Rook and Don trotted towards the road where they could hear some cars rushing past. 
            "We'll find shelter there and tomorrow. We can enter the forest. Well, you can," Don said. "I'm not going in there." 
             "Alright," nodded Ron. They finally reached the road. Beyond the road was a small quaint village with short stone walls as fences and wooden houses. Rook glanced back at the forest, he wanted to go there so badly. They were so near. He was sure he would find his family after that. Somehow, his answers lay in the forest. 
               "Right, no cars, let's go," Don announced, flicking his tail then looked back, realising Rook wasn't listening. 
              "Rooooook," called Don. 
              "Sorry," Rook tore his gaze away from the forest. 
               "Let's go," Don said. They crossed the road. In the sky, ribbons of red and orange danced. They reached the first house and Don searched for a place to stay. Finally, he led Rook to the garage. There was a small opening and they entered. The garage was packed. There was a car and all kinds of junk laying around. Shelves were full with all kinds of things. Don found a corner with a fluffy jacket and curled on it. Rook searched for another spot. He was glad for good cover and found some old blankets. He curled up underneath it. It was warm and comforting. Outside, night was slowing descending. Rook pricked his ears as he heard the trickle of rain outside. He was glad for the shelter. He felt safe. He would sleep well that night. 
              "Good night," mumbled Rook sleepily. 
               "Good night," replied Don. 

Rook sprung up, his eyes sharp, his body rigid. He could sense the danger. Something was not right. His eyes adjusted to the night. The garage seemed deadly still. He tensed as he sense movement beside him. He almost let out a cry of relief as he saw it was only Don. Don stood rigid beside Rook and motioned with his tail for Rook to creep around the car towards the exit. There was something in the garage. Something that wanted to kill them. Rook felt chills of fear running along his spine. He had never felt such fear, it froze him to the bone. An unseen danger, stalking, watching them. Slowly, Rook stepped forward, his paw silently touching the cold ground. His tail low, eyes and ears sharp, Rook managed to make it to the other side of the car without a noise. Don was next. The sharp stink of the creature in the garage wafted to Rook's nose. He wrinkled it. He had never smelt anything like it. He imagined a large, dog like creature with red eyes and fur and sharp and long fangs. Crouching down, Rook peered under the car. He saw it. On the otherside of the car, four long and slender legs stood dangerously. A large tail accompanied it. Rook could not see the creature's head. Don reached Rook's side and nodded once more to the exit, urging Rook on. Gulping, Rook moved forward, they were getting nearer to the exit, and the creature. Rook didn't know if the creature knew they were in the garage with it but he hoped it didn't. Rook had almost managed to get to the exit when he heard a deep deadly growl. Rook slowly looked up, his fur standing up. His whole body frozen with fear. He laid his eyes on a large, slender shape. It had long, dark fur and a bushy tail. Muscles rippled under its blazing fur. But what caught Rook's eye was its head. It had a long muscle with a sharp nose and large, sharp ears. Its mouth was curled up into an ugly grin. It had the sharpest fangs, laced with death. Its eyes were dark and black, locked onto Rook. Rook gulped. The creature stepped forward. Something flashed in Rook's mind. At least he could think a little. Fox. This was a fox. It was much bigger, much larger, much scarier than he had ever thought anything could be. The fox let out another deep, blood curling growl and tensed up. Rook knew it was about to make its move. He closed his eyes, ready for the end. Suddenly, there was a loud shriek and Rook almost fell back. He clenched his eyes shut and shrunk back. He could almost feel the cold teeth sinking into his flesh. There were some loud scuffling sounds, crashing noises, clanking, another shriek and a vicious snarl. 
           "Open your eyes and get the hell out of here!" Don's angry voice hollered out of nowhere. Rook slowly opened his eyes. The ground was littered with all kinds of things that had fallen down from shelves. Rook spotted the fox. Don was on a shelf, snapping at it, claws unsheathed and hissing loudly. The fox had climbed onto the car and was growling loudly, leaping up at Don.    
          "W-what about you?" cried Rook. He really wanted to get out. He ached to just shoot out of the garage and leave Don. At least he'd be safe. He was right beside the exit. He could leave. He would not die. He snuck nearer to the exit and stepped out. There was a loud crash as a large bucket came crashing down onto the hood of the car. The fox let out an annoyed shriek and scrambled onto another shelf. Don scrambled off his own shelf and landed on some old toys. Rook bit his lip and slipped back into the garage. The fox bounded towards Don while he struggled to get off the toys. Cursing himself under his breath, Rook charged at the fox. He dug his unsheathed claws into the fox' tail. It twisted around in shock and anger and thrashed Rook to the ground. Rook hit the ground hard, his whole body shuddering. The breath was knocked out of him and the world seemed to spin. He felt the fox' hot breath on him and let out a small cry. 
             "What are you doing?" Don's annoyed and gruff voice shouted as he distracted the fox once more. Rook scrambled to his feet, unsure what to do. "Get out of here!"
            "How about you?" Rook asked. 
           "I'll be fine! I told you, I was going to die soon anyways," Don said, leaping onto the roof of the car. Rook took a moment but finally, he headed for the exit. But the fox spotted him and rushed towards him. Rook pelted out of the garage. Outside, the morning was cool. Birds squawked and fluttered away as Rook burst out of the garage and pelted down a street. The fox was hot on his trail. Rook's feet were barely touching the ground. He was barely thinking straight. He just knew he had to run. Run run and run. Suddenly, there was a loud noise as a car zoomed by. The fox skittered to a halt and fled. Just like that. And it was over. The fox was gone. Scared of by a car. Rook slowed down and leapt onto a fence. He then climbed a tree and settled on a branch, breathing deeply. He watched as a few other cars passed by, thanking them. He caught his breath and settled down, letting the aching in his chest fade. He looked out for Don. A while later, Don appeared, trotting down the street. He had a gash on his side which was bleeding down and staining his already dirty fur. He spotted Rook and joined him on the branch. 
             "Good job kid," he grinned, his teeth bloody. Rook cringed. 
             "Are you alright?" Rook asked, nodding towards the cut on his side. Don nodded. 
             "Yeah. Better than I could've been," Don shrugged it off. 
             "Thanks," Rook said. Don had saved his life. "For saving my life." 
            "No problem kid," Don waved it off as if it were nothing. "Mmm, what a great start to today." Rook looked at Don to see if he was being sarcastic but there was no trace of joke on his face. 
             "Ready to set off?" Don asked lightly. 
             "Um..., uh.., "Rook shrugged. He was not thinking about the journey anymore. That was the least of his worries. He could only focus on the fact that he had met a fox and he had almost died. 
             "Lost your tongue?" Don teased. 
             "No," Rook answered. "I just- I mean, do you think you can walk with your- your wound?"
             "'Course," Don said. "It's nothing I tell you."
             "Um. Ok," sighed Rook. "If you say so. But um, do you think we could take a rest first. I need to... settle down." 
             "Alright kid," Don relented. "I'll go get us some food." Rook nodded and his stomach grumbled hungrily at the thought of some food. But he didn't feel like getting down the tree any time soon. 
              "You stay here," Don said to his relief. 
              "What if the fox is still here?" asked Rook. 
              "It's not. I'm sure it only comes out at night, when nobody is around. It's unlucky that it found us but it won't want to risk being out now, when there are humans," Don assured Rook knowingly. 
               "Right," Rook nodded. With a curt nod, Don leapt off the tree and trotted away, tail held high.