Aberrant: Dead Rising - Loose Ends [Complete]

[Jasmine Gentian]

May 10th, Approx. 11:00 a.m.

Jas and Bond had done their share of talking, and both had agreed that they preferred to leave Fox's for now, despite the news about the baby. After all, Jasmine had never felt comfortable with Morgan's leadership style, and Jim had his own reasons for wanting to avoid sticking around the refuge, part of which involved the fact that someone seemed to be on a kick to destroy them.

They'd moved Pumpkin to their tent permanently, and she seemed to have adjusted to it fairly well. That was reassuring enough for them to start getting ready to leave as soon as possible, so Bond was spending the day doing a lot of last-minute trading, as he'd posted it on the board that he was going to be leaving soon and there were several people who'd been trying to do a little bartering of their own to be able to afford certain items he needed. Jasmine had decided to spend her last full day at the refuge working on the wall and doing what she could to help get some things finished up. She didn't feel so uncomfortable showing off her quick-building abilities, knowing she was going to be leaving soon, and she figured it was the least she could do to try and help people out before they left.

But hanging out James while he was bartering was bound to be boring for Pumpkin, and a construction site was no place for a little girl. So inspiration had struck, and she and Pumpkin had gone off in search of Hana, the little girl from Dr. Shattuck's office the other day. After all, she'd said she had babysitting experience, and unlike many of the older teenagers and adults around the Refuge, she wouldn't have anything so pressing to her time that she probably wouldn't be able to spare a few hours.

Besides, Jasmine had nabbed some awfully tempting payment from Jim's snack food stash - candy was usually one of the most popular things to go, and Jasmine had been surprised that there was any left for her to barter with. So she headed off to check first at the Doc's office, an assortment of various candies and a couple of the kid's books and travel-style games she'd claimed for Pumpkin thrown in a knapsack.

[Atomicweasel]

Hana had been busy cleaning Myfwany's office while the doctor attended to some patients in the infirmary. She'd gone through all the shelves, dusting them carefully with her rag, even clambering up onto the counters so she could dust the tops of them. She'd put all of Myfwany's instruments in their proper place, and on little bits of paper she'd written out their names in her tight feminine handwriting and she'd stuck these little labels to the instrument handles so she could better fetch them when asked. She'd gone perhaps a little overboard with that, labeling things that didn't rightly need to be labeled, like 'Thermometer' and 'Flashlight'. But once she'd started, she hadn't wanted to leave anything out.

By the time Jasmine arrived at Myfwany's office, Hana was mopping the floors. She'd already swept. She was tired and more than a little bored, and so, when Jasmine stepped into the room she found Hana standing there in a faded yellow summerdress and her precious Adidas, with her back turned towards the door, holding the mop like a microphone...and singing.

"They only want you when you're seventeen," Hana sang at her mop, her girlish hips swinging left, then right, "When you're twenty-one, you're no fun." She spun her mop, pirhouetting along with it. "They take a polaroid and let you go. Say they'll let you know."

"So come on." Hana whirled again and found herself facing Jasmine and Pumpkin. The little teen froze, mop clenched in her hands, a deep blush blossoming under her pretty blue eyes.

...But her expression quickly changed from one of embarrassment to shock.

"Squirt!?" She gasped at Pumpkin.

[Jasmine Gentian]

Jasmine's face flickered briefly in confusion at Hana's response to seeing them. Then she glanced down at Pumpkin, and back up at Hana, and tilted her head, looking intrigued.

"You two.. know each other?"

She glanced down at Pumpkin cautiously to see her reaction.

[Dawn OOC]

"Bana?" Pumpkin asked softly. She was clearly uncertain; one of the blue 'dogs' that they'd first seen her use appeared by her side, whining anxiously. Pumpkin burrowed her face in its fur and peeked uncertainly at Hana.

[Atomicweasel]

The mop fell from Hana's hands to the floor with a clatter. She let out a strangled excited little noise and started toward Pumpkin, only to jump back with a start as the blue beast materialized out of nothingness.

No no no, not her, please not her... But how else would the Squirt have made it this far? How else would Hana herself have made it? Hana felt a great heaviness press against her ribs from the inside. Her lower lip trembled as she stared at Pumpkin and her savage looking companion in disbelief.

"Wh-where did you find her?" she stammered at Jasmine. She wanted very much to run to Pumpkin's side. To touch her. To hold her. To make sure she was real. But that abomination the little girl had summoned kept Hana frozen in fear. She felt herself shudder and then she was shaking and all of a sudden she couldn't hold back the tears. They spilt silently down her face while she held her hands over her mouth.

Hana sniffled once, her jaw tightening as she roughly swiped the back of her fist across her eyes. "Squirt, come here." Hana pleaded in a desperate whisper.

[Jasmine Gentian]

Jasmine knelt down next to Pumpkin, and smoothed a hand over the girl's blond curls. She glanced up at Hana and studied the young girl compassionately.

