Tickle Fights, Lullabies, and First Kisses

Summary: The Big Three boys (Percy, Jason, and Nico) decide to have a bit of "bonding time." Also includes: Solangelo's first kiss! Set after Blood of Olympus and contains minor spoilers (but then, so does this summary.) Solangelo, Jasper, Percabeth, and Caleo. Includes slash (boy/boy), but I don't think the language is any stronger than the books.

Disclaimer: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Heroes of Olympus belong to Rick Riordan. Harry Potter belongs to Joanne Rowling. The song "Je T'aime" belongs to Kelly Sweet.

Author's Note: I have no idea how alcoves work, so let's pretend that A: You can sit up straight in them and not hit your head, and B: Two people can fit and not be squished. I am also not a doctor, unlike Will, so don't take my medical advice because I'm not sure how accurate/useful it is. Be prepared for rapidly-changing POV's (I generally write in omniscient third-person, which for me means "nobody's POV and everybody's POV at the same time; internal thoughts come and go as they please.") Please don't report me for using lyrics, or leave any nasty reviews about it (trust me, I've seen them before); the story wouldn't have the same effect without them. And please, please listen to the song, it's amazing, I love it. By the way, Will and Nico are in the pre-slash-are-we-actually-dating-or-does-it-just-seem-that-way phase. In the beginning of the story, anyway. *winks*

"You know what we should do?"

Percy and Nico turned to look at Jason. The three of them were sitting at the Zeus table for breakfast today, having recently decided that they refused to sit by themselves anymore (they now alternated between the Big Three tables.) "What?"

"We should have a tickle fight." Jason was looking way too serious for such a ridiculous suggestion.

Percy nodded like it was the best idea he'd heard in his entire life, but Nico only stared. "...Why?"

Percy turned to look at the son of Hades and raised an eyebrow. "Why not? It sounds fun! And I think we can all agree you need to have more fun."

Nico huffed as Jason made a noise of assent. "You've been smiling more since you started hanging out with Will," here he winked at Nico, making him blush and glare at the blond, "but you need to loosen up more. This is a good bonding experience. You, me, and Percy, after breakfast, Cabin Three."

Percy blinked. "Wait, why my cabin?"

"The Zeus statue in mine creeps me out and Cabin Thirteen is too dark and gloomy. Um, no offense, Nico."

"You know, saying 'no offense' doesn't make it inoffensive," Nico pointed out.

Jason rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Sorry."

"Never mind," Nico sighed. "I'm just going to keep eating before Solace comes charging over here claiming I'm 'starving myself' or something."

Jason coughed and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like "Solangelo." Nico decided that he was spending too much time with Piper. At least it would keep the son of Jupiter from bothering him as much. He returned his attention to his cornetto and Percy resumed pouring the whole bottle of maple syrup onto his blue pancakes (they had also requested more food choices after seeing the variety at Camp Jupiter.) Jason looked around for the ketchup he always ate with his scrambled eggs. Nico didn't understand it, but he did understand that Jason tended to have eccentric tastes; his love of brownies and peach preserves was proof of that.

Becoming aware of Annabeth's disapproving stare, Percy stopped pouring the syrup and quickly put the bottle back on the table.

"Whipped," Nico coughed.

"Pot calling the kettle black," Jason coughed.

"Shut up, Grace."

"So," Jason began once they were settled in Percy's cabin, "terms and conditions?"

Nico groaned. "Oh my gods, you are taking this way too seriously."

"Yeah, chillax bro. It's a freaking tickle fight; there are no terms and conditions. First rule: there are no rules. Fight!" With that, the son of Poseidon launched himself at Nico and Jason, managing to tackle them both onto a bed. He pinned Nico down and pulled off his shoes and socks, tossing them into a corner. Percy sat on Nico's legs and tickled his bare feet.

"S-stop it!" Nico giggled. "I'm g-going to send you to the Underworld!" The threat was ruined by the huge smile on his pale face. He reached up and ran his fingers up and down Percy's side, who then rolled off of Nico to get away.

Percy ended up right next to Jason and started tickling his stomach; Jason shrieked and tried to cross his arms to protect himself. "C-cut it out!"

