Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It doesn’t feel like waking up.

Avid was no stranger to sleep paralysis. It haunted him, as a child. Lying in bed, unmoving, a shadow watching him and he couldn’t see it but knowing with dreadful certainty that it was what had attacked him.

It felt a lot like that. Locked in place, only his eyes open, looking towards a cold stone wall.

The first feeling was confusion. The episodes had stopped. They had slept, less and less as the land twisted more and more, quick naps caught on floating platforms while two stood watch. Under his cheek he felt cold stone, not the warm body of one of the others, piling together for warmth and safety.

But of course, he shouldn’t feel that.

He was dead. Dead people didn’t have sleep paralysis. Dead people didn’t feel feeling slowly deep back into their limbs, feel the chill of the stone.

Avid grew more certain when he saw him. Legundo. Half stumbling into view, eyes snapping to him, falling to his knees next to him.

Legundo was dead. He was dead, and Avid had known he was dead too when Legundo stopped speaking back. Legundo had fought next to him, leading the charge. If Legundo had even a breath left, the other would’ve kept fighting to save one more person.

“Avid.” Legundo said, low and hoarse. “Avid. Get back up, get back up-“

He pats Avid. A familiar pattern, checking for wounds, patting for spots where blood had seeped. Legundo reached up for a pouch slung across his torso that was- no longer there.

Avid blinked.

Wait. Where was Legundo’s hazard suit? His pouch of medicine, larger than the first aid supplies everyone else carried.

Instead he wore an outfit like. Like.

The before.

Hands shifted underneath him, and Avid shouldn’t be feeling this but he did, he felt the warmth of Legundo’s hands, the way the other pulled him, Avid letting himself be pulled into a sitting position.

“You’re here?” Avid said, staring at the other. Legundo nodded once, grim, eyes tracing Avid.

“Are you wounded?” Even as he said it, he’s still examining him, Avid obediently tilting his head and letting himself be examined even as he examines Legundo back.

The other looks normal. No dried blood splatters on their clothes, clothes that they had long since tossed into packs, offering no protection against claws and blackened teeth. But not injured.

“My back-“ Avid paused. His back felt fine. Minutes ago, it had felt like fire tracing claws down his spine. Now? It felt perfectly normal. “I’m fine. I think.”

“Taneesha.” Legundo breathed, already shifting to the next priority. He staggered to his feet, hands scraping over the stones. Turning them red. “Taneesha! TANEESHA!”

Avid lunged forward, pulling him back. “She’s gone!” He yelled. He’s already scanning the small room, waiting for the growls of something disturbed.

“She was- she was so close to me.” Legundo was shaking, pulling at his arms. “I need to look, she was so close.”

“She stopped speaking soon after you did.” Avid said. Or maybe that was him who was shaking.

Remembering the fall. Landing on the cliff. Legundo and Taneesha yelling his name, the mutual horror when they realized all of them were too weak to stand.

They had talked, back and forth.

Until Legundo stopped.

Until Taneesha stopped.

Until Avid watched the sun rose, feeling his last few seconds tick away in quiet.

“I need to look.” Legundo said, voice hoarse as his hands rested on Avid. “I need to look. We don’t leave anyone behind.”

She’s dead, Avid doesn’t say. Instead, he releases Legundo, sagging back to the floor. Moving felt too hard.

He watches the hole in the floor. Red water had filled it, he thought it was blood. A pool. Mushrooms had ringed it, not those mushrooms but- red. White speckled caps. Not the same but he still feels a shudder of revulsion. The memory slots back into place.

It all felt real. The stone under his hands, even as he touched it again and again, the trick Viking had taught him for centering himself again. It all felt real.

Minutes ago, he could swear he was bleeding out as the sun rose on the hospital.

And yet, now he sat here, in a dark cave. Perfectly okay.

A soft cough. Legundo approached, settling next to him. “She’s not here.” He rubs his chin. “I checked. She should’ve been just paces away.”

“Maybe it was just a dream. Maybe it was just all a weird awful dream.” Avid said, beginning to tug on a lock of hair, harder and then again-

Legundo taps his hand and automatically, Avid let go. “A dream could not be shared like that.” He said, gazing at the empty pool. The mushrooms that had ringed it had withered. “One cannot meet people you had never met before.”

“You’re the one who said that stuff like that can’t be real. Where’s the science to it?” Avid insisted, voice rising.

“And yet, it happened. There was science to it, and yet.” Legundo reached up, patting at his chest. “I’ve seen war before. I wouldn’t imagine it like that, I have faces I would find in those dreams. I dreamed of you in some of them.”

Avid reached over, pressing his hand to Legundo’s on the floor, let them twist their hand until it clasped around his wrist, taking a pulse that was still there. Still beating.

“That was no dream.” Legundo repeated. Avid looked back to the pool.

This world had felt like a dream. They had woken up on the edge of a different village. Skeptical of the odd fungi nearby, convinced they were kidnapped. He was yelling about something- someone attacking them? Legundo had been frustrated, certain they had been sleepwalking or spirited away by someone for more mundane reasons.

“I don’t think I want to be here anymore.” He said, softly.

Why had they come here? Something about a cure. Cure for something. He remembered them talking about that, Legundo talking to Woocie when they stumbled into the village and found strangers.

But weeks and weeks had blurred the memory, buried it under things shelved away as the days became about one more step, one more chest.

After the radio station, both of them saw a far different world. He had gone to sleep that night convinced he’d wake up here in this cave. He never did. When the others heard their story, they had taken it for fact but shared there were no other villages nearby.

It was as if this world had been a dream. But now they were back.

It couldn’t be real. But it felt real. It felt real how Legundo finally rose and Avid fell in a half step behind them, Legundo leading with his strength and Avid just behind, the faster of the two if things went wrong and someone had to lead the monsters away.

They break out of what had to be a crypt and Legundo sped up, Avid speeding up as well. “Keep a watch on the trees.” Legundo instructed. “Watch for shadows first, then movement.”

“It’s cloudy here.” Avid said, looking up. There wasn’t any sun. He missed it. It felt like a missing tooth because he had seen it rise, and yet, here, clouds obscured it. It didn’t line up, another puzzle piece off center.

“I think it’s always like that.” Legundo said, and Avid knows without looking his brow is furrowed. “I think- I think I remember the way. Back to our town.”

“The way to the… town. The town.” Avid repeated, the words becoming more solid. There was a town. He had friends here. Probably? Maybe? He wasn’t sure of anything anymore.

“We’ll go to the town. Stay sharp. Buildings are the greatest danger.” Legundo commanded. Avid nodded, automatically ticking off inventory as they walked through the trees.

“Maybe we shouldn’t go then.” Avid said, remember how the hospital had felt like a suffocating box, nowhere to run- quiet. Quiet. That was probably a dream.

“It’s- I don’t remember what we were doing beforehand, but we left supplies there. And a place to rest.” Legundo said. “We need both of those right now.”

Avid nodded. Legundo knew best when it came to scouting, so he focused on what he could do. A crossbow, how long had it been since he had used a crossbow? Had he ever? Slung across his back. A knife, made of silver more likely, and Avid made a note to forge an iron one soon. An axe, stone. His armor and gas mask was gone and he felt oddly naked without it.

A place to rest sounded really nice. Even if half of him insisted it had been a dream, he still felt exhausted. Like he hadn’t slept a wink. A restless energy kept him going, kept his mind on this world.

“The air is so fresh here. It’s incredible.” Avid remarked. He took a deep sniff. And then another. Rotting leaves, wet soil. Spruce tree. No wet smell of rot, mushrooms, and blood. No matter how much he scanned the trunks, there were no signs of graying wood, crumbling rot, the caps of mushrooms.

Brock would’ve loved this-

Stop that thought.

“The trees are healthy as well.” Legundo said, words softening. He almost seems reluctant to break into the open field, draw closer to the walls. The very familiar walls looming ahead.

Oakhurst. He hadn’t thought the name in so long. But it jumps right to mind as he follows Legundo through the narrow gates.

”Where have you lot been?”

Avid jumps a foot in the air, taking a smooth step behind Legundo as the other spins, one arm going out to tuck Avid behind him.

Cleo. The name jumped to mind when he saw the first hair, the farmer stalking towards them. Behind her stands Scott and Drift. Drift is beaming, hurrying forward as worry falls from her face. Scott looks nothing but amused.

