Not half as confident as he put on, Kyuhyun moved up and placed his hand in the opening, filled with nervous tension.  His gloves kept him from the worst of the temperature and as carefully as he could, he projected a fireball about the size of a small melon and pushed it forward slowly.  Intently, the others watched as the fire hissed and sizzled where it met the snow, forging forward inch by inch.  A low creaking sound forewarned the snow’s imminent shift before a chunk fell directly on the fireball, hiding it from view while more piled in to fill the void that had been made.  Annoyed, Kyuhyun made it larger and the hissing increased.  They could see the orange glow of the angry fire through the melting snow as some of the water trickled inward through the hole and began pooling at his feet.

           The temperature in the shelter rose as the intense heat continued to melt the surrounding snow, top layers shifting restlessly to fill the bottom.  “Easy, Kyu,” Siwon cautioned, pulling at the top of his coat when it continued to get warmer.  Even as he spoke, the whole structure shifted slightly, startling everyone including Kyuhyun.  Immediately, Summer nulled his influence, while the structure tilted forward and halted, the hole about a foot lower than it had been.

           Uncertainly, Leeteuk placed a hand against the shelter and sighed.  “I was afraid that might happen.”  Quickly, he patched up the weakened areas but left the hole where it was.  “We haven’t reached the ground yet.”  Surprised expressions met his and he elaborated.  “The snow’s still the only thing holding us up.”  By his reckoning, they’d hit something massive in the fall that had rendered him unconscious, but it had been the last of the major deterrents before they settled in a nest of snow, weakened enclosure and all.

           The others looked at each other in concern.  “So we’re not done moving yet are we?” Kharin asked, perching next to Eunhyuk nervously.  He patted Kharin’s shoulder comfortingly and she settled next to him, leaning her head against his shoulder.

           “Probably not.”  Resigned sighs echoed around him.  None of them favored another fall like the last one and he couldn’t even begin to give them an idea of what it would be like.

           “What if we managed to get to the bottom?” Summer asked, eyeing Kyuhyun and the hole in the shelter speculatively.

           Her question prompted curious looks from the rest.  “And how would we manage that?” Kyuhyun responded skeptically, miffed that his attempt hadn’t worked.

           Summer shrugged.  “I don’t see why we can’t just melt ourselves down to the bottom and go from there…  At least then we would know we have nowhere else to go.”

           “Or just bury us further under more snow,” Kyuhyun muttered darkly, earning him a worthy glare.

           “Can’t we just dig ourselves out?” Siwon threw out, trying to help prompt ideas.

           Leeteuk shook his head immediately.  “We have nowhere to put the snow.”

           Eunhyuk perked up at a new thought.  “Not dig, but what about a tunnel.  Do you think we could handle that?”

           “It’s the same problem though,” Leeteuk cocked his head to the side, briefly confused.

           “Not if we work together,” Eunhyuk persisted, the beginnings of an idea starting to come together.  “We know the snow keeps shifting to replace whatever we take out, but what if we were able to keep that from happening?”

           Their curiosity piqued, Summer asked, “How?”

           “We freeze it,” Siwon added, beginning to see where he was going with the idea.  “But you still have to get the tunnel started.”

           “Kyu can do it,” Eunhyuk answered easily, focusing on the fire elementalist.  “It’s the same thing you’ve been doing, but faster.”  He used the one hand to imitate a projectile.  “If you can create the void of space we need, me and Siwon can freeze it solid.”  A glance at the water elementalist showed him grinning lopsidedly.

           “Well, it’s certainly worth a try,” Kharin shrugged, feeling a bit helpless.

           Together, Eunhyuk and Siwon approached the fire elementalist.  “You up for it, Kyu?” Eunhyuk asked, glancing at Leeteuk and Summer who were watching speculatively.

