Aphrodite’s Little Angel Boy

by Sarah_Lee25

Summary:

Basically a rewrite of almost every Nico Di Angelo scene in the Percy Jackson series. Instead of being a child of Hades, he is a child of Aphrodite. But everything is the same, he just has Aphrodite powers.

Bianca is still a daughter of Hades and she also still dies.

Nico still does all the dangerous and lonely stuff he did in the book but all as a son of Aphrodite.

Nico has the same powers as Aphrodite herself but they drain him just as badly as his Hades abilities.

Hades acts like a stepdad for Nico. (lowkey a better parent than Aphrodite)

This is a very chaotic AU but very self-indulgent

Notes:

I saw a fanfiction piece where Nico was a son of Aphrodite but I didn't like how different he was so I decided to make my own son of Aphrodite Nico.

This is really self-indulgent.

Chapter 1

There was a knock on the door, and Nico di Angelo came huffing into the parlor, his cheeks bright red from the cold.

He was smiling, but he looked around anxiously. "Hey! Where's… where's my sister?"

Dead silence. Percy stared at Chiron. He couldn't believe nobody had told him yet. And then he realized why. They'd been waiting for them to appear, to tell Nico in person.

That was the last thing Percy wanted to do. But he owed it to Bianca.

"Hey, Nico." Percy got up from his comfortable chair. "Let's take a walk, okay? We need to talk."

He took the news in silence, which somehow made it worse. Percy kept talking, trying to explain how it had happened, how Bianca had sacrificed herself to save the quest. But Percy felt like he was only making things worse.

"She wanted you to have this." He brought out the little god figurine Bianca had found in the junkyard. Nico held it in his palm and stared at it.

They were standing at the dining pavilion, just where we'd last spoken before he went on the quest. The wind was bitter cold, even with the camp's magical weather protection. Snow fell lightly against the marble steps. Percy figured outside the camp borders, there must be a blizzard happening.

"You promised you would protect her," Nico said.

He might as well have stabbed him with a rusty dagger.

It would've hurt less than reminding Percy of his promise.

"Nico," Percy said. "I tried. But Bianca gave herself up to save the rest of us. I told her not to. But she—"

"You promised!"

He glared at Percy, his eyes rimmed with red. He closed his small fist around the god statue.

"I shouldn't have trusted you." His voice broke. "You lied to me. My nightmares were right!"

"Wait. What nightmares?"

He flung the god statue to the ground. It clattered across the icy marble. "I hate you!"

"She might be alive," Percy said desperately. He felt an impulsive need to comfort Nico, to do whatever it took to please the boy. "I don't know for sure—"

"She's dead." He closed his eyes. His whole body trembled with rage. "I should've known it earlier. She's in the Fields of Asphodel, standing before the judges right now, being evaluated. I know it."

"What do you mean, you know it?"

Before he could answer, Percy heard a new sound behind him. A hissing, clattering noise he recognized all too well.

Percy drew his sword and Nico gasped. He whirled and found himself facing four skeleton warriors. They grinned fleshless grins and advanced with swords drawn. Percy wasn't sure how they'd made it inside the camp, but it didn't matter. He’d never get help in time.

"You're trying to kill me!" Nico screamed. "You brought these… these things?"

"No! I mean, yes, they followed me, but no! Nico, run. They can't be destroyed." The impulsive need was like a warning bell, blaring red alarms in his brain to do anything for Nico, lay down his life if needed.

"I don't trust you!"

The first skeleton charged. Percy knocked aside its blade, but the other three kept coming. He sliced one in half, but immediately it began to knit back together. He knocked another's head off but it just kept fighting.

"Run, Nico!" Percy yelled. "Get help!"

"No!" He pressed his hands to his ears.

Percy couldn't fight four at once, not if they wouldn't die. He slashed, whirled, blocked, jabbed, but they just kept advancing. It was only a matter of seconds before the zombies overpowered him.

"No!" Nico shouted louder. "Go away!"

The skeleton’s bones trembled. Percy’s body flinched at the command, his legs trying to get as far as possible from Nico. He tried to get himself under control, what was up with him?

“Get away from me! Just go!” Nico cried.

Percy’s body was definitely trying to flee. The ground rumbled beneath him. The skeletons froze. The older boy rolled out of the way just as a crack opened at the feet of the four warriors. The ground ripped apart like a snapping mouth. Flames erupted from the fissure, and the earth swallowed the skeletons in one loud CRUNCH!

Silence.

In the place where the skeletons had stood, a twenty-foot-long scar wove across the marble floor of the pavilion. Otherwise, there was no sign of the warriors.

Awestruck, Percy looked to Nico. "How did you—"

"Go away!" he yelled. "I hate you! I wish you were dead!"

The ground didn't swallow Percy up, but he felt a stab to his heart as if someone had impaled it with ice. Nico ran down the steps, heading toward the woods. Percy started to follow but slipped and fell to the icy steps. When he got up, he noticed what he’d slipped on.

Percy picked up the god statue Bianca had retrieved from the junkyard for Nico. The only statue he didn't have, she'd said. The last gift from his sister.

He stared at it with dread, because now he understood why the face looked familiar. He’d seen it before.

It was a statue of Hades, Lord of the Dead.

Annabeth and Grover helped Percy search the woods for hours, but there was no sign of Nico di Angelo.

"We have to tell Chiron," Annabeth said, out of breath.

"No," He said.

She and Grover both stared at Percy.

"Um," Grover said nervously, "what do you mean… no?

Percy was still trying to figure out why he’d said that, but the words spilled out of him. He felt like he’d protect Nico from anything and anyone, even jump in lava if Nico so much as asked. "We can't let anyone know. I don't think anyone realizes that Nico is a—"

"A son of Hades," Annabeth said.

Percy bit his lip in thought. “No, what if I’m wrong. Something isn’t right…. Maybe Nico isn’t a son of Hades-”

“And what if he is?” Annabeth said. "Percy, do you have any idea how serious this is? Even Hades broke the oath! This is horrible!"

"I don't think so," He said. "I don't think Hades broke the oath."

"What?"

"He's their dad," Percy said, "but Bianca and Nico have been out of commission for a long time, since even before World War II."

"The Lotus Casino!" Grover said, and he told Annabeth about the conversations they’d had with Bianca on the quest. "She and Nico were stuck there for decades. They were born before the oath was made."

Percy nodded.

"But how did they get out?" Annabeth protested.

"I don't know," he admitted. "Bianca said a lawyer came and got them and drove them to Westover Hall. I don't know who that could've been, or why. Maybe it's part of this Great Stirring thing. I don't think Nico understands who he is- if he even is what we believe he might be. But we can't go telling anyone. Not even Chiron. If the Olympians find out—"

"It might start them fighting among each other again," Annabeth said. "That's the last thing we need."

Grover looked worried. "But you can't hide things from the gods. Not forever."

"I don't need forever," Percy said. "Just two years. Until I'm sixteen."

Annabeth paled. "But, Percy, this means the prophecy might not be about you. It might be about Nico. We have to—"

"No," he said. "I choose the prophecy. It will be about me." He needs to do this, for Nico.

"Why are you saying that?" she cried. "You want to be responsible for the whole world?"

It was the last thing Percy wanted, but he didn't say that. He knew he had to step up and claim it.

"I can't let Nico be in any more danger," Percy said. I won’t let this fall on him. "I owe that much to his sister. I… let them both down. I'm not going to let that poor kid suffer anymore."

"The poor kid who hates you and wants to see you dead," Grover reminded him.

"Maybe we can find him," Percy said. "We can convince him it's okay, hide him someplace safe."

Annabeth shivered. "If Luke gets hold of him—"

"Luke won't," he said. Percy felt something heavy and dark stir in his gut at the thought. He won’t let Luke get to Nico. "I'll make sure he's got other things to worry about. Namely, me."

Chapter 2

Summary:

The Battle of the Labyrinth rewrites. I hope this makes sense...

Notes:

Reminder that I am only adding scenes I would change (most scenes hint at Nico having manipulative powers over not just people but the dead) (it's not Hades' abilities, he is charmspeaking them to life and then charmspeaking to do his bidding.) also Nico's fatal flaw isn't grudges- it's low-self esteem and being victim to manipulation

Nico got out of the back car and stormed over to Geryon. The cowherd Eurytion wasn’t as sleepy as he looked. He hefted his club and walked after Nico.

“I came here for business, Geryon,” Nico said. “And you haven’t answered me.”

“Mmm.” Geryon examined a cactus. His left arm reached over and scratched his middle-chest. “Yes, you’ll get a deal, all right.”

“My ghost told me you could help. He said you could guide us to the soul we need.”

“Wait a second,” Percy said. “I thought I was the soul you wanted.”

Nico looked at him like he was crazy. “You? Why would I want you? Bianca’s soul is worth a thousand of yours!” His words were like a punch to Percy’s ego. “Now, can you help me, Geryon, or not?”

“Oh, I imagine I could,” the rancher said. “Your ghost friend, by the way, where is he?”

Nico looked uneasy. “He can’t form in broad daylight. It’s hard for him. But he’s around somewhere.”

Geryon smiled. “I’m sure. Minos likes to disappear when things get…difficult.”

“Minos?” Percy remembered the man he’d seen in his dreams, with the golden crown, the pointed beard, and the cruel eyes. A sick feeling whirled around in his stomach. “You mean that evil king? That’s the ghost who’s been giving you advice?”

“It’s none of your business, Percy!” Nico turned back to Geryon. “And what do you mean about things getting difficult?”

The three-bodied man sighed. “Well, you see, Nico—can I call you Nico?”

“No.”

“You see, Nico, Luke Castellan is offering very good money for half-bloods. Especially powerful half-bloods. And I’m sure when he learns your little secret, who you really are, he’ll pay very, very well indeed.”

Nico drew his sword, but Eurytion knocked it out of his hand. Before Percy could get up, Orthus pounced on his chest and growled, his faces an inch away from Percy’s.

