I had this one unfinished for the longest time! So here I bring some Hazel/Nico bromance for those who love them as much as I do, hope you like it.

As always, this all belongs to Rick Riordan.


After Nico left Las Vegas, getting used to the 21st century had taken just a little adjustment. The Lotus Hotel had slowly, but periodically been updated in a way that made it easier to figure out technology, and overall electronics. He knew about television, and music equipments, and most things.

The one thing that had caught his attention, besides Russia not being communist anymore, had been Google. The casino didn't allow connections to the outside, or at least not ones such as the Internet.

The moment he'd been introduced to the search engine he'd been marvelled, astonished, and curious. His initial trust towards Google and how that had grown into complete dependence to it was why he was at 3.30 della mattina googling how come jellyfish thought without a brain.

"Hazel," he shout-whispered.

No answer from the other side of their blanket-curtain.

"Hazel!" he tried a little louder.

A groan from his sister made him smirk. Then he felt guilty. Then he dismissed his guilt, his news was something everyone certainly needed to know.

"Hazel," he called, now in speaking volume.

"What is it?" she asked sleepily.

"I need to tell you something," he said, getting up and going to sit next to the daughter of Pluto.

"Is it an emergency?" she said, sudden worry written all over her confused face.

"No," he admitted. "But I might forget in the morning so I have to tell you now."

"Please tell me this isn't like that time you woke me up to enlighten me about how many cubs a polar bear could have in a life time."

"No, no," he shook his head. "This is shocking, I promise."

She sat up groggily, and stared at a picture he was showing him on his phone screen.

She looked at him with slight annoyance. He smiled encouragingly.

"Did you know that the Nomura's Jellyfish can grow to a diameter of 2.2 metres? They're tentacles can reach 7 metres! Do you even know how many feet those are? Like a million or something!"

"Go back to sleep," she told him, pulling her knees to herself in a more comfortable position, rolling away from her brother. "Jellyfish are gross."

"They're cool," he corrected. "And huge, 2.2 metres is taller than our cabin door! And 7? That's two storeys height, Hazel!"

Silence greeted his excitement.

"Fine," Nico conceded. "I'll go to sleep."

And sure he did, Hazel knew. His snores were soft but too regular to be faked, plus once his curiosity had been satisfied, he had nothing to stay awake for.

That was not the case for Hazel. She couldn't help thinking that she didn't go much to the beach, unless Percy was there, and even then she went in a group. Over the time she'd stay at Camp Half-Blood, he'd insisted in trying to teach her how to surf -an ability he'd acquired proudly but she lacked of completely-.

She'd always known jellyfish existed, but the ones she'd had the misfortune to encounter were not bigger than half a feet and looked like disks of transparent jelly. Not that horrific bush of certain death her brother had found "cool".

She shivered as she pictured the giant thing swimming next to them on the sea.

Twenty minutes later she was still turning and twisting, maybe they weren't even in America. She needed to find out, but how? This late at night who could...

What was that thing Nico used to find answers? The others had laughed once, Thalia and Percy had said it made him look like when he was 10, "hyperactively adorable but with too many questions".

Sahara? Salami?

She turned to face her brother, who had carelessly left the curtain open when he'd left. He was facing the wall with his head, but with his body looking down. One of his hands hung loosely from the side of the bed, an object still barely attached to it.

She quietly got up and took the phone from her brother's hand. He wouldn't be needing it. He grunted and mumbled something, then turned slightly.

She sat on her bed, curiosity getting the best of her. Nico had tried to teach her to use the phone. He'd told her the way to unlock the thing and how to use "apps".

She pushed the colourful symbol. Safari, that was it!

It took a little bit, with Hazel continuously pressing the button again in case the phone had forgotten, or wasn't accepting her touch, or something.

After a while she got the hang of it. She found out that luckily, that type of jellyfish live in Asia, that 7 metres were almost 23 feet, that fetuses grew finger nails on the twelfth week, and a bunch of other interesting stuff.

She was actually having fun when the phone turned off all of a sudden.

Her eyes widened, what had she done? Nico was going to kill her! He hated people touching his cell with "all his black heart", as he had once explained.

She shoved the item in her bedside table's first drawer. She'd tell him tomorrow. The last thing she needed was to have to wake up her tired brother for this. He had to be in a good mood -or as good as he got- for her to tell him. What's more, she could even wait until he'd gone to his late morning routine in the infirmary. Because, infirmary meant Will, Will meant happiness, happiness meant a relative good mood, and a good mood meant he might even have patience with her for murdering his device.

Yes, tomorrow. He wouldn't even remember his phone. He didn't use it that much during the day.


The next morning Hazel woke up early. Camp Jupiter decidedly made campers get used to the lovely pink light of dawn. Nico of course kept sleeping until well after 9.

At breakfast, she sat with Jason and Percy on Jason's table. After everything that had happened, Percy and Jason had asked the camp's activity director whether they could sit together. Chiron had accepted as long as Mr D was all right with it. The camp's head had agreed with a not-very-sincere comment about not ruining any bromances.

"Mornin'," said Jason smiling.

