Yes yes I know I didn't make it to Valentine's Day but my wifi has been crud and finals killed me all of February. Anywho, a sneaky little reviewer caught my plot twist! I hope you like it, David-El!

Fourteen Days

Day Four

After the perfect day the son of Hades had with Percy, he'd been hoping to arrive at Camp Half Blood and spend the rest of the day making this day just as perfect. Having set out Percy's gift for the morning the night before- and also not wanting to give himself away by appearing early every morning to see him- the Ghost King had decided to stall a little in the Underworld. And maybe he asked Persephone to look a little nicer today. Not that he'd ever admit to it, the dandelion-turning witch that she was, because he didn't want her getting any ideas. Nico di Angelo did not need a makeover! Huffing at the fact she'd mentioned it at all, the Italian stepped from the shadows, adjusting the leather jacket he'd switched to after Percy had laid claim to his previous one. He doubted he'd be getting it back now.

It was just after lunch, which meant Percy would likely be in the training ring. Not that it was creepy that Nico knew his schedule by heart. Nope. Not one bit. Denial was a beautiful thing, wasn't it?

So he set out, not even bothering to notice the odd stares and snide whispers anymore. He was a child of Death itself, he got it. But it wasn't as if that changed overnight. As much as he hated the childish shunning of the Greeks, he was also impressed by their emotional dedication, and so found himself staying around Camp Half Blood far more than its Roman counterpart. And one Perseus Jackson had nothing to do with that. Oh hey look, was the denial again? Nah, it couldn't be!

Worn converse kicked at the well-traversed dirt beneath them, dark cocoa eyes blinking idly into the buttery sunlight of the ever-sunny bubble the demigods lived in. Nico knew he was close, at least, when he tuned in and heard the metallic ring of swords striking one another, and the dull thudding of various dummy targets meeting their end. Striding into the arena, he gave a tiny smile when he saw the son of Poseidon practicing in the middle, attention drawn to the oblivious boy like a magnet. Hanging back, leaning against one of the beams behind him, Nico watched him with the same awe he'd had since he was ten. He doubted it would leave anytime soon. Percy was simply a once in a lifetime demigod, and sometimes his power frightened even Nico, which was a difficult thing to achieve. But just as Percy paused, wiping the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand as Nico stood to approach him, someone beat him to it.

Tartarus black eyes narrowed into cold slits of jealousy and distrust as Jason jogged up to the hero of Olympus and swung a tanned arm across Percy's shoulders. Percy jolted in surprise and then smiled up at him, the two of them falling into easy chatter. Nico scowled, his eyes on the golden boy of Rome, jealousy bubbling in his stomach. When the fuck had they gotten so chummy? Last Nico had seen of Grace and Percy, the two were still at each others throats, trying to prove that the other was weaker. And he certainly did not like nor approve of this new installment. The son of the sea was his damn it! The golden boy moving in was going to bring up so many problems! There was also a twinge of worry in his chest, hidden deep beneath the anger and possessiveness. Because Jason Grace had everything any boy or girl could ever want, and what did Nico have to compare to that? How could he possibly compete with the perfect child of Zeus? And it was true, that the sea and sky had always been together. Would he be cast aside for favor of the offspring of Zeus, merely because that's what fate dictated? It made him feel sick to think about it.

He was drawn from his thoughts by the happy cheering of his name. Blinking he tuned back in, giving a lilt of a smile towards the Sea Prince who had caught sight of him leaning against the wooden beam. Kicking himself up and off smoothly, he uncrossed his arms, lips curving in a slight smile of greeting. And maybe he felt a sick sense of pleasure when Percy ran right out from under Jason's arm to come to him, but nobody else needed to know. Instead he opened his own arms, a small chuckle escaping at the exuberant chanting of his name. Hadn't he just spent the whole day with Percy yesterday? But he didn't mind as the shorter frame crashed into him, knocking the breath from him and sending the two of them to the ground, laughing the whole way.

