"Let me get this straight," Alabaster said, his hands shaking as he clutched his cup of Swevian Tea. Lou's own cup was untouched.

"You need my help- on a quest? Most particularly, you need...it. The very thing I cannot use to it's full power. Explain yourself."

Lou stared guilty at the ceiling, trying to come up with a good response, and not getting it straight forward. What would she tell him- that she was on an illegal quest just because she had a strange untamed gut feeling that may or may not be valid? What would he think of her then?

"I...I need to help someone. It's the wizarding world- we're on the brink of a war, as I said. Mom may have told you- she doesn't keep much things secret, these days, does she?" Lou hadn't planned on it, but she spat out the last part.

Alabaster seemed to pick on it, and raised an eyebrow, seeming to get over his slight annoyance with her story.

"What did she do this time?" Alabaster sighed, his muscles relaxing. He finally took a sip of his tea, looking at Lou with a quite obviously inquiring look.

Lou clenched her eyes shut, and decided that if she would re-gain her half-brother's trust, she had to be frank with him. She launched into her story.

Lou talked and talked for what seemed like hours. She ranted about Hecate, her Revelation of Nico's soon-to-be death. She talked about how she and Mera had work on that case, about Prosedzo, about Mera's disappearance and her strange feeling of dread whenever she thought about it. With a lurch, she even told his about how they had planned on telling Annabeth, as she finally remembered they were intending to do that. Lou began to notice just how much things she had been planning had gone stray.

As Lou talked, Alabaster listened, taking occasional sips of his beverage as he did, eyes never leaving her. He had a thoughtful expression on his face. His brow was scrunched, but his posture remained considerably relaxed compared with when he'd discovered Lou-Ellen at his door.

"Alright," Alabaster said, setting down his cup and clasping his hands together. "I believe you. I'll admit, Lou, that I didn't feel very pleased to see you- but you'll have to forgive me for that. Years as an exile..." he sighed, shaking his head. "It makes me a little...not me. I understand that you need my help, and I understand why- maybe I just got a little angry at figuring you were showing up for my help when no one exactly asked about my whereabouts for nearly two years." He tilted his head to the side. "I'm sorry I blew up at you." Alabaster ended this with a shrug.

Lou felt her heart clench at his words, and realized what this had meant to him- her just showing up after a couple years and asking for his help. Lou's actions were an impulse. Her eyes pricked ever so slightly. Without even realizing it, she jumped across the short table, dropping her mug and not caring about the spilled tea or the broken glass, as she threw her arms around Alabaster.

"I'm sorry," Lou-Ellen muttered, struggling not to cry. "I really, really I am. I tried to help get you back- I swear it on the River Styx, I did-" Thunder rumbled in that cloudless day in Woodinville. "-but no one would listen. I tried to reach you out- but IM's wouldn't reach and-and-and I-" She broke down completely, not making any noise, but simply digging her face into his shoulder, and letting her tears flood. After moments of flabbergastation and hesitation, Alabaster hugged her back tighter, and tried to soothe her.

She wondered how everyone would feel about watching her cry- Lou-Ellen, the daughter of Hecate with her stealthy, sly, witty and silently powerful personality, breaking down because she had realized what a complete idiot she was. Feeling like a kid again, she let Alabaster calm her down, relaxing in his grip.

He pulled her off, having both hands on her shoulders as he did so.

"Hey," he said, sounding genuinely surprised. "Calm down...It isn't your fault- it never was. And I'm okay now..I have friends- I have a life."

Lou sniffed, nodding, and feeling slightly less guilty. "I just didn't want to loose-to loose another person that means a lot to me. And...I'd understand if you can't help but-but-"

"But I will help," Alabaster interrupted firmly. "I trust you. You can use this well." He guided her back to her seat and waved his hand. Another cup of something brow- Swevian Hot Chocolate appeared out of the mist. He pushed is forcibly into her hands. "Drink," he commanded. "it'll make you feel better. I'll got get what you wanted." And go he did.

Lou sipped a little of her warm beverage, surprised to learn it was quite delicious, and warmed her to the root.

In mere seconds, Alabaster appeared, holding a golden vial. Despite having asked him for it, Lou never really expected him t give it to her. She gasped at the exotic liquid as her brother handed it to her.

"Is this...is this really-?" she stuttered.

"Yes," he said, smiling somewhat proudly. "It's my experimental Exilir. It sure can't make you live longer, but it heals extreme and fatal wounds."