           Kyuhyun gestured ineffectively.  “I suppose it’s worth a shot.  If not, we can just think of something else, like flying out of here.”  The group frowned at him and he rolled his eyes.  “If we’re going to do this, we’ll need a bigger door,” he stated, looking at Leeteuk pointedly.

           “Alright.  Hold on a second,” he cautioned, moving forward and resting a hand against the wall to determine the best orientation.  “Here goes,” he smiled, gesturing at the wall and before them, a circular portal spiraled open for them, revealing more packed snow that drifted into the opening slowly.  It made Leeteuk nervous to have such a door in their shelter, but they had a point.  At least it was slightly angled down to keep any snow from falling directly in.

           Kyuhyun moved to investigate the opening while Leeteuk moved out of the way, going instead to squat near the girls.  Siwon and Eunhyuk came up and flanked Kyuhyun in nervous excitement.  “Ready?” he asked, looking from side to side.

           “Whenever you are.”  “Yes,” they both answered simultaneously.  Behind Kyuhyun, the water and wind elementalists nodded, prepared to work in tandem.

           “Here goes nothing,” the fire elementalist murmured quietly, pointing his open palm at the wall of snow.  In the blink of an eye, he summoned a self-sized fireball that hissed and fizzled where it pressed against snow briefly before he shoved it away, conscious of the heat and how it affected them all.  Immediately following his fireball, Eunhyuk created a vortex that spun around the walls of the newly created tunnel, helping to hold the melted snow back, while Siwon provided a small but steady stream of water that was carried with the wind to freeze the snow into place.  Determinedly, they pressed forward, unsure where the end was but rushing to find it.  At last, Kyuhyun felt a change in resistance and he let the flames die out, more relieved than he would care to admit when the pale light of mostly dark greeted them after the tunnel had been burned through.  Eunhyuk and Siwon let the combined elements run their course, finally lowering their arms when both streams reached open air.

           Curiously, Leeteuk and Kharin came around to peer over their shoulders, looking through the tunnel in appreciative awe.  Summer leaned over as far as she could but all she could view was the opening, now frozen solid.  “Well?” she prompted impatiently, holding Eleanara to her as she shifted over further to see what she could.

           “I think it worked,” Leeteuk answered slowly and pushed himself forward to the edge.  It looked solid enough, though a bit smooth and slick.  He thought it may prove difficult to traverse if only for a lack of traction.  At least the ceiling and walls looked whole.  None of them showed the signs of pressure or any fine cracks.  Tentatively, he took a step into the tunnel and laughed in relief when the ice held his weight without even the slightest hint of giving in.  “I think you guys did it,” he smiled, turning to look at them with respectful admiration.  The effect was lost though, when the light finally wore off and left them in the dark, illuminated only dimly by the light in the tunnel.

           “Bugger it,” Summer muttered in annoyance, tightening her embrace around Eleanara, for her own comfort as much as anything else.

           Kyuhyun was very tempted to use a flare but thought better about it after the last time the shelter had slipped.  They had an opening now and he would rather use that one instead of one further down.  “I guess that means it’s a good time to head out,” he sighed, reaching for the first pack at hand.  It was pointless to worry which one was his just now.  “You guys coming?” he asked, setting a tentative foot on the ice next to where Leeteuk was standing.

           “Go slowly,” he cautioned, catching his arm to stall him for just a moment.

           “I will,” Kyuhyun assured him dismissively, brushing the hand off.

           In shared concern, the rest of the group watched the first part of his trek as he carefully made his way over the slick ice, ducking slightly to keep from bumping his head.  The reinforcing ice had made the tunnel slightly smaller than originally intended but it still left them plenty of room to walk through, even if they did have to hunch over.  “Alright.  Looks well enough,” Leeteuk nodded to himself, glancing around the darkened room, just able to make out their faces.  “Grab your packs,” he directed, snagging one near him and catching the corner of one of the blankets crumpled with the rest of their stuff in the corner created between two walls.  “Come on, Kharin,” he called out, gesturing for the young woman to head through now.

