Percy was having a bad day until the Ghost King appeared in his fireplace.

Nothing was going right for the son of the Sea God. The coffee machine stopped working, the satellite dish was messed up from a storm during the night, and a red sock got into his white laundry load, so now, he had a surplus of pink clothing. To make matters worse, he had no groceries. And Percy was famished from his travels with Blackjack. He now regretted visiting the Big Apple.

Percy lived in a remote area in New Hampshire where the forests were thick and the people were thin. He practically knew every one in town because there were just so few of them. They all seemed to be nice, though; this one older woman, Rosy, always stopped by the General Store when he was working to give him some delicious pastry. The thought made his stomach growl in yearning.

The cabin he lived in was nice, fit for a guy and an occasional friend. It had two bedrooms, a bathroom, living room, and kitchen. A dining room wasn't needed because he just ate his dinners on the couch. It was cozy, with a pellet stove in the basement and a nice little fireplace in the living room. Percy chopped his own wood, but it was summer at the moment, so the fireplace was cold and dark. There was even a barn/garage a few feet from the house that was home to Blackjack.

Yesterday, Percy had noticed that the drain was clogged in the kitchen. He had just gotten home and was looking forward to a good splash of cold water, but nothing came out of the silver faucet. He was just too tired to do anything with it last night, so he told himself to do it today. That was the first task on his day of chores.

After clearing the sink of any dishes, which consisted of a fork and plate, Percy concentrated on water. The faucet began to jiggle over the sink, water straining against whatever was blocking it. Percy waited a few moments, and then gave a tremendous surge of energy. There was a tug in his stomach, and a glop of brown something exploded from the faucet head. It splattered the sink, causing some of it to shower upon Percy. But then again, the water was now running freely.

A smile had just spread across Percy's face when there was a giant crash from behind him. He quickly turned, Riptide already in hand, and watched as a plume of smoke seeped from the fire place. There was a tremendous amount of coughing and gagging, like someone was choking. Percy quickly ran over, abandoning his sword, and waved away the smoke. He was greeted by the sight of a teen, one he had grown to recognize. His smile slowly came back.

Nico di Angelo, with tears in his eyes, looked up at Percy. He tried to smile back, but it looked like a pained grimace. Percy, who was quivering in trying to hold back laughter, held out his hand, and Nico grasped it firmly. His face was covered in soot, along with all his clothes. He looked down at himself and gave an exasperated sigh.

"I just had these cleaned," he mumbled to himself. "Why is your chimney the darkest place in your house?" He brought his hand through his hair, trying to straighten it.

"Because no one puts lights in their fireplace, unless it's fire," Percy said, grinning wickedly. "You want me to wash those?"

"Yes." Nico stripped himself of his bomber jacket, but was reluctant to take off anything else. Percy, after dropping the jacket in the bathroom, marched into his room, Nico close behind.

"Where have you been for the past year? I've been so lonely here, well, besides having Blackjack." He opened his closet door and riffled through some shirts.

"I've been in the Underworld, where else?" He snatched the green tank top Percy tossed him. He stared at it in disgust. "Don't you have anything in black?"

"Nope," Percy replied with glee; he liked teasing Nico. It was a good thing he had grown, or else he wouldn't have any pants for him to wear. Percy knew he had a pair of skinny jeans somewhere, but they were a darker blue. He had to let Nico have some comfort.

Once he found them, he sent Nico to the guest bedroom, the place he always stayed. He was the only visitor, so the room had a black comforter and was very simple. Not that Percy complained. He never used that room.

Percy gathered up the clothes that were now thrown outside of Nico's room and threw them in the laundry, along with his jacket. He pressed the Start button and watched the grinning skull on the t-shirt spin around and around. All the suds turned a grey color.

Nico was found washing his face in the kitchen sink. He was scrubbing his face so hard, his hair bounced up and down. It was messy and probably full of soot, but who could tell because of how dark his hair was. He occasionally squirted some hand soap into his palm, and then kept on scrubbing. The green tank top and denim skinny jeans actually looked really good on him. He should wear color more often.

