This story has been a long time coming. I actually wrote most of it before I got the idea for 'She came back to haunt us' which wouldn't let me go. Long story short: a persistent cold, family staying beyond Christmas holidays, an eye infection, 'a lockdown with a still ongoing pandemic' and 'a husband who took my computer hostage to work from home' later I finally settled back into a routine with my kids and I am going to start pushing out all the stories I finished since last year. This is the first story I finished editing but the rest will come soon, I just have to come up with some titles and descriptions. Okay, weird ramblings and pity party is over. I hope everyone is staying safe and will get some enjoyment out of my stories.

All usual disclaimers apply

Chapter One

Winter in Chicago

Amity Compound - extended Leadership meeting

Tris POV

"Thank you so much for hosting this meeting, Johanna! It is always nice to escape the city for the tranquillity of wide-open spaces," I compliment Johanna after waiting in line to talk to Amity's leader on the way out of the mess hall that doubles as meeting room for large gatherings. She gives me a wide smile and a hug which I return.

"It is always a pleasure to have you, my dear. I wish we would have more Abnegation born in leadership positions - these meetings would be so much more pleasant, don't you agree," Johanna teases. We are the last ones in here, so we are talking more freely even though not very loudly. It is always like this when it's just the two of us and I think it is mutual that we are looking forward to those rare occasions.

"Tell me about it! I may have left Abnegation but still have to deal with Marcus' 'holier than thou' attitude. Pity my father is out sick," I lament. "Same with Jack," Johanna relies. I grin cheekily and query "That he is out sick or his attitude?"

"Stop that, you naughty one," Johanna chastises without meaning in her tone before admitting "Both!"

I can't help the laugh. "Yeah, I wish Jeanine would have called in sick. I prefer Cara in meetings."

Johanna nods. "Any progress in getting Four into leadership?"

"No! He still does not want to run into Marcus. Who can blame him?"

"And how about the two of you? Did you set a wedding date," Johanna enquires further.

I can't help the cringe.

She pats my hand. "Maybe it was time," she gently enquires.

I nod. She is right. "He is still my best friend!"

"And he always will be. But, Tris, you were always meant to be with someone who can push you to go further and advance in every aspect of your life. Being comfortable and stagnant is not going to make you happy in a relationship." Johanna counsels.

"We both thought being from Abnegation and our Divergence was telling us we are meant to be. It was a great steppingstone for us, but you are right. I do want more and Four is not ready. God, he might never be. But until I find what I really need, we will stay like we are - companions."

"Maybe what you are looking for has been waiting for you to fully open your eyes..." Johanna eyes me speculatively.

Say what? "What?" I stammer out, caught off guard by her cryptic remark.

"Tris, everyone thinks all we do in Amity is consume peace serum and farm. They dismiss us all the time and behave less restricted in our presence. You can learn a lot about people by observing when they let their masks slip from time to time."

I groan. "Johanna, you still don't make sense. Are you trying to tell me someone has been waiting for me to break up with Four to make a move and this person is exactly the one who is going to be perfect for me?" I know I sound as unbelieving as I feel.

Johanna just smiles at me, but before she can say any more there is the sound of stomping feet and an irritated voice shouting "Come on, Stiff! The train is fully loaded. You can exchange recipes another time!" I roll my eyes at Johanna and turn towards the bane of my existence. "I'll be there in a minute, Eric!"

Eric steps fully through the open door. "One minute or I am leaving you behind!"

I wave my hand over my head and turn to hug Johanna one last time. "Remember to open your eyes and your heart, child! Everything will be fine," she whispers in my ear. That sounds quite ominous. She walks with me to the door and stops to pick up a bag which she hands to me. "We made some crisps this week!"

Yes! I do an internal fist pump. Ever since I was small this was my incredibly special treat for helping out Amity. Johanna never forgets to supply me with some whenever they finish another batch. "Thank you," is my simple reply and we both know it is meant for more than just the crisps.

I open the bag while walking towards the train tracks and smile widely as I see the variety she packed. There are multiple small bags with apple, parsnip, carrot and beetroot crisps. Yum.

Out of nowhere two arms sneak around me. One holds the wrist of the hand holding the bag up, the other plugs it from my now fruitless grip. I inhale the familiar scent of lemon and mint just as hot breath moves the hair around my ear and I hear a rough voice. "What have you got in there to make you smile like that?"

