i love that canon nico's appearance is described as unnerving. percy says he has a glint in his eyes that makes you think he's either a genius or a madman. people comment about how his presence is eerie and how he just seems to show up, like a specter. his smile is said to be more unsettling than his scowl. pretty privilege nico is a fun hc but i just love the idea that he looks like some eldritch being at his worst and a sopping run-over black cat at his best.
okay, but we know nico is obsessed with mythomagic. but has no one to discuss it with because bianca isn't particularly interested. and then here comes annabeth who's been equally obsessed with the game since she was seven. and these two bonds instantaneously. and over the years, he grows to see annabeth as a friend, not super close but someone he knows he can trust and rely on. and then he realizes they have a crush on the same guy. and he wants a reason, any reason, every reason, to hate this girl who made him feel so seen and validated and known. but he just can't.
Ok this is a conundrum lmao. I pretty much enjoy everything that has Nico, and the people come up with countless fantastic ideas as well.
But since you asked, I'd say I'm most enthusiastic with the Royal AU(s) and that Time Travel AU (with or without the selfcest part) of mine.
The Royal AU(s) because imo Nico is canonically a prince (son of Hades) and a King (Ghost King) and a court member (Ambassador of Pluto). With that, the AUs appear not quite far from canon, thus have enough materials to work with, while still allowing me to spice things up with a few touches of politics and warfare. ヾ(•ω•`)o
Actually no that was a lie. I just like Royalty Nico too much LOL. 🤣🥳😔 every time I think of him as a Prince or a King I picture him with all these exquisite clothes and thorny crowns and bony thrones, commanding his people with those limited set of leading skills and abundant love, and I just fall in love all over again.
And of course, the fact that I can squeeze a nice Hades-and-Nico father-son relationship out of it lmao. 🥰🥰 It's like my religion at this point. In every Royal AU I have, Nico would always be Hades' precious child. Nico can be a King, a Prince, a Crown Prince, or an Angel,... and I'd personally make sure Hades favors him all the same. Of course, Nico's devoted to his father (and their nation) in kind. I just love this family too much.
The Time Travel AU because 1/ I can fantasize as much as I want about an Older Nico and 2/ The first one Nico should love is him, and what else is better to build it than a Time-Travel AU, wherein you can meet multiple versions of yours?
I'm a die-hard for selflove Nico. Always have been. Since the very start. And the Time-Travel AU - even without all the selfcest part (which I might have or have not put in just to piss the fandom off lmao) - is a perfect reflection of it.
I'm a vindictive being. Sometimes I see nobody good enough to take care of Nico the way he deserves. So I just think, "Why don't I make another version of him take care of himself?" and surprisingly, it makes sense - what's with Kronos being the Titan of Time... And that's all I need for an AU.
An older Nico from the Future, who has lived through and understands all nooks and crannies of Nico's traumas, returning to the Past to save himself. What's more beautiful than that?
Also yes because I have self-esteem issue LMAO. 🤣🤣🤣
This basically concludes it. Tho there're many more AUs I'm in love with - the Sky AU in which I made Nico Nyx's successor aka the embodiment of Night for example, or many others which I wrangle Luke in just for the angst.
"My Body's Looking WRONG."
- Glass Animals, "The Other Side of Paradise"
"When a gunshot seals his fate, Mordecai Heller dies. However, he did not expect a secondary life that seemed promising. There was only one...actually, multiple problems:
1) This was Hell.
2) He didn't know anyone or anything from or about this place.
3) That pompous, cheesy talkshow shitlord of a radio host...what was his name? Alexander? Allen? Alastor, that's right!
Though a lovely little princess of Hell and her girlfriend try to guide him, as well as the other patrons, to the path of redemption...if it isn't too much of a problem." - The Other Side of Paradise.
The fact that this took me this long is insane. I'm very proud of how this turned out, and I sincerely hope you like this <3
Thank you so much for the support, and because I wanna show how many hours this has tracked, here we go.
There. Hope you enjoy! <3 Thank you for the support through and through.