Annabeth almost regretted agreeing to go when she had to stand and her muscles ached in protest. The food had helped, but she was still tired. Annabeth was jealous of Piper, who was the only one of the five who was going to be able to sleep.

They agreed to leave Blackjack with Piper and Jason. Hopefully they would have no need for him, but Blackjack could only carry two at once anyways, so it made no sense to take him with them. Perseus promised that the horse wouldn't stray too far.

It was unfortunate that they had chosen the hottest part of the day to start walking, and that they had to stray from the river. They'd taken some water pouches with them as a foresight, but it was so scorching that Annabeth had to stop herself from drinking half of hers in the first twenty minutes.

They were mostly quiet, the silence only punctuated by their heavy breathing, and Fai pointing out which direction they needed to go. How he could tell where they were Annabeth wasn't sure; to her the hilly expanse in front of them looked entirely the same to her in every direction.

The walk felt consistently uphill, despite the fact that the terrain was sloped in such a way where parts of it should have felt like they were walking down. She almost wanted to ask for a break, but she was both too proud to admit she was tired, and too unsure of her ability to stand again if she got to sit down.

It was some consolation that even Perseus's perfect exterior seemed to be cracking under the hot sun. Some tired lines had started to appear under his eyes. That didn't stop him from striking up conversation when they hit a particularly flat bit of land.

"So, Fai," he said, and though Annabeth hadn't known him long, she already recognized the playful smile tugging at his lips, the one that meant trouble. "When were you going to tell me you're a legacy of Poseidon?"

Fai just about stopped dead in his tracks. Annabeth almost stopped too. How could he possibly know that?

Fai seemed to be wondering the same thing.

"How—?" he stammered, staring at Perseus.

"I wish I could say my senses were that good, but it was my horse that recognized it," Perseus admitted.

"Your horse," Fai said, slowly, as if he thought Perseus mad. If Annabeth hadn't had the earlier conversation with him about his connection to horses, she might've come to the same conclusion.

Annabeth was suddenly reminded of Blackjack sniffing Fai after they fought the hellhound. Had he smelled it on him? That was a strange thought, but it seemed the most likely explanation.

"He talks to his horse," Annabeth supplied, realizing as soon as she said it that without context it came across as particularly unhelpful.

"Right," Fai said, giving Annabeth a look that indicated he thought Annabeth as insane as Perseus. It was probably deserved.

"My father created them, so I can understand them," Perseus explained, though not before throwing Annabeth an amused glance, as if they shared a secret. She hoped being red from the sun would cover up the blush she felt creeping up her neck.

She decided not to bring up the point about the horses technically being Perseus's brothers. That little detail might scare off Fai for good. Even now, Perseus's explanation had not seemed to settle him much.

"Are you really a legacy and a half-blood?" Annabeth asked, unable to keep her curiosity in check. She had never heard of such a thing happening, though she figured it must be possible.

"My mother was descended from Periclymenus, who was a grandson of Poseidon," Fai said, "He had… my grandmother said that was part of the reason my mother drew Mars's attention in the first place."

Annabeth had the feeling there was something more he wasn't saying, but she said nothing. She was no stranger to wanting to keep some parts of yourself hidden. Fai's ancestor's name sounded familiar though, and it took Annabeth a few seconds to place it. It was wrapped up in other memories, ones she hadn't thought of in a long time. A great ship, marked by stars in the sky.

Luke had told her about that. She'd liked that particular story, a long time ago. And there had been something specific that she'd liked about Periclymenus, though now she couldn't remember exactly what that detail was.

"Periclymenus… he was an argonaut, wasn't he?" Annabeth asked.

Fai looked surprised that she had known that, but he nodded.

"He was."

"An argonaut?" Perseus asked. Annabeth looked over at him, surprised he did not seem to recognize the word. He was the true Greek here, after all.

"The band of heroes who sought the golden fleece," Annabeth explained.

The confusion etched on Perseus's face deepened, but he said nothing. Annabeth suspected he didn't know what the golden fleece was either, though she wasn't sure how it could be possible. How could he know so much about the Greek gods, but not Greek heroes?

