Title: Promises
Pairing: Percy/Nico
Disclaimer: I so NOT own any Percy Jackson characters, they all belong to Rick Riordon.
Warnings: boyXboy
A/N: Sorry for all the mistakes you find :)
Also if anyone wants to be my beta and beta this, I'll be more than grateful!
Anonymous: I'm sure you'll like what I have in store for Nico ;)
XTheSonofHadesX: *does Dr. Evil's pinky move and in a creepy voice*I have plans for Nico…
Reining3: Nico's a stubborn one; it's like pulling teeth getting him to reveal his secrets!
PoseidonXHades1: Here's the next chapter :)
Thank you to all who reviewed!
Chapter three
"Stop it you crazy dog!" I groaned, pushing Mrs. O'Leary away from me.
For some reason she's adamant on waking me up during the nights. This started a week after me and Percy had our argument and it's been continuing ever sense. Sometimes the big shadow ball would bark and growl while other nights she licked the fuck out of my face. Tonight seemed to be the latter. Could this be her revenge for upsetting her master?
Her leathery tongue managed to slip between my fingers and reach my cheek. I scrunched my face in disgust as the saliva rolled down my chin. After a few more forceful shoves, Mrs. O'Leary finally relented and took a couple of steps back. Wiping her drool out of my eyes, I glanced at the clock, groaning again at the time. 1:47 a.m. the green lights blinked.
"Great." My face reacquainted itself with the pillow, simultaneously smearing the saliva and slowly suffocating me. "Just great."
Mrs. O'Leary barked, her massive paw clawing at the sheets. A warning, I guess, not to kill myself. I rolled my eyes and sat up. There was no way I was going back to sleep dirty, and taking a shower would just wake me up even more. Seeing no other choice (my face was starting to stink) I got up and took a quick bath. When I came out, the hellhound was gone. Probably went back outside to her post.
One quick sweep of the cabin with my dark eyes held no interest to me. I was wide awake now, no chance of falling asleep just like previous nights. Once again (this was starting to be a regular thing and I didn't think I liked it) I grabbed my bomber jacket and made my way outside. The roaming harpy's didn't bother me as Mrs. O'Leary always alerted me when one was coming my way.
The camp looked like a ghost town, being still and silent as death. Even the ever loud Hermes cabin was noiseless. I think the forest was worse though, stowing away mythical creatures and monsters from any prying eyes. The moonlight that illuminated the entire camp was cut off by the thick foliage, making the forest appear even more sinister and ominous than originally. Shaking off the urge to shiver, I patted the massive dog on the head, silently telling her to 'let's go'.
We headed in the opposite direction of the forest, the destination unclear. Mrs. O'Leary kept in stride with me, staying strictly by my side. She would occasionally lift her muzzle up, sniffing for any stray harpy's or potential danger. I stuck my hands into the pockets of the jacket, protecting them from the chill that overcame the deadened camp.
The soft gurgling of the creek soon reached our ears, signaling that we were close the some camp activities and the border. The creek was shallow and wide, some flat rocks that campers had placed jutted out from the water's surface. With ease, we followed the haphazard trail to the other side where the amphitheater was located. Deciding that it was a good place as any to occupy some time, we made our way towards it.
The big shadow ball yipped excitedly; tail wagging back and forth as she clambered down the many steps to the platform below. I followed at a leisurely pace, arching a brow as she started to hop and bounce around the circular stage I think chasing her tail. My lips twitched in amusement, fighting off the lingering grin that popped onto my face at her antics. I've never seen a hellhound act this way before. Ever. But I guess Mrs. O'Leary wasn't a normal hellhound to begin with. The first hellhound to be tamed and friendly and not at the beck and call of my father, Hades.
I laid down on the dirt, feet pointing towards the seats and folded my arms beneath my head. Having given up on bouncing around, Mrs. O'Leary trotted over plopping down next to me. Her piercing crimson eyes stared unwaveringly at my face while I made to ignore her and instead focused on the trillion of stars up above. There were hardly any clouds, making it a good night to star gaze.
I don't know how long we laid there, but sometime during I fell right asleep.
I was woken again by Mrs. O'Leary, but this time instead of licking me; she nudged my face with her wet nose. It was still dark out, letting me know that it was still early in the morning. I don't know how long I slept, but it didn't feel very long. Sighing I closed my eyes again before opening them to knock the sleep out of them. I should probably head over back to my cabin, check the time and see how long I have to wait for the day to officially start.
Turns out it was already 6:20 a.m.. By now, Mrs. O'Leary had left (her job was done, no need to stick around) melting into the shadows to God knows where, probably to go eat. Making sure I looked presentable enough, I went out to the dining pavilion for breakfast myself. The food was served from 6 to 9 the latest.
