Special thanks to everybody that has followed, favorited, or reviewed my story!
-At TailsDoll13: I'm so glad to have inspired you! I can't possibly express how much that means to me! *childish Will sneaks away and gives you a hug*
Thank you everybody who's reading this story! As always, you are INCREDIBLE!
Will held Nico in an iron grip, and no matter how hard Drew tried to pry him off, his grip would only tighten. At first, warmth spread from Will's touch and branched out, spreading throughout Nico's body like the ripples from a pebble dropped in water. Then, he felt the energy like magic, and he figured something was going down that he may not be a fan of.
"Will, please-" Nico gasped, sucking in air and trying to catch his breath. Will showed no sign that he heard di Angelo, and Apollo frowned.
"Will," Apollo cooed. "I think it's time to let go."
"No!" Will turned and glared at his father. "I won't!"
"Will." Apollo's tone darkened, and a shadow fell across his face. "Let go of the boy right this instant."
Will wrinkled his nose, then faced Nico. His crinkled nose was only an inch away, and his blue eyes reminded Nico of the sky on a summer day except more innocent. Will pouted.
"You don't want me to let go, right?"
Nico could feel his face beginning to burn which only embarrassed him more, and he looked anywhere except at Will's eyes and kept as much space between them as he could. Drew cleared her throat.
"Will, let go on the count of three."
"You don't tell me what-"
"One."
A fleeting glimpse of panic crossed Will's face, but he didn't let go.
"Two." Drew lifted her chin and gave Will a threatening look as if daring him to test her patience. Will looked down at his feet and released Nico.
Apollo seemed impressed. "Well done, Drew. As for your quest-"
"Killing Python?" Drew shook her head. "How? Where is he?"
"To find him, you must seek my Oracle."
"The Oracle?" Nico asked. "But I thought it was-"
"No, not anymore."
Drew raised an eyebrow in confusion, but didn't say anything.
"Python is with my Oracle of Delphi, or he will be soon. You must find it, yet I must kill it."
Will's eyebrows furrowed. "Kill?"
Apollo gave Will an apologetic look, then continued. "Yes. Since it was my task given to me by Zeus, it will be my blow." He suddenly grabbed his head and clenched his jaw. "Quickly!" he continued. "Before Zeus knows that you-" He gasped for a breath, then collapsed. Drew grabbed him before his head struck the ground, then gently lowered him. She looked up at Nico, yet her gaze slid towards Will.
Will had sunk to the grass, his head in his hands. Drew raised her eyebrows at Nico, nodding her head at Will. Nico sighed, then lowered himself onto the ground next to Apollo's son while Drew watched the homeless god.
Urg. What was Nico supposed to say? Yeah, sorry that you want crazy and were hugging me and wouldn't let go until Drew counted to three. Oh, yeah! Python's after Rachel and Apollo has to kill it so we have to drag him around with us. Want some nectar for that head?
"Hey," he said instead. Will looked up at him, his eyes calmer like they were before he had glowing hands and attacked his dad. Thankfully, Apollo had cleared things up with all that, or else Nico would be afraid that Will was homicidal.
"Hey?" Will lowered his hands and stared at them. "What... what happened?"
Nico blinked. "You don't remember?" Will shook his head and his gaze slid towards Apollo. His eyes widened and he tried scrambling to his feet, but Nico put a hand on his shoulder surprising both himself and Will. Will looked down at him, and Nico quickly let go. "Apollo's fine," he said hurriedly. "You cured him, at least for a little bit. He just... got tired."
Will's eyes narrowed. "Really," he said dubiously. "He got tired."
Nico forced himself to stop fidgeting. "Something like that."
Will sighed. "And what happened to me?"
Drew met Nico's gaze and he could feel the silent argument.
Tell him, she insisted. Nico glared at her.
No. He'll only be upset with himself.
"He doesn't want to be in the dark," Drew said.
Nico scowled. "It's better than-"
"Than what? Him hugging people? At least he acknowledged you."
Will rolled his eyes and sighed, exasperated. "Do I even want to know?"
"No."
