a/n: This was low-key inspired by that one ep of pokémon where Ash is trapped in the snowstorm with his poké pals. XD

Fictober Day 22: "We could have a chance."

Suguro rubbed his hands together, trying to feed warmth into them. "It's fucking freezing in here."

"You c-can say that again," Shima stuttered, visibly shivering.

"You f-forgot dark," Miwa added.

Shima hummed in agreement and continued, "We're going to die in here."

"We are not," Kamiki said flatly, although there was a faint tremor in her voice that told everyone she was cold as well.

"Really?" Shima said doubtfully. "B-because Okumura-sensei and Kirigakure-sensei have been gone for almost twenty minutes and there's no heat. How much longer are they gonna take? How are we s-supposed to keep warm? We don't stand a chance."

Suguro was wondering something similar. He was getting pissed off just waiting for their instructors to return with little to do other than talk to each other. Just because some demon had broken through the headmaster's barrier didn't mean they had to wait around like helpless children! They could have helped fight it off, too.

Except Okumura-sensei had said it was a pretty powerful demon, and that they'd been given orders to remain in the classroom until the coast was clear. But then the power had gone out, and with winter coming in strong, the temperature was drastically colder than it had been twenty minutes ago.

"Actually," Okumura said suddenly. "We could have a chance."

It was Moriyama who looked at him in confusion. "What do you mean, Rin?"

Suguro heard shuffling. Metal clanking. And then—

"Hey," Suguro snapped when Okumura unsheathed his sword. "What're ya doin'?"

The whole room was illuminated by the brightness of his flames, giving everything a blue tint, and Suguro saw him grin. "Relax. I'm just freeing my flames because they're warm."

Suguro blinked. A second later, Moriyama was stepping closer to him, her fingers outstretched like she was leeching warmth from a campfire. "You're right, Rin! They are warm!"

Shima was already making his way toward Okumura, too. He nearly whimpered. "Holy hell, Okumura-kun. You're a lifesaver."

"You're... you're sure it won't burn?" Konekomaru asked hesitantly.

Okumura's grin expanded, radiant like a beam of the sun. He didn't seem at all offended by the implication of Konekomaru's question. "Nah. I've learned some things while training with Shura. I'm in control."

Konekomaru smiled timidly at his response and stepped closer before expelling a pleasant hum. "Wow."

"Eyebrows? Suguro? I don't bite," Okumura said, beaming.

Suguro grumbled under his breath, but ultimately decided it was better than freezing to death. "Alright, fine. I'm comin'. But if you burn me, I'm gonna kick your ass."

"Noted."

Then Okumura was looking expectantly at Kamiki, who scowled at him. She crossed her arms, but it did little to hide the violent tremors in her body, which Okumura seemed to pick up on because his smile dimmed a little. "You look cold."

"Maybe I am," Kamiki said snootily.

"Then come join us!"

"I'm not joining your cuddle puddle."

Suguro snorted. "We are not cuddling."

They all inched toward the wall, and it wasn't long before Okumura sat down. Everyone around him followed, and finally, Kamiki huffed. "Fine. Whatever. I'm only doing this because I hate the cold."

"You're not the only one," Suguro muttered.

And that was how they spent the next hour: all gathered in a half-circle against the wall, with Okumura in the middle. Boredom was heavy in the atmosphere, and their instructors had yet to return.

"Rin?" Moriyama's voice was dripping with worry. "Are you alright?"

Suguro looked back at him, eyes widening when he saw the way Okumura's normally-bright flames waver like a flickering candlelight. He frowned, catching the fatigue etched across Okumura's face.

"Hey, she's right," Suguro said with a scowl. "You look beat."

Okumura laughed, but it was watered down with exhaustion. "Yeah. Sorry. Never had my flames out for this long." He yawned. "But it's fine. No big deal."

Moriyama insisted, "You should take a break! We've been warm for a while now!"

"Nah," he repeated, with a tired wave of dismissal. "S'fine. I'm good."

Suguro's scowl deepened. It was just like Okumura to pull a stunt like this—use all of his energy on the behalf of his classmates. He pushed himself off the floor. "If you don't rest, Okumura, we're all just gonna move to the other side of the room."

"Hey," Shima said, but cowered under Suguro's harsh glare. "I—I mean, yeah, Okumura-kun. Save your energy."

"You've done more than enough for us," Konekomaru said quietly. "It's ok. Really."

Okumura opened his mouth to reply, but just then, the lights above them flickered before fully powering on. Okumura-sensei burst through the door, looking urgent, but paused when he saw his students. Raised his brows quizzically.

"For the love of—Nii-san, what are you doing?"

He flashed that same grin—two parts cheeky, eight parts exhaustion—and finally returned his sword to its sheath. "Keepin' my friends warm."

"You've got to be kidding me," Okumura-sensei deadpanned, pinching the bridge of his nose. "How long has he been doing this?"

"...for about an hour, sensei," Konekomaru answered hesitantly.

"We were just trying to convince him to take a damn break when you came back in here," Suguro said. "What the hell took so long?"

"There was... a complication," Okumura-sensei said vaguely. "I think this is a given, but since the demon has been taken care of, you're all free to go. I'll see you next class."

Suguro bit back a scoff. He turned back to Okumura, swallowing his pride, because the least he could do was give his thanks for making sure they didn't freeze their asses off.

Okumura was already out cold.