Covered in the sand of the arena, breathless and laughing, it took a few seconds to regain their composure. When they did, Nico smiles and brushed the sand particles from the raven locks of the demigod laying above him, enjoying the pink blush that dusted across his cheeks. Only for the movement to be ruined by Jason, who walked up and laughed at them, offering a hand to Percy, who he hauled up with relative ease. Nico scowled and glared at the proffered appendage when it next came to him, standing on his own. One arm reached out to snag Percy by the waist and pull him back into his side, glaring from above his head at the Roman demigod. Jason looked startled at first, especially since he and Nico had grown closer since their escapade with Cupid, and then it clicked. All morning Percy had been dithering on about his secret admirer. So it was Nico, huh? And the jealousy was practically radiating like poison off the son of Hades, nearly tangible enough to choke on.

Jason wasn't flirting with the Sea Prince at all, despite what Nico thought, but this was a wonderful opportunity. He certainly was open to all genders for romance, and Percy was far from unattractive. Maybe sincerely trying to win his hand would finally get that idiotic son of Hades to act. And if he won himself a child of the sea...well, Jason certainly wouldn't complain! If Nico hadn't made his move yet despite all of Jason's pushing, maybe he should swipe him out from under the Ghost King's nose. A smirk curled the corners of his lips, pale azure eyes sparking mischievously, plans unraveling inside his blonde head. It was a win win situation for him.

Nico snarled silently and tightened his grip on the boy in his arms, only to receive a hard smack to the arm that made him jump. "You're not even listening!" the ravenette hissed, anger morphing into a natural pout on his pretty features. Nico shook his head to free himself of the thoughts, an apologetic look on his face.

"Sorry, Perce, I was distracted." Percy snorted and began his tale anew, and though Nico truly wanted to appease him by listening, he was far more interested in the arm Jason was placing across Percy's shoulders again. Their eyes locked behind Percy's head, both glaring heatedly at one another as they walked in a leisurely manner down towards the beach. Percy happily chatted away, oblivious to the fact they weren't listening at all, content to simply be with them. Jason smirked and leaned down to press his lips to Percy's ear, eyes never leaving Nico's.

"Go on, Percy," he urged softly, making Percy's pale cheeks flush at the rather forward affection. Nico snarled, which only made the smirk on Jason's face grow, and tightened his grip on Percy's right hip. It didn't last long, though, for Percy soon caught sight of the water and was off and running down the beach before you could say hippocampus. Faster than he'd ever dared, Nico snagged Jason by the shirt, pulling him until they were nose to nose, hand fisted into the collar as if imagining how good it would be to punch him in the face.

"Back the fuck off, pretty boy," he growled, infuriated by the smirk on Jason's face. The golden boy only laughed mockingly and allowed himself to be held, knowing he held the control in this situation with his less passionate emotions.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Nico," he said in a perfectly naive, innocent tone. It only made Nico angrier. Just as he was about to throw sparky boy to the beach and start some sort of fight, Percy came running up, arms outstretched to forcibly shove them apart. He may have become frail in Tartarus, but he was still the strongest demigod of their generation and possibly all of existence, and the two stumbled away from one another rather roughly. Nico caught his footing in the sand while Jason fell on his ass, which made Nico feel pretty smug. Not that he had much time before Percy was whirling on him like an angry cat. Or perhaps a kitten, with his disheveled hair and big green eyes.

"What is wrong with you two?! You haven't even spoken a word to one another and you're already trying to fight! You're best friends, where did this even come from?" Exasperation and disappointment was so thick in his vocals that Nico and Jason simultaneously winced, muttering pathetically sincere apologies to the ravenette between them. Even though Nico couldn't help but stare and appreciate the curve of that sexy waist when Percy planted his hands on his hips to berate them.

