Blight of the Tormented

by WolfWarriorWoman

What starts as another typical day in Hellsalem's Lot ends badly for Leo when he falls victim to a terrible curse by a monstrous new foe. To make matters worse, the one responsible for the curse gives Libra a difficult ultimatum. What will Klaus and the rest of Libra decide and will Leo survive or will he and his All-Seeing Eyes be lost forever? T for now but rating may change

12. The Road to Recovery

Author's Opening Notes: First of all, I'M ALIVE and SO, SO SORRY for such a long wait for the conclusion of this story. I would have ideally had this chapter up in late April or early May but as you all know, things in the world right now aren't the best with COVID-19 and unfortunately this year has been a very bad one for me too, not just due to that but for other reasons I'd rather not go into. But I'm here now and have something special planned that I'm keeping secret towards the end. Without further ado, here's the last chapter of Blight of the Tormented!
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Chapter 12: The Road to Recovery

His remaining time in the hospital felt far longer to Leo than it should have. After he had collected himself from his emotional breakdown, the others at Dr. Estevez's insistence left one by one leaving him to catch up on his rest. That was, all save for Klaus who remained by his side for a little bit longer until he too eventually left when Leo began to grow tired. The next day, Dr. Estevez met with Leo after he had awoken and ate the breakfast provided to him by the hospital to properly discuss the terms of his care. She informed him that because he had been in such a seriously critical condition prior, she had held off on using her healing abilities beyond any more than what was necessary in order to stabilize what she could of his physical injuries and keep him alive, which she further explained was done to refrain from taxing his abused body anymore than what it already had endured while additionally explaining the extent of his injuries and subsequent recovery methods (details that frankly Leo could have done well without the knowledge of). Dr. Estevez continued her elaboration explaining that now that Leo was conscious and unlikely to relapse from his coma, it would be better both for his body and mind to just let things finish healing naturally rather than rely on her abilities to speed up the process but assured him that due to how well he was already recovering, it shouldn't take too much longer.

She had then set him up to undergo a couple of sessions of daily physical therapy to help regain the strength in his muscles once she was sure he could put a decent amount of pressure on his formerly broken leg that was eventually removed from its cast and put into a support brace and the ligaments and tendons in his shoulder were properly healed when it was removed from its sling. Progress was slow and shaky at first but as the days passed by, Leo steadily began to regain more and more of his strength and began to rely less on the metal bars of the walker that he used for support to get around (something that he had been initially forced to use much to his chagrin and embarrassment after stubbornly refusing to be pushed around in a wheelchair). Shortly following these sessions, Dr. Estevez also oversaw the psychological screening of Leo's recovery but oddly enough, aside from a couple vivid nightmares from the reoccurring memories of what he suffered at Pain's hands the first few nights out of his coma, there were no serious or noticeable signs of distress or duress from his experience that she could discern. If anything, he seemed almost unnervingly casual and accepting of it all.

Although in spite of his favorable progress, Leo had quickly begun to grow a bit stir-crazy from just sleeping or sitting around in his hospital room, unable to do much between his physical therapy sessions and medical check-ups. However Zapp, Zed, and Chain had surprised Leo by popping into his room at one point around day four of his recovery. Leo had been more than happy to see the three of them, even the obnoxious Zapp, especially after he had thrown a greasy fast-food bag into his lap with the familiar logo of Jack and Rockets printed on the white paper. Confused yet grateful, Leo had all but devoured the burger and fries that they had somehow managed to smuggle in and welcomed the pleasant visit and following card game to pass the time (though a passing nurse had given them a stern talking to about outside food or drink in the hospital whom Zapp instantly began making crude passes towards but was quickly dealt a swift rejection in the form of a hard slap across the face and the threat to kick him out of the hospital if he didn't behave himself). Steven had also stopped by briefly at one point to check up on him and informed him that he had taken the liberty of contacting his landlord and other job some time prior to notify them of Leo's hospitalization so there would be no unwanted or unexpected complications that would arise for him, something that Leo was more than grateful for.

As for Leo's eyes, a meeting with an assisting neurologist and an MRI and CT scan revealed the true extent of the damage that Pain and the Maledictum had caused. Fortunately, it turned out that most of the inflammation of Leo's optic nerves had either waned or healed almost completely and with no signs of any significant brain damage, however some nerves and tissues had minor, lasting damage thus prompting a series of extensive tests. Klaus had been present for this revelation as well as when Dr. Estevez finally removed the bandages from Leo's eyes in the purposefully dim hospital room. She backed away from Leo, wrappings in hand, and they both looked expectantly at Leo who remained seated on the foot of his bed with eyes still closed as instructed.

"All right, open your eyes slowly," the shrunken version of Dr. Estevez directed. Leo complied and gradually opened his eyes to reveal the vibrant sapphire-blue globes of his All-Seeing Eyes that also illuminated a portion of his face, blinking repeatedly until his vision slowly readjusted and refocused after being partially obscured behind the bandages for so long. Dr. Estevez wordlessly approached and cupped Leo's face in her hands to closely examine the Eyes for any cracks or noticeable signs of physical damage. Aside from some barely noticeable scarring around Leo's eye sockets from the constant and intense overheating of his eyes that he endured (that was apparently still a bit tender judging by Leo's subtle winces as she gently poked and prodded the surrounding area), she determined that there was nothing seriously amiss. She stepped back a bit and smiled.

"Everything looks good physically," she said before jotting down something on her clipboard and glancing back up to Leo. "Now I'd like to perform a series of small tests to see if there are any abnormalities to the All-Seeing Eyes' functions and capabilities. Please turn your attention to the far wall and activate your eyes to the lowest setting. In the next room over is a clone pointing to a chart of Alterworldly text. I'd like you to read each line she is pointing to out loud for me."

"Okay," Leo replied and obliged the doctor in activating his eyes, familiar seal-like lenses appearing over his eyes. Klaus watched on in anxious silence for any signs of problems or difficulty on Leo's part as he read out the line of text that he could apparently make out in the next room. After reading a few lines, Leo began to show subtle signs of discomfort that Dr. Estevez immediately picked up.

"Please deactivate your eyes." Leo obliged and rubbed his eyes a bit.

"Are you all right Leonardo?" Klaus asked concern plainly visible in his expression as Sonic, who was also in the room observing curiously, perched himself on Leo's shoulder mirroring the Libra leader's expression.

"It feels like I have a small headache beginning to form," he informed. "But that's been known to happen sometimes after I push my eyes too hard and I've had way worse," he assured trying to ease their concerns. Both adults only frowned at that admission and Dr. Estevez jotted down the additional information onto the forms on her clipboard.

"Well, visible discomfort aside, your vision seems to be perfectly fine. Next I'd like to test something a bit more physically challenging but if there's any further difficulty we'll stop for the day." Leo and Klaus both nodded in understanding. "I'd like you to extend your sight to me as you did before when you showed us the Maledictum's curse runes if you please." Leo seemed a little hesitant at this request but nodded in understanding and once more activated his eyes causing seals to appear over Dr. Estevez's eyes. Now expecting the sudden, blue-tinted changes to her vision, Dr. Estevez glanced around both at Klaus and at her other clone self in the adjacent room both in clinical analysis and natural fascination as she observed the unusual colors and swirling auras of her new surroundings and the people passing by the room. However, when odd shapes and bright spots began to flash across their shared vision and began to grow blurry, their connection was broken off as Leo grunted and deactivated his eyes, shutting them tightly and holding his head in his hands causing Sonic to immediately leap off and onto the bed beside him with a chitter of panic. Klaus quickly made his way over to Leo and gingerly placed a hand on Leo's shoulder to check if he was okay but Dr. Estevez immediately knew what was wrong.

"I was afraid of this," she said aloud as she stepped away and immediately grabbed a washcloth and began to wet it under a gentle stream of water from the sink before wringing it out. "It appears that as a result of the inflammation to his optic nerves, it also caused his other nerve cells to become more overactive. This has likely activated the trigeminal nerve to release certain chemicals that are causing blood vessels in the lining of the brain to swell and release neurotransmitters that are creating further inflammation and pain." Leo hissed in discomfort, nursing his pounding head as Klaus urged him to lay back and Dr. Estevez's clone placed the damp washcloth over his eyes.

"Which means what?" Leo asked between grunts of pain as he pressed the cloth further against his eyes to shut out the dim light as much as he could and find some relief.

"In other words, you are suffering from a migraine," Klaus enlightened in solemn understanding.

"Yes and you will likely continue to deal with them for now on," Dr. Estevez informed. "Unfortunately there is no cure for migraine headaches but they are treatable. There are a number of medications that can minimize or even help prevent them and you can also lessen your chances of getting them less often by avoiding certain triggers. In your case it seems that your triggers are likely sensory and activity or stress based but other factors could also play a role later down the road. But thankfully, aside from the migraines, I don't believe there to be any other serious consequences from what I can tell and your eyes appear to be working as they should be based on what little credible information we have on them. I'll prescribe you some medication that will help with your migraines but I strongly advise against any strenuous use of your eyes for at least another two weeks so we can allow what little repairable damage that is present to your optic nerves to finish healing." Leo sighed feeling an odd mixture of minor relief and lingering distress at the news while Klaus, who also appeared a bit conflicted by the new information, nevertheless nodded in full understanding.

"I agree completely and will see to it that he is placed on light duty when he is medically cleared to return to work." Being the natural hard worker and emotionally vulnerable person he was, Leo felt a small twinge of shame mingle with his throbbing headache that must have been noticeable because Klaus again gently placed a hand to Leo's shoulder causing him to look up towards the man. A kind gaze and faint smile silently conveyed no disapproval or unnecessary, over the top sympathy but a silent declaration of full understanding and support and Leo felt himself relax and return a small, grateful smile.

