My Forever and Always (Soulmate Aus)

Green thumb- Caleo

Dedicated to @natalikabra because my dedication button doesn't want to work.

Out of all the flowers on the island, the one wrapped around Calypso's pinkie finger was the most cared for and its roots didn't even touch the sand. She loved the little white and orange tipped flower bud that grew on her finger but she hated how it blossomed every time she fell for someone that washed up on Ogygia because of the Fates. It should've only bloomed when she met her soulmate but she knew that was never going to happen. The Fates sparked hope for the beautiful island girl by blooming her bud but Calypso knew it was a trick when the only other resident on the island's flower didn't bloom as well. Sometimes the men that washed up on her shores had already met their soulmates and it made her feel bad that she was stealing him away from their significant others. 

Leo Valdez hated his dainty little flower bud that snaked its way up and around his ear. It was out of the way, sure, but that didn't mean he couldn't hate it. For one, it was small. Yes, he knew that was a stupid reason to hate a flower. Secondly, it was mostly white which he was afraid of staining it (even though it was physically impossible to stain). And last but not least, he knew it was never going to bloom. After the death of his mom, little Leo gave up on his never-ending quest to make the flower open. So he sat and watched as everyone else's bloomed at camp.

Don't get him wrong, he loved seeing Percy and Annabeth hold hands and their blue and grey flowers get tangled (it was hilarious when they tried to pull away but couldn't due to the flowers) or Frank offering Hazel his red and purple one as a romantic gesture that he knew Hazel would love (and she really did, it made her smile every time). Jason was always cautious about his electrifying blue and dark pink it was almost red flower that wrapped around his thumb when he swung his sword, even though the flowers were also indestructible. And if Leo was very quiet and stealthy so Nico didn't realize he was there, he could find Nico di Angelo/Ghost King/Death Breath play with his black and yellow flower wrapped around his bicep. It had bloomed the day he met Will Solace, son of Apollo. Sometimes, most of the time, though he wouldn't admit it, it did sting a little when Leo thought about his soulmate and watched all his friends be so happy with theirs.

He did, at first, think his soulmate was Khione. She was pretty, Leo liked her, and it did make sense for their flower to be white. When Leo noticed that she didn't have a flower, his excitement washed away. Most gods didn't have flowers because of their immortality; Zeus, Athena, and Artemis just to name a few. Aphrodite (obviously), Ares, and Dionysus are some that did but they also broke the bond and slept with anyone they pleased because, well, they're gods and Zeus didn't really pay much attention to these when he set everyone up. Because of this, it wasn't uncommon to find a god who didn't have a flower.

The second time the two ran into each other, Leo wasn't as thrilled. Even more so when he was ejected into the sky. He did find peace when he found the island but was back to being not as thrilled when he met the resident on said island.

"You broke my table!" She complained, stomping her foot to get his attention. He had to admit that she was beautiful but he couldn't care less for her table, he was just glad he was alive. "You crashed onto my island and broke my table! Do you have anything to say for yourself?" She asked, waving her hands around. Leo caught it, the white and orange blur that was wrapped around her pinkie. Calypso herself didn't seem to pay much attention to it.

"The flower. Has it always been like that?" Leo asked, gesturing to her finger. Calypso huffed and looked down to her finger though she had already figured it had bloomed. She sighed quiet enough that Leo didn't hear it before looking back up at him where she saw his flower that matched. Her eyes darted from his flower to hers before widening.

"No!" She rushed out. Leo looked confused and subconsciously reached for his bud that wasn't a bud anymore. "No! No, this can't be! This. . . This isn't happening! No, you're not my soulmate. The Fates are just messing with the both of us. Yes, that's it! Just the Fates messing with us!" Calypso stated triumphantly. She looked around for something to happen and when nothing did, she didn't look so triumphant. She waited a second longer, this time Leo looking around with her but still nothing happened. "Ugh!" With that, she stormed off.

Leo, who was surprised by her sudden outburst and the whole soulmate thing, stood there not moving. Eventually he snapped out of his frozen state and retrieved a mirror from his tool belt to see his flower. It was beautiful, almost as beautiful as the island girl, the way the orange bled into the white but the white still managed to look delicate, like if he went to go push his hair back too roughly the petals would just fall off. Smiling to himself, Leo stashed the mirror away and caught up to the island princess.

"So, we're soulmates." He stated, a cheeky smile on his face. Calypso stopped trudging back to her garden and glared at the repair boy. "Name's Leo Valdez and yours is?"

"Not interested." She spat before continuing down to her garden. Leo kept up the pace though, which she was not expecting. "Go away." Leo looked around.

"I don't know if you've noticed this or not but we're stranded here, together." She groaned and turned around to face him again.

"No, I'm stranded here. You're free to go." Leo raised an eyebrow at her correction.

"And how exactly am I supposed to leave?"

"Say you wish to return to wherever it is you came from and then a raft should appear for you to take back home." She explained. "It's happened every other time." Her tone saddened just enough for Leo to pick up on it. His smile dropped. 

"What if I don't want to return?" He asked slowly. Calypso raised an eyebrow and snorted.

"Trust me, you want to return. There's not much here for you." Reluctantly, Leo said what needed to be said but nothing happened. The two looked around for the second time that day, waiting for the boat to arrive. Calypso huffed when it never appeared. "I give up! Just stay! But don't you dare bother me." Leo rolled his eyes. 

"Gee, thanks Sunshine. I can feel the welcome radiating off of you."