html code: #7F748B | at The Nest, where else would he be? | late evening
Percy's parents, like most humans, did not have a special connection to the Solstice. Frankly, The Lawless couple were not big on magic in general - which was uncommon in their world of magic - so the Solstice was just another day for the whole family. It felt like a cruel and unusual punishment, having the very people that created him have no interest in magic or celebrating the Solstice. Once Percy was older and could venture out on his own, he decided that he would celebrate this day as proudly as the other species did. In fact, it was on a past Solstice that Percy had wandered into the Nest.
The Nest always seemed to glow even brighter on the day of Solstice, and the people he met inside changed his life.
Ziran Chao was always offering him soups or remedies for his symptoms, and after offering whatever he could to repay her for her kindness, they'd set up an agreement to take a few shifts at her shop. And Briar Ambrose was quite possibly one of the most interesting people he'd ever met, enjoying all of her stories of growing up in the fae realm and her indulgence of his overflowing curiosity. Not to mention the Nest's host, Arlo Daylee, was another who indulged his endless questions, so he would often be trailing behind Arlo or Briar spitting off whatever came to mind.
He met Wren at the nest too. She seemed to fill every missing part of him, and her presence grounded him in the curiosity-peaking world of magic. It felt like a sudden romance, replacing overwhelming thoughts of what all Percy had missed by being sick and human, replacing it with happy memories they shared together since starting to date and thinking of her when they weren't together. He never felt like a nuisance to her.
This year being at the Nest with Wren and his friends was the perfect place to escape after what happened with his parents a few days ago.
His parents had always insisted that they wouldn't involve magic in the search for a remedy to Percy's mysterious illness. To them, there was surely something in standard medicine that would cure him. Growing tired of the constant messages of 'we don't know what's wrong with him', he decided to research magical medicine on his own. He met Ziran at the Nest, and though her remedies did well to manage his symptoms, there was still a nagging feeling that there was a root cause that everyone was missing.
After study whatever books he could find of magical illnesses, he happened to hear about Cyrus Dumonte and his mother. Cyrus was a common guest at the Nest, and he trusted anyone he met there more than someone looking to take advantage of a naïve human. Convincing his parents to join him wasn't an easy task, especially since Percy hadn't seen his father Barclay in weeks. The air was tense between the three as they sat at Penny Dumonte's table, and dissolved into lawlessness as Penny told them Percy wasn't their child.
Percy knew better than to cross a witch, but his parents were a different story. They ignored the deadly seriousness in her eyes as they adamantly denied her claim and labelled her a scammer. They were also quick to assure Percy that he was their child, but the way the witch had looked at him when they left, it was difficult to doubt her words. He played those words on repeat in his mind, wanting to believe that she wouldn't lie to him just for a quick coin, but fighting with the same thoughts that Barclay and Constance were his only family and wouldn't lie to him either. It was too painful to think that they'd hidden such an important aspect of his life, the possible pathway to a cure, just so he would believe that he was truly their son. And if he wasn't, could it mean that he wasn't human either?
Percy holed up in the Nest for the next few days after the incident, hoping against hope that he would see Cyrus and ask him if his mother was telling the truth. After the insults his parents threw her way, he was unsure that any attempt to find out what the witch really knew was likely ruined, but he had a hard time letting go of it. This felt like the first real step towards the truth he'd ever gotten, and he didn't want to believe it could be ripped away from him so easily.
The only time he left the Nest was to change for the Solstice. If anything would make him feel better, it would be the event he looked forward to the most every year. All of his friends would be together, and he and Wren promised to meet up at the Nest later that day. Once he had everything put together, he almost made it out the house, but a weak voice called his name as he was halfway out the door. "You haven't been home since..." His mother stopped, knowing mentioning the meeting would only upset him, "Are you sure you don't want to stay for dinner? Your father made-"
"I'm going to see my friends. I just came home to change," He interrupted before she could continue, and left before it could turn into an actual argument. He was old enough now to make his own decisions, and getting stuck with his parents over an awkward dinner would only ruin his Solstice experience this year.
Sitting in his favorite chair with his favorite person made his thoughts calm down enough that Percy actually managed to nod off for a moment. After running on depleting adrenaline for several days, his body finally caved in to sleep, at least for a little bit. As the Nest started to awaken with party guests and music, Percy blinked back awake and sat up in the chair for a moment, and then settled back in with Wren. "Are you excited? The party is just getting started here," Percy said to her with a grin, his arms settled comfortably around her.