Bewitched || P. Jackson

𝕆ne step forward...

Nicki wasn't sure about tofu, but the tacos tasted as good as they smelled. While they ate, Leo tried to lighten the mood and joke around. Nicki was grateful Leo was with them. It made being on a quest without Percy a little less intense and uncomfortable. At the same time, she kind of wished Percy was there with her instead; but she chided herself for feeling that way.

After Piper ate, Jason encouraged her to get some sleep. Without another word, she curled up and put her head in his lap. In two seconds she was snoring. Jason looked up at the group in a panic, who were obviously trying not to laugh.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, drinking lemonade Leo had made from canteen water and powdered mix.

Ethan took a sip, his eyes fluttered shut and he let out a more than inappropriate noise for the situation.

"Good, huh?" Leo laughed.

"I think we need to be alone." Ethan winked, taking another sip of his drink. "Me and this lemonade are destined to be together."

"You should start a stand," Jason said. "Make some serious coin." But as he stared at the embers of the fire, something began to bother him. "Leo... about this fire stuff you can do... is it true?"

Leo's smile faltered. "Yeah, well..." He opened his hand. A small ball of flame burst to life, dancing across his palm.

"I want a cool power," Ethan sulked, resting his head on Nicki's shoulder.

"That is so cool," Jason said. "Why didn't you say anything?"

Leo closed his hand and the fire went out. "Didn't want to look like a freak."

"I have lightning and wind powers," Jason reminded him. "Piper can turn beautiful and charm people into giving her BMWs.

"Nicki is a walking Salem Witch!" The black haired boy interjected.

"Exactly! You're no more a freak than we are. And, hey, maybe you can fly, too. Like jump off a building and yell, 'Flame on!'"

Leo snorted. "If I did that, you would see a flaming kid falling to his death, and I would be yelling something a little stronger than 'Flame on!' Trust me, Hephaestus cabin doesn't see fire powers as cool. Nyssa told me they're super rare. When a demigod like me comes around, bad things happen. Really bad."

Nicki bit her lip. "Sometimes the real power is being able to defy what is expected of you. You always have a different destiny."

"Yeah," Jason suggested. "Maybe people with special gifts show up when bad things are happening because that's when they're needed most."

Leo cleared away the plates. "Maybe. But I'm telling you... it's not always a gift."

Jason fell silent. "You're talking about your mom, aren't you? The night she died."

Leo didn't answer. He didn't have to. The fact that he was quiet, not joking around—that told them enough.

"Leo, her death wasn't your fault. Whatever happened that night—it wasn't because you could summon fire. This Dirt Woman, whoever she is, has been trying to ruin you for years, mess up your confidence, take away everything you care about. She's trying to make you feel like a failure. You're not. You're important."

"That's what she said." Leo looked up, his eyes full of pain. "She said I was meant to do something important—something that would make or break that big prophecy about the seven demigods. That's what scares me. I don't know if I'm up to it."

Jason wanted to tell him everything would be all right, but it would've sounded fake. Jason didn't know what would happen. They were demigods, which meant sometimes things didn't end okay. Sometimes you got eaten by the Cyclops.

Nicki rested her hand on Leo's shoulder. "You don't have to be, Leo. We're a team. We're kids, we're never going to be ready or up for it, but doing it together makes it doable; even if it's scary."

Leo nodded his head, tears stung his hard eyes. Gently, Nicki rubbed her thumb in circles in an attempt to comfort him.

If you asked most kids, "Hey, you want to summon fire or lightning or magical makeup?" they'd think it sounded pretty cool. But those powers went along with hard stuff, like sitting in a sewer in the middle of winter, running from monsters, losing your memory, watching your friends almost get cooked, and having dreams that warned you of your own death.

Leo poked at the remnants of his fire, turning over red-hot coals with his bare hand. "You ever wonder about the other four demigods? I mean... if we're five of the ones from the Great demigods? I mean... if we're five of the ones from the Great
Prophecy, who are the others? Where are they?"

Jason stared at the fire pensively. "I don't know," he said at last. "I guess the other four will show up when the time is right. Who knows? Maybe they're on some other quest right now."

"It's definitely Percy." Nicki smiled to herself. "He always gets caught up in things."

Leo grunted. "I bet their sewer is nicer than ours."

The draft picked up, blowing toward the south end of the tunnel. Ethan let out a loud snore, making Nicki chuckle. She rested her head on top of his, humming under her breath.

"Get some rest, Leo," Jason said, noticing the boy yawning. "I'll take first watch."

The tunnel fell almost silent as Leo drifted into a peaceful sleep.

It was hard to measure time, but Jason figured his friends slept about an hour. Jason didn't mind. Now that he was resting, he didn't really feel the need for more sleep. He'd been conked out long enough on the dragon. Plus, he needed time to think about the quest, his sister Thalia, and Hera's warnings. He also didn't mind Piper's using him for a pillow.

"What's got your looking so sullen?"

Jason almost leapt out of his skin at Nicki's voice. The slightly older girl smiled at him, sheepishly. "You need to stop scaring me, Nicki."

"Whoops," she let out a laugh, tossing him a golden coin. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"This isn't a penny."

"Shut up, Blondie."

Jason turned the coin over in his fingers. "Just being pensive over the past few days and stuff like that."

"Anything good?"

"Nope." The boy sighed, staring up at the roof of the sewer. "Do you miss Thalia?"

"More than anything. She is my best friend. My first friend in all of this insanity. You remind me off her. You're incredibly standoffish when you want to be but you're just protective. Proud, y'know? A little too much, the whole world isn't your responsibility, Jason."

"I can't quite figure you out." Jason turned to look at Nicki. His blue eyes pierced into hers. "How are you so cheerful yet so pessimistic at the same time?"

Letting out a laugh, Nicki threw her head back. For the first time, Jason got a good look at the scars that littered her body across her shoulders. "Trauma, Blondie. It's a magical comedy tool."

The boy shook his head. "You're an enigma, Nicki. I'm not sure I'll ever understand you."

"That's the fun in it." Her eyes sparkled. "If no one knows you, no one can hurt you." Nicki's eyes watered lightly as she yawned. "Goodnight, Jason."

"Yeah, goodnight." Jason watched and Nicki curled into Ethan. The boy wrapped his arms around Nicki protectively in his sleep, an action so familiar to him even in his unconscious state that it sent Jason's mind into overdrive.

Every time he learnt something about Nicki, he found twenty more things he couldn't understand. A heavy feeling weighed in his stomach as he watched her breathing level out as she fell deeper asleep.

One step forward, a hundred steps back.

As Jason stared into space, he pondered the difference between Nicki's interactions with Ethan and Annabeth in comparison to everyone else. The blonde couldn't help but wonder what made Nicki so anxious to fully trust someone outside of her friend group.