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restinslices · 2 months

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Everything pt2

PJO Show Ares X Child!Reader (no gender specified)

Word count: 6168 (I realized a bit late that majority is me setting up the scene. If you just wanna see their talk, read after the “~~”)

Summary: You haven’t seen your father since the last time you talked, but of course with your luck he finds you again and you’re forced to make a big decision.

Warnings: Reader is going through it, poor attempt at a fight scene, the lore and timeline is probably fucked up but ignore that, OOC Ares probably and as of typing I’m realizing MAJOR SPOILER FOR THE TITANS CURSE. To avoid this, scroll until you see “I don’t have any friends that come over” or “~” if you wanna be extra careful.

You’d love to say that not seeing your father after your last talk was some sort of surprise, but it wasn’t. Thankfully (is that selfish to think?) none of the demigods had a real good relationship with their parent. Well, Percy seemed to have a solid relationship with Posideon, but it’s not like he saw him everyday. And as selfish and heartless as it sounded, that offered you a bit of relief and comfort. It’s not like your father was sensitive and loving to you and you screwed it up. Everything was pretty much back to normal.

It was a pretty somber day at camp. Percy, Grover and Thalia had managed to save Annabeth and Artemis, but it didn’t come without casualties. You weren’t necessarily friends with Bianca or Zoë but you still grieved over them. The hardest part though, was watching how sad your friends had gotten, especially Percy. You knew what Percy was like. Percy was extremely loyal but that loyalty led to carrying a lot more weight on his shoulders than what was necessary. If your suspicions were right (and you knew they were), he’d blame himself for Bianca’s death. That made zero sense to you. He told you exactly how she died and to you, it seemed like Bianca made a choice. Percy couldn’t have done anything to stop it. He didn’t see it that way and you weren’t sure why you insisted on telling him over and over again and trying to cheer him up.

“Nico?” Percy raised to his feet when he saw you approaching. You shook your head,

“No sign of him. He’s been missing for a week now Percy. If we were gonna find him, we would’ve found him by now”. Percy looked defeated. You were sure he knew the chances of finding him were slim to none, but you kept combing areas of the woods for him to keep him somewhat at peace. If he thought there was a chance, he wouldn’t be as depressed hopefully.

“I’m gonna say it again-“

“Don’t”

“Well what should I say to calm you down?”

Percy thought for a moment but just shrugged and started heading inside his cabin and you followed. Percy collapsed on his own bed and you took it upon yourself to sit on the bed next to his. You didn’t know if it was because you held resentment towards your father, or if you actually liked Cabin 3 but you really wished this was your cabin instead. “Must be nice having a cabin all to yourself. No obnoxious cabin mates, no extra noise, nobody leaving their shit on the floor”.

“I guess” was all he said back to you and you sighed. You didn’t wanna keep repeating yourself but you genuinely didn’t know what to say but not saying anything made you feel like an asshole that was ignoring the situation.

So you tried to change the subject.

“Is it like this at home too? Just you and your mom? No friends over?”.

“I don't have any friends that can come over”

“None at school?”

“None”.

That made you frown. You were older than Percy by a few years, so you had time to adjust to how lonely life could be as a half-blood and by now, you didn't return “home” either. Camp was your home now year round. You understood why Percy kept going home though. You heard about his mom and she seemed like a nice woman. You were grateful he at least had that.

But instead of saying something sweet and nice and voicing your thoughts, you made a joke instead. “That's why your little ass keeps getting into trouble. You have no one out there watching out for you”

“My mom watches out for me plenty”

“But she's not keeping schools from being blown up now is she?”. Percy rolled his eyes, but he didn't look as sad as before so you took this as a sign to keep talking “if I was watching you, you'd be alright. At least you'd have help”

“You're tryna live with me now?”

“Sure”, you said with a shrug. “A cool mom, random blue food, stopping you from exposing yourself - it all sounds grand”. You both laughed at your joke because that's what it was. A joke.

At least… it was at first.

Either Percy didn't know what a joke was, or he was pretty fond of having a big sibling when he was home because the next day he told you he sent an Iris message to his mom and she was fine with getting an air mattress for you. You almost told Percy that it was just a joke, but then you thought about how lonely he must be at home and how annoying it can be only having his mom to talk to about this demigod stuff. Plus, it hopefully wouldn't hurt to get a break from camp.

You didn't know why you decided to pray and tell Poseidon about this, but you did. The sun had set and you slipped out of your cabin and snuck into the woods. You made a mini fire and threw two candy bars the Stoll brothers managed to sneak in, which was a real shitty offering but it was all you had. You couldn't do it during the feast. You had too much to say and someone would hear.

“Terrible offering, I know. I hope you're listening anyway” you started. “I'm gonna be following Percy around when he goes home and I'm gonna try and keep him and Sally somewhat safe. I don't know how safe Percy can really be but I'll try anyway. I hope that's not a problem. I'm not tryna step on your toes or anything”.

In all honesty praying and giving offerings felt strange. You were supposed to pray to Ares everyday and give him an offering, but you stopped doing that after your last talk. The first time you threw food in a fire and didn't say his name, you thought you'd combust as a punishment. You didn't though, so you kept doing it. Occasionally you'd give offerings to other gods but it was mainly Athena. Partially because she was like Ares but not really and partially because you hoped it would upset Ares. Was it childish? Yes. But compared to someone as old as Ares, you were a child.

“That's all I really have to say. If you don't want me to go you can drown me in my sleep or maybe send a letter. Whatever works for you”. You looked around, expecting for some paper saying “absolutely not” to land somewhere around you but nothing happened, so you put out the fire and snuck back into your cabin.

You don't think you have a huge ego, but you definitely felt you deserved a pat on the back for how good your work was.

You were able to convince your own lousy family to hand over any legal documents to Sally and thankfully Percy's middle school had a highschool right next to it. Although the demigods weren't supposed to use phones, a minor text here and there saying “hey, I think there's monsters here” didn't hurt anyone. There were plenty of times you had to sneak out of your school and into his, and if you weren't so busy fighting for your life, you'd audition to be in some spy or assassin movie.

Thankfully though, you weren't always busy helping Percy. You figured you might as well help Sally out so you got a job at a nearby bookstore inside of a mall and honestly? You'd prefer fighting monsters over dealing with bratty customers. Seriously though, how can you be a bitch at a bookstore?

“I've already told you ma'am” you said in a monotone voice, “we can't give you a refund if you do not have a receipt”.

The black hair woman scoffed and looked at you as if you caused the problem she was having. “A receipt? Do I seem like the type of woman who keeps a receipt?! When I bought Twilight, I expected better and I hate it and now I want a refund and as the customer, I am always right!”.

The entire conversation made you wanna explode in front of her and change the trajectory of her life, but unfortunately it didn't happen. What was with mortals and not understanding basic store rules?

“I would love it if you were right but you're not. No receipt. No refund”. She scoffed again and you wanted to grab her by the throat and stop the noise from ever leaving her mouth again.

“Well what do you expect me to do?!”

“Pick up a different book then get out maybe?”.

You couldn't put a finger on the noise that came out of her next. It was some deep throaty sound with a mix of anger and disgust. “Do you know who I am? I'm Holly Holiday-” you accidentally cracked a smile at her stupid name and that just fueled her rage. She pointed a finger at your name tag and said your name, followed by “you are so done for! I'll have you eaten alive for this!”.

She turned on her heels and left in a huff. Fucking finally.

You looked over at your coworker Harper and pretended your fingers were a gun and shot yourself, getting a laugh out of her. Harper and her twin Hazel shared a few classes with you and by some coincidence they also worked in the mall. Harper was with you while Hazel worked at the costume store downstairs. You couldn't tell them apart and you weren't sure if you'd ever pass the “we talk sometimes” stage but it didn't matter right now.

“I know it's closing time but are you ok if I take a bathroom break really quick? I can help out when I get back”

She waved dismissively, “take your time man. Hazel'll be coming up here too”. You nodded with a small thank you and stepped into the mostly vacant mall. The mall was usually lively but with it being so late at night, the only people around were other people like that annoying customer and workers who had the misfortune of still working this late.

It was eerily quiet. Sure, you thought you were used to how silent it was at this time of night, but you still got the creeps and did not take your time alone in the bathroom.

Maybe you should have though, because once you left the bathroom that same annoying lady was waiting outside, which she definitely should not have been doing.

“I told you I did not like that book”.

Seriously? She was still complaining? She was still here after the store had pretty much closed?

You said something that would've gotten you fired if your boss was around, “yeah? Tough shit lady. No receipt, no refund, it's as simple as that. Don't buy books you haven't read. Now get out the mall and go take care of your kids”.

She snarled. A genuine snarl that made you start to sneakily slip off the bracelet you were wearing. You didn't know if gods could give other kids gifts, and either it had been allowed this whole time or Poseidon didn't care since shortly after your “chat” after hours you received a dagger that could transform into a bracelet. You thought maybe Ares had sent it, but his gifts didn't smell of the ocean and a fresh breeze.

Regardless of who gave it to you, that snarl didn't sound good.

“I don't think you're very good at your job”

“I guess I'm not. Now do us both a favor and just leave”.

She didn't leave. Instead she smirked and that was all the confirmation you needed to know something was wrong. The bracelet slipped off your wrist and while the monster was transforming, you gripped your weapon and brought it up through the bottom of her mouth. You pulled it out, but not through the entry wound. You pulled it towards you, letting it split her face in half.

Just in case, you stabbed her in the heart, twisted the knife then pulled it out of her through the side of her chest. You didn’t have to wait for her to crumble. It was game over. A surprisingly easy win.

You grabbed some nearby napkins so you could wipe your dagger clean then returned it back to your wrist.

“What happened?” Harper asked once you stepped back inside, which was really odd for multiple reasons.

Firstly, you looked like you usually did. Nothing about you was particularly out of place. At least you didn't think so.

Secondly, she didn't sound curious. She didn't sound concerned. She sounded frustrated, like you did something wrong.

“Nothing” you lied. “It's nothing. Let's just clean up, yeah?”.

“I'm sure it's not nothing Child of Ares”.

Your brows knitted together and you hoped you just heard wrong. You turned to look at Harper and that's when it started to click.

Harper. Hazel. Holly.

Harpies.

They were too lazy to pick a different initial for the first name and you fell for it like an idiot. Plus the “I’ll have you eaten alive” comment. But in all fairness, who actually takes those comments seriously? If you took every threatening comment seriously, you'd be sent to an asylum.

Harper's short red hair looked like flames now. Her green eyes looked hungry for your flesh and her sharp teeth glistened in the light as feathers grew from her arms. Realistically, you should've been scared. There were two alive harpies in the building, but something about a monster with a gray shirt with mini white books decorated on it really made you wanna laugh. She must've sensed this since she sneered,

“You think I'm funny?”

“Do you want an honest answer?”

“You won't think I'm so funny soon you spoiled demigod!”. You wanted to make a joke about how calling children with severe abandonment issues “spoiled” was silly, but you decided this wasn't the time. Instead you took the bracelet off.

Harper laughed in your face. “You think that will stop me?”

“Handled your friend pretty well. How about you stop trash talking and come over here so we can see if you're any different”. You don't know which comment got her so angry but she leapt at you.

You sidestepped her and planned on delivering a quick stab to the neck, but she must've seen it coming. She grabbed something and quickly turned to bat you in the face with it, making you stumble back. It took you a quick second to realize she hit you with a book. A Goosebumps book no less.

“You are incredibly childish” you mumbled and you wished you could laugh it off. Maybe you were childish too because you picked up the book and launched it at her face, feeling a tad bit disappointed when she dodged it.

You swung at her but she caught your wrist and squeezed hard enough to make you drop your dagger. You were quick on your feet though and you brought your available elbow down on her inner elbow (you were sure it had a scientific name but honestly who cares?). You heard a crunch and Harper screeched. Her grip loosened enough for you to snatch away while kicking her, her flying and hitting the railing.

You grabbed the dagger and threw it. You meant for it to hit somewhere fatal but she moved and instead it hit her directly in the eye, which made her screech even louder.

You snatched your necklace off and the object quickly took the shape of a double sided sword. It was a gift from your father and although he was probably pissed at you, you figured he probably wasn't watching and wouldn't care.

You charged at her and swung the sword. Although she was screaming in pain and was no doubt in agony, she slid under the blade. As she turned to face you, her hands moved and a sharp gust of wind knocked you off the third floor.

