Yay, Leo is happier. I don't know if I've done this yet (I know I've done it in response to reviews) but I'd just like to thank everyone for their ideas. It's nice that you respect my writing enough to allow me to trust me with your visions of Leo. And thanks to everyone who has faved or followed. I don't know if Frank is actually older than Leo, but let me have my quirks and accept that he is in this, same with the ages for the Nico memory, I tried to make them accurate. Oh, and this chapter will contain scenes of child abuse (nothing too graphic) so I will put a warning before those. If it is a sensitive issue for you then please look out for them.
Fantasiedreamar : The song is really addictive. And I found Lesassy funny :)
Pacenya347 : I'm sorry but I can't put Nico in as he is till in Tartarus/trapped in a jar at this point. Though their pasts may be intertwined a little in this chapter.
Great Faith : And I love all of you guys! Reading your reviews makes me excited.
AmaebLEO : Woah, so many ideas :) Thank you for all your contributions and you will be seeing them popping up throughout the rest of the story. And about the Nico thing, I may do one for him but I'm currently planning a sequel of this for with something else happening to Leo. So if I do do one for Nico, it will be in a while.
QueenofLothlorien : Thank you for your answer, and I'm glad that you like angst because this story still has a lot of angst to go. If I do you use your idea, then it will have to be temporary as I can't see Leo having that problem still, are you okay with that? And Grayson is another one of my fave characters.
Neon Wish : I'm glad that you like it :)
Our Mismatched Socks : Ooh, that idea is definitely being used this chapter, so thank you.
Catsrawesome : You can keep the costume, and I'm happy that you love it.
Kittehx1 : Yes, angry Leo is awesome.
The Golden Sun : Thanks, it's nice that you think it's amazing. And I don't know about the future thing, I kind of have an idea how I could do something like that so watch out for it next chapter.
ObsessedwReading : The feels for Leo are strong indeed.
TeamLeo'sVeryOwnFlinxShipper : If you want to imagine the officers dying, please be my guest. And now I'm thinking of that skit...
Septimus : There will be another memory of him getting mistreated this chapter.
Killua-chan : No, I'm not that cruel :) And I'm happy that you think the characterization is okay and that I got the Spanish right (maybe I have learned something in my AS level lessons). And I'll do that idea for you next chapter. I'm sorry if the other didn't turn out the way you envisioned, I suppose I just took it in a different direction.
RoseAmy13LunaGinny : I'm glad you enjoyed it, and I will put a scene like that next chapter for you.
Elia the Huntress : I hope that's a good thing. And thanks for telling me the Spanish was correct, I try but even though I do study it, I'm far from fluent.
Disclaimer : Yeah, I still don't own them. Yes, that still saddens me.
Frank's P.O.V
During the short break, Frank had taken the time to splash some cold water onto his face in an effort to keep calm. Leo Valdez - the freaking imp who had teased him and made sarcastic quips since the beginning of the quest - had tried to... tried to... no, Frank couldn't even think it. He had been last to leave the room, and as he slowly returned, he attempted to concentrate on the good memories that they had seen. As he approached the door that had appeared in the room after the previous memory, he noticed his Latino friend sitting outside, his head leaning against the wall opposite the room, his mouth slightly open.
It was clear that the younger demigod was asleep. And Frank really couldn't blame him. The kid had been through so much, and Frank expected that Leo was exhausted, if not a little overwhelmed. Frank really didn't want to wake him, but they had been given a time limit for this break and he didn't think that Leo would appreciate being carried in bridal style while still sleeping. Reluctantly, he shook the other boy's shoulder. Leo rocketed awake, Frank's reflexes being the only thing that saved him from a fist to the jaw.
He was so startled that his reflexes also decided that the best defence would be for Frank to transform into an animal. A bunny to be exact. Leo, who had been wiping his eyes blearily, looked over at the bunny-fied Frank, and burst out laughing. This caused the others to come rushing out.
"Careful guys, wouldn't want you stepping on Frank now. He might leave a little pellet in your bed." Frank was unsure of how Leo could be so sarcastic after just waking up, and after he turned back into regular, old Frank Zhang, he was about to ask but the pleading look on Leo's face stayed his tongue. He supposed that he'd do Valdez a favour this once, maybe he'd lay off of the bunny jokes. But their friends weren't stupid and they instantly began questioning why Leo was slouched on the floor and why Frank had turned into a rabbit.
