Settle in and wait see what happens.

“Strange, isn’t it?” Scarlet begins chipping at the ice. She whispers close to your ear. “One moment you’re tangled with hating everything in the world, and then the next you’re appreciating even the most minute detail there is.”

“What are you going on about?” You hiss, somewhat annoyed.

“Look up,” she tells you, and somehow, even in the pitch dark, you can see Scarlet rolling her eyes at you.

You screw your vision upward and see the night sky above you. Thousands of stars ignite the inky blackness with faint dots differing in color. Whites, blues, yellows, and reds— they all wink with beauty, complimenting everything around it. There wasn’t anything to hate suddenly, and you found yourself drawn to the twinkling spectators above, observing not just you but the many creatures in the forest.

“I know we shouldn’t be distracted,” Scarlet whispers. “But isn’t this strange? We are out here freezing in the snow hunting strangers to ****, yet we’re presented with a beautiful blueberry winter sky.”

You blink and return to your sights. “Don’t look at it, we have a job to do.”

Scarlet pushes your shoulder. “They’re not going anywhere, {first_name.}”

You attempt to adjust, but she grabs the receiver and pulls on it. You hiss her name, but she covers your mouth. “Pretend we’re friends for a moment, forget the task, and relax.”

Suddenly, you become aware of your tangled legs. You’re intertwined with each other, sharing air, heat, and scenery. The rapid beating of her heart indicates some sort of anxiety in her emotion. You look at Scarlet’s face and wonder what’s in her head. Her expression is similar to toddlers seeing something for the first time— amazed, innocent, youthful, and without borders. Eventually, you look up again and see the stars. They’re brighter now than you’ve relaxed and have taken the time to see everything. It’s God-given beauty. The Galaxy, untouched by the Armageddon that shredded empires and all subjects, still projects a unique vista that has been admired by trillions of life forms.

You swallow when you feel Scarlet moving; the small motion makes your position more compact and your posture more intimate. She looks down at you, her smile prominent in the dark. “Something is amazing about it, isn’t there?”

Your words become trapped in your throat as her words caress your nose. All you see is Scarlet. She suddenly catches your staring and tilts her head. “What is it?”

“You always manage to do something that surprises me,” you scoff slightly, hoping the sudden heat you are feeling on your cheeks isn’t as noticeable as you think.

“Well,” Scarlet shoots her pupils up as she lets her grin tightens into a lazy smirk. “I have to comment on things I admire. Otherwise, we’d be stuck with just each other.”

“You make that sound like a bad thing…do I have to remind you who booked us a room with a single bed?”

Scarlet, let’s put a soft feminine giggle. Her dark blue eyes are black in the moonlight, but they reflect that subtle twinkling above you. “I don’t remember you protesting the idea of resisting the offer,” she shrugs, brushing her shoulder against yours. “Not that I blame you— I know you're just mmmadly in love with your partner.”

“You’re so full of yourself,” you chuckle, and silence falls.

Her breathing shallows, and your warmth is exchanged. Every movement, no matter how slight, is felt between you. But you don’t have to linger long with this acute awareness of Scarlet’s pressed body for long because she tenses and scoots closer. “Bobs your uncle,” she whispers. “That’s our guy, isn’t it?”

You tense and look. Their watchman was approaching you, blissfully unaware of the prone dangers huddled together. You were surprised to see that this guy was better equipped than the first people you encountered earlier this morning. “Another one further in the back, too.”

The man stands 6 feet away from you and starts whistling a tone as he unzips himself to answer the call of nature. You wait long enough to wonder how much this man had to drink, but when he’s done, Scarlet slithers off like a red-headed snake, silently egging you to follow her… so you do.

You grab and drag him into the forest when he’s close enough to the tree line. Scarlet pounces, stabbing him like she’s playing the quickest game of whack-a-mole. You clamped your hand down. His mouth suppresses his screaming—something wet and warm pools against your palm. The muffled cries of terror subside, and you lower the corpse.

“Shit, Scarlet.” You swallow and curse. “My gloves are wet now.”

“Yeah, I got a little excited there,” she cleans her blade on the man’s uniform and stows it away. “Should be one more walking around, right?”

“Yes,” you grumble, discarding your gloves. “Just one more.”

With the second watchman taken care of, you go to the tents. Scarlet shoulders her rifle and points it at one of the tents. “Any survivors?”

“No,” you say. “If they have any buddies out there, they’ll come running back. Best we get this over with.”

“How embarrassing,” Scarlet steadies herself. “Why didn’t I consider that?”

…

…

At Tiny’s Tavern. You and Scarlet started to drink again. Since your companion was talkative, you suspected her to be more so over whiskey, but instead, she became quiet and considerate.

