This is super late, I know. But it's here, so enjoy. Also, please excuse my use of the puritan language. I know that it probably sucks.
Chapter 6
Percy liked to think he tended to be a calm and patient person. He had lived with his strict aunt for the past few years after all. But this? He was losing his patience, fast. Percy glared through his fingers at Travis, who lay on his back, kicking at the metal bars of their cell. It was like the brunet has no care in the world.
And his brother was not any more helpful. The younger twin was busy humming loudly to himself, all the while trying to squeeze his head through the bars. Just because he was skinny, did not mean he was a magician. Like it would do them any good anyways.
"Can you two stop?" Percy finally grumbled.
"Aw, come on, Perce," Travis chuckled, hanging his head off the side of the bench to grin at Percy, "where's your sense of fun?"
"Spending my night in a jail cell after just moving to town is not my definition of fun."
Connor pressed his feet against the bars, hanging there like some kind of monkey. "What are they going to do, charge us for stealing a piece of string?" He grinned over at his brother. "Not like we haven't been caught breaking in somewhere before."
"Not since we were fourteen, though," Travis reminded him. The older of the two sighed and glanced at Percy. "Just relax, we'll be out of here in no time."
They had been in there for two hours now, and the police had yet to actually let them make a phone call. When Percy had asked the twins about it, they had simply laughed. Percy, for his part, failed to find the humor in their situation. He did not really fancy spending his night in a cold jail cell.
The green-eyed boy pinched the bridge of his nose and leaned back against the cold brick wall. Well, he did want to get closer to these kids, he reminded himself. Nothing like sharing a cell to do the job.
The sound of boots hitting the cement floor down the hall caught Percy's attention. He sat up straight as the police officer rounded the corner. He frowned into their cell, narrowing his eyes. Without saying a word, the man pulled out a set of keys and unlocked their cell.
"You're all free to go," the man grumbled. "Your ride is up front finishing up the paperwork."
The twins grinned and stepped out of the cell, making faces at the cop as he returned to the front. Percy blinked before standing to his own feet. "What just happened?" He asked.
"Dad must be here to pick us up," Travis chuckled.
Percy froze. He watched the twins turn the corner, his mouth floundering on its own. It should not have been a big deal, but it felt like one. He knew now that these people were wealthy, but he also knew the town hated the adults from these families. It was true he had already encountered Demeter and Jason's father, but this one felt different.
The twins were already on the other side of the large desk by the time Percy arrived at the front. The boys' father stood in front of the desk. He wore a nice suit, like Jason's father had. The buttons looked to be made of silver, each with a little snake etched into it. On the man's finger was a ring with a turquoise stone, this one bearing two snakes criss-crossing in the stone. A small, black tweed hat sat on top of the man's head, hiding most of his black hair.
But he was not the only one there to pick up the twins. Luke, Nico, and Jason stood behind the man, though they were clad in their pajamas. Luke grinned sheepishly over at him. Nico, for his part, narrowed his eyes, probably not happy about being dragged out this late. But the curious thing was the shirt Nico wore. It was a navy blue, threatening to fall off the boy's shoulders. Obviously it was not his.
Percy's cheeks tinged pink as he glanced at Luke again. Perhaps there were other reasons Nico was unhappy about being pulled from the house in the middle of the night. Jason let out a loud yawn as Mr. Castellan finished signing the papers.
The man stood to his full height before facing the green-eyed boy in front of him. He held his hand out with a smile. "You must be, Percy." The man's voice was so calm, almost soothing. It almost reminded Percy of a harp being played. "I'm Hermes, Luke and these hooligans' father."
The twins simply grinned. "Our very loving and understanding father," they both chimed.
Hermes sighed and motioned to the cop behind the desk, who was currently on the phone. "These fine gentlemen are just contacting your aunt for me. If it's okay with her, I'd be more than happy to get you out as well."
Percy blinked. This man, whom he just met, was offering for his release? Not that much could be done to him, as he was still a minor for a few more days. Still, it would be nice to not sleep in jail. He glanced at the phone again. Though, after the last time he had gotten brought home by the police, his aunt had threatened to let him sit in jail for a while.
"No, ma'am, the gentlemen is here now. He's freely offering to accept your nephew to be released into his custody." There was a pause. "Yes, ma'am. No, his name is Castellan." Another pause came before the cop ripped the phone away from his ear.
Percy's eyes widened. Even from this distance, he could still hear his aunt's angry yelling from over the phone. He glanced at Hermes. The man bounced on his heels, smiling down at Percy. His blue eyes sparkled with a hint of mischief. Percy was starting to guess where Luke and his brothers got it from.
The policeman winced and tried to bring the phone back to his ear. "Ma'am-"
Again he pulled it away, some form of angry Chinese curses blaring from the phone's speaker. Perhaps if she was being a little more calm, Percy could have deciphered it. His father had taught him a long time ago that sometimes it was simply better not to understand his aunt when she was upset. Now would probably be one of those times.
Hermes did not seem concerned. On the contrary, the man was busy inspecting his nails as the policeman was forced to listen to Percy's ranting aunt. When the man hung up the phone, Hermes looked up with a smile. "I take it I have permission to liberate young Perseus here?"
The police offer narrowed his eyes with a sigh. "Yes, it is fine. I'll just need you to sign his form as well."
"Marvelous," Hermes replied, twisting the large ring on his finger. He pulled out his keys and dangled in the air. "Would one of you lad like to go get the car ready? Perhaps pull it around front for me."
Jason grinned and snatched the keys from Hermes's hand. He mumbled something to Nico and dragged the grumpy boy out of the police station. Percy glanced in their direction as the door was about to close. It looked like Nico was about to yell at the blond.
Both twins put their hands on the police officer's desk. "I believe you have our string," Travis said smugly.
Connor grinned. "We'd like it back."
The officer gave them a dull look. "It's sting, go find some more."
Travis tutted, wagging his finger. "No, sir, we asked for that string. It holds a lot of sentimental value to myself and my brother here I'm afraid. I must request it be returned to us."
Percy shot them a confused look. However, the twins were now looking at Luke, who seemed to be having a silent conversation with them. Travis smiled and winked at his brother, who seemed to relax his shoulders. Grumbling to himself, the policeman handed the small piece of string over to Travis, who grinned and put it in his pocket.
Percy glanced at the door. Blinking back at the cop, he threw his thumb over his shoulder. "Am I free to go?"
The cop nodded, but Hermes stopped the green-eyed boy. "We'll give you a lift back to your car, Percy. After all, the twins left Luke's car there." Luke glared at his brothers, who just chuckled. "It's no trouble at all, really."
"Um, sure." Percy smiled up at the man. "I guess I'll go wait outside."
Hermes nodded at him before leaning over and signing his name on Percy's release form. Letting out a sigh, Percy pushed the door open to be greeted by the warm night air. At least the weather was not so unbearable at night. Percy's breath caught in his throat as he froze on the stairs that led up to the police station.
Jason had Nico pressed against the side of Hermes's van, their lips pressed together. One of Jason's tan hands rested against Nico's cheek as he sucked on the younger boy's lower lip. Nico had his arms crossed, but did not seem to be pushing Jason away. He was clearly kissing the blond back, his eyes closed.
The door was practically kicked open behind Percy. "You're a free man!" Luke chuckled and put an arm around Percy's shoulders.
When Percy glanced at Hermes's van again, Jason and Nico had separated. The two refused to look at each other, and even put several good inches between them. Nico cleared his throat as they approached. "Everything taken care of?"
Luke glanced at the brown-eyed boy before smiling. Detaching himself from Percy, Luke shifted behind Nico the wrap his arms around Nico's waist. "Yep, now we can get you off to bed. You do need your beauty sleep, after all."
Nico turned his head to glare up at Luke, Jason snickering beside him. Percy remained silent. Nico glanced at him from behind his bangs. His lips tilted down as he stared into Percy's green orbs. Subconsciously, Percy's eyes shifted over to Jason for a brief second. Nico seemed to tense up in Luke's arms, the color draining from his already pale face.
