The Ghosts of Millennia

Nico and Thalia Have an Attitude-Off

CHAPTER SUMMARY

Nico and Thalia have a heart-to-heart. Hermione has a divine visitor.

BEGINNING NOTES

Chapter Rating: General Audiences
Content Warning: Rape (mentioned only)
Word Count: 4232

We have two new betas, guys! Oli and Suhaila! Suhalia has exams, so she'll make her debut next week.

And all the characters are owned by JK Rowling, or Rick Riordan.

Credits at the end.

____________________NICO____________________

Nico knew he should sleep. He'd only gotten a half-hour's worth in that convenience store, and, after the pure exhaustion of dark magic and fighting to make his soul stay where it belonged, he should be at least a little tired. But he wasn't. At all.

It was 4:09 a.m., December 31st. Twelve hours, nineteen minutes left to speak with Ceres and save the world from war. And his nerves had passed the "overdrive" setting back in Indiana. Ceres would kill him the moment they stepped foot in Montana. Khione, or whichever god cast the raging blizzard, was trying to kill him now. Zeus was back in New York, wreaking havoc on the biggest city in America to send his daughter's chosen hero a message:

I want Hades gone. Make this difficult for me, and I'll kill your family all over again.

Nico thought nothing could be crueler than watching Bellatrix Lestrange torture Will at Riddle's behest. The Lord of the Sky proved him wrong.

"Do you think Sky Guy's aiming his Bolt at me right now?" Nico asked the thestral below him. "Maybe Ms. le Fay too. Oh, and Papà. They made you together, you know. The only time they ever cooperated, but this was before the whole kidnapping thing happened. So, I can't get blasted by Sky Guy unless you drop me. I guess he could send a gust of wind. Or Ms. le Fay could get me if Papà turns a blind eye. He'd do it too... Newt, this was a terrible idea."

"N-- Newt?" Nico turned. Thalia was shivering something awful, even with all the layers and furs she had wrapped around her body. She was white as a sheet. Even that silvery glow of a Hunter didn't hide it. He probably didn't look much better.

"Sorry... I ramble when I'm nervous. Um... I thought everyone was asleep." Thalia was too terrified to say anything. "You know, we could land for a bit since everyone else is out cold. No one would know."

Relief washed over Thalia's face. Nico directed Newt to the ground; his heartbeat slowed with every meter they dropped. They plunged under the clouds, back into the thick of the blizzard, but he barely felt the temperature drop. He'd shivered every time a wind above the clouds touched his skin up in the sky; down below, the frostbite seemed to wear off.

"T-- thanks," Thalia stammered. Newt kept flying, hovering over the snow. The farmland and prairies of Nebraska had replaced the woods a while ago, but they were still forced to slow down because, below the clouds, the falling snow constricted their vision.

Thalia started to climb down Newt's tail. "Don't," he warned. "There's a reason Newt won't land, and I don't think it's because he'd get too cold. He doesn't have any skin, so I don't think he'd be able to feel--"

"Got it. Snow's too high. I'd get trapped."

"...yeah. Hey, I'm... sorry, about before. Running away, the wampus cats. I put you all in jeopardy. It's just that... no, no excuses... uh, nevermind."