Samindi

"Because of the biters?" the teenager asks. After a moment, Samindi feels a hand grasp one of her own.

"It's okay," the teenager whispers. "A couple of them almost got us when we were still in the city. One of them even grabbed me, and I barely got away. I felt sick, too. I couldn't stop shaking or crying all day."

The teenager squeezes Samindi's hand firmly for a moment before she continues. "Don't worry about my mom. I saw you outside. I'll tell her what you did. You can stay with us."

"Huh?" Samindi raises her head as the other girl takes her hand.

She shakes her head weakly, "No. Bad food I think, I haven't eaten well."

Shaking and crying because she got close to a walker. The girl had probably barely been out of this van. Samindi couldn't help but smile, the girl likely had no idea how bad it was out there. Still she tried to make the smile as friendly as possible. If she was going to get help from anyone in this vehicle it would be this girl.

She squeezed the girls hand back, "I just need to rest, have some food." She fought back another surge of her stomach. "I would like to stay."

She dropped her head back into her arms.

Samindi

Something burbles in Samindi's guts. A chill runs through her body and pinpricks of sweat break out across her skin. Her body is weak and tired; it wants to lie down, or failing that, keep her head in her arms forever. Her brain knows it needs food to regain her energy, but her stomach won't even consider the prospect.

"We're going to my grandmother's house," the girl says softly. "It won't be too much longer now. I'm sure you can stay with us at least until then."

After a moment, she asked, "What's your name? I'm Callie."

Samindi didn't dare move from the seat. Sure she wanted to lie down but with the space in the RV there wasn't much room for selection. She was not going to ask to lie on the bed, last thing she felt like right now was that woman yelling at her some more. So she resigned herself that this was as comfortable as she was likely to get a kept her head in her hands, doubled over trying to supress the pain in her stomach.

She nodded in her arms as the other girl kept talking. When she asked for her name Samindi looked up again, "Sami."

She followed it up with a soft groan and dropped her head back into her arms, "Uuuurgh. I might just sleep for a bit."

Samindi

"Uh..." Callie says awkwardly. "Okay then. We'll talk later, after - "

"Oh, my god," the woman's voice booms suddenly. At some point, she must have finished her conversation with Leonard, because she sounds close. "She's bit!"

"For crying out loud," Leonard grumbles from the driver's seat.

"Don't you 'crying out loud' me!" the woman snaps. "Look at her! She's been bit! It's already affecting her. I was right! You brought a bit girl into this RV!"

"She just had some bad food - " Callie starts, but the woman interrupts her.

"Of course she'll say that! She's bit somewhere under her clothes. She's going to attack us! Leonard, you stop this RV right now and kick her off!"

Sami was just about dozing off with a "Mhmm." in reply to Callie as the woman started screaming again.

Sami raised her head from her arms but the motion of the vehicle, the screaming and lack of rest caught up with her and she leaned forward and vomited on the floor. She had long since emptied her stomach of anything solid so it was only bile and saliva that splashed across the floor.

"I'm not bit." She struggled between coughing and retching, "I ate something bad."

She leaned out of the dinette and rested her elbows on her knees, head in her hands. "My stomach hurts."

Samindi

"Ew!" Callie exclaims as the vomit splashes across the floor. At that moment the vehicle turns, causing the pool to spread, and Callie pulls her feet up onto her seat to avoid it.

"Oh my god!" the woman repeats, eyes bugging out at the vomit. "She threw up. She threw up right in front of me!"

"In the RV?" Leonard shouts back from the driver's seat. "You better not have! We'll never get the smell out!"

He sniffs the air, then sighs. "You did."

"That's not important now!" the woman shouts. "It proves she's bit! She's sick! She's going to turn!"

"You don't throw up when you're bit," Leonard says patiently. "You know this. You've seen what happens."

"I don't know anything and neither do you!" the woman snaps. "What are you, a doctor? Since when?!"

"Mom, please," Callie begs. "Stop."

"Callie - !" The woman starts to raise her voice, then catches herself. She takes a deep breath before speaking again. "Callie, we can't keep her here. It's not safe."

"What if she's not bitten?" Callie asks, almost desperately. "What if she just ate something bad? Like she said she did."

"It's not just if she's bitten or not, Callie. We don't know her. We can't trust her. What if she hurts us?"

"What if she protects us? We were stuck, remember? And then she helped us. She can keep helping us!"

"We don't need some girl to protect us. Isn't that right, Leonard? Do you need a little girl to help you?"

"She did more out there than you did," Leonard grumbles, but then falls sullenly silent. The woman watches him expectantly for a moment, but he doesn't continue. Finally, she sighs and turns back to the table, her gaze passing from Samindi to Callie and back.

