History Repeats (Title)
T-M(Rating)
Percy/Nico and Percy/OC (pairing)
Romance and slight humor(genre)
Percy is nineteen, Nico is sixteen, Annabeth is nineteen, and Zephyrus is fourteen: when more characters are added I will add their ages. (Simple Info)
Nico, being the Mythomagic nerd he was had heard of the tragic Hyacinthus and Apollo tale (not to mention Apollo and Hyacinthus had double the attack points when used in the same turn), but he never thought he'd be caught up in his own version. And with Percy Jackson at that. (Summary)
I'm a comma whore, yes, I admi it. It's horrible as me being Athletically Challenged. Slashing all the way. Anyways, formal stuff needs to be out of the way. I did a quick editing, and read over this like three times. I apologize for any big mistakes, or mistakes in general that hinder any reading ability. Disclaimers: I don't own anything recognizable such as the Heroes of Olympus series or PJO series, that belong to RR, Disney Hyperion, and other people. Updates are sporadic... this should have three parts too it. I'm really, really trying to work on my smut skills so when the lemon comes up in later chapter, please comment honestly. (Warnings/Disclaimers/Miscellaneous)
Nico hated three things in life at this moment. He hated having an excessive attachment to one Perseus Jackson. If he hadn't had said excessive attachment he wouldn't be in this ruddy clinic ward worrying his ass off because this particular son of Poseidon always managed to find himself in trouble. The second thing he hated were greek myths and their tendency to repeat themselves. In particular, the tragic greek myths.
"Sorry," whispered a soft voice filled with regret, and sewed with longing. A controlled breeze flew into the stuffy room.
Nico glared over at the owner of the voice; Zephyrus. The squirming pixie-like boy ran frantic hands through his matted, midnight sky-blue hair. His platinum grey eyes were fixated on Perseus. Zephyrus happened to be a child of Boreas, the eldest Anemoi, but named after the most famous one. Nico despised both Zephyrus. Jealously ruled the winds.
The third and final thing, Nico hated was Tyche. Lady Luck hated him and only him. How else could he explain the reason for his obvious misfortune? Why everyone close to him ended on the brink of death (or they died) at one time or another around him. Nico chuckled mirthlessly. How dare people claim him stupid to be moody, emotionless and apathetic; detached from the people around him. This –he glanced over at a comatose Percy– was what happened to people he cared about!
"He's going to be fine," a bright voice reassured. Onyx eyes flicked from Zephyrus over to the newcomer. Nico only inclined his head to acknowledge his "respect" for the sun god. Apollo grinned at the son of Hades, blindingly. "There's no need to worry." Nico only nodded stonily. Apollo sighed. The sun's rays dimmed a bit as Apollo conjured up a chair, seating himself next to the half-italian. He lounged out on his chair, glancing at Nico, his blue eyes foggy. "You're lucky it wasn't a misguided disc to the head," he said after awhile.
"I'd be lucky if this hadn't happened at all," Nico replied snippily.
"He's not dead," Apollo tried to appease.
"Good! At least I don't have to beg Lady Persephone into creating me an ocean blue flower named Perseus!" Nico snapped. He saw the way Apollo flinched and he drew pleasure from that. He wanted the sun god to feel pain. This was all his fault anyway!
"Watch yourself, young one, I can and will – "
"Turn me into a tree or flower? What about Zephyrus!" Nico pointed at the startled boy. "He and his stupid jealousy caused this. Percy almost died because," Nico choked. He buried his head into his hands, trying to keep his tears at bay. He was so close to the breaking point. All he had wanted to do was to tell Percy about his feelings. How did it end up like this?
How?
Nico Di Angelo was having an off day. Ok, as the son of Hades he was always having an off day, but, it was different from the usual issues that plagued his life. You see, he hadn't been able to get a full night of sleep for couple months because a certain Hero of Olympus kept haunting them. Adding to the fact, the invisible cleaning ladies of the cabins were leaving nasty notes about his nightly emissions. How was he supposed to control them? He tried going without sleep for a couple nights, but that hadn't worked out so well. The Hermes cabin still gave him dirty looks for accidentally summoning an army of dead soldiers when they had decided to prank him. To be fair, they deserved it. I mean who pranks a child of the Big Three?
