you do not know who is your friend or who is your enemy until the ICE breaks. Somehow, the children kept moving, though Fenru seemed at the edge of breaking. Only nudges kept him going, and Ice felt his heart both break and harden. He may hate water, but this wasn't the time to give in to fear. Together, he and Triell herded the young Tainn males to safety, but Fenru didn't even crawl towards the rock formation - he just collapsed on the wet grass, and Ice took the moment to breathe and stand over his sodden body. His sides were heaving, gaze cast into the world, but the downpour and mist rising from the river limited his vision and he couldn't catch sight of the females. The possibility that they'd been swept away by the current presented itself, but mercilessly he dashed it against a rock. He'd not believe that until he found it to be true. He couldn't falter now. "Hey hey Fen Fen," he said, his voice brighter than he felt. "I'll go fetch her in a moment, but if you stay out in the rain, you'll get too cold so your eyes will freeze and you won't be able to see her, so c'mon, get up and into cover." With that, he gave the youth another nudge and stepped off him, allowing the rain to touch his form again. Nudging Hael and Triell in passing, Ice ducked in among the scattered slabs. Here and there it formed enough cover to keep the rain out, and he gave a sharp back to draw Triell and the boys there. "In here, you'll be able to curl up safe and sound with each other and dry off. Listen to Triell, and have heart. I'll be back with Mum-" In the heat of the moment, he didn't really register that he used Fen's name for her. "- and Kisla and Naira soon enough, you'll see." And then he was gone, bounding down the slope like an expert mountain goat. All the desperation, worry and fear that he'd not dared show in front of Fenru broke out as he made his way back down. His step lengthened into careless leaps that nearly sent him tumbling head over heels, his heart hammering and his breath rapid, trying to smell them but smelling only water. Finally, with a grunt, he landed elbow-deep in the water around the den entrance. It was submerged, and he waded around before finding the place where Kisla had shown up, only to tumble down into the water. If I hadn't called her... Too late for that, though. Perhaps she would've been taken unawares otherwise... Slogging through the muddy water Ice burst up on the ruined bank. The water wasn't as deep here, and it was easier to run. Grunting with the effort and eying the river warily, Ice pushed himself into motion. The water clung to him, threatening to topple him but he kept going, refusing to give up even if he had to search the banks for hours, until he nearly collided with Corinna. He'd been so busy worrying he'd not picked out her gray-and-tan form against the equally gray-and-tan rainy world. "Oh by the stars, there you are!" But he quickly sobered, seeing the sodden form of Kisla lying beside Naira. He froze where he was, standing still as a statue as he feared the worst.. but a faint rise and fall of her wet flank betrayed life, and he let out the pent-up worry in a rushed bark. He bounded around their leader, latched onto the scruff of Naira, and began to back up, dragging her out of the water. He assumed Corinna would grab Kisla. Once they were a couple of yards from the waterline, he let go of the sodden Second and stood there, panting again. They were far from safe, but at least more safe than they'd been at the waterline. Ice bent down for a moment, touching his nose to Naira's cheek and standing over her as he'd done with Fenru, to keep the rain off her. "Triell and the boys are safe up the slope, sheltering among some rocks. It keeps them out of the rain at least, but they're very worried about you." Ice was, too. It was evident in the way he kept staring at Kisla, hoping she'd open her eyes. His gaze skipped over to Corinna. "The question now, is.. how do we get you up there?" He guessed he had enough strength to carry/drag/coax one of the two sodden females along, and even if Naira was awake, her brush with the river might've left her too weak to be able to climb the slope on her own, and unless Kisla woke up, they definitely had to carry her. Despite the movement that kept his muscles heated, the wind blew cold and stole the warmth from him - how mustn't it then be for those who had had the misfortune of bathing..? .ice aesir |
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