Don't judge spelling or grammar mistakes, I have no editor and bad eyes so I miss A LOT.
If there was one thing Nico di Angelo was good at, it was getting out of any dangerous situation. And dangerous was pretty much the situation he was in right now.
He was an assassin for the king (not that his captors knew this) and probably the most wanted and most dangerous man in the world. Not that he was doing something heinous right now; in fact he was trying to turn his life around by saving the king's daughter who had gotten herself embarrassingly kidnapped.
Yeah that's right; Nico was on a mission to save the Princess.
I bet you never saw that coming.
But there would be no life changing turn around if he didn't get out of this cell. He kicked the bars and they clanged loudly but didn't budge. He told himself he was just checking their strength but really he was just pissed.
"Out of all things to get locked up for it had to be something as stupid as insulting a lord. Why couldn't it have at least been something like murder?"
He grumbled and leaned his back against the stone of his cell and the damp coolness of it seeped into his back. He could do nothing but wait, all of his weapons and tools were gone; and his magic would at least need a night before he could use it again.
"I'm going to die of boredom before they find the means to hang me."
He sulked for another ten minutes (more like hours to Nico) before the sound of the door down the hall slamming open startled him out of his thoughts.
Footsteps, a single pair of footsteps sounded down the hall. Nico shrunk back in the shadows knowing his black assassin robes would make it harder for someone to see him.
"If they think I'm not in here they'll open the door and I can make my escape. I can take on one guard easy."
The light from the guard's lantern got brighter as he approached, but Nico placed himself in a spot he knew the light wouldn't touch. He had done this before, it was almost too easy.
There was a pause of sound as the guard stopped to look in the cell, obviously confused as to why it was empty. Nico couldn't help but grin as he heard the jingle of keys and the sound of something metal being slid into a lock.
It was almost too easy.
The door swung open and Nico waited only long enough for the guard to get past the threshold so there was no chance of the door being closed in his face, and then he showed himself.
The guard was so startled he almost dropped his lantern. Nico pulled his fist back, ready to punch the guy and knock him out… or kill him, he really didn't care. One good hit to the temple and he would go down, easy.
"There you are, you're a funny one, aren't you?"
Nico's whole body froze as he got a good look at the guy. He wasn't wearing a helmet or any armor really (he must be overly confident or an idiot) and his black hair was windswept like he'd been out riding in the rain and he'd let it dry without fixing it. His skin was dark, almost a bit darker than a normal tan, which meant he must have spent a lot of time outside in sun.
And his eyes…
Nico couldn't help but think of the emerald crown he had sold off after he killed the man who wore it. The green was so beautiful, but there was even a hint of blue in them.
"I'm Nico fucking di Angelo. Greatest assassin in this country and possibly the world, and I'm standing here frozen like a moron because this guy is unnaturally attractive."
The guy in question didn't seem at all worried about the hand that was poised and ready to hit him. "I've never seen anyone actually try to hide in the shadow of their cell to lure me in. This is new." His green eyes closed but the smile that appeared in its place was just as beautiful.
"Fuck." Nico lowered his arm and stepped back until his back was against the stone. "Fucking fuck."
He wasn't sure if he was cursing at the guy or himself but it was probably the latter.
The guard just chuckled and stepped back out of the cell, locking the door behind him. "Those black clothes are pretty useful," the guard was still smiling, like he had been told a funny joke. "I would take them off to save me the trouble of this happening again, but that might make things a bit awkward."
"….."
He didn't seem put-off by Nico's silence. "The punishment that was agreed on for you was three days with no food or water, but don't worry, I'll sneak you something to eat when I can."
Finally able to find his voice again, Nico walked back up to the bars and placed his hands on the cool metal. "I need to get out of here now. There's something I have to do, something important."
"Is it more important than keeping your head?" The guard asked him. His smile had disappeared but there was still a twinkle of playfulness in his eyes. "I only just managed to keep that lord you insulted from killing you. The least you can do for me is stay in here for three days and be a good boy."
"Mother fucker…He's beautiful but I still want to stab him."
"My name is Percy by the way."
Nico almost had to shake himself out of his thoughts. "Huh?"
The guard smiled again and chuckled. "My name: it's Percy, Percy Jackson."
It was Nico's turn to laugh quietly. "A last name…that's interesting, you must be someone important then. The son of some lord who has too many children and you just ended up being the forgotten one then?"
The smile disappeared from Percy's face and Nico was surprised to find a hint of sadness in those green eyes. "Something like that." He nodded to Nico and turned to leave.
Just before he was out of sight Nico sighed hard and said, "Nico."
Percy paused and turned to look at his captor, "Your name is Nico?"
Nico shrugged, not offering the beautiful guard any more than that. There was no harm in giving away his name since no one really knew it. And he could always change it if he needed too.
"Alight, Nico," Percy said with sadness all but gone from his expression. "Let's try to make these next few days as easy as possible.
Nico rolled his eyes at that comment and he went back to his cold stone wall and tried to make himself comfortable.
"Oh and by the way."
Nico glared at Percy who had just poked his head back in sight.
