After the Avengers went to Sokovia, Nico returned to camp. He visited the Underworld every day for training, but Nico refuses to tell me what they're doing. He does keep on muttering something about his 'idiot father' being an 'idiot therapist.' Anyway, the Avengers ended up contacting us in the middle of the week and asked whether I wanted to visit the coming weekend. So, now we're in Avenger's Tower.
We finish climbing up the stairs. Gods, I love Nico, but sometimes his fear of elevators is really inconvenient. Nico stops at the floor with his room first, wanting to give me the full tour.
"This is the monstrosity Stark calls a bedroom," Neeks announces, showing me the inside.
In typical Nico fashion, everything is as dark and goth as possible. He doesn't even realize how clichè he's become. He has painted his walls black and put up some black and white pictures of the 1930s hanging around. There are some questionably dark posters on the walls as well, along with skulls everywhere and on everything.
I dryly remark, "Thinking about forgoing a career as a war veteran for a job as a pirate? I'm sure Percy could hook you up, though your pirate's skulls speak for themselves."
He glared at me with his full-on teenager scowl, "Piratey isn't a word."
"Shut up, Death Breath," I mutter before wrapping my arms around him and leaning closer for a kiss.
We stand like that for a minute or two. The world really seems to melt away when I'm with him. Suddenly, it doesn't matter that my mom thinks I'm a freak and won't let me near my fully mortal little sister. It doesn't matter that I don't have a single friend outside of Camp Half-Blood. It doesn't matter that literally every parental figure I've ever known or cared for has abandoned or forgotten me. Nico is my family; Nico is my home. He may be broken, but I'm damaged too, and I love him. I hope this Avengers situation doesn't go to Hades. Even though I selfishly want to be his only 'family,' I know he needs his brother in his life.
I hear someone cough and quickly whirl towards the doorway where Bucky stands, smirking.
"So you two lovebirds have hidden in here. Tsk, tsk, I expected better from you boys," Bucky struggles to contain a laugh as he says this.
Nico is blushing as hard as a field of peonies in the spring, and I smirk.
"Neeks here was giving me the grand tour. How are you, Bucky?" I ask.
Bucky fiddles with the doorknob, his face clouding over with something resembling regret or sorrow, "I'm sure you've heard of what's happened with the Avengers this past week, with Ultron and everything."
"I heard something. Tony nearly destroyed the world with his Ultron invention, right?" I reply, still not entirely sure what went down.
Nico jumps in after I step on his foot, "Are you okay? How are all the Avengers? There were three new heroes, right? They're Spider-Man, Quicksilver, and Scarlet Witch. Will they all be staying here?"
"Yes, we're all okay, thanks to Spider-Man. Quicksilver would have died if he hadn't swooped in on time. To answer your other question, I think so. There's some paperwork Tony has to get through first, so they aren't here yet," Nico's brother replies.
I'm internally freaking out for Nico at that last part. Nico doesn't have the capacity for healthy social interaction at the moment, so having three new kids his age around will only make him panic. Not to mention, it'll add to the people questioning him. Also, I've heard the one hero is especially good at digging through the minds, which could expose many secrets he's not ready to share.
"Anyway," Bucky continues, "Romanoff just got back from work, and everyone else wants to meet you, Will."
"What new conspiracy theories has Natasha come up with now?" Nico grumbles.
"She's just... curious. That's the word. Natasha just takes things too far sometimes. They're all interested in meeting Will," Bucky replies, continuing to fiddle with the door handle awkwardly.
I'm pretty excited to meet the Avengers. I don't actually know anything about them. I've only heard of Thor and Ironman from Leo, and I haven't even seen photos of the rest. Well, excluding Steve and Bucky, with whom we went to coffee.
I grab Nico's hand and say, "Well then, let's go meet them!"
"Jar- sorry, Friday," Bucky trips over his words a little, "Friday, please alert the Avengers that I've found Will and Nico, and we're coming up."
"Yes, Metal Mouth," the intercom-robot-thing responds.