           With a helping hand to steady herself on the ice and ease her progress since she was still sore from the fall, she moved nervously, casting frequent glances back at the others in concern.  She was short enough to stand upright, but just barely, and it did little to help her move forward.  They heard her murmuring quietly under her breath while she walked, aware she was as nervous as they were about the amount of snow still piled above them.

           “I’ll take the last leg and the extra pack, but who’s going to take Nara?” Leeteuk asked, reaching for the second blanket still sitting under the last pack.

           “I’ll take her,” Siwon volunteered first, though it was apparent both Summer and Eunhyuk had been about to offer their services as well.

           “Okay.  You may need to spread the weight out and since you’ll be carrying your pack, you can drag her after you on the blanket.  It should make it easier to pull her with the ice anyway,” Leeteuk explained, wishing he had a better way but it was all they had; nor was he going to ask anyone to come back through the tunnel for anything that they may have left so he intended to bring the rest with him when he exited the shelter.

           “Not a bad idea,” Eunhyuk nodded, wincing when he adjusted his pack nervously and started through the tunnel next, nose still stinging.  Ahead, he could only see the slow moving figure of Kharin so perhaps Kyuhyun had already made it out the other side.  Thank goodness he hadn’t felt the need to call back to let them know; there was no telling what loud vocals would do to the stability of their path.

           Reluctantly, Summer handed off Eleanara to Leeteuk and she nodded slowly, testing her weight on the recently healed ankle.  “Be careful,” she urged, resting her hands on his for a brief moment.  Then it was past and she reached for another pack that lay nearby.  As she passed Siwon, she looked up, “Take care with her, okay?  She’s kind of fragile,” she laughed lightly, the humor masking the concern in her eyes with some difficulty.

           “It’ll be alright,” he assured her confidently, though the sound was a bit forced, even to his ears.  They watched her start her trek through the tunnel, noting that the light was gradually starting to get a bit brighter the longer they waited.  Dawn was fast approaching for which they were grateful, but it cast the ice into a state of shimmering brilliance that was difficult to look at for too long.  It made them nervous that it was melting already, but that was unlikely given the amount of snow that would help to preserve the current temperature.

           The two men waited for her to get some distance before they moved to head out.  Siwon stepped in with his pack, the blanket trailing behind him.  Before he got too far, Leeteuk stepped up to lay Eleanara down carefully.  Gently, he traced a lock of golden hair from her face and smiled softly to himself.  “She’s good,” he stated, looking up and giving Siwon a thumbs-up.  The taller man nodded and smiled before hunching his shoulders to avoid the ceiling and started hauling Eleanara’s sleeping body along after him.  The blanket whispered quietly as it slid over the ice with little resistance, the waterproof side making it sufficiently easier than expected.

           Leeteuk watched the ice beneath them carefully, watching for any developing weak spots.  Really, Siwon would be better at reading the stability of it, based on water content, but he wasn’t about to point that out at this time.  By the time the water elementalist got about halfway through, there didn’t seem to be anything wrong so Leeteuk settled himself to follow.  He laid the blanket out, set the first pack in front of it and the second he hauled after him as he backed into the tunnel, taking care to keep himself from putting all his weight in any one spot.  Quickly, he hauled the pack in front forward and then snagged the blanket to drag the second pack after him.

           “Here goes nothing,” he sighed, moving slowly but steadily towards the end of the tunnel.  Every now and then, he could see a curious face look through to see where they were and it helped to keep his nerves to a minimum.  The ice creaked around him slightly, but that may well have been normal.  Behind him, he cringed when their shelter finally shifted again, the entire structure dropping about a foot instantly so the opening was displaced and he froze, listening with every fiber of his being.  He could only hope it wouldn’t prompt any motion from the rest of the snow above…at least not yet.

