Disclaimer: I do not own anything.

Warnings: Violence. Language.

Just Be Friends

Chapter One

Nico I

Nico di Angelo wasn't having the time of his life. The school dance was plain stupid—he told his sister that they should've just skipped and they'd ended up arguing. As if things weren't bad enough, they were arrested by their vice principal—Nico suspected that there was something seriously wrong with that guy—for a crime they didn't do.

Well, he didn't say they did anything wrong.

"Where are we going?" Bianca whispered, her eyes darting about wildly. Nico knew this was her women intuition acting up—whatever she sensed, he had no idea since had no 'manly intuition' to match her womanly instincts.

Usually, he would've snorted at her paranoia, but even he had a sinking feeling his gut, a small voice screaming at him to run, and the hairs at the back of his neck were rising.

"Shut up," Dr. Thorn growled, jostling his sister roughly, earning a yelp of pain from the older girl.

In the dark, Nico could barely make out his sister's face. Her silky dark hair framed her olive-skinned face, her cap had fallen off, revealing her face which she always tried to hid whenever she went out—like she was ashamed to be caught around Nico or something but the eleven-going-on-twelve-year-old boy tried not to think too much about it.

"She's just asking a question," Nico grouched.

"Did I order you to speak?" Their vice principal snarled, then stopped, but his grip on their collars were as tight as ever. He sniffed the air, his nose twitching and it seriously grossed Nico out.

His sister looked as horrified as he was. Nico was mildly surprised she was so surprised. Hadn't he told her how strange things were these days? Not only did they not remember anything about their past, they were stalked by a man with one eye and he swore there was a guy with hooves.

Bianca never believed whatever he said. Either she was delusional, ignorant, or she really didn't see anything.

Abruptly, Nico was pulled from his reverie and Dr. Thorn quickened his pace and forcefully wrenched them down the corridor. He kicked the door at the end of the hallway. The door flung open, slamming loudly against the wall but Dr. Thorn paid the fallen screw no mind.

He entered, leaving the door ajar. His beady mismatched eyes were narrowed and glowed with evil.

Nico had always been good at reading people, so it was no surprise he was cowering back from the guy. He looked cruel enough to kill. Not them though, it was as if he was using them as bait.

"Don't move," Their vice-principal—Nico's ADHD mind wondered who would ever give this guy the qualifications to be one—snarled lowly. "If one of you say a word, I'll kill your sibling. Got it?"

Nico was about to protest but Bianca nodded hurriedly. Being fourteen, she was only slightly taller, but that didn't stop her from pushing him behind her, trying to shield him from danger. He felt a little insulted, he was the boy, younger or not, he was supposed to be protecting his sister. Another part of him felt warm; it was times like these that Nico would know his sister seriously cared about him instead of treating him like an annoying fly.

Nico knew he was told to keep his mouth shut but his ADHD couldn't help it. He shifted slightly, peering over Bianca's shoulder when he heard footsteps echoing down the hallway. Someone was approaching—Dr. Thorn's target. Nico wondered if that person on the other side would help them or they were as evil as Dr. Thorn.

The di Angelo siblings stiffened when the door creaked open.

Someone stepped in, Nico couldn't tell the gender nor could he see the person's face. The light from the hallway flickered, illuminating only a small part of the face. The stranger advanced slowly, not seeing Dr. Thorn creeping behind his back. Every step the stranger took made a strange sound, like hooves clopping on hard surface.

Nico was thoroughly puzzled, and the person's legs looked, disfigured, bulging out.

"It's okay," The stranger said. "I'm not going to hurt you." The voice was low-pitched—Dr. Thorn was about to jump a boy not much older than them!

He took another step closer to them. "My name is Grover Underwood, recognize me? We're from the same school. The one who choose the music, anyone?" he spoke hurriedly, sounding as if he was trying to keep himself calm. "I'm going to take you out of here, get you somewhere safe." His lips curved upwards in an attempt to be comforting—if that was his intention, he succeeded; Nico relaxed.