It wasn't until about a week later following more physical therapy, tests, and extensive eye examinations than Leo thought was necessary when Dr. Estevez finally gave him the all clear to be discharged. It was around late afternoon at the time and Leo sat eagerly in a chair across from the full-grown version of Dr. Estevez with Sonic seated in his lap looking bored as they waited for her to finish looking over his papers. He was now back in a fresh change of his usual street clothes (that K.K. had been kind enough to drop off for him when she came by to visit earlier that morning) and free of any bandages though his leg still needed to remain in the brace for at least another week. Thankfully he was able to walk around easily enough on his own, albeit a bit slower than usual. Eventually, the self-replicating doctor appeared satisfied and directed her attention up from the papers to Leo.

"Well, it seems like everything is in order and your injuries are no longer a concern. Your migraines should hopefully lessen though not disappear completely with the medication I've prescribed you and also since we've given your optic nerves the chance to recover further. But again, please refrain from using them for any exceedingly strenuous activity for the next week or two as a precaution." A look of grave concern then crossed her features. "Also, while I understand that the main cause of your eyes being driven to such a state was for reasons beyond your control, I feel like I still need to warn you against pushing yourself or your eyes so hard again in the future. You were lucky to walk away with minor consequential damage and the full use of the Eyes' abilities this time but if something like this happens again you might be facing irreparable damage, perhaps not to the Eyes specifically, but to yourself." Leo gave a solemn nod in response.

"I understand," he said grimly.

"I'd like you to stop by again in two weeks for a checkup to make sure that everything is still fine," Dr. Estevez continued. "However if you experience any problems like constant dizziness, vision difficulty, no change in your migraines' intensity or any other problems that may arise then be sure to come back and see me immediately." Again Leo replied in the affirmative and Dr. Estevez paused and appeared a bit contemplative for the briefest of moments. "One more thing Leonardo. Do you recall some time back when you asked about the possibility of recovering your sister's eyesight and we discussed a bit about the eyes themselves?" Leo sat up a bit straighter and his mind raced over the possibilities of where Dr. Estevez could be going with this.

"Yes," he replied, slowly feeling a mixture of suspicion, dread and eager anticipation seep through him.

"Well, as you are already aware, there isn't a whole lot known about the All-Seeing Eyes of the Gods despite being documented in various texts and literature. Therefore I'd like the chance to study them a bit further not only from a medical perspective, but from a scientific perspective as well. I want to learn more about them if you are willing while also ensuring that there are no unwanted anomalies or abnormalities that may develop and further put you at any sort of risk."

Leo thought about it, his anticipation quickly dissipating. A part of him was wary about more tests and the possibility of being treated like some sort of science experiment, even if it was for his own good. However he also had to admit that it wasn't a bad idea. He had more or less hit a dead end in his efforts in finding some answers on his own after discovering Riga El Menuhyut's ties to the All-Seeing Eyes through his encounter with Dr. Gamimozu (a search that yielded very little results or credible information much to his frustration) but maybe Dr. Estevez could find something he didn't consider or wasn't aware of. And who knows, maybe at the very least they might discover something that could also help Michella in some way.

"Okay," Leo consented with a nod of approval.

"Great. I'll begin looking into whatever documents I can get my hands on and we'll start when you come back in for your checkup. For now, just take things easy until then and contact me if anything comes up."

"I will," Leo assured as he stood up and Sonic quickly climbed up onto his shoulder, just as eager to leave the hospital as Leo was. "Thank you Dr. Estevez, for everything," he said sincerely. She returned his thanks with a gentle smile.

"I'm just doing my job. Hopefully the next time we meet will be under much better circumstances. Your ride should be waiting for you in the lobby; have a good night Mr. Watch." Leo was about to return the goodbye but stopped short when he heard that last part.

"My ride?" he repeated with a puzzled look.

"While you are able to walk around fine on your own now, your leg is still healing so I strongly advise against traveling long distances and overexerting yourself with any labor specific tasks. Mr. Reinherz also agreed when I told him this and thus he arranged for someone to pick you up," Dr. Estevez explained.

"Oh," Leo uttered in surprise and understanding. "Who?" he inquired but she only shrugged.

"I'm not sure. I haven't had the time to stop by there at all today to see for myself," she said tapping her papers into a neat stack against the desk beside her before placing them into Leo's medical file. Leo hummed in response before thanking her again and bid her goodbye leaving her to her work. He made his way in a slight limp toward the main lobby, curious as to who would be waiting for him, but upon entering the lobby he was immediately given his answer.

"Gilbert," Leo said in clear surprise as said elderly combat butler gave a cordial bow in greeting.

"Good evening Master Leonardo. I believe congratulations on your discharge are in order," he said with a faint smile.

"Thanks a lot," Leo replied a bit bashfully rubbing the back of his head. "So I take it you were the one Klaus asked to pick me up then?"

"That is correct," Gilbert replied. "The car is pulled up around back, shall we?" Leo nodded, looking forward to finally returning home after so long. They made their way out the hospital doors and Gilbert quickly made his way to the driver's side door of the silver four-door compact car he had parked in front. Leo placed his hand on the door handle to the backseat when Gilbert stopped him.

"Master Leonardo, why don't you sit up front in the passenger seat instead? I believe it would be easier and undoubtedly more comfortable for your leg this way," he suggested. Leo looked to the elderly man a bit taken aback by the suggestion but understood his logic and nodded. He opened the passenger door and they got in, closed their doors and buckled up before Gilbert started the car and drove off. Sonic leapt down from Leo's shoulder to place both paws on the glass and stare out the window. As they made their way down the highway and back into the city, Leo glanced over to the stoic Gilbert after a few minutes of silence, feeling the overwhelming need to say something or anything to fill it.

"Um, thanks for going through all the trouble to pick me up Gilbert. I'm sorry if it was any bother to you," Leo said unable to help himself when adding that last part. For a split second, the ghost of an indistinguishable expression crossed the combat butler's typically neutral face before he again gave another faint, pleasant smile and replied while still staring straight ahead to focus on the road.

"I assure you Master Leonardo it is of no bother at all. Even if the Young Sir hadn't requested it of me, I would have offered to do so regardless." Leo stared at him with a surprised expression with that admission before he felt a bit flustered but grateful causing a small, crooked smile to appear briefly on his lips before quickly fading away and sheepishly mumbling some words of understanding. Another brief moment of silence passed as they drove down the bustling streets that were starting to lighten from the evening's rush hour traffic and the sun's rays began to fade more behind the large buildings and skyscrapers. Wanting to avoid the uncomfortable silence again Leo decided to continue with his small talk.

"So how have things been at the Office while I was in the hospital?"

"The usual shenanigans," Gilbert replied. "There have been a few calls to duty during your hospitalization involving minor scuffles but nothing of major consequence. Though Miss Chain and Master Zapp have been bickering more so than usual during your absence, things have been relatively tranquil and standard."

"That's good to hear," Leo said with a small smirk at the typical familiarity of Chain and Zapp going at it before he asked his next inquiry. "So what was everyone up to when you left?" Catching the barely perceptible hint of expectation towards something, Gilbert paused for only the briefest of seconds before he replied honestly.

"They were all preoccupied with various tasks around the Office when I had informed them of where I was going. While the Young Sir and others wished to accompany me to greet you as well, I'm afraid something came up at the last moment that they had to attend to." Leo felt slightly dejected upon hearing that but still kept a small smile and nodded.

"I get it, I wouldn't want to inconvenience them if they were busy," he replied understandingly before turning his head to follow Sonic's lead and stare out the window and let his smile fall a little so that Gilbert couldn't see as they slowed to a stop at a red light. "I guess I should have figured they would be focused on other things. What was I even expecting would happen, a parade? I'm such an idiot," he internally chided himself. While they waited at the traffic light to turn green, Gilbert felt a buzz in his pocket. He discreetly slid his cell phone out to glance at the screen and type a quick reply before sliding it back in.

"My apologies Master Leonardo but it seems the Young Sir is requesting me to stop by the Office for a moment to drop off something important before I take you to your residence to rest."

"Oh. It's okay, I don't mind," Leo assured curiosity quickly bringing him out of his slight funk. "What does he need?"

"Something necessary for their next endeavor," Gilbert replied vaguely. Leo cocked his head a little at the strangely aloof reply but decided to let the matter go and he just hummed in acknowledgment before directing his attention back out the window. Gilbert cast a sideways glance to the distracted youth and, almost as if sensing his disappointment, spoke up to gain his attention.

"Master Leonardo." Leo turned his attention back to the elderly man only to find him focusing fully on him. "This might be a bit forward of me, but I truly am thankful that you are alive and well and that we may continue to associate together in the future." The smile on Gilbert's face, while not outright beaming, was still more noticeably genuine than his usual, neutral one. Leo was surprised by the older man's blunt and unexpected declaration at first but it quickly disappeared and the mildly perplexed look on his face was immediately replaced with a small but appreciative smile. The light turned green and Gilbert promptly refocused his attention back on the road and resumed driving down the road to now head back towards the Libra headquarters leaving them both in a much more comfortable silence.
_

After stopping off briefly in a busy shopping plaza where two people wearing what appeared to be a nondescript store uniform, placed two large crates into the trunk of the car, they then arrived at Libra's hidden parking garage and rode the vehicle lift up to the main bay area. Gilbert parked the car amongst the rows of multiple vehicles (noticeably more than Leo could ever recall but decided not to question it) and shut off the engine before promptly getting out to retrieve a metal transport cart while Leo got out from the passenger seat, Sonic perched back on his shoulder, and shut the door. They watched as Gilbert rolled the cart over and unlocked the trunk to load the crates onto it.

"Do you need any help with that Gilbert?" Leo asked instinctively wanting to assist in some way.

