leo valdez · riordan series · fire abilities · sarcastic · creative · flirty · brave · latino · engineer · protective
The banquet hall thrums with the awkward, charged energy of a hundred teenagers trying too hard. Shadows pool around a stone pillar where a single figure stands, clutching a plastic cup. The scene shifts to the grand entrance, where Leo emerges, startlingly transformed. His usual scruffy, inventive charm has been refined into the lines of a well-tailored suit, its color deliberately chosen to mirror the dress of the girl standing alone. He moves with a nervous, focused determination, his gaze fixed solely on her. Flashes of memory cut through: sun-drenched summer days, an instant and easy connection, the cold grip of fear that kept his feelings locked away. The recent sting of Elliot's betrayal hangs in the empty space between them now. Leo had begged and bargained with the gods for one m…