☼ ᴾᴸᴱᴬˢᴱ ᵀᵁᴿᴺ ᵀᴴᴱ ᴸᴵᴳᴴᵀ ᴼᴺ ᵂᴴᴱᴺ ᴵᵀ ᴰᴵᴱˢ ☀ - Stri and Socks

Nico followed, running for his life. If he were honest with himself, he was grateful to have both Sam and Myrnin besides him, even if they were both ahead of him. Even if whatever it was that was attacking them was more likely to get him than it was to get either of them, just by virtue of how slow he was. His body was exhausted, he was still dealing with blood loss, and there were thousands of things running through his head at once. He just wanted to curl up somewhere and pretend like he could get a normal night’s sleep for once. Being here, though, with Myrnin and Sam, people he trusted (although Myrnin more so than Sam at that point), was a close second. An experience that was much better than anything that was waiting for him in his world when he blinked back.
Nico knew he was falling behind. He knew he wasn’t a vampire, he wasn’t as strong as either Sam or Myrnin, he didn’t have the same sort of endurance. Even so, he was slower than he should have been even as himself. Nonetheless he barreled around the corner, doing his best to not let his legs get trapped by the cloth reaching out for him, trying to trip him and grab him… if he shadow travelled, he wouldn’t be able to stay conscious for long afterwards. But if he didn’t shadow travel, then he might not get out of the room in one piece. It was a difficult bargain to make. One that Myrnin would likely be upset at him for.
There was no time to consider his choice, just enough time to close his eyes and melt into the nearest shadows, reappearing where Myrnin’s voice had come from. If he had thought he could take Sam along with him without losing them both, he would have. The truth was, he wasn’t even sure he himself could make the jump, and as he solidified right behind Myrnin, he lurched forward, barely able to keep his balance. They had to be near the exit. They had to be.

Nico almost winced away from Myrnin’s touch, but they couldn’t afford that right now, and he would have toppled over entirely if it hadn’t been for Myrnin’s presence. They were almost out. They were so close, and Nico just wanted to reach forward and bridge the gap he saw Sam disappear into.
“Thanks,” he mumbled to Myrnin, well aware that his reaction time was a little bit slowed by some combination of the blood loss and the exhaustion. And then Myrnin had left Nico’s side and gone through as well, and Nico was aware of the things after them, so he put what little strength he had left into a sprint, barreling directly in the direction Sam and Myrnin had gone.
One step at a time and he did manage to make it through without one of… whatever it had been… grabbing his foot. He scarcely registered the living room before he skidded to a halt, breathing hard and kneeling down as though that would make his head stop spinning.
“What a room,” he mumbled, glad to feel the familiar weight of his sword back at his side, and the comfort of having his jacket on once again. He couldn’t describe the difference it made. Perhaps it was just the familiarity, or perhaps it was the weight of the material that made Nico feel just a little bit calmer. He couldn’t really look at Sam and he couldn’t really look at Myrnin, but he was glad they had both made it out. He was glad they were back in the living room.
And then, as though he had finally had the chance to process it, his hand moved almost subconsciously towards where Sam had bitten him. That was his blood running through Sam’s veins. Yet he was still alive. They were all still alive, and the panic had subsided. All Nico wanted now was a hundred year nap with the promise of no nightmares. With that out of the running… what he wanted most was to find the right words to say to Sam. He had already thanked Myrnin for the option he had given him, but he’d made his opinion clear.