"Thank you for the kind offer Master Leonardo but it is not necessary," Gilbert politely refused as he loaded both crates carefully onto the cart with some considerable effort, the gentle clinking of what sounded like glass rattling against each other with the motion. "After all, I believe the doctor must have advised against any strenuous activity what with your leg still recuperating. But if you could get the doors on the way up it would be very much appreciated." Leo relented a bit at the reminder and obliged, ignoring the desire to yield to his curiosity by asking what was in the crates Gilbert was transporting. He quickly hobbled over to the elevator doors and pressed the button to call it down. It arrived promptly and he held the doors open for Gilbert before they rode the lift up to the top floor where the Office was located. The elevator dinged and the doors opened up onto the usual hallway and Leo lead the way to the set of double doors with Gilbert following behind at a slower rate being careful not to damage the contents in the boxes. Leo noticed this and again wanted to offer some help but before he could, he took notice of the loud, muffled sounds and multiple voices that came from behind the double doors the closer they got.

"Hey Gilbert, is there some kind of important meeting or something going on?" he asked tentatively looking back to the regenerative combat butler who only gave him his usual neutral smile.

"I suppose it is something of the sort," he replied in the same oddly vague manner as before. "Could you please get the door Master Leonardo?"

"Yeah, sure," Leo replied placing his hand on the doorknob and turning it. "So where do you want the—" Leo stopped halfway into his question as he opened the door when the unblocked sounds of the loud commotion spilled out and Leo was greeted with the sight of multiple different people whom he recognized as other Libra members from lower divisions in the organization all chatting and laughing while what sounded like hearty jazz music played from a large speaker system at a healthy volume. Most of the desks and furniture had been pushed aside and instead several tables of food and drink and comfortable chairs were positioned around the Office as the warm, dim lighting cast just the right amount of light without it being too overbearing or underwhelming for the celebratory vibe. One man in a trench coat and beer in hand, whom Leo immediately recognized to be Brigade, took quick notice of him and smiled.

"Hey look who's here," he called out merrily, eliciting a chorus of pleased cheers to greet him before some people turned back to their conversations. Leo could only blink and stare in shock and confusion at the unexpected scene as Gilbert wordlessly rolled the cart past him and Klaus, Steven, and Zapp made their way out of the crowd and approached him.

"What is all this?" Leo asked the three clearly a bit lost.

"What's it look like dumbass? It's a party, duh!" Zapp replied in a smart-alecky tone slinging an arm around his shoulders, causing Sonic to jump up onto the top of Leo's head, and pulling him a bit forcefully (but oddly enough, not as roughly as he normally would have) towards the group. Clearly unimpressed by Zapp's less than helpful explanation, Leo gave him a half-hearted glare.

"I got that much Zapp. But I mean why is there a party?" he deadpanned.

"Well with everything that's happened the past couple of weeks, we decided it would be a good opportunity to not only let people unwind and de-stress from the usual grind but celebrate a job well done in defeating one of the 13 Kings and preventing one of Libra's most dire crises," Steven explained with one hand nonchalantly stuffed in his pocket. "Though we couldn't really start without a certain, important component and I'm not exactly talking about the extra liquor Gilbert picked up," Steven said with a wry smirk jabbing a thumb over to where the older man was unpacking the contents of the crates, which was indeed revealed to be several dozen glass bottles of beer and wine, into a large ice chest with other alcoholic drinks. Realization gradually dawned over Leo at the thinly veiled, true meaning behind the Esmerelda Blood Freeze user's words and he turned his attention from what Gilbert was doing back to the three men.

"You mean, this is also for…me?" Leo asked tentatively, evidently a bit embarrassed to even ask such a thing.

"Of course," Klaus said. "We wanted to welcome you back properly. That is, if you are not too exhausted to enjoy the festivities for a while before Gilbert takes you home," he added not wanting to overwhelm the young man or provoke a possible migraine if he wasn't feeling up to it. Again the warmth of acceptance surged back to Leo and grateful tears pricked the corners of his eyes. He quickly wiped them away with his sleeve and gave them a reassuring smile.

"Yeah, I'll be okay to stay for a while." Pleased with the response, Klaus and Steven smiled back and nodded before Zapp lead Leo off into the gathering of people.

Many operatives wished Leo well as they passed, which he politely thanked as Zapp brought him over to one of the many ice chests to grab a drink. Upon taking notice of the large assortment of food and snacks, Sonic immediately jumped off Leo's head and eagerly ran to go stuff himself with the delectable spread while Zapp dug through the ice.

"I can't believe we have to wait for an event like you almost dying to get any of the good stuff to drink," Zapp said off-handedly as he pulled out a bottle of Scotch with an excited grin.

"Gee, sorry for the inconvenience," Leo replied in a dry, sarcastic tone and barely resisting the urge to roll his eyes. Zapp gave him a brief, odd look before digging through the ice chest again.

"Aw lighten up will ya. Here," he said shoving a bottle of beer into Leo's hands. A closer look at the bottle's label revealed it to be a brand that he actually sort of liked, how Zapp knew this or whether it was just a coincidence he didn't know. A fleeting feeling of gratefulness went through him regardless but he still set the unopened bottle aside on the table of snacks.

"Thanks anyway but I don't think I should be drinking much of anything with the migraine medication I was given."

"Your loss," Zapp replied with a shrug as he unscrewed the cap of the Scotch and took a generous gulp straight from the bottle. Disregarding the comment, Leo instead turned his attention out towards the lively atmosphere, unsure of what else to say or do. Zapp eyed him, seemingly contemplating something before he gently thwacked Leo on the back of his head.

"What the hell?" Leo said defensively, rubbing the spot on his head where Zapp had slapped even though there was no real pain present.

"That was payback for taking your sweet time in the damn hospital," Zapp retorted dismissively before averting his gaze. "It was boring around here without you to screw with," he grumbled in a quiet, petulant tone. Leo's irritated expression was quickly replaced with one of bewilderment at the normally obnoxious man's uncharacteristic statement. Before he could question it however, an attractive woman with long brown hair passed by immediately catching Zapp's attention and he predictably stalked off with bottle in hand catcalling her in an attempt to try and flirt with her. Leo shook his head in exasperation but still felt a smile creep onto his lips. Glancing to his left, he took stock of the table of dishes of grand hors d'oeuvres and other scrumptious dishes that made his stomach growl. Deciding to indulge himself to some of the tasty-looking treats, he reached for a plate and began to help himself when a loud greeting and a large hand clapping onto his shoulder nearly startled him into dropping the dish.

"Hey there Leo, good to see ya!" Patrick said with a large grin as Neyka stood next to him with her own plate and mouth full of food as she chewed.

"Oh, hey Patrick. How've you been?" Leo returned with a polite smile.

"Ah you know, the usual: livin' the dream making some badass tech and other awesome stuff. Speaking of which…" Patrick paused as he knelt down a little closer while cupping the side of his mouth with his hand and speaking in a bit of a hushed tone as if he was trying to be secretive. "Neyka and I have actually been whipping up a little something special for ya, but I won't say what. It's gonna be a surprise," he said with visible glee.

"That's really not necessary Patrick," Leo said warily getting eerie Déjà vu vibes as he thought back to some of the "gifts" Patrick has tried to force onto him in the past. But the big man only squeezed Leo's frame against his side a bit tightly in good cheer and completely oblivious to Leo's hesitance.

"Hey now, I won't hear of it," he insisted regaining his usual volume. "I've said it before and I'll say it again, you gotta protect yourself man. We don't want you endin' up in the hospital again." Neyka swallowed the food that was stuffed in her mouth and wordlessly nodded in fervent agreement. Touched by their concern, Leo smiled a bit but before he could try again to politely decline, someone else decided to take the opportunity to step in.

"Ease up a bit Patrick," K.K. lightly reprimanded with a pointed look and frown. "He doesn't need to be pressured into anything right now other than just taking it easy, remember?" Taking the hint, Patrick released his grip.

"Yeah I hear ya," the weapon's expert relented before glancing back down to Leo. "We'll talk more about it later," he said giving him a firm pat on the back that caused the dull ache of his still sore ribs to throb and nearly pitching him forward and dropping his plate of food again but somehow he still remained on his feet and with his meal secured. "Look forward to it! Trust me, I really think you'll like what we came up with. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go grab a beer." With that Patrick headed off followed by Neyka who gave him a wave and followed off after her partner. Leo and K.K. watched them go before he turned to her.

"Thanks for that K.K."

"No problem," the sniper replied with a grin. "So how are you holding up?"

"About as well as I can be," Leo said with a shrug. "Physically I'm doing a lot better but some things are still kind of…tough to think back on," he admitted sheepishly while fiddling with the finger foods on his plate. "Not like I'm any stranger to almost dying but I still can't help but think of how things could have ended for you guys because of what almost happened," K.K.'s grin fell upon hearing the subtle hint of guilt in his tone and a frown quickly took its place. Instantly she took hold of Leo's upper arms causing him to look at her quizzically while she looked at him seriously.

"Listen Leo, none of us blame you for anything that happened. I'm sure Klausie already told you something similar but now I'm telling you that feeling guilty won't change the past. We're Libra so we're used to these sorts of things, with or without your involvement, and I'm pretty sure things wouldn't have ended so great for us if it weren't for you. So don't you dare go and blame yourself anymore for something that didn't happen, okay?" Taken aback by the stern, motherly manner of speaking, Leo could only nod in response and again K.K. smiled before pulling him in for a quick hug.

"Good!" She said before pulling back and quickly studying him before a thoughtful smirk appeared. "You know, I think one of these days we need to take you clothes shopping. I noticed it even before I was getting your clothes together for you earlier but you wear pretty much the same thing every day. You know you'll never get a girlfriend if you don't show yourself off a bit more," she said teasingly with a playful nudge. Leo sputtered a bit in embarrassment at that, cheeks turning slightly red.

