The clearing by the lake is one of Will's favorite places at camp. A great view of the clear water of the lake, less trees for the sun to filter through, and large patches of grass that make it easy to have a picnic or just enjoy the sunshine.
It really helps the Apollo cabin during the winter, he's come to realize.
Will tilts his head up, letting the rays of the December sun fall across his face, soaking in the brief amounts of sunlight that he can.
"How do you think the quest is going?" Aria asks from her blanket, and Michael just shrugs. They're having a little bit of sibling bonding, all four of them hanging out in the clearing.
"Hard to say. It's not like two years ago when there was evidence of things getting worse with the weather." Michael says and Aria nods, nervous fingers twisting her golden hair into a braid.
"Do you think Percy caught up with them already? That prophecy…. He'd be the fifth right?" Michael sighs.
"Yes, since Phoebe ended up staying back because of the Stoll brothers." Will frowns. The older Hunter had been tricked by the Hermes boys' prank, and she had been under medical supervision in Artemis's Cabin since then. He wasn't allowed in. No boys were.
"Two people dying…" Aaron says seriously, his face painted in a frown. "That's serious shit. Aren't the Hunters immortal?"
"Yes and no." Michael says, ruffling his dark hair with a sigh. "They are immortal in the sense that they will not age, and don't get sick like the rest of us. However, they can die in battle like normal demigods, and can also get like… maimed and stuff. They can die, it's just not as easy as it is to kill mortals."
"So it's like demigods on steroids? We are a bit more hardy than mortals and they are a bit more hardy than us?" Aaron asks, and Michael nods.
"In a sense, I guess. But they have to take their oath very seriously, or they will lose their immortality. I think. I know they can't have any romantic connections, at least." Michael says, and Will frowns. No romantic connections? How sad.
"That's a crazy oath." Aria says. "No love? Ever? I could never." Will nods in agreement. "But… Being immortal is a pretty sweet deal if you ask me. I'd never do it, but I can see how some would."
"I wonder what exactly Bianca and Nico went through that made her decide to so quickly join the Hunters." Will says softly, and Aria lifts her head to look at him.
"Right? Like didn't they just find out they were demigods?" Will nods. At least from what he'd heard around the camp. Gossip spread fast. At least no one seemed to catch on to what Will had felt when he had healed Nico…
"Whatcha frowning about, Solace?" Aaron asks, and Will just shakes his head. Chiron had asked him not to tell anyone, and to make sure that if Nico got hurt again, that he was the only one to heal him. Lessen the possibility of more people finding out, he supposes.
"Jus' thinking about what would cause someone to leave their sibling. I don't really understand because I don't have any siblings like that. I mean, I got you guys, but no full siblings or half on my mama's side." Michael hums under his breath, flicking a rock out over the clear water, watching it skip a few times.
"I don't think we can ever understand exactly what they went through. Every sibling pair is different. I don't get along with my half brother, but I know Daniel adores his siblings." Michael says, and Will nods. Daniel mentions his siblings all the time, and Michael's right.
"Plus, Nico is safe here." Michael continues, motioning to camp. "We can train him and wait for his godly parent to claim him. He'll be fine." Aria purses her lips.
"He's a cutie, but he's a little strange." She comments, and Will turns his head to look at her sharply. She holds up her hands in defense, blue eyes wide. "What?" She asks, and Will frowns, but Aaron speaks before he can ask.
"He's just a kid. What do you mean, strange?" Aaron asks, his eyebrows furrowing. Aria sits up, her braid falling over her shoulder.
"I dunno, I just get some vibes. He looked at my Nano like he'd never seen one before. He's ten! Like? Shouldn't a kid have seen one before?" She says, and Aaron shrugs.
"Didn't they go to like some military school or something? Maybe their school was strict. He's kinda nerdy too, maybe he just likes that card game more." He says, and Aria scoffs, crossing her arms.
"I just get weird vibes around him! I can't explain it, I just do." Michael reaches out to touch her shoulder, a dark look on his face.
