PJatO || Frazeleo || PJatO || Frazeleo || A Spark of Life || Frazeleo || PJatO || Frazeleo || PJatO

Title: A Spark of Life – Percy Jackson and the Fire-Catching Baby

Fandom: Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus; post both series

PJatO Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Rick Riordan for he created the awesomeness that is Nico di Angelo. And everything else related to Percy Jackson and the Olympians / Heroes of Olympus. Aside from the Gods, of course. They are all copyright by the old Greeks. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Warnings: shounen-ai, hetero, threesome, fluff, mpreg, shoujo-ai

Main Pairing: Frank/Hazel/Leo

Side Pairings: Nico/Percy, Piper/Annabeth, Chris/Clarisse, Jason/Reyna, Jake/Will, Malcolm/Katie, Lou/Miranda, Kayla/Nyssa

Percy Jackson Characters: Leo Valdez, Hazel Levesque, Frank Zhang, Perseus Jackson, Nico di Angelo, Annabeth Chase, Piper McLean, Clarisse la Rue, Chris Rodriguez, Connor Stoll, Travis Stoll, Jason Grace, Reyna Anderson, Jake Mason, Nyssa Black, Will Solace, Kayla Hein, Malcolm Cage, Katie Gardner, Lou Ellen, Miranda Gardner

Own Characters: Esperanza Nicole Zhang

Summary: Set in September 2013, so after "Like a Phoenix" and "A Very Half-Blood Easter"!

Nico and Percy are on babysitting duty since Frank, Hazel and Leo want to have a night to themselves again. While Percy is busy being completely and utterly in love with his adorable niece, Nico remembers how the little rascal had come into their world only weeks prior.

I hadn't planned on writing this before September, since I always posted my headcanon pieces around the same time as they take place, but sooomeone told me a little late about their birthday so I decided to pull it forward. I know it's late (toootally your fault for telling me so late and having birthday during my exams xP), but happy birthday, flutefreak! I hope you like the Frazeleo fluff. ;3

A Spark of Life

Percy Jackson and the Fire-Catching Baby

Nico was a very concentrated and strict person when it came to work-ethnic. He was always focused and he opposed such notions as skipping work, or delaying it. But one thing in his apartment was currently making it really hard for Nico to leave.

"Who is the most beautiful and most adorable little baby on this planet? Who is? Yes you. Yes, you are. Are you not the cutest thing possible? Gods, I want to keep you", cooed Percy, tickling the little baby's tummy with his fingers. "I think I won't return you. No, I'm going to keep you."

The little girl giggled delighted, her chubby fingers grabbing Percy's black hair as the son of Poseidon was busy playing with her set of dark curls. Her dark, coal-like eyes were sparkling with glee as Percy made funny faces for her.

"I highly doubt my sister and her boys are going to like that", noted Nico amused.

"I so don't care!", pouted Percy, placing a kiss on the baby's nose. "I love her. I want to keep her."

The son of Hades smiled fondly. He had spend hours just sitting at the kitchen counter and watching his boyfriend play with the baby. The baby that was Nico's niece. Well, technically somehow. Biologically seen, Esperanza Nicole Zhang was the daughter of Frank and Leo. Even though Leo's very special ability had come as a surprise to everyone – especially to the threesome at hand – Frank, Leo and Hazel could not be more grateful and love the baby any more...

/flashback\

It had only been about three weeks ago, on Reyna's birthday. Her half-blooded friends had organized the biggest party possible. The praetors' house was practically bursting with people.

"Are you sure it's alright?" It had been about the twentieth time that Frank had asked this question.

Nico rolled his eyes, pulling Percy, who was comfortably seated on his lap, some closer. His dark eyes bore into his sister and her boys. Frank and Hazel kept glancing at Leo with guilty eyes.

"For the very last time, yes", groaned the highly pregnant son of Hephaestus. "It is alright for you two to drink and have fun. I don't need to party."

"See, little bro!", grinned Clarisse broadly as she wrapped one arm around his neck. "I told you your little boy toy wouldn't mind! Take a beer!"

She took the beer from her boyfriend, the son of Hermes only making a slight noise in protest, and handed it over to Frank. The big guy still looked slightly uncomfortable though and kept glancing at Leo. Percy cocked his head amused and leaned over to ruffle the Latino's hair.

"You are so generous", chuckled the son of Poseidon, looking at his own boyfriend out of the corner of his eyes. "I won't let Nico even near any coffee, alcohol or cigarettes when I'll be pregnant. Only out of fairness. If I'm not allowed to, he won't either."

