❛ ᶜᵒᵐᶦᶜ ᵇᵒᵒᵏˢ / ᵃᶫᶦᵉᶰˢ !

Adam had been preparing himself for what was sure to be a hellish trek back to Springhill Suites when the boy had appeared out of no where lugging what appeared to be a lifeless b o d y behind him. Truthfully he was caught off guard, unsure what to do or how to respond to the situation. It wasn’t like he had a medical degree and could assist in reviving the lifeless being, or did he really belong at the Country Club in the first place. He’d just been in the area, trying to make a trade for goods before continuing on his merry way home…

Wrong place, wrong time. 

It seemed he had lost himself in thought for the next thing he knew the boy was shouting at him, investigating if others were left out in the cold. If it was just this kid to deal with that frozen body–

He shifted on his feet before appearing from beyond the trees, “Er-Me, yeah. Do you…need help?” He offered a little awkwardly before shuffling towards the building, “What happened?” 

SQUINTING INTO THE CLOUDY ABYSS, alix clenched his fists, taking a g l a n c e back at the person he’d left in front of the FIREPLACE... before a d i f f e r e n t voice came into earshot. the y o u n g carer SHOT back around, dark browns finding his almost immediately. ❛ ...help? ❜ he echoed in a CONFUSED tone ; had he been one of the people who’d h a n d e d him the body? ...that q u e s t i o n was answered at his next question. pursed lips o p e n e d to reply... but just as, the w i n d s kicked up, b l o w i n g his hair into his face --- and he quickly gestured for the other to f o l l o w him inside.

A SHAKE OF HIS HAIR, clearing the ICE off his curls ; and he looked b a c k to the other boy. ❛ there were these guys that came outta no where and dropped that person on me, ❜ he f i n a l l y returned, p o i n t i n g over to the body. a hand r e a c h e d up ; he scratched his head, clearly BEFUDDLED over the situation... but not enough to l o s e his head in it. he looked back before f u r r o w i n g his brows ; attention now on the blonde. ❛ ...if you weren’t with those guys, where did you come from? ❜

she’d have to start back soon. getting stuck in the middle of a snowstorm wasn’t exactly how she planned on spending a night. the snow was coming down, but not so much that it made it impossible to see a distance in front of you. so she knelt down, bag in front of her, and begun situating her things. water, a pot, a lighter, a flashlight, and a small amount of food. once she counted it all, confirming it was there, she stood back up and started to head out. aoife had her jacket zipped and mittens completely secure, though the hood of her jacket had been accidentally detached at some point so she would have to brave the storm without it. she hadn’t gotten far when she heard a voice, ears straining to make out exactly what was said. it wasn’t until she got a bit closer to them that she finally put it together. “oh no,” she said, words coming out with a breathy puff. “- alix!” she hadn’t recognized him until just that moment. “i didn’t realize it was you.”

eyes s o f t e n i n g as the fuzzy blur came into view ; for some reason, he WASN’T expecting aoife... but upon spotting her, his expression began to l i g h t e n. alix’s shoulders r e l a x e d and he glanced down b r i e f l y in thought --- before looking back up. he came to h e r ; taking a few steps forward, off the country club’s property and onto the sidewalk. ❛ hi, aoife. ❜ the small brunette returned in m o n o t o n e... though that had more or less been on ACCIDENT. things felt a l i t t l e awkward... mainly because of how much he’d spilled e m o t i o n a l l y to the girl that night ; but he was pushing though it.

in all honesty, alix was HAPPY to see her ; hadn’t yet had the c h a n c e to apologize for how he’d acted after that raider attack... ( or before ) after they’d gotten b a c k to his camp. he’d been UPSET ; and though he k n e w she probably understood, he felt BAD, anyway. aoife didn’t d e s e r v e it... getting caught in the CROSSFIRE of his own inner TURMOIL. alix would o n l y be able to move on from this by saying ‘ sorry ’. vision moved back up to f i n d her eyes --- and he pulled his mouth back briefly ; not too sure how to START. ❛ ...aoife? i’m--... it’s--... ❜ he s t u m b l e d over his words, but clenched his jaw to REGAIN himself.

