&&theirstodoand D I E -[Annabeth&Percy]-

[gunbun]

There had been a certain amount of solace in knowing what being truly alone meant. Many people tried to pity themselves, and said that they'd been 'alone all their life'. The truth was, not many people actually knew the feeling. The bitter hollowness; the crushing emptiness that haunted every thought. The fore-mentioned solace came from the fact that now he knew, as he had for the last few years, what being utterly and completely alone meant. It wasn't something that you could understand, nor was it something you could even describe accurately... better to try describing what being in water felt like, and having the listener get a thorough understanding of the experience; It just didn't happen.

Nico blinked softly, his cheeks wet, and eyes filled with still more tears that had yet to be relinquished. Sad, really... his secluding himself and crying like a child. Unbelievable, absolutely unbelievable. Sighing, the son of Hades scrubbed at his face, removing all traces of the tears expect the slight redness of his eyes and nose. Of course, his alabaster skin only made the soft colour all the more vibrant. There was nothing to cry about, really.. only his entire damned existence. In retrospect, his life hadn't been as bad as he liked to think, because, obviously how bad someone-or-other's life was was all a matter of perspective.

There were, of course, a myriad of things that Nico could find enough gumption to complain about. His total lack of parents, for one. All he had left was his father, Hades, who really despised him. What good was it to take comfort in the possessing of a father that thought you were worthless? No, what constantly brought the tears to Nico's eyes was the thought of Bianca.

Growing up without a mother, and only his elder sister to depend on, and then being forced to let go of her so abruptly to the Hunters had wounded the little boy very deeply. The hatred that used to be split between Percy and Artemis was now solely reserved for Artemis. Percy had paid his dues, and Bianca had absolved him of blame.. as well as Artemis, but that was one person he'd never forgive. Goddess or not. Despite any evidence to the contrary, Nico was certain that Zoe, or whatever her name had been, had paid for her sins by dying on the god-forsaken Californian mountain.. but Artemis had escaped unscathed.

Sighing again, the boy looked at the small statuette of Hades in his hand, grimacing at it's horrible and acute perfection. This wasn't a mere mythomagic idol, it was forged by the gods. The stupid doll had, conceivably, been the reason that Bianca had died. She'd, apparently, picked this thing up to give to him, and nearly killed all the people on the quest with it.. then sacrificed herself to save them.

Disgusting, but noble, eh?

Nico missed his sister terribly, even though he got to sneak home and conjure up his spirit every now and again. The punishment for doing so was always severe, and Bianca got irritated with him when he disturbed her. But how could she know what it was like? She didn't know how lonely it was, sharing a macabre cabin with a strange girl that didn't deserve the rank given to her. An arrogant thought, but true in Nico's mind. She had never even known that Hades was their father. Not that that really had any importance. She probably would've been revolted at the idea. Being a demi-god of Hades descent wasn't all that bad. Most other demi-gods only had powers that focused on one particular thing, or a few things... Like Percy, for example. His skills pretty much ended with water and horses.

Nico, on the other hand, was able to dabble in all sorts of things, necromancy being such a wider range of a topic. Obviously, being so pale and eerie looking had it's downsides as well. Say good-bye to ever finding what Percy and Annabeth had. Gag. The boy hadn't ever thought of trying to get a girlfriend, but it would probably have to be a girl that didn't mind going out with a son of Hades. That was like trying to look for a needle in a collaboration of a dozen haystacks. Whatever. It wasn't like he was interested in anyone at the moment. Maybe he'd meet some pretty girl and fall in love and blahblahblah...

Looking around the dark interior of his cabin, the son of Hades smiled coldly, eying the richness of his surroundings. Hades wasn't only the God of the Dead. He was also the patron God of Wealth... which came in handy. Nico stood slowly, stretching, and placed the small figurine of his father on his nightstand, before laying on his bed, hands peaceably resting on his chest, and looked up at the ceiling. The soft silk of his bed-sheets felt nice. Even though it was a beautiful day outside.. Nico just didn't feel like interacting with anyone right now. ~

[/font][/center]

[Annabeth Chase]

It was such a lovely day. Then again, when was it not a nice day at Camp Half-Blood? The place was sort of prone to good weather. Annabeth looked up as a tiny fluffy white cloud skirted the camp borders, unable to come within. It was nice to have blue skies often and all, but one had to admit, the constant sunshine sometimes made practicing a little… well, hot. She adjusted her ponytail so it was a little higher in hopes of getting as much hair off her neck as possible, though that always seemed to be a losing battle. Oh well, didn’t keep her from trying. She glanced into one of the cabins as she passed. It was one of the cabins most other campers seemed to try and avoid, though she personally had nothing against those who inhabited it (their patron was a different matter): Hades Cabin.

