Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Will hated late shifts. Not because he hated his work—he loved being a nurse—or because they took place at night—though they had taught Will he was definitely not a night owl—but because he then had to walk home. The streets weren't safe even in broad daylight, and it was even worse at night. It was a miracle he hadn't been mugged yet after two months of internship.

No matter how much he tried to stick to populous areas, if he wanted to get home, he had to go through a few particularly creepy alleyways. He tried his best not to linger, keeping his pace just below a run and his face hidden under a hood. It gave him a feeling of blending in, barely reassuring against the dark and the omnipresent silence.

This night had been another lucky run…until he reached his apartment building, that is.

There were two bodies on the ground. One was covered in blood that was pooling around his head; the other wasn't bloody, but its neck was bent at an awkward angle—broken, most likely. Dead, both of them.

Will felt his heart racing, his mind blanking out, his body freezing in place, as he stared at the bodies in front of him. Then, along the second body's hand, he saw a trail of sparks, like an electrical current running across the skin. He'd heard of people with those marks: thugs, working for the Olympian gang in exchange for pseudo-superpowers. Cecil had had a few run-ins with them, Will knew, and he wasn't the only one. They were never good news.

And yet, these two were dead. That could only mean one thing.

Will's stream of thought was interrupted by a noise—a barely audible groan, more heavy breathing than actual sound. Before he could properly think about it, Will's feet were leading him to the source of that noise. A few paces away from the bodies, tucked in the shadows between two dumpsters, a slight figure was slumped against the brick wall, completely covered in a dark blue costume—half armor, half suit, made of a supple, yet mostly rigid material.

Will recognized the mask, its angular lines evoking a helmet: rumors of this vigilante had first started around two months ago, when Will was starting his internship at the hospital. People generally called him 'the Ghost of New York City', though the moniker wasn't exactly official yet. Actually, nothing was official: people had no idea what gender the Ghost was, nor what their allegiances and intentions were. The only thing people did know was that the Ghost was a super.

Seeing the Ghost in front of him was almost anticlimactic to Will. The frail figure, shorter than Will by a foot at least and definitely broken, did not match the fearsome super he'd heard of. And yet, if the dead thugs were any indication, there had to be something fearsome about the Ghost.

"Are you even conscious?" Will said—out loud, though he guessed it was a pointless question to ask. The Ghost hadn't reacted to his presence yet, and that was all the answer Will needed. He reached out to the Ghost, gently trying to wake them. Still no reaction. The only indication Will had that the Ghost wasn't dead too was the faint, raspy sound of breathing coming form under that mask.

Will had no idea why he did what he did next: he reached out, delicately, and lifted the Ghost in his arms. His nurse training said he shouldn't move an injured patient without identifying what was wrong with them, but his common sense told him that he couldn't help anyone when they were stuck between two dumpsters, with two dead bodies close by, and in a place where could be mugged at any time. Whatever was wrong with the Ghost, it would be easier to treat from the relative safety of Will's apartment.

He lived on the second floor, and the Ghost's body was light in his arm: he could get them there easily. The most difficult part was fumbling with his apartment keys without letting go of the Ghost—even if he'd decided to move them, Will still wanted to be as stable as possible. But finally, Will was inside, laid the Ghost on his couch, and rushed to his bathroom for the first aid kit he kept there.

As he knelt next to the Ghost's inanimate figure, he paused briefly. There was no obvious bleeding or broken limbs; if he wanted to know what was wrong, Will would have to remove the costume, and he felt reluctant about it. Supers were notorious about keeping their identity a secret; how would the Ghost react to Will finding out?

He shook the thoughts away. Too late for that; he'd already brought them inside his apartment. He took the scissors out of the first aid kit, trying to cut away the Ghost's jacket, but he couldn't manage to make the slightest damage to he strange fabric.

"Guess it is made for combat," he muttered, sighing. He'd have to remove it, which meant moving the Ghost's body around even more, and he didn't like that. "Why in hell and I even doing this?"

Regardless, he struggled with the Ghost's costume until he found where the jacket opened—because of course it was hidden, probably so it wasn't a liability in battle—and gently tugged it off, revealing pale skin underneath. His—definitely male, Will saw now—body was just as frail as it had felt in Will's arms, and the Ghost's chest was marred with bruises and scars. In several places, his skin was singed, probably by the thugs' electrical abilities; three of them ran across his entire chest, like claw marks, reaching up under his mask and down to his lower body.

These three wounds weren't just burns, Will noticed as he examined them. They were bleeding, too, gashing through the skin in a deep, thin incision, stopping barely above raw muscle. While the Ghost's jacket had seemingly contained the bleeding, it hadn't stopped it entirely. The attack, whatever it had been, had clearly been intended to work around the protection of the Ghost's suit.

Will treated the central burn first, delicately washing the blood away, applying disinfectant to the gash, and burn ointment all around it. He'd rather not have to stitch it, since the skin was burned, but it was still seeping blood, and Will doubted it was a good idea to leave it open.

Stitching across the Ghost's entire chest took several crucial, nerve-wracking minutes, and Will was starting to worry at his lack of reaction. No cry of pain, no jerking motions, nothing. If he didn't hear his pained breathing, Will would have wondered if he wasn't dead.

Finally, he was done with the first burn, reapplying disinfectant and bandaging it. He considered the other two, reaching under the rest of the Ghost's costume, and hesitated briefly. Baring the super's chest was one thing, but removing his mask meant seeing his face, and removing his pants…well, Will just felt plain uncomfortable at that.

But if he left those two wounds untreated, he might as well not have done anything at all. "I've come so far," he said, mostly to himself.

He pulled the Ghost's mask off first, slowly, almost reverently, revealing his face: fine features twisted in pain, revulsed eyes, dark hair sticking to his face with sweat. He was beautiful, but Will's rush of adrenaline had nothing to do with that and everything to do with fear of what the Ghost could do if he knew Will had seen this face.

Will took a deep breath, wrestling his nerves back under control, and worked on the second wound, which reached across the Ghost's jaw. There were a couple bruises on his face, too, and he applied balm to them and the ones on his chest, before he stitched the main gash closed. Bandaging it was a little complicated, and Will had to use two different strips of gauze—one across the Ghost's chest, and another that he stuck across his neck and jaw with tape. It was rough work, but it was the best Will could manage.

That left the third and final wound. Will gulped as he trailed it down the Ghost's body—his mind idly wondering at how smooth it was. The thought of a super shaving his body hair felt preposterous, and yet, here he was, picturing just that.

His fingers had trailed down to the Ghost's waistband without Will even noticing, and he let out a nervous chuckle at his ridiculous train of thought. Sure, there was something attractive about the super on his couch, and he was about to undress him—but this was really not the right time to think about this.

He pulled the Ghost's pants down, delicately, sighed in uncontrollable relief at the sight of his briefs, then winced when he saw the gash reached under them, down the Ghost's right thigh. He took a deep breath, and brought his scissors to them, cutting up the leg. Enough to give Will access to the wound while preserving the Ghost's modesty. Well, so to speak.

Will worked on the wound faster, his movements more secure after treating the other two and his barely-out-of-teenage-years brain on overdrive at the idea that his patient was basically naked on his couch. Bandaging the wound was the most awkward part of the process, but he managed it eventually.

He'd done everything he could for the wounds he could see on the Ghost's body. He'd felt it enough to be pretty sure no bone was broken, and there were no signs of internal bleeding. Suddenly, Will was at a loss for what to do: he stood up, awkwardly standing by the Ghost's unconscious form.

Should he call the police for the dead bodies outside? They'd ask questions, especially with the Ghost's blood now on Will's hands and clothes, and Will wasn't sure he could lie about it even if he managed to clean it off completely. An ambulance, for the Ghost? He might have missed something, or they might know better what to do, but Will guessed involving more people would only make the super even more angry than he would already be when he woke up.

For all the drama supers made about hiding their face, seeing the Ghost without his mask didn't really help all that much. He had no idea who he was, who Will could call for help—even after he'd searched the Ghost's discarded suit, which unsurprisingly gave no further clues.

He guessed the best thing he could do at this point was just wait. The Ghost couldn't remain out for that much longer—if he did, it would mean he'd suffered brain damage, and Will doubted it would be treatable after this long. When he woke up, he could tell Will what to do.

Will went to his bedroom to grab a spare comforter, and laid it over the Ghost's body, carefully testing his bandages as he tucked him in. Then he went back to the bathroom, to wash his hands—and splash water on his face, too, for good measure. It was starting to be a long night.

It only took a few more minutes of waiting after he came back to his living room for the Ghost to stir, which Will greeted with a sigh of relief. The Ghost, however, didn't seem as happy as he was: he jolted in surprise under the comforter, tried to sit up, and cried out in pain.

Will bolted from his chair. "Hey, it's okay, you're okay," he said, placing his hands on the Ghost's shoulders. "Lie back; you're wounded pretty badly."

The Ghost struggled weakly against Will's grip, gave up, and set his gaze on Will. His dark eyes were hazy, confused, and a little scared, but mostly angry. "Who the hell are you?" His voice was too weak to carry any real anger or threat. "Where am I?"

"I found you in the alleyway. Carried you inside, and patched you up. I'm a nurse," Will said, as if being a nurse explained anything. "Do you remember what happened to you? The thugs?"

The Ghost was silent for a moment, breathing deeply, slowly. Then, he nodded—hesitantly. "If you saw them, why did you help me? You must have figured out I killed them."

Will shrugged. "Hippocratic oath," he said, trying to sound casual.

"I thought that was only for doctors."

"Well—I know the kind of people these thugs are. I'm not a fan of killing, but—judging by what they did to you, you didn't have much of a choice."

The Ghost pushed the comforter back a little, glancing down his own chest. "That wasn't them. That was their boss." He looked back up at Will. "Did you really need to remove my mask and get me naked? What are you, some kind of a fetishist?"

Will scoffed—the super was a lot more manageable while he was unconscious. "Well, sorry for trying to save your life. Next time I'll leave you in an alleyway to bleed to death," he said, pulling away and crossing his arms. He had no idea where that bout of defiance came from—for all he knew, the Ghost could very well kill him too, even weak as he was.

To Will's surprise, the Ghost just sighed. "You did save my life, didn't you? I'm sorry. Though I—I really wish you hadn't seen my face."

"If it's any consolation, I still have no idea who you are. Your identity's safe with me."

The Ghost gave a brief chuckle, which ended in a wince of pain. "How reassuring."

"So…are we good?"

"What exactly did you expect? That I'd kill you for seeing my face?" He glanced at Will's face, and attempted another chuckle. "Oh, Gods. You totally did, didn't you?"

"Well—there are some pretty crazy rumors about you."

"I'm just trying to help people. Not my fault that sometimes involves brutalizing someone who deserves it. But I'm not going to hurt you after you saved my life. Besides, I don't think I could do much right now."

"You'll need to rest. You can sleep here, if you want."

The Ghost looked away, briefly. "I'm not sure it'd be such a good idea. The Bolt could come back anytime to finish the job, and when he sees I'm gone, he'll be looking for me."

"The 'Bolt'?"

"The Olympian Bolt. Jupiter Grace? Leader of the Olympian gang?" Noticing Will's blank expression, the Ghost chuckled. "Do you even read the papers?"

"I know who Jupiter Grace is, I just didn't know—"

"Well, yeah, he's not going to advertise that." He paused, then sat up again, wincing as he did. "I really should leave."

He was on his feet before Will could react, clutching the comforter around him. However, he'd barely taken a step that he staggered, and tipped forward to the floor—until Will caught him. "I don't think you're in any state to move right now," he said.

The Ghost looked up at him. "You're in danger as long as I'm here."

Will knew he was right. He'd already guessed that the two thugs hadn't been alone, and that others would be looking for the Ghost. Perhaps he'd been lucky when he'd chosen not to call the police. And yet he couldn't just leave him alone when he could barely walk.

"I'm already in danger for helping you, aren't I? I don't think one night can hurt any more."

He observed the Ghost's reaction, meeting his conflicted stare with a grin as he gently led the super back to the couch.

"Fine," the Ghost finally said. "One night. After that, I don't care how much my wounds have healed, I'll be out of here."

"Good enough for me," Will said. "Lie down; I'll get you some clothes to sleep in. They'll be too big for you, but I guess it's better than nothing, right?"

"Right," the Ghost said as he sat down.

Will hurried to get old pajamas, but by the time he was back, the Ghost was already sound asleep on his couch, and he didn't feel like he should wake him up. Instead, he just tucked him in, taking a cushion from his chair and placing it under his head.

He headed to bed, more because he had no idea what else to do. Watch over him all night? Probably pointless—he was certain the Ghost was out of danger now—and a little creepy. Sleep was slow to come, with the thought of a super—the Ghost of New York City—in his living room, but eventually, exhaustion took over, and Will fell asleep.

Will was too used to getting up at sunrise, though: even when he'd gone to sleep only a few hours before, he was still up in the early morning. He got up to his usual morning routine, hazy from the lack of sleep and, for a moment, having completely forgotten about the night's events.

It was only when he was out of his bedroom, still in his underwear, that he noticed the bundled cover on his couch, and froze, panicking at the thought of how embarrassing this might be if the Ghost woke up now.

His fear was for nothing, though: he quickly realized there was no one under the comforter. The costume was gone too, as were a few of Will's old clothes that had been strewn around the room in his usual mess. The pajamas he'd left were still there, though, neatly folded and with a note on top of them.

Couldn't stay here—it wasn't safe for either of us. Sorry about the clothes. Couldn't walk back in my costume in broad daylight. I'll make it up to you. -NA

Will couldn't help but feel a hint of disappointment that he was gone already, before Will even got to say goodbye—or check his wounds again first. And what was that 'NA' standing for?

He shrugged, and went back to his routine. Maybe it was best to move on from that night—though he probably shouldn't forget. If the Ghost was right, someone might look around. Notice that there's a nurse living nearby. Will had to be ready…to do what? He was too tired to think about it.

All morning he thought about the Ghost, when he was at the gym and when he showered, when he met Cecil for lunch, and when he headed to the hospital for his shift. Yet, over the course of the afternoon, his work took up most of his attention, finally shifting his thoughts away from the Ghost.

A couple days later, another intern in the hospital came to see him near the end of his shift. "Will? Your name is Will Solace, right?"

Will blinked at her—she'd barely started working here, and he didn't know her. "Yeah, why?"

"There's a patient who wanted to see you. Said he had some stitches to get removed?"

"What?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. That's all he said—and he was very adamant about you removing them."

Intrigued, Will followed her to a nearby room. Thankfully, she didn't follow him inside, because when he saw who the patient was, he froze in place.

"Holy shit." Standing right there was the Ghost of New York City, a faint smirk on his lips.

Chapter Text

"What—How—Why—" Will felt stupid for being unable to use words right now, but he just couldn't bring himself to believe it.

The Ghost was right there. In the hospital Will worked at.

He knew his name.

He was still smirking at Will. "Sorry. Didn't know what else to do. I figured if I went to someone else, they'd ask questions."

Will nodded, though his mind had difficulty processing the Ghost's words. Past the initial shock—and panic—seeing him there was just so…strange. He looked too normal, in his jeans, black t-shirt and black jacket, even if Will knew there were scars underneath the clothes—even under the popped collar. His curly dark hair with an undercut made him look young, too young to be a guy who fought crime and got burnt or wounded badly enough to bleed out. If anything, he looked like a boy of around Will's age—with admittedly a better sense of style, not that that was an accomplishment.

"Are you okay?"

"How did you know my name?"

The Ghost shrugged. "I knew where you lived. I can identify supercriminals; this was pretty easy." He paused, biting his lip. "I know, I shouldn't have—but as I said, I had no one else to turn to."

"Well, what do you usually do when you get hurt?"

"I—I don't. This was the first time things went awry." He looked down as he spoke, looking almost ashamed.

"And you had nothing planned?"

"It's not like there are classes to do…what I do."

Will scoffed. "Fine, whatever. Take off your jacket and shirt, and sit on the exam table."

Most of the burns and bruises on his chest had already faded, just like the bruises on his face. He reached out to remove the Ghost's bandages, doing his best to focus on his work in silence.

"You're angry I came here," the Ghost said, keeping his voice neutral.

"You're damn right. What happened to 'it's not safe'? This is even worse than you being in my apartment!"

"I already said I'm sorry! Besides—no one will suspect a thing. I'm sure you get tons of patients."

"I'm an intern. I don't get patients asking for me, especially to remove stitches there are no record of."

The Ghost sighed. "I didn't think about that."

"Clearly."

He stopped talking to examine the wounds, now that the bandages were removed. They gashes had closed, which was a good sign, though the burns around them weren't fully healed. "I can remove the stitches," he said, "but I'll have to make new bandages for those burns."

The Ghost only nodded. "You're the expert."

"I'm not a doctor, though. What happens when you have broken bones? Internal damage?"

"Well, I—"

His voice was cut off in a wince as Will began to remove the stitches. He'd been delicate, but evidently, it was still painful.

Will figured he should try to distract him—take his mind off the pain. "So how do you plan to make it up for stealing my clothes?"

"I was thinking of just giving them back to you at some point. Though your hoodie is pretty comfy."

"Yeah, well, it means a lot to me, so you'd better not forget to return it. Hopefully without blood all over it."

"I will; I promise."

Will had almost finished pulling the stitches, on two of the three wounds, so he asked the next thing that crossed his mind: "So what's 'NA' stand for?"

"Night Angel."

"'Night Angel'?"

"It's what I call myself." He chuckled. "Did you really think I'd settle for 'the Ghost of New York City'? I'm trying to make myself a good reputation."

"Well you're not making a very good job at making yourself known by that name."

He scoffed. "Well, sorry I don't have a PR team working for me!"

Will couldn't help but laugh. "I'm gonna need you to lower your pants so I can finish here."

The Ghost—Night Angel—let out a soft gasp. "I—okay." He fumbled with his belt, and pulled his jeans and boxers down, just enough to uncover his wounds along his thigh.

He remained silent as Will worked, though Will noticed the goosebumps spreading on his skins from where Will's fingers touched it, the suddenly shorter breaths Night Angel took—and the suddenly tense feeling of his underwear's fabric. Will couldn't help but blush, and his thoughts led him back to that night, when the super had been lying unconscious and naked on his couch.

Clearing his throats, he hurried through the last few stitches, before standing up straight again. "All done. I'll put something on your burns and make another bandage."

"Right." Night Angel hadn't moved, not even to pull his jeans back up. "Thanks. And—do you think you could do something for my face? The Bolt has to know he hit me there; I don't want it to be too visible."

"I understand," Will said. He first started working on the lower wound first, though, to let Night Angel finally pull his pants back up—he doubted either of them needed that source of distraction. He finished working on the other two wounds, applying a different kind of bandage to Night Angel's face and neck, one that would take on the color of his skin and be mostly indistinguishable from it—unless one was standing close to him or touching his face, it would be difficult to notice there was anything. "Is this okay?" he asked, waving at the mirror by the exam room's door.

Night Angel walked to it, and silently looked at himself, reaching out to the bandage on his face and tentatively touching it. Then, he turned back to Will, and nodded. "It's perfect. Thank you, Will. For everything."

"You're welcome, 'Night Angel'."

"Nico."

Will stared at him, frowning in confusion, and he repeated himself.

"Nico. It's my name. I figured, since I looked for yours, the least you deserved was that I give you mine in return."

Will nodded. "Nico. Nice to meet you."

"Yeah. I'm glad I met you, too." He grabbed his shirt and put in back on, then reached for his jacket, but froze. "I take it you realize you shouldn't tell anyone about this, right?"

"Of course. Besides, it's too dangerous, isn't it?"

He'd meant it as a joke, but Nico looked down again, looking ashamed. "It is. I—I should—give me your phone."

"What? Why?"

"So I can give you my number. Duh."

Will stared at him in disbelief. "So you didn't want me to know about your secret identity, and now you're giving me your name and phone number?"

"Well, to be fair, it's only my first name, and if you manage to trace that phone number back to me, it's probably time for you to consider a change of career and become a superhacker, because that's the sort of skills you'd require. I don't exactly use a normal phone." He held out his hand. "Come on, hand it over."

Will shrugged, rolling his eyes, but he complied. Nico input his number in Will's contacts, and gave the phone back to him.

"Call me even if you just think something's weird. And…I should probably check on you from time to time, just in case."

"I don't need a babysitter."

"No, what you need is a private army to keep you safe from the Olympian gang. I'm the next best thing you've got." He paused to put on his jacket. "I'm serious, Will. The moment they realize I'm not dead, someone will come sniffing around. If you see anything at all, you call me."

"All right, all right, I will."

Nico let out a sigh. "Good. Okay, I should go now."

"I can come with you, if you want." Will blurted the words without thinking about it, and Nico turned to him, a frown across his face. "My shift's over anyway. We could walk some of the way together. I mean—if you walk at all."

Nico huffed out an amused breath. "Yeah. Yeah, okay."

"Great! Just wait here while I get changed. Be back in five minutes!"

"What were you even doing there?"

Nico cast a frown Will's way in response to his question. "I thought I'd established that the less you knew, the safer you were."

"Yeah, but I don't buy it. Besides, I already know too much. So. Why were you there, and why did the thugs attack you? Or did you attack them?"

Nico sighed, but to Will's surprise, he answered. "I was keeping an eye on someone who lives in the same building as you. Percy Jackson. He's a witness in a case against Jupiter Grace, and I doubted police protection would do any good since Senator Grace"—he said the words with undisguised loathing—"has ties to the police."

"Oh. Is he…"

"He's okay. I was there that night because I knew the Bolt was coming in person. He's a super, and when he comes, it's rarely to just talk, you know? I fought them to stall for time, and Jackson had time to get out."

Will stared at Nico in awe. "That was brave of you."

"Was it? I mostly feel like I let myself get beaten up and left for dead by a supervillain."

"You are lucky I was there to patch you up. So now what do you plan to do?"

"Lay low for as long as possible. The moment I'm out in the open again, the Bolt will try to track me down to locate Jackson. The trial's in a couple weeks; I'd rather make him waste time on finding me than him."

"Is there any way I can help?"

"No. Thank you, but you've done more than enough already."

Will felt a little sad at the rejection, but he understood. "All right. Well, at the very least, if you need some patching up again, feel free to call me."

Nico scoffed. "I'd rather not get beaten up at all, but I'll think about it." He pulled to a stop at a crossing. "Well, this is where we say goodbye."

It took Will a moment to realize what he meant—Nico knew where he lived, of course; he'd know how to get there. "I hope we'll meet again."

For all answer, Nico made a noncommittal sound. "Be careful what you wish for, and all that."

Will laughed at his tone. "That didn't sound nearly as badass as you expected. See you around, Nico."

There was a faint smile on Nico's lips as he turned his back to Will and walked away. Faint, but Will caught it anyway.

Cecil asked Will to meet him at a bar downtown later that night. Will hadn't even been able to tell him about Nico yet, hadn't even decided whether he should. Now that he'd met Nico again, that he'd learned his secret identity (well, his first name, anyway), would it be wise to tell his news anchor of a best friend about it? Cecil would dig deeper, and Will didn't want to betray Nico's secrets.

So when Cecil greeted him with news from that night, he felt like his heart was leaping in his chest.

"Will, dude, didn't you hear? Two people were killed right in front of your place!"

It took Will a moment to even realize what he meant, but then it clicked for him. The thugs Nico had fought—and killed, he suddenly remembered with an uneasy feeling—had been gone the next morning, and Will had never wondered what had happened to them.

Cecil misread the shock on his face. "What, you didn't know? Dude, it was on Monday, didn't you have a night shift? They died right around the same time you usually come home!"

"I—I guess I came home earlier."

"And you've been living in a bubble since? You'd promised to watch my news show."

Will shrugged. "Sorry. Had a rough couple of days." Patching up a vigilante, daydreaming about him, forgetting he was a murderer—in self-defense, sure, but still. Clearly he'd been busy.

"So you don't know anything about these guys? No juicy exclusive detail for me?"

"If I knew anything, I'd have told the cops already."

"But they could have hidden details," Cecil said in a conspiratorial tone. He looked around dramatically, as if he expected someone to listen in, and added, "They're suspected to be from the Olympian gang."

Will managed a convincing enough scoff. "Well, good riddance, then, right?"

Cecil took the bait and ran with it. "You're damn right!" he said, with more than a hint of resentment. "And yet the police is looking for the Ghost instead of throwing him a party. Assholes."

"The Ghost? What about him?"

It took Cecil rising his eyebrows at him in surprise for Will to realize he'd perked up a little too quickly at the mention of the Ghost. "He's their prime suspect."

"Do you think they're right?"

Cecil shrugged. "We don't really know anything about this guy. He's been violent before, so it's possible. And he's always targeted shady types like that. Could be him."

"And you think he should be thrown a party?"

"If they're really Olympians, sure, why not?"

Will fell silent, mulling over Cecil's words. First he forgot that the Ghost had killed people, then he met him again, and now that he was trying to remind himself he wasn't so good, there came Cecil, muddling it further by pointing out what Will already knew—that Nico had had his reasons.

His thoughts felt like a complete mess. He shook his head, as if that could clear them, and only found Cecil staring at him with a curious frown.

"You okay, dude?"

"Yeah, just—it's freaky. A few minutes, and I could have seen the whole thing. I could have died." That had never occurred to him, either. The more he thought back to this night, and the more he realized that maybe Nico was right when he said it was too dangerous.

"Maybe the Ghost would have defended you. You could have talked to him, and told me all about it afterwards. Preferably on prime time television. Can you imagine?"

Will chuckled. "Right. Or he'd have forced me to keep my mouth shut about all this."

Cecil groaned. "True. But if you do that, it'd better be because you also nailed him in bed. I won't accept any other reason."

Will almost choked on his drink—this was sounding a little too close to some of the thoughts he'd had. "Not even if he threatened to kill me and anyone I talked to?"

"I'm willing to die for exclusive news on a super, Will. I'm serious."

"Well…I do know something. He wants to be called Night Angel." That was safe enough to tell, right?

"What?"

"The Ghost. That's the name he wants to use."

Cecil stared with disbelief. "And you know that because…?"

Well. So much for 'safe enough'—of course Cecil would want an explanation. "I—just heard about it."

"What? Where?"

"Um…one of my neighbors. Tuesday morning. Kept muttering about 'night angel'. Since you tell me it happened on Monday at night, I figured that was him." A terrible lie, but then, Will had never been a good liar.

"Will Solace, are you lying? To my face?" Then, surprisingly, he smiled. "Atta boy."

It was Will's turn to frown. "Wait, what?"

"I get it. You do know something, and you can't tell me how you know it. I knew it!"

"Um—"

"You couldn't have been home before these guys died. You don't walk that fast, and besides, you always take the long way around at night." Will tried to speak, but Cecil silenced him. "It's fine; I get it. Go figure, I was actually joking when I said I'd let us both die for a scoop. If you don't want to say more, don't. Though if you do…"

"You were testing me?"

"Keep your voice down! Besides, you can't really be mad at me when you're the liar."

"Cecil, I—"

"It's fine. Just don't lie again. If you don't want me to ask questions, just say so. Deal?"

Will stared at him for a moment, taken aback by his offer. But he didn't really have a choice. "Okay, deal."

"So. 'Night Angel', huh?"

