Realistic or Modern Patient Zero (A Zombie Survival RP)

[FireMaiden]

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Location: The Jordan Lodge
Date: November 23rd, 2018
Interaction: N/A
Mentioned: Maj (Beth)
Leliana wasn't exactly sure when she had fallen asleep. Sometime between her crawling into her bed and letting the last of her tears free. She was exhausted, physically, mentally, emotionally. It had been a trying day, and the nurse could only handle so much. Her eyes had closed and sleep had taken hold of her before she even realized it. Luckily, the nurse slept soundly, too drained to dream, she was only roused once when Beth finally came to bed. The nurse, still half asleep, had shifted to be close to her girlfriend, curling up against a familiar form that brought her comfort. Beth may not have realized it, but Leliana relied on her quite a bit. Beth was always there for her when she needed it, a shoulder Leliana could always cry on when needed. And during the crazy time they now lived in, it was more important than ever.

The next morning, Leliana didn't rise as early as she normally did. Curling up tighter under the blankets, fighting against the cold that assaulted the lodge. She managed to drift in and out of seep before it was impossible to slip under again. Yet, for as long as the nurse dared, she stayed under those blankets. Her eyes focused on Beth sleeping next to her for as long as the other blonde stayed in bed. Once Beth had left, and Leliana found herself alone she finally started moving. Slowly sitting up with a small grimace, she sighed. Eyes slowly moved along the room, Leliana had no idea what to do today. She could try cleaning up the lodge a bit more. Inventory needed to get done, Milly needed to be watched and Hector would probably need some help as well.

With another sigh, she finally slung her legs over the edge of the bed, walking around to the dresser and opening her drawer. From under her pants, she pulled out a box and popped out one of the pills from inside. Quickly swallowing it, she ran her hand through her hair and immediately grimaced at the texture. Greasy and knotted, Leliana had to think back about when her last shower was. A few days obviously, a week maybe? Looking in the mirror hanging above the dresser, Leliana grimaced once again seeing her face. "Okay...shower first."

Grabbing a towel on her way to the bathroom upstairs, she stepped in and closed the door behind her. Locking it, she tossed the towel onto the counter before moving to turn the water on. Her clothes were pretty dirty as well, Leliana glad she had a change in their room. Anyway, after a few minutes, the nurse checked the water, a small smile curling her lips as the warm water flooded her palm opening her fingers, the small puddle splashed down as she stepped away to undress. She peeled her clothes off the best she could, her shoulders complaining a bit. Dragging Shinoa outside had been a tough bit of work, Leliana stepped into the water as soon as she could. Letting a sigh fall from her lips, she held her back in the water, allowing it to wash over her.

Leliana took her time, the water helping her muscles relax. She made sure to scrub her scalp, working the conditioner through to gets the tangles out. She almost scrubbed her skin raw in a few places, but it felt like there were about 10 layers of dirt and other grime on her. The shower felt amazing. After maybe half an hour, she turned the water off and stepped out. The towel was nice and soft, surprisingly, and Leliana felt...well, she felt great. It had been a while since she last waited that long to shower, and finally feeling clean after all that was something she couldn't describe. Refreshing was probably the closest.

The only problem was that she had forgotten to take a change of clothes with her. After a few moments of drying just her hair, Leliana wrapped the towel around her body and made short cash to her room before anyone could see her.

 

[Rumble Fish]

November 25th
7:50 am
Arthur's Theme
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While the rest of the lodge slept, Colt stood in the kitchen, whisky coffee in hand and staring out of the window at the pink sky and flurry of snow. She had been staring out of said window for the last hour after a sleepless night. When she had woken from a nightmare for the third time at two am, she rendered that task obsolete and taken it upon herself to take the time to stand watch. Now the sun was raising its head, it would not be long before the lodge would be alive once again. But... she was not ready for that yet. Yesterday had been difficult enough. Before facing another day with humans; she needed to reset. And she already knew who could help with that. Like an excited child looking for Santa Claus, she had not been able to stop herself from looking out of her bedroom window just so she could see him. Grabbing one of the carrots she had taken from the ranch, Colt put on her hat and jacket and left through the back door, gingerly closing it behind her. Her paces crunched through the snow as she made her way over.

He was like something out of a Hollywood picture. A stunning creature against a wild and open plain. Arthur was grazing contently on a little patch of grass he had pawed free from the snow. But as he noticed Colt approaching, he lifted his head with erect ears and a little flutter of his nostrils as he nickered in her direction. Colt clicked her tongue and dug into her pocket, pulling out the little chunk of carrot. After a night of eating grass, surely he would fancy a sweeter snack than just the vert. The sun settled across the white blanket of his back, giving off an almost angelic glow.

“Hey boy,” Colt spoke as she approached him with the treat, trying to lift her flat spirits for his sake, “Lemme look at ya.” Arthur huffed and ambled over, his velvet muzzle wiggling at the prospect of being given a tasty bite from his new two-legged friend (Technically one legged but he did not need to know that). The vet did not react to his happy crunching and bent down to lift one hoof to pick it out. As she scraped the small metal device against the frog, she felt Arthur stoop his head back down to graze.

“Sorry we don't have a stall. But there's a shit ton of trees you could use for shelter. Y’seem to be doing well, all things considered.” Colt grumbled as she moved from hoof to hoof. Thankfully Arthur was a co-operative creature and made little protest, “Think I’ll take y’out huntin’ with me today. We need food and sometimes having company that can’t fuckin’ mouth off back is good for the mind. Not that ye would, Arthur, I know yer no’ that type. Not that I can say the same for any of them. Don’t get me wrong, son I love ‘em… but dammit a lot of ‘em need to mind their tongues.”

Of course none of this meant anything to Arthur’s who continues to graze, letting out a little snort. Colt liked to imagine that was a sound of agreement. Unbeknownst to her it seemed that horses possessed a better understanding of humans than she had initially thought. Arthur had turned his eye to watch her as she picked out his hooves as he grazed. She had a gloomy aura. A good and honest one, but gloomy nonetheless. It was a little un-nerving to him.

Colt felt Arthur stiffen a little, as if he was in thought. As soon as Colt stood up, groaning and stretching her back out. Now, what was next? If she was going to ride, he’d need to be groomed. Mumbling to herself, she bent down and opened her grooming kit, searching for a dandy brush. Suddenly, there was a sudden lift of weight from her head and the wind blew through her shaggy mane.

“What the fu-?” She was interrupted by a smug chuff and retreating hoof beats. Spinning around she caught the tail end of a satisfied Arthur, head held high prancing away, her cap flapping freely in his mouth. “Is that my hat-? Hey-! No! Arthur? Arthur! Give that back, c’mon!” Her heart-rate was still racing and at this point she just wanted to go hunting as an excuse to clear her head. But she needed her hat first.

“Arthur!” The horse did not seem to care for her annoyance, but he did pause long enough for her to catch up, though like a typical bully he held it up high out of her reach. He nodded his head rapidly to the point she was afraid the cap of the hat would rip away from the rest. The veteran grumbled with a frustrated tap of her foot, glaring at him. The stallion seemed to relent as his head stooped down. Colt could not resist smirking at this display.

As she jumped forward to snatch her hat, Arthur chuffed and suddenly jerked back, sending Colt flying into the long grass with a startled yelp. Once her sore body hit the ground, Colt groaned and pulled herself up, spitting out the mouthful of grass she had almost swallowed. Her face was smudged with what was thankfully just dirt. Staggering to her feet, she turned to the horse who had politely dropped her hat next to her. Trying to save face, Colt grumbled as she put it back on. Arthur stood patiently, his ears flicking towards her as if questioning what she had been doing on the ground. The veteran sighed with a shake of her head and grabbed his halter.

“Okay,” she sighed as she slipped it over his ears, “I’m not in the mood for any more nonsense so ya’ll better-WAAH!” The veteran yelled as, while she was still holding on, Arthur had jerked back and once again, Colt found herself flung through the air and face first onto the grass. Groaning and spitting out grass, she sat up to see Arthur once again frolicking away, tail high and with prancing steps, very pleased with himself. Seeing him play and prancing, Colt’s anger melted away. He had gotten her good, she could not deny that. Just before she could grab the cap from the grass, a black muzzle snatched it and Arthur squeaked in amusement.

“Oh ho ho, yer a impish one.” She gruffly chuckled as she got up, playfully wagging a finger at him like a scolding teacher “Now. C’mon. Give me my hat.” She puts a hand out, hoping the equine would relent and drop it. No such luck. Arthur swished his tail and bowed his head as he pawed the ground playfully.

“Give me my hat.” Colt bowed slightly, like playing with a large dog, “Gimme my hat. Huh?” Her muscles hurt with the now wide smile that had found itself across her face, her husky voice now in an unusually playful tone. Arthur jumped a little with erect ears, his nostrils fluttering in a carefreel squeal, as if elated she had accepted his invitation to play.

“Give-gimme my hat!” She was almost laughing now as Arthur shifted from left to right as Colt opened her arms, mirroring his movements, like she was about to tackle him, “Ooooh what’s it gonna be boy? I’m gonna getcha!” She made a mock swipe for the hat. Arthur squealed again and took off at a floating trot, his head held high. With a full laugh, the veteran took off running after him.

“You get back here, you big ugly bastard!” She guffawed as she chased him, swiping for the hat which caused Arthur to spin and kick his back legs out with a playful squeak, “Oooh I’m gonna beat you so hard you’ll have a twitch!” Arthur flew like a mad dervish, kicking his heels and tossing his pretty head. The air was filled with running hooves and husky laughter. After a little longer, the veteran sighed and stopped, completely out of breath from the chase. She panted lightly as she wiped her sweaty forehead with the back of her hand. Arthur noticed this and approached her, neatly dropping her hat at her feet and simply watching her with his gentle eyes.

That smile could not be deterred. Colt shook her head a little and put her arms akimbo. “What am I going to do with ya, huh?” Her voice silky and soft; unlike anything anyone at this Lodge would have ever heard. With a gentle chuff and gazing of his soft eyes, Arthur pushed his velvet nose into her hand. The veteran reached up and stroked him on his cheek. He was soft like a bear with his winter coat. The heat of his breath warmed her soul. It was hard being back. It was going to be hard for a while. But the unconditional love and loyalty of the living being standing in front of her made everything better. Already; she felt like today may not be so bad.

​

 

[Maj]

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November 22, 2018
9:40 PM
The Lodge

"It's almost impressive how easily you unintentionally injure yourself."

Things had been silent between the two men since Hector started to repair the damage Owen's rampage had caused to his own body. All of the shards of glass had already been picked out and now lay in a small aluminum tray next to them. The doctor was now disinfecting and bandaging the young man's hands and was, surprisingly, the first one to break the silence between them.

Owen didn’t verbally respond. Something akin to a sigh exited his nostrils but he only watched idly as the Doctor continued the work on his hands. He was back inside now, in the cellar where Hector often worked. It had taken some coaxing from both Hector and Aubrey to get back inside, but he was grateful for it. The warmth starting to finally worm its way through the numbness of his icy skin. He sniffed occasionally, the remnants of the tears that had managed to come through during his rage and also the cold.

Now that the rage was gone all Owen could focus on was the guilt. He had been something of a jerk. Although he still felt he was right in his feelings. Betrayal and anger still swelled under the surface but it had less bite now. In the end though, he knew he could have reacted better.

“How is she?” It was the first words he had spoken since he had left the lodge over an hour ago. Owen’s voice was void of much of anything, but there was still sincerity in his tone.

"Physically? Her shoulder might never be the same. I'll do what I can for her but she is going to have issues shooting a bow again in the future."

It also didn't help that Owen damn near popped every stitch she had out of place. Though the doctor left that part unsaid.

"Mentally? She had something of a breakdown but was able to pull herself together. Barely."

The fact was that the doctor sincerely doubted she was going to get much sleep tonight. She was far too wired and on edge. Like if every shadow that moved had her father lurking within.

"You're going to get your answers after you both rest. It's been a long 24 hours, Niño. For everyone."

"I…" Owen took a breath and closed his mouth. He wasn't sure how to explain everything going on in his head. He sort of wanted to apologize, he also sort of wanted someone to acknowledge that his anger, while maybe dramatic, had been justified.

"I don't think you were unjustified in your anger, Owen." The old man said neutrally. His grey orb was watching the twin's expressions and could practically read his thought process off of his face.

"In fact, I'm surprised it took as long as it had for you to finally demand answers the way you did. I stopped you because neither of you were going to be able to get anything across. Given your emotional states at the time." He explained.

"Not because I thought you were in the wrong or at fault, somehow. It was merely… counter productive to allow the conversation to happen then and there."

"I always knew something had happened and that Andy was adamant about keeping me in the dark. I just assumed maybe some boyfriend had roughed her up or something, I never imagined…" Owen drifted off. The idea that she had known their father and never said a word still stung. But it was something else at the core that bothered him the most. Andy had been terrified to see him, his mother wouldn't even speak of him, and unknowingly Owen had befriended this guy. He had been in his family home, seen pictures of their lives. Because of his gap in knowledge, Owen had involuntarily put his sister at risk and had violated his mother's wishes.

"My mother worked her whole life to keep him away from us." He said finally. "I guess if nothing else I now know there was some reasoning behind that."

Hector’s brow furrowed into a pensive mask at the mention of Owen's mother. It was true that the woman made it her life's mission to shield her kids from harm. She wished for nothing more than happiness for them.

"Mary…" he began, pausing his medical work to speak, "made it a point to avoid speaking on the subject with everyone. Even when her friends and coworkers were gossiping about former lovers and ex-husbands."

"So, it wasn't just you two. She kept quiet about it with everyone. Logically, it would have been the best choice to inform you of the dangers he posed. But, it seems she wanted to spare you the turmoil. An action your sister echoed."

"And she says they are nothing alike," he retorted, somewhat bitterly. Owen had dedicated his entire life to trying to do right by his mother and twin. He took less than legal jobs to help his mother with the bills and to help Andy with college. He had learned to fight to make sure they were safe and somehow along the way he had still failed, all because his sister was also trying to protect him.

The older gentleman exhaled lightly through his nose. A laugh. "It seems being self sacrificial is a family trait that runs deep in the Jordan lineage."

Owen finally let a smirk play on his face, bringing some familiarity to it. He nodded in response, pausing as his mind traveled deep into thought once more. Tears welled up for a moment in the corners of his eyes and then dissipated as he quickly gained control once more.

"It sounds stupid, but I just don't think I was prepared to see her like that. Andy never lets anything bother her. She's sort of like oil, letting everything bad slide away. She gets testy and mean sure, but she's always in control, always able to think with a level head when the fire is on her. I've seen her handle hostage situations and gunfights and whatever happened to her…" he didn't want to think too deeply on it. Owen would give her the chance to fill in the blanks herself, but he was pretty sure he already knew what came at the end of that story.

"She's human at the end of the day, Owen. An annoying, snarky human but a normal one nonetheless. The things that affect you, affect her the same way they affect me or anyone else. We just have our own ways of processing. Some healthier than others."

"Smashing a car is probably pretty heavily in the unhealthy spectrum I guess," the boy mused.

"Do you feel better?"

"Calmer," the redhead confirmed. "I'm not sure I'd say better. Now I'm just sort of drained and worried. I don't like being forced to sit on the sidelines." That much was true, but he knew he was in no state to help Andy tonight. Hector had made the right calls, as usual.

"Better." The doctor reaffirmed. Calmer is always better. The old man looked down at his handiwork and nodded to himself. It was enough for his injuries.

"Are you ever going to get tired of having to patch the two of us up?" Owen asked with a laugh. "People are going to start saying you play favorites."

"Potentially." He agreed nonchalantly. "But it's what your mother would have asked of me. If she could."

Owen could only look at his hands when Hector spoke, letting his words hang between them. He knew Andy joked about him having a crush on their mother, but in this moment the boy understood how deep it ran for him. He wasn't sure how to respond, so instead, he just rose one of his massive hands and let it rest on the doctor's shoulder.

"I miss her too."

Collab: shadowz1995

 

[FireMaiden]

This is part 1 of a collab between me and Rumble Fish
Date: November 24, 2018​

It was another twenty minutes before the veteran felt like she could go inside. After giving Arthur a final look, the veteran gingerly made her way inside. The lodge was silent but she knew it would not be long before it became busy. And she did not want to face anyone yet. She had things to do. Quietly she made her way up the steps and to her room. The floor creaked a little as she walked. Opening the door a little, she glanced inside.

Nessa was not there but she did not question it. She closed the door and looked around before her eyes were drawn to her bed. Her silver flask sat there neatly on her pillow. Instantly, she was overwhelmed with the urge and grabbed the flask. She took a long swig from it, not even bothering to find out what was inside but from the burning sensation in her throat it was certainly a form of alcohol. Gasping at the taste, she closed it before starting the task she had wanted to avoid thinking about. Pulling out all the bags she had stashed under her bed and the floor-board, she pulled out every can and bottle… and sat mournfully on the bed as she was faced with the amount. No wonder they didn’t trust her.

Inhaling through her teeth, she felt a dead weight in her stomach as she took out a pen and post-it-notes from her rucksack. Getting to her feet, she turned her back to the door, sipping from her flask and counting. Every now and again, she stuck a written note on a bottle or can. A day of the week and a date on each. She had to start somewhere.

Leliana was perhaps, outside of Andy, the earliest riser in the lodge. She had gotten used to it for work and school, and while she had slept in the day before, there were quite a few things that had to be done today. Slipping out of bed, she quickly got dressed, securing her pistol to her thigh as she did every now, a rather sad habit but one she would feel naked without. Anyway, she crept out of the bedroom she shared with Beth, and to her surprise, noticed the veteran enter her room. She had been missing yesterday when Owen got back, it was...her legs twitched to follow but instead, Leliana turned and headed downstairs. Quickly entering the kitchen, she grabbed one of the smaller bottles of water and a granola bar before heading back up. Leliana had grabbed these in the off chance Colt hadn't eaten in a while, the nurse was soon outside of her door.

Taking a deep breath, she forwent knocking and opened the door. "You!" The nurse exclaimed. "Where were you? Why didn't you come back with Owen? Are you okay? You aren't hurt are you?" Leliana rambled off a few more general questions, her forehead creased with worry as she observed the veteran. It was clear Leliana, despite the easy day she had taken yesterday, Colt had crossed her mind more than once. Her absence had been felt in the lodge. Leliana had honestly missed her scarred friend. "We were so worried about you!"

“Fuck-!?” Colt yelped and dropped her pen as she heard the door hit the wall and Leliana’s voice practically falling down the stairs as she rattled off questions. She does not turn around at first until there was a pause in the nurse’s questions. The older woman sighed and rubbed the back of her neck as she turned around to face the nurse, avoiding eye contact with the woman.

“Leliana,” she breathed out in a sigh, stuck on what to say. This was happening much faster than she had wanted it to. But she could already tell that Leli was not about to take anything from her so she let out a sigh and, rubbing the back of her neck, looked at the floor. “…Sorry.”

Leliana winced a bit when colt yelped, but, it was good to hear her voice. She had been missing for two days, and a number of different things could have happened in-between the time she left Owen and got back. With a little sigh, Leliana took a moment to collect her thoughts to not overwhelmed colt further. "No, no, I'm sorry I shouldn't have snuck up on you, but I was very surprised to see you," Leliana spoke, walking further into the room. As she did, the nurse happened to spot the bottles and post-it notes. "Here, take these," Leliana spoke, offering the water and granola bar. "Didn't know if you had any food while you were gone so...figured this was a good place to start." She smiled, waiting patiently for Colt to make the next move.

Colt winced a little as Leli seemed to notice what she was doing but said nothing. The veteran scratched her neck as she took the granola bar and water. She did not exactly know how to tell the nurse that she actually had eaten- and well. So rather than try and explain, she opened the bar “Thanks.” She mumbled as she sat on her bed, her eyes still downcast, “Yeah um… I… I suppose I owe you an explanation.” She figured the nurse knew nothing given her initial questions.

"Well, I won't say no to an explanation," Leliana chuckled, moving to sit next to Colt, a faint smile on her lips. She was glad the veteran was back and safe within the lodge. "But you don't have to talk right now if you don't want to. I'm just glad you're back." The nurse spoke truthfully, looking around the room. "What's up with the post-its?"

“Oh I um…” she taps her foot nervously, “Just… trying to organise things.” This must have looked really bad on her end. Taking a deep breath, she took a moment before turning to Leliana, still not exactly comfortable with eye contact but she could look the nurse in the face for now. “I… Owen and I, um. We had a fight.”

"That's good," Leliana nodded. She could read, so obviously, she saw the dates. But if Colt didn't want to talk about it, Leliana wouldn't push her. But...she could put two and two together. Colt was trying to ration the booze. It was a small step, but it was a step nonetheless. But as Colt mentioned a fight she had with Owen, Leliana focused on the vet again. "Yeah...honestly that doesn't surprise me," The nurse mumbled, the way he had been acting the day he got back still hanging onto Leliana's thoughts. Of course...she couldn't blame him for getting mad about his dad. "What happened?"

Colt winced and rubbed her arm at Leliana’s comment about the fight but decided to continue anyway. “So um… Basically he didn’t like how I don’t like Nile and that we’re the same and I shouldn’t be so fucking- ” Already she could feel her anger rising but with a clenched fist, she managed to breathe deeply for a second to calm down. But she closed her eyes at the next part, not wanting to show too much. “Well… He brought Sasha into it and I just…” she took out her gun and (with the safety on) fiddled with it in her hands as she continued, “I had bad withdrawls, I had been worried sick about him and that- it just fucked with my head and… I ran off because,”

Her eyes began to feel heavy and pressure built at the corners. “I ran off because I was gonna... I-I-I almost… I tried to...” feeling her voice break on the last words, she turned to finally look Leli in the eye, struggling to keep herself composed. Any kind of stoicism was eradicated just by her eyes, feeling a lone tear running down her cheek. She did not want to say it. Already opening up to this extent was a strain on the veteran. But, her time with Hank was already having an effect.

 

[Rumble Fish]

This is part 2 of a collab between myself and FireMaiden
Date: 24th November

"Oh you and Nile aren't the same," Leliana spoke. It was true, they both had an addiction, but Colt hadn't almost gotten them killed. So Nile, while maybe Colt was a little harsh on him, deserved it. Would Owen start yelling at Leliana if he learned she had slapped the hell out of him? Anyway, the nurse listened quietly as Colt spoke, brows creasing again when she mentioned the low-blow Owen has mad. Glancing down at the vet's hands when she pulled her gun, Leliana cocked an eyebrow but the more Colt spoke, the more Leliana understood. "Oh, Colt..." The nurse spoke gently, her body moving without thinking. The nurse gently wrapped her arms around Colt, softly rubbing her back as she gave Colt the chance to pull away or hug back.

