Getting the wings down is easy. Attaching them is not. They're enormous, and we have to hold them at the right angle to first connect the wiring, then connect them to the dragon securely. Leo is great, he knows exactly what to do right away. This would take me days on my own. I do my best to hold the wings for him, or pass him whatever tools he needs. At least, I pass him tools until we figure out that the toolbelt is magic and can produce just about any tool we need.
We work silently. It's kind of awkward, and I can't stand it.
"So... you're a fire user." I note.
He sighs, stopping what he's doing. "Yeah, I'd really appreciate it if you kept that quiet."
"But Leo, it's incredible!"
"Incredibly dangerous according to the Hephaestus kids."
"They don't get it." I insist. "They think that fire users cause catastrophes, but maybe the fire users come to resolve catastrophes."
"That's a sweet thought." He says. "But trust me, I cause catastrophes."
"So, you've had accidents." I note. "I have too."
He looks up at me, semi-curiously. "What does that mean?"
"I still don't know how to control all my... gifts." I feel my heart sink. "I've had lots of accidents. Every once in awhile I find out new stuff I can do. I've started fires, lightning strikes, I make people fall asleep sometimes on accident."
"Damn." Leo suddenly seems nervous. "Don't make me fall asleep. I'm tired enough."
"I won't." I suddenly feel really bad. I didn't mean to make him afraid of me.
He must notice the expression on my face because he stops what he's doing and looks over at me. "Sorry. I trust you." He sighs. "I burned down my mother's machine shop. She was inside. I was trying to protect her."
"Protect her from what?" I ask.
He scoffs. "You'll think I'm crazy."
"Leo, I was made out of dirt."
"Well, so was the sleeping woman."
"What?"
"There was this sleeping woman outside of the machine shop. She was made out of dirt, she told me she couldn't hurt me but that she could break my spirit. She was going to hurt my mom, so I used fire to try and stop her, and I ended up burning the place down. Then my family wouldn't take me in and I ended up in the foster system. And now I'm here. Crazy how things work out."
"Oh, Leo." I take his hand comfortingly. "That wasn't your fault."
He gives me a smile, then reaches up to wipe my face with the only clean spot left on his army jacket. "You've got some grease."
It's so gentle and sweet I could cry. We sit like that for a moment, and I get a weird feeling in my stomach. Butterflies. Oh god, no. Not Leo. I'm suddenly very aware that we're staring into each other's eyes. His hand stopped wiping my forehead and is now resting on my cheek.
We're stuck frozen in that moment for I don't even know how long. It's like a standstill.
We're taken out of our trance by Festus, who snorts in annoyance. What just happened?
Leo goes back to the wing, finishing attaching the final bits. It's as if nothing happened. I act like nothing happened too.
"I'm um, I'm going to look for supplies." I decide.
He gives me a nod and I go off to explore. There's water canteens, spare clothes, handwashing sinks. I flip my hair upside down and start working the grease out with hot water. It's not perfect, but at least it's not all matted to my head anymore. I fill a backpack I find with nonperishable food, water bottles, and some ambrosia and nectar.
"Theo!" I hear Leo calling for me. "We're good to go!"
I rush back, throwing my hair into a bun on my head to hide the grease that's still stuck in it.
Leo whistles. "You find a shower back there?"
"More like a sink, but I worked with what I had." I look at Festus, who is stretching his wings happily. "Wait till we get outside buddy."
We hop on the dragon, and the door swings back open for us. Festus doesn't even hesitate. He rushes out the door, and Leo grabs my waist to keep from flying backwards. There's that feeling again. Ugh. Push it away. We burst through the tree canopy, where we get a view of the whole valley. It's brighter than I expected outside.
As we swoop towards camp, I see people lining up to attack. Satyrs run and hide, screaming in terror. Maybe I should've warned everyone first, but too late now.