The names feel cobwebbed, sliding back into his mind to click back into place after a beat.

He and Legundo had talked about them in the beginning, names traded like a secret. Trying to reinforce the story, like they could wake up if they could just find the right name. Before he fell asleep, he remembered their faces, traced the details, wondering if he had made them up.

He’d remembered Cleo’s face wrong, her eyes were a different color. He thought Scott uglier, Avid thought with a trace of bemusement. He felt like he should be annoyed seeing Scott, and he’s not quite sure why. Weeks in the apocalypse would do that to you!

“We thought you had gone off and killed Legundo.” Scott remarked. Avid stared at him, and the other’s face twisted slightly, like a joke that had landed flat.

Avid really hoped it wasn’t a joke. He had peaked already with that pun he had made with brains that had made Viking left until he cried. He wasn’t quite sure he had capacity for humor after that, he might have used it all up.

“We’re both still alive.” Legundo said flatly, and Avid thanked everything that it looked like it wasn’t a joke or reference only he had forgotten.

“You two just disappeared on us!” Cleo said, throwing her hands up. “We were looking for you! What were we supposed to think, out looking?”

“We didn’t go that far.” Avid mumbled. That walk had been nothing. Practically a light stroll. Far was trudging the entire day. The others could’ve found them, easy.

“Have you seen Taneesha when you were searching?” Legundo shifted forward, voice searching. Cleo’s face twitched. “Woocie? Branzy?”

Avid felt his heart rattle at the confusion in the three. Then drop. Legundo slumped, drawing his eyes back. Fix that. “Right. Right. We can just see about sleeping first and then swing around.” Avid said, reaching out to nudge Legundo, offering a plan.

He knows Legundo will never be content until he has searched the area, confirmed the others had been gone. He had become the shepherd to their flock, or more like the sheep dog. Keeping them together, moving, alive.

He's not sure if Legundo will ever be satisfied again, but Avid is here. Avid will search.

Because he’s not sure he’ll ever be content until he finds them again.

Legundo pauses for a second, before sipping his head ever so slightly. Accepting the plan. “Right then. To sleep.” He spins away, heading to one building among others.

It was odd. To see a village. Walls uncontaminated, no distant growls or creaks as something dragged itself over the floor. Avid’s eyes darted side to side, and he caught how Cleo hurried after them, Scott drifting away.

“Wait, you can’t just walk away and not answer our questions.” Cleo said, following behind. “You were missing for three days, what were you doing out there?”

“Only three days?” Legundo breaths and Avid feels a wet, hysterical giggle escape. Cleo actually takes a half step back. Only three days? It felt like it had been years, even if it was really only weeks.

They had counted the time, best they could. Squid marked down every sunrise on a stick he faithfully carried.

“We were really worried. You didn’t leave any notice where you were going and I know you were having a hard time lately, Avid.” Drift says, speeding up so she was a bit closer. “I was worried you two had gotten trapped in a ruin somewhere. But I couldn’t find any traces of your path.”

“I had a bet that your paranoia caused you to snap and kill Legundo. Or for him to finally kill you and put the rest of us out of our misery.” Scott said, examining his nails. He keeps pace oddly easily, looking like he’s sauntering to Cleo and Drift’s jog.

“No one dies on my watch.” Legundo said, firm. Avid nodded, skittering just a little closer. Stupid, foolish, better to stay a few feet away so the first swing didn’t get you too. But he’s weak and Legundo allows it.

“It felt so much longer.” Drift looked just as she remembered her. He remembered her the best, even as their memories had grown faded and worn. She smiled at him and Avid tried to smile back.

“That still doesn’t answer my question.” Cleo said. “Where did you go? We can’t have people up and vanishing for three days and then just walking back into town like it doesn’t matter.”

“I’m not even sure where we went, or how we got back.” Legundo said thoughtfully. Avid takes an instinctive half step as Legundo stops, hovering by his shoulder. Immediately, he checks where the other’s looking, looking for movement, for blood.

Legundo was staring at a building, eyes thoughtful and a bit-

Oh. The clinic. It felt like it had been years since he had seen that building.

“Those are awful.” Avid said, staring at Legundo’s house. He had liked it, he thought, the clinic. He wasn’t sure why. Windows? Why have those? Why was it on the ground? Why so much vegetation nearby? At least use stone, slower to turn than wood which the mycelium threads had gobbled up so happily.

“We’ll fix it.” Legundo said, turning away and Avid was already following, his axe in hand. One pace behind, primed to run if necessary.

“Is no one else finding this bizarre?” He heard Scott say behind them. Cleo lets out a wordless sound of frustration but Avid’s world has narrowed again, focused on keeping watch as the one in the back.

He’s good at keeping watch. He’s great at it. It was one of the few things Avid was the best at in their group. If only, Viking had joked, he had the sense to not immediately stick his head in the shaking bushes.

He keeps pace, relaxing slightly as they leave walls for trees with more room to run.

Silence trails them like a ghost.

“Do you think the other four go out?” Avid said. Legundo rolls his shoulders, examining the trees they passed.

“The extraction codes were real enough.” He said. “If they managed the generator and got up to the roof in time, I don’t see why not.”

“Good, good.” Avid sighs, feeling a knot release. At least some of them would get out. Alive. Alive? What did life even mean anymore? Was he alive?

When Legundo picks a tree, Avid drifts to one nearby, his axe falling into his hands.

He drove the thoughts from his head, driving them into the chopping, wood flying away. The solid thunk, the shudder under his hands, the smell of tree sap. It didn’t feel more real than it had felt there.

Legundo gave you a goal, he told himself. Focus. Sort. How many things can you smell? Tree sap. Grass. Spruce. How many things can you hear? Legundo chopping. The rattle of gravel. Footsteps-

Steps- crunching, shifting, closer-

Drift screams, staggering back as the axe graze their throat. The scream startles him, jars him, they didn’t scream-

“Why were you sneaking up on me?!” Avid said, his voice pitching up. Drift stares at him, one hand pressed to her throat.

“I didn’t! I was so loud walking up!” She protested. Avid shakes his head, his hands beginning to shake around his axe.

“You don’t do that. I could’ve hit you.” He insists. Drift pauses for a moment, shaking herself off and eyeing Avid.

“Right, it’s fine. It’s fine. I'll try not to do it again.” Her tone is still confused and he can’t quite understand why. Drift raises her hands, palms out as she takes a step closer. “I was just worried. You guys disappeared for three days and the moment you got back to town, you headed back out to the woods again.”

“Legundo needed wood for his windows.” Avid said, shrugging. He turns back, begins sifting through the chunks. They’d need good, firm hardwood for this. They’d need more iron bars. The clinic was partially barred, but Taneesha had taught them how to layer it, make it so light could get it but nothing else, bars interwoven. Back before it became clear that the best choice was to pick up and run.

“He didn’t say he needed wood for his windows?” Drift said, voice lilting. Avid tossed another chunk to the side.

“They’re a problem.” He said. He frowns, staring off in the distance. They were going to need to fix their windows too, right? He hadn’t even looked at his house, not wanting to split too far from Legs. “Think we can find some birch for ours? Dunno if there’s much around here, but it grew around where me and Elle grew up, and she used to talk about stripping the bark and wearing it like a cape.”

Another chunk, set aside this time. It was a promising one, dense and hard to the touch. No flaky business here!

The soft clunk of wood being sorted. The rattle of leaves. “Drift?” Avid said, looking back for the answer.

“Elle?” Drift said, and their face is twisted in confusion. “You’ve never mentioned an Elle.”

“My partner.” Avid repeated, gazing up at Drift through his curls. “I told you about her.”

“You didn’t really talk about her other than mentioning you had one.” Drift looks oddly bemused. Avid feels his mind go blank.

“No, I’ve definitely talked about her.” He insisted. He had talked about Elle all the time. The way she smiled, how good she was at fighting. “It’s all the time really.”

A soft cough behind him, Avid tensing and then relaxing as he realizes it’s Legundo marking that he’s there, that it’s a living person behind, before the other approaches, sticks snapping under his boots.

“It was more with Branzy.” He said, and Avid blinks. Oh. Hm. He had… forgotten, the memory slotting back into the misty regions that had grown shadowed. He had not talked much about Elle, not since he had stumbled away from her body, shaking. He never talked about it in Oakhurst.

