Ignis // Leo Valdez

You Are So Annoying

Three years ago

"Why? Why would you take life advice from a ghost, Nico?" Kyra exclaimed in disbelief, throwing her hands up in the air. King Menos walked or floated towards Nico and Kyra before getting stopped by Kyra.

"And come any closer to him and I swear to the gods I will banish you to Tartarus!" Kyra threatened as she shielded Nico with her sword, making him glare at her.

"I know what I'm doing, gods! Will you ever stop treating me like a kid?!"

"I'll stop treating you like a kid when you stop acting like one!"

"If I may-"

"Shut. It. You creepy little...creeper! You aren't apart of this!" Kyra flicked her wrist, sending Menos to the edge of Tartarus.

"Kyra!"

"Nico!" She mocked as Nico crossed his arms and glared menacingly at her. "You are so much smarter than this! He's obviously trying to manipulate you, why can't you see that!?"

"You're the one trying to manipulate me!"

"Excuse me?!" Kyra exclaimed, her voice boomed across the empty halls of the underworld. She was mainly allowed down there due to Nyx's and Hades close and creepy relationship. Even if she wasn't allowed she would probably have gone down there anyway.

"You heard me! You're always to tell me what to do and when and how to do it. I'm sick of it!" Nico yelled, stepping forward towards Kyra making her back up and freeze. "You are not my mother or my sister. So stop acting like it." He started to walk away, purposely banging his shoulder into hers.

"You think I don't know that?" Kyra whispered making Nico pause. "I know I will never be...her. But I'm trying, Nico. I'm really trying and I just...want to keep you safe. No matter if you hate me or not." Nico bent his head but didn't say anything, silence filling the room. He suddenly whipped around, still hiding his face and wrapped his scrawny around her. He buried his head in the crook of her neck as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders protectively.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. You're right, I know you're right. It's just...hard. I just want to...protect you. No matter what. I just wish I could kidnap you and shield you from anything negative in this world forever," she chuckled wishfully.

"Haven't you already kidnapped me?"

"Shut it, brat."

"You first, freak."

...

As Nico sat besides the blood soaked cot, holding the hand of his concussed sister, he reminisced. He thought back to when they were happier in a sadder time.

He lifted his hand hesitantly and wavered it above Kyra's cheek before lightly touching the deep scars engraved in her skin. Four long and deep lines etched in her cheek, forever marking her sacrifice and loss. The shortest was only a couple of inches long from her jawline but the longest a few inches from a corner of her nose.

Footsteps were echoed from behind Nico making him turn around to see a familiar repair boy. It wasn't hard to tell he had been crying. Though it wasn't like Nico had any room to judge, his eyes were just, maybe even more red, than Leo's.

"Oh sorry I didn't know you were here I'll just go-" Leo started, his voice raspy and quiet, but was quickly interrupted by the emo boy.

"It's fine, it's not like you're bothering her anyway." Leo pursed his lips at that and hesitantly sat down on Kyra's right. Silence overtook the infirmary as they both looked down at the weak Kyra. Leo stared at her scar on her cheek and sighed.

"The Chimera," Nico started, breaking the silence but refusing to look at him. Leo looked up at him, confused.

"Huh?"

"That's what did this to her. Jace said Echidna and her little pet cornered them on the Peace Bridge. The thing was going to kill Elly but Kyra took the fall. Literally," Nico clarified as he raised his head to look Leo dead in the eyes. Pun intended. "No one could've known where they were going to go because it was a last minute decision that Elly made. Neither of them even wanted to be there in the first place! And it's not like the queen of monsters was just hanging around a bridge at the right time and just happened to stumble on them." Leo furrowed his eyebrow together, processing what Nico was implying.

"You don't mean...?"

"That's not all. Elly also added that before Echidna appeared out of nowhere, it was clear, sunny day and the water? Not even moving. After she showed up? A storm instantaneously started and the water was rising and crashing against the bridge." Leo stared at Nico astonished, trying to wrap his head around this information, as Nico casually took a sip of water. "Also apparently Aphrodite never lost a sacred dove."

"What?! Then what the Hades was that prophecy?!" Leo exclaimed, standing up outraged as Nico sat calmly at his seat.

"Think, Valdez. Think back to the prophecy." Leo put on his stupid looking thinking expression for a moment before realizing.

"To find the crooked dove they will embark..."

"And a feigned defeat will echo upon at dawn," Nico finished, setting down his water. "It was right in front of us the whole time. The gods knew her fatal flaw was selflessness and they used that against her," Nico started, looking back at his sister.

"So they set her up." Leo finished, turning back to her, watching her chest rise and fall will each ragged breath. "Can they do that? Are they even allowed to do that?" He questioned, growing angrier with each word.

"They're the Olympians. They do whatever they want," Nico answered bitterly. "Of course, doing this brings consequences that we have to pay for, too."

"Dude, please stop being vague and just tell me," Leo exasperated making Nico roll his eyes at him.

"I mean," Nico started irritably, "how do you think her mother is going to feel when she realizes the gods tried to slaughter her own daughter? Sure they never had a great relationship but it doesn't help she has been looking for a reason to start a war with them for years," Nico stressed to Leo making him freeze.

"And they just gave her the perfect reason," Leo whispered as he looked at the girl who had just started a war.

"Wow, Valdez. Congrats, you finally got it!" Nico snarked, slow clapping, practically oozing sarcasm.

"You cannot miss a chance to make fun of me, can you?"

"No, no I cannot," Nico replied, silence filling the room again for a moment.

"What are we going to do?"

"I don't know," Nico whispered back, pressing his lips together worriedly. "We just need to worry about getting Kyra awake. She might have the solution and hopefully the power to convince her mother to calm down. She has always done it before, like when Annabeth and Percy pissed her off and Kyra had to spend a month calming her down."

"What happens if that doesn't work?"

"Then let's just hope you can die a second time."

"...We're screwed, aren't we?"

"Oh, totally."