Chapter 9: Found

They sat there for a while before finally finding the motivation to stand again. Both took a long drink of water before they began walking again. Their progress was slow, as both of them were exhausted. Neither had slept well the night before, and the absence of sleep was making walking nearly unbearable.

At least near the hill they had a reference, but eventually they knew they'd have to head into the middle of the woods. Camp was up here somewhere, but they had no idea where, and once they had wandered away from the hill and had no idea where they were at all, their tempers began to rise.

Both were growing frustrated rather quickly with their surroundings and each other. They now had no idea where they were and their irritability continued to rise as the day progressed.

Mello already had a temper, but combined with the lack of food and sleep, his irritability just grew. Mello was moving faster than Matt, and he stopped, turning to face the redhead. "Would you hurry up?" he snapped.

"Don't get bitchy with me just because we're lost," Matt retaliated.

"I wouldn't have to get 'bitchy' if you hadn't led us in here and got us lost!"

The insults were quickly growing worse. Matt glared at Mello and said "I didn't get us lost. You fell because you were throwing a temper tantrum. That isn't my fault. I could have gotten us back if you hadn't gone and hurt yourself."

"If you had a life outside those useless video games we wouldn't have gotten lost in the first place!"

"Screw you," Matt spat.

"I don't need you to find my way out of here!" Mello snapped.

"Then by all means get out of here by yourself!" In the back of his mind Matt questioned the anger. He knew they were getting angry over nothing and that both of them were overreacting, but that didn't keep the hurt and anger at bay at all.

"I will! It's better for me that I don't have to cart your weak ass around!" Mello nearly shouted, walking away from Matt.

Matt growled to himself and turned, starting to move into the trees and farther from where Mello was. He didn't need Mello. He didn't need to deal with the insults or the blame that was being thrown at him. He'd get back on his own! He'd-

Matt was struck violently by dizziness and lightheadedness. It happened so suddenly that he didn't have time to prevent himself from falling. He hit the ground hard, his knee taking a rough impact. He let out a small cry, eyes closing against his will. There was a roaring in his ears, and the ground felt like it was moving. He felt so warm, warmer than he had been the entire time they had been lost, and he realized how stupid him and Mello were being.

Everything was spinning and he couldn't make his body move. He felt himself begin to panic. He couldn't pass out now! He was alone because of their stupid fight; because they had let their tempers rise and hadn't restrained themselves. He couldn't lay there alone and defenseless in the middle of nowhere!

'Don't leave me Mello, please.'

Almost as if hearing his thoughts, Matt dimly heard the sound of hurried footsteps. "Matt?! Matt!" Hands were rolling him onto his back and he groaned. "Answer me Matt!" Mello sounded panicked, and Matt forced his eyes open, staring blearily up at Mello.

"Mels," he croaked out. Mello gently reached down, placing his hand on Matt's forehead and then his cheek. Matt leaned into the cool touch.

"You're warm. You must have a small fever."

"I'm sorry," Matt muttered, finding Mello's other hand and clutching it, desperate to get grounded again and stop everything from spinning so much.

"I'm sorry too." He squeezed Matt's hand in reassurance then pulled back. "I need to check your knee okay?" He didn't wait for an answer, gently unwrapping Matt's knee. He cringed. The area around the wound was starting to take on a red tint, a sure sign of infection beginning to set in. He looked back up at Matt, who had closed his eyes again. "Does it still hurt a lot? Has it gotten any better?"

"It seemed to be better last night, but then it started hurting more again."

Mello slowly tore off more material from his old shirt to rewrap the wound. "I think it's getting infected."

"So soon? It's supposed to take a day or two."

Mello didn't look up. "You used river water though, and it probably sped up the process. Plus it's been over half a day. We need to find camp today."

Matt said nothing. Mello quickly finished bandaging the wound and stood. He flexed his ankle experimentally. It was holding his weight pretty well now, but because he hadn't rested it fully or iced it, it still had not completely healed. He leaned back down and tugged at Matt's arm. "Get up, we have to go."

They walked for a short while in silence, the pointless argument all but forgotten in wake of Matt's new development. They scanned for any signs of life around them, desperate to find camp. They hadn't had a bite of food in nearly a day, and what small amount they HAD consumed over this journey was not even close to satisfying. The canteen was almost half empty already and both boys were growing more and more tired as they walked.

'Everything looks the same,' Matt thought tiredly. 'Have we been here before? It seems like it. It looks the same as at the bottom of the hill…or the top of the hill…' His thoughts were jumbled and confused and he opted to not think at all, but just to focus on walking beside Mello.

Matt was cold. He wrapped his arms around himself, hunching forward in an attempt to keep warm. Mello glanced at him worriedly. It wasn't cold in the least out here. This only meant that Matt's fever was getting worse. Matt tripped and nearly went down, but Mello caught his arm and kept him balanced. Mello guided Matt's arm around his shoulder, so he was supporting some of the redhead's weight.

"Mello?" Matt asked.

"Yes?"

Matt said nothing, leaning against the blond. He seemed confused, as if he wasn't exactly sure what was going on. Mello knew it was just another symptom that came with lack of food, but it scared him to see Matt so disorientated. "You think we'll find camp today?" he probed.

"We'd have to climb…no…well then maybe," Matt mumbled. Mello tightened his grasp around Matt's waist. He was getting worse. Mello leaned his head against Matt's, fighting off his own moment of lightheadedness. He took a sip of water and continued walking, fighting off the wave of hopelessness that was threatening to overcome him.

It was hard though. Their situation was not looking particularly good. Matt's strength was fading fast now that the infection was starting to take hold. It wouldn't have been that bad if he wasn't already so rundown from the past few days, but combined with the lack of food and sleep, the infection was weakening him quickly. Mello wasn't feeling that great either. He was hungry and thirsty, but they had to conserve water because neither of them could climb back down or up, not that he was willing to let Matt go alone again. On top of being exhausted his ankle was still kind of sore, and it was getting worse since he was supporting much of Matt's weight.