"I think that's a little mean", hummed Leo, wiggling his nose. "I don't like alcohol or coffee anyway, so why should I not allow them to? And none of us are smokers. Wait, Nico smokes?"

"Sometimes", shrugged the Sea Prince and licked his lips. "It's totally cliche to say that, but it looks hot when he's smoking. All with leather jacket and gloomy aura, it's kind of hot. But no, he only smokes like one cigarette every two weeks or so, when work gets too straining or something."

The son of Hephaestus frowned thoughtful and turned to stare at Nico, obviously trying to picture the complete bad boy attire on the Ghost Prince, until he nodded slowly in approval. "Yeah. Yeah, I can picture that. Huh. Well, the smoking aside... Do you think I could get Hazel into a leather jacket too? And maybe perhaps a pair of leather pants and boots... Huh..."

"Perv", giggled Percy and shook his head. "But yeah, maybe. You should try. It's not like they could deny you anything at the moment. You're carrying their child, after all."

"True enough", grinned Leo broadly. "They're totally coddling me and spoiling me and trying to do everything to make me feel good. It's really adorable and awesome."

"I would say that I envy you", hummed the Sea Prince with tilted head. "But Nico is already carrying me on his hands, so yeah..."

"Yes, yes", interrupted Clarisse with a grunt, half way hanging over Frank's shoulder next to Leo. "We all know how adorable you two are and how much your lovers worship the ground you're walking on. Can we please talk about something more interesting? Like, the weather?"

Hazel on Leo's other side blushed slightly as she overheard Clarisse's comment before turning back to her conversation with Kayla, Nyssa, Reyna, Piper and Annabeth, all four of them busy giggling as they watched Jason dancing on the table and slowly shedding his clothes.

"We could have gotten you a professional stripper too", noted Nico with a half-grin.

"No! We're perfectly fine with that!", protested Katie, Reyna and Percy loudly.

"What was that?", grunted the son of Hades with a glare and stared at his boyfriend.

The Sea Prince gave his best, most innocent smile and batted his eyelashes at him. "What? Let me appreciate the sight, love. He is nice to look at."

"Yes, Nico, let him appreciate the sight!", agreed Katie with a broad smile as she turned her chair around so she could wrap her arms around Percy's neck and rest her chin on his shoulder.

Malcolm next to his girlfriend heaved a sigh and threw a pitiful glare at Nico, as if to say 'What can we do?'. The next second, the son of Athena turned back to his half-sister, distracting Annabeth from her conversation with the girls. Shaking his head, Nico turned to the girl on his other side.

"You know how to get Percy's undivided attention back, right?", smirked Lou mischievously while stealing her girlfriend Miranda's drink. "I would die to see it happen. You against Grace."

The son of Hades remained silent for a moment before determinedly shoving Percy off his lap. The Sea Prince gave a surprised yelp and held onto Frank so he didn't hit the ground. Glaring at his lover, he got comfortable on their chair again.

"What is your brother doing, Hazel?", huffed the son of Poseidon.

Golden eyes blinked curiously as Hazel turned her attention away from Leo to stare first at the Sea Prince and then at her brother, who was... slowly climbing onto the table next to Jason. She had a pretty good idea what he was up to, so she did the only logical thing.

"Haze! What are you doing? I can't see a thing!", whined the son of Hephaestus as Hazel's hands covered his eyes, trying to bat them away. "Frank! Tell her to stop!"

But the son of Mars was way too busy exchanging fighting strategies with Annabeth, Malcolm, Reyna and Clarisse. Piper, who was feeling slightly ignored by them, had moved on to sit between the daughters of Demeter, so she could braid Hazel's hair. Due to the fact that the daughter of Pluto was too busy shielding her lover's eyes she was in no position to fight him off.

"Piper, really. Why?", groaned Hazel annoyed and glared at her.

"Because she likes doing it", chorused Katie, Miranda and Lou, presenting their braided hair.

Piper gave a Cheshire grin at that, turning part of her attention to Percy. "Isn't it obvious?"

Sea-green eyes blinked dumbfounded as he stared up at Nico. The son of Death glared challenging at the son of the Sky and, as if on an invisible queue, both boys started to swing to the music and stripped in agonizingly slow pace. Percy gaped, his mouth dry and his cheeks red.

"NICO!", screamed both, Percy and Hazel loudly.

"Shut up, both of you!", chorused Katie, Reyna, Clarisse and Jake and Will, who just came to join.

The son of Apollo and his boyfriend were grinning broadly as they took their seats in the front row and enjoyed how the two lean heroes flexed their muscles and showed their fit physiques.

