Apologies for not updating yesterday, I forgot what day we were on :P
To Riordanlover16- Whipped cream straight out of the can! XD I called it squirty cream 'cos that's we call it here in the UK (or at least my house) but the Americans call it whipped cream, right? You guys have weird words :P Haven't decided on the ring bearer yet but seeing as Bradley can only just keep his head up on his own now, probably not him XP Yes, yes. Jessica has always lived in San Fran, they've always been closer to Camp Jupiter. The Jacksons and Jackson-Blofis's moved over after Lou disappeared so they were all closer together. Also I don't know American geography, so just go with it :D
To valdeznation- (Chap 46) He is gentlemanly! They're a family now, they all share the pancakes XD Leo hugs things in his sleep, per canon, so why not Lou too? She fidgets and grabs and drools (Bradley had to get it from somewhere) I love your all caps reviews, I feel like you're yelling at me, but happy yelling? That's a thing, right? O.o (Chap 41) Starve no more! The feast is here! (This chapter is over 4000 words, do you know how long it took me?)
Annabeth was not wrong about a mad family. Up until they got home from the park, Leo had thought it was the fun kind of mad family, the madness he himself was well acquainted with. Quirky, chaotic, maybe a tiny bit unhinged.
Tobias had refused to go into the pond, hissing and growling at the waterfowl targeting his boat. Louisa, unwilling to believe a nephew of hers couldn't swim, plucked him from her shoulders and threw him like a ball into the murky water. Annabeth, on hearing the scream and splash, had charged down the hill with her knife in hand. Percy left Estelle and Bradley to Leo and hurried after her.
"See, he floats!" Louisa said proudly. Annabeth tackled her and they vanished beneath the water. Tobias kicked and splashed, floating on his back and spitting.
"Blegh! Yuck! Mammy! Daddy!" Percy plunged into the water and Tobias grappled for him, climbing him like a monkey. He shivered and dripped miserably until Percy waved the water away from him. "Mean!" Tobias wailed, delving into his father's coat in the search of warmth.
There was another splash and then Louisa stumbled onto shore, Annabeth over her shoulder in a fireman's lift and Annabeth's knife clutched firmly out of the blonde's reach.
"Hey, hey, not in your condition!"
"You tried to drown my son!"
"Percy, take your wife away. She's mental."
"What? She's not the one launching toddlers like a shotput."
"Ow, ow, that's my hair!" Louisa sank to her knees, grappling with Annabeth. There was a mix of swearing in English, Latin and Greek, attempted headlocks and rolling and more swearing. The knife, thankfully, was lost in the tussle, discarded on the ground. Next to Leo, Estelle was cheering.
"Go on, Annabeth! Kick her butt!"
"You're supposed ta be on my side!"
"You won't let me come to the wedding!"
"OK, you can come!"
"Wooo! Go Annabeth, go go!"
"You little shit!"
"Ha!" Annabeth crowed, pinning Louisa. "That's what you get!"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah!"
Percy tried to break them up with his free hand, hurriedly calling on Leo. It took a minute and a fair amount of bribery and pleading to pull the two apart, both men standing between them when they did. Annabeth puffed a loose lock from her face, tipping her chin up defiantly. She had remained dry purely by holding onto Louisa, whose magic waterproofing naturally extended through contact. Louisa squashed her cheeks between her fists, blowing a raspberry. Then she grinned, snorting a laugh. Annabeth fought her smile for a handful of seconds and then was laughing too.
Percy rolled his eyes.
"I will never understand you two." Inside his coat, Tobias sneezed. Percy bundled him closer. "Alright, let's get you home. Nana Jessica will sort out that mean Aunty Lou, yes she will." He shot his sister a look. Louisa shrugged innocently.
"He floats."
Leo retrieved Bradley from Estelle. Tobias was wrapped in a thick blanket and tucked into his stroller, face scrunched in a sulk. Louisa recovered his ship for him, though she had a bit more making up to do.
"Mean," Tobias muttered, sniffing.
"Yeeeeaah," Louisa agreed. He stuck his tongue out and she gave a lopsided smile. "Alright, squirtface. Next time, no ducks. I'll show you some sharks."