❛ i’m... sorry about pushing you when i saw you with my sister’s rabbit. and... pushing you away, too... in a different way... when we got back here... when you were just trying to help. ❜ oh, thank GOD. he’d f o r g o t t e n that aoife had been out there, too. TERRIFIED ; and alix had been rather selfish, focused on what they did to h i m --- it wasn’t just about the men desecrating his baby sister’s grave... it was about if aoife was okay. if they’d HURT her, how would he have f e l t? would he still be t h i n k i n g about what they did to some ol’ baby toys? no, he’d be SOBBING over a l o s t friend.

the last few d a y s had been HARD on alix ; for the most part, he’d kept inside, neither wanting to meet n e w people, nor e x p l a i n to the ones around him WHY he’d become so recluse. SELFISH as he hadn’t helped with r a t i o n s or contributed to the group in anyway since he and aoife’s run in with those raiders ; simply kept in his room. not only had he been p u s h e d to the edge, mentally... but he’d KILLED someone... not one of the w a l k e r s but a LIVING human. it’d been a few d a y s... but he was f i n a l l y coming to a resolution when the snow HIT ; watching it f a l l outside his window, he figured, had his sister’s shrine been in the woods now, it would’ve gotten DESTROYED by the w e a t h e r if not that group of raiders. like he’d done beforehand, alix woke up, got d r e s s e d, and headed to the rationing station to contribute once more... h o p i n g it wasn’t too late. finishing up, the young brunette h e a d e d out, taking his sketchpad with him. it was snowing l i g h t l y --- no sure sign of the HORRENDOUS blizzard y e t to come... so he decided he’d enjoy the change of pace. it wasn’t until he spotted m o v e m e n t out of the corner of his eye that he looked up ; s l o w l y, he came to a stop. squinted eyes kept on the figure a little t o o far out to recognize past the larger s n o w f l a k e s and he DECIDED to call out to them. ❛ you lookin’ for someone? ❜ he inquired, unable to make out who it was j u s t yet. 

“Shoot.” Elliot slouched as she waited for the question. She wasn’t quite sure what the boy would be interested to know about her, but she was willing and open to his investigation. What a strange question, not odd, just strange in the fact that it had never been asked of her before. Elliot was grey, she didn’t live as one or the other, people however, tended to want to understand her and either enjoyed that they didn’t or were entirely frustrated by her. “That’s not on me, little man. People either really like me or really hate me, usually more positive than negative. It’s not easy to be apathetic about me. You can go that route if you want to try it out but you’ll end up on one side or the other.” 

alix gently r o c k e d his head back ; eyes rolling up at her return. in all truth, elliot was intriguing --- and perhaps that was because she had a COURAGE he l a c k e d. but on instinct? jealousy ; he REBELLED. the snarky brunette was normally DEFINABLE... ten times MORE to adults. but with her? it was ridiculous. ❛ then i’m gonna take that route. ❜ he said c h e e k i l y after a beat, rocking his head back down.

downturned lips let out a startled hiss as she flinched at the sight of another raider in the brush. they were like cockroaches, rats. they were worse than walkers, who were kind enough to only EAT YOU ALIVE. “camps, yeah.” she agreed through tight lips, bottom bit fiercely in attempts to keep it from tugging further down in despair. “I don’t–” she should’ve joined one a long time ago and she knew it. instead she’d held onto her independence FIERCELY, stupidly, in some vain attempt at containing the curse she had of BETTER PEOPLE dying for her ( and now wasn’t she subjecting this child to the same fate? ). maybe she’d hoped someone from her past would find her or that vasiliy would stick around and she’d have more of his company than the romantic chance encounters. “I don’t live at any of the camps, uh–but i think we’re somewhere nearer the capitol, aren’t we?” truly she had no idea, but a run-in with a nice jock girl who’d comped her some jerky had been around there. she’d mentioned belonging to the capitol and being close to home. “where’s yours?”