"Yes."
Drew and Nico glared at each other. Apollo grumbled, "I am Freeeeed."
"You took on Apollo's... illness," Drew finally said, and Nico huffed. "Zeus dressed Apollo like he was homeless, then cursed him so that he would act that way except really crazy or weird or whatever. When you took that curse, you acted like you were three or something."
Will paled. "Huh?"
"You, like, imprinted on Nico or something."
"Not really," Nico grumbled. Drew rolled her eyes.
"Fine. You were just hugging Nico a lot, and you snapped at Apollo. I had to count to three before you let go."
Will frowned. "Oh." His gave Nico a sideways glance. "Sorry, di Angelo."
"Yeah, well she didn't mention the knife."
Will eyebrows rose. "Knife?"
"You were holding a knife and trying to get to your dad. Your intentions were unclear."
Will snorted. "Sounds crystal to me."
"Oh, yeah."
"Obviously I wanted to stab you."
"You were hugging me."
"I was manipulating you to soften you for the kill."
Nico stifled a grin and looked away, but Will caught the smile and his eyes twinkled.
"I saw that," Will taunted. "Death Boy likes me."
Nico eyes widened and he whipped around. "What?!"
Will stepped back, his mouth forming an O. Alarm flashed across his eyes. Drew looked up from prodding Apollo, who grumbled in protest. She watched Nico knowingly.
She already figured it out, he thought grudgingly. He never even told her. She heard rumors and put the pieces together, not to mention that she was the daughter of Aphrodite, so she probably would've figured it out anyway.
Will, on the other hand, hadn't heard Nico admitting that he had a crush on Percy, at least Nico didn't think he did.
Will put on a smile. "Hey, di Angelo," he said, patting Nico on the shoulder, and Nico breathed a sigh of relief. "Relax. I didn't mean to freak you out or anything." Something flashed across his eyes, but it passed too quickly for Nico to recognize it. Disappointment, anger, amusement? But Will had already turned towards Apollo. Drew stepped away so Will could talk with Fred/Apollo, then ambled up to Nico, her face grim.
"What was that?" she demanded, and Nico cast her a dark look.
"Excuse me?"
She should've backed off. Most people did. She was either stupid or really stupid because she held her ground.
"You just flipped out. Surely you're not that sensitive."
Anger pulsed through his veins and his fists clenched, yet he swallowed his pride. His hands relaxed and he looked away. "I know," he grumbled, feeling like a scolded eight year-old. "I know that's not..." His gaze flicked towards Will, who was crouched next to the god, and he lowered his voice. "I know that it's not what he meant. He just.. caught me off guard."
"There's no reason to be on-guard in the first place, Nico," she said softly, shocking Nico. Drew never seemed like the comforting type back at Camp Half-Blood. She was all wrapped up in breaking hearts. But if she had a different plan in mind to break Nico...
She wouldn't. This seemed like genuine concern.
"We've got a problem," Will said, wrapping an arm around Apollo and helping the god to his feet. "We don't know Apollo's task."
"Actually," Drew drawled, and Will's lips parted and he squinted like You've got to be kidding me. "We already know," she continued. "He has to kill Python. And we can't do it for him, so you'll have to do that whole cure-thing again."
"But-"
"And Python is with the Oracle, a.k.a. Rachel, and she's, like, at Camp Jupiter."
"Hold it," Will said, holding up his hands. "I have no idea how I cured Apollo. My hands just randomly started glowing. Also, Camp Jupiter is, well, far."
"That's one of the biggest understatements I've heard all week," Nico grumbled. Will glared at him.
"I'm just saying that we can't exactly take the bus there."
"No kidding."
"Did I ask for your input, di Angelo? I don't think so." Will lifted his chin stubbornly, and Nico matched his glare. They remained like that for a few moments until Nico finally looked away, sighing.
"Okay," Will continued, "so we have to make it to California, and we can't exactly bring Apollo on a plane or Zeus would accidentally shoot us down. Any ideas?"
Nico raised a hand, then quickly put it down. "I'll shadow-travel us there," he said, and Will's face grew stern.
