robinnest | Children of Hades

[ mal quirks an eyebrow at nico. ] E. [ she tilts the phone screen toward him. ] Evie. She's my best friend.

[ her thumb taps the gallery icon and row after row of photos cascades down the screen. there are many group shots featuring the four of them: in the girls' room, in the boys', in class, on the campus grounds. there are many more featuring mal and one or both of the boys. but even at a glance, the photos featuring a blue-haired princess outnumber the rest.

mal flips through a few for nico's benefit. mal and evie baking in the dorm kitchens; mal and evie sitting on the bleachers, mal with her typical uneven smirk, evie smiling brightly, her hand on mal's knee; mal with her head on what is clearly evie's lap, drowsily aiming the phone at herself while evie puts braids in mal's purple hair; evie hugging mal tight, her hand on mal's cheek, their heads pressed together, and the two of them laughing.

the further back in the roll the more evie and mal's clothes look like the attire mal was wearing when she met nico: torn, distressed, old, made livable again by a lot of creativity and a good dose of artistry.

as she looks through the photos, mal's expression is as soft as it has ever been. ]

She's the only one who knows where I am. She's the only person I ever told about my dad.

[He isn't one to assume. Nico's complicated and frankly exhausting history with self discovery, identity, and acceptance is one so fraught with struggle and denial that he's never felt remotely fit to make any assumptions about anyone else. (It's one of the reasons it had taken months to get anywhere with Will despite in hindsight the many many dropped hints and honestly what probably amounted to exasperated blunt admissions.) It didn't help matters that his isolation had led to such a lonely existence that he didn't have a frame of reference for friendship. (He was sure Will was just being friendly when he insisted Nico play on their team for capture the flag, offered him a seat at the Apollo table, constantly sought him out and spent hours lying next to Nico in his coffin bed talking about everything and nothing.) So when Mal shows him picture after picture and scrolls past dozens more of herself and her best friend, Nico wonders, but he doesn't assume.

At least not until he catches the way the two girls look at each other and he seriously has to bite his tongue to keep from assuming out loud. He could still be wrong. They could be best friends. Friendship didn't preclude love. (It's what he tells himself anyway.)]

She sounds like a really loyal friend. [He says lamely because it's all he can do to keep himself from asking if this is why she didn't care about his sexuality when he'd told her. (He can practically hear Jason's disapproval at the idea that the only people who would accept him are those who share in his existence but it's just a voice in his head and imaginary Jason is a lot easier to block out than the real thing.)]

Edited 2019-09-04 21:13 (UTC)

She's the best. You know those people that are just…impossible not to like? Like actual sunshine made into a person? That's Evie. So, of course, I hated her when we met, [ mal says with a laugh. ] I used to torture her back on the Isle. It’s a wonder she ever decided to put up with me.

When we were little, it was just me and Jay.

[ she flips to a different picture: a handsome long-haired boy with muscled arms stares straight into the camera with long-suffering expression while a grinning mal kicks her muddied boots into his lap.

the next photo is of her and carlos, obvious by deduction, who grins at the camera under a shock of white hair and a mess of freckles across his nose. they’re playing a video game, which mal, judging from her expression, was in the process of losing. pressed against carlos’ side is a mutt. ]

Carlos was Evie’s friend first. That’s Dude, [ she points at the dog. ] Carlos found him at Auradon. Everyone loves that stupid dog. He didn’t cower at the other end of the room when I walked in anymore. That was progress.

[ she comes to a photo taken of the four of them on her bed in her dorm. the bed was too narrow to fit all of them comfortably so mal and evie clung to each other in the middle. mal threw one leg over evie’s and evie held onto mal’s arm with both hands. jay teetered on the edge beside mal while carlos flashed the camera an open-mouthed grin on evie’s other side. they look happy. they look close.

an ache spreads comes into mal’s throat. she abruptly locks the screen. ]

Wow, [ she utters with a disbelieving little laugh. ] I’ve just been talking for five minutes straight. Sorry about that.

[ straightening, she pastes on a bright smile. ]

Did you get everything you needed?

[Mal's description of Evie has Nico unknowingly smiling to himself, the comparison to literal sunshine bringing to mind a certain son of Apollo. Yes, Nico knows what it is to be around a person like that. How they draw you in like gravity, even when you think you don't want to be. It was impossible to hold out against a person like that.

