A night spent watching over the survivors was, simply put, not an easy task. I caught myself dozing off multiple times. I had to inventory my backpack and the dogs’ bags two times to pass the time. The night was shockingly uneventful. All the couple did was sleep. They did not snore, nor did they move. In one word: boring. Seven hours of rest have gone to waste. Unlike me, Don and the wolves were blissfully snoring louder than hibernating bears with their bellies up. The sight of Don drooling on my thigh ticked me off. Annoyed by his display of blissful slumber, I pinched his nose for a couple of seconds. His hand flew to my wrist, prying my hand away.

 

“Princess, what gives?” Eloquent as ever, Don rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

 

“It’s time to wake up. You’ve slept enough."

 

“It’s still dark!” In other circumstances, a grown man whining would have been hilarious but granted that D was worn down, I didn’t laugh.

 

“The sun is rising, and we have some things to prepare before everyone wakes up.” He turned to face me in the opposite direction, and the thin layer of icy powder fell off him. In a fetal position, he attempted to go back to sleep.

 

"Why can't you do it alone?"

 

“We need to refill our water bottles." I played with the matted strands of his hair. "And I want you to suffer with me."

 

He faced me once again with a playful smile. "I thought I was the sadist in the relationship?"

 

"Forty-eight hours without sleep would turn a nun into a sadist."

 

The man chuckled before sitting up. I got up and stretched my aching legs; the rush of blood flow made me light-headed and stumbling like a newborn deer. Don rushed to stand, offering some support by grabbing my elbow and placing his large hand on my hipbone. Once I was good to go, we grabbed the water bottles and placed them in the old bucket. We made our way to the back of the shack, where - behind tall dead grass and droopy bushes devoid of a cloak of thick leaves - hid a well. The base was made of stones devoured by moss. The pulley hung from a mouldy wood structure anchored in the ground.

 

The more we walked in that direction, the more congested the plants intertwined. The layer of snow made the ground slippery, making our steps hesitant. Finally, when we reached the well, beyond exhausted, I took the bottles in my arms while Don hung the bucket from the hook.

 

“I need a shower, badly." Don blurted out.

 

“Are you desperate enough to mop up in this cold?” I may have been joking. Afterward, I realized how uncomfortable it must be to have layer upon layer of grim bundled up in dirty clothes.

 

“Hell no.” I was about to add that his wish would be granted soon, but a feeling of agitation overwhelmed me. A summoning force compelled me to return to where I left the two sleepyheads. “Where you going?”

 

With the bottles full of translucent water and no cap, I jogged back to our camp. The journey seemed longer; I blamed it on my nerves. When I came around the decrepit cabin, I saw the couple tiptoeing their way towards us, emulating cartoon characters. They were so focused on circling the big, bad wolves that they didn't see Don and me approaching.

 

“What are you doing?” The humans, feet away from me, whip their heads in our direction.

 

“Huh, we, um… well.” The female survivor overcame her fright faster, although she spewed nothing coherent.

 

“I thought we agreed to keep our distance, did we not?” My love's voice was hefty with hostility.

 

“Y-yes, we did.” Her companion was lacklustre, his previous boisterous attitude was gone in the wind.

 

“Get the hell away from our camp before I make sushi out of you two.”

 

"Look, we just want some water. We used the last of our ration yesterday." Their eyes were pleading us, we had no ownership of the source of water, and even if we did, I would never refuse fellow living beings. Quickly, I peered at Don to get his approval; he gave me a short nod, and we went our way without further discussion.

 

 

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

 

 

A cup of warm soup occupied the hands of all eight of us. I enjoyed every sip of the scalding, hot broth, unbothered by the attention-seeking wind. The cup of soup in our hands guaranteed enough heat to combat the cold air of November. With each gulp, an explosion of light but rich flavour hit my tongue, along with occasional vegetables soaked in the salty stock goodness and meaty pieces of the bird’s flesh. The freshness of our meal was unparalleled. A meal prepared with love was always the most satisfying.

 

“How did you know that the water was consumable?” Percy broke the comfortable silence established during the meal. I started to understand his character a bit more; as for the others, I could not say for sure. We haven’t interacted enough. The conditions we are in aren’t favourable for playing twenty-one questions.

 

“Loki drank it,” I said, lifting my eyes from the colourful meal I was inhaling. “He came back with Akira, and Milo, drenched.”

 

“That’s right, Thor drank some too,” Milo informed us, relishing it as much as I did our breakfast.

 

“Is it a trustworthy indicator, though?” Mira shared a quarter of her portion with her girlfriend. The soup was nutritionally dense, something they hadn't eaten in a long time.

