Ch. 70: Time Nearing Its End

"Maybe we need to find you some help." Lara said.

With the sound of those words, Julia felt a chill vibrate through her. Those words meant that their time together would come to an end. If her ankle was broken, she couldn't go any further. Even if it was just sprained as Lara suggested, the swelling would increase, the pain would get worse, and it would still take days and weeks before Julia could do any significant walking.

"Here, why don't I find a spot just inside the trees where we can pitch the tent and you can lay down in the shade."

Lara looked around for awhile and found a small space close by that was fairly dry and concealed underneath some thick growth of trees. She put up the tent, and then helped Julia get inside.

"I'm going to look for some clean water, and maybe some more food" Lara said. "I'll try not to be too long, OK?"

"OK. Be careful!"

"OK!"

Lara continued down the dry stream bed, hoping she might find running water somewhere.

She had traveled another quarter mile and found nothing but trash and junk. But several steps later she stopped after she spotted what appeared to be a house in the distance.

She walked over to one side the stream bed, using the trees as a partial cover, and then walked carefully in the direction of the house. She got close enough to where she could get a better look. She spotted a couple of young women wearing white blouses and medium length dark skirts walking across a garden, and then disappeared.

Lara thought about approaching and telling them about Julia and how she needed help. But she decided the day was still early and wondered if Julia would want to know about it first and let her decide on what to do. Nonetheless, it appeared if Julia really needed help right away, she'd be able to get it.

Lara backtracked on her way back to Julia.

When she arrived she found her in the tent, moaning and wincing at the pain in her ankle.

"Julia?" Lara asked.

"Hi" Julia answered.

"I walked further downstream and saw a large house and a couple of people there. I bet we could get help there, but I decided I should ask you first if you want me to bring them here to you."

Julia didn't answer, but looked as if she was thinking and having trouble deciding. Finally she answered, "No, I want to wait a little bit."

"OK" Lara said.

Julia touched and squeezed her ankle.

"Maybe we can rest long enough for it to heal?" Julia asked.

"I don't know." Lara answered. "Even if it's a sprain, it'll take a few days just to be able to walk on it."

Julia winced and cried again. "It's hurting really bad!"

Lara touched Julia's shoulder.

"I'm sorry Lara. But I guess I ruined the rest of our adventure."

"No! Not at all! You made this the best time of my life!"

Julia managed to stop weeping.

"I got to enjoy the two things I love the most, being nude outdoors and being with you." Lara said warmly.

"Thanks, this has been the best time of my life too! Even if my Dad is going to kill me!" Julia said.

Lara chuckled. "Oh, your Dad is not going to do anything but hug you!"

Julia let out a sarcastic laugh. "You don't know my Daddy! He's always so skeptical and stubborn. He's just... Ugh!"

Lara looked solemn.

Julia winced. "Uhh! It's hurting!"

Ch. 69: A Fateful Jump

Lara yawned after sitting up from a peaceful sleep in the tent. Julia groaned, and curled herself up into ball once she lost Lara's warm body at her back.

Despite the morning light, it was still somewhat dark under the tree canopy, and darker still inside the tent. The two girls felt safe here.

Lara crawled out of the tent and tip toed out a ways to relieve herself. The sound of birds singing their morning songs filled the dark interior of the forest.

The morning air was cool but not cold. A warm day yesterday was looking to make things a little more warm today.

Lara was hungry again.

The blackberries she ate yesterday didn't take long to digest. She knew her first priority was to find more food, and water too. The moisture of the blackberries she and Julia had been eating the past two days was just barely enough to keep them hydrated. And if the day were to get more warm today, they'd need more water.

Julia peeked her head out of the tent, and smiled at Lara. She stepped out and walked a ways into another direction and relieved herself.

"We're going to have to find more food and water" Lara said. "There's a dry stream bed that way, maybe if we follow it far enough, we might find some water, and maybe more blackberries."

"Yes! Blackberries! I'm hungry!" Julia answered.

The two chose to pack up the tent and take it with them in case they found a better place to set up camp. They headed towards the dry stream bed where Lara had found the blackberry bush. This began Julia's third full day in the nude, and by this time she was getting used to it.

"I think I'm starting to like being naked!" She said.

Lara chuckled. "Well, it's definitely more fun when you have a friend to share it with."

"I bet this is probably like what you and Teresa used to do at the nudist resort."

"Yeah, sort of. Except it's different at a nudist resort. You're still confined to a space. Out here, you can go anywhere."

