Fay is a champion in multitasking. Or so, she’d like to believe. The young woman eyed herself in the mirror, as she used both hands to pull her hair up in a loose bun while she used her toes to put her black shoes upright to slip her foot in. She rubbed her lips together to disperse the red lipstick she had put on and when she was she was satisfied with the bun, she bend down to tie her black oxfords.

She patted down her floral dress, as a sort of unconscious act of checking if she forgot something. Walking around the house, she gathered things for in her brown leather backpack. Her brush on the left side of the room, her book on the right side of the room, and her glasses on the nightstand. As Fay rushed through the house, her cat followed her every move with it’s sky blue eyes, while laying in the windowsill to enjoy the morning sun. Fay’s last stop was the kitchen, where she packed her bread and the sandwiches she made for her brother. Lee was already at his guard post. She placed the canister she would be filling with tea in it too, before closing it with the clasp.

Before she left, she gave a kiss on top of the cat’s head. ”Bye kitty cat, be good!”

The small woman put the bag in the wicker basket of her old bike. A glance at the big clock tower urged her to hurry up. She got onto her bike and rode it down the cobblestones towards the school. People called out to her, and she waved as she passed by and weaved around the people walking to their destinations. For a moment, she allowed herself to close her eyes and let the sun rays warm her face.

As she arrived on the town square surrounding the clock tower and school, children ran up to her and started running behind her bike. They have made a sort of contest out of it. Every morning, they try to keep up with their teacher as she crossed the square.

After parking her bike, she greeted the kids with pats on the head and hugs. Fay always found this to be the best feature about kids. No worries, and immune to the tensions in the square. They just laughed, played, skipped rope and kicked the ball. As if right on que, the clock tower bells rang through the square. 8 o’clock.

The children of Fireflies gathered around her, already eager to tell her about their weekend and what they had done. She laughed. ”Alright guys, calm down. We’ll talk about it in class. Kenneth, tie your laces. Lucy, I think your mother would like to give you your lunch.” Fay pointed towards a woman that was crossing the square, waving a packet of bread. Lucy ran towards her mother. Fay counted the children that had gathered around her, and including Lucy, she was still missing one. The young teacher glanced around the square, and found the missing child some way off. ”Emma! Are you coming?”

As the early light of dawn began to illuminate the forest near the Fireflies settlement, Astor Ermengilde sat motionless upon the thickest branch of a poplar tree.

The man was working his tongue idly, shifting an old bit of cinnamon bark from one side of his mouth to the other for the umpteenth time since he had set out the night before. It had a pleasant roughness that he could focus his mind on as he kept his eyes open for his quarry.

Below him was a carcass. A buck that he'd taken with his bow just two days earlier. It had already been skinned and partially butchered, the spoils brought back to town, and the blood that Astor had collected during the process had been cast all over the surrounding area - ensuring the wide spread of the scent.

Just as he was beginning to consider a more active search for his prey, Astor saw them, padding smoothly and slowly from the trees like ghosts. Wolves. Their snouts were alternately pressed low to the ground or raised slightly into the air.

Wolves had been growing bold recently - sometimes even venturing into sight of the guards who patrolled the outskirts of Fireflies. Naturally, the hunters had been called upon to help. Small bounties had been offered for each wolf killed, and their pelts had always been valuable anyway. It was a temptation that few hunters could resist, and Astor was no exception.

He drew a large revolver from it's place in a shoulder holster. This would be a difficult kill with his bow - and would more likely just result in him losing a precious arrowhead. At least bullet casings could potentially be reused, if he could get slugs and primers from a trader.

He took a moment to get a count. Ten. They were unnervingly close, and despite their focus on the carcass below him, Astor felt that gripping fear seize his gut at the realization that they significantly outnumbered him (and his revolver's ammunition).

Taking a slow, steadying breath, he braced himself against his branch (it wouldn't do to fall into their midst because the kick of recoil caused him to lose his balance), took aim on the largest, and squeezed the trigger.

The large beast let out a surprised yip and slumped forward over it's shattered shoulder, and the others quickly made a break for the treeline at the thunderous report of Astor's .357. He was quick, however, and the wolves were far too close to outrun a bullet. He managed to get off another shot, which knocked another wolf down to the ground with another pained yelp.

After waiting a few minutes to make sure that the rest of the pack was truly gone, during which time Astor holstered his revolver and shot the downed wolves with arrows to guarantee his kills. Once he was relatively certain that he was in the clear, he clambered down from his perch and began readying the wolf carcasses for travel, and then set to work digging a hole for the remains of the buck.

"I'm serious, it was your best work yet!" Dillan tried his best to convince his little sister as she looked up at him with a pouty glare while he helped her with her dark brown hair that had just been cleaned thanks to her attempts of making him breakfast. "Maybe don't cake the kitchen with flour next time, but still it was very good," he assured her with his best fake smile. Emma crossed her arms with a huff and looked away from him.

"Then why did you hack up a lung the second you took a bite?" she asked with a annoyed mutter. Dillan cringed and held back a nervous chuckle as he tried to get her curly hair out of a knot.

"Well, um, I just never had that much salt in my pancakes is all," he chuckled nervously, but flinched as he saw her scowl deepen in her mirror and the tension grow in the air. He let out a heavy sigh as he knew he wasn't getting out of the hole he dug for himself. "Look it was a nice gesture Emma, but I said I'd help you learn to cook if you wanted," he said as he finally unraveled her hair and started to put it into a ponytail, though he was forced to stop as she turned to him with the same pointed glare and pouty expression.

