eachdraidh | 1st Circuit - Text for Both Courts, Video-locked for Unseelie

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1st Circuit - Text for Both Courts, Video-locked for Unseelie

[There's probably a better way to do this, but at least he can put out feelers and see what he's working with. Since the decimation of Caer Scima Hiro's been a little more than bitter toward the Seelie and while he doesn't want to have anything to do with any of them, he realizes that as a scientist he needs to gather as much information as possible.]

It's been a long month, hasn't it? I'm not used to any of this. Monsters? Destroying people's castles? It's weird. I was getting ready for class one day and the next I came here and then the fighting started. I think I'm going to fall really, really behind in my homework. Makes me wonder…what do you miss most about home? I can't be the only one who really misses advanced tech (computers, video games, even the old stuff like VCRs would be okay at this point.) And I know, I know, the Station exists but it's not the same. So, what about you guys?

[If he can figure out what people value? Maybe they can use that to their advantage, too.]

[Unseelie Locked]

[Now comes the hard part. With that out of the way the video function of the locket clicks on and it's obvious that the locket's hanging from something in front of Hiro. He's in a room at the Station, ever-recognizable blue hoodie hanging loosely on his frame but the sleeves pushed up to his elbows. More importantly than that? He looks a little nervous.]

…hi. My name is Hiro Hamada. I don't know most of you, but I hope you're listening anyway.

[He pauses and looks to the side, evidently looking at someone else who's in the room with him. Deep breath, Hiro.]

It's not a secret that we lost this battle pretty bad. That's a fact, but I think there's something we can do about it to help recover. I know there are other people that don't know how to really fight, or there are people who can only fight with weapons. What if we could do something more than that?

[Give him a second and he's holding up his hand. It looks as though he might completely freeze up but after a short moment a small fireball appears in the palm of his hand. He wants to put it out immediately, but he pauses long enough to at least look at the locket again.]

I couldn't do this when I first got here. [And the fireball vanishes.] Think about how much stronger we'd be as a court if everybody could wield a couple of spells. Even if it's not something you want to use for offense even picking up a few for defense is better than nothing. I know there're a lot of magic users here but…well, Lemina and I have been working on something pretty cool.

[He's going to lean forward and pick up what looks like a piece of paper with a class list and a list of elemental spells written on it to show the camera.]

The Guild's designed to not only teach people how to unlock their own magic ability but hone it and build up to becoming a better magician. We have a few ideas how to use it to help our side of this war. We're going to start classes soon for anybody who's even kinda curious. [A pause.] Look, I didn't even really believe in magic before I got here and knowing the little bit I learned saved me back there. It'd be really cool if you guys considered it and you can always ask Lemina or me if you have questions.

[Actually…he looks off screen toward where Lemina's sitting.] Maybe we should do that now?

[ooc: This is actually going to be open to both Seelie and Unseelie because of the mage university being started by Tzilan just outside of Redgate. Lemina's been putting up flyers around the Station and Hiro just doesn't realize it and has a very strong bias against the Seelie. You can check out more about said-Guild in the class link above, and you can sign up your character here. As an aside, Lemina will also be teaching classes at said-university on her own, but will be keeping the Guild as something separate. edit: also Lemina might pop into some threads as well!]

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Yeah, that's like saying I'm from the "early millennium." It doesn't work that way. [That's a little perplexing though. What are they really looking for?

But it doesn't matter. That takes a backseat when Leo starts explaining about the Archimedes sphere and guess what, he doesn't even have to ask anything. He gets it. Automatons. Robots. Holy crap, somebody who speaks his language. He's trying not to actively just start talking a mile a minute but he's excited to learn suddenly.] Dude, you've gotta show me that sometime so we can see if we can hack it and make it work here. What kind of a ship do you have? How does it work? What kind of automatons are you working with?

[Leo. You opened Pandora's box. Good job.

…huh. Well. He's friends with a god, why wouldn't there be demigods here? He just rolls over the top of that and yes, yes, it's impressive and he knows who Hephaestus is but that's not important at the moment.]