"I was coming back from the bathroom and I was thinking some things over. I was so deep in thought that I didn't notice Leo and I knocked him over, causing him to set a pretty intimidating blaze for a moment. Hence the transformation." Frank hoped that the others would buy it, but Annabeth wasn't a daughter of Athena for nothing.
"That tale seems awfully convoluted..." She trailed off, obviously speculating about the honesty of Frank's statement. Frank was sweating slightly, he knew this wasn't really a big thing, but Valdez trusted him to not reveal that he had been sleeping and Frank had recently realised that maybe he wanted Leo's trust. He knew the phrase was that you only realise how much you cared about something when it is gone, but the thought of losing the pyro elf had done the trick. Sure, Leo could be annoying and hyperactive and tended to spontaneously combust when excited. He was also funny, kind and a whole lot braver then Frank had understood.
"Yeah Frank, don't rabbit on. You startled me causing sparky boom boom time. I startled you causing nose twitching carrot time. The live of a demigod, where turning into a rabbit is considered a fairly normal occurrence." Leo was wearing his biggest imp grin, and the others gave in on trying to find a deeper meaning in the interaction. As they all returned to the room together, Leo leant in and whispered to Frank:
"Thanks for not letting the rabbit out of the bag." Before winking and settling himself on the couch. His sketch book was pulled out again, Frank wondered what exactly the son of Hephaestus had been drawing. The demigods were seated in their original positions, though they were all huddled up a little closer. Without further ado, the next memory started.
Piper's P.O.V
Twelve year old Leo was standing in a large group of kids his age, gathered around what seemed to be a teacher. He was paying the teacher no attention, instead he was focused on the paper pirate that he was creating. It was good, it looked very realistic.
They spent a few minutes huddled around like that, the teacher giving strict instructions on where they could or could not go. They appeared to be standing in Franklin Square park. Once the teacher was done with their lecture, the kids dispersed, though they stayed in an area where the teacher could see them.
Leo was about to follow a small gang of boys who had made their way to sit under one of the many trees, when he noticed someone staring at him. On a bench, not too far away from Leo, sat a boy of around ten. His hair and eyes were dark, but his face was filled with childish excitement as he gazed at the paper pirate in Leo's hand.
Hazel, Percy, Annabeth and Frank inhaled sharply.
"Is that...?"
"It couldn't be..."
"He looks like..."
"Nico!" Hazel exclaimed, her eyes wide. Leo did a double take.
"Hold up, the random boy who I just happened to meet on a school visit to Washington D.C at the same time that he was visiting, and you're telling me he was the son of Hades!" Leo looked bewildered.
"That's definitely Nico, and from the looks of it, it's a couple of months before he discovers the fact that he's a demigod." Annabeth interjected grimly.
Leo strolled over to the younger boy, who looked embarrassed at being caught out on his staring. Leo's friends called his name, but he waved them off. Nico looked more and more uncomfortable.
"Hey." Leo's tone was friendly and soothing. Nico still looked a little intimidated, but he was taking the opportunity to see the pirate up close.
"Do you want this?" Nico's eyes went as wide as saucers.
"See, if I try and take it back to Texas with me then it would probably just get destroyed. You seemed interested in it so if you want to have it then you can." Nico hesitantly took the small paper creation of Leo.
"It's really good, how did you make it so easily and so quickly?" Nico was opening up to Leo a little bit.
"I'm good with my hands," Leo shrugged modestly "I'll make you another one if you want." Nico nodded so enthusiastically that he almost fell off the bench.
"Okay, what do you want me to make?" Leo started pulling miscellaneous sheets of coloured paper out of his bag.
"Could you make one that looks like this?" Nico slowly held out a Mythomagic card - Poseidon's card to be glanced over it before nodding. He sat down next to Nico and his hands got to work. Nico watched the entire process, awestruck.
"Here you go." Once the paper creation was complete, Leo handed it over with a flourish.
"Thanks." Nico started turning the amazing paper Poseidon over in his hands. Leo bowed before muttering bye and sprinting over to his friends. The screen remained on Nico as a taller girl with dark brown hair ran over.
"Who was that?" She questioned, handing over one of the two ice creams that were in her grasp. Nico shrugged, still clutching his paper gifts.
