Pyrra

Leo remembered the first time he stumbled upon Pyrra.

And her response? She tried to light his ass on fire.

He was walking back from Bunker 9 after dark, regretting he missed dinner. His stomach was practically screaming at him. Time sure flies when you're having fun – especially when your idea of fun is holing up in the side of a mountain, covering yourself in grease and getting your hands pinched in a table vice. The blood blisters were already forming on the edge of his fingertips and he kept poking and squeezing them. He always needed something to do with his hands, even after working for hours on end. It was amazing his ADHD hadn't driven him crazy from being cooped up in the bunker all day.

As he walked, he snapped his fingers and caused small spits of flame to dance on the edge of his fingertips. Like, really small. Once he summoned a pint-sized fireball in his hand and the dryads went nuts, and he learned the hard way to never do that again. He had the bruise on his ass to remind him.

Staring into the fire was a wonderful way to distract him from the extra creepy vibe in the forest that night. His brisk walk carried him through the trees and he absentmindedly veered off the beaten path. Before he knew it he was near Zeus' Fist, which was clearly not where he wanted to be.

"Damnit Leo. Maybe a round of dizzy bat would be a little more helpful next time," he scoffed under his breath and ran a hand through his mop of hair.

You're not lost, he told himself. You're just exploring.

In the middle of the night.

In the woods.

Blah. If he could survive a quest with Piper and Jason to the west coast and back and save a psychopath goddess, walking back to his cabin should be a piece of cake.

He turned around and began to re-trace his steps when he noticed something over to his left. He narrowed his eyes and peered deeper into the forest, only to sense a massive amount of heat coming from that direction. It was far off, but Leo could still feel it.

Any smart person would have cautiously stepped away and headed to welcoming sweatpants and a comfortable bed. But Leo? Nope. He pulled a crescent wrench out of his tool belt, because wrenches were undoubtedly the best thing he could think of, and crept forward. His bulky steel toe boots crunched everything in his path. Clearly, stealth wasn't his special ability.

He stepped out of the woods and onto the beach that sat on the north side of Zeus' Fist. The creek slowly babbled into the Sound, and the lull of soft waves danced in his ears. It would have been peaceful – romantic, even – until a fireball hurled towards him with incredible speed.

"Fuck," was all he could mutter as the flames engulfed him.

The fire dissipated as quickly as it came. Rubbing his eyes and wiping off what was left of his shirt as if he got a little dust on it, he held his wrench in front of him. Did he honestly think he could smack one across the Sound like he was a demigod Jeter?

"Centaur shit! Why aren't you dead?" someone yelped off to his side. The voice was feminine and quick and snappy, and there was a nice slice of disappointment in it.

"I have this terrible habit of not dying. Sorry to ruin your plans, darling." He rolled his eyes, even though it was dark enough so no one could see him.

Ahead of him was a young woman, who seemed to be glowing in the night. Not like a creepy ghost glow, but more of a warm fire and old coals kind of glow. The kind of glow that you could sit around and stare at for hours and roast marshmallows over while getting eaten alive by mosquitoes.

"Who are you? And why did you sneak up on me like that?" she asked, with an impish gleam in her eyes. She took several steps closer and eyed him up and down.

"Leo Valdez, at your service," he announced and bowed, throwing his hands out for theatrics. "Professional pain in the ass and disrupter of tranquility."

Leo had this other terrible habit of falling in love with every girl he came across. In the first five seconds of making eye contact, he was already planning out their spicy romance in his head. It sucked because it never lasted longer than those five seconds. Once, he tried to seduce a sadistic ice goddess in her daddy's creepy ice castle. He was in way over his head with that one. He blamed it on the pressure to find a prom date and not his raging hormones.

The girl in front of him was now inching her way closer, like a cat ready to pounce. She had a sharp face like an elf, as well as pointed ears that peeked from behind her fiery dark red hair. It was pin straight and hung in front of her chest. She was wearing a sheer gossamer dress that looked like it was made of Celestial bronze, even though it gently tossed in the breeze. It was incredibly short, as well, and her tan legs seemed to go on for days. And her eyes, gods they were enchanting. The small kaleidoscopes kept shifting between different colors – silver, gold, bronze, copper, steel – and Leo thought he was going to melt.

Her eyes kept darting across all his features, and he couldn't help but smirk. Let's see how long we can make this last, he challenged himself.

"A son of Hephaestus?" she gestured to the wrench.

Leo twirled it in his hands before slinging it into his belt loop, like some cowboy holstering his smoking gun. "Yup. I see my reputation precedes me."

"I know your father, you know. I used to work in his forges, centuries ago. Just as my father before me."

"Did you get fired or something?"