Behind him, Dr. Thorn raised something.

Nico's eyes widened, his fists clenching and unclenching, shooting meaningful looks behind the guy's back. Either Bianca blocked his view or it was too dark for him to see clearly. Only too late did he realize what his look meant. He crumpled when Dr. Thorn's attack struck goal.

He cried out in pain, falling to his knees.

"All three of you will come with me," Dr. Thorn said, cutting Nico's train of thought. "Quietly. Obediently. If you make a single noise, if you call out for help or try to fight, I will show you just how accurately I can throw."

What other choice did they have?

Nico threw a helpless look at the hallway, where the dance was being held at the other end, as he was ushered out of the room and forced out the school through the backdoor. He shivered slightly as the winter cold slapped him, snowflakes brushed his cheeks and landed in his hair.

He liked winter, but today was seriously too cold.

"You work for Luke," The Grover guy spoke up suddenly, he was chewing his lip nervously. Nico nearly passed out when he saw the guy's legs. Where legs were supposed to be, were furry hindquarters, hooves replacing feet. Bianca reached out to grasp her little brother's arm to refrain from passing out.

Dr. Thorn's mouth twisted in distaste. "You have no idea what is happening. You are not much, satyr, but you'll be useful to lure those girls out here. I shall send all of you to the General."

"You won't hurt Persis and Thalia!" Grover shouted back protectively. Nico wondered if they were his girlfriends or something, though he also wondered who the General was. Then, seeming to register the rest of the sentence, he demanded to know who that was.

Grover was ignored as Thorn looked toward the horizon. "Ah, here we are. Your transportation."

Nico turned and saw a light in the distance, a searchlight over the sea. Then he heard the chopping of helicopter blades getting louder and closer. "Where are you taking us?" Nico demanded, his smaller form trembling.

"You should be honored, my boy. You will have the opportunity to join a great army! Just like that silly game you play with cards and dolls."

"They're not dolls! They're figurines!" Nico yelled, leaping to his favorite game's defense. No one insults his Greek myths and games and get away with it without a sound yelling from him. What else did Thorn said again? "And you can take your great army and—"

"Now now," Dr. Thorn warned, his eyes flashing at the blatant disrespect. "You will change your mind about joining us, my boy. And if you do not, well…there are other uses for half-bloods. We have many monstrous mouths to feed. The Great Stirring is underway."

Nico stared at the guy in disbelief. Okay, this lunatic was even more of a Greek fanatic than he was. Was he roleplaying something?

"The Great what?" Grover asked.

"The Stirring of monsters." Dr. Thorn smiled evilly. "The worst of them, the most powerful, are now waking. Monsters that have not been seen in thousands of years. They will cause death and destruction the likes of which mortals have never known. And soon we shall have the most important monster of all—the one that shall bring about the downfall of Olympus!"

"What do we do?" Bianca whispered, seeming to have put aside her fear of Grover to trust him with their lives.

Grover bleated nervously. "I'm not strong enough to fight him. But my friends might be able to help."

"They're big and strong men, capable of wrestling with this guy, right?" Bianca demanded, eyes wild as she threw a frantic glance at Dr. Thorn.

"No," Grover whispered back. "All girls. One's smart, the other two are Big Three kids."

"We're dead," Bianca muttered. "What Big Three—" she cried out as her back hit the snow. "What?" Some invisible force had pinned all three of them down, just as she thought they were dead meat, a girl materialized over her, shielding the younger girl's view of missiles flying over their heads.

Blonde curls fell in perfect ringlets around the grey-eyed girl, she offered Bianca a small smirk. "Don't underestimate girls. Like Grover said, I'm smart, very smart." Then she turned to glare at Grover. "You're dead, goat boy, who told you to run away?"

(And this part, Nico would never forget as long as he lived)

They were his favorite Greek myths come alive, in the flesh: a blue-eyed girl with a terrifying shield and spear, and a green-eyed girl with a glowing bronze sword highlighting her pretty features—the daughters of the Big Three.

He fell in love immediately.

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