Only 5, including me, campers were already here. Two boys and three girls, who, by the way they were dressed, had recently come from a jog. How these people wake up so early and not be complaining flew over my head. If it was up to me, I'd be in bed till the late afternoon. I nodded to myself as I grabbed a plate and started piling some food on there. That sounded wonderful… no nightmares and no hellhound waking me up. "If only, if only…" I sighed.
The clink of the fork scrapping along the plate sounded louder than usual as I made a sacrifice to Hades. Idly I sat down at the Hades table, the thought of 'will I ever have another sibling?' passed through. I doubt it. Persephone rules over my father with an iron fist. She'd castrate him if he ever went to another woman for sex. Spending some time in the underworld did wonders to her personality (completely sarcastic). At least she was bearable to me, though I can see it was forced. Probably a little bitter towards the fact that I was the produce of her husband's infidelity.
More campers trampled in, grabbing their own plates and tossing food into the fire for their god parent. One of them being Percy Jackson. He glanced my way, eyebrows furrowing as his eyes caught sight of me. I tilted my head back down to my plate, noticing that I had eaten everything already. Through my bangs, I gazed around at the other tables, stopping briefly at Athena's table on Annabeth. Her grey eyes were pinned onto Percy, no doubt wanting to know what was up with the troubled face he was making. I can just see it within her facial features, all the different scenarios and hypothetical clues being pieced together to figure out what Percy was mulling over. Her quick wit was something I envied of her; it was a trait that made her even more beautiful and desirable. I'll never tell anyone that though, let alone her.
Biting my lip, I dumped my plate and headed towards the beach. I didn't feel like participating in camp activities. I wanted to test my luck in sleep, see if I could get a couple of hours' worth. The warm moist wind blew softly over the land from the ocean, chasing away last night's chill with it. Within five steps I could smell the salt from the ocean and walking further brought the sea into sight. It was breathtaking, seeing the sun rise above the cerulean horizon.
A large hand suddenly grasped my elbow in a hard grip and tugged, swirling me around to face the owner. Immediately the color of malachite swarmed my vision.
"Percy!" My cheeks flushed at how absolutely embarrassingly I said his name; breathlessly. He thought nothing of the exclaim as he stepped closer, eyes roaming over my face.
"Are…are your nightmares getting worse?" He asked a little hesitant that I would bite his head off at the question. I don't blame him, with the way I had acted when he asked, I would be cautious in bringing up the subject again too.
"No." I said. "I haven't had a nightmare in a while thanks to your dog waking me up at all hours of the night." There was a slight bitter tone lacing my words.
His brows furrowed in question, making his expression look cute. I had to bite my tongue to keep from chuckling at him. I also noticed that he had yet to remove his hand from me.
"Why?"
"Hell if I know, she's your hellhound." I shrugged, casting my eyes back to the shimmering water.
It was silent between us for a while. I kept stubbornly looking into the water as Percy seemed content to stare at my face. The urge to swipe my hand across my face was brutal. Was there something there? Did I have some breakfast still lingering? His intense gaze creep the hell out of me. It was like being watched by millions of people only it all came from Percy.
"What? Is there something on my face?" Percy blinked a couple of times, coming out of his daze.
"Nothing." I had to strain to hear his mumble but I heard it nonetheless.
I opened my mouth to argue back but he cut me off, pulling me by the elbow he still hasn't let go of towards the beach. What was going on? Wasn't he going to leave back to camp for the activities? I gently tugged my elbow from his grasp, making him stop and look at me. The moron had a grin lighting up his face like a Christmas tree and I'd be lying if I said it wasn't affecting me.
"I'm skipping today." He explains, continuing on down the golden sandy shore.
Soon the oasis that I had been in weeks ago came into view. Small cluster of palm trees grew with patches of grass on the shore hiding the rock I claimed as mine perfectly. The sun rays were filtered by the thick leaves, leaving us to not worry about getting sunburn, yet somehow those tiny slivers of sunlight were soaked into the flat rock we were on, heating it just enough to warm my back comfortably. Percy was sitting, legs stretched out in front of him and arms extended behind him propping him up. He looked just as content as me.
It didn't take long before I dozed off into a light haze, taking in everything and simply letting my body relax.
"I could talk to Mrs. O'Leary into not waking you up at night?" Percy asked, hands idly playing with a blade of grass in his lap.
"M'kay." I mumbled, feeling the lack of sleep finally get to me.
I was half aware when the son of Poseidon moved my head onto his lap. My eyes kept drooping, wanting to close for good in sleep. Malachite eyes peered into my own hooded ones, and before I drifted off in some well-deserved slumber, I thought I heard Percy mutter something strange about my eyes.
I know this is sort of a filler chapter, but this needed to be done to progress the story. Things are going to be getting more interesting from now on ;)