CHAPTER 4

NICO

Nico already regretted agreeing to this situation. He kept his scowl firmly in place as they travelled to the Capital Office back in Olympus.

The walk itself was not very long, but it was still really unpleasant. Why the hell had he even said yes to this? He would definitely make Annabeth pay for it later; he could handle Percy if he got upset so that was fine. He'd definitely get retribution for this torment.

It was very uncomfortable to walk with the Alpha that had almost snapped his neck; even if the Alpha was walking behind him Nico knew that Will is still wary of him, watching his every move waiting for something. This weird tension was swirling like a storm between them and he knew that the Alpha could feel it as well.

The silence between them would have been deafening if not for the sound of their footsteps on the forest floor. He's not sure why, but Nico was feeling really anxious right now.

Nico hated small talk but he needed a distraction from the bright blue eyes that were watching him carefully, even if he could still feel them burning into his back. He just shrugged it off and decided to talk to Lou Ellen instead.

"Is your mate okay, Cecil?"

Lou Ellen smirked slightly at him. She was definitely amused by the tension between him and her Alpha. "Yeah, He's okay. He had a large gash at his back but it's nothing that we cannot heal."

Nico didn't know what to say to that so he just nodded in response, he is really not good with small talk. Thankfully, Lou Ellen noticed.

"You thought that mates needed to be close in situations like that, right? That it would help him to recover or something like that, just like with Annabeth and Percy?"

Nico wondered if Lou Ellen is able to reading minds. "Um, yeah… something like that."

"Well, Nico let me teach you something about werewolves that Hunters do not know." Lou Ellen's grin is a little bit taunting.

He almost wanted to say no but his curiosity got the best of him. Nico glanced behind him; it's a good thing that the Alpha behind him was not making a big fuss about this. Will just let out a small warning growl behind him which is not surprising, wolves are very protective of their culture and try to keep it from outsiders. They did not want anyone, especially humans, to know even the most trivial things about them.

"Your Alpha leader is growling his disapproval at that." Nico jerked a thumb over his shoulder.

"No-" Will yelled suddenly.

Nico stopped walking and stared at Will with raised eyebrow, waiting for an explanation for his outburst.

Will looked beet red while Lou Ellen chuckled quietly. Will glared at Lou and cleared his throat turning his attention back at Nico. "I mean, I don't care if you learn something about us werewolves." Will gestured to himself and Lou Ellen.

That was a suspicious answer and Nico knows that there's got to be a catch in there somewhere. This Alpha would not just suddenly approve of him knowing something about them without strings attached. He waited until Will spoke again.

"My only concern is that if you were not a human, possibly a demon in disguise, that you would then use that knowledge against us."

Yup, Nico was right… there it is.

"Are you still going on about that? I thought I already made it perfectly clear that I'm not a threat!" Gods couldn't he just believe him already?! Can't he just give him his trust?!

Nico didn't know where that desire even came from.

It seemed for some odd reason though he truly wanted Will to believe him and gain his approval so desperately and would not give up until he had it, like a stubborn child that wanted a cookie.

Nico subconsciously reached for his obsidian sword that hung at his side just for reassurance that he'd be able to defend himself if the wolf decided to suddenly attack, he know he was probably antagonizing the wolf but he also refused to back down.

Will started to walk towards him as he tightened his hold in his sword. He stood frozen on the spot, even though Will is not dominating him.

"Will, wait-" Nico heard Lou Ellen trying to keep Will from whatever it was he was going to do.

"Like I said earlier Lou; I will not harm him. Not unless he were to give me a reason to do so." Will answered but his eyes were still locked on Nico.

Will was close to Nico now, close enough to touch him. "You see, I can't trust your smell. The Hunter's blood smell is not strong enough to cover that other one that I can't distinguish. That's enough reason to raise my suspicions that maybe you are a demon." He narrowed his eyes as he glared at Nico.

"It seems like you are able to easily gain almost everybody's trust, from Annabeth and Percy down to my parents." Will leaned in closer to him.

Nico can see Will's blue eyes were tinged with a little bit red. He tried not to let himself be intimidated.

"But whatever you are doing to them, it won't work on me so you better watch out. I'll figure out what you are Nico di Angelo; whether you are a demon or something else." Will's smile towards him was irritatingly smug as he whispered his next words. "I know that you are hiding something."

Nico shivered a little but he knows it wasn't from fear. The bastard just continued smirking at him before he turned around. With that Will started to walk ahead of them as if that was all he had to say for now.

Nico held his tongue but he kept the burning glare towards Will.

What the hell?! Why had he just become speechless because of an Alpha? This is why he doesn't want to be around werewolves; they just can't seem to leave him alone!

