Camp Jupiter is. Not to mention, it's been proven time after time again that if someone can't control their own life, they will put extra emphasis on what they can control, the two major ones being their eating and the people around them.

That last bit brings me onto my second point. You get the impression that he has been through quite a lot, so of course he tries to control the people around him as a means to cope. He becomes so engulfed in this desire to control everyone that he doesn't consider how it might affect others. From his perspective, why should he? No one seemed to care about him. It doesn't occur to him that blackmailing Hazel is- well- blackmail. He becomes so determined to prove himself, despite not being a child of a Roman God, but a descendant. As you can imagine, when he first joined, the camp probably looked down on him quite a lot.

In fact, he seems to be so aware of the Camp's protocols, there is a high chance that he, like Jason, has been there most of his life. When you consider it's principles, it makes sense that his main goal would be to reach the top of the pecking order. That is the way that they are taught; they're Roman demigods, after all.

Before you start on the killing of Percy's pillow pet being unfair, I'd just like to point a few things out. Yes, it was a bit if a dick move, but Percy had just waltzed into a camp, been claimed as a son of a major (although frowned upon) God, and threatened his authority. Octavian was genuinely scared of him. He was probably 100% aware that stabbing his pillow pet would do nothing, but did he look like he cared? Not only was he trying to back up his authority in doing so, it was essentially sending a message to Percy of "if you dare threaten my position, you'll face a lot worse than this. Whilst it may have been a bit of an overreaction, honestly, fair enough.

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outoftimewriting · 4 years

Text

Imagine (based on the incomplete fanfic Son of Underworld) (3/5) (Son of Hades! Percy AU)

Before reading, check the masterpost - and read the warnings before proceeding :)) Good reading!

Percy goes back to Yancy, and things proceed as normal. He has nightmares, he misses his mom, who he only saw for a week. He thinks back on last summer and asks himself if it's worth going back to.

Annabeth tries to go back to her father's family. It doesn't go well, but at least they could keep contact using a landline for the three months she can deal with the monsters in her father's new location. There's a weekend he tries to visit her in San Francisco - but he still isn't perfect and lands in Sacramento.

It takes him an hour and a half to reach her - and it's the best weekend of the year, even if he doesn't meet anyone in her family - she is afraid they'll double the monsters in her house.

And her stepmom is racist. So there's that.

Annabeth makes fun of his Academy Uniform, the blazer and the black gloves, the red tie that he hates, and he calls her Wise Girl - he is two grades over her because of her years as a runaway.

It feels a little like a date. There's pizza, and they hold hands when she takes him to see the Golden Gate. He notices that Annie's eyes look literally like molten silver - every demigod carries a trace of their parent, he finally notices.

He can't come back after that - they were attacked by a Hydra, and killing it was only possible because he managed to use fire - a green, weird fire that he did not know he had - to cauterize the stumps.

Blackjack shadow travels him back to Yancy Academy and he and Annie keep the contact for another two weeks before she has to go back to Camp since San Francisco is becoming too dangerous.

It's his last year of middle school. Next year, he doesn't know if he'll continue in Yancy or go for a scholarship at Phillips Academy, in Massachusetts.

It's far. It's almost four hours from his mother, it's six hours from Camp. But it's the best school on the East Coast.

He does his midterms exams. He is in all high of A+ in Geometry, Algebra II, Economics and Government, Ancient World History, and Health&PE.

U.S. History and Science keep between B- and D+, and he is okay with that.

Language Arts and World Cultures can go die in a hole. He hates reading, writing makes him anxious and the only language he can get a C+ is Latin.

They give him a tutor for English - his GPA is only sustained by math. His grades raise a little: They go from F to E+.

There's a girl being tutored with him. She is Cherokee and a grade below him - her name is Piper.

He hates verbs. He hates To Kill a Mockingbird. He will kill a mockingbird if it stops them asking him to read again.

He cheats in his essays - makes skeletons write them for him. They suspect - it's not his handwriting, it's not the way he writes, it has no errors.

They can't prove it, so he scrapes Language Arts with a D+.

His midterm GPA is amazing. He goes see his mother for Christmas, even though he thinks there's no Christ. Maybe. Who knows? He is not celebrating Jupiternalia anyway.

He barely put his bag down when his four weeks with his Mom go down the drain - Thalia and Annabeth appear in his door. He grabs his backpack, his weapons, and go.

Annabeth looks at his hands with wonder - it's the first time she sees them bare in two years, but he puts his gloves back quickly enough.

Thalia is less skittish around him, and that's good. Better, at least. He notices that her eyes aren't only green - there are waves in them, it's like looking at the sea. It changes with her humor, perhaps? He doesn't know.

They make fun of his uniform - but they are going to Westover Hall, and he will merge better if he looks like a preppy kid from a boarding school.

Percy knows about the Mist this time. He helps Thalia to control it - his heart aches when he thinks of his friends. Its been a year and a half now. He misses them.

The daughter of Zeus asks him who taught him.

"The same person who taught you"

She looks at him appreciatively now, but he knows he'll come short of whoever she is measuring him against.

They see the kids. There's a girl looking nervous and overlooking the gym, and a boy by her side fiddling with his cards. Their hair is black just like his - he wishes for a brother and a sister.

Their skin is not like his - but it doesn't matter that they have a different mom, does it? In the end, it's family. Grover says they're powerful - so Big Three might be a possibility.

They're not children of Poseidon - their skin lacks the tan and the hair lacks the messiness, the windswept look - And Zeus is a lot of things, but a hypocrite isn't one of them, is?

Percy dances with Annabeth, and he feels alive. Then, he is running to save the children.

He doesn't shadow travel them. Shadowtravelling with more than one person is tricky, and he still hasn't mastered not going to Wyoming.

He kills the manticore with his Warhammer, but as it crumbles to dust, Annabeth falls.

The earth trembles at his feet - but it's Thalia's hand in his shoulder that remembers him there's two kids here, and Artemis Hunt is all looking at him with varying degrees of disgust and fear.

It's nothing he is not acquainted with. For being black (and not even a normal shade of black), for his clothes, for not having a father, for having a father and it being Hades. Just now, he was being judged for being a man.

Misandry is news for him. His mother raised him to respect all genders (even when he discovered a few months ago there's more than two), that women deserve the same as men. Annabeth fights alongside him frequently enough. Clarisse wipes the floor with his ass. Katie Gardner doesn't - it doesn't make her weaker, or less deserving of respect.

He knows women have to fight for their place in society much more than he has to. He knows these women are probably traumatized by violent men and unable to fight back.

It still doesn't make it right for them to be bullies. It gives a reason, but not a justification.

And when they take Bianca Di Angelo, who has a little brother and barely has any idea of what she is doing, who was just attacked by a thing that shouldn't exist and is probably still in shock, he wants to scream.

Artemis sees something in Bianca - and he finally looks at the girl's eyes. There's a storm raging in them.

Zeus is a hypocrite, after all.

But it's not his place to say anything, nor to the children, nor against Artemis, so he just leaves the tent and goes ask the only other boy here to teach him Mythomagic.

Nico Di Angelo asks way too many questions and has an infinite source of energy. He is prideful - a trace common of all Zeus children. His eyes aren't stormy like his sisters, there aren't clouds in his irises. They are white, like his probable father's lighting bolt.