To make matters worse, Hazel decided to make an appearance. She was right below you, cackling, arms outstretched and you knew if you landed in those arms she'd devour you.

You did the only thing you could think of with such short timing. You angled the sword vertically and aimed directly for her mouth. She seemed to understand but it was too late. You came crashing down, your sword along with you and it slid directly in her mouth and down her throat. Because of the sword having a solid middle so you could hold onto something, it didn't go all the way through and you stumbled a bit, but you were better off than her. She stopped all movement and to make sure the job was done, you ripped the sword through her, cutting her in half.

“MY SISTER!”, Harper screeched and you looked up at her with your messy sword in hand.

“You want more from the Child of Ares?!” You claimed you hated trash talk and you especially hated being called his child but the adrenaline was really getting to you. “I have plenty to give!”.

She flew up higher and started to come down fast towards you. You readied your sword, prepared to end this but suddenly she stopped and started trembling.

“L-L-Lord Ares. I-”

Before you could ask any questions and she could finish her sentence, you were being launched into the air. The scream you let out was embarrassing but it didn't matter in the end. You both collided and hit the wall and instead of being knocked out or injured like you thought you'd be, you were completely fine. Your sword went straight through her chest and pinned her to the wall behind her and you were hanging above the ground, grasping onto the hilt of your sword and hoping your hands wouldn’t start sweating.

“L-L-Lord Ares. I-”

No. No way. It couldn’t be. But who else could’ve launched you in the air like that?

You looked down and there he was. You don’t know why, but you expected him to look somewhat different. Maybe a new haircut or a new jacket. Maybe he’d try contacts, but no. He looked exactly the same. You didn’t know if you were comforted or unnerved by it.

You wished you had something cool to say but all you said was “what are you doing here?”.

“Saving your life”. Yeah right. You had everything 100% under control. He chuckled and you started to wonder if he could read your mind. When you screamed internally though, he didn’t flinch so that theory went out the window. Maybe you looked annoyed and didn’t know it.

“Are you gonna catch me?” You asked.

“What for?”

“Because you threw me all the way to the fifth floor and it’d be nice not to break something”

“You need me to warm up milk up for you too?”.

Fuck it. You’d risk the broken leg.

You tightened your hands around the hilt and planted your feet on the wall then pushed off with all your might. Fortunately, you got the sword out the wall. Unfortunately, you were now falling from five floors up.

You braced for impact, but instead of falling and hitting the floor, you fell into someone’s arms. You looked up, thinking that maybe someone was with your father that you didn’t see before, but no. It was him. He caught you. Something you weren’t expecting but you weren’t against.

You mumbled a thanks and stood on your feet. The year was 2006 when you last talked. It was early in 2008 and while that wasn’t that big of a gap, the talk you had last time made things more awkward.

“I thought you’re not allowed to interfere”

He raised a brow at you as if saying “you care about rules now when you’ve been breaking them?”. Were you breaking them though? Sure you were encouraged to give offerings to your parent but you hadn’t been punished… yet. If it was so bad you wouldn’t be walking right now. And you doubted he paid enough attention to notice. He was probably relieved to have one less kid bothering him.

Gods, you were a downer.

“Are you gonna tell on me?” He asked.

“If you hadn’t caught me”

“And now?”

“My lips are sealed”. You didn’t see his expression. You were too busy looking down at your shoes. A habit you hated you developed. It made you feel small. But you guessed demigods were supposed to be small in comparison to their parent. That’s why you showed them respect but they hardly returned the favor.

A moment of silence passed before he spoke up again.

“You have money on you?”.

Was he gonna rob you now? “Uh, yeah”.

“You’re paying for dinner. Let’s go”

He started walking away before you could even respond, and like a reflex you grabbed his arm to slow him down. “I can’t”.

“Can’t?” He said so calmly it kinda scared you.

“Yeah. I can’t. My uh…” you decided not to tell him the entire truth about staying with Percy and Sally. “My ride… mom. She’s coming to get me. You don’t want mom knowing you’re in town, right?”.

He looked you up and down and you tried your best to not seem nervous. You weren’t sure he believed you but he let it go for the night.

You wished it stayed that way. That he’d just go back wherever he came from but instead he told you the name of a diner nearby and said to be there by noon tomorrow and that you were paying.

“Great. Thanks dad” you thought. “I always love our talks”.

The good thing about his random plan to go to a diner at noon was that you were allowed to clean yourself and sleep beforehand. The bad thing was that now you were sitting across from him and it was incredibly awkward.

Ares kept laughing at his phone and you debated on asking him what was so funny but he said “started a Twitter war about vaccination. It’s getting good”. You screamed in your head again, but once again he didn’t flinch. Maybe he just had a good poker face.

“I’m happy for you?”. He glanced up at you and instead of going back to his phone, he set it face down on the table. You didn’t know if he seemed to glow because of the little war he started, or if a source of light was hitting him nicely. Maybe it was a god thing.

“You’re probably wondering why I’ve called you here”

Was this an HR meeting? “I’m wondering why I’m paying”

“Ask me”

“You know I wanna know though so why am I asking?”

He didn’t respond. He just looked at you and you could hear his foot tapping on the floor.

You rubbed your brow, already feeling a migraine coming on. You took a deep breath and let out a sarcastic response (which was not a good idea but your mouth worked faster than your brain).

“Ares, the amazing God of War. The Protector of Mistreated Women. Wearer of biker jackets. I come before you as your humble child, begging thee to tell me what required my summons and why you were at the mall last night. Please please please tell me. I’ll fall over and die if you don’t”.

Sarcastic or not, he accepted it. He motioned towards the platter of burgers and fries, “this is your thank you. This is your offering to me since you haven’t been doing that”.

Well fuck. You didn’t think he’d notice.

You leaned back in your seat and your fingers strummed against your knees and you had to remind yourself that running out probably wouldn’t end well.

“You noticed?”

“I did” he said simply. It reminded you of how emotionless he was the last time you talked. It reminded you of how frustrated you were that he talked as if nothing was wrong and as if your pain didn’t affect him.

“You demigods think you’re so smart. You have these big egos and think you’re ahead of us. You gave your offerings to Athena and Poseidon of all people ” he spat their names like it left a bitter taste in his mouth to mention them.

“And then you stay with that fish boy and his mom. Yeah. I saw that too. And I save your life and you don’t seem the least bit grateful”.

Grateful.

Something about that word you hated.

Grateful? What was there to be grateful for? “Yeah dad, I’m super grateful my life consists of monsters trying to eat me and a dad I only see once in a blue moon. Totally grateful”.

“We can’t interfere”

“Didn’t stop you last night”

He tsked, “I don’t get you. You complain about my absence then you complain when I’m here when I could be doing anything else!”. His voice rose but the people in the diner were either used to this or didn’t care enough to say anything.

The nervousness and the fear rolled off you the more he spoke. Gratefulness? Doing anything else? You weren’t stopping him.

“Then go do those things. I’m not holding your hand and making you stay”. Your brain told you to shut up and apologize, but your mouth wasn’t having it. “And this isn’t about us and you know it. This is about you. This is about your ego being hurt. You don’t care about my safety. You didn’t go to the mall to protect me. You just love a fight and you were probably disappointed you couldn’t do more”

“That’s what you think?” His eyes burned with something you couldn’t quite place. Anger obviously, but it seemed like something else was there. Or maybe there was literal fire in his eyes. Either way, it was clear he was upset and if you didn’t shut up soon, he’d probably turn you into a random animal.

But who didn’t love animals?

“That’s what I know. And I didn’t need your help. I was just fine. The only thing you would’ve missed if I somehow died was your little offerings. I don’t matter to you. Just admit it so we can move on”. Ares opened his mouth to say something, but you spoke again “and for your information Percy and Sally are very nice people. They feel more like family than you do”.

That shut up whatever he planned on saying. The last time you two talked you swore you saw an emotion cross his face. This time you were definitely sure you saw something cross his face before it went back to its default expression.

Was that regret?

No. That was stupid and you’ve had plenty of stupid thoughts.

It went silent. Weirdly, eerily silent.

The diner wasn’t silent obviously but you two were.

You both were just staring at each other like statues. You wished you could read his mind. You hoped you would see thoughts of regret and sorrow and maybe hopefulness about your relationship going forward. You wished he had the same thoughts you had. Another stupid thought. Being hopeful didn’t work with him.

For whatever reason, your mind wandered off to the late night talks you’d have with Sally and for whatever other reason, you started to speak.

“Have you heard the song American Pie? Yes, it’s somewhat important to what I have to say. Yes or no only please”

He looked bored and unamused but he answered anyway. “I don’t know. Maybe? Who cares?”.

“There’s a line in the song that says this’ll be the day that I die. And for whatever reason it made me think about what I’d do if I were dying. If I woke up one day and I knew I was gonna die that day, what would I do? You wanna know what I realized?”

He raised his brows for a second and leaned back in his chair. There was a possibility he was still bored but he seemed somewhat interested. “Shoot”.

You smiled bitterly. Here he was so calm and fine and here you were, speaking slow and hoping your voice didn’t waver or crack. “I realized-” you failed. Your voice wobbled a bit and you cleared your throat a little too loud. “I realized I’d spend every second trying to make you love me”.

You didn’t bother trying to read any expression he had next. You knew you’d always get it wrong and you’d imagine what you wanted to see. “And I uh… I don’t wanna be that way anymore”. You blinked rapidly, trying to prevent any tears from falling out. You didn’t have the rain to cover your face and blend in like you did last time. “And selfishly I hope that scares you”.

“Gods don’t feel fear”

“Well whatever you wanna call it I hope you feel it. I hope -and I’m gonna keep calling it fear- I hope you feel afraid for what that means for us”

“Allow me to humor you for a bit” you felt as though the comment was supposed to be sarcastic but it didn’t sound sarcastic or aggressive. It was weirdly soft. “Why would you not wanting to spend your last day with me scare me?”

“Because that means I won’t admire you anymore” you answered. “You don’t get it. You don’t get how much you mean to me. You don’t get how much I used to idolize you. Before I was claimed, I was already intrigued by you. Once I was claimed I read every single story that had to do with you. I was honored to be your child and tried to show you how honored I was everyday. I didn’t do all this for me. The training, bettering my Greek, learning everything I could about mythology. I didn’t do that for me. I did that so I would never shame your name and make you look like you raised incompetent idiots. The way I would defend your name and what you represent, you’d think I was being paid”

“Me not admiring you anymore means I won’t care about defending you. It means I won’t care anymore about our family relationship. And I hope the idea of me calling you Ares instead of dad terrifies you. That emptiness or indifference I’ll feel when I hear your name… I know it hasn’t happened yet but thinking about it terrifies me too. Maybe I’m just selfish and don’t wanna be alone”. You used your sleeve to wipe at your wet face, a mix of embarrassment and relief for finally getting this out of you. “I could be right. I doubt it. I’m probably just making all that up but either way I need you to stop doing this. Seeing you at all, it gives me hope. I don’t want an enemy for life. I’m not Percy. But this is just gonna make this harder and if you hate me I am begging you to have mercy and leave me be. No visiting. I won’t come to see you when we do that little field trip either. I’ll stay at camp or I’ll go bother another god. Hermes is really nice. And if I break my end of the deal you can do whatever you want to me. Turn me into an ant, rearrange my fingers, throw me down a flight of stairs at full force, whatever”.

There you went again making up shit. Swearing you saw something worse than sadness on his face; grief. That was impossible. Your eyes were just playing tricks on you like they always did.

You didn’t know what you wanted him to say, but you didn’t expect “you think, but you don’t know anything”.

“Then tell me what I don’t know”. He didn’t say anything. He went silent and you were getting real tired of his silences. You sighed, “Sally’s been waiting outside so…”

“Yeah…”. He let out a breath. Annoyance. Had to be. “You want this?” He asked.

You were honest. “No” you said instantly. “No I don’t but this just seems like the best thing to do”. He didn’t argue with you.

Your hand went to reach inside your pocket for money but then he spoke again “keep it”.

“It’s no problem-”.

“Just keep it”.

You nodded.

You stayed sitting down. Why was it so hard to stand? Why did your legs feel so wobbly and your throat so dry? Why did your chest feel like a huge weight was crushing it? Weren’t you supposed to feel the opposite? Free and lively? Feel like you could float?

Another stupid thing escaped your lips. “Can you do me a favor?”.