Colt could not bring herself to continue but before she could do anything, the nurse had wrapped her arms around her body. Colt was frozen, a little surprised at this gesture. Why wasn’t the nurse angry? She had essentially abandoned them, why would she be welcomed back so quickly? The veteran said nothing as she slowly wrapped her own arms around the nurse and pulled her in closer, squeezing her tight. Feeling Leliana's arms and her hand softly rubbing her back, Colt sank into her grip. She let out a long sigh, trying to stay composed. But that was hard. It was a a few good long minutes before Colt began to pull away reluctantly. She wanted it to last longer, but that would be forever. She sighs and rubs her arm. “I um…” she sighs, this was going to be difficult, she scratched her neck anxiously “Uh… do you? Remember that talk we had a while back? When you told me about…” She didn’t continue that sentence, “And you asked me if uh…” She could feel her heart-rate increase in worry. It was such an alien experience, feeling this way. Soldiers didn't cry, soldiers didn't show weakness, and soldiers certainly don't ask for this.

Leliana smiled a little when Colt returned the hug. The veteran needed it. A show that Leliana was there for her. She couldn't blame Colt for what she tried to do. Leliana would be a hypocrite in that regard if she had. When Colt finally started to you'll away from the hug, the nurse allowed her to do so, a gentle smile on her face. Reaching out, Leliana gently patted Colt's hand as the veteran once again started speaking. "I do," The nurse nodded. "I have a few boxes, I can give you three of them. You'll need to experiment a little with the dosage a bit to find what works for you but...I'm sure it'll help." Leliana knew Colt was struggling. She had been for a while, and Leliana could only wait for this moment when Colt asked for help. Leliana knew that forcing it wouldn't get the best reaction from her.

Colt glanced down at the bed as Leliana finished for her and offered her the medicine. Her shoulders sank in relief at not having to ask. The dull ache in her chest lifted and the veteran sighed softly, “Thanks…” she started and rubbed her arm before taking in a breath and forcing herself to say it. “Because… I need help.” She nodded a little, as if to affirm it to herself as much as she was trying to assure the nurse.

"You don't have to thank me." Leliana, while they didn't share the same type of trauma, they had the same outcome. She understood how hard it was to cope with no help. "It's okay to need help Colt, you don't have to feel ashamed about it. Everyone needs help at some point, even the rough and tough soldiers," Leliana chuckled a little, hoping to make Colt feel a little better about what was going on. "Is your arm okay?"

"Well... Thanks anyway." Colt looked at her arm and sighed. This would need an explanation too. “I-I didn’t do it I just…” she sighed and went quiet for a moment, before putting her arms around herself as if to protect herself as she looked at the ground. “I… I had this… episode. Last night. And…” she took in a deep breath “…Well.” She didn’t want to go much further but if Leli asked she would. How could she fail twice? It felt impossible. Groaning, she face-palmed.

Leliana had a few ideas as to what she could mean by that, but if Colt had done something, Leliana wanted to make sure she was okay. "Did you...hurt yourself?" It was a loaded question, and one she didn't ask lightly, but Leliana could help if Colt wanted her to.

Colt was quiet for a minute. “…I don’t know. I was drunk a-and I was just-” she chuffed hard through her nose, forcing herself to continue. “…I thought I was being attacked by things and… well, I met someone. I was staying with him. I must’ve been screamin’ cause he found me outside and dunked my head in a barrel and I…” she frowned and sighed, “…I tried to stay under. Must’ve cut myself on the wood. So… I guess I did.”

"Did he patch you up?" Leliana asked after listening in silence again. Flashbacks were...awful. So she wasn't going to pry for detail about the event or even ask about who she was staying with. At least, not yet. "I can take a look at it if it's bothering you." The nurse added, head tilted just a little.

Colt just nodded glumly, “...Guess it’s worth a look. He wasn’t, shall we say, proficient?” She sighed heavily again, staring at the wall. She took a long sip from her flash as her mind grappled with everything that had happened and was currently happening. There was something that had been bothering her that had to do with the nurse. "I wanted to radio you." she said bluntly, well as blunt as she could manage with her wild thoughts, "...I wanted to talk to you but I kept thinking back to that fucking day in the kitchen and... I thought you hated me.." she sips again and turns to the nurse, her eyebrows were creased in worry. "Do you hate me?"

"What? Of course not." Leliana answered quickly. "I was just worried, ya know? A lot had happened so quickly and one of the most capable people we had was..." Leliana sighed a little. "Do you remember what I told you a while ago? I don't...I don't like talking about what happened to me. But my own mother didn't know about that. I trust you Colt. And I care about you, you're my friend. Even before we got to know each other, I cared about you. It was just...scary seeing you possibly throwing your life away like that." Leliana fell silent, letting those words hang in the air for a few moments. "I'll be right back with the stuff for your arm, okay?"

“I know I know- I’m sorry!” Colt rubbed the back of her neck anxiously, feeling prickles of sweat in her forehead, “I think I just... I’ve been throwing it away for so long I just...” the woman sighed and took another sip, not knowing how to respond. As Leli told her she’s get the stuff for her arm, Colt just sighed. “Sorry. You’re my friend too. And I trust you too... more than anybody.”

"It's okay," Leliana smiled, standing up. "I'll be right back." With that, she moved to the door and opened it, quickly making her way downstairs to grab some medical supplies. She was making sure to be quiet as well, not wanting to disturb anyone still asleep as she gathered what she needed, Leliana was back upstairs and in Colt's room in a flash. "Alright, let's take a look at your arm."

Colt sighed gently and and looked Leliana in the eye. Her eyes glistened with tears of gratitude and relief. So far. So good. "Okay...Thank you."

 

[The Mad Queen]

Homecoming Part 2
Ralph & Colt
(by myself & Rumble Fish
November 24th 2018 ​

Her talk with Leliana and having her hand checked out left Colt in a calmer mood than she had been in. Her shoulder still stung from the bullet Hank had to dig out but she was used to that feeling. She had finished counting out all the alcohol she had stored up and it was a depressing number. Colt was not oblivious; she never had been to the fact that she had a severe drinking problem. All she could hope was that this could help. The veteran sighed heavily as she took her flask, freshly filled with vodka and left the room.

Colt had taken her jacket off and left it in her room as she clumped down the stairs with her rucksack. Both the bandages around her chest and wad of gauze around her shoulder and her newly bandaged hand were visible; not that she cared anymore. Walking into the kitchen, she unzipped it. The bag could have been a chest of treasure in the eyes of the hungry lodgers. Cans of soup, rice, nuts, grains, milk, bags of fresh venison, bear and rabbit she could refrigerate and vegetables, but those were mainly for Arthur. From the window, she could see him grazing contently, steam rising from his warm body into the chilly air. The vet sighed and started storing everything.

Ralph sat in an accompanying room next to the kitchen, the assault rifle he had taken from a soldier on the first day disassembled in front of him as he took great care to clean it, putting the pieces back one by one. He glanced up from the weapon at the sound of a familiar set of footsteps entering the kitchen and pulled himself to his feet. Making his way to the kitchen he stood before the table, his eyes wide as he stared over at Colt. The Doctor had no idea what to say, lost for words for a few moments.

"When did you get back?" Was all he could manage

“Ah-!!” Colt jumped as a voice caught her off guard and she spun around. It took the veteran a moment to calm down. Could people not do that? Breathing heavily, she shook her head, not quite registering her relief in seeing the doctor again. This was still an unnerving experience even though it had only been a few days; “Uh… About… half a hour ago?” She unscrewed her flask and drank from it. She glanced outside to look at Arthur again, hoping to reassure herself.

The Doctor shot her his usual smile, relieved to see that the veteran was still alive. It quickly faded as he moved towards her but, much like Leliana he took care to keep some distance.
"What happened Colt? Where have you been?" He shook his head

Colt kept putting things away as she answered. “Out.” She answered before looking at him for a second, “Some things happened… But-but I’m fine. And I’ve got us some supplies which is something I suppose.” She took another sip before fully turning around and gestured out of the window to Arthur “…Also brought him.”

Ralph approached the window, glancing outside to see the animal before him. "Where on Earth did you find a horse?" He asked with a smile, looking back at Colt "Thought all the farms and stables would've been long abandoned by now."

Colt paused "...He was given to me." She sighed before turning to face the doctor fully, flask in hand, "Forget about me. What's happened here?" she looks around, brows creased and face stony; expecting a proper response. Now that she had calmed down, the uncomfortable vibe of the lodge began to set in. Something felt wrong and she did not like it. She looked to the doctor for answers.

"Something awful." Ralph shook his head, his smile fading away once more "You remember David, right? He turned into a volatile and wrecked havoc. Only one person died but..." He sighed heavily "One is always bad enough." He leaned against one of the walls, his head lowered "Shinoa's gone, Colt. The poor girl never stood a chance."

Colt blinked as Ralph explained what happened while she was gone. Her eyes widened as he described David had turned into a thing and… murdered one of their own. And it was the young mother. The most vulnerable outside of the child Milly. Colt’s expressions shifted from shock to anger as she brought a fist to her face and squeezed her eyes shut. The woman growled as she processed what the doctor had told her. So many thoughts rushed in at once. A flood of indignant righteousness knowing she had been right not to trust the man, frustration at her concerns not being considered, disbelief at the damaged caused and grief in knowing what had been taken. Finally she took a deep breath and opened her eyes, feeling a familiar impulse. If she had stayed behind, she could have done something…

“I should have been here…” she started, trying to halt herself. Shaking her head, she took a long drink from her flask before turning her face away, shaking her head a little with a frown. She had to push on. What happened happened. “…Was anyone else hurt? What was the damage to the building? Were any supplies destroyed? What about the baby?”

"A few people got hurt but Hector got the worst of it." He didn't answer her question damage to the building, merely leaning back and glancing at the missing door, the broken windows. The lodge had taken a battering just as much as it's inhabitants. "Bethany had Valerie at the time, so he's still alive. She's..." He choked on his words as he fought back tears "She's never going to remember her mother, Dav- that thing has left her an orphan."

Resting his head in one hand, he ran it down his face "It appears something also happened at the circus. Nobody came back from that unscathed, but at least nobody died." He shook his head "At least nobody died." He repeated, muttering to himself "Doesn't sound like much of a consolation. It never has. Not to me, anyway."

The doctor’s sadness punctuated Colt hard. She looked around seeing the damage around her. Her heart fluttered in relief knowing that the baby was okay. Knowing the man was a father, his pain was evident. And… a circus? What the fuck happened in her 72 hour absence? Colt took another moment to think. She took another long swig before she stood up fully, speaking in a firmer tone; whether it was to assure her self or Ralph was a mystery. “Beth and Leliana already have Milly. They will know what to do with the infant. We have enough supplies to last us a while with the baby. I’ll organise a run into the town for formula soon; whether I go alone with Arthur or bring you or someone else. As for the damage,” She cringed slightly at this, “I’ll see that Nile and Owen see to the doors. Once I’m done here I will start on the windows. Since nobody else has died, assume nobody was bitten?”

He nodded "Well, if you have things under control for now then perhaps I should be getting back." There was still something bothering Ralph, something left unsaid from Colt's side "Can't leave it unguarded. Can't make that mistake. Can't let it happen all over again." He muttered under his breath, shaking his head firmly.
"Back?" Colt frowned, her tone suddenly sharper mostly out of confusion than anger, "Back where?"

"The university." He admitted "Something awful happened there too. I'm worried it, or at least something similar could happen again given the resources that place has." With Maria in the wind, there was nobody who could stand guard of the place "The past week has been tough to say the least. I don't think any of us can handle much more of this." The warmness was completely absent from Ralph's eyes "This whole thing just feels a bit...Hopeless."

He faced Colt "I wish I had better news to give you."

Colt listened to the man and sighed. He really seemed to be between a rock and a hard place. The veteran frowned in thought before sipping again. “…I’m not going to ask you what it was- I trust your judgement.” She answered finally, lifting her head a little. “Ralph, do you remember what you told me when I felt hopeless?” Despite her intense inebriation that inhibited most memories of that day and events, this stood out, “It is grim. But, the only alternative is to surrender to the disease. And that can’t happen.”

At Colt's words, Ralph looked up and managed a smile "That feels like years ago, doesn't it?" He chuckled, lightly "A lot's happened since then and we've lost some good people. Up until a few minutes ago I was sure we'd lost you, too. Happy to be proven wrong."

Colt blinked slowly, starting to feel the effects of the vodka but still able to listen to him. “It does.” Her eyes went downcast for a moment. She thought back to her talk with Leliana. They had not discussed in depth what she had tried to do. But she took a moment to answer. She leant back ono the counter. “…I am too.” She admitted genuinely. She couldn’t manage a smile, but her tone was evident.

"What happened out there, Colt? You don't have to say anything but I get the feeling that-" He stopped, for the man had to choose his words carefully. The wrong thing and he'd push her even further into herself. Given that the disappearance, Nile's words and Colt's own demeanour left the man concerned he wasn't about to let that happen. Not if he could help it, anyway.

Colt took a moment before taking in a breath. “…Twice” She spoke, eyes down. “That’s the answer to what you’re probably thinking.” There was a short silence before she took another sip from her flask, waiting for Ralph’s response. Already the back of her neck prickled with nerves. Her instinct initially had been to deny it; but… if she was seriously going to try and get better she had to open up. Colt was like an oyster; stubborn and hard to break into. She had to choose when to open.

The demeanour spoke for Colt more than her words, but Ralph was not a Doctor of psychology. He could only make theories as to what she had meant by 'twice'. Again, he had to be careful not to push too far. He went over the facts in his head. Some fight with her and the others before vanishing for a day or two before returning? Had she just wanted to be alone? No, that couldn't be it.
He was silent for a few moments as he continued to process the information. "What happened twice? I'm honestly a little bit lost." He offered his warmness as he asked.

Colt pinches the bridge of her nose and sighed with closed eyes. It was difficult enough to talk to Leliana, who seemed to understand quicker given their similar backgrounds and gave her some comfort with no further information needed. But Ralph required more blunt measures. She didn’t move as she spoke next. “I tried to end it. Twice.” She spoke plainly. It felt so alien to say it out loud like this and she did not like it.

Within an instant Ralph's face dropped, behind his brown eyes was little more than sadness. The veteran had been somewhat right, it was a possibility he had considered. Just less so than others. It was less that it hadn't crossed his mind and more that the Doctor hadn't wanted to think about it. He feel silent once more, fighting every instinct to either shout at her or to wrap her in a hug

"Colt..." He shook his head "I..." He slowly and cautiously approached. Being lost for words, all the Doctor could do in that moment was outstretch his arms as he offered her a hug.

Colt flinched a little, somewhat expecting the doctor to react more than he did. Given the more volatile reaction he had during that same talk she had referenced before, she could not help but be worried. But as he silently offered her a hug, Colt sighed and, after a moment of quiet took his offer and walked into his arms.
He embraced Colt in his arms. By no means would he be the first one to let go, waiting for her to pull away instead. He would hold onto her as long as she needed.
"I'm sorry I wasn't here."

Colt held onto him like she had with Leliana; tightly. And just like then, it was hard to keep it all in. But she had to. As he spoke, Colt sighed softly. “It’s not your fault.”
"It wasn't your fault, either." He replied, softly
“Hmmm…” She did not know how to respond to that. After another moment, she gently pulled away, “Well… it didn’t happen. So there’s that.”
"I'm glad you're still here. And I'm sure I'm not the only one around here." He smiled, offering his warmness to her once again
"Thanks and," she blinked and looked back outside to Arthur, "I hope you're right."
"If there's anyone around here that doesn't appreciate you and the things you've done to help us, then they're an idiot." He grinned "Plain and simple."
“Well… we’ll just need to see about that.” She sighs softly, “I’m… I’m glad that, despite what happened, everyone who made it is safe. That’s what matters to me right now.”
"I think it's the most important thing to focus on right now." Ralph nodded "I suppose all any of us can do for Shinoa right now is to look after Valerie."

"Exactly." Colt sighed, taking one last sip before putting the flask away, "Right. First things first, people need to eat. I've brought back some good meat, butter, bread and milk. See too it that everyone gets fed before we do anything else. I'll make dinner today- I might know something that will be a bit more hearty than water and coffee. If we're going to avoid this happening again, this place needs to be refortified. We can't do anything for the kid- um, Valerie if we aren't sorted first."

"We may have to consider moving elsewhere soon but the group isn't in the condition for that right now. I'll see to it that people get fed, and let me know if there's anything else I can help with." As he started to prepare, he looked over to Colt once more and smiled "It's good to have you back."

"Maybe." Colt could not help but feel reluctant about that. Ralph had a point. The Hazmats knew their location and the lodge was weakened from numerous attacks. But now was not the time. "Good. If we ration properly, what I've brought back could last us at least a fortnight. But I think after what happened, a good meal would do a fair few of them some good. I'll check the chickens for eggs and get the wood and nails to board the windows." She went to leave the kitchen to do just that when Ralph spoke up again. Seeing him smile when he had seemed so hopeless before soothed the veteran. She gave him a nod, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it."

Mentioned:
Leliana FireMaiden
Hector shadowz1995
Nile Togy
Owen, Bethany Maj

 

[Maj]

​

November 23, 2018
8:15 AM
The Lodge

To say that Andy had slept would be a gross understatement. She had laid in bed through the night and even occasionally dozed off as the hours ticked by. Andy seemed to finally be sleeping somewhat soundly when the sounds of the lodge started sifting in through the walls. No one was being discourteous, but since she was so restless anyway the sounds of life were enough to rouse her once again. She gave up, finally pushing the blanket away from her form and climbing out of bed. After her talk with Hector, she had come to her senses enough to shower and peel herself out of the gross clothes from the day. So when she rose she was in fluffy Yoda themed pajama pants and an oversized T-shirt. Her hair was disheveled, and down for a change, a messy mane of red curls and frizz that seemed to swallow the rest of her head.

There had been more than a few terrible moments during the night where she had wanted to leave. Even a few that she had gotten close to acting on it. However, when the sun rose she was still here. It was a conglomeration of things that kept her from being able to leave. Hector’s words, the explanation she owed her brother, and Luca’s decision to put her in charge. Despite all of that though, she had thought about it and she still wanted to. For some reason though, instincts be damned, Andy was still here.

Silently she trudged into the bathroom, doing her best to keep from disturbing Luca. The mirror revealed a puffy-eyed Andy. Her eyes were swollen and bright from extended stress and crying, her pale face almost sunken in appearance from the dark circles that had shown up during the night. She splashed some water on her face, icy from the cold pipes outside. It did a decent job of waking her up but caused an intense shiver down her spine. The bandages around her shoulder felt crusty and used, they pulled on her skin as she moved to brush her teeth. Without the pain medication in her system she was now agonizingly aware of each stitch in her flesh beneath the surface.

When she exited the room, she had almost expected to see Owen camped outside her door waiting for her. However, he wasn’t within sight. That brought some relief. True to her word, Andy planned to talk to him today, but she had hoped for a few precious hours to caffeinate before she had to do so. Some unknown person had acted as her guardian angel and started the coffee pot before she had woke. The smell seemed to waft through the rafters in a lulling sort of way. Like a cartoon character in pursuit of a pie, she almost floated through the lodge to the kitchen to grab a cup.

Her body acted on its own, having made coffee in the lodge a million times within her lifetime. She pushed up on her toes to the cabinets above her head, reaching for the mugs. The chill of the ceramic felt good in her palm, even better as she poured the liquid into it, steaming and bringing warmth to it. Typically she liked her coffee with cream, or whiskey, or any matter of thing, but this morning she drank it black. The brewer had done a decent job. It was good and dark, the bitterness welcomed on her taste buds.

She heard his steps before she saw him. Only someone as tall and awkward as her brother could make such a ruckus coming down the stairs. Sure enough, when she looked up from her steaming cup Andy saw him. He looked about as bad as she did, hands twisted in bandages and eyes that matched hers, puffy and almost lime. Andy could feel her heart quicken and her chest tighten as the reality of the situation started to consume the brief solace of her morning coffee. The girl offered him a weak smile, the corners of her mouth turning slightly in greeting. Owen didn’t return the favor.

“I’m ready, whenever you are,” Andy told him, making good on her promise both to him and to Hector. She seemed to stammer through the words though. Unsure of herself in a very un-Andy-like manner. That seemed to ease him, his shoulders visibly relaxing. He nodded slowly and made his way down the rest of the stairs.

“You can finish your coffee first,” he assured her. Owen’s voice sounded rough, likely from all the yelling he had shown the night before. He came into the kitchen himself and poured himself a cup, drowning the liquid in sugar and powdered creamer.

“God, would you like some coffee with all that sugar?” Andy teased in her normal manner. There was still some hesitation to it, as if she wasn’t sure how her brother would take her ribbing. But the normality of it seemed to continue to put him at ease. He finally returned her smirk then, slowly raising up his middle finger to her as he drank slowly from the cup.

“You go ahead and choke down your burnt bean water,” Owen retorted. “I’m going to enjoy my beverage instead of trying to sound pretentious.”

About half an hour later the pair walked through the woods, side by side, in silence. She was dressed now, thermal underwear under a pair of ripped jeans and a large hoodie with an anime character on it that Owen didn’t recognize. Her messy hair was still unbrushed, but down and stuffed under a knitted beanie. His mother had made it for her, he had a matching one somewhere. When they got to the perch, he gave his sister a quizzical look. Although he still didn’t know the extent of her shoulder injury, he was pretty sure she shouldn’t be climbing any ladders any time soon.

“I guess I didn’t really think this through,” she admitted at his gaze. “This is just where I always come when…” her words faded as she shook her head. “I guess we can go back and find somewhere quiet to chat.” Her brother however only knelt down and gestured for her to climb up. Whatever it was she felt she needed to say was going to be uncomfortable enough, if being here gave her a little bit of relief, then that's what they would do.

“What?” She asked, a defiant hand going to her hip. “You are just going to carry me up the ladder?”

“Andy you are a half a foot shorter than me and probably about half my weight. Just because you got too good for piggy back rides a long time ago doesn’t mean I’m not up for the challenge. Come on.”

She considered this for a long moment, unsure if she should take his offer. Her initial reaction was to rebuke, but instead, Andy sighed and hoisted herself up onto his back, holding on with her good arm, and locking her legs around his torso. If she was the type to give compliments more freely, she would have told Owen she was impressed with how strong he had gotten. He scaled the ladder with so little effort that she wasn’t sure her weight slowed him down at all.

Andy climbed onto the small cot that she used to sleep sometimes during elongated hunting trips. The blankets were old and itchy, but they did feel somewhat comforting over her lap. The girl sighed, leaning against the wall with her eyebrows squinted together. She barely noticed when Owen sat down next to her, pulling the other side of the blanket over his own lap to share. It was somewhat comforting but brought back what would have to be done.

“Once I get started,” Andy began after several moments. “You can’t interrupt me, hold all questions till the end because if I get cut off I’m not sure if I’ll be able to finish.” It was the first truly honest thing she had told her brother in years. He only nodded silently. His hand went out to her knee, hesitantly. Owen still wasn’t sure how his sister would react. Would his touch be helpful? Or would it ultimately only end up causing her more frustration. She had never been much for physical intimacy.

However, he was surprised when her hand went out to the top of his, lacing her fingers through his own rough and calloused ones and squeezed. The room continued in silence for what felt like an eternity. Both because Andy was trying to find the strength to start and because Owen was so eager to finally understand what had happened to his family.

“I’m not sure how to start,” she finally said with a nervous laugh.

“How did you find him?” Owen asked carefully, hoping to give her a launching place. His sister nodded thoughtfully.

