Haruno gasped like her lungs had forgotten how to breathe.
She coughed violently and choked on her own breath. Her vision flickered between white and black. The blizzard was still swirling endlessly around her. Her body was trembling uncontrollably. She was still cold, but not like before.
Something was holding her.
She blinked through frozen lashes, trying to see through the raging white around her. There, she could make out a shape. It was a moving silhouette. Steam poured from it in waves like heat battling against the storm. She couldn't see its face or even tell if it had one. It carried her easily. Her fingers twitched, scraping against its side. It pulsed with warmth.
"Wh…who…"
No answer.
She tried again, louder this time, but it came out only as a weak croak. Her ears were ringing so badly she couldn't tell if she was even speaking anymore. Her hearing was fractured. Everything was muffled, like she was underwater.
She hear a voice. It wasn't that terrifying command from the worm. This was different.
"Don't move."
Her mind spun. She blinked, forcing her blurred eyes to focus.
'Who… was that? Where am I? I was eaten—'
The thought cut off.
A low rumble echoed across the snow. She couldn't make out what it was. The sound felt far away. She was too weak and tired. At least at least the whisper was gone. She couldn't hear it anymore.
Time passed in fragments. The wind dulled. The ground beneath her stopped crunching. She couldn't feel snow brushing against her legs anymore. The thing that had carried her stopped moving. She felt it shift, gently lowering her down. The world around her turned a little brighter. A cave, maybe.
Her body sank into a surface that wasn't snow but rough stone. It was warm, radiating a low, humming heat that made her skin sting as it thawed. She tried to open her mouth to thank or ask but her jaw trembled uncontrollably.
Then, she heard it again.
Walk.
Her heart dropped.
Her limbs jerked violently, spasming to life. Her legs twitched, kicking against the ground. Her hands clawed weakly at the air.
"No. No please, no more…"
Her body began to rise. It wasn't her doing.
Her knees buckled as soon as she stood and she would've fallen but strong arms caught her from behind.
She felt them wrap around her, holding her upright. A chest pressed against her back. Her whole body was shaking, and not from the cold anymore. Her vision blurred again as tears broke free, streaking down her face in uneven trails.
"I… I don't want to die. I'm scared… please… I don't want to… it's scary…"
Her knees gave out again but the grip behind her tightened, catching her every time. The warmth radiated through her body
The voice came again right next to her ear.
"Relax. You're not going to die."
She froze. The whisper of control still tugged faintly at her muscles like threads twitching beneath her skin but the warmth behind her was stronger. It pressed her trembling body still, refusing to let her move. Her breathing slowed, though tears still streamed down her cheeks. Her lips quivered as she whispered.
"I can't… I can't stop… my body—"
"Then don't fight it. Just… breathe in and out."
She tried, taking one breath after another.
The warmth spread further from the hands gripping her shoulders to the pulse at her neck. The blizzard's sound faded, drowned out by the steady rhythm of that voice. She could still feel the faint pull in her legs. The whisper still told her to walk but every time she twitched, the warmth behind her pulled her back.
Her tears wouldn't stop. She didn't even know why she was crying anymore. Relief? Fear? It didn't matter.
"You were never meant to survive that trial alone. How did Haruno survive it..."
She tried to turn her head but she couldn't. Her muscles refused, caught between the cold, lifeless command and the warmth pressing against her. Her voice came out filed with fear.
"Please… don't let go…"
The voice answered immediately with no hesitation.
"I won't. If I let you go, we both die."
She could still feel her body trying to move but it didn't matter anymore. Every time she felt herself slipping away, every time the whisper tried to reclaim her, those arms just held her tighter.
And for the first time since the trial began, Haruno stopped walking.
°°°°°°
Haruno stirred.
Her body, once stiff and cold as stone, now felt wrapped in something heavy, soft, and warm. Her eyelashes fluttered open. She blinked several times, her blurred vision slowly resolving into the faint glow of a campfire ahead of her. Shadows danced along the stone walls of a small cave in the middle of the frozen storm.
Lanterns using Xana as fuel hung on protruding rocks. There was a pot resting near the campfire, releasing tiny puffs of steam. Haruno tried to move but something heavy was around her.
Her arms were pinned... no, held. She turned her head slightly, and that's when she saw her savior.
A sleeping face was slightly tilted toward her. His long crimson hair wasn't in a braid. His breathing was warm enough that she could feel it brushing her neck. Her entire face flushed red in an instant. Her heart skipped several beats as realization struck her like lightning. He was holding her tightly.
