Can't get this out of my head. Should be a few chapters long- not overly action packed but (hopefully) not too angsty either. This takes place, and fits in with, my other story- Weighing the Pros and Cons.

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Sitting alone in the dining hall of his father's palace was certainly not how Nico di Angelo had intended to spend his afternoon.

The day had started out well enough- he had gone on the picnic with Percy, Annabeth and Rachel, as planned, and he would have enjoyed himself had it not been for the intense sun and lack of shade that plagued their chosen location. He had tried to ignore it- tried to be normal- but the throbbing pain in his head and the burning sensation on his skin had driven him to his breaking point.

He had only lasted twenty minutes before muttering something about food poisoning and excusing himself. The other three had looked concerned, but (thankfully) they seemed to buy his excuse- Rachel had even offered to drive him home, but he had quickly declined.

Despite what he had told them, he had had no intention of going back to his apartment. Sure, being in his dark room would have been preferable to being outside, but he also knew that he needed more than simple shade by that point.

Nico was well aware that there was only one place for him to go when he started feeling ill, and he had stumbled towards the nearest patch of shade (which was nearly a bock and a half away) before quickly willing the shadows to carry him down to the Underworld.

When he had arrived in his father's palace, the relief had been instant. The burning sensation had gone away and a sense of relief had washed over him. As much as he hated to admit it, he knew that his body was happy to be where it belonged- in the dank and cavernous depths of his father's domain. He marvelled at how it was possible to both love and hate a place so intensely.

The logical side of his brain wanted nothing more than to be back on the surface, enjoying a nice, normal, day by the ocean with his friends- but the more instinctual part of him yearned to be here, in a place that most people would have found unbelievably depressing. He wished there was a way to turn that part of him off, but he knew that that was impossible.

Like it or not, he was a son of Hades, and this was where he belonged.

That fact had become harder and harder to ignore in recent years- as his powers had grown, so had his need for this place, and his aversion to life above ground. As that day, and his lingering headache, had made painfully clear, he simply wasn't made to enjoy a sunny, summer afternoon. His body craved darkness and shadows, and he could never completely ignore the call of the Underworld.

It was some consolation to know that Percy had faced similar challenges in recent years- but even then, yearning for the sea seemed a lot less freakish. Nico would have traded with his cousin in an instant- though he doubted that his father would be pleased if he ever admitted that out loud.

To be honest, it was really nothing personal- Nico knew he was lucky that he was closer to his godly parent better than most demigods, and his dad really wasn't all that bad when you got past the tough bravado. When he was younger, had had been terrified of the lord of the dead but, having nowhere else to go when not at camp, he had ended up spending a fair bit of time in the Underworld. It had been very uncomfortable at first, and he had felt more like an unwanted guest than part of the family- but in the wake of the battle with the Titians, his father had gradually let his guard down around his son. In recent years they had (shockingly) even developed some semblance of a parent-child relationship. Hades would never admit it, but Nico knew that he cared about him- and the day he had realized that had been one of the best he could remember.

With a deep sigh, Nico brought his hand towards his throbbing head. The headache was fading, but not quite as quickly as his other symptoms. It was his own fault, really, for forgetting to bring his sunglasses- it had been nearly impossible to go outside without them for the past three years, but had stupidly decided to test his limits.

He vowed never do so again. The pain simply wasn't worth putting up a brief facade of normalcy.

Nico began to contemplate heading upstairs to have a lie down in his room when the sound of footsteps distracted him. He sat up abruptly and, seconds later, the door to the dining chamber opened to reveal his father- dressed in his casual "Mick Jagger" style attire (as Percy once deemed it).

The god's expression remained blank, but Nico could tell from his relaxed body language that he was (thankfully) not angry to see him.

"Nico." Hades greeted him curtly, taking a few steps into the room. "I thought I sensed you in here, but I did not expect a visit today."

"Yeah, sorry Dad." The young man replied, leaning back in his chair. "It was unplanned."

For a moment, his father said nothing and he made his way to the chair at the opposite end of the dining table. Though he had grown fond of his son in recent years, he always kept his distance- Nico had never been hugged by his father, and knew he never would be. The Lord of the Dead had a soft side, but it wasn't that soft.

After a long pause, the god finally spoke. "Well then, why have you come?"

Nico tried to suppress a smirk- his dad was always frank and was not one for pleasantries. That suited the young man just fine.

