Aug. 10th: Drift Away, Ch. 3: Stargazing
Title: Drift Away, Ch. 3: Stargazing.
Author: 3am_moonlight (MirroredIllusions on TtH)
Crossover: BtVS / The Walking Dead
Rating: Gen / Teen
Word Count: 1,065
Timeline: BtVS: Post-Chosen & TWD: S03.
Disclaimer: The Buffyverse belongs to Joss Whedon and the TWD 'verse belongs to rich people with expensive lawyers.
Summary: Buffy star gazes on the roof.
Author's Note: Written for Day 10 of the 2020 August Fic-A-Day.
A/N: Blah.
Buffy had climbed up on the roof of the house they were currently squatting in. Was it still squatting if no one owned property anymore? It didn't matter. The house had been empty when they entered, and it had even had a few bottles of water, a dozen tin cans, spices, and a few other edible things. A thorough search of the entire house had revealed a well-kept house with no signs of the apocalypse. It looked like the inhabitants had left on a vacation and simply never returned.
It made it easier for them; nothing to kill, no corpses to remove, no blood or other disgusting stuff they had to use precious water to wash away. All they had to do was move in and make themselves comfortable, and they had. For the first few nights, they had all slept in the master bedroom, but after that, they had split up and taken a room each.
The house was large, and in addition to the master bedroom there were two single bedrooms, presumably where the house owners children had grown up, and two guest rooms. There were also two bathrooms on the second floor but no access to running water.
The property was surrounded by a thick fence, but it was only about five feet high so if a large herd came by and realized they were there, they would have to either run or hide in the hope the undead would grow bored and leave. But for now, they were relatively safe and more comfortable than they had been in months. It also helped that they were able to give each other some much-needed personal space.
It was temporary. So far they had stayed for a month, and while the surrounding houses were much in the same shape, it was only a matter of time before they ran out of food and would need to go looking for somewhere else to stay. None of them knew anything about farming, but Buffy knew a thing or two about hunting. Kinda. It gave them fresh meat, but it had to be eaten quickly as they had no way to store it. It also meant she had to leave the other two for the entire day as they were some distance from a forest.
Even now, it was strange to be able to see the night sky so clearly. No smoke, no smog. Just a clear, star-strewn sky and the moon shining softly on the landscape. It was beautiful, the added night sounds and the lack of walkers were very relaxing. But it wasn't to last as she could hear Andrea on the stairs.
For someone who claimed to be such an independent woman, she sure was clingy.
"What are you doing up here again? It's freezing." The older blonde had found warm jumpers, down jackets, and other winter clothing while familiarizing herself with the home. Given the lack of electricity, she was wearing it pretty much all the time. Michonne had done the same, although she hadn't bundled up as much. Buffy was wearing it more for show than actually being cold. Something else to thank her Slayerness for, she supposed.
"It's peaceful up here," then she added. "I'm a night owl and being outside and seeing the sky relaxes me." It was true enough, but some proper Violence Therapy would've been even better. Larger groups of walkers cut the edge off, but she needed something more. Something this particular kind of undead couldn't give her.
Changing the subject as she turned around, she said. "We need to make preparations to leave. We won't be able to scavenge here for much longer, so we need to pack up. See if we can't find a working car and fuel for it."
About half of the homes had cars, either in a garage or in the driveway. Over the weeks they had tested a few, but with little luck. A couple of them had had a decent amount of fuel though, so if they could just find a working car...
"There's enough food for another two weeks, at least! We're safe here."
"No, we're not. It's an illusion. We've been lucky, but it won't last. A large herd will come, and when it does we need to be elsewhere. Preferably somewhere with a tall, thick, and strong fence to keep them out." Then she added, more like an afterthought; "And people."
"We should try harder to find my group. I'm sure most of them made it, and if Hershel is still alive then he can help me." A doctor, even a veterinarian, was the holy grail of the post-apocalypse. For that reason alone, she was willing to look for them. It helped that most of them sounded like good people and willing to defend their group. Unfortunately, it didn't sound like they were very good at it.
It didn't mean they would accept her and Michonne, no matter what Andrea wanted to believe. It didn't mean that Michonne was willing to join even if they allowed them to stay. The third woman of their little trio wasn't all that fond of people, and becoming part of a group with a lot of in-fighting might not go over so well.
"A large group of people shouldn't be that difficult to see if we come across them. But for now, we need to collect as much food and water as we can, get a car, and then move on from here."
Andrea studied the property for a few moments. It was large, and if it had better security, was closer to either the ocean or a forest with plenty of wildlife then it might've been their home for longer, but it wasn't. The former lawyer turned toward her again.
"Do you think they made it?"
"If the herd was as large as you said, then maybe not. If they managed to escape in cars and didn't run out of gas at some unfortunate time, then they might've made it. I hope they did. No one deserves to die like that."
Andrea got more comfortable and they spent the next while just watching the stars as they tried to corral their own spiraling thoughts. They had been living in their little bubble, leaving meant more danger. It meant they might run into people who might or might not be friendly.