ATTENTIVE eyes kept forward as open ears held on for her return --- then they r o l l e d to the nearest street sign as she mentioned the cheyenne state capital. ❛ uh... ❜ he started, looking down b r i e f l y in thought, trying to REMEMBER just what the building looked like... then up to s e a r c h for it. tan and big ; alix curbed the corner, making the bike shake uncomfortably upon spotting it, and sped to a STOP out in the front. the small brunette held onto the handlebars, pulling it a l o n g s i d e him once they were both off ( because no way in hell would he leave his bike ) and made a BEELINE to the s i d e of the building. crouching down behind a bush, alix took off his backpack and p u l l e d out his walkie talkie. bringing the thing up to his face, dark browns darted towards where he t h o u g h t the girl to be, and towards the street before he pressed down on the button. ❛ state capitol group, you there? ❜ he radioed ; before looking b a c k to his opposite. he’d HOPED one of them had a l r e a d y seen them coming... but if not, prayed to GOD someone had their radio on.

☼  •  —  the camp at the cheyenne country club is, admittedly, pretty small  — both physically and in population. in spite of the acres of fertile land that surround the property and offer much in the way of natural resources ( the earth mother can be profoundly generous when treated with respect and compassion )  the indoor accommodations for the camp and its members are significantly less spacious. were their numbers greater, the gardener imagines most, if not all, of their rooms, would have to be shared by multiple occupants. and as much as he welcomes the thought  —  and he does, oh, he wants nothing more than for his home to become a home, a refuge, to so many more and for the tiny family at the country club to flourish, to g r o w  —  he often wonders if it will ever come to fruition, given how seldom survivors seem to stay. ( he’ll forever be grateful for adalene; the dedicated patrol guard  —  and his close friend  — has been a constant from the very birth of the camp from the ashes of a violent raid on the city, a familiar face among the many that come and go. )  but for what the club lacks in size, it makes up for in h e a r t. and organic produce. anyone is welcome to seek shelter within its walls, to find nourishment and peace. and truthfully, topher considers it a blessing that alix happened across the fields of the country club, and even more so that he’d decided to stay. 

            christopher haas does not claim to have any p r e t e r n a t u r a l abilities; the opening of his third eye did not bestow clairvoyance or precognition, and his interest in the subject didn’t quite facilitate skill. but for years, he’s practiced the art of reading and visualizing auras, and he remembers being struck by the purity of the pale glow that enveloped alix the night they met. to see a child who’d not only managed to survive in this world but still remain so wholly and truly g o o d in spite of it  — it’s a gift he imagines he’ll cherish the rest of his life, a small promise from the universe that his optimism, his faith is not unfounded. good still exists. and alix, he’s so much more than simply good  — he’s creative, intelligent, courageous. the potential he has as a member of the camp  — of the community  —  it’s immeasurable.  ❝  thanks for takin’ it, ❞  he says sincerely, returning the smile with one of his own.  ❝  the camp is a better place for your presence, alix. i’m glad you’re here.  ❞  he takes another sip of tea, dark eyes curiously following the younger male as he stands from his chair and reaches for his bag. grin growing, he tucks his mug away beneath his chair and rises himself, offering alix an enthusiastic nod.  ❝  i think now’s the perfect time. you set ‘em up, an’ i’ll go grab the signs. ❞

            the signs in question aren’t actually signs at all, but rather a pair of white, king-sized sheets that he and alix spent an entire afternoon meticulously painting with encouraging and informational  messages for any extraterrestrials that happened to be near enough to find them. (  ❛ ALL LIFE WELCOME ❜ and ❛ UFO PARKING HERE ❜ among a handful of others, all painted in large, bold letters and decorated with various peaceful symbols and artistic renderings of alien spacecrafts. ) given that they’ve set up lookout at the center of an open field only a few yards away from his van, acquiring them only takes about a minute or two, and the gardener returns just as quickly with a folded heap of fabric and a number of tent stakes balanced in his arms.  ❝  okay  — where d’you think i should put them? ❞

dark browns l i g h t i n g up, genuinely, at his opposite’s reply ; alix couldn’t help the smile that grew across his face. attention went down, then, to recuperate --- and he idly s h o o k one of the l i g h t s to check if it’s bulb still worked as cheeks REDDENED. looking back to toph at his answer, however, an enthusiastic nod in return and alix moved to stand. the lights were BIG, but l i g h t w e i g h t ; bright. surely what they l a c k e d for in numbers, the made up for in SIZE. 

