Nico prepares for his departure on December 19th.

Chapter Rating: Teen and Up Audiences

Content Warning: Sexual Themes (mild), Self-Harm

Word Count: 2737

And all the characters are owned by J.K. Rowling, or Rick Riordan.

____________________ NICO ____________________

Light danced on top of Nico's eyelids, changing the color behind his eyes from black to red. He rose a hand to face, and rubbed the tiredness from his eyes; when he managed to open them, black spots danced in his vision. Nico looked around, waiting for the spots to fade; the whitewashed walls and bare windows reminded him of a hospital. It took Nico a second to get his bearings... the infirmary. He was back at Camp Half-Blood.

"How many times have I told you not to long-distance shadow travel?"

Nico couldn't help himself; his eyes flickered towards the open doorway. Once there, they refused to budge, even though Nico knew he was staring. He couldn't look away, not with his eyes starved of such a sight for so long. They drank the image in: beach blond hair falling over the deepest, bluest eyes in history; strong, muscular arms covered by the hooded green sweatshirt on top of an orange camp T-shirt; blue jeans ripped and faded from the daily wear and tear of demigod training, beat-up black-and-white sneakers rimmed with neon orange... all looking at Nico di Angelo like he was the world.

Will Solace.

"Hi," Nico managed after a long pause, a stupid, uncontrolled smile on his face.

Will snorted, though he didn't take his eyes off Nico either. "That didn't even remotely answer my question."

"You know the answer already," Nico teased, though his voice was still one of awe, rather than mock. "I never listen to you."

That was as much as either boy could take. In less than a second, Will traversed the few feet that separated him from his boyfriend, and kissed him. It wasn't the same kiss as August, not an innocent kiss, not one of exploration, but one of want. It was rough, and it was physical, with Will pretty much on top of him and pressing him into the bed. It was one that, had the circumstances been any different, might've led to more than just a kiss.

And it was glorious.

Nico pulled him in with as much fervor, running his hands up and down Will's back, on his thigh, his arm, anywhere he could reach. Will's legs lay on top of his, their feet tangling together, hanging off the side the bed. Every inch of their bodies pressed together, and at every site of contact, Nico's skin felt on fire. Maybe it was a side-effect of Apollo's lineage, or just a result of passion, but Nico loved it. Wanted it. Wanted more.

"Will--" Nico gasped, the boy's name coming out more like a moan. "I missed you, I missed you so much, I--" Will adjusted his position, which made Nico groan, cutting himself off.

"I know," Will whispered. "Me too, I know."

Acting on instinct, Nico rolled over, to try and place himself on top of his boyfriend. Unfortunately, Nico's instincts forgot how tiny the bed was, and that moving in either direction would result in both boys falling off said bed and onto the floor. Now sprawled on the ground, both Nico and Will burst out laughing, embarrassment creeping onto Nico's cheeks.

"Well... that kind of ruined the mood..." Nico noted, still laughing, but feeling awkward all the same.

Will laughed again, shaking his head at Nico. "It's fine, Neeks. We got two weeks, right?" He propped himself up, his lips an inch from Nico's ear. "And," he whispered, "I do have the Apollo cabin all to myself..."

The implications of Will's hanging words were enough to excite Nico again, enough that he forgot about the hazard of uncovering his arms under anyone's sight. But, Will never gave Nico the chance to finish what they'd started. He stood, fixed his clothes, then extended his hand towards Nico. "Come on, I promised Annabeth I'd have you up and out by dinner. I'm sure you want to say hi to everyone. It would be selfish to hog you too long."

Nico rolled his eyes, but took Will's hand, and stood. "I wish you were a little more selfish."

"Hey," Will teased, "Easy. The wait's what makes this fun."

Sure, but, by this time tomorrow, you won't be my boyfriend anymore.

Nico swore he heard something shatter. Still, he let Will lead him to the Dining Pavilion, where the year-rounders ate dinner. A few people, like Lou Ellen and Rachel, had shown up for the Solstice meeting, but would likely head home for the holidays after. In total, most of the gods' tables had at least one person sitting at it, or one representative floating around the pavilion. The rules on where campers sat relaxed in the winter months, since so few campers stayed at camp.

Will joined Lou Ellen at her table, leaving Nico to head towards Percy and Jason. They both noticed him at the same time, and stood to greet him.

"Hey, man! How you feeling?" Percy asked.

"Better now," Nico said, a smile forming on his face. "Will's a pretty good doctor... just don't tell him I said that."