“I would stay in the car, all of you,” Geryon warned. “Or Orthus will tear Mr. Jackson’s throat out. Now, Eurytion, if you would be so kind, secure Nico.”

The cowherd spit into the grass. “Do I have to?”

“Yes, you fool!”

Nico turned toward him and opened his mouth to shout. “Don’t-”

Eurytion looked bored, but he wrapped one huge arm around Nico and lifted him up like a wrestler. His arm muffled Nico’s shouts of protest. Eurytion tightened his grip ever so slightly, shutting the boy up.

“Pick up the sword, too,” Geryon said with distaste. “There’s nothing I hate worse than Stygian Iron.”

Eurytion picked up the sword, careful not to touch the blade.

“Now,” Geryon said cheerfully, “we’ve had the tour. Let’s go back to the lodge, have some lunch, and send an Iris-message to our friends in the Titan army.”

“You fiend!” Annabeth cried.

Geryon smiled at her. “Don’t worry, my dear. Once I’ve delivered Mr. di Angelo, you and your party can go. I don’t interfere with quests. Besides, I’ve been paid well to give you safe passage, which does not, I’m afraid, include Mr. di Angelo.

“Paid by whom?” Annabeth said. “What do you mean?”

“Never you mind, darlin’. Let’s be off, shall we?” They were going to take Nico away. Percy felt panic rise within his chest.

“Wait!” He said, and Orthus growled. Percy stayed perfectly still so he wouldn’t tear his throat out. “Geryon, you said you’re a businessman. Make me a deal.”

Geryon narrowed his eyes. “What sort of deal? Do you have gold?”

“I’ve got something better. Barter.”

“But Mr. Jackson, you’ve got nothing.”

“You could have him clean the stables,” Eurytion suggested innocently.

“I’ll do it!” Percy said. “If I fail, you get all of us. Trade us all to Luke for gold.”

“Assuming the horses don’t eat you,” Geryon observed.

“Either way, you get my friends,” Percy said. “But if I succeed, you’ve got to let all of us go, including Nico.” I can’t let him be in danger again.

“No!” Nico screamed. He had gotten his face free but was struggling with Eurytion who was doing his best to silence him. “Don’t do me any favors, Percy. I don’t want your hel-mph!” Eurytion had covered his mouth once again but Percy felt Nico’s words buzz in his bones.

Geryon chuckled. “Percy Jackson, those stables haven’t been cleaned in a thousand years…though it’s true I might be able to sell more stable space if all that poop was cleared away.”

“So what have you got to lose?”

The rancher hesitated. “All right, I’ll accept your offer, but you have to get it done by sunset. If you fail, your friends get sold, and I get rich.”

