Nico's birthday!
Regulus woke up extra early - so early that even Bianca hadn't shadow-apparated into his room with Giallo yet to warm her cold feet up and to his stomach and then ask Regulus to braid her hair with the daily fresh flowers Persephone left on the desk in his room. It often contained a fun fact about said flowers, making Regulus far more knowledgeable about flowers than he ever had thought he'd be.
He slipped out of his bed and looked at the desk, once again glad for his night vision. It appeared that today there'd be white poplars in his sister's hair - their father's sacred flower. He could feel it in the flowers; they felt like the soft embrace he always gave them. Regulus smiled softly.
His door still creaked, so he used the shadows to travel to the kitchen (even though the distance was so short the faceless, yet screaming souls still bothered him. He briefly wondered whether cloak-less Dementors would look like that, but the thought went as quickly as it came.)
He grabbed the ingredients of Nico's favourite dessert: Crostata! Regulus personally thought it was too sweet, exactly like Bianca preferring his mother's tiramisu above anything else. It had taken him a lot of practice, but eventually he learned how to make this dessert exactly the way Nico liked it.
He sang ‘Tu Musica Divina’ to himself, filling the tart with a crispy frolla pastry base and a filling of strawberry jam he had picked out of the garden himself. It had taken him more time than he would have liked, but he didn't immediately kill every plant he touched anymore! Granted, he killed them almost every time, but it was progress!
Bianca, too, had improved in that regard. She hadn't improved much either, however, but that was mostly because she simply did not care about whether she killed some plants by accident. She liked to play - both inside and outside - and nothing could stop her when she had her eyes on something.
Nico seemed to have much more control in the ‘killing plants’ category, which was probably because of the minor blessing Persephone had given him. He was glad for it, as his brother somehow was even more energetic than his sister was.
While Bianca loved to explore the world by going everywhere and seeing as many things as possible, and was often wilder than even a wild hippogriff had been, Nico was energetic in a different way; his younger brother loved to look at things and figure out why they worked the way they did. Regulus adored his adorable, overly-excited nerdy personality.
When he finished the tart, the sun greeted him through the windows, as if it wanted to sample the delicious-looking tart as well. Regulus would not blame Apollo, to be honest. It looked and smelled better than any other tart he'd ever baked.
The snow outside made him overjoyed as he was wearing a cosy - black, of course - sweater over his robes and had just baked something, making the kitchen not only smell but also feel fantastic. This day was going to be unforgettable!
His musings were interrupted by an amused cough, and as he looked away from the beautiful snow-covered garden, he saw his mother smile lovingly at him, her eyes crinkling in merriment.
“My little lion.” She ruffled his hair, making herself a cup of coffee and letting out a content sigh. Regulus would never understand that; to him pure coffee tasted horrible. He'd take a good cup of tea any time.
He nodded at his mother. “Do you think papa and Persephone will come today?”
She took a sip of her coffee. “They will if they know what's good for them.” She answered, smiling just as serene as before. “Your little brother only turns four once, after all.”
After finishing the rest of her coffee cup, she stood up and began preparing eggs. Regulus assisted her as usual while they were in the kitchen, beginning to squash the oranges into juice and preparing a large fruit salad with freshly selected fruits from the garden.
He used Nico's favourite fruits to make the salad, which meant it honestly was largely a strawberry salad, but that was fine. To finish it up, he added a hint of brown sugar and cinnamon. Normally, his mother wouldn't allow it, as sugar tended to make his little siblings even more destructive and restless than usual, which generally meant that Bianca would include Nico into her shenanigans even more than usual, knowing he complained - or as Regulus liked to call it: being reasonable - less than Regulus.
Today, she only huffed at the sight, but didn't say anything about it besides that. It was Nico's birthday, after all, and no bigger sweet tooth than his little brother existed. Regulus doubted there ever would be.
“I really don't know why the three of you like sugar so much.” She mused out loud.
“It's probably the youth.”, Regulus joked, making his mother gasp dramatically.
“Why, Regulus, did you just call your poor, very young mother old?!”
“I didn't call you young, did I?” After a deliberate moment of silence, he gasped just as dramatically and put a hand on her shoulder. “Oh no, mamma! You must be losing your hearing already!”
She shook her head, before bursting out in laughter. “The audacity! I'm only thirty-three years old yet!”
He nodded mournfully. “Truly ancient, I know.”
Hades and Persephone arrived in the middle of the kitchen at that moment, bringing small packages with them.
“Who is ancient?” Persephone asked.
Regulus straightened and smoothly responded “Nobody.” He could joke around with that with his mother, but despite being basically his second mother, Persephone was still a Goddess and he knew better than to offend her. He still hadn't forgotten the threat she threw at him when he first met her.