"What are the odds of two demigods who don't know what they are discovering each other on a trip to DC?" Piper's boyfriend turned to Annabeth.
"They should be astronomical, especially considering the variables of both Leo and Nico's past." Annabeth looked to be in deep thought.
"I want to know if you always hand paper creations over to random kids."Percy gave Leo a strange look.
"He seemed like he'd appreciate it." Leo was still working on the pad, Piper was really curious about what he was doing but what from what she'd seen, Leo was keeping it a secret for now.
"He looked so happy..." Hazel's voice trailed of and she turned to look at Leo.
"I know you didn't know me back then, but thank you for making my brother smile." She smiled, and Leo's cheeks were tinted red. Luckily, the next memory started up before her friend could set himself on fire.
A colourful room popped into view. Five year old Leo was sitting covered in paint, inside a complicated fortress of blocks. Other five year olds stared at him curiously every now and again, but other than that, they seemed to leave him alone. Within the block walls, Leo was painting a design for what looked to be an even bigger, better fortress that would utilize pillows as well. He seemed perfectly content. The teacher didn't.
"Miss Valdez, you must realise that a boy with abilities like yours has so much potential, even if he's possibly ADHD and dyslexic." The two adults were standing in a small office looking out the happy Leo.
"I want Leo to have as normal of a childhood as he can." Esperanza's voice was firm. From the exasperation on the teacher's face, this topic had clearly been discussed before.
"So there is absolutely no way that you will consider having him tested to skip any grades in the future?" Esperanza shook her head.
"If he wishes to take the tests when he is older then I will not stop him. But for now, my little boy will enjoy his childhood as much as he can." The teacher surveyed the resolution in Leo's mom's eyes and sighed.
"Then this conversation is obsolete." The teacher glanced at her watch. "And just in time, you can take Leo home now, Miss Valdez. I will start seeing the others out. Goodbye."
As the teacher started preparing the other children to leave, Esperanza sat in front of the block fortress.
"Time to go, mijo" She gently began removing blocks, and when Leo was completely visible, she reached inside and tenderly pulled him out.
"Maybe one day..." Esperanza shook her head, as if to clear away whatever she had been thinking about.
"You really are a genius!" Percy exclaimed. Piper felt herself raise an eyebrow, she knew that Leo was smart but she'd never really thought about just how capable Leo had been as a kid.
"I just made a block fort, it wasn't that impressive." Piper saw Percy's eyes widen.
"Dude, when I was five I could barely stack blocks, never mind make a fort out of them." Frank was nodding.
"And that painting was really advanced for a child." He butted in.
"Well I did draw the first design for the Argo when I was a kid. It's actually in crayon." The people who hadn't known this (Percy, Hazel and Frank) stared at Leo like he was insane.
"You drew the Argo in crayon when you were just a kid. Next you're going to tell me that you made a real working car out of a toy or something." Leo's grin widened.
"You didn't?" Jason asked this question with a touch of disbelief.
"In one of my foster homes there was one of those cars that you stick your feet through and walk around in. I happened to upgrade it, shall we say." Everyone shook their head's in disbelief. Piper wondered at what Leo could achieve when he got bored. The screen came back on.
Warning : The scenes of drunken child abuse will be in this memory (also, any spelling mistakes in the man's speech are intentional).
Nine year old Leo was curled up in a dingy cupboard-like room. His head was buried in his knees, and he was clearly struggling to remain silent.
Piper knew that this wasn't going to be a good memory. Leo's face had gone carefully blank. She was relieved when Jason and Percy, seemingly catching on to the same thing that she had, wrapped their arms around him.
"You aren't going to like this." Leo stated. The boys simply hugged him harder, and Piper shifted so that she could keep an eye on Leo and the screen at the same time.
"Where are you booooy." A drunken voice slurred. Leo grasped his knees tighter.
"You're going ta get a real hidin' from me boy if ya don't come here right now." The sadistic glee in the voice was terrifying. Leo remained in the tiny room, though he did silently slide under the ragged bed.
"Naughty little boys need a punish... puni... punishment." He giggled at his own speech, and you could hear heavy boots getting closer and closer to Leo's hiding spot. The tiny Latino was quivering under the bed at this point, his eyes shut in a silent prayer. The door creaked open, adding to the horror movie like feel of the memory.
