With Will dead and Nico gallivanting off to Thanatos's realm, Lilian and Marcus faced a choice. They could proceed to the Primordial Ooze – Lilian could smell the odd combination of seafood and peanuts, both sour with age – or stay behind and wait.

"Let's keep going," Marcus said, pointing ahead with his narwhal tusk. "We're close enough that we can find our own way, and Nico and Will can catch up later."

And that was how Lilian knew what they had to do. "Ah... no. We're staying right here. The lavenders will attract scavenger monsters, and Will and Nico are unconscious."

"So that's it? We'll just twiddle our thumbs and play bodyguard until Nico brings Will out of death?"

If he can, Lilian thought with dread. Marcus had motivated Nico—which was better than leaving the poor boy in a stupor—but how long would Nico stay in the realm of the dead? How long did they all have? Barely a day had passed since they'd plunged into the Underworld, but time moved differently here. The best case scenario was that only a few minutes had passed in the mortal realm; though Annabeth and Percy would lecture them the whole flight, they'd arrive in Greece together, with no surprises from the Zealots blindsiding part of their group. In the worst case scenario, weeks had gone by, and they'd be too late.

I can't think like that, Lilian chided xemself. Xe pinched xyr cheeks – like how Auntie Annie Abebe used to – and focused—only to get distracted by Marcus's next question.

"What's your favourite food?"

"I... pardon?"

Marcus smiled wryly at xem, rows of lavenders between them. Lilian wanted to change the lavenders to marigolds; somehow, xe thought they'd suit Marcus better. The orange hues matched his personality, and the flowers themselves symbolized optimism, in honour of the story of Xótchitl and Huitzilin, who'd offer the flowers to Tonatiuh to bind their commitment to each other. The thought of committing oneself to another made Lilian look away, flustered.

"Hey, the flowers turned orange. Did you do that?"

"Ah—that was an accident." Lilian changed the marigolds back to lavenders, which were more respectful to Will's body, at least until Nico brought him back. Before xyr thoughts could spiral out of control again, xe answered, "Fried chicken with macaroni cheese—mac 'n' cheese, I mean. It sounds unhealthy, but it's not like I eat it regularly. That's part of what makes it special; it's true soul food."

"That sounds awesome. When all this is done, I'll make some for you."

"If you mean you'll get KFC and Kraft Dinner, count me out."

"No, really. I'll try." He moved closer to xem, his dark eyes wide and pleading. "I'm trying really hard, and I haven't snapped in weeks, but I'm slipping. If we don't get to the Ooze soon, I might become violent again."

"Marcus, hon, we've been fighting monsters almost nonstop. A bit of aggression is part of the job description." Lilian nudged him. "Look, more monsters are coming. Aren't these the Acalica that Will defeated back in Alicante?"

Marcus readied his weapon while Lilian summoned xyr butterfly swords, the celestial bronze shining in the gloom. "By the way, Marcus, what's your favourite food?"

Lilian slashed, xyr two blades in tandem with each other and Marcus's narwhal tusk. Ashes from the Acalica's decapitated limbs and heads dotted the petals that flurried around them; thorns stabbed the monsters' eyes under Lilian's precise control. Marcus replied, "I wish I could say something from my culture like, I don't know, curry or falafel or something, but I just like hamburgers. The thick, juicy kind where you need a toothpick to hold it together."

"Then when all this is done, I'll treat you to a Steak 'n Shake."

"Deal." Marcus rammed the blunt end of his narwhal tusk into the mouth of one of the weather fairies, knocking out several grey teeth. Lilian laughed. Xe could get used to this: fighting monsters with Marcus Hassan, letting out all their pent-up feelings while planning a next date—in this case, a first date. It'd be a good life.

Lilian finished off the last Acalica just as the lavenders were disturbed. Just in time, xe thought as Will woke up. He didn't need to see the same monsters he'd fought a few short days ago; Lilian's heart warmed when the first thing Will did was reach out to hug Nico. Then he looked up at Lilian. "Did I make you worry?"

"I'm fine."

Nico smirked at xem. "You look more than fine. What happened between you two while we were dead?"

Will frowned at Nico. "You weren't dead. I was dead."

Lilian grinned as xe put away xyr butterfly swords. "Marcus and I were planning a date. It'll be fun, I think. Want to go on a double date sometime after?"

Marcus groaned, his ears bright pink, though his eyes sparkled, and he had a spring in his step as they walked.

The Primordial Ooze flowed like a river, churning way too fast for a substance called ooze. It was also a sickly yellow colour, and Will whistled. "I win the bet. What'll you guys pay me?"

Lilian smiled at him. They were close to the same height, though Lilian had better posture. "What's your favourite food?"

"Hawaiian pizza."

Nico grimaced. Marcus nudged him. "What people do for love, right?"

"Shut up, Hassan." He unsheathed his sword, which actually made Marcus take a few steps back, but he only dipped it in the ooze. The Stygian iron reacted with the liquid.

The rapid currents slowed, allowing the fluid to gather closer and become more viscous—a little more like ooze, though more closely resembling runny hummus. Will placed a hand on Nico's shoulder and pulled him away. "Wait, Nico. What will happen when the Ooze is completely calm?"

"Anyone affected by its volatility will also be calmer, at least in terms of their demigod powers. People who discover their godly parent a lot younger or older than twelve will have better control over their powers, because their powers will be subdued enough for them to control. In a way, I'm helping a lot more than Marcus and Jason. It might prevent tragedies for overpowered kids who find out too early or too late or just the wrong way."

"But you were one of those children. That means your power, too..."

Lilian's mouth formed an O. Marcus stared at Nico but had the good sense not to try to convince him to keep going for his sake. Nico shrugged. "I'm okay with it. You never liked when I used my powers, anyway, so why is this bothering you?"

"Because it's like giving away part of who you are. It's like if Marcus went vegan and pacifist, and Lilian stopped carrying around a pack of... uh, fertilizer. No offense, Lil."

Lilian's mouth twitched. "None taken."

Nico moved back to the edge of the Ooze and dipped his sword in the liquid again. "It's not like I'm giving everything up. I'll still be able to shadow travel and control one or two dead creatures at a time. But no more armies of skeletons doing all the hard work. And no more bringing people back from the dead."