Cities and Sewers

10

Tavi's P.O.V.

After school the next day, Lee and Gray offer to drive me to where we're meeting at the beach. I text Levi that I don't need a ride and sit in the back seat in the center as Gray drives and Liem rides shotgun.

When we park at the beach, Mae and Nico are already up by the small ice cream shop by the parking lot. They're both standing there in what I assume is an extremely awkward silence.

After some quick hellos, we walk down the beach for so long that soon enough we can't see any of the few people sitting at the main part of the beach. I purposefully led them out to the huge house that used to be my great uncle's. It was given to my mother in his will when he eventually died from dementia. I found the key when I was looking for my mom's old necklace a while ago. The key to the once gorgeous house now resides on my key ring.

"Why are we here again?" Nico asks, like he's bored. Or maybe it's fear that I see when I really look at him.

I casually begin to climb the steep stairs up to my great uncle's house. We reach the halfway-mark at an almost completely destroyed porch.

"Are we supposed to be up here?" Gray questions, obviously concerned.

"It's chill. The house belongs to my family, but we've never had the money to remodel and fix all of it. I had an idea, though. Who needs the money when we have an urban manipulator in our midst? I researched all of our powers and it says online that Nico can manipulate all forms of urban areas. That includes houses and woodwork and things like that. This is a good place for Nico to test out his powers. It's the beach therefore there's water for me. It's the afternoon so there's an obvious shadow for Mae. And Lee doesn't really need anything to test his powers because invisible energy is everywhere."

"I thought I was the one with the super smarts," Gray pouts.

I scoff as Nico says, "So how do I do this?"

"Cue the training montage," I smile.

For the next half hour or so, Mae, Lee, and I sit back and watch Gray try to teach Nico how to use his powers.

"Can I try something?" I ask eventually.

"Go ahead," Gray obliges.

I walk over to stand next to Nico. "I came here for the first eight years of my life before my great uncle was taken to a nursing home and the house was left abandoned for the next two years before he died, but my only memories here are of when the house was gorgeous. It was painted a beautiful pale grey before it was taken over by moss and vines. This porch area had a covered area like a sunroom. These chairs were covered in vibrant, bohemian patterns, and this wood was stained a color close to orange. The house felt like it was something out of a fairy tale.

"Close your eyes, Nico, and picture what it used to look like." Nico does as I say and I wipe away the stray tear that fell when describing. "Now, make it how I remember it."

Nico's hands raise in front of him as if another force is telling him what to do. The moss and vines retreat from the wood and the holes in the porch are suddenly repaired. The sunroom screen is restored and the wood going up and down the stairs and across the porch bursts to life in a beautiful burnt orange. The chairs do the same and are suddenly covered in the lively patterns I remember.

Nico opens his eyes and his jaw drops. He quickly covers it with his mouth and turns to me.

"Did I do that?" he questions.

I nod with a huge smile on my face. Nico embraces me in a hug as the rest of them give him a round of applause.

"I think it's Mae's turn since it looks like Nico's got it down," Gray grins.

Mae's eyes widen. I don't think she was expecting to go next. 

A/N: What do you think? I LOVE THIS CHAPTER! Nico is such an interesting character to me even though I created him. Like, he's one of those people that can be an asshole around some people and completely sweet and awesome and kind around other people. I don't know about you, but I have people like that in my life and they're awesome people, but they can also be super annoying, ya know. I'm ranting. Love to you and everything you do <3