"Time to get you kids home."
Percy turned to find Hermes walking up to the van, the twins following behind him. As everyone piled into the van, Percy found himself sitting shotgun up front with Hermes. The trip was quiet for the most part, save for Hermes joking about the twins getting caught. It was a little odd for Percy to hear. Sure his own father had overlooked most of his stunts, but he knew most parents weren't so lenient with their children.
Upon their arrival back at school, Hermes parked the van a few spots behind where Percy had parked. "Percy," Hermes called to him before he could shut the door. "Would you like to come have dinner with us tomorrow evening?"
That had caught him off-guard. "Um, I-uh..." It really should not have been that big of a deal, but it felt like it was. A real look inside the lives of these people the town wanted to persecute was being offered up to him, how could he say no? "Sure."
Hermes smiled at him. "Very good. Luke can give you directions tomorrow." Said blond had gotten out of the car at some point. He smiled over at Percy as he stood in front of the van. "I shall see you then."
Percy nodded and closed the door. Hermes pulled out of the parking lot with the twins still in the van. Jason had Nico on the sidewalk, rambling about something. Nico smiled as the blond gestured with his hands. How could Nico cheat on Luke like that?
"I guess I'll be seeing you tomorrow night then," Luke chuckled, nearly startling the green-eyed boy. "It's not that hard to find, if you can remember the road we took to get to the river."
Percy kept his focus on Luke. "I remember the road." How could he forget it? He had walked all the way back to his apartment from that cemetery the other night. Percy chanced a quick glance over to Jason and Nico. The shorter boy let out a yawn as the two slowly made their way to Luke's parked car. Once they were far enough away, Percy turned back to Luke. "I went to the courthouse."
"Wow, that was blunt." Luke grinned. "I already know, Jason mentioned it to me earlier. Kept it from Nico, seeing as you found his mother's death certificate." He glanced over his shoulder at the two other boys. "He's still having a hard time getting over it, not that I blame him." The blond let out a breath and stuffed his hands into his pockets, his eyes returning to Percy's face. "She had stopped by the bakery on her way home. I was over at Nico's house that night, and we were both craving cupcakes."
"Couldn't she have just made them?"
Luke chuckled. "You clearly haven't stopped by to try out the bakery yet. And the couple that runs the place is nice enough not to turn us away." He shrugged. "Anyways, Nico's father called to ask her to pick some up for us. All we ended up getting was an anonymous call. From what my father has told me since then, it was the men that murdered her, calling to let everyone know that Maria was dead." Luke was quiet for a long moment, swallowing a lump in his throat. "And it's never really the talk you want to have with your child. Yeah..." Luke kicked at the ground. "That was a very long night."
Percy suddenly did not feel so well. "The cops didn't do anything?"
Luke let out a dry chuckle. "Sure, if you count letting the men sit in jail for a couple of hours. At the end of it all, the judge claimed there wasn't enough evidence to support our claims." He was not really looking at Percy anymore, keeping his eyes just to the side of Percy's head. "That's partially why Judge Minos is one of the town's judges now. Jason's father keeps the man in line. At least having people afraid of you has some advantages."
"So does paying them off," Percy mumbled. Luke shot him a confused look. "You know, from the impression you gave me the other day, I thought you guys weren't that well off, middle class maybe, but then I find out you're all loaded."
"Oh, that." Luke rubbed the back of his neck. "Look, Percy, it's just something we don't like talking about. Our money is really the only thing most people want to associate with us for. The only time people are nice to our parents is when they want money, so we don't like talking about it."
"And the truth?"
"Well, I didn't lie...exactly." It was true, for the most part. "Everything east of the river belongs to our families, which we divided up to build houses on."
"You're not going to include the town?" Percy arched a brow. "Grover told me your families pretty much own everything in the town."
"He did, did he?" Luke rubbed his chin. The blond did not seem as cheerful anymore. Glancing back at Percy, he let out a sigh. "I suppose that is something important that I might have overlooked mentioning." He raised his arms in a shrug. "Our families helped build the town. A lot of their money went into building everything, not to mention their blood, sweat, and tears. Out of everyone here, our families have been here the longest. We let people build their homes on our land, didn't even ask them for money. And then they attack us with their religious garbage. How is that for hospitality?"
Percy was silent. He was starting to wonder who the monsters in this town really were. The town had painted these kids and their families out to be evil, but the townspeople seemed to be more evil than any of these persecuted people. At least they did not murder innocent women on their way home.
The green-eyed boy cleared his throat, glancing around at their surroundings. "If they hate you all so much, why don't they just run you out of town?"
"How are they going to do that?" Luke arched his brow. "They're too scared of us. The 'magic' we hold over them is that if they ever do anything, we raise prices. The school lost funding for several months after Nico's mother died, until the board was forced to fire one of the teachers involved in the murder." The blond gestured off into the night sky. "And as much as they claim to hate the stuff, most men in Aimes love their beer. How do you think they'd take not being able to buy that from the only place in town willing to sell it?"
"I'm sure torches and pitchforks can still be rounded up." The tow boys locked eyes. "After all, this town does seem to be living a few generations in the past."
Luke was the first to crack a smile. "I keep remembering why I like you, Percy." He sighed and pulled out his keys. "Well, I think I need to get these two home. After all, we do have school in the morning."
Percy nodded and turned to head to his car, but on the way stopped and turned around. "Sorry," he called out. Luke stopped and turned around, tilting his head to the side. "For bringing all of that up, I mean."
Luke waved it off. "Don't worry about it. I should be apologizing for not being honest with you already. Like I've said, I don't think you're like those assholes." With a final smile in Percy's direction, the blond turned back around and proceeded to his car.
Percy let out a heavy breath as he went to his car. It had been a long night, and he could not wait to get to his bed. No amount of strange noises was going to keep him awake tonight.
How wrong he was.
He found himself inside a small house lit by candlelight. There was a soft knock at the door. A fire crackled in the corner of the small house. The woman from the hanging, the one with the timeless face dusted her hands off and made her way to the door. She snapped her fingers and a boy shot out of his chair. It was the same black-haired boy with a ponytail. He dropped the book he was holding, letting it crash to the floor.
When the woman opened the door, a man and woman stood outside. The man took off his hat and bowed his head to the woman whose house they were entering. Behind the woman stood a younger boy.
He looked to be around the same age as the other boy. But the scary thing was how eerily similar he looked to Nico. The same shaggy black hair, though this boy wore it longer, his bangs framing his face. He even had the same dark brown eyes that Nico did. But he had an olive skin tone. His shirt was loose, exposing the top of his chest.
The next person to enter the house made everything spin. It was the girl from the execution. She stood there beside the tall brown-eyed boy. Her hair was up in a bun, bonnet securely in place. Her dress was neat and covered all but her hands.
The man, presumably the father, motioned to the two children in the doorway. But when he opened his mouth to speak, a muffled sound came out. It was like hearing the conversation with ears full of cotton balls. The woman of the house inspected the girl, tilting her chin up. She spoke, but the same muffled words came out. She looked disappointed, though. It was the children's mother that stepped forward next.
She placed her hands on her son's shoulders with a smile. The woman with the timeless face looked the boy over. Whatever she said to the boy made him smile and nod. The timeless faced woman circled the boy with careful eyes. She nodded before motioning to the other boy in the house, presumably her own son.
The daughter bowed, looking up when the boy kissed her hand. With a closer look, the boy with the ponytail's eyes seemed to shine like gold in the dark lighting. When his mother placed her hand on his back, the two boys in the room stared at each other. It was just frustrating, not being able to understand what they were saying.
The boy with ponytail bowed, as did the other boy. When they looked up, the brown-eyed boy smiled, his eyes looking the slightly taller boy over. They stood up and shook hands. There was a spark of interest in the brown-eyed boy's eyes as he smirked at the boy with the ponytail.
