Post by Alyson T. Paige on Feb 7, 2015 7:37:08 GMT 10
Snap!
Alyson was sitting on the wall, her knees pulled up to her chest and her arms looped around her legs, camera in hand. The Australian bush fell away before her, a beautiful space of flowing hills and bustling cities - unlike England's summer, the sun here was hot enough to scorch the grass and turn every field into a sea of gold and yellow, filled with burnt, dead grass. While it was a terrible time of year for harvests or rearing, it was a wonderful photo opportunity; the colours were a sharp contrast to the clear blue sky, that sat like clean blue slate over the world. It was the first time Alyson had taken out her camera since arriving, and she was peering through the lens at the scene before her, it's metal bulk protecting her still-pale face from the sun and one of her fingers hovering above the button.
Snap!
Without taking her eyes away from the camera, she reached into her pack beside her, groping a bit before her finger fastened around it as if she were holding onto the cliff that would save her life when she was dangling 100ft above a raging river. The movement was mostly to check her pack was still there; Alyson had been sitting in the same spot, occasionally clicking a button and taking a permanent photo of the scene she was looking at, a reminded of who and where she was, for what felt like hours, though the sun had only edged a few degrees up in the sky, so it couldn't be that long.
From her spot, directly above the little door that passed as a gate in and out of the Sanctuary, she could see at least a couple of miles ahead, and by sweeping her head - and her camera - to the left and right she could see just about anything that could be a threat, even if it was through a slightly dimmed lens that made everything look slightly darker. Alyson was sure this passed as sentry duty, and she was also sure she'd much rather be doing this, or indeed anything on the wall or outside, than cooking, housekeeping or any of the other form of work that took place inside, on the safe side, of the large barrier everyone considered their protection. So, sentry duty was important. Alyson decided that was what she was doing, if anybody asked. Which, she hoped they didn't.
Post by Magella Jones on Feb 7, 2015 16:28:27 GMT 10
It is easier to know where you are going... ...When you know where you have been
Magella was wandering around Sanctuary, checking in on everyone as she went. The place was growing faster than she had ever thought possible and she was surprised that everyone still turned to her as the leader. Desmond was older and had more experience with leadership but here she was. It did make her happy that she was in control, she liked being able to direct what was happening here.
She paused near the doors that led to the outside, looking up at the wall. And there, sitting at the top, was someone. They were turned out to watch the horizon, something held up to their face. A light frown appeared on Magella's face and she turned, her feet carrying her up the stairs to step up behind the person she could now see was a woman. A quick check of her face and she realised it was Alyson. With all her ventures out into the Great Beyond, and the general running and maintenance of Sanctuary, as well as dealing with her garden, she hadn't gotten the chance to really get to know her.
Dropping down beside the woman, she glanced at the camera, then out into the horizon. "I hope I'm not disturbing you while you're doing... sentry duty." she murmured, gesturing to the camera. "I just thought, since you're sitting up here and not running around out there, we could get to know each other a little better. And keep an eye out for danger." Magella gave the woman a bright smile. "I hope you've got sunscreen on, you're very pale to be sitting out here in the sun."
Her hand lifted, running through her short locks, brushing them back from her face for the hundredth time that day. She really needed to hunt down a pair of scissors and hack her hair short again. She stretched the hair out in front of her, frowning at the length, it really, really needed a cut, it was almost long enough to serve as a hand hold for zombies. "You wouldn't happen to have any scissors would you? My hair needs a hair cut something awful."
Post by Alyson T. Paige on Feb 8, 2015 10:42:08 GMT 10
When Magella sat down beside her, Alyson barely noticed. It was only when the woman spoke that she looked around, inwardly groaning, her eyes flashing in annoyance but still mostly hidden by her camera. She'd much rather be left alone, but she also highly doubted that would happen.
