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Realistically, Rain knew they fucked up the minute they stepped foot to the outside. Realistically, they should’ve felt the blizzard coming the night before and prepared. Water ghouls were not meant to be out in the snow. Just like other sea life, they tended to spend the winters in warmer climates, their bodies not able to produce heat like mammals, or even other ghouls. Rain always tried to avoid going out if it was freezing. So, if they even tried to notice the incoming storm, they wouldn’t be in their current problem.
They were out at the lake, bundled up due to the snow. It wasn’t anything crazy, just a light dusting coming from the sky, so they thought it’d be okay. The main concern was the wind; it was strong. They hummed quietly to themselves as they walked around the sand, trying to find the bracelet they dropped here last night. It was harder to find thanks to the snow that was starting to stick, needing to use their foot a few times to push away any snow. They could wait, should, but dammit they didn’t want the bracelet to rust. Besides, the snow was calm. They’d give themselves five more minutes before deciding to head back.
Unfortunately for them, the calmness didn’t last. The wind picked up greatly and, by the time they did manage to find the damned thing, (of course it was under the dock, why wouldn’t it be hiding?) The snow had picked up, too.
Okay, so not great. They were going to need some serious Dew Cuddles when they got back. Starting their journey home, they tried to shield their eyes with their hand as they began making their way up the hill. Just five minutes, and then they’ll be warm again.
They don’t know how long they’ve been going uphill, the wind seriously slowing their progress down, but at some point they had to stop. They couldn’t see past their hands, their surroundings in total white. There was a tree in front of them, but that was it. Could they recognize the tree, maybe? It was in vain to think they could. Walking up to it, they tapped their hand onto the bark of it, a slew of snow dropping off the branch and onto their beanie, effectively pulling it off their head.
Rain grumbled as they bent to pick it back up, their teeth clattering against their skull. They brushed off the snow and forced the hat back on, noting how much colder it was. They could feel themselves getting worse by the minute, their gloved fingers feeling almost numb. That’s probably not good.
“Shit…” They whispered to themselves as they looked around for a solution. If they truly were going in a straight line, there should be a shed somewhere to the right of them. It would be faster to find shelter there, just until the storm passed. If it passed. Satanas, they hoped it’d pass soon.
They could feel their legs becoming stiff under them as they trekked through the snow. Their breath was coming out shaky. They were slowing down. But soon, the barest of an outline between the trees was coming into view. They smiled, finally, some shelter.
The shed was as rickety looking as they remembered. Low hanging roof, wood that should’ve rotted aeons ago. Home sweet home. They shoved their way through the last bit of snow and grabbed hold of the doorknob, rattling it. And rattled it a bit more. And…
“Fuck, no!” They shook the doorknob, slammed their body into the door, and tried breathing on the metal to maybe warm it up. Nothing. It was stuck.
“No, no, no…” They could feel their resolve finally starting to break as they looked around for the solution. If they broke the door open then they could just prop it back up. It wouldn’t be the best solution, but it’d be better than dying of hypothermia right outside of it. They only had their body, so conjuring up what little strength they had, their body slammed into the door. A creek, one more push with their shoulders, and they were in. Ice shattered around them as they fell to the concrete ground, groaning in pain. They shuffled their way into the shed, slamming the door shut with their foot. The wind whistled around them, the flimsy window shaking with its power.
They made their way to a corner and huddled into themselves. Now away from the snow, they can feel the layers on them soaked, their feet cold and numb under the socks. Why did they think it’d be a good idea to venture out when it’s snowing, let alone by themselves? They should have at least brought someone with them. They took their gloves off in a hurry, quick to cup their hands together as they blew warm air on them. Should they take off their boots, too? Would that be a better idea than staying in the wet socks? They couldn’t even feel their toes, would it really make a difference? They were too unprepared to deal with things like this, they should’ve done more research before. Or, crazy idea, they should’ve just stayed inside.
“Tired,” they muttered to themselves. It was true, now the adrenaline of just trying to open the door was wearing off, they could feel their mind slipping into unconsciousness. Should they? Is this like a concussion, where they needed to stay awake? They wrapped their tail around their thigh, squeezing. Sleep sounded so good right now… why would it be a bad idea, anyway? It’s not like they’re going anywhere.
They don't know how long they were in there for, slipping in and out of consciousness the entire time, but soon the wind wasn’t as strong and the snow wasn’t falling as violently. They were acutely aware of how dark it was when they heard the door creak, rolling their head off the wall to check out the noise with lidded eyes. They smiled and their tail unwrapped itself to wag, waving a hand over to the intruders.
