"Dinner's almost ready are you to coming back? You missed lunch." Nico jumped, he hadn't heard Masky coming. Toby didn't seem surprised so maybe he had. Nico remembered Toby saying he was hungry earlier and he hadn't had a chance to eat since then thanks to Nico walking out.
"Sure Masky." Nico said getting up first and reaching down to help Toby up too. Toby took Nico's hand and didn't let go of it when he was up. Nico felt a little colour rise to his cheeks as Masky noticed but he just smiled. Of course he wouldn't think anything of it since he was with Hoody.
"Oh by the way we need to go grocery shopping tomorrow. I'm assuming you'll want to come Toby? What about you Nico?" Masky added as they walked back to the house. Nico adjusted his hand in Toby's so their fingers were laced together, waiting for him to answer first.
"Hell ya I wanna go." Toby said happily. Masky rolled his eyes at Toby then looked at Nico.
"Nico? I have to warn you sometimes Toby insists on being an embarrassment by riding in the cart." Nico chuckled as Toby glared at Masky.
"I guess I might as well go along." Nico said with a shrug.
He guessed that with so many people in one house to feed, grocery runs would be a big thing. Plus they could do with as many people to carry bags as could be spared, especially since most of them didn't look human enough to go into a town. Nico thought he could be helpful. Of course it was possible that the mist would cover the others different appearances. But they weren't Greek monsters as far as he could tell so he wasn't sure the mist. A Greek thing. Extended to them.
Nico resolved to ask about it later as they reached the house. They found dinner already on the table with Sally, Senderman, Hoodie, E.J. and of course Smiling Dog already there. Masky went to sit next to Hoody and Nico was happy to slide in next to Sally with Toby on his other side.
Toby immediately started helping himself to food. Tacos by the looks of it. Nico had the feeling that when he had been younger they had waited for everyone to come to the table before they started eating. Obviously that wasn't how it worked here.
E.J. seemed to have a small bowl of meat of his own. It was slightly lighter in colour than what everyone else was eating. It looked more like pork. Nico was doing his best not to think about that as he waited for Toby to finish serving himself, and pass the food so Nico could take some. Toby had his plate piled with almost more food than it could hold.
Toby we have been over this many times, put only as much food on your plate as it will fit and if you are still hungry when you finish take seconds. At this rate you are going to make a mess. Slenderman scolded from his place at the head of the table steepling his fingers.
Toby stuck his tongue out the hole in the side of his mouth at Slenderman, making Nico chuckle softly. Toby then passed the serving bowl on to Nico.
Nico served himself less than Toby even though he would probably want seconds as well, he didn't like to over fill his plate. Especially since they were making their own tacos out of premade ingredients. So some room for maneuvering was needed.
Toby was already starting to run into some trouble. Nico could see Masky and Hoodie laughing discretely as they watched Toby's antics. Until E.J. engaged Masky in conversation. BEN, L.J. and Jeff showed up together. Nico relaxed a little, finally allowing him to start arranging his own taco and eating comfortably.
"You cheated!" Jeff was loudly accusing BEN as they took the remaining places at the table.
"I did not." BEN said doing his best to sound indignant. Nico could pick up a small crackling under BEN's words like they were coming through a speaker. Interesting.
"Ya you did! I crashed into that stupid statue of yours! That thing doesn't even exist in Mario Kart, so the only way it would be there is if you were cheating!" Nico had no idea what Mario Kart was, but he guessed it was some sort of game. Sally stole a cherry tomato off Nico's plate, Nico pretended not to notice.
"What's Mario Kart?" Nico asked Sally. He would have asked Toby, but Toby's mouth was too full of food at the moment for him to be able to answer.
"It's a video game where you drive little cars over these cute courses, I like the rainbow one." Sally said humming as she pretended to feed some of her food to the stuffed bear on her lap.
"I like it but the boys don't usually let me play with them, and even when they do I lose." She pouted and popped the bit of meat she had been pretending to feed the bear into her own mouth.
"Well maybe you'll get the chance to play against me some time. Given that I've never so much as touched a video game before I'm sure you'll win." Nico said reassuringly. He then heard a choking noise from his other side. He turned in time to see Toby swallow the last of his mouthful and start coughing. Nico patted him on the back, worried, as he coughed for a minute.
"Huh for once it's not me." He heard Masky mumble from across the table and Hoodie laughed. After a minute Toby stopped coughing though his breath still wheezed in his throat a bit.
"You've never played a video game?" Toby asked Nico, his eyes wide. That's what that was all about?
"Nooo?" Nico said slowly, he was confused, was that really such a big deal?