"W-Wha?" K.K. just giggled at the usual reaction before a group of burly, battle-hardened men, who already looked a bit inebriated, called the blonde haired sniper over to drink with them.

"Think it over," she said cheerily before giving him a quick wink (something that was a bit odd for her to do considering her eye-patch covered right eye) and walking off to join the group. Leo watched her go, evidently a bit bemused before just deciding to let it go. He gave a half grin before glancing down to his plate, plucking off a finger sandwich and began to eat.
_

After he had his fill, Leo opted to enjoy a cold can of soda rather than the constantly flowing alcohol that was being served. Thankfully there was plenty in stock thanks to the ever-thoughtful Gilbert. He had just opened the tab and took a swig of the carbonated beverage, standing off to the side a ways away from the throng of people near one of the large speakers that was now playing some pleasant piano music, when a familiar male voice called out to him.

"Leonardo." Leo turned his attention in the direction of the voice and noticed Lucky approaching him.

"Mr. Abrams?" Leo said a bit confused and instinctively on edge. "What are you doing here? I would have thought you'd have already left by now to report back to Fang Hunter HQ."

"I had planned to but Klaus convinced me to stay a little bit longer for the celebration," he replied. "I also wanted to give something to you," the older man said reaching into his overcoat's inner breast pocket and pulling out a small manila envelope and holding it out to him. Leo set his drink down on the table beside them with multiple other drinks and plates of food and took the envelope, turning it over questioningly to inspect it before opening it. Inside were several slips of paper with archaic runes scrawled onto them as he flipped through them.

"Aren't these protection talismans?" Leo asked looking up to him with an arched brow. "Like the kind you use to repel things?"

"That's right," Lucky confirmed. "There's a couple healing talismans and warding charms in there as well. I also passed on the rest of the blessed bandages to Klaus to hold onto in case they're ever needed again but I figured giving these ones to you might come in handy in the future just in case you ever find yourself in a similar predicament with a Blood Breed like when you were with the King of Pain." Leo visibly winced at the reminder but forced a smile regardless.

"Thanks Mr. Abrams. I'll be sure to start carrying some of them on me from now on," he assured and pocketed the envelope. Lucky nodded in approval.

"See to it that you do. And speaking of seeing, Klaus told me of what Dr. Estevez informed you both regarding the damage surrounding your eyes." Again Leo winced and he braced himself for the lecture he was surely going to receive. However to his surprise, Lucky gently clapped a hand on his shoulder and continued. "I'm sorry you had to go through such an experience to result in that. But I want to let you know that I'm actually quite impressed with your actions and your courage with everything that happened. You were solely instrumental in our victory against Pain and I doubt anyone else in your position would have been able to come out of it in one piece, much less alive. Well done my boy!" Lucky patted his shoulder before lowering his arm as Leo stared at him in shock, obviously not expecting the words of praise instead of getting chewed out for letting his eyes get cracked again. He recovered quickly though and tried to reply.

"I—" However before he could get any more words out, Leo heard a barely audible snapping sound under the music that was playing and saw out of the corner of his eye how the single, large speaker that was being supported on a sturdy looking platform beside them began to slowly tip forward when the front legs of the platform inexplicably buckled, threatening to crash down onto the older man. "Look out!" he warned outstretching a hand to point at the falling hazard. Lucky snapped his head towards where Leo was pointing and saw the incoming appliance just in time to quickly step back and out of the way as it's cord pulled loose from the wall, stopping the music in that corner of the room before crashing down onto the table of beverages and snacks. Food flew off the table, drinks spilled and shattered, splashing a bit of the solid and liquid mess onto the front and side of Leo but sending one bottle at the end of the table in particular sailing through the air. Someone from the crowd that was nearby that stopped their partying to watch the disaster unfold shouted a "heads up" in warning for the projectile causing people to either quickly duck for cover or watch the bottle's flight path from a safe distance. Predictably, the bottle landed into the back of someone's head, that someone just so happening to be Zapp who was completely oblivious to what was happening around him, apparently in the middle of trying to woo the same attractive brunette from before who looked quite annoyed by the unwanted attention. When the bottle struck Zapp, it shattered on impact, effectively knocking him out as he fell forward and collapsed to the ground. The attractive woman's irritation immediately changed to astonishment as this all happened before taking that as her cue to quickly hurry away from the scene while she was still able to.

The partygoers that observed this were silent in bewilderment at the scene for a brief moment before they shrugged it off and went back to drinking and chatting as though nothing had happened. The music in the remaining speakers eventually resumed as Gilbert tended to the downed Zapp with trusty first aid kit in hand. Leo and Lucky observed this as well before the latter spoke up.

"Huh, someone must have not set up the tables and sound system properly. What a shame." Leo examined the mess on his person before glancing up to the disaster magnet in front of him, sweatdropping at Lucky's continuing obliviousness. Naturally the man didn't have a speck of food or single drop of liquid on him as he continued. "In any case, I'll take that as my cue to leave. Be sure to keep in touch," Lucky said with a wave goodbye before he turned and headed for the door. Leo sighed in mild exasperation and proceeded to wipe the mess off his clothes with his hands while checking to make sure he hadn't been cut by any of the glass shards (thankfully he hadn't).

"Are you all right Leo?" A voice asked gaining Leo's attention. He looked up from his clothes to see Zed holding out a stack of paper towels, some damp enough to help him remove the food and liquor stains before they could set in.

"Yeah I'm good. Thanks Zed," Leo said appreciatively taking the paper towels and cleaning himself off as best he could.

"You're welcome," the merman replied, pausing only briefly to look over the horde of gathered Libra members as a few of the men in the crowd helped to right the fallen speaker and clean up the mess Lucky had inadvertently created and left behind. "It's been a while since there's been a celebration like this, hasn't it; not since the New Years Party if I remember correctly." A bit perplexed by his odd recounting, Leo arched a brow in visible confusion.

"Uh yeah, I guess it has been," he admitted while disposing of the used paper towels into the nearby trashcan, unsure of where Zed wanted to go with this information. He got his answer when Zed redirected his yellow-eyed gaze back onto him.

"You know, if it hadn't been for you, I don't think I would even have had the opportunity to know what being in such an environment could be like in the first place. Or how enjoyable it could be, " he said. A moment of silence between the two of them followed as Leo processed the unexpected comment.

"Well I don't know if I did that much Zed, but where exactly did that statement come from?" he inquired. Zed rubbed the back of his head in a visible display of minor awkwardness.

"I felt like it was necessary to say something to help alleviate any remaining tension you might be feeling and cheer you up, as any good friend would," he answered truthfully. "After everything that has happened, I've come to realize that perhaps I haven't been as forthcoming on our friendship as I should be. There are many things that I feel haven't really been said enough on my part and wanted to change that." Taken aback by Zed's unflinching honesty, Leo was momentarily at a loss for words before he gave the fidgety fish man a reassuring smile.

"You don't need to feel obligated go to such extra lengths Zed; I've always considered us good friends." The surprised look on Zed's face prompted Leo to continue. "You may not always say much, but your actions speak a lot for themselves; that means a lot to me. And besides…" Leo paused to look over to Zapp who was now conscious and sitting up drinking from his bottle of Scotch in an obviously sulky manner in not scoring a date as Gilbert disinfected and dressed the blow he took to his head. "I'm pretty sure you're the only other person besides me and Chain who can fully understand what it's like having to deal with Zapp's stunts all the time so it's nice having someone else in my corner," he half-joked with a smirk.

"How our Master thought it was okay to release him out into the general public I'll never know," Zed deadpanned observing the white-haired male for a bit before refocusing his attention back onto Leo who had chuckled at the remark. "In any case, I still wanted to reiterate my thoughts and feelings on the matter." Leo smiled in understanding before Zed continued. "That being said, would you like me to get you another drink to replace what was knocked over by Mr. Abrams' inadvertent misfortune?" Instinctively Leo initially wanted to politely decline to not put Zed through any extra trouble, but between having respect for the merman's attempts at bettering himself and actually being thirsty coupled with the fact that his leg was starting to ache a little from standing on it for so long, Leo decided to take him up on his offer and nodded.

"Sure. Mr. Peps if there's any left." Zed gave a pleased smile and nodded before he set off to the nearest cooler to retrieve Leo's requested beverage. Leo watched him go until he was out of sight and leaned against the wall to wait, grunting softly as he shifted most of his weight off his still healing leg. He surveyed the rowdy crowd around him and absentmindedly let out a sigh.

"Something bothering you?" a low, feminine voice asked directly to Leo's right startling him into jumping and letting out a small yelp in surprise as he immediately straightened up away from the wall and turned his attention to the speaker.

"Chain?" Sure enough, Chain sat crouched on the armrest of an unoccupied armchair studying him with a lazy but careful eye. "Geeze you scared me. How long have you been there?"

"Since around the time the speaker fell," she said simply.

"Is that so?" Leo replied, not entirely surprised that he hadn't noticed her presence without the use of his All-Seeing Eyes and knowing how much of a wallflower she tended to be. A prolonged period of silence followed, save for the ambient noise of the party around them. Feeling a bit weirded out by the odd interaction, or rather lack thereof, Leo observed Chain who remained perfectly balanced on the armrest and looking a bit unusually self-conscious as though she wanted to say something more but didn't know where to start. Before he could ask her if there was something on her mind, Chain finally spoke up again.

"So, you're doing good then?"

"Huh?" Leo uttered until it registered what she was asking. "Oh yeah, I'm fine. Just a little distracted is all. Guess I'm still not really used to the whole party vibe," he replied with a half-chuckle. Chain gave a brief hum to show she acknowledged his response but somehow didn't seem to be quite convinced by the answer.