Exactly.
You don't.
Moving on, he tried jacking off. He would have to remember to send Will a fruit basket for that in gratitude. He had been so surprised to learn his dick wasn't going to fall off; he wasn't going to go blind nor would he have hairy palms because he touched himself. The relief he'd felt that day and night had been immense, but still, masturbating did little to help his not-so-little (in his humble opinion) problem. He still awoke with sticky sheets.
So, Nico had to come to the conclusion that something had to be done, today. He took a quick shower and changed out of his uncomfortable night clothing into his "emo" clothes as Rachel so eloquently put it. They aren't emo, Nico thought as he stared at himself in his large body-mirror. His jeans were black and sinfully tight with a few rips and tears on the legs. He wore a loose black band-tee Rachel had bought him last year for his birthday. The final touch to his totally non-emo outfit was his baby, Abaddon. His beautiful stygian iron sword hung in her scabbard around his waist.
He was ready to face the world all drop-dead sexy like this. This was his last option to rid himself of these infuriating dreams; confessing his attraction to Percy Jackson. In the worst case scenario, Percy could drown him in the nearest river and he'd end up dead with Bianca's teasing to live with for the rest of eternity, but again, that was the worst case scenario. Percy was a nice, generous loving guy.
Yea.
Nico plastered a scowl worthy of Hades on his face. He set out the door, keeping his flint-colored eyes ahead. His destination was the training area where Percy was sure to be at this time of the day. He hurried down the trail, pushing passed newbie kids and blushing girls. His fast-pace did not let up until he burst into the sparring area, all flushed and sweaty, any movement stopped, and all attention was fixated on him.
"Nico?" an amused voice called. Said sixteen-year-old perked straight up, clearing his throat loudly.
"Oh, hi, Percy!" Nico greeted, his voice rising in pitch. "Lovely day we're having!" A pale hand leapt up to pat down his dark unkempt hair. Percy laughed. The tinkling sound music to Nico's ears.
"Yes, we're having a very nice day. Not to sound rude or anything, but you're kinda distracting my class, and I can't teach them anything while you're here. Unless… is there anything wrong?" Percy tilted his head, giving the younger demigod a critical once over.
"Please, fuck me," Nico spit out suddenly. It took him a moment before he realized what he said. Hades! Why did that come out of his mouth?! He'd never live this down. Nico's ears burned bright red as he shifted uncomfortably. "Umm, uhh, what I meant to say was… I need to talk to you in private. It'll only take a moment or two." The son of Hades fidgeted under the intense sea-green gaze of Perseus. Those eyes that had the startlingly ability to look like the blue sea of the Mediterranean or the icy tempest of the Arctic ocean.
"Sure, Nico," Percy answered. Nico thanked the Gods Percy didn't hear the comment or he had heard, but thankfully decided to bat it off. For that, Nico flashed a rare smile over at the brunet whom returned it. Percy addressed his class that he'd be gone for a few minutes, and gave them instructions on what to do with the time. Nico mainly tuned it out, too busy imagining how his time with Percy would go. Hopefully, his brain and mouth could work together when he confessed his infatuation.
But like all good things for Nico, they lasted for a mere minute before blowing up in his face, painfully reminding him that children of Hades always seemed to carry bad luck.
The kid Percy was apparently sparring with dropped his sword to the dirt ground with a loud clatter, and he let out a big wail of pain, launching himself into Percy's surprised arms. It took everything within Nico not to whip out Abaddon and tear the elfish (whom he was assumed either was twelve or thirteen) boy into tiny shreds. He reigned in his anger, silently cajoling himself that his precious sword couldn't be bothered to kill such an unworthy one.
"Zephyrus, I'll come back. You won't even notice my absence," Percy cooed.
Whoa. Nico blinked. Cooed. First name basis? Who was this small-pint, and why was Percy allowing the dwarf to cling to him with such fervor? Nico subtly pouted. He wanted to cling to Percy like that.
"You wish to rip my heart out, Perseus Jackson! Go frolic with your Ghost King. Leave me to die a sure death in your wake. Begone Percy! Let me wallow in my misery and for you to rejoice in your love!" the tiny boy dramatized, a curtain of dyed deep-sky blue hair covered his platinum grey eyes.