Trust me, I get it. I'm going backwards, too. ['And I don't like it that much.'] I'm a robotics engineer so this place kind of sucks for getting anything done.

[Hiro shut up. You're supposed to be gathering information, not giving it away.]

Right? That's what I thought, too! But, you know, it's an important distinction and all.

[ Hiro can't see it, but he is rolling his eyes really hard. Elizabeth is a nice gal, but jeez. ]

The only place it'll work is the Station, but I can totally bring it along! I don't have a clue if we can get it to work through magic or whatever, but it might be worth a shot.

[ Finally, someone who understands him! It's a huge relief - even his best friends are clueless about this stuff! Even though it's over audio, Leo starts counting the questions off on his fingers as he talks. ] It's an ancient Greek trireme, a warship I built out of celestial bronze, but it's not just a ship, it can fly, too. You don't even want to know what it took to get the materials for the engine together - twelve ingredients, including Lemnos fire from my dad's forge and water from the Styx. Nearly blew up the Bunker trying to put it all together, [ he says, laughing. It's easy to do now that it's long past. ] And the automatons... eh, there's a lot of them in camp. I worked with the security automatons, but mostly there was Festus, my dragon. He's also part of the control system on the Argo II, but he fell apart a while ago, so it's just his head.

Dude, if I had the money outside camp, I would totally rock robotics. Mechanics are almost too easy sometimes, you know?

Right, right, how could we think otherwise.

[They even have similar sarcastic quips. This is kinda mind-blowing.]

I work better at the Station anyway. We can probably figure out something and even if we can't I'd love to look at it anyway. [Because it's an artifact and seriously, ancient and advanced is still messing with his head a little.]

So you're a captain. I've never been on a flying warship before. How're you keeping it airborne? Where do you even find raw materials like that? It's hard enough to find some bot parts back home, I can't even imagine digging up water from the underworld. [A beat.] Dragon. An automaton dragon? Oh man…wait what do you mean it's just his head? Does his head still work? ['Do you have his head?' It would be a valid question seeing how he has parts of his own robot friend, but it seems weird to ask a stranger right off the bat.]

I started building stuff when I was really little. [Conveniently leaving out who he was working with…sorry Leo, Tadashi's definitely not coming up.] I was actually supposed to be heading to my Humanoid Construction class at SFIT before I got here. [There's a shrug even if Leo can't see it.] I'm already a couple of weeks behind though so I guess another month or two won't hurt. [Still blows though.]

You got it. If I leave before you get there, I can stash it somewhere and come back when you're around. For all the crap we have to deal with for not having technology, teleportation's pretty sweet.

I usually go by "admiral", actually, but captain works, too. [ And he likes your enthusiasm, kid! ] How does a plane stay airborne? It's a combination of aerophysics and essence of venti - which, incidentally, is also one of the engine ingredients. When you live in a camp full of demigods, though, you get connections. Like there's this son of Hades who hooked me up with the Styx water. I've never had to go the Underworld, thank the gods.

And yeah, a dragon! His name's Festus, and he tried to burn me alive when we first met, but as soon as he figured out he can't burn me, that was it. He got torn apart by some lasers on our first quest, though, so only his head was left. My dad took him back to camp, and I fixed him enough so he'd work as the ship's masthead and main computer. [ And some day he wants to fix the rest of him, too, but that's his a secret for the time being - not that it really matters when he's stuck in the Drabwurld. ]

Me too. My mom was a mechanic, so she started teaching me things when I was little. She said I was better than most of the guys she worked with, [ he says with a laugh. ] I actually drew the Argo II in crayon when I was five. Finding the actual blueprints locked in Bunker 9 and building it was surreal.

Tell me about it. I've been going back and forth for almost the whole month. Beats borrowing a horse.

Oh okay, sorry Admiral Valdez, I didn't mean to disrespect you. [But it's obvious he's grinning on his end of the line.] Aerophysics I get, but pretty sure we're fresh out of venti on campus. [I.E. what the hell is that. Tell him stories, Leo, he's curious.] So there's a whole bunch of you constantly building stuff and traveling to all of those mythical places the stories talk about? It almost sounds like this place suits you guys.