"Hey," she muttered, carefully re-wrapping her prized possession in a tattered blanket and removing the entire contents of her pack, one by one, to place the faded blue rag and the black metal she could see glistening underneath it where it belong, right at the bottom. Alyson spent another two minutes replacing everything, just as neatly as it had been before. Perfectionist? Nah, she didn't think so.
Pushing her freshly-taken photos into the pocket that held the rest of them, Alyson turned back to the face the horizon, her vivid blue eyes occasionally flickering over to Magella sitting beside her.
At the mention of scissors and cutting her hair, the younger woman reached into the sheath sewed onto her left sleeve - she was right-handed, so it had seemed like a sensible choice - and, running one finger absentmindedly over the initials carved into the hilt of her father's old hunting knife, pulled it out and handed it to her companion, gently holding the blade and leaving the handle open.
"I don't carry scissors," Alyson explained, although she could see why they would make a decent weapon - but, she preferred something she had been using her entire life, and something she could drop in a crisis. Not that she would, because the knife was incredibly precious to her. "But, this should be sharp enough to cut your hair. Though, I don't see why you'd want to." She glanced momentarily at Magella's short, dark hair, before looking at her own dark locks, which were spilling over her shoulders in a mess of natural curls and split ends. "I couldn't stand to have my hair short."
It was true. The last time her hair had been cut shorter than shoulder length she had been eight, and she'd locked herself in her room for a day until her mother promised to never cut it that short again. The memory made Alyson shudder, but she was sure her dark curls hadn't been cut since their move to Australia, and hadn't been brushed in 12 months. No wonder they were mess.
Post by Magella Jones on Feb 8, 2015 14:16:16 GMT 10
It is easier to know where you are going... ...When you know where you have been
She caught the flash of annoyance but, to be perfectly honest, she didn't give a shit. It was her place and she would make sure that everyone in Sanctuary was clear on what was going on and she wanted to make sure no one was secretly an axe murderer. She didn't really want to die in the middle of the night by another person's hand. Magella really wanted to go out kicking and screaming, taking as many zombies with her as she could.
The proffered knife was taken gently, Magella glancing at the blade and hilt for a moment before shaking her head and handing it back. "As much as I appreciate the offer, I'm likely to scalp myself if I try to use that to cut my hair. I keep it short to stop people and the zombies from grabbing it and using it against me. Plus I don't have to brush it when it's this short." she grinned, ruffling her own hair awkwardly. "I guess I'll just have to wait until I go out shopping again. Shouldn't be too long, people are going to start complaining that they smell. I'll have to find a camping store or... I'm rambling. Sorry."
Magella watched the girl pack away the camera, taking note of just how carefully she placed it back in her pack, how it was wrapped up, and everything padded it. "I... I wanted to ask you to do a job for me actually, that's why I came up here. Well, I was wondering if you could be our record keeper. It wouldn't be anything too strenuous, take a picture of each of the survivors, Sanctuary, keep a photographic record of our achievements, loses, everything." She hoped she wasn't going to push the girl too far, but she didn't see her giving up her camera for someone else to use, not with how carefully she kept it protected. "The bulk of the record keeping will probably fall to someone who stays at Sanctuary more often. Alice maybe. You'd just be supplying pictures.
Post by Alyson T. Paige on Feb 9, 2015 8:45:46 GMT 10
"If I'm honest, I don't really brush my hair anyway," she admitted, pushing a stray strand behind her ear to keep it from blowing across her face in the breeze. "Even before the outbreak - it just seemed like a waste of time. My hair would always end up messy by the end of the day, no matter what I did."
Alyson had her hand protecting her eyes against the glare of the sun, meaning she could see better, and also casting a long, dark shadow across her face, hiding her pale skin from all the UV lights that has burnt it red every summer since she moved to Australia. Every single one. She kept her vivid blue eyes on the land below, and had only looked away to take her knife back from Magella and slide it back into it's sheath, looking at a pale red patch on her sleeve before glancing back to the horizon.
