Chapter Text
Camp Half-Blood felt different now. After the war with Gaia, the quiet that lingered wasn’t exactly peaceful. The demigods who had survived were different too. Irrevocably changed through loss and death and pain far greater than any their age should have to witness. It was thought even then by most demigods that what the seven of the prophecy had been through was somehow worse. And among the seven, there was a quiet acknowledgment that some of them had had to survive a fate that now, given the time to heal and fit back into the world they had sacrificed so much to save, they seemed almost worse than death in some ways. Percy, Annabeth and Nico had been through Tartarus. And that place seemed to have broken something in them.
The whole camp bore witness to the unhealthy co-dependency Annabeth and Percy formed following the end of the war. They all saw the anger and fear that simmered between them. It was hard not to notice the decay of what had once been the golden standard for relationships in Camp.
Nico on the other hand faced a quieter sort of ruin. The boy who had long since faded to the edged of camp life, barely even registering for most campers even when he was there, now seemed to have disappeared completely, locking himself away in his cabin. Stewing alone in the darkness of his own thoughts, barely eating, slipping away almost entirely unnoticed. Jason knew why the boy refused to let himself heal. While Eros had forcefully revealed certain things to Jason, Nico still couldn’t bring himself to face that part of himself. The pain of Tartarus seemed to only be amplified by the hatred Nico held for himself and there was nothing Jason could do to help him.
In a surprising move, Mr. D was the one that kickstarted their recovery. In hindsight, perhaps it isn’t so surprising at all? He was more than just the god of wine and partying after all. Mr. D was more than that. As the god of madness, he had been able to see the madness pulling at the minds of the three demigods. Tartarus was a place even the gods feared. To think that three demigods had not just experienced it but had survived the experience scared him. He understood the strength of a human mind better than most gods having once been human himself but even he couldn’t quite wrap his mind around how this had happened. In any case, the three had earned his respect, and moreover, they had earned his protection.
The god took it upon himself to slowly ease them back into their world and their lives, healing what little bits of damage he could that their time in Tartarus had left them with. Slowly but surely, as months passed, the demigods minds began to heal. Soon they were well enough to start to heal themselves and Mr. D found that when Nico grinned at him late one afternoon, a shadow of the child he had once been shining through the cracks and said, “You’re so much more than the Wine Dude you know?” reminding him of the endearing way the boy had first come into his sight, he couldn’t stop the fondness from coloring his voice as he responded, “You’re a smart boy Nico di Angelo, I’ll take your word for it.”
Nico let the surprise show as the god called him by his actual name for once. Mr. D shooed him off, returning to the Big House and starting a game of poker with Chiron, scowling as Chiron smiled knowingly at him. All three of the demigods were faring better now. His job was done. For now, at least, he decided.
Annabeth, now faced with the reality of the situation between her and Percy, realised that there was really only one way for them to move forward. Percy was mired in anger and grief that he didn’t quite understand. She on the other hand had been forced to acknowledge a part of Percy that while it had always been present, had never come out in force as it did in Tartarus. Watching him choke a literal goddess with her own poison had carved a fear into her and though logically, she knew he’d never use that power to hurt her, her body and subconscious didn’t quite seem to get the message and she found herself flinching away from him.
When eventually the two decide to separate, making the matter permanent after a week spent apart, it comes as no surprise to either of them. Annabeth knows she’s leaving part of herself behind with him, and with how things are, it doesn’t seem likely they’ll be able to stay friends. But she doesn’t hate him for it. Not really. In part at least, she understands. As does, it seems, Percy.
Percy is angry at first. It’s visible in the way he trains. The arena quickly empties when he shows up, sword in hand. Clarisse stuck around for a while, but while she could keep up and even offer a fair challenge, she couldn’t keep up with his need to exhaust himself so entirely. On the third day when Percy shows up looking once more for a fight, it isn’t the daughter of Ares that steps forward. Nico steps in front of her, waving her look of concern away and getting into position. The fight is intense. Neither holding back as Nico seems to understand the pain, mirroring it as the two fight. Swords escalate to powers, and eventually, exhausted, they stumble together, weapons on the floor, grappling more than fighting, until its too much. Annabeth had seen them lying side by side on the arena floor, clearly exhausted, faces tear stained, but for the first time since the war had ended, she realised that both of them were completely relaxed. Worn out, and tired enough that they’ll definitely be sore for the next few days at least, but finally relaxed. A pang of jealousy rang through her chest as she turned away, telling herself she’d find her way soon.
Not long after, she finds herself sitting next to Nico. The boy had been sitting, leaning against a tree, eyes closed, when she had seen him. Something had drawn her to sit next to him. He acknowledged her as she sat, moving to make space for her next to him. The silence stretched between them for a while.
“He seems better now.” She said, keeping her tone flat.
Nico is silent for a long time before he responds, “He’s still finding his way,” He pauses and looks at her, “You will too you know?”
She felt the sting of tears and quickly looked down, “It doesn’t feel like it,” swallowing thickly, feeling the lump in her throat and pretending she isn’t tearing up, she forces her voice to be steady as she asks, “How are you so ok?”
Nico sounds broken when he laughs and Annabeth can’t help but turn to him in surprise, “Me?” his voice is incredulous, clearly surprised that that’s how she sees him, “I’m not.” His voice is still steady despite the tear that tracks its way down his cheek, “I just,” he stops, looking at her consideringly before sighing and tensing as he seems to make a decision, “I need him to make it.” It sounds like a confession.