Annabeth would have kept on going if something unusual - or perhaps not so unusual all things considered - caught her eye. Unlike so many other campers, who were out practicing or just enjoying the weather it seemed, there was someone laying down in this cabin. And as there were only two people in this cabin, and this one certainly didn’t look female, she could pretty well guess who it was.

She’d never really gotten to know Nico, though there were a number of occasions she’d wished she had… then again, there were also a number of occasions she’d wished she’d punched him or something, but that was besides the point. She wasn’t holding a grudge against him now. And this seemed the perfect opportunity maybe just to spend some time getting to know him. Well, first see if he was doing alright, just laying in there by himself.

She climbed the stairs and stopped at the door, knocking on the frame out of courtesy. “Nico? You alright?” She figured one of three things might happen: he would ignore her, he would get angry, or he might actually be friendly. She hoped it would be the latter.


((OOC: Wow, putting me to shame, Nico. I feel like a total bum now, my post is so short comparatively, lol))

[Ψ ADMIN SUSHI Ψ]

Per usual Percy was in search of Annabeth. With his recent dreams Percy feared letting her out of his sight. The last thing he needed or wanted was for Annabeth to get hurt, or worse killed. Percy knew quite well that they were all perfectly safe inside Camp Half-Blood, but something in Percy’s gut told him to doubt that safety. His recent paranoia had set him into a frenzy. Normally he wasn’t so paranoid like this and had things well under control—well, under control by Percy standards. The point of the matter was, Percy was a nervous wreck and the constant dreams weren’t helping any.

Walking back from the archery fields Percy decided to head back to his cabin for a quick change of cloths. He, after all, smelled a slightly less ripe than usual. He jogged back to good old Cabin # 3. His legs leapt the few steps in a few bounds before entering a familiar form caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. A few cabins down Percy saw a familiar light brunette head approach a cabin not her own. Recognizing it as Annabeth, Percy spun on his heels and went after her. A smile stuck on his face.

Approaching the cabin Annabeth had just entered Percy’s brow furrowed. It was Hade’s cabin. His lips pursed slightly but the initial smile did not fail. He walked up the steps and stood behind Annabeth. Percy craned his neck to see into the cabin spotting Nico. The smile faded slightly seeing Nico lying on the bed. He glanced to Annabeth and put his hands on her hips to steady himself as he tried to tower over her in the door frame.

“Hey guys. Nico, something up man?” Percy’s eyes narrowed in on the tiny figurine in the boy’s hand. Percy swallowed hard getting rid of the sudden lump that grew in his throat. His thoughts went back to the origin of that small Hades figure. His thoughts went to Bianca and the day she--. Percy blinked and the smile went away all together knowing what was probably on the son of death’s mind.

[gunbun]

Speak of the goddamn devil, right? The soft sound of pittering feet up the morbid steps of his cabin made Nico tense, already irritated with whoever was out there on his porch. The total lack of door on that wall was interesting. There were three options as to whom had removed his slab of obsidian: Celeste, trying to air the place out; some mischevious campers, looking to annoy him with a stupid prank; or someone from the village staff, trying to coax him outside.

If the lattermost option was, indeed, their motive... Pff, nice try. Nico'd already killed two pigeons and a small mouse that had wandered in for shade and coolness. Surprisingly, though not to Nico, the room was frigid; an icebox. The di Angelo boy had never really wondered about why his room was always freezing, but now that the though came to mind, maybe it was some kind of indicator of his Father's mood? There were times when his father had reason to be irked, and the room would get a little stuffy. Then again, Nico had been angry at the same time. Maybe it was his mood? An arrogant smile curved the pale lips of the louging boy.

"Nico?" The girl at the entrance to his hovel, though she gave a feeble taptap at his door, still sounded as if she wasn't sure of his presence in the room. Strange little girl, wasn't she? Not in any particular mood to give an inclination, seeing as how Annabeth, as obviously she was, continued on with another question. "You alright?

[/i] Ooh, that was a marvelous question, eh? How best to answer such a revolting query... that was the real question.

