CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT:
THE GROUPIES OF NARCISSUS

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"WHO IS AUNT ROSA?" Hazel asked Leo.

Kit stared at the side of Leo's face, tracing the muscle that twitched in his jaw as he hesitated then sighed. "It's a long story," he said. As they began to climb in the direction Nemesis had pointed, he inched further into Kit's space, hand finding his lower back to steady himself. His skin was warm through the thin material of Kit's shirt, and his mouth ached with the urge to kiss him. He shook the feeling away as Leo smirked at him. "She abandoned me after my mum died. Gave me to foster care."

"Oh," Hazel blinked, freckles dusted pink. For a moment, she seemed to forget how to speak. Uncertain whether she'd upset him by asking. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, well..." Leo shrugged her off. "What about you? What Nemesis said about your brother?"

Kit hadn't cared to learn much about Nico Di Angelo. He knew the younger boy at surface level; that he was a son of Hades, that his older sister died after joining the Hunters of Artemis, that Nico was bitter in his loneliness ever since. He came and went from Camp Half-Blood whenever he wanted, so Kit wasn't that surprised he found his way to Camp Jupiter. He was surprised, though, that Hazel was so attached to him. Nico Di Angelo wasn't the most... affectionate of people, but then again neither was Kit. Maybe, it just took the right person, and for Nico that was his blood.

"He found me in the Underworld," Hazel said, misty-eyed and breathless. "He brought me back to the mortal world and convinced the Romans at Camp Jupiter to accept me. I owe him for my second chance at life. If Nemesis is right and Nico's in danger, I have to help him." She turned to Kit then, and he was both confused and vaguely alarmed at the glimmer of hope that shone through the sullen shadows of her pupils. "You'll help, won't you? You knew him before."

"I, uh... sure..."

While Hazel smiled, comforted by his agreement, Kit turned to Leo with a helpless expression the second her back was turned. In truth, he had no desire to save Nico. It wasn't that he wanted him to die, but the fortune in his pocket weighed on him like a bomb.

You will spend your whole life paying for mistakes you'll never truly learn from.

What did that even mean?

Kit hadn't wanted a fortune, but Gods were never particularly good at listening to demigods. Now, he knew. More so than before, Kit struggled to resist the urge to always second guess himself. Whatever choice he made, would it only end terribly?

"And what Nemesis said about your brother having six days to live, and Rome getting destroyed... any idea what she meant?" asked Leo.

Hazel shook her head. "None, but I'm afraid--"

Whatever she planned to say died on her tongue as she climbed to the top of one of the largest boulders to get a better view. Quickly, Leo followed, leaving Kit to drag his way up behind him. His boots scraped against rock as, predictably, Leo stumbled and almost kicked Kit in the jaw with flailing legs. Hazel hastily offered him a hand and helped him to the top, leaving Kit to grumble the rest of the way to where he found them staring at each other.

"Is there something in Hazel's eye, Leo?" he frowned at the boy's back, not oblivious to the way that Leo flinched at the sound of his voice. "No? Huh."

There was more to be said. Hazel's shame was as pungent as Death itself, pooling in that glimmer of her eye that Kit didn't yet understand. He hoped... he hoped it wouldn't hurt him in the end. Standing on this metaphorical and physical ledge, watching something unfold that could've been prevented. He wanted to push until nothing could be left hidden; then, he'd be free to take Leo's hand without wondering what he saw when he looked at Hazel.

If he wanted to know the parts of her that Sammy once knew.

"When we were talking to Nemesis." It was Hazel who spoke instead, gaze locked on the hand she'd just been holding. "Your hands... I saw flames."

Leo sighed. "Yeah, it's a Hephaestus power. Usually, I can keep it under control."

"Oh."

For a second, the three of them stood at the top of that boulder and stared into the valley below. They were like kings at the edge of the world, like ants in a universe that preceded them. Kit was caught between Leo's warmth and the unexplainable life of Hazel, a gaping black hole that tore pieces of the earth and its life into purgatory. He searched for this reflecting pool Nemesis spoke of but found nothing.

Surprise, surprise.

"We should keep going," Leo insisted anyway. "I wonder what Nemesis meant about finishing before dark."

