Snow fell gently outside the Hades cabin. Though most campers were frolicking in the flurries, Nico lay sprawled on his bed, fiddling with a skull he'd found in the forest. He'd named it Rudolph and stuck antlers on it, which was about as Christmas-y as he could get. Holiday cheer wasn't his thing.

A knock echoed through the room. Hoping it wasn't carolers from the Apollo cabin, Nico set Rudolph down and trudged to the door. A grinning Will Solace stood on the porch.

"Merry Christmas!" His wild blonde hair was crammed inside a Santa hat, and his sweater made Nico nauseous.

"What do you want?" Nico groaned, squinting from the sunlight and bright snow.

"Nobody's seen you in days. I've come to drag you outdoors for a change." Before the son of Hades could react, Will grabbed his hand and pulled him into the snow. "It's Christmas!"

Nico inhaled sharply when his socks hit the freezing ground. "Great. Wet socks. Thanks, Will." A snowball nailed him in the head, which made him even colder and more annoyed.

"You're welcome!" The son of Apollo called, not sorry in the least.

Cursing, Nico angrily brushed the snow out of his hair. "Go to Tartarus."

Will doubled over with laughter, and Nico took the opportunity to open a crack in the ground and bury him up to his Santa hat.

"Nico!" An excited voice called from behind him. He turned around to see Hazel, followed closely by Frank. The sight of her beaming face immediately lifted the boy's spirits.

She hugged him. "You're finally outside!" Glancing down to his feet, she frowned. "And in socks."

"Which are now soaked, thanks to Will."

The son of Apollo popped out of his snowy prison and yelled, "I regret nothing!"

Glaring, Nico whipped around. "I may get hypothermia!"

"No, you won't! I'm a doctor, I'd know."

Nico growled and rolled his eyes, unable to think of a comeback. Hazel touched his arm. "You'd better change into something warmer, though. You're shivering."

"Okay." He began walking to his cabin.

"Come back when you've changed," Frank called. "We miss you!"

Those words caught Nico off guard. He'd spent his life believing he was an outcast, unworthy of being missed or cared about. His friends were doing their best to show him they did care, and it was starting to tear down his walls. It was scary, but it felt good to be loved.

Before he reentered his cabin, Nico glanced over his shoulder at the demigods playing in the snow. Percy was surfing a colossal drift with Jason, Annabeth and Piper were crafting snowmen, and Will was chucking snowballs. He smiled. Christmas was better than he thought.

Merry Christmas, lovelies! Hope you enjoyed some happy Nico fluff :) Until next fic! ~jarjarjinx