Uh. No offense, but is there a reason you named a fire-breathing robotic dragon "happy"? [Seriously there better be a good reason for this.] Sorry about what happened to him though. I know how that is. [Baymax…he's going to fix him though. He has to. Maybe when he does, he can show Leo. That wouldn't be a bad idea.] So now you've got Happy the GPS dragon. Nice. I bet he's really useful even if he's in a few pieces.

Yeah my--[…whoa…no. Take a deep breath and slow down. Change the sentence.] Aunt let me clear out a bunch of space in our garage so that I can work on projects when I'm not using my lab at school. I think she just thought it was a better place to work than my bedroom and anything that was created was less likely to fly down the stairs and into Lucky Cat.

[Like the hover car. Good times.] You fulfilled your own prophecy. I think surreal's kinda putting it mildly.

I could maybe deal with a pegasus, I guess, but it's kind of a letdown when you're used to a dragon, you know?

That's more like it. [ The grin on his face is practically audible. ] There's never been a shortage of venti in my life, [ he says, cheerful despite the connotations that Hiro won't get. ] There's probably a lot around and you just didn't know it. Wind spirits can go pretty much anywhere.

It's just me and the rest of Hephaestus cabin doing the building, honestly. Most of the others in camp focus on training or healing or whatever. Some of them don't even know how to use basic power tools, [ Leo says, rolling his eyes. Looking at you, Piper. ] Traveling and going on quests isn't all it's cracked up to be, though. Lots of risking your life for gods that won't even talk to you, let alone thank you for lending a hand. And it's always the end of the world. [ A beat. ] So, yeah, it's a lot like home. Honestly, I might not mind it so much if it weren't for the technology thing.

First Jason, now you. Everyone's a critic. [ What would you guys have him name the dragon? Smaug? ] I thought it fit. Better than Puff the Magic Dragon. I'm glad I could salvage him for the ship, and he's great with sonar, radar, and diagnostics, but... [ He's hesitant to mention it, but since none of the others are here, anyway... ] I want to rebuild him. We're kind of on a tight deadline at home, so I dunno if I'll be able to finish it in time, but I'm going to try. [ Because it might be useful to have a flying mechanical dragon when you can't touch the ground. And he just misses his dragon. ]

Sweet deal! I used to want something like that, but then I found Bunker 9. The place was super old, but there's a lot of stuff in there that's proved useful, and I'm the only one that can open it. It's pretty awesome; I always missed it when we were on the quest.

I dunno, it's still a horse even if you stick wings on it. Thanks but no thanks.

I know a guy here who can usually talk to the spirits. I should ask him if there're any wind spirits around. Maybe they'd be willing to give me a lift sometime. I'm not really spirit-savvy.

Which is still how many people? Your camp basically spends the whole time honing their own crafts based on…what, who their god parent is? [It makes the most logical sense based on what Leo just told him about the Hephaestus cabin. At least Leo gets another laugh because man, it sucks but that's exactly what's going on here isn't it.] Any words of advice for somebody who's not part-god and still stuck here? I could use all the help I can get. [Even if it's just to take advantage of people...]

I think I like how this Jason guy thinks. [Smaug would have been better than Happy okay.] Though Puff might have worked too if you count the steam. [There's a pause but he nods in understanding.] How tight of a deadline is tight?

The lab's great because I can use all of the college's equipment but I like the garage because it's home, you know? I've created a lot of cool stuff at home but the lab's pretty new. I was still unpacking when I ended up here instead.

Yeah, I pretty much felt the same way. That's what dragons are for.

Me either, but if they are around, they're not interested in demigods for once. I haven't gotten attacked by anything that won't already attack anyone else. [ Weird thing to be relieved about, maybe, but what can you do? It's a nice change. ] Jason's horse was actually a wind spirit he asked for help. Who knows? Maybe they would want to help.

