#reader is there ig

Magnus

Okay, any specifics I should look for to find him?

Will

Nah, he can sense the dead from miles away. 

“He can sense the dead-? Of course he can...” Magnus muttered to himself as he shivered. Will had mentioned the weather within the borders would be maybe a light autumn- but outside of the borders, it was freezing. Even with his Frey heritage, his shorts felt a little cold.

“I can also sense bad fashion.” Magnus quickly turned around to come face to face with a dark-haired guy. Without introduction, the boy—probably Nico—motioned for Magnus to follow him, which he did. “Your full name is just Magnus Chase, right?” Nico asked. Magnus nodded as he saw literally nothing in front of him, just forest and trees. Nico stopped and held his hand out to touch air or something.

“I, Nico di Angelo, permit Magnus Chase to enter Camp Half-Blood, or whatever.”  Nico turned around, “You should be good to go now—wasn’t sure whether the border would stop you from getting in because you’re not Greek and all that. Anyways, go pretend to be my boyfriend, try not to die and join in the Christmas activities!” Nico walked off. 

“What.”

So Magnus began his day at Camp Half-Blood. As he made his way through the border, he laid eyes on the big house—which seemed normal enough, if it was not because of the line of hurt people right outside. 

Being the good person he was, he carefully made his way to said line and approached the one in the back. Before he even could greet the girl at the end, she turned to him, barely looking at him as she went, “Oh, Will! I thought you were inside already, they might need more hands.” 

Magnus paused before he caught up. Ah yes, people really did mistake him for Will.

“I uh, wasn’t yet. What happened?” He asked as the girl looked at him like he was stupid. 

“Harley’s two legged death race, holiday edition—wait did you skip it?” The girl gasped, “I won’t tell, but only if you heal me first.”  She then whispered. Not wanting Will to get into actual trouble, Magnus quickly healed the girl, who then thanked him and walked of after saying, “Hey, didn’t know you had instant heal! Sick!”

Magnus then made his way into the infirmary where one guy looked him over, went up to him, and whispered in his ear. “I know about the switcharoo, name’s Austin, I’m Will’s brother, I won’t snitch if you help heal the line out. You know how right?” Before Magnus nodded he was set to healing, asking each patient for details on their wounds.

”Myrmekes, you know, giant ants got us.”

“Oh, Sherman Yang decided I should be an ornament.”

“The crafting table didn’t agree with me. Nor did the glitter.”

“Archery practice.”  “Were you the target?”  “No, the instructor.” 

“A reindeer ran me over.”

“Decorating the lava wall.” “What.”  “Yeah, you should check it out!” 

So as the line grew short, Austin let Magnus go explore, kindly giving instructions to find the lava wall. 

Magnus did not know what he expected. However, somehow the words “Lava Wall” never made him think of a climbing wall with lava flowing down from it. Worse yet, multiple people were currently climbing it holding tinsel and lights, both quite flammable objects, and somehow it actually looked Chrismassy and joyful. Somehow.

“Impressive isn’t it, Will?” Some dude spoke from next to Magnus, “It reminds me of that one time dad tried to actually be there for Christmas. Hephaestus wasn’t too clear on why the trees should ‘light up’ but he at least apologized for almost setting mom on fire. Good times! Catch ya later.” 

Magnus watched the guy leave with a look of concern, but as time went by, he realized that was probably one of the lighthearted stories he’d hear. Later that day, while having lunch with Nico, the guy decided to trauma dump as if Magnus were Dr. Phil’s little helper.

“Yeah, the decoration are cool most years but this one feels less chaotic than others—though not as quiet as the winter my sister died—” Nico shrugged. “That one was not fun. There’s also that other winter when things were too quiet and we ended up fighting Bob the titan, before Percy yanked him to hell—he’s alright though don’t worry. Bob, I mean. I saw Percy a week ago and he was acting crazy.”

Magnus remembers something then. “Where’s Klaus?”