Nico made sure to wash all of the soap away before wiping his face dry with a face cloth. He looked up at Percy, but there was still a long streak of black along the right side of his face. Percy just shook his head and exploded with the laughter that had been contained for far too long.

"Can you please help me then?" Nico sounded angry, but a grin was trying to push its way through.

"Yah, just hold still and don't shadow travel into another chimney." Percy dabbed the face cloth in some of the soapy water in the sink and grabbed Nico's chin tenderly. Nico's stomach did flips when Percy's skin made contact with his own. The face cloth dragged across his pale skin, and Percy was so close he could have wrapped him in a hug if he really wanted to. But they were just friends, and he was keeping it at that, for now.

"There, squeaky clean!" Percy dried off Nico's face with just a little too much force than was needed. Percy patted his cheek, then his own stomach. "I am starved. Do you want to go to the General Store with me?"

"Yah, we can shadow travel!" Nico grabbed Percy by the arm before he could protest and ran head long into the darkest corner.

The darkness that was surrounding them soon began to fade. Rays of sunlight illuminated the boy's faces. Nico landed lightly on his feet, having shadow traveled many times in his life. Percy, however, stumbled when his feet met solid ground. The hand that was clasped around his forearm let go, and he fell face first into a pile of crunchy, dead leaves.

It was Nico's turn to laugh. He giggled, clutched his stomach and doubled over. It was a small laugh, nothing that rang out, but it was big enough. Percy watched and listened as he plucked dry leaves off his tongue. Nico fell over, rolling on the ground, and his face grew rosy red. His breaths came in short gasps, and he opened his eyes a crack to see Percy smiling at him. He finally regained himself and stared back.

Wow, Percy thought, I have a lot to learn about my cousin. He jumped to his feet and waited until Nico was up and ready. Percy noticed that Nico had grown a few inches, so he was now only slightly shorter than him. A leaf stuck out of his brown hair, and those kind of things really bugged Percy. He plucked it out of Nico's hair before he could attack it with his sword. Nico flinched, as if he had actually swung a sword.

They had appeared to have shadow traveled into the woods behind the General Store. They could both see and smell the garbage bins. Nico grimaced.

"Let's go get that food and leave. I think the smell is burning my nose!" The boys jogged to the front of the store, which definitely smelled a lot better. Judging by the fact that a little red car was in the parking area and sweet smells were wafting through the doors, Percy new that Rosy was there. And she had the goods.

Percy looked at Nico and knew he smelled it too. He had this lazy grin on his face and he was practically drooling. Percy wondered when Nico had eaten last.

Being the gentleman he was, Percy opened the door for Nico, who thanked him with a bow. They just giggled while walking through the aisles, grabbing cereal, pasta, pizza ingredients, and various other things like fruits, vegetables, and snacks. Percy made sure to grab the blue tortilla chips with the salsa.

As they were walking towards the cash register, Rosy appeared holding a container full of piping hot pastries.

"Percy!" she exclaimed, her accent thick in German. She shoved the container into Nico's hands. He nearly dropped it because it was so hot. "I haven't seen you in such a long time." She took his face in her warm oven mitts and kissed both of his cheeks. "And who's this?"

She took the container and Nico smiled, thankful that he didn't have to scorch his hands any longer. "I'm Nico di Angelo. Nice to meet you, miss." He offered her a kiss on the cheek, shoving his hands in his pockets even though they were burning hot.

"Oh, you are Italian!" She gave him a smile and turned towards Percy. "And he is such a gentleman." Nico beamed. "Anyway, I won't be around, which was why I was bringing your present here. I am going to visit the family in Germany!" She pat Percy on the cheek and gave Nico a small kiss before heading out the door. They heard her car start up and fade into the distance.

"Wow, she's nice!" Nico looked at Percy. "How do you know her?"