"I can learn myself, just like you did!" she declared with confidence. Dillan arched an eyebrow as he turned her back around and continued with her hair.

"There's a difference though. I had to learn by myself because no one else showed me, you have me here to help you," he said with a small smile as he finished her ponytail. "Come on, I'll show you a few tips later tonight when my shift ends," he offered as he rose from his knee and looked to his watch. "Come on now, get changed for school and I'll walk ya halfway to school," Dillan walked out to let her change and after a few minutes she emerged in her usual attire. A yellow T-shirt with a green flannel, a pair of tan boxer shorts and dirty sneakers. Dillan raised an eyebrow as he saw a few bandages on her knees and sighed. She must have been getting into trouble again. He kept it to himself though, knowing she was smart enough not to leave the settlement.

With the same pout on her face Emma avoided eye contact and snatched her stuff before marching out of the house with a huff. Dillan shook his head with a small smirk and followed her out as he pulled on his gloves. The two walked through the streets in silence, Emma making sure to avoid any contact with her brother and Dillan simply trying not to sour her mood even further. Though as a group of guards walked past the two, clearly from the night shift from the tired expressions on their faces Emma's sour look dulled slightly before she glanced over to Dillan. "Will... Will you have to leave because of this whole mess between our settlement and the Water Leafs?" she asked, her pouty look still on her face, but her eyes soften with what only could be called worry. Dillan glanced back to the group of guards before looking back at his sister. A small frown came to his face as he saw the look on her face and sighed. He didn't want to tell her, but he also didn't want to lie.

"I honestly don't know Em, I hope not, but right now things are kinda hot," he admitted but quickly placed a hand on her shoulder for comfort. "I promise though, that no matter what happens I'm gonna always come back. Okay?" Emma stared at her brother to see if he was just trying to say what she wanted to hear, but after a few seconds she scoffed and shrugged off his hand from her shoulder as her usual pouty look returned.

"Well even when you do come back, you'll just make fun of my cooking!" she huffed. Dillan chuckled and patted the top of her head, always amused when she tried to act tough and grown up.

"I'm heading off now Emma, head to school and have a good day. I'll see ya when I get off," he said before parting ways with Emma as they both reached the town square. Emma sighed as she watched her older brother march off towards his post. She knew he meant what he said, but she couldn't help but feel worried. Before she could linger in her thoughts though she heard her teacher call out to her. She smiled and nodded as she ran towards her.

"Sorry, I was just walking with my brother," she apologized as she joined the gathered children and awaited for her day to start.

Meanwhile Dillan marched towards his post with a frown. He hated to see his sister so worried for him, but he knew she was tough for her age. With a groan he cracked his neck and entered his post. A few of his fellow guards greeted him with tired mummers and grunts, Dillan doing the same. He climbed up to a higher point in his post and as he got to the top he saw Lee had already arrived. "Morning," he grunted as he took a seat across from him and rested his M14 on his lap before looking out towards the outside of the settlement. "Ready for another exciting day?" he asked, his sarcasm nearly oozing from his tone as his frown only deepened.

---

The air was cool; thick with fog and general stickiness of morning humidity, enough to make it hard to breath and bring any strenuous physical activity down a notch. Beads of sweat rolled down the man's face, only to be patted away by an old white t-shirt pulled from the back pocket of his running shorts, making room for several more to well up from his pores and roll across his skin once again.

But, it wasn't every day that an early morning jog around the inside perimeter of the settlement went according to plan. If it wasn't weather conditions, it was economic. In fact most mornings were usually half that distance -or less- just due to blockades of certain areas being under construction, or flooded for a number of reasons. There was an unusual stench that permeated at times within sections of the compound that could possibly be from sewage backup, or dead animal carcasses disposed of in the wrong way, or simply the ever-growing vermin problems.

Rats. Especially rats.

Marcus did his best to push away the random thoughts which consistently invaded his mind whether he wanted them there in the first place or not. An economy that has its ups and downs and the stacking problems and tensions that citizens of Fireflies were having to experience for the last month since the accident at the Dam. And yet what about those living within Water Leaf? Those young and old who were considered friends and -to some degree- family for generations, all the while strengthening the infrastructure of a society already on the fringe of collapse and outside threats.

But it that hadn't been bad enough, that nagging guilt of the night his uncle came to his rescue, put himself in harm's way because an adolescent boy wanted to be an “adventurer". The end result was a very dead relative and nothing to show for it but pain and anguish within his side of the family. Maybe they didn't say it aloud, but Marcus knew they thought it: He was responsible.

The toll emanating from the central clock tower pulled Marcus from his otherwise over-extended reverie, which was a good thing considering he may have continued his run for an endless amount of time just to clear his head. Oddly enough, the man didn't let much bother him, especially in his line of work essentially overseeing the welfare of a society. But the tensions rising up in small pockets were hard to ignore, as reminders seemed to be everywhere…

---------------------

“How are you feeling, hon?”

“Like shit warmed over.” A low, raspy voice from under the covers said. “But, thanks for asking.”

“Doc Lasco says you should be fine in a couple of days as the virus works its way out.” Marcus pulled the light tan covers from over his wife’s pale face, and ran his fingers through her short, auburn hair, taking care to untangle any strands along the way.

“Oh great, so I get to vomit up what little I can eat?” She shot him a wry grin. “That's great news.”

