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DaughterOfHecate: I'm glad that you like it! I love writing Hazel and Reyna, they've got to be two of my favourite characters ever! Artemis and Draco will show up in a chapter or two, but the next 2 or 3 chapters will be focusing on the Greek side of things. I hate needles too, I was literally poking myself with a pencil all morning to prepare myself I don't really have a precise schedule, but I try to update at least once a week, mainly on weekends. And yes, Hades being frustrated with his brothers brings me immense joy School's a lot better that I expected, thanks for asking! I hope you enjoy this chapter, and thank you once again for your kind words and support!

Nico had never been so eager to be in the Underworld.

The minute his feet touched the ground, he broke out into a run, relieved to finally be back on his home turf.

He raced towards Elysium, ignoring the millions of faceless spirits he passed, his heart thumping with anticipation.

He and Bianca hadn't seen each other since the day of the battle at Camp Half-Blood. Even though Nico was fully capable of visiting her in Elysium, he had resisted the urge(sometimes Nico didn't know if there was an urge to resist anymore... if he even wanted to visit Bianca). It was some sort of an unspoken agreement between the two of them, they had said their goodbyes, seeing each other again would just make it harder to leave. Nico had to move on and live his life, he couldn't do that if he kept visiting his dead sister(If he didn't visit her, he could almost pretend that she had never died. That she had just left for a while.) He'd assured himself that he'd be able to spend his entire afterlife catching up with Bianca. He was in no hurry to visit(he didn't want a repeat of the last time he missed his sister) But now... now everything was different.

Bianca could come back. She could come back. They could be a family again. Everything would be alright.

'Would Bianca even want to come back?' a part of him wondered, 'The dead need to stay dead, remember genius?'

'This is different,' he assured himself, 'Besides, why wouldn't she want to come back?'

Nico couldn't provide himself with an answer.

"Nico!" he heard someone call.

Nico spun around to see Charles Beckendorf beaming at him, a girl whom he assumed was Silena Beauregard standing next to him.

"Long time no see, kid." he greeted, walking up to him with the beaming smile still on his face.

"Beckendorf," Nico smiled, trying not to make his grin seem too forced, "How's Elysium treating you?"

"Never been better," he answered happily, "Although," he added in a whisper, "The constant parties are getting kind of tiring."

Nico laughed politely, trying his best to pay attention to what Beckendorf was saying.

"Don't tell your dad I said this, but Elysium can get kind of boring after a few months. I mean parties are nice and all, but maybe we could have an activity table? Or a forge, maybe? Or even-"

Silena placed a hand of Beckendorf's chest, signaling him to stop, "Is something bothering you Nico?" she asked gently, apparently having noticed his absent-minded behavior.

"What? Oh, it's nothing, I was just looking for Bianca, that's all. Have you seen her?" he asked, peering over her shoulder.

Silena looked down, looking almost guilty, while Beckendorf winced, muttering something about machines being easier to handle than angsty 12 year old's.

"What's wrong?" Nico asked, his stomach plummeting, his excitement steadily being replaced by dread, "Where's Bianca?"

When Silena finally met his eyes, he noticed that they were full of regret, "I'm sorry Nico." she said, placing a ghostly hand on his shoulder, "Bianca chose to be reborn."

Nico stumbled backwards, staring at her in disbelief, desperately trying to find a sign that she was lying, that she was wrong.

"What? No, she-" 'she wouldn't' was on the tip of Nico's tongue, until he realized that Bianca would do that, and had done it before(She had left him. Again.)

He swallowed the dry lump in his throat, "When?" he croaked.

Silena looked at him with something that resembled pity, but right now, Nico couldn't bring himself to care.

"A few hours ago." she whispered, "At least, according to Underworld time."

Nico's world froze. Hours. He had been so close. He had missed the chance to bring his sister back by mere hours. He had failed her. Again.

Nico felt tears pooling in his eyes and wiped them away furiously.

Silena and Beckendorf exchanged concerned glances.

"Nico-" Silena began, squeezing his shoulder.

