A/N: The sisters have a surprise for Nico.

Sofia cleaned her hands on a napkin. 'Don't worry, Nico, we've got a plan.'

I put down my roll with jam. 'When someone says they've got a plan, I usually start worrying immediately.'

Beside me, Sofia's youngest sister, Lucia, could hardly contain her excitement. 'We're going to get you new clothes!'

'So that's the catch.'

'Yes!' Elena, the middle child, cheered. 'Donna Gloriana said we should!' She got a michevous glint in her eyes. 'Hasn't your girlfriend ever taken you shopping?'

'Oh, eh...' I looked down at my plate. 'Well... she did.' I quickly took a bite of my roll.

Elena chuckled. 'It won't be as bad, I promise.'

I nodded, my mouth still filled with bread and jam.

They dragged me to a a shoe shop in the city centre first. 'I don't know if I am sure about this...' I muttered, as soon as I saw one of the price tags.

Sofia shrugged. 'Donna Gloriana offered to pay for everything.'

'Ah. Yes. I'll... try on those red-and-black shoes,' I mumbeld. They looked nice and comfortable.

Lucia skipped past us to get them. 'Get those stilleto's too!' Elena called after her, refering to a pair of ridiculous glittery heels her sister passed.

'Figures that you would go with the first pair, after we made you fit five others,' Elena said as we walked out.

I nodded. It felt weird to be in my mothers' home country. No, it was weird to be in my own home country. It was just that my mom had really known it. I only recognised a few fleeting details.

When we crossed a bridge, I stopped to take a look at the buildings around me. Sofia stopped next to me. 'Is there something?'

I shook my head. 'This was the country of my... my great-grandmother, and I am the first one in generations to set foot here. It feels strange.'

Lucia put her hands on the railing of the bridge and looked out over the water. 'Did you ever meet your great-grandmother?'

I hesitated. 'Eh... yes. When I was very little. I know she... wore black hats and pearls. And... I mean, I think she took us on a holiday once... And...' I felt tears burning in my throat. I swallowed 'And... I just wished I knew more. I remember that I really liked her.' I sniffed. 'Hm.'

Lucia looked a little crestfallen. 'Eh... sorry for asking.'

'It's okay,' I mumbeld. 'Being here means more to me than I thought. It makes me think and remember things I haven't thought or rememberd in a while.' I took a deep breath. 'What more did Donna Gloriana tell you to buy for me? I think I have to wear more than just shoes.'

Elena strided past me. 'A whole lot more.'

Lucia walked to the other sighed of the bridge. Sofia patted my shoulder. 'Be careful with yourself, okay?' she told me, before we went on.

'What is it like to be a demigod?' Lucia asked, while we were searching through a clothing rack. 'I hear about them sometimes, because my family has a few of them, but I never understood what it's really like.'

I thought for a moment. 'When you first learn you're a demigod it's weird. It feels like there are monsters around every corner.'

'Are there monsters right now, in the store?'

'One of the shop assistants is a fire demon, but she isn't dangerous. She, like a lot of monsters, has integrated into human life.'

Lucia pulled a face. 'Which one? I don't want to talk to her.'

I smiled a devious smile. 'Find out.'

'That's mean!'

I snickered. 'Quickly you get used to the world around you. Then you start to develop powers. I can raise skeletons, for example.'

'Skeletons?' Her eyes twinkled when she said it.

'Eh, I'd better not show you right now.'

'Of course not.' She giggled. 'I do feel like there is a little magic around me, though.'

'I couldn't say that about America,' I said with a sigh.

'I think there is magic in America! I'd love to see it some day.'

'It's nothing special.'

'To me, Italy is nothing special. But you made a lot of effort to come here... oh!' she pulled a shirt out of the clothing rack. 'Try this.'

'I think Bianca would have liked it here, too,' I said while we were sipping a coffee and chatting. 'You know, my sister, I said things about her over the phone.'

Sofia stirred her coffee. 'I think she would have been glad to see you got here.'

'I'd find it awful to lose one of my sisters,' Lucia said. 'I would miss them every day.'

I nodded. 'I still miss Bianca, sometimes. But you can't stay sad forever.'

Elena looked up. 'Do you think your mother wanted to visit Italy?'

'...yes. I think she would have loved to see the country again some day. She would have been happy here.'

'Are you happy here?' I looked at Lucia. 'I mean, it sounds like your life wasn't always easy,' She went on. 'So...'

I slowly nodded. 'Yes, I am happy here.' I meant it. 'That I was strong enough to come here already shows that I am happier than before. You have all treated me very kindly. It feels good to know that my family is still there for me.'

'You've got family at home, too,' Elena stated. 'Like the people who were with you during the phone calls.'

I nodded. 'But I am still glad that I can add all of you to that family.'

A/N: A 'catch,' as in, the little trap in what someone says, is called a 'addertje onder het gras' in the Netherlands, or directly translated: 'The little adder (A type of snake) under the grass.' I had this in the draft up until the very last one, when I realised no-one in English ever said that.

I might have rewritten whole parts of this chapter last minute.

I am on a holiday now, the Island is pretty