"You wouldn't happen to be the assassin known as Hades, would you? If you were, that would make your stay a little different I'm sure."
"You little shit."
"Do you really think Hades would get himself arrested over a pissing match with a stuck up lord?" Nico shot back. His mother always said it hurt to tell the truth.
Percy laughed loudly this time. "You're right, there's no way a guy like that would be caught for something as stupid as that. He'd have to be a real idiot." He winked at Nico before taking his leave.
Nico clenched his jaw as he listened to Percy laugh all the way down the hall before he shut the door and it was silent once again.
His jail cell felt colder and emptier now that Percy was gone, like he had taken all the light and happiness with him.
"Damn him."
That night Nico focused on trying to get his magic back up to par so he could break out. He was still cursing his slip up with the guard…Percy as he knew him now. Nico was a twenty five year old man who had spent the majority of his life killing people and never once had he fucked up until now.
There was a small barred window in his cell, not even big enough that he could climb out of it if he could knock the bars off. But there was a full moon that night and the light seeped into his skin and helped to replenish his magic faster.
Most people absorbed their magic from the sun, as the sun was much more powerful. But Nico strived to make his life more difficult, and he preferred the moon magic. There was something more beautiful about it, less grandiose.
By midday that day he was back up to full strength, and the incident the night before had been diminished to a small bruise on his ego.
The jail was much busier in the day time. Nico saw Perc twice as he led two new prisoners in and both times Percy winked at him as he passed.
Nico wanted to stab him.
Badly.
Nico couldn't wait to wipe the smile off the guard's face, and now that he had his magic back he would do just that. Percy already admitted that he would be coming by at some point to give him food, which left Nico a lot of time to figure out a plan.
He couldn't afford to spend three full days locked up. Not only was it dangerous for the princess (but Nico was sure she could handle herself until he got there) but he was counting on the king's promise to give him a pardon if Nico brought her back unharmed and within a certain amount of time.
The time limit was frustrating but it made sense that the princess needed to be back before her own wedding. And if he didn't act quickly, word would eventually get out that she had been kidnapped and then the alliance with their neighboring country would be in trouble.
"This is bullshit." Nico picked at the stone floor he was sitting on. "This is why I'm never the good guy, I hate deadlines."
The day passed very slowly, almost painfully.
Percy didn't show himself until the moon was high in the sky again and the other occupants in the hall were fast asleep.
"I brought you some meat and cheese with some bread as well." Percy was dressed in his armor tonight and he was filthy. He looked like he had been walking through an overgrown forest in search of puppies. "I have water as well, I'm sorry I couldn't bring more."
He reached through the bars and placed a small wooden cup of water on the floor as well as a bag of food.
Nico wasn't concerned though; he had spent all day working up a spell that was going to get him out of there. He casually walked up to the bars, not too fast so that Percy might back away. "Thanks, you really didn't have to." He leaned up against the bars and tried his best to look friendly and at ease.
Like he'd hoped, Percy didn't move away; in fact he was leaning in and grinning like they were old friends.
"I'm not even using a lot of persuasive magic on him; this guy is like a fish caught on a line."
It was going to be so easy. All he had to do was grab a hold of Percy's arm and freeze him, take his keys, bust and then he would be on his way.
At least, that was the plan until Percy had reached through the cell bars and grabbed him by the back of the head so he could bring their lips together.
"What?"
He was so stunned he lost the time manipulation spell he had been saving. His mind went completely blank even as he felt a rough hand on his cheek pull him closer so their kiss could deepen.
"Too much persuasive magic!"
But even when he stopped that spell, Percy continued to hold onto him.
In fact he didn't stop until he realized that Nico was not responding as he'd hoped and then he let go as if Nico had burned him.
"I'm so sorry," Percy's face was so red Nico was sure his head was about to pop off. "I'm not sure why I did that, I just—it's like I wanted to but I wasn't going to and then I did and then I couldn't stop."
Nico had still not managed to find words. In fact the only sound he made was a mix between a groan and a kicked dog.
Percy's eyes were so wide and he looked so embarrassed Nico would have laughed at him in any other circumstance. But he didn't have time to as the flustered guard turn and ran.
Nico finally gathered himself enough to grab onto the bars and rattle them furiously. "Get back here you bastard! I'm gonna beat the shit out of you!"
He waited a few minutes to see if Percy would return, rattling the bars so much that one of his neighbors woke up to tell him off. When it became apparent Percy wasn't coming back Nico grabbed his food and drink of the floor and found a corner to sit in so he could eat.
"I'm actually going to kill him. Stab him. With multiple weapons. Put his head on a pike so I can parade it around with me."
He was able to spend the rest of the night and the whole next day thinking about how the most skilled assassin had fucked up twice. That put him in such a good mood that he was pretty sure his aura could wilt flowers if he tried hard enough.
The only happiness he took from the incident was the knowledge that Percy was shorter than him. It was so childish to think like that but it made him feel better.
"That short little fucker, I'm just going to melt his brains the next time I see him."
He had scratched one of his fingers bloody on the floor by the time night fell once again. He was still going to try the same plan again; as long as the 'tiny' guard didn't pull something out of his ass he should be fine.