the small brunette picked up the duffle bag and s t a r t e d towards the first ‘ x ’ among five that he’d set up in the c l e a r e s t part of the field. it was one his most FAVORITE places ( perhaps on this planet ) to look up at the s k y ; he was b l e s s e d to happen upon this place in that sense --- and if the APOCALYPSE had never happened, would he have ever happened upon cheyenne? ...would he have ever met topher? these were q u e s t i o n s he didn’t c a r e to think about.

he’d placed the fourth one now before his camp mate’s return ; upon it, alix looked up with a, ❛ uh... probably between those two lights? ❜ he pointed. expression saying he was in a deep thought ; and he moved b a c k to the third light he’d set up... before eyes returned to his friend. ❛ around this one and i gotta set these up, but when i do? on each side of ‘em. ❜ a small nod, before b o u n c i n g curls hurried over to set the last two up --- and i m p a t i e n t l y, he RACED back over to plug them in.

a BLINDING light and alix immediately dropped the cords to s h i e l d his eyes. maybe he should’ve WAITED until him and topher were at a s a f e distance before TURNING THEM ON, he was now r e a l i z i n g. with that, the g i g g l i n g, teary-eyed boy hurried over to help his camp mate put the rest of the signs down --- and rushed back once they’d finished, nearly s t u m b l i n g over himself in the process, before f i n d i n g his place comfortably away, briefly looking over to topher and d r o p p i n g his head in his hands.

fiona nodded at the answer. as a girl, she’d always wanted a telescope. things like that were more DIFFICULT to get when she was a kid; things like telescopes and microscopes cost more money back then. now, anything you wanted was yours for the taking to some extent. telescopes and jenga were a lot more popular now than playstations and netflix. peeling her eyes from the telescope, fiona chuckled at his ANEMOIA for the eighties. “everything looks beautiful in retrospect.” he’s not so young that he can’t understand the concept. “memory, even collective memory, glosses over the harder parts of life.“ with a grin, fiona laughed again. “I was born in ‘90, so I guess I just missed the eighties myself, right?” she could remember that feeling though–as a kid the nineties had been somewhat of an extension of the late eighties–and she’d watched enough GREMLINS to see the appeal herself.

leaning back, fiona let herself sit cross-legged by the telescope–keeping her eyes peeled on their surroundings, before letting her gaze fall on robocop with a small smile. “yeah, I miss having all of the benefits of the pharmaceutical industry and hospitals, even if I complained about them before. they had their problems, but it was better than nothing.” at least more people would’ve been able to survive. she couldn’t count how many lives wouldn’t have had to be LOST if there was access to insulin or epinephrine, or albuterol. “no, not a doctor.” although she certainly FELT like one now. she was doctor, nurse, nutritionist, mental health evaluator, and social services. there was something about the term NURSE that was so much more to her than any other title. ‘DOCTOR’ certainly had more prestige, but fiona was a nurse regardless of everything else. “I was a nurse in the emergency room before all of this. I’m lucky, too, it was the right kind of job for all this I think.” as robo basked in the attention, tail flat against the ground and nose held high in the princely posture he assumed when contented, fiona smiled. “yeah, he’s too distinguished for picklehead.”