“Deal.”

~~~~~~~~~~~

“Minos should be here by now,” Nico said, frowning. “It’s fully dark.”

“Maybe he got lost,” Percy said hopefully.

Nico poured root beer and tossed barbecue into the pit, then began chanting in Ancient Greek. Immediately the bugs in the woods stopped chirping. In Percy’s pocket, the Stygian ice dog whistle started to grow colder, freezing against the side of his leg.

“Make him stop,” Tyson whispered to Percy.

Part of Percy agreed. This was unnatural. The night air felt cold and menacing. But before he could say anything, the first spirits appeared. Sulfurous mist seeped out of the ground. Shadows thickened into human forms. One blue shade drifted to the edge of the pit and knelt to drink.

“Stop him!” Nico said, momentarily breaking his chant. “Only Bianca may drink!”

Percy drew Riptide. The ghosts retreated with a collective hiss at the sight of his celestial bronze blade. But it was too late to stop the first spirit. He had already solidified into the shape of a bearded man in white robes. A circlet of gold wreathed his head, and even in death, his eyes were alive with malice.

“Minos!” Nico said. “What are you doing?”

“My apologies, master,” the ghost said, though he didn’t sound very sorry. “The sacrifice smelled so good, I couldn’t resist.” He examined his own hands and smiled. “It is good to see myself again. Almost in solid form—”

“You are disrupting the ritual!” Nico protested. “Get—”

The spirits of the dead began shimmering dangerously bright, and Nico had to take up the chant again to keep them at bay.

“Yes, quite right, master,” Minos said with amusement. “You keep chanting. I’ve only come to protect you from these liars who would deceive you.”

He turned to Percy as if he were some kind of cockroach. “Percy Jackson…my, my. The sons of Poseidon haven’t improved over the centuries, have they?”

He wanted to punch him, but Percy figured his fist would go right through Minos’ face. “We’re looking for Bianca di Angelo,” Percy said. “Get lost.”

The ghost chuckled. “I understand you once killed my Minotaur with your bare hands. But worse things await you in the maze. Do you really believe Daedalus will help you?”

The other spirits stirred in agitation. Annabeth drew her knife and helped Percy keep them away from the pit. Grover got so nervous he clung to Tyson’s shoulder.

“Daedalus cares nothing for you, half-bloods,” Minos warned. “You can’t trust him. He is old beyond counting, and crafty. He is bitter from the guilt of murder and is cursed by the gods.”

“The guilt of murder?” Percy asked. “Who did he kill?”

“Do not change the subject!” the ghost growled. “You are hindering Nico. You try to persuade him to give up on his goal. I would make him a lord!”

“Enough, Minos,” Nico commanded.

The ghost’s next words were taken from him. He paused to collect himself and sneered. “Master, these are your enemies. You must not listen to them! Let me protect you. I will turn their minds to madness, as I did the others.”

“The others?” Annabeth gasped. “You mean Chris Rodriguez? That was you?”

“The maze is my property,” the ghost said, “not Daedalus’s! Those who intrude deserve madness.”

“Begone, Minos!” Nico demanded. “I want to see my sister!”

Minos’s image flickered but with a concentrated look that almost made him seem constipated, his image came back into focus. The ghost bit back his rage. “As you wish, master. But I warn you. You cannot trust these heroes.”

With that, he faded into mist.

Other spirits rushed forward, but Annabeth and Percy kept them back.

“Bianca, appear!” Nico intoned. He started chanting faster, and the spirits shifted restlessly.

“Any time now,” Grover muttered.

Then a silvery light flickered in the trees—a spirit that seemed brighter and stronger than the others. It came closer, and something told Percy to let it pass. It knelt to drink at the pit. When it arose, it was the ghostly form of Bianca di Angelo.

Nico’s chanting faltered. Percy lowered his sword. The other spirits started to crowd forward, but Bianca raised her arms and they retreated into the woods.

“Hello, Percy,” she said.

She looked the same as she had in life: a green cap set sideways on her thick black hair, dark eyes, and olive skin like her brother. She wore jeans and a silvery jacket, the outfit of a Hunter of Artemis. A bow was slung over her shoulder. She smiled faintly, and her whole form flickered.

“Bianca,” Percy said. His voice was thick. He’d felt guilty about her death for a long time, but seeing her in front of his was five times as bad, like her death was fresh and new. Percy remembered searching through the wreckage of the giant bronze warrior she’d sacrificed her life to defeat, and not finding any sign of her.

“I’m so sorry,” he said.

“You have nothing to apologize for, Percy. I made my own choice. I don’t regret it.”

“Bianca!” Nico stumbled forward like he was just coming out of a daze.

She turned toward her brother. Her expression was sad, as if she’d been dreading this moment. “Hello, Nico. You’ve gotten so tall.”

“Why didn’t you answer me sooner?” he cried. “I’ve been trying for months!”

“I was hoping you would give up.”

“Give up?” the sound of heartbreak in his voice made Percy’s chest ache. He felt the urge to hold and comfort the boy. “How can you say that? I’m trying to save you!”

“You can’t, Nico. Don’t do this. Percy is right.”

“No! He let you die! He’s not your friend.”

Bianca stretched out a hand as if to touch her brother’s face, but she was made of mist. Her hand evaporated as it got close to living skin.

“You must listen to me,” she said. “Holding a grudge isn’t healthy and is especially dangerous for a child of Hades. It is our fatal flaw…. Possibly yours too. You seemed to have developed this flaw, maybe from spending so much time with me…. You have to forgive. You have to promise me this.”

“I can’t. Never.” Nico’s eyes were welled with tears.

“Percy has been worried about you, Nico. He can help. I let him see what you were up to, hoping he would find you.”

“So it was you,” Percy said. “You sent those Iris-messages.”

Bianca nodded.

“Why are you helping him and not me?” Nico screamed. “It’s not fair!”

“You are close to the truth now,” Bianca told him. “It’s not Percy you’re mad at, Nico. It’s me.”

“No.” He shook his head, tears running down his cheeks.

“You’re mad because I left you to become a Hunter of Artemis. You’re mad because I died and left you alone. I’m sorry for that, Nico. I truly am. But you must overcome the anger. And stop blaming Percy for my choices. It will be your doom.”

“She’s right,” Annabeth broke in. “Kronos is rising, Nico. He’ll twist anyone he can to his cause.”

“I don’t care about Kronos,” Nico said. “I just want my sister back.”

“You can’t have that, Nico,” Bianca told him gently.

“I’m the son of Hades! I can.”

“No….” she shook her head with a sad smile, “you’re not, Nico, and you know it. Don’t try,” she said. “If you love me, don’t…”

Her voice trailed off. Spirits had started to gather around us again, and they seemed agitated. Their shadows shifted. Their voices whispered,

Danger!

“Tartarus stirs,” Bianca said. “Your power draws the attention of Kronos. The dead must return to the Underworld. It is not safe for us to remain.”

“Wait,” Nico said. “Please—”

“Goodbye, Nico,” Bianca said. “I love you. Remember what I said.”

Her form shivered and the ghosts disappeared, leaving them alone with a pit, a Happy Flush septic tank, and a cold full moon.

___________

 

The doors of the workshop burst open, and Nico was pushed inside, his hands in chains and mouth gagged. Then Kelli and two Laistrygonians marched in behind him, followed by the ghost of Minos. He looked almost solid now—a pale bearded king with cold eyes and tendrils of Mist coiling off his robes.

He fixed his gaze on Daedalus. “There you are, my old friend.”

Daedalus’s jaw clenched. He looked at Kelli. “What is the meaning of this?”

“Luke sends his compliments,” Kelli said. “He thought you might like to see your old employer Minos.”

“This was not part of our agreement,” Daedalus said.

“No indeed,” Kelli said. “But we already have what we want from you, and we have other agreements to honor. Minos required something else from us, in order to turn over this fine young demigod.” She ran a finger under Nico’s chin. “Very pretty if he wasn’t wasting himself away trying to conjure the dead. Say hello dear,” Kelli undid the gag and to her delight, Nico gasped and coughed. “He’ll be quite useful. And all Minos asked in return was your head, old man.”

Daedalus paled. “Treachery.”

“Get used to it,” Kelli said.

“Nico,” Percy said. “Are you okay?”

He nodded morosely. “I—I’m sorry, Percy. Minos told me you were in danger. He convinced me to go back into the maze.”

“You were trying to help us?”

“I was tricked,” he said. “He tricked all of us.”

Percy glared at Kelli. “Where’s Luke? Why isn’t he here?”

The she-demon smiled like they were sharing a private joke. “Luke is…busy. He is preparing for the assault. But don’t worry. We have more friends on the way. And in the meantime, I think I’ll have a wonderful snack!” Her hands changed into claws. Her hair burst into flame and her legs turned to their true form—one donkey leg, one bronze.

“Percy,” Rachel whispered, “the wings. Do you think—”

“Get them,” he said. “I’ll try to buy you some time.”

And with that, all Hades broke loose. Annabeth and Percy charged at Kelli. The giants came right at Daedalus, but Mrs. O’Leary leaped to his defense.

Nico got pushed to the ground and struggled with his chains while the spirit of Minos wailed, “Kill the inventor! Kill him!”

Rachel grabbed the wings off the wall. Nobody paid her any attention. Kelli slashed at Annabeth. Percy tried to get to her, but the demon was quick and deadly. She turned over tables, smashed inventions, and wouldn’t let them get close. Out of the corner of his eye, Percy saw Mrs. O’Leary chomp her fangs into a giant’s arm. He wailed in pain and flung her around, trying to shake her. Daedalus grabbed for his sword, but the second giant smashed the workbench with his fist, and the sword went flying. A clay jar of Greek fire broke on the floor and began to burn, green flames spreading quickly.

“To me!” Minos cried. “Spirits of the dead!” He raised his ghostly hands and the air began to hum.

“No!” Nico cried. He was on his feet now. He’d somehow managed to remove his shackles. At his shout, tension buzzed along the air between Minos and Nico, almost as if they were pulling at two ends of a rope trying to gain the upper hand.

“You do not control me, young fool,” Minos sneered. “All this time, I have been controlling you! A soul for a soul, yes. But it is not your sister who will return from the dead. It is I, as soon as I slay the inventor!”

Spirits began to appear around Minos—shimmering forms that slowly multiplied, solidifying into Cretan soldiers.

“I am the s-son of Aphrodite,” Percy’s eyes widened at the revelation. Nico wavered before taking a deep breath, “I am the stepson of Hades!” He insisted. “Begone!”

Minos laughed. “You have no power over me, son of Aphrodite. I am the lord of spirits! The ghost king!”

“No.” Nico drew his sword. “I am.” His voice resonated through the air. Percy wanted to nod his head and bow, referring to Nico as the Ghost King.

Nico stabbed his black blade into the floor, and it cleaved through the stone like butter.

“Never!” Minos’s form rippled. “I will not—”

“Go back to where you came from, ghosts,” Nico sneered, his voice chilling.

The ground rumbled. The windows cracked and shattered to pieces, letting in a blast of fresh air. A fissure opened in the stone floor of the workshop, and Minos and all his spirits were sucked into the void with a horrible wail.

The bad news: the fight was still going on all around them, and Percy let himself get distracted by Nico again. Kelli pounced on him so fast he had no time to defend himself. Percy’s sword skittered away and he hit his head hard on a worktable as he fell. His eyesight went fuzzy. He couldn’t raise his arms.

Kelli laughed. “You will taste wonderful!”

She bared her fangs. Then suddenly her body went rigid. Her red eyes widened. She gasped, “No…school…spirit…”

And Annabeth took her knife out of the empousa’s back. With an awful screech, Kelli dissolved into yellow vapor.

