Grimoire Gaming

Spectral Voices

Elias Lincoln

What is your name?

Elias James Lincoln, but you can call me ‘Eli’ or ‘EJ’.

How old are you?

I'm 27.

Looking for a showmance?

I'm a bisexual male, and I could be in the market for a fun showmance, but I'm a little burned on the idea of love right now.

Where are you from?

I’m from around Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. My family owns and operates a dairy farm just outside the city.

Do you have a job?

I work in IT at the PepsiCo plant in Beaver Dam.

What has your life been like so far?

I had a comfortable upbringing, and my moms and pops are still together and happily in love. I have two younger siblings, a brother and a sister. We all grew up learning how to work hard on the farm — a dairy farm, with both cows and goats, Wisconsin’s all about our cheese, ya know? Anyway, there were lots of early mornings, sweaty days, and late nights growing up on a farm, but it learned us good. Although I’m the oldest, I had no intention of taking over the family business. I always loved computers and excelled at all things involving technology, so I went off to get a four year IT degree at University of Wisconsin-Madison, followed by a masters there. After that, I worked retail for a bit, which is where I developed the incredible fashion sense you see here today, and then I landed my current gig with Pepsi a few years back. I was living with my high school sweetheart then, Georgia, and after a years of saving up for the perfect, unspeakably expensive ring… I proposed to her. That was last year, and I thought I’d won the lottery when she said yes, but… turns out her heart wasn’t as sweet as I thought. A few months ago, I came home from work a bit early and I caught her with some dude buried about eight inches deep in — well, you know how it goes. So now I’m single for the first time since my sophomore year of highschool, and I’m stuck back living with my parents, and I’ve really never felt more like a pathetic teenager in my whole life. I need to move out. Again...

Any quirks, talents, or weird facts about you?

Uhm, I ran track all through high school and college, so I should be pretty agile when it comes to physical challenges. On top of athletics, I was also a mathlete. Yup, it’s about as awkward as it sounds. And… weird facts? Well… I was born without wisdom teeth, so that’s pretty weird, evolution in action and whatnot.

Why do you deserve to win?

Life’s shit on me so far — oops, can I say that on here? Anyway, I got a bad hand at first, but I'm willing to stay for another round. I wasted years of time and money on a girl that didn’t appreciate me, so it’s time I start living for myself and reclaim the good ol' years that I lost, ya dig?

And if you do win, what will you do with the million dollars?

First, I’m paying off all of my school loans, and my car loan, and then I’m going to buy my own place. Anything left over is going straight into my savings, for that fresh start I was just talking about.

Spectral Voices

Liam Lewis

^{_{#59B717 | Cameron Monaghan}}

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Liam Lewis
^{High School Student}

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Physical Characteristics

Liam stands at a slightly above average height for a seventeen year old boy. Years of wrestling and farm work have garnered him an athletic build. He has his father’s striking red hair and muddy green eyes, and a healthy spattering of freckles, much like his older sister.

Life Before the Apocalypse

“I was an average high school kid, with the exception being that I grew up on a farm. I guess not everyone does that, and Dad says that’s good for me, ‘cause it gives me a leg up on the rest of the kids, ‘cause I “know the value of hard work.” Whatever that means... My grades were fine, my social life was okay, and I was supposed to be going to college in the fall. I got in on a wrestling scholarship, but I was going to be studying music. I wanted to be a teacher, like mom was, and dad was back before he quit to focus on the farm. I was supposed to be going to college, having the time of my life — making music, partying, finding new friends, landing a boyfriend, ya know? The extent of my worries should have been studying for exams, or having a breakup, or a really bad hangover… but instead, I’m here. Running for my life. My mom and baby sister are dead, my older sister refuses to accept that, and I’m all out of fuckin’ cigarettes. This shit blows.”

