Cold Shoulders
It never really snowed in the Gaipan Forest, but, apparently, no one told the weather that day.
Longshot made his way carefully through tree branches, wary of icy patches, while behind him, the newest Freedom Fighter followed at the same slow pace. Neither was used to navigating, or even seeing, the forest like this, all covered in snow. Although Gaipan experienced a cold winter every year, sometimes including snowfall, the white stuff rarely came in quantities larger than a dusting, and it never stayed for more than a day. This morning's storm, though, had left a good foot of the stuff on the ground, leaving everything looking rather strange.
For the Gaipan Forest had an interesting quirk: its trees never dropped their leaves. In most other places, cold weather brought the transition from green leaves to yellows and reds and oranges, followed by the falling that left the branches skeletal. Gaipan, though, never experienced that last step. The leaves changed colors, but stayed on their branches, unless torn off by winds or storms. In the spring, the leaves came to life again, shining verdantly amidst all the new flowers. Some said that the forest was Spirit-touched. Opinion seemed divided equally about whether this was an omen of good or bad fortune, but all the locals agreed that it had been this way for the last hundred years.
Perhaps the snowfall wasn't so strange. As Longshot moved silently along, the archer decided that ever-living red leaves were rather pretty beneath the icy flakes. It wasn't entirely bad seeing it all with a girl walking with him, either.
Of course, the nice scenery came with its own dangers. The Freedom Fighters had designed all their camouflage based on the forest's regular Winter reds, so having everything suddenly turn white had left the main base exposed. Jet was worried enough about it to send the Freedom Fighters out to check on things and make sure that no one was around to cause trouble. While the air was currently still, Sneers predicted that the storm would be returning later that night, and it would be all too easy for a Fire Nation traveler or scout to hide in the weather after getting a good look at a certain treehouse village.
And so Longshot and his temporary partner were making a loop through the territory east of the base, looking for danger and trying not to fall out of a tree.
Longshot wasn't entirely sure about this partner business. Smellerbee seemed competent enough, in the four months she'd been with the team, proving to be a quick learner with swords and blades. She was quite devoted to Jet's ideals, and a great fighter against the Fire Nation. She was the only female member of the main Freedom Fighters team, but that certainly wasn't a problem for anyone.
Still, Longshot wasn't entirely working with new people. Strangers, really, were kind of scary, and Longshot liked to know someone for a full year before he stopped considering them a stranger. In the four months since Smellerbee had arrived, their interactions consisted solely of Longshot sniping a soldier or two who had been hoping to sneak up on her, just like he did for all the other Freedom Fighters. But could he rely as easily on her, in a pinch?
Behind him, Smellerbee spoke in her low, scratchy voice. "Hey, are you cold? I am."
Longshot thought about it as he eased himself down to a lower branch. Eventually, he just shrugged.
Smellerbee hopped down after him. "I should have brought an extra cloak," she said. "I thought my armor would be warmer."
Longshot nodded noncommittally.
"You're not the easiest person to have a conversation with, are you?"
Longshot turned to look at Smellerbee. It was a completely valid observation, but it was one that people didn't normally make. Still, all he could do was nod vigorously, and then move on.
They continued on their patrol until Longshot noticed a large dark shape at the base of a tree in the distance. They moved a little quicker to investigate. To Longshot's eye, it looked like a covered transport wagon, although definitely not military. Sure enough, once they got close, that's exactly what it proved to be. It was crashed into the trunk of the tree, and there were no signs in the snow of either a driver or an animal to pull it.
By the time the pair reached it, the snow had already started falling. It was a bit early yet, but maybe it would wait a while to get worse.
"Hey, there's some good stuff here," Smellerbee said from within the wagon's flatbed.
Longshot peaked in for a look.
"There's some standard supplies- flour, blankets, rope, candles- that I bet they wanted to sell in town, but also some fun stuff. They got some sweets, nuts, fancy chopsticks, dishes, some metalwork... all kinds of things."
Longshot swept his gaze over all of it. That was a nice haul, but only if they could get it back to the hideout before someone else found it. He and Smellerbee could just fill up a couple of sacks, and bring back what they could carry on the rest of their patrol, but that wouldn't be much. Play it safe, or take a risk for the whole treasure?
Smellerbee noticed his ambivalent look, and grinned. The red stripes of war paint she also wore made it look quite predatory. "Let's take it all. We can pull the cart back, and there isn't anyone out there right now. We can cut the patrol short and probably be back before the snow really starts falling."
Yes, that was probably the best idea. The others had their own patrols, and neither Longshot nor Smellerbee had seen any trouble. Having all the supplies would be better for the Freedom Fighters than simply completing the patrol.