"I don't know," Kit muttered, steadying one foot on the edge and beginning to shuffle down with the other. Their boulder wasn't big enough for the three of them, and Kit had no intention of sticking around like a thorn in a rose bush. "But let's not find out, yeah?"

Hazel hesitated. "Well, who is the cursed boy she mentioned?"

"Cursed boy she mentioned."

Later, when retelling their tales to the rest of the eight, Kit would furiously deny the squeal that came from his mouth when an unfamiliar female voice spoke in his ear. He shuddered and tripped the rest of the way back to Earth, surprised to make out the shape of a girl not much older than themselves.

No, not a girl. A nymph.

"Hello," Hazel greeted her with a smile, and yet she didn't join Kit in the firing line. If this nymph turned around and took a bite out of his throat, he'd have no time to prepare himself. She didn't look harmless, but then again Kit could barely see her as her skin and clothes blended in with the scenery. "Who are you?"

"Who are you?" echoed the girl.

"Are you the cursed kid Nemesis mentioned?" Leo asked curiously. He was trying not to laugh at the sight of Kit picking mud out of his hair. "But you're a girl."

Kit rolled his eyes then snorted when she retorted, "You're a girl."

"Excuse me?"

"Excuse me."

"You're repeating--" Leo gasped, clambering down to stand beside Kit which left Hazel no choice but to do the same. Dusting some dirt off Kit's shoulder, he asked him, "Hey, babe, wasn't there some myth about a girl who repeated everything--?"

"I don't..." It was Kit's turn to gasp. He nodded, eyeing the girl with a new sense of interest. "Wait."

"Wait," she said miserably.

"You're Echo."

"Echo," the girl muttered in agreement.

"You were cursed to repeat the last thing you heard?"

Echo nodded gravely. "You heard."

Kit knew pieces of the myth -- he recalled the name Narcissus and its vague meaning -- but, like most of their history, the details remained hazy like forgotten books on a dusty shelf. He knew Echo was involved -- how, he wasn't sure yet -- but she had gotten too close to this Narcissus fellow and now she was paying the price. Forever cursed to repeat the words of others, never her own.

"You poor thing," Hazel sighed, hands fluttering with the urge to help her. "If I remember right, a Goddess did this?"

"A Goddess did this."

"Doesn't surprise me," scoffed Kit.

A tear dropped down Echo's sunken cheek, glistening on her cheekbones like shards of crystal. "Surprise me."

Her tears seemed to unnerve Leo -- Kit, too, wasn't sure what to make of them. It reminded him of several months ago when they stood on that helicopter tarmac and Piper turned to Kit for comfort after sending her dad home with Hedge. Echo's tears were of never-ending misery and a hope, against all odds, for release.

"But didn't this happen thousands of years -- oh." All of a sudden, Leo's eyes went wide. He let out an uncomfortable, high-pitched laugh as Echo frowned at him. "You're one of the mortals who came back through the Doors of Death. I really wish we could stop running into dead people."

"Dead people," Echo said. It sounded like she was scolding him, and just one glance at Hazel explained why.

"Leo," Kit hissed, elbowing the Hephaestus boy in the ribs when he made an oblivious humming noise. "Do you want to take that back?"

"No? Why would I...?" He followed Kit's pointed gaze and gasped. This time, his laughter was tinged with a healthy mix of horror and hysteria. "Uh... sorry. I didn't mean it that way."

Fortunately, Echo saved Hazel from an awkward response as she whirled around to point at the far shore of the island. "That way," she repeated antsily.

"You want to show us something?" Hazel asked.

"Show you something."

"Are you sure you're real?" Leo asked out of the blue. He'd gone cross-eyed trying to focus on her pointed finger, flushing when he realised he'd spoken aloud. "I mean, like, flesh and blood?"

"Flesh and blood."

Quicker than Leo could blink, Echo closed the gap between them and touched the side of his face with her spider-like fingers. Leo flinched back at the feeling. His shoulder smacked into Kit's sternum, knocking the wind out of him as his heel stomped on Kit's boots. The older boy groaned and shoved him upright, muttering a frustrated 'dude' as he glowered at the muddy footprint that stained the leather.

"Sorry," Leo winced.

Echo repeated sadly, "Sorry..."

Kit forced a smile. "Not your fault, Echo."