Sick or otherwise, Mila’s sarcastic brand of humor never failed, but that was also her way of dealing with an illness that has otherwise kept her bedridden and feeling terrible for almost a week. Whatever the virus was, it has started shortly before that, hitting a handful of children first and then a few adults, as cases were being reported from one end of the settlement to the other. Most within Fireflies assumed it was Water Leaf causing it, but when their citizens started showing signs, those rumors began to die down. Either way, Marcus had to work closely with the medical staff as they continued investigating the source.

Smiling back at his beautiful bride of seven years, he planted a kiss on her clammy forehead before heading into the washroom for a long awaited shower.

Night shifts: the only part of the job that Piero hated. Work was fine and engaging as usual, but at that late hour it usually meant that people would just whine more about everything.
While he was escorted by the guards from the dam to the settlement, he couldn’t believe the nerves that one of the Waterleaf’s engineers showed by accidentally taking his tools without asking first, and his colleagues had to avoid another ‘accident’ from happening at the dam by holding him when he found out.
Piero himself noticed that things were starting to escalate at an alarmingly growing pace at the dam, especially because he was one of the hot-headed ones that bore a newfound hatred for the other settlement, and that made him a target of pranks at his expense, sometimes innocent and sometimes he wasn’t sure if they were just ‘pranks’ or plain sabotage.

He just couldn’t wait to come home to that bottle he’d been dreaming about all night while working, to help him with his new anger problem and to help him sleep through his mother’s moans, as her pain seemed to only grow and grow each day.

Cold breeze and fog had always helped him in calming down, and today was not an exception. It was a strangely peaceful morning, and with the heavy tension after the lovers’ accident, it was not to be taken for granted. Given this rare circumstance, Piero took the longest route around the settlement to get home, mindlessly observing the surroundings.
He saw an off-duty guard doing his morning jog.

Maybe I should start exercising too. Healthy mind in a healty body is what they always used to say, and right now I haven’t got either.

After passing through the nicest part of the town, he then got to his neighbourhood, not the worst one, but definitely run-down. As soon as he entered his house, Piero was greeted by loud moans, as his mother tried to raise her hand to greet him.
“Good morning to you too, Ma. Have you gotten any sleep at all?”
Chiara whispered, with a very feeble voice: “No.”
“Today I’ll try to have the doctor to come see you. Eat something, I’m going to sleep.”

Piero took the liqueour bottle from the shelf and went into his bedroom, closing the door behind him, and crawled onto the sofa, fully knowing he wasn’t going to be able to get any sleep.

This is going to be a long day.

I might've bit off more than I can chew." Astor thought, grunting as he adjusted his grip on the wooden poles he'd lashed together.

I should see about getting a cart or a wagon. Maybe a pony to carry some of this weight.

He had bound the wolf carcasses to a set of wooden poles he'd cut from saplings, and was now dragging them back towards Fireflies from the forest. The wolves were wrapped in an old tarp, something he'd bought from an older trader a while back for rainwater collection. Hopefully, it'd keep him from tracking blood all through the forest.

It only took him a few hours to reach the outskirts of the settlement. Breathing heavily, he stopped before the guards to declare himself.

"Morning fellas. It's Astor, back from a hunt. Got two wolves. From a pack of ten. Anyone in the market for a new coat?"

Another day in the yard, with a few hares bundled up in a dirty, brown bag. Verelik had just come back from the forest, after snagging some hares from some traps he had set up the previous night. It wasn't necessary to bring a rifle for this particular task, but he brought it as usual, in case an early bird deer strolled by. After all, he had left at five in the morning, as those hares came out just as the morning dew would settle.

He had already collected them though, of course. Now he was in the yard, skinning them each one by one, a task he had performed countless times already. It wasn't yet seven, so Alyssa would still be asleep. Verelik finished the first hare and hung it up by the legs on his second clothes line, which he used for hunting instead. Since he had only recently moved into this particular house, nothing here was yet second nature. He'd have to fix this all up and make it feel like home for the third time again.

By the time the clock tower's bell rang, he had finished. Blood dripped onto the concrete beneath the hares. As a kid he had learned there used to be vegetarians, though of course food is not so easily forged these days. Good thing, too, or he'd probably lose his job. He arched his back and rolled his neck, before heading back inside.

The house wasn't very furnished, but it did its duty. Verelik dumped his bag near his rifle and walked over to the kitchen. Guess we'll have hare kebab again.

He began cooking, occasionally letting it cook while he looked out the window, watching settlers head to their respective duties. He had a coffee mug in his hand, and took a sip every now and then. Occasionally, he heard footsteps from Alyssa's room. She was awake, so he finished up with the food and set them down at the table. As if on cue, she stepped into the main room, her hair tied back into a simple ponytail that reached just below her neck, save two locks of hair let loose at the sides, followed by side-swept bangs crossing to her left. She shared the same brunette hair as her father, along with the blue eyes. Without saying much of a word, she sat down at the table, made a slight grunt, and began eating, all while Verelik sipped coffee and read some paper. This was their way of signifying the two's relationship, while seeming dormant, it was rather caring.

Halfway through eating her meal, Verelik spoke. "Looks like Fay's still teaching. She'll probably be your teacher."
Alyssa had to quickly swallow what she had in her mouth before responding. "You didn't think she'd be there?"
Verelik looked up from the paper, his eyebrow slightly raised. He hesitated before speaking. "That's not what I meant. I don't know, it was idle talk."
"Uh-huh." Alyssa continued eating.
Verelik put down the paper and gulped the rest of the coffee. "Come on, Aly, it's only been a year."
She finally looked up at Verelik, with a slight raised eyebrow. She was in the middle of chewing, but her face still screamed "I'm pouting right now".
He sighed, then got up from his seat. "Sure, be like that. I'm getting my jacket, make sure you wash up, 'kay?" Without waiting for a response, he walked off to his room. Alyssa shrugged and finished her meal.

