Snowfall

Groundhog

“Mommy! Mommy! Guess what day it is!” Huntleigh Jackson excitedly tugged at her mother’s shirt, a bright grin on her white face.

Thalia crouched low so she was the same height as her daughter. “Well, I don’t know. Why don’t you tell me?” Thalia asked, giving a smile that only her child could ever receive.

“It’s groundhog day! The groundhog’s gonna decide if winters leaving!” Huntleigh was practically bouncing in excitement. “Can we go see the groundhog?”

“Sorry, Leigh, but he’s all the way in Pennsylvania. We can’t go there.” Huntleigh pouted, then bolted into the next room yelling for her father.

“Percy, you’d better not,” Thalia muttered, following her daughter. She was sitting on Percy’s lap, begging him to take her to Pennsylvania. Thalia glared at him, and his gaze darted wide-eyed between his daughter and his wife.

“I mean, there’s probably a way . . .” Percy trailed off as Thalia drew a bolt of electricity from the lightbulb, causing a slight flicker, and twirled it around her finger idly. Percy took a drachma from his pocket and placed it in her hand. “Ask if Aunt Artemis can take you.”

Huntleigh grinned and skipped into the bathroom. Once the door was closed, Percy threw his hands up in the air. “What did I do!”

“Are you seriously going to let her go and see a groundhog?” Thalia asked.

“If Artemis agrees to take her, which she probably will. We both know she adores Leigh way too much.” Thalia glared again. “What? We won’t have to take her!”

“Firstly, I don’t trust Artemis not to kill the groundhog.” Percy winced. He knew that was true. “Secondly, is it even legal to watch firsthand?”

“I don’t know and I doubt Artemis will care.”

Thalia placed her hands on her hips. “And the killing part?”

“She probably wouldn’t do that in front of Leigh!” Percy protested. Thalia raised an eyebrow. “Okay, she might, but come on! Let her have her fun!”

“Because ‘fun’ is getting a goddess to commit a crime,” Thalia said sarcastically. “Just what every little girl wants to do.”

“Thalia, we aren’t normal, and neither is Leigh. She’s growing up knowing her world and seeing the good parts of it. Is that so bad?”

Thalia pursed her lips, too proud to admit that yes, he had a point. Luckily, she was saved by Huntleigh bursting out of the bathroom with a large grin on her face. Thalia sighed. She knew this would happen.

“Aunt Artemis said yes!” Huntleigh was bouncing up and down with excitement. “She said she’d come and get me in a few minutes! Hooray!”

Thalia was about to question what right Artemis had to make that decision before she felt an immortal presence push into her mind, and most likely Percys from his expression. “If that’s okay with you?”

Percy glanced at Thalia, who nodded. “That’s fine. Thank you, Artemis.”

“Of course.” The goddess retracted from the connection, leaving the couple with a very energetic child.

They managed to keep Huntleigh reined in until they felt Artemis flash in outside the house. Huntleigh seemed to realise this, as she raced to the door, throwing it open and leaping at Artemis. She laughed as the young child latched onto her legs, smiling widely. “Let’s go!”

“Why don’t you say goodbye to your parents first?” Artemis looked up at them. “I can keep her for today and tonight, if you’d like.”

“That would be nice, thanks,” Percy responded.

Huntleigh waved to her parents and said a quick ‘bye.’ “Can we go now?”

Artemis smiled. “Yes, little hunter, we can go.” Artemis smirked at the couple, knowing full well what they would most likely be doing, and teleported away with their kid, leaving them in an empty house until morning.

Thalia grinned suggestively at Percy. He returned the expression and they snuck off to the bedroom, allowing themselves some actual pleasure time for the first time in months.

Thank the gods for the damn groundhog.