Ex-Nemesis

CHAPTER 14: ONCE AND FOR ALL

A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the delay, this is the bonus chapter I promised, the next chapter, well, it still needs some work, but I'll be able to send it to Sunny soon. So sit tight!

Also, I'm really sorry about the irregular update schedule, but I'm REALLY busy these days.

I thought I'd get some free time after the exams but my school decided to start all the extra stuff, sports meet and arts festival and whatnot. So I have to attend practices after school and it gets late when I get back, so i only have a few hours left to do all my other work. Seriously, all the practices are at the same time, I'm gonna have to split myself into like.... 3 or 4.

Nico would've kicked himself if he had had the strength.

He had been so careful of hiding his identity, now it was all over, because a grand total of three words slipped from his lips!

Nico watched in terrified silence as realization dawned on Sunshot's features, the dimwit slowly collecting the obvious big round dots.

He watched as the superhero's eyes went wide with shock, while Nico's own were threatening to slip closed.

God he was so sleepy.

He heard Will whisper his name but Nico's consciousness was slipping.

He let blissful darkness overtake him, choosing to ignore the frantic pats on his shoulder, vain attempts to keep him awake.

***************

Nico leaped back as a gemstone encrusted fist swung harshly at him, cutting through the air with deadly precision.

"Hazel!" he called, "please, listen!"

"I'm not interested in anything you have to say!" Hazel screamed, "murderer!"

Being accused of thieving by the people of the neighborhood, being accused of being a villain but almost everyone in the city... Nico could take it. But being accused of murder by his own sister?

It was clear that she didn't know that he was Nico, and that Nico was him, but every single insult she threw his way was a hit in the gut.

Where was that sweet girl who made flower crowns and insisted that Nico wears them to school?

Where was that girl who liked to play with his hair, while completely and utterly disregarding her own cinnamon curls?

Where was that girl who tagged along with Nico everywhere he went?

Where was that girl who hugged him when he was upset, muttering sweet nothings in his ear?

Where was his sister?

Emotions consumed Nico like a tidal wave, his impeccable image cracked and he failed to notice the fist coming his way.

If you ever want to experience what it feels like to be hit by a bulldozer, don't duck when Hazel gemstone boxing gloves come at you.

Nico was sent flying, his whole being weightless.

He called upon the shadows and they arrived to cushion his fall, but it still left him winded despite the fact that he was unharmed.

He pushed himself up onto his elbows, gasping. Hazel strutted over, her gait like that of a predator's.

Nico wasted no time in getting up. Once his feet were firmly on the ground, he met Hazel's burning gold eyes, devoid of the kindness that once warmed them.

His gloved hand reached behind his back, ghosting over towards the slender weapon over his shoulder as Hazel raised her fists once again.

But looking at her face...

He couldn't do it.

His hand froze, fingers trembling.

What was he DOING?

He couldn't draw his sword! He couldn't! Because- because-

Because she was Hazel.

She was his sister.

To think that even for a moment, Nico considered pulling the weapon out of its sheath to fight her... what a brother he was...

Nico drew his hand back harshly and clenched it at his side.

Hazel didn't attack. She stared at him, her expression expectant, calculating.

Silence stretched between them, safe for both their panting breaths. They stood only a few feet away.

That few feet of distance was killing Nico.

He longed to stretch out his hand, to touch her, to hug her and kiss her, to tell her that everything will be alright.

She raised her eyebrows suspiciously. "Well? Come at me! You were about to draw your sword, weren't you?"

"No."

"What?"

"I said no," Nico murmured, "I won't fight you... I can't fight you..."

"And why is that..."

"You're my sis-"

"Bullshit!"

Nico drew in a breath, a sudden memory flashing through his mind's eye. He let out a chuckle.

Hazel was immediately on the defensive. "What's so funny?" she demanded.

Nico smiled to himself under his mask and took his time to respond, "Do you remember, Hazel, you hated curse words back then?"

"Huh?"

"You would yell at anyone who cursed with that squeaky voice of yours. And that one time, when our cousin, Percy visited?" Nico shook his head fondly. "He somehow got you to believe that this one curse word was a term of endearment, and you went around calling everyone that. The face of that grumpy old man next door? Hilarious."

"What? H-how do you-"

Nico smiled at her ruefully, not that she would be able to see it, and said, "I already told you, I'm your-"

"Nico?"

A moment of silence.

"I-is it really you?"

Nico's heart swelled with relief. "Yes! Yes, Hazel! It's me!"

Gold eyes turned emotional and she flung herself at him-

And hugged him close.

Nico's breath left him. If a tear slid beneath his mask, nobody but him was to know of that.

"Oh my god, Nico! I thought I lost you!" she sobbed, her face buried in his shoulder.

He patted her hair gently, "well, I'm here, you're here, that's all that matters..."

He felt her warm breath against his ear. "Oh Nico... you're so...Gullible..."

Nico froze up at the word. Something was off. Gullible? Had he been fooled? How?

"What?" was his intelligent reply.

A sudden, searing pain laced through his gut. He stumbled, gasping and backed away from Hazel to look down at his midriff.

His clothes were starting to tinge a darker shade and the fabric was torn. His breaths came out uneven and rushed, it became a struggle to merely inhale.

Nico looked up at Hazel to see her smirking, the previous warmth that had swirled in her eyes replaced by ice-cold hatred.

In her hands was a golden knife, made entirely out of gemstone.

It glimmered crimson under the moonlight.

Her laugh was high pitched and cold. "You thought I believed you, didn't you?"

Nico swallowed.

"Ha! In your dreams!"

And she lunged, ready to finish the job, once and for all.

A/N: Hey ya'll, have fun hanging off THIS cliff. :)