Nico pretended to drink his caffè d'orzo and watched the other campers as they ate breakfast.

The healers still hadn't returned his actual clothes yet and he had no choice but to wear the grey hospital gown and pajama pants issued out by them.

The hated IV made everything even more awkward. It was annoying, and always in the way. And even worse, it let everyone else know that he could barely take care of himself.

But no one really paid attention to it, or him.

Ungrateful aren't they? Not like you deemed their lives worth saving.

Nico ignored the voice of Minos. He put his drink down and turned to leave when Will Solace sat down next to him.

At the Hades table.

"What's wrong with you," Nico asked him.

I could ask you the same, Ghost King.

"You looked bored," Will said with a shrug.

"And you're lucky my dad didn't turn you into a pile of dust."

"Oh Hades doesn't scare me. That much. But I am worried about you."

So genuine. Yet by his own admission he's only trying to get in your father's good graces.

"That's not what he said."

"What?"

"Mimosa said I could leave the infirmary."

"For breakfast. You're helping me in the infirmary today."

Once a prisoner of war, always a prisoner of war. They want to lock you up again...

"What's wrong? You look pale."

"I'm the Son of Hades, pale and sickly is normal."

"Agree to disagree."

You see what I mean?

"Whatever."

"Hey, the deal was that you gain twenty-five pounds and you can move into your dad's cabin. You've gained eleven so far."

Such concern... Never trust a silver tongued son of Apollo.

"Shut up," Nico said.

Will stopped talking and gave Nico that look that he was beginning to hate. The one that meant he was really going to start pushing buttons.

"You're not eating so let's head back. I want you rest for an hour first and then I'll come find you. But let's walk by the lake first."

Will skipped rocks across the lake surface. A group of naiad's glared at him, only their eyes and long hair visible above the water.

Nico's skin began to crawl, watching the waves roll and the naiad's roll with it, moving with it.

"I want to see you try," Will said, dropping a rock into Nico's hand.

Nico threw it and it sank to the bottom.

Impressive.

Will picked up another stone and said, "Like this." He went through the motions slowly before throwing the stone. It bounced along the surface three times before sinking.

The naiad in front lifted slightly and hissed at them. She disappeared under the water with the rest of the group.

"They're in a mood," Will said, watching the spot where the naiads had just been.

Nico's second attempt skipped one time. Will smiled and walked over to him. "That's good but you're still not relying enough on your-" Will touched his wrist and Nico recoiled.

"Don't touch me," Nico shouted at him before he thought.

Will raised his hands slightly. "Hey sorry... I was just trying to show you the right way."

Ah there it is. Listen to him. He knows what's best for everyone.

"It's fine," Nico said quickly. "Sometimes I just react. I-I-."

Will took his wrist again and guided it in to the right angle, positioning his fingers as well. Nico felt a rush of warmth. Their arms moved in sync, drawing back and moving forward. "Now, just let go," Will breathed close to Nico's ear.

Nico watched the stone skip but then came to his senses. He pulled away again. "Whatever. This is dumb. I'm ready to go back in now."

"I'm sorry. Am I pushing too hard? Because before you couldn't wait to get out of the infirmary."

He's right about that. You don't know what you want.

"You were the only one who paid attention to me at breakfast."

"Oh don't worry. Everyone definitely noticed all the creepy staring and not saying anything that you were doing."

Bold speech from someone so beneath you.

"I didn't expect so many people to be there," he admitted.

"Crowds can be overwhelming," Will agreed. "In your head, in your head, they are fighting/With their tanks and their bombs/And their bombs and their guns/In your head, in your head, they are crying/In your head, in your head Zombie, zombie, zombie," he sang quietly. He turned red. "It's an Apollo thing. Sometimes we express our emotions through song when we don't know what to say." He made a face. "Or limericks."

"Limericks," Nico wondered aloud.

"Yeah." Will threw another stone. "My gifts are weird like that sometimes."

Nico laughed bitterly. "Gifts. I don't have any gifts."

"I think you have a lot to offer actually."

Minos had nothing to say to that. He seemed to retreat a few paces. Nico wasn't sure if he should be relieved or more worried.

"Shadow travel is useful. If only it wasn't so physically demanding."

"I'm not weak!"

"Such hostility. Chiron and I have a theory that since your gifts originate in the Underworld that they're not actually meant to be used by a living person."

"Oh please. I can travel to Japan and back and not even break a sweat."

Will raised an eyebrow and looked pointedly at the way Nico was leaning on the IV stand to stay on his feet. Then he seemed to be preparing himself for something unpleasant. "Judgement."

The naiads reappeared in the middle of the lake and went back to watching them. Nico stared back and tried to ignore Will.

"You unleashed it on the whole valley on the night Octavian lit up the sky."

Murderers, Octavian seethed.

"He-I-," Nico struggled to find an explanation.

But Will just shrugged. "I think about it a lot. Especially at night. We were relatives, sort of. We could have been friends. I was cheated of the opportunity."

A likely story.

"You don't understand. If he had stood there much longer the onager would have exploded. And the entire valley would have been destroyed," Nico said, growing even more defensive.

"I'm not blaming you. I mean, maybe I did for a minute but then I realized that's what he wanted. He wanted to go up in a blaze of glory and no one could have stopped him."

"I didn't mean for Leo to die," Nico whispered. "But he fired on the Roman camp and..."

"It was the only way."

Lies, Octavian taunted. You let me burn.

Nico shivered. "I really want to go back now."

Will hurled a rock straight out into the lake. "Fine. I have rounds to get done. You're not going back to your room to be all gloomy though. There are other people hurting in the infirmary."

Nico felt awkward standing in the supply room with Will but at least the ghosts were quiet.

He looked around the room. Everything was meticulously arranged. Towels, robes, medical supplies and healing herbs, mirrors of every size. He didn't know the first thing about healing.

"What am I supposed to do?"

"Walk around. Talk to people. Play Mythomagic with someone."

"Yeah right."

"Lou Ellen plays with you three times a week. I think you can persuade someone," Will said, pulling bandages from a drawer. He laid several across Nico's arms.

"Lou Ellen's eyes glaze over when I start describing the different cards. I don't think her heart is in it."

"Ah well, sit in the corner and take turns glaring at everyone. It worked so well at breakfast."

Will unspooled three rolls of bandages and started draping them across Nico's neck and shoulders.

"What are you doing?"

"I need different lengths." But Will couldn't keep from grinning.

Nico pushed Will away and looked at himself in a mirror. He started pulling at some light blue bandages.

"I turned you into a rainbow mummy," Will said, laughing.

Nico stopped untangling himself. His skin was lighter than the clothes he wore but just as gray and dull. The multicolored hues made this more obvious.

He didn't recognize himself anymore, he realized. He took in his bony face, his sunken eyes and looked over his shoulder at Will.

Will touched his arm. He traced the back of Nico's hand with his fingers. "There's nothing wrong with the way you feel. This isn't facist Italy." Will ran his fingers back up Nico's arm before backing off. "Tell me I'm wrong. Tell me you don't feel the same."

"I might...like you," Nico said.

"Wow. Coming from you that's practically a marriage proposal. I might like you too, Nico di Angelo."