Hello!
This is it, the last chapter. I want to thank everyone of you, whether you reviewed, followed this story or put this on favorite. THANK YOU! We were at 198 reviews when I posted this, so after this story ends we will have over 200, which is something I couldn't imagine ever achiving. Also, 132 Favs and 188 Alerts are worth throwing out another big Thank you all, I love you! I know most of you don't read my ANs (as proven by a little experiment in the last chapter ;)), but this needed to be said. The epligoue will be posted in the next few days.
I wish you all so much fun with this chapter!
See you one day (or in a few days, if you want to read the epilogue)
Chapter 29
Nico was woken up by Claire, who was shaking his arm. The son of Hades groaned and opened his eyes. Claire was standing right in front of him.
"Will told me to wake you.", she told him.
"Why?", Nico groaned and closed his eyes again. He was still tired. How long did he sleep?
"Because we will be there in a few minutes and he said something about sleeping on the train", Claire explained.
Nico looked around. They were still overground, rattling along between skyscrapers on both sides. Claire looked a lot calmer than twenty minutes ago. Hopefully she would stop being so annoying now.
"You shouldn't sleep on the train while having your younger sister with you, young man", a voice scolded.
Both Nico and Claire looked at the old woman sitting in the same spot as earlier.
"What?", Nico asked, completely confused.
"He's not my brother", Claire said.
"You left her unsupervised, which is really irresponsible. She was running up and down the train for the past ten minutes!", the woman scolded.
That explained why Claire wasn't so hyper anymore.
"And what do you mean he is not your brother? Why are you travelling with him then?", the woman continued.
"Because mummy said so", Claire told the woman. She smiled at Nico and climbed on the seat next to him.
The woman looked scandalized. She probably thought Nico was kidnapping her or something.
In that moment Will turned up next to them, preventing the woman from speaking more.
"You're awake!", Will exclaimed in fake surprise. "Claire must have launched a space shuttle next to your ear!"
"Shut up!", Nico grumbled and kicked Will against the leg. He wasn't that hard to wake up, his name wasn't Percy Jackson after all.
Will just laughed and Claire started giggling too.
"Anyway, Gina said the next stop was ours. So get up and to the door", Will said.
Indeed, the train was slowing down and people started getting up. Gina was already standing by the door, cap pulled in her face and sunglasses covering her eyes. She seemed anxious to get out in on of the most populated parts of Chicago.
Claire got up and grabbed her bag, before joining Gina at the door. Will held one hand out to Nico, which the son of Hades gladly accepted. Will pulled him up and then towards the door which just opened in that moment.
"Where to now?", Will asked Gina as they climbed down the stairs to ground level.
"Just over the river. Should be five minutes if we hurry", Gina responded.
Will nodded. He was still holding Nico's hand, which normally made him uncomfortable when done in public, but at the moment he didn't mind. He was way too tired to fully progress what was going on.
Claire skipped down the stairs in front of them, her bag bouncing up and down on her back. Nico wondered how she could still have so much energy left.
When they finally reached the ground, they turned left and followed Gina, who was striding ahead.
"Where are we going exactly?", Claire asked after a while in silence.
"To the train station", Will told her.
"And then?"
"New York"
"Cool", Claire commented and grabbed Nico's other hand. He frowned down at their intertwined hands, but shrugged and let her swing them around.
"We have to hurry, the train leaves in ten minutes", Gina told them, just as they passed Willis Tower.
Claire picked up her speed and was practically dragging the two boys down the street.
"Claire, slow down a little", Nico said.
"No! We have to hurry!", Claire responded.
"Yeah, but you don't need to run"
Claire huffed and slowed down a bit, so that she was just walking very fast. She let go of Nico, though.
Will started laughing silently. Nico frowned at him, wondering what he found so funny.
Before he could ask, someone bumped into him. Nico staggered backwards a bit, letting go off Will's hand in the progress. He turned to snap at the someone who apparently didn't have any eyes, but froze when he saw who it was. Not him again.
The others had stopped too and were now watching them. Claire and Will looked confused, while Gina looked disgusted.
"Well, hello!", the boy said, blue eyes fixed unblinkingly on Nico's face.
He lifted one hand and reached for Nico's face. The son of Hades took a step back and slapped the hand away from his face.
"What's your damn problem?", he asked.
"Stop playing hard to get, you know you want it", Creepy said and winked in what should be a suggestive manner.
Nico scowled. Apparently that creeper still hadn't gotten the memo that Nico wasn't interested.
"I really want to punch your face", he replied and crossed his arms.
"You two know each other?", Will asked and looked from Nico to Creepy and back.
"Sadly", Nico growled out.
