Leo Valdez Fluff And One-Shots

Sleeping Beauty

It's strange, really. The last thing you can remember is training; slicing the dummy here and there with your (weapon/s). And then, suddenly, darkness.
You sit in the black, confused when voices ring out around you as if from down a tunnel. They sound panicked, and you can't do anything but listen as they grow closer.
"Way to go Matthew, you hit _____!"
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to! Someone wake her up!"
You feel pressure on your shoulder, and can only identify it as a tap. Then, someone shakes your shoulders. But you're paralyzed. You try to move, but you're helpless as you continue to listen.
"She's not waking! Is she d-dead?"
"No you idiot, she's still breathing!"
"Oh Gods, what did I do?"
The voices continue to overlap each other like waves in the ocean, and you begin to recall your surroundings before everything was dark. You were training, and there were two Ares boys battling viscously across the arena. In the far corner, a small group of Athena's daughters were reading. And in a different corner, you remember seeing four of Hypnos's kids. Two of them were lackadaisically helping their newest brother, Matthew, with training while the fourth slept against the wall.
So Matthew did something to me? He...put me to sleep? Why can't I wake up?
You snap out of your thoughts when a certain joking voice surfaces above the others.
"Hey, who died?"
By now, at least fifteen voices were surrounding you. You could even hear Annabeth's, who you recall being one of the girls reading.
But that one voice; you would know that voice anywhere.
Leo Valdez. Your crush ever since he helped you prank the Stoll brothers when you first came to camp. It was revenge for them breaking into your cabin and freezing all of your undergarments with a mini freezer they somehow got their hands on. Not only were you upset, but you felt completely violated. Let's just say, they went a full week with only the underwear they were wearing. Leo's gift of fire was very handy, and you remember the brothers' faces when they saw the scorched remains of all their underwear. Priceless.
Shuffling feet reaches your ears, and you can almost envision Leo forcing his way to the front of the crowd surrounding you.
"Seriously, what's going on-Holy Hephaestus I didn't think someone was really dead!" He exclaims, and you laugh in your mind since your lips seemed incapable of smiling; just as immobile as the rest of you.
"What's wrong with _____?" You hear Jason ask, recognizing the son of Zeus's voice. Was he with Leo?
"Is...is she really dead?"
If you had been awake, your body would've tensed. But no, it stays as limp as ever.
Leo's voice just sounded so...you don't even know how to describe it. I mean, you were kind of close to him, maybe even considered a friend. You guys talked every once in a while, but not as much as he did with Jason and Piper. But his voice reminded you of how a child would sound after realizing their goldfish died. It just sounded so broken.
"No, she's not dead." Someone says, and you hear a sigh of relief. The same person then goes on to describe what had happened to you, and how you're only in a deep sleep.
"Well did you try to wake her?"
"They did." Annabeth points out. "It's just that she won't wake up. I'm not sure what this is, I've never read about it before. I don't think it's fatal or anything. But we have plenty of books in our cabin; I wouldn't mind doing some research."
Hearing the most intelligent person you've ever met say that even she doesn't know what's wrong with you sets your heart racing, but on the outside your breathing is still long and deep; a true sign of deep sleep.
Non-fatal. The words calm you, but only slightly.
"What's going on over here?" Chiron's voice calls, growing closer as does the clopping of his horse-hooves. You lay still and silent as ever, listening as the story is explained once again. But you're only half-listening.
Will I ever wake up?