"I was supposed be out with Percy, Annabeth and Rachel this afternoon- but the sun was overwhelming." He paused, looking down at the dark wood table. Maybe complaining to his father wasn't the best idea- he had mentioned his worsening symptoms to his father before, but had received very little reaction- it was as if the god simply could not understand why this was a problem. Sighing, he decided to continue anyway. "It's getting harder and harder to go outside in the daylight now. I could only handle it for a little while, and I needed to come down here to recover. I don't know how much worse it is going to get..."

Unfortunately, Hades did not offer any of the comfort he had desired.

Quite the contrary.

"Ah, excellent." He began, completely missing the dejected tone in his son's voice. "You're becoming more and more like me every day."

The gods really could be oblivious sometimes.

Nico's insides churned, but he hoped his face did not show his discomfort. He didn't want to insult his father, but becoming more like the King of Death was not what most young men in their mid-twenties wanted. He wanted to be normal- to enjoy time with his friends- to find a girl who wasn't revolted by his oddities...

But the older he got, and the more his divine half took hold of him, the more that seemed like a hopeless fantasy. No normal person was going to want to be around him if he stayed inside all day and spent long stretches of time in the Underworld. That's why he had been trying so hard to hide what had been happening to him- to resist. But he knew that ultimately, it would be a losing battle.

He couldn't hide forever.

"Perhaps you should reconsider my offer."

His father's voice broke him out of his trance and he directed his gaze towards the god, knowing what was coming next. Hades had been trying to convince him to join him, permanently, in the Underworld. The god wanted a lieutenant to help him with his tasks and, about five years ago, he had decided that Nico should be the one to fill the post. The young man was flattered, and could see his father's logic- Hades had had far fewer children than the other gods and Nico, for some unknown reason, had been the first to live into adulthood without becoming a crazed lunatic.

As far as Hades was concerned, he was the perfect candidate- powerful, handsome, heroic and (most shockingly) sane- but the boy had repeatedly declined, calming that he wanted to enjoy a normal life like everyone else.

Hades, perhaps surprisingly, had never tried to force him to comply- but that didn't stop him from making repeated attempts to convince his son to join him.

Unfortunately for the god, his son's determination had not yet faltered.

"No. I can't." He replied quietly.

Nico knew he was risking is father's wrath and, frankly, the offer did have its temptations- but there were still certain things...and certain people...that kept him tethered to the surface.

He wasn't ready to give up- not now.

Most who didn't know the Lord of the Dead would have expected him to release his vengeance on his defiant son- but, as Nico had often tried to convince people, the god's reputation was a bit unfair.

Rather than engulfing the young man in a column of hell fire, or turning him into a pile of ash, Hades simply smirked and leaned further back in his chair. Clasping his hands in front of him, he stared intently at the young man before declaring: "You're just as stubborn as Maria."

Nico smirked back, deciding to take that as a compliment. It was still painful to hear mentions of the mother he couldn't remember, but the note of affection in his father's voice was a source of great comfort. He could tell that Hades had truly cared for her, and he often wondered if that was part of the reason why he had turned out relatively okay.

Maybe children of Hades born out of love had a fighting chance...

"You will say yes eventually." The god continued smugly, adjusting one of the skull buttons on his leather vest. "This is where you belong."

Nico's stomach churned again, and he hated that he could not deny his father's statement. The Underworld was the only place where he felt right, and he wondered how long he could resist its call.

"Perhaps." He conceded. "But not yet. I'm not ready to give up on being human. I have friends. A job..."

Rachel.

The last word flickered through his head, but he quickly pushed it aside. Despite his annoyingly persistent infatuation, he knew that couldn't think about her. Not like that. The thought of the un-loveable son on Hades and the untouchable Oracle was simply too absurd.

They were a match made in hell.

"You'll never be human, Nico."

His father, blunt as always, distracted him from his train of thought.

"I know."

Hoping to avoid another uncomfortable topic they had touched on many times before, Nico stood up from the table. The headache was still present, but he felt well enough to return to the surface. As long as he stayed inside until it got dark he was pretty sure that he'd be okay.

"I should be going." He said, nodding towards his father. "I'll pop in next weekend to see if you need help with anything."

The god said nothing and, after another awkward moment, Nico willed the shadows to whisk him away.

Hades knew that he should have stopped him- should have forced him to accept his fate- but the image of a beautiful woman with deep brown eyes held him back. As much as he hated not getting his way, and loathed seeing his son toil away on the surface like a lowly human, he owed it to Maria to let their son do as he wished.

He could only hope that the boy would come to his senses soon...

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A/N Good, bad, ugly? To me, the hardest bit was writing Hades- I want to have him care for his son, without seeming too soft. Let me know what you think.

The next bit should be much heavier on the romance.