A/N: Eric and Kyle (unsuccessfully) go hunting in this chapter, and while nothing too gory happens it is slightly bloody, I understand some people may find that a little difficult to read so tread with caution. Other than that, hope you enjoy and thank you for reading!

Three days into the storm and Eric was attempting to carry on his routine as normal, treating the powerful snowfall and Kyle's constant presence as if they were minor inconveniences. He continued to hunt (though the extreme weather made the animals few and far between, and Eric was practically wading in the thick powder), and it felt like business as usual until he returned home to see Kyle still on the couch, his dismayed expression swiftly morphing into that of uneasiness when he took in Eric's appearance; an animal carcass in his knapsack and dark blood staining his clothes.

But Eric would leave Kyle, mildly horrified and thoroughly grossed out, in the living room, as he tended to his latest kill in the tiny shed so they could have it for dinner later. Eating meat so organic and fresh (for lack of less appetising phrases) was something Kyle quickly got over. Eric wasn't surprised; in the conditions Kyle needed to get used to he couldn't afford to be picky.

And Kyle very rarely complained, quite the opposite. He was maddeningly quiet, adjusting to his temporary home with lacklustre inquiries about where certain things were kept in the cabin, and how to work the shower. The latter request was submitted on the second day. Thankfully the fierce, debilitating storm hadn't claimed the plumbing. But it appeared to have claimed Kyle's alluring personality that had crawled under Eric's skin over a week ago at the supermarket.

He resented how Kyle sat on the couch all day, frozen and withering, waiting for the storm to pass. In fact, the only time Kyle ever piped up was over breakfast when he asked if Eric had heard anything from the rangers. The answer was always 'no', they still weren't responding and Kyle still couldn't get any reception on his cell phone either. The mountains were under the tyrannical rule of the storm, shielding the town (and all the freedom it represented, to Kyle at least) that had never seemed so distant. All that was visible were the faint outlines of mountains and the evergreens the cabin was nestled in.

Another disappointing, silent breakfast. Kyle had trudged back to the living room, and Eric had rolled his eyes and ignored the increasing twinge in his heart at the despondent shell Kyle had become. After all, what was Eric supposed to do? Yes, he could try to be a little more sympathetic, but he was a begrudging host not a babysitter. Why should he have to curb his routine that was ensuring both his and Kyle's survival, when Kyle was a grown man who could entertain himself? And besides, who said Kyle even wanted Eric to keep him company?

Eric grumbled under his breath and shook his head, pulling on a nondescript grey beanie (the last of his winter layers) and grabbing his rifle and his knapsack, heading for the front door. Despite hunting being difficult as of late, and despite having a sufficient amount of food in the pantry and fridge, Eric still felt the outing was necessary, partly to escape the uncomfortable situation inside the cabin.

"Are you going out?"

Turning around, Eric saw Kyle lingering by the doorway to the living room, and he furrowed his eyebrows at the question. Of course he was going out! But Kyle was still waiting for an answer, looking at him expectantly and even now Eric was irritated by it.

"Uh, yeah…" he replied, before he reached for the door again.

"Wait!"

Eric pursed his lips to conceal an exasperated sigh. He cast Kyle a questioning look.

Kyle scratched at his arm and studied the mounted heads on the wall absently before he asked, "Can I come with you?"

The crease in Eric's brow deepened.

"I thought you didn't like hunting," he replied.

Kyle rolled his eyes although Eric was just relaying the truth, and ran a hand through his hair.

"I don't but… I need to go outside," Kyle explained. "Get some fresh air. It's driving me crazy, being indoors all day."

Eric had been hunting alone for twelve years. And he liked it that way, just like he did everything else that had become a solitary activity. But, unfortunately, he was no longer alone, for the time being at least. His comfortable way of life had been suspended and the rules had temporarily changed. What suited him had become redundant. He had Kyle to take into consideration now too. Of course he could reject Kyle's request, but what would that lead do? Returning to the cabin to find Kyle even more miserable?

"Fine. Get your coat," Eric replied, before he walked past Kyle and ascended the stairs. "It's freezing out there. I'll try to find you a hat, or gloves, or something…"

"Thanks…" he heard Kyle say, but he didn't sound too grateful… nor did he sound off-put.