Percy grinned. "Hey, man, it was your idea." He moved his hands all over Jason's sides and under his armpits. Jason squirmed around and flailed desperately; one of his feet almost hit Nico in the face. "Hey! Watch it!"

"C-can't! Give me back-up!" Jason pleaded.

Nico considered it for a moment. Remembering Percy had been attacking him before, he nodded. "On my count!" he instructed. "Now!"

Nico lunged at Percy, knocking him off of Jason. He then proceeded to use Percy's strategy against him, sitting on the older boy's legs and tickling his feet. Jason took a couple seconds to catch his breath and then went for Percy's stomach.

"Ch-cheaters!" Percy complained. "Those are m-my ideas!"

"Too bad," Nico replied. Jason only tickled harder.

Percy thrashed and waved his arms around wildly, laughing hysterically. "G-guys, s-seriously-"

Crack. Thud.

Nico froze; Percy took a few deep breaths. Simultaneously, the two boys looked down over the edge of the bed, where Jason was lying on the floor, dazed and groaning, one hand clutching his broken glasses over his eye.

"Oh, schist."

"Tell me again what happened."

They were now in the infirmary, a place Nico was all too familiar with; curse that stupid son of Apollo!

Said son of Apollo was now hovering over Jason, alternately consulting his clipboard and scolding Nico for doing dangerous things. He wasn't even the one who got injured, for Hades' sake! He then sent a mental apology to his father.

Percy and Nico looked at each other, then pointed at Jason. "It was his idea!" they chorused.

"Oh, real mature, guys, thanks," Jason huffed. Piper rubbed his shoulder soothingly.

Annabeth glared. "Seaweed Brain. Explanation. Now."

Percy gulped. "Um, well, Jason wanted to have a tickle fight–"

"What is that?" Calypso asked.

"I'll show you later, Sunshine," Leo promised. The poor girl had no idea what she was in for.

"–so we could bond and Nico could loosen up–"

"It worked," Jason interrupted. Nico's cheeks burned red as Will glanced at him curiously.

"Oh, yeah, it totally did, you should have seen..." Percy faltered as Annabeth's gray eyes flashed warningly. He cleared his throat and continued. "Um, so, anyway, Jason and Nico were ganging up on me–"

"You went after us first."

"Whatever, Death Breath. So they were both attacking me… and then I think my arm hit Jason in the face, 'cause the next thing I knew he was on the floor."

Everyone turned to Jason. "Yeah, that's pretty much what happened. Percy hit me in the face, my glasses broke, and I fell off the bed and hit my head on the floor."

There was a brief pause before Leo cracked up. "Oh, man, Sparky, you are such an injury magnet. You could probably injure yourself sleeping or something."

Jason turned red. "Shut up, Valdez."

Leo wasn't done. "Hey, do you think the Hecate kids could fix the glasses? Like reparo or whatever it was?"

Annabeth didn't look very impressed. "That's Harry Potter. Hecate is a goddess, not a witch."

Calypso looked confused. "I didn't think witches existed. Is this another twenty-first century thing?"

Piper shook her head. "They don't exist; Harry Potter is a story. Repair Boy's just being ridiculous." She thought for a second. "Actually, I'm surprised you even remembered what the spell was."

Leo pretended to be offended. "Rude. I know things, Beauty Queen."

"Anyway," Will cut in, "be sure to keep an ice pack on that bump." He handed one to Jason, who pressed it to the back of his head and sighed in relief. "It won't melt. I'd also recommend laying down for a while. The rest of the day, or until the swelling goes down. Try to sleep it off if you can. Luckily, you don't have a concussion, but I still see you in here far too often than is comfortable." He glared and Jason shrugged sheepishly. "I can talk to Lou Ellen about the glasses thing, but if she gets mad, I will tell her who suggested it. Stop snickering, Valdez."

Calypso sighed. "You see what I have to deal with?" Annabeth and Piper nodded sympathetically.

"Oh, you love me, Sunshine."

"Sometimes I wonder," she muttered, then kissed Leo on the cheek. He turned bright red and his black curls started to smoke; he stammered something incoherent and ran out of the room. Calypso followed after winking at the other girls.