Nico asks him why he has green eyes - and why they turned black after the question. He doesn't know the answer.

Apollo appears and says something about flying in the sun car - it's the first time he and Thalia agree on something.

But calls for Blackjack. He is not flying, not even under a god's asking. Apollo understands.

Thalia goes with him. Better through shadows than through air. He doesn't want to leave Nico with the misandry archers - but he has Grover, and Percy would probably land them in Iowa.

The daughter of Poseidon holds his waist while they ride on the hellhound. He focuses the best he can - and, for the first time, he lands exactly where he wants to land: in the woods at Camp.

Thalia helps him get to the Big House under weird looks of the year-rounders. They are there at least three hours before Apollo.

"You're kinda heavy, Corpse Breath. But that was cool."

"Shut it, Kelp Head"

He is anxious to just leave and go back to his mother, but Annabeth is in danger: They need a quest.

He has dreams. He can't fault Annabeth for doing what he would've done without a second of hesitation. It's Luke.

He helps Nico settle at Cabin 11, and avoids the huntresses. Connor hugs him, and Clarisse wipes the floor with him in wrestling - they are his friends now.

Clarisse, Connor, Annabeth, Grover, Charles. Luke, Ethan, Alabaster. The scales are tipping. He doesn't care for masters - he cares who is the defending.

Artemis goes missing, and they finally get a quest. Zoe Nightshade doesn't want a boy in the quest but tough luck: He is the most experienced camper here right now AND the quest goes through a desert, so he is going.

There's some doubt about taking Thalia - she is a daughter of Poseidon and can't do much in the wasteland.

So it's decided: Phoebe, Bianca, Zoe, Perseus, and Grover. No one is happy about it, and Percy knows Thalia is going to follow them.

He introduces himself as Perseus to them. He is stoic and doesn't smile around the girls.

Capture the Flag is horrible. He doesn't leave his post and blocks Zoe with skeletons for enough time that Thalia manages to snag the flag and cross the river.

The huntresses get mad and try to fight the campers - Phoebe tries to hit Nico with the pommel of her sword and a lightning bolt hits her, putting her out of commission.

He is claimed. Bianca isn't, but it doesn't matter: She is not a camper, she is a hunter. Her loyalty is to her half-sister now.

They leave in the morning without Phoebe before anyone wakes up.

Bianca looks at him weirdly because of his soft white and blue sweaters and scrunchies that he started using to take off hair from his face, and the contrast it makes with his dark skin and demeanor.

Newsflash: He doesn't care for a prejudiced daughter of Zeus's opinion.

Zoe doesn't even look at him twice: They have trans girls in the hunt, they're caught up with modern times. Except for the misandry and the exclusion of genderfluid, agender and non-binary people. But sure, caught up.

Nico asks him to protect his sister. He says he is going to try, but he understands death better than some. He says it'll be dangerous, but he'll do his best.

For some reason, Nico doesn't look worried.

Thalia joins them in the Space museum. She came in her Pegasus, Porkpie, and they fight the Nemean Lion together. His hellhound startles the hunters, and Thalia laughs.

They kill the Nemean Lion, and Perseus thinks he finally perfects his power over the earth when he uses a stone spike to pierce the monster through the mouth and barely gets tired.

The duster is not his style, but beggars can't be choosers. Zoe is warming up to them, he thinks, but he doesn't care either way: his objective is Annabeth.

He still hasn't managed to open the ground or to control metal's proprieties, but he controls the earth beneath his feet, shadow travels (very badly controlled, but sure), raises armies of skeletons and money and gems just sprout when he wants them. He has power.

But he isn't completely in control yet, so he doesn't want anyone touching him. And it's been such a long time since anyone except his mother ever been close to any skin below his neck.

Perseus has dreams. He is grateful that Artemis took the sky for Annabeth, so he burns the coat in her name.

Thalia says she has met Apollo, and Perseus is glad at least one god is on their side.

Perseus feels in the air: life. This town is cloying with the smell of life, of forests and waterfalls. He hates it on principle but wishes she could enjoy it.

He kills a spartoi. He doesn't manage to kill more, but now he knows. He wishes he could open the ground and swallow all of them, but even his own skeletons he only manages to turn them into piles of bones.

The boar carries most of them: it's still just a boar and they are five, so both he and Thalia enjoy Blackjack, who now is almost the size of a small rhino.

Perseus meets Ares awake this time. He didn't snitch on him to the gods, but he wishes he did.

Meeting Aphrodite is awful. Percy looks at her, and he sees blonde hair that he can't decide if it's golden or brownish, he looks at her eyes and see the blue and grey fight for dominance in the irises. Her skin flicks, and he sees a scar crossing her eye.

For a moment, her skin turns as black as his - his desire for family.

He hates her more than he hates Ares when she looks at him with a smile and says that his love life will be the most interesting tale she has ever woven.

They cross the junkyard. Bianca dies for a figurine of Zeus, and Perseus wants to scream at the skies for the injustice. He isn't close to Bianca, he won't miss her, but he blames himself.

What if he was good enough at shadow traveling to take all of them away? What if he was able to kill Talos before? If he saw the figurine in her hand, if he was clearer in his warning, if, if, if.

He is a son of Hades, and death follows him. The stench of it grabs at his clothes, but he doesn't cry. Bianca is not the first to die in the name of the gods - she won't be the last one.

Perseus tries and tries to reach for any part of her body - everything is gone.

The Hoover Dam goes exactly the same way - Percy finds the mortal girl cute, but he doesn't ponder on it. It's not the time. He tells her his name is Percy, because why not. He is not seeing her again.

He laughs at the dam joke and feels a little freer. He cares about Zoe. It's difficult not to.

They fly away, and Perseus doesn't like it, but he barely flinches.

They get closer - all of them. Perseus always makes friends in quests, and he is happier for it.

Thalia catches Nereus - and she tells them all about Bessie, the ophiotaurus. Percy thinks that, for a serpent cow, it's pretty cute.

Grover leaves with it back to Camp Half-Blood and away from the temptation that Thalia feels. He knows it - he feels it too, deep inside of him, the urge to kill all of them.

But is Kronos any better?

They meet Annabeth's father. Her stepmom caught a glance at him and sneers like he is covered in blood.

Luke is in Mount Othrys. Percy doesn't join him. He wants to. The drachma is still in his pocket. But Luke needs to pay for what he has done to Annabeth. This is not about the war that looms on the horizon, this is about his best friend.

They fight. Perseus holds the sky, but the thing in his fingertips is not the earth, it's something older and harder, that presses him to his knees. He draws strength from the earth, and he holds on.

They win, but at what cost? Luke falls. He cries and throws the drachma over the cliff - a promise gone with one of his first friends.

Zoe is dead. Three people dead, for a goddess who couldn't care less about them. Perseus wants to go back in time and accept Luke's proposal.

He wants to cry and he doesn't. They go to Olympus. Thalia joins Artemis, and he feels betrayed: just because she is afraid of power, she is going to throw the weight of this prophecy on him?

And on top, she just joined the eternal misandry group, and something in his heart festers. He thought he had one more friend in her, but she was just another pawn.

Annabeth basks in her mother's praise. He wants to vomit - two people are dead, but who cares.

