Asphodels (Valdangelo)

Torn (part 1)

Keeping the wiki page for Diocletian's scepter open while I wrote this, and looking at that one picture of Nico just made me feel like I did back when I read that part in House of Hades.

I made a mistake, had to re-write this, now here we are. Enjoy!

Leo and Nico get into a fight.

It's loud, and volatile, and the Argo II might have ended with a hole right through the hull, and ashes where the main mast used to be, so they stop in order to get it repaired; and that's how the find about Diocletian's scepter. No one seems to know what caused it, even Hazel who's been spending the most time with the two is at a loss; finding the scepter, then, is not only something that will help in the long run, but also a good way to separate Leo and Nico so that they can cool off.

Jason is assigned to go with Nico, which normally would've been exiting, because Jason has wanted to go to Diocletian's temple for ages, or remembers wanting to go there. It's weird, dealing with the disparity between the memories Juno gave him, and the real ones he has of his life before he was taken away from Camp Jupiter.

He does send a message to Reyna that they're going there, because he remembers their promise, however faintly, remembers being her friend; and maybe he wants to make it up to her for this whole mess. It's the least he can do, considering he's so different from the Jason she knew; but that's the last thing on his mind.

No, the problem is that Nico doesn't like him one bit, which given Jason was the first one to claim the guy was a traitor, and voted against saving him, is honestly to be expected. That doesn't mean it's any less troublesome when they are going on a mini quest by themselves, particularly when Nico's angry.

There's a part of Nico that thinks it stupidly fitting that he has to face Ερος, of all gods, when he's fighting with the boy he's fallen for; the fact that he's doing it side by side with the boy his crush is dying for just adds to the whole thing. And while Leo is probably furious with him now, Nico will still do everything in his power to keep the curse a secret; particularly from Jason.

He hadn't meant to snap at Leo anyway, to get into an argument with his best friend over something so utterly stupid; it shouldn't have escalated like it did, but tension had been running high. It was really a matter of time before someone exploded; Nico never thought it'd be him, but Leo had changed him.

That made it sound like it was a bad thing, the closeness he had formed with Leo, the trust they had in one another; it was why the fight happened, because they knew each other too much, knew exactly what made the other tick, how to get the other angry. It wasn't something bad, it just was, a simple fact; Leo had changed Nico, and he liked to believe he had changed Leo too in turn.

So when they face Ερος, and the god tries to force him to tell Jason 'the secret he's been hiding', he feels something akin to rage but not exactly; because it's not his secret to tell. So instead he confesses something else, the thing that's been eating at him since that night where he found Leo after a nightmare; the one thing he can't tell his best friend.

"I'm in love with Leo!"

He's angry, and mentally daring the god to try coaxing anything else out of him; for all he knows, sharing this much might bring more trouble than it is worth.

"That's the big secret"

He tries to ignore Jason, and the look he most likely has in his face; doesn't think he could deal with his reaction, not right now, not immediately.

Leo's the first on the shore when Jason and Nico come back, so he notes the scepter on Nico's hands immediately; but the look on Nico's face stops him from approaching. He does want to fix things with the son of Hades as soon as possible, because he misses him; but he also knows Nico better than most anyone on this ship.

The asphodels are still trying to choke him, and he has plan to confess after this mess is over with; which is why he wants to be able to spend his time with Nico, while he still can. But things hardly ever work the way Leo wants them to, and as they get closer to the House of Hades, and closer to their goal; Leo finds himself with little to no time for anything.

There might also be some weight to the fact that Nico now spends most of the time with Reyna, who's joined their ship recently, and whom Leo is nowhere near brave enough to approach; particularly when he's convinced she hates him. And when he gets a chance again, he sees Nico talking with yet another person he's too much of a coward to face, but for very different reasons, guilt and jealousy like a mixed drink; and then Jason approaches them, so obviously Leo's not needed, really.

He decides to concentrate on the Argo II instead, because trying to fight against fate has only brought him trouble so far; and maybe there's a part of him that would rather have Nico hate him if his plan doesn't work. Better to mean nothing than to mean something when he's dead and gone.