(POV change: Nico)
"You're sure that they'll believe you?" Ben asked grabbing Nico's wrist to stop him before he could walk into the shadows and make them take him back to camp. Nico sighed and turned towards Ben wrapping his arms around Ben's shoulders.
"I'm pretty sure." Nico assured Ben. "After all it would have been hard to follow Percy underwater. It's very plausible that I would lose him."
"I'll be watching." Ben stated. "If they try to hurt you I'll stop them."
"I know." Nico said laughing softly and kissing Ben lightly. "If they do you can interfere but don't kill anyone okay? Not yet."
"Okay." Ben sighed. "Are you sure you can even do this? You can lie to most of them but… your sister?"
"I can lie to her. I've been lying to them for ages." Nico stated, a little annoyed.
"You've been keeping things from them. You haven't been lying. Besides they didn't know anything before, now that they know a little they might be more-" Nico covered Ben's mouth.
"If you make me nervous I definitely won't be able to." Nico laughed. He uncovered Ben's mouth.
"Okay." Ben said ruefully. "But if this doesn't work I am going to be your knight in shining armor and save you whether you want to be saved or not."
"Okay." Nico said laughingly. "Can I go now then?" Nico asked and Ben let go, reluctantly letting Nico step into the shadows.
He appeared on the porch of the big house and immediately went inside. As he suspected he found everyone in the conference room. They were planning again. They looked up when he came in. Hazel was there so they must have involved the Romans. Wonderful.
"Where did you disappear to?" Annabeth asked immediately.
"I tried to follow Percy." Nico responded without missing a beat. "I thought it would be useful to know if and where they have their base."
"Did you manage it?" Annabeth asked quickly.
"No." Nico said shaking his head. I lost him while he was underwater." Nico said meeting Annabeth's eyes but he could see both Hazel and Jason frowning at him. He looked over Annabeth's shoulder and met Hazel's eyes. "I thought I might be able to follow the feeling of his soul but I don't know it well enough."
"That's okay Nico." She said smiling at him. "It was good of you to try." He smiled back at her.
Jason however was still frowning at him and when Nico tried to meet his eyes it was harder. Jason knew how much Percy had meant to Nico in past. Jason had been the first of the demigods to accept Nico, it was harder to lie to him. It didn't feel like proper repayment. Jason's eyebrows snapped together into a frown. But he didn't say anything.
Instead he pulled out the empty chair next to him and gestured for Nico to sit. Nico bit his tongue, but Hazel had noticed and pushed him towards the chair so he sat. Insisting he sat next to someone else would raise Jason's suspicions even more.
Nico didn't contribute much as the meeting continued because they were mostly talking about organizing search parties to try and find the creeps headquarters. That went on until there was a break to stretch. Nico got up and wandered around the room and Jason cornered him.
"What are you hiding?" He asked curiously it didn't sound like he was attacking Nico.
"Nothing." Nico said trying to sound as truthful as he could and meeting Jason's eyes but he felt like Jason was looking through him. He had nothing to be guilty about, he was protecting his boyfriend but still Jason's open, trusting, eyes made him feel bad.
"You actually did find something didn't you?" Jason asked even more softly. "Why don't you want to tell everyone?" Nico looked away and shook his head. "Nico if you don't want to tell, it's probably all the more important that we know. Is it bad." Jason asked putting his hand on Nico's shoulder and meeting Nico's eyes intently.
""It's better if you don't know." Nico insisted giving up on trying to make Jason believe he wasn't hiding something.
"Wait you're hiding something?" While Jason and Nico had been intent on each other Clarisse had gotten close enough to hear them.
"No!" Nico snapped immediately. "Honestly Clarisse if you're going to eavesdrop you're going to hear things out of context and miss understand." But now everyone was looking at them and Jason was looking uncomfortable which was not helping.
"No I didn't!" Clarisse insisted. "What are you hiding?" She shouted and Jason edged away from Nico, going to Clarisse's side.
"Calm down." He told her softly but he didn't contradict her. Of course not, Nico had just stupidly admitted to Jason that he was hiding something.
"Tell us." She insisted to Nico ignoring Jason. Nico's hands clenched into fists.
"There's nothing to tell." He snarled at her. He shouldn't have, of course she didn't need anymore provocation to draw her weapon and lunge at him. There was a crackle of electricity and then there was someone between Nico and Clarisse. Someone in green. Ben grabbed the metal blade of Clarisse's sword, it hummed as electricity was conducted through the metal and then Clarisse was thrown against the wall.
"You shouldn't have done that." Ben said in a monotone voice, electricity humming in the air around. He was practically glowing from it. Everyone shrunk away from him except Nico.
Nico stepped forward wrapping his arms around Ben from behind. He rested to fingers against the far side of Ben's jaw and made Ben look at him.
"Ben calm down. If you hurt any of my friends, I don't care if I love you, I will dispel you." Nico said calmly. It didn't matter that Ben was already dead and technically more powerful than Nico. He was a ghost, that meant Nico had the power in their relationship.
Nico could feel the stillness in the air, it was like time had stopped. He didn't doubt that the demigods expected a fight but of course a fight didn't come. Instead Ben gasped softly and tilted his head back a little exposing his throat to Nico. Nico kissed Ben's neck gently accepting the sign of submission and then stepping away. Ben stepped back so he was a little behind Nico still glaring.
"I'm sorry about that." Nico said softly looking around the room as everyone stared back at him. They seemed to be in shock, Clarissa was still on the ground but she was still alive. Nico would have known if she wasn't.
"You're one of them too?" It was Jason who asked, his eyes wide and unbelieving. Nico felt his heart twist when he saw how hurt Jason was, Percy had been one of Jason's best friends and now Nico too.