[ He shrugs, trying to recall the number of people there. ] Eh, I dunno, fifteen maybe? Apparently I had a lot of half-siblings and didn't know about them. There's maybe a hundred of us in the whole camp, I dunno - but we do pretty much stick to what our parents do, yeah. I mean, we all get training so we'll all have a better chance at surviving outside of camp, but what we specialize in is pretty much just that. It's in the blood.

Dude, I'm, like, the worst person you could ask for advice, [ Leo says with a laugh. ] Don't let the whole war thing freak you out too much, I guess? Learning to use a sword or something wouldn't hurt, just in case. And try not to die.

Puff the Magic Dragon was a dumb name, [ he counters, though there isn't a trace of annoyance in it. ] My dragon needs his dignity, okay?

Try August 1st. It may not sound that bad now, but when I came here, we were halfway into July. So yeah, it's pretty tight.

I get it. I haven't really had a home for a long time, at least until I got to camp. Having the bunker there made a big difference, but we had to leave, so I only had the ship before they brought me here. Now it's just... [ He shrugs again, unsure how to explain. ] I dunno, wherever I am at the time, I guess.

[ Nowhere in the Drabwurld really feels like home. It was easier to ignore that when Jason and Piper or even Annabeth and Percy were here, but now it's just him out of the Seven.

Of course, that just means he has to find a new home somewhere, at least until he gets home. ]

Are there even dragons in this world? [He knows about the jabberwock but that hardly counts.] How can a person right a wind spirit though? Wouldn't they just...I don't know, fall from the sky?

You make it sound like you guys are constantly hunted. Wait, are you? Dude, not cool. [Hum. If he had that many half-siblings...how would he even deal?] Can't imagine having that may siblings though, half or not. Talk about having to constantly fight for attention. Can you do stuff that isn't the main skill of your godly parent? Like if you didn't want to build, would you be allowed to learn how to be a water kid or something? [Leo just...just go with it.]

I sort of make it a point not to die. [He's actually very serious about that.] I have a crossbow but I have no idea how to use it. We don't really have a lot of combat back home. Not like this.

So you've got two weeks before the basic end of the world. Great. Maybe it's a good thing you're stuck here instead.

[...that's strange. He gets what the implication is, but that's almost sort of sad. He knows where home is. Home is with Aunt Cass and Mochi and the nerds, and it's always been with Aunt Cass, Mochi and Tadashi. Being here though? Yeah. Home is wherever he is at the time.]

In a way though, maybe that's kinda cool. Not being tied down to anything and being free to move wherever you want. It opens a lot of possibilities.

Not anymore. [ He pauses. ] Well, maybe, like, two by now, but I dunno. They're supposed to be extinct here, I think. As for wind spirits, they can make themselves sort of tangible, same way any other nature spirit can. Jason's took the shape of a horse, but I guess it might've been easier for him to do it than anyone else, son of Jupiter and all.

We are. At least, we are outside of camp. There's some kind of barrier there that keeps monsters out, but once we're too old to go to camp, we're on our own. They say Greek demigods aren't expected to live past age 20. [ Such is life. Leo's accepted it already, though mostly he just prefers to ignore the inevitability of death - especially after discussing that line in the prophecy.

Still, he manages a laugh. ] Oh, trust me, it's definitely weird when you've been an only child all your life. I dunno if I'd say we're fighting for attention, though; we're usually too busy for that. [ Though let's be real, there's probably some part in all of them that wants Hephaestus to acknowledge them with more than just a flaming hammer over their heads. ] It doesn't work like that. I mean, you can totally get into makeup or war strategy or swordfighting or whatever if you want, but you can't just pick and choose your powers like that. Besides, I'm kind of on the opposite end of the elemental spectrum. Best I can do to mimic a son of Poseidon is make water bombs, and I've already done that.

Can't help with a crossbow. I didn't really fight like this at home, either; it was mostly just monsters we were up against. I had to learn how to use a freaking chain as a weapon, just because my friends didn't think I'd last long enough with just a hammer. [ He snorts. They have so little faith in him. He did fine, didn't he? Even threatened their own lives... and we're done thinking about that. Moving on. ] I wouldn't mind it as much if they were still here.

