Pamela Clay's Story

"Slow down, girl!" Patrick Clay yelled from the Mech Hall's store front, "you're gonna kill ya'self if you keep that up." The Mech Hall was always loud and full of people when a harvesting cycle rolled around. Patrick by no means was a loud man but had to maintain a steady yelp in order to be heard above all the customers coming to fix their harvesting tools. It was a pretty modest set up, the Mech Hall. When you walk into the Hall you entered into a room the size of a small market. It was set up like any old corner store with rows of items the Clays made. Along the walls were small knickknacks that Patrick and Dana made often, because they were in high demand and easy enough to produce.

Dana, hearing her dad, took her head out from the lead furnace and removed her goggles, "I know what I am doing." Dana turned from the furnace in search for her bullet molds. Her eyes scanned the back room of the Mech Hall, hands down the most interesting room in all of Dust...you know, in her opinion of course. The back room was gargantuan. There were multiple stations set up, about 10 square feet, dedicated to a different type of engineering and at the back wall, opposite the door that led to the store front where her dad sat calmly in his favorite chair, were all of the metals, molds, and scraps that the town managed to find over the last few decades. It was heaven for a young mechanic like Dana. She found her bullet molds, put on her goggles, and headed back to the furnace. She poured the molten metal/lead alloy into the molds and looked up at Patrick, excited to be doing everything exactly how he said, "I learned from the best, dad!" He gave her a wink with a smile before turning back to the last minute harvesters.

Dana took off the goggles once again and began cleaning up after herself, waiting for the bullets to cool off. This was her fourth batch today. She wondered why the town leaders ordered so many of them this time. Maybe the newcomers put the Dusties on edge and they wanted some more protection? Maybe Aaron went on one of his crazy hunting trips and wasted a bunch of deer? One thing Dana new for sure was that this order did not come from Noah. He did not like guns and only had them in town for protection and order. Noah must be under a lot of stress these days with the newcomer vote approaching. Dana could only think what her father would want. He wouldn't turn people away from Dust...especially when the woman was about to pop one out any day now.

*DING*

"Hey, Danimals," Patrick called from the front, "can you help your old man? I'm dying up here!" Dana smiled at the sound of her dad's nickname and made her way to the front. He explained when she was younger that Danimals was the name of an old yogurt company before the disease hit. A wild monkey was one of the leading characters but instead of calling his wild daughter "monkey" he decided on a more subtle name like Danimals. His last sentence didn't make her feel as good.

I'm dying here.

Her dad was dying. The town has already started planning his funeral. It was his idea to be apart of the planning so the Dusties didn't "muck it up."

"What do you need, dad?"

Patrick motioned towards the front door. Dana's eyes followed his finger until she saw what he was gesturing towards.

Pamela.

---

Pamela was a busy lady when harvest came around. She spent the week of harvest checking in on the farmers to make sure they were actually giving their percentage. This is when Pamela becomes the bad girl. There is something powerful about being the bad girl; the one in charge; the one people fear. Pamela sat up from her usual seat in the library and started heading toward the Mech Hall.

The sun wasn’t in a particularly bad mood today, it was only 90 degrees. Pamela sauntered through Main Street, attempting to wave at people who she recognized. See, she wasn’t all bad. The sun was directly overhead, midday. Pamela finally had a day off from all of the harvesting nonsense and decided to pay her sister a visit. She knew Dana would be working her butt off in the Mech Hall because of the huge bullet order that came in and it was time the sisters had a chat. Someone in town was afraid of the newcomers and was getting things in order just in case things went south. If we didn’t have these newcomers lounging around in Dust all this extra precaution wouldn’t need to be taken, Pamela thought. She was waiting for judgment day so those two men and their cow of a wife can get out and stay out. She could only think of the stories that Diane, her mother and the founder of Dust, told her about neighboring towns being overtaken by strangers with another agenda. Trusting outsiders can get you killed and Pamela wasn’t ready to die.

Speaking of death, Pamela finally reached the Mech Hall and could smell her decaying father from outside. The line to get to the front counter was out the door. Lazy harvesters waiting till the last minute to take care of business were littered like trash outside of the Hall. Some heads turned has Pamela made her way to the front door.

“Good morning, Miss Clay.”
“Pamela, hello there!”
“I’ll have your harvest for you soon, I swear.”
“Nice seeing you ma’am.”

It’s funny what little people say when you are in their face; funnier when you aren’t. Pamela ignored them, skipped passed the line, and opened the front door.

*DING*

Pamela and Patrick locked eyes immediately. They haven’t had a real conversation since he and Diane started living in separate homes. Pamela wiped off some of the sweat from her forehead before speaking, “get Dana, if you can manage it.”

"Hey, Danimals," Patrick called back to the back room, "can you help your old man? I'm dying up here!"
Pamela waited, as patiently as she could possibly be, for her sister to appear. A few moments later, out came Dana. She was covered in dirt and grime and smelled like smoke. “What do you need, dad?” Patrick’s eyes never left Pamela as he gestured toward her.

“We need to talk,” Pamela left without seeing if Dana followed her. Of course Dana followed her.

