The Sea's Warrior (Fem Percy x YJ) [REWRITE]

29

The bird was chirping outside the window again. A warbling song, never ending and on repeat. Just as I thought it would stop and leave, it would begin anew. I sighed and placed a puzzle piece down, turning to look out the red framed glass. The front yard spilled out in front of the house, save for the gardens bordering the cold walls. Among the leaf covered branches sat a little bluebird. I smiled and leaned over the arm of the couch, staring at the bird.

The bird startled and flew away. I frowned, only to have my unasked question answered by the knock at the door. I slipped off the couch, padding into the foyer. Through the window, I caught a glimpse of a familiar jacket, and I pulled open the door without a thought. Kaldur blinked and smiled. It was infectious, causing a smile to pull at my lips.

"I really didn't expect to see you this soon," I said as I moved out of the doorway. He walked inside, slipping off his sandals and putting them beside my beat up sneakers.

"Junior high dance rules!" Bruce called from deeper within the manor. Laughter bubbled in my chest. It was hard to bite down the urge to tell him that didn't really mean anything to me. Kaldur only shook his head, his smile widening.

"I was not planning on visiting for a few days--" He reached over and pushed the door shut. "--at least. However, my king wished to investigate some freight ships currently docked in the harbor, and he decided my assistance would not be necessary. Under normal conditions, I might have protested, but he was quite insistent I take the respite he was offering." Sunlight washed over his shoulders, and I leaned against him in a hug. Warmth radiated from the fabric of his jacket. Kaldur sighed. His arms draped around me; tension fled from his body, leaving him with a fair amount of his weight pressing me into the ground.

"Uh, you okay?"

"I do not know why, but you are very relaxing," he mumbled. "I just feel at ease."

"Is there any point to saying this in Atlantean?"

"No." He hummed. It rumbled through his chest. His arms tightened around me.

I pulled away and walked the short distance to the stairs. Cold wood sat under my palm as I looked back at Kaldur. "Do you want to go up to my room? As long as we leave the door open Bruce should be fine with it." Most of my weight rested on the balls of my feet as I waited for Kaldur's answer. Say yes, I silently pleaded. I wanted to curl up with him, wanted to act like a teenage girl. And if my want had anything to do with me being constantly on edge, and too nervous to ask Bruce to get me a weighted blanket, that wasn't important.

Kaldur took a step forward, feet silent on the hard floor. A simple nod, and we walked up the runner-lined stairs. As soon as I entered my room, I sat on my bed. He stood paused in the doorway, eyes scanning over the room. Shadows drew his gaze first, and then it locked onto the bookcase.

"This was not here last time."

I nodded. "Yeah, Bruce thought I needed something to do other than watching TV or whatever it is he thinks I spend time doing. But dyslexia doesn't make reading fun for me." My nails scraped against the back of my neck. "Though I've actually ended up really liking a book, and next thing I knew I'd forgotten to eat. Better just to not read." Kaldur stood in front of the shelf, fingers trailing over the hard spines. His teal and gray jacket was still on; I bit the inside of my lip. "You know you can take your jacket off, right? You've- You've told me that it hurts you, and- actually, if we just shoved you underwater would that make your gills stop hurting?"

Zip. Kaldur pulled off his jacket, fixing the sleeves before tossing it towards me. It hit the side of my mattress and fell to the floor in a heap. I laughed. With a pull of my fingers towards my palm and the smallest of tugs in my gut, the water bottle on my dresser flew through the air. Plastic crinkled and crunched when I caught it. Kaldur pulled a book free, and he walked over to the bed. He sat it down and picked up his jacket. Only then did he cast a curious look at the now open bottle I held.