He leans forward to get a look at Jay—definitely good looking, if not his type—though more important to him is the easy affection he clearly shares with Mal. The easy feeling is repeated with Carlos and Nico finds himself grateful to these two strangers for being a part of Mal's life. He's happy she has people like Evie, Jay, and Carlos. The phone being locked is abrupt and he senses a shift in Mal's emotions that keeps him from commenting on it. She misses them, probably. Who wouldn't miss friends like those?]

I did, and don't worry about it, they sound like great people. [His eyes flicker to the phone and he keeps his silence. He should tell her about the way phone signals draw monsters to them, but it's not like she was making calls or surfing the internet. And anyway, they were already two Hades kids walking around together. Using a phone wasn't exactly going to make that much of a difference in alerting monsters to their presence. Besides, between Mal's magic and his abilities, they could take 'em. He will tell her, just not today.

Nico motions ahead and begins walking. They aren't far from the Statue (their first stop) so there's no reason to waste a shadow jump on the short distance. After a brief silence, he speaks tentatively, like someone not used to having this kind of conversation.]

...Aside from Will, my closest friends aren't at Camp right now. They're all Roman or they aren't year round campers. I haven't known most of them for very long though.

[ no, being born in the thirties would put a damper on the ability to make or maintain friends.

mal nudges him with her elbow and holds out her open wristlet for him to put his purchases inside. there are people on the sidewalk, but no one's looking at them. two teenagers out on their own don't command much attention. ]

Are you telling any of them about me? [ she wants to know how much of a surprise she's going to be.

fyi she 100% respects the "welcome back to camp, oh, yeah, I have a new sister now, so anyway, how was your year?" hustle. ]

[He nods in thanks as he slips his bag into hers, and smiles shyly.]

I will. But Hazel deserves to know first, and you needed to know about Hazel. I'm going to IM her tonight or tomorrow—that is, Iris message. Do you use Iris messages?

[ she shakes her head no. ]

Wild guess…Iris carries them?

In an instant sort of way, yes. [Or maybe it is a good time to mention the phones.]

Most demigods don't carry phones because when we use the internet or make a call it somehow attracts monsters. [He shrugs to indicate it's not really a big deal to him. It's not a rule he has any strong feelings about, and truth be told if he had a reason to break it, he'd do it without a second thought.]

Iris messaging is a way to communicate with someone face to face by calling on Iris. Um, like a [What did they call it?] face chat. [Got it.]

It's not a big deal if you have one, it just means you have to be careful if you make a call or use the google.

[ mal stops walking. ]

Oh, Nico… [ she looks at him with tragic expression. ]

We have to teach you technology.

[He pauses, looking unsure.]

...did I say something wrong? [Face chat. The Google.]

...I'm really good at video games.

Edited 2019-09-05 23:11 (UTC)

[ her mouth presses into a thin line, the corners of it twitching. she makes a truly heroic effort not to laugh in his face, which involves looking down at the pavement, looking up at the sky, and briefly covering her mouth before she regards him again with just a hint of a smile. ]

I'm so glad, [ she says in a very thin voice. she has a laugh stuck in her diaphragm that she is doing her best to keep there, sue her. ]

We just need to get you updated on a couple of things.

[It's not difficult to see the laugh she's holding in, and it doesn't bother him. His lack of knowledge on these things isn't exactly a secret. After a moment's pause he continues, his tone intentionally over the top hopeful.]

Are you going to teach me about the google and the wifi?

[ she knows what he's trying to do. she knows that he knows that she's about to burst. and she is shaking her head at him even as the twitching gets worse and seems to spread to her shoulders.

she finally has enough control to clear her throat and helpfully supply, ] No "the", Nico. You don't say "the wi-fi." It's just wi-fi. Same with Google.

And it's called a video chat.

Ah. [He gives her a considering hum in response and shrugs, slight smile still present.]

In that case, IMing is like a video chat. [Pause.] After I talk to Hazel, would you like to meet her through IM? It's okay to say no. [He isn't worried about Hazel's reaction. She'll be shocked, he's sure, and then thrilled just like him. Big three children tended to respond well to siblings. (They've all been mostly alone for a while after all.)]

You don't have to decide now either. You can tell me later if you want.

[ meeting her little sister. mal rubs her arm. ]

Yeah, of course. I'd love to.