It was almost 8, but luckily the school was of walking distance. Verelik had been in the shower for long enough now, even though he had said he'd only grab his jacket. In the mean time, Alyssa had washed up and was now enjoying a simple hobby. She was good at lots of things, thanks to her father's skill teaching, and one of those things was darts. That, along with the standard survival skill set that Verelik would of course teach her. Darts however was simple to play, and easy to set up. There was no time to enjoy a song on the guitar or climb the tree in the back. "501, let's go!"
At that moment, she heard Verelik finish his shower. She groaned. "Alright, let's get at least 100 then." She had three darts. She pulled her arm back, then let it fly. She aimed for the inner 20, but got the non-ringed patch. "80." Another dart flew, this time aimed for the outer 20. It landed, and she smiled. "Niiice, 40! One more!" She held the dart up, took a breath, an--

"Hey, Sweet Cheeks, what're you doing there?"

The dart flew off into the wall rather than the board. She slowly looked at Verelik, who was smirking with his arms crossed, while leaning against the wall. She tried to be angry, but she lost her composure and giggled. He smiled back. "Okay, I owe you one. Remind me later, but for now, let's go."

The walk to the school was brisk. It was known to both of them that the Lover's Incident ended up lowering their reputation, though the looks weren't common, most likely due to the morning rush. They arrived at the school, just as a group of other kids crowded Fay. The clock tower above them rang, signalling that 8th hour. Alyssa and Verelik walked up to the group, and Verelik patted Alyssa's back and slightly nudged her forward, while smiling in the general direction of Fay and the kids. "Good luck, try not to beat the boys up."
"Dad..." She looked sheepish.
Verelik chuckled. "Alright, alright, have fun now, yeah?" He looked over at Fay and nodded. "Nice to see you again, Fay. Look after Aly for me." As he said that, Alyssa walked over to the group, looking for familiar faces.

Fay smiled sweetly and tucked a stray strand of hair behind the ear of Emma. “That’s quite alright, dear.” The young teacher looked up and waved at Dillan, but he didn’t notice. With a pat on the back, she send Emma towards the other kids before counting them all again and letting her finger land on Alyssa, who was walking over together with her father. All complete, she thought to herself. The administration of the school had already signalled her Alyssa would be joining her class again. Alyssa was a lovely and bright kid, and Fay of course had no objection. She expected her to turn up this morning. She did not, however, expect her father to come along with her. She pushed her glasses back up her nose as Alyssa and Verelik stood by her side. She hadn’t seen him since he left to Water Leafs. Something that, in some way, did something to her. “Hello Alyssa, good to have you back.” She smiled sweetly at the young girl before she took off to her classmates.

Fay turned towards Verelik as the children made their way to the stone steps that led to way towards the school building. The small woman had to arch her neck to look the tall man in the eyes. “It’s good to see you again too. And ofcourse, you know I always will.” She had to push up her glasses along the bridge of her nose again. ”Thank you for dropping her off.”

---

Lee smirked as Dillan sat down with a sigh and a sarcastic comment. Dillan, his partner in the Guard, was the total opposite of him. He was more laid back, sarcastic, and a little grumpy, while Lee was cheerful, active and above all, a real morning person. But that did not mean that Lee couldn’t be serious, and that Dillan couldn’t be fun. As partners, they complimented each other. Lee could easily call Dillan his best friend. They weren’t always like this, of course. They didn’t grow up together. But they bonded over the fact that they both have to raise little girls. Even though his little girl fay is now a big girl, she’s still little in Lee’s mind.

They even had a bromoment, when Dillan didn’t for the life of him know what to do with a girls hair. Lee taught him the trick: braiding. It was easy to do and kept the hair in place. They practiced it on Fay, much to her dismay. Emma was already 10 years old. Time goes fast.

”Good morning sunshine. He grinned as he threw Dillan a water bottle. Up here, it could get kind of warm. He took a sip of his own bottle and already longed for the lunch his sister would be bringing him.

Mid stretch, Lee heard a voice outside the gates. He leaned over the wall and looked down into the face of Astor. ”Hey Astor! Good going, my man. My coat game is good, but I’ve been wanting another carpet.” He smirked before signalling down to open the gates for the hunter. ”And you should be in the market for a shower.” he added.

"Ugh." Astor said dramatically, waving a hand under his nose in an exaggerated motion, smiling. "Don't remind me. I'll have to head home and scrub down before my shift at the pub tonight, or Mom'll give me an earful."

Continuing on into town, Astor waved to Lee and Dillon as he passed, calling back; "Hey Lee! If you're serious about that carpet, swing by my place in a few days! I'll see if I can get the pelt treated and ready for you by then!"

With a few new items on his itinerary, Astor made his way towards The Damn Pub - where he had a small apartment built into the rear face of the building. The trek seemed much less strenuous once he didn't have to worry about snagging on tree roots or looking over his shoulder for the rest of the wolf pack, and he found himself leaning his pole-bound carcasses against the stairs that led up to his dwelling within twenty minutes or so.