"Hey, no one said you had to like the kid. But weren't you the one calling him cute like… two days ago?" He asks, and Aria shrugs his hand off, her mouth set in a line.
"Yeah, but I didn't meet him until archery the other day. I can't help how I feel. Maybe it's Dad? I don't really get prophecies but… I dunno Michael. I just feel like there's something there." Will sighs, laying back down on his blanket, watching the fluffy clouds in the sky.
There's something bugging him too, but just like Aria, it's too hard to place.
—
Dad works in truly mysterious ways.
That's all Will can think about when he sees two new faces at dinner that night.
Well.
Not new to camp, but new to Cabin 7. A random midwinter claiming. Unusual, but Will can never pretend to understand his dad's flighty ways.
"So Phoebe always wears a pink ribbon, and Penelope a purple one?" Michael asks, blinking as he looks between the two girls seated across from him. It's apparently the first time their cabin had ever had twins, much less perfectly identical ones.
The girl with a pink ribbon in her hair nods, twirling a dark strand around her finger.
"Yep! It's how we always do it so people can tell us apart." Phoebe says, and Penelope nods. Will can already foresee himself screwing up their names even with the color coordination.
"So…Where are you from?" Aaron slides in and asks, leaning over the table, and Aria smacks him on the back of the head.
"Can you please have some fucking tact!" She snaps, and the girl with the purple ribbon, Penelope, giggles.
"Our mom is Filipina if that's what you're wondering! But we grew up in Maine. Came down here last summer, but Apollo didn't claim Phoebe until today. Obviously, we are twins, so I didn't have to get claimed." She shrugs.
"See! I just wanted to see if they were Islander like me, ARIA." Aaron frowns, kicking her under the table. Aria sticks her tongue out at Aaron, crossing her eyes playfully.
"Well, they aren't so you can go cry about it!" Aaron kicks her again, and Michael levels them both with a harsh look.
"Can you two not act like children for once?" He says exasperatedly.
"We are children." Aaron and Aria say in union, and WIll can't help but laugh as the pair of them gasp and high five. Michael just sighs and waves his hand, clearly not wanting to deal with them.
"You two can take Taylor and Chloe's old bunks on the girls' side." Michael says, addressing Phoebe and Penelope who nod in union. Gods above, Will is not gonna get used to that ever.
"Aaron usually has more tact, I promise. And all of us are morning people, so I hope that either you are, or grow to be one. We wake with the sun, Dad made sure of it." Aria chirps, making Penelope laugh.
"Penny used to piss off all the Hermes kids by waking up early to go on a run, don't worry." Phoebe cuts in, and Aaron gasps dramatically, a hand over his heart.
"Say, Penelope, are you any good at archery?" The younger girl nods, a smirk on her lips. She holds out a hand, raising one eyebrow.
"Tomorrow?" She asks, and Aaron grins, reaching out to grab her hand, shaking it firmly.
"Nothing like some good old fashioned sibling rivalry to welcome the newbies. I love a good archery competition." He says, more excited than Will has ever heard him before. Will sighs.
"Just no one get hurt please, I've had enough of patching Aaron up over something stupid he does. The supersonic arrows are cool IN THEORY." Will eyes Aaron. "But in REALITY, you're just gonna keep getting hurt." Aaron shrugs.
"Worth it in the name of warfare and innovation! Beckendorf is fun to tinker with and his arrows are badass." Michael just shakes his head.
"Okay, you mad scientist, just don't blow anything else up that could sic Mr. D on your ass again." Aaron salutes him, a cheeky grin appearing on his face.
"Aye aye Interim Captain Michael Yew!" Michael just rolls his eyes and pushes Aaron, making the younger camper fall off the bench, the girls dissolving into a pile of giggles.
Man, Will adores his siblings.
—
"O Iris, goddess of the rainbow, please accept my offering." Will murmurs, flipping a drachma into the rainbow that the prism was creating. "Daniel Lee, son of Apollo, Florida."
