Nico fingered the shiny gold ring in his pocket. He wondered if he should keep it in its case to keep it safe but figured that the dull black velvet would dull its sparkle.

He guided Will up the steep slope of the cliff, shushing his boyfriend's complaints. When they got to the top, he saw a tuft of dark hair sticking up from behind a huge rock formation. He motioned for the person hiding behind it to get down, and they complied.

Hopefully Will wouldn't spot the several people hiding behind the rocks, unknowingly about to watch the big moment. He had told them that he was just going to prank Will, but he had a different plan in mind.

Nico's stomach fluttered in nervousness, and he fingered the ring one last time before taking a deep breath and pasting a happy, totally-not-nervous expression to his face.

"Happy five-year anniversary," he smiled, taking his hand out of his pocket and untying the blindfold around his boyfriend's head.

Will's bright blue eyes widen. "Nico! Oh my gods!" He took in the grass-green cliff that overlooked all of Camp Half-Blood, gazing in awe at the sparkling lakes, rolling strawberry fields, and tiny people, dressed in orange and small as ants.

He embraced Nico in a hug, and the son of Hades grinned into his boyfriend's neck. "I love it," Will murmured. "Thank you." They broke apart, and Nico laughed. "Anything for my little demigod Care Bear," he told Will, who rolled his eyes and smirked.

"Shall we, Ghost Boy?" he asked, and they sat down.

"I'm twenty, shouldn't it be Ghost Man now?" Nico groaned as his and Will's fingers intertwined. He heard a faint snicker from behind the rocks and prayed that his boyfriend hadn't heard it.

"No way, Ghost Boy. Love you too much for that." Nico cleared his throat nervously, and gently slid his hand out of Will's grasp.

"Will, I love you so much," he said. "You're quite literally the light of my life." He brushed a finger across his boyfriend's arm, which was glowing ever so softly in the evening dusk. "We've spent five years of our lives together. And I want it to keep going."

"Nico, what are you trying to say?" Will whispered. Nico bent down before him on one knee and pulled the golden ring out of his pocket, thanking the gods above that he didn't fumble it, and presented it to Will.

Will sucked in a breath, tears welling in his eyes.

"Will Solace, my night light, my sunshine, will you marry me?"

A strangled gasp escaped from Will's throat. "Gods, Nico, yes!" Cheers erupted from those hidden behind the rocks as Nico slid the ring onto Will's finger with ease, and the couple kissed. Nico fit his mouth perfectly to his fiancé's and he tasted pure sunlight on his lips.

A hoot was heard, and Will spun around to see their friends emerge from behind the rock formation, and he shrieked.

Nico laughed and wrapped an arm around his fiancé's waist. "It's okay, they weren't stalking us. I invited them." Will placed a hand over his chest.

"Dang it you guys, I almost had a heart attack!" he groaned.

Percy smiled. "That makes two of us," he said. "Nico didn't tell us he was going to propose! I thought we were about to witness an epic prank."

Will looked at Nico.

"You told them you were going to prank me on our five year anniversary?" he asked, incredulously.

"Yep."

Will turned back to everyone else. "And they believed it?" Everyone nodded.

"For the record, I suspected something was up," Annabeth grinned, her own ring glinting as she laid a hand on her slightly swollen stomach. Leo rolled his eyes.

"Well, we can't all be as smart as you, Mama Jackson," he said jokingly. "Some of us are very, very dumb." Piper slugged him in the arm. "Like you, McShizzle!"

"Right back at you, Beauty Queen," he smirked.

Will embraced Nico again and kissed the top of his head. "I love you, Ghost Boy."

"Love you too, Night Light."

"Mrs. O'Leary!" Percy cried, and the two broke apart to see the huge hellhound barreling towards them, her mouth open in happiness. She broke through the crowd, knocking people over like bowling pins. Percy barely had enough time to pull Annabeth safely out of the way before Mrs. O'Leary came their direction, headed straight towards Will and Nico.

"Mrs. O'Leary, stop it!" Nico yelled, but he couldn't stop her as she barreled into Will, licking his face. Will teetered once, twice, and then stepped backwards onto open air. Nico screamed as his fiancé hurtled away from him and off the edge of the cliff.

"WILL!" he shouted, pushing Mrs. O'Leary off of him. Tears streamed down his face in violent waves, making it hard to see as he precariously perched on the edge of the cliff, trying to spot Will.

Mrs. O'Leary was taken by Hazel, who sent her back to Chiron to get help. She didn't understand what was going on, but she whimpered and obediently shadow-traveled away.

"Nico! Oh my gods, he fell!" Piper gasped, clutching Shel's hand so tightly she was shaking.

"I'm going to go look for him," Frank said, turning into an eagle and flying downwards.

"I need to go." Nico sprinted down the cliff as fast as he could, and the rest of his friends followed, running down the unsteady trail.

"We'll catch up," Percy called when several people tried to wait for him and Annabeth, who was having trouble getting down. "Go, go, go!"

Nico reached the base of the cliff and wiped his eyes, scanning for Will. He finally saw Frank standing over a body on the ground that was radiating a soft golden glow.

Will.

"Frank! Is he-" Nico's voice broke, and Frank looked up. His eyes were shining with tears, and he bit his lip so hard it was bleeding.

"Nico, I don't know!" he whispered. "I-I don't know, I can't tell, I can't..." Nico dropped to his knees beside Will. One of his arms and both of his legs were at an awkward angle, and his eyes were shut tight. But what was more concerning to Nico was the amount of blood that was matting his blond hair, staining it red.

"Where's Chiron?" he yelled at his friends, who were coming down the cliff huffing and puffing.

"Mrs. O'Leary should have- I see him!" called Hazel, pointing to Chiron's figure galloping towards them. The centaur reached them within seconds and dropped his gaze towards Will's body.

"Someone get the Apollo Cabin! The medics!" he roared at their group, and Leo sprinted away. "Nico, is he alive? NICO!" Nico just grasped Will's hand tightly and started at his face. A million horrible thoughts raced through his head.

"I don't know...I don't know..."