Nico looks around. “No clue. He said a friend would come over as well, some Heartstone guy?”

Magnus frowns. “Why is he here?”

“No clue,” Nico repeats. “I think Klaus is trying to drive Percy to a nervous breakdown, don’t know why. Can’t blame him either, Percy makes you wanna do that sometimes.”

“Right,” Magnus eyes Nico, picking up his trash and standing. “I’ll take a walk.”

“Will!” A girl of about fifteen approaches him and smiles. “Oh, did you get a perm? Lovely! Though I would spend less time under the sun if I were you, your hair is getting sickly lighter,” she says casually. “Anyway, today for the campfire Chiron asked me to tell you not to sing any ballads, you know what happened last time.”

Magnus stares at her still hung up on the comment about his hair but trying his best to move on. “I do. Yeah, I know everything that’s ever happened here.”

“Cool,” the girl pats his shoulder and leaves. “No one needs more drama—ah, like that one time mom came to my prom wearing the same dress as I did and said ‘See, when someone the right size wears it, it does accentuate your curves!’ Ugh, totally unnecessary I mean, she knows I wore it because my actual dress was covered in acid from the gorgon pretending to be my grandma! Anyway, toodles!”

Magnus reaches the campfire and sits next to Austin. “Gods, I know I’m no one to judge but does anyone here have a decent childhood?”

Austin laughs like he just said the funniest joke. “Good one, buddy. What’s next, a proper education?” Chiron calls Austin to the front and he rubs his hands eagerly. “Showtime!”

Magnus watches the guy step to the front and bring out a saxophone. He starts playing and Magnus recognizes it as ‘Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree’. At first he sits back and enjoys it thinking he’s finally discovered something about this camp that isn’t inherently concerning. 

The problem starts when Austin gets a bit too excited and his music starts to command everyone to leave their seats and rock around the lava wall, which is functioning as their Christmas tree.

***

It’s 10pm, Magnus has been healing the entire camp from second and three degree burns, and he’s either hallucinating or he actually saw Blitzen and another guy with a santa hat on entering the forest in the back of a bronze dragon.

“Has anyone seen a reindeer?” A camper walks up to where he’s walking holding a flip phone against their ear. “No?” They talk back into the phone. “Sorry, Percy. No yeah, I sent them over to you this morning—yeah, I,” they spot Magnus and smile. “Oh, hi, Magnus!”

“Y/N,” Magnus waves casually. “Who the hellheim lost a reindeer?”

“You don’t wanna know,” you snort, texting someone on the flip phone. “You should tell Heartstone to make Klaus stop messing with Percy, poor guy is going bald and may be getting an ulcer.”

“He’s not the only one,” Magnus replies. “Hey, Nico told me you guy have a god around here named Mr. D?”

You hesitate. “I’m not sure you should go anywhere near him. He might not be okay with you hanging out here.”

“I’m already dead, what can he do, vaporize me? The lava wall already tried that—I can’t be burned.”

“Show off,” you state with no real annoyance. “Yeah well, he’s probably playing cards in the porch.”

“This camp needs like, a whole therapy guard—like an entire cabin for the mentally ill.”

“Oh, Magnus, sweet summer child,” you pat his shoulder. “The whole camp is for the mentally ill. See ya!”

Y/N walks away humming Rudolph the red-nose reindeer and continue to ask about the animal’s location to anyone you encounter. Magnus walks up to the big house and finds a man who can only be Mr. D sitting there and chugging down eggnog.

“Uh, hi.”

“Bill Lonely, you’re here,” Mr. D glances at the boy without even reaching his face. “What do you want?”

“I heard you sometimes give free therapy sessions—can I help?”

Mr. D snorts. “Are you a doctor?”

“No but I feel a lot of bad things when I look at your campers.”

“Join the club, kid.”

“Also my sword is good with words and if that doesn’t work I can stab them so they go to a better place. Sorta.” Magnus scratches his nose and sniffs. “So can I?”