AN: Thanks so much everyone who is taking the time to review. It's spurred me on. Here is some more. Enjoy!

Where do you start looking for a man you haven't seen in five years?

Percy was struck by that question very soon after leaving the apartment. It was a warm enough day, clear and bright, while New York was its usual buzzing self, and as far as Percy could tell, there were no immediate signs of apocalypse, so there was no need to panic.

He'd thought about contacting Nico a lot of times in the past five years, but had gone though a mixture of being unable to find Nico and been avoiding the son of Hades. It was embarrassment at being kissed, of course. Not just for himself; as far as Percy could tell, no one else seemed to know Nico was gay, not that he went around asking, and so he'd kept the kiss to himself completely. It was nothing to do with whether or not he had kissed back. That was irrelevant.

And if he had, it was because he was confused. He cared about Nico, how could he not after everything they'd been through? And then ... he'd got confused.

But now he had to find the only boy who'd ever kissed him, because Nico had probably stolen his father's secret baby. There was one person he had never tried asking. That was probably purposeful. He dug through his pockets, and found one golden drachma. This had better be the best way to find him, because no way could he pull off that same trick with Annabeth twice.

He found a quiet place in the sun with a water pipe above his head, and forced the water burst through the metal, making a mist of spray in the New York morning light. It took a lot of effort and left him breathless. And even as he looked at the water he wondered if he was doing the right thing.

He checked around in case someone was watching a fully grown man talking to a water leak, and muttered the incantation. He took the gamble.

"Hazel Lavesque."

The mist shimmered with a rainbow, and an image formed. It took him a moment to realize what he was looking at, and when he did he cried out in shock.

He had not expected to see his two good friends, Hazel and Frank, going at it like rabbits.

"Oh gods!" he cried, turning away. He nearly ended the connection, but he remembered his lack of Drachmas just in time. "Guys?" he tried, "guys, sorry to interrupt, but... guys?"

Hazel spotted him first. She screamed and smacked Frank who was on top of her. "Ow!" said Frank, "What was that for?"

She pointed at Percy, and Frank turned before springing off of Hazel. Hazel screamed once more when she realized Frank's move had left nothing to Percy's imagination.

Percy closed his eyes. "I'm sorry!" he said, "Just get covered up. This is important."

"Percy, can't you see we're busy?" said Frank, annoyed, "Maybe you should call back later."

"I would if I could, I promise you," said Percy, eyes still closed, talking to a water pipe in a New York alley. "It's about Nico."

"Nico?" gasped Hazel, "is he alright? We only talked yesterday."

"Yesterday?" Percy repeated, opening his eyes only to see them both shoving on clothes but nowhere near decent, and closing them again. "Did he come and see you?"

"No, I Iris messaged him about the invitation. Thanks for inviting us by the way. Shall we RSVP now?"

"Yeah, sure," said Percy. He should probably say something gracious about how there was no way they wouldn't have been invited to the wedding, except he was feeling quite sick of weddings now. "So, where was Nico?" He dared to open his eyes again, and saw them both now wearing enough clothes to be decent.

Hazel was frowning with concern. "In our father's kingdom," she said, "he's spending so long down there, nowadays."

Frank put an arm around her, "Hazel gets worried about him. I keep telling her, Nico's a grown man. He's technically approaching ninety. He can look after himself perfectly well."

"I'm not worried about him being eaten by monsters!" Hazel cried, "I'm worried about him cutting himself off from everyone who loves him."

Percy tried not to let his heavy guilt show on his face.

"That's his choice, Hazel," said Frank, quietly, "you can't change the way he is."

Percy thought back to the first Nico he ever met. He was a smiley boy who wanted nothing more than to tell you everything there was to know about his card game. Percy had changed the way he was.

"Is he still there?" Percy asked aloud. "I need to talk to him."

"I'd say you do," said Hazel, "he was talking about not going to the wedding. I told him Frank would carry him there if he didn't."

Percy decided not to mention how terrified Frank looked at that idea. "Do you think you can find him, Hazel?" he asked, "I don't think he'll want to talk to me, but I need to know where he is."

"Sure," said Hazel. "Wait there."

She got off the bed and headed for the bathroom.

"Er..." said Percy, "I've only got one drachma, and it's going to run out."

"She'll call you back," said Frank as Hazel disappeared. He stepped forward, then blanched and checked he was. There was a moment of awkward silence, as Percy tried to pretend he hadn't seen either Frank nor his girlfriend naked. "Er," said Frank, "How's all the planning going?"

Percy made an involuntary face which made Frank laughed at him, "That fun?" he asked.

"It's everywhere, Frank! Everywhere!" He breathed deeply, trying to calm himself, "I thought Annabeth would be cool about it, you know? Because she's always been so cool about stuff. Like sleeping on rocks in Tartarus and stuff is fine, but the idea that one flower could be out of place at our wedding would be the bringer of death and destruction to all humanity!"

Frank just laughed again. Percy frowned at him.

"Hey," said Frank, "it'll be worth it when you're happily married for the rest of your lives."