"Well we're fixing that after dinner." Toby said decidedly. Nico shrugged, it wasn't as if he cared much and obviously it mattered to Toby.
"Ooo can I play too?" Sally asked excitedly.
"Is there a reason why she shouldn't?" Nico asked Toby who shook his head. "Then sure why not." He said smiling at Sally.
"Yay!" Sally said happily clapping her bears paws before starting to eat again quicker. Obviously looking forward to playing.
"You hear that Jeff? BEN? Me, Nico, and Sally get the games after dinner." Toby called across to them grinning. They groaned but didn't argue.
Nico guessed they had been playing most of the day so they couldn't really make an argument that it was still their turn. Nico was quiet for the rest of dinner. Listening to the conversations that went on around him to learn more about the people he was staying with.
Maksy talked to E.J. for most of the meal doing his best to include Hoodie, until Masky has some sort of coughing fit and excused himself. After that Hoodie finished quickly and went after Masky.
"Is Masky okay?" Nico asked Toby softly after watching them both go. Toby nodded and swallowed his mouthful before answering Nico properly.
"Yep, he just went a little too long without his medication, he'll take it now and be okay in like five minutes."
"Oh okay." Nico said tuning back into the conversations around him.
L.J. and BEN were arguing about something. Nico couldn't tell what. But it couldn't have been really important because they were smiling as they insulted each other. L.J. was living up to his name by cackling away as he watched BEN and Jeff's fight. Jeff interrupted the fight when E.J. got up to leave the table.
"Hey eyeless guy, are you going out tonight?" He said in a louder than needed voice.
"Yes, why?" E.J. said sounding annoyed.
"Want a partner?" Jeff asked smiling a little wider than usual.
"Well yes if only it was someone other than you offering." E.J. said smirking. L.J. burst into another laughing fit, Toby gave a muffled snigger as well.
"Ouch I'm hurt." Jeff said putting a hand on his chest in over exaggerated offence. "Come on, I'll be quiet I promise."
"It's not that you're not quite." E.J. said sighing. "It's that you're messy! I like to keep things neat, and with you around there's no chance of that."
"Come on, I'm the one who broke the jar and spoiled your last batch. I might as well help you refill." Jeff insisted. Nico remembered the broken jar of kidneys they must be talking about. Oh, he didn't feel very hungry anymore.
"Fine. But we're doing things my way, understand?" E.J. relented and Jeff jumped up from the table.
"That's fine with me I'll just split off from you near morning to have a bit of fun before we come back."
E.J. sighed heavily as he left the room with Jeff tailing him. At that moment Nico remembered that he had wanted to apologize to Jeff for insulting him the night before so he stood to follow.
"I'll be back in a minute." He told Toby when he looked up at Nico worried, as Nico left he could feel Toby's eyes still on his back.
"Hey Jeff, wait a minute." Nico called once he was in the hall, Jeff turned around but hesitated to stop until E.J. called over his shoulder.
"I need to go get my mask and my scalpels, I'll meet you in the front hall." Jeff nodded and turned to face Nico, fully crossing his arms and scowling.
"What?" He asked in a growly tone.
"I just wanted to apologize for what I said to you last night." Nico said rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly with one hand. Leaving the other down inconspicuously close to his sword hilt just in case.
"I'm a nightmare when I get woken up, I have no filter at all, I just wanted to let you know I didn't mean it." Jeff stared at Nico for a long moment, Nico fidgeted.
"Let me get this straight, I tried to kill you and you're apologizing to me?" He said raising one almost nonexistent eyebrow.
"Umm I guess so." Nico said and Jeff laughed, Nico wasn't sure if he should too.
"Wow you're weird." Jeff said, Nico shrugged, he couldn't exactly deny it.
"Ya and you're a picture of normality." Nico joked sarcastically.
"Ya totally." Jeff said sniggering. Nico smiled crookedly, he got the feeling he was forgiven, though that wasn't going to stop him keeping a close eye on Jeff. Nico didn't trust Jeff yet, or really anyone here beside Toby and Hoodie, he wasn't even sure about Masky.
"Maybe you're okay after all, kid, see you later." Jeff turned on his heal and went down the hall to meet E.J. so Nico went back to Toby.
"What was that about?" Toby asked when Nico slid back into his chair.
"I just wanted to apologize to Jeff, I said some pretty nasty things to him last night." Nico said shrugging.
"I think that'll be the first time Jeff will have ever heard the word sorry then." Toby said laughing and reaching out to give Nico's hand a slight squeeze. Nico smiled squeezing back before letting go, picking up his plate and getting up to take it to the kitchen. Nico washed his own plate and put it in the drying rack just to make things a little easier for the person doing dishes tonight. Which turned out to be L.J. with some help from BEN.
