madness and ecstasy // leo valdez

-the sun will shine on us again, brother-

so can any of y'all actually see the text posts I put at the top of each chapter?

Incase you've forgotten, when Teqi talks through peoples head and shit [I dunno what to call it lol] her thoughts are in italics and Leo's are in bold. Also, the rest of this book gets so messy after this chapter, the plot holes are as big as the Tartarus pit so I'm just preparing you.

<3

Teqi felt like she was going to melt into the concrete and turn to a pile of sweaty sludge if they had to walk around this city any longer. Not to be rude, but part of it was Hazel's fault. For a girl with super underground senses, she wasn't much good in Rome. She kept leading them around and around the city, getting dizzy, and doubling back.

"Sorry," she said for the tenth time, fiddling with her hair. "It's just...there's so much underground here, so many layers, it's overwhelming. Like standing in the middle of an orchestra and trying to concentrate on a single instrument. I'm going deaf."

As a result, they got a tour of Rome.

Frank seemed happy to plod along behind Hazel. Teqi could sense Leo getting more and more twitchy and annoyed as they went on, so she stole a lemonade icey pole from one of the many stands that scattered the city and held his hand. It made her feel better too, but she couldn't get rid of the heavy weight crushing her into the hot pavement.

The Forum was okay, but it was mostly ruins overgrown with bushes and trees. It took a lot of imagination to see it as the bustling centre of Ancient Rome. They passed big churches, freestanding arches, clothing stores, and fast- food restaurants. One statue of some Ancient Roman dude seemed to be pointing to a nearby McDonald's. 'Nico must be close', Teqi thought.

On the wider streets, the car traffic was absolutely nuts. But they spent most of their time weaving through small alleys, coming across fountains and little cafes where they were not allowed to rest apparently. Teqi's feet hurt, and she was greatly regretting her outfit choice, even if it looked cool. She had black jeans and a purple and black checked top on, with an incredibly puffy white jacket that kept slipping from her shoulders until she gave up and let it hand from her elbows. The jacket was light but was making her arms hotter than the sun was.

Leo frowned at her when she spent too long walking past the one shop that had air conditioning blowing out onto the path. He tugged on her sleeve, "why don't ya just take it off querida?"

Teqi tensed, and then relaxed a moment later when she remembered what it meant. He kicked a pebble on the ground of the alleyway they were now wandering through. "I can call you something else, yknow. Like- uh," an evil grin spread on his face, "Bebita?"

She narrowed her eyes and kicked the pebble back in his direction. "And what does that mean exactly?"

Leo tried not to laugh, but his hand caught on fire and he burst into giggles, throwing his head back as he cackled. Frank turned around and glanced at him in concern. He kept laughing until he could speak, "It means- hehe- uh-" He covered his smirk with his hand and spoke in a mockingly deep voice, "Babygirl."

Teqi snorted once, and ended up laughing along with him until she got hiccups, and Leo winced as he held his sides from pain. He grinned at her victoriously, "now you're happy!"

"Huh?" Teqi asked, as he kicked the rock back to her. Leo shrugged and fiddled with his fingers, pulling a pipe cleaner from his toolbelt.

Then he looked up with wide eyes, and his nose sparked, "I nearly forgot," He reached for something else in his magic toolbelt and brought out Teqi's knife pouch. "Here, I- uh, added something."