The next day, tension sat in the air like an unwanted visitor.

Annabeth and I were barely speaking, looking away if we held each other's eyes for more than a few seconds.

Even though I was willing to stand by all the anger and frustration I had felt last night, it wasn't worth the feeling I had the next day.

My parents could have sensed the strained aura between us without even having heard all the fighting coming from my room last night. My mom seemed to know to leave it alone and I was silently grateful for that.

It was obvious that Annabeth and I weren't trying to ignore each other. We would find ourselves standing alone in the kitchen together or positioned across from each other in the living room, but neither one of us spoke. It was as if we were waiting for the other one to initiate the first words. There was still a silent battle going on and I was willing to surrender just to make the stress go away. We had both laid our armor down and it was time for the truce.

There were only so many ways to keep avoiding each other in a two bedroom apartment while we were snowed in, because that afternoon it felt like neither of us could take it anymore. We were going to talk one way or another, but I hadn't exactly planned on running into Annabeth in the corridor the way it happened.

I was walking towards my room as Annabeth walked back from the bathroom down our narrow hallway. Both of us seemed to stop in our tracks before we ran into each other. Annabeth was the first to break our gaze, looking at the blank wall next to her. A loose strand of hair fell forward from behind her ear and for the first time I noticed that she looked as if she hadn't gotten any more sleep than I had.

We stood there for a minute, avoiding each other's glances. I felt like needles were going through my entire body. I wasn't expecting it when Annabeth took a deep breath. Green met gray at the same time. Annabeth bit her lip. "Was that our first real fight?" she mumbled.

I found myself staring at her for a second before loosening myself. I gave her a small smile. "I think it was."

She held my eyes and it was enough to break the ice. I sighed, "Annabeth, listen-"

Annabeth shook her head before I could even start. "I have something to tell you," she said.

I blinked. "What is it?"

The longer we stood in the hallway, the more uneasy Annabeth seemed to get. There were different things swimming in gray eyes that I couldn't make sense of. When she realized she had trailed off, Annabeth seemed to collect herself quickly. "Never mind that, it can wait," she said, changing her mind. "But, I just want you to know that I thought about it."

"Thought about it?" I asked. "You mean about going to New Hampshire?"

Annabeth nodded.

There was another beat of silence before Annabeth spoke and I wasn't expecting what came next.

"I can't go with you," Annabeth said. When she saw the look on my face, she didn't wait for my response before beginning to explain herself. "You know I can't just get up and go to another state whenever I want. What if my dad found it? Besides, by law, I can't even leave the state without filing advanced notice while I'm attending this boarding school here."

"It's not like they're going to find out," I argued. "You can tell your dad-"

"It's not that simple," Annabeth said, cutting me off. "Trust me, I've thought about it. The last thing I want is for you to gone alone but I don't have a choice, Percy."

I saw the look on her face and knew that she had put in hours of thought into it. There was no reason Annabeth wouldn't want to come, especially not after our stupid fight when she accused Rachel of being my "ex-girlfriend".

Annabeth exhaled. "And, we can't forget about Nico. He could show up again at any given moment. He even left his sword in your room. There's no telling when he'll come back for it. Besides, someone needs to stay here and keep in touch with the camp about all of this."

There was a part of me that new she had a point, but I didn't want to admit it. I hadn't even thought of going up there alone, and now I knew I was going to have to take care of Rachel's monsters by myself.

I looked back at Annabeth, making a last desperate effort to propose anything to get her to change her mind. "It'll only take a few days," I reminded her. "We'll be back before anything happens."

"Percy," Annabeth said, her voice louder this time. "I can't go. You know that."

Those were the last words spoken about the matter before I finally took a deep breath. As much as every thought in my mind was repelling against the idea, I didn't want to argue. A part of me knew that it wasn't going to change things. "Alright," I finally said, watching Annabeth relax slowly.

It didn't take long for the day to progress after that. The sun sank behind the thick clouds across the Manhattan skyline quickly.

That evening, I folded my clothes, shoving them into a back pack. Annabeth sat on my bed, hugging her knees.

She barely spoke to me as I packed, even though I could feel her eyes following my hands. Besides the sound of clothes crinkling and the zipper on the back pack, a deep silence consumed the room. I couldn't tell if Annabeth was thinking or if she was just watching.

When I was done, I set the backpack aside, but Annabeth's eyes didn't move and I knew she was lost in her thoughts. Thin, light snow flakes could be seen coming down against the dark night sky from my window. It wasn't until the snow slowed down outside that I finally touched Annabeth's shoulder.

She looked startled glancing up at me, obviously brought out of her thoughts. "Did you finish packing?"

I didn't know if my face showed the concern I was feeling at that moment, but I sat down on the bed next to her. "Are you okay?" I asked, "Seriously?"

Annabeth didn't answer me, realizing quickly that I had been done a long time ago. Without really saying anything, she slid off the bed, going over to where her suitcase sat in the corner of my room. She knelt down, searching for something tucked underneath her clothes. When she came back to the bed, she was holding something in her hands wrapped in an old cloth.

I frowned as she handed it to me.

"Take it," Annabeth told me. "For Rachel, I mean."

Safely tucked inside was a celestial bronze blade. Its handle was large, decorated with ancient Greek writing and silver prints.

I looked back at Annabeth.

