I am so glad you are all patient with me. I know you don't want to hear this, but I have to graduate in about two months, so school work has had all my focus. But now I have a break, and I decided to update What Lurks in the Shadows rather than Not Your Typical High School Romance (which if you haven't stumbled across you should check it out).

Oh, on that happy note, I've decided to make this a trilogy since Will and Jake already have a kid, and so do Jason and Leo. You know their kids names. If this story gets love, you'll get the full name of one future kid of one family.

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Percy's POV

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You would think being in an underwater palace would provide more excitement, when it all reality it provided the same amount of boredom as camp. After about five days, I found myself out of things to do. So Poseidon let me accompany him to underwater sword practice. Only to watch though. I oversaw one area, Triton oversaw the other area, and Tyson, at the head of the army, called out sword positions. As one unit a hundred or more mer-people swung their shimmering swords at coral dummies, chopping off small chunks every time. I winced at every swing. Coral was a living thing, I'd learned, and while it didn't seem to mind being used as a practice dummy, I still felt bad for it. And all this sword practice was making me homesick. And when I got homesick I thought of Nico. And when I thought of Nico I got more depressed… It was a vicious cycle.

"At ease!" Tyson bellowed to the mer-people, who gratefully let their sword points drop to the sandy floor. I smiled at my baby brother. He seemed so much happier under the sea, and leading dad's army. Tyson strode over to dad and I, removing his helmet and giving us a peanut butter grin. "I like it," he said to me.

"I can tell big guy," I said half-heartedly, giving him a wan smile. Tyson cocked his head to the side and studied me with his big eye. "I think I'll go do something else," I said quietly, swimming away. I swam up to my room and sat down on my bed, sighing. I closed my eyes and put my head between my knees. "Show me Jason Grace and Leo Valdez," I whispered, and in the corner, my magic mirror shimmered. "One way," I added. That ensured they couldn't see me. The image changed from the inside of my room to the inside of a cozy looking house. Leo and Jason lounged on the couch together, a baby girl balanced on Leo's knee. "One way sound; on."

"Oh, what a cutie you are," Jason cooed at the baby, who giggled. "And getting bigger every day. Yes you are. Such a big girl." Leo smiled as Jason tickled the baby's tummy. I smiled a little at the sight of them. Leo had sprouted like a weed and was now a couple inches taller than Jason. Jason's hair has shagged out a bit and now reached his ears like he hadn't cut it in a while. But something about the way he looked, he looked almost fearful. Like around every corner was an enemy he couldn't see but knew was there. It wasn't very visible, and he was doing a good job of fooling Leo, but I could plainly see it.

"Hey guys, got her bottle," another voice said from in the kitchen. "I couldn't find the straight one so I got the slanted one." Someone came out of the kitchen, and it was then that my heart about stopped. Nico smiled easily at the baby as Leo handed her over.

"Nico," I said softly, touching my fingertips to the mirror. "My baby… My Prince of Shadows… Oh gods how I've missed you." Watching Nico with the baby left my stomach in knots. He looked so at ease as he sat down in the chair opposite of Jay and Leo, settling the baby in the crook of his arm and holding the bottle to her mouth. She suckled contently, playing with his fingers as he did so.

"Angel is going to be so sad when you finally leave," Leo commented to Nico, who laughed and kissed the baby's forehead. So that was her name. Angel. She was a beautiful baby girl.

"Are you going to miss uncle Nico?" he asked the baby. "I'm sorry kiddo. But I have to find your uncle Percy. Can't give up on love, got that?"

"Enough," I said to the mirror, and instantly the only thing I could see was my reflection and my room. I sat back down on my bed, a little bit dazed. Nico was back in the states. He was talking with Jay and Leo as I sat there. He was coming to find me. I made up my mind right then and there. I got up off my bed, packed what few belongs I'd brought with me, and swam back to my dad and Tyson.

"Why Percy," my dad said with surprise. "You're all packed up. Going somewhere?" I nodded.

"I'm going back to Camp Half-Blood," I said simply. "I'm going home. I have someone waiting for me." While dad looked a little uncertain, he nodded all the same. Tyson sniffled and hugged all the air right out of me.

"Be careful," he told me. "Say hi for me."

…

I set my stuff on my bunk, breathing in the crisp New York air. Everyone had accepted me back with open arms. I'd contacted Jay and Leo, who were so thrilled to see me they wanted to call Nico. But I told them to not and to send Nico on his way. They told Nico Hazel wanted to see him right away and that he should get going so he doesn't keep her waiting. After much complaint, he agreed to leave. Now all I had to do was wait for him to get here.