"Maybe I won't use any persuasion magic this time. He obviously didn't need it."
The thought of Percy liking him just made him angrier. He had spent his whole life not being noticed by anyone, and that 'tiny bastard' had no right to just come out of nowhere and have any nice feelings for him.
"Feelings get you killed; I'm not stupid enough to fall for the lie of 'love'."
By the time Percy showed up again, three of his fingers were scratched bloody.
He watched silently as Percy placed a bag of food and another cup of water on the stone floor. Percy's face was already turning red and the sight of it made Nico want to throttle him.
"Look, I'm really sorry about last night."
Nico didn't want to hear it. He used his magic to enhance his speed so he could grab Percy by the front of his shirt and slam his head into the bars.
When Percy tried to pull away, Nico slammed him against the bars again so hard it split his lip. "Just shut the fuck up." Nico grabbed the keys off Percy's belt and finally used the spell to freeze Percy's muscles.
He let the now bloody guard fall to the floor, smiling at his success.
Nico was out of the cell in less than a minute, already formulating a plan on how to retrieve his weapons so he could get out of there.
A hand grabbing onto his boot almost startled him enough to make him jump. He looked down only to see Percy grabbing onto him. The hand that was not grabbing onto Nico was lying in the puddle of water that had spilled onto the stone. Nico was stunned to see the water slowly moving up Percy's hand and disappearing under his armor. The water was traveling to the cut on Percy's lip, healing it and the bruise on his head.
"He shouldn't be able to move for at least an hour with that spell on him."
"What are you?" Nico asked the question but he didn't get an answer.
"Your weapons…take a right after you…leave the hall. It's the last room… on the left." And then Percy let go of his leg and groaned softly.
Nico said nothing in return, he quickly left the hall and followed Percy's instructions. He just hoped he wasn't being led into a trap.
"He's not human, very curious."
It wasn't a trap; but Nico didn't have time to stop and question Percy's kindness. He quickly strapped all his weapons and armor back on, feeling a lot more confident with his beloved sword next to his side once again.
He focused on his next task. Get out of town as fast as possible, grab a horse, and go save the princess.
Easy.
The fact that it was dark made it all the easier to sneak out of the area of town he had been captive in. He was waiting for the alarm bells to start ringing at any time, signaling that someone had found Percy but that never happened.
It made him nervous but he brushed it off, he needed to hurry to make up for his lost time.
The stable area was quiet too, no one was in sight. Nico used the shadows to cover him as he snuck into the barn. The horses snorted frightfully as he walked past the stalls, the beasts never liked him, most likely because he always stank of blood and death.
He went to the tack area to get a saddle and bridle and his heart froze in his chest.
Percy was there sitting on a chair, his chin resting on his hands like he was bored.
Nico couldn't take this guy anymore.
"How in the Fuck—"
"Calm down, I'm not here to arrest you." Percy held up his hands.
Nico growled at him. "I don't give a fuck if you're here to arrest me, how in the seven hells did you get that spell off you?"
Percy grinned at him and stood up. "Well as long as I'm touching water, spells and injuries don't seem to last with me."
Nico wasn't convinced. "Bull shit. That is complete bull shit."
"Not bullshit I'm afraid," Percy smiled up at him. "I already saddled my horse and a spare if you're ready to go?"
Nico shook his head, his brain not able to comprehend the twists this guy was throwing at him. Percy Jackson was the most unusual, unpredictable, short person he'd ever met.
Percy just continued smiling at him and moved past him to go to the horses like there was nothing out of the ordinary. It was like he helped criminals escape from jail every day.
"You're so…"
Percy stopped and looked at him expectedly.
Nico cursed in several different languages before settling on, "you're so fucking short."
Percy raised an eyebrow at him. "What are you, five years old?"
"Shut up before I kill you."
"Sure you will," Percy went to the nearest stall and opened it, leading some giant black beast out. "This is Blackjack, you'll be riding him."
Nico glared at Percy and then glared at the horse. "There's no way, I want a smaller one."
"No other horse here is going to let you ride it, but I asked Blackjack and he said he'll let you." Percy petted the giant horse lovingly on the cheek.
"He told you that himself did he?" Nico felt like his life was quickly spiraling out of control. He was talking to someone who thought they could talk to animals.
"He did actually." Percy waited to see Nico's reaction.
Nico said nothing, but his blank stare made it so he didn't have to.
Percy sighed. "Look, you've already seen my secret so there's no point in holding back. My mother fell in love with a water god so I have some freaky abilities. I can heal with water, summon storms, talk to horses and most spells don't affect me for long."
Nico didn't know how to respond to any of this. "Why are you telling me this? In fact, why are you even here? You don't know me." Nico placed a hand on a dagger at his belt; he didn't want to kill Percy, it hurt him to even think about it. But Percy's words confused him and he couldn't trust him, and Nico knew what to do with people he couldn't trust.
"That's the thing," Percy's eyes looked toward Nico's hand as the assassin started to pull the blade out of its sheath. "I do know you, I know everything about you."
Nico paused and Percy took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
"My last ability is…I mean I can…I can read minds."