“Dewy,” they muttered, their breathing shallow. The fire ghoul raced over when he spotted them. He knelt down, immediately taking both hands into his. They hissed slightly at the sudden heat.
“Raindrop.” Dew breathed, eyes frantically checking them out. “How long have you been out here? Fuck, you’re freezing.”
“Why did you go outside in the first place?” The other ghoul, they recognized as Mountain holding a flashlight, interjected. “They’ve been talking about a possible blizzard all weekend.”
Rain hummed and took their hand away from Dew, reaching into their jacket pocket to show them their prize. “M’ bracelet got lost.”
Dew looked down at the bracelet with wide eyes, mouth gaped slightly. “You…”
Rain nodded, fisting the bracelet as they put their hand back into Dew’s. “It was gonna rust, Dewy.”
There was a shuffling behind them as Mountain bent down, shoving the flashlight into Dew’s chest. “C’mon, we need to get them inside. You can continue this conversation later.”
Dew huffed as he let go of Rain, standing to give Mountain space. The earth giant immediately went to pick them up, covering their quivering body in his jacket. They deeply sighed and felt their mind begin to slip again, whatever conversation happening in the background becoming garbled in their ears.
They only came back when they were forced to sit their shaky form up. They recognized it being one of their rooms, maybe Dew’s, but they couldn’t tell for sure. Mountain was all over them, bent down and hurriedly taking off their shoes. He was talking to someone else, but they paid no mind.
They tried to help, he obviously was working on getting their wet clothes off, and went to find the buttons in their jacket. They fumbled with them, their fingers still void of feeling. Mountain eventually brushed their hand away, unfastening the buttons himself.
“I dunno why it has buttons,” They mumbled, earning a chuckle in return. They looked up into Mountain’s eyes. Before they could smile, they noticed the fear deep inside the earth ghoul’s eyes. The tight line in his lips.
“How…” they looked down to their hand, fiddling with the bracelet. “How long were you looking?”
“Two fucking hours.” Dew came into view with a pile of blankets in his arms, dropping them unceremoniously onto the bed. “You didn’t tell anyone where you were going or anything. We only found you because your beanie was lying next to the door.”
Rain immediately went to touch their head, noting that yes, their hat was gone and their curls were damp. They giggled slightly, head leaning on Mountain’s shoulder. “My bad.”
Mountain hummed in response, finally shedding any last bit of fabric on them. He took hold of them and forced them to lay down at the headboard, layers of soft, warm blankets beginning to pile up on their body.
“Think you could eat something?” Mountain asked them as he laid down the last blanket. Rain snuggled into the pillow, eyes closed, their teeth still chittering.
“I’m hungry.” They said in response. There was a chuckle somewhere and they heard the door open.
“We’ll get you something to eat, then.” Mountain rubbed at their covered knee, Rain finding absolute comfort in the warmth.
“You mad at me?” Rain opened their eyes just enough to see Mountain, sleep trying to force its way in.
“No.” Mountain shook his head. “Try not to sleep until your body temperature is normal, okay?”
“Mm.” Rain made to sit up, Mountain helping in the process. “Where’d Dew go?”
“To get you something to eat.” He wrapped one of the blankets around their shoulders tightly. Rain studied his face some more, frowning when the worry lines only grew.
“You’re mad at me.” They nearly whispered, a statement rather than a question. Mountain just shook his head again.
“Not mad.” He said. “Worried. Dew isn’t mad either, that’s just how he is. You know that.”
“I didn’t think I was gonna be out there for that long.” Their breathing hitched as they felt a sting of tears in their eyes.
Mountain hushed them, a hand brushing their cheek. “It’s okay, Raindrop. These things happen.”
Dew came back into the room with a plate of steaming food. Rain’s stomach growled when the smell hit their nose, Mountain laughing quietly with them.
“Dew will cuddle with you while you eat, and then you can sleep. Sounds good?” Mountain moved to grab the plate from the fire ghoul. He didn’t wait for a response as he immediately crawled onto the bed right next to Rain, wrapping an arm around their shoulder. Rain nodded anyway, forcing their hands out of their cocoon to start chowing down.
That’s how the rest of the night went. They shuffled over to give Mountain space next to them, being encased by the two. Dew made a few rogue comments on Rain’s stupidity, I cannot believe you risked death just for a bracelet. Rain argued its importance, slapping Dew’s back with their tail.
Once Mountain deemed it safe for them to sleep, they wasted no time in doing so, snuggling close to the giant, using his chest as a pillow. Dew was right behind them, spooning them above all the blankets. They briefly remember asking where the bracelet was, before finally slipping into full sleep before they could hear an answer.