It's always calm before the storm.

Morning arrived, but the world outside remained grey. D-boy wondered how long they had until the blizzard returned. The fierce storm had eased into a gentle snowfall, adding to the already thick blanket of snow that covered everything. Eff was still asleep, and D-boy had been obsessively overthinking their next move—how they would keep themselves occupied in this strange new existence. His own psyche felt like a mess. The map before him had been overdrawn multiple times in neat black pen, one he'd found in the cabin. It felt strange to be in a house that wasn't alive, wasn't once a part of something dark, and didn't whisper or hum with malevolent energy.

There was a lot to take in for the newfound area. D-boy wasn't sure if it was just him, but he had always been hyper-aware of the liveliness around him. Every living thing seemed to "talk" to him—not in direct words, but in a presence that pressed in on him. The trees, the crows, even the ants—they all radiated their existence toward him, intently, as if demanding his attention. He wondered if Eff experienced the same bombardment in their new years of realism, or if it was just his burden to bear. D-boy never asked. Not out of pride, but because he was waiting for the right moment. He needed a good reason before sharing this strange part of his reality.

The white noise in his head only grew louder, a constant hum he couldn't escape.

"Shut up for once…" he growled under his breath.

"I'm wishing,I'm wishing.For the one I love to find me,To find me.Today,today."

Sickness couldn't get the damn song out of her head, it had already been a day since encountering the family in the woods her and Reverend had to mutilated. To her, it was out of sheer spite, but according to reverend it was to conceal themselves hiding in the woods. Their bodies were dumped somewhere in a nearby ravine where they would remain undiscovered. The young couple had a 3 year old watching movies on a portable DVD player which kept playing as their screams were cut short.

"Like being in nature didn't suffice as enough entertainment for the disgusting worm baby," Sickness muttered aloud.

"You can never keep your thoughts to yourself, can you?" Reverend laughed.

"I do what I please, abominable meat statue," Sickness growled.

They had been away from the cabin for a while, and Sickness hoped the snow hadn't blocked the front door too much. Reverend had met Sickness purely by coincidence. Both had been silenced by their humans, but for different reasons. Reverend believed Johnny had never been the type to give in to his own desires, so abandoning him hadn't been much of a struggle. He sensed, however, that Sickness had been harder to get rid of by Devi—her mindset was unshakable, and Sickness had become restless, determined to prove she could do anything.

Their re-existence was troubling. Reverend had awoken in a municipal waste plant and wandered to the cabin in the woods, where he found Sickness picking at her own hangnails. Surrounded by bodies murdered by those same hands. She told him how she had awoken under what once was Devi's home, now laid a gigantic pile of rubble. With Devi gone without a trace. No matter how hard Sickness tried, she couldn't detect her anywhere, leaving Sickness to her own devices—reanimated.

The cabin incident wasn't a random act, unlike the camping family. After weeks in pittering around the rubble, Sickness ventured out being drawn into the wooded hills, where she found the cabin. She had hoped it would be empty but an elderly couple lived there, and were then quickly disposed of. Reverend had arrived shortly after the incident and realized that being alone as unnatural beings wouldn't work for either of them. Besides, the situation was too interesting to pass up.

For Sickness, it was all about control.

"For the past three weeks, I've known you don't like playing nice. You could've let the kid die of hypothermia, but nooo," Reverend teased.

"I'm getting tired of your easygoing shit. Just shut up already," Sickness protested. Reverend only shrugged.

Reverend never let Sickness get a rise out of him. He was patient, always waiting for the right opportunity, unlike his ally, who demanded trust and submission at once. He wasn't forceful or argumentative.

"Well, since you went after that family first, I had to be flexible. Otherwise, I'd have ruined your fun. Besides, I know your bloodlust is just a way for you to vent." Reverend spoke calmly, knowing he was right. Sickness turned to him, ready to fire back something snide, but realized it wouldn't matter. Instead, she turned away sharply and continued trudging through the snow as they approached the hill leading to the cabin.

Eff awoke, stretching and yawning. "You really need to stop talking to yourself. It gets annoying."

His counterpart ignored the comment, his mind focused on the nightstand. "You think you can open the drawer, Eff?"

Eff turned lazily towards him, still sprawled on the couch. "What'll you give me in return?" he asked, grinning.

D-boy raised an eyebrow. "Do you really think being a prick right now is fun? Nevermind. If you won't do it, I can live with that."

Eff stood up with exaggerated annoyance. "Oh, c'mon. You think anything you could give me would be worth it? Show me where this pissing cupboard is. Now you've got me curious," he teased.

D-boy growled under his breath, irritated but unwilling to start a fight. They had learned that prolonged arguments or even physical confrontations never led anywhere useful—just built-up resentment that neither of them had the energy for anymore.

The black, locked nightstand was surprisingly pristine, looking hand-carved but with a noticeable wobble in its legs. Eff knelt and began picking at the lock, quickly realizing it was simple, almost insultingly so. "Could've opened this with any key really," he muttered.

"Well, let's see what's inside, shall we?" Eff said with a grin as he pulled the drawer open.

Both figments leaned forward, their faces twisting in confusion as they stared at its contents.