Yeah, this is way over due. I'm not going to bother apologizing.

Reviews:

Katraj0908:I hope that in the new version you make it so that Nina hates Annabeth as well...also that Nina doesn't totally lash out on Apollo when she learns there's a prophecy from Apollo or something and lets him explain.

That will be changing. She will still be upset, but the fight will definitely pan out differently. Nina's at the age where hormones start to run rampant, so she won't really know how to react in this setting.

I hope Nina still has a really good relationship with her father as she does on the original. Like I know you aren't bashing Sally in this one but you should still have her send the button to him, have him visit after she's petrified, and have her send her permission form to Poseidon like I just find that sweet and shows how different of a child Nina really is, you know? I also love Daddy's girl stories as well, so...

Definitely still a Daddy's girl.

Okay this purple obsession you have going on is really annoying...like I get that it's her favorite color but you can't name a weapon purple even if it's in another language like no.

Yeah...I was 13, in my defense. Three years later, that was really messed up. Definitely changing.

EmmaTheHPJOnerd:SAWEEET! I love this story, and totally ship apollo and nina! they are soooooo sweet together! My mind is blown. At first, I was skeptical, because I normally hate gods and mortals being together as the main romance with a passion. Caleo was the only acception. But you got me hooked, and its 3am, I just finished marathoning the story. ;D also, I am looking forward to the Hogwarts part. Maybe you could have them continue the Yule Ball, but as a Hogwarts tradition, not for the tournament. And you can bring your date from outside school if you want, that way Lav can have Percy, Vati can have Leo, and Nina can have Apollo! YAY! Also, I totally appreciate the ego-melting of the smarties, cause they really do need it. :P sorry Mione, Annabeth. I LOVE YA! Bye Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious writer named MeggieBlack! Super story! Ps are you by any chance related to Sirius? Like, siriusly, are you? LOL LEL HHAHAHAHAHA pun intended. Deycies, Emma-

Thanks for the review. I wish I was related to Sirius. I like the Yule Ball idea. I'll try to find a way to incorporate it. Maybe a ball to honor the fallen after the Final Battle at Hogwarts.

Ellatheenchanted: Thanks!

yaleswindleHappy: Who will Annabeth be paired with, if not Percy? PERCAVENDER. I like it. BUT WHO? I think that she should go with charlie weasley. :P random, but I can sooooooooo see it happening

Maybe, that's actually a cute idea I hadn't thought of.

OrnellaOfOctrio: Hey, just askin, who will be Annabeth's partner? I think that she should be with either jake mason or Lee Fletcher. OR CHARLIE WEASLEY

Are you by any chance friends with yaleswindleHappy? I kind of like the idea of Annabeth and Charlie.

HayleyPlaysMC: hey, you have a spell check problem :"The size difference and Percy and me snickering into our hands," should be "The size difference kept Percy and I snickering into our hands." Helpful?

Very helpful. I didn't even notice when I went over the chapter. Thank you.

The ending of the chapter here was kinda poorly written; maybe you can close with them descending into the underworld. "As the boat slowly floated into the fiery darkness, I wondered: Will Sally treat me nicer once I save her sorry hide?" Or something like that. I am awful at writing. I KNOOOOOW that Sally is nicer, it was just an example.

Thank you for the advice. I wasn't really sure how I wanted the last chapter to end, but I have them entering the Underworld in this chapter.

Annabeth Granger: Hi... It's me. I was eleven when I reviewed your story for the first time. Now I'm 13. I loved your story. I was obsessed. I'd check every day, and my heart broke when you discontinued. I knew Nina was a Sue, but I tried to be polite. I think I was. I'm not the best socially. But now, I've read these revisions and I have to admit that your writing has improved. She does still have some traits but it isn't as awful. I admire your skill now, considering the fact that Nina was toned down for the most part. You are a good writer, I must say.

Thanks so much for sticking with this story so long. That means the world to me that even when my heart wasn't in it, I still had people who enjoyed reading. That's what brought me back to this story, so thank you.

Guest:The ending of the chapter here was kinda poorly written; maybe you can close with them descending into the underworld. "As the rock split open, a chilly breeze came from inside. The hair on my neck stood up. I stepped closer to Percy as we descended into the gloomy pit of hell." Sound good? YES! XD Lol Np

Thank you very much for the advice.

Guest: Hi just curious when are you gonna update oh also i don't have an account that's why im just a guest

Slowly but surely, yes.

ALL PEOPLE THAT REVIEWED WHILE SIGNED IN, I WILL PM YOU TO ANSWER YOUR REVIEWS. PLEASE ENJOY.