The two Clay sisters began to walk to the middle of town, “what do you want to complain about now,” Dana tried to smile at her sister but it came out looking a little too sarcastic for Pamela. “I don’t have time to deal with your sass, Dana,” Pamela sighed before continuing, “I want to know your vote concerning the strangers in our town.”
Dana smirked at her big sister, “you already know I want them to stay. So why really did you come to see me?” Dana skipped a few paces in front of Pamela and turned to face her, “you miss me?”
Pamela quickened her stride to catch up with Dana. She wasn’t fond of petty games of tag. Pamela knew that she wanted to talk about Juniper and her sister’s weird obsession with her but was finding a hard time coming up with words. “Of course, I miss you,” Pamela still loved her sister even though their opinions were as opposite as their parents. Pamela wanted a safe Dust while Dana dreamed for a free one. You can’t have both.

“I wish I could say the same for you, big sis,” Dana frowned, “now if you have nothing else to say I really have to get back to work. My bullets should be almost done.” Pamela has always been sad that Dana loved Noah and Juniper more than her but if she had to choose between the town surviving and her sister’s affection she would choose Dust every time. It is what Diane would do. Pamela took a few more strides toward the center of town and then turned to face her sister, “I need to talk to you about Noah and Jun-“ Pamela felt two stings on her body, one on the left side of her face and another on her side. She touched her hand to her face, “what the hell was that?” She searched for what stung her and found two bundles of weeds on the ground next to her.

Dana was full on laughing, “looks like you’ve been got, big sis!”

Pamela looked up to see two figures celebrating on a roof nearby. She couldn’t make out their faces but knew that one of the troublemakers must have been Juniper. When there was foolishness, Juniper was always close by.

“Get down here right now!”

Entry:

So far, so smooth. We've only been here a few
days and everyone in this dustbowl looks like they
want to eat us. It's not a comfortable thought that
there's the four of us here. Owen, Gin and the
baby, and me. Breakfast, lunch and dinner with a
bit of a pre-dinner snack. We were only too fucking
lucky to have found this town and actually gain
entry—thank you, little Evie—but it's only a
matter of time before they turn us out. Or me,
rather.

Putting Gin and her family in a good place is all I
care about right now. I don't care if the goddamn
town comes at me with torches and pitchforks, or
if she does it for them by just standing there and
staring at me with those eyes. I'm making sure
Gin's in good hands, and she is—at least, for now
—but it's as if she's waiting for the other shoe
to drop, a.k.a. me getting myself into a fuckload
of trouble. She shouldn't care so much about me.
I'm only the beast of burden. Always have been,
always will be.

Noah rested his forehead on the papers that littered his desk. He had no doubt that their would be ink pressed into his brow, but he couldn't bring himself to care. It was days like these that Noah found his job to be the most difficult to carry out: the mind-numbingly boring days. For whatever reason, Harvest tax paperwork just wasn't doing it for him, and any distraction would've been a godsend. At this point he would even welcome Pamela coming in to bother him about the newcomer vote. While the Thompkins couple didn't pose any kind of threat in Noah's eyes, Robin Bradford was a whole different story. Noah knew that, despite his own indecision, most of the people of Dust had already made up their minds one way or the other. Either way the vote went, though, there was no way he was letting that woman leave the safety of town before she gave birth. He couldn't stomach the thought of her or her child dying because they turned the family away.

Noah's head shot up at the sound of shouting on the main street, one of his unfinished papers sticking to his forehead. He batted it away and smeared the ink off his face with the back of his hand. A smile spread across his face as he approached the Town Hall's screen door. There, in the middle of Main Street, was a strange collection of Dust's usual suspects: Pamela and Dana Clay on the ground, Juniper Jacobs and Chip Darney perched on a roof.

I gotta get out of here, Noah thought, pushing the door open and stepping onto the porch. An arid breeze gently pulled at his green tunic. From what he could see, Juniper and Chip on the roof had done something to upset Pamela Clay. He would think it was breathing too loud, but he knew that Juniper much preferred to earn her disapproving looks. Seeing Evanne join the group, Noah decided to call it a day for his work, and he tried his hardest not to run to join her. He caught the tail end of her offer to Pamela.

"I could go with you as well, Evanne," he suggested. "I need to speak with the newcomers anyway. And Juniper and Chip might require some extra supervision."

A hit! Juniper and Chip cheered as they saw their weed wads slap against a face with long dark hair. They shared a high five before peeking over once again to see who it was. Then Juniper heard the screech of a voice that she knew all too well. “Get down here right now!” Pamela Clay. Juniper rolled her eyes dramatically before looking over at Chip who was swallowing a lump in his throat, he went on to mutter a weak "Uh oh." Juni let out a soft chuckle at this reaction and then patted his back before sliding toward the makeshift ladder that got them up there in the first place.

"Come on. We've got to go." She said, looking back at the boy who was worried he would get into trouble. "Don't worry, she's not as scary as she looks." Juniper reassured him before disappearing behind the back of the house and jumping down until the dry soil. Soon after, Chip was right behind her. While they took their time to approach the roach, Juniper noticed a slew of people gathering around the Clay girls. Maybe she was in more trouble than she bargained for. Not looking over to Chip and moving her mouth only the slightest bit she said "It was a good shot though." Chip snickered a little bit right before reaching them. When they were within ear shot Juni could tell they were already trying to figure out their punishment. The thought of being punished for having just a bit of fun made Juniper boil inside. After all, no one could deny that Pamela Clay was the most hated woman in town.