Thalia pleads for the ophiotaurus life, but she doesn't lift a finger when they talk about his death. He hates her. He holds a grudge for his cousin just like his father holds one for his brother.

He just saved their asses for the third time, and they're talking about murdering him because he might not save them a fourth.

The gods. They take and they take and they take and the demigods keep giving.

His father saves him - no one dares to go against Hades' vote to let him live, because he is a hero.

They go back to camp, and Perseus is charged with the task to tell Nico.

"Well, so bring her back"

The boy says it non-chanlantly like he is counting on it. Percy feels guilt creep at his heart like a plague, all the ways he failed to save Bianca. If he just had a better grasp in his powers, if he was just better. And here it was, something else he couldn't do.

"I can't, Nico"

Nico yells at him. He screams that he killed his sister. Percy starts to retract, and they end up in the pavilion. Everyone is there, and they don't lift a finger to help.

Percy is so tired. He hasn't seen his mom since October. He just lost one of his best friends. He was on a mission for a week. He held the sky in his hands. Zoe is dead. Thalia is gone. Death follows him. The guilt claws at him - for not being enough.

Nico shouts and shouts. The final straw is when he says that he shouldn't have trusted a son of Hades, how everyone told him not to. He tells no one wants him here, and before anyone can say anything to contest it, spartoi appear.

People scramble for their weapons, but Percy opens the ground and swallows all of the skeletons. When they're gone, so is Percy.

Turns out? Percy doesn't want to be here anymore either.

Nico is prideful. People in camp scrambled for his attention. A couple of kids of Aphrodite tell him that Perseus wasn't a good company, trying to get in his good graces. This time around, there's no one to sing the praises of Percy Jackson.

Grover takes him aside and explains, a little against him own will, what happened with Bianca. He gives him the figurine.

Nico feels guilty. He is too prideful to admit, but he feels it burning in his heart - so he tries to understand what he just did. Grover tells him about the last two years. The guilt now fights with admiration, and resentment battles with adoration.

Some people steer clear of him for a while. Charles Beckendorf is too kind to isolate him - but Nico sees the sadness in his eyes. Annabeth doesn't talk with him - she just lost three best friends in a swoop. Grover reluctantly tells him more about Percy. Clarisse wipes the floor with him - and he doesn't complain when he wakes up and his makeshift bed in Cabin 1 is crawling with bugs - He is pretty sure Connor hates him.

Katie Gardner doesn't talk to him anymore. Will Solace - who is his best friend - consolates him. He tells Nico he was pretty awful to Percy last summer, and Percy still came back.

Pretty awful doesn't even begin to cover what Nico did. But he nods and settles. It's going to be fine.

Perseus wanders the Underworld. He plays with Cerberus, and it's finally time to go make peace with his father and meet Persephone.

There's the heavy weight of a drachma in his pocket.

109 notes · View notes

buoyantsaturn · 3 years

Text

Bring On The Monsters (8/8)

chapter title: The Prophecy Comes True

word count: 4,520

read on ao3

The Doors of Orpheus let them out into the middle of Central Park, and from there, Will did his best to lead the di Angelos to the Empire State Building. In his defense, he’d only ever been in the city once, and Argus had driven him and the rest of camp there in a camp van.

When they got to the door, Bianca set a hand on Will’s shoulder to stop him from walking inside. She held the Lotus card out to him.

“You should go back to camp,” Bianca said. “We don’t know how Zeus is going to react, and we don’t need him getting angry at you and your dad when he’s only mad at ours right now. Trust me, Will, it’ll be safer for you this way.”

Will took the card, looking dejected, though he nodded in acceptance. He kept his gaze on the ground as he said, “You’ll wanna go to the 600th floor. Ask the doorman for the key. He’s gonna be a real jerk, but don’t let that stop you. And…” He lifted his eyes and met Nico’s. “Find me when you get back to camp, okay? I’ll be...in the infirmary, probably, but maybe the pavilion, depending on what time it is, and if it’s after dark then I’ll be in my cabin, but--”

Nico jumped forward and pulled Will into a hug. “Be careful.”

Will hugged him back. “You too.”

Will pulled away and glanced at Bianca, holding his arms out awkwardly. She punched him in the arm. “If you manage to get yourself killed between here and camp after the week we just had, I’ll find you in the Underworld and kill you again myself.”

Will nodded. “Noted.” He pushed forward for a hug that lasted no more than a second, and then he ran toward the street to hail a cab.

With one hand, Bianca tightly gripped the strap of her backpack, and reached down to grasp Nico’s hand in the other. “C’mon, Nico, let’s pay our uncle a visit.”

Will had been right about the doorman giving them a hard time, but after Bianca threatened him with her knife, he handed over the keys and pointed them toward the elevator. After what seemed like half an hour, the doors finally opened, not into a building, but out onto a stone path that wove between lush green hills.

Every building on Olympus was white. White and bright with little bits of silver decorating everything that reflected the sun straight into Nico’s eyes. He wished he was back in the Underworld, and he’d barely even stepped foot in Olympus at that point.

They followed the path to the palace, which was almost an exact replica of the one in the Underworld, only - of course - white and silver instead of black and gold. Nico hated it already. At least they had a good idea of where the throne room would be once they got inside.

Zeus was much more unnerving than their father, having chosen to appear as a larger being while Hades had opted for a regular human height. Zeus towered over them and glared with so much force that Nico thought would kill them in an instant if he had his bolt. And Hera’s presence at his side was nowhere near as comforting as Persephone’s had been.

“Hello, um,” Bianca started awkwardly, and then fell to her knees and bowed her head. She tugged Nico down beside her. “Uncle Zeus. We came to deliver your Master Bolt.”

“Admitting guilt?” Zeus asked with a raised brow.

“No, sir,” Bianca answered swiftly, and started removing her backpack. “We were set up. Ares gave us this bag during our quest, and it must have been...enchanted, somehow, so that the Bolt appeared after a certain amount of time.”

Zeus watched them for a second before replying, “Are you telling me that my own son stole my symbol of power? You do realize that it’s impossible for another god to do so.”

“No, sir,” Bianca said again. “He was working with someone else.”

“Who?”

Bianca hesitated, so Nico answered, “We don’t know.”

“Our dad had a guess,” Bianca told him, “but he wouldn’t tell us what it was. He said it was impossible, and that he couldn’t believe it was true.”

“And something about things stirring,” Nico said, though he wasn’t sure why he chose to bring that up specifically.

Something about it must have struck Zeus, though, because his eyes widened and he leaned back on his throne. He whispered something to his wife, whose expression turned to one of shock and fear, which definitely wasn’t making Nico feel any better.

“Give me the Bolt,” Zeus said, holding out a hand. Bianca took the cylinder out of her bag and approached the throne, setting the Bolt in Zeus’s hand. “I shall let you both live, for now. Return to camp, mention nothing of this stirring to anyone.”

Was that supposed to be their dismissal?

Bianca seemed to think so, because she returned to Nico’s side, barely stopping to grab her back with one hand and Nico’s arm with the other as she left the throne room. “Not even a thank you,” she muttered as soon as they were out of the palace.

They marched back in the direction of the elevator, though this time Nico caught himself watching the scenery as they went. There were nymphs and minor gods wandering about, and someone that looked an awful lot like… “Will?” Nico said before tripping over his next step.