I use the arm that was holding the bag open to elbow Eric in the ribs and turn around while making sure to stomp on his foot. His hand did not release my wrist, so I am now standing with his whole arm around my back while I glare furiously at him and my bag that he holds up high over his head.

He gives me one of his trademark smirks and an "Uh, uh!"

I stare at him incredulously and make certain I pronounce every syllable clearly "Give me my bag!"

And his pierced eyebrow rises. "Make me!"

"Are you serious? It's fucking late and you were the one complaining that I am holding up the train. Who is delaying it now, huh?"

Eric just glares at me for a second before leaning down until his nose is almost touching mine. His steel grey eyes are holding mine captive all the way and I am brought out of my stupor when I hear him growl "Finders keepers! You want it back? Try and take it!"

Seriously? He made me shorten my chat with Johanna for pulling this shit?! Does he really think he can get away with this? Time to put him in his place! We are both leaders and I am not letting him get away with bullying me. I know from past training experience that I am at a physical disadvantage but with the right tactic I will be able to take him.

I gently pull my left arm forward and as expected Eric is not letting go of my wrist. I am making sure that his hand is touching first my hip and then the underside of my breasts as I slowly lean back into his arm holding my back. My pelvis lifts enough to touch his. When I move my right hand over his back up to his shoulder, my body moves back towards his, pushing my breasts against his chest.

Eric's face shows momentary confusion and I know I have only seconds before he figures out my game plan. I go in for the kill and close the distance between us letting my lips meet his. Nothing happens and I think I really stunned Eric as he just keeps staring into my eyes.

I slowly trace his lips with my tongue while raising my right leg up towards his hip and our still joint hands towards his crotch. Eric's eyes widen and then he is kissing me back. It's actually nice and I can taste something minty when our tongues meet. He has finally let go of my wrist and I move both hands towards his neck and hold on for dear life when I jump up and cross my legs around his hips. Eric's hands grab onto my ass to hold me up and I can feel something thick and hard right in front of me. Wow! No, Tris, you have a plan. Stick to the plan! I can hear whistling and cat calls from where the train waits somewhere behind me.

One more sweep with my tongue and a rotation with my hips and I force my way down to the ground. Both Eric and I are panting, and he has the weirdest look in his eyes when we both step back and turn towards the waiting train. I take off in a run and by the time I jump into the last carriage Eric still has to take a step.

I am trying to be discreet when I secure my bag of crisps inside my jacket. Yeah, it seems I really would do anything for crisps, including making out with Eric Coulter in public. Come to think of it, I am surprised this particular dare hasn't been issued yet.

I hear a light thud behind me and know Eric finally made it onto the train. I don't dare turn around, but I am hyper aware of his presence right behind me.

His hand lands on my shoulder just as the train pulls out and I am surprised at how comfortable his steadying hand is.

I know my actions will have consequences and he is not going to let me get away with this. I better warn Tobias, Dauntless men are the worst gossips I have ever met and this is going to be the topic of the week for sure.

The train is gaining speed and we are fast approaching the fence. I can see the convoy of attendees from our meeting are in the process of passing through the gate.

Something on the side catches my eye, but before I can utter a word there is a cacophony of gunfire and the fence is engulfed in flames.

I don't realize I have jumped out of the train until Eric pulls me away from the tracks and the still moving train with a strong grip on my hand.

There is a soft whoosh and suddenly the train explodes into a fiery hell.

OH MY GOD!

Eric changes course and shouts over his shoulder "Dauntless first". I can see people on fire trying to roll around in the snow in an attempt to extinguish the flames.

I can hear repeated gunfire and agonized screams from the destroyed gate before another RPG is launched right in the middle of it all and there is dead silence.

Eric goes as low as possible and drags me over the tracks where there is a slight decline that will give us more natural cover and camouflage with some evergreens.

"We need to get the emergency cache from the train as soon as possible."

I nod to show I heard him and agree. We are not allowed to bring weapons into Amity, but we have an emergency cache on every train. It is in a virtually indestructible compartment so it should have survived the blast. The problem is getting to it without injuring ourselves.

"We can use the snow like a fire extinguisher to gain access." I suggest.

Eric thinks it over for a moment. "That will work, but until then we need to stay hidden. If they see us moving, they will just keep shooting." And as if to proof his point there is another salve of gunfire and I can see more Dauntless dropping to the ground.

'Please, please, play dead,' I internally shout while looking on helplessly and it seems my prayers are heard as there is just motionless silence out there. I do not want to think of the alternative.

