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Caitlynn Reilly

"Learn to enjoy the little things. One day, you may realize they really were the big things."

0 · 505 views · located in New York City, The Apocalypse

a character in “Virus”, as played by slcam

Description

Full Name: Caitlynn Reilly

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Nickname: Caitlynn usually goes by Cat. Though it does not take any stretch of imagination to realize Cat is just a shortened form of Caitlynn, it also seems to fit her. As she grew up, she seemed to grow into the name as well, with a somewhat cat-like attitude of being loyal when it is convenient and cold and aloof otherwise. She prefers to be called Cat because Caitlynn seems too formal to fit her personality, and she was only called her by her full name when her mother was upset with her or her older sister wanted to tease her. She does not mind most other nicknames, but is fairly picky about what she will actually respond to.

Age: 17

Gender: Female

Role: Immune

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Description: Cat used to have long, red-orange hair. She has since cut it short since it is much easier to maintain and less likely to get in the way. Her hair is naturally curly and neatly frames her oval-shaped face. It is also a darker auburn since she does not have time to lighten it for obvious reasons. She likes the more mature look it gives her in any case. Her eyes are a steely blue that compliments her red hair. Thick, dark eyelashes frame her almond eyes, giving them a defined look. She often smiles, which shows off her full lips and high cheekbones. Her nose is somewhat short and rounded. Her skin is naturally fair, but tans well. Cat is about average height at 5'7 with an athletic build, though she never had a consistent interest in sports.


Personality: Cat is very frank, often saying just a little too much. So much so that she has to constantly apologize. She does not mean to be harsh, but she has a very difficult time keeping her thoughts to herself. This does not mean that she is constantly chatty, it is more that she blurts things out, often at the wrong time or in the wrong context.

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Cat is also somewhat selfish. She will normally think of herself before anyone else, and focuses on her needs before anyone else's. Depending on her mood, she can be affectionate to the point of being clingy, or be completely aloof and uninterested in everything around her. It all depends on what will get her what she wants and needs. She is fairly complacent when she does not feel like working with others, and will often come up with rather absurd excuses to avoid doing what she does not want to do. On the other hand, she would rather be told what to do and have someone in charge than have to make the big decisions on her own. Overall, she is fairly happy just following orders unless they clash with her desires.


It is very difficult to make Cat angry, but she will act upset to get what she wants. Usually, she will not yell, but will just walk away crying and ignore the person until they apologize. She does not have a hard time forgiving, but it will take some time to regain her trust if you have truly upset her. She will do anything she can to gain someone's trust, whether she likes them or not, simply because she enjoys being trusted. Cat tends to be fairly optimistic and looks for something good in everyone. At the same time, it takes a while to truly gain her trust, and she is careful who she calls friend, no matter how many good qualities she finds in them. She is always somewhat wary, but more because of the undead walking around whose only instinct is to kill than of her fellow survivors. She is cautious to the point of being obsessive when it comes to safety.


Cat is somewhat of a coward, and hates even the thought of being injured. She will not willingly volunteer to do anything dangerous, preferring to let others play hero while she waits on the sidelines. It would take a lot for her to jeopardize her safety for someone else. One reason she acts this way is that she is determined to find her family again, if at all possible. She knows that trying to be a hero and taking risks is the fastest way to get killed.


She feels happiest when alone in the quiet, but that does not mean she does not need companionship. Without a sufficient amount of contact with others, Cat will quickly become depressed and lose hope. It is when she is around people that she can feel the most optimistic about the future. She used to be able to be alone for long periods of time with no issues, but since the virus emerged that has changed. She can only be happily alone for a short time before she begins to feel panicked, and, the longer she is completely alone, the more terrified she becomes.






Likes:
*Some time alone every once in a while.
*Chocolate.
*When things go right.
*Being trusted.
*Archery.
*Getting what she wants.
*Being around others.
*Living another day.
*Little things that remind her of the past.


Dislikes:
*The undead
*Feeling lonely.
*Feeling unprotected.
*Feeling betrayed.
*Loud, unexpected noise.
*Blood and open wounds.
*Bugs.
*Having to make important decisions.











Fears:
*Death and those who are dying. She is especially afraid of a slow death.
*Being on her own. She is afraid of being truly on her own, with no one to care whether she is alive.
*The dark. Cat hates being in total darkness, and will slowly begin to panic.
*Cat is afraid that her sister and father are already dead and that she might not be able to find them at all.