"Percy?", chimed Will with a happy grin. "Would you mind lending him to me some time?"

"No", growled the Sea Prince with a dark glare. "He's mine! And if he wants to have sex any time this month again, he should get down here and put that shirt and those jeans back on!"

"Why is my brother so embarrassing?", groaned Hazel and tried to hide her head in the crook of Leo's neck, but the fact that Piper was still braiding her hair didn't give her much moving space.

"Well, if it annoys you so much, why don't you join them?", suggested Annabeth loudly. "The ultimate showdown between the Little Big Three. Who has the best body?"

The party guests all started to cheer loudly and stamp their feet in agreement. Percy frowned slightly confused and looked around, until he saw the surprised and disapproving glare from his boyfriend. That was enough for him to know that it was the right thing to do. Grinning broadly, he too took a table of his own and climbed it. Later he would say that it was only the alcohol making him do it, but right now he simply enjoyed the wolf-whistles and the jealousy on Nico's face.

"Hazel!", whined Leo once more, trying to shake his girlfriend off. "If Jason, Nico and Percy are taking their clothes off, I demand to get to see it!"

"Oh and you should see it!", whistled Travis as he and his brother entered the room, carrying a barrel with Bacchus' best wine. "I never thought I'd get to see Percy without clothes."

"At least not since Nico snatched him away", agreed Connor and licked his lips. "But seeing all three of them, nicely lined up and losing clothes... Poor, little Leo, missing all the hotness."

The son of Mars send them a silencing glare to shut them up. Grinning broadly, the two brothers left to place the wine at the bar and then join Will, Jake and the girls in their cheering.

"I am certainly not letting you lecherously watch other guys", huffed Frank displeased.

"B—But I want", kept Leo whining.

The son of Mars rolled his eyes and placed one hand on top of the Latino's round belly. "I really don't care what you want when it involves watching half-naked men."

"Haze", pouted the son of Hephaestus and crossed his arms over his chest. "At least make him stop watching too. I don't want Frank drooling all over Percy, you hear me."

The daughter of Pluto frowned thoughtful, lifting her head up so she could stare at Frank with calculating eyes. She leaned over, straddling Leo's lap as best as possible so she could place one of her hands on Frank's face, effectively covering his eyes.

"Hey!", protested the son of Mars.

"No", hummed the Roman girl with a pleased grin. "I just decided that I really don't like the way you're looking at Percy. So none of you will get to watch. Simple as that."

She was looking very smug as she sat there and kept both her boys from watching while getting her hair braided by a humming Piper. Reyna, as she tore her eyes away from her dancing boyfriend, laughed at the amusing scene around her. She really loved her friends and what a tightly knitted community they had become. As the three sons of the Big Three climbed back down, she pulled Jason over to her by hooking her fingers into the waistband of his boxer-shorts. Her dark eyes caught how Percy and Nico got comfortable on the couch in the corner, enjoying their respective half-naked states. Snorting slightly, she turned her focus on her own half-naked boyfriend.

"Come here. I actually prefer to unpack my presents myself though", purred the female praetor.

The evening proceeded like that. With much dancing, more alcohol and even more make-out sessions for the different couples. By the end of the night, Frank was laying on the couch, with Hazel on one of his sides and Leo on the other, all three of them deep asleep. As deep asleep as every other guest of the party. At least until Leo's ear-piercing scream ripped most of them from Morpheus' arms. The first ones being Hazel and Frank, obviously.

"Leo? Are you alright? What's wrong, firebug?", asked the daughter of Pluto worried.

"I think... the baby... wants... out", gasped the Latino wide-eyed.

Frank frowned confused for a second, holding his head with one hand and Leo's hand with the other. Though then it dawned on him and his eyes widened frantically.

"Oh my gods, oh my gods, oh my gods", chanted the son of Mars in a panic.

At least until Hazel hit him upside the head and glared at him. "We've gone through this before. You and me, we need to stay calm so we don't upset Leo. And make yourself useful and go and get Will, Kayla or Austin. And hurry, for the love of it."

Frank nodded hastily and ran away, stumbling over several half-awake demi-gods on his search for the three children of Apollo. The only one he could find however was Will, buried somewhere beneath Jake, Chris and Clarisse in a heap near Katie, Malcolm, Lou and Miranda.

"Will!", exclaimed Frank loud enough to pull them from their drowsiness. "You need to come with me! Like, right now! Because I can't find Austin and Kayla anywhere and Leo is having the baby and I have no idea what I'm supposed to do, but I really, really need you!"

