Disclaimer: I do not own this series.
"Nico?" Hazel's voice said softly. A timid knock. "Are you in there?"
An aggravated sigh could be heard. "Go away Hazel. I'm not in the mood to talk."
"Well I'm in the mood to listen." She lithely slid to the floor and rested her head against the door. "Whenever you're ready."
"When are you going to understand I'm not ready?! That I'll never be ready?" A loud bang could be heard as Nico shouted. Quieter his voice rang out again much softer. "You aren't my sister. You aren't Bianca."
Hazel swallowed the impulse to cry once again over this issue. She forced herself to speak. "I'm not asking or planning on taking Bianca's place. What I want is for you to give me a chance. To give all of us a chance."
A few seconds passed by. Not even the faint sound of breathing being made out. As well the ship had been too well made to offer anything more than the slightest sound of voices, carried far away from their sources.
"What can I say?" He paused. "I push others away to avoid being hurt. So why are all of you guys trying to make me feel? I'm not some masochist."
"It's life." Simply stated. "Of course it would be so much easier to live life without the turmoil that other people bring into our lives. But what kind of life would that be?"
"Peaceful."
"Boring." She continued. "I didn't have to worry about people when I was dead. But that felt empty. Like I was giving up. That is death."
"How fitting for us then." She could practically hear the smirk dripping from his voice. "The son of Hades as dead in life as he shall be in death. How freeing it is. You may want to try it sometime."
"No."
"No?"
"As children of Plut...Hades...we need to be even more alive. We can see how truly dead those down below are."
"So?" Nico seemed to sink even more into his depression. "What's wrong with death?"
Hazel's eyes softened. "Death is an integral part of our lives. But I kinda prefer not to let it rule my life."
"Who said we get the choice?"
"I say we do. We have gone on listening to everyone else like they seem to know any more than we do."
"Some people seem to. Like Jason and...Percy..." Nico's voice cracked on the last name.
"I'm not going to deny that they are great leaders, but that doesn't mean they know more." She chuckled. "They can be down right idiots sometimes, can't they? But what makes them great is that they listen to those around them. And they are devoted to the people that matter to them."
"Like Percy is devoted to Annabeth?" He softly asked from his side.
"Kinda. I mean it was pretty romantic how he only remembered her when he had his memories erased."
"Ha you don't say. I mean he forgot me and I had to play it off like I didn't know him."
"Oh yeah that's right. Aren't you guys friends? That must have hurt. But don't take it to heart, Juno probably planned that out. It's not like he would just forget about everyone."
"Friends...I wish sometimes... But how can you be sure? He's forgotten others before."
"Why aren't you guys friends? He seems to be trying really hard to make whatever it is up to you. And I'm sure because we are his friends. Love is a great motivator for heroes to take the necessary steps to greatness. Friendship as well, but not as much. It's not like only remembering you would have made any sense."
"Why not?" Nico asked sharply. "I've known him almost as long as she has. I probably noticed him long before she did…"
"Noticed…?"
"Forget about it."
"Nico...do you like Percy?" She tentatively asked.
"Ha like is such a small concept to describe how I feel about him."
"So you do?"
"He is infuriating. Foolish. Stubborn. Insecure. Makes promises he can't keep. As well as blind and ignorant." His tone softened. "But he cares enough to make promises, ignore what you say to make the best call, and tries so much. He is pulled in each direction but still goes his own way. And is devoted to a girl who ignored his feelings for years because she was and possibly still is hung up on a guy who chose the wrong side."
"Damn...what makes you say she is still hung up on this guy? Percy and Annabeth seem like the perfect couple."
"Guilt that she couldn't save him. If he came back to life I don't think Annabeth would be able to ignore him. He was her dream."
"And you would know this because…?"
"No one ever notices the shadows. I was there and I saw how she grieved for him. Percy is the perfect crutch if you think about it."
"How is he?" She honestly wanted to know.
"He liked her since the beginning, or so I heard. He feels guilty that he couldn't save the guy for her, even if he personally disliked him. Percy isn't going to push her to forget about him, cause he cares too much to cause her the distress of picking him or her memory. And she goes along with it!...Damn."
"Do you hate her?"
"...No…" He sighed. "I actually admire her. She's brave and smart and compliments Percy wonderfully. A match made by the gods."
"But she isn't you…" Hazel summarized.
"It can never be me! Percy would never look at me in that light. And he has Annabeth."
"Have you told him?" She gasped. "Is that why…?"
"No!" Nico grimaced on his side of the door. "I don't want him to know. I can live like this."
"Well I can't. I consider you my brother, even if you don't consider me your sister. I don't want to just sit by as you mourn over your love that can 'never be'." She stood up in indignation. "Percy is a good guy and would never make fun of you. And you need some closure, if nothing else."
"Don't you dare!" He shouted as he hurried to unlock the door. "It's not yours to share."
Nico stepped out into the hall. Hazel grabbed his arm and began to pull him towards the room where everyone was. "It's yours to share now with the support of your sister."
A/N: Well this became a lot longer than I thought it would be. Anyways that's my reasoning for why I completely don't ship Annabeth with Percy. She can stay with Luke or Thalia for all I care. Fun fact: whenever I typed her name I kept making the mistake of typing it as 'Annabath'. I swear it was unintentional. I still doubt this will end happily as a Percy/Nico story, but maybe a happy story in that Nico gets all his feelings off his chest and stuff. As much as I loved the last book, it kinda didn't reach my expectation for that scene. Anyway thanks for reading and please review.