☼ • — the camp at the cheyenne country club is, admittedly, pretty small — both physically and in population. in spite of the acres of fertile land that surround the property and offer much in the way of natural resources ( the earth mother can be profoundly generous when treated with respect and compassion ) the indoor accommodations for the camp and its members are significantly less spacious. were their numbers greater, the gardener imagines most, if not all, of their rooms, would have to be shared by multiple occupants. and as much as he welcomes the thought — and he does, oh, he wants nothing more than for his home to become a home, a refuge, to so many more and for the tiny family at the country club to flourish, to g r o w — he often wonders if it will ever come to fruition, given how seldom survivors seem to stay. ( he’ll forever be grateful for adalene; the dedicated patrol guard — and his close friend — has been a constant from the very birth of the camp from the ashes of a violent raid on the city, a familiar face among the many that come and go. ) but for what the club lacks in size, it makes up for in h e a r t. and organic produce. anyone is welcome to seek shelter within its walls, to find nourishment and peace. and truthfully, topher considers it a blessing that alix happened across the fields of the country club, and even more so that he’d decided to stay.
christopher haas does not claim to have any p r e t e r n a t u r a l abilities; the opening of his third eye did not bestow clairvoyance or precognition, and his interest in the subject didn’t quite facilitate skill. but for years, he’s practiced the art of reading and visualizing auras, and he remembers being struck by the purity of the pale glow that enveloped alix the night they met. to see a child who’d not only managed to survive in this world but still remain so wholly and truly g o o d in spite of it — it’s a gift he imagines he’ll cherish the rest of his life, a small promise from the universe that his optimism, his faith is not unfounded. good still exists. and alix, he’s so much more than simply good — he’s creative, intelligent, courageous. the potential he has as a member of the camp — of the community — it’s immeasurable. ❝ thanks for takin’ it, ❞ he says sincerely, returning the smile with one of his own. ❝ the camp is a better place for your presence, alix. i’m glad you’re here. ❞ he takes another sip of tea, dark eyes curiously following the younger male as he stands from his chair and reaches for his bag. grin growing, he tucks his mug away beneath his chair and rises himself, offering alix an enthusiastic nod. ❝ i think now’s the perfect time. you set ‘em up, an’ i’ll go grab the signs. ❞
the signs in question aren’t actually signs at all, but rather a pair of white, king-sized sheets that he and alix spent an entire afternoon meticulously painting with encouraging and informational messages for any extraterrestrials that happened to be near enough to find them. ( ❛ ALL LIFE WELCOME ❜ and ❛ UFO PARKING HERE ❜ among a handful of others, all painted in large, bold letters and decorated with various peaceful symbols and artistic renderings of alien spacecrafts. ) given that they’ve set up lookout at the center of an open field only a few yards away from his van, acquiring them only takes about a minute or two, and the gardener returns just as quickly with a folded heap of fabric and a number of tent stakes balanced in his arms. ❝ okay — where d’you think i should put them? ❞
dark browns l i g h t i n g up, genuinely, at his opposite’s reply ; alix couldn’t help the smile that grew across his face. attention went down, then, to recuperate --- and he idly s h o o k one of the l i g h t s to check if it’s bulb still worked as cheeks REDDENED. looking back to toph at his answer, however, an enthusiastic nod in return and alix moved to stand. the lights were BIG, but l i g h t w e i g h t ; bright. surely what they l a c k e d for in numbers, the made up for in SIZE.
the small brunette picked up the duffle bag and s t a r t e d towards the first ‘ x ’ among five that he’d set up in the c l e a r e s t part of the field. it was one his most FAVORITE places ( perhaps on this planet ) to look up at the s k y ; he was b l e s s e d to happen upon this place in that sense --- and if the APOCALYPSE had never happened, would he have ever happened upon cheyenne? ...would he have ever met topher? these were q u e s t i o n s he didn’t c a r e to think about.
he’d placed the fourth one now before his camp mate’s return ; upon it, alix looked up with a, ❛ uh... probably between those two lights? ❜ he pointed. expression saying he was in a deep thought ; and he moved b a c k to the third light he’d set up... before eyes returned to his friend. ❛ around this one and i gotta set these up, but when i do? on each side of ‘em. ❜ a small nod, before b o u n c i n g curls hurried over to set the last two up --- and i m p a t i e n t l y, he RACED back over to plug them in.
a BLINDING light and alix immediately dropped the cords to s h i e l d his eyes. maybe he should’ve WAITED until him and topher were at a s a f e distance before TURNING THEM ON, he was now r e a l i z i n g. with that, the g i g g l i n g, teary-eyed boy hurried over to help his camp mate put the rest of the signs down --- and rushed back once they’d finished, nearly s t u m b l i n g over himself in the process, before f i n d i n g his place comfortably away, briefly looking over to topher and d r o p p i n g his head in his hands.
❛ i’m sorry, ❜ the younger between the two b r e a t h e d out in between giggles. looking over through fuzzy vision, he couldn’t t e l l what topher’s expression was... and only hoped he wasn’t PISSED. perhaps it was FOOLISH to do this... when the lights could so e a s i l y attract biters... but the thought had never occurred to alix. oddly enough, topher made him feel as though he didn’t need to w o r r y about things like that... like the world WASN’T doomed, and they were back to how things had been b e f o r e.
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