"Zephy, don't be like that. Nico is a wonderfu – "
"Wonderful what?!" Zephyrus cried and Nico rolled his eyes. This kid. "I should've known you'd lead me on. My friends all begged me not to fall for you. You were and are the hero of the century, you could have had your pick at anyone. Yet, you chose me, Zephyrus, a lowly child of the North Wind Boreas. You only liked me out of pity! I shall hate you with all my heart if I had any heart left to give."
Nico narrowed his eyes, the smell of sulfur started to permeate the air around him. His hand inched up to his scabbard. His patience had dissipated with Zephyrus' act. Nico's lips pressed into a hard frown, facts needed to be ironed out right now. He, alike his father, weren't the best when it came to certain people or items they wanted to possess.
"Zephyrus," Percy began, a lone finger trailed the curve of the boy's jaw. Nico turned away. Percy was clearly too enraptured to talk. That was cool. He ignored the stab of pain in his chest, deciding that he needed to have a chat with Annabeth about Perseus' new relationship. Nico nodded in a quick beat. He waved goodbye to Percy and spun on his heel, beginning to trek back to the cabins.
"Annabeth!" Nico burst into the Athena cabin, not at all surprised to see a number of kids completely ignoring him. Instead the blond-haired clan focused their precious time and energy on the SMART boards. Che, trust the Athenian kids to ignore everyone else in favor of their own personal projects.
Nico headed further into the cabin until he found Annabeth on a lonely bed, typing furiously on a Daedalus' laptop only stopping every so often to check the many books crowding around her. "Annabeth," he tried to grab her attention.
"Annabeth," he attempted again, this time a little louder.
"Annabeth," he raised his voice an octave higher, but to no avail. Nico groaned, knowing that his voice could climb higher and higher, but she'd never notice unless he tried to physically get her attention. He groaned again. One had to approach Annabeth cautiously when she was like this; she wasn't the type to blindly touch.
Oh well, Nico made a split decision, hopefully, Annabeth would recognize him as a friend rather than foe; he wasn't too keen on gaining any debilitating injury at the moment. He reached out to nudge her shoulder slightly when he suddenly found himself flipped, his face smashed against the shiny wooden floor, his arm twisted painfully behind his back.
First, ouch. Second, he got her attention. Hooray.
"Nico?" Annabeth asked suspiciously.
"The one and only," he replied back.
He heard Annabeth sharply exhale before releasing him. She sat back on the bed, eyeing him curiously. "What are you doing here?" she got straight to the point, cutting around the crap. He smiled a little, he knew there was a reason he liked her initially.
"Percy," he answered simply.
"I figured as much," she said. She moved some of her bigger books onto the floor, patting a seat next to her on the bed. "What's eating at you?"
"Who's that brat Zephyrus, and what's his relationship with Percy?" Nico glowered at the remembrance of that irksome boy and how chummy he was with his Perseus.
"Zephyrus?" Annabeth tapped at her chin, a slight pensive expression on her beautiful features.
"Yes. Tiny, scrawny brat, fake blue hair, and dreary grey eyes!" Nico struggled to control his temper, yet another trait he gained from his father that could be potentially lethal.
"You're talking about the Boreas kid? I don't know much about him to tell you the truth. He came to camp a couple of weeks ago, and Percy became enamored with him in days. They started dating fairly quickly," Annabeth said more to herself than anything. Nico didn't detect any amount of envy or jealousy, just curiosity.
"Days?" Nico said in disbelief. Percy didn't just fall for someone in days.
"Mhmm," came Annabeth's reply. "I was surprised like you were, but he seemed pretty sure of his feelings for Zephyrus."
Nico clenched his fingers into tightly balled fists. Something weird was going on. This whole story sounded like some badly fragmented mess that seriously needed vital pieces to make a clear picture. "Is there anything else?" he growled.
"I can't think of anything besides Zephyrus always wears these pink studded belts whenev— Shit!" Annabeth cursed loudly, a phenomenon, which surprised Nico immensely since Annabeth harped that cursing was used with those that had a limited vocabulary. She scrambled out of bed, heading toward the opening of the cabin without a glance back. "Hurry up!" she threw over her shoulder.
