Black Magic // Percico

Chapter Fifteen: Nico di Angelo and the Bloody Necromancer that Won't Go Away

You could practically smell the tension in the room, cut the silence with a knife. Nico glances around and takes an incredibly loud slurp of his tea, wishing more than anything he could be with Percy. Thalia glances at him and shakes her head with a silent chuckle, she was just as awkward as him. Ironic how she was the one in danger but she didn't really care, not that it had been the first time she'd almost died (there was this one time with an exploding glass orb about fifty years ago, but they don't talk about that) because of them, nor would it be the last.

Bianca sat on an armchair with Thalia on her lap, tail curled around the human's waist in soft comfort but her expression is anything but. If looks could kill. Hazel is glaring with an almost identical expression, Frank by her side with an emotionless expression. Rachel's sitting on the floor with something that looks like olive oil and rose petal, in that kind of deadly calm that can send a man stark raving mad. Nico sits on one of the pillowed shelves, set there for him. Jason and Leo sit on the couch, avoiding all eyes, looking terribly guilty and embarrassed.

"Well it's not like he actually hurt her." Leo blurts out, Bianca lets out a snarl that shakes the window panes.

"I don't care if he didn't actually hurt her, you brought them here with promise that she would not be harmed." Bianca roar, she's ready to dismember the vampire and pyromancer but Thalia places a hand on her arm. Bianca closes her eyes and takes a steady breath.

"You ever, let anything get that close to hurting Thalia again and it will be the end of you." Hazel says, they nod quickly and she smiles and takes a sip of her tea. Nico breathes easier as the tension slowly starts to drown away.

"Since we're done here, I have a date with Perseus." Nico starts to spread his wings out so he can fly away but Bianca's voice stops him

"Yes about that," Bianca suddenly says, "the bet was the make him fall in love with you, not the other way around."

Nico gapes at her, spluttering slightly, "I-I." It was one thing to think it but to have another person speak it allowed, well that was another thing altogether. Did Nico love Percy? It'd been a week since the accident and everyone had been rather tense, only just making up for it now. To them, all immortal beings, a week wasn't long at all but it had been a month since he'd made that bet, four weeks. But Percy had wormed his way in, and for someone who's lived through hundreds of years, had many lovers but never loved them truly, Percy made him feel like he'd always known him.

"Okay, maybe...I'm rather fond of him." Nico says quietly, a chuckle runs around the room making him blush darkly.

"You're falling in love with him and you know it." Hazel chips in, wiggling her eyebrows, she takes Frank's hand and smiles at him like a proud mother. Nico groans and buries his face in his hands.

"I think he's good for you Nico." Rachel says, "Before you met him, there was no way in hell that you would have defended Thalia from that vampire."

"True." Thalia pipes up, Nico sends her a glare but she just winks, "I mean, you've barely acknowledged my presence, I was just some moving furniture that fucks your sister. But now I'm an actual person to you!" Bianca goes bright red and hides her face making Thalia snort.

"You should bring him here, I'd love to meet him and not from some corner of a bus." Hazel smiles.

"Are you insane? Bring my human boyfriend, here? Do you want me to die alone?" He yells making some glass on the chandelier explode like popcorn, the entire room stares at him until he blushes brightly and hides his face again.

"So he is your boyfriend?" Jason teases, before Nico has a chance to defend himself, the doorbell rings. He uses it as the perfect division and flies over to it.