“Another one?” He asked lifelessly- no. He was not lifeless. He was happy. You were sure of it. You’d leave and he’d cheer because he wouldn’t have to deal with another kid anymore. You knew it.

“It’s not a favor if you don’t wanna see me either”. Another bit of silence but you weren’t surprised. “Can we do that thing mortals do? You know, when they hug and say they love each other before they go their own way? Or maybe just the ‘I love you’ part”. He looked at you for a bit and you were about to apologize for making it weird and leave but Ares stood up.

You stood up.

It’s strange how something you’ve never done before can feel so right. Like it was always meant to happen or always supposed to be this way. You weren’t necessarily cold and Ares wasn’t a heater, but the second he wrapped his arms around you and you did the same for him, you felt much warmer. Not a burden type of warmth. The kind of warmth that brings you relief on a freezing cold day. That crushing feeling stayed the same though.

“I love you dad” you said and it fell out so naturally, you’d forgive anyone for thinking this was a normal occurrence. That the fight you had was just a small disagreement but otherwise you two had an amazing relationship.

You didn’t know how the words “I love you too” would sound coming out of his mouth, but it sounded better than you hoped for. It once again sounded natural and genuine even if you knew it wasn’t.

You thought it wasn’t.

No. You knew it wasn’t. This was no time for brain tricks and delusions.

Pulling apart was probably the hardest thing you had to do and your job was keeping Percy Jackson safe. That sudden coldness fell over you again and the crushing got worse.

It didn’t get any better when you left. You didn’t have the guts to look at him one last time, afraid you’d call off your deal right then and there if you made eye contact with him.

Luckily Sally was an intelligent person. She was smart enough not to ask how it went. Even if she did, it’s not like you could answer with the huge lump in your throat.

“Do you want ice cream dear?”.

You shrugged. There was that word again. Want. You didn’t know what you wanted anymore. You thought you did but it all felt wrong. There was no weight lifted off your shoulders and you didn’t feel light on your feet. You felt cold and hollow. The weight got worse and pushed down on you with so much force, you didn’t know it was even possible.

Then your eyes landed on his bike and it all came out. Your head fell into your hands and you let out sobs that were lodged deep in your chest. Your ears were ringing and you were sure you looked and sounded like the most pathetic person alive but you couldn’t care anymore. Sally, once again being an intelligent woman, took that as a sign it was time to go and pulled off. You assumed Sally would’ve dropped Percy off after you went inside. You assumed he wouldn’t wanna wait out here for you while you talked to one of the people that hated him the most. His hand patted your shoulder, notifying you that he was in the car still. Usually you’d make a joke and tell them that you were fine, but nothing came out but borderline hysterical sobs.

You grew jealous of Percy. He didn’t see Poseidon much but at least he knew deep down that Poseidon cared for him. Sometimes you’d get that feeling but you thought it was all a delusion. Fuck. Why did you keep doing that? You knew it was all a delusion.

That choice had to be the right one. It needed to be the right one.

That didn’t stop this wave of agony from drowning you, and you’d fight a thousand harpies if it meant this feeling would go away.

Omg y’all I did it😭. I mixed two ideas someone suggested with my own ideas and here we are. I hope y’all like it even though a huge portion is me yapping but to be fair I didn’t realize until after I was done and summarizing all of that didn’t seem like it’d sound right, yk? There was definitely a way I could’ve done it but I’m stupid soooo… yeah. Anyway, OOC Ares but this is my angsty fantasy so I’m making him care about his kids. In my head the whole “I hate my own kids” is him trying to convince himself he doesn’t care for them so it’s easier to stay apart from them. Idk, maybe I’ll make a part 3 from his perspective and answer why he said he was saving their life. I make no promises tho. And I know I said it’s show Ares so skipping ahead doesn’t make sense but we know what’s gonna happen Taglist: @kyuupidwrites @chadmeeksmartinswifey @lebguardians @beansficreblogs (one asked to be tagged, one asked for more dad fics, then one commented plus reblogged and one reblogged, so although majority did not ask, imma just assume y’all would wanna see a part 2😀. We’re getting the band back together like this is Phineas and Ferb)

#percy jackson #percy series #percy jackson ares #pjo tv show #ares pjo #percy jackson angst #pjo angst #ares x reader #ares x child #ares angst #idk what else to tag #HEY YOU GUUUYYYSS #I yell like we’re on Electric Company

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mediumgayitalian · 2 months

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okay a few solangelo things i’m curious your take on,

what kind of gift givers do you think will and nico are to each other?

are either of them music nerds? making playlists? gifting playlists? what music do u think they like?

what is their favorite fruit?

do you think either of them keep up with pop culture? are they fans of anything? celebrity crushes? like do you think will would think timothee chalamet is cute bc he lowkey has nico’s vibes and is such a buzzer name for celeb crushes? lolll

and then, do you think nico shamelessly takes will’s sweaters and shirts to wear or secretly swipes them?

ty! love ur blog so much xx

HELL YEAH THANK YOU

what kind of gift givers do you think will and nico are to each other?

i think nico spoils will fucking rotten.

his dad is the god of wealth he is holding NOTHING back. aside from that, he grew up wealthy and spent so so long in the lotus casino. i think he has a rly bad handle on money lol.

however he's such a mysterious guy that i think it doesn't occur to will that nico is actively spending money on him??

like will makes an offhand comment about how he would marry the person who would bring him the mystical rocket launching boba fett. and nico is like word okay and the next day there is a rocket launching boba fett on will's pillow and he's like BRO???? OH MY GOD?????

but he just figures that nico knew someone who had it!! he knows nico is big on figurines & collectibles and has a lot of connections, so he thinks nico just called in a favour.

in reality nico did all those things and also spent like two hundred k lol

basically, nico doesn't even think about it. if he hears a friend express a want that he has to means to acquire...its not even an active choice to him?? he's like well why wouldn't i buy this for them.

and i think this means a whole lot to will!!

he's spent his life in his mom's tour van or a bunk bed. he grew up in two wars. he was responsible for an entire infirmary at 13. he's a nerd and he likes nerdy things but like...collecting takes time. and money he doesn't have, because money isn't really a focus in camp and its not like he's paid lol

so of course there are things that he likes but...imagine being will. imagine having a budget for the INFIRMARY YOU RUN and thinking, like...well the camp has only so much money. i know exactly what these medical supplies cost. i refuse to steal. why would i ever be so selfish to ask for money to be spent on me and the things i like?

and then there's nico, who doesn't need him to ask. who WANTS to give him things he wants, not just what he needs or what he wants for others. what WILL wants. nico will get him.

will on the other hand....he gives away his time like it's free.

he does things for people. constantly. like austin complains about not having anywhere quiet to practice and will builds him a soundproof practice room. you know?

now when nico, who has had no one spend their time on him since bianca....

like his father did not have time for him. even when he lived in the underworld, he was put to work. or else he was bored. it's not like he and hades HUNG OUT, you know?

and of course he had no friends to spend their time on him. even in his first time at camp half blood -- for the first time, bianca didnt have time for him. she chose the hunters for ETERNITY, she said i am done choosing you now. and nico drove percy insane, who certainly didn't have time for him between saving the world. the entire time we saw him in TTC he was being pushed away.

by the time he had hazel, HE was the one pushing himself away before anyone else could. he filled his time so he wasn't waiting for anyone else. besides, through no fault of hers, he and hazel CAN'T give each other as much of their time as they would like!! they live on opposite sides of the country!!

but will.....

gods will. will SEEKS HIM OUT. the first thing will says to him is i have carved out, in my busy healer schedule, three days of time for YOU. not only have i carved out these three days, but in that brief moment of time where i was running around camp, i was thinking about you. you were a PRIORITY and i'm upset that you did not come spend your time with me.

like.....oh my god. can you imagine that? being nico? hearing someone you barely know, at this point, talk about how much time he wants to spend with you? and then as you get closer, he spends SO MUCH time with you!! he makes you a priority!

will walks nico to breakfast and watches him in sword practice and takes out his schedule when nico is making his to make sure they line up. he plans dates and they're FUN and he is so careful to make them enjoyable for nico, too, so much so that he forgets his nerves.

the biggest gifts they give to each other is noticing, i think. i see you, i see what you need and wont ask for, and i care enough to give it to you anyway.

are either of them music nerds? making playlists? gifting playlists? what music do u think they like?

will is the HUGEST MUSIC NERD IN THE WORLD.

he may not have many musical talents himself but music was naomi solace's whole world. you bet your ass it's everything for him, too.

he is teased for his love of country, and he does love country (everybody loves country if you hate country you are lying to yourself, i know you sing along to before he cheats with your whole chest), but he has a VAST music taste.

he is a britney spears stan. i will not be convinced otherwise.

nico, on the other hand, is not nearly as ignorant about music as people pretend he is. y'all he was in a casino/arcade until like 2006!!!!! do you think it was silent in there!!!!! do you think he is not the absolute king of just dance and DDR!!!

however he was, like, 10. so i think he's familiar with a lot of songs but in the way you were when you were a kid, you know?? like i could sing paparazzi w my whole chest beginning to end flawlessly at eight years old, but i would not have been able to recognise lady gaga by name or sight.

i think he and will make somewhat of a game out of it. the first time they hang out, nico is NERVOUS beforehand. like for hours. will said they were going to have a chill day bc he has time off, but what are they supposed to DO?? before they were actively doing stuff together. will was teaching nico first aid basics, or nico was helping him around the infirmary; they were helping rebuild camp together. sure, they were talking, but they had something to focus on if things got awkward or conversation faded naturally.

that is VERY DIFFERENT from just hanging out in person. is nico supposed to have conversation starters prepared? how much silence is rude? is will going to finally decide he's boring? or weird? will is such a hyper person!!! how is nico supposed to entertain him!!

meanwhile will is in his cabin freaking the fuck out to his siblings like GUYS HES GONNA THINK IM A WEIRD NERD DORK LOSER 😭😭😭.....WHAT IF HE SAYS THE WORD SAND AND I GO ON THE ANAKIN SKYWALKER RANT ON REFLEX FUCK KAYLA WHAT DO I DO I DONT KNOW HOW TO MAKE FRIENDS LIKE A NORMAL PERSON HE IS SO OUT OF MY LEAGUE

so he calls his mom 💀

and his mom is like baby....you are a disaster are you aware. and hes like thanks MOM i know i need HELP OKAY

and naomi is like well you got on with my backstage crew just fine. and hes like well yeah we just talked about music that was easy.

...

OH THANKS MOM YOURE SO SMART

and he's like wait nico has spent a lot of time in the underworld...he might not be very up to date!! this'll be awesome. so he stays up till like 3 on the big house computer carefully making nico several CDs worth of playlists.

he makes HOURS of music. way more than they could ever listen to in one day, but he gets carried away. he makes a playlist with his favourite country music, including his moms stuff obviously, with rock music he thinks nico in particular will like, pop punk stuff, regular pop, an entire CD dedicated to the icon herself kesha (whom he knows personally bc she sun backup vocals for his mom when she was a teenager), some musicals, and some iconic european music to top it off. he has a little bit of EVERYTHING.

most important, though, he makes a CD with the top 100 billboard songs from the years 1958 (when it started) to 1985. he doesnt have enough time to do it all the way to this year in one night but vows to work on it when he has time.

when he goes to nico's cabin, he comes with a stack of CDs as long as his arm and chiron's CD player. he's practically sparkling with excitement; when nico opens the door he is already halfway through a sentence lol.

for four straight hours, they just listen to song after song, will pausing after each one to ask what nico thinks. he recognises a lot of them, even though he didn't know their names, but even still he's pretty quiet at first. but as they go on it gets hard not to get caught up in wills excitement, and he dances like such a dork, anyway, is it his fault for laughing? and those four hours pass like MINUTES and suddenly its curfew and will has to go.

this becomes their tradition! will plays a song, nico reviews it. even as they learn how to hang out with each other in different ways, it becomes reflex -- when there's a song playing will looks at nico for a reaction. when they're with others, in public, whenever.

the first time nico makes will a playlist he cries.

the playlist is called sunshine.

will plays on his walkman until its worn right through.

what is their favorite fruit?

at first will thinks nico doesn't like fruit at all because he has to force this dumbass to eat fruit and vegetables. all he eats is like. cereal and sandwiches. it stresses will the fuck out.

he's out here plopping a bowl of fruit on nico's table like eat this whole thing or i'm gonna whoop your ass before scurvy does. (he is genuinely afraid nico is going to get scurvy, although its not a very effective anxiety because hes kind of deeply afraid of scurvy in general and is always trying to push people to eat oranges lol).

nico ALWAYS drags his feet about it. at one point will gets worried that nico just straight up doesn't like fruit and starts fretting about synthetizing supplements.

turns out nico is just, like...a little pretentious. about fruit particularly. in his defense, he has been all over the world. like he's had indian mangoes and algerian clementines okay it is VERY hard to settle for stuff grown in north america as nice as the demeter greenhouses are.

his favourite fruit ever is the lemon though. he had a lemon tree in his backyard when he was a kid that he doesn't remember, exactly, but he remembers how it tastes. will brings him a lemon once and almost as if his hands are working on their own, he cuts a slice, removes the peel and pith, puts it in a jar of sugar, and shakes to coat it, like his nonna would do secretly when he mama wasn't looking. its the best thing he's ever tasted.

will is a fruit fanatic, on the other hand. he steals strawberries every time he walks by the fields. the demeter cabin has to count their blueberries every night because he can and will eat them all when no one's looking.

his favourite, though, and he never ever gets it at camp, is prickly pear. in the summers before camp he would go to the desert with his mom and pick enough to make his stomach hurt -- he's never home when they're in season now, so sometimes when she's free shell drive up to new york just to bring him a box of them. she knows he's busy and cant leave camp in summers but she wants him to have that, at least.

i think all year-rounders are into pop culture just fine, but they're a few years behind. except for music -- will knows music. but things like movies and tv shows and memes, they either get updated from their summer-only friends or they stumble upon in naturally when it's not longer relevant lol.

nico, though, has an encyclopedic knowledge of old pop culture, because the lotus got new tech and games and movies before literally anyone else. he saw back to the future before it was in theatres and it changed his life. he quotes it all the time and no one has called him out on it then, but it is only a matter of time.

