runner

all your life you've never seen a woman taken by the wind. would you stay if she promised you heaven? will you ever win? she is like a cat in the dark and then she is the darkness. she rules her life like a fine skylark and when the sky is starless. rian holloway - twenty-one - bryant middle

[ofskylarks]

alastor.

“  m’sure you’re fiiiine,  ”  alastor let the last word ring out , hand waving off her self-doubt.  she was possibly one of the few in bryant ( apart from his sister of course ) that he got along with.  what a feat.  “  now if something  DOES  go wrong,  we could blame it on good ol’ freddy.  poor guy always picks the shortest sticks.  ”   nudging her playfully,  alastor continued to twirl the daffodil between in his fingertips.  his gaze focusing on rhiannon.  “  good, good.    —and oh, patrolling?  s’the same old, same old.  some nights i have to fight off the sleep because its so boring,  but it’s only a matter of time before another clicker comes along and i get to put em’ out.   i fancy the violence.  ”

   she knew that alastor wasn’t the type to sit around and chat with just anyone, so she saw it as an immense privilege that he didn’t mind hanging out with her.  she respected his desire to be a bit aloof, but she also had a secret desire to break through his shell.  

   she laughed at his tease, smiling over at him.  “it’s what keeps things exciting,” she added, understanding his last comment.  she always had a gun at her hip and if she could, a quiver over her shoulder.  “i’ve been itching to do more hunting.  gathering and scavenging isn’t nearly as fun,” she added.

[mira-ida]

Detective Amy Santiago, an unapologetic brownnoser who has seven brothers, so she’s always trying to prove how tough she is.

[ofskylarks]

coldbodied:

     ❛ WHAT THE FUCK ?? ❜ her voice half hushed over a gust of wind, eyes wild, staring out into the trees. a white knuckle grip surrounding the handle of blood caked knife. ❛ who’s there come out , now ! ❜

   rian pulled back the string of her bow, letting it press against her lips as her eyes focused in on the deer not that far from her.  but suddenly a rustling of leaves and a twig snapping under her boot sent it running.  “shit,” she said, lowering the weapon.  a voice from behind the trees startled her, and she gripped the bow once again, the arrow still loaded.  “who’s asking,” she replied, coming through the brush slowly to see the girl.  

[ofskylarks]

monica.

Monica tilted her head to the side. “Hawkeye?” Monica repeated. She had never really been into superheroes or anything growing up. Not to the point where she knew them by name. She knew Batman and Superman and that was about it. “What does Hawkeye look like?” She wondered. Maybe she could get her hands on a comic book and see for herself. “I don’t think he meant it to be flirty.” Monica shook her head, wrinkling her nose. “I don’t even know how to tell if a guy is flirting.” She pointed out, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. “That’s some good advice.”

   rian gave a small nod as she popped another berry into her mouth.  “yeah i remember my brother talking about him.  i don’t know much but i think he’s the one who shot fancy arrows,” she explained.  “you’re a cute girl, he was probably flirting,” she teased, not that she knew much more than the other girl did.  she was mostly joking.  “i bet once you paint a portrait of him he’ll fall in love for sure.”

[editingsource]

[ofskylarks]

monica.

“A superhero?” Monica repeated with a soft chuckle, though she did flip over to a new page. “Do you want a cape?” She asked as she set her pencil to the paper, already starting to sketch. She took a few berries from the napkin, popping them into her mouth happily. “Don’t worry Rian, I won’t.” Monica shook her head, smiling at her friend kindly. “He just offered to bring me paints in exchange for a portrait of himself.” She admitted, wrinkling her nose a little. “But he seemed nice… and how likely do you think it is that I’ll go any farther than these steps anyway?”

   rian wiggled with excitement as monica spread open a clean page and began to form pencil strokes.  “yesss,” she replied happily, holding out the word for dramatic emphasis.  “and a really cool crossbow or something,” she continued.  “i could be like hawkeye.”  she hoped she was remembering the name correctly.  things like books and comics still got passed around sometimes, she remembered her brother trying to get his hands on anything he could back when they were together.  “sounds a little flirtatious,” she smiled, giving her friend a small nudge.  “i know, i know,” she laughed.  “you’re smart, just be careful.  nice is different than good.”

[ofskylarks]

alastor.

he eyed her curiously, brows raising when she explained she was doing a friend a favor.  alastor forgot that people had friends here.    “  well you know more than me ?  that plant would’ve withered to the ground, hence why no one ever ASKS ME  for favors.  ”   plucking one of the daffodils out of pure boredom,  the boy twirled it between his thumb and pointer finger.  his gun still carefully slung over his shoulder.  “  —-so how’s all the running going ? heard things got pretty crazy yesterday. ”

   “yeah, let’s hope i didn’t screw this up or else i’ll really be in trouble,” she laughed, gazing over at the watered plants.  “i mean, i know it’s just water but it seems like there could be so much that could go wrong,” she shook her head.  she had tried the domestic work around the camp before, and though she appreciated the members who did it, it wasn’t for her.  she much preferred being out in the field.  “it’s amazing.  i mean, it’s always kind of crazy, but that’s why i love it,” she said with a grin.  “how’s patrolling?”

[ofskylarks]

monica.

