hello friends!

sorry it's been so ridiculously long since I updated lolol I meant to update like a week after my last one and… life happened? idek but thankfully finished this chapter and already started the next one so mAyBe we'll get back to a normal updating schedule (although no promises ski season is in full swing which means I'm working and racing a lot and that plus school and everything else is just a lot oof)

anyway onto the chapter pls enjoy!

•

January 25th, 1776

"Jason!" she cried, pounding on the door. The roar of the blizzard grew, and she shouted over it. "Jason, please open the door!"

The door cracked open, and Piper's familiar face lit up in a smile. "Annabeth! How lovely to see you. Come in, this storm's getting worse." She stepped aside, revealing a heavily pregnant abdomen.

Annabeth gasped, her worry forgotten for a fleeting second. "Piper! You're pregnant!" She clapped her hand over her mouth instantly. "I'm sorry, 'tis not proper to speak of it—"

Piper laughed, drawing her inside the warm, cozy little house. "It's perfectly all right," she said, her diction pronounced and voice sweetly lilting. "We're not in public, and I'm very glad you know. I've been meaning to have you and Percy over to tell you—you both are the reason I am even able to be here."

All of Annabeth's worry and exhaustion came back in an instant. "That's what I'm here for, actually. Percy, I mean. Is Jason here?"

Piper's brow crinkled. "Is something wrong?"

Annabeth sat down at the table and explained everything—Percy leaving for the camp, how he never returned, the search party looking for him. "I know it's snowing, but the storm isn't as bad as it was, and—" she broke off. "I need him, Piper. I know my parents think he might be…"

Piper sat down across from her and grasped her hand warmly. "Of course. I understand completely. And Annabeth—Percy's smart. He's probably tucked away somewhere with Blackjack, just waiting out the blizzard."

"I know, but Piper, you've lived your whole life in Virginia. The blizzards here—sometimes they come on so fast you have no time to search for shelter, and it's completely blinding."

Piper nodded. "I know. But we will find him. Jason will be home shortly."

Piper made her a cup of tea, which Annabeth accepted gratefully and held it close, reveling in the warmth. Her hands shook so badly that a few drops spilled out, but Piper merely wiped the table and touched Annabeth's shoulder comfortingly.

After only a few minutes, the door opened and Jason came in, his outer wraps crusted with snow. "I think the storm's dying down, Pipes. In fact—" he turned around, closing the door, and saw Annabeth. "Annabeth? What are you doing here?"

She explained yet again, trying to hide the frantic worry and weariness in her voice.

Jason's face was grim as she finished. "Percy's been here for enough winters to know what to do if he's stuck in a blizzard, but that storm—it came on so fast. We'll have to hurry."

"Should we get more men? Backup?" Annabeth asked anxiously.

"No, there's no time. Every minute is precious when you're in weather like this," Jason said, shaking out the snow from his scarf and tying it around his neck again. "I'll go alone."

Annabeth stood, shrugging her own heavy outer wraps back on again. "I'm going with you."

Jason looked alarmed. "What? No, Annabeth, you cannot. 'Tis dangerous out there."

"I know, but I am physically capable, and besides, you cannot go out there alone. If the storm gets worse, you might need help."

Piper stepped forward. "I agree with her. In fact, I would go out with you both, but—"

Jason stepped forward, placing his mittened hand gently on her abdomen. "You need to stay warm and safe for the baby."

She nodded, leaning into his touch. "I know."

Jason looked weary. "Then fine, Annabeth. But we'll have to leave immediately, before the storm picks up again."

Annabeth nodded firmly. "I'm ready to go."

Jason turned back to his wife as Annabeth pulled on her boots. "Be safe, my love."

"Me, safe?" Piper scoffed. "You are the one going out into the storm."

Jason laughed softly, and held her close. Annabeth was silent, not wanting to intrude into the private moment, and her heart ached as she watched them kiss, watched Jason embrace his wife.

She wanted Percy. She neededhim back, needed him to be safe.

She wanted this—what Jason and Piper had together. A married life, a home, a baby. Somewhere to come back to after a day apart, somewhere they could raise their children together.

Would it even happen?

Jason interrupted her thoughts by placing a hand on her shoulder comfortingly. "Let's go."

Annabeth quickly hugged Piper goodbye and followed Jason out the door. Thankfully the storm had died down a bit, and the snowflakes hurtling from the heavens were less thick, less blinding.