After a minute, the image shimmers and his older brother appears, a grin on his dimpled cheek, his black hair a mess. Will can't help but feel a pang of loneliness. He loves all his siblings of course, but he'd grown really close to Daniel over the last two years. Being at camp without him was weird.
"Will!" Daniel laughs, and Will can't help the smile that makes its way onto his face.
"Hi! Camp isn't the same without you, I swear." Will complains, and Daniel just laughs, shaking his head.
"I can imagine, but I like being able to come home and spend time with my eomma and the kids." Daniel always has this sparkle in his eye when talking about his family, and it reminds Will of how he feels about his mama. At least some of them get to be happy when it comes to family.
"Anyway, what's been happening at camp? I haven't gotten any updates!" Daniel exclaims and Will sighs, leaning back against the wall. Daniel raises an eyebrow, blinking. "That bad?"
Will shakes his head. "It's not that, nothing really… serious. Well besides a missing goddess and Annabeth, the arrival of two campers, a prophecy, stuff like that." Daniel stares at him for a long moment, mouth set in a frown.
"Okay… so that's a lot. Start from the beginning." Will sighs and launches into a long tirade explaining everything that had happened at camp. Daniel just listens, worrying a piece of fabric between his fingers.
Once Will finishes, he sits back, letting Daniel process everything he had just said. He'd purposefully left out the details of healing Nico, the odd darkness that he feels curling in his chest whenever the younger boy is around, the things that he and Chiron had discussed.
"I would say I'm missing out on all the excitement, but just as much happens during the summer." Will can't help but snort. Daniel's right, of course. Not a boring summer since Will arrived at camp. "Have there been any clues about the parentage of the new kids?"
Will hesitates. He's not sure if he should say. He could be wrong.
"Not really, no." He says in the end, but he can tell that Daniel is wary of it. His older brother has always been able to see right through him.
"Okay then. This Nico kid seems really adorable though. I can't wait to meet him when I get to camp, especially if he's been following you around like a shadow." Will scoffs, rolling his eyes.
"He has not! He follows Percy around more than anything." Daniel laughs, a twinkle in his eye.
"Hasn't everyone followed Percy around at some point?" Daniel says cheekily, and Will wrinkles his nose.
"I surely haven't." Daniel gives him a look like he doesn't believe him. Will blinks, confused. "What?" Daniel just laughs, shaking his head.
"Nothing, nothing. Is there any other info dumping you gotta do? I have another Iris set up in like 15." Daniel says, looking off to the side. Will thinks about it, and suddenly remembers something.
"Oh! Aria mentioned someone named Faolán, and they said I should ask you about who it is…" A scarlet blush appears on Daniel's cheeks, and he clears his throat.
"What… were they saying about Faolán?" Will frowns, thinking back to the conversation the other day.
"We were talking about some bet the Aphrodite Cabin has on when Percy and Annabeth are gonna get together." Daniel snorts, laughter shaking his shoulders. "Aaron asked how much the bet was for, and Aria said that this Faolán person told you about the bet, and when I asked who that was, they said I should ask you. So I am." Daniel sighs, running a hand through his messy dark hair.
"Gods, I really wish that we were having this conversation in person." He mutters, and Will blinks, his eyebrows furrowing.
"It can wait until you come to camp for the summer, Daniel…" Daniel shakes his head, propping his chin on his hand.
"No, no, you asked. Faolán is my boyfriend." Will stares at him, not comprehending what his brother is saying. Daniel just blinks back at him. "What?"
"Your what?"
"My boyfriend."
"No, I heard you. I'm just confused."
"About what?"
Will picks at one of his nails, a fragment shipping away.
"You have a boyfriend…?" Daniel nods, his features morphing into a frown.
"Is that a problem?" Will shakes his head, his brain running at a mile a minute. Daniel sighs, running a hand through his dark hair. "Will… I don't think there has been a straight Apollo kid ever." Will freezes, and Daniel hesitates, a look of panic in his eyes.