The girls found the dry stream bed and followed it down stream. The growth of trees on either side were thick with low brush that they were forced to walk down the stream bed, tip-toeing over rounded rocks and occasional junk that other people had tossed.

"Keep your eyes out for blackberry bushes!" Lara said.

The two had walked about a half mile down stream, just further than what Lara had done the evening before. There was more trash and abandoned junk laying about. And old demolished couch was seen at one side of the stream, plastic bottles and planks of plywood could be found throughout.

Julia walked closer to one side of the stream bed.

"I think I see blackberries over here!" she said.

Sure enough, the girls found more, and spent the next half-hour picking off all that they could reach without pricking themselves with the thorns.

"I think I see a bunch more over here." Julia pointed. Except she couldn't reach them with her arms. They were behind some other bushes and tall grasses. She looked for a way around. There was a small ditch, and she made an attempt to jump over it.

"Ahh!" she yelled.

Julia lost her footing after she jumped and fell down.

"Are you OK?" Lara asked.

Julia laid there squinting her eyes. "Ouch! Damn it!" she exclaimed, touching her ankle.

"Are you alright?" Lara asked again.

"I don't know, it hurts really bad. I think I might have broken it!"

Lara stepped into the ditch, and knelt down to provide what help she could offer. "Do you think you can stand on it?" She asked.

"I guess I'll have to try."

Julia held her hands out, and Lara grabbed them and anchored herself as Julia attempted to stand up.

Julia let out a wincing groan, and then hopped on her other foot as Lara helped her maintain balance.

"It really hurts to walk on it!" Julia said, as her faced turned red from the pain and agony.

"Can you move your ankle at all?" Lara asked.

Julia was able to move her ankle left and right and up and down.

"How does it feel?"

"It hurts, but not as bad as when I stand on it."

"Maybe you just twisted it."

"I don't know, it's just hurts" Julia whined, and started to cry. "What am I going to do now?"

Ch. 68: Kissed For the First Time

Their bellies full of blackberries again, Lara and Julia lay down in the tent after the sun had set and cast the thick growth of trees into pitch black darkness.

The forest was silent except for the breathing of the two girls.

Julia laid on her back while Lara cuddled up on her side rested her head on Julia's shoulder.

Lara brushed her fingers up and down Julia's tummy.

"I feel so free here with you." Lara whispered.

Julia giggled.

"I feel happy right now." Julia responded.

"Really?" Lara asked.

"Yeah, really."

"Mmm, that's feels nice" Julia whispered and giggled as Lara touched gently stroked her labia.

"Ohh!" Julia sounded ever so softly.

Lara parted her labia and moved her finger up and down while Julia's breathing increased. Julia was very wet.

Lara picked herself up and crawled on top and kissed Julia's tummy and made a line down to her clitoris and kissed it. Julia moved her head and made a gentle moan.

Lara slid her hands underneath Julia's thighs, and Julia spread her legs open. Lara kissed and licked her clitoris, opening her mouth and sucking it softly, listening to Julia's moans.

"Uhh!" Julia moaned to the feel of Lara's finger pushing inside. She began fucking her more rhythmically, then at the same time, continued sucking her clitoris. Julia's moans turned into heavy breaths and whines. Lara began rubbing her Julia's clitoris with her other hand, fucking her with the other.

Electricity surged through Julia's body, turning into a radiating warmth and causing her skin to feel prickly from the sweat. Lara didn't stop. Julia's voice whined more consistently, vocalizing every subtle change in pressure and vibration. Lara learned to listen and adjusted her movements until she found just the right place. And without warning, Julia's legs tightened. Her body twisted and heaved forward, pushing Lara out of place.

Julia found Lara's arm, pulled her body towards her, and clutched the smaller girl into her like a teddy bear, all the while gasping, whining, and twitching uncontrollably.

Seconds later, Julia settled down, released her clutch of Lara's body, and began to breathe more easily.

Julia giggled and twitched some more.

Lara managed to find Julia's face in the pitch black, and began planting deep, open mouth kisses. The two girls kissed for several minutes and then laid down facing each other.

Julia continued to breathe heavily, giggling at what she had just experienced. It wasn't the first time she had an orgasm, just the first time someone gave her one.

Ch. 67: Bringing Back Food

With some junk and trash strewn about the dry creek bed, Lara wondered if there was anything she could use to carry enough blackberries back to the tent for Julia. She looked around, but nothing immediately caught her attention.

