Well, this is just a cutesy one-shot that came to me while reading the books. I didn't expect it to end up so long.
Disclaimer: I own nothing!
I is for Introductions
"You know what?" Leo asked suddenly, popping his head out of the engine he was mucking around in. His eyes glowed with a mischievous amusement that made everyone nervous. He hung upside-down from the bottom of the engine, his hair sticking up every which way. Grease was smeared across his cheek and a streak kept the right side of his hair plastered to the side of his head.
Hazel giggled, throwing a rag at him. "What's that?" she asked, dropping down so she could look up at him, wrapping her arms around her knees.
"I'm going to take you on an explorative date," he said matter-of-factly, pulling his head back up into the engine.
"What?" Hazel stammered, her cheeks tinting with red, "But- but- but- where would we go?"
Leo grinned to himself, hidden within the huge machine. "It's a secret. It won't be explorative if you know."
"But what if we get attacked by monsters? How will we even get there?" Hazel mumbled, fanning herself.
"I've already asked Chiron if we can go, and Percy will drive us. Nico is going to go do something with him. Plus, we can totally handle ourselves out there," Leo explained, dropping down on to the cement floor. Hazel jumped in surprise. "Come on, it'll be fun."
A small smile crept over Hazel's lips. "Alright, I'll go, but…"
Leo groaned.
"What about Frank?" she finished.
"Don't worry. I've paid off the Stoll brothers to keep him busy until we get back."
Hazel laughed. "Oh no, that'll be terribly interesting." She paused. "Okay, I'll go."
"Fantastic!" Leo said, grinning widely, "We're leaving in about two hours. I have to… go clean up now." He looked down at his grease smeared clothing and ran a hand through his oiled hair.
Hazel giggled again. "Knowing you and the Cabin Nine lot, you'll be covered in grease by the time we go to leave."
Leo rolled his eyes. "Have a little faith. I can stay clean for more than two hours."
"Right. Sure. We'll see who is right in two hours." With that, she turned on her heel, flouncing towards Cabin Ten, the Aphrodite cabin, where Piper was currently playing therapist, a bounce in her step.
…..
Hazel was in Cabin Ten before Leo could fist pump the air in triumph. She slammed through the cabin's door, slamming it shut just as hard behind her.
Pressing her back against the door she slid to the floor, hands over her face. "Oh gods, oh gods," she whispered.
"What? What happened?" Piper asked quickly, bolting from her chair to Hazel's side.
"What do I do? What do I do? Piper, what do I do?!" Hazel cried, jerking her eyes up to meet her friend's. Piper had fake glasses perched on the end of her nose, and she wore a tight dress in place of a suit. If Hazel hadn't been on the verge of a full on anxiety attack, she would have laughed her way in New Years.
"Hazel, what happened? What are you talking about?" Piper said sternly, leveling her gaze with Hazel's.
"Leo- Leo- Oh my gods- Piper!" Hazel stammered, her gold eyes wide.
"What about Leo?" Piper asked patiently, twisting her legs so that she wasn't giving Hazel or any of her siblings a shot down her dress. Annabeth appeared, dropping down beside her. She gave Piper a questioning look, only receiving a shrug in reply.
Hazel's mouth moved, but no words came out. She was flushed cherry, her eyes wide in what looked like astonishment and fear.
"Okay, Hazel," Piper started soothingly, filtering a little smidge of charmspeak into her words, "Now, you need to calm down and explain to us what happened, alright. Can you do that?"
Swallowing, Hazel nodded. The story spilled from her mouth, ending in a puddle of words at Piper's and Annabeth's feet. She was breathing hard, blinking fast.
Annabeth scowled. "Percy and Nico are going with you two?" she asked, voice tight.
Hazel nodded. "Do you know what they're doing? Isn't it weird for them to be together? Well, I mean, without Jason around too?"
Annabeth glanced away, standing and walking towards Piper's bed. "Yeah, it is. I don't know what they're doing," she muttered, suddenly irate.
Hazel looked questioningly to Piper who sighed in response.
"Annabeth, at some point, you're going to have to tell someone other than just me. Just think about it, Hazel's even more trustworthy than me. She's your friend," Piper coaxed, trying to keep the charmspeak at a minimum. She knew Annabeth absolutely hated it when she used it on her.
"I know," Annabeth sighed, flipping open Piper's chest at the end of her bed and rummaging through her clothing. "I know."
Hazel got to her feet, stumbling over towards her. "Can I know what happened? Only if you want me to. By the way, what are you doing?"
"I'd like to know that too," Piper said, stepping forward and staring down into her chest.
Annabeth ignored their questions. Instead, she said, "If I tell you what happened, can we just get back to this right afterward? No questions."