"I mean, I'm sure there have been! And it's totally cool if you are! There's no pressure or anything, just like-"
"I'm not." Will says. "At least… I think." Daniel sighs, ruffling his hair.
"Chloe is so much better at this than me." He complains, and Will can't help but laugh. "She gave me this big long speech and all I got in me is assuming you're straight." Will shakes his head.
"I didn't… I dunno process it? Realize that was a thing people could… do? Until fairly recently." Daniel tilts his head, a smile playing on his lips.
"Anyone in particular?" Will blinks, pursing his lips.
Dark hair. A cheeky grin. Will shakes his head.
"Not really, no. Just a like… realization that I think boys are cute too." He shrugs. Daniel hums, one of his dimples appearing on his cheek.
"Well, I'm glad we could have this talk at least. I really do have to go now, though. I'm sorry." Will shakes his head.
"No, no it's fine! I think I'm just gonna…. Keep it to myself for now." He says softly, and Daniel nods, but his eyes soften.
"I'm really glad that you told me, kiddo." He says, and Will snorts.
"I'm not that much younger than you, Daniel." His older brother shrugs, laughing softly.
"You don't think I know that? See ya this summer, Will!" Daniel chirps, waving. Will shakes his head and waves back before the connection is cut off.
He sits back against the wall, pressing his hand over his heart. It had been pounding throughout most of the conversation with Daniel. Had he really done that? Admitted that to himself and to Daniel? It had tumbled so naturally from his lips that Will couldn't believe it.
His mama had never been big on homophobia, and she always taught Will that love is love, but growing up as a kid in Texas, Will always knew he was a little bit different. But knowing that not only was Daniel, his closest sibling, just like him, but all of his siblings?
He thinks about it, hugging the crocheted sun that Daniel had given to him two years ago. Apollo had both male and female lovers, if he remembers his history lessons properly. Maybe that contributed to it? The acceptance? Greek stories were pretty fluid with sexuality anyway, now that he really thinks about it. Will feels his cheeks heat up, and he presses the heel of his hand to his cheek.
Well… at least he doesn't have to be coy about it. He shakes his head. If only everything else about being a demigod was this easy.
—
There's a strange air around camp these days, Will notices.
December is cold as it is, but there's something… wrong.
He finally figures it out when he sees Nico sitting cross legged on a rock, staring wistfully at the Pegasus stables.
"Nico?" Will asks, jogging over to the younger boy. "What're you–" He stops, recoiling slightly like he's been punched in the face.
What IS that? Will can feel something radiating off of Nico, something dark and terrifying. That Will has never felt before. At least not in real life.
The aura of death.
Nico turns to look up at him, and Will can see the tears in his eyes.
"Did something happen?" Will asks, and Nico shrugs, turning back to look at the stables.
"Silena tried to teach me how to ride a Pegasus." He says softly. "But as soon as I got close enough to touch, the Pegasus got scared and tried to kick me. Silena told me to step outside while she tried to calm it down, but I guess it wouldn't as long as I was around…" Nico sniffs, wiping his cheek with the back of his hand.
Will can't help but feel bad for the younger kid, and he lays a hand on Nico's shoulder. The dark cloud that hangs over Nico intensifies, and Will feels every cell of his body telling him to run away, that this is bad news.
What the hell? Will furrows his eyebrows, but before he can speak, Nico stands up suddenly, shrugging Will's hand off of his shoulder.
"And everyone else has been acting really weird, and Percy's not back yet and I just had this feeling today and my sister–" Nico freezes, and Will blinks. Even though Nico had shrugged his hand off, Will can tell something's not right.
"Nico, I–"
"I have to go. Bye." The younger boy takes off in a flurry, leaving Will in the dust. He frowns, thinking deeply. He shakes his head.
The stables are quiet when he walks in, and he can hear a soft voice soothing one of the Pegasus from one of the stalls.
"Silena, hey." Will says, peeking around the doorway to the stall. "Everything all good in here?" Silena sighs, putting down the brush she had been using.
