Demigod Diaries - Lily VII
I just couldn't fall asleep. I kept thinking about Nico. He was so strange.
· He wore 'death' clothes
· He never cared how he looked
· He didn't comment on the insults
· He hardly tried to make friends
· He kept acting like he was in pain
· He was freaky powerful
The next morning, I didn't see him until he came running in at breakfast. His aviator jacket was flapping open, his belt chain hung oddly with the weight of his sword. He looked slightly pinkish from running and his hair was in a mess (though his hair had always been messy).
Chiron paused as he came huffing in. But he let him take his seat without a second glance. As Nico sat, May G. Carl from the Hecate cabin flicked her wrist and causes his chair to disappear. Nico went sprawling on the floor.
People started laughing. I couldn't see Nico's expression but he just pulled out another chair and sat down quietly. May G. Carl stopped laughing.
Chiron was still talking, but I wasn't really paying attention. I kept looking over at Nico. He was playing with the food on his plate, not seeming to put any in his mouth. I haven't really seen Nico eat anything since he arrived at Camp Half-Blood.
Over at the Hecate table, Fare E. Wan was shaking May G. Carl with a worried expression.
Chiron was saying something like "...please, no more magic tricks will be tolerated and will result in serious punishment from now on… monster classes will be canceled today, unfortunately… several Mythomagic cards were found, but if you don't claim them by Tuesday then… and the rest of the day will be spent preparing for this week's games; the Sword-fighting Competition! This event will be held at the end of the month, on Sunday as usual and everyone is expected to participate..." wait, WHAT?!
A SWORD-FIGHTING COMPETITION?
I would die in a sword-fighting competition. I'll be totally humiliated.
On the other hand, this might make the other kids respect Nico more.
As we were leaving, Will. Zard Kidd and Fare E. Wan, both from May G. Carl's Hecate cabin, started yelling for help.
Standing on my tiptoes, I realized what had happened.
May G. Carl was standing where the bench had been pulled away from. Hands outstretched, eyes half-closed, head lifted three inches from the ground, mouth open with a smile, frinch flying above her face, legs bent in sitting position as she stood.
She was frozen in time.
Nico stood further away from the group. I weaved my way out from the crowd of campers, struggling to get to him.
Chiron's voice cut through the noise. "What is going on here?"
Fare E. Wan called out to him "Chiron! Hurry! May's been frozen in time! She's gone cold!"
Chiron started trotting over. Nico sighed and snapped his fingers. Immediately, May G. Carl burst into laughter, stopping when she dropped to the ground. "What?" she demanded. "What are you all staring at?" Then she looked down. Waves of worry and confusion crossed her face. "When did you guys move the bench? What happened?"
Chiron huffed. "Madeline Georgia Carl, do not ever play silly jokes like that again. Please report to kitchen duty in twenty minutes."
Fare E. Wan and Will. Zard Kidd helped a very confused May to her feet.
Nico trudged towards the woods. He unclenched his fists and started running. The grass withered and died beneath his feet.
I looked back, then ran after him.
It was an hour before I found him. He was sitting in Bulls-Eye Clearing in a circle of dried yellow grass. He was plucking the petals off a pink chrysanthemum flower and moving his lips in the form of the 'Love me, Love me not' chant. He was working fast, winding every petal into a sort of pretty pink chain.
When he finished, he huffed at his bare stem and began connect the ends of his cord. Now he had a pretty pink yarn-like band in his hands.
I figured that now would be a pretty good time to go see him.
I stopped when his hands began to fly over the cord. They moved around and molded the cord into different shapes.
Nico's hands kept moving, weaving it into some kind of yarn statue. When he was done he sat it down, satisfied. I craned my neck to see... And stepped on a very loud twig.
The cord disappeared into his pocket and he put his hand on his sword. "Who's that?" he asked uncertainly.
I was worried he'll attack me so I pretended to have just stumbled over.
"Um... Nico?" I called. Nico's eyes bore into me, somehow making me feel slightly sleepy.
Nico relaxed. He came over and gingerly held brushed a leaf out of my hair. His pitch-black eyes made it hard for me to read his expression.
"I guess we better get back to camp." I told him. He only nodded. I tried to hold his hand but he flinched away from me.
As we walked in, a few girls started whispering and sneaking looks in our direction.
I felt a chill. There was frost gathering on the left side of my clothes and hair. Nico was acting like nothing had happened.
A boy from the Ares cabin, naturally a good sword-fighter, yelled, "Hey, White Boy! Bet you're not joining the competition, eh coward! You'll probably trip over your sword and fall!"
That was all it took. Ice spread from Nico's feet. Covering the ground. Heading towards him.
