rewritten: January-June 2025

"So Marlene thinks you're immune?"

Ellie hummed in response. "That's what she believes."

What happened to Ellie was nothing short of a miracle. Maeve was just thankful that she didn't lose her baby sister. She didn't care that she was 'immune', though it helped with the concern of her being infected. Marlene was going on and on about Ellie being the key to a vaccine, and the woman sounded confident about it too.

"Well, how were you bitten?" Tess asked. "I mean, you must've been somewhere you shouldn't have been to find infected in the zone."

"Yeah," Ellie sounded embarrassed. "I'd sneak out. See, we were in this military boarding school."

"You? Military boarding school?" TJ piped, looking into the loading trailer.

"Yes," Maeve answered, her lips pressed together. "We were going to be soldiers."

Tess observed the exchange between them and continued, "You used to sneak out?"

"I'd explore the city, or where I was able to go. I was at the mall when I encountered the infected."

"The mall? That place is totally off-limits! HOw on earth did you get in there?" Tess and Ellie moved into the adjacent museum, passing Joel, who was a tool bench, either cleaning or tinkering with his gun.

Neither Tess nor TJ paid him any mind.

Maeve followed Ellie and Tess.

"I...had my ways. Anyway, one of those – what you call Runners — bit me. And that was that."

Tess nodded. "I see. Were you with Marlene when it happened?"

"No," Maeve said before Ellie could. "We went to her for help after."

"Knowing her, I'm surprised she didn't shoot you," TJ remarked, joining the conversation, sifting through the desk near the garage door.

The sisters laughed uncomfortably. "She almost did."

"So what about you, Maeve?" Tess inquired, directing her attention to the older girl.

"Oh, no. I haven't been bitten. I came close, but Jordan, my boyfriend, saved my ass. We were also in the mall; he tried being romantic, gave me a bracelet, which was really sweet, but then the infected came at us like a flood. I'm honestly still surprised we got out unscathed."

"It must've been scary experiencing that," Tess commented and Maeve hummed in agreement. "Joel? How are we doing?"
"Good," the older man trudged into the room and passed them. "I found some ammo."

"Very nice. And you, TJ?"

"Not much luck on my end, just what I found at the office building." The boy said, and as if he suddenly remembered, he began to count the round in the revolver he had. He placed the bullets into the chamber, clicking it back into place once he was done.

"We should move ahead," Joel suggested, maneuvering around a falled shelf that had a vase perched on top.

The second floor caved-in, looking as if the wood turned liquid. It smelled like mildew and water damage. So, if she had to make an educated guess, water damaged the upper floor and caused the cave-in. The board had simply given away, but some of the floor had warped into a downward curve. It probably didn't help that maintenance stopped.

"Behind you," TJ said, glancing at the three females before following Joel up.

Maeve rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. How brooding of him. It was like he was a mini Joel, with blond hair. She glanced between Tess and Ellie, her eyelids heavy. Man, she was so exhausted. She wanted to sit and take an hour to recuperate.

She stepped forward when she noticed Ellie trip over a stray piece of wood. The smaller girl collided with the fallen shelf, inadvertently sending the vase tumbling to the floor. The sound of shattering clay reverberated off the walls. Everyone froze.

"Ow, shit! Sorry, sorry! That was me!"

"Tess," Joel said in a tone of annoyance. His voice had been muffled by him being on the second floor.

"Sorry!" Ellie apologized again, regaining her balance with Maeve's assistance.

"Are you okay?" Maeve asked.

"Yep! I'm as cool as a cucumber." She gave her a thumbs up.

"C'mon, you two. Stay close to me." Tess softly instructed, and they began to ascend to the second floor.

"Oof!" Maeve bumped into the narrow door frame of the unruined display room. "What is this place, exactly?"

She knew it was a museum, but she was curious about the type of museum it was. She observed the mannequins positioned next to the dusty displays, dressed in Confederate uniforms, which she had learned during school. BUt it didn't quite look Confederate. It was like one of the museum staff members had fun on outbreak day and gave the mannequin leather pants and tri-pointed pirate hat. Someone wanted to make a mark.

"This museum is old," Tess remarked, taking in her surroundings. "Some of these things are hundreds of years old."

"That's amazing."

"Hey, Maeve, check it!" Ellie jumped to her side, shoving something into her hands.

"What's this?" Maeve's expression twisted as she examined the peculiar item: a brooch. It was pretty with an ivory side profile of a woman. Pieces of the face were chipped. Delicate metal wrapped around the ivory like tiny vines, shimmering in copper or rust. Maybe it was intended to look like that. Fashion used to be weird.

