Author's note: My friends are nagging me to continue to write our Marvel story but did I do it? No. Instead, I started to work on my PJO series. I've been forming it up for awhile but I wasn't quite sure on how to begin. Then this happened.
Takes place post The Titan's Curse and during The Battle of the Labyrinth. This is Bianca's POV. The next one will be in Catelyn's POV. Translations are at the end.
Part 1 of Rhythm of My Life series
Gone, Gone, Gone
I have left Nico, Bianca thought to herself numbly as she entered the Underworld. He is all alone now.
After Bianca had gotten off of Charon's ferry ride, she looked at the lines. One line led to the Fields of Asphodel. The other was the line to go through to be judged on whether you were worthy enough to enter Elysium, or worse.
Bianca was terrified. She did not know where to go. Should she try to go into this line or go into that one? She had no idea.
"What are you doing?"
Bianca jumped a few feet in the air before turning around. She looked to see that there was a girl looking at her with warm, gray eyes that seemed to be haunted with curly, auburn hair. She looked Roma and seemed to be older than her by a couple years.
Bianca did not speak for a few moments. Instead she studied the older girl in front of her.
"Who are you?"
"I am Catelyn," the girl answered. She had a German accent, Bianca noted. "I am here to help you."
Bianca followed Catelyn to Hades' Palace. Apparently, he wanted to see her and Catelyn as well. This was when Bianca realized that Catelyn was her sister. They didn't speak much at first. Catelyn soon broke their silence.
"I sense your brooding, what is the matter?"
"It's Nico," Bianca answered. She didn't know if Catelyn knew who Nico was or not, but she didn't elaborate. "He's all alone up there now. I abandoned him."
"Oh, but you haven't," Catelyn told the girl kindly. "You can always be there for him, watch over him. That's what I have been doing for my brother and sister and for you and Nico ever since I had passed."
Bianca became perplexed at this. "You've been watching over me and Nico?"
"Yes," Catelyn nodded. "I was curious, you see. After I had passed, I learned that our father had you two. I decided to see who you are; what you looked like. I was curious about your mama as well. She's a kind woman, I must say."
"You've met my mother?" Bianca asked. Catelyn nodded again.
"You can see her later, I assume. You should be able to," Catelyn looked down in sadness. Bianca didn't know why, but she felt as if she should not ask.
"Is that where we are going?" Bianca asked, unknowingly pointed to their father's palace.
Catelyn gave a chilly smile. "Yes, this is his home."
After Bianca had met her father for the first time, Catelyn took her away from him to show her what the Underworld was like.
"You are the daughter of Hades, Bianca," Catelyn had explained to her. "You have nothing to fear, for the most part. You are a monarch of the souls here, kleine Schwester."
Bianca tilted her head. "Kleine Schwester?"
"It means 'little sister' in German," Catelyn explained. "But I shall warn you that there are few places you shall not go to for your own safety..."
As Catelyn explained Bianca's new life further and further, the young girl realized more that Catelyn was no threat to her. She truly wanted to help.
Catelyn had memory loss, Bianca found out.
In a (mortal) day, Bianca went to go ask Catelyn a question, but Catelyn didn't know who Bianca was.
"I'm sorry, who are you?" Catelyn asked. "I don't remember meeting you."
"I am Bianca, I am your sister. I recently died and came here, remember?" Bianca asked.
Catelyn tsked and shook her head. "Oh, oh no. I do not have any little sisters named Bianca. I only have Becca and Ruthie! Then there's Max and Jimmy..."
Bianca did not know who these people were, except that these Becca and Ruthie girls seemed to be Catelyn's other sisters. She guessed that Max and Jimmy were her brothers. Did this mean that their father sired more children with Catelyn's mother?
Catelyn seemed to be able to read Bianca's thoughts, because she had answered her.
"Oh, no, my sisters and Max are not his children, my mama had more lovers than Hades," Catelyn explained. As soon as she said this, something must have ringed inside the girl's head.
"Bianca! Hello, how are you?"
"Catelyn, how old are you?" Bianca asked. They were in Catelyn's room, where Catelyn had explained she barely even came here. Their father had created it for her but she was always busy doing something else down here.
"I am fifteen," Catelyn answered. "Why do you wish to know?"
