Change in Life

Chapter 17. Deed in Kind

As the weeks went by, the temperature started to drop far beyond what they thought it would. The river continued to freeze until the current prevented it from frosting over any further. It seemed to have shrunk as three meters of ice covered the shore. The danger this presented was hidden, yet not unknown. At any given time it could give way with one of them on it as they innocently drank and carry them down to the falls. The snow on the ground started to build up to the point where it took too much energy just to move, even with their nimble bodies. On some nights, the snow would be so deep it would be too exhausting and dangerous to go outside.

The fun and games Jade and Blake played in the beginning of the season when the snowfalls were light and enjoyable were now non-existent. If they were not to starve to death in their own home they had to risk all of nature's dangers and venture out of the warmth and safety of their den in order to hunt. Though the snow was beautiful, with the moon, its only purpose was to blind them as they already had to struggle against the gods of winter; the moons rays reflected off the snow directly into their eyes.

Trudging through the snow with caution, trying not to fall through unstable sections, the foxes seemed to take forever just to get from one tree to another. Every step away from their den they took, they got colder and more anxious, not knowing if they were going to freeze to death or break an unstable flooring of snow and fall through. All hope of finding their way through this terrible season would have been lost if not for the constant company of the other.

Instead of going their separate ways like they did in the autumn, Blake followed her relentlessly. Her need for him to stay with her for the season had been taken literally. Never once did he lose sight of her. In the event that he did, he yipped, and if he heard nothing, he barked. The unrelenting feeling of having done something wrong also spurred his mission to help her. He had reluctantly discovered that he had given Jade the cold-shoulder a day after their play in the fresh snow, before the novelty of the frozen powder wore off. The observation was made when from her very affectionate charm turned into something of reserved spite that morning as they settled in. Apart from the, what he believed now, accidental cuddles as they slept, her mischievous standpoint of him became cautious, as if she was holding out on something.

The chances of finding food in the winter months, especially nights like tonight when blizzards became more frequent, were very slim. But whatever the chances of them finding food were, they were going to take them. They more-or-less had to. For the last week that went by they ate nothing but the food they had in their stashes. Their chickens didn't last long. Blake had even eaten something from the bottom of the stashes pit whose only resemblance to once being meat was the crunch of brittle bones. So much more food was needed in the cold season to power their already slim bodies that there was nothing left in any of them... and they weren't even half way through winter.

Blake didn't take this news well and the sudden heavy surge of fear struck him. Their chances of survival were slim.

At first Blake panicked. With no food in the stashes and prey almost nowhere to be found, the fear of dying became apparent. Jade felt the same, but she had done this before... just. They knew that if they had each other, they would somehow make it out alive. That's if they still had each other in the end

They scavenged for ages, missing out on every opportunity of food due to the extensive snowfalls. They were about to give up hope for the third night in a row when one last source of food came to the corner of their eyes. Blake's eyes beamed with excitement. He looked at Jade and her to him as they lowered.

Jade's thought possessors were scrambled more and more with each night that passed. The disillusions of winter and the more pressing issue of how to deal with Blake had been her main qualms. They mostly failed hunts like this one because her head couldn't get in the right space. Her constant hunger prevented her from figuring out his mindset quicker. She had tried snuggle into him more tentatively, hoping to invoke him to cuddle back - of which he didn't - and talking more about his past experiences with relationships - and that of which got the least results. All she knew now was he used to have a "girlfriend" named Sky. He wouldn't elaborate on her.