Author: 3am_moonlight (MirroredIllusions on TtH)
Crossover: BtVS / The Walking Dead
Rating: Gen / Teen
Word Count: 1,065
Timeline: BtVS: Post-Chosen & TWD: S03.
Disclaimer: The Buffyverse belongs to Joss Whedon and the TWD 'verse belongs to rich people with expensive lawyers.
Summary: Buffy star gazes on the roof.
Author's Note: Written for Day 10 of the 2020 August Fic-A-Day.
A/N: Blah.
Buffy had climbed up on the roof of the house they were currently squatting in. Was it still squatting if no one owned property anymore? It didn't matter. The house had been empty when they entered, and it had even had a few bottles of water, a dozen tin cans, spices, and a few other edible things. A thorough search of the entire house had revealed a well-kept house with no signs of the apocalypse. It looked like the inhabitants had left on a vacation and simply never returned.
It made it easier for them; nothing to kill, no corpses to remove, no blood or other disgusting stuff they had to use precious water to wash away. All they had to do was move in and make themselves comfortable, and they had. For the first few nights, they had all slept in the master bedroom, but after that, they had split up and taken a room each.
The house was large, and in addition to the master bedroom there were two single bedrooms, presumably where the house owners children had grown up, and two guest rooms. There were also two bathrooms on the second floor but no access to running water.
The property was surrounded by a thick fence, but it was only about five feet high so if a large herd came by and realized they were there, they would have to either run or hide in the hope the undead would grow bored and leave. But for now, they were relatively safe and more comfortable than they had been in months. It also helped that they were able to give each other some much-needed personal space.
It was temporary. So far they had stayed for a month, and while the surrounding houses were much in the same shape, it was only a matter of time before they ran out of food and would need to go looking for somewhere else to stay. None of them knew anything about farming, but Buffy knew a thing or two about hunting. Kinda. It gave them fresh meat, but it had to be eaten quickly as they had no way to store it. It also meant she had to leave the other two for the entire day as they were some distance from a forest.
Even now, it was strange to be able to see the night sky so clearly. No smoke, no smog. Just a clear, star-strewn sky and the moon shining softly on the landscape. It was beautiful, the added night sounds and the lack of walkers were very relaxing. But it wasn't to last as she could hear Andrea on the stairs.
For someone who claimed to be such an independent woman, she sure was clingy.
"What are you doing up here again? It's freezing." The older blonde had found warm jumpers, down jackets, and other winter clothing while familiarizing herself with the home. Given the lack of electricity, she was wearing it pretty much all the time. Michonne had done the same, although she hadn't bundled up as much. Buffy was wearing it more for show than actually being cold. Something else to thank her Slayerness for, she supposed.
"It's peaceful up here," then she added. "I'm a night owl and being outside and seeing the sky relaxes me." It was true enough, but some proper Violence Therapy would've been even better. Larger groups of walkers cut the edge off, but she needed something more. Something this particular kind of undead couldn't give her.
Changing the subject as she turned around, she said. "We need to make preparations to leave. We won't be able to scavenge here for much longer, so we need to pack up. See if we can't find a working car and fuel for it."
About half of the homes had cars, either in a garage or in the driveway. Over the weeks they had tested a few, but with little luck. A couple of them had had a decent amount of fuel though, so if they could just find a working car...
"There's enough food for another two weeks, at least! We're safe here."
"No, we're not. It's an illusion. We've been lucky, but it won't last. A large herd will come, and when it does we need to be elsewhere. Preferably somewhere with a tall, thick, and strong fence to keep them out." Then she added, more like an afterthought; "And people."
"We should try harder to find my group. I'm sure most of them made it, and if Hershel is still alive then he can help me." A doctor, even a veterinarian, was the holy grail of the post-apocalypse. For that reason alone, she was willing to look for them. It helped that most of them sounded like good people and willing to defend their group. Unfortunately, it didn't sound like they were very good at it.
It didn't mean they would accept her and Michonne, no matter what Andrea wanted to believe. It didn't mean that Michonne was willing to join even if they allowed them to stay. The third woman of their little trio wasn't all that fond of people, and becoming part of a group with a lot of in-fighting might not go over so well.
"A large group of people shouldn't be that difficult to see if we come across them. But for now, we need to collect as much food and water as we can, get a car, and then move on from here."
Andrea studied the property for a few moments. It was large, and if it had better security, was closer to either the ocean or a forest with plenty of wildlife then it might've been their home for longer, but it wasn't. The former lawyer turned toward her again.
"Do you think they made it?"
"If the herd was as large as you said, then maybe not. If they managed to escape in cars and didn't run out of gas at some unfortunate time, then they might've made it. I hope they did. No one deserves to die like that."
Andrea got more comfortable and they spent the next while just watching the stars as they tried to corral their own spiraling thoughts. They had been living in their little bubble, leaving meant more danger. It meant they might run into people who might or might not be friendly.