Longshot nodded at his partner.
"Sweet," she said, her facing settling down into an easy smile. "Let's get hitched!"
Longshot quirked an eyebrow at that.
She might have started blushing beneath her war paint, but it was hard to tell with the paint's red color. "Hitched up. With rope. You know, so that we can pull the cart?"
Ah. That made much more sense.
It turned out to be slow going, dragging the cart. Longshot decided, after the second hour of pulling the thing along, that the cart had to have been previously hitched to those rhinos the Fire Nation loved. Nothing else would have been strong enough to get the thing going fast enough to crash into a tree. Of course, that could have just been the muscle fatigue talking. The snow on the ground was adding to the difficulty, and as new flakes fell from the sky, the ground became both rougher and more slippery.
And it sure was snowing a lot harder, now. Pretty windy, too. Good thing he always wore a hat, even one this flimsy.
Smellerbee's thoughts must have been in the same vein as Longshot's. She turned to reveal her that face and hair were both all frosted over. "We're not going to get this thing back before the storm really hits. We need shelter!"
Longshot nodded. He began looking around, trying to figure out where they were-
Smellerbee pointed a finger into the distance and said, "I think there's a cave right over that way! Come on, one last pull to get the cart over there."
Longshot squinted in that direction as they pulled the cart along. Yes, he did recognize this place. Smellerbee was right, there should be a small gully in that direction that would be dry this time of year, and there were various small caverns exposed in the rocky walls.
That was pretty good of her to remember and recognize this land. She had only been a Freedom Fighter for four months!
They found the specific cave that Smellerbee remembered. It was only about six feet deep, and not quite tall enough for Longshot to stand at his full height. They pulled the cart right up the entrance, and turned it around so that the open back jutted right up into the cave's entrance. The wagon's covering would protect them from the wind and snow, and they would have access to the supplies if they need them. As soon as things were settled, Longshot immediately pulled some scrap wood off the cart, and spun one of his arrows to friction-heat it into a small fire. That would warm them up quickly, and the archer placed some loose stones in a circle around it so that they would absorb the heat and continue to keep the cavern comfortable even after the blaze died down.
Then the pair of Freedom Fighters was left with nothing to do but wait.
They sat next to each other to conserve heat, and stared at the fire.
"So," Smellerbee said, "crazy weather we're having, huh?"
Longshot nodded.
"Yeah, crazy weather. All... snowy."
Longshot nodded.
"I'm not sure if I like snow. It's been kind of troublesome so far."
Longshot shrugged, and looked up at the top of the little cave's entrance. The cart didn't fit in precisely, but the accumulated snow was piling together and sealing it off, trapping the heat in nicely.
"Yeah," Smellerbee said, following his gaze, "I guess it would be worse if it were rain."
Longshot nodded.
They sat together for another few moments in silence, and then Smellerbee stood up. "Hey, I have an idea. You hungry? Or thirsty?"
Longshot nodded agreeably.
Smellerbee grinned, and climbed into the cart. Longshot heard the sounds of her shifting through the supplies, and then she popped out again with her hands full. "Check this out!" She laid down a pair of metal mugs, and then displayed a pile of brick-shaped somethings wrapped in paper. "I found these in the candy stash. It's called chocolate. You ever try any?"
Longshot shook his head.
"Well," Smellerbee said, leaning closer to him, "I'm going to let you try it the best way I know. We melt a little snow for water in the mugs, and then we add the chocolate pieces and heat it all up over the fire. Trust me, you'll like it."
They did as she said, and before long, the smell of rich sweetness filled the little cavern. Smellerbee took one mug, and gave the other to Longshot. The archer stared into it, studying the brown liquid. It looked a little like mud, but the color and smell were just the opposite of disgusting. Gingerly, so as not to burn his tongue, Longshot sipped at it.
Huh.
That was good.
He smiled at Smellerbee.
She nodded, and sat back against the cave wall, sipping from her own mug. The way her body settled, her shoulder was pressed up against Longshot's. They sat that way in comfortable silence for a long while, sipping at their hot chocolate. The fire eventually burned low, but the stones around it still glowed. Longshot could still make out the shape of Smellerbee's face when she finally spoke again. "Hey, Longshot?"
He nudged her gently in acknowledgement.
"You're a pretty cool guy to hang out with. We're friends, right?"
He nodded vigorously. He might have given a different answer this morning, but Smellerbee was apparently very good at learning things quickly. Given more time, he wondered what their new friendship might progress to.
As the snow raged outside, the two Freedom Fighters leaned together a little more in the warm darkness.
END
