a/n: I've been gone AWHILE. Sorry. I wrote this almost to completion a couple years ago. So I wrote the end just now. Maybe one day I'll feel inspired enough to finish Doctor and di Angelo. Probably not, though. I'm really sorry. I'm just not as into Doctor Who anymore. Well, enjoy this for now.
Nico felt pretty crappy. His abdomen ached as he plodded along through the streets of New Rome. Hazel walked beside him, going on and on about the latest of Octavian's evil ploys and Bobby's newest prank. He wasn't really listening, just nodding his head and saying, "Yeah, totally," whenever the time called.
Suddenly, Hazel halted. "What?" Nico asked.
"You're not listening," Hazel remarked with crossed arms across her chest and a tapping foot.
Nico sighed, "I'm tired, I guess."
Hazel shook her head, "That's not any sort of explanation. What's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong, Hazel."
"Is it a girl?"
Nico groaned pointedly. The pain is his side flared and shot through his whole torso. He tried to hide his pain, but Hazel must have noticed him wince.
Her eyebrow inched up her forehead quizzically, "You got yourself hurt, didn't you?"
"No!" Nico shook his head. "Just don't ask, alright?"
Hazel took in a slow, deep breath. The kind that mom's take in when she knows her grade school kid is about to do something stupid but is too stubborn to stop. "If you insist."
Nico nodded, "Good."
They kept walking.
Pluto's Ambassador sat on the roof of the watchtower, right on the edge where a strong wind might blow him off. He'd swiped Reyna's binoculars using the tactics the Stolls had taught him. When he thought about it, Reyna probably knew he'd been taking her binoculars and was simply allowing him to keep using them. But he didn't mind so long as he had something to watch the games with.
He held up the binoculars. From up there on the watch tower he could observe everything that happened during war games. The fifth, as per usual, marched straight up to the walls of the fortress in their continued suicide mission. The fourth and first laid low inside, only coming out to take shots at the other cohorts. The second and third were diligent, Nico could hand that to them. But it didn't seem likely that they'd succeed in their mission.
Nico focused the binoculars so he could get a better look of the fifth's tactic. They marched in Cannae formation, strong flanks but a weak center. Dakota was absent for some reason or another, leaving Gwen to lead the cohort. Between the two, they were excellent fighters and tacticians. But when it came down to it, Dakota's strong suit came in leading a group while Gwen's was in individual rumbles and small quest groups. With Gwen in charge, the fifth was doomed even more so than usual.
Nico sighed. He wished the praetor's had found his sister a place in one of the other cohorts. "What's done cannot be undone," he mumbled under his breath sorrowfully. The wind picked up and Nico took in a deep breath through his nose. The smell of fall breezed around him. Even the air tasted like a cold Halloween night. Halloween always did have a strange taste to the air.
Your mind is going down the rabbit hole again, Nico thought. Try focusing on the battle, you might actually learn something this time.
He shifted his weight absent-mindedly. The movement caused another flare of pain in his side. Ignore it.
But that's hard, Nico whined to himself.
Suck it up. You're the son of Hades, not some pathetic Venus-spawn. You can pull through some cramps.
But only girls are supposed to get cramps!
Pretend you're a girl. You do like guys, right?
Well, girls are cute too…
You're impossible.
That makes you impossible, too!
Silence from Nico's other half. The twelve (and a half!) year old huffed as he returned to watching the battle. The third cohort was finishing up and effectively winning. Realizing the battle had reached its close, Nico stumbled down the stairs and sprinted to where the fifth's ranks were milling around in their latest loss.
"Hazel!" He called out to his sister.
She turned and waved her brother over, "Guess what!" She said.
"What?" He wheezed.
"We lost!"
Nico rolled his eyes, "Big surprise. But how do you think you did?"
"Better than last time…" She paused to think. "Yes, definitely better than last time. I think I'm improving with my spatha."
Nico nodded earnestly, "Good. Very good." He rubbed his side again.
Hazel knit her eyebrows, "Are you sure you're okay?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah. I think I'm just a bit sore. Nothing to worry about."
Reyna trotted over on Scipio. She slid off the pegasus and nodded at them both. "Hazel." Hazel waved awkwardly. "Nico."
"Reyna," Nico said, returning her greeting.
The praetor went straight to the point, "If you want, I found a flat for you in New Rome. You can stay the night there… if you want to, that is."
"That'd be nice." Nico chewed his lip.
"Do you want to go… now?" Reyna began to hoist herself back onto Skippy.
Hazel rolled her eyes and silently wondered why these two were always insistent upon being nervous wrecks around each other. And when they weren't so fidgety and nervous, the only other thing the pair did was crack bad jokes that usually had some stupid innuendo behind them. Hazel was just waiting for a dirty joke to slip and then Gwen would join in and Jason, Dakota, and Bobby would make things even worse… Hazel just wasn't in the mood for that kind of craziness.
