*Ok, so, Nico is 5-6 months preggo. Enjoy*

Nico was walking down to the lake to clear his head when Piper pounced. She literally burst out of the bushes. 

"Nico di Angelo, come here!" she cried. "I need to speak with you!" He sighed and walked over to where she was standing. 

"Yes?" he asked. 

"Nico, how many skeletons can you animate at any one time?" Piper asked, her eyes sparkling.

"Hhmmm... At my most powerful? Maybe 100-150 at most. Now? I'd be lucky to get away with maybe 20" he replied, thinking. Piper nodded and frowned. 

"But... 15 would be fine, right?" Piper asked again. Nico nodded. 

"Easily," he said. She nodded. 

"Good," she said. "Come to the lakeside at 6 o'clock. Be in a spooky costume, Neeks!" and with that, she ran off. He sighed and wondered what she was up to. Knowing Piper, it was something extra. But he was willing to go along with it. He had been looking forward to Halloween this year anyway. He now had a substantial baby bump, so had many ideas for costumes. He smiled and inwardly laughed. He then headed off back to Hades cabin, his lakeside walk forgotten. 

As he walked down to the lake's shore at 5 to 6, he wondered again what Piper had been planning. He didn't have to wait long, as there, by the lake, stood a massive gazebo. Surrounding it, there were strategically placed gravestones and gory, Halloween-ish details. He grinned, knowing now what Piper wanted him to do. She spotted him and ran over.  "Nico!" she waved. 

Her costume was that of a mummy. Bandages were wrapped around her head, leaving only her eyes and mouth clear. Her hair was sticking up wildly from in between said bandages, and makeup had been added to her nose to make it look almost non-existent. Loose ends of bandages were flopping everywhere, and she was barefoot. She wore an ankh necklace and she had a Scarab beetle brooch. She really had gone all out. 

Percy appeared behind her moments later. He, too, had gone big. He looked like a zombie, his hair spiked and spray painted blue. His face was also blue, only a sickly shade. There were fake scars and blood dribbling down the side of his face. His brown shirt was ripped and he had knee-length jean shorts, also ripped. His left shoe had a large hole in the front, were the sole met the top.  Any bare skin was that sickly shade of blue. 

They both stopped when they saw his costume. He himself wasn't very scary, but his baby bump was. He had simply thrown on a black cloak to cover his bump until he exposed it. He was wearing a white shirt - rare for him, but necessary - and he had cut the limbs of off a doll. He had then stuck them to his shirt, and, with the help of some fake blood, it looked like there was a baby coming out of his abdomen. It was, actually, rather terrifying. 

Piper coughed, and then looked him in the eye. 

"Right! she said, eager to begin. "I've told everyone to arrive at 10 past, so we have some time to prepare! Nico, come here" she then proceeded to tell him the plan. He frowned at first, wondering if he could physically do it. Then, he laughed. 

"Oh, gods, this is going to be great!" 

•🌌•

As the rest of the camp arrived, all wearing varying degrees of effort, the lakeside was eerily still. There was a thin layer of mist surrounding the gazebo, and there didn't seem to be a soul around. The wind blew slightly, and there seemed to be something whispering in their ears. Frank stepped forward in a vampire costume, looking around. He looked rather silly, as his teeth were falling out, and he was lisping around his 'fangs'.

"Hey? Fifer? Anyone thhere?" he called. There was no reply. After a moment, the fog thickened and the whispers became more urgent. Many of the group began drifting over to the lakeside, feeling compelled to go there.  After some more time had passed, the whisperings abruptly stopped. People were looking around and panic was masked in many people's eyes. 

Everyone was at the lakeside by now, many not knowing how they got there. Suddenly, there was a wave, a massive wave that swept over the side of the shore. They all managed to get out of the way in time, but what stood before them shocked them all. The fog was thick and sluggish, and suddenly Hazel squealed. Frank jumped and looked where she was pointing. There, standing and looking as if they were staring at them, stood 15 skeletons.

But then Hazel ran up and peeked around the skeletons, looking for something. When she didn't find it, she shrugged, threw back her head and shouted:

"Nico!!" as she said this, the fog dissipated, and voices could be heard laughing in a tree. Piper jumped down first and ran over to the large group. 

"You should have seen your faces!" she chuckled. "We really had you!" at that, Percy and Nico appeared, also laughing. Will ran up and slapped Nico's hand, but he was grinning.  After everyone had gotten over the shock, they too laughed. It turned out that the skeletons would be their waiters for the evening. Everyone laughed, and the evening, along with everyone partaking in the said evening, relaxed.

There was some blood punch, mummy sausages and many other 'spooky' treats. The cups were small pumpkins and there where skeleton bone biscuits. The party was a great success.

Jason almost shit himself!