Annabeth helped Percy up. He still felt dizzy, but they had no time to lose. Mrs. O’Leary and Daedalus were still locked in combat with the giants, and he could hear shouting in the tunnel. More monsters were coming toward the workshop.

“We have to help Daedalus!” Percy said.

“No time,” Rachel said. “Too many coming!”

She’d already fitted herself with wings and was working on Nico, who looked pale and sweaty from his struggle with Minos. The wings grafted instantly to his back and arms.

“Now you!” she told me.

In seconds, Nico, Annabeth, Rachel, and Percy had fitted themselves with coppery wings. Already Percy could feel himself being lifted by the wind coming through the window. Greek fire was burning the tables and furniture, spreading up the circular stairs.

“Daedalus!” Percy yelled. “Come on!”

He was cut in a hundred places—but he was bleeding golden oil instead of blood. He’d found his sword and was using part of a smashed table as a shield against the giants. “I won’t leave Mrs. O’Leary!” he said. “Go!”

There was no time to argue. Even if they stayed, Percy wasn’t sure they could help.

“None of us know how to fly!” Nico protested.

“Great time to find out,” Percy said. And together, the four of them jumped out the window into the open sky.

__________

“The workshop moved,” Annabeth guessed. “There’s no telling where.”

“So what do we do now?” Percy asked. “How do we get back into the maze?”

Annabeth gazed at the summit of Pikes Peak in the distance. “Maybe we can’t. If Daedalus died…he said his life force was tied into the Labyrinth. The whole thing might’ve been destroyed. Maybe that will stop Luke’s invasion.”

Percy thought about Grover and Tyson, still down there somewhere. And Daedalus…even though he’d done some terrible things and put everybody he cared about at risk, it seemed like a pretty horrible way to die.

“No,” Nico said. “He isn’t dead.”

“How can you be sure?” Percy asked.

“I can feel his emotions. They’re active, not a feeling of being dead. It’s hard to explain.”

“What about Tyson and Grover, then?”

Nico shook his head. “That’s harder. They’re not humans or half-bloods. I’m not good at reading their emotions, but I think I can sense them. They’re most likely still alive.”

“We have to get into town,” Annabeth decided. “Our chances will be better of finding an entrance to the Labyrinth. We have to make it back to camp before Luke and his army.”

“We could just take a plane,” Rachel said.

Percy shuddered. “I don’t fly.”

“But you just did.”

“That was low flying,” he said, “and even that’s risky. Flying up really high—that’s Zeus’s territory. I can’t do it. Besides, we don’t even have time for a flight. The labyrinth is the quickest way back.”

He didn’t want to say it, but he was also hoping that maybe, just maybe, they would find Grover and Tyson along the way.

“So we need a car to take us into the city,” Annabeth said.

Rachel looked down into the parking lot. She grimaced, as if she were about to do something she regretted. “I’ll take care of it.”

“How?” Annabeth asked.

“Just trust me.”

Annabeth looked uneasy, but she nodded. “Okay, I’m going to buy a prism in the gift shop, try to make a rainbow, and send an Iris-message to camp.”

“I’ll go with you,” Nico said. “I’m hungry.” Percy felt a small grin make its way on his face. It’s good that he’s eating, Percy thought to himself, he’s so thin.

“I’ll stick with Rachel, then,” he said. “Meet you guys in the parking lot.”

_________

To Percy’s surprise, Rachel and Annabeth started up a conversation as they walked. Annabeth asked her more about her background, but Rachel was evasive, so they started talking about architecture. It turned out that Rachel knew something about it from studying art. They talked about different facades on buildings around New York—“Have you seen this one,” blah, blah, blah, so Percy hung back and walked next to Nico in uncomfortable silence.

“Thanks for coming after us,” he told him at last.

Nico’s eyes narrowed. He didn’t seem as angry as he used to—just suspicious, careful. “I owed you for the ranch, Percy. Plus…I wanted to see Daedalus for myself. Minos was right, in a way. Daedalus should die. Nobody should be able to avoid death that long. It’s not natural.”

“That’s what you were after all along,” Percy said. “Trading Daedalus’s soul for your sister’s.”

Nico walked for another fifty yards before answering. “It hasn’t been easy, you know. Having only the dead for company. Knowing that I’ll never be accepted by the living. Because I’m weird- different from the other campers. Hades told me himself, said my powers were darker than my half-siblings. Aphrodite has teased me about it on random occasions. Only the dead respect me, and they only do that out of some weird obsession with me- they sometimes hang on to my every word. I hate it.”

Percy frowned. He didn’t want to tell Nico that sometimes he did the same thing. “You could be accepted,” he said instead. “You could have friends at camp.”

He stared at him. “Do you really believe that, Percy?”

Percy didn’t answer. The truth was, he didn’t know. Nico had always been a little different, but since Bianca’s death, he’d gotten almost…scary. Oddly enough, he had Hades’ eyes—that intense, manic fire that made you suspect he was either a genius or a madman. And the way he’d banished Minos, and called himself the king of ghosts—it was kind of impressive seeing as he got rid of him with words alone, but it made Percy uncomfortable too.

Nico could demand about anything, all of their deaths, and it could happen. Percy still remembered those strong feelings in his chest when Nico had demanded he go away, and the burning feeling he received when he refused to obey.

Before Percy could figure out what to tell him, he ran into Rachel, who’d stopped in front of him. They’d come to a crossroads…….

________

 

As Percy raced across the battlefield, he saw horrible things. An enemy half-blood was fighting with a son of Dionysus, but it wasn’t much of a contest. The enemy stabbed him in the arm then clubbed him over the head with the butt of his sword, and Dionysus’s son went down. Another enemy warrior shot flaming arrows into the trees, sending their archers and dryads into a panic.

A dozen dracaenae suddenly broke away from the main fight and slithered down the path that led toward camp, like they knew where they were going. If they got out, they could burn down the entire place, completely unopposed.

The only person anywhere near was Nico di Angelo. He stabbed a telekhine, and his black Stygian blade absorbed the monster’s essence, drinking its energy until there was nothing left but dust.

“Nico!” Percy yelled.

He looked where the older boy was pointing, saw the serpent women, and immediately understood.

He took a deep breath and held out his black sword. “Armies of the undead, serve me,” he called, his charmspeak reaching into the depts of the underworld.

The earth trembled. A fissure opened in front of the dracaenae, and a dozen undead warriors crawled from the earth—horrible corpses in military uniforms from all different time periods—U.S. Revolutionaries, Roman centurions, Napoleonic cavalry on skeletal horses. As one, they drew their swords and engaged the dracaenae. Nico crumpled to his knees.

Percy closed on the hellhound, glancing at Nico’s body trembling on the ground. The hellhound was now pushing the satyrs back toward the woods. The beast snapped at one satyr, who danced out of its way, but then it pounced on another who was too slow. The satyr’s tree-bark shield cracked as he fell.

“Hey!” Percy yelled.

The hellhound turned. It snarled at him and leaped. It would’ve clawed him to pieces, but as he fell backward, Percy’s fingers closed around a clay jar—one of Beckendorf’s containers of Greek fire. He tossed it into the hellhound’s maw, and the creature went up in flames. Percy scrambled away, breathing heavily.

The satyr who’d gotten trampled wasn’t moving. Percy hesitated to check but ran to Nico instead.

The boy wasn’t looking all that good. He was pale and shaking, looking seconds from puking. Percy pushed his hand against his forehead. A fever.

“Nico, can you move?” Percy asked.

Nico nodded, trying to focus. As he went to stand he stumbled as if he were walking on a waterbed. “Fine, I’m fine,” he demanded as Percy went to balance him. There was a slight charmspeak behind his words that had Percy close to believing him.

He shook his head. “No, you're not. Sit down, get somewhere safe. Don’t join the fight if you can’t manage it-”

“Percy!” Grover called frantically.

Percy glanced one more time at Nico, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Stay safe,” he said before rushing to follow Grover’s voice.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nico looked worse than when he left him.

His fingers in one hand were clenched as the other held his gut. He retched on the grass below him and shuddered.

Percy rolled him over as gently as he could and put his ear against his chest. His heart was beating faintly. “Get some nectar!” Percy yelled.

One of the Ares campers hobbled over and handed him a canteen. He trickled some of the magic drink into Nico’s mouth. He coughed and spluttered, but his eyelids fluttered open.

“Nico, are you alright?” Percy asked. “Can you talk?”

He nodded weakly. “Never tried to charmspeak so many before. I—I’ll be fine. I need chocolate.”

“Chocolate?” Percy began to think Nico was delirious from his fever.

He nodded. “Yes. Chocolate, it helps, trust me,” Nico wiped sweat from his brow and turned to look at the Ares camper. “Please?” He asked softly.

Percy had never seen someone with a leg injury move so fast.

He stared at Nico incredulously. “That wasn’t charmspeak- I would have felt it. What was that?”

“I just played with his heartstrings- something I realized that doesn’t drain me but only works as well when I’m vulnerable,” Nico grumbled.

“What?” Percy asked.

“I made him feel bad for me, want to help me. I know it’s bad, I manipulated his emotions,” he looked away from Percy, embarrassed and worried the older boy would find him horrible and disgusting.

Percy nodded. “Cool.”

Nico stared at him in shock. “You don’t think it’s bad? I-I just made him think he cares about me and has to do whatever I say,” Nico stammered.

Percy winced. When he puts it like that, yeah it sounds pretty bad. But their demigod abilities weren’t asked for and most of them could be used for dark purposes.

“You didn’t use your powers on us, you could’ve, to get your revenge, but you didn’t.”

Nico looked like he would start crying any second.

There was that tug in his chest again. But Percy ignored it. Maybe Nico was accidentally playing with his heartstrings, maybe he has for a while, but who could blame him? He’s been lonely and grieving by himself for a year.

“C’mon let's get you somewhere comfortable.”

_________

The only thing that bothered Percy was Nico, hanging in the shadows at the edge of the pavilion. There was a huge shock when it came to Nico being the son of Aphrodite, a powerful son of Aphrodite at that. Annabeth, Percy, and Grover were a little relieved to find he wasn’t a child of the big three.

He’d been offered a place at the Aphrodite table by Silena, though most of the cabin seemed wary about him joining. Nearly everyone couldn’t believe Nico Di Angelo was a child of Aphrodite.

He was very different from the other Aphrodite kids. He didn’t take care of his appearance 24 hours a day, didn’t turn his nose at physical activity, and didn’t criticize people on their outfit choice. Percy began to wonder if there were other daughters or sons of Aphrodite who were the same as Nico, deep down.

Nico had a lot of eyes on him. There were a million different emotions behind each one, but a constant was curiosity. Nico declined the offer to sit with his half-siblings, mostly because anyone could see how uncomfortable they were all acting with him. He was also welcomed at the Hermes table, and even at the head table with Chiron, but Nico had refused.

After dinner, the campers headed toward the amphitheater, where Apollo’s cabin promised an awesome sing-along to pick up their spirits, but Nico turned and disappeared into the woods. Percy decided he’d better follow him. Nico shouldn’t be alone after everything that’s happened.