(he has seen star wars. he saw star wars before will was alive. but it is 100% funnier to pretend he doesn't know what a galaxy is and watch will's eye twitch when he asks him about luke skyrunner)

and then, do you think nico shamelessly takes will’s sweaters and shirts to wear or secretly swipes them?

yes absolutely. but he's super embarrassed about it at first so he genuinely STEALS them, not just borrows them.

it's a heist and everything. he shadow travels into the apollo cabin at like three in the morning and rifles through will's shelf. when he gets back he panics and shoves it under his mattress, where it lives in shame for four months. will just thinks it must have been an unfortunate victim of some poor sick child or bleeding demigod and writes it off.

after several months, during which nico thinks about the sweater ALL the time but cannot physically force himself to touch, nico finally gets brave enough to take it out from under his mattress. he just stares at it for a long ass time, wrinkling it in his clenched hands. it's just a hoodie, you know?? who cares.

nico cares. obviously.

eventually he gets so annoyed with himself that he just yanks it on expecting to be able to tell himself like SEE you dumbass it's just a piece of clothing it literally does not matter. except.

except.

the hoodie still smells like will.

somehow.

and that is.

well.

he would rather dunk his head into the river of fire than admit it, but he melts. the hoodie is old as hell and worn and so so so so soft, gods, no wonder will wears it all the time. he never wants to take it off ever.

for weeks, whenever he's alone in the cabin, he wears the hoodie. it stops smelling like will pretty quickly but he doesn't mind, it's still the most comfortable thing ever. it becomes second nature to walk into his cabin, throw off his jacket, and tug the hoodie on, wearing it to bed.

on one night, and of course it's the hermes' cabin fault, everyone is rushing out of their cabin to see what the fresh fuck is sounding like twenty four fire alarms at once and also a nuclear explosion. nico, in his haste, does not take off the hoodie.

will, whipped, makes sure his siblings are okay and then turns immediately to find nico. he Sees The Hoodie. nico Sees Him See The Hoodie. nico tries to flee.

will has longer legs and also spots a teasing opportunity, so hera herself could not stop him.

will teases him to pieces but is also visibly pleased. the next morning nico finds another hoodie of will's hung over his desk chair.

he wears will's hoodies all the time.

THANK YOU FOR SENDING THESE IN I HAD SO MUCH FUN

#wrote these for the entirety of my class bc this class is Boring As Shit #pjo #percy jackson and the olympian #hoo #heroes of olympus #pjo hoo toa #nico di angelo #will solace #nico di angelo/will solace #nico di angelo & will solace #solangelo #will/nico #nico/will #nico di angelo headcanon #will solace headcanon #longpost #my writing #ask

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slafkovskys · 3 months

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idk thinking, idk how close jack and luke are during the season once angel has the babies in october, but imagining the twins getting hurt and jack is immediately taking a leave of absence and luke asks him why or someone on the team and that’s when he realizes he’s just not part of any of their lives and don’t know anything

warnings: mentions of a sick child, mentions of a serious illness, mentions of hospitals, angst

luke sees jack’s car in the parking lot, so he knows that he’s there for the optional morning skate. he lets out a sigh and debates going back to his apartment, but yasmin’s there and if he goes back, she’ll inevitably want to drag him around to do whatever she wanted, so he’s turning off his car and getting out into the bitter new jersey december without much of a second thought.

he takes his time putting his gear on, talks to holtz about possibly going to a knicks game later in the week, and then he’s taking the ice. he hears one of the trainers shouting for jack and that’s not abnormal, so he doesn’t pay it much thought. out of the corner of his eye, he sees his older brother shuck off a glove and take what looks like a phone from alec’s hand.

luke lines up to shoot a puck into the net and just before it’s his turn, he sends a glance back and jack is gone which was weird. he tries not to dwell on it too much as skate goes on, but then when he makes his way back to the locker room, he sees jack’s gear haphazardly dumped in front of his stall. nico looks sullen as someone comes to clean up the mess. luke calls out to his captain, “hisch, what-”

nico only shakes his head and luke deflates. still half dressed in his gear, he sits in his stall and reaches for his phone and the first thing he sees makes his heart fall,

quinn hughes will not be traveling with the team on their upcoming roadtrip citing personal reasons. the vancouver canucks have no further comment at this time.

quinn missing a roadtrip and jack disappearing mid skate meant that something was wrong. angel wouldn’t let either of them do such a thing unless it was serious. suddenly he’s rushing to get dressed and thankfully finds alec in the gear room. the man looks surprised to see him, “what can i do for you?”

“what happened with jack?” there wasn’t a word to describe how embarrassing it was that he had to find out things about his family from outside sources and the look alec gives doesn’t help.

the man shrugs and continues hanging jerseys, “kid, i couldn’t tell you. when i answered, all i got was it was something about one of his kids.”

luke’s heart falls to his stomach and he doesn’t hang around any longer. he’s rushing out to his car and dialing the only person he knew to call, “dad.”

“luke,” jim sighs, “i can’t talk much. me and your mom are about to get on a plane to go be with quinn.”

it kept getting worse. luke’s voice cracks, “just please tell me they’re okay.”

jim hesitates and luke can only imagine he was looking at ellen for support, weighing out what he could and couldn’t tell their youngest son, “it’s drew. he’s got rsv and they’ve put him in the hospital. angel and quinn brought him in a little while ago so they aren’t sure how serious it is yet because they’re still doing tests, but it’s- this isn’t something that you take lightly especially in a two month old. luke, son, i’m sorry, but i have to go.”

and the line goes dead and luke just stares out of his windshield. he’s so thankful he has his windows tinted because he can’t stop the tears from flowing. he wanted to be there, he wanted to be with jack on the way to be with the babies and angel and quinn, but because of his own choices, he was sat in the parking lot getting second hand information.

god, he wanted to go home. not the apartment where yasmin was or even michigan. no, home was wherever angel was and home was so far from his grasp right now.

#hughes bros x angel #luke hughes #jack hughes #the inbox purge

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lvrhughes · 1 year

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King of my Heart | N. Hischier

word count: 1.5k

pairing: Nico Hischier x gn!reader (I think pls correct me if I’m wrong)

summary: at a team dinner it finally hits you, Nico is all you want.

warnings: none?

requested: no

not my gif!

you met Nico when he joined the devils, you just being hired, him just joining the team. You two became best friends fast.

He was always there for you, if you were sad, if anything happened, if you did something and you were proud, he was right there supporting you. Everyone always assumed there was something more, you two were so close, always. Out for dinner or watching a show on the couch, you two were almost always touching.

“You two are such a cute couple, what can I get for you?” That was a commonly heard sentence that it came to the point you both stopped correcting people.

I mean being assumed to be dating your best friend of 6 years, daily, was normal, right?

“Nico!” You squealed as he picked you up and spun, he was finally home from a roadie.

“I missed you” he said, placing your feet on the ground and shoving his face in your neck. You giggled, the scruff on his face tickling you slightly.

“I missed you too”

“There’s a team dinner tonight, your coming.”

“I don’t even have a choice anymore?” You asked, a clear joking tone. You were going either away, if he had asked you or told you.

“Come on Y/n/n, you knew you were coming either way.”

You laughed and pulled him down onto the couch, him falling on top of you. This was a normal place for you two, cuddling was basically a daily activity.

“Okay come on, we should get going.”

“Nooo, I just got home I don’t want go out again.” Nico mumbled into you. He would never admit it but all he ever wanted was to be yours, to cuddle you and kiss you everyday, but he couldn’t risk the friendship so he’d take what he could get for now.

“Up, up, Neeks. We’re going to dinner.”

It took a bit of bribery, more cuddles as soon as you guys get home, but finally you were both out the door and headed to dinner.

“Ah they’ve arrived!” Jack was quick to greet you both, and immediately start telling you how insufferable Nico was because he wouldn’t stop talking about you.

A blush covered your face, you loved Nico, everyone knew that but you loved Nico in a more then a friendship way. But you wouldn’t even admit that to yourself, so you played the blush off as you get flustered when anyone talks about you.

Dinner was fun, obviously on a high from all the wins, team dinner was held at a random bar. There was drinks and dancing all the night. You and Jack had talked for a bit before he left to find someone to dance with, Nico had been quick to disappear to the dance floor after a few drinks, hence leaving you with Dawson to talk.

“You know, Nico really loves you. You’re really lucky.”

“I know, I love him too”

“No not like that, Y/n. He loves you, more then you think.”

Before you could even comprehend what he said Nico was pushing his way back to you. His hair was sweaty and in his face. He looked glorious. The lights were shining on him just right and the way his hair fell was perfect.

Holy shit. You were in love with Nico. All at once, it all came crashing down on you.

“Come dance with me” Nico yelled over the music. You were still frozen, staring at him with awe. Dawson swiped his hand in front of your face, snapping you out of your gaze.

“Shit, sorry Neek, what’d you say?”

“Come dance”

He waited no time for a reply he took your hand and pulled you onto the dance floor. It was crowed, you were pushed against Nico. This was not helping you figure anything out, you had just realized your in love with your best friend, was a lot.

“What’s wrong?”

Fuck he noticed.

“Nothing Neeks, I’m fine.” You lied but he was a bit tipsy so he couldn’t notice it. Soon he was back to jumping around and dancing, forcing you to join him. It was so fun. You two would occasionally stop for drinks but go right back after, you both were out there til final call.

You and Nico had walked to the bar, only living 10 minutes away, so you started your trek back. You were a bit tipsy now and Nico was completely drunk at this point. And now Nico was extra needy.

“Baby, I just wanna hold youuu” he whined the entire walk back, all he wanted was to lay with you and hold you, he made that very clear.

“Come on Nico, you need to go to bed.” You finally had gotten home and Nico inside but now he wouldn’t even go in his own room.

“But Baby, I wanna cuddle.” He words were slightly mumbled together but he was getting his point across.

You gave up. He clearly wasn’t going go bed so you’d comprise.

“Nico, we can cuddle as soon as you change, okay?”

He didn’t even answer he just stumbled over to his room before coming out not even a minute later in sweats and a tee-shirt.

You fell done onto your bed, while he was getting changed you had ran in to your room to change, he found you quickly, and opened your arms. He fell into them in an instant.

“Come on, let me get comfy. Then you can sleep in here tonight, okay Ni?”

“Mhm” Was all he mumbled before slightly lifting himself so you could move, as soon as he deemed you looked comfy, he threw himself back on you.

“Umph” was all you could use to describe the sound you made as he landed on you, quickly he cuddled into you.

“Okay Neeks, let’s sleep now.”

“Okay” was all he said, right before he passed out. You ran your hand threw his hair. It was so soft.

