𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒉 𝒅𝒂𝒚

[meloh]

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| Marisol King | 18 | tags: Michelle King, Douglas King |

Through even the most hopeless of situations, Marisol believed joy could be found. Now days, in the midst of the tense pressure of constant danger, that belief had really been put to the test in even Solie's optimistic worldview. Faintly nagging her was the thought that Michelle, her mother, might have meant for Marisol to be making use of herself, or was it that Douglas, her dad, asked her to get something for him? Since she couldn't make sense of those concerns, she let them fade, and allowed the sunlight to stream into her consciousness, warming her inside and out. Seeing the blossoms starting to grow, she smiled, content. Maybe she hadn't seen a new face or heard a new name in so long she wasn't sure she recalled what a handshake felt like, but life went on, and her's wasn't a horrible one. Still, she couldn't help but wonder how long her present circumstances would persist. Her circumstances... her boundaries... she supposed she ought to return home. It was never wise to be out all alone for long now, it had been a lapse in her judgement to walk out this far in the first place.

Thus, she spun on her heels, shaking her head as she mentally rebuked her faulty decision, and followed the wisp of smoke winding through the trees back to camp; back to her home; back to her entire life as it stood indefinitely.
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[moonkin]

` 𝐉𝐈𝐌𝐌𝐘 𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐎 ⥼──────────────
xxi.⤷ tags. kyra xloc. woods xrole. stranger xwords.
It wasn't like he had a choice.
x.To let Kyra get eaten by whatever those things were? No. No way.

He can feel a pair of droplets run down his face. A minor distraction compared to the burn in his lungs as they ran. Could he blame Kyra for getting them into this situation again? No. He couldn't. He wouldn't. Jimmy steals a glance to his left where she runs alongside him. She's still keeping up. He pushes on despite the voice in his gut that tells him they were no longer targets. It was only to be safe.
x.He's jerked to a stop, backtracking the last two steps to Kyra's side. "What?" He breathes, his chest falling high as he pants. Jimmy straightens from bending over and drags his shirt sleeve across his mouth. The dampness of perspiration soaking the blue fabric a navy color. "What is it?" He asks again, clearer this time and more audible to her ears. Stepping closer, he squints over her shoulder to see what she's looking at.
x."Holy..." The word is dragged out in a moment of utter shock. He grabs Kyra by the arm, gaining her attention. "We can't just go, Ky." A look of caution crosses his dewed features. "Think about it. How much attention does that smoke draw?" His grip, although gentle, drops from her arm and he takes half a step back. Jimmy shakes his head. "We can't."

[winterfell.]

─ ⋆ -- ( ＥＬＩＺＡＢＥＴＨ ) ─────────────────────────────────
⇉ [ location : outside ] [ family : graham ] [ tagged : walter ] [ 571 words ]


- - - - -Early to bed, early to rise. Elizabeth hated this tenet more than she hated most other tenets. Working diligently and staying out of the woods were easy enough, but waking up at sunrise? No thank you. Getting out of bed in the morning took significantly more work than any other daily tasks. Regardless, once the sun started to break up the darkness that had overtaken her bedroom, she started forcing herself to rub the sleep from her eyes. Realistically speaking, there wasn't much reason for her to worry about waking up so early. She wasn't even sure if her parents expected her to or if they just accepted it as an inevitability at this point. For the time being, it was an unfortunate habit, one she maintained just to make sure her parents knew that she wasn't taking their hard work for granted; to make sure they knew that she was here to pull her weight and help out in any way possible. Completely void of enthusiasm, she quietly slipped out of bed and threw on her jacket. Even in the springtime, the early mornings were a bit cool for her taste. She yawned, blinking as her eyes continued to adjust to the ever-growing presence of light in her room, before exiting the bedroom and the house.