The smoke from the fireplace seemed to swirl around the scene, slowly dissolving it away. The two boys from before sat in a field of wheat. The boy with the ponytail was staring off at the setting sun, while the boy next to him picked at a piece of wheat.
The boy with the ponytail shut one of his eyes, crossing his legs as he watched the sun slowly descend. "What doest thou think about the claims of those young girls?"
The olive-skinned boy rolled his eyes, bringing his knees up to his chest. "Possibly stumbled upon some mushrooms. Seems like the most likely explanation." He turned his head, shutting one of his eyes from the sun. "My sister seems to have eyes for thee."
The taller and paler of the two let out a breath, not meeting the gaze of his friend. "So I have noticed." He glanced at the other boy. "My mother has been impressed with your studies." He did not seem as cheerful as the olive-skinned boy. "Though, I do worry that thou are not being careful."
"Thou worries too much." The brown-eyed boy licked his lips, looking out at the town on the horizon. "My studies require this sort of practice. The rest of Salem will never be the wiser." The boy with the ponytail was quiet. The olive-skinned boy smiled and stood up. Letting out a sigh, he held his hand out for the other to take. "Come on." The taller boy remained still. The standing boy chuckled. "Come on, Kronos."
Kronos. Kronos. Kronos. The name kept repeating, over and over again. The world began to swirl, spinning out of control. Falling away, into the abyss. Into the darkness below.
Percy shot up with a start. He quickly looked around, not recognizing his surrounding. He was in the woods, which were covered heavily in fog. It was still dark out, so Percy could barely make out anything around him.
He stumbled to his feet, his head pounding. How did he get here? Checking his pockets, he let out a groan. There were no keys on him. He sighed and looked around again. Where was he? The last thing he remembered was laying down in his warm bed, and now he was stranded out in the middle of nowhere. Not much of a change from the recent changes in his life, he thought bitterly.
Percy ran his hand through his hair as he slowly turned around, evaluating his options. It was anyone's guess at which way led him back to town. And like his keys, his phone was still in his apartment. With a heavy sigh, Percy randomly chose a direction and began marching through the woods.
A yawn escaped Percy as he dragged his feet towards his car. It had nearing six by the time Percy had gotten back to his apartment complex, and then another fifteen minutes trying to wake the landlady to open his apartment for him. Needless to say, Percy had not gotten to go back to bed. Instead, he had been forced to endure his time at school with the very little sleep he had managed to get.
He still had dinner with Luke's family later, but he was feeling a nap was in order first. Luckily, school had come to an end after an eternity. Nico had been fairly quiet during their class together, only speaking when he needed to.
However, he was getting plenty of attention from the rest of the student body. As if on cue, two girls stopped him on the grass that was at the center of all four school buildings. The taller of the two, a sports player by the looks of her, placed a hand on his arm.
"Now we all heard about your tragic time with those demon twins. The whole school is talking about it really." She shifted the books in her arms. "I was just letting you know that the school is praying for you. Jesus talked with the sinners and all that, it's heroic really what you're doing, but everyone's scared that your soul is gonna get damned to hell."
Percy glanced over the girl's shoulder, noticing someone approaching. "Don't be silly, we'll suck out his soul after we eat his heart." Luke cracked a smile as the two girls scurried off, whispering to themselves. He shook his head and glanced at Percy. "You look exhausted, man."
"I am," Percy mumbled.
"You still okay for dinner tonight?"
Percy nodded. "I'll be there, I'm just going to grab a short nap beforehand."
The blond laughed and pulled out a piece of paper. "Here." He leaned forward and pointed at the scribbling on the paper. "There's our address, shouldn't be too hard to find." He shifted Percy, facing them towards the woods beyond the school, and pointed into the distance. "You'll come to the road we turned off on to go to the river. Just keep going past that until you find a small cemetery. Right after that are the family houses, mine is the third one on the right."
"Got it," Percy replied, pocketing the slip of paper. "I guess I'll be there a little before six."
"Great." Luke smiled at him. "I'm helping Nico with a project, so he will probably stay for dinner. I'm assuming that's not a problem?"
The green-eyed boy shook his head. "Nope, not unless he has a problem with it."
The blond laughed and started walking towards the parking lot. "Not really giving him a choice in the matter." Luke rubbed his jaw. "Still not entirely sure what his problem is with you, though, yet."
The two talked a little more on their way to their respective cars, sports mostly. Another unfortunate circumstance to their standing with the town, none of these kids were able to get on the teams at school. Not because of lack of ability, but because of who they were.
When they arrived at their cars, the two parted ways and Percy found himself on his way home. Just not the home he wanted to be going to. But he was thankful when he walked in his apartment and was able to collapse on his bed.
He cracked an eye open to look at his phone, which had fallen from his hand when he fell on the bed. He really did miss home, wanted to talk to someone from home. Sure he had his aunt that he talked to every now and then, but she usually just told him to "suck it up". As loving as always.
Quickly opening his phone to shut his alarm, Percy scooted up the bed. Letting out a sigh, he rolled over on his back and shut his eyes. He needed sleep. Besides, the person he wanted to talk to was still in school at the moment. Later, he thought before drifting off into a deep sleep.
His alarm woke him up at five. He still felt groggy, but he could not be late for the dinner. Yawning, Percy sat up and shut off his alarm. He smiled and scrolled through his contacts until he found the one he wanted. Percy pressed the phone to his ear and leaned back against the headboard.
"Hello, stranger," came the familiar voice of his ex-boyfriend. "How are things down there in the south? Gotten eaten by a gator?"
Percy laughed at the boy's attempt at a southern accent. "Hey, Alabaster."
"What are you up to?"
Percy yawned and stretched one of his arms. "Just woke up from a nap. Have to get ready and go over to a friend's house soon."
"Oh." Even though Percy could not see, he knew the smile was gone from his ex's face. "Like a...date?"
The green-eyed boy let out a sigh. "No, not like that. He's dating someone else. Besides, his father is the one that invited me to dinner."
Alabaster let out a laugh. "So you're into old men now." The boy cleared his throat, the sound of a car door shutting. "Sorry, just getting out of school when you called. Um, so how are you anyways?"
"I'm fine." Percy laid a hand over his eyes. "It's been rough here, especially with no one that I know around. No sign of my family either. I'm starting to wonder if my aunt was smoking something."
"Again?" The brunet chuckled. "But seriously, you're doing okay?"
"Yeah."
"And...you're still moving back when you graduate?"
Percy smiled. "Of course." He licked his lips. "I miss you."
He could feel Alabaster's smile, without even having to hear the other. "I miss you, too. Hopefully some southern boy doesn't come along and snatch you up."
Percy chuckled. "Well, I'm pretty sure gay boys are rare down here, or deep in the closet. I'll look for some Christmas presents tomorrow at school, see if some found any back there." Another laugh from his ex-boyfriend. "No, there's only...two that are out at school. Possibly three that might be gay? Anyways, one is really nice, he's the one that I'm going to have dinner with. The other...well, I can say I don't think I've met someone entirely like him before." Percy let out a chuckle
Alabaster was quiet.
Percy checked his phone, making sure the boy was still there. "Alabaster?"
"Do you like this other boy?" The way the boy said it was hard to read, almost strained.
"What? No!" Percy shot up, his eyes fully open now. "I mean, he barely wants anything to do with me. I doubt he would ever let me kiss-"
"Kiss him? Is that what you want?"
Percy let out a sigh. "Alabaster..."
The boy let out a sigh, cranking his car. "I'm sorry," he breathed out. "I just miss you, and I hate that we had to break up over this. Not that your aunt minded; she probably hated me."
"She didn't hate you," Percy mumbled.
The brunet chuckled. "Percy, it's like she knew every time we were going to get heated and decided to call during that moment. It was almost scary."
