Okay guys, an update, finally! I think this is going to be the last chapter of the nightmare, and then I'll have a present time chapter and then it'll be the end! :( :) mixed feelings haha! Well, I promised my web buddy I'd advertise for her site. So it's a PJatO role play site and just PM or send her an email at if you want the URL!

Annabeth sniffed, jeez she must look like hell, her make up was probably running her cheeks making black trails and her eyes were probably red and puffy and her face was probably contorted with sobs. Some girls look dainty, vulnerable, something you'd want to protect from the cruelties of the world, pretty when they cry. Not Annabeth. She just looked horrible.

"Thalia should be here any minute, I... er... bribed fate about that too, and that's why Annabeth's here also..." Nico hung his head a bit. Percy furrowed his brow and Nico winced like a dog about to be kicked.

"Nico... what did you bribe fate with?" he asked. Nico blushed and looked down at his feet.

"Er... you know... bribed... threatened... same thing... really..." he muttered. Before either of them had time to him a black Lexus pulled up behind Percy's small green car. Thalia stepped out, not looking immediately at them and bent her head down.

"Are you going to get out?" she snapped.

"You're Little Miss Sunshine today aren't you?" a male voice replied.

"She never is Travis, drop it." a second female said. "And why do we have to go here? It's such a depressing place."

"I don't know, I just went on a whim... Percy? Annabeth? Nico?!" Thalia asked disbelievingly, finally catching sight of them.

"Thalia, it can't be Nico because, you know Luke--" Silena Beauregard said gently as she got out of the car.

"No, Luke didn't kill him I did." Thalia said staring at Nico. Nico cast his eyes down.

"He made you." he said quietly.

"Why are you here?" she asked. "How?"

"What are you talking about?" Travis asked.

"He threatened fate." Percy said, disapprovingly. Then Thalia did something no one saw coming, she burst into tears. Nico looked disturbed.

"Really Thalia, he would have killed me anyway..." he said in weak defense.

"But my own spear, and I would have joined him, followed him to the ends of the earth because I had a stupid little girl crush when I was 12. And then I realized it was Kronos speaking for him and my own cousin's blood was on my hands. How do you think I felt? I'm so sorry Nico, I got him back for you though." she smiled weakly. Nico nodded.

"Yeah, he came down pretty pissed, but hey, now he gets to torment poor souls for the rest of eternity. So everyone's happy right?" Nico's sense of humor is so irrelevant. No one laughed.

"Nico..." Thalia said once again, as if she couldn't believe he was there. "I'm sorry."

"Thalia, really I don't care. I mean, I probably know more then what you guys know up here. Luke talks in his sleep you know." he said. Just then Annabeth's cell phone rang. She blushed and fumbled to get it out of her bag.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Andi? Where are you? I called and left a message this morning." a male's voice said. Matt.

"Matt, look I ran into... some old friends and I really needed to talk with them." she said.

"Enough to miss our anniversary brunch?" he asked, sounding a little hurt. Annabeth nearly dropped the phone.

"Oh my gods Matt, I'm so sorry. It totally slipped my mind and I mean, I haven't seen these people in 11 years, they're practically family! Well some of them are..." she said.

"Andi I'm tired of the excuses, I don't care If you met the president of Afghanistan, that's the last time you miss one of our dates. Don't bother coming home tonight." and then there was nothing but dial tone. Annabeth swore in ancient Greek.

"The guy broke up with me over the phone." she said disbelievingly. "What kind of loser breaks up with someone over the phone? And now I don't have a place to sleep."

"You can crash at my place." Percy offered. "Rachel's out of town."

Hours Later:

"Well, I'll see you guys someday s- well hopefully not soon, but I will see you guys." Nico said. The remaining half bloods were in Percy's apartment, it was nearly midnight. Nico has stood there dejectedly for a while, not sure what would happen. As the witching hour approached Percy's watch went off. Nico took one last breath of air. "See you guys." He gasped a little as the gaping wound regenerated. Blood fell onto the kitchen floor. The Mist began swirling around and all that was left was a stained linoleum tile to mark that Nico di Angelo has been there...