"This-this wouldn't happen to work against the AK, would it?" Lou asked, a little desperately.

Alabaster's eyes darkened slightly. "Lou, nothing can work against the Avada Kedavra. Nothing- I mean it. It's too dangerous already the way it is- this Exilir is extremely delicate. One drop, or bit, or speck of dust would ruin it completely- it would turn the solution into Apothermegyi."

Lou's hands shook and she stared at the innocent looking liquid that could kill her in seconds.

"This- this could turn into a magic destroyer?" she asked shakily.

Alabaster nodded solemnly. "It' deadly to us, children of Hecate- for a wizard, it will corrupt your magical core, rendering you a Squid for a while before it recognizes the pattern of the magic that used to flow through their veins and in their bloodstream, and then the potion starts following the route,leaving a mark on- it litters your blood, slowly killing you as painfully as possible." As he spoke those words, he stared intently a the potion, which glittered harmlessly, not knowing it posed such a great threat.

"And if you were a child of Hecate?" Alabaster whispered ominously. "It destroys your existence- because we are magic. Magic in us is more than just a natural core- it's a birthday right. Magic is a part of our soul, of our essence. If you, for example, take this potion?" he looked up at her, his eyes half closed in concentration. "It 'd be like...like erasing a part of your being, and then letting you sort of fade out of existence on your own. It's brutal, this potion is- the only reason I made it is because cures tend to come in handy in situations when you're out here, away from a safe haven, and being tracked down by monsters often."

Lou nodded, understanding the danger behind the golden glints of the Exilir.

"Wait- hold on, how did you find out I had this?" Alabaster said, looking puzzled.

Lou laughed shakily- the conversation had unnerved her. "I didn't..at first. But... this may seem weird, but when I saw you, I- I had a sort of..in sight. A knowledge of something I didn't use to know."

"Mother," Alabaster muttered. "Of course. She must have altered your thoughts- made you think it was necessary to do what you did."

"I wonder what else she altered." Lou said bitterly. "I don't think I really have any use for this."

Alabaster shook his head no. "You'd better keep it- loathe as I may be to admit it, she must have a reasonable excuse for this- keep it close."

Lou-Ellen reluctantly agreed. She was really glad that Alabaster had a life in the magical world to look forward to even if he was banished from the demigod one.

"A question though," he said. "If you didn't come for this," he pointed to the Exilir. "Then why did you come."

Lou bit her lip nervously. "That night...when mom told me about Nico, I was angry. I blamed her for a lot of things, including your exile. And then, when Aphrodite was talking to me, she asked me if I loved you- and I said yes, of course I did. Your mentions? I don't know, they just sort of stirred up something inside me, and it felt...right to come to you now."

Alabaster smiled, with a new light shining in his eyes. "I love you too, sister. I just hope your troubles are worth it. If I can help with anything, then let me know it.

Lou grinned brightly. "Will do. I hope my troubles are worth it, too. I swear, if I have to apparte again.."

Alabaster laughed for the first time since she came.

-O-

The response Nico got from Vitellius was instantaneous- the Lar nodded at him approvingly.

"Quite thoughtful, Ambassador of Pluto, sir." the ghost said. "I mean, a permission from Death himself? How absurd!"

Nico mentally smirked, but he was also confused. He opted the logical respone. "Uh, yes, absoultely."

Vitellius seemed delighted that Nico was agreeing with him. "How unjust, indeed! This is messing with the natural balance of things, I say, and I know it's not your fault, My Lord, no, I never said it was! But what an annoying feeling of unbalance- us Lares can look briefly into the future you see, and the things we saw, I shall not repeat!"

Nico nodded, sipping the much, missed hot chocolate of New Rome and paying close attention- Vitellius seemed to relish that, basking in the attentiveness.

"Yes, yes thank you! I see you finally understand. Us Lares must silently show our disapproval of this. Of course, us Romans don't complain, so we opt this method." He looked down at Nico proudly, as the other Lares sent them suspicious looks, but didn't dare approach them when Nico was there.

"Right...of course. I'll try and deal with your problem. Thank you for your cooperation- I mean, for your opinion on the matter. Uh, dismissed." The Lar floated away, looking rather proud of himself, and ignoring the glares of his fellow Lares.

Nico had some very interesting news to tell Annabeth, that night.