Hazel liked mornings with her cousins. Even Thalia whom she'd met for a bit. They were funny to be around and avoided talking about their inborn twisted fate. She guessed when you were a kid of the Big Three out in the modern mortal world, better see the light in the darkness or you'd never be happy.

"Slept well?" Percy asked. He looked as if mornings weren't his area of expertise.

She nodded as honestly as she could. They both eyed her strangely but kept quiet. They probably thought they were dreams about the war, or maybe even her own long forgotten past.

After a while, Nico joined them, still rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He grunted a 'good morning'.

"To you too," said Jason. "Hey I was wondering yesterday, I didn't know..."

"You never do, young cousin," Percy patted Jason's back.

"Hilarious," the blond remarked plainly. "Anyhow, who of us is the youngest? Because technically you guys are like 80," he explained looking at the children of the Underworld.

"Eighty?" Percy asked. "Is it really that much?"

"Here, let's make the math," Nico fumbled in his pockets. "Wait... Ah right, no phone. I must have dropped it when I slept, couldn't find it this morning."

"You were looking for dumb facts in the middle of the night again?" Jason raised an eyebrow.

"Let the kid find out stuff," Percy rolled his eyes.

"Hey! Didn't we just literally establish I'm old enough to be your grandfather?" Nico scoffed.

"Dreams are free, kiddo," Jason smiled, in good humour. "But you really should sleep more. You've got eye bags."

"Yes, Nickie, our mamma bear here worries," Percy teased the blond. In a shrilly voice he added, "Sleep better, eat your greens, and brush your teeth before going to bed."

Nico snorted, "I'll go see what I can do in the infirmary."

"Ah, young love," Percy sighted when Nico was out of sight.

Hazel giggled.

"The new Brangelina," Jason agreed with a laugh.


Hazel sparred with Annabeth for a bit, then went to draw calmly at Arts & Crafts. Only after she returned to her cabin before lunch did she encounter the problem she'd try so hard not to face.

Nico was stretched face first in his bed trying to find something between it and the wall. She could see his back muscles moving as he tried to reach the thing with his arm.

"What are you doin'?" she asked calmly. She knew perfectly well but maybe he'd let it go. "Don't you wanna come for lunch?"

"Just a sec," he replied, his voice muffled by the covers. "It has to be here somewhere."

"Aren't you hungry?" she insisted. "Saving lives with Will... it must be tiring."

He chuckled dryly as he stood up, and started pulling stuff from under his bed.

"I save no lives," he corrected. "Will does and I watch with interest."

"So," she said. "About lunch?"

"You're insistent!" he huffed. "Let me get my phone, and I'll go!"

Hazel sighted heavily. She had to tell him. Perhaps they could take it to the Hephaestus cabin and they'd fix it.

"You won't find it there," she whispered.

"Not with that attitude I won't," he muttered as he lied on his stomach, and crawled under the bed to see better. "Hey I found those Tic Tacs I lost the other day, you want one?"

She made a face, "Gross."

He mumbled something she couldn't quite hear and started moving objects here and there.

"I meant that I know where the phone is."

The shifting of things stopped. Nico emerged from under the bed, his hair full of dust bunnies.

"And you didn't tell me that before I hit the ground because...?" he questioned with slight irritation.

"I... borrowed it, last night, after you went to sleep," she admitted. Her voice small.

"Ah," he said. "Just tell me next time, yeah? I've been worrying over it for a while. That's as far as dad's affection goes he'd be mad if I lost that mobile."

"Cell," she suggested. "Percy and Jason call it that: cellphone. Why did you call it mobile?"

"Po-tey-to, po-tah-to," he shrugged indifferently.

"Ah."

"So," he stared at her expectantly. "Where can I find my cell-slash-mobile phone, if I may know."

She slowly opened her bedside drawer and handed the object to Nico.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled.

He eyed her wearily. Then eyed the device. Then pressed the home button. Some symbols appeared on screen, the ones that haunted her since last night.

"Did something happen to it?" he inquired.

"Those things!" she cried pointing to the screen. They won't go away!"

"Oh," he raised an eyebrow. "It only takes about two hours to charge. Don't be too depressed by that."

"Charge?" she wondered. "It's broken! I messed it up!"

He looked at her bemused. Then his eyes cleared.

"No, no, Hazel!" he talked quickly. "It's not broken, it needs to be charged! Every cell does, it's the only way you can carry it around with you!"

"So..." she looked strangely at the apple that appeared on screen. It seemed to be missing a bit.

"It's supposed to do this," Nico explained. "Or well, not this often, I've never got any battery, Jason's always mad at me because of that. But it's normal for it to turn off."

She stared at the floor, her cheeks felt warm.

He seemed to realise she was put off by this news.

He smiled tentatively. He didn't want to make her feel dumb.

"Hazel," he said, slowly. "No one will laugh at you for this."

"You don't think so?"

"Nah," he shook his head, wrinkling his nose for effect. "After I tried to push an automatic door there's nothing they haven't already seen."


I know demigods aren't supposed to have phones, but c'mon, that rule's obsolete in any way that matters when it comes to fanfiction. Also, I know Brangelina isn't the best comparison right now, but have in mind I wrote it before and I really have no other couple I could name off my head.

If you liked it please leave a review, it'd make me super happy.

Thanks for reading!

TagTheScullion