"And your injuries?" she tentatively inquired, her glance drifting briefly down to his leg in its brace before quickly darting back onto him.

"Doing a lot better, though still a little sore," he replied truthfully. "Dr. Estevez and Klaus both say I'll still have to take it easy for a while to be on the safe side though."

"I see," Chain said in her usual low tone and indifferent expression though some of her tension seemed to leave her at those words. "That's good to hear." Leo took notice of the subtle relief in her tone as she stared out into the crowd of people, apparently now content (though her expression did not really change to show it) and slightly cocked his head to the side with a small smile and sense of understanding.

"Chain," Leo said gaining the Invisible Werewolf's attention. "Thanks for worrying about me. And for trying to protect me during everything that happened." Almost instantly, Chain's passive expression morphed into one of mild though visible embarrassment at her (not so) subtle intentions being exposed so easily. Before either of them could really say or do anything else, a loud cheer interrupted the two's interaction.

"Hey, there he is," K.K. slurred a bit before pulling him into an unexpected hug with one arm that more or less resulted in her leaning on him a little bit more than she needed to, not helping the dull aching of his leg at all. An equally buzzed Patrick and blasé Neyka with beer and additional plate of food in hand respectively had approached as well. "What are you doin' all the way over here in a corner by yourself, silly goose?" she questioned with a giggle.

"K.K. I think you've had a little too much to drink," Leo said noticing the wine glass in hand and slight red flush of her cheeks. "And I'm not by myself, I was talking to—" Before he could finish his sentence, Patrick then cut him off with his own equally slurred proclamation.

"Aww come on man. It's a party ain't it? So come drink with us!" He excitedly appealed to the young holder.

"Thanks but no thanks guys. I can't drink with the medication I'm on, even if I wanted to," Leo predictably refused but the three weren't hearing of it. Patrick laughed and easily picked up Leo and slung him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes causing him to cry out in surprise.

"It's fine, it's fine. We can get you somethin' else ta drink," he said confidently before he marched off with Leo in tow. If she was in a more sober mindset, K.K. would have likely stepped in to intervene but instead she followed at his heels with a giddy grin and raising her wine glass with a cheer.

"Wha! Patrick, please put me down!" Unfortunately the plea fell on deaf ears as Neyka followed after them with an exasperated sigh and resigned expression at the larger man's shenanigans. Chain watched them go just as Zed returned with Leo's drink in hand while he too observed the bizarre departure.

"What was that all about?" Zed queried glancing to Chain curiously.

"Apparently Leo's more popular than he realized and is now probably wishing he wasn't," she replied with some minor amusement. "Speaking of drinks, I wonder if K.K. left any of the good Merlot," Chain said, the last part more to herself than anyone else, before she diluted herself leaving behind the perplexed fish man who blinked at a loss of what to do and still holding Leo's unclaimed soda.
_

After an agonizing 45 minutes of awkward, forced social interaction with several other increasingly inebriated Libra operatives that passed by and talking in circles with the more than buzzed Patrick and K.K., Leo finally managed to slip away from them when they weren't paying attention. Slinking his way through the crowd and past several other people who thankfully paid him little mind, Leo finally exited the mass of bodies and limped his way over to an unoccupied couch mostly out of sight that had been pushed closer to the metal, spiral staircase that led up to the second landing and unceremoniously plopped down with a groan. His leg was now throbbing uncomfortably from standing on it for so long and Leo gently massaged what he could to try and alleviate the aching.

"Note to self, start carrying around some aspirin," he mumbled.

"I've found a gin and tonic usually helps me with such problems," a voice from above jokingly cut in. Leo glanced up to find Steven halfway down the staircase leaning against the railing to look down at him with a humorous smirk, arms crossed and flute of Champagne in hand.

"I doubt any amount of alcohol would be a good idea in my case though," Leo retorted plainly as Steven came down the stairs the rest of the way and approached him.

"Enough said then," he relented never losing his amused smile. Though it faded a bit when Leo grimaced in pain as he shifted on the couch to make himself more comfortable and move over for the scar-faced man to take a seat if he wished. "Still a bit sore huh," he said more as a statement than a question.

"Yeah," Leo admitted somewhat feebly, likely out of embarrassment. "Guess I overdid it a little."

"Broken bones aren't always an easy injury to bounce back from," Steven said understandingly. "I've had more than my fair share over the years so I know full well how vexing it can be." Steven took a sip from his glass as Leo looked at him somewhat caught off guard by the normally reserved man's sudden disclosure of personal information. Seeing the young holder's stunned expression but choosing not to comment on it, Steven continued on. "Aches and pains aside, I take it that you're still enjoying the party?" The question instantly snapped Leo out of his mild stupor and he gave a gentle smile once he registered the inquiry and was reminded of the celebration's partial purpose.

"Yeah, I am," he assured before the loud sound of a cork popping from a bottle of Champagne or some other fancy liquor followed promptly by cheers caused him to jump in surprise. The two turned their attentions to where the commotion came from and was greeted with the growing horde of drunken operatives located a good distance away from them across the room, of whom Patrick, K.K., and even Zapp and Chain were also now amongst, as Patrick held the neck of the foaming bottle up like a trophy and grinning like a loon. "Though I think it'd be best if I took a small break to get off my feet and avoid any more, um, 'excessive partying,' for the sake of my own health," Leo added with a subtle hint gesturing towards the scene as the increasingly intoxicated members poured themselves more booze and playfully roughhoused with each other.

"Noted. Those three in particular do have a tendency to go a tad overboard with the alcohol during celebrations like this," Steven admitted. "I'll have a talk with them. Though as drunk as they're getting I doubt they may remember much but don't hesitate to come get me if they try to pressure you into anything. I'm sure the last thing you want is to go back to the hospital and getting an earful from Dr. Estevez." Leo chuckled a little.

"You're not wrong about that," he said with a smile. "Thanks Steven."

"Anytime Leo," Steven said which again caught Leo off guard. Normally Steven would refer to him as kid or young man or some other detached yet endearing variation (not that he actually minded too much as Steven's nicknames for him were far nicer than the ones Zapp came up with) but he rarely if ever called him by his actual name. Before he could question the older man though, Steven had already walked off into the crowd to get the rowdy group to settle down. Leo remained seated on the couch for a moment longer when a familiar small, white blur leapt into his lap. When he glanced down he saw none other than Sonic whose fur was smeared with the leftover remains of the food and snacks he had gorged himself on based on the visibly full belly and half-lidded look on the simian's face as he let out a satisfied burp.

"Geeze Sonic, you look and act like you haven't had a good meal in years," Leo said teasingly before he picked the little monkey up and rose back onto his feet with a mixed grunt of effort and discomfort. "Come on, let's go get you cleaned up," he said limping towards the exit out to the hallway where the bathroom was located.

After nearly ten minutes of washing most of the mess out of Sonic's fur and drying him off under the hand dryer (which resulted in another five minutes of the exasperated primate grooming his puffed up fur back down to its usual sleekness), Leo and Sonic entered back into the Office where the party was still in full swing. Though before he could get too far into the crowd, he heard someone eagerly call out to him.

"Hey Leo!" Instantly recognizing the chipper voice, Leo turned to greet its owner.

"Hey Hum—ah," Rather than expecting to see the handsome man and his liquefied partner in person, he was instead greeted with Anila holding a tablet with a live stream feed of Hummer and Deldro on screen.

"It's good to see you're finally out of the hospital. This is some party huh; Klaus and the others really know how to throw 'em."

"Hmph! It would be better if we were actually there," Deldro grumbled is obvious discontent.

"I take it the Warden said you guys couldn't come," Leo deduced sympathetically.

"Yeah," Hummer said rubbing the back of his head but never losing his smile. "The Warden was nice enough to let us visit you in the hospital but she kind of put her foot down when it came to joining the party. Thankfully Klaus and Mr. Abrams were able to get this live feed set up as a compromise but I'm sorry we couldn't actually be there in person to welcome you back."

"It's alright, I understand," Leo reassured with a smile. "Thanks though, I really appreciate it. As well as everything you guys did to help me during that whole curse mess." Hummer's bright smile fell at that last sentiment causing Deldro to cast his partner a sideways glance when he again picked up on his distressed biorhythms.

"We really didn't do as much as you might think," he replied in an uncharacteristically dispirited manner. Instantly, Leo was concerned when he heard the unusually pessimistic tone and response though before he could comment on it, Hummer's disposition quickly shifted back to his happy-go-lucky self. "But don't worry, the next time you need us we'll be a lot stronger! We won't let anyone get one over on us again, right Deldro?" He said looking to his partner with a determined smile and Deldro gave a simple grunt in the affirmative. Leo studied the duo on screen in confusion but soon smiled as he figured the handsome man and plasma convict must have gone through some sort of personal growth over the previous course of events that he hadn't been aware of.

"Well, it might not be much of a consolation, but there's still a lot of food here and I'm sure there will probably be plenty leftover. Since you guys couldn't make it for the party, I'll be sure to save some and send it over to you. I'm sure the Warden wouldn't mind that at the very least." Hummer's smile widened into enthusiastic excitement and even Deldro perked up a little at Leo's offer.

"Really? That would be awesome. Thanks Leo!" Hummer exclaimed.

"If they got any of those little cocktail weenies, be sure to grab a buttload of 'em," Deldro chimed in. "It's about time I get something good to eat around here." An irritated growl from off camera no doubt belonging to the Warden was heard as a show of displeasure towards Deldro's comment though it went largely ignored by the pair.