"I was only curious," Bianca answered. "Where were you from?"
"My family lived in Germany. My mama's papa was from Poland, though," Catelyn furrowed her eyebrows, looking down into nothing particular. As long as Bianca had been in her sister's company, she could tell she was thinking about something.
"How about you, Bianca? Where were you from?"
"Nico and I are from Italy. We moved to DC when we were little," Bianca explained. Then she become a little disheartened. "That's where my mama died."
Catelyn gave Bianca a soft, gentle look. She was motherly, Bianca had noted.
"I know," Catelyn said quietly. "Zeus had killed her."
It was quiet between the two girls for a few moments. Then Bianca asked her a question.
"How many brothers and sisters did you have?"
"I'm sorry?" Catelyn frowned.
Oh, no, did I offend her? Bianca thought worriedly. Before she could backtrack herself, Catelyn gently hit herself upside the head with her hand.
"Oh, my siblings!" Catelyn remembered. "Yes, I had two brothers and two sisters. Jimmy and Max and Rebecca and Ruthie! Jimmy and I are twins. Max and Rebecca are still alive; Jimmy and Ruthie are not."
"Where are they?" Bianca asked.
Catelyn became silent for a moment before answering quietly, "I do not know. Father forbids me to see them or our mama."
Catelyn's aura became sadder and Bianca felt bad. So she grabbed onto Catelyn's hand.
"I am glad that you are here, Bianca," Catelyn gave the younger girl a soft smile. "I have been so lonely for the past seventy-odd years. But now, now you are here. This makes me happy, truly. It makes me sad that you have died, for you are so young. You should have lived out your life."
"I became immortal," Bianca reminded her older sister.
"You did? How—oh wait, no. You became a Huntress, I forgot. Silly me," Catelyn gave a small, silly grin. "That's alright. I suppose you should have lived until you died in battle. Well, I suppose you had, but...well, you get my point, don't you?"
Bianca nodded. "Yes, sorella, I do."
"You have beautiful hair, did you know this?" Catelyn asked of Bianca as she brushed out her hair.
"I like yours more than mine," Bianca admitted, looking at Catelyn through the vanity mirror.
Catelyn stopped in the middle of brushing Bianca's hair, staring back at Bianca. She gave a small laugh as she pulled the hairbrush away from her little sister's head. "What? You love my curly, messy hair?" she wondered, putting a hand in her messy curls and fluffing her hair up. "Are you sure about that, kleine?"
"It's beautiful," Bianca mostly whispered. "Mine is just black and straight."
"Thank you, Bianca," Catelyn smiled sincerely. "I love yours more though. It's not straight; there are some waves in it."
One day, the girls sensed that Nico was putting himself in danger. Bianca had been sending Percy Jackson Iris-messages while Catelyn was visiting Nico in his dreams. Bianca wasn't ready to face Nico just yet. If she had visited him, she would not know what to do. She was glad Catelyn was helping her take care of him. Then again, Catelyn had always taken care of them in a way. Bianca never realized how much she had appreciated it until now.
"Your brother is a very angry little boy," Catelyn had explained to her. "His grief is heavy and hard, like a storm. I'm not sure if I will be able to convince him well, he is little at ease at the moment. His trust in me is little."
"Thank you, Catelyn, for helping me," Bianca told her. "I wouldn't know what to do without you."
"I'm sure you would," Catelyn answered her. "You just need to find it right in your heart, yes?"
Bianca nodded softly. "Yeah, I guess you're right." There was a pause before Bianca spoke up again. "I'm sure Nico will be able to trust you more soon. You just have to visit him more, right?"
Catelyn smiled. "You are correct."
It was another time where Bianca had found Catelyn in Persephone's gardens by herself. She was sitting on a bench near one of the statues. (Catelyn had explained that these statues were once people who were turned to stone by the gorgon Medusa, who had been decapitated once more.) Her shoulders were slumped.
"What's the matter, Cat?" Bianca had asked.
Catelyn was silent for a moment before she answered. "Father wants me to go to into that dreaded Labyrinth. He...he wants me to find Nico."
Bianca didn't understand. "What do you mean?"
"I'm going to be alive, again."
Catelyn was actually revived the next time Bianca was summoned by Nico. It was strange, because he was also summoning Catelyn too. Catelyn had explained to Bianca that Nico and she had become closer. When Bianca asked her how, she was answered with, "Secrets."