Sure, he firmly believed that she would eventually turn him into a human again and would do it the right way instead of Regulus being stuck like some sort of half-flower creature the rest of his life and possibly beyond, but the idea of being a flower for even a little while seemed like a horrid fate to him.
Humans were not meant to be plants, no matter how pretty.
She hummed politely, probably seeing through his last-minute lie. It was a good thing that his siblings and he were privately educated about their… personal family history - and beyond, as technically they weren't related to everyone in the pantheon because Gods did not have DNA, but that would have mattered very little to him anyway. He had been a pureblood, after all. A Black, at that - by their mother.
In Particular, Nico took the mythology lessons like a fish took to water. It was so adorable! While Bianca shadow-apparated to him whenever she wanted, whether that be in the middle of the night or when he was at school (it was a wonder she hadn't been caught yet, as he attended the local boy school and she the girl school) to take him to an adventure, Nico did it to excitedly share a new mythology fact he'd discovered.
“Well, I suppose that Odysseus is rather old now, isn't he?” She replied just as smoothly, putting down the presents on the kitchen table.
Hades nodded. “He would be, yes. If he were still alive and hadn't died an eon ago, that is.”
Maria offered them both coffee, which Hades politely declined, but Persephone took with a relieved breath. “I swear it, this drink is even more addicting than Dionysus’ extra special brownies are.”
Hades grumbled. “Those are horrid.”
She sighed. “You just don't know how to enjoy a party of Dionysus’ type.” She spoke regretfully. "It'll be so hilarious if you'll turn up as a surprise to one, though!" She chuckled. "The other day, Dionysus made love with some nymph, and Zeus absolutely lost it!"
Hades frowned. “What a hypocrite. Alas, what's new?" He tutted. "My partying skills are excellent, though. I merely prefer a party of quality instead of what Dionysus dares to call a party, thank you very much.”
She hummed teasingly. “Well, you did not lie about knowing how to have a good time.”
“Persephone is right.”, Maria added, just as teasingly, sharing a suggestive look with Persephone.
Hades conjured some extra strong nectar and ambrosia for himself and drank it in one gulp. “Why did the two of you meet again?” Regulus made a face; he completely agreed with him. Seeing his mother flirt with his father was bad enough already!
Giallo, Bianca and Nico slipped out of the shadows, at exactly the right moment, and ran into their father's arms.
“Papa!” They shouted happily in unison, climbing to his arms like two mini koalas. Giallo's tongues slobbered happily over Hades’ suit and be-furred it, undoubtedly ruining the entire suit. A shame; it had been a beautiful suit, exactly something he would have worn himself if he would have seen it somewhere in his size. Perhaps he'd ask his mother if he could have tailor-made suits? He already had tailor-made robes. She probably would agree in a heartbeat, as she always stated that one could never have too many clothes. Despite being six years old, Bianca was still little enough to easily fit with both Nico and Giallo in their father's arms. Regulus still knew all too well what that felt like. It had been nice, but he was glad that he was tall enough to come to his father's middle now.
Hades smiled down at them, ignoring Giallo with the ease of a man who was used to this happening. To be fair; the hellhound did every trick Bianca had taught him and this was undoubtedly one of those tricks. Especially, considering the (more than normal) mischievous look on her face.
“Ah, of course. It was because Nico was born.”
Hades concluded to himself.
Bianca giggled before sticking her tongue out at Nico. “Papa practically called you a baby!”
Nico pouted. “I'm not a baby!”
"SÌ, you are!”
“No, I'm not!”
“Are too”
“Am no-”
Hades cleared his throat. “Children, please.
Nico frowned to himself while counting softly under his breath, before putting up four fingers in the air. “I'm this old today!” He told his father seriously. “I'm not a baby.”
Hades nodded just as seriously back. “You're right, my little ghost. You're so big already.” His eyes shone brightly as he gazed over them. “You all are. Before I know it, you'll be just as old as your mother.”
Maria threw her high heel at the back of his head, which he caught with a practiced ease.
“First Regulus, now you! If one more person calls me old today, I will tell Andrea that you all have changed your mind and want to be baptized after all!”
The threat was enough to make everyone collectively hold their breath.
“Niccolò,” Hades said, making the little boy look attentively at him.
“SÌ, papa?”
He put him down on the table, surrounded by the gifts everyone had for him. They were all wrapped in black paper, just the way both he and Bianca liked it too. Regulus liked to think that was because of his influence.
“Happy birthday.”
Nico's eyes grew wide, as he looked at the presents that surrounded him on every side.
“Go on, my little ghost king. It's all for you.” Persephone encouraged him gently.
Nico opened the gift closest to him, which was a drawing of him, Bianca, Regulus, Persephone, Hades and Giallo she had obviously drawn herself. The drawing was horrible, but that only made it even more cute in Regulus's opinion.
