Alucard's little sister: Wow, that last chapter was a bit on the long side. Oh, well, it can't be helped, some of chapters will be longer and others will be short. Oh, yes, and see first chapter.
Editor Cain: You're on a roll with these chapters right now. One right after another.
Alucard's little sister: I know. I love this story but I've been ignoring it for too long. I thought about this chapter while reading the book I am Legend.
Cloudy Day
Leona woke up at six in front of the radio. It finished playing a song then played the message that she made. "Hello," said the radio in Leona's voice. "This is Leo the Lion, if you are lonely, need ammo, or even a place to stay, then come over to the Winchester Pub when the sun is at its peak. I'll be there until the sun starts to set. And now some music." The iPod started playing another song.
"Well, at last I know it works," she muttered. She reached into her pocket, pulled out the garage door opener and pushed the button. She looked out the windows when the metal shutters were opened. "Shit," she growled.
The skies were blanked with thick clouds. There was no sun to be seen.
"Looks like we're staying here today," said Paul. "Oh, well, you can't control the weather."
Leona sighed. "Damn it, I wanted to go to the shipyard today. I don't wanna stay here all day. You know what this means. "
"Yep, I'll wake up the knucklehead. C'mon, Ichigo," said Paul. He walked up the stairs with the dog in tow.
"I'll collect the sticks," said Leona.
There was a knock at the door. "I'll get it," said Leona. She walked over to the door, opened it and sighed. "Oh, hi, Anthony, what brings you here?"
"I'm here to collect payment that your Dad forgot to give me yesterday," said Anthony. "Don't you just love the weather today?"
"Stay there, I'll go get it for you," said Leona. She walked over to the kitchen and opened the freezer. She took out two Twinkies and walked back to the front door. "Here you go, have a nice day."
Anthony took the Twinkies. "You too," said Anthony. He ran off.
"Loon," muttered Leona as she closed the door. "Now, to get the sticks."
Paul walked up the stairs into John's room with Ichigo following right behind. "Oy, John," shouted Paul, "wake up!"
John rolled over. He was still asleep.
"Waking him up is never easy, is it," he muttered to Ichigo. That's when it came to him. Paul pointed at John. "Ichigo, wake up drill L."
Ichigo trotted over to John. He gave John a good sniff and licked the side of his face. When that didn't work Ichigo started licking John's face all over.
John couldn't stay asleep any longer. "Alright, alright," cried John, "I'm up, I'm up!" He wiped the slobber off his face. "Eww, I've got dog breath… in my mouth gross."
"Good morning, how was that for a wakeup call," said Paul. "Now get ready and come down stairs. We have a lot to talk about today."
John dragged himself out of bed. "What's going on," he asked, but Paul was already gone. He went to the bathroom. He quickly got ready and dressed. He stopped and stared at the blood stained lab coat. He hovered it over the trash. "No, I can't," muttered John. He put the lab coat on. "Maybe I can find something that can get the stains out." He walked down the stairs.
Leona was sitting on the couch with Momo sitting on her lap. "Hey, John," said Leona. "Food is in the kitchen."
When John finished his breakfast, Leona walked over to him with three sticks in her hand.
"Pick a stick," said Leona. "Don't worry, just pick a stick."
John picked a stick. He pulled out a small stick. "Now what?"
Leona walked over to Paul. "Your turn, Dad," said Leona.
Paul pulled a long stick out. He put it in his mouth. "This thing is rigged," he growled.
"No, it's not. You're just unlucky," said Leona.
"I'm lost," said John. "What's going on?"
"Let me explain," said Paul. "It's a cloudy day. Which means two things, one, it's hard to tell time because you can't see where the sun is or see shadows. Two, since it's cloudy out, the Darkseekers can go outside of buildings for a few minutes so it's safer to stay here. So, instead of going out, we're going to clean the house. The three sticks were to decide who did what. Leon, we'll start with you. Since you have the medium stick, your job will be to dust, clean the litter boxes, clean the dishes and walk Ichigo."
"Yes sir," said Leona. "Sorry, Momo, but I have to get up now." She picked up the cat and sat her down on the couch. She walked into the kitchen. "C'mon Ichigo, let's go for a walk."
"Bones, since you have the short stick, you'll be doing the laundry," said Paul.
"With a wash machine," John asked.
"No, by hand, I'll go get you the washboard. Yes, you can use a wash machine and you can use a dryer. Keep an eye on the detergent and the dryer balls. In between cycles you will be vacuuming and or folding the clothes. Oh yeah, and pull the bed sheets off and wash them, too."
"Well then, what are you doing," John asked.
"Oh, just sitting around eating Bonbons. No, I'll be watering the plants in the greenhouse, feeding the chickens and giving them water in the little house next to the greenhouse and I'll be cleaning the bathrooms."
Leona walked back with Ichigo on a leash. "At least you don't have to nail the siding back on to the side of the house." She thought of something. "Hang on Ichigo." She walked over to the radio and switched the recorded tapes. "I knew I shouldn't have done this one last." She walked out the front door with Ichigo.