That was it then. That was the reason.
A fear that Nico had never felt before overtook him. All these years hiding, lying, hunting, killing, stealing, all of it didn't matter at all. He had found the one person on this earth that knew absolutely every one of his secrets.
"So you've seen the ugly truth then?" Nico pushed his dagger back into its sheath. "What are you going to do with the information then?"
Percy looked confused and with a startling thought, Nico realized he was probably reading his mind right now.
"What am I going to do?" Percy didn't hesitate; he didn't pause for a second. He placed a hand on Nico's arm and smiled at him. "We're going to save a princess so she can make it to her wedding, that's what we're going to do."
Nico snarled and slapped his hand away. "And what about after we save the princess?"
Percy actually rolled his eyes at him. "What do you mean am I going to turn you in or something? I thought you were doing this to change yourself into a better man; you're going to get a full pardon, right? That pardon will protect you from any lord that want to arrest or execute you for a crime. You could live a normal life and get away from all the bloodshed, which means you'll have to make an honest living, which means I'm going to have to help you."
"I don't need help," Nico snapped at him.
"Oh really?" Percy looked almost gleeful. "Do you know how to cook, farm, bake, fish or how to do anything a normal citizen has to do?"
There was a long pause before Nico said, "You know the fucking answer."
"Exactly."
Nico wasn't convinced, not even for a second. "And you're just going to drop everything and come with me on this self-discovering journey? I highly doubt that." He scoffed at him. "What do you get out of this? A friend?"
That same sadness that Percy had shown him before was back. "Well yes…but also, I think saving someone who deserves to be saved would be a pretty good way to spend the rest of my life, don't you?"
"You have no idea-" Nico stopped himself because of course Percy had some idea, he could read his mind. "You know me, right? Then you've seen what I've done. I've killed innocent people; I've killed a lot of people."
"And you're going to make up for it," Percy didn't smile at him, but his expression wasn't unkind. "You're allowed to be happy, Nico, You can have friends and family too, you're not hopeless. I've met worse men than you."
Nico scoffed again. "You're starting to sound like my fucking fairy godmother."
"You'll get used to it."
Nico said nothing more. He grabbed the reins from Percy's hand and led the giant horse out of the stable. It was going to take some effort to get on the beast's back and he didn't exactly want Percy to watch him.
By the time he was seated and comfortable Percy was leading his own horse out and easily mounted it. "Who are the di Angelo's anyway?"
Nico glared at him. "Why don't you just read my mind and find out?"
"Well I tried," Percy kicked his horse into a walk. "But it was buried pretty deep and I didn't want to be rude."
Nico followed after him muttering under his breath. "Well let's just keep it that way then."
Percy smiled at him. "The best secrets are always better when told willingly."
"Fuck off, shorty."
"I'm only a few inches shorter than you, you child!"
They rode through the night and then into the next day. Percy only stopped them when he said the horses needed a break and they needed to eat.
Nico tried not to glare as Percy unpacked some food and drink. The little shit had obviously been planning to leave with Nico. He could have saved them both the trouble of losing time by just telling Nico all this in the jail cell.
"If you can read minds," Nico grumbled as his nibbled on some bread. "Then how come you let me smash your face against the bars of that jail cell?"
Percy snorted and shrugged. "Do you really think you'd believe me if I just handed you an explanation for everything? You're stubborn and you wouldn't trust a kitten if it came to you looking for affection. Letting you beat the shit out of me and running away made it possible to get your weapons. You're more agreeable when you have that sword with you."
Again Nico wanted to stab him.
"And besides, you basically live off your ego. If I let you beat the shit out of me and you no longer see me as a threat it's easier to talk some sense into you."
"Fuck off, Jackson." Nico once again had his hand on the hilt of his dagger. "Do you think you can beat me in a fight?"
"Oh, undoubtedly." Percy replied quickly.
His confidence made Nico want to choke him. "What if we were in the desert with no water around?"
Percy shrugged. "You might have a fair chance then, but doubtful."
"Don't kill him, don't kill him."
Percy looked at him and smiled.
"I know you're listening you little shit. This is me trying to not kill you."
When Percy laughed Nico changed his tactics.
"So if spells don't work on you, then how come you kissed me?"
The immediate blush that appeared on Percy's cheeks made Nico want to laugh. "I was using persuasion magic, but it wasn't strong enough to make you want to kiss me."
"You were thinking about it," Percy shot back.
"Nope," Nico smiled slyly at him. "I was thinking about how to escape, nice try."
When Percy's face turned redder and he didn't answer, Nico decided he'd finally won an argument.
"The guard that fell in love with an assassin, that's so damn typical. You're as boring as a romance novel." Nico took another bite of his bread, feeling a little more confident.
"Or I could fall in love with the princess as a plot twist, you never know."
Nico actually did laugh this time, almost choking on his food. "Not this princess you won't, she'd beat the shit out of you first. She's not exactly the damsel in distress kind of girl…she more the damsel that will stab you with a sword and then light you on fire."
"You sound like you like her," Percy grinned at him.
"I do appreciate a girl who knows what she wants and will light the world on fire to get it. That poor bastard prince has no idea what he's in for."
