A/N: I'm so sorry I didn't post a new chapter last night! Rest assured it's not going to become a pattern D: I had company over, them zombie walk, then terrible asthma attacks through the night (which hasn't happened for a looong time so I'm kind upset... I thought I was through with all this!) anyway, with a nebulizer in one hand and my head in the other (horrible sinus headache) I was unable to upload the chapter. So many of you left wonderful reviews and I feel so bad, but this is the soonest I could post. And I'll put up the next chapter as per usual tonight.

Catrina woke the next morning to the smell of bacon. Wondering if she were still dreaming she wandered out of the small bedroom and into the kitchen. The redhead she was staying with was standing at the stove, cooking.

"Matt? Is that…?"

Hope bubbled into her chest as she walked closer to see the frying pan in his hand and something sputtering in grease. He only smiled and nodded.

"Yea, it's bacon. I got it for scavenging barrels of gasoline for the community near here. Figured you wouldn't have eaten well in a while so…"

At the mention of a community Catrina felt weak with relief and turned to take a seat at the table. She jumped when she noticed Mello for the first time, sitting at the table and looking directly at her. He turned when Matt called to him and tossed a piece of uncooked bacon. He quickly scarfed it down greedily before looking back at her. She sat opposite him and waited for Matt to join her, serving up food she thought she would never see again. Her mouth was watering at as she eyed the delicacy. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had actually meat. Though she wanted to savor it, the bacon was gone in minutes and Matt chuckled at her.

"There'll be more at the community I promise. That is where you're going right?" She hadn't directly said it but it only made sense for someone in her condition.

She nodded eagerly and drank her water, though she hated to wash down the amazing flavor still lingering on her tongue.

He glanced at his watch and began picking up the kitchen, tossing one more piece of bacon to Mello. "If you don't mind, I'd like to leave soon. It takes a little while to get there."

She agreed and they set out after breakfast, each with a pack and Mello walking beside them. Matt didn't feel comfortable leaving the blond alone and Catrina mentioned that he would probably be hungry anyway. Matt had really only given Mello a little bacon so that he wouldn't feel left out but it wasn't near enough to fill him up. The area was normally clear of infecteds during the day but it was always better to be alert and both continually scanned their surroundings.

An hour later they were approaching the outskirts of the community. It was built on the grounds of an old private school, whose perimeter was surrounded by a stone wall too high to climb over. All trees around the wall had been chopped down and the gate had been fortified to keep out intruders by the school when the infection had first begun to spread. Inside, they had managed to stave off hunger and utility failure until it was moderately safe to go outside again. As the school reworked itself into a functioning society, it began to expand outward. Matt had helped on some of the construction.

"Mello, stay here." Matt put a hand on his chest and pushed back gently. The last thing they needed was to be suspected of being infected and the blond would probably be shot on sight. Luckily, it didn't look like Mello wanted to get too close. He crept into the shadows of some nearby buildings and lay down, watching them.

As they approached the gate, Matt called up. "Hello? Markus!"

A stocky brunette peered down at them before smiling. "Matt! How'ya doing mate?" He spotted Catrina and burst out laughing. "Don't tell me she's yours! Is that why you won't move in, hu?"

Matt just shrugged. "Sorry to disappoint you but I'm just her escort. Open up?"

"Sure sure." He quickly began tugging the rope connected to the small doorway to the right that led to the quarantine room. Catrina would be kept there overnight and checked for any signs of infection before being let in. It was just a precaution and Matt was sure she would be fine. He hugged her quickly, not one for goodbyes.

"Thank you for help. And please take good care of Mello. Perhaps I can visit sometime? I know you must get lonely."

Matt was impressed by her spunk. Most people that lived in communities did so out of fear but she was obviously a strong survivor. It gave him hope that women like her were bearing the next generation. Outwardly he only smiled and ushered her in. "Just worry about the baby for now alright? I'll be around." He waved as he strode off to where he had left Mello. The blond was sitting against a building, panting with the onset of heat. Seeing Matt, he got up and followed as they began to make their way back.

Stopping at a building Matt knew to house infected, he let Mello prowl inside to eat. Waiting outside, he began to worry. He wasn't sure how many were there or how strong they were or even how strong Mello was. From what Catrina had said, he could fight well but that wouldn't stop a much larger infected from overpowering him. With few humans left outside of communities to hunt, infected prayed on animals and other of their kind for food. The city hadn't completely succumbed to nature yet, meaning that there were few animals large enough to satisfy an infected and forcing them to resort to cannibalism to live.

When he heard the sound of a fight and a yell cut off abruptly he nearly dashed inside. It wasn't too long though, before Mello came out with only a few scratches and fresh bloodstains on his clothes. Relieved, Matt let himself relax. Now they just needed to get home safely. He inwardly resolved to find out places safe for Mello to hunt in.

When they were nearly back at the apartment, the redhead stopped at a small pharmacy to pick up more cigarettes. He hopped the counter and grabbed two boxes before heading for the door. To his left, something caught his eye and he paused. He'd caught sight of the pharmacy and questioned, not for the first time, if anyone had tried to cure the infection. It had taken hold and spread so fast that he'd never heard of anyone trying to develop a medicine.

Looking over at Mello he wondered if there was a pill behind the counter that could help. What if all this time there had been one simple medicine that could save their loved ones. Goosebumps broke out on his arms as he fought the hope threatening to well up. If he could just find the right one then maybe… It was a dangerous thought. If it failed then the crushing of the dim hope inside him might be too much. For the first time since the blond had walked back into his life, he refused to accept the new Mello.

Mello was fiery and smart, passionate and driven, not passive and animalistic. He couldn't give up and do nothing. Going into pharmacy, he grabbed several bottles, trying to get a variety and skipping over the ones that he was relatively sure wouldn't have any effect. Pack filled, he hurriedly walked home with Mello by his side. His thoughts were swirling in his head. Could he find a cure? It seemed crazy but then it wouldn't be too surprising if he were. After all that had happened, he could feel the slight edge of insanity that had prompted him to grab the drugs.

When they arrived, Matt looked back and realized how dirty the blonde's clothes were. He couldn't have the infected blood on anything in his house and he quickly decided that the clothes needed to be burned. Leading Mello to the bathroom, he shut the door and slowly began to peel off the stained shirt. The infected didn't struggle, simply watched Matt with interest as his pants were also removed and he stood nude.

Now the redhead could see that the scar on Mello's face extended down his right shoulder and part of his back. There were also numerous other normal scars all over his body, most likely from fights.

Taking a washcloth, Matt soaked it with water from a bottle and began to wipe the bond down. It was the only way to take a shower since he didn't have running water. Sometimes Mello would shudder away when he hit a sensitive spot but otherwise he stood still and let the gamer clean away the filth on his body. When he was satisfied that the blond was clean, Matt set the washcloth down and brought his hands up to Mello's face. Tired red eyes looked back at him as his resolve to save the blond solidified.

Next stop was the bedroom where he pulled out some clothes for Mello to wear, baggy but they would do. Digging in his bag, he pulled out the different bottles of medicine and set them on the living room coffee table. He sat Mello down on the couch and picked one at random, popping out two pills as the instructions read "take two every six hours as needed." He nudged them into Mello's mouth, the blond making a face but swallowing them anyway.

One hour later Matt knew that he had entered Hell.