Snippets

A/N: Inspired by a night when I was startled awake by thunder and lightning. I realized that storms might mean an entirely different thing to Nico. Either that or I'm just way too obsessed.

The thickness of her coat helped keep out the dampness and the cold, but like any other material, it did little to muffle the vibrations on the ground and the ringing in her ears. The outrageous bursts of light penetrated her lids and abducted the quiet darkness that would have helped her sleep. Oh well. No hope of sleep now.

Nico curled into herself tighter, bringing her bony knees almost up to her chin, wrapped within the cradle of her equally bony arms. She had unravelled her coat into a wide blanket with sleeves, so the rest of the blankets they carried were distributed equally between Josef and Eli. She hoped they were warm. The cave was little more than an alcove on a rocky hill side, perhaps fifteen feet wide and ten feet deep. Josef had to crouch when they settled in, but by that time there was little left of the day anyway but time for sleep. The arrogant rain, each drop as fat as her index finger, threatened to trespass the only dry ground they could manage to find. Already the air was heavy with moisture, and the ground was about to turn soggy. She could feel it, hear the tiny rivulets of water giggling as they pushed and prodded their way into the soil.

For one second, she found herself blinded by the brightness as lightning cracked across the sky. Then came the terrifying moment where she knew the lightning had passed, but her eyes refused to adjust and all the world was composed of odd squiggly shapes, dark all around, but for a dull hue of red, green, maybe blue, here and there. She held her breath, blinked hard several times, and the world began to rearrange themselves again. Just as soon as she had released her breath, the furious bass of thunder struck her to the core, paralyzing her limbs, and her breath caught. The wind howled an elegy, and the rain answered by coming down even faster.

You're pathetic.

The voice was there, clear and loud even against the storm, cementing and surpassing her fright at the same time. But she must not listen, she knew she must not listen. She must ignore it, and Powers, she would endure a thousand lightnings and a thousand thunders, if only she could avoid hearing the voice.

You don't mean that. You're not brave enough, the voice continued. It was saccharine with truth, and cruel with its frankness. Look at you. Scared out of your wits by a mere storm.

Scared by a storm. It was childish. It was immature. Nico knew she made a pitiable sight there on the ground, crumpled like a ball, shaking with the rhythm of the rain.

But the memories wouldn't leave her alone. They were not entirely memories in every sense of the word; there were no clear images, no moving pictures playing in her head like a normal recollection. No, the bulk of it was forged from emotions, many different ones all folded and stirred into one another, such that the lightning would call one and a hundred of them would well in her chest. Then the thunder would seduce another, and a different set would replace the previous one. They were all fears, a variety of them. Nico was surprised to know that there could exist so many.

You deserve that much.

There were images, sometimes. Rarely. All blurred and fuzzy, as if she was seeing them through lenses that peeked over a frosted glass window, far removed from reality, but existing all the same in her mind. There was blackened rock, huge, maybe a mountain, and the feeling of pain, a hundred thousand cuts that made her bleed her life. Then came a pull of gravity, the crashing blow of an impact, and the insensate horror of knowing that someone was hunting for your blood. That was the worst part. She was already familiar with the ferocious anger and bloodlust of spirits when they see her true form, and yet none could evoke the same magnitude of fear she felt from the storm's desire for her death. Did she not have the right to be afraid? How many people could taste their demise in the thunder's call, and see their end spelled in the inky white traces of the lightning's fingers?

"Nico," a harsh whisper came from the other side of the cave. "Go to sleep."

Nico froze on the hard ground, her mind suddenly blank, except for one thought. How humiliating to have Josef see her in this state!

She calmed her breathing as much as she could, to show him that she was just fine, and on her way to sleep. She even let one of her knees unfold from her chest, in what she hoped was a good pose of relaxation. She was so focused in trying to look nonchalant, that she did not hear Josef's footsteps approach her. All she felt was a big, warm hand worming its way through her hood to rest on her cheek, and she resisted the urge to jerk away so that he would not feel the tears that streaked down her face. She felt his other hand turning her so that she faced the ceiling of the cave. Her view was obstructed by Josef's face, calm and patient, making no sign of noticing her tears.