“I was sixteen,” she finally began, voice shaking. “Me and mom were at the doctor's office…”

Mentions: shadowz1995 Brax

 

[Rumble Fish]

Milly looked outside the broken window at the snow. It was a fluffy flurry of the stuff, like something out of her story books. One of the books brought back by Aubrey was ‘The Snowman’ and it looked just like that. She remembered how she and her mother would cuddle under the weighted blanket and watch the movie. She could still remember the opening narration by heart. "I remember that winter because it had brought the heaviest snow I had ever seen. Snow had fallen steadily all night long and in the morning I woke in a room filled with light and silence, the whole world seemed to be held in a dream-like stillness. It was a magical day... and it was on that day I made The Snowman."

A small tear found its way down the young girl’s face. She blinked it away and turned to the snow-jacket hanging off the door. While her mother was not here, maybe she could still recapture some of that lost innocence by building a snowman. It would be hard on her own but staying inside was only going to make her feel worse. Putting the jacket on over her blanket, she grabbed Snowy and carefully made her way down the stairs, ignoring everyone on the way and she opened the back door.

To her surprise, the first thing she spotted was the distinct camo-jacket as Colt was walking across the backyard, fists clenched and gun strapped around her back. She must have gone on a patrol and just came back. The young girl jumped slightly.

“Oh! Hello.” She squeaked, which got Colt’s attention. The veteran grunted in surprise and frowned. She seemed to be on edge. But before Milly could apologise, the veteran spoke up.

“You’re up.” It was more like a statement than anything else. Milly rubbed her arm as Colt continued to watch her, “Why are you outside? You need to rest, kid.”

“I-I know but…” she looked back outside, “I just want to be outside.” Colt just hummed methodically. Milly looked around, but as she was about to take a step off the porch… she froze. What was out there? They were surrounded by trees, anything could be hiding in them! What if there were more monsters?! Colt noticed this and looked down at the small girl.

“What’s wrong?” She asked, trying to mask her husky grumble with a layer of sympathy. Milly blinked a few times and cuddled her teddy closer to her.

“I… I don’t want to be attacked again.” she whimpered, close to tears. Col’s eyes went downcast as the youngster said this. It was awful that she had to worry about something like this. And then they had Valerie who was to grow up in this new reality? Colt took out her flask and drank from it.

“Yeah. I don’t blame you.” She gestured down to her colt.45 “Gotta be ready now. No matter what.” She noticed Milly looking at the gun. The little one looked like she wanted to ask something but was too scared to. Colt didn’t blame her. “Spit it out.” Milly winced.

“...Could you… show me?” She squeaked, chewing on her bear’s ear as she asked. Colt blinked in surprise.

“How to shoot?”

“Yes!” Milly whimpered, almost sobbing from fear, “I-I don’t want to get hurt again or-or anyone else to die or…” she couldn’t continue, her breathing became hurried, clearly reliving those horrifying moments before being bitten. Colt felt any aloofness melt and her face softened.

“Hey it’s okay,” she knelt down to the girl’s level, “If you really want to, I can start teaching you. It’s not easy though.”

“You will?” Milly blinked in surprise, “Th-thank you!”

Colt rubbed the back of her neck and stood up, a little bit lost on how to begin.

“Give me a few minutes. Stay here.” She instructed the girl, to which Milly obeyed instantly and sat on the porch. She occupied herself by playing with a mound of snow as Colt spent the ten minutes getting things set up. She had set up some tin cans on a rock and got a Glock with a silencer securely attached. She was not going to make that mistake again. Once she was done, she beckoned Milly over. The youngster eagerly trotted through the snow to join her. Colt handed her the secured gun. She jumped at the coldness of the metal. Colt bent down next to her.

“Right. We don’t have much ammo to play with so we’re only going to fire a few times today, okay?”

“Won’t it alert monsters?!”

“Not with the silencer on, don’t worry.” Colt gently manipulated Milly’s hands to hold the gun properly and aimed at a tin can. “Now. Stand firm, don’t hold it from your wrist. Keep your arms tight.”

“Why?”

“If you hold it from the wrist, the gun will whip back when you shoot. Guns have recoil and you don't want it to come back and smack you in the face. Holding firm helps with it. Hold it up to chest level.” Milly did as Colt said, the veteran noticed she was still breathing sharply and hurryingly, her hands shaking violently. “It’s okay. Relax. I’m here.” she knelt next to her, putting a hand around her shoulder. The youngster tensed slightly at the touch.

“Breathe slowly,” Colt instructed her, “You want to breathe steadily. Focus on the inhale, shoot on the exhale.” Milly’s breathing slowed down, but the fear was still evident.

“I-I can’t,” she whimpered. Colt squeezed her shoulder.

“You can.” She affirmed, “Stay firm, and squeeze the trigger on the exhale. Let the gun do the work. Don’t be afraid of the trigger.”

Milly breathed deeply, and did as Colt said.

A short PAH! Escaped from the gun as she fired. Milly felt the recoil race through her skinny body and, despite the muffling from the silencer, the clap went through her like a firework. The gun dropped into the snow as Milly wailed and covered her ears; crumpling onto her knees. The veteran felt her stomach jump at this. She hadn’t expected this reaction. Instinctively she went to her level and pulled her close into a hug. Milly squeaked and gripped onto her like a spider monkey. Colt was caught off guard by this but wrapped her arms around the small girl and stroked her back, the way Leliana had. She wanted to go and get Leliana or Beth but she could not leave the child outside. The veteran sighed and patted her back.

“It’s okay, it’s just a noise.”

“But wha-what if-if-!” Milly couldn’t get her words out through her sobs.

“I know, I know, but it’s going to be alright.” Colt looked around just to be sure, stroking her back “Nothing’s coming. We’re safe.” she looked to the cans and her eyes widen before letting out a short chuff of a chuckle, “But… hey, look.”

Milly turned her head a little out of Colt’s chest to look where Colt had. One can had been knocked off its perch. She straightened up with a little squeak, her big Disney-esque eyes blinking in surprise. Colt could not help but smirk with a husky chuckle.

“I hit it?” She stood up excitedly.

“Yup.” Colt nodded with a smirk. “You did.”

“Wow…” The wonder in Milly’s voice only warmed Colt more as she let out a little sigh, “But… the noise, it’s scary.” To the veteran’s shock, Milly stooped down to pick the gun back up. Colt squatted next to her in a flash as Milly repeated what she had been told.

“Yeah. But you’ll get used to it.” Colt assured her, “You… learn how to cope with these things.”

“Is that why you’re so brave?”

She asked that with such certainty that it caught Colt off guard.

“...I’m not brave.” Colt sighed as she watched Milly try to aim, “I’ve just learned to cope. Everyone has. Look,” she put her arm back around Milly’s shoulder and the small girl looked at her with big eyes. She let out a small sigh before speaking again, “The world’s a scary place. Especially now.”

“Because there are monsters.”

“Yeah. Monsters.” Colt sighs, “And it’s going to stay that way. I don’t know what is going to happen. But you’ll get used to it. And I know this much, you’ve got us. You’ve got Leliana and Beth, you’ve got Hector, Owen and Aubrey. And they’ll keep you safe as best they can.”

“And you.” The bluntness of that statement caught her off guard and Colt took a second to respond.

“Sure. You’ve got me.” She shook her head and straightened up, giving Milly the gun back, “Right. You know how it sounds and feels now. Try again. And keep your eyes up. Look where you want the bullet to go.” She noticed the small girl still seemed to be anxious and thought for a moment when an idea popped into her head. "Hey, have you ever ridden a horse before?"

"No." Milly spoke bluntly but Colt paid no mind.

"When we're done, would you like to come with me? I was going to take Arthur for a small ride around the parameter on a patrol. I'll let you ride him."

"Really?!" Milly chirpped happily, her pale cheeks flushing in excitement, "Can we go now?" Colt shook her head a little, a smirk still on her face.

"Y'know what? Sure, let's go."

"Yay! I've never ridden a horse before, is it fun?"

"...It's one of the best feelings in the world."

"Really?"

"Really really."

Mentions: Maj FireMaiden shadowz1995 Corgi

 

[Maj]

Part 2 of 4​

March 14th, 2010
2:12 PM
Freeman Medical Center


“Does your family have any history of migraines?” The doctor asked the redhead girl on the examination table. She kicked her feet nervously against the metal of it, dangling off the end as she sat. Her red hair hung down in loose curls around her round face, emerald eyes thoughtful.

“I don’t think so,” Andy answered without looking up at him.

“Her father complained of them a few times, but I’m not sure how serious they were,” her mother answered after. Andrea Jordan perked up at this, looking over at her mother as she spoke. The blonde woman sat across the room in a generic-looking chair. She had picked Andy up from school right after work, still dressed in the navy colored scrubs that were her uniform. Delicate hands were folded over the almost comically large purse in her lap, blue eyes fixated on the doctor as she spoke.

“Well, we will have to wait until the tests come back to know for sure if that is what is going on. But in the meantime, we can give her some medication that should help break through the headaches. If she starts having them more frequently or if they are accompanied by any other more worrying symptoms like dizziness or fever or anything give us a call.” He scribbled something down on a pad of paper and handed it over to her mother who placed it in her wallet. She thanked the doctor and nodded for Andy to follow her out of the room.

Andy wasn’t listening as her mother chatted with the nurse at the checkout desk. Her mind was fixated on that small piece of information her mother had given earlier. Andy knew exactly three things about her father. He was alive, her mother was convinced they were better off without him, and that he sometimes complained of migraines. That was it.

Back in the car, Mary Jordan tried to converse with her daughter. However, Andy was too busy thinking and gazing out the passenger side window to respond. That elicited a few quick glances from the road over to the redhead teenager before she finally spoke up.

“What’s on your mind kiddo?” she asked.

“Huh?” Andy asked dumbly coming back to her senses and pulling her head off the window to look up. Fog showed an almost perfect print of the side of her face where it had been resting previously. “Oh, nothing.” she lied.

“You are too smart to be a space case for no reason, what's up?” she asked again. It was clear her mother wasn’t going to let this go. Andy sighed and straightened up, thinking carefully about her next words.

“Shouldn’t I know more about my dad?” the redhead asked finally. Mary seemed shocked at this response, her mouth opening a few times to speak and then closing without saying anything. Andy could see her mother visibly tense up at the mention of him. This was always the case, eventually she and her brother had learned not to bring him up at all.

“We’ve gone over this before Andy. He’s not a good person and we are all better off without him.” Her voice was soft but controlled as she spoke, sapphire eyes fixated on the road ahead. “I understand the curiosity. It’s only natural for you guys to want to know more but I need you to trust me on this. The less you know about this, the better.”

“What if I get really sick, or Owen? We don’t know anything about him or his side of the family. What if we have some sort of awful disease that runs on our father's side and we know nothing about it.”

“I don’t have that information either Andy, I’m in the dark as you are.”

“Right, so shouldn’t we know someone on that side? Someone we can ask those kinds of-”

“No,” her mother interrupted.

“Maybe he’s different now, you know? People can change-”

“No,” Mary interrupted a second time.

“I’m just saying, maybe just a phone call or-”

“No.” Firmer this time.

“Maybe you could just tell me his name-”

“Andy enough!”

Andy looked at her mother, shocked but did not press the matter further. In her sixteen years of life, there had been seldom times Mary had ever yelled at her children and never so ferociously. The red-headed teen sat in silence, looking back out the window while her mother drove. Finally, the nurse broke the silence.

"I know you are curious, but trust me. It is far better if you don't know."

"Okay," Andy agreed softly.

---

November 23, 2018
9:37 am
Andy's Perch

"And that should have been the end of it," Andrea explained to her brother. "But it wasn't. I don't know if it should be chalked up to rebellious teenage behavior or just natural curiosity, but I couldn't leave it alone. Turns out a lot of things are public record. You can literally go down to any courthouse and find information on people. Turns out mom had a restraining order, one that was put in place about the same time we were born. It didn't have much information as to why except that it was about some sort of domestic dispute case. At any rate, once I knew his name was Liam James, he really wasn't that hard to find."

 

[RayPurchase]

Fight or Flight? (Part 1)
Andy and Aaron​

November 24th, 2018
7:22 AM
The Lodge

Andy was dressed already. It seemed without as much night life to occupy her time and far more physical intensive labor she found herself going to sleep earlier and waking up earlier more naturally. It could be without as many lights her circadian rhythm was resetting, or it could be that she was less likely to stay up till 4am binge drinking. At any rate, by the time she went out the front door and to the shed, the redhead was already suited up for a day of work. There was plenty around the lodge that needed to be done and that was easier to focus on than the alternative.

“Aaron!” She called into the open door. Her shed and worktable had become a sort of makeshift garage for her new friend. She didn’t mind. In fact, the girl was just glad that she had some tools and a place for him to be able to use his talents for the lodge. The huntress leaned against the door frame with her uninjured shoulder and sipped her coffee, waiting for the mechanic to pull his head out of whatever motor he was currently buried in.

Aaron’s head emerged from the confines of the wrecked Camaro that now occupied the workshop. He could have had a month of sundays, a full team working under him and a fully supplied workshop, and the situation would still have been the same. The Camaro was dead. The bodywork had enough problems going on, but with enough buffing, elbow grease and a respray they could make something of it. But the internal workings? Electrics were shot and in several hundred pieces. Most of the fuel and coolant pipes were ruptured, and a whole load of that was in the parts of the engine you really wanted to keep it away from. So the best he could do was salvage what he could. The fan belt was still mercifully in one piece, and a handful of spark plugs had managed to survive being pulverised into oblivion. But that’s all he’d found so far, and so the relatively modest pile of reusable parts were very much outstripped by the growing pile of scrap on the other side of the Camaro. As such the emergence of Andy was a good distraction, and he’d been in need of some of them recently. His head still ached from that wonderful Thanksgiving visit to the circus, and while the docs were telling him it would be best to take it easy and stay somewhere dark and quiet, his head was going to keep on throbbing regardless, best to do something to at least take his mind off of it, even if this sort of early morning starts could be considered obsessive.

Gingerly stepping out of largely stripped out interior of the bonnet of the Camero, Aaron raised an oil stained hand in her direction. “Mornin’ Andy, doin’ the coffee run I see, I’ll take mine black and burn, no sugar I’m sweet enough,” He grinned and chucked a cracked pipe into the pile. “How’s the shoulder holdin’ up”

As if on cue, the girl held out her other hand with a cup of steaming beverage, holding it out to Aaron. She had grabbed him one on her way out, figuring that if nothing else the warm cup would probably feel nice against his icy hands. It was black, she had a sense for these kinds of things. People like her and Aaron tended to want to get their caffeine down with as little resistance as possible.

“He’ll be sad we have to scrap it,” Andy said, nodding toward the pile of parts that was once her brother’s car. “He loved that car, although I guess it has always sort of been a hunk of junk.” She exhaled out of her nostrils in a slight laugh. “I’ve had to come pick him up off the side of a road because it broke down on him more than a few times. I appreciate you looking at it.”

Nodding his head thoroughly as he sipped at the coffee, Aaron patted a hand on the frame. “She’s got good bones I’ll give her that. I mean if you or your brother want we can always salvage the frame. It’ll be a tough rebuild, but we’ll have somethin’ to work on,”

“She was always a project car for him anway,” the redhead said with a nod. “I’m sure Owen would appreciate that, but you’ll have to ask him yourself.” The girl stood awkwardly in the doorway for a few moments, watching the texan work and sipping her coffee. She had come here for a reason, and there was no reason ultimately to be nervous about asking Aaron about his area of expertise. After a moment, the girl parted her lips to speak.

“So I know we don’t have much in the way of working vehicles,” the redhead began. “But could you give me the rundown of what we do have?”

Aaron grimaced, unable to hide his reaction to the state of affairs. “Workin’ vehicles, yeah that’s the tricky part. Obviously we’ve got the Humvee, couple of dents from our grand day out, but other than that she’s still hummin’. One RV that’s runnin’ fine, if I really had the time, tools and resources I’d like to give her a full service, but that’s me just being picky. Then we’ve got the other RV that got knocked over, that’s still lyin’ out there for now, shiftin’ it back the right way up ain’t goin’ to a grand time for anyone involved. The good news is that what I can tell, aside from none of the tires touchin’ the ground, most of the damage is superficial, should know for sure once she’s the right way up but I’m hopeful,”

He took a pause sipping more of the coffee and catching his breath once again. “Then of course we’ve got the U-Haul, once again no real problems of note there aside from a little wear and tear. Then we’ve got Ralph’s car which he’s squirelled away somewhere, you’ll have to ask him about that I haven’t had a chance to take a look over it. And then last, and very much least we have the old Camaro here,” Aaron slapped his hand against the battered frame of the car he himself was leaning against.

“So yeah if you’re lookin’ for showroom quality I’m afraid you’re straight out of luck. Planning a run or just takin’ stock? Cause if it’s the first then I’m goin’ to have to take a rain check for at least a week, Leli would string me up by my ankles if she found out I was workin’ this mornin’ let alone goin’ out there,”

Andy laughed. She knew the feeling. Between going around and checking on things, doing her best to assist with the lodge repairs, training with Colt and the like she hadn’t been kind to her shoulder. She had done her best of course to baby it, but she knew that ultimately she was slowing down the healing process by refusing to rest. There were things that seemed more important to her in the moment. Hector and the blonde nurse both would likely have a fit if they knew all she had been up to.

“Believe me, I’m not real keen on leaving after our last little outing,” the girl shook her head. “I am mostly just taking stock I suppose. Against my better judgement I’ve ended up sort of in charge?” The last part came out as a question, Luca had mentioned as much to her and she had sort of fell into the role. People seemed to come to her with questions and seeking advice and the whole thing felt more natural than she cared to admit. But it was still foreign to her. She had some sort of vague leadership experience. The girl had worked as a teaching assistant in college and had coached the archery division of the track team. However, that didn’t hold a candle to Aaron or Colt’s military training or the fact that Luca had been in charge of a whole mafia.

“I’m not sure why you guys thought the twenty something girl with an attitude problem was the best choice, but I’m all in favor of democracy.” There was something akin to teasing to her tone before she softened again, considering their position. She had felt out of sorts for days, no matter who she was talking with. Andy wasn’t sure how much of her family drama the people of the lodge had witnessed, or even inferred on their own with the information. She had gone from no one knowing about her past to at least a few knowing and a lot more assuming all over night. She liked Aaron, more than she had expected and more than she cared to admit.

Well when you put it that way that was a hell of a lot of weight on one person’s shoulders. Especially someone who on paper wasn’t exactly the natural apocalypse leader. Sometimes Aaron pondered why someone like Colt, who had the military expertise and had been here long enough, hadn’t just assumed control. Or that Luca fella, the rod of iron who he’d perhaps spent 5 minutes talking with. It would have been easy to simply say it was Andy’s place and her rules, and so it just sort of spawned from that. But that wasn’t strictly true though was it? She was the one who had held this band of misfits through the collapse of Aurora and was keeping them alive in this pocket of barbarism.

“I mean if you really want to go down the martial law route then I can always break out my khakis and get some sort of hierarchy sorted with Colt. Then again I ain’t an officer for a reason, they pay me to move stuff from point A to point B, fix that, shoot them. You keep on doin’ what you’re doin’ and don’t go overthinkin’ it. I would be rottin’ in that circus if it wasn’t for you, so I won’t hear nothin’ more about it,” He gave a final nod of his head, and took a sip of his coffee.

(Collab with Maj )

 

[Maj]

FIGHT OR FLIGHT
​

[Font=Kameron[COLOR=rgb(247, 218, 100)]][/COLOR]
“Thanks,” Andy smirked. She was alive thanks to him as well, but she decided it was best to just take the compliment. The girl had managed to do better than she thought she would and for some reason when they were under fire she tended to be the one with a plan. He was right, she would just continue to do what she had been doing. .

“So everything we have, aside from maybe Ralph’s car is a large clunky vehicle that guzzles gas? Not great for a quick get away if we need one.” The huntress took another long sip from her coffee mug, steam coming from her nose as she swallowed hard. “Maybe I do need to go on a quick run into town. Just to grab a few smaller vehicles. Do we have anything we could attach to the u-haul I could use to tow them back?”


Aaron lowered his mug for a moment, his eyes narrowing “Careful now, you callin’ my old girl clunky? Walkin’ a dangerous line there Red, callin’ out a guy’s gal like that,” He only managed to hold the narrowed eyes and pursed lips for a moment before letting out a snort of laughter. “I’m shittin’ with ya, that girl has got a fine set of bones, but slight she ain’t. So yeah if you’re after somethin’ nippy you’re going to need the Doc’s car. U-Haul should definitely have the power to shift a car as long as it’s all rigged up correctly. Whatever you bring back I’ll be happy to run an eye over it, try and replace anythin’ that’s given up the ghost or is bein’ held together by prayer alone,”



“I didn’t mean to insult your girlfriend,” Andy said with a roll of her eyes, but the corners of her lips were turned upwards. She paused, thoughtfully looking at the ground as she digested what Aaron had told her. Leaning against the wall of the shed for support, she crossed her ankles and nodded.

“Yeah, we are going to need something more nimble in the event we need a quick getaway,” she mused aloud. “I think it would be pretty easy to catch up with a uhaul or the RV. I think I should be able to manage an in and out run. There should be abandoned cars in one piece everywhere, I wouldn’t even have to go too far.”

“We’ll need a couple of them mind you to get everyone out in the event of gettin’ the hell out of Dodge,” Aaron paused for a moment, holding the mug halfway to his mouth, the small amount of steam still emanating from it wafting by in front of his eyes. “This quick getaway idea Andy. This a just in case scenario, or is this more of a personal plan of action?”

The girl balked at first, as if the accusation was ridiculous, but quickly softened. She used her arms to lift herself up onto the worktable and sat amongst the tools, leaving her coffee cup next to a pile of arrowheads. A heavy sigh came from her nostrils as she crossed her arms over her chest protectively.

"I don't…" she began and then closed her lips as she fought with how to explain her situation.

"I don't know, honestly."

Poor gal, Aaron thought to himself. He wondered sometimes whether the Red he knew was the real Andy. The one who had been living a mostly carefree life before her world was shattered. Here she was in her increasingly ruined home, filled with waiths, strays, and those who just didn’t know where else to go at this point. That was a lot of pressure, a pressure he was glad not to have had to deal with. To run away from it all, must seem like a real easy, and real tempting way out. Aaron sighed and moved away from the car, propping himself up next to the worktable.

“I mean I wouldn’t blame you. Hell some days I wake up, take a look over the sun risin’ over the tree tops and think to myself, yeah I could just go. Get in the Humvee, slip out whilst everyone else is still sleepin’. Just me to worry about, no commitments, no obligations, sounds pretty sweet eh?”

He shook his head, answering his own questions as he turned his head, looking towards the door of the garage.