He grinned widely. “Thank you, Bi!”
Bianca looked proudly at herself. “I drew this myself!”
Maria chuckled. “And you did a very good job of it!”
Not having the patience to wait any longer, he opened the second gift. It was a book written in Ancient Greek, evidently, as Regulus could easily read the cover easily, which said ‘Necromancy 101; now that's is the spirit!’.
Hades looked dryly at the giggling Persephone, who was obviously very proud of her pun. She winked at Bianca. “I also made this myself"...", she stage-whispered in Ancient Greek. The sound sounded just as natural as Italian did to his ears. Perhaps even more so.
Nico leaned forward and pulled a strawberry out of his pocket. “For you!”
Persephone chuckled amusedly. “Thank you, Nico.” She kissed his forehead gently. “That's a very kind offer.”
He opened the next package, which was a Giallo shaped plush toy made of black wool and cotton. Maria smiled down at him. “I, too, made this myself.”
He hugged the plush hellhound closely to his chest - it was just as big as his entire tiny stomach. “Her name is Nero!”
Hades made a face. “Are you sure you want to call the plush hellhound Nero?”
Nico nodded. “SÌ! She's black!”
Maria chuckled. “You have the same naming talents as your sister.”
Hades hummed. “Well, I supposed it's settled then. Nero couldn't do a worse job than her namesake.”
Persephone agreed. “Especially as he's dead.”
Hades said nothing, but appeared conflicted. "What if you open the last gifts, little ghost?" He offered as a suggestion instead.
Nico's head bobbled happily as he opened the gift Regulus recognized to be his’.
It was a tiny wand he had carved out of wood himself. Regulus had given the same gift to Bianca when she turned four, and she still played a lot with it.
Even though they weren't wizards, they could still experience what it was like to hold a wand. Even if the magic was imaginative in this case.
He squealed. “Thank you, Reggie!”
Regulus nodded, taking out his own fake wand out of his pocket. He always had it with him. Bianca did the same.
“Now we all match.” He replied cheerfully. Bianca and Nico beamed.
Nico opened the last gift, even more excited than he already was before. Regulus blamed the sugar he already had had. Not that he would ever admit that to his mother, who already had the classic 'I told you so' look on her face..
Neatly wrapped, was an entirely black ring with a tiny ghost on it. It reminded him of the lion ring on his own finger and the white poplar - which was the sacred flower of their father - ring on Bianca's finger.
Regulus's ring could turn into a weapon. Bianca's could too.
He looked intensely at Nico, who instinctively knew how to transform the ring. It turned into an entirely black sword.
“Ironically, I also partly made this gift myself.” Hades said. “Just like I helped making Regulus’ and Bianca's gifts.”
He walked towards the boy and held out his hand. “May I?”
Nico handed him the sword.
“If you want it to not be black anymore but gold, which is much safer, all you need to do is push this button.” He pushed on a botton on the top of the sword, and instantly, it turned just as golden as Regulus's and Bianca's swords were.
They already knew the process, as their father had taught them how to, along with how to use it when he had time.
Which meant that they hadn't received that many lessons, but it was enough to know how to hold the sword and that was the most important part.
It also helped that the swords were made specifically for them - made as no-ask favors Hades had asked of Hephaestus, who all too gladly wanted his uncle to owe him three favors - and that Regulus already knew how to fight because of his last life.
He only lacked muscle memory, which fortunately could with hard work be solved.
Fortunately, there had been no need to fight seriously yet (not that that would stop his sister, who was more competitive than anyone else he had ever met), but they were children of Hades, and therefore their already strong scent would only grow stronger in the future, meaning they probably would have to fight a monster in the future.
Or at least, he would. If he could help it, his siblings never would.
Nico admired his now golden sword. It was small and light enough for him to wield it perfectly - eventually - and always would, as just like the ring, the sword would grow with him.
Nico slipped into a shadow on the table and into Hades’ arms. “Thank you, papa!” He hugged him.
Hades’ black eyes shone brightly with admiration. “Of course, my little ghost. Now, let's eat the tart your brother has made you, shall we?”
Regulus smiled. Even if his father couldn't be around all the time, he cared enough to know what he'd been up to in recent months, which included baking a lot of Crostata tarts to perfection. He offered almost every single one to Persephone, Hades, and Lady Hekate. The others, his sister, mother, brother and him ate which resulted in Nico loving them only more than he already did before.
As he looked at Hades, who was cleaning Nico's mouth with a napkin, he couldn't help but think that his father was the best father he could have ever asked for. He was already ten years old, but this life seemed to fly by in comparison to his previous one.
He ate the tart, and it was indeed perfect. This entire day was. This entire life was.