Percy started putting the groceries on the counter. "She was the first person to welcome me to the neighborhood. I guess she knew the previous owner." Percy dug for his wallet, and found it, but was five dollars short. Nico pulled out a five and handed it over. The cashier, Sam, gave them their change and they left with five bags of groceries.

"This place is really nice," Nico said, gazing into the woods. He took Percy's wrist gently and led him over to the darkest shadow.

Nico was careful not to appear in the fireplace this time.

They melted out of the shadow in the basement. Percy had made sure to turn off the lights when he left. At first, he thought they were stuck in some shadow realm, but Nico had reached up and pulled the string that turned on the lights. He had been clutching Percy's wrist, and hadn't let go, even though they were safely home.

Percy cleared his throat, and Nico hastily let go of his wrist. His face grew a slight shade redder and he tossed his hand through his hair. He quickly ran up the stairs taking them two at a time. Before he reached the top, he said, "We should put the food away, before something goes bad." Percy followed without a question.

Both of the teenagers set to work on putting away the groceries. They placed the waters in the fridge, the cereal in the Lazy Suzan, and the pizza stuff on the counters for later. Nico had to sit on the counter to put the last of the food away. He still had to stretch, and the tank top he was wearing rose a few inches, revealing his pale stomach. Percy stared, and didn't realize he was until Nico was pulling down the shirt hastily, staring wide eyed at Percy. He was blushing a deep shade of crimson. Percy just gathered up the plastic bags and threw them into the pantry.

They then set to work on the satellite dish.

Percy left Nico by the house and marched down to the barn. He opened the barn door, and was greeted by an eating Blackjack. He decided not to bother him, so he set to work on finding the ladder. It was leaning against the far wall. He carefully, and very slowly, brought it down so he could bring it out.

Could you possibly quiet down your thoughts, boss? I'm trying to keep my hay down, thank you. Percy stared at Blackjack.

"What was I thinking?" Percy honestly didn't realize he was thinking about anything.

Boss, the Pegasus whined, you were daydreaming about that Corpse out there. You were-

"Hey, don't talk about Nico that way!" Percy was furious. "He happens to be my cousin." Blackjack's nostrils flared and he shook his massive head while ruffling his feathers.

What?! If he's your cousin, why in Hades are you thinking like that?

Percy couldn't answer that one. He opened his mouth to respond, but nothing came out. Blackjack just whined and went back to eating his hay. Percy stormed out of the barn, hefting the ladder over his left shoulder. He saw Nico, who was looking at the dish, and his heart began to flutter. The way he stood, he almost looked like Annabeth when she was concentrating really hard. One hand was on his hip, the other on his chin, and his eyes was far off, almost as if her were in a different universe.

The ladder toppled off his shoulder and landed on his foot. He let out a shout, more out of shock, and fell to the ground. Nico whirled around and sprinted over. His face was contorted in horror and worry. But there was also calmness to it. Blackjack galloped out of the barn, Percy having forgotten to close the door. Nico fell to his knees and practically slid the rest of the way. He had Percy's head in his lap in an instant.

"What did you do to yourself? I knew I should have helped you." He pushed strands of hair off of Percy's forehead, which was beaded with sweat. The pain was starting to catch up to him.

"I think it's broken," Percy gasped. "Take me into the house and get me some water. I'll be fine.

Nico scooped Percy up in one swift motion. Percy hadn't realized how strong he was. One of his arms was wrapped around Percy's back, the other behind his knees. Percy grasped Nico's neck with one arm, not wanting to let the boy go. Blackjack followed them to the door, and then marched over to the window that was always open for him in the living room.

Nico had a little trouble opening the door, but he managed to open it with the hand that was under Percy's knees. He hurried over to the couch and gently placed Percy where there were a lot of pillows. He rushed towards the fridge, where he snatched a bottle of water and a dish towel. He unscrewed the cap with one twist of his wrist. He was crouching in front Percy within seconds.

"What do I do with it?" He had already splashed the cold water on the cloth and was dabbing Percy's forehead, which made him feel a little better.