It took a few moments in which Clarisse too got up some. Katie from behind them grunted.

"Austin and already left yesterday with Mitchell and Lacy, because the three of them were already so busy throwing up", mumbled the daughter of Demeter.

"And Kayla is sleeping in the bathroom with her head in the toilette and Nyssa in her lap", snickered Clarisse. "She's out cold. Won't be a help for you guys."

"A... and neither will I...", yawned Will, ruffling his own hair. "I think I see two Jakes. As much as I appreciate that and as many dirty things as I can imagine... I highly doubt it's right... There being two Jakes, that is... sorry, Frank..."

Frank's eyes grew to the width of saucers as he turned desperately around to run back to his girlfriend and his still screaming boyfriend. "He—He... He's too drunk still and Austin and Kayla are too and I don't know what to do and I'm sorry I-"

"Frank!", interrupted Piper in her strongest charmspeaking voice. "Calm down."

The daughter of Aphrodite ruffled her hair as she emerged from behind the couch where Leo was still laying, Hazel massaging his round belly. Frank stood next to them, a desperate expression on his face as he stared over at Piper. The native-American huffed with one raised eyebrow, her eyes taking the situation in and as in an instant, she was wide-awake. Leaning down, she poked the three demi-gods who laid nestled around her.

"Leo is having the baby and the children of Apollo are out of commission. Wake up."

Those were all the information Percy, Nico and Annabeth needed to try and wriggle free from their little cuddling session. The two sons of the Big Three were still only clad in their boxer-shorts and Nico had one hand down Percy's backside. Annabeth's hair were pointing into every direction, but her eyes were still clear and calculating. Percy, Nico, Annabeth and Piper had probably been the ones to drink the least, because Nico and Piper had soon started to fall into conversation about their work, while Annabeth and Percy had been trying to distract them.

"What's that supposed to mean?", asked Percy as he hurried around the couch to sit down beside Leo's head and cradle it in his lap. "Hey there, firebug. How are you feeling?"

"Pain", gasped the Latino, staring up with wide eyes. "Make it stop? Where's... Where's Will?"

Nico came to stand beside his sister, resting one calming hand on her shoulder, while Piper and Annabeth stayed behind the couch to give Leo enough breathing space. All eyes turned to Frank questioningly. But before Frank could answer, the previously woken demi-gods came into full consciousness and started to also circle them, everyone throwing loud questions around, overwhelming the already defeated son of Mars even more. The Canadian had no idea what to do, or how to speak. At least until all the ruckus was finally loud enough to wake the owners of the house. The descending praetors had enough authority to shut at least most of them up, making it possible for Piper to shut the rest of them up with her charmspeak.

"Good, now that our house is calm again, does someone want to explain what's caused this to begin with?", asked Reyna with one raised eyebrow. "I had thought to be woken up to pancakes and waffles and much, much coffee and not to a hoard of berserk demi-gods-"

The high-pitched scream of Leo interrupted her rant and effectively told her everything she needed to know. Both praetors hurried down the last steps of the stairs to join their friends.

"The baby wants out, but Kayla and Austin and Will are in no physical state to deliver the baby and now we have no idea what to do, because those three were the only ones who had taught themselves everything about male pregnancies and their special anatomy", rattled Frank down.

"And if we wait until at least one of them is undrunk enough to do it...?", asked Jason.

The fact that 'undrunk' was the new sober and that about seventy-five percent of the present demi-gods agreed to that without correcting him told Percy that handing any of them a scalpel at the moment would be the dumbest thing possible. Biting his lower lip, he ran his fingers through Leo's curls and tried to calm the Latino down a bit.

"The baby's early", supplied Will in a slightly slurred voice and with crossed eyes. "Too early. If it wants out now, we can't wait. It could be dangerous for both, the kid and Leo."

Hazel had turned to face the praetors, her back to her still whimpering lover. Nico frowned as he noticed that and took a step around her so he could face her again. Her hands were balled to fists and trembling next to her body. With knitted eyebrows, he grabbed one of her hands. Golden eyes turned to stare at him pleadingly, tears shimmering in them.

"I—If something happens to the baby", whispered the daughter of Pluto in a broken voice. "You know how afraid Leo was when he first learned about this pregnancy, how crazy he drove himself about not being a good mom... If something happens to the baby, we'll not just lose her, we'll lose them both. And I can't, I physically, mentally and emotionally can not lose Leo."

Nico stared into her eyes and what he saw in them reminded him of his own expression in the mirror after Bianca had died, only a hundred times worse. Closing his eyes, he took one calming breath. He would not let his little sister suffer like that, he would find a solution.