Leo, on the other hand... Well, that was implied. He kissed Kit's cheek in an apologetic gesture, pleased to feel the warmth of his skin beneath his lips. When he pulled back, he wore an impish grin, even winking at a bemused Echo as he asked, "So, you have to repeat everything?"

Kit rolled his eyes. Way to state the obvious, genius.

"Everything," Echo let out a sigh. Over time, she'd worked out how to use her restricted words to her own advantage. Her tone was certain where his was questioning. She seemed distrustful as Leo grinned.

"That could be fun."

"Fun," she scoffed.

"Leo, don't--"

But it was too late.

"Blue elephants."

"Blue elephants."

"Kiss me, you fool."

"You fool."

"Hey!"

"Hey!"

It went on until Kit was pinching the bridge of his nose and Hazel couldn't hold her tongue anymore. "Oh, Leo, don't tease her."

"Don't tease her," Echo muttered solemnly.

"Okay, fine," Leo grumbled.

Kit could tell it took him a lot of self-control to agree. It was in his nature to take the piss no matter how serious the situation. Still, even Kit could see how it could be considered cruel.

"What were you pointing at, Echo?" he asked in the hopes of redirecting the conversation.

"Do you need our help?" added Hazel, her brows furrowed in concern.

"Help," she said, and then she was gone.

For a second, Kit wondered if this nymph could somehow disappear into thin air. She moved quicker than the wind itself. The only way he realised she was there, waiting, was by tracking her footprints as grass changed back to sand.

"We'd better hurry or we'll lose her."

Kit didn't need telling twice. He was the first to chase after Echo, closely followed by Hazel then Leo. She lead them back across the island to a meadow near where they first started. In the centre was an unassuming pond. Kit wouldn't have looked twice at it were it not for the sea of nymphs that virtually blocked the water from view. They were giggling and whispering with each other. Some held mobile phones and were recording the water. Others lofted signs over their heads with words that paled in the sun. Kit could only just make them out if he squinted. He hoped he wasn't right, but he was sure he read Narcissus.

"What exactly are they looking at?" Leo asked Echo.

The nymph let out a dreamy sigh. "Looking at."

"I think I might know," Kit muttered. He began to shove his way through the crowd, glaring at the nymphs who dared to protest while Hazel blurted frenzied apologies in her attempt to keep up with him.

"Hey!" complained one nymph, shoving Kit right back with the hand that wasn't waving around her phone. "We were here first."

"Yeah," huffed her friend. This one had large red hearts painted on her cheeks. In each one were the letters I <3 N! "He won't be interested in you."

"I'm so heartbroken," Kit rolled his eyes, kicking aside the poster the nymph tried to use as a shield. Leo elbowed his way to Kit's side; together, they cleared a path for Hazel and Echo, who stuck like glue to the only other girl's side.

"Demigod business. Make room. Thank you."

"Just tell them how it is, Leo," Kit grumbled, then raised his voice at a squealing nymph, "Get out of the way!"

"Kit," Hazel hissed, her tone scolding.

Fortunately for him, the nymph didn't turn around and gouge his eyes out for the attitude. She was too busy giggling at the sight of Narcissus kneeling at the edge of the pond, tracing his chiselled features with the curves of his fingertips. Kit couldn't lie; he, too, was momentarily stunned by Narcissus. He certainly wasn't labelled handsome for no reason. He had dark curly hair that reminded Kit somewhat of Leo, eyes that glimmered like emeralds in the reflection of the water. He wore a simple white t-shirt that gripped his muscular arms in just the right places, with a dust-covered bow and quiver strapped to his back. From the looks if it, he hadn't moved in a while, but boy was he handsome.

"Uh, Christopher?" Leo raised an eyebrow at him. "Is there something in the hot dude's eye?"

"Whatever," Kit grumbled, his face flushing pink as Leo smirked. "We have more important things to focus on."

"Like?"

Kit wasn't entirely star-struck by Narcissus. He pointed at the water. "Like that."

There, laying on the reedy bottom of the pond, was a giant sheet of Celestial Bronze that Narcissus was using for a mirror. It was large enough that it needed at least two people to carry it, which would've been fine was it not for the boy cursed with obsession and his overly protective gaggle of groupies. Now, they could be a problem.