“What?” Bianca asked. “Did you say you saw Will? He followed us up here after I told him not to?” She sounded angry, and was scanning the horizon in the same direction Nico was looking.

The Will look-alike appeared to notice them, and said goodbye to whoever he had been talking to. He jogged toward the demigods with a sunshiney grin, and it didn’t take Nico long to realize that this definitely wasn’t Will. For one, his hair wasn’t quite as golden, and he lacked Will’s freckles. And he was a good foot and a half taller than Will.

“Hey, di Angelos, right?” the man - probably a god, Nico’s brain supplied - greeted. “My son’s been praying non-stop for the last hour that I stop Dad from smiting you two, though I don’t know how he expected me to do that. But anyway, you made it out alive! That’s great!”

“Your...son?” Nico asked, feeling his face heating up at the attention the god was showing to him. That, and the fact that his chiton showed much more skin than it was probably supposed to.

“Will!” he said, his face somehow lighting up even more at the name. “I’m Apollo, you know, god of the sun? And poetry, and healing, and blah blah, all that. Hey, thanks for keeping my baby safe out there on his first quest. Well, he’s not my baby, but you know what I mean. My youngest. Well, my youngest at camp. Anyway, he’s going to be really happy to see that you both made it back to camp safely. And trust me, I’m also the god of prophecy. I know.”

“I don’t suppose you know how we’re getting back to camp,” Bianca said. “I gave Will the rest of our money, because I didn’t know for sure that we would be leaving. So now we’re sort of stuck here.”

Apollo thought about it for a second, tapping his chin with one index finger. Then, he reached behind himself and brought out a single gold coin. “This should be enough for a cab.”

“Cabs take mortal money,” Nico pointed out. “Not drachmas.”

Apollo grinned. “So don’t take a mortal cab!”

Nico was not a fan of the Gray Sisters. He almost puked in the back of their cab more than once in the ten minute drive - which was supposed to be closer to an hour. Nico and Bianca stumbled over Half Blood Hill, still struggling to regain their bearings. Once he could finally see camp, Nico’s eyes started scanning for Will.

He ran at full speed toward the infirmary.

Nico burst through the door, his eyes wild and searching. There were blond sons of Apollo inside, all looking at him with startled expressions, but none of them were Will. Finally, Lee grinned and said, “Hey, Nico, he’s--”

“Nico?” Will’s voice came from across the infirmary, and he practically flew out of the storage room. In a second, Nico was nearly knocked off his feet with the force of Will’s hug. “You’re okay! I was so worried, I kept praying, and you’re okay!”

“I’m okay,” Nico said with a giddy laugh, closing his arms around Will and tucking his face into his friend’s shoulder.

Suddenly, Will pulled back, just a few inches. “Wait, and Bianca?”

Nico nodded. “She’s okay.”

Will hugged him again.

After a few moments, Lee approached them and ruffled Will’s curls. “Alright, Will, let the boy breathe.” Will released Nico reluctantly and took a step back, but he took Nico’s hand instead. Lee turned to Nico and set a hand on his shoulder. “Glad to see you again, Nico! Any injuries I should know about before we go talk to Chiron?”

Nico squeezed Will’s hand, then shook his head.

“Alright, then let’s go get Bianca, and we’ll have Chiron call a head counselor meeting,” Lee said, then turned to Will and winked. “You’re in charge until I get back.”

The counselor meeting was just as uncomfortable as the first, if not more. It was clear that the other counselors still weren’t very fond of the di Angelos, but they were interested to hear about the quest - especially when Nico slipped up and mentioned the stirring again. There was a short debate over who Ares might have been working with, though Chiron had seemed thoroughly uneased, and ended the meeting early, insisting that Nico and Bianca needed rest. They were shuffled into their room in the Big House and left alone.

It made Nico feel trapped.

When they got to their room, though, Nico spotted gifts on each of their beds - wrapped, but in a way that showed exactly what was underneath. He figured it was probably difficult to wrap a sword without making it look like a sword.

There was a note left beside the sword that Nico couldn’t decipher, so he handed it off to Bianca to read for him.

Dear Nico,

I understand that your visit has left you unarmed, so I had your sword fished out of the Styx. The river has wiped away the curse placed upon it, and has transformed the blade from Celestial Bronze to Stygian Iron. This new blade is equally effective against monsters, though it has other properties that I would be happy to teach you of in person. The offer to visit again still stands, and I can ensure that you will receive the best training Elysium has to offer.

I hope to see you again soon.

Your Father

Bianca received a similar note, alongside a new knife and a bow. The blade of her knife, the heads of her new set of arrows, and the blade of Nico’s sword were all made from the same black material. Almost like obsidian, though it didn’t reflect light, and it was freezing cold to the touch.

Nico couldn’t wait to try it out.

He and Bianca had sword practice in the arena with the Hephaestus cabin about a week later. Just about everyone from cabin nine wanted to get a closer look at Nico’s sword, though he didn’t want to let anyone touch it until he learned about those other properties that Hades had mentioned. He wasn’t going to be responsible for… For sucking out somebody’s soul, or something.

When Beckendorf asked, though, Nico found he couldn’t outright deny him. He had made the sword, after all, even if it had been changed since then. Beside, Beckendorf was actually Nico’s friend, unlike most of the Hephaestus cabin. Sure, everyone had started warming up to Nico and Bianca by then, but Beckendorf had been there from the beginning. Sort of.

He was no Will, is what Nico was trying to say.

So, when Beckendorf asked to try out Nico’s sword, Nico had refused. And when Beckendorf came back with, “How about later, during free time? We can go out into the woods, so no one has to know.” And Nico figured, as long as nobody could see that he was playing favorites, then it was probably okay.

Which was how Nico found himself sneaking off with his sword just after dinner, making his way into the woods in the direction of Zeus’s fist. Beckendorf was already in the woods waiting for him, a few cans of Coke on the ground next to the rock he was sitting on. He smiled when he saw Nico.

“Hey, man, I was starting to think you’d ditched me,” Beckendorf joked. He reached down for one of the cans. “You want a Coke?”

“Bianca says I shouldn’t have sugar,” Nico told him.

Beckendorf tossed him the can. “She doesn’t have to know.” He cracked open his own can, and nodded to the scabbard at Nico’s hip. “So, you gonna let me see that thing, or what?”

Nico pulled the sword out of its sheath and stepped closer to Beckendorf to hand it over. The son of Hephaestus stood, then nodded toward the rock he’d been sitting on for Nico to use as he started to move away.

“It’s really well-made,” Beckendorf said, testing the weight in his hand and eyeing the blade to make sure the lines were all straight.

“You made it,” Nico reminded him, and Beckendorf shot him a confused look. “It’s the same sword I left camp with. My dad, uh-- Apparently, if you dip a sword in the Styx, it comes out like...that.”

Beckendorf took a few practice swings into open air, then came back to Nico. He handed the sword back, and reached around Nico for his own scabbard, on the ground behind the rock. “Why would he dip it in the Styx?” he asked, moving away again. “Did he say?”

Nico hesitated. The sword had been cursed, but Nico didn’t know when that could’ve happened, since it never left his side after he left camp. Which meant it must have been cursed before he left… Surely not all curses were bad, if it had been cursed at camp. “He said it was...cursed.”