Percy nodded glumly. Married to his first girlfriend. Forever.

"How often have you guys heard from Nico?" he asked, glumly.

"Well, he never gets in contact by himself," said Frank, "Hazel just forces him to talk sometimes. About once a week or so."

So often? Percy thought. "How does he seem?"

Frank frowned, "Well, like Nico," he said, "you know; quiet, moody, unfriendly to everyone except Hazel..."

Not quite like Nico should be then, Percy thought, but then that was nothing new. And, again, probably Percy's fault.

"I can hear her talking to him," Frank said, "I'll go look."

"Yeah," said Percy after Frank left the room, leaving him looking at an empty bed and feeling rather foolish.

He waited a few moments, and then he heard shouting.

"Nico!" Hazel cried, "I'm only asking."

He didn't hear Nico's response. Maybe that was something to do with having two open Iris messages going on at once.

"Nico!" Frank cried, "You can't talk to Hazel like that!"

Again, Percy didn't hear Nico's reply, only a quiet sob from Hazel. Apparently the protective boyfriend routine hadn't been appreciated.

"Well, that's fine, then," said Frank, "we can leave you alone really well."

And Hazel burst out into the bedroom. Percy looked at her, tears dropping from her eyes, and felt a whole new heap of guilt.

"What happened?" he asked, shyly.

"He shouted at me," she said, miserably, "said I should stop bothering him. I can't stop bothering him! I'm the only family he's got!"

Percy nodded. That was true. He hoped the argument had happened before his name came up or that would be just another weight of guilt he needed to deal with.

"Sorry, Hazel," he said, because it felt necessary.

"It's not your fault," said Hazel, "I just don't get why he has to be so … closed off."

Frank emerged from the bathroom, "I told him that he needs to apologize if he wants you to keep in contact," he said, seriously.

"Oh thanks!" cried Hazel, sadly, "now how do I check he's alive?"

"He's can't speak to you like that, Hazel," said Frank, softly, "just because you're his sister, doesn't mean he can shout at you for asking how he is. I'd love to have a sister that cared as much as you do. He's an idiot for not seeing how lucky he should feel."

Hazel didn't seem able to stay angry at the big guy for that. She let her shoulders sag, and allowed Frank to put a comforting arm around her. It felt like too personal a moment to watch, so Percy decided to thank them later and leave them to it.

It was only once the image was gone, and Percy was all alone in an alley in New York, that he realized he'd spent his last drachma seeing too much off his friends and causing a sibling argument that may be unfixable. He was a bad person.

And he still had one idea of how to find Nico.

Nico had woken to find a toddler standing in a crib and staring at him.

It had not been a good omen. For a start, if that same receptionist saw him carrying, or maybe even walking, a toddler out of the hotel when he'd carried a baby in, he'd have some explaining to do.

"Hi," he said to the toddler.

"Hi," it said back.

"Er... I'm Nico," he said, pointing at his chest, "I'm your brother."

"Nico," said the toddler, and Nico breathed a sigh of relief. It was only copying words still. And it had to be an after effect of the magic that had kept him a baby for so long. This was nothing to be alarmed at.

"So, I haven't got any toddler sized clothes," he said, allowing his voice to be light and calm, "Maybe... do you think I'm going to have to get you new clothes every day? How long do you think you'll just grow like this?"

The toddler looked at him blankly. He'd taken off his own diaper during the night, but didn't seem to have wet himself or anything.

"And I should probably give you a name," said Nico, thoughtfully. "What would you like?"

The toddler put its head to one side. Nico decided it wasn't analyzing him completely with that look. It was just a toddler.

"Maybe I could name you after my Mum?" he said, "Her name was Maria, so maybe Mario?"

The toddler's eyes narrowed.

"OK," said Nico, "I don't know if I can turn Bianca into a boy's name..." internally he thought Perseus and shut it down straight away. "Hmm, I don't know if I can think of any other relatives. Except Hades, of course, and you do not want to be named after him."

The toddler continued to watch him. It freaked Nico out a bit, but he hid it. After all, this was just a toddler. What harm could he actually do?

"Well, there's no rush," he said, "we should probably get you washed and stuff. How am I going to get you some clothes without taking you somewhere and have people ask why you're naked?"

The solution came to him when he was holding the toddler in the sink (the bath seemed like a massive drowning risk for someone so small). Thankfully the kid found water as entertaining as any other child, and particularly enjoyed splashing Nico in the face. Nico got his revenge by pouring water all over the toddler's head, and when he used one of the motel towels to dry the boy, the boy said "Nico."

"Yes, little man?" said Nico, not really expecting a reply.

"My brother?" said the child.

"Yes," said Nico, assuredly, "your brother. I'm going to look after you."

And the child may be freaky and weird, but then so was Nico, and Nico still knew he had one job; protect the kid from anyone who might try to harm him or take him back to the underworld. And that meant fitting in, whatever the cost, whatever he had to do.