“Did that stretch by myself when all this kicked off, over a month of just me and my thoughts, and I’ll tell you what, you quickly become your own worst enemy there, every worry and fear turnin’ against you, and the only friendly face you can hope for is your reflection in the mirror. You’re strong Andy, damn strong. All this. This is your doin’. You could have run and hide, but you said no, you put your foot down and said, this is my home, my life, and people. We all have moments of weakness, that moment our demons are scratchin’ at the door. But you ain’t alone in it, ours here is a collective strength. You ain’t in this alone,”

"People keep saying that," she let out a laugh that sounded almost watery. Her face was pointed downward so he couldn't see the tears well up in her eyes. It seemed like all her eyes did lately was leak. Had her sudden reunion with her birth father really changed her so much? Softened her so quickly that she was just a weepy mess now? No. Maybe she was shaken now, maybe walls she had fought to keep her whole life had been torn down against her will, but it was also a sense of comfortability that had been built with the people in the lodge. For the first time in her young life, Andy felt she could be herself. It was terrifying and it had happened so naturally and quickly that the girl hadn't even realized it had until it was staring her in the face.

"I'm scared." Her voice broke through several lulls of silence. It was soft in her vulnerability. "That man," she tilted her head in thought before correcting herself. "My father scares me more than any of this. More than the undead, more than being responsible for countless lives, more than fighting a lion. All I want to do is run, but something keeps me here anyway. a sense of duty or responsibility maybe? Maybe the logic that there is more safety in numbers. Or maybe," she sniffed, "it's just selfishness."

Andy didn't want to be alone. She hadn't been since all this started. Solitude had been something she revealed in before, but now the idea of it didn't bring the same comfort. She didn't know what her dad wanted, she didn't know if he was coming back or of he really had happened upon them by accident. But if he wanted to come here for her, she couldn't shake the feeling that by being her she was doing more harm than good. Aaron was right, as was Hector and everyone else that had assured her that she wasn't alone. For some reason, she believed these people would fight for her. But at what cost? Who would they lose because of it?

"But I guess at the end of the day it doesn't matter why I haven't left. I think if I was going to, I would have. I just don't want us to have our backs against the wall. No matter how much I love my home, the time is coming that we will have to abandon it I think. I want us to be ready when the time comes."

“Backs against the wall? Nah, we’re holdin’ all the cards red. Cause we’re alive, and we’re fighters. Not warriors mind you, fighters, and that’s a damn sight better, we know what we’ve all got here, and we’re goin’ to hand onto it. And we’re not goin’ to abandon this place, never goin’ to do that. Instead we’re just… movin’ on to fresher pastures. There’ll still be the memories of this old place. And those you can’t abandon. Those stick with you forever.” Aaron’s eyes now settled on the light coming in through those doors. Looking past them to somewhere much further away.

“Never told you about my place back home have I? 1300 acres of rollin’ plains, 160 heads of cattle, and was just the 5 of us, Ma, Pa and my brothers. They’re probably still there, wonderin’ where the hell I am, I guess my MIA status has filtered home. Would be havin’ breakfast around now, I can almost smell it, if I close my eyes and listen, can just about here her callin’ us to the house. The slight burnin’ smell of the eggs, god I love that woman, but she can’t cook eggs for shit. Can’t stand them, but there they were each and every mornin’. And right now I’d give my left leg for a plate of them right now.”

Aaron let out a sigh, and opened his eyes, having fluttered shut as he was speaking. The image fading as quickly as it came, like the dust in the sunlit air.

“And just like I’m goin’ to get back there one day, you’ll get to return here, and all of this will be like some god awful fever dream, it’ll leave its marks, that’s for sure, but those marks will fade away till they’re just a distant memory. Just got to stay on the path, the old straight and narrow. It’s a bastard to walk, but my god we’re all walkin’ it together, chaos to the left, madness to the right, but we keep on walkin’ and we keep our heads held high,”

Aaron fell silent for a few moments. The silence only punctuated by the scant noise of distant bird song. It was interrupted by a deep chuckle from Aaron, and he raised his head, the light catching his eyes and the moisture glistening within them, not yet rolling down his cheeks.

“God damn Red, turns out those waterworks of yours are infectious. Can’t go tellin’ anyone about this, I’ll lose that hardman image I’ve spent so long buildin’ up,”

She didn't speak while Aaron did, instead only let him fill the silence and gave him and the story of his home the respect it deserved. When he finished she let out a laugh and gave him a rare, genuine Andy smile.

"I'm not telling anyone!" The girl finally lifted the coffee mug back to her lips, rubbing her eyes on the back of her sleeves. "If I blab they are going to know about me being a little bitch too. Your secret is my secret now. None of this will leave the shed, of that you have my word." The redhead slid down off the table and gave Aaron an affectionate pat on the shoulder.

"Thanks Aaron. For a dude with Mechanophilia you are pretty alright."

Aaron smirked at her, shrugging his shoulders. “What can I say, machines keep their secrets pretty damn well. But I trust you Red no fear about that. And remember you feel like runnin’ off or that the whole world is crumblin’ around you, the shed is always open, mostly because of the smell mind you. But as long as you keep on bringin’ me coffee, I’ll keep on listenin’.”

“Deal,” the redhead replied.

Collab: RayPurchase
[/Font]

 

[Rumble Fish]

November 25, 2018
The Lodge
Part 1
This is a collab between myself and Maj ​

The frost crunched in a rhythm as Arthur ambled his way over the uneven ground of the woods back into the open area where the Lodge stood. He huffed and shook his mane out, sending frost droplets flying. He was relieved that they were walking, the weight of both his rider and the game slung behind his saddle was harder to balance. Colt knew this enough to simply give the horse his head and let him take the lead. Reaching the back of the building, everybody seemed to be inside and busy.

“Woooah.” She hummed as she gently squeezed the reins. Arthur stopped instantly and dropped his head to graze. Kicking her feet from the stirrups, the veteran dismounted. Releasing a groan she stretched out her arms, feeling a pop in her back. She had been in that saddle for the last couple of hours and everything was stiff and sore. “Good one, huh?” She asked the horse, leaving a pause as if he was somehow going to answer, “You’re better about guns than I thought you’d be.” She smirked as the horse sneezed in her direction, wrinkling his muzzle at her.

“Oh yeah?” She said with a smirk and a chuckle, “C’mon ya big ugly bastard say that to my face!” She approached him with mock anger, making the beckoning motion with her finger. Arthur flicked his head and heels. The veteran chuckled, “C’mere ya-!” she made for a grab for the reins but he pulled away. His relaxed posture and erect ears told her he knew this was a game. And he loved this game.

Andy watched her return from inside the lodge. It pained her to be unable to hunt. It was one of the few things she knew she was truly gifted at and knew she could do for the lodge better than anyone, and also because it was one of the limited things in the world that put her frazzled mind back at ease. She was, however, thankful that Colt was gifted enough to pick up her slack while her shoulder healed.

When the woman climbed down off the horse, Andy exited the lodge and headed across the yard to meet her. Her normal leather jacket was replaced with a baggy sweater to give the bandages on her shoulder more room to breath and less fabric to irritate them.

"How did you fair?" Andy asked in the way of greeting, nodding up to the load of game on the back of her steed.

“You’re not supposed to laugh while I’m beating you up!” Colt growled playfully as she now had Arthur in a play-headlock and the horse was lifting his lips to try and nibble her jacket, showing his teeth. The sound of the door opening caught his attention as Arthur yanked his head free, his nostrils flared, ears erect and eyes wide as he noticed someone step out. Colt looked around Arthur’s form to spot the redhead making her way over. The veteran blinked and took a second before she answered. There were… a lot of thoughts running through her head.

“Pretty good.” She turned to the game on Arthur’s back. “Got this doe and a couple of ducks down at the stream.” She ran a hand down Arthur’s neck as the horse seemed to relax and was now craning his neck towards Andy, intending to give her a once over with his velvet nose to determine whether this was a new friend or something to run like hell from. Colt rubbed the back of her neck; a feeling of dull worry began to swirl in her stomach.

“How’re you holding up?” she asked the redhead, scratching Arthur’s withers. She knew how Andy felt about hunting so kept quiet about that; she doubted she wanted verbal sympathy.

"Oh you know," she said absently. "Useless and vaguely in pain." She shrugged her shoulder and it caused her to wince as if to prove the point. "I can at least help you dress those down. That doesn't take too much shoulder work." She pulled her knife from it's usual spot in her boot. It was still sheathed, the old cracked leather keeping the blade concealed and not to alert the horse.

"I actually wanted to talk to you anyway. I know we were working on some shooting lessons before you left. With my bow busted and my shoulder more so, I'd like to take another crack at it. Do you have some time later?"

“Hm.” Colt hummed, “I know that feeling.” The vet nodded at the woman’s offer to help her with the game. While she would rather not admit it, Colt knew she was not the best at that aspect. That was her father’s field of expertise. She took her flask out from her pocket but looked back up as Andy requested more lessons with guns. Her fingers drummed against the flask in thought. She had shown Milly the basics, and the others but… the last proper lesson she gave resulted in- Colt looked around frantically, almost picturing the Things charging at her. The flash left her eyes as she turned back to Andy.

“Uh… I have time right now, I just gotta untack Arthur.” She finally spoke, “You sure you’re okay with your shoulder?” She added, taking an anxious jolt from the flask. Almost instantly, the veteran shook her head.

“No- fuck never mind,” She spluttered, “You wouldn’tve asked if…. Ugh.” She took another, longer drink. This was going fantastic already. Meanwhile the horse grazed a few feet away, his tail flicking lazily and totally oblivious to Colt’s anxiety. The veteran sighed and averted her gaze.

"Chill out," Andy said with a light laugh. "I'd be an asshole to get mad at you for asking. It's probably going to hurt, but the stitches are healed enough that a little bit of kick back should be okay. If not I'll take the Hector lecture later." Her mind went to the events of the other night and her father's sudden appearance. "It's better to be prepared to defend myself if I have to. I'd rather not shoot myself in the foot, literally."

She reached up to the back of the horse, careful to run her hand down his side to help keep him aware of her presence as she moved to help pull down the game. While she had never ridden one, Andy knew at least basic horse protocol.

"I'll get started on this and you take care of your boy," the redhead suggested. "We can meet back up when you are done."

“Okay…” Colt rubs the back of her neck as she takes one last drink before putting it back in her pockets, “Sounds good.” She gathered up Arthur’s reins and brought him close. She took her time to take off his saddle. His fur was ruffled and sweaty under the tack and steam rose from him. He turned his head to look at Andy as she took the game down from his back but did not respond; the best kind of response you could get from a horse.

Having untacked him, Colt took a dandy brush from the bag she had allocated to Arthur’s stuff and gave him a swift brush. Dust joined the wind as she swept. She turned around back to Andy, as he was still watching her.

“So, remind me again.” she started, “Where did we leave off?”

"We got through safety and some maintenance," the girl confirmed. She was kneeling on a tarp now, the metallic smell of blood thick in the air as her knife sliced up the belly of the deer like butter.

"I know how to shoot in the most basic sense. But for me," she smiled a bit cockily. "That's not good enough. I'm used to being a good shot. I just need to figure out how to translate my archery skills to guns. I've thought maybe a rifle might be easier and more natural, but probably not with my shoulder." The gun Colt had given her last time was in her bag just out of reach. It did make her feel a bit after to have it on her, even if she wasn't overly confident in using it.

“I’d be a fucking lier if I said a handgun was anything like a rifle.” Colt fished into her pocket to pull out a carrot for the horse, “But it has the same kind of discipline. I suppose the best we can do for now until your shoulder is better. Even a pistol can do a fuck ton of damage when shot right.” She held out the carrot chunk and let Arthur snuffle it up out of her hand. She turned back to Andy. Not many people had properly interacted with Arthur, not that she minded all that much but at the same time, if she wanted to keep him, she needed Andy’s approval the most. It was her lodge after all.

“Wanna feed him? Arthur doesn’t bite. As long as you keep your hand flat at least.” She offered, taking her flask out again. “No.” She said to Arthur, who had wiggled his muzzle in an attempt to grab it from her hand as she went to take a drink from it. But just before the end touched her lips, Colt paused. She really needed to try here. Sighing, she shoved it back in her pocket. Regardless, Arthur continued to shove her with his nose, possibly hoping she had carrots in that pocket; which she did but she was not about to let him know about that.

“I’m about elbow deep in deer blood at the moment,” the girl said with a laugh, wiggling her crimson dyed fingers at Colt. However, Andy actually did love horses and she did in fact want to feed the newcomer that the marine had brought back with her. “Let me finish this up and I’ll take you up on that.”

 

[Rumble Fish]

November 26th, 2018
The Lodge
Part 2
This is a collab between myself and Maj

“You know,” the redhead said as she stood in her familiar archery stance. “I still don’t really see how this helps me improve.” The girl had been practicing pulling the gun from the hip holster Colt had found for her for several hours. It was the same repetitive movement. A quick movement down to her hip, unlocking the gun and a smooth transition up to a proper hold on the handgun. Then she was told to dry fire the unloaded gun and replace it back in the holster. She had done this over and over and over again. Andy understood the need for proper stance. It was something she had drilled into many a student on her Archery team. But she wanted to practice actually firing the weapon to improve her aim, and she couldn’t do that without seeing where the bullet went.

“Because we don’t have enough bullets to fuck around with.” Colt grunted from the tree stump she sat cross-legged on like some kind of fuck-ugly buddha statue, holding her flask. “Besides, bullets are worthless if you can’t aim. If a Thing was to leap outta fuckin’ nowhere right now and ya can’t pull out it out, get in position, aim and then fire all within half a second, you’re fucked.” She sips from her flask in thought.

“Also; the rule of guns is,” Her chest puffed as a belch rolled from her mouth, “The first to draw wins. At least that’s what Pa told me at least and it’s worked well enough for me.”

“Fine,” the redhead growled in response and continued the motion. It was becoming easier now, that much was certain. Maybe it wasn’t as natural as the motion from quiver to bowstring, but she didn’t fumble with the straps any more and it had been at least an hour or two since she had fumbled so bad she had dropped the gun. She did her best to stay the course, practicing what Colt had showed her.

“So, have you talked to my brother yet?” the huntress asked, breaking the silence. She looked over at Colt knowingly. “He told me you guys had a fight. Since you didn’t come home right away it must have been pretty nasty.”

The once relaxed veteran felt her muscles stiffen at the redhead’s question. It had been a few days since she had been back and she hadn’t seen him. Not that she wanted to. It was hard enough being back here at all without having to revisit that. She sighed deeply from her chest as her lungs felt heavy from the thought.

“No.” she responded bluntly, looking towards the trees. She took a longer drink from the flask, keeping her eyes away from Andy, trying to see the horizon through the woods. She couldn’t afford for her head to spiral again. Not after that. “Yeah. It was… I guess you could say nasty.” The woman gulped and went into her bag. Pulling out a half bottle of red wine, she lifts it up to the sun to look at what she had written on the side with a sharpie. The urge to simply neck this whole bottle was intense. Instead, she turned her head to watch Arthur grazing about twenty feet away. She counted the black spots on his flank; she needed to push these thoughts out. Her eyes shifted subtly as she counted, wanting to be accurate.

“Sounds like you both had a time of it,” she said with a sad laugh, continuing her repetitions. “Still, you probably should try to at some point. I had to. Whatever happened between the two of you can’t be worse than me having to explain why I kept our dad a secret from him for almost a decade.”

Colt did not respond further than a grunt of agreement. Andy was right. This was nothing compared to what had happened… then why was she so troubled by it? Thinking about Owen only made the impulse to down this bottle even stronger. She would just have to bide her time. If Owen felt so bad about it, he could talk to Nile about it. If those two were much better friends than he and Colt had been, wouldn’t that fix everything? The woman’s face grimaced a little at the thought before she finally turned back to Andy.

“Better. Keep your eyes on target at all times.”

----
November 27th, 2018
The Lodge​

“The sight isn’t as reliable as it is with a gun,” Andy instructed as Colt held one of her spare bows. “Anchoring your bowstring is important because if it is the same each time, you can adjust your aim accordingly. Before you know it you don’t really aim at all. I’m sure you know the feeling.” The redhead did her best to demonstrate, but even pretending to pull a bow made her shoulder ache in ways that she was sure Hector would lecture her for later. She stood in perfect stance, shoulders squared above her wide hips. One arm was outstretched so perfectly that it was easy to imagine exactly where the bow would be in her clutch. The other was drawn back, fingers curled as if around a string, pressed firmly to her cheekbone.

“I always use the same spot under my eye to anchor my shot, but plenty of people use other things. It’s whatever feels comfortable, a spot you can find over and over again.” The huntress instructed.

An arrow soared at least Hector-height past the target, resulting in a long string of mumbled expletives from the scarred vet. Colt grumbled as she fumbled with the bow, drawing once again. This was getting on her nerves; she had such a skill for guns and could fire a round into a target with her eyes closed; but this? Colt stood still as she listened to Andy before attempting again. Pulling back by her wrist, predictably, the vet quickly lost her grip and released prematurely; the string slapping against her unscarred cheek.

“Aurgh! Fucking-!” Colt hissed as she felt the red line of skin sting, bring her hand to it. “Fuck me! This is much harder than they make it look in the fucking movies.”

“It is,” Andy replied with a light chuckle. “But you have a leg up already because you have naturally good aim. Just try and relax.” The redhead made her way over to the woman now that there was no arrow knocked that could potentially go wayward. She adjusted Colt’s arm, giving it some bend to keep the string from causing her harm and pushed her other arm down.

“You don’t aim with your eye so much as you would with guns,” she reiterated. “Really in archery you aim with your whole body. No matter how much it looks like that arrow is going to fly straight, if you core is off it’s just going to end up in the bushes. Try again.”

Colt flinched a little and her muscles tensed at Andy’s grip so it was an effort to relax like she had instructed. When Andy moved away, Colt absorbed her words and tried to keep her body in line with the bow. She took in several heavy breaths, hoping to steady her nerves. As she exhaled, Colt released the arrow. The arrow zipped through the air like a red kite, striking the tree with a dull thunk! Colt lowered her bow, blinking with surprise.

“I actually hit it?” she asked dumbly. "...Huh."

“See. Not so hard really, you just have to learn to sort of put away your gun knowledge and realize this is a totally different skill set. I struggled with that too when you first started training me.” The girl walked to the tree to retrieve the arrow, wiggling it free of the bark.

“Now lets see if you can do it again.”

“No guarantees. But I can try.” Colt takes the moment of respite to took a drink from her flask. She took in a deep breath for a sigh. Those thoughts were still not going away. She knew she’d have to face Owen sooner or later. But she did not know how.

As if reading the woman’s mind, Andy perked up. She was nothing if not empathetic. It was something of a surprising trait of hers, many didn’t notice it. It didn’t matter how mean she was, at the core Andy understood people and their emotions better than most. It was just a fact, it had been that way for as long as she could remember.

“Still haven’t talked to my brother, huh?” The redhead asked, with a knowing smirk. The veteran averted her eyes and gripped onto her flask tighter, proving her right, “You keep skulking around every time you think about it. It’s not hard to see you want to talk to him. You guys were kinda friendly, weren't you?” With a movement that had become more natural by the day, Andy pulled the gun out of her holster and pointed it at the same tree Colt had been shooting. The practice had done her some good and had made her far more comfortable with the weapon.

“Just do it. If it’s ugly, then it's ugly, but you aren’t going to feel better until you do.”

 

[shadowz1995]

A doctor and veteran walk into a bar


It was another still night. No signs of life outside of the grazing horse and bird cries. Colt had made her way down the steps, a shotgun in one hand and a bottle in the other. At this point in time, the veteran had settled on a routine. She would watch the night until the first glint of light, and then retreat to bed. The day started early for everyone, by then it was safe. Reaching the door to the porch, Colt was a little surprised to see the long-maned doctor already perched where she had planned to be.

Colt paused. Out of everyone in this community, Hector had been the one she spoke to the least. Outside of their one encounter not long after he came- the pair seemed to avoid one another. But the sight of his bruised shoulders beneath the thin tank top, and explicit hand marks around his neck prompted her to speak. Their other resident doctor had only briefly alluded to the events that had unfolded in her absence- she needed to know more. Shiona was dead, but that was all she knew. How did it happen? Who else was hurt? What led to David’s death and eventual turn? She cleared her throat to announce her presence.

“Dr. Salazar,” she greeted him, swinging the gun around her shoulders and across her back.

The doctor turned his head to the right, catching the visage of the lodge's military veteran. A barely touched glass of bourbon sat in the older gentleman's hands, the ice mostly melted already. Hector didn't drink. It was only on extremely rare occasions that he partook and even then, it was only a few sips. He was always against altering the brain's chemistry for things outside of medical purpose.

"Ms. Colt." He replied with a light rasp, the damage to his larynx still apparent. He returned his grey colored gaze back to the treeline. It was clear that his eye was scanning the forest but not for threats. Similar to how someone looks at a T.V. but doesn't watch the program.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" His Spanish lacquered voice asked.

The woman groaned as she sat down alongside the doctor, flask in hand and matching his gaze towards the trees. She watched the silhouette of Arthur grazing between some trees. He would become aware of any threat long before any human in the lodge, so it was worth a watch.

“Time for me to start my night shift.” The vet answered as she took a drink from her flask, “I don’t mind some company for once.” She added, continuing to watch. It got a little lonely out here sometimes with only the horse to talk to. After a moment of quiet, she turned to him.

“Something happened when I was gone.” She spoke bluntly, making a statement more than anything, “Ralph told me about Shiona but that’s it. I need to know; what happened with that tree-man?”

"If by tree-man you mean David, then I killed him." He said coldly. As if talking about the color of the horse ahead. "Something happened between him and Leliana. It caused the girl to have a panic attack. I was in charge of the lodge at the time and decided to escort him off of the premises after meeting. He refused, I threatened him at gunpoint and he took exception to that."

The veteran growled under her breath at this. So she had been right to not want him here. But rather than indulge in a personal touchdown dance, Colt took a sip from her flask and gave a blunt nod, inviting the doctor to continue.

Hector's single eye looked down to the drink in his hand as if it were poison before reluctantly taking a measured sip of the amber liquid.

"I shot him several times. He was dying. I decided it was the perfect time to gather data on a live host after death. Took him down to the cellar as he bled out. Disabled the jaw and started collecting samples as he died. Strapped him down after he expired and continued taking samples."

His bruised hand went to his neck and rubbed at the markings there absentmindedly, "I was unaware that the change could happen so quickly. My studies had suggested it could take between 30 minutes to several hours after clinical expiration. David started moving after 5. And he was also far different from the normal infected. Capable of running at full speed, prioritizing dangerous targets, stronger than before he turned, and even capable of defending key vital spots from damage."

He sighed as he recounted the events that took place at the lodge, "I was later informed that there have been cases of these 'deviant' infected cropping up sporadically. If I had known these facts, I would have taken different precautions. Apparently, no one deemed it necessary to inform me about this."

Colt stayed quiet throughout the rest of Hector’s monologue. Her eyes looked down to her feet. Her chest felt heavy and there was a shiver running up her spine from what she had just heard. She could only hope that something like this would never happen again; not on her watch. But that was grasping at straws- nothing was set in stone anymore. The woman looked back to Arthur who, by now had become aware of their presence, began to walk over, possibly hoping Colt had something tasty for him. She sipped from her flask.

“I... I’m sorry that happened to you all.” she spoke earnestly, “I wish I could’ve been here to do something about it. Was anyone else hurt?” She knew from her talk with Ralph, but the vet wanted details.

