Nico

The months leading up to the birth were exhausting. Leo was always worried about Calypso, and sometimes Nico would find clumps of Leo's hair in the bathroom sink where he had been pulling it out from stress.

Nico and Leo had begun to share a cabin. Normally, Nico didn't stay at Camp Half Blood for very long, but now he had Leo. Because there weren't any other children of Hades aside from Hazel, who was technically the daughter of Pluto, Nico's cabin was practically empty. Hazel didn't even stay in the Hades cabin. She still stayed in her room on the Argo II, which sat in the woods outside of Bunker 9. Leo had begun to stay in the Hades cabin with Nico. It was always dark in there, which Nico thought Leo wouldn't like. Leo had adapted though, and he made the dark cabin bright.

Seeing his bright friend in such a worried state made Nico sad. Leo didn't do well under pressure.

Well, he could make, fix, and invent things of exceptional quality under pressure, but this kind of pressure... this was just different. This had to do with human beings, not machines.

Nico didn't let on that he noticed, but sometimes late at night Leo would cry. Nico always wanted to slip into bed with him and wrap his arms around him and tell him everything would be alright, but of course he wouldn't do that. He was incredibly shy, even around his boyfriend. He loathed himself for it.

Still, he was supportive in the little ways that he could be.

He would occasionally shadow travel into nearby towns and buy baby supplies. He would also buy orange soda, which Leo liked. It calmed him down.

He would write nice little notes on scrap pieces of paper and put them under Leo's pillow. Things like "I liked the toy robot you accidentally built today" or "It's cute when you get grease stains on your forehead." Nothing too corny or sweet, just little things. Nico was good at little things.

When Leo would toss and turn from nightmares, Nico would make sure he woke up to an old black-and-white movie playing and some fluffy blankets. He was always too nervous to wake Leo, but he could ensure his comfort when he awoke.

Nico found that taking care of Leo was like carrying laundry if Leo had the basket. Leo would go about, carrying a heavy load, and Nico would trail behind, picking up the socks he dropped. If Leo tripped and fell, Nico would help him pick up the basket and help him carry on. Reassuring Leo was exactly like laundry.

Leo never kissed him anymore. Sometimes, if it was a good day, Nico would kiss Leo on the cheek. They hadn't actually kissed in a while, because Nico was too timid to try and Leo was too busy to notice.

Still, Nico was determined to be there for Leo, even if Leo was slipping out of his reach.

Annabeth

Good Gods, Annabeth thought preparing for a baby was chaotic, and it wasn't even her baby. Leo and Calypso would definitely make interesting parents.

Annabeth spent most of her time in camp classes thinking about the little family. A son of Hephaestus, a minor goddess, and a child of a demigod and a goddess. Wow.

She thought about them when she did archery.

She thought about them when she was on the canoe lake.

She thought about them when she climbed the rock wall.

The Valdez family consumed her thoughts.

Yes, demigods always made mistakes, but this was a whole new level of making mistakes. This was accidentally creating a human being. Annabeth was glad that she and Percy wouldn't be doing that, at least not anytime soon. They kept things simple. Simple was good.

She felt sorry for Calypso. Calypso had arrived at a camp of people she didn't know, only to announce that she had accidentally gotten pregnant. It hadn't been exactly flattering to her character. Annabeth didn't judge her. It hadn't even occurred to her to judge Calypso. She just felt sorry for her.

On the bright side, Calypso was actually really cool. She was a little flirty and stubborn, but so were most of the Aphrodite campers (with the brilliant exception of Piper). Despite her little flaws, she was smart. She was smarter than she let on, actually. When Annabeth was designing things for Olympus, Calypso would watch over her shoulder and occasionally point things out Annabeth failed to notice, like a miscalculation here, or an arch that didn't match a curve somewhere else there. But she wasn't obnoxious with her intelligence; she was quiet and kept it concealed. Calyspo was great at canoeing, and all of the nymphs adored her. She sang the loudest at camp fires, and she was pretty good at painting. She fit into the camp, even though some of the other campers looked down on her because of the baby.

Annabeth didn't look down on her in the slightest. In a way, she looked up to Calypso.

Annabeth pondered these things while she absentmindedly flipped through the pages of an architecture book that Percy had found for her, when all of a sudden there was a knock at the door.

"Come in!" She called without looking up.

Hazel stepped into the room.

"Hey," she said, tucking her hair behind her ear, only to have it fall back into place.