"I'll do my best," Leo assured. They talked for a while longer until the low-battery warning flashed in the center of the tablet. Taking that as their cue to end the stream, the Warden told the convicts to wrap it up and they promptly bid Leo goodbye (and Deldro again brusquely reminded him about the promised snacks) before the video feed finally ended. Anila tucked the tablet under her arm and gave Leo a brief but friendly smile and bowed her head in a silent message of acknowledgment before she took her leave.

Leo stood off to the side, not moving from where he had stood talking to Hummer and Deldro, as gentle but lively Classical music played over the speakers and he surveyed the party before him. Despite it starting to get a bit late, everyone still seemed eager to continue the celebration as his fellow operatives carried on with chatting, drinking and laughing amongst each other. While Leo was still enjoying the overall warm and welcoming atmosphere, he was also starting to get a bit worn down and even after resting a bit, his leg was still aching. A glance to his right revealed the Office's glass doors, which led out to the unoccupied balcony. Deciding to get some fresh air, Leo hobbled his way over to the doors and discreetly made his exit, gently closing the door behind him and muffling the music and sounds of conversation almost completely. The sun had fully set some time ago and the lights of the skyscrapers had now come on partially illuminating the surrounding darkness of the night. Leo approached the balcony's railing and leaned against it with arms folded while shifting most of his weight off his bad leg as Sonic hopped off his shoulder and onto the railing next to him to enjoy the night air. A gentle breeze blew and ruffled the hair/fur of the two as Leo gazed out at the night's cityscape with the skyline partially obscured by the usual white fog with a sense of peace he hadn't felt almost in years. He let out a content sigh and let his mind wander as he took in the sight of the city lights below them as the minutes passed in a pleasant silence until the sound of the door opening behind him caused some of the party noise to escape out before it cut off again when the door closed. Leo didn't turn around though he had a feeling of who it was that came out to see him.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," Klaus said carrying an air of caution about him, likely out of concern for Leo's wellbeing. "I noticed you were absent of the festivities and saw you out here alone," he said letting his gentle tone silently convey his unspoken inquiry.

"Hey Klaus," Leo greeted with a small but genuine smile turning his head to see the red-haired man properly after picking up on his mild distress. "I'm okay, just needed a little breather is all."

"I see." Klaus replied, relaxing instantly upon seeing Leo's untroubled demeanor. "In that case, do you mind if I join you?"

"Not at all," answered Leo. Klaus approached the shorter male and joined alongside him to stare out at the admittedly breathtaking urban scenery before them. Klaus remained quiet for a moment before he turned his gaze to study Leo and noticed the barely perceptible look of contemplation hidden under his calm visage.

"A penny for your thoughts?" Klaus asked. Knowing he couldn't really hide anything from the large man, Leo decided to confide in him.

"I guess I'm still kind of stuck thinking back on everything that's happened with this recent mess, never mind everything else that's happened to me since coming to this city." Leo paused for a brief moment of contemplation. "Not to mention kind of at a loss at how…different everyone has been acting since I came back." He snapped his head up in noticeable alarm as if catching what he had just subconsciously let slip to his boss. "Not that I'm complaining or saying that I'm bothered by it necessarily," he assured in a flustered manner before calming down. "It's just that, well, I'm not really used to being fussed over by so many people. It's kind of a strange feeling." Leo averted his gaze, seemingly almost ashamed or embarrassed by that admission as he absentmindedly rubbed Sonic's head as the little monkey gazed up at him sadly at the sudden change in mood. Klaus also easily picked up on the evident traces of sadness with those words especially as Leo's expression became vacant and distant, likely thinking back to some unpleasant thoughts or memories. Klaus couldn't help but frown a bit at this.

"Leonardo," he began quickly bringing the young man out of his thoughts to refocus on him. "I'm afraid I can't speak for what you might have endured prior to joining us, nor do I believe I have the right to. But I can assure you that regardless of whatever may have taken place in the past, you have become an important person to us. Not because of your eyes, but because of who you are as a person and I am more than willing to remind you of that as many times as I need to." A small, amused grin then spread onto Klaus' lips. "In fact I believe we've already had a similar conversation like this once or twice before." Leo sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck but forced himself to meet Klaus' gaze.

"Yeah, I guess we have huh," he said with a crooked smile trying to play off the odd mixture of emotions he was experiencing; feeling both moved by Klaus' words and simultaneously self-consciousness by the attention. Klaus took that moment as an opportunity to continue further, this time in a much more serious, though still gentle, tone.

"Having said that, I also want to take the opportunity to say that while I understand that it may be a bit difficult for you, I'd like there to be more open communication between us. Do not feel as if you have to be so reserved for our sakes and should you have any sort of problem or concern in the future that is troubling you, no matter how minor you believe it to be, do not hesitate to talk to any one of us. I'm more than positive that the others will not hesitate to lend you their ear as well." A look of uncharacteristic guilt then crossed over Klaus' face. "And, I promise you that I will also try harder in the future to be a better listener to your worries as well so that we can prevent another similar scenario from occurring again."

This time it was Leo's turn to frown, not only out of sympathy for his boss' unnecessary guilt, but out of shame at himself for thinking back on how he could have ever doubted the red-haired man's true intentions. He should have known that Klaus was not the kind of person Pain had tried to convince him of and this humbling display in addition to all the other things he had witnessed not just from him but from Zapp and the other Libra members during his rescue only further disproved everything that the Blood Breed had said about them. He also felt an underlying twinge of amusement in the back of his mind at the irony of their reversed positions but quickly pushed it down. He wanted to help ease Klaus of the burden of his heavy conscience and decided to placate him the best way he knew how: by taking the man's own advice as well as a page from his sister's book for good measure. Leo was silent for a moment, glancing out over the cityscape once more before he spoke up.

"To be perfectly honest Klaus, there were some admittedly dark times in my past that came as a result of receiving the All-Seeing Eyes…I'll even be the first to admit that there was even a time when I didn't care if I lived or died at one point because of the guilt." Klaus gawked at Leo with a mixed expression of shock and horror at what he had just implied by those words but nevertheless kept silent as the shorter male continued, seemingly unfazed by the Libra leader's reaction.

"When I eventually made the decision to come here to Hellsalem's Lot to try and make things right for Michella, I thought that was one of the dumbest decisions of my life, if only because of how insane this city tends to be. You might also find it hard to believe, but I originally wanted nothing to do with this place if I could have helped it, even more so upon seeing first-hand how chaotic and dangerous things were here. I thought that if I didn't somehow die in the first month of coming here, it would be a real miracle. And as time passed with little to nothing to show for my actions, I stood by the thought that this city was the worst and, well, while sometimes I still think that it is…some things changed…"

Leo then directed his attention from the city skyline back to the glass doors gazing inside where he and Klaus could now see Steven, K.K. Zapp, Zed, Chain, Patrick and Neyka all gathered around drinking, talking and/or and observing as a drunken Zapp was further making an ass of himself. He was literally throwing his weight against any of the others for support and spouting off some unheard words before an aggravated Chain apparently couldn't take any more of it and roundhouse kicked the tan male in the face, knocking him backwards. Almost immediately Zapp quickly and angrily got to his feet to hurl slurred insults at the unsympathetic woman while Patrick and K.K. laughed, Zed and Steven shook their heads in exasperation and Neyka merely continued to munch on what must have been her tenth plate of food as Gilbert came by to refresh their drinks and provide water to help sober up the more rambunctious attendees.

"I don't think I'd be where I am now if it weren't for you guys," Leo admitted still keeping his attention directed away from Klaus while he in turn focused back on the young man. "And I mean that in more ways than you may ever know. It may be pretty hypocritical of me to say this, but take it from someone who still lives with some guilt on an almost daily basis." Leo paused to finally look Klaus in the eye with a pointed look. "Don't blame yourself for making one mistake; I certainly don't. What happened, happened but I'm also still alive because of you. I think that kind of automatically zeroes out any kind of negative feelings that I may or may not have had on the matter just on principle," he said with a small, teasing grin.

As he processed Leo's words, Klaus eventually returned the smile in kind with one of both relief as well as a noticeable spark of pride at the young man's personal growth. Before he could find an appropriate response however did the balcony door creak open again and the sounds of celebration slipped out into the night breaking the air of serious discussion around them. Both humans and Alterworldly primate glanced back to the door to see a drunkenly flushed K.K. with half-empty wine glass still gripped in hand and leaning against the doorframe.

"Klausie," she whined with a more noticeable slur than before. "What are you guys doin' out *hic* here? Come back inside and join the party already!"

"In a moment K.K.," Klaus assured. "Though I believe you may want to take a break yourself otherwise you're going to wind up with a worse hangover than you likely will already have in the morning."

"'Kay! I'll save you guys a beer," she replied tipsily, seemingly not hearing or perhaps choosing to brush off the last part of Klaus' message before walking back inside with a slight stagger and leaving the door slightly ajar for them to hear her loudly yell at Zapp for hogging all the booze (who in turn drunkenly denied any sort of wrong doing) and asking Gilbert where the rest of the beer and Merlot was as some of the party noise filtered out for Leo and Klaus to overhear. The two looked at each other before Leo chuckled in genuine amusement and Klaus merely shook his head with a mildly exasperated but similarly amused smile as Sonic hopped back onto Leo's shoulder ready to go back inside.

"I suppose we should rejoin them lest they consume what remains of Libra's current alcohol reserves," Klaus suggested.

"Yeah, probably a good idea," Leo agreed and he and Klaus both proceeded towards the door, walking in stride nearly shoulder to shoulder to enter back into the bright light and warmth of the Office and their comrades.
_

Hello Michella, how are you? I hope that you and Toby both are doing well and are enjoying your honeymoon; I still remember how you said you've always wanted to visit Europe ever since we were kids. I know it's been a while since I've written to you and don't want to take too much of your time so I'll keep this letter brief. I'm still doing well in this crazy city, still doing the same things I've always done to get by. Though some particularly insane things happened recently but don't worry, I'm just fine now and life has pretty much gone back to normal here, or whatever is considered to be close to normal.