Eric leads us carefully over the snowy ground towards the train. I tug on his hand and he turns back to me. "Let's try to see if they are leaving before we risk getting shot at when we they see our silhouette in the light."

"Fuck!" He rubs his hand over his face as if to clear his mind. "Ok., but we do not have too much time if we want to help possible survivors."

"Well, do you hear anything?"

Both of us strain and I think I can make out voices in the distance. They are not coming from Amity who hopefully saw or heard the explosions. Shit, I think they are coming closer. I lean in to whisper to Eric but he beats me to it. "Sounds like they are coming!"

We both look around us and there is nowhere to hide. If they walk onto the tracks we will be sitting ducks.

"Ever built a snow bunker, Stiff?"

"I don't think we have the time for that but if we pile more snow around the bushes we passed we can hide behind.

Without a word Eric shoves me in that direction while taking his jacket off. I take off as fast as I can but glance back once to see Eric walking backwards while swiping his jacket left and right to hide our tracks. Crap, I did not even think about that.

I reach the bushes and pick the largest cluster. There is a good bit of snow but it won't be enough.

Taking a guess at how tall Eric is when sitting down, I quickly pile up more snow while clearing a bit of ground. By the time Eric reaches me I have made a nice snow enclosure. It is going to be a tight fit but at least I managed to create an almost full oval. Hopefully they will stay close to the train and not venture further out.

"Sit down," I order Eric and surprisingly he quietly obeys.

I miscalculated a good bit and he is very visible over my wall.

"Lie down on your back. Change of plan."

Yet again he just does as I say and lies down, his legs sticking out the opening I created. I cover them with snow and smooth it out as much as possible. Then I take the bag Johanna gave me out of my jacket and empty its contents into the various pockets of my jacket. Using my trusty knife, I rip the white fabric open at the seams. Fuck, it might not be enough. Looking back down at Eric I close my eyes for a second and let out a sigh of resignation. I crouch down and take my jacket off. Then my sweater and finally my t-shirt to reach the long-sleeved top my mum smuggled me with a little help from my dad. It's not pure white but close enough to provide extra cover.

I reach down and start pulling up the hem when Eric's hands stop me. "Just pile up more snow on my sides, then lie down on top of me and pull the bag over our heads. If we get the walls to collapse on top of us, we will be well hidden."

Without a second thought I follow through and kneel with my legs bent along Eric's hips, my ass planted on his abs. I use part of the entrance and make it collapse to cover him up to where I am sitting with a little extra to cover my dark pants from where they shine through the light top that is now hanging over them.

I wriggle a bit to burrow further into the snow and fit myself into Eric's frame. Eric helps me pull the bag over our heads with a small opening leading right into the bush to provide fresh air. I forcefully push out my left arms and pull it back quickly to have it covered by the snow wall. I do the same on my right and the miniature avalanche does what we hoped for. From the pressure on my back I know that I am fully covered.

I can't help the sigh of relief, but it is short lived as I can now hear the voices quite clearly.

I can feel the cold seeping through my thin top and it feels slightly clammy where my body heat melted some of the snow. Beneath me Eric lies completely motionless and I try to do the same.

I can hear the crunch of footsteps in the snow and they sound fucking close. Then I hear them...

"Come on, Gus, there is nothing left alive out here!"

"I wouldn't be too sure. Did not recognize any Dauntless leaders."

"It's been years since you left. The only one I would be able to recognize is that cocksucker Eric..."

"Fucking hell, Cole. The tattoo... the leadership tattoo is a dead giveaway!"

"Yeah, but some of them are quite burnt. There is nothing left to identify them by. Let's go before more guards come!"

"They are all too far away. In wintertime Dauntless operates on the bare minimum of staff outside the compound. Nothing has changed there. Amity is not equipped to deal with us and they are too far away anyway. Who is going to follow us through the fields? Those sissies all hide within their factions once the temperature drops..." A tortured scream and gunshots interrupt him. I stare wide eyed at Eric. His eyes are cold and he seems ready to murder Gus and Cole. I am begging him with my eyes to not do anything stupid.

"Fine! Gather everyone, we should reach the first shelter in a couple of hours. We have orders to take the long way back to avoid any detection."

They shout out to the rest and you can hear at least ten different voices laugh and joke about their successful ambush. I am not even aware of doing anything, but it seems I was just about to rise and confront those cowards when Eric's hands move and grab my shirt. I can feel his icy fingers on my stomach where he fists the fabric to hold me down. Clearly he knew that would get an involuntary reaction and his lips meet mine just in time to swallow my squeak.

