A Little Chat Between New Friends

Posted on Sun Sep 3rd, 2023 @ 2:16am by Hale Stratton & Vienna Quinn

1,257 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Bangor or Bust
Location: Someone's Backyard, En Route to Bangor
Timeline: 28 August 2010 - 07:10 p.m.

Vienna had decided to sit out on the back porch, it was safer than wondering off away from the house just in case they had any undead visitors. Her mind was on her family, that and her relationship with René.

Aside from Rene, Hale thought of the teens in general terms. Among the girls, they were THE PRINCESS, because her personality screamed entitled and spoiled, and the Nice One. He knew their names of course; he also knew that the teens had that whole 'adult bad, youth good' vibe going which was, when you were one of the adults in question, kind of off-putting.

Still she was sitting on the porch by herself and that was as good a spot as any to watch the area, so he sat on the top step and turned slightly so that he could see her and be seen which was about as far as he got. How on earth did you breach that whole 'teens versus adults' barrier they had going?

Words, he thought. Just get the words out there. Make a start.

"You alright," he asked. He didn't settle his gaze on her (whole frightened rabbit theory) but instead, kept watch, looking at corners, and the tree line, the road ... places where the not-as-dead-as-he'd-like could appear.

Vienna gave Hale a shrug of her shoulders, she hadn’t really had much to do with him so far apart from in training. “To be honest, I’m not sure.” She offered a polite brief smile. “I haven’t been able to contact my parents, or my brother.”

"That's rough," Hale said as he turned toward her for a moment, his expression softened, sympathetic. "Things have been so busy the last day or two, I didn't get a chance to call and now ... the call won't get through. They live off-grid up in Alaska which just means they aren't connected to the power grid. Our cabin is self-sustaining. People always get the wrong idea but they have jobs just like everyone else. Cars and all." His gaze swept the surroundings again and the thought popped into his head that they'd need a vantage point or foot patrols. He dismissed it at once and returned his gaze to the girl beside him.

"Yours are in Bangor, right?"

Vienna nodded. “Yeah, René has been staying with us as an exchange student. Right now he’s all I’ve got.” She sighed. “What if my parents are...what I mean is, what if...” she didn’t finish the sentence.

"Father Dominic is trying to arrange for you to get back to Bangor," Hale said. He paused for a moment, his attention caught by a deep patch of shade, before returning to look at her again. "Look, I'm never going to tell you anything but the truth straight out. If that's not something you can handle, if you'd rather a pretty lie or false hope, then we should end this conversation here."

Vienna looked into Hale’s eyes. “I’m not afraid of the truth, I know what’s going on out there. It’s crazy and it’s...unknown, but we have to have hope, right?”

Hale nodded, thought about what she said. Hope wasn't something he indulged in. He looked at things head-on, unflinching, because you had to know what you were up against. He understood odds and tactics and strategy .. but hope? He believed his parents were alive because the odds made it seem likely. Isolated cabin on a mountain. No through traffic. No big settlements nearby. It was possible. Likely. But her parents? In Bangor?

"Bangor. There's some logic to making zones that are easier to protect," Hale said. "If your parents made it to one of those, that would certainly improve their odds at least in the short term. Can your father fight? Take on the 'folks-that-should-just-lie-down-coz'-their-dead'?"

Vienna nodded. “Yeah he can fight, he taught me everything I know about hunting, how to use a bow and a knife. He’ll do everything he can.”

He let the comment go unchallenged as he had before; truth was there was a big difference between hunting and combat. "Then most likely, if they aren't at your house, they'll be in the safe zone. But make sure that the person taking you home checks your house first. I'm thinking it won't be easy to get out of the safe zone once you're dropped in there."

Vienna nodded. “I planned to go home first anyway, just in case.” She gave Hale a curious look. “Do you think my family stand a chance? With everything going on right now?”

"It's really hard to say," Hale said quietly. "Get enough of 'them' together, they could overwhelm anyone and I don't know what's going on in Bangor. How bad things are. What I know is that hunters tend to be observant and keep their wits about them when they're out in the field. Gives your parents a better chance the most."

Vienna nodded. “My Dad is a mechanic by trade, but my mum is a nurse, and my brother is a junior doctor. With everything that’s going on they’re on the front line when it comes to dealing with the sick and injured.”

"It's bad for those in the medical field. Most doctors and nurses I've met share this powerful drive to help, so they'd be right in there ... helping, you know? That's how the hospital here got overwhelmed so quickly. No one was prepared for this." He shook his head slowly. Just another image to add to the warehouse full of them he already had. "Hard to give odds though. Depends on where they were, how quick they were to figure out what was going on, things like that. For all you know, your Mom was home with a bad cold and stayed clear of it."

Vienna offered a smile. “Maybe, I know for a fact my mum would tell me to stop worrying about what I can’t control. I guess it’s time I heeded her advice.”

Hale nodded as his thoughts strayed for a moment, to Alaska and his own family, and then to this team, right there in the middle of it ... without him. "Maybe easier said than done." He shrugged lightly. "Just means we care and that's not a bad thing."

“That’s true” Vienna nodded. “Thank you for helping to cheer me up, I appreciate it.”

"No thanks needed," Hale said. "Think of me as ... a sort of older brother ... at least until we get back to Bangor and your family. The one that looks out for you. Someone you can talk to if there's need. Just don't," he flashed a quick grin, "start leaving snakes in my bed. I have four brothers back in Alaska and I can't tell you how many times I woke up to something weird ... a snake in the bed, toothpaste in the hair ..."

Vienna couldn’t help but giggle at that. “My brother and I never actually did that, we tended to do our own thing. I miss him so much right now, but it’ll be nice to have you as my temporary big brother.”

"Just remember, us big brothers are protective," Hale said. "You ever find anything that needs its butt kicked, you let me know. Got you covered." He rose smoothly to his feet and tipped an imaginary hat. I'm going to check on the food.

Vienna nodded. “Thank you Hale, I appreciate it and I promise.” She smiled warmly.

 

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