A/N: After quite a large amount of candy and sugar (not to mention only a few hours of sleep) I now present to you, Chapter 12!
Claire pinched the bridge of her nose as she waited for an imminent sneeze to overtake her. She squeezed her eyes just as K-Mart sat down beside her, taking Ryan's former seat by the fire. She waited until Claire opened her eyes a few seconds later before she spoke.
"Stuck?" She asked, noticing that Claire's eyes were starting to water. Claire nodded, still holding her nose.
a voice suddenly spoke up from behind them, saying. "If you let your nose go, then it wouldn't be stuck."
K-Mart turned to see Otto arriving with his beaming smile firmly in place. Claire smiled as she released her nose in hopes that he was right.
Not even a second later, she let out a thunderous sneeze, which made both Otto and K-Mart smile. Claire shook her head slightly, her brain feeling like it had been rattling around from the force of the sneeze. She looked up and almost instantly frowned in annoyance.
K-Mart and Otto followed her gaze across the small field and saw Ryan and Alice carrying a decent sized buck through the trees. They spared each other a glance since they couldn't see anything that would make Claire angry like that.
When Ryan and Alice came into full relief, K-Mart saw another person following behind them, but couldn't really see their face. She could easily see the size difference between the three of them though, so she assumed it was a young kid.
Claire quickly stood up and said. "Otto, give Ryan a hand with that buck. I need to speak with Alice." She was about to add saying 'again', but held her tongue. Somehow she knew that it was Alice's idea to bring the girl with them.
Otto quickly began to walk across the little field and exchanged a few words with Alice before he took her place with carrying the buck. Alice took the small person by the hand and walked towards Claire by the bonfire.
Now that K-Mart was up close with the person, she realized that it was a fairly young girl. She smiled at the cat ears on top of her hood, and could tell that she was very shy. She peered out from her scarf and hood with one amber eye, the other concealed by her black hair.
"Alice…" Claire began, but Alice quickly began to explain.
"We found her in the forest. She was hunting for deer, and apparently she was the one that owned that Jeep we saw on the road. She said that she was going to stay at the farmhouse, but went hunting first." Alice explained, her voice very calm. "I can't just leave her... We can't, Claire." She added, and the girl peered up at Claire timidly.
Claire's gaze was riveted to the girl's face, and couldn't bring herself to say no. She could already tell that she was bonding with Alice, and likely with Ryan. She slowly gave in and nodded her head. "You got a name?" She asked as she finally managed to take her gaze from the girl's face.
"J-June." June replied quietly, still clinging to Alice's hand. "My n-name is June."
Ryan returned at that moment, and June gasped slightly at his sudden appearance beside her. He hadn't made a sound, not even a footstep when he'd approached. His M3 was slung across his back, and he'd given Alice back her bow and quiver before they'd started to carry the deer.
"So… Anything else for me to do before I go down for the night?" He asked Claire, who shook her head in reply. "Alright then. See you all in the morning." He walked away and went into the farmhouse.
"Want me to get Betty?" Alice asked Claire, who went against her own rules and shook her head. Somehow, her instincts said she was clean, and Claire trusted her instincts.
Alice kept her surprise hidden from view as she then asked. "What about…"
Claire shook her head again, and said. "She's clean. Trust me." Before Alice could say anything else, Claire turned and walked away, leaving K-Mart with Alice and June as she followed Ryan's example and went inside the farmhouse.
"She doesn't normally do that, does she?" Alice asked K-Mart, who was just as surprised as she herself was. K-Mart shook her head and looked at June with a gentle expression and tone.
"My name's K-Mart. Want to stay here with me for a bit so Alice and Claire can talk?"
June's fingers momentarily twitched in Alice's hand, but she nodded mutely and released her grip. She slowly sat down on the ground beside K-Mart, who gave Alice a nod.
Alice accepted the offer to watch over June, and quickly went into the farmhouse, her brown duster trailing out behind her, momentarily revealing her two kukris sheathed on the back of her belt, and a pair of pistols strapped to her thighs.
K-Mart stoked the fire with a stick for a few seconds, then turned towards June with a warm smile. "So June, how old are you?"
June's amber eye briefly flickered with surprise before she quietly answered. "I'm… F-fourteen."
"that's pretty young to be on your own like that, even in this world." K-Mart observed, her gaze locked on the center of the fire. "Where are you from, originally?"
June had to think hard about that one. She had a flashback of a tall obelisk, and something about politics…
"W-Washington D.C." June answered as she remembered her former home from over four and a half years ago. She let out a silent breath as K-Mart seemed satisfied with her response.
"If you don't mind me asking… What's with the hood and the scarf? it's night time." K-Mart sounded curious, but her gentle tone had a faint edge of concern as well.
"I-I like th-the h-hood…" June replied, what little of her face that was visible in the firelight blushed.
K-Mart realized that she had a note of sadness in her voice, so K-Mart decided to let her speak on her own terms next. She'd asked just one too many questions.
June and K-Mart were quiet for several minutes, and K-Mart was just stoking the fire again when June suddenly asked in a quiet voice. "Why are you called K-Mart?"
K-Mart smiled and slowly lowered her stick. "Funny story. About six months after Raccoon City, Claire and what few people were in this convoy at the time came into a K-Mart store looking for supplies. Claire found me inside a storage closet, with an Infected trying to get inside. From then on, I joined her, but I didn't tell her my name, everyone at the time just called me 'K-Mart girl.' Eventually, the name stuck, but I did eventually tell Claire my real name. Ryan had just joined us at the time, so I remember it really well."
June was amazed at the story, then asked. "What is y-your r-real name?"
K-Mart turned towards June, who had shifted to face her, eagerness shining in her amber eye. She regarded June with a smile. The cat ears on the hood made her seem like an excited kitten, so she replied. "My name is Dahlia, but to everyone here, I'm just... K-Mart."
Closing Remarks: Short chapter this time, but (and I still remember the review from 'Claire') this little chapter is focused on the bond I am creating between K-Mart and June. I already paired Alice with Ryan, and since Claire (Redfield) is an angry bitch (at times) she doesn't get to be paired… yet, or ever. It depends on how the story plays out :P
Anyway, I think my lack of sleep has taken a toll, so i'm gonna take a nap, then write some more for either this or my other fanfics that i have yet to upload/update.
*proceeds to put on a cat ear hood and curl up like a cat to sleep*