He knows that his smell is intriguing but they just can't seem to mind their own business, can they? Every single one of them was the same. They were always pestering him about his scent; a constant reminder that he was always different among others.

That he doesn't belong.

In Nico's head, he cursed Will a hundred times over and was imagining a painful death for the strong, beautiful Alpha. He also cursed himself for thinking how attractive Will is. He didn't deny in his head the fact that Will was still gorgeous despite being an asshole. Even if he's donning the brightest, most obnoxious shade of orange shirt Nico had ever seen, over a pair of khaki shorts, he is still good looking. Stupid wolf…

Thankfully, Nico lost his train of thought before he blurted out something embarrassing when Lou Ellen nudged him lightly.

"Don't worry about him, Nico." Lou Ellen offered a small smile. "Will doesn't mean anything by it. Trust me." She looked at Will who was heading out of the forest by now. "We just lost half of our pack, or clan as others called it. For us, they were family. Will is still grieving for the lives that he could not protect that night. So, I'll apologize on his behalf."

Nico also looked at Will. Family huh? He knew very well the pain of losing family. That pain had almost destroyed him.

Will was just protecting his family from any possible threats. In that regard, Nico thought highly of him, it was definitely something to respect.

Maybe he lost someone dear to him, a mate maybe, his Omega. He remembered Lou Ellen saying something to Will earlier about someone named Paolo. So, Will was still mourning about this Paolo, his mate? But he can't mourn properly because of the responsibilities of an Alpha.

Nico can understand that. He'll let it slide this time, just this once.

Nico remembered from his training that werewolves mate for life. Werewolves cannot mate again, they were bound until the end. When one of them died, it will become hard for the surviving werewolf to continue on living.

They will fall into depression, some will go crazy and others will end up killing themselves. Only a handful can survive with the constant familial love that will help them through it, like their love for their kids.

It is also true for an Alpha but they will experience more pain and longing that will result in them being so weak that it will break the whole pack. That's why Alpha's are more protective to their Omegas to an extent. Their well being was the wellbeing of the entire pack, so much rode on their continued safety.

Will is no ordinary Alpha, he noted to himself. His Omega is gone but he's still standing tall knowing that he was dying inside.

Nico needed to stop thinking about Will, about his enticing blue eyes, that dusting of freckles on tan skin, the dimples in his cheeks and – okay stop! Will has just lost his mate and it was inappropriate for Nico to harbor such thoughts towards him.

Yes, Nico was irritated but he doesn't understand what it is about Will that he can't help but be captivated by. Nico needed to stop because he felt something like this before and it came crashing down on him like the weight of the world. Also, he can't harbor feelings towards a werewolf. He's a Hunter and he had only just met Will today. Not to mention Will threatened to kill him soon after meeting him.

Oh, Lou Ellen was still talking. He seriously needed to pay more attention to what was happening right now.

"He's just worrying over something right now. I'll tell you about the werewolf thing some other time."

Nico just nodded and ducked down to avoid the large tree trunk that was obscuring his way. They continued on their way through the rest of the forest in silence after that. Not too long after that they were out of the trees and he was able to see the city once more.

Will had been waiting for the two of them not too far passed the treeline.

It was still silent between the three of them. Nico tried his best to ignore Will. Take note: tried. His blue eyes were still scrutinizing Nico as they once again began walking together.

Luckily, Lou Ellen chose this time to speak and filled the air of awkwardness by asking questions about the changes in Olympus over the last two years, especially about the new buildings that had not been around back then.

The Capitol Office is just four blocks away now. Just a few minutes more and he can get away from these werewolves, for which he is thankful.

As they make their way over they reach the heart of Olympus which is crowded with merchandise from other cities and towns showcased in a local market. The smell of fresh breads, linens, flowers and many more wonderful scents fill the air. It was just another busy morning for Olympus. The sun is high and the market was a teeming with humans and some werewolves mixed in.

Nico was still amazed with how easily the humans here treat the wolves like equals without a second thought. Some people even greeted Lou and Will as they passed by. It was clear that Olympus was still their home based on the easy smiles they both gave in return to the humans that addressed them. Nico also receive small nods his way from those they passed, he just nodded back and continues on his way to the Capitol Office.

"I can't wait to see the Capitol Office." Lou Ellen was still talking, huh? He must have tuned out for a bit while lost in thought again.

"Is the bakery near the playgrounds still open? Oooh! I can't wait to go! Cecil and I lived for the cinnamon buns there!"