“He was good to talk to.” Avid said, voice lilting with fondness.

“He was good for you to talk to.” Legundo agreed. Avid hummed, tossing back the next piece of wood.

It was Branzy that had dug into his mention of Elle, had come to him wanting to share stories of his own missing partner.

“All the other people here are lone wolves, ya know?” He had said. “We’re the only ones missing our other half. Nice to talk to someone who gets the feeling.”

He hadn’t talked at first, avoiding as he could. But there was only so much to talk about, once you got through the horror and the gore and things became a bizarre routine and Avid-

Didn’t want Elle to be forgotten after death.

And as the days went by, it had become easier. To remember the way she had smiled, how she braided her hair when she was thinking, kept fidgeting with her bolts, hands littered in scars where a fidget had gone wrong.

To use the past tense, to think of the good, until the grief never left but became more… settled. Like a blanket draped around his shoulders, just there, and not a shroud smothering the breath from his lungs.

“I wish we got to meet Clownpierce.” Branzy had always seemed so certain that the other hadn’t died, only gone missing in the chaos. That the other was likely building a throne out of flesh or something, ringmaster of the new world.

He hoped they found him.

“Clownpierce.” Drift repeated. Avid almost opened his mouth to say that Branzy talked about him before, remembering after a moment Drift wouldn’t know.

“I think we got enough.” Legundo said, giving him a way out. He had his own wood, tucked under one arm. Avid nodded, lifting up his own pile. “Pretty sure I won this contest.”

“You always win.” Avid grumbles. He wasn’t sure how, but the other could always pick the best wood for blockades. Firm, unyielding, dry, and dense. “But it’ll be me getting the iron.”

Tomorrow, he decides, trailing after Legundo. They’d pack for it, they’d need to make sure they had enough weapons and torches, he had had enough of the dark, and definitely some-

His stomach rumbled.

Avid blushed. Food.

“I have some here.” Drift said, jumping to help, pulling out a big slab of-

Avid’s stomach turned. Without seeing, he knew Legundo took a half step back.

“You have anything else?” He said, looking away, trying to focus on Legundo, even as his stomach began to twist, insisting there was no occupancy, nope, no room free. “A-actually, maybe I’ll try fasting instead. I’ve heard it’s healthy.”

“I think I have berries back at the clinic.” Legundo said, and his voice is distant. “I think I remember gathering some. They should be fresh enough.”

Drift’s eyes are nothing but sympathetic. “Having an off food day again?” She said, and he was relieved to see her tuck the meat away.

“Close enough.” Avid said, and his smile feels as cracked as porcelain. He hadn’t had an off food day since the nightmare started, and the idea feels so long ago.

That had been one upside, of the whole awful thing. He had woken up, clean and new. Nothing until the bandages but skin. It was incredible. It was one of the things that made him treat the world as a dream, throwing himself head first into danger before realizing the consequences were very real.

He felt like a baby relearning how the world worked.

People wanted to eat. People felt hungry. People could eat more than a few bites. There was flavor to food, a good one. It shouldn’t hurt to turn your head, it shouldn’t feel like an iron band pressed on your chest when you take a breath. Sleep came easy. It shouldn’t be exhausting walking for more than a hundred steps.

But meat, Avid swallowed hard.

They ate some of it, early on. Raided from chests, livestock domestic or in the wild, likely stumbled away from rotting farms, that was still healthy.

But eventually, it became less and less common to find healthy animals, and more and more common finding animals whose meat already glistened green, stink with rot. The zombies attacked anything living nearby, and slowly it whittled down what they found.

No one had an appetite for it, even then.

Not with the amount of chests filled with all too human entrails, the distinct way the iron would feel the air, how they still smelled warm. He had thrown up, when he destroyed a mushroom and it splattered into meat on the ground.

It still pulsed. They could swear it.

“Board up the windows, eat, and sleep.” Legundo declared, pulling Avid from his memories. The other was looking back at him, gaze all too knowing. “That’ll be our plan.”

Drift giggled, an unsure little sound. “Avid, did you infect Legs with your fear of vampires?” She said. “Scared a bat will come through your window?”

Avid paused, looking back at Drift. “Vampires?” He echoed, voice thin. The wood was clearly to defend against creatures that would throw themselves against windows, to block out the awful noises. “Who would care about vampires?”

Vampires, what was that about again? Avid cast his mind back, mind feeling a million miles away.

Her weak smile faded away. Replaced with concern. “But you talked about them all the time. That we should be protecting ourselves from them.”

Legundo turns his head back, voice grave. Both gaze at Drift, eyes in shadows. “There are far worse things in the dark to be afraid of.”

Chapter Text

Drift was a bit ashamed to admit it had actually taken her a bit of time to actually start searching for Avid and Legs.

Everyone was constantly flitting in and out of the village. People who kept mentioning they were pretty sure they just saw them, and almost a full day went by before people started connecting that maybe they saw wrong.

Martyn had come to her, in that little sideways apology where he refused to actually admit fault, sharing he had actually mixed up Owen for Avid. By then, Drift was well and truly nervous.

She knew after the first day something was wrong. Avid was paranoid and loud and he was incapable of not gaining attention, whether it was with squabbling with Scott or arguing about vampires.

But more than that.

Avid never forgot to come back home.

He hated staying out at night. He did it only a handful of times, but every time, he jittered, shifting back and forth. Avid never would’ve left all night. He wouldn’t have left without coming back to check on her.

Drift got the sense sometimes he was worried about leaving her alone. Sometimes, he looked at her like he was worried she’d disappear, shatter into glass if he looked away.

When they connected Legundo was gone too? That was when concern became louder.

Drift was pretty sure Scott noticed as well, keeping quiet for his own amusement. It was so hard, gauging his lines sometimes. How easily his sense of humor slipped into casual malice and then back so quickly she couldn’t say whether he thought it a joke or was happy Avid was gone.

They scoured the nearby trails, but even with all her experience, Drift couldn’t pick up any tracks. Time or bad luck had worn things away and it didn’t help everyone was in and out of the nearby woods.

The longer that they went without any sign of them, the more Drift grew worried.

There were so many ways to go missing in the world and she had seen or heard of the worst of them. Drift didn’t believe in vampires but she did believe in pitfalls in the woods, in how many crumbling ruins were around.

She hated the other theory, that maybe they had killed each other or Legundo got made and finally killed Avid or Avid went crazy and killed Legundo. A few people found it funny but it just made her sick.

Neither of them would do something like that. It wasn’t in their nature.

But that didn’t replace the fact that they had no idea where the others were. Personally, Drift found herself consumed with thoughts about the tombs.

They hadn’t come across one that was unsafe yet, but who knew if that would continue to be the case? After all, it’s not like they had ever been trapped like this before. Old ruins weren’t necessarily structurally sound.

She couldn’t get the thought out of her mind. Attacked by wild animals. Fell through rotten floorboards. Slipped and crushed by rock.

And then the two just… walked back into town. Normal and whole.

Except for their eyes.

Drift had meant many people as detectives. She had seen people who lived through nightmares, gazed into eyes and knew they had killed someone.

And yet, neither of them actually answer. Suddenly, it was like she was on the outside looking in at two seasoned people who had known each other their entire lives.

After Avid had looked at her, threw everything she thought she knew in her face….

“I think the term is a sixpence for your thoughts?”

And that’s what led her out here, chopping wood to try and burn out the restless energy in her limbs, kept company only by Scott who had followed her trail in the forest after Cleo stormed away from him back in town.

“Most people say a penny. And you can have them for free. I’m just. Worried.” Drift rubbed her arms, looking out where she saw Avid and Legundo walk. She lifted the axe, swinging it down hard.

“You can say that. I’m more concerned he might infect Legundo with his talk about me being a vampire.” Scott didn’t even pretend he was going to chop trees, leaning against a trunk with an air as if he was above such menial labor.

“See, that’s the thing. I asked them about it earlier.” The moment kept replaying in her head. “And Avid looked at me like I was crazy. He and Legundo didn’t even seem to know what I was talking about. It was like the whole thing was just completely dropped.”

That was the part she kept skipping back to. The wide eyed, confusion laced look on Avid’s face. Like he hadn’t even thought about it, was confused she even brought it up.

“Isn’t that a good thing, in the end? He finally lets go of the craziness?” Scott said, an odd glitter to his eyes that Drift couldn’t help but notice.

