long chapter!

"Magnus! Wake up! Ugh! Magnus!" Sam shook her friend. The worst thing about having a friend who died on an almost daily basis is he slept like a dead body.

"I got this," a fly turned into Alex Fierro. "Magnus Chase, if you don't wake up right now I will dump you!"

"What? No! Please don't do that!" Magnus sat up. "Oh hey Sam."

"I'm going to murder you," Sam should her head.

"Wouldn't be the first time," Magnus shrugged. "What's up?"

"Annabeth asked me to wake you up, but if my brother- sister?"

"Brother," Magnus and Alex said simultaneously.

"And I wonder why you two make a good couple. If my brother is here, then I think he's the worst of your troubles, Mr. I-ran-away-from-Valhalla-because-i-wanted-falafels-with-Annabeth," Sam laughed, closing the door as she left.

"Who's Annabeth?" Alex asked.

"My cousin. You know I wouldn't cheat on you."

"You swear?"

"On Thor's hammer."

"Farty Thor?"

"No. turns out, that guy's not Thor. That's his brother Gaston. Thor is the Avengers Thor."

"And how do you know this?"

"Uh, he told me. This is the Avengers tower, and I'm helping them with some mission/quest thing."

"Elaborate."

"Well, the mission is done. We had to find some seventy year old assassin or something. But now, we have to help Annabeth's boyfriend find his sister. I'll meet up with you later? If Annabeth needs me, I should probably get. She and Percy have PTSD and get blackouts, panic attacks, and nightmares. When they happen, they can be bad."

"I'll come with. I want to meet your family."

"Well, you already know Frey. My mom died. I have no siblings. Annabeth and you guys are about it. Well, and Blitz, Hearth, and Amir."

"I'm still coming."

"Fine. I'll introduce my cousin's family to my boyfriend," Magnus rolled his eyes.

"Thank you. I'm still baffled that you can tell when I change," Alex was genderfluid, but most people couldn't tell if he was a guy or a girl. Magnus could.

"In my opinion, it's a good thing. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't know you this well?"

"Whatever. C'mon."

"Everyone should be at lunch seeing as its twelve. Follow me," Magnus led the way to the kitchen table.

"Who's that?" Nico asked, his hand inching toward his sword.

"This is Alex. He's my boyfriend. He's also dead, like me. Is Annabeth around?"

"She's in Stark's lab."

"Which one?"

"Penthouse."

"Okay. Thanks."

"I'll come with. When she starts working on something, she forgets to eat."

"You care about her?" Alex asked.

"Well, yeah. She's... she Percy and I are the only three mortals to survive Tartarus."

"Huh?"

"Bad place. Don't ask," Nico shuddered.

"Worse than ginnungagap," I whispered "Nightmareland." Alex made an O shape with his mouth.

"So, Magnus, I wouldn't have thought you were into guys."

"I'm not. I'm into Alex."

"Well, he's a guy, which means you're into guys."

"Technically, she's a girl."

"What?"

"I'm genderfluid and transgender. Right now, Magnus is right. I'm a girl. But when we came in, I was a guy."

"That's weird. No offense."

"When your dad is Loki, being called weird is the least offensive thing someone could say. Weird is just not normal, and for me, it's true. I'm not normal, not by most people's standards."

"Not by my standards either," Magnus said. "My my standards, you're extraordinary."

"Shut up. You're just trying to get back on my good side from ditching me for falafels."

"Falafels?" Nico asked.

"Yep. My favorite food."

"You know how some people's weaknesses are girls, or friends, or money? His is falafels," Alex explained.

"I was homeless for two years! Falafels were the only food I had! Amir's was the closest I had to a home, and he gave me free food!"

"I'm not criticizing. My weakness is chocolate," Alex shrugged.

"You're both weird."

"We're demigods. Comes with the territory," it was Magnus's turn to shrug.

"I'm a demigod. Believe me, I know but you're weird even by demigod standards."

"We're dead. We die almost every day. We live in the same hall as a Viking, a civil war veteran, and a murderous Irish chick. I have a talking sword. She can shapeshift. Sam can fly and is constantly throwing her axe at my head. And yet, by enjeri standards, that's just another day in Valhalla."

"So, your excuse for weirdness is repeated death? I can sense death. Neither of you are dead."