Strengths & Weaknesses

➕ Strong — Years of farm work with his dad and wrestling for the school team have helped Liam build a lot of muscle. He’s young, limber, and has a lot of energy to be doing any heavy lifting that the group needs.
➕ Hand-to-Hand Combat — Fighting a zombie barehanded sounds like a nightmare, but if anyone is skilled enough to do it without getting bit or scratched, it’s Liam. Weapons can run out of ammo, break, or be dropped, but Liam’s fists and arms will always be with him… hopefully.
➖ Rebellious — He wasn’t always such an asshole, but losing his mother to this apocalypse has only worsened his rebellious tendencies. He’s disagreeable, reckless, and he’ll act out without just cause.
➖ Bad Aim — Liam’s dad taught him how to hunt when he was young, so he knows his way around a gun, he’s just not so good at the aiming part. Because of this, he doesn’t have a rifle of his own, he has to rely on his family and others to handle the firearms and protect the group.

Personal Goals

More than anything… Liam would quite literally kill for a pack of cigarettes. Not just a pack, a whole damn carton. Food is also important, a teenage boy has a teenage boy’s appetite, after all.

His dad and a lot of the others in the group want to find a place to settle, fortify, and call home. Liam isn’t necessarily on that boat. He wants to help find a cure… well, he can’t find the cure himself, but he can help the doctors and scientists stay alive and get to a medical lab where they might be able to develop one. More than anything, Liam wants to have his life back so he can go to college and live a normal teenage life, and the only way to have that is to eradicate this plague first.

Inventory

A machete and a backpack with some emergency rations, a blanket, a plastic water bottle, an empty pack of cigarettes, a few lighters, his sister’s old CD player and some earbuds, a few of his favorite CDs, and a small stockpile of batteries to replace the ones that die in the CD player. Liam would feel empty without music, so this possession is a necessity. Liam also has his dark bay quarter horse, Mercury, by his side.

Spectral Voices

Gareth Lewis

^{_{#CFC11A | Danny Bonaduce}}

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Gareth Lewis
^Farmer

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Physical Characteristics

Gary is a tall, rugged man in his mid fifties with a build that reflects many years of hard, manual labor. The redhead used to wear a goatee, but his facial has grown rather scraggly in the past few months. Other than that, he is your average blue jean-wearing, red-blooded, all american man.

Life Before the Apocalypse

“What did I do, before the world went to hell in a handbasket, you mean? I managed my farm, The Lewis Family Farm, my pride and joy — aside from my family, of course. We had about 400 acres of land in northern Minnesota, grew soybeans, hay, wheat, barley, and oats. We even sold our highest grade barley to the local brewery, cashing in on that hipster market. Money was good. Had horses too, over a half dozen of our own and then some that we stabled up for our riding customers as well. We lived a good life, a simple american life, full of hard work and home cooked meals. Had my wife Eleanor, and my three kids — my eldest daughter, Ffiona Mae, my only son, Liam, and my youngest baby girl, Gwyneth. We braved out the first few months of this shitstorm together, had enough food on hand that we didn’t need to leave the farm. One day, we needed some things though, El headed out with little Gwennie while the three of us stayed back to defend the house and do the farm work — had to make sure we could keep ourselves sheltered and fed, ya know? But… they never came back. They never came back… and now it’s just me and my two eldest, one of which is swimming in denial, and the other has grown cold. These are bad times, but the only way we can get through it is to stay together.”

Strengths & Weaknesses

➕ Hunter — Gary’s been hunting primarily deer for years, he’s a good shot with a rifle in his hands.
➕ Agriculturist — The man ran his own successful farm for nearly 30 years, he knows how to till the soil and grow and harvest food crops. If it comes time for the group to settle down and maintain a stable existence, his knowledge will be valuable.
➖ Arthritis — Gareth is still strong with years worth of muscle built up, but his age and the manual labor that gained him that muscle have caught up with him. He can’t move like he used too, and he suffers in silence from his joint pain.
➖ Stubborn — He’s old and acts as if it is his way, or the highway. Gary understands that they must work together as a team to survive, but he isn’t about to take orders or stand idly by while the younger generations make decisions that he doesn’t agree with.