Nico turned to glance at Sam, opening his mouth to say something when Myrnin spoke first. Right. Sam had probably been speaking to Myrnin, not him. Nico didn’t know why that stung. He frowned, staring at the ground for a moment before he looked up to answer Myrnin’s question. How could he explain that the idea of being happy and running carefree through a maze had thrown him off so much? It shouldn’t have bothered him, but in the aftermath of their conversation… it had been a lot.
“It was just a different version of the maze,” Nico murmured, still sort of catching his breath. “But in the daylight. I don’t know it…” he trailed off, staring at Sam. “You were there. We both were. I think it might have been… other versions of-” the demigod was spared trying to come up with some explanation by the House whisking him back to his world.
-
“-leaving a rip in the mortal world that can’t be closed.” After a few moments of the House being empty, Nico blinked in again, holding his scepter a little more like he was actually prepared to use it. Fortunately, it hadn’t been in hand when he had last blinked, but now it was just going to be an inconvenience. Great. He muttered something under his breath, moving to lean it against the wall. The last room had been a lot to handle, and Nico wasn’t sure he fancied seeing either Sam or Myrnin again. Or maybe he did, so he could actually talk things through. He needed to know why Myrnin had offered to take his memories. He needed to know if it had been as great a risk as it had sounded. Not that he would change his mind, just that he wanted to know. And then there was Sam. Sam, who Nico would rather never see again. He wanted to kill off this fledgling crush and just move on and go away, back to the way life had been before. Yet on the other hand he did desperately want to see him. He needed to know he was alright after everything.
A hunger strike. Poor Sam. Poor, brave, stupid Sam. How had an attempt not to hurt anyone end up like this? The thought shook Nico down to the core – it was the first time he’d allowed himself to consider it.

Nico glanced up as soon as he was aware of Sam’s presence. There were so many things he wanted to say, but so few things he actually could say. He didn’t even know what he felt anymore. Fortunately for both of them, though, his heart seemed to have gotten the message that an elevated heart rate right now was inappropriate at best. He’d said some things he hadn’t meant, last blink, and he couldn’t just take them back. Distantly, he wondered if it was still his blood circulating in Sam’s veins, but that was a petty thought. It ceased to be his blood as soon as it left his body, and he had more than enough to spare. It was Sam’s now, and that had to be good enough for the both of them.
“Hey,” he replied quietly, staring down at the tear in his jeans that ran across his kneecap. It was easier than looking at Sam. “Just… trying to make sure my world doesn’t go down in flames,” he replied, but any humor in the statement fell short. “What about you?”
It wasn’t adequate and they both knew it. There were things they needed to talk about, and there were things they couldn’t talk about, and the conversation they’d been having before suddenly felt so trivial.
“Before you say anything…” Nico cut off, wincing away from the sound of his own voice. It was too loud, and he didn’t know how to do this. “I still don’t care that you’re a vampire. It doesn’t make you a monster, I stand by that. And I don’t care if you see yourself that way, or if other people think you are, you’re not.” It had to be said. That didn’t mean, though, that Nico wasn’t still angry about what had happened. The difference was, he was mostly angry at himself.

Nico looked away, not sure what to say. Sam had still bitten him, still violated his privacy, still sent him spiraling into things he didn’t want to remember, but was that really his fault? Nico knew it wasn’t. He couldn’t blame Sam for being hungry. He couldn’t blame him for acting when his body gave him little choice in the matter. It wasn’t Nico’s place to tell Sam what to be. He had no say in the matter whether Sam tried to stay as human as possible, or if he did what was expected of him.
Nico knew what it was like to feel like nothing was right at all. To feel like every path led down the wrong road, but you had to go down one of them. You had to hope, in the end, that something turned out okay. Even if nothing ever did. Nico remembered when everything was new to him. When he thought the skeletons he summoned were Percy’s doing, when he was afraid for his life because he didn’t know what his own powers could do. He still couldn’t control them at times. He knew where Sam was coming from, but if Nico had messed up when he was first learning, nobody would have died. If Sam messed up… Nico was living proof that things could go wrong in so many ways.
“If being a good vampire means you wouldn’t have stopped before I died, then… I don’t know why you’d listen to me, but I wouldn’t want you to be a good vampire either.” He stared at the ground, swallowing hard. He might have been out of it, he might have been spiraling, but he knew Sam had stopped before the real damage was done. He knew Sam should have killed him. “But I don’t think there’s one right away to be a vampire. I don’t think you have to lose your humanity to fit their stupid expectations.” Nico still wasn’t looking at Sam, his attention focused on the floor instead, as though he found something very interesting there. “You get to choose what you want to be, Sam. Nobody else gets to choose that for you. And if you have to take blood to survive… then… then you’ll figure out how to do that without hurting people.” Nico wasn’t usually an optimist, but it wasn’t like Sam’s entire world was at stake. He could afford to believe that Sam could choose his own path.
Nico almost smiled as Sam, as he usually did, asked if he could help. The answer hadn’t changed, but it was a sweet sentiment. It was a sentiment Nico didn’t feel like he deserved. Not after what had happened last time. Not after some of the things he had said.
“You’ll find somewhere,” Nico murmured, twisting his silver ring around his finger. “Do you… do you have a place to stay right now?” Nico knew what it was like to have nowhere. If Sam needed, Nico had tips for how to survive without somewhere to go. He hoped Sam wouldn’t need that.
Finally, Nico looked up at Sam, considering him for a few moments.
“I reserve the right not to answer if I don’t want to,” Nico replied, an almost-smile touching his lips. “But feel free to ask. Who knows, maybe it’ll all feel smaller if I say it out loud.”