"Not right now. But we did die. Earlier this year."

"I only know two people who came back from the dead. My sister, who I brought back. And Leo, who drank a magic I'm-not-dead-anymore potion."

"Don't forget about me," a voice hisses. Alex gasped at the sight of the girl. She had hair made of fire, red eyes, paper white skin, one bronze leg, and one goat leg. She wore a torn up cheerleader's uniform, only it was bloodstained as though someone had stabbed her from behind.

"And Kelli. But she's a monster who's always trying to kill me," nico sighed, goddess his sword, and slashed, killing her instantly. She crumbled into yellow dust and blew away. "And monster successfully killed. I'm surprised more haven't shown up."

"But we have," nico face palmed.

"I had to jinx it," he faced the ten monsters. "Larystrigonians. Naturally."

"What are they?"

"Cannibalistic ogres. If you've got a weapon, draw it now." Alex pulled her garrote wire and got it ready while Magnus flicked his pendant off his necklace, turning it into a floating sword.

"He thinks he's so tough, doesn't he," the sword pointed at Nico's.

"Jack, meet nico. Nico, jack. Now let's kill some ogres." Nico nodded and he, Alex, and Jack the sword attacked the ogres. They fought back. Fifteen or so minutes later, Jack turned into a pendant again. Magnus staggered left, right into Nico.

"He didn't even fight!"

"Jack fought. When Magnus makes Jack fight, he's fine. Until he grabs Jack. When he touches him or turns him back into a pendant, he receives the effects. He's instantly tired, sore, and sometimes bleeding. Like now. Magnus!"

"I'm okay Alex. Just a scratch. Not even a big one. Band Aid would work." It wasn't a little scratch. His arm was gushing blood.

"Eat this," Nico handed him some ambrosia. "It heals demigods."

"Thanks," Magnus ate it. "Tastes like falafel."

"That's a good sign. Ambrosia is supposed to taste like a food associated with a good memory."

"Well, falafels were my first official date with Alex."

"No they weren't. You wanted falafels, but I voted for Indian, and as girlfriend, my vote is worth double."

"That was outside Valhalla. We had a date inside Valhalla where we had a falafel picnic in my room."

"That was a date?"

"In my book, that was my first date ever."

"Ever?"

"Yes."

"So I'm your first girlfriend."

"And only girlfriend."

"Get a room," nico groaned.

"The... ambersha? Worked."

"Ambrosia. And good. Lab's through here," nico went in through the adjacent doorway. The lab was empty.

"Something tells me she's not invisible," Magnus said."

"If she got her Yankees cap working again, she might be. Annabeth."

"JARVIS, where's Annabeth?" Magnus asked.

"Miss Chase is in Mr. Jackson's bedroom, along with Mr. Stark and Mr. Rodgers," the computerized butler announced.

"Thanks... I don't know what floor that is."

"I do. Come on," nico pinched the elevator button and they went to Percy's room. Nico popped his head in. "Hey. What's up?"

"Shhh," Annabeth put a finger to her lips and stepped from the room. "Percy had a panic attack. He's sleeping now, but I'm not sure it's a good idea for him to see Gabe."

"But if his sister is on the line..." Nico started. "I'd go into Tartarus again for Hazel or Bianca."

"And I'd go for Matt Bobby or anyone in the Athena cabin. I understand a sibling bond, but I didn't even know he had a sister. Him and Sally never mentioned her."

"I knew," Nico admitted. "When I lost Bianca, he told me he knew how I felt."

"And you never told me?"

"At the time, I assumed he was talking about when Dad took his mom."

"Oh. But... How could he not have told me?"

"You mean the way you told him everything after you ran away?"

"It's different. He knew I ran away and he knew the basics of what happened. He never even hinted at a sister."

"He never told you about Gabe either. He never told his mom about him."

"But... why?"

"It's how he copes Annabeth. He either jokes about it or ignores it. And you can't joke about a sister. Not when she's gone."

"I'm calling Sally. I need to find out more about this. If I can find her for him..."

"This is his sister Annabeth. It's something he needs to do. When Bobby ran away, you went after him. The effects of Tartarus are minimal now. When Will got lost in the labyrinth, I went after him. The effects of tartarus are minimal now. Percy hasn't had a quest that he wanted to do since you were taken by Kronos. Maybe he needs this, for more than one reason."