Percy smiled at the memories. "It's just motherly Asian instincts. I mean, the woman did help raise me."
"I must resent her for preventing what would have been a great night."
Percy grinned into the phone. "I'm sure it would have been." He jumped to his feet and stretched. "Listen, I've gotta get ready, but I'll talk to you later. Okay?"
Alabaster blew out a breath. "Yeah, talk to you later. And I miss you."
"Miss you, too," Percy said before hanging up the phone. He sighed and dropped the phone on the bed. He could not be mad at Alabaster for what had just occurred. They might have broken up because of distance, but their plans to get back together still stood. So Percy could see how the brunet could still view Percy as his. And it was not like the boy had to worry about Percy cheating on him. Percy was no cheater. But his now ex had said it would be for the best, that they could pick up where they left off upon Percy's return.
Percy yanked his shirt over his head, letting it fall to the floor. He walked into the small closet that his apartment had and picked through his shirts until he found a dark blue polo shirt. After slipping it on, he made his way to the bathroom and checked his appearance. His hair was a little messy, but that was not entirely unusual for him. The green-eyed boy ran his fingers through his dark locks a few times before finding it acceptable. With a quick smile to his reflection, Percy returned to his bedroom to grab his phone and keys.
The road was less maintained the farther out he went, not that he was surprised by this. He had already traveled the road twice, and the time he spent on foot had seared the road into his mind. It was an old, paved gravel road with leaves and small branches littering it. Looking around, it felt like the trees were closing in on him, become more dense as Percy drove.
Soon enough, the boy passed by the turn for the river. He slowed down after crossing a small bridge. The road began to narrow, barely becoming wide enough for two cars to share. Looking into the woods, Percy caught sight of an old wooden house on the verge of collapsing. The trees had grown up around it, while vines spread across what was left of its exterior.
He stopped the car for a few seconds when he reached the cemetery. As the wind blew, leaves scattered across the old steps that trailed up the small hill that the grave site was placed on. The rusted iron gate swung in the wind, the latch up and preventing it from staying shut. With a small sigh, Percy continued down the old road until he reached the first house.
With the woods like they were, and the driveways appearing to be rather long, Percy was unable to see any house. On the front of the gate was the head of a boar with two spears in its mouth. The teenaged boy continued down the road until he found the one he was looking for.
Two snakes criss-crossing around a caduceus sat in the center of this gate, the same symbol that Percy found on the jewelry everyone wore from Luke's family. He parked his car at the edge of the driveway and got out to push the gate open.
Upon driving through, he got out a second time to shut the gate back. When Percy took his hands off the gate, the wind picked up. The boy stopped and frowned. He felt like someone was watching him. Jerking around, Percy was only met by his car. He shivered, feeling something cold run down his back.
Glancing over his shoulders, several leaves blew away in the wind. Percy's lips tilted down into a frown as he got back into his car. He must be imagining things, Percy thought to himself.
The driveway was longer than he had been expecting. It winded around a beautiful giant yard. Trees were scattered across the landscape, there was even a weeping willow towards the very center that the driveway passed.
And there was the house, a giant manor that looked like it belonged in the south. It was beautiful with a small balcony on the second floor and large windows on the ground floor. Columns lined the front of the house, supporting the roof. And the trees had been perfectly aligned around the driveway, making it appear that the mansion had caused the woods to part for it. It had been well kept for however long it had been standing, possibly even renovated.
Parked at the end of the driveway were four vehicles. All of them looked brand new and spotless. There was the van, which Percy had already seen, but he recognized one of the other three. The silver mustang that had picked up the twins after school was parked directly behind the van.
Percy parked behind the vehicles and turned off his engine. Taking a deep breath, Percy opened his car and stepped out into the giant yard. He stood there for a moment, simply staring up and marveling at the manor before him. It sort of reminded him of Wayne manor from the new Batman trilogy.
"There he is," came Luke's voice from Percy's side. The green-eyed boy turned to find the blond and Nico walking towards him, carrying quite a few leaves in their hands. "I take it you found the place easily enough?"
Percy just shrugged. "Wasn't bad at all. This is a really nice place, and a really big yard."
Luke chuckled and clapped a free hand across Nico's back. "You should see Nico's house then. It's a little bit bigger than mine."
"Really not important," Nico sighed. He frowned down at the green leaves in his hand. "I need the Ziploc bags we picked up."
"Yeah, they're in my car." Luke pulled out his keys and pressed a button on his keychain. The silver mustang chimed lightly and unlocked its doors. "There you go."
Nico grunted and opened the passenger side door. Percy's brow furrowed. That was strange, he thought. "Didn't you have an older car, with really bad seat?" He glanced at the blond. "No offense."
"Oh, right." Luke pursed his lips, his brow creasing. "Um, I...got a new car."
"In a day?" Percy asked skeptically.
Nico shut the car door and shot Luke a look before narrowing his eyes at Percy. "First you complain about us not being honest about our money, and now you're complaining about Luke getting a new car in the spur of the moment."
Luke smiled at Nico, but there seemed to be something wrong. The blond chewed on his lip as he pocketed his keys. "Ready to go inside?" He asked Percy.
Luke led the way up the stairs, up to the giant wooden doors. Opening the right door, Luke held the door open while Nico and Percy stepped inside. He closed the door as Percy stood in awe before the house. It was...not quite what he had been expecting from outside.
The walls were pure white, the floor hardwood, so shiny that Percy could practically see himself in. The furniture was lavish and looked like it had just been purchased. There was even a fireplace in the living room. A small mirror was perched over an entry table placed across from the door against a wall. A winding staircase wound its way up around the wall next to the small table. There was even a giant flatscreen mounted on the wall opposite one of the couches in the living room.
Percy felt very small in this place. He would not be surprised if he could fit all three of the homes he had lived in growing up inside this house. And he had only seen the entrance of the house. Percy could only imagine what the rest looked like.
The sound of footsteps caught Percy's attention. Hermes rounded a corner on the staircase, dressed a lot more casually than he had the night before. Following behind him was a boy around Luke's height, but carried more muscle on him.
He had Hermes's black hair, though kept it cut short, almost buzzed. His biceps were rather large, and the boy carried himself with an air of confidence. His skin tone was like that of Leo, darkly kissed by the sun. His eyes were small in comparison to most people Percy had met from Luke's family, beady brown eyes that reminded Percy of the floors that he stood on. But the one feature that was the same was the boy's face. Like the others, he bore upturned eyebrows and a mischievous look in his eyes.
Hermes slowed down when he noticed them in the entryway of the house. "Ah, there you are, Percy." He jumped down the last step and smiled, extending his hand for the green-eyed boy to shake. "I'm pleased to have you as my guest this evening." Stepping aside, he motioned to the raven-haired boy behind him. "I don't believe you've met Chris yet."
The muscular youth smiled at him. "Not yet. I'm Chris Rodriguez."
After all Luke had told him, it had not been a surprise to find this was the other brother. "Percy Jackson."
"I think the lady of the house is still busy with dinner," Hermes informed them. His eyes fell upon his eldest son. "Did you and Nico finish with his project."
Luke smiled and held up both of his hands to show the leave to his father. "Most of it. I think we can hunt through the rest of the woods over the weekend and finish up with what he needs."
The father motioned over his shoulder. "Well, why don't you two run those up to your room and get cleaned up? You can show Percy around while we finish up preparing dinner."
Luke smiled and nodded. He winked over at Percy before running up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Nico rolled his eyes and followed after the blond. Percy and Hermes watched them until the were out of site. The man smiled down at him before motioning to a large window that hung over a small garden.
Chris excused himself and headed around a corner. Probably the kitchen, Percy though, seeing as how he could smell whatever was cooking coming from that direction. The green-eyed boy faced the window again and just stood there, staring out at all the grass and trees that surrounded the house.
"Beautiful, isn't she?"