Coming to a stop Juni crossed her arms across her chest. Chip took his usual stance with his hands in his pocket and his head held high. Juniper was proud that he wasn't ducking his head in shame this time. There was nothing to be ashamed of. They didn't know who was down below... It was honestly all good fun. If it had been anyone else in town there would have a couple of shared laughs and nod goodbye. Pam was just one of those fun suckers. It was unfortunate that she had to be the one down below. Otherwise, Juniper and Chip would have still been on that roof enjoying themselves. Now it looked like they had to do chores.

"What seems to be the problem, your Highness?" Juniper said, her voice drenched in sarcasm. Your Highness was a little nickname that Juni had given Pamela years ago, and somehow it just stuck. It was awfully appropriate since Pamela thought she walked above the rest of the townsfolk. Juniper looked over at Noah, knowing that he would disapprove of her picking at Pam. Juniper let the little fire inside of that wanted to punch Pamela in the face dwindle down. Her light eyes look between the people in front of her. Dana was trying to remain cool, Pamela was just Pamela, Noah was being diplomatic as usual, and Evanne was trying to make things a little less annoying.

She realized that this was her best option, though the mentioning of the newcomers sent her stomach into a pit. She wanted to see Ginny and Owen, but she had mixed feelings about Rob. She was mad, but she knew that he was avoiding her more than she was him. "That's fine." She said, agreeing to run errands. However, she was going to let Chip get away. Juniper looked up at the sky, "Well shoot, will you look at that time." She looked over at the 10 year old next to her, "You're supposed to help Mrs. Crawly gather her crops!" Chip shook his head like he knew exactly what she was talking about. "But Juuuuni," He whined, trying to ham it up. Before he could go on though Juniper slapped him on the back and said "Go on, Chip."

After this little episode Chip began running toward Mrs. Crawly's little shack that was toward the Town Hall. Juniper smacked her hands together, looking at Noah and said "Should we leave?" She could only stand so much time in the presence of Miss Pamela Clay.

First Evanne and now Noah. It seemed that everyone in the town was going to join Pamela in the middle if she stayed here any longer. “Don’t be too hard on them, Pam. Boys will be boys.” That would be the case if both culprits were boys. As they both approached the crowd Pamela learned that her convictions were correct. Juniper was the leader of the destructive duo.
Almost as if Dana was reading Pamela’s mind she came up to her and whispered, “remember Pamela, it was just two weed balls; a little joke. Don’t make it into a big deal.” Dana hugged her big sister and quickly scurried away, “I have to go finish my work…and I uh, remembered I have to run some errands. Bye everyone!” Pamela knew Dana had errands to run but they weren’t that pressing, she had a copy of her mech schedule for the day.

Ah! Pamela thought to herself, Noah Ripley. Dana must have been in a rush to get away because of Noah’s unexpected presence. She did look and smell like a mechanic. Ha, she probably didn’t want Noah to see her like that. Pamela knew why Dana was so infatuated with the monkey for a leader. He was everything Dana loved about their dad and everything Pamela hated about him. His affinity for the newcomers made him weak and is going to singlehandedly destroy everything Diane Clay built.

“No, Noah,” Pamela shot him a look that she reserved only for the Noah Ripley, “we need to talk before you ‘speak with the newcomers’. Understand? Or do I need to explain here in front of everyone the superfluousness of this vote since it really comes down to you in the end. Our votes don’t matter one single bit, ain’t that right? So, as I was saying, we need to-“

“What seems to be the problem, your Highness?” Juniper and the kid that Pamela didn’t really know reached the crowd, interrupting her like they were born to do so. Pamela and Juniper haven’t stopped staring at each other since she started walking towards her. Pamela was cold hearted, she knew that, and Juniper was warm, fun, and inviting. Pamela was jealous of Juniper on top of all the hatred she had for her and it made her furious. She’s never wanted to hit someone until Juniper ruined her life a year ago. She can never forgive her for what she did. Pamela knew Juniper’s flame inside was yearning for a fight and Pamela’s ice cold heart was urging her to kick Juniper in the face. But there were more important matters at hand. The ferocious battle of fire and ice would have to take place at another time. Dana was right, it was just a stupid childish prank. This time…Pamela would let Juniper get away.

“You seem to be the problem, Juni,” Pamela took extra time saying Juniper’s nickname, injecting as much sarcasm to it as she did with ‘Your Highness’. “I don’t understand why you insist of being a child,” Pamela looked over to Evanne, finally breaking the uncomfortable eye contact with Juniper, “but if you insist on being one I will have to punish you like one. Go help Evanne with her errands. You are lucky I don’t have time for this today.” Pamela walked towards Noah and clamped on to one of his pockets, “you and I have to talk now.” She began pulling him towards the Town Hall but stopped midway and turned to Juniper one last time, “I swear to God if you don’t have your harvest this cycle I will be all over you.”