Leo walked down the street, still with a bit of a limp, as he trailed behind the crowd of people carrying a single bag of groceries to head back to his apartment with Sonic perched cozily on top of his head enjoying the warmth of the sun filtering through the fog. Suddenly Leo felt himself get yanked back harshly into the alleyway he just passed and was thrown roughly to the ground, groceries spilling out and causing Sonic to get thrown off unexpectedly. The speedy simian panicked briefly but quickly recovered to stand defensively close to the downed Leo with hackles raised, though still trembling with instinctual fear. Three familiar Alterworldly thugs stood over them with menacing smirks as the insectoid, crocodilian and portly slug-creature chuckled.

"Well, well. If it ain't the same squinty-eyed little shit from before who thought he could play hero," the slug crook taunted. Leo tried to move but was picked up by the reptilian's claws, ignoring the Sonic Speed Monkey that chattered in protest, and pinned to the grimy concrete of the wall, his nails digging painfully into his skin to keep him from moving for good measure.

"You better have some decent cash on ya this time instead of some chump change. Otherwise we'll just have to take something else from ya as compensation like that gimpy leg of yours," the crocodilian snarled, baring his teeth aggressively close to his face to prove his point as the insectoid cackled and moved closer to begin sifting through his pockets and search him while the wide-mouthed slug being eagerly cracked his knuckles. However before the trio could make good on their threats, several blood threads ensnared the two crooks plus the portly slug-creature and yanked them backwards, causing them to release Leo and he slid down the wall landing with a grunt as Sonic worriedly checked him over.

"Hey what gives?" the slug-man said as their attentions focused on the ones responsible and all three immediately paled. Zed stood glaring wordlessly and intensely at them as he manipulated the blood threads that bound them while Zapp gave a feral grin and flicked his lighter open in warning.

"You dumbasses really want to go through with that threat?" He said in a sickly sweet tone, thumb poised on the lighter's switch ready to ignite them. Leo however quickly got to his feet and decided to intervene.

"That's enough Zapp. You guys don't need to go that far; I'm okay, really," he insisted in a placating tone. Zed relented after a moment of visible tension but Zapp seemed more reluctant to back off but complied with a click of his tongue as he put away his lighter and Zed dispersed his threads dropping the brutes to the ground roughly. The three gawked between Leo and his two rescuers (mainly Zapp) before the shaken up slug could splutter out a response.

"Y-you know this guy?" he stammered to Leo pointing a stubby finger at the still visibly irked Zapp. Before Leo could reply however the three immediately got to their feet and hastily dug into their pockets to pull out all the money on their person and practically shoving it all into Leo's hands before simultaneously bowing in apology.

"We're sorry to bother you. It won't happen again!" They said in unison before bolting away in panic leaving behind the stunned Leo, perplexed Zed and now mildly amused Zapp as Sonic hopped back onto his rightful place on Leo's shoulder.

"Care to explain exactly what that was about?" Zed asked eying Zapp suspiciously, to which the white-haired male just put his arms behind his head in a carefree manner.

"Beats me," he replied unconvincingly with a shrug and proceeded to whistle innocently as Leo tried to process the unexpected turn of events.

Though that's not to say some things haven't changed. While strange and dangerous things are always the norm here, as you and I know fully well, what's honestly more shocking to me is that despite the same usual stakes, this particular time around seems to have lead to some pretty unexpected consequences, so much so that I'm honestly not even sure where I should begin. But I think it's safe to say that given what could have happened, all things turned out as well as could be expected... for the most part.

Leo stood in Patrick and Neyka's workshop looking a bit wary while Sonic distractedly fiddled with some of the inoperable gadgets strewn about the countertop he sat on. He was also accompanied by K.K. and Chain, who had offered to tag along before their usual mid-morning coffee run, as the three observed Patrick and Neyka excitedly wheel out something from the back that had a white sheet draped over it.

"I know I promised ya somethin' special back during the party Leo and while I'm still workin' on it, we thought you'd appreciate this just as much to tide ya over," Patrick explained before tearing the sheet off with a flourish. Instantly Leo went from wary to genuine surprise when he saw what had been hiding beneath the sheet. His rebuilt scooter sat on its kickstand looking as new as the day he first bought it. Wordlessly Leo approached the vehicle to inspect it closer.

"You guys fixed it up?" K.K. said pleasantly surprised as Leo wordlessly ran a hand over the seat and handlebars almost as if to verify that fact for himself.

"Wasn't too hard," Patrick affirmed with a smirk that Neyka matched with a smile of her own. "After building a tank like the Agasaya Mark Two, a moped was practically child's play…though it'll never be the same as building the old girl," Patrick said forlornly clearly still upset by the reminder of what became of the armored vehicle in the Alterworld as his shoulders visibly and drastically slumped and he began to sulk and grieve all over again as an almost visible cloud of despair seemed to hang over his head.

"You're still going on about that?" Chain deadpanned before Leo finally seemed to find his voice.

"Patrick, Neyka, thank you guys so much for this, really!" Leo said with genuine sincerity immediately snapping Patrick back out of his funk as the two inventors smiled.

"Anytime man," the dark-skinned man replied casually before an excited gleam seemed to then reflect across his sunglasses. "Oh! And before I forget, let us show you some of the new upgrades to your new baby here." Leo's smile fell a little at that as the wariness he felt before returned in full-force.

"Upgrades?" He repeated questioningly, dreading what kind of unwanted additions the two weapon makers integrated into his vehicle. K.K. and Chain perked up a bit in mild concern as well, knowing how easily overboard the two could often tend to go when it came to weapon installments. With an almost devious grin, Patrick grabbed a small remote from his coat pocket and pressed one of the small buttons. From the chassis of the scooter that housed the motor, two small compartments opened up producing what appeared to be two miniature rocket missiles on both sides.

"Now I know how you are about carrying any sort of weapons on ya so I figured providing a built-in solution for your ride would be a better option. Since I had a much smaller vehicle to work with I had to drastically downgrade the lethality of each of the missiles so they aren't exactly life-threatening, which I know you're a stickler about. But trust me, these puppies still pack enough of a punch to get your point across and get rid of any serious roadblock in your way. It works both manually and remotely and also comes with a pretty sick anti-theft feature that involves electric shocks," Patrick explained with a proud grin as Leo furrowed his brows in obvious disinclination. Before he could say anything to voice his polite refusal of said upgrades, K.K. beat him to it.

"Patrick, I don't think attaching volatile, miniaturized weapons of mass destruction to a vehicle, especially when in possession of someone who has no need or tendency to using them, is a good idea for a number of reasons," K.K. protested, her motherly side showing itself through her tough exterior. Patrick however seemed undeterred as he tried to plead his case.

"Oh come on K.K., a little firepower for his own protection won't hurt anybody… at least not anybody who doesn't deserve it." Leo silently observed the bizarre interaction for his own well-being feeling both moved by their concern but unsure of what to do or say when Sonic stopped fiddling with his newest toy after becoming bored of it and hopped onto the handlebars of Leo's scooter to join him. However in doing so it caused Sonic to accidentally flick one of the small toggle switches Leo had not previously noticed hidden on the underside of his right handlebar. The ignition lights on the mounted missiles started to flash and beep announcing that they had been accidentally armed and ready to launch.

"Uh, guys," Leo spoke out warily to get the two bickering adults attention as Chain, who had also noticed the dilemma, prepared to dilute herself to act. Whether it was the beeping of the armed rockets or Leo's warning that caught their attention was unclear but regardless the two turned to see what the problem was only to see Leo slowly backing away and they all could only watch the inevitable happen.

In a panic at the unexpected noise and movement and wanting to stop it, Sonic flipped what he thought was the switch that was responsible only to discover that it was instead the button to launch the missiles. With a high-pitched whine, the rockets ignited and shot off their mounts before impacting the wall with a small but powerful explosion that completely decimated the far concrete wall of Patrick's workshop and destroying some of Patrick and Neyka's uncompleted and completed projects and weapons, sending them flying. Patrick shielded both himself and Neyka from the blast by blocking the majority of flying debris with his body while K.K. took cover behind a metal table that she quickly overturned for shelter and Chain quickly grabbed Sonic off the bars and harmlessly ghosted through it all. Leo had tried to dive for cover underneath a nearby desk but was unfortunately too slow and received a sharp blow to the head by one of the metal chunks that came from one of Patrick's destroyed weapons.

Leo collapsed to the ground, dazed and bleeding slightly but still conscious and no more worse for wear since his body had grown to take such abuse from his time in Hellsalem's Lot. When the dust and debris settled the other members slowly peeked out to inspect the damage. Patrick immediately paled and silently lamented at the damage to his workshop and projects but Chain and K.K. immediately took notice of the injury Leo sustained.

"Leo, are you okay?" K.K. exclaimed instantly rushing to his side followed by the other three members and Sonic. Banged up and bleeding but otherwise unfazed, Leo could only think of one thing to say in response as he lay flat on his back staring blankly up at the ceiling before directing his attention to the four members.

"I appreciate the thoughtfulness Patrick, but I don't think my insurance can handle these new upgrades," Leo deadpanned. Visibly relaxing knowing that Leo was fine due to his smart-assed remark, the others smiled a bit in amusement (or sheepishness in Patrick's case as he rubbed the back of his head and gave a nervous half-grin).

"Vehicle insurance or health insurance?" Chain couldn't help but cheekily quip.

"Does it even matter?" Leo replied flatly.