That left Toby and Sally free to drag Nico away to the living room where the games were, as soon as Toby finished eating. Nico turned out to have as little skill at video games as he had expected. He couldn't figure out how the game worked, how to drive the little cars or what things you were supposed to hit and which to avoid.
Toby kept assuring Nico that Mario Kart wasn't really that complicated, but it sure seemed that way to Nico as he always came in last. Toby was usually first except when his twitching threw him off. Then Sally would throw a little mini celebration for herself.
Nico was relieved when the game session ended by Hoodie coming down to remind Sally it was time for her to go to bed. She refused to go at first though. It took Hoodie promising to get Masky to read to her. And Nico promising that he and Toby weren't going to play anymore anyway to convince her to get ready for bed.
After that Toby sulked for a little while but he stopped when Nico cuddled up to him on the couch. Even though it made Nico a little uncomfortable he couldn't seem to help it. Toby was just so warm, he practically radiated life, and after spending so much time with the dead, Nico craved life.
"Do you ever get tired?" Nico sighed grumpily as Toby started bouncing his leg, making his body vibrate.
"Not really, I mean only every few days. I have a really messed up sleep schedule." Toby said laughing and trying to still his leg unsuccessfully.
"Want some help?" Nico asked and expanded quickly when Toby looked down at him in confusion. "Help calming down, I can take a bit of the extra energy if you like, I figured out how a while ago." Toby hesitated but his curiosity seemed to win out, and he nodded.
Carefully Nico sat up and pressed his lips against Toby's, any skin-to-skin contact would do but he liked this one. Toby kissed back, Nico focused on the energy moving through Toby's veins. Carefully drawing out a strand and then drawing it out with Toby's breath, and breathing in the exhale.
Nico felt a shock through his lips and a slight burning in his throat that made him jerk back. He could feel Toby relax under him and panicked for a moment before assuring himself that he could still feel Toby's heart beat. What had that shock been? Even when Nico had been forced to drain other creatures entire life before, it had only felt like a slight tingling current. Not even half of Toby's energy had felt much stronger.
"What was that?" Toby asked softly, he was a lot more still than Nico had ever seen him, and seemed dazed.
"Energy and life force are basically the same thing." Nico explained equally softly wiping his mouth with one hand. "For some reason as a child of death, I can draw out and feed on other people and creatures life force. You have way more than you should though. I've never felt a current anywhere near that strong. No wonder you're always so hyper."
Nico had no idea how that could have happened but he was happy not to think about it for now. The shock of life had made him feel better than he had in months. Plus Toby was finally still besides his occasional twitches and much easier to cuddle with.
"I like that." Toby said with a sigh, his eyes sliding shut. "I can't remember the last time I felt this relaxed, thanks." Nico smiled, it was the first time anyone had ever thanked him for this but he had suspected it would help Toby. That's why he had suggested it. Toby wrapped his arms around Nico's shoulders loosely. "How did you figure out you could do that?"
"It was an accident the first time?" Nico admitted feeling comfortable enough to tell the truth this time. "When I ran away on my own for the first time. My sister had looked after me before, so I didn't know how to get food for myself and I was starving. I didn't mean to but this dog came up to me and next thing I knew it was dead and I felt much better. It took me a while for me to admit that it was a useful and even necessary thing for me."
"After a while I did. But I still didn't want to kill anything so I figured out how to take only part of the life force and leave enough for whoever. Or whatever I was taking it from to be able to recover." Toby nodded but didn't say anything.
"Toby are you falling asleep?" Nico asked, a smile played around the corners of Toby's lips and he nodded slightly again.
"Then go to bed." Nico said laughing softly and giving Toby a gentle push. Toby's only response was make a complaining noise, tighten his grip on Nico's waist and bury his nose in Nico's neck. "Really?" Nico asked laughing.
"Yep." Toby said and Nico could hear the laugh under his voice. "I don't like sleeping on my own anyway I get nightmares." Nico softened at that.
"Me too, but if we stay here all night I'll be sore in the morning. Why don't you just come sleep in my bed with me?"
Toby looked up at Nico, his eyes open now and one eyebrow raised questioning. Nico felt himself blush. "Sleep nothing else and if you're not tired enough for that yet I'll knock you out got it?" He added trying to hide how flustered he was but Toby just chuckled sleepily.
"Okay." He agreed easily. Nico got up, pulled Toby up after him and led the already half asleep boy up to his room. Ira played chaperon by forcing themself between their chests.