Percy woke up and got dressed. He had a feeling something was wrong, but he didn't take that feeling too seriously. Something was usually wrong anyway, it's not like today would be any different. He threw a jacket over his shoulder as he walked out the door because, even though it didn't snow in Camp Half-Blood, it was still winter. He walked to the dining pavilion and immediately surrounded by people. They were all asking what seemed to be the same question, but he couldn't exactly make out the words because they were all shouting. Glancing down at them, he realized that most of them were Athena campers.

"Hey!" he yelled, making them all go silent. He pointed at Malcolm and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Do you know where Annabeth is? She wasn't in her bed when we woke up. We've searched the entire camp for he-"

"You can't find Annabeth?" Percy asked urgently. Malcolm paused and looked cautiously up at Percy. A cold feeling washed over Percy as Malcolm said those next words.

"You mean she wasn't with you?" Percy didn't even bother to answer as he turned and sprinted out of the pavilion, knocking down all of the campers in his way. He ran to the sea and down the shore and back again. He ran to the Athena cabin and went in without knocking, already knowing that she wouldn't be in there, her siblings would have already checked. He checked the sparing arena as he checked his head for where she could be. Annabeth wouldn't leave camp without telling Percy where she was going. Did she tell him? He ran through what happened last night in his mind.

"Tomorrow, your butt is going so far into the ground during sparing, you're going to be having dinner with Hades," Annabeth laughed, throwing her head back with a laugh. They were walking back to their cabins after dinner, about to go to bed.

"You wish you could beat this," Percy said, flexing his muscles jokingly.

"Oh I know I can. How many times have I only since we've been here for Christmas break?"

"Five," he muttered.

"What's that?" she asked innocently.

"Five but that's just because-"

"Nope. No excuses, Seaweed Brain. You should be pummeling me, you're invincible for gods sake."

"You're just so…distracting."

"Distracting how?" she said, turning around as they reached her cabin.

"Because you're so…you." Percy tried to get out.

"Aww, honey," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Flattery will get you nowhere." Annabeth turned, flouncing off to her cabin. He grabbed her wrist and spun her around.

"Not so fast." He put his lips to hers briefly and pulled away with a smile on his face. "Goodnight, honey."

She rolled her eyes, unable to hide her smile, and turned back around. "'Night, darling."

Percy wasn't really fantastic at sorting through hidden messages, but he was ninety-seven percent sure she had put none into her goodnight rant last night. Okay, maybe eighty-four percent sure. So she had to still be in camp. Maybe she's with Chiron, Percy thought, mentally slapping himself in the head. Why didn't he check there first, she does this a lot. Still, relieved as he might be, he jogged to the Big House in search of his girlfriend. Not even bothering to knock, he burst into the room where Chiron would usually be doing…something. Percy never really knew what that horse did in his spare time. He was almost plowed over by the wheelchair on it's way out from the room he was about to enter.

"Percy!" Chiron said, sounding shocked. "To what do I deserve the pleasu-"

"Do you know where Annabeth is?" Percy said, interrupting him.

"Why I- no, Percy. I don't," Chiron said concernedly.

"Do you have any idea where she could be?" Percy asked, starting to really panic now.

"No, no I don't. Why, can you not find her?"

"Malcolm said she wasn't in her bed and she's nowhere around camp and-" Percy started to hyperventilate. Now this may sound really really lame but this was Annabeth. Annabeth wasn't anywhere.

"Well, Percy, what if she's-"

"Maybe she's at Thalia's tree!" he sprinted out of the cabin and up the hill before Chiron could stop him. Even before he got to the tree, he knew she wasn't there. He slid down the trunk and lay at the base of the big pine. She wouldn't just leave camp. She wouldn't. Where could she possibly be. Even if she left camp, where would she go? Maybe my place, or her school. Percy sighed, sitting up. Feeble attempts maybe, but it was a start. He got up and started walking to his cabin. He had to contain himself, if the other campers saw him as a nervous wreck, they would all be a nervous wreck, even if they didn't know why he was so shaken. Percy had always been humble, he wasn't blind. He noticed the impact he had on all of the campers, especially the new ones. The returners tell the stories of his "adventures" all the time around the campfire. The newbies look up to him like some sort of god. I guess, he thought, I could have been a god if I wanted to be. But that's beside the point. He walked through the maze of cabins toward his own, getting stopped my numerous people.

"Did you find her?"

"What's going on?"

"Why is everyone so upset?"

"Guys, I'll explain everything later, just let me get through," he said.

"But, Percy-"

"Wait, what-"

"Prissy!"

At that familiar voice he turned around and found himself face to face with the daughter of Ares.

"Yes, Clarisse?" he said.

"What is going on?" Clarisse asked. "I heard from Will Solace that Annabeth is gone and half the camp is running around and- what is going on?"

"I don't know," he said honestly.

