Harry Potter and the Norse Gods

{25} Christmas Visits

ANNABETH

It had been almost twelve o'clock by the time we left Percy's parents' house on Christmas Day. We hadn't been intending to stay that long, but it was Estelle's first Christmas with everyone there, and Percy – and me, if I'm being honest – caved almost immediately.

Unfortunately, that meant that we were now rushing to get back to Camp in time to leave for the Burrow. England was five hours ahead of New York, so it was already five in the evening there, and there was a Christmas Dinner that we had all been invited to at 5:30.

"You know, I could've driven," Percy pouted from the passenger's seat.

"You had too much Eggnog this morning," I replied.

Now that we were out of the big city and heading towards Camp, I was more relaxed. Maybe we wouldn't be ridiculously late.

"No, I didn't," he argued, "You just don't trust my driving skills."

"That's not true," I said, "I trust your driving skills under most circumstances."

"And this isn't most circumstances?"

I shot him a 'seriously?' look.

"Percy, if someone were to look at you, and just you, and ignore our surroundings, they'd think there was an earthquake. You're way too wired at the moment," I pointed out, "Also, we just cleaned the car last weekend and you have a habit of finding every muddy puddle and snow pile there is to drive through."

"I won't argue with you there," he conceded, "I'm just glad we were let out of Camp for Christmas. It feels like we've been in lockdown all year."

"We kind of have," I said, "But it's for our safety. If there are fewer demigods out and about to be caught, less are going to be caught and sacrificed."

"Yeah, I just wish I could see my mum and Paul and Estelle more," he sighed.

"Me too," I admitted.

"I guess it's just more incentive to finish this quickly," he joked.

I managed a chuckle, but I couldn't help the feeling of dread that washed over me at the mere thought of what was to come. Ouranos' return, much like Gaia's had, felt like more of a 'when' than an 'if', and we were still recovering from the last battle with a Primordial.

= = =

I breathed a sigh of relief when I finally spotted the sign for Delphi Strawberries. Even though Camp had become something akin to a prison – albeit a large and nice one – over the last few months, it was still home.

I parked the car on the side of the road, bracing myself for the cold before I hopped out. It hit me like a hellhound when I did, but it wasn't as bad as I had been anticipating. Still, I wrapped my jacket more tightly around myself as I navigated my way through the snowy bank.

Across from me, I could see Percy tucking his hands into his pockets and muscling his way through a tall pile of snow that separated the road from the land around it.

"Hopefully it won't be this bad in England," he said when he reached me, his breath creating small white clouds in the air as he spoke.

"I wouldn't be hopeful about that," I replied.

"I knew you would say that," he sighed.

I chuckled and led the way towards the camp entrance.

Beyond the barrier, the snow wasn't as deep, so we were able to make our way down to the Big House where everyone else was waiting with relative ease.