"First thing's first." He muttered, kicking off his boots, stripping off his outer jacket, and trudging up the smooth wooden stairs with them in his arms. Showers were never quite a pleasant affair for Astor, given his jury-rigged setup (something that didn't quite qualify as plumbing). But he was eager to get clean, and didn't want to go through the steps necessary for a hot shower.

Stripping as he went through his "compact" apartment and dumping his soiled clothes into the laundry tub, he stepped into his cramped tile shower stall and pulled on the rope that would allow some water to cascade down over him from the water tank that had been installed on the roof above. Rainwater, mostly, though he would occasionally climb up to collect some for boiling and drinking or cooking.

The shower was quick and miserable - freezing cold water, rough soap, and a too-coarse towel made sure that he was all too happy to be done.

"I've got to look into a bathtub some time. Maybe I could get a wooden one if I brought one of the carpenters some prime game." He muttered, teeth chattering as he dried himself off and jumped into some fresh clothes.

Dillan held back his smirk as Lee commented on Astor's smell and kept his frown as he glanced down to Astor as he entered the settlement. "Jesus you're right, he needs more than one shower," he muttered loud enough for just Lee to hear as he wrinkled his nose from a smell that lingered from Astor. He gave a nod as Astor waved to them and looked back out of the settlement with an expressionless look. Behind his sunglasses his eyes scanned the surrounding territory with an almost piercing gaze. He began to drum his fingers along his weapon and let his mind drift for a second. His recent memory of Emma's attempt at breakfast almost brought a small smile to his face. Her gesture was nice, almost lethal with the amount of salt she used, but none the less he appreciated it. Though before he could continue the amusing memory, a more worrying and upsetting one took over. Her worry for his safety and that almost fearful look in her eyes. She may be just a kid still, but she knew when danger is lingering. She's smart and tough for her age, but in the end she's just a kid.

Soon his thoughts moved on to the threat that was completely possible. The Water Leafs. War between the two settlements was just a single shot away. As the thought of being attacked came to him Dillan ceased drumming along his weapon, not realizing that it had gradually gain a faster rhythm as he thought to himself. After a brief moment of silence Dillan leaned back in his seat and aimed his M14 towards the empty lands that surrounded the settlement. He slowly scanned the territory with the scope of his gun and spoke without looking to Lee. "When do you think we'll go to war with the Water Leafs?" he asked as he gave a quick glance to Lee before looking back down the scope of his weapon. "I give it a week, maybe even a few days," he said without looking at him, but as he finished speaking he realized that his statement came out of no where. He just brought the mood down without thinking. He mentally cursed himself, but stayed silent.

Verelik watched Alyssa head off with her classmates. He sighed, turning back to Fay. "Thank you. I... hate that she has to grow up with the tension of the world at the moment." He looked back at Alyssa and slightly smiled with a hint of sadness. Verelik held his hands at his hips, suddenly realising he forgot his revolver, then shrugging. Then, not wanting to risk some disapproval for whatever reason, mainly due to his former Water Leafs background, he decided he should head back home. "Alright, well, I'm holding you back so I'll let you go. I'll come around to pick her up later." He looked back down at Fay.

Alyssa had arrived with the others, and she scanned them all to find some familiar faces and perhaps a friend. She knew a few of them, such as Emma, though wasn't sure if she could call any of them a friend. She retreated to the outskirts of the chattering group, hands in pockets.

The younger teacher nodded back up to the tall man. “See you later, Verelik." She turned on her heels, sighing before she walked towards the stone steps. The children had made their way inside, and were happily chatting in the classroom. Fay placed her bag on top of her desk, that was situated in the front of the class. Behind her a big blackboard adorned the wall. In top top right Profession Test: Monday 16 april was written in neat white chalk handwriting. The back walls of the class were filled with drawings and pictures. Mainly pictures of how the world was. The Eiffel Tower, once a great and tall structure, now a heap of metal. The Tower of Piza, now broken bricks on the ground. More pictures of a big bright red bridge Fay forgot the name of and buildings around the world. Sometimes, she would stare at the pictures and imagine herself being there.

“Alright class, quiet down." The young teacher said, kind but with a hint of authority. “Bradley, turn around please." The young man turned towards the teacher with a grin still on his face, a result from the conversation he was having.

Fay was the teacher to the 10 to 15 age group. This meant she actually taught from 10 to 14, as the 15 year olds start their traineeship at that age. She did however still teach and guide the trainees on saturday, in a trainee class. Fay Always wanted to teach this age group, since they're the most challenging.

The young woman put her hands on her hips and looked into the classroom. “Bradley, Jones, Alyssa, Terry.." Fay called out the names of the 14 year olds in her class. “Today you'll be making the Profession Test. You'll find the questions of the test on the blackboard in classroom 03, miss Baker will be there to help you. Go on." She ushered the children out of the classroom. These tests were always very exciting. The children have to answer some questions, a lot of questions, and the results will show what profession in the settlement they're best suited for. The patted Alyssa on the back as she was the last to leave the class room, “Good luck!" she said to the small group before closing the door. Fay turned towards the class and started the day.

---

Lee laughed heartily as Astor passed and the gates closed again. ”See you then, Astor!" The guard sat back down again and kicked his feet up on an empty chair as Dillan took watch. He thought for a second after Dillan mentioned war. He hoped it wouldn't come to that. Surely, it wouldn't. Right? ”Let's just.. hope it won't go that far." Lee's smile broke for a second, but it was back on his face a moment later. "I don't look that far into the future. Right now, I'm only looking out to lunch."

