"The moment I met you,
I held my breath.
And you've been taking
it away ever since,
Nico di Angelo."
[ NICO DI ANGELO x MALE OC ]
[ PERCY JACKSON SERIES ]
[ HEROES OF OLYMPUS SERIES ]
cover by @humaneity !
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0024. | HOT CHOCOLATE AND NAPKINS
Sunrise came quickly and Vela was forced to slip from Silena's arms. He packed his bag silently and sheathed himself with his knife, making sure his rings were on his fingers before tying his laces (a double knot as Annabeth taught him). He whispered a goodbye to Silena though she was still snoring and kissed her forehead before slipping out the door of the Aphrodite cabin soundlessly.
He met up with Percy and Annabeth who were waiting for him with Argus and they set off in the Delphi Strawberry Farm van. Nobody spoke but there was at least a slight ease of tension after what Vela had shown Annabeth but still the silence persisted.
Percy decided to be the one to break it. "Bad dreams?" He asked but Vela stayed quiet. It was obvious he wasn't speaking to him.
Annabeth shook her head but glanced up at Vela nervously. He frowned. "No." She said, "I got an Iris-Message from Eurytion." Vela froze, snapping his head over to Annabeth who refused to meet his eyes. Why hadn't she told him? All the things he had told and shown her but she had hidden this from him?
"Is something wrong with Nico?" Vela grilled her, and she looked down guiltily. She knew she should've told Vela first but it was hard to tell him stuff when he was so adamant about prioritising Nico's safety despite barely knowing the boy.
Annabeth sighed. "He left the Ranch last night." She said. "He headed back into the maze."
"What?" Vela yelled and Percy looked just as worried. Vela's heart was hammering. This had totally messed up his plan. Nico was supposed to stay safe at the Ranch and after Kronos was defeated, Vela was going to go find him so that he could ensure his safety. But no.
Vela was trying hard not to be fuming but it was difficult.
"Didn't Eurytion try to stop him?" Percy asked, taking over the interrogation for Vela who was severely disturbed by the news for some reason.
"He was gone before Eurytion woke up." She said and Vela sat up straight. Good posture helped him think. "Orthus tracked his scent as far as the cattle grid. Eurytion said he'd heard Nico talking to himself the last few nights. He said he heard your name a few times, Vela; but now he's pretty sure that Nico's taking to the ghost again - Minos."
Vela couldn't decide whether to be ecstatic or furious. Minos was trying to influence him again and if the ghost was meddling with Nico, there wasn't much Vela could do about it until he found him. On the other hand... Nico had said his name - in his sleep! The image of the sleeping son of Hades mumbling his name in his sleep was enough to make his heart stop beating.
"He could be in danger." Vela murmured, trying to compose his red cheeks and focus on Nico's safety, not him speaking his name. "I- we have to find him." He corrected himself but he still felt Annabeth's glance.