"No, Nico. Doctor's orders."
"Will-"
"Nico, you know what-"
"Listen to me," he hissed, and Will opened and closed his mouth, seeming indecisive. Nico took the opportunity. "Will, when… when you're hands were glowing and you wanted to see if your powers worked, I felt... stronger. It was like you healed me or something. Whatever it was, I know I can do it. I can use my powers. Please, Will. Trust me."
Nico didn't know if he could shadow travel, but it was there best chance. And he wasn't lying when he said he felt something. He was sure that Will noticed it, too. Surely, whatever that magic was, it gave him enough power to shadow travel.
Will clenched his jaw and released a deep breath.
"And we've got another problem," Drew said, reaching for her sword. "The Kobaloi seemed to have gotten interested in demigods."
Nico turned around and caught a glimpse of glowing green orbs- their eyes. He drew his sword, and Will pulled his bow and arrows from Drew's backpack. He nocked an arrow but remained lax, not raising the bow. Apollo growled, viciously glaring at the dwarfs while hiding behind Will.
A Kobalos waddled out from behind a tree, his tufts of hair bouncing with each step. "Fear me!" he shrieked, and Will laughed.
"Fear you? You're dreadfully outnumbered. What do expect to-" His sentence was cut short by a yelp of surprise, and Nico whipped around to see a Kobalos clinging to his shoulders. Will tucked and rolled, squashing the Kobalos beneath him, yet it screamed at him in determination while it snatched arrows and snapped them in half. Apollo jumped away to cower behind Nico, but Nico tore off after the Kobalos, brandishing his sword.
The Kobalos skittered away, its pockets suspiciously fatter than before he attacked Apollo's son. Will leaped back to his feet and reached for an arrow only to find that his quiver was empty, so he began searching the grass. Nico leaped at the Kobalos.
It cartwheeled away and Nico skidded to a halt, grinding his teeth. If this creature wanted to play games, then fine, but Nico wasn't about to hand over a win.
Hands tore upwards through the grass and grappled for the Kobalos, and passersby sprinted away, shrieking. Nico didn't know what they were seeing, but apparently it wasn't all that pleasant.
Drew was sprinted after the other Kobalos, shouting out, "Let me catch you!" and, "You really, really want to let me kill you!"
That would normally seem very strange, but Nico reminded himself that she was using charmspeak. Besides, he had his own Kobalos to worry about.
Nico was just about to march forward and give the dwarf a nasty haircut when it soured backward with a yelp. Before Nico could blink, the little guy was pinned to a tree by five arrows: two fastened the shoulders of his shirt to the tree, two tacked his pants, and one was frighteningly close to an especially sensitive spot. Nico glanced back at Will, who lowered his bow. In two long strides, he was standing in front of the Kobalos. He snatched the last arrow from his quiver and nocked it.
"Nice shot?" the dwarf tried. Will's gaze narrowed.
"What do you mean?" he hissed. "I missed."
Nico glanced back and forth between the two, frowning.
"The rest of my arrows," Will growled. "Hand them over."
The Kobalos swallowed, then slowly reached into his pocket and tossed a pile of broken arrows onto the ground. Will stared down at them, then raised his bow and pointed it at the Kolabos' nose. "Your name and what you want," he demanded.
"We-we were sent here," the Kobalos stuttered. "I'm Sillus. My brother, h-he's Triballus."
"Who sent you and why?" Will said slowly, his voice sending a chill down Nico's spine. It seemed that Apollo's son could be threatening when he wanted to.
"Z-zeus," Sillus stammered. "He said we would get a really awesome reward. He just wanted us to delay you for as long as we could." He gulped and eyed the bow warily. Will glanced at Nico.
"Where's Drew?" he asked.
"She went after the other one. Triballus."
"Well, she took the rest of my arrows with her." Will regarded Sillus thoughtfully, then walked up to Nico. "What should I do with them?" he asked quietly. Nico sighed.
"I don't know. We shouldn't bring them with us, so maybe we can tie them to a tree and have Drew use charmspeak on them, then I can shadow travel us to Camp Jupiter before they can get loose."
