#:: 𝑖𝑐 ; 𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑣𝑖𝑣𝑜𝑟 ღ 𝑏𝑎𝑖𝑙𝑒𝑦

[thesoulofasurvivor]

@wolfvirago sent:

“You’re just like me!” For the Sweet Tooth AU :3

She was half-hiding behind the tree, leaned up against it with both hands clutching the stuffed bear. Scared, a nagging feeling that tells her she should just run but the curiosity kept her still. Curious about what was said, because for reasons she couldn't quite understand, something about this person felt different.

An ear flicked forward, ❝ You don't look like me... ❞ She says, an attempt made to keep her voice steady, free of the fear she felt inside.

[thesoulofasurvivor]

continued from an open starter with @innerwar 🫡

Well... Shit. There was a moment of silence, perhaps a little too long. That was an unexpected turn of events and she was stood silent trying to figure out what she should say, which led to an awkward lapse of time, just staring at the guy.

❝ I don't lie. ❞ She blurted out. All that time and this was the best she could come up with, and that in and of itself was absolutely a lie. It was a big fat lie, yet she made the claim anyways thinking he'd actually believe it, which was stupid because she didn't even believe herself.

[thesoulofasurvivor]

continued from an ask with @innerwar 🧐

A gun to the face is usually how this went. Not much talking at all, actually, just sudden death, no questions asked. Suppose she couldn't really blame anyone for reacting the way that they do, because nobody wants to risk getting bit or anything. It scares them, and fear can make a person do horrible things.

But would she consider herself lucky that it was him who saw it and no one else? Not necessarily. She can't quite deny that it was nice not only to hear someone say they believed her, but that they believed her so easily.

A brief smile crossed her features and then she pressed her lips together, averting eye contact she shrugged her shoulders and looked at him again. ❝ Anyone who knew is gone now. ❞ People she loved... People she didn't give a rats ass about. Gone. ❝ Why? ❞

[thesoulofasurvivor]

continued from an ask with @rubiesintherough 🤫

Gone to shit? That's certainly one way to put it. Bloaters may be rare to see but... The other infected? Other survivors who want to shoot you on sight? Not so much. But it's just the world she lives in, the world she was born into, it's all she's ever known and she was used to all of it's shit.

❝ Dawn of the dead? ❞ An eyebrow hiked, a slight grimace twisted her lips. Never heard of it, but in her defense she doesn't know a lot of things about before the outbreak. She shrugged her shoulders and eased her expression. ❝ The neighborhood seemed empty, I think it's safe for now... ❞ She waited a beat, ❝ So you wouldn't mind if I stayed here? ❞

[thesoulofasurvivor]

@midniightchanged

She listens, but she doesn't say anything. She doesn't move either, staying as still as possible and staring forward at the blanket that she had over her head with Teddy pressed against her chin. Being angry and refusing to speak was just so much easier... And it's become habit to just get mad about it, which was fine, she was fine with that.

Well, she was fine with it until Judith left with Dog Junior. Maybe it's because that gave her some time to herself to decompress. But that's exactly what she needed; a moment to herself to just calm down and collect her thoughts.

Eventually she came to the conclusion that she did want to talk about it. At least a little bit. By the time Judith would come inside with Dog Junior, Bailey would be back downstairs laying on the couch with teddy in her arms, waiting.

Judith knelt down to greet Dog Junior, laughing a little and scratching behind his ears. "Hey buddy, have you been keeping Bailey company? Good boy." She smiled softly, patting the dog on the head before looking up at the lump under the blanket that was Bailey, one eyebrow raised.

"Look, you may not wanna hear from me right now, but you don't get to walk into this house and be disrespectful, Bailey. If I did something you need to tell me because I can't fix it if I don't know. Even if it wasn't me. If something happened, I want you to feel like you can tell me." Judith sighed, standing up and leaning against the doorframe once again. "You left in a good mood this morning, but when you came home... look I'm gonna take Dog Junior out, so whenever you're ready come and find me, because we're not just sweeping this under the rug, or ignoring it. But we'll do it on your own time okay?"

Apparently, somewhere along the line she'd learned not to push Bailey, and let her come to Judith on her own. "C'mon buddy." She whispered to the dog, watching as the small puppy picked up his toy and clumsily headed towards the stairs. "Take your time bug, just know that I'm here for you."

[thesoulofasurvivor]

plotted starter for @betaofthedead for a Sweet Tooth AU!

Stupid... She should have known it was a trap. Who just leaves food lying out in the woods? But she let her curiosity get the better of her and she had to go see what the smell was, and from a distance she observed what looked to be some sort of packaged food. An ear twitched and turned, and before she had a chance to react someone had ran up behind and grabbed her.

The teddy bear that she was holding had been dropped on the ground, she screamed and kicked her feet as she was momentarily lifted off the grass. The first instinct was to bite; bite the arm around her chest and when she did the man yelled in pain and reflexively shoved her away from him.

❛ It fuckin' bit me! ❜ The man shouted, and as he did, the young hybrid tried to run — completely forgetting about her beloved stuffed toy in the moment. But she was stopped almost immediately by another. There was a group of them.

