Time passed quickly in the infirmary – quicker, perhaps, than Nico would have preferred. Despite having only been placed under Will Solace's care for a short period of three days, Nico had already noticed major improvements. The scars on his arm that he got from Lycaon were fading after they had been treated by the blond – Nico could still see the boy's look of sheer repulsion when the dressings were removed to reveal the vicious cuts. He also noticed that his skin seemed to glow with light, particularly after he came into contact with the healer. He hadn't told Will about the cuts on his chest from Lycaon, though. He had even put on weight which was an achievement in itself. Now he didn't look like he'd be blown away by the smallest gust of wind, as Will seemed keen to remind him.
"Your weight is normalising at last. Or it's on the beginning of normalisation at the very least." Will straightened up after examining the measurements on the scales. He held out a tape measure and wrapped it around Nico's waist, glancing quickly at the measurement. Nico promptly blushed crimson. "Your waist is still abnormally small but hey," the healer gestured with his hands towards Nico. "You don't look like a living skeleton anymore. Congrats, di Angelo, I'm satisfied with your care. For now at least."
Nico cocked an eyebrow. "For now?" He took a moment to stretch and looked at his arms, noticing with some amount of happiness that they no longer looked ready to dissolve into darkness. Solace turned away from Nico with a small smile on his face, scribbling away on a clipboard. He turned back to face Nico after a few moments.
"What, you thought that was it? Dad would skin me if I let a patient go without regular check-ups. Consider me your personal Doctor, di Angelo. For now," The boy held a small lollipop in front of Nico, teasing him for a moment before he handed it to him. Nico raised an eyebrow but said nothing. "Consider yourself discharged and fit for Demigod duty. Just don't try and summon an army of the undead any time soon and you'll be A-Okay. You're banned from shadow travelling until further notice, though. Too strenuous an activity for your health."
"Thanks Solace," Nico smiled genuinely and Will's face softened from his stern doctor look. "For putting up with me three days and getting me back on my feet."
Will placed a hand on Nico's shoulder and returned the smile "What're doctors for, di Angelo? Now get going, no doubt you're keen to go get beaten up to get another lollipop out of us."
Nico grinned again and raised a hand in farewell before he left the infirmary and the son of Apollo behind for the second time in three days.
The first thing he did was change into fresh clothes. He'd taken several changes of clothes with him, but it had been such a hassle to pull the screens around his bed to change privately that he had waited for as long as he could bear before changing. That was the only advantage to his Cabin, Nico thought as he glanced around the dark and gloomy interior: privacy was ensured. He changed quickly and ensured his sword was strapped to his side as usual. He had been changed for little under two minutes before there was a knock at his door. He opened it to be greeted by the sight of Jason Grace, who raised a hand in greeting.
"Hey Nico," Jason's eyes flickered over Nico, taking in everything from the faded scars on his arms to the healthier-looking pallor of his skin to his face, which thankfully looked less emaciated than usual. "I heard that Apollo medic discharged you and figured you could use some fresh air." Nico blinked in surprise but quickly smiled.
"Sounds great." Jason stepped back and led the way. Nico closed the door to his cabin behind him without looking back and fell into step behind Jason."
"So…" Jason began, glancing at Nico out of the corner of his eye. "That Apollo kid seems pretty keen on you, huh?" Nico tilted his head.
"Who, Solace?" Nico laughed. The sound was still so strange to Jason, it still left him surprised. "He was the one who checked I was okay when I first came to camp. Guess he feels somewhat responsible for me, Grace."
"You made quite the impression on Reyna, too." Jason watched as a small smile spread across Nico's face.
"Traveling with a huge statue on your back across the world does that to you, Grace. Especially when you're getting chased by demented lycanthropes." Nico's hand travelled lazily up his arm, tracing the outline of the scars he had received from Lycaon. Jason watched with mild interest.
"Did you manage to kill him?" Nico looked up at him questioningly. "King Lycaon, that is."
"I imagine so." Again, Nico laughed and again, Jason was surprised by the melodic sound. "Not many can survive being stabbed in the heart by a silver dagger."
They had reached the top of one of the tall hills overlooking the Camp now and they sat in the shade of a tall oak tree, looking down at the campers going about their lives. Nico watched as one – probably a Hermes kid – got chased by another – probably an Ares kid – and waved something madly over their head. He snorted in amusement, realising it was the Stoll brothers when the boy passed the item to an identically-dressed boy and they continued running away, passing the object occasionally between each other. Jason followed Nico's gaze and grinned too before he pulled out an apple and offered it to Nico. Nico shook his head with a smile and Jason shrugged, taking a bite out of it. They sat in companionable silence for a while. Nico seemed content to watch the camp. Jason followed his wandering gaze for a while, frowning when he noticed Nico glancing in Percy and Annabeth's direction – who were currently sitting atop a smaller hill – every few seconds. He took another bite from the apple, contemplating how to tackle the topic. He settled for whatever amount of subtlety and tact he could muster and dove in.
