If the world was ending...

Into the Woods: James

James was so glad that he was alive. But hit the ground, hard. He had lost sight of Jaiden as he tried to stop himself from falling any further. Luckily, he didn't think he was hurt that bad, just really sore and a fair amount of bruises.

"Jaiden!" He called, "Jaiden!" He heard a groan near the side of the hill. He ran to where he heard it and found Jaiden laying around fie feet from a bush. James knew exactly what had happened. 

"Jaiden! Are you okay?" He asked.

"Yes, I just crashed into a bush." She said, "Ya know, the one time we needed our armor, we had to go to a fancy casino."  She was covered in scratch marks and bruises. But there was a giant gash on her left arm. 

"Okay, we need to treat that immediately," James said, "Umm...stay here, I'm going to go check something," 

"No," Jaiden said, "I'm coming with you," James couldn't argue. It was her arm that was hurt, not her legs. James nodded and they went to the bottom of the hill where he suspected was a creek. Thankfully, there was. He sat Jaiden down and scooped up a good amount of water and washed it around Jaiden's gash. Then, he ripped a part of his suit and wrapped it around the gash.

"There," He said, "That should hold it for now," Jaiden smiled at him. For a moment, James felt the little space between them charged with electricity.

"Thanks," She said, "Now, we should really go get some help." She got up and started back up the hill. James followed her, half disappointed.

"We could start back to the casino," He said, once they reached the top of the hill, "Let's just hope that-" There was a sudden loud noise that interrupted him. He saw a car pull to the side of the road. The window rolled down. It was Den.

"Need a ride?" She asked them. 

"Of course!" James said. Jaiden nodded too and Den unlocked the back door and they climbed into the very back with Adam. Den stepped on the brakes and they took off.

"What happened?" He asked.

"Jaiden gashed her arm and needs some actual medical attention," James told him. Adam took off the fabric and looked at it.

"Okay, from what I'm seeing, she's going to only need some stitches," Adam said.

"Wait, how do you know what to do?" Jaiden asked.

"I've had stitches in seven places on my body," He said, If that's not qualified, then I have no idea what is." 

"Maybe a doctor's degree," James mumbled under his breath, "Den? Where are we going?" 

"Well, your token thing is pointing straight," Den said, "If it stays that way, our next animator could be in Canada. But we're going to have to stop somewhere for the night." 

"Perfect," Adam said, "We can stitch Jaiden up there since it would be very difficult to do it in a moving car." 

"Yeah, I agree," Jaiden said quickly.

...

After around an hour of driving, Den pulled over into a clearing in the forest and down a hill under a bridge. 

"Okay, everyone out!"Den said, parking the car. She pressed a button and just like Adam's briefcase, it converted into a tour bus.

"Okay, why couldn't we have driven around in that?" Rebecca asked.

"Do you want the TikTokers to find us?" Den asked, "We should probably all get some sleep, so I call the bathroom first." She opened the door and dashed in.

"Okay Jaiden, let's get this pain over with, and we'll bring Tim along too," Adam said, taking a first aid kit, "Oh, and here's your armor James," He handed James his clothes.

"Thanks," James said, walking into the bus. James admired the interior inside. Around ten beds in the wall and another room with a long couch leading to a dining table and chairs. He sat down and waited for Den to get out. Once she left the bathroom, James went in and got changed out of his ripped suit. He didn't put on his armor since he was going to go to bed, but just put on a shirt and pants. Once he left the bus, he saw Jaiden and Adam walking up to the bus.

"Woah, it's done that quick?" James asked.

"Told ya I was qualified for stitches," Adam said smiling. Tim looked like he was about to throw up.

"I am never watching you do that again," He said. James had to cough to hide a grin. They walked into the bus to get some sleep.

...

Crack

James heard something. He looked at the clock and it was around nine in the morning. James' eyes shot open. He had never in the last two years ever woken up that late. Something was off. James realized that Jaiden's backpack was missing and so was Adam's briefcase and Den's purse. He looked up and the sunroof was opened.

"Guys!" He yelled, "I think we were robbed!" 

"What?" Jaiden asked tiredly, "I was having the best sleep ever!" 

"Jaiden, things are missing, it's nine in the morning, and no one opened that sun-roof!" James exclaimed. Den sat up. 

"James is right," She said, "Everyone out-"

"Just drive!" James said. Den scowled, but she ran to the drivers seat. She slammed on the gas which woke everyone up. 

"Everyone hold on!" She yelled, "We're going up!" Adam and Rebeca gripped the doorway, Tim clung to his bed, and James slammed into Jaiden.

"Sorry!" He said as he worked his way up the bus. Once they reached the top of the hill, Den forced them all out so that she could get the bus turned into a car. Once they were all in, Den turned the car on and they headed straight.

"What are we exactly following?" Rebecca asked. 

"That," Den said, pointing ahead. James could barely see a person on a motor cycle with a dufflebagslung across their back. They were moving fast, and James didn't think that they would get there in time, but with Den at the wheel, they had a fighting chance. They chased after the motor cycle, slowly getting closer. Then, Den did something risky. She cut through a hiking trail through the woods.

"This is NOT how I planned my morning!" Tim yelled. After three very sharp turns, Den found the road and turned to block the lane the motorcycle was coming from. James saw it coming, with no indication of stopping. He braced himself, but suddenly, he saw the motorcycle was flying over the hood of the car. It didn't land so gracefully, but rather the driver fell off of it and the motorcycle slid too far awa for them to grab it.

"So much for keeping a low profile," Rebecca said. They got out of the car and stood over the person.

"Are they...dead? James asked. Den knelt down and flipped the drier over nd took off his helmate. He coughed and started breathing.

"What the heck was that?" He asked them.

"You stole our property and now we expect it back," Den said, "What's your name?"

"My name...," The boy managed to say, "Is Tony."