Marching March [Closed]

[in-venting.livejournal.com]

Sherry's legs hurt. A kind of dull, irritating, throbbing ache that made her want to do a lot of nothing. She watched Boon jump around spastically in her room from her seat at the base of her bed. Every once in a while, the alien dog would run up with a toy of some sort (his current favorite toy was a wad of knotted rags from some of the clothing Sherry'd grown out of), she would throw it, and the dog would try to eat her book.

At least Boon was nothing if not predictable. "No..! Boon! No! Books aren't snacks!" Sherry held the book over her head, the dog licked her face eagerly, "Get the toy! The toy! Not my---auuugh! That's my face! What've you been eating, your breath is horrib---ewww!"

Comments

[boulderkiller.livejournal.com]

Whoops.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, settle down-" Chris attempted to be diplomatic, but there was a shrill, screaming girl not five yards away and no amount of military training could prepare a guy for that.

[letmelive]

Fortunately for Chris, Claire wasn't far away when the screaming started. So she showed up thirty seconds later, slightly out of breath from sprinting down the hall.

"Sherry?! Sweetie, what's wrong?" She called just as she caught sight of Chris, but didn't slow down beyond giving him an odd look and shoving him out of the way so she could get into the room.

[in-venting.livejournal.com]

"That person just barged into our room!" Sherry cried as she scrambled behind Claire, her book and the ache in her legs momentarily forgotten by the need to flee furiously to safety.

[boulderkiller.livejournal.com]

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Chris said quickly, eying Claire like a kid who'd been caught getting into the cookie jar. "I thought you'd be in here. I didn't know you'd set up an alarm."

[letmelive]

Claire couldn't help but laugh, shaking her head and turning towards Sherry, crouching down to her level.

"Sweetie, it's all right. This is-" she glanced behind her, gesturing back at Chris. "-My brother, Chris."

[boulderkiller.livejournal.com]

"I'm sorry if I scared you," Chris added quickly, holding up his hands in the universal "come in peace" gesture. "I forget that I'm scary-looking sometimes."

[in-venting.livejournal.com]

Sherry gave Chris a look that seemed stuck awkwardly between annoyed and still terrified. "...Hello, Uncle Chris," she greeted him, though she sounded a bit suspicious.

"He's the one you went to find, isn't he?" Sherry raised her eyebrows at Claire.

[letmelive]

"That's right," she replied, nodding her head. It looked like Sherry wasn't going to start screaming again, at least. Claire carefully stood back up and moved to sit down on her bed, glancing up at Chris. "He just woke up during the last podpop. You were... out, at the time."

[boulderkiller.livejournal.com]

Chris smiled awkwardly and came a little further into the room, kneeling down so he at least wouldn't be towering over her. "I would have come by sooner but I've been busy... anyway, it's nice to meet you, Sherry."

[in-venting.livejournal.com]

"Oh, I see," Sherry kept one foot behind her, even though she logically knew there was no place for her to run. Unless she suddenly vaulted over Chris like a gazelle. But he was big, and she was fairly sure her mother would be upset with her for fleeing.

So, Sherry stared at Chris for a moment, sizing him up and replied. "It's nice to meet you, too." I think. She held her hand out to him for a handshake.

[boulderkiller.livejournal.com]

Chris shook her hand in a very official manner. "Claire's told me a lot about you, so it's nice to finally get a chance to talk to you."

[letmelive]

"All good stuff, I promise," Claire said to Sherry, smirking a little.

[in-venting.livejournal.com]

Sherry made a face at her mother before looking at Chris. "You're not allowed to mess with my hair. I really hate it," she warned. "She probably didn't tell you that."

It would probably not stop him, but better to tell him now, right? Yes, of course she was.

[boulderkiller.livejournal.com]

Chris held up his hands again. "Okay, no messing with your hair. Got it." Honestly he used to hate that too. Though he couldn't remember when the last time somebody actually did was.

[in-venting.livejournal.com]

Sherry seemed satisfied with this and started to say something when a noise distracted her. A wet, chompy, noise that Sherry was beginning to associate with terrible doom.

"We-- Boon! No! My book!" Chris and Claire were momentarily forgotten in the sudden rush to save her precious hardback.

[letmelive]

"Oh no!" Claire jumped up to help Sherry with the dog, moving to grab him. "Drop it, Boon!" The dog shied away from her, but she managed to get her arms around his middle and held him still.

"Drop. It."

[boulderkiller.livejournal.com]

"You're stuck looking after my sister and a puppy? Looks like you've got your hands full, Sherry." Chris uncrossed his arms and stepped further into the room. "Need some help?"

[in-venting.livejournal.com]

"Yes!" Sherry gave Chris a look, one that perhaps wasn't yet Zombies have eaten all of my friends and I am alone, but still pretty frantic, anyway. If it wasn't clear she really valued her books before, it was probably crystal now.

Boon, however, continued the fight, stubbornly refusing to put the book down.