"Where should we start?" she asked, trudging through the snow next to Jason.

His brow was furrowed. "Probably we should go to the camp, retrace his steps from there. Maybe he just wandered off the road in the blizzard, or perhaps took shelter in a barn or house along the way."

Annabeth nodded firmly and followed him.

Less than an hour later, they had made it to the camp. The snow was falling gently, contrasting to the whirling winds of the storm earlier. They checked in quickly with Major Pitcairn, but he told them that Percy had left and that he would send soldiers out to search for him as soon as the storm completely stopped.

Annabeth felt a lump rising in her throat, and she hurried out of the tent as Jason thanked the major and followed her. "Are you alright?" he asked her gently.

She shook her head, swallowing. "No. No, I'm not."

Jason nodded grimly. "We're going to find him, 'beth. I promise."

Don't promise, Annabeth's heart cried. Because you might have to break it, and what would I do then?

But she forced a smile to her frozen lips. "Alright," she said weakly, and Jason seemed to understand.

They trudged out to the road. "Let's head back the way we came, since that's how Percy would have started back," Jason suggested. "If you see anything, shout."

It felt like hours of walking in the deep snow. Annabeth's legs burned and ached. But she trudged on, ignoring the pain, thinking only of Percy. Jason was silent next to her, occasionally lending a hand if she needed help getting out of a hole the snow or her boots were stuck.

Suddenly he stopped, squinting out into a large field covered in a deep layer of pure white snow. "What?" Annabeth asked, following his gaze.

"Nothing," Jason said, shaking his head as he turned back to the road. "And yet…"

"What?" she asked again.

"I think I see something, but I'm not certain," Jason said, his gaze sharp. "Wait here."

"No," Annabeth said stubbornly. "I'm going with you."

He sighed, apparently expecting this. "Fine. Come along, then." He stepped off the road and the snow immediately came up to his mid-thigh.

Annabeth swallowed, knowing that it would be even higher on her, since she was shorter than Jason, but she had no choice. Percy could be out there. Holding her skirts high, she followed Jason, her already aching legs groaning in protest as she tramped through the deep snow.

"Aha!" Jason shouted, his voice echoing eerily over the snow-covered field in the cold air. "Look!"

Annabeth gasped. He was holding up a satchel—Percy's satchel, one he had had with him when he left the day before. "It was on Blackjack," she said, tears welling as she remembered. "I looked out the window as he left, and it was attacked to the saddle. I was saying something to him, but I don't think he could read my lips through the window…" he voice trailed off as she remembered what she had said to him, the last time she saw him, wheeling around Blackjack and smiling back at her.

I love you.

Blinking away tears, she shook her head. "If it's here, then Blackjack at least got this far. Hopefully Percy was still with him."

Jason nodded. "They might be around here somewhere, since there's no shelter anywhere near here. They couldn't have gotten much farther than this in that storm."

Annabeth knew the unspoken in his words: Either they're here, or we'll find their bodies.

She nodded fiercely and hiked on through the snow. Jason followed, and both of them called out in the frozen air, hoping that if Percy was anywhere near he would hear them.

They were close to giving up when Annabeth heard Jason suddenly shout from behind her. Whirling around, she saw him digging frantically in the snow.

"What? What did you find?" she asked wildly, already stumbling through the drifts, kneeling and digging with him.

Jason held up Blackjack's saddle. "I'm betting he made a cave in the snow for shelter, and used this as the door. But with the shifting winds, it somehow got moved—"

"But he's still here. He and Blackjack are still here."

Jason firmed his lips. "I hope so."

They continued to dig quickly, and suddenly the snow caved away to reveal a little room of snow, barely big enough to contain—

"Percy," Annabeth breathed.

Jason caught her arm. "Annabeth, wait—"

She broke away from his gasp and stumbled down into the little hollow. Percy was leaning against Blackjack; the horse looked up and neighed weakly at Annabeth, but didn't move.

"Percy," she said again, the tightness and worry in her chest expanding until she couldn't breathe, couldn't speak, and she reached him and he was breathing,he was alive and breathing.

But barely.

His eyes were closed and face was pale, and frost had actually gathered on his nose. She brushed it off with her fingers, shocked at how ice-cold his bloodless skin was.

"Annabeth, his heart is beating so slowly—" Jason murmured on his other side, fingers on his friend's pulse. "If it weren't for Blackjack, he'd have frozen to death by now."