"You can trace your lineage that far?" Annabeth asked, turning back to Fai.

She had not meant for her voice to sound so wistful. Mostly she had said it to cover the awkward silence, but as the words left her mouth she realized how impossible such a thing was for her. Fai nodded, not seeming to notice her voice changing.

"My family has a habit of moving around. But we have always been careful to preserve our connection to Periclymenus."

"That must be nice. To know where you came from," Annabeth said. There was a strange ache in her chest.

Annabeth herself had no memory of her father beyond vague flashes. She had no idea who he had been, if he was a good man or a bad one, who his parents had been before that. She didn't even really know where she had lived, before Rome burned it to the ground. Even her mother's identity, which had haunted her for years, was starting to feel less certain by the hour.

Perseus was looking at her, she could feel his eyes. Instead of avoiding them like she normally would try to, she met them. She instantly wished she hadn't.

He was looking at her like he understood, like he felt her longing as his own. Like he pitied her, just slightly.

I know of aimlessness.

That was what he had said to her when they first met, one of the first things. And in the same breath he had asserted that he knew his roots and his purpose and that she did not. He had seen this sadness in her before she even recognized it in herself.

She hated him for it, a little.

"Well, it was inevitable, in a way," Fai said, not seeming to notice the silent communication travelling between Perseus and Annabeth, or else ignoring it.

"Why's that?" Perseus asked. He looked away from Annabeth at last, and though she'd been almost angry at expression seconds earlier, the absence of his eyes only made her feel worse.

"Poseidon…" Fai started, then trailed off.

Annabeth got the distinct feeling that whatever Fai was keeping secret, he was only interested in telling Perseus about it, probably because it had something to do with his father. Annabeth didn't miss the sideways glance he gave her. Neither did Perseus, it seemed.

"Annabeth is trustworthy," Perseus assured him, shooting Annabeth a quick smile.

Annabeth simultaneously felt warmed by the compliment, and irritated at his ability to change his moods so quickly. And why should he call her trustworthy, anyways? He knew her to be a liar. That was one of the only things he knew about her.

But he trusted her anyway, if what he said to Fai was to be believed.

"I can keep a secret," Annabeth said. That much was true, at least.

Fai looked between them, seeming to realize this was probably going to be his best bet in terms of speaking to Perseus in a somewhat private context.

"Poseidon bestowed Periclymenus with a gift, a powerful one. It has been passed down through the generations ever since."

It was like his words knocked the missing piece of knowledge about the argonaut loose from Annabeth's mind, slotting it neatly into the empty space that had been there before. No wonder she had found his story so interesting as a child.

"You have Periclymenus's gift?" Annabeth asked. She knew her voice was laden in a sort of giddy admiration, but she couldn't bring herself to try and contain it.

"I'm supposed to," Fai said, his mouth turned down in an unhappy expression, "But I can't access it, I've never been able to. I don't know why."

"What is it, exactly?" Perseus asked.

"Periclymenus was a shapeshifter, able to transform into any creature he desired," Annabeth explained.

Perseus raised his eyebrows slightly in surprise.

"Impressive," he said, looking at Fai with newfound admiration.

"It would be, if I could use it." Fai sighed.

Suddenly Fai's question about Perseus's parentage last night made perfect sense. If Poseidon had given his family the gift, maybe he hoped Perseus could help him unlock it now.

Perseus seemed to have reached the same conclusion as Annabeth.

"This is why you agreed to come on the quest. Because of me," Perseus realized aloud.

"In part," Fai admitted, "It also just felt… correct, I suppose."

"I swear I'll help you in any way I can," Perseus promised, clapping Fai on the shoulder.

"Thank you," Fai said. Annabeth couldn't tell if the red in his face was the sun or not, but she thought not.

"We're nearly there." Fai said, probably to change the subject, "Maybe two more miles."

That reinvigorated their spirits. They made good time the last half hour, though Annabeth nearly finished her water. Finally they hit a particularly wide clearing, and Fai stopped, Annabeth and Perseus close behind. There was nothing there, but Fai seemed to be indicating that they had arrived.