“What am I going to do?” You whispered, looking down at Nico.

You had managed to fall asleep pretty quickly after that though, Nico’s body heat lulling you into sleep. You woke up in the morning, no Nico.

“Nico?” You call through the house. No answer. Odd.

You got up slowly, your head had a slight pounding but you chose to ignore it. You walked into the kitchen, Nico still wasn’t there but there was a fresh pot of coffee. You quickly poured yourself a cup before taking it with you to find Nico. You walked into the living room, still not there. The bathroom? Nope. The pantry? Still no. Finally it came down to his room or the laundry room. You chose his room.

“Nico?” You asked through the door, yet still no answer. Gently you pushed the door open, you found Nico pacing the room, his phone to his ear, speaking rushed and panicked in German.

it took less then a minute for Nico to notice you, he stopped pacing to look at you, then end his call.

“Good morning” was all he said.

“Nico what is going on?”

“Nothing”

You shook your head, you knew he was going to tell you now, why keep pushing. You walked over and feel on his bed, having left your coffee in the bathroom on accident. He follow in suite, laying beside you.

“Nico?”

“Yes?”

you took a deep breath, this might ruin everything, hopefully Dawson was right.

“I love you.”

“I love you too”

Fuck. This is harder then you thought.

“No Nico, I am in love with you.”

When he didn’t say anything you looked over at him. He was just starting at you.

“Nico?”

He pushed his lips against your fast. You barely had time to react before he pulled away.

“Shit, I’m so sorry I should’ve asked-“

You cut him off with another kiss. He was quick to reciprocate, his arm shaking around your waist, his other holding your jaw. You hands tangled in his hair.

When you finally pulled away, you were both out of breath.

“I am in love with you too.” Was the only thing said, by Nico, before kissing you again.

“I’ll never get tired of that” he mumbled against your lips, your lips curving into a smile at his words.

“Your all I want Nico.”

“I’m all yours baby”

bonus part

“Hey Ni?”

“Hmm?”

“Who were you on the phone with? You sounded panicked.”

“My mom. When I woke up this morning I couldn’t take it anymore, I called her to confess I loved you and I was scared you wouldn’t feel the same.” He explained. He was going to tell you he loved you today, you just beat him to it.

You laughed lightly as he shyly smiled.

“Don’t laugh” He said with a smile, hiding himself in your neck. He began to place kisses on your neck.

“Ni” you warned.

“what’s wrong, Baby?”

His look was playful, matching the energy of a golden retriever.

“Be careful where you plan on taking this, Hischier.”

he laughed in response and let his head fall to your chest.

#nico hischier #nico hischier imagine #nico hischier x reader #nj devils #nhl blurb #nhl imagine #mads writings!

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roscoehamiltons · 2 months

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Silly Season 2024 Predictions

aka predicting how the grid will look for 2025:

red bull: max verstappen, daniel ricciardo

mercedes: george russell, fernando alonso (or alex albon, if fernando remains at aston martin)

ferrari: lewis hamilton(!!!), charles leclerc

mclaren: lando norris, oscar piastri

aston martin: lance stroll, yuki tsunoda (or fernando alonso, if he doesn't go to mercedes)

alpine: esteban ocon, pierre gasly

williams: kimi antonelli, alex albon (or valtteri bottas, if alex goes to mercedes)

visa cash grab rb: liam lawson, sergio perez (or yuki tsunoda, if he doesn't go to aston martin)

sauber: carlos sainz jr, nico hulkenberg

haas: ollie bearman, kevin magnussen (or zhou guanyu, if kevin retires)

thoughts, explanations (and a lot of babbling) under the cut:

red bull: maybe i'm delulu for thinking daniel to red bull will still happen lol but it makes perfect sense on paper-- daniel's already familiar with the team and works well with them, he has support from the higher ups, he's a marketing dream, he has a similar driving style and preference to max...

also i know there have been rumours about alex going to red bull again but i don't think he'll do it in the end.

mercedes: i want it to be fernando that replaces lewis bc it would bring the most chaos and drama lol, but it's also a decision that actually makes sense? swapping a world champion with another world champion, and one that isn't likely to want to stay long term (5-10 years)? i guess this is dependent on how both mercedes and aston do this year but 🙏 pls make it happen lol

alex is my second choice for the seat if fernando doesn’t take it. i started making my predictions before james confirmed that alex was signed to williams for 2025, but even with that news, i still think it's a possibility he could go to mercedes. there's been so many whispers in the press about alex wanting to either leave williams or getting offers from top teams, that i can't help but think that alex is trying to gun for a top seat.. and mercedes is his best choice for a top seat imo. not to mention that james did say that he wouldn't stop alex from leaving if he wanted to, and of course the ties with mercedes that james and williams have... it would be easy for them to do some negotiations and make it happen. also i'm sure that george would put in a good word for alex, if alex was interested.

also some honourable mentions, because there's a lot of possibilities to consider: everyone is talking about kimi antonelli and mercedes and i do think that they're going to try and push him into f1 as soon as they can.. i just don't know if they'll take the risk of putting him in the merc seat right away. i'm really interested to see how he does in f2 either way-- if he's as good as everyone says then the results will speak for themselves. i think esteban is a good option too; he's a solid driver (and underrated imo), and more importantly he has ties to merc and toto. if merc wants a more short term option then carlos is a good choice, though it's more likely he would go to sauber. as for mick, i don't think that he's merc's first (or even second or third) choice for the seat, unfortunately for him and the mick girlies. lastly, this one is a bit random but nico hulkenberg also came to mind as a solid short term option (plus, he's german).

ferrari: still can’t believe lewis is going to be driving for them.

mclaren: no notes, very solid pairing.

aston martin: i think the lineup will stay the same if fernando doesn’t want to move to mercedes. i suppose there’s a chance that the rumours about lance going to wec could be true but we will see.

if fernando does go to mercedes then yuki is probably the most obvious choice as his replacement. i also think it’s in yuki's best interest in the long term to leave the red bull family, and this would probably be the best opportunity to do so.

i was actually initially considering checo as the driver to replace fernando — they have history after all, and checo seems to love the team. however, thinking about it, 2023 really took a hit to his reputation as a driver and I don’t know if aston would want him back anyways? i think checo would absolutely reach out to them though if the seat opens up, i think he’s going to try and stay on the grid if it's possible.

alpine: i think both will stay, but if one was to leave it would probably be este (to mercedes?) rather than pierre. if he were to go then jack doohan would be the likely replacement, maybe victor martins if his results in f2 are good.

williams: like i said earlier, i think mercedes is going to try and get kimi into f1 asap, even if he doesn't win f2, and aside from merc itself, williams is the most likely option for that to happen. alex will stay if he doesn’t get the mercedes seat—the supposed red bull offer doesn't start until 2026 and i don’t think he would break his contract to go to aston or alpine.

as for who would replace alex if he does go to mercedes, i would love for it to be valtteri. i stole this idea from @velvetsainz actually, but the more i think about it, the more i like it... the idea of valtteri and james on the same team again tickles me and valtteri is a fantastic mentor (as evidenced by his relationship with guanyu). also i'm fairly certain that toto is back on valtteri's management team again so i can see toto mentioning valtteri as an option for williams in their negotations for the hypothetical alex to mercedes move. is this likely this is to happen, idk, because valtteri did pick sauber over williams in 2021 for a reason but a girl can dream lol

visa cash grab rb: this one was the one i probably struggled with the most ngl.. i think liam is definitely going to be in f1 in 2025 (and deservedly so) but the question of who's going to be in the other seat.. the three main options would be yuki, checo and daniel (if daniel remains at visa instead of moving up, either checo stays at red bull or yuki is the one getting promoted). i originally had the lineup as yuki and liam (and checo at aston martin) but ended up switching yuki and checo around in the end. if checo does end up retiring at the end of this year and yuki goes off to aston then i'm not sure who would replace him..maybe ayumu iwasa? i looked at their list of juniors and am not really familiar with anyone besides him tbh

sauber: this one pains me because i'm a huge fan of both valtteri and guanyu, and they're actually my favorite pairing, in terms of overall vibes and personality... but i would be (very pleasantly) surprised if they both manage to stay at sauber next year. i think it's a given that carlos is going to go to sauber now that he isn't with ferrari, especially with his ties his dad has to audi. i also think sauber/audi would want to start preparing for 2026 and they would also want a german driver to drive for them, hence nico hulkenberg (plus the rumours that they were interested in hulkenberg last year, but ended up renewing guanyu instead).

there's a chance that one of the current drivers could stay, which in that case it would likely be valtteri (with carlos as his teammate, rather than nico). they could also promote theo pourchaire to f1, but i think it's likely they would stick to established drivers, especially during the first couple of years that audi settle in.

haas: the new haas tp has spoken very highly of ollie and with the amount of free practice sessions they have scheduled for ollie this year, it wouldn't surprise me if they're trying to get him on the grid. i know some people think that kevin might retire after this year, but i think they would like to keep one of the current drivers since the last time they had two new drivers didn't go well 😬. on the chance that kevin does end up retiring, i think guanyu is a good shout for a replacement. it might seem a bit random but he's a consistent driver who rarely crashes and more importantly, brings a lot of money and sponsorship, which haas needs.

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pancake-breakfast · 8 months

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There's a lot going on throughout the whole Wolfwood-Chapel-Livio arc in Volumes 9-10 of Trigun Maximum, not the least of which is some pretty clear Biblical references and imagery. But there are some less obvious ones, too, so I'm gonna talk about one of them here and try to pull it a little closer to the surface.

This bit caught my attention in Volume 9, when Chapel has Wolfwood pinned to the ground and is reviling Vash to him, trying to tear away the hope that has only grown stronger in Wolfwood since he met Vash.

Wolfwood's not speaking out loud here, but still, his word choice seems strange. He's called Vash ignorant and an idiot, but calling him a child seems oddly out of place (especially in light of how young Wolfwood is himself).

Despite his seemingly insulting words, Wolfwood doesn't seem to intend insult here. He cares a great deal about Vash, and while he knows there's a logic to what Chapel is saying, it's Vash's "idiocy" and naiveté that Wolfwood has ultimately chosen to follow.

Then I got to thinking of another place where being called "like a child" isn't intended to be an insult.

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. - Matthew 18:1-5, NSRVA Translation

It's inevitable that children would be a bit of a focus in an arc that takes place at a functioning orphanage. But the kids at Wolfwood's home orphanage aren't treated as ignorant or annoying or worthless. They're kids, yes, but they're full of infinite hope, love, and forgiveness.

At the beginning of the arc, they jump in front of Wolfwood's bike despite not recognizing him and having no way to know ahead of time that he's an ally. They're determined to help Miss Melanie and the hostages and desperate to be taken seriously. They understand the situation is bad and most likely beyond them, but they won't... can't... cower in fear and do nothing.

They are scared, but they are brave. In addition to confronting the weird stranger on a bike who is Wolfwood, one of them goes so far as to try and take on the mercenaries surrounding the orphanage himself.

It's a dumb move that nearly gets him killed, but the alternative at that time seemed to be to sit around and do nothing, so the kid decides instead to do his best.

Later, when Wolfwood is being torn apart by Chapel in front of the orphanage, Miss Melanie tries to protect the kids and save as many of them as she can, telling them all to scatter and do their best to escape. But the kids call her out on the stupidity of this suggestion.

Not only is it unlikely to work, but it practically guarantees her death, at the very least, and they can't allow that. She may be willing to sacrifice herself for them, but she's overlooked that they are just as willing to sacrifice for her.

Near the end of the story arc, Miss Melanie decides to trust them with the truth that most of them have already figured out. In defiance of Wolfwood's wishes, she tells them about his true nature, and then she presents them with a decision. They can turn their back on him if they want. After all, he looks nothing like the big brother they remember, and on top of that he's become a killer whose hands are drenched in blood. But just in case they feel differently, she's brought the bag of confetti they've been saving to use to celebrate his return... a return they had no way of knowing would ever happen.

They choose the confetti.

It didn't matter what he'd done in the past, or even what he'd done while they'd been trapped hiding in the orphanage. Their big brother Nico had home when they'd most needed him, and they were going to celebrate.

To be counted among children like these is not an insult. They are the same as Wolfwood was before Chapel took him in. They are hopeful and they care deeply about one another. They have all overcome some darkness or another, and yet at the orphanage they have not only found a family and some sense of belonging, but they have learned to turn around and extend that same love to others.

