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mratyn reached his muzzle down to his paw, plucking out a thorn and waiting for the pain to subside.
why did he get locked out during winter, of all times? all he had was a makeshift shelter to keep him warm and even then, he felt like he was freezing his nose off.
his breathing was all he could hear. it was all he’d ever heard beside the wind for days. he was surprised he wasn’t dead yet.
his ears perked as pawsteps grabbed his attention. his heart raced. there was something else here, and he’d either die for good, or find company.
gray fur shrouded by snow was visible in the distance, and it was coming closer. whatever was there could see him, and it instilled fear in him for the first time in a while. as the figure got closer, it started calling something out, only to be cut off by coughs.
slowly mratyn began to approach, shivering as his paws padded through the snow.
“marty??” they called out again. mratyn could’ve sworn he’d almost thrown up his heart.
the other rat hurried to catch up, nearly slipping multiple times. once close enough, mratyn felt they were familiar, though he wasn’t sure.
“garbage rat??” he shouted over the wind, the rat speeding up their pace. before he could react he was nearly knocked to the ground as they collapsed into him in some pathetic attempt at a hug.
“marty!! you’re alive, you’re here!!” they cried out. mratyn felt his eyes water, but tried to ignore it as he realized his suspicions were right.
“garbage r- oli!! how did you - why are you out here??” he yelped, concern lining the edges of his smile. oli buried his face in the fur poking out of mratyn’s shirt, right below his maw.
“you went missing, everyone’s worried!! almost everyone, i mean .. but me especially!!” their voice was muffled, but still clear enough to mratyn. he placed his paw over oli’s back, as they tightened their grip around mratyn.
“i’m sorry, garbage rat. i don’t know why i ended up out here.. b-but you’re here too!!” he pulled away for a moment, oli’s watering eyes staring right into his own. “i was alone for days!”
oli shuddered as he chuckled, sending a warm shiver down mratyn’s spine. the freeze of the snow seemed to hit him then and there, and he brought oli close again.
“i’ve got a small shelter. nothing much, but it’s something. if you wanted to stay,” he murmured, “but i know the mansion must be warmer.”
“it is,” oli said, resting his head on mratyn’s shoulder, “but i’m not gonna go in without ya.”
mratyn hesitated to respond. he didn’t know if he wanted to go back. he hadn’t really thought about it.
“uh, it’s okay. i’m getting by just fine,” he said, laughing it off.
oli frowned. “you’re just gonna let yourself freeze to death? just come inside. safety rat’s been worried..”
“well, let him know i’m just fine!”
“marty, you could get sick out here. i’m speaking from experience, i’ve slept in the cold for most of my life.”
mratyn sighed. he figured there was no use arguing, and he didn’t quite like sitting in the snow.
it had taken a while to follow oli up the mansion walls, but mratyn managed to keep up nonetheless.
“there’s a crack in the window here. i noticed it a little while ago, and i thought that’s how you got out here at first,” oli said, reaching out their paw to mratyn, “be careful, its a big crack but pretty narrow for a rat.”
mratyn nodded, as oli slipped through first. looked easy enough.
he scrambled up to the crack, his claws harshly scrabbling against the glass as he tried to slip through.
he didn’t land as gracefully as oli had, but that was the least of his concern.
“alright, let’s take you to my place first. i’ll tell safety rat you’re alright later. the other rats might catch on, too,” oli said, and bunted his head against mratyn’s shoulder affectionately.
he followed oli silently towards the old paint can. the paint along the sides was chipping off, leaving a more rusted look underneath.
mratyn stepped inside, pausing at the doorway. his tail lashed behind him, as he watched oli wait inside.
“.. marty? you can come in, you know that, right?” they asked after a while. he hesitated, until oli walked up to him and put his paws on either side of mratyn’s face.
“are you sure you’re doing okay? did the cold affect you at all??” he asked, turning mratyn’s face over in his paws, “are you hurt?”
“no! no, i’m fine. just a bit worried, i guess,” he mumbled, swiping away one of oli’s paws. the garbage rat frowned, then grabbed his arm and pulled him inside.
“it’s better in here, isn’t it?” they asked, letting go of mratyn and settling down in a pile of scrap paper and cloth. “much warmer in here.”
hesitantly he nodded, approaching oli and sitting down right next to the pile of scraps, only for them to pull him down next to them.
mratyn was surprised, but didn’t argue. oli snuggled close to him, and he rested his head on oli’s neck, his tail’s lashing calming down.
oli put a paw over mratyn’s shoulder, and for a moment he forgot about the cold, that he shouldn’t be doing this, that this could be dangerous. he forgot about the watching eyes, and frankly, he didn’t care anymore.
he let his eyes shut, and he let drowsiness overtake him as he rested against oli.