"Pour some water on the towel and squeeze it onto my foot." Nico nodded quickly. He gave Percy the towel while he worked on his shoe. It was painful, taking it off and Percy cried out whenever Nico moved it. There were tears in Nico's eyes; this was obviously hurting him to be hurting Percy. With one final pull, the shoe came off, and the sock was a lot easier.

Nico took the towel and nearly drained the bottle. The rest of the water he forced Percy to drink. Just that started the repairs. Once Nico started dripping water on his foot, the fractured bones started fusing together. The water numbed the pain, and Percy let out a heavy sigh, which was copied by Nico. The son of Hades rested his head on the couch right next to Percy's chest, and Percy watched as the last tear fell from his face.

He didn't even think. Percy reached down and stroked Nico's hair. Nico's eyes grew wide, and he took a sharp intake of breath. The hair that tangled around Percy's fingers was soft and thick. He closed his eyes and whispered, "Thank you."

Nico turned, causing Percy's hand to fall on his shoulder. Nico had the slightest smile on his face. "Anything for a friend." His eyes sparkled.

Nico stood, taking Percy's arm and resting it tenderly at his side. "You should rest. I'll fix the dish." Percy wanted to protest, but Nico placed two fingers on his mouth. "Don't complain." Even though his face was starting to blush, he leaned down and pecked Percy's cheek. Firecrackers exploded in both of their stomachs. Percy watched in a daze as Nico walked out the door.

Boss, that is disgusting! Blackjack reared his head and stared after Nico like he was prey.

"Blackjack, please just leave him alone and go back to the barn!" Percy had had enough of that Pegasus. Blackjack neighed and galloped back to his room, making sure to beat his wings wildly as he passed Nico. From where he sat on the couch, Percy could see Nico lift up the ladder with no problem. The muscles that no one knew about bulged on his arms, and he disappeared beyond the window frame. Percy realized just how exhausted he was and fell into a deep sleep, wondering whether Nico was just being Italian or if he was being really nice.

When Percy finally awoke, his nostrils were overwhelmed by the smell of cooking pizza. His eyes found Nico, who was sitting in the armchair, watching Clash of the Titans. He had a grimace on his face, probably because of how inaccurate the movie was. Percy tried not to move too much, but Nico turned around instantly, a smile spreading across his face.

"The satellite dish works now!" He was pointing towards to roof.

"Good job Nico!" Percy sat up, rubbing his eyes, trying to clear his mind of the images that had invaded his slumber. He didn't feel like talking about them. Especially to Nico. "Did you make the pizza already?"

"It's in the oven. Once 6:00 rolled around, I couldn't bear it any longer. My stomach won't stop talking to me." As if on cue, Nico's stomach gave a mighty gurgle and he clutched it, trying to silence the beast. Percy couldn't help but laugh. Nico smiled. "You know, it's probably time to take them out."

He stood, and Percy followed. His foot screamed in protest, but he didn't care. He just leaned against the counter as Nico opened the oven and set the pizza on the oven top. Percy's stomach gave a low grumble and Nico's answered. It was almost as if they were debating whether to eat the pizza or their owners.

"We should let it cool off." Nico started slicing it, and he was a pro at it. The slices were perfect. Or maybe that was just Percy's hungry mind talking. Nico turned and nearly knocked Percy over. "Why are you up?" he questioned. "Go sit down." He ushered Percy over to the arm chair and cranked up the footrest. "I nearly sent you into the oven." Nico ruffled Percy's hair, and Percy was vaguely reminded of his mother.

After watching Perseus chop Medusa's head off, Percy couldn't wait any longer.

"Can we please have the pizza now?" he begged, throwing his best puppy face at Nico. He giggled and got up, marching towards the kitchen.

"How many pieces do you want?"

"Eleven," Percy answered, and they both started laughing hysterically. "Just kidding, I'll have two for now." Percy heard the scraping of the spatula and he was soon produced with two slices of beautiful cheese pizza. "Thank you so much!"

Nico just smiled and headed over to serve himself. Percy waited for Nico to sit down before taking a bite. His taste buds were overwhelmed with flavor. He moaned with pleasure.