-O-

Christmas that year was different. Nico wasn't really one to have a holiday spirit, because it reminded him too much of Bianca on celebrations. But today, it was totally, definitely different. A pile of gifts stood on his bed in the fifth cohort, the one he'd been using since he'd arrived to investigate what they called 'Project Lar'. Annabeth had been fascinated with the amount of information he'd pulled out of Vitellius, and admitted that the idea may not have been so ludicrous after all. He hadn't really tried anything else- the Lars were considerably more looser after Nico had reassured them he would find some sort of miracle solution to their problems. Annabeth had told him that she and her crew would take it from there, claiming that Nico already had enough on his plate with being in yet another war.

The surprise at seeing so many gifts piled on top of another drove most of those thoughts away. Still shocked, he cautiously reached for a wrapped present as it might explode.

It didn't explode, fortunately, but it had the same affect as a dynamite when he read the note.

'Hermione Granger,- to Nico.

Merry Christmas! I hope you're happy, wherever you are. I dropped by at Grimmauld Place, and I've been told what happened. I really do hope you can trust us with your secrets whatever they may be. I'm not stupid (Nico snorted) I know something's up. I just really, really want you trust us enough to tell us, sooner or later. Anyway, Mr. Weasley's doing great, and Sirius is happier than usual.

Stay Safe!

-Hermione.

As Nico put down the note with a look of typical surprise on his face, Hazel strode by.

"Happy Holidays, Nico!" she said cheerfully, and walked over to kiss him on the cheek. "I see this school of yours had decent people. Be sure to check out my gift, too!" And then she walked away, looking genuinely pleased.

Nico was warm inside, too. It was his first Christmas with Hazel, and Camp Jupiter. He tore open Hermione's gift.

It was a book labelled 'Creatures through The Centuries'. Hermione must have noticed he'd been reading about magical creatures. It was true. Nico had quite a liking to magical creatures now- they weren't like other animals. Nico was usually not too good with other living beings, but all the magical ones seemed alright. Not that he would know- they were just weird like that.

Hagrid had apparently wanted to send Nico Blast-Ended Skrewt eggs, but he didn't know if they were allowed at Camp, so he brought him a mole-skin backpack. Even Gred and Forge had brought him a few samples of their Skiving Snackboxes and requested he show them to 'Cravis and Tonner Stoll'. Apparently, they had been secretly pen pals since November when the twins remembered Nico mentioned them, and they had taken an instant liking to each other.

Ron had brought him a broom-care set, which he didn't really know what to do with since he neither had a broom, nor will ever have one. He didn't even think he knew how to ride one, but he shrugged it off, deciding that Ron was just trying to be himself.

Harry's gift was more rational- apparently, Sirius suggested it, because it was the movie, "The Man in the Iron Mask" coming with an audiobook CD which was charmed to play and actually view little holographic figures that fought each other. He called Hazel, and they snuggled up by the greek-fire, well, fire-place and watched the 'movie' play out.

By the end of it, Nico knew exactly why Sirius and Harry had sent him this.

"That was...crude." Hazel said. "But it wasn't bad. Everyone's happy in the end, aren't they? Philippe's a good king, isn't he?"

Nico nodded, but argued a little. "I think the point, Hazel," he said calmly, "is that Philippe had to stay in prison all his life- only because he was Louis' twin brother, and for no other reason. Him being innocent simply didn't change the fact that he suffered all the same."

"But Louis is in his place now. And...and D'Artagnan married Louise, didn't he? It all fits."

Nico shrugged. "On the bright side, it always means that in the end, you have to choose what's right and not what's tempting. D'Artagnan choose to help his friends instead of staying loyal to the King because he knew it would be best for everyone, then."

Hazel looked at him seriously. "Yes," she said. "D'Artagnan reminds me of someone who gave up..gave up what he loved most in the world to help save it." She kissed him on the cheek again, and then stood up to leave.

Nico thought about her words, his thoughts wandering off to Bianca, and then to Mrs. Weasley's words.

Quite understandable that you want to spend time with your family.

Huh. Turned out he did want to spend time with his family. He went back to unwrapping Reyna and Percy's gifts, trying, and failing, not to think about midnight, at Hogwarts, as he shoved one of Ms. Jackson-Blofis' blue cookies into his mouth.

-O-

Nico shadow travelled to Camp-Half Blood, searching for Travis and Conner to deliver Fred and George's message.