"We found her in Dallas.. she was holed up inside of a library, in the hideaway someone had made in the basement. She was pretty scared, but her little friends here did a good job of looking after her."

She glanced down at Pumpkin, and smoothed her hair again gently.

"It's okay, Pumpkin.. Hana isn't going to hurt you. We found her a couple days ago, and brought her back to the Refuge too. Do you know her, recognize her?"

[Dawn OOC]

"Bana?" Pumpkin asked again, but the tone was a little less afraid and more hopeful. As if it were mirroring Pumpkin's emotion, the blue 'dog' sat on its haunches and yawned.

Pumpkin let go of the animal; it stayed where it was as she walked toward Hana. When Hana knelt down, Pumpkin said, "Bana!" and ran to her, hugging her. Turning back to Jasmine, she chirped, "Azzy, it's Bana!"

[Atomicweasel]

Hana's fingers were trembling as they gently slipped through Pumpkin's hair. Her throat had gone thick as she pressed the little girl against her. Her hands fluttered over Pumpkin's shoulders, her back, her arms. She was real. She was unbelievably real.

Hana didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so she did both, sobbing with relief, wiping at her tears ineffectually and beaming at Pumpkin. For once, her smile was not shy nor timid. For once it was delivered without any reservation whatsoever. Hana squeezed Pumpkin to her once more and then peered over the child's shoulder at Jasmine.

"She's my cousin," Hana said thickly, swallowing. She sobbed out a laugh, wiped her now red and puffy eyes and ruffled Pumpkin's head. "You little Squirt."

[Jasmine Gentian]

Jasmine blinked back tears at Pumpkin's excited words, and then nodded at Hana's declaration. She smiled happily at both of the girls, watching their reunion with a lightness in her heart that she hadn't experienced in a long time. Some selfish little part of her, the little bit of seventeen-year old girl that was buried underneath all the new responsibility and horrifying experiences she'd witnessed over the last seven months, whispered jealously that this was supposed to be her.. she'd put so much effort into finding her family, only to come up at dead ends twice so far. Literally.

But she shoved it away, reminding herself that she still had chances, and that wanting to find the rest of her own family didn't mean she shouldn't be as happy for Hana and Pumpkin as she could be. Speaking of which...

"That's so wonderful, Hana... I'm so glad. I mean, what are the chances??

She laughed a little, her expression softening into something gentle and fond as her gaze flickered to the little blond-haired girl in Hana's arms.

"I don't suppose 'Squirt' has a name, does she? Something besides 'Pumpkin'? It's all she'd tell us, all she could remember, I think."

[Atomicweasel]

"That's what Uncle Mike always called her. 'My little Pumpkin.' Hana laughed, let out a shuddering breath. "Her real name's Betina..."

Hana remained kneeling before Pumpkin on the hard wet floor of Myfwany's office. She gently stroked a hand through her cousin's hair, sniffled and then laid her palms lightly on Pumpkin's shoulders. Her words were for Jasmine, but her eyes stayed glued to the little girl in her arms.

"Her dad, Uncle Mike, he had stupid nicknames for everyone. Like he called my mom Cake, and my dad was G.I Joe..." Hana paused to suck in a shakey gulp of air. "He really hated that..." she gigglesnorted, "Pumpkin couldn't say Hanabanana when she was little, so...Bana. That's what she called me. And then Uncle Mike started calling me that, too." Hana laughed again, hugged Pumpkin to her tightly, tilting her head forward until the tips of their noses touched.

"Eskimo kiss." Hana told the child, then let her go and uncurled from her crouch. Hana's pretty dimpled knees were red from kneeling on concrete. Her hands still trembled as she pushed her own long dark hair out of her face and fretted over Pumpkin.

"What...what is that thing?" Hana asked, finally lifting her gaze from Pumpkin to look at Jasmine...and the huge blue dog-like creature Pumpkin had left sitting there on the threshold of the doctor's office.

,,

[Jasmine Gentian]

"This is one of Pumpkin - Betina's protectors. She's different, like.. some of the rest of us. Like myself, and Dr. Shattuck, and Jim, and Violet. She creates these creatures. All sorts of different ones. These blue guys here.. they're pretty fierce, and she has another one I've seen that's pretty wicked looking. It must be how she protected herself for so long on her own. I think your Uncle Mike must have went out looking for food or something, I don't know. He had to leave her for some reason, and.. Pumpkin told us he never came back."

She was quiet for a long moment, a haunted look on her eyes as she remembered that moment at Gabrielle's refuge, when Pumpkin had clung to her, sobbing, begging her not to leave like her Daddy had.

"There was food where we found her, and she seemed to be managing okay.. but we don't know how long she was down there by herself. But she has others too, ones she plays with. Little silver dragons and such. Some of them are quite cute, and they keep her company when someone isn't around."