Wolfwood still has some part of that deep inside of him... and it's Vash who helps him find it again.

Vash isn't so different from these children. He hopes for better things even when he has no way of knowing. He tries to see the best in people, to give them as many chances as possible, to understand them and forgive them.

He does his best to help even when it puts him in danger because something has to be done. Often it seems all his kindness has gotten him is reviled and run out of towns and hunted for both bounty and revenge. But he keeps at it.

It's true he's lost sight of his goals here and there along the way, but at least in the part of his life that we're allowed to see, he's lucky enough to have Wolfwood to bring him back around.

In this way, they've both epitomized the verses above, both reflecting the hope and kindness that is displayed by children even when it comes at the sacrificing of their own bodies, their vengeance, and their egos. Vash has demonstrated this particular aspect of Christlike-ness for Wolfwood, and Wolfwood, in turn, grows to reflect those same traits himself.

But the Biblical parallel doesn't end there. Let me just pull up the verse immediately after the passage quoted above...

If any of you put a stumbling-block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were fastened around your neck and you were drowned in the depth of the sea. - Matthew 18:7, NRSVA translation

Do we have anyone who fits this in the story? Maybe someone who preys on kids, specifically seeking out the most hopeful and protective of them so they can break them down and bend them to his will, drain them of the care they had for others, and turn the best of their traits to be nothing more than tools to be wielded for his own ends?

Anyone?

In conclusion, even God hates Chapel. Tie a giant fucking rock around this man's neck and throw him into the sea and, Biblically speaking, even that's far too good for him.

Nightow knew what he was doing.

#cw christianity #cw religious abuse #trigunbookclub #trigun maximum #volume 9 #volume 10 #manga analysis #pancake thoughts

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evony256 · 5 months

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Spoilers for drdt chapter 2 episode 6!!!!

So uh I noticed something about both episode 4 and episode 6 WWAAAYYYY back when episode 6 first came out. I honestly thought about making a post about it but social anxiety and all that shit. I also wasn't quite sure if anybody else had talked about it before, but since I haven't seen anyone mention it, ig I'll point it out. Eight months later.

Back in episode 4, right after Teruko talks to Arei, Teruko starts talking to Charles. Now, they have a silly little convo, some banter here and there. But there was one piece of dialogue from Charles that stuck to me.

"You make fun of me when I can't cook, and you make fun of me when I can. There really is no winning with you, Teruko."

Now, I want you to remember these two lines. Especially the first one. They might seem like nothing, but they will be important.

Ok so flashback to episode 6, right after Ace wakes up from his beauty sleep. Once Ace leaves, MonoTV enter the room and tells Teruko and Eden to leave. When asked as to why they need to leave, MonoTV prompts this response:

"You complain when *you* have to do chores, and you complain when *I* have to do chores! There's really no winning with you, Teruko!"

OOOOOO SOMEONE IS REPEATING DIALOGUE!!! SOUND THE ALARMS!!!!!

The similarities between the first sentences is shocking. Sure, they are about different things and use different words. Yet, they give off the same feeling and seem to have the same base. And don't even get me STARTED on the second sentence. They are literally the exact. same. thing. Now, this could be me overanalyzing every single bit of dialogue and every single aspect and design choice in this series, as I do. BUT this isn't the first time "dialogue repetition" has appeared in this series. A good example is in episode 5, when Arei breaks down. Arei says "I wanted... I just wanted to..." which is a direct paralel to Min's words in episode 12. Hell, Teruko even goes as far as to point out that "that pitiful crying" reminds her of something or someone.

This could be possibly drawing a paralel between MonoTV and Charles. Though, we don't have a lot of evidence for that. The only other evidence that we have is the detail that Charles definitely has had some sort of traumatic experience with dogs and MonoTV looking like a cat, yet stating that it's a dog. And that could also be used to link Nico and MonoTV together, considering the whole "cat theme". So that's why I don't have that much faith in it. Yet there's also the fact that Mr. Charlers has had a couple of interactions with MonoTV as well. Though, I am still very interested in this odd detail. I, personally, will be delusional and use this as "evidence" that Charles won't die in Chapter 3. If you guys have any other ideas, then... Say them? Or not if you don't want to. I literally took 8 months to post this, I am NOT in a position to tell you to talk about what you think

#drdt #charles cuevas #monotv #teruko tawaki #drdt theory #drdt charles #drdt teruko #drdt monotv #danganronpa despair time

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twoidiotwriters1 · 6 months

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Daughter of Olympus (Leo Valdez xFem!Oc)

A/N: One thing I love about these two is how blatant they are about their feelings, there is no hesitation (there is a lot and is drowning them) -Danny Words: 2,634 Series' Masterlist Previous Chapter / Next Chapter Listen to: 'Message In A Bottle' -by Taylor Swift

XXVII: I Don't Have High Hopes but I Think Leara Should Be Our Ship Name

"You remember when Annabeth explained to us how Athena kids are born?"

"Yeah?"

"I get it now," Ara mumbles absentmindedly. "The meeting of minds thing."

Lily peers over the chariot. "What?"

"I've got a crush," Ara tightens the nave, hunching so she doesn't have to face Lily.

Her friend gasps and pulls Ara up, dragging her to a tall bench. "Who is it? You always go for the craziest option available!"

"That's not true!" She scowls.

"I always thought Aphrodite kids had good taste, but you don't."

"I'll ignore that," Ara leaves her tools on the workbench. "Cause I really wanna tell you."

Lily smiles eagerly. "Okay. I'm listening."

"Well... It's a boy."

"Yikes," she sits on the bench next to Ara's and supports her elbow on the workbench. "Do I know him?"

"Yeah, er... just met him."

"Oh," Lily's expression shifts. "Oh no, Ara."

"What?" She pouts. "You can't say that's a bad pick!"

Her friend wrinkles her nose. "Leo Valdez? Are you sure?"

"You don't approve," Ara sighs knowingly.

Lily rolls her eyes. "I get why you like him... but is he really the safe option?"

"Lily!"

"Well," she frowns. "All I'm saying is, you get along with Jason just the same!"

Ara's taken by surprise. "Jason?"

"Why not?" Her friend insists. "Your siblings love him, like, they're obsessed—"

"Piper likes him, Lily," Ara makes a face.

"Ugh, fine! But Leo is bound to get you hurt," Lily explains like it's obvious.

"No, he wouldn't! Why would you even think that?" Ara's getting upset for no reason, she has to wrap it up.

Lily crosses her arms and Ara knows she's in for a lecture. "He's insane, Ara. Have you talked to him for more than just five minutes? I have the feeling he doesn't even like people at all."

"That's not fair, you don't like talking to people either," she reminds her.

"Yeah, but I like you, and I make an effort for you," she insists in an exasperated voice. "Nothing against him, he just doesn't have time to be a good boyfriend, and you know it. Don't pursue him, Ara."

Telling Ara she can't do something is giving her entrance to prove others wrong. "But I like him, isn't that enough?"

"Listen, if you date Leo, you won't be his priority," Lily tries to reason. "You shouldn't settle for the bare minimum. Also, you're Olympus's go-to girl—"

"This is exactly why I didn't want to tell you," Ara snaps defensively. "You go on about common sense like it's so easy. I know better."

It's not up to her to decide anymore, Leo's soul light matches hers, and all she can do is come to terms with it. Lily's observations aren't wrong, but she doesn't understand just how much of a dead end Ara is facing.

Lily's eyes darken. "Right, because you have always made the right choice."

Ara knows what she's insinuating, and she won't allow it. "Thank you for helping me with the chariot, you're dismissed for the day."

"Naí, Strategus."

Lily grabs her stuff so she can leave, but someone else storms into the room before that can happen.

"I'm going to gut you!" Nico Di Angelo stops in front of Ara, holding the old aviator jacket to her face.

We convince Nico to stay for the rest of the summer, but it doesn't matter how much we try to include him in our routine, he doesn't like it here.

Lily hands him a bag with food and drachmas. "Thank you for helping us this summer."

"You won't try to stop me from leaving?" He asks reluctantly.

"We know you'll be careful," I smile. "Ghost King."

Nico makes a face. "Shut up."

"It suits you," Lily teases him. "It's an honor to be friends with a king."

"Whatever," he turns away.

"You didn't deny we're friends, though!" I laugh. "Wait! We have one last favor to ask you!"

He glances back over his shoulder. "What?"

"Look for the children of Olympus!"

"What's that?"

"Nothing important, just... if you contact any of them, ask them how they became it. Heracles and Achilles."

Nico's face is hard to read, but he nods. "I'll try."

"See you later, Neeks!"

"Maybe," he replies shortly.

Percy runs into us at that moment. Lily goes away claiming she has business to attend to with the Stolls, but I know she wants to be sad in private. Nico's the only kid who resembles her around here, and now he's leaving, claiming this is not his place. I wonder what that makes her think.

Mr D asks Percy and me to walk with him. He takes us to the campfire, where Clarisse and Chris are having a moment.

Percy doesn't understand Mr. D's sudden change of heart, but I do.

"...remember that a kind act can sometimes be as powerful as a sword. As a mortal, I was never a great fighter or athlete or poet. I only made wine. The people in my village laughed at me. They said I would never amount to anything. Look at me now. Sometimes small things can become very large indeed." He gives me a look. "That weapon you carry is flashy... Make sure it doesn't dim your brains."

He leaves us, and I stare at the purple aura surrounding Clarisse and Chris. Percy speaks beside me. "Hey! That's right, you got a sword!"

I smile. "Hephaestus gave it to me. It's called Pantodýnamos."

Percy cocks his head to the side. "That's weird... I feel like I've heard that before."

"Almighty? Yeah, about a hundred times in every book of ancient history."

"Right," he grins. "And it sure is almighty, I saw you killing all those monsters—How did it feel?"

"Like small things can become very large indeed," I quote for Percy's amusement.

He pauses for a moment, suddenly worried. "But why did Hephaestus give it to you? He didn't seem to like you at first."

I open my mouth to reply, but I'm his little sister, he'll freak out if I tell him what my fate is. "I guess he changed his mind," I lie. "Maybe he likes that I chose him over my mother."

Percy seems to believe it. "Well, I feel better knowing you have a good way to defend yourself."

He ruffles my hair and walks me to the campfire. Lily's with the Stolls, next to her is Michael, and he's staring at me. When we lock eyes he smiles and winks. I look away feeling self-conscious, and a golden light brightens my skin.

"Oh, crap..." I mutter in distress.

During the campfire, Ara realizes Leo is nowhere to be found. It comes to her that if he's not here then he probably didn't have dinner either, and she can't ignore that.

The girl leaves the amphitheater and goes to get drinks and her on-the-verge-of-dying T-Rex bag, then approaches the forest, where she whistles and Apollo is quick to appear on her side. Ara rides him to the bunker, it's dark out and she's not looking to fight monsters at this hour.

She enters the bunker quietly, all the lights are off with the exception of one on top of Festus's platform, next to it Leo is scribbling something on a blueprint.

"Holy, Hephaestus!" Ara gasps. Before her, the ship's shell is already being built.

Leo gives a start. "Hi, doll!" He hastily tries to clean his workspace. "I know, I know, dinner time. Let me just—"

"Dinner was two hours ago," Ara walks up to him.

"Oh," he blinks. "Whoops."

The girl places a soda and a sandwich on his workbench. "You forget to eat and your reaction is 'Whoops'?"

"You can't judge me, Miss 'Huh'," Leo grabs the food. "I just thought—"

"You can think?" Ara sits on the platform and pats Festus' head, Apollo curls next to Leo's workbench ready to take a nap.

"Ha ha," Leo rolls his eyes. "I'm a genius, you know..."

"Don't get too comfy, boy," she speaks to her lion. "We'll head back in a moment."

Leo pouts. "You're leaving already?"

"You're coming with us," she raises a brow. "I can't let you stay here."

"You're no fun," he sighs. "My mom and I used to sleep in her workshop sometimes."

"You have a good bed in cabin nine," she insists calmly. "And I'm a fun girl, you just push my buttons."

"I've noticed," Leo smirks. "But you keep coming back, so maybe I don't push them enough."

"Hm," Ara looks around curiously. The bunker's full of life already; Annabeth was right after all, she's dying to work here. "Anyway, hurry up and eat. I gotta leave Apollo with the pegasus, he'll spend the night chasing the poor harpies otherwise."

Leo makes a face. "You know how batshit that sounds?"

