The monster dude led us into a huge, fancy-looking lobby, where there were a handful of people sitting in chairs. "Mr. Valdez, please follow me." I followed him, and Calypso followed me. The fuzzy guy turned around. "Not you," He said to Calypso. "My boss wants to speak to him and him alone." I could feel Calypso behind me growing mad. I NEEDED to talk to this boss man, and I can't let her ruin this. I put on my jokester smile and turned around.
"Cal, it's fine, I'm just gonna talk to the dude. I'll be right out."
She seemed slightly convinced but I guess she didn't feel like making a scene because she wheeled her luggage over to an empty chair and sat down. Oh, yeah, I still have Festus.
"Hey, man, what do I do with this?" I asked the monster.
"Bring the dragon."
How did he- "Whaaat? Dragon? Nah, it's just a metal suitcase." Nice one, Leo.
The monster stared at me. "I do not have time for games, firestarter. Follow me."
The fuzzy big-eared dude led me to an elevator. As the door closed, I waved to Calypso. I saw her wave goodbye as the elevator doors closed, and all I saw was my reflection. Dude, you look like a trainwreck. My hair was messy and so was the rest of me. I tried to clean myself up as much as I could. The soft classical music playing inside the elevator was strangely ominous. After tidying up a bit, I realized the monster never pressed any buttons. He had used a key card. Well, if I need to make a quick escape, I might need to pickpocket this guy to get down. Or maybe I can just jump out a window on Festus... I kept formulating potential escape plans when the elevator dinged.
The monster led me out onto the floor of one of the fancy-shmanciest hallways I have ever seen.
"Where are we going" I asked.
The monster side-eyed me before responding, "The throne room."
That was vague. Wait, throne room? Who IS this boss guy?
At the end of the hallway was a set of large golden doors. The monster scanned his keycard on a scanner, and a robotic female voice said "Welcome, Wah-Wah."
Wait a sec- Wah-Wah?! That's the weirdest name for a monster I have ever heard. Then again, I can't remember the names of any monsters so...
As the gold doors opened, I marveled at the ornate throne room before me. Hot damn this guy's gotta be RICH. The throne room had these thick, fancy rugs in the middle that looked very expensive. There were servants all over the place and at the back of the room was a massive gold throne. Lounging on the throne was this posh-looking dude in a purple suit. He had curly hair and eyes that looked to be judging me from all the way across the room. Gods, he has such a weak chin. It's like he doesn't even have one.
The monster bowed at the weak-chinned man and bowed. Should I bow? Nah. "So, uh, hi. I'm Leo Valdez, Bad Boy Supreme, who are you?"
The purple suit guy smirked. "I am The Beast, but my friends call me Emperor Nero. I am so sorry you don't remember me."
Huh?
The Beast kept talking. "When I heard how your friends allowed you to die, I was truly heartbroken. I did not know children could be so cruel. I am overjoyed to see you have returned safe and sound, with only the small problem of amnesia."
Small problem? Who does this guy think he is? "Wait a sec, we know each other?"
"Oh, yes" The Beast replied. "I was temporarily your patron and foster father until you ran away to that awful camp, and look where it got you." Normally that would have come off as accusatory, but from him, it sounded sympathetic. "It's alright, though. Now that you're back home, I have a proposition for you."
Listen to him, whispered my inner voice, he knows us better than those camp losers.
"What kind of proposition?"
"Well you would stay here and work and train with some of the best mentors around, and I can help you get your memories back."
I thought about this. Free place to live AND my memories back? Sounds pretty good to me.
"Alright man, but what about my friend, Calypso?"
His face grew sad. "Oh, poor Leo, I'm afraid she has manipulated you. She is a sorceress and the daughter of the evil titan Atlas. She used you to escape her prison, and now she has abandoned you."
What? That can't be true.
"Calypso wouldn't abandon me-"
"Are you sure, Leo? She never wanted you around in the first place, and now that you've brought her to the mainland, she has left." The Beast pressed a button on a remote, and the lights dimmed. "Dammit, wrong one!" He whispered. He turned the lights back up again and pressed a different button. A TV lowered from the ceiling. It showed security camera footage from 8 minutes ago. Calypso grabbed her luggage and walked out the door, not looking back.
My heart sank. The first person to care about me after I died just walked out on me. What about Leo and Calypso's garage? Was that a joke? Was she really just using me to escape her prison?
The Beast could see the probably very obvious sadness and confusion on my face. He stepped down from his throne and walked over to me. He wrapped his arms around me in a 'comforting' hug. He smelled very strongly of lavender. His chin-that-was-not-a-chin was resting on my head. I didn't hug him back.
"Dear boy, I am so sorry you had to find out like this. Betrayal is never easy to get over, but now you see how those people treated you. You deserve better, Leo."
I gathered myself and tried to smile. "It's not like I remember any of them anyway!" I laughed, but it felt forced. "I agree to your deal, Mr., um, Beast." Mr. Beast? That doesn't sound right.
"Please," He said. "Call me stepfather."
YOU ARE READING
INSANE (Leo Valdez AU) **ON HIATUS**
Fanfiction"A great fire burns within me, but no one stops to warn themselves at it, and passers-by only see a wisp of smoke." - Vincent Van Gogh In this AU, Leo Valdez is dead, at least that's what he thinks when he wakes up with no memories. On his journey t...