Jasmine studied both Pumpkin and Hana quietly, looking engrossed in serious thought. This was going to complicate matters - before it hadn't been a problem to take Pumpkin with them, there was nothing really holding her here. It was just Jasmine she'd been attached to, and Priest, who'd been trying to distance himself from the little girl in favor of passing her off to Jasmine, one she'd told him about her decision to take in the little girl. But now.. now Jasmine would feel terrible pulling Pumpkin away from Hana. Very few people had actual family left in this world, it would be terrible to separate them. Yet, Jasmine didn't feel comfortable staying here at the enclave.. and she knew James didn't either. Not only that, but she didn't feel terribly comfortable leaving Pumpkin here, even if she could find someone to take her in. From what she could tell, Hana had been hanging around with whomever she could manage to. But she was just a normal twelve-year old, not a small child with mysterious powers. No one else had wanted to take Pumpkin in, really - save James and Violet, who were no longer together anyway. Even Priest hadn't been able to convince his crew, which was why Jasmine had taken over her care. Not only that, but she found herself admitting that the idea of leaving Pumpkin behind broke her heart a little bit. She was growing quite attached to the little tow-haired little girl. She bit her lip slightly, her expression turning into a slight frown of concern.

[SalmonMax]

"There's a big blue dog in my door," said a familiar voice from outside, "which can only mean one thing..."

Myfwany peeked around the edge of her office doorway and smiled inside with a wave. "Hey Punkin!"

Almost immediately she noticed the oddities of the scene before her though. Jasmine looking pensive, and both Hana and Pumpkin with tearstreaked eyes.

"Is everything all right?" she asked.

[Dawn OOC]

"Bana!" Pumpkin exclaimed, hugging Hana tight. The dog moved out of the doorway, lying down where it could watch the room but not necessarily threaten it.

Suddenly Pumpkin turned and held a hand to Jasmine. "Azzy, it's Bana!" The little girl was so giddy that she was starting to repeat herself; her wide grin was evidence of that.

As she turned that beaming smile to Myf, a cloud of butterflies filled the air around her and Hana. It was only when one looked closer that they realized that they weren't butterflies, but fairies. One had to look very close to see their sharp teeth and claws.

[Jasmine Gentian]

Jasmine smiled then despite her worries, and walked over to Pumpkin, taking the little girl's hand and squeezing it softly. She glanced up at Myf with a small, happy smile, and shrugged.

"It would appear Miss Pumpkin and Miss Hana are engaged in a rather emotional family reunion. Apparently they're cousins."

[Atomicweasel]

"Yeah--" Hana ducked under one of the butterfly faeries, then flinched as another zipped past her face. She stood fidgeting nervously--twisting to her left and then her right as the little things flurried about her, circling her waist, spinning lazily circles around her, diving between her legs and looping back behind her ankle--making Hana lift her foot and stumble backwards into Myfwany's examination table.

"--we are." Hana's voice had dropped to a tremulous whisper. She raised her arms protectively, like a boxer warding off a blow, but didn't dare strike out at the fast flying faeries that swarmed all over her. From beneath the cover of her arms Hana's eyes peeked out, wide and frightened.

"Make them go away, Squirt." Hana pleaded.

[Jasmine Gentian]

Jasmine saw the slight pout on Pumpkin's face beginning to surface, and she knelt down next to her, placing a hand gently on her shoulder and smiling softly at her.

"Pumpkin, sweetheart, Hana's not used to your new friends just yet. Let's put them away for now and you can bring them out and show her a little later, okay? Is that alright?"

She tucked one of Pumpkin's curls back behind her ear and stroked her cheek lightly with her thumb. She could tell that the presence of the little girl's creatures bothered Hana, and in truth she wasn't that surprised - most people didn't respond too well to them, especially the first time or two.

[SalmonMax]

Myfwany blinked in surprise and came into the room, careful not to step on the dog as she did.

"Cousins...now there's a happy coincidence," she remarked. "You don't have to be afraid, Hana. These creatures look real but they're really just..." Myf frowned, trying to think of a way to put it. "Sort of like magic play-doh. Just shaped energy."

[Atomicweasel]

"They've got fangs," Hana protested in a small voice, scrunching her head lower into the protection of her forearms.

"Don't be scared, Bana!" Pumpkin exclaimed, trotting up to Hana and pulling at the girl's wrist. "They won't hurt you! They're my friends!" Pumpkin tugged at Hana's arms, trying to pull them down. But Hana wouldn't budge. Pumpkin frowned up at her cousin and then turned to flap her hands at the huge hound and the whirling faeries. The dog like creature scrambled to its feet and bounded out the door of the office, brushing past Myfwany's leg and almost bowling her over. The faeries followed close behind, swirling outside like a blue cloud of butterflies.

"See!?" Pumpkin yanked at Hana's arms again, finally succeeding in pulling them down. Hana looked guardedly toward the door, as if she suspected the magical manifestations would come racing inside the room at any moment.