Beckendorf nodded, like he wasn’t surprised, then gripped the hilt of his own sword. “Well, not all curses are bad, you know. I just made a new sword for myself, complete with a few curses of its own. Wanna see?” He didn’t even give Nico a chance to nod before he pulled it from the sheath.

The sword was easily a foot longer than Nico’s, and it reflected the sun almost blindingly compared to Nico’s. The blade was split down the middle, one half Celestial Bronze, and the other half something closer to silver.

“It’s really difficult to forge these two metals together,” Beckendorf was saying. “It took quite a few curses just to keep this thing from busting apart with a single hit, but it’s definitely worth it.”

“What is it?” Nico asked.

Beckendorf grinned. “I call it Backbiter. Half Celestial Bronze, half steel.”

Nico flinched. “Steel? But we’re not supposed to--”

“And whose rule is that?” Beckendorf cut in. “Chiron’s? Do you really think he knows what’s best for us?”

Nico ducked his head and shrugged, flicking at the pop top on the can without opening it.

Beckendorf kneeled down in front of Nico, setting a hand on his shoulder. “Nico, the gods make all sorts of rules for us to pretend that they care, when really, they’re just trying to keep us in line. They don’t realize that, together, we’re way more powerful than them. You’re going to be the most powerful demigod in the world someday, kid, and the gods are just going to keep piling on more rules to keep you from taking them down. Why should you have to reign it in when they never do?”

Nico frowned, and said the first words that came to mind. “My dad cares about me.”

Beckendorf gave him a sympathetic smile. “He doesn’t.”

“He does,” Nico shouted, shoving Beckendorf’s hand away. “He told me himself, and he wants me to come back to the Underworld!”

“So he can trap you there,” Beckendorf said, rising to his feet to tower over the younger demigod. “He knows how powerful you could become.” He held out a hand to Nico, though his other hand tightened around the hilt of his sword. “Look, Nico. I’m leaving camp, and I want you to come with me. I can help you train. We can find every other demigod before they make it to camp, and we can build up an army against the gods.”

“Why would I want to fight against the gods?” Nico asked, eyes flickering between Beckendorf’s face and his sword. “The gods help. It’s the monsters that we have to fight!”

Beckendorf raised his sword to Nico’s chin. “I thought you trusted me, Nico. I came to you because I thought we were friends! Are you really going to make me kill you? What do you think will happen to Bianca? Will she join me when I tell her that your dad sent another hellhound to take you out? Or will I have to kill her, too?”

Nico’s sword was in his hand without him realizing that he’d even picked it up. “Don’t touch my sister!” he screamed, and lunged blindly. Beckendorf parried his strike easily, and Backbiter sliced through Nico’s skin, just beneath his ribs. Beckendorf yanked the sword back, tugging Nico forward with it and knocking him off balance. Nico dropped to his knees.

“It didn’t have to come to this, Nico,” Beckendorf said as Nico clutched at the wound in his stomach. “Hopefully Bianca won’t choose to fight.”

Then he was gone.

Nico didn’t hear him walk away (probably due to the pounding of blood in his ears) and he couldn’t see any sign of Beckendorf around him (though there were black stops in the corners of his eyes that were moving inward). The only thing that Nico found around him was his sword. With one hand still holding pressure on his stomach, Nico reached for his sword, then used it somewhat like a crutch as he pulled himself toward the nearest shadow. He would never make it back into central camp on his own two feet, and he still didn’t know how the whole teleportation thing worked, but he had to try.

Hades had said something about shadows, so that’s where Nico went. And instead of crawling onto solid ground, he slipped through the earth, reappearing in the shadow of the Apollo cabin.

And he passed out.

Nico’s stomach hurt. Not like he’d eaten something he shouldn’t have, but like he’d pulled a muscle. Or a lot of muscles. Or like someone else had tried to pull his muscles out of his body.

He opened his eyes. He was in the infirmary, and there was a familiar head of blond hair resting on the cot at Nico’s side. Will’s hand was gripping Nico’s hand tightly in his own, despite how heavily he was sleeping.

“Charlie…” Nico whispered, suddenly remembering what had happened. He tugged on Will’s hand, but the other boy didn’t move. “Will-- Bianca!”

The curtain around his bed shifted, and one of Will’s brother’s poked his head in. Michael, Nico thought after a second. He was one of the only children of Apollo that didn’t have their father’s golden hair. He didn’t smile much, either, and those two facts had always caused Nico to have a hard time believing that he and Will could be related, let alone brothers.

Michael crossed to Nico, setting a hand on his shoulder with a stern, “Don’t move. Will put a lot of work into keeping you alive, and he won’t be happy if you mess that up.” He glanced down at his younger brother with the beginnings of a fond smile. “He healed you all by himself. And knocked himself right out.”

“Where’s Bianca?” Nico demanded. “Beckendorf, he--”

“She’s okay,” Michael cut in. “She wouldn’t leave your side when you suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and Chiron just took her to grab some lunch. They’ll be right back.”

“And Beckendorf?” Nico asked.

Michael frowned. “What about him? I haven’t seen him since dinner last night.”

“He stabbed me,” Nico said, feeling his body starting to shake at the memory. “He said he was going to kill me, and that he was gonna kill Bia next. He’s-- He’s running away to build an army!”

Michael’s eyes widened. “Woah, dude, uh. Maybe you should wait for Chiron to come back before you start talking about stuff like that.”

“Betrayed by a friend,” Nico mumbled to himself. “The prophecy...it wasn’t over yet.”

Nico and Bianca were kept under close surveillance for the rest of the summer, and Beckendorf never showed his face again. Nico wasn’t sure how many people had heard the truth, but it seemed like there was something of a divide at camp. There were the people who were on Nico’s side - the Apollo cabin, a bunch of Will’s friends, and a few who had befriended Bianca at some point or another - and the people who were in some way loyal to Beckendorf. Nico wondered how many of those people were going to disappear, and end up as part of Beckendorf’s “army.”

By the end of the summer, Nico felt more welcomed at camp than he ever had before. He had friends, more than just Will, and he didn’t feel like so much of an outsider. He was happy, and he was excited to stay at camp, until one day in August when Will sat him down by the lake and announced that he was going home to Texas for the school year.

“I’ve been at camp year-round for the last two years,” Will told him. “I miss my mama, and my grandparents. We all agreed that I would be safer here, but after going on that quest… I think I’ll be able to keep myself safe out in the real world, too.”

Nico felt ice in the scar on his stomach. “But… Charlie.”

Will’s expression dropped. “I know. But Nico, you have to know that I would never go with him after what he did to you.”

“But he could hurt you.”

Will shook his head. “I won’t let him get close enough. I’m fast, I can outrun him no problem. Besides, once you figure out your teleporting thing, you can come check up on me.” Will bumped Nico with his shoulder. “I know you’ll keep me safe.”

“I don’t...know how it works,” Nico told him.

“You’ll figure it out! While I’m with my mama, you can go visit your dad, and he can teach you all sorts of stuff,” Will said. “And when you come back to camp, you can sneak onto the computer in the Big House and email me about all the cool stuff you’ve done!”

Nico pouted down at the grass. “I don’t know what that means.”

