A/N: So there's this tumblr page that's a little comic and whatever. It's really good, so for those of you too lazy to go check it out on tumblr, here is a story version of it. Story belongs to feelslikehome-comic. Tumblr. Cover art is from the cover page of the comic. Art by monkeyscandance.
It was a late night in July, the air of New Rome stiff and humid. Percy and Annabeth were sitting in their apartment, watching the nightly news. It was the weekend, putting a hold on their summer courses. Percy's interest was close to nothing, the only real reason for him watching was being with Annabeth. He watched Annabeth, watching as some boring new reporter talked about a mysterious fire in a park a few miles away, when Nico di Angelo formed in between the coffee table and television.
Nico crumbled forward, his body falling on top of the magazine covered table. The elder demigods stared in shock at the demigod before them. Annabeth was the first to recover, jumping to her feet and rushing off down the hall. "Get him on the couch and then don't touch him, I don't want you breaking him anymore then he already is." she called to her boyfriend.
After a moments pause, realizing she was indeed talking to him, Percy got off the couch, walking around the coffee table. Slowly, he lifted the Son of Hades into his arms, carrying him around and laying him on the couch. He pulled the throw pillows off the couch, leaving one behind Nico's head and placing the others on a chair in the corner.
Nico was breathing ragged, shallow breaths, his skin with a bluish tint; he looked like he was dying. Percy had seen him after shadow-travel, and he hated it. It irked him to see Nico—a demigod he'd known since Nico was ten—so pale and deathly. He knew he wasn't the only one who hated it, but it wasn't like he could do anything about it. Nico was just about seventeen now, and listening to adults was not his forte.
Instead, Percy looked at the spot at which Nico emerged, seeing the Stygian iron sword laying on the ground next to inky goo puddle. Nico's clothes were smoldering, cracks forming along the walls and floor dark seams radiated outwards like a shotgun blast of ink. Annabeth came back in, holding a large first aid kit.
"Come help me," she told Percy. He nodded, moving and helping her peel off the steaming shirt.
"This is totally ruined," Percy stated.
"Mhm. Think he could borrow some of your old clothes?" Annabeth asked.
"I'll go check," he said, standing up.
He went back into his room, rummaging through the drawers before finding a plain black tee shirt, one he'd only kept for when Annabeth wanted to where his clothes (all the time). He pulled out an old pair of shorts, then headed back to the main room, seeing Annabeth gently cleaning open wounds on Nico.
"Anything else you need me to do?" Percy asked.
"Could you start cleaning up the floors?" Annabeth asked.
"Yeah sure."
They worked in almost silence, Percy cleaning up the puddles of darkness and moving Nico's sword to the closet, while Annabeth patched up the son of Hades. The only sound in the apartment was the quiet television and Nico's shallow breathing. Once Annabeth had finished, she dressed him in the clothes Percy had brought, before grabbing a thin blanket and wrapping it around him.
"He looks adorable," Percy said, standing behind Annabeth.
"I think he's healing up," she said. "I didn't give him a lot of nectar. Just a small teaspoon mixed in with the antibacterial for the cuts, and some unicorn draught I got from Reyna."
"You'd make a good nurse," he said, kissing the top of her head.
"I do try."
Nico's breathing slowly got heavier, more evened out as time passed. Finally, Percy tugged lightly on Annabeth's arm, saying, "C'mon, bed time Wise Girl." She nodded, walking slowly with Percy to their shared bedroom.
"Hope he's okay," Annabeth muttered. Percy nodded, pulling off his tee shirt before crawling into bed.
"It's Nico. If he wasn't passed out he wouldn't have let us even touch him," he said with a shrug.
"I bet this is how our parents felt, always worrying about us," she said. "I'm just so worried about him."
"Well sweetie, Nico's at that age where he likes to rebel."
Annabeth climbed into bed next to him, looking at him seriously. "Nico's been at that age since he was like, eleven."
"He'll probably be fine in the morning," Percy assured her. "Let's just hope he doesn't wake up before us."
~Feels Like Home~
"Don't wake him up!" Annabeth called from the shower.
Percy rolled his eyes, standing in the bathroom doorway. "I got it."
He went into the kitchen, pouring a bowl of cereal and grabbing a milk cartoon. Although Annabeth had instructed him not to wake Nico, Percy had other plans. Using his shoulder, he pushed open the door, calling a greeting to Nico. "Nico? Are you up yet?"
Nico groaned, squinting as the light from the kitchen spilled over him. Percy let out a soft chuckle, smiling as he moved inside.
"We've got no luxury brunch at home, only cereals." Percy started. "It's Cap'n Crunch time!"
He placed the bowl on the table, followed by the milk. "Milk is good for you," he chimed. "Helps you grow."
"Shut up, Percy," Nico grumbled, sitting up.
Percy smiled, ruffling Nico's hair. "Not a morning person, huh?"
Surprisingly, Nico didn't push him away. "Just tired," he said, rubbing his eyes. "Shadow travel does that to you."
Nico pulled off the blankets, while Percy said, "You looked like death warmed over last night. No offense or anything."