Annabeth feels the weight of those words settle around them. She looks at Nico properly for what feels like the first time and she sees the apprehension, fear, and exhaustion that clings to him. ‘I need him to make it,’ she repeats his words in her mind, and she thinks she understands. They spend the afternoon sitting together in silence under that tree. It feels freeing somehow.
The next time they see each other, they both recognize a quiet bond between them. Neither felt the need to talk, to interfere in the others life. But they saw each other as they were. Broken, bruised, and struggling to heal.
Annabeth finds herself being folded back into the routine of the Athena cabin. Surrounded by siblings, entrenched in books, training, planning and talking, joking around with people who thought in comfortingly identifiable patterns of thought, she began rebuilding herself. In the forgotten familiarity of a family she had nearly forgotten about, she found little glimmers of hope. And she didn’t realise the first time she really smiled, but as she bent over a book with a younger sibling, puzzling over a problem together, her sisters and brothers saw the small smile that settled on her face. She would heal in time.
Nico is still alone. Jason pushes himself into the younger boys’ life sometimes but doesn’t linger, afraid to overstay his welcome. Random campers come up to him sometimes, he responds to all of them with a detached politeness, helpful but removed and distant.
It takes several months for any real progress. Percy, who had retreated into himself after their sparring session, suddenly seemed to fit himself back into camp life one day with no explanation and just like that, he began to seek Nico out, “We’re both single person cabins, it makes sense to line our activities together,” he says.
Nico can’t find it in himself to refuse and suddenly, the two seem inseparable. Nico is considerably confused by this development but is trying hard not to look a gift horse in the mouth so to speak as he attempts to enjoy the time they spend together.
Percy on the other hand seems almost entirely back to his old self. Smiling, making badly timed jokes, and going through his favourite camp activities with a renewed vigour. Nico however sees the sharpness he hides under his smiles, he sees the dark circles under his eyes that never quite seem to fade, and the stiffness he holds himself with, always on edge. He tells himself they’ll both be fine. They just need time.
So of course they don’t get time. When has demigod life ever been easy? Seeing Annabeth find herself again had lulled Nico into a false sense of hope. He shouldn’t have been surprised really when he got called into the Big House one day. When he walked in to see Hazel and Percy standing stiffly, and Mr. D looked at him, expression almost apologetic for a second before sliding once more into oblivious disinterest, Chiron clearly displeased and lips pursed, sitting in a corner, he really should have expected it.
“Lady Hecate has a quest to issue. She has specifically requested the three of you,” Chiron didn’t sound pleased with the information he had to convey. Not that it mattered. He had no choice in the issue either, clearly.
Nico was trying to suppress the disappointment and panic welling up in him when Hecate’s voice rang out, “Oh good, you can be punctual.”
Percy glared at her and Nico almost rolled his eyes fondly at the clear annoyance the son of Poseidon was displaying. Hazel seemed better at hiding her feelings as she bowed her head lightly toward the goddess.
“Now, I wont take too much of your time,” Hecate smiled pensively at them, “If I’ve learnt anything from the last war its that complicated plans rarely work. I did briefly consider following in dear old Hera’s footsteps and wiping your memories to get what I want,” all three demigods tensed while Hecate continued lightly, “but that seemed unwise.”
“Now, are you planning on getting to the point anytime soon Hecate, or can I get back to playing poker again?” Dionysus interrupted her, voice intentionally dripping with boredom and Nico found himself biting back a smile despite himself as annoyance flashed on Hecate’s face.
“So impatient,” she chided before finally getting to the point, “I have a little problem that needs to be taken care of. Monsters in my pet world,” seeing the confusion on the demigods’ faces, she expanded, “Long story short, there’s a hidden society of mortals who are blessed by me. Witches and wizards. None of which I would be making your problem if not for the fact that Monsters from our world seem to have slipped into theirs. The war was a confusing time and they seem to have gotten lucky.”
“So you want us to kill them?” Percy asked, clearly eager to be done with whatever this was.
“Kind of,” Hecate seemed reticent.
“Kind of?” Nico barely hid his annoyance, tacking on a “My Lady,” too late and earning a raised eyebrow from the goddess.
“Kind of,” she repeated, “There was already a war brewing in their world and Voldemort – a surprisingly nasty piece of work for a mortal – has somehow started recruiting them.”
“Come again?” Hazel sounded sufficiently confused.
“Are you saying a mortal wizard is amassing an army of Greek monsters?” Nico questioned, disbelief coloring his voce.
“Yes.”
“No,” Percy piped in, “no, no nope. No way. Screw this.”
“What he said,” Nico added, pointing his thumb at Percy.
“Yes well, your refusal to accept it makes it no less true,” Hecate huffed, annoyed, “You wont be fighting them exactly. The situation is… delicate. I have made arrangements for you to attend Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You will befriend Harry Potter and find a way to earn the trust of a man called Dumbledore – your soon to be headmaster – and work with them to wipe out the monsters. And while you’re there, your father would likely appreciate if you finished the job that potter started and actually kill Voldemort.” Hecate directed the last part to Hazel and Nico, pretending as if she hadn’t just dropped a buttload of information that barely made sense.
The silence stretched unbroken for a while as Hecate looked expectantly at them. Eventually, she was left to sigh in disappointment and settle into a longer more comprehensive explanation as all three demigods responded together, “Huh?!”
The day had barely started and everyone in that room was already done. It was going to be a long, confusing day.
Great. Just great.