disclosures | Week 5: Wednesday

[Look he was literally just walking by when he finds himself thrown into a bubble with Rebecca. There's an angry, startled noise as he looks around, confused by what he's seeing.]

Rebecca, what--[But he stops then as he watches what's happening. It's...strange, really, watching this from her perspective but he turns back to the real Rebecca with a confused look.]

...what's happening here?

[She looks pretty damn miserable here. It's been a long time since she's thought about New York.]

I was supposed to get a promotion and I... I don't know. I panicked.

[...this is just kind of sad. He's quiet as he watches how this goes, hears Rebecca talking to herself and how she's hidden away in an alleyway.

...at the same time, he kind of gets it.]

Do you know why? [Why she panicked, he means.]

I should've been happy. But I... I wasn't. Mom would've been so happy because I would be... better, but I didn't feel happy about it. At all. Like there was something wrong with me.

[Ah. He remembers this conversation.]

And that's why you ran away to California for that guy. I don't think there's anything wrong with not being happy even when people think you should be. [He doesn't seem too terribly bothered about the bubble, but he's watching.

...and then he sees the sign.]

That is a weirdly on-point ad. [The arrow cracks and creaks, swinging downward and the view shifts--]

...that's him?

It sounds stupid when you say it like that. Because it was. Dumb and crazy.

Right? It's such a weird butter ad. They were playing for a while.

Yeah, that's him. That's Josh Chan.

It's maybe not that dumb. [That's muttered though, and he's watching how this goes. He gets to see Rebecca suddenly moving upon seeing Josh and he tilts his head.]

...what did you like about him? [Like. Sure, Josh isn't the ugliest person but Nico's more into blondes.]

It's pretty dumb.

[She watches through it- god, why does she have to live through this again? Summer camp though...]

He was the last time I really felt happy.

[Because Rebecca's life is suffering. Nico's going to just kind of size Josh up instead.]

Okay, yeah, so it's pretty dumb. [But hey.] How long ago was that though? Josh made it sound like it was a really long time.

When I was in high school.

[Her tapestry says she's 28. So he can probably guess it's been at least decade since she's actually been happy.]

...and what about him, specifically, made you happy? [Mostly because to him Josh seems kind of...childish, maybe. It's sort of the same feeling he has about someone else, but he likes that other person better.]

He was nice to me. I felt like, you know, I could be myself around him.

[jfc Rebecca, why's the bar on the floor with you.]

...that's it? [He's watching the end of this, their awkward goodbye and Josh being the way Josh is. It's awkward and a little like an intrusion, but this kind of gives him an idea of what Rebecca really thinks of herself, yikes.] No one else has ever done that?

Are you kidding? Of course nobody else has ever done that. Mom always wanted me to be better, Audra didn't even like me, and dad- he walked out on my birthday party after having a huge fight with mom in front of my three friends.

[... Oh man, other people aren't like her. Other people actually have people who like them for them? That's a wild and alien concept to her. They don't have to lie to make people like them.

Fuck.]

... My mom was right, I am crazy,

That's not what I said. [Mostly because like. Wow? That would be enough to make anybody kind of clingy and stuff.] It's just...there's at least ten years between high school and how old you are now.

Did things only get better in California?

You don't have to say it.

Yeah, and I wasn't happy during any of that. [That's not entirely true, but she's prone to over exaggerating and not remembering times she was actually happy.]

For a while.

I would count "for a while" as being happy during some of it, at least. [The memory seems to fade as Josh walks away, rippling a little in a way Nico isn't sure he likes. He ignores it though, unaware that the scenery around them fades from the concrete jungle of NYC to something more...open. Woodsy. A summer camp, actually, with several cabins scattered across the grounds in varying decorations.]

You make it sound like your mother called you crazy often.

[Oh, summer camp. She loved summer camp the one time she was actually allowed to go. But this isn't her camp. Is it Nico's?]

That's because she did. Crazy, irrational, weird and dramatic.

That doesn't sound great. [Like duh, but also wow. He opens his mouth to comment again, but something draws his attention then.

The scene seems to settle inside a dark, empty cabin and from the point of few with a bed. There's a soft, rapping noise at the door and the POV changes to look at a blonde boy. Nico's expression falls a bit even if it can't be seen.

The boy speaks first.

