Hello readers! Look it didn't take me three months to update. Go me! Anyway there is a lot of angst and clichés in this chapter, so be ready. Let me know what you thought at the end!

The whole house was in a panic. No one was quite sure how not a single person in the house saw a seriously injured blonde girl stumble away, but based on the fact that search parties were forming it had to be believed. After Percy had torn Thalia a new one he turned to try and comfort Annabeth, only to find that she was nowhere to be seen. Which sent him into a new frenzy.

The whole group was assembled in the foyer when Percy decided to give his speech. "So as many of you know Annabeth is missing, but I thought that I should give some context to that," he started. "When I walked into the kitchen today I saw Thalia holding Annabeth by her neck, choking her. As far as I could tell Annabeth had done nothing to start this, and my suspicions were confirmed when I talked to the eight other people in the room. That's right eight!" Percy shouted, startling everyone in the room.

"There were eight people in that room and none of you came to Annabeth's aid. I had to be the one to do it, and honestly that is just pathetic. I get that most of you don't know her. I get that she hasn't been the most friendly, but she was torn from her home, married to someone she didn't know, then forced to move across the country with nothing other than a god damn cat. So yeah I don't think any of you would be very friendly either," he all but growled.

"What Thalia did will not be seen as okay by this family, and I am handling it as we speak. God forbid Annabeth dies, well everyone in that room will go with her," the whole room gasped at what Percy was implying. The people in that room were some of his closest friends, and he was threatening their lives. "Whether you like it or not that girl is still my wife, and you will treat her as such. She is still the head of this family whether you have met her or not, and I will not stand for any disrespect.

"So I suggest that all of you form your search parties and head out because the lives of some of your friends depend on it. She is out there somewhere and she could've gone far. She can barely breathe, she can barely move, and she hasn't eaten in at least 24 hours. So she shouldn't be very hard to find," Percy yelled slamming his fist on the banister. Percy had been married less than a month, and he already couldn't keep his wife safe.

A lot of things had gone through Percy's mind when he's first realized that Annabeth was missing. Most of them were curse words, but there was also a fear that settled deep in his stomach. Annabeth may not of been the perfect wife that he had hoped for, but she didn't deserve to be treated the way that she was being treated in his household. And her treatment reflected on him. Percy actually did care for her, maybe it wasn't in the way that her husband normally cares for a wife but it wasn't in anyway wanting her to get hurt. The fact that his friends were the ones that were inflicting pain upon her with something that he wasn't sure he could deal with, and that's why all of his friends were sitting down in cells far below the basement. And that was where they were going to stay until Annabeth was found and she could help determine the punishment that would fit for them.

He thought the Annabeth could be dead was not something that had quite crossed Percy's mind. He knew somewhere deep down that it was a possibility, but it wasn't a possibility that he wanted to think about. If he was being honest with himself Percy thought the Annabeth probably only made it out onto the lawn or not much further in and passed out, but he knew that wasn't true. He would've seen her when he first went to go look for her. He also knew that Annabeth was not dumb. There was no way that she was going to sit down and take it, and that's probably why she was somewhere deep in the woods it was going to be almost impossible to find her.

It wasn't just her throat that Percy was worried about either. And that forest their animals that could kill her, and if they didn't get to her first he was still worried about the fact that she hadn't eaten or had anything to drink in a while. There was also a storm set for that night, and if he couldn't find her before then he would have to call the family back in until the storm passed. They would go back out at that point they were probably searching for a body more than they were searching for any life.

Percy had promised Annabeth's mother that he was going to keep her safe at all costs, and it felt a lot like he wasn't doing that. It felt a lot like he'd failed. Percy remembered what it felt like to hold her for that first time, and the only time, but it didn't seem real. It didn't seem like it was just the night before. Instead it felt like a lifetime, because he didn't think he was going to get a lifetime with her anymore. Strangulation was something that needed to be treated almost immediately by a doctor or there's a good chance that she was going to have permanent damage to her throat. He was also afraid that she wasn't going to recover out in the open because should be more worried about surviving than healing. With an injured neck she wasn't going to be able to hunt or scavenger for food and water. The odds were that she was passed out in the middle of the forest with little to no protection, and that may as well of been a death sentence.

Percy couldn't focus on all of that at the moment though, he needed to start looking for her. So he quickly made his way out the back door and into the forest, the same way she would've gone. In order to find her he knew that he had to think the way she would've thought, but he didn't understand anything about her. Even if he did he wasn't sure it would have been much help right then, she probably couldn't even have seen clearly when she ran.