"Oh my Gods! What did you put in this?" Percy took another huge bite.

Nico swallowed. "I put a little twist on it. Secret family recipe."

Percy just rolled his eyes and continued munching. He had demolished the two slices within minutes. Nico took notice.

"You are such a pig, Percy!" He took Percy's plate and grabbed him another slice before even starting on his second piece. Once he was finished, Percy set his plate down on the coffee table and sighed, rubbing his stomach. He groaned, and Nico placed his cleaned plate on the table as well. He leaned back with a sigh. "I haven't had pizza in forever," he said longingly.

Percy fell out of the chair and the teens started laughing like maniacs. Nico's eyes were wet and red from the laughter. Percy crawled over and climbed onto the couch. He gave Nico a light punch.

"I will beat the secret recipe out of you." Nico was gasping for air and tears rolled down his face. He looked hilarious. Percy exploded with laughter and fell onto Nico's shoulder. They both laughed until their stomachs couldn't take it any longer. They both quieted down, Percy still leaning against Nico.

The movie continued, but Percy had seen it a thousand times. Once the Kraken came out, Percy couldn't keep his eyes open. The blood that was pumping all the vital nutrients from the pizza made him sleepy, and he finally slumped against Nico and traveled into total darkness.

Percy was jolted awake by the feeling of flying. He opened his eyes and saw Nico carrying him. He quickly wrapped his arms around Nico's neck and buried his face into his chest. He could feel the teen's heartbeat through his warm skin and shirt: quick and erratic. He was soon being placed on his bed, but he never let Nico go.

"Don't leave," he said groggily. "Stay with me." Nico opened his mouth to say something, so Percy pulled him closer. Nico began to blush violently.

"I'm going to my own bed now." Nico made to get up, but Percy's grip was like a vice. He tackled Nico so that Percy was on top of him. Nico gasped and tried to shove Percy off. He loved the way Percy wanted him to stay, but he couldn't. "Please get off of me!" He sat up and pushed against Percy's chest, but it was no use.

Percy grabbed Nico's wrists. His sea green eyes searched Nico's almost black ones, looking for a reason to keep him where he was. He saw longing, and he smirked. Nico was starting to whimper, and Percy could tell he was scared. There was a voice in the back of his mind telling him to let Nico go. He knew he had to listen.

Percy toppled onto the bed besides Nico. He felt Nico shifting beside him, and knew he was about to leave. But before he did, Nico's lips traveled onto Percy's cheek and he whispered, "Thank you." Nico kissed him gently on the forehead, and left.

Percy felt hollow on the inside. Before he went to bed, he changed into some pajama pants. He felt it was necessary, so he dropped some off outside of Nico's door as well. They were black.

Again, Percy had dreams of things he longed to do, but couldn't. As soon as his dream ended, his eyes opened and they stared into the darkness of the outside world. It had to be midnight, so Percy tried to fall back asleep. But for some reason, he couldn't. Percy rolled over, which made him realize why he was being deprived of sleep.

Nico was curled up against Percy's back with an arm wrapped around his shoulder. How Percy hadn't felt this earlier, he couldn't explain. Nico had changed into the pajamas that were left outside his room, and they were really baggy. They made him look smaller than what he actually was. His free hand was tucked under his cheek, and it was the cutest sight Percy had ever seen.

Wait, did I just think that, Percy thought. While he was pondering Nico began to stir. He opened his eyes slowly and looked up at Percy. To him, Percy looked just like a god.

Nico smiled sheepishly. Percy smiled back. He turned all the way around so they were face to face. Percy started to stroke the boy's hair, and Nico closed his eyes and sighed. Percy rested his hand on Nico's cheek, and they stayed like that for a long time.

Eventually, Nico spoke. "Percy, do you miss Camp Half-Blood?"

Percy stared in confusion. Nico had never cared for Camp Half-Blood, so why he was asking Percy made no sense. He put his hand back at his side, noticing how weird it was to be touching your cousin's face like that.