"Bana, what's this?" Pumpkin had found Hana's friendship bracelet. She held her cousin's hand, palm up, to look at the three colored braids.

Hana glanced down to where Pumpkin held her hand. "That's to help me remember."

"Member what?" Pumpkin asked.

"My friends." Hana's eyes seemed to darken as she looked down at the friendship bracelet, an inky whorl that swam across the deep blue of her eyes and then vanished. "That's for Jamie." Hana pointed to the white band, now a dirty gray, "this one's Amanda." her finger traced over the blue band, then hesitated. Pumpkin looked up at her expectantly. "And this one's me." The last band, once purple, had been stained and darkened until it looked all but black.

[Venus]

Violet didn't like eavesdropping on people she cared about. Unfortunately it was nigh impossible not to. She had been just a door away checking on one of the women who barely survived the prison escape. Violet was still struggling with all the emotions and traumata that were unleashed unfiltered around her. It was difficult to explain since no one could relate to her and what it felt like for her.

Focusing on work was a good way to deal with problems, but that also meant she was close to the victims which meant she had to steel herself somehow or she would succumb to all the pain... which was not an option.

The unearthly beauty dressed as a nurse which looked rather like a teenagers wet dream entered the room and smiled at the family reunion. It was a welcomed change witnessing this and she briefly savoured the strong emotional rapport that was filling the room. There was too much suffering lately and these moments were scarce - too scarce.

Instead of saying anything Violet simply smiled giving some of the warmth back she just received.

[SalmonMax]

Myfwany came over and put a comforting hand on Hana's shoulder. There was nothing to say, but she reminded the girl with that light contact that she now had other people around her...not just the memories of friends.

"I'm glad you two were able to find each other," she said after a second of respectful silence. She smiled and looked around. "So...anything I can help you with? Not that I object to a happy moment in my office, of course."

[Atomicweasel]

Hana glanced up at Myfwany. She reached for Pumpkin and drew her cousin in close, turning the child so that she could lean back into Hana.

"I'm almost done cleaning up," Hana told Myfwany. The office was spotless, shining from Hana's mopping, everything dusted and swept and wiped down. Even the sink was sparkling and shiny. The only hint of disarray was the dropped mop, left lying where Hana had let it slip from her hands.

"Who does your hair, Squirt?" Hana asked Pumpkin.

"Azzy does."

"It's nice." Hana rested her hand on Pumpkin's head and looked from Jasmine to Myfwany. "I think Jasmine was looking for you."

[Jasmine Gentian]

"Actually.. I was looking for you, Hana."

She smiled at Myf apologetically, then glanced back at Hana. She gazed at her quietly for a moment as she turned things over in her mind. This was definitely something she needed to discuss with Jim - it would affect their plans one way or another, and as mature as the young girl standing in front of her acted, she thought it might be best if she had a chance to discuss things with him before talking to bringing up any possibilities or complications to Hana. She didn't know how the girl would react to the news that Jasmine had been planning to take her cousin away from the base and on the road, and she wanted to have her thoughts in a little better order before informing her.

"I have some things I need to take care of today, you see.. and I remembered you mentioning your babysitting experience. I was hoping you might be willing to watch Pumpkin here for a bit.. ironic, hm?"

Her lips flickered in a slight smile, and her eyes glimmered with a touch of amusement. It seemed it could still be a small world sometimes, even if it was a changed one.

[Fox]

Not too far away..

"Whoa, Jim. You're really cleaning out your little shed here." The Brit trader smiled at that as he handed over the bag of ammunition, a few tools and liquor. He reached into the coldbox and handed a chilled can of beer to the surprised (but happy) customer.

"On the house." he said with another smile. 'The English Store', as increasing numbers of the Refuge's inhabitants referred to the converted garage, was bustling today. Bond was trading away his stash of guns, ammo, and those medical supplies he hadn't donated to Dr Shattuck. In return he was taking in small valuables, jewellery, books and C.Ds.

"You sure you don't want to trade more than the one bottle of Jack, Bond?" the man asked. "I got some primo dirty magazines. Good condition, only a couple months old, and the lady don't like them around the place." Jim shook his head.

"Sorry, Garth. Most of the booze has already been earmarked for someone. Besides, it's bad enough I'm selling guns and booze together. One bottle or six-pack per customer. Tell you what though: I'll throw in another ten shotgun shells for each of those magazines." The Refugee blinked.

"That's damn generous of you, Jim. Hell, alright then. I'll be back with them later." The man paused, scrutinising Bond. "You closing up here, then?"

"Only short term." Bond shrugged. "Going on the road for a bit. Going to hit some other enclaves, see how they're doing, and retrieve more of my stashes. Guns and booze are all well and good, but the Refuge is growing to the point where she's going to need to get serious. When that happens, I'll be there with a wagonload of what you all need." He winked.

