When I can't sleep, I type. So this is what you're going to get. It's the start of the downfall, you just won't know which couple is going to take the heat. Maybe it's Percy and Nico, maybe it's Jason and Leo. You'll just have to read and find out. The real deal won't happen quite yet, but this chapter will be bad too. I'm also rereading the Titan's Curse. Nico is adorable as a geek! And adorable when he's young and doesn't hate the hero. He was excitable when Percy, Annabeth, and Thalia first found him and Bianca.

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Nico's POV

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I was sore, and that was putting it mildly. Leo kicked my ass in sword fighting today, and he wasn't even the best with the sword. All throughout practice, I kept feeling the N on my necklace hit my chest, and I'd smile, lose my concentration, and Leo would wallop me with the flat of his sword. He would almost hit me with the edge, but he'd turn his wrist at the last moment and slap me with the flat. The last one he did sent my sprawling into the dust of the arena floor.

"How about we take a break," Leo said, helping me to my feet. I groaned in protest and sank against the arena wall, accepting a bottle of water from Leo. Jason lounged somewhere in the stands, reading a book. When he heard the sounds of swords stop, he looked up and wandered down the join us. He drew his own Imperial Gold sword, and he and Leo began sparring. I watched as I sipped at my bottle of water. Jason was a natural with his sword. Leo quickly broke into a sweat, and he frowned in concentration. Once or twice I seriously thought he was trying to separate Jason's head from his shoulders.

"Rest!" Jason called, and Leo promptly collapsed into the dirt, panting heavily. Jason laughed and stooped to peer at him. "You look a little tired there," he said, grinning. Leo glared as he rose to his feet, swaying wearily. "Careful," Jason said, helping Leo to the stands. "You're getting better," he commented, smiling at Leo.

"Thanks baby," Leo said, pecking his cheek. I finished the last of my water and tossed the bottle in the trash.

"Guys, look what Percy got me," I said, pulling the necklace charm out. I'd kept it a secret all day, and now that they were both here, I could show them. "It cost him most of his money from our shopping spree yesterday. He surprised me with it when we got back to camp." Leo gently took the charm in his hand and examined it. All my instincts screamed to take it back, but I bit my tongue and let him examine it closely.

"It's beautiful Nico," Jason said with a lazy smile. "You're one lucky guy. Percy's the greatest." Leo gave him a pout and cuddled up against him, and I chuckled to myself. "Awww, you're the greatest too, babe," Jason said, kissing his forehead. "No need to get jealous." Leo grinned at him and sheathed his sword. "I take it we're done for the day?" Jason said, setting his sword aside. I did the same with mine and tucked my necklace back inside my shirt, once again letting the cool metal rest against my skin.

…

"You good for noting twat!" I groaned as I rolled over in my bunk. Sword fighting wore me out so I was trying to catch some sleep, but Clarisse decided to pick a fight with the people from the Apollo cabin, again. I still had no idea what a twat was, but I'm pretty sure she was calling Will Solace that, since he's the only one she called a twat.

Abandoning the idea of sleep, I stumbled outside while slipping my shirt back on. It was dark blue today, with some band scrawled out on it in white. Leo picked it out for me, so he could tell you better what band it was. I went down to the creek where Jason and Leo were hanging out with Percy, Annabeth, Piper, and these two new kids Hazel and Frank, who I'm pretty sure were a couple and the only straight ones in our group. Percy caught sight of me first and ran over, the water shedding off him like a coat.

"Hey sweetie," he said, wrapping me in a hug and kissing me tenderly. Leo whooped in the background and Jason let out a loud whistle. Frank and Hazel looked mildly embarrassed but everyone else had grins on their face.

"Hey Jackson!" Piper called. "Are you going to share your little prince, or are we going to have to wrestle you both into the creek?" Laughing, Percy ran down and plunged in, hefting Piper up and riding on his own little wave around the creek. She screamed and pummeled him, but I just laughed and sat down on a rock by the shore. "You coming in di Angelo?" she asked when Percy finally let her splash back into the creek. Everyone was in, even Frank and Hazel. Hazel was on Frank's shoulders, and it appeared he had no problem holding her up. He was a big man by definition, and Hazel was on the small side.

"I don't really want to," I said, feeling shy all of a sudden. Going in required taking off my shirt and jeans, and right now I didn't want to. Percy studied me for a moment, then climbed out and sat down beside me, wrapping one arm around me. "I don't want to take off my shirt," I whispered, turning pink.