In his bedroom Eric found an olive green ushanka hat that he had worn once and hated, and gloves that would obviously be large on Kyle but would have to do. Walking back down stairs, Eric noticed Kyle lacing his boots up at the bottom, his coat and scarf already on. The sound of the stairs creaking under Eric's weight alerted Kyle to his host's presence, and he glanced behind him at the hunter at the top of the stairs. Eric noted Kyle was looking slightly cheerier, and took it that his gamble of allowing Kyle to come hunting with him was paying off.

"Here," Eric said when he was close enough, dropping the hat and gloves into Kyle's lap.

Kyle got up off the stairs to let Eric pass, responding with a weak smile and clutching the borrowed clothes to his chest. Eric waited as Kyle put the hat on, and remained silent when Kyle slipped the gloves on and realised just how big they were, the fingers absurdly long.

"How do I look?" Kyle joked, putting his hands on his hips and his one foot on the bottom step, puffing his chest out.

Even though the ushanka hat was big and lopsided on Kyle's head, the style suited him, his boyish curls peeking out of it and complimenting his tight-lipped, mirthful smile. Add that to the ridiculous pose and the half-filled fingers of the gloves dangling farcically at his sides, and Kyle looked rather endearing, something Eric couldn't stay pissed off at. He let a smile leak onto his features but then quickly wiped it away.

Eric shrugged and raked his gaze over Kyle.

"Fine," he answered.

"Oh…" Kyle's smile simmered and his pose deflated, before he smirked and asked, "Like a hunter?"

"Not exactly," Eric said, opening the front door and letting the snow drift in.

Kyle blinked and looked warily outside, before he adjusted his hat and followed Eric out the door.

The quietness of the forest didn't trouble Eric. It was to be expected, especially at this time of year, and even in the warmer, more forgiving months the sounds of the mountain were more lilting and wispy than cacophonic. The rustles in the undergrowth, and the language of the creatures more diverse than any sprawling city, would echo and bounce from the tree trunks, evading human ears.

Now everything had been halted, frozen, sedated as the winter rolled in with the storm. Minimal rustling, minimal chattering, the birds still chirped overhead but unlike spring, where they sang and spoke of consummation, they now lamented and pleaded for shelter from the frigid cold. And although they were short on company, Eric still walked with his rifle poised at the ready, weaving through the forest with stealth and familiarity. He didn't stomp, or trudge, even in the thick snow he drifted through the forest phantasmally. Unlike Kyle, who was traipsing behind Eric with his shoulders hunched and arms crossed, bracing himself from the chill, the snow crunching irritably beneath his boots.

Eric rolled his eyes, invisibility was his biggest asset and he couldn't let Kyle jeopardise that.

"Be quiet!" He snapped over his shoulder.

Kyle lifted his eyebrows, puzzled, before he protested, "I didn't say anything!"

Eric tutted and rolled his eyes again. "Your feet! You need to walk a little lighter. You're probably scaring the animals away!"

He saw Kyle's eyes widen and heard him scoff incredulously before he turned around and continued their trek.

"Sure, and these fucking awful conditions have nothing to do with it!" Kyle retorted. "How do you expect any animals to be roaming around when nothing is growing? They have no food!"

"They find a way to eat," Eric replied, raking his gaze over the landscape he knew better than Kyle. "They adapt."

"Then why haven't you shot anything yet?"

Eric gritted his teeth and clutched his rifle a little tighter, but before he could remind Kyle that he had only been up here for three days and knew virtually nothing about the mountain, he spotted a doe mule deer in the distance, searching for food.

"Look!" Eric said in a hushed voice, pointing to the deer. "There's a doe over there!"

"What?"

Grabbing Kyle's arm before he could frighten the doe off, Eric dragged him to a nearby tree and ignored Kyle's surprised huff when he pulled him closer.

"We can't startle her…" Eric murmured, although Kyle's curls tickling his chin had startled him somewhat.

He hadn't realised how intimately they were pressed against each other until then, and Kyle's steady heartbeat and temperature became way more apparent. It was everything Eric had discarded from his life but it didn't feel unpleasant, and certainly not scary.

"So what do we do?" Kyle asked.

"Take a look – slowly – and see if she's still there, if she's looking in our direction."

Kyle's heart rate picked up considerably, Eric felt it beneath their layers, as well as Kyle's fidgeting. Eric glanced at him, but Kyle had beaten him to it, already looking up at him with doubt in his eyes. Eric felt it residually, almost like sympathy. There was no time for a pep talk though (as if Eric would've had any idea what to say), so he just nodded impatiently. Shifting his body, Kyle glanced behind the tree and quickly returned.