"Fuck," he gasped when his injured ankle encountered a hidden root on the ground. Matt's arm tightened around him, stopping him from falling. Mello quickly steadied himself and straightened, giving Matt an appreciative look. Matt smiled back weakly in response and they continued walking.

They hadn't been moving very quickly to begin with, but as time passed both began to move slower. Mello's ankle was starting to throb with each step, and he was falling into a more pronounced limp. Matt's fever had worsened, leaving him cold and exhausted. His head felt thick and heavy. His legs were shaking under him, almost too weak to carry his weight any longer. He kept pushing on though, one step at a time, not allowing himself a chance to rest. He knew he couldn't get up again if he let himself sit down.

Both managed to keep moving for a little while longer before Matt's legs gave out, and both fell to their knees hard. Unable to find their balance, both fell forward, sprawled across the ground. Matt let out a little groan and curled closer to Mello.

"Matt we have to go," Mello said, his voice tinged with exhaustion. It felt so nice to be lying down…so much easier. His ankle hurt so much less, he was less lightheaded, and he didn't have to move. They couldn't just stay here though, or they'd never get back.

"No," Matt muttered quietly. His stomach physically hurt and every limb in his body was exhausted. He could barely find the energy to shift closer to Mello. His knee was still hurting him, and he was still cold. All he wanted to do right now was sleep.

"We have to," Mello said, checking Matt's temperature again. It had gotten worse and Mello could only hope it hadn't rose dangerously high. Matt moved, closing the space between them so he was pressed against Mello. His face was flushed and he had closed his eyes again.

"We're going to be fine," he tried to reassure the redhead. Seeing Matt like this though…it scared him. His clothes were ripped and he was covered in dirt. His face was drawn in discomfort and he could sense the weakness radiating off of him. Mello doubted he looked much better. He could feel the grime caked to his face and the tangled mess of his hair, and if he looked as bad as he felt then he must look pretty pathetic.

It was obvious Matt wasn't going to be able to walk much farther, if at all, and Mello couldn't carry him. He could barely handle his own weight. He gazed at Matt with concern, watching his breaths come in slow pants. Mello leaned his forehead against Matt's, feeling his stomach clench not in hunger, but in worry as he once again felt how warm Matt was. He opened the canteen and propped Matt up; steadying the redhead's hands and helping him drink some of the water. Matt slumped against Mello weakly when he had finished and Mello helped him lay back down. "Thanks," he murmured, not opening his eyes, taking comfort in Mello's presence. Seeing that Matt was not intent on moving, Mello lied back down beside him, watching Matt's slow breaths. Suddenly Matt's eyes opened and met Mello's eyes. "Did you hear that?" he whispered.

Mello listened carefully and he heard it too; the rustling of branches from farther away, behind him. He turned around, propping himself up on his arms and tensing defensively in front of Matt. Matt raised himself up slightly, staying crouched behind Mello but watching the trees warily. Both tensed as they saw something moving towards them.

Mello pushed the exhaustion to the back of his mind, too focused on only one thing; to protect Matt. Well to protect himself as well, but the redhead couldn't run, could barely move. He couldn't let him get hurt. But as he raised himself up higher, the creature left the shadows of the trees.

"L?"

Indeed it was L, who had paused only a moment before moving towards them. Matt made a small sound of relief and collapsed fully on the ground again, while Mello relaxed and a smile of relief filled his face. "L, you've found us."

The detective was beside them both now, glancing them over quickly and taking in their appearances. Neither seemed to be in particularly good shape, although Mello was partially sitting up, which was more than could be said for Matt. "Indeed. I thoroughly search the area every few hours just in case you two managed to find your way back."

"Back?" Mello asked.

"Yes, camp is approximately a five minute walk north of here. You almost made it on your own." L stood from his crouched position by the exhausted boys. "I will inquire as to what happened once both of you have been thoroughly taken care of. Are there any injuries I should be aware of?"

"Matt tore his knee open."

"Mello sprained his ankle."

"There were pebbles in it, and he used river water to clean it."

"He's been walking on it and making it worse."

"An infection is setting in, he needs medical attention."

L took in all the information in stride and carefully helped Matt up. "Will I need to carry you, or can you manage the walk?" he asked.

"I can walk I think," Matt said, a small amount of strength returning now that he knew how close they were.

"I can walk as well," Mello said, standing. L placed an arm around each of their shoulders to steady them, and led them back to camp.

Everything happened quickly after that. The rest of the children were gawking, asking if they were okay and what had happened. A medical team was waiting, and the duo was led to them instantly, being sat gently on beds and asked all sorts of questions about what had happened. L was talking on his phone to Watari, telling him to call in all the searches and that the successors had been found.

"Hey Mello?"

"Yes?" Mello asked, looking up from where his ankle was being prodded and facing Matt, whose knee was being cleaned and cared for.

"I never want to go camping again."

Mello laughed tiredly. "My either Matt."

They had had enough of the woods to last a lifetime.

The End

/…/…/…/

AN: Finally it is finished! I hope you've all enjoyed it; it took the entire summer to finish. In the end they survived (as if you expected any different). I'm just glad it's finally done. Thanks to all my readers and reviewers, you're all awesome.

As for future work I am still working on My One and Only, and oneshots. I also have nother ongoing story in mind, called For Him. This will be a high school AU. Do not flee, I shall make sure it is good and not cliché with every dn character in it…not that some of those aren't good as well. It will be Matt/Mello and look for that sometime in the future.

Until then college will continue to steal my life. Thanks for reading!