"Shars?"
"Yeah, sharks." He frowned sceptically. Louisa raised her eyes to her brother. "What are you teachin' this boy? Show him some fuckin' sharks, gods dammit. You had one job."
"Nooo, I have multiple jobs. Like putting his shoes on six times and then realising he's not wearing the pants you've put on him eight times."
"That's toddlers for ya."
The Jacksons went one way, homeward bound to warm Tobias up. Estelle chimed the bell on her bike in farewell. Leo and Louisa waved until they were out of sight.
"Are you going to do that to Bradley?" Leo asked.
"Yes," Louisa said. "I'll chuck him in the sea when he's a bit bigger." Leo scratched his chin in thought. "What?"
"All Neptune/Poseidon kids float, right? Like, do you all have natural buoyancy?" Louisa nodded. "Does that mean your kids will get it? Uh, I mean… you know, all Neptune/Poseidon legacies. Not just… your kids. General your. Obviously."
"Obviously," she agreed in a tone Leo couldn't decipher. "Come on, I want food."
"Ah, yes. Drowning toddlers is hungry work."
"He's only a little bit drowned."
Leo wondered how Bradley would react to being thrown into the water. Technically, he had no other heritage, godly or otherwise, to impede any skills he may inherit, being Louisa's 'clone'. Would he take to the sea like… a fish to water?
Leo internally winced. Even by his standards, that was terrible.
Jessica had already spoken to Percy by the time they got home. Louisa stilled at the sight of her looming on the other side of the door, bat resting on her shoulder. A moment or two later she managed an angelic smile. "Hi, Mom."
"You leave my Tobias alone."
"Little bit drowned, he's just a little bit drowned."
"I'll drown you, you dumbass. You don't throw toddlers!"
"Why not? They're small 'n' throwable."
"You're small and throwable," Jessica remarked, arching an eyebrow. The leather wrap on her bat creaked as she adjusted her fingers. Louisa eyed the weapon cautiously, pursing her lips. Leo looked from one to the other, undecided on which immovable force would crack first.
It was Louisa.
"I'll get him a present," she mumbled, "to say sorry."
"And?"
"I ain't promisin' I'm not gonna throw him again. It's good for him."
"Is it really?"
"Yeah, actually. I read up on it. Kids like bein' chucked about, they think it's fun. 'N' it helps, like, develop their sense of balance 'n' that, so…" She stuck her tongue out. "You're welcome."
"Two presents," Jessica prescribed. "One for Tobias and one for me for putting up with you."
"Love you, Mom." Jessica spun the bat in her hand and thwapped it sharply on Louisa's arm. "Ow! Funny bone! Oooohh, ow." She wriggled her fingers, ducking her head as Jessica glowered. "I'll be good."
"I doubt that very much. Go and make lunch."
"Yes, Mom."
Leo waited for Louisa to go, marvelling at his soon-to-be mother-in-law. She smirked, bat shrinking into a charm she clasped to her necklace.
Apparently, there were multiple types of madness in the family. Leo had scraped past the surface and was seeing the true calculated recklessness of it all, the impulsive, the defiant, the glimpses of their true nature only growing more and more frequent the deeper he entrenched himself with them.
Oh, he loved it.
Most of it.
There was one type of madness he had yet to be introduced to, one they had seemingly been shielding him from. He didn't experience it, this black sheep of the madness, until the last day of January.
He was in Louisa's bedroom, changing Bradley's diaper and, weirdly, enjoying this bit of routine. The last few days he had lost in appointments, in planning security systems for the well-to-do's that had attended his grand opening. It was, in a strange almost uncharacteristic way, nice to sit still for a moment. The last two days he hadn't been home at all, endearingly marked by Bradley crying when he walked in, crying until Leo held him and gave him attention.
"I missed you too," Leo soothed, catching Bradley by the ankle to dress him in his jumpsuit again. "Much better company than those hoity-toities I had to talk to." He thumbed his nose and Bradley smiled, hands flailing until Leo picked him up again. "You just want fussing over, don't you? Yes, you do. Fuss fuss fuss." He blew a raspberry on the boy's cheek, gaining a bout of giggles for his effort. Leo grinned.