[ He lets out of a soft breath, trying not to get caught up on Piper and Jason again. Keep moving forward, he reminds himself. ] Yeah, I guess so. I kind of had enough of being free to go wherever I want, though. I did plenty of that before I even knew I was a demigod.

Well I know my next thing to look for in this place. [Thanks Leo.]

[Well that's fine.] Can't you find a way to protect yourself? Like how do monsters know how to hunt you guys down? There's gotta be a way to make a portable barrier or something.

But at the same time at least that's another group of people to watch your back. [Or so he thinks. He gets what Leo's implying though regarding the opposite end of the elemental spectrum but he's not going to acknowledge it yet. Another time, maybe.] Okay but how do you make a water bomb? Wouldn't that just be like a water balloon?

[Huff. He'll find somebody to figure this thing out. Somebody not-Jason-shaped.] And I've never even fought monsters so at least you're a step ahead. And unless you mean a hammer half the size of your body? Pretty sure they were right to think that, dude. …but that still sucks that they're gone.

Why? Nothing to keep you down?

If I ever see a kid riding the wind, I'll know who it is.

No one has since Ancient Greece. I don't know how I could do anything different. The barrier's supposed to be some special kind of magic from the gods that covers us, hides our smell or whatever. That's how they track us - apparently monsters can sniff us out pretty easily and no amount of deodorant can hide it.

Yeah, but I haven't actually spent that much time with them, aside from building the ship. They couldn't come on the quest with me and the others, either, so suddenly having family doesn't do me any good as far as that goes.

[ Hm... How does he explain it to someone who doesn't know Hephaestus-related skills? ] It's basically like a grenade, just with water. So no, not a water balloon. Mine are way better protected than that and they won't go off unless you want them to. I have ice bombs, too, and those just take a mix of the right chemicals. It's a lot of chemistry.

And hey, that hammer's gotten me through a lot of fights! [ No, Leo, no it hasn't. That was your head, not your hammer. ] My dad's famous for bringing his forging hammer into battle, so why can't I? But no, I had to lug around a giant chain before they were happy, [ He sighs dramatically, deliberately ignoring that he still feels rotten about not having them here. ] It sucks, but it's been a while. I guess I've just gotten used to being on my own again.

[ Not that he likes it. ]

There was plenty to keep me down. I just didn't let it catch me. [ A beat. ] Mostly. [ Another. ] Okay, so they did catch me all six times. But I got away again, and I don't plan on letting them catch me again.

So maybe I miss flying a little bit. So what?

Well if it's a special kind of magic there has to be a way to replicate it. What's the point of magic if you can't re-create it the same way you can with technology? And that gods haven't gone away. Can't you ask them to give you a boost? [He puts so much faith into these apparent gods, it seems.]

[Hm.] I guess just because you're kinda related by blood doesn't mean they're considered family more than your other friends. [But he's bypassing that because Leo just said a keyword here.] I'm good with chemistry, but I'm gonna guess the chemicals needed don't exist here, either. Never thought about making an ice bomb before, but it doesn't really get cold where I live either.

Maybe it's better that way. Why be exactly like your dad when you can make a different name for yourself? [Not "better." Different.] You don't think they'll come back? [It's a question he's asked a few people who've mentioned that people have disappeared, but it's always worth asking.]

You kept running away. [Really, Leo, did you think he wouldn't figure out what that meant?] Hey, I get it. You get into trouble once and you start figuring out how to plan new routes to make disappearing even easier.

[...bot-fights and running away from foster homes are not the same thing.]

Hey, I'm not knocking it! I miss flying, too, but I'd need Festus intact for that. [ And also not a useless hunk of metal outside of the Station. Ugh. ]

That's what I've thought, but no one's found a way to do it yet. And no, we can't ask the gods, because when they're not batshit crazy, they're locked up on Olympus refusing to talk to anyone. There's no way to get in touch with any of them unless they find you first. [ Mostly. Sometimes they get lucky - or unlucky, depending on how you look at it.