"I tink that there's a kid hiding in here somewhere." The man belched, but only his nasty boots were visible to the child under the bed.
"And I think he's here!" The bed was literally ripped away and Leo was exposed. The man leering over him was tall, especially when compared to Leo. Other than that and the maniacal glint in his eyes, he would have appeared perfectly normal.
"Got you." He announced, darkly. Leo was frozen in fear, but when the man advanced, he scrambled backwards. His hasty movements were prevented when a foot stomped on his hand. Leo screeched as the foot ground into his hand. He started muttering in Spanish, but the words were to fast for the TV to translate in time.
"Speak English ya dirty pig." The foot was removed, and Leo instantly cradled his hand to his chest. His relief only lasted a second before the large man was dragging him by his black curls. They made their way down a decent looking corridor then Leo was tossed into what must have been the sitting room. He stumbled and fell over an empty beer bottle.
The man walked through the door in a way that would have been nonchalant if it wasn't for the drunken staggering. He reached a side table and picked up an open bottle of beer. As he staggered towards Leo, some of the foul liquid sloshed out of the bottle, splattering the tiny Latino and causing him to jump. Then the man was on him in a flurry of punches and kicks. A lot of them were dulled due to the man's inebriated state, and even more of them missed, but the ones that landed were brutal.
After what seemed to be an eternity but was in actual fact a few seconds passed, the drunken man dragged himself off of the cowering boy and stumbled away. Little Leo remained bloody, bruised and beaten on the floor.
"Why?" Piper felt tears streaming down her cheeks and Leo looked over at her worriedly. The thought almost made her laugh, Leo had just been battered on screen and he was looking at her like she was the one needing comforting.
"Why have so many people hurt you?"
"I guess The Fates just hate me." Leo didn't seem to perturbed by this memory, considering the way he had reacted to the other abuse memory.
"You seem to be taking this better than you took the other one." Jason voiced exactly what Piper was thinking. Leo shrugged.
"We're going to watch bad memories and nothing I can do will stop that. I might as well stop causing trouble and get this over with so we can get back to saving the world." Piper didn't know whether to be relieved that there would be no more terrifying rage moments like before, or saddened that Leo was so resigned to watching such despicable memories.
"Just remember that we're here for you, Repair boy." She gave him her sternest look and Leo replied with his trademark smirk.
"I'm good. That happened a long time ago." Leo put his pad down for a moment, and stretched. Then he resumed whatever it was that he had been doing for the past few memories. Another memory began.
Thirteen year old Leo was sitting next to a boy of approximately the same age. The second boy had extremely pale blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes. They were clutching game controllers and laughing.
"I'm definitely going to win this time." The pale boy declared. Leo shook his head with mock pity.
"You do know, Jazz, that trying the same thing over and over again while expecting a different result is a sign of insanity?" Jazz elbowed him.
"Will you stop calling me Jazz?" He implored. Leo pretended to think about it for a few moments, then he shook his head.
"Nope." He replied, and his character on screen skilfully beat down the paler boy's.
"Yes, I am the champion. Ballads will be made about the epic day were Sir Leo Valdez bravely defeated Sir Jazz for the hundredth time in a row." Leo mock bowed and pretended to be accepting a medal, wiping fake tears from his eyes. Jazz rolled his eyes.
"Does the brave, humble Sir Knight Leo want his humble friend to retrieve a beverage for his awesome self?" Leo patted Jazz on the head.
"I tried to tell people that sarcasm is infectious but they didn't believe me. Now look at you with a sense of humour of your own." He dodged Jazz's elbow this time and both boys laughed as Jazz left, presumably to fetch the drinks.
Piper noticed that Leo's scribbling had again increased in fervour, but decide to ignore it or her curiosity would kill her. The others were laughing at Leo's witty line, and Percy was marvelling at Leo's video game prowess. Piper rolled her eyes. They may be her family, but they were still idiots. As if he had heard her thoughts, Leo looked up and winked at her. She was glad that he was happier, it had hurt so much to hear his confessions. She knew that his past would always hurt him, but she hoped that there is enough memories like the previous one to help him through.
So this was not too sad, though poor Leo got hurt again :( And, if I got any facts about America wrong, I apologise but I'm English and I don't know too much about the geography of America. As always, feel free to leave me a review and I will see you next time (which should be really soon).