Again she was grabbed, this one laughing at his friend who was panicking over the chunk taken out of his arm. Quickly, he had something over her face, something that prevented her from biting; it was like some sort of make-shift muzzle for a person. He had her arms restrained and no matter how hard she fought him she just wasn't strong enough, all she could do was yell and cry.

[thesoulofasurvivor]

continued from an open starter with @aviiatrix 😎

She knew she was lying immediately, when she said she was fine — that distinct and sudden spike in the woman's heartbeat. She was fucking lying to her. She could feel the tightening in her chest, labored breathing, and her lips twisted with a frown.

❝ Just fucking say it. ❞ Bailey demanded the truth, a truth that she pretty much already figured out herself but she wanted to hear it from River. She didn't want any goddamn lies. There is only one reason why anyone would lie about being okay after an encounter with infected.

[thesoulofasurvivor]

@innerwar sent:

❝ you ask a lot of goddamn questions. ❞ - from tlou james

That was obviously a hint for her to shut up... Isn't it? Bailey's grip on the teddy bear she was holding in one hand tightened slightly and her eyebrows pinched, a pout on her lips. As impressive as her hearing is, she couldn't read minds.

❝ Well I can't read minds, dude. ❞ She grumbles, ❝ How else am I supposed to know more about you? Got something to hide? ❞ And that's coming from someone who does have something to hide...

[thesoulofasurvivor]

The joy upon her expression had sunk quickly, the second she heard an eerie shriek and a door fly open. She knew that sound. Goddamn stalkers... She fucking knew something wasn't right. She pocketed the two working lighters and stood up just as the gunfire rang through her ears; she jumped at the sound and her heart skipped a beat, a sharp gasp left her lips.

It scared the shit out of her, but she quickly shook it off and bolted toward the noise, she wasted not a second to take her pistol into her hands, aim it for the head and shoot the creature. She looked to the entry of the store, adjusting her aim to another stalker that had scurried into frame, but only briefly, because when it seen her and she seen it, it shrieked and quickly retreated to hide around the corner just outside the store, falling silent.

Echoes in the distance, more infected, likely responding to the sound of gunfire. Of course, the mall truly being empty was too good to be true. She leaped to Ellie's aid, grabbing her arm and helping her to her feet and putting some distance between them and the entrance of the store. She hadn't realized just where they were backing up to until it was too late...

The floor creaked, cracked and shook and just as soon as she did realize, the floor buckled beneath them and they both fell through to the basement floor. The lower level was filled with spores.

Those nerves began to dig their claws more deeply into her back and under the base of her skull. She felt the need to run, felt eyes on her like a rabbit wandering the woods in the dead of night. Carefully, and as quickly as she could, she made her way about the store, checking shelves and drawers as she went, even lifting the lids of grills and opening shattered oven doors.

Then she noticed something; her light illuminated another small checkout counter, and behind it, a partially ajar metal door. Maybe it was the way her light played on the walls or how it mixed with the very faint ambient white light from the snowy exterior of the mall, but something deep down told her to move away; the shadows felt deep behind the door.

Bailey’s voice hit her ears and, unconsciously, she turned at the call of her name. No sooner than her eyes moved away from the door, a shriek erupted from behind it and it was fully thrown open. The door banged against the wall as a fungal covered figure scrambled over the counter, fell forward onto its back, and flailed as it quickly righted itself, limbs and eyes wild. Ellie quickly snapped back to look at it, aimed her pistol without thought, and fired. The pop filled the whole store and spilled out into the main walkway of the mall proper. Her ears rang and the stalker’s face whipped to the side. Half its jaw now gone, it sprinted forward and slammed into her. The two of them fell back, crashing into shelving and taking some of it down with them as both it and Ellie fought against one another.

[thesoulofasurvivor]

continued from an ask sent to @demcnsinmymind 🥺

She didn't know what it is that he was looking for, but he seemed to be looking for something. With the way he stood around this house, she thought it was just... This house, but he said no. She had yet to ask him directly, maybe she really didn't even have to ask him because she's more or less been able to answer the question herself.

The whole way here, he's been acting kinda weird, like he recognized the place; like he knew the house. The home had been long picked clean, it was lacking even in furniture and in her exploration of the place, she hadn't found not a single thing worth taking.

A quick glance is thrown his way, watching him as he walked to the window, but it was only brief and then she was back to doing whatever it is that she was doing which wasn't much. There isn't a whole lot to see in here unless she was looking for dirt and dust.

She straightened her posture and looked back at Lance quickly, as if startled when the silence was suddenly broken with a question. How long has it been since the outbreak? Gee, what a question... Her lips push together, eyes averted briefly and her head tipped ever so slightly, her arms came up to entwine her fingers and then she started picking at her pinky as she thought about the answer.

Well she's like, fourteen, and she knows it's been longer than that... Do you remember what it was like before? ❝ No, I was born after and I'm fourteen. My dad told me he lived in a Quarantine Zone for a few years after the outbreak. ❞ She shrugged her shoulders, swinging her arms down at either side of her, her eyebrows slumped.

