#also i cut out a chunk of scenery description from that quote so that's why the lil bar is there

[aroaceleovaldez]

i was thinking a lot the other day about the parallels between Nico and Iapetus/Bob. Both had their memories wiped in the River Lethe and immediately were told lies about their lives - Nico and Bianca were told by Alecto that they were orphans and both their parents had died in an accident, among other lies we don't know the details of that Nico eventually learned to be false as he regained his memories. And obviously Iapetus was given an entire false identity by Percy. Percy has a tendency to use both of them - keeping them at a wary arm's distance but repeatedly insisting that they're allies and that they should be loyal to him. And both of them know fully well how far Percy's actual loyalty to them extends and are willing to sacrifice themselves for his sake anyways. Percy leaves Nico in the Underworld in TLO, with Nico making an explicit note that he knows Percy doesn't trust him anymore. Percy has just choked him. And he still rallies the forces of the Underworld to come to his aid. Bob begins to remember his true self while in Tartarus and Percy warily reinforces that they're allies and Percy leaves him in Tartarus while Bob sacrifices himself to allow Percy to escape.

Plus, Nico was the only one to keep in touch with Bob and reinforce that Percy is their ally. It reminds me a lot of Nico's conversation with Hazel in Son of Neptune about Percy -

Nico talks about Percy with personal experience of what it's like for Percy to briefly consider him an enemy. It really makes you wonder what his conversations with Bob were like after Sword of Hades.