He felt very guilty about stealing. It felt like he was using his powers for evil, as he shadow travelled himself and the toddler into a kid's clothing store at the mall an hour before it opened. He grabbed a selection of pants and tops and underwear, in the size he thought the kid probably was and a few sizes up. He was about to leave some money on the counter when he realized that would probably give them away far more than just coming and going. So he decided to simply return the clothes when the kid grew out of them. That would possibly only take a few hours after all.

He checked out of the hotel as soon as the kid was dressed. He was walking now, clinging to Nico's hand but steady enough on his own feet, and Nico tried not to mourn the money he'd lost on the carrier and spare diapers. There was a different receptionist that morning, thankfully, and Nico didn't get questioned about how his child had aged two years in one night. He had been just about to book them into another hotel when Hazel's face had appeared in the rain-drops on the wall of a public building. He'd pushed the child gently aside and glared at her.

"Hazel!" he said, "You can't just appear whenever you want, you know!"

Hazel's face flushed, "I know," she said, "Percy just appeared while me and Frank were... you know,."

Nico blushed furiously. None of that was a picture he wanted in his head.

"What do you want?" he demanded.

"Well, Percy wants to talk to you," she said, "He says it's important."

Nico rolled his eyes. Did they even do three way Iris messages?

"Well, I don't want to talk to him," he said, stroppily, "tell him I can't go to his stupid wedding because I... I've got diarrhea, I don't care. Just tell him I'm not going."

"Nico!" Hazel protested, "He cares about you. We all do."

Nico rubbed his face; he didn't want to be told that. Percy didn't care about him; he was trying to check that Nico wouldn't tell anyone about the kiss.

"I'm not going, Hazel!" Nico said.

"Nico, wait!" Hazel called, before he could close the connection, "What's going on?"

"Nothing!" he said, realising he was now suddenly shouting.

Hazel raised her voice too, "Nico, if something is the matter ,you have to tell us! We could help!"

"I don't need your help!" Nico shouted, "I don't need anybody's help! Least of all Percy fucking Jackson's!"

"Nico!" Hazel cried, "I'm only asking."

"You're never 'only asking!'" Nico shouted, "You're interfering! Why can't you just leave me alone?" and because he realized leaving him alone was the safest thing Hazel could do right now, he added "You're just a busybody! Get a life!"

"Nico!" Frank cried, "You can't talk to Hazel like that!"

"Oh, here comes lover boy to the rescue," Nico sneered. "My life is none of your business! What I am doing does not concern either of you! And if I needed help, I can find better people to ask than the two of you!"

"Well, that's fine, then," said Frank, furious face belying the calmness of his words, "we can leave you alone really well."

Hazel was in obvious tears. She didn't speak again, just ran from the connection, revealing a bathroom behind them. Frank spared Nico one more glare.

"Keep pushing her away and you'll have no one, di Angelo. Is that what you want? To be all alone?"

"Yes, actually," Nico responded, glancing once more at the toddler who was watching him curiously from just out of Frank's view.

"Fine," said Frank. "Next time she tries to get in contact with you, I will stop her. But don't think for a minute I'm doing that for you! She is the kindest, bravest, best woman you could ever hope to meet, and you have messed her around enough now. She deserves better than you. Good bye, Nico di Angelo."

And Frank finished the conversation with un-Frank like closure. Nico tried not to let it bother him. He had done the best for all concerned. He'd protected Hazel and Frank from the fallout of him taking the baby, and he'd protected the baby from Hazel's loyalty to the gods. If he'd been kinder, Hazel would have contacted him every day for the rest of his life and Nico just couldn't risk that. It was better this way.

The toddler took his hand again. "Nico sad?" he said.

Nico nodded.

"Look after Nico," said the toddler, and Nico smiled.

"It's me that looks after you, little man," he said, "I'm the grown up."

The toddler smiled. Probably because he didn't understand. Almost definitely not because he understood far more than Nico possibly could have.

He checked them into the new hotel, this time a city center place designed for business trips, and assessed the size of the kid. He looked like a three year old now, maybe even four, probably big enough for a bed of his own. The pants were already quite short on him. Was he growing by the hour now?

He asked for a twin room, and they made their own way to the room, the kid still holding Nico's hand. He was getting to like this feeling of being wanted and needed, and when they got inside he enjoyed a pillow fight with the kid. All too soon, it was time for the kid to get changed. They hadn't even had lunch yet.

"How about... Paul?" he asked the kid, as they got him undressed.

"No!" shouted the kid.

"Andrew?" Nico suggested as he handed the kid some underwear.

"No!" shouted the kid.

"Hmm," said Nico, "then how about ... Simon?"

"No!" shouted the kid, as he pulled on some pants, and did up his own fly.

"Then maybe... Michael?"

"No!" said the kid, grabbing his own T-shirt and pulling it over his head.

"How about Peter?" Nico suggested.

The kid's head appeared at the top of the T-shirt, "No, Nico," he said, "my name is Zagreus."

Nico blinked.

AN: Reviews are now what I live for. So pressure or anything. :)