Day 4: First Light, First Fright

The next morning, Lucy heard movement downstairs. She walked down and headed to the kitchen where she heard pots and pans clanging. Thinking it was Quinn making something for Riley, she just walked in. "Hey Quinn. Can you make me-" She finally looked up to find two undead eyes staring at her. The zombie moved around the center island towards her, groaning in its hunger for her flesh. She screamed and raced to the door, fumbling for a moment in her terror.

By now most of the house had heard her cries and were thundering down the stairs. When they saw what was going on, Riley and John were brandishing their weapons while Quinn aimed his pistol. "LUCY. DOWN." John ordered and she dropped to the floor a moment before John's sword sliced through the spot of air her head had been.

With a wet thunk, the zombie's head dropped to the floor. He had been so close to her, about to grab her. His body followed, the black sludge that his blood had turned into pooling around the wound on the floor. Lucy took a shaky breath and got up, checking herself over for any wounds from the creature. She quickly went over to John, hugging him tightly.

As the morning finally got underway, with that rude wake up call in the past, the group sitting around the dinng room table. Quinn and Riley bring the food out, serving everyone portions of oatmeal and biscuts. Everyone dug in, John taking most of Lucy's food, since she suddenly had a loss of appetite. Once the food was gone, the group gathered together, ready to talk about the pan for the day.

"We need to find Sam. He told us he was going to go work on the electrical system yesterday." Quinn flips a light switch and the lights come on, "Obviously we now have electricity, so that means he fixed it, or at least this part of the house. Something to do today is to see where we have power and where we don't. When me and Riley were making breakfast, only half the kitchen had power, luckily the fridge is part of that section, so we can now have parishable food and such."

Riley nodded with him at the mention of the kitchen, " I want to go out and look for Sam. I was cooped up in the house yesterday, and I need to get some fresh air and stretch."

Looking at her hard, Quinn paused, but nodded."Take John. I'll stay with Lucy here. I'll clean up the rest of that zombie and Lucy can check and see which parts of the house have power."

Day 3: Starting Our New Lives

One by one, the group filled down into the living room. Riley had woken up first, finding a route to the roof. She lay up there, watching the sun rise. Quinn woke next, and after doing a few morning stretches, he goes downstairs to start breakfast and some coffee he found in the cupboards. Soon the smell of the coffee fills the house, bringing down first John, then Sam, and finally Lucy.

Once the food and coffee is done, Quinn goes to the living room to get the group, "Breakfast is up!"

Sam darts into the kitchen, making up a plate of a bagel and some corned beef hash. John and Lucy each get their own plates and sit side by side. Quinn makes a plate for himself and Riley, setting them down. He then taps Lucy on her shoulder.

"Hey, is there any way to get to the roof?"

"Yeah. Go to the third floor. At the top of the stairs, go to the window straight ahead. It leads to a balcony. Outside attached to the wall should be a ladder that leads to the roof."

"Thanks!" Quinn turns to leave, but Lucy grabs his hand.

"Wait. Why do you need to get to the roof?"

Quinn turns back, "To get Riley. Every morning since she was eight, if she was troubled, she would go to the highest place near where she was. After the outbreak, it's rare for her to still be there when I wake up. Since she wasn't with me this morning, I know she went to the roof."

"Oh... Ok." Lucy let go and nods, getting back to her food. During their exchange, John listened in. He had been curious as to where Riley had gone.

Quinn followed Lucy's instructions, arriving at the roof. He sees Riley and sits by her. "Food time Monkey."

She nods and gets up, following him down and to her seat. Soon, everyone has eaten and dressed for the day. They meet in the living room.

John stands and addresses the group, "Ok. I think we all agree we should stay here and make this a kind of home base. So that means we need to fortify our defenses and clean up this house a bit. So if its ok with everyone, I think that the guys should go and fix up the fence outside, and you two girls go through each room and find anything valuable or helpful, and along the way clean up a bit?"

