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Post by NotAvailable on Feb 29, 2012 3:45:31 GMT -5
Welcome to the McGraw Farm This farmstead is roughly 22.95 acres of land with an aged farmhouse, a small barn and some crops occupying it. There's a dirt path that leads into town twenty miles away, in it's driveway, an old, red, Ford truck. The house is a two story with a wrap around porch, complete with four bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms and a locked basement. There's plenty left to loot here and it's safe from the infected. Down in the locked, basement, however is a safeouse. It's expanded to fit atleast twelve survivors, has lined the reinforced walls with plenty of food, water, batteries, first aid and several cots/sleeping bags. The door is still heavily secured. The key's almost always on one of the McGraw family members. Whom are still alive and spread out in the U.S.
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Post by Winters on Feb 29, 2012 5:37:43 GMT -5
".....-, thats when everyone else split, dipskies, got out while they could. I met up with Dani and the others a couple of days later. Been moving from the east ever since, got an RV up and running and everything. Fits six, and since there was five of us including me, it was more than cozy enough. Two usually drove in a truck ahead, camping supplies, ya know, that sort of stuff. We made tracks across the USA, stopping from place to place. Couldnt really stay for longer then a couple days, more and more places are coming up infected every day now. Didnt really know that until we were in the middle of Kentucky. Tried to get into Ohio, but that failed. Ashland was our only stop, it safe up until the day I went to check it out."
The trio had all been walking for what seemed like miles now, with Rabbit doing most of the talking. Maybe he was talking too much, getting a little ahead of himself, finding new people willing to converse, share stories. But there wasnt a lot of sharing on her end, not that she was keeping anything to herself, but Rabbit just never gave her much of a chance. "Yo, what about you? An Jimmy too, hes young. He a cop? I mean, uh, are you a cop? Seen the holster, that and you look it. Got a pretty good nose for the five-oh, take that however you want."
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Post by NotAvailable on Feb 29, 2012 5:48:52 GMT -5
Anna listened to the man rant on and on and on about his life story. She didn't mind much, it was useful information, some of it anyway. There'd been viral outbreaks peppering the U.S. recently, something that made her regret coming home for awhile. She couldn't help but scowl. She didn't need this, not now, she was just getting better...
She hadn't heard the last part of Rabbit's rant, asking about herself. Instead, she'd kept her eyes forward and noticed the familiar muddy road with the old farmhouse up ahead. Jimmy looked up at his mom and then at Rabbit.
"She's in the CIA. I'm in the fifth grade," he told him, smiling. "We live in Washington but my mom wanted to come home to surprise grandpa for her birthday but he's not here....then all this stuff happened," he explained. The three continued on up the road until eventually, Anna had reached into her jacket pocket, pulling a set of keys out. She'd fumbled through them until she'd pulled a specific one out.
Ascending the porch steps, she'd opened the screen door and cleared her throat. "The phone is in the kitchen on the wall...next to the dinner table, Rabbit, make yourself at home," she told him, unlocking the actual door itself.
As she stepped in, she'd looked back and fourth through the spacious living room. Exactly how she'd left it five years ago. "Dad...? You here...?" she called out. "Anyone?" she tried again, glancing at the bare hat rack.
Her father's sheriff's jacket and hat were gone.
"Guess he's still not home..." she said, removing her jacket and tossing it on the couch. Jimmy wandered off toward the staircase to see if his old room was still intact.
"Hey! Not so fast, mister! Lemme make sure we're alone in the house before you wander off on your own," she told him. The boy slumped his shoulders.
"Fiiiine...."
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Post by Winters on Feb 29, 2012 6:15:21 GMT -5
Grinning at the boy. The CIA, that was pretty far off from being a cop, on a higher level of the fuzz. But it was good knowing that maybe she didnt need as much protection as he originally thought. She was with the CIA, getting all of her weapons training prior to this outbreak. He could handle a gun easy enough, but the both of them had been on opposite ends of the law, it seemed. Rabbit looked at Anna for a second before seeing the house not far away. Its was odd, but not that they were on somebody elses property, and especially since it seemed like it hadnt been touched by the infection, Rabbit was quiet.