"I take it you saw Nico." She says dryly, and Will nods. Her pretty face is marred with a frown, her long dark hair tied back in a ponytail. "He scared Porkpie. I've never seen him react in this way." She strokes the neck of the Pegasus, who just whinnes, tossing its head.
"What exactly happened?" Will asks, leaning against the wall. He's not a huge fan of horses himself, so he keeps a safe distance. Silena reaches out to fiddle with a lock of Porkpie's mane.
"I think it was all wrong from the moment he stepped in. It was like this shadow of darkness came over the stables. He seemed a little sad, but I couldn't place it. I tried to ignore it, but when he came closer, Porkpie freaked and started bucking, trying to kick the kid. He's never had that reaction before. It was so… creepy. I don't know how to explain it." Will frowns as he listens to Silena explain. So it wasn't just him feeling the darkness surrounding Nico. That definitely hadn't been there before.
"I've never met Nico before but… I know he's a kid, but I just have a bad feeling, Will. There's something about this kid that he's not telling us, and it scares me. I understand Porkpie's reaction." She finishes, and Will sighs.
"Others feel like this?" Silena shrugs.
"A few. I've not like… talked to other people about it, but you can see people avoiding him." Will frowns.
"That's new." He comments, and Silena hesitates.
"It… is. I think only today?" She says slowly, and Will blinks. "I can't make heads or tails of it myself. I'm sorry, Will. I wish I had the answers." Will shakes his head, pushing off the wall to stand up fully.
"It's okay Silena. There's nothing you can really do about it. I'll… just keep an eye on things, I guess." Silena nods, waving her hand.
"Maybe talk to the Hermes kids, see if something happened. Maybe Connor or Travis? Since they're his head Counselor…" Will sighs, ruffling his messy blond curls.
"Yeah, thanks anyway, Silena." He smiles sadly. She gives him a sympathetic look, turning back to Porkpie.
"Anytime, Will."
—
WIll doesn't see Nico for a few days. That doesn't make the atmosphere less awkward though. Something is clearly bothering the other boy, and Will just can't make sense of it.
Though, now that he thinks about it, if it was one of his siblings out on a quest, he would have a similar reaction.
"Do you think that's it?" He asks the shimmering image in front of him, biting down on his lower lip.
Chloe sighs, resting her chin on her hands. Will can see a few pictures from camp on her wall in her dorm room.
"It's really hard for me to say, Will. Maybe he's just going through some depression or something over his sister. You said she joined the Hunters almost immediately right?" Will nods. "Wouldn't that suck for any ten year old who was so attached to his sister?" Will hesitates.
He supposes she's right, but there is this feeling in the back of his mind that he can't quite shake. The feeling of death and darkness that had radiated off of Nico that day was something that still sticks with him now.
"What is it?" Chloe asks, reading Will like an open book. Will sighs, leaning back against the wall again.
"I promised Chiron that I wouldn't say anything…" He whispers, and Chloe frowns, crossing her arms.
"He's making you keep a secret? Will. You're 12." Will frowns. Chloe is right, as she usually is, but he can't help but feel like this is something bigger.
"When I… healed Nico, I… he's not 10, Chloe. Not in the traditional sense. I could tell that he was like PHYSICALLY ten, but that's not the reality. I don't know what it is, but it was like when I healed Thalia after she came out of the tree. And Nico… There's so much darkness around him right now. There was… a feeling of death." Chloe's eyes widen just a bit, enough that Will notices it.
"Chiron was right to say you should keep quiet about this." Chloe admits. Will nods, fingers twisting in his blanket. "Does he have any theories?" Will shakes his head.
"Nothing that he told me at least…" He says softly, and his sister sighs, running her fingers through her tight curls.
"Do you have any theories?" Will shrugs his shoulders.
"We don't even know which parent it is. My guess is Hecate." He says, and Chloe hums, thinking deeply. "You don't think…" Chloe shakes her head, a serious look on her face.