a small quirk of his brows and alix n a r r o w e d his vision briefly ; before giving her s m a l l nod in return. eyes fell back down to robocop ; the young brunette couldn’t h e l p the small laugh that e s c a p e d his mouth as she told him she was born in the nineties --- and dark browns went back UP to find hers. ❛ lucky. ❜ he voiced, grinning before s h a k i n g his head, ❛ at least you were close. ❜ a soft hand g l i d e d down the side of the pooch’s face and alix smiled warmly before getting up and moving b a c k to the place he’d been stationed b e f o r e they’d come. ❛ y’know... i always hated that stupid thing on the internet... where, like, it was like, ‘ you’ll only get this if you’re a nineties kid! ’ like, i get it. it’s ren and stimpy. i’ve seen some clips. you’re not special. ❜ 

he r e l i n q u i s h e d a small laugh before dark browns darted over to her --- and he quickly added, ❛ current company excluded? ❜ vision back on the fire... but it soon w a n d e r e d back to robocop, and suddenly alix was r e a c h i n g for his sketchpad ; his pencil to the paper and the young carer began to t r a c e the outline of the canine’s fur. ❛ oh! ❜ he p a u s e d at her reply, brows PERKING and suddenly he was seeing her in a d i f f e r e n t light... not one ‘ better ’ or ‘ worse ’, just... different. her k n o w l e d g e must’ve been a POWERFUL asset in this world... as well as it p r o b a b l y had been in the world BEFORE this.

the young brunette looked back d o w n to his sketchpad and thought about the t i m e s someone with medical expertise would’ve been EXTREMELY beneficial to have around --- and immediately, his mother came to mind. as she had a t o u c h of arthritis, and the REASON he had the leave her behind being BECAUSE of it... looking back to the woman, alix w o n d e r e d if she could’ve helped her at a l l. an uncomfortable swallow and the mood a r o u n d him seemed to SHIFT briefly... but he soon p u l l e d himself back out of it. ❛ ...lucky for the people around you, too. so... thanks for... surviving. ❜ he decided to say... though he wished he’d worded it a l i t t l e better.

sadness dripped off of him like rain from the sky during a thunderstorm. how could it not? he was so young, and already he’d been through so much. aoife knew the same feeling, and understood how terrible it was. but also how terrible it was to experience it alone. “hey,” she said quietly as she caught up to him as he moved down the hall. aoife moved slightly in front of him, not blocking his path, so that he could see her. “alix.”

“it’s okay to not be alright.” this time her voice dropped to an even lower whisper, just in case anyone nearby was listening. sometimes people just weren’t alright, and that was okay. for a bit of time, aoife hadn’t been. there were times when she still wasn’t. but she’d accepted these parts of her life- made room for them. “you just- both of us…just went through something really scary. if you’re okay, you can tell me.” sometimes being there for someone didn’t mean talking them through things. sometimes it just meant being there- having the other person know that they weren’t alone. 

“…and if you don’t want to talk, that’s alright. i just want you to know that you’re not alone.” knowing she wasn’t alone in her thoughts had helped her when she’d been in a tough spot. she’d been surrounded by people so brave it seemed that they radiated it. aoife thought they hadn’t been scared, but that wasn’t true. they were all scared, but people just showed it in different ways. 

as aoife moved c l o s e r, BACK into his path of sight, alix paused... he HAD to. dark browns were keeping down however, s t i l l, as he tried to un-clench his fists --- which were apart of the reason he started walking away... because he DIDN’T want her to SEE ; regardless of the sob fest he’d displayed earlier. he didn’t want to be upset... be so ANGRY ; they were just objects, after all... and the ordeal was OVER, but he couldn’t quite s h a k e this one off.

s p l a l t t e r e d blood painted the side of pale cheeks and without KNOWING it, alix wanted to go wash it off. a s h a l l o w swallow, and alix’s eyes f i n a l l y went up to meet hers. ❛ i’m fine. ❜ he repeated... though calmer, this time --- he gave her a s m a l l shrug, l i t t l e smile before continuing past her, down the hall. the boy knew aoife MEANT well... but this one was going to take some t i m e. 

the young brunette c u r b e d the corner and turned into the restrooms ; going for a sink. hands CLENCHING porcelain, dark browns looked u p to the mirror... and suddenly his stomach t w i s t e d. dizzy, he turned to one of the stalls --- and VOMITED harshly into the toilet. teary eyes b l i n k e d rapidly... before expelling out some m o r e ; and the young boy took quick breaths to r e g a i n himself, before muscles began to relax.