Weaknesses:
*Cat tends to rely on others to make decisions, and has a difficult time making them herself.
*Though she mainly uses the bow, her aim is not perfect, but she has been practicing a lot out of necessity.
*She cannot stand being alone for long periods of time, and will quickly become irrational and panic.
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Weapon: Cat carries a metal recurve bow with a blue, soft plastic grip that her father bought her. She also has a bag full of light aluminum arrows that she can wear like a backpack. She also carries a jackknife with a fire starter attachment that her father gave her for her sixteenth birthday and a hatchet she found, useful both for cutting wood and zombies.
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Inventory: She carries backpack-like quiver that has several large pockets for her other things. She always has some food, a couple canteens filled with water, and tools to make more arrows. She has several rolls of bandages and athletic tape, along with some gauze. She has a lightweight thermal sleeping bag tied to the bottom of her bag. She keeps a photo of her family in a plastic bag, and often takes it out to look at it.

Skills: Cat has some skill with a bow, and when calm, can usually take a zombie out with one or two shots. She is still working on her accuracy, but is not opposed to giving up and using her hatchet.
Though she is not a terribly fast sprinter, she has excellent stamina and can run for long periods of time.
Cat is fairly agile and can climb most trees without too much trouble. She has a good sense of balance and is not bothered by heights.

History: Cat's parents divorced when she was young, and she and her older sister lived with her mother. She and her sister, Kara, stayed at their father's house one weekend a month. They lived comfortably and never went without anything they needed. From a young age, Cat was spoiled and given whatever she wanted. She easily did well in school without much effort, and was good at sports though she never had a firm interest in pursuing them. She was just content to have fun with friends and do whatever caught her interest at the time. Her mother was very firm about cleanliness and safety, and strictly enforced chores. She took care of everything else, though, and Cat got used to having things decided for her and getting what she wanted as long as she followed the rules.

When she was fourteen, she began to show an interest in archery, and her father bought her a bow and paid for lessons. Archery came fairly easily to her, and she soon moved on to other interests, only using her skills on an occasional hunting trip with her dad. From her father she got a love for the woods, and learned to enjoy being alone in the quiet environment. Though her sister, Kara, would often tease Cat, they were very close. When Kara was eighteen, she entered the navy and traveled for a few years before returning home, getting married, and moving away again. Without her sister around, Cat easily became lonely, but they kept in touch.

News of the outbreak reached them on Cat's birthday. Her mother waved it off and told Cat it would blow over in a few weeks, telling her they would be safe as long as they stayed indoors. However, the when the virus went airborne, Cat's mother quickly became infected. She soon knew she was infected, and told Cat her only chance was to find her father and her sister. Cat gathered supplies and left the house. She heard the retort of a gun as soon as she was outside, and knew her mother was gone.

Since then, she has been searching for her family, traveling with small groups.


Theme Song(s): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFxtQW7dPnE&feature=endscreen&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL8278A5E6E5FE7A1C&feature=player_detailpage&v=G1qO2pxzHNE

Other: Nothing at the moment.

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So begins...

Caitlynn Reilly's Story

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kade Murphy Pearce Character Portrait: Caitlynn Reilly
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#, as written by slcam
Going to New York City was most likely the worst decision they could have made. 'The city that never sleeps' was a perfect breeding ground for the virus, with hundreds of thousands infected, and Caitlynn and her group were just not equipped for that kind of madness. They were also desperate for certain supplies that were unlikely to be found elsewhere. Cat had not cared either way, and went without a care. She did not realize how quickly everything could go wrong. How quickly everything did go wrong.

Before the day was through, nearly everyone had been fatally injured, left behind one by one to the swarming hoard. Now it was only Cat and Greg, but even Greg did not have much time left. He had been bitten. At the time, he and Cat were able to fight the zombies off, scaling a wall to escape. However, it was quickly apparent that he was not immune. She dragged him into the alley entrance of a restaurant when he fell unconscious, knowing exactly what it meant, but not ready to admit it yet. Resting his head on her lap, she watched helplessly as his pulse slowed and stopped. She cried, terrified both of what she had to do and of being left alone.