"Well, alright." Garth paused again. "I heard about the Des Moines thing. You think the people that did that are gonna come here?" Jim nodded once, slowly.

"Sooner or later, yes. Want some free advice?" The other man nodded, and Jim sat on a crate and opened himself a beer. "Prepare. Not to fight, but to hide. Dig a gopher-hole, stock it with dried or canned food, first aid supplies, a firearm and ammunition... you get the idea. Cooperate with others if you like, but keep the boltholes small: family-size. The bigger the hideout, the easier to notice. Dig a latrine down there. And make sure you can stay down there for 3-4 days." Bond took a swig of his beer and grinned wryly. "From what I saw, these people come, destroy anything that moves, and fade away again. Hide for a few days and you stand a better chance."

"Don't ya think the supers can fight them off?" The other asked. Jim shrugged.

"Maybe. But you can't. Keep yourself and your wife safe, Garth."

"Hell, Bond. You should give everyone this talk." The Englishman laughed at that.

"I have been. All morning. You think your the only customer I want to keep alive?" he added with a wink. "Take care of yourself."

"You too, Jim." The man offered a hand, and Bond took it. "See you later, man."

Garth walked out deep in thought, and Bond took another sip of his beer. He could have just made a general announcement, but telling bad news to a crowd of people meant that they ALL wanted to have a say, which tended to create a lot of noise and hot air without being very productive. Especially here in the Refuge, he'd noted in the past. So far he'd given his advice to 20 different residents of the enclave, keeping the discussion calm and friendly.

He hoped that would be enough for everyone to get the message.

[Atomicweasel]

Originally Posted By: Jamine Gentian

"Actually.. I was looking for you, Hana."

"Oh." Hana glanced up in surprise. For a moment she felt an acute stab of panic. How can she know? Who could have told her? But that was impossible. No one knew and no one ever would.

Then what? Had Jasmine just come to hang out? Hana brightened at that possibility, experienced a surge of pride, broke into a bright smile...

Originally Posted By: Jasmine Gentian

"I have some things I need to take care of today, you see.. and I remembered you mentioning your babysitting experience. I was hoping you might be willing to watch Pumpkin here for a bit.. ironic, hm?"

"Oh, sure, yeah, I'll watch the Squirt." Hana blurted, blushing deeply. Stupid. she chided herself. To Jasmine she was just a kid.

A shoulder strap of Hana's summer dress had slipped down one arm, and she tugged it absently back into place. She crouched by Pumpkin's side, carefully pressing her knees together, and taking her cousin's hands in hers. "Wanna do some drawings, Squirt?"

"Wanna play!" Pumpkin answered, tugging on Hana's hands and dragging her towards the door of the office. "With Bana and my friends!"

"Your...friends?" Hana asked uncertainly as Pumpkin hauled on her arms, forcing her to follow.

"Yeah!" Pumpkin exclaimed excitedly.

"The blue ones?" Hana pressed, dragging her feet.

"Yeah!"

[Venus]

Now Violet was confronted with the problem of blocking the only possible way out of the office. She watched the young girls heading towards her and decided to make a quick step inside giving away her presence to the others.

"Hello...", she hesitantly greeted the others. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop on you guys but... well. Anyway, if you want I can watch after both girls for a while. Unless you think that's a bad idea?", Violet's voice didn't give much away but her offer sounded genuine.

[Jasmine Gentian]

Jasmine smiled a little at Violet, and if it was a bit more guarded than it would have been before the trip to Gabrielle's, well.. at least the young woman wasn't being obvious about it.

"Well.. I don't know if Hana needs the help, and I'm sure they have some catching up to do..."

She was quiet for a brief moment, glancing down at Hana and Pumpkin. Hana hadn't seemed to have experienced any problems so far - she was probably too young to have attracted much attention around the refuge. But as always people's reactions to Pumpkin and her abilities concerned Jasmine enough to want her to err on the side of caution.

"...but on the other hand, it might not be a bad idea to have someone nearby. I'm sure Hana can entertain Pumpkin well enough so they're not taking up too much of your time. But perhaps if you could keep a loose eye on them, Violet?"

She smiled at both Hana and Violet, hoping the young girl didn't take it the wrong way. She knew Hana would be able to take care of Pumpkin in the traditional sense while she was gone, but with the reaction of some of the residents of the refuge to the little girl's powers, perhaps having an adult around wasn't a bad idea.

[Atomicweasel]

Pumpkin finally stopped pulling Hana's arms when Violet stepped into the doorway. Both girls stared up at Violet, then looked to Jasmine, quietly following the conversation with their eyes. Pumpkin, still holding Hana's hand, idly swung her cousin's arm back and forth as she twisted lightly from side to side.

Hana's face stayed sphinx-like and unfathomable until at last she answered Jasmine's proposal with her habitually demure little smile. Then she turned to look expectantly at Violet.