He's still kind of annoyed about that, okay?

Moving on. ] Eh, sort of. It's just kind of weird, but after a while you get used to it, I guess. And you're right; we definitely don't have the right materials here, so I kind of just had to wing it. It worked out, though. Totally creamed some fire elementals with them, too.

I guess they might come back, but I'm not holding my breath. Another friend of ours has been brought here, like, three times now, and got sent back all three times. Gods know if they'd stay even if they did come back. [ Leo doesn't want to think about it.

He snorts. It's not like his "crimes" are a big secret. It's what led to them. ] Let's just say the foster system could use some work. I figured I was better off by myself. But I didn't know I was a demigod then, either; it might've been a lot easier to get away if I did. Not that any of that matters here.

Yeah...my ride's kinda busted, too. [Which is sad. But let's not dwell there.]

Sooo...the gods are...pouting? [That's. No.] They kinda sound like a huge drag. No offense. What kind of gods are they if they're just hiding from everybody?

This I've gotta see. If I could get my hands on some real science I could make a lot of progress here. [But that thought's put on hold, too.] Why would they keep bringing people if they keep sending them away? Isn't that just more work for them? ...you've never been sent out, have you?

Maybe it doesn't matter now but it did back then. [The past shapes people as far as Hiro's concerned. The last few months definitely solidified that.] I guess I got lucky that Aunt Cass took us in so we didn't end up in the foster system, too. ["We." Oops. That...let's just ignore that.]

I've thought about asking them to bring him here for me sometime, [ Leo admits sullenly. He misses his dragon quite a bit. Festus is his best bud. ] He wouldn't be able to go outside of the Station, though, unless they made him a flesh-and-blood dragon somehow.

I dunno if I'd call it pouting, exactly? The Greek/Roman divide's kind of doing a number on them, so they're all kind of wacko. Maybe Zeus thought barricading them all up there was supposed to help somehow. I try not to think about it too much. Gods are weird. And, yeah, a total drag. You wouldn't believe the crap we do for them, and we don't even get a thank you! I mean, you'd think Hera would be a little more calm with me at least, since she freaking babysat me, but noooo. All I got was a "Hurry up and free me from this stupid earth cage!" And don't even get me started on Khione.

[ There is a reason he hates the cold, and it's not just because he's from Texas. ]

I don't know if they'd like me sharing my secrets with one of the Unseelie. [ But when has that ever stopped him? Leo's always excited to talk shop with a fellow mechanic or engineer. ] Got me there. It doesn't make any sense to me. Maybe the king thinks we need them, but the queen doesn't? I dunno, I've just kind of gotten used to it. But no, I've never been sent back. It's just been one long ride.

Yeah, but my mom always told me to keep moving forward instead of living in the past. [ Or keep running, so it translated. Running from the fear, from the memories, from the pain... Same difference, right? ] My aunt called me a diabloand blamed me for my mom's death. [ She wasn't entirely wrong, either, but it was more Gaea's fault than Leo's. He's still bitter about the way she treated him.

But something else catches his attention. ] You said "we." You had siblings?

[He considers all of that for a very long time, starting from the comment about Festus and all the way down to the question about siblings. It's with all of that in mind that he's carefully fiddling with the locket's settings and switching the entire feed to a locked channel.]

If that applies to pretty much any automaton then I guess it'd be the same with Baymax. But I mean I don't know how they'd make him flesh-and-blood since he's a robot and...Baymax as a human? Might be a little too weird.

Paranoid then, whatever. Or entitlement. There's probably a lot of words that can describe the gods based on all of that. I still don't get why they can't help themselves if they're supposed to be these all-powerful gods or why they can't even reward you guys. We get rewarded here for everything we do and the monarchs aren't gods. I don't think.

[...oh. Well. He's just...yeah he probably should have figured that Leo would at least pick up on that but he's not going to confirm or deny anything.] When you put it that way it kinda feels like we're stray animals that one of them brings home and the other decides to take to the pound instead. I don't know if I want to stay or get sent back. It hasn't been long enough to really tell.