The teenager didn't even consider the request before giving her answer. She even looked at the short-haired woman as she spoke, looking out of the corner of her eyes.
"Sure," Alyson agreed, shrugging her shoulders. Any excuse to use her camera was good enough for her. "Just tell me what to photograph, and I'll do it."
Oddly, looking at the world through dark-tinted lenses was far more comforting than looking at it without, especially after the outbreak. It was her coping mechanism, so to speak - seeing the world as a picture made it much easier to forget everything that had happened over the last year was real, easier to make it all seem like some elaborate story or game that had been conjured up by a couple of bored kids who needed some entertainment. It wasn't, but it was easier to pretend it was than face the truth.
Post by Magella Jones on Feb 10, 2015 12:01:18 GMT 10
It is easier to know where you are going... ...When you know where you have been
"You don't brush your hair!?" Magella exclaimed. It came out much louder than she had intended and she pressed her fingers to her mouth to stop herself from continuing at the same volume. "Why wouldn't you brush your hair? It looks so thick and shiny, I bet it would be absolutely beautiful if it was brushed and washed properly. Oh, how long has it been since you've used shampoo. I miss shampoo."
She leaned back on her hands, letting her legs flop out over the edge, bumping her heels a little against the wall. Her face was turned up to the sun, drinking in the warmth it provided. Sitting here like this reminded her of being at home on a Saturday afternoon, chilling in the sunshine with her siblings. She missed them so much, they weren't just family, they were friends as well. Everyone supported everyone else, and no one was left behind.
Alyson's words brought her back out of her thoughts and she turned her head towards the girl, a slightly blank look on her face for a moment. "Photograph? Oh, right, yes. Well... If you want to go around and take a picture of everyone to start with, and see if you can get Sanctuary itself in a single photo. It doesn't particularly matter if you can't, I just thought it might be nice."
Her hands lifted, rubbing at her face as she leaned forward to sit up properly. She was feeling so tired all the time, and she was doing half the physical activity she had been doing before she found Sanctuary. Mostly she was able to hide it, but sitting down for a moment like she was now just brought back huge waves of exhaustion and it crippled her.
Post by Alyson T. Paige on Feb 11, 2015 10:34:55 GMT 10
With her arms still hugging her legs, Alyson felt the sun burning every square centimeter of skin that wasn't covered by clothing, and she fiddled with one of her long, dark curls absentmindedly. She glanced momentarily at Magella when she spoke again, the older woman's sudden exclamation startling her and making her jump a little.
"My mother used to make me brush it,"she explained, looking back at the horizon and the Australian bush stretching out before her. "But eventually I just sorta... stopped. Like I said, it ended up quite a mess by the end of the day, and it just struck me as pointless to spend so much time looking after it if it was never going to be able to stay that way."
For as long as she'd been able to remember, Alyson had been repeatedly told she looked like her mother - they had shared vivid blue eyes and dark, curly hair, the kind of things her classmates from her childhood would've died for, but had never really bothered Alyson herself.
After a moment of pause, she reached over to her pack again, which was still lying open at her side, and, carefully pushing the array of other items it contained to the side, drew out her camera again and tugged the faded baby-blue blanket away from it, letting the scrap of fabric fall to her knees. Lifting the camera to her face again, she turned around slightly as to face Magella and leaned back a little, taking a photo of her short-haired counterpart and handing it too her.
"You look tired," Alyson stated, flatly, once again repacking her camera - it had began to become a rather repetitive process, or so she thought. "If you ever clean yourself up a bit more and want a better photo, let me know. The lighting's good up here, but the time of day's terrible -light shining directly onto the lens. I wouldn't be surprised to find a bit of camera glare."