“I’ll show you,” Will promised.

“And…” Nico hesitated. “Beckendorf, he said… He said that my dad doesn’t really want me to visit. He said that Hades is just going to lock me up so I can never get powerful enough to fight back against him.”

Will’s expression darkened at the mention of Beckendorf, and he sighed in frustration. “Well, he wasn’t there, and I was. I saw how much your dad wants you to visit him, and how much he wanted to help you learn stuff. I wish my dad would tell me stuff like that, but I’ve never even met him.”

“I have,” Nico said.

“What?” Will asked. “When?”

“On Olympus. He said you were praying that Zeus wouldn’t kill us,” Nico told him. “He thanked us for keeping you safe on the quest, and he gave us money to get back to camp. He… You look a lot like him. He called you his baby.”

Will’s nose scrunched up. “That’s...embarrassing. He really said that?”

Nico nodded. “You know, if you go away for school, then you might not be the youngest when you come back.”

Will’s eyes widened. “What? Did he tell you that? Do I have more siblings?”

“He said you were his youngest at camp,” Nico replied. “He… He didn’t say anything, but he implied it.”

“Woah,” Will said, glancing out toward the lake. Then, he shoved at Nico’s arm. “You’re just saying that because you don’t want me to leave! You think I’ll stick around just for the chance that I get a new sibling.”

“Well...won’t you?”

Will laughed. “And then what am I supposed to do all winter when you’re in the Underworld with your dad?”

“Who says I’m gonna do that?”

“You’d be stupid not to.”

Nico shoved him. “Maybe you’re stupid for going to school.”

“I’m definitely gonna be if I don’t.” He grinned at Nico, poking him in the stomach near the place where he’d been stabbed. “Now that I know I’m such an awesome healer, I’ve decided that I’m gonna be a doctor someday, so I have to go to school.”

Nico grabbed Will’s hand to stop the poking. “Promise me you’ll be careful? And Iris Message me if Beckendorf shows up. I don’t care if I don’t know how the shadow travel stuff works yet. I’ll figure it out, and I’ll come get you.”

Will squeezed his hand. “Maybe you can come visit for Christmas. Don’t let me leave camp without giving you my email address, okay? And my home address. And my mama’s phone number!”

The end of summer came a week later. Some of the campers wouldn’t be leaving for a few more days, but Will was set to leave right after breakfast. He’d given Nico about six different ways to contact him during the school year, and he’d sneaked Nico into the Apollo cabin to help him pack the day before.

At breakfast, Chiron enlisted the dryads to hand out clay beads to every one of the campers. The beads were small, but Nico could make out the design of a white angel on the black surface. The di Angelos, Chiron had announced, the angels.

Nico and Bianca helped each other with their necklaces, and after breakfast, Nico gave Will one last hug before he was shuffled off toward the van that would take him and a few other campers to the airport.

Nico sat on the top of Half Blood Hill in the shade of Percy’s willow tree and watched the van drive away. Then he stayed a little while longer, until finally pulling himself to his feet and heading back to the Big House to pack a bag.

He was going to see his dad.

thanks for reading!!

buy me a coffee | send me other canon scenes to rewrite

#solangelo #will solace #nico di angelo #bianca di angelo #mine #my writing #bring on the monsters

20 notes · View notes

samatheia229 · 4 years

Text

PJO Mortal AU (Solangelo-centric)

The Olympia Family

(AKA the family with so much chaos and drama, they would have made an even more popular reality TV show than Keeping Up with the Kardashians)

Thalia Grace - 24

An ambassador of the Artemis Foundation

Badass

Won't hesitate to throw hands at anyone who messes with her family.

Very protective of her little brother and cousins.

Not afraid to speak her mind and fight for what she thinks is right.

Has a kind of love-hate relationship with her stepmother Hera. While Thalia respects and acknowledges Hera as her stepmother, she is a free spirit, and hates being chained down by the old-fashioned rules Hera imposes.

Briefly dated Luke Castellan for 2 years, but broke up due to reasons. The break up was mutual and Luke still remains as one of Thalia's closest friends.

Deadly with a bow and arrow (she'd be hunting down hunters like they hunt animals for living if it weren't for the fact that murder is unfortunately illegal).

Jason Grace - 19

Sophomore at Uni (double majors in Management and Aerodynamic Engineering)

Flight school graduate

Heir to Jupiter Airlines (given that his father doesn't plan to retire anytime soon, Jason is considering becoming a pilot in the meantime)

Hera's favourite child since he actually follows her rules (He bends them slightly every now and then, but she doesn't need to know that).

Regular at the Manhattan Chess Club

Has an intense rivalry with his older cousin Percy that's been going on for like 10 years now... (his life goal is to beat Percy. They're currently at a stalemate of 3795 wins each.)

Very protective of Nico. He almost had an aneurysm when he heard that grumpy, little stay-away-or-I’ll-death-glare-you Nico had a boyfriend. A boyfriend.

Has a best friend Leo Valdez who is an engineer student with an eccentric personality and is a mischievous menace. His childhood friend, Reyna Avila Ramirez-Arellano, is an athlete in javelin-throwing and currently resides in her hometown in San Juan, Puerto Rico, but they still keep in touch.

Dating Piper McLean, the 19-year-old founder of the Beautifully Imperfect Foundation

Zeus Olympia

CEO of Jupiter Airlines

Drama Queen TM

Favours Thalia more despite Jason being his heir and enables most of her rebellious antics, much to Hera's chagrin.

Can be rather childish and petty ("It's been 43 years, and I've long since given up on expecting him to change," Hades deadpanned.)

As the youngest child of the Olympia family and with his father on Death's doorstep, Zeus was given a lot of free reign, hence his playboy tendencies. He eventually did settle down with Hera Junos, the single daughter of one of the oldest families in Greece. Hera was fond of children but was unable to sire her own due to medical issues, which led to Zeus getting a mistress (with Hera's begrudged consent), Beryl Grace, the daughter of Hera's family chef. Beryl has always had a rather strange personality and an unhealthy obsession with alcohol. A few years after giving birth to Thalia and Jason Grace respectively, her liver gave way and she died before they could find a solution.

Hera Olympia (formerly Junos)

Zeus' wife

The kids call her ‘Aunt Ra’

Jason is her favourite child because he actually listens to her

Coming from both a high-class and old family, Hera was raised to be a perfect lady (a lady should not wear pants or speak out of turn etc. etc.) and has a rather old-fashioned way of thinking, enforcing strict rules in her household.

She still loves Thalia, but because the way Thalia acts goes against everything Hera was taught, her relationship with her stepdaughter is a bit strained. Hera now mostly lets Thalia do her own thing, but every now and then might still be a bit controlling. She's trying, okay?

Bianca di Angelo - 19

Sophomore at Uni (majors in Journalism and English Literature)

Works part-time at the Artemis Foundation

Generally quiet and shy, but has a tendency to fuss over small details.

Very responsible and possibly the only one with a brain cell among the cousins. (Proteus and Triton don’t even live in the same continent half of the time; Kym doesn't give a damn; Thesi is too nice to reprimand them; Ro‘s too busy fawning over her fiancé; Hero is more likely to fan the flames than quell them; Thalia, Jason, Percy and Nico are always either competing against each other or breaking the Internet with their antics again; Hazel is pretty innocent but has a slight vindictive streak so caution must be exercised; and Tyson and Estelle are innocent beans of sunshine that must be protected).