He bounced Bradley on his knee and ploughed through some nursery rhymes and the odd song he knew from the singalongs at Camp Half-Blood. Bradley burbled, joining in as best he could. He was halfway through 'This Little Pegasus Went to Market' when someone rang the doorbell. He had just started on 'Humpty Dumpty' when the shouting started.
Bradley gave a start, smile fading. Leo held him close, patting his back. "It's OK, mijo," he assured. "Mama's probably losing at Uno again."
It was not Uno.
There was an old woman in the apartment. Eighties maybe, stooped and similar in height to Leo. Her silvery grey hair was wispily tied back in a bun. She wore a thick, maroon knitted jumper over a white shirt, the collar neatly pressed about her throat, and an ankle-length black skirt over polished black old lady shoes. She leaned on an equally polished dark wood cane, brandishing it here and there to emphasise whatever point she was making against Jessica.
"Mother!" Jessica fumed. "I am more than capable of deciding who I want to marry and when, this has nothing to do with you!"
"Nothing to do with me? Who has to hobble behind you and pick up the pieces while you lurch from mistake to mistake then, hmm?"
"Why is everything I do a mistake to you, why can't you just leave? Why are you even here?"
"I wanted to know why I wasn't involved in your engagement."
"Because you're a sour old woman who judges everything I do, that's why. I swear we've had this conversation before, why hasn't it gone in yet?" Jessica rubbed at her forehead, temper broiling with enough force to draw Leo to a halt.
Oh, this wasn't the shouting he had grown accustomed to. This wasn't bickering, this wasn't playful familial quarrels, this was something else, something sharper, something more hateful.
Louisa was sitting on the couch where Leo had left her, pencil poised over the sketch she had been working on. It had been forgotten in favour of glaring at the elderly woman, though Harvey stood between them. Was he shielding her from view or was he shielding the woman from whatever attack Louisa had planned with her drawing implement?
Bradley hiccupped and mewled, the unsure sound he made before the tears came. Leo shushed him, rocking him gently. He looked up to see the old woman focused on him, on Bradley.
"Hi," Leo offered, waving a hand. Bradley turned his face into Leo's neck, hiding himself.
"Whose child is that?" she demanded, rounding on Jessica. "Don't tell me it's yours. Not another bastard." Jessica rolled her eyes, shaking her head.
"You need to get into the twenty-first century, seriously."
"If it's not yours, then whose?" She shuffled forward. Leo edged back, half-turning to shield Bradley. This was just some crotchety old lady, mortal if she was Jessica's mother. She had the same blue eyes as Jessica, though none of the warmth and mischief Leo had come to know. These were like two cracking glaciers, unwaveringly numbingly cold, yet burning with animosity.
At this new angle, she noticed Louisa, stopping short. She lay her twisted hands atop her cane, lip curling. "Still here, are you?"
"Yep."
"And why is that?"
"Housin' cost crisis."
The woman looked from her to the baby, mouth folding into a straight line as she took in the matching dark hair. Louisa bared her teeth, the pencil snapping in two in her fist.
"Is that your child? Oh, dear lord, who on earth would have a child with you?"
"Hey!" Leo butted in. "Don't talk to her like that!" The woman scoffed at him and Leo bristled. "Lady, who the hell are you?" She regarded him coldly, the glaciers flash-freezing as she took him in. She turned to Jessica with a look of disgust.
"I see you finally got some help for this abysmal place, but he needs to hold his tongue."
"Help?" Leo repeated incredulously, Louisa on her feet faster than he could blink.
"That's not the help, you old bitch, that's my fiancé!"
That stopped her short. She turned to Louisa, staring at her in horror, in confusion.
"I beg your pardon?" she managed almost breathlessly. Louisa snarled, fists clenched. Leo was target to her scrutiny again, then Bradley. "That child is not his."
"Yes, he is!" Leo and Louisa defied together.
