To RandomFanAuthor- yep! About fifty! ^_^ What do you mean decent enough? Rude. This one has 20. I wrote an Awake Jason scene that made me laugh, in a wicked 'yep, that'll do' kind of way :3 I have no plan for Leoisa. Nope. None. Suck it. :3 And with Lou, she basically blood-bended and now she can hear any and all blood around her, so it's loud and it's tempting her to do it again just to shut it up, sort of. And Leo- yes, he's awesome and dragony and warshippy... but he is not built for running!

To zantarak- I love Hazel and Frank, they're so pure, but also terrifying at the same time?

To Thals13- My brother has to have all his Lego stuff because of his autism, it's like his thing. Lately, we've been able to talk him out of keeping every single box, he hoarded them, they were everywhere with smaller boxes in them, absolute nightmare. His stuff is on two tables, his shelves, drawers, my shelves in a whole other room, windowsills, on his floor, in tubs and boxes and bags in the loft/his room/under his bed/under the stairs. And you're going to fly to England just to make Leoisa happen? Do you lot realise how stubborn I am? And I'm bloody good at hiding, so HA! Frank and Hazel- as above, I love them, but god damn, they're powerful. And Lou's not OK, she's literally driving herself crazy, see above *totally innocent*

To someone- (Chapter 16) I'm sorry for not updating yesterday! I was fighting with my sketchbooks. I can't draw hands. Or eyes. Or elbows? Reyna and Leo are my brotp- I've always felt Reyna's got a secret mischief streak in her. She and Leo would compete, definitely. Lou's the only one that can hear the loud. She's fine. Absolutely dandy. Julia needs a break, she's only smol! (Chapter 17) I was just about to post the new chapter and saw the numbers had changed! Thank you! (Although ten seconds earlier while I was still in Doc Manager would have been ideal :P ) I can relate to Leo's sense of humour. Dude gets it. And thank you! Here's another! :D

The rushing of the spider was gone. She heard the rushing of a bird when it landed on the kitchen windowsill. The tap dripped. She tried reading. The letters didn't sit still. Rushing of a cat, trying to catch birds too quick for it. There was a pond at the end of the yard- she went to talk to the fish, but even their voices were lost to the rushing they brought.

She tidied the house. Dusted, hoovered, washed up. Stood washing her hands with rose-scented hand soap, only realising she had used half the bottle when cramps hit her reddened fingers.

She couldn't keep her hands still, imagined this is what Leo felt like. She found herself tapping, fidgeting with an ornament or knick-knack or anything that came to hand, cracking her knuckles, fiddling with her hair or clothes, tying and untying laces on all the shoes that had them. She tried painting, tried drawing. At some point, her brain tuned in and she saw a tide of blue-black monsters or claws coming at her face, she saw a field turned black, saw storms gnawing at the sky, dashes of light sprinkling the darkness. She could feel the rain on her face, the mud over her ears. She was drawing again, she saw the trees at angles they could not grow at. With a scream, she wrenched the sketch from the book, crumpling and hurling it at the wall. She looked over her recent works, nightmares she saw when she was awake. She destroyed them all, tearing, throwing, scrunching, then shredding, burning, kicking the ashes.

Now, she was in the garden, crouching in the grass. A ladybird fluttered its wings, she could hear its rushing. It began to rain. The bug took off, she lost sight of it. She closed her eyes just for a moment, opening them at a streak of lightning. She was shivering, drenched, the rain came down like pellets, followed by thunderclaps. Cramps riddled her legs, she was still crouched from her ladybird observation. She didn't manage to stand, electing to fall backwards and lie stretched out in the wet grass.

There was a timid rushing in the ground below her. Worms, ants, maybe a rabbit or something a little further down. She could still hear the fish. And some birds in the trees next door. Her hands furled into fists, fingers ensnaring on blades of uncut grass. She closed her eyes again, the rushing grew louder. It did not like to be ignored.

She had to ignore it. It had hurt Leo, she had hurt Leo. Hazel and Frank could have been next because she couldn't control it. She had to do it, had to control it, for them, for Leo, for Reyna, for the remainder of the camp. Their fight was not yet over, they would need her, fully functional, in her own head. They had asked her to get better, Leo had made her promise. They needed her.

They needed her to fight for them. They fought for themselves too, but ultimately- they were fighting for the gods. They were always fighting for the gods, questing for the gods, dying for the gods. She had missed the funerals of those recovered. She had been sedated, trapped in a grey mist that teemed with the rushing, so loud and demanding, she could not see why it had not severed through her head entirely. She had wanted to go to the funerals, she had wanted to say she was sorry. She wanted to tell them she was going to avenge them, the turned and the missing. Whichever emperor had sent those monsters would get more than a taste of their own medicine. They were going to get her. And she was already better.

Not better in the sense the others were hoping for. But better, because she knew who she was and knew what she could do and she knew that she was fine with what she had become.

She was fine.

Everything was fine.

Reyna was on watch now. Leo had made himself comfortable in one of the chairs- not at all comfortable-looking to Reyna, but it was Leo- and promptly dozed off. Reyna had heard people talking in their sleep before. Leo did, mumbling nonsense, but he also hummed, murmuring song lyrics she couldn't distinguish. She was tempted to smother him, muffle the noises that were twigging at her ear, but she had bigger priorities to deal with.

She had seen Louisa throw her artwork around, destroying it in any manner that came to mind. As much as she wanted to, Reyna could not go and calm her. She had to stay put. Hazel and Frank were still worried and a little shaken- they knew the basics of it, not sure if they should ask or if they wanted to know the answers.