Hazel bit her lip, a questions already rising in her chest, but she forced it back and nodded.
Taking a deep breath, Annabeth glanced sideways at Hazel. "Percy and I had a huge fight, and… kind of… broke up."
"What? Why?" Hazel asked suddenly, wincing because she had already broken her promise.
Annabeth didn't seem to care. "I found out that ever since Nico got back, and Percy and I got out of, you know, he and Percy have been…" She trailed off, clearing her throat nervously. Tossing clothes onto Piper's bed, she delved deeper into the chest.
Hazel glanced between the pair. "What? I don't understand."
"They've been-"
Piper cut in, "Knocking boots."
Annabeth nodded her affirmative. "Knocking boots equals break-up especially after us."
"But… they're both boys," Hazel mumbled, "How can they… Boys don't have…"
"Hazel, don't try to think about it too hard," Annabeth advised, smiling, "You're too innocent. Why don't you… ask Leo about it? I'm sure he's well versed in that department."
Piper let out a slightly hysterical laugh. "Oh my goddess, do not tell her that. Hazel, do not, under any circumstance, ask Leo anything like that. I'll…" She sighed. "I'll tell you when you guys get back tonight."
"Okay," Hazel mumbled. They were silent, then Annabeth popped up from the chest, holding up something. "What are you doing?"
"Put this on," Annabeth instructed, shoving the piece of clothing towards Hazel.
Grumbling, Hazel walked around to the side of the bed, stripping and throwing her clothes on top of the others. She pulled the garment down over her head, wriggling into it. "Why am I changing anyway?" she asked, adjusting the dress.
Annabeth and Piper rolled their eyes at the same time. "Because," Annabeth started slowly.
"You don't want to go on a date looking like a vagrant wearing a Camp Jupiter t-shirt. Although Leo probably doesn't particularly care, it's still nice to be able to dress up a little, shock him into speechlessness," Piper finished, fishing out some grey leggings and soft, brown leather boots.
"Piper," Hazel warned, "You're Aphrodite side/movie-star-ness are showing again."
Groaning, Piper tossed the new articles at Hazel before shrugging out of her dress and pulling on shorts and a Camp Half-Blood t-shirt. "I'm going to have Jason check on Leo's progress, get him cleaned up too." She looked Hazel over, pursing her lips at the light blue jean dress that stopped just above Hazel's knees. "Annabeth, there should be a gold belt in there somewhere. It'll help break it up, and make her eyes pop. I'll be back in about ten minutes."
"Okay," the girls called after her.
They were silent for a long moment before Annabeth smiled. "So… you and Leo."
Hazel's face flared to life. "Annabeth, don't," she whined, "Please."
The girl's smile only widened further.
…..
Over in Cabin Nine, Leo was quickly finding out that he was going to lose the bet with Hazel. Like he'd said he was going to do, he'd taken a shower. Now, he was shifting through his clothes, looking for something clean and relatively oil free. He stood in his boxers, steaming himself dry.
"Hey, Mr. Head Counselor, what're you doing?" Nyssa asked, flopping down on the edge of his bed. She began unwrapping the bandages around her knuckles. She was in an exercise bra and loose basketball shorts. Obviously, she'd just come back from working out, and smelled like it too.
Leo didn't even glance over at her. "Looking for clean clothes."
"Those are clean," Nyssa commented, not looking up from her hands.
Leo rolled his eyes. "Something without oil or break fluid or antifreeze on it," he said.
"Everything in this cabin had some type of fluid on it," she told him, her lips pursed to the side as she began slowly rolling her ace-bandages.
"I know," Leo grumbled, still rummaging. They were silent for a long moment before Leo finally stood straight with a triumphant cry. "I found a shirt! And pants!"
He didn't notice the sly look Nyssa passed the others crowding the cabin, sitting on their bunks or hanging from the sides. Holding up five fingers, she slowly began to silently count down. By the time she was dropping her last finger, Leo was threading his skinny arms through his suspenders.
"Get him!" Nyssa shouted at the top of her lungs, tackling Leo to the bed with the closest of their cabin mates.
Leo let out a screech of protest, dropping under their combined weight. "Hey! What gives?" he shouted, struggling to remain stain free.
Nyssa grinned, holding him in a headlock. "Cabin Nine send off. We do this every time one of our members has his or her first date. Looks like it's your turn," she told him, wrapping a leg around his to keep it pinned to the mattress. "Alright, set to work!" she called to the rest, grunting as Leo struggled in her grasp.
"Come on, guys! Don't do this! Please!" he cried, trying his damnedest to wriggling free of Nyssa's strong hold and ultimately away from the approaching traitors.
