Camp
Regulus
James supports Regulus as they walk, the atmosphere is quiet and the sun is setting. The world seems peaceful, or perhaps that’s the result of the amount of blood he lost before James found him.
Regulus felt drained and weak, the edges of his vision were fuzzy and his head felt like it was stuffed with cotton pads. Everything around him was moving too quickly and he was having a hard time keeping up with James.
After a long, slow walk they arrive at a small campsite, there are five small tents and a camper is parked just outside of the circle the tents created around a small fire.
After what felt like an eternity of walking, they finally reached a small campsite. Surrounding a modest fire there were five small tents, Regulus figured that the fire was kept small so as not to draw any attention from outsiders. What really caught his eye, though, were the two cars and the camper parked just outside of this set up, which felt like luxury most people don't have anymore these days.
“Hey! Can someone help me out over here?” Regulus hears James call out, the sound of his voice muffled by the fuzz in his brain.
A tall man approaches them, he’s wearing a green jumper, something Regulus himself would’ve worn before the apocalypse. A second strong arm wraps around him to support him.
He swivels his head and gazes up at the stranger, his mind racing. The guy standing there has a prominent scar across his face, and one of his eyes is completely sightless, adding a mysterious air around the man.
“Who on earth is this James?!” The stranger asks, irritation evident in his voice.
“Calm down Remus,” James replies in a steady voice. “He isn’t a threat, I found him, he’s hurt. We need to get him to Pandora.”
Regulus struggles to recall the names of the people around him. His mind is foggy from the bloodless, making it hard to focus, yet for some reason he doesn’t completely understand, he feels safe with James.
“James! You can’t keep bringing in strays!” The unknown man, now identified as Remus exclaims. Still, he lends James a hand, together they carry Regulus across the camp and towards the camper at the edge.
“Hey Panda, are you in there?” He inquires friendly yet tinged with a sense of urgency.
The door creaks open, revealing a girl with white hair illuminated by a soft light coming from within the camper.
“Another stray?” She asks softly, her voice wrapping around Regulus like a warm blanket, his eyes drooping.
“Yes.” James exhales as he assists Regulus climbing the steps of the camper. “I found him just a few miles down the road, he was stabbed in the thigh, I have no clue how long he had been there for or how much blood he lost.”
Regulus feels a small pair of careful hands sit him down on a soft surface, it then dawns on him that his eyes are closed and he’s breathing heavily, how could he let his guard down? He doesn’t even know these fucking people, his hand moves to his gun. It’s a reflex he can’t shake off, he’s terrified.
In the split moment he moved his hand towards his gun, Remus lunged at him, yanking the weapon from his grasp.
“I didn’t fucking think so.” Remus says coldly, not an ounce of remorse in his eyes. “Try to pull something and I will not hesitate to blow your brains out.”
“What the fuck.” Regulus spits out as he shoots up right, the world spun and he dropped to his knees.
“Alright Remus, that’s enough.” The girl, named Pandora, interjected softly. “He’s scared and disoriented, let me help him.”
“My gun-” Regulus says, a hint of panic in his voice.
“Reg you’re safe here-” James begins to reassure him.
“Don’t you dare call me that-” Regulus snaps, anger flaring in his eyes.
“James,” Pandora cuts in. “It might be best if you step away as well, I can handle him.”
James glances between Pandora and Regulus and eventually sighs as he turns around and leaves the camper.
“So” Pandora began, looking directly at him. “What’s your name?”
Regulus hesitated, his voice barely above a whisper as he replied “I’m Regulus.” It striked him as odd that she was so calm, a complete stranger was just dropped into what seemed like her home and she didn’t seem the least bit intimidated. In fact there was a confidence around her that made him feel uneasy. He couldn’t shake the feeling that even if he had the intention to hurt her, he wouldn’t stand a chance. “You must be Pandora.” He said trying to regain his composure
“Yes and I’m going to get you patched up.” She said with a reassuring smile.
And true to her word, half an hour later, he found himself with eight stitches in his leg and in fact wearing a clean pair of trousers.
“See, all patched up.” Pandora says as she starts cleaning up the stuff she used. She then offers him two pills and a bottle of water. “To fight off the infection.” She says with a warm smile.
“Thanks” Regulus says as he takes the pills. As Pandora continues to organise her things, a comfortable silence settles between them. “Are you not going to ask me what happened?”
“Do you want me to?” She asks, raising her eyebrow.
He’s stunned by the question. “No.. no not really.”
“Get some rest Regulus.” Pandora says with a gentle smile, as she extinguishes the candles and steps out of the camper.