Well, he could always ignore her. That was an option for everything. Sometimes, closing your eyes and pretending that it's all just a bad dream is what gets one through life unscathed. Nico'd employed this particular tactic many times... the most memorable in his life were, one, when he'd hidden behind that tree with Grover and Bianca. He could nearly remember the feel of terrified tears sliding down his baby-cheeks, griping tight to his sisters waist. And, two, his first trip down the Styx to see his father.

The second method of answering the girl annoingly hovering in his doorway, much like the pigeons had done, would be to just get angry. Of course... that might not be the best course of action. Duh. Then he'd get in all sorts of trouble for scaring her... and maybe other people. And then they'd force him to go talk to his dad about it, not like he'd care, and write some stupid apology speech or something. Not ruddy likely. There was no way that Nico would kow-tow to Chiron and Dioynsus... at least not that far.

And, the final option, as far as he could see, was to actually talk with Annabeth. Not exactly about his problems in life and everything he'd been stewing over in the past few weeks --had it really been so long?-- in here. True, there were a load of people probably breathing a sigh of relief that they only had to deal with one of Hades's offspring roaming around the grounds. Nico hadn't set foot outside his door in daylight since.. about nine days ago.

" Yes, I'm here. "[/color] Psh, not exactly an honest answer.. but what the hell. It wasn't like he was in the most divulgatory mood at the moment. Wait.. what was he going to divulge right there even? The blank face broke out in a soft chuckle.. an eerie sound that echoed his Father's laugh. Not exactly on the caliber that Hades commanded, but it was a cruel, chilling laugh all the same. " I'm always here, aren't I? "[/color] Of course Nico's response was rapid-fire, he spoke immediately after Annabeth's first question. Amazing that so much of his thought process was crammed into the span of a few nanoseconds.

Her second question, as previously contemplated was a little harder to answer and still be honest. It wasn't good for his image if he were to lie to Annabeth, or anyone for that matter. The last thing he wanted to endure was Megaera's "I-so-totally-told-you-so" lecture. " Well, not sure how you mean, "[/color] he hedged, trying not to sit up and look at her. There was a big chance that she couldn't even see him, what with the pitch-black shadows that were his cloak. Very useful, they were; the shadows made it easy to travel. Although, judging by the fact that she'd even spoke to him.. there must be some sort of way they could see him. Not a big deal, really...

Nico flinched slightly as another pair, slightly heavier, footsteps marched up the steps and onto the tiny porch that Annabeth was standing on. If any more people decided to come and delight him with the little visit that they had neglected to pay all throughout the last two weeks, he might as well just put a sign over the doorway stating "NICO LOVES VISITS. COME AND BOTHER HIM.", and then he'd have the pleasure of these little people all the time! How much fun.

There was a few moments of silence, during which, Nico raised an eyebrow and half glanced at the figures in the doorway. Oho! It was Percy. Sighing groggily and heaving his emaciated-looking body off the bed, the boy tugged at his long-sleeve shirt, obviously not perturbed by the heat from outside, and put his hands in his pockets.. rocking uneasily on his feet for half a second before sighing again, this time with defeat, and said, " You guys can, like, come in or something. "[/color] True, Nico probably wasn't the master of hospitality. But, then again, he could be gracious when he felt the need. This particular situation just didn't merit his most auspicious of manners.[/font][/size][/center]

[Annabeth Chase]

Annabeth didn’t pretend to understand Nico, or most boys in general, at all, but Nico like a different species entirely, and there were no books or specialists or anything out there to help one learn how to effectively communicate with him. Thus, she got the idea right off the bat that she was doing a miserable job at it. “Sorry, Nico. Thought maybe you could use some company for a change, and… you know, we never really got the chance to get to know one another all that well. Didn’t mean to disturb you though, if you were busy…” Or PMS’ing, guy-style, she added to herself. Well, she was starting to see why he likely didn’t have many friends. Sad really, but that’s how he seemed to want it. But if he was always so aloof and stubborn… And that laugh, so like his father’s, was a bit creepy too, though that part certainly wasn’t his fault. His words bothered her though, like he was seriously trying to hide a ton. Not that he didn’t have stuff to hide; they all did, to be honest, but still, locking oneself away wasn’t the best method. “I’m just worried about you. You never leave your cabin, this has to be the first time I’ve heard your voice even for ages. What’s on your mind? Not meaning to pry, of course. I just want to help.”