Bucky groans at the nickname and leads us up to the Avengers' living room. When we walk through the doorway, I freeze. All of the Avengers are lounging on the couch, and once I see their faces, I go still.
"Hey, Will!" Steve greets me, but I don't respond.
"Wiiiiiill," Nico waves a hand in front of my face, "Are you there?"
I can't stop glaring at Clint standing in front of me. He withers under my glare.
Finally, Clint musters up the strength to say something, "Hi, Will."
I snap; I just can't take it anymore. I walk straight up to Clint and punch him in the face, "CLINT BARTON! YOU-YOU-YOU TRAITOR!
Everyone backs away a little.
"I deserved that," Clint mumbles meekly, rubbing his cheek where I punched him.
"You deserve much more than that weak punch!" I take deep breaths, trying to calm myself.
Nico quickly moves in front of me, so I don't punch my big brother again, "Will, calm down. What exactly is going on here? Do you and Clint know each other?"
I ball my hands into fists, "Know him?! He's my brother."
"Wait, what?" Tony and Romanoff say simultaneously.
Clint jumps in, "Will's my half-brother. We share the same dad."
Nico arches an eyebrow, "Dad? As in Cabin Seven?"
Clint nods and asks, "You, Nico?"
Nico replies, "Cabin Thirteen."
"Thirteen?" Clint asks.
I cut in there, "You've been gone a long time, Clint," I feel another pang of anger, "Where were you?! We needed you; I needed you. Did you know that I'm head counselor now? Lee and Michael are dead. Half of camp died; meanwhile, you were busy playing superhero."
Clint looks shocked, "What happened?"
I say the next part in Ancient Greek, aware that the Avengers are consuming our fight like reality tv. I think Stark's eating popcorn, *Two wars. I was the head counselor for the second. At thirteen years old, I became head counselor and medic in the midst of a WAR. I have watched people die. I've tended to fatal wounds and delivered so much bad news knowing had YOU been there; dozens more lives could have been saved!*
"Back up a second. You said half of the people at your camp died. This is the same camp Nico's living at, right?" Bucky interjects.
Clint and I ignore him.
"I'm sorry," Clint says in English this time.
I shout back at him in English, "You don't get to be sorry. You were more than just another sibling; I looked up to you. Six years ago, when I told my mom about everything, she kicked me out. Everyone in Cabin Seven became my family, but you, I knew I could always count on you to be there for me. Now, Mom still won't let me near her, my little sister, or my stepfather, and you've abandoned me. So 'I'm sorry' really doesn't cut it," I storm off, racing towards the stairs. I need to leave.
POV SWITCH!!! NICO POV
"Will!" I shout, preparing to chase after him.
Bucky, Steve, Romanoff, and Stark all block my path. Thor and Bruce still sit on the couch, and Clint is, well Clint is at a loss.
I groan, "Move out of my way."
"What was that?!" Natasha's all riled, now, "Half the people at your camp died? Clint weirdly knows Will? Will's parents kicked him out six years ago? He would have been eight years old six years ago!"
Stark juts in, "And what was that Cabin stuff? Barton, you aren't off the hook either."
"I don't have time for this," I mutter.
"Then make time for this!" Bucky shouts.
Clint starts talking, "It's a long story. I'm Will's brother on his dad's side. I used to be a counselor at the camp Will and Nico go to, but I left to start a family. Eventually, I joined SHIELD and then the Avengers, and I just haven't looked back."
Everyone starts shouting again. All these questions, so many questions, I can't take it anymore; Will needs me. I try to run through the Avengers, blocking my path. We start fighting, and the air's a flurry of fists as everyone realizes I know my way around a fight. It's so loud, no one, not even I, hears the elevator ding as Wanda, Pietro, and Peter arrive. They jump into the fight without hesitation, identifying me as the enemy.
Suddenly, I feel the girl behind me. That seems to stop everyone.
"Wanda, DON'T!" Steve yells, but it's too late.
Wanda collapses, clutching her head in agony.
Visions of Tartarus flash in the back of my mind, but they don't affect me. I am in Avenger's Tower. Will is nearby. I am okay.
