(Mortal AU)
Ten-year-old Nico crept down the stairs.
He'd only gotten up for a glass of water, but the sounds coming from the living room had made him curious.
The boy saw his father on the couch with his head in his hands. Nico couldn't see his face from where he was, but he could see Hades's shoulders shaking. This worried Nico. What was wrong with his father?
Nico crept closer, trying to startle Hades. He lightly tugged on the older man's sleeve and Hades jerked his head up. Nico could now see his tear-stained cheeks and red-rimmed eyes.
He's crying. Nico thought. But that was ridiculous. His father didn't cry. Hades did not cry.
"Nico," said Hades, wiping at his eyes. "You're supposed to be in bed."
Nico ducked his head. He'd always found Hades intimidating, though he was sure he'd probably grow out of it. "I was thirsty," Nico said weakly.
The expression of Hades's faces softened. He held out his arms and Nico let himself be scooped up in them. He rested his head against his father's chest, listening to his heartbeat. That somewhat calmed him, but seeing his dad crying had still rattled him. (A/N: My dad is literally the toughest guy I know, and I have never seen him cry. It legit scares me to think about what would make him do that. P.S. my dad is da best!)
"Is something wrong, Papa?" Nico asked. He felt Hades's arms wrap tighter around him.
"Nico," he began. "There- There's something I need to tell you."
Nico had no idea what to do. He was scared of what his dad was about to say.
"Your mom and Bianca went out to buy groceries this afternoon," Hades began. Nico nodded. He vaguely remembered Mama saying something about heading to the store today and that Bianca had volunteered to go with her.
"Well," Hades continued. "when they were coming home, there was this man who fell asleep while he was driving and hit their car. Mama and Bianca, they-" His voice broke. "They didn't make it." (A/N: It was a drunk driver, but Hades doesn't wasn't to explain what that means to his ten-year-old son, especially with this whole thing going on.)
Nico gasped. This couldn't be happening. No wonder his father had been crying. He'd loved Nico's mother with his whole heart. The same thing with Bianca and Nico.
Nico curled up in his father's arms as tears began to face down his face and sobs wracked his body.
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RiordanVerse One-Shots
FanfictionI keep coming up with ideas in my head, but I can never get them down fast enough. So this is the product of my brain going about a million miles a minute. So this is a bunch of one-shots, au, crossovers, mortal meets, etc. Comment if you have any...
