I think I have a system right now: I'm going to attempt to get this fic done within the next several weeks. I think I'll be updating on the weekends, using my free time within the week to write. We'll see. School gets in the way.
This chapter was going to be available yesterday (Sunday), but things came up. Oh well, a day late. Enjoy anyway!
CHAPTER EIGHT
The Downhill Plunge
Day: 8
Leo was intimidated by ice skating. Nico was intimidated by singing and dancing. But on the eighth day of Leo and Nico's Ultimate Christmas Vacation, both boys decided to do something that intimidated them equally.
The boys—decked out in their parkas, hats, and gloves—trekked up the steps to the lodge that belonged to a ski and snowboard resort. Leo held the door for Nico as the two boys made their way to the front desk inside.
"How can I help you?" a man behind the counter said in a thick Russian accent.
Leo slapped some money onto the counter. "We want to rent out some skis. And we'd also like access to the slopes."
The man did a one-over of the boys. He then took Leo's money and nodded outside.
"You can meet the group outside."
"Group?" Leo said. "We're part of a group?"
"Yes," the man said. "The new skiers group. You will learn the basics before you take on the slopes."
Leo did not enjoy being called a newbie, even if it was true. He leaned his head back and laughed so loud people began to stare.
"Oh, oh dear," Leo said, wiping tears from his eyes. "You think we're newbies? I'm sorry sir, but you have us all wrong." He slapped a hand on Nico's shoulder, causing the latter to wince. "My buddy and I here—we are professionals, you see. We've got the medals to prove it. That reminds me, Nico: I need a new pedestal to mount my latest skiing trophy back at home. Think I can order one online?"
Nico, not knowing what else to do, nodded his head. "Sure," he said, voice cracking. He didn't like where this was going.
The man behind the counter raised his eyes. "You've won tournaments?"
"Of course!" Leo scoffed. "I am insulted that you didn't recognize me. I am a huge success in…"
"Australia!" Nico blurted.
Leo glanced at Nico. "Yeah…Australia."
"They have skiing tournaments in Australia?" the man asked.
"Where else would I have won all my awards?" Leo said, as if it were obvious.
If there were actually skiing tournaments in Australia, Leo and Nico had no clue. But they were already a mile deep in this lie that there was really no turning back now.
The man was clearly confused but said nothing more about the subject.
"My apologies," he said. He handed Leo and Nico tickets to attach to their parkas and pointed them to the other side of the lodge, where they could access the slopes.
"Thank you, my good man," Leo said, bowing. He tipped his knit hat as a gentleman would in the early twentieth century. Nico rolled his eyes and pulled him away, muttering an apology to the man.
They sat on the ski lift and gazed at the slopes below them. Snowboarders and skiers alike dropped off and made their way down the hills expertly. Nico glanced at Leo through his goggles, which protected his eyes from the harsh winter. What in Hades did you get us into?
Leo grinned back at him, giving him a thumbs-up with his gloved hands. He held his ski poles tightly.
Both boys were bundled up to the point of nearly looking ridiculous. Their hair stuck out under their knit hats and over their goggles. Their snow pants and parkas hardly allowed them to move. Their gloves were so big they could barely grip the ski poles correctly.
But this was all to protect them from the frigid cold. Despite their attire, their cheeks and noses were still bright pink.
"We'll be fine, man," Leo said, reading Nico's thoughts. "It can't be too difficult."
"You told the man we were tournament-winning professionals."
"So I slipped in a few false details. Nothing that will do any harm."
The ground began to meet their feet as they reached the top of the hill. Nico bit his lip.
"Here we go," Leo said.
The boys slipped the bar over their head and squeezed their way off the ski lift. They wobbled as they tested out their skis, awkwardly pushing themselves to the beginning of the slopes.
"Well, this is it," Leo muttered as he watched people start off down the hill.
"I have a sick feeling to my stomach," Nico said. He clenched his gloved hands around his ski poles as if his life depended on it.
"It won't be bad," Leo said. "Just keep your balance and try not to run people down."
"Easier said than done," Nico grumbled. "I'm sure half the population of St. Petersburg are real professionals at this stuff. They're going to know we're fakes."
Suddenly, a stranger piped up behind Leo. "Hey, kid, you gonna go?"
Leo squeaked in response, "Uh, yeah! Ha. Sorry!"
He edged his way to the beginning of the run and took a deep breath. Then, without warning, Nico pushed him.
Leo yelped as he took off, skiing not at a fast rate but with an alarmingly lack of balance. He wobbled and waved his hands in the air, trying to get a hold of the skis. Not thirty seconds into his downhill plunge was when he found himself falling hard on his butt.
He glanced behind him, embarrassed with his obvious lack of skill, when he found Nico in the same position. Only for the son of Hades, his was laying awkwardly with his face buried in the snow.
Leo grumbled as he tried to stand up, but it was difficult with the skates on his feet. He looked back and found Nico having the same difficulties. Both boys struggled and swore under their breaths as they tried to push themselves off the ground and stand up.
