#austin is thirteen here and this is taking place... somewhere in canada i haven't figured out where!

[jendoe]

❥ wip whenever

tagged by @leviiackrman, @phillipsgraves, @marivenah, @sstewyhosseini, @detectivelokis, @gwynbleidd, @unholymilf, @nightbloodraelle, AND @risingsh0t to post a wip... like ages ago now 💀 anyway. no tags because my brain is fried, but if you see this, consider it a tag because i want to see what y'all are making!

some austin Lore below because i finally figured out an important side character

"Come on, kid. Get your coat on, I'm taking you fishing."

Austin seemed confused, but nevertheless, he did as told, bundling up and following him outside. Thankfully, infected activity had (so far) been low out here, and he felt secure enough to bring him along. If they did happen to run into anything, well, maybe they could get in a lesson on sharpshooting. Kid needed to know how to defend himself if, God forbid, he was ever separated from the group.

They walked in silence, nothing in the air but the chirping of birds and the call of an elk in the distance, until they finally reached the lake shore. He recognized the old wooden boat tied to the dock from his past trips here, the familiarity a comfort in the lingering chaos. Lino gestured for Austin to come closer to help him ease down into it, not wanting it to tip over, and once he was settled, he climbed in, too. He could feel his eyes on him, as he opened his tackle box to look through it.

"Maybe I should've had you dig around in the dirt for some worms first," Lino said, an attempt to lighten the mood and break the silence. "Not sure if the fish are going to want to bite without a meal."

The joke doesn't land. All Austin does is continue to stare, but he quickly realized what had really caught his eye: the lures. "I don't know how to fish," he said, reaching for a shiny, glittery pink fish to hold it up in the light. "Nobody taught me."

"Your daddy never took you fishing?"

A shake of his head, shaggy, blond hair flying every which way. He'd have to find some scissors and give him a trim when they got back to the house. "No, sir."

Lino let out a low chuckle. "No need to be so formal, kid, we're family now," he said, and after taking the lure from him to attach it to the line, he offered a pole to him. "Promise it's easy. Just follow my lead, alright?"