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Tweak says, "My bum itches."

Leah Stone (reapinghavok) wrote in immune_ic,
@ 2011-11-23 03:49:00

Entry tags:

# 2011 [11] november, leah

WHO: Leah & O'Brien
WHEN: November 26, 2018; around 6:00PM
WHERE: Out and about; Fancy Pharmacy (close to City Hall)
WHAT: Undead hookers! Oh, and raiding a pharmacy.
HOW: Foul language and possible nudity ~~because of the hookers, of course...~~
STATUS: Complete

Daylight Savings Time had become another pointless thing of the past; one of the few things Leah was glad to know it was no longer enforced. If it was, the hour would be dark by now and Brandon would no doubt be giving her hell for being out after dark on her own. As it was, she still had at least an hour of sunlight left to continue scavenging for medical supplies. That new dog of Lilah's would no doubt be needing flea medication, and Leah knew several doctors willing to trade useful items in exchange for whatever she found.

This particular pharmacy, the now ironically named Fancy Pharmacy, was located on a fairly quiet block, populated by what looked like the sickliest-looking group of shufflers she'd ever come across. Clothing hung in tattered strips over what was left of the body, skinny cadavers that looked more like walking skeletons and less like something that used to be alive. Their movements were even slower than normal shufflers (if that was possible), each step an enormous chore that looked beyond painful. Fortunately for them, thought Leah, they don't feel.

Pausing in the entrance-way of the pharmacy, Leah dug in her pocket for her flashlight, resisting the urge to snort when her eyes caught sight of what appeared to be her only major threat on this block. A group of three female shufflers, all of whom had more flesh on their bones than the others, stood more or less on the curb across the street. Judging by the remains of their already scanty wardrobe — short skirts, bosom-bearing tops, one six-inch high heel and the matching no-inch high heel (in one zombie's case; the other two were bare-footed) — it didn't take a rocket scientist to determine what they did when they were alive.

Lit flashlight in one hand, machete in the other, Leah ducked into the pharmacy, pushing the door closed behind her. It wouldn't do much to prevent the zombies outside from coming in — there was no lock, and the display windows were broken — but it would slow them down a little, and every second counted.

Light streaming in from the front windows illuminated the front of the store, the flashlight serving to help her see at the rear. She could hear grunts coming from somewhere beyond the shelves. Quietly, Leah walked along the store, keeping the wall at her side, her machete at the ready. Bottles, empty and not empty, were scattered about the floor, making her steps all the more treacherous.

She was nearly to the source of the noise when her foot nudged a full bottle of pills, sending it rattling down an aisle. Leah halted, her breath catching. The chomping that had gotten louder the closer she got, stopped. Leah felt her heart pounding. A hand appeared around the corner of a shelf, followed by a rotted face, its eye (one missing), staring at her. It was the anticipation that affected her the most. One zombie, a sight she had looked upon countless times, was barely worth the adrenaline rush anymore. As it reached for her, hands groping, she swung her arm back and sliced it through the forehead. It fell back onto the floor, and she finished the job.

After a full inspection of the rest of the store, making certain all the present corpses weren't going to get up, Leah commenced searching through what items were left in the pharmacy.

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reapinghavok
2011-12-14 05:42 am UTC (link)

When O'Brien corrected her about the rookie not being his friend, Leah tossed up her hands in a surrendering gesture. "Pardon me for assuming you were friends with the guy."

"If it were me? I'd do the same thing he did to you. Shoot him, take his belongings, and leave him for dead. Without a backup weapon." Why, yes, she did have the stomach to see a plan like that follow through. Especially if the person in question was a government official.

Leah shrugged when the man countered that he didn't shoot people unless there was no other choice. "Guess you're one of those rare, happy-go-lucky kind of cops. The ones who make the easiest targets for betrayal." He stated then that no one should shoot her, and she paused, sizing him up. "Clearly you don't know me well enough, or you wouldn't be saying that. Unless you're referring to how useful I can be, in which case, smart man." She couldn't possibly forget that he could shoot her, if he chose to.

When he joined her at the window and noticed the party they were about to be a part of, Leah rolled her eyes at his remark about it being her fault for being so argumentative over his loudness. "Fine. Whatever. You want to blame me? Go ahead. Doesn't change the fact that it's gonna be a pain in the ass getting out of here."

Hopping from the window out onto the sidewalk, Leah took the head off the nearest zombie and glanced over her shoulder at O'Brien. "If you can keep from hitting me," she said, referring to his gun, "I can get us to City Hall. If you decide to sacrifice me? Good luck getting there on your own."

"You run out of bullets, I'll let you borrow one of my machetes." It was a rare offer, giving him the option of handling one of her weapons, but if he had as little ammo as he claimed, they'd be in deep shit.

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detectiveobrien
2011-12-14 06:22 am UTC (link)

"Well, would you be friends with an asshole that shot you?" He rolled his eyes, "fine. Yeah, I considered the guy a friend, and look what happened." He stared at her while she explained what she would do in his situation. He was just about to comment on shooting someone--and as payback, at that-- when she started making assumptions as to what kind of cop he was again.

His brows pushed together with frustration; Actually. He didn't know what to say to that. A 'happy-go-lucky kind of cop'? That was an easy target for betrayal? "I'm not happy-go-lucky," but an easy target for betrayal? Maybe... It was highly likely actually.

He narrowed his eyes a bit, thinking quietly at what she had said, and then cut his attention back up to her, "We've been over that, remember? I don't know you at all. I don't even know your real name-- so clearly I think you're useful to have around. And pretty," okay, yeah. He said it.