"Hey, Hazel!" Said Annabeth cheerily, wondering why Hazel was here. Hazel was awesome, but wasn't generally one to randomly seek out Annabeth.

"Hi, um... could we talk?"

"Sure!" Annabeth closed her book and moved over on her bed so that Hazel could have room to sit. Hazel brushed her lap and sat down, fidgeting with the ends of her wild hair.

"I had a conversation," she said quietly.

"With who?" Annabet asked casually.

"Reyna."

Annabeth took a deep breath. She had been expecting this. Hazel continued. "Look, Annabeth, these past few months have been great. I've fully recovered from the quest, and so have the other Romans, Jason and Frank. We've all grown to love this camp and the people in it, but..."

"...but this isn't your home," Annabeth finished for her.

Hazel nodded, not meeting her eyes.

"Frank says he loves me. I love him, too. We want to walk the streets of New Rome together, under the columns and arches with music playing and the smells of things baking floating through the air. Camp Half Blood is a wonderful home, but Camp Jupiter is our home."

Annabeth understood.

"Why did you decide to stay this long?" She asked curiously. Hazel shrugged.

"I didn't want to seperate from my new friends right away. As for Frank and Jason, they have their own reasons for staying this long. But for me, it's the campers."

Annabeth's heart felt warm.

"Hazel Levesque, I am honored on behalf of every camper here." She smiled at her friend.

"It's time for me to go home with Frank," Hazel said.

Annabeth nodded.

"But... there's the baby," Hazel added.

The baby?

"You mean Leo and Calypso's baby?" Annabeth asked. Hazel nodded.

"We want to be here for our friends as they begin a new chapter in their lives. We will stay until the baby is born, and then we will go back to Camp Jupiter. That's where we belong."

"You are so wonderful, Hazel," said Annabeth, pulling her friend into a hug. "Camp Jupiter is lucky to have you."

Hazel hugged her back, and Annabeth promised herself to remember this moment when Hazel, Frank, and Jason left Camp Half Blood.

Leo

Leo bounced on his feet, not knowing what to do with himself. What did normal people do with themselves? How was their posture? How did they stand still? What did they do with their hands? Leo kept fidgeting with things he absentmindedly pulled from his tool belt and bounced from foot to foot, staring at drawings pinned to the walls of Bunker 9.

I'm going to be a dad. I'm going to be a dad. I'm going to be a dad.

"Hey, Leo," said a female voice, so unexpected Leo yelped and jumped a foot in the air. He turned to see Calypso, who giggled.

He sighed. "Hey, don't scare me like that."

She playfully punched his arm. "Sorry, Valdez. I do that."

Leo laughed a little, and looked at his feet. Lately, talking to Calypso had been awkard. He couldn't meet her eyes anymore. Not now, when he could see her stomach beginning to bulge.

"I brought you flowers," she said, and she held out her hand. Crumpled in her fist were some droopy dandelions.

Those aren't flowers, those are weeds, Leo thought, and he laughed a little to himself. He thought it was cute.

"Thanks," he said cheerily, slipping the weeds into his tool belt.

Calypso nodded. "So what are you looking at?" She asked, regarding the drawings.

"Oh, um..." Leo scratched the back of his head. He hadn't been looking at anything in particular, just abandoned projects. He hadn't even been thinking, just wandering. "Nothing," he responded.

Calypso hopped upon a tool table and sat there like it was her throne. She pointed her bare toes and studied them as if they were greatly interesting. Her white dress was spread around her like a cloud.

Leo looked at her, but she wouldn't look at him. She just stared at her toes and smiled a little.

Finally, he just turned back to the projects on the walls and ignored her presence.

"Don't ignore me," She said after he turned around.

Leo turned back to face her.

"Well you weren't saying anything, so I figured I'd just..."

"Leo, if I didn't want to talk I wouldn't be here."

"Then say something."

Leo studied Calypso, wishing she would stop playing games.

"I don't like Nico," she finally admitted.

She might as well have slapped him in the face.

Leo instantly felt defensive.

"And why is that?" He demanded.

"I don't know. He's creepy."

Leo couldn't help it. His hands burst into flames.

"How DARE you. You know nothing about him."

"I know that he's the son of Hades. And he's creepy. You aren't a cute couple."

"Calypso, so help me..."

Leo couldn't even think straight. He was fuming.

"Nico di Angelo is the most wonderful person I know, and how DARE you say otherwise. His intelligence and selflessness are incredible. I can't tell you how many times he's saved me on quests. But not just me. He's saved practically everyone at some point or other, even you."