It was about then that she heard the footsteps too and hardly a minute later a very familiar face was looking over her shoulder. She had to laugh slightly, both because it was, as usual, great to see him, and because he had such a funny look on his face: like he was straining slightly, his brows furrowed, lips pursed, but still his usual goofy smile. It was a wonder really that Annabeth didn’t burst out laughing. It if weren’t for the subzero room and seriously depressed-seeming boy in front of them she probably would have. At the same time as his smile faded, she found hers did too, though for a vastly different reason: namely that she was suddenly being used as a means of balancing, which threw her own balance a little off. She wrapped her arms around his, effectively pinning them to her sides, which did help.

She stopped short when Nico actually stood. That in itself was an unusual and unexpected sight, but even more so was how thin he was. Sure, he’d always been on the unnaturally thin and sickly pale side, but this was getting ridiculous. Well, she supposed leaving his cabin as much as he did - that is to say, never that she’d seen - didn’t make for a good diet. He seemed like he wanted absolutely anything but for her and Percy - well, maybe not Percy so much, as those two got a long a lot better than she and Nico did - to simply not be here at all right now. Yet, surprising, he invited them in. She felt a little bad, like she was imposing or something. “Oh, um…” She hoped Nico didn’t take it the wrong way. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to be around him, just that he certainly didn’t make it look like the feeling was mutual. Letting go of Percy’s arms, she glanced at him with an expression that obviously said she was leaving that decision up to him.

[Ψ ADMIN SUSHI Ψ]

Percy looked from Annabeth to Nico. He hadn’t seen the kid in a while, not since he got back to camp. Thinking back, Percy didn’t recall seeing Nico at the Hades table with the daughter of hades. He wondered if Nico felt any better about not being so alone in the cabin, but Percy was smart enough not to ask. He never really wanted to bring the topic up always afraid Bianca would get brought into the conversation some how. When Annabeth’s hands fell over Percy’s his attention shot to her. He smiled again at her touch. Her arms wrapped around his and the smile only grew further. His cheeks turned a slight shade of pink knowing that Nico was watching. He glanced back to Nico the smile failing to stay on his face.

As Nico got up Percy couldn’t help but flinch at the sight of Nico’s small frame. He looked sick, more so than usual. The invitation inside was something Percy would have went without regardless. Had he not been welcomed inside Percy would have pushed past Annabeth to talk with Nico anyway. He knew something was bothering the kid otherwise he would have seen his face around camp. Percy’s eye met Annabeth’s and he took her hand guiding her inside the cabin. Looking around, Percy couldn’t help but be reminded of the Underworld. It was uncomfortable and something Percy did not enjoy in the slightest.

“Thanks.” Percy said. He let go of Annabeth’s hand and folded his arms across his chest. He stood there for a minute his focus on the cabin’s interior. It was rather distracting. Flashbacks of his time spent in the various parts of the Underworld filled Percy’s mind. He blinked and they vanished from his mind. He drew in a breath and sighed.

“So what’s the deal? You’ve been spending a lot of time hiding out in here. Haven’t even seen you since I got back to Camp. Is anything wrong, you look—“ Percy paused. “Great.” Deciding upon not being flat out truthful with Nico about his physical health, Percy glanced over to Annabeth hoping she would chime in any moment.

[gunbun]

As Annabeth looked up at Percy, as if waiting for either permission or him to make the decision, Nico laughed again. A hollow and mirthless sound, too much like his father's laugh. It was actually beginning to get annoying. Like teenage boys whose voices were finally beginning to deepen, and they had to endure the months of squeaking in strange places. There were days when Nico laughed at something, and the hearty sound of his own laughter was all he heard... and then there were the days like today, when Hades used him as a megaphone.

Nico briefly pondered on the fact that Annabeth was reluctant to step into his cabin. Understandable, of course. Most people would be uncomfortable with walking into a room of solid obsidian that had no light-source readily available, and no escape but the one door. Maybe Annabeth thought that the di Angelo boy was planning to kill them? Not exactly the most polite thing to think about your host, but perhaps an astute observation, were that even the case.

There was that blatant look of uneasiness and scrutiny, present in both Annabeth and Percy's eyes, that let Nico know what they were thinking of. Obviously his skinny little corpse. The both of them probably thought that he was starving himself from depression or something. That would easily account for their spontaneous visit, now wouldn't it? What did they know, anyway? Neither of them knew what he was dealing with, as cliche as that sounded. Let them make their judgments; it was he, the Prince of the Dead, that would make the final judgments.