Will nodded. "I—" He wasn't sure what to say—what he could say. He could definitely not share Nico's name or that he'd given Will his phone number. Could he explain how he'd patched him up? No—that felt too intimate. Too much like betraying Nico's secret weakness, even if that weakness was a completely mundane one. And explaining everything about the Bolt would be too dangerous. "I talked to him."

"Okay. He should make the theme more explicit on his costume, but it works well enough. Do you think I can share that on the news?"

"Well—" Will paused. What was and wasn't okay to share? "He said he wanted to build himself a good image. I suppose 'Night Angel' is better than 'the Ghost'?"

"He said that, didn't he?" He paused, and Will could almost see the gears turning in Cecil's head. "Do you think you could hook us up? He gives me access to information, and I'll make sure he gets his reputation?"

"Cecil, I can't 'hook you up'. I don't know the guy."

"Just in case you ever talk again. I'm sure he'll check up on the poor, helpless doctor he rescued from the big bad thugs."

"That's—not what happened."

"Shhhh—I'm already writing the fanfic in my mind."

Will scoffed. "I don't even want to know if you're serious or not."

Will managed to come home without Cecil asking any more detail about Nico. Apparently, he was staying true to his deal—so far. Will only hoped he hadn't made a mistake by telling Cecil to go ahead and make the name 'Night Angel' known. Maybe he should have asked Nico first; but then, Cecil would have guessed that Will was still in contact with him.

His brain felt like it was on fire as he went straight to bed, and Will wasn't sure if it was the alcohol, meeting Nico, Cecil's suggestion to sleep with Nico, or a combination of all three. It wasn't like the thought hadn't crossed his mind after Nico had been all but naked on his couch, and Will had definitely felt a tension earlier in the exam room too.

He only realized where his mind had taken him when he felt his own cock in his hand, hard and straining against his underwear. A small trickle of shame coursed through him, but not enough to stop him as he jerked himself through his fantasies, before he finally drifted off to sleep.

His morning routine went the same as always—he went out to run, then to the gym, then back home to shower and get ready to go to work. He was just out of the shower when there was a knock at the door.

Curious, Will quickly put on his jeans and a shirt and went to open the door. "Um, hi?"

In front of him stood a man, about as tall as Will—which was pretty noteworthy, since Will was tall himself. He had short blond hair, sky blue eyes, and was wearing what Will could only describe as "fancy, yet casual" clothes. His shirt was rumpled in a way that was too attractive to be anything but intentional, his jeans faded without being worn, his shoes were clearly designer, as were his golden-rimmed glasses.

The man held up a plate. "Detective Grace, NYPD. Can I have a few words with you?"

"What's it about?" Pointless question. His name was Grace, and he looked like the spitting image of the Senator—they had to be related. Will could guess.

"May I come in?"

With any luck, he was still just searching the entire neighborhood. Had the police come to talk to some of Will's neighbors. For the first time since he'd moved here, he regretted not being closer to them. "Um—sure." He opened the door and let the man in, feeling like Grace would hear his heartbeat racing out of control. "Can I get you anything?"

"Thanks, but it won't be necessary. I'm just checking on everyone in the neighborhood."

"So…what's this about?"

"Do you know two men were killed in front of this apartment complex of the night of Monday to Tuesday?"

Will nodded—his experience with Cecil had proven he was too terrible a liar to hide that. Though hopefully this man wouldn't be as familiar with Will's way home as Cecil was. "Yeah, I heard on the news. I had a night shift that night—I must have barely fallen asleep when it happened."

"So you don't know anything about it?"

"Just what I've heard on the news." If Cecil could be called 'the news'.

"I see." Detective Grace took out a smartphone and a stylus from his breast pocket, and started scribbling. "What about the vigilante called 'the Ghost of New York City'?"

"Same. I've heard of him, of course, but that's it."

"And Percy Jackson?"

Will paused, frowning. Any chance that this man wasn't working for the Olympians was gone now. "Who?" He managed to keep his tone relaxed.

"One of your neighbors. He vanished from his home that night."

"Oh. Well, I don't really talk to my neighbors a lot. Do you think it's connected? Did someone file a missing persons report?"

"I don't know if it's connected yet, but I'm not giving up on any leads. And no, no one has. Which is why I find it suspicious."

"You think the Ghost was my neighbor all along?"

"Not exactly, no." He stood up. "Well, I've used enough of your time. Thanks for talking to me. If you remember anything else, call me. Here's my card." From his smartphone's case, he slipped a business card, reading 'Detective Jason Grace, NYPD'.

"I didn't know detectives had business cards," Will couldn't help but say as he shoved the card in his pocket. "Grace…any relation to the Senator guy?"

"He's my father."

Will faked an expression of sudden recognition. "Oh, that's why you looked familiar."

"I get that a lot." Detective Grace shifted on his feet, as if he was suddenly uncomfortable. "Well, I should be going."

"Yes, of course. Sorry. And sorry I couldn't be more helpful."

"No need to apologize. Just doing my job. Thanks for your cooperation."

Chapter Text

Will stood still for a moment after he'd closed the door on Detective Grace, trying to catch his breath.

Jason Grace. The Bolt's son. In his apartment. Asking about Nico.

Will was almost surprised he was still alive.

He had to call Nico, but he couldn't move. He remained where he was, leaning against the door, for a couple minutes. When he opened it, the hallway was empty—either Grace was gone, or he'd moved to one of his neighbors.

It wasn't good enough. If Jupiter Grace was a super, his son might be too, and Will had no way of knowing what kind of abilities he had. He could listen in on the call, and find out Will was in contact with Nico. Then he'd come back and—Will shuddered at the thought.

He had to keep his mind clear, and think.

Will's eyes drifted to the clock hanging on his wall. If he didn't leave now, he'd be late for his shift—but he had to call Nico, and he couldn't do that while Grace was still potentially around. Except Grace wouldn't know to follow him to the hospital, would he?

Will rushed to get ready, and left his apartment in just as much of a hurry to head for the hospital. It was the middle of the day, and he chose to take the narrow streets that formed a more direct route to the hospital. Not only would he get there faster, but if he was being followed, he'd notice more easily.

He reached the hospital without seeing anyone following him, and only then did he relax. He locked himself in an exam room, and pulled out his phone, finding Nico's number in his contacts.

"Will? Is everything okay?" Nico's voice was as panicked as Will felt.

"I am. I'm fine—I'm at the hospital. I just wanted to call you because some guy came by my place."

"Some guy?"

"Detective Jason Grace. If he's even a real detective. He asked about—you know."

"Jupiter's son. Yeah, he's a real detective." Nico scoffed. "Well, depends how you define 'real'. He has a badge and he's on the payroll. But he only solves crimes when it benefits his family."

"Like what you did."

Nico sighed loudly. "Like what I did."

"And Percy Jackson's disappearance."

"He asked you about Percy? Fuck! The Bolt must be getting desperate if he lets his son look for him so openly."

"Couldn't you use that? At least show the conflict of interest and get Detective Grace suspended, or off the case, or something like that?"

"But then you'd have to testify against him. And I'd have to protect you, just like I'm protecting Percy against his father."

"I'd do it."

"You have no idea what you're talking about. Jason Grace is his father's top hitman. You don't want to be his enemy."

Will gasped. Letting a corrupt cop in his apartment had already made him anxious—but a hitman? "I—so what now?"

"I don't know." Nico sighed again. "Look, thanks for letting me know. It's really helpful of you. Now I need to figure out what to do about it."

"Call me if you need anything."

"I think I'll call you to make sure you're not dead first."

Will almost laughed, but he realized Nico was absolutely serious. "I—okay. Thanks." Then, remembering his talk with Cecil the previous night. "And, Nico—is it okay if the name 'Night Angel' became public?"

Nico was silent for a moment, and when he spoke, he couldn't hide his irritation. "What did you do?"

"It's my friend, Cecil. Cecil Castellan? You might have seen him on the news? He figured out I was there that night. I just said we talked, and that you wanted to be called Night Angel. I swear that's all."

More silence—Will almost thought Nico had hung up on him. "Okay. Okay, that's fine. Just—don't tell him anything else. Especially not about Jason."

"All right. Also, he said if you needed someone to build you a reputation—"

"Will."

"Just kidding. Though he did offer. And you said you didn't have anyone taking care of your PR, so—"

"I'm not feeding information to a journalist. I'm trying to hide who I am, not turn it into a political ploy."

"Okay. Okay, I'm—sorry. Forget I asked."

There was more silence between them—which Will was starting to find a little awkward.

"I have to go," Nico finally said. "Are you gonna be okay?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I think so."

"Okay. Stay safe, Will. Call me if anything happens."

Percy didn't have to ask any questions after Nico hung up—he'd heard enough from what Nico was saying over the phone. "Problems with a groupie?"

"Will saved my life after I almost died saving yours," Nico snapped. "He's not a 'groupie'. I don't even have groupies."

"Well, you won't get any if you keep your existence a secret. Maybe it's good that someone can speak up for you being a hero. A journalist? That can be good for you image."

Nico paused at those words, then shook his head. "I don't give a damn about public opinion. Too many people know too much about me already."

"If you say so." As far as Percy knew, he was one of only two people who knew anything about Nico—himself the other being Leo Valdez, a superhacker who was outfitting Nico with his gear. And that Will guy, maybe—Percy had no idea what he knew. He paused, hoping Nico would tell him more about he'd said about Jason Grace, but he remained resolutely silent. "So what was that call about? Aside from the journalist issue, I mean."

"Jason Grace is looking for you."

"I'd gathered as much. That's bad, right?"

"It means Jupiter Grace wants to put in more resources to find you than we originally thought."

"Well, it means he really believes that my—my testimony will put a stop to him, right?" He still felt uncomfortable about the whole thing—especially the thought that he'd have to dig up his memories of that night—but he couldn't help but feel a hint of satisfaction that he could help Nico in his work combating crime. He'd been dying to help. Metaphorically speaking, of course.

Nico's face dampened his enthusiasm. "He believes it will be easier to brush things under the rug by disposing of you. Maybe he just doesn't want his image to be tarnished by a trial, even if he wins. He is a Senator, after all."

"You're just a peach, aren't you?"

Nico ignored him, and walked to the laptop open on his desk. It looked like an ordinary computer, but Percy knew it was connected to a cluster set up by Leo on the upper floor of the penthouse Nico lived in, giving it enough power to rival any supercomputer. "I'm more worried that he was asking questions about your disappearance. I need to know if it's an official investigation yet, or if Grace is doing it on the down low, using the murder case as an excuse."

"Does it matter?"

"If you're officially a missing person, you can't exactly testify. We'd have to bring you out of hiding, or use official means of witness protection, and—well, neither option is optimal."

"I couldn't just show up to the trial anyway?"

"You probably could, but it might give grounds for a vice of procedure. Or something like that. I'm not a lawyer." An alert popped up on the screen. "Oh, shit!"

"What? What is it?"

"The call was monitored."

"The Bolt?"

"Who else could it be?" Nico got up, pulling his shirt over his head as he walked over to the locker where he stored his suit.

Percy stood there, staring in confusion. "But he can't track you down, right? You said Leo's algorithm was foolproof."

"It is. Completely unhackable—I trust Leo for that. It's not you I'm worried about. Now Grace knows that Will has my phone number. He'll go after him." He sighed. "And I can't even call to warn him, because they'll just listen in again."

"So you're heading out? In daylight?"

Nico was down in his underwear by now, and was already putting on his suit—tight, dark fabric hugging his lean body. "You see an alternative?" he asked as he pulled his mask on, stylized after Ancient Greek helmets.

Nothing happened during Will's shift. Maybe Jason Grace really had let him off the hook—after all, it wasn't like he had any reason to suspect Will. Right?

He was still jittery when he walked out of the hospital, but he got to his apartment complex unharmed. The entrance hall was badly lit and dim in the waning light, but Will was used to it, so he didn't bother turning on the lights as he crossed it.

If he had, he'd have run away screaming. Instead, he walked right into a bulky man, whose hands clasped around Will's mouth and kept him silent as he emerged from the shadows. Will's eyes darted around to find two women flanking him, each holding a gun pointed at him—one at his head, one at his legs. Pretty clear message.

"You're coming with us, and you're telling us everything you know, this time," said one of the women. She was the one pointing her gun at his head, and stood in front of Will, tower over the other woman and making even Will feel unusually small, even if she was a few inches shorter than him. He couldn't make out her face in the dark, only the way her dark hair was pulled back in a severe ponytail.

Will froze, his eyes wide. They were clearly working for the Olympian gang—Will could feel the sparks trailing on the hand that kept him quiet. How did they know about his involvement with Nico? And what could he do to get himself out of this situation?

He didn't have to worry about that last part. A small object—a knife—flew at gun that the woman in front of Will held, while the other woman collapsed with a muffled sound. The man holding Will retreated to a corner, holding Will in front of him like a human shield.

His position gave Will a perfect vantage point to what happened next: from behind the henchwoman left standing, appeared a figure clad in a black suit, materializing out of thin air. Will immediately recognized it—it was Nico, his suit deeply familiar after Will had had to remove it from his wounded body.

Nico struck at the woman with a quarterstaff, and she took the hit with a cry, but she remained standing, pulling another gun from a hidden holster and firing at Nico. But he moved too fast, his movements blurry, as if parts of him blinked in and out of existence as he maneuvered around the woman. She fired again, let out a huff of frustration, and put the weapon back in its holster. The next time Nico struck, she was ready, catching his staff and wrestling with him over it.

Before either of them could win, the other henchwoman was back on her feet, and she crept in on Nico from behind. Will tried to yell, in spite of the thug holding him still and silent, and his the muffled sound that came out was enough for Nico to roll out of the way just as the woman was shooting.

Nico had lost his staff in the process, but as he backed away, keeping both women in front of him, he held out his hand, and a sword materialized in it, its blade a glossy black unlike anything Will had seen before.

The henchwomen exchanged a look, and aimed at Nico, but he moved as they were firing, his figure melting with the shadows, not quite there at times, moving too fast to catch. In a second, he was on the shorter woman, cutting her down with one fell swing of his sword—dead, or incapacitated, Will couldn't say. The taller woman leapt at Nico, unfazed by her colleague's demise, putting herself too close for Nico to use his sword.

The thug holding Will didn't seem as cold. He tensed, hesitating briefly, then hit Will on the back of his head. By the time Will's vision cleared, he was on the floor, both thugs engaged with Nico in close combat. His sword had vanished, and Nico's movements were still unnaturally fast—enough so that he could take on both thugs—but they were slowly backing him up against a wall, depriving him of space to move to.

Will barely felt able to move, let alone stand up, but he couldn't just do nothing. He dragged himself across the floor, towards the fallen henchwoman. It took him a moment to reach her, letting him take in the bubbles formed by her breath in the blood pooled around her nose—she was still alive. He felt awful for the relief he felt at that.

Her gun was right there, and Will reached for it, pushing himself up on his knees and lifting the weapon. But when he tried to aim it at the thugs, it felt too heavy in his hands. His hands shook too much, echoing the thoughts in his mind—could he really risk killing someone? And what if he hit Nico? Part of his brain was whispering to just do it, pull the trigger, but he couldn't do it.

His gaze fell on Nico's staff, abandoned on the floor on the other side of the woman's body. He carefully reached for it, tossing the gun behind him, unsure what he was going to do exactly. Using the staff for support, he managed to stand up, and he slowly walked to the thugs in the far corner of the room, with Nico trapped between them. Every movement was accompanied with a stabbing pain in Will's skull, but he walked forward, slowly, careful to be as silent as possible.

Finally, he came within reach, and swung the staff like a baseball bat, with no expertise or even any idea if it would work, hitting the remaining henchwoman on her back. She cried out, falling to her knees, just in time for Nico to kick her square in the temple, knocking her unconscious.

The last man showed a moment of hesitation, and it was enough for Nico: he leapt at the thug, his whole body blending with the shadows. He tackled the thug, even though he was easily a foot shorter, flipping him over with his momentum. The man hit the floor with a thud, and didn't stand back up.

Will realized he was standing in place, completely useless, only when the fight was over. Well, not completely useless, he thought, looking down at the staff in his hands.

Nico turned to him. "You okay?"

Will nodded, even though the movement was enough to remind him of the hit he'd taken. "I'll live."

"Not if we stay here. You're coming with me. But I need your phone first."

"My—" Will froze, and it hit him. He'd called Nico, and the thugs had sounded like they knew. It wasn't just intimidation—and it couldn't be a coincidence. He reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone from it. As he did, something else slide into his hand, too—Jason Grace's business card. "They're from the Olympian gang, aren't they?"

Nico ignored his question, snatching Will's phone and the business card out of his hand. He held up the card, and tore it into scraps. "It's bugged."

Will let out a sigh. "I should have known."

"You had no way of knowing. I'm sure he bugged everyone he talked to."

"So—are you gonna break my phone?" It wasn't exactly brand new, but Will was attached to it—though not to the point of being attacked by gang members.

"No. I'll just turn it off until I can get a friend to take a look at it. Come on, we're leaving." Nico held out his hand, but Will paused.

"Leaving?"

"You can't stay here now that they know you know me."

Will breathed in deeply, trying to find something to retort. "I'm not even worth sending the top assassin. Maybe I'll be fine?" Nico stood unflinching, though Will thought he heard him take in a sharp breath. Maybe he was growing impatient. "But where are we going?"

"Somewhere safe. Trust me."

Will held Nico's gaze for a moment, then he nodded, and took Nico's hand. Of course he trusted him.

The next thing he knew, everything was fading to dark around them.

When Percy heard footsteps coming from the cluster room above, he thought Nico had finally come home. It was weird that he'd choose to arrive there, but maybe he'd shadow-stepped blindly. Maybe he was in trouble—that happened a lot. So Percy rushed to see if he needed help.

Instead, the moment he opened the door, he was pinned against the wall, a sharp blade pressed against his throat. His heartbeat suddenly racing, Percy looked up to meet the sky blue gaze of the man holding him—and a name fell out of his lips, almost unbidden.

"Jase?"

Chapter Text

Percy couldn't believe it. Jason Grace—professional assassin, detective, mafia-boss-slash-senator's son Jason Grace—was Jase. His Jase.

And judging by the hesitation he'd shown, by the wide eyes Jason was staring at him with, and by the fact that Percy wasn't dead yet, he'd also recognized him.

Percy suddenly felt like a seven-year-old boy again, playing with his two best friends while their dads met to talk business. He and Jase had been close then, their dads often met alone, without Nico's, and Percy didn't necessarily mind not having to drag a younger kid around. He'd always been fond of Nico, but there were things a seven-year-old could only do with boys his own age. Jase had been that company to Percy.

Then Nico's dad and sister had died, and he'd come to live with Percy's family. Percy's dad had died too, not too long afterwards, and his mom had forbidden him from ever meeting with his very best friend.

Now there he was, so thoroughly changed by the years, yet unmistakably the same person. With a knife pressed against Percy's throat, and clad in a form-fitting suit not unlike Nico's, dark purple with golden highlights. No mask, though.

Since Percy had chanced upon Jupiter Grace using his powers to commit a triple homicide—an assassination, Nico would say, murdering political rivals—he'd never made the connection with his dad's old business partner. And he'd definitely been too busy trying to avoid Jupiter's goons to look into his family, to look at pictures of his son. Did Nico know? Maybe he didn't even remember—he was barely four at the time.

Silence hung between them now as they stood still, staring into each other's eyes. Jason had definitely not known who his target was, at least—his surprise was too great for that. Percy knew he should have taken advantage of his hesitation, to…what? Fight him? Run? Call for help? But he felt frozen in place.

"You're coming with me," Jason finally said—the first words he said to Percy in…eighteen years? Had it really been that long? His voice was deeper than Percy remembered, huskier, and obviously, threatening.

"I—I don't think so. Jase, you can't—"

"If I was going to kill you, I'd kill you here and now. You're coming with me, or I change my mind."

The implication was clear, and Percy gulped nervously. "How did you find me? Did you hack into N—into Night Angel's phone? He said it was unhackable."

"Nico's right," Jason said. So much for trying to hide his identity. "But data is electronic. I just followed it."

Percy frowned. "That—doesn't make any sense."

"If you're hoping to stall me until Nico comes back, it won't work. He'll be busy for a while with his new boyfriend. I have a few people who will make sure of that." His eyes narrowed. "So shut up. We're leaving. Now."

He pushed Percy towards the cluster room's door, and Percy had no choice but to follow his lead.

A new scenery formed around Will, as if he was emerging from a dream. A dream where he'd been choking: his knees gave way under him, and he was breathless, his heart racing in his chest.

"Sorry," Nico said, laying a hand on Will's shoulder uselessly. "It does that to people when I take them with me, but I figured shadow-traveling away would be the better option. There might have been others watching."

Will didn't reply for a while, too busy catching his breath. When he felt like his lungs weren't on fire, he spat, "Really? And you think they would have watched as you kicked their friends' asses?"

"To find my hideout? Yeah, they would have."

"Yeah, because you're just so important, aren't you?" Will didn't bother to hide the bitterness in his voice. The painful trip had eroded the rest of his patience away. "It's all about you!" Nico jolted backwards, and Will took the opportunity to stand. "They were going to torture me all because I may know something!"

"But they didn't. I saved you."

"And now I can't ever go back home! Clearly I'm saved!"

Nico sighed, and silently pulled the mask off his face. "Look, I'm sorry. I know this is all my fault, but I'm trying to do the best I can, okay?" He looked down, and let his mask drop to the floor. "Maybe I'm just making everything worse. Maybe you should have let me bleed out in that alleyway."

Will bit his lip, regretting his outburst. "That's not what I meant. Of course I don't regret helping you out." Nico didn't move, looking too lost in thought to hear Will's words, so he took a step forward, reaching out to cup Nico's face without thinking. When his fingers brushed Nico's skin, the boy gave a start, looking up at Will. "You may think it's your fault, but I made my choice when I decided to help you, okay?"

"You don't need to make me feel better, you know. I'm a big boy. I can handle it."

"I don't doubt it," Will said, managing a smirk, but he kept his hand on Nico's cheek and Nico didn't make a move to brush him off. "So how did you know I'd need to be rescued?"

"Someone listened in on our phone call. Since my phone is untraceable, I knew Jason's only other option would be to go after you for more information. I was standing guard around the hospital all day, but the Olympian thugs were watching too. I couldn't extract you directly, so I made a plan of attack instead."

"You…let them capture me?"

"I knew I'd get you out of it. It was that, or risking that they attack us where I couldn't be sure to beat them."

"I don't follow. You were kicking ass back there."

"Only because there were shadows around." Nico sighed. "That's my power. I can use shadows to…blend time and space around me, so to speak. The darker it is, the stronger I get. That's why I work at night."

Will considered him briefly. "So…if I carried a torch, you'd be just as vulnerable as a regular guy?"

"A regular guy with intensive training and top-quality gear," Nico retorted, deadpan. "But it can be an issue."

"Is that how Grace beat you that night?"

"He's got much better than a torch. He can generate electromagnetic waves and fields. Which includes light."

"I know. I am a doctor." Okay, so physics hadn't been Will's favorite topic. But he'd still taken a few classes. He'd had to. "So where were the Graces just now? Am I not a valuable enough target for them to act in person?"

"I—" Nico paused. "I don't know. Maybe they thought I wouldn't leave Percy undefended to go after you. Or maybe they didn't expect me to know we were being listened. I guess we'll never know." He suddenly frowned. "Where is Percy, anyway? You'd think he'd be curious to hear what happened." He slipped past Will, calling out Percy's name—without getting an answer.

Will walked after him. "So—this is your place?"

"Obviously."

It didn't sound quite as obvious to Will. He wasn't sure what he'd imagined Nico's place to look like, but he was a vigilante with shadow powers who called himself Night Angel. As a result, Will was surprised the place was as bright and airy as it was. The apartment was a penthouse, its outer wall made entirely of smoked glass. It felt open, enough to give Will vertigo even when from a distance.

The décor inside seemed to be a mixture of stuff accumulated over several generations. There was a computer in each room, all identical, looking brand-new, and marked with a logo of a fiery hammer Will had never seen before. Some of the furniture—like the dining table—and the carpets looked ancient, Victorian or even older than that, while others were more modern. There didn't seem to be any sense or common aesthetic joining them together, though Will was sure it was all pretty expensive.

"I kind of like your place, but was it really necessary to tour the place with me?" he ended up saying when they were back in the room they'd first appeared in—some kind of armory, now that he looked at it closer, except the weapons stored away with efficiency, rather than displayed to impress.

"I'm not taking you on a tour. I'm looking for Percy."

"Maybe he went out?"

"He knows he shouldn't leave. It's too dangerous to risk it." He grabbed his phone, abandoned next to the computer in this room. "And he'd definitely have left me a message if he had."

"Don't you have, like, a security system?"

"Of course I do." Nico had already moved to his computer. "He went to the cluster room? What the hell was he doing up there? He went in hours ago!"

"Is that bad?"

"No, just weird. I've got a computer cluster above us, but that's all there is. I don't see why he'd go there. Or stay there. He should have heard us by now." Without hesitation, Nico made way for the stairs, and Will followed after him.

The cluster room was little more than a flat surface under a smoked glass dome, with rows upon rows of what looked like shelves to Will—though he guessed they were basically oversized computer cases. The air in the room was surprisingly cool—too much to be comfortable.

More importantly, there was no one in sight here, either. "He should be here," Nico said. "Nobody came out."

"Don't you have any security in this room?"

"Yeah, but I need to access it directly from here. Terminal's over here, come—"

Nico paused, and Will followed his gaze to something on the floor. An all too familiar card, one Will had also had in his pocket just moments ago. He didn't need Nico to read it to know whose name was on it.

"Jason Grace. But—how—and why—" There was a hint of panic in Nico's voice, but his frowned looked more intrigued than anything else. He moved again, resuming his march towards the terminal. "I need to see the security footage."

"You have cameras too? Why didn't we use them immediately?"

"I only have cameras in here. And outside the apartment, too. I don't record myself in my own apartment, thank you very much."

"Isn't that unsafe?"

"It shouldn't be. No one should be able to come in here without me knowing it."

Will refrained from pointing out that someone had. No need to shove it in his face. "Do you think—"

"That he killed Percy? That's the weird part. If he did, why bother taking the body? It would be much easier to leave it here, maybe even try to frame me for it. Jason would know how to do it."

"Then what did he do?"

They'd reached the monitor, and Nico typed furiously on it. "That's what I'd like to find out."

It took some fiddling, but eventually, video footage played for them—half a dozen cameras' footage, actually, all showing up at once on-screen. Will was focusing on the camera that showed the door, and so, when Nico paused the footage, he was confused at first. Then he followed Nico's gaze. Another camera showed a row of computer cases—nothing that looked interesting, but for the fact that one of them was giving off sparks. Nico let the footage play, in slow-motion.

"Is that supposed to happen?" Will said, breathless.

"No. And if it did, the system should turn on, spray cooling gel before there's a chance of fire."

"And it hasn't."

"If the room was covered in cooling gel, we'd have noticed."

And yet, more sparks were coming out of the machine, too many to be even possible without catching on fire. They formed an almost solid shape on the screen—like a man. "That's him, isn't it?" Will asked.

Nico observed the footage for a moment silently. When the shape became more distinct, he nodded. "Jason. I always guessed he'd inherited his father's powers, but apparently he took them to a whole new level."

"I don't understand. How does he do that? Could he come back?"