Percy glanced up at Hermes. "Yes, sir. It's very peaceful out here, not anything like back in California."
The man chuckled at that. "Our families have lived out here a very long time. Not sure I could see us living anywhere else. While these houses that you see now weren't here, my family was living here even before the Civil War." He pointed to an area just past a large tree behind the house. "I've been thinking about building some other things around the house, since we have a big yard. Perhaps a big shed right over there."
It really was a big yard, but not much other than the house occupied it. "Were there ever tree houses or swings? With all of the kids, I just figured that there might have been some."
"Very perceptive." The man hooked his thumb through his belt loop and pointed off into the woods. "Since there were so many kids, a lot around the same age, we designated an area for playing. All of our families live within a short walking distance, so we chose the Dare estate." He cleared his throat. "At the time, Hera didn't have any kids...of her own," the man's brow creased as he spoke, "at least until she adopted Rachel. But it all worked out, I suppose."
Once again, Percy was drawn to the sound of footsteps. Nico emerged at the bottom of the staircase. Percy smiled at him, though the boy just stared back at him before heading into a different room. The green-eyed boy let out a heavy sigh. What had he ever done to Nico?
"Sweet kid," Hermes mused. Percy looked up and found Hermes with a raised eyebrow. Shit, Percy thought, he had been caught staring by Nico's boyfriend's father. "He stays around here a lot, so I like to think of him as part of the family, especially after his mother's passing."
"I was sorry to hear about that," Percy whispered.
"We all were." Hermes cleared his throat and looked back out the window. "He used to be a handful when he was little, a endless ball of energy. It was sad to change so much after Maria's passing."
"Dad." Both males turned around to find Luke standing. "Let's try not to depress the guest." He smirked at Percy, nodding his head behind him. "Come on, I'll show you around outside first, and we'll work our way up to my room."
While there was not a whole lot in the yard, it was still a beautiful sight. It did not feel as humid today, which was also nice. There was an old barn on the border of the woods, which Luke said was from when their families originally settled in the area. There was a gazebo out back with a glass table and some chairs, even a swing on the back porch.
Luke spent nearly fifteen minutes just sharing stories from his childhood. They were not all that different, Luke and Percy. While Percy had spent most of his younger days on the water, Luke and the other kids had ran around in the woods surrounding their homes. And from the sounds of things, there was a lot of land to run around on.
Nico joined them once they were back inside the house, tagging along next to Luke and bumping shoulders with the blond every few steps. The dining room looked new, the table shining under the crystal chandelier. Hermes had even stocked a wine cabinet in the room, which was not even locked to keep the kids out. "Dad doesn't really care," Luke had said.
There was a study opposite the kitchen, which Luke said was primarily was used by their father. The blond did give Percy a quick peek inside, only to find a fairly average room filled with a desk, office chair, an average sized bookshelf packed with old books, another flatscreen—though not as big as the one in the living room—and a treadmill.
"Dad likes to stay in shape," Luke chuckled as he shut the door.
"Your dad looks really young." It was true, and the same had applied to Jason's own father. Both men, as well as Demeter, looked rather young, considering their children. Especially Demeter, whose daughter was now Nico's stepmother. "He looks like he's in his twenties."
"Ah, yes, that." Luke chuckled as he shut the door to the study. "Well, my parents married young, and had me not long after that. Which is the case with a lot of our parents."
"And Chris?"
Luke's eyes flickered down the long hall, presumably towards the kitchen. "Long story. Our father... How can I explain this?"
"You don't have to," Nico mumbled, narrowing his eyes at Percy. "It doesn't matter where Chris came from, he's a nice guy."
Percy held up his hands in defense. "I didn't mean anything by it. I just noticed he had a different last name, and looks to be Luke's age, that's all."
Nico studied Percy for a moment, not seeming convinced. Luke smiled and nudged the younger boy before leading them towards the stairs. "I guess there's not much else to show. We'll just finish with my room. Seeing as how I respect my father's privacy, Chris is a slob, and the twins might have toxic waste stored in their room, we won't visit their rooms."
Percy laughed as he jogged up the stairs after the blond. His eyes lingered for a moment on Nico's butt as the boy walked ahead of him. The boy should really not wear tight jeans, Percy thought. He felt wrong for looking, so he quickly cast his eyes to the floor. His parents had raised him better than that.
Luke's room was towards the end of the hall, the last door on the left. It was rather clean, not entirely what Percy had expected. "Not that he cleans it," Nico had said after Percy made a joke.
Luke beamed at Nico and wrapped his arm around the smaller boy. "Thank you, dear," he said, pressing his lips to Nico's cheek with a laugh. Nico squirmed away and wiped off his cheek, sticking his tongue out at the blond.
Luke's room was fairly average, aside from the size. It was definitely larger than his room back in California, possibly just a little smaller than his entire current apartment. There was a computer desk against one of the walls, and next to it an opened closet. Luke was definitely not lacking in clothes, Percy thought as he looked inside. The bed was a full size by the looks of it, a light blue comforter and white sheets covering it. There were a few sports memorabilia, school books piled on the bed, and all three major gaming consoles with his own flatscreen TV.
Luke motioned to the room with a lopsided smile. "Well, this is my room. Not super fancy, I guess." His expression looked perplexed as he took in Percy's mild expression of awe. What Percy would not give to live here. "I mean, I guess it is a lot, but it's not a big deal."
He had to be kidding. There was a bed-sized bean bag chair in the corner of the room! And his own mini-fridge! Turning around only caused Percy to flail his arms. There was a wall of video games and movies! How could Luke be so casual? This was heaven.
"Oh," Luke said, motioning back over his shoulder, "there's a gaming room down at the other end of the hall. Dad put it in for all us boys to enjoy gaming, but he pops in every now and then to join us. The man's good at Grand Theft Auto...scary good." He cleared his throat and then chuckled. "You want to see that?"
"Dinner!" Came a yell from downstairs.
"Oh, well I guess that answers that question." Luke chuckled and opened his door, heading down the hall. With a quick glance at Percy, Nico slowly followed after the blond.
Percy took in a deep breath, casting a final look at the room. If he did have family here, he was starting to wish it was one of these families. Perhaps that was a little selfish of him, but he doubted he would ever want for anything. What person in their right mind wouldn't choose to have this life, if given the choice. He was not entirely sure what would happen to him after high school. His parents had never had that much money, and his aunt would probably get him a scholarship. Hopefully that would last through most of whatever university he chose.
Something caught Percy's attention as he was about to close Luke's door, something caught his eye. On the computer desk sat a large framed picture of a young Luke and Nico. The blond's hair was longer back then, nearly covering his eyes. The kid even had a big, toothy grin. But the thing he noticed about Luke was that there was no scar on the blond's face. Percy frowned as he stared at the grinning child. What had happened between the time this picture had been taken and the present?
Percy's eyes finally widened as he finally payed attention to Nico. The brown-eyed boy's skin was an olive complexion, just like the boy in his dream. It was almost scary how similar the two would look if Nico's skin were not pale now. He was so small, and looked so happy. It must have been before Maria's death. But how did a boy become so pale? The boy in the photo looked healthy and alive, nothing like the image of Nico in his current state. Not even like Bianca, or even Medea, who was pale, but nowhere near that of Nico.
"Percy, you coming?" Luke popped his head into the room, eyes instantly falling on the photo in Percy's hand. "Oh..."
Percy shook his head, placing the picture back where he found. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been-"
"No, it's fine." Luke eyed the photo for a brief moment before casting his eyes at Percy. "That was a long time ago, almost like a dream now. He was so much happier back then, I think we all were. But I don't think anyone in our families were ever meant to be happy." The blond bit down on his lip. "You know it's true what they say, money doesn't buy happiness. You just feel...empty...and alone. Anyways, we should get downstairs, Penelope wants to meet you."
"Penelope?"
Luke smiled as the two walked down the stairs. "The twins mother and my father's current wife."