"Don't be ridiculous, it looks nothing like him!" Louisa inhaled deeply; plumbing rumbled in the walls and beneath their feet. "Do you seriously let this behaviour in your… home?" she implored shrilly of Jessica, regarding the apartment with clear disdain. Jessica's eye twitched.
"What sort of behaviour?" she growled, a tone that said choose your next words carefully.
"This," the woman gestured in disgust at Louisa. "She's as vile as you, the little slut."
Several things happened at once. Thunder crashed. Bradley screamed, a wailing pitch not heard from him before. Jessica slapped her mother. Rain lashed the windows in sheets. Harvey grabbed Louisa by the arms, digging his heels in as she surged forward. He called for help, realisation dawning on Jessica. She sidestepped her mother, who nursed her struck cheek, and grabbed Louisa by the arm. She and Harvey had one each, pulling her back with all they could muster.
"I'll kill you!" Louisa raged. "I'LL KILL YOU!"
"Lou, no!"
She was face-to-face with the woman, pupils raven pinpricks in a mass of sea green. Her shoulders strained against the two restraining her.
Leo struggled with Bradley, now thrashing in his arms, screeching in terror. He was shaking his head, tears carving paths down his scarlet face. All Leo's shushing and rocking did nothing; fear had dug its claws into the child and would not let go.
Green sparks flitted around small, clenched fists. Panicking, Leo looked up— for help or to help, he wasn't sure. Another flash of green, the offshoots of fireworks only surviving seconds. Bradley tipped his head back and screamed more.
They had been having a nice peaceful day and this woman… she had swung in out of nowhere and crushed it all to smithereens in mere minutes.
What the fuck?
He opened his mouth to speak, hoping the words would form on their own as his brain supplied nothing. Blood was trickling from the old woman's nose, her surprise at it opposed by the horror of Harvey and Jessica's.
"Out!" Jessica ordered, yanking on Louisa's arm. Somehow, she uprooted her daughter and hauled her away. Harvey swept forward and steered the old woman out, arm around her shoulders and brooking no resistance.
Louisa yelled, wind roaring. The lights flickered and died, the steady hum of electricity guillotined. Jessica shoved Louisa into her room, where Storm awaited to usher her out the glass double doors. Out the window, Leo could see the neighbouring buildings had gone dark too.
Jessica grabbed him by the shoulders, calling his name for a third time. "Leo! Get him in the bath, get him in water. Now."
"I can do that," Leo mumbled, nodding shakily. Jessica pushed him towards the bathroom and then rushed off after Harvey, snatching their coats from the hooks and stomping her feet into her sneakers. She slammed the door just as thunder rattled the windowpanes.
There was a baby bath they used. It had wings so it could be supported on the sides of the main tub. One-handed, Leo wrestled this onto the sides and began to fill it with the detachable bath hose. Bradley continued to wail and thrash; Leo turned to him as he coughed, tipping him forward just as he puked all over his jumpsuit.
Leo grimaced, but had learned over the past few months how to get the sickly stained clothes off without getting said sickly stain on the baby. He threw the soiled clothes into the big bath. Tested the baby bath waters with his elbow. Removed the still clean diaper and then knelt, lowering Bradley into the bath.
Jessica was a genius. Bradley continued to cry, making himself hoarse, but as the water lapped around him, his noise dwindled bit by bit. Within a minute, he was grumbling. Another minute and he was hiccupping, blinking teary eyes. Another minute and he was sombre, soothed.
Leo breathed a sigh of relief, scooping a handful of water onto Bradley's chest. He smiled as the sea green eyes looked up at him, as the wriggles slowly started to come back. Bradley loved bathtime, loved kicking and splashing and generally being a flood risk.
"There we go," he said. "Not so bad now, huh?" He wiped his hand dry on his T-shirt, pulling taper candles from his belt. He set them on the corner of the bathtub, lighting them with his finger. It wasn't much light, not enough to bring the bathroom into any better detail, just Bradley. His dark hair was darker still as he tipped his head back, playing in the water. Orange hues dashed and danced in his eyes as he gawped at the pretty flames.