Annabeth's chest heaved with dry sobs. "He's alive."

"For now," Jason reminded her. "We have to get him home, and quickly." He lifted Percy's unconscious body off of Blackjack, who snorted and got to his feet, shaking the snow off his glossy back. "I know you're tired, Blackjack, but you're going to have to carry him," Jason murmured to the horse. "Think you can do that?"

With Annabeth's help, they managed to get him on Blackjack's back, and Jason led the horse as Annabeth stumbled behind as they headed out of the endlessly frozen field to the road again.

The journey home passed in a blur. Annabeth could barely think—Percy was alive. But would he be able to stay that way? She knew people who had gotten too cold in the Boston winters, who had died in the frigid temperatures, people who had lost hands and feet from frostbite.

It was too much for her to handle, to think about, now. She just had to get Percy home.

They reached the Chase house, Percy slumping from the horse and Jason catching his limp body in his arms. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion—Annabeth ran up the icy steps, followed by Jason carrying Percy; she threw open the door, and vaguely registered her family's shocked faces and exclamations as Jason barked orders. They brought him to the parlor, laying him in front of the roaring fire.

Jason brought in buckets of snow and pulled off Percy's boots, rubbing his feet with snow to get the blood moving again, but Annabeth barely noticed. She knelt next to his head, brushing back his frozen hair from his closed eyes.

"Please come back to me," she begged, holding back her tears. "Don't leave, Percy. We found you—you're going to be alright…" she dissolved into sobs, shoulders shaking, but his eyes remained closed.

The minutes turned into hours. Jason went over all Percy's extremities with the snow, and Annabeth helped him strip most of Percy's frozen uniform off and replace it with blankets. The fire roared, and Percy shook with chills, sweat beading on his forehead.

"What should I do?" Annabeth asked Jason tearfully.

Jason shook his head. "I—I don't know."

In the end, there wasn't really anything they could do.

Mrs. Chase made a pot of steaming soup, and Annabeth managed to get a little hot broth down Percy's throat, but he choked on it, and still didn't wake. Evening turned into night, and Jason stood at the window looking out into the snowy darkness as Annabeth sat next to Percy on the floor, holding his hand and rocking back and forth.

Once or twice, Mr. Chase came into the room to stock the fire with more wood, squeezing Annabeth's shoulder sympathetically. He had already told her that it wasn't certain if Percy would live or not; after being exposed to the bitter cold so long, he would be very weak.

Annabeth knew that. She knew that it was a miracle he had even lived this long, a miracle that none of his fingers or toes had fallen off with frostbite. She knew that her father, a doctor, had seen this before; this slow fall into a frozen death, even after being rescued.

But she refused to believe it.

Around midnight, her head was nodding with exhaustion. Jason had left earlier in order to get home to Piper, and promised to come first thing the next morning. Annabeth hadn't left Percy's side—not to eat, not to sleep, not to change—and the rest of her family had gone to bed. She was dozing off, still holding his hand, when she heard the front door open cautiously.

"Annabeth?" a soft voice asked.

Annabeth blinked. "Who is it?"

A head of bouncy red curls peeked around the door. "'Tis me, Rachel. Oh—" Her eyes had fallen upon Percy, covered in blankets and lying, almost lifeless, on the floor next to the fire.

"Oh, Annabeth—" Rachel said again, her hand covering her mouth, before falling to her knees and embracing her.

Annabeth hugged her friend back, her tears finally breaking loose. "Rachel," she sobbed. "Rachel, we don't know if he's going to make it—we found him, but it might have been too late—"

She felt Rachel's tears, hot on her neck. "He will," Rachel said, fiercely, stubbornly. "Annabeth, he will. He has to." She leaned back, her green eyes studying Annabeth. "You're exhausted, though. You need to get sleep."

"But Percy—"

"I'll stay with him. Or we both can. Bring your quilt down here and sleep on the sofa."

"But—"

"No buts," Rachel said firmly. "You're dead on your feet. Wait a minute—" she stood quickly and darted out of the parlor, returning in a few seconds with Annabeth's quilt from her bed. "Here. Take off your shoes—that's it, good."

Everything was foggy with exhaustion, and Annabeth sank onto the couch, her vision blacking out as Rachel covered her with the blanket. The last thing she saw was Percy, lying still on the ground next to the fire.

You have to live, she thought fuzzily. I can't—I don't want to live without you.

And then she fell asleep.

•

"Annabeth. Annabeth, wake up."