Pamela, before turning back to Noah gave a stern look to the remaining two, Evanne and Juniper, “you are dismissed.”

Dana was beginning to like how this day was turning out. She was going to get to witness a Pamela and Juniper showdown. Juniper was such a brave and free soul. Dana wanted one day to be as open with her feelings as Juniper. Dana was aware that a lot of the town was stuck between thinking she was a kid and she was the best mechanic in the world. Juniper defied expectations and somehow was the sexiest bartender in history and the derpiest kid in our town, maybe in America. Dana dreamed of that level of comfort in her own skin. She was confident when it came to machines but needed to be more like Juniper. Dana thought the majority of the people in Dust could benefit from a little bit of Juniper juice.

Dana was so wrapped up in Juniper and the adorable Chip Darney’s calm and collected entrance that she didn’t notice the fourth member of their group. “I could go with you as well, Evanne,” Dana, recognizing the voice, could feel her face begin to burn, even more than it was in the hot sun, “I need to speak with the newcomers anyway. And Juniper and Chip might require some extra supervision.” Noah Ripley was here, less than 4 feet away from her. Dana turned to him and managed a smile. She then remembered what she was doing before Pamela came and got her which more importantly told her what she was wearing. I look like a dirty bum right now. Crap , Dana thought to herself. Why did Noah have to come out now? There have been so many countless days that Dana put on her nice outfits, attempted eye liner, eye shadow, and even dreaded mascara hoping to see Noah and she never did. The day she looks like absolute poop is when he decides to just appear! Dana couldn’t decide if she was madder at him or herself…or Pamela! Yeah, blaming Pamela is always the way to go. Regardless, Dana had to get out of there. She shimmied up to her sister and whispered into her ear, “Remember, Pamela, it was just two weed balls; a little joke. Don’t make it into a big deal.” Dana squeezed her sister tight and ran off, spurting some poor excuse as to why she was in such a hurry.

---

“That’s a bit of sweat you managed to acquire,” Patrick smiled at his daughter as she entered the Mech Hall, “Pamela grilled you that hard, huh?” Dana walked up to the counter, the store was emptying out, “No, Noah was there.” Patrick raised a brow, grinning harder, “ah, the love of your life!” Dana turned bright pink. She quickly looked around to see if anyone overheard her dad, “can you be any louder? Quiet down.” Patrick smirked and slowly got up from his chair. Dana’s eyes widened in fear, knowing what he was about to do. “Challenged accepted,” Patrick said as he made his way to the front door. He opened it and took a few steps out. “Dad, whatever you are about to do please-“

“Hello world!” Patrick exclaimed, “My name is Patrick Clay and I have an announcement! My beautiful daughter Dana Clay is madly in love with a fine gentleman. We aren’t sure if he knows but today is his lucky day because I am here to let everyone know!”

There was a small crowd of forming in front of the Mech Hall. He always took his jokes too far. Patrick maybe had a little too much Juniper than Dana wanted him to have. “Who is the lucky guy?!” Someone from the crowd called. The mood was light and everyone was enjoying Patrick’s boisterous announcement…everyone except Dana. She couldn’t help but appreciate his ridiculousness though. “Dad, you are already a few weeks from death,” Dana pulled at his shirt, “don’t make me make it a few days.” Patrick turned to Dana, “Ha, I already have one daughter who wants me dead. That’s all I need,” he paused in thought and then continued, “Besides, I might as well go out having fun and getting you that boy of yours.” He gave her his Patrick wink-smile combo before turning back to the crowd.

“The special man who has captured my daughter’s heart,” he dramatically grabbed at his chest with both hands. Someone passing by at the wrong moment could have mistaken it for him having a heart attack. He wasn’t too far off from one these days. “Noah Ripley,” Patrick yelled at the top of his lungs making Dana almost faint, “…needs to find this young gentleman and tell him to open his eyes because Dana isn’t going to chase after him forever! That’s all folks!”

Patrick let out a hefty I-am-proud-of-myself sigh and began walking back towards the shop. Dana’s mouth was wide open and all she could do was stare, “you are such a kid some days, Dad.” Patrick stopped in front of his daughter, put his hands on her chin, closing her mouth, and stared deeply at her. All the childishness left as he said, “you will not chase that boy forever. You are the best thing I’ve ever created and you don’t need a guy who doesn’t know how great you really are. I’m not saying to give up on him, he is a great man. Just know when enough is enough. Okay?”

Dana couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Her father never talked to her like this, not about Noah. She couldn’t help but take every word to heart because of how serious he was. He spoke like they were his dying words. He was not joking around one bit. Dana never believed Noah would ever notice her if he hasn’t already. He was married for Christ sake. Noah obviously isn’t worried about little old Dana…but she had to try.

“Okay,” Dana knew her dad just wanted her to be happy and appreciated having someone who cared that much about her happiness. Soon she’d have no one to care for her like her father does.

“Now,” Patrick bent over and picked up a heavy sack and handed it to Dana, “you must go help that Rob character with his water filtration system.” Dana smiled knowing that she’d get to prove her mechanical skills once again. She’ll be in her comfort zone and will get to meet one of the newcomers. Win-win. Dana grabbed the sack, put it over her shoulder and went out into the hot sun. She looked back at her dad who was standing outside, now walking backwards, “I am going to get you back for that by the way.”

