Pretty Flowers

Leo looks on in shock, his mind taking a minute to fully process what he's just seen. A few minutes prior, he had heard cries for help coming from the street below, and so he rushed to the window to see what was going on. 

A man and a woman, presumably a couple, were running for their lives towards the courthouse with a group of sprinter zombies right on their heels. The couple seemed to see the Grizzlies in the distance, because they were screaming for someone to save them. Hearing their pleas, Leo wanted to run out there and rescue them himself, but there was no way he'd make it in time.

Watching the Grizzlies cluster together on their makeshift wall, a budding hope began to develop in his chest. However, that hope quickly turned to a feeling of horror and helplessness as he could do nothing but watch as the Grizzlies gunned the zombies, as well as the couple, down in cold blood before they could get too close. 

Just as he thought the Grizzlies were going to save them, they shot the couple like they were nothing. They didn't stop there, though. As soon as the area was clear and there were no more undead within the vicinity, The Grizzlies ran out to relieve the dead couple of any supplies they may or may not have had. 

'No wonder that mystery woman wanted them dead...' Leo thinks angrily, swallowing down the bile that creeps up his throat as his feelings of disgust and horror begin to shift into one of raw unbridled rage. 

'how could they do something so unnecessarily cruel? Was it just so there wouldn't be more mouths to feed? Because of what they could have possibly had in their backpacks? Why did people have to be so needlessly vile to one another?' 

Anger laced thoughts race through his mind as he has to forcefully tear himself away from the window for fear of going out there and unleashing his anger onto the Grizzlies. 

Leo doesn't understand why he is so mad. He knew that he would encounter evil people sooner or later; whether they were sociopaths, sadists, or even psychopaths. As this is the first real group of survivors that Leo has encountered thus far, he really hoped they would be potential allies. 

The decaying body on the hood of their truck should have been a glaring red flag of what type of people they are, but he ignored the signs in favor of being optimistic. 

"Fucking pricks," He grumbles to himself, pulling out the sketchbook to release some of his frustrations onto the pages. 

Nearly every page is filled with doodles and random sketches as Leo has been trying to grind his Drawing skill. To his dismay, he feels his skills are still nowhere near the sketchbook's previous owner's when comparing drawings. Whoever that was, the kid had some serious talent. 

Time passes by all too quickly as Leo occupies himself by drawing various different animals that he saw in the woods. As the evening sun begins to enter the apartment, he returns the book to his backpack before walking over to one of the living room windows. 

The sky shines brilliantly with different colors, painting the horizon with numerous shades of oranges and purples. There is somewhat of an ethereal beauty in the way the evening rays seem to dance across the eerily quiet town. 

In moments like this, one can easily separate themselves from the dark reality of the state of the world around them. 

Crossing his arms against the windowsill, Leo allows a ponderous gaze to sweep across the soothing townscape in front of him. 

Leo hasn't received any more quests since he completed the last one by locating the Grizzlies base. At this point, he isn't really all that sure what he's supposed to do. He has plans to loot different places of interest within the town, but then what? 

As if the universe was listening, a dark figure runs across a nearby rooftop before hopping down onto a small balcony, abruptly drawing Leo's attention. Seeing the sight, he is torn. The ever curious part of him wants to go and check out what it is, but after seeing how ruthless the Grizzlies are… Leo doesn't really want to risk another encounter with a survivor so soon. 

The small two story building is rather close, only being about a block away. Leo is really tempted to go and check it out as he didn't think that they are part of the Grizzly group. He hasn't seen any of the Grizzlies move the way that person moved, nor has he seen any of them go out of their compound solo. 

After scratching his chin in contemplation, Leo decides to strap on his backpack and grab his crowbar. 

"Definitely one of my smarter choices," He mutters ruefully, making his way down the fire escape towards the alley. After spending a few days holed up in the apartment, Leo has begun to feel rather antsy. Going to see if he can make contact with some random stranger isn't a good excuse to leave safety, but it's still a reason nonetheless. 

If anything, Leo hopes that he could get some helpful information out of them. That is, if they didn't try to kill him and take his stuff. 