"Not a chance," one of the others grinned, holding a black marker. Leo never knew a simple marker could look so terrifying.
It was nearly thirty minutes later when laughter spilled through the room and Jason stepped through the crowd. "Alright guys, I think that's good. He's got a date to get to," the blond said, pulling Leo to his feet. "Hey dude, you're actually wearing completely clean clothes for once." He was trying his hardest not to burst out laughing again. It was the hardest thing he'd ever done in his life.
"Yeah, great, my clothes are clean," Leo muttered sullenly. His hair was now messier than usual. He smelled like girly sweat and oil, again. Marker covered every available inch of skin, including his stomach, and someone had managed to get a smudge of motor oil both on his cheek and his pants.
Jason did laugh that time, slinging an arm around Leo's shoulders. "Come on, let's get you cleaned up. You have thirty minutes left."
"Okay," Leo agreed. Before leaving, he spun around, yelling, "I will get every single one of you! Mark my words! Sleep with one eye open!"
"Whatever," Nyssa laughed, waving him off, "Just get going. You've got a date to catch." The others laughed as well, but as Leo noticed, much more nervously than Nyssa.
…..
Hazel grinned widely, standing with Percy by Thalia's tree. They watched as Nico and Leo climbed towards them. "I won the bet, didn't I?" she asked, stringing her arm through Nico's.
A soft blush colored Leo's cheeks in embarrassment, or maybe from scrubbing at his skin to remove the marker. Thank the gods that it hadn't been a permanent marker, or one of the Stoll brother's. That wouldn't have come out for weeks. Either way, Hazel thought he looked adorable. "I got ambushed by my own cabin," Leo muttered under his breath, "Traitors."
Hazel grinned. Nico frowned at her. Leo grinned back, his flush deepening, shirt starting to smoke. Percy just rolled his eyes and motioned towards the camp van with a smile.
"Come on, let's get going before Mr. D or Chiron change their minds." He climbed in the driver's seat, Nico taking shotgun. Hazel and Leo occupied the back. "Let's get this show on the road."
…..
"We're going to head out," Percy said, standing beside the car with Nico close to his side. They were very close, closer than Hazel thought anyone but a couple should stand. Did they not know the meaning of 'personal space'? Or were they actually a couple? She hadn't been able to figure much out from Annabeth's story. "Don't get into trouble. If something goes wrong, call or send an iris message. I've got a cell." He passed Hazel a folded slip of paper and a few bills. "There's the number and some money."
"Thank you, Percy," Hazel said, smiling widely. She was giddy with excitement, her fingers adjusting and readjusting her dress.
"Bye then. See you in a couple hours. We'll meet back here by seven at the latest," Percy said, turning quickly. The pair disappeared into the mall, swallowed by the shoppers.
Leo clapped his hands together. "Alright, first order of business is food."
"Why food?"
"You'll see." He took her hand without thought, taking off into the crowd after Percy and Nico.
…..
"What is this?" Hazel asked, confused as she stared down into her small box of chicken nuggets. Cautiously, she picked up one of the small pieces, staring at it.
"It's a chicken nugget," Leo said as if that explained everything, popping a few fries into his mouth.
"Those are those things you told me about on the Argo II, right?" she asked. Her eyebrows crinkled together, becoming close friends.
Leo beamed. "You remembered that?"
"Of course I do," she replied easily, "What are these made of?"
Leo swallowed, picking one up. "Well, chicken…" He stopped, pursing his lips in consideration. "And a lot of other things you don't want to know about, but they're pretty good. Just try it."
Hazel watched him skeptically for a long moment before sighing and finally giving in. Hazel nodded. "You're right, they are okay."
"See? The Leo is never wrong," Leo said victoriously, grinning widely.
"Right," Hazel said, rolling her eyes even as a grin slowly spread across her lips.
"After we're done eating, I've already know what we're doing next," Leo said, inhaling more fries.
…..
Hazel and Leo stood outside the movie theater, sucking in the cool night air after the stuffy warmth of the crowd. People streamed past them, talking animatedly about what they were going to do next or the movie or another mundane topic. They paid no attention to the young pair standing on the curb.
"That was… amazing," Hazel breathed, a grin splitting across her face. "The picture was so clear and it was so lifelike!" She bounced on the balls of her feet, adrenaline pumping through her veins.
"I thought you'd like it," Leo said, returning her grin with a wider one, "Next time I'll have to take you to see a movie in 3D."
"What's that?"