"Scout's honor," Percy joked. Jason waved Nico over to sit beside him, launching into the usual questions the moment he sat down: how the quest was going, if there was any progress, how he liked Hogwarts, how many times Annabeth had saved Percy's ass, etc. Under normal circumstances, Nico would've let Percy handle his brofriend, as Hazel had labeled them. But, Nico also knew how soon he'd disappear from Jason's life. Even if it was only a temporary leave, it might be a long time before Nico came out of hiding. Jason took it hard whenever Nico shut him out; the least he could do was answer his friend's questions now.

At the campfire, Nico hung out with Leo and Piper alongside Jason, Percy, and Annabeth; the night consisted of his friends trying to force Nico to sing along with the campfire songs, which he refused on basic principle. There was running around, some charmspeak, a threat of a Percicane or Gracenado (also Hazel's naming skills), then various rubber bands flung at him from Leo's toolbelt. By the end of the night, Nico hadn't sung a note, but he and all his friends were hysterical in a way that Nico could only describe as drunk on life.

When the ashes of the fire had burned out, Nico remained the only person still sitting there. He thought of Hestia--not the follower of Hecate, but the goddess--who he'd met there six years before. He saw her tending to the flames every now and again, but tonight she hadn't shown. Maybe that was better. Nico liked to confide in her, but any information--accidental or otherwise--could thwart his escape plan. Hestia was his father's sister, after all; she wouldn't keep secrets from her family.

"Hey."

Nico turned, and saw Percy's face in the moonlight. "Oh, hi. I thought you'd be with Annabeth or something."

"'Cause there's less of a chance of us getting caught?" Percy asked with a chuckle. "Nah, she's holed up in her cabin, with some books on quantum mechanics, or whatever it is that smart people read about." Percy sat beside him, eyes fixed on the dying embers of flame. "You okay?"

"Huh?" Nico asked. "Yeah, 'course I'm okay... what made you think I wasn't?"

"You get this look." Percy outright laughed at Nico's shocked expression. "Not a bad one, just one that... well, you seem far away. Like you're planning something, thinking about something."

"I do?"

"Yeah. Don't worry about it, took me years to get a decent read on you, and even now I'm pretty shitty at it. You can still act like the dark and brooding son of death to the rest of the camp."

"Excuse you, Jackson, I am the dark and brooding son of death. I've got the tragic backstory to prove it."

They both laughed that time. From over the Sound, Nico heard the faint sound of church bells, announcing the new hour: Midnight. December 18th. One last day before he had to say good-bye.

"You're doing it again," Percy informed him.

"I'm allowed to think."

"I know." Percy glanced back at the coals. "Mom's been asking about you; she won't admit that she misses you, but she does."

"That's Sally for you," Nico added, smiling despite himself. "Loves too much."

After Gaea's Awakening, Nico had drifted from camp to camp, trying to figure out exactly what to do next. His father called on him now and then for small tasks, but nothing like before, like when war was brewing. Before July, he'd ended up at the Jackson apartment, at first just to see Percy on his way to and from Camp Half-Blood, but his visits grew longer and longer each time. It got to the point where Sally and Paul just left sheets on their couch, half-expecting him to show up and spend the night. Near the end of August, Sally had sat Nico down at her kitchen counter, and forced him to admit what he never could before.

"You know I love these visits of yours, Nico, but this can't last forever. You understand that, right?"

"Yes, Ms. Jackson--"

"Sally, dear."

"Sorry... Yes, Sally. I just... don't know what to make of myself right now, I guess."

Sally laughed, the kind of laugh that brought out the lines around her eyes. "You're fifteen, Nico. You're not supposed to know what to make of yourself yet. I'm nearly forty, and I still don't know exactly what to do." She paused to fix her greenish-blue eyes on his brown, then continued, "But, I at least know that I'm headed in the right direction. You've gone through so much at such a young age. I know first-hand what that's like; I'm sure Percy told you about my parents. If there's one thing I can tell you, it's that the first step back into the real world is the hardest. But you have to try, okay? For me."

Nico nodded his head, unable to speak. Sally smiled, the smile a mother gives to a son, then turned to an overhead cabinet to grab a glass. Nico watched her; he watched her fill the cup with tap water, turn towards the direction of her office, take one step towards the doorway, then two--

"Sally?"

"Yes, dear?"

"Would it... could I... I don't know how New York works but... school? High school? Is that possible? For me?"

Sally turned again, that smile back, eyes now soft and teary. "Of course, Nico. I'll discuss the details with Paul as soon as he gets home. And you can stay here for as long as you like."