The sun was just beginning to set. The late afternoon glow illuminated her lightly tanned skin and revealed tiny specs of dust and debris that clung to her body. She put her hand up to her forehead to shade her eyes and looked downstream to see if there was anything.

She started walking in that direction.

About a quarter of a mile down there were pools of water and the stream was becoming more defined. And there was more junk too. This was a place where people had abandoned things they didn't want, old televisions, chunks of drywall, and rusted appliances peppered with bullet holes.

Lara saw something yellowish several yards away and walked towards it. It was a plastic pail made for a child. It was colored red where it had lay on the ground, but a cream-yellow where it was exposed to the sun. She cleaned the inside with her hand and figured this would work well to carry several blackberries, and made her way back upstream.

When she got to the blackberry bushes the sun was just on the horizon. She knew she didn't have much daylight left. She picked several blackberries quickly and filled up the pail. Then she continued to pick more and eat them for herself until she picked off all that she could reach without getting pricked by the blackberry bush.

By the time she finished, the sun was almost below the horizon. Lara picked up the pail and looked for her way into the trees.

Meanwhile, Julia was still inside the tent, having just woke up from a short nap. It was dark inside. She unzipped the door part of the way down and looked out. There wasn't much light available, but she could still see somewhat. She had no sense of how much time had passed since Lara set off to find food, and she began to fear.

She stepped out of the tent and walked out about 30 feet and then squatted down to pee.

Seconds later, she walked back to the tent but remained standing, looking around to see what was around her. It was too dark to tell. She took in a deep breath, and got back into the tent and waited.

"Julia!"

Julia lifted her head after hearing a faint voice in the distance. She unzipped the door and stepped out.

"Lara!"

The last bits of sunlight was almost gone. The darkness of the tree canopy had nearly turned everything pitch black. Lara was having difficulty finding her way back. The tent, which was camouflage in color, was difficult to spot.

"Julia!"

Julia looked to the left and to the right, but couldn't see Lara. "Over here!" she yelled.

Lara was holding on to the pail of blackberries, treading carefully where she placed her feet and reaching her free hand in front of her to make sure she didn't bump into anything. She yelled out once more for Julia, who responded again. Lara was getting close enough to where Julia's voice was becoming more clear. It was playing a game of Marco Polo.

"Julia?"

"Over here! I'm over here!"

"Julia!"

"I'm right here!"

Lara finally found her way back to her.

"Oh my God, it's so dark under these trees!" Lara spoke with a bit of humor mixed with panic.

"Come on, let's get inside." Julia said.

"I was getting so worried! Where did you go?"

"I found a blackberry bush and brought a bunch back" Lara said, handing the pail to Julia.

It was too dark to see, however. Both girls had to use their hands to reach out to each other. Lara finally grabbed Julia's hand and gave her the pail of blackberries.

Julia took the pail and then took in a deep breath of excitement. She started eating them.

"Oh thank you, thank you!" She said in between bites.

"I had to walk downstream to find something to carry them back in, that's what took me so long." Lara responded.

Ch. 66: Setting Up Camp For The Night

An hour later, the valley they were walking in was coming to an end. Hills and mountains now stood in their way. However, it had brought them to where Lara had hoped to find, extremely thick tree coverage. It had become more difficult to walk through, dense with fallen leaves.

"It looks like there's no other way but up." Lara mentioned.

"Good, I can't go any further!" Julia responded. "I'm tired!"

"OK, I guess we'll stay here tonight then."

Julia threw down the tent she was carrying. Lara picked it up and began looking for a place to set up. The heavy thick tree canopy made this area dark, even though there was still some daylight left.

Julia looked for a place to sit down.

The quiet serenity of the forest was soon broken however. Julia heard the soft thump of the helicopter in the distance. She looked up, but there was no way to see through the tree canopy. She turned to look at Lara, but Lara had disappeared.

She got up and walked in the direction that Lara had been.

"Lara?" She spoke. There was no reply.

"Lara!" She raised her voice.

"Over here." Lara answered. 

Julia breathed a sigh of relief. She walked towards Lara, and found her standing by a patch of ground surrounded by fern. 

"What do you think, does this look good?" Lara asked.

"Yeah, I guess so." Julia answered. 

Lara threw down the tent and began setting it up. The ground was quite cushy with the covering of leaves, and provided a comfortable bed to lay on. Lara crawled inside, with Julia following her. Lara zipped up the door, but then unzipped a small window on the side.