Piper smirked. "C'mon, Sparky," she grabbed Jason's hand and began walking out of the infirmary. "We'll be in Cabin One, I'm gonna try and get him to sleep." She jerked her head in her boyfriend's direction. "Bring his glasses in if you can get someone to fix them, but be quiet so he doesn't wake up."

Will nodded. "Come with me," he looked at Nico, "please?" Nico flushed and nodded quickly. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Jason giving him a thumbs up. He glared at the blond and mouthed, 'I will murder you slowly and painfully.' Jason didn't seem fazed.

After the two had left, Percy turned to Annabeth. "Wise Girl, what was that about?" His green eyes reflected confusion.

"I'll tell you later, Seaweed Brain."

Piper and Jason had reached the Zeus cabin. Piper had a guiding hand on Jason's back, since he couldn't see very well without his glasses (his vision had become even worse than it was when he got them.) "Watch the steps."

"Thanks," Jason responded gratefully.

They went inside, and Piper could see why Jason only liked to be in his cabin to sleep. The large, imposing statue of his dad's Greek form wasn't all that welcoming… and there was no bathroom. "Where do you use the bathroom at night?"

Jason shrugged. "Depends on the situation. Usually I walk to the main camp one, but if it's freezing or I'm really tired I'll go in Percy's cabin. Occasionally Percy or Annabeth will be washing their face or something… you know, the nightmares and all that."

Piper frowned. "They have it really bad, don't they?"

"Yeah, they do. But at least they have each other."

Piper nodded. "Mmm-hmm." She looked at the statue again. "How do you sleep with that?"

"Oh, I don't. Not really. I sleep up there." He pointed at the alcoves. "It's the only place it doesn't seem like the statue is looking at me. Thalia used it too, apparently; I found pictures of hers when I discovered it back when I first came here."

"Like that one you had with you on our quest to free Hera?"

"Yeah." He climbed into his alcove and lay down on the bedroll inside, adjusting the ice pack so it was settled comfortably under his head. Piper crawled in after and sat next to him, running her fingers through his soft blond hair. He smiled contentedly and scooted closer to her.

"Will you sing something?" he asked. "I love your voice. It's really soothing."

"Sure." Piper thought for a moment until a song came to her. She cleared her throat and hummed for a few seconds, checking her pitch, then began:

Je t'aime, je t'aime toujours

I am forever yours

Sweet dreams, sweet dreams mon cher

You're always in my prayers

Softly, sweetly

Wrapped up in heaven's arms

Sailing, soaring over the moon

Gathering star dust

Be still, be safe, be sure

Je t'aime, je t'aime toujours

Wishing, praying

All of your dreams come true

Please remember

Where'er you are my heart is with you

Sweet dreams, sweet dreams mon cher

Always in my prayer

I am forever yours

Je t'aime, je t'aime toujours

When she finished the song, Piper noticed Jason had fallen asleep, snoring loudly. She wasn't entirely sure how he could sleep with all the thunder in the cabin, but figured it was a comforting sound since he was the son of the sky god. She leaned down and gently kissed his temple, hearing him make a pleased sound in his sleep.

"Je t'aime, Jason."

"Hey, Lou Ellen?"

The head counselor of the Hecate cabin poked her head out of the door. "What do you want? I told Cecil I was gonna meet him in five minutes." Seeing the curious look on Will's face, she added, "And no, it's not a date. We're gonna prank the Aphrodite kids. They keep trying to force us together, so we thought we'd have a little… revenge." The smirk on her face was borderline evil.

Will seemed lost (things like "revenge" were unfamiliar territory to him), so Nico decided to take charge. "Can you fix glasses?"

Lou Ellen raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess: Jason?"

Nico nodded; Will appeared to have found his voice again. "He, Percy, and Death Boy over here," he pointed at Nico, "were pulling dangerous stunts. Again."

Nico scoffed. "For gods' sake, Solace, it was a tickle fight. And don't call me that."

"Someone got injured!"

"Jason gets injured all the time!"

"What if the next time it's you who-"

"Will you two dense idiots just kiss already?!" Lou Ellen snapped.

Will and Nico stared at her. "Excuse me?"