"She's still there, but she just looked at me," he whispered.

"Alright, move," Eric replied, before he shoved Kyle out of the way.

He was a swift hunter, lifting the rifle to his chest, setting the doe in his sights and firing almost in one, fluid motion. The bullet left the gun with a loud, predatory growl and effortlessly pierced the doe's greyish flank. She staggered, already alerted to, and startled by, the humans' presence. She attempted to run, buckling under the excruciating weight of her injury. Eric, unscathed and determined, was quicker than the usually agile animal though and shot her again in the leg, blood exploding from her slender limb. She wailed at the fatal injury, large ears slicked back in horror as she stumbled hysterically, fruitlessly, before she collapsed in the snow.

Eric grinned triumphantly and looked to Kyle, expecting him to be as impressed as he had been at the makeshift shooting range, but instead the cashier had covered his face, feet planted in the snow. Eric lowered the rifle and frowned, disappointment wiping out any sense of victory.

"Come on," he muttered, walking the short distance to where the doe lay.

Kyle reluctantly followed him and when they reached the doe she had bled out already. Her wide, frightened eyes were dulling and the bullets embedded in her flesh had stained her hair and the snow beneath her crimson.

As always, Kyle was the first to speak.

"This… you don't…"

Eric had initially only slid his gaze to Kyle but turned to face him full on when he saw how the colour had drained from his face, how he was shaking at the sight of the dead deer (not shivering from the cold), his bewildered eyes trained on the corpse.

"You're done, aren't you?" He asked.

"What?"

"You don't want to keep going. This…" Kyle covered his mouth mid-sentence and averted his stare. "Can we go back now?"

"But we only just left," Eric argued.

Kyle exhaled shakily; he removed his hand from his mouth but still wouldn't look at Eric.

"I know but I want to go back," Kyle said, voice wobbly and strained. "Please?"

Eric bit back his own exasperated sigh, glancing between the woods that were waiting for him and a pleading Kyle. But when he caught sight of the fallen doe, torturously sad and unbearable for Kyle to even be around, the twinge Eric always felt in his heart when he saw Kyle deflated and wary returned, sharper than before and forcing him to heed to it. Sympathy, he reasoned. At least this time he could give Kyle the answer he wanted, he could do something to ease Kyle's discomfort and therefore extinguish that infuriating nagging at a heart that had once been so immune.

"Please, Eric, can we just go? I can't watch you kill anymore-"

"Fine, we'll go back," Eric interrupted, his voice softening when he said, "I just need to take care of this first, okay?"

Kyle glanced at the doe, grimacing, before responding to Eric with a nod. The hunter opened up his knapsack, and Kyle took it as his cue to turn around. As if watching Eric bundle the animal in a bag was more traumatic than watching him actually kill it.

"Let's go…" Eric then muttered, throwing the knapsack over his shoulder and walking past Kyle, expecting him to follow.

Neither spoke as they made their way back to the cabin.

"Thanks for letting me borrow these," Kyle said when they reached the house.

"Huh?" Eric asked, his indignant thoughts had shrouded him in an irritated haze, unsure of what Kyle was referring to.

Kyle arched an eyebrow.

"The gloves?" He replied, "The hat."

He tugged at one of the flaps.

It seemed that they had been preoccupied with very different things as they walked back to the cabin wordlessly. Kyle was concerned with making amends, while Eric was stewing in the unfair situation the storm had placed him in. It wasn't unusual in the short time they had known each other for Kyle to be the first to talk. But now he was the first to be the bigger person, it peeved Eric greatly. Pettiness was all he had ever known.

"Oh, yeah, whatever," Eric said, shaking his head and dismissing his previous confusion, and possible shame. He supposed he could attempt to reach Kyle's level. He managed a discreet smile. "You're welcome."

Kyle attempted to hide his own smile in the scarf wrapped around his neck, and coupled with the rosy tip of his nose Eric was reminded of Kyle posing on the stairs an hour ago. The memory was warm, washed up on the shores of Eric's mind on an unusual, gentle current… but it was also distracting, and Eric suddenly remembered the deer carcass in the knapsack, and the fact that he and Kyle were still stood outside, freezing for no apparent reason.

"I'm going to take care of this," Eric said, hitching the knapsack further up his shoulder. Kyle spared the bag a glance and nodded. Reaching into his coat pocket, Eric pulled out the keys to the cabin and threw them to Kyle. "Here, you can let yourself in."

