When I Don't Remember You (Percico)

Chapter Twenty Three: Doors We Can't Walk Through

Nico di Angelo

Asphodel has always been miserable and I don't get it.

I feel like if people just lived a life, give them a little bit more than one of the most painful things in the afterlife, you know? Like, they're not being tortured, but maybe give them a bland town to just keep living.

Just personal opinion.

The girls name was Hazel Levesque, though. She was a little younger than me but a year or so, but she was born a couple years before Dad met Mom.

She's also technically Pluto's daughter, though, so... I don't know how that reallt works.

Either way, she died at the like, same time Bianca and I went into the Lotus and our mom died, so that's a really weird coincidence that I'm not going to think about because I can't stand to think about those people right now.

She's my sister, though. Technically speaking.

So we'll see how that goes. If we'll continue to communicate and talk after this job is done.

If she'll even associate with me if she finds out I'm dating Percy.

I miss him.

I hope that, wherever he is, he misses me, too. That he's doing okay.

It was a couple hours of walking around the misery of Asphodel when I finally caught a glimpse of her.

Not going to die, I was also looking around for Bianca a bit because I didn't think I'd actually find Hazel among all of the souls in Asphodel, but Bianca did mention that she was going to try to rebirth, so maybe she got it.

Maybe it's stupid to look for her, who knows.

I just miss her and I miss my mom and I miss my boyfriend.

So pull out a different sister that I've never met before to distract me from my missing boyfriend. Why not.

"Hello?" I said as I approached her, her face starting to go more into focus, confirming that she was who I was looking for. Just roaming around Asphodel. Looking... Not happy. "Is your name Hazel Levesque?"

"I am she, yes," she confirmed for me. "what's it to you?"

"I— my name is Nico," I introduced myself to her. "I'm your brother. Well, half brother, my father is Hades. Are you trying to get to his palace?"

She nodded her head, seeming hesitant.

"Yes but I'm sure I'll never reach it, it's just a goal and direction to keep me sane in here," she insisted, which seemed fair. "there's some sort of separation between here and there, right? Father wouldn't just let spirits of Asphodel wander his palace. I am closer than I was when I died, though."

"Yeah, 70 years is a while to make progress," I broke that news to her. "Would you like to go to the palace? I can bring you."

She sighed.

"It's not like I have anything to lose by giving it a shot," my younger sister figured. "yeah, big brother, let's go. Lead the way. Bring me back to life, while you're at it."

"That's the plan."

And while she definitely took that as sarcasm or some kind of joke, she'd eventually figure out it wasn't one at all.

Getting to the palace wasn't hard, but Dad wasn't there so she didn't get to meet him. Either way, I'm not sure how that would work if it's Hades meeting her because her dad is Pluto.

I still don't really get that because we're related but it's not the exact same.

Is it like a split personality? I feel like that's what it has to be.