"Hey Perce." I turned to find Malcolm behind me, Mitchell trailing behind him. Other than myself and Frank, Malcolm and Mitchell were among the oldest members at camp. Malcolm was pushing twenty and Mitchell was twenty-one. They told me they wanted to stay behind and oversee all the new campers, and perhaps raise a family of their own, right there on camp grounds. So far they didn't have any kids, but they'd gotten a room together at the Big House together so they wouldn't have to sleep in their cabins.

"Hey Mal," I said. "Hey Mitch." Mitchell nodded at me and sat down on my bunk, staring around uncomfortably. Before today, I'd never really talked to them before. "What's up?" I asked them both.

"Not much." It was Mitchell who replied. "We were just wondering how you were doing. Are you excited to see Nico again?" I couldn't keep the grin off my face as I thought about seeing Nico again. "I am going to take that as a yes," Mitchell said with a laugh, peeking outside. "Oooh, guess who's here!" he sang, skipping outside.

"Make sure he doesn't say anything!" I hissed to Malcolm, who nodded once and followed Mitchell outside. I ducked into my closet and waited patiently. I kept peeking out of the crack to watch the door, and finally it swung open. Nico entered alone, glancing around. He sat down on my bunk, running his hands over the dusty sheets. Seeing Nico made my heart swell.

"Hey Percy," he said to what he thought was an empty room. "Man, it's been awhile since I've been here. I have so many interesting stories for you when I find you. Most of them involve telling my dad to fuck off." He chucked lowly and wiped the back of his hand across his eyes. It came back wet, and I realized with a start he was crying. "I can't wait to see you again. I love you Percy." He got up and went to leave. I couldn't take it anymore. I crept out from the closet and stood in the middle of the room.

"I love you too, Nico," I said softly. Nico whirled around and stared wide-eyed at me. I in turn studied him. He'd grown in three years. Granted, he still wasn't as tall as me. His hair had been recently cut and was swept to one side like he'd been through a wind tunnel. His aviator jacket was in place over a white t-shirt and he had on loose black jeans, his bow slung over his shoulders. He looked rugged, but I don't think I've ever seen him look so beautiful. "Hello, my precious Prince of Shadows," I said, a slow smile spreading across my face. "Welcome home."

"Percy?" he asked in disbelief. "Prince?" I nodded and opened my arms wide. Nico plowed into me, his arms snaking around my waist. "Percy," he said breathlessly. "It really is you."

"Yep," I said. "It's really me. It's so good to see you, my precious Prince of Shadows."

…

Nico's POV

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I've had a lot of surprises in the last three years, but this one took my breath away. Seeing Percy brought back so many memories, both good and bad. But the good far outweighed the bad. Percy hadn't changed much, except for the fact he got a little taller. I was surprised to find I was catching up to him in height. His shock of dark brown hair was a little longer than normal, but it was currently spiked up in the front and slicked down in the back in a style only he could pull off. He'd stopped wearing his orange Camp Half-Blood shirt in favor of plain blue with a forest green hoodie over the top. He smiled easily at me and you'd think we'd never been apart.

All in all, I was falling in love with him all over again.

"Are you sure you don't want to go sleep in your own bed?" Percy asked as I bustled about his cabin, straightening things up. He was lounging on his bed in only his blood-red boxers and a black V-neck, looking sexy as hell. "After all, it is our first night back. I don't want to overwhelm you."

"Puh-lease," I said, crawling into bed with him and resting my head on his chest. "If I wanted to sleep in my own bed I would. But this is first night I've seen you in three years. I'm making the most of it." He laughed lowly and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me even closer to himself.

"You know," he said thoughtfully. "You've changed a lot. You're no longer the kid who used to cling to me when he got upset." I smiled at him and reached under my shirt, pulling out my necklace. "Oh my gods you still have it," he said with a laugh. He pulled the ring I gave him out of his pocket and showed it to me. "I still have mine too."

"So you do," I said with a giggle. "Hey I've been wondering, are you interested in retiring any time soon?" Percy glanced at me and shrugged. "Because Jay and Leo have found a nice little community that would be perfect. They have colleges and homes and places to raise families. It would be nice to get away from this all, you know?" He nodded slowly.

"Yeah, I get you," he said. "But right now I don't want to think about the future right now. I want to think about the present. Jay tells me you aren't officially done with your quest yet. I'm going to help you defeat whatever monster you're after. Because, after all, in these famous words." He tilted my chin up and kissed me softly. "You can't give up on love."

…

Awww yay! The reunited already! Don't worry, this story is far from over.

Okay, the big reveal child. He's the son of your favorite power couple, with Prince of Shadows and Prince of the Sea as his mom and dad. He will be the oldest di Angelo child, and adopted. And his full name is…

Lucas Hayden di Angelo! How about some love for the future oldest di Angelo boy!