Hello! Another fanfic! Thanks to readergurl421 for non-intentionally inspiring me to write this one down! Hopefully you like it!
Disclaimer: Yeah, I don't own Percy Jackson.
Chapter I
NICO
Nico had been having a fairly crappy day even before two of his best friends fell into the deepest pit of hell. But because he was a demigod it just had to get worse.
The only person who seemed happy that he was there was Hazel. And even she was sobbing into Frank's shoulder in the corner. The big guy himself was looking even more baby-like than usual with his I'm-about-to-bawl-my-eyes-out-expression.
Piper had started crying within seconds of take off and locked herself in her room. Jason wasn't even allowed in. Not that he had tried though, he looked catatonic, sitting on the floor, leaning against the Argo II's mast.
Leo was the worst though, he was frantically trying to occupy his time with the ship's crazy mechanical stuff that confused Nico to no end. His eyes, normally lively looked shattered beyond repair and his expression was hollow.
Nico knew he looked really bad. Time in Tartarus then putting yourself in a pomegranate-seed induced coma while sealed inside a jar by two giants, one of which had the idiotic idea that he could be a ballerina (long story) really took it's toll on a 12 year old kid. The only thing holding him together was the knowledge that everyone he cared about was alive.
Looking around at the demigods, who were some of the toughest people he knew, all broken and destroyed he knew that Camp Half-Blood would be 10 billion times worse. The 7 or now rather, 5 barely knew Percy and Annabeth. Sure, Jason, Piper, and Leo spent 6 months with Annabeth but Nico knew that wasn't her. That was a scared Annabeth, without her Percy. Hazel and Frank met Percy only 2 weeks ago. None of them, even if they tried, could claim they knew Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase. But the kids at Camp could, and they would.
The only one who didn't look affected was Hedge. He looked normal, swinging his bat at a Scooby-Doo punching bag, if that's normal. Nico couldn't stop himself and before he knew it he was trying to have a conversation with the satyr.
"Hey, er-Coach?" Nico couldn't handle calling this half-goat man with anger issues "coach" but he did, not wanting to have to apologize to the mixed-martial-arts loving barnyard animal.
"What's troubling ya Young Dark Cupcake?" Hedge turned to look at a now snickering (that's something he hasn't done since, well, before Percy disappeared) son of Hades. Being called "Young Dark Cupcake" was new, and weird. But (against his better judgement) he replied anyways.
"It's Annabeth and Percy I'm not su-" Coach interrupted him.
"Oh, c'mon!" He yelled, exasperated. Then he (with strange mountain goat-like powers) jumped onto the storage trunk at the front of the boat, making him now over 9 ft tall. "Cupcakes! Or should I call you wimp-cakes?" He began to tell. No one even acknowledged him. Nico was pretty sure that Jason wasn't registering anything at the moment and Leo was too focused on flying his ship. Hazel and Frank hadn't even looked up from their seat about 100 ft away. Piper was still hiding out in her room.
"Hey," Coach looked at Nico. "Grab that." He pointed to a megaphone setting on the bench near him. Nico considered this, Coach's speech was not looking promising in the "feel better" department. But if it knocked his quest-mates out of their reveries of depression then it may be worth it. He heard a choking/sobbing sound from his sister and decided. He handed the goat his megaphone.
"Good work." Coach sounded like a drill Sargent. "CUPCAKES!" He bleated. Leo ran out of the engine room, hand on fire, and Nico realized that flame-boy thought the goat was a threat. Jason glanced up, looking like a confused two year old. Hazel pulled her head off of Frank's chest and looked as if she was looking at the world for the first time. Her boyfriend was glaring, though he wasn't the least bit scary, at the coach. Nico thought he heard the door of Piper's room open below.
"STOP YOUR BLUBBERING! NOTHING IS WRONG!" That was not the right thing to say. Frank stood up, being the klutz he is his movement toppled Hazel to the deck but both looked downright murderous. Electricity crackled around Jason's knuckles, making his blonde hair stand on end. Piper emerged from the basement. A tissue box in one hand and Kapotropis in the other. Nico assumed that the tissues were not meant to be very menacing. But her bloodshot-kaleidoscope eyes definitely were. Nico was about ready to run Coach through with his sword when a light caught his eye. Not a light, a fire.
A Leo Valdez fire.
The boy was surrounded by white hot flames, smoke curled up from his hair, white tendrils pluming up like a cigar. His eyes were coal red and focused on the man with the megaphone. Then he noticed Hazel, backing slowly away, hand over the pocket of her jacket. The others were all transfixed. Only Nico noticed that she was too close to the edge, too late.
"HAZE-" he was cut off by her earsplitting shriek as she fell off the flying ship. Leo immediately extinguished after hearing it. He whirled around. Jason was still staring at the empty space where Leo had been and Frank was tuning around in circles, like a dog chasing it's tail.
"She fell!" He yelled, trying to get his point across to the group. Piper recovered first and sprinted to the edge.
"JASON!" She sounded like she would kill him if he didn't listen. Dazed, he looked around. Oh gods, Nico remembered, Jason can fly! But he wasn't moving, just looking confused. Frank and Leo both gave up on freaking out and looked at Jason too.