When he came alive again, she knew she had no choice. Greg was depending on her. How many times had he said he would rather die than become one of those monsters? Now, if she did nothing that is exactly what would happen. She hesitated, but was finally able to act when his fever began to rise and agonized moans escaped his lips. Knowing she would not be able to help him if she had to stare at his grimacing face, she covered his head with his jacket, whispering a feeble, "I'm so sorry." With that, she took her ax and hit him repeatedly with the blunt end, sobbing hysterically, until she felt his skull cave in. She stood there, hatchet held limply in her hand, sobbing and panting.

Without another word, she replaced the weapon in her pack and walked out of the large kitchen, slowly weaving through the tables. She accidentally knocked over an end table, breaking a large vase. Shocked, she looked up to see the soulless eyes of one of the infected staring at her. She watched in horror as the monster opened its mouth wide and began screeching, instantly attracting the attention of several others that had been ambling around nearby. The Alarm began pounding and clawing at the large glass windows. Cat wasted no time in darting back to the kitchen, hearing several more zombies pounding by the time she reached the swinging doors. Running back to the door she and Greg had entered through, she heard the glass shatter as she ran out without a backward glance.

She ran as fast as she could, hearing terrible moans and predatory growls not far behind. The still screeching Alarm was quickly drawing a hoard. Cat flew out of the alley, haphazardly trying to untangle her bow from her pack then fumbling for an arrow. She nocked her arrow as she reached the building across the street. She saw several undead sprinting at her out of the corner of her eye as she whirled and shot at the closest. The arrow buried itself uselessly in its shoulder, and the beast screeched in frustration without stopping. She turned and sprinted to the revolving door, whirling through and running haphazardly through the building. The flimsy door did not stop the quickly growing hoard for long, and they were in the building as well within seconds.

Not seeing any other exit, Cat burst through the door leading to the stairs, wishing she could lock it, before propelling herself upward. She slung her bow over her head and under her left arm so her hands would be free. Several flights of stairs later, she found the roof access door. Luckily, locks were on the inside and she quickly unlocked the door and flung it open, already hearing moans echoing from below. She locked to flimsy lower bolt, anxious that she could not lock the deadbolt as well. It would not hold them long. Cat slammed the door shut and leaned on it, panting heavily. She looked around on the roof, desperate for some means of escape.

The man standing there with a ladder caught her completely off guard. This stroke of luck was so unexpected that Cat absently wondered if he was some sort of angel, or maybe if she was dreaming. She snapped out of her shock, her desperation now tinted with unexpected hope. Skipping formalities, she breathlessly said, "Hey, no time to explain. All you need to know is zombies are coming, there are a lot of them, and we need to get off this roof." She did not wait for a reaction before she grabbed a side of the ladder and began dragging it to the edge of the roof the man was facing. "Help me!" she demanded, already judging the distance between the two buildings. It would be long enough... probably.

Finally, the ladder was in place, and Cat hurried across, trying not to look down and failing horribly. She looked back at the man, who she still thought of as her guardian angel, and yelled, "Hurry!" Just as she got across, she heard the door bang open. She held a hand out to the man, desperately beckoning. When he came in reach, she forcefully yanked him across, seeing the opposite roof begin to fill with undead. One was already clambering onto the ladder. As soon as her angel was safely on the roof behind her, she jerked the ladder, dislodging it from the other roof, gasping as the zombie's weight pulled it down and still trying to hold on to the ladder. With a loud thud, the zombie hit the wall and lost its grip, falling several stories into the shadowy alley.

Cat gave a small laugh quickly followed by a groan as she attempted to pull the ladder back up. "Little help here?" she said, wondering if her angel had already disappeared. When the ladder was safely on the roof, she collapsed in a laughing heap, completely hysterical. She watched as several of the mindless undead flung themselves off the other roof at them, falling to the ground with distinctive thuds.

It was only a few moments before her laughter subsided, turning into gasping, dry sobs. She covered her moth, uselessly trying to stifle the loud sobs. She had lost far too much in such a short time, and the effects were unavoidable.