Leo plucked the face cloth from the basket, soaking it and gently cleaning Bradley's face. Almost instantly, Bradley grabbed a corner and stuffed it in his mouth, sucking. "Gross," Leo laughed, using the other corner to scrub his head and then clean behind his ears.
They sat like that for a while. The semi-darkness of the bathroom, disturbed only by flickering candlelight. The only protection from the cold floor tiles was the slightly damp bathmat. Bradley splashed and cooed, all his earlier misery apparently forgotten in lieu of an early bathtime. Leo added warm water a few times, keeping the temperature up. Did he dare take the tot out again? What if it upset him? He had never heard Bradley cry like that, never.
And he had never seen the green magic on him either. He saw it on the twins, on Louisa more than Percy. It was her magic and she had taught her brother it. Bradley, evidently, had it too.
Leo rested his arm on the side of the bath, laying his head on the back of his hand. Bradley splashed again. "Much more of that," Leo said, "and you'll wipe out our candles." He sighed, mustered a small smile. "It's not the storm bothering you, is it?" Bradley hadn't once flinched at the thunder or the rain harsh on the frosted glass of the bathroom window, hadn't been disturbed by the howling winds or the extra layer of darkness settling in on the winter's night. "That's 'cos it's Mama," Leo deduced. "Mama made that storm, didn't she?"
"Brrrbbbb," Bradley said, sucking on the cloth again.
"You didn't like the shouting," Leo mumbled. "I didn't either. Horrible old woman, wasn't she?" Why had her nose started bleeding? Going by Jessica and Harvey's reactions, that was Louisa's doing, but why?
I'll kill you.
What had she done?
I'LL KILL YOU.
The bathroom door creaked as it opened, startling Leo. He was on the defensive immediately, grasping for his toolbelt, only to recognise the scent of rain and cold coming in.
Louisa was soaked through, trembling. The main bath taps turned themselves on and she stooped to put the plug in, snatching Bradley's dirty clothes up and throwing them in the hamper. Leo watched her quietly, watched the steady drip drip drip of rainwater from her hair, her chin.
She wrenched her hoodie over her head, tossing it to one side. Leo faced Bradley as she pulled off her leggings, hopping and cursing. The main tub was filling quickly, steam rising around them. The candlelight whispered and shrunk, fighting a losing battle in the rising humidity.
Leo didn't look at her until she was in the tub. She still wore a T-shirt, though that was plastered to her, and possibly her underwear though Leo wasn't about to pry. Her bare legs were hidden beneath the baby bath. The taps squeaked as they switched off of their own accord, the hot water sloshing just beneath Bradley's.
Leo met her eye. "You OK?" She huffed, sinking beneath the water. Bubbles spewed forth, displaced as she rubbed vigorously at her face with both hands.
He waited for her to resurface, however grudgingly so. When she was ready, she slid up, the water melding around her chin. "Who was that?" he asked.
"Denise. Mom's mom. She's a bitch."
"I gathered as much."
"Mmph."
"She was only here a few minutes."
"That's all she needs." Thunder sounded, still overhead but quieter now. Louisa closed her eyes, breathing in deeply and out slowly.
"Are you OK?" Leo asked again. She shrugged and sat up, leaning forward to check on Bradley. He was upside down to her, smiling and kicking more at the sight of her. Water lashed over the edges, lathering over Leo's legs and his damper-still bathmat.
Leo bit his lip. "Lou?" She moved only her eyes to look at him. "Bradley, he… I think he reacted to you, to…" He waved vaguely at the ceiling, motioning to the storm still raging outside. Louisa frowned, brow furrowed.
"Reacted how?"
"He had… you know that green light you do? He had some… just a quick flash, on his hands." She swore and sat back, folding her arms. "Jessica told me to put him in the water. It's helped him." She nodded, jaw clenched.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I'm sorry. Don't listen to Denise."
"She shouldn't have called you that." He shook his head. Her eyes closed, the deep breath again. In through her nose and out through her mouth. "She doesn't know."
"It wouldn't matter to her anyway," she grumbled. "I'm sorry, Leo. She's—"
"A racist old bitch?" He achieved a half-laugh for that, a tilt of her head. She nodded, shrugged a shoulder— can't argue with that. Leo smiled tightly. "Well, she didn't accuse me of using you for a green card, so at least she's original."