"You have to sleep. We had a hard day, and we'll have another one tomorrow," he whispered so quietly she could barely hear him above the pattering of rain. He looked out of the cave, tilting his head to see the sky. "It's not the League," he added, before looking back at her with a small smile. "It's just our good old friend, Weather. It's been terribly hot lately. Thunderstorms are just expected."

He knew what ailed her? Her surprise sent her searching Josef's face for any traces of mockery or humour, but she should have known better. Josef would never do that. The remark about the League had not been a guess or a playful jibe at all. He knew. Somehow that fact made Nico feel… safe.

He took both of her hands into one of his own to warm them up. Nico hadn't realized how cold she had been until she felt the delicious warmth of his skin. The other crawled over her torso and rubbed her chest and tummy like a mother pacifying the coughing fits of her child. She allowed herself one moment of peace, savouring his kindness, before allowing the prickling guilt to wash away the serenity of the moment. How disappointed Josef must be. He always told her to be brave. He must be ashamed to see all his lessons wither at the sight of a storm.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"Shh. None of that," he said. "Try to go to sleep."

He let go of her hands, and threaded his fingers through her hair. Her hood had fallen away to the ground. He brushed the strands from her forehead, then resumed combing her hair with his fingers again. In another time, she would have felt uneasy by a touch that emphasized her vulnerability, but that did not seem to be Josef's intention. He wasn't entirely ignoring her weakness, her fear, but somehow she felt as if it was okay to be weak and afraid. And somehow, in a convoluted way, this acceptance made her feel brave. It made her feel all other kinds of things too, things she should not name now that Josef was hovering over her like this. It would be inappropriate. He was a friend after all.

A few minutes after she had closed her eyes, and was floating on a peaceful wave towards slumber, she felt his fingers untangle from her hair and his presence leave her. Suddenly, the wave washed her back to the shore of consciousness, but she did not want to let Josef know that. Slowly, she turned around back to her previous position, trying to ride back out to the wave. She couldn't let Josef's time go to waste.

The more she tried to go to sleep and found out that she couldn't, she became more frustrated. Her frustration prevented her from getting back to the lazy, mellow state she was just in a moment ago.

She heard a soft rustle behind her, but before she could turn around, a muscular arm slipped beneath her body, turned her over and pulled her to the hard chest of its owner. Nico's heart pounded in her chest, and she became insanely worried that Josef would feel it. Her head was tucked under his chin, her face buried within the folds of his shirt. She felt him fling a heavy cover over both of them, and she realized he was wrapping both of them in his blankets.

"You stubborn girl," he reprimanded, his voice right beside her ear. "I told you to go to sleep."

A delightful heat swam from her toes all the way to her head, but Nico couldn't figure out if it was because of the blankets, or Josef's arms… or just Josef. When she closed her eyes and bowed her head, the darkness was no longer interrupted by the heavenly white outbursts.

"I'll stay until you're fast asleep," he said, his breath tickling her ear.

It was a guilt-trip, Nico realized. Until she slept, he would be awake too. If she didn't sleep soon, she'd be the reason for keeping him up. It was a nice tactic, actually.

She allowed herself to settle against him comfortably, not for self-indulgence, but so that she could regain the peace and calm she needed to drift off to slumber. The steady beat of his heart drowned out the harshness of the falling rain, and if she listened to it, and only it, she found that it even overcame the echoing boom of the thunder.

Her last thought as she slowly succumbed to the whispers of sleep was how embarrassing it would be if Eli woke up right then and caught a glimpse of them. How embarrassing indeed.

A/N: I think Eli was awake throughout the whole thing, don't you? Hehe.