"Ah, screw it!" Leo said. He unclipped his boots from his skis and stood up.
Nico heard Leo's loud outburst and copied his friend, detaching his boots from his skis. The two met up halfway between them.
"This is not working," Nico said. "We're on the bunny hill! This is basically a flat surface we're going down. This is embarrassing."
"We can't give up now," Leo said. "I'm pretty sure once we're on these slopes, we can't get off."
"Neither of us knows anything about skiing," Nico said anxiously. "We're going to kill ourselves!"
"Like you said, this is the bunny hill. This won't be too hard. We just have to get used to it."
Skiers and snowboarders passed by as the boys were careful to stay out of their way. Nico and Leo glanced at each other nervously. It was now or never.
Nico suddenly began reattaching his boots to his skis.
"What are you doing?" Leo asked.
"You're right. We've committed to this. Once we're on, we can't get off. Let's just go."
Leo cracked a smile. "I'm so proud."
Nico rolled his eyes.
Between the both of them, the boys had fallen twelve times within their run down the bunny hill. Once they reached the bottom, they decided that they had enough of skiing and returned their equipment before walking back to the lodge.
"Ah, I see our little professionals have returned," the man behind the desk said. He was the same one from earlier. He looked the boys over, who were completely covered in snow. The man came to the painstakingly obvious conclusion.
"Must have been a tough run out there," he continued sarcastically. "Which slope were you on?"
"Thebunnyhill," Leo mumbled quickly, his words jumbling together.
"I beg your pardon?"
"The bunny hill!" Leo said. The man cracked a smile, stepped out from behind the desk, and put his hands on Leo and Nico's shoulders.
"Ah, I suppose all professionals have a bit of trouble once in a while. Better luck next time!" The man began to laugh.
Leo and Nico ducked out of the man's grasp.
"Come on," Nico said. He grabbed Leo's hand and led him out of the lodge.
"I hate skiing," Leo grumbled. "I was so stupid to think we could go skiing. And I screwed it up for both of us by thinking we could just waltz in there and claim we were professionals. Have I always been such an idiot?"
Nico put his hand in Leo's and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "First of all, you are not an idiot. Second of all, you need to stop thinking about it. Don't let that man ruin your vacation."
"I just…" Leo collapsed on a park bench just outside the lodge. "I hate making a fool out of myself."
Nico sat next to Leo, leaning in to his friend. Nico's body heat was enough to lift Leo's spirits a bit. Leo realized that he needed and depended on Nico now, and to the point that Nico simply being there right next to Leo was enough to make him feel better.
"Come on, everyone hates embarrassment," Nico said. "Whenever I think back to my Mythomagic days, I realize how embarrassing I must have been. I try not to think of it too much."
Leo giggled. "You were probably adorable."
Nico shrugged. "Bianca thought so."
There was a wave of silence before Nico took Leo's hands and stood up.
"I know something way cooler than skiing."
"And what's that?"
Nico ran to the center of the park, yards away from the ski lodge. He jumped up and landed on his back, sinking into the thick snow. Then he began moving his arms and legs simultaneously.
"Snow angels?" Leo said, raising an eyebrow.
"The best snow angel wins!"
Leo took that challenge to heart. "Be prepared to lose, di Angelo."
"In your dreams, Valdez!"
Leo flopped on his back and quickly moved his arms and legs, copying Nico in his movements. The two boys laughed as they felt the snow seep into their boots and go down their shirts from the aggressive snow angel making. When they stood up, they were once again covered in snow.
The angels were exactly alike, besides Nico's being slightly shorter in stature. However, both boys playfully argued over winners.
"I clearly won with my exceptional snow angel skills," Leo boasted. He crossed his arms over his chest. "There's no if, ands, or buts about it."
"Oh yeah?" Nico snorted. "I started first and took my time, which means mine was carefully crafted for perfection. I believe I have won, thank you."
Leo narrowed his eyes. "There is only one way we can solve this."
"And what's that?"
Leo reached down and picked up a handful of snow. He began packing it together with his gloved palms. "A good ol' fashioned fight."
Nico saw where this was going. He grabbed his own snow and began mimicking Leo. "You're on, Valdez! Snowball fight!"
Nico threw his snowball at Leo, which caught the demigod off guard by landing square in his face. Nico laughed as he ran off, quickly being pursued by the son of Hephaestus.
"You're going to pay for that, di Angelo!"
Leo rushed after Nico and threw three snowballs at him, all hitting Nico in the back. Nico stumbled and fell to the ground. Just before Leo could launch another offensive, Nico crawled behind a tree and began building an arsenal.
"Come on, Nico!" Leo taunted. "The tree won't protect you for long!"
Nico smiled in spite himself. He quickly rounded up five snowballs in his one arm as he used the other to throw.
Leo just reached the tree when Nico jumped out and began volleying snowballs at his friend.
"Take that!" Nico shouted as all the snowballs hit an overwhelmed Leo. The demigod shouted a string of curses as he dramatically fell to the ground.
"I've been hit!" he said clutching his chest. "I've been shot! Soldier down, soldier down!"