Kit flinched as one of said groupies suddenly shoved her iPhone screen in his face. She seemed eager enough to gush about Narcissus that she paid no attention to how they obviously weren't nymphs. "Look," she screeched loud enough that Kit wondered if his right ear drum was bleeding. "His latest Youtube video got a million hits in, like, an hour. I think I was half of those!"

"I bet you were the other half," Leo mumbled in Kit's ear.

But Kit shook his head stubbornly. "Narcissus is a pretty face, sure, but he's too pretty. I like men..." He trailed off at Leo's curious expression. "Who don't jerk off at their own appearance."

Leo snorted at that. "Same."

"As riveting as this conversation is," Hazel murmured; once again caught between looking scandalised and vaguely alarmed. Really, this was just the Kit Dempsey effect. To both terrify and intrigue at the same time. It explained why Leo was so into him. "You called him Narcissus?"

Echo, who'd somehow stayed quiet this whole time, let out a sad sigh, her dreamy expression gone. Now, she sounded wistful, yearning for someone who could never be hers. "Narcissus."

"You know this guy, Kit?" Leo asked.

But Kit didn't get a chance to reply. The other nymphs had spotted Echo and boy were they annoyed.

"Oh, not you again," the girl with the hearts on her cheeks tried to push Echo away, her whole face blending in with the red paint. She huffed and puffed from the effort, but still somehow managed to misjudge where Echo stood. She ended up shoving several other nymphs, including the girl with the phone.

"You had your chance, Echo!" shouted Groupie 2. It was easier to categorise them that way. Most of them were copies of the rest just wearing their own Narcissus merchandise. "He dumped you four thousand years ago! You are so not good enough for him."

Echo's eyes wilted like roses. "For him."

"Wait," Hazel frowned. "What's going on here? Why did Echo bring us here?"

All of a sudden, the details came rushing back to Kit. He dusted off the metaphorical bookshelf; for once, he wasn't going in blind. Echo's curse... it was given to her by Hera, who did not appreciate Echo's love for gossip. She would forever be destined to repeat the last things she'd heard, suffering the loss of helping her love, Narcissus. Not that the other nymphs seemed to mind. They liked him the way he was, cursed or not.

"Echo was a nymph like us a long time ago," said Groupie 2. "But she was a total chatterbox! Gossiping blah, blah, blah all the time."

"Really?" Kit eyed the girl, feeling the strange urge to defend Echo. "I wonder who she gets it from."

"You know, just the other day, I told Cleopeia -- you know she lives in the boulder next to me? -- I said 'stop gossiping or you'll end up like Echo.' Cleopeia is such a big mouth! Did you hear what she said about that cloud nymph and the satyr?"

"Still wondering..."

But the nymphs were too caught up in themselves to notice. "So anyway, as punishment for blabbing, Hera cursed Echo so she could only repeat things, which was fine with us. But then Echo fell in love with our gorgeous guy, Narcissus. As if he would ever notice her."

"As if!" chanted the rest of the nymphs, reminding Kit of a creepy cult.

"Now she's got some weird idea he needs saving," said Groupie 2. "She should just go away."

"Go away," Echo growled back. She even stomped her foot for good measure, balling her fists like she hoped she'd get to sock one of them in the face.

Leo, who was blinking at the scene in disbelief, leaned in to whisper in Kit's ear, "My money's on iPhone girl."

"You mean Groupie 2?" Kit asked.

Leo snorted. "I like that much better. Five bucks she wins if they start brawling?"

"You're on," Kit muttered, scrutinising what he could make out of Echo's form. Sure, her arms were thin like twigs and she was no taller than the boy beside him, but Kit had a feeling she could pack a mean punch with all the pent up anger of a four-thousand-year-old curse. "I've got faith in Echo."

Back to the fighting groupies.

"I'm so glad Narcissus is alive again," sighed another nymph in a grey dress. She had the words Narcissus + Laiea written up and down her arms in shonky black marker. "He's, like, the best and he's in my territory!"

That was the wrong thing to say. Kit and Leo's heads swivelled back and forth between the arguing nymphs, struggling to keep up with the flurry of screaming and rude hand gestures.

"Oh, stop it, Laiea," Groupie... 500? scoffed. "I'm the pond nymph. You're just the rock nymph."

"Well, I'm the grass nymph," another insisted, licking her lips as she eyed the grassy strands beneath Narcissus' knees.