"There's simply no way that all three of them broke their vow, Will. Hades is always known for being more serious about these sorts of things, at least so I have heard." Will sighs and nods. "Whatever it is, Will… I don't think you should latch on too much. You have this innate… need to fix people. Not everyone can or should be fixed, kiddo." Will feels his shoulders sag.
"You say that like I can help it." He grumbles, making Chloe laugh. He wishes that he could reach out and get swept up in one of her hugs right now.
"It's what makes you such a great healer, Will. You're so dedicated to those that are in your care, and you see the best in people. You want to help people so badly that you will hurt yourself in order to make that happen. It's why Michael and I took such care to teach you, to help you realize your faults so that you can pace yourself. You're one of the best healers this camp has seen. You just put too much of yourself into it." Chloe says, and Will sighs. She's right, as she usually is.
"I'll try my best to… not do that." He says, and Chloe chuckles softly.
"It's not always a bad thing, I promise, Will. It's good… in moderation." She smiles warmly at him. Will nods, pushing his hair out of his eyes. "I have to go, kiddo. I have a class in about 20 minutes. I'm really glad that you called though." Will smiles sadly, nodding.
"I really should do it more." Chloe laughs, nodding as she pulls her curls back out of her face.
"You should. I missed talking to you like this. Alright, I'm gonna get going. Talk to you later, Will!" Will smiles and waves as her image fades away.
—
It's midday when Will spots Percy and Nico out of the window of the infirmary. He had no idea that Percy was back from the quest even! On a whim, he decides to duck out of the building, hiding a fair cry away from them, still able to hear, but he knows that they can't see him.
He'd missed the first part of the conversation, clearly, but he tries to keep up with what they're saying.
"She wanted you to have this." Percy says, and Will's brow furrows. Bianca? Where was she? The Hunters weren't here, as far as he knows, though…
"You promised you would protect her." Will feels his heart drop into his stomach. Oh. Oh no. \he thinks back to the other day. Nico had mentioned something about his sister. What was it?
Percy looks nervous, shuffling his feet. "Nico… I tried. But Bianca gave herself up to save us. I told her not to. But–"
"You promised!" Nico sounds broken, his eyes angry and rimmed with red. Will frowns. Oh, how he wishes he could comfort the younger boy…
"I shouldn't have trusted you." Nico continues, a darkness in his tone. "You lied to me. My nightmares were right."
"Wait, what nightmares?" Wil purses his lips. Demigod nightmares were awful, terrible things. He wouldn't wish them on his worst enemy.
"I hate you!" Nico throws the thing in his hand that Percy had given him earlier. Will's not sure what it is, but he's not about to reveal himself to find out.
"She might be alive." Will closes his eyes, breathing in deeply. "I don't know for sure–"
"She's dead." One tear drips down Will's cheek. "I should have known it earlier. She's in the Fields of Asphodel, standing before the judges right now. I can feel it." His eyes snap open. Nico can FEEL it? Wil curls his hands into fists, a million thoughts running through his mind. But if he can feel the death of a person, what does that mean…?
"What do you mean, you can feel it?" Percy asks what Will has been feeling, his sea green eyes stormy.
Will lets out a yelp that he hopes the other two don't hear when he sees the scene unfolding in front of him.
Four skeleton warriors appear, hissing and bones creaking. Will trembles, hiding himself more behind the tree. What the hell is happening? He shakes, his heart beating wildly in his chest. Calm down, Will. Calm down. He can hear his sister's voice in his head, Chloe's soft tone warming him.
"You're trying to kill me!" Nico screams, and Will clutches at his shirt. There's no way it was Percy, right? Percy doesn't have those powers. Only a child of…
"Hades." Will gasps, falling to his knees. Thousands of images flash in his mind. The darkness that surrounds Nico. The missing gap in his aging. The ability to see the dead. The skeleton warriors.
"He's son of Hades." Will says to no one.
"No! GO AWAY!" He hears Nico wail, and the ground rumbles, a flash of heat searing through the air. Will squeaks, reaching out to steady himself on the tree before standing up and peeking around the trunk. Nico's chest is heaving out of fear, and there's a giant crack in the floor of the dining pavilion. The warriors are nowhere to be seen.