"How're things, y'know… with Percy and Annabeth?" Jason raised an eyebrow, watching as Nico's gaze shot away from the couple quicker than a child caught with their hand in the sweet jar. Evidently, he lacked subtlety and tact. He filled the brief silence by taking another bite from his apple. Nico frowned before he laid down on the grass and looked at the treetop above them.
"Fine, I guess. It still hurts a bit but I'm happy for them." He sounded convinced. Jason took a bite of his apple, nearly choking when the other boy jumped up suddenly. "Let's have a spar." Jason swallowed the apple chunk, massaged his now-sore throat and cocked an eyebrow.
"A spar? After you just got out of the infirmary?" He shook his head in disbelief. He dug a small hole and dropped the apple remains in it, covering it up with the dirt quickly. "It's like you want that medic to murder me." Jason stood up and unsheathed his gladius whilst Nico similarly unsheathed his stygian iron sword. A small shiver ran down Jason's spine when he looked at the blade, but he readied his guard anyway. "Alright. On your go."
Nico was fast, Jason quickly discovered, and he was a lot faster than he had expected him to be. Nico's first attack – a lunge to his leg – had been so quick he had almost missed it and had barely managed to knock the blade aside with his gladius. Jason quickly learned after that to cover any openings in his defence, receiving a small cut on his free hand when he failed to do so. He felt his reflexes kicking in, his heartbeat increasing, blood pumping through his ears, as his body reacted almost autonomously and automatically. His arm seemed to lift itself and the blade clenched in his hand to parry Nico's descending blade and seemed to lunge forward in a counterattack. Nico's eyes widened at the speed and he jumped back, barely avoiding the blade, knocking it aside with his own blade's forte.
The battle got increasingly fiercer, the two constantly battling to outdo each other and fighting to land more hits on the other. Just when Jason would pick up on a pattern in Nico's movements, the younger demigod would shift his attack pattern suddenly and throw him off balance and, despite his years of practice, he was finding it difficult to distract the younger boy during combat. He relished the challenge, though, and he knew the feeling was mutual.
Eventually, Jason knocked Nico's blade aside and tackled him, sending them both tumbling to the ground, their blades discarded, heaving and panting for air. They lay there for a moment, fighting to get air back in their system before Jason rolled over and lay next to Nico. Jason realised, with some sadness, that it had been a while since he had fought for fun, rather than purely for survival or for defence. Nico seemed to be thinking along the same lines.
"Think I won that one, Grace," Nico laughed as he looked up at the sky. "That last move was cheating."
"All's fair in love and war, di Angelo." Jason combed a hand through his hair, brushing stray strands out of his face. "We'll call it a truce." Nico hummed in agreement and they fell back into comfortable silence, watching the clouds drift past. The sky was as blue as a brilliant, sparkling apatite stone and the few scattered clouds were as bright as diamonds. Nico was the one to break the silence, pointing up at the sky with one hand.
"Things are a lot calmer after Gaea." He paused to look across at Jason, then turned his head back to the sky. "Hopefully that'll be the last Great Prophecy in our lifetime." Jason laughed.
"You're telling me. I think my hair would go grey if I had to fight another war." Jason said, a grin spreading across his face when Nico snorted in amusement at the idea.
"Didn't Hazel disguise you as an old man at one point?" Now Jason was laughing, though the memories of his aching back and slow reflexes still plagued him.
"Never again, Neeks." Jason, too, looked up at the sky and watched as the clouds drifted lazily overhead. "I think it's a good sign, y'know? The sky being this calm. I think we'd know if the Gods were angry or moody. The sky's usually the first warning we get." Nico couldn't help but disagree, thinking back to Hestia's cryptic warning. 'You're going to need your strength for the events to come.' Nicowas definitely sure he didn't like the sound of that, but he didn't voice his concerns to Jason. It'd be unfair to spoil his good mood after their spar.
Instead, he settled for the companionable silence with Jason as they continued watching the clouds drift past from their place in the shade. They eventually walked down the hill and walked through camp, stopping now and then to talk to their friends. They even managed to confirm that it had, indeed, been Connor and Travis being chased by Clarisse, who had had her helmet stolen when she turned her back for a moment. Nico felt sorry for the brothers, wondering what state Clarisse had left them in and whether they'd find any camper remains hidden in the forest during the next capture the flag game. He was brought out of his wondering when he almost walked into Annabeth, only being stopped when Jason grabbed him. He muttered a quick thanks and looked at Annabeth.
"Finally, I've been looking for you everywhere." She began. There was something in her eyes and in her expression that made Nico uneasy, but he couldn't pinpoint what it was. "Chiron asked me to spread the word, there's a camp meeting later." Jason and Nico exchanged a look. Jason remembered the last time a camp meeting had been called – right before he had been given the prophecy to free Hera. Annabeth seemed to know exactly what they were thinking. "I know. Hopefully it isn't another prophecy, but you can never be too careful. I'll see you guys there then."