She let the axe drop into the stump with a solid thunk, taking out her worry on the poor tree. “Look, I’m not going to pretend like I wasn’t worried for him.” Because she was. He had been so on edge and paranoid she was half convinced he might hurt himself. His conviction unsettled everyone. “But it’s really out of character for him to just. Drop the whole thing.”

Drift was a detective. She picked up on motivations. The bandages, always neatly and tightly wrapped. The stakes. The crossbow with silver tipped bolts. How he stayed in the house, insisting no one was invited in.

Avid had brushed off all the teasing, all the jokes, and even insults, meeting it with full conviction. He wasn’t the type to just drop it. He wouldn’t have suddenly let go like that.

“I just wonder what happened in those three days.” Drift mumbled. That’s what it all came back to. Those three days missing. Where had they gone?

That was the oddest part. They had never seen a trial over there. Nobody saw them walk out, nobody saw them walk back.

“Maybe. But I definitely prefer it. It was getting real old being accused all the time.”

“Ah shoot, I guess you aren’t the best person to complain to about this.” Drift said with a wince. Scott was an odd duck, but she wasn’t sure what he had done to receive the full force of Avid’s convictions.

“No, no, some offense taken. But I’m nice so I’ll let it go.” Scott pressed a finger tip to his chin. “He is so much less fun to tease now.”

“You shouldn’t have been teasing him anyways.” Drift said with a sigh. “You all complained about how loud and paranoid he was, and then you just kept poking him with a stick.”

“But that would be so much less fun.” Scott whined. Drift rolled her eyes.

Perhaps she shouldn't feel so bad about Avid being so suspicious of Scott all the time, not without how Scott kept waving a red cape in front of a bull.

“Are you going to stop savaging that tree?” Scott said, louder now. Drift jumped, looking at what she had done. She had just started wildly chopping as she thought, beginning to hack at the stump, awkwardly shaving away at the sides. It forced it into a pointed stump, surrounded by wood chips.

Drift felt herself flush, shaking her head. “Got a bit too deep in my thoughts about this.”

“Oh, I have an idea for something fun. Perhaps we should investigate together.” Scott said thoughtfully, tapping his chin. “I think it could be pretty fun to play detective.”

“I’m pretty sure it would require you to be able to play nice for more than five seconds.” Drift joked. She wasn’t sure Scott had the kind of temperament that put people to ease either. Made them trust him, yeah.

“Stilll, I think it could be fun. Just two buddies, playing detective.” Scott said, leaning forward. “C’mon, it would be really fun.”

“You just want to antagonize Avid.” Drift said. Scott smiles gaily, not even pretending innocence. “Fine, fine. Maybe it’ll be more fun this way.”

It would be nice to have someone helping her in this, acknowledging something was weird and different. That something didn't ring right. It’s not like it could get too awful. Maybe in the next couple of days, Avid would go back to normal. And Legundo would go back to normal too.

She spun, reaching up to fix her monocle with her free hand as she heard the sound of steps through the trees- Pearl approaching.

And then jerked back, a small gasp slipping free.

When had Scott gotten so close? He shifted back smoothly as Pearl approached, as if he hadn’t approached at all. Drift eyed him for a second before tossing it into the back of her mind with all her other idle observations.

Drift investigated. It’s what she did. She just needed to investigate this now too.

She looked down at the hacked at stump in front of her. Perhaps because the topic was close to mind, she couldn't help but think that it looked like a stake rising out of the ground.

They broke their fast quickly, feasting on sweet berries. Legundo felt his eyes slip close at the first bite, soaking in the taste of sugar.

Beautiful, wonderful sugar. He could trace the easy energy across his tongue, the wonderful promise of calories. So much better than the bitter, sour, or worse, combination of both taste that they had by the end, eating vegetables raw.

The closest they got to the hospital, the harder it became to find supplies and the worse the hordes got. Preparing their food fell to the wayside, more focus on eating as fast as possible.

Legundo sorts the berries mechanically, pushing over the larger portion to Avid’s side. Almost instantly, he’s met with Avid’s hand pushing part of his portion back.

“You’re bigger.” Avid told him, violet eyes fierce. “You need more.”

“I can run on less.” Legs argued. The military had him going on scraps at times, one time forcing them to more… unsavory means.

“That excuse doesn’t work as well now.” Avid said, nudging the berries closer. “Eaaaaat.”

Legundo sighs, knowing he won’t win this one. He shifts back part of the pile, Avid knocking back a berry he tries to slip into the other’s portion. They both wolf down their food, eyes darting to the windows in sync.

That will need to be the first fix.

The two rise in sync, both finishing their last bite at the same moment. Tools are pulled out, wood arrange, and Legundo settles beside the front door.

A soft whistle from Avid, Legundo’s shoulders relaxing when the warning comes.

Avid stepped up beside Legundo, facing outward towards the street as Legundo faced in, head on a swivel to monitor the road.

“What do you think about the boards I chopped?” Avid said. Legs hummed, thinking it over.

“Keep one window unblocked.” He said, and he can hear the rattle of wood as Avid starts arranging, sorting wood into piles with quick efficiency. He doesn't step away, instead settling back into a crouch to watch when he's finished.

One window unblocked- the boards would provide ample defense for a night, but Legs already found himself longing for their crude bunkers, carved out in stone.

They were less practical, with only two to dig. But in terms of safety, they far surpassed wooden houses, even ones with iron bars and windows boarded.

Avid pressed his head to Legundo’s chest, arms wrapping around him. Legundo held him back, one at settled on his head as he counted, watching the area, his back to a wall as Avid centered himself.

But for now, he focuses on the door. The hinges were the weakest point, and foolishly, he had arranged his door in a way that the hinges would swing out. He had half a mind to tear the whole thing out and simply rebuild it.

“We can get a few more pieces of iron.” Avid hummed. “Replace it with an iron door.”

“Quite the luxury.” Legundo joked back. Avid nodded, a bit more solemn.

It really was quite the luxury, in truth. They had been on the move for so long, racing ahead, abandoning a trail of roughshod homes and bunkers, that the thought of having a place to live? For longer than a few days? Of choosing to use iron on something so heavy and unhelpful as an iron door instead of conserving it for armor or weapons?

The thought would've been unthinkable. Iron doors were better for defense, but using valuable iron for something to stay in one place, a house they would leave in a heartbeat, was odd.

It wasn’t like they hadn’t considered settled down there. Dig somewhere deep below, down where the zombies couldn’t dig to reach. Bring seeds, light sources. Arrange a fish pond, when the discussions happened while fish get lived. Or build up high, over the ground.

Again and again, they discussed it. In the end, something pushed them forward, always forward.

But they couldn't leave now, could they? Legundo shifted a bit uneasy, and felt Avid shift to press his back against Legundo's, a silent pressure.

One breath. Two breaths. Legendo counted them off in his mind, anchoring himself in this moment, reminding himself that the other was breathing and alive and right here. The thought of not being able to simply up and leave was bizarre.

He let his mind drift to other thoughts, knowing Avid was watching

They’d need to stockpile more food. As far as he could tell, neither of them would be eating meat again any time soon. And not having enough made Legundo… antsy. Made him worry about whether Avid would have enough to eat, to stay strong.

Keeping their group running as long as they did took steep reserves to keep everyone moving and healing. Legundo redid the math, turning it over again and again. They needed a lot more for him to be comfortable with it. More than just berries. Wheat, bread, potatoes- the thought of a baked potato sounded delicious. It brought back the memory of sitting around a smoky fire, people hissing and juggling too hot potatoes.

“Maybe we can get that- the farming book.” Avid said. Legundo glanced at him. “You have that thoughtful wide eyed look that means you’re mentally crunching our food numbers again.”

“Got it in one, I’m afraid.” Legundo said, smile shading more towards real. It cast him mind back- he couldn’t really remember most of the books but he did remember the plant growth one. Perhaps because it was where his view on rationality had begun to slip, forced up against the unreal. “Are we sure we want to prioritize that over strength?”

“I think we’ve proven to be strong enough.” Avid pointed out. Legundo hummed. Not strong enough for his tastes, but Avid is nudging him before he can sink his teeth into that thought. “I dunno about you, I’d prefer access to food more.”

