Okie dokie then. On with the show~!

Disclaimer: I'm not Rick. This is not canon. If it was, I think Rick would be swarmed by Team Leo D:


Eight: The Life We Must Treasure

-On deck-

*~Frank POV~*

Frank felt a little lonely. Hazel was resting in her cabin below, still shell-shocked even though Leo had woken up several times now. She needed space, he could tell. But it still left him feeling lonely as he stood on the deck at the helm, watching the clouds pass by as they flew. It was near two o'clock in the morning, so the slowly descending moon was casting an eerie light over the Argo II.

Frank was also feeling a little useless. When his turn for 'Leo Watch' came yesterday, he wasn't ready for a life-threatening situation. When Leo's attack started, Frank froze. He was definitely no son of Apollo. It freaked him out. Thankfully, Annabeth had been walking by in the hallway and Frank was able to grab her and get her to save Leo.

Why am I so useless? I can command an entire legion of dead guys, but when Leo started dying...

The doors to the lower deck opened slowly. Frank craned his neck to see who was coming out. Shouldn't be Jason. I just relieved Piper of watch, so who…?

He was more than surprised to see Leo stagger out onto the deck. A little life support system was strapped to his back. Frank thought that it must've been heavy, considering how weak Leo must be feeling.

Frank tried not to look at the wrapped-up stump, but it was hard. Anyone who knew Leo would instantly feel queasy at the thought of him losing an arm, and Frank was looking right at the place it used to be.

Needless to say, the son of Mars felt like he needed to find a bucket. What a tough guy, indeed.

Leo stumbled a bit, making Frank forget about his nausea momentarily. He rushed down the stairs to help the struggling Latino. Leo was breathing in and out slowly, the oxygen tank controlling his breaths. He stood straight and walked unsteadily to the railing of the ship. Frank held the boy by his shoulders, stopping him.

"Leo?"

Leo turned to face Frank. The son of Mars gasped at how empty his eyes were. Leo's eyes were so distant and tired, devoid of any real emotion. His face—from what Frank could see through the oxygen mask—was slack.

"L-Leo," Frank tried. "You need to go back to bed. How did you get out here?"

Leo turned around and brushed Frank off. He stopped at the railing, looking over it to the land below. "Come?" he whispered so softly Frank almost missed it. "How?"

"Come where?" Frank began to ask. He then froze in his tracks as Leo lifted himself onto the railing, trying to find his balance.

Now, if you've never seen a one-armed person try to climb up onto a rail or a balance beam, I don't recommend it. A lesser person would think it was hilarious. But, in reality, it's extremely hard to watch. The person struggles with all their might, wearing themselves out rather easily, hugging the rail until they can get their breath back. Then, they have to stand up, which is another balance battle in itself.

In short: not a pretty sight.

Frank thought in the back of his mind the son of Hephaestus must not even know about his handicap. Either that, or he knew full well about his new handicap and wasn't coping well. Frank tried to push that scary thought down. Please, gods—whichever one is bothering to listen—don't let him be…don't let him try!

Frank wanted to reach out to Leo and get him down, but all he could do was yell, "LEO, GET DOWN FROM THERE! YOU'LL FALL!"

That came out louder than he intended (it even echoed) but it seemed to do something. Leo flinched, almost tripping over the railing as he balanced precariously like a gymnastics star. Frank was still frozen in fear. If he falls, would I be able to shift and catch him? Frank thought about it for a moment and knew he wouldn't be able to. He could face a herd of Katobleps and lead a legion of ghosts against an army of monsters…but Leo willingly jumping off his own ship to his death was the thing that made Frank freeze up again. He wouldn't react fast enough if it came to that!

"…Frank?"

Frank looked up and saw Leo looking right at him, a confused look in his otherwise blank eyes. "What are you yelling about?"

Frank dared to take a step closer. "Leo, get down from there," he repeated, trying to stay calm. "Please come down. We can talk about whatever's hurting, if that's the problem. You don't have to end it! Whatever's bothering you, please, we can help. Don't jump."

"Come?" Leo asked, the void-like blankness returning to his face. "Jump? Is that what you mean by come?"

Frank's eyes widened. Leo turned around again, edging closer to the end of the rail. Frank was still frozen, unsure of what to do.

"LEO!"

Frank turned to see Piper, in her eagle pajamas, hauling ass across the deck. Her face was frozen in horror. "Frank, do something—NO!"

The son of Mars looked back at the rail.

The now empty rail.

Leo had jumped.


A/N: Dun dun duuuun! D: Oh no, Leo!