Five days. That's how long you've been stuck in this coma-like state, passing the day slowly by wondering if any of the Athena kids found a cure yet.
Of course not, I'm still asleep.
You've tried many times to wake yourself, but to no avail. You just can't. For once in your life, you can't help yourself. And you feel terrible just waiting for someone else to find a way for you. You realized a while back, but you're quite a burden for all these campers. Especially Matthew, who keeps visiting once in a while to just apologize and vent about how stupid he was.
You're lying in the infirmary, hooked up to two wires that feed you the water and food you are incapable of drinking and eating yourself. You've had many visitors throughout the days, but they only stay for about five minutes. Why would you want to stay any longer than that when the person you're visiting can't talk to you or even react to your presence?
There's always one person, however, that just refuses to leave your side. The one and only Leo Valdez; Bad Boy Supreme.
Of course, he isn't there 24/7. He leaves when curfew comes, but immediately returns in the morning just after breakfast. Mostly, he sits in silence. Sometimes you think he left, but then he'll shuffle in his seat, or cough, or do something to indicate that he's still right there, sitting next to your bed. Every once in a while, however, he'll talk. And you can't do anything but listen to his voice. That's what you're doing right now, actually.
"Oh Gods, I was so embarrassed." Leo says, commenting about a time he had accidentally mistaken a woman for a man. "I thought she was going to kill me right there, I swear it!"
If you could, you would be smiling and laughing at his story. I mean, it's not often you meet a woman with a beard.
"But, by a very long shot, my most embarrassing moment must have been that one time you saw my underwear. Gods! The conversation was going so well, and then bam!I'm standing in just my shirt and underwear!"
You recall the fond memory that had occurred only two months ago. Apparently, Leo's new fireproof pants weren't as fireproof as he thought.
"_____, you should have heard Percy after that! 'Don't worry man, I think she liked the Spongebob pattern!' Yeah, right!"
Well, Spongebob isn't that bad...
Silence falls over Leo, and you can faintly hear him breathing. A small part of your brain begins to bug you, the same feeling you get when you just know you're being stared at.
"What am I doing?" Leo mumbles quietly, probably to himself. "I don't even think she can hear me. I'm practically talking to myself, she's probably too far away-"
He stops in the middle of his sentence. You wait impatiently for him to continue, feeling shocked and confused as his warm hands are suddenly wrapped around one of yours. He pulls it to him, resting it in his lap between each palm.
"Who are you kidding, Leo, she was far away even before this."
A new wave of confusion sweeps over you, and you barely acknowledge his thumb affectionately swiping over the back of your hand. What does he mean by far away? You both live at the same camp, and your cabin isn't very far from the Hephaestus cabin.
Your thoughts fade away slowly as you suddenly become aware of the wetness on your hand. Leo's breathing has become more choppy, and he inhales sharply before letting out a muffled sob. It's almost too obvious that he is crying, and you are only further convinced when a few stray drops of tears fall upon your wrist.
"You know, _____, everyone keeps asking me why I visit you so much." Leo says, squeezing your hand tighter. "For the first few days, even I didn't know why. I just wanted to sit next to you, and look out for you. I wanted to be right here when you woke up; the first person you see. But I didn't know why."
He pauses, sniffling. The hand on top of yours leaves, most likely to cover his mouth as an especially larger sob wails through the room, and you would've flinched if you could move as the room's seemingly freezing temperature sweeps over the back of your hand.
"You've always been so far from me, _____. I don't know why, but no matter how close you were, you seemed right out of my reach. I wanted to, and I tried to reach you. And then reality kicked in, and I drew back because you were too far. Too good for me."
No, Leo. I've always been so close to you.
You want to shout it, you want to hug him and tell him that he is wrong.
Oh Gods, you want to tell him.
"How dumb is this." Leo mutters, letting out a weak laugh. "I'm practically confessing to you, and you'll never know. I'm putting my heart out in the open, I'm saying right now that I love you, and it's dumb. Because I know that when you wake up, you won't remember any of this, and I won't have the stupid guts to repeat all of this."
A minute passes. Two minutes. But all that reaches your ears is Leo's breaths, slowly growing steady and more controlled.