Post by Magella Jones on Feb 12, 2015 9:49:33 GMT 10
It is easier to know where you are going... ...When you know where you have been
"You bring up fair points." Magella acknowledged. "That's why I've cut it short. I don't have to do anything with it, no knots, no grabby hands. But I'm not trying to push it on you, Alice has beautiful long hair. It just never really suited me. I grew up with brothers, you see, there was always wrestling and mud and sticking bubble gum in each other's hair. Usual sibling stuff."
She grinned at the memory, glancing over at Alyson. "Only child? You've only ever spoken about your parents so I'm assuming. I don't really like assuming though, it always ends badly. Why did your mother stop making you brush it? Surely she'd want her little princess to remain beautiful." Magella couldn't help it and reached out to tuck an escaping lock of hair behind Alyson's ear, freezing for a moment when she realised what she'd done, pulling her hand back to her lap.
The offering of the picture gave her a moment to bring herself back into focus, pulling a face at the lines and wrinkles that were in the picture. "I look... old." she let out a sigh. "Of all the things I thought would happen to me in this world, getting old was not one of them. I'm already going grey, you know. I've been going grey since I was fifteen. Mum was completely grey by the time she reached thirty, so I'm hoping I have a little more time than that."
Looking at the picture, she rubbed at the cheek that was smudged with something. It would make a good before and after picture from now to when they got some water back in the tank and they could actually wash without the threat of dehydration. She smiled, running her finger along the edge of the photo. "Thanks Alyson." she murmured. "Just having some reminder that there's still technology out there somewhere will be enough to bolster some people around here. Me included."
Post by Alyson T. Paige on Feb 13, 2015 6:17:15 GMT 10
Without even realizing it, Alyson flinched involuntarily at Magella's touch, and, after a couple of seconds where she sat in stiff, frozen silence, she reached up to wrap her fingers in the gold chain around her neck, fiddling with the ring that hunt just below her collarbone.
"Only child, yeah," she agreed, awkwardly, stretching her legs out and letting them dangle over the edge. "And my mother... well, I started leaving my house earlier and earlier, and eventually she didn't have time to make me. And then she really couldn't." Unless she learnt to do it from beyond the grave, Alyson thought, bitterly, looking away and blinking back tears that threatened to overwhelm her. She hated thinking about her mother - when the car had first crashed, she'd smashed every mirror in her wide, spreading farmhouse, earning herself a few dozen years of bad luck, to avoid looking at her own reflection. She'd also ended up cutting her feet countless times on shattered glass, and there was a pattern of scars on a sole that served as a permanent reminded of her own grief.
Running one finger around the inside of the ring, Alyson read the inscription in her head: Dearest Lana xx. It was faded and worn away, so much she was reading it more from memory than anything else, but she rubbed at the edges to clean blood and dirt from the gold, doing the same with the heart-shaped locket that was looped around her neck, and it made her feel better.
"It's been a long time since I've used any sort of technology other than my camera," Alyson sighed, keeping her eyes trained on the horizon, a thin charcoal line between the clear blue of the sky and the burnt fields that covered the ground. "I'm looking forward to driving any sort of vehicle. And having a proper weapon, so I can look after myself. Knives aren't exactly my specialty."
Post by Magella Jones on Feb 15, 2015 15:00:32 GMT 10
It is easier to know where you are going... ...When you know where you have been
The tenseness in Alyson's posture wasn't lost on her and Magella made a firm mental note not to touch the girl again. Just because some like Alice and Lex would be uncaring about human contact didn't make other's the same way. She'd have to reign in her natural hugging instinct, try to remember the concept of personal space and calm down some.
There was a slight hesitation in Alyson's voice when she spoke of her mother and Magella kicked herself for prying into her business. Two mistakes in one conversation, pretty soon she'd be chasing people out of Sanctuary because she was being too nosey. Another firm mental note was made alongside the first and she repeated it in her head over and over.