“Bring it on, Danimals! Give me your best shot.” Patrick waved as Dana made her way to the newcomer shack at the corner of the town. Dana skipped the entire way to the shack, not hearing the coughs that were coming out of her dad as she left. She was beyond excited to do some tinkering and he didn't want to ruin it for her. Nothing worse than a dying old man bringing the mood down.

When Dana reached the shack she knocked on the door three times lightly and quickly, "Hello! I am Dana Clay, the town mechanic. I was sent to help you with the filter."

Noah barely even had time to register Dana Clay before she scurried away, and Evanne responded to him after what seemed like a moment of thought.

"Sure thing," she said. "I'm sure they'd love to have you over." He grinned back at her.

"No, Noah," Pamela needled, "we need to talk before you 'speak with the newcomers.'" Noah did little more than sigh, but she continued, "Understand? Or do I need to explain here in front of everyone the superfluousness of this vote since it really comes down to you in the end. Our votes don't matter one single bit, ain't that right? So as I was saying, we need to--"

Juniper's interruption had Noah sending a silent prayer of thanks up to whatever gods were watching over his sanity, and the resulting snarkfest, however heated, that followed was just the reprieve he needed to steel himself for the inevitable. Evanne's eyes found his, a question playing out in her irises. He shrugged helplessly. The answer to that kind of inquiry would require too much explaining and too many of Juniper's secrets divulged without her permission.

Noah winced at Evanne's responses to Pamela. It wasn't that he didn't agree with everything she was saying--on the contrary, in fact--but he knew that they would be hearing about it from her later.

"Noah, if you don't find us at the store just meet us at their shack."

He nodded. "Of course," he said with a smile he was sure looked more like a grimace. Evanne had already begun walking away as Pamela continued to talk at her and Juniper. Pamela grabbed on to one of Noah's pockets

"You and I have to talk now," she said, pulling him straight back to his own personal hell. He missed his small window of escape when the she-devil turned back to Juniper to grump some further instructions Noah was far too busy groaning out loud to hear.

Pamela fixed him with another of those patented glares that she saved just for him.

"Come on, Pamela," he said. "What is there to discuss right now? The vote is for me," he admitted as he allowed her to drag him wherever she wanted, "so I'll now how the people of Dust feel. You can't honestly be against that, can you?"

Evanne told Pamela to not talk to her like she was above her. There was one problem to Evanne's statement though. Pamela was above Evanne in every way imaginable, unless how many children one has was taken into account.

• Pamela, even though she had a town sanctioned job and was omitted from harvest tax, grew as much food as almost any of the farmers and gave as much as she could.
• Pamela spent hours upon hours reading books about civilizations and ways to run countries from before the disease.
• Pamela kept everyone in line just like her mother did before her and if she has a daughter she will do after her.
• Pamela donated time a the hospital in the little free time she had.
• Pamela went hunting with the guys when they needed an extra member.
• Pamela won't admit it to anyone but she was the one who lowered Juniper's sentence from a year to only 6 months.
• Pamela does everything for Dust.

Fuck Evanne.

---

Pamela and Noah stopped a few feet shy of the Town Hall, "Come on, Pamela. What is there to discuss right now? The vote is for me," he admitted, "so I'll know how the people of Dust feel. You can't honestly be against that, can you?"

"For the first time in a long time," Pamela thought long and hard about her next few words, "it doesn't matter what I think." Pamela took a moment to air out her shirt by pulling the fabric back and forth, "because of this vote you are giving a voice to people who can barely read, let alone articulate an opinion on whether you should let these people join us or not. You are telling them that their opinion matters." Pamela sat down on the steps in front of the town hall. She's been walking and barking at people for far too long today and was getting tired of it. She looked up at Noah and spoke softly, almost whispering, "what do you think is going to happen when you make your decision and you disappoint the people who voted otherwise? Do you think they are just going to stay quiet? No, you just gave one hundred little people one hundred little voices and now they will never shut up. It's happened already before in other towns. You keep up this democracy façade and people will revolt, Noah. I promise you that."

Pamela turned and looked at the town hall, with the Dust insignia on the front, "in the cellars of this town hall right now is enough back up food and water to last this entire town months in case of an emergency. Do you think if Diane Clay asked the people to give up half their food 20 years ago they would have? No, they would have bitched and moaned and we would have all died five years ago when we had that drought that lasted all summer. You do remember that drought right?"

The leader before Noah died in the drought and the town went through a few interim leaders before finally voting on Noah. Pamela personally thought it was a good vote at the time. She still does. She really didn't want to spit this much stuff at Noah but he's been avoiding her for a few days and it had to be said. Pamela didn't dislike Noah as a person; she actually enjoyed his company when it wasn't business related. It's just too bad that 95% of their interactions these days are just that, business related.

Pamela looked up at Noah once more, "You and I both know that this town was not built on democracy. Don't start giving people the impression that it was. Stop being a carpet and do your damn job."

"For the first time in a long time, it doesn't matter what I think." Noah almost fell over in shock, even as Pamela continued, sinking down onto the steps of the town hall.