"That's Cole Lampmann, you know, the guy we talked about on Thursday?", Gina told Will.
Will's frown was replaced with a scowl, as he turned back towards Creepy. He looked ready to murder the guy.
"Yes, and you are?", Creepy said and looked Will up and down in dislike.
Will snarled and lunged at the boy. His fist slammed into Creepy's already bruised face, breaking his nose and sending him flying to the ground.
"Will!", Gina gasped in horror, while Claire clamped her hands over her mouth in shock.
Cole was staring up at them in a mixture of shock and hatred. Nico blinked at his boyfriend in surprise. He didn't see that coming. Will was inspecting his hand, a frown on his face.
"You're crazy!", Cole exclaimed and staggered to his feet.
Will glared at him and raised his hand, as if he wanted to punch the boy again. Cole gulped and turned on the spot, running away. Will growled out something like 'I will be back in a second' and ran after him.
"What is he doing?", Gina asked. She looked furious. "The train will leave shortly"
Claire was staring wide-eyed at the spot were Cole was just lying. Two red drops had stained the pavement. People were standing around them, some looking excited and others scandalized. They needed to get away from there or they would draw even more unwanted attention.
Nico turned to Gina.
"Take Claire and get her to the train, pick up the tickets and go. I will get Will", he told her.
Not waiting for an answer, he followed the other two boys. Gina yelled something after him that sounded like a cuss word, but Nico was too far away to make out the exact wording. Not that it was important, Nico was focused on finding his boyfriend. The blond hair of the son of Apollo was easy to make out and so it wasn't all that hard to follow him.
They were passing Willis Tower again and running back the way they came. Nico didn't know if Will was still following Creepy or if he was just running around and searching for the way back.
Suddenly Will turned into a small alley between two high buildings. Nico skidded to a halt in front of it. A sound like someone hitting a wall was heard. Cautiously Nico walked into the alley and turned a corner.
What he found there was a bit … unusual.
Will, breathing heavily, was standing over the limp form of Creepy. That in itself wouldn't be strange, but normally Will was the one healing the person on the ground, not the one who was the reason the person was on the ground in the first place and needed the healing. That was normally Nico's job.
"Will?", Nico asked and tapped the taller boy on the shoulder.
Will stiffened and whirled around, fist raised. Nico was more surprised than hurt, when Will's fist met his cheek, but he couldn't help but say "Ow".
"Oh my gods, Nico!", Will yelled.
He reached for Nico's cheek, but the younger flinched back a bit, making Will's eyes tear up.
"Oh gods, I'm so sorry.", Will said. "Why am I always hurting you?"
He looked close to break into tears and Nico really didn't want that.
"Hey, I'm okay. It's fine, I shouldn't have startled you", he said, trying to calm his boyfriend down.
Will still looked distraught, but he nodded.
"Does it hurt much?", he asked.
Nico shook his head, even if his left cheek was throbbing painfully and he could practically feel a bruise forming under his eye. No need to worry Will even more. Will reached gingerly for the bruise and inspected it a bit.
"I'm sorry", Will muttered.
"I told you, it's fine", Nico protested.
And it really was. He could totally understand Will's reaction. Not that long ago Nico had slammed Will into the floor because he surprised him. He should have known better than to surprise Will like that.
Will looked miserable and Nico didn't want that. Will was supposed to smile constantly, not look like a kicked puppy. He reached up and pulled Will's head down to his, so he could kiss him softly on the lips.
"Seriously Will, it's okay. I had worse"
"I know, but then it wasn't me who hurt you. I'm your boyfriend and I'm supposed to protect you, not hurt you"
"I don't need protection"
"I know, but I just have the urge to...I don't know...make sure you're alright and away from harm. You're one of the most important people in my life and I want you to be happy. I feel like it is my job to make sure you get the happiness you deserve, but then I go and hurt you again and again", Will said. He dropped to the floor and sniffed. "I'm a horrible boyfriend"
Nico blinked in surprise. It had been a long time since someone said something like that to him. It made him feel warm and fuzzy inside, because someone finally, finally cared and that was something Nico never imagined would happen again. But now he needed to show Will that he wasn't a bad person.
Nico kneeled down in front of the other boy and put a finger under Will's chin, forcing him to look at Nico.
"You're not a horrible boyfriend, Will.", he said. "You're the best boyfriend anybody could want."
Will blinked at him.
"Really?", he asked hopefully.
"Yes"
A small smile slipped on Will's face and Nico couldn't help but smile either. He looked way better like that.
A groan pulled them from there thoughts. Creepy was sitting up, holding his head and looking around confused. His gaze landed on the two demigods a few steps away from him. The confused expression morphed into one of fury and he jumped up.
