It was strange to see Bo huddled up and hunched, her body contracted against the cold both within and without. She was wearing one massive pack, and dragging another, and although the weight didn't seem to bother her at all, it meant she could only use one arm at a time to insulate herself.
Even if Bo weren't ill, night was approaching, and by now the temperature was already dropping. And though the wind was much weaker than it had been, without her jacket, Lauren could feel its effects far more keenly. The satellite images they were using to navigate were accurate to a degree far beyond that of civilian equipment, but all the same, she would be very glad when the cabin actually came into view.
Bo wasn't sure how long they'd gone on like this. She dimly felt the differing depths of snow, but hardly registered any landmarks of the journey at all, relying completely on Lauren to lead her. It was as though the cold had drained the life and colour out of the whole world. She could feel it on her face, in her blood, in the air in her lungs. It settled on her skin, and it seeped out from her bones. And it was claiming more than her body; she could barely think about anything else. Anything but the cold - God she was so fucking cold - and the warmth of the hand leading hers, which felt somehow a million miles away.
She heard Lauren say that they didn't have far left to go, and felt herself nod. By now, she had to fight for each step – one, then another, then again. As they came to the top of a ridge, her step failed, and she fell forward into the snow. Lauren, trying to hide her alarm, helped her back up. Without a word, she pulled the succubus' arm over her own shoulders to support her. Bo was trying, but Lauren was holding her up as much as she was pushing her onwards.
"We're almost there Bo, look you can see the cabin from here. We're almost there."
Bo nodded, not even bothering to raise her head. In this awkward half embrace, she could feel the warmth of Lauren's breath on her face as she spoke, and little else seemed to matter.
Lauren took all three of their packs, and, making sure they were all secured, shoved them all down the virgin side of the hill. It was a steep enough drop that they rolled more than half way down on their own. She slipped her free arm around Bo's waist, and together they made their own way down in a difficult, stumbling action. Bo was not heavy, but Lauren was neither built for - or accustomed to - manhandling someone through adverse weather conditions anymore. The slope was on their side, but not a single inch of the distance came cheap.
When they reached the point where the three packs had gathered, Lauren had to stop for a moment to take stock. Bo allowed her to put one of the packs on her back, and she took another. She thought about it for a few moments, and reluctantly decided to leave the other behind, for now at least. The cabin wasn't far and they could come back for it if they needed to, it wasn't important right now.
The last stretch was a battle. It wasn't just the sheer physical effort demanded from Lauren, but seeing – and this close, feeling – how much Bo was suffering was almost unbearable. She knew that Bo would probably be fine, but looking at the state of her now, feeling her wrack for each breath, it was difficult to believe. Her shivering had become almost convulsive, shaking violently, and she seemed totally lost in herself.
The last few metres at least offered solid ground to walk on. The cabin's occupant had evidently set down a stone path to the doorway; for that small mercy Lauren silently wished him a mercifully painless death, whatever it might have been. Bo walked these last few steps under her own strength, and they both stumbled up onto the sheltered porch gracelessly.
Bo pulled the massive padlock off the door bolt without a word, and Lauren yanked the bolt over. She barged the door open inelegantly, and they both fell into the cabin into a messy bundle of exhausted bodies and crumpling foul weather fabric. She pulled herself back up to her feet in a scramble, but Bo had stayed right where she landed, curling tighter against herself.