- - - - -The sun hung low in the East, poking through the trees that made up the thick forest that surrounded their home. Every day, she'd look out at the evergreens. A very, very small part of her wanted to dash toward the treeline, to explore and get a taste of something new. But this tiny urge was always easily drowned out by her fear of what was out there. She knew one thing above everything else: they were not allowed in the forest. She didn't have any real desire to defy that rule. Or any other, really. She averted her gaze, instead resting her eyes on the fire, now roaring back to life as her father fed it. Her stomach rumbled at the smell of smoke. She'd learned to expect breakfast to be accompanied by that scent. It was definitely a step backwards from microwavable french toast sticks and maple syrup, but she couldn't complain. As much as she missed the conveniences that life before the blackout allowed her, she was grateful for what she had in the aftermath. For starters, she was alive. As was her family. Her parents still loved her and her siblings were healthy. The family still maintained its friendship with the King's and Lizzie was able to see Gus literally every day. The situation could be much worse.

- - - - -She felt the morning dew on the bottoms of her bare feet as she stepped down from the porch and onto the grass. She didn't see anyone else outside, though she caught a glimpse of blonde hair in the distance. Marisol must have been up to something. Or just mindlessly wandering. She wasn't sure what the girl was up to, but as long as she stayed close to home, everything would be fine. She briefly wondered if Mr. and Mrs. King would be out soon, or if Gus would be making an appearance shortly. She shook these thoughts from her head and decided to focus on her father, tending to the fire so that the two families could have a decent breakfast. "Do you need any help with anything, Dad?" she asked.

[ufoparty]

❝ 𝐑𝐔𝐓𝐇 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐇𝐀𝐌 ! ! ❞
( 47 | outside | tags — walter, lizzie, stephen )

Struggling to get out of bed seemed to be the new routine. Considering that the master bed was much more welcoming than the terror outside the house and in the woods. Ruth Graham was the mother of the Grahams, the best thing she could do for her family was be there for them, and instead she continued to lay in bed, even if she wasn’t asleep.

Her bare feet hit the floor before she would be permanently glued to the bed, sending a shiver up her spine. She dressed simple, a plaint-shirt, one of Walter’s coats that practically swallowed her frame, jeans, and hiking boots.

Stepping outside she was greeted by the smell of smoke, a scent she always enjoyed. “Whatcha cooking good looking?” she cooed to Walter, hooking her hands around his forearm and resting her face against his shoulder. She gave gentle smiles to both of her children, greeting them with a mouthed ‘good morning’.

[moonkin]

` 𝐉𝐈𝐌𝐌𝐘 𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐎 ⥼──────────────
xxi.⤷ tags. kyra xloc. woods xrole. stranger
Needless to say, Kyra was the leader in this duo. Not that Jimmy couldn't do things himself, for himself. He got this far, hadn't he? It was only that he took the safest route. The one that got you unnoticed. It didn't frighten him to follow that smoke trail and into who knows what, he just didn't want to walk right into another deadly situation. They had adjusted to this one quite well in his opinion.

"Okay," he says after a moment of steady eye contact. Jimmy rubs his thumb and forefinger into his eyes then pinches the bridge of his nose. She trusted him, and he, her. His hand drops to hang loose from the backpack strap around his shoulder. "Let's ... let's stay together when we get there, okay?"

[coën]

☙ ◦ ⤜───────→ 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐨𝐝𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐫
"Teddy" ▪ stranger ▪ no tags ▪ the woods ▪ wc; 265
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The crisp morning air seemed to burrow all the way down to Theodore Carver's bones, turning his fingers useless and stiff as he fumbled with a box of matches. His campfire had gone out sometime during the night, and he definitely preferred having the comforting flames nearby. There wasn't much room for error; these three matches were his last. However, it wasn't merely the cold that was hindering his progress with the fire. He'd heard some strange noises in the middle of that same night, and now he couldn't seem to still the shivering of his fingers. Well, they hadn't necessarily been strange noises as much as snapping twigs and feet shuffling in the undergrowth, but huddling in a makeshift shelter in the pitch black darkness didn't exactly make one feel safe.

As yet another fragile match snapped against the box, Teddy huffed in resignation. He dropped back from his crouched position to sit on the dirt-floor of the forest like a defeated toddler. The straps of leather and bone hanging around his neck clacked together as they fell against his dull green sweater, causing him to hurriedly silence them with his calloused hand. Although he hadn't seen them himself, there were some strange things in these woods, and keeping quiet had seemed to keep him unharmed for now. The debris beneath him rustled as he shifted to grab his worn greenish beige backpack and dig around it for something to eat. Telling by the amount of empty space, he was running low on.. everything. A few pieces of stale jerky would have to do.

