**Author's Note: Bit of a different chapter today, and it's kinda on the longer side, too. Keep in mind... I wrote this while really tired, so tell me if anything seems OOC or just plain weird, and I'll figure out some way to fix it, haha. As always, thanks for everything and enjoy!**

"C'mon, Nico," Leo said, patting his friend on the shoulder. "You've got to eat a little more than that or you'll starve, man!"

"No." Nico flinched at the contact, and shifted his chair a few inches away. "I already said I'm not hungry," he answered, but he sort of knew that Leo was right. Today for breakfast, all he was eating a few pieces of dry toast and a cup of tea—not much, as usual.

Leo glanced down at his plate—a huge omelette with just about everything under the sun cooked into it, a blueberry muffin, and a tall glass of orange juice. "At least have some of the muffin," he suggested, holding out the pastry.

"...Fine," Nico muttered, rolling his eyes as he took the muffin from Leo's hand. He examined it for a second or two, before shrugging and taking a bite out of it. It was perfectly made—warm, fluffy, sweet—and the taste made him smile. The food on the Argo II was always great; after all, magic was a pretty reliable cook.

"Taste good?" Leo asked, happy to see Nico eating something. "Have the rest, I don't really think I could eat anything more," he offered, letting out a satisfied sigh. His plate cleared itself as he took the last few sips of his orange juice, before putting the dishes away.

Though Nico didn't really feel the slightest bit hungry, he forced himself to eat more of the muffin, eventually finishing it. Tossing the wrapper into the trash, he turned to Leo. "Let's go."

The two left the dining room and walked back to the deck at a leisurely pace, enjoying the stillness that the night had to offer. Leo busied himself, fiddling with a rubberband, toothpicks he stole from the dining room, copper wire, and a couple of nuts and bolts. After a few minutes or so, he grinned and turned to Nico. "Watch this!"

Nico grimaced in anticipation, as though whatever Leo had conjured up was sure to be bad news. Naturally, he was right.

Leo pulled the rubberband back, then loaded the contraption with nuts and bolts. As he let go of the band, it sprang back into place, flinging the tiny metal pieces all over the floor, like an upgraded slingshot of sorts. "Amazing, right?"

"Hardly," Nico answered, even if he was somewhat impressed at how Leo could just toss these things together like it was nothing. "Someone's going to slip on those, you know."

"Ten bucks it'll be Coach Hedge," Leo countered, carefully stepping over the pieces, deliberately not picking a single one up.

Nico glared at him, then bent down, meticulously gathering each and every last piece into his hand. He got up, fist closed around the scrap metal, and tapped Leo. "Here," he said, dropping the tiny pieces of ammunition into his hand.

"Hmm," Leo mused, "you're a good person. I mean, I never would've picked those things up. But you couldn't leave 'em, could you?" He chuckled, reaching up to ruffle Nico's hair. "That's nice of you, though in my defense, I really would've paid to see Hedge fall."

"Stop, don't touch me. Cleaning up after you doesn't make me a good person," Nico muttered, straightening out his hair. He wasn't used to people treating him like this—like a kid—and he wasn't sure whether to be glad or angry or just plain confused. It made him happier than anything that Leo wasn't scared of him. But the way Leo undermined his authority was irritating, to put it in the least. Wasn't he Nico di Angelo, powerful son of Hades, a force not to be reckoned with?

With a sigh, he stared over the edge of the ship, still not looking back at the mechanic standing next to him.

Leo noticed his mood, and frowned. "Sorry," he said, but he didn't sound very sorry at all. "I know you're not the friendliest guy out there, it's just that..." He paused, opening his palm to look down at the nuts and bolts in his hand. "Well, ever since I figured out about Sammy and Hazel, I've felt like I had to protect her."

Nico raised a brow at this. Protecting Hazel was his job, wasn't it? Though, considering the fact that ever since he'd gotten out of Tartarus, Hazel spent her every waking moment tending to his needs, he figured he wasn't doing a very good job. "What does this have to do with me?" he asked.

"I guess I get the feeling that if Sammy were here..." Leo couldn't seem to shake the feeling that Sammy was so much better than he was, but he pushed the thought away. "Well, lately I just feel like I have to take care of you—both of you. It's what he'd want, after all. And who am I to go against a dead man's wishes?"

Nico felt his expression soften, almost into a smile. Being protected—it was something he didn't get to experience often. "Alright, fine," he agreed. "But I still think you're twice as immature as me."

"And I've got no doubt that I am," Leo answered, and the moment would've been rather sweet, if Leo hadn't gotten a cold chill up his spine right after. He shivered, then looked up at Nico with a dull look in his eyes, like he wasn't all there.

"Leo?" Nico looked concerned, maybe even a bit frightened. "Are you... alright?"

"Not Leo," a voice rasped. It sounded like Leo, but it wasn't him. It was darker, colder.