[ she is not scared of meeting her sister. the butterflies in mal's stomach arose more to excitement than nerves. but there is a part of her undeniably relieved that this will not be a face to face meeting.

should it go wrong, hazel's on the other side of the country. no reason for them to cross paths. no needlessly upsetting a kid. ]

Edited 2019-09-06 00:31 (UTC)

Great. She's going to love you. [Unlike Nico, Hazel's never had an older sister before. He has a feeling she'll take to it quickly. His eyes and smile are soft and he nudges Mal's shoulder with his own before nodding ahead to where the Statue of Liberty can bee seen between a few buildings.]

Almost there.

[ i am, indeed, lovable. it is probably for the best that she's too distracted to voice it out loud. the sarcasm is a little too biting. ]

What is that?

[ knows google. does not know the statue of liberty. priorities right here. ]

[His eyes widen in surprise and he picks up the pace, gesturing for her to follow the last few steps until they clear the last building blocking their sight.]

The Statue of Liberty. Another country gave it to ours and it's supposed to represent freedom and all that. A long time ago anyone who moved here had to come through here, and the statue—Lady Liberty—welcomed them in. [It's not the most detailed of description, but what do you want from a guy who started school at fifteen and whose main teacher is a centaur way more interested in the ancient world?]

...I've never actually visited either.

[ the google™ is able and ready to answer questions. ]

Are you kidding? Look at her!

[ mal runs ahead, not stopping until she reaches the safety barrier preventing her from running headlong into the bay. even that does not stop her climbing to the top bar and balancing like a gymnast atop it. the breeze brings with it the smells of the cars' exhaust and the nearby cart of food and a sharp salt scent from the ocean beyond.

the statue's size is dwarfed by the buildings beyond her, but she's still spectacular, especially knowing the ( cliffsnotes version of ) her story. mal peeks one ferry pulling away from the island and looks for nico. ]

Can we go see her?

[It is impossible not to smile at Mal's excitement, and even if he hadn't already been planning it, the answer would have been yes. (He's not sure there's anything Mal could have asked of him right now that he would have said no to.)]

Did you think I was going to make you just look at it from here? Yeah, we're going. [He grins and offers her a hand down. She doesn't need it obviously, maybe he just wants to hold her hand for a moment.]

[ unkowingly, mal does him one better: once she's on the ground, she doesn't let go. instead, she uses their joined hands to tug nico along with her to the battery, a park facing the ferry piers. the signs, as well as the crowds, help guide her as to where to go.

as she runs, she asks over her shoulder, ] How high can we climb?

[He shrugs, still smiling with Mal's hand warm in his.]

As high as you want. [He'll shadow travel them to one of the crown spires if she asks him to. Who's gonna stop them?]

[ this is the story of how mal finally meets hades: after traveling to the underworld to explain how nico passed out on top of the statue of liberty, fell off said statue, and plummeted to the island because he's just That Stupidly Well-Meaning.

staving off any awkward father-daughter conversations, mal does not even think of shadow travel. they find the ( still respectably sized ) line, but a combination of the still early hour and not during peak season means they're soon at the front.

and they come across their first obstacle.

we don't sell same day crown tickets, the ticket agent explains in a tone that says he has explained this exact point five hundred times before. you must reserve them either online or by phone.

mal smiles. ]

I'm sorry. I meant we have reservations. [ as she speaks, her irises glow green.

the agent straightens in his seat, expression grown slack. a pale green light enter his eyes, obscuring his pupil. mechanically, he enters information into his computer and prints out two tickets. it takes mal a moment to parse the names on the tickets, but finally she reads christian knowles and jessica knowles.

she carefully counts out the cost of the tickets because she may be a thief, but she's a thief with principles, and takes the tickets. she hands nico his with a cheeky, ] Here you go, Christian, [ and steps away from the window.

as they leave, the ticket agent slowly comes out of the trance. he blinks, looks around, but whatever just happened was too weird for his brain. he gets back to work. mal triumphantly waves her ticket at nico. ]

Let's go catch a ferry.

Edited 2019-09-07 15:17 (UTC)

[Nico's brow furrows at the name and he stares at the ticket in his hand, mouth opening in a wide "O" of understanding. A second later, he's shaking his head, once again impressed with Mal's resourcefulness. Without thinking about it, he takes her hand again (it's a big crowd, they wouldn't want to get separated) and soon enough they're in line for the next ferry.]

Did you do that with the mist? [It almost seemed like Charm Speak, but mist could accomplish it, he's sure.]

Not exactly. What’s the mist?

[ it’s not an actual mist, she assumes. as if to be sure, mal looks to the water. it’s a clear day, the sun long since risen. the bay is calm but for the wake thrown by the boats crossing it. ]

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject