A Second Life

10. Nico's Naughty Side Comes Out

Connor

I was alone in my cabin, absentmindedly doodling. My mind was wandering aimlessly, but I was trying hard not to think of Travis. Ever since Travis had died, I couldn't be in the company of others. I'd randomly cut off my sentences and then there would be an awkward pause where I'd wait for Travis to speak. I'd sometimes see something funny and turn around expecting Travis to laugh, and there would just be no one there.

The pen I was holding snapped in half, ink spilling all over my hands. I groaned and walked over into the bathroom, grabbing soap to wash my hands with. The water rose up into a mist in front of me, appearing as Percy Jackson.

"Hey Connor!"

I frowned. I hadn't slept, could I be hallucinating? "Percy? Is that you?"

"Yes, it's me. I don't have time to explain-"

A mix of anger, concern and loneliness rushed over me. "Where are you? Are you ok? Are you with Nico? Your letter barely explained anything."

"I'm fine. I'm with Nico. I'll explain everything- I promise- but I need you to go to Hermes. You need to tell him to take you to Hecate and tell her '12 Grimmauld Place'. "

I was confused as Styx. "Percy, what? What's going on?"

"Just do-" The message flickered, his voice becoming more and more blurred by the second. "-important."

"Wait I didn't hear! Percy! Percy!" I scrambled to find a drachma, patting down my pockets and checking the drawers, but the message faded by the time I had found one.

I sat down and pondered what I should do. I walked towards the stamps hidden under my bed. I only had one left. They were gifted to me from dad, and they summon whoever you want to see. I tried using it when Travis died, but I guess there really was no way to bring him back. I thought about Percy and said his name, putting the stamp onto a spare piece of paper.

Here goes nothing.

Percy

I had finished the call with Connor. He was going to be here any moment. He was the only Hermes kid to stay out of the whole betrayal fiasco, and I couldn't stop smiling on the way down.

"What's got you so high in the sky? Plotting to murder me?" Harry snarled.

"Nope!" I said while skipping away, not going to allow him to nullify my happiness.
Unfortunately, I rammed straight into Nico, who seemed uneasy judging by the look in his eyes. Behind I noticed Sirius, to which I slightly furrowed my brows in confusion, but I got distracted by Nico himself, when he spoke to me.

"Which annoying dude died?" He said while furrowing his brows accusingly.

"Sadly no one. But............." I paused for dramatic affect, "I've just invited Connor. He's coming with He-" I glanced back, aware of Sirius listening in, so I spoke her name in Latin and continued "- and she will tell him about wizards and stuff and he's going to come here."

"It would do him good after losing Travis. And from the looks of it, it would do Fred some good too. Not to mention the entertainment we would get from all the pranks." Nico said, a crazy smile on his face.

I looked at Nico for the first time in a long time. Properly looked at him. He had grown so much from who he used to be. He wasn't as scrawny as before, no longer completely emo; I would catch him wearing a dark green shirt sometimes in lieu of a black one. It seemed that the betrayal, although breaking him, had healed him too. They say you can never heal in the same environment that broke you.

Nico was living proof. Since coming to camp, he lost Bianca, got dragged into the Battle of Labyrinth, fought against Kronos - and somehow coaxed Hades to support Olympus, then loses me for 8 months and searches for me, and then gets dragged to Tartarus' entrance. Alone. I also went into Tartarus alone, but I had Hermes' temple. I had control over liquids. The most Nico could do without food was try and keep his life force intact, forget trying to knock out the giants guarding him. They probably did everything they could to nullify his power. He had become much more stronger. And I did notice how he would use the mist and his blessing from Dionysus together to manipulate Harry when Harry asked about his sword.

He had become a smarter, battle-toughened warrior.

He was also more handsome, with his eyes deep, eerily like the Pit, feeling as if you could fall into them for days. His sharp jawline had become even more defined, his hair silky and darker than night itself. He was no longer the same Myth-O-Magic obsessed kid he once was. He had been robbed by the conniving, thieving hands of the Fates, rendering helpless to a life much worse than anyone should have.

"-Perce, you okay there? I've been calling your name for a while."

"Huh? Yeah I'm good, everything's peachy," I said still not completely focused on what he was saying. Behind me I heard a knock on the door, and I sprinted to it, immediately recognising the figure who stood.

Fred appeared behind me, and I stepped out of the way, "Fred, meet Connor Stoll. Connor, meet Fred Weasley."

They immediately started talking, happily chatting away about their latest prank ideas. I never thought the phrase 'It takes one to know one' was ever so true. It's like the moment they made eye contact, they recognised each other as fellow trouble makers, and just hit it off.

That's more then I can say though. The only people who really were okay with my presence were Remus, Fred, Ginny and Mr and Mrs Weasley. Sirius I had no idea about, the trio were all baby glares, and Dumbledore just stared into my soul.

Nico seemed to be the same, apart from the fact that he seemed wary of Sirius. In the way that Sirius could find something out about him that he doesn't want others to know. The way that Sirius was too smart for his own good.

My thoughts were promptly interrupted by a voice. "Percy dear, lunch is ready, come eat so we can go take you to Diagon Alley. Also, be a darling and call Nico too." I heard Molly say, and I walked down the hallway, finding Nico with Fred and Connor.

"Lunchtime, wash your hands and let's go." I said hurriedly, mouth watering at the thought of a home-made meal.

"I have an idea." Nico started.

"Oh no. What is it? Who caused you to use your brain?" I asked, mildly horrified. Yes, I got smacked.

"Nothing much, it's just something small to, you know, keep them in their places. Especially the trio. Nothing much really."

"I'm in." If it means kicking back their insufferable egos a notch, I was all for it. And Nico was perfect at horrifying people.