"Why not?" he asked, kissing my neck. "You have a wonderful body Nico. Show it off." He slowly lifted my shirt off me, and I let him, turning pinker. Once again, Leo whooped. Percy looked down at my chest and stomach. "Oh, your necklace," he said, understanding. "Just put it on your clothes Nico," he said gently, unclasping it. "It's not going anywhere." He set it down on my shirt and watched as I shed my jeans. No one was embarrassed now. We were a close group, and a welcoming one at that, seeing Frank and Hazel laughing and joking with Piper and Jason. I waded in and was met by Percy, who pulled me under and began kissing me in the little air bubble he created.

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Percy's POV

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"This has been great," Hazel said as I willed the water off of her. She slipped her clothes back on and wrapped herself around Frank, who kissed her temple. "Thanks for welcoming us into your group. You guys seem close knit."

"We are," I replied, turning and willing the water off Piper and Annabeth. They stood with their fingers twined together, and I smiled. It was good to see them finally sort their feelings out. Nico came up to me calmly, but in his eyes I saw the panic. "What is it sweetie?" I asked him, and he buried his head in my chest and burst into tears.

"My necklace is gone!" he wailed, and that got the attention of everyone there. Frank and Hazel looked a little confused, but Piper, Annabeth, Jason and Leo looked concerned. "I looked at my pile of clothes and it wasn't there!" he continued. "Someone or something stole it!" I looked around at everyone, and they all shrugged. I don't believe anyone in our group would steal Nico's most precious item, but all the same.

"Did anyone see what happened to Nico's necklace?" I asked. Everyone shook their heads, looking as baffled as I felt. Alright, let's spread out and find it," I continued, scooping Nico up and letting him rest his head on my shoulder. "Jason, do you think you could search with Leo down the creek? Piper and Annabeth, upstream. Frank and Hazel…" I paused, realizing they didn't know what it looked like. "It's silver with rubies and the charm is an N, for Nico," I said quickly. You guys check the west woods. I'll take Nico and look in the east woods. The groups moved off, scanning the ground. Jason actually called the winds and began searching through the tree line, trying to ask the tree nymphs if they've seen it.

"Will we find it Prince?" he asked as I slipped his shirt on him.

"I sure hope so sweetie," I replied, worried. "I sure hope so."

…

"Nico, I don't think we're going to find it tonight." It was well after dark, and we'd all met back at the creek. No one had any luck finding it, and we'd scavenged every part of the woods and creek. Nico burst into fresh tears and buried his head in my shirt, fisting it. "Thanks for helping guys. Anyone wanna help look tomorrow? I hate to ask, but…"

"Say no more," Leo said, holding up his hand. "Nico's our little buddy. Of course we'll help search tomorrow. Won't we guys?" The rest of the group nodded, except for Hazel and Jason. Both were curled up on the ground by the creek, out like lights. Frank gently picked up Hazel while Leo shook Jason awake and led him back to camp. Frank followed with Hazel, Piper and Annabeth followed them, while I brought up the rear with Nico. I was still carrying him.

"Will we find it Prince?" Nico asked as I tucked him in. I curled up beside him and pulled him close, kissing the top of his head. I ran my fingers through his hair and attempted to lull him to sleep. He yawned and held the shirt I'd left for him close to his chest, and I heard him sniffle a couple of times.

"We'll find it Nico," I replied. "It's got to around here somewhere. At least none of our friends have it."

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No one's POV

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"Are you sure this is a good idea Leo?" Jason questioned the other boy, wringing his hands nervously. He didn't like this one bit (and not just because Leo came and roused him from his sleep to do this). "That's Nico's necklace. Not just that, but it's the gift that Percy gave him. If Percy ever found out you had it, he'll kill us both."

"Relax," Leo said, digging it out of the small hole he'd buried it in earlier in the day. "We'll 'find' it tomorrow, return it, and everything will be golden." He dropped it back into the hole and scraped the dirt over it. Jason watched as the dirt covered the red N. He still had a bad feeling about this.

"What if someone finds us?" he asked, pacing. "What if someone discovered that we had it the entire time, that we hid it to have a little fun? I never expected Nico to burst into tears. I thought you'd fixed that?" Leo shrugged.

"Old habits die hard," he said. "Now let's get back before the cleaning harpies discover we aren't in our cabins and decide they want to have a midnight snack." Leo led a nervous Jason back, and unknown to them, a set of eyes was watching them.

"You are both dead men," Percy promised as he silently followed them back to camp. "First off for making Nico cry and second for lying about not having that necklace."

…

Who expected that? Maybe it's just a friendship that'll get ruined, or maybe it'll tear every couple apart. We'll just have to see.