The girl's brother scrambles forward to grab her, "What did you do to my sister?" he shakes my shoulders violently, but I slip out of his grasp.
"Ask her! She's the one who attacked me!" I reply angrily.
Wanda starts shaking and crying. Pietro puts an arm around her shoulder, helping her stand. He starts murmuring to her that she's safe, attempting to soothe her. Eventually, she calms down and stands on her own, but she still seems incredibly shaken.
Peter asks, "Hey, Wanda. Are you okay?"
"I am, but he," she points to me, "is definitely not. When I show someone their greatest fear, I also experience a fraction of their vision and see some of what they see. In a few rare instances, someone has already experienced their greatest fear, and I am able to sense that as well. What I want to know is how that boy right there went through what I just saw and came out alive. If I experienced any of that, I'd be dead. He's not sane, I'll tell you that much," she can't even meet my eyes.
Peter interrupts, "Wait, who are you?"
"He's my younger brother who I told you all about earlier. Nico, you have too many mysteries, care to explain this last one?"
"I don't want to talk about it. Okay?! Everyone keeps on telling me to talk about it! Will, Chiron, Dionysus, Asclepius, EVEN MY FREAKING FATHER WHO HASN'T EVER CARED ABOUT ANYONE BUT HIMSELF! I DON'T WANT," I take a deep breath, "to talk. You aren't my family, stop trying to be. We don't know each other anymore, so stop forcing your way into my life. Now I'm going to go find Will, while Clint over there brainstorms ways to make up for hurting him," I push past the gaping Avengers.
POV SWITCH!!! BUCKY POV
"Did the room just get colder and darker or am I hallucinating?" Peter asks.
Bruce responds, "I think that was Nico. Have we considered the possibility that he's a mutant? It would explain a fair bit."
Clint becomes oddly outspoken, "NO! There's no way Nico's a mutant. What, just because a cloud moved in front of the sun and a breeze swept through, Nico's genetically altered? Seriously? He's just a kid with trauma, and we're being way too nosy."
"I agree with Eye of Hawks. The Little Emo One hath suffered much. I say we feast together and forget about this! "
Pietro jumps in, "He hurt my sister! I want to know why. If he is a mutant, I want to know. At the very least, I want to know what memories he's hiding because they could be dangerous!"
"Pietro, no. I saw his memories, or, at the very least, glimpses. What we need to do is support him. He has a good heart, that much I could tell," Wanda says.
Natasha jumps into the discussion, "Actually, I agree. Maybe we have been prying too much. I don't share my past in the Red Room with everyone, why should he have to share his traumatic experiences?"
Everyone ends up sharing their opinions and by the end, the thoughts are as follows:
Pro Leaving Nico Alone
Wanda
Clint
Thor
Peter
Natasha
Pro Asking More Questions
Steve
Myself
Bruce
Pietro
Tony
"Bucky, Steve, you both know Nico. Don't you trust him?" Clint asks.
"He's my brother, and what he just said hurt me, but I deserve to know what he's hiding," I respond.
Steve answers Clint's question too, "I think the kid's been through some rough times, but he needs to talk about them. He can't keep everything bottled up or he'll end up hurting himself and all of us."
"We'll keep talking about this later. Maybe Nico will open up on his own," I say, wishfully thinking the best, "For now let's just pretend this never happened. In the meantime, I want to enroll him in a school nearby. Maybe since you, Peter, are moving in with us for now, you can watch over him at school. You won't be in the same grade, but you'll both be in high school," I add.
"I don't think Nico's going to like that," Steve says.
"Nor do I," I respond.
With that final note, we split off to search for Nico.
AN: I got an update up! This one's really long and was so much fun to write. Word count: 2368, and my record used to be 1700ish. I hope this chapter made sense and flowed. It was pretty hard to write since most parts had seven or more people in them. Please vote or comment if you feel like it!
Announcement: I have an update schedule. It's now official. I am going to force myself to update every single weekend (usually Sunday but possibly Saturday). I have a plan for this book, so it won't be abandoned.
Any suggestions? Constructive criticism? Chapter ideas? Anything you want to see more or less of?