Will looked at Nico in panic, as if he had no idea what to do now.
"Please tell me you have a plan", he whispered.
"It wasn't me who ran after him, ready to beat him up.", Nico replied.
Will climbed to his feet and positioned himself in front of Nico, who was still sitting on the floor.
"You will pay for that", Cole yelled.
He balled his fists and charged. Nico was ready to jump to Will's aid, but he didn't need to. Will grabbed Cole's outstretched arm, twisted it around and slammed him head-first on the ground. Will held him down with a knee on the back and looked over at Nico, who was staring at him with an open mouth.
"Didn't expect that, huh?", Will asked cheekily.
Nico shut his mouth and scoffed. "Don't be too full of yourself, he is escaping"
Will looked down and indeed, Cole was wriggling free.
"Stop it", Will muttered and pushed Cole back on the floor.
"What the hell is your problem, man?! Who are you even?", Cole yelled. He tried to free himself again, but Will was fast to stop him.
"You want to know what the problem is? You are!", Will growled at him
"What did I do?", Cole asked. Then he looked at Nico. "Tell this weirdo to get off me"
"You kissed my boyfriend against his will, touched him against his will and you have the nerve to constantly hit on him, while it's obvious he doesn't want you to!", Will yelled angrily.
Nico couldn't help but think that Will was really hot when angry.
Creepy was stunned and kept silent. His gaze was flickering from Will to Nico and back to Will. Then he scoffed and laughed.
"You just want him for yourself. But guess what, he's mine!", he said and smirked
The look on Will's face was murderous.
"Keep dreaming", he muttered.
Then he smacked Creepy's face into the pavement. Cole went still and Will relaxed visibly.
"I think we-", Will started but was cut off when Nico practically tackled him to the ground and pressed their lips together.
"What do we do now?", Will asked.
He was sitting with his back against the wall of the alley, trying to smooth out his hair.
"The train's gone and we're stuck in the middle of Chicago"
"I don't know", Nico admitted.
He stood up and held his hand out to help Will up, too. Will took the offered hand, but still tried to smooth out the mess that was his hair.
"You look fine, Will", Nico told him, trying to get him to stop.
"No I don't.", Will replied. "Everybody will see that I was just making out with my boyfriend"
Nico rolled his eyes. Since when was he bothered by that?
He started to walk towards the street, Will was trailing behind a bit. Nico was thinking about their current situation. Gina and Claire were, hopefully, on the train to New York. They would arrive there tomorrow and then be picked up by a van from camp. The problem here was that neither Will nor Nico had told them about the van. They would have to send them an IM and tell them everything they needed to know. Until then, Nico and Will would probably go back to the apartment and maybe take the train tomorrow or a greyhound bus to New York. The only thing Nico was sure about at the moment was that they needed to get back to camp as fast as possible. They had their first completely monster-free day in a week today and Nico doubted it will last until midnight. And yes he counted the wind spirits from yesterday.
"Are you up for shadow-travel? We could go to the train", Will suggested.
"It would be suicide to try and shadow-travel into a moving train while I'm not completely up to par. And before you ask, New York is too far", Nico replied.
Will looked horrified.
"But you just gave me an idea", Nico continued.
"Will everybody survive this idea of yours?", Will asked.
"I should survive it. However, afterwards I will need some place to sleep for a while."
Will looked doubtful but after thinking about it for a minute, he nodded. "When do we go?"
Nico looked at his watch. "In about an half an hour. You want to get something to eat?"
"Sounds like you are asking me out on a date", Will said and laughed.
Nico rolled his eyes.
Will wrapped one arm around Nico's shoulders and pulled him towards him. Somewhere in the back of his head Nico wondered how Will caught up with him so fast.
"There is a McDonald's down the street", Nico said and pointed in said direction.
"We're not going to McDonald's!", Will protested."That's so unhealthy."
"Yep, still the same dork as ever", Nico muttered.
Will laughed again. "We are still not going to eat fast food. Doctor's orders"
Nico gave his boyfriend a disbelieving look. "You're not starting with that again, are you?"
Last autumn Will had finally stopped using that phrase, after Nico nearly killed him because of it. It had been really annoying.
"Apparently that was the only way to get you to actually do what was good for you", Will responded and shrugged. Or tried to, seeing as one arm was still slung over Nico's shoulders.
"By the way, do you want me to put some nectar on that bruise", he asked, now completely serious.
Nico touched the spot right under his eye, were a big blue bruise had formed. It stung when he touched it, but other than that it didn't hurt. He actually had forgotten about it.
"It's fine", he said.
They passed a small coffee shop.