Nico drew his sword and furrowed his brow in thought, knowing he'd seen something like this before. "Eidolon!" he said out loud, finally coming across the correct word. "But... But that's wrong. Hazel told me about what happened. You eidola are supposed to stay trapped down there..."

"Idiots. They were all idiots," the voice said again, and it made Nico uneasy to hear it coming from Leo's mouth. "You, too. Son of Hades, do you not realize I am a different spirit? Those three were not the only eidola out there."

Nico felt anger well up inside of him, but he kept it in check. He wanted more than anything to fight the thing—but how? It was a spirit, for one thing, and it was in Leo's body, for another. "What are you here for?"

"Gaea. She promised me new life, if I could get you, Nico di Angelo." The way the spirit said his name was full of disgust, as though the very words were poison in its mouth.

"Me? Why..." He didn't even bother. He was the guide to the Doors of Death, a powerful demigod who could tip the scales in any one direction in this war. And there was the secret with Hazel... but that was another story.

"Kill you. I'm here to kill you."

Nico wasn't sure what he was more angry at—that his friend's body was being taken over by a spirit, or that the spirit had used Leo, of all people, to kill him. Because seriously, it would be rather pathetic, he thought, to die at the hands of Leo, the Idiot Commander of the Argo II.

He straightened and held out his sword. "Eidolon." He manipulated the tone of his voice, trying to channel his anger into fear. "You are a mere spirit! Do you think you can kill me, Prince of Hades himself? King of Ghosts?"

For a moment, the spirit faltered in Leo's body. "Hades will be no more. Gaea promised me that, child."

"Leave at once, and I will spare you!" Nico's hand tightened around the hilt of his sword. He knew he would never use it in this fight, because it still was Leo's body, but the thing was still an intimidating weapon. Taking in a deep breath, he glared, an intense, hateful fire burning in his eyes. "To the Underworld!" he shouted, forcing energy into his voice. It was a thousand times worse than what he'd done to Leo the other night, and he could feel the power ringing in the air. "BE GONE!"

"The end of the world is at hand," was all the spirit said, before the life slowly returned to Leo's eyes. "What—" He shivered like he was freezing, and crumpled to his knees. "What just happened, Nico?"

But Nico couldn't bring himself to answer. His other powers drained him, but manipulating fear was different. He trembled, feeling more terrified than tired. "Leo? S-Say something, Leo. It's you?"

"Yeah, buddy," Leo answered in his usual tone of voice. "What's wrong?" He got himself to his feet, pulling Nico into a hug. "It's okay, I'm here."

Nico swallowed, and for the first time, raised his arms to return Leo's hug. "You're cold," he said, still holding him tightly, "Leo, you're freezing." Nico pulled off his coat and wrapped it around the older, whose skin was almost icy to the touch.

"...Eidolon," Leo murmured, remembering this feeling. "I usually never feel cold, except for when I..." His voice faltered, with his mind flashing back to when he fired on the Romans. "Oh, gods, Nico. Did I... Did I hurt you?" He began to look for wounds or bruises, but Nico seemed unscathed.

"No," Nico said. "I banished it back to the Underworld. Everything's fine." He frowned, like he didn't believe what he was saying. "Let's sit down."

"Sure, yeah," Leo agreed, and the two walked back up to the ledge where they'd sat and spoken that first night. "Nico, I'm sorry. I didn't... I couldn't... Gods, I hate that feeling." He shivered again, even in Nico's jacket.

"Relax. The thing is gone. Gaea should have known she couldn't kill me with a ghost," Nico said, trying to sound more reassuring.

"K—Kill you?" Leo's eyes widened in horror. "Nico, what did I do to you?"

"It wasn't you. And nothing, I didn't let it get that far." Nico meant what he said, but it didn't change the fact that he was terrified beyond belief.

"Are you sure? What did it say? I remember some things... but I don't understand." It wasn't the eidolon's words that he didn't understand, it was how Nico was acting. He looked absolutely terrified, even if he claimed everything was under control.

"Nothing, nothing!" Nico growled, feeling his temper get the better of him. "Stop asking questions!"

Leo flinched. "Are you... okay?"

Nico took a deep breath. "I'm your guide to the Doors of Death. I'm a son of Hades. It's simple—Gaea wants me dead. That's all the spirit said. Are you happy?" He left out the detail with Hazel, because he barely trusted himself with that secret, let alone Leo or anyone else.

"I know that," he said, "I just want to know if you're okay."

Nico felt emotion well up in his chest, because it was rare that he heard such sincerity and concern in someone's voice, especially Leo's. "I—I'll be fine," he managed out, before his voice caught in his throat. A few tears fell from his eyes, though he wasn't really sure why he was crying.

"I'm sorry. I guess that eidola just dig me, or something," he muttered, trying to joke half-heartedly.

Much to his surprise, Nico smiled.