"Now you can either leave or you can come and play with the hippocampi with me! But no fighting!" Both grimaced as they looked at one another, clearly not wanting to spend time with the other when the challenge was newly set. Friendship was abandoned in favor of the bet, natural competitiveness of the big three shining through. Neither wanted to be around the other person who wanted their object of affection, especially when said loved one wanted to be around both of them. But it was better than leaving and not getting to spend time with him at all, so they grumbled and insincerely muttered apologies to one another until Percy deemed himself satisfied.

"Now quit acting like children, or I'll drown you both!"

Both demigods followed the swimmer down the beach like whipped puppies, now aware of what a big mistake it was to fight in Percy's presence. It would have to be either very subtle, or very far away from the son of Poseidon.

Even with their promises, though, they were glaring at each other all the while they were feeding and playing with the hippocampi. And if Percy noticed he was being tugged about between the two of them like a ragdoll, he didn't say a word. Personally, he was plotting their deaths, but only he and the hippocampi needed to know that.

Break

Of course, Percy couldn't catch a break, and by the time supper rolled around, his hands were balled into fists against his tattered jeans and he was breathing harshly through his nose in an incorrect replica of breathing deeply. Jason and Nico were bickering behind him, snappy hisses and curses that only exasperated him further. He couldn't comprehend their behavior, he had known them both for years- admittedly Nico held the title there, but regardless- and he'd never seen them fight so terribly. In fact, he'd never seen them so violent in regards to one another before in his entirety of knowing the both of them simultaneously. Were they not decent friends? Had they not faced Cupid and bonded over the experience together? So what in Hades was going on?!

"Fuck off, Grace, maybe he doesn't want to sit with you, you arrogant simpleton!"

Okay that's kind of funny. Your thirties are showing Nico.

But wait what? I swear to the Gods…

"You're just jealous because maybe he wants to spend more time with me instead of you, bone boy," Jason growled back.

If I hear one more word…

"Because at least I'm around! You can't just waltz in and-"

"ENOUGH!"

The son of Poseidon whirled around, fisted hands squeezing as every goblet of liquid overturned and violently splashed upon the two childish demigods faces. Sputtering and nearly falling on their asses, they quickly tried to wipe away the various drinks as the dining hall went silent. Whether it was to focus on the fight or because they were upset at Percy stealing their drinks to punish the unruly halfbloods didn't seem to matter.

"I'm not going to sit with either of you because I'm not a fucking doll to be tugged around and sat in the lap of the one who pulls the hardest!"

Shame quickly colored the faces of the other two children of the big three, but Percy wasn't even close to finished. He'd had to listen to them fighting, had to break up a few scuffles, for hours now. And Percy had never, in all of his life, been patient. It could be his ADD or his personality, but whatever the case, they had pushed all his buttons and then proceeded to throw him from the edge of his complacency. It was almost motherly as he placed his hands on his hips to scream at them, a storm of words dying to be let out.

"I don't know what the hell is wrong with you two, but it ends now! You can go and sit at your own tables and be miserable because I am tired of you making me miserable! I am going to sit with whoever I want to, whenever I want to, and if you have a fucking problem with that then we can head to the arena right now so I can kick your asses!"

Silence.

The echo of his words was both amusing and eery, underlining his frustration with his cousins. Dionysus was trying to stifle a laugh while Chiron looked rather affronted by his language, though he too seemed to be enjoying the free entertainment. The various drinks still pooled around Jason's and Nico's feet lifted on command, wrapping around their wrists and dragging him forcibly at Percy's request to their separate godly tables, unceremoniously dumping them onto the bench before dissolving back to the floor.

Percy glared around at everyone staring open-mouthed and wide-eyed at him, daring them to say a single word. Angrily huffing he stormed, muttering and cursing, out of the dining hall. Nico and Jason shamefully stared down at their plates, aware now that Percy fully intended to skip dinner because of their possessive behavior. A few wolf-calls and teasing comments were made, commenting on how badly they'd just been whipped by the savior of Olympus. But their punishment wasn't over.