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kade Murphy Pearce Character Portrait: Caitlynn Reilly
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#, as written by Thadine
Kade set down the ladder for a moment, looking down at his red hands. Maybe he would just wait for a bit before going across again. After all, even the slightest discomfort could lead to a slip, and a fatal fall. That last journey across the gap between the buildings had definitely been nerve-wracking, and he wanted to make sure that he made no future mistakes. It would be horrible to die now, he still had to find his family. They had to still be alive. He didn’t know how far they had made it when they decided to leave him, but they were strong. They were survivors. He was mostly concerned for his little sister and his mother, in fact, the thought of his father hardly crossed his mind. In a way, he wanted to return to where he had been left and see if he could try to track his family, but logic told him otherwise.

He reached down for the ladder again, assessing the building ahead to see if it was long enough. He’d use the same tactic again. Kade took a step forward, but then suddenly stopped, turning to look over his shoulder. Something echoed far away. No, not far away...under him. It was almost as if he could feel the movement below, like an earthquake was starting. He narrowed his eyes, then shook his head, whisking the thought away. Nothing was happening. The odd noises weren’t a threat to him, so he wasn’t in danger. Maybe he was just imagining things? Kade chuckled to himself quietly. He should have read a bit more of that book. This was proof that he was going insane. He spared a glance across the street though, and did a double take. Were those...was that a horde? Heading in the direction of the building he was on? He hadn’t been making any noise, as far as he was concerned. Why were they coming after him? Panic gripped him for a moment, until he remembered that the door was closed. He had shut it behind him, it was going to take a little while for them to burst through. He had time. Still wondering how he had attracted their attention, he faced the building ahead once again, ladder in his grip.

What happened next was something he did not expect. Kade could have sworn that he heard a noise behind him, and quickly turned to see the cause of it. In an instant, he saw a flash of movement as someone entered the door. Their eyes locked on him, and suddenly they were rushing towards him. He hardly had time to even wonder who it was, and how they had gotten up here. He hadn’t seen anyone enter the building from the front, and that was the only way-

It all connected suddenly. He hadn’t seen her do it, but she had lead the creatures into the building, and now, was leading them onto the roof he was currently on. Kade parted his lips to question her, but before he could even muster a single word, the girl came and grabbed the other end of the ladder. He lurched forward as she began moving, hardly able to hold onto it while she seemed to take control, and do what he had done on the previous building. He hadn’t even heard her speak amongst his own thoughts, and the noise that was now coming from the door. Letting go of the ladder as she placed it between the two structures, he watched her go across, then set to doing it himself. Whatever doubts he had in his mind, whatever questions, were now gone. All he knew was that he had to get across.

He looked behind him, catching sight of arms bursting through the door, clawing the empty air. Suddenly, the door seemed to shatter, and the undead came rushing through, straight towards him. Kade set foot on the ladder, his heart beating so quickly he felt as if it might burst. It creaked underneath him, and though tempted to look down to see were his footing was, he resisted, and stared up at the girl who was already across. He could hear the monsters behind him, their feet pounding against the ground, snarling and growling. He wasn’t going to make it. One of them was going to grab his ankle, and pull him towards the horde. He was going to be torn apart, eaten alive...killed. His body broke out into a cold sweat, and adrenaline took over. Kade pushed himself forward suddenly, raising a hand into the air to grab onto hers, and suddenly, he was on the solid ground of the rooftop across. Though his vision was blurred, and he was hardly standing, he could still register her words, and turned towards the edge, grabbing the end of the ladder and helping her pull it up.

The object clattered onto the rooftop, and a wave of relief washed over Kade as he realized that he was safe. They were safe. Whoever this girl was had risked his life, but saved it at the same time. He ran a hand through his brown hair, letting out a heavy sigh, and stared at the girl, who seemed to be entertained by whatever had just happened. The extreme feeling of excitement that had gotten him moving on the ladder, had left, and he found himself questioning the girl’s intentions in his mind. Was she going to try and loot him? No, she was a bit younger than he was, certainly she couldn’t have been corrupted by this disastrous world just yet. Rather than leaving him for the creatures either, she had actually helped him across. Did she have a team? Maybe she had been separated from them. Perhaps this was his chance to find a teammate or two to travel with.

Her laughing seemed to shift into cries though, into sobbing that almost sounded like she was in pain. Rather than doing what a normal person would do, and ask if she was alright, he stared and stood awkwardly, not comprehending what was going on in front of him. Had she been injured? Was she traumatized by something? He clasped his hands together behind his back, watching her from a few footsteps away, analyzing the situation like he would with a puzzle. After what seemed like forever, the idea arose in his mind that maybe he should ask if she was feeling okay.