Ara smiles a little. "You'll get used to it eventually."

Leo walks over to where she is. "Can I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"Is it true what they say? That you can't fall in love?"

Ara laughs. "Who says that?"

"Malcolm."

She shakes her head. "No! That's nuts!"

"It's not true?" He asks, sitting next to her.

Ara notices the faint glow of his skin. "Love is the one thing that keeps me going."

He tilts his head. "Really?"

"I mean, if I were incapable of loving, my life would be pointless."

"So you're willing to date?" His voice turns a bit hopeful. "Let's say, a mechanic genius with amazing looks?"

"Are you asking me out?" She inquires with amusement.

"Yeah, I think I am," Ara's shoulder is touching his, and Leo's breath catches in his throat as he leans closer.

"Leo..." Ara's not sure this is how she wants things to happen. "I... I..."

A playful smirk appears on the boy's face. "Are you about to confess? It'd be great if you said something like 'You're so attractive it makes me insane', even if it's a lie."

"Are you teaching me how to flirt with you?" Ara's head is spinning but his teasing annoys her enough to clear her head.

"You look like you need help. And you're not threatening to maim me for sitting this close to you like the day we met," Heat spreads across his cheeks, and he finishes the sentence quietly. "I can stop if you want."

Ara blushes, looking down at where their hands are placed, one next to the other. "I've gotten used to you, that's all..."

Leo glances at their hands and he lightly touches hers with the tip of his pinky. He looks up to her eyes and waits. She's not doing anything, but his heart is throbbing painfully as he sits in expectation.

"You're doing a great job here, by the way," Ara tells him.

Leo nods, not listening to a single word of what she just said. He moves slightly closer, closing the gap between them until their faces are just a few inches apart. The boy tilts his head and softly brushes his lips against hers for a brief moment.

The proximity makes him so dizzy he pushes himself away almost instantly. He's in honest disbelief, no girl had ever allowed him to get that close, he nearly wants to ask Ara if she's in her right mind.

In spite of his attempt to stop, their noses are still brushing. He's right there, he could kiss her if he wanted to, and he is dying to, but he wants her permission.

"I know I don't know a lot about you," he places his hand on top of hers. "But since I met you I've had this feeling... I don't even know what it means, but I'll try my best to be whatever you want, just..."

Ara wants to kiss him so badly that her chest hurts. The girl clears her throat and moves away, desperately trying to de-escalate the situation. "I don't date guys that could set me on fire, though."

For a moment, the sound of his heart pounding is all Leo can hear and process. Then Ara's breathing, slow and strained. It takes him a while to make sense of her words.

The way she's acting gives him hope. He feels so close to getting all he ever wanted, even if he doesn't even know what that entails.

He moves away too, trying to calm down. He drinks half of his Coke in one gulp. "You're gonna talk about cons? Let me talk about yours, then."

Ara's mouth falls open. "You've known me for like three days!"

"Six, actually," he replies. "So it's a looong list." Ara punches his shoulder. "Ouch! That a yes or a no?" Leo laughs, he can't help but think how cute she looks when she's pouting.

"I'll give you one and you gotta say one in turn, alright?" She replies. "Let's see who's got more."

A devilish look appears on Leo's face. He tilts his head slightly. "You're bossy."

"You're a flirt with every girl you find pretty."

He grins. "That sounds more like a compliment."

"It's not."

"Are you sure?"

"Just give me a con!"

"You're impatient."

"Some of your jokes are cringe."

Leo gasps, pretending to be insulted. "That's harsh."

"I give you permission to be a little harsh, then," Ara grins.

"Alright. You're a terrible flirt."

Ara responds with a feisty look in her eyes. "You have no proper strength for a demigod."

"Dang, now this is just roasting," Leo takes a bite of his sandwich. "My powers are a work in progress, sunshine. I'd try my best to protect you though, if that counts for anything."

Ara sighs and stares at her feet. "If you're not sure you can, then don't do it," the girl nudges his arm. "Your turn. You said you had a long list, right?"

"I was lying," he admits casually. "But feel free to keep going, I need the reality check."

Ara groans and looks away. "I ran out of cons too."

Leo pats her knee. "At least we tried. Now what?"

Ara's knee is tingling where he touched it. "I'm not a flirt," she blurts out. "Silena taught me to be kind and hand out compliments to everyone. If I'm a terrible flirt it's cause I've never tried to flirt with anyone, this is just how I am."

Ara is kind of weird, but Leo is starting to get her. She isn't as hard to understand as most people, maybe cause she always says what she means. "I'm a bit of a flirt," he replies, "but I try not to flirt with you at all, 'cause if you were to flirt back, I'm pretty sure I'd drop dead."

Ara giggles, her face is as red as the strawberries they grow in camp, but she doesn't seem to mind. "You're so dramatic—But you make me laugh, like, real laughter. Can't do that easily nowadays..."

"Wow," he says, trying to sound like he's joking. "You like me a lot."

He lets the statement sink in, giving her the opportunity to deliver a firm rejection.

"I never said I didn't."

"What?" There is a whirlwind of emotions inside of him, too much data has entered his hard drive. He can't even feel his face at this point. "What do you mean?" He urges her. "Cause it's kinda sounding like you've got feelings for me—"

"I know how it sounds," Ara scowls.

"But... then..." He stammers.

Ara fixes her eyes on the lion. A sudden wave of panic is making her second-guess everything, maybe she should follow Lily's advice.

"Listen, Leo... You have a ship to build, and I have to find my brother. Those are the priorities. After that, we have to defeat Miss Dirt-face. We don't have time for feelings."

It's like she's trying to convince herself, but what he hates the most is that it's true, and it hurts like hell. The first time he meets a cute girl who's attracted to him, and they can't be together. His life is just that great.

"Right. Let's focus on the prophecies now, and maybe if we survive that, we can think about dating," he replies, sounding overly sarcastic. "Sorry for asking..." Every fiber in his body wants to scream. Is he destined to be rejected even by the people who want to choose differently?

Ara gets up as gracefully as possible. "Please, don't stay here for long. Go to sleep."

She heads to the door in silence. The boy doesn't go after her, all he does is reply under his breath. "See you."

Pollo gets up and follows Ara out of the bunker, leaving Leo alone with his longing.

Next Chapter ->

Taglist.

@siriuslysirius1107 @ask-giggles1303 @ash-the-hoarder @im-planning-something-look @bandshirts-andbooks @coolninjapaper @thewaterlily @whenisthefall @1randomcomic @you-bloody-shank @sunflowergraves @owlalex44 @taylordaughter @typicalsolangelolover @writingmia @espressopatronum454 @slytherinnqueen @orbitingpolaris

#twoidiots writing #pjo fanfic #pjo hoo toa #pjo fandom #percy jackson and the olympians #leo valdez x oc #leo valdez fanfic #doo

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once-upon-an-animation · 1 year

Text

A rant about Reyna’s love life situation in ToA…

So I just read the Tyrant’s Tomb and uhhh…I see why people have such mixed feelings about what happened with Reyna. Here are my thoughts (w/ spoilers of course).

- First of all, that whole Lester/Reyna pseudo love story thing was so…weird? Like, I understood the point of getting Reyna to reflect on dating, but like, did she really need a bizarre romantic subplot with Lester to achieve that? The whole incident w/ Venus felt like it only existed solely for the sake of this moment with Reyna, seeing as it was first introduced in this same book, and will likely be forgotten about afterwards. As a result, the whole thing seems so random with no buildup whatsoever. I think there are better ways to introduce Reyna’s interest in taking on celibacy and joining the Hunters than this pile of weirdness with Lester/Apollo.

- Second of all, a lot of Reyna’s dialogue concerning her love life sounded like Rick Riordan just inserting himself into the story, and it was extremely cringey. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think it was OOC for Reyna to say these things, but the language choices made it clear that RR was just using the character to voice his own thoughts (I literally cringed when he used the word “ship” unironically in her speech to Lester/Apollo near the end of the book. Nobody talks like this.) We have never seen any of the kids at New Rome actually mention Reyna’s love life in any of the books as far as I remember (let me know if I’m wrong). So this problem she has with other people “shipping” her doesn’t seem real in-universe and feels like it’s being brought up to address the fandom specifically and sort of…scold(?) them for shipping Reyna with other characters.

In addition, I don’t like it when authors use their characters as a disguise for their own thoughts. It ruins the integrity of the character and the story. If you have something to say to the fandom, just say it instead of hiding behind your character.

- Third, I find the line where Reyna says “Why do healthy friendships have to progress into romance” (or something like that) in response to Lester/Apollo asking her if she’s dating Thalia to be really hypocritical. Romance is a very major theme in RR’s books and he has a knack for pairing up as many characters as possible, even characters who don’t really need to be a relationship/whose romances could have worked just as well as a friendship. This line Reyna says about not every friendship needing to be a romance could apply to almost every couple in this franchise.

I give Percabeth, Frazel, SilenaxBeckendorf, and EmmiexJo a pass, because romance genuinely complements their stories, but as far as other ships goes, I actually think their romances were unnecessary/poorly executed/could’ve worked just as well as a friendship. ChrisxClarisse definitely didn’t need to be a thing; Clarisse doesn’t even give off romance vibes anyway and Chris stops existing after TLO. Grover and Juniper are cute, but nothing would change if their relationship didn’t exist. Jasper/Jiper might have genuinely been better as friends. Caleo ABSOLUTELY didn’t need to happen; I personally believe romance was NOT the best resolution for Leo’s arc. I give props to Nico and Will for being the first gay ship, but again, RR should not be using romance as a bandaid for emotional conflicts. Nico should learn to maintain healthy friendships first before jumping into romance. TysonxElla did not need to happen for any reason at all. A lot of the hinted pairings in The Hidden Oracle (Miranda & Sherman, Chiara x Damien, Valentina x Paolo) didn’t need to exist either. These are all side characters whose romances have little to no impact, and who would lose nothing if they were all just friends. Same for Lavinia x Poison Oak.

As you can see, RR loves to pair people up together. And most of these pairings are straight/straight-passing. But Reyna maybe liking girls is where he finally draws the line, and decides that romance doesn’t need to happen all the time? Seriously? Like don’t get me wrong, it’s cool to finally have a character in this franchise who chooses to be happily single, and I know that Thalia has not expressed any interest in women (neither has Reyna, tbh), but like…still. RR has been gung-ho about romance everywhere else, even with characters where it literally didn’t matter. Why did he draw the line here?

All of this also makes me wonder if Piper/Shel became a thing just to placate disappointed fans who wanted to see a major character in a wlw relationship. I remember RR’s tweet where he was like “I didn’t want to make Reyna like girls because it would seem like girls only like girls if things don’t work out with boys”. This is a nice sentiment, but it becomes questionable when you realize that what he tried to avoid with Reyna is basically what he did with Piper? And to make matters worse, Shel is such a non-character. She exists for a few pages at the very end of the final series, has no canon personality or physical appearance (as far as I remember), and she’s so unimportant, she doesn’t even have a last name! Her only purpose in the story is to show us that Piper likes girls, which is so lame! Why not give a wlw between two fully fleshed out characters instead of this last-minute romance between a major character and a character who’s just a device?

- Lastly, I’m really tired of RR shoving the female characters that he doesn’t want to pair up into vows of celibacy (Rachel, Thalia, and now Reyna). In fact, this happens with the male characters too, where they are either dating (Percy, Grover, Tyson, Leo, Nico, Will, Frank, Jason) or they’re dead (Luke, Octavian, Jason).

Reyna was so close to being the first major character who didn’t fall into this pattern and then it was ruined. There are many options that people can have for their love lives beyond dating or mandatory celibacy, Richard Riordan, and these options are not that hard to write/explore even in a book aimed at preteens. The characters could easily say that they’re not interested in romance at the moment and may become interested at a later point, that they’re interested but are waiting for a person that they truly want to date, that they’re working on friendships right now, that they’re focused on other things right now, etc. Not everyone needs to be paired up, but not everyone needs to take on a vow of celibacy either. Characters are allowed to just be single, no explanations given. There are so many things Reyna could do besides being a Hunter. She could go to school, travel the world, do something similar to Emmie and Jo where she creates a safe haven for others, maybe even a safe haven for abused girls such as a herself. Becoming a Hunter is not the only option here.

Sorry for the length of this rant, and sorry if this post sounds hyper-critical of Rick. I’m just not impressed with the way Reyna’s love life was handled, and how she explained it using dialogue that was essentially just Rick Riordan talking. Very weird.