"It's an extra," she told me. "I remembered I had it in my luggage. You know, just in case."

"You want Rachel to have it?"

"It'll be easy for her to handle," Annabeth explained. "She needs something that can protect her against the monsters. Scratching and kicking won't hold them back for long."

I nodded slowly, wrapping the blade back in its cloth and finding room to put it on the bottom of the backpack.

When Annabeth sat back down on my mattress, I found myself looking at her. "Paul wants us to leave first thing tomorrow morning."

Annabeth was staring out towards the window where the snowflakes had nearly stopped falling. "That's probably smart," she said. I couldn't read the tone in her voice but she almost sounded far away in a sense.

As I looked at her, my mind kept narrowing down on small details like how she had gotten her camp necklace back from her dorm. The glass beads seemed to sparkle as they hung against her collar bone.

I had to focus to realize that Annabeth was saying something when she spoke. "I think the airports are starting to re-open. My dad will probably want me home as soon as a flight to California shows up," she told me.

I tried not to let it show, but I had to admit it wasn't exactly the best thing to hear. Christmas was only a few weeks away and at this rate, she'd be spending it in San Fransico. Then I suddenly felt guilty for not being happier. After all, what Annabeth really wanted was to spend one normal Christmas with her father, and I couldn't stand in the middle of that. My throat felt dry when I said, "that's great."

…...

Paul was in the bedroom, putting together some last minute things for the trip.

It was the next morning and it felt way too early to be up and ready to drive out of state during a blizzard.

My mom tagged behind my stepfather down the hallway, reminding him to watch out for the icy streets and to call every few hours.

I wasn't expecting it when Annabeth pulled me aside from the doorway just a few minutes before we were getting ready to leave.

I saw the look on her face and immediately found myself asking, "What's wrong?"

Annabeth looked as if she had been fighting with herself. She gripped my arm lightly. "Do you remember the thing I needed to tell you yesterday?"

"What is it?" I asked, waiting for her to continue. Inside, a nervous feeling was suddenly beginning to boil.

Annabeth swallowed. "I think I might know why monsters are going after Rachel," she said told me.

It didn't take long before I was sure my eyes were wide. "What?"

"Listen," she said quickly, holding my arm tighter. "I'm not sure of it yet. It's just a theory."

"Tell me what it is."

My parents seemed to walk into the room no sooner than I had said that. Paul had the car keys in his hands as he went towards the shoe rack.

Annabeth let go of my arm, lowering her voice. "It can wait. I promise," she told me. "We'll talk about it once you get back."

From behind me, Paul began to open the door. "You ready?" he asked, noticing that Annabeth and I had our own conversation in whispers taking place.

Reluctantly, I broke my gaze with Annabeth trusting that she was telling the truth when she said it wasn't important to talk about right now. A bunch of thoughts sped through my head but I tried to swallow them down as I turned to the door.

Paul kissed my mother goodbye. "You guys will be fine home alone, right?" he asked, gesturing to Annabeth.

"We'll be fine." My mom said, turning to me. She touched my shoulder. "Just take care of what you need to. I expect you two home as soon as possible."

I nodded, promising my mom for the third time that I'd be safe. I knew it had taken Paul a lot of convincing to get my mom to agree with the idea of her son going to New Hampshire to handle monsters again. My invulnerability and the thought of helping Rachel seemed to win her over. My mom kissed head as I tried not to complain.

I realized Paul was already down the hallway, waiting by the elevator the next time I turned around. Still, standing in the doorway, I found myself looking at Annabeth.

She was quiet and it bothered me more than anything else. It felt weird leaving the house to take care of something monster-related without her. I had been so focused on the thought of Rachel's danger that I had barely thought about what it would feel like to leave Annabeth for a few days when we were supposed to be making the most of our winter break together.

For the first time in weeks, Annabeth stepped forward, hugging me. I didn't know what was making me hold on as she leaned into my chest, but for a second I didn't want to let go. Her hands moved down to my waist, sending a current up my spine. I told myself it was stupid, and that I'd be with her again in a few days as she pulled back. I expected her to say goodbye or wish me luck. Instead she said five words that seemed to stick in my head. "I'll Iris message you tonight."

After waving to my mom and Annabeth one last time from the corridor, Paul and I went down the elevator.

The air felt bitterly dry as we walked to Paul's Prius. The windows were frosted with thin ice and the interior of the car felt chillingly cold.

I threw my back pack in the back seat, getting in trough the passenger side door. Paul cranked up the heater as we watched the ice melt slowly, dripping down the glass. I didn't know where it came from, but I found myself turning to Paul. "Thank you," I said.

Paul looked just as surprised. When he realized what I meant, he seemed to smile slowly. "It's no problem. New Hampshire isn't too far. Besides, it's to help someone in a lot of trouble."

"Rachel hasn't been picking up her phone," I told my stepdad. "I texted her, but-"

"We'll get there by this evening at the latest," Paul assured me. "She'll be fine."

I didn't realize when the windshield had cleared or when Paul pulled out of the apartment parking lot into the crunching streets. As we drove, I found myself staring ahead with only one thought going through my mind. It was as if my brain had done a thorough reprogramming operation as I became more and more focused on the one goal in front of me. I couldn't let my brain think about anything else besides one fact.

Rachel needed my help. If my dreams had meant anything I knew that I had to get to her, and soon.

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