Sea Princess (Daughter of Poseidon Fanfiction)

8.Good Night, Sunshine

Thalassa's POV

I listened with a straight face until Nico said he kissed Will. My expression turned into pure ecstasy. "YES! My OTP became canon!" He stopped walking for a second and asked, confused, "What's OTP and canon? Also, Jason and Percy always say they 'ship' Will and I but I don't get it. Is it like an inside joke or something because we don't have any ships." My face fell, "How do you not know what that is? Were you born in another century or something?" Nico's expression darkened, "Yeah."

I was shocked for a second but then I grinned and said, "That's so cool! How do you deal with technology? What year were you born in? What does it feel like to be older than everyone yet younger than them?"

He hesitated then answered, "I don't deal with technology. I was born in the 1940s. It's kinda weird being technically over eighty years old, but I'm used to being different." He said 'different' as if it were a disease. Realisation hit me like a sledgehammer. Oh gods, I thought. Nico was born in a century where people who were into their own gender were shunned. And then, he was somehow pulled out of time and placed in a century of technology so he must have felt even more out of place. Later, he probably found out he was a son a Hades and felt like a complete outcast. "Nico wait~", I started. But it was too late. His eyes began to water and he ran off and faded into the darkness of night. I felt horribly guilty for ruining his day that was meant to be perfect. I sat on a fallen tree and buried my face in my hands. Ugh, why do I always push it too far?

After a while, I stood up with new found determination. I was going to apologise to Nico. I was about to start walking when I heard someone say, "Hey, Thalassa."

I was shocked that someone managed to sneak up on me without me noticing, so of course I exclaimed, "Woah!" as I tripped and fell and face planted into the mud. I heard a snicker as the person hauled me up. Of all the people in the world, it was Màgos. I felt heat rising up my neck, but hopefully the mud concealed my bright red cheeks as I tried to angrily say (keyword: tried), "Don't sneak up on me like that, Cheese Charmer." He laughed and said, "I didn't sneak up on you. I saw Nico running out of the woods and when I asked him where you were, he said you were here. Also," He closed his eyes and flicked the air. The mud blasted off of me like I was the centre of an explosion. He opened his eyes again to show his dark brown irises with a tint of violet. Why am I getting distracted, I thought. He looked a little drowsy, but he smiled and said, "Your welcome, Mermaid."

As we made our way to camp at night, I asked, "So how did you know about Nico's date?" He smirked and just answered with, "I have my sources. By the way, Nico seemed angry when I saw him. Did something happen?" "I sorta pushed it too far with the questions. I'm going to apologise. He must have been through a lot." He nodded and agreed, "He did go through a lot. He used to have a biological sister who died in a quest when he was only ten. I've even heard rumours that he survived Tartarus on his own."

"Tartar sauce?", I asked. He laughed (this guy laughs a lot. How can people be so happy yet others can be so sad?) and said, "No, Tartarus. The deepest abyss where monsters are born and sent back to when they're killed." My mouth formed an 'o' with realisation. Màgos grinned and then yawned. That mud explosion must've really taken the energy out of him. I realised we reached the camp. "Cheese Charmer," I said. "You seriously need to go get some sleep. Meanwhile, I gotta go apologise to Nico. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" He gave out another yawn and nodded. He sleepily walked towards the Hecate cabin while I headed off to Nico's cabin.

I knocked on the door and realised it was open. "Nico?" No answer. I pushed open the door and walked in. "Nico?" I called. No one seemed to be here. I was about to turn around and leave when something shiny caught my eye. I walked over to the glinting object. It was a sketch book encrusted with small jewels that looked real. I flipped open a page and almost dropped the book. I saw a detailed drawing of a female creature with hair made of fire and sharp claws and fangs. It had mismatched legs. One donkey leg and another seemingly made of bronze. It wore a burnt and torn blouse and a short pleated skirt. A cheerleader outfit. At the bottom right corner of the page the word 'Empousa' was written. I flipped to the next page and saw an even more horrifying sight. A wrinkled hag with bat-like wings, brass talons and glowing red eyes. It wore a a tattered dress of black silk, and its face was twisted and ravenous, like a demonic grandmother in the mood to kill. At the corner was written, 'Arai'. I flipped the page and almost yelped in terror. The gruesome figure of a woman with tattered clothes and emaciated limbs stood in the page. She looked like a victim of famine – limbs like sticks, swollen knees and knobby elbows, rags for clothes, broken fingernails and toenails. But what filled me with despair and misery was her eyes. They were sunken and rheumy, pouring out tears. I read the corner which said 'Akhlys – Goddess of Misery'. Page after page I saw a drawing twice as terrifying as the one before. How could Nico deal with this? If these are the monsters in Tartarus, how did he manage to keep his sanity? When I reached the end I saw a picture so detailed that if it were coloured, it would have popped right out of the page. It was as if Nico poured out his heart and soul drawing this one. But unlike the others, it wasn't a drawing of a monster. It was drawing of Will Solace.

I realised I was still in Nico's cabin. I set down the sketch book and went off to my own cabin. I decided I was going to apologise tomorrow.

Nico's POV

When I ran off, I felt angry at first. I ran into a kid from the Hecate cabin. Mágos I think? He asked me where Thalassa was and I pointed to the direction I came from. He thanked me and left. I didn't really know who he was but he seemed to know Thalassa really well. I decided to ask her about him later when I get my schist together. I didn't know where I was walking till I reached the infirmary. I sighed and walked inside. Maybe I could see Will, but he might've headed back to his cabin. I found a room with an empty bed and flopped into it. My thoughts kept drifting to Will's sky blue eyes and charming smile. I could've gone back to my cabin but I didn't feel like it. Even with the redecorating, it was too dark and gloomy. The door opened and I groaned. I was about to sleep even though it was probably only nine o'clock. Who would dare interrupt my sleep? "Hey, Death Boy." I immediately sat up. It was the light to my darkness himself, Will Solace.

"Hey Sunshine." I said, trying not to look too happy. He approached me and sat on the edge of the bed. "Why aren't you sleeping in your cabin?", asked Will. "Two problems: Too dark and too lonely." I answered. He smiled and said, "Too lonely? I could fix that." Before I could ask what he was doing, he pulled off the covers and joined me in bed. He pulled the covers over both of us and wrapped his arms around me, my face heating up as he did so. When he saw my red face he chuckled lightly and said, "You're cute when you blush, Death Boy." I smiled and said "Good night, Sunshine." "You too, Death Boy."

And for the first time in years, I fell into a sleep with no nightmares.

A/N Hey guys, sorry if I'm not putting in enough kissing scenes. I'm not really imaginative when it comes to that kind of stuff. But how was it?