"I know right. Walking everywhere isn't so bad, great exercise, keeps us from getting lazy and fat and become buffets for zombies, but it also takes forever to get anywhere, and you can't carry half as much as you could in a car back to Sanctuary. I'll see if I can find some utes or something hanging around. Then we can pack bigger things like furniture and stuff, things to make this place feel a little more like home." She glanced back over her shoulder, looking at the small collection of buildings surrounded by the wall. Such a small place for the last of humanity to survive.
Hearing that Alyson wasn't particularly confident about protecting herself made Magella feel a touch of worry. "If you want, I can help you out, teach you a few things to keep yourself safer. I could find you a pole or whatever. Even a baseball bat like Lex's would be easier to handle if you don't like knives. There's a whole heap of weapons out there if you just use your imagination. It helps that you don't have to parry or wrestle your opponent, just keep hitting them until they stop moving. They don't exactly try to stop you."
Post by Alyson T. Paige on Feb 19, 2015 11:34:22 GMT 10
"I'm fine with defending myself," she replied. "Just, knives aren't my favourite weapons. I prefer things I can shoot with: guns, slingshots, etc. Don't get me wrong, I'm okay with close-quarter weapons, but I can handle them. I've been learning how to take care of myself for a while."
Dropping the ring from her fingers so that it hung from its chain again, Alyson began to trace meaningless patterns on the back of one hand, leaving pale white lines. The sun had ticked a couple of degrees up in the sky, towards the center of the sky directly above their heads, and it was burning so bright that it was more dangerous to look at than burning magnesium. Alyson blinked as she covered her wide blue eyes with one hand and glanced between the landscape spreading out before her and the woman sitting beside her.
"Right," she said, suddenly, breaking the quiet that had sprung between her and Magella. "I can't put up with this horribly awkward silence for much longer, so let's make small talk! For lack of a better conversation topic - or even a mildlysafer conversation topic - what was your life like before the outbreak. You had siblings, I know, and your clearly Australian - I may not have been here long, but I can tell an Australian accent when I hear one. So, what's your story?"
Post by Magella Jones on Feb 19, 2015 21:44:02 GMT 10
It is easier to know where you are going... ...When you know where you have been
She was slightly surprised at Alyson's quick outburst, Magella having felt comfortable sitting in silence with the woman. Looking back over to her, she rubbed the back of her neck, thinking about the questions she was asked. What had her life been like before the outbreak. A smile kicked up the corner of her mouth.
"Correct, I am Australian. Good observation. I came from a big family. I was the youngest of seven. Three brothers, and three sisters." She grinned, looking for the shock she thought she'd find on Alyson's face. "My parents were both only children and they'd vowed to have as many kids as possible. There was always something going on. Ballet, soccer, camp. It was chaotic, but it was home, and we all loved each other. No one was allowed to pick on the family except the family. We'd roam the streets in a pack, having fun, helping other kids, being nice to our elders. You know, typical kid stuff."
Magella kicked her foot a little, feeling her heel bump against the wall, marking off each bump in her head. "My Dad died when I was thirteen. Heart attack. I was really angry for such a long time. I pulled away from my family then. I was angry that he'd left and I felt that if he had left, then maybe they would too. So, instead of caring and being drawn into that emotional turmoil, I pulled away. I put Mum through hell. She'd lost her soul mate and there I was kicking up a stink over no good reason."
There were tears in Magella's eyes, stinging them a little. Her hand lifted and she rubbed them, trying to will away the emotions. "Finally she gave up. My brothers took over and they dragged me down to the local community garden and turned me over to this little old lady. Esther taught me how to garden, and drew me back from the edge. She became my rock. Eventually, she died a week before my eighteenth. But it was peaceful, she was sleeping. I'm sorry. I've got something in my eye and it's scratching."
Her hands rubbed harder at her eyes, trying desperately to stem the flow of tears. She'd avoided thinking of her life before the outbreak, so she wouldn't break down, and now she couldn't stop crying. Drawing her legs up, Magella turned a bit so her back was facing Alyson. She didn't want the woman to see her in her moment of weakness.