"Their opinions do matter, Pamela," he argued fervently, his arms spread wide. "I can't just add a whole 'nother family onto their burden with no regard to their thoughts or feelings or needs." He almost argued further, but in that moment he truly saw Pamela for the first time of the day. She looked tired and worn, and her voice lowered.

"What do you think is going to happen when you make your decision and you disappoint the people who voted otherwise? Do you think they are just going to stay quiet?" she demanded. "No, you just gave one hundred little people one hundred little voices and now they will never shut up. It's happened already before in other towns. You keep up this democracy façade and people will revolt, Noah. I promise you that."

Noah scowled, but he paused for half a minute before he replied. "I think you might be overreacting a bit to one little vote. This is far from the first vote Dust has ever had. If it makes you feel any better, you can think of it as an opinion poll."

He winced when Pamela began speaking again. Oh boy, he thought as she launched into her standard speech. At this point he practically had it memorized. Oh, yes, he thought. Everything was perfect when Diane Clay ran Dust. Nothing was ever better, because Dust so-oh-oh-oh great.

"Yes, I remember the drought." Morbid as it is, that's how I got my job. Noah's attention was pulled away once again as Evanne walked by with Evelyn and Juniper. He smiled and raised his hand in greeting to her, but Pamela's voice jerked him back to their conversation.

"You and I both know that this town was not built on democracy," she said. "Don't start giving people the impression that it was. Stop being a carpet and do your damn job." And just like that, Noah was angry.

"A carpet?" he asked indignantly. "Like when you pulled me back here and I let you? Or like when I mostly listened to your little Diane Clay stump speech again?" He took a deep breathe to calm himself before he continued, "I am going to go speak with with newcomers, like I was going to earlier, and try to see whether or not they are shitty people and whether or not I am going to let them stay." And hopefully catch up with Evanne, he thought to himself.

Noah turned abruptly and strode away, leaving Pamela to collect dust on the steps of the town hall. He didn't stop, didn't turn around until he got to the dirty, rundown shanty that the newcomers were currently calling their home. Tentatively, he stepped to the door and knocked.

"A carpet?" Noah was angry. It didn't happen often, him getting upset like this, but when it did...it was because of Pamela.
"Like when you pulled me back here and I let you? Or like when I mostly listened to your little Diane Clay stump speech again? I am going to go speak with the newcomers, like I was going to earlier, and try to see whether or not they are shitty people and whether or not I am going to let them stay."

"You let me pull you back here because it is my job to pull you," Pamela stood up off the steps and let out a deep sigh. She could feel the heels of her feet begin to ache. She could smell the slight body odor coming from her; the kind that was so faint that you would have to have your nose to her pits to smell. Pamela's stomach was grumbling and her heart was heavy from the bossy act that she was forced to put on during this time of the harvest cycle. Normally she would continue ripping Noah a new one but honestly she just couldn't muster anything up this time around. She spoke slowly and quietly, meticulously choosing each word, "I want you to succeed, Noah. I want you to be a great leader. I want this town to survive. But you have to be honest with yourself and understand that the advice I give you just might be right. You can't write me off anytime I talk to you."

Noah turned abruptly and strode away, leaving Pamela to collect dust, no pun intended, on the steps of the town hall. She smiled at the sight of him leaving, partly because he spoke up to her for once and partly because she could finally go home and get some sleep.

Pamela began walking towards her home when she saw a small kid tossing a pebble up and down and skipping down the street. She took a few quick strides and before he knew it Pamela was standing right beside him. He jumped when she spoke, "shouldn't you be helping Mrs. Crawly with her crops, little boy?" Chip Darney, in his surprise, dropped his pebble to the ground. He turned slowly, his face white with terror, "I'm so sorry, Ms. Clay. I swear I was on way!" Juniper is a bad influence on these kids. She is going to be the death of me. Pamela smiled at the kid. She rustled his bushy hair then kneeled down so they were eye to eye, "Didn't anyone teach you that lying is bad?" Chip's eyes widened as he tilted his head backwards, afraid of what Pamela would do to him. "Yeah," he stammered, "I know not to."

Pamela's mood was getting better, as if she Chip's childish joy was seeping into her. She brought her pointer finger to her chin, pretending to think really hard, "now, what are we going to do about your punishment?"

"Punishment?! No!"

"Punishment. Oh yes." Pamela laughed for the first time all day, "take my hand, Mr. Darney. I know where we need to go."

"Wherever we are going," Chip was hanging on to Pamela's hand, dragging his feet behind him, "I do not want go." Pamela looked down at the kid, "calm down Darney. Nothing is going to harm you...not while I'm around." Pamela smiled quietly to herself, remembering the old musicals her dad would sing, obnoxiously, around the house when she was younger. Chip raised his brow, "you are bringing me somewhere to off me are ya." Pamela gave her best attempt at a sneer and looked down at the brown headed boy, "I am going to off you real good. Take you where no one can find you."

"...shit."

Pamela squeezed Chip's hand at the swear word, "Juniper is a bad influence."

