Warnings: It's a bird, it's a plane, it's blood!

~~~

     "I promise in the morning we'll get that fixed up... But right now I hear mobs and we don't even know where anyone is... So let's just find somewhere to bed down."

     Rob nods in agreement and with the support of Preston the two maneuver their way through the cold darkness, in search for a place to sleep.

~~~

~Preston's P.O.V.~

     "Ow! Preston wait!" Rob whimpers, clutching his leg.
     "Sorry, Sorry!" I blurt, drawing my hands back.

     After an uneasy sleep I stuck to my word and am now attempting to pull out the arrow lodged into his ankle. I watch guiltily as Rob closes his eyes and takes slow deep breaths. After a moment he hesitantly nods, slowly pulling back his hands. Once again I approach his leg, no longer bleeding but soon to be. The head of the arrow is the only thing stopping blood from spurting out of the wound. I'm such an idiot.

     Placing my hands on the neck of the arrow I snap the wood so I don't have as much to pull out and so I can slide the pant leg over the arrow and roll it up. Now with access to the arrowhead I throw the useless material away, locking eyes with Rob.

     "You might wanna look away and bite your sleeve." I suggest, watching as he does just so.
     "Just get it done with..." He mewls, fabric clenched tightly between his teeth.
     "Okay. One... Two... Three!"

     I tug with all my might and the arrow pops out, blood gushing immediately after it. Rob shrieks in pain, the fabric doing little to soften the noise.

     A few tears streak down his cheeks as I glance in horror at the amount of blood flooding out of the hole.

     "Oh crap! Um uh..." I sputter, looking around for something to stop the flow.

      I spin around frantically, not catching a glimpse of anything I can use. All that surrounds me is trees, bushes, and snow. Can't there be a tree that can grow fabric!? I plea in my mind, huffing in frustration. I look back at Rob and jump as I notice the large amount of blood already pooling around his leg. Instinct kicks in an I instantly reache under my hoodie, pulling down my black t-shirt so it sticks out. (Yes I know his skin doesn't actually show a t-shirt but for the sake of this scenario we're gonna pretend he does XP) In the blink of an eye I rip off a large strip of my shirt.

     "Preston, your shirt!" Rob exclaims, eyes wide as I ignore his statement and proceed to wrap up his wound.
     "You're gonna die of blood loss if I don't do this." I explain, finishing up a tight double knot.

     Rob opens his mouth to say more but before he can muster a single word a snarling blur is tacking him to the ground.
He yells out in pain and surprise, tumbling across the ground just as another two forms emerge. The wolves must have followed his blood! I realize in my mind, scrambling to my feet.

     "ROB!" I scream, whipping out my bow and shooting off the wolf upon him.

      The other two wolves growl viciously, the first one springing to its feet. Rob struggles to his feet, tumbling towards me. I pull back another arrow, sinking it into the stomach of the first wolf and successfully brining it down. Caught off guard the remaining wolves rush towards their pack member.

     "Let's go!" I shout, throwing Rob's arm across my shoulders and practically dragging him.

     Rob yelps in pain, forced to only put little to no pressure on his injured ankle. Behind us I can pick up the sound of two pressing wolves, their snarls clear throughout the brush. Rob is trying his absolute hardest to move at my pace, limping drastically. But there is no use, I can easily hear the approaching thuds of the wolves.

     "ARGH this isn't going to work!" I fume, skidding to a halt, "Get on my back!" I command, squatting down.
     "But-"
     "HURRY UP DANGIT!" I press sharply.

     Rob leaps onto by back and I waste not a second to grip onto his legs, being mindful of his ankle. Rob gasps as the wolves shoot from behind a tree, rushing towards us. I jerk forwards, bolting away. Moving like a superhuman with the help of adrenaline I race through the snow, not even caring which direction I'm heading. Rob is rather heavy, but I pay no mind.

Although my adrenalized state does not last forever, and soon enough my lungs are starting to burn. I huff, forcing myself to continue on while taking uneven and shaky breaths. Rob seems to be weighing more by the second and I can hear my heart thumping inside my head, probably working too hard for my own good. But I still hear the steady pace of the two wolves behind us, stubbornly pushing on. But just as I'm about to break down from exhaustion Rob perks up.

"Preston, over there!" He says, pointing towards the right.

Low and behold the frame of an old worn down stone shack is hiding behind a small cluster of bushes. With new hope I redirect my course, throwing open the creaky old wooden door and plunging into the darkness without hesitation. Not a second after I slam the door shut I hear snarling and barking, claws scratching at the rotting door. But thankfully it's holds.