"You okay? You look--"

"Fine," Nico's voice snaps instantly, but the tone grows softer then. "If you’re looking for Hazel, she’s still asleep." The boy mouths an "oh" before gesturing for Nico to step outside. Walking into the sun, the scene blurs as Nico blinks at the early morning light. The blonde's hair has a cowlick on one side and glasses sitting crookedly on his nose. Nico's hand moves a bit but stills, a successful attempt to stop the impulse to fix them. The blonde points to the strawberry fields where a large group of kids are packing their camping gear.

"It was strange to see them here. Now it’ll be strange not seeing them."

"Do you regret not going with them?" The tone's curious, as if Nico's genuinely not sure. The blonde gives a lopsided smile.

"A little. But I’ll be going back and forth between the camps a lot. I have some shrines to build."

"I heard. The Senate plans to elect you Pontifex Maximus."

The other boy shrugs. "I don’t care about the title so much. I do care about making sure the gods are remembered. I don’t want them fighting out of jealousy any more, or taking out their frustrations on demigods.’

"They’re gods," Nico replied, hardly bothered by the subject. "That’s their nature."

"Maybe, but I can try to make it better. I guess Leo would say I’m acting like a mechanic, doing preventative maintenance." The boy frowned, and Nico shakes his head.

"You know, you couldn’t have stopped Leo. There’s nothing you could have done differently. He knew what had to happen."

"I – I guess. I don’t suppose you can tell if he’s still –"

"He’s gone." A short, quick answer from Nico. "I’m sorry. I wish I could tell you otherwise, but I sensed his death."

The boy stares into the distance and Nico hesitates. In the distance, the group of kids pick up their gear and begin walking across a large hill toward a series of black SUVs. There's companionable silence before the other boy breaks it.

"Ella the harpy is going with them, you know. She and Tyson. Even Rachel Elizabeth Dare. They’re going to work together to try to reconstruct the Sibylline Books."

"That should be interesting." Nico comments.

"Could take years. But with the voice of Delphi extinguished …" the blond etrails off.

"Rachel still can’t see the future?"

The boy shakes his head. "I wish I knew what happened to Apollo in Athens. Maybe Artemis will get him out of trouble with Zeus and the power of prophecy will work again. But for now those Sibylline Books might be our only way to get guidance for quests."

Nico snorts lightly. "Personally, I could do without prophecies or quests for a while."

"You’ve got a point." The boy straightens his glasses. "Look, Nico, the reason I wanted to talk to you … I know what you said back at Auster’s palace. I know you already turned down a place at Camp Jupiter. I – I probably can’t change your mind about leaving Camp Half-Blood, but I have to –"

"I’m staying."

A blink of surprise. "What?"

"At Camp Half-Blood. The Hades cabin needs a head counsellor. Have you seen the decor? It’s disgusting. I’ll have to renovate. And someone needs to do the burial rites properly, since demigods insist on dying heroically." Somehow Nico continues to make this casual. Not that it stops the boy from smiling suddenly.

"That’s – that’s fantastic! Dude!" He opens his arms for a hug before freezing upon seeing Nico's expression. "Right. No touching.
Sorry."

"I suppose we can make an exception." Begrudgingly, but it doesn't last before the blond zooms forward and squeezes Nico in a tight hug as he flails just slightly.

"Oh, man, wait till I tell Piper. Hey, since I’m all alone in my cabin too, you and I can share a table in the dining hall. We can team up for capture the flag and sing-along contests and –"

"Are you trying to scare me away?" He sounds amused even so.

"Sorry. Sorry. Whatever you say, Nico. I’m just glad." Nico's gaze shifts then toward some of the other cabins, eyes landing on a different blonde in a green surgeon's shirt, jeans and flipflops. He waves toward Nico, stern and unhappy for a moment before he pointed to the ground at his feet. The message was pretty clear: "You. Here. Now."

"Jason…would you excuse me?" Nico doesn't bother to wait for an answer and he turns to walk closer to the other boy. His expression doesn't change even when Nico approaches.

"So where were you?"

"What do you mean?" Nico has no idea what's even going on. The other boy sighs.

"I’ve been stuck in the infirmary for, like, two days. You don’t come by. You don’t offer to help."

"I … what? Why would you want a son of Hades in the same room with people you’re trying to heal? Why would anyone want that?" He sounds baffled, confused why anyone would want him, Nico di Angelo around.

"You can’t help out a friend? Maybe cut bandages? Bring me a soda or a snack? Or just a simple 'How’s it going, Will?' You don’t think I could stand to see a friendly face?"

"What … my face?" More bafflement, but this time a hint of embarrassment.