#trials of apollo #reyna ramirez arellano #rick riordan #rr crit #anti rr #lester papadopoulos #apollo #toa #pjo hoo toa

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filtharchives · 4 months

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My brain decided to go into "what if the MC in the OL games were disabled" ? And (un)fortunately you got picked by my brain to ramble with and hear opinions

Like imagine Cove with a deaf/hard of hearing MC, as kids they struggled a lot to communicate but when he got a bit older, Cove tried so hard to learn sign language so he could better communicate with MC. Hangman being their personal choice to communicate regardless of age being such a given that Cove is so happy for since it gives him time to articulate his thoughts !

Also if they use a cochlear implant, MC could just go "You're not worth my batteries" to Jeremy as kid so they were the only one chill with Jeremy since they didn't hear his rude words anyway(but still would have taken action in Miranda's birthday depending on Cove's reactions, I'm particularly into the punching or party whistle option)

Meanwhile on OL2 the MC being a wheelchair user sounds weirdly fitting to me, like obviously the house would have to be adapted with ramps on the porch and the MC's room being on the bottom floor but still, imagine Qiu going to ask if they have a bike or something, both just staring at each other(with Tamarack laughing in the background) until Qiu realized the wheel part of WHEELchair

The Walks moment having the MC preferring to go down the hill through the grass rather than the stream like the Boy's club did, but only when it's time for them to leave that they realize that they can't go back up on their own....cue to everyone helping push the MC uphill, maybe Darren complaining a bit while Baxter finds it amusing since he never had to do anything like that

Also both Tamarack's grandparents and Qiu's parents silently agreeing to also have ramps on their porches so MC can visit anytime

I never played Baxter nor Derek routes to properly think on them(my eyes are only on Cove) ;;;;;

I don’t know anything about physical disabilities so I don’t think I can say much on this

also never played the OL2 demo since I’m waiting on the full release 🙈

BUT I HAVE PLAYED BAXTER AND DEREKS ROUTES

I specifically imagine Step 2 w derek and his brothers and I think it’d be so cute like one day yall r hanging out in the big park and maybe nico wants to sit in ur lap while derek pushes ur wheelchair around as fast as he can like

“this is great! I can train my strength and speed like this!”

meanwhile jorge is running beside him trying to keep up 💀

and nico’s having the time of his life be what rambunctious little kid doesn’t love going fast on wheels

tbh kinda blanking on baxter lol sorry b-man

OH but in the same vein as cove learning asl for a deaf/hoh reader, I think I mentioned once in a previous ramble with @/sugar-omi that I like to imagine he’d learn a second language if u have one, especially if u learned it for ur culture

if u have kids and want ur kids to be bilingual like u, cove would be cool with speaking ur second language at home and stuff so the kids adapt

that goes for all the OL1 boys I think cause they’re all sweet like that

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tagthescullion · 1 month

Text

Choices

Fandom(s): Trials of Apollo

Summary: Nico faces the grim reality of losing another sister to the Hunters of Artemis. He has convinced his father to change his mind and fight for their dysfunctional family, surely he can make Reyna change her mind, too.

Rating: T (swearing, people being bitchy)

Words: 1800

AO3 link

“Why?”

Reyna had been waiting for him to arrive. She had barely flinched when she felt that cold, bizarre feeling that meant somebody shadow-travelled nearby.

Nico saw her shoulders rise and fall as she sighed.

“Don’t make a big deal out of this,” she asked.

Nico scoffed.

Only then did she turn around.

“It’s not the same.” Reyna stated.

The same. No need to clarify.

I’m not like your other sister who abandoned you at the first chance. I’m not like your other sister who died days later because death was better than dealing with an unwanted little brother.

“Isn’t it?” Nico asked, his voice hard. “You’re not joining those fucking Hunters, then? All miscommunication. The rumour mill in Camp Jupiter is insane.”

Reyna’s expression became a stony cold wall. Emotionless.

“Don’t be immature,” she chided him. “Yes, I’m joining the Hunters. No, it’s not the same, because I’m not a twelve-year-old girl who doesn’t know better. I made a founded decision.”

Nico crossed his arms. “Yeah, founded. Founded by all that marketing bullshit they use to convince people. First that condescending bitch Zoë, and now Thalia, the giant hypocrite. She hated them, and now she goes around replacing the ones who die.”

Reyna took a deep breath. With her face devoid of emotion, and Nico feeling too many emotions himself, it was hard for him to know if she was exasperated, tired, or about to stab him with a dagger.

But, to be frank, Nico didn’t give a shit. If he got stabbed, so be it. Reyna needed to understand this was a mistake. A huge, massive, regrettable mistake.

“I know how Thalia used to feel about them,” Reyna told him. She leaned back on what would become her former desk, half sitting on it, and mirrored his crossed arms. “She’s told me all about Zoë too. And her version of what happened to Bianca, Nico.”

“Her version?” Nico rolled his eyes. “There’s one version. Artemis convinced Bianca to join the Hunt, had no better idea than to be kidnapped a nanosecond later,” he ignored the rumbling of thunder in the background, “and then darling Zoë took her on a quest she wasn’t ready for where she was murdered because not a single one of those assholes in the quest had a second thought about a girl who didn’t know shit about demigod life joining them!”

Reyna opened her mouth to speak but Nico wasn’t finished.

He shook his head. “And all for what? Because Percy and Thalia wanted to get Annabeth back. All for infallible, perfect Annabeth Chase. My sister’s life wasn’t worth shit next to hers to any of the people in that quest. And neither does yours.” He sneered. “The moment somebody Thalia loves is in danger, you become disposable. She won’t hesitate to put you in the line of fire.”

Reyna put a hand on his forearm. “You’re being unfair.”

Nico pulled his arm out of her grasp. “I’m telling you the truth. You don’t believe me? Look at the facts. Any Hunter dies? Thalia has them replaced before she can even learn the former one’s names. There used to be a dozen when my sister joined. By the Battle of Manhattan Thalia had doubled that number.” He put his hands on his hips. “A bunch of them died then, and by the time you met them, Thalia had already got the numbers up again. She doesn’t care! They’re statistics to her!”

“That’s not true, Nico,” Reyna insisted. “Thalia cares a lot more than you think. Hell, she probably cares more than Zoë did. Most of the girls there have been rescued from tough situations; from abusive partners, sometimes their own families… Thalia’s only helping them have a better future.”

Nico snorted. “Oh, forgive me, I didn’t know she was doing a saint’s work. And here I was, thinking the best way out of a toxic relationship was therapy. Clearly, joining a group of eternal maidens who are taught to hate, mistrust, and shun out men is much better. With the addition of dangerous monster hunting. How fun!”

“If you’ll be a little shit about it, you can just leave,” Reyna snapped. Her façade broke and Nico saw she was both hurt and annoyed. “I do want to talk to you about my decision, but I won’t if you’ll just stand there and complain without listening to my side.”

“Fine,” Nico said. He grabbed a chair from next to the wall, and sat straddling it, leaning on its backrest, looking at Reyna. “Go ahead, explain your betrayal.”

Reyna rolled her eyes again. “You’re dramatic, patronising, and right now, publicity to Thalia’s cause against boys. Be a man, shut up, and listen.”

Nico frowned but stayed quiet. She wanted to talk, let her. There was nothing she could say that would make him change his mind.

“Do you remember how you said you didn’t feel part of Camp Half-Blood?” She began. “How you never fit in, and you struggled to try because you felt whatever you did was never enough, so why bother?”

“You fit in perf— you’re a praetor!”

“Ah, ah, ah,” Reyna raised a hand to stop him. “Ahora me toca a mí. Yes, I was a praetor, so was Jason, and look how quickly he decided to join Camp Half-Blood, where he felt more comfortable. Having power isn’t the same as being happy in a place, you know? You’re powerful in your father’s domain, would you stay there forever?”

Nico first thought it was rhetoric, but she seemed to be waiting for some sort of reply, so he shook his head.

“I love Camp Jupiter,” she stated, and her voice shook with emotion. “But I also think I’ve done more than my fair share to keep it running. I’ve led them through two wars! I’ve given them years of my life.”

Nico swallowed a comment about how they would likely be the last years of her life, because, let’s face it, lately the Hunters, ironically, had a reduced life expectancy.

“Thalia’s offer is one of being able to have a life,” Reyna said. “I won’t have to lead, I won’t have to think for everybody else, shoulder that responsibility.”

“Will you be happy, though?” Nico asked. He tried to keep the venom in his voice to a minimum. “Is it really a life to be your age forever, and run around the wild without a care for the world?”

Reyna shrugged. “It’s better than this. Besides, what do you want my life to be? To grow up, get married, sprout out a couple of kiddies?”

Nico made a face. “Yes, that’s what I want you to do, have children. You know, Reyna, believe it or not, I’m aware it isn’t the 1940s anymore. I simply don’t think having no responsibilities will make you happy. And the Hunters they— they’re just not a good option.”

“Is there really any other reason than what happened to your sister to make you hate them?”

“Do I need any other reason?” He demanded, he felt his heartbeat quicken again. “Other than them letting my sister die? I’ll give you another reason: they take advantage of girls when they’re vulnerable. They’re like mythological mormons! They convince you to join their cult but they fail to give you other options.”

“Mythological mormons?” Reyna sighed. “Your issues with protestants aside—”

“Gods, it’s not about the protestants!” Nico waved his hands as if trying to grab an idea from the air. “You’ve always thought Hylla’s decision to join the Amazons was rushed. You’ve said it yourself, you think they only managed to convince her because she was in despair.”

Reyna’s face shone with anger. “She wasn’t in despair. She was broken. She’d been hurt time and time again by those brutes in Blackbeard’s crew. If you knew what they did to her, you’d understand why she joined some weird group who kept men in line. But the Amazons did sweep in when they saw somebody vulnerable, Thalia and the Hunters don’t do that.”

“You’ve told me they went for girls in abusive relationships, forgive me for assuming that puts you in a vulnerable situation,” Nico argued. “They offered my sister a life free of any burden when she felt overwhelmed, and they —coincidentally— asked you to join the immortal sorority of man-haters when they knew you felt weird and left out.”

“That doesn’t make me vulnerable,” she insisted. “And for your information, Thalia’s been asking me to join for ages, ever since the quest to get the statue back to New York.”

“When, of course, you weren’t vulnerable, it was a perfectly unstressful situation,” Nico deadpanned. He leaned on the back of the chair again. “If your issue is that you don’t want to have sex with people, then maybe go to a pride-parade dressed in purple, don’t abandon your whole life on a whim.”

“You know,” Reyna said. “I’m not sure if you’re worried I’ll abandon my life, or that I’ll abandon you.”

Nico hesitated for a second. “Both. I’ve already been abandoned once by a sister because of the Hunters. I’d rather it didn’t happen again. But you wouldn’t just be abandoning me. You’d be abandoning everybody.”

Reyna walked towards him, she knelt in front of his chair.

“I won’t abandon you,” she promised. “I’ll come back, I’ll see you as much as I can. It’ll be like going to university, that’s all.”

“Let’s, for a second, pretend you can keep that promise,” Nico suggested. “Let’s pretend you’re one of the lucky few who live for centuries. What happens when all the people you know are dead?”

Reyna swallowed. “I don’t know. I don’t see the future. I’ll have the girls.”

“The Hunters Thalia replaces every less than a decade?” He wondered. “Those girls?”

She shook her head. “It’s my decision. I’m making it, sound of mind, having considered the pros and cons —regardless of whether you believe me or not—, and not being led in a moment of vulnerability.”

Nico huffed, shook his head, and stood up.

“All right,” he said. “I give up. You want to leave your friends and family, your life and responsibilities, off you go.”

“Thank you for understand—”

“I don’t,” Nico cut her off. “I don’t understand it. I’m mad as hell.”

“For somebody who didn’t grow up as an only child, you seem to love the word ‘I’.”

Nico scoffed. “Right, sorry, I keep making things about me. Let me make this about you. Remember when you said, in front of both camps, that you used to have a home, but now you had two? Well done, Reyna, by choosing the Hunters, now you have none.”

He turned and left the room, shutting the door with all the strength he could muster.

#first of all i love that it's 1800 words it's beautiful #nico di angelo #reyna avila ramirez arellano #pjo #hoo #toa #pjo hoo toa #riordanverse #pjo fic #mis fics #tagthescullion

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