[He doesn't need to speak Spanish to know what diablo means, but there's a frown.] How can you be the one to blame for something like that though? You don't exactly strike me as a murderer.

[Annnd the million dollar question, finally. He stalled as long as possible to answer everything else but then there's that. So. There's a pause.] Yeah. Older brother.

I don't know what a Baymax is, but if he's your friend, maybe it'd be worth asking about. I just haven't asked about Festus yet because... Well, I dunno, I guess. I'm not really sure if they really can make that happen, honestly. I've just heard about it.

[ He laughs. ] Yeah, those are good words, for sure. See also: full of crap. I think it's got something to do with giving us freedom of choice, which... [ Leo snorts. Yeah, right. ] At least that sort of works for not claiming us until we come to camp, but not the quest thing. All I know is that they try to stay out of mortal affairs, but gods forbid any mortal offend them!

Anyway, I think they consider still being alive reward enough, most of the time. Though I heard they once offered godhood to Percy, but he turned it down. It had something to do with the Titan War, but I wasn't around then, so I don't know the details.

Isn't that kind of what it's like, though? That's how they treat us, anyway. Otherwise throwing us around like they have just doesn't make any sense. [ Aside from annoying the hell out of their "subjects," which they are definitely good at. Leo wouldn't put it past them to be doing it for fun.

...Guess he should've seen that question coming. There's no point in hiding it, though - not when he was seen in full flame on the front lines at the recent battle - even if it hurts to admit in regards to this. ] I have something called the Blessing of Hephaestus. It means I can summon fire. My aunt didn't know about it, but she still blamed me for the workshop burning down because I was... [ Take a breath, Leo. It's in the past. Eight years in the past. ] I was the only one left alive when it happened. I think the police might've believed her, too.

[ Ouch. That's painful, man, and he knows it. But he also knows how utterly meaningless being told "sorry" is, so he won't say that. Instead, he settles for a simple, ] That sucks.

Baymax is my best friend. [That's about all he's going to say on that because...well. Baymax is Baymax and Leo is still kind of a stranger even if he's a cool stranger. Someday you'll learn about him, buddy, just wait.] Why wouldn't they be able to make it happen? You wouldn't believe some of the stuff they seem capable of.

You mean the freedom to make choices that'll benefit them. [Yeah, no, he's not imagining this right?] Sounds like they all kinda need a reality check, especially if you guys are doing all the leg work. [...wait what.] Some guy you know turned down the chance of being a god? Hope he had a really good reason.

Well...when you put it that way. [He hadn't considered that but it really makes an awful lot of sense.

But that's not the point. The point is that Leo's talking and...and wow. That's...horrifying.] ...dude. [And what else can you say because like Leo, he knows how meaningless being told "sorry" is. He can draw his own conclusions just fine. Plus he seems to get he doesn't have to elaborate on Tadashi, thankfully.]

...this place really is sort of a fresh start then, isn't it?

Hey, you don't have to explain it to me. Festus, Piper, and Jason were my best friends, and none of them are here either. It sucks without them around. [ Trust him, he gets it. It's been months and he's basically just been on his own for the first time since learning he's a demigod. It took forever to even start getting over Piper and Jason leaving. ]

I dunno why they wouldn't be able to, it just sounds... I dunno, unreal. Even the Mist we have back home can't change the nature of something, just what it looks like.

[ And maybe he's still kind of wary of magic, but let's not go into that right now. ]

Exactly. Man, you'd fit right in back home. We all get a little cynical of it after a while. [ It's kind of funny, honestly. If anyone ever comes in awe of the gods, they learn fast. ] Try to tell them that, and see how far you get. Just send me a message or something about it, though; I don't want to be there if Zeus calls lightning down on you.

Honestly, I have no idea what Percy's reasons were. Annabeth, maybe. We haven't really talked about it.

[ Thanks, dude. Thanks a lot. Leo sighs. ] I didn't mean for that to happen. There was a goddess threatening me and my mom, so I just wanted to protect her, but Gaea used that against me.