Kade cleared his throat. “Are you....okay?” He asked quietly, his voice shaky. He took a single step towards her.

“I mean, I know you’re probably not okay. I’m not either. Who is at a time like this? I mean in the current...situation, because you don’t sound so good. I still don’t know if you’re crying or laughing, but I’m leaning more towards the idea that you’re distressed. T-thank you, for helping me though. I guess it was you that lead them there in the first place, but...” He trailed off, realizing that rather than being concise and quick, he was almost speaking aloud his very thoughts.

Kade shook his head, starting over. “Have you been injured?”

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kade Murphy Pearce Character Portrait: Caitlynn Reilly
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#, as written by slcam
Caitlynn's sobs began to fade into odd little hiccups. The sound was far too silly for how she was feeling, but she could not seem to stop. The man's voice startled her out of her hysterics, at least somewhat, and she began to realize how awkward this must be for him. On the other hand, she should probably be careful because he could be dangerous. Cat discreetly inspected him as he spoke, still occasionally hiccuping. Her little hiccups that sporadically punctuated his sentences would have made Cat want to laugh, if they were not so irritating. He was going to think she was little more than a child.

She tried hard to compose herself, noting how nervous the man seemed. She did not think that he had any evil intentions at the moment. When he mentioned injury, she quickly checked herself, wiggling toes and fingers. "No, I..." she said, uninterrupted by another hiccup. She took a couple deep breaths, waiting for any other hiccups. Hopefully they had finally stopped. She continued, hoping not to be interrupted again. "I don't think I have anything worse than some... scrapes and bruises." Another zombie threw itself off the adjacent roof and Cat gave a slight wince. For the most part, the undead were losing interest, unable to reach their prey, and were shuffling away as different noises caught their interest.

"Sorry, I did kind of lead them right to you. But you don't even know how glad I was to see that ladder." Realizing how rude that sounded, Cat quickly tried to make it better. "I mean, I was glad to see you with the ladder. It was rather useful... and you were too, of course. Oh, I mean.... Sorry, I am just making this more awkward. But no, I'm not injured. It's just been... it's been a long day." She considered him for a moment, letting out one last hiccup, wondering how much she should trust this man she just met. "I came with four others. We shouldn't have come. I'm all.... It's just me now." She slowly stood, cautiously offering a hand. "Sorry, you probably don't need to know that, why don't I just introduce myself. My name is Caitlynn, but call me Cat."

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kade Murphy Pearce Character Portrait: Caitlynn Reilly
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#, as written by Thadine
Kade found his eyes following hers as she looked over her body for injuries. It was an automatic thing he did, as if he figured that she would miss something while looking over, especially if she wasn’t immune. The thought entered his mind quickly, and for a moment, he was worried that if she did indeed have any injuries, then there could be a risk in her catching the infection. He had the urge to ask if she was indeed immune or not, though decided that it wouldn’t be wise to bring it up at the time. She was still calming down. Though he wasn’t great at social interactions, he had learned about timing. Sometimes it was good to talk; sometimes it was best to say nothing at all.

She seemed to be calming down, although slowly, and he felt his tense muscles relax slightly. Feeling rather awkward standing near her, he took a step back, and leaned up against the edge of the building, resting on his elbow. He turned his head slightly, looking out back at the building they had both just been at. At the very moment, one last undead had launched itself towards the building, its fingertips clipping the edge before it slunk down into the alleyway. Kade flinched slightly, his heart skipping a beat, and turned away from the building. He almost forgot that the girl was still near him, until she spoke up. Her voice almost frightened him more than the infected that had leaped towards the building.

Kade looked over to the girl, his brown eyes fixating on her. Listening to her voice and jumbled words, he could tell that she was just about as nervous as him, if not more. At her mentioning being glad to see the ladder, he found himself looking down at the ground where it rested. He hardly even noticed that she didn’t mention him, until she corrected herself. Multiple times. He raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest, waiting for her to finish. He thought for a moment about interrupting her and telling her to get to the point, though decided against it, not wanting to start off with a bad impression.