"You say current like you expect me to remarry, Luke," Hermes said as they rounded the corner of the stairwell.
Luke stiffened and chuckled nervously. "You know I'm fine with her, Dad. All of this is a lot to take in for Percy, I'm sure. I didn't even begin to cover Chris's mother having run off to Mexico and only leaving you a note, or that there was Libye, who you divorced before even having children with."
"That was before your mother and she was a old crone that would not stop talking," Hermes said with the wave of his hand, his eyes closed. "But I suppose you're right." He motioned towards the hallways. "Why don't we head in for dinner?"
Everyone else had already taken their place at the table by the time the three of them arrived. By the looks of it, Percy would be sitting across from Luke, as the blond sat down between Nico and his father, who sat at the head of the table.
At the other end was a fair-looking woman with the same color hair as Travis and Connor. It flowed down over her shoulders like a waterfall, curling slightly at the ends. Around her wrist was another bracelet with the caduceus and the snakes. It was starting to click in Percy's mind that these were probably family crests.
She smiled at Percy as he took his seat. "We're so glad to have you here this evening, Perseus."
He returned her smile with one of his own. "Just Percy, please."
The woman gave a slight nod. "Very well. And you can call me Penelope."
Dinner slowly went by like it would for a normal family with a guest in the house. The food was delicious, possibly the best Percy had yet to have in during his time in the south or even his entire life, and the candles that Penelope had lit filled the dining room with the scent of pine.
"So, Percy, tell us about California," Hermes said out of the blue. "Been out there myself, but it's been quite a few years."
"Really?" Percy smiled and finished chewing his food. "It's nice, the weather is always fairly warm. Everyone freaks out when it rains or even reaches sixty degrees." The green-eyed boy laughed and everyone smiled. "I suppose not quite like here."
"You can wear shorts in the winter here as well," Travis said with a grin.
Chris shrugged. "Yeah, but the humidity makes the wind feel really cold."
"You'll have to make sure you get a jacket then, if you didn't pack one," Penelope said, wiping her mouth.
Percy glanced across the table when things fell quiet for a moment. Not that he wanted to admit he had been staring, but he had noticed that Nico was not eating very much. The pale boy sat there, poking at his food with his fork. Luke seemed to take notice as well and he leaned in to whisper in the brown-eyed boy's ear. For a brief moment, a pained look appeared in Nico's dark orbs before he speared a piece of beef and stuffed it into his mouth, his face contorting into displeasure.
Hermes cleared his throat to get Percy's attention again. "And you're here looking for your father's family, is that right?"
Percy took his eyes off of Nico with a frown. He met Hermes's mischievous blue eyes with a wry smile. "Yes, sir, though I've had no luck so far. Apparently there aren't any Jacksons around here."
"Can't say that there are." Hermes took a sip of wine. "What was your father's name anyways?" His eyes flickered up to Percy, staring at him curiously.
"Um." Percy blinked. He felt like he was under a microscope all of a sudden from the way the man was staring at him. "Don, sir."
Hermes grunted and took another sip. "Afraid I've never heard of anyone around here ever having that name either."
Dinner continued on with little small talk, though Percy quickly became aware of the watchful eyes of Hermes that seemed to always be on him. Had he done something wrong? Percy had been trying to be as polite as possible.
When Hermes went to open his mouth again, Luke cut him off. "Dad, leave him alone. You always told us it wasn't polite to stare."
"So I did." Hermes finally smiled and held up his glass. "My apologies, Percy, I was just trying to see if I could place your face with anyone I knew." His lips tilted up as he took a sip of his wine, a spark flashing in his eyes before he looked away from Percy.
"May we be excused?" Luke asked, sitting down his fork. "I thought I could show Percy the game room for a little while until he needs to leave."
Hermes nodded, choosing not to answer verbally. The twins grinned and shot out of their chairs, and were up the stairs before Luke and the others could even stand up. Luke just chuckled and pushed his chair under the table before leading the other boys towards the staircase.
Now that they were going at a slower pace, it allowed Percy to take some time to look at the family photos that decorated parts of the house. There were quite a few, detailing each boy in the family and their development over the years. One detail that he was quick to pick up on was the lack of photos of Luke after receiving a scar. At least there weren't that many in the hallways.
Most were family portraits, but there were also individual photos that had been placed throughout the house. Percy stopped in front of one. Luke slowed down when he noticed and let the others move past him. He smiled as he stood beside Percy, reaching out to pick up the family portrait on the small hallway table.
"That one was taken shortly after the twins were born."
Percy glanced the family over before his eyes lingered on Hermes. "Your dad hasn't aged much over the years."
The blond shrugged. "Good genes, I guess." He chuckled and nudged the raven-haired boy next to him. "Just don't go hitting on my dad, if that's where your mind is going."
"Gross." Percy made a quick face, but soon smiled and nudged Luke back. "So what are we playing?" He asked. Luke grinned wickedly as he opened the door that the other boys had disappeared into.
"You two are horrible cheaters," Luke sighed as he reclined on the long couch that the family kept in the gaming room.
And that was exactly what it was. A giant projector worked as the monitor for the gaming consoles that were stored in the room. So not only did Luke have all the consoles, but another set was in this room as well. When Percy had asked about that, Luke said it was to ensure that anyone could play whatever they wanted whenever they wanted. And the speakers were amazing, almost like a movie theatre. The couch even had cup holders.
The group had decided on Super Smash Bros. Brawl on the Wii. But since it was only for four people, two had to sit out. The twins were taking turns with one of the controllers, while Nico would randomly accept Luke's controller and play for the blond for a short period of time.
The twins both stuck their tongues out at Luke. "You're just a sore loser," Connor mocked.
"It's not like they actually had a way to cheat," Nico jumped in, his legs strewn across Luke's lap. Luke pouted at the boy, who rolled his eyes. "Stop being a baby and accept that they beat you."
The blond continued to pout, placing a hand on the brown-eyed boy's leg. "Why do you have to take their side? You like me better, you're supposed to side with me."
Nico smirked and let his head drop onto his shoulder. "You're such a child." Letting out a yawn, the pale boy pulled out his phone. "It's getting late, I should probably get going." Nico stood up and stretched.
Luke placed the controller beside him, standing to his feet. "You're not staying here?"
"I've got that thing in the morning."
"Oh." Luke pursed his lips. "Well, okay."
Percy got to his feet as well. "I guess I should probably head home as well."
"Well damn," Luke mumbled, "everyone's leaving."
"It is a school night," Chris reminded his brother.
"Yeah, yeah." Luke waved the muscular youth off before opening the door. He let out a sigh and motioned for Percy and Nico to head out. "I'll see you both off."
As they stepped into the hall, Percy's eyes fell upon the door opposite them. It was completely sealed, not even a crack under the door could be seen. And on top of that, the door was locked and bolted from the outside.
"What's in there?" Percy asked.
"Nothing," Luke replied quickly. He casted his eyes to the floor before motioning down the hall. "It's not important, just some...things-"
"Things Hermes keeps around," Nico interjected. He bit his lip and shot Luke a glance, who had his eyes hidden behind his blond bangs. "We should go."
When they got to the bottom of the stairs, Nico hugged Luke. The blond buried his nose into the boy's raven locks, Nico's arms wrapped tightly around him. "I'll come pick you up in the morning," Luke whispered as they pulled away.
Percy scratched his cheek and looked away. He wondered if he should let them have a moment to say goodbye. Percy had the feeling they were just being polite and refraining from kissing in front of him. Nico stepped out the door, tossing Luke a smile as he stepped outside.
Luke shook Percy's hand. "I guess I'll see you in the morning as well."
"Yeah," Percy replied before heading out as well. When the door shut behind him, he jogged to catch up to Nico. "I can give you a ride, if you want."