“We’ll see if we can arrange the trade.” He… thinks Sausage has it? Perhaps? His memory of some of it was unfortunately blurred. “But as for tonight-“

The plan settled into their mind. Avid’s gaze flickered, looking up. At the moon casting scarlet across the sky above him.

They shifted closer together, hackles raised. The red brought to mind spilled blood and they had seen quite enough of that.

“We need to go back.”

The act of getting supplies was slower than he preferred.

It was odd how little they now had to work with. The him of before was a bare fool. Random scraps and supplies, but barely anything truly a weapon, armor that was clearly barely worn.

What had he been thinking? He hadn’t even made any extra tools. Legundo passed off his extra iron and wood to Avid who scampered to the crafting bench, beginning to fiddle with it.

This would certainly not do. Without convenient bunker sources, they’d need to put together what they needed themselves. Legs sorted through the chests, mentally tallying what they had in his mind.

Not enough food. Not enough weapons. He made a mental note to keep an eye out and see whether he could scavenge materials for a gun. The crossbow was nice, but Legundo would feel far better with actual firepower.

Avid shifted back on his heels and Legundo rose to his feet, taking the cue. The door swings open without a sound, thanks to his work with the hinges.

And they were out into the night.

Quiet. It strikes him first. Most of the others must be asleep or out collecting their own resources. Or perhaps angry at them. Cleo had seemed frustrated earlier.

Legundo kept one arm ever so slightly raised, half angled to keep Avid behind him. He was hyper aware of the other’s breathing, how they shifted next to him. He found himself counting their inhales, tracing it for hyperventilation or the ragged pulse of injury.

And when it ticks up, he notices immediately.

“Zombies. In the woods.” Avid’s fingers flick, counting. Twenty. The motion goes by just slow enough for Legundo to catch. But then they speed up, fingers flicking as they map locations.

He nods to himself, thoughtfully. “How different they are.” They had to be different, otherwise Avid would be far more panicked now. Instead, the other is relaxed, casual as he counts, no sign of frantic nerves.

Avid laughs, soft. “Chief never believed us.” He said.

“The memory did seem a bit fantastical after week two.” Legundo agreed. It had seemed rather fantastical to talk of a world where zombies in the night were not a dangerous thing, but a mild inconvenience. Something to be dealt with, perhaps with even a wooden sword and not something requiring guns and armor.

A gun. He had to admit, he missed having one. Legs shifted on his feet.

Avid shifts. Ready to follow. Legundo raised a hand. “Do you need time?” He asked. The shifting, the fidgets. It had lingered since they had eaten.

“Not since that first week.” Avid said, reaching down to a stomach wound long gone. “At least now I know I wasn’t crazy.”

Legundo bumped his side. Avid sighed. “Okay, I’m not crazy.” He said. “You know, sometimes I can make a joke.”

“If I don’t get to be self sacrificial, you don’t get to call yourself crazy.” Legundo said drily. He didn't plan to hold only himself to that standard. “Any of us could and did make the same mistake.”

He had nearly been the one to go down second that day, feeling his heart stop when he raced towards the distant sound of screaming to see Avid on the ground, only half conscious, slumped just outside the fence. And the blood.

Instinct had overwhelmed memory carrying him through even as his feet faltered, mind confusing Avid with a battlefield long ago. He burned all the energy he had left, wildly yelling to draw the monster's attention, running as it began to stagger after him.

He thanks everything out there that the zombie broke attention to hunt the fish in the river instead of continuing after them. It wasn’t good, was worse with how Legundo quickly noticed the strikes becoming stronger, quicker, with everything it killed.

But it was better when he came back and saw Avid there, shaking and pale, but standing. But it was better than the other option, not when a few strikes left him limping, gasping as he ran like he hadn’t in months, training falling by the wayside as he left the war behind.

You could leave the war behind but sometimes it still finds you. And the ones you protect.

Avid hummed, bumping into Legundo’s side again. “We got better.” He said, violet eyes knowing. “Cut that out.”

“We did.” Much better. It was after when Avid revealed they and Viking had ventured into the building, finding valuable resources that helped saved lives later. When Avid heard the growling, he assumed it was the same as a zombie here.

But the ones there were so much stronger.

They got faster, quicker to react, stronger. By the end, Legundo could outrun a zombie for far longer.

It just didn't matter in the end.

“We could leave them.” Legundo hummed, but already he’s reaching for his supplies and Avid meets his hand with an iron dagger, already digging into another chest. The shifting has stopped the plan set.

Neither of them would be truly satisfied leaving the woods infested like this. It wasn’t the same, hopefully wasn’t the same, but- if it was, if it could be, Legundo was nipping the problem at the root this time.

Three goals in one. Destroy the zombies. Go back to the crypt.

(Find their friends).

They tear through the zombies like machines. It’s barely even a fight, and Legundo finds himself more and more on edge with each kill. They go down like ripping wet paper, barely a strike and they fall.

Even the skeletons, as jarring as they were, didn’t prove a challenge.

But, it’s a good enough distraction from the matter weighing on him.

Despite their search, they find not a sign of them. Nothing. Any trails matched to those from before, or presumably so. Legundo couldn’t guess who was who. But he can tell it’s not one of his, not their scent, the way they moved, how Branzy tended to pick up and fiddle and drop things along his path or Viking would reach up and snap off branches.

Legundo wipes away bone fragments, staring down at the pile at his feet. “Perhaps we should rename them.” He offered. These things barely qualified as zombies.

“What do you want to call them, the not as scary guys? The green boys? Oooo, or maybe we can call them the fun dudes. Get it? Because they were mushroom zombies but they were certainly not fun guys.” Avid said, lighting up. Legundo resists the urge to press his hand to his face.

“That was your worst one yet.” He told Avid. The other beams back, gaining another sigh. “Out with it. What’s wrong?”

Avid doesn’t freeze. Instead, he rocks back and forth, ever so gentle. Thinking. His violet eyes dart back and forth.

And then he swallows.

“Do you remember how I told you I was injured?” Avid whispered. Legundo paused, eyes flicking to Avid’s.

“You didn’t like when I examine you there.” He said, voice quiet. It wasn’t until the eighth week Avid finally spilled his story, a jumbled rush of grief and pain when they had barricaded their way into a cave, high on the joy and adrenaline of being alive. “Yes. I do remember.”

He had been astounded and unhappy by equal measures to learn that Avid had hid such a thing from him.

But, Legundo acknowledged. It made sense in retrospect. He never would’ve been able to provide Avid with the dignified care he would have needed.

Before dealing with corpses walking even with arms and hearts missing, or a fungus that corrupted anything that it touched, the idea of a wound that was unhealed for decades? Ludicrous. He would have held out his hand to help and called Avid a madman from the other side.

Even then, Avid never enjoyed being touched on his neck. He grew more comfortable with it, less jumpy. Opened up. Legundo never asked more than the other could give. The one examination Avid allowed showed no sign of the wound.

“What can I say, Doc. It’s uh.” Avid took a deep breath. “It’s back. I noticed it. When we were eating. It felt numb again.”

“I know.” Legundo says, mechanically. He had noticed Avid’s nervousness. Took it as his worry around dealing with zombies again.

It. The idea snaps into his mind instantly, the story that Avid finally shared on a quiet night unfurling. The symptoms. Numbness. Appetite loss. Fatigue. Coughing.

“Ah.” Legundo folded his arms, leaning forward. “Are you feeling okay? I don’t think I can get my hands on the booster shots we used, but I can probably whip something up.”

What he wouldn’t give to have those shots back, their ability to put them back on their feet from anything truly a blessing.

“No. I just.” Avid paused. He shifts back and forth, not just jittery but thinking. “After this, you can take a look at it. Captain knows best.”

Trust. Handed to him so carefully. Sometimes, Legundo found himself alive with the feeling of it, in having that.

“If you would be comfortable, I’d be delighted.” Legundo says softly, carefully, holding Avid’s gaze. “We’ll cure this.”

Avid smiles back, weak but believing.

“I guess that knocks out a potential point for the other world theory.” Avid said. “We checked it over before, and I didn’t have so much as a scar.”

Legundo’s thoughts tilted and he can see Avid nodding, veering their plan. In private, they’d need to check for other things.

Even if Avid’s wound didn’t follow, did their own scars follow back from that world?

The wounds made by their death were erased in all but his memory. But Legundo could not say whether the tightness and pain in his skin was due to old scars or new.