Post by Alyson T. Paige on Feb 20, 2015 10:35:47 GMT 10
"Wasn't thatthe reason the mother from Cheaper By The Dozen gave for having so many kids? Her only sibling died, or something like that," Alyson broke in, glancing at Magella to catch her grin and looking back out at the horizon. "I watched that film like, six times in one week."
She listened to the other woman as she went on, talking about her siblings and family, her childhood and adolescent years before the outbreak, and visibly cringed as she hot on to the subject of her father's passing. When I said 'for lack of a better subject' I meant only answer with the nice parts of family life, she thought, shifting uncomfortable and pressing her hands together.
"I'm... sorry for your loss," Alyson mumbled, awkwardly, scratching the back of one hand. "Well, I suppose I'd better hand over my fair share of sadness to add to the conversation. I'm an only child - as you already figuared out - and I was born in England, a long way away. It was cold, in case your wondering.
"There was rarely anything going on in my house, which is probably one big difference between me and you. My family wasn't exactly poor, so I got practically everything I wanted, when I wanted it."
Taking a deep breath, Alyson reached up to wrap the two golden chains that hung from her neck around her fingers: from one chain was a heart-shaped locket that held blonde and grey locks of hair, and the other secured a plain gold engagement ring with scuff marks scratching the edges and the extremely faded engraving on the inside, the reminders she'd been carrying around for the past five years.
"I was fourteen when my mother crashed her car into a tree and died on impact. It was dark and icy, since it was January, and her tires slipped on black ice. She was found by my father three hours later after he went traipsing along the roads she would have taken home when she didn't answer her phone," Alyson finished, looking away in the same way Magella had when she had started to talk about her father, gripping the chains tighter until they left deep grooves on her palm, that stung as if she were a vampire who'd been burned by holy metal. "Anyway," she started, cheerfully, grinning at herself. "Me and my dad moved over here a year later - my dad's from here, actually, so this was obviously his first choice of country-to-escape-to."
Post by Magella Jones on Feb 21, 2015 11:34:44 GMT 10
It is easier to know where you are going... ...When you know where you have been
Magella turned back to Alyson once her tears had been stopped, rubbing at her face to rid herself of the last of the evidence to her crying. She watched as the woman wrapped the chain around her fingers and pulled hard, making marks in her skin. Part of her wanted to reach out and stop the personal torture but she remembered how her last touch had been rejected and she stopped herself.
"I'm also sorry for your loss." she murmured. "I'm grateful for the fact that my father wasn't alive to see the world crumble into this. I don't think he would have lasted long. I worry about my mother, I worry about my siblings. I... I don't want to find them." She shook her head. "It sounds ridiculous doesn't it? I don't want to find my family because I don't want to know who else I've lost."
She shook her head and squeezed Alyson's shoulder lightly, just for a moment and dropped her hand back to her lap. "Australia is hell compared to England. It's so hot all the time. Do you miss the cool? The snow? I've never seen snow. I doubt I ever will now." Magella gave a slight shrug of her shoulders, her hands rubbing at her eyes a little. "So many things the rest of us will miss out on. And children, if we survive long enough for that."
Staring off into the distance, Magella thought about all the things that were pssibly gone forever. "Alyson, do you think the rest of the world is dead too? Do you think there's a country out there that's survived? It doesn't even have to be a whole country. There could be an island off the coast of Australia with people just living there. And all we'd have to do is float over on a boat." A rueful smile curved her lips. "But would you take that chance? Would you leave these walls and go sailing to these islands were you could be saved or thrown into even deeper danger."
Her hand rubbed her forehead, as if trying to banish the dark thoughts. "I think too much. I'm sorry for disturbing you Alyson. Thank you for sharing something of yourself, and agreeing to play photographer for us. We'll claim back this country one day." She made to stand up, hesitating for just a moment in case there was something else the woman wanted to ask her.