"Okay", nodded the son of Hades solemnly, his voice even and loud. "Okay. Reyna, Jason. I need you two to help the others around the house. We need bowls with water, hot water. And clean towels, lots of them. Sterilized, if possible. And cushions for Leo."

"Whoa, what do you think you're doing, Zombie Boy?", grunted Clarisse, lifting one eyebrow. "Not in a trillion years I'd give you a scalpel and let you near anyone living."

"I don't intend to operate anyone", huffed Nico, giving her a dark glare. "Now do as I said."

His commanding voice was pretty impressive, so impressive that everyone finally got moving, until only Nico, Percy, Frank, Hazel and Leo remained in the room. The first ones to return were Reyna, Annabeth and Piper, loaded with cushions and pillows and blankets, placing them all around and as much as possible also beneath Leo.

"What are you up to, Nico?", whispered Percy with a confused frown.

"Just... stay where you are and try to distract Leo for a bit, amore", replied the son of Hades in a soft voice, cupping his boyfriend's cheek. "Trust me."

The Sea Prince chuckled slightly as he leaned in to peck Nico's lips. "Always, you know that."

"Nico!", called Jason out of breath as he and the others returned to the living room. "We got everything you asked for. But... what exactly do you intend to do?"

"I travel through solid walls and the earth itself", started Nico while taking deep, slow breaths. "I can take people with me. Why should I not be able to travel someone else without me being with them? I've never tried it before, but Esperanza is a baby, in size the smallest human possible and less mass makes it easier. There's also only a thin layer of skin and organs separating us and no continents or anything alike. I'm stronger than I ever was. But for this to work, I need concentration and shadows. Many shadows. Turn the light off and shut the fuck up, please."

For a moment there was complete silence between them. Everyone was looking around questioningly, not sure if what Nico was up to was a good idea (and some still trying to grasp what Nico was planning). In the end, all eyes turned to Hazel (because Leo was in too much pain due to contractions and Frank was short of a panic/heart-attack due to not knowing what to do). Her golden eyes looked at Nico thoughtful, fearful and also hopeful.

"Do... Do as he says", whispered the daughter of Pluto, squeezing her brother's hand, staring deep into his Tartarus dark eyes. "Please safe them, please safe my family, Nico."

He squeezed her hand back reassuringly before he let go of it and placed both of his hands on Leo's stomach. The room turned dark, as dark as possible, the curtains drawn and the lights turned off. No one even dared to breath, afraid to interrupt Nico's concentration. The only sounds were Leo's screams and Percy's soothing words. No one dared to chide Percy about talking, knowing that the Sea Prince's voice was currently not just calming Leo but also earthing Nico.

"Come on, kiddo", whispered the son of Hades, his brows furrowed in deep concentration. "Your parents really want to meet you. Actually, there are many people waiting for you here."

The demi-gods cowered together as the shadows started moving. They swirled around, like they were sucked in by an invisible force. Though looking closer, it was quite obvious that said force was Nico. The darkness surrounding him and Leo was thick like ink and heavy as lead, surrounding them until no one could even see their silhouettes anymore. Frank grew antsy, the panic raising, a panic far worse than any he had ever experienced. He wrapped his arms around Hazel, hugging her close and trying to calm himself with her scent and warmth.

"They're... going to be fine, right?", asked the son of Mars in a very untypical and broken voice. "Our firebug and our sparky are going to be fine, right? We're not... They won't..."

"They'll be fine", whispered Hazel, her eyes closed tightly. "They'll be fine. They'll be fine. They'll be fine. They have to be fine. They're fine. They have to be fine. They're fine..."

It turned into a mumbled chanting, a pleading beg to the gods and everyone listening. Tears were gathering in the corners of her eyes. The baby was way too early, something was wrong. But no one was there to take care of it. They couldn't lose their daughter before her birth. They hadn't even met her properly, they couldn't lose her before that. They hadn't even talked about a name yet. Sure, they mostly called her sparky and Leo had voiced his desire to name her after his late mother, but they had not agreed on anything yet. A child should never die before having a name. No, a child should never die. Especially not theirs. But what would even be worse would be to also lose their firebug. Not their Leo, he had only become theirs not even a year ago. Their time together had been so short, they needed more. There were still so many things they wanted to share. Like their wedding. And their second child. All the things they wanted to see and do.

