THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME - PERCY/NICO AU HIGH SCHOOL - CHAPTER IX - Parte II

This is the magic lucky word count. Reblog for creativity juice. It might even work, who knows.

Very True!

1x02 || 2x03 || 3x04

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME - PERCY/NICO AU HIGH SCHOOL - CHAPTER XII

Hi, how are you doing? Things are finally calming down. Maybe there'll be another chapter later this week!

In today's chapter we have another scene from the past. I hope you like it^^

And I have some news. I've made a cover for this story! Also made with artificial intelligence. I feel like I should get paid since I'm practically training them already! But it looks cute.

Previous chapters: CHAPTER I / CHAPTER II / CHAPTER III / CHAPTER IV / CHAPTER V / CHAPTER VI / CHAPTER VII / CHAPTER VIII / CHAPTER IX / CHAPTER X / CHAPTER XI

I hope you enjoy it!

''You're funny.'' Nico told him.

''You are.’’

And like third graders, which they both were, they laughed again as they heard the bell ring. Percy hadn't even realized that half an hour had passed, what was more time than he'd usually spent with his old friends these days. And what that said about him, hm?

''We have to go.'' He heard Nico say.

They really had. In a hurry, he helped Nico collect the lunch boxes and accompanied him to his next class, discovering that Nico was in fact in the same classes as him. Was Percy so distracted by trying to hide that he didn't see what was going on around him? Well, that would change from that moment on.

***

A few more days passed and with them, Percy began to pay attention to his surroundings. 

It was strange. How had Percy not noticed Nico's presence until that moment? Everytime Percy looked around, Nico would be there, at any place or time of day, too. That is, until they both went off to their respective homes, rehearsals or trainings, and even then, Percy would still be thinking about Nico; while waiting for his older brother to pick him up or at home helping his mother cook, trying new dishes.

That's what continued to happen for a long time, days, weeks, months, even, was hard to get a sense of time when the hours passed so quickly and the days were all the same. Percy felt like he was emerging from a paralyzing sleep, finding something that finally held his attention. One day he noticed that Nico sat at the front of the room and was very close to the exit door. On another, Nico was more towards the middle of the room and then the little boy appeared next to him, sharing the double desk with him. Grover was in the desk next to his with Juniper, Luke behind him with Thalia.

Percy looked at Nico once again and saw him writing something around a drawing, a black helmet, the handwriting as beautiful as the features of the figure. Percy wanted to ask since when they had sat together. Since when had Nico been part of his group of friends and since when had he felt so comfortable with Nico's presence, with the quietness that Nico's actions brought. Instead, he said in the lowest voice possible:

''What's that?”

''Hm?' 'Nico muttered and looked at him, as calm as ever. ''A design for a novel. I don't know if I'll finish it.”

The strangest thing was that he knew exactly what Nico was talking about. Percy had seen the draft of the novel in one of the breaks shared with food, and like everything Nico did, it was beautiful and delicate, as if Nico put a part of his soul into everything he touched with his hands, whether it was a piece of paper, art, food or homework.

''You should. It's beautiful.”

Nico didn't say anything, he just lowered his head and continued scribbling, his face hidden behind long, black hair that shone as it reflected the sunlight. Nico then doodled a sword and an armor, leather gloves, a crown of roses. The more Percy watched Nico draw, the less Percy understood what was holding his attention so much. Maybe it was the slim hands, the long, elegant fingers, maybe it was Nico's concentrated attitude, or maybe was the relaxed body next to his, his head next to Nico's, admiring the soft lines that revealed so much beauty.

'''Alright, guys. Get your books.'' The teacher said and out of nowhere, part of the magic was broken.

The drawings were still in Nico's notebook, just as beautiful as before, and they were still stuck together, leaning over the shared desk. The difference was that Nico had tensed and looked up at Percy, as if Nico hadn't paid attention to what was happening around him until he heard the teacher's voice. Percy also realized something, maybe he was very close to Nico, hugging him by the shoulders like a prison with no escape.

''Sorry.'' Even with all this in mind, Percy made no move to pull away or let him go.

Percy thought Nico was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. There was nothing like seeing the blush spreading across Nico's face, the darker skin taking on a warmer hue, to look at and to touch too, because even over his clothes, Percy could feel the heat emanating from Nico at the points where they touched; at his shoulders and hips, almost making Percy touch that delicate, beautiful face.

''...mind.”

''Sorry?”

''I don't mind.' 'Nico repeated in the same low, discreet tone, then turned to his notebook and picked up the books they would need.