Nico blinked. He had no choice, but to follow the girl's tracks. Occasionally, he'd hear snippets of "I'm stupid", "It was in front of me all this time", or "How didn't I notice?", he heard Annabeth mutter quite loudly. The daughter of Athena made a sure pathway to the Aphrodite cabin. She schooled her face before heading in, Nico reluctantly beside her. He glanced at her from the side, wondering what they were doing in the Heartbreak Home.
"What did you do!" Annabeth asked harshly upon entering the obscenely girlish cabin. The children of Aphrodite dropped their gossip magazines, makeup kits, and mirrors staring at the blonde in bewilderment.
"What are you talking about?" Lacy, one of the nicest in the Aphrodite girls, gathered the courage to talk too Annabeth. Annabeth whipped around to face the petite girl, her molten grey eyes flashing.
"Don't play me for stupid, girl," she warned.
"I," Lacy gulped, "we don't know what you're talking about," she clarified.
Annabeth stalked forward, a move which Nico recognized as deadly. Annabeth was beyond angry and rational thinking too turn against a fellow camper (even if an Aphrodite one). "Didn't I tell you—?"
Nico caught her by the wrist before she did something that she regretted later on. "Annabeth? What's wrong?"
Annabeth faced him, frowning. "This cabin gave Zephyrus the magical girdle of Aphrodite. Anyone who wears the belt is able to make the person they desire fall madly in love with them, in this case, Seaweed Brain believes he's in love with Zephyrus," she spoke rapidly. Her poisonous gaze zeroing back on Lacy.
Nico was about to express his own feelings on the matter, now, a lot more in synch with the furious child of war. Drew cut in, she strolled into the cabin with a pair of twins, flanking her sides. The asian girl crossed her arms, glaring imperiously at Annabeth and Nico. "You must be mistaken, Annie," Drew said sharply. "No one steals the girdle of Aphrodite."
"Really?" Annabeth challenged. "Check then."
Drew sniffed, raising a finely manicured eyebrow. "Why should I?"
Annabeth shrugged. "Why shouldn't you? Wouldn't you like to prove the child of wisdom wrong?"
Drew chewed on her bottom lip minutely. She passed Annabeth, heading toward her cabin bed. Nico watched as she sank down to her knees, whispering in french to an impossibly old wooden box standing at the foot of it, hearts of all kinds covered the relic. The box clicked open, and Drew ripped through the chest, the smirk previously on her face sliding off as if she just been slapped.
"Where?" she screeched loud enough to put a banshee to shame. "What did you do with it! Give it back or else!" she pointed a shaking finger at Nico and Annabeth.
"We didn't take it," Annabeth said. "We were wondering what you did with it."
Drew nodded, rising up too her feet. Her outrageously expensive heels clacked on the floor as she stared down her cabin members, even Piper, the supposed cabin leader, stood in an erect manner not daring to object to whatever Drew Tanaka was about to say. "I'll only ask once," Drew said in a deceptively sugary voice. "Who gave the girdle of Aphrodite away?" she inquired, charmspeak leaking into her words.
"Well?" Drew demanded. "Step forward and reveal yourselves!"
They only had to wait. A pitiful whimper escaped a tiny girl as she walked to a lone spot in front of Drew. Nico hid his surprise well, wondering how in the hell did a little girl no more than seven created such a big ripple. "Elizabeth." Drew tilted her head, for a moment confusion crossed her features. "You gave the girdle away?"
Elizabeth nodded, downtrodden.
"Fucking idiot!" Drew said sharply. "You have disgraced our mother. You should be banned from the cabin for doing something so retarded!"
Elizabeth flinched, tears welling up in her cornflower blue hues. "I-I-I d-d-didn't mean too," she wailed, her hands clutching onto her princess pink dress. "Chrissy said that no one would notice a-and that M-m-mommy wouldn't mind!"
Drew flared. She whirled around to face the curly brunette on her right side, in that action she demanded an explanation. Chrissy immediately threw up her hands in front of her as a weak barrier of protection. "Zephyrus' mother is the head of the Tiffany Company in America," she gulped, licking her lip-glossed stained lips, "he promised me all the jewelry I could ever want if I gave him the girdle."
