Anti-Hero || Leo Valdez

29 - Not The Government Name

They stayed until all the cookies were gone.

Sally wished Via good luck and told her and Leo that they were welcome to stop by on their way back to the Waystation, or really whenever they wanted. Via was pretty sure she'd just been unofficially adopted by Percy's mom. The next time she saw Pat, she was going to brag about it so much...

After Leo's clothes were finished and he'd changed back into them, Via helped him lug Festus out of Percy's bedroom where they'd left him and back toward the front door. Leo wasn't doing very much work (he lamented that he'd had way too many cookies the entire time), so they ended up taking a break at the end of the hallway. While she waited for Leo to catch his breath, her ears picked up snippets of the conversation Percy and Sally were having in the living room.

"Are you sure they're not dating?" Sally was asking.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Percy replied. "I saw Calypso with him the last time I was at camp, and they were definitely acting somewhat like a couple. I don't think Via and Leo even knew each other at that time."

"I wonder why she didn't come with them. I'm sure Via's respectful of their relationship, but if it were me, I would be going with them."

It was at this point that Via realized what they were talking about and wished that she hadn't heard anything. Judging by the look on Leo's face, he could hear it too. Why were they talking about this now? Couldn't they have waited until Via and Leo had left? This was so awkward. The two of them exchanged a look before listening into the Jacksons' conversation again.

"Maybe they broke up?" Via heard a soft rustle of clothing, which she translated to a shrug from Percy. "I dunno. To be honest, I kind of like Via better. And Leo kind of looks happier around her too. I feel like Calypso —"

Leo, apparently not wanting to listen to any more of this conversation, grabbed Festus' handle and dragged him out into the living room. Via was quick to help him, also hoping to put a stop to this conversation. As soon as Sally and her son saw the two of them, they shut up. Percy cleared his throat; meanwhile Sally smiled at them and asked, "Is there anything else I can get for you?"

"Nah," Leo shook his head. "It's a short flight the rest of the way to camp. Should take an hour, maybe two, tops."

"Alright, then," Sally said. "Good luck, then, you two."

"Thank you," they said in unison.

After the door closed behind them, they made their way back down to the street before Leo opened Festus up again. They were mostly silent as Via finally figured out how to strap herself in (she was pleased that she'd finally been able to do it, but Leo didn't say anything, which was weird because he said every single time he'd had to strap her in that he was going to be very happy when she could finally do it on her own). They were silent as Leo took off. They were silent as they flew east toward Montauk. In fact, Festus was the only one making any noise at all. Almost forty-five minutes had passed when Via decided to break the silence.

"Leo," she said tentatively, "Is everything okay?"

He shrugged. Via sighed. Great. Now he wasn't talking to her.

She was pretty sure it was because of the conversation they'd overheard between Sally and Percy. Via wondered again, this time in frustration, why they couldn't have kept it to themselves until Via and Leo were gone?

It had bothered Via too, because she thought that Calypso was being unfairly judged when her and Leo's relationship was really none of their business. It was even more bothersome that Percy had compared Via to Calypso. Via thought the comparison was stupid — Calypso was a good person. Did she and Leo have the best relationship? Probably not, but Via didn't know all the details, and neither did Percy and Sally. And regardless of the state of Calypso and Leo's relationship, mentioning Via was even worse. Via and Leo's mini-quest had nothing to do with Leo and Calypso's relationship.