A new look crawled across her face, and Leo could recognize it from anywhere. Where a girl is looking at someone of interest across a crowded room, and she basically screams with her eyes to carry her away in the most romantic and sensual way possible. All those Aphrodite girls practiced it every day, but Leo was never on the receiving end. He was now at a loss for words when it flashed across her face. A lump formed in his throat and heat was rising to his cheeks. Hopefully he wouldn't start smoking in front of her.

She rolled her eyes. "Apparently gods don't like their little worker bees distracted with sexual advances. Something about poor productivity metrics…" She waved it off like it was no big deal. "It doesn't matter anymore. That was eons ago. I've been here ever since."

Eons. Leo didn't know what to say. His jaw was gaping open as he stared at the woman in front of him. Not that he should be surprised - this was Camp Half-Blood, after all.

"So you were grounded and sent to Camp? For screwing your co-workers?"

"Basically."

"So, you're a…?" he prompted, hoping she would answer. Clearly she wasn't a mortal if she lived for centuries and could hurl giant infernos at his face.

"A little promiscuous?"

"Whoa! Not what I meant."

She looked disappointed. "A nymph, you fool. Can't you tell?" she asked, playfully batting her long lashes.

"A fire nymph? I didn't think we had those here."

She delicately held out her hand and a small flame danced at her fingertips. She smiled and said, "You don't. It's just me, the accident. My father was seduced by a nymph. And alas, I arrived, and was dumped at the foot of a forge."

The fire in her hand started to grow darker and more powerful, and Leo wondered if she would ignite if her emotions got out of control. It twisted into different shapes that didn't seem to make her happier with the memory. There were monsters, battles, weapons, people, and flames – all shifting ferociously in her palm. She scowled as unknown thoughts raced in her mind, and Leo did the only thing he knew how to do.

He laughed.

She immediately extinguished the fire in her hand and glared at him. It looked like she wanted to strangle him and shove a flaming foot up his ass.

He could feel a mischievous spark in his eye, and he knew he shouldn't be doing this around others. Especially strange nymphs that he met in the middle of the night. He was still self-conscious about his power and lack of finesse. However, Leo kind of sucked at playing by the rules. He held out his hand and a ball of fire ignited in his rough palm. It wasn't nearly as pretty as her demonstration, but he still smiled madly.

"We're all freaks here. And I? Well, I'm the king."

Her eyes grew wide as she watched. "A King?"

"The King. King Leo, the master of flame, the ruler of handsome, the enforcer of charm and –"

At that moment, Leo's ramble was cut off when a thunderous boom rattled the skies above. He cowardly extinguished his flame and looked up, waiting for a lightning bolt to crisp him like a french fry.

The nymph smirked and asked, "Did someone piss daddy off?"

"Nah, just grandpa this time."

She gestured to his extinguished hands and changed the subject. "I didn't know mortals could do that."

"Demigod, actually."

"I've seen civilizations rise and fall. You, Leo Valdez, have barely seen a few seasons," she said with a huff.

Leo wasn't sure what to say after that, so he remained quiet for a few moments and continued to study the nymph in front of him. He realized her skin wasn't actually glowing, like he thought when he first saw her. Her tan appearance was actually from a metallic tint, like she had molten metal mixed with her skin. He thought it was bizarre, until he remembered that all the wood nymphs were green and the water nymphs were blue-ish. Needless to say, she was really hot – and not just because she was a fire nymph.

He noticed she was studying him just as much, so he decided to break the ice smoothly.

"So, uh, name, what's your nymph?"

Fuck.

She laughed the most clearly crisp laugh Leo had heard since arriving to camp. It was so genuine, it seemed, and he wanted to make her laugh more.

"My name is Pyrra," she purred as she dipped down in a curtsey, mimicking his earlier greeting.

Leo didn't know what came over him, but he reached out and took her hand and planted a soft kiss on top. Isn't that the nice way to woo a lady? Or nymph, whatever.

He felt his face get hot and his brain went all stupid, so he dropped her hand immediately. In order to avoid another awkward silence, he did something else that fell in his area of expertise.

He turned and ran back to the cabins.

I'm in a fantastic mood. Wanna know why? I bought a horse today, and I am super duper stoked. Like holy shit I cannot wait to go pick her up tomorrow I think I might peeeeeeee. YESSSSSSSS.

So you get another chapter :)

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter! I know not many people like OCs, but I have a good idea for her so please just bare with me. And don't worry, this won't interfere with our love for Caleo, the best ship everrrrrrr.

Shout out to AsumeKona, who not only reviewed, but also followed and favorited this story! Dedication at its finest. And thanks to Owlhearted and the guest review, you guys are wonderful! Keep those babies comin'!

Don't forget to review! I'd love to hear what everyone thinks of my OC.