A/N: A Christmas gift for all my wonderful Perleos, and the rest of my readers, too. (: Thanks for the continued support guys!

"Leo? What are you doing way over here?"

He was sitting on a big rock right on the edge of the clearing in the forest of skeletal trees, and grinned when he saw Percy peering up at him through the snow and his mop of wind-tossed hair. Percy came back to camp quite a bit during the winter, as if he couldn't bear to be away for longer than a week at a time. Leo stretched a hand down to him and Percy clasped it, climbing effortlessly up the side of the boulder in a few steps and sitting next to him, right against him, because there wasn't much of a flat surface at the top before the edges curved down at the sides.

Leo didn't mind.

After a moment, when Percy had yanked his scarf out from under his leg and almost succeeded in pitching himself backwards, his breath puffing in the air like a dragon's as he situated himself, he blinked, and glanced quickly over at Leo in wonder. "You're heating the rock?"

He shrugged uncomfortably and tried another smile. "You looked cold."

The rock had been covered in thick ice to begin with, but Leo wouldn't mention that. He went back to watching his siblings play, aware of sea-green eyes tracing his profile.

Snowflakes were falling with a gentle, haphazard grace, but they melted in Leo's proximity before they could make it all the way down. He frowned, casting a sullen glance up at the gray sky.

He was grateful for the power his father gave him. He just wished it would stop taking from him.

He would love to play in the snow with his little brothers and sisters. Nyssa wasn't the only girl in the cabin anymore, Harley no longer the youngest, and Leo could only sit and watch Shane haul little Christa around on his shoulders, because he would melt away all the fun as soon as he came near.

He itched to build with the snow. To pick it up.

To feel it, just one time.

Percy made a soft sound, like "oh," and slid down from the rock in a way that reminded Leo of water slipping through stones. The smile Percy sent him in the next moment was dazzling, and Leo could only blink at him stupidly as the young earthshaker spun and crunched away through the snow.

Leo was still for a second, then huffed and kicked his feet, embarrassed and lonely and lovelorn. He rubbed his arms, more out of habit than anything else- he was perfectly fine in the t-shirt he wore- and the fluttering of something caught his eye.

"Ah- Percy!" He clutched at the scarf before it could fly off and jumped down, trotting ahead a few steps as the snow flattened delicately underfoot. "Percy, wait- you forgot your..."

Cold was nipping at his ankles, and he couldn't believe it as he glanced down. There was a delightful crunch as he took a step back, and then as he knelt and some of the snow shifted into his shoe. He was wearing shorts, and could feel the frosty bite for the first time as he dropped slowly to his knees. Unsure whether he was about to laugh or cry, he glanced up as someone neared him, and grinned when he saw it was Percy.

Of course it was Percy.

"How are you- ?"

"A trick I picked up from dad." Percy's face was as soft as the snowflakes in his eyelashes as he took the scarf and gently wound it around Leo's neck. "It's not exactly easy, but frozen water's still water. As long as I'm nearby," he crouched, and took one of Leo's hands, turning it gently palm upward, and deposited a handful of snow there, "I can make it snow for you."

The snow was freezing, and powdery, and started to burn as it melted slowly down his wrist. He could, if he wanted to, attempt to count each individual snowflake that dissolved, too delicate and insubstantial, on their own, to withstand the slightest amount of heat. He could run his fingers through the snow, feel the texture that might have been grainy like sugar if it had a chance to be anything other than soft, with teeth of bitter cold. He could have packed it into a ball to throw, could have turned away and built something right then and there, the first snowman of his life-

If only he could tear his eyes away from Percy's face for even a moment in the wake of this gift he'd given Leo.

The first gift of the first winter with his family, and one he would never forget.

Trembling, he dropped the snow and reached for Percy, who moved into his arms the moment he realized they were for him, and pulled him down, pulled him close, heated the snow away again because Percy deserved the warmth.

"You're welcome," Percy replied, despite Leo's silence, and Leo could hear his smile, warmer than anything Leo had ever touched before. He drew back before Leo wanted to let him go, and pulled him to his feet.

By now his siblings had realized he'd come to play with them, and the little ones were cheering and running for him, clutching his shirt and arm and begging him to make them a huge snow fort with a big bold H9 on the front for their cabin!

All he could do was nod, overwhelmed and smiling so widely he thought his face would break apart.

He called his big brothers over, and within moments Shane, Chris and Jake were drawing blueprints in the snow with a stick, to make the little ones laugh- and the kids deserved this feeling of family more than Leo deserved feeling the snow. So he added some extras to the plan here and there, like a door that would actually open in the back and a window, and drew in some impressive ice fixtures that would adorn the top, assigning them to the resident earthshaker. Percy was a little surprised to be included, but happily so, stepping forward to look at the plans, fingers flexing as he imagined how he would flow and freeze the water in the appropriate shapes. Jake laughed because the quirk was very Hephaestean and leaned over to ruffle Percy's gray-streaked hair, catching Leo's eyes and mouthing, "He's a keeper," grinning when Leo's hair steamed.

They had quite an audience by the end of the day, half of what campers remained for the winter (some of the demigods had family to go home to after the summer, and some didn't) watching in awe as the most glorified snow fort in existence came to life right in front of them.

In the end, it collapsed in on itself halfway through, and the campers watching shouted in dismay, but Leo's little ones shrieked with laughter and clapped their hands because building with family was such a joy it didn't even matter it hadn't worked.

And there was snow in Percy's hair and laughter in his eyes when he flopped down next to Leo in the snow. Leo put an arm around him immediately and Shane yelled from the top of the ruined fort, "Get a room!" He was promptly pelted with snowballs, thrown by Harley and Jonesy, who looked determined to be Leo's champions and Leo couldn't do anything but laugh.

"Thank you Perce," he murmured at Percy later when they all sat by the fire, as a highly amused Grover handed out hot chocolate, and the little ones slept peacefully in his lap and in his arms. He didn't know how to communicate what a gift Percy had given him, or how to explain in words how wonderful the whole day had been, even though it was something others might undervalue, playing in the snow with loved ones

Percy's only response was to raise his mug in a silent toast, and smile.