fix you - solangelo

Chapter 8

The next day, Nico was leaving the mess hall when he heard a shout from Half-Blood Hill. Grabbing his sword, he quickly ran over.

"What's going on?" he asked, and then he noticed the troll. 

A large troll was standing at the camp boundaries, bashing the barrier with its club. The monster was hideous, with gray-green skin, a pushed in face, and beady red eyes. It wore a dirty loincloth, and carried a club as big around as Nico, which, provided, wasn't that much, but a solid blow from that weapon would kill a camper. The thing roared at Nico, and bashed the barrier again.

An Ares camper named Mike and a Hephaestus girl, Nico thought her name was Jane, were standing near Thalia's tree. "We don't know how it got here," Mike grouched, crossing his buff arms. "It showed up just now and started hitting the barrier."

Jane tapped a wrench agaist her palm. "We don't know how to get rid of it. It would take a party of at least twenty campers to kill that thing. It has super thick skin."

Nico regarded the troll, slightly repulsed. "We have twenty campers, right?"

Jane scrunched up her face. "Maybe. Most people are home right now, since its winter. In total, we have like thirty campers, but the Aphrodite kids won't get within a ten mile radius of this thing. And the Hypnos campers....well, you know." 

"I could summon some skeletons to he-"

"No, you will not!" Will Solace said, marching up to Nico and shaking a finger in his face. Nico felt both excited and exasperated at the sight of the son of Apollo. "Remember? No Underworld magic! Doctor's orders!"

Nico rolled his eyes. "Will, I'm fine. I'm strong enough now!"

"No you're not!" WIll replied. "I would know; I'm an actual doctor."

"But you don't know about Underworld magic," Nico protested. "It's different."

"That doesn't-"

"Shut up! Both of you!" Mike said loudly, reminding Nico of his sister Clarisse. 

Nico and Will glared at each other. Nico might have a crush on the son of Apollo, but he could be as annoying as sugar-high Dakota.

Jane rolled her eyes. "Anyway, we should try to get as many campers as we can to fight this thing."

"I'll go get my siblings," Will volunteered. "And whatever's left of the Hermes cabin."

"I'll get Percy and the Athena cabin," Nico said.

Will looked at him. "Why do you specifically want to go get Percy?"

Nico blinked at him. "So he can help. And so I can yell at him for making me leave the camp with him and leading this monster here."

Mike cursed. "That idiot Jackson. He always messes things up."

"Shut up with your stupid Ares-Posiedon rivalry," Jane said, frustrated. "Just go get some help."

MIke walked off towards the Ares cabin, mumbling under his breath. Will regarded Nico carefully, a slightly hurt look in his eyes. "Do...do you like him? Percy, I mean."

Nico shook his head. "Not anymore...but why are you so interested?"

"Um, no reason," Will said, quickly turning away and jogging down to the Apollo cabin.

"Aww," Jane said from behind Nico. "Look how jealous he was. That's so cute."

Nico looked at her, confused. "What?"

"He was jealous of Percy," Jane said.

"What?!? Um, no," Nico said, shaking his head. "Definitely not. Why would he?"

Jane just shook her head. "Gods, you really are dense." She walked down the hill towards the Hephaestus cabin, leaving Nico standing on Half-Blood Hill, confused.

"What in Hades is going on with people lately?" Nico muttered to himself as he started towards the Posiedon cabin. 

.

Nico reached the cabin and knocked on the door. "Percy!" he called.

The son of Posiedon opened the door. "Yeah?"

"There's a troll at the camp border," Nico said. "It followed our scent here, after we went to Walgreens."

"Schist," Percy said, a phrase Nico still didn't understand. The son of Posiedon took out Riptide. "Do we have enough campers to fight it?"

"We're not sure," Nico said, starting towards the Athena cabin with Percy beside him. "I could have summoned some skeletons to help, but Will 'Doctor's Orders' Solace wouldn't let me."

Percy grinned at him. "Aw, he does like you. Also, you already have a nickname for him, that's adorable."

"Stop it," Nico said, annoyed. "He doesn't like me."

"If you say so," Percy said as they reached the Athena cabin.

Nico knocked on the door. A younger daughter of Athena opened the door, maybe 8 or 9 years old. "Hello!"

Nico did his best to smile at her he wasn't a big fan of small children. "Hi. Is Annabeth here?"

"Yup," she replied. "Annie!" the girl called. "Percy and some other guy want to see you!"

Annabeth came to the door. "Thanks Chloe."

Percy frowned at Annabeth. "She can call you Annie ad I can't?"

Annabeth grinned. "Shut up, Seaweed Brain. And anyways, she's my sister."

"But I'm your boyfriend!"

Annabeth cleared her throat. "Anyway, hey Nico, what's up?"

"There's a troll trying to get into camp," Nico said. "It won't go away, and we need a party of campers to fight it off."

Annabeth narrowed her eyes at Percy. "What did you do?"

"I didn't mean to!" Percy protested.

Annabeth sighed. "Okay. We don't have many campers that can fight, but I'll get everyone who can up to Half-Blood Hill. Thanks for telling me, Nico."

"Hey, I came, too!" Percy protested. 

"Yeah, yeah, I love you, too," Anabeth said, closing the door. 

"Let's go to the Hecate cabin and see if any of them could help," Percy suggested.

"First intelligent thing you've said all day," Nico said under his breath.

They reached the Hecate cabin, and found that Will, along with his siblings, had already told the Hecate campers about the troll. Nico's heart fluttered a bit at the sight of the son of Apollo.

"Okay then, ready to go?" Nico said, trying to ignore the pattering in his heart.

"Well, I'm not going," Will said, turning slightly red. "I'm not a fighter."

Nico was tempted to tell him to come anyway, but he clamped his mouth shut and nodded mutely.

"Okay," Percy said, shooting Nico a look. He continued in the true spirit of Camp Halfblood. "Let's go, um, kill that troll, I guess."