That bakery was Nico's personal favorite too. Annabeth took him there once and he had the best chocolate cake he's ever tasted in his lifetime. After that, he always visited the little shop. Plus the old lady that owns the bakery was so nice to him that she'd give Nico free sweets on occasion.

"Nico?" Lou Ellen was still waiting for his response.

Nico was still thinking about how good the cake was that he hadn't notice Lou Ellen was still talking to him. "Yeah, it's still open." He answered.

Lou Ellen was delighted to hear that. "There was this one time that Lord Apollo actually forbid us all from buying or eating sweets."

Nico raised his eyebrows. He was amused by this seeing as Apollo has a huge sweet tooth; Naomi always complained about it every single time he spoke with them.

Lou Ellen snigger. "It was when we were still young."

Will walked past him sending a glare at Lou Ellen. "Don't you dare Lou."

"Oh, Shut up Will," She dismissed Will with a wave of her hand. "Nico deserve to hear your misfortunes because he's-"

"Lou! We're not discussing that-"

"We're here." Nico cut Will off. He needed to stop the two of them before it ended in a bloodbath or something, and they were at the Capitol Office already. Nico pushed open the tall wooden door carved with the symbols of Olympus from long ago.

The Capitol Office was a not a very big place but it is big enough to accommodate a decent sized crowd. Even though it looked a little old, the inside building itself was kept in good condition and the pillars were still sturdy and even painted a cream white that still looked fairly new.

Nico walked ahead to the door on the right that let to Annabeth's office. He tells himself that he'll just fill out the forms and ditch the two wolves then and there.

"Glad you came back early." Annabeth's voice greeted them as Nico opened the door. He was so preoccupied thinking about how to get out of wolf-sitting duty that he did not even detect Annabeth or Percy's presence before entering.

"Yo! Nico!" Percy messed up his hair as he loomed over him. Nico swatted his bandaged hand away scowling at him. Percy likes to poke fun at his height which he knew bothered him.

Nico noticed how Percy's sea green eyes were still as bright as ever and they seemed to glitter even more when he smiled. It was his eyes that had first attract him to Percy.

Yes, he had had a crush on Percy before. It was back when he was saved by Percy two years ago. He can admit that he thought he was falling for Percy then.

It was so painful to watch Annabeth and Percy courting in front of him, but deep down he knows that Percy belonged with Annabeth and his crush died down after they were married.

Nico soon discovered that he was just drawn in by Percy's Alpha pull because it was so strong. Now, he considered both of them as good friends and is very thankful for both of them.

"Will! Long-time no see! Lou Ellen you too!" Percy was quick to greet the two wolves.

Nico noticed that Will was glaring at Percy for some reason. It puzzled him but he did not delve into it.

"How are you?" Percy smiled at the both of them.

Nico tuned out Percy as he saw how Will's mood had not improved, and decided to speak to Annabeth instead.

"Why are you here?" Nico was feeling so confused, shouldn't they be at home so that Percy could rest? Percy was still recovering from the ambush attack and needed Annabeth by his side. Speaking of which, Percy had a bandage on both of his arms. What kind of damage had he suffered?

"Percy insisted on coming here to see them." Annabeth gestured towards Will and Lou Ellen.

"Well, this is the report from Lord Apollo." Nico said as he handed the files over to Annabeth. "I would suggest a council meeting tomorrow about last night's events."

"Yes, you're right. We should discuss it along with the clans." Annabeth skimmed through the files. "I really wanted to know why they attacked Will's pack before they reached the border and then Percy's pack soon after after."

"We actually have more questions than before and still no answers, Annabeth." Percy said as he joined their conversation, all hints of his easygoing attitude from before gone.

"And we need to protect the townspeople from it. It would cause a panic if they knew about it." Nico nodded at that, it would be for the best. They needed to make sure that the humans were safe too.

"We have answers to that." Will's voice was a little strained as he addressed Annabeth. It was understandable considering it had been his pack that lost their lives from the attack. "But I'll discuss it in the council meeting, not here."

"That would be very helpful Will. Thank you." Annabeth smiled.

"But on one condition." Will continued.

Nico has a feeling that he knows what condition it would be.

Annabeth's brows furrowed in confusion though. "Okay, What?"

Will glanced directly at him. "I want di Angelo to not attend the council meeting."

Shit. It was official now, despite his attractive looks, Solace is definitely an ass.

A/N: I don't own anything except the plot. HI! It's been a while, but this is chapter 4. Hope you like it! I would like to thank ammstar11, my beta, for being such a wonderful human being. Thank you very much. Please favorite, follow and review. For those who left reviews for this fanfic, guys, thank you and rock on! love y'all honeybunchies! :*

I've also updated this chapter :D