Julia had curled herself up in a ball, laying on her side. Lara laid down next to her, facing her. Julia closed her eyes and rested. Lara rested as well, but admired the beauty of Julia's eye lashes, eye brows, and her angelic face.

The silence was broken by the sound of Lara's grumbling stomach. Lara was already hungry.

Julia giggled.

"Hey..." Lara whispered. "I think I'm going to look around and see if I can find us something to eat." "OK, be safe, and don't lose your way back." Julia replied.

Lara had walked towards a large area of sunlight, hoping to find something, maybe blackberry bushes, or a stream of water. When she got there she indeed found a stream, but there was very little water, almost none at all, just the remaining ground water draining out of the mountains after the recent rains. But she followed it downstream hoping to find more water, or something edible.

She began to see debris and trash laying about. An old tire here, shot gun shells there, and other shards of metal and plastic. The further downstream she went, the more junk she found, but so far none of it appeared useful to her. Lara had probably walked a quarter-mile until she finally found what she had hoped to find, more blackberry bushes.

These were more difficult to get to however. The foliage of grass and shrubs were thick, and she couldn't see what she was stepping into. But it was food nonetheless. She began picking several to eat, but remembered not to get carried away and leave plenty for Julia. She wondered if Julia had the strength to walk out to this area and then walk back.

Ch. 65: Finding Shelter in the Forest

Lara looked at what Julia was pointing to, about 100 feet away. They couldn't make out what it was, but it looked like a pile of leaves standing up. They walked over to it, and the closer they got, the more it revealed itself.

"It looks like a tent." Lara said.

Lara picked it up, and indeed it was a tent, mangled up and disassembled. It was colored with camouflage, making it difficult to see from a distance.

Lara sorted out the pieces and laid the tent out over the ground. It was hexagonal in shape. Two of the three support rods appeared to be in good condition, but the third was broken, snapped in half.

"Can we still use it?" Julia asked.

"I think so. One of the rods is broken, but I think it'll still stand up."

Lara began assembling the tent. All it took was to slide the two rods into the sleeves of the tent, and secure them into the pegs along the side.

"Well, here's our shelter." Lara said.

Lara crawled inside and found it dusty and full of leaves and other debris. Julia peeked inside.

"Nice, looks cozy!"

"And if it rains, it'll keep us dry too!" Lara added, tossing out a handful of leaves.

Julia crawled inside, sat down, and looked all around.

"Is this waterproof?"

Lara nodded her head. "Yup, it should be."

She zipped up the door.

"And see, it zips up."

"Too bad we're not closer to all those blackberry bushes."

Julia remarked. Lara thought about it for a moment.

"Well, maybe we can fold this back up and just keep walking until we find a place with food."

The two girls exited the tent, disassembled it, and folded it up. Julia carried the tent while Lara carried the rods, and they continued walking through the forest moving deeper into the area more thick with trees.

It was only another forty-five minutes later, and another couple miles of walking, that Lara slowed down to a stop. She turned her head upwards. Julia turned around to look at her.

"I hear something." Lara spoke.

Julia remained quiet. Seconds later, Julia replied, "I think I hear it too."

"It sounds like a helicopter." Lara whispered.

As the sound grew louder, it became apparent that it was indeed a helicopter. Lara and Julia walked up to a large oak tree and stood next to it, trying to conceal themselves under its branches.

A minute later, they could see just a spattering glimpse of the helicopter about a 1/2 mile away as it passed by, and then finally flew out of view.

"It's getting late, I doubt they'll be back tonight."

"Maybe we can set up the tent here? If they won't be back?" Julia asked.

Lara looked around. She had hoped to get deeper, using up all the available light the tree canopy would allow.

"Just a little bit more further." Lara said.

Ch. 64: The Struggle Between Right and Wrong

Full from eating blackberries, Lara and Julia walked at a more leisurely pace through a thick wooded forest of oaks. Their nude bodies slightly sticky from the sweat of a warm, humid day, and small bits of broken leaves and dust stuck to their skins.

The flat terrain of the valley, the carpet of dried oak leaves, and the shade from a thick canopy of trees made for a relaxing walk amongst chirping birds. Chipmunks and squirrels could be seen scampering ahead of them gathering acorns.

"How are your feet doing?" Lara asked.

"They hurt, but it's better on these leaves." Julia replied.

"I'm thinking if we can just go deeper in that direction, it looks like it gets more thick." Lara pointed. "I think we can stay for a few days, maybe more."

