Nico's POV

I was so relieved when Will said he wasn't mad at me. I've never attacked a person before and I was afraid he would hit me back. Or at least yell at me for it. Octavian would do worse. Maybe I should stop comparing Will with Octavian. As much as I would love to stop doing that, it was easier said then done. Octavian was the only human I've known for years. It was hard to not try and use what I've learned from watching Octavian while being around Will. That's how I thought humans were. Hazel's mom was that way too. It made it easy to assume all humans were cruel. So far, Will's been nothing but kind to him. It wasn't fair to keep comparing him to bad people. It was just hard.

Once I had calmed down again we went back downstairs. I was still feeling a bit sick but I was able to stay awake and actually make sense when I speak. The little conversation Will said him and I had a few days ago was pretty funny. I don't even remember it happening. What did I think was outside? Poor Will must have been so confused.

"So, wanna watch TV?" Will spoke up suddenly, making me jump a little. I stuck my tongue out at him when he snickered at my reaction.

"Yeah. The new episode of Adventure Time. I missed it," I shot him a look, only to get a bright smile in return. "Thanks to someone."

Will just shrugged and flopped onto the couch, turning on the TV and flipping through channels. I pulled myself onto the couch from behind and sat on top of it, resting my feet flat on the cushions.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next week Will took me out to buy some more clothes. I pulled a hat over my head to hide my ears and tucked my tail into my pants. My tail itched and the fur tickled the bare skin on my leg but I had no choice but to keep it hidden. The walk to the store was kind of long and I felt nervous. I have already endured this walk full of strange eyes on me before, but that didn't make it any less disturbing.

It was a bit easier this time. Will actually spoke to me this time. We talked while we walked and it made me feel much less anxious. The moment we arrived to the store, I immediately felt less calm. There was so many people. I just stayed near Will as we walked. I was staring blankly at the collection of items and clothes when I slammed into a smaller body. I was grabbed from behind and pulled onto my feet to prevent me from falling on whoever I walked into.

"I-I'm so so sorry!" I sputtered. "Are you..."

I froze when I actually saw who I'd bumped into. The girl's eyes and hair gave her away completely. We stood there for a full minute, just staring at each other, until I felt a warm weight on my shoulder. I was too in shock to turn around, knowing it was Will anyway. The girl's eyes lit up as a smile spread across her face as she lept forward and pulled me into a hug. "Nico!"

I stumbled back a bit, wrapping my arms around her loosely. I couldn't believe it. I couldn't speak for a moment. A familiar woman hurried forward, eyes growing wide when she locked eyes with me. Will pulled me slightly, trying to see my face.

"Neeks? Who is this?" He asked, confused and concerned.

I smiled slightly, ignoring the woman and hugging the girl closer to me. I missed her so much. I wasn't sure what to even say. The girl returned the embrace, tightly. Will must have been so confused. I held back tears as I buried my face in the girl's shoulder.

"Hazel...."