She was half-wrapped in his arms, both of them covered by a thick dark cloak that seemed to capture all the heat in the cave. He was leaning against the stone wall, his legs stretched slightly, with her back resting against his chest. His hand rested on her waist, though it was obvious from the faint pressure that he hadn't let go even in sleep.
Her first instinct was to jolt but her body refused. Her muscles ached and the memory of the snow and the worm all slammed back into her head. Her stomach twisted and the faint smell of cold and iron came back to her.
She swallowed hard. Her eyes trembled.
Her breathing grew shallow for a moment but then… she felt his warmth. She could feel the heat from his chest, from his hands and even the faint hum beneath his skin. Her blush deepened as she shifted slightly, snuggling closer without meaning to. Her cheek brushed against the fabric of his shirt. She felt like a piece of ice melting in his hold.
Her mind, though, wasn't quiet.
Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the worm's gaping mouth again, the endless snow, the voice in her mind repeating.
Walk. Walk. Walk.
A shiver ran through her despite the warmth. She instinctively moved closer, pressing into him as though he could shield her from something that wasn't even there anymore. For a moment, she simply breathed. His scent was faintly floral. It had a trade of rose. Haruno's eyes moved down.
She saw his hands resting near her side. They were slightly open, steaming faintly in the cold air. He was generating warmth constantly. It was humanly impossible but she didn't care. He wasn't cold at all. He wasn't even trembling.
"If anything, you're too warm…"
The words slipped out before she could stop them. Then she froze again because he moved.
Phaser's eyes twitched slightly, and he gave a small groan as his eyes opened. Two bright silver irises glowed faintly under the dim light. He blinked once, disoriented, then his gaze focused on her.
"You're awake."
Haruno stammered, feeling heat crawl up her neck.
"Y–yeah. Just now."
He squinted for a second, then gave a small scoff. He shifted his arm slightly and to her surprise, instead of pulling back, he hugged her tighter. Haruno went still again. Her heart practically stopped.
"Y-you…"
Phaser sighed into her hair, his breath sending a chill down her spine.
"You were shaking. Don't move too much. You're still recovering. You suffered from frostbite and hypothermia. If it wasn't for my healing, you would be dead by now."
She blinked rapidly trying to find words but all she could manage was a small nod. He leaned his head back against the cave wall with his eyes half-lidded.
"The trial got you pretty bad. That whisper is not something you just walk off."
At the mention of the whisper, Haruno's expression changed. The color drained from her face as her mind replayed the sound. She hugged herself slightly beneath the cloak.
"I… I don't hear it anymore. I thought I was gone. I thought it ate me."
Phaser turned his head slightly, looking down at her. His tone softened.
"If you heard it again, you'd know. It's not subtle."
"Did you… hear it?"
"Once, when I went to find you. It tried to pull me too. Thankfully, I'm immune to the cold so it didn't affect me that much. I think it's the one making this blizzard."
Haruno stared at him in quiet awe. "You came in there after me? Through that thing?"
He shrugged slightly, as if it wasn't a big deal.
"You were dying. What else was I supposed to do? Let you get eaten?"
Her chest tightened at that. She looked away in embarrassment.
"Thanks."
He hummed softly in acknowledgment. Then, after a small pause, he added.
"Listen. If that voice comes back again, don't try to fight it alone. Just… hold on to me."
She froze again, looking up at him.
"H-hold on to you?"
"Yeah. If you die in the trial, it resets. Both of us die. So it's not just for comfort. It's survival. Also, you were scared. Don't let go if you're scared."
She turned even redder, trying to look anywhere but at him.
"R-right. Survival. Totally."
He smirked faintly, eyes closing again as he leaned back.
"Good. I don't plan on dying for a sword anyway."
Haruno couldn't help but chuckle softly at that. It was so typically Phaser in the middle of something life-threatening. She relaxed a little, feeling the last traces of fear loosen their grip on her chest. The fire crackled softly beside them, filling the silence with small, comforting sounds. She looked up at him one last time. His face was calm now, faintly illuminated by the orange light.
Quietly, without saying anything, she leaned back against him again.
He didn't move or react this time. His warmth surrounded her completely, as though nothing could reach them here.
"Thank you for saving me..."
[I will be taking a break for a while so don't worry about it. More chapters will come soon!]