Nico nodded, though, and swiftly climbed aboard ship Skippy on the magical journey to Terminus' border. Neither Nico nor Reyna talked on the way to the flat. As the two passed by Terminus they simply dropped their weapons and kept riding. Nico's abdomen began to hurt even worse, but he made no mention of it.
You'll be able to curl up in that flat soon, he told himself. Then you can sleep off the pain. No biggie… right?
Reyna slowed Scipio to a halt in front of a quiet building. It was two stories, tucked away at the back of a dead in. "No one will bother you here. Even Bobby is too lazy to bother you when you're hidden away like this," Reyna said.
"Thanks," Nico mumbled.
She began to leave, but then turned around, "Are you okay? You seem a bit off."
"Just tired," he lied.
She looked skeptical, but Nico knew Reyna: she wouldn't press for answers. She only nodded and took her leave.
The Greek spent at least an hour curled up in fetal position in bed, praying to Apollo that the pain would wane away. Unfortunately, the hurt just grew. Right as Nico began to plead with Letus to come and take him to the Underworld, he turned over the side of the bed puked. He stared at his own lunch for a good minute before rolling back on the bed. The thought crossed his mind that he needed to clean up. The stink would soon diffuse around the room and the carpet would stain. But his side hurt so much! Nico caged his eyes on a spider web in the corner of the ceiling.
Get up, he told himself.
His lazier half replied, But it hurts! And the room smells…
Well, whose fault is that?
The stars'. Our stars.
Nico bolted upright in bed. Had he lost his mind? Perhaps. But right now Nico felt the urge to clean up his tossed cookies. Take responsibility and-
He ran for the toilet and upchucked again. Once done, Nico leaned against the bathroom wall and began muttering curses to his least favorite gods. Then he hurled anything left in his stomach.
Whether the gods or nature were to blame, Nico di Angelo hated them both.
Nico found himself early to evening muster. A senate meeting had been scheduled to follow the meal, so the war games had been held early that day. After attendance and inspection were conducted, the legionaries made their way into the mess hall. The two children of Pluto sat alone at their normal table, apart from even the fifth cohort. Jason's gang-Reyna, Gwen, Dakota, Bobby, and Octavian-all sat around the praetors' table. Hazel watched wistfully as the group laughed and joked, save Octavian (who probably wasn't even paying attention to the other teens' antics).
"You wish you had friends like that?" Nico asked.
Hazel nodded slowly, "Yeah." And then, "Minus Octavian. He can stay away from me." Nico laughed. Hazel's eyebrows climbed her forehead while she watched him laugh. "It's not that funny."
Nico chuckled a bit more before saying, "Yes it is!"
A bowl of steaming chili floated down in front of Hazel. Nico crossed his ankles and stretched on his couch while a plate of fettuccine alfredo slowly fell to his spot at the table. His eyes followed it down, but he made no move for his fork. Hazel paid no mind while she engulfed her chili.
Hazel ranted to her brother for the first ten minutes, but then Don the faun pranced over in his usual fashion and in general ruined the one-sided conversation. Hazel seemed rather vexed, but Nico just took it as an opportunity to nap during the meal.
And then, "Hey kid, aren't you gonna eat anything? You're already small enough. Try getting some meat on those bones."
When Nico didn't answer, Hazel also started talking, "Nico?"
He sighed, "I'm just not hungry today. Normally I'd eat, but I had a large lunch. No need to fret, 'kay?"
"You've been acting strangely all day, Nico. I just want to make sure you're alright."
"Well, now you made sure. Are you satisfied?" Nico sunk down into his couch, but Hazel only stood up.
"No, I'm not. Gwen's good with this sort of thing, I'm going to find her. Don?"
The faun perked up with the mention of his name. "Yes?"
"Watch my brother for me." And then she was off to find the Centurion of the fifth.
Nico locked eyes with Don and held his gaze. He had to give the crazy faun some credit, as he never looked away. Before he knew it, Gwen was leaning down over him and asking him how he felt or some bullcrap.
"Uhh…" Nico blinked as she poked and prodded at his body. He squeezed his eyes closed when Gwen pressed her hand against his forehead. "Cold," Nico breathed.
"I assume ya mean my hand and not your forehead, seein' as how you're most definitely runnin' a fever. Nico, I really need you to tell me how ya feel. Any bad symptoms lately?"
"I threw up," he mumbled.
Gwen sucked in a breath to calm herself, "Okay, when?"
Nico sat silently for five long seconds before saying, "Just after the war games. And my side is sore."
"Your side… what's that have to do with… Oh."
" 'Oh' what?" Hazel chimed in.
Gwen laid her fingers on the right side of Nico's abdomen and applied weak pressure. "Does it hurt right 'bout here?" Nico nodded in pain and Gwen sighed deeply.
"What does that mean?" Hazel questioned, quite obviously worried.
Gwen glanced in Hazel direction. "More than likely your brother here probably has appendicitis and will need surgery. Go tell Reyna, will ya Hazel?"