Chapter Twenty One: Santa Monica and The Underworld

We called the nearest taxi that would take us from Las Vegas to L.A. Thank the gods this guy accepted casino credit cards. When he swiped the thing it came up as unlimited. I told the guy to keep the change. As soon as we were in L.A., we hopped out out of the taxi and started on our way to Santa Monica.

Santa Monica looked exactly like the California beaches you see in the movies look like. It just smelled a whole lot worse. It was kind of like when you walked over a sewer back in Manhattan. We all walked down to the edge of the water.

"What now?" asked Annabeth.

I grabbed Percy's hand and squeezed it. He looked into my eyes and smiled.

"Ready when you are," he said.

"I was born ready," I smirked back as we began trudging into the salt water.

I could feel Percy's surprise that we were still dry and I started to mentally laugh. I stuck my tongue out at him. We were now completely submerged, and breathing. A mako shark swam up to us. It nuzzled up against us like a dog. Together, Percy and I reached out our still conjoined hands and stroked its dorsal fin. It bucked a little as if inviting us to hold tighter. We did so. As soon as we had a tight grip, the mako shark shot off.

When it finally stopped, the surface was glistening maybe 150 ft. above us. I could make out the Nereid from the Mississippi making her way toward us. She dismounted the humongous seahorse. I so want one of those. It was awesome! "Percy and Nina Jackson. Well done, you have come far. It has been many years since children of Poseidon have been born. Even longer since there have been twins." She paused and looked at me. "And, never before has our lord been blessed with a little girl before. We have watched you both with great interest." I suddenly remembered the faces in the Atlantic when I was younger. The nereids.

"If our father is so interested in us, why isn't he here? Why didn't he come speak to us?" I asked. I so hope he does care.

"Do not judge the Lord of the Sea too harshly. He stands at the brink of an unwanted war. He has much to occupy his time. Besides, he is forbidden to help you directly. The gods may not show such favoritism."
"Not even to their own kids?" my brother asked.

The nereid shook her head sadly. "I know you journey to Hades' realm. Few mortals have come back from there alive. I have for you gifts from your father. Take these,and when you are in need, smash a pearl at your feet."

"What do they do?" asked my brother as he took the four pearls. He handed me two before we both pocketed them.

"That depends on the need," smiled the nereid. She waved to us and vanished. The mako back to us, and brought us back to the beach.

Once we were on the surface, we quickly found Annabeth and Grover. We told them everything on our way back to the city. Once we got there, we started searching for DOA Recording Studios, the entrance to the Underworld. No one could tell us where it was. Eventually, we found it because of luck.

When we entered, we saw a man in an Italian suit sitting at the front desk. We gave the man, Charon, 20 gold drachma and a promise to ask Hades about a pay raise for him in exchange for letting us through. I think he got more on his part. We traveled through the Underworld and made our way to Hades' palace. Before we got there, Grover's shoes, the ones Luke gave him started acting up. They began to drag him down to the entrance to Tartarus. Oh no, this must be Kronos' doing. We chased after him and I managed to grab him before he fell in. Luckily, the shoes had been loose on him because of his hooves.

We ran rather quickly to the palace. Guards led us through the halls and I shivered. I could still hear the screams of anguish emitting from the Fields of Punishment. Percy grabbed my hand for comfort that there was actually someone else alive there. I looked back and saw Grover and Annabeth doing the same. When we reached the throne room, I bowed to my uncle. He looked as regal as ever sitting up there on his throne.

I looked up at Hades nervously. I had been in the presence of Mr. D before, but he hadn't struck me as god-like, not like Hades did. His aura seemed to simply ooze power.

"The Jackson twins have finally arrived," Hades said, smirking slightly. "I suppose you're here for your mother?"

"Yes, Lord Hades."

I turned to look at Percy. He looked so brave in the face of an all powerful god. I was just one minute shy of quivering in my shoes. I reached out and grabbed Percy's hand and turned back to look at Hades. The god was sneering down at us.

"I'll return her to you in exchange for my helm."

"We don't have it, my lord," Percy said. "We never did."

"Oh?" Hades asked. "You're lying to me."

"We swear on the Styx we stole nothing from you or Zeus," I said. Even so far under the ground, we could hear the thunder rumble as my oath took effect.

Hades eyed me curiously. "You speak the truth, daughter of Poseidon. Then do explain why my brother's Master Bolt is hidden in your bag?"

"Ares," Annabeth hissed. "He gave us the bag. He must have hidden the bolt in it."

"Then the war god has my helm as well," Hades mumbled. He stared harshly at Percy and me. "You must prove yourselves, Perseus and Antonina Jackson. You will get retrieve my helm and get it back to me. In return, I will send your mother back to your home."