Everyone nods, with the addition of Lucy and Riley looking a little pissed. Sam clears his throat, "I was in the military, so I can help build our defenses. Also i can help fix anything needed around the house."

"That will be very needed! Thank you." And with those words, the group split up, each going to their appointed "jobs" and began their next day.

Day 2: And Yet Here We Are: Alive!

*I was given permission by the owner of the characters Lucy and John to use them in this post*

The next morning, Riley awoke. Remembering the previous day, she reaches down and taps Quinn on his forehead five times. That had been their safe signal. Five taps meant all clear when waking up. But if you were woke by a squeeze, anywhere, that meant to wake up alert because something is wrong.

Quinn sits up and stretches, then gets up, going to the little kitchenette to cook some breakfast for everyone. He uses some of the food Riley had gotten the day before. Soon enough, everyone was up and eating. Lucy kept glancing at Quinn, then at Riley, more glaring at her than anything else. John soon was talking to Quinn about the future of their little group.

"We need to go out and look for more supplies."

"But we also need a bigger living space. This tiny apartment of yours is barely big enough for one person, let alone four! Plus what happens if this place is attacked? Its too closed in to fight properly."

"We already solved that problem. Lucy's parents house is across the park where you two were living. Its easier to defend and big enough for us all and a few more for now." Hearing this, Lucy turned to their conversation.

"No."

"No? Lucy! The man has a point! We can't stay here any longer." John pleaded with her. He had been feeling the lack of privacy and these newcomers were just the excuse he needed to get her to go back.

Lucy sighs, "Fine... But, only for a little while. then we look for somewhere else."

John and Quinn both nod. "Ok! Now that thats settled, since you two are going to be with us for a while, we will need more supplies. So how about on the way there, we go and look for some. The other day I thought I saw a cache of ammo and cans in an old warehouse. They should still be there."

Riley lifts her head, "Sounds good. When we get there, I'll keep lookout."

The other three nod, though Lucy was reluctant. They clean up the apartment, packing anything valuable or essential to their survival, like the camping stove they cook on. Lucy and John look everywhere, collecting their belongings and stowing them in their packs. There has been an unspoken rule since the Accident: pack light and only take what your willing to carry. In the end, Lucy had her personal bag, same with Riley, and John and Quinn had their one personal bag along with one extra for any supplies they might find.

The four left the apartment complex and made their way back to the park, turning North to where the warehouse was instead of east to Lucy's parents house.

Day 1: Out in the World

Slowly walking through the rubble, Riley and Quinn glanced about, looking out for any zombies and food. Quinn signaled to Riley, using a system they had made when they were kids so they could talk to each other privately around people. He told her to go check out a burned out store while he stood watch outside.

She stepped through the broken window, her daggers at the ready. She started grabbing water bottles and canned food, throwing them into Quinn's pack.

Meanwhile, Quinn was still standing guard, his rifle loaded. He tapped on the wall, getting Riley's attention. He signaled to her to look for some ammo for him, since he was low. She nodded once and disappeared. She stepped back through the window, holding the full pack, 5 .17 ammo boxes and 7 .22 ammo boxes on top. Quinn nodded to her and leads the way to their temporary safehouse, a gazebo in the park down the street.

Once there, Riley dumped the contents on the floor and began sorting through it. Quinn whispered, "Riles... pass me a water."

She handed it to him and he took a swallow. "So... How are you holding up?"

"Fine."

"Riley, there's no one here. Tell me." Quinn leaned back against the railing, facing Riley.

"I... I miss her Quinn..." She sighed and started cleaning one of her daggers.

"I know you do... I do too." Quinn patted her shoulder, just like their dad would do, making her smile.

Suddenly, they heard rustling in the bushes a ways away. They both instantly stood, their packs on, daggers and rifle at the ready. Riley scaned the area, alert to any sneak attacks.