Chapter Text
There was no other choice but to run like the wind and hide in dark alleys while those with the stomach for violence ensured nothing got too close. The streets ran red with blood, echoing carnage left behind them as they all sprinted in attempts to find somewhere safe. Pounding on doors and begging for assistance only resulted in being laughed at or turned away with venomous fury. Of all the times to end up in this place, why did it have to be on the night of the hunt?
Blue was inconsolable, shaking like a leaf and hyperventilating as Stretch covered his mouth in order to keep his panicked breathing quiet (alerting the prowling beasts and hairy townsfolk to their position spelled certain doom). Pap stood with wide, terrified eyes, struggling to keep his breathing under control and stay still enough to prevent his bones from rattling. Having Classic hanging off him and clinging tightly, much like a frightened toddler, seemed to be helping with that. Sugar did his best to comfort Axe enough to prevent a full mental breakdown, focusing on his brother being the only thing preventing him from the same state. The fact that Coffee smelled like a Starbucks and refused to be further than a foot away from the horrortale brothers seemed to help matters, his scent keeping them a little more tied to the present. Mutt and Red stood guarding both ends of the alley they were tucked away in. And, the rest were scouting for somewhere to hole up in and clearing the way when necessary. Everyone tried not to think about what that entailed.
The silence stretched on for ages, everyone taught like bowstrings. The only silver lining was the moment of respite for their aching legs. Blessedly, there was enough time for the most panicked to collect themselves enough to keep moving when Wine rounded the corner, motioning hurriedly for them to follow. "Come, quick!" He kept his voice mostly low but loud enough for everyone to hear. "We've found a safehouse, but we need to move as fast and quiet as possible."
The house was small in regards to space with two stories and two exits. Both exits were on the first floor with sturdy doors several inches thick with windows made of cloudy glass, one at the back, locked tight, and another in the front. It lacked any separated rooms aside from probably a bathroom upstairs.
All sat in utter silence on the bottom floor, preferring easy access to an exit, while Wine rummaged for anything they could use for light. Eventually he'd found a lantern along with a tinder box that was swiftly made use of. The light was meager, but enough to actually see their surroundings. "I-is that what I think it is?" Pap asked in a shaky voice. "Oh god!"
"Shhshshhshshshhh! We need to stay quiet," Wine tried to keep the frustration out of his voice, and as a result it came out harsher than intended. The taller skeleton winced but fell silent, folding in on himself to be as small as he felt. They didn't have time at the moment for Wine to feel too much guilt (they didn't have time to focus on much of anything other than survival). But, if it made this easier he'd do something. A blanket yanked from an open closet then hastily laid on the floor as an improvised rug. "Edge, I thought I told you not to kill anything in here."
Edge huffed, offended at the insinuation he couldn't follow simple directions. "I didn't. Something else did. Took care of all that nasty business outside. Just be happy I didn't leave the corpse here."
"Can you not talk about that stuff so casually?!" Blue's distressed voice struggled to keep low.
"Oh, for fuck's sake! Get used to it. We're not in your soft little world anymore, you sniveling baby," Edge snarled, causing Blue to flinch backward.
Soon, however, the shorter steeled himself, not willing to just sit there and be bullied like that. He had a right to be bothered by death and violence. A scathing reply was at the tip of his tongue when Char abruptly interjected. "Both of you, shut the fuck up. Now is not the time to be fighting amongst ourselves. I don't want to be wolf chow and neither do you, so unless you have something useful to say, don't say anything at all."
A tense silence befell them. Hell might has well have frozen over. The drama queen of the group, the shit stirrer, was being dead serious through the whole ordeal and now he was emphasizing how necessary it was for everyone to work together. Reality sunk in heavy and oppressive. This was their situation for the perceivable future. And, there was no way they could stay here forever.
Stretch was the one to smash through the stillness, asking the most important question. "What do we do now?"