Once they were inside, he nodded to Anna when she told him where the phone use. He moved into the kitchen, picking up the receiver, and then dialing in Danis cell number. As the phone rang, he looked out into the living room, seeing the little boy shrugging his shoulders. He seemed so calm in a world like this, it was baffling. Finally, the phone connected. "Dani, its Rabbit... No, Ashland was a bust, military everywhere, place was overrun... Yeah, mine died, im using Annas right now... Oh, umm, a survivor, im at her place, sorry, long story. Where are you guys?... Plenty, why?... I dunno, id rather not... Now, its not like that, shes not dangerous... I know, I know... Yeah, wrong place, wrong time, I guess... Iight, peace."
Rabbit wasnt quite sure how he should be acting, it seemed like he was intruding every second he was in the house. Anna had been somewhere upstairs, he could hear walking around. In the living room, Jimmy had been sitting on the couch. Between the outbreak in Kentucky, and the fact that the woman had been looking after a kid on her own, Rabbit seemed amazed at how she did it. Anna definitely didnt seem like it was her first time encountering the infected, and her son was almost fearless. Without knowing what to do, he just open up his duffel bag, and started to take out the contents. Guns and ammo remained in the bag, but his own personal food supply was now lined up on the table. It was the least he could do for opening up her home like this, especially to a stranger.
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Post by NotAvailable on Feb 29, 2012 6:30:14 GMT -5
Jimmy had been sitting back lazily on the couch, both hands on his stomach and his feet wiggling about. His mother was upstairs checking things out and he was left downstairs, looking around at the old furniture. He smiled at the old, faded, blue chair with lighter blue floral print and a dirty, lace, cloth draped over the top. He fondly remembered how much his grandpa Jack hated the thing but his mom loved it, thus it never was tossed out.
Even to this very day, it was still sitting in the same spot as it always had been. Caddy cornered with an old side table and lamp next to it. When he heard Rabbit's voice chime up, he'd looked over at the kitchen, getting off the couch and wandering over, half way. He barely caught a lick of the conversation but he wasn't worried. When he hung up, he'd began to take out all the things he brought with him, displaying it evenly on the table.
"That's alot of stuff. You don't have to worry about giving us any food. My grandpa has alot in the fridge and pantry. We got the crops out back too," he told Rabbit, making his presence known.
Back upstairs, Anna had been searching through the rooms. She'd checked every last one of them except her father's, so far. Al of them had been clear, though. Moving toward her father's room, she'd found the door half way opened. Cautiously pushing the door open further with her foot, she'd aimed her .45 forward. Nothing but an unmade bed and some crumpled clothes in the corner.
Lowering her aim, she'd ventured further inside to see his closet had been opened. His suitcases were gone. She instantly knew that that meant her father had been out of town. The agent sighed, relieved and smiled a little.
Looking back into the room, she'd seen his gun rack displayed beside the window. On it, was his Remington Shotgun. She'd walked around the bed and toward the rack, reaching out to grab it. When she did, she'd moved back to the closet, searching for his stash. She knew her dad wouldn't mind her borrowing it.
When that was all said and done, she'd came trotting downstairs, smiling with the weapon slung over her shoulder. "Jimmy, it's safe. You can go upstairs and rest up if you want," she said, before realizing he hadn't been in the living room.
"Jimmy...?" she called, worriedly. Finally she'd heard his voice coming from the kitchen. Again, she's sighed relieved.
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Post by Winters on Feb 29, 2012 6:44:22 GMT -5
Naw, little man. You go put it away for later, ill help." Insisting, Rabbit grabbed some of the food, and followed the kid into the kitchen. He had been opening up storage space, and then putting the canned food where it belonged. Everything else was put into its place, it was good to see that he knew where things went still. Some children he seen werent taught much, only to loot, even in his hometown before the outbreak. After all the food was put away, Rabbit could hear the kids moms calling to him, and then Jimmy answered. As Anna got into the kitchen, he stood in front of the counter, not letting her see the food they lay out, he felt a little embarrest because she probably wouldnt accept it.
"My um, group. Theyre a couples miles from here, decided to hit another town while I was here in Ashland. Dont really travel at night. Looks to be getting pretty dark soon. You dont mind if I stay here until morning? Ill be gone by then, I promise." Just as he always did, Rabbit didnt even let Anna respond before he opened his mouth again. So much for being quiet. "Ill even stay on the porch, lock the door, then I cant take anything." Rabbit knew how the world was, not everybody had the same manners. Manners themselves changed, it wasnt like it was before in most places. He didnt know how to act yet, which rules applied. The regular, old, civil rules. Or the rules for survival. He was caught between the both of them now, and felt a little put of place. "Ill keep watch, too. Make sure none of those shamblers get too close to the house."