Kyle caught the keys with one hand and unlocked the door. Eric pursed his lips and went to walk away.

"Eric, wait!"

When Eric turned around, the front door had been opened and yet Kyle was still stood on the porch, his hands tucked behind his back. For once, it was Eric waiting for Kyle to speak, and he tried to duplicate that expectant look of his. But perhaps only Kyle could pull it off.

"Sorry we had to cut the trip short."

Eric dropped his smile and shrugged. "It's fine."

But before he could walk away again, Kyle continued: "I guess I underestimated how much it would affect me," he tried to chuckle then, hollow and supposedly light-hearted. "Like, I told you, I've never been hunting before. So… yeah, anyway, I appreciate you letting me tag along. Thanks."

Eric glanced between the shed and Kyle, unsure what to say. So he nodded, and thankfully that was enough to placate his guest. Eric saw him sigh, and that relieved exhale seemed to melt his awkward smile into a content grin. Kyle entered the cabin, but even then Eric kept looking at the spot where he had stood.

Although he spent a lot of time in the shed, it wasn't Eric's favourite place to be. The dank odour it possessed was that of the unappetising side of nature, and because there was zero electricity the only light source was the small window curtained by thin, crumbling cobwebs. But Eric wasn't too concerned with aesthetic details. After all, the shed served its purpose. And he was just as pragmatic about what occurred in there. He never flinched when cutting open the animals he had taken from the mountain, gutting them and preparing them accordingly so they would be fit for his plate. Natural predators felt no remorse when they pounced on their prey, tore through their flesh with teeth and claws, every creature needed to eat. Including Eric.

But when he had removed the doe from the knapsack and placed it on the slab, he was drawn to her cold, lifeless eyes and they had reflected Kyle's distressed, mournful stare in the forest. For the first time, Eric had hesitated with his shining knife in hand. When blood had oozed out of the first incision, still fresh and shimmering red, Eric had registered the coppery scent crawling up his nostrils for the first time in years and he had coughed, disgusted. He had tasted metal on his tongue and his heart had clenched as if it were poisoned.

He wouldn't let the guilt seep in, no, he still believed he was innocent because he had somebody to blame. Kyle. His reaction had gotten to him, permeated his conscience before the sight of that dead doe in his mini abattoir had. But Kyle also proved to be an effective distraction. That smile outside the cabin was just as embedded in Eric's warring mind. So as he worked Eric had concentrated on that smile, on the numerous smiles he had seen spread across Kyle's face since the day they met, and wondered if there was a way he could consciously elicit them. Being snowed in, evidently, did not make Kyle smile. It made him retreat into an anxiety and despair that was crushing him, crushing what had intrigued Eric and endeared him to Kyle in the first place. Unfortunately, there was nothing Eric could do about the storm. As much as he liked to believe he was the most powerful being on this mountain, there were higher forces beyond the peaks he could not compete with. Still, he could make the best out of a bad situation. Comprise, he begrudgingly realised, was just the start. Wrapping up the tender pieces of venison, he left the shed and made his way back to the cabin.

He didn't say anything when he entered the house, nor did Kyle respond to his presence. Eric wasn't offended; instead he went to the kitchen and placed the meat in the fridge for later. He washed his hands stained a deep, bloody pink and as his eyes roamed the room he remembered that there was hot chocolate in one of the cupboards. A potential ice breaker, a truce of sorts.

Lame, but it's a start.

Sighing to himself, Eric dried his hands, left the kitchen and peered into the living room. Kyle was sat on the couch as usual, staring at the burnt out fire, and even though he had been staying with Eric for a couple of days now, approaching Kyle was still a rather nerve-wracking process for him. It was the most sustained amount of contact Eric had had with another person for a long time.

Eric stood by the threshold of the living room, stroking the wooden door frame. "Hey…"

Kyle flinched and looked up. Maybe he hadn't heard Eric come in at all?

"I'm, uh, making hot chocolate," Eric said, fidgeting. "Do you want some?"

Kyle blinked but his grin relaxed Eric immediately.

"You have hot chocolate?" He asked, sitting up. "Why didn't you say so before?"

Eric laughed shyly at what he now recognised to be a joke and ducked his head. But when he looked up Kyle was still there smiling softly at him, eyes glinting. And what Eric felt in his heart wasn't a twinge, a pang, or anything bitter. It was warm and elated, it was relief.