As always, Thalia grace was visiting camp, mainly to see Jason.
"Thals!" Jason said, running forwards to hug his sister.
"Hey little bro," Thalia chuckled, ruffling Jason's hair, "You've grown so tall."
"Taller than you?" Jason asked hopefully, standing beside his sister and measuring himself.
"Maybe," Thalia said, pulling Jason into her arms again, "Miss you."
"Same here," Jason said, smiling.
Thalia grinned, "Finally, another opportunity to beat you in Capture the Flag."
"You wish," Y/N said, walking towards then, "Hello again, Grace."
"Jackson Junior," Thalia nodded, "The competition has arrived."
"Hey!" Jason complained, "How about me? Or Percy?"
"You'll see later," Thalia winked, and turned towards Y/N, "Lady Artemis wants to meet you later."
"I... okay then." you said.
~time skip~
"No!" Thalia screamed, "Get back here, Jackson!"
"Which one?" Percy laughed, "THAT'S MY SISTER!"
Y/N had just ran to the barrier, winning the game for Camp Half-Blood.
The camp erupted in cheers, rushing to Y/N to congratulate her for the win.
Nico was the first one to reach Y/N. He ran towards her as fast as he could, and crushed her with a bear hug.
"YOU WERE AWESOME!" Nico screamed into her ear, "BLOODY BRILLIANT!"
Y/N laughed, "I couldn't do it without you!"
Percy swooped in to hug Y/N too, "FINALLY!" he looked at Thalia over Y/N's shoulder, "IN YOUR FACE, GRACE!"
The celebration lasted for hours. Finally, you were left alone with Nico.
Nico wrapped his arms around his best friend, "Good game, Y/N."
"Ditto," you said.
Behind Nico, you saw a little girl with auburn hair waiting near the canoe lake.
Lady Artemis.
"I'll see you later?" Y/N said to Nico.
"Yea, okay. Sure." he replied.
His eyes darted to your lips for a moment. He blushed red and, hesitantly, lowered his lips to kiss your cheek.
"Good night," he whispered in your ear. Then he ran quickly towards his cabin, hiding his now pink face.
Nico shut the door to his cabin and slid down, savoring the moment.
"Holy Hades," Nico said, "I kissed Y/N... well, on the cheek. But still."
He looked at the big mirror, framed with stygian iron, and saw his flushed face.
Smiling, he got ready for bed.
Meanwhile, Y/N walked over to Artemis.
"M'lady?" you asked, "You wanted to see me?"
"Yes, Y/N." she said, smiling up at you, "You have shown much bravery, skill, and wit in the game. That was very impressive."
"I... thank you."
"Now, I would like to ask you... would you like to join the Hunt?" Artemis asked.
Your eyes widened. Lady Artemis was asking you to join the Hunt!
You see, it's not everyday that the goddess herself would ask you to join the Hunters.
But...
"I'm sorry, m'lady," you said, "It's an honor, really. But... I don't feel that I should join. It just doesn't feel right."
Artemis looked at you, then at the Hades cabin. Her expression turned a bit annoyed, "Of course." she said.
She handed you a business card, "Let me know when you're ready." then she disappeared in the moonlight.
~time skip~
You sat on the bench near the canoe lake, staring at the waters with the card in your hands.
You made the decision not to join, and you were extremely pleased with that.
Nico came walking, "How's my favorite person doing?" he asked you.
"Um... fine," you said, tucking the card into your jacket pocket.
Nico looked at your pocket, "What d'you got there, Y/N?"
"Nothing," Y/N said, "Just... just- Hey!"
Nico grabbed the card out of your hands, laughing. "Can I see it then?"
"No!" you said, a little too fast, "Give it back, Neeks!"
"I don't think so," he said, stretching his hand away from you teasingly, making you have to reach far out to get it.
Your face was only a few centimeters away from Nico's, "Please, Neeks. It's Percy's credit card! Give it back!"
"No chance," he said, running away.
"Hey!" you laughed, "Come back here!"
You chased Nico across camp. Finally, you tackled him to the ground.
"Ha!" you said, "Now, give it back please."
Nico was silent. His eyes was on the card.
He had already read it.
"What is this?" Nico asked angrily, "Who gave you this?"
You looked at Nico's crestfallen face, "L-lady Artemis... she asked me to-"
"Join the Hunt," Nico muttered, "And you... you-"
Nico couldn't take it anymore. A tear dropped onto his cheek. He got up, thrusted the card to Y/N, ran to his cabin, and slammed the door. He walked towards his bunk and fell down, sobbing.
"After all this time, Y/N?" Nico whispered, "You were with me since I was 9 years old... and you're going to leave me? Just like that?"
What he didn't know was that Y/N really, really wanted to tell Nico that she gave up immortality... for him.
-FantasyDemiWitch