           Whether it would or not, he couldn’t very well stay there so resolutely he continued to plow forward, steadily dragging the extra pack after him.  With some disgruntlement, he came to the conclusion that running would have been nigh on impossible anyway, given his lack of traction on the ice.  It was, however, unnerving when Siwon disappeared from the tunnel and left him alone on the reflective surface.  Steadily, he maintained his pace and finally emerged from the end of the holed out tunnel, grateful beyond words that the others snagged his pack and the blanket from him allowing a chance to look around.

           The morning sun had finally risen over the edge of the mountain and bathed the area in blinding light, rays reflecting off the snow glaringly.  With eyes squinted, Leeteuk surveyed the downward slope of snow that terminated in the edge of a forest of conifers, the first layer of which was still half-buried.  Beyond that was what appeared to be a village, small streams of smoke leaving easily identifiable spots in the residential area of occupied homes.  Curiously, he glanced up at the mountain face and whistled softly.  It appeared as if the entire face had come crashing down.  No wonder it had been so hard to hold the shelter together.

           “Looks like we did it,” Kyuhyun mused, breaking him from his reverie with a congratulatory clap on his shoulder.

           Leeteuk nodded, agreeing with a warm smile.  “We did.  Thanks to you guys.”  He bowed slightly to Kyuhyun, Eunhyuk and Siwon whose combined efforts had enabled them to escape.  “And Eleanara,” he murmured quietly, letting his gaze drift down to the sleeping woman at Siwon’s feet.  He had not left her side yet and still kept a vigil over her while the rest tried to figure out what to do.

           Kharin knelt next to her and smiled up at him with reassurance.  “She’s just sleeping,” she assured him, running a hand gently over her forehead in a motherly gesture.

           The crunch of snow surprised them all as Summer walked over and smacked her hands down on Siwon and Kyuhyun’s shoulders before glancing around the group, forcing a smile at the bruised group.  “So what’s next, oh fearless leader?” she grinned, the heady experience of simply being alive filling her with more energy than she would have had otherwise.

           The others shook their heads with understanding grins on their faces, but all eyes turned to Leeteuk.  “We need to take care of your nose first,” he pointed at Eunhyuk, setting the current pack down to start rifling through it.  “Here,” he handed off a piece of cloth that he would have used for a small towel, giving it over to Siwon who nodded in understanding.

           The water elementalist doused it in his element and then cringed at the wind elementalist who sighed in resignation.  “I’ll get him,” Kharin volunteered, taking the cloth from the taller man’s hand lightly and nodding her head towards Eleanara.  Siwon simply accepted her choice and the shadow elementalist stepped up to Eunhyuk, frowning in concentration when he flinched away from her ministrations.  “Sorry,” she whispered, trying to be gentle.

           “It’s alright,” he hissed through his teeth, eyes tightly closed.

           The group watched for a few seconds and then Leeteuk took a deep breath, thinking.  His gaze traveled back down to stare at the small village that lay so close and yet so far away.  They had made it out of the avalanche but they still had a mountain of snow to clamber down and he doubted very much that it was going to be half as solid as he hoped.  Though Eleanara had healed them, he knew he was tired and if they felt even close to what he did, they would need to rest first and then attempt the climb down.  With all that in mind, he reached for the waterproofed blanket he had dragged out, hauling the pack off, and spread it out over the snow.  He sat down with the pack in his hands and started to rummage for food.  “First things first,” he urged, locating a ration bar and holding it up meaningfully for the others to see.

           It didn’t take them long to follow his lead, shedding packs and digging through the stores within.  None of them had the correct packs anymore but it didn’t really matter as they all generally had the same stores.  Carefully, Kyuhyun and Eunhyuk joined him on the already spread blanket, mindful of the slightly shifting snow, and watched as Siwon and the girls helped to spread the blanket Eleanara was on, situating her so that she was propped against the former for comfort.

           “I wonder if they’re friendly,” Eunhyuk mused around a bite of food looking considerably less bloodied, staring down at the small village beyond the trees.