Monica shook her head at her friend. “I can understand that.” She mused, giggling a little as Rian peeked over her shoulder at her doodles. “No, I’m not drawing you. Right now I’m not really drawing anything.” She shook her head, wrinkling her nose. “Did I tell you that a man from another camp is going to try and get me water color paints?”

   rian pouted playfully at monica’s answer.  “well you should draw me, make me a bad ass, like a cool superhero or something,” she suggested with a nudge, laughing quietly.  “really?  that’s awesome,” she said, pulling a small napkin filled with berries out of her pack, gesturing towards her friend to share.  “don’t go anywhere with him alone though, okay? i mean, if you don’t know him that well.  even if you think you do, i can go with you, for backup,” she added.  

[thewaltdisneygifs]

[ofskylarks]

carolina.

               — being a mechanic was the last thing carolina had ever expected of herself. at the age of eight, when the apocalypse first happened, she had wanted to be a news anchor or a supermodel. never had she pictured that by twenty one she would know the inner workings of vehicles like the back of her hands, or that getting covered in grease and oil and grime could be rewarding work. now, as she laid breathing heavily under the belly of a large truck with her hands doing their best to pry off the exhaust pipe, she felt at peace.

               — that was, until she heard somebody come in. a rush of panic was sent through her immediately, and one hand fell to her waist where she kept her gun. it was highly unlikely that an infected could ever get in here but she was always on alert. she rolled out from under the truck, eyes scanning and ears working to listen for the groans characteristic of the undead, but no such thing was seen or heard. instead, a familiar smile and mop of dark hair loomed over her, and she groaned.

               — “ rian, if you’re going to come in here then tell me when you come in or else i freak out. i don’t know how many times i’ve told you that. ”

   rian wasn’t great at keeping herself occupied.  her hands were always buzzing with electricity, her feet constantly tapping against the floor.  it was why she loved running so much.  it was easy for her to feel trapped within the walls and fences of bryant, but when she was out in the field she was free.  

   that being said, when it was time for her to be inside, she could drive herself crazy pretty quickly.  she tried to go around and be as helpful as she could, but sometimes that just meant finding someone to annoy.  today that person was lina, one of her closest friends, her oldest friend, actually.  they had come to the camp together, and because of that had a sort of unique bond that would never be matched.

   she made her way to the garage, sneaking inside to find a pair of boots she recognized sticking out from underneath the truck.  it was quiet for a moment and then in a flash she rolled out and their eyes met.  “sorry,” rian sighed, though a smile on her face.  “i’m always in stealth mode, it’s hard to turn it off,” she took a few steps back, pulling herself up on some sort of cabinet and swinging her feet.  “whatcha doin, can i help with anything?  there wasn’t a run today so i’m antsy as hell.  i need something to do or i’ll probably die,” she groaned teasingly.

[ofskylarks]

monica.

Monica chuckled a little at her friend, shaking her head at her. “I understand.” She told her kindly. Rian was a nice girl, someone who Monica could consider a good friend. They two just got along flawlessly, while the two girls themselves were rather different. Rian was bubbling with energy while Monica was always nice and calm. “I could ask you the same thing.” Monica pointed out with arched brows before shrugging. “Just sitting, doodling a little. Why’re you up so late?”

   she nodded, “i suppose you’re right,” rian smiled.  “i just couldn’t sleep.  sometimes if i have a really good day or i’m anxious for the next there is just no chance of sleep for me,” she explained, shrugging her shoulders.  “what are you drawing, me?” she teased, trying to peak at the other girl’s sketch.

[ofskylarks]

elena.

‘    i really want to lay out under the stars. i used to do it all the time and now i never do and i don’t know where i was going with this — point is i like stars.    ‘

   “oh you should.  i love the night time.  it’s like my second favorite time of day.”

[ofskylarks]

alastor.

alastor watched as the person in front of him watered one of the plants, his fingers running through the various daffodils.  he wasn’t usually one for nature perse, but he could appreciate it on more than one occasion.   “  y’know,  i’d offer to help but i’d probably end up killing them?  i wasn’t blessed with a green thumb.   ”

   “oh, me either,” she said with a small laugh, setting the watering can down in the dirt and wiping her hands together to clean them off.  “i’m just doing a friend a favor,” she told him, moving her hands to her hips.  “i mean, i’ve got some decent plant knowledge from gathering on runs but i don’t think i could grow anything myself.” 

[ms-moretz]

[hopesumners]

[aestheticgram]

[ofskylarks]

monica.

Most people were afraid of the night. They were afraid of the infected and the wilderness and the loners that were more active, but Monica had always found a strange sort of peace with the night. While most people slept, Monica liked to go and sit somewhere with her sketchbook and some bread and just relax. She spent the whole day taking care of others and spending time with others, she needed these nights alone. She sat outside the school, perched on one of the steps with her back leaning against the concrete railing, when she heard footsteps approaching. Monica tensed a little and she looked up, pencil frozen mid stroke. “You should really learn how to announce yourself when you get closer.” Monica chided in her soft voice, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. “You scared me a little.”

   rian couldn’t sleep.  it was probably the adrenaline from the day, she always had a lot of energy, and sometimes she just needed an outlet for it.  occasionally she would go on night jogs around the school or just go out for a bit of fresh air.  she pushed open the doors to the school, seeing a familiar figure sitting on the cement steps a few feet ahead.  she smiled, coming up behind her.  “just me,” she said softly when she noticed her friend jolt.  “sorry, i guess i’m just used to sneaking up on animal,” she laughed, sitting down beside monica.  “what are you doing out here?  it’s late.”