Percy got the impression that Nico cared, yes, but in a... positive way. He saw the little boy open the book to the right page, lean against the back of the chair and up his arm, starting to read while the teacher explained the subject, like that scene was something completely normal. This made Percy wonder once again: had he ever done this with Nico? Since when were they so close? Wasn't it Annabeth who should have been by his side? Sure, they'd never been that close or acted the way he and Nico were acting, but... since when did she sit on the other side of the room with Clarisse and Silena? Shouldn't he have cared a little more than just being slightly surprised? She was his friend, wasn't she...? Shouldn't Percy miss her? So why had he only noticed Annabeth's absence now?

''Is everything all right?' 'He heard a soft voice beside him, and then, Nico's hand rested on his arm, Percy noticing in his friend's face a worried look.

Percy took a deep breath, letting his shoulders relax, and found himself smiling, something inside his chest warming and pulsing, as if the spark of an unknown feeling inside him was waking up.

''Everything is great. Wonderful. Incredible.”

''You dork.'' Nico rolled his eyes and leaned back against him, continuing to read the text the teacher had asked them.

Well, after that, Percy quickly understood what was going on; or rather, his psychiatrist had helped him understand. Nico wasn't stalking him, but in fact, Nico was doing the same thing he was; Nico was trying to live a discreet life away from prying eyes. Even he, at the age of eleven, admired the image that Nico made. The little boy stood out so much among the other studentes that Percy could clearly see the difference. Straight, wavy, thick hair, a small, fleshy mouth, intense black eyes, it was such a beautiful set that it gave Nico an androgynous, feminine look, although it was impossible to mistake Nico for a girl.

The point was, Nico had found the best places to hide, the same ones that Percy had found too. The music room, the forest, the bleachers near the sports fields further away from the classrooms.

Percy couldn't help himself, day after day, he found himself doing the same steps.

In addition to spending his time in class close to Nico, always during breaks, whether during the day or in the afternoon, he found himself walking and finding his way to the familiar bleachers with the familiar mop of hair in the far corner trying to hide. They never agreed out loud, it was just something that had become routine.

Nico would leave first, Percy would exchange a few words with his remaining friends and then he would follow Nico; he would practice basketball for a few minutes on the courth floor and then he would sit down next to Nico, accepting a lunchbox filled with the things he loved most, cake and pie, blueberry juice too, and sometimes, Nico would surprise him, baked potatoes or pancakes; if Nico was in the mood, lasagna or something Italian. No matter what it was, Percy would happily eat every grain and every bit of food. If Nico made it for him, the least he could do was repay him by eating it all. But it seemed so little compared to what Nico did for him... Percy wanted to share something with Nico that was important and valuable too. But what could be more valuable than sharing the food you've made yourself with someone?

''Your drawings are very good. Where did you learn?’’

They were once again in the stands, Percy ignoring the ball still in his hands to watch Nico take a forkful of food into his mouth, stopping midway with the fork between his lips.

''Hm?’’

''Where did you learn to draw?’’

''Oh, that?'' Then Nico looked down at his lap, where the notebook was, and put his lunchbox down. ''I had a lot of free time.”

Percy didn't know if he had understood… but Nico smiled at him, seeming to understand his confusion.

''I don't have any friends. I never had. Imagination was all that I had.”

''And what am I? A tree?’’

''No, you're a popular and rich athlete.’’

''You're right. I have many riches, how about you share them with me?”

''What are you saying?'’ Nico smiled again and Percy felt a throbbing in his chest that had nothing to do with the asthma he had as a baby.

''My mother likes to cook.’’

''Isn't that obvious? I mean, she has a restaurant, doesn't she?'' Nico said and tilted his head to the side, like that would make him understand what Percy meant.

''She'd love the company.”

''Don't we... have a paper to finish?’’

''I have plenty of space at home. My mother won't mind.’’

''Are you sure? I've never been to anyone's house.’’

This only made Percy's chest tighten even more.

''There's always a first time, right?’’

Nico looked at him, seemed to analyze him from head to toe and ended up shrugging.

''I will trust you.’’

At the time, Percy didn't know why he was having so many palpitations or why the feeling of relief had seized him so intensely. Later, he would recognize it as the fear of being rejected, and even if he didn't understand it yet, he knew that someone as sweet, beautiful and talented as Nico would never reject him so rudely. Thiat way, they finished eating and went on to their next classes, arranging to meet at the main gate after the last class.

***

Percy admitted, he had wasted more time than intended talking to the literature teacher. Apparently, he needed to try harder if he wanted to have a future at that school. She argued with him, went over every little thing he'd done wrong, and even gave him extra assignments to make sure his mistakes were corrected. Percy left the classroom as quickly as he could, and as soon as he saw the time, Percy ran down the corridors towards the school's main gate. When he arrived at the place he and Nico had marked, he remembered why Nico was always hiding in corners, which made Percy remember why he was hiding too.