Percy clucked his tongue in agitation. "Prince Jason, right?"
Nico shrugged, he didn't really care to get to know the princess's fiancé. From what he heard the man was a pushover and his father was only letting him marry the princess as an insult. Jason was the youngest son, he had no claim to the throne and his father was going to make sure of that.
But Piper didn't care; she seemed to like the prince despite all that.
Admirable.
Once the horses said (yes said, because Percy could damn well talk to them) they were ready to go again they continued on.
Nico knew the general location of the mercenaries hide out, he had dealt with them before. The whole situation still made him nervous of course, it seemed too easy. How did Piper get kidnapped so easily? It was a thought he asked himself often since this whole thing started.
He once again doubted himself; he could never be the hero. It wasn't going to work out, something always went wrong.
He didn't mean to look toward Percy but their eyes met and Percy expression said it all.
"You're going to be fine."
Nico gave him the finger and urged Blackjack into a faster pace so he didn't have to look at his stupid face anymore.
They rode through the small valley that would lead to the mountains where their destination was. Nico felt his stomach twist nervously when he saw white smoke coming from the foot of the mountain. Something must have gone wrong; he just hoped Piper was okay.
Percy let him push their horses a bit harder. The poor animals were exhausted but they didn't have any time left. And even with the faster pace they didn't make to the base of the mountains until the sun was setting.
They tied the horses away from the smoke after checking to make sure there were no fires near and then headed in deeper.
Nico couldn't help but notice the sides of the mountain were scorched up higher than a human could reach. Even a sorcerer would have trouble shooting flames up high enough that could burn rock.
"What kind of creature could do something like that?" Percy asked him.
Nico just shook his head. He was not an expert of magic, he only knew about his own magic.
They eventually found a small river that they followed up stream. As they got closer to the mercenary camp, the more fire and melted rocks they encountered.
It was like…
"It looks like there's been a pissed off dragon flying through here." Percy said finally.
"There's no such thing as dragons." Nico replied stubbornly.
"You don't believe that," Percy said in a very 'matter of fact' voice.
No he didn't.
It was very obvious that whatever it was that burned down the forest had been attacking the mercenary camp. Nico wasn't an optimistic person, and that wasn't about to change. At this point he would be happy just to find Piper's body.
Percy moved closer to him until their arms were touching. "Do you think whatever did this could still be around?"
"I hope not…" Nico kicked a crumbling black rock out of the way and almost swore out loud when it rolled over; it was a skull.
Now extremely weary, they continued forward.
There was no cover, all the trees had been burned away, and Nico's magic was no good in the daytime anyway. It was twilight now, but it wouldn't help, they couldn't wait around for dark.
The cave was in view now; there was no point in stopping.
Percy drew his sword and Nico followed his example. He did not want to be caught off guard, if there was a crazy powerful warlock nearby he would kill them as quickly as possible.
There was complete silence as they approached the cave. Even the stream didn't make a sound other than when they stepped in it. It was unnerving, like the world was holding its breath and was about to scream. Nico wanted to run, for the first time in his life.
"What's that sound?" Percy whispered.
Nico looked around but he couldn't hear anything but the stream trickling very quietly.
"Not the stream," Percy was looking around now. "It sounds almost like…hissing."
"I don't hear anything," Nico snapped at him. "Are you sure you're not hearing it in your head?"
Percy's eyes filled with fear; real, actual terrified fear.
"What?" Nico knew his own face was mirroring Percy's, there was something very wrong.
Green eyes turned from Nico to look toward the cave.
No, he wasn't looking at the cave. He was looking above it.
Nico's own eyes searched for what Percy was seeing. Only when a chunk of stone moved and fell off the ridge was he able to kind of see what was resting there. His eyes were sharp thanks to his magic, but even they could barely make out the huge form of something lying on top of the ridge.
Finally a hissing sound started to build up. Nico only had a brief glimpse of the creature turning from the colour of the stone it was lying on to a brilliant bright gold before a torrent of flames shot toward him.
Percy threw himself in front of him and Nico fell into the stream, but he didn't have time to react in any other way before the fire was surrounding them.
"Don't move!" Percy yelled as he threw his hands in the air. At once all the water in the stream rushed around them, entrapping them in a sphere of water just as the fire hit them.
The hissing sound of the water boiling and evaporating was deafening. Nico pulled his cloth mask over his face to try and keep his skin from peeling off in the heat. He grabbed Percy's leg and fed his own shielding spell into Percy's magic, trying to strengthen the water.
The stream was drying up fast, and Nico had no clue what would happen if Percy ran out of water to use.
Then, as if his ears had burst, it went silent again and the fire stopped like someone had turned it off.
Nico looked up at the gold dragon who was hissing horribly; its tail whipping back and forth like a cat that was getting ready to pounce on its prey.
Nico could feel Percy drawing on his power again as the dragon's turned into a deep breath.
It was going to breathe fire again, and there was no way they could outrun it.
And judging by the small amount of water in the stream, there was no way to fight it either.
"LEO!"
The dragon paused mid-breath like a dog being caught stealing meat from a table.