"Look at the time stamp."

Will did. Twelve minutes past eleven in the morning that day— "That's when I called you."

"Yeah. I thought he was trying to hack me, trying to find out where I was. I can fool a program attempting to trace this location, but he turned into an electronic signal and followed it here. You can't fool a person with a firewall."

Will stared at him. "And that doesn't freak you out?"

"The more I know about my enemies' capabilities, the more I can plan around them." Nico shook his head. "No, being in the dark would freak me out. No pun intended. What I do want to know is what happened to Percy—" He fast-forwarded through the video. "There," he said, pointing at the part of the video showing the door. Indeed, Percy was coming into the cluster room—rushing in, a worried look on his face. But Jason was waiting right behind the door, and he pinned Percy against a wall.

Jason raised his hand—and held it up there.

"Is there no sound?" Will asked.

"No point. We couldn't hear anything with the hum of the machines." Still, Nico was staring intently, and when Percy's lips moved, he smiled. "Jase," he whispered. It took Will a moment to realize he was repeating what Percy had said. A diminutive?

"Is that good news?"

"Just look."

Jason was forcing Percy to follow him to the machines—forceful, but not violent. And Percy wasn't dead yet. He struggled, made a business fall out of Jason's pocket, but Jason just pushed him into to the nearest computer. Jason put his hand on it…and they were gone, turning into another cluster of sparks that trailed off for a few more seconds on the screen.

Nico shut down the monitor, and took a step back, sighing. In relief? That was what it looked like to Will.

"Is that—good?" he couldn't help but ask.

"I don't know for sure. But it's something."

"Care to elaborate?"

Nico sighed again, then nodded. "There's something I need to explain. But not here. Let's make ourselves comfortable."

Nico led him back down to the armory. "Sit down. Do you want anything to drink, maybe? I have some killer iced tea from Percy's mom, you should try it out." He made his way across the room, where a wardrobe stood against the wall. He peeled his suit off, shamelessly letting it drop to the floor, and Will couldn't stop himself from staring.

"Um…" he managed to mumble, the question all but forgotten. He'd seen Nico in his underwear, of course, but he'd been wounded, unconscious and bloody, and Will had been scared shitless. Now, though, Nico was awake, graceful even in the simple action of picking clothes, his lean muscles rippling as he put on black sweatpants.

"Will?" Nico half-turned with a curious glance, his arms halfway inside a black hoodie.

"Sorry. Yeah, that'd be great."

A grin passed on Nico's lips, soon hidden as he put on the hoodie. "Be right back."

He was gone only a minute, returning with two glasses of iced tea, and settled on the couch Will was sitting on. Will couldn't help but squirm at the sudden proximity, but he wasn't sure what to do—he didn't want to move away, not exactly, but the slightest touch of Nico felt electric after seeing him undress like that.

Will decided to change his mind by focusing on what they were here for. "Your story?"

Nico nodded. "Yeah. There's something you need to know about Percy. And…well, about Jason and I, too, I guess. It…may have been a little more complicated than I previously told you."

Chapter Text

Nico had fallen silent, sipping his iced tea, and Will couldn't help but urge him on.

"What do you mean, 'more complicated'?"

"I mean Percy's not just a witness I'm protecting. And Jason's not just the local mafia boss's son. Although we are all these things."

"But you're also more?"

Nico nodded. "To each other, anyway." He fell silent again. "You're not even going to try it?" he asked, nodding at the iced tea.

Will frowned, but he complied, and— "Whoa, yeah. I get what you mean when you said it was a 'killer iced tea'." Then, frowning, he added, "Wait, I'm not going to die, now, am I?"

Nico laughed—a full-body laugh, eyes closed and skin slightly flushed. From so close, Will wanted to either tickle or kiss him to make sure Nico kept laughing, but he dismissed the thought. As if there was any chance Nico would be interested.

"I'm…happy to see I'm so funny to you."

"Sorry. I haven't had a lot of opportunities to laugh recently. No, I'm not going to kill you. Especially not with iced tea." He smiled, wiggling an eyebrow in a teasing way.

Will couldn't help but smile back, though he felt as confused as he was amused. "You said it was from Percy's mom."

Nico nodded. "Right. I should get back on track, shouldn't I? It's just difficult to talk about. I haven't even told Percy the whole thing yet."

"Are you sure you want to tell me? If it's private, I understand—"

"No, no, it's fine. Okay, I've known Percy since I was born. Literally. Our families were all friends, so we grew up together. Our fathers started off as business associates, you see. My dad, Percy's, and Jupiter Grace."

"Oh." Will couldn't help himself—that felt too dramatic not to acknowledge in some way.

Nico chuckled again. "Yeah. 'Oh'. And when I say 'business', I do mean the shadier side of Jupiter's life, not the Senator part. They started the Olympian gang together—overthrew another gang that ruled the city at the time. And had their kids almost at the same time. Percy was born first, then Jason and my sister Bianca at around the same time a year later. I came two years after that, the only second child. I think Jupiter and Neptune didn't want their kids to have to share the inheritance whenever the time came."

"Wait. Percy's dad was called Neptune? And he happened to work with a guy called Jupiter?"

Nico rolled his eyes. "Not their real names, obviously. I don't think anyone knows what they were born as—except Jupiter himself, now. They chose those names when they started the gang, along with the Olympian theme. My dad was Pluto. I think they chose that because their powers happened to match the Greek gods. Of course, when Jupiter went public, he needed to create another alias, and the Bolt was born. But I'm getting ahead of myself."

"You don't say."

"Hey, don't interrupt!" Nico nudged him in the shoulder, and Will couldn't help but nudge him back, which got him a smile out of Nico as a reward. But that smile faded quickly "Okay, what I'll tell you now comes mostly from my own investigation and from my dad's notes, so it may not be entirely accurate. I was four at the time, so my own memories aren't really helping. You need to understand that they had an ideal when they started. Supers were finally commonplace at the time, and when no one could stop crime in New York City, our dads decided they'd be the criminals to help the city. Run an…ethical gang, if you will."

"That didn't work out."

"Yeah. Well, they were criminals, don't make me say what I haven't. They were trying to make sure the victims of their crimes were people in high places—as much as possible. Of course, you could argue that even if a few corrupt politicians lose a lot of money because they no longer benefit from drug trades, the people who buy them…well, their lives are still wrecked." Nico's eyes became distant, and Will wondered what he was thinking about. It must have been difficult, knowing your own dad had taken a part in that.

"Right. So they were just trying to be better. Or…less awful?"

"Something like that. Jupiter changed his mind after a few years. Steered the gang towards being…well, what it is now. Their own power and wealth above all."

"I assume that didn't go over well."

"You assume well. He had my dad killed first—he was resisting him, while Neptune was negotiating behind my dad's back to find a compromise. Bianca was caught in the crossfire too."

He fell silent, and Will reached out and took his hand, holding it gently. "I'm sorry."

"Thanks." He took a deep breath, in and out, before he continued. "Percy's mom—Sally—took me in after that. But Neptune's compromise didn't work out either—he was assassinated too, not long afterwards. I don't know how Sally got Jupiter to stay away, but she did, and she raised Percy and I."

"I see. So there's…history between you."

"If you think I'm doing what I do because I was revenge, that's not it. My dad kept notes of everything he did for work—almost a journal—and Sally found it, and when I was old enough, she gave it to me. That's why I became a vigilante. But Sally didn't want Percy to know, though, and I respected her wish."

"Until now."

"He still has no idea. He witnessed Jupiter kill three people, and even then, I don't think he made the connection. If he did, he never told me, and judging by what I saw on the camera—well, he looked surprised to recognize Jason."

Will nodded. "And you think Jason was shocked too?"

"He was surprised, or he wouldn't have paused before striking. If he'd known his target was his childhood best friend, he would have made his peace with it or let someone take the assignment. At least…I think so. I don't know how much Jason's changed in all these years, of course, but if he's anything like the kid I knew…"

Will wondered how much a professional assassin was like his child self, but he didn't want to disappoint Nico. On the other hand, he hadn't killed Percy, so maybe he was right. Jason had hesitated, that was for sure.

"But what do we do now? He's probably not going to let Percy testify against his dad, even if he's decided to show mercy."

"Probably not. But…" he turned to Will, "Jason did leave his card."

"You want to call him?"

"Why not? We need to talk to him, one way or the other. He has Percy, and he could probably come back anytime he wants. I'll have to deal with him sooner or later."

Will noticed the distant look in Nico's eyes. "You don't look thrilled."

Nico shook his head slowly. "This—this isn't how I expected our reunion to take place."

"He's his father's hitman. How did you expect it to unfold?"

Nico grimaced, and remained silent for a moment. Then, suddenly, he got up. "I'll call him in the morning—I don't want him to feel threatened if I call at night. If he thinks I'm ambushing him, he might take it out on Percy. And I should deadlock the door to the cluster room, so he can't get to us tonight."

His sudden rambling felt uncharacteristic to Will. He stood up too, laying a hand on Nico's shoulder. "Nico, are you okay?"

"What do you think? I took an obvious bait, almost all my defense systems breached, my secret identity might be compromised, my only chance to take down Jupiter Grace might be lost, and my best friend was kidnapped." He sighed. "I don't regret saving you, but you've got to understand this isn't really a victory day for me. Don't take it personally."

"I'm not. Taking it personally, I mean." Will gave Nico's shoulder a gentle squeeze, and to his surprise, Nico leaned against him, his shoulder on Will's chest. "Is there any way I can help?"

"I'll tell you that after I call Jason. But I might need patching up at any time, so I'd appreciate if you stuck around."

Will smiled, and resisted the urge to pull Nico closer. "Anything. Besides, I'm not comfortable going back home just yet."

"Good thing there's plenty of room here. Not that you seem to mind proximity." Nico looked up at Will, flashing him a brief grin. "And try to be more discreet with the staring."

"Um—" Will felt like his face was going to burst into flames at any moment, but he tried to keep his composure. "Then don't undress where anyone could see you."

Nico leaned in close, turning himself to be face to face with Will. "What if that's my intent, though?"

Will was pretty sure he was about to choke. Saying anything right now would be a terrible idea.

Nico's laugh—his ridiculously adorable laugh—saved him from having to retort. "You should see your face."

Will scoffed. "Are you mocking me?"

"I'm not. But your reaction's still funny." Nico got his laughter mostly under control before he resumed. "I just wanted to make sure I wasn't imagining things with you."

"Is—is that a problem? Because if I make you uncomfortable, I—"

"No. No, it's definitely not a problem. It would have been really embarrassing for my image as a vigilante if I had to deal with an unrequited crush." Will frowned at his choice of words, but Nico didn't let him ask about it. "It's just—I can't right now. You understand, right? I have to focus on saving Percy."

Will blinked. "So you—" He stopped in his tracks, at a lost for words. Asking if Nico liked him would sound silly. Immature. And unnecessary—Nico had been obvious enough. "Of course I understand."

When Percy came to, the first thing his brain registered was how comfortable he felt.

That made no sense to him. He'd just been kidnapped by a professional assassin, one whose father Percy could get locked up. But it was also Jase. Percy couldn't believe he'd never made the connection.

And he hadn't killed Percy yet. That was a good sign, right?

Percy opened his eyes to find himself sprawled on a couch. He was in what looked like someone's home, sparsely decorated with a military precision. Mostly white and grey, with just a touch of purple here and there. No pictures, nothing that looked overly personal. Comfortable, yet cold.

And sitting at a desk, his back turned to Percy, was Jason, unmistakable even from behind. His short hair had an inimitable golden sheen to them, and he was now dressed down in a t-shirt and sweatpants, letting Percy see the tattoo on his left arm. As a kid, Jason had always drawn a lightning bolt there, and he'd boasted to Percy he'd get a real tattoo someday—apparently he'd made good on that promise.

Percy stared for a moment, frozen as he tried to decide what to do next. Running away was unlikely to work, but Percy might manage to get the upper hand on Jason while he wasn't looking.

He sat up, slowly, trying his best not to make a sound…and Jason immediately pivoted his chair towards him. "Welcome back." His tone was neutral, the shock from earlier—when exactly? Percy had no idea how long he'd been out—washed from his features. He was wearing glasses, with a thin, golden rim, that he hadn't been wearing before. Percy didn't even know Jason had ever needed glasses.

"Where am I? What am I doing here? What do you want?" If Percy couldn't physically assault Jason, he'd do it verbally.

"This is my place. I took you here because I'm trying to figure out what to do with you."

"What does that even mean?"

Jason raised a dubious eyebrow. "I think you know why I came to find you."

Percy stared for a moment, afraid to say the words out loud, but Jason's expectant look left him with no choice. "You were going to kill me. So I couldn't testify against your dad. Because that's what you do." He looked around again, and suddenly, the lack of decoration made more sense. Impersonal—perfect for an assassin who may need to disappear at any moment. "So why didn't you?"

An almost imperceptible emotion crossed Jason's face—too fast for Percy to catch it fully. "Because—" He breathed in deeply. "Because it's you."

So. Jason had recognized him, and spared him. Why? Percy didn't feel like questioning it too much. Jason could change his mind at any time. Just because they were friends years ago didn't mean Percy knew him now. "So what happens now?"

"That's the question, isn't it?" Jason said, smirking. "My dad will want proof that you're dead. Nico will want you back. And I—" He sighed. "You're staying here until I figure it out."

"Yeah…how about no."

Jason chuckled. "Do you even realize I'm doing this to protect you?"

"I was perfectly fine under Nico's protection."

"Until I got through it. Do you think I would have been the only one? I can protect you for real, Percy. My dad won't look for you with me."

"Really? Somehow I feel like he's the kind of guy who would turn on anyone the moment they're not useful to him."

Jason's expression darkened. "And you think I'm not useful anymore, just because I refused to kill one target?"

Percy gulped, realizing the implication—that Jason would still kill anyone his dad ordered him to. Still, Percy had gained too much momentum to stop now. "A weapon who refuses to kill even once stops being reliable. He'll just get another hitman."

"And you know this how, exactly?"

"I saw your dad kill three of his closest rivals from within the Republican party. Just so he could be sure to remain a senator. They were working together until they announced they were running, right?"

A smirk appeared on Jason's face. "You did your research."

"Not enough." He'd had no idea who Jupiter Grace's son was, after all.

Jason considered him silently for a moment. "If I promise I'll give you plan tomorrow, can you at least stay the night without trying anything? Nothing will happen to you here tonight."

His question took Percy aback, but he doubted he really had a choice, so he just shrugged. "Sure, I guess."

Jason's shoulders relaxed. "Thank you. I'm trying my best, Percy. I swear."

"Are you sure it's not a little too late for that, Jase? You're a professional hitman."

Jason's eyes snapped up at Percy, glaring lightning at him. "You don't get to judge me. Not after you abandoned me all those years ago."

Percy frowned. "What?"

"I get that Nico was too young to decide on his own, but why did you just leave me alone?" He took a shaky breath. "I became this to please my dad. Because he was all I had left."

"I didn't get to decide. My mom wouldn't let be get in touch with you anymore after my dad died."

"Your dad—" Jason's eyes widened slightly, but he shook his head. "Never mind. I assume you're hungry? I had to give you something to make you sleep, and I know from experience how it feels when you wake up."

His brusque change of subject left Percy confused—and more than a little suspicious—but he was starving, so he nodded. "Yeah."

"Okay. I'll order something. Wait here."

"Do you think we'd still be friends now? If your mom hadn't forced you to stay away from me?"

Jason's question was even more of a surprise to Percy that he had barely spoken at all since their food had arrived (a moment where Percy had briefly considered trying to signal the delivery girl to call for help, before changing his mind, lest Jason killed her—or Percy).

"Do your friends usually know about your line of work?"

Jason eyed him oddly. "Do you think I can have friends in my line of work?"

"Then why do you ask if we'd still be friends?"

"Because…you knew me before."

"I—" Was this a trick question? Some kind of manipulation Jason was pulling on Percy, to convince himself that he didn't have to spare him? "I don't know. If you had to hide this life from me, I think I'd end up noticing it. And if you told me the truth—"

"You don't mind what Nico does."

"Nico helps people." Percy half-expected Jason to argue with that, to rationalize his own activities, but Jason fell silent instead. "I can't know what we'd be to each other. It's been too long." He thought back to what Jason had said—about Percy abandoning him and becoming an assassin to please his dad. "Do you think you'd have become…this…if we had been friends?"

"Not if it had meant losing you."

Percy hadn't expected such a straightforward answer from Jason. "Why is that?"

"Because you were the most important person in my life. Why else do you think I spared you now, in spite of everything?"

"Not important enough to set free, though," Percy noted, bitter.

"Too important to let go," Jason retorted.

Percy scoffed. "Really? You're still trying to convince me this is for my own protection? Because I won't fall for your Stockholm Syndrome bullshit."

Jason flinched, then settled into a hard look. "Believe what you will. I'm going to sleep. Don't try to leave, you might get electrocuted by my security system. It would be a shame."

Chapter Text

Percy had taken Jason's warning literally about his front door being booby-trapped. Perhaps it was a mistake, but Jason's confident attitude when going to sleep, like Percy didn't have a chance to escape, had made him afraid to try. If it was some kind of mind game…well, it had worked. Percy wasn't a hero like Nico—fearing for his life was a little too new to him.

Sleep had come easier than he'd expected, too, even though he'd barely woken up a couple hours ago. Though Percy supposed getting drugged didn't exactly count as sleeping—if anything, it had drained him even more.

So the realization didn't hit him until morning, when he woke up with early sunrise shining right on his face. Jase—Jason Grace—is holding me captive. He might still decide to kill me. And I was just sleeping on his couch like it's nothing. The thought jolted him awake, setting his heart on a wild race and sending a fight-or-flight through his nerves.

But fighting a professional assassin was out of the question, and he still feared a trap if he tried to leave, which left him with no way to calm down. Jason was nowhere to be found—still sleeping, or gone?—so Percy was left with pacing uselessly. He didn't even dare snoop around, in case something else was trapped in the apartment beside the door.

He tried to figure out what he could do about his own situation, came up empty-handed, and reflexively headed for the bathroom. He always thought better under the shower—and besides, he needed one badly, after sleeping in his clothes.

The door locked, which was a small mercy—though Percy doubted a locked door would hold someone like Jason for long if he decided to come in for whatever reason. Percy stripped down, briefly wondered if he should have taken some of Jason's clothes to change into, then decided against it. Better to get back into his own, even if he'd worn them all day and night.

He stepped under the spray, and suddenly laughed at his string of small worries. So what if the door did or didn't lock, or if he had to wear dirty clothes? He was still kidnapped and probably going to die soon!

He burst out laughing—a half-sarcastic, half-nervous laugh—then the bathroom wall exploded in front of him, and everything went dark.

When Percy regained consciousness, he was back on Jason's couch, its velvety texture warm against his bare skin, while something else—thick and heavy; a blanket?—was laid over him. His eyes flew open, and he tried to sit up—only for Jason to push him back down with a firm grip.

"Easy," Jason said. "Easy. You knocked yourself out pretty bad. Nothing broken, but you might have a concussion." He checked Percy with an unbearable look of worry on his face, sighed, and shrugged. "You look okay, but this isn't my specialty."

"What a surprise," Percy replied, drily.

Jason snorted. "At least you can talk. And I assume you still know where you are and who I am."

"Why did you booby-trap your own shower, you sick motherfucker?"

Jason blinked once. Then again. "I—didn't. You're the one who caused this."

"What the hell—" Pain stabbed through his skull, cutting him off as he hissed in pain. "The hell are you on about?"

"Are you in pain? Percy, I'm seriously, if you have a concussion—"

"Then you'll have a job well done in spite of yourself," Percy spat. His head still hurt, but he pushed through the haze and tried to focus on his surroundings. It was like the entire apartment had been flooded, with wet spots clinging to furniture and walls, and a sheen of water covered the floor. Jason's was soaked too, his hair and clothes clinging to his skin as a result. His glasses were nowhere to be found, and Jason was squinting ever so slightly. "Okay, I'll bite. How exactly did I do…that?"

"If I were to guess, same way I control electricity and Nico manipulates shadows."

Jason's words hung between them for a moment, unable to make sense in Percy's brain. "What the—"

"All I know is, I heard you get in the bathroom, then my vitalis detector"—he pointed to his wristwatch, except Percy guessed it wasn't just a watch—"went off and the pipes in the entire apartment exploded. Possibly the entire building. I went to check on you, and you were unconscious. Also, the vitalis was pretty adamant about you. So if you didn't cause this, then you just happened to have cause a massive superpower surge without any visible effect."

He paused, visibly expecting Percy to say something, but it was too much to process—and Percy felt like he was missing pieces, unless he really did have a concussion preventing him from making sense of all of this.

Jason added, "I got you some clothes, but I—I thought you might not like the idea of me dressing you while you were out."

It seemed pointless to focus on that, but Percy nodded anyway. "Yeah. I wouldn't have." It felt awkward enough to picture Jason finding him unconscious and naked and carrying him here. "So what do you mean, about that detector—"

"Vitalis? It's the energy all supers rely on. Unless they're regular people with fancy tools, no matter the source of their power, it'll use vitalis in some form. At least for any superhuman—aliens are a whole different matter, but you're not an alien. I'm pretty sure I would know."

"But I'm not a super either. I can't be, I was never in any experiment, I never had any powers—"

"Perce." The nickname on Jason's lips stopped Percy's rambling. "What do you know about our dads?"

Will was more than a little impressed by the display of luxury that was Nico's apartment, now that he'd slept in it. The guest room he'd slept in was bigger than the bedroom in his own home, and came with its own bathroom—and from what he'd seen, there were at least two more guest rooms like that. Nico had told Will his dad had anticipated Jupiter's betrayal and put money aside in case he needed to run, but Will wondered how much money exactly Pluto had had if this apartment could be bought with only the "just in case" money.

But even then, he was fairly certain the only thing that had let him sleep was the thought of Nico being right there under the same roof. Maybe it was crazy to feel safer with a vigilante, or maybe it was perfectly natural after said vigilante had just rescued you, but he did feel safe.

Or maybe it had to do with Nico confessing his crush. He smiled just thinking about it. Even Nico's refusal to take it any further felt like a promise more than a rejection. Later. When Percy's safe.

If Percy's ever safe, a treacherous voice whispered in the back of Will's mind. He ignored it. If it came to that…well, he'd still be there for Nico, as a friend or whatever else Nico would let him be.

He was pretty sure Cecil would skin him for falling so hard and fast for someone he barely knew—someone who was obviously dangerous. And thinking about Cecil reminded him of what had happened the previous day. Would the Olympian gang target Cecil to get to him?

That was what got him to hurry out of bed. "Nico, I need to call my friend—tell him what's going on."

He paused at the wide-eyed look Nico was casting his way, looked down at himself, and realized he was still in nothing but his boxers. "Um—"

Nico chuckled. "I guess it's payback for those times you got to see me undressed," he said, grinning.

Will took a deep breath. "Fair enough. I probably owe you a bit more eye candy." And he sat down on the couch across from Nico, before he could change his mind. He hoped he looked more resolute than he felt. "I really do need to call my friend, though."

"If you mean Cecil Castellan, I warned him last night. I even promised an interview, so long as he didn't record me or my voice. You can call him to check if you want. I got Leo to check your phone, it should be safe now." He nodded to the coffee table between them, where Will's phone rested.

Will took it. "Thanks. I—not that I don't believe you, but—"

Nico shook his head. "It's fine. Go ahead."

It took Cecil a long time to pick up—long enough for Will to start worrying something had happened to him. "Will? It is you, right? Please tell me they didn't steal your phone."

"It's me, Cecil," he said, relief washing over him. "Ni—Night Angel told you what happened, right?" He'd almost slipped up and called Nico by name.

"He said you were attacked, and he took you somewhere safe. Is it true? If you can't speak freely, try to speak in code or something."

"It's true, Cecil. I'm fine. But they might go after you—"

"Does that mean I might get to join your party in the Night Angel Cave?"

"What? There's no cave—"

"Right. Angels don't live in caves. Is it a church? Please tell me it's not a church, that would be so cliché—"

"Cecil, I'm not telling you where his hideout is. Just—be safe, okay?"

"As much as I can be in these circumstances, right? And you, try to make my fanfic happen, okay?"

Will couldn't help but blush at his suggestion. He hadn't read Cecil's fanfic, only glimpsed it—seeing his stand-in with the thinly-veiled name of 'Bill' had been enough to make him lose it from embarrassment—but the rating was enough. "Bye, Cecil."

"Remind your superhero boyfriend he owes me an interview." He hung up before Will could protest.

When he looked back up, Nico's curious smile didn't help with his blush. "He's something, your friend. Do you know him well?"

Will nodded. "We met in middle school. Been best friends ever since."

"Any family?"

"It's—complicated. Why do you ask?"

"I met someone with the same last name when I was practicing with my powers. Luke Castellan?"

"Practicing?"

"This gig didn't happen overnight, you know. And you're avoiding."

Will sighed. "It's his half-brother. I assume you know what else happened."

Nico nodded. "He went rogue, became the Titan. It happened shortly before I started training, but—well, my teacher was his target. We ran into each other. I owe him a scar or two."

"Oh. I can assure you, Cecil's nothing like him. And I doubt he's a super."

"I believe you. Luke got his powers from his mom—she'd experimented on herself. If you say they're half-brothers…" Nico shrugged. "Even then, the press made the whole thing sound worse than he was. Are they close?"

"They were—before. After, Cecil wouldn't even talk about him. I'm pretty sure he's still trying to find where Luke's disappeared to."

"And Cecil trusted you with his brother's identity. He must really trust you."

Will wasn't sure he was imagining Nico's implied question. "I trust him too, but I wouldn't—not with your secret."

Relief flashed on Nico's face, and he knew he'd been right. But Nico just shrugged. "Well, no use delaying it. My turn to make a phone call." He looked defeated just at the thought of it.

"You want me to go? I don't want to intrude."

"No, stay. Unless you feel like getting dressed now," Nico added with a smirk.

Will's blush deepened, but he stood his ground. "Maybe I like showing off to you."

He was certain Nico winked at him before he grabbed his phone.

"Jason," Nico finally said. "It's been a while." He set the phone on the coffee table, pressing a finger to his lips to Will's intention. Will simply nodded—he didn't really feel like talking with the hitman if he could avoid to anyway.

"I can guess why you're calling." Jason Grace's voice was eerily different than what Will remembered. Same timbre, obviously, but all affectations of being a police detective were gone, replaced with a bleak coldness. And underneath it, Will was certain he detected a hint of worry.

"And I can guess you don't intend to kill Percy, or he'd be dead already," Nico retorted. "So why don't we cut to when you hand him over?"

"I could still change my mind."

"If you meant that, you wouldn't have picked up the phone." No answer came from Jason's side, and Nico continued. "I've had all night to figure out what you did. I guess you followed the data to my server, which means you can turn into an electric current. And unless Mr D suddenly changed his mind about you, there's only one person you could have learned it from. That very person would be very mad if they heard you hesitate over the phone." Nico paused again, but too briefly to let Jason respond. "What I'm saying is: if you hadn't decided to go against your dad's orders, you wouldn't have picked up at all, because just talking to me is running the risk of being found out."

More silence answered Nico's speech, finally broken by a faint laugh. "Damn, Nico, when did you have time to become a shrink on top of everything else? You're putting even me to shame."

