Children of Hades

[lordofdarkness]

Insert pretty thing here

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[lordofdarkness]

[It would be an understatement to say that Nico is impressed and a little awed by Mal's work the moment he walks into the cabin. While he's already come to appreciate her artistic talents, that still didn't prepare him for the portraits on the walls painstakingly detailed and mapped out, making the cabin feel theirs in a way it never felt to him before. It's beautiful, amazing, entirely Mal and he loves it. And later, he'll tell her that. Later he'll ask her to show him how she captured his dumb untamable hair so well and what color of paints she mixed for her eyes. Not right now though.

Right now he stands in the doorway and when he gets his breath back his voice is fond but not without a hint of exasperation.]

Mal.

[inkings]

Hey.

[ stopping in her task, mal hops off the box she had been standing on and walks to her bedside table to pause the music. she turns around with a smile. ]

Don't worry. I'll get rid of the fumes as soon as I'm finished.… What?

[lordofdarkness]

[He gestures at the sword at his side raising an eyebrow.]

Training? [Completely unable to hold his ground for even a minute though, he adds] This is amazing.

[What? It does and his sister deserves to feel appreciated (even when she's blowing off training, don't @ him.)]

[inkings]

[ mal chuckles. ] No? Training's later.

[ because clearly nico is being overenthusiastic yet again. definitely not the case that mal straight up lost track of time and also forgot. ]

[lordofdarkness]

[The other eyebrow follows the first and amusement plays across his expression.]

Later as in an hour ago?

[inkings]

[ nico, please. she would know if she were an hour late. ]

No. It's still — [ she checks her phone. ]

[inkings]

[ well. ]

Right. I knew that. I was—just going to meet you. There.

[lordofdarkness]

Very convincing. I definitely believe you. [His eyes sweep over the spray cans around her and a purple smudge on her cheek.]

So you're ready to go then?

[inkings]

[ mal makes a face. stop calling her out like this, man, that's just disrespectful. ]

One minute, [ she begs. ] I have to finish this while I still have the details.

[lordofdarkness]

[Never.

He snorts and moves to his side of the room, nose wrinkling at the fumes but otherwise unbothered. He takes in the details, letting more of his awe show and eventually makes his way to her side—his favorite side because Mal is way cooler looking than him.]

You did all of this today? [He knows she did because he left the cabin that morning, but it's still hard to wrap his mind around.]

This really is amazing.

[inkings]

[ she shrugs. ] I've been planning it for a while. Getting the paints I needed took longer. It was tricky, but a couple of the Athena kids helped me figure out the base.

[ returning to her box, mal gets back to work coaxing a balcony out of the black. the painting is nearing completion: the portico is the only major piece missing. for the gardens, she will either have to use cutouts to get the tiny spots of color she needs or else use a brush. as she has neither at the moment, she leaves the space blank and focuses on the palace itself. ]

[lordofdarkness]

[Nico is silent, too absorbed watching her work to remember to respond. Several minutes pass in that fashion with Mal working and Nico watching. It's easy to see how she gets lost in this and Nico isn't even the one doing the painting.]

...you definitely made this the coolest cabin here.

[inkings]

[ the last bit of paint goes on the wall. mal steps off the box and examines her finished work proudly. she tosses the can of spray paint.

she holds up her fist to nico with a smirk. ]

We are going to kill next cabin inspection. [ *not literally.

**maybe literally if dad will love her. she’s kidding. probably. ]

[lordofdarkness]

[Having learned the fist bump from Piper, Nico knows what to do and he happily bumps her fist with his own.]

We are. They won't even recognize the place. [Finally he turns from the wall painting to glance at Mal.]

Are you still up for a little training?

[inkings]

You’re going to nag me if I say no, aren’t you? [ she points out, widening her eyes in pointed gesture at him.

mal goes to her bedside table where she pulls on her fingerless gloves, then sits on the bed to pull on her boots.

tell her about the face paint because she has no idea. ]

[lordofdarkness]

Nag is such a strong word. [Yes, yes he is. Going to nag her that is, whether or not he's telling her about the paint is still up for debate.]

Did you know that children of the elder gods are naturally talented at fighting? Especially with swords. We still have to practice, but you'll already be better than most of the camp.

[inkings]

[ mal regards him with amusement as she finished tying her boots. she reaches into her drawer for her spell book. ]

Is there a trivia game for demigods that you memorized?

[ she marked the page earlier with a ribbon so she opens the book to the correct spot. ]

Sing us, spirits, a prayer and a breath of fresh air. [ mal draws her finger left, right and up. a breeze sweeps into the room, setting the curtains across the door fluttering, and chasing the paint fumes out. in their place is left a different scent for each who smells it. when mal breathes in, the familiar notes of evie’s perfume tickle her nose. ]

[lordofdarkness]

[Nico very carefully does not look at his Mythomagic cards tucked away on his shelf.]

No. Chiron told me. [He takes a deep breath of the fresh air and is surprised to smell lilies and something else he doesn't recognize, a subtle sweet scent that makes him feel warm inside. Nico smiles.]

Cool spell. [All of her spells are and he isn't sure he'll ever get used to her almost endless depths of magic. (Almost, because he remembers the werewolf incident.]

Now are you ready?

[inkings]

Yep! [ she slides her sword out from under her bed, carrying it in hand. a long straight blade with a distinct cruciform hilt, longer than a typical greek sword, but not so much as to demand the use of two hands. mal points it at the curtains across the door. ]

Let’s go.

[lordofdarkness]

[Nico moves to follow her and then stops, moving in front of her instead and pointing at her cheek.]

Wait, you've got some paint. [There's amusement in his eyes and he glances around the room to find something to wipe it off, eventually grabbing a clean shirt from his drawer for her.]

[inkings]

[ she holds still, making a face while he wipes at her cheek. her cheeks dimple when she smiles. ]

You really can't take me anywhere.

[lordofdarkness]

[Nico nods very seriously though his eyes betray his laughter.]

Can you imagine what the other campers would say? Yesterday Kayla accidentally shot Sherman Yang in the armpit—well, "accidentally—"but this would be hotter gossip for sure.

[inkings]

There goes all respect for the house of Hades. Will you still visit when I'm disinherited?

[lordofdarkness]

Yes, but only wearing a hood. [Nico grins and ducks out the door, dodging any retribution for that comment.]

[inkings]

Oh! Is that how it is, you traitor! [ she calls after him, laughing.

he's definitely getting smacked with the flat of a blade in practice. ]