           “I guess we’ll find out,” Kharin assured him, though she knew an answer wasn’t necessary.

           “Are we sure we want to stop there?” Kyuhyun asked pointedly, regarding the buildings with an annoyed and suspicious expression.

           “I think we have to at this point.  If nothing else, they may have news we don’t,” Summer added, observing the town intently.  “Plus, they should know more about what to expect for weather.  We can’t expect her to keep providing a barrier when normal means work just as well.”

           Slow nods went around the small group as gazes alighted on Eleanara.  “She needs food and rest,” Leeteuk stated quietly, his gaze thoughtful and concerned.  He couldn’t help but feel responsible for her continuous state of unconsciousness as he had pressed her to it initially.  As suggested, she had done so… a couple times now though the last was due entirely to necessity, or so she had thought.  He remembered how it had felt to be fused with the wall when it shattered and he was only grateful that he was unconscious when she had healed him.  Reflexively, the hand that had been shattered opened and closed once.

           “All she’s done is rest,” Kyuhyun muttered, slightly indignant, but they could all tell he wasn’t really upset about it like he was pretending now.

           “Who knows?  Maybe she’d like to actually fall asleep instead of pass out from exhaustion,” Eunhyuk laughed lightly, nudging Kyuhyun in the ribs.

           The fire elementalist frowned at him.  “And you still have blood on your face.”  The unsubtle reminder visibly dampened the mood as Eunhyuk  scrubbed at his face tentatively, uncomfortable with the statement.  Kharin hadn’t been able to get all of it, though she’d tried, and what was left still looked unsightly.

           Siwon shifted uneasily, drawing attention away from the embarrassed man.  “Can someone else get Nara?  I need to see to the rest of our water.”

           Summer hopped up and reached for her mostly frozen water skin.  She measured a thoughtful look at Kyuhyun and prompted, “You too, Kyu.  Come on,” she gestured, acknowledging he might well be able to melt the ice without destroying the skin itself.

           “I’ll take her,” Leeteuk volunteered, seeing how everyone was splitting up.

           Awkwardly, Siwon stood up, carefully cradling Eleanara so as not to jostle her.  His efforts were nearly wasted when his feet sank into the snow with the added weight he carried but it held after a few inches and he sighed.  “Go figure,” he chuckled, a wry smile on his face at seeing Leeteuk nearly ready to hop up to catch her if need be.  “Here,” he deposited her gently into his arms, smiling warmly.  At another glance from him, Kyuhyun finally got up reluctantly.

           “Fine.  I’ll see what I can do,” he shrugged, unsure if he could use the heat without the fire.

           Leeteuk took a moment to adjust Eleanara more comfortably, letting her head rest against his shoulder while her legs extended to one side off his lap.  Even when she slept, he could see the tension in her; probably from using her ability so extensively.  One small blessing out of all of this was that it was no longer snowing and the wind had finally abated.  It didn’t mean it wasn’t still cold but at least they didn’t need her ability to keep moving forward.  As if in answer to that very thought, she curled further against his body, bringing her hands up to rest against his chest and she sighed, some of the tension leaving her.  As before, he froze, unsure how to react until finally, he simply tightened his arm around her and smiled to himself.

           Behind him, the trio was trying to figure out how to melt the ice down in the water skins so they could be refilled and have drinking water.  Summer was ready to neutralize whatever power Kyuhyun was calling while he focused intently.  Siwon stood slightly off to the side, ready to douse him if need be, but preferably not.  His biggest concern was refilling the skins so they were full and not partially empty as they were from the last time they had been drunk from.

           “Just do whatever you always do when you call your power,” Summer was coaxing him, unsure how it worked in principle.  She only knew she could cancel it out…not how it came into being.