"And what role did Elizabeth play in this Chrissy?" Drew asked tightly, not even bothering to delve into the beyond stupid reason for handing away such an artifact.
Chrissy took a cautious step backward, glancing left and right for some help from her siblings. "Elizabeth speaks the best french in cabin, and she's the easiest— do I have to finish?"
"No," came Drew's acid answer. "I will deal with you later." Chrissy nodded, trembling in her spot. Drew slowly twirled around to face her frozen siblings. In a rare show of affection, she picked Elizabeth, still crying, up in her arms, and rocked her gently, whispering soft and gentle words in under in her ear.
"Retrieve our mother's girdle," Drew spoke, leaving no room for protest.
Annabeth was a cold statue. She regarded the Aphrodite cabin like an disgusting group of maggots beneath her feet, something that wasn't worth any effort. "I'll get your girdle, if you tell me how to combat its effects."
Drew smirked, resembling the Ice Queen of Narnia. "True Love's kiss," she replied, amused.
"You're not telling us everything," Annabeth accused.
"Great deductive skills, Annie," Drew sarcastically praised. "I'm not telling you everything. While you do need True Love's kiss it has to be mutual, the person has to be in love person with the their true love while they're under the effects of the girdle, not too mention that becomes impossible after a certain amount of time."
"How long is a certain amount of time?" Nico questioned, trying to stave off the nerve-wracking feel of apprehension.
"How long has the brat been wearing the belt?"
Annabeth and Nico shared a quick look, neither of them had any clue exactly how long Percy had been under the influence of Zephyrus. Annabeth resolved to take a guess, however, Chrissy spoke up. "Zephyrus has been wearing the girdle for thirty days… you have today and tomorrow before it becomes permanent. I'm sorry," she finished quietly, ducking her head.
February 1st, Nico seared the date into his memory. He'd save Percy as the demigod had saved him so many times in the past. He turned to Annabeth who was already smiling at him as if she knew exactly what he was planning. "Am I really that obvious?" Nico asked sheepishly.
Annabeth giggled. "It was written all over your face. Enough talking though, you have an idiot-in-distress to rescue."
"I do, don't I?" Nico mock-saluted to Annabeth, stepping into the shadows; swathed in darkness Nico shadow-traveled to the training area. He was glad too see Percy training a new class of freshies in the art of swordsmanship. He, however, wasn't happy to see the conniving small blunette wrapped around Percy like some tree-slug.
Nico wasted no time in jogging over there, a faux amiable grin on his lips. "Percy!" he yelled. "I'm sorry I ran off earlier."
"Nico," Percy returned the grin, unwounding an arm from Zephyrus. "Its alright, I was a bit worried when you suddenly disappeared. Where did you go?"
"Oh… uhh… the Aphrodite girls needed me to model for some girdles. Apparently, they are back in fashion for males," Nico jabbed at Zephyrus. Zephyrus glared at him, something, which Nico found laughable; his glare was probably the weakest he had ever been given.
"Really?"
"Yup," Nico tried to hurry the conversation along. "Listen, I needed you for something early this morning and I still need you. Can you leave the kid to watch the class for a while? It is really important."
"Maybe… if Zephy's okay with it," Percy went back to holding the pathetic kid closely, giving him such an intense lovesick gaze, it was vomit inducing.
"That's great!" Nico said cheerfully. "Zephyrus has already agreed!"
"What!" Zephyrus squawked in surprise. "I did no such thing."
Nico chuckled lowly, "Oh, he's just being coy, Percy. He's told me in private that he's worried you've been working so hard, and he just wants you take a much deserved break." Nico chuckled again. He grasped onto Percy's nearest forearm. "Come on."
Percy nodded, keeping his eyes on Nico; inner Nico cheered, relishing in the attention his Perseus gave to him instead of the boy. Percy bended down to give Zephyrus a quick kiss on his forehead and an affectionate flick to the nose. "Tell the class I'll be right back, Zephy," Percy said, pulling out of the hug.
"But Percy, I didn—"
Not another word was heard; Nico pulled Percy against his chest, sending a triumphant smirk at the kid, disappearing into the shadow realm. Part one of recovering his idiot from the treacherous claws of the hellion was complete.