Bean shook her head. “No, you shouldn’t. We’re all stressed and that was the first plan anyone suggested, so of course we went along with it,” she held tightly onto Aspen’s hand. “You were just tense and on edge…it’s okay…” she smiled a little, kissing her on the head. She wanted to help the other girl feel better. Luka covered his mouth in shock. Did he really just snap at the others?! “Y-Yeah…I-I think I need a break…” he whispered as Lilac looked away.
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Tohru shook his head.
"I-I don't know… I don't know…" he murmured, "This is exactly how it all started… We couldn't agree on anything, and next thing we knew…"
Lis stepped up.
"Look, I'll do whatever you lot need me to do. Tohru looks rough. I'll take point."
"Everyone just chill, god." Kas shifted his weight, looking tense and anxious. All of the fighting was getting him on edge, and he couldn't bear to be standing still. "If you don't stop yelling, you're gonna draw some unwanted attention. So everyone just shut up so we can get moving! As a group. Stick the people who are injured and or can't fight in the middle, and everyone else in the front or back."
Luka nodded in agreement as Lilac moved to the middle. Lilac couldn’t fight because she had Mori in her arms. She was not going to let go of him since it would be easier to travel this way. It wasn’t a problem anyway, since Mori was very light. Bean meanwhile moved to the back to keep watch from behind. Luka stood next to Kas, offering his help if he needed it.
Mori clung tightly to Lilac, looking pale and afraid. He didn't really know what was going on, but he could tell that it wasn't good, and it scared him. He didn't protest being in the middle, knowing that he was in no state to fight.
Rachel moved to the back, gripping her spear. So far, things were good. No one was injured, no zombies showed up, and she wasn't working on any hurt people.
"Anyone feel like they're not stressed?" She asked casually, trying to cheer the group up with some conversation.
Earl shrugged. He always felt stressed. The apocalypse wasn't the most relaxing thing to happen to him.
Then again, he was always stressed in some way, regardless of the situation. Him dealing with the company, taking care of his sister, training.
"You know me."
Lilac brushed her fingers through Mori’s hair, in an attempt to to calm him down. “Shh…we’ll be okay…just hang on, okay?” she whispered, looking around for any danger. “And when we start running, I’m gonna need you to close your eyes. Don’t open them until I say,” she added, knowing that the others fighting would get gory pretty quick. Lilac then looked back to Rachel. “Ehh,” she moved her hand side to side as if to portray a neutral emotion.
Levi took a few deep breaths to block out everyones yelling and then stepped over to the group. "Kas' idea is great. Me and the scout group can run ahead quickly while the rest of you wait here for us to come back."
Mori whimpered softly and closed his eyes, burying his face in Lilac's shoulder. Kas preened a bit at the praise, but didn't allow himself to soak it in for very long. "Alright. Ideally, we'll get out of here quickly and without complications."
Lilac held Mori close. “We should get going now before the worst happens,” she told the others, not taking her eyes off of the kid. He didn’t deserve this. He didn’t deserve to be in this situation. No one did and yet here they were. She hated it.
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(sorry I kinda died, I had stuff to do this weekend-)
(Same, like I said, I was moving this weekend. And today was mother's day so I was doing stuff. I'm ready to pick back up when y'all are!)
(Same, like I said, I was moving this weekend. And today was mother's day so I was doing stuff. I'm ready to pick back up when y'all are!)
(me too!)
(Hi)
(heyooooooo)
"Okay, right, right," Tohru murmured, "We can do that. Everyone else stick together back here. We'll walk back your way once we've found a clear path forward."
Lis ran to the back of the group, prepared to help hold up the rear.
"Works for me, as long as we're on the same page. Go ahead, you guys. We'll keep at a stroll back here."
Kas nodded a bit and headed out the door, keeping a tight grip on his bow as he walked. He was noticeably limping, but trying to hide it. Mori kept his face hidden, staying as quiet as he could as he trembled in Lilac's arms.
Lilac held Mori close as she followed the others. She wasn’t going to let Mori go. Not unless she absolutely had to. Her siblings, meanwhile, followed behind them as they kept an eye out. Luka was tired but he pushed through for the others. He didn’t want to be an inconvenience…he already snapped. He didn’t want to make anymore mistakes. Bean held onto Aspen’s hand, shaking a little as she looked around wildly. Don’t make the same mistake twice, Bean… her mind plagued her with memories of past issues.
Lis, standing six feet or so behind the siblings, kept scanning the forest edge, trying to make sure nothing was out there.
Tohru looked over his shoulder at Kas.
"You're doing okay?" He asked, keeping his voice low as his gaze fell to the other’s limping gait.
Aspen looked forward quietly, keeping her head held high and one hand on her bat, the other intertwined with Bean's. Her eyes darted around for any signs of movement or danger "its okay" Aspen whispered so only Bean could hear, as she could feel the other girls hand shaking violently in her own.
"Yeah, I'm fine…" Kas replied, his voice a bit stiff and strained and his face looking rather pale. His leg was hurting a lot, honestly, but he wasn't about to slow down the group when they were potentially being chased by zombies. They couldn't afford a setback.
Tohru gave back and unconvinced "Mhm," but kept pace with Kas, not saying anything further.
He was definitely not in good shape to be running, but Kas was stubborn. He knew the type. Tohru would be better off watching his back than arguing with him.
Bean held onto Aspen’s hand tightly, whimpering quietly. Seemed this girl needed a lot of help. Luka glanced at Kas, worried about the other boy. “Kas, maybe you should let someone carry you…” he whispered, not wanting to worry anyone else.
Aspen leaned into Bean a little bit, planting a soft kiss on her cheek "everything will be fine, I promise." She said quietly, gripping her bat handle harder.
"I'm fine." Kas insisted, staggering a bit and inhaling sharply. "Oh god… I'm fine. I'm fine. Fine." He leaned against a tree next to him, digging his nails into the bark. "I'm… fine."
Bean nodded. “O-Okay…” she whispered softly as Luka got closer to Kas. “You don’t look fine…your leg is hurt and you’re probably really stressed. Not a good combination,” Luka sighed, putting his hand on Kas’s shoulder.
Kas closed his eyes, gripping the tree as his injured leg shook violently, wobbling a lot and generally not looking very stable. His leg didn't seem like it would hold out much longer with all the strain, but he was trying to take another step anyway.
Kas…" Tohru sighed sadly, "Luka, I promise I'm watching his back."
He strolled over towards the other kid, giving him enough space to breathe.
"There's no shame in needing help. But if you need a subtle helping hand again-"
A twig snapped in the woods again. Then another. There were definite footsteps.
Luka heard it too and something snapped within him. It was almost as if some part of him suddenly awakened. “We need to go! NOW!” he yelled, scooping up Kas in the process. He knew the other boy would get mad but he wasn’t willing to risk anyone getting hurt. He rushed over to the others, still carrying Kas.
Kas yelped when he was picked up and clung to Luka, angry at being carried but still not wanting to fall in the process. "Put me down! I can… I can run!" He insisted, although he didn't sound particularly convinced himself. Mori wailed in distress and held tighter to Lilac, trembling more violently with fear.