[Venus]

Originally Posted By: Jasmine Gentian

"...but on the other hand, it might not be a bad idea to have someone nearby. I'm sure Hana can entertain Pumpkin well enough so they're not taking up too much of your time. But perhaps if you could keep a loose eye on them, Violet?"

Violet nodded at Jasmine and added her trademark smile, "Of course I can, I wouldn't have offered it in the first place if I didn't wanted to."

The tall sexbomb shifted her stance slightly giving her hips a generous sway and looked down at little Hana. "I hope you don't mind if I stay around you two for a bit?"

Violet's thoughts were lingering with Jasmine's guarded demeanour. Ever since she confessed to having manipulated her, Jasmine was rather reserved. She couldn't blame her, though but she wished Jasmine wasn't as... dismissive as she was. At least she was polite and took the offer. Maybe one day she'd trust her again, but the unearthly beauty highly doubted that. No one would ever really trust her.

[SalmonMax]

A bit bemusedly, Myf watched the goings-on with an approving smile. She felt a little pang inside too though...a sense of family and friendship that was happening around her but leaving her out of the loop as it did. There was always a sort of distance between doctors and patients...especially for someone like Myfwany who didn't do a lot of socializing outside of the clinic.

Maybe, she mused, it was time to change that. Too much distance was bad for people, bad for the community...hell, why dance around it? It was bad for her.

"You did a great job in here, Hana," Myfwany said. "Thanks."

[Jasmine Gentian]

Unaware of Violet's contemplative thoughts regarding their friendship, and distracted with her most recent concerns, Jasmine nodded a brief thanks to Violet. She knelt down next to Pumpkin and gave the little girl a kiss on the top of her curly blond head. It was an affectionate gesture that spoke volumes about how Jasmine felt regarding the little girl. She touched Hana's hair lightly and offered the girl a small smile of thanks, and then hurried out the door.

She made her way towards Bond's garage, smiling warmly at his latest customer as she passed him leaving the "shop". He nodded briefly back at her with a smile, and she walked up to Jim, leaning up and giving him a soft kiss before she pulled back and glanced around the garage.

"Looks like you're about finished here, hm?"

[Atomicweasel]

Hana watched Jasmine go with a faint look of disappointment and then turned to Myfwany. The smile the doctor got was both proud and shy, a reluctant acknowledgment of Myfwany's praise.

"oh, thanks." Hana answered demurely. She pulled Pumpkin gently towards Violet, "No, I mean, yeah, sure, that's fine..." Hana answered the tall beauty, flustered and blushing. "I was just gonna see what Pumpkin wanted to do or whatever..."

"Azzy gave me games!" Pumpkin squealed, reaching around herself to point at a little knapsack.

"Okay." Hana grinned at her cousin.

"We can play them with my friends!"

"Oh." Hana's grin faded.

Pumpkin had started to pull Hana toward the door again when the little teen paused and turned back to Myfwany, with Pumpkin leaning against the end of her arm and digging her feet in against Hana's resistance. "Hey, um, Doctor Myfwany? Would it be okay for me..." Pumpkin managed to yank her a few feet farther. "Could I paint the infirmary?" Hana asked as Pumpkin hauled her closer to the door.

"Unnn! Bana!"

"Okay okay!"

[Fox]

"Just about." Bond smiled as he finished his beer and tossed the can over one shoulder. It rattled into the trashbin he kept for metals with unerring accuracy. "Our charitable donations cleaned out a lot of the food and all of the medical supplies. Electrical goods have started to clean out since I spread the rumor that the Refuge will be getting power 'soon'." He grinned slyly. "There's plenty of munitions left, but we'll be taking those. Entertaining though the thought is of arming lots of angry, scared women wanting nothing more than to pop a cap in James for Christmas with high-explosive armor piercing ammo... I'd better not." He sighed in mock-regret.

"I'm a paragon of self-denial, it seems. So it'll be the guns, assorted small valuables, and the light reading..." he rustled the porn magazines at her with a wicked grin before dropping them into another crate "coming with us. Most of the liquor I'll be trading to Violet. And the real books I have an idea for. But I'll need to talk to Jules, Gabrielle and Myfwany first." He smiled and gave her a gentle kiss of his own.

"Hana take to minding the Pumpkin alright?"

[Jasmine Gentian]

The eyes glimmered with amusement as he spoke, and chuckled lightly as he dropped the magazines into the crate. Then her lips twisted into a wry sort of amusement at his question, and he got the distinct impression that things hadn't gone exactly as they'd expected.

"Oh, certainly. Better than we could have possibly imagined.. the reunion was absolutely touching."

His eyebrows arched at that, and she could have sworn she saw a corner of his lips twitch in confused amusement.

"The reunion?"

"Yes. They're cousins, apparently."

[SalmonMax]

"Paint...the infirmary?"