"I know you. I knew you back when we were kids, and I've observed you enough since I found out the truth about our dads."

"Well, you're right that I won't kill him. But you're wrong about one thing, too. I'm not letting Percy go."

"Then what do you want?"

"I'm not sure yet. Look, I—hang on, I'm putting you on speaker."

Nico glanced up at Will, trading visibly shocked expression as Percy's voice came from the phone. "Nico?"

"Percy? Are you okay?"

"Nico, I'm not angry when I ask you this, but…why did you never tell me about our parents?"

Nico was frozen for a moment, in fear or shock or guilt, Will wasn't sure. "Jason told you?" It had the inflections of a question, but it didn't feel like one.

"Yeah."

"Sally didn't want you to know."

"Well," Jason interjected, "Sally didn't plan on dad's genes kicking in—like it did for our dads." It took Will a moment—and Nico's wide-eyed horror—to realize what Jason was saying. "Yep," Jason continued, "Percy got his dear old dad's powers. Ruined my apartment in the process, by the way. I guess you owe me, since that means yours was spared."

Nico scoffed. "I'm pretty sure I don't owe you anything after you broke in here and kidnapped Percy."

"Guess that's one way to look at it. Which reminds me—I did have something I want. Since you weren't home, I assume you managed to rescue your doctor from my men? I need him. I think Percy has a commotion—maybe something worse. I won't let him die."

"You want me to give Will over to you?" Nico's disbelief transpired in his voice. "Not gonna happen. Find another doctor."

"One who won't report to my dad immediately? I don't know any of those."

"Still not gonna happen."

"I'm not asking for you to let me take him captive," Jason said. "We can meet on neutral grounds."

"And how do I make sure this isn't a trap?"

"I am in a lot of pain," Percy said, interrupting their debate.

"Mr D's old school is still closed since the Titan went up against him, isn't it?" Jason offered. "We could meet there. Activate the vitalis dampeners. That way, neither of us can use our powers to get out or abduct anyone."

Nico remained silent for a moment. "I can't speak for Will."

"You're on a first-name basis? That's cute. Well go on and ask him, then. I don't want to waste any more time than necessary."

Nico just looked up at Will, imploring him with his eyes.

It was crazy. They would be walking into a likely trap willingly. Even without his powers, Jason Grace was still an assassin. He had come into Will's home, planted a bug on him, sent men after him.

But Percy needed medical attention, and Nico had no one else. Nico, who was right there—desperate and vulnerable, like the night they'd first met. So he just nodded.

"We'll be there in half an hour," Nico said.

"Perfect. And Will—I assume you're listening—I want you to know it was nothing personal. I needed a distraction."

On that arrogant not-apology, Jason hung up, leaving silence hanging between them.

"Now what?" Will asked.

"Get ready. I'll shadow-step us there. We're leaving in twenty-five minutes."

Will nodded, and hurried back to his room.

"And Will…" Nico's voice made him pause in the doorway. "Thank you."

Chapter Text

Will had no idea what a school for supers was supposed to look like, but this wasn't what he had in mind. The place looked like a summer camp on a Long Island beach. It was deserted, abandoned for a while, just like Jason had mentioned over the phone, but a set of cabins still stood mostly intact safe for dust. In the distance, Will saw a pool, and what looked like an outdoors arena, but the view beyond that was blocked by hills.

Nico had changed into his Night Angel suit, sans mask, then shadow-stepped them to a house standing near the cabins, which he pointed out to Will as the location of the infirmary. The term didn't sit right with Will—it made him think too much of a school infirmary, without proper equipment he could use. But when they stepped inside, Will saw he'd worried for nothing: the house's first floor was like a miniature hospital, with a regular consultation room next to an MRI and an X-Ray machine. At the end of the hallway, a door was marked 'Surgery block'. The light was dim inside—probably an emergency system running on low power, but proof that the compound was still working.

Will wondered why anyone would need so much equipment. Nico must have read his expression, because he said, "A lot of the supers who came here still needed help controlling their powers. It leads to a lot of injuries. And Mr D's training was…demanding, at times." He made an awkward face, half-smile, half-grimace, like he was fond of the place but it also held bad memories.

"Is that why you came? Because you wanted to learn to control your powers?"

"No—that came easy enough. I needed to learn how to use them to…well, to do what I do now. I also needed to be able to fight without them."

"And where did this…Mr D go now? Couldn't you ask for his help against Grace?" Will wasn't sure he meant Jason, Jupiter, or both, but Nico just shook his head.

"After the Titan…After Luke went up against him, he disappeared. I still have contacts from my time here, like Leo, but they're all busy. There are criminals everywhere, and not enough of us to keep them all in check." He checked his phone. "It's gonna be time. Let's get back outside."

Will followed Nico out, blinking in the sun after the darkness inside the infirmary. That didn't seem to bother Nico, who walked up to a console next to the door. "The dampeners are still operational."

"That will…stop you from using your powers, right? Are you sure it's a good idea?"

Nico glanced at him. "Jason is certainly going to try to fight, if that's what you want to know. But not until you're done with Percy."

"You sound pretty sure of yourself."

"I may know a thing or two about Jason Grace. Things from back when we were friends. He probably thinks I was too young to remember." Nico sighed. "And I did my research on him as an adult, too."

"Because you were friends?"

"Because he's his father's best hit man. But really, none of that matters. He set up this meeting to make sure Percy was healthy—he wouldn't screw that up."

"What if he was lying, and this is a trap?"

"It's definitely a trap, even if he's not lying."

Will couldn't help but whimper a little. "You're not really making me feel better about coming along."

Nico let out a nervous chuckle. "Sorry. It'll be all right, don't worry."

Then, Nico's gaze shifted to somewhere behind Will, who turned around. Two men were coming from over one of the hills. The first he recognized easily—it was hard to forget Jason Grace in his apartment, not so long ago. And he'd only seen Percy on Nico's security footage, but he was fairly confident the second person looked like him.

It was almost underwhelming, that they were walking like that. Will had expected Jason to make a dramatic entrance. In a way, this felt worse—like Jason was telling them, 'I don't need a show of force to know that I'm stronger'.

Nico tapped the console behind him, and it emitted a faint buzz. Nothing felt different to Will, but judging by the way Jason suddenly tensed and Percy staggered as they walked down the hill, they'd felt the dampeners activate. He wondered what it must have felt like—to have a part of you completely disabled, if only temporarily.

Jason and Percy soon reached them, pausing a few steps away. "Hey, Nico," Percy said with a faint smile. Then, turning to Jason, "So…how do we do this?"

"Head inside. Nico and I will wait here. No foul play. Scout's honor."

Nico scoffed, but he didn't reply. Instead, he glanced at Will. "You're gonna be okay?"

Will nodded. "I'm just here to do my job." In a way, it was true. But it definitely didn't feel like it.

Moments later, Percy was lying down on the exam table, while Will ran a batter of test to identify any brain injuries. He didn't speak much, though Percy wasn't sure why. Still, he was Percy Jackson. Breaking the ice was within his abilities.

"So you're the guy who saved Nico's life? I still need to thank you for that."

A small smile blossomed on Will's lips. "You don't need to. You can thank me for this, later."

"I hear we were neighbors until that night. It's a shame we never met. I could have set you up with him sooner."

Will froze, his skin turning a few shades darker. "Um."

"Come on, don't tell me he didn't tell you anything yet! Or maybe you're straight? If so, I'm sorry I said anything. It's just, Nico told me he thought—"

"No, that's not it." His blush deepened, and Percy wondered if it was a good idea to run his mouth like that. Maybe Will wouldn't like the idea of Nico talking about him to Percy. "And we did talk about it. It's just—he didn't want to worry about…that…while you were in danger."

"Aw. I'm touched, even if he shouldn't have. Although apparently I wasn't in danger. Well, except from myself."

Will snorted at that. "How did you even hit your head?"

"It's pretty much what Jason said. The plumbing exploded while I was in the shower, and I hit the wall. At least I think it was the wall. It's pretty dumb."

"You had no idea what you were doing," Will argued. "I'd say it's a miracle you didn't cause more damage." He paused, then added, "So what's it like? Being a super?"

"So far, not all it's cracked up to be." Truth be told, he'd barely felt different until they'd come here. Percy only even realized he'd had a new awareness when Nico had done…whatever he'd done to cut him off from it. Hopefully it would be easier to sense after he left. "What about you? What's it like, working with a super?"

"I don't really work with him. We've barely run into each other a few times."

"I mean…how're you holding up? It's kind of my fault you're involved in all this. I just wanted to apologize."

Will shook his head. "I'm here because I want to help Nico, and because it's the right thing to do. I made my choice." He sighed. "I should probably run an MRI for good measure, but I think you're pretty much clear. You have a bruise, but it's only skin-deep. You got lucky."

Percy sat up. "But?"

"But the moment we walk out, they're going to fight, aren't they?"

"If you're worried about Nico, you shouldn't. He can handle himself."

"I know that," Will said. "But—what then? Is he going to have to kill Jason? How exactly do we get out of this situation?"

"Actually—I might know how."

They emerged in the sun to find Jason and Nico stuck in an intense stare-down. Nico was still leaning against the house's wall, next to the dampener's console, and Jason was standing a short distance away, his posture just as relaxed—but the way their gazes were locked belied their attitudes.

"He's fine," Will said, and he waited for the storm.

But it didn't come. Instead, Jason walked up to Percy—to make sure Nico couldn't shadow-travel away or out of genuine concern, Will wasn't sure. Either way, Will couldn't help but back away from Jason a bit, which he noticed.

"Thank you," he said, barely looking away from Percy. "This will save us all a lot of trouble."

"Unless you let Percy come back with us, you can keep your gratitude," Nico retorted, stepping up to Will's side. He'd put on his mask, covering his head, and his quarterstaff was in his hands.

Jason seemed nonplussed. "Unless you and your doctor are bulletproof and can survive explosions, I don't think you can really stop me from taking Percy back. You should be glad I'm not killing you just for good measure, Nico. This situation is enough of a stain on my reputation as it is—don't push me."

"I'd take my chances," Nico said. "I have my own tools, Jason."

"Don't," Percy said, stepping in between them. "Please." Jason put his hand on Percy's shoulder, trying to shove him out of the way, but Percy didn't budge. "Jason and I talked, and he has a point. No one will look for me with him. And—I'm going to need a teacher. He can do that."

"I can teach you too, Percy," Nico said. "Don't be ridiculous."

"I know, but—I'd rather you don't." Percy took a deep breath, and added, "You had your chance to tell me everything."

Will felt Nico flinch next to him more than he saw it, but to his credit, Nico didn't let it distract him. "You can't trust him. He could change his mind and kill you at any moment. We can talk it out later. Together."

Percy shook his head. "I don't want you to fight. So I'm doing this. Sorry, Nico. I promise I'll come back, but please, let me do this for you."

Nico took a step forward, and instantly, Jason raised a gun—where he'd been keeping it, Will wasn't sure. It also took him a moment to realize the arm wasn't aimed at Nico, but at himself. "Not another step, Nico. Listen to Percy, and nobody has to get hurt."

There was a still moment, Nico too far for his staff to be of any use, Jason with his gun raised at Will, and Percy in the middle, trying to defuse the situation. Will felt like he should say something, but he also felt like he didn't belong there—this was between the three of them, the sons of the Olympians. Will's presence only served to make Nico vulnerable—which he was sure Jason had been counting on.

Then Nico dropped his staff. "I'll let you go—but I will be coming for you, Jason."

"I know. I'll be waiting."

The car ride back was silent, until they were almost at Jason's apartment. It was still baffling to Percy that Jason was letting him see where he lived. Maybe Jason really wanted to show Percy he trusted him—or maybe it was another attempt at manipulating Percy. Into what, he had no idea.

Except…maybe he did, actually. The look of concern on Jason's face when he'd emerged from the infirmary was one he'd seen before, long ago, when they were kids. Percy still remembered what Jason had told Nico afterwards.

"I know what you're thinking," he said.

Jason only replied with a neutral grunt.

"You think I chose you over Nico. But you're wrong. I chose the chance for both of you to work together."

Jason scoffed. "I never knew you were delusional, Percy."

"Think about it, though. Nico wants your dad out of the way. You want to keep me safe, and that won't happen as long as he's in charge. Working together is the best way to deal with both problems at once."

"You want me to turn on my father? And why would I do that?"

"Because you're still in love with me?"

Jason froze, and the car lurched. For a moment, Percy was sure they'd hit something, but no—they'd reached Jason's home, and he'd stopped the car. "What did you say?"

"I heard you say it to Nico, all those years ago. You thought I was out from the painkillers, didn't you?" He paused. "At first, when you kidnapped me, I wasn't sure. But I'm right, aren't I? That's why you wouldn't kill me. That's why you made such a desperate arrangement, just in case I was hurt."

Jason licked his lips slowly—as if to stall before he spoke. "If—and I do say if—you were right, it would be shitty of you to use it against me."

Percy sighed. "You're right. I—I shouldn't have. I just—this is all happening so fast. First you show up in my life again, and you're an assassin, and now my dad was a crime boss and I'm a super…I just want things to be out in the open."

"Well…they are."

Percy was sure he could read the way Jason shifted in his seat—like he wanted to ask Percy how he felt. If there was any chance he could reciprocate. Could he? Percy had thought about it, back then, but he'd been too young to really understand love or sexuality. When he'd come out as bisexual to his mom, he remembered bringing it up—and the stress on Sally's face, which he now guessed had more to do with him mentioning Jason than with his sexuality.

But now Jason was an assassin, and he was holding Percy captive. Somewhat willingly, but still—it made everything more complicated.

So he didn't quite know what to say if Jason asked. All he could manage was, "For what it's worth, I meant it when I said I wanted you to teach me." He wasn't as mad at Nico as he'd pretended; that had been an easy way—a cruel way—to make Nico comply. But he was curious what Jason could teach him. He could count on Nico to teach him later if he still needed it—but Jason teaching him was a unique opportunity.

Jason only grunted again, and he killed the engine. "Come on. We shouldn't linger here too long. Someone might see you."

After Percy and Jason had vanished over the hill, Nico took his his mask, and dropped it on the ground—more frustrated than angry.

"I—I don't know what to say," Will said. "I feel like this is my fault."

Nico shook his head. "Jason would have found something else. Or he wouldn't have come at all. I just—I can't believe Percy would do this."

"He really didn't want you to fight Jason. He told me so himself, before we came out."

Nico turned to him, sighing, and Will realized there were tears in his eyes. "He did?" Then he shook his head. "Doesn't matter. I'm the one who's supposed to be a hero—I should have found a better way to end this."

His voice broke in a sob, and though he didn't start crying, he kept his head lower. Will took a tentative step forward, then, seeing Nico wasn't reacting, crossed the distance between them. He cupped his face, and said, "You did what you could with such a short time to prepare. You had more at stake than Jason—you weren't at your advantage. You'll get another chance to get Percy back."

Nico looked up and met Will's eyes, then managed a faint smile. "You're right. Thanks. But I'm serious, you can't blame yourself for this. You're not—"

"A weakness? I kind of feel like one. Not even in a bad way, just—" He smiled. "You know. It's kind of flattering, in a way."

Nico chuckled. "I'm pretty sure there's a legacy of damsels in distress who would disagree."

But he was smiling, his eyes lighting up in spite of the defeat he'd just taken, and that smile drew Will in, literally as much as figuratively. Before he was thinking about it properly, his lips were on Nico, his hand slid from Nico's jaw to his hair and he wrapped his free arm behind Nico's back. Nico let out a small, surprised noise—a gasp, or a whimper. But then he leaned in, kissing Will back and clutching fistfuls of Will's shirt. Nico was still smiling, and Will smiled too, feeling like his heart was about to burst.

Then he really burst out—with a laugh, forcing him to break the kiss. "I'm sorry," he managed to say while catching his breath.

"Sorry?" Nico said, sounding offended.

"I know what you said last night, but—I couldn't resist. Besides, Percy said we shouldn't have waited at all."

Nico raised an eyebrow. "Oh, he did, didn't he? Well, maybe it's a good thing he's out of my reach right now."

Will laughed again, and Nico joined him, and Will couldn't help but kiss that smile again. Nico took over this time, flipping them around and pressing Will against the house's wall as he deepened their kiss. Will felt Nico grinding against him, was keenly aware of the padding of his suit and the hard lines of Nico's body underneath—lines that were seared into his memory already.

His legs were about to give out by the time they parted, out of breath, but he would have happily collapsed if it meant kissing Nico for a while longer. But Nico took a step back, and turned away from him, picking up his mask and staff in the dirt.

When Nico didn't move, he took a step towards him. "Was this okay?" he asked. "I—don't want you to feel like I'm pressuring you."

Nico shook his head, and turned back to face Will with a smile. "It's more than okay. I guess Percy's right—it didn't make sense to wait. I haven't been a superhero for long, but you don't really get a reprieve. Asking you to wait until there's one—it wouldn't be fair to you." After a moment, he added, "I mean…if you still want to?"

Will nodded. "Yes. Yes, I definitely still want to."

The grin that bloomed on Nico's face was different—closer to his playfulness this morning, when Will had shown up in his underwear. "Let me turn off the dampeners and we'll be out of here."

Chapter Text

There was a moment, after they reappeared in Nico's apartment, where Will wasn't sure what would happen. Could they just take back where they'd left off, or would the change of setting break the spell?

But Nico's grin was still here, mischievous and inviting, as he laid his mask and staff down on a nightstand—making Will realize Nico had taken them straight to his bedroom. "Just give me a second to get out of this," he said, gesturing at his Night Angel suit. "Unless you'd rather help me?"

He didn't need to ask twice. Will crossed the space between them in just one step, his lips finding Nico's as his fingers worked from the memory of that first night, when he'd had to undress an unconscious, wounded Nico. One thing was for certain: he much preferred doing it to a Nico who was responsive to his every touch. The lack of blood certainly didn't hurt.

Nico guided his hands, showing him what to do when he fumbled, and soon, his suit was off, abandoned on the floor. Without the padding that it offered, in nothing but his underwear, Nico looked significantly less bulky—though his muscles were still too defined for him to look anything but imposing in spite of his height.

And imposing he was when he pushed Will back against the bed, forcing him to sit down. Nico straddled his lap and kissed him, then pulled back, and Will felt fascinated by the sight in front of him as Nico tugged at Will's shirt and pulled it over his head.

When their lips crashed together again, Nico pushed him down on the mattress, his strong hands roaming across Will's chest with unabashed interest and curiosity. The contact set Will's nerves ablaze, as if he was just realizing what was happening here, and who it was happening with. As Nico's lips moved away from his and down his neck, settling over his pulse point, it was all Will could do to throw his head back and feel.

A moan escaped his lips in a most disgraceful way, but he couldn't bring himself to care. He needed more; he got rid of his own pants, shimmying under Nico's weight while Nico seemed too intent on leaving a mark on Will's skin to care. When he got them loose, his underwear slid alongside—more than he'd planned, but not exactly an issue in this context.

Still, that got a reaction out of Nico, who pulled up just enough to smirk down at him. "Eager, are you?" He looked down at Will's cock, already hard and leaking as it pressed against Nico's stomach, and reached out to it. He gave one stroke—just enough to make Will's breath hitch. "I guess that means it's my turn?"

He got on his knees, then off the bed completely, standing over it and staring down at Will for a moment. His gaze made Will blush, partly in embarrassment at his own vulnerability, partly with heat and desire as he recognized the appreciative look in Nico's eyes. Then Nico hooked his fingers in his own waistband, slowly pulling his underwear down while he cast a teasing smile at Will.

Will propped himself up on his elbows and drank in the sight of Nico slowly uncovering himself for him. Taking in the sight of Nico's erection, of the desire he returned for Will.

Then Nico crawled back on the bed, leaning down to kiss Will as he tangled their bodies together. Will could feel every line of Nico pressed against him, feel the heat of their cocks resting side by side, and the rush of sensations that this simple contact brought already. His hand slid between their bodies, meeting Nico's as they both reached for the other's cock, and for a moment, they froze and burst into giggles.

Still, that was enough waiting. Will bucked his hips up, the friction making both their breaths catch and replacing hilarity with feverish heat. Their slow kisses made way for frenetic movement—of their hands, of their hips, of their whole bodies.

It only took a couple minutes of this for Will to feel a familiar pressure build up within himself. Nico noticed the way his body tensed, and the hand he had wrapped around Will's cock moved faster as he propped himself up on his other hand. Will stared up at him, but his confusion was short-lived, washed away by his orgasm and the feeling of Nico's hand relentlessly jerking him through it.

Only when he came down did he see the hungry gaze Nico had kept fixed on him, and Will chuckled. "I hope I didn't look too ridiculous." He'd had a few one-night stands criticize his o-face in the past.

"I thought you looked beautiful," Nico replied.

Will gaped at him briefly, taken aback by his earnest tone, the spark in his eyes. Then he sat up to kiss Nico, to pull him closer, to just take in that this was real. His momentum was cut short when he felt Nico's still very hard cock pressed somewhere against his thigh. He glanced down, then smirked at Nico. "I guess it's my turn?" he said, echoing Nico's words.

He pushed Nico off of him, rolling to pin him down on the mattress. Nico gasped, but he remained still as Will trailed kisses down his chest, slowly working his way towards his crotch. When he reached, he paused briefly, glancing to see Nico's dark, lust-filled gaze. Then, without hesitation, he sank down, taking Nico's cock in his mouth in one smooth motion. The way Nico's back arched was enough to make Will proud of his technique—he was out of practice, but he guessed the ability to suppress his gag reflex wasn't something he could just forget.

Will moved after a still moment, finding the pace that got him the best reaction out of Nico. Nico's hands tangled in his hair, but Nico was too far gone to guide him anymore—the grip he had felt more like he was holding on for dear life. Will chuckled at that, knowing Nico would feel it on his cock. Nico moaned, then tensed when Will bobbed his head up again. He came silently, but hard, heat filling Will's mouth as Nico's whole body went lax under him. Will just kept going, swallowing and sucking around Nico ceaselessly.

Nico was the one who stopped him, pulling at his shoulders gently. Will obeyed without hesitation, letting Nico pull him into a kiss, reveling in the soft moan Nico made when he tasted himself. Will sank into Nico's embrace, locking their bodies together, pressing his weight on Nico's.

When Nico broke their kiss, they were both out of breath and Will was half hard again. "Well, that—happened," Nico said.

"You're not—having second thoughts, right?"

"You're the one who's putting yourself in harm's way for my sake. I don't think it'd be right for me to reject you, even if I wanted to."

Will chuckled. "That's good enough for me." He leaned down for another, quick kiss. "Nico, I—" He paused, unsure what he was trying to say. "I'm happy I found you in that alley."

Nico smiled up at him. "So am I. I mean, not just because you saved my life."

"I think you've made up for that, by now."

"Only because I put you in danger in the first place. It doesn't count."

"Shut up," Will said, giggling. "I'm not interested in the brooding type. I've read Cecil's fanfic—it was not appealing."

Nico raised an eyebrow. "Well, I can think of a few ways to distract me from my brooding." His hand wrapped around Will's cock, gentle but firm. "Do you mind if I turn off the lights? I know a few ways to be creative with my powers."

"How could I say no to that?" Will retorted.

Jason had taken Percy literally with his idea of teaching him to use his powers. And apparently it didn't involve giving Percy any free time.

Dinner was still awkward after Percy had confronted Jason about his feelings, but after that, Jason dragged Percy to a bare room in his apartment. It was like a miniature dojo, complete with soft mats and a few human-shaped targets neatly sorted to the side. There were also a bunch of devices Percy couldn't identify—probably something to do with Jason's powers. Compared to the rest of the apartment ant its relative lack of personality, it was also surprisingly distinct, all in deep, electric blues and stark blacks, with a dash of purple here and there.

"Is that what the real Jason is like?" he asked, teasing. "The one place you're actually at home is the training room?"

Jason ignored his quip, and came in after Percy, carrying a jug of water. "I'm gonna have to make a few changes to the place if your powers deal with water. But wrecking my bathroom again was out of the question. Besides, we need to start small. Teach you control."

Percy eyed the jug. "Okay. How do we do that?"

"Catch." Jason tossed him something, which Percy barely managed to get a hold on. It was a watch, identical to the one Jason wore—except, Percy remembered, it was more than a watch.

"It's a—how did you call it?"

"A vitalis detector. Few supers can actually sense the vitalis with their own senses, and those who do usually have powers that relate to it."

"Like what?"

"Like a human version of the vitalis dampeners you saw at the school. Or worse. The Titan could drain it in other supers, strengthening his strength along the way."

"The Titan?" Percy had heard the name before, outside of the news—Nico must have mentioned it at some point. "So he was like a powers thief?"

"Something like that. But you're not—or at least, it's not likely. By the looks of it, you inherited your dad's abilities, and that dealt with water. Hence the detector. If the level fluctuates, it means a super is using their powers nearby. It can help you not be caught off-guard, or it can help you test your own powers."

Percy stared at the watch's dial, watching the gauge on it, under the hands that showed the time. "So how does that help me control my powers?"

"Sometimes, when you start, your powers barely have a visible effect. The detector will tell us that you are doing something even if we can't see it. Actually, it's better if we start with something that's now showy—less chance of an accident that way. Just try to move the water in this jug. Stir it, or something."

"How?"

"Just try. Your powers are a part of you—just will it to happen the same way you will your arms to move. It's not any more complicated than that."

Percy scoffed. "Sure. Sounds simple."

Will had no idea how long they spent lying silently on Nico's bed in the afterglow. They were side by side, Nico on his back and Will on his side, half draped over Nico's body, his face buried in Nico's hair.

He couldn't remember the last time things had been this easy with anyone. He had had a few dates over the years, but none of them had been this serious—even the relationships that had lasted much longer than the short time he had known Nico. And med school had eaten so much of his time, he hadn't even slept with anyone lately.

"You know," Nico finally said, "it had been way too long."

"I hope you're not implying you went for me just because I was available."

Nico snorted. "No, I—I told you I had a crush on you. I just mean—this whole vigilante business turned out to be lonelier than I anticipated."

"Did you never date anyone since you started?" Will asked. "Or even just sleep with anyone?"

"I have, actually. Just a couple flings—at school, people tended to get around." He smirked. "But, well, I was working hard to get over Percy, and then the school closed, and we were all scattered. Being a superhero was a lot easier when Mr D was there to keep us all together."

"But it closed—because of the Titan, right?"

"Yeah."

Nico fell silent, and Will felt the need to say something. "I didn't know you used to have a thing for Percy."

Nico shrugged. "Well—yeah, it's not something I'm particularly proud of. I don't think he knows, and I've been over it for a while, so it doesn't matter."

"It's great, that you could keep your relationship with him through that. I don't think most people could do that."

"Well, I am a angel," Nico retorted, grinning.

"You're a dork is what you are."

Nico laughed, and Will soon joined him. It felt nice, to share this easy moment with the boy Will had fallen for so fast and finally gotten with—in some way. It couldn't last.

"At some point, we're gonna have to get out of bed and address the situation, you know," Nico said.

"I know. But maybe it can wait until morning?"

Nico scoffed. "Because night is totally not when a vigilante does his best job. I have to figure out where Jason lives, and that means breaking into the police precinct. Hopefully his official address is also his real one—in any case, it's a place to start."

Will groaned. "Buzzkill." Still, he sighed. "Sorry—I know this is important to you. I'm just being selfish."