They said their goodbyes and continued on the way. Nico found himself mulling over what Hestia had told him for the second time that day. If Jason noticed, he didn't say anything but instead left Nico to his thoughts. They parted at the Hades cabin where Jason hugged him before heading off in a random direction. Nico entered his cabin and spent the remainder of his free time pacing, wondering about the meeting Chiron was calling that night.
The mood in camp was anything but joyful. Even Nico himself felt the anxiety that plagued the campers and himself for the rest of the day, covering them like a suffocating blanket, snuffing out any tiny flames of hopeful optimism they possessed. Only Lou Ellen seemed to believe the meeting was a good omen rather than a bad one. Nico didn't have the heart to share what Hestia had told him with her. His anxiety soon drove him to the campfire earlier than the others, where he sat in the shade of a small tree to the side of the main group of benches, half-hidden in the shadows, and waited.
He didn't wait long. Soon the other campers arrived in trickles of twos and threes. Percy and Annabeth arrived together – Nico averted his eyes – with Jason following shortly after. It wasn't long before the camp was fully assembled around the fire with Nico sitting off to the side. He noticed Jason sweeping the crowd and frowning, but he paid it no mind and remained where he sat. Silence fell when Chiron stepped forward in front of the flickering flames of the campfire and coughed loudly to clear his throat. Nico noticed Dionysus standing in the background with his arms crossed. He also noticed that the God did not seem very happy, which troubled him.
"A quest has been announced." The mood among the campers seemed to diminish even further and many campers – the remaining participants of the Prophecy of the Seven chief among them – looked mutinous with anger. Chiron continued, undeterred. "To keep it simple, we are blind and vulnerable, as are the Gods, though they loathe to admit it." The fire flickered wildly for a moment before it settled down. Chiron exchanged a look with Dionysus who was stood behind him. "Lord Zeus has decreed that a child of Apollo is to venture forth and slay the serpent Python." Nico's eyes – and the eyes of every other camper – flickered to where the Apollo cabin sat. Fear was etched on each of their faces. "Python has occupied the Ruins of Delphi and is cutting off our ability to receive prophecies. It's essential Python is slain for life to return to normal. This is a blind quest without a prophecy, the outcome is unknown. The Apollo cabin," Chiron was now looking directly at them, too. "Must decide among themselves who is to lead this quest and they will then decide whether they go alone or take others with them."
Silence fell when Chiron ceased speaking, but not for long. Will Solace stood up and strode outward, his face blank and expression unreadable. He reached Chiron and stopped before him.
"Well, it's obvious then, isn't it?" He said, his tone also unreadable and betraying no emotion. "I'm the Cabin Counsellor, so the duty falls to me." He stopped for a moment, as if waiting for one of his siblings to object or contradict him, but was met with silence. He looked once more at Chiron who nodded at him. Nico's eyes flickered over to Percy and Jason in turn, and he noticed their willingness to volunteer themselves, though he also detected reluctance, like they considered it their unwilling duty to help as the most powerful half-bloods present. Will turned away from Chiron and ignored Jason and Percy entirely, instead directing his gaze to the group of Ares kids, each of whom carried their own weapons as if they had been expecting this. They glared defiantly back at Will. "Clarisse," Will spoke calmly and clearly, his tone casually inquisitive as if he were asking about the weather. "You've got experience in battles like this. Will you join me?"
Clarisse narrowed her eyes and looked Will up and down, sizing him up as if he were an appealing target dummy. The predatory look in her eyes gave the impression that she was deciding which limb to chop off first. She inhaled deeply, as if bored by the meeting and rolled her eyes like she had been waiting for him to ask. She nodded once.
"Fine, Solace. I'll join you, sure, but I'm keeping the thing's head afterwards. Can't expect Jackson to do everything anyway." Clarisse muttered. A few of her siblings snorted but fell silent when she glared at them. She stalked forward from the mass of Ares children and stood at Will's side, her arms crossed and a glare on her face. Will's eyes searched through the mass of campers, many of whom seemed to consciously avoid his gaze or looked at the floor when his eyes met theirs. Nico's own eyes flickered to Percy and Jason again who both looked ready to stand up and volunteer themselves for the quest, then to Dionysus, who looked at the branch above Nico's shoulder and moved his head a fraction of an inch up and then down, and then Nico's eyes darted to the fire, drawn there by the light of the flames. As he watched the flames dance in the evening air, he felt a strange feeling of confidence course through him, flooding his system and bringing him to his feet. The silence that filled the camp then mattered little to him as he firmly put one foot in front of the other, ignoring the many eyes following him, until he stood face to face with Will Solace, looking the slightly taller boy dead in the eye.
"Count me in, Solace." Nico heard himself say and extended his hand. Will stared at him for a moment before he firmly grasped his hand and shook it. Even Chiron looked surprised by Nico's forwardness. Jason looked furious. Percy looked like he'd been hit over the head with a hammer whilst Annabeth next to him looked on with a smile on her face and nodded to him encouragingly, showing her approval.
"I wouldn't have it any other way, Di Angelo."