"We check her for bites," she says simply. "If we find anything, she's out the door. Otherwise...we'll see."

"Sorry." Samindi looked up to the woman with dizzy eyes, "I'll clean it. Promise."

She would have laughed at this situation any other time. But she really thought she was about to get thrown out onto the road. The conversation did not seem to be going her way at all but thankfully Callie had her back. She almost felt guilty about throwing up on their floor but it probably wouldn't have happened if the woman would stop yelling for five minutes and let her get some rest.

"I can help." She said weakly, "When I'm better I can help." She caught on to what Callie was trying to do and raised her head to give her a small smile in thanks.

Earlier she figured the woman would want to check her, especially when she said she thought she was bit under her clothes. So she wasn't totally taken back by the suggestion and as long as it was just Callie then Sami could accept the humilation.

"Callie can check me. I'm not bit." She repeated. "I need to use the bathroom anyway. She can check me then."

Samindi

"What?" Callie asks, surprised. "I mean - yes! I'll do it. I'll check her."

"No you won't," the woman intones gravely. "How do I know you'll actually check her? Or even if you do, and you find something, how do I know you'll actually tell me?"

"No!" protests Callie as the RV slows to a stop. "I'll tell you the truth!"

Leonard turns off the engine and exits the driver's seat, stepping into the conversation. The woman shoots him an accusatory look. "What are you doing?"

"There's another road block. I'll have to clear it before we can keep going. While we're here, we can clean up this...mess. Ugh. What are you all shouting about now?"

"She's bit - "

"She's not bit!"

" - and you see? Callie wants to 'check' her for bites, but she's already decided it can't be true. You know we can't trust her. I'll check her."

"How can we trust you?" Callie retorts. "This isn't even about bites. You just don't want her here! You'll say she has bites even if she doesn't!"

Leonard regards the two for a moment. "Why don't I check her? I want her to stay, but you know I won't let her if she's bitten."

Callie goes silent, shrinking back just an inch and curling her lip slightly in distaste. The woman's expression goes stony and foreboding. Slowly, she puts her hands on her hips, then says one word to her. "You?"

Leonard avoids looking at Samindi or Callie. "That's not...it's a matter of life and death. That's what's important right now."

This was getting worse. Samindi was not going to have a man check her. She was embarrassed enough around her own father, she wasn't going to strip down in front of a man.

"Wait!" She pleaded with Leonard, "Let them check me while you go look at the roadblock."

She looked desperately between Callie and her mother before continuing to Leonard, "By the time you're back it'll be done, no more yelling."

She wasn't happy about it but if Callie and her mom had to be the ones to check her then she wouldn't argue about it. It wasn't what she wanted, preferring to trust Callie, but it also wasn't nearly as bad as it could be. She didn't know if she would leave if Leonard insisted on checking her, hopefully it wouldn't come to that. For now it seemed both the other women were as surprised and disgusted as Samindi was so hopefully that option was already off the table.

Samindi

"Yes, that's right," the woman says, glancing back at Samindi for a moment before looking at Leonard. "Go. Do something useful."

Leonard shrugs before turning and exiting the RV. Callie releases a relieved sigh while the woman looks down at the vomit on the floor with a sneer of disgust.

"Look at this mess," she mutters, then locks eyes with Samindi. She holds it for a long moment, thinking, before sighing. "Not even five minutes in here before you do this. Go to the bathroom and get yourself straightened out. Callie, help me clean this up."

"Shouldn't we...check her for bites before he comes back?" Callie asks.

"Don't worry about that. Get some paper towels. And you...keep out of the way."

"What do you mean, don't worry about that? What about all that stuff you said about her being bit?"

"I mean, do what I say. Now." The woman crosses her arms with a huff. Callie frowns in indignant frustration, but she wordlessly begins looking around for paper towels.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:52, Sun 25 Apr 2021.

Samindi's eyes fell to the floor, embarassed as the woman pointed out the vomit. "Sorry." she repeated.

She gave the woman a confused look as she said not to worry about checking her, she was so determined before Leonard left the vehicle. She looked to Callie but did go the the bathroom as the woman ordered, it was long overdue and hopefully it would help her stomach pains.

Closing the door behind her she dropped her shorts and sat on the toilet. Her embarassment was heightened as she did her business while the other two women were so close, not to mention they were cleaning up the mess she made. She groaned again as her stomach rumbled and realised that with the troubles in her gut she hadn't considered how long it had been since she had a drink. She would have to ask for some water when she was done.

Her thoughts wandered and it would have been only a couple of minutes she was on the toilet but having the time to herself, comfortable and with no yelling, her exhaustion finally took her. She slumped forward, dozing off, hoping to catch some rest before the woman started up again.