Not wanting to get caught out after dark, he quickly navigates the town's back alleys, quietly sneaking his way past the occasional walker. With his improved memory, Leo is able to easily locate the small building in a short amount of time. Since his apartment is on the sixth floor, he spent quite a bit of his time looking out over the town to memorize different locations.

Walking up to a small window in the center of the building's backdoor, Leo cups his hands over his eyes as he tries to get a look inside. The interior is quite dark, so he isn't able to see much, but he can just make out some boxes stacked on a shelf within.

'Must be the storeroom or something,' he considers, debating whether or not he should use his crowbar on the door. If the survivor that Leo saw is still on the second floor, the chance of him being able to break into the building without being noticed are rather slim. 

Looking around, there weren't any fire escapes like at the apartment building, which means the only way to the second floor would be from inside or by dropping down from the roof onto one of the balconies at the front. 

If he wasn't so paranoid that someone from the Grizzlies would hear him, or he'd be attacked by another group of runners, he'd probably try shouting to whoever is inside. Leo could also try knocking, but he doubts they'll even be able to hear him from upstairs. 

"I'm just full of good ideas today..." He mutters under his breath, deciding to say 'screw it' and use his crowbar on the door. There's a high chance that this would get him shot, but he's practically starving for some kind of social interaction. 

Wedging his crowbar firmly in between the door's lock and the frame, Leo lets out a small grunt as he pushes the metal bar–the cheap lock easily giving way under his superior strength with a loud pop. 

Evening rays begin to stream into the medium sized storage room as the door creaks open noisily, allowing Leo to make out the large amount of boxes lining the many shelves within.

Taking out his flashlight, he begins to move into the room, sweeping the glowing beam across the storage area as he scans for threats. His entrance isn't in any sense of the word quiet, so if there were any undead within the building, Leo half expects them to come running out of a dark corner any second. 

He moves quietly, his ears honed for any sudden sound emanating from deeper within the building. After looking over a few boxes, he realizes that the store is probably some kind of florist shop. There aren't any flowers in the back where he is, but most of the boxes are filled with gardening supplies of varying types. 

Leo only has to search in the dark for a few minutes or so before he stumbles upon another door behind a stack of boxes. 

Trying the handle, he lets out an inaudible sigh of relief, as unlike the last one, this door happens to be unlocked. Leo is thankful that he doesn't have to make any more unnecessary noise. If by chance whoever's inside hadn't heard his entrance before, they surely would have taken notice of his breaking and entering of the interior door.

As he crosses the threshold into the front of the store, Leo's earlier suspicions are confirmed by the many dead and dried plants placed around in an organized manner. 

The entire front wall of the store is glass, which allows the sun to peek into the building and give energy to some of the flowers. However, with no one there to water them, the sunlight isn't enough.

Gently caressing a nearby dried up flower, a frown forms on his lips. He doesn't understand why, but the sight of all the dead plants that are left behind and forgotten makes him kind of sad. Outside of town, he's seen many vibrant and colorful flowers as he made his way through the woods; but in here? All of the plants are dead and brown–ironically matching the rest of the town. 

Moving his attention over to the thin wooden staircase behind the counter, Leo suddenly snaps his flashlight to the ceiling as he hears a series of low groans coming from the floor above. Old floorboards creak noisily above his head with the mystery occupant's movement, prompting him to consider his next course of action. 

How does he want to do this? He doesn't feel that sneaking up the stairs is a very good idea. If anything, that would most likely get him shot, with whoever was up there thinking he is there to rob them or worse. 

Spotting a silver bell on the counter, an idea strikes Leo. "Let's see if those points I put into Charisma were wasted…" He murmurs lightly, walking over and smacking the bell a couple times. 

Fut-ting! Fut-ting!

Almost immediately after ringing the bell, a loud thud comes from overhead as if a piece of furniture was knocked over. 

"I'm not here to cause trouble, I merely want to talk!" Leo says just loud enough that his voice carries to the closed door at the top of the stairs. He figures that the best chance at conversation is to let his presence be known. 

