"Trust me, you've already done enough!"
Alpha stood off to the side, blending in as people talked loudly and shuffled past her. She eyed the larger man until he disappeared into the sea of people, rushing off seemingly excited.
She began to wander through the crowd, her machete firmly in place in its sheath, bobbing against her right thigh as she walked. She walked slowly, trying to blend in as much as possible. In the back of her mind she knew there was a chance people would recognize her, especially if one of them was a leader. She ignored the thoughts and continued on, knowing the chance was unlikely if she was smart… and acted fast.
She scanned the crowd and began to pick people out. That man who was talking to the blacksmith? The larger black guy with a feather still rushing around the fair? The blonde man who kind of resembled Kurt Cobain, or perhaps his one-legged friend who walked assisted by a crutch next to him? She eyed several shop keepers, weighing the risk factor and wondering how long it'd take for anyone to notice they were gone, at least at the booths with multiple people.
Her mind began to churn as the smell of fresh baked bread began to seep into her nostrils. A smell she hasn't experienced since her former life. She was drawn towards the booth where an older woman, maybe in her forties, handed out recently wrapped bread to a small child and her mom. Another woman popped her head out behind her, this one a little more chubby and with brown hair.
"Alright Anne, this should get us through today. I'll help you out here after I get this all put away, and once the crowd dies I'll go back and help out the girls prepare for tomorrow." She told her from behind.
"Oh thank god, Olivia… this place is packed! I swear last years festival wasn't nearly this busy." Anne told her, smiling at her. Anne was a woman in her mid thirties, with blonde hair tied back into a bun.
"People just love our bread that much I guess." Olivia smirked and replied back. "Let me just get this back and I'll come help you out, and get you a break." She said pushing an empty four-wheeler back out from the small stand.
Olivia began to push it carefully through the crowd, the windmill in sight. She began to push it faster before a woman stopped ahead of her, Olivia stopping in her tracks and swerving the four-wheeler out of the way to avoid her.
"Oh goodness, I'm so sorry!" Olivia said as she began to straight it out again. "I didn't see you there… today's just so busy and—" she began.
"Don't worry about it." She told her softly. "I get it… it's crowded here. If I had a dime for every time someone nearly knocked me over…"
"You would have a bunch of useless change." Olivia giggled at her joke.
"Say… you're the woman who runs that bakery, aren't you?" She asked. "That bread smells amazing… reminds me of simpler times."
"Oh yes!" Olivia perked up. "It's my passion, and it's making me so happy seeing everyone enjoying it. Seriously, when was the last time you ever had bread?" She asked.
"Stale bread… very stale bread, years ago." She smiled weakly. "I can't wait to get my hands on some. You know, it was always something I wanted to get into, baking…"
"Well as I'm proving right now, it's never too late." Olivia smiled.
"Actually… would you mind if you told me the process behind it? Maybe you're right, it's not too late…"
"Yes!" Olivia said excitedly. "Just let me put this away and I'll be right back." Olivia hurriedly pushed the four-wheeler back into the windmill before joining back up with the woman.
"So when did you start this?" She asked, walking along the crowd as Olivia began to follow her.
"Oh not too long ago, I've been reading up on these old books that were brought back recently, and Eugene helped set the place up so we could actually make it. Hey… you know I don't recognize you, are you from the Sanctuary?" Olivia asked her as they began to walk away from the crowd.
"Yeah… I'm still new there… but I wouldn't exactly mind moving here…" She smiled. "So… about setting up the bakery…" She said softly as her right hand began to slide down her side, touching the hilt of the machete as they walked further away from the crowd.