Samindi

Thankfully, the bathroom seems at least slightly soundproofed, possibly because the cramped quarters of the RV demands it. Samindi can hear Callie and the older woman moving around on the other side of the door, but the sounds are muffled. That said, she is also distracted by the sounds of her own digestive tract now that she finally has enough time to relieve herself.

Even after dozing off, she enters something more akin to a semiconscious torpor than a true sleep. When she awakes, she is aware that some time as passed, but isn't sure how much. There is no grogginess, however, and she finds herself somewhat energized by the catnap; however, that energy may also step from the adrenaline of sudden, sharp knocks on the door.

"Are you ever coming out?" the woman snaps from the other side of the door. "What are you doing in there?"

Samindi immediately spoke upon waking, "I'm coming."

The rest had helped but she guessed it couldn't have been more than ten minutes. She stood and dressed and after flushing the toilet and washing her hands she gulped down a few handfuls of water, not wanting to bother the woman with a request for water and possibly set her off yelling again.

She opened the door, "Sorry, I fell asleep." She seemed to be apologising for everything she was doing since entering the RV. If it kept the woman happy then she would keep doing it, Samindi still wasn't totally sure she wouldn't be thrown out.

She felt better, but still bad. Standing in the doorway of the bathroom she asked, "Uhh, did you still want to check for bites?"

Samindi

The water tastes funny in Samindi's mouth, but she can't be sure whether she can trust her own senses in that case. There may indeed be something strange about the water, but it could just as easily be residual vomit in her mouth or a side effect of her food poisoning.


The woman's eyes flit away for a moment, looking simultaneously exasperated and embarrassed by the question. "No," she says. "If you were hiding bites, you wouldn't let me check you, so...don't bother.

"Sit down." She gestures towards the same table Samindi had sat in with Callie before. "Who are you? What were you doing in the forest?"

Sami was confused but relieved when the woman stated that she wouldn't be required to strip down. For all the arguments earlier she seemed to let it go pretty easily. Perhaps she just liked arguing, it certainly seemed that way.

She nodded and obediently sat down again. She thought for a moment, there wasn't really any reason not to tell the truth and it might even illicit some sympathy from the woman.

She sighed and started, "Umm, I'm Sami. My parents, ah... they..." Tears began to well in her eyes. Legitimate tears. As strong as she'd like to think herself it was only the daily terror and constant threat to her life that kept her mind off of the death of her parents. "Sorry." Again she was apologising. "Can I have a glass of water?" She hoped the strange taste of the bathroom water was just her, she didn't want to think of the other explanations.

Regardless of her request she wiped away the tears before they fell. Sami decided to only tell the two women the basics, she didn't trust them and wasn't planning on staying with them past getting well enough to continue on her own. "They died in a car crash. Uh. I don't know how long ago, maybe two months? I got away." She shrugged, "I just kept moving, hiding, looking for food. Running away from those things." She didn't feel the need to tell them where she was going. It still sounded crazy to her, what were her chances of reaching Colorado. What were the chances her cousins and their family were still alive?

Looking back up to the woman she raised a corner of her mouth, "So, yeah." She tried to give her most innocent eyes, "I wouldn't have bothered you but I'm really sick, I ate something bad and haven't eaten for days. I was scared."

Samindi

Other than Samindi, the woman is the only visible person in the RV. The vehicle is not moving, so it's likely Callie is outside with Leonard. This conversation is one-on-one.

The corners of the woman's mouth twerk downward for a moment as tears appear in Samindi's eyes, revealing sympathetic sadness before she disguises it by taking a deep breath and looking away. "Fine, if you have to. I think there's glasses in the cabinet above the sink."

She waits until Samindi is pouring herself some water before she speaks. "That still doesn't explain why you were in the woods. Don't you have a home you can live in?"

She seems to realize something, and her eyes narrow quizzically as she studies Samindi's face. "Wait - are you Indian? That's why you can use the bow and arrow, isn't it? Is that why you're in the woods, because you're more connected with nature?"

She catches herself. "Sorry - not Indian. Native. Excuse me."

Samindi pours a glass of water and returns to her seat. She sips at it slowly, wondering at the taste. She didn't know about RV's and the water from the bathroom had her worried she had drunk some recycled or used water. She shuddered.

She was about to open her mouth to explain but when the woman continued, making her presumptuous commentary on her heritage, Samindi decided that was as good a reason as any to explain what she was doing. Even though it really was just as simple as what she said previously. Running and hiding. It certainly wasn't the first time she had been thought of as Native American, it seemed to be the first thing most Americans thought of when she said she was Indian. At least in this situation she could use the ignorance to an advantage.

So she decided a half truth would confirm the womans assumption and provide her an escape from greater details. "You're right Ma'am." She nodded, "I am, that's why I have the bow. I have spent alot of time in the forest, it is easy for me to hide there."

