A/N: Folks, it's been so long. Looking back, I don't wonder why I took a break from this thing. It sucked.
But, uh, I started this up again when I was at someone's party. And I think it can work. I'm trying a new plot, one that's different from the one I was planning on before. And I'll try to make less Mary-Sue OC characters.

Thanks so much for reviewing!

***

Nico

I hate dancing.

Let me just tell you that, whoever you are. I hate dancing. I'd rather burn in the fiery pits of Tartarus than dance at a prom or spring formal or whatever the Hades people have at mortal schools.

Ah. See, I don't have to go to school anymore. Lucky, lucky me, huh?

So anyhow, asking Miri if I could be her escort to… to this thing was out of question if I wouldn't be going at all. 'Cause I wasn't, due to my dancing disability. I wasn't asking anyone and because I was definitely, defintely not going. No matter whatever Aphrodite said, that irritable hag.

Excuse me?

Er, nothing. Nothing at all, ma'am.

Don't call me 'ma'am'. It makes me feel old.

Oh, uh, sorry.

Ahem. So as I was saying earlier, I wasn't going to ask Miri to come with me to this stupid little camp thing, this stupid little thing that Chiron must be out of his mind to agree to, this stupid little thing that was absurdly ridiculous to host at a demigod camp!

Why would I ask Miri, anyway? People still think we're brother and sister. I don't like her. Naw, I don't. That's gross.

And also, she's... strange.

In a good way.

What's that supposed to mean?

Gods. Get out of my head.

Don't tell me what to do, mister. I'm still—

Yeah, I know. You're still fuming over what I said before.

Hmph.

Whatever.

Nico, you either like Miri or you don't. It's as simple as that.

It's not that simple, goddess.

How do you know? I'm the goddess of love! And in your case, it is that simple.

(I paused, aggravated, before roaring to the depths of my brain—)
GET OUT OF MY HEAD!

No!

Leave me alone!

(A girly giggle echoed inside my mind.)
Oh, Nico. You're just like your father. He had so many pretty girls in the old days—not as many as Zeus, of course, but there were still quite a lot and they were all beautiful. However, all of the male children he produced with them ended up being annoying and stubborn fools like you. See, if he had a child with Persephone, even just one, now that's a different case. Their offspring would—

SHUT UP!

Silence. I hesitated, unsure whether or not she was truly gone, but I regained my confidence again when she didn't reappear for another ten minutes. My thoughts were mine again, and only mine. I sighed aloud in relief.

Then, er, I headed out to find Miri.

My 'sister' was sitting lazily on an upturned canoe near the lake, watching other people row to and forth, Ray Bans slid over her eyes like an effin' indie rockstar.

"Hellooooo, brother dearest," She drawled as I neared her. I grimaced at the word brother, but she continued to smile at me widely, oblivious.

"Hi, uh, Miri." I coughed uncomfortably, feeling less like 'thy king of ghosts' and more like 'the strange adolescent who sometimes hears voices in his head'. (Well, I was both. So there.)

"Hey, have you heard from Dad lately?" She asked. I forced a smile and shook my head, obviously being dishonest I had actually heard from him only a week ago, when he'd told me about Erebus's secret.

"Nah. He's too busy for… us."

"Ah. I see." Miri took her shades off and glanced at me. A little forlornly, I noticed. For a moment, I had the sudden urge to tell her the truth.

And I almost did. The words were just about to slip from my mouth, words about Hades and Erebus and questions like if her mother was in it or not.

But I stopped myself just as my lips parted, as my teeth opened like two sideways gates. Only a rumble from my throat escaped.
"Mmrargbh."

She wrinkled her nose. "What?"

I hesitated again, before replying quickly, "Nothing. Nothing at all."
(Like that's the truth.)

"Whatever," She waved her hand in a carefree way and stood up from the canoe. "I think I'm gonna head back to the cabin." She started to walk away, glasses dangling loosely from her fingers.

"Wait!" I called out. Miri stopped and turned around. There was an awkward pause in which she raised her eyebrows and I battled inwardly with my conscience. "Erm… do you know any of Erebus's kids?"

Someone yelled with outrage inside my mind. And it wasn't Aphrodite.

"No," she said with a chuckle. "You've been here longer than I have. Way longer. I wouldn't know anyone you don't know."

"Oh." I scratched my head. She had a point. "But, uh, there is a cabin for Erebus's kids, right?"