Thinking back on Annabeth's little monologue, the one that Percy's appearance had cut short, Nico realized a small amount of sincerity in her offer to help him. But it was empty. Obviously so. The boy knew the instant he even thought about asking her help, she'd rescind the offer. She had no kind feelings for him, and probably would be disgusted by his pleas for help... Not that he'd ask her anyway. Annabeth Chase had no place in his business, there was nothing that she could do for him, sadly enough. Nico was on his own again. How surprising.

Attention was re-directed at Percy as the slight colouring of his cheeks was brought into focus. Of course, it wasn't like Percy's blush had made him look over, but it was pretty prominent. The son of Hades wondered for a moment if he were actually capable of blushing anymore. Nico laughed again, that same half-Hades laugh.

The chuckles were stilled as the son of Poseidon boisterously said his thanks, then strolled from the doorway and deeper into the coolness of Nico's room. ' A bold move, ' he mentally observed with a cold smile, then looked over at Annabeth for a moment, waiting for her to do the same. It was always interesting to see the reactions of different campers to this cabin. Percy had the least reaction, which was strange, seeing as how he was probably one of the only campers that had actually gone to Hades, and returned to tell about it. This room should've been too much of a bad memory for him. The mettle involved made Nico feel a little better.

At least he had a friend in Percy Jackson.

Lids closed over onyx eyes for a moment as the boy blinked, then focused on Percy, listening with a passive smile. Ah, concern was the game he and Annabeth were playing, was it? Both of them had expressed measurable concern for his welfare. A strange coincidence that the both of them, as conspicuously important camp members as they were, decided to call on him with pleas for information and stories of concern.

Despite his overwhelming desire to ask the pair of them what, exactly, Chiron had promised them in return for their double-agent services, Nico decided to play along for the time being. It wasn't as though he was particularly angry at them for trying to get into his confidences through these lies -- maybe only half-lies, the both of them actually looked somewhat distressed at his physical and emotional state --, it was nice to feel that someone, even if strictly superficially, cared about him.

" There is no deal, " the son of Hades lied smoothly, shrugging, " I just don't like being out there when everyone else is, you know? Do you think I enjoy being looked at as if I'm a carrying the Plague? "

[/color] Honestly! Who wanted to invite that kind of calumny and consternation, just so they could walk around in the sunlight? Nico didn't belong out there with those people.

At Percy's next sentence, as serious and kind as he had been trying to be, the boy couldn't contain his laughter. For a moment, it was even his old laugh, the one that still belonged to a little kid. Of course, after the first gulp of air, the sound shifted entirely. The light-hearted laugh melted away, leaving the sound of his former Hades-like chuckle; only now, it was a full-throated Lord of the Dead laugh. It was a cruel and terror-inspiring sound, filled with malice, evil, and a cold sense of mirth. Even after Nico stopped, the laugh echoed around the room, gathering in the shadows, and chuckling darkly to itself, like some kind of demon.

Nico looked down at his hands, clenched in rage before he even felt the emotion coursing through him... and when the wall of fury finally did register in the boy's mind, it was an anger like he'd never felt before. A soundless bellow escaped his lips as he wheeled around, throwing his fist into the thick mirror that hung on the wall beside his bed. The ghastly thing had been a belated birthday present, from Alecto, who said that it was from his father. Nico used it to talk with his Father whenever he needed to relay important information to him... and now, as he felt the contact of the frigid stygian ice on his hand, and the thick gushing of blood from the cuts that sprouted there like weeds, and heard the rich sound of ice being broken, Nico didn't worry about how much trouble he'd get into. It felt good, but the rage was still in him, controlling him.

" Bastard! "[/color] he yelled, the rage now in possession of his tongue as well, " Why can't you just let me be normal? I don't want to be you! I won't be what you are! You can't make me! "[/color]

The fire inside him was like a tangible thing, it made every part of him burn with it.. feel infused with the power that was his right, as son of Hades... but he didn't want that! He wanted to be normal, like Percy, and have a chance at friends, and have a mother to look after him when he needed to be comforted. Nico didn't want to be the son of one of the most hated and feared Gods in the history of the World. Nobody wanted to be labeled that way.

