Sunflower

3

Tw for thought of suicide

Nico has his eyes set on the medical cabin in the corner of camp. Behind him he leaves a trail of dead grass as he has a dark look on his face. The campers around him watch as he storms into the cabin.
    He instantly sets out for the girl who's standing at the back of the cabin. Aelia's singing an old song from when she was young under her breath as she hears someone come up behind her. Her medical sense can see nothing wrong with the person as she finishes stacking the boxes. When she turns around she steps back after being met with a very angry Nico. "What in the Hades are you thinking?!"
    "I didn't do anything! Go ask Stoll." She holds her hands up in surrender.
    "Bringing him back? You're going to sacrifice yourself?" He snarls, taking another step toward her.
    Instantly her face hardens, "How did you find out? Did Apollo tell you?"
    "What does it matter how I found out? It's the fact that you're going through with it." He glares at Aelia.
    "Leave it be Nico. It's not your decision." She growls, walking past him.
    "We don't trade lives for each other Lia! Jason's dead! There's nothing you can do for him." He follows hot on her heels.
    She whips around dropping the boxes from her arms, "You're wrong. I can bring him back Nico! You yourself said that to bring back someone from the dead you need to sacrifice a soul whose cheated death. I am that soul. So I'm going to do this, because I can't stand seeing all of my friends suffer without Jason in their life."
    "When did you cheat death?" Nico asks, taken aback.
    "You're not the only other one from a different time." She says sternly. "I need to do this. It's the only way I can make things right for myself."
    "By sacrificing yourself? That's not going to fix anything!" Nico exclaims.
    "What else can I do?" she yells before taking a shaky breath, "My best friend is dead. I can't stand it, I can't live knowing I can bring him back. You need to understand that. Please understand that."
    He freezes as tears start flowing down her face, "No I don't. People die, people live, that's life. Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should. Imagine what Jason would think if you did bring him back and he found out how."
    "He would be alive, and you all would have him back. I was never supposed to be here. Why does it matter if I leave now?" She whispers with a sharp edge to her voice almost threatening Nico to speak against her.
    He steps forward, "It matters because you're our friend too. I won't deny that having Jason wouldn't make all of us happier, but we would still lose a friend."
    She shakes her head, "You don't understand. He's like a- was like a brother to me. I need to do this. There's nothing you can do to change my mind. I'm sorry."
    She starts walking back further into the cabin when Nico says something, "I'll tell everyone."
    Aelia glances back, "Go for it. They can't change my mind either. But know by doing that, you get their hopes up. You know as much as I do this could very easily not work. That's why I didn't tell anyone."
    His dark eyes lock on her, "It's better to get their hopes up then to leave them in the dark."
    She shakes her head, "Your loss."
    Nico turns to leave but right before he opens the door she says something, "If you figure out anything with that phone thing Leo made, please tell me. I can't figure out how the damn thing works."
    He rolls his eyes and leaves the cabin. He bee lines straight to the Hades cabin where he pulls multiple of the books of the dead off the shelf. He flips through them before flattening the page of the spell for summoning the spirits of the dead. He silently goes over it multiple times in his head before setting off to find one of his friends. The first one he finds is Annabeth who is reading a book out on the dock. He strides over before standing behind me, "I need to call Reyna."
    She doesn't even glance up, "Didn't Leo give you a phone too?"
    Nico sighs, "I don't know how to use it."
    Annabeth finally looks up cursing under her breath, "Sorry. I'm used to Percy asking the same thing and he knows how to use it. Anyways, why do you need to call her?"
    "Rather not say. So can I use your phone?" Nico says.
    She pulls it out of her pocket before pressing the screen a few times she puts it to her ear before handing it over. Nico hears the ringing sound that he learned to not be worried about. When it's done he hears Reyna, "Annabeth?"
    "It's Nico." Nico mutters, walking away from Annabeth.
    "I'd everything alright? Is something wrong with Annabeth?" She asks.
    Nico shakes his head before verbally saying no, "She's fine. But I need to use your strength for something."
    The phone is quiet before Reyna sighs, "Alright, I can be there tonight. Why do you need it? You had better not make up a lie Di Angelo."
    "I need to summon Jason from the underworld."
    "You need to do what? This had better not be some joke."
    "It's not. If I tell you why, you can't say anything to the others." Nico looks behind him seeing Annabeth focused back on her book.
    "You have my word."
    "Aelia is trying to trade her life for his. I tried talking her out of it, but I think the only one that can is Jason himself."
    "I thought you said it had to be someone who cheated death?" Reyna says and it's followed by a series of yelling.
    "Apparently she's an old timer too."
    "You need me for the spell?"
    "Only if you're willing to help." Nico mutters.
    "Of course I'll help. I'll be there by nightfall."
    After a minute of silence Reyna speaks again, "I guess Hazel and Frank are coming too."
    "You can't say anything." Nico hisses at the device in his hands.
    "I won't. I'll see you later."
    "Bye." Nico says, keeping the phone to his ear until he hears a beep. He pulls it away seeing that she had hung up on him.
    He walks back over to Annabeth, "Thank you, Reyna, Frank and Hazel are coming tonight."
    "Short notice. Is everything alright?" Annabeth asks, taking her phone back.
    Nico shifts nervously, "Of course." When he turns to leave he mutters under his breath, "It will be."
    When Nico leaves, Percy pops up from under the water staring after the younger boy. "Did you hear anything?" Annabeth asks, looking back at her book.
    "I wish I hadn't. Somethings very wrong." Percy mutters.
    He climbs out of the water and sits next to Annabeth. She looks up, "What do you mean?"
    "I mean, Lia wants to bring Jason back."
    Annabeth closes her book, "How is that a bad thing?"
    "Nico said something a while back about how to get a sound from the underworld you need to sacrifice one that cheated death. I just heard him say she was an old timer too. She must be trying to get Jason back by sacrificing herself." Percy whispers.
    Annabeth stares blankly at the water. "And she thought we'd just be fine with her doing that? Gods I miss Jason but I wouldn't want to lose her either."
    "Apparently Nico tried talking some sense into her but she wouldn't hear it."
    "Of course she wouldn't, she's just as stubborn as Nico." Annabeth says bitterly, "Does Nico have a plan?"
    Percy nods, "He's going to summon his spirit, try to get Jason himself to talk her out of it. My guess is that's why Reyna's coming. He needs a powerful spell to be able to do that."
    Behind them they hear a small sizzle, and in an instant they're both on the feet and Percy has his pen uncapped. But both relax when they see Apollo standing there. He smiles, "Didn't mean to scare you. I was looking for Meg."
    "She's probably training. She seems to like challenging Clarisse to fights." Percy points to his right when the dummy's are usually stored.
"Thank you." He says before walking away.
    "Wait Apollo." Annabeth stops him, "What happened to your arm?"
    Both Percy and Apollo look at his arm where the thick scar from Aelia is, before Apollo shrugs, "I can't remember."
    When he leaves the two demigods exchange a glance knowing full well that only celestial bronze can injure a god. And that if he was cut he would remember it happening.