Even before the apocalypse, he was never completely healed.

Despite the beginning of a new plan, he can see how Avid begins to pull back, something settling in their eyes. Something pained. The topic needed to end, lay to rest. A spin, going to hunt again, burn out the nervous energy. “Right, where’s the next-“

Avid yelps.

Red. Spills across his vision. Legundo drops into a haze, spinning, light glinting off the axe blade.

A sword flails into it at the last second, Legs, axe cleaving past it like nothing, but the other stumbles with the motion. Falls back.

“Wait wait, wait wait, it’s me!” Legundo stared down at the figure as it reached up, pulling the skeletal head off theirs. Revealing blonde hair, familiar blonde hair.

Martyn.

His instincts twinge, and Legundo’s eyes shoot up to regard the forest. A few heartbeats and Scott melts out the woods.

But most of his thoughts were on Avid. No blood in the air. He counts their breaths, breathing normal. A hand drifts over his shoulder, the motion slightly curved, signaling that Avid was surprised but okay.

“What were you thinking?” Legundo demanded, voice raising. He shifts the axe up but doesn’t drop it, glaring down at the other.

“I just thought it would be funny to give Avid a little scare! You didn’t have to go all crazy on me!” Martyn protested. Legundo’s eyes narrowed, shifting back on his heels to hide Avid more thoroughly behind him.

“That.” Legundo said, sharp. “Was not funny.”

What would even possess them to think that was in even the smallest amount amusing?

To have something come up behind you like that, without warning to know that it was a person and alive? Not even a whistle or a cough? No one would just walk up behind another, as if there weren’t things that walked just the same.

“It was a little funny-“ Martyn started, freezing under Legundo’s glare.

“It was not funny at all.” He said, stern, bringing himself to his full height. “I won’t apologize for my reaction. Neither should Avid.”

He can see Scott’s eyes flicker to Avid, the slight tilt at realizing Avid had his crossbow drawn, a bolt already loaded. Pointing down, the slightest concession, Avid’s eyes sliding towards Legundo to gauge whether he’d need to fight.

Legundo jerked his head and the crossbow lowers further.

“Can you even hit anything with that?” Scott said idly.

“Can hit a flyer at two hundred paces.” The grin Avid gives is full feral.

“Brock argued one hundred paces.” Legundo said. That got him an angry snort.

“Brock only says that because he’s jealous of my trick shots.” Avid informed him crisply, and Legundo snorted at the repetition. He was pretty sure that was the hundredth time he had heard that claim.

“I would argue Taneesha was better than you both.” Legundo pointed out, voice low. Avid sighed, trying to swat him with the side of the crossbow, now moving when Legundo side stepped it.

“Awful. Awful. I’ve been betrayed by my own captain.” Avid sighed. “Truly cruel.”

“Gentlemen, gentlemen.” Scott clapped his hands together and Legundo shifted, blocking Avid from the other’s view. “We have some questions for you.”

Chapter Text

Avid has taken up a post at Legundo’s side, eyes watching Legundo’s blind spot, shifting to remain just out of the blind spot itself.

“What questions do you have?” Legundo said. Avid is still loose and lax, crossbow held looser now, more focused on the forest around them than the two in front of them. “What brings the two of you out here to follow us?”

“Oh, nothing much. Just kind of weird how you disappeared for two days and then suddenly reappeared and started acting kind of weird.” Scott drawls. There’s something to his voice that Legundo can’t quite identify, some kind of edge or note that escapes him.

“I’m just here because I wanted to pop around, see what’s happening.” Martyn said. “And spook ya, didn’t think you'd be crazy enough to go for my neck.”

Spook them. The insanity of it sent Legundo reeling, forcing him to press his eyes closed and take a deep breath before he centered himself again.

“A very reasonable response.” Legundo said, eyes flickering open again. Avid hasn’t moved, eyes on the forest. “As for your questions, I’m afraid we’ll have no satisfactory answer for you. Not yet.”

He doesn’t have a satisfactory response for him or Avid yet, not one that they would accept. For all intents and purposes, they were ripped away from this world for weeks, dropped in another, and then tossed back like so much refuse. Why? And why them?

And how could he open the path again?

“Three days. This area isn’t small, doctor.” Scott said. There’s an odd flash to his eyes in the dark when the light hits them right, a shimmer of red. At least it’s not the dead white of the zombies, or empty sockets.

But more important, was the flicker of determination. There had to be some answer.

But the answer he had was insanity to contemplate. Odd things happened here, he could see that now. His eyes were open now, unclouded by his desperate bias. No town had a crimson sky, nor books that gave magical gifts. But no one here was yet ready to understand the real story.

But, an answer of a kind was needed.

Legundo feels Avid’s gaze flicker briefly to him before flickering away, trusting that Legundo can handle this conversation. “We were waylaid in a tomb.” He said. “The floor collapsed, and Avid was injured getting out. I stayed to help him, until he could walk out under his own power.”

A reasonable story, according to what he could piece together out of the fragments. The tombs were old, the ruins unsteady. He distantly remembers checking people over, brusque and quick, after several near accidents when rebuilding some of the town framework into proper housing.

Already, he could see Martyn believed it, something dropping out of his shoulders. “Cleo’s not going to be happy about that. She thinks checking the tombs is a bad idea.” He shared. “Not surprised it happened to someone eventually.”

The story weaves itself. “Luckily, it wasn’t serious.” Legundo said.

“Of course! Otherwise, Avid would have come back here with his leg chopped off!” Legundo blinked at the odd non sequitur answer, and Martyn looked oddly taken aback by his lack of a response.

“I suppose.” Legundo settled upon. “We were planning on going out there and marking it off limits. Make sure no one else gets hurt.”

And see if maybe their own answers were there too.

“Perhaps we should go with you too. I’m not much for labor, but I’m told something about many peasants make light work, or something like that.” Scott said. Martyn jerks up, eyes darting between them.

“I’m not much for labor either, being rich and noble and all.” He said, straightening up. “So, uh, I’ll do the managing thing! That you do!”

“No need.” Legundo said. They didn’t need anyone else involved, not when they didn’t know yet whether it was possible for others getting tossed over there. Legundo and Avid didn’t barely make it out alive, they didn’t make it out alive at all.

“No, really, I insist. After all, I’m still curious about something.” Scott said. He doesn’t believe the excuse, Legundo could see it clear as day. “When did crazy Avid stop believing in vampires?”

“Vampires?” Avid echoed, something confused and dismissive in his eyes, something that makes Scott arch an eyebrow.

But Legundo’s chest fills with cold fury at a different word. Avid is not crazy.” He said, firm and furious. “Leave. Do not call him that again.”

“I mean, he kind of is with the whole garlic and silver and the calling everyone vampires thing.” Martyn sniggers, and Avid slips closer, within reaching distance of Legundo but that does not cool the fire in his chest. “Can’t imagine getting stuck for three days with him, I probably would have just left for a bit-”

The thud of his axe into dirt was satisfying. Legundo would not hit them. They didn’t have to know that, nor that Avid wouldn’t fire that crossbow bolt unless necessary. “Leave.” Legundo growled.

Martyn turned. And ran.

Legundo locked eyes with Scott, staring him down until the other turned and flickered into the darkness, melting into the shadows. “Do come by to chat, Avid.” He threw over his shoulder. “I really am curious what finally convinced you I’m not a vampire.”

Legundo took a deep breath, lifting his axe back up, back to its holster. Settled. Unsettled.

“Avid.” Legundo set his hand on his shoulder.

“Legs, it’s fine.” Avid said, violet eyes looking at him as Avid tilts his head, pressing his cheek against the other’s hand. “It’s- not like I know them well enough now to really feel hurt about it. Can’t say it doesn’t sting but, uh, kind of how it goes? We’ve got more important matters. I dunno why everyone is focused on the vampire thing either.”

Honestly, Legundo isn’t either, and it’s the second time it has been brought up. But he knows it has to sting, more than Avid says. The other hated being called crazy.

“Imagine, vampires versus zombies.” Avid jokes, trying to break the tension.

Legs digests this, debates whether to push it. Decides instead to give into the chuckle. They wait there for a moment, soaking in the quiet of the night. “We’ll search first. We’ll talk later.”

He is no Branzy or Viking. But he can listen.