          ❝  i’ll be fine. ❞   the boy PROBABLY has a point ; being out after dark with a sprained ankle? spell it out & it says DISASTER, or something along the lines of MEALS ON WHEELS ( the much slower version. ) a pause brings her to rethink her decisions.  ❝  or — or i’ll just find somewhere else to bunk until morning. ❞  that sounds better, definitely more APPEALING than hobbling around jumping at every shadow. the camp is preferable,  but you know what else is preferable? actually being ALIVE when the sun rises.  ❝  geeks? ❞  briar raises a brow at the term ; one she hadn’t come across before but — suspected it was one belonging to the undead familiars they all knew. ( she preferred to call them DEAD BASTARDS but, each to their own she supposes. ) there’s a form of relief when the weapon is lowered, and she finds curiosity taking place of the caution ; with weight resting on her left foot to avoid pressure on the right, she gestures towards him with a flick of her wrist. ❝  speaking of camps, shouldn’t you be in one right now? ❞  

disbelieving brows ; vision darted down to her ankle and he s h o o k his head. attention s w e p t back up to her at her thought, however, and alix’s expression showed a hint of c o n c e r n. ❛ ...how’d you even get that, anyway? ❜ he asked, g e s t u r i n g to her ankle, before eyes went back up to meet hers. ❛ ...yeah. geeks. or... walkers? i think i heard butt munchers once. ❜ dark browns shifted to the side in thought --- but before too long, he was looking back to her. ❛ what d’you call ‘em? ❜ posture shifted s l i g h t l y at her next question and his lids l o w e r e d back to their prior, lethargic half-mast. ❛ i am. ❜ he answered coldly ; no, he WASN’T sure why he l i e d. maybe it was because he’d had his fair share of people t e l l i n g him where to go, what to do... like he wasn’t CAPABLE of taking c a r e of himself. so, yes. he HAS a group, a c a m p, but he’d taken good care of himself BEFOREHAND and figured that much was enough. ❛ i’m guessin’ you should’ve waited for someone to come with you at your camp before leaving, huh? ❜ he mocked, motioning to her a n k l e once more in REBUTTAL... though his s m u g expression died down and he, i n s t e a d, held a look of GUILT a beat after at his quick-to-defend reaction.

❝  uh, ❞   having such a quick fight-or-flight response had always been a double edged sword. on one hand, the alertness drove him to fight… freakishly fast, as the kid put it, but on the other hand, it made moments like this incredibly awkward. devrim never liked attention, couldn’t quite relate to the kind of people that reveled in it, wanted it, or even went so far as to seek it. there was a certain discomfort that came with feeling watched. moreso, there was a certain discomfort that came with being forced to talk about himself. shoulders tensed. eyebrows furrowed in an attempt stop the strain from betraying itself in his face. ❝  not really. ❞  can i go now?

dark brown hues kept on the other boy and alix allowed his lips to c u r v e into a sly smile as he waited for his answer ; brows ARCHED once it’d been given. ❛ oh, well... you got a gift, then! that’s cool. ❜ voice had an i n n o c e n t ring to it --- with such a voice, he could very well say ANYTHING sinister and it’d come out sounding p u r e and j u s t. ❛ well... um... if y’wanna still wash that... ❜ he paused to gesture towards his opposite’s knife ; and then in the direction of the country club, before d r o p p i n g his hand to his side. ❛ or if you wanted me to show you...? that might be easier... ❜ eyes s w e p t up to the right in thought and before the other male could say anything, alix started f o r w a r d  towards the building to lead. ❛ i’ll just show ya’. c’mon! ❜ he shouted, before turning and heading towards the country club. 

approaching the building, the young brunette went for the b a c k doors --- opening them before looking back to his opposite. he started in b a c k w a r d s  ; and held up his arm to point as he REACHED the hall to the bathrooms. ❛ down there, first door on the right.  just go a little easy on the water. ❜ they had a GOOD supply... but alix a l w a y s conserved.

under the cut, , ,,,,, ,you’ll find a list of all the threads for aLL of my muses. bold means my partner owes & italics means i owe. feel free to let me know if any of these are wrong ., .… . or if you’d like to drop anything !!