The Stolls were ecstatic about it.

"A package-" Travis started.

"-from Gred and Forge-" Conner continued, jumping.

"WICKED!" they both exclaimed, running off with the sample of Skiving Snackboxes.

Only an hour later did Nico realize his mistake. Katie Bell's hair was green, much to her horror. Pollux had passed out, and claimed that he found himself in the attic of the Big House with about seven Firewhiskey bottles, and had no idea how in Hades he'd gotten there. Nobody really believed Pollux the Son of Dionysus was drunk, however, because several other demigods had fainted, too, recalling that the last thing they remembered was Travis or Conner sweetly offering them a candy. Percy was sporting an unstoppable nose-bleed which Leo kept pestering him about, saying that Gaea must have needed a lot of his blood, but that was perhaps because Leo's hair was bright pink , and Calypso was howling with laughter about it, hence he wanted to drag Percy along into the embarrassment. She, however, soon discovered she had her own problems to worry about when she discovered that she had a severe fever which turned her face bright red, due to the fact that she most likely drained down something the Stoll Brothers put in her beverage because she kept insisting that she wasn't stupid enough to take anything from them. Meanwhile, Will was having a hard time at the Infirmary because several of the Ares and Apollo kids were puking their guts out and he couldn't get them to stop. Apparently, since the Hecate and Athena Cabins knew too well to be owned, Travis and Conner made sure that their cabins smelled like dung all day long.

By the end of the day, everyone except the Hermes Cabin was pissed off at them. Nico watched in disbelief as he saw Piper laughing her head off at Jason, whose head had inflated to five times its usual size. Percy, who was still unhealthily nose-bleeding, was laughing along with her.

"You've got a big head, Jace." he quipped.

"And you've got a bloody nose." Jason retorted.

"Air-head."

"Blood tap."

"Human hot-air balloon."

"Uh...alright, I'm out of insults about nose-bleeds."

All in all, the Campers were all ready to go down on the Stoll brothers with pitchforks and torches, but Nico thought that the Stolls had really taken it too far when he saw what made him almost want to cower behind a tree.

A very orange-colored Reyna was chasing the Stolls, with her sword raised high, and several Roman and Greek victims of the pranks behind her (though not as intimidating as Reyna herself, and not to mention Annabeth who was standing beside her, eyes narrowed) yelling, "Twelfth Leigon Fulminata! Demigods of this Camp!" Her orange face twisted dangerously. "We unite again against a common foe. Romans and Greeks- CHARGE!"

About a hundred demigods charged after the Stoll brothers, who found Nico and begged him to Shadow-travel them away.

"We'll tell them you gave us the stuff if you don't!" Conner threatened.

"That," Nico said, glaring at him. "is so low." Nico, however, didn't feel like facing a hundred demigods and Reyna and Annabeth, so he let his self-preservation kick in, and Shadow-traveled them all back to Camp Jupiter, where it was thankfully quiet.

Although he may never admit it, it was the best Christmas in Nico's life.

Right. Sorry for not updating in a while and all, but it school's open and all, and mom won't let me near anything electronic except on weekends, and you know how moms are. I just hope this is enough- I intended this chapter to be amusing and funny, with a lot of family fluff. You know, Lou and Alabaster, Nico and everyone else, The Stolls and the Weasleys. In case you're wondering if they'll ever meet, then yes, the next fanfic, year 6, Travis and Conner will finally get to meet their pen-pals, Gred and Forge, at Weasleys Wizard Wheezes! But guys, I need your help on something- I'm planning to get Nico an animal, next book, but I don't know which of these :

1) An owl, which I'll probably call Helio, OR

2) A cat, which I'll call Emerald Midnight, Em, for short, OR

3)Something else...Make your suggestions.

A random reviewer said she/he doesn't think that 'Lar' is the singular or 'Lares'. Yes, thank you for trying to point that out, but I've done some research on Wikia, and it says 'Lar' is needed the singular or 'Lares'. 'Laris' sounds like it could be that too, although I haven't exactly heard about that one before, but I'll check. Thank you, I appreciate that you try to point out my flaws and I hope everyone else does that too. Oh, and just because it annoys me how everyone gets it wrong, it's pronounced 'Dar-ta-nyaan' not 'Dar-ta-genan'. Learn Francois, people!

WAZZAHM!

-Ambs out, See ya soon, once I manage to update!