"There's a few things you should know," Fai said, turning to face them.

Annabeth had thought she had seen him wear a serious expression before, but she realized now that that expression had been his normal resting expression, and the one he was wearing now was his serious expression.

"Don't touch anything, especially not the jewels," Fai said.

Perseus and Annabeth exchanged a look. It felt like they had done it a thousand times before.

"Jewels?" Perseus asked, one brow raised.

"You'll see," Fai said, rather ominously.

Annabeth had to actively resist meeting Perseus's eyes again.

"Let me approach first. You might see some strange things, but they usually aren't real," Fai continued, as if this was a perfectly normal thing to say.

"Usually?" Annabeth asked, her stomach flipping with nerves. Fai winced.

"It's hard to explain. It probably won't hurt us."

"Probably?"

Fai winced again.

"Just let me do the talking."

This did not leave Annabeth feeling particularly confident, but when Fai stepped forward into the clearing, she followed.

The second her foot hit the ground inside the clearing, everything changed.

Annabeth had experienced snow a few times in her life. A few flurries on a particularly unfortunate winter, once a thin layer covering the ground. This was nothing like that.

White freezing powder covered the ground up to her knees, soaking straight through her sandals and the bottom half of her cloak. Wind whipped new flakes through the air so fiercely it was actually painful when they hit the exposed skin on Annabeth's face. It was so thick she could barely see Perseus beside her, or Fai ahead.

Annabeth knew the weather was boiling, she had spent the better part of the day walking in it. There was no way this was possible.

And yet she was cold, colder than she had ever been in her life. Colder than she had been jumping in an icy lake in the winter years ago, colder than when she spent the longest nights of the year alone on the ground, nothing to ward off the chill but a ragged cloak. This cold dug beneath her skin, settled in her bones, and promised to stay there. It was suffocating, miserable, freezing.

Annabeth was positive if she spent another second in it alone, she would be buried by the snow, never to be seen again.

Without even thinking she reached out beside her, grasping for some sort of connection; a guarantee that she wouldn't be lost to the storm. She felt Perseus's fingers close around hers.

The touch felt like a wave crashing through her, powerful enough to wash away the worst of the cold, even for just a second. She almost believed that it would be possible to be warm again.

Then she felt a particularly cold gust of wind brush past her ear.

"Get out," it seemed to whisper.

Annabeth wanted nothing more than to follow its instruction, but she could not remember how to move. She felt Perseus's hand tighten around hers, pulling her in his direction.

"Hazel!" Fai yelled, his voice barely audible over the howling of the wind, "It's Fai!"

The whole world seemed to shudder. For just a flash, Annabeth felt the hot sun on her face and dry grass beneath her sandals.

"Hazel!" Fai yelled again, but his voice was clearer now, the wind not so powerful as to drown it out.

The weather flickered again, pulsing through stifling hot and frigid cold in equal, immediate beats. But they were slowing now, and when they finally stopped they settled on the sun.

Annabeth nearly cried to have the warmth on her face again, even if she was suddenly just as overheated as she had been before the cold overtook her. She didn't care though, she would take a thousand summer days to a chill like that again.

Perseus's fingers flexed underneath hers, and Annabeth realized she was still holding his hand. She dropped it, not looking at him, taking a step away for good measure. She didn't dare check to see his reaction; she was positive there would be a self-assured smirk on his face.

Why had she even reached for his hand in the first place? In the heat (well, chill) of the moment, it had seemed like the only thing to do to keep from drowning. But of course it wasn't real, Fai had even told them it wasn't real, and now she just looked like a scared fool who couldn't handle something so simple as a snowstorm.

She was so concerned with the state of her hand she almost didn't notice that the space around them had changed completely. Where the ground had once been empty, a small house now sat in the middle of the clearing. But "small" was the only humble description that could be assigned to it.

