Connor squeezed Nico's shoulder, "You okay?"

Nico grabbed his hand, "I should be asking you."

"Well, I asked first." Connor sat down beside him.

Nico sighed, "I don't know. I mean, I'm glad that they know now. That this guy is finally going to face justice once they catch him. But…to think that this could have been avoided…that Will's death could have been prevented by this guy getting arrested…but that wouldn't stop you from getting hurt back then."

Connor shrugged, "Nothing can change that." His voice was soft.

Nico looked over at him.

"Nothing can change what has happened. I'm sorry, but that's how it is. It could have been prevented, but it wasn't. So now we have to deal with it." Connor rubbed his leg.

Nico bent over and pulled up Connor's pant leg, then started undoing the straps, getting off the bed to do so.

"Nico…"

Nico kept undoing the straps, then gently pulled the fake foot/leg off. He rested his hand on Connor's knee, his other hand gently brushing the scabs and sores from the ill-fitting prosthetic. He looked up at Connor, then gently touched the scar tissue where the rest of Connor's leg had been.

Connor's face twisted with sadness and pain.

Nico put a little pressure on it.

Connor winced, then shook his head, "It's stupid. It doesn't actually hurt, but the sores do. Not that it's…" He sighed, shaking his head again.

"You didn't sleep last night and you just gave up your bed. We'll share this one tonight." Nico changed the subject, keeping his tone neutral even as his heart pounded in his chest over the boldness of what he just said. It wasn't a big deal. He would sleep on one side, Connor on the other and they might end up close in the night because of how much of a cuddler Connor was.

No big deal.

"It's fine. I'll just sleep on the floor." Connor said. He was watching Nico's hands as they applied antibiotic ointment to the sores.

"Don't be ridiculous, Connor. You need sleep. You're under a lot of stress."

Connor hesitated, "I don't want to dream. I don't think I could handle halfblood dreams tonight."

Nico paused, then continued wrapping the bandages around Connor's leg before saying, "I know how to prevent them. But to do that, you need to sleep."

Connor sighed, then nodded. "Alright, just shove me if I bug you."

"I can do that." Nico replied softly, "Do you need me to get you some pajamas or something?"

Connor shrugged, "I don't know right now."

Nico nodded, "Well, I'm just going to sleep in my boxers." He said it before he could stop to think about it.

Connor nodded, "Yeah, that's probably easiest." He pulled off his shirt.

Nico tried not to stare at Connor's body, suddenly understanding the scars he saw on his chest, arms, and back. Nico wanted to touch them and kiss them. He wanted to press his chest to Connor's and feel the heat of the older man's skin.

Connor ran a hand through his curly hair, "It's weird having the agents out there."

Nico nodded, "My coworkers. Yeah."

Connor looked at him, then at the floor, "You miss Will a lot, don't you?"

Nico was surprised that he wasn't surprised at the question. That he didn't feel any sort of pain from the question. "I do. Not as much as I did a couple months ago. It's getting a little easier."

Connor nodded again, "Is it helping being here?"

Nico felt his heart leap to his throat, and he wanted to plant a kiss on Connor's lips, "Of course. Being here has made such a big difference."

Connor nodded, then pulled himself to his foot and started unbuttoning his pants.

Nico tried to act casual as he took off his own shirt and pants and got into bed. He switched the pillows so that his was under him, tossing Connor's pillow on that side after smelling it quickly.

Damn, Connor smelled good.

Like mint and lemon.

Connor managed to get himself onto the bed, then lay down on his side, staring at the ceiling for a moment before turning off the lamp on his side.

Nico turned off his own lamp, then rolled onto his side, away from Connor. He could hear Connor's breathing, but just barely. What were the chances that Connor would end up cuddling him? He had put on an air of avoidance because that was all he really wanted from Connor. He wanted to be held and touched by the son of Hermes.

Connor seemed to started to fall into sleep, then started tossing and turning a bit as if trying to get comfortable.

Nico finally rolled so that he was closer and reached out to Connor, "Hey,"

Connor rolled to face him, "Yeah?"

Nico pulled himself into Connor's arms, ignoring Connor's surprise, and rested his face in Connor's neck.

Connor was frozen for a moment, then let his arms drape around Nico and relaxed, "Here's hoping nobody walks in."

"Second that motion." Nico murmured, breathing in Connor's scent. Loving the feel of Connor's skin against his own. He put his arms around Connor.

Connor's cheek rubbed slightly against Nico's head then his breathing deepened.

Nico waited a little while, then gently kissed Connor's neck.

Connor's hand found it's way into Nico's hair.

Nico felt breathless. He wanted to push his luck, but given the day Connor had had…no. Given the kind of person that Connor was and the way Connor's life had been going, Nico was afraid Connor would freak out if Nico kissed him.

Connor finally relaxed completely, and his breathing deepened.

Nico felt his throat close up, wondering if Connor had still been awake when he kissed his neck.

He shook his head, knowing he was overthinking, and closed his eyes to try and sleep and divert any dreams. It didn't take him long to fall asleep, then he just had to slip into Connor's dreams.