"Wake up."
Those two words tug at your heart. All the times that you had told yourself this, nothing seemed to happen. But hearing Leo say it...it was like he was throwing you a rope. You grip the rope tightly, not wanting for a second to let it go.
"Please just wake up already." He urgently says, words pouring out faster with each sentence. "You look beautiful; did you know that? You look gorgeous, like always. But you're far more beautiful when you're awake, and smiling, and talking, and laughing, and I can see your beautiful (e/c) eyes. You're so much more beautiful then, _____. I need you. Wake up."
The rope tugs you upwards, rocketing you into the air. You hang on for dear life, feeling as if your arms are actually burning with the effort.
"I don't know why, and I don't know how, but I know you can hear me. Wake up. Wake up! I..."
He pauses, breath caught in his throat. Coughing, his next sentence is strained and weak.
"I can't lose someone else."
Leo's voice cracks at the end, as if he's on the verge of tears once again. The rope slows, and it feels like you're being dragged through water. You desperately want to cry out to Leo and tell him to keep going.
"So far..."
The rope stops. It leaves you suspended, wondering how far away the ground is. All around you is dark, but above you, a small pinprick of light is visible. You know now that you have to reach it. Not only for you, but for Leo.
Steeling yourself, you lift your arm and begin to climb. It's slow going, but you don't plan on stopping until you've reached the top. Nearing the light, you begin to grin as it gets closer.
But then...
No!
Your hands start to slip, keeping you at such a distance that the light is taunting you.
"Just out if my reach." Leo's voice echoes, and you want to yell at him.
He's giving up on me! Leo's my rope, and he's giving up!
You grasp the rope in panic, not wanting to fall all the way back. But your heart burns as the rope descends. You break when your feet hit the ground, and the light is nowhere to be seen. You wail; collapsing to your hands and knees to beating the floor with tight fists. You ignore the pinch of your fingernails in your palms, you ignore the burning in your eyes as they're drowned in tears, and just bend into the despair with gross sobs scratching at your throat.
Leo Valdez! Leo, help me! Save me, please! Don't do this to me; don't abandon me like this!
You throw your head back, shouting into the darkness, before stumbling to your feet and walking blindly in circles. You're met with silence, and pace the floor until your calves become sore; deciding then to just stand where you are.
All the while, your sleeping body doesn't move in the slightest.
Your heart drowns out even your own thoughts, and you can hear its rhythmic beating as if it's coming directly from beside your ear.
Why, Leo? Why did you give up?
Pain. Pain is quite a terrible thing. Especially when two people are experiencing the same pain, they're sitting only a foot apart, but they just can't reach each other.
Someone has to dive in and break the barrier. Someone has to give in and run to the light.
And it wasn't you.
Soft, plump lips fall over your own. They give only slight pressure, but it's definitely there.
Leo! You think happily as the person backs away, but then swoops in for another kiss. And the light...
"Leo!"
You sit up as quick as lightning, said boy jumping back in surprise with red, tear-stained cheeks.
"_____? Y-You're awake!" He says, wiping furiously at his eyes. He sits up straight, holding out his arms for a hug. You collapse into them, clinging on to your savior with a tight embrace. Your head is buried in his shoulder, and you can feel as more tears fall on your hair. Pulling back, you laugh softly with your own eyes blurring as salty drops start to gather. Bringing your hands to Leo's face, you hold each side with your fingers in his soft hair while your thumbs wipe away any hints of his sadness. Leaning forward, you rest your forehead against his own and smile as your nose touches his.
"I'm right here Leo." You say against his lips. "I'm not too far, I'm right here."
"Oh Gods _____, la bella durmiente, it's really you." Leo mumbles. He pushes away what little space remains between the two of you, kissing you, and for the first time in five days, Leo Valdez smiles.
Because you are right there with him.

——————————————————————-

"Matthew..."
Matthew stirs in his sleep, flipping on his bed anxiously as the most beautiful woman he's ever seen appears in his dream.
"Thank you, Matthew." She smiles. "You've done a great job."
He smiles back, nodding eagerly.
"Of course!" He exclaims. "Anything for you!"
The woman disappears, and Matthew awakens to a silent cabin. All his other siblings sleep, but he stays wide awake with a smile on his face.
It's not everyday that a goddess asks him for help.