A/N: Hey there again! Here's Chapter 22 for you guys. We have our summer hols now so expect us to update sooner! And plsssss review! Every review matters! Luv...

Chapter XXII: Leo

Leo is furious.

No one lays a finger on the Argo II. Unless they want to get hammered by Leo Valdez. No one. Not even a six ton overweight sea monster.

"DIE, YOU OBESE MORON!" He nearly screams as he charges at the Cetus with his giant hammer. Once he reaches the monster, he skids to a halt and bangs his hammer on its chest. It roars and pushes Leo away with its large horns. Leo is slammed against the pole, his head lolling to the side.

"Leo!" Piper screams. Leo is peeled off the pole by the Cetus and is banged against it again. And again. And again. Finally, the Cetus seems to be satisfied and let's Leo drop to the floor, face first. Pipers runs at it, Katoptris in hand. She jumps at its face and stabs it straight in the left eye.

It howls in pain, and to reinforce it, Hazel comes at it and drives her spatha in the chest. Annabeth jumps to leverage her acceleration and slices off it's tentacle. Leo tilts his head to the side to see Percy yelling and stabbing continuously at the monsters stomach. Jason is helping him, and each time the blade goes in Cetus grunts and roars.

After what seems like ages, it retreats, it's neck pouring out golden blood, it's stomach ripped to pieces, and it's eyeball rolling around sightlessly on the deck. It is a truly disgusting sight. It dives into the water, and the last Leo sees of the horrific sea monster is its giant tail. Everyone just stands there, panting and murmuring, shocked at what a hard blow the monster was.

Hazel is the first to recover. She gets up and wipes the blood and sweat from her face. She hurries over to Leo. "Leo! Oh my gods, are you okay?"

"No, I'm totally fine, Hazel. I'm just gonna lay down here thinking about the hundred dumb ways to die, and how this is one of them," he replies sarcastically.

Hazel crouches down and pushes the dirt and blood From Leo's face. "Where does it hurt?"

Piper is behind her. "Leo? Is your head hurting?"

Leo opens his mouth for another sarcastic retort, but he decides he can save it for later, and now is probably not the best time.

"Here," Piper brings out a ice pack from her Cornucopia that is laying on the floor. "Put it on your head." He does as told, and soon the pain in his head fades away. He gets up on his knees. "Everyone okay?" Annabeth says weakly.

Leo wonders what the problem is with people and asking if they're okay.

"Okay, as in when your dog died, or okay as in if you're alive?" Leo asks.

Annabeth gives a small smile. "Both."

Jason pulls himself up with a grimace and shakes the dirt off his shirt. "Two of us need to guard the ship in case the Cetus decides to make another trip over here."Any volunteers?"

Leo raises his hand. "I'm going to murder anything that comes just a foot near my baby."He glances around at the Argo II's wreckage. "What's left of it..."

"I'll guard, too," Hazel pulls her Spatha out from a heap of grease left by the Cetus and shakes it off. "Piper and Annabeth will fix you guys up back to normal."

They all nod and head to their assigned duties, leaving Leo and Hazel alone on the stardeck Hazel checks both sides to see that no one is around and turns to Leo.

"Leo," she places a hand on his shoulder. "I've been wanting to ask you something."

"Uh huh," he says.

"What exactly happened to you when Khione blasted you out of the sky that time?" She asks the question quietly, as if it is a very fragile statement, careful not to anger him.

"What do you mean?" He murmurs.

"Well, you've been acting a bit different these days. You're not being the Leo we know. You still look elfish but your playfulness and humour is sort of diffused. You seem like something really big happened to you over there and you can't take your mind off it. Like a frog chasing a fly," she analyzes.

Leo gapes at her, trying to hide his astonishment. "What are you, some psycho mind-reader?"

She flushes. "Actually, 'psycho' and 'mind-reader' mean the same thing. And it's not a compliment, believe me."

"Whatever. To get to the point, something did happen to me, and so far, Percy is the only one who I have told." He gulps. His voice shakes threateningly.

Hazel nods.

He tries to continue on, but it is hard for him to open his mouth. It is hard for him to talk about Calypso,how he had left her, he had left her like every other man. Leo feels extremely guilty and almost bursts into tears at the thought.

"I-" he starts.

Hazel must have seen the look of wariness in his expression, because she decides to not push him any further. "It's okay, Leo. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," she says, squeezing his shoulder. She turns to the opposite side of the deck, but Leo grabs her by the elbow.

"Wait," he says. "You're right. You're probably the only one who would ever understand."

"What makes you think that?" She asks curiously.

"You've been to the Underworld and back. You left your old life with Sammy and your mother and you chose to live again, to get another chance. You left him, or he left you afterwards, and you guys both had separate lives. You would know what it feels like to be abandoned."

"But Leo, no one abandoned you. We're still here-"

He shakes his head. "No, no. No one abandoned me. I abandoned her," he emphasizes on the word, 'her'. He looks away and takes small breaths to calm himself.

"Her who?"

"Calypso," he whispers miserably.

Hazel looks dumbfounded for a second or two, but soon her eyes widen. "Calypso? Daughter of Atlas? Chained to her homeland Ogygia?"

"That's her."

"So you landed there? And she found you?"'

He nods, re-telling his story. "She found me and got really mad at me at first, but soon she started talking to me. I mean,how can you go on for a month without talking to the only other person on the island?"

Hazel nods, encouraging him to go on.

"So, she and I worked together on my raft, and it worked. We'd almost become friends. Infact, I think we had become more than just friends. We were close. Then-"

His voice falters. Should he tell her about kiss? Or was it too personal? He thinks. This is Hazel. I can trust her with about anything. Okay, maybe not his ship, though.

"Then, she kissed me."

Hazel's hand flies to her mouth. "Really?"

"Yeah, really. I swore to her that I would come back for her, but now..."

"You're not so sure." She completes.

"What? No! I swore on the River Styx. What else can I do? I have to go back for her, to free her from her curse." He says, logically.

"Leo, as much as I want you to complete your wonderful romantic adventure, we have a war to finish." Hazel sighs, almost reluctantly.

"I know," he says through gritted teeth, trying to control his anger. "I can make my time for her. And I will."

"You do that. But first we have to beat Gaea."

He balls his fists. "Can't you see? I love her."

Hazel stops talking. "Y-You do?"

He goes very red in the face. He imagines himself looking like a cherry. "Yes. I love her. And the moment I get a girl, you're planning to take her away from me?"

Hazel glares at him. "Me? Leo? After everything we've both experienced, you're trying to suggest I'm not feeling happy for you? I am! You have no idea how much! It's just you've got to understand that we have worse things to worry about. We'll all come with you to Ogygia after we beat Gaea, and trust me you can date all the girls you want once everything is over."

"No. You don't tell me what to do. Remember what Nemesis told me? I'm the seventh wheel."

"She's Nemesis! She can make up anything and give it to you disguised as the truth."

"I believe her. I am the seventh wheel. I always will be. "

He stalks off angrily.