Myfwany frowned in confusion. "You mean...the outside, right? Because I can't move everyone inside out just so you can repaint."

[Atomicweasel]

"Yeah, outside." Hana answered shyly. "Just the walls, I guess." Pumpkin had succeeded by now in dragging Hana to the door. Hana managed to grab the frame as Pumpkin hauled on her other arm. "If that's okay."

Pumpkin gave another yank and Hana was propelled out the door. "What are we playing, Squirt?" her voice drifted back to the office as the girl and her cousin crossed the infirmary.

"Games, Bana!"

[Venus]

"I guess that means I've got to follow them outside?", Violet asked not really expecting any answer. She nodded to Myf and followed the girls outside.

"If there's anything you need my help with - you know where I am."

Outside Violet leaned against the doorframe and smiled as she saw the little family reunion. It was almost as if there was never a Zombie apocalypse until her eyes drifted further away and over the refuge. The grim colors of reality was reflected everywhere and the moment of serenity she felt was gone just as quickly as it came.

Poor kids...

[SalmonMax]

Myfwany nodded at Violet and followed her to the door. She leaned out then and called, "Hana!"

When the girl looked around at her, she waved and added, "You can paint the outside walls if you want. Just...keep it in good taste, okay?" She grinned.

[Atomicweasel]

"Okay, Dr. Myfwyany!" Hana shouted back from outside. She followed Pumpkin around the infirmary, only to find the giant blue dog like creature waiting for them around the corner. It was chasing the cloud of faeries in an excited circle, but it stopped on seeing Pumpkin and bounded over to the little girl's side. The faeries came swooping in close behind, pulling up at the last minute and spiraling around overhead.

Hana tensed, but Pumpkin grinned up at her. "Don't worry Bana, they won't hurt you unless you're bad."

"Unless I'm bad?" Hana asked nervously. She glanced over her shoulder at Violet and then turned back to Pumpkin.

"Don't worry, Bana. You're not bad." Pumpkin comforted her cousin. "Let's play here!" Pumpkin had drawn Hana down a sloping path to the edge of the silo bunker. Hana stood under the shadow of the flat gray wall, Pumpkin's dog-like creation nuzzling its head into her hand while Pumpkin emptied out her backpack.

"I don't wanna play checkers," Pumpkin announced, pushing the checkerboard aside.

Hana glanced down, "What about your books?" she squatted on her heels beside her little cousin. "I could read you this one," Hana turned one of the books over in her hands. "The Mouse and the Motorcycle."

"Azzy already read me that one."

"Oh." Hana set the book down among Pumpkin's pile of goodies.

"Bana, let's play River Sharks!" Pumpkin thrust a banged up box at her cousin. Big block letters proclaimed it to be 'River Crossing Jr.'

"Okay...how do we play?" Hana asked indulgently.

"You have to go like this..." Pumpkin opened the box and spread out the contents, arranging two little figures on either side of a board with a painted river in which there dwelt cartoon fish and an octopus and a shark. "this one is you," Pumpkin gave the boy figurine to Hana.

"I'm the boy?"

"Yeah...and you have to..." Pumpkin began moving the rectangular little blocks around. "make it so you don't fall in the water, because if you do then the shark eats you."

"Okay." Hana agreed.

"But you only get to move one at a time and you can't jump logs. Whoever crosses the river without dying first, wins."

One of the faeries had settled on Pumpkin's head to watch. Hana danced her little figure back and forth across the shore. "Bana, don't!" Pumpkin scolded. "You only get to go when it's your turn. I go first."

"Okay. I was just practicing my dance moves."

"You're not allowed to dance!" Pumpkin moved a plastic log thoughtfully, her tongue poked out in concentration.

"Oh, how come?"

"The shark doesn't like it." Pumpkin concluded, moving the little girl figure onto the log.

"Oh."

[Fox]

Originally Posted By: Jasmine Gentian

"The reunion?"

"Yes. They're cousins, apparently."

"Well well."

Jasmine narrowed her eyes at Bond's apparently offhand acceptance of her revelation. He didn't pause, blink from surprise or ask her to repeat herself. He just nodded as though it made sense and smiled at her. Come to think of it, he hadn't been stunned into insensibility by the news of her pregnancy either. He was incredibly happy about it... Well, she was fairly sure he was happy. He'd said so, at least. The frustrating thing was that even for an intimate, Bond was nightmarishly hard to read. If you got a handle on his true feelings, it was because he wanted you to know them. And if that was the case, couldn't he show you whatever he wanted you to see, true or not?

She dismissed that. Bond was enigmatic, eccentric and ever-so-slightly annoying sometimes, when he just didn't seem to falter or fluster, but he cared about her. That much she was certain of. Call it woman's intuition.

"Well well?" she poked him in the ribs while they cuddled. He grinned like a Cheshire Cat and she poked him harder.

