The Last Bullet

12) Nightshifter

Percy wasn't sure if he was happy with the newest development in his life.

Nico di Angelo, his younger/older cousin whose mere presence could make him need a Tylenol, was sitting on his bed.

Sam, a big, strong, intelligent hunter that had seen enough to scare the monsters in his head, beamed at the sight of Percy's little shit cousin.

You see, dear old Sammy was Nico's biggest fan. Well, second biggest fan. The title of first went to Will, who was Percy's little shit doctor.

Percy could remember how Sam had begged him for stories about Nico. It was strange, and Percy wasn't really sure why the man was obsessed with the demigod, but he happily obliged.

Sort of.

"Is it true you rode a bull to Romania, leading an army of skeletons in the great Telekhine war, all while wearing a speedo?" Sam asked immediately. For such a smart guy, it was really easy to convince Sam of the weirdest stuff.

"What have you been telling him?" Nico turned to Percy, looking a lot concerned.

"The truth," Percy nodded seriously, then narrowed his eyes. "What do you want?"

"What, can I not just visit my cousin?" Nico pouted.

"No," Percy raised an unimpressed eyebrow.

"You're right," Nico nodded in agreement as he stood. "Can I talk to you? Alone?"

Percy nodded, and they walked outside, leaving Dean and Sam to their own devices.

"What's up?" Percy questioned. "Did you lose your favorite speedo?"

"I don't have a speedo," Nico said, blushing in a way that told Percy all he needed to know. "And I found it."

"Found what?" Percy asked. "You're speedo?"

"I don't have a speedo!" Nico went rummaging in his bag, pulling out a Yankees cap. "And no. I found this." Percy stared at it, speechless. He hadn't realized it at the time, but it had gone missing when Octavian had invaded the Argo II. They all figured the guy had hidden it somewhere, destroyed it, or just done some other terrible thing with it.

"Where was it?" Percy gingerly touched it, frowning.

"Camp Jupiter," Nico said slowly, and Percy looked up in shock. Nico paused for a long moment, as if he were thinking about something. "It was in the augur's temple. Octavian's old place. No one had gone in there for a long time. Currently, there's no augur for New Rome, and Rachel's been doing prophecies for them with the help of Ella."

"Why'd you go in there?" Percy asked.

"Chiron wanted to read what was left of the original scrolls," Nico shrugged, opening his bag to show Percy that it was full of old charred paper.

They sat in silence for a long moment.

"You should keep it," Nico said slowly.

Percy looked up nervously, "I-I don't know if that's a good idea, with Athena still attacking me with owls and all."

"Keep it," Nico insisted. "Athena won't be mad for it. So keep it."

Before Percy could argue, Nico shadowtravelled away, leaving Percy with one of the last things left of Annabeth Chase.

***

The thought of the cap in Percy's bag burned through his mind as they walked through the jewelry store. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to forget it. He wondered for a moment if that was what Annabeth had felt for the Mark of Athena, an item that marked a bad time. Would this be a bad time for Percy?