As he passed under the shadows of the trees, Percy realized how dark it was getting. He’d never been scared in the forest before, though he knew there were plenty of monsters. Still, Percy thought about yesterday’s battle, and he wondered if he’d ever be able to walk in those woods again without remembering the horror of so much fighting.

Percy couldn’t see Nico, but after a few minutes of walking, he saw a glow up ahead. At first, Percy thought Nico had lit a torch. As he got closer, he realized the glow was a ghost. The shimmering form of Bianca di Angelo stood in the clearing, smiling at her brother. She said something to him and touched his face—or tried to. Then her image faded.

Nico turned and saw Percy, but he didn’t look mad.

“Saying goodbye,” he said hoarsely.

“We missed you at dinner,” Percy said. “You could’ve sat with me.”

“No.”

“Nico, you can’t miss every meal. I know you’re probably overwhelmed with the thought of having so many new half-siblings….. Especially after your real sister passed away not too long ago, but you may find a home here.”

“No…. Bianca isn’t my….. She’s my half-sister too. She was the daughter of Hades and I was some fling between my mom and Aphrodite.”

It was odd to hear an eleven-year-old talk about flings and such. Percy bit the inside of his cheek. “Still, she was your sister, she took care of you, she loved you.”

Nico didn’t say anything but he dug his shoe into the dirt.

“If you don’t want to stay with the Aphrodite cabin, maybe they can make an exception and put you in the Big House. They’ve got plenty of rooms.” Percy suggested.

“I’m not staying, Percy.”

Percy felt his heart turn into a cold puddle that seeped into his stomach like dread. “But…you can’t just leave. It’s too dangerous out there for a lone half-blood. You need to train.” You have to stay here, where it’s safe, he didn’t say.

“I train with the dead,” he said flatly. “This camp isn’t for me. There’s a reason I didn’t sit with the Aphrodite cabin, Percy. I’m not welcome, they don’t want me there. I’m different, my powers are nothing like theirs. I don’t belong. It’s not up to you. I have to go.”

He wanted to argue, but part of Percy knew he was right. Percy didn’t like it, but he couldn’t force Nico to stay. If being here would make Nico upset, Percy couldn’t find it in himself to keep him at camp. He remembered in Pan’s cave, how the wild god had addressed each one of them individually…except Nico.

“When will you go?” Percy asked. Please stay, just a bit longer, Percy thought.

“Right away. I’ve got tons of questions. Like who was my mother? Who paid for Bianca and me to go to school? Who was that lawyer guy who got us out of the Lotus Hotel? Why did Aphrodite choose to have me? Why did Hades go back with my mother if she cheated on him? I know nothing about my past. I need to find out.”

“Makes sense,” Percy admitted. “But I hope we don’t have to be enemies.”

He lowered his gaze. “I’m sorry I was a brat. I should’ve listened to you about Bianca.”

“By the way…” Percy fished something out of his pocket. “Tyson found this while we were cleaning the cabin. Thought you might want it.” He held out a lead figurine of Hades—the little Mythomagic statue Nico had abandoned when he fled camp last winter.

Nico hesitated. “I don’t play that game anymore. It’s for kids.”

“It’s got four thousand attack power,” Percy coaxed.

“Five thousand,” Nico corrected. “But only if your opponent attacks first.”

Percy smiled. “Maybe it’s okay to still be a kid once in a while.” he tossed him the statue.

Nico studied it in his palm for a few seconds, then slipped it into his pocket. “Thanks.”

Percy put out his hand. Nico shook reluctantly. His hand was as cold as ice. Percy felt a bubbling of worry grow inside him again.

“I’ve got a lot of things to investigate,” he said. “Some of them…Well, if I learn anything useful, I’ll let you know.”

Percy wasn’t sure what he meant, but he nodded. “Keep in touch, Nico.” Please, he didn’t say.

Nico gave him half of a smile, but it was something. “I will.”

Notes:

some stuff about Nico's powers:

- Nico doesn't have Hades' abilities, he is charmspeaking the undead to life and then charmspeaking them to do his bidding.
- Nico's fatal flaw isn't grudges- it's low-self esteem and being victim to manipulation
- Nico has many other abilities he isn't aware of
- he's pretty average now cuz he's only 11 but his powers get stronger every day without his knowledge
- Nico's heartstring ability allows him to enforce the idea into people's heads that he is important and should be protected and cared for. It only works when he is weak and vulnerable, trying to do it when he is in pique health won't have any effect.
- because it is in Percy's third person it's hard to tell but when Nico accidentally puts charmspeak behind his words, others are affected too not just Percy. No one comments on it since his control range is low and they can brush it off really easily.
- the dead are easier for Nico to charmspeak than live people
- Nico can sense emotions, but he can only tell if the emotions are negative or positive he doesn't know what someone is exactly feeling
- it's harder for Nico to read people's emotions if they aren't the same species as him
- Percy cares for Nico, not because of charmspeak but because being around Nico amplifies his feelings of concern and care for Nico. It's another one of Nico's abilities he isn't in control of but uses on Percy accidentally because Percy is the one he wants to care for him and worry about his well being
- Nico can raise his stamina by eating chocolate. It clears his head and brings some energy in his body

Chapter 3: The Last Olympian

Summary:

Nico in the last olympian!

Notes:

I had to reread most of the book to write this. I cried a shit ton.

Nico walked back to Percy and Juniper. "Good job, Percy. Judging from the trail of goat pellets, I'd say you shook him up pretty well."

Percy was afraid he knew why Nico was here, but he tried for a smile. It was good to see Nico. "Welcome back. Did you come by just to see Juniper?"

He blushed. "Um, no. That was an accident. I kind of . . . dropped into the middle of their conversation."

"He scared us to death!" Juniper said. "Right out of the sky in a pink cloud of flowery perfume. But, Nico, you are the son of Aphrodite and all- you said you can sense life by their emotions. Are you sure you haven't heard anything about Grover?"

Nico shifted his weight. "Juniper, like I tried to tell you . . . sensing emotions of anything other than mortals is different for me… even if Grover died, he would reincarnate into something else in nature. I can't sense things like that."

"But if you do hear anything?" she pleaded, putting her hand on his arm. "Anything at all?"

Nico's cheeks got even brighter red. Percy held back an amused smile. "Uh, you bet. I'll keep my ears open."

"We'll find him, Juniper," Percy promised. "Grover's alive, I'm sure. There must be a simple reason why he hasn't contacted us."

She nodded glumly. "I hate not being able to leave the forest. He could be anywhere, and I'm stuck here waiting. Oh, if that silly goat has gotten himself hurt—"

Mrs. O'Leary bounded back over and took an interest in Juniper's dress.

Juniper yelped. "Oh, no you don't! I know about dogs and trees. I'm gone!"

She went poof into green mist. Mrs. O'Leary looked disappointed, but she lumbered off to find another target, leaving Nico and Percy alone.

Nico tapped his sword on the ground. A tiny mound of animal bones erupted from the dirt. They knit themselves together into a skeletal field mouse and scampered off. "I was sorry to hear about Beckendorf."

A lump formed in Percy’s throat. "How did you—"

"I talked to his ghost."

"Oh . . . right." He’d never get used to the fact that this twelve-year-old kid spent more time talking with the dead than the living. He’d never get used to the fact that said twelve-year-old also has constant access to the underworld. "Did he say anything?"

"He doesn't blame you. He figured you'd be beating yourself up, and he said you shouldn't."

"Is he going to try for rebirth?"

Nico shook his head. "He's staying in Elysium. Said he's waiting for someone. Not sure what he meant, but he seems okay with death."

It wasn't much comfort, but it was something.

"I had a vision you were on Mount Tarn," he told Nico. "Was that—"

"Real," he said. "I didn't mean to be spying on the Titans, but I was in the neighborhood."

"Doing what?"

Nico tugged at his sword belt. "Following a lead on . . . you know, my family."

Percy nodded. he knew his past was a painful subject. Until two years ago, he and his half-sister Bianca had been frozen in time at a place called the Lotus Hotel and Casino. They'd been there for like seventy years. Eventually, a mysterious lawyer rescued them and checked them into a boarding school, but Nico had no memories of his life before the casino. He didn't know anything about his mother. He didn't know who the lawyer was, or why they'd been frozen in time or allowed to go free. After Bianca died and left Nico alone, he'd been obsessed with finding answers.

"So how did it go?" Percy asked. "Any luck?"

"No," he murmured. "But I may have a new lead soon."

"What's the lead?"

Nico chewed his lip. "That's not important right now. You know why I'm here."

A feeling of dread started to build in Percy’s chest. Ever since Nico first proposed his plan for beating Kronos last summer, he'd had nightmares about it. He would show up occasionally and press Percy for an answer, but he kept putting him off.

"Nico, I don't know," Percy said. "It seems pretty extreme."

"You've got Typhon coming in, what . . . a week? Most of the other Titans are unleashed now and on Kronos's side. Maybe it's time to think extreme."

Percy looked back toward the camp. Even from this distance, he could hear the Ares and Apollo campers fighting again, yelling curses and spouting bad poetry.

"They're no match for the Titan army," Nico said. "You know that. This comes down to you and Luke. And there's only one way you can beat Luke."

He remembered the fight on the Princess Andromeda. Percy had been hopelessly outmatched. Kronos had almost killed him with a single cut to his arm, and he couldn't even wound him. Riptide had glanced right off his skin.

"We can give you the same power," Nico urged. "You heard the Great Prophecy. Unless you want to have your soul reaped by a cursed blade . . ."

Percy wondered how Nico had heard the prophecy— probably from some ghost.

"You can't prevent a prophecy," Percy said.

"But you can fight it." Nico had a strange, hungry light in his eyes. "You can become invincible."

"Maybe we should wait. Try to fight without—"

"No!" Nico snarled. "It has to be now!"

Percy almost agreed before shaking it off. Charmspeak, right. He stared at him. Percy hadn't seen his temper flare like that in a long time. "Um, you sure you're okay?"

He took a deep breath. "Percy, all I mean . . . when the fighting starts, we won't be able to make the journey. This is our last chance. I'm sorry if I almost charmspoke you- I don’t like forcing people to agree with me. And I’m sorry if I'm being too pushy, but two years ago my sister gave her life to protect you. I want you to honor that. Do whatever it takes to stay alive and defeat Kronos."

Percy didn't like the idea. Then he thought about Annabeth calling him a coward, and he got angry.

Nico had a point. If Kronos attacked New York, the campers would be no match for his forces. Percy had to do something. Nico's way was dangerous—maybe even deadly. But it might give him a fighting edge.

"All right," Percy decided. "What do we do first?"

His cold creepy smile made him sorry he’d agreed. It used to be childlike and adorable, Percy couldn’t remember what that looked like on him anymore. "First we'll need to retrace Luke's steps. We need to know more about his past, his childhood."

Percy shuddered, thinking about Rachel's picture from his dream—a smiling nine-year-old Luke. "Why do we need to know about that?"

"I'll explain when we get there," Nico said. "I've already tracked down his mother. She lives in Connecticut."

He stared at him. Percy had never thought much about Luke's mortal parent. He’d met his dad, Hermes, but his mom . . .

"Luke ran away when he was really young," Percy said. "I didn't think his mom was alive."

"Oh, she's alive." The way he said it made him wonder what was wrong with her. What kind of horrible person could she be?