^{Excuse any spelling mistakes, made this on my phone.}

---

Receiving cards and letters from various people of the settlement used to be something to look forward to, especially for one in the mayoral position. Marcus never quite admitted it, but he enjoyed the attention to a degree. But more so, he appreciated the love of the people, the joyous expressions on their faces, and the positive tone of each of the small notes that were quietly slipped under the front door of him home, or placed within the “in-box” at his office. It hadn’t stopped at the letters though, as provisions from the various bakers and cooks were delivered as a thanks to him and his wife, and the breweries always saved a few specially-made bottles of their finest liquors. Well...as fine as it could be considering the resources they had to work with. All in all, one could say then that it was “Good to be King”.

But, as the days since the accident trudged on, and tension was thick enough to be cut with the sharpest of blades, the cards began to slow their pace until they stopped completely.

Except for one…

Marcus opened his front door to leave for the office as he did every morning, a single letter tied in a red ribbon was propped up within the large terracotta planter pot which sat near the left side of the entryway. The man cocked his head, perhaps not really expecting it as it had been almost two weeks since the last, but he managed to crack a smile nonetheless as he reached down to pluck the light-brown folded parchment from the shallow dirt. The front read “Mayor Bellamy”, in a very ornate style of handwriting not seen very often, and there was a faint scent of jasmine permeating from the paper itself. He pulled one end of the red ribbon until the bow unfastened itself allowing Marcus to open the letter.

Dear Mister Bellamy,

You may not remember me since I was a small child when you helped my family. But my name is Abigail Williams and I am a citizen of the Water Leaf settlement, born and raised. I am writing to you because, contrary to what you may have heard or what you might think, our settlement needs your help. As you’re well aware, the Fireflies and Water Leafs have been allied for generations, and because of what happened at the dam, our whole society (even over here!) is beginning to crumble and I’m afraid.

I know I’m not the only one either, because again, contrary to what you might think, not every Water Leaf blames you for anything, or is upset with you. In fact, they want action.

The problem, however, is that our Mayor has completely lost his focus on making sure that his people are taken care of and I think he’s allowed the hatred for what had happened to his daughter to cloud his mind. I even hear whispers that he is out for blood!

I am sorry that my letter isn’t more comforting since you’ve been good to me and my family in the past, but I felt it was my obligation to bring this to your attention. I am concerned Mr Bellamy and I hope you can find a solution to all of this madness.
Your friend,

Abby

Marcus looked up and surveyed the street for a moment, ensuring that he wasn’t being watched by someone who may have known about the letter, before placing it into his coat pocket and heading off down the narrow road toward his office.

Michelle finished eating her breakfast, getting up to put everything away on the kitchen sink.

"Are you all done, sweetie?" her mother snuck up behind her, startling Michelle to the point where she nearly dropped the empty bowl she had on her hands.

"¡Mamá! No me asustes así..."

Her mother giggled, grabbing the bowl from Michelle before shooing her away.

"Okay, okay, I'll see you later." Michelle planted a quick kiss on her mother's forehead before heading down to her office to grab what she would need for her next home visit. She had on a simple grey blouse and a black pair of pants, and she slipped on her white coat before reaching for her stethoscope.

Another one claimed by that damn virus... Michelle thought to herself, reaching inside her medicine cabinet after unlocking it and frowning when she was reminded she only had a few doses of antiviral medication. She reached for the small container and quickly put it inside her pocket, grabbing some more additional supplies which she would put inside her brown messenger bag. After she locked the cabinet and slipped the key inside her bag, she headed towards the front door. "I'm out now, see you guys later!" Michelle called out to her parents, hearing them mumbling something in response from the adjacent room as she closed the front door behind her.

Her walk to Ms. Chiara's house was the same old routine as every other day. She waved at some residents, turned down the request of one of them for her to do an on-the-spot consultation, and kept her brisk pace to her destination which she eventually reached without any issues.

"Mr. Carnot, are you home?" she knocked lightly on the front door, waiting for a response.

Why is mom so silent today? At this time of the day she’d usally asked me about 4 times if I had gotten enough to eat. He chuckled at the thought.
Let’s hope that everything’s alright. Right now I can’t afford to be distracted by her, I don’t want to risk doing a lousy job at the dam.

Piero spent a lot of time drowning in his thoughts, comforted by his drink.
A few knocks on the door and a voice from outside the door woke Piero up from his lightheadedness, as he remembered he’d asked the doctor to come by. Still sluggy from the lack of sleep and the alcohol dose, Piero slowly got up from his chair and went to answer the door.
”Yes, please come in, it’s open.”

He invited Michelle in. As he escorted her to his mother’s bedroom, Piero began to talk sloppily, trying to cover his dizziness:

”I don’t know why, my mother just keeps getting worse, and now she hardly talks. She doesn’t do anything strange, if she does anything at all: she drinks good amounts of water, she sometimes even walks on her own, and she eats. Anyway, please let me know if I can do anything, and if you want something to drink or eat.”

Michelle stepped inside the home, thanking Piero for his hospitality. As they walked to Chiara's bedroom, Piero explained the situation. The first thought to cross Michelle's mind was the poor woman was very close to death. Not the type of news anyone would like to hear, but she preferred being a realist more so than an optimist.

"I'll be good for now, thank you," she replied, approaching Chiara's bedside.

"Hi there," Michelle smiled, putting her stuff down. "If it's alright with you, I'd like to check out how you're doing." Michelle eased the eartips of the stethoscope in place and approached Piero's mother. She checked her heartbeat first before moving the diaphragm around various locations throughout Chiara's chest. Once she was done, Michelle hung the stethoscope around her neck and proceeded to check Chiara's eyes.