"The little Niña…. Milly, I believe her name was. She suffered some head trauma and an exposure to the virus but she has shown no changes thus far. Still monitoring her but she may have gotten lucky. I'm still studying exactly how the virus is passed on. Luca was injured as well but they were mild wounds. I was the one that ended up the most injured."

He paused at the thought of that, looking at his leg before adding, "Thankfully." Hector was aware it was only his well trained body that kept him alive through that ordeal. A weaker person wouldn't have gotten up from the first hit down in the cellar.

"Michael is the one who took it down while it was distracted with me. Decapitation."

Colt nodded, already aware of the fact about Michael. She sighed softly at the thought of them getting hurt. After a moment of silence, she opened her bottle she had brought down. Red wine; not typical of Colt but still. Besides, it tasted nice.

“I’m sorry you got hurt.” She said before turning to face the man fully, “But… Thank you, for keeping them safe. I’m eternally grateful.”

The man shook his head lightly, the waves of hair accentuating the movement, "No need for sympathy or gratitude. It was simply my responsibility."

“I know what you mean.” Colt nodded, “I feel responsible for them too. And… I should’ve just come back. I know it wouldn’t have done much but…” She sighed, not sure how else to continue. She took a drink from the bottle instead and held her hand out to Arthur who had finally made his way over, pushing his muzzle into her palm, wanting some affection.

The doctor cast a wary gaze on the large herbivorous creature, clearly not trusting the large steed very much. "Perhaps. There's no way of knowing for sure. We just have to be grateful we only had one casualty. It could have been a lot worse."

He took another swig from the bourbon and let out a long breath as the liquid flame went down his throat and warmed his chest. The condensation of his breath disappearing into the frigid, night air.

"We learn and do better next time. That's all anyone can expect."

Colt could only release a hum of agreement, her unscarred cheek already turning a light pink from the cold air coupled with the wine. She gave Arthur one last scratch behind his ear before the gelding took his leave back to the trees. She let out a long sigh, jets of steam puffing from her nostrils.

“It’s like when I was in Syria and Afghan.” She spoke, keeping her eyes on the horse in hopes that it would suppress whatever memories were likely to jump up and harass, “The goal outweighed the cost. If you died in an otherwise successful mission- that’d just be how it was.... Lost a lot of friends that way. Man I talked to just five minutes ago- now a smoking corpse in a crater. Say a quick ‘Our Father’ and move on.” She gripped the wine bottle tight, bringing it to her lips.

“Fuck…” she brought a hand to her face in annoyance, “What the fuck am I saying?” She then committed to the bottle.

"Nothing I haven't heard before, Ms. Colt. The amount of soldiers that came back from those countries mangled both mentally and physically were a dime a dozen. A story as old as war itself. Another drop of blood in the river that is human history." Hector replied with a light shrug, wincing immediately at the movement in his injured shoulder.

“Hmm…” Colt coughed from deep within her chest as some booze had gone down the wrong pipe, “Not going to lie. It feels, well, kinda good. Having someone understand that. If that makes any sense.” she could not expect anyone perhaps outside of Aaron to see eye-to-eye with her when it came to war.

"Naturally, Ms. Colt. After all, who do you think picks up the pieces when it's all said and done. Politicians make the decision, soldiers go out to follow their orders, and it's the medical staff back home that have to try and keep together what remains. For better or for worse, I do understand. It's my job to do so."

“Yeah well,” she drinks again. Already the vet was beginning to feel its effects so capped it shut. “Unlike those other soldiers, I’m a fucking idiot."

"You'd be surprised." The older male interrupted. "You're actually one of the brighter ones. I've had a vet tell me that he was convinced that the cure to his rheumatoid arthritis was to just play the drums more. He couldn't even make a fist properly."

“...What?” Colt blinked in confusion, releasing a snorted laugh, a rarity of the veteran. “Okay uh, maybe I’m not that much of an idiot. But still. Rather than be smart and look for help, I… Well, you know. Didn’t.”

"Many don't. Many just live with their demons until the end of their days. As a doctor, I recommend getting it taken care of in any way you can. Whatever makes you feel at peace. As long as it isn't…" His gaze flicked down to the bottle in her hand, "...detrimental to your health."

Colt sighed, knowing this had been coming. She looked at it before taking another drink from it.

“I’ve been trying to cut down but,” she sighed and stared ahead, “I’m worried.” the veteran admitted, “I mean…” she cut herself off.

"I'm not judging, Colt. Just cautioning that while you are young now and your body can handle it, it will catch up to you eventually. Your body is already limited. Try not to limit it further. If you can help it."

The doctor gestured to the lodge behind them, "The meds Owen brought in can help. If you need them. But take it at your own pace. It's already commendable that you're making an effort to cut back some and I'm always here if you feel you need to speak with a doctor about something. Free of charge thanks to this epidemic." He said with a short rumble in his chest. A light chuckle.

Colt nodded at what the doctor said, but as he mentioned the medication, the woman bristled a little and averted her gaze. Hector was right but, something about it simply did not feel right. Given how that day had gone and the road it took her down, she did not want to think about it.

“Thanks,” she cleared her throat a little, “I’ll, well, figure something out.”

"I know." He replied neutrally.

“Yup.” She takes another sip of wine, her eyes drawn to the man’s own glass, “What’s that you got?”

The Venezuelan looked down at the watered down drink in his hand with a combination or distaste and resentment. It didn't taste bad at all but the idea of it is what bothered him.

"Bourbon. We are going through pain medication too quickly for my liking so I've decided to take a measured amount of strong alcohol to dull the pain receptors for a few hours. Not enough to harm the organs and not enough to inhibit my functions."

“Hm. Guess we’re more alike than I initially thought. You’re still smarter than me.”

The pair allowed the silence to build once again, sharing the quietness of the night in just their physical company. During this time, with her mind wandering, Colt blinked as she became aware of the date. With a sigh and a sad smirk, she took another, much deeper swig- here’s to thirty fucking years on this dying rock.

Rumble Fish​

 

[Maj]

Unfinished Buisness​

November 26th
7:15 am
The Lodge

The stack of dishes had steadily gotten smaller and smaller over the past 30 minutes or so. It wasn't the most exciting task, but keeping things clean would help with morale and make sure that nothing...gross decided to make the lodge it's home. Housekeeping wasn't what Leliana expected her main job to be even during the end of the world. It's not that she minded though, it was a small way she could help everyone. With a sigh, she finished her hands off one final time and sat the last plate to the side, watching the sink drain for a few moments before grabbing a hand towel. She would put the dishes away later after letting them dry. Or...it was cold enough maybe the water would just freeze to them? It was a small conflict, one she decided to let go and instead, grabbed the nearby notebook and pencil. It was time to do inventory.

Soon after, a redhead stumbled out of the master bedroom. She was dressed, but clearly lacking the morning potion that brought her back to life. Andy had dark circles under her eyes but her hair was brushed and braided neatly down the side of her face. It was obvious she was a woman on a mission, with boots already on and a badly patched messenger bag across her body. Where she was off to was anyone's guess.

The woman made her way past Leliana without greeting, to the coffee pot that was already half empty. It was still fresh and hot however, which is all that mattered to the huntress. Three gulps in and she already appeared more alive and finally, her eyes settled on the blonde at the table.

"You busy today?" Was all she asked. They were overdue for a chat.

When Leliana heard another person, she turned a bit to look at Andy. She greeted the redhead with a small smile, not wanting to jump at her with conversation first thing. Anyway, as the other girl turned to get coffee, Leliana turned back to counting the number of canned goods they still had. She only looked away again when Andy spoke to her. "Oh umm, Milly might need some help, but Beth and Hector are still here...and the baby...but I don't have anything major to do today," Leliana spoke, listing off a few other things in her head she might have to do, but they weren't all of major importance. "But yeah, I'm free. What's up?"

"I need to go into town. In and out, nothing major. It's a fairly personal run but I figure we can snag whatever of use we can find on the way. It's stupid for anyone to go into the city alone if they can help it." She paused to take another sip of her drink, wincing as the hot, bitter beverage hit the back of her throat.

"I'm not pulling any bowstrings any time soon with this," she shrugged her injured shoulder in reference. "Wanna go and back me up?" Truth was she was getting more confident with a handgun by the day. Colt was doing a great job at training her, but Andy had a dual motive for asking the blonde to tag along.

"Oh umm...I don't mind going but wouldn't it make more sense to ask..." Leliana was going to suggest Colt or Aaron, or well...anyone who had more combat experience than herself. But everyone that came to mind was either injured or unavailable due to lodge repairs. "Nevermind, I'd be happy to go." It had been a while since she had left the lodge on a run, and as was normal now, Leliana was already dressed and armed. Of course, she would have to run upstairs to grab her backpack and bat, but they could leave right after that. "Let me grab a few things, and then we can leave whenever you're ready. Sound good?"

"Perfect," Andy agreed.

November 26th
10:30 am
Aurora Cemetery

Several hours later, Andy pulled the u-haul she had been driving to a stop. It was bulky, and they didn't need anything that large in the realm of supplies but the lodge was running low on working vehicles. The u-haul that had been brought back several runs before was among all they had left. Plus Aaron had hooked her up with a tow, and so if they found anything that looked like it ran, Andy could bring it back. They needed cars that guzzled less gas anyway.
She hadn't really told Leli where she was going, but it was clear now. They were parked just outside the cemetery.

The gates stood strong and tall, almost untouched looking compared to the rest of the ransacked and looted town. Andy supposed that it made sense. During a pandemic that caused the dead to reanimate, she could hardly blame people for steering clear of the cemetery.

The flowers that had been left by loved ones were all wilted and fluttering away in the wind. Icy tombstones and frozen ground was all that seemed to await them. The redhead jumped down from the vehicle with a soft thud to the ground.

"We're here."

Leliana sat in the passenger seat, mostly in silence. There wasn't any tension between the two of them, but Leliana didn't know what to talk about. She already knew about what happened at the lodge, and the archer probably wasn't too keen on sharing details about the circus. Briefly, Leliana was going to ask if she was okay but...had decided against that as well. There wasn't tension between them and Leliana didn't want to push and create any. So, as they pulled up to the cemetery, Leliana had many questions with no answers. After Andy had gotten out of the truck, Leliana followed suit. She didn't land as gracefully, stumbling a little but remaining on her feet. "So...what exactly are we doing here? I can't imagine there's any good supplies here." Leliana asked as she rounded the truck to Andy's side, looking over the rows and rows of tombstones. It was...a little sad honestly. None of them were going to be visited again.

"Like I said," the redhead began as she adjusted her bag over her shoulder. "This was a fairly personal run. My uncle is here." It was odd, but the urge to visit him had been strong over the last few days. Likely it had to do with seeing her father again. Maybe Andy felt it prudent to pay homage to the only real father figure she had ever known.

"We were really close. He passed a few months ago. Pancreatic cancer." The redhead sighed as she made her way to the front gate, holding it open for the blonde. "He's who left me the lodge. Taught me to hunt. He was there for us and our mother when she fled to Aurora eight months pregnant with us. I was still trying to figure out how to get over losing him when all this shit started pouring down." The girl let out a bitter laugh. "Although I guess now I'm just glad he didn't have to see any of this."

Leliana nodded. She hadn't forgotten what Andy had said, but visiting a grave was honestly the last thing she had expected. She stayed silent as Andy spoke, Leliana making her way into the cemetery as The redhead held the gate open. "I'm sorry. He sounds like a good man." Leliana never had any true father figures in her life, but she never really...wanted one. It was an odd situation. But she was never short of role models. Her grandma was buried out here somewhere, but Leliana couldn't remember where exactly. It had been year's since she had last visited. "You mentioned he built the lodge right? He did a great job. I'm also sorry it keeps getting...broken."

"All things break eventually," the redhead sighed. It was more true than she wanted to admit. Their time in her family home was drawing to a close. That much was certain. Luca had known it, and maybe if she hadn't been so stubborn about it she would have known it before now. But it was undeniable. If they were going to continue to survive, they needed sturdier walls and more space.

"It's not your fault," she assured her. "I don't blame any of you. As weird as it is to admit and as uncomfortable as it was in the beginning, I think ultimately it was good to bring life back to the place. It had been mostly abandoned except for me for a while." She walked the rows of graves as she spoke, glancing idly at them as they passed. Following memorized visual markers Andy finally led the pair to a simple tombstone that read "Jacob Jordan."

Andy smiled as she knelt beside the grave. It was a soft and sad sort of thing, almost jarring on her normally stoic face. Her hands went to the ground dusting away the stray dirt and old flowers that had been left, likely by her mother. She didn't have any flowers to give this time, but the girl busied herself putting down the items she had brought. A few sketches, the deer antlers that Aderyn had accidentally broken off the wall, and a picture of the twins, their mother, and her uncle sitting around the old fireplace.

"Hey old man," she greeted softly.

Collab: FireMaiden
Mentions: Rumble Fish RayPurchase shadowz1995

 

[Maj]

All Becomes Clear
Andy and Owen Part 2
​

November 23, 2018
9:37 am
Andy's Perch

Owen sat in silence and waited for his sister to continue. True to his word he hadn’t interrupted her once during the beginning of her tale. He already had so many questions, but she had made it clear that if he derailed her that she may never make it to the end of this story. By the way she spoke, it was almost clear that she had practiced this many times. Her comment about having wanted to tell him about their dad for a long time suddenly rang even more true.

“I stalked him from afar for a long time,” Andy explained further, breaking the silence. “I wasn’t dumb enough to totally ignore all of mom’s vague warnings, but I was definitely intrigued. And more than a little stupid. It was clear he ran a somewhat shady life. Liam spent most of his time at some seedy biker bar, with a bunch of dudes that seemed even shadier. I never intended to meet him, but they eventually noticed the sixteen-year old girl sneaking around.”

--

April 22nd, 2010
5:12 PM
Outskirts of Aurora

“Yo Liam!” one of the burly men called to the redhead seated at the bar. He turned, a dopey intoxicated smile plastered on his stubble covered face. His expression turned to confusion as he noticed what the man was trying to call his attention to. Green eyes landed on the squirming form of a girl in his friend’s grasp, a giant hand tangled in the girl's hair as she tried desperately to get away from him.

Andy could smell the alcohol on his breath even from the difference in their heights. It was the closest she had ever been to her father, in truth closer than she had ever intended to get. However, when his friend had caught her looking in a window she had no choice but to reveal her identity.

“What do we have here Dan?” Liam asked, words a slur of mixed vowels through the haze of his beverage. However, from the bewildered look on the man’s face Andy could tell he already had an idea. He looked so much like them. They had the same shade of crimson hair, wavy and kinky in texture. Their emerald eyes held the same half-opened expression, although his was worse from the booze coursing through his veins. If her brother was ten years older they could have been twins themselves. With the same wide shoulders and burly frame, it was like looking at Owen as an adult.

“You tell me man,” Dan said with a laugh. “I found the girl creeping around outside, she says she’s your kid.”

“Is that right?” Liam laughed. “Well I’m sure I’ve made a bunch of little bastards in my time!” He said the last part louder, like he was saying it for someone else's benefit. The group around him cheered as if this was something to be celebrated, some jostling him and sloshing drinks onto the sticky, peanut shell-covered floor as they did so.

“You’ve got to be pretty damn stupid to come snooping around somewhere like this. It is obviously not a place for children…” Liam began.

“She looks more woman than child to me!” Someone interrupted from the crowd by the pool table. Andy blood started to run cold, her breath suddenly caught somewhere in her throat where she wasn’t sure if she wanted to inhale or throw up. The reality of the danger she could be in settled in around her like a damp blanket. The rest laughed and cheered at the man’s comment but Liam rolled his eyes and put up a hand to silence them. They obliged.

“What makes you so sure that I’m your father lass?” He asked. Andy stammered when addressed, fear pumping through her. She couldn’t get away, the man who had found her was still clutching her by her hair, deep at the scalp so all she could do was struggle uselessly. Her converse sneakers skid across the ground, held just high enough that she couldn’t quite get any traction. Everyone was staring at her. The man had taken her phone, so she couldn’t call the police, or even her mother or Owen at this point. She had no choice but to hope for this man’s mercy.

“So you are stupid and mute?” Liam asked, causing another roar of laughter. “Out with it lass.”

“Mary.” She finally managed to spit out her mother's name, voice cracking. Amusement fled from Liam’s reddened features. His emerald eyes grew hard as they stared back at her now, the bar silent.

“What the fuck did you just say?” he asked, icily.

“Mary Jordan,” Andy said again, this time with a little more conviction. “Mary Jordan is my mother.”

Liam slid down from his spot at the bar, stepping off the raised platform and closing the distance between them. Each step made Andy squirm uncomfortably in her captor’s grasp. When her father's large hand reached out to grab her chin, Andy tried to move from it but was unable to. She was forced to look up at him as he analyzed her face with more precision.

“And why should I believe you?”

“Why would I make that up? How would I even know the two of you were connected otherwise?” The girl asked. “I know nothing about your relationship,” she admitted. “Just that my mother left eight months pregnant with me and my brother. I’ve been trying to find you.” She couldn’t stop the flow of words once she got started. Andrea had a lifetime of things she wanted to say to him.

“I wanted to get to know you.”

Liam nodded up to his companion and he let her go. She didn’t fall despite the weakness in her knees. A shaky breath exited her lungs as relief came over her and she did her best to stand strong, finally face to face with her father.

“What is your name girl?” Liam asked, a bewildered smile turning the corners of his mouth.

“Andrea.” Her father went into a full grin, clutching her to him in an embrace. She didn’t move at first, shock freezing her. However, after a moment her own arms went up around his neck and returned the gesture.

November 23, 2018
9:37 am
Andy's Perch

Owen watched as his sister shifted uncomfortably. Her eyes seemed fixated on the floor now, like if she looked up to him that she would lose her conviction to continue. When she paused, he resisted the urge to ask her to go on. He watched as her shaking hands reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a lighter and a joint. Andy struggled to flick the plastic bic to life and he wordlessly reached out and helped her, much like Hector had the night before. She nodded thankfully and took the light from him, drawing a deep inhale off the rolled paper. His sister reached out and offered it to him but he shook his head.

“I went to see him fairly often after that,” she finally continued as the drug seemed to seep into her lungs and put her at ease. “I was a goddamn idiot, but I was just so glad to get to know him. He made me feel,” she rolled her hand at the wrist as she looked for the word. “Special I guess? It all sounds dumb now and I’d like to blame as much of it as I can on being an impressionable sixteen year old. He convinced me that if I told mom about our meetings that she would keep me from him. He was right of course, but that would have been better, I just couldn’t see it at the time. He also convinced me that you would tell mom if I let you in on what I was doing. You and mom were always so close and you never really questioned her reasoning for keeping him from us, so I believed that too. It all seemed so harmless at first. Fun even. He snuck me beers from the bar, we played pool. I went on rides with him on his motorcycle. I didn’t realize he was alienating me from anyone who could help me. Not until it was too late.”

Andy’s hand shook even worse when she took a second drag. No tears rolled down her face, but her green eyes were almost lime in color, bloodshot and waterlogged. She sniffed and shifted uncomfortably, leaning deeper into the walls of the perch like the wood might hold her up where she threatened to fall.

“He asked me to take him to mom one night. I’m not sure why I didn’t do it. I had done everything else he had asked of me. Liam claimed he just wanted to talk to her, to try to clear up a lot of the misconceptions of their break up. Something about it put me on edge though. Maybe it was how adamant mom had always been about how dangerous he was, the fear in her voice when I had pressured her about him. I’m not really sure but I told him that I would have to talk to her first, that I was happy to do so. I explained that I would talk to mom on his behalf, plead his case for him and get her to agree to meet with him, but that wasn’t enough. He kept pressuring me and when I wouldn’t budge, he tried to grab me and put me in his friend's car.” The more she spoke the more unstable her voice became. It cracked and pitched in different places, each pause for breath was met with another desperate drag from her joint.

“He changed so fast Owen. Like as soon as I was unable to give him exactly what he wanted that I was no longer worth all the kindness he had shown me. It was clear that this is what he had been after from the start. I knew if I got in the car that something bad was going to happen. I wasn’t sure what, but something just told me that I had to get away as fast as I could. I fought Owen. I tried, honestly I did. You have to know that I tried but….” Her voice faltered as he heard a sob fight its way to the surface, cutting through her speech and forcing her into silence. Owen waited for his sister to continue but she didn’t. Her eyes stayed in her lap, tears silently rolling down her face as her free hand clutched her mouth like she was trying to keep the sobs in by force. When she had come home she had been busted up nine ways to Sunday. Her arm was broken, fractures in her collar bone, bruising on her face and his mom had said elsewhere too when she had gotten a chance to get a good look at her.

“What did he do to you Andy?” he asked finally. Owen did his best to keep his voice soft as he addressed her for the first time since her story had begun. His sister only laughed. It was sarcastic and bitter and literally seemed to bubble through the tears that had consumed her. His eyes didn’t leave her as he tried to understand. His mind ran wild. She was lucky to be alive. At sixteen years old, she would have been so vulnerable. Against a group of grown men, so much could have gone wrong. A pretty young girl like her alone against them?

He felt his own tears start to burn at the corner of his eyes. Dread set in as he swallowed down the emotions for his sisters sake. Owen hoped to god he was wrong, but something in him screamed that he was right. It made everything fall into place. It made everything make sense. Every lie she had told him, every inconsistency, every argument they had over the last eight years. It connected everything together.

“Andy…” Owen choked. “He didn’t…” he paused. How in the world do you even ask such a vile question. Who in the right mind would do that, especially to their own daughter? However, if nothing else, his time working the streets of Aurora had taught him about the evilness that existed in people. There were people that would do that to a young girl. His voice cracked as he tried to ask again. “Did he…?”

Andy’s gaze shot up, chin trembling. Her eyes were hard and angry, but somehow so vulnerable. It broke Owen’s heart to see her. No wonder she had gotten so hard over the last eight years. It was easier to see her like that, than like this. She lifted the joint to her mouth again but her hands vibrated so violently that the smoldering paper dropped to the floor. As their gaze locked, his eyes begged her to tell him it wasn’t true. She wished she could. It was a kindness that she could no longer afford to give him. Andy had been protecting him from it for as long as she could, but found that she no longer had the strength to do so.

“I tried Owen,” she assured him. “I got away finally, but only after.”

“After what?” Her brother asked, almost pleading. His sister only smiled sadly, tears now rolling freely down her freckled face. She reached out and grabbed her brother's hand, gripping it tightly and letting her thumb trace the back of it. Her soft fingers traced every scar, callous and busted knuckle with affection she hadn’t shown him in almost a decade.

“After what?” he asked again, his voice breaking. Owen didn’t want to believe it. He wanted any other explanation, but none would come. Her gaze shifted back down to the floor, unable to keep his gaze any longer.

“Please don’t make me say it,” Andy said shakily. “Please.” He knew and for now, that would have to be enough.

 

[Rumble Fish]

November 25, 2018
The Lodge
Part 3

“Yeah… we were.” Colt sighed as she took another swig before watching Andy’s technique. Unfortunately there were no mistakes she could point out and therefore take her mind off of the current conversation. The woman took a moment. Her shoulders and chest were tight from anxiety. She hated feeling this way and she did want to talk to Owen. But... Finally she spoke.