 

“Yes, it is. They wouldn't drink anything that was polluted or infected. They have a keener nose than any canine and are far more intelligent than they look like.” After the brief exchange, everyone’s attention went back to their food. No one had sufficient space for a second serving, no matter how good the meal was. Thinking of our unwelcome neighbours, I gauged the options, and wasting food was not on the list. It was with resoluteness that I marched into enemy territory with a disposable bottle filled with the remainder of the soup.

 

“Here.” I handed it to the two, sitting close to their fire, monitoring the boiling water. “Unfortunately, there’s no human flesh in it.” The woman laughed, thinking I was pulling their chain.

 

“What?” The confused man accepted the bottle, debating whether I was making a joke. “Why would you think we eat people?”

 

“You tell me you’ve got traps set up all over the border of the forest. ”Guffaw erupted between them both. Apparently, I said something funny enough to make the two bend over and wheeze vociferously.

 

“We do hunt humans, but not to eat them.”

 

“Robbing them of their belongings is what we do, Miss." The bear-like man regained some of his liveliness.

 

“I am curious. Why didn’t you rob us?” His answer was much like what I expected. Two against eight were not good odds. He also pointed out to me that the two wolves and our weapons were very effective dissuasions for people who used their wits more than violence. “Oh. Well, good thing I have an anti-theft sword and robber-chasing pups.”

 

“Those are pups?"

 

“Yup, eight months old.” The surprised looks I got from the strangers amused me. “Enjoy the soup, and take care.”

 

“Thank you!”

 

This outcome was more favourable. While I had to sacrifice my sleep, I was glad that I kept watch all night.

 

 

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶

 

 

Having the wolves give piggyback rides like the day before, the party’s stamina was dwindling at a fast rate despite that. Their feeble bodies were fatigued. They were pushing themselves beyond their current limits. The more we advanced, the slower their pace became. Compared to yesterday morning, their gait was strained as if they had iron-clad boots on. We had at most three hours left of walking before reaching the camping grounds, meaning we could get there at the zenith. Maybe we could have dinner before hitting the road again.

 

“We are almost there. Hang in there, guys!” My cheers made them pick up the pace a little, otherwise, they still had dull faces full of tiredness. They took advantage of their wolf ride to snack on their ration, hoping it would give them enough energy for when they would have to move their legs again. I felt bad that I couldn’t do more to help. For me, our odyssey barely made me break a sweat - after all, I walked a lot recently.

 

“I never asked, but what kind of mode of transport is waiting for us?” I looked up at Don. His tall frame looked even more impressive on the back of Loki. Like a Viking on a mission to conquer new land, and while doing so, partaking in degrading debauchery with foreign beauties. My thoughts derailed at the image of D in the Northern Warrior character coming into my village and plundering everything with his comrades. My parents would have errands to run in the town market, leaving me behind and alone in the house. He would come in, taking everything the residence had to offer, including my body. Deflowering me on my childhood home floor, in the middle of the living area. Plundering me repeatedly until satisfied, afterward whisking my limp body on his mount towards his home, where he could further his exploration of my no longer virgin body.

 

“Rory? Earth to Rory!” Don broke me out of my fantasy. An often occurrence that plagued my existence when near him, he must be used by now.

 

“You’ll see?"

 

“You won’t tell me?” I shook my head. He seemed disappointed, and unfortunately for him, I was determined to keep it a surprise. "Ok fine, but you are earning yourself some punishment.”

“We’ll see.”

 

“Are the people in your camp aware of our arrival?”

 

“Yes and no. Clover didn’t express it, but she kind of lost hope of finding you. The others are excited to meet, well, you. We didn’t expect you to have a party of survivors with you, but they will be happy.” I went on to share about the life I had back home, and everyone joined in the conversation after a while. It distracted us from the kilometres we walked. We laughed and exchanged banter, we talked about pleasantries as if the apocalypse never happened.

 

The time flew by faster, and chatting with the group made the trip more bearable for all. Soon enough, we stepped foot on the camping ground, welcomed by a tacky sign with “Welcome to Chump Chap Camp” in awful fuchsia letters and a matching mascot resembling a crossover between a baby and a squirrel. The mascot’s disturbing eyes were big and appeared to follow your every move. Its smile was stiff with square teeth peaking from its upper lip, and the worst was its odd proportions, its head looked small and dented, and its cheeks were protruding too much.

 

Behind the overall creepy sign - corded in an orderly fashion - were rows of campers.

My vehicle was parked in the fourth row on the left, on Chuky Avenue, it was the second last down the line. We followed the principal road connecting all the ‘Avenues’. My companions were looking around, as well as me, for any indication as to which was our ticket to Roryland. The place was oddly quiet, the same way it was when I first came here. There was a perturbation in the air behind us that attracted Thor, Loki, and my attention. With no time to react, the object hit Thor’s rump, bouncing off immediately and dropping on the gravel unbeknownst to the others.

 

 

︶꒦꒷♡꒷꒦︶