Nico frowned, weighing Sam’s options in his mind. There really were no good options there. Nothing that Nico would have preferred, were he in Sam’s shoes. Things still felt awkward between them. Stilted, uncomfortable… and as much as Nico knew Sam was blaming himself, he knew it was just as much his fault. Him and his traitorous heart. At least the whole biting him thing seemed to have gotten rid of the way his heart pounded erratically around Sam. Nico didn’t like dealing with feelings. He didn’t like confronting them, and he didn’t need a crush making everything more complicated. Like it or not, Sam wasn’t supposed to know. Sam wasn’t supposed to know, and he wasn’t supposed to get a say, because… well, because Nico hadn’t cared if his feelings were reciprocated. He was barely ready to deal with the fact he had feelings. Fortunately, they seemed to be… at least in hibernation for the moment.
“Time travel sounds fun,” he commented lightly, glancing up at Sam for just a moment. It sounded fun as long as it was intentional. “Unless you think you’re in danger if you stay with one of them, don’t stay on the streets.” It was a warning, more or less, but one born out of concern rather than anything else. “Or if you do, find someplace where you can make a fire. I… I dunno if you have McDonald’s in your world but… they sometimes have food leftover and they’ll give it to you if you ask nicely.” Nico shrugged. He didn’t know if it was obvious that he was speaking from experience. He didn’t know if he wanted it to be.
He shifted uncomfortably at Sam’s question, but it was a fair one. “The Earth herself is a goddess, of sorts, and she’s sort of waking up. And then she’ll try to rule things, and she’ll probably kill us all to do it. Her armies can’t die anymore. Nobody can die anymore, and we’re trying to fix that, but even if that gets fixed, even if we make death permanent again… well, everyone I know might die in a war anyway.” He sighed, letting his head drift down to rest on his knees. “I don’t even know what I’m doing. If I do it wrong it just… gets so much worse.”

Nico, unfortunately, had forgotten about the vampire thing. Well, he hadn’t forgotten, he had just failed to take it into account when giving suggestions. The very things that had kept him alive when he’d been without a home were things that would cause Sam far more harm than good. Which obviously hadn’t been his intent, but still. It showed that he wasn’t thinking about it like he should have. Because Sam was different from other human beings, they had just proven that beyond a shadow of a doubt. Nico had the bite marks to prove it.
“Things happen,” he murmured, looking up at Sam. He shifted uncomfortably, searching Sam’s expression for a moment. “I know… I know it’s not my place to ask, and I’ll shut up about it if you want me to, but… do you have a way to uh… get blood safely?” As cruel as Nico had been when Sam had backed away, as terrifying as the experience was, it didn’t mean he wanted Sam to swear off blood forever. That would kill him. Besides, Nico was more than used to blurring the line between monster and friend in his own world. Not that he thought of Sam as a monster, just that Sam seemed to more or less consider himself one. It wasn’t a fair word. The lines weren’t as clearly defined as they were in Nico’s world and it wasn’t fair. He just wanted things to be simple, for once.
“I might,” he contradicted quietly, grateful to turn his attention back to his world. At least there he had a plan. At least there he could do something, even if it was risky. He twisted the ring on his finger, trying to find the right words. It was hard to look at Sam when he was considering his world, because it wasn’t a fair thing to place on someone else’s shoulders. Nico had always been better off dealing with things alone. Or… he at least pretended he was. The House had always made sure he wasn’t really dealing with it alone. “It’s a risk I have to take, I guess. One step at a time.” His throat felt dry as he spoke, and he knew he was trying to convince himself as much as Sam.
“Sounds like we could both use a distraction,” Nico murmured under his breath.