Annabeth blinked, sitting up slowly. "Percy?" she croaked.

The person in front of her laughed softly. "No, it's Jason."

Annabeth scrambled to sit up. "How is he?"

Jason gestured to the fire. "See for yourself."

Annabeth turned, and there he was—he was sitting up, and a very pregnant Piper was sitting next to him, feeding him broth. He looked up, and saw her, and his pale face lit up in a weak smile.

Annabeth sobbed and tumbled of the couch into his arms. "Percy," she gasped. "Percy, Percy, Percy—"

"He's not out of the woods yet," Jason said, before taking a step back. "I'm interrupting a moment, aren't I?"

Piper shook her head at him fondly. "Yes, love."

Annabeth didn't even notice. "Do you even know how worried I was?" she demanded, pulling back. "How worried everyone was?"

Percy winced, and his voice was raspy and quiet, but to Annabeth it was the most beautiful thing in the world. "I know. I'm—I'm sorry." He tried to say more, but coughs overtook his frame, and his shoulders shook as he retched.

Annabeth gasped. "Don't say anything more," she ordered, worry filling her again. "Here—" she reached for water and handed him a cup. "Drink."

He reached for it, hands trembling, and sloshed water on his linen shirt as he drank. Annabeth guided his hands, slowing the shaking.

"Is the moment over yet?" Jason asked.

Annabeth took a deep breath. "Is he going to be alright?"

"Your father examined him this morning. He'll take some time to recover, and he can't exert himself at all," Jason explained. "His lungs are weak from the cold, and he seems to have lost hearing in one ear. But he woke up, and your father said he should be back to normal in less than a week, assuming all goes well."

Annabeth burst into sobs, her heart a mess of emotions. Percy seemed to understand, weakly enfolding her in his arms and pressing kisses to her hair as she wept against his shoulder, murmuring, "I'm alright, I'm fine. We're going to be fine."

She pulled back finally and wiped her eyes. "Thank you, Jason. For everything."

Jason smiled. "Of course."

Annabeth hugged Piper, and Rachel stumbled off the other sofa, curly red hair a nest of tangles around her face. "I want to hug too," she mumbled, and Annabeth, laughing through her tears, enfolded her in the group embrace.

"Who are you?" Rachel asked sleepily, glancing at Piper.

"This is Piper," Annabeth explained. "Piper, Rachel. Rachel, Piper."

Piper looked slightly alarmed, and Annabeth didn't blame her. The color of her skin and her heritage as a Cherokee from the mountains of Virginia cut her off from the small-minded colonists. If someone was to find out that she and Jason were married, apart from the Chase family—who Annabeth had told a few months before—and Luke and Thalia, well—

But she knew Rachel, and trusted her.

And she didn't let Annabeth down.

"A pleasure," Rachel mumbled, hugging Piper sleepily—carefully navigating Piper's protruding abdomen—and climbing back onto the sofa. "I'm exhausted, I'm going back to sleep."

Piper laughed softly, relief showing on her chiseled features, and leaned back into Jason's arms. "I like her," she said to Annabeth, nodding toward where the redhead had curled back up under a quilt, already snoring again.

Annabeth smiled too, watching Rachel's pale face relax into sleep. "Rachel's amazing, and you can trust her, Piper. I promise."

Piper nodded, smiling her thanks, and squeezed Annabeth's hand before getting to her feet with Jason's help. The two of them left the parlor, leaving Annabeth and Percy by themselves—well, not counting Rachel, asleep on the sofa.

Percy, having finished the broth that Piper had been feeding him, set down the bowl and pulled Annabeth into his arms again. "I'm sorry," he murmured. "I was stupid, and selfish, and I should have listened to you and Major Pitcairn. I shouldn't have gone out into that storm, and I caused so much worry and trouble for so many people, especially you—"

Annabeth kissed him, effectively quieting his apology. "'Tis alright, Percy. You're here, and you're safe. That's all that matters to me right now."

Percy nodded, pressing a kiss to her hair. "We're safe."

Annabeth laid her head against his shoulder and they were soon fast asleep, completely unaware of how little time they had left.

•

and that's that! ahhh we're so close to the end I can tASTE it

shameless plug I wrote a story for my friend aisling's 18thbirthday (some of you may know her as allineedisabook [guest] she's fantastic) and I'd love it if you checked it out =)

ok hope y'all have an awesome week pls leave a review if you liked it!

wm