She finished the glass of water and thought to hazard a question of her own, "Do you have any food? I'm really hungry."

Samindi

The water from the kitchenette tap tastes the same as the water from the bathroom sink. This does seem to be what the others are using as their drinking water, but there's no reason to believe their choice of water sources is any cleaner than Samindi's choice of food.

"You need food, too?" the woman asks. Her voice has an offended edge to it, but beneath that, it sounds resigned. "What if you just throw it up again?"

Her lips press together for a moment, and she leans forward. "If you can hide in the forest, why did you come with us? Why did..."

She pauses for a moment, choosing her words carefully. "Why did my husband help you?"

Samindi couldn't answer the question about the food, it was entirely possible she would just throw it up. She shrugged slightly, "Uh. I'll try not to? But I'd really like some please."

She felt as if she was going around in circles with this woman, or at least she was looking for a reason to throw Samindi out of the vehicle. She looked anxiously towards the door, hoping that Callie would return soon. She was getting fairly uncomfortable with all the questions. Something, anything, to take the womans focus off of her would be great.

"I came because I am sick." She tried to remain calm but there was a hint of frustration in her voice. "I could've died out there!"

Then she looked at the woman in confusion as to the question about her husband, "Um. I don't know. I helped with the walkers then I asked for help? He didn't offer or anything, almost left me there."

Samindi

"He did, did he?" the woman asks, sounding slightly surprised. She is silent for a moment, then repeats, "So, you helped him with the...the walkers."

She looks at Samindi for a long moment. By this point, the paranoia and hostility that was previously in her eyes is gone; instead, she studies Samindi appraisingly, like a teamster trying to decide if they want a horse or not. After a long moment, she turns away, opening a cupboard in the kitchenette.

"We're traveling to my mother's home," she says, not making eye contact with Samindi. "She's retired now, but she used to be a nurse. She's always kept extra medical supplies in the house. I don't know what the treatment is for food poisoning, but I'm she can help you - as long as you help us, of course."

She leans on the kitchenette counter, looking back at Samindi over her shoulder. "Now, what kind of food do you think you can keep down?"

Samindi frowned upon the woman turning her back after studying her so closely. She didn't really know what to make of it, maybe the woman was unbelieving of her ability or maybe she was considering Samindi's ability to help. Regardless of the reason Samindi was slightly uncomfortable at being appraised in such a way.

As the woman spoke of traveling to her mother's home, confirming what Callie had mentioned earlier, Samindi allowed her hopes to rise. It was the first time the woman had spoken with her on a subject that was not about her. Samindi's hopes soared when the woman mentioned her mothers previous occupation and that she would be able to help with her sickness.

"Of course. I can help!" She said eagerly, "Whatever I can do."

Samindi beamed back at the woman, only slightly exaggerated, as she turned to look towards her and ask about food. "Uh. Not meat. Anything packaged or... fresh?" She knew it was unlikely fresh food was kept by the family but thought it couldn't hurt to ask.

Samindi

The woman tries to return Samindi's beaming expression, but can only manage a small, troubled smile, and even that looks forced. She turns back to the cupboard, examining its contents. Samindi cannot see what is inside.

"We don't have anything fresh," she says, apologetically. "We do have packaged food! Barely. How about, ah..."

She pulls a box of crackers out of the cupboard and places it on the table. Inside, Samindi can see it has already been mostly empty, but there is one row of crackers still sealed in plastic packaging. It's not much of a meal.

"Crackers are good for an upset stomach," the woman says, smiling. "They're easier to...keep down."

Her eyes stray to the floor. Samindi can see it was wiped down while she was in the bathroom, but there is still a subtle residue of her vomit.

Samindi stretched her neck trying to see what was inside the cupboards, disappointed she could not see inside she wait for the woman to find something to eat.

As she revealed the box of crackers Sami was happy enough for the selection, even more so when she realised that one sleeve of them was unopened. It wasn't fancy but with her stomach as it was it would be a more than suitable meal.

"Thank you!" Samindi exclaimed as she opened the packet and took the crackers out, three at a time, and began eating. She nodded as the woman spoke of how they were a very suitable meal in her condition.

With food in hand Samindi was no so worried about the stain on the floor. She tried to pace herself but her hunger won and she shoved the first few handfuls in her mouth before she slowed down.

Samindi

The woman silently watches Samindi eat for several seconds.

"You can have the rest of the box," she says, finally. "You need to keep up your strength. Especially a girl your age..."

She trails off at that. Something in her voice sounds mournful, or perhaps regretful, but she doesn't explain further. Instead, she folds her arms and looks towards the front of the RV.

"Leonard will probably be done soon. Then we'll keep going."