She can be bold when she wants to be, as well as reckless.

Has her father's habit of gesturing with her hands while talking and when she is on edge.

Ace

Nico di Angelo - 17

High school Senior

Heir to Pluto Corp.

Resident Emo in the family (“I'm not emo!” “Your only-dark-clothing phase says otherwise.” “It's not a phase, Persephone!” “Like father, like son.”)

Stubborn AF

Can't deal with all his overprotective sisters and cousins

Currently pining over William Solace ("Shut up!")

Avid gamer, plays digital games, card games (his childhood and to-this-day favourite is Myth-o-magic, which is one of the reasons he approves of Hazel's boyfriend, Frank) and all games in general (he visits the arcade monthly to make sure he's still 1st place in every game there)

Has a tendency to hold grudges and gestures with his hands while talking or when on edge, a habit he shares with his father and older sister.

Plays the violin (Persephone had introduced him to it, and he'd taken a liking to it)

Hazel Olympia (formerly Levesque) - 14

High school Freshman

Aspiring artist (she’s won thirty different art competitions locally in the span of three years and placed silver last year in the Chelsea International Fine Art Competition under an anonymous name because she wanted to win by her own merit rather than rely on the Olympia name. Hades plans to surprise her by giving her own exhibition hall for her next birthday.)

Regular at the Manhattan Riding Club

Has a bit of a vindictive streak in her that was probably born out of spite due to her upbringing

Exudes a powerful aura of passive aggressiveness, but is also incredibly kind and magnanimous

Has the ability is summon, manipulate and detect precious minerals, as well as the ability to place curses on them. (This knowledge is confidential and hidden from the public)

Loves her family with all her heart, and literally no one is more protective of Nico than she is

She was the first but also last person to know about Nico's boyfriend (First because she goes to the same school and is not dense, thank you very much, but technically last because she was the last person that Nico officially told since Will is terrified of her for some reason, something about her being 'the FINAL BOSS'; this amuses Hazel to no end).

Has a very cute crush on Frank Zhang, a HS Junior who’s an archer and animal lover (it’s mutual, by the way).

Hades Olympia

CEO of Pluto Corp., one of the largest companies in the mining industry.

#DONE with life and all the people in it, particularly his crazy family

Functions solely on his children, Persephone and caffeine, usually caffeine because the other two are often the cause of his high blood pressure

Broods a lot (”I don’t brood.” “Yes, you do.”)

Deadpan 200% of the time and takes no shit

Loves all his children equally and definitely does not have a favourite (it’s Hazel, in case you’re wondering)

As the eldest son of the three brothers, Hades was betrothed and wed to his childhood best friend Persephone Terrafield by their fathers in an attempt at a business partnership (Spoiler Alert: It didn’t work out in end). Admittedly, Hades and Persephone did have a small infatuation with each other when they were younger, but it never grew into anything serious, and as they grew older he saw her as more of a sibling than a lover and vice versa. After the inevitable death of his father, Hades and Persephone divorced but literally nothing in their relationship changed since they’d never loved each other romantically in the first place. When Hades decided to court their mutual friend, Italian diplomat Maria di Angelo, Persephone supported both of them wholeheartedly. In the span of the seventeen years they were together, Maria gave Hades two beautiful children, Bianca and Nico. Unfortunately, Maria passed away after being on life support for two years in result of a plane crash when Nico was 6.

In the two years when Maria was hospitalized, Hades was so desperate to find his beloved a cure that he sought out a witch doctor that was rumoured to be in New Orleans. Marie Levesque, the aforementioned witch, was a greedy, manipulative person with a deluded and unstable mind, who drugged Hades and essentially raped him because she thought his spawn would have the perfect blood for experimenting magic on. She used magic to wipe his memory of the previous night’s events and handed him an ‘antidote’ that was actually just water dyed a milky white. After ten years, Marie finally revealed to Hades a 12-year-old Hazel, who looked miserable, was suffering from malnutrition, wounds, burns etc. and had a supernatural ability which Marie proudly said she had bestowed to her via dark magic. Hades was absolutely mortified, revolted and a bunch of other things. He filed a lawsuit against Marie, charging her for rape, child neglect, child abuse and human experimentation, as well as taking permanent custody over Hazel Levesque (now Hazel Olympia).

Persephone Terrafield

CEO of jewelry enterprise The Red Pomegranate which was a sub-branch of Pluto Corps. The enterprise has the highest production rate in the US.

Self-designated matchmaker for Hades (Hades always tells her she should focus on her own love life first, but he’s just an ungrateful brat)

Current life goal is to fulfill Maria di Angelo’s dying wish: help Hades find love again. (Mission status: still at Square 1 because Hades has some trust issues after the Levesque Incident)

The kids all call her ‘Aunt Seph’, but she loves the children as though they were her own

She and Hades often joke that they would totally still be married if they didn’t see each other as siblings and platonic soulmates and she hadn’t had her sexual awakening of being lesbian.

She lives with Hades and the children as she finds it too much of a hassle to move into her own place, not to mention lonely (with the kids at school and doing club activities, someone needs to make sure Hades gets exposure to the sun anyway).

Persephone is the daughter of an unnamed businessman and Demeter Terrafield, an agricultural revolutionist and healthy-cereal-obssessed woman.

Her mother and Hades have this sort of weird rivalry going on whenever Demeter visits; Demeter hates Hades because he hates healthy cereal, and apparently anyone who hates healthy cereal isn’t good enough to be hanging around her daughter, so she always replaces all his coffee with decaf and puts the healthiest cereal she can find on his bedside table every morning; in retaliation, Hades will deliberately eat the most sugary sweets he can find in front of her and locks her out of their personal greenhouse. (The glass walls are made of the strongest glass he could find and the door is locked by multiple manual and digital locks.)

Hestia Olympia

CEO of WarmHearth Interior Design Agency (WHIDA)

Everyone's favourite person, indefinitely

Has the infinite patience of a goddess

Gentle, kind, very wise, gives great advice

The kids call her ‘Aunt Tia’

Often fondly exasperated by her younger brothers' antics (because no, just because they’re grown men now does not mean they are going to stop their childhood feuds since despite their protests, they are all petty AF), but once she snaps, they all line up like toy soldiers and behave nicely.

Knits a lot. Most of her carpets, quilts, bags, scarves etc. are handmade.

She looks relatively innocent, but don't be fooled. There's a hidden arsonist in her that is always ready to come out when she's angry.

Hestia has a 'I'm not mad, just extremely disappointed and upset' Mom Look that has sent people bawling their eyes out and begging for her forgiveness with just one glance

She is the oldest of the Olympia siblings, but as a child had a frail and weak body. Kronos wanted to get rid of her since she was 'useless and couldn't be wed off', but Rhea, their mother, begged and pleaded Kronos to let her live. For some unknown reason, Kronos complied.

Her brothers are all very protective of her

YOU DO NOT, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, MAKE HER ANGRY

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lifeofroos · 3 years

Text

Part 9. It is... different from what even I was expecting, but I think it is nesecarry. The rest is on my AO3!