"Right."

I nodded. "'Kay. Thanks."

Miri walked away, leaving me behind, wondering to myself if she'd be going to live in that cabin very soon.

A short notice from Miri

I hate dancing. Gods, I just hate it. If I was ever to dance in public, it'd be a happy reality-show-worthy moment where everyone watches Miri Agopian trip over her own feet to some weird music playing in the background.

But even though I hate dancing, I love… dances. Balls. Whatever you like to call 'em. As long as it's formal and you get to dress up like a freaky princess, I'm always there. With my raccoon-like eyeliner and party-crashing kit. Mwa ha ha ha.

I'm kidding, I'm kidding! I'm fine with dances, as boring as they may be. But I'm usually found in the back of the room, slurping up fruit punch like a human vacuum cleaner.

Mmm...

What I'm saying is that, um, I probably won't be at the camp dance. I have stuff to do. Yeah.

And... Back to Nico again.

I wasn't feeling good. Actually, I was feeling sick to my stomach. The kind of get-rid-of your-lunch-and-partly-undigested-breakfast nausea.

"Nico!" Someone called out to me, where I was sitting under the shade of the Fleece-covered guardian tree, hiding from the bright noonday sun. (With my head between my knees. Holding back retch.) I could faintly see the outline of Percy running toward me, pounding footsteps on the grass.

I squinted. Ah. New shoes. That explained his heavy jog.

"What's up, man? You look sick."

Yeah, well, duh. A three-year-old could see that.

"I am sick." My voice came out as a muffled moan.

"Oh. Do you want some ambrosia?" He fumbled with the pocket of his jeans, searching for the ever-present squares that demigods kept with them at all times. When he finally found some, he opened my clenched hand, peeling back my fingers like the skin of a banana, dropping the godly food into my palm.

They helped a little, but not a lot.

There was a quiet minute of stillness. I wanted Percy to leave, but he was probably thinking that he was helping me by being there with his cousin-ly love.

"Did you know that there's a god of sarcasm?"

I looked up. I had a feeling that my eyes were red and bloodshot. "No, Percy, I didn't know that. Now could you go make out with Annabeth or something? I recover more quickly when I'm alone."

He stared at me, and I added, "It's a son-of-Hades thing."

"Yeah, I'm sure it is," he said with a tinge of irony. "But if you want me to leave, I'll go. And anyway, Annabeth…" His eyes glazed over for a moment, glassy with some kind of weird vision (about his girlfriend, of course), before he turned on his heel and scampered away. Yes, scampered, like a dog to its master.

A master that currently resided in Athena's cabin.

Hmm. The ambrosia really was helping. Maybe I could…

"Ahhh…!" I groaned and fell back down. I shouldn't have tried to stand at all, because nausea struck again the second my knees started to straighten up.

"Aww, what's wrong? Wittle baby feelin' sick?"

Another voice. It was… it was…

"Clarisse, leave me alone," I mumbled to my ankles.

"I'm not Clarisse." The person dropped something onto the grass, near my folded up legs.

A pair of Ray Bans.

"Miri?" I raised my head slightly.

"Yes, Nico, who else?" She grinned and plopped down next to me. "And anyway, do you usually have hallucinations of Clarisse? She's taken, you know."

"Shut up," I grumbled. "I might start barfing any minute."

I expected her to leap up with a loud 'ewww!', but she merely continued to sit there next to me in silence.

"Well?" I demanded.

"What?"

"Are you going to leave or not?"

Miri glared at me and huffed, "You're so rude, Nico!"

"Like you care."

"Actually, I don't. I just said that for the effect."

"What effect?"

Instead of snapping back, she laughed. "Looks like you're better now." She leaned over and…

Kissed me on the forehead.

My eyes widened and I felt my heart race like a teenage girl's, one who had just met her favorite male celebrity and was now hyperventilating with shock.

"Nico!" Someone else called out my name, for the umpteenth time that day, and Miri jumped away from me. I felt myself turn red.

"Chiron." He was galloping toward us, wheelchair-free, a worried expression on his face.

"What's wrong?" I asked as he halted to a stop.

"Your… your father is…"

"What? What's wrong with him?" I didn't even bother reminding Chiron about Miri. He probably knew the truth, too. But really, what had happened to my father? Was that the reason why I had been feeling so unwell?

"He's… gone. Without a trace."

***

Review!