"He obviously came here because he likes the wildflowers," the next one exclaimed stubbornly. "Those are mine!"

Soon, Kit couldn't make out a thing they were saying. He wondered if they even knew what they were arguing about. Echo was just glad she wasn't involved anymore. She shrunk into Hazel's side and watched as Groupie 500? launched at Groupie 2.

"Whoa, ladies!" Stupidly, Leo threw himself between them, only just dodging the claws of Groupie 2, who hung back to scowl at him warily. "I need to ask Narcissus something."

Kit frowned. "Oh, no, you don't."

"I do," Leo said stubbornly. He was already approaching the cursed boy, ignoring Kit's fruitless protests until he was kneeling next to Narcissus. Momentarily distracted, he looked over his shoulder to stick out his tongue -- told you so his expression seemed to taunt. "So, Narcissus. What's up?"

"Could you move?" answered Narcissus boredly. "You're ruining the view."

Leo gritted his teeth as Kit snorted and Hazel face-palmed. "Right, great view," he forced himself to say. "Happy to move, but if you're not using it, could I just take that sheet of bronze?"

"No," Narcissus shook his head, then gasped when his reflection did the same. He leaned down close enough to kiss the air above the water, sighing at the curve of the bronze face's lips. "Oh, I love him. He's so gorgeous."

Leo frowned at him, perhaps debating the risks of revealing the truth to Narcissus. Part of Kit hoped he would do it just to see what would happen. "Man, you do realise that you're looking at yourself in the water, right?"

"I am so great," Narcissus sighed. Once again, he leaned down, only to hold back a mere inch above the surface. "No, I can't make ripples. That ruins the image."

"And so modest too," Kit muttered to Hazel. "Who would've thought?"

He had to hand it to him, Leo was nothing if not persistent. "But if I took the bronze, you could still see yourself in the water. Or here, I'll trade you."

Slowly, Narcissus tore his gaze away to stare in the simple monocle-sized mirror Leo pulled from his tool belt. Tucking a strand of hair behind his ear, he shook his head and set the mirror down. "Even you carry a picture of me? I don't blame you, I am gorgeous. But I already have a much better image. The colour flatters me, don't you think?"

"Personally, I think the colour washes you out."

"Washes me out?" Narcissus frowned at the sound of Kit's voice.

He didn't have much of a chance to ponder over his words before his groupies, faithful as ever, flocked to him and Leo and almost toppled the latter into the pond. Now, that, Kit was sure, would've driven Narcissus insane.

"Marry me, Narcissus!"

"No, me!"

"Would you sign my poster?"

"No, sign my shirt."

"No, sign my forehead."

"No, sign my--"

It was enough to give anyone a headache. Kit rubbed at his temples, his ears ringing with the shrieks of the nymphs even after they went quiet. It took him a second to realise Hazel had drawn her cavalry sword on them. Quickly, he hurried to do the same, creating a semi-circle of space around Narcissus, Leo and now Echo. The latter of which was trying and failing to rouse Narcissus by waving a hand in front of his face.

"He won't sign your swords," said one of the nymphs with a pout.

However was Kit supposed to live with himself?

"And he won't marry you," Groupie 2 stomped her foot -- ah, Kit had started to miss the sight of her glittery iPhone. "And you can't take his bronze mirror! That's what keeps him here!"

"You're all ridiculous," Hazel scoffed, deeming it safe to step forward with Kit watching her back. "Don't you see? He's so full of himself! How can you possibly like him?"

"Like him," Echo sighed, sitting back on her heels when Narcissus continued to ignore her.

"You can do so much better, Echo," Kit muttered.

The cursed nymph frowned, her doe eyes blinking in confusion. "Better, Echo?"

"Narcissus, listen," Hazel turned to him. "Echo brought us here to help you. Didn't you, Echo?"

"Who?"

"The only girl who cares what happens to you, apparently."

Personally, Kit really didn't see the appeal. He would've said as such, but he had a feeling Hazel would run him through with her cavalry sword if he tried. Instead, he settled with the safe response. A question that might get them somewhere. Who would've thought? "Do you remember dying?"

"Well, that can't be right. I am much too important to die."