“That’s good.” Nico’s voice was soft, and he was grateful, really. He knew from experience now that Sam didn’t have to completely drain anyone in order to feed properly, and though it was still not a comfortable thought, he didn’t want Sam to die. He especially didn’t want Sam to die because he was trying not to be a monster. There was nothing inherently bad about vampires, Nico had come to realize. Just as there was nothing inherently good about humanity. It was about the choices they made.
An awkward silence settled, and Nico couldn’t help but wonder why Sam was so confident in Nico’s ability to put his world right. He couldn’t help but wonder why he wanted to make sure Sam was safe, wanted to protect him from whatever dangers there were in his world. Homelessness wasn’t a good option for anybody.
Nico followed, his footsteps quiet as he moved towards the hallway. Not so quiet that Sam couldn’t hear, of course, but just… quiet, on instinct.
“Do you have a good feeling about any door in particular?” Nico inquired, looking at them all. “The last one was almost nice, until it wasn’t.” Which was a remarkably eloquent thing to say, really. “This one, maybe?” Nico asked, swiftly changing the subject and pointing at one a few steps down. “Unless there’s one you prefer.”

Nico followed Sam and almost tensed up before realizing that he wasn’t, in fact, looking out over an ocean. It was much too small for that. It was a lake, and the worn wooden boards of the dock felt familiar underneath his feet. He may not have spent much time lately on docks, considering Poseidon would just as likely drown him as he would thank him, but that didn’t erase a childhood spent on docks just like this. He didn’t remember much, but what he did remember stuck out firmly in his head. He was comfortable, even when the water lapped at the wooden beams holding the dock up.
He glanced up at the sky, then back at Sam. He hadn’t really considered that every room with Sam would need to be dimly lit if it was outside. He may not have known much about vampires, but he could tell that the dim sunlight was bothering him as it was. It wasn’t even close to midday. Unfortunately, that meant Nico was going to have to be at a disadvantage no matter which room they went in, if it were outside. Then again, he’d rather be somewhat blind than have Sam end up dead.
The lake was close enough to what Nico had experienced in the past that it wasn’t particularly remarkable (other than its color). The mountains, on the other hand, were enough to almost take Nico’s breath away. He looked at the view, soaking it in for as long as possible.
There were two kayaks further down the dock, and Nico dared to step a bit closer.
“It’s like… a one person gondola,” he commented, though that was a terrible description for it. “Except I think if you tried to stand in one of these you’d probably fall right in.”

Nico tilted his head, edging closer to the kayaks. He had never heard the word, but that wasn’t terribly surprising.
“I wonder if Camp Half Blood has them,” he mused. He had seen the canoes, but he had also spent most of his time there avoiding the lake because people said there were things in it. Besides, the weapons had been so much cooler than the lake – why would he want to do something he could do literally anywhere else? Especially when Camp Half Blood meant he could learn to fight. He wished now he had made different decisions as a kid. But the older kids had tried to keep him appeased when Bianca was gone, and keeping him appeased meant showing him all the weapons.
“We might as well go out there… I don’t really see anything else to do here.” He shrugged, sitting down on the dock so he could take his shoes and socks off. If he was going to fall in, which was definitely a possibility, he didn’t want to get those wet. “Hm?” he asked, brow creasing. He lifted his dark gaze up to meet Sam’s. “I lived in Venice for six years. You can’t get anywhere if you don’t use a boat.” He straightened up, carefully edging towards the kayaks. Shooting Sam a look that said ‘here goes nothing,’ he lowered the craft down into the water and very carefully lowered himself into it.