Nico wrenched himself from her grasp, mumbling quickly, "Sorry. I- I just need-", he frantically blinked back tears, "I got to go." he muttered, racing away from Elysium, while Silena and Beckendorf watched his retreating figure in concern.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" Charles asked, "Should we go and talk to him or something?"

Silena shook her head, "I think he needs some time alone, Charlie. He needs some time to process this."

Beckendorf shook his head sadly, "Poor kid."

Silena had to agree.

*****Line Break*****

Nico made it to the Fields of Asphodel before breaking down completely.

He screamed, sobbed, and cursed. Cursed Bianca for leaving him again. Cursed his father for filling him with false hope. Cursed himself for not being fast enough.

After about 15 minutes of screaming and crying, Nico felt his anger and grief leave him, and he slumped against a poplar tree, filled with an exhausted numbness.

He curled up against the tree, his head on his knees, taking shaky breaths.

It was then that something struck him.

She didn't even say goodbye.

That made him start crying all over again, although this time is was softer, quieter and less destructive.

He knew that logically, Bianca couldn't have waited to say goodbye. They both knew that he would've tried to talk her out of it, that he would've convinced her to come back.

Bianca knew better than to break the laws of death, even if their father himself allowed it. She always had been a goody two-shoes.

Had. Bianca was gone now. For good. She wouldn't even remember him now. They'd never be able to spend their afterlives together like Nico had always imagined. She was an entirely new person now.

Nico didn't know how long he spent crying his heart out under that poplar tree, and most spirits gave him a wide berth.

Keyword: Most

Nico sniffed miserably and lifted his head in surprise as he felt someone place a cold hand on his shoulder.

He looked up to see a young girl, who looked about his age, with curly cinnamon colored hair and dark skin. She was staring down at him, looking genuinely concerned.

"Are you alright?" she asked softly.

Nico wipes his eyes furiously, "Yes." he answered roughly, "Of course I am."

"You don't look fine." she stated bluntly, her voice still kind.

"Don you want to talk about it?" she asked when he didn't respond.

Nico nodded meekly, feeling a bit awkward talking to a random spirit, but he really needed to get it off his chest.

"I- I came here to bring my sister back to life." he answered, his voice hoarse.

The girl's eyes widened in surprise, "Is that possible?"

"It should have been." he answered bitterly, before taking another shuddering breath, "She's gone." he whispered.

The girl tilted her head in confusion, "Isn't everyone here 'gone'? Except you, obviously."

Nico should his head vigorously, "Not that type of gone. Bianca, well, she chose to be reborn. She left me," he choked out, "Again."

The girl's eyes softened, "I'm sorry." she said.

Nico nodded half-heartedly, and the two of them sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes.

It occurred to Nico that he didn't even know the girl's name.

"What's your name?" he asked tentatively.

She smiled at him, "Hazel Levesque.", she said, extending a hand.

"Nico di Angelo." he answered, shaking her extended hand.

A few moments later, he realized that there was something... strange about Hazel.

"You're different," he mused, trying to put his finger on what exactly was so unique about her.

He snapped his fingers triumphantly, "I've got it! You're a child of Hades, aren't you?"

"Hades?" Hazel echoed, looking confused, "My father's name is Pluto, not Hades."

"You're Roman." Nico realized.

His sister. The sweet girl who had patiently listened to him vent was his sister.

"Roman?" Hazel asked, "What do you mean? I'm from New Orleans!"

"Hazel," Nico began cautiously, "What do you know about the Greek gods?"

A.N:

Hi! I'm back(early too!)

I'm really excited for the next few chapters, which is why it's so early. I really had fun writing this one, and it only gets better from here.

Artemis, Draco and the others are taking a backseat for about 2 more chapters, but I promise, they'll be back soon!

Also, Nico's starting with the Greeks because he knows a lot more about Greeks than he does about Romans. I also refuse to believe that Nico chose to bring Hazel back to life without having some sort of bonding moment with her first. He wouldn't bring some random kid back to life just because she's his sister.

I hope you all had as much fun reading this chapter as I did writing it! With luck, the next chapter should be out soon!

-Keera(ڡ)