My fresh start was going to Half-Blood Hill after finding out I'm a demigod. At least there I had friends. This place doesn't really have much for me.

And this is the part where you tell me it doesn't get easier, huh? [It's okay Leo. Well not okay but he can understand.]

Because being in a fairy war is totally real. [He sounds more amused than anything.] If the monarchs can trap us here, they're a lot more powerful than we think.

I'm not sure if I should be happy about that or a little worried. I wouldn't worry about Zeus though. I bet I could dodge fast enough.

[...he's a little angry suddenly though because it's clear where the problem is.] Why was she threatening you though? What would you even have done? You were a kid.

[It's not his place to say it, but.] Maybe it's time to start looking in new places.

I'm not really an expert on that, [ Leo admits. ] I just try to not to think about it most of the time. Just keep going and stay busy so I don't have to.

[ He makes a face on his end of the line. ] I know, but turning a machine that runs on gears and oil and Tabasco sauce into something made of flesh and blood sounds a little far-fetched, even for them. At least most of the stuff they've done kind of makes sense, even that we're all from different worlds. Changing Festus into a real dragon... I'd have to see that to believe it.

Maybe a little bit of both? I dunno, man, at least the Romans survive longer than we do, with their whole... city thing. So it's not all bad, I guess.

Because there's a prophecy that says I might be the one to defeat her when she rises again, [ Leo explains, sounding frustrated. And he is, especially with the part that suggests he might have to die to fulfill that prophecy. ] I guess she was just trying to scare me away from her. Didn't work. Now I just have a real reason to kick her butt back into the dirt.

[ He's a lot less confident than he sounds about it, unfortunately. But at least he sounds okay, if more than a little angry. ]

You'd think I would have by now. [ He settled into Camp Half-Blood without a problem. Sure, he's got places to stay in Seelie territory, at the Station and Caer Glaem and Cothromach, but none of them really feel like home the way camp did. ] I'll be fine. I just need to keep busy.

It's cool, I won't hold it against you. [And that's that.]

I'm not even gonna ask why your dragon runs on tabasco sauce, but maybe you're right. It just seems like something they should attempt even if it's just to prove if they can or not. The worst that could happen is they fail but then maybe you'll know how to get the pieces and rebuild him yourself? Just a thought.

"Might be." That's pretty drastic for a something that's a "might be" and all it does is add another strike against her. Pretty stupid move.

If you say so...pretty sure that can be said for all of us now. Hope that's true.

[ He snorts. Like he's worried about that. ]

Don't ask me; I didn't build him. That's just how they were trying to catch him when I got to camp, and I just kind of rolled with it. [ He pauses, considering that. ] I guess I could always build a little automaton while I'm at the Station and see if they can do it. But yeah, if they did mess up, I do know how to rebuild him. It'll just take a while.

Tell that to her. The only other person it could've been was Jason, and he'd already been taken by Hera at that point, so he didn't have anyone to threaten. [ It's debatable whether he could actually be considered lucky for that, though. Everything sucks in the lives of demigods, business as usual. ] Doesn't change what happened, though.

Oh, but we're supposed to be at home in these dumb castles! Didn't you get the memo? [ he asks sarcastically, rolling his eyes. ]

Demigods have some strange ideas, don't they. [See, there you go.] Yeah, exactly! A test run. There're a few places worth digging around in, I've pulled some parts out for some of my own projects. It's kinda weird and I don't understand how it's happening but I'm not gonna say no.

I'll make it a point to if I ever see her. [Maybe. Probably not.] ...I know. Nothing will.

[There's a very, very dry laugh that follows. Too bad you guys ruined his castle.] Right, right! How could I forget? Let me just go settle back on my goose down pillows and recline to watch TV on my luxury flat-screen.

[...yeah guess who's never been rich and doesn't even know how to deal with the idea of a castle.] Castle needs an upgrade anyway. Maybe I'll look into that, but that's not important here.

You should let me know what you come up with. Call me curious.

1st Circuit - Text for Both Courts, Video-locked for Unseelie

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