"How did you–" Percy says, stepping closer to Nico, but the younger boy recoils.
"Go away! I hate you! I wish you were dead!" He spits out before turning and sprinting down the steps into the forest. Will almost runs after him, but something keeps him from going. It's not safe. Nico isn't safe. Being around Nico isn't safe. Will frowns. He has to tell Chiron.
Will turns, running back to the Big House. He pushes open the door, stumbling a bit on the carpet as he walks in.
"Chiron, I– Taylor? Chloe?" He stops, looking confused as his older sisters turn to look at him. Lee and Michael are standing by their sides, dark looks on their faces. Chiron sighs, standing up.
"William. Did something happen?" Will's eyes shake. What is everyone doing here? Why are Chloe and Taylor back from college? Why is Lee back at camp?
"What's going on?" WIll asks, and his siblings share a look. He knows that look. It's the one that the older kids give each other when they're not sure if they should tell him something.
"Will, it's complicated." Michael says, but Lee lays a hand on his shoulder.
"Michael, we may as well tell him now. We are going to tell the entire cabin eventually." He says, and Michael huffs, shrugging Lee's hand off of his shoulder.
Taylor grabs onto Will's hand, pulling him closer to her. She takes his face in both of her hands, making Will look at her. He's getting to be just as tall as her.
"Will… James is missing." Will frowns, not understanding.
"Missing?" Taylor glances over at Chloe, who nods her head.
"Missing in the loosest sense of the word." She says softly. "James has…James is with Luke."
Will feels his entire world fall apart.
—
Chloe, Taylor and Lee don't stay for long. The only reason they had come back was to report their findings to Chiron, since break was only for a couple more days.
Will spends all his time either in the infirmary, angrily ripping up bandages into usable pieces, or with one of his siblings.
The infirmary is where Percy finds him.
"Hey… I heard about James. I'm sorry." Will sighs, still ripping up pieces of bandages.
"It's fine, Percy. There's not much I can do about it at this point." He says, his voice level. The older boy furrows his eyebrows, mouth settling into a line.
"It still sucks though. Losing a sibling like–"
"Yeah, it does." Will interrupts, tearing a bit more forcefully. Percy hesitates, blinking a few times. Will takes a few deep breaths. After a few too many times watching Frozen with his siblings, he feels like Elsa's mantra has become his own.
Conceal. Don't feel. It keeps his head on straight in stressful situations. Keeps him level.
"Is there a reason you've come all the way over here? I don't usually need to heal you because of your whole water thing." Will asks, turning to face Percy. The older boy rubs the back of his neck, looking a bit embarrassed.
"I heard that you were one of the campers who got close to Nico when he was here." Percy says sheepishly, and Will sighs. He hasn't even begun to process the fact that Nico was a child of Hades. And he's not about to do that with Percy freaking Jackson of all people.
"I was, yeah. Haven't seen him in a few days though." Will comments, his mask not slipping even a bit. Keep it to yourself, he thinks. Percy shuffles from side to side, still clearly embarrassed to be talking about this with Will.
"Ah… yeah. He kinda… ran off after I told him about his sister… I was just curious if you had any ideas where he would have gone…?" Will sighs, turning fully to face Percy, their eyes meeting.
"Percy, I've known Nico for about a week. I have just about as much of an idea as you do. I barely know anything about him, and it's not like I was discussing details about his home life with him. He wasn't claimed, so there's no clues there. He didn't talk much to me, or anyone, especially since a few days ago." He sees the expression on Percy's face change. That must have been when Bianca died, Will assumes.
"How long ago?" Percy asks, and WIll levels him.
"A few days, Percy." He clips, and the older boy frowns. "It's not like I'm keeping track. I have enough to do here."
"Right… sorry, Will." Percy says, and Will runs a hand through his curls.