While most of the people looking for her were out in search parties, Percy had decided to go alone. He didn't want to be around the people that called themselves his family at the moment because they weren't acting like his family. The fact that he cared about Annabeth should have been enough for them. So Percy wandered around by himself. He'd occasionally shout an "Annabeth!" into the open, but he never got a response. However, he had no plan to stop looking. The storm was bringing in a cold front, and Percy was sure that Annabeth was not dressed for the weather.

Percy may not have been the sharpest crayon in the box, but if there was one thing he was good at it was surviving. That fact accounted for the blanket that he had in his arms as well as the pack that he had on his back. That pack contained enough food and water for two people through the night, a first aid kit, a change of Annabeth's clothes, a lantern, and a small tarp and bungees that he could use to set up a makeshift shelter if needed. Basically Percy didn't plan to come back until he found Annabeth, even if that meant dealing with the storm.

Everything he passed that could be used as a shelter Percy checked. Whether it was a small den to a pile of trees, anything that Annabeth could be hiding in. Percy was lucky with his size. He was much larger than the fox and coyote that ran in the forest. While the wolves would be an issue for him, Percy had brought a sound box that made a bear noise to scare them off. He had never actually tried it, but it was worth a shot. Not to mention he was carrying if it really came down to it.

The trek felt like it had gone on for hours, and even though it had Percy was definitely making it seem worse than it was. Not only was he losing hope of ever finding Annabeth, he was also getting deeper into the forest. Once he got too far he'd turn around and try a different sector, but none of the sectors he had tried had anything. None of the sectors searched period had anything. There was a small fear in the back of Percy's mind that the other search parties weren't looking very hard, or at all, but it was quickly washed away when he thought about the fear those people must be feeling. They knew that if they had searched an area and not found her, but she turned up there dead they were dead as well, and that was not something that most of them wanted to deal with.

Around 4 was when the first sound of rolling thunder was heard. Percy was a lot of things, but selfish wasn't one of them. After the second time he heard it he called all of the search parties back. There was no need in risking any more lives than necessary. Percy, however, was not ready to head back yet. While he prioritized his family's safety, his own was something that wasn't as high up on his list. Plus it wasn't that big of a deal if he got a little wet.

So the great trek continued. Around the trees and through the brush that seemed to always get tangled up in Percy's feet, and sure enough it finally got him. Percy thundered to the ground with an "umph." Cursing Percy started to push his way up when something caught his eye, a mess on blonde hair. "Holy shit," Percy cursed as he pushed himself up and quickly stumbled toward where he thought he had seen her. "Annabeth!" Percy yelled again as he gained distance, but there was no movement in the shallow den.

Percy did something that resembled a baseball slide into the den where sure enough Annabeth laid, unmoving. "Annabeth," Percy breathed shaking her. " Annabeth wake up," he yelled more frantically when the girl in his arms didn't move. "Annabeth!" he shouted frantic that time. The shaking wasn't working though. Percy had to stop and breathe for a minute, and decided to check her pulse. "Oh thank god," he muttered when he was able to find one somewhat quickly.

Another crack of thunder reminded Percy that he needed to set up a shelter for them because trying to carry her back at this point was just going to do more harm than good. So Percy quickly wrapped Annabeth in the blanket and set his pack down. He pulled out the tarp and breathed a sigh of relief that it was large enough to cover the entrance to the den. He pulled the tarp tight over the entrance and secured it so that minimal rain would get in over night. Then he slipped back into the makeshift shelter.

Percy sent out a quick text to the family that he was safe, but that he wasn't coming back in that night. He also made sure to leave out the part where he mentioned that he had found Annabeth. The next thing Percy did was check over her clothing. Luckily nothing Annabeth was wearing was ruined, but he still pulled the oversized sweater he brought over her head. Percy then pulled the thick cabin socks he had brought onto her feet, which to his dismay were badly cut. "How did you get this far little one?" he asked her as he pulled her to his chest.

They sat there in silence for the next hour before Annabeth stirred. "Percy?" she croaked out.

"Yeah I'm here," he told her warmly before pulling her even closer, even though neither was sure that was possible.

"I'm not weak, no matter how I look right now," Annabeth said trying to sound strong, but failing.

"I know you're not weak, but right now I'm going to hold you because I thought you were going to die today. But don't you ever think that I don't know how strong and independent you are," Percy whispered to her.

"Okay good," Annabeth muttered before closing her eyes again. Once Percy was sure that she had fallen asleep he heard a muttered "Percy?"

"Hmm?" he hummed in response.

"Thanks."

Okay so that's chapter 9! YAY! I know it's kind cliché, but I thought that it was cute. Plus I think that Percy had a lot to think about in this chapter. What did you guys think? I'm also taking suggestions for where this story should go because I don't really have a plan, so if anyone has any good ideas let me know!

Emily