"Me?"
"He helped us stop Gaea. If we hadn't stopped Gaea, everyone would either be dead or enslaved. That includes you, princess."

Calypso scowled. "Don't call me princess."

"Don't call my boyfriend creepy."

"Stop calling him your boyfriend!"

"Well what else would he be to me?"

"Um, I don't know, maybe your friend?"

"Yeah, my friend that I love and happen to makeout with all the time."

"Ew."

"Hey, I've kissed you before. And tell our daughter "ew". Because how do you think she got here?"

Calypso crossed her arms. "Do not bring my daughter into this."

"Our daughter."

"Whatever. Okay, other than being good at quests, what is Nico good for?"

The flames in Leo's hands burned even brighter anger.

"He loves me, for Gods' sakes! Even when he found out about our baby, he stuck with me! He forgave me! Because he's a forgiving, loving person. Maybe he struggles with sadness and doubts within himself, but that doesn't stop him from being nothing but supportive of other people!"

Leo's eyes began to water with rage. He couldn't believe someone could say such mean things about Nico. He just couldn't.

"Nico brought Hazel back from the underworld. Don't tell me you don't like Hazel."
"Hazel's cool," Calypso replied.

"And Nico, too. Right?"

"Whatever."

"Calypso. I don't care if you don't like Nico. But never say anything bad about him. Because I love him. He's comforted me throughout this whole baby thing. He got supplies for us. He helps me when I have nightmares. He's always been there for me. I would literally die for him."

"Why don't you tell him that?"

"I..." Leo faltered. Why didn't he? "I don't know. I guess I don't want to scare him."

"You didn't."

"What?"

Calypso whistled. "Nico, come on out!"

Nico crawled out from under the table Calypso was sitting on. His face was redder than the fresh strawberries from the strawberry fields, and he wouldn't look at Leo.

Calypso turned to Nico. "I told you you had nothing to worry about. He doesn't have feelings for me anymore. This boy loves you."

Leo gaped at them. He couldn't believe what they had done. "You guys..."

Calypso laughed. "Don't get mad at Nico. Get mad at me. I dragged him into this. And for the record, I don't think Nico's creepy. He's great. You two are a sweet couple." She hopped down from the table and planted a kiss on Leo's cheek. "Sorry to scare you." She smiled and walked out of Bunker 9, leaving the two boys alone.

Nico hugged his arms to his chest. "She made me do that. I swear..."

"Don't worry about it, man. I believe you." And he did. This was totally something Calypso would do. Man, Leo would never understand that girl. Then he laughed a little. "So have I scared you off now?"

Nico gave him a little half smile. "Nah." He grabbed Leo and hugged him tightly. Relieved, Leo hugged him back.

Nobody's Point of View in Particular

It happened on a bright day in June (it was the fifth, to be exact) in the middle of a ripening strawberry field. Calypso's head rested in the lap of her baby's father, and her baby's godfather (who happened to be the baby's father's boyfriend) held her hand. It took six hours. Aggie-Phae Summer Valdez was entering the world.

"Come on, Calypso! You got this!" Annabeth encouraged. Aside from Annabeth, Chiron, Grover, Leo, and Nico, nobody else was around to witness the birth. They hadn't put Calypso in the Big House because it might frighten other campers who went there with wounds. Instead, they decided to put her in the privacy of a clearing in a strawberry field. Calypso had wanted the baby's name to be Aggie Phae Valdez. Leo had pushed her to add a hyphen between Aggie and Phae so that it would be one name so that her middle name could be Summer. He had told her that he wanted Summer to be a part of her name for the season she was born in. Summer was the warmest, brightest season, and they knew their daughter would be just as warm and bright. So her name was Aggie-Phae Summer Valdez. Aggie for the Argo II, Phae for Hephaestus, Summer for her father's favorite season, and Valdez for her father's last name.

Leo

Honestly, Leo wanted to throw up. He hated this whole process. He couldn't look at it. Instead, he focused on Calypso's head in his lap. Her face glistened with sweat and her cheeks were red and splotchy. A few strands of cinnamon colored hair stuck to her forehead, and she pinched her eyes together when she screamed. He placed both hands around her head and moved his thumbs along the sides of her face. She kept screaming, and Leo couldn't look. Focus on her face. Nothing but her face, he thought. Although her face wasn't the most pleasant thing to look at. He hated to watch her contort such a beautiful face into such pained expressions. And he hated that he was the reason why she was in so much pain in this exact moment.