No matter how they paced, or searched. They found no sign that the others were here as well. None of Branzy’s building or machinery, Viking’s haphazard paths, nothing.

Legundo veered his steps, following Avid when the other darted away. The other knew where to go, even as Legundo felt himself wishing not to. Even as Legundo lagged back, Avid led the forward, falling into the lead.

And yet, more than not wanting to go, he wanted to know what they would find there.

The crypt loomed large as they approached.

There was no lingering path, nor eroded rubble as with the others. It was so easy to stumble past it in the trees, tucked away as if the person who built it realized halfway through they were actually rather embarrassed by the whole matter and didn’t want anyone to see it.

The building itself was half cave, built into the side of a hill. Made of dark stone, the walls had begun to erode and collapsed.

“It's a different stone.” Avid said. He scurried over, tapped one of the outer bricks. “The stone here is firm and grey. This stone-“

“But who would have concrete out here?” Legundo finished. They had only seen it in the other world, building an entire- “It was a bunker. Or similar to one.”

It hadn’t come to his mind before, his wartime bunkers being rather different. But this looked very similar to what he had seen over there, a building built to keep zombies out. They kept an eye out for them, especially. Not a crypt at all.

They were the riskiest spots. Sometimes, you could even piece together the tragedy. An unlocked door, blood splattered just inside. Unlocked but not damaged. Two zombies. They could never figure out how it used to spread, and perhaps it once did spread in a different way. Or perhaps the unhappy owner was now food for the mushrooms.

Bunkers were built to be difficult to get into, a constant gamble whether the resources would be worth the time. Not to mention, the risks. Some were built defensively, providing accidental ambush spots for a zombie. Even if not, close quarters and areas forcing them to go one by one, separating them, were risky.

But on the other hand, they were the richest spots. That was where they got the best fold, the tools and armor that saved so much time.

Time and time again, Legundo had run the gamble, whether some of them would plunge in.

And on the last gamble, it failed.

“It’s like someone just picked it up and dropped it into this forest.” Avid agreed. If there was a door, it was long since gone. Legundo pushed in first, hand out to stop Avid. He wasn’t going to risk Avid running into anything first.

The mushrooms were still gone, the pool drained. There was a hint of something musty to the air, but nothing of fungal rot.

Every building had smelled of rot. And death. “Dropped in here, but empty.” Avid murmured. He crouched over the pool, shifting so Legundo could hold onto his shoulder. “I wish I got a sample of this.”

“It didn’t look like anything I knew.” Legundo said. Avid snorted at the joke. They had talked about that pool so often, Legundo was pretty sure he could write the book on it. Consistency. Color. Refraction when the light hit.

He wasn’t quite sure how accurate their memories had been after weeks, especially not with the other schooling in their best to help, but sometimes confusing the both of them. Things became less clear over time, and eventually, they became more focused on discussing other things.

Avid shifted closer to him, arms wrapping around himself. “Now what?” He asked. “They’re…”

Far away, in another world. Far from where they may ever see them again. The door has closed, the curtain has fallen, and now they are left alone on the stage. Without the pool, could they go back? Could the others come here?

Legundo reached for his arm, drew the other close. “This doesn’t change anything.” He said. “It doesn’t mean we can’t find them again. If they aren’t here, we’ll just have to find a way to bring them to us.”

Avid smiled, cracked and bleeding. “They would love it here.” He said, swallowing hard. “Maybe Branzy’s Clown is here. And there’s wolves for Viking. They’d like it a lot. And plenty of food and all the zombies are weak.”

“Exactly.” Legundo breathed out, shuts his eyes. For a moment, he can almost pretend the clammy air is the cold air of another cave, one with more company. “We’ll look for them. And in the meantime, we can prepare in other ways.”

Securing food for one. Not to mention, Legundo wanted to see about refreshing his medical supplies. He still had some on him, but what did he leave back in his cabin? How much could he gather now? With Avid’s wound, it was better to have more rather than less.

“A bath.” Avid added to the list.

Legundo jerked upright.

”We can take baths again.

Legundo climbed out of the bath as a changed man. He could almost feel some of the weight slough off his shoulders, transforming into something comfortable and warm.

There was just something about finally taking a hot bath, the dreamy feeling of soreness that had long since become mental seeped out of his being. A comfortable heaviness settled into his limbs, sharpening his mind.

The clean clothes were truly the glory of the night. Legundo never thought of how much of a difference it made to pull on clothes, untainted by blood, untainted by dust or dirt. The door clicked open, Avid not shifting from where he had sprawled outside of it in a lazy crouch, lazily blinking.

His face almost foreign now, unmarred by dirt or dried blood, how it should be.

“A bath.” Avid said lovingly. “Remember when-“

“He was sick for days.” Legundo said, already chuckling at the memory. “I definitely remember nursing Viking through that.”

“Hey! I helped!”

“And you were surprisingly good at it.” At the time, he hadn't expected Avid to be so good at taking care of the sick. It made more sense later, when he connected it to Avid being sick for most of his life.

It had been funny in hindsight. Less funny during the incidence. Viking had a tendency to be just a minute late to shore, to hop in the water before climbing into the boat. Maybe it was constitution or bad luck, but he caught a nasty cold after so many dunks in cold water, having to walk around in wet clothes.

They had spent days skulking around their base like mice. By the end, Branzy and Brock had begun feverishly building a sledge in case they needed to flee but Viking hadn’t yet recovered enough to run.

“I definitely missed one. I know we’re clean now but.” Avid paused and Legundo nodded. He definitely felt cleaner now, as clean as he must be after waking up in a dusty tomb.

But baths were few and far in between in the apocalypse. Most of the time, it was a frigid and quick plunge with armor on. Viking had been a sobering lesson in cautiousness, in the risk a bath held when they didn’t have any dry clothes to change into. And later, even that slowed. The zombies killed the fish in the river, leaving them rank and rotting.

And Legundo and Chief were always concerned that maybe this time, a fish had been turned. All it would take is a large enough swarm, and they could be in big trouble.

The idea of a warm bath had sounded absolutely heavenly in comparison.

Avid held out a ribbon and Legundo took it wordlessly. “I’m not as good as Viking or Taneesha.” He warned, beginning to comb through Avid’s hair.

“You don’t have to be.” Avid said, sprawling in a looser sitting position, limbs akimbo. He bares his neck to Legundo trustingly, and Legundo carefully gathers his hair.

It had been a tradition started by Taneesha. Of the group, she and Avid had quickly found longer hair a massive inconvenience. Legundo had no way of knowing, as he still kept his hair shorn fairly short, even if it had grown out since his soldier days.

She had turned down the shears offered, instead declaring she and Avid would simply braid it. Everyone else had quickly picked up on the simpler braids,

There was something soothing to the mindless task of sorting hair. They always set it with a moment of peace and for a moment, Legundo could almost imagine he was in one of their hastily dug caves, a fire softly crackling, Viking doing Taneesha’s braid while he carefully did Avid’s.

The moment didn’t linger, but he let it wash over him all the same. All too soon, he was tying off the ribbon, one hand settling on Avid’s back.

“I'll stay awake for the first half.” Legundo said. He chooses to force himself up, settle onto one of the hardest cots he no longer remembered making, for a moment, wishing to have more pillows.

As if hearing his thoughts, Avid arranged around him, bundling off blankets into rough bundles, and carefully fussing over the thin pillows he swiped as well, stacking them on the bed around him. It didn't quite fit, one blanket toppling to the floor.

Without a word, they both rearranged to the floor, blankets carefully being heaped up. Pillows piled at carefully chosen spots and-

It wasn't the same. It was closer now. Just a little most comfortable, something about weight draped over his legs, pressure against his sides. But they didn't breath. Their thin fabric barely held warmth, let alone made more. They didn't shift and shuffle, snore or sigh. It wasn't the same.

But as Avid settled in, half curled at his side, it was close enough. Close enough that he could almost pretend in the rays of moonlight that fell across the floor.

“We'll swap at midnight.” Avid said. “I'll wake up even if you don't wake me.”

Legundo sighed. “I told you guys I simply forgot to wake you up in time.”

“Five times?” Avid challenged, a sleepy little grin curling on his face. Legundo pushed him, settling in to watch. He had forgotten the first time. He had been caught in his thoughts that night. The smell of blood, the feeling of flesh splitting, of seeing someone he knew fall, and go limp.