"None taken."
Percy watched as Nico flexed his back, winning as something probably stretched painfully. "Annabeth was the one to patch you up," he supplied.
"Ah," Nico said. He lifted his wrist, looking at the bandages. "Sorry for the hassle."
"Don't let her hear that or she'll kick your ass," Percy threatened, pointing a finger in Nico's startled face. "And then she'd patch you up again."
"But—"
"No buts," Percy said, sitting on the couch. "That's what friends are for. Mi casa es tu casa, and all that."
"That's Spanish, not Italian," Nico pointed up.
"Oh shut up," Percy said. Nico chuckled, shaking his head.
Percy grabbed a pillow, swinging it hard at Nico. "Take that!" he shouted. Nico laughed, throwing his hands up to block his face.
"I give up!" he exclaimed. He fell back in laughter, covering his face.
"So…how are you feeling?" Percy asked. "Annabeth said you looked pretty beaten up. You really scared us there, Nico."
"I followed a monster trail last night," Nico said. "It was easy to find. Or, more accurately, the monster found me."
"Why'd you go after it alone?"
Nico shrugged. "It wasn't a big monster."
"Still a Lone Ranger, huh?" Percy said. "Next time, give Annabeth or me a call before you head out on a big adventure."
Percy held out his hand, saying, "At least let me see your injuries."
"Percy," Nico groaned, watching as Percy unwrapped the bandages.
"They already look all healed up." Percy observed.
"That's what ambrosia does, it heals demigods." Nico deadpanned.
"Hey now!" Percy warned.
"That you for treating me, Nurse Jackson," Nico said, his hands up. "But I'm all good now."
"Ha, you sound just like Annabeth right now." Percy laughed.
"That just means your girlfriend's right," Nico pointed out.
"Yeah, she's great at that." Percy said.
They both stopped, hearing foot steps. Annabeth came into the room, hands on her hips but a playful smile. "Are you two talking about me?"
"Annabeth!" Percy exclaimed happily.
"I told you to let him sleep," Annabeth chided, pushing Percy's face back. He simply laughed.
She turned to Nico, saying, "Glad to see you're up and alright, Nico."
"Nooo, let me go Annabeth," Percy whined.
Ignoring Percy, Nico said, "You know what they say…with great power comes the great need to take a nap. Nothing a little sleep can't fix."
"Wait, you're still using that phrase? You big dork!" Percy exclaimed.
"Hey!" Nico exclaimed.
Percy pulled lightly on one of Annabeth's belt loops, saying, "Don't just stand there, Annabeth. Come sit with us and help me embarrass Nico."
"Be nice," Annabeth said softly. "That's not fair."
She turned to Nico, calling his name. "Hm?" Nico asked.
"How about I tell you something embarrassing about Percy?" Annabeth asked. "Percy suggested we bury you in the sound to see if that heals you, like he does with water."
"Seriously?" Nico asked in disbelief.
"Annabeth!" Percy exclaimed.
"Oh come on, Percy, that was funny," Annabeth said.
"You're supposed to be on my side!" Percy whined. "I was worried, okay?"
"Well," Nico said, joining in. "Against popular belief, Persephone didn't turn me into a plant permanently. And since I'm all healed up, I'm going to head back home to them now."
"Wait!" Annabeth shouted, while Percy called for Nico. They both reached out, Annabeth grabbing onto the younger boy's tee shirt.
"What that…?" Nico muttered.
"You're not going anywhere." Annabeth said, slightly out of breath. "After I worked so long on it."
"Worked on what?" Nico asked.
Instead of answering him, she to Percy, saying, "You! Make sure hasn't run off."
"Alright you guys, what's going on here?" Nico asked nervously.
"Oh just you wait." Annabeth turned around, leaning over the back the couch.
"I have a bad feeling bout this," Nico muttered.
"Relax, it's nothing bad, I promise," Percy said reassuringly. "Just stay a little longer?"
"Aha!" Annabeth exclaimed, turning back around. She was now holding Nico's jacket. "There you go! The jacket looked as beaten as you. But nothing a few stitches can't fix."
She handed the jacket to Nico, who looked at it in confusion. "Why? Why are you doing all these things for me?"
"That's what friends are for," Percy said.
"You dropped by the right demigod place," Annabeth added.
"Why did you Shadow travel here anyways?" she asked. "Isn't the Underworld more convenient?"
"I was in a hurry to not get eaten by monsters," Nico said. "And anyways…I sort of…just thought of a place that feels like home."
Annabeth and Percy looked at each other, making Nico nervous. "Uhm, sorry about that…I did it by accident. Guys?"
"Nico!" they exclaimed suddenly.
They grabbed him, pulling him into their arms. He let out a startled yelp, finding himself in their hug. "That's nothing you have to be sorry for," Percy said with a chuckle.
"But—"
"Oh shut up. You're always welcome here." Annabeth said.
A/N: Go check out the original comic, it was really great! Of course, this isn't word for word. The comic is really great, check it out at .tumblr. Read and review!
Xoxoxoxoxoxoxo