Mi Flor~ (Leoxoc)

The Rivalry Sparks

*Leo*

Leo immediately regretted his words. Valentine's head whipped around, and her eyes locked on him. 'So this is how I'm gonna die.' Leo thought to himself. 'After seemingly endless quests and trials, not to mention basically dying already, the great Leo Valdez would be booked to death. An automatic spot on Lamest Demigods Weekly Magazine forever. Yeah, THAT would be hilarious to the gods.'

"You." Valentine poked a finger towards him, "Here." She pointed to the floor by her feet. "NOW." She did not look happy. Speaking of happy, Leo could really use a giant bronze dragon right about now. He reluctantly walked towards her, stopping a few feet away.

Leo held out the bin of popcorn, smiling sheepishly, "Popcorn?" He asked. Though it didn't seem possible, she became scarier. Terrifying even. A vein popped out on her forehead, showing she had reached maximum 'I want to kill Leo'.

She reached out and grabbed the bin of popcorn, smiling innocently at him. 'Oh crap. I'm a goner.' Valentine took one piece of popcorn, ate it, then dumped the rest over his head. She didn't seem completely satisfied, so she slammed the bin over his head and pushed him over a root that grew out of the ground.

"¡Bondad! Geez, mother nature! Take a few hundred chill pills!" Leo said, rubbing his backside, the popcorn box still over his head.

"Huh, you look way better this way Valdez. I can't see your annoying little face."

"Okay, that's enough" Chiron intervened, gripping Leo's arm and hauling him off the ground like he was as light as a feather.

"She started it!" Leo said in a fake whining voice, pulling the bin off his head and brushing popcorn out of his hair.

"Chiron." Valentine said, her voice deep and emotionless. That somehow made Leo freak out even more. "Are you seriously expecting me to help.." She looked at Leo like he was a pile of laundry that she was dreading having to clean. "Him?"

Leo gasped dramatically, putting his hand over his heart. "Ouch!"

Valentine glared at him, "Look out Valdez, your ego is showing!" She said, a wicked grin on her face. She moved closer to him, whispering, "And if you ever interrupt my reading again, especially for something as stupid as a coffee table, you'll be saying a lot more than 'ouch'."

Leo gulped, "Must have been a pretty good book then." Valentine's glare intensified. 'Why are scary pretty ladies always out to kill me?' Leo thought to himself. But on the other hand, the last girl that hated him this much. Leo forced himself back to reality, hoping his expression didn't slip.

*Valentine*

Valentine's head whipped around, her eyes burning straight into his soul.

"You." She pointed to Leo.

"Here." She pointed to the ground at her feet.

"NOW." His face looked like he was contemplating pulling a weapon out of his tool belt but then decided against it. 'Wise choice, Christmas elf.' He hesitantly took a few steps towards her, staying a few feet away. 'Another wise choice. Didn't think that was possible!'

"Popcorn?" He asked with a smile that reminded her of her past 'brothers'. Just the thought of them made her completely enraged. His smile immediately faltered. And because of his show of weakness, she decided not to kill him. Not at the moment at least. She took the popcorn from him, putting on a fake innocent smile. He didn't buy it. Valentine took a piece of popcorn from the bowl, ate it, decided it wasn't worth keeping, and dumped the rest on Leo Valdez's stupid head. 'Hmm, he's not in enough pain.' Valentine thought to herself, glancing at the bin in her hand. A brilliant idea popped in her head, and she slammed it full force on the repair boy's head. While he stumbled, she summoned a root, causing him to slip and fall onto his backside.

"¡Bondad! Geez, mother nature! Take a few hundred chill pills!" Leo winced, rubbing his back. Valentine allowed herself a small victory grin, noticing he left the bin over his head like he didn't even notice it was there.

"Huh, you look way better this way Valdez. I can't see your annoying little face." Valentine said.

"Okay, that's enough." Chiron intervened, grabbing Leo by his upper arm and lifting him off the ground like he was as light as the strawberries in the fields.

"She started it!" Leo said in a sarcastic whiny voice, taking the bin off his head and rubbing the popcorn out of his hair. Valentine almost had the nerve to do it again. Instead, she turned to Chiron.

"Chiron." Her voice was dangerously low, "Are you seriously expecting me to help..." She looked Leo up and down like he was a box of old cheese, "Him?" Valentine finished, a distasteful look in her eye.

"Ouch!" Imagination killer said, putting a hand on his chest and gasping over dramatically.

Valentine glared at him in annoyance, "Look out Valdez, your ego is showing." She said mockingly. 'If I scare him off now, he might ignore me forever. Ah, if only!' She leaned towards him, lowering her voice to a deadly whisper, "And if you ever interrupt my reading again, especially for something as stupid as a coffee table, you'll be saying a lot more than 'ouch'."

Leo gulped as if he was staring death in the eye. Which in a way, he was. "Must have been a pretty good book then." He said, making Valentine intensify her glare. For a moment though, his eyes clouded over like he was going back to a memory and his face showed a look of pain. He quickly shook his head, his expression turning to a glare. For some reason, he somehow seemed more angry with her than scared like he was before.

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