"I'm the one who's sorry," Nico said as he sat up. "I'd stay if I could, but—you knew this would be complicated, right?"

"I did," Will said, nodding. "And—what's this, anyway? What are we?"

"I was hoping 'boyfriends' would cover it?" Nico replied, suddenly tentative. "If—you know, if that's okay with you."

"Boyfriends is perfect," Will said, leaning up to kiss him. "Go on, then. Do what you have to. I'll be here when you return."

Nico closed his eyes, letting out a soft sigh. "Thanks for understanding. And—try to avoid the server room, just in case Jason comes back there somehow. He won't be able to get in the rest of the apartment, so you should be safe down here."

"I know. Don't worry about me."

"Of course I'll worry about you," Nico said.

"It's not working," Percy said, gritting his teeth. "Is this really the best advice you can give me? We've been at this for hours now!"

"Whatever it is that triggered your powers the first time," Jason said, "you can't rely on it forever."

"But maybe we could try something else, at least?"

Jason narrowed his eyes at him. "Giving up already? So much for proving your worth." He stood up, pacing with frustrated energy.

"I don't remember saying anything about proving my worth," Percy retorted. He stood up as well, if only because sitting didn't seem to help any.

"Really? You think I'm teaching you out of the kindness of my heart?"

"Your heart had something to do with it, last I checked."

Jason stopped pacing instantly, turning on Percy. "What did you just say?" He walked towards Percy, his face a mask of fury. "There are three ways this ends. One, which is the least likely, you somehow convince me to run off together, and if you think I'll defy my father and the entire Olympian gang for a defenseless idiot, I'll show you just how much I'm not like Nico." He stepped closer. "Two, you prove your worth and realize you're better off working for us rather than being on the run your whole life." A few more steps, and suddenly Jason was crowding into Percy's space, forcing him to step back. "Three, I kill you because you're useless, and I can't afford the weakness."

Percy's eyes went wide with fear. "You wouldn't—"

"Do you really think so?" Jason snarled. "That just because I gave you a chance, I won't kill you if it's the best thing to do? That I'm stupid enough to—"

Water exploded from behind Jason, cutting him off as it flew through the air and knocked him to the side. Frozen, Percy took in the scene in front of him: the broken jug of water, lying in shredded pieces on the floor; and the water itself, hovering above the ground next to Percy in a liquid tendril. He blinked, and reached out to touch it and make sure it was real.

He turned to Jason, and the water followed his movement, wrapping around him like a protective pet. Except it wasn't moving of its own accord, of course.

Jason's face had changed once more when he stood up. The fury was gone, replaced with a satisfied half-smile. "At least we don't have to worry about a lack of power," he said. "Time for a break." Without another word, he turned on his heels and walked towards the door.

"Were you trying to scare me on purpose?" Percy called after him. "So did you mean what you said about killing me? Jason?"

Percy heard Jason's chuckle, but he got no answer to his question.

Chapter Text

The precinct was plunged in the dark—Nico's territory. Yet he couldn't feel at ease in it anymore—not after the way the Grace family had beaten him on his own turf three times now. That night in the alleyway…if it hadn't been for Will, Nico would have died. And since then Jason had managed to take Percy away—and keep him. Their second confrontation hadn't even involved any powers.

He should have prepared better. Will would have helped evacuate Percy some other way, and maybe Nico would have taken a beating, but at least Percy would be safe right now, instead of being captive with the son of the man Percy could take down with one testimony.

The whole thing was a mess, and even the thrill of a nighttime mission couldn't distract him from his thoughts. Or maybe that was what had just happened with Will. Amazing, yes—but as much of a mess as the rest. It was one thing to give in to his desires in the heat of the moment, to decide there would never be a right time, but it didn't make their position any easier. At best, Will would be in trouble with his work for going missing; at worst, Will would never be able to have a normal life anymore.

Scratch that; at worst, he'll die.

Nico scoffed at the intrusive thought, even if—or perhaps because—it was upsettingly true. He didn't regret his decision, not after Will had made the first step knowing what he was getting into; all Nico could do was try for the best now.

And that meant taking the Olympians once and for all, starting with Jason. His office was, to little surprise, the nicest in the precinct. It was like someone had conveniently forgotten the hierarchy of police ranks, or that this office existed and was probably meant for the chief and not a regular detective.

The room might be trapped, of course. His mask's internal display showed him no vitalis activity outside his own, but there was still the possibility of more mundane traps. Unlikely, in such a public place, but Nico would be foolish to try.

Still, Nico was in his environment. He reached for the shadows around him, tightening them into solid, warm tendrils—enough to mimick human body heat—and spreading them around the room. He used the shadows for a first, thorough search; when nothing happened, he stepped inside, tentatively.

No trap sprung on him, which he saw as a good start. He walked over to the desk, turning on the computer. It was protected by a password, but Nico had come prepared: he pulled out a flash drive encoded with one of Leo's wonderful programs. He plugged it in, and let it operate while he looked around the rest of the office.

There wasn't much there: neatly-sorted files, awards and medals organized on the walls, a small bookshelf with spare glasses resting in front of a few books with no apparent common thread. A few pictures on the desk—to Nico's surprise, two of them were of Jason as a child, one with Percy and Nico, and another with just Percy. The detail seemed odd—Jason must have known about their family history for longer than Nico had. Why would he have those keepsakes?

Another of the picture was of young Jason in the arms of a teenage girl a few years older than him. Jason's sister, Thalia; Nico hadn't known her too well back then, since he was so young compared to her. It had taken Nico a while to find any trace of her after he'd learned the whole truth, and even then, the trail had gone cold. At the very least, it looked like she had escaped from her father's influence.

Nico tore his gaze from the picture, and looked at the files. The first that caught his eye was the case of the vigilante now known as Night Angel. Nico wasn't sure when or how Cecil had managed to get the moniker out in the public, but he made note to thank him for it. Much better to be thought of as an angel than a ghost. Maybe he should ask Leo to alter his suit accordingly, too.

His cheerful stream of thought stopped when he read further into the file. Information on Will was included, as well as an unfiled missing person report—dated for the next day, likely prepared in advance so Jason could hunt for Will officially as soon as it was reasonable to assume Will was missing instead of having gone without notice. Nico considered taking it out, but Jason could just make another report if he wanted; better to leave no evidence at all.

With the information on Will came notes on his friends, including Cecil Castellan. Jason had made the connection between Nico's new nickname and who had first spread it, it would seem. Next to it, an annotation was hand-written: "likely just PR; doesn't know anything beyond what he's given". It was a small relief; in the end, this meant Cecil was one more person for Nico to watch over.

Finally, Nico found the file he'd expected: the case on Percy's supposed disappearance. Yet after looking at the file further, it became clear to Nico that this wasn't an official file at all. If anything, it looked like something that should be filed, but hadn't; like Jason was ready to claim he'd forgotten to do the paperwork if someone called him out on it, but hadn't wanted to make Percy's disappearance public.

Nico wondered if there was a link there. The pictures, the file, Jason sparing Percy but insisting to keep him prisoner…

Memories of a conversation they had as children came to the surface.

"Do you love anyone?" Nico had asked, like the young kid he was. Maybe they'd just watched a movie where true love conquered all—or had someone read them a fairytale? A book? Whatever it was, Nico had immediately been curious.

"I don't know," Jason had said. "How do you know?"

"Well, is there anyone you'd do anything for?" A song kicked into Nico's memory—from the movie Enchanted? Was that what they'd watched?

"There's Percy," Jason said.

He'd looked over to Percy's sleeping form in the bed next to them. Nico didn't remember how he'd ended up there, but he remembered the faint him of hospital equipment. Yes, that was it: he'd been hurt, and Jason and Nico had come to visit their friend and watch a movie together. Then, with Percy right there and knocked out from the meds, Jason had told Nico he loved Percy.

Maybe Nico was reading too much into an admittedly fuzzy memory. But the pieces fit too well together for him to dismiss it on-hand. If there was one thing Mr D had taught him, it's that a super's instincts were an important tool in their arsenal.

He was still deep in thoughts when the computer came alive. The virus was already working to clone it on one of the servers at home, but Nico started searching through it. Anything that could help—contacts, locations, bills. The list of potential places Nico could go next grew too fast to his liking, but he guessed it was better than a dead end.

The drive flashed red, and Nico pulled it out, turning off Jason's computer and willing the shadows to put the room back the way Nico had found it. It was one of the first tricks he'd learned after discovering his own power—one that had come in handy when a teenaged Nico wanted to clean his room and pass Sally Jackson's thorough inspection. Looking at Jason's office, Nico thought he would have a similar attention to detail—one that would be hard to fool.

He made his way to the door, but froze before it. On his mask's display, an indicator went off—the vitalis detector. But instead of fluctuating up like it usually did when a super came nearby, it went down. Just like—

"Oh no," Nico muttered. He threw himself back, an old sense of terror surging through his veins even before the door opened.

Nico attempted to shadow-travel away, but his power was already robbed from him even before Luke Castellan came into view. He'd given up on his Titan attire: the elaborate bronze armor had made way for a simpler outfit, dark jeans and a black hoodie. It would have looked almost innocuous, if not for the way his hood blended shadows to hide his face in a way that could have fooled anyone but Nico. His gloves were pretty distinct too, as were the wings on his shoes. Nico had seen similar equipment at Mr D's school, but the model looked newer. Clearly, Luke had found his own superhacker to work with.

"Long time no see," Luke greeted him. "Hear you've been making friends with my brother. That's rough, man."

"What do you want?"

Luke considered him briefly, and through the shadows surrounding him, Nico was sure he saw him smile. "You're the one shoving your nose in my business, Nico. You sent up a storm on the vitalis detectors here. I'm the cavalry."

"This is Jason Grace's office. Why would the alarm get you to come?"

"Oh, come on. I know you didn't complete your training with the old man, but you can probably put that together, can't you?"

"Cut the shit, Luke. Make your threats, fight me, I don't care, but don't toy with me."

Luke shrugged. "Fair enough."

He lunged at Nico, but Nico had been expecting it. He ducked and rolled, his training helping him where his powers were failing.

Nico remembered Luke's powers from his uprising against Mr D: he was fast and strong, but did so by stealing other supers' strength. With just Nico around, he would be dangerous, but not so much that Nico couldn't stand his ground. Nico took the staff handle from his belt, deployed the weapon, blocked Luke's next strike and swung back at him, forcing Luke to retreat.

Luke was no longer blocking the door, and he'd left it open; that was all Nico needed. He ran for it, sprinting across the precinct's open space outside of Jason's office. He knew he couldn't outrun Luke while he had a hold on Nico's own powers, so he didn't bother going all the way towards the exit. He needed to hide.

Mr D had taught him all about picking the right cover in battle, but then again, Luke had been Mr D's student before Nico, and he'd defeated him. So Nico ignored the best spots, and rolled under a desk instead, keeping his breathing under control to avoid making noise. He didn't think Luke had a heightened sense of hearing, but then again, he had gear to assist him like Nico did. At least Leo had made Nico's suit to hide him from thermal imagery.

"I don't know if I should be impressed that you're not dead or feel ashamed for you," Luke taunted as he exited Jason's office. "Mr D had a lot of hope for you, you know. He told me so, the last time we fought." In an imitation of their old mentor's voice, he added, "'My new student will show you what it means to be a true hero!'" He scoffed. "Apparently he didn't have enough faith in you to stay in touch, though."

Nico remained still, listening to Luke's voice as he moved around. When he came close, Nico tensed up, readying himself to fight, but Luke walked past his hiding place—too obvious to even bother checking, apparently. Nico hesitated for just a moment, then slipped out from under the desk and struck at Luke again. His staff connected with Luke's back, sending him sprawling on the ground with a shocked cry.

"Maybe when you're not cheating," Nico spat as he struck again, aiming for Luke's temple. Luke's body went slack, but Nico didn't bother to check on him—Luke's powers made his body impervious to most forms of harm. All Nico had done was buy himself a few seconds, at most.

So he ran off, leaving the precinct before Luke could come after him again. The moment he was out of Luke's reach and his powers returned to him, he shadow-traveled away, heading straight home.

"You're back already?" Will rubbed his eyes, trying to chase sleep away, and blindly reached for his underwear. "Did you find anyth—holy shit, Nico, are you okay?" Nico was shaking like a leaf. Will couldn't see any wounds on him, but he still gave up on his search, got out of bed, and gently grabbed Nico's shoulders. "What happened?"

"I—" Nico slowly reached up to his mask, removed it, and dropped it on the floor. "I'm fine. I'm not hurt, I mean." He glanced at Will, his gaze running over his body, and smirked. "You're naked."

Will couldn't help but smile back, feeling himself blushing. "Um—yeah. But don't think you can just distract me like that. Something clearly happened."

"I found a few leads. Cloned Jason's computer—I'll ask Leo to come by and take a look at it, see if there's anything we can use. And I found—" He paused. "I think I know why Jason went through all this to keep Percy alive. Unfortunately, that doesn't really help me, because I don't know what he'll do about it."

"Can you tell me?"

Nico glanced up at him. "Yeah, I—when we were kids, he told me he loved Percy. Like, romantically."

"You think he still does?"

"Or at least that his old feelings kicked in when he was about to kill him. But the longer they stay together, the longer he can realize his feelings have changed, or that Percy will never reciprocate, or—" Nico sighed. "Or worse, Percy could fall for him. It'd be his style, falling for the wrong guy."

Will raised an eyebrow. "Meaning what exactly?"

"After his first serious girlfriend broke up with him, Percy's mostly been in a streak of bad relationships. Culminating with"—Nico shuddered—"Luke Castellan. That was before he became the Titan. I'd just started at Mr D's, he came over at home to check on me, flirted with Percy instead. They dated until Luke went public as a major supervillain." He sighed. "Anyway, that doesn't change anything. I did find that Jason made the connection between you and Cecil, so we'll have to keep an eye on him too, at some point. Especially because—"

There it was—whatever had shaken Nico so dramatically. "If you don't want to tell me—"

Nico shook his head. "Luke was there. Said I triggered a vitalis detector in Jason's alarm."

"But—Luke hasn't even been seen for years."

"I know. And now it looks like he's working with the Graces."

"But you made it out okay, right?"

Nico nodded. "Yeah. I—I guess I've been preparing myself for this. I mean, unconsciously or something. But I don't know where he stands."

The worry in Nico's eyes made Will understand—it wasn't directed at himself. "You think he'll go after Percy."

"Maybe not right away. But it won't take long before he connects the dots. I haven't gone after Jason so far, and Jason hasn't filed the missing person report on Percy like he should have—"

"Do you think we should call him?"

Nico blinked at him. "Call who?"

"Jason. I'm sure you can call him back on the number he used, right? It's probably unhackable like yours, so he'd have no reason to disconnect it?"

"I don't really want to tip my hand, but—" Nico huffed out a frustrated sigh. "Maybe you're right. I'll think about it."

"Are you going to investigate those leads you found, then?"

"I should, but—they might be on high alert by now. Better to wait. Besides—" He hooked his arms behind Will's neck, pulling him closer. "I need the rest. And some time with my new boyfriend."

"I'm gonna pass out," Percy said—whined, if he was honest with himself. He dropped down on the mat of Jason's training room, staring up at the ceiling. "Why did no one tell me it would take this much work to become a superhero?"

Jason came into his field of view, staring down at him with thinly-veiled disapproval. "One: I'm not teaching you to be a superhero—I'll be happy if you can just not kill yourself. Two: did you really think it'd be easy? Three: we've been going at it for one evening. If you're already exhausted, I don't think you'll make it."

"Thanks for the encouragement, teacher. Any other wise words?"

Jason scoffed, and held out his hand. "Get up."

Percy considered him briefly, rolled his eyes, and grabbed Jason's hand. Jason had to pull him up more than he pushed himself off the ground, but he managed to get on his feet, landing too close to Jason for comfort. Yet neither of them pulled away. "You know, I should thank you. You're harsh, but at least it's working."

"I'm pretty sure this is how—how did you say it—the 'Stockholm Syndrome bullshit' begins."

Percy winced. "Look, I'm—I'm sorry. Not because I was hostile to you. But I didn't have to be an asshole about it. Especially since I knew how you felt about me."

"I don't remember ever saying you were right."

"Give me a break, Jase. You're not as good at pretending as you think you are." He paused, noting the way Jason gulped and shifted on his feet, still without stepping away from Percy. "You know, a few years ago, I thought I actually liked you back. I even told my mom about it when I came out to her. She freaked out—of course, I had no idea why." He forced himself to stop ranting, and took a deep breath. "Maybe you should help me figure out if I did or not? Just one kiss. Plus, that way, you can prove how totally not in love with me you are."

Jason's eyes narrowed at him. "Percy—"

"I'm seri—"

He was cut off when Jason closed the distance between them, kissing Percy with uncontrolled hunger, opposite to everything Percy had seen of him so far. And—okay, he could definitely get behind that. Jason's lips on his; Jason's hands on his body, one pressed at the low of his back, the other grasping at the hair on the back of his neck; Jason's hips grinding into his own. It was everything teenaged Percy had imagined during his sexual awakening, and then some.

So it was almost painful to break the kiss. He was out of breath, unable to make himself step away just yet, but he also couldn't let it go any further. "Well," he managed to say. "At least that's out in the open now."

Jason was staring at him, his expression a confused blend of emotions that Percy couldn't decipher. "Why did you do this?" he finally asked. "What's your game?"

"I—don't know," Percy admitted. "Unlike you all, I have no idea what's going on. I have no idea what I'm doing. I just wanted one answer." He finally mustered the energy to shrug off Jason's hands and take a few steps back. "It doesn't change anything. I'm not going to be the stupid victim who falls for his captor just because we have history."

"Percy—"

"No, really. It's not even about whether I think you're consciously trying to manipulate me. I just—I don't want to be that guy again." He turned on his heels and walked towards the exit.

"Percy, wait."

Percy ignored him. Let Jason see how fun it was to have someone walk out on you when you're desperate for an answer.

Chapter Text

Will woke up to a loud, unknown voice reaching him from another part of the apartment. Startled, he reached for his clothes in a hurry, adrenaline rushing instantly. Was it Luke? Some other of Jupiter Grace's goons? Where was Nico?

His frantic questioning was put to an end when he heard laughing from the other room. Nico's laugh was in there, unmistakable in the way it immediately soothed him. Curious, Will came out of the bedroom.

"So that's your new bae?" the newcomer said as soon as Will came into view? "Damn, I can see why you wanted to keep him safe."

"I keep everyone safe, Leo," Nico retorted. "But yes, this is Will." He crossed the room in a few quick steps, giving Will a brief kiss on the lips. "Morning. This is Leo—I mentioned him to you."

"The superhacker?" Will glanced at him; he did not look like much, but then again, neither did Nico. "Thanks for the phone."

Leo walked over to shake his hand, a wide smile on his face. "From what I understand, I should thank you for saving Nico's life. So I'd say we're even." He turned to Nico. "Not that I don't enjoy meeting the boyfriend, I think you wanted me to take a look at something?"

Nico nodded. "I cloned Jason Grace's computer."

Leo's eyebrows shot up, and he gave an impressed whistle. "And you made it out in one piece?"

"Narrowly, but yeah." Nico handed Leo a device—some kind of computer drive, Will thought. "Can you tell me—"

"Say no more. I'll get you all the information there is to get out of this baby." He strode to Nico's computer and plugged in the external drive. Then, to Will's surprise, he stood still, while the screen flashed with information too fast for Will to read anything.

"Um—what're you doing?"

Nico signaled him to stay quiet. "Leo's a superhacker. Literally, a super hacker. He can communicate directly with computers."

"So he's not really a hacker?"

"I do have a degree in computer science," Leo interjected—though he sounded distracted. "And another in engineering. Couple PhDs, too. Talking to machines is only one part of the job. But it does make it easier." He sighed. "This is gonna take a while. Encrypted data and all."

"How long?"

"An hour? Maybe two. Make yourself comfortable, folks."

"Wake up. There's a lot more training to do before you can be considered ready."

Percy groaned as he stirred on Jason's couch. "Seriously?" He glanced at the clock. "It's been what, four hours?"

"Six. Much more than enough."

"I'm pretty sure young adults like us need at least seven or eight hours of sleep—"

"You'll live."

Percy considered Jason's contained expression; all traces of his abandon the previous night were gone. In a way, Percy was grateful for that. He wasn't sure what had been going through his mind when he'd asked Jason to kiss him. He'd hoped to get the upper hand on Jason somehow, to create a weakness to exploit. But now, he was left wondering if he wasn't the weak one. If Jason tried to kiss him again, in spite of everything he'd said, he wasn't sure he'd stop him. So the distance was preferable by a whole lot.

And yet, he had meant what he'd said. He couldn't fall for Jason. Not after everything: not after the kidnapping, not after his own decision to go with Jason to prevent a fight with Nico. Not after Luke.

He hadn't thought of Luke in a while, but he guessed the comparison made sense. Beyond their similar looks, they had a lot in common—and not just the good things. Which only made it more pressing to avoid even thinking about a relationship with Jason that went beyond not getting killed by him.

"Do I really need more training?" he said, keeping his voice casual. "I can already control my powers pretty well." To demonstrate, he lifted the water in Jason's glass, bringing it inches from his face. He considered splashing Jason with it, but at the glare Jason cast him, he decided against it, and put the water back in his glass.

Jason remained silent for a moment after that. "You did get the hang of it pretty easily. But you'll have to build up strength with it. And you need to learn to think with it. In the heat of the moment, it has to be as natural as walking or breathing."

"'In the heat of the moment'?" Percy repeated. "What happened to being content with making sure I don't kill myself?"

Jason didn't answer. Percy wondered if that was their thing now, bantering until one of them asked a question the other wouldn't answer. Then he chastised himself. They couldn't have a thing. That was more intimate than Percy could afford.

"Okay, the good news is, I decrypted Jason's data."

It was evening already; Leo had clearly overestimated his abilities or underestimated Jason's defenses. More importantly, his phrasing already got a sigh out of Will.

"But you didn't find out where he lives," Nico retorted, glum, echoing Will's thoughts.

Leo nodded as he plopped on a couch. "That's the bad news, yeah. Guess he's more careful than that. Shouldn't be surprising, in his line of work." He sighed. "Maybe you could try going through other people's computers at the precinct, but I doubt Jason has many guests over."

"He's gotta have a legal address, at least," Will suggested.

"Yeah, but he doesn't live there," Nico replied. "I checked, believe me."

"I'm kind of amazed," Leo said. "The computer syncs with his phone. Usually, that means I can access GPS history, especially since his phone probably has an AI on board. But Jason either wipes the record regularly, or he got someone to customize the program to leave no record at all. Either way, you're not going to find out where he lives from this."

Nico sighed. "All this trouble for nothing."

"Not quite. I've got a list of contacts which were probably not meant for your average cop to see. If we cross-reference it to what you found in his office, we can guess a few places you can start investigating. The closer the contact, the likelier that they'll know where he lives, or know someone who will. At the very least, the data can help you prioritize."

"Prioritizing." Nico scoffed. "Fantastic."

"There's also some evidence to support Percy's testimony—if he makes it to the trial."

"When he makes it," Nico corrected. "What did you find? I thought Jupiter left no trace—especially on his son's computer."

"It's not something Jupiter left," Leo said. "If anything, it looks like Jason was digging dirt on his own. It's should be printed now." He walked back over to the computer, grabbing a few sheets of paper, and dropped them in front of Nico. "Correspondence, between Jupiter and a few known Olympian members. He arranged for his opponents to be gathered in one place on the night of the murder—but one of them had to make sure Percy was there, too."

When Will stared at Nico, he wore a frown to match Will's own. "That's—" Nico stuttered, "that doesn't—"

"Why was Percy there that night?" Will asked—though he was pretty sure both Nico and Leo were already asking themselves that question.

"I—I don't know," Nico said. "He was going to meet someone, I think? I didn't really bother to ask."

Will nodded—he could imagine Nico had other things in mind at the time. "Why would Jupiter want a witness on the scene?"

"Maybe it's not a witness," Leo said. "The emails specifically mention Percy."

"He wanted an excuse to go after Percy," Nico said, anger suddenly filling his voice. "Get rid of Poseidon's son."

"Do you think Jupiter knew he was a super? If you didn't—"

"Percy's a threat regardless," Leo said. "He has his father's charisma, and was raised by his widow. Sally Jackson had some involvement in the Olympians' activities, back when they were trying to improve the city. Maybe there's a faction willing to rally behind Sally or Percy, and Jupiter decided to make a pre-emptive strike."

"And by attacking Percy, he was sure to draw you out, too," Will suggested. "I don't know much about the Olympians, or your family history, but—you're openly his enemy. The Ghost of New York fights the Bolt—that was one of your first appearance in the public eye. It'd be two birds with one stone."

"Until Jason turned on him," Nico noted. "I wonder what it means, that Jason got a hold of these emails. He can't have done that since our encounter yesterday—he had to have known before he even kidnapped Percy."

"Meaning what exactly?" Leo asked.

"I wish I knew for sure."

"My father wanted you to be a witness," Jason said, three days later.

They were mid-training, smack dab in the middle of a complicated exercise that required all of Percy's focus. So naturally, the moment he heard the word, Percy froze, and Jason swept him out from under his feet. The water Percy had held in the air collapsed, flooding the training room's floor. Of course, Jason didn't mind the mess, since he'd just have Percy clean it up later. At the moment, though, Percy couldn't care about that injustice.

"He what?"

"He made sure you'd be there. I'm still not sure if you're the target, or if you were just a way to get at Nico, but he wanted a reason to come after you."

Percy blinked up at Jason, and scrambled back to his feet. "And you—"

"I wasn't supposed to know. But I had my suspicions. My father isn't that sloppy, usually. In the rare case there are unplanned witnesses, they don't make it out alive. And there's the fact that he sent me, even though I know you. No one ever sends an assassin after someone from their past."

"Because—this might happen?" Percy guessed.

Jason nodded. "You said you wanted answers, so—I thought you deserved to know."

Percy stared at him for a moment. "Why now?"

"I don't know," Jason shrugged. "I'm not—used to any of this. I'm trying to make an effort. Besides, I want you to realize why I can't just let you leave. You wouldn't be safe if I did."

"Until your dad realizes what you've done, right? It's going to happen eventually. You haven't even gone to work since I'm here."

"I—" Jason sighed. "I'll handle my father."

"Thanks, that makes me feel so much safer." He sighed. "I don't get it. Why even bother going through the trouble?"

Jason stared up at him, frowning. "What do you mean?"

"You knew about this all along, right?" Jason nodded, and Percy continued. "So why pretend you came to kill me and act like you changed your mind at the last second? Why fight Nico over me? Why not just come clean and work together?"

"Because—I can't do that. What if my father gets the security footage in Nico's apartment, or at Mr D's? It had to look like I kept you alive for a reason, but not like I was actually working with the enemy."

"He's not the enemy, Jase—"

"He is to me." Jason paused briefly, his breathing more ragged than it had been a moment ago. "I'm an Olympian, Percy. An assassin. It's all I am."

"You're my friend, too. And Nico's, too, if you'd just ask for forgiveness."

Jason shook his head. "It's not that simple."

"It never is," Percy retorted. "But it doesn't mean it's not worth it."

It was no surprise when Jason left the room wordlessly; in spite of everything, this was their thing, at least for the time being. But Percy still felt accomplished for what had just happened between them there.