The entire thing seemed to be made not of wood, brick or mud, but of solid metals, mostly gold and silver from what she could tell. Annabeth now understood what Fai had meant about the jewels; they adorned every inch of the place, with no seeming rhyme or rhythm to their placement. They came in every size as large as a dinner plate to as small as the nail on her littlest finger, in every color Annabeth had ever seen and some she hadn't. The entire thing sparkled in the sunlight, almost as blinding as the sun itself.

"What are you doing here?" a voice yelled. The door to the house shot open, and someone, presumably Hazel, stormed up the pathway leading to the edge of the clearing where they stood. Annabeth only realized now that the path was made of solid gold.

When she finally stopped in front of them, Annabeth was able to get a good look. Whatever she had been expecting the sorceress Fai spoke of to look like, Hazel was not it.

First of all, she was much younger than Annabeth expected. Annabeth guessed that Fai was around their age, but Hazel looked a few years younger, barely past 22 years, if Annabeth had to guess. Secondly, she was much shorter than Annabeth anticipated, standing at half Fai's height and maybe three quarters of her own.

She was beautiful though, brown skin a few shades darker than Piper's, and curly dark hair reaching just past her shoulders. When the sun caught it, certain strands seemed to shine as gold as the path she stood on. Her face was full and healthy, and if her expression hadn't been absolutely murderous, it would have been quite pretty.

"I'm. Uh—" Fai started, but he clearly did not have his mind collected enough to answer Hazel's question. Annabeth noticed he was blushing, and she did not think it was from the sun.

"And who are you?" Hazel asked, not bothering to wait for Fai's answer to address Perseus and Annabeth.

Hazel's eyes trained in on her, and Annabeth had just enough wherewithal to notice her dark brown irises were flecked with gold, like the precious metal was eating her from the inside out.

"I'm Perseus, and this is Annabeth," Perseus said, gesturing to Annabeth beside him, "We're friends of Fai's."

This seemed like a poor explanation to Annabeth, but she kept her mouth shut. Hazel's gaze swiveled over to Perseus.

"Friends," she said. It was slow, suspicious.

"Friends," Perseus confirmed, looking like he was halfway to putting his hands up in a surrendering gesture. Personally, Annabeth thought 'friends' was a bit of a generous description for people who had known each other barely a day, but Perseus managed to keep his voice genuine and convincing. If Annabeth hadn't known better, she might've thought he was using charmspeak.

Thankfully this seemed to be enough for Hazel, because her attention turned back to Fai.

"I told you not to bring anyone here," Hazel said. Her voice still sounded mad, though anger was leaking from her stature, replaced with sheer exasperation.

Fai winced. Annabeth noticed he did that a lot.

"I know, I'm sorry. We have an emergency."

Hazel gave them one last once over, like she was deciding in what manner exactly she was going to toss them from her land. Then sighed, heavy and deep, and the last of the anger faded from her face.

"I suppose you had better come inside."

She turned, walking back up the path leading to the house. Fai followed her easily. Annabeth glanced at Perseus, wondering if he was as hesitant as she to go inside.

He was already looking at her, like he was waiting for her eyes to meet his own. When they did, he gave a half-shrug.

"If she wanted to kill us, she probably would have already."

That was a fair point, but Annabeth still felt something holding her back.

"Fai likes her," she said instead, not entirely sure why those had been the particular words that her brain had come up with.

It made Perseus laugh though, however quietly.

"Do you think she likes him back?" he asked, his smile confirming that he had understood exactly what she had meant with her last words.

"We had better hope so," Annabeth said, "Now's our last chance to run, if not."

"I'm not one to run," he said. His voice was still light, but Annabeth heard the conviction behind the words anyways. She wished she could say the same about herself, but unfortunately she was very used to running. Running away from the disaster that seemed to follow her at every turn, that she had managed to avoid for a long while. Maybe it was finally catching up to her.

But right now, surprisingly, she didn't feel like running any more than Perseus did.

"I guess we had better follow them, then," Annabeth said.

"I guess we had better," Perseus said.

They made their way up the path together, following Fai and Hazel who had already gone inside.

Annabeth's fingers twitched to be held again.