They had already experienced this scene. Nico was pressed against the wall outside the gate and two other boys surrounded him, one of them was holding Nico by the neck while the other looked around suspiciously. The difference this time was that a crowd was watching them and no one was doing anything to stop what was about to happen.

Percy approached them, pretending to be another spectator, and listened the murmurs, while one of the boys spoke:

'Who's going to protect you now, huh? Because of you, our friends were expelled. Why don't you put yourself in your place and--’’

''What place would that be?’’

Percy couldn't help himself. This time, he didn't want any explanations. 

He stepped out of the crowd and the next thing he knew, he was face to face with the boys, or rather, his fist was against their faces. The pain came immediately, as he felt his nuckes collide with the nose of one the boys who were older than him, but who were no match for Percy.

''It's easy to mess with people smaller than you, isn't it? Why don't you play with someone your own size?”

''Would that be you?”

''What do you think?”

The silence fell, a silence that had become common no matter where Percy went. The nose of the boy he had punched was now swollen, blood trickling down his face, and the other, who had been too shocked to react, seemed to wake up from his trance. That would be the perfect moment for them to fight back, wouldn't it? Well, that's what people say, cowards soon give up if they find someone to resist them. And that's what they did, the boy who had watched his friend get knocked down with a single punch, pulled the other by the arms, helping him up and they both staggered into the crowd, running away with their tails between their legs.

Percy watched them fleeing in the distance between the cars and turned to Nico who was still leaning against the wall, the corner of his lips reddened and and on his arms and neck, marks of fingers and nails. The worst part was seeing the tears that kept falling or how Nico cowered, expecting other people to come and do the same to him. Percy didn't think, realizing that this was becoming something usual for them, and Percy didn't like it one bit, the fact that Nico had to hide in corners because of people's prejudice. 

He walked over to Nico and stopped in front of him, offering his hand. He had learned the hard way that touching someone when you don't feel safe or when you're in shock is the worst thing to do. So he just stood close without touching Nico, and tried to get his attention:

''Nico.'' Percy said in the softest voice.

''No, I… Percy?'' Percy held on and tried to be strong, Nico seemed to be reacting to everything worse than the previous time.

''I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... I was waiting for you... then, these... these boys showed up and…’’

Percy didn't know what to do. He felt his heart break when Nico took a step towards him and opened his eyes wide, his pupils unfocused and wet, as if Nico was waking up from a nightmare, and held onto his hands, trembling and breathing fast, still curled up on himself.

''It's allright. Can I hug you?”

''Hug me? Why... why would you want to touch someone like me?’’

''It looks like you need it.’’

''I... I need?'' Then, Nico looked at Percy with the most desolate and lost look he had ever seen.

''Nico. It's allright.'' Percy said it again, refusing to accept what those people were doing to Nico.

''I have to... I have to talk to Bianca, my... my sister.’’

''We will. After we get to my place. Yes?’’

''You promise?’’

''I promise.’’

Then, as if a key had been turned, Nico grabbed his arm and picked up their bags from the floor, saying: ''You dropped it.'' Just like that, like nothing had happened. But Nico was still shaking, gripping his arm tighter and handing one of the bags to Percy, holding his own against his chest in the hope that the bag and Percy would protect him.

Gods! How could someone do this to such a vulnerable and defenseless being? What had Nico done to be treated like this? Then, Percy looked around, recognizing these people. Some were in the same class as them, others Percy knew in passing, and none of them had the decency to help a classmate being abused. That's why they said he was a "rebel", and if it was up to him, things would continue exactly as they were.

''Are you ready?'' Percy said when he saw that Nico was beginning to calm down.

''Hm. Thank you.’’

Percy took Nico's backpack from his shoulder, put it with his own, and led Nico by the hand between the cars parked near the school, spotting a familiar black pick-up truck.

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Thank you for reading. And if you can, send your appreciation in the comments. Until next time!

To all my writers who have a tough time with smut terms and not knowing which ones to use, I have found the holy grail for us.

This reddit user took a poll of 3,500 people and went really in depth with asking their favorite terminology, along with actual pie charts on what the readers preferred to see in their smut.

Here's the direct link to the Google doc with all the info!

We need to gatekeep fandom.

Fandoms are made by and for weird nerds.

Fandoms are suposed to be weird, fandoms are suposed to be cringe, fandoms are suposed to be horny.

Fandoms are inherently proship, as in, "ship and let ship" always was basic fandom etiquette before the normie invasion.

Fandoms aren't suposed to follow canon, fandoms aren't suposed to be pure, clean, sanitized or marketable.

