I wasn't going to write today, (one word: Deadpool) but then my sister chose that moment to start playing guitar, which gave me an idea. So you have her to thank for whatever this is.

Set in the Riordanverse, which disclaimer, is not mine.

Pre-Solangelo

Apparently, Solace thought that the sword-fighting arena was a great place for playing guitar. Good acoustics? Was that even a thing? Nico wasn't sure, so he decided to keep his mouth (brain?) shut. Didn't Gandalf say something about wise people knowing to keep their mouth shut when talking about something they didn't know? Was-

Focus. That was a luxury mortals without ADHD had. Something Nico usually tried, and mostly succeeded in having. That was, apparently, unless Solace happened to be-

Jason almost landed the blow with his Gladius, snapping Nico back to attention. He swung up his Stygian Iron at the last moment, putting all of his effort into pushing Jason's weapon back. It didn't help that Grace had the height advantage, but Nico's pride (especially since it involved his height, or lack thereof, was involved) kept him from admitting defeat so easily. Well, as long as he stacked up enough hubris to make up for all the extra feet difference between him and, well, everyone else. And-

Annnd, he'd gotten himself distracted again. Jason applied strengthened his grip, putting all of his effort behind his weapon. Nico's sword went flying. The other boy pointed his at Nico's chest, right over the heart. But Jason being Jason, he didn't look too gloaty, (Was that even a word?) he simply lowered his Gladius.

Nico looked up, " Can we do it one more time?"
"Sorry, Neeks."

Nico was probably just as surprised as anyone else would be when he didn't protest to being called that.

"I would, but I promised Piper I'd meet her by the lake in ten minutes. Besides, you're distracted, I think you should deal with the source, don't you?"

He 'discreetly' pointed over to Will Solace,who was still there, the guitar in use. Solace looked up and waved enthusiastically, which, of course, made the skeletal butterflies work in overdrive.

It struck him how much things had changed over the war with Gaea. If someone had told his past self that in one year from then, things would be really looking up; that he'd actually enjoy being at Camp Half-Blood, that he spent more time sparring and talking with, actually enjoying the presence of other, living, breathing demigods, that he hadn't wasted any more time with ghosts since he'd gotten back from his quest with Reyna and Coach Hedge... At most, he would have laughed in their face, and at least, he wouldn't have believed them for a second.

Stubborn and annoying as he was, Solace'd had a decent point. And he owed at least a small portion of all of this to the blond, for finally getting through his thick skull that it wasn't so bad here, that people didn't hate him as much as he thought they did.

In fact, quite the opposite. Nico wasn't really one to acknowledge it when he was wrong, but he had to admit, Will had been quite right. And maybe, yes, he himself had been... less right.

"Nico?"

He startled back, hand automatically reaching for his sword hilt. He quickly moved it to hook his fingers into one of the belt loops in his jeans, next to where his Stygain Iron was sheathed, like that was fooling anyone. But at least Will's concerned doctor expression diluted a little.

"You play?" he gestured to the instrument on Will's lap.

He could've slapped himself.

Really Nico, 'You play?'.Of course you went for asking the immediately obvious, he mentally chided. But it was the first thing he could think of.

"Yeah. Not sure if I'm any good, but I play anyway," he gave a lopsided grin.

Nico stared like an idiot for what felt like far too long, before he looked away, flushing. Thank the universal forces, Will was looking down at the guitar, plucking out a few chords, and not at the red Italian.

Now that said Italian Venetian was much closer, he could actually hear what Solace was playing. Some Indie-sounding song. And another. Nico was reaching his limit when he started on a country song. Yes, he was way too attractive for his (or anyone else's) own good, but whether he was worth sitting through a country song for was questionable. In fact, he spent so much time playing mental ping pong about that very subject, that the end of said song came before a decision did. Nico didn't think he could take it anymore. He stretched out an expecting hand to Will, which probably wasn't the mos polite thing in the world. But hey, if his people skills had been non-existent for all fourteen years of his life, he could hardly expect them to magically appear just because Will Solace happened to be in his immediate area. Solace probably had more than enough people skills for the two of them, anyway. He took the hint and handed over the instrument, exchanged from a pair of perfectly tanned hands to, well, a leaning-more-to-the-unhealthy-pale-side pair of hands.

"You play?" Will repeated his opener.

Way to rub it in, Solace.

"No idea, actually."

"Well, you know, you sort of need the chords in order to play, anways," Will grinned.

Nico looked down, allowing his bangs to cover his significantly more pink face, "Oh...right."

He took the guitar back.

"Please don't tell me you're going to start another 'I pick up chicks with my tractor and defend the exsistence of the confederate flag' song."

"Not a fan of country? Well, what do you suggest?"

"Uhhh, is Panic! At The Disco a music genre?"

"No, it is not. So I happen to play guitar, and you don't. That's very convenient, actually," he shaped his fingers on the bridge," this is a minor."

They sat out there for what must have been an hour, and Nico decided that maybe country wasn't so bad after all.

*Bordering-on 16 year old snickers about "In all his fourteen years" like there's much difference.*

Disclaimer: I have nothing against country, Brown Bird is a good band, and I in no way involve myself in US debates about the confederate flag, Nico just seemed to be pretty against that type of thing in BOO, so I included that.

And, as always, please send me prompts in the reviews.