What surprised you more was the number of drinks she could down before you. Five glasses presented themselves. Scarlet’s gaze was forward, disinterested in you and the environment behind you. Steadily, a crowd had come in and was filling the tavern with abundant traffic.

Scarlet ordered a meat platter, which was joined by crackers, cheese, and a mustard dip. You thought she ordered it for herself, but she scolded you for not eating when some time went by.

“So, you want to talk about anything?” You asked, finally tired of the quiet.

“No,” she says. “Let’s take it easy and see if anything comes to us first. There’s no reason to rush anything now.” Her speech is slightly slurred, but there’s no indication of intoxication from her aside from her accent and breath.

“All right. Golden idea, Scarlet.”

She mumbled something, bringing a glass to her lips just to find it empty. She slams down the glass and looks like she’s about to make a scene when the bartender returns. It’s Miranda.

“What’s the matter, babe?” Her hands are occupied with a clear cup and rag. She sees you and winks before looking at Scarlet again.

Scarlet points at the glasses, all empty of content. “More.”

Miranda licks her teeth. “More what? We have a menu.”

Scarlet looks down like she wasn’t expecting this question. You butt in. “Old Forester bourbon.”

Miranda closes her eyes and tilts her head to one side. “Oh, I shoulda known.”

Scarlet slumps down on her stool, her eyes glossy and her cheeks red. She stuffs some meat into her mouth and chases it with some cheese.

“You doing, you know, fine? Scarlet?”

No answer. “I’m talking—“ before you can finish your question, another voice breaks inc, and this time, it isn’t Miranda’s. It’s a deep, booming voice with an echoing crowd. Next, you feel hands on your shoulders too, and you are **** off the chair by a man taller than you by at least afoot.

He was dark-skinned and had long, greasy black hair pulled back in a ponytail. He pushed you around and flicked your forehead. “She doesn’t want to talk to you, little man.”

Immediate offense takes over, and you stand straight, but the offender is still towering over you. “What? Huh? You going say something?” He eyes your black uniform and scoffs. “Or are we going to take this outside?”

“You should leave before I consider you worth my time and energy.”

“And if I don't?” The men step closer.

“Then I’ll leave you as warm as the room we’re standing in,” you say, unmoving.

Also unmoving is Scarlet. After downing yet another drink, however, she tilted her head to one side. “What do you want, big guy?”

The “big guy” smirked at you before twisting his head to look (or gawk) at Scarlet. He shifted his legs and placed his hands on his hips. “Who do I want is a better question.”

Scarlet muses, her eyes drifting to the man while she twisted in her seat. When her eyes were firmly on the aggressor, the corners of her lips curved. “Who do you want, then?”

The man grinned smugly, shooting you a brief glance. “I‘ve always preferred redheads. The firey type that thinks she’s in control but is really just a **** slut looking to be raw-dogged and knocked up.”

He licked his thumb and rubbed his eyebrows, shooting you another venous looking before returning to Scarlet. “I can tell you want your hair pulled, your ass spanked— choked, slapped, and abused, probably denying you want it, but in reality, loves the feeling of my horse-sized cock exploring every hole you have.”

He inhaled, now disregarding you wholly. “I’m not picky. I’ll take your mouth. Your pussy. Having anal in every position you want… as long as I’m in control.”

Scarlet had a hard blush, but you couldn’t tell if it was because she was getting aroused or because she was finally experiencing the effects of the ****. “So,” she leans back. “How big exactly is…horse-sized?”

“I knew you’d ask,” he grabs himself before he answers. “13 hard inches. That’s nine more inches than this kid’s got.”

“Oh,” she looks at you. Her blue eyes are unfocused, and you realize she’s totally wasted and actually considering this guy. “Well then, let’s go up to my room.”

The man, with a foot-long plus one ruler cock, looks at you and shakes his head. “Fuck you.”

The respect and wonder you had for Scarlet blink out. “Good job, you get to use all the holes I’ve used for months. Have fun with that used toy.”

“She’ll finally feel something other than disappointment,” he counters.

You’re about to retort when Scarler suddenly falls on top of you. “Join me,” she coos. “It’ll be fun.”

“What?”

She nods, kissing you.

“You’re fucking drunk,” you try to push her away, but her nails dig firmly into your sides. “Let. Go.”

“You’re not coming then? It won’t be fun without… as much fun, at least.”

“If you go up there, I’m not following you.”

“And where will you go?”

“Back with the rest. I didn’t go with you so I could watch you get railed by some stranger from the bar,” you scoff, embarrassed by how much you’re still attracted to her. “Come by when the next part of this contract needs completing.”

Her eyes flash. “Warren. Come. With. Me.”

Surprised, you look deeper into her eyes. What’s the matter with this bitch?