Ch. 4: Waterlogged

Timothy heard his brother's cries a second before a vice-like grip wrapped around his stomach and he lurched up, leaving his heart on the ground. His head shot up to see the snowy white chest of an owl.

Timothy barely had time to register his fear when Martin jumped and just managed to latch onto the owl's talon. But the extra weight did little to deter the owl as he flew up, away from the ground to soar below the branches.

"Hold on Timmy!" Martin bared his teeth, dragging himself onto the owl's foot. Timothy tried to slip out of the owl's grip but the bird only tightened it's grip, but that didn't stop Martin trying to pull the owl's talons away from his brother.

"Martin it's no use!" Timothy yelled through the rushing air. Why couldn't he have stayed with their mother and sisters? He kept insisting on being a hero and it would get them both killed. But still his brother's eyes blazed with determination and thought. He turned his head away from Timothy to look at the naked leg of the owl.

Before Timothy could ponder what was running through Martin's head the larger mouse shot forward and sunk his teeth into the owl's leg. The bird shrieked in pain as slivers of blood ran down it's skin. The owl swiveled it's head around to jab its beak at Martin. While his brother evaded the attack Martin dug his own teeth and claws into the owl's skin, gagging at the taste of blood.

But to his relief he felt the owl's grip loosen and he ripped his teeth away and let gravity do the rest. Wind screamed past his ears, whiskers smacking across his face and eyes tearing up. Martin, seeing his brother falling, jumped after him. Below Timothy saw a frozen river below and braced himself just before impact. Pain slammed his shoulders as he hit the ice-the awfully thin ice.

Martin landed beside him and the cracks moved across the ice, Timothy laid sprawled and completely still. "Don't move," he hissed to his brother.

Despite his bristling fur Martin stayed stock-still, eyes skyward. The barn owl flew in circles over their heads, Timothy could make out the red stream on it's leg and it looked to be debating whether to try and re-catch such viscous prey. Martin's fur settled when the owl flew away, vanishing into the trees.

"Timothy! Martin!"

The two boys' heads turned to see their mother and sisters dashing across the snow and slid to a halt at the river's icy banks. "Don't get any closer!" Timothy called out as Cynthia moved to step forward.

While the sandy mouse froze in place Elizabeth looked over the cracked ice, able to make out the rivulets of water sliding below. Meanwhile Teresa was studying their surroundings as if looking for something.

When her eyes fixed on something Timothy followed her gaze to see a few feet away a broken branch having fallen over the river to form a makeshift bridge. Teresa darted to the branch, hesitantly climbing onto it. Timothy could see the bark shimmering with frost and imagined it was hard to keep one's grip if his sister's slow crawl was anything to go by.

Martin was looked as his older sister as well, "What are you doing?"

She didn't answer, sitting on the middle of the branch and examining both it and the thin ice. She looked to her brothers, "How fast do you think this river is?"

Timothy carefully looked down at the ice, drops of water flowing out of the cracks with a force that told him the river was not slow moving. He told Teresa this.

"Can we use the branch as a boat?" Cynthia suddenly spoke up, beaming in excitement.

Eyes turned to the smallest mouse and Teresa hummed thoughtfully. "Possibly." She climbed off to land in the snow. "It would save us from walking."

"The ice'll break as soon as you push that branch onto the ice," Martin pointed out.

His sister sighed, chin resting on her palm, "I know."

With his eyes Timothy measured the distances, they were closer to the branch then they were to the shore. There was no way to get off the ice without breaking it, unless they wanted that owl to return. "Martin and I can handle getting a little wet."

The girls pushed against the end of the branch where it fell off the tree. In doing so the other end of the branch, thin and spindly, almost like spider legs, moved across the ice, a series of cracks formed, looking similar to a spider's web, the brothers braced themselves.

The girls pushed the thicker edge of the branch into the river and jumped on just as the ice shattered. The brothers shifted as the ice they sat on broke into a piece that was carried away by the river.

The forest around them moved past at a speed Timothy wished he could appreciate but he and Martin were far too busy trying to keep their balance on the thin block of ice. Elizabeth and her daughters were clutching the branch, the boys' mother reached out to them, as close to the edge as possible. "Reach for me!" she called out.

Martin looked to his brother, "We need to jump."

Timothy barely had time to register those words before Martin leaped, knocking Timothy off balance. He slid into the frigid waters, pressure tightening his lungs. Forcing his limbs to move he picked a direction and his head burst from the surface. He took in a breath, spotting Martin already climbing onto the branch. But a moment later a shard of ice smacked into the mouse's head, sending him back under water.

The world was mute as he tried to find the surface again, eyes shut against the freezing water. His lungs felt like they were shrinking, and despite how hard he moved his limbs they still started to freeze up.

Timothy's eyes popped open to see Martin and his brother dragging him onto the branch. He laid across the bark, coughing up lungfuls of water and desperately trying to suck in as much as air as possible His family surrounded him, Elizabeth wrapping her shawl around him while Martin and Teresa massaged feelings back into his limbs. Cynthia nuzzled into his side.

When Timothy finally stopped shivering he looked around at their surroundings, the branch easily pushing past the thin ice and the trees were unrecognizable. They had traveled a good distance thanks to the river.

He let out a soft side, pushing his nose into Cynthia's neck, "There's got to be an easier way to travel."