And then there was Leo- he insisted his legs would never be the same from that dead sprint- all the way from the praetorium, to the Pomerian Line, yelling excuses at Terminus, winding through the city and out the other side, finally up the stairs with seconds to spare. Reyna figured, for someone like Leo, a sleep was well-deserved.

She picked at her dinner while Louisa crouched in the grass until sundown. The sky was hardly visible. Louisa's storm had taken on a new edge, vicious and bursting at the seams with thunder and lightning, rumbling under nature's domain. Reyna had already had reports of floods, directing Frank's attention to helping the exhausted legionnaires dig run-offs to save the barracks and lower-level homes in the city.

Reyna looked up from her plate to see Louisa had settled for a lie-down in the grass. Over the years, she had learnt storms were good for Louisa. If she made them, it burnt off pent-up anger or frustration. If she was in one descending from nature, she was calm and distracted, content to be in the rain without her water-proofing. Somehow, she never got a cold. It was annoying, more than confusing- the girl could withstand the pressures of the ocean; a little rain was nothing of concern. Reyna was not so lucky, having once stomped out into a storm of Louisa's doing- probably Octavian related- and being struck with a cold so severe, she was called Rudolph for weeks. Not to her face though, never to her face.

She sighed, stabbing her fork into her spaghetti Bolognese- an easy, microwaveable ready meal- winding the strands around the twines. It had only been two days, just about. The funerals last night. She delivered a speech in their honour, but it was not enough for what they deserved. A twisting in her gut told her things were only going to get worse. They had to be ready.

Shifting in her seat, she stretched her legs out, resting her feet on the table. She set her plate on her stomach, enjoying the last of its warmth. She ate in silence, watching the screen. Louisa still lay in the grass. Reyna wanted a little window to her brain, had done for years. She probably understood Louisa's behaviour the most- after Jessica, of course- or at least recognised the patterns and could sense what mischief would occur. She just needed to learn about the process, figure out what cast Louisa's thoughts and feelings. She needed that little window.

Outside, thunder sounded, a second delay through the speakers. Louisa was playing with the raindrops, making them dance and skip and bounce, form shapes around her and then throwing the rivulets to one side. She kicked her legs up, spinning into a backward roll and rising, stretching her arms over her head. She gave the sky another few seconds worth of consideration, tromping back inside with mud splattering up her legs. She wore no shoes, socks caked with mud. She stripped them off at the back door, wafting through the dark downstairs and working her way up the staircase. She disappeared into the bathroom, the taps running a moment later. Reyna forked spaghetti into her mouth, jostling her foot.

Leo's head lolled, chin dipping onto his chest. He started snoring. Reyna ignored him- it wasn't any more irritating than the humming. But then there was a snort and she looked round.

"Huh, what?" Leo mumbled sleepily. "Who's there?" He blinked at her. "What happened?"

"You woke yourself up snoring."

"Sweet." He yawned, propping his arm on the rest, dozing into his palm. "How is she?"

"Having a bath, mind what you say." She warned. Leo waved at her dismissively, eyes closed.

"Leo Valdez drinks his respect women juice." He saluted clumsily, yawning again. Reyna bit the inside of her cheek and looked away, resisting the urge to yawn. She could not show tiredness. She continued to eat, feeling Leo's curious gaze on her.

"What?"

"How'd you do it?"

"Do what?"

"Get Lou to be not-Lou." Reyna glanced at him sidelong. He sat up a little straighter, stretching and groaning, rolling his neck. "We spent six months with her and she never changed. She wanted to fight everything and everyone. All you have to do is give a look and she stops." He narrowed his eyes at her. "Be honest, Reyna. You're a witch, aren't you?"

"No."

"Hypnosis?"

"No."

"Bribery." She cut him a look. He nodded solemnly in agreement. "Right, right, that was Octavian's thing. Is it voodoo? Magic amulets? It's a spell. Curse. Hex? Potion." She stopped shaking her head as the guesses got more and more ludicrous. "You made a deal with the devil. Lou lost a bet? Did she steal your food and you're making her pay for it? Stole your girlfriend? Or your wallet? Or your door hinges?"

"How can she steal my girlfriend when she is my girlfriend?"

"I'm not answering that." Leo decided wisely. "Respect women juice refills, glug glug." Reyna sighed, setting her empty plate on the table. "Just give me a clue. In case we have to travel with her for another six months and Louisa-isms get in the way."

"Louisa-isms?"

"Cal came up with it."

"I need to meet Calypso. She seems to know what she's doing."

"Probably the only one of us that did." He shrugged, rubbing at his eyes. "Man, I miss her. All that time, just us three, it feels weird now. Nice not to be hunted down by people Lou's pissed off, but still weird."

"You three were close?" He nodded. "How did Calypso handle Lou?"

"Basically like a naughty toddler." He laughed. "You should have met amnesia-Lou. Absolute nutter. I think I described her as a hyperactive puppy cross very dedicated guard dog."

"Oh, she's always been like that."

"Not as angry though."

"Really?"

"Still a dick."

"That's never going to change."

"I'll tell her you said that."

"And what's she going to do?"

"Not much. You're like her kryptonite. Oh my gods, it's kryptonite, isn't it?"

"I can see why you two get on so well. You're both idiots." Reyna rolled her eyes. Leo grinned.

"Aww, thanks, Rey-Rey."

"OK, now you're losing your tongue."

"No, no! I'm sorry! I'll be good, promise!"