"We... We actually... Made it..." I wheeze, slumping down.

I gently set down Rob before collapsing to my knees, hunching over. My lungs are on fire, as well as my legs.

"Are you okay Preston?" Rob questions in concern.
"Yeah... I'm just tired." I huff, leaning back.

In my resting moments I decide to note my surroundings. The stench in the abandoned shack is rancid and stale, corpses of dead mice and droppings littering the ground. The roof is caving in, holes tearing it in multiple places. The walls also have large holes and with all the exposure dim sunlight spills into the space.

After a few minutes of silence I slowly push myself to my feet, peeking through a hole in the wall. I instantly spot the two canines, pacing back and fourth in front of the door and occasionally pawing at it. One wolf is grey and fairly small, white specks littering its coat. But the second one is unmistakably the leader, it's black shining fur and stocky body very distinct. I draw back into the run down room, looking at Rob miserably.

"This is really bad. Like really bad. Rest in pepperonis bad. Those wolves don't look like their gonna leave very soon and I don't know how long this for is gonna hold up. We can't really stay here forever either, we need to find everyone else..." I report, huddling into a cleanish corner.

Rob frowns, tentatively sitting down. I pull out my remaining arrows, counting how many I actually have left. Seven. That's not gonna do us very well... And Rob doesn't even have a weapon! And my bow is nearly broken too... I realize, glancing nervously at the fraying string.

"Let's leave at nightfall."
"Excuse me?!" I blubber, staring at Rob. "My bow is about to break, I only have seven arrows, your ankle is really badly hurt, mobs are gonna spawn, you don't have a weapon, and there are two angry and probably hungry wolves waiting outside!" I half-shout in disbelief.
"I know I know! But hear this. There's not much we can do right now. Regardless of if we stay here or not it's not going to change any of those factors besides the mob part. Look, if we go at night the wolves might be sleeping and we can sneak around and find a new shelter before any mobs find us."
"You are crazy!" I exclaim, not buying into the plan.
"Preston, please. Just... Trust me." Rob pleas, eyes not blinking.

I turn away from his intense stare, pressing my lips tightly together as I weigh the options. Sighing deeply I drag my freezing hands down my face. Looking back to Rob who has not moved an inch. I nod slowly.

"Fine. We'll leave as soon as the sky gets dark." I grumble, suddenly becoming very interested in the ground.

I can feel the grin on his face as he shifts excitedly. Rob scoots over to my side, crushing me in a hug.

"Poofless will never be defeated!" He shouts in victory, pumping a fist in the air.
"Shut up you little cactus, we're not done yet."

~~~

"It's now or never, time to go." I state nervously, glancing at the dark sky through a particularly large tear in the roof.

I stand up, pulling Rob up with me and tip toe to the door, pressing an ear to its gritty surface. I listen for noise, anything to indicate the wolves are still awake and prowling. But when I hear none I start to creak open the door extremely slowly.

But as Rob predicted the wolves are lying together a few meters away, chests rising and falling steadily. 'Come on.' I mouth silently, letting him lean half of his weight on me as he heavily limps out of the doorway. We begin to creep away from the wolves, wincing at every crunch of snow beneath our feet and every distant sound of mobs. A wolf sneezes and we freeze, attempting to merge into the shadows. The grey wolf raises its head, shaking its head before setting it back down. I swallow down the lump in my throat, side stepping away.

Once we're about thirty or so meters away we begin to hurriedly slip away. I catch a glimpse of a distant stray and cautiously drag Rob along with me, receiving a small noise of discomfort from the sudden change in speed. But without any protest Rob limps faster, seeming to know that mobs lurk nearby.

Finally, after what seems to be an eternity, we finally find a large bush to shelter behind. Ducking behind it Rob unlatches himself from my side, plopping down into the snow.

"We actually made it!" I whisper happily, settling in beside him.
"I told you that I'm trustworthy!" Rob boasts, smiling in the dark.

I scoop out an area of snow and shift into a semi comfortable position, using my arms as a pillow.

"Do you think everyone else is okay?" Rob asks, yawning.
"Let's hope so. Let's also hope we can find everyone else eventually. Who knows how long it's gonna take? Could be a could of days or months. Assuming we survive that long." I comment grimly.
"We're gonna make it. And everyone else is too. I don't know exactly what we're gonna do but we will find a way to fix all of this." Rob encourages.
"One can only dream."
"And that's what I'm going to do right now. Goodnight Preston."

I hum in reply, sleepiness draining away the last of my energy.

~~~