"You don't need a green card. You're from Texas."
"I am." She squirmed into sitting up, crossing her arms on the edge of the bath and pouted. Leo kissed her forehead. "You're mad I'm not a cowboy, aren't you?"
"Little bit."
"Yeehaw!" he exclaimed with his best Texan drawl, urging a snort of laughter from her.
"No no no, don't do that again."
"Aaahh," Bradley said, head tilting back as he yawned. Leo tutted.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Are we keeping you up?"
"Mmmm."
"OK, OK. Come on then." Leo pulled Bradley's towel from the rail and lifted him, deftly wrapping him. Bradley snuggled into him, as he always did, eyelids drooping.
Splashing behind him. Without looking round, Leo passed Louisa a towel. She wrapped it around her waist, combed her fingers through her hair. She fashioned it into a messy braid and then swept her hands down, whisking all the water away.
Leo pursed his lips. "That's cheating."
"You want me ta do Bradley too?"
"No, no. This is my job. Go away." Leo stalked from the room, her bare feet padding behind him. Jessica and Harvey weren't yet back, taking Denise home and making sure she stayed home. Storm was still out, enjoying the rain and the puddles and the mud her poor rider would spend hours washing out tomorrow.
In her room, he settled Bradley on the bed. Poor thing must have worn himself right out; he fell asleep before Leo even had him half-dressed. Louisa watched him as he tucked Bradley into the cot, moving forward to tuck her hands around his arm when he straightened up.
"Did he really have this?" Green light spiralled around her fingers, fading as her grip returned to his arm. Leo nodded.
"Only for a second or two, just a quick… blip."
"He's too small."
"He's got you to teach him." She squashed her cheek on his shoulder, sighing heavily.
"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry." Sorry about Denise, Leo realised, but her apology ran deeper. She was apologising for what Denise said, apologising for something beyond her control.
Leo kissed her nose, then her mouth when she lifted her head to meet him.
"Bradley could be green for all I care," he smiled. "He's still mine." The sentence had hardly left him when she kissed him, a clumsy rushed kiss he was quick to meet. With a tilt of his head, the clumsiness fell away, rectified as their mouths moved together. Her arms wound around his neck and he was suddenly very aware that she was only in a T-shirt and a towel.
They had been here only once before. He wasn't sure what to do with his hands, holding them out to the sides. Louisa broke from him, grabbing first his right and then his left, yanking them by the wrists to her waist. She liked his hands there as much as he did, warm, gentle, welcome.
She returned her arms to where they had been, her hands in his hair. Leo could feel a thrumming heartbeat, but he could not tell if it belonged to him or her. He hardly noticed the storm outside, ensnared in the one within.
With a stab of reluctance, he pulled away. She growled at him, fingers tightening in his hair. Leo found himself laughing, just a soft quick laugh. She was annoyed with him, disrupted. "Sorry," he smiled. "I just wanted to make sure—"
"Leo."
"OK. If you change your mind though—"
"Shut the fuck up." She drew him back into the kiss, feeling his smile, the buzz of laughter in his chest. She didn't protest when he dropped the towel for her and he didn't protest when she pushed him towards the bed.
He yelped when it met the back of his legs sooner than he thought, toppling backwards and falling away from her for a moment. Louisa snickered at his momentary look of confusion and he grinned that crooked grin she loved so.
"It moved," he insisted. He grabbed the hem of her T-shirt and pulled her to him. She dithered, cupping his face and kissing his forehead. Leo dropped his voice to a whisper, sensing her hesitation. "Without being presumptuous," he said, "I went shopping."
"Presumptuous, huh?"
"Maybe a bit. Is that OK?"
"What, that you went shoppin' or…?" She raised an eyebrow. Leo screwed his face up and she laughed again, climbing forward to sit astride his lap. Leo stared at her, whatever dregs of thought left fading fast as his heart beat faster and faster. "Thank you."
"Gentlemanly, me."
"Yeah, sure."