Personal Goals

Gareth’s immediate goals are to find more guns and ammunition. He’s a good shot, hell, he’d even take a bow and arrow at this point. The group needs anything that they can get their hands on to defend themselves against the horde.

On the long term, Gary wants the group to choose a place to settle. The nomadic lifestyle is not sustainable, they need to fortify an area and start up a farm and community to survive in. Of course, Gareth plans to have his two remaining children with him in this settlement. Keeping them safe is always a top priority goal, even if that means sacrificing himself.

Inventory

A Winchester 94 hunting rifle with a total of 14 rounds. A backpack with a canteen for water, a blanket, a tarp, a hunting knife, and some emergency rations. He also rides a palomino american quarter horse named Lucy Loo.

ʙɪɢ ʙʀᴏᴛʜᴇʀ

Elias Lincoln

What is your name?

Elias James Lincoln, but you can call me ‘Eli’ or ‘EJ’.

How old are you?

I'm 27.

Looking for a showmance?

I'm a bisexual male, and I could be in the market for a fun showmance, but I'm a little burned on the idea of love right now.

Where are you from?

I’m from around Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. My family owns and operates a dairy farm just outside the city.

Do you have a job?

I work in IT at the PepsiCo plant in Beaver Dam.

What has your life been like so far?

I had a comfortable upbringing, and my moms and pops are still together and happily in love. I have two younger siblings, a brother and a sister. We all grew up learning how to work hard on the farm — a dairy farm, with both cows and goats, Wisconsin’s all about our cheese, ya know? Anyway, there were lots of early mornings, sweaty days, and late nights growing up on a farm, but it learned us good. Although I’m the oldest, I had no intention of taking over the family business. I always loved computers and excelled at all things involving technology, so I went off to get a four year IT degree at University of Wisconsin-Madison, followed by a masters there. After that, I worked retail for a bit, which is where I developed the incredible fashion sense you see here today, and then I landed my current gig with Pepsi a few years back. I was living with my high school sweetheart then, Georgia, and after years of saving up for the perfect, unspeakably expensive ring… I proposed to her. That was last year, and I thought I’d won the lottery when she said yes, but… turns out her heart wasn’t as sweet as I thought. A few months ago, I came home from work a bit early and I caught her with some dude buried about eight inches deep in — well, you know how it goes. So now I’m single for the first time since my sophomore year of highschool, and I’m stuck back living with my parents, and I’ve really never felt more like a pathetic teenager in my whole life. I need to move out. Again...

Any quirks, talents, or weird facts about you?

Uhm, I ran track all through high school and college, so I should be pretty agile when it comes to physical challenges. On top of athletics, I was also a mathlete. Yup, it’s about as awkward as it sounds. And… weird facts? Well… I was born without wisdom teeth, so that’s pretty weird, evolution in action and whatnot.

Why do you deserve to win?

Life’s shit on me so far — oops, can I say that on here? Anyway, I got a bad hand at first, but I'm willing to stay for another round. I wasted years of time and money on a girl that didn’t appreciate me, so it’s time I start living for myself and reclaim the good ol' years that I lost, ya dig?

And if you do win, what will you do with the million dollars?

First, I’m paying off all of my school loans, and my car loan, and then I’m going to buy my own place. Anything left over is going straight into my savings, for that fresh start I was just talking about.

_{FC: Chance Perdomo
Color: 43696A}

ʙɪɢ ʙʀᴏᴛʜᴇʀ

@MissCapnCrunch Here's my audition tape! :3

Elias Lincoln

What is your name?

Elias James Lincoln, but you can call me ‘Eli’ or ‘EJ’.

How old are you?

I'm 27.

Looking for a showmance?

I'm a bisexual male, and I could be in the market for a fun showmance, but I'm a little burned on the idea of love right now.

Where are you from?

I’m from around Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. My family owns and operates a dairy farm just outside the city.

Do you have a job?

I work in IT at the PepsiCo plant in Beaver Dam.

What has your life been like so far?

