Author's Note: I was flipping through the Trial of Apollo books at the bookstore the other day and I remembered how much Nico and Will's 'doctor's note' bit got to me. Then I felt bad for Chiron and wrote.

Disclaimer: The following characters belong to J.K. Rowling, and this story derives from her original works, storylines, and world. Please do not sue me, I can barely pay tuition.

Warnings: NA

Stacked with: MC4A; Flouting Regulations; Sky's the Limit; Eternal Rhapsody

Individual Challenge(s): Wise Seaweed; Seeds; Shipmas; Old Shoes; Themes and Things A (Reflection); Themes and Things B (Joy); Rian-Russo Inversion; Flags and Ribbons; In a Flash

Representation(s): Nico di Angelo; Nico and Will; Chiron probably isn't straight either let's be real (also immortal)

Bonus challenge(s): Eternal Boredom; Larger Than Life; Second Verse (Tomorrow's Shade); Chorus (Persistence Still; Nontraditional)

Tertiary bonus challenge: Satisfaction; Evolution

Word Count: 641

Small Victories

Chiron was an old, old man. He had seen many things, met many people and, perhaps more exceptionally, raised many children. Sometimes, he made the mistake of thinking that he had seen it all. Then someone like Nico di Angelo turned up with something ridiculous like a doctor's note in hand.

"So according to this, you cannot sit alone at your appointed table in the Dining Hall," Chiron said, readjusting his glasses and looking back up the young man before him. To Chiron's delight, the son of Hades had been putting on weight since staying at camp on a more permanent basis and eating regular meals. He still hadn't put on a camp shirt, which Chiron didn't necessarily begrudge him. Orange wasn't for everyone. His faded clothes were clean, however, which was not a negligible note. He stood before Chiron, head high, bundled up in an oversized black sweater, hands sunk in his pocket.

"Correct," Nico said. "As per the note."

"Yes," Chiron said. "Which is signed by… Will Solace."

"Head Healer of the Apollo cabin, yes," Nico said. "A reliable source."

"Yes, of course. Also your boyfriend, from what I hear."

"The gossip in this camp is insidious," Nico said.

"Absolutely," Chiron said. "But I have my reliable sources too."

"Percy. You mean Percy, Percy blabbed."

"Perhaps," Chiron said. "Though to be fair, many people are 'blabbing' as you say."

"Yes," Nico said. "That might affect my mood disorder as well—you know, the one identified on the doctor's note, which releases zombies from the earth and may cause the occasional earthquake or loosening of shadows around camp. I really shouldn't be sitting at my table, all alone."

"Which table do you propose joining?" Chiron asked.

"Cabin 7," Nico said, point blank.

"Where your boyfriend sits."

"Coincidentally," Nico said.

"So he is your boyfriend?"

"Chiron, why are we being finicky with language and labels," Nico said. "Really, think of it this way: this is where my doctor sits."

"You realize that I cannot set a precedent in which campers can sit at the table of their choice," Chiron said. "You may not have been at camp overseeing the drama and politics here long, but you can see how this would create problems."

"That's probably a conversation you should have with my doctor, because I already have a note," Nico said, waving the slip of paper.

Chiron sighed.

But then again, this was the longest conversation he had had with Nico di Angelo since the boy had first stumbled across camp's borders at ten years old. As Chiron remembered it, Nico had looked through a pack of cards to show him the 'Chiron' Myth-O-Magic card and upon realizing that he'd left it behind, had proceeded to describe it to Chiron in a flurry of words and gestures and adjectives, topped off with a 'just trust me it's so cool!' Yes, Chiron distinctly remembered this.

The boy standing before him now was different, but how could he not be? The fact that they were sustaining a conversation and that under Nico's cool, collected exterior a bit of playfulness shone through… The fact that Nico was interested in staying at camp and making camp his own…

"I will allow this to happen, until you give me a reason not to tolerate it," Chiron said slowly. "Which includes creating a phenomenon. And then I will perhaps need the doctor's note to be renewed. Am I understood?"

"Of course," Nico said. "That sounds like standard practise."

Chiron smiled. "Go on, then. Go tell M. Solace, who is undoubtedly waiting just outside the door, about your great success."

"Great," Nico said. "Thanks, Chiron."

"My pleasure," Chiron smiled.

And yes, it most certainly was. He was an old, old man and he liked these small victories. He might as well let Nico di Angelo have one as well.