The Scythe of Kronos

A Slightly Frozen Boyfriend

Nico POV

Sounds slowly start to drift into my head, cutting through the darkness I was seeing. What happened? Where am I? Why does my shoulder hurt so much? Why am I asking myself annoying questions when I can open my eyes and figure it out? Good idea, Nico.

I open my eyes, groaning when the light feels like it's piercing my brain. My mind still feels murky, and I'm having trouble figuring out what is going on. I remember... the forest. Kronos's scythe hit me – that explains the shoulder pain – and I shadow travelled myself and Will away.

Oh, gods... Will. Is he okay? I try to sit up, but pain hits me again and warm hands push me back down.

"It's okay, Nico. Lay back." I inwardly sigh in relief. Thank the gods. Will's face slowly swims into focus. He looks okay. Tired, perhaps a bit shaky, but alive. Good. I look around the room we are in. A couple of beds, nightstands, window, door. Nothing special. Nothing that can tell me where we are.

My eyes then settle on a man behind Will, sitting on a bed. He is watching me closely, and I study him. I feel like I've met him before.

"Have I met you before?" I ask the man, getting straight to the point. The man looks startled.

"Not that I am aware of,  I certainly don't recognize you." Interesting. He has a British accent, and I swear I've talked to him before. I've never been to England though, so where have I met him? My mind still feels sluggish, and I can't remember where I've met him. Whatever. I turn my head to Will, who is looking at me with concern.

"Will, I'm fine," I say, rolling my eyes at his expression. He rolls his eyes as well but has a smile on his face.

"Only you would say you're fine right after you get skewered," Will says, and I smirk.

"I've had worse," I say simply, which is very true. I was stuck in a jar for multiple days with barely any oxygen or food. I had to go into a death trance to survive. I also went through Tartarus alone and had to drink fire to survive. Not fun. You get it.

Out of the corner of my eye, I can see the man's eyes going back and forth between Will and me, looking ready to either fight us or help us. So indecisive. For his sake though, he should pick the latter. I ignore him for now. I need to figure out where we are, and I don't need a mortal getting in the way. Wait a minute though... is he mortal? Will might kill me for this, but I read the man's aura. Usually, I do it automatically, but when I'm weakened – like now – then it requires some effort. Not a lot, though.

Something is weird about his aura. He isn't a monster exactly. Not fully. But I've felt this before, and I wince at the memory. Lycaon, the werewolf. This man is a werewolf. I can sense something else as well. Something magical. He isn't mortal, that's for sure. It doesn't matter, though. He is a werewolf. He is dangerous, and I bet that stick he is holding turns into a weapon. Not that one of his kind needs one. One scratch when they are in wolf form and... I shiver and slowly reach for my sword that is hiding under a bunch of bloody t-shirts.

Will, realizing what I'm doing – or about to do – grabs my arm.

"What are you doing? You're injured, stop moving around." He says. I give him my best glare and reach for my sword again, but he takes it from the floor and holds it away from me.

"Will, give that to me," I say, getting worried. The werewolf has definitely seen the sword and is now standing up.

"Will, please, give it to me. We're in danger" I say desperately. I can't let the werewolf hurt us. It's my fault we are here. Wherever here is.

"No, we aren't, Nico. It's fine. Lupin helped us." I could tell that he isn't lying, but that doesn't help me feel better. Werewolves are deceitful and evil.