Nico had been pacing circles into his apartment for a week. Will couldn't really blame him for that—one week of dead ends and coming back empty-handed whenever he investigated would bear hard on anyone. There was a hint of resentment that this week happened to be their first week, but he could deal with that on his own, like an adult. He could understand priorities.

Maybe this was why Nico hadn't wanted to start anything so long as Percy was gone.

Will himself felt the weight of this time, for a different reason: he was locked up in here. Nico's apartment was nice, and Nico had even smuggled some of Will's things from his place at his request. But Will couldn't stay holed up in here forever.

Leo's daily visits didn't always help. Will had never known there was such a thing as being too friendly, but if there was, Leo was it. Never mind his prying into Will and Nico's relationship, in spite of Will being all but a complete stranger.

But Leo wasn't completely devoid of empathy. On the third day, when he'd come to find that Nico hadn't returned from his nightly excursions yet, he offered Will a distraction from his worries.

"You're a doctor, right?"

"Actually, I'm a nurse," Will replied. "An intern, really."

"I could've sworn Nico said you're a doctor."

"I am. Well, I've got the degree. But I work as a nurse."

Leo considered him with an amused look. "And how does that happen?"

"Dad wanted me to be a surgeon. I wanted to work with the patients, not barely see them when they're awake." Will noticed Leo's funny look. "It's the truth. I'm sure you're used to dark and gritty backstories in your profession, but that's pretty much all there is."

"You don't look old enough to have a doctorate."

Will shrugged. "Child prodigy with a dad who can pull some strings. Just because I didn't want to be a surgeon doesn't mean I wasn't good at it."

"So there is a bit of a complicated backstory there. Do I know your dad? Is he a super of some kind?"

"Not everyone in the world who matters is a super," Will retorted.

"Right." Leo cast him an apologetic glance, then, as if that were enough, he moved on. "What matters is, you have the expertise I need."

"I do?" Will asked, frowning at him.

"I'm working on medical equipment. But—you know, better."

Will scoffed. "Of course you are."

"I mean, for us supers, we can't just wait until we can be carried to a hospital. Or found in an alleyway by a random nurse who happens to pass by. We need something more instantaneous. Which, if you manipulate vitalis well enough, can totally be done. Even for regular people." He took out his tablet, browsing on it as he spoke.

"So you want to make—what, an instant heal ray?"

"More or less. Well, more less than more." He presented Will with something on his tablet: a series of blueprints, hard to decipher without any context.

"Looks complicated," Will said tentatively.

"Of course. Every injury has to be treated differently—just because we use a different power source to accelerate the process doesn't mean it changes the way it is healed. That's where you come in. You could help me tune the process for every type of injury." He took on a conspiratorial glance as he grinned at Will. "In exchange I'd let you try it out on the field."

"Why would I want to be on the field?"

Leo's grin grew larger. "To keep Nico safe? I'd make you a suit and everything."

Will narrowed his eyes at him, trying to school his featured under control. He couldn't pretend he hadn't thought of helping Nico in his work—and the longer he spent in this apartment, the stronger that feeling grew. But he wasn't sure he was ready for that yet. "I'll help you design it," he finally said. "For the rest—we'll see some other time."

Leo's proposal remained in his mind for the next few days, but outside of when he was working with Leo on his project, Will avoided thinking about it. Nico had enough to worry about without having to deal with his delusions of grandeur.

Being a superhero had never even been a dream of his until he'd met Nico; he'd been happy saving lives at the hospital. And when he was working with random people with mundane diseases—or imaginary ones, which happened a lot working in the ER—well, at least he was still helping people. And if it hadn't been for Leo's offer, it would have been nothing but an idle fantasy. Will had no idea what to do with fantasies being offered as a reality.

Things took a turn for the complicated by the end of that third week. Will had prepared a small dinner for him and Nico for that small anniversary. Nothing particularly elaborate—there was only so much to be accomplished with Nico's limited supplies, but Will had managed to whip up some pretty decent pasta-tomato-scampi-garlic combo. Cecil would probably kill him for the garlic, but…well, he'd first met Nico bloody and unconscious. He was sure they could survive this.

Nico emerged from the bedroom after his daily nap to find the table Will had set.

"Surprise!" Will called out cheerfully. Noticing Nico's sleepy confusion, he added, "It's our first week, so—"

"Oh! Wow, you're right." Nico strode across the room to kiss Will. "Happy week-versary. And—sorry I've been a lousy boyfriend the whole time."

Will shook his head. "You're doing everything you can. I already told you I understand."

"Only every day, several times a day." Nico sighed. "Thanks for bearing with me." He glanced at the table with a sly grin. "You cooked. I didn't know you cooked."

"Well, I like to keep some of my talents hidden—unlike some who like to show off all the time." Will grinned. "Come on, sit down, it'll just take a minute to warm it up. I'll be right back."

Famous last words, he thought when he came back with their plates to find Leo had arrived in the meantime.

"I got good news and bad news. Ooh, what's that?"

Will glared at him, but Nico answered calmly. "Week-versary. You're kind of intruding."

"Yeah, well, sorry and all, but I think you'll be glad I did. One of my worms found something."

"Worms?" Will couldn't help but ask.

"Internet worms. You mentioned Luke, so I put them on the lookout for anything about him. Apparently the Olympians have caught on to Jason Grace going completely off the grid, and they sent Luke after him."

Nico was immediately on his feet. "And they know where Jason lives."

"Yeah, pretty much. The order went out ten minutes ago. I sent a message, but—"

"I was asleep." He sighed. "I should have given Will access to the computers, I'm so stupid." He look at Will apologetically. "I'm sorry, Will, but—"

Will shook his head. "I told you: I get it. We can just keep this for later."

Nico nodded. "I'll never thank you enough." He turned to Leo. "We can still call Jason's phone, right?"

"I—think so, why?"

"To warn him."

The look on Jason's face when his phone rang was priceless to Percy—priceless, and more than a little worrying. Who could call Jason's phone, his father? Another of the Olympians?

"Nico?"

Hearing Jason say the name was a relief, but Percy's worry turned to curiosity. Why was Nico calling him, after a week of complete radio silence?

Whatever it was, it didn't last long. "Got it. And—thanks." Jason hung up immediately. "We're leaving."

"What's going on? What did Nico say?"

"My father might have found out about—this situation. So we're leaving."

"To where?"

"Does it matter? Not somewhere he knows to look for me is a good start. We don't have time to argue."

Percy had no choice but to follow him, out of the training room and straight towards the entrance door. "Aren't you taking anything?"

"Does this apartment look like it has anything I care about in it?"

"Aside from me, is that what you mean?"

Jason stopped dead in his tracks, but when he glanced back at Percy, there was a faint smile on his lips. "Exactly."

"How do you even know Nico's not trying to trap you?"

"I'll be taking that chance."

The implication was not lost on him—that Jason would rather risk losing Percy to Nico than to his own people. Before he could say anything, though, Jason opened the door. Revealing a woman waiting on the other side.

As soon as Jason saw her, he froze completely. It took a moment longer for Percy to realize why her dark hair and electric blue eyes were familiar, but Jason confirmed his hunch.

"Thalia?"

Chapter Text

"I thought you died." The cold of Jason's voice surprised Percy, until he noticed the tension in his stance. Hesitant and angry—and cautious, too.

"I almost did," she replied. "What're you doing here? We were supposed to—" Her eyes drifted past Jason and landed on Percy. "I don't understand. You're supposed to be hiding from him, not—"

They were all immobile for a moment, Percy unsure what to say, Jason barring the doorway with a firm stance, Thalia silently puzzling the situation together. Then Jason turned back to glance at Percy. "We're leaving. Now."

Before Percy could reply, a cold feeling spread into his bones, as if the temperature had suddenly dropped. He couldn't identify what it was, but it gripped at his lungs, at his muscles, preventing him from moving or breathing. He collapsed to his knees, barely stopping himself from lying facedown on the floor.

Jason's gasp was the only hint that Jason was experiencing the same phenomenon. Percy glanced at Thalia, wondering if she was responsible for this, but she looked as uneasy as her brother.

Then, from further down the hallway, another voice came, chilling Percy with its familiarity. "I told you to wait for me, Thalia." A man appeared by her side. They were about the same age—late twenties or so—but he looked more like Jason than she did. Not that Percy could ever think they were related—there was a hardness to the newcomer that he hadn't seen in Jason, even in this killer Jason had become. Percy wondered how he could have missed that all this time.

"Luke." His voice came as little more than a whisper, his chest still feeling crushed under the cold. "What—"

"Evening, Percy. Been a while. You never returned my calls, it was kind of rude of you."

Luke took a step towards Percy, but Jason managed to block the way again. Percy wondered how Jason could do it when he couldn't even stand. Luke didn't look too impressed, though. "I wasn't sure the reports were true. Jason Grace turning on his dad for the sake of a childhood friend? So much for the perfect killer."

He shoved Jason back, sending him far across the room. Jason stuck the landing, however, remaining on his feet next to Percy's crumpled form, undeterred. "If you think your ability is all you need to beat me—"

Slowly, almost casually, Luke stepped inside the apartment. "I do, actually. I mean, come on, even you can't have been prepared for me." Jason's silence was a dead giveaway, and Luke laughed. "Well, I'd love to explain how I ended up working with your dad, but—"

"Working with whom?" Thalia's question made Luke freeze up for a brief moment. "You said—"

"Not now, Thalia."

Jason seized the opening, however. "You didn't know you were here to kill Percy for the old man's sake?" 

During the confused silence that followed, Jason knelt by Percy's side, and pressed his fingers against Percy's throat. It took Percy a moment to realize what he was doing—checking Percy's vitals. Was he really so paralyzed by Luke's power that Jason had thought he was dead? Painfully, Percy managed to turn his head and look at Jason, meeting his gaze. Jason's hand found his, squeezing gently, and he pulled Percy to his feet. Maybe it was Jason's touch, or maybe Percy was finally getting used to the feeling of Luke's power, but he managed to remain standing, this time.

Still, there was the issue of Luke himself. Percy reached for the water pipes running in the apartment's walls—and found nothing. It was like his power was gone—had Jason's training really been for nothing after all? No, of course not—he remembered what Nico had explained about Luke's power. The Titan's power. He could leech off of other super's abilities to strengthen his own. With three of them in a room, Percy doubted he could be stopped.

So why was Percy still alive?

The reason became apparent through the haze of his thoughts: Thalia. She had slowly moved to stand in front of her brother—and incidentally, in front of Percy. She was speaking, but the words didn't reach Percy's brain properly. Evidently, he wasn't coping with Luke's power as well as he'd thought.

There was a nudge on his shoulder, and Percy realized Jason had been trying to get his attention for a moment now. "I'll clear the way for you. You just leave. Find Nico."

"I—" Percy's argument died in his throat. He couldn't stay and fight by Jason's side—not without admitting he was falling for Jason a little bit. Not without accepting that he was that guy again—the guy who could leave, who knew he should, but didn't. That Luke would be the cause of it would just add insult to injury.

Jason must have taken his silence for agreement, because he leaped past Thalia. Luke lunged at him as well, too fast for Percy's eye to follow, but Jason rolled out of the way in time for Thalia to step in and hold Luke off. Jason reached for a hidden gun, but when he pointed it at Luke, he hesitated. Percy could guess why—with Thalia too close, Jason couldn't be sure he wouldn't hit her. And Percy himself wasn't too far out of his line of fire, either.

That last thought snapped Percy out of his contemplation. He stumbled towards the door, but before he could reach it, Thalia's body flew past him, hitting the wall to his right. Percy kept going, but a hand grabbed his upper arm and pulled almost hard enough to dislocate it. Percy felt himself tipping backwards, and he fell with his back on the floor just as a gunshot rang above him. No cry of pain followed—either Jason had missed, or Luke's powers helped him endure pain too.

Percy scrambled away from Luke, when a blur in the shadows behind him got his attention. Out of thin air, Nico materialized, in full gear with his staff in one hand and a circular device in the other.

He threw the device, which fell at Luke's feet, flashing a bright light that blinded Percy. The feeling of his power being cut off didn't fade, but it did change in some way—like the gripping cold had become a suffocating warmth instead. The lights, Percy noticed, had gone out, with only the street lights outside keeping darkness from taking over completely.

Whatever the device was, Nico didn't seem affected by it: he charged at Luke at super speed, landing two blows with his staff before kicking Luke back into the kitchen.

He made to go after Luke, but Jason stopped him. "Take Percy out of here."

Nico hesitated. "Your powers should be blocked along with his," he said, distrustful.

Jason nodded. "But yours aren't. You can shadow-travel him away."

There was a brief pause. Then, Nico replied, "You have twenty seconds before the power runs out."

Nico ran to where Percy still sat against the wall. "Ready to leave?"

Percy glanced after Jason, worry tearing at his resolve. But not hard enough. "Yeah," he said. "Let's go."

He clasped his hand on Nico's, and the world fell to darkness.

"I can't believe Luke's powers takes such a toll on your bodies," Will said. "How could you even stand last time you faced him?"

"Lots and lots of training."

Will undid the blood pressure monitor wrapped around Percy's arm. "Well, he's okay. He's just passed out from exhaustion." He scoffed at his own choice of words. "I mean, there's no 'just' about it. He's in the same state of shock as someone who's been through torture—without the wounds. But he'll recover with some rest. Physically, anyway." He turned to look at Nico. "You should let me have a look at you, too."

Nico hadn't even bothered to take off his suit—only his mask, and even then, only after Will had already started checking on Percy in a guest room. "Leo's dampener worked fine. Luke's power barely affected me."

"What about last time? Why didn't you tell me what it was like to you?"

"As I said: I've been trained. I can withstand it. Percy's never been exposed to anything like it, except for the dampeners as Mr D's camp. And they're on a much less aggressive level than Luke is."

Will sighed. "Come on, we should give Percy some space." He gently guided Nico out of the room, and only turned to him after he closed the door behind them. "What happened in there?"

Nico shook his head. "I didn't linger long enough to find out. Jason told me to take Percy away, and—I did." He sighed. "Am I a bad person for leaving him with Luke? One of them is bound to kill the other."

Almost reflexively, Will pulled Nico into his arms. Nico came without resistance, leaning against Will's chest with a weight that betrayed how shaken he felt. "You focused on what you'd come to do: save Percy's life. You couldn't do that and also take out two supers at once."

"Do you think I should have gone back? If I hadn't freaked out when Percy fainted—"

"If you'd gone back with them expecting you," Leo chimed in as he entered the room, "you would have ended up in a bad spot. Maybe they would have even teamed up against you."

Nico pulled away from Will, shaking his head. "Jason let him go. I don't think—"

"But you don't know. Besides, if Jason didn't kill Luke before my baby ran out of juice, chances are you would have had to fight Luke without the upper hand. I don't know about Will here, but I don't think I can spare you just yet."

"Knock it off with the sarcasm, Leo," Will rebuked him gently. "But he's right," he added, turning back to Nico. "You couldn't go back and risk your life, with Percy back in your care. You made the right call—it doesn't mean it's easy. I don't know what you learned at superhero school, but hopefully you learned that much."

"Fair enough," Nico said. "So what's our next move?"

"Well, I installed a protection in your server room to prevent Jason from coming in the same way he did last time," Leo said. "He might know the address, but there's no chance he or anyone can make it past my security system."

"You said that last time, too."

"Last time I hadn't installed a dampening field tuned specifically to your powers. Unless you have hidden relatives left, no one can make it through using powers." Leo paused, and winced. "Sorry. Didn't mean to bring up—"

"It's fine," Nico said. "Thanks for everything again, Leo. Do you think you can get me more of the portable versions?"

"Of course. I'll work on their battery life, too. I'm glad I managed to get you the prototype before you went against Jason and the Titan."

"Me too. Things would have been a lot uglier without them. Now, if you don't mind—"

Leo shuffled on his feet. "Right. I'll give you some privacy. There's just one more thing I wanted to show you before I left. I was going to show Will while you were gone, but since you came back within a few seconds, I couldn't—" He nodded to the door behind him. "Well, it's all in the other room. You can figure it out on your own—you did help me design it and all."

In spite of everything—of Percy lying unconscious in the next room, of Nico imperceptibly shaking next to him, of his own caged situation—Will couldn't help but feel a rush of excitement. "I didn't think it's be ready so soon."

"It's only a prototype. But it should work. Well, I'm off. I'll see you for the next crisis."

Once they were alone, Will turned to look at Nico, unable to repress the grin from his face. "I—would it be okay if—"

Nico returned his smile. "Let's go see your new toy."

Leo hadn't just left his present to Will in a box. That would have been far too simple for his tastes. Instead, when he and Nico stepped into the living room, they found a full-sized mannequin shaped to Will's exact measurements. On him rested a superhero suit, made from the same light and sturdy material as Nico's. But while Nico's was black and all in one smooth piece, this suit was white and gold, and made up of rigid pieces—almost like plates—fitting into one another. Without any superpower to support Will, he needed the extra freedom of movement. The helmet was sleek and winged in a sunburst pattern, with the face covered in a design meant to evoke a surgeon's mask—Leo's idea—and a reflective visor over the eyes.

"Leo calls it the Anima suit," Will said when he managed to tear his eyes off of it and catch Nico's look. In it, he found an admiration that matched his own—and a hint of worry, too. "I—I know what you're thinking. That it's dangerous. And it's not like I'm going to jump in the superhero business tomorrow. I'm not even sure I want to be one. But he needed the suit to power the device, and I thought—better be ready just in case, right?"

Nico tore his eyes away from the suit, and to Will's surprise, made an amused snort. "I am worried, yeah. But I know you won't do this recklessly just to be with me. I—think it's amazing that you'd even consider it. I don't think just about anyone would do it, given the chance."

"What do you mean?

"Being a superhero—when you're a super, it's kind of a given. Not necessarily as a masked vigilante like me, but you want to use your powers for something. But you—you're doing this just because you want to. It's—impressive."

"Wow," Will said, chuckling in embarrassment. "Yeah, that's me. Impressive."

"You are, though," Nico said, pressing a brief kiss to his lips. "I guess you'll want to try it on."

Will managed a smirk. "Is that just an excuse to watch me strip to my underwear?" But he didn't wait for Nico to reply before he took off his clothes and put the suit on, piece by piece. It took him about a minute, but he guessed it would be a lot faster once he got used to it. It fit him perfectly, just like Leo had promised it would, reminding him of the tailor-made suits his dad made him wear whenever they met. But it was also surprisingly comfortable, and hugged Will's body in a way that felt natural, supportive, and protective, all at once. "This is—awesome," he said. "How can you manage to ever take off your own suit? I don't want to wear normal clothes anymore!"

Nico laughed. "Been there. I may have kept the suit on for about a week when Leo first gave it to me. I actually slept in it for the first night, too." He grabbed the helmet from the mannequin. "Do you want to try that on too? For the full effect?"

There was something almost final about the suggestion—like if Will put the full suit on, he would really accept it as his. But he nodded, and Nico stood on tiptoes to put the helmet on Will's head.

"You know I can do it myself, right?" Will protested before the mast fit over his face.

For a moment, he could barely see. Then his eyes adjusted to the light, and at the same time, the suit came to life, his visor's transparency adjusting as a heads-up display appeared. When Will looked at Nico, the suit's image recognition added information about him—name, current health assessment, and, to Will's amusement, a note that said The bae. Keep him alive for me, will you?

"What's so funny?" Nico asked.

"Leo," Will said. He didn't even know how to explain it, but Nico nodded. In all likelihood, he'd programmed similar things into Nico's suit.

"You said something about a device this was powering up?"

"Yeah, I—"

Before he could get the suit under control, a door opened behind Nico, and Percy stepped into the room. He froze for a moment. "Whoa. Hello. New ally? I don't think I've ever seen you on the news, but I've been out of the loop for the past few days."

"No, it's—" Will tugged on his helmet until he found the place where it unlocked, and took it off. "It's me, Will."

Percy stared at him with wide eyes for a few seconds. "Wow, that is cool. I must have missed out."

"Percy, you should still be in bed," Nico interjected, almost chiding him.

"I'm fine," Percy said, plopping down on the couch. "Thanks for the rescue. I don't think I would have made it out of that apartment without you."

"So—you're not mad at me anymore?"

"What? I—no, I'm not. I never was, I just—" He sighed. "Look, it was a tough call to make, but I didn't want you to risk your life for me. We can talk about it later. And now he's risking his life—" Percy sighed. "What happened to Luke and Thalia? All I remember is you shadow-stepping us out."

"I don't know, I didn't go back—what do you mean, Thalia?"

"Thalia Grace. Jason's sister. She was there with him, although I don't think he told her why they were there exactly. She fought against him when she figured it out."

"Who's Thalia?" Will asked. From her last name, he could guess she was related to Jason and Jupiter, but that was as far as it went.

"Jason's sister," Nico said. "Presumed dead in the same accident that killed my father and sister. I was never sure about it. You mean she was there? With Luke?"

Percy nodded. "Positive. He knocked her out just before you came—you probably didn't even notice her."

Nico sighed. "Just when I thought things weren't complicated enough."

"Are they?" Will asked. "Wouldn't it explain that Luke's suddenly working for the Bolt if he's hanging out with his daughter?"

"She didn't know Luke was working with Jupiter," Percy retorted. "That's pretty much what decided her to fight against Luke."

"Yeah," Nico said. "From what I gathered, on the day she supposedly died, it was because she wanted to prevent my father's assassination. She was working against Jupiter. She must have faked her death to escape him. I don't see her working for him now." He sighed. "We can figure that out later. For now, I'm just glad to have you back, Percy."

"I'm glad to be back. And—you're right, we should talk about what I said last time." Percy glanced at Will, who got the message.

"I'll give you a moment," he said, stepping out of the room. He was still in the Anima suit, he realized when he was outside—it was so comfortable he'd completely forgotten already. Maybe he could use the time to figure out the suit's other functions. Leo hadn't left any note to explain how it worked, but when Will put the helmet back on, he found that the HUD provided a series of instructions.

He had only been reading through them for a few minutes when an alarm blinked on his display. Intrigued, he pulled it open, and his display changed to show footage from one of the security cameras outside of Nico's apartment. For a moment, Will thought it was a false alarm—the image appeared empty.

Then he noticed the body on the floor, lying in a growing pool of blood. For a moment, Will thought the man was dead—until he pushed himself to his knees, looked up at the cameras briefly, and he passed out on his side. Will had only met him twice, but he could recognize him easily.

Jason Grace was there. And by the looks of it, he was dying.

Chapter Text

It was not the test run Will had expected for his Anima suit, especially since Leo had called it "a prototype". But he had to do something, and while he wasn't sure where they stood with Jason, he couldn't let him die, either. If Percy's anguished look hadn't convinced him to help, his hippocratic oath would have made him try his best anyway.

He helped Nico carry a barely conscious Jason to the nearest couch, fully conscious of the blood that trailed after them and soaked into the cushions. Then Will turned the heads-up display of his visor back on, activating diagnosis. Immediately, physiological information appeared—high and unstable heart rate, weak breathing. After a second, image scan added details, each pinned to a location on Jason's body: stab wounds, broken bones at his ribs and left leg, and internal bleeding somewhere in his gut, mercifully slow but still highly dangerous.

"I don't know how much I can do," Will confessed. The suit was designed to heal supers, to use the vitalis energy they drew their powers from and follow it back to its source, their bodies, in order to fix them. But all of that was theory; he hadn't had a chance to try yet.

Still, he had to try. He engaged the suit's healing mode; immediately, colored lines lit up below the suit's glove panels, like so many veins, buzzing with energy. His visor's display turned on the vitalis detector mode, and Will saw the energy flowing out of his hands in steady pulses, spreading out in so many spheres. Nico shuddered when the first of them touched him, then winced at the next few.

"I think it's best if you stand back," Will said. "It's still experimental—I don't know how the suit might affect other supers around me."

Nico hesitated, but nodded, stepping back and dragging Percy with him. Once they were all the way across the room, Will saw that the energy pulses faded before they hit them, and he turned his attention back to Jason.

"It's all about intent," Will muttered to himself, remembering his discussions with Leo as he developed the suit's concept. "That's why he needs a doctor."

He pressed his hands to Jason's stomach, and focused on the internal bleeding there; how it needed to resorb, and how the blood vessels needed to close up. For a moment, nothing happened, and Will felt stupid for counting on faith to fix damage that was so severe. But then, his display updated, showing the bleeding was receding. Will could barely believe it; he turned off the display, lifting Jason's shirt to expose his skin. A hematoma spread there, just where his display had shown the bleeding, but it was fading rapidly, turning from a dark bruise to a pale yellow, then vanishing entirely. It felt like a miracle, even though Will knew exactly what had happened.

There was no time to waste in wonder, though. Will moved to the stab wounds, seeing as Jason had lost a lot of blood already. One by one, as he focused on them, they closed, the skin and tissues underneath reforming without even leaving a scar behind. Will then fixed his bones, putting them back in place and in one piece and fixing the damage to nearby organs like it was nothing.

Will was tempted to try more, to force Jason's body to make more blood to replace what he'd lost, but he wasn't sure that was a good idea. He had no idea what limitations the vitalis had yet, and Jason was seemingly out of danger—Will didn't want to try upsetting his body's chemistry by pushing it too far. It would be better to look for blood to transfuse naturally instead. Everything else could be fixed with rest—and judging by Will's display, Jason, who had been semi-conscious for the entire procedure, had fallen asleep, so he was already working on that.

It would have to be enough for now. Will stepped back, turning off healing mode. "He'll be all right," he said, taking off his helmet. "You can come now. I've turned off the suit." He'd have to talk to Leo about that side-effect of the Anima suit—if he couldn't heal without incapacitating his allies, he wouldn't be much use on the field.

No one moved for a moment. Will glanced back, finding Percy standing with a nervous tension, but looking at Nico hesitantly. Finally, Nico nodded. "Will and I will make something to eat."

The implication was clear: Will followed Nico out of the room. "Are you sure it's wise to leave Percy alone with him?"

"I don't think Jason's going to be any trouble for him," Nico retorted. "Besides, I assume he'll be out for a while."

"Hard to say, but I think so," Will said. "The suit tells me he just fell asleep, so he could technically wake up at any time. But it doesn't sound likely—his body will need to recover."

Nico nodded. "So it worked, huh?"

"Yeah."

"How does it feel?"

Will fell silent for a moment. "It's hard to say. I barely felt like I did anything. But I'm also exhausted. It's not the same thing as actual surgery, but I almost feel like I experienced the same stress in a few minutes that I would have in hours."

Nico raised an eyebrow. "Is that—normal?"

"Well, I do power the suit…somehow. Leo didn't give me the details. But that's why it's a suit, and not just a portable tool. He needed something to power it, and someone who had the right knowledge to direct the healing."

"He chose well," Nico said. Then, with a chuckle at Will's surprised look, he added, "What? Did you think I'd try to dissuade you from using it?"

Will shrugged. "Kind of, yeah."

"I told you—I think it's admirable. And I trust you not to overdo it." He leaned in to kiss Will briefly. "Now get out of that suit, and help me make more of—whatever it is you made for us that we never got to eat."

Between rescuing Percy and healing Jason, Will had all but forgotten about the week-versary celebration he'd prepared for Nico. The prospect of sharing it with two more guests wasn't a pleasant one, but he guessed they didn't have much of a choice. "Don't touch anything until I'm here to make sure you don't ruin it," he teased.

