"How do you guys know each other?"

"She.." Nico gulped. "She was my sister, back in heaven."

"When I heard he was banned I nearly cried myself to death." Bianca explained, pulling away, "Then I got banned."

"You've been banned this whole time!?"

"No, just recently." Bianca assured him. "But I've been hoping I could run into you! Oh the stories they tell of you."

"Don't. Say. Them." Nico snapped.

"So... is Bianca like your little sister?" Calypso interrupted.

"Nope! Neeks here is my little bro!" Bianca said, laughing.

"Don't call me Neeks." Nico mumbled.

Leo stifled a laugh. "Y-you... little bro?"

"Yep!"

Leo fell to the ground, laughing his head off. Nico huffed, crossing his arms and slouching.

"Killmenow." he mumbled.

"Oh, Solace says hi." Bianca said.

"Tell Solace to go eat a--"

"LANGUAGE!" Hazel scolded.

Nico huffed.

"Oh, so you don't want to say hello to your top bitch?" a voice asked from behind them.

"Seriously, does no one hold their foul tongues!?" Hazel exclaimed.

"Nope! Not with my brother." Bianca said, causing everyone to laugh--except Nico.

"Solace." Nico said, a low growl in his throat. The laughing abruptly stopped and Nico slowly turned his head.

"Good day, Angelo." Solace greeted.

"What are you doing here? Did you get banned too?" Nico mocked, scowling.

"Actually, yes." Solace lifted up his shirt, revealing his black tattoo. He let his shirt fall.

"Is this like a f'cking reunion?" Nico asked, sighing.

"Again I say yes." Solace said. "And can you please stop thinking of me as 'Solace' Di Angelo?"

Nico stuck his tongue out at him.

"Wait." Leo said, "Doesn't mean Angelo mean angel in... some weird language?"

"I think it's Italian..." Percy said.

"Right!" Annabeth snapped her fingers.

"And he was one of the first three banned from being an angel..." Leo continued.

"I know I know I know." Nico grumbled, "The irony."

"Well he wasn't the most pleasant angel around." Solace teased, messing up Nico's hair.

"Shut up Solace." Nico grumbled. "I was too pleasant, you were just a big ass--"

"LANGUAGE!" Nico stepped out of the way, narrowly avoiding Hazel's slap.

"You're getting rusty." Solace let out a hearty laugh.

"Shut up, you try to avoid a slap from one of these girls." Nico grumbled.

"Okay, fine I--"

SMACK!

Annabeth stood above the twitching Solace, blinking. "I might've... knocked him out."

"Or killed him!" Calypso exclaimed, running over to him.

"Well... he's twitching! That means he's alive!" Annabeth said a bit too desperately.

"Relax, fallen angels can't die." Nico scoffed.

"Why not?"

Nico stared at her like she was an idiot. "Fallen angels are angels fallen from heaven, when you die you either go to paradise or the other place. The devil-- or, Lucifer, has no intention of recruiting past angels, despite being one himself. So it was made that if we die, we sorta just come back into our bodies, against our will I might add."

"Right. Logic." Annabeth nodded.

"Guess Wise Girl isn't so wise anymore." Leo said.

"SHUT UP VALDEZ! I DON'T-- oh. Oops."

Percy poked the twitching Valdez. "Someone's on a killing spree."

"I just injure them." Annabeth scoffed, crossing her arms, "Not the same thing as killing them."

"I think Solace wishes he was dead, though." Nico stated, poking the body.

"I am..." Solace groaned, curling into a ball. "This is how I get welcomed..."

"Hey, does Zeus still have that big pimple?" Nico asked randomly.

"It's gotten bigger, actually." Bianca said.

"Damn, how's that even possible?"

"No idea."

"Well, I have an idea." Percy said. "Soon as our friends--"

"Solace is not my friend." Nico interrupted. "Continue."

"Fine." Percy huffed, "Soon as these people that we know wake up, we should get some pizza."

"Sounds good. Except... what's pizza?"

"NICO!" Bianca sighed, "I've been here in a shorter amount of time than you, and even I know that."

"Well if you haven't noticed I don't really socialize here, or try to be part of something, at all."

"Fair enough."

"Someone doesn't know what pizza is!?" Leo sat up, looking around. "WE MUST SHOWETH HIM!"

Nico looked at him boredly. "Whatever."

Leo gasped, placing a hand on his heart. "Did he just... whatever!? To pizza!?"

"Yes. Yes I did."

Leo faked a dramatic swoon before falling down onto his back again.

"Is he always like this?" Nico deadpanned.

"Sadly, yes."

Nico rolled his eyes. "Okay, let us try this pizza object before Mr. Dramatic drives me mad."

"Sounds good." Percy nodded.

"Someone should help those two up." Nico nodded to Solace and Leo. "Annabeth's hits really, really hurt."

"I think Leo fainted from the news of you living in non pizzaland." Bianca muttered, waving a hand over Leo's face.

"'Tis a tragedy!" Leo gasped, coming forward-- only to smash into Bianca's hand. "Ow... my nose."

"Come on." Bianca helped him up.

"Well this was all fun and games, but let us get going." Thalia helped up Solace.

"Fine fine fine..."

-----

"Cheesy." was Nico's first comment on the pizza.

"Really? That's all you have to say!?" Leo exclaimed, "How about mind blowingly awesome!?"

"Nope. Just cheesy."

Leo fell over.

"I think you killed him." Calypso muttered.

"Wouldn't be the first time today." Percy laughed, eating more of his pizza.

"Yeah, I'ma head out." Nico got up, finishing his pizza in just a couple of bites. He waved goodbye before anyone could stop him (including his sister) and ran out of the restaurant.

Mortals and their petty foods. Why, only two thousand years ago this 'pizza' had been yeast-less bread with olive oil and fish on it.

He looked up at the sky. It was odd, he was... craving home; or maybe a home.

He had fallen so long ago, been so lonely for so long. He wanted what he heard people call 'family,' but at the same time he didn't want it. Or, maybe it was just that... for once.

Nico wanted someone to care.