Rachel was to first to reach them, smacking Nico's head and walking past to the next table to whack the back of Jason's in a similar fashion. "You're the stupidest boys I have ever met, and Percy is my best friend," she scoffed, leaving the two to rub their heads and wince. The Oracle had one hell of a swing.

Clarisse didn't move, but they both withered under her glare, narrowed like a predator upon them from her seat at the Ares table. It didn't seem very promising in any positive way, but it did promise pain for upsetting her sea princess. Her revenge would come in time, she knew how to wait it out to have them squirming self-consciously, but for now she would leave the real verbal reaming to the trio of women storming towards the two idiots.

Hazel, Annabeth, and Piper certainly looked like a cavalry coming to the rescue of their adored Prince with how they stalked across the hall to the two of them. Hazel grabbed Nico by his ear while Piper caught Jason by the nape of the neck, dragging them out of the hall and behind the structure before dropping them to the ground. Nico was rubbing his ear and cursing softly in Italian, while Jason was trying to shrink down under the catlike glares of the three intimidating women.

"I cannot believe you would do that!" It's Annabeth who rips into them first, hands gesturing wildly, making the men cringe back away from her for fear of it turning into another head slap. "Do you know how much it bothered him today, seeing you two fight? No, you don't, because you're selfish little cretins that don't deserve his kindness!" She is quieted when her girlfriend puts her hand upon her elbow, stepping forward to take her place, chocolate brow drawn tight and disapproving.

"If you would have listened for just a few minutes while he spoke instead of focusing on sizing up who has the biggest muscles and smallest brain, you would have noticed how excited Percy was to have you both in camp at the same time. He was hoping to spend time with both of you because he was afraid he was spending so much time with Nico that you two couldn't hang out. And how do you repay him? By solidifying his fears! Can you imagine what he must think now? That him keeping the two of you apart, even though he did not, caused you two to suddenly hate each other!" Perhaps her anger is even scarier, because she is calm, but her charmspeak isn't even active and the severity and weight of her words is far worse than Annabeth's protective, uncontrolled outburst.

Hazel moves them both aside for her own say, arms crossed fiercely across her chest, scowling down at them fearlessly. "If Percy wouldn't come crying to me for doing it, I would beat you two into the ground right now and not care about how you'd look after it all. You are going to march to one of your cabins- you will not go to Percy- and you are going to work together and actually plan out and think of a way to apologize to him. And if I hear another peep out of you two that is in any way meant to be escalated into a fight, I am going to tell Frank and Leo what you did to Percy and let them deal with you instead! And then I am going to tell Tyson, and Reyna! And when you're nothing but scraps, I am going to call Sally, and tell her you made her baby boy cry, and let the hellhounds eat you for dinner. And don't think I can't get Persephone and Father on my side for it." She whirled around with that last, complex threat, hooked both girls behind her by the elbows, and went marching down the path to Percy's cabin. Behind her, the two left behind could hear her speaking with Annabeth and Piper about cheering up the son of Posiedon.

Nico and Jason turned to look at one another, only to begin glaring immediately.

"Stay the fuck away from him, he's too good for you," Nico hissed. Jason scowled, hands clawing into his jeans in a pathetically obvious attempt at restraining himself. "I'm bad for him? You don't even have the guts to confess, how could you handle being seen in public with him?" The shadows behind the mess hall darkened, humidity rising in desire for sparks of electricity, only to be reminded of the very clear threat placed upon them when Nico reached up to rub his aching ear once more. Sometimes he forgot Hazel was from an older era too.

"Well this is going to be fun," he muttered under his breath, standing to head towards Cabin Thirteen. Nico didn't even want to think about how he could possibly work with the golden boy for even five minutes, much less when it concerned Percy. But they both seemed sincerely sorry for upsetting him, so perhaps the desire to fix things would be strong enough to overcome their new competitiveness. It was going to be a long night.