“I… Just, the thought of doing that makes me feel like I’m gonna be sick.” She spoke honestly as she sat back down on the same large stump as yesterday, holding her flask in both hands. Where was Arthur? She needed him. After a second, she spotted the horse through the trees.

“Arthur!” She grabs a piece of celery from her pocket, “C’mere son! Come geddit!”

“Then just throw up on him,” Andy said with a scoff. “He probably deserves it.” After a moment she softened, re-securing the gun and standing with her arms across her chest. Her hip was popped to the side in a way that looked almost thoughtful.

“It’s not easy,” she agreed. “I hate talking to people in general, let alone about anything of value. But we have to do it anyway. For better or for worse this group seems to want to stick together. If we let shit come between us we are only setting ourselves up for failure. At least that's what I think.”

“I still don’t know…” Colt sighed as Arthur came strolling over. Getting up, she fed him the celery but kept her eyes down, not wanting to think about it, but there was no way she could ignore it anymore. Walking up, she took both of her arms and wrapped them around Arthur’s strong neck. The horse, as if knowing what was happening, stood still and calm. The veteran groaned.

“He… I just...” Her brows lowered the more she thought about it, and her grip on Arthur tightened, “Thank God I’m not responsible for anyone I suppose.” she added in a grumble, sarcasm layered over her words like ooblek.

“Ultimately we are all adults capable of making our own decisions. If anyone here wanted to just leave, they could. If you wanted to leave or if I did, there is literally nothing stopping us. You are responsible for the things you want and chose to be responsible for. If you want to carry the weight of the whole group on your solitary shoulders, then who am I to stop you?” Andy gave a roll of her eyes, but her face was soft. “I’d call you a moron, but I wouldn’t stop you. I think it’s easier if we all try to shoulder the load together, as stupid and cliche as that sounds. I can’t do this by myself. Luca can’t do this by himself, I don’t think any of us can.”

Though her arms stayed locked around Arthur’s neck, Colt turned to look at Andy as she began to speak. When she brought up how it would be stupid to take charge, the veteran finally released the equine from her death grip and began stroking his face. Arthur shut his eyes, enjoying the attention.

“...That’s the thing.” She took her time talking, “That is something I want. Or… I did. Do… I dunno how to feel about it anymore.” she stroked the back of his ear.

“I’m not saying you can’t be a leader Colt,” Andy rolled her eyes again. “You are far more capable than ninety percent of the people here, and one of the few people I trust in a fire fight. I’m just saying that none of us have the ability to do it alone.”

“Yeah…I mean, I shouldn’t say this but,” Colt agreed glumly, looking to her prosthetic leg and running her fingers down her charred skin. “When I was in charge at that time I was, well. Happy. I felt strong, I felt fulfilled. Like… I meant something. And I had a purpose.”

“Why shouldn’t you say that? Most people like to be in control, and you are a person who is likely used to being the one to give orders. I’m not saying you can’t do that anymore, I’m just saying we don’t get through this by having some dick measuring contest about who is the leader.”

“I never said we did.” Colt bristled a little as Andy seemed to echo what Owen had told her before, why did keep telling her that when that was not her point? ”I just.. It’s just how I feel.”

“We get through this by working together. I’m the poster child for reasons not to think you should throw yourself into solitude. I’m just saying that you are great at what you do, maybe you pop off now and then but so what. Luca is great at what he does. Owen, despite being far too rash for the taste of someone who loves him, is also great at what he does. No one can do what Hector can do. We don’t get through this by being martyrs or being headstrong. We get through this fucking murder pandemic by defering to others when things enter their area of expertise. There is safety in numbers,” she found herself quoting Luca but then amended it saying, “But there is also wisdom. The more people we have to back us up, the better we will be. Always.”

Colt listened to Andy as she moved over to lean against a tree, eyes still downcast, tapping her flask against her knuckles in thought. Everything the huntress said made complete sense, however, Colt looked up towards the trees, blinking furiously before tracking them back down to the ground.

“You might think that. I dunno about…” The woman let the back of her head rest against the bark, folding her arms in self comfort.

“Yes,” Andy agreed immediately. “We have some absolute morons among us. But even they serve a purpose. Do you know how to build a building from scratch? Because I sure as fuck don’t.” She sat on a nearby stump, letting her arms rest, rolling her shoulder back and wincing lightly. Her braided hair fell over the wound in such a way it seemed to highlight the hues of red that streaked from her neck just under the surface of her jacket. It would soon be another of the various scars she would carry for the rest of her life.

“Even the fat one-” Andy sighed, reminding herself that she promised to start using his name. “Even Michael has had the rare instance of being helpful. Turns out he beheaded some behemoth zombie version of David while we were away.”

Colt chose not to respond to the building comment, she knew who she was referring to and did not want to delve into that right now. Or ever. A broken eyebrow raised at her explanation about how exactly they took down David.

“Wait a fucking- You’re telling me-?” Andy held up a hand to stop Colt.

“I’m just as surprised as you are.”

“Hm.” Colt rubbed the back of her neck, a little taken aback, “Huh. Well thank fuck for him then.”

“I’m not Luca,” Andy said, changing the subject. Colt’s body stiffened and her glare could burn a hole through the grass she was staring at.

“I’m not the type to swing my dick around here and tell everyone its my way or the highway. That isn’t me and that might have gotten him results when he was out murdering people or whatever it was he did, but it’s not what we need. He knows it too. I’m just good at picking the right people for the right job.” Andy looked up to meet Colt’s eye, with a gentle smirk. “And you are one of the people I trust to do a lot of jobs. So I’m glad you are here. I need you.”

“But,” Colt blinked rapidly, trying to avoid the woman’s gaze but simply couldn’t. She took in a breath, asking the question that had been eating away at her mind since that interaction with Luca, “...Am I good enough?” she looked to Andy, finally meeting her gaze, her stoic demeanour crumbling into an expression of anticipation.

“Good enough for what?” Andy said with a scoff. “To survive? To lead? To keep a bunch of fucking knuckleheads from killing themselves?” The redhead laughed. “I’m sure anyone is good enough to try. More importantly, you are Colt. You are a fighter, you are kind and you are the kind of person I would want in my corner when shit goes south. Just be you. Being you is enough.”

“If you’re not Jane, then who are you?” Hanks words shot through the woman’s head like a bullet as Andy spoke. Her eyes widened a little at her words. After a few more seconds of silence, she used the tree to support her as she stood up. After one final swig, the flask was shoved into its pocket. Colt blinked at the ground, her eyes hardening; like an old fuse being ignited.

“Listen, I’ve shed enough water works for you, me and Noah and his god damn arc this week. So we aren’t doing that today,” Andy commanded.

“He belittled me.” She spoke pointedly, her eyes still on the snow, “In front of them all. I was humiliated and I just had everyone’s faith in me shattered.” She took in a breath.

“But I took command, and I fought, and I killed and I kept this goddamn place standing! And I’d do it again! I have done it again! And I’m not gonna stop until I’m either a head rolling in the grass or a bullet riddled walker!” In a fit of emotion, the flask was out, but not to her lips. It was granted the gift of flight as she hammer threw it into the opening.

“Good.” The redhead nodded in acknowledgement. That was what she had wanted to hear. Colt was an asset to the group and one she couldn’t afford to have running off because someone said some shit she didn’t like.

“Luca is just a man. He has kept me alive, he has done stuff for the lodge too, but he is still just another man. And I don’t know about you, but I don’t let the huffing of any man dictate how or what I feel. You gotta let that shit go man. No one’s faith in you was shattered, I think he just managed to shake your faith in yourself.”

Colt’s chest heaved from the sudden burst of adrenaline and reignition the redhead had struck, whether she meant it or not. She paced back and forth in the frost, fists balled trying to bring herself back down to earth. Her breath was visible as short bursts of steam like from the nostrils of a pent up bull.

“At some point, you are going to have to let this shit go,” Andy continued to speak to her as she paced. “You are using words he said to punish yourself at this point. Go punch him in the face if you think it will make you feel better, but at some point you are going to have to quit holding something he said to you months ago in such high regard that it changes your perception of yourself. I think you are better than that. I think you know you are too.”

Colt strode through the frost to where her flask had landed. Picking it up, she ran a finger along its cold metal before looking at Andy with the same expression as before.

“He means nothing to me.” She spoke with the same vigor, clenching a fist, “I’ll be damned if I’m gonna let some glorified crook tell me who the fuck I am! I know where I stand! And that’s behind a gun in the name of keeping people alive! And if anybody doesn’t like it, the can go fuck themselves with a chewed corn on the cob!”

“Glad to hear it,” Andy said matter-of-factly. She leaned back on her stump, stretching her spine and looking up and at the clear Colorado sky. Boots crossed at the ankles she tilted her head thoughtfully.

“While I’m playing therapist,” she teased. “Let’s talk about my brother.” Andy made eye contact with Colt once again. Emerald hues locked onto Colt’s forest colored ones. Her face was gentle, there was no malice or snark behind her words this time.

Colt’s expression was unchanged but there was a clear shift in her eyes as Owen came back up.

“Owen isn’t the type to yell without reason. I’m not saying he had a good reason, but he had a reason all the same. He tends to try to shoulder way too much too, especially when it comes to people he thinks need to be protected. He likes the underdogs, I think it's because he can understand them better than others. I’m not really sure, maybe it’s because he’s a 6’3 sap.” The girl snorted. “I’m not really sure what happened between the two of you, I haven’t pried nor do I really want to. It’s between you guys and ultimately isn’t any of my concern. But I’ve never known a fight to not have people who both swung a little lower than maybe they should have. You know?”

Colt blinked and finally broke eye contact. Andy knew the hulkish man better than she ever could. But she was still angry; and she did not know how long that would last. It had driven her to contemplate and act upon things she had been afraid of for a long time; that burn was not going to soothe quickly. But… despite the turbulence, Colt sighed and her shoulders finally relaxed, the tension slipping out of them.

“I’m not letting that get to me again.” Colt uncapped her flask and took a sip.

“He’s a good person,” Andy admitted with a sigh. “If he hurt you, I’m sure he wants the chance to apologize for doing so.”

“If that’s true,” she finished her swig, “He’s a better man than he is.”

“He’s a goddamn idiot,” the redhead said with a bitter laugh. “But he’s better than most of us.”

“Hmm…”

Collab with: Maj

 

[The Mad Queen]

Homecoming Part 3
Ralph & Andy
(by myself & Maj
November 24th 2018 ​

November 28th, 2018
The Lodge

Sitting around was hard, especially when you were so used to doing things. Andy had become accustomed to the constant need for her to be active. If she wasn't going on runs, she was hunting, if she wasn't hunting, she was helping with the various chores around the lodge. However, with her shoulder in the state it was in now the girl did little but run her jaw. She had done enough talking in the last week to last her a life time. In reality, her social battery was running low. Unfortunately, that seemed to be a commodity that she would no longer be able to afford herself. It was hard to admit, but her place was among the others now. There was little hiding in her bedroom left to be had.

It was early morning when she saw Ralph stroll through the kitchen. He was one among many that she still had business to attend to. The girl had been grateful he had stayed for a while. His help with Shinoa and repairing the lodge had been very helpful, and ultimately needed. The damn place was basically in shambles.

"Hey Ralph, do you have a moment?" The redhead asked from her seat at the bullet hole ridden coffee table. She had a sketch pad in front of her with a cup of coffee close behind. Doodles and notes filled the pages showing the disorganized way that the woman tended to reorganize her mind.

Ralph had been moving back and fourth through the kitchen for a good chunk of the morning. A disassembled assault rifle, one he'd held onto from the beginning sat on the kitchen table. As he took a seat, cleaning one of it's many parts he looked up at Andy with a smile.

"Always." He nodded "What's on your mind?"
"I wanted to talk to you about the University," the redhead admitted truthfully. While the campus had been her home for the last three years, and she had even visited it recently, Ralph had been the one who had been there the most recent during all the madness. He was her best bet to weigh the pros and cons of the plan that was kicking around in her head.

"You were just staying there. I know when I was there we ran into a few small hordes and we didn't explore everything. Would you say its relatively secure?"
He shook his head "Parts of it still have infected crawling all over it but some of the main buildings are safe." He finished cleaning the gun part in his hand, slotting it back into place within the rifle "The group that moved in before I did..." He shuddered at the mere mention of Simon's group. "Took the liberty of cleaning house, even if it was just in search of test subjects. The building holding the labs is secure as is the library but I can't say much about anything else."
Piece by piece, he started to put the rifle back together "If you're serious about moving everyone there, we'd need to go room by room. We can't take any chances that there could be a single one of those things left behind. It could take days, maybe even longer even if everyone was healthy."

"I have a master key in my bag," Andy said thoughtfully. As suspected the doctor had good information. There were ways to do this safely, and he was right it would be slow going. "Maybe if we take it building by building, we could start a temporary base over there. The dorms seemed pretty clear for the most part, other than those who died in their rooms. If we got a party together they could start going and clearing that out floor by floor. Once we had places for people to set up it wouldn't be too hard to begin clearing out more space and securing it." The redhead paused to take a long drink off the top of her cup, letting the warmth of the mug cover her palms.

"I don't want to leave us totally defenceless again, but we would need to send some of our best guys. The last thing I want is to send anyone to their deaths for what is essentially a recon mission." Luca might be well suited for a party like that when he was done recovering. In fact, Andy might have volunteered herself first. Stealth was something she had her bow excelled at, but with her shoulder she wasn't sure if she would be pulling a bowstring any time soon.

The Doctor nodded, his eyes moving between Andy as she laid out the plan and the gun parts that still lay on the table before him.
"Most of the people around here are injured, some of which are the best we have." He sighed "Yourself included." He pointed at the woman with a one of the parts "So it sadly may be a case of just sending who can be spared."
He put the final piece together, laying the rifle on the table "I do know the place a bit, and the technique of smearing guts to conceal our scent should give us a bit of leeway. It's how I was able to move around in one piece...Honestly, I'm used to the smell by now." He smiled "It's not up to me who gets sent over, I know. But I'm offering."

"I appreciate that," the girl said truthfully. She wasn't sure how adept Ralph was with the gun he had spent the better part of their conversation cleaning, but it took some skill to be able to stay alive on your own out in the city. Maybe she would ask Colt to nonchalantly ask him to target practice with her, just to confirm if he was good enough to be sent into the trenches. Hector could hold his own in a fire fight, but Ralph was ultimately right. Too many of them were injured. Her brother might be a good candidate. While she knew that he was absolutely useless with a gun in his hands, the boy had a knack for knocking together skulls that many others lacked. There were options, but they also had time to figure it out. His information about concealing his presence with corpse guts was new to her. The thought disgusted her, but she had to give the doctor points for resolve and creativity.

"Even if I was capable of pulling a bow right now, I'm not sure I could go," the girl admitted after some more thought. She remembered how cross Hector had been with her when she came back injured last time. Andy had been lectured like a child for 'risking the human race.' "Hector is using my blood for his work, and as much as it pains me to admit it, I guess that its more of use to him than it is spilled out there."

"I don't think you going is a good idea in general, given the extent of..." He stopped, raising an eyebrow when she mentioned Hector using her blood.
"Why on Earth does he need it?" He shook his head.

"Oh," she seemed almost embarrassed, something pink coming to her freckled cheeks. It wasn't until that moment that she realized that she hadn't actually told anyone about Hector's findings. Andy tucked a piece of hair behind one of her ears in a gesture that made her look her age for once, almost erasing the façade of maturity she wore. "I'm resistant." She admitted. "At least to some part of the virus. I don't know all the crazy science mumbo-jumbo that Hector uses when he talks about it. Its why the Hazmat soldiers were here, even if I didn't know it then." She remembered to the raid and how they had asked for her by name, the lodge had fought to keep her safe after the fear that the soldiers had caused by proving their ruthlessness at the middle school. The leader had said something about her blood being too precious to be wasted as she bled out in his grasp. If Luca hadn't interfered maybe she could have provided the government with some well needed answers.

"They took a sample of my blood at the middle school and I guess whatever they found was enough to send them looking for me. It wasn't until we went to the university ourselves to get Hector supplies for his lab that he was able to take a look and see what was going on. I'm not immune mind you." She finally looked back up to Ralph. "If I get bitten, I'll still die. It just takes me a lot longer I guess," the girl sighed. "I mean, at least that's how I understand it."

He'd had theories about why he was the soldiers had asked for Andy and Luca specifically, but it hadn't really mattered all that much. Even if they were to hand the two of them over, the attack would've gone ahead anyway. Ray still would've died, he'd still be down a knee and those who had left the lodge in the following days, unable to deal with the carnage.
"We all die, Andy." He said, coldly "Just some can survive a bit longer than others. Whether that's resistant blood, being skilled or just common sense and a cool head." The Doctor let out a sigh of defeat "It's useful, for sure but I don't know what it is that Hector is hoping to make from it. To put it rather bluntly, a cure isn't possible. I don't know if it's the case with you, but everyone is carrying this thing. So when we die, we return and spread it around."

"Even I'm a carrier. Found traces of it in my blood and I think I'd find it in other people as well, if given the chance to study."

"I was in the hospital when the outbreak started. I watched a man who was no where near the emergency rooms get shot in the chest and rise back up. I know we all have it. Again, I don't know all the details but from what understand by talking with Hector we are actually looking at two different viruses. One is the one that turns you. We all have that. Its inevitable, when we die we will return." The girl took a breath. "Even I am not saved from that. The other however is the disease that kills you when you get bitten, or maybe its an infection. I'm not a doctor. That's what I'm resistant to. I don't know if we will ever find a cure, but if we can keep a bite from being a death sentence, we will be a lot better off."

"I was there too." He glanced at the floor, his eyes heavy "Had bodies chase me from the morgue. It's how I knew this thing could bring back the dead. Lost my whole team but did manage to save this little girl, Rachel."
"If she went to the school like everyone else, there's a high chance she's dead by now. I like to think her and her family are out there, somewhere but..."

"I try to focus on the ones we did save." Her voice suddenly soft. Her mother had died in that hospital, just a few walls over from where Andy was. If she hadn't left with Luca would she have died with her? Or would she had been able to get her out. There was no real way to know now. "We can save a lot more if we have more room and better resources. As much as I love my home, we are just outgrowing it."
"I know that, and I always have but...That number just gets smaller every single day. Ray, Jenna, Cletus, Shinoa. Couldn't save any of them and that's just the people who lived under the same roof as us over these past few months."

"The others are lost, but I like to think our old mauve marauder is still kicking around there. I didn't get to speak to her too much, but the one conversation we did have gave me the impression she's too stubborn to just lay down and die." Andy said with a laugh. She could just be talking shit, but something told her she was right. "All we can do now is keep moving forward doc," the redhead said with a sigh. "It's hard sometimes but its all we really can do. I'm sorry by the way." Her apology sounded so genuine it almost sounded foreign in her voice. "I may have judged you too harshly the first time we spoke. I don't uh..." she paused, scratching the back of her head awkwardly. "Take too kindly to father figures. But I think you are genuinely a pretty good person."

He glanced up, his gaze moving off of the floor "Ah, don't worry about it too much. I certainly didn't take it personally. We all have our moments. Even me. But, I do appreciate it." His smile returned "I'd really like you to be right about her, but she left on a suicide mission based on the note she left... I-I'm just trying to come to terms with both her and Shinoa right now."

"Saw them both as one of my own." His voice choked up "But, if I wallow in this we could well lose someone else. I guess all there is to do now is keep occupied."
"There is plenty to do," the girl said with a sad laugh. Her family home looked more like a boarded up drug den by the day. At least they still had power and running water. "I can relate though. We can drown or we can do our best to tread water. I'm doing my best to tread too."

Mentioned:
Colt Rumble Fish
Hector shadowz1995
Luca Brax

 

[FireMaiden]

This is part two of a collab between me and Maj
November 26th, 2018
10:38 am​

Leliana nodded a bit. She still felt bad about the state the lodge was in now. Covered in bullet holes, boarded up windows, and busted doors. Ralph has brought up the idea of moving, and it was a good idea. But nobody was in the proper state for that. In any case, it was still their best bet eventually. "I like the lodge despite everything. It's still cozy...somehow, upstairs is still pretty warm," Leliana chuckled a bit as they walked. She was following Andy's lead, of course, her eyes roaming their surroundings. It seemed like, for the moment, the two women were alone. Which was good, no creeps or hazzies. As they finally reached the grave, Leona stayed a step behind to give Andy her space, watching as she cleaned off the grave and placed a few memorials. The act made Leliana smile, her eyes wandering for a few moments, she spotted something not too far away.

Walking around Andy, she made her way over to another grave. Just behind it, poking up through the frozen ground was a little wild winter bloom. It was white, just barely big enough to get through the soil and shelter by one of the tombstones, Leliana stooped down and picked it. Gently holding it in her palm, she walked back over to where Andy was and squatted down, placing the flower among the things Andy had left. "It's not much, but I hope he likes it."

Andy sat in silence for a long time. Everything she really wanted to say to him was written down on the back of her sketches that she had meticulously folded and weighed down. Instead, the redhead just let the cold wind blow through her for a little bit. Leliana's presence was a welcoming one. She was one of the few people that seemed to understand the comfort that came in silence. The blonde was also one of the few that didn't seem to bother her or drain her in the ways other did. Maybe there was a reason for that.

"You know," the twin began slowly, breaking the silence. "I sort of cyber stalked my dad after everything went south between us. There wasn't much to find at first, a few drunken ex girlfriends blowing up his Facebook account, a few warrants for his arrest for some minor shit." Andy stood, using her palms to dust the dirt off her kneecaps. Small wet stains stood out in the denim from the ice.

"Then out of the blue he was in jail. I followed that case pretty closely. I was downright relieved honestly that he was finally locked up. " The huntress looked out of her peripherals to judge Leliana's reaction to her information.

"I read about what happened to his niece."

Leliana didn't know what to expect after the silence. It was a comforting thing to be able to just...sit there, and not have to worry about making conversation. The sounds of the abandoned city, the way the cold air brushed over them like it too was trying to comfort Andy. It was a nice change to the chaos that had become the everyday. When Andy broke that silence, Leliana honestly didn't expect what she had to say. "Oh." The nurse knew it wouldn't be a secret for much longer. She knew that as soon as she had seen Liam's face in the driveway. Leliana crossed her arm, gently rubbing her upper arms as Andy kept talking, revealing that she...she knew. "Yeah...surprise!" Leliana laughed weakly, sighing as she fell silent, her gaze focused on something in the distance.

"He called you Andrea...that was our grandma's name. She was a pretty cool lady. If she was still alive when he...he was caught, she would have personally kicked his ass," Leliana spoke. "I never knew he had a brother. Or uh...or kids. Liam was good at hiding things." Her uncle was like that. He hid everything that he felt wasn't important. He hid his work from her mother, his vices from her grandmother, what he did to her...it was odd that a house full of Aurora natives didn't actually seem to notice. But maybe the case wasn't as big as she thought it was. As she spoke, her nails had started digging into her arms, enough pain to keep her focused. "One hell of a family reunion huh?"

"Tell me about it," the red head said with a bitter laugh. So her suspicions had been correct, Leliana was related to Liam too. She had suspected as much by her reaction to his sudden appearance. Of course she could have been any poor girl that had crossed Liam's path, but upon further inflection she had realized they had the same last name. James. Andy had her mother's maiden name, not Liam's.