"Okay . . ." Percy said. "So how do we get to Connecticut? I can call Blackjack—"

"No." Nico scowled. "I don’t think Pegasi like me, and the feeling is mutual. They’re constantly sniffing me and sometimes it feels like they're mocking me…. I would offer the cloud I came here in but that doesn’t always work. But there's no need for flying." He whistled, and Mrs. O'Leary came loping out of the woods.

Percy wanted to ask about the cloud thing but Nico’s tone suggested he wouldn’t get a straight answer.

"Your friend here can help." Nico patted her head. "You haven't tried shadow travel yet?"

"Shadow travel?"

Nico whispered in Mrs. O'Leary's ear. She tilted her head, suddenly alert.

"Hop on board," Nico told him.

Percy had never considered riding a dog before, but Mrs. O'Leary was certainly big enough. He climbed onto her back and held her collar.

"This will make her very tired," Nico warned, "so you can't do it often. And it works best at night. But all shadows are part of the same substance. There is only one darkness, and creatures of the Underworld can use it as a road, or a door."

"I don't understand," Percy said. How did Nico even know about this in the first place?

"No," Nico said. "It took me a long time to learn. But Mrs. O'Leary knows. Tell her where to go. Tell her Westport, the home of May Castellan."

"You're not coming?"

"I am," he said. "But you should learn how to do it by yourself for when I’m not around."

Percy was a little nervous. Nico hopped up behind him but he seemed to hesitate about his hands. He placed them on her fur which Percy doubted would keep him on but he leaned down to Mrs. O'Leary's ear anyways. "Okay, girl. Uh, can you take me to Westport, Connecticut? May Castellan's place?"

Mrs. O'Leary sniffed the air. She looked into the gloom of the forest. Then she bounded forward, straight into an oak tree. Nico let out a small yelp before his arms gripped Percy’s waist. He glanced back at the boy to check on him and caught of glimpse of his ears which had turned a bright scarlet.

Just before they hit the tree, they passed into shadows as cold as the dark side of the moon.

____________

"So, Nico . . . how do we do this?"

"We have to go inside the gates first," he said.

"But the river's right here."

"I have to get something," he said. "It's the only way."

He marched off without waiting.

Percy frowned. Nico hadn't mentioned anything about going inside the gates. But now that they were here, he didn't know what else to do. Reluctantly, Percy followed him down the beach toward the big black gates. He trusted Nico, even if sometimes his ideas were a bit crazy.

Lines of the dead stood outside waiting to get in. It must've been a heavy day for funerals, because even the EZ-DEATH line was backed up.

"Woof!" Mrs. O'Leary said. Before he could stop her she bounded toward the security checkpoint. Cerberus, the guard dog of Hades, appeared out of the gloom—a three-headed rottweiler so big he made Mrs. O'Leary look like a toy poodle. Cerberus was half-transparent, so he's really hard to see until he's close enough to kill you, but he acted like he didn't care about them. He was too busy saying hello to Mrs. O'Leary.

"Mrs. O'Leary, no!" Percy shouted at her. "Don't sniff . . . Oh, man."

Nico smiled. Then he looked at Percy and his expression turned all serious again, like he'd remembered something unpleasant. "Come on. They won't give us any trouble in the line. You're with me." Percy didn’t see why being with Nico would grant a free pass- maybe because he calls Hades his stepdad?

Percy didn't like it, but they slipped through the security ghouls and into the Fields of Asphodel. He had to whistle for Mrs. O'Leary three times before she left Cerberus alone and ran after them.

They hiked over black fields of grass dotted with black poplar trees. If Percy really died in a few days like the prophecy said, he might end up here forever, but he tried not to think about that.

Nico trudged ahead, bringing them closer and closer to the palace of Hades.

"Hey," Percy said, "we're inside the gates already. Where are we—"

Mrs. O'Leary growled. A shadow appeared overhead—something dark, cold, and stinking of death. It swooped down and landed on the top of a poplar tree.

Unfortunately, Percy recognized her. She had a shriveled face, a horrible blue knit hat, and a crumpled velvet dress. Leathery bat wings sprang from her back. Her feet had sharp talons, and in her brass-clawed hands, she held a flaming whip and a paisley handbag.

"Mrs. Dodds," he said.

She bared her fangs. "Welcome back, honey."

Her two sisters—the other Furies—swooped down and settled next to her in the branches of the poplar.

"You know Alecto?" Nico asked Percy.

"If you mean the hag in the middle, yeah," he said. "She was my math teacher."

Nico nodded, like this didn't surprise him. He looked up at the Furies and took a deep breath. "I've done what Hades asked. Take us to the palace."

Percy tensed. There was a halt in his chest as if his heart had stopped. "Wait a second, Nico. What do you—"

"I'm afraid this is my new lead, Percy. Hades promised me information about my family, but he wants to see you before we try the river. I'm sorry."

"You tricked me?" And just like that, he felt his heart shatter into pieces like glass, stabbing into his chest and setting a painful fire within him. Percy was so mad he couldn't think. He lunged at Nico, but the Furies were fast. Two of them swooped down and plucked him up by the arms. His sword fell out of his hand, and before he knew it, Percy was dangling sixty feet in the air.

"Oh, don't struggle, honey," his old math teacher cackled in his ear. "I'd hate to drop you."

Mrs. O'Leary barked angrily and jumped, trying to reach Percy, but they were too high.

"Tell Mrs. O'Leary to behave," Nico warned. He was hovering near him in the clutches of the third Fury. "I don't want her to get hurt, Percy. Hades is waiting. He just wants to talk."

Percy felt like shouting, crying, and even like hurting Nico. His chest ached from the betrayal but he was so mad all he wanted to do was tell Mrs. O'Leary to attack Nico. It wouldn't have done any good, and Nico was right about one thing: his dog could get hurt if she tried to pick a fight with the Furies.

Percy gritted his teeth. "Mrs. O'Leary, down! It's okay, girl."

She whimpered and turned in circles, looking up at him. "All right, traitor," Percy growled at Nico. "You've got your prize. Take me to the stupid palace."

Alecto dropped him like a sack of turnips in the middle of the palace garden.

It was beautiful in a creepy way. Skeletal white trees grew from marble basins. Flower beds overflowed with golden plants and gemstones. A pair of thrones, one bone, and one silver sat on the balcony with a view of the Fields of Asphodel. It would've been a nice place to spend a Saturday morning except for the sulfurous smell and the cries of tortured souls in the distance.

Skeletal warriors guarded the only exit. They wore tattered U.S. Army desert combat fatigues and carried M16s.

The third Fury deposited Nico next to Percy. He didn’t want to even look at him. All three of them settled on the top of the skeletal throne. Percy resisted the urge to strangle Nico. They'd only stop him. He’d have to wait for his revenge.

He stared at the empty thrones, waiting for something to happen. Then the air shimmered. Three figures appeared—Hades and Persephone on their thrones, and an older woman standing between them. They seemed to be in the middle of an argument.

"—told you he was a bum!" the older woman said.

"Mother!" Persephone replied.

"We have visitors!" Hades barked. "Please!"

Hades, one of Percy’s least favorite gods, smoothed his black robes, which were covered with the terrified faces of the damned. He had pale skin and the intense eyes of a madman.

"Percy Jackson," he said with satisfaction. "At last."

Queen Persephone studied him curiously. He’d seen her once before in the winter, but now in the summer, she looked like a totally different goddess. She had lustrous black hair and warm brown eyes. Her dress shimmered with colors. Flower patterns in the fabric changed and bloomed—roses, tulips, honeysuckle.

The woman standing between them was obviously Persephone's mother. She had the same hair and eyes, but looked older and sterner. Her dress was golden, the color of a wheat field. Her hair was woven with dried grasses so it reminded Percy of a wicker basket. He figured if somebody lit a match next to her, she'd be in serious trouble.

"Hmmph," the older woman said. "Demigods. Just what we need."

Next to Percy, Nico knelt. He wished he had his sword so he could cut his stupid head off. Unfortunately, Riptide was still out in the fields somewhere.

"Hades," Nico said. "I have done as you asked."

"Took you long enough," Hades grumbled. "My daughter would've done a better job."

Nico lowered his head. If Percy hadn't been so mad at the little creep, he might've felt sorry for him.

He glared up at the god of the dead. "What do you want, Hades?"

"To talk, of course." The god twisted his mouth in a cruel smile. "Didn't Nico tell you?"

"So this whole quest was a lie. Nico brought me down here to get me killed."

"Oh, no," Hades said. "I'm afraid Nico was quite sincere about wanting to help you. The boy is as honest as he is dense. I simply convinced him to take a small detour and bring you here first."

"Hades," Nico said, "you promised that Percy would not be harmed. You said if I brought him, you would tell me about my past—about my mother."

Queen Persephone sighed dramatically. "Can we please not talk about that woman in my presence?"

"I'm sorry, my dove," Hades said. "I had to promise the boy something."

The older lady harrumphed. "I warned you, daughter. This scoundrel Hades is no good. You could've married the god of doctors or the god of lawyers, but noooo. You had to eat the pomegranate."

"Mother—"

"And get stuck in the Underworld!"

"Mother, please—"

"And here it is August, and do you come home like you're supposed to? Do you ever think about your poor lonely mother?"

"DEMETER!" Hades shouted. "That is enough. You are a guest in my house."

"Oh, a house is it?" she said. "You call this dump a house? Make my daughter live in this dark, damp—"

"I told you," Hades said, grinding his teeth, "there's a war in the world above. You and Persephone are better off here with me."

"Excuse me," Percy broke in. "But if you're going to kill me, could you just get on with it?"

All three gods looked at him.

"Well, this one has an attitude," Demeter observed.

"Indeed," Hades agreed. "I'd love to kill him."

"Fa- Hades!" Nico said though it seemed like he almost called the Lord of the Dead ‘Father’. "You promised!"

"Husband, we talked about this," Persephone chided. "You can't go around incinerating every hero. Besides, he's brave. I like that."

Hades rolled his eyes. "You liked that Orpheus fellow too. Look how well that turned out. Let me kill him, just a little bit."

"Hades, you promised!" Nico said. "You said you only wanted to talk to him. You said if I brought him, you'd explain."

Hades glowered, smoothing the folds of his robes. "And so I shall. Your mother, Maria that is—what can I tell you? She was a wonderful woman." He glanced uncomfortably at Persephone. "Forgive me, my dear. I mean for a mortal, of course. Her name was Maria di Angelo. She was from Venice, but her father was a diplomat in Washington, D.C. That's where I met her. When you and Bianca were young, it was a bad time to be a child of Hades. World War II was brewing. A few of my, ah, other children were leading the losing side. I thought it best to put Bianca- and you, out of harm's way."

"That's why you hid us in the Lotus Casino?"

Hades shrugged. "You didn't age. You didn't realize time was passing. I waited for the right time to bring you out."

"But what happened to our mother? Why don't I remember her?"

"Not important," Hades snapped.

"What? Of course, it's important. And you had other children—why were we the only ones who were sent away? Why did you send me away too if I’m not your son? And who was the lawyer who got us out?"

Hades grit his teeth. "You would do well to listen more and talk less, boy. As for the lawyer . . ."