           “It’s not that simple,” Kyuhyun sighed in annoyance.  “I call fire.  That’s my element.  Obviously,” he stressed the word pointedly, “if I did that here, we’d have a bit of a problem.”  His retort earned him a glower from her but he focused on the water skin in his hand.  Technically, it should be simple, but perhaps that was why it was so hard… he was thinking too much.  He honestly didn’t know why he wouldn’t be able to just call the heat he needed instead of the actual flame itself.  With an intense expression on his face, he focused on the container in his hand, not calling fire, but rather willing it to warm up instead.  Nothing happened at first so he closed his eyes and tried to imagine it differently.  A gasp of surprise from Summer alerted him that something had changed.  Slowly, he cracked one eye open and couldn’t help but grin.  “Hah!”  The water skin he held was steaming slightly in the cold air and when he shook it, he heard water slosh instead of the usual silence.

           “Not that simple?” Summer laughed with a raised brow, arms crossed in front of her.

           “Well it wasn’t,” he defended himself.  “Much easier just to call a fireball,” he went on, tossing her the melted water skin.

           She scrambled to catch it and then almost dropped it again from the heat.  “Ayah…  That’s hot,” she murmured, juggling it from hand to hand.

           “Oops,” Kyuhyun responded, caught off guard by her reaction.  He hadn’t realized his tolerance for heat was that high.  It was easy to figure it came with being a fire elementalist, but it was a side effect he had not anticipated.  “Just pour it out already,” he waved, already focusing on a new water skin.  They had six more to go and he was not particularly patient.

           “Careful,” Siwon cautioned, looking up at the mountain of snow still above them.  He did not want to prompt another slide before they were off this part…especially not because of hot water, never mind it was a fairly nominal amount.  “Give it here,” he gestured, waiting for Summer to toss it to him.  She did so easily and he winced at the heat but it promptly died down after he uncorked it and filled it the rest of the way.  “Now that is simple,” he winked, setting it down on the waterproofed blanket.

           In such a way, the group was able to drink their fill, the water slightly warm and quite welcome.  Kyuhyun’s ability to melt the ice was grinned at by all and he briefly found himself the center of attention for his efforts.  It was not what he had expected and for just a moment, it made him feel warm from more than the water he drank.

           Once they all had a chance to recharge from food and drink, more immediate thoughts began pressing their way in as opposed to finding a way down just yet.  Not the least of which was the state of their clothes and the real concern that the smell of blood would attract unwanted attention.  Hungry animals were a valid concern, as that was largely what they had escaped from, but it would certainly be hard to explain to any other person why they did not reflect the injuries their clothes indicated.  Yoogin had warned not to let others know who they were, but it would be odd for them to waltz down there with the amount of blood they had on them and no injuries.  They had a change of clothes, but their winter wear was the only set they had and it was just as bad off as the layer beneath it with the notable exception of Eleanara.

           While the problem was carefully looked at, the pot of water was emptied, scoured by Kyuhyun’s fire and refilled again.  Summer promptly took over and set to work on Kyuhyun’s face and Siwon’s head, both of whom still had caked blood on their persons as well.  Kharin picked ineffectively at the hole in her clothes and tried futilely to wash out some of the top layer of blood with water from her water skin.  Eunhyuk watched her attentively unsure what they might be able to do overall.

           After a moment, he went to search through his pack and found the extra pair of clothes they had packed by way of necessity.  He inspected it carefully, trying to determine if it would be suitable simply to lie over the bottom layer.  They couldn’t hide the blood on their coats, but maybe, if they could stand the cold long enough to reach the village, they might be able to get by without the blood stained outer layers.  It was also possible that some of them might well be able to keep the majority of the coat on as in his case he was mostly blood free with the exception of his chest where the blood had drained down.  That he could cut out while the rest was salvageable.  Intensely, he pondered that while the rest were in their own worlds.

