Hello readers! Here it is, chapter 2! I'm not entirely pleased with how this chapter turned out, I had some ideas all fleshed out but then my chapters and plans all got deleted :( So, please let me know how I can improve it!

Huge thanks to my reviewers, you are amazing people:

Sparklehannah - thank you for the kind words of encouragement. I always did think Leo would be an amazing head counselor. Unfortunately, no more awesome big brother Leo in this chapter, but you can expect lots more to come!

Irenechon2005 - thanks so much! It is so cool that you think my writing could actually be even close to awesome!

Tala May - Huge thanks for taking the time to read and review my story!

Quihi - Amazing criticism! I didn't even notice the discrepancy between my summary and canon, thanks for letting me know!

EvergreenDragon - here you go! Chapter two! Let me know if I should keep going :)

Trigger warning: There is some blood in this chapter, and some self-suturing. Please do not read if this bothers you, but nothing too graphic.

Disclaimer: I absolutely, positively, in no way whatsoever own even the tiniest part of the Heroes of Olympus universe or any characters created by Rick Riordan.

"Leo! Leo Valdez where are you?" Annabeth's voice sharply echoes through Bunker 9.

I startle awake, wincing as my head clangs against a beam of the unfinished hull on the Argo II.

"Leo! There you are! What are you doing, sleeping? How are we ever going to get this ship done if you slack off like this?"

"Oh, hey Annabeth." I stretch out my muscles, sore from sleeping in an awkward position. "What's the time?"

"What's the time? WHAT'S THE TIME! Leo, it's 8:30 in the morning! You promised me that you'd wake up early and meet me here so we could discuss how the Argo II is coming along! But what are you doing here? Sleeping. You need to WORK Leo, this is important."

"Hey Annabeth, chill out a bit would you?"

"Chill out! Leo, the ship is so far from finished, we are way behind schedule, and we need to get things done!"

"S-sorry Annie" I mumble as everything spins.

"Hey Leo, are you okay?"

I flash her a grin. "Perfectly fine! Now what was it you wanted to see?"

"Did you and your siblings get the hull finished yesterday? It was supposed to be done a week ago."

"Oh yeah, that. Umm, we ran into some problems with the welding... it's almost done though!"

"Leo! You can not slack off like this! Just- I don't know, try to finish it today, okay?" Annabeth brushes some hair off of her face. She looks exhausted. She's been spending so much of her time looking for Percy, no wonder she hasn't been able to help me with the ship very much. He's more important, we can't succeed without him.

"Yes Ma'am!" I smirk at her as I salute. Then I turn more serious. "Don't worry Annabeth. I'll get this done, okay? You just do what you need to do."

She glares at me. "Leo, this is no time for joking! You need to be more responsible!"

"Cool it, Wise Girl!" I retort, my irritation overflowing.

CRASH! Annabeth shoves me backwards, and I crash into a nearby worktable, wincing as I connect with the heavy building tools. "DON'T CALL ME THAT, YOU IDIOT LOSER! YOU ARE USELESS AND PATHETIC AND CAN'T EVEN BUILD A STUPID SHIP RIGHT! YOU ARE NOTHING, YOU IMBECILE!" She storms out of the bunker ranting and raging as I try to catch my breath from the heavy fall. I wince as I shift my arm, a sharp pain stinging through me.

"That's not good." I mutter, seeing the small saw-like knife sliced into my left arm. "Well, at least it isn't my dominant arm." I carefully remove the knife, staunching the flow of blood with a nearby rag. I grit my teeth as the wound burns. It doesn't seem too serious, but it's not a pretty sight. A flap of my skin hangs down, and a deep puncture leaks blood, dripping onto the floor. For a brief moment, I consider running down to the infirmary and snagging a bit of ambrosia, that would probably fix it up right away, but then I reconsider.

"This little cut isn't so bad! Anyway, I have to get back to work, and there's people that need the ambrosia a lot more than me, they're more important. I'll be fine!" I try to talk myself up, make believe it isn't so bad. Tightly wrapping the wound, packing it with gauze from my little first aid kit, I set back to work. Every swing of my hammer or twist of my screwdriver causes me agony as a fresh wave of blood spurts from the wound, and I am woozy from a lack of proper food and sleep. After struggling through another hour of work, my bandages are completely soaked with blood.

"Shoot! This really is not good!" A brief inspection of my cut tells me that this needs more than just gauze and bandages. I head over to the sewing kit in the corner that I keep for when I rip my clothes when working, steeling myself for what's to come.

I pull out a needle, muttering a quick prayer to Hephaestus as I thread it and tie a tight knot. Lighting a white-hot flame on the tip of my finger, I run the needle through, effectively sterilizing it. Infection is the last thing I need right now. I grit my teeth and bring the tip of the needle to my arm. In, out, in, out, the needle slices through my flesh, pulling together the edges of my skin. Spots dance at the edge of my vision as blood drips onto the floor. I breathe out through my mouth, my nostrils filling with the acrid stench of my own burning flesh. A few more stitches and I tie it off, throwing the needle off to the side and slumping against the wall, fighting to maintain consciousness.

After a few minutes, I struggle to my feel, my knees quavering as I push myself off the ground. I wipe the blood from the floor and the first aid supplies, tucking the first aid kit neatly back into the corner. After wiping off my wound, I put on a fresh layer of bandages before shrugging a loose hoodie over my sweat soaked t-shirt. I stagger out of Bunker 9 towards the cabins, wondering how I will hide this from the rest of the campers. My youngest Cabin 9 kids are way too perceptive for their own good, and if anyone finds out, I will be stuck in the infirmary. I can't afford to lose valuable time from working on the ship, it is the only thing I'm good for. I have to either finish the Argo II, or die trying. With that thought, I continue on back to the camp, sliding a smile back onto my face and returning to the carefree Leo everyone thinks I am, and knowing that I can never let anyone see past this mask.

Well, there it is, chapter 2! Yayyyyyyyyyy :D