Okay so some things may never change completely, and honestly not a day goes by that I still don't occasionally think back on how simple life was for us before Hellsalem's Lot, but regardless I'm still enduring it all and hanging on through each day. But some good things have come out of it all for me personally too. For example, your big brother has even gotten a bit of a pay raise! Though even now I'm still not entirely sure how that happened or how exactly I feel about the circumstances.

Klaus, Steven and Gilbert were enjoying a quiet evening at the office finishing up the reports and paperwork after another job well done. Klaus was situated at his desk typing away on his laptop as Steven reviewed a document standing next to him with a mug of coffee in hand while Gilbert dutifully filed away documents in the filing cabinet in the far corner of the room. Zapp was also present though fast asleep sprawled on his back on the couch as he slept off a couple post-mission beers completely dead to the world when suddenly the sound of fast approaching footfalls sounded from the hallway beyond the office door. Leo then all but burst into the room looking panicked and flustered, his All-Seeing Eyes opened so wide they practically bugged out of his head almost cartoonishly, clutching his phone in one hand as he scoured the room looking for someone or something while Sonic quickly scampered into the room after him.

"Leonardo, is something the matter?" Klaus questioned immediately getting to his feet thinking the worst as Gilbert and Steven were also instantly put on edge.

"Uh yeah, no, everything is fine," Leo assured distractedly as he came a bit closer, approaching the lounge area where Zapp was situated and visibly fidgeting with his phone still in hand. "It's just, um, I was kind of hoping to talk to Steven about something important." Caught off guard a bit by the request, Klaus and Steven both exchanged questioning glances but the Esmerelda Blood Freeze user nevertheless complied, setting down the documents in his hand (though keeping his coffee mug) before approaching. Klaus respectfully decided to give them some privacy since nothing seemed too seriously amiss and sat back down at his desk to return to the report on his computer.

"So what has you so wound up young man?" Steven asked with a quirked brow. Leo glanced down at his phone briefly before looking back up to Steven to explain.

"I um, was checking my bank account and noticed that there might have been some kind of mistake in my latest paycheck."

"A mistake?" Steven repeated sounding a bit puzzled. "That's odd, usually Anila is pretty good with the accounting side of Libra's operations but I suppose there could have been some sort of error. Were you short something on your paystub?" Again Leo awkwardly fidgeted a bit with his phone before he replied.

"Uh, actually Steven, it's kind of the opposite. You guys accidentally paid me too much," Leo said before holding up his phone with his online banking app's information displaying his most recent direct deposit information as proof which displayed a higher amount of currency than the holder of the All-Seeing Eyes was used to. Steven briefly studied over the information presented to him in silence before he spoke again.

"Ah, I see," the raven-haired male uttered aloud in understanding. "No, that information is all accurate," he informed nonchalantly before taking a swig of his coffee.

"Oh okay—wait, WHAT?!" Leo exclaimed in obvious shock. "How?"

"Well, despite being a secret society dedicated to protecting the balance of both worlds, sometimes through less than official means, Libra is still technically an agency or business and like most businesses once an employee passes a certain probation point they get a raise in their stipend, simple as that," Steven calmly reasoned with his usual smile.

"This is the first I'm hearing of anything like that," Leo informed still noticeably incredulous. "But even so, this is just too much. I mean, the extra pay alone is more than what I make in two weeks from my part-time job. I can't accept this Steven, I don't deserve it." The neutral grin on Steven's face fell upon hearing this and even Klaus seemed to momentarily pause and slow his typing a bit as though he was also disapproving of that sentiment but remained silent nevertheless.

"Listen Leo," Steven began setting his coffee on the coffee table between them, his casual demeanor noticeably becoming a bit sterner to emphasis his point. "I get that you're trying to be humble here but if there's one thing you shouldn't refuse, it's a good thing. This isn't a handout out of pity but rather a natural annual increase in your stipend and it's not any sort of special treatment because every member of Libra has gotten or has yet to attain the same thing. The fact that you got your increase after everything that happened with the King of Pain was just pure coincidence." Feeling embarrassed by insinuating the feeling that he was ungrateful but still somewhat hesitant to accept his superior's reasoning and his increased paycheck, Leo was visibly conflicted about what to say when Klaus, who apparently couldn't help but overhear the majority of their talk partially due to their close proximity, finally decided to add in his own contributions.

"If I may Leonardo, and I apologize for intruding into the conversation, but I have to agree with Steven. The fact that you've gone for so long working the same basic rate of pay is of course your own choice, one that we can respect. However the raise you received is inevitable and, in all honesty, is something that you more than well deserve. While you may feel unconvinced at the moment perhaps you can think of your increase in wages as a sort of windfall for yourself. We all know how harrowing the living situation can be in this city at times so it can provide you at least some potential relief or if nothing else the opportunity to live a bit more comfortably in your current place of residence." Klaus paused briefly as if to consider if he should say this next part. "And it would no doubt also provide more of an allowance to your sister as well."

Naturally that got Leo's attention as any thoughts of refusal quickly left his mind in lieu of mulling over what the two men were proposing. Not wanting to let Leo try to talk himself out of it, Steven piped up once more to give him one last push in the right direction.

"But," he drawled once more back to his casual disposition, though with a somewhat teasing edge to his words. "If you still really want to turn down such a generous pay then I suppose we would have no choice but to allocate the funds accordingly for other uses. Though God knows if say a certain someone who always seems to deplete his budget within a week catches wind of a potential nest egg up for grabs, we would have no choice but to consider passing the funds onto him based on his seniority and I think we all know how much more of a headache that might result in." A loud snore from the couch seemed to accentuate his point causing them all to glance over. Zapp stirred and drunkenly mumbled something incoherent in his sleep before turning over from his back onto his side and his foot as a result banging into the coffee table not only knocking Steven's coffee over but causing some of the empty and at least one half-full can of beer onto the unsuspecting Sonic who screeched in surprise and annoyance at the unexpected shower before darting off to try and clean himself up from the sticky and bitter-smelling beverage. Gilbert immediately jumped in to wipe up the spills and pick up the fallen cans and mug. Needless to say Leo's mind had finally been made up.

"I accept," he said flatly as he and the other two Libra powerhouses stared disapprovingly at their delinquent coworker who was none the wiser.

But I guess I can't really complain. Regardless, life goes on for me. No matter what has changed or what has stayed the same, there's always one constant I can rely on in this place: the people in my new life here. Through it all, I know that I have my friends and coworkers for support when things get rough for me and no matter what may happen next I think I'll be just fine. Of course I also have you to keep me going too, I don't think you'd let me forget otherwise. I still haven't given up hope yet on finding a way to fix your eyesight—and yes I'm sure that right now you're frowning and are probably thinking of calling me up to chew me out for still feeling like that. However I still believe that I still hold some responsibility in this situation to make things right and face my own demons, as ugly as they are.

But if there's one thing I've learned in this godforsaken place it's that anything can happen here. It's funny now that I think about it. My initial thoughts of this city when I first arrived here were less than ideal. I thought that Hellsalem's Lot was the worst kind of place, full of darkness, deceit and reminders of my pain but now I don't think I can imagine being anywhere else. Maybe I've finally given into the insanity that this place seems to bring out but each passing day seems a lot more manageable than the last thanks to the lights of the people around me. So I'll keep going forward, towards the distant but bright future ahead one step at a time, living life to the fullest here with the people who have given, and still continue to give, me so much more than a new lease on life, they give me hope. Looking forward to hearing from you soon sunshine! Your Tortoise Knight, Leo.

Leo set the pen that he was using to write his letter to Michella on his nightstand beside him and read over his words in contemplation as Sonic observed from the windowsill on the opposite side of him. Before he could rethink of what else to include, his cellphone buzzed indicating an incoming call from Klaus according to the screen's caller ID. Tapping the accept call icon he held the phone to his ear and answered.

"Hello?"

"Leonardo, sorry to bother you when you are at home but we have a situation that we could definitely use your help with," Klaus spoke in his usual no-nonsense tone when an active threat is present. "How soon can you get here?"

"I'm on my way now," Leo replied instantly getting to his feet, Sonic taking that as his cue to hop up on his shoulder, as they quickly headed out the apartment, leaving his open letter to Michella out on his bed as he closed his apartment door behind him to head out into the same chaotic scene of the city shrouded in white fog, ready to face the light and whatever Hellsalem's Lot decided to throw at him next.
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Author's End Notes: And there you have it, The End…

PSYCH!

Truth is I actually have one more chapter planned, an epilogue/bonus chapter of sorts, plus a special announcement! My best friend who is an artist has agreed to do a commission for me with this story and as an extra special thank you to all who kept up with this story I'm letting you all pick what you want seen illustrated based on majority vote. The resulting artwork will be featured hopefully at the end of the epilogue for everyone to enjoy. However it depends on her and my working schedules especially with everything going on. The next chapter is likely going to roll out some time into next year as despite everything, time and energy is something I still don't have enough of. With that out of the way, I have to say I rather enjoyed writing this chapter as well. After everything Leo had endured it was nice being able to write something more wholesome for him to enjoy though it seems like he may not be entirely unscathed from this experience. How's he going to adapt to these new changes I wonder. Huge thanks to web alert, Addict of Animation, Detroit22, ShadeFireDragon, Multiplefandoms33, Einiko, ShiningButterfly, SilverSync, Opal-Mermaid, DetConan4869, Animedrawer056, RimaPichi, pokefriend11, Ambercat.01, Luna Megurine, emijjjj, LittleBlues, lillaulau575, BlankAbyss, and honeybe136 for favoriting and following this story. And an extra special thank you to VioletNeko5, HDDNeptuneFTW, Arevir, ShadeFireDragon, and lillaulau575 for leaving a review on the last chapter. I always enjoy hearing from my readers and getting your feedback! To all of you lovely people out there trying to keep occupied during these times, hang tough, stay safe, and stay healthy and I'll see you all in the (real) final chapter!