"Is Annabeth gone?" she asked. He just looked at her. When he didn't answer, she repeated, "Is Annabeth gone?" If Percy didn't know her so well, he wouldn't have caught the slight desperation and anxiety in her voice.

"I'm-I'm not sure," he answered, voice cracking as he turned his head and body back towards his own cabin. "I have to- I need to-I just have to go do something."

"But-"

He kept walking. Past the questions, past the interrogations, into the safety of his home. He went to the desk next to his table and pulled out a gold coin. He took out a water bottle, opening it, and tossing the water into the air. With his mind, he was able to make a sort of mist with it. "Please," he whispered along with the prayer to the goddess Iris as he tossed the drachma into the spray. "Sally Jackson," he said out loud and was granted with a vision of his mom. "Mom?" The woman standing on the other side of the wall of water turned to face him and a smile played across her face.

"Yes, Percy?" He took a deep breath and got right to the point.

"Is Annabeth there?" Percy couldn't imagine why his girlfriend would need to go back to his apartment all the way in New York but he hoped and hoped and-

"Annabeth? Why would Annabeth be here, I thought she was at camp with you," Sally's smile faded as she gazed with concern at her son. "What's wrong, Percy?" And with those words, he broke.

"She's-she's gone. I can't find her. I don't know where she is, and she would tell me where she is, unless she doesn't know where she is then she got kidnapped and that's bad. Oh no, this is so bad, She's not here, she's not anywhere, I can't find her, I can't find her, I can't find-"

"Percy, calm down, obviously she has to be somewhere, don't worry. We'll find her. Have you asked Chiron if he knows? Maybe he sent her on some quest or something…"

"No, he didn't even know she was gone, but she is, oh gods," Percy sat down on the ground and stared at his shoes. "I-I need to find her she's somewhere, right, Mom?"

Sally smiled a sad little smile as she said, "Yes, she's somewhere. Go find her, check back with me when you can. I'll let you know if she turns up."

He knew she wanted to talk more, but at this point, he was sad to say, he didn't care. "She's somewhere. Im going to find her. Okay Ill find her. Bye, Mom," Percy said, shutting of the Iris message.

Where else? Where else? School? It's a longshot but it's better than nothing. He got off the floor and ran to the Athena cabin. There was no one in there; they were probably all looking for their sibling. Percy ran to Annabeth's bunk and reached for the phone that was on her dresser. He steered clear of the bed that contained Daedalus's laptop and a bunch of notes for Olympus because, even though she was gone, if he touched her architecture stuff she would full out murder him, Curse or not. He scrolled through her contacts and landed on the name Lauren. Percy pressed the call button and put the phone to his ear. Right now, he didn't care about the monsters that were probably making a beeline for camp, he could take down Kronos all over again in order to find Annabeth.

After three rings, there was a "Hello?" from the other side of the line and Percy pounced. "Lauren? Lauren. Are you still at school?"

"Um, you don't sound like Annabeth," the girl said matter-of-factly.

"No, of course not, this is Percy. Lauren, are you still at school?"

"Oh, hey, Percy! How are you doing?"

"LAUREN could you please just answer the damn question."

"Fine, fine, jeesh, pushy. Yeah, I thought you knew that, my parents are too lazy to fly me back to their place for the holidays," Lauren said breezily. Percy could picture her doing her nails in her dorm room at this exact moment.

"So, you're in your room right now?" Percy said, picking up Annabeth's New York Yankees cap from the hook next to her bunk. Well, guess she's not hiding.

"Yes, I am, Mr. Pushy."

"And you're alone?"

"Yes, I am." Percy's brain fuzzed over. Even if Annabeth was at school, she rarely left her and Lauren's room. If she wasn't there with her roommate, she wasn't there at all. There was a pause. "Why?"

"No reason, thanks."

"But-" He hung up and threw the phone on the bed in frustration.

"No luck?" Percy jumped and turned around, his pen already in his hand. A familiar-looking little girl of about 10 stood in the doorway. After a second, he realized this was one of Annabeth's sisters. She was one of the smaller ones; she looked like she was about 6 years old. He couldn't remember her name, but he was sure that they were related.

Putting his weapon back in his pocket, he walked toward her. "Nope,"

"Oh," she almost whispered, not moving. They just stood there for about a second before Percy made to get around her, and she said, "You should probably tell everyone what's going on, we almost had a riot."

"A riot?"

"Pretty much. Travis and Connor started handing out flaming torches."

"I swear to all the gods, those sons of Hermes are going to get it-"

"Where's my sister?"

Percy glanced at the girl and quickly made to get around her again. This time, the girl stepped in front of him so he couldn't get out. She stood defiantly in front of him her bottom lip trembling. "Do you know where she is? Do you know if she's okay?"

He looked at her big, grey eyes, so much like Annabeth's. He almost broke again, just like he did in his own cabin. Almost. Kneeling down, he made sure he was level with those intelligent orbs as he said a single word that almost broke him. "No."