Paul laughed. "Yeah, my feet hurt just thinking about it," he said. He looked over at John. "I'll be outside if you need anything."
John walked up the stairs as the radio played a different message.
"Hi, it's me, Leo the Lion, due to circumstances beyond my control, I won't be at the Winchester Pub today. Be careful and be safe out there."
He brought the dirty clothes, in baskets, down the stairs and into the basement where the washer and dryer were. Everything was going well until John was on the fourth load of laundry. He filled the top with detergent and he checked the container after starting the load. "Empty," he said and he dropped the bottle. He grabbed a pile of folded clothes, he put them in a basket and walked them up the stairs. He set them in the living room and looked over at Leona who was dusting the curtains. "Where's Paul?"
"He's in the upstairs bathroom," said Leona.
"Thanks," he said. He walked up the stairs into the upstairs bathroom.
The upstairs bathroom was covered with Rubber ducks. There were rubber duck stickers on the walls and rubber duck toys in the tub.
Paul was cleaning the mirror when John came in. "What is it, Bones," he asked looking in the mirror. "It better be important."
"The detergent is empty," said John. "I have two more loads to do and then the bedding."
Paul sighed. "Very well," he said. He dropped the towel he was using. "Let's go."
John followed Paul out of the bathroom and down the stairs. "Where are we going," he asked.
"The Mega-Mart down the road," Paul said. "You heard that, Leon?"
"I did," said Leona. She checked her watch. "You have about four hours to go and get back. Good luck."
"We'll be using the station wagon," said Paul as they left in the house. "Because the Vibe needs to recharge its battery."
"Uh, sure, fine, whatever, I don't really care," said John. "Just don't drive too much like a maniac today."
To John's surprise, Paul drove the speed limit to the Mega-Mart. Just like the hospital the Mega-Mart had seen better days. Some of the letters had fallen off the sign and shopping carts littered the parking lot.
"Keep your guard up, Bones," said Paul, "for this is the most dangerous building in London." As they walked, in Paul grabbed a basket and handed it to John. "For the detergent."
"For a dangerous place, it sure doesn't look like it," said John.
All of the shelves were still standing and there was hardly any dust on the floor. The inside looked like it did before the quarantine.
Paul lightly hit John of the arm. "Shhh, not so loud, trust me, you won't like what's in here. Some keep it down to a whisperer," hissed Paul. "Now, follow me."
As they walked down the detergent aisle, tension in the air began to build. John leaned over Paul. "I think someone's watching us," he whispered.
"Well, hopefully, it's just a scout," whispered Paul. "It might even be just the security cameras above your head."
John looked up to see three security cameras above his head. "I guess that could be it," he whispered, "but I still have an uneasy feeling."
Paul grabbed two containers of detergent and put them in the basket. "all the more reason to get out of here." The two of them headed out but stopped a few feet in front of the door.
Right ahead of them was a Darkseeker. It seem to be unaffected by the fluorescent lights. It was dressed head to toe in military gear and the black armband signifying that he was infected.
"Awwh, shit," muttered Paul. "I was afraid of that."
The Darkseeker held out its hand showing all five digits. Slowly it put its thumb to its palm and then slowly brought down its index finger.
Paul tugged on John's sleeve. "Don't just stand there you idiot, run," snapped Paul.
"What the hell is it doing," asked John as they ran down the aisle.
"It's mocking us, that's what it's doing," shouted Paul. "Now shut up, and keep running!"
After the Darkseeker put its pinky down, it let out a screech, jumped on top of the shelf and ran after them. It spotted John, who was running slower then Paul. It leaped off the shelf and on to John, knocking him out.
Paul did not notice what happened and was able to get to the fire exit. When he opened the door, he noticed John was missing. He dropped the basket and grabbed the fire extinguisher by the door. He ran back. When he found the Darkseeker and John, the Darkseeker had John on his back and was running its finger over John's forehead. Not wanting to risk killing John, Paul used a fire extinguisher like a bat and hit the Darkseeker in the jaw.
The Darkseeker fell off John. It spit in to its hand and looked at it. In its hand was a blood covered front tooth. Throwing it to the ground, it ran off.
Paul put John's arm over his shoulder and dragged John to the exit. He kicked the basket out of the Mega-Mart. He continued dragging John and kicking the basket to the car. Paul opened the passenger side door and dropped John in. He picked up the basket and put it in the back. He went back to John and sat him up in the front seat.
Blood was running down John's face and getting into his eye as he regained consciousness. "Owww," he muttered, "what the hell happened?"
Paul grabbed a band aid from the glove compartment. He put the band aid on John's wound. "You were attacked by the most ruthless Darkseeker around," said Paul. "Tomorrow, we're going to have to explain a few things to you. Ok?"
John nodded. "Yeah, ok," John sighed. "I can see why you don't like going in there."