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Post by NotAvailable on Feb 29, 2012 6:53:24 GMT -5
Anna stood in the archway of the kitchen, looking at her son shuffle through the fridge for something to eat. She then looked back at Rabbit, folding her arms and leaning against the side of the archway.
"Don't worry about it, kid. You can bunk in here. I'd feel comfortable taking shifts though for the night...I won't be here long, think it's best for us to get out of the city before they send in the bomb squad," she responded.
She'd unfolded her arms and turned around to head back to the living room, crossing the room to get to the windows. She'd parted the blinds, stealing a little peep outside. She didn't see anything or anyone near by but you could never be too careful. There were more than just these...zombies roaming about.
"Hey, Rabbit...you didn't by chance see anything, ya know, not so human out there, huh? I mean, besides the infected?" she asked of him.
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Post by Winters on Feb 29, 2012 7:16:36 GMT -5
It was impossible to tell if Anna had been leading him on to believe that she didnt mind him staying, and would kill and take the remainder of his stuff through the night, or if maybe she actually was being kind and generous. Rabbit thought of the former, but his gut went with the latter. His run was still hanging from his shoulder, so it wasnt like he was at a disadvantage had she tried anything. They seemed past that now, anyways, quickly and oddly as it was.
When Anna asked if he had seen anything else besides the walking dead, Rabbit didnt really know what to say. He wasnt exactly sure what he saw, for her to even bring it up made him curious just how much of the outbreak she had seen herself. "I have, actually. Those walkers? They seem to adapt in certainly places, havent figured it out yet though. Crimson red skin, sharp fingers, move quicker. Those are dangerous when theres more than one, and there usually is. Then the ones that walk on four legs, dont think they evolved from the walkers though. Not the dogs. Well, those two, im sure the animals get infected a lot out here. But these are quick, climb on the walls. Havent seen one up close, not sure id ever want to. Arcians the one who knows more about the infected types then the rest of us..."
Maybe she knew all about them herself. Anna, at this point, seemed to be as seasoned a survivor as Rabbit. As interesting as it was, he wished that the group was here. They could all learn more, would be good to have another survivor with them. Five was already more than enough, but they stuck together for all this time, and they were still alive. But as things were, it seemed that Anna and Rabbit lead two completely different lives. She had a home, and family. Didnt look to do a lot of traveling, especially with a kid, that would make survival a lot harder. "...You know about Raccoon City, right? Suppose to be covered up by the government, but after all of these BOWs started popping up, the truth about it all did as well. Are we on the same page, here?"
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Post by NotAvailable on Feb 29, 2012 18:57:48 GMT -5
Anna turned back to look at the guy, wide-eyed when he described what she and her old friend once called, "Crimson heads and Lickers" some little names they'd adopted from a band of officers from the RPD. Those were creatured that were a force to be reckoned with, when the infected fed enough, they'd mutate into these slimy, red...infected...that were much powerful than a normal one. The only way to keep them down was to burn them or completely destroy their heads.
The Lickers...however, were a completely different story. They were agile and quick, had a long tongue that could rip you apart with the gentlest of squeezes, she had the scar to prove it. They were mighty opponents and something she'd hoped she'd never have to go round with ever again.
As she'd stared blankly at the man, he'd began asking her about Raccoon about the stories that the government had covered up. The B.O.W.'s and Umbrella, she knew alot about that.
"Yeah...I know about Raccoon City. First hand, actually," she responded, turning to look back out the window. Her hand suddenly moved to her jacket pocket where she'd squeezed onto the little lump inside.
Raccoon City. How could I ever forget Raccoon City? You don't.
"Mom? Are you alright?" Jimmy asked before turning to look at Rabbit as he'd taken a bite out of his newly made sandwich. "What'd you tell her? She looks all pale."