"It's going to suck," because running wasn't exactly something he was going to be good at, in the shape he was in. Fuuuuck, it was going to suck. O'Brien moved to climb back up into the window to follow Leah's footsteps, hopping back down onto the sidewalk. "You're positive? How far is City Hall from here, again?" He huffed, giving her a nod, "I can cover you, and I promise not to sacrifice you. It's not my style."

He paused, quirking a brow at her offering up one of her machetes to him, and it actually made him smile a bit. "Deal," he gave her a nod, and stepped past her to lift his arm back up to aim out toward one of the zombie hookers to shoot her -- well, in the face. Headshot. the only way to kill a zombie, really.

And for the record, yeah, he only had a little bit of ammo. He'd had everything stolen, been locked up in Quarantine, and only just now got out because he basically snuck out, but not without getting his gun back first.

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reapinghavok
2011-12-15 04:00 am UTC (link)

She let out an indignant snort at that, not deigning to give a real answer. In all honesty, Leah felt for the guy, as she'd stated to him on the forums. However, commenting to him via a computer screen was infinitely easier than expressing her sympathy face-to-face. Fortunately, it wasn't very likely he could fit the puzzle pieces together and link this Leah with the Leah who haunted the intranet forums.

"If you say so," was all she said. Obviously this conversation was going nowhere. As far as cops went, O'Brien was the most trusting one she'd ever come across. It would've been so easy to pluck at his nerves for a bit longer, but, yet again, her thoughts returned to the gun and she decided to err on the side of caution.

Tilting her head to one side, Leah studied the man for a moment, letting his last words, tacked on almost as an afterthought, sink in. Beyond being healthy, vanity held very little importance in her life. Yet, she would've been lying if the compliment, grudging though it may have been, hadn't had some effect on her mood. "You have one of my real names," she said, deciding not to respond to his opinion of her appearance. "But you're right. Useful's all you need to know."

"Quit moaning and make yourself useful," she snapped at him. Yeah, she didn't exactly consider this a fun walk in the park either, but they'd survive. It was only shufflers. The quicker they got out of here, the quicker they'd be at City Hall. "It's half an hour from here, if we take the streets. If we take to the roofs, it'll be much faster. And safer," she added, for his benefit. Arching an eyebrow, Leah returned the nod. She didn't know if it was his 'style' or not, but it was the only promise she had to go by.

Glancing at him, she noticed the smile, even in the semi-darkness. Leah's expression darkened. "Stop grinning like a fucking moron. We're not safe yet." She jerked her head toward one of the fire escapes on one of the buildings across the street. "Up there." She kicked at a zombie that came too near. "We won't be able to stick to the roofs the whole way, but the more time we're up there, the better. Go!"

*Walking directions from Fancy Pharmacy to City Hall

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detectiveobrien
2011-12-16 05:42 am UTC (link)

For the record, no, O'Brien had not made the connection, yet. Maybe later on that night, if he survived the trek to City Hall, it would all click into place. But for now, he had absolutely no clue that Miss Machete was the Leah that had actually commented back and forth with him on the forums. Especially over her whole dislike of the internet. She was the one he made that long list of reasons why the intranet was a good thing for? Who knew?

"Well, I'm not. You make me sound like an idiot-- and I may be loud," he'd attracted the zombies, after all, had he not? "--and I'm not perfect and all of that, but I definitely knew how to do my job, and I did it well. I miss it, actually. So whatever you've got in your head about what kind of cop I was, you should just forget it, because you have no idea." So there, damnit. He didn't appreciate her insulting him as a cop. Before the world went to shit, it was all he had. He took it very seriously, and so what if he was 'happy-go-lucky', like she'd said? He got shit done, and he got it done right.

He nodded, keeping his eyes on her, though his frustrated frown was definitely still present; That's right. She'd said he could call her 'Stone', but he opted for Miss Machete. So they were even. She knew his last name, and he knew hers. And apparently useful was all that he needed to know, according to her. Good to know. She hated his guts.

He blinked, staring at her with a bit of shocked when she snapped at him, "I just killed a fucking zombie for you, and I agreed to cover your ass-- and you're suggesting I'm not being useful? And I'd like to see your face if someone told you you had to make a run for City Hall, and you'd been shot less than three weeks ago, and been operated on and stitched up by fucking Jeepers Creepers with rusty medical tools," and he was fairly certain he still had a fever, but that was beside the point. It was his own damn fault he was out here.

O'Brien took note of the arching of Leah's brow, and he tilted his head to the side with an 'oh, c'mon, are you kidding' sort of look, "I'm not going to shoot you. I promise." He supposed he didn't blame her for not trusting him... but still.

And as soon as she told him to stop grinning, the happier expression on his face fell, but he didn't say a word. He let his eyes follow the jerk of her head, and he glanced up toward one of the fire escapes, and then back to her. Was she fucking kidding? No... No, she wasn't kidding, was she? He was definitely not in any sort of shape to be scaling tall buildings. "Hell," he grumbled, adjusting his backpack and turning to hurry over and reach up for the ladder to pull down. He only paused with what he was doing to shoot another Walker, that got too close, in the head.

Quickly and carefully climbing his way up onto the fire escape, he turned back to look to see where Leah was and what she was doing. He'd promised to cover her, after all.

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	↓ started us on a new line reapinghavok 2011-12-18 02:07 am UTC (link)
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	Re: ↓ started us on a new line detectiveobrien 2011-12-18 02:19 am UTC (link)
	:) (Reply to this) (Parent)

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