[roony]

[ ★ ] 𝐃𝐎𝐔𝐆𝐋𝐀𝐒 𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆
xxxxage . forty-fivexxfamily . kingxxtags . marisol


indentearly mornings were never very kind to douglas king. being the man of the household, however, it was a requirement for his duties to be fulfilled first. doug was not to be mistaken for a man who complained; he simply did what needed to be done to provide for his family. there was never a time the man wasn't stricken with worry, even in its most mildest case, which often led to him unintentionally boarding up his focus. only he knew now how important it was for his mind to be clear; a delicacy that he'd carried in the past, but not so much in the present.
indenta beaten white tee was slung over his muscular frame, the fabric stretching into the cuff of his navy jeans as he dressed himself that morning. it was beyond douglas' knowledge as to where his wife wandered off to, though it was his assumption that she was preparing breakfast. a small sigh of content slipped past the man's chapped lips, a hand stroking the side of his head, down to the scruff of his darkened beard.
indentupon making his trip outside, doug's hand firmly pushed against the screen door, the crisp morning air sending a few chills on his forearms. it was his hope that none of his children had ventured too far away from the house; all of them were old enough to take care of themselves. but he knew that no matter how hard he tried, he was stuck in the earlier timelines of being able to keep a close eye on them.
indentthe male propped a leg on the lowest step of the front porch, the other acquainting itself with the dry undergrowth as his hazel gaze glanced over to the brush of the forest. nothing had entirely been on his mind that morning, much to his surprise, until he noticed a small frame walking further in the direction of his home. doug squinted, trying his best to make out the features of said figure until they were close enough to be recognized.
indentmarisol knew better than to venture out in spotted places. it didn't appear as though she'd wandered too far off, quickly taking to note that she did enjoy admiring the budding blossoms just east of the land. once she was close enough to his reach, he took the initiative to pull his weight off of the porch steps, meeting marisol halfway.
indentafter wetting his lips, douglas took a moment to read over the words he planned to share with his daughter aloud. "you're up early," he sheepishly commented, his hazel eyes parting to the peachy skies, then back to her. "would it be dumb of me to ask if you were checking the blossoms again?" douglas asked, a playful smile curling onto his whiskered lips. he already knew the answer to the question, of course, but it never hurt to strike up a bit of small talk when he could.

[roony]

[ ★ ] 𝐂𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐄 𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐇𝐀𝐌
xxxxage . seventeenxxfamily . grahamxxtags . katelyn


indentwaking up to the familiarity of the ceiling was a reminder that callie had been victorious with outsmarting her sister. living in such a tight space with a substantial number of people gave her the disadvantage of having to room with her younger sister, katelyn. the least their parents could've done was have them in two separate beds on either side of each other, since bunks appeared to be more of an invasion of space for callie.
indenther reserved demeanor didn't allow anyone or anything to open up to her, as she kept most of her interests and hobbies on the down low. and, as far as her social life was concerned, it was practically non-existent. but that didn't mean she didn't know how to carry on a conversation. it just simply wasn't her preference.
indentwhen it came to katelyn, however, the blonde was practically a whole other person. with the two only being a year apart, it was easy to depict that callie was rarely to never alone. a luxury that she alternated from loving to hating on sporadic days.
indentthe blonde had awoken quite peacefully that morning, especially upon realizing that katelyn, for once in a blue moon, had lost to the notorious game of rock paper scissors. the sisters mutually agreed that if they couldn't control having their own rooms, then the least they could do was barter for the best seat in the house. or, in this case, the best bed in the room.
indentcallie could faintly hear the shuffling of the bed frame beneath her, signaling to her that katelyn was awake. "morning, doofus," she jeered, her body shuffling over to the edge of her mattress as she peered down at her stirring sibling, a fistful of pillow clenched in her hand.
indent"hope you had fun losing last night." without any warning, the blonde ruefully chucked her pillow below the top bunk, hitting katelyn square in the face. after taking a small sniff, callie's expression quickly soured, her head shooting upward in newfound alert. "ugh, it smells like ass in here," she mumbled, the back of her head flying back to her crumpled pillow as she threw the sheets back over her legs. the blonde relished in finding ways to get under her sister's skin, granted she was the only sibling younger than her in the family.