Leo frowned, glancing towards the rapidly darkening sky. "Well, to watch that type of movie, you have to wear these special glasses. While you're watching the movie, the glasses make it look like things are popping off the screen at you, like a hand reaching towards your face or a sword, because there's something about the movie's film and the glasses that make it happen. I've never figured out how it works, but it would look similar to something like this," he said, reaching his hand out towards her face. "It's really cool, especially when it's done really well like with this movie called Avatar from a while back."
Hazel fell into the rhythm of Leo's explanation, following him as he stepped off the curb and started towards the strip mall just across the street. She reached out a hand, slipping her fingers around his. "I'd like to do that some time. This is the first time I've seen a movie since coming back. I saw a few back in the 1930s, but they were never as cool as this. I usually just read books when I could get them."
Leo didn't react to her taking his hand. "Really? What kinds of books?" he asked, cheeks just the slightest bit pink, hopping onto the curb by the mall. He paused, looking over at her. "Want to look through the stores? We've still got about an hour before we have to meet Percy and Nico."
Hazel nodded, following him as he weaved his way through the crowds of people. "I read whatever I could borrow. I read a lot of fantasy and historical fiction though. I actually read the Hobbit when it came out in 1937. I loved it and I loved this movie too."
"Wow, really? What was your favorite book? Or is?"
"Weirdly enough, I really enjoyed the stories and poems of Edgar Allan Poe and the Grimm Fairytales. Sometimes they were too much for me to read, but they were also extremely captivating."
Leo laughed. "I have never read an entire short story, let alone a book."
"I figured. You were too busy fixing cars and making little machines to read."
"Yep!" Leo said cheerily, turning into the first store that looked relatively interesting.
They found themselves in a store filled to the brim with fandom merchandise from every genre and of every type. Dresses, jackets, and bags hung from the walls, smaller accessories and shirts populating the floor.
Hazel's mouth dropped open, a light sparkling in her eye. "This is so cool," she whispered, skimming her fingers over the shirts and pants. She frowned at the fake swords, steering clear of them. "What's Doctor Who?" she asked, turning to Leo.
Leo turned to her, a pair of fake plastic glasses with spring eyes and a mustache pressed to his face. "A science fiction show about this guy in a police box and aliens."
Hazel let out a snort of laughter, covering her mouth quickly with her fingers as she stared at him.
"What?" Leo asked innocently, grinning, "Is there something on my face?"
"No, of course not," she giggled, looking back over his shoulder. "Peter Pan!" she cried, pointing over his shoulder. She jumped towards a small rack of hats, topping her head with a green hat that had a red feather pointing off to the side. Turning, she cocked her head, resting her hand on her hip. "How do I look?" She almost started laughing again as Leo turned towards her with a red pirate's hat topped with a bloom of white feathers resting on his head.
"Ravishing," he said, not sarcastically, "Do you like my pirate hat?"
"I love it!" she cried, topping her curls with Mad Hatter top hat.
Grinning, Leo dropped the hat that Bofur wore in the Hobbit on his head, mimicking the character. Hazel laughed. When he pressed a bald cap over his curls and pretended to be Gollum, she completely lost it, collapsing to the ground in a fit of laughter. They spent the rest of their hour trying on different accessories from different fandoms, even if they didn't know the fandom. The clerk was very accommodating in explaining each one to them.
By the time they arrived back at the car to a waiting Percy and Nico, Hazel wore the Peter Pan hat with a plastic sonic screwdriver from the Doctor Who show poking out of her pocket. The clerk had given it to her for free because they hadn't had any luck in selling it. It was the last one and it was slightly broken, but Leo promised to fix it for her when they got back. Leo on the other hand had left with cat ears, tail, and collar that Hazel had coerced him into purchasing just so they could see the looks on the other's faces.
"Have fun?" Percy asked, smiling as he took in their heaving chests and flushed faces.
"Yes," Hazel croaked, her voice hoarse and cheeks sore from all the laughing she'd been doing.
Nico raised an eyebrow at Leo, but didn't ask as he pulled open the door for Hazel and climbed into the front seat. He glanced back over his shoulder an hour into their trip back and had a hard time deciding whether he should smile or frown.
Cat ears and hat still on, Hazel's and Leo's heads leaned against each other, their eyes closed. Soft smiles rested on their lips as their chest rose and fell gently. Between them, their fingers were twined together.
Flipping back around, Nico's mouth decided today was a day for smiles, and turned up at the corners. "I have the feeling that we're going to be going out more often from now on."
"Oh yeah? Why's that?" Percy asked, glancing in the review mirror at the sleeping pair in his backseat.
"There's still a lot of things Leo still has to introduce Hazel to."
Well, that was fun. Hope y'all liked it.
P.S. – There may or may not be a sequel to this featuring Percy and Nico's points of view from their date, but we'll see.