Julia looked to where Lara pointed, and then turned to her look at her. Lara had a way of taking charge in these kinds of moments.

"I wonder what my Dad is going to say about all this." Julia spoke.

Lara thought for a moment and chuckled. "I don't know.

"I wonder if the police already called him." Julia continued.

"Probably."

"Great! There goes my car!"

"Who needs a car anyways?"

Julia thought about it for a moment. She was still struggling between staying with Lara or giving up and letting the police catch up to her.

"I don't know." Julia said and then giggled. "Maybe I don't need one."

"Why are you worried about your father anyways? What does he have to do with anything?"

"Oh Lara... You know what I mean. He's just so domineering. Even my mom too! They spent so much money on me. That car, my tuition, my new clothes... I feel really guilty about it."

"Yeah, but they paid for all that because that's what they wanted. They put themselves in that position. Besides, even if you eventually go back to them, they'll spend all that money on you again."

"Oh my God! They'll kill me."

"No they won't. They'll do it because it's what they want for themselves."

"I don't know." Julia said.

"You're their only child. It's more about their own egos, it has nothing to do with you."

"You don't know my father..."

"I know enough!" Lara interrupted. "For one thing, you're over-analyzing him. You've been living under his shadow for so long that you're worried about disappointing him. But if you look at him from my angle, he's just all bark and no bite. If he tries to give you shit, then tell him he's no longer in charge and you're going to do whatever you want. And if he says he's not paying for your tuition anymore, then tell him fine, you won't be coming back."

"But I can't tell him that, he's my dad!" Lara rolled her eyes. "Ah! Parents. They're so overrated!"

"Besides, if I don't go to college where am I going to stay? I can't stay with my aunt permanently?"

"Julia! You stay with me! We're together now! We can do this! We don't need jobs or money. We don't need a car. We have each other! We have a lifetime to learn how to survive! There are lots of people who live out here and survive with whatever the Earth gives them."

Julia didn't want to argue. She knew she wanted to stay with Lara and really give it a try. She just couldn't shake the grasp her parents had on her. And now with the police looking for them, it seemed as if they would always be on the run.

Lara had waited for a response from Julia about staying together and surviving from the land. The fact that Julia had not responded, suggested she may have said something wrong.

"OK, I'm sorry." Lara said sincerely. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm one hundred percent confident in my abilities to do this, and I'm never going to leave you. I'm never going to abandon you. Even if the cops catch up to us, I'm not going to give you up!"

"Look, let's just enjoy what we have now." Julia offered. "I'm here with you right now."

Julia saw something unusual about 100 feet away, and kept her eyes focused on it as she kept pace with Lara. Finally, she slowed down to take a better look.

"Julia?" Lara spoke, stopping to turn around. "There's something over there."

Julia pointed her finger.

Ch. 63: A Disturbing Phone Call

The cellphone belonging to Julia's father rang

"Hello?"

"Is this Richard Conway?" A voiced asked.

"Who is this?"

"This is Deputy Longwell from the Buncombe County Sheriff's department, are you Mr. Conway?"

"Yes?"

"Mr. Conway, two days ago we found a small, compact car abandoned on a dirt road, and it's registered to your name. Do you have any information about this?"

"No, I don't know what you're talking about."

"Are you the father of Julia Conway?"

There was a pause, as Julia's father realized they were talking about his daughter.

"Yes! What's happened? Where's Julia?"

"Well, we don't exactly know sir. We found her car on a farm road about 15 miles up in the hills east of Asheville. 

"Oh my God! Betty! Betty! Come here!"

"She left for college about a week ago." Julia's father explained.

"And where would that college be?"

"Indiana Tech"

"And where is Indiana Tech?"

"Fort Wayne! What happened? Where is my daughter?"

"Well, we found her car on a dirt road about 15 miles east of Asheville. Your daughter's belongings were found in it. This road belongs to a residence, and some of your daughter's belonging were also found at that residence. Our deputies arrested two older women living in that residence on charges of producing and selling narcotics. We believe your daughter might have been involved." 

"What? No, my daughter? Absolutely not! She just left home a week ago! She doesn't know anyone out there."

"Out where sir?"

"Asheville! Wherever you are! Where is my daughter?"

"We don't know. But she was definitely in that residence. We have deputies looking for her now. We also found evidence she was with someone else, and it appears she is with that person now. Do you know who that might be?"

"Richard, what is it, what's going on?" Julia's mother asked.