Bianca wondered what Catelyn meant by this, but she never asked her.
When Nico had summoned them both, Catelyn had left first. Bianca needed time a little time before she answered Nico. The only reason she was going to appear to him now was because Percy was there with him.
So finally, she went.
When she appeared, all time seemed to stop for the ones who were alive, and a newly revived Catelyn, who was shaking. Bianca was neither jealous nor angry at Catelyn for being alive once more, she was happy yet worried for her big sister. She could live her full life, instead of being fifteen forever. (But she had been fifteen for a little over seventy years. How would she be able to handle it?)
Bianca's eyes spot Percy, who stared at her in awe. She knew he felt guilty of her death, but he shouldn't be. It was her choice to stop that giant bronze robot in the junkyard.
"Hello, Percy," Bianca greeted him.
"Bianca," Percy had said, his voice thick with emotion. "I'm sorry."
"You have nothing to apologize for, Percy. I made my own choice. I don't regret it."
"Bianca!" Nico cried, stumbling forward to her. Bianca turned to him. She hadn't wanted to face him at all, but she knew she had to now. Her eyes flickered to Catelyn, who was breathing heavily. Her sister gave her a nod of encouragement.
Go on, Catelyn's warm voice flooded her head. You can do it.
Bianca gulped before looking into her brother's eyes. "Hello, Nico. You've gotten so tall."
"Why didn't you answer me sooner?" Nico's voice broke. "I've been trying for months!"
"I was hoping you would give up."
"Give up?" Nico asked, sounding heartbroken. "How can you say that? I'm trying to save you!"
"You can't, Nico. Don't do this. Percy is right," Bianca tried to convince him. "I'm sure Catelyn has tried to explain to you so many times that this isn't possible."
"No! Percy let you die! He isn't your friend!"
Bianca reached out for Nico to caress his face, but her hand evaporated as it got close to his skin. She was a ghost, she was not able to touch them. A part of her sad because that meant her and Catelyn could no longer share the physical affection they shared for each other. Another part of was happy, for perhaps Catelyn could mother Nico now as she had been to her and her siblings before.
"Nico, you must listen," Bianca began. "Holding grudges is dangerous for a child of Hades. It is our fatal flaw. You have to forgive. You have to promise me this."
"I can't. Never."
"Percy has been worried about you, Nico. He can help. I have been letting him see what you were up to, hoping to find you. Catelyn had been visiting you every night to try to help you, but you refuse to heal."
"I can't heal with you gone!" Nico cried.
"So it was you," Percy realized, referring to Bianca sending him Iris-messages.
"Why are you helping him and not me?" Nico screamed. "It's not fair!"
"You are close to the truth now," Bianca explained. "It's not Percy you're mad at, Nico. It's me."
"No."
"You're mad because I died and left you alone. I'm sorry for that, Nico. I truly am. But you must overcome your anger. And stop blaming Percy for my choices. It will be your doom."
Bianca glanced back at Catelyn, who had a proud expression on her face.
"She's right," Annabeth Chase cut 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. "Besides, you have Catelyn now. She will help you."
"I don't care!" Nico cried. "I'm the son of Hades! I can."
"But Nico, you can't," Catelyn cut in. "Remember what I told you when my brother tried to do the very same thing for me? It—"
Catelyn suddenly stopped. She started to mutter curses in Hebrew. The spirits that had appeared before Bianca had started to gather around everyone, acting tensely. They were shifting.
Danger! they whispered.
Bianca realized what was happening.
"Tartarus stirs," Bianca warned. "Nico, your power is drawing the attention of Kronos. The dead must return to the Underworld. It is not safe for us to remain.
"Wait, please—"
"Goodbye, Nico," Bianca interrupted. "I love you. Remember what I said."
Bianca turned to Catelyn.
"I believe this is our farewell, kleine Schwester," Catelyn informed heavily.
"It is, sorello," Bianca agreed. "Goodbye, Catelyn. I hope you are able to live your life fully this time around."
Please, look after Nico for me, Bianca thought.
And with that, Bianca and the ghosts disappeared.
Translations
kleine Schwester: little sister (German)
kleine: little one (German)
sorella: sister (Italian)