Nico’s gaze immediately went towards Sam as he heard the other boy hiss, wanting to make sure he was okay. It seemed like he was… he wasn’t dying, at least. Well… he wasn’t dying any more than he was already dead. Vampires were complicated. Could they even drown? Nico found he didn’t want to find that out.
“I’ve never been in one of these before, but… my guess is…” he frowned as he pulled the paddle from the side of his boat, glancing at the way the paddle end seemed to be… both ends. That was unusual. Or maybe it was just gondolas that were unusual. He didn’t know. “Alright,” he continued, lowering one end into the water, “You just…” he demonstrated, propelling himself forward a decent ways. He was tempted to stand up, but he knew the paddle wouldn’t be long enough if he did so. He dipped the other end in the water and pulled it back, smiling a bit as he got into a rhythm.
It didn’t take him long to figure out how, exactly, the kayak seemed to work. He circled back around and pulled his craft next to Sam’s, leaving enough room for Sam to paddle away if he needed to.
“Got it?” he asked, tilting his head. “You just have to make sure you use equal force on both sides so you don’t end up going in circles.” It would probably be easier for Sam. If Myrnin was any indication, vampires were naturally strong, right?

Nico gave a soft hum of amusement as Sam replied, his gaze drifting back up to his friend. Yes, his friend, he decided. Even after everything that had happened. Hear that? Friend. he lectured his rebellious heart, in case it wanted to make decisions Nico wasn’t ready for. Decisions that could compromise this friendship that rested on the edge of a knife. Or the tip of a fang.
“Then you’re doing a great job,” he quipped back, shooting Sam a soft smile. Smiles came easier around Sam. He didn’t know why, especially given the events of the last room. When Nico had made a fool of himself and then he’d almost died. He tried to banish the thought. He wasn’t as successful as he’d hoped.
He was actually impressed by how quickly Sam was getting the hang of it. He waved back before dipping the paddle back in the water and tailing Sam, using the wake Sam left to speed his own journey – same speed for half the work. He remembered doing that when he was little and too weak to go on long journeys. Although “long” was relative and he’d only rarely been allowed to paddle.
“You sure you’ve never done this before?” he asked jokingly, using a bit of strength to speed up and pull besides Sam.

Nico’s eyes widened a little bit. “I’ve been lots of places, but most of them had lots of water,” he returned, shaking his head. “I can’t imagine not having any at all. Well… except for when I lived at the Lotus, but that doesn’t count.” His face darkened a little with the memory, and he knew it wasn’t something he was keen on discussing with Sam at the moment. Maybe eventually. Maybe when he trusted Sam not to pity him over the things he’d gone through, maybe when he wasn’t as frightened of freaking the other boy out. Maybe. Or that could be a secret Sam would never have to know about. Like Tartarus. Like Cupid. Like everything else in Nico’s life that he felt too awkward about telling anyone else unless it was forced out of him by the House when he didn’t have a say.
“Wii?” he repeated, somewhat bewildered. He’d never heard of a Wii, or if he had, he had forgotten it. “What’s a Wii?” He looked genuinely interested, leaning forward as he waited for an answer. Sam sounded proud of it, and he also sounded like Nico should know what it was. Probably a modern non-demigod friendly thing. He let the comment about strength slide. Sam hadn’t come to terms with being a vampire yet, and Nico wasn’t going to force him to think about it if he didn’t want to. He was about to say something else about Wii, something to distract from the sour note in Sam’s tone, when he was hit in the face by a paddleful of water. Made even worse by the fact he was leaning into it.
“Hey!” He managed, spluttering a little bit. A competitive spark had lit itself in his eyes as he pushed some of his wet hair out of his face. Grinning a little manically (and wider than he had in a long time), he raked his paddle across the water, aiming the whole of the spray at Sam.

It was difficult, at times, to tell where the mask stopped and Nico di Angelo began. In his world, the world filled with trials and tribulations and seemed to lack happy endings, there was no difference. The world that had stripped him of everything he loved, everything he clung to when the world was too much, the world that had forced him into hell and then made him survive to save everyone else. Yes, that was the world that had forced Nico to create the mask. He became the mask there. It was best to keep friends away by acting scary. By acting how people expected him to act. There was nothing to laugh about, in his world.
In the House, though, there was a difference between Nico di Angelo, son of Hades, and Nico. Perhaps not around everyone, but at the very least around Sam. For whatever reason, the mask came off around him.
“Mm-hmm,” Nico replied jokingly, as though he didn’t believe Sam. His eyes flashed playfully as he sent one last splash of water at Sam before he dipped the paddle firmly in the water and began to follow. It was difficult to keep up – he was only human, after all – but he did what he could, aiming a few splashes in Sam’s direction whenever he got close.