"Hmm, okay. I'm going to take your temperature now, alright?"

The woman nodded softly, making Michelle feel a tinge sad. The job didn't come without its consequences.

"Okay, my dear, lift your arm just the slightest for me..." Michelle helped Chiara through process as she placed the thermometer under her arm. She could only smile as she waited out the time, her mind a bit occupied as to how she would approach Piero. When some more time passed, she remove the thermometer for a quick read.

"Well, you don't have a fever, so that's good." Michelle reassured her, putting the thermometer away. "If I may have a minute, please." Michelle headed for the door, closing it behind her once she was outside.

"Okay, Piero, I'm going to be very honest with you. Your mother doesn't look good at all. The virus coupled with her already deteriorating health is making things worse by the minute. She has a weakened pulse and although she doesn't have a fever, her temperature is higher than I'd like. I have some medication for her but I have to advise that it will not kill the virus, so at this stage, there's a pretty good chance her symptoms will not alleviate."

Michelle paused for a moment, letting the news sink in. "I'm afraid there's not much I can do," she continued, sitting down and motioning for Piero to do the same. "I, um...I do have an option whenever you feel it would be the right time--if that's the option you would like to take in order to ease her last few moments of life. It is completely up to you both whether you would like to go that route. The procedure is commonly known as physician-assisted death or physician-assisted suicide. It is an extremely hard choice to make, but it is an option in case the pain becomes too overwhelming."

She stopped, awaiting Piero's reaction. Her expression was one of kindness and concern.

Verelik watched Fay walk off, until he remained alone in the square. He scratched his stubble and sighed. "Could've gone better..." He turned around and walked back the way he came.

It was always concerning to think what the change in the tides of life could do to the two neighbouring settlements of the Fireflies and the Water Leafs. Verelik, to be frank, was a little tired of the crap that kept happening in his life, which indirectly affected Alyssa. He knew soon she would be doing a professions test, and then she'd be working, just the same as himself. He couldn't bare another loss in his life, but he couldn't hold on to Alyssa for so long.

She might have hid it, but it was quite obvious to Verelik where her motives lie. She wanted to help people. She's a much better person than me... Far too reckless, much too naive. He rubbed his eyes and groaned while walking back home. Suddenly he had the urge to think of the different roles Alyssa could perform. A hunter; No, not what he does. Too dangerous. But he can't say no, of course. That said, what about a guard? These roles would fit Alyssa nicely, but Verelik couldn't help but fear the thought of his daughter at constant danger. He knew it's something she'd be good at. But there must be something else.

For one thing, Verelik could never imagine Alyssa working as a teacher or a doctor. She's far too energetic and unwise for the job. It'd keep her safe, at least. A dam engineer? Bah, yeah right. He knew anything without action would be a drag. Farmers... Electricians, or even a cook, but no, all those jobs would lack excitement for Alyssa. Does any of this matter? What she gets today will probably set her in that path, so it's not my choice in the end. Hell, she might make a good farmer, or even a Mayor's helper or something. Actually, she probably would be a good help to Marcus, who knows.

Verelik's body jolted to the side on instinct after almost walking into a street lamp. He looked up from the ground and realised he had headed off in the wrong direction. Off down the street, one of the doctors, Michelle, had entered a house. That virus... poor people. I should try and help out if I can. As he thought these words, he turned around swiftly, and headed back to his house, this time, his mind clear of thoughts. It didn't take too long, and he unlocked the front door and stepped into the void room. Once again he felt his hips, lacking his side-arm. He went round to the back and found his rifle in its case, leaning against the wall. Next to that, his revolver with its holster. He swiftly strapped it on and slung the rifle over his back after taking it out. "About time I hunt the big stuff."

Verelik walked through town to the gates. Looking up, he saw the slightly familiar faces of Dillan and Lee, whom he had spoken to on occasion at both the pub and on these hunting trips. They weren't manning the gate this morning, though that is of no surprise, of course. "You fellas wanna let an old man through? I promise I'll feed you tonight." He adjusted his rifle on his shoulder as he awaited for a response.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Alyssa was following some others through the hallway. She hadn't walked down this corridor in almost twelve months, and even though that wasn't long, it felt somewhat foreign for whatever reason. For the first day back at school, at least. Speaking of, she was doing a test on the first day back. She raised her eyebrow to no one in particular, then shrugged and entered the classroom. There were a small handful of 14 year olds in the room, along with Ms Baker and a bunch of test papers. Exciting, she thought blandly. She couldn't wait to leave, and she hadn't even sat down yet. Let's get this over with.

Dillan chuckled and shook his head. "Yeah, figures that would be your main concern," he said with a small smile. He laid his weapon back on his lap and sighed, a frown returning to his face. "Sorry about that by the way, didn't mean to bring the mood down like that," he apologized and looked to Lee, his glasses hiding his somewhat worried eyes. "It was just that Emma asked me if I had to leave because of this shit," he shook his head and began to drum his fingers along the frame of his M14, his frustration slowly creeping up his spine as he looked towards the floor. "She shouldn't have to worry about this stuff, she should just focus on being her age and that's it. I never got to, but here she does ya know? She's surrounded by kids her own age, good people who look out for each other and a place that she can actually call home," he tightened his fist as he furrowed his brow as he realized something. "I...I just don't want her to end up like me. I want her to be so much better than me," he admitted with a sigh. It was true sadly, he wanted Emma to be nothing like him. He wanted her to be free from worry and not be haunted by nightmares of his past. At her age he had already done regrettable things that still bother him to this day. Everyday he's plagued with his dread and anxiety of the future and honestly can't see himself being around in ten years, but instead of dealing with it he hides and uses his job as an excuse. He puts on a smile for her, but inside he's already tired at such a young age.