The most horrible and fear-filled moment in Hazel's life, more horrible than the moment before dying, was the absolute silence that followed. No screaming from Leo, no grunted mumbling from Nico, no soothing whispers from Percy. Nothing. But what came next was more freeing, more relieving and filled with more happiness than returning to life. A high-pitched scream, followed by giggles and babbling, accompanied by Leo's soft cooing. The relief filling her heart made her knees wobble. If not for Frank's arms around her waist, she would have collapsed.

"H—Haze, look", whispered the son of Mars, his voice stocking and soft, obviously in total awe. "She's beautiful... Sh—She's perfect..."

Golden eyes opened reluctantly. It took her brain a moment to comprehend the scene in front of her. Her brother stood in front of the couch, shaking on the whole body. Clarisse and Reyna stood behind him, supporting him so he wouldn't collapse. He was holding a baby, a baby whose full attention was on the fingers tickling her belly and combing through her hair. Those fingers belonged to Leo. The Latino had sat up, with Percy's help, to reach out for his daughter.

"Y—You did it", mumbled the daughter of Pluto stunned and moved forward, half-hugging her brother with shaking limbs. "Thank you, thank you so much..."

"No problem", chuckled Nico, completely out of breath. "But I would love for you to take her off me, because she's getting heavy and I need to lay down... I really need to..."

"With great power comes the great need to take a nap, eh?", grinned Percy, sneaked out from behind Leo as he was being replaced by Frank. "Come on, let's borrow Jayna's bed."

"Don't call us that", huffed Reyna with a glare as she handed the Ghost Prince over to his boyfriend. "Jason, help them upstairs and remove my lingerie, will you?"

The son of Jupiter nodded hastily and went to Nico's other side, helping Percy as he guided the son of Hades upstairs. Reyna all the while chased everyone else out of the living room with a single glare, everyone aside from Nyssa, Jake and Will. The son of Apollo took the baby to check if it was alright, Nyssa and Jake helped cleaning her. Hazel used the time to slowly collapse on the couch next to her two lovers, wrapping her arms around Leo's neck to pull him against her chest.

"I'm so glad you're okay, firebug", whispered the golden-eyed girl.

Frank grunted in agreement and Hazel guessed that he was still too shocked and speechless to really say anything at all. His arms though were so tenderly wrapped around Leo's waist to deliver the message: He was glad Leo was alright and still with them.

"How are you feeling, Leo?", asked Kayla with a frown as she practically crawled out of the bathroom, looking around. "You look worse than I am feeling..."

"Fine, just tired", yawned the Latino. "I'm just glad I didn't have to go through birth. Being a woman must suck big times..." The son of Hephaestus smiled shallowly, still obviously exhausted, before turning serious. "Now hand over my daughter or I will hurt you."

"Aw, our little Leo is in full mommy-mode", cooed Nyssa as she walked over to them, a bundle in her hands. "See that, Sparky? Your mommy demands to finally meet you."

"Mamá", corrected Leo. "We agreed on that, so we won't confuse the kids. Hazel will be the mom."

"Okay, okay", chuckled Jake, waving one hand dismissively. "So, Sparky. Meet your parents. That big guy looking like he got hit by a lightning bolt is your dad, the pretty lady with the funny hair is your mom and that exhausted imp that looks like a taller version of you is your mamá. Say hello."

Hazel was in awe, quite equal to Frank, as she stared at the baby given to Leo. The son of Hephaestus was glowing and smiling brightly as he was cradling the baby close to his chest. Frank's chin rested on Leo's shoulder so so he could take a good look at his daughter, staring at the baby doe-eyed as though she was a completely different species. Hazel smiled softly at them, leaning in so she could take a close look at the baby too.

"Hey, Sparky", grinned Leo, rubbing his nose against hers. "It's good to finally get to see you. I hope you remember my voice. You know, your dad and mom and me are going to love you very, very much, what do you think? Gods, you're so cute."

"That is so true!", agreed Nyssa with a squeal. "She's like a mini Leo!"

Frank had to agree to that. The big, sparkling earthy-rich eyes staring up at him looked so much like Leo's, just without the years of pain. Her skin was a light caramel, her cheeks chubby and with a light rosy tint, her ears slightly pointy just like Leo's and she even already had a light tuff of curls.

"She really looks like you, firebug", grinned Hazel pleased and leaned over to place a kiss on Leo's cheek. "She's perfect. You are perfect and you made a perfect baby."

"A perfectly healthy baby at that", interjected Will. "Congratulations, you three."