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Pamela and Chip entered the now empty Mech Hall. Looks like all the harvesters have finally gotten their acts together
"Patrick isn't a great influence either," Pamela spoke softly so only Chip could hear, "but he is step up from Juniper." The old man, sitting in his chair, looked up at the duo, "what brings you here, Pamorama?" Pamela, dragging Chip along, stepped up to the counter, "Chip here has been a troublemaker and I thought you would be the perfect person to handle him."

"Oh my God," Chip's eyes flashed between Pamela and Patrick Clay, "you are going to throw me into the furnace!"

Patrick Clay's eyes glowed as he smirked, "attend the tale, my young friend." Patrick nodded at Pamela, getting what he needed to do, "I'll deal with the boy, Pam. You are welcome to stay if you want." It's been awhile since Pamela spent any quality time with her dad. She didn't particularly seek it out, but soon he would be gone and she'd regret not spending some time with him, "I'll stay."

"What's your name, son?" Patrick knelt down next to Pamela's brown headed culprit. "Chip Darney, sir," he paused before asking, "why do you call me son? I don't have a dad, mister." Patrick raised a brow, forgetting that Dusties didn't use pre-Delsis lingo anymore. He was a dying breed...almost literally these days. "Ah, well I founded this town a long long time ago," Patrick ruffled Chip's hair, "so in a way I am everyone's dad and everyone is my son. You know, the boys at least." The corners of Chip's mouth rose up, creating a genuine smile, "it's nice to have a dad then. I'll call you dad...as long as you don't murder me."

Pamela's idea was working. She knew that Patrick would be able to entertain the kid as well as teach him something useful. Patrick always knew how to make someone feel like they belonged. Pamela yawned, a reminder of her growing tiredness, but was curious to see what Patrick would teach the Darney boy. She sat up straight in her chair and watched in silence.

"Okay," Patrick cracked his knuckles, something that all of the Clay's did before hard work, Pamela noticed, and looked at Chip, "you see that pile of sticks over there? I need you to pick the ten straightest ones you can find and report back to me." "Why do I need sticks?" Chip asked too many questions. "You have 30 seconds, Mr. Darney," Patrick leapt up to his feet, to Pamela's surprise, and spoke in his famous announcer voice, "Chip Darney The Great begins his mission to find ten sticks for arrows. One day he will be the greatest hunter to ever live! What a champion! What a man! 30 seconds, son! GO GO GO!"

Ah, he's going to teach the kid how to make arrows. He's going to give Chip more weapons to terrorize me with. Thanks, Dad

Patrick and Chip spent the next hour making jokes and having fun while creating ten arrows. Chip's smile never left his face the entire time. Patrick had to take a few breaks, because of his sickness, so Pamela had to jump in here and there to help finish them. "I didn't know you knew how to make arrows, Ms. Clay!" Chip stared at Pamela with a new found respect for her it seemed. "Yeah," Pamela remembered when Patrick taught her and Dana how to make arrows when they were little. It was one of her fondest memories. She frowned slightly, sad at how everything with her family turned out. The divide between her parents has torn a hole in her heart.

Chip, with all of his childlike energy that made Pamela equally jealous and nauseous, ran towards Patrick who was watching him and Pamela, "DO I GET TO KEEP THEM!?" Patrick looked at his daughter, "what d'ya say, Pamorama? Do you think he deserves it?" "With great power comes great responsibility," Pamela nodded. "I would sing a song from that musical," Patrick got up slowly from his chair and began walking towards another section of the hall, "but it died long before the Delsis disease hit, thank the lord above." Patrick put together a small beginner's archery pack equipped with a quiver packed with ten perfectly made arrows to go with Chip's ten, a bow, and a small kit to make and mend both. He came back and handed them to Chip, "I am sure someone will be happy to show you how to use these. Just make sure you aim at animals and not at my daughter, okay?" Chip held his newly acquired items close to his chest, smiling all the while, "I will be the greatest hunter to ever live, dad! And I won't shoot Pamela, I swear."

"Good," Patrick put both hands on Chip's shoulders, "because if you do she will make a meat pie out of you. Pamela is full of mischief, she is."

Pamela covered her face with her hand, embarrassed, "Dad, not again!"

Juniper shifted from one foot to the next, listening to Aaron speak mundanely about the wilderness. She had always had a deep love for the freedom and danger that came with the wilderness, even when her heart was broken up. The way that Aaron spoke so casually and uninterestedly about the outside was beginning to set Juni on edge again. She felt like she needed to defend the greatness that came with surviving in the wilderness but she just didn't have the will power. Too much had happened out there, and quite honestly, she was still healing.

Her face contorted when he made the comment about indians. Racism was not something that people generally dealt with in these days. Everyone was a person and every person could do their share of work. Skin color didn't divide anyone in Dust. Attitude and hard work was what set people aside in this world. Racism was a learned habit and Juniper didn't really understand it, but she also didn't want to get excited about the whole thing. She supposed Aaron had a half decent reason for saying such things. Juniper continued talking without a beat.