"No I'm not." Nico assured him gently. "I've never hurt a human. I never will either. Or a demigod for that matter, outside of wars, I've never hurt anyone."
"Then why-?" That was Hazel. He smiled at her ruefully but then looked at Jason.
"Jason you're a Roman, but you love a Greek. If the Greeks and romans had gone to war what would you have done? You have people you care about on both sides. I care about you. Hazel I love you but-" Nico reached back to Ben and Ben took his hand immediately lacing their fingers together letting Nico do the talking now. "Ben's been my best friend since I was eight in the Lotus hotel. When I found him again when Jason arrived and Percy went missing it… it was one of the happiest days of my life.
"I've just… just been trying to avoid fighting against anyone I love I can't… I've already helped you win two wars. Can't you just... Do you really need another? I hate fighting and I can't choose. They've never made me choose. Even if you do have to fight can you just leave me out of it please?" He could see doubt on both Hazel and Jason's faces but Annabeth looked furious.
"We're supposed to protect humanity." She shouted at Nico. "How could you love him when you know what he does!?"
"Humans die Annabeth!" Nico snapped back. "They die every day every second I feel it, look." He stopped and expanded his awareness cocking his head to the side and snapping his fingers for the next three deaths he felt, it took less than a minute. "Deaths. All close enough for me to feel. Humans kill humans, sickness kills humans, age kills humans, accidents kill humans. Everything kills humans! And every human dies! Sooner or later, old or young, sudden or long, they all die.
"Demigods too! We all die. If you're uncomfortable with that, if that scares you, then that's something you have to work out yourself because you're going to die too! If you go ahead with this stupid pointless war then it might be sooner rather than later."
"Both you and Percy are so sure we'll lose." Annabeth sneered putting her hand on her blade and stepping closer. Electricity crackled around the room making everyone's hair stand on end.
"Maybe there's a reason for that." Nico snapped. "Because I won't fight with you in this war and I'm the only one that can get rid of things that are already dead! Ben's already dead, Sally's already dead, Scarecrow, Jane, Jeff. More of them! I could probably send them away but I won't. Can any of you do it?" He said glaring around them.
"Traitor." Clarisse growled. Finally seeming to regain control of her twitching body and starting to stand.
"I'm not a traitor!" Nico snapped at her. "I won't fight against you. I would never want to hurt any of you! You're the ones making me choose! I was just hoping for a little peace after the last war! I nearly killed myself for you people and you still think I'm a traitor? Can I do nothing good enough for you!" He was shouting now. "Bring the armies of the underworld to save your asses during the Titan war, Travel across the world dragging a giant statue during the giant war and nearly MELT to save you all, and you're asking more of me!? You're not only asking me to fight in a third war for you, but you're asking me to fight against people that I love!
"How's that for gratitude! To me and to Percy. He's helped save the entire population on this planet twice! So what if he's killed a few dozen people? They all would have been dead without him anyway and they would have died eventually despite anything! You think this war would change anything? Humans always die it's what they DO! Who are you going to go to war with next to try and stop that? Thanatos and the Keres? Or my father himself? Well good luck dying to try and stop death I will not be joining you!"
Once he finished complete silence fell. Even Ben was staring at him now. Nico stood, his fists clenched and his chest heaving. He glared around the room. He relaxed a little when his eyes landed and Jason and Hazel who were both looking a little scared and startled.
"Jason, Hazel, please be careful. I really do care about you too. I'll be praying for you through this. You and Reyna." He turned to Ben and gave him a thin smile. "I think we should leave now." Ben nodded and Let Nico pull him into and through the shadows of a corner. Nico didn't take them back to Slenderman's mansion. Instead they ended up in the woods nearby.
Ben pulled Nico into a hug immediately as Nico started to cry. He wasn't even sure he was sad, just overwhelmed. Angry, hurt, confused, there was too much happening in his head and it just started to spill over. Ben didn't say anything. This was a human thing he didn't understand, but that didn't matter because he understood that Nico was hurting so he just held on and let Nico cry.
"That didn't go as planned." Ben commented when Nico has subsided to sniffles.
"Nope." Nico agreed.
"Should I have just stayed away?" Ben asked awkwardly. Nico shook his head.
"No it's okay." He said softly.
"You can fight with them if you want." Ben said softly. "We won't mind."
"No I don't want to fight anyone!" Nico insisted and sighed. "I just want my sisters to be safe. You too, but they can't hurt you can they? And all of you can hurt my sisters."
"I'll try to look out for them." Ben promised softly giving Nico a gentle squeeze.
"Thank you." Nico mumbled.
"Anything for you doll, and you know it." Ben said making Nico chuckle softly.
"This'll all be over quickly. I just hope they'll still want anything to do with me." Nico sighed pulling away from Ben a little. Ben pulled him back in and kissed him gently.
"Hey no matter what you'll always have me and the rest of the creeps. That's something right?" Ben said softly cupping Nico's face in his hands.
"Yep." Nico said smiling at Ben and wrapping his arms around Ben's waist again. "That means a lot."
"You know." Ben said and hesitated for a minute. "I won't fight if you don't want to me. I'll sit this one out if fighting, and maybe hurting or even killing some other demigods would make you think less of me."
"No." Nico said softly pressing against Ben reassuringly. "They're the ones looking for a fight. Why would I think less of you for giving them one? I just think less of them for starting it."
"Okay then!" Ban said happily. "Are you going to be okay now? Do you want to go back to Slenders' or just chill here?"
"Let's go back." Nico agreed quickly. "And find something to play. The real world is to complicated right now."
"Sounds good to me." Ben said and lead the way out of the woods holding Nico's hand.
A/N One chapter from Nico, one from Drew then back to Percy to wrap this up.