DAYLIGHT ↬ leo valdez x reader

15. CEILINGS

"Okay doctor." Leo shook his head. "How about you leave the diagnosis for tomorrow and be happy I'm dealing with you."
"Right. Goodnight Mr. Supersized McShizzle." I yawned, resting my head on the pillow and closing my eyes.
"Goodnight, Icicle." He replied soothingly.
This was going to be humiliating to recollect tomorrow.

After a fresh croissant, I was just about ready for the day.
I must've missed Leo slipping out in the early moments of the morning because the bed leaves traces of the warmth on the mattress which a certain absence was noticeable.

Leo spun his Wii controller in a circle, and the sails lowered themselves. "We shouldn't be far," he said. "Festus and I calculated the landing as best we could. What do you expect to find at the mile marker?"
Piper explained what she'd seen in the knife—the man in purple with a goblet.
"Purple shirt?" Jason asked. "Vines on his hat? Sounds like Bacchus."
"Dionysus," Percy muttered. "If we came all the way to Kansas to see Mr. D —"
"Bacchus isn't so bad," Jason said. "I don't like his followers much....But the god himself is okay," Jason continued. "I did him a favor once up in the wine country."
Percy looked appalled. "Whatever, man. Maybe he's better on the Roman side. But why would he be hanging around in Kansas? Didn't Zeus order the gods to cease all contact with mortals?"

Frank grunted. The big guy was wearing a blue tracksuit this morning, like he was ready to go for a jog in the sunflowers. "The gods haven't been very good at following that order," he noted. "Besides, if the gods have gone schizophrenic like Hazel said—"
"Like Y/N said." I chimed.
"And Leo said," added Leo.
Frank scowled at him, yet not me. "Then who knows what's going on with the Olympians? Could be some pretty bad stuff out there."
"Sounds dangerous!" Leo agreed cheerfully. "Well...you guys have fun. I've got to finish repairs on the hull. Coach Hedge is gonna work on the broken crossbows. And, uh, Annabeth—I could really use your help. You're the only other person who even sort of understands engineering."
Annabeth looked apologetically at Percy. "He's right. I should stay and help."
"Y/N, I wanted to pitch some ideas with you too. If you want to stay."
"Sure." I replied as coolly as I could. Hard to pretend like last night didn't happen but we were doing pretty well at it.

Frank slid his bow off his shoulder and propped it against the rail. "I think I should turn into a crow or something and fly around, keep an eye out for Roman eagles." "Why a crow?" Leo asked. "Man, if you can turn into a dragon, why don't you just turn into a dragon every time? That's the coolest."
Frank's face looked like it was being infused with cranberry juice. "That's like asking why you don't bench-press your maximum weight every time you lift. Because it's hard, and you'd hurt yourself. Turning into a dragon isn't easy."
"Oh." Leo nodded. "I wouldn't know. I don't lift weights."
"Yeah. Well, maybe you should consider it, Mr.—"
Hazel stepped between them.

"I'll help you, Frank," she said, shooting Leo an evil look. "I can summon Arion and scout around below."
"Sure," Frank said, still glaring at Leo. "Yeah, thanks."
Hazel turned to Percy. "Just be careful when you go out there. Lots of fields, lots of crops. Could be karpoi on the loose."
"Karpoi?" Piper asked.
"Grain spirits," Hazel said. "You don't want to meet them." Piper didn't see how a grain spirit could be so bad, but Hazel's tone convinced her not to ask.
"That leaves three of us to check on the mile marker," Percy said. "Me, Jason, Piper. I'm not psyched about seeing Mr. D again. That guy is a pain. But, Jason, if you're on better terms with him—"
"Yeah," Jason said. "If we find him, I'll talk to him. Piper, it's your vision. You should take the lead."
"Of course," she said, sounding sadly upbeat. "Let's find the highway."

Annabeth and Leo could practically communicate with their movements. Their work on the hull was so complicated sounding that I stayed back and paced impatiently whilst Coach Hedge fixed crossbows. On multiple occasions he would slam his hands on the deck and kick his goat legs around in anger. I had ended up lying beside him on my stomach, watching him repair the crossbows.
"What's it with you and Valdez?" he asked out of the blue. I looked up at him with a grimace and watched as he placed the crossbows down and shooted me a serious scowl.
"What?" I yelled a little too aggressively. "Sorry, what?" I repeated quieter.
"I was on patrol last night and I heard some commotion happening from his room. Can you explain why you were in his room last night?"
"How did you–?" I started.
"We all heard you. Continue."

"Leo only made enough rooms for you and the Seven." Coach Hedge gleamed with pride at that. "So he offered to share with me. And we slept together last night. Don't make that weird."
"That boy's got brains." Coach said. I raised my eyebrow, asking for an elaboration.
"Coach, you gotta help me out here." I shrugged.
"The Prophecy of the Seven isn't really 'of the Seven.'" I shook my head unresponsively. "They're just the seven half-bloods. You're the healer who's heart is kind and pure. He forgot to make you a bedroom on purpose."
"Do you hear the words coming out of your mouth?" I said.
"He likes you. You take his breath away, head over heels, all that sappy lovey-dovey teenager stuff." He waved his hands around and swooned. Oh my gods.

"Whatcha talkin' about?" Leo appeared from the stairs, walking with his hands in his pockets. He animatedly picked up one of the crossbows and grinned approvingly. "Oh-ho, nice job Coach. Y/N, wanna come down and see my ideas?" He extended a hand and I took it gratefully. Coach wiggled his eyebrows at me as we walked away. As we paced through the halls Leo played with his curls anxiously. "I want my next invention to help you with your healing. An ambrosia dispenser, medkit with unlimited supplies, a necklace that is actually a vial of nectar. Does any of that spark your interest?"

"They all sound pretty good to me," I started, "But you shouldn't overwork yourself."
"What else am I here to do?" He shrugged and tapped his fingers on his side. "And besides, working my butt off keeps my mind off things."
"Is it about what Nemesis said?" I guessed. He looked to the floor. "'You will always be the outsider.'" I quoted.
"Yep." He exhaled through his teeth.
"She's wrong, you know. You're not a seventh wheel."
"I'm pretty sure the goddess is more right than we are. Plus, it's pretty obvious. Hazel and Frank, Percy and Annabeth, Jason and Piper. Out of the seven it just leaves me."
"I'm part of the prophecy too, so technically it's out of the eight. Me and you."
"And Coach Hedge." He grinned.
Our conversation was cut short when some thumping came from above us.

➻ AUTHOR's NOTE
IATS UNFINISHED BUT I WANTED TO GET SOMETHING IN FOR U ALL OK CYA TMOSZ