Hades snapped his fingers. On top of his throne, the Fury Alecto began to change until she was a middle-aged man in a pinstriped suit with a briefcase. She—he—looked strange crouching at Hades's shoulder.

"You!" Nico said.

The Fury cackled. "I do lawyers and teachers very well!"

Nico was trembling. "But why did you free us from the casino?"

"You know why," Hades said. "This idiot son of Poseidon cannot be allowed to be the child of the prophecy."

Percy plucked a ruby off the nearest plant and threw it at Hades. It sank harmlessly into his robe. "You should be helping Olympus!" he said. "All the other gods are fighting Typhon, and you're just sitting here—"

"Waiting things out," Hades finished. "Yes, that's correct. When's the last time Olympus ever helped me, half-blood? When's the last time a child of mine was ever welcomed as a hero? Bah! Why should I rush out and help them? I'll stay here with my forces intact."

"And when Kronos comes after you?"

"Let him try. He'll be weakened. And my stepson here, Nico—" Hades looked at him with distaste. "Well, he's not much now, I'll grant you. It would've been better if Bianca had lived. I had bigger plans for her. But give him a few more years of training. We can hold out that long, surely. Nico will be able to manipulate more than just mortals, soon he’ll have the power to whisper in the ears of Gods."

"You're crazy," Percy said. "Kronos will crush you, right after he finishes pulverizing Olympus."

Hades spread his hands. "Well, you'll get a chance to find out, half-blood. Because you'll be waiting out this war in my dungeons."

"No!" Nico said. "Hades, that wasn't our agreement. And you haven't told me everything!"

"I've told you all you need to know," Hades said. "As for our agreement, I spoke with Jackson. I did not harm him. You got your information. If you had wanted a better deal, you should've made me swear on the Styx. Now, go to your room!" He waved his hand, and Nico vanished.

"That boy needs to eat more," Demeter grumbled. "He's too skinny. Darn that Aphrodite- her children tend to end up with all kinds of eating disorders! You ought to raise him better. He needs more cereal."

___________

 

The mountain of darkness loomed above Percy. A foot the size of Yankee Stadium was about to smash him when a voice hissed, "Percy!"

He lunged out blindly. Before he was fully awake, Percy had Nico pinned to the floor of the cell with the edge of his sword at his throat.

"Want . . . to . . . rescue," he choked.

Anger woke Percy up fast. That sting in his chest was a constant reminder of Nico’s betrayal. "Oh, yeah? And why should I trust you?"

"No . . . choice?" he gagged.

Percy wished he hadn't said something logical like that. He let him go.

Nico curled into a ball and made retching sounds while his throat recovered. Finally, he got to his feet, eyeing his sword warily. His own blade was sheathed. Percy supposes if he'd wanted to kill him, he could've done it while he slept. Still, Percy didn't trust him.

"We have to get out of here," he said.

"Why?" Percy said. "Does your stepdad want to talk to me again?"

He winced. "Percy, I swear on the River Styx, I didn't know what he was planning."

"You know what Hades is like!"

"He tricked me. He promised—" Nico held up his hands. "Look . . . right now, we need to leave. I put the guards to sleep, but it won't last."

Percy wanted to strangle him again. Unfortunately, he was right. They didn't have time to argue, and he couldn't escape on his own. Nico pointed at the wall. “Reveal yourself.” He commanded. A whole section vanished, revealing a corridor.

"Come on." Nico led the way.

Percy wished he had Annabeth's invisibility hat, but as it turned out, he didn't need it. Every time they came to a skeleton guard, Nico just pointed at it and charmspoke it to sleep. They would stop moving as its glowing eyes dimmed. Unfortunately, the more Nico used his charmspeak, the more tired he seemed. They walked through a maze of corridors filled with guards. By the time they reached a kitchen staffed by skeletal cooks and servants, Percy was practically carrying Nico. He managed to put all the dead to sleep but nearly passed out himself. Percy dragged him out of the servants' entrance and into the Fields of Asphodel.

He almost felt relieved until he heard the sound of bronze gongs high in the castle.

"Alarms," Nico murmured sleepily.

"What do we do?"

He yawned then frowned like he was trying to remember. "How about . . . run?"

Running with a drowsy child of Aphrodite was more like doing a three-legged race with a life-size rag doll. Percy lugged him along, holding his sword in front of him. The spirits of the dead made way like the Celestial bronze was a blazing fire.

The sound of gongs rolled across the fields. Ahead loomed the walls of Erebos, but the longer they walked, the farther away the walls seemed. Percy was about to collapse from exhaustion when he heard a familiar "WOOOOOF!"

Mrs. O'Leary bounded out of nowhere and ran circles around them, ready to play.

"Good girl.'" Percy said. "Can you give us a ride to the Styx?"

The word Styx got her excited. She probably thought he meant sticks. She jumped a few times, chased her tail just to teach it who was boss, and then calmed down enough for Percy to push Nico onto her back. He climb aboard, and she raced toward the gates. She leaped straight over the EZ-DEATH line, sending guards sprawling and causing more alarms to blare. Cerberus barked, but he sounded more excited than angry, like: Can I play too?

Fortunately, he didn't follow them, and Mrs. O'Leary kept running. She didn't stop until they were far upriver and the fires of Erebos had disappeared in the murk.

Nico slid off Mrs. O'Leary's back and crumpled in a heap on the black sand.

Percy took out a square of ambrosia—part of the emergency god-food he always kept with him. It was a little bashed up, but Nico chewed it.

"Uh," he mumbled. "Better."

"Your powers drain you too much," Percy noted.

He nodded sleepily. "With great power . . . comes great need to take a nap. Wake me up later."

"Whoa, zombie dude." Percy caught him before he could pass out again. "We're at the river. You need to tell me what to do."

He fed him the last of my ambrosia, which was a little dangerous. The stuff can heal demigods, but it can also burn them to ashes if they eat too much. Fortunately, it seemed to do the trick. Nico shook his head a few times and struggled to his feet.

"My stepfather will be coming soon," he said. "We should hurry."

____________

In Percy’s dream, he saw Nico di Angelo alone in the gardens of Hades. He'd just dug a hole in one of Persephone's flower beds, which Percy didn't figure would make the queen very happy.

He poured a goblet of wine into the hole and began to chant. "Let the dead taste again. Let them rise and take this offering. Maria di Angelo, show yourself!"

White smoke gathered. A human figure formed, but it wasn't Nico's mother. It was a girl with dark hair, olive skin, and the silvery clothes of a Hunter.

"Bianca," Nico said. "But—"

“Don't summon our mother, Nico,” she warned. “She is the one spirit you are forbidden to see.”

"Why?" he demanded. "What's your father hiding?"

“Pain,” Bianca said. “Hatred. A curse that stretches back to the Great Prophecy.”

"What do you mean?" Nico said. "I have to know!"

“The knowledge will only hurt you. Remember what I said: holding grudges is a fatal flaw for children of Hades.”

"I know that," Nico said. "But I'm not a child of Hades- I’m not the same as I used to be, Bianca. Stop trying to protect me!"

“Brother, you don't understand—”

Nico swiped his hand through the mist, and Bianca’s image dissipated.

"Maria di Angelo," he said again. "Speak to me!"

A different image formed. It was a scene rather than a single ghost. In the mist, Percy saw Nico and Bianca as little children, playing in the lobby of an elegant hotel, chasing each other around marble columns.

A woman sat on a nearby sofa. She wore a black dress, gloves, and a black-veiled hat like a star from an old 1940s movie. She had Bianca's smile and Nico's eyes.

On a chair next to her sat a large oily man in a black pinstripe suit. With a shock, Percy realized it was Hades. He was leaning toward the woman, using his hands as he talked, like he was agitated.

"Please, my dear," he said. "You must come to the Underworld. I don't care what Persephone thinks! I can keep you safe there."

"No, my love." She spoke with an Italian accent. "Raise our children in the land of the dead? I will not do this."

"Maria, listen to me. The war in Europe has turned the other gods against me. A prophecy has been made. My children are no longer safe. Poseidon and Zeus have forced me into an agreement. None of us are to have demigod children ever again."

"But you already have Bianca. Surely—"

"No! The prophecy warns of a child who turns sixteen. Zeus has decreed that the children I currently have must be turned over to Camp Half-Blood for proper training, but I know what he means. At best they'll be watched, imprisoned, turned against their father. Even more likely, he will not take a chance. He won't allow my demigod children to reach sixteen. He'll find a way to destroy them, and I won't risk that!"

"Certamente," Maria said. "We will stay together. Zeus is un imbecile."

Percy couldn't help admiring her courage, but Hades glanced nervously at the ceiling. "Maria, please. I told you, Zeus gave me a deadline of last week to turn over Bianca. His wrath will be horrible, and I cannot hide you forever. As long as you are with the children, you are in danger too."

Maria smiled, and again it was creepy how much she looked like her daughter. "You are a god, my love. You will protect us. But I will not take Nico and Bianca to the Underworld."

Hades wrung his hands. "Then, there is another option. I know a place in the desert where time stands still. I could send the children there, just for a while, for their own safety, and we could be together. I will build you a golden palace by the Styx."

Maria di Angelo laughed gently. "You are a kind man, my love. A generous man. The other gods should see you as I do, and they would not fear you so. But Nico and Bianca need their mother. Have you spoken to Aphrodite? Maybe she could help convince the gods. Besides, they are only children. The gods wouldn't really hurt them."

"You don't know my family," Hades said darkly. “And Aprhdodite is a fool, she does not care for Nico. The only thing she ever thinks about is the way she looks.” He sneered. "Please, Maria, I can't lose you."

She touched his lips with her fingers. "You will not lose me. Wait for me while I get my purse. Watch the children."

She kissed the lord of the dead and rose from the sofa. Hades watched her walk upstairs as if her every step away caused him pain.

A moment later, he tensed. The children stopped playing as if they sensed something too.

"No!" Hades said. But even his godly powers were too slow. He only had time to erect a wall of black energy around the children before the hotel exploded.

The force was so violent, the entire mist image dissolved.

When it came into focus again, Percy saw Hades kneeling in the ruins, holding the broken form of Maria di Angelo. Fires still burned all around him. Lightning flashed across the sky, and thunder rumbled.

Little Nico and Bianca stared at their mother uncomprehendingly. The Fury Alecto appeared behind them, hissing and flapping her leathery wings. The children didn't seem to notice her.

"Zeus!" Hades shook his fist at the sky. "I will crush you for this! I will bring her back!"

"My lord, you cannot," Alecto warned. "You of all immortals must respect the laws of death."

Hades glowed with rage. Percy thought he would show his true form and vaporize his own children, but at the last moment, he seemed to regain control.

"Take them," he told Alecto, choking back a sob. "Wash their memories clean in the Lethe and bring them to the Lotus Hotel. Zeus will not harm them there."

"As you wish, my lord," Alecto said. "And the woman's body?

"Take her as well," he said bitterly. "Give her the ancient rites."

Alecto, the children, and Maria's body dissolved into shadows, leaving Hades alone in the ruins.

"I warned you," a new voice said.

Hades turned. A girl in a multicolored dress stood by the smoldering remains of the sofa. She had short black hair and sad eyes. She was no more than twelve. Percy didn't know her, but she looked strangely familiar.