"So what does that make us?" She mused. "Cousins?" Andy shook her head sadly. There were far less appealing people to be related to. Leliana was one of the few people that she would call her friend. The redhead, in a rare show of compassion, reached out and grabbed the girls hand and gave it a squeeze.

"I wouldn't wish what happened to you on anyone." Her voice was controlled, but watery. It seemed to swim with emotions that had remained unprocessed for the greater part of a decade. She opened her mouth to speak twice, closing it wordlessly as she fought for the words.

"I of all people know what it means to have survived him," she finished finally.

A dry chuckle fell from the nurse's chapped lips. This wasn't the worse way anyone could have found out. There were only a few people outside of her family who knew, and they were the ones with the weird reactions. Pity, anger, blaming a child...his work buddies drove past their house everyday for three months until the neighbor threatened to shoot them. "Yeah, it does. My mom was his little sister by...i think three years?" Even before everything came to light, there was an odd strain on that relationship. And Diana James never told her daughter what it was. But, the more surprising thing to come of this interaction was Andy reaching out for her hand. Leliana managed a gentle smile, squeezing the redhead's hand in return with a soft sigh.

"This may sound...odd...but I always hoped that I was his only victim," Leliana admitted. "I was always terrified that my friends would be targets, but they got lucky. Even after he went to prison that didn't change, the psycho sent someone after me." Leliana hadn't meant to share that, but Andy already knew something Colt didn't. There wasn't any point in hiding it. But Andy next statement just made Leliana's stomach churn. She...she hadn't escaped him? Leliana had really hoped there were no other victims. That she was the only one who had to suffer thanks to that monster. Her gaze shifted to her cousin, mouth opening to say something before it closed and she focused on the grave in front of them. She wouldn't push.

"Hey, can we...make another stop while we're out?"

Andy let the girl speak without interruption, mirroring her thoughts. There had been a sense of dread and guilt when she found out about his neice on the news. She had questioned herself, wondering if she had come clean and gone to the police if she could have saved the girl from her fate. Andy swallowed those thoughts down. When Leli asked about leaving the redhead nodded

"Of course."

 

[Rumble Fish]

​

Time at this point meant nothing to Milly. She had practically no tracking ability after that day. All she could remember was the last seconds before being grabbed by that… monster. The youngster shivered despite being under her blanket and continued to face the wall. Since she had been given the all clear and was allowed back in her room with Leliana and Beth, she hadn’t left the safety of that room. Or… was it safe? The monster chased her up here and- what was that? Her head whipped to the door as she thought she heard movement. She knew that it was just another one of the lodge’s residents, but every little noise scared her.

Milly mumbled something and pulled her blanket closer around her skinny and shaking frame. Aubrey had kept her promise and got her her weighted blanket which she now had around her body; it was like someone was giving her a full body hug which the youngster craved. Her cuddly toys sat on the floor with her. She hadn’t moved from this corner for days. She had been given food and water from the couple but she could not sleep for more than ten minutes without waking up screaming for her mother as images of the monster relentlessly flashed through her mind. This lodge was supposed to be safe! Then why did it have a monster inside?!

She could not think about that right now. She had another dilemma; Milly was hungry. Leliana and Beth were busy and she did not want to call for them. That would be rude. But she needed something to eat, she could not ignore her tummy rumbling anymore despite trying to drown it out with recreating a scene from ‘The Incredibles’ with her teddies. Sighing, the youngster stood up shakily, still a little unstable from the pain medication she was doped up on and gripped both her blanket and bear, carefully making her way out of the room and down the steps. So far so good…

Vanessa was up in the rafters in the kitchen, watching Andy closely as she exited with a cup of coffee in hand. As she crossed through the doorway of the kitchen, the acrobat dropped down silently to the floor, quickly ducking behind the frame of the doorway, quietly trying to keep her multicolour eyes on the redhead.

Milly released a yelp that sounded like a hybrid of a stepped-on cat and a startled puppy as the woman suddenly dropped from the ceiling. Freezing, she squeezed her teddy so tight against her chest she almost expected Snowy’s head to shoot off. In her fear it was like her feet were nailed into the off-coloured wooden boards. Her mouth gaped for a moment before closing. Everything had been so scary and harrowing in this supposed safe-zone… until a few days ago. Milly squeaked and shrank almost half her size in anxiety; not wanting to speak. What if there was another monster in the cellar and saying something would alert it?

The harlequin's head snapped towards the sound of Milly's outcry. The noise had been sudden and unexpected, giving the woman a small fright. Eyes wide she fixed her dual coloured gaze on the young girl.

'The child has seen us stalking Andy'

'Oh no! She could tell!

'Calm down, maybe she doesn't realize?'

Vanessa took a slow, quiet breath and closed her eyes for a moment. As she opened them again, she smiled warmly at Milly. "Sorry, ya gave me a bit of a fright there. Um… an..anythin I can reach for ya in ere?" She said as she looked around at the cabinets, appearing slightly worried. She didn't know where anything was yet. After all, she had no reason to snoop through the cabinets. "Or is there somethin else..?"

Milly blinked a few times and looked around the room as Nessa finally acknowledged her. She gulped softly and preened Snowy’s head. She looked about once again. “I-I don’t know… I’m just hungry.” She spoke before clearing her throat.

“I think um,” she added, “I think there's something. In the top cupboard.”

Glancing back at the kitchen doorways, Nessa bit her lip. Had she really let any get away so easily? How was she possibly going to understand the mind of the huntress if she didn't keep a constant eye on her?!

Shaking her head lightly, she turned her attention back to the cabinets. "Top? One on the left or right?"

“The left I think.” She answers as she sits down in a chair. As she looked around, she noticed something large moving outside of the window. She leapt up in fright, but after a second, her face lit up as she realised who it was and she ran over to the undamaged window, opening it up. With a bright smile she quickly jumped back into the kitchen, opened the fridge, grabbed a carrot and then went back to the window.

“Arthur! Here Arthur!” She chirped with her hand out flat with the carrot, “Look at this!” She made a couple of kissing sounds which drew the horse over. Outside, the horse looked up from his grazing and ambled over, his ears perked at the idea of getting a treat.

Reaching up into the cabinet for the aforementioned biscuits, Vanessa watched the young girl as she called the horse over, offering him a snack. It seemed to her a friendly creature, though the acrobat had a strange feeling the drunken vet wouldn't let her anywhere near the magnificent beast.

"Here. The biscuits..." She called out, offering them to Milly.

“Ooh,” Milly turned back to Nessa as she handed her the biscuits, “Thank you.” she gave her a smile before turning back to Arthur, who was contently munching on the vegetable, turning his big and hazel eyes to Nessa, as if hoping she too may be offering treats. “Do you want to feed him? I’m sure he’d like it.”

"Oh um… n..no I dunno if that's a good idea.." Vanessa said, caught off guard by the offer. "I don't think Colt would like that very much.”

“One wouldn’t hurt, would it?” The small girl gave her a cheeky smirk. Colt indeed loved this horse more than she had ever seen, “He really likes carrots; and he likes people who give him carrots.”

The acrobat looked back at the horse almost wistfully as she thought about it. It would be really nice to interact with him, but as she thought about agreeing, an image of an angry Colt shooting at her flooded the mind of the harlequin.

"N..no I'm fine just watchin you feed em." She responded as she gave the youngling a slight smile again.

“Um… okay.” Milly shrugged as she fed him. Content with this interaction, Arthur shook out his mane and ambled off, “Bye Arthur!” she closed the window but she could still see him now looking for a place to roll. She bit into one of the biscuits but went a little quiet. She sighed quietly and looked back to Nessa.

“Are… Um. Are you okay? After all that? My head still hurts. A lot.”

"After all what?" The harlequin asked, looking down to the young girl. She hadn't been here when David turned, as she had been out on that run with Andy, but it was easy enough for Vanessa to piece together that something major happened while they were away. "No one has told me exactly what went down."

“Um…” Milly blinked and rubbed her arm, averting her gaze. The young girl shook her head. “It-it doesn’t matter.” She sat at the table, clasping her hands together. “It um… It was scary, that's all.” She sighed and started nibbling on her biscuits. She just could not get over it.

“Guess Colt knew what was happening. That’s why she didn’t come back until a few days ago.”

"Not so sure. Ya found her flask after all, remember? She wouldn't go too long without it by choice I don't think."

“I remember… but, she was gone for three days. She didn’t tell me what happened. But I’m glad she’s back.” Milly blinked, “She’s been showing me how to use a gun, it’s scary but… I’ll learn to cope.” she added, echoing the veteran’s words to her.

"Life is scary, malyshka, but we must learn to be strong. Learning to use a gun could be useful.. Maybe I should ask her to show me, too." The acrobat said, looking away from the young girl with a calm but serious expression.

“I just,” she sighed and rested her head in her hands, “I don’t… like being scared all the time. Leliana could have…” she blinked back tears; the thought of potentially losing another maternal figure was too much for the youngster to think about.

"Fear is an awful thing, but it keeps us alert and alive." Nessa replied, looking back down at Milly. "You just can't let fear make you freeze up."

“I suppose… It’s just, it’s really hard.” The small girl sighed and her eyes glanced down, “ I’ve never had to do this before.”

Vanessa chuckled softly. "You're going to have it pretty hard for sure, growing up like this." She said. "But you will have a better life than me. These people will see te that."

“I hope so.” she twiddles her fingers, “I keep thinking about my mum. About the last time I saw her…”

"Your mother..?" The acrobat inquired, an almost vacant look in her eyes.

“Yeah.” She looked out of the window wistfully. “Just… I’m worried about her.”

"She is out on a run?" Vanessa asked "Is that why I have not met her?"

“Well.” Milly sighed, drawing on the window’s glass as she stared out of it, worried that looking Nessa in the eyes would cause a breakdown, “No. I haven’t seen her since… since the monsters came.” she waited a moment before continuing, thinking about ‘Monsters Inc’ to stop the vivid memories from surging back.

“She locked me in a bathroom at the motel so I’d be safe while she looked for help.” She leaned against the window’s frame, “...I was in there for two days before Jenna found me. Then I met Owen and Colt and they brought me here. I don’t know where she is. People have gone out to look for her but… nothing.”

"Oh…" Vanessa looked away from the child, feeling a little bad for speaking so casually of the girl's mother when she was missing and possibly dead. "I hope she is still out there somewhere.. Waiting for you to find her."

“Hm.” Milly scratched her neck, “I hope so.” she continues to stare out the window as snow started to fall once again. The small girl sighed and rested her chin against the windowsill, now unable to think about anything else. She had said that so many times over her months at the lodge, but now... her faith in that hope was beginning to flicker like dying candle...

Collab: TheMightyRedLemon

 

[Maj]

Andy and Owen
Final Part​

November 23rd, 2018
Andy’s Perch
10:11 AM

Neither of the siblings moved for a long time. The only thing that broke the silence between them was the occasional sniffle from Andy as she did her best to regain control over her reeling emotions. Owen didn’t know what to do, or even what to feel for that matter. Every time he put too much thought into his sister’s words he felt his face grow hot and his vision threaten to go red. He had no way to have known, but he was mentally beating himself now for letting that man leave the property. There were a million things he wanted to say or do to ‘his father’ and none of them were pg-13. His sister was right, Andy didn’t need to say it. Owen knew exactly what had happened and every time his thoughts returned to it he felt his stomach turn.

His sister, while the same age as him, had always been more like his little sister. He had done his best to protect her. Owen had given up his own education to make sure she was well cared for. There wasn’t a thing in the world that the former baseball star wouldn’t do for her and yet he couldn’t shake the feeling he had somehow failed her. She had been alone, in fact she had barely escaped with her life. Not to mention that afterward she had dealt with the aftermath entirely by herself.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” He finally spoke, voice low and controlled. The last thing he needed was the seething anger that lurked under his surface to come across. Andy would start blocking him out again and he wasn’t mad at her at all. She laughed, almost in a self-deprecating way, rubbing her nose on the back of her hand as she did so.

“Can you really blame me?” His sister asked, finally raising her gaze up from the floor. Her eyes seemed to scan him, as if analyzing him. Owen could feel her trying to gage his mental state after hearing the news. When she seemed satisfied, the girl sighed and shrugged. “I was ashamed I guess,” she continued. “At least at first. I blamed myself for being stupid, and for being so easily manipulated. I blamed myself for not heeding mom’s warning and for not trusting her.”

“None of what he did is your fault Andy,” her brother assured adamantly.

“I’m past that point Owen. I know for a fact that I’m not the one who made the decision to abuse a teenage girl. However,” she shook her head. “I am the only one who made the reckless decisions to put myself in the position to begin with. That’s all I mean.” There was more silence while Owen processed that. Finally his head cocked to the side thoughtfully.

“Why else?” Owen asked his sister. Andy looked up, confused.

“What do you mean?”

“You said ‘at first.’ So why else wouldn’t you tell me?” He kept his sisters gaze and watched as she grew increasingly uncomfortable under it.

“I guess,” she began hesitantly then paused and rolled her eyes. “Nothing. You are reading too far into this Owen.”

“No, I’m not.” He was sure of that. The man softened his gaze but didn’t let it go. “You were going to tell me just now, so just do it. What else could you have to lose at this point?” She kept his gaze, eyes darting like she wanted desperately to be rid of it before exhaling loudly from her nostrils.

“I guess, I just didn’t want you to get hurt.” She watched as Owen immediately grew defensive and she snorted in response. “Oh come on Owen. Like if I had told you, you wouldn’t have gone rushing off, baseball bat in tow?”

“Damn straight, I would have,” he growled.

“Exactly,” she said with a sad smile.

“I could have helped you Andy!” He retorted, frustration leaking into his tone. “I could have done…”

“Done what?” She interrupted , voice cracking. “You were a child and he was a grown man and all you would have done is get yourself hurt or worse.” Her eyes welled up at the thought and she angrily looked back down at her feet. “You have always been reckless when it came to me. You still are.”

She was right, how many times had he lost his cool because someone had said something bad about her? How many times had he justified his behavior or choices because in his mind, he had done it for his sister? Owen sunk back into his seat, and let her continue.

“Maybe now it would have been different, but then?” Andrea shook her head. “I couldn’t let you throw yourself to the wolves in a fight you couldn’t win.”

“I still wish you would have told me sooner.” He crossed his arms and suddenly seemed like he was almost pouting. His sister's words had obviously struck a nerve with him.

“I do too,” she admitted wistfully. “I almost did a few times. Or at least, I had tried to talk myself into at least telling you I knew who our father was. There was always a reason not to. Someone interrupted us, or I psyched myself out. How was I supposed to tell you that I had known for years and never said anything to you? You have every right to be mad at me,” Andy assured him.

“I’m not mad Andy,” Owen said with a sigh. “Hurt maybe? Frustrated? Definitely. I just keep thinking of how different things could have been between us if you had trusted me. I know that I can be brash and sometimes I can be a lot to handle when I lose my cool,” he thought back to the remains of his car and winced, the bandages still wrapped around his hands. “But even if I was mad at you Andy, we would have been alright. I would never have hurt you.”

Andy’s eyes widened in shock. Is that what he thought she was afraid of? It was true, the huntress had seemed some fearsome, brutish displays from her brother. There were few people she would bet against him in a fight. He was the epitome of the phrase “It’s always the nice ones” because Owen was the kindest and most wonderfully loving person she had ever met, aside from maybe their mother, but when he lost his temper he was downright breathtaking in his anger. However, never once had she worried for her safety around him.

“Owen, I would never think that low of you.” She spoke softly, reaching out to let her hand rest on her brother’s knee. “If there is one thing in this crazy, death infested world that I know is true beyond a shadow of a doubt is that you would never hurt me.” Visible relief washed over her brother’s square features. His freckled cheeks relaxed his forest colored eyes fluttering down to his lap, shoulders slumping. She couldn’t help but wonder how long he had been holding on to such a ridiculous fear.

“I just figured, when you saw me that night in the alley way, that maybe you thought....” He cut himself off and shook his head. It was his turn to be uncomfortable in his own skin. “You wouldn’t talk to me after it happened, and we haven’t talked about it since. So when I found out about all of this I just assumed…”

“No,” Andy shook her head, letting her kinky strands of red hair fall around her icy shoulders as she did so. “No. I was worried about you. You make all kinds of stupid decisions and I guess seeing you like that sort of confirmed my fears that you had fallen in with a bad crowd.”

“But you had been avoiding me for years before too,” he rebutted. “Just not as adamantly.”

“Yes,” she admitted. “But not intentionally.”

“Why though?” He pressed. It was the one thing he felt the most cheated of. Not knowing the truth about his father be damned. Andy had hurt him on a daily basis for years because she seemed to want nothing to do with him. The timing lined up with her assault, but he didn’t understand why. “Sometimes it felt like you could barely stand the sight of me. Talking to me, even lightly always just seemed like some chore you were forced to do and all I wanted was to be close to you.”

“I know,” she nodded her head in agreement. “I know that I hurt you.”

“But why? You are my twin. I’ve been next to you since before we were born. We used to be best friends and do almost everything together and then suddenly you locked me out.”

“I felt guilty I think,” Andy said with a sniff. “I knew I was being dishonest with you. The more you tried to pry your way in the more resentful I got about it. It was just hard to be around you.”

“It was hard to sit on the living room couch and watch movies with me?” He asked with a scoff. “To go to the mall with me?”

“Yes.”

Owen recoiled, obviously confused by his sister’s comment. Sure, she was keeping secrets and maybe the guilt of that made it frustrating when he started asking questions. He knew that he could be annoying sometimes too, a little over eager and at points downright desperate for his sister’s attention. However, none of that made any sense to Owen about why just being around him would be difficult. He opened his mouth to say as much but was cut off.

“You know, you look like him in the right light.” Andy was looking up at him now, apology so clear on her features as if someone had written it across her cheeks. She knew it couldn’t be easy to hear, but she had promised honesty.

“What?” He asked coldly.

“It’s not your fault. I don’t blame you for it at all, we both resemble him. But especially as you got older and your features started filling out I couldn’t deny it anymore. It was uncomfortable to be around you because you looked just like him. I bumped into you in the hallway in the dark once and about screamed.” Owen just sat in stunned silence as his sister began to cry once more.

“I know that’s awful to say,” her voice broke as she continued. “But it’s just true. Somehow it was harder too because you were nothing like him.” Her brother looked even more confused and she laughed sarcastically and continued. “You had his face but you gave me all the warmth and kindness I had wanted from him. So all of the anger and ugly shit I had tried so hard to bottle up would fester and I would take it out on you.” She seemed desperate for him to understand, reaching out and taking one off his large hands in both of hers.

“I am so sorry for that. I can’t take it back. Each time I did it I wished I could but I can’t. You are nothing like him.” She assured him, almost pleading. “You may look like him, but any of his ugliness all got passed on to me.”

“Andy, no.”

“Yes.”

“No!” He retorted forcefully. “God Andy, you are nothing like that monster.”

“I’m not a good person Owen,” she said with a sad smile. “I am not good to even the people I love most in this world, and the people I don’t love?” She let out a sarcastic snort. “I couldn’t care less about. I killed people the first day of the apocalypse. People. Not zombies. How fucked up is that? I killed a living person before I killed a dead one. And I don’t really have any regrets about it.”

“That has nothing to do with it,” Owen interrupted. “You’ve saved people too. We have all had to change our moral compass.”

“I know I hurt you,” she continued. “And I kept doing it anyway out of selfishness. The fact of the matter is, you would never, ever do that to me.”

“It’s okay,” Owen said softly.

“See?” She snapped. “That’s what I’m talking about. You are comforting me! You forgave me without giving it a second thought. I love you and I was so awful to you-“

Owen pulled her into his arms with enough force to ensure she couldn’t fight him. He wrapped his limbs around her slim form and felt her sink into his chest, hands against it as she began to sob once more.

“I love you too. That’s all that matters Andy. It’s all okay.” He let one of his hands reach up to stroke her hair, leaning his head on top of hers. His sister had gone through something so terrible that he couldn’t even imagine it. He didn’t want to. All Owen knew was that she was never going to have to go through it again.

“No matter what the future holds for us here,” He said softly. “You will never be alone again. We do this shit together, got that?” It was almost a command, one that his sister heeded, nodding weakly into his chest.

“Okay,” she agreed.

 

[Rumble Fish]

Part 1
This is a collab between FireMaiden and myself

It had been an idea rattling around Leliana's head for a few days now. One she had no idea would be appreciated or not, but it seemed like one worthwhile. Hector needed an eye patch. While the doctor wasn't making any trips out of the lodge any time soon, he was still working. And if they were attacking again and he was dragged into it, it would be good protection. Leliana had enough sewing skills and know-how to make one, and enough knowledge of how eye patches worked thanks to her chosen professions that it should work out just well enough. And since it was hand made, she could make adjustments if need be. So, for the past little bit, Leliana had been searching for materials. She had found some scraps of leather and an old belt that was too small for even Milly, but was now looking for some of the sewing materials she knew was floating around the lodge somewhere. Plus, either a dowel or a thin knife.

Things had been uncomfortable for Milly. Apart from her trips to the bathroom and occasional lessons from Colt, the small girl spent 99% of her time in the room, wrapped in a blanket and sitting in a corner, drawing or trying to read. She could not stop herself from touching the now bald spot on her head, running her fingers across the stitching. She shuddered every time.

“Leliana?” she squeaked, becoming anxious. Where was she? She had left the room ages ago and Beth was taking care of the baby. Getting up, still with the weighted blanket around her shoulders, she opened the door and poked her head out of the room, with her feet firmly planted inside and refusing to move. “You there?”

"Right here!" Leliana called out, just loud enough for Milly to hear her. Raising one arm for a moment, she exposed her position, somewhat hidden by a cabinet as she sat on the floor going through one of the many duffle bags. But after a few seconds, the nurse sat up a little more to try and find the smaller girl. "You need something Milly? What's up?" She didn't have to need anything, Milly could have just wanted to hang out and that was fine. Leliana just wanted to make sure she was okay. Milly had been through a lot and...well, it was more than a child should have to go through.

Milly's little body jolted as the woman called out to her but she relaxed once Leliana revealed herself. She let out a short sigh of relief but kept looking around anxiously. "I-I just- just wanted to know where you were." She pouted slightly and lowered her brows as she mumbled, "Beth's busy with the... baby." Ooh, alliteration, she liked that. But the disgruntlement was evident in her voice. Clinging to her bear, she tilted her head like a young owl as she noticed what the nurse had been doing. "...Whatchu doooing?" she blinked, as if a switch had been flicked.

Leliana smiled at Milly, watching the girl for a few seconds before relaxing back down to continue looking. "You'll be able to hang out with Beth in a while. You can hang out with me for now though." The nurse was happy Milly was up and moving around, and better yet, talking to people. She was dealing with trauma a lot better then most kids did. When Milly asked Leliana what she was doing, the nurse stuck her head back up to look at her. "I'm looking for some needle and tread. I'm making Hector an eye patch."

"Okay," The small girl chirped as she shimmied over to the nurse. Upon having her idea explained, "Oh, that's really nice of you." She commented. A noise outside made Milly jump and, for a moment, hide behind the wall, expecting some kind of monster to jump out... It was just Arthur using a tree as a scratching post. Seeing the horse though the window, the girl relaxed and approached the nurse, "I think there's some in one of these drawers," she begins to look through some of the drawers.

