"Nico di Angelo, what are you doing here?" you asked as you put your hand on your hip and stared him down. Nico smirked at you and shrugged his shoulders.

"It's my sister's shop, what are you doing here?" he asked tauntingly as he looked you over.. You rolled your eyes in annoyance as he replied to your question with another one. Do guys really have brains the size of a pea?

"That is confidential." You retorted as you gave him a playful glare, earning a scoff from Hazel. Your glare obliviously wasn't that playful as Nico began to shift uncomfortably under your gaze. Hazel cleared her throat, drawing both yours and Nico's attention to her.

"Will you two lovebirds stop being awkward and say something nice for once?" she scolded in a motherly tone. You gave Nico a look and quickly turned back to face Hazel. Watching her face turn into an expression of disappointment as she noticed your action, you winced and bit your lip as you thought. "Now, for what you were telling me about, I have somethings for you to take." she called over her shoulder as she walked out of the room. Nico shot you a confused look and you gave him an innocent smile as you followed Hazel.

Finding your short friend in the storage room, you noticed her grabbing a step stool to reach something. "Need any help?" you asked as you walked up next to a leaping Hazel. She shook her head and continued to struggle as she tried to reach the object she was after. You shrugged your shoulders and focused on transforming into an owl. Hazel gasped as she heard the cracking of your bones when your body began to shift.

Flying up to the shelf that Hazel couldn't reach, you landed right in front of her. Her honey colored eyes widened, and she shakily pointed to a small rectangular box next to your left wing. Due to it not being too heavy, you took it in your claws and flew it down to her. Transforming into your human form, you watched Hazel open the small lid and expose the contents inside.

The box held celestial bronze daggers, celestial bronze tips arrows, and a weird contraption that Leo must have made a while ago. You looked up at Hazel with a smile on your face. "Thank you! This definitely help me defeat Porphyrion!" You exclaimed as you threw your arms around her. Hazel smiled and hugged you back.

"I was gone for five minutes and I miss a hug?" Nico complained as he walked into the room, causing the two of you to break apart in surprise. You and Hazel turned to him and gave him a confused look. Nico never liked physical contact and it was quite unusual for him to ask for it out of the blue. "What?" he questioned, giving the two of you a blank look. You shared a look with Hazel and erupted into a fit of giggles. "What's so funny?" Nico asked as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Nothing," you choked out as you tried to calm yourself down. Hazel laughed beside you and clutched her stomach. Seeing the hurt expression on Nico's face, you nudged her in the side.

"I can't believe that I heard my big brother complain about not getting a hug!" Hazel exclaimed as she tried not to fall on her butt. Grabbing Hazel's arm, trying to steady her, you looked her in the eye and told shook your head. Her laughter ceased and she peered around you to peak at her brother's expression. You watched as her mouth formed an "O" and she took a step towards him. Nico shook his head and took a step back, making Hazel stop and give him a sad look.

"Maybe we should get going, we have a long journey ahead of us.Thank you for the supplies!" you interrupted, breaking the silence as you walked over to Nico and took his hand in yours, the other holding the box. Hazel nodded and told you goodbye before she returned to the front of the store.

☠

"Hey Mary, thank you so much for letting us stay here!" you told your cousin as you found your clothing bag in Sapphrenia's saddle. Turning around, you walked up to the fair-haired girl and gave her a hug before releasing her and giving her a small smile.

"You're welcome! Anything for you!" she chirped cheerfully. You smiled and gave her another quick hug. "Well, I'll see you soon. Don't get into too much trouble! Tell Nico I said goodbye as well." Giving her a small nod, you walked over to Sapphrenia and waited for Annabeth to get on after you. Watching Mary retreat out of the stables, you let out a small sigh and rested your head against Sapphrenia's mane.

"He's not gonna be meeting us anywhere is he?" Annabeth asked. Letting your shoulders sag, you turned toward your sister sadly and explained what happened. "He must be really upset, huh?" You nodded your head and looked down once more.

"I think it really hurt him that we laughed at him about it. It wasn't very mature to do so, and I feel horrible. He just wanted a hug and we made fun of him for it. Who knows, maybe he really needed it and didn't want to tell us that," sighing, you looked down at Sapphrenia dejectedly.

"Hey, don't worry about it. I'm sure everything will turn out fine. You guys are friends, and friends forgive each other. Things happen and I'm sure he understands that." Annabeth said as she patted your shoulder and convinced you to get going.

"You're right. I'll have to apologize to him later, right now we have a goddess to help!" you exclaimed as you took your pegasus' reins in your hands and took flight. "Do you think Sally would allow us to stay at her place for the night?" Annabeth nodded her head and informed you about the phone call she had made to Percy and his mother the night before.