"You dare come here?" Hades growled. "I should blast you to dust!"

"You cannot," the girl said. "The power of Delphi protects me."

With a chill, Percy realized he was looking at the Oracle of Delphi, back when she was alive and young. Somehow, seeing her like this was even spookier than seeing her as a mummy.

"You've killed the woman I loved!" Hades roared. "Your prophecy brought us to this.'"
He loomed over the girl, but she didn't flinch.

"Zeus ordained the explosion to destroy your daughter," she said, "because you defied his will. I had nothing to do with it. And I did warn you to hide her sooner."

"I couldn't! Maria would not let me! Besides, Bianca was innocent."

"Nevertheless, she is your child, which makes her dangerous. Even if you put her away in the Lotus Hotel, you only delay the problem. Bianca will never be able to rejoin the world lest she turns sixteen."

"Because of your so-called Great Prophecy. And you have forced me into an oath to have no other children. You have left me with nothing!"

"I foresee the future," the girl said. "I cannot change it."

Black fire lit the god's eyes, and Percy knew something bad was coming. He wanted to yell at the girl to hide or run.

"Then, Oracle, hear the words of Hades," he growled. "Perhaps I cannot bring back Maria. Nor can I bring yon an early death. But your soul is still mortal, and I can curse you."

The girl's eyes widened. "You would not—"

"I swear," Hades said, "as long as my children remain outcasts, as long as I labor under the curse of your Great Prophecy, the Oracle of Delphi will never have another mortal host. You will never rest in peace. No other will take your place. Your body will wither and die, and still, the Oracle's spirit will be locked inside you. You will speak your bitter prophecies until you crumble to nothing. The Oracle will die with you!"

The girl screamed, and the misty image was blasted to shreds. Nico fell to his knees in Persephone's garden, his face white with shock. Standing in front of him was the real Hades, towering in his black robes and scowling down at his son.

"And just what," he asked Nico, "do you think you're doing?"

A black explosion-filled Percy’s dreams.

________

In Percy’s dreams, he was back in Hades's garden. The lord of the dead paced up and down, holding his ears while Nico followed him, waving his arms. Percy wondered if Nico’s charmspeak worked on Hades.

"You have to!" Nico insisted.

Demeter and Persephone sat behind them at the breakfast table. Both of the goddesses looked bored. Demeter poured shredded wheat into four huge bowls. Persephone was magically changing the flower arrangement on the table, turning the blossoms from red to yellow to polka-dotted.

"I don't have to do anything!" Hades’s eyes blazed. "I'm a god!"

"F-Father," Nico forced out the word, "if Olympus falls, your own palace's safety doesn't matter. You'll fade too."

"I am not an Olympian!" he growled. "My family has made that quite clear."

"You are,'' Nico said. "Whether you like it or not."

"Aphrodite mocks you, she doesn’t bother to even care for you!” He sneered, “You saw what they did to your mother," Hades said. "Zeus killed her. And you would have me help them? They deserve what they get!"

Persephone sighed. She walked her fingers across the table, absently turning the silverware into roses. "Could we please not talk about that woman?"

"You know what would help this boy?" Demeter mused. "Farming."

Persephone rolled her eyes. "Mother—"

"Six months behind a plow. Excellent character building."

Nico stepped in front of his stepfather, forcing Hades to face him. "My mother understood about family. That's why she didn't want to leave us. You can't just abandon your family because they did something horrible. You've done horrible things to them too."

"Maria died!" Hades reminded him.

"You can't just cut yourself off from the other gods!"

"I've done very well at it for thousands of years."

"And has that made you feel any better?" Nico demanded. "Has that curse on the Oracle helped you at all? Holding grudges is a fatal flaw. Bianca warned me about that, and she was right."

"For demigods! I am immortal, all-powerful! I would not help the other gods if they begged me, if Percy Jackson himself pleaded—"

"You're just as much of an outcast as I am!" Nico yelled. "Stop being angry about it and do something helpful for once. That's the only way they'll respect you!"

Hades's palm filled with black fire.

"Go ahead," Nico said. "Blast me. That's just what the other gods would expect from you. Prove them right." Percy wondered if Nico would use his heartstring trick to get the lord of the dead to spare him because right now it wasn’t looking good for the son of Aphrodite.

"Yes, please," Demeter complained. "Shut him up."

Persephone sighed. "Oh, I don't know. I would rather fight in the war than eat another bowl of cereal. This is boring."

Hades roared in anger. His fireball hit a silver tree right next to Nico, melting it into a pool of liquid metal.

________

Soon there was a free aisle down the center of Fifth Avenue. Standing at the end of the block was Percy’s giant dog, and a small figure in pink and black armor- roses embellished the outfit here and there.

"Nico?" Percy called.

"ROWWF!" Mrs. O'Leary bounded toward him, ignoring the growling monsters on either side. Nico strode forward. The enemy army fell back before him as he came through, walking as if he owned the place. It gave Percy a familiar feeling that reminded him of the Goddess of love.

Through the faceguard of his skull-shaped helmet, he smiled. "Got your message. Is it too late to join the party?"

"Son of Aphrodite." Kronos spit on the ground. "Do you love death so much you wish to experience it?"

"Your death," Nico said, "would be great for me."

"I'm immortal, you fool! I have escaped Tartarus. You have no business here, and no chance to live."

Nico drew his sword—three feet of wicked sharp Stygian iron, black as a nightmare. "I don't agree."

“Rise, warriors!” Nico charmspoke.

The ground rumbled. Cracks appeared in the road, the sidewalks, the sides of the buildings. Skeletal hands grasped the air as the dead clawed their way into the world of the living. There were thousands of them, and as they emerged, the Titan's monsters got jumpy and started to back up.

"HOLD YOUR GROUND!" Kronos demanded. "The dead are no match for us."

The sky turned dark and cold. Shadows thickened. A harsh war horn sounded, and as the dead soldiers formed up ranks with their guns and swords and spears, an enormous chariot roared down Fifth Avenue. It came to a stop next to Nico. The horses were living shadows, fashioned from the darkness. The chariot was inlaid with obsidian and gold, decorated with scenes of painful death. Holding the reins was Hades himself, Lord of the Dead, with Demeter and Persephone riding behind him.

Hades wore black armor and a cloak the color of fresh blood. On top of his pale head was the helm of darkness: a crown that radiated pure terror. It changed shape as Percy watched—from a dragon's head to a circle of black flames to a wreath of human bones. But that wasn't the scary part. The helm reached into his mind and ignited his worst nightmares, his most secret fears. Percy wanted to crawl into a hole and hide, and he could tell the enemy army felt the same way. Only Kronos's power and authority kept his ranks from fleeing.

Hades smiled coldly. "Hello, Father. You're looking . . . young."

"Hades," Kronos growled. "I hope you and the ladies have come to pledge your allegiance."

"I'm afraid not." Hades sighed. "My son here convinced me that perhaps I should prioritize my list of enemies." He glanced at Percy with distaste. "As much as I dislike certain upstart demigods, it would not do for Olympus to fall. I would miss bickering with my siblings. And if there is one thing we agree on—it is that you were a TERRIBLE father."

"True," muttered Demeter. "No appreciation of agriculture."

"Mother!" Persephone complained.

Hades drew his sword, a double-edged Stygian blade etched with silver. "Now fight me! For today the House of Hades will be called the saviors of Olympus."

_______
(BONUS SCENE)

Zeus had taken his throne. He glared across the room at Poseidon while all the other gods filed in and took their seats. Even Hades was present, sitting on a simple stone guest chair at the foot of the hearth. Nico sat cross-legged on the ground at his stepdad's feet.

He looked like a child. His hair was wild- most likely helmet hair- he had cuts and dirt on his face but he smiled. In his eyes, there was a bit of giddiness that reminded Percy of younger Nico, the one who bounced around and rambled on about mythomagic.

Nico had glanced over at Aphrodite who perked at the attention. She blew a kiss at him and in a flash, Nico’s hair was combed and styled, and his face was cleaned and healed of cuts. The bags that were once growing under his eyes disappeared and his pale skin began to slowly regain its color.

Hades scowled at the goddess as Nico admired his complexion. Aphrodite sent him a nasty look and for a second they were locked in a heated staring contest.

"Well, Poseidon?" Zeus grumped. "Are you too proud to join us in council, my brother?"

Percy thought Poseidon was going to get mad, but he just looked at his son and winked. "I would be honored, Lord Zeus."

Percy guessed miracles do happen. Poseidon strode over to his fishing seat, and the Olympian Council convened.

While Zeus was talking—some long speech about the bravery of the gods, etc.—Annabeth walked in and stood next to Percy. She looked good for someone who'd recently passed out.

"Miss much?" she whispered.

"Nobody's planning to kill us, so far," he whispered back.

"First time today."

Percy cracked up, but Grover nudged him because Hera was giving them a dirty look.

"As for my brothers," Zeus said, "we are thankful"—he cleared his throat like the words were hard to get out—"erm, thankful for the aid of Hades."

The lord of the dead nodded. He had a smug look on his face, but Percy figured he'd earned the right. He patted his stepson, Nico, on the shoulders, and Nico looked happier than Percy had ever seen him. He beamed up at Hades, his smile so blinding that most of the Olympians turned to stare.

Aphrodite looked a little bitter at their interaction.

For a second Percy thought she was going to get up and pick a fight with the lord of the dead when Zeus continued…..

Notes:

Some extra stuff/background info

-Hades wanted to hide Nico in the casino with Bianca because he cared about Nico too and was afraid Zeus wouldn't care to spare him either.
- Hades began to reach out to Nico at first because his presence was like having Bianca and Maria around again considering Nico looks like both of them
- having Nico around was kind of a mistake too since Hades began to grow sadder and pained the more he looked at Nico (all leading up to his distaste for the boy)
- Hades had decided to use Nico against the Olympians. He was going to train him and help him get stronger so that he could charmspeak some respect out of the gods.
- originally he wanted Bianca to be the child of the prophecy so when she died he came up with his plan to use Nico's abilities
- Hades made Nico a room because deep down he cares about Nico
- Aphrodite doesn't reach out to Nico as much but when she does it's to dress him up and tease him or criticize his lack of self-care habits
- Persephone wasn't sure what to make of Nico at first but she warms up to him
- Aphrodite taught Nico how to fly around on a pink cloud but he's still getting the hang of it
- Nico found out about shadow travel after talking with Hades and the god shadow traveled them to his palace
- Nico was hoping that being the child of Aphrodite he could woo Percy but was disappointed when he announced he and Annabeth were dating
- Percy proceeded into crushing Nico's heart by patting him on the back and saying he cared about Nico like he would a younger sibling

Notes:

Hope you like it. I was too lazy to rewrite every single thing from the books so I copied most of it and changed the POV's.

I also have fanart for this AU I already made on my new Tumblr @Saraiisstanky

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 1 of Son of Aphrodite Nico Di Angelo AU