I had a comfortable upbringing, and my moms and pops are still together and happily in love. I have two younger siblings, a brother and a sister. We all grew up learning how to work hard on the farm — a dairy farm, with both cows and goats, Wisconsin’s all about our cheese, ya know? Anyway, there were lots of early mornings, sweaty days, and late nights growing up on a farm, but it learned us good. Although I’m the oldest, I had no intention of taking over the family business. I always loved computers and excelled at all things involving technology, so I went off to get a four year IT degree at University of Wisconsin-Madison, followed by a masters there. After that, I worked retail for a bit, which is where I developed the incredible fashion sense you see here today, and then I landed my current gig with Pepsi a few years back. I was living with my high school sweetheart then, Georgia, and after a years of saving up for the perfect, unspeakably expensive ring… I proposed to her. That was last year, and I thought I’d won the lottery when she said yes, but… turns out her heart wasn’t as sweet as I thought. A few months ago, I came home from work a bit early and I caught her with some dude buried about eight inches deep in — well, you know how it goes. So now I’m single for the first time since my sophomore year of highschool, and I’m stuck back living with my parents, and I’ve really never felt more like a pathetic teenager in my whole life. I need to move out. Again...

Any quirks, talents, or weird facts about you?

Uhm, I ran track all through high school and college, so I should be pretty agile when it comes to physical challenges. On top of athletics, I was also a mathlete. Yup, it’s about as awkward as it sounds. And… weird facts? Well… I was born without wisdom teeth, so that’s pretty weird, evolution in action and whatnot.

Why do you deserve to win?

Life’s shit on me so far — oops, can I say that on here? Anyway, I got a bad hand at first, but I'm willing to stay for another round. I wasted years of time and money on a girl that didn’t appreciate me, so it’s time I start living for myself and reclaim the good ol' years that I lost, ya dig?

And if you do win, what will you do with the million dollars?

First, I’m paying off all of my school loans, and my car loan, and then I’m going to buy my own place. Anything left over is going straight into my savings, for that fresh start I was just talking about.

Silver Bells (A Holiday RP)

Yee ❄️

ʙɪɢ ʙʀᴏᴛʜᴇʀ

@MissCapnCrunch If you still have room, I'd like to request a complex male. :3

CANCELLED.

_{Setting: Friday Night at the Radley Residence
Mentions: Jamie & Marty@smarty0114, Hannah@Undine, and Josie@Kitty}

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Marshall licked at his bottom lip, almost able to taste the last kiss that was lingering there. Sitting in the front seat of Jamie’s car, parked in his own driveway, oh how he had wanted that final kiss to last forever. How he had wanted this perfect date to never end. But here it was, at an ending. Marsh brushed his fingers over his lips and turned to look at the silver car that was still idle in front of his house. Taking his fingers away from their gentle perch, he held his hand to his side and wiggled those very same fingers in a wave to say goodbye to Jamie as he pulled away.

The teen let out a soft sigh as he watched the taillights disappear into the distance. The brief disappointment was quickly replaced with a bubbly flutter in his stomach. This utterly giddy, cloud nine feeling that was overtaking him was the very reason that he meshed so well with the Candy creed. Marshall Radley was infatuated with the idea of love, even more so the prospect of it. Was he in love? It was too early to tell… right? Hannah wouldn’t think so — goodness, he couldn’t wait to tell Hannah all about his first date! None of the candies could gush quite like the two of them together could.

Spinning on his heel, Marshall practically danced through the front door of his house. Scratch that, it wasn’t practically dancing, he was literally dancing down the hall. A waltz with an invisible partner — though he had one in his mind’s eye. He bumped into his mother, as he had his eyes closed in all of his lovestruck revelry, and let out a surprised ‘oof’.

“Hi my baby boy, how was your night?” Margot said warmly, pausing in the hall briefly to talk to her son, whom she knew had gone out for the night with some new boy.