Inside me, fury boiled up. How dare this god force us to risk our lives in exchange for our mother's? Why couldn't he go get his stupid helm by himself. Hades smirked ferociously at me as if he knew what I was thinking. I shuddered to think if he did.

"Fine," I grumbled. I pulled two of the magic pearls the Nereid had given my brother and me. Grover was standing closest to me, so I handed him the other one. Percy took the other two pearls from his own pocket and handed them to Annabeth. We all placed our pearl down on the floor in front of us. "We'll get your helm back. You better hold up your end of the bargain."

"I swear it on the Styx," Hades said with a sly smirk as we all stepped on our pearls. Huge bubbles formed around us, and we began to float up and up through the rock ceiling and into the bay above us.

When we arrived back at the beach, all four of us were soaked. Percy and I had to will ourselves dry so none of the mortals would get suspicious. Ares was already waiting for us.

"Didn't expect you to make it back," the war god grunted as he took a step towards the four of us. "Kind of hoping you'd die down in Old Death Breath's palace."

"Sucks for you, doesn't it," I snapped. The anger Ares evoked inside mortals was filling me up inside, just about ready to explode out of my mouth. "Where's the helm?"

I didn't bother asking about Zeus' weapon. The Lightning Bolt was already safe in Percy's bag. We just needed to get that back to Manhattan by midnight tonight. Only mostly impossible.

Ares' only response was to snap his fingers. A angry boar burst into existence and charged at us all. Grover and I jumped one way while Annabeth jumped the other. Percy pulled out his sword and cleaved the boar's left tusk off at the base. The animals started running around in circles. Ares snapped his fingers again, and it disappeared to wherever it came from.

"Not bad, Jackson," Ares said. "Sweet of you, letting your sister hide behind you like that while you do all the dirty work." I gritted my teeth. Like he didn't just hide behind that filthy pig.

"Shut up," Percy shouted.

"Course, that's what she does. Hides behind you, hides behind gods."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I snapped, my anger getting the better of me.

Ares made a baby face at me, pushing his bottom lips out in a hideous attempt at a pout. "Little, baby Nina hiding behind the sun god. Funny how's he's managed to put up with your whining for so long. Guess he kind of has to."

A small portion of my anger was replaced with confusion. What did that even mean? Apollo wasn't forced to be my friend all these years. He's a god. He didn't need to spend all the time he did with me. The same for Artemis. They did it because they liked me.

Ares seemed to revel in my confusion and anger. "You don't know, do you, little girl? About the prophecy?"

"What prophecy?" Annabeth demanded. She stepped up next to me, her dagger drawn, and gray eyes glaring heavily at the god in front of us.

Booming laughter escaped from Ares' chest. "A prophecy made long before your time, girl. About the arranged marriage between the first daughter of Poseidon and Apollo. Pity you can't expect the gods' biggest man whore to stay faithful, isn't it?" Ares was full on sneering at me. "Are you going to be his little slut, girl?"

Rage, hate, anger, sadness, and a bunch of other emotions took complete control of me. I didn't know the exact definition of slut, but I had heard Gabe call Mom and me it enough times to know it wasn't good. Before I could do something stupid, like attack Ares without a weapon, Percy did it for me. He swung and hacked his blade at Ares, and I could only watch in stunned silence.

Ares was wielding a sharp double-handed blade against my brother, pushing him back away from the water. The fighting pair was getting closer to us. Still, I couldn't move. The anger had me frozen. Annabeth and Grover each grabbed one of my hands and pulled me back. My eyes stayed focused on the fight, but my brain didn't process it. It was too busy thinking things over a mile a minute.

An arranged marriage? To my best friend?

There was another prophecy about me?

Apollo didn't really want to be my friend?

My best friend was a man whore? What was a man whore? What was a slut?

My best friend was going to cheat on me?

"Nina!"

Someone was shaking my shoulders.

"Nina!"

The shouting was in my face, but I could only stare blankly ahead.

"NINA!"

I blinked. Percy was directly in front of me, shaking my shoulders violently.

"We need to go, Nina," Percy mumbled. "You can think about whatever on the plane ride to Manhattan. Come on. I gave the helm to Mrs. Dodds."

"You mean the fury?" I asked as I numbly followed my twin.

My brain was coming back down to Earth. Everything around me was clearing up. People were shouting at us, and cameras were pointed at us. Ares was no where around, just wreckage from the fight. Annabeth and Grover were already in the cop car Percy led me to. I climbed in next to the daughter of Athena, Percy on my other side. The cop started the car and headed in the direction of the closest airport.