Piper, Annabeth, Percy and Jason got back downstairs again just as most other campers squeezed back in to at least take a look. Jason came to stand behind Reyna with some distance to the couch, yet still able to look at the young family. Percy and Annabeth grinned broadly as they watched from behind the couch, together with Kayla and Nyssa. Malcolm looked plenty uncomfortable, staring at his big sister for help as he noticed the sparkling eyes of his girlfriend, Chris next to him tried not to laugh at his demise. Katie was swooning over the baby, together with her younger sister Miranda, both their eyes gleaming joyfully. Lou deemed it unfit that Nico was the only one not present though so she grabbed Piper's hand and she sneaked upstairs just as the other siblings of the parents took proud stand behind the couch.

"You did good, little brother", praised Jake and Clarisse at once.

"Totally. But... You're not going to name her Sparky... right?", asked Nyssa half-casual. "Right?"

"Nys, don't bug them", chided Annabeth as she saw her girlfriend and Lou helping Nico down the stairs, hurrying over to them with Percy to help. "They're still shocked and exhausted."

The son of Poseidon cuddled up against his Ghost Prince, pressing his hands against Nico's sides to get the water pulsing, using his enhanced healing powers to take away some of his boyfriend's exhaustion. Piper and Annabeth sat down on the couch next to them, looking over at the Latino questioningly. The son of Hephaestus was still completely entranced by his daughter.

"No, it's alright", hummed Leo softly and looked up at them. "She needs to meet her whole family. See all those nice people here? They're some of your aunts and uncles and they will love and cherish you and babysit you when mom, dad and me want some alone-time." The half-bloods laughed at that, shaking their heads. "These are your aunt Clarisse and your uncle Chris, don't let uncle Chris teach you too much mischief, instead go to aunt Clarisse to learn combat once you're older", started the Latino, pointing at the couple standing behind Frank. "And your aunts Kayla and Nyssa and your uncles Will and Jake, but you need to watch out for needles with uncle Will and have aunt Kayla teach you about using a bow so you will one day be able to outsmart your dad and you will built great things with uncle Jake and aunt Nyssa." The two couples smiled softly and waved at the little girl. "Then there are your aunts Lou, Miranda and Katie and your uncle Malcolm, I'm sure he'll help you through school and aunt Miranda and aunt Katie will teach you all about nature, but you have to be cautious so aunt Lou won't hex you." The daughter of Hecate winked as the two brunette girls between her and Malcolm squealed at the cute baby and Malcolm looked majorly uncomfortable. "Your uncles Connor and Travis will most likely get you into much trouble...", drawled Leo thoughtful as the Stolls high-fived with mischievous grins, obviously planning all the things they would be able to teach the kid. "And those are your aunts Piper, Annabeth and Reyna, I'm pretty sure they're the ones to babysit you the most, because aunt Reyna is strict, aunt Annabeth will teach you and aunt Piper is loving, the perfect babysitting-unit." Leo grinned broadly, batting his eyelashes at them. "And of course your uncles Jason, Percy and Nico. They will teach you about all the awesome adventures they had and prepare you for all the awesome adventures you will one day have." Leo paused for a moment, looking at Frank and Hazel shortly before turning his undivided attention back to his daughter. "Sparky, they will all love you very much and one day you will have many adventures with the cousins they will give you. But for now you're the only one so until then, you'll have to be adorable enough for all of them to share." He rubbed his nose against hers once more, making her giggle in delight. "Guys, meet your niece, Esperanza Nicole Zhang."

"Nicole?", groaned the son of Hades, hiding his face in the crook of Percy's neck. "You can't be serious. You will not name your daughter after me."

"She's here because of you", replied Leo, turning honest, big eyes on him. "I owe you her life."

"Urgh, those puppy eyes", moaned Nico, squeezing his eyes shut. "Nearly as bad as Percy..."

"Esperanza Nicole Zhang", repeated Hazel in a soft voice. "I like it."

"Uhu", nodded Frank, still short on words.

The others laughed at the still dumbstruck expression on Frank's face. For a little while, everyone tried to at least pat her head once or make a funny face so she would giggle high pitched, at least until Will and Kayla put their feet down, declaring it enough.

"Leo and Esperanza need rest, this is too much for both of them. And all of you should get home and sleep through your hangovers. She will stay so cute for a while, so plenty of time to visit and coddle her", ordered the son of Apollo strictly.

"And you, Leo, rest", added Kayla, wiggling her finger in warning.

/flashback|end\

The ringing of the doorbell broke the spell, making Esperanza cry in surprise and Percy glare at the door fiercely as though it was a dangerous monster. Nico chuckled softly and went to open. His amusement turned into surprise as he saw Piper and Lou standing in front of him, glaring.