Marshall immediately spun her into a tight embrace. “Oh, Mommm, it was sooo amazing.” He said with his face buried down into her shoulder, emphasizing his words by squeezing his arms around her and rubbing her back. “He’s so lovely, Mom. I can’t wait for you to meet him, which you will, because he’s officially my boyfriend now.” He said gleefully after pulling out of the hug. “He took me to a fabulous I-don’t-even-know-how-many-stars restaurant, but it was probably the most, and then he drove me out to an overlook of the city and we sat under the stars. Don’t worry, no hanky panky or anything like that… uhh, mostly. It was so sweet, we talked about our families and pasts and just… enjoyed the starlight.”

Margot stroked her son’s cheek with her thumb. “That sounds wonderful, Marshie. Can’t wait to meet him. What’s his name?”

“Jamie.” Marshall replied quickly with a lovedrunk grin. “His name’s Jamie.” He said before taking his leave to head towards his bathroom down the hall. On the way, he passed Martelle, who was just coming out of her own bathroom with a towel in her hand, patting her hair dry. With yet another wide smile, Marsh tipped forward on one toe to leaned down and kiss Marty on the cheek. “Hope you left some hot water for me!” He said quickly and cheerfully before dashing into his own suite.

It wasn’t until he was in the shower, alone with his thoughts and the steamy water, that Marshall let himself truly dwell on the events of the night. Every kiss was seared into his mind as he remembered the heat between their lips, white hot and strong enough to brand him for life. Maybe that’s why the water was steaming, was it him? He couldn’t tell as he watched the vapors rise from his arms as his hands spread aromatic suds over them. Marshall’s vision blurred as he focused on his own hands traversing his bare skin, and then he closed his eyes completely, imagining that they weren’t his hands at all. He ran his fingers along his forearm, up his bicep and across his chest. With a small gasp, he stepped back until his shoulder blades were pressed against the cool tiled wall, offering him enough support to counteract the growing weakness in his knees. From his chest, his hand found his throat, gripping tightly enough that he had to tilt his head back against the wall and part his lips to suck in a breath. It wasn’t long before the heated moment was washed away down the shower drain, but the memories… the memories would stay.

Marshall toweled off his own hair as he brought his clothes from the night over to his hamper. He paused before tossing his blazer in with the mix of dirty laundry, and instead brought the garment up to his face. Inhaling deeply, his nose was greeted by the scent of Jamie’s cologne. In all of their canoodling under the stars, some of it must have transferred over, which brought Marshall nothing but smiles and euphoric joy. Carrying the suit jacket and his cell phone with him, Marshall tucked himself into bed. Having gone suddenly mia for the night, he had a few texts and notifications to catch up on, including one from his dancing partner, Josie. She needed his Candy services.

To: Dancing Queen
ooh girlll, im all ears!
lets go out for smoothies and a chat after dance tmw?

He briefly considered sending Ophelia a text too, but decided against that. It could wait until the morning, he didn’t want to dampen this night at all with drama. Positive vibes only. On that note, he rolled so that he was facing the soft glow of the lamp on his bedside table — it was good selfie lighting. With a head of messy damp hair pressed against his pillow, he took a few snapshots until he settled on the best sleepy-but-adorable pout that he could manage. The harder part, was coming up with a caption.

To: Jamie
wish you were here

Too forward? Probably too forward. Backspace.

To: Jamie
miss you already

Fuck. No. Too clingy. Backspace.

To: Jamie
Good Night ❤️

That would have to do. He clicked send and bit his lip in anticipation of a response. Before going to sleep, he had one more very important thing to do. The social medias. If you aren’t dating on Facebook, is it even real? No! So, Marshall switched all of his accounts to announce that he was in a relationship with Jamie and grinned into his pillow like a giddy schoolgirl. Now all the world could share in his joy, and that was a happy thought to go to sleep on.

