DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the works of Rick Riordan. These characters mentioned are his, only what acts I have them engage in could be described as mine.

A/N: This is a one shot I wrote as requested by Athena Goddess of the Wise in her challenge. I hope you enjoy it! Long live Liper!

Clang. Clang. Clang.

The pounding of metal was as soothing as a lullaby for Leo. It made him feel safe, secure. Metalworking was the only time he could think.

Think like himself. Not Leo the clown everyone else saw. But like Leo.

So he continued to pour his emotions into his work. The flames represented his angst and anger. The tools, his coping mechanisms. The final product, how he acted.

He was tired of acting.

Hissss. Hisssss. Hissss.

He sees his tears falling on the hot metal.

Piper wasn't a girl for appearance.

Not always anyways. Sometimes when there was a cabin head meeting, she'd throw on some makeup, curl her hair. But usually she'd just dress plain. No one ever said anything, except Drew and her cronies.

Piper didn't care. She'd gotten worse from the kids at Wilderness. There she was made fun of for being Cherokee. Here, it was just jealousy.

So when she woke up on a drizzly April morning, it didn't hurt when Drew made some backhanded compliment.

Piper just got dressed, and decided to head outside for a walk. It surprised her she wasn't struck by lightning. She and Jason broke up the week before.

Jason. Just his name stuck in her mind, like cobwebs. The rain and her tears mixed together. Fortunately, no one saw.

Leo finally retired from the forge. He couldn't take it any more. Nothing, nothing, was turning out like he wanted too. He angrily punched the wall, screaming. He pounded his fists against the stone like a madman, screaming incoherently.

He couldn't keep his mother. He couldn't keep friends. Everyone acted like he was a ticking time bomb. He couldn't keep Piper, because Jason ha-

He stopped. It wasn't Jason's fault. It wasn't Piper's fault. Piper wasn't his anyways. That didn't stop him from crying though. Piper was the only one who cared, who understood. She could calm Leo down.

So where was she now?

Piper's sobs were drowned out by thunder. She ran and ran, soaking wet, in no direction. She ran until she collapsed, her chest heaving. She didn't love Jason, her mother had played them both for fools. Like playthings.

Her father was still recovering. His once playful eyes were now orbs of distance. The horror the giants inflicted upon him was terrible, and no one but Dionysus could help him. But Zeus was greedily keeping all the Gods close by.

Her bloodshot eyes bored into the grey skies, silently asking for an answer. It almost seemed like magic (which wouldn't be a surprise), but the thunder stopped. A lull in the storm. That's when she heard screaming, not far from her. She looked up. The forge.

Leo.

Leo finally wiped his tears away and looked at his hands. Bloody, bruised. Almost like a macabre work of art.

A bitter laugh escaped his lips. So maybe he had accomplished something today.

He got up, slowly, like he might fall. It was her birthday.

April 9th, 1972. Esperanza Valdez was born. He had celebrated her birthday every year, or tried too. Sometimes his foster family would find out, and mock him, destroy what he was working on. Other times, he couldn't complete it because he would break down.

But this year would be different. He would make something glorious, like her. He swore he would.

That was when a dripping wet daughter of love had walked into the forge, with bloodshot eyes and a shaky smile.

"Hey," Piper whispered.

Leo took a ragged breath. "Hey Beauty Queen. Come for a necklace?" he asked, trying to find his mask again.

She shook her head, coming closer. "I came for a friend,"

That's when she fell into his arms, surrounded by his warmth.

Leo wrapped his arms around Piper's waist and refused to let go. Her soaked mane of hair smelt faintly like cinnamon. He never noticed before, but he was glad he did.

He pulled back and smiled. A real smile. From a real Leo. "I'm glad you came when you did. You took the last friend here,"

She laughed, that beautiful laugh. She sniffled, and looked around. "She understands Leo," she said, staring at the forge.

It surprises him that she remembered. It surprises him that she said just the right thing. Because Leo thinks. Piper's right. His mother died loving him, and he knew somehow she loved him still. He didn't have to make anything for her; he was her greatest creation, and living in her honor was the greatest thing he could give her.

Leo took a sharp breath, tears spilling over. Piper frowned and brushed them away. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. Everything's right. I have the best friend in the world, I love her, and she makes me see the world for what it is," he said.

Piper grinned, hugging him tightly. "I'll always be here Leo,"

"He understands too, you know. He just needs time," the son of fire said.

Piper shook her head. "I…. let him get tortured Leo. I couldn't help him," she said, casting her gaze at the floor.

"To save the world. You've given up more than any of us. You sacrificed the most, which is completely unfair. It isn't your fault. You did the right thing. He'll come to see, in time. He loves you. He always has," Leo told her, lifting her chin up with his hand.

Piper's eyes seem to shine, brightly. She sunk her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

"I love you too Leo Valdez. You're right. I need you by my side though. I can't do this alone," she whispered.

"I can't do this alone either Be- Piper. I need you here too," he said gently, into her ear.

She looks up at him and smiles, considering how he'll react.

Leo smiles back. "I couldn't ask for a better friend," he said.

That's when her lips crash into his.

"Neither could I," Piper says, when she pulls away.