"Save her goda-"
"FLY!"
"Jason!"
"Cupcake, go!"
"Superman!"
Jason just looked at them with wide eyes. Nico was about ready to kill the blonde. They kept a fluent stream of curses headed in the son of Jupiter's direction, which couldn't have been great for his morale.
Nico tried to think. He could tell Hazel was alive, still falling, but alive nonetheless. Actually she seemed to be just like Percy and Annabeth, falling to certain death. What would Percy do? What would Percy do?
Probably jump and save her. He thought, even though he couldn't fly. But they were over the ocean, so Percy could save her. Okay. What would Annabeth do? What would Annabeth do? What would Annabeth do?
Use her resources. The recourses Nico had were a flying boy who is catatonic and a sword, and a 50 foot tall statue. The statue? Wait how did they get the statue in again?
Eagle. The Eagle!
"HEY!" He hollered, raising his voice for the first time in a while. "Where did you guys get the eagle?" They all froze and turned to Frank who looked ready to murder himself.
"He'll never catch her." It was Leo who mumbled that, he had a point. They were so far up, and she was close to spash-down.
"H-how do-o I ca-a-tch-ch h-her?" He stammered.
"Hello!" Piper said in a "duh" voice. "GRAVITY YOU IDIOT!" I realized what she meant.
"Think heavy thoughts dude." Nico suggested then shoved him overboard. They could hear him yell, then nothing.
"Not good. Not good." The child of Hades muttered, staring over the railing.
"They'll be fine." Piper said, sounding completely sure, or maybe that was charmspeak, it didn't soothe him.
"My sister is falling through the sky. That's Zeus territory. She'll land in the water. Poseidon territory. But in the end she'll be back in dad's. Death territory." Nico explained. That didn't help Leo, who was now looking like he'd rip his hair out if his hands weren't still steaming. Nico knew the Latino-elf blamed himself for Percy's, Annabeth's, his mother's, Festus', and now Hazel's fate. Coach looked very uncomfortable and was pacing while muttering something that sounded suspiciously like: "4 Cupcakes fell today. It's raining cupcakes."
It felt like eternity, but was probably only 20 minutes of waiting. Then Frank came.
With Hazel.
They all, except for Coach and Jason, who was now watching with a look of polite interest on his face, tackled the pair. Which was a bad plan because they didn't see Hazel's cuts. She yelped and scrambled away.
"Question, how does one get cut while falling?" Leo asked nervously.
Frank winced and once again looked ready to kill himself. Nico quickly realized that it was talon marks. Apparently Frank had tried to catch her but forgot about the razor sharp points on his claws. Piper got the poor girl some ambrosia. Then because the life of a demigod has no breaks coach got the megaphone out.
"Good work cupcakes! Vanilla," he pointed to Jason. "snap out of it! Chinese-Canadian cupcake," he nodded at Frank who looked offended. "Remember you can fly next time! Burnt cupcake," he grabbed Leo's shoulder. "Stop spontaneously combusting! Chocolate," he looked at Hazel "fall overboard again and I'll send you into next Sunday!" He smacked his bat menacingly. "Frosting," he looked at Piper who had a confused expression plastered on her features. "quit moping!" We all fumed. Nico had noticed he wasn't mentioned but didn't mind. Piper spoke up first.
"What? We can't grieve over our friends for an hour?" She snapped.
"Grieve?" He said, obviously confused. "Oh, I get it. You're worried about Percy and Annabeth." They all stared at him, one for just realizing that, and two for not calling them cupcakes. Then he continued, "Those two are the toughest cupcakes I've ever met! The monsters'll be running from them!" He yelled. We sighed.
"Now," he had an air of wanting to start a new topic. "Uh, megaphone." He muttered to Frank who reluctantly grabbed it and handed it to Coach. The goat, realizing he was shorter than us, climbed up on the railing, teetering towards falling off.
"If he falls, I'm not saving him." Frank grumbled.
"If he doesn't fall, I'll push him." Leo muttered from the other side.
"Listen up! We need to get to the doors of death so you need to man up and cows go moo." Nico, Frank, and Hazel looked at coach who was shaking his megaphone. Piper gave a watery smile, and Jason looked like he wasn't listening. Coach tried again.
"Gaea ain't goin' to defeat herself so" his voice became Darth Vader's. "we need to become more- VALDEZ!" Leo smirked halfheartedly and walked away. The rest of the demigods followed suit, ignoring the coach's orders that were said in a voice that sounded like Minnie Mouse.
Nico wondered sadly what Percy and Annabeth were doing, probably falling, he froze, darkness seemed to surround him, howls of monsters echoed, hopelessness drowned him. He vaguely heard Hazel scream his name then he fell to what he assumed was the deck, though he couldn't see it. He was back in Tartarus, and he knew he'd die this time.
Sorry for the sorta-cliffie. Hope you liked it. I'm pretty sure they're OOC but blame it on the fact Percabeth is in Tartarus, and Nico just came from there, sorry about Jason, he'll get better. Tell me what POV's you think I should do. Please review!