Nico and Percy turned to the source of the voice.
A beautiful girl in a very ripped dress was standing at the entrance of the cave. She saw Nico and immediately turned around to look up at the dragon.
Even only able to see the back of her head, Nico could tell she was glaring daggers at the dragon, which let out a whine.
After a short staring contest the dragon laid its head down with a groan and camouflaged itself back into the surrounding rocks.
The girl then turned her attention back towards the two men and she all but galloped over to them. "Nico, oh thank the gods," As soon as she reached them she helped pull Nico to his feet. "Please tell me you have an extra pair of trousers with you. These assholes didn't even have the courtesy to kidnap me while I was wearing more comfortable clothes."
"Uhh…they're in my saddle bag…"
She looked pleased with that answer. "You got some ash on your cheek," she pulled down her sleeve so she could scrub it roughly off his face. And once she was satisfied that Nico no longer looked dirty she turned to Percy.
"Hello there, beautiful. Where did you come from?"
But Percy had either lost his words or the energy to speak them because all he could do was open his mouth and then close it again.
"Piper," Nico said with a hint of fear in his voice. "Did you…tame a fucking dragon?"
Piper looked confused and Nico once again had to resist the urge to stab someone.
"Leo?" She gestured behind her toward the dragon. "He's not a dragon."
Both Percy and Nico looked at each other and then to Piper, and then past Piper to the dragon.
"Are you fucking shitting me?" Nico asked her.
Piper held her finger up in the air to stop him before he started to ramble. "What I meant to say was he's not a real dragon, he's just a changeling the mercenaries captured. They were going to sell him as a pet but I gave him a better idea."
Nico shook his head. "Un-fucking-believable."
"Stop putting fuck in the middle of words," Piper smacked his arm.
Percy had still not found any words at that point, and it seemed he didn't need to. Instead he sat down in the water now that the stream had some better flow back to it and sighed.
"Why am I even here?" Nico said to no one in particular. "Why did I even bother to come rescue you?"
"Because I knew if I waited for you to come find me you could take me back and I would be able to convince my father to give you a royal pardon." Piper didn't sound impressed. "It took you long enough, were you walking?"
"No," Nico pointed to Percy who looked like he was sleeping sitting up. "This guy tried to lock me up for three days and it took me longer than expected to get out."
Piper took another look at Percy and scoffed. "It only took you so long because he's so pretty."
Nico growled at her and stomped off. He wasn't going to respond because he knew he'd never win. He sat down at the edge of the stream and allowed himself to relax. It was getting very dark out now and soon the moon would be up, he could replenish his depleted magic and lead them out of the burning woods no problem.
He watched Piper and Percy still standing in the stream and wondered if Percy was telling Piper all his secrets. Not that Nico cared, Piper would never turn on someone once she made a friend out of them but it still put him off.
The sound of human footsteps approaching him had him grabbing for his sword that was lying beside him, but he stopped when he saw the smaller man come closer.
Nico could tell from his pointed ears that he was a changeling.
"Hey uhhh," the guy scratched the back of his head nervously. His voice had an exotic accent to it that Nico couldn't place. "Sorry for trying to melt you."
Nico tried to search his head for an answer but he was so mentally exhausted the best he could come with was, "it's not the worst thing that's ever happened to me."
"Did it at least make the top three?"
"Yes, it's probably the second worst thing that ever happened to me."
The changeling, or 'Leo' as Piper called him, laughed. "I'd hate to see number one then."
True to her word, Piper wasted no time changing into Nico's clothes as soon as they got back to the horses. She decided that she was going to ride with Nico and Leo could ride with Percy. Nico had a feeling it was because she wanted to interrogate him and he wasn't wrong.
"So are you going to tell me about Percy?"
Nico didn't even hesitate. "He's short."
Piper smacked him gently on the back of the head. "You know what I mean."
"He's a lost puppy who thinks his winning personality is going to change me into a better person." Nico retorted.
Piper made some kind of noise like she was coming to a conclusion. "Well looking like that I'd let him change me any day."
"You're getting married."
"I can still look," she said grinning. "And trust me, he's pretty but Jason is much better."
"Sure," Nico was done with this conversation, like, yesterday.
Piper was quiet for a moment, and when she spoke again she sounded nervous. "Do you think I'll make it in time for my wedding?"
For once Nico wasn't thinking of himself when he answered, "I'll make sure you get there."
Nico didn't need much sleep, but he couldn't speak for the others. They decided to stop for a couple of hours just so Piper could get some sleep before continuing on.
But Nico couldn't relax as tired as he was, so instead he found a large, flat rock nearby and lay down so he could look up at the sky.
That's how Percy found him a few minutes later.
"Stargazing?" Percy said as he struggled to climb up onto the rock so he could sit next to Nico. He had taken off his heavy armor and was dressed only in a white cotton shirt and pants.
Nico was trying very hard to not think about how beautiful he was, but the smile on Percy's face said he was caught.
"It's flattering really," Percy said to break the awkwardness. "I don't see what you see of course, I always thought I look a little strange."
"Strange how?" Nico grumbled in reply.
"Strange as in…non-human?" Percy replied.