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Post by Winters on Feb 29, 2012 22:36:28 GMT -5
Seeing the expression on the womans face, Rabbit looked down at her kid, and spoke to him, making sure that Anna would hear as well. "Just some oldschool stuff, seems mommy and I have a little more in common than we thought." Flashbacks of Raccoon City came to him, as well. But they werent making him sickly, he moved on from it easily. Sure it was traumatizing, but it was also eight years ago, he barely remembered it. And when he did, never let it bother him, because he was alive now, and thats all that mattered. Now feeling like he just stirred up some bad memories, Rabbit spoke to Anna, and reassured Jimmy that it was alright. "Hey, you need to talk about it, or something, lemme know. Your not the only one who survived, hard to believe anybody got out. But we did, thats what matters now, right?"
Now he felt a little uncomfortable, and once again, out of place. Seemed like it would be better if Rabbit left, and let Anna collect herself, sometimes being alone and left to think was for the better. But he didnt want to, he wanted to make things better for her, for one reason or another. "How about you go lay down, ill keep watch. Doubt there would be any infected this far from the city, but just in case, I dont mind. You look like you need the shuteye, really."
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Post by NotAvailable on Feb 29, 2012 22:46:53 GMT -5
Anna shook head head a little, checking her watch. It was 7:45 in the evening and she was hungry, thirsty and tired but she could hardly think about doing any of those with this newly surfaced outbreak. Rabbit went on trying to console her, she didn't need consolation, she'd accepted what happened and moved on too. The problem really was just alot of guilt she'd carried from then until now.
"So you think your company will randomly pop up through out the night?" she asked, before turning to look at the boy. Her eyes had narrowed a little threateningly as she'd look at him. "I'm not saying I don't trust you but if anyone shows up at the door to loot us, they're f*cking dead and you're not gonna make it to see the morning," she told him.
Jimmy had shuddered a little at the sudden coldness of his mother. Grimacing a bit he'd walked on over to her and patted her on the arm. "I don't think Rabbit's gonna stab us in the back, mom. If he wanted to, he already would have," he explained.
Anna looked down at her son and then up at Rabbit. "Yeah, well, desperation changes people when you least expect it. I won't make that mistake again."
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Post by Winters on Feb 29, 2012 23:08:53 GMT -5
"I get that, yo. Im the same way. If this was my house, id be skeptical of you, too, especially with the kid. Ive seen people use their kid as a tactic to get what they needed, everybody trusts the moms with kids, ya know? You boys smart though, hes got a point. You can never be too careful, but living scared of everyone you meet isnt the way to survive, either. Whats to say that you wont just kill me? Take all my food?" The ironic part was, half of his own food supply had already been given away, inside Annas kitchen. When she found it, that would be the card that told her he wasnt bluffing. Nothing he could say would change their trust, thats for sure, he had to prove it. That didnt take a couple of hours and some stories, for all she knew, they were all lies.
But Rabbit stopped mistrusting people, because ninety nine percent of the time, he stayed away from people. The only reason he bothered with Anna was because she had a kid, he didnt know what to do. Just leaving them wouldve eaten as his conscience, knowing that he contributed to the death of a mother and her son. Or at least pass up the karmatic opportunity to do something good for a change, leaving them to fend for themselves wouldnt be right, it couldnt be explained. Figured that maybe if he did something nice for somebody, that later down the road, somebody would do something nice for him. Teamwork was one thing, but karma was something that nobody could exactly explain.
"Nobodys coming for me, I didnt tell them where I was, just that I was safe. They were going to come get me, but I told them not to, because I didnt wanna put you on the spot like that. But I gotta say, somebody with your experience would be good in a group. Most of us are from Raccoon City, been there, done that. Dani and I got out, found the others, sort of stuck around. We learned to survive by sticking together, by putting aside trust issues, and just combined our knowledge to keep everybody alive. It would be easy for one of us to betray the group, but I know first hand that its better to pull together, not apart. You got trust issues, I get that, and I dont blame you."
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Post by NotAvailable on Feb 29, 2012 23:19:54 GMT -5
Anna listened to Rabbit's words and started walking across the living room floor to the kitchen. She didn't have trust issues normally but in these special occasions, one needed to be wary. Especially when you had a child around. She'd stopped halfway through the kitchen and laid a hand on her stomach. "I understand that but I don't work well with groups. To be honest I'm a loner and practically the alpha b*tch. I don't mix with people," she explained. She wasn't trying to seem arrogant, she only told him what she felt was the truth.