Dillan soon realized he was doing it again and shook his head. "Sorry, I didn't mean to unload that crap on ya, just a long week," he said with a small, sheepish smile. He leaned back in his seat and sighed. "Enough about my crap though, how are you and Fay doing? I haven't talked to her for awhile," he said, hoping to move the conversation in another direction.

Clean of the morning hunt, Astor sat on the edge of his bed with a thick quilt over his shoulders, fighting the mild shock of his frigid shower as he planned out his day.

First thing’s first; I’ve got to drag those carcasses to the mayor’s office to collect their bounties. After that, I’ll get to work skinning ‘em, then see if I can get started on a marinade strong enough to work with their scent, and if so, get started on that. Maybe talk with someone before I give it a try. If Michelle’s free, maybe she’ll be willing to make sure I don’t keel over right away.

As he consciously went over his to-do list, Astor shrugged off the quilt and walked over to the door, stepped into a clean pair of boots, and grabbed a light jacket from the rack by the door.

Again, Astor found the process of hauling the carcasses to be much less strenuous thanks to the relatively smooth streets and paths that led to the home of the mayoral councilor who’d posted the bounty in the first place. Dealing with the woman was easy enough as well, and she quickly filled out an entry in her ledger that reflected the nature of Astor’s visit. After she had finished with that, she promised that a notice of credit would be drafted in his name, which he could bring to a farmer or a woodsman in exchange for goods (as those two professions were in the most distinct danger of wolf attacks, aside from the hunters themselves).

Thanking the councilor for her time, Astor turned around and dragged the carcasses towards The Damn Pub. Again.

Once he had reached the pub once more, the hunter began to arrange his tools for the task of butchering the wolves. He doubted any reputable butchers within the settlement would willingly risk contaminating their shops, so he had to make due with his own survival kit.

Ropes were used to bind the wolves in spread out areangements on a wooden rack, and he made quick work of gutting them. The smell of their organs was as foul as he’d suspected - the consequence of an entirely carnivorous diet, he’d once read - and he quickly disposed of the viscera in a bucket, where they would be stored and eventually used as more bait.

Skinning was a bit tough. The wolves, despite their size, were fairly bony, and it was hard to find a good pattern with his knife that didn’t inevitably run up against bone and halt his progress.

Nonetheless, Astor persisted. He eventually had a pair of decent pelts laid out next to the carcasses, and he figured a craftsperson would have an easy enough time turning them into useful attire (or, in Lee’s case, a rug).

“Well, now that the easy part’s over... I guess it’s time to see if I can stomach eating some of these greasy cuts.” He said, washing his hands in a basin as he readied his knife yet again.

Lee was already thinking of the moment where he would give the wolfskin carpet to his sister. He stood and looked out over the fields as Dillan spoke to him. When he was done talking, the tall man looked down at his partner on the chair. ”Dillan, Emma is smart. And because she is smart, she notices the tension and she worries." Lee kept his gun before him as he bend to pick up his water bottle and took a sip from it. After he was satisfied, the closed the bottle back up and sighed. ”And, Emma will be just like you. Because you're smart, strong and good. Don't wish she won't be." He said back down on his chair and grinned at his friend. ”That's ok mate, it's what we're friends for." He gave Dillan two small slaps on his cheek. ”Cheer up.”

Lee looked over the other side and saw someone approaching the wall. Too far away right now though. ”Fay is good. I think. You know how she is, she'd never admit to not being good. She adores Emma, though." Lee smiled as he thought back to how Fay talks about her students. He found it adorable.

As the person came close enough, Lee saw it was Verelik. He had to blink two times to see if his vision or sanity were still in check. Then he remembered Fay saying something about them returning, because his daughter would be in her class. ”Verelik, my man. Ofcourse, I have respect for the elderly," Lee said as he grew a cheeky smile on his face. He signalled another guard to open the gates again. "Well, I'm not known for passing up on a meal. What's for dinner?" The young guard leaned over the wall and looked down at Verelik.

---

Fay had pulled her chair towards the window, and sat down with one leg over the other. A breeze came trough the window as her face bathed in the sun. She had just taught her class about the history of the Fireflies mayors. Some of the older girls swooned about their current mayor. The class was currently doing assignments. The young teacher's mind wandered towards the children in classroom 3A, making their professions test. She wondered how'd they'd do, in their traineeship. She looked back on her traineeship with a fondness, and wished the same for ther class. At the same moment the bell rang, the door opened and the excited preeteens returned to the class. "It was sooo boring," Bradley said as he picked up his coat from his chair.

Fay chuckled, stood up and clapped her hands together. “"You heard it, lunch time!" Fay barely finished the word lunch before chairs squeeked across the floors, pens dropping and chatter filled the classroom. Fay herself headed back towards her desk, where she picked up her bag that held the lunch for Lee. She made extra too, because she knew Lee always shared with Dillan.

The other teachers took care of her class during lunch, as Fay always, every day, brought lunch to her brother. The sun was bright in the sky now, it was warm, humid and no clouds to bring shade. She dropped her bag back in the basket of her bike before walking with the bike towards the edge of the square.