Hey guys! Sorry for the break, but I'm back now:
The next few days passed very quickly for Nico.
It was so good to have Hazel back, even if she was only staying for a little while. Nico had almost forgotten what it was like to have a sister. He found time to be with her every single day, and they'd talk and laugh and just have fun in general.
One day, the two of them were sitting under the Athena Parthenos when Hazel opened up to Nico.
"The legion is still trying to recover," she confessed, her voice breaking. "Octavian did some pretty bad damage while we were away. He planted some nasty seeds in the minds of a lot of demigods. Frank and Reyna are doing their best to undo the damage, but – I don't know. Octavian still has supporters in the legion. Sometimes it feels like the Twelfth Fulminata will never be united again."
Nico listened carefully. He knew it wouldn't be easy for Hazel to admit that they weren't doing so well, and well nigh impossible for Reyna to confess that running the last Roman legion in the world was a burden.
"Come here," he ordered when she was done. She obliged, and seemed surprised when he kissed her forehead.
"The Twelfth Fulminata has survived for centuries and centuries," he reminded her. "When the Roman Empire broke up, who continued Rome's legacy? The demigods of the legion. Just as the demigods here at Camp Half-Blood continued the legacy of Greece. What Octavian did was bad, but there's no way one pathetic augur can unravel so much history and culture in such a short time. So keep your head up, and this will pass."
Hazel nodded and offered a watery smile. "Easier said than done," she responded, trying for a laugh.
They sat there in silence for a few minutes, just enjoying the fall sunshine.
"So, how's life here?" Hazel asked quietly.
Nico hesitated. Long enough for Hazel's eyes to narrow.
"What is it, Nico? Come on, don't just retreat into that shell again. I thought we were over that."
Nico considered making everything up, but gave up once Hazel prodded him again.
"I'm having some - personal - problems," he managed.
"What is it? Is someone giving you trouble because you're a son of Pluto? What is it?" Hazel sounded fiercely protective, and Nico felt a surge of warmth inside him.
"Son of Hades, actually, at this camp. And no, that's not it, for once." He sighed and put his head in his hands. "It's - a guy."
"Oh." Hazel's fierce demeanour vanished, and now she looked curious. "Do I know this guy?"
Nico nodded.
"It's Will Solace, isn't it?"
Nico looked at her in astonishment. "Am I that easy to read?"
Hazel laughed. "Nah, it's just that you're my brother. I have a knack for reading you."
"Well, okay then. It's complicated."
"No, it's not. Do you like him or not? Like, like like him."
Hazel's 1940s straightforwardness never failed to surprise Nico, despite the fact that he himself came from the 1940s too. "I don't know," he admitted.
Hazel regarded Nico levelly. "And what does that mean?"
"It means my feelings are difficult to interpret and changing by the day. It means my eyes are constantly drifting towards him, I'm sweaty around him when I don't want to be, and that I'm paying more attention to the way I act when I'm around him. It means I'm - "
"It means you like him," Hazel interrupted. "I know exactly what you're talking about, Nico. I know because I've been through it myself, with Frank. And I can assure you, these are surefire signs of like-liking someone."
Nico had had no idea what to expect in his first session of discussing crushes with his sister, but he certainly hadn't expected Hazel to sort his feelings out for him. Not that he found that a bad thing - in some ways, things were clearer. And then of course, in some ways they most certainly were not.
Until he'd said them out loud, Nico had had no idea how much attention he'd been paying to Will, or how he'd been acting around Will. It was a shock, for sure.
That night, by the campfire, Nico watched Will. He laughed and he sang and he even danced a little. But Nico didn't realize what he was waiting for until Will sat down next to him.
"We're still taking that trip to New York together, right?"
Nico managed a nod, and Will grinned. "Awesome! There's so much to do and see - "
Nico didn't even hear what Will had to say, he was too busy watching Will's mouth move. It was strange how fascinating it was. He watched and laughed as Will laughed, and another evening with Will sped by in a blur.
That night, in the Hades cabin, Nico and Hazel discussed the issue again.
"Why don't you tell him how you feel?" Hazel asked.
Nico stared. "Are you kidding? I don't know if you've noticed, but these feelings aren't exactly - conventional."
"So?" Hazel shrugged. "We're demigods. Nothing is conventional."
Nico bit his lip.
"Oh." Hazel suddenly got it. "Oh, I see."
There was no need to explain - Hazel already knew. Already knew that Nico, who had had such strong feelings for Percy for so long, was afraid to have his heart broken. Again. That Nico was afraid of being alone. Again. That Nico would be rejected and ridiculed, and forced to flee and wander the mortal world and the Underworld, alone. Again.
"Everything will turn out fine if you're just honest," Hazel urged Nico.
Nico laughed. "That hasn't been my experience."
Still, the thought of honesty intrigued Nico as he fell asleep that night. But that would just be too simple now, wouldn't it?
I was thinking of making this only seven or eight chapters, but after doing some thinking and having some brainwaves I've decided to expand this story. Do you guys approve? Let me know in the reviews!