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Both X5s had enough feline in their DNA makeup to keep their body temperatures around 100F, which made it necessary to bundle up warmly in the frigid-cold temperatures of the overgrown wilderness that was once rural Seattle.
Max, from experience, had dressed for the occasion in thermals and gloves, socks, boots, every layer she could possibly accommodate, while Alec had been—true to his name—a smart ass and chose a light jacket over a turtleneck, boots over athletic socks, and driving gloves. At least both of them wore sunglasses, which helped keep the glare from the snowdrifts down, but even so, both their pupils had narrowed to bare slits behind the glasses.
Max's breath fogged out in front of her as she led the way, and despite her better judgment, she kept an ear out on Alec as they tromped. He was keeping pace with her easily, and surprisingly was staying quiet as they tracked the Manticore escapee.
Like Joshua, this poor creature had been a failed experiment, too much simian DNA and not enough human, and it had turned fierce, violent, and destructive. They'd managed to chase it out of Seattle entirely, and were following it now, hoping to trap it and keep it safely somewhere else, but it was too fast for them.
It kept to the trees during the day, sleeping at night and letting the X5s do the same. As the sun went down on their second night out, Max could already tell the temperature was getting even colder, and inwardly she grinned. If Alec said one word about lighting a fire tonight, she was going to laugh her ass off.
Instead, as night fell completely on them, she watched Alec worriedly, kept an ear on his vital signs and an eye on his hands and feet, watching how often he flexed his fingers or stamped his feet to keep them warm and circulating.
"Stop it," Alec said, and his gritted teeth told Max that he was deliberately keeping a chatter out of his voice. "Stop watching me like that."
She shook her head, dragging her fingers through her hair in exasperation. "It'll see us if we light a fire."
"Like it doesn't already know we're following," Alec scoffed, but he didn't argue with Max's logic. "Kinda making yourself suffer needlessly, aren't you?"
"Me!?" She lowered her voice at that, shooting Alec an evil stare. "Me?"
Alec just gave her an insufferable grin, and she huffed, turning her back on him and shivering despite the tent protecting them from the wind. She was startled moments later when Alec's leather jacket appeared around her shoulders, but by the time she turned to glare at him, he was sitting in the same place he had been, peering out the flap into the darkness.
She knew his eyes would be open wide, black pupil nearly obscuring the green iris, and when he turned back into the tent, she quickly turned the lamp down to let his eyes return to normal. "Anything out there?"
"Not that I can see, but it's starting to snow again. Pretty soon tracks are gonna be gone, and we'll be able to start fresh in the morning and see exactly where he's gone and when he goes." He slowly opened his eyes, and by the time he had, they were back to normal.
Max just sighed, shrugging the leather jacket off and handing it back to Alec. "Here, no sense you freezing your ass off while you're watching," she said, settling back into her sleeping bag.
Alec took the jacket and put it on, then unzipped his sleeping bag, moved it next to Max's, unzipped hers, and then zipped the two bags together to form one large one.
"Hey!" Max punched Alec in the shoulder, but it didn't deter him. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Being reasonable?" he asked sarcastically. "It's gonna get colder out there tonight, you're already shivering, we're both high-temp X5s, and there's nothing to be gained by freezing to death," he pointed out. "We'll share body heat, we'll both stay warm, and you will get the supreme pleasure of knowing what it's like to sleep with me," he finished, beaming widely and sliding into his half of the sleeping bag. "Goodnight, Max."
She huffed loudly, but when Alec ignored her, she tried to shove him out of the bed. He laughed and let himself become dead weight, and after a moment she gave up. "I hate you."
"Nobody hates me," Alec said, yawning. "Go to sleep already."
Max curled up against Alec's side, cuddling him in close and snuggling against the body heat he was radiating and replacing it with her own. "Goodnight, Alec."
Alec curled himself around Max, making an almost-purr deep in the back of his throat.
The End