Strings

_{Location: Black Sunrise
Mentions: Tate@Lovely Complex}

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It was a good day. A bright, sunny day, especially by Boston’s springtime standards. Tish had opened up Black Sunrise this morning, as she did most days of the week, and she was now on lunch break. She had just finished eating at her favorite vegan restaurant downtown and was walking back to work with a bit of a surprise in her bag. Tish turned off of the main street and headed towards the block where her shop was located.

Black Sunrise looked small from the outside, it wasn’t until you stepped in that you saw it in all of its glory. The front door opened to an immediate set of stairs, going up. At the top of the steps, there was a beaded curtain tied off to the left, and a coat rack. The tattoo shop itself had a pleasant, homey atmosphere, at least in Patricia’s opinion. The comforting sound of buzzing needles greeted you at the door, and the air was painted with the smoked spicy aroma of incense, which was gently burning at the front desk. At the front desk sat a heavily pierced art school grad named Mary, who was studying as an intern for the year in addition to managing the front desk duties. At their respective tattoo stations were Jessie, who specialized in colorwork and shading, and Victoria, whose strongest talent was portraits. Both were currently working on clients.

“Afternoon, my lovelies.” Tish greeted her employees in a chipper tone. Before making her big reveal, she walked over to check out the pieces that Jessie and Victoria were working on. Jessie was inking a beautiful watercolor cherry blossom branch on a young woman’s foot, and Victoria was tattooing a little girl’s face onto a middle aged man’s shoulder blade. “Awwe, how precious. Is that your daughter?” She asked amiably, to which he replied with a positive confirmation. “She’s gorgeous, you’re in good hands with Victoria, I can’t wait for you to see it!” Tish praised the work and then looked to Victoria. “Great job, Vi, as always.”

Tish then walked back to the front desk, where she had set her purse down. As she began to rifle through the bag for the white envelope she’d had hidden away in her apartment for a few weeks, she explained: “Now, let it never be said that I am anything less than the best, most caring boss EVER!” Tish pulled out the envelope and retrieved four tickets to tomorrow night’s masquerade. “The first surprise is that tomorrow’s walk-in hours are cancelled, and the shop is closed for the Spring Festival. The second surprise is that I’ve gotten each of you tickets to SPECTRUM’s Masquerade tomorrow night. Even if you aren’t interested in finding your soulmates quite yet, it’s bound to be a banging party, so I expect to see you all there having a good time.”

After a few moments of sharing thanks and talking about what they might expect at the masquerade, including Victoria’s client’s touching story on how he met his entwined wife, Tish headed back to the back room with her own ticket. She set her bag and her spring coat down at her desk and retrieved her cellphone. Tish snapped a selfie of herself wearing a pouty face and holding her ticket to the masquerade below her chin, before writing up a text caption to send to her best friend.

To: Tate the Great
I know the club is working with SPECTRUM for this
so I assume you’re going
pls don’t make me go alone? :)

Our Evil Ways

The sun blazed hotter than the eighth circle on this late summer day. Ffiona brushed a stray strand of hair back, which consequently stuck to her sweat-slicked forehead, while the rest of her auburn locks were braided over her left shoulder. The heat might be oppressive, but it wasn’t anything that the ex-forest ranger wasn’t used to. Even before the dead walked among them, FiFi spent most of her days in the great outdoors. With her hair braided, her blue jeans rolled up to her knees, and her flannel unbuttoned and tied just below her breasts, Ffiona was doing the best she could to combat the scorching temperatures.

Liam, Ffiona’s younger brother, was far less fortunate. Although the Lewis’ all were born with the same unfortunately pale complexion, Liam’s had seen far less of the sun’s rays over the years. While his father and older sister seemed to be faring well, save for gaining a considerable amount of new freckles, Liam was roasting alive. This was his karmic payback for all of those days spent playing video games inside instead of helping with the farm chores, he was sure of it, though he’d never admit that aloud. Instead, he rode beside his sister, a cloth tied around the lower half of his face like some kind of cowboy outlaw, but really he was just trying to protect his already red cheeks and damned-near crispy fried nose from the sun. At least he had the familiar tones of Dream Theater’s “Pull Me Under” playing through his headphones to keep him company in these trying times. Images and Words was one of five albums in Liam’s ‘Survive the Fucking Apocalypse’ collection… a growing collection, housed in his scuffed camping backpack.

