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“Alright, Mo, piggyback ride?”
“You’re hurt.”
Peter grimaced, helping her up onto his back anyway. She was right, he’d broken them out of where they were being held, but the price was the burning wound in his side. He would’ve taken it any day if it meant protecting Morgan.
It wasn’t that deep anyway, and it wouldn’t take that long to heal. What he was actually worried about was the cold- they’d made it out to find the trees and grass coated in snow.
Peter tried to hide his shivering, stumbling forward through the trees. They had to keep moving, had to get out before someone came looking for them. He had to save Morgan.
He wasn’t sure how long he’d been running when his body finally gave out. Leaning against an icy tree, he slid Morgan off of his shoulders, then lowered himself as gracefully as he could so that he was sitting down. Morgan was shivering, and he tried not to show the fear on his face.
“Hey, Morgs, do you think you can do something really important for me?”
She nodded, and Peter’s heart clenched, but he knew she had to keep moving, she had to get to safety, and at this point, he would only slow her down.
“Alright, Mo, it might be scary, but you’re gonna have to do this part on your own, okay?” His teeth chattered through his words, cutting him off. “There should be a road not too far from here, you just have to get to it and flag someone down.”
Morgan trembled. Peter wasn’t sure if it was from the cold or fear.
“What about you?”
“I’ll be fine, Mo. Just taking a little break.”
“You’re bleeding.”
Peter glanced down at his side, surprised to see that she was right. He pressed his hand against the cut. “I’m fine, just a little scratch.”
Morgan shook her head. “I don’t want to leave you.”
Peter’s stomach sank, but he plastered some semblance of a smile on his face. “It’s okay, Morgs, you go ahead, I’ll catch up.”
She considered that for a second before finally nodding, then turning and starting to run again. Peter slumped against the tree once she was out of eyeshot. He let his eyes slide closed, waiting for either the cold or their captors to take him.
It wasn’t long after when he stopped shivering, his hand falling away from his side, sticky with blood. He knew that was bad, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care.
He thought he heard someone getting closer, and for a second he thought that their captors had found him, or worse, had found the both of them. But then a familiar voice called out his name, and he forced his eyes open to see a blurry figure in red and gold.
“Pete?”
Peter tried to make his voice work, only managing to get out an: “M?”
“She’s safe, kid, we got her.”
Relief flooded through him, and he let his eyes slide closed again. He was starting to feel warm, sleep threatening to overtake him.
“Hey, no, Pete. Stay with me, kid, stay awake.”
But Peter didn’t decide that anymore. Distantly, he felt someone wrap their arms around him, lifting him up, heard their pleading reassurances that he was going to be alright, that he had done good.
The warmth wrapped around him, dragging him under.