Milly might find some small comfort that the sound of Arthur scratching caused Leliana to jump a little as well, hands tensing as one moved slightly to her holster before she too realized it was just the horse. "Still not use to him being here..." Leliana mumbled, looking around a bit as Milly started looking too. As Leliana started her search again, she finally found some black thread. And super glue which would be helpful. "Be careful Milly, you might get poked."

"Colt let me ride him!" Milly chirped excitedly and suddenly, the memory just coming back, "The other day, after she showed me how to shoot she let me ride him and we went around the lodge, he was so friendly! Really tall but friendly! It was funny watching his ears because they move around so much," she raised two fingers to demonstrate, swivvling them about like the equine's ears, "And Colt says they can hear things from two miles away! That's really cool." The youngster stopped rambling quite sharply upon realising she was doing it and went back to looking. After another minute, she pulled out a couple of needles. "Would these work?"

"Oh really?" Leliana chuckled softly as Milly started explaining what Colt had helped her with. It was good Colt was helping Milly, especially when it came to firearms. She needed to learn eventually and getting her use to it now was the best idea. "Yeah, horses are pretty cool. But did you know their brains are really tiny?" Leliana asked as she stood, dusting off her pants as she turned to face Milly just as she pulled out some needles. "Oh those are perfect, thank you!"

"They are?" Milly blinked as she looked back to Arthur, "But how are they so smart if their brains are really small?" she handed Leliana the needles and sat down, holding her feet together. "I have a book on horses, and a cuddly horse... but I might give it to Colt actually." She tilted her head towards Leliana as she watched her, "You ever made one before?" she asked.

"Yep. They're the smallest brains for an animal that size. Most of what's in their heads are their teeth." Leliana informed Milly with a little poke to the girl's side as she took the needles. Taking a moment or two to gather her supplies, she joined Milly on the couch agree stoking the fire before she sat down. "No, I haven't. Not a real one anyway, I've made one for a Halloween costume. But that was from a kit, not from scratch," Leliana spoke as she got to work separating the materials. "So it might not be the best, but people missing an eye wear them for protection. So it's a good idea that Hector has one."

"I've seen pirates wear them. And that cowboy from that movie- who was he? Rooster! From True Grit!" She bounced a little on the sofa as she spoke. Milly took out one of her jigsaws and played with it as Leliana worked, her face fell a little in thought but she kept quiet as she put the pieces together. She did not want to distract the nurse.

"Yep, pirates wore them a lot. It helped keep one eye use to the dark so they could see when they went below deck." Leliana actually had no idea how true that was, mostly because she didn't remember where she heard it. But it seemed pretty plausible. In any case, she was glad the girl didn't seem to be holding any grudge against her for what Leliana had to do during the attack. A lot of children would still be upset they were left alone and unfortunately restrained as Milly had to be, but she seemed to understand that Leliana had no choice. As the nurse glanced over at her between pulling threads, she caught the fallen look on the younger girl's face. "What's wrong Milly?"

Milly looked at Leliana as she asked her if she was alright. The small girl sighe and bright her knees up to her chest, holding them in her hands. “It’s just…” she gulped, “…I’m worried.” She answered, keeping her eyes to the jigsaw, “David turned so… quickly! I’m worried like… what if it happened to someone else?” she squeaked, “I’ve been having nightmares of you and Beth, or Hector or Colt and Andy- just- everyone becoming monsters!”

"I...wish I could tell you that's not going to happen," Leliana spoke, picking up the small knife she had found to help tear the two sides of the belt apart. "What I can tell you, is that we're going to do our best to avoid getting sick. Colt and Andy are incredible fighters, Hector takes a lot of precautions with his experiments, and Beth isn't dumb." She added with a slight sigh. "It's okay to be worried Milly, we all are. Those monsters are scary, but we're all going to do our best. You too."

Milly could only nod in response. She did not want to believe her. Surely everything would be okay? It was like… a bad flu, it’ll go away eventually, right? Milly pulled her blanket further around her shoulders as she watched the nurse work. She wanted to change the subject, but to what? She played with the jigsaw pieces a little. The box had been blank so she had no idea what this puzzle was. She managed to finish putting the edges together. "Hm... what do you think this is? A zebra? Or a giraffe?"

"Hmm...maybe both? Or a lion." If Leliana wasn't busy, she would help Milly with the puzzle. "Do you like putting puzzles together?" The nurse asked with a small smile as she picked up the other scrapes of leather she had found and the scissors so she could start cutting out the correct sized pieces she'd need.

Milly nodded, “I like puzzles.” She answered simply, “I was good at work in school and sometimes finished earlier than the other kids. Miss Honey would sometimes give me one to do. Sometimes at recess she’d sit with me and we’d work together on it when I didn’t want to go outside.” Milly placed another piece, her mind glazing over in thought. “I miss her.”

"I liked most of my teachers in school too," Leliana spoke. "Ms. Lash, in second grade, was my favorite." Her teachers after that all kind of went downhill, but there were still a gen or two. English teachers always happened to be here favorite. "Miss Honey sounds very sweet. And...once I'm done with this I can help you with the puzzle if you want," Leliana offered with a smile.

“She was.” Milly leant back as she thought about her, “After I um... had to go to the hospital she’d visit me and bring jigsaws. And when mum took me out of school she tutored me for a little bit. She’d always bring homemade millionaire shortbread.” She looked at the nurse as she offered to do it with her and she nodded, “I’d really like that, thank you.” She looked at the eyepatch curiously.

Leliana smiled a little, working on cutting down the belt pieces. She had grabbed it and was going to use small pieces to help with support so that they patch wasn't laying directly on the eyehole. Which wasn't fun. "Shortbread is pretty tasty, it was my grandma's favorite. She had an amazing recipe for it," Leliana spoke as she use the needle to start poking some of the holes she would need.

“Ooh- shortbreads what goes on the bottom of millionaire shortcake, it’s really tasty. I’d ask Miss Honey how to make it but she never told me. Said it was her secret recipe.” Milly knocked her knees together in thought as she looked around the room. “Colt brought back biscuits- maybe someone of them are shortbread.”

"Biscuits?" Leliana chuckled, giving Milly a sideways glance. Maybe that term was something she picked up from one of her cartoons, but it was cute. "If we had some milk and butter, I could probably make some but...you know, next time someone goes on a run, I'll add it to the list. They might not be able to find some but who knows." Leliana told Milly with a smile, still poking a few holes in the leather and belt pieces.

Milly bopped to and fro on the couch as a song randomly popped into her head and she kept doing it as Leliana suggested that she could make them. “Ooh that would be nice.” she cooed before looking at the eye patch again “I think he’ll like it.” She commented, blinking her baby blue eyes.

"I could still make some box cake...we have chickens and water," Leliana mumbled, tilting her head a little as she grabbed the thread to set up her needle. "When's your birthday Milly?"

Milly’s eyes rolled upward in thought. She had to mentally grapple with herself to come up with a date. “... third of December. And today is...” she chewed on her hoodie tassel in though. “It was the 11th two Tuesdays ago cause Colt said that was Memorial Day so this must be...” her mind drew a blank and she couldn’t remember. With a short huff the small girl folded her arms grumpily, “Can’t remember.”

"It's okay, I'm not really sure what the date is either," Leliana chuckled, starting to sew two pieces of leather together to help build up strength before she pulled it together to create the needed shape. "What's your favorite cake flavor? Mine's lemon."

"Oooh," Milly crooned and clapped her hands together as she thought, "I like lemon a lot. But... I think my favourite is red velvet cake." she answered, "I like buttercream icing the most. I never really liked fondant. It's okay but I would take buttercream icing any day."

"Fondant is gross," Leliana chuckled, making a mental note of Milly's response. She couldn't guarantee anything but...Milly still deserved to celebrate her birthday. And since it was soon...you know, somewhat, Leliana would work on that. Anyway, she held up the eye patch, holding it over her eye as she sizes it up. Hector was larger than herself, so she worked the material for a few moments to get what would most likely fit comfortably for him before settling again to start sewing it together. "Red Velvet was my grandma's favorite cake too."

"My dad made red velvet cake every year for my birthday..." her face a little, "Um... At least until..." she stopped herself as she picked up some discarded material Leliana was not using and looked through it curiously. "...Do you like Halloween?" she asked before her face drew a blank, "Wait... I-I asked that before haven't I? Never mind, sorry." she rubbed the back of her neck, pushing her hoodie down. Around the middle of her neck was a thin and red scar that went around the whole of the neck.

When Milly mentioned her dad, Leliana glanced at the young girl with a slightly skewed brow. It was the first time Milly had done that. "he sounds like a nice dad," Leliana spoke, pushing her own curiosity to the side. "I love Halloween. Last year, I went as a fairy." She smiled, taking her time to stitch the eyepatch. "And I don't remember you asking me about it. Who cares if you accidentally repeat a question anyway?"

“I don’t remember much about him but, there are some things. I didn’t trick or treat, but I still dressed up. Last year I dressed up as a zebra. Mum would dress up too, think she was a giraffe and we watched ‘The Lion King’.” Milly blinked and rubbed her neck again as she thought of an answer to Leliana’s last question. She coughed softly, “It’s just. Mum always said that repeating yourself was bad and it would bore people or annoy them. It’s a bad thing. I mean, it must be since none of the kids at school liked me.”

"I don't remember much about my dad either," Leliana spoke, letting Milly know that she understand how felt. "Dressing up an watching movies sounds like fun. Me and my mom would dress up and hand our candy on our porch." She sounded happy reminiscing but when Milly mentioned what her mother had told her, Leliana's attitude shifted. "Sweetheart, it's okay to repeat yourself, there's nothing wrong with it. You aren't going to bore someone by doing that." Leliana was seriously starting to question Milly's mother. The woman had done...something pretty awful to Milly, Leliana just knew it. "Those kids just didn't take the time to get to know you. Kids are like that, they're mean. They missed out though, you're a very lovely girl Milly."

 

[shadowz1995]

Uncomfortable Honesty

Normally, the cellar was always rather silent. One could often hear the old, hispanic doctor downstairs working silently and tirelessly down in the depths of the lodge. The scratching of pen on paper, Hector talking quietly into his recording device, the ambient hum of the preservative equipment, or the clinks of glass equipment being shifted around as the scientist moved specimens around.

However, today was not like most days.

There was some indescribable sound emanating from the makeshift lab. Something was clearly thrashing down there and making an inhuman chittering, scratching sound against some kind of plastic. Every few seconds, a thump would be heard followed by the low rumble of Hector's voice. The grey eyed male spoke in a monotone voice, devoid of emotion, as always.

The jarring part was that he spoke as if there wasn't a decaying squirrel locked in a 5 x 5 plastic box thrashing about trying to get a bite out of the tanned, long haired man before it.

"Subject 23-A showed no outstanding signs of resistance or immunity to the Lazarus plague nor to the Jordan Pathogen after administration of serum A-13. Subject's pupils are dilated and unresponsive. Accelerated necrosis of muscle tissue is evident. Increased aggression evident. Deterioration of cerebral tissue can not be safely confirmed at this time but is inferred. Subject 23-A final result is a failure and the A-13 serum will be retired from clinical trial rotation. To be recorded physically in Jordan's Pathogen clinical trial studies. End log #389"

Without missing a beat, the doctor set the recording device down and dawned thick leather gloves that had obvious scratch marks from his previous experiments. Well practiced hands cracked open the plastic prison of Subject 23-A and slowly pushed a finger in. The zombified rodent dove for the opportunity to spread its disease to a more qualified host and latched on to the armored digit.

Hector's free hand clamped down on top of the squirrel. It didn't even try to squirm away as its nature would dictate. It just kept trying to get through the glove like a rabid dog.

Both hands grasped the creature and the one eyed doctor snapped its spine in two. A death sentence under normal circumstances.

Yet, the creature still moved. This caused a graying eyebrow to raise in mild interest. An unintentional side effect perhaps? Apparently, the newest batch of the A-series caused the infected to become a little more resilient.

Several snaps later and the creature was completely still. It was only when the chittering had stopped that Hector realized he had a redheaded audience.

The twins had been standing and watching for a while. Andy wasn't sure if the injuries to Hector's head had made him less observant to their presence, or maybe it was just his hyper focus on his work. When his grey eyes finally met hers, the girl gave the doctor a small wave of her hand before making herself at home on her normal throne, on top of the ice chest.

"That one's a no go as well huh?" Andy asked knowingly. She didn't pretend to understand all of what Hector did. In fact, the girl really only understood a fraction of it, but she had seen similar displays with the animals before.

"I didn't even realize that animals could turn," Owen muttered, eyes still fixated on the dead animal in the doctor's gloved hand. The idea seemed to unease him, as if a visible shiver went up his spine. "I've seen plenty of animals being eaten, but none walking around afterwards. Was the lion that you fought a zombie?" Her brother asked.

"I wouldn't still be here if it was," she replied with a full expression on her face. That much had to have been obvious. The obvious scratch marks still protruding down her shoulder were enough evidence of that, not to mention the direct bite she had suffered afterwards. "It was starving, but in the same way that we can."

"As of right now," the large man began, "that isn't something the virus is capable of. I synthetically created a mutation of the viruses so that it could infect and mutate animals for testing. I haven't come across too many recently infected humans to use for my studies so I had to force a mutation."

The doctor rubbed his still-bruised neck in memory of what happened, "Luckily, as I recently discovered, the virus adapts and mutates quickly when presented with the right conditions. I merely created the right conditions so that it wouldn't slow down my work and preserved the new strain for future experiments."

The Venezuelan turned and discarded the corpse of Subject 23-A into a biohazard bag which undoubtedly contained the corpses of various small, woodland creatures. It was fortunate that those bags trapped scents with surprising efficiency.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" He asked, inquiring about why they came down to his lab. Andy coming down on her own was normal. However, both of the twins at the same time was an oddity.

"Coincidence honestly," Andy replied, catching the Doctor's meaning. "I was coming down to have you take a look at my stitches and Owen…" his sister paused to look over at him, trying to remember why he had tagged along.

"I think I pulled a muscle repairing the fence," he answered with a shrug. "Nothing serious, I just was going to ask for some ibuprofen, but I figured it's all locked down here."

Andy didn't speak while Hector tossed her brother a bottle of medication and then began looking over her shoulder. It was clear that mentally she was somewhere else. Her emerald eyes stared straight ahead, almost glossy with her eyebrows knitted in thought.

"Hector, can I ask you something?" The huntress asked finally, breaking the silence. This had been on her mind for several days.

"Of course." He nodded.

"Did you and my mom date?" Her question seemed to catch Owen's interest as well, who sputtered some of the water he had just drank to chase his medication with.

Maj​

 

[shadowz1995]

Uncomfortable Honesty​

"I- …"


It was the first time that the twins had seen the doctor genuinely caught off guard by a question. He crossed his arms and looked down to the basement floor. His solitary eye flicked back forth as if reading something etched into the ground. One could tell he was searching for an answer that he did not know himself.


A full minute of silence passed by before he looked up again, his brow furrowed and his posture very obviously indicating he was uncomfortable with the subject of their mother. As he has shown in the past.


"I'm not sure." He finally replied.


"Andy where is this coming from?" Owen asked, noticing how uncomfortable their doctor friend had become. His sister held up a hand to say she had a point. Her gaze turned back to Hector, making sure to make eye contact. Sometimes Andy was able to tell much more by studying the person, than by their words.


"When I was talking to Owen the other day, I remembered something sort of odd. The day that I disappeared, I came home really late. Mom was dressed up really nice, like she had plans that night. Of course she didn't go but…" Andy paused. Hector knew things about her mother that even some of her closest friends didn't. It hadn't been obvious all at once, but all the small details he had divulged over time had added up. "You guys were more than just co workers, weren't you?" She asked.


Owen listened to his sister put together the clues that had been staring them in the face. He wanted to smack himself for not seeing the signs earlier. There had been plenty. The reaction when he heard his mother's name at the hospital, his explanation of having a large file on her, even their conversation from the night before all showed how much he had cared for her.


"You're right," Owen added thoughtfully. "She went on dates from time to time, but I didn't ask many details." If it had been Hector the whole time, that meant that his mother and Hector had been seeing each other for years. "The other night, you told me that taking care of me and Andy is what mom would have wanted you to do. I didn't think much of it then, but for you to do that, you must have done a lot more than just respect her."


"I don't…" he started but lapsed back into silence. His leg started to bounce as he continued to think. It wasn't embarrassment or guilt for hiding the truth that seemed to dominate the old man's emotions but genuine discomfort and confusion. At not knowing how to answer the questions asked of him.


"I suppose it depends on what you are referring to." His gravelly voice stated with a measure of discomfort. "I can't tell the difference between seeing, dating, fooling around, or talking. These terms are used interchangeably and the meaning is subjective to those who said them. It's not something I can answer confidently."


“You are overcomplicating it,” Andy said with a roll of her eyes. “Did you guys go out on dates? Did she dress up for you and smile at you when you spoke? Did you exchange gifts on holidays? Did you sleep together?”


Hector opened his mouth to respond but closed it quickly. An emotion he couldn't quite place his finger on seemed to well up in his chest for a ghost of a moment before he quickly shook it off. Andy's questions certainly checked off the list in his memories but his mind lingered on the second question. It wasn't her usual smile with patients, coworkers or friends. There was a specific smile he remembered. One that wouldn't leave his mind now that Andy reminded him.


The girl watched as his face contorted, almost pitying him as it did. Maybe she was coming at him too hard, but she knew Hector well enough to know that unless she was blunt with him he would dance around the answers as he always did. He was not a man to reveal anything unless he felt he had to. But he was revealing plenty now. Andy could see the pain on his face, and something akin to fondness as well. As if the sheer memory of her mother was enough to bring both light and dark to his features. He was obviously shaken, or at the bare minimum he was widely uncomfortable. His large form was rigid but unsettled, seeming to bounce in and out of reality and memory as he contemplated Andy’s words.


It took a long time but eventually he nodded his head silently, looking as befuddled as when the conversation began.

 

[shadowz1995]

Uncomfortable Honesty
Part 3


It was obvious that this wasn’t something that Hector was good at. He was out of his element. The man could study human behavior and write it in such detail that you felt like you had known the person your whole life. He moved around a lab with the confidence that only came from knowing you were a master in your field. His decisions had conviction, his thoughts and advice all built within logic. It made sense that when it came to matters of the heart, he lacked all of these things. Love was never logical.


“Did you love her?” Andy asked softly.


Silence.


For a long time, uncomfortably long, it was only the humming of the freezer that Andy sat upon that filled the void and the occasional shuffling of feet from an uncomfortable Owen.


After what felt like an eternity, Hector merely shook his head. His tone was very soft for a man with his voice.


"... I don't know."


“Oh for heaven’s sake Andy,” Owen growled, finally speaking up. The display was too much to watch. There were tears threatening to well up in the corners of his own eyes as he watched Hector struggle through his sister’s gauntlet of questions. “Leave him alone.”


“It’s a straightforward question,” his sister retorted defensively.


“Is it?” The larger redhead laughed sarcastically. “Do you love Luca?” He watched as his sister baulked, eyes rolling skyward as her mouth opened and closed in rapid motions as she struggled to come up with a come back that could shut her brother up. None came.


“That's what I thought. You would think for someone as emotionally stunted as he is, you’d have a little goddamn compassion.” The boy softened as he looked at Hector once more, choosing to move to more tangible questions that he knew the man could easily answer.


“How long were you guys together?” he asked.


The doctor's shoulders relaxed some at that question and his back straightened to a more normal position for him, "It's been 13 years since Ms. Jordan had asked me to have coffee with her for the first time. It would have been 14 in the coming weeks."


“Fourteen years?” Andy asked, bewildered. “Four- Fourteen!” The concept that her mother had been dating a man for more than half her life and she never knew it didn’t sit well with her. “If you guys had been dating that long how come we never met you?” she asked, somewhat pointedly.


“We did, Andy,” Owen said softly, remembering. “I mean mom never introduced him to us as her boyfriend or anything. I assume that might have made Hector uncomfortable, but we’ve met Hector briefly a few times. Haven’t we doc?”


The doctor nodded silently. He definitely remembered them when they were children. He just hadn't recognized them until Owen said his name and that he had a twin sister. It was also then that Hector realized who Owen was crying over in the hospital.


"I had shorter hair then and the nature of my career piles the years on quickly."


“But that still doesn’t make any sense,” Andy complained. She was also quickly remembering being introduced to Dr. Salazar when she was at her mother’s work. However, the girl had been far more preoccupied drawing pictures of flowers with her mothers highlighters than conversing with some doctor. “If you guys were together that long, why wouldn’t she have brought you around more?”


“Andy,” Owen’s voice was soft, and almost careful as he spoke. “Do you really think after the last guy she was with that she would be too keen to bring her boyfriend around her kids?” Andy’s eyes met her brothers as she slumped against the wall, as if the idea drained all the fight out of her. He was right. Even though Hector was nothing at all like Liam, she couldn’t blame her mother for being more cautious with her personal life afterwards.


“Did she ever tell you about him?” Andy asked quietly. “Do you know if he ever…” her voice grew strained as she tried to ask her questions. Now she was the one to look disheveled and uncomfortable as she spoke.


"I can spot the signs of psychological and emotional trauma from a mile away, Andy. When you were both a little more grown, I asked out of curiosity about the father of her children."


Hector leaned back as he recalled the conversation, staring at the floor above the basement, "She knew I was aware and she steered the conversation away from him. She only told me that he was a severely abusive human being and that she did everything in her power to protect you both from him. Mary wanted you to grow up never knowing. Circumvent the turmoil entirely."


'Though it seemed to have the opposite effect.' His eye locked with Andy's green ones. It wasn't a thought he said aloud but it was one he knew she mirrored.


"You're more like her than you know."


The sounds of swallowed sobs could be heard from Andy’s throat as she struggled to contain the emotion that threatened to drown her. Andy had so many regrets. She regretted undoing all of her mother’s hard work by disobeying her and running right into her father’s arms. She regretted being so self absorbed that she didn’t even notice how much her mother had loved the man in front of her. She regretted throwing divides into her family that now could never be fixed entirely. But more than anything else, she regretted not realizing how strong her mother was before now. The woman had deserved better from her and there was no time left to correct the wrongs.


Owen moved from his spot standing in the entryway, to sitting next to his sister on the freezer. One of his massive arms went around her frame, pulling her into his side and resting his head on top of hers. She let him, finding comfort in the embrace. When the wave settled she pulled back and adjusted herself, composure falling over her like a sheet. It didn’t come all at once, but sort of wafted through the air as it settled around her.


“She’d come back after trips,” Andy began, voice soft and waterlogged. “And she’d dance in the kitchen while she did the dishes. Mom was always pretty happy but, I think you made her a lot happier.”


The old doctor's eye returned to the roof. As if asking an ever silent God if that was true. Did he really make her life a better one? Happier one? If he did, how? Hector's capacity to be a lover was on par with a pet rock.


Or at least, that's what he thought. Apparently, Mary had a very different opinion.


"I don't know." He replied. "I can only hope that's true."​