Fandoms are for self-shippers, bad cosplayers, rule 34, bad fanart, strange headcanons, crackships, darkships, edgy fanart, bad fandubs, bad ocs, AMVs, rps, askblogs, confession blogs, cringy memes, random gore, fucked up re-imaginings and most importantly fandoms are about FUN

I think we were a little too kind letting the normies in while they were bored out of their mind during quarantine, because now fandoms are being destroyed by puritans who don't understand what fandoms are to their core.

This is not for you.

Behind every fanfic update, there is a writer being turned into THIS as they await your reactions

Maybe you’ve met the right person, but you’re just not ready to fall in love.

Unknown (via perfectfeelings)

Behind the Scenes of Fic Writing: 30 Questions for Authors

What was the first fandom and/or pairing that you wrote fic for?

Do you participate in any writing events or challenges throughout the year? If so, what do you like about them?

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A Hollywood producer tells you that they want to film just one of your fics. Which fic would you want it to be?

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What is a line/scene you’re really proud of? Give us the DVD commentary for that scene.

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Send me a word. If it’s in your WIPs, include the sentence and a short summary of the fic.

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Update!

Oii, como vai? Faz um tempo que a gente não conversa. No momento, estou a todo gaz! Basicamente estou traduzindo a "Não Há Lugar Como o Lar" que se chama"There’s no Place Like Home" e também revisando a "Refulgente(Amor de babá)", uma história original que eu também vou trazer aqui em forma de fanfiction; ela era originalmente uma fanfiction, mas estou tentando ganhar algum dinheiro com a escrita, tentei transformá-la em original.

A boa notícia é que estou colocando as duas versões da "Não Há Lugar Como o Lar" no AO3 aqui e aqui. Eu adicionei algumas palavras e revisei o texto. Até agora temos duas informações novas nos primeiros capítulos que já estão no ar. A primeira é que o Nico comenta no primeiro ou no segundo capítulo que a Bianca é meio irmã dele. A outra é sobre o Kronos (aqui ele vai ser bonzinho), ainda não tem muita informação sobre na história, estou pensando em fazer um extra com ele. Bemmmm, algumas ideias estão surgindo, então acho que a história vai ser alongar um pouquinho mais, porém, o enredo principal vou tentar terminar o mais rápido possível.

Eu também gostaria de pedir a ajuda de vocês! Coloquei essa história em uma plataforma que talvez no futuro possa me pagar, A Tapas. É completamente gratuito para ler os capítulos, a história está em forma de original, é claro. Se você puderem passar por lá, fazer o cadastro no site e me ajudar com inscrição e like, até um comentário se for possível, eu ficaria muito agradecida.

There’s no Place Like Home

Não há lugar como o lar

Amor de Babá

Também vou começar a escrever alguns posts sobre dicas de escrita. Na verdade, eu tinha um blog sobre o assunto, e agora vou colocar tudo num lugar só. Por enquanto é só isso. Ah, se eu de vezes em quando desaparecer é porque estou descansando do burnout que vive me perseguindo ou tentando levar meus projetos adiante. Ah, a faculdade também. Mas se vocês sentirem minha falta é só mandar uma mensagem ou ask.

Hi, how are you? We haven't talked for a while. At the moment, I'm in full swing! Basically, I'm translating “Não Há Lugar Como o Lar", which is called “There's no Place Like Home”, and I'm also revising “Refulgente(Amor de babá)", an original story in portuguese that I'm also bringing here in the form of a fanfiction; it was originally a fanfiction, but I'm trying to make some money from writing it, so I tried to turn it into an original.

The good news is that I'm putting the two versions of “There's No Place Like Home” on AO3 here and here. I've added a few words and revised the text. So far we have two new pieces of information in the first chapters that are already up. The first is that Nico comments in the first or second chapter that Bianca is his half-sister. The other is about Kronos (he's going to be nice here), there's not much information about him in the story yet, I'm thinking of doing an extra with him. Well, some ideas are coming up, so I think the story will be a bit longer, but I'll try to finish the main plot as soon as possible.

I would also like to ask for your help! I've put this stories on a platform that might pay me in the future, the Tapas. It's completely free to read the chapters, the story is in original form, of course. If you could stop by, register on the site and help me out with subscriptions and likes, even a comment if you can, I'd be very grateful.

There's no Place Like Home

Não há lugar como o lar

Amor de Babá

I'm also going to start writing some posts on writing tips in portuguese. In fact, I used to have a blog on the subject, and now I'm going to put it all in one place. That's all for now. Ah, if I disappear from time to time, it's because I'm taking a break from the burnout that keeps haunting me or trying to move my projects forward. Ah, college too. But if you miss me, just send me a message or an ask.