           Leeteuk was comfortable where he was, but he was very aware of the fact Eleanara, of all of them, needed food and water the most.  He was loathe to wake her, but they would need her on her feet when they tried to climb down the snow.  Gently, he removed the glove from his left hand with his teeth and used his bare hand to caress her cheek softly.  “Eleanara,” he murmured quietly, turning her head slightly so he could see her face better.  “Wake up, Nara,” he urged again, running his fingers across her forehead to trace the hair out of her face.  He smiled slightly when her forehead creased in reaction.  “Come on, Eleanara.”  He gently shook her body with his supporting arm and watched when she took a deep breath and finally opened tired, but still dazzling hazel green eyes.

           She groaned weakly and squinted up at him, wincing from the light of dawn and burying her face in his chest.  Her hand tightened on his jacket and she took another breath, suddenly alarmed when the coppery tang of blood reached her.  Panic flooded her that he might still be hurt and she jerked back to see the blood stained spot on his jacket.  “Are you injured?” she asked worriedly, her mind struggling to pull the pieces together.

           “Easy,” Leeteuk cautioned, tightening his arm around her so she couldn’t lean back too far.  “I’m fine.  It’s just drying blood,” he assured her, understanding what she had focused on.  “You already took care of us,” he explained further, glancing at the others who had noticed her reaction and smiled at her when she was able to meet their gazes, especially Eunhyuk.

           “Welcome back, Nara,” Kharin smiled, leaving the torn coat alone for now.  She was distracted by Eunhyuk’s attempt to cut out the blood covered fabric, though.  He had created a jagged v in the overcoat but it had rid him of most of the blood too so he looked fairly polished if still pinched in the face from pain.

           Eleanara glanced around, the blinding light reflecting off the snow hurting her eyes.  “We’re outside…” she stated, her hand tightening on Leeteuk’s coat reflexively.  The sight of the mountain towering over them pulled at her memory and she stared at it stubbornly.  With a gasp, she remembered they had been up there not that long ago, and she stared at Leeteuk, recalling his limbs fused with the rock wall.  “An avalanche?” she asked quietly, holding his gaze intently.

           “Yes,” he nodded.  “It was a near thing, but there is a village nearby,” he soothed, turning his head to look at the small ring of structures beyond the trees.  “That is where we intend to go now.  But first,” he interrupted her, reaching for the water skin.  “You need to eat and drink.  Here,” he offered, handing her the water skin quickly.

           She caught hold of it awkwardly, her fingers responding in a sluggish fashion.  It wasn’t that she was cold, but rather that her body seemed confused by the request.  Her brows creased in surprise and she bent her will to handling that small task first.  The stopper wasn’t difficult to remove, fortunately for her, but it was still hard to bring to her lips to drink.  A sigh of pleasure escaped her as the replenishing liquid hit her tongue and flowed down .  She had not realized how thirsty she was until she had the chance to drink again.  At least that reflex took over easy enough.  Embarrassed, she admitted, “I feel weaker than usual…”  She slowly lifted the skin to her lips again and took another long draught before she sighed.

           Leeteuk took the water from her easily and replaced it with a ration that Siwon handed him.  “It’s to be expected,” he shrugged.  “You weren’t exactly given the chance to recover from your last exertions,” he explained with a half-smile.

           Nervously, she chewed her lip despite his assurances.  That just meant she would be that much more of a burden to look after on the way down.  She forced herself to take a small bite of the ration and as soon as she was finished with that, her hunger flared to life.  A grumble issued from her stomach and she took another bite, flushing slightly when Leeteuk laughed at her.  She shrugged despite herself, fixing her gaze on the village off to the side.  With one free hand, she made sure her amulet was hidden under her clothes.  Despite how she felt now, after the next bite of food was down, she assured him quietly, “I will be ready when you are.”  When his arm tightened around her in understanding, she felt worried but comforted.  They had made it this far together.  They could get a little further still; one step at a time.  Of course, she would have to address Eunhyuk’s wounds before they did, but she could finish this first.