"You're late", stated the daughter of Aphrodite irritated.

"Two hours late", added the young witch, her hands stemmed against her hips.

"Sorry, I got... oh, who am I trying to kid?", sighed Nico and got out of the way. "Percy looks so content and perfect with Esperanza. I just can't... I could watch him all day."

He motioned for the girls to follow him and they did. All three of them grinned broadly as they saw the content Sea Prince, playing with the baby. Piper bit her lips as she watched them play. Whenever Esperanza clapped her hands, little sparks of fire flew off, surprising and scaring the little girl, but Percy made that fear disappear by wrapping them in little water-bubbles, making the colorful bubbles fly around the baby, which made her giggle in delight once more.

"He's really good with the kid", noted Lou curiously, nudging her best friend. "I'm pretty sure you can't wait to make some of your own, can you? Eh, eh?"

Nico blushed slightly and turned away from her. "Well... He's making it really hard not to want it at the moment. I mean, just look at him! He looks so content. I can't imagine how content he would look if it were our baby, our own blood..."

"I suppose he would explode with joy", contemplated the daughter of Hecate thoughtful.

"How long are you going to babysit her?" asked Piper as she sat down on the soft and fluffy carpet next to the son of Poseidon. "It's had to get Leo out of the same room most of the times. How did you manage to convince him that you're fit to watch over his little angel?"

Percy chuckled slightly. For as much as Leo had ensured to have many babysitters at his back and call, he really had a hard time to ever let her out of his sight.

"Hazel and Frank convinced him that she would be fine", replied the Sea Prince.

"Where is she? Is she fine? Is she alright? Sparky?"

The sudden outburst interrupted them as Leo, Frank and Hazel stumbled into the apartment, the yelping of Mrs. O'Leary could be heard outside. The son of Hephaestus rushed over to Percy, Piper and Esperanza, leaning over his daughter to give her a blinding smile.

"Five hours, that's a new record, sis", smirked Nico teasingly. "If you keep going like that you're going to have a full day with Leo in about... two years?"

"So not funny", sighed the daughter of Pluto, sitting down next to him and resting her cheek against his shoulder. "We tried to go on a date with him, but he kept worrying about Sparky..."

"I think that's only natural", huffed Percy and turned to glare at the children of the underworld. "She's his little princess, after all. Keep that in mind, di Angelo. If you're going to try and separate me from our baby within the first eighteen years, I'll cut you."

"Of course, amore", chuckled the Ghost Prince amused.

"Can we go home now? I've missed too much of my Sparky-time?", asked Leo with pleading eyes, cradling his daughter close to his chest. "Right, my little Sparky?"

The Latina squealed as if in agreement, tugging on her mamá's curls as the two of them joined Frank and Hazel. Grinning contently, the son of Mars wrapped his arms protectively around Leo, placing his chin on Leo's head. Hazel chewed her lips as delighted as she stared at them. She loved how they looked together, her boys and their little girl. Their perfect, little girl.

"Let's get home", nodded the daughter of Pluto. "I want some family cuddles done. Right now."

"It's the only thing we do in our bed anymore aside from sleeping", mouthed Frank miserable.

"Have fun, you guys", grinned Percy and waved them off. "You can drop her off any time. Seriously, even in the middle of the night, just bring her here if you want to be alone."

"Will do", nodded Frank amused.

"But that won't suffice for long, brother. How about you make Percy his own so he doesn't have to borrow ours?", suggested Hazel with a wink. "Bye, bye."

The last thing the threesome heard was Nico's grunt before they left. Hazel and Esperanza giggled, golden eyes staring down at the joyful little baby. Frank's hand on Leo's backside slid lower and lower until it rested on the Latino's ass, seeing as this was about as much action as he was getting ever since their daughter's birth. Not that he was really up to anything these days. Esperanza was quite the hand full of work, always demanding attention and mostly so by catching fire. It was hard enough to watch a baby, but a baby that could burst into flames if she got too excited? They could really be glad that they had such a wonderful and caring family to support them and help them. At least two of their friends were practically constantly close to aid help if the need arose, the most handy of those of course being the Sea Prince, or the living fire-extinguisher as they had secretly dubbed him. Frank had never really thought about having kids, much less about having them so early in his life – and in his relationship – but he wouldn't trade Esperanza for the world. She was his little angel, his firstborn child, the child he had sired with one of his two loves. If the need would call for it, he would single-handedly burn the world down to keep her safe.

She was their little miracle, their spark of life.

~*~ The End ~*~