I stare at him in horror as he winks at me. Our people are dying and he fucking winks? Sadistic, ruthless, heartless motherfucker... Eric kisses me again and again and he is really good at it. His tongue sneaks out and meets mine. We keep going and I am trying to get some friction but Eric won't budge and his hands are still holding onto my shirt for dear life. He slowly ends the kiss and stares as me inquiringly. My lips are swollen, and I am still a bit dazed. "We should be okay to come out. They are long gone. I'll help you push up, ok?"

I nod and slowly move my hands onto his chest and gently push upwards. Eric's hands on my stomach help and the snow moves off us quite easily.

Now that Eric is not distracting me I feel the cold take hold of my wet shirt and shiver violently. Wordlessly he grabs all of our things and drags me by the hand closer to the still burning train. There is no sense checking for survivors now. The Factionless rebels made sure all were dead.

"Thank you for stopping me from getting us killed!" I manage to say with chattering teeth. I am honest enough to admit that had Eric not forced me to stay still and then distracted me I would have gotten up and exposed us. I am not willing to evaluate why kissing him did not repulse me. That is something to be shelved for way later.

He only grunts in reply.

...

The heat from the train hits me and it actually feels nice on my skin. I have to change into my still dry clothes. Thank god the jacket is water proof and I kept all the discarded layers safe inside.

I struggle with removing my shirt. My hands are still shaking so badly and I look at Eric for help. He sighs in defeat and moves closer to grab the hem and pulls it up and over my head roughly.

I still have my bra on but that doesn't make me feel better. Eric is quite gentle when he pulls first the t-shirt and then my sweater over my head before helping me into my jacket.

"There is nothing we can do about our pants so for now let's just stay as close as is safe to the fire and warm up. Then we will move to get our supplies out of the cache."

I am really surprised nobody came to help.

"We follow them?"

"Yes!" That one word tells me everything I needed to know about how Eric really feels. It is laced with anger and a thirst for revenge.

We walk alongside the burning carriages for what feels like an eternity but is probably closer to fifteen minutes. The fire is not as strong and we decide to go ahead and get to the cache which, ironically, is where we were positioned on the train.

We work together to push snow up against the hatch and wait for the snow to melt and the metal to cool down enough for us to safely touch.

Finally we are able to dig into our emergency supplies and boy am I surprised. It is far better stocked than what is written in my handbook. Eric sorts everything onto a plastic sheet he grabbed first.

"Where did all this come from?"

"I like to be prepared!"

"You? How?"

"Who do you think stocks these things? It was my idea to have the caches installed. The previous leaders were quite content thinking they had everything needed for an emergency within Dauntless. History taught us to always be prepared. They indulged me! Every time the season changes, I rotate all stock. Here, that's you." And I am handed a small duffel bag with my name on it. The fuck?!

I look inside and there is a selection of clothes. I pick up a pair of pants and they are my size. I've left modesty long behind and change out in the open with Eric right next to me without thinking twice. Ah, that feels so much better! Eric did the same and is now working on two backpacks.

"Put the spare clothes in and the wet stuff into the outer mesh. Here," he hands me a plastic bag with small discs "Put the trackers somewhere with easy access!"

Eric divides the weapons between the two of us. Throwing knives, hunting knife, handgun and ammo, whistle, goggles that I do not recognize, flash grenade. Then he pulls a spare backpack over and dives in. He pulls out food and water and sits down on the plastic sheet, leaning against his backpack. I mimic him and we start eating while he explains his plan.

"We will track them! I want to see where they go and who they meet before we take them. This way there is no need to capture them for interrogation!" Shoot to kill... Fine with me!

"We will leave instructions how to locate the tracking devices." Eric points to a large envelope in clear plastic. "Every time we change direction or every hour, whichever comes first, we will drop one. They stay active for weeks so there will be a clear signal path to follow. The goggles are modified to change between night vision and infrared but can also detect body fluids and other chemicals."

I would love to interrupt and ask where they come from but now is not the time.

"We will walk until sunrise and depending how close we get and what they are doing we will rest when we find something suitable."

I do interrupt now. "I have helped out in Amity since I can remember. I know where most seasonal buildings are. As long as the landmarks are still there I will be fine."

"Good, saves us time and if they know those locations tracking them might be even easier if they move from one to the next. They went east, that's our starting point. Where is the closest shelter this way?"

I am trying to imagine a map of Amity with the fence and train tracks.