"I don't know, but I found it. Pretty neat, right?" Ellie then walked away.

"Yeah." Maeve chuckled and placed the brooch on the closest cabinet display, and then followed after Ellie.

"The hall's blocked," TJ informed as he surveyed the hallway, clearly frustrated. "How're we supposed to get past this mess?"

"I'll figure a way out for us," Joel answered, beginning to search the area.

After some more digging through the 'old world' museum, Maeve succeeded in uncovering a few valuable items. She found a pair of scissors, some cloth wrap, a couple rolls of duct tape, and a bottle of alcohol, which was surprisingly still sealed and full.

I need to keep these safe! Maeve packed her newly discovered supplies into her bag. She could hand them over to Joel or Tess later. Definitely not TJ. Her pride wouldn't allow her to see him as a worthy recipient of supplies. Plue, he'd been nothing short of a jerk to her.

Call it being petty.

It made her miss Jordan.

"Hey, over here! I think I found a way for us to get through," Joel shouted to everyone, standing near a doorway completely blocked by debris, with a massive wooden beam holding it all in place.

The wood creaked and the debris shifted as Joel lifted the beam, creating a small opening through the rubble.

"Alright, be careful," Joel warned, straining against the weight of the debris.

Tess crouched and began to crawl through. Dust and tiny bits of plaster, along with splintered wood, sprinkled around her.

"Ellie, you go first." Maeve urged her sister, giving her a gentle nudge.

"But—"

"Just go."

"O–okay..." Ellie replied, getting down to start crawling through the narrow path.

Maeve was already kneeling, ready to follow, when the beam suddenly cracked loudly.

"Shit...sonof—"

"Watch it!"

Maeve was abruptly pulled back as just the debris collapsed, causing parts of the ceiling to cave in as well. TJ leaped over her, shielding her from the larger pieces of the ceiling. Fortunately, the debris fell around them rather than on them.

"Oof..." Maeve as she and TJ sat up. She waved away the dust particles that danced in the air. She looked at TJ. "Thank you."

"Sure." TJ grunted and settled back on his knees.

The darkness enveloped them, only with a faint glimmer of light remaining. It must've gone out when the beam collapsed. As they regrouped, the guys switched on their flashlights.

"Ellie?!" Maeve crawled toward the doorway and caught sight of Ellie and Tess.
"I'm okay! Are you okay?"
"Never better," Maeve replied with an upbeat tone.

"Damn it—this crap is blocking our way," TJ growled, tugging at the some debris but struggling to clear it from the door.

"Forget it," Joel told him. "Tess?"

"We're alright!" the woman responded, her voice rattled from the collapse.

Joel grumbled in frustration, glaring at the obstructed exit. He wiped his mouth and fell into contemplation. "We'll find a way around to you—"

The screeching of the infected cut him off. Not just screeching, but also clicking.

"Look, they're here!" Ellie shouted in fear.

"Run. Run!"

The females rushed out of Maeve's sight and her heart did a series of flips when the Clickers stumbled after them.

"Ellie!" Maeve yelled out but she silenced herself.

"C'mon, let's get out of here." Joel crouched through the rubble and debris and led them into the hall.

The way they went was on the other side of the rubble-filled doorway.

Joel quickly led them away to the side of the hall as a Clicker stumbled about a display room with a fake horse and carriage.

Maeve bit her lip. It looked like those things were in there with them. She wanted to sigh. They couldn't catch a break, could they?

TJ nudged Maeve to move forward to follow Joel down the hall. A Clicker was dead ahead, awkwardly pacing in a circle rotation near double doors at the end of the hall, which seemed to be their only exit. She could hear Joel's jaw clench. She found it odd that she heard that, but passed off as her nerves.

Without a spoken plan, TJ stealthily approached the Clicker, quickly drawing his hunter's knife. He plunged the knife into the infected temple, effectively killing it. He lowered the body to the floor, so the sounding of it falling wouldn't attract the others.

"Well done, kid," Joel commended him quietly before guiding them into the stairwell, away from the danger.

In the stairwell, there weren't signs of infected, and to be prepared for any more surprises, TJ picked up a nearby chair–it was one of those elegant velvet cushioned arm chairs–and shut the door as quietly as he could and wedged the chair under the handles. He shook the chair slightly, ensuring that it'd remain in place even if someone tried to force the door open from the other side. At first, she thought it was ridiculous, then she saw the logic behind it. Better to stall any infected while they made their escape.