Nico turned from the stars again to look at Percy. It was true; his features were a little too perfect, his skin unblemished and unscarred. His eyes were an unnatural green, brighter than they should be, more expressional than they should be.
"It doesn't matter, Jackson. As long as you're not secretly an asshole, because we don't all have the power to read minds." Nico turned back to the stars and let out a huff.
Percy chuckled quietly. "Yeah, you maybe can't read my mind but I can tell you what I'm thinking."
Nico grumbled out a curse and then waved at him to continue. "Enlighten me."
Percy leaned a little closer so he could meet Nico's eyes. "I was thinking about how beautiful you are."
"And there he goes again, throwing me off. I'm actually going to kill him."
Nico didn't believe his words for a second; he knew he was ugly inside and out. His eyes were such a dark gray that they looked black like a demon's. His skin was covered in scars; his nose was too big, his hands too rough and always covered in blood.
He didn't realize he was holding his hand up to look at it until Percy took it in his own hands and kissed the knuckles softly.
"What do you want from me?" Nico asked him. There was no malice in his voice, just exhaustion.
"I want you to forgive yourself," Percy was looking down at him so intensely that Nico stopped breathing.
He knew Percy knew what he was thinking. He knew that Percy could look into his mind right now and see the monster he was. His first victim, the first person he ever killed, the one person he would never forget.
His heart shattered and Nico pushed Percy away, trying to keep the sob in his throat from escaping. "Please, don't. I can't." He laid his arm over his eyes so the only thing he had to look at was darkness.
Percy said nothing else but Nico could feel him lay down beside him. They were touching but for the first time Nico didn't feel disgusted by the contact.
They spent the next few hours in comfortable silence, until it was time to move again.
The three days it took to get back to the capital went very smoothly even for Nico's standards. They rode for long hours and stopped only when they needed too. At night they stopped for a bit longer to get some sleep, and no matter where Nico would go, Percy would find him and quietly lay next to him. Sometimes they talked but mostly they were silent and Nico was grateful for that.
Mostly because Piper was very chatty.
Nico suspected that she was just trying to get to know him better. They were close to the same age and he had been her father's assassin since she probably could remember. But Nico wasn't interested in making friends; he had a hard enough time getting away from Percy's attempts at socialization.
"I once thought you were scary, can you believe it?" Piper asked him. They were almost at the gates of the castle and Nico had half a mind to make her get off and walk.
"I'll never forget the first time I saw you," she continued without any acknowledgment from him. "You interrupted my birthday ball by stepping into the ballroom covered in blood."
Nico didn't miss the scared look the Leo shot his way.
"Your father tried to send his men after me to kill me. I needed to make a statement."
"Well it worked," she smacked him on the arm. "I can't wait until you get your pardon, no one should have to live a life so dangerous."
Nico scoffed, "believe it or not, but a lot of the missions I took were to keep other countries' assassins from killing you, so really you're the reason I've been in business for so long."
Piper went quiet after that and Nico was thankful. He didn't want any more friends; they were just a sign of weakness. He couldn't allow himself that, not now or ever.
Once they were safely in the castle Nico allowed himself to breathe. Piper had a servant take Leo to a room of his own so he could get some rest. Piper was adamant that he would be rewarded for killing her kidnappers and protecting her.
They went straight to the throne room next. Nico tried to get Percy to wait outside but he was stubborn and insisted on following them.
King Tristan looked overjoyed to see his daughter safely back at home. He stepped down from his throne just so he could wrap her up in a hug.
Nico motioned for Percy to stay by the door and he went to join the two royals. He bowed low as he approached and Tristan finally turned his attention his daughter to the assassin. "I see you didn't fail me. I honestly can't believe you managed it but I guess I should expect it from you."
Nico said nothing; he only bowed his head slightly in thanks.
"Father, please issue his pardon. I think Nico has done enough for us to last a life time." Piper didn't look at Nico when she said this and Nico suspected she was still a bit miffed about the comment he made earlier.
"I would love nothing more than to do that." King Tristan said.
The way he said it made Nico nervous.
"It would have been easier if you had failed," the king continued. "It wouldn't make this as hard as it has to be.
Nico drew his sword in a flash of obsidian as the guards lining the room began to advance.
"Father? What are you doing?" Piper tried to get the kings attention but he pushed her behind him.
"King Zeus, along with having you married to his youngest son requested that Nico be handed over to him for execution," Tristan said sadly. "He said that it's the only way he will agree to a treaty."
"And this is why I have trust issues."
Nico turned his attention from the king to the knights who continued to advance on him. He knew he could take most of them down, but there was fourteen against one and even he wasn't that good.
The first one made a move to grab for his arm to secure him and Nico quickly jumped away before thrusting his sword through the knight's eye and out of the back of his skull.
By the time his body hit the floor, every knight was swinging for him.
Nico pulled his sword out of the knight's head with a curse and swung towards his next kill.
His sword clashed against a familiar blade and Nico snarled at Percy. "Move!"
"Stop this at once!" Percy yelled back.
Nico wasn't going to throw his life away, not even for Percy Jackson. His free hand drew a dagger and he struck at Percy, trying to get him to back off.