"I can't believe you're working for Jupiter." Thalia couldn't even bear to call him her father. Not after everything he'd done—and now this.

"And I can't believe you let Jason escape."

She had—she had made sure Jason got out of reach from Luke's power and got away from here. Once he had disappeared, Luke had had no option but to retreat back to their base of operation—a small motel, just on the edge of the city.

Thalia didn't feel sorry about her choice. "What exactly did you think I was going to do? Happily watch you kill my brother?"

"He's no more than Jupiter's puppet."

"And what are you?"

Luke narrowed his eyes at her. "I'm doing what I've always wanted to do. Destroying Mr D's legacy. People like us—we need to unite, not spread across the world and try to fight crime, each of us on their own or in small teams."

"All these years, you told me you understood the threat that he represented. And now you're working for him?"

"Only for now," Luke said. "I need his position as Senator secure."

Thalia frowned at him. "Is that what this is all about?" She considered everything she knew about the case—she'd kept her distance from her father, but she had kept her eyes on his business nonetheless. "He needs Percy to get at Nico, is that it? It wasn't a coincidence that Percy was a witness, was it?"

Luke only grinned, but that was all the answer she needs. "Jupiter Grace will pass laws protecting supers, and organizing supers. Once a census is put in place—"

"A census?"

"Yes, then I can start gathering people on my own, I won't need your dad anymore—"

"Is that what you think will work? And then what? You raise an army? Take over the world?"

"That sounds more like your dad's domain."

"And you think he'll just let you do what you want?"

Luke scoffed. "As if I was afraid of what Jupiter Grace might want."

Thalia took a step back, studying him. "You're not going to stop working with him, are you? No matter what I say?"

"I thought you'd understand by now," Luke replied simply. "Everything I do, I do for a better future for us all."

"A better future?" Thalia let out a sarcastic laugh. "You do all this out of petty revenge over your mentor. That's what you said, isn't it? Destroying Mr D's legacy? Well, have fun with that."

She spun on her heels and walked out of the room. Part of her almost expected to feel the cold of Luke's power settling over her, but nothing came.

Nico and Will brought food for Percy and Jason, but Percy couldn't bring himself to touch any of it. He felt stupid for being this upset: after the victory of managing to walk out on Jason when he had the chance, this felt like a step back. Like he was falling into his old patterns again. But he'd examine that some other time. Right now, he could afford to just wallow in his feelings. Everyone was safe for once, and Jason was still out, so he couldn't see Percy. That was perfect.

The day passed by, Leo came to check on the Anima suit and talk to Will about it. Percy vaguely noticed Nico trying to bring Percy into the conversation about something, but he couldn't manage more than a vague nod.

When Jason finally came to, night had fallen and Will and Nico had gone back to bed. Percy was half-asleep himself, but he jerked away at the first sign of movement.

"Hey!" he said, softly. "You're up. Just give me a second, I'll warm this up—I'm sure you're starving."

He shot to his feet, but Jason caught his arm before he could leave. "Are you safe?"

"Yeah, this is Nico's place. You're fine, Will took care of you."

Jason let out a sigh of relief. "Good."

"I'll get us some food, if you let me go?" Percy suggested.

Slowly, Jason's gaze drifted to his hand on Percy's wrist, and he let go. "Sorry. That'd be great, thanks."

In the few minutes it took to microwave both plates and come back, Percy found Jason sitting up on the couch. He laid the plates on the coffee table, unsure what to say. "I don't know if you should get up yet.

"I'm fine."

"We should probably wait for Will," Percy insisted.

Jason looked up at him, raised an eyebrow, then shrugged. "Fine, I won't try to stand. But I can at least sit and eat. I'm not letting you feed me like an invalid."

Percy chuckled. "Fair enough." He sat down and waited until Jason was eating to dig into his own plate. "So what happened to you?"

"I held my ground against the Titan. What happened to me is what happens to anyone who does that." He paused, and Percy wondered if he should bring up that Nico had fought Luke in the past without ending up in such a bad shape. Before he could, Jason said, "Well, to most people. I guess Nico got away with the impossible twice now. Back in the day, and again today."

"Well, he had Leo's help," Percy said.

"Are you trying to comfort me? Make me feel better for failing where he succeeded?"

Percy was about to protest, but the truth was, that was exactly what he was doing, and he wasn't even sure why. So he just shrugged. "Maybe I'm saying you need help to win too. There's no shame in that."

"I had a whole gang helping me, until you came into my life."

"Back," Percy corrected. Jason's eyebrows shot up, and Percy explained. "I came back. And you can't really tell me the Olympian gang is better company than we are."

"There's no we, though, is there?" A rhetorical question, judging by Jason's sarcastic tone.

Percy sighed. He had no clue whether Nico would forgive Jason, let alone ally with him. He had let Will save his life, but that could mean anything, from getting even for how Jason had stood up for Percy to plain and simple compassion. "We can at least talk about it. Later. When you're back on your feet."

"Is that a challenge?" Jason teased.

Percy groaned. "Don't be stupid. Take your time. And you didn't tell me what happened to you yet."

"You don't want the details," Jason said, digging into his plate again.

"Maybe I do. Maybe I want to know what I abandoned you to."

Jason's eyes snapped up. "Touching. What happened is simple: I fought, I failed, even with Thalia turning on Luke. She bought me enough time to escape, and I traveled electrical networks until I could get back here. Of course, Nico protected his server room, so I had to go by the front door. I collapsed before I could make it to the doorbell. Blood loss, I assume." He paused, and dropped his utensils, checking his own body. "How long was I out, anyway? I can't feel any wound."

"Um, a few hours? It's better if Will explains to you when he's up, I think. I have absolutely no clue what he did."

Jason shook his head. "If this is your clever ploy to force me to stay the night, I should point out to you that I have nowhere else to go."

Percy couldn't help but flinch at the innuendo. It was one thing to deliberate with his feelings for Jason alone, but it was another to have them thrown in his face. At a loss of what to respond, he decided to just ignore it. "Good night, Jason."

Chapter Text

It took Will a minute to remember about the new residents of Nico's apartment; a minute too many, since he barged into the kitchen in his underwear and ended up face-to-face with Jason.

"Um," he stuttered, blushing. "I guess you're up, then?"

"So I am," Jason said. "I understand I have you to thank for that."

Will bit back the retort that came automatically—mostly because it wouldn't have been true. He would have helped Jason, no matter what, because that had been his first instinct. But it was hard to remember that now, when their last two interactions had involved interrogation and a hostage situation. Plus the goons Jason had sent to take him at his own place. So Will ended up staring at Jason dumbly, unsure what to say or do about him.

Nico saved him by entering the kitchen as well. He'd thought to put some clothes on, Will noted bitterly—but that faded when Nico wrapped a possessive arm around his waist. "You could say that, Jason. Now why don't you give me a reason not to regret my boyfriend's kindness?"

"I saved you first," Will pointed out—and felt immediately petulant for saying so.

Jason didn't seem fazed by this. "I want to help. About Percy."

"Because you care about him so much?" Nico retorted.

"Because I love him."

Will couldn't help but gasp at Jason's earnest, direct reply—too fast to be anything but the truth.

Nico didn't seem impressed. "And—what? That makes up for everything that came before it?"

"Aren't you the hero, Nico? You should know the power of redemption when you see it."

"I don't know the power of redemption because I've never needed it."

"But you know love." Jason nodded at Will. "I know it must be hard for you to trust me. But I let Percy go with you. I came here, after my father's newest hit man came almost killed me. That has to count for something." He paused, and Will realized he was catching his breath—out of stress or because of his wounds' aftereffect, Will had no idea. "If you won't trust me, don't. Just use me. For him."

Nico studied him quietly, and instead of answering, he pulled away from Will and walked past Jason, deliberately forcing him to step aside so Nico could reach the coffeemaker. Only when Nico had a mug in hand did he turn back to look at Jason. "I can do that."

Percy wasn't sure if he should have announced his presence when he'd heard Nico and Jason talking in the kitchen, but before he could make up his mind, Jason had dropped the bombshell and made him freeze up.

It was one thing to remember childhood memories, or to tease Jason himself about the feelings Percy suspected he had. It was another to hear Jason flat-out say that he loved him right now. So close after seeing Luke again, it almost felt like a sign of some kind.

Will was the first to exit the kitchen, and he frowned at Percy pressed against the wall, trying his best not to hyperventilate.

"Hey. Are—you okay?" Will asked. Percy nodded frantically, but he couldn't really make a sound. Will glanced back towards the kitchen, understanding dawning on his face. "You want to come with me?"

Maybe he should—weird as it would be to follow Will, a guy Percy barely knew altogether, anywhere while he was in his underwear. Or maybe that would just be running away, and that hadn't worked so well so far.

So Percy got a hold of himself and shook his head. "I'm fine. I need to talk to them."

Slowly, Will nodded. "Don't overdo it. You're still recovering from your encounter with Luke."

"On more than one level," Percy muttered as he went into the kitchen. He tried to put on a good face when he saw Nico and Jason, but the weight of both their gazes on him was too much. He felt like he was about to fall apart already.

Thankfully, Nico saved him from it. "Jason says he trained you. He even thinks you could be on the field. Do you agree?"

The question took him aback enough to chase away his own emotional turmoil. "Um—I've never done any of that before."

"But would you want to?"

Percy glanced between the two of them. The worry on their faces was identical, but he couldn't lie just to stay safe and spare their feelings. "Yeah. You know I do. Ever since you started being Night Angel, Nico—"

"Good. Because I got Leo to make you a suit, which I'm sure you don't remember me asking you about last night. I don't know when you'll get a chance to use it, but judging by how things have gone recently, it'll probably be soon."

A suit? "You mean that? You want me to be a superhero?"

"At least for now. I can't take down the Bolt on my own. And—" Nico turned to look at Jason. "I'll have Jason watch your back. That way, I don't have to keep an eye on him at all times, and I can have the team I need."

Percy couldn't help but frown at that suggestion, but he didn't want to say anything in front of Jason—especially since he had no idea if either of them knew what he'd overheard. "Okay," he simply said. "So I guess it's more training for me?"

"Count on it," Jason said. "We don't have much time, so we'll have to make the most of what we have." He turned to Nico. "The offer's available for you too."

"I'm good," Nico simply replied. Jason simply nodded, as if he agreed. "On the other hand, you should teach Will a few basics, if he's okay with that."

"Are you sure we should bring him in the field?" Jason asked. "One neophyte is enough. Will could stay back. At least Percy packs a punch."

"Leo assures me that the Anima suit does too. Will just has to learn how to think on his feet. And if you get injured like you did last night, you'll be glad that Will doesn't stay back."

"But—"

"Jason," Nico snapped. "I appreciate the feedback, but I'm not letting you run this team."

Their gazes locked for a second, after which Jason chuckled. "Yes, sir," he said, his tone half amused and half admiring. "Where can I set up a training space?"

"I have a room for that. I'm sure you can find it."

The dismissal was obvious, and Jason walked out without complaint. Percy was tempted to follow, but he needed to talk to Nico first.

"You're letting me be a superhero after a week of training?"

Nico looked back at him, and he smiled. "I've been where you are. I know what you'll do if I don't let you. And I also know that you sneaking behind my back would only make things worse." He sighed. "How did I end up as the dad to a super family overnight? I didn't ask for this when I opened business here."

"Hey, at least this is better than how our dads handled it."

"We've only been on the same team for less than an hour, Percy," Nico retorted, deadpan. "I think it's too early to celebrate no one killing each other yet."

Percy was forced to agree—and yet, he couldn't help but think about what Nico had said. "You really trust Jason to keep me safe on the field?"

"I trust him not to go back to his dad if it puts you at risk. I'll watch over you too, don't worry."

"And you trust him because—"

"You heard him, didn't you?" Percy gaped at the question, causing Nico to chuckle. "Come on. I've gone through a lot of training—do you think I can't hear someone moving in the other room?" He took a sip from his coffee, dragging it out—on purpose, Percy was pretty sure. "I think he meant what he said, and yes, that's why I trust him not to turn on you. And for what it's worth, I also think he knew you were listening."

"So—" Percy felt at a loss for words, but also like he had too much to ask. "What should I do?"

Nico shrugged. "You care about him. Of course, there's your history with Luke, and the whole kidnapping thing, so I get that you don't want to start anything with him. Honestly—I don't know what you should do. Give it time. Besides, right now, you should probably focus on not letting his father kill you."

"That…does put things in perspective, yeah," Percy conceded.

Leo joined them later in the morning, with Percy's brand-new superhero suit. Will wasn't invited to watch him try it on—mostly because Jason Grace dragged him to a training session instead.

If there was one thing that didn't help Will feel comfortable around him, it was Jason hitting him repeatedly. Even if it was all pretend and Jason was clearly holding back, it just made Will think of the time Jason would probably have hit him for real, had he known for sure of Will's contact with Nico.

He was rescued from the lesson by Leo, who took him to look over the Anima suit.

"I thought about what you told me—how the healing mode affected any nearby super," Leo said. "I thought of a solution." From his own backpack, he pulled out components, then removed the suit's gloves. "This will help you focus the vitalis you emit—send it only the direction you point. As an added bonus, it should give you some range."

"What about weapons?" Will asked. "After I spent an hour getting roughed up by Jason, I realize it might be missing from the suit."

Leo raised an eyebrow at him. "It has weapons already. You just didn't look hard enough. I'll give you a rundown, if you want. Also, since I hear you might be on the field anytime, be sure to look into the propulsion system. Anyway, gotta check on Percy again now. You should put that on and try it out while I'm still here, in case it needs tuning." With a wink at Will, he added in a dramatic hushed voice, "Don't worry, it totally won't need tuning. I know what I'm doing."

"What? There's a 'propulsion system'?" Will asked, but Leo was already out.

Will remained alone, staring at his suit as if it could give him answers. All he could do, he figured, was put it on and test Leo's upgrades. And maybe look for those features Leo had mentioned. Why did he have to be so elusive about them?

As soon as he put on the Anima suit, however, an alert popped up again. Incoming phone call - Cecil Castellan. The suit synced with his phone? That was new.

He took the call, more out of curiosity than anything else. "Cecil? What's up?"

"You mean aside from the shady super fights that have been occurring over the past few days? I should be the one asking you."

"You're not getting a story out of me today, Cecil."

"But am I getting one soon?"

Will chuckled. "There might be a few new heroes in town soon."

"A few?"

"Three. Well, two new and one reformed, I guess. That's all you're getting today."

"That's more than I expected. If I'd known you were such a blabbermouth, I'd have taken advantage of it by now," Cecil teased. "But that's not what I was calling for."

Will felt himself blushing about his own stupidity. At least he hadn't told Cecil anything about their identities—or that Will himself was one of them. "What is it, then?"

"It's your dad, Will. He's in town, and—he's looking for you. I made something up about you being out of town with your new boyfriend, but that didn't help much. I think he went by the hospital, and since no one there was told where you were, they blew my cover story."

Will groaned. That was not what he needed right now—between vanishing from work and having a boyfriend, he was fairly sure his dad would consider disowning him. Not that that would be the worst option. "So he's in town?"

"Are you going to meet him? He's staying at the Four Seasons. He told me on purpose so I could let you know if I talked to you."

This was not the time, but Will couldn't stay away from his life forever, either. At the very least, he needed to make sure his dad was safe. If Will himself was a target, his family would be next on the list. "Sure. I'll figure out a way to reach out safely. I can't keep him in the dark forever. Thanks, Cecil."

"Maybe if you could give me some information as thanks, I'd feel the gratitude a little more—"

"Thanks, Cecil," Will repeated insistently before he hung up.

The test drive of the Anima upgrades would have to wait. Without bothering to take off the suit, he walked out. He found Nico in the living room, sitting at his computer and watching the feeds of information Leo had set up to keep Nico in the loop at all times.

"Nico?" Will said. "How did you—how do you handle things with Sally?"

Nico looked up at him, frowning. "What do you mean?"

"Well, she's the closest thing to family you have, so I was curious what you do about your vigilante life when you're around her. I know she knows, since she gave you your dad's note and all, but still—" Will shrugged, trying to coax Nico into finishing the sentence.

It didn't work. "Why don't you tell me what this is really about?"

Will sighed, and slumped on the couch. "It's my dad. He's in town, and he knows something's up. I don't know what to tell him, or how to get in touch at all without things getting dangerous."

"Well, I'm sure we can figure something out," Nico said. "But what do you want to tell him?" He paused, then added, "You don't talk a lot about your dad."

"I don't know," Will admitted. "He wasn't thrilled when I gave up being a surgeon to work as a nurse, so I'm pretty sure this wouldn't thrill him. But I can't just play dead, either, right? He'll only attract attention and Jupiter will find him."

Nico nodded slowly, but his answer was interrupted when an alert blared on screen. "Unless he already has. Your dad is staying at the Four Seasons, I bet?"

Will felt frozen in place. "Why—what happened?"

"Hostage situation. The Olympian gang. Apparently the Bolt himself is on the scene." He looked up at Will. "I'll save him. Don't worry."

"I'm coming with you."

"Will, you're barely ready—"

"I'm not staying behind when my dad's in danger!" They may have their differences, but it was his dad. He couldn't sit back.

Nico observed him silently, and finally, nodded. "I'll get Jason and Percy. Looks like our new team is about to face its first trial by fire."

Chapter Text

Percy couldn't believe this was actually happening. He was decked in a suit of Leo's making, along with Nico as Night Angel and Will in the Anima suit. Jason had asked Nico to make a stop by his own apartment, and from there, they'd brought back Jason's body armor. Much less elaborate than Leo's creations, it was made of the same fabric and made him look terrifying with his faceless helmet.

But Percy couldn't focus on Jason's armor when his own suit was so incredible. It was covered in iridescent blue scales—darker at his body and lighter at his hands and feet. Leo had modified a computer's liquid cooling system and integrated it into the fabric, meaning the suit was crisscrossed with veins of water; at the end of each of Percy's arms, this network presented two discreet exists that Percy could use to shoot out water if he needed an emergency source to exert his powers on. The gloves were also equipped with three prongs—to make up for his lack of proper punching, Leo had joked. The trident was also on his chest as an emblem—his father's chest when he had been one of the Olympians.

Percy hadn't been sure about the symbol at first, but he'd remembered everything he knew about his father's role in the gang; how he'd strived to be ethical in his business. Percy was sure he'd done bad things too, but if he could accept fighting by Jason's side, he could also wear his father's emblem. Avenge him and clear his name by fighting back against Jupiter Grace.

Leo had given him a helmet, too, but Percy had only worn it once before he chosen not to wear it. The helmet reduced his visibility and awareness too much to use his power—at least, at the moment. Instead, he'd asked Leo for a face mask—and Leo had delivered. It covered the upper half of Percy's face, and ended in three prongs that jutted out of Percy's hair, evoking his emblem. Nico had frowned at the lack of protection, but Jason had trained Percy to watch for his head without armor—Percy would just have to prove himself to Nico.

The four of them had found a spot across the street from the Four Seasons, standing on the roof of a four-storied building where Nico had shadow-travelled them. It was raining, and late enough in the afternoon that the sky was completely dark already. The atmosphere felt perfect for Nico to his powers—or for Percy to use his.

Nico was looking at the hotel intently, as was Will—and Percy had to admit that maybe his lack of helmet meant he was missing out on a few cool features, if they could scan the hotel but he couldn't.

"Third floor," Nico said. "Ten Olympians. No sign of the Bolt."

"Security cameras found my dad there, though," Will said. "Along with twenty more hostages. So that's where we're going, right?"

"Right. Any ideas how to get in? I can't shadow-travel with four people in the middle of the action. Even if we don't get shot, I'd strain myself too much."

"I can blow us an entrance," Jason suggested, "and we can rappel from here to there."

"And lose the effect of surprise?"

"It's a trap," Jason retorted. "A pretty obvious one, too. We don't have the effect of surprise."

"The Bolt is expecting Night Angel to swoop in and save the day," Nico retorted. "Not four of us. The later he realizes that, the better for us."

"Maybe I can do something?" Percy offered. "With all that rain around us, there's gotta be a way for me to use it, right?"

Jason stared at him, his face unreadable behind his helmet, and Nico didn't even bother turning to him. Will, however, was the one who made a suggestion. "Do you have fine enough control to use the water to undo the joints on one of the windows? Maybe on the fifth floor?"

Percy glanced at him, and shrugged. "It would be hard from this distance, but—" The suit was supposed to increase his own control over the vitalis, just like every other super suit. "It's worth a shot. But then what?"

"If you can, and you make sure the rain pushes the glass inside, it won't raise the alarm, right? Then we just have to figure out how to get across."

"I can carry us there," Jason offered. "Percy and I, I mean. It'll be easier if he's working in close proximity."

"And leave us behind?" Nico retorted.

"You can shadow-travel with Will once it's open, right? Less of a strain if you see where you're going, and with only one person, you'll be fine." Jason tilted his head in a way Percy was pretty sure meant he was grinning. "Or I can come back and carry you across one by one, if you prefer."

Nico remained silent for a moment. "How much about our dads' powers do you know?"

"Everything my dad wanted to tell me. So everything I needed to fight you. Hopefully he's not as well prepared to Percy's powers."

"Hopefully." Nico scoffed. "All right. Let's do this."

Will felt pretty proud of himself for coming up with part of the plan to get inside. His brain felt solely focused on his dad's safety right now, so having any idea felt like a miracle. He only hoped it wouldn't backfire and make him responsible for their defeat. Would Jupiter kill Will's dad if he and the others were killed before they could make it to him? Will had no idea, but it didn't seem impossible.

He'd barely had time to test Leo's addition to the suit, but he'd taken the time to read up on the weaponry, at least. It was a flipped version of healing mode—manipulating weaponized vitalis. It wouldn't kill anyone, but it should have enough concussive force to make Will useful in a fight…provided he didn't get taken down as soon as the struggle started.

As it turned out, Jason had been literal in offering to carry Percy across: he took a hold of him, and slowly rose above the roof they stood on and across the street. Will wondered if anyone would see them—from the street below, or in the building across from them. But Jason crossed the street so fast, Will had good hopes that he had made it unnoticed.

A few seconds later, the window they hovered by fell inside the building, landing more softly than Will had expected. Before he could wonder about that, Nico took his arm, and they vanished from the roof to appear inside the hotel.

"I thought to stop the window before it hit the ground," Percy said, sounding proud of himself. "I know we're two floors above them, but I didn't want to risk making noise."

"Good call," Nico said. "Let's go."

The staircase was further inside the building; Will didn't like the idea that they'd have to take it much, since it was the only obvious way into the third floor and therefore was bound to be guarded. But it was their only option, and Nico had a plan.

"We have to disable whatever sentries they have before they can raise the alarm," he explained as they walked. "I'll deploy shadows to cover us, but they'll notice if we're too slow, so we have to take them down fast." He glanced at Jason. "Can I count on you to do that without killing them?"

Will could almost sense Jason's smirk. "You know, I've actually had a lot of experience not killing people. How else do you get information on the people you actually want dead?" Then, with a brief glance at Percy. "Sorry. It's probably not something I should joke about."

"It's really not," Percy said. "I get it, but…try to tone down the evil if you can."

"Yes, sir," Jason retorted, his tone only  about half sarcastic.

The walk down those stairs felt interminable; Will kept jumping at every shadow, every innocuous noise, wondering if he'd made the right choice coming here after all. If he was nervous now, what would it be when they were actually in danger?

Nico projected shadows around them when they reached the fourth floor and kept going down. They wrapped around Will and the others, casting a light veil over his sight but hardly anything more. Will had never seen Nico use this side of his powers before; he wondered what it would look like from the outside, but he guessed he had no way of knowing. He just had to trust Nico that it would hide their approach.

On his display's infrared scan layer, vague blobs told Will where the guards were moving. Of course, there was the risk that some of them might be decoys, but since Jason had promised not to kill anyone, Nico had reluctantly agreed it would be best to knock out hostages rather than take any chances.

Will wasn't sure what Jason's armor showed him, but he moved with an ease that Will had only seen Nico show so far—probably the kind that came with being used to this life and job. Once they reached the landing on the third floor, Jason hovered a hand over the door's handle, whose lock came open with a soft click. The door itself cracked open a little, but Jason stood still. After a second, Will understood why: the scanner showed a guard on the other side. Intrigued by the door suddenly opening, he came to check…and the moment he pushed the door open, Jason caught him in a chokehold, clasping a hand over his mouth until the man collapsed into a heap on the floor.

Will couldn't help but engage his suit's diagnosis scan, but the man was in fact still alive. A sigh of relief escaped him when the information displayed.

"If you're so happy about it," Jason hissed, "you can tie him up." He held out a rope from his tool belt towards Will.

"Tie him—can't you knock him out for long enough?" Percy asked.

"Not without causing permanent brain damage," Will answered for Jason's sake as he grabbed the rope. He was surprised Jason knew that—or cared. Nico's instructions not to kill would still have been respected even if Jason had caused grievous body harm instead, so Will was surprised that Jason respected the spirit of Nico's command rather than its letter.

As Will bound the man's hands, thankful for the dexterity his training as a surgeon had given him, Jason searched him for weapons. "One down," he finally said. "Nine more to go."

"Ten," Nico corrected. "We didn't see the Bolt on the scans, but he was reported to be here. I'm not ignoring that possibility."

Jason scoffed. "Knowing him, he was out the moment the media showed up. He wouldn't take a chance that could lead him to being identified."

Nico ignored the complaint. "They split the hostages. You and Percy go left, to the suite with five Olympians in it. Will and I will take care of the others in the tearoom."

No one commented on his decision, but Will couldn't help but feel a little upset at being dead weight. They headed out of the staircase and split up, Will following Nico at a quick jog down the hallways.

"You can see them on your display?" Nico asked. Will nodded, and he continued. "I can shadow-travel to the two in the middle of the room; they're far enough from the windows that it shouldn't be an issue. Just before I do, I'll kick the door in; you hide here a moment, then come in and take down the guard farthest from us, by the window. That's all I need from you; I'll take care of the guard by the door."

Will nodded again, silently. All he hoped was that he wouldn't disappoint Nico. "Why do I wait?"

"Just do it. You'll see. Now, at the count of three—"

The next three seconds went by in a flash to Will. Suddenly Nico was kicking and vanishing, and Will stood still for a split second. Then he heard gunfire, and realized what Nico had meant—the guards were, naturally, shooting at the apparent threat, even though Nico wasn't there anymore. Will threw himself against the wall next to the door, hearing the whistle of bullets flying past him. When they quieted down and Will heard the sounds of scuffle, he rushed in through the open door.

Nico had his staff out, sparring against two of the guards, remaining fast enough in the dark room to dodge the other two's gunfire. When Will entered, the guard across the room noticed at once, and hesitated a moment before aiming his gun at Will instead of Nico. Will was too slow to react, and he flinched when a bullet hit him; but the Anima suit absorbed the shock, and while Will staggered under the impact, he wasn't wounded.

Before the guard could shoot again, Will engaged the suit's weapons, aiming at him. Immediately, a golden beam fired from his hands, snaking through the air even faster than bullets. Their movements seemed random, but Will realized they were aimed at his target, as if they had their own guiding system. Intent was key with vitalis, Will remembered—he guessed it was no different here.