The guys stood up, and Maeve followed suit, albeit hesitantly.

"What now?" she asked, uncertain about their next move.

"Now we find Tess and your sister," TJ replied as Joel started to ascend the stairs.

Locating Ellie and Tess was the right course of action. Her mind lingered on the possibility of those Clickers taking them out, but she was confident Tess was cleverer than the infected. As she climbed the stairs, she could almost hear Tess's voice in her head. Clickers could be avoided; even if they were on someone's trail, all they needed to do was stay quiet and hide.

"Grah!" A shout echoed through the air as the three reached the top floor, prompting them to immediately drop into a crouch.

An infected pounded fiercely on a closed door at the end of the hallway. Its hands were covered in blood, as was its face. Maeve couldn't help but recoil as the infected began to violently slam its head against the door, the chipped paint turning crimson with its blood and flesh.

Holy hell...her nose wrinkled as a headache started to form just from watching the infected inflict pain upon itself.

"Stay back. I'll handle this," Joel muttered and quietly approached the fungal being, moving swiftly to put it in a chokehold.

The runner screamed and scratched at Joel's arms, but the man swiftly snapped its neck before it could pierce his skin.

"Damn, Joel..." TJ exhaled as the man unceremoniously tossed the body aside with a heavy thud.

A sudden shout made the three of them tense up. It came from the other side of the door, the very door that the infected had been trying to break through.

"Step back, you two," Joel instructed, positioning himself in front of the door before delivering a powerful front kick that easily forced it open. The force of the kick splintered the door and caused the wood to crack and splinter around the knob.

Strong kick...Maeve was briefly in awe.

"TESS!"

A runner had her pinned against a decorative side table, and she fought against its overwhelming strength. Yet, in the midst of the struggle, Tess somehow managed to gain the upper hand before either Joel or TJ could step in to help. She threw the infected off balance, causing it to fall to the floor, and then she bludgeoned it to death with a piece of plywood. THe noise it made during the final blow made Maeve feel a bit nauseous.

"Are you alright?" TJ rushed to her side.

"I'm fine," Tess gasped, letting the now shattered piece of wood fall from her hands.

"Guys, get in here!"

"The girl!"

"Ellie!" Maeve shouted, drawing her switchblade just as a few infected charged into the room.

"Eat this!" She watched as Ellie struck a runner in the head with a bottle.

She felt a surge of pride in her before she had to sidestep an infected coming at her. The runner swung its arm at her, growling and gasping.

"Stupid thing!" A bottle to the face threw the infected off guard, fiving Maeve the opportunity to stab its jugular. The body collapsed, and she rushed over to Ellie.

"Are you okay?!" She examined Ellie for any injuries.

"I'm fine, I'm fine – watch out!"

A loud pop entered the room. Her ears immediately rang. As she turned, she saw a runner that'd charged at them during their short exchange had been shot. Blood and brain matter oozed from its temple. The body thudded to the ground.

Ew...

"Stay focused!" TJ chided them and went to turn, only for a runner to appear, and whack his gun from his hands, all while tackling him. He barely had time to react.

"TJ!" Maeve yelled as he was swarmed by the infected. She hurried to help him, her knife poised. Clenching her teeth, she leaped onto the runner's back, successfully capturing its fierce attention. "Die!" she grunted, driving her blade into its throat. Blood gushed from the wound instantly. She pulled her knife free and stabbed its neck repeatedly until its life force drained away, its body going slump and then falling.

TJ's expression was unreadable as he looked at the bleeding body and then at Maeve. "Thanks."

"Y-yeah..." she replied, trailing off. She looked at her hands. At the blood on them. Glistening the light of the rising sun. It stunned her. The violence she just had.

"Alright," Joel's voice rang out from a partitioned area of the room. "I think that's all of them. Everyone okay? Clean?"

"I'm clean," TJ answered after a brief moment of checking himself and picking up his dropped revolver.

"Mae?" Ellie approached her sister, noticing her unusual silence.

"Yeah?" Maeve responded, still a bit dazed as she gazed at the lifeless runner.

"C'mon, let's go."

She snapped out of her daze, wiped her knife on the sleeve of a nearby mannequin before stowing it away.

"You alright?" TJ suddenly asked her.

"Fine."

"You sure? You look kind of–"

"I said I'm fine." Maeve snapped at him, brushing by him without another word.