The patriarch and remaining parent of the Lewis family, Gareth, trotted his horse up alongside his children’s, returning from his place at the head of the pack with news. This was how the Lewis’ had been travelling with the group for a number of days now — Gary, serving as their family’s natural leader, usually stayed with Freddie Jones and the others at the front of the group while Ffiona, Liam, and the Carter’s stayed close together to keep each other safe first and foremost. Once the three horses were side-by-side, walking at an incredibly slow pace to stay in the middle of the group, Gareth spoke up. His voice was quiet, as he’d grown accustomed to speaking these past few months, lest he attract the dead’s attention. “Freddie Jones ‘n them found some water up ahead. And some signs pointin’ towards a Costco. Thoughts are to head there next.”

“Oh… that’s good, right?” Ffiona asked, looking over to her father. At this point, Liam decided he might as well take out an earbud to see what they were talking about. He passively looked over at his family, waiting for them to continue whatever conversation they were having.

“Well… we’ll have to see, I guess. My thoughts are the place has probably already been looted for the common supplies, but that don’t mean we won’t find some useful stuff.” Gareth responded with a shrug. He patted Lucy Loo’s neck encouragingly after she blew out a sigh. Horses sigh when they’re tired, but they were always tired these days, and unfortunately they had to keep on walking.

“Right. Costco’s have a bit of everything, I think it’s a good idea.” FiFi agreed with a nod, even going so far as to smile. Not even a zombie apocalypse could knock her positive outlook on life.

Liam perked up at the thought of a Costco. They might have cigarettes! Or aloe! Or both! Sweet respite was in sight, maybe this new world wasn’t as bleak as it looked. “I’m in!” The teenager chimed in, whether or not his opinion held any merit.

“How far out is it?” Fi asked curiously.

“Eh, a few miles out still, I reckon. Plans are to see what we can find there, then head towards the Twin Cities. Now, that plan… I ain’t as fond of.” Gareth voiced his opinion to his family. Heading towards any city was just flirting with danger in his opinion. This thing was a plague, and plagues have always had the most devastating impact on highly populated areas. That, and he just plain didn’t like cities, he was a country man, through and through.

“Well…” Ffiona pondered that, running her hands through Genie’s mane. “That might not be so bad, could be where mom is headed too.” She said, naively still believing that Gwyneth and her mother got separated from them by the horde, and that they were still alive and out there somewhere.

“Oh, Jesus Christ, Fi! Are you seriously that dense?” Liam retorted and rolled his eyes. While rampant positivity might work as a coping mechanism for Ffiona, it felt like battery acid in his own wounds.

Following Ffiona’s comment, Gareth had fallen silent. Mournfully silent. It wasn’t until Liam snapped that he spoke up himself. “Hey, don’t talk to your sister like that. Ya ain’t so old I can’t give ya a whoopin’ for it, ya hear?”

“No. Just, no. You’re all talk, Dad, and Fi needs to stop this. Mom is dead. Gwennie is dead. They’ve been dead for months.” Liam stated firmly, his nostrils flaring with equal parts sadness and anger. Why did he have to be the adult here? “And if it weren’t for Dad and I convincing you to leave, you’d be dead too. You would have stayed at the house waiting for them to come back until the shamblers busted down the front door. They ain’t coming back, Fi, and we’re never going to find them. Not alive, at least. And no amount of positive thinking is going to change that.”

Gareth sighed defeatedly. His son wasn’t wrong… he could have said it with more tact, but, he wasn’t wrong. In an attempt to comfort his daughter, Gary spoke with a soft voice. “Ffio— ” He was cut short by Ffiona pulling back on Genie’s reins and turning the gray horse off to the right, away from her brother and father.

“I’m going to go update the Carter’s on the group’s plans.” Her voice was hollow and stony as she took her leave.