Will dipped his head, his blue eyes worried. "Nico, are up for that? Really."
Nico suppressed a groan. "Yes, Will. I'm fine." He held out his hands to Will, forcing away the urge to draw back. "You can check."
Will met Nico's gaze and stared at him for a minute, watching him with a slight smile tugging at his lips, and the look made butterflies dance in Nico's stomach. He finally grabbed Nico's hands, and Nico shuddered as he felt the shock. Even if it was becoming familiar, the feeling wasn't something that he'd ever feel comfortable with.
Will's eyebrows creased and he looked back up at Nico. "Di Angelo, you're... you're fine."
Nico didn't pull his hands away. He didn't want to. "I know. That's what I've been telling you this whole time if you've been listening to anybody but yourself."
"Hey, we already established that everyone loves listening to me talk. It's not my fault that my voice so great."
Nico rolled his eyes, and a cursory glance caught Sillus trying to pull out the arrows pinning him to the tree.
"Secure Sillus and let's go find Drew, okay, Narcissus?"
Will's smile widened. "Sure thing, Death Boy."
"Hey-"
"Ah-ah," Will said, waggling a finger at Nico. "You call me Narcissus, I call you Death Boy."
Nico set his jaw and grumbled, "Whatever. Just check on Sillus. There's no way the arrows are gonna hold him any longer."
Will shrugged. "You'd be surprised. Those babies are pretty strong."
Just to prove his point, Sillus gave the arrows a hard yank. Nothing happened. Will turned back to Nico, beaming. "Told you."
A drawn out groan sliced through the air, and Drew came trekking into view, gripping Triballus by the ear. She tossed her hair back, exasperated.
"Thanks for the help," she snapped. Will held his hands up defensively.
"Sorry, Drew. We were busy."
"Yeah, sure." She glanced down at Triballus. "Go tie you and your brother to that tree."
Triballus obliged, grabbing the rope that Drew held out to him. When he finished, Drew adjusted it and tightened it until they could barely move.
That's when they realized they were forgetting someone.
"Apollo," Nico whispered, his fists clenching. "Where in the name of the gods has he gone?"
Drew pursed her lips. "There were two of you here, and neither one of you thought to check on him? Will, I'm mostly talking to you."
Will's eyes grew wide. "What? Why?"
"He's your dad! Now go find him. It shouldn't be too hard. He's probably scaring people. Nico and I will watch the Kobaloi. Right, hon?"
She faced Nico expectantly, and Nico nodded. "Yeah. Fine."
"Good. Will, don't get yourself killed." She pulled off her backpack and tossed him a few arrows. "You seemed a little short," she remarked, her eyes flicking towards the broken arrows scattered across the ground.
Will nodded. "Thanks. I'll be quick." With that, he turned and jogged off. Drew's watched him go, and a sad look tugged at her eyes.
"He's okay, right?" she asked.
"I think so. We'll just have to find out what happened with him when he healed Apollo so he can figure out how to do it again when we see Python."
"Mm-hmm." She tilted her head. "Nico, don't encourage him to do anything stupid, okay?"
He blinked. "Uh, okay. Why?"
She smiled. "You two always seem to be trying to fight it out, like who's stronger than who."
"Not really-"
"Yeah, you have. Just don't get each other killed, alright, hon?"
Nico looked away. Of course. He would never let Will die on him. However, he couldn't make any promises on his part. He'd probably die if it would keep the others safe. He didn't want to let anybody else down. Not again.
"Alright," he said quietly. "I will."
Let me know what you want to see happen next chapter! I'm open to ideas and some nice dashes of inspiration from you guys! don't be afraid to review- I don't bite! Also, feel free to give me helpful criticism and let me know on any grammatical errors you have seen (I know how annoying and distracting those can be, and I'll try to change them right away!).
Side note: I have my finals coming up next week so I may not be able to publish this as quickly. I'll try to squeeze in some time to write! Please, don't hate me! Nico and Will can give you free hugs in the meantime!