[winterfell.]

─ ⋆ -- ( ＥＬＩＺＡＢＥＴＨ ) ─────────────────────────────────
⇉ [ location : outside ] [ family : graham ] [ tagged : walter, stephen, ruth ⇉ gus ] [ 504 words ]


- - - - -She nodded when her father said there was nothing she could do, smiling then at the nickname he'd used for her. It got quiet pretty quickly after the comment. Had it been just a little later in the morning, perhaps Lizzie would have been more talkative. She wasn't a natural early bird like her father or her brother. In fact, she couldn't remember a time in her life in which she woke up and started her day before either of them. Even being fully aware of this, Lizzie was still caught by surprise when Stephen's voice cut through the quiet morning. "Morning, Stephen," she said quietly. He gestured behind him to where she stored the lunch he'd caught for them. A few years ago, she would have been disgusted. She hated the taste of fish her whole life. Until the blackout, that is. Afterwards, food became limited and frozen pizzas were impossible to keep. She'd grown fond of the taste of fish these days.

- - - - -She was about to answer her father's question regarding her mother's whereabouts when the woman in question stepped outside. "Morning, Mom," she said as the woman locked arms with her father. The smiles on their faces, no matter how commonplace in the Graham household, communicated the love between them, a love that Lizzie often found herself in awe of. She was fortunate to have parents that loved each other -- and their children -- as much as they did.

- - - - -She snapped to attention when her father refocused his attention on her, nodding quickly at his request. "Sure thing," she said, spinning on her heel and making way for the King house. She was pleased that her father mentioned Gus by name to bring along with her -- as if she would even consider asking anyone else. Her parents and family being welcoming of her boyfriend seemed like a trivial concern nowadays, but it was still something that weighed on Lizzie's mind, much like she still worried about Mr. and Mrs. King and their thoughts on her. Logically speaking, they couldn't possibly have too many objections to her, since they seemed content with the two of them spending literally every day together. But the paranoia still ate at her sometimes. Knowing that her family seemed to approve of the two of them was a weight off her shoulders, no matter how stupid it seemed.

- - - - -She quieted her thoughts once she reached the porch to the King house. She briefly wondered if Mrs. King would answer and if Lizzie would clam up in response. She wondered if anyone was awake inside at all, and if she was being rude by waking them from their sleep. She knew she'd hate it if someone woke her up with abrupt knocking. But, in the end, she had a task to do for her father and that sorta trumped everything else. She knocked on the door and waited for someone -- hopefully Gus -- to open up so that she could go about her task and get back to her family.

[moonkin]

❝ 𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐍𝐘 𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆
twenty-seven / cousin to the king sib's | location: outside the king family's house / tags:
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a puck slides over busted up blacktop. it collides with one of many cracks, flips in the air and spins on its bottom. this doesn't stop the man racing toward it from smacking its side with the front of his hockey stick, sending it flying once more into an imaginary goal. tony slams on the brakes. the side of his roller blade suddenly scraping the asphalt. he turns on one foot, the other fanning out at his side. he spins and connects the puck with wood again: restarting the game.

ever since the government had shut down, tony had no where to go once he was stuck here at his uncle's home. no more practices (which took up most of his time), no more games, no dreams of winning big. it was just him and this single roundabout game. after his second turn, he paused instead of making another hit. he stands tall instead of bent at the knees. a gloved hand perches on his hip as he looks down the empty driveway. it had occured to him to leave, to see what was left out there, but he also knew it was better to stay here.

tony rips off his helmet and walks his way over to the grass. tossing the hockey stick down, he lowers himself to the ground and starts to unlace his skates. every piece of gear he had was starting to grow worn out: holes in the gloves that barely fit anymore, wheels rubbed flat, scuffs on a once white helmet from all his frustation throwing. he sits his skates aside in the pile accumlating to his left and combs a shaking hand through his damp hair.

tony hangs his elbows off his knees and stares forward at the lone black object feet away. maybe it was time for a newer hobby... he glances around, over his shoulder at the house. he can see a few had already made their way out too. he sighs, gathers his things and starts his way back.