"Everyday I have to put up with this! Every, single, day! It's driving me nuts! And I'm not the only one! So please," she sighed, "just please get together. Oh, and the glasses can be fixed easily. Here." She took them from Will's limp hand, muttered something in Ancient Greek, and handed them back, good as new (and cleaner as well.) "I'm going to find Cecil now. Bye." She walked off towards Thalia's pine.

"So, Nico– Nico?" But he was gone. Will sighed. "Great," he muttered. "Thanks a lot, Lou Ellen."

Will put Jason's glasses in his pocket and hurried to the Hades cabin, figuring that was where Nico had disappeared to. Hopefully not literally; Will was going to murder him if he'd shadow-traveled again, especially after such strenuous physical activity.

The son of Apollo knocked on the door to Cabin Thirteen. "Nico? You in there?" Of course he was. "I want to talk to you."

"Go away." Nico sounded even more sullen than usual. Not a good sign.

"I'm coming in." He opened the door to find Nico sitting on one of the beds (no longer a coffin), staring down at his lap. He looked up when Will came over. "I told you to go away."

"Nico," Will sat next to him and put a hand on his shoulder, Nico stiffening as he did so. "About what Lou Ellen said–"

"I get it. You don't like me that way. That's fine with me." It was obvious it wasn't but Will didn't focus on that part.

"What? Of course I like you that way. Gods, I told you you're dense."

"If Lou Ellen is to be trusted, you are too."

"Don't change the subject, Death Boy." For once Nico didn't protest the nickname. "Look at me."

Nico did so, and Will could plainly see the guarded expression, the hesitance in his dark brown eyes. "I like you; we've established that. And I think you like me too." Nico blushed deeply and averted his eyes. "Right?" After a few seconds, Nico nodded- only just barely.

Will smiled softly. "Then I don't see why we can't have something special." He leaned forward– slowly, to give Nico time to back away if he wasn't ready– and gently pressed his lips to Nico's, their eyes fluttering shut. It was gentle, sweet; everything a first kiss should be. Will's arm wrapped around Nico's waist and pulled him closer; Nico balanced himself against Will's shoulder. When they pulled away, both their cheeks were flushed.

"Oh, wow," Will breathed. "That was…"

"Nice," Nico murmured.

"Amazing," Will agreed. He sighed happily before realizing, "We should probably return Jason's glasses."

"Probably," Nico mused. He got up and glanced at Will. "You have them, right?"

"Yeah, Lou Ellen fixed them in a second after her rant."

Nico observed Will carefully. "Are we... together?"

Will grinned. "Do you want to be?"

"...Yes."

"Then there's your answer. And now, off to Cabin One!" He took Nico's hand, to which the raven-haired boy reddened slightly, and they walked through the ring of cabins until they reached the large marble one.

Will opened the bronze doors quietly and waved his hand around to get Piper's attention. The brunette looked over and he held up the glasses for her to see. She came over and took them with a whispered thanks, then gestured questioningly at his and Nico's joined hands. "I'll tell you after Jason wakes up," Nico mouthed. Piper smiled and ruffled his hair, then went back over to the alcove where Jason slept.

Nico closed the door quietly as they left. Once they were a good distance from the Zeus cabin, Nico groaned. "Jason's gonna have a field day when he hears about us. And his girlfriend's a daughter of Aphrodite, unconventional or not."

Will shrugged. "Let them have their fun, and we can have ours." Seeing the look on Nico's face, he clarified. "Kissing, I mean. Cuddling. Exchanging 'more than friends' Christmas presents."

"You are aware Christmas is tomorrow, right?"

"Of course I– WHAT? Really?! Since when?!"

"Today's December twenty-fourth. Unless I'm mistaken, Christmas is on December twenty-fifth. That's tomorrow. Simple math, even for a demigod."

"Holy Hestia, I need to find something right now! I'm gonna go ask Chiron if he'll let me go into the city." With that, Will ran in the direction of the Big House.

"Will! Will, you don't have money and you can't defend yourself against monsters! Hey! Are you listening to me?! Get back here! I don't need anything for Christmas! Idiota!"

Translations and Definitions:

cornetto: The Italian term for croissant, usually filled with cream, chocolate or jam (typically jam.) A traditional Italian breakfast food paired with a cappuccino.

Je t'aime - I love you (French)

toujours - always (French)

mon cher - my dear (French)

Idiota - Idiot (Italian)