"What reasons though?"

"I don't know. They're his reasons. But the important one I can tell you, is think about Percy. What is his number one worst fear?"

"Losing his family and friends."

"What's the one thing you can count on about him?"

"He'll always do whatever it takes to take care of his friends and family."

"What makes him explode toilets?"

"His family and friends doing something dangerous."

"What makes him explode oceans?"

"His family and friends getting hurt."

"What is this about?"

"His sister."

"Who's your mom?"

"Athena."

"What's she the goddess of?"

"Wisdom and war."

"And because of that you are?"

"A genius."

"That means?"

"Super smart."

"So then put together the puzzle."

"That flaw's gonna kill him one day."

"Not going after his sister would kill him today."

"I guess you have a point. You know you're pretty smart. For a guy," Annabeth said. Magnus and Nico made a sound of protest. Alex laughed.

"Nice one."

"Uh..." Annabeth noticed Alex for the first time. "Who're you?"

"Annabeth, this is my girlfriend, Alex."

"She dead too?"

"Yes. But we're not exactly dead."

"If you die, you're dead."

"Tell that to Jason, Leo, and Hazel," Nico laughed.

"They get killed on a daily basis."

"No. he gets killed on a daily basis. I get killed maybe twice a week."

"Why does he die so much?"

"He ticks people off a lot."

"Must run in the family," Nico laughed. In one swift movement, Annabeth plucked her dagger from her waist, hurled it hat his head, grazed his temple, drew her drakon bone sword, pinned Nico to the ground, and had her sword at her throat. It took her less than two seconds.

"Wanna say that again?"

"You're so funny. You think you scare me," nico melted into his shadow and reappeared, holding his Stygian iron sword around Annabeth's neck. "If anything I should scare you."

A column of water shot through the door, effectively destroying it and pulled nico off Annabeth, flinging him down the hall. "If anything, you should be scared of me!" Percy called from bed.

"Steve. Was he awake that whole time?"

"Woke up when you left."

"Naturally. Percy, I know you need to do this, and we're going to held you however we can. But you have to promise not to get yourself killed. Deal?" Annabeth asked him.

"Deal. Can we leave now?"

"We leave tomorrow. For now, let's eat, binge watch all four season herlock, and sleep."

"You mean all twelve episodes?" Percy taunted.

"Oh hush."

"And really only nine since season four isn't ok Netflix and won't be for another year or two?"

"Shut up! They took how to train your dragon off Netflix!"

"Numb3rs is off Netflix!"

"So is flashpoint!"

"Same with alias!"

"Karate kid hasn't ever been on Netflix!"

"Neither has Batman: the Dark Night!"

"Or X-men!" (This is my personal rant... you now know my favorite movies and tv shows)

"You guys do realize that I'm a billionaire, right? I can buy the shows you want. For pocket change," stark said.

"X-men," Percy and Annabeth said simultaneously.

"Here," he tapped stuff into his phone and a tv slid from the ceiling "just push play and you can watch all the xmen movies in order. Enjoy," stark and Rogers left.

"You two are dorks."

"Says the guy who's only a hero because he died. At least we haven't died yet."

"But now that I have died, I've saved the world. Twice."

"We've saved the world. Too many times to count. And fought and won two wars. Before we were seventeen. You have a talking sword."

"Yes. I have a talking sword. Alex has a pottery wire. In the world of Vikings, a freaking pillow is a weapon. Your boyfriend nearly destroyed the world with a nosebleed."

"Don't blame my nosebleed!" Percy exclaimed.

"Oh cool it," Annabeth rolled her eyes. "It wasn't his fault."

"Sam said you needed me."

"Oh. I just needed your sword," Annabeth shrugged. "Tony helped me out though."

"Why'd you need my sword?"

"To sharpen mine."

"What?"

"It's one of the sharpest swords in the world."

"Whatever. I'm taking Alex out for lunch. Text me if you need anything," Magnus saluted in mock respect and led his girlfriend from the room.

"Okay spill," Percy said.

"What huh?"

"You're dying to grill me about something, so go ahead."

"Why Gabe? Why not your mom or dad?"

"She's not my full sister. She's my half sister."

"Okay. So?"

"She's Gabe's daughter."