"Yes." he chuckled, twisting away. "Well well." This was casus belli for a poking assault, which was in turn good for a tickle or two. A small battle for superiority ensued which ended with Bond being pinned against the wall, forcing him to resort to kissing to break free.

"Alright." he said when they'd both gotten their breath back. "So where does that leave us, travelling-wise? Will Pumpkin still be coming with us, or will she want to stay with her cousin." He pondered for a moment. "More to the point, who's going to look after both of them while they're here?" He looked at Jasmine, obviously thinking. "We can take the girl too, I suppose, if Pumpkin can't stand to be parted from you OR her cousin." He sat down on a crate, tugging Jasmine over to sit on his lap and looping his arms around her waist.

"Whatever gets decided, I want us..." he placed a spread hand over her abdomen with a slight smile "... to get going soon. Three or four days, tops."

[Jasmine Gentian]

She nodded softly in agreement, slipping her arms around his neck and biting down thoughtfully on her lower lip.

"Well.. if you're sure you're okay with the idea, I suppose we should talk to Hana and see what she says. She's young, and it's another person to keep safe on the road. But she's not as young as Pumpkin.. and she managed on her own for an awfully long time for a twelve year old. Means she's resourceful. It might be good to have someone around to keep an eye on Pumpkin when we're busy or if there's trouble, and we could probably start teaching her some things too. I still don't think it's a good idea to leave Pumpkin here.. Hana's a regular young girl, she'd probably find someone to take her in and manage okay, but we'd have the same problem we had before with finding someone to take care of Pumpkin. Worse, really, with all these refugees. Myfwany is too busy to even consider, Gabrielle has even more on her plate than before, and the only new options are dozens of emotionally and physically traumatized women. I think we can safely say that would probably be a poor idea, even if we had the time to sort through them all and explain the situation to see if any of them felt able to handle it. It would take far more than three or four days."

He knew Jasmine was a deeply emotional young woman - perhaps not obviously so, and certainly not with anywhere near the flare for drama that women like Violet seemed to possess. Not even with the passionate temper that seemed to possess Jules at times. No.. her emotions were calm as still waters, and ran just as deep. He knew she'd become attached to the girl, and had a sneaking suspicion that before they'd met she would have just been the type to take anyone along if she felt they needed protection, whether practical or not. But it was easy to feel a sense of pride in seeing her try to work things through and think of them from his typically more analytical perspective too.

He nodded slightly in agreement at that, and she leaned down to kiss him softly. Seconds turned into minutes, and the gentle kiss became firm and passionate as the attractive, able-bodied young woman in his lap shifted to straddle him. The crate he was sitting on was just wide enough to accommodate her knees against the outside of his thighs. No doubt they could have lingered there quite contentedly for awhile if the man who'd approached for trading behind them hadn't coughed in that self-conscious manner that indicated he'd been there for significantly more than a second or two of their.. interactions.

Jasmine had, of course, been too distracted to notice - she was very new to these types of situations, after all. And if Bond had noticed, which - like always, was indiscernible - he certainly hadn't considered it worth pulling away from the dark-skinned girl for. At the sound of the cough though, Jasmine pulled back with the expected flush of her cheeks, and slipped off of Jim's lap a bit self-consciously. The guy standing near with his hands on his pockets couldn't quite conceal an amused, chauvinistic grin as she hurried away, glancing over her shoulder and throwing him a slight smile before she headed back in the direction she'd come from.

"Smooth - looks like you found yourself a Bond girl, huh?"

,,

******

It was about an hour after she'd left that Jasmine returned to the building where the doctor's offices were located. She glanced around, seeking out Pumpkin and Hana in the area where she'd left them, and wondering if perhaps Violet had taken them away somewhere or if they'd stayed nearby. It was Violet who caught her attention first, leaning up against the corner of the building and watching the area behind it. She walked up next to the buxom seductress and grinned at the sight. Behind the office building Hana was sorting through some random garbage she'd collected - building scraps from the nearby wall site, and some assorted pieces of metal and machinery probably scrounged from the nearby garage. There even appeared to be empty paper towel tubes and pieces of cardboard that likely came from the dining hall, which meant Pumpkin had sent Hana scrounging.

She knew that Pumpkin had been the one to issue the demands, for it was what she was doing now, pointing clearly to a not yet finished area of the makeshift garbage city and directing, as Hana futilely tried to help construct some sort of building out of an empty milk carton and popsicle sticks. In the meantime, dozens of tiny glowing figures swarmed the completed structures, chasing each other up makeshift stairwells and through soda can tunnels, having as much fun as their young, curly-haired progenitor.

"They seem like they're having fun.. I hope they didn't give you any trouble."

As she waited for Violet's response, Jasmine caught Hana's attention when the young pre-teen glanced up at the sound of her voice. She motioned her over, looking as if she wanted to talk to her about something.

"Do you mind keeping an eye on Pumpkin for a minute? I needed to talk to Hana about something."