When the beams reached their target, they hit him full-force, ramming him into the wall nearby and knocking him out. For a moment, Will stood frozen, unable to process that he'd just done this.

Then his attention was called away when he heard Nico's cry. One of the guards he was fighting was down, but the other had managed to get a hold on him long enough for the last guard to get a few good shots. Will's first instincts was to diagnose Nico, but he stopped himself. The most important thing was to take out their enemies.

The guard who had fired had finally noticed Will, just a few feet away from him. He turned towards him, but Will was faster, lunging at him with the Anima's weapons at full charge. When he connected, his own momentum added to the weapon's concussive force, sending the man flying back into the wall hard enough to crack some of the plaster underneath.

Carried away by his momentum, Will lost his balance and fell on his knees, but when he looked at Nico again, he realized the fight was over; the final guard was down. Will scrambled to his feet and rushed at Nico, engaging the diagnosis he'd held back before.

"I'm fine—" Nico complained.

"Two of the bullets hit you close enough that the second one went through the suit," Will retorted. "You're not fine."

"It's just a flesh wound," Nico retorted, but his voice strained with pain regardless. "The bullet didn't get very deep. I've had worse. Besides, not now."

Will followed his gesture to the corner of the room behind him, where he found hostages gathered on the floor, sitting with their hands and feet tied. "Oh. Right." As he scanned the crowd, he saw the face he'd been hoping: his dad was there, among them. Safe. They'd succeeded.

"Don't untie their hands," Nico said. "We don't know if any of them are decoys. Let the police figure that out."

"Right." But Will couldn't help himself any longer: he headed straight for his dad, cut the bonds around his feet, and helped him up. "Are you all right, sir?"

"Yes, I'm—" He suddenly paused, an intrigued look on his face.

"I'll escort you out. Just wait a moment. It might not be safe out there."

Nico was already helping other hostages, and Will didn't want to be outdone. But as he helped a woman to her feet, she immediately went for Nico.

"Night Angel!" she said, and Will tensed up, wondering if he should stop her. Before he could, however, Nico turned towards her.

"Thalia?"

"I don't have time to explain, but it's a trap—"

"I know, that's why we have backup—"

"No, you don't get it. Didn't you notice? All the hostages are here!"

Will hadn't paid attention, but as he skimmed the hostages, he supposed there was about the right number of them. Had Nico known this when he'd decided to split up? It must have shown on the scan, even if Will had only been paying attention to the number of hostiles.

"But—why only have half of the men guard the hostages?" he asked.

It was a little disconcerting, how easily Percy worked together with Jason. Just over a week of training together, and Percy could already anticipate Jason's movements—as long as they weren't directed at him, anyway. It was even more disconcerting how easy it was to follow Jason's orders, and that didn't sit quite as easily in his stomach.

Jason had had him create a distraction by bursting the pipes in the suite's bathroom, drawing attention away from the front door. Two of the guards left to check the bathroom, and Percy used the flood to lock them inside, diverting some of the water to take out one of the other goons. By the time he looked up, Jason stood over the limp bodies of the remaining two. Percy had barely noticed their struggle.

"This place is empty," Jason said. "But—there was radiation showing hostages from here."

"There was," a new voice answered from behind them. "But infrared is just another form of electromagnetism. In time, I could have taught you how to fake them."

Jason turned back first, and Percy immediately noted how uneasy his stance looked compared to moments ago. When Percy followed his gaze, he understood why: there stood the Bolt—Jason's father. There was no way of knowing that it was him under the armor, strikingly similar to Jason's in design, but where Jason's was sober, his father's was golden with purple highlights and decorated with bright white lightning bolts.

"And who are you?" Jupiter asked Percy. "Some kind of wannabe hero? Did Mr D reopen his school without me knowing?"

The dismissive tone was what did it for Percy. "I'm payback," he snarled, calling the water from the flooded bathroom and hurling it at Jupiter. But it never hit him: wind blew, impossible as that sounded inside a hotel suite, and it formed an invisible barrier that the water crashed against like a wave.

"Well, I must thank you for giving away your identity, Jackson. Now let me finish what seems to be an impossibly difficult task I gave my son weeks ago."

Jupiter leapt forward—and then Percy realized that wasn't true: he soared forward, flying into Percy at high speed, surrounded by a crackling lightning bolt. Jason stepped in the way, but the lightning crashed against him and threw him back; just a second later, Jupiter rammed into Percy. But he didn't just hit him: he grabbed hold of Percy by the collar of his suit, and kept flying onwards, crashing the two of them through the window and rising higher and higher into the air.

"I would all have been so much easier if you'd just done your purpose," Jupiter said, his voice almost sweet. "Draw out the di Angelo boy so I could kill him, and die. But you both had to survive, didn't you? Well, today I'm trying up all those loose ends."

And with that, as they were floating higher than any of the surrounding buildings, Jupiter let go of him.

Chapter Text

It was like a nightmare scenario.

Suddenly the Bolt had come into view of their scans, just on time for Will to see him carry another form out of the suite and up in the air. He couldn't say who it was with just the infrared scan, but he could guess.

Nico, thankfully, dealt with the emergency better than he did. "Can you get the hostages out?" he asked Thalia. She nodded, and Nico clasped his hand on Will's forearm, taking him into the shadows.

They reappeared in the suite across the building, where Olympian goons lay unconscious. Another form was among them, however: Jason, recognizable with his armor, but much less menacing now that he was sprawled on the floor.

"Jason!" Nico ran to kneel by his side, but Jason was already stirring. Will's scan told him he was fine—only dazed by whatever his father had done to him, with a bruised shoulder.

Will ran to the shattered window instead, looking up. Jupiter was rising high and fast, and the form he held had to be Percy's. "Nico?" he called, panic seeping into his voice.

"Jason, you need to get up," Nico said. "He's going to kill Percy if we don't do anything!"

When Will glanced back, Jason was moving, slow and sluggish. He would never be up and ready to catch Percy in midair fast enough.

An alert popped in a corner of Will's display, pointing to somewhere behind and above him. He turned to follow the indicator, and found it locked on Percy. Jupiter had dropped him, and he was plummeting down.

Diagnosis impossible (target moving too fast). Engage quick rescue?

Will had no idea what it meant, but he validated the command immediately. Whatever it was, he doubted it could hurt Percy.

His stomach lurched when the suit moved of its own accord. Blood rushed through his body under the sudden acceleration, making him dizzy; yet he still managed to register that he was flying through the air towards Percy's falling body. He caught Percy by the waist, more by reflex than anything. When he did, the suit pulled to an abrupt stop, hovering in midair.

Percy looked as freaked out as Will felt, but he wrapped his arms around Will's neck nonetheless. "Well," Will managed to say, "I guess that's the propulsion system Leo told me about."

"Awesome," Percy said, sarcastic but without any bite. "Now how do we get somewhere safer?" He looked up, and Will followed his gaze, seeing Jupiter descending upon them.

"Um—" He had no idea how to control the propulsion system, but he was starting to get a grasp on Leo's design. It was just a matter of thinking the command, and if the suit could do it, it would. So he thought about flying down—and they immediately dropped in free fall.

"Too fast!" Percy said, as if Will hadn't noticed.

They didn't hit the ground—Will managed to get the propulsion back up and slow down their fall, landing softly. Still, it was a small miracle Jupiter hadn't caught them and killed them by now—or so Will thought, until he looked up. Jupiter was following them, but another form emerged from the hotel, flying at high speed and ramming into Jupiter. Nico had gotten Jason up after all.

Will heard Nico's voice into his helmet, taking him by surprise—even if it made sense that Leo would have given them a way to communicate. "I'll help Jason," he said. "There's enough clouds to let me shadow-travel against their flight. You two stay down there. Help the hostages when Thalia brings them out, and tell the police where to find the other Olympians."

"I heard that," Percy said when Will turned to him, and he tapped his mask to explain.

"Do you really think they can take on Jupiter without us?"

"I don't know. I haven't done such a great job so far. You were great, though. Thanks for saving me."

Will smiled, even though he knew Percy couldn't see it through his visor. After spending the entire time feeling like the useless member of their team, it was sort of reassuring to see Percy shared his anxiety. "I saw what you did in there, flooding the place. I don't think you were useless." He waved around them. "With all that rain—who knows what you could do?"

"Not much, if I have anything to say about it."

Startled, Will turned to see a man emerge from the hotel. He had never met him in person, but he'd heard enough about him to match his looks now from the pictures in Cecil's home. Luke was here.

Percy tensed up at the sound of Luke's voice, and even more when cold seeped into his bones as Luke's power took over his own.

"And who the hell are you two, anyway?" Luke asked, mocking. "One of you's not even a super, I can sense it. Do they just give any random kid suits now? Is that how the great Mr D's legacy evolved?"

It was hard to keep a strong figure in front of Luke's derision, but Percy had prepared for this. He took deep breaths and ignored the way Luke's power dug into his heart—ignored the way it felt like he was dating Luke all over again, unable to realize he was dating the most notorious of super villains. He pretended to brush dirt off his suit, clicking a button on the left side of his belt as he did so. Only when his body warmed up again did he look up.

Luke didn't even bother to hide his identity anymore, even if he still wore a custom-made suit like Percy's. His face was bare, as if he couldn't be bothered to see the point in head protection. Or maybe the Olympians had been taken by surprise when Percy and Nico hadn't died as planned, and Luke hadn't been supposed to step in. Percy didn't know, and he found that he didn't care.

"You want to know who I am?" he said, projecting his voice as best he could. "I am the Son of Neptune!"

Phrased like this, it sounded official, almost like a superhero name of his own. Percy couldn't help but smirk at that—well, at that, and at Luke's dismay when he recognized Percy's voice.

"You're not—are you serious? And I thought I was gonna have to smoke you out of hiding! Guess you're too stupid not to come out and fight the people who want you dead, huh? We can add that to the list of things you couldn't figure out."

Will walked past Percy's, and Percy caught his arm. He gave him a nod, thankful for the help, but Percy didn't want someone to defend him in this. "I fight these people because they want me dead. Because I can't just sit back and let people walk all over me anymore. That's what you would have me do."

Luke frowned at him for a second, then managed to school his features back into a contemptuous mask. "Whatever. As I said, makes the job easier for me. It's not like you can fight me on even footing, is it?"

He charged at Percy, but the rain pooled under his feet, causing him to slip and almost fall. Luke faltered for a second, and slipped again—and this time, he fell on his knees. He looked up, confused, and Percy noticed Will glancing back and forth between them as well. "You've taken enough from me when we were dating," he said. Then he winked at Will. "Had Leo put something special on my suit," he added, just loud enough for his communicator to pick up on it.

It was a smaller version of the blocker Nico had used to get Percy out of Jason's apartment, tuned to block out superpowers that weren't Percy's. This one was smaller in range, barely covering Percy's own body, since Percy hadn't wanted to risk incapacitating his friends. But it meant Luke couldn't leech off of his powers.

Will nodded. "We can take him," he said, as if he was just realizing. Luke had some super strength and speed even without leeching off of anyone, but nothing the two of them couldn't handle—Percy hoped.

Footsteps came rushing from behind them, causing splashes on the wet pavement; Percy glanced back to see a boy with Luke's blond hair, a microphone in his hand, followed by a cameraman.

"Cecil?" Will blurted out. "What're you doing here?"

Of course—Cecil Castellan, Luke's brother. Percy should have known. He frowned at Will briefly—likely wondering who this masked person was, and why they knew him—before turning his gaze to Luke, behind them. "Luke!" he said. "What are you doing?"

Luke was back on his feet, but he hesitated at the sight of his brother. "You—Get out of here! You shouldn't be here!"

"This is the Bolt we saw up there, and the hostages say they were taken by Olympians!" Percy let out a sigh at hearing that hostages had come out of the hotel already—he'd wondered if Luke might have done something to them, too. "Is that who you're working for now? What are you, some kind of mercenary? Is that how low you've fallen?"

Luke stared at him with unveiled disgust. "You have no idea what I'm doing! What it's like for supers!"

"What I'm seeing is that we have a few supers here who don't take that as an excuse to do the things you do."

Will turned back to Cecil, putting a hand on his shoulder. "That's enough. We'll take it from here."

Percy agreed—Cecil might have rattled Luke, by the looks of it, but he wasn't equipped to deal with a battle. "Find cover," he said.

Cecil remained still for a moment. "You two owe me an interview," he said before retreating.

Will didn't waste any time: as soon as Cecil was out of danger, he fired. Percy hadn't seen his suit's weaponry in action yet; the golden beams of light, bright enough to look like sunlight, were a sight to behold. Yet Luke dodged them as if they were nothing, and they dug into the ground, damaging the pavement around the impacts.

They needed to work together. "Keep firing," Percy said in his communicator. "I'll make sure he can't dodge everything.

He called water to himself, and a small wave lifted him up off the ground and carried him towards Luke. He threw one punch, and Luke dodged it, but it was enough to get his attention. With the water doing the movement for him, Percy could almost match Luke's speed, dodging his attacks as well as Luke was dodging his. It also left Percy free to focus on something other than his own leg play; he called more water, trying to trip Luke, or strike at him, or immobilize him in some kind of way.

Luke was still untouchable, but between Percy and Will's continued fire, he was forced to play defensive. "You were saying?" Percy taunted him. "Any random kid, right?"

"If you think you could take me one on one, then you'll be able to talk," Luke spat.

He threw himself at Percy, knocking him off the water that held him upright. They tumbled to the pavement, Luke landing on top of him. He caught Percy's wrists and held them with one hand, grasping Percy's collar with the other.

"While I'd love to comment on the familiarity of this—" He never finished his sentence; instead, he rolled to the side, holding Percy as a shield between himself and Will.

From the lack of being shot, Percy guessed Will had stopped firing. "Now what?" he asked. "We're staying like this forever?"

"Not forever—just until a few of those useless Olympians show up and get rid of your friend. They won't be able to fight while he's outnumbered, will they? And in the meantime—" He let go of Percy's collar and reached for his own belt, bringing up a pair of handcuffs that he clasped around Percy's wrists. "Can't let you walk around immune to my powers. Where'd you put the blocker?"

"Do you really think I'll tell you?"

"Do you really think I'll mind searching you?" Luke raised an eyebrow as he gave a smirk. "It's not like I dated you because I hated you, you know. I really liked you."

"Yeah, just not enough to stop murdering people." Or to date someone who wasn't still a teenager, Percy added mentally. But that argument wouldn't work—he'd heard Luke slip past it many times when they were dating.

"Well, you asked for it." He still held on Percy firmly with one hand, pushing down on his shoulder to force him to kneel, but his other hand rand across Percy's body—in a way that Percy was sure had nothing to do with searching.

Percy closed his eyes, unable to repress a shudder—or desire or disgust, he wasn't even sure anymore. It didn't matter—he had to focus his power, and do so subtly enough that Luke couldn't sense him coming. If he'd been able to get the upper hand on Jason during training, he could do this.

Luke's hand brushed past the blocker, and caught on it. With a triumphant "Aha!" he reached for it; but just then, a massive column of water dropped on the two of them, exerting massive pressure that threw them violently against the pavement. Percy kept it still for a moment, struggling to find his own breath—he'd only managed to breathe underwater once during training, and it had taken some effort to resist his own survival instincts. Luke was holding his breath, but between the shock and the water pressure, it was a losing battle. Percy held the water in place until Luke closed his eyes, and then some more, in case he was faking it.

"Percy," Will's voice came, severe and a little worried, "he's passed out. You'll drown him."

Only then did Percy allow himself to let go. The water fell around him, splashing on the ground and spreading around him. Percy tried to get up, but he felt too exhausted to do it; this had exerted him more than he'd planned. Will rushed in immediately, checking in on Luke then on Percy himself.

After a few moments, Percy finally managed to gather his thoughts and sit up. His hands were free—he wasn't sure how Will had done it—and Luke was bound, a vitalis blocker attached to the back of his neck, out of reach of his cuffed hands.

"You okay?" Will asked when he noticed Percy moving.

"Y-yeah, just tired. I'll be fine." He stood up, wobbled on his legs for a moment, and finally found his balance.

"The police is here. Can you tell them what to do? I have to see if N—if the others need me."

Percy nodded. "Yeah, I think I'm out of it anyway."

Will found that the suit could locate Nico as well as it had tracked down Percy when Jupiter was taking him up in the air—part of the communicator's functions, he guessed. They had flown a couple blocks down, and landed on the roof of a tall building. Will couldn't see more than that from a distance, but he hurried in their direction.

Diagnosis impossible (out of range). Engage quick rescue?

Hell yes, Will thought. And just like that, the suit took off, going to find Nico in autopilot. It was still dizzying to move that fast, but at least Will knew what to expect this time. When he landed, he wasn't disoriented, he was ready.

Or so he thought. The fight in front of him looked downright apocalyptic. Thunderbolts tore the sky and headed towards the three fighters—Jupiter, golden and towering, Jason in his bulky armor and Nico in his sleek black suit—only to be diverted and damage the roof near them. Nico moved like he was lightning, phasing in and out of shadows, but never able to lang more than a glancing hit. The shadows moved of their own accord, too, almost taking a physical shape like a demon was trying to pull itself into existence; but all it took was a bright lightning bolt for the shadows to disappear.

Jason seemed to be on the defensive, and Will realized why when he engaged diagnosis; his left shoulder had been bruised in the hotel suite, but it was now dislocated completely. It was amazing that he could still stand straight, let alone block his father's attacks.

Will turned on the healing mode and targeted Jason. Immediately, a flow of vitalis appeared between his hands and headed towards Jason. By the way Jason immediately stood more straight, he must have noticed, but he wasn't healed yet. Will focused on his shoulder first, urging the sensory nerves to shut off for a moment as he pulled the bone back in its socket and made sure that tendons and ligaments didn't get caught along the way. It took a minute, but finally, Jason's arm was healed, and Will released his hold on it.

When Jason punched with his left hand, following it with a lightning bolt, Jupiter was taken by surprise, not expecting Jason to use his injured arm anymore. The hit connected, the lightning exploding with a deafening crack, and Jupiter flew backwards. Nico moved immediately, appearing behind Jupiter and catching him with his staff. Jupiter landed on his back, but he wasn't out: lightning struck down again, three bolts at once, each headed at one of them. Jason blocked his and the one that went for Will, but Nico must have been out of his range; the lightning hit a spot right next to Nico's feet, exploding and sending Nico backwards.

Will's first instinct was to help Nico, but his diagnosis assured him Nico was fine, and Jupiter was already scrambling up, so he switched to attack mode. Stealing Jupiter's idea, he didn't fire at him, but next to him, trying to predict where his feet would land. Jupiter dodged the first few beams, then messed up at the fifth: he staggered as Will's shot connected with his ankle, just as Jason came down from above, landing on him hard, followed by a thunderbolt.

It flashed bright, and Will's display adjusted to prevent him from being blinded by it. When it finally faded, Jupiter lying down, with Jason kneeling on top of him. The Anima suit's diagnosis kicked him immediately. Unconscious, it said about Jupiter.

Will had a collection of personal blockers and handcuffs on his suit, courtesy of Leo; he walked over to Jason and handed him the equipment. Jason stared at it for a moment, almost confused. Will could guess what he was thinking.

"I don't think I can lecture anyone about superheroing yet," Will said. "But you should try to be the better person. For Percy's sake, if not yours. Make him face justice."

Jason's face remained turned to the handcuffs in his hands, then he shook his head. Will tensed up, but then, Jason said, "Can he hear me?"

Will frowned, but he opened his communications—he hadn't considered that Jason might not have access to them yet. "He can now."

"I'll do it. I'll bring my father to justice. But not for Percy. I don't want to be a good person just so I can deserve him. How manipulative would that be? I'll do it because it's the right thing to do."

"Turning over a new leaf?" Nico said, sarcastic. Will turned to him—he hadn't heard him join them, but at least that meant he was probably okay.

"Do you think I can't?"

Nico shook his head. "I took you on my team, didn't I?"

"Out of necessity."

"That's what I said." Nico didn't elaborate, but the implication was obvious enough.

Jason scoffed, and he clasped the handcuffs around the Bolt's hands and placed the blocker on his neck. "Can you take him to the police? I think they have some bad memories of the man wearing this armor."

Nico nodded. "You sure?" Jason nodded, and stepped off his father's body. Nico bent down to put a hand on him, and shadow-traveled away.

"I'll join them," Will said. "I take it you're not coming?"

"Better if I don't."

"Will we see you again?"

Jason remained silent for a moment. "Do you want to?"

"You did help, in the end," Will said. "And I'm pretty sure Percy and I owe at least part of our victory to your training." He shrugged. "I don't know if I'm forgiving you for putting me in danger, but I can't put resentment before what Nico and Percy want."

"How do you know it's what they want?"

"Well, Percy gave me a piece of advice, the first time you and I met. So let me return it."

Will flew back to the Four Seasons a few minutes later. Nico, as Night Angel, the only recognizable figure, was already getting attention from the police and the press alike. Only Cecil was apart from the crowd, talking to Percy to the side.

Someone else detached from the crowd and walked straight to Will—his father.

"Will? Is that you?"

Will froze, unsure what to do. "I—what?"

"Do you think distorting your voice will prevent your father from recognizing you? I know you. I know how you work—and I saw you in action. Is this why you went missing? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I—you're not angry?"

"Are you crazy? I saw what you just did—why would I be angry?"

Will felt a tension relieve from his shoulders. "I—I don't know. Look, I can't talk here, but I just want you to know I didn't hide it from you. This is kind of a new thing. But—maybe we can talk later?"

His father grinned. "Well—you know what hotel I'm staying at."

Will's dad had left, only to be replaced with Cecil. Will suffered through the interview, hoping he wouldn't be as transparent to him as he was to his dad. A few of his questions made Will wonder if he hadn't already figured out—and between knowing him and working with Night Angel, Will guessed it was easy—but he would deal with that whenever Cecil was ready to confront him about it. 

For now, he was ready to head back home and get off this suit. Well, maybe not take off the suit—it was still comfortable, in spite of everything—but definitely get home and relax.

When he glanced at Nico, he saw that the feeling was mutual. "We're leaving," Nico said over the communications. He'd been talking to Thalia, Will realized—about what, he could only guess. But whatever they'd said, she didn't come with him. Percy joined them, and finally, Nico took them back home.

"I can't believe we just won," Percy said.

"You've known about my activities from the start, and yet, you have so little faith in me," Nico deadpanned.

Percy scoffed. "You know what I mean. We went in to save hostages, and we end up taking down Jupiter Grace!"

"Until he can lawyer his way out." Nico sighed as he took off his helmet. "But his credibility will be damaged, at least. We can expect some good to come out of it. And with him out of the way, I can clean up the Olympian gang before it can get a new leader."

"You mean 'we' can," Will said.

Nico looked up at him, and smiled. "Yeah. We can clean up."

"But before that, we earned some rest, right?" Percy said.

"Yeah. We did. And a night with the boyfriend," Nico replied, grinning at Will. Okay, maybe he would get out of the suit after all.

"I got it. I'm giving you guys some space."

Percy wasn't even out of the room before Nico was kissing Will, and Will was more than happy about that.

Chapter Text

Percy found himself on the balcony. He didn't go there a lot—especially not in the past few days, when he'd stayed here for his safety and the balcony was too exposed—but tonight, he needed the fresh air. Not just to stay out of Will and Nico's feet—although that too, and they had deserved the space—but also just to be on his own and think.

If there was something he doubted any therapist would advise him, it was to physically fight his abusive ex and send him to jail as a way to find some catharsis. But he had done that anyway, and yeah, it had been for a good cause, but to Percy, the whole thing had felt personal. And now that Luke was out, it felt good.

Part of him had hoped, when Cecil had joined them, that Luke would give up. That maybe Thalia would come out of the hostage crowd, and together, they could change his mind. He wasn't sure if that was optimism, or falling back in his old patterns, but he'd still hoped. Yet he didn't regret the route he'd taken, either—proving to Luke, and to himself, that he wasn't defenseless, that he could be stronger. It felt contradictory, but he guessed that was par for the course for him.

And then there was Jason. No signs of him since the battle; Nico had told him Jason didn't want to be seen in his old Olympian armor, but that didn't mean he couldn't come back here, right?

What Jason had said over the communications had shaken Percy too. I don't want to be a good person just so I can deserve him. How manipulative would that be? I'll do it because it's the right thing to do.

To Percy, there was a silent implication; that Jason did hope to deserve Percy anyway, but that he wouldn't force Percy to be with him just to do the right thing. And if that was the case, his absence made more sense—coming back would always come with an unspoken hope that Percy would in fact decide to be with him.

Which left only one thing to do.

Luckily, the communicator in his suit let him access the contacts on Nico's phone, so he found the number easily. He thought to call, but decide it would be too hard to do his if he had to speak. So he texted instead.

Jason was here within a minute, floating down onto the balcony. "You're lucky I was close to my computer. I travel a lot faster when I use the Internet."

"Right," Percy retorted. He had a distinct feeling Jason had been waiting—hoping?—for a message like this. That, or he'd dropped everything, which amounted to the same thing.

"You wanted to talk?" Jason asked as he landed.

Percy nodded. "Well—kind of."

"Kind of?"

Percy leaned in and pressed his lips to Jason's. Immediately, Jason's arms wrapped around him, drawing him in as he kissed him back. It was brief, because Percy didn't want things to get out of hand, but he didn't step out of Jason's arms after he broke the kiss. "Now we can talk."

"What do you—"

"I don't know if I can fully trust you," Percy said. "Not just because of what you did, but because of my own issues. Beating down Luke—it felt good, but that's not going to make my issues disappear, either." He took a deep breath, half-hoping Jason would interrupt him, but Jason remained quiet. "So I figured—if you're going to make an effort and prove you can be trusted, I can make an effort too and decide to trust you. Decide to just…not listen to the part of me that tells me to freak out."

"You don't have to do this—"

"I don't," Percy said. "That's the point. I'm choosing to."

"And you don't even want to take some time to think about it?"

"We can take it slow." He shook his head. "We should take it slow. I think we both need that, for different reasons. But I just wanted to tell you that—this is what I choose." He sighed. "I didn't want you out there on your own, wondering if you ever had a chance."

Jason didn't answer, but he didn't have to. The glistening in his eyes was all Percy needed to know what he was thinking. "So—"

"Stay the night," Percy offered. "Not—not to sleep with me. I mean, we can sleep together, as in, actually sleep together, but—" He groaned. "We have a lot to catch up on. And we should see if we can even hang out when there's no kidnapping or impending doom going on."

"Hang out? I don't know if I even know how to do that anymore."

Jason said it as a joke, but Percy felt he might be telling the truth. "Well, I'll show you, then. The only thing you need to know is that you'd better be ready for some awkward noises. The kids get pretty loud at times, and I think they might be up to go at it all night."

He grinned at Jason, who chuckled, and before he knew, both of them were laughing hard enough for Percy to feel an ache in his stomach. That was nice—just laughing together, Jason's arms still around him. Maybe they didn't need more for now.

"At least we still have the same sense of humor," Jason said.

"We have all the time in the world to find out what else we have in common."

"If by 'all the time in the world' you mean 'until the next crisis', then yes."

"I think it'll be enough." He pressed another kiss to Jason's lips. "Don't you?"

"I think I already know," Jason replied. "But I'll take any excuse to spend time with you."

He kissed Percy again, and they headed inside.