"I know more than most campers." He says, and Percy snaps his head up to look at him. "When I healed Nico, I learned that while he may be physically ten, he hasn't been ten for decades." Percy's lack of reaction surprises him. "But you already knew that, didn't you?" Percy nods.
"We figured it out when Bianca talked about there being no subway when she was a kid. She and Nico stayed in this place called the Lotus Hotel. Time passes differently there." Will hums, nodding. He remembers Taylor teaching him about a similar myth.
"The Pegasi didn't like him. The campers started to ignore him. He gave off this… aura. I don't know what it is." Will says carefully. Percy frowns again, fiddling with one of his camp beads. "I'm smart, but there are others who can put together pieces faster than I can." Will says offhandedly, ripping more pieces of bandages. "If I can put it together, others will be able to."
"You…" Will nods, glancing at Percy.
"I won't tell Chiron. Or anyone. Not even my siblings." Percy breathes out a deep breath, looking at Will gratefully.
"Thank you, Will." Will leans against the bedside table, looking at Percy.
"I'm not doing it for you, Percy." Percy gives him a confused look. "I'm doing it for a scared 10 year old that didn't deserve any of this. I can only hope that he will come back to camp but…" Will sighs. "There's nothing I can do, or you. I just hope that Luke doesn't get him either."
Pain flashes across Percy's face. Will huffs out a laugh.
"Luke may have been your friend, but he has my brother. I guess we can both understand that pain." Will says gently.
"I'm still sorry, Will." Percy says, his voice hoarse. Will shakes his head.
"Like I said, Percy. James made his choice." Will picks up the pile of bandages he had ripped into small pieces, placing them into a small basket. "Are you heading back to school for the rest of the term?" Percy nods. Will hums.
"Well, I'm sure someone here will keep you updated if anyone returns, but I really doubt it at this point. Nico's untrained. We can only hope something doesn't kill him before he can come back." Will props the basket on his hip. "I think your friends are waiting for you." He points out, seeing Grover and Annabeth through the doorway.
Percy turns, but he looks back at Will. "Can you promise–"
"On the River Styx." Will says, and Percy's eyes widen. "I won't say anything."
"Thanks again, Will. I'll see you in the summer?" Will nods, waving his hand.
"I'll be here. Always am." Percy smiles warmly, running out of the door to meet the others. Will sighs, going to the back room.
His hands shake as he puts the bandages into the drawer, and it's not long before he has to lean over the desk, tears dripping down his cheeks.
"Fuck you, Holden." He hisses, wiping furiously at his cheeks. It's almost like there is a chip of his heart taken out. All of his siblings are so near and dear to him.
"Will?" He hears a voice call out, and before he can react, Aria steps into the back room. Her eyes soften and she comes to his side, resting a hand on his shoulder. "Oh, Will…" He shakes his head, but the tears fall harder, faster.
Before long, Aria pulls him into a hug, wrapping her arms around him tightly. WIll feels himself crumble, and before long, he's full on sobbing. Aria just shushes him, her fingers running through his curls.
"Why would he do this?" He cries, burying his face in Aria's shoulder. His sister doesn't respond for a long time, and he knows that she doesn't understand either.
"I don't know, Will. He always had a chip on his shoulder when it came to Dad. He was unclaimed for two years, and he used to be so MAD that Aaron was better at archery. I think it was just a lot of built up stuff." She pulls back to press a kiss to the top of Will's head. "Please don't take it personally, Will. I don't think there was anything that we could have done as siblings." Will sniffs, and Aria brushes a few tears off of his cheeks.
"It hurts, Aria." He whispers, and Aria gives him a sympathetic look.
"I know it does, sunbaby." She says quietly, and Will wants to cry more at the use of Taylor's nickname for their siblings. "You don't always have to be so strong, you know?" Will shakes his head, but she shushes him before he can speak. "I mean it, Will. You're just a kid. You can cry, you can feel things." Will crumbles into her arms again.
Aria rests her chin on top of his head as he cries.
"We will get him back, I promise."
They both know the impossibility of that statement, but Will believes it anyway.
He has to.