The thoughts had chased him around that night, a lingering shadow that settled over him no matter how he tried to shake it.

The other nights were not accidents. No one spoke of it, but subtly, they all competed a bit. Not wanting to wake the others. It was so rare now to get a full night of sleep. Legundo couldn't remember the last time he had one. Even if they shifted around the watch time, all it took was one sneeze, one twitch wrong, or a zombie too close, and everyone was wide awake again.

It rarely worked however. Even when he tried,none of them slept lightly. It took weeks before Avid finally slept until his watch.

Legundo settled in, listening to the soft even puffs of breath. Not asleep, not yet, but Legundo could wait with his own thoughts and the quiet breathing. They were alive. Alive. It was an odd thought, settling into his mind with a heavy pressure. Up until now, it hadn't felt truly real.

After so many weeks, he had begun to question his own memory. Did he truly remember a town called Oakhurst? Or was that made up? Did any of what he remembered actually happen?

He knew Avid still half believed that it all had been an odd dream, perhaps caused by the oddity around Oakhurst. But Legundo knew for himself, it had never been a dream. He could remember their faces, their names, their dreams. He couldn't make up any of it.

They say that you've only dream of faces you've seen before.

Legundo knows he's never seen anyone like them. But he worries that he'll never see them again.

The idea chases and were it not for Avid's weight, he would've returned to the forest and begun his search again. They had gotten a second chance but what about Taneesha, whose voice had grown weaker and weaker from where she lay? What happened to the other team?

Closure. That was the worst of it. Never knowing what really happened to them. If they would ever see them again.

Legundo stilled as a scrape came from the window. Then another. Someone tapped against the boards. Not zombies, something lighter, not the heavy groans and scrapes as wood buckled and shrieked.

He'd kill them, if he had to, all the same.

A soft scrape of footsteps. Avid shifted ever so slightly as the door finally opened. It was left locked, but the other pushed past the lock as easily as if it hadn’t been. As if they had done this before, to know how to simply shove the door open. Maybe they had and Legundo simply didn’t remember.

It took a moment for Legundo to place the face. Owen, the former lumberjack.

In the darkness of the room, their eyes were even darker, almost swallowing the surrounding light. “Good evening, Doctor.”

“Owen.” Legundo kept his voice level, knowing Avid wouldn’t wake, or at least stop pretending to be asleep, unless he heard panic. Steady, steady, he smoothed a hand down Avid’s back. “What made you think you could come in here?”

“I thought this clinic was open to everyone.” Owen’s eyes dropped to Avid. “Or did Avid change that?”

Owen glared at Legundo, Avid still tucking his head on top of their leg. They shifted in their sleep before settling, clearly trusting. Not even moving. Legundo’s hand tensed, dropping to the crossbow at their sides at the anger that gaze held. An air of a predator eyeing prey. Legundo gazed at him, a silent promise that they would do anything not to make that happen.

“How lucky of Avid.” Owen said, sawdust grinding beneath his fingers. “To have your tolerance.”

“It’s never been tolerance.” Legundo said, tilting his head to the side. Without Avid to watch, he had to tilt his head to minimize his blind spot.

“Pity.”

“Nor pity either.” Legundo said. He sees Owen nearly calls that a joke but there’s a firmness towards Legundo’s gaze. Like the idea was completely dismissable. "I wouldn’t try to pity him.”

He’s watching Avid glue himself together from shards, physical and mental. Watching the other bandage hasty wounds. Force himself up from wounds that must scream to run, lure off monsters able to kill him in a single hit.

Held Avid when he shattered. Had Avid hold him while he shattered.

He could no more name how he felt for the other than he could name the wind. But it is not pity, nor tolerance. And he wishes others would stop assuming so.

“Maybe we don’t have to have this conversation at god’s hour.” Avid mumbles into his leg. Legundo snorts, one hand dropping to Avid’s break, stroking down his shoulders.

“Apologies, the world doesn’t run on your clock.” Owen said. He doesn’t move. He has not yet said what he came for, and Legundo fixes him with a look. They would need sleep. They could hole up in the day to catch up, but the idea still made Legundo fizzle, the thought of what they needed to get done in his head.

“Then what do you need?” Legundo asked, pulling Owen’s attention back, reaching out to a blanket to adjust it until it hid Avid a bit better. “I don’t remember you being one for social calls.”

“Perhaps, I would like to speak with the doctor alone.” Owen snapped. Legundo shifted, eyed the crossbow a bit firmer. He can feel Avid’s tenseness, a sign that the other was considering pushing up and on the attack. Legundo holds his hand still, a sign to wait.

He’s not quite sure yet, but something in him doesn’t want to view Owen as a threat. Wants to listen to him.

“Unfortunately, that won’t be happening tonight.” Or ever. Potentially. It’s not like they needed to be glued to their side, they had split even in that bloody world but- the wound was fresh, raw. Of lying on the floor, helpless, listening to the shattering of glass, the tearing of clothes and skin, and Avid’s scream as he was carried away. Of only having one member around, voids everywhere he looked. “You can speak to us together. Avid is to sleep anyway.”
He can hear how the other snorts slightly, and Legundo makes a note to chide the other on their sleeping schedule, even if it brings up the old argument on hypocrisy.

Owen stands there, eyes aflame, frame almost shaking with tension. “I’ll wait, doctor.” The other bites out. Neither of them jumped at the slam of the door, even as Legundo made a note that he’d like it barred.

“I think.” Avid said reflectively. “He really doesn’t like me? Maybe.”

“He doesn’t have to.” Legundo dismissed. Any conflict would be set aside for survival, or he would make them set it aside. And it wasn’t like it could be just Avid, perhaps it was Legundo as well, even if the way Owen looked at him was different to Avid, something hungry in the other’s gaze. “Try to sleep again.”

Avid shifted, almost rolling away before stopping. Pausing. “I can’t.” He mumbled. “It’s not just the talking. It still feels weird.”

It. Legundo knows what he must be referring to. There is a finality to Avid’s voice, to the splinter of violet he sees peering up at him sideways. An unsettled energy that needs answers to sleep. An answering shard of panic in Legundo’s chest answers it, a sense of ‘oh, so that is why my chest has been tight’.

He’s afraid of this wound as well, and what it may mean for them.

“Are you ready?” Legundo said gently. He doesn't move a muscle, knowing how stressed Avid must be, that even the slightest flinch would be read into fear. Still, Avid shuddered.

“I think so.” Avid giggled, high pitched and hysterical. “It's so odd showing you this. It'd been so long since anyone looked.”

“You can wait but I'd prefer you not.” In fact, Legundo didn't want him to wait at all. The longer Avid lingered without care, the worse the outcome would be. Such a wound could be due to any number of reasons, most extremely dangerous. He opened his mouth before hesitating again. The idea has been said, the words in the air. The subject opened from where it had been briefly buried, exhumed much like a zombie creeping in the building.

Legundo had no desire to lose Avid to infection.

The only thing that held his tongue was knowing that if Avid brought it up, the other had already made up his mind to show him. Avid hid, when he was scared, he hid and lied and ran.

But once he revealed something, that was that. He would not take it back. Avid was opening up to trust him right now, the least he could do was leave him the stage.

Avid finally seemed to center himself, still shuddering faintly. “You already know the details.” He said absently, shifting so he could speak clearer. “I got it from an attack when I was younger. It never healed after that- lately it's been growing worse. I don’t- I almost forgot what it was like to live with it. It’s just- numb right now.”

“Avid, you're going to be fine.” Legundo reassured him. “We can put our minds together, if necessary, we'll cure it.”

If death wished to take Avid from him, it would have to pry him from his cold dead hands. Legundo would plunge into the underworld to deliver him, would trade places with him if he must, and pull Avid free of the darkness. Not one of them would die, that was his promise in that world, only later, reluctantly, expanding it to include himself with their realization his own death would shatter the others irreparably should it toss it away too casually.

If death wished to take Avid, Legundo would go down with him, fighting tooth and nail as he had fought the zombies for their lives.

Avid’s half hidden eyes meet his. And slowly, awkwardly, the other refusing to lift his head off Legundo's lap, he undoes the bandages.

When he saw the wound, the first thing to hit him was an awful dreadful certainty. Any thoughts on the others disappears like smoke.

None of them had ever gotten infected by the fungal zombies.

But if they had…

He was certain that it would've looked like that.