❝ Do you know this place? ❞ She decided to ask anyway, making an over-all gesture with her hand in reference to the house.

[thesoulofasurvivor]

continued from an ask sent to @rubiesintherough 🤓

Okay, maybe she was scared but there's no way she was going to admit that to a complete stranger. Revealing weakness to a potential threat was never a good idea, and she would always try her best to conceal her fear. But even if she was able to keep a straight face, her heart was racing and it was proving difficult to control the pace of her breathing, her hand kept near the pistol at her hip.

❝ Fuck you, I'm not scared of anything, ❞ That was a blatant lie, but her voice did not falter. ❝ And I think you should fucking leave unless you wanna get shot. ❞

[thesoulofasurvivor]

@cardiomyapathy liked for a starter! 😶‍🌫️

❝ You don't understand what I've been through, ❞ She sighed and gave a subtle roll of her eyes. She turned on the ground, quickly sitting up to adjust the sweater she was using as a pillow and laying back down, cradling her teddy bear in her arms.

❝ Could you just leave me alone? You talk too much. ❞

[thesoulofasurvivor]

That smug smile across her features only grew bigger as she realized he had nothing to say in response to her previous comment, because obviously that meant she won, and winning feels pretty damn great. But the glorious feeling of victory lasted only several seconds before her expression turned neutral.

There hasn't been any electricity since she arrived at their camp... Guess that wasn't the usual. She was used to living without electricity, wasn't sure if she's ever actually seen lights powered in that way before. Not that she can recall.

But the more he explained it, the less exciting it got. ❝ So now we're going there... ❞ She began slowly, unsure of whether or not she had taken it the wrong way. She stepped beside him to lift a hand to offer it out to the horse, ❝ To clean up the mess? Or do you expect me to do something about the spores? Are all the people you sent gone? ❞

Bailey strokes the large animal's face only after it had smelled her, and as she did she looked at Skizzo, ❝ You can't go in without a mask. ❞ Not unless he was immune... And that's something you can only find out the hard way. The spores weren't a problem for her, but for him, they are.

Something that Skizzo himself would have called a frown but that would be described as a pout spread across his face at Bailey's sentence. That she would leave his sorry ass to die wasn't surprising; he didn't expected anything else, truly, and the feeling was pretty much mutual. Still, she didn't need to be such a little bitch. He let out an exhale so big all of his body seemed to momentarily deflate, puffy oversized coat and all. ❝To the power plant,❞ he replied, pulling his gun out of his back pocket to check the magazine. He then did the same with the sniper rifle he carried across his back.

❝You noticed we don't got any electricity anymore, yeah?❞ It stopped working long before Bailey had arrived to camp, together with hot water and assorted amenities. They had a diesel generator, an old, faulty piece of junk they had hooked up to the infirmary (stitching wounds and checking for Cordycept infections was easier said than done in only candle light), but fuel was always hard to come by. ❝We've been working on fixing that for a while.❞

Cautiously, he approached one of the horses stationed near the gate. The animal flicked its white tail, nostrils flaring as they took in the smell of Skizzo's expired aftershave, of his musty old coat, but remained calm. ❝Dunno what the hell happened in there, but the place was overrun with fucking infect. The people that went in there didn't come back.❞ Torres and Evans were far from his best men but Skizzo had deemed them capable enough to deal with the situation. Apparently, he had overestimated them. Or maybe it was worse than it looked from the outside.

❝I sent a group to take care of the situation, lure the infect out and get rid of 'em. Now the problem is, place is still full of corpses and fungi and shit. 'S full of spores and the men I sent in there had the last of our respirators.❞

[thesoulofasurvivor]

@luposcainus liked for a starter! 🤗

❝ Look what I found, ❞ She dangled the keychain up in the air, the plastic was cracked but it held together. It had her name on it. She had no plan to keep it, but she wanted to show it off anyway. ❝ It has my name on it! ❞ She turned it around to look at it herself, and then she looked at Caspian.

❝ I couldn't find one with your name though. ❞ The keychain is lowered and she absentmindedly fooled around with it with both hands. ❝ Did you find anything? ❞

[thesoulofasurvivor]

@dscvrdbcttr liked for a starter! for iggy 🫣

❝ When you turn... ❞ She pauses to take a breath, staring down at the contents in the can she was holding, stirring the food with a spoon. ❝ Are you still a person? ❞ Another momentary pause, but it wasn't long before she added ❝ Or are you just a monster? ❞ She wasn't sure what kind of answer she expected, more or less she was just voicing her thoughts.

❝ What happens to the part that's you? ❞

[thesoulofasurvivor]

@airxn liked for a starter! 😸

❝ Come on Airin, I said I was sorry. ❞ Her head leaned back as she stares up at the animal perched upon the tree branch above her. Her lips turned in a pout, eyebrows slanted and she shifted her weight all to her left.

It was an honest mistake, an accident, she would never step on his tail on purpose and she apologized for it right away. ❝ Are you really gonna sit up there and ignore me forever? ❞