Leo was very aware of Nico holding Calypso's hand and murmuring encouraging things to her. It made his heart tingle at how gentle Nico was. It always amazed him how such a dark, powerful person could be so soft and good-hearted.

Grover knelt opposite of Nico, holding Calypso's other hand and telling her he loved her. Calypso had never told them that it was Grover who she had fallen for, but after putting the pieces together, everyone had figured it out. And nobody minded because they were sweet.

Annabeth and Chiron helped to actually deliver the baby, and they seemed so calm and confident that it left Leo in a state of awe. He would have thrown up if he had to do anything like that. Jeez.

Finally, the six-hour delivery was complete. Calypso shut her eyes and breathed hard, and Leo kissed her forehead.

"I am so proud of you," he whispered.

She was already asleep. Then the silence was broken by the very first cry of Aggie-Phae Summer Valdez.

Aggie-Phae weighed eight pounds and six ounces. Her eyes were bright blue, which was odd because neither of her parents had blue eyes. They were brilliant. She had dark tufts of black hair all over her tiny head. Her hands and feet were tiny and curled, and she was warm when Leo held her.

He sat in a rocking chair in front of the big house with his daughter in his arms. Calypso was napping in Chiron's office, and Grover was with her. Leo's friends relaxed on the porch with him. Hazel was braiding Piper's hair, Annabeth was reading something, Percy leaned against a post and played with Riptide, and Jason and Frank were playing some kind of game where you hold hands and slap the other persons hand and try not to pull away. Ouch. Nico stood behind Leo's rocking chair and pushed him back and forth slowly. Leo enjoyed it, and he was pretty sure his daughter did, too.

"You're a father, man," said Percy. He smiled, but it wasn't just one of those "I'm saying congratulations because I have to" smiles. It was one of those smiles you did when you saw something beautiful.

"I know," said Leo, although he couldn't really process it. All he knew was that he loved the little girl in his arms.

"So who gets Aggie?" Asked Annabeth.

"Aggie-Phae," Leo corrected her. Annabeth rolled her eyes. "And Calypso will be staying at camp with us, so we can raise her together. If either of us goes on a quest, Aggie-Phae will stay with the parent who remains at camp. It's really simple. When we're adults, we can try to live at Camp Jupiter and raise her there. We might not live together, but we can switch off. And we can still act like we're a regular family. We can bake cookies as a family and feed pigeons and do whatever picture-perfect families do. Honestly, we kind of already are a family."

Was it just him, or did Nico tense up behind him? The rocking of the chair became slightly irregular.

Hazel took a break from braiding Piper's hair. "I hate to ask this, but what about Grover and Nico?"

Yep, Nico definitely did tense up.

"What about them?" Leo asked. "If things go well, they'll live at Camp Jupiter, too."

"Yeah, but won't it be difficult for Aggie..."

"Aggie-Phae."

"Whatever. Won't it be difficult for her to feel like she lives in a picture-perfect family if she has two sets of parents?"

"Not really. It just means she had two sets of parents that love her."

Aggie-Phae made a soft gurgling sound. Leo thought it was beautiful.

He sounded calm and collected, but he secretly wished that his daughter could have a regular family. It really sucked that he had to love Nico so much, and that Calypso just had to be in love with Grover, and that Leo and Calypso were destined to not end up with each other. He didn't regret having a baby, though. He loved that baby with all of his heart.

Leo realized that Nico had stopped rocking him altogether.

He hugged Aggie-Phae to his chest and stood, then walked around the rocking chair and stood next to Nico. Their shoulders leaned on eachother. After a while, Nico un-tensed.

"Could I hold her?" Nico asked shyly.

"Dude! Of course! You're her godfather." Leo passed his daughter into his boyfriend's arms. It made his heart flutter to see how gentle Nico was with Aggie-Phae.

Everyone watched with warm hearts as Nico cradled the warm little lump of life in his arms.

Then a flame shot up from the bundle of blankets at his face, and he cried out in surprise. He still held tightly onto the baby, but his hair was definitely on fire. Percy summoned some water from a glass that had been sitting on the railing and sent it flying towards Nico's hair. The fire went out and the water vanished.

"Um, thanks," Nico said, his eyes wide as he stared at the child in his arms.

"That's my girl!" Leo whooped. "That's my daughter! Yeah!"

Author's Note: That's the end! Hope you enjoyed it! The future is wide open!