"You’re so dense. I hope you got over that nonsense about leaving Camp Half-Blood."

Somehow when Will said it…it made more sense to stay right where he was. "‘I – yeah. I did. I mean, I’m staying."

The boy grins a little. "Good. So you may be dense, but you’re not an idiot."

Even so, Nico protests. "How can you even talk to me like that? Don’t you know I can summon zombies and skeletons and
–"

Will rolls his eyes. "Right now you couldn’t summon a wishbone without melting into a puddle of darkness, di Angelo. I told you, no more Underworldy stuff, doctor’s orders. You owe me at least three days of rest in the infirmary. Starting now."

"Three days? I – I suppose that would be okay."

The grin grows brighter on Will's face. "Good. Now –"

A loud whoop cuts through the air. Over by the hearth in the center of the common area, a black-haired boy and a blonde girl stand together. The boy's grinning even as the girl laughs and playfully slaps his arm. Nico raises an eyebrow and turns back to Will.

"I’ll be right back. Promise on the Styx and everything."

Walking, he approaches the couple who were both grinning like crazy.

"Hey man," the boys says. "Annabeth just told me some good news. Sorry if I got a little loud."

"We’re going to spend our senior year together," the girl explains. "Here in New York. And after
graduation –"

"College in New Rome!" The boy interrupts again, pumping his fist like he was blowing a truck horn. "Four years with
no monsters to fight, no battles, no stupid prophecies. Just me and Annabeth, getting our degrees, hanging out at cafés, enjoying California."

"And after that …" Annabeth kisses the boy on the cheek. "Well, Reyna and Frank said we could live in New Rome as long as we like."

There's a stunned moment of surprise before Nico finds himself speaking. "That’s great. I’m staying too, here at Camp Half-Blood."

"Awesome!" The boy looks happy and Nico takes the time to really look at him. Tall, black hair, sea-green eyes, the build of a skater but years of training behind him. He's a good-looking guy, but Nico finds himself tilting his head before he frowns lightly.

"So," he says. "Since we’re going to be spending at least a year seeing each other at camp, I think I should clear the air."

The other boy's smile wavers. "What do you mean?"

There's a pause. "For a long time, I had a crush on you. I just wanted you to know."

The boy looks confused, looking at Nico first, then at Annabeth, and then back to Nico.

"You--"

"Yeah. You're a great person, but I'm over that. I'm happy for you guys."

"You…so you mean--" the other boy stutters.

"Right."

Annabeth's eyes sparkle a little, giving Nico a sideways smile as she catches on.

"Wait, so you mean--"

"Right. But it’s cool. We’re cool. I mean, I see now … you’re cute, but you’re not my type." Nico shrugs.

"I’m not your type … Wait. So –"

He begins to walk away. "See you around, Percy. Annabeth."

The girl raises a hand for a high-five which Nico delivers, grinning to the pair before turning and quickly walking back toward where Will stood.

...meanwhile in real life, the actual Nico di Angelo definitely looks high-key embarrassed. So much for "don't go places just for a guy."]

... So you also went somewhere for just one guy?

[She wasn't expecting anybody else to do the same crazy thing she did. On the other hand, this looks like summer camp and like Nico was surrounded by friends here.

Maybe it worked out better for him in the end, letting go of a crush and actually moving on.]

Um. [Ignore him, he's suddenly a little flustered.] More like I stayed somewhere...but it wasn't just for him.

[Not seen: the argument he and Will had literally a few days prior about Nico running away and how he needs to stop doing that.]

Looks like you had a good circle of friends there. Despite... underworldliness? Is that right?

They're okay. [Casually, but...they're good people. All of them. He misses them now that he thinks about it which is strange given he was alone for so long.] It wasn't always like that though.

[There's a nod though.] My father is Hades. [So yeah. Lots of underworldliness there. Maybe that also explains why being surrounded by death doesn't bother him too much yet.]

My father is garbage. [It's reflexive, she didn't think about it.

But being a literal son of a god seems bizarre.]

What's that like? Is he... an involved parent?

[He quirks an eyebrow. That was fast. And yet...yeah, he can see that.]

I wouldn't call him garbage, but I wouldn't call him father of the year material either. [He frowns a little.] Death isn't exactly warm and affectionate, but there is some mercy sometimes. He...tries. Or has been trying, at least, which I suppose is better than nothing. It's been better in recent history but he's told me his own fair share of lies and I often go months without hearing from him. Or years.

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