"Anyway, I've got a pick up truck out there, I can take it to get out of the city with my son, sometime tomorrow, maybe. If you're gonna come with us, then you better get some sleep sometime tonight. I'll need another driver with me," she told him.
Jimmy had already wandered upstairs not too long after with his backpack. So now it was just the two of them downstairs. The agent stopped to look at the equipment left on the table, ammo and some weapons that she assumed belonged to Rabbit.
"So I know 'Rabbit' couldn't possibly be your name. What's your real name? If we're gonna build up some sort of trust, then I'd like to know more about yourself."
With that, she'd went through a covert, pulling out a bottle of whiskey and couple of shot glasses.
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Post by Winters on Mar 1, 2012 0:09:38 GMT -5
It was understandable, and without even saying it, Rabbit nodded a yes maam, making sure that he understood. He wasnt sure about what tomorrow would bring, but knew that he would give his group a call sometime, and meet probably back on the highway. A place like this would be perfect to set up camp, even for just a week, but it wasnt up to him. This wasnt his land, and knew that he wasnt right to even think it.
Seeing the bottle of whiskey and some shot glasses, Rabbit was a little surprised. "Steven Rhymes. From the s***ty part of Raccoon City. People these days call me Rabbit cause im quick on my feet, usually the one going in on runs. I can manuver around the walkers easily enough, gather them up and away from the group. Most of them are so slow, I dont worry about getting pinned down. Plan my path, get in and our, right quick. Everybody who got outta the city mustve had some special trait, kept them alive. I was with my friend Dani, shes played all sorts of those games, ya know? Knows a few tricks." It was a little odd having somebody actually want to know his real name, usually most people settled for a nickname. Wasnt all to important, but whatever helped, he would tell Anna.
By this time, she had been pouring some glasses, and then slide on over to him as they sat around the coffee table. Rabbit sat on the floor though, preferred it, in fact. He hadnt had any alcohol in a long time, it was always a good bartering tool. Used as an explosive post times, but sometimes even used to start a car. "The others in my group we found along the way. Clearwater is an old War vet from Nam, always good to have a straight shooter around, and somebody who has some real war experience. Pretty laid back kind of guy, always playing some old rock music on the radio in the RV when hes driving. Armando, or Stone as we call em, hes some sort of mercenary for hire. He didnt exactly hire him, per say, but it was his previous line of work. Mexican, real crazy when it came to taking on the infected, had some serious firepower, and knew how to make ammunition for when we when can save our casings..."
The last, but certainly not least, member of the group had been Arcian Griffin. Rabbit didnt really know a whole lot about the guy, but he was always reluctant to stick with them. "...Last guy we picked up, said he name was Arcian, couldnt really tell what sort of background he had. But he had a hell of a shot. Said he was from some sort of strike team back in Raccoon City, I figured he was STARS or something, never cared much to ask. Saved the group more than once, main reason we keep him around. Always had a knack for tracking down the infected, too. Couldnt exactly tell how, but he always knew." Rabbit felt like maybe he was talking a but too much at this point, but Anna didnt stop him. But seeing as he had already finished a couple more shots, the talking wasnt going to stop until he passed up the liquor. "Damn yo, almost forgot how good this stuff was...."
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Post by NotAvailable on Mar 1, 2012 0:24:33 GMT -5
It was the name, "Arcian Griffin" that stood out amongst the entire group. It sounded familiar but the woman wasn't one hundred percent on who he was. That's when Rabbit had mentioned the strike force team. In a flash, she was back in Raccoon City on the last day when the bombs fell. She'd just gotten separated from Richard, the man she'd bonded and survived with the entire week of the outbreak. She and Jimmy were in a tight spot when a UBCS soldier had came from nowhere to lend them a hand. He said his name was 'Arc' Griffin, possibly the same guy. Had to be.
"Arc..Oh yeah, I know that guy. He helped my son and I out of a tight squeeze on the final night of the outbreak. Wow... didn't know he was still among the living," she said, looking down into her glass. She wanted to drink it but in the end, decided not to. Mainly because of her situation.
"Here, take the whole bottle. I think I'll quit for the next few months," she said, smiling. "Anyway, if your group is that important to you, I can drop you off to meet up with them. I've got to get some supplies if I'm gonna head back to Virginia."
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