And, in the blink of an eye, Nico found the closest thing he'd ever had to a real, honest-to-Olympus home. Percy started his senior year as Nico entered the school system for the first time in almost a decade as a freshman at Goode. They never talked about the situation, it was just something that, well, that happened. Percy and Paul and Sally all treated him like a member of the family, and Nico was just fine with it all; he needed no label. It wasn't like they kept it a secret either; Annabeth often showed up at the Jackson's apartment and saw Nico there, but if she asked Percy what was up, Nico hadn't been a part of the conversation. The Romans just assumed he was at Camp Half-Blood, and the Greeks assumed he was at Camp Jupiter. He never bothered to correct them.

He didn't know if Sally had expected him to return for sophomore year, but the quest had put any education or normalcy on hold. He still Iris Messaged her and Paul when he got the chance, but this proved that it wasn't enough for Sally. It was weird, thinking of her missing him in the same kind of way she missed her own son, though Nico knew she felt it to a lesser extent than with Percy. He wanted to I.M. her and Paul one last time before he left, but that didn't look possible now. She'd invited him over for Christmas, and he'd agreed to go, which meant that there was no reason for him to I.M. her mere days before he'd see her in person. It would raise suspicions too much, which could mess up the whole plan.

"Nico?" Percy asked, snapping the son of Hades into reality.

"I gotta go," Nico mumbled, and sprinted back to the Hades cabin.

It was funny; even after months of being away from that corner of the bathroom, his towel and ambrosia ritual felt just as worn as it had back in August.

The morning of the 18th felt like the calm before a storm, the planning before a war, the final hours before euthanization. Nico ran through the list of people he had to say goodbye to: Hazel, Frank, and Reyna wouldn't show up until at least the next evening. Nico couldn't say goodbye in person, and he couldn't risk a suspicious I.M. So, he sat on top of his bed, using the light of the morning sun coming through his window to write a message to each of them. A goodbye letter to each of them in Latin, so it was easier to read. Then, he wrote to Sally and Paul in Ancient Greek, saying everything he couldn't say before he left. He knew Percy would translate it for them.

By that point, it was already noon, but Nico couldn't stop writing. He wrote to anyone who'd miss him: Jason, Leo, Piper, Annabeth, Percy, Lou Ellen, Cecil, even a note to Chiron explaining all the ways camp had saved his life. By the time he finished, he'd filled up an entire notebook, one of those composition notebooks you got at WalMart for a dollar. He didn't rip any of the pages out, but kept it bound like a journal or a diary. A collection of good-byes, of excuses and thank yous and things he never could say before. He'd left the first page blank; on it, he wrote a table of contents, naming each person he'd addressed, and where they'd find their message. He closed the cover, and, on the center box where the name went, he wrote the most important message of all:

Goodbye

With nothing else to say, he closed the cover, and placed it all the way under his sheets, pushing it down to the foot of his bed. That way, even if for some reason someone glanced under his pillow or sheets, they wouldn't find the incriminating evidence early. He would reveal it that night, right before he left. He had one goodbye left to say, to the one person he hadn't addressed in that notebook. The sun had set, it was past six in the evening, and Nico couldn't put it off any longer.

It was time to break up with Will Solace.

Nico walked to the Apollo Cabin, figuring Will wouldn't be in the Big House this late. Every step was a dagger to the chest, and every atom in the air offered more and more resistance. It would be so easy to turn back, to hide the book, to pretend everything was okay, to keep Will and return to Hogwarts and continue betraying his friends.

No. I'm weak and I'm selfish, but I'm not stupid. I'm not stupid.

Nico knocked at the cabin door. "Will," he whispered as loud as he could. "Will, it's me."

The door flew open to reveal Will's blinding smile. "Hey! Haven't seen you all day; what's up?"

"Nothing," Nico lied, and crossed the threshold.

Will shut the door behind him, and chuckled. "You know, there is a rule about two campers being alone in a cabin together."

"I know; didn't think you'd care."

"I don't." His smile intact, Will walked towards his boyfriend in slow motion, each step echoing off the walls of the Apollo Cabin. Nico closed his eyes to keep from crying, using every ounce of willpower he had to keep the emotions out of his face. He felt Will's warm and inviting hands wrap around his waist, forehead touch forehead, breath hit his lips--

"Will. Stop."

Will pulled back, brow furrowed in confusion. "Is something wrong, Neeks?"

"Will..." Nico couldn't hide the emptiness from his voice any longer. "We need to talk."

Would love to comment, but it's not going to keep ya'll from crucifying me in comments...

This week's beta commentary:

STORY: Unfortunately, Nico's instincts forgot how tiny the bed was...

LISSY: Brought to you by Sokka's instincts. Sokka's instincts, you were so funny I put a reference to you in my fic about a DIFFERENT fictional and mystical world.

SARA: I love it.

GIULIA: SOKKA'S INSTINCTS YOU UNDERSTAND ME HAHAHAHAHA