Well, more like tripped into them and was overwhelmed by horrors in Connor's dream.

Nico found himself yelling desperately for Connor to hear him, to try and find a way out. He didn't want to be here. "Connor?! Connor!"

Finally, a hand grabbed his shoulder and turned him.

Nico stared, horrified from what he had seen, into blue eyes.

"Nico…" Connor said, frowning slightly, then he broke eye contact and looked past Nico, "You shouldn't be here."

"Connor…" Nico sobbed, gripping his shirt.

Connor didn't say anything, just forcefully pulled Nico along until suddenly they were in a park.

Nico sank onto a bench.

Connor stood nearby, not speaking, not moving.

Nico finally managed to calm himself, shaking his head, "What was that?"

"You don't want that answer." Connor said softly.

Nico looked up and followed his gaze.

There were seven kids playing on the playground.

Nico felt like he was choking, "Those are the kids from the accident."

Connor sighed, "Yeah. It's just memories playing out. Don't worry. I'm not in danger of being overwhelmed by them."

Nico could tell by the tone of his voice that he was already overwhelmed by the memories. "Don't lie to me."

The kids all waved at Connor, and started heading toward him.

Nico grabbed Connor's arm as he went to step toward the kids, "You can't. Please. Don't."

"It's the only way I'll wake up. I've tried other ways." Connor walked toward the kids.

Nico followed him, "Connor, I can't see that. Please, I really can't. I can't see you get hurt."

Connor was smiling at the kids, greeting them with hugs and such, "You guys ready to get to camp?"

Nico felt his breath hitch, "No, Connor. No!"

Connor glanced back, then smiled at two kids, "Get the others to the van."

"Please, you need to come with me. Just, come with me." Nico begged, grabbing Connor's arms. He couldn't let Connor go through that memory. Not again. It almost broke the guy the first time. Reliving it this vividly. "You need to let this go. Five of them are alive and well. You saved five of them. You couldn't save the other two. What's the point in going through these memories again? Please, Connor, I can't see you get hurt."

Connor didn't turn back, but he wasn't moving forward either.

Nico pulled on him again, "Come on, Connor. Just come with me."

Connor looked down at his feet, "This is the only way I can feel like I did when before I lost my foot. I know it comes with pain, but sometimes pain is bearable."

"It's not real anymore. This is the past, Connor. You need to come back to the present."

Connor sighed, then suddenly flinched, "Nico, wake up. Get to Zoey. Go!"

He shoved Nico back.

Nico jerked awake, looked over at Connor, then stumbled out of the room. He glanced at the agents, then went to Zoey's room.

She was awake, crying, hiding under her blankets.

"Zoey?" He whispered, going over, glancing toward the windows. He was relieved that the curtains were drawn.

She peeked out at him, "Mr. Nico, I'm scared."

Nico had a bad feeling, "Come here, we'll go out to the living room until you fall asleep again." He picked her up.

Her arms wrapped around his neck, and she whimpered into him.

He carried her out into the living room.

Connor came out shortly with a shirt and jeans on.

The agents looked up and frowned slightly, wondering if something was going on.

Connor took Zoey, cuddling her, "It's okay, kiddo. We've got you."

Nico glanced at the sliding doors, "I've got a bad feeling." He said in Greek to Connor.

Connor nodded, then nodded toward the agents.

Nico went over to McGee, "Is everything clear outside?" He kept his voice in a whisper.

McGee frowned a bit and scrolled through the monitors, "Looks like it."

Gibbs squinted at Nico, "Something you want to tell us?"

Nico shrugged and shook his head, "I'm just going off the gut feeling of Connor right now. I generally trust his gut."

"His gut?" McGee questioned.

"His gut. His intuition, however you want to put it. He's got a bad feeling and I trust him. He hasn't been wrong yet." Nico explained, folding his arms.

Travis came out, looking half-asleep but very wary, "Hey, thought I heard her crying. Come here, baby girl." He took his daughter from his brother. Then in Greek, "Bad feeling?"

Connor nodded.

Travis switched back to English, "Me too." He kissed Zoey's forehead.

Nico glanced toward the closet where their weapons were hidden, uneasy, "Not comforting, guys. One Stoll is bad enough but when both…"

Connor flashed a nervous smile.

Travis opened his laptop and clicked a few things, "It's not my house."

McGee frowned over his own laptop, "The cameras are clear."

Travis froze, "Um, my server says that this security system is out."

Nico felt his eyes widen.

The agents got up.

Travis glanced back at them, "Get to the panic room. Get Katie."

Nico darted off to get Katie.

Ellie accompanied him, making sure everything was okay.

Katie looked up, "What's going on?"

"We're getting into the panic room." He helped her up.

She looked a little panicked and let him help her up, "Seriously?"

He nodded.

She froze after she got to her feet, "Then we have a problem."

"Don't tell me you're in labor."

"Okay, I won't tell you." She looked over at him.

Nico looked back at Ellie.

Ellie looked just as alarmed as he felt. "I'll tell Gibbs."