The girl made a remark about how she had been travelling with four others, and he felt himself grow hopeful. Maybe this was just what he was looking for. A group to travel with. Even though he wasn’t so big on the human interaction part, he would finally be a bit safer than just traveling by himself. This was his chance; perhaps he could mention it to her. He parted his lips to speak up, but stopped himself when she said that she was alone. Kade stared at her blankly, partly feeling sorry for her, partly disappointed for himself. As she extended a hand towards him, and introduced herself, he snapped out of his thoughts, coming back to reality. He reached forward, almost carefully, and took hold of her hand gently, giving it a quick shake before pulling his arm back towards his own body, slipping his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

“I’m Kade.” He muttered quickly, turning his head to the side, staring off the building, avoiding eye contact with her. A lock of his hair fell in front of his vision, and he shook his head briefly to get it away. What else was he supposed to say? He wanted to mention that he was traveling alone, but would she even care? Would she offer him anything? Advice or companionship...maybe she was fine just going by herself. Some people took the loss of friends differently than others. It was possible that right now, the only thing she would want was to be left alone.

After what was a few seconds of awkward silence, he let out a quiet sigh, and nodded his head towards her.

“I’ll just...go now.” And with that, he turned towards the ladder on the ground, reaching for the end of it. She could find her own way off of the building if she was really desperate. What he assumed though, was that she would want to stay on the safety of the rooftop for a while longer, most likely alone. He wasn’t sure if his guess was right, however. Some part of him was bothered by the fact that he had passed up an opportunity to travel with someone. He hesitated slightly on the way to the other side of the roof, as if pausing, trapped in thought. A sound in the distane interuppted him though, and he looked up, searching for whatever had made that sound. He focused intently on the buildings far away, hoping to hear the sound again, yet nothing happened. Had that been...an explosion? He narrowed his eyes, but whisked the idea away, and continued on his way, glancing over his shoulder at the girl behind him.

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Character Portrait: Kade Murphy Pearce Character Portrait: Caitlynn Reilly
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#, as written by slcam
Cat was glad when Kade shook her hand, somewhat awkwardly, and quietly introduced himself. The way he avoided her eyes made her slightly nervous, and she wondered why he was so hesitant to make eye contact. Perhaps he was shy? Or maybe he was hiding something? Maybe he was hurt and did not want her to know, or had something of value he thought she might steal? With that, she realized he might just be thinking of taking her supplies. Her eyes never left his face as she reevaluated him. Something about him told her he was not the kind to be a thief. If he really wanted to take her things, he had plenty of opportunity while she had been hysterical earlier.

She adjusted her pack, half startled when he spoke again. When Cat realized he was trying to leave her, she quickly began to panic, throwing a glance over her shoulder at the scattered remains of the horde still on the adjacent roof. If he left her, she would be completely alone. How would she know what to do? Would she be able to find any other survivors to travel with or would there be no one willing to let her travel with them?

She felt her breath begin to quicken as her heart began pounding. Cat forced herself to calm down, taking deep breaths of the cool air. When he paused for a moment, she wondered if he really wanted to travel alone, or if he was just trying to see if she wanted to join him, but did not know how to ask. She hoped it was the latter, and decided to act as if it were. She opened her mouth, managing to squeak out a quiet, "Wait!" but her word lost in a loud thud that sounded like some kind of explosion. Cat immediately thought that perhaps the government had dropped a nuclear bomb on New York, but quickly realized that was not the case with a relieved sigh. It was far to small for that, and they would already be dead if that were the case.

She tried again as he looked back at her, her voice more confident this time. "Ummm, wait." She walked over to the edge of the roof, looking over to see the street still crowded with zombies. She decided to just be direct and ask. The worst he could do was refuse. "Could I.... Would you mind if I traveled with you for a while? I could leave if we happen upon another group, if you want. But you do kind of have the only way off the roof at the moment. I mean, I could figure something out if you just want to travel alone, but I would not mind company if you wouldn't. And I wouldn't mind sharing supplies either, if you need something. I would be glad to...." Cat quickly realized she was rambling and, when she heard desperation begin to creep into her voice, she was finally able to stop herself. She turned and looked at him hopefully, nervously waiting for his answer. 'What will I do if he says no, what will I do?'