"No thanks." With only moonlight, Nico's face was hard to make out. But he was there, right next to Percy. The one advantage of Nico being pale was that it at least allowed Percy to make out where the boy's face was. But Nico's expression was still unreadable, and he did not appear to even look at Percy when speaking. The boy randomly came to a stop. "I didn't mean it like that. It's just that I live right next to Luke."
"Oh." Percy gave a nod, glancing between Nico and the ground. He rocked on his heels, unsure what to do. They were both just standing there, staring at each other. "I guess I'll, um, see you later."
"Yeah," Nico mumbled. He cleared his throat and looked away.
Percy nodded, pursing his lips and pulling out his keys. Perhaps it was for the best. Percy unlocked his car and opened his door.
"Um, Percy?"
The green-eyed boy turned around to find Nico standing there, rubbing his arm awkwardly. "Did you need something?"
The brown-eyed boy motioned with one of his hands, as if he were indicating an area behind him. "It's just that I'm not really ready to go home yet, but I've been crashing with Luke for the past two nights and I feel like I'm starting to be a burden."
He chuckled. "I doubt Luke thinks you're a burden."
"I stay there a lot," Nico mumbled. The boy ran a hand through his hair, not meeting Percy's eyes. "Home's...not my favorite place to be a lot of nights."
Was Nico abused? Was something going on? Percy shut his car door, placing his hands back into his pockets. "Well, do you want to go driving around with me?"
Nico eyed the car for a second before shaking his head. "Would you just walk with me for a moment? I just need a little bit more time before I go home."
"Sure, we can do that." Percy took in a breath before stepping over to where Nico stood. "Where shall we go?"
The boy pointed down the driveway. "Don't really care where we go, just want to walk." Without another word, the boy slowly began walking down the long driveway. Percy jogged to catch up, falling into step beside the shorter boy. "You don't have to do this, if you don't want to."
Percy smiled cheekily. "Wouldn't be here if I didn't. I will get you to be my friend."
Now that they were out from under the majority of the trees, the light allowed Percy to witness Nico rolling his eyes. "You're a dork. But I suppose you're the best I've got for the time being, aside from going back to bother Luke."
"You're so kind." Percy grinned and slid his hands into his pockets. "I can see why people like you so much, you just have this sensitive aura about you."
When they reached the road, Nico took a left, kicking at a small rock. "I don't really care if people at school, or even the town likes me. What do they even matter? All they'll ever see is what they want and they'll never be able to see past the veil of blindness that is covering their eyes. For all the good they claim to do, most Christians just like to throw their weight around and force their beliefs on others."
"They might argue the same about you, assuming you support things like gay marriage."
"I do." Nico glanced at Percy from the corner of his eye. "But that's different. What they are doing is discrimination, telling me I can't do something because of something a book says. One that may not even be accurate." The boy let out a sigh, kicking the rock and sending it sailing down the old road. "On the other hand, it's not pushing in the same way. It's not like they have to go and have a gay marriage, or even attend one. But it's not right to make it wrong for others to do that, especially if they don't believe the same."
"Wow, you're opinionated on that subject," Percy chuckled. The taller boy shrugged. "I didn't mean to sound like I was arguing. I wasn't raised as a Christian, and I definitely don't support homophobia. I would kind of being hating on myself if I were to do that."
Percy's eyes roamed the woods as they continued to walk. It was so dark out, and the trees made it almost impossible to see. And to make matters worse, the road had no street lights. The closest things to street lights that the old road had were candles that burned on either side of the iron gates that led to the houses. There was also a lot of noises, including howling. But Nico did not seem to be bothered by it, so he remained silent about the issue. However, would it have killed Nico to have brought a flashlight?
When they reached the first house, Percy slowed down for a few seconds. They were nearing the cemetery. "I'm sure you broke a lot of girls' hearts," Nico said after a moment, breaking the silence.
"Not really, I'm still bisexual. Girls are pretty."
Nico made a face. "Their female parts are gross."
The taller raven-haired boy smiled. "Come on, you don't like them even a little bit?"
"I'd rather dye my hair pink and parade around in a dress." Nico looked in Percy's direction, though it was too dark to make out the boy's face. "Their boobs are comfortable, that's about all I've got for you."
Percy laughed loudly, slowing down. Nico came to a stop in front of the pathway that led up to the cemetery, facing Percy with an amused look. The green-eyed boy cleared his throat. "Well, I suppose that's something. Though, going back to what you said, my first girlfriend did break up with me when I came out."
"Why's that?"
"She was afraid I was going to cheat on her with a guy. Apparently, it automatically makes me a whore to be bisexual."
Nico gave a small nod, biting lightly on his lip. "That's pretty harsh. Any truth to that accusation?"
Percy's lips tilted down. "I'm a very faithful guy, never cheated in my life and don't plan to."
The pale boy shrugged. "Never say never." He sighed and glanced behind him. "Sorry, I just usually come here when I'm trying to clear my head." Crossing his arms, Nico turned back to Percy. "Lot more quiet than my house."
Did Nico's father fight with his stepmother? Or perhaps with one of the kids? What if the stepmother didn't like the kids? "I'm sorry," Percy whispered.
Nico shook his head, slowly moving back towards Luke's house. "It's okay. We don't have to go in there. I'm sure most people would be freaked out to go into our old family cemetery."
Percy reached out and grabbed Nico's arm. The brown-eyed boy turned to give him a curious look. The tan boy smiled down at Nico. "Then it's a good thing I'm not most people."
In the moonlight, Percy could make out Nico's brown orbs searching his green ones. He could understand Nico being distrustful of people, but he really wanted to show the guy that he was not like that. For whatever reason that was. Percy was already friends with Luke, so he knew it would be a good idea to try and be friends with the blond's boyfriend.
He quickly cleared his throat, releasing Nico's arm. "I mean, unless you don't want me going in there." It was a little late for that, but Nico did not need to know that. "It's your call. We can just keep walking up and down the road until you're ready to go back for all I care."
Nico's dark eyes pierced through him like daggers in the moonlight. The boy was silent for a long time, which began to make Percy nervous. But, eventually, Nico let out a sigh and ran his hand through his messy hair. "It's fine. Not anything that great about the place that you'd probably be interested in."
Percy followed the shorter boy up the stone steps until they reached the iron gate. Placing one hand on it, Nico pushed it open. It creaked so loudly as it opened that the hair on Percy's arm stood up. Nico motioned inside and Percy walked forward. After they were in, Nico closed the gate behind them.
Sliding his hands into his pockets, Nico took off walking through the old graves. With a quick glance in the mausoleum's direction, Percy followed after the pale boy. It seemed much quieter now, save for the crickets and owls. And without any trees hanging over them, Percy was able to make out Nico's appearance much more easily.
The brown-eyed boy came to a stop in front of a stone angel. At the very bottom was a name carved into the stone. Maria di Angelo.
Percy swallowed the lump in his throat, placing his hands in his back pockets. "I'm sorry," he whispered. Nico looked up at him with furrowed eyebrows. "I mean I was sorry to hear about your mother. That was..." He let out a breath. "This town is very fucked up."
"You have no idea," Nico mumbled, turning his gaze back upon his mother's grave.
Glancing around, Percy came to a realization. If he was correct, they were standing in the same spot that the creepy man he had met was standing after Percy had went to leave. "Um, Nico?" The boy turned to face him again. "Is your father rather young looking, with dark hair and a pale complexion? And maybe some scary eyes."
Nico's lips formed a thin line. He kneeled down, placing a hand on the grave. "He already told me he met you here. I was thinking about asking what you were doing out here, but then I figured I'd just let it go."
Percy's cheeks tinged pink. "But back there-" He flailed his arms, pointing back to the road. Nico arched a brow at him. "You-I-but you made it sound like you thought I hadn't been inside here before."
Nico grinned at him, standing back to his feet. "Maybe I'm a liar." He took a step forward, a twisted look in his eyes. "Maybe I lied about all of that stuff, and maybe I just wanted to get you out here so that I could rip out your heart and drink your blood."