"It's the Sheriff in Asheville. He says they found Julia's car abandoned on some farm road. They're looking for her now."

Betty put her hand to her mouth, and immediately sank to the floor. 

"Hell, I don't know! She left for college on her own!" Julia's father replied to the Sheriff. "The Sheriff says they think she's with someone else." He said to his wife, still trying to collect herself on the floor.

"The two women we arrested says she was with another girl the same age, but was wearing no clothing." The Sheriff opted to add more information. 

"Oh my God! Lara?" Julia's father replied.

"Lara?" The Sheriff asked.

"Lara Wellen, her best friend. She must have hitched a ride with Julia."

"What do you know about this Lara?"

"She lived down the block from us. Julia went to school with her."

"We couldn't find anything in your car, or at this residence to identify Lara. Would you know why she removed all her belongings from Julia's car?"

"Hell, I don't know!"

"Does Lara still maintain a residence on your block sir?"

"Well, her family has lived there for years."

"Do you have a phone number for Lara or anyone at her residence?"

"Betty! Get up Betty! Do you have a phone number for Lara or Lara's mother?"

"I, I don't know. I need to look." Betty said.

"OK, Mr. Conway. We're going to need you to come here to Asheville. We have a lot of questions to ask. We don't know what your daughter's involvement is at this time, but..."

"Well what about those two women you arrested? What are they saying?"

"Well listen, right now we have a lot of questions to ask, and right now we have your daughter and her friend somewhere in the National Forest. We need to understand why they're running, and what's going on. I can send officers to come pick you up, or you can meet us at our headquarters in Asheville. It's your choice, but we need your cooperation."

"OK, fine. I'll be there as soon as I can."

Ch. 62: Descending Into The Valley

Julia walked gingerly on her sore feet.

Emotionally, she wanted to stay with Lara for as long as she could. But she doubted that it could last. She wanted to be with Lara, but still didn't see herself as someone who could live nude forever, or at least live the kind of continuous wanderlust that Lara was seeking. In the back of her mind, she still herself as going to college, marrying a man, and raising babies.

As the two walked along the cliff, searching for a place to climb down, Julia wondered if she could give herself up to the detectives, tell them the whole story, and that would relieve Lara from having to be on the run. But she didn't want it to end this quickly.

Julia picked up the pace and walked past Lara, while Lara followed behind. The breeze blowing up the face of the cliff blew Julia's long auburn hair, while she raised her hands tip-toeing over rocks and fallen tree branches. Lara admired Julia's natural beauty, her youthful slim figure, and her determination to keep going under pain.

They continued to walk along the ledge for another half-mile until they found it slowly descending towards the valley. The ground became less rocky, and trees became more thick, providing a carpet of leaves that made it more comfortable to walk on.

Julia turned her head around and held her hand out. "Hey!" She spoke.

Lara took her hand, folded her fingers into Julia's, and walked by her side.

"You know what?" Julia said. "No matter what happens, this is going to be the best summer I've ever had."

Lara chuckled. "Yeah, me too!"

"You?" Julia asked.

"Yeah!" Lara answered.

"But you got to do all kinds of things in other summers."

"But this is the first time I've ever felt free! I can just go anywhere and not have to worry about anything. Just live!"

Julia smiled. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"But it's a lot more special with you" Lara answered.

Julia blushed a little. "Yeah?" She spoke quietly.

"Yeah!" Lara replied.

The ledge they were walking along had finally descended down far enough that it all but disappeared, and the two girls found themselves practically in the valley already. The tree canopy was getting more thick, and the light had become more dim, with just spots of sunlight breaking down here and there.

But not too long after, they found a place with a bit more sunlight beaming down, and to their delight, found dozens of large blackberry bushes.

Lara took in a deep breath of amazement. "Oh my God, blackberries!"

She began plucking them right away, popping them into her mouth as quickly as possible. Julia began plucking them too, but was uncertain considering what they done to her digestion last night. Nevertheless, she was hungry.

"Oh my God, these are SO good!" Julia exclaimed.

In their haste, they found themselves getting too close to the vines and getting pricked by the thorns. "Ouch!" Lara said.

They spent perhaps twenty minutes feasting on blackberries and still found more available.

"Too bad we can't take all these with us!" Lara said, leaning up against a tree with her hand on her belly.

"We're going to have to find another lake or something." Julia added. "I just know what these are going to do to me!"

Lara couldn't help but chuckle.

"Yeah! But we have to find shelter. It's going to get dark soon."