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Character Portrait: Kade Murphy Pearce Character Portrait: Caitlynn Reilly
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#, as written by Thadine
Kade paused almost immediately, as if expecting for her to call for him. He turned to face her, secretly relieved that she had stopped him from leaving. Though he usually wasn’t one for human company, he was frustrated with having to resort to reading books to distract himself from the world. Perhaps some conversations, no matter how awkward, would keep him focused on something else. He often made big deals out of social situations with people, and usually planned out conversations and responses beforehand so he wasn’t surprised with anything. This encounter with her had been completely unexpected, which was why he seemed slightly dazed and acted withdrawn, enough to make him look suspicious of something.

He stared at her for a moment, his grip on the ladder loosening, hanging just barely from his fingertips. Yes, he wanted to travel with her. However, the words would not come out of his mouth; it was like something was caught in his throat. Curtly, he nodded his head, and gave a small, forced smile. It was as if he was trying to agree just with actions.

“I could...always u-use more food.” He muttered, inwardly cursing himself for having stuttered slightly within that sentence. He had been trying to get rid of that habit for years, yet it always showed up when he was nervous or afraid. Kade felt heat rise to his cheeks, and a light blush crawled over his features. He silently hoped that she wouldn’t notice. He always felt like he looked silly when he was embarrassed.

“And company.” He added quickly, trying to draw attention away from his slip-up before. “I’ve been traveling alone for...a while now. You don’t have to feel obligated to stay with me though, you could leave whenever.” Kade didn’t like looking at her for too long. His eyes wandered towards the street, focusing on the creatures below as they limped and stumbled along the pavement. Just watching them made him feel sick to his stomach, and he quickly changed his attention to his feet, staring at his black high tops. By the way he dressed, one could tell he was a student. However his odd colour combinations would have someone thinking he was colour blind.

Kade raised his free hand, tucking a strand of his light brown hair behind one ear, and turned towards the edge of the building, ready to continue along with the process of moving from structure to structure with the ladder. While setting it up to reach across, he felt his nerves already acting up.

“I don’t know if I can do this again.” He joked lightly.

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Kade Murphy Pearce Character Portrait: Caitlynn Reilly
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#, as written by slcam
For one, sickening moment, Cat thought Kade would flat out refuse to travel with her. She stood there awkwardly, hands clasped behind her back and just under her bag. His slowness in responding made Cat want to scream. Finally, he gave a small nod and a hesitant smile that seemed forced. Cat was so relieved, she wanted to collapse and cry again, but she kept her composure. She returned the smile with a grin of her own and a small laugh that sounded as if she did not quite believe her luck. She did not know how she would have reacted if Kade had refused. Cat wondered if he felt irritated that she insisted on wanting to travel together. Perhaps he preferred being alone and she was just going to be a burden. Cat decided that did not much matter, she had gotten someone to travel with, whether he was thrilled with the idea or not, and she would not have to deal with the big decisions involved in surviving. Or at least she would not have to deal with them alone, and that was enough to make her much more relaxed.

When Kade spoke again, however, she heard nervousness in his voice instead of irritation. Perhaps she was misjudging him. In any case, she was sure he would be fine to travel with, and she was glad she had run into him. It was funny how offering food usually seemed to work when she wanted something. She was glad that her father had taught her to hunt and prepare the meat. Though she had not participated much in the skinning, she had gotten some basic knowledge, and had been able to work out solutions to what she did not remember. It had been invaluable, both in feeding herself and in bartering with other survivors. If only she could find her father. Was he even alive? And what about Kara?

Though she would have stayed with him either way, she smiled when Kade told her he would not mind her company. Perhaps they would be able to travel together for a while. It would probably be easier traveling with Kade than with her last group. Not to say they were bad people, but they only kept her around because she could hunt. She was always nervous they would abandon her if she did something they did not like. She felt that Kade would not be that way. He seemed far too timid.

She happily walked over to Kade with a confident smile, helping him with the ladder. She gave a small chuckle at his uncertainty and said, "Well, look at it this way, it can hardly be as bad as last time." She gave an emphatic nod toward the half a dozen zombies on the other roof. "At least this time we can take our time. Unless maybe it is easier when you have to just get across quickly...." When the ladder was secure, she continued, "Well, do you want to go first, or shall I?" She happily went along with his decision, and soon began yet another walk across the wobbly ladder.