After a few moments of silence, thanks to his better hearing, he hears someone slowly walking in the direction of the balcony above him. 

"I'm going to come up, okay!? I don't want to fight you! I have no intention of hurting you!" He quietly yells, making his way towards the staircase located against the side of the room. Leo hopes this plan doesn't backfire and gets him killed, but first impressions matter, and sneaking up on whoever is up there doesn't sound like a good one.

Slowly moving up the stairs, taking one step at a time, he tries to listen for any subtle movements as he gets closer to the top. 

Whether whoever is up there is as quiet as a mouse, or they've stopped moving completely, he can't tell. As he climbs the stairs, he tries to make his movements loud enough to be heard so as not to catch them off guard.

Finally reaching the door, he promptly knocks while asking, "Again, I'm not here to hurt you. Can I please come in?"

Getting no response, Leo lets out a quiet sigh as he tries the knob. Luckily, the door isn't locked and he's able to slowly push it open.

"I'm coming in, okay? Please don't kill me. I only came here to talk."

Entering the obvious living area of the shop owner, he's greeted by a cozy and clean little apartment. 

Leo allows his eyes to sweep over the small living room, taking note of the doors leading to other rooms. As he can see, the living room is nearly empty other than a large couch and a coffee table facing the balcony doors. What catches his attention though, is a small glass of orange juice on the counter in the connecting kitchen. 

Either the apartment's owner is still here, or they made their way to the roof the same way they came in.

Hoping they are still here somewhere, he picks up a nearby knocked over chair before placing his knife onto it while keeping his crowbar in his hands. Turning his attention towards the closed doors further inside the apartment, he makes another announcement.

"I placed my knife onto the chair here as a show of good intentions. I have my crowbar still, but I need something for an emergency. I don't want to fight you, I really don't, but I will if necessary. I only have a few questions I want to ask." He claims firmly and coherently, beginning to walk towards what he expects to be a bedroom. 

As he's about to reach the door, he hears the creaking of a bowstring being pulled taut behind him. 'Shit,' he thinks before stopping mid stride. Leo puts head down dejectedly while a look of pure disappointment crosses his features.

"Slowly, turn around." Hearing the command, he lets out a sigh, realizing he has no other choice. He follows the voice's instruction only to roll his eyes as he sees who the voice belongs to.

"Well well well, if it isn't the guy cosplaying as Gordon Freeman." The beautiful blonde woman exclaims with a light chuckle. "I didn't expect to see you again so soon, let alone in my apartment."

Although he wasn't able to get a good look at her last time because of her hood and the shadows within the house, he did get a glimpse of her silky blonde hair. Now, though, he's able to get a clear view as the evening sun streams brightly in through the windows, lighting up her slender figure. 

She couldn't be older than him, and if she was, it isn't by much. She's wearing black cargo pants that hug her hips nicely, along with a black tank top that gives him a clear view of her clearly athletic form. Her toned arms have a steady grip on the bow she's wielding.

"...Who?" Leo asks in confusion, not knowing who this Doctor Freeman is that she mentioned.

"..." The young woman looks at him with a deadpan expression, clenching her jaw and exhaling a breath filled with disappointment out of her nose.

"Forget it, it doesn't matter. Your name is Leo, right?" What are you doing here? Are you stalking me or something?" She asks, looking at him suspiciously, her bow unwavering from its position aimed at his chest.

"What? No, of course not." He vehemently denies, not wanting her to think he is a creep or something.

"Right… Anyway, how did you find me?" She asks, her face and voice full of skepticism.

"I'm holed up in that apartment building towards the center of town. I was looking out of the window when I saw you running across the rooftops. I didn't know it was you, though; I only wanted some answers." Leo replies honestly, hoping she doesn't shoot him with an arrow.

"Ok, let's say I believe you. What is it exactly that you'd like to know?" 

"Well, first, may I know your name? It'd make this conversation a lot more pleasant if we were on a first name basis and I didn't feel like you're going to kill me." He nervously responds.

Hearing the nervousness in his answer, the young woman can't help the small smirk that tugs at her lips before she responds.

"Victoria,"