Looking around for something else to destroy, and ignoring the searing pain in his hands, Nico instantly snatched up miscellaneous items from his nightstand, breaking them, until the last thing on the surface was now in his hand. The flash of bronze caught his eye, and the son of Hades stopped and looked at it. Bianca's figurine. The lump that rose in this throat choked him until Nico, finally feeling the anger and hatred leave him, sat down on his bed. The boy's head fell into his hands, and he wept. [/center][/font][/size]

[Annabeth Chase]

Annabeth followed Percy inside, glancing around at the eerily reminiscent surroundings. Percy wasn’t the only one who’d been to the Underworld before, and Annabeth had no desire to go back either. She let go of Percy’s hand against her desire to keep hold of it in a place that looked so much like death, and turned her attention back to Nico. He really did look sick, poor guy. Though staying in here all the time, she’d be more concerned if he was bright and cheery. His laugh, though, was enough to send chills down her spine. Hades was not her favorite god to deal with, as she had the misfortune of meeting him on several occasions (both of which were before she’d even known Nico existed; one of which was before she even knew Percy existed). The fact that this was almost like listening to a sound recording of the God of the Dead was really, really creepy. But it was Nico, she reminded herself. He was a friend, and certainly not someone to be feared.

And then Percy had to go run his mouth. Annabeth rolled her eyes and shoved him slightly. She was about to speak up and protest that perhaps ‘great’ wasn’t the best word for it and that he looked seriously sick when Nico burst out laughing. Like real honest-to-goodness laughing. Not the sounds-like-Hades laughter, but the real, sounds-like-a-normal-kid laughter. She had to smile. Okay, so maybe Percy’s air headedness came in handy some times.

But, unfortunately, it didn’t last nearly long enough. The Hades-laugh was back, and this time it seemed even Nico was displeased with that. Annabeth took a step back as he punched a glossy black mirror on the wall, letting out a gasp. She’d known something was wrong from the start and all, but she would never have guessed it was this bad. “Nico…” she said a little tentatively - it wasn’t the easiest thing in the world to stand up to a rampaging rebellious teenager, as she knew a little too well from one of the new Athena campers who was having a lot of adjustment issues; times like that made being a counselor very interesting indeed.

Then out of the blue he picked up a figurine, dropped himself on his bed and started seriously crying. Annabeth didn’t even think. She shoved past Percy, her unease at Nico’s sudden outburst completely gone now, and unceremoniously took a seat next to Nico on his bed. Without losing a beat, she wrapped her arms around Nico in a hug, pulling him close to her despite the fact that he might very well kick her butt - he’d never seemed the overly friendly type, so this was probably seriously pushing it. She wasn’t thinking about that now though. He - someone she considered a friend - was upset. End of story. No other reason needed. “Hey, hey… Nico, it’s alright… we’re here for you…”

She glanced at Percy. “Don’t just stand there! He needs ambrosia, or nectar.” She turned her full attention back to Nico. “Don’t worry… Nico, it’s okay…I promise…”

[Ψ ADMIN SUSHI Ψ]

Percy shuffled his feet and glanced over at Annabeth out of the corner of his eye. He shrugged at her after receiving the shove. As if saying ‘what’d I’d say?’ His clueless ness was cut short when Nico began laughing. It sent a shiver down Percy’s spine and he couldn’t be more reminded of Hades. Not a fond memory Percy had of any of the Gods. He clenched his jaw and tried not to show discomfort on his face. After the laughter stop Percy let out a nervous bit of laughter to follow it up, forcing a half smile.

He zoned out for a moment contemplating what he should say next, when he glanced up again Percy saw Nico’s hand bleeding. His mouth gaped open slightly and he reached a hand out toward Nico. “Nico what—“

He didn’t get to finish the thought though as Nico shouted directing his anger verbally toward the God of the Underworld. Percy froze and stared in almost horror as Nico cried out. He snapped back to reality when Nico began to tossing things around the cabin. Instinctively Percy turned to Annabeth and pulled her close in a protective embrace shielding her from possible flying pieces of debris. When the act of anger, frustration and depression subsided Percy slowly let go of Annabeth and stared at Nico. He had seen the son of Hades upset before but this was different. It frightened Percy if he was being honest.

His eyes went to Annabeth only vaguely hearing what she ordered him to do. Percy blinked and hesistated trying to regain his senses. He swallowed and shook his head clear. He patted his pants pockets hoping he had some pieces of ambrosia. Luckily there was a small baggy in his back pocket. He fumbled the bag to Annabeth and turned his focus to Nico. He was crying now. Not just crying sobbing. Honest to Gods despair shook the boy’s body.

“Nico…” Percy cleared his throat. He was never good at these kind of things. “Things aren’t—“ He sighed looking down to Annabeth. It would be really be helpful if she took over here. Percy scratched his head still trying to shake the after effects of the laugh and outburst from his system.

“Anything you want us to do?”