"There's no one to help you now," Nico sing-songed as he sprinted a safe distance away. While Leo kept up his antics on the ground, Nico hastily began piling snow and packing it together. By the time Leo noticed Nico's absence, the son of Hades had a nice barrier to hide behind.
"Hey, no fair," whined Leo. "I'm going to need a chance to build my fort!"
A snowball came whizzing out of the air and hit Leo right in the chest.
"You snooze, you lose!" Nico shouted from behind his wall of snow.
Leo began making his own fort, which was similar to Nico's. If he had the time, he could have added a lot of cool aspects to it: a throne, maybe even a ditch for his arsenal. But alas, he had to make do with the time he had.
The boys volleyed snowballs back and forth while hiding behind their own forts. Things got intense when Nico climbed the tree from before and jumped right onto Leo's wall, smashing it. They then attacked each other viciously without any barrier for protection. By the time the boys grew tired and collapsed on the ground, they could hardly see the color of their clothes.
"You know," Leo panted, clearly out of breath from the battle. "If this were a real war, that would have been a suicide jump into my fort."
"But this isn't a real war," Nico said. "Rules like that hardly apply."
Leo laughed and tossed a handful of snow at Nico's face. Nico returned the favor.
"You were right," Leo said, wiping the snow off his face. "This was a lot more fun than skiing."
Leo reached out and gently took Nico's hand, which caught the son of Hades by surprise. They looked at each other, studied each other, and began to laugh at the fun they had that day.
Then Leo stood up, breaking that moment.
"Well, one more fun thing we have to do," he said as he brushed himself off.
Nico copied his friend. "What's that?"
Leo had that mischievous look in his eye, a twinkle that Nico grew to love.
"Do you wanna build a snowman?"
Nico raised his eyebrow. "Isn't that something from a movie you like?"
"I'm serious, dude."
"Well, yeah. Who wouldn't?"
Leo grinned like a madman. "Well come on! Let's go, then!"
They began to compact the snow together to form a small ball. Once it was packed in tight enough, they rolled the ball and patted it along the way until it formed the bottom piece for the snowman. They did the same two more times for the middle and top pieces. Once all three sizes were formed, the boys stacked each piece on top of another. The snowman now had a body.
"All we need are the details," Nico said. "I'll find some sticks for the arms and pebbles for the eyes and mouth."
"I'll get the rest of the stuff," Leo said. "Be right back."
Leo ran off in the direction of the lodge as Nico scoured the snow-covered land. When he finally found two twigs and a handful of pebbles, Leo was at the snowman, putting a hat on its head and a scarf around its neck.
Nico stuck the sticks in the snowman's middle piece and Leo put a pair of gloves on each stick. Nico then carefully put two pebbles on the snowman for the eyes and positioned the rest to create a mouth.
"Where did you get the hat, gloves, and scarf?" Nico asked, noting that Leo still had his own on.
"I took them from that Russian guy who made fun of us earlier."
Nico looked at Leo bewilderedly. "You did what?"
Leo shrugged as he grabbed a brown paper bag from his pocket.
"And what's that?" Nico asked warily.
"That guy's lunch," Leo said as he dug through the bag. "Oh, and what do you know? Look!"
Leo pulled out a plastic bag of carrots. He grabbed one and stuck it in the center of the snowman's face. The snowman now had a nose.
The boys stepped back to admire their work.
"Beautiful," Leo said.
"Ah, yes," Nico said. "Our creation: a snowman made out of snow, a stolen lunch, and kidnapped winter apparel."
"Hey!" a loud voice boomed behind them. Nico and Leo whirled around to see the Russian man from before barreling after them.
"You stole my things! Get back here!" The man was completely furious, shaking his fist in the air.
Nico and Leo exchanged a look. Without a word, they turned around and ran, giggling as the bewildered man crazily chased after them.
Nico,
Day 8. Location: St. Petersburg, Russia.
We should have gone to see the rest of St. Petersburg, but I guess being chased by that Russian guy put a wrench in our plan. Either way, we had a lot of fun failing at skiing, building snowmen, and having snowball wars.
Let's go back and do it all over again.
Love,
Leo
Nico set his new gift on his dresser. It was a touristy snow globe with a happy snowman in the center and a sign that said ST. PETERSBURG next to it. When Nico shook it, multicolored "snow" rained down inside. It couldn't have been any more peaceful.
Leo stood at the helm of his ship, gazing upon the beautiful buildings and architecture that made up the city of St. Petersburg. He wished he had more time to spend with Nico in the city, but he supposed the rest of the pleasantries of the day made up for it.
He leaned against his controls and sighed. This had so far not only been the best Christmas vacation for Nico, but for Leo as well. At this point, in his heart, he knew that the whole vacation wasn't just for Nico. Leo had helped himself.
Leo shivered against the cold wind and tugged his jacket around him even tighter. Tomorrow, if all things went according to plan, they would be in a much warmer place…
As always, thanks for reading! Tell me what you think of everything so far! More is to come shortly :)
~Serena