Info: Nico gets therapy from Dionysus, based on a throwaway part in Tower of Nero.

This might be crazy part 9: Anise Milk

‘Nico di Angelo?’ I looked over. Dionysus was sitting on a concrete block near the climbing wall. I sighed and walked over to where he was sitting. ‘Sir.’ He pushed a mug into my hand. ‘Is there an emergency that you want to talk about right now?’

I raised my eyebrows. ‘No. I thought there was something you wanted to discuss. Because you were the one to call me over, push a mug into my hand and with that announce that therapy is in session.’ I sat down next to him.

‘That’s true, but if there is something urgent going on, I’d rather we’d talk about that than about what I had in mind.’

‘Thanks, but there is nothing. We can go on with what you had planned.’ Dionysus nodded. My mug filled itself with Anise milk. I held it in my lap while I prepared myself for what was about to come.

‘The next thing I wanted to talk about was…’ yeah, yeah, Bianca. ‘...Hades.’

Wait. What is this that you are saying? ‘...Hades?’ I almost let the mug slip from my hands. ‘As in… about the Underworld? The place?’

‘No, I meant your father. Now, I know, Nico, that this will be a difficult subject…’

‘Didn’t you… I thought you wanted to talk about Bianca. Because… last time...’ I was so confused that I couldn’t say anything else.

‘I wanted to talk about a few things, in multiple sessions, that all tie back to your sister.’ He got a concerned look in his eyes. It almost seemed as if he thought he had made a mistake. ‘But as I was saying: I know this will be a difficult subject. Yet, I also think it will be one of the cornerstones on the way to recovery.’

Oh, he knows this will be difficult. That apparently makes it better. I looked him dead in the eye.

There were a few seconds of silence. ‘Can you tell me what you are thinking right now?’

‘Probably exactly what you think I am thinking: why did you not give me any word ahead, so I could prepare? I just... I was there, and then I was here, and...And… why did you not give me any word ahead, so I could prepare? I just…’ I shook my head. And… why did you not give me any word ahead, so I could prepare? I just…’Also, I... I mean... why would I tell an Olympian god what I, or, the son of another high-ranking god, feel about that god? I…’ I stopped. This might as well be received as disrespectful. ‘Go on, Nico. It’s alright. I understand what you are getting at.’

Sure, sure. ‘Well… that… hm.’ I hunched over my shoulders. ‘Whatever I say might as well become an arrow in the quiver later down the line. Maybe that will take years, or centuries, but it might as well be next week.And… why did you not give me any word ahead, so I could prepare? I just…’ I tapped the bench and shook my head again. ‘I just was walking through camp, and...’ I pressed my mug against my chest.

Dionysus nodded slowly. ‘I… know. I understand that you are uncomfortable with this subject.’ He looked at the concrete for a moment. ‘And… that I could have warned you beforehand.’

I did not answer. I felt repulsed to saying anything right now. ‘I am going to the bathroom for a moment.’

‘Of course.’

When I came back, I still did not know how to talk or what to say. So instead of using words, I just looked at my mug. After some time, Dionysus coughed. I did not look up, but I could hear the remorse in his words. ‘Maybe… I should have told you in more detail how I am planning to help you.’ You think? ‘I think I might have gotten the wrong impression that you easily adapt to most subjects.’

‘What… How…’ My hands were shaking a bit. A droplet of milk fell onto my pants. ‘Can you do that now, then? Explain it, I mean?’

He nodded. ‘Well, eh... first of all, we can take as much time as you think you will need with what I’ve got planned.’ I slowly nodded, but still did not look up. ‘What I want to do is try to get to the very core of the grief you feel for your sister, so we can try to work through that and help you manage it. Not just because it will make carrying that grief, that went unchecked for so long, easier, but also because I think it will be a way to talk about other stuff that is plaguing you. For example, how you felt about Percy Jackson…’ At this point, my heart skipped a beat, until I realised he was probably talking about how I hated him. I still felt like I would never tell Dionysus about how I had truly felt about Percy. ‘...but also about Jason Grace and, not a small feat, your journey through Tartarus.’ The word ’journey’ rubbed me the wrong way. As if it had been a fun walk through the woods. ‘And I think that when we combine all of those issues, we might be able to actively work on silencing the voices in your head, not just on living with them. I think Hades is someone who had a part in how you feel about Bianca and that is why I wanted to talk about him first. He is something that deserves his own conversation, but also something that ties into a bigger issue. I think we first need to talk about Hades, before we can properly talk about Bianca. Now, as I said before, I might have ran ahead of you.’ A short break, a few seconds of silence. ‘Now I ask you: how do you feel about all this?’

I took the time to think of an answer, and Dionysus respected that. In the meantime, I drank up my anise milk. ‘I think that it is a good idea to try and tackle the subjects like that, even though we both know that it will be hard and difficult work. I think it will be worth it if it will really help me feel better. But…’ I looked at my hands. ‘...I would have really appreciated it if you had told me ahead what you were planning on doing. Because the talk about king Minos also ties into this, doesn’t it?’

A nod.

‘Yes. So… that.’ I put my hand over the cup.

‘I am glad you still trust me enough to go on. And, Nico…’ he wiped a lock of hair out of his face, ‘I… I guess I feel sorry that I did not tell you earlier. That was a mistake and I’ll try not to make it again.’ It dawned on me that it was the first time during the therapy sessions that he had truly apologised to me. Actually, it was the first time ever that I heard a god apologise.

‘Thanks.’ Now, I looked up. We were both smiling. ‘I think I will be ready for the next session in a couple of days.’

‘Then you are free for now. I’ll throw you a juice box sometime soon.’ I put down my mug and stood up. ‘Bye, Dionysus.’

‘Bye, Nico.’

My smile faded while I was walking to the Apollo cabin. I knocked and asked for Will, who immediately came to the door, put his arm around my shoulders and walked towards my cabin with me. There, we sat down on the porch. ‘It’s alright, Nico.’

I softly grabbed his face and kissed him. He put both of his arms around my waist. After I pulled back, I slumped against his chest and slid my own arms around him. ‘Dionysus just told me… it will be difficult. In short, he wants to tackle a few things so that we can get on the road to feeling better about Bianca. After that, he wants to continue with everything that happened after her death.’ I pushed my head against his chest. I felt afraid.

‘That… that sounds like it will be a rough next few weeks.’

‘I’d… I’d say months.’ Will pulled me closer and pressed a kiss onto my forehead.

‘You can do this. I know you can. And what is a few months, or even a few years, if it means a happier rest of your life after that?’

I did not answer. Will´s arms were warm and comfortable and it made me feel a little, a little safer. He would understand it.

A/N: This was a difficult chapter to write, because I set out to write a chapter about Hades, but then I realised I needed this in order to make that. Nico would not just trust Dionysus out of nowhere. It took a lot of thinking, coca-cola zero and Hadestown in the background to get to this.

In the next chapter, they’ll continue about Hades. I got a suggestion that I should write about Nico talking to Hades and not only about Hades as well, and I think I am going to try to built that in somewhere.

#Nico di angelo #dionysus #trials of apollo #percy jackson #percy jack and the olympians #tower of nero #therapy #fanfiction #tw therapy #tw death #fanfic #writeblr #writing #Will solace #solangelo

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