"I could really use a coffee", Will said.
Nico lifted his arm from his shoulder and nodded his consent.
Five minutes later he was sitting in a comfortable chair, holding a steaming cup of coffee and listening to Will telling him about his dog and the day he locked himself in the basement. It was a really funny story and Will was great at telling it. All in all he was enjoying himself.
That was until an IM shimmered in front of them and they found themselves looking at the head-counsellors surrounding the ping pong table. Chiron furrowed his brows and looked at them questioningly.
"Where are you? Aren't you supposed to be on a train?", he asked.
"Well...we kinda missed it", Will admitted.
He ducked his head and waited for the scolding. Nico calmly took a sip of his coffee.
"You missed it? What about that girl you wanted to bring? And the demigod?", Jason piped up. He was leaning forward on the table and looked kind of angry.
"Don't get your toga in a twist, Jason", Nico said. "They are on their way."
"Wait, only you missed the train? Were you too busy to remember the time?", Percy asked. He wiggled his eyebrows and Nico wanted to throw something at him. Some of the others laughed and Annabeth leaned over and smacked him on the back of the head.
"Don't be an idiot, Percy", she scolded.
"Will wanted to beat someone up", Nico told Jason, trying to ignore Percy.
Will gave him a look that clearly said 'Traitor!'.
A shocked silence hung in the rec room on the other side of the IM.
"Will wanted to beat someone up?", Katie Gardner asked.
"Oh gods, that reminds me! We left him lying in that alley", Will exclaimed horrified. He looked ready to run out of the coffee shop and personally drag that idiot to the hospital.
"Who cares?", Nico muttered.
Chiron proceeded to ask them about their plans now and told them to meet up with Clarisse and Chris in New York. Nico ignored them mostly, leaving Will to handle the campers. He was content with just drinking his coffee and letting the caffeine wake him up a bit.
He glanced at the time on his watch and nearly dropped his cup. The time was already up.
"Will, we have to go", he told his boyfriend, interrupting him in the middle of a sentence. He swiped his hand through the IM and pulled his boyfriend out of the seat.
"Come on, Will", he said and pushed him out the door.
"What's up with you?", Will asked confused. "And do you have to be so rude? I was in the middle of a conversation."
"You can continue this conversation on the train, now hurry up"
They entered another alley and stepped into the shadows the setting sun cast on the floor.
"Where are we going?", Will asked.
"You will see"
With these words they were engulfed by the shadows and stepped out in a small corridor.
"I thought we couldn't shadow-travel on a train", Will asked.
"Not on a moving one, this one is currently stopping in one of the stations", Nico explained and grinned at the perplexed look he got from Will. "Let's find the girls"
Will nodded, grabbed Nico's hand and dragged him through a door and into a big compartment. They found Gina and Claire in a compartment three wagons down. They had to leave the train and get into another wagon to find them. Thankfully the train was parked in this station for a while.
"Will! Nico! Where were you!", was the furious greeting they got.
"Hey Gina", Will said and sat down in a seat across from her.
Seeing as he was still holding Nico's hand, he was dragging him down with him.
"Holy Hades! What happened to you?", Gina asked concerned and leaned forwards to inspect the bruise on Nico's face.
"Did you run into a wall?", Claire asked.
She was now sporting bright green hair. Looking at her it finally clicked. Only Aphrodite and her children were able to change their looks (take Piper for example), but Claire's godly parent was male. But Nico knew that Aphrodite also had godly children, one of them being male. Why shouldn't the ability of changing your looks be passed down to your godly children? So if this theory was indeed true, that would mean Claire was the daughter of Cupid, or his Greek form Eros, a god that wasn't exactly high on Nico's 'I like them'-list. Claire, however, was not her father and he actually kind of liked her. Therefore there was no reason to treat her any less.
"I accidentally punched him", Will said quietly and it was clear he was still feeling bad about that.
Nico squeezed his hand and shook his head slightly. A sign that he should stop worrying about it.
Gina and Claire were looking confused now, but didn't ask. Nico yawned.
"Would you be mad if I take a nap?", he asked.
Claire immediately nodded.
"Why?", Nico groaned.
"Who will play with me now?", Claire asked.
"How about you ask Will?", he suggested.
Will shook his head furiously, but Claire didn't see that. She was pouting now.
"But I want to play with you"
"Why?"
"Because I like you"
Nico was surprised at this. She liked him? Why would she do that?
"We can play tomorrow, okay?", he promised.
She was still frowning, but nodded.
Nico closed his eyes, leaned his head against Will's shoulder and finally relaxed. The train jerked into motion and they were finally on their way to camp, on their way back home.