"There is a wood shop about four hours east. Depending where they go there are two likely options. I would say another six hours to reach the seasonal sawmill on the far side of Mildred's Forrest or if they cut through Pidgeon Woods they will be at the lake in about five hours and the house is not far if the lake is frozen over. If they need to go around it will take them another hour at least. But those are just my guesses."

"Fair enough! Let me show you how to work the goggles."

Eric puts them on me and shows how to change the settings. This is some neat stuff. He leaves the setting on chemicals and I can see the trail leading east.

"What chemical are we tracking?"

"Residue from firing all those RPG's. They fired so many and often, we will have a trail for a good while."

We grab our packs and Eric helps me adjust mine before taping the envelope with tracking instructions and a bright green glow stick to the train.

As we start walking, I dare ask the question that has been burning my tongue for the last ten minutes. "Where did you get those goggles?"

"I modified them myself."

"Really? Why?"

"Jeez, Stiff, if I answer this question will you promise to shut up afterwards?"

"Yes!"

"Erudite has no interest in advancing our equipment and our armoury does not have the experts to do so. I like tinkering with stuff and I was bored."

And that's all I am getting for the next six hours.

...

We follow the residue in a straight line and drop our trackers every hour. We did pass the wood shop, but after careful investigation with the infrared setting we deemed it abandoned although they did not extinguish the fire in the fireplace when they left. We took the opportunity to warm up and take a short break.

I am wrecked and walking through the snow is much harder and time consuming than I expected.

Sunrise won't be for another four hours or so. The trail turns to the left and they did indeed decide to enter the woods that lead towards the lake. Hopefully we will be able to walk easier in there as the canopy should have held off some of the snow.

The chemicals are wearing off and it's getting harder to spot their path. We need to switch to regular night vision soon. I signal for Eric to stop a for a moment.

"I need a quick break."

He grumbles but concedes "Five minutes!"

Once I am done I approach him carefully. "I can't detect much more of the chemicals. If you trust me to lead you the right way we can cross the forest without having to follow their path. We need to be careful when we exit in case we caught up too quickly."

"Go ahead!"

And we are off once more. We decided to drop the trackers every half an hour now that we are in the woods and making our own way through.

I can see the tree line about four hours later and we approach with caution.

Once the trees have thinned enough for us to peek through, we can see that we have caught up to the incumbents. We stay within the protection of the trees and move closer to where they are crossing the frozen lake.

We will give them a small head start to not be seen in the big open space and decide to rest and catch up on some sleep. Thank god Eric packed emergency shelters and blankets. They provide just enough warmth from our body heat to make it comfortable.

...

After six hours of rest and a snack we check the area. There is no sign of life - like smoke from the fireplace - and using infrared we can only detect one anomaly. As we can't know for sure what is hidden in the snowbank on the other side of the lake we decide to proceed with caution. We stash our backpacks and activate another tracker before slowly approaching the shoreline with weapons ready. We keep checking with infrared and by the time we are halfway across the lake we finally see the shape turn into a human. Shit! Both of us raise our guns and fire. A head and a chest shot kill the rebel but not before he can fire of his RPG.

We turn and run but it's to no avail. The ground behind us explodes and we are swallowed by the icy lake water. Fuck, that's cold!

A hand grabs me by the collar and moves upwards. We break the surface and Eric pushes me up over the rugged edge of the ice. Shit, that hurts! I turn to help Eric but I am too late to grab him when his hands slip and he falls back in the lake after hitting his head on the rim.

I throw myself down and reach him before he can sink too far. He is dead weight and I am struggling to pull him out of the water without slipping in myself. I turn his head and cradle my arm under his chin to keep his face above the water level while I dig blindly in my pants pockets for the rope I know is there. Managing to free it with a shaking hand I tie one end around Eric's torso and shoulders. Trying to keep him afloat, I move back slowly until I reach my destination - a log that protrudes from a flooded sandbank. Praying the ice is solid enough to keep the log in place I use it like a wrench to pull Eric out. Time is of the essence and he has been in the water way too long already.

I don't know if the Factionless will return upon hearing the shots so I use my jacket with the rope still around Eric to drag him back where we stashed the backpacks.

Eric is deathly white and still but has a pulse. I am shivering so badly I can barely set the emergency shelter back up. I put a thermal blanket on the ground and drag Eric on top. I strip as many layers as possible off him before pushing his knees as far up to his chest as I can. Then I try to take my own clothes off. They are getting stiff and I know I have to hurry. After pulling the backpacks inside and closing the flap I manage to rip open the plastic cover and get the specialized 'ready heat' blanket out. I cover both of us with this treasure that heats up by reacting to oxygen before passing out.