Percy yelped as he fell backwards over a grave. Nico started laughing, shaking his head lightly. The green-eyed boy pouted, pushing his bangs out of his eyes. That was not very nice, Nico was almost believable. When Nico finally calmed down and he stared down at Percy, a smirk appeared on his lips. There was a dark spark in the boy's eyes, flashing dangerously at Percy.
"That's not funny," Percy mumbled.
Nico shrugged. "I thought it was funny. Don't you trust me?" He laced his hands behind his head, shifting his weight.
Percy's eyes flickered down to some exposed skin that had emerged when Nico's shirt lifted from the movement. He had seen the boy shirtless before, but there was something about the color of the boy's skin in the moonlight that made it all the more enticing for Percy.
Nico was not available, Percy reminded himself.
Letting out a sigh, Percy looked away. Not only that, but Nico did not seem all that interested in him. Not that Nico seemed to let a relationship get in the way of things, Percy thought bitterly. Should he mention what he saw?
Percy's eyes traveled up from the ground, landing on the tombstone he had tripped over. Blinking a few times, his brow furrowed. It read: Tartarus di Angelo. Another relative of Nico's? Perhaps Hazel's father?
The grass shifted beside Percy, and when he looked, he found Nico sitting next to him with his legs pulled up to his chest. The green-eyed boy turned his attention back to the onyx headstone that sat in front of them. "Hazel's father?"
The brown-eyed boy lightly shook his head. "Just an ancestor. Never got to meet him myself." He shrugged, his eyes dully staring at the name. "Nothing really important."
He was not sure why, but the grave seemed to stand out to him. Percy kept staring at the name, though nothing came to him. It almost felt important to him. But he knew that he had never seen the name before, or even heard it. And when it clicked in his mind that they were sitting on the guy's buried corpse, Percy quickly jumped up.
Nico stared up at him with an amused look. "Scared of the dead?" He grinned and got to his feet, slipping his pale hands into his pockets. "Afraid that my ancestor is going to rise from his grave for sitting on him?"
"It's not funny," Percy mumbled.
"It is a little bit." Nico smiled and took off walking.
In the darkness, Percy's green eyes observed the shorter boy as he paced around the small cemetery, glancing at a few tombstones that he passed. Percy wondered what went on inside that head of Nico's. The kid was quiet, but he had a lot of interesting things to say when he opened up. And here in the graveyard, Percy wondered if he had a twisted side to him. Something about the glint in Nico's eyes had caught Percy off-guard.
When Nico came to a stop in front of the mausoleum, Percy made his way over to the brown-eyed boy. His green eyes examined the weird figures on the stone that blocked the entrance. "What's this?" He decided to ask.
Nico let out a short breath. "Just an old family crypt."
"For who?"
The boy shrugged. "All of the families used it. I guess they thought it was a good idea to seal it off when civilization found its way down here." Nico slowly rubbed his palms together before turning to Percy. "I think I'm ready to head home now."
The walk back was quiet, Nico keeping his head down for most of the walk and kicking at rocks that they passed. How the boy found them in the dark, Percy would never know. He could barely make out the hand in front of his face, let alone a tiny rock on the paved gravel road that they were walking on.
When they got back to Luke's house, the two stopped in front of the driveway. Percy was not really sure what to say. Nico's eyes roamed the woods around them, almost like he were distracted by something. A faint chill ran over Percy's arms, giving him goosebumps.
Nico licked his lips and finally focused on Percy's face. "Um, so, Hermes might have seen that your birthday is coming up in a few days."
Percy gave a slight nod. "The eighteenth."
"Well," Nico began, "the others were thinking that you shouldn't be alone on your birthday. And we didn't know if you had any plans, so they thought we should invite you over."
Percy was stunned. "You don't have to get me anything. I mean, you guys just met me and I really don't need a party. I was just going to call home, or something."
The boy held up his hands. "Don't look at me, it was Luke's idea. But," Nico's eyes flickered up to stare into Percy's green eyes, "I don't think anyone should be alone on their birthday." Staring into Nico's brown eyes, behind those long eyelashes, almost made Percy's heart stop. "And I know how you must feel. After losing my mother, all I wanted for my birthday was for her to be there. It's been a few years for you, sure, but it doesn't change how a child feels after losing their parents."
"Yeah," Percy whispered.
"So you should come over. I'm sure Demeter will bake you a cake." He smiled and playfully punched Percy in the arm. "Maybe we can even go swimming at Silena's house."
Percy suddenly felt like their proximity was too close. The boy's pale lips in the moonlight were starting to become enticing. He wanted to feel bad, he really did, but something about those dark eyes and the way Nico looked in the night was almost sinful. It was like the boy was made for the dark. And then it hit Percy that Nico did not seem as exhausted tonight, did not seem as sick anymore.
It was not until Nico pulled back and cleared his throat that Percy found himself reaching out to fix a strand of the boy's hair. Nico lightly bit down on his lip, drawing the attention of Percy's eyes. "Thanks again for walking around with me," Nico said with another clear of his throat. He shifted his weight, wrapped a hand around his other arm, and looked up at Percy again. "I'll see you at school," he whispered.
Percy let out a long breath as Nico walked off, disappearing into the darkness. This was beginning to become a problem. Nico was beginning to become a problem. He did not want to cause problems with Luke, not after the blond had become such a good friend over the past few weeks. But there was definitely something there between him and Nico, even if the other boy did not want to admit it. While the brown-eyed boy may have not been Percy's usual type, there was something that drew Percy towards him.
But he knew nothing would ever come of that. Nico was with Luke, and Percy would never stand a chance. He could not compete with someone that Nico had known his entire life.
Running a hand through his hair, Percy slipped inside the gate. However, he came to a stop once he had closed it behind him. He froze. Percy thought he saw something in the corner of his eye. When he turned around, his heart nearly exploded. Nothing was there but the long shadow of a tree branch hanging above him. Still, he once again had the feeling that he was being watched. And in the darkness, it only put Percy more on edge as he walked back to his car.
Once he had his key in the door, Percy looked around Luke's yard. He kept thinking he saw something just out of the corner of his eyes. But when he looked, Percy found nothing. With another quick look around, Percy opened his door and cranked the car.
The teenaged boy slowly drove down the driveway, half expecting something to jump out of the woods. If it were the Stolls, Percy would not have been surprised. When his car reached the gate, he sat there for a moment. He was going to have to get out. And if horror movies had taught him anything, it was that something bad always happened when the person had to get out of their car.
Letting out a short breath, Percy worked up the courage to open his door. Wanting to quickly get back inside after closing the gate, Percy left his door open. Quickly pushing the gate open, Percy jogged back to his car. He glanced down to shift gears, and when he looked up, Percy nearly screamed.
There was Nico, standing in the middle of the road. His head was down, casting shadows over his eyes. Percy wiped a hand down his face, falling back against his seat. He slowly pulled his car into the road before shifting it back into park.
Percy rolled down his window, raising an eyebrow at Nico. "Did you forget something?" Perhaps it was best not to tell Nico that he nearly pissed himself upon seeing him.
A frown marred the boy's face as he looked up. His eyes were so dark that it was hard to distinguish them from behind his black bangs. It was like staring into the abyss. "Thought I heard something, thought I'd come back and check."
Percy looked around the dark woods. "Didn't hear anything. Maybe it was me cranking my car?"
It really unnerved Percy that he could not see the boy's eyes. It was impossible to tell if Nico were looking at him or roaming the woods. "I knew you were going to crank your car, idiot," Nico said darkly. A long pause passed by, where Nico simply stood there. Nico finally moved, tossing his thumb down the road. "You should go, it's getting late."
Percy did not argue. He nodded and rolled his window back up before driving away. Perhaps he had not been imagining things, perhaps there had been something in the woods. If Nico had come back because of it, surely there must have been something. He glanced in his rearview mirror, only to find Nico gone.