He too hadn't seen the little bugger, Chip. Juniper let out a soft sigh before her attention was ripped away from Aaron. Just down the road Robin and Evanne were supporting the moaning Ginny. A dark feeling hit her in the pit of her stomach. She thought about being that pregnant and how terrifying it must be. Juniper couldn't imagine going though such an experience without someone there to support her. Juni's mind flashed back to the night that Robin left, then it raced forward a week and remembered everything tall and terrible that happened in the cold starlight. Her blue orbs watched intently, completely vexed by the situation. Juniper kept her eyes on them as her body wanted to move forward and help them while her mind pushed her back into a strangers position. Juniper had been so engrossed in the situation happening down the street that she had completely lost any kind of conversation with Aaron.

Then she realized. Juniper clapped her hands suddenly. "I'm so sorry," she said, "but I've got to go." Without stopping to hear his response she ran past the hysterical group of baby lovers and made her way to the Mech Hall. She had a hunch that Chip would be here, but really she wanted to talk to Patrick. Whenever she felt like she needed real fatherly advise she would ask him. Most of her childhood Juniper felt like the estranged daughter of Patrick Clay. Oh course she supposed that a lot of young orphaned people felt that way toward him. Approaching the Mech Hall she crossed her arms across her chest. Entering she saw Chip, excited as ever, Pamela, who looked embarrassed somehow, and Patrick, who was still the same mischievous old man.

Juniper waved at Chip who delightfully waved back at her, jumping around with an armful of arrows in a quiver. "Hello, Pamela." Juniper said with just enough sweetness to pass as friendly. "Can you excuse us for a minute, please?" This time her voice was more stern, trying not to show the urgency she felt inside. "You too Chip." Then she looked at Patrick with those tired eyes and knew he understood.

When Pamela removed her hands from her face she was surprised to see Juniper who looked like she just ran a marathon. She stood at the doorway, huffing, puffing, and sucking air like her life hung in the balance. What cruel punishment did Evanne inflict on this woman? "Hello, Pamela," Juniper said, regaining composure, "can you excuse us for a minute please?" Pamela's heart ached, but she kept her own composure as well. She was finally enjoying her father and was able to hang out with him without talking about town politics and now Juniper was here to steal him away. Pamela's weight shifted onto one hip, "I'm sorry, Juniper, but we were kind of in the middle of something. I'm sure you can-"

"It's okay, Pamorama," Patrick put his hand on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "We'll have more time to catch up."
Patrick looked down towards Chip, "looks like my other daughter needs my help, son. Mind running along with Pamela? I am sure she'd enjoy teaching you how to use your new bow and arrows."

Pamela turned to her father primed to complain but couldn't bring herself to do it once she saw his eyes. There was no real arguing with that man and she knew it. "Come on, Chip," Pamela took his hand and they made their way towards the front door.

"Apparently you are my sister," Pamela called to Juniper, "maybe its about time you started acting like family to all of the Clays." Just like that, Pamela and Chip were gone.

Juniper wasn't in the mood to be snippy with Pamela. In fact, she wasn't in any sort of Juni mood. There was no odd clock ticking in her head, no sign of shenanigans, and no sign of that little fire that was lit earlier in the Thompkin's shack. Her emotions were swaying back and forth like a rope swing and she didn't know which place to land. She was moving so fast that if she leapt to the sturdy ground she'd probably break her ankles, but the water on the other side looked deep and ominous. Juniper always thought she was strong. But the fact that a mere man, a single human could make her so crazy made her, well, crazy. It had been a long time since she had seen Robin, and she honestly thought that she was past everything that happened.

Today was supposed to just be another day in the neighborhood. Nothing more than a silly day spent terrorizing the townsfolk, taking care of dear little Chip, then working at the bar. But now it was all too overwhelming. First Robin, then Evanne with her perfect little baby, and then Ginny having her baby, and Chip being an idiot, and then back to Robin. Juniper's head spun as she said nothing to Pamela and Chip who walked away. June's blue eyes watched them, seeing that Chip was excited but had a reserved amount terror in him. Juniper didn't blame him, Pamela was scary even to the big kids.

When she was finally alone with Patrick she plopped down on a bench across from him and drooped her head. Juniper hated being so pathetic, but she just needed a moment. One moment.

"Patrick," Juniper started, "I really messed up." The blonde lifted her head up so that she could see Patrick's eyes. He looked older than she ever remembered him, then she was reminded of his illness. What a blow to the gut Dust was going to get when this man died. Juniper sighed, not wanting to confess herself like Patrick was some kind of priest. Juniper hadn't felt this guilty about her and Robin since she first came back from the wilderness. Of course, things were a little different then and Juni was quite sickly for a while, but that didn't make a difference.

Patrick said nothing, waiting for the punch line. But before Juniper could say much more her red cheeks were stained with tears. She didn't want Patrick to know her as troubled or needy, but she didn't have any sort of parental figure but him. Patrick was a good listener and an even better confidant, and Juniper took advantage of that when she was younger. Now, she tried to stay balanced on her own two feet, but today she needed a father. The only person that Juni told the whole truth to about the wilderness was Luke, but that didn't mean that dear old Patrick didn't weasel his way into the truth. Juniper may not have told him everything, but he knew.

Gently, Patrick put down his tools and spoke, "There's no use in crying." Then he took a seat next to her on the bench and started one of his great pep-talks.

"Now Juniper, let me tell you a little story."

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