I have risen from the dead! Just kidding. It was just a well-needed break to focus on me and my life. Never expected it to be that long though, but life happens, you know? But I'm so sorry for abandoning you for that long. That was never my plan. (Especially leaving you on that mean cliffhanger!). And let it be noted: I'm not abandoning any of my stories. They will all be continued, eventually.

But I'm back! So excited to be too! :D I wanted to return to this story with the completion of this current arc. But I'm not quite done with it all yet, and I also really wanted to give you something. Since it was my birthday today, I decided that my gift to myself would be to share what I've got so far with all of you. (I do have the rest planned out and should be able to get it up soon).

So, ENJOY! :D

Red Among White (part 2)

Blood in the snow; there was something very symbolic about that. Leo found himself mesmerized by the image, or maybe he just didn't want to face the source of the blood...

"Leo..." He sounded tired, but there was still strength in his voice, and Leo finally dared to look at him. "I'm okay."

Well, that was a lie.

Focus: Chase & Leo

"S'rry," he forced out before his eyes rolled back into his head...

Seeing his brother collapse was all it took to snap Leo into action and he managed to catch Chase just before his head hit the snowy ground. Lowering him carefully, Leo placed Chase's head in his lap.

"Chase?" he questioned frightened and shook the other boy. "Chase?!"

The only response he got was his own desperate cry echoing back at him, taunting him. Leo quickly pressed two shaky fingers to Chase's neck. His thoughts swirled around in his head with the rage of a nutty squirrel as he held his breath, waiting.

He then sighed in relief when he felt the steady thumping of his brother's pulse. He was still alive.

Of course he's still alive! He just fainted. Stop being so dramatic, Dooley, Leo scolded himself and took a few deep breaths to try and calm himself. But as his gaze traveled over his brother's body, the air stuck in his throat. There was so much blood!

The previous all black mission suit covering his brother had now been painted a deep crimson all over his right side. The blood – that Chase very much needed inside his veins – was now oozing out of the bite, seeping through the cloth, and sliding down into the snow below. Though unlike the blood in the snow, there was no symbolic beauty to this red. It only had one meaning; Chase was slowly bleeding to his death.

NO!

Leo almost screamed it out loud, not that he cared. Chase would not die. He couldn't. If he did then- No. No, he wouldn't. Adam and Bree had probably contacted Big D by now, help was on its way.

Leo shifted slightly, trying to get a better look at the wound -despite that the mere sight of it was making him nauseous. Reaching out with shaking hands, the boy moved towards the wound. But he suddenly froze as the thought hit him.

The wolf!

He remembered it vividly and clearly. During the fight there had been a wolf who, quite literally, almost bit Leo's fingers off. But then Chase had been there, shoving the wolf away. He'd basically tackled it, what if...

No! No, no, no.

Leo shook his head violently, tears prickling his eyes. He wouldn't, couldn't, think of that. Instead he focused back on the mission at hand – saving Chase. Taking a deep breath, Leo pressed down on the wound, prompting a weak whimper from the wounded boy.

Okay, Leo thought running through the facts in his head. The coms don't work and there's no cell signal. Plus, we're lost in the forest somewhere nobody probably knows. Adam and Bree are who knows where! (Possible hurt or in trouble themselves). Help may or may not be on its way. And Chase is possibly/probably dying because of a stupid robot. Which by the way looked like a freaking WOLF! Oh, and I'm the only one who knows he's hurt, so Big D will not know to send medical help.

Great, just great...

"This can't get any worse!" Leo shouted at the darkening sky, the helplessness of it all becoming too much. Tough as soon as the forbidden words left his mouth, he slapped a hand over it, looking around panicked. Stupid, stupid Dooley! That was something you never ever should say. He'd watched enough movies to know that. If you said that things couldn't get any worse, they always did!

And true to that, just as the words were uttered a low growling was heard from forest surrounding them. Leo froze in his attempts to stop the blood flow, a shiver running down his spine. He knew that growling! And more importantly, he knew what had caused it. It had the same source as the bleeding wound in his brother's side.

A wolf robot.

To Be Continued...

Okay, fine, you got me. I still love writing those mean cliffhangers. That won't change! XD

But also, like I said, the third and final part of this arc should be up soon. I can't say when for sure. It all depends on when I find the time to sit down and write (I have a big exam coming up in awhile that's a bit of a bother). Let's just leave it at that I'll try to update soon. :)

In the meantime, if you're itching for some hurt!Chase you should read my new story A Month of Whump. (If you haven't/aren't already ;)) Basically, it's 100-500 words of Chase-centric whump every day of October to the Whumptober 2020 prompts from Tumblr. It's just a fun little project I have to get back to writing regularly while also working on getting back to my bigger stories.

Until next time! :) /Libra

PS. I have a poll up on my profile about which of my stories I should focus on continuing next. So don't forget to vote! :)

PPS. ALSO I JUST WANNA SAY KUDOS AND THANKS TO ANYONE WHO HAS PATIENTLY WAITED FOR THIS UPDATE FOR SO LONG - YOU ARE AWESOME!