"You died staring at yourself," Hazel insisted with more patience than Kit possessed. "I remember the story now. Nemesis was the Goddess who cursed you, because you broke so many hearts. Your punishment was to fall in love with your own reflection."

This seemed to spark something in Narcissus' memory. "I do love me so, so much."

"You finally died," Hazel continued as if he hadn't spoken. "I don't know which version of the story is true, though. You either drowned yourself or turned into a flower hanging over the water or -- Echo, which is it?"

"Which is it?" she said helplessly. Her expression was of pure heartache; having to watch her lover's life end and never being able to share the truth was worse than dying, in some ways. Echo would live with this knowledge forever, a burden on her own shoulders. Atlas in nymph form.

"It doesn't matter," Leo decided. "The point is, you're alive again, man. You have a second chance. That's what Nemesis was telling us. You can get up and get on with your life. Echo is trying to save you. Or you can stay here and stare at yourself until you die again."

Narcissus didn't have a chance to give it much thought before his groupies began to scream their opinions.

"Stay here," one begged.

"Marry me before you die," another said through sobs.

For the love of Ares, Kit thought in disgust. Father, I give you permission to feed me to the myrmekes if I ever get this desperate.

Narcissus shook his head. "You just want my reflection. I don't blame you, but you can't have it. I belong to me."

Hazel let out a groan. Then she gestured with her sword toward the edge of the crater. "Leo, Kit, could we talk for a minute?"

"Please," Kit said, already turning away from the pond. The nymphs were taking turns posing beside Narcissus to have their photo taken. "If it gets me away from these lunatics."

"Excuse us," Leo told Narcissus, who didn't acknowledge him, of course. "Echo, want to come with?"

"Come with," she nodded a little too eagerly.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Hazel rounded on them. "Nemesis was right," she said. "Some demigods can't change their nature. Narcissus is going to stay there until he dies again."

"It's not like the world's missing out on much," Kit scoffed; then, because Echo was frowning at him, "Uh, no offence. I'm sure he was... delightful before he became obsessed."

Kit highly doubted it, but it made Echo happy. "Became obsessed," she sighed in agreement with him.

"Guys, we need that bronze," Leo insisted. He looked as tired as Kit felt, running a hand over the ridges of his cheekbones. "If we take it away, it might give Narcissus a reason to snap out of it. Echo could have a chance to save him."

"A chance to save him," Echo smiled at the thought.

Hazel stabbed her sword in the sand. "It could also make several dozen nymphs very angry with us," she pointed out. "And Narcissus might still know how to shoot his bow."

Kit shrugged. "I'm not afraid of some nymphs."

"But several dozen of them?" she countered. "I think that's too much even for you, Kit."

For a moment, nothing else was said. Kit didn't see any other solution, but Leo had his thinking face on, and that was always dangerous. Gasping to himself, he did a little victory dance before whirling around to face a bemused Hazel.

"Your power with precious metal," he said. "Can you just detect it or can you actually summon it to you?"

Hazel frowned. "Sometimes, I can summon it. I've never tried with a piece of Celestial Bronze that big before. I might be able to draw it to me through the earth, but I'd have to be fairly close. It would take a lot of concentration, and it wouldn't be fast."

"Be fast," Echo warned.

Kit's sword glinted in the last scraps of sunlight. "Trust me," he insisted as Hazel stared at the blade. "I can buy you some time if needed."

"Alright," Leo began in his here's the plan voice. "We'll have to try something risky. Hazel, how about you try to summon the bronze from right here? Make it sink through the sand and tunnel over to you, then grab it and run for the ship."

"But Narcissus is looking at it all the time," she pointed out.

"All the time," Echo agreed, moving about antsily.

"That'll be my job," Leo said, and the look on Kit's face told him everything he needed to know. "Kit, Echo and I will cause a distraction. If all else fails, I'll let Kit loose on them."

Kit scoffed at that. "You'll let me loose on them? What am I, your pet?"

Leo smirked. "If you are, you're not very obedient."

"I'll show you obedience," Kit mumbled, but he didn't push it as he eyed up the crowd of nymphs once more. He could do this. He had to. "What do you reckon, Echo? Are you willing?"

Echo nodded slowly. She was the bravest nymph Kit had met, and unfortunately for him, he'd met a lot of them. "Willing."

"Great. Now, let's hope we don't die."