But before he could comprehend what was happening, there was a leg hooked behind his foot and his legs were buckling as he was flung to the floor and pinned by a very strong arm.
Nico clawed at the arm hold him and tried to kick the body pinning him but Percy was strong; very strong. It was like being crushed under a stone wall.
"I beg your pardon, your grace, but my fiancé still hasn't learned how to act properly when in the presence of royalty." Percy bowed his head to the king, the effort of having to hold a flailing Nico down didn't even seem to bother him.
King Tristan held up his hand to stop his knights from advancing. "And you are?"
"He is Percy Jackson," Piper stated calmly. She moved from behind her father to nod to Percy. "He's the prince of the Emerald Isles."
Nico finally gave up on breaking free, there was no way he was going to be able to push Percy off him. His head was still spinning as he stared up the exuberant ceiling of the throne room.
"Prince? This guy was a guard at some stupid town less than a week ago!"
"I am Percy Jackson," Percy gave the kind a sincere smile. "And once again I'm sorry for my fiancé's behavior. I know he has a history with you but it's still not acceptable."
"FIANCÉ? What in the seven hells is he talking about?"
"We've come here to get your royal pardon so that we can marry. I trust you have one written up?" Percy's words were as sweet as honey but Nico could hear the controlled anger in his voice. "We both know that a king cannot command the execution or arrest of neighboring country's prince, no matter powerful or large the country that that king rules."
King Tristan had no expression on his face. "You're Sally's son?"
Percy nodded, his eyes not leaving the king's.
"It is true that a king cannot order the arrest or execution of another country's Prince," the king said slowly, as if he was talking to a child. "But even if I issued the pardon, Nico would not be a prince until you married, which means that when King Zeus of Olympia arrives tomorrow, he can still arrest your fiancé and have him executed before you could ever hope to marry."
"And if you give us the pardon tonight," Percy said slowly, much like the king had. "That means we can marry tonight and King Zeus will no longer be an issue."
"Father," Piper laid a hand on her father's arm. "Please, he saved me."
The king looked down at his daughter; there was a look of grief on his face. "He only saved you because I ordered you to be taken in the first place. I knew that King Zeus would want Nico; he's insulted him many times by killing his men. I knew the only way to get Nico to comply and let his guard down would be to offer him a better life, something he couldn't refuse."
He glared down at Nico but Nico didn't even acknowledge him. "If I refuse King Zeus's wishes then I risk the chance of starting a war. I will not let my country burn for this man, he is less than human. He is nothing. I won't do it."
Finally at his wits end, Nico spoke up. "The moment Percy let's go of me, I'm going to find Zeus and I'm going to kill him. I'll kill every son and daughter he has until there's no chance of starting a war. I'll even put Jason on the throne if that's what you want, just let me go."
King Tristan looked at Percy. "If I agree to a pardon, I have conditions."
"Of course," Percy bowed his head in agreement.
"First, you will marry this creature as insurance that you will take him back to your country." The king narrowed his eyes at Nico. "And secondly, if King Zeus does start a war, Nico is to follow through with last mission, and that mission will be to wipe out any person in Zeus's palace that even whispers the word 'war'. And if he fails trying, Zeus will have his execution and war will still be avoided anyway."
"Those are agreeable terms," Percy said curtly.
King Tristin scoffed and reached into his pocket to pull out a paper. "I wish you happiness." He handed the paper to Percy and Percy took it.
"I thank you," Percy bowed his head and easily picked Nico up off the floor. He held Nico's arm in a vice grip, giving Nico no other choice but to follow him out of the throne room.
He didn't stop pulling Nico behind him until they were far past the castle gates and Nico, who was still holding onto his sword was started to think of impaling Percy through the back.
"What the fuck just happened?" Nico finally shook Percy off of him and held his sword to the 'prince's' throat. "You better start talking before I get impatient and decide to cut your head off instead."
"Stop posturing," Percy pushed the blade away from him, not caring that he sliced his hand open. "We need to find someone who can marry us, now."
Shocked once again, Nico felt he was starting to get used to the feeling. "What the fuck are you talking about? You're just a guard and I'm a wanted assassin, there's no way you're a prince, and even if you were I still wouldn't marry you."
"Why not?" Percy wasn't smiling, and for the first time he actually seemed to be angry with Nico. "You're not a commoner, we both know that."
Nico held the blade up to Percy's throat again. "Don't say it."
"I'm not a guard and you're not an assassin." Percy continued.
"Don't." Nico's voice sounded fragile, like glass that was ready to shatter.
"I'm Percy Jackson, Prince of the Emerald Isles."
"Don't do this here."
Percy looked sad now, like he was heartbroken. He didn't want to be saying these things, that much was obvious. "And you're Nico di Angelo, Prince of the Obsidian Mountains, and last of your name."
Nico pulled his sword away and sheathed it. A numbness overtook him, a feeling he hadn't had since that day. "I'm the last of my name…because I killed them all."
"I don't believe that for a second." Percy took Nico's hand and led him away.
I'll probably post another chunk next Friday. It might make it to three chapters possibly?