"I guess I do," Percy said slowly. "It was always nice outside and you were surrounded by friends. And you were safe, never having to worry, day by day, whether a monster was going to jump out of nowhere." Percy realized that his eyes stung, and he turned away from Nico before the boy could see his tears.

But Nico did see them, and he wrapped Percy in his embrace. He pulled Percy into him, and he realized that he had started crying when he pulled away and there were trails of water running down Percy's back. It quivered as Percy took in ragged breaths and released them in sobs.

Percy swung his legs over the side of the bed and stood. He stared out the window while dragging his fingers through his messy black hair. He soon felt thin arms wrap around his waist, and he could feel Nico's forehead gently pressing into the area between his shoulder blades. Dark chocolate hair grazed Percy's spine, making him shiver.

"Why do you care so much?" Percy whispered. "You never liked camp. You'd always go off to the Underworld and hang around with the dead instead of being in a nicer place where living people cared about you. I care about you" He turned around to face Nico and saw that he had hurt him. Nico looked shocked, and he let go of Percy and covered his face in his hands. This time, Percy grabbed him, and squeezed his cousin. The teen broke out into a horrible break down. His cries rang out and he buried his face in Percy's chest. His body wrenched when he took in great breaths. Percy could tell that Nico had needed to cry for a very long time.

Once Nico's breaths evened and the only noises he made were little sniffles, Percy put him out at arms length. He stared Nico in the eye, never looking away. The boy's eyes were red and puffy, but he talked, none the less.

"I never felt welcome at camp. People would look at me and say, there's the son of Hades, and stare at me in discussed. People shoved me around and teased me, tossing me around like I was some piece of trash!" His lower lip quivered. "I was an outcast." Nico took one of Percy's hands off his shoulder, then the other, making sure to be as gentle as possible.

"Then I realized that you were the only person who treated me right. You always smiled and waved, and I felt so wanted." A faint smile tugged at his lips. Percy just stared in stunned silence. "When you left, it only got worse." The smile was gone. "I was bullied even more without your protection. Once I felt like I couldn't handle it any more, I left during the night and made my way to the Underworld by shadow travel. The dead didn't stare at me funny, they never bothered me. But I was so lonely. Then it dawned on me…" Nico looked away, embarrassed.

"Talking will make you feel better," Percy soothed. Nico just smiled.

"It's you, Percy. You make my life worth living." Tears trickled down his pale face, but Percy knew they were tears of joy. "Without you, I'm nothing." And without thinking, Nico tossed his arms around Percy's neck and pressed their lips together.

Percy was surprised at first, shocked really, but finally gave in. He cupped Nico's jaw in his hands and kissed him passionately. He could still feel tears streaming down Nico's face, and knew that they would just keep coming. Nico laughed while crying against Percy's lips and he tangled his fingers in the demigod's hair. He opened his eyes, just for a second, and the sight of Percy so close to him was overwhelming. He noticed a little scar, which was barely visible, above his right eye. He would always remember that scar.

They both stood in the middle of Percy's room, wrapped in each others embrace. Nico thought it would never end, but Percy pulled away. He wiped away the tears on his companions face, also taking everything in. He noticed a freckle on the bridge of Nico's nose, and laughed quietly. He then scooped Nico into the air and into his arms. Nico gave a small scream.

"Off to bed," Percy said as he carried Nico, bridal style, down the hall and into his room. He sat down on Nico's bed and placed him, lying down, gently. He quickly pulled the covers over his small frame, tucking it in under his chin. Nico smiled despite his tear stained cheeks. After pushing stray pieces of hair out of Nico's eyes, he bent down, hovering above his lover. "I love you Nico di Angelo."

"And I love you, Percy Jackson." Nico wriggled his arms out from under the blanket, and grabbed Percy's face. His sea green eyes seemed to glow. "I always have." Percy just kissed Nico on his secret freckle and left. They both fell asleep and dreamt of nothing. If only someone hadn't started knocking on the door at six in the morning.