...

I come to some time later. I can't tell if it still bright outside, but the blanket continues to give off heat so it hasn't been eight hours yet. Eric hasn't moved and I am unsure whether he is asleep or still unconscious.

My arms and legs feel stiff and I move them slowly to get the circulation going.

Once I am happy that I can move freely I carefully check Eric over. To my relief his pulse is strong. I decide it's time to check our surroundings and get dressed in my spare clothes before carefully crawling out of the shelter trying not to disturb Eric.

It looks like I have been out all day and it's about to get dark again. The lake area is silent and the hole is still visible to the naked eye.

I retrieve the googles and scan the whole area, focusing on where the other guy was hidden and the direct area surrounding the house. Nothing!

Well, thank goodness for small favours…

I will have to leave Eric behind and check around the house if there is anything I can use to transport Eric.

I am going back inside the tent to grab my things and peel the bag with trackers from my sodden pants.

Once ready I set off but about thirty minutes into the track around the lake darkness begins to fall and the wind and snow pick up. Oh my god, I forgot that Shauna told me a blizzard was forecasted for today. Shit, shit, shit!

Do I have time to go back and forth? There is no way I can get Eric and two backpacks over to the house if I go back, but what will happen if I get stuck at the house?

I am going to risk it and go ahead to the house. There has to be something to transport Eric if he is still unconscious when I return.

I am double timing it to the lake house while keeping watch with infrared for any heat signature. Finally, I reach my sanctuary and it looks undisturbed which surprises me. I would have thought the Factionless went inside. The floor is covered in a thin layer of dust, indicating that indeed nobody went in here since summer. I drop the backpack close to the fireplace, activate another tracker and look around. Not much that can be used to transport Eric. The blankets look quite promising. Going around the house I see the lean to and once more luck is on my side. There is a small cart with a handle for pulling. Eric won't fit all the way on top but mostly. I might have to strap him onto it if he is still unconscious.

Grabbing extra rope and wearing my googles I make my way back to the tent as fast as possible. The wind is brutal, and the snow makes it impossible to see further than a few feet. It is pitch black out by now, but I am still making good progress.

I am in luck and I have no trouble finding the tent. Eric is still out, and I decide to try and lift him with all the blankets surrounding him and just dismantle the tent after I have him tied down to the cart. I pack everything left into the backpack and put it on.

Fuck, what did Eric put in his backpack? Mine wasn't that heavy!

Returning to the house is slow going. The fresh snow makes pulling the cart hard and the extra weight from the backpack has me covered in sweat. My steps are getting slower and slower and I feel like collapsing when I finally reach the house.

I open the front door wide and prop the backpack against it so it won't close with the strong wind. Carefully I untie Eric and drag him into the house before rushing out to store the cart out back. No reason to make it that obvious someone is here. Deciding to play it safe I place another tracker in the corner of the lean to show that we spent more time here if we should be gone by the time they catch up. Hope that's soon!

I have to hold onto the house to reach the front. I can't see the hands in front of me and the wind is trying it's best to push me away from my safety line.

It feels like forever until I reach the front door which I gratefully close into the blizzards face.

It's freezing cold and my hands are back to shaking violently. First priority is getting a fire started. Having been in these remote houses before I know Amity has a special way to keep the fire going for a long time. I check if there are enough logs stacked into the feeder and that the kindling is ready to go. Using the lighter from the mantle the fire catches on first try and slowly the flame grows.

I wait with bated breath, ready to intervene, but everything for once goes smoothly and soon the fire is strong enough to be left unattended.

Grabbing the duvet and blankets I found earlier I make a nice bed in front of the fireplace and drag Eric over.

I gently place his head on a pillow and remove the emergency blankets I transported him on. The ready heat blanket stopped working sometime after I left and Eric feels really cold, even to me, and I am still not past shivering.

Eric's remaining clothes are wet and I remove them after covering him with a blanket. I am aware enough to know that I do not want to see all Eric has to offer.

I grab another blanket and duvet to add more layers.

Once done I strip my own wet and sweaty clothes and crawl into the nest of blankets with Eric. He is cold and I am shivering like there is no tomorrow. The best is to share what little body heat we both have till the fire gets the room warm.

I am exhausted and fall asleep in no time.