Post by roch on Aug 10, 2007 18:13:11 GMT 1
Thank you so much for all the encouragement with this, guys - it really keeps me going! 
Previous instalments to be found at...
shewolf.proboards47.com/index.cgi?board=fan&action=display&thread=1180892091
shewolf.proboards47.com/index.cgi?board=fan&action=display&thread=1180976796
shewolf.proboards47.com/index.cgi?board=fan&action=display&thread=1181061095
shewolf.proboards47.com/index.cgi?board=fan&action=display&thread=1185725157
shewolf.proboards47.com/index.cgi?board=fan&action=display&thread=1186680677
==============================================
Part VI
The door opened further, and the first tourist burst through from the cafe with alarming speed.
In a sudden panic, Grayson dropped the lighter and staggered backwards. He saw the fire begin to take hold but did not wait a moment longer and ran to the door.
Behind the counter, the flames sprang up, growing stronger quickly, with a speed to match the tourists. The first to come through gave a strange, hollow moan, low and unearthly. It sounded more of a protest than a cry of pain. Then the next one came through.
Blocking the door as Grayson tried to escape was Jasmine. “Wait, there’s my Granddad!” she cried.
For a moment they could not afford, Grayson looked into her eyes and felt sorry for her. “No, Jasmine. It isn’t him any more.”
Sandy, or what used to be Sandy, was now shambling forward with an oddly vacant expression in his eyes. Angry but vacant. He stumbled forward into the flames without hesitation, his only desire to drain the lifeblood from the humans on the other side.
Jasmine turned white as a sheet and gaped. “Granddad,” she whispered.
Grayson took her arm and forced her out of the door.
***
“Carl!” Matthew protested, too late.
Carl was holding the door open halfway, and his eyes were wide, though whether this was through fear or surprise no-one knew.
Then Chas stumbled through the door. “Carl,” she muttered. “Oh, Carl.”
“I didn’t know what had happened to you!” Carl whispered, pulling her close to him. Chas pressed her head to his neck.
***
Outside the shop, Grayson and Jasmine found themselves bursting out of the door practically on top of Rodney and Viv. Jasmine had tears running down her cheeks, but she didn’t make a sound.
Suddenly Viv squealed. “What am I going to do now?” she shrieked.
Grayson grabbed her, forcing his hand over her mouth. “Be quiet!” he hissed. “Everyone, stay quiet if you want to live!”
It was dark outside, and their faces were half in shadow and half illuminated by a growing yellow glow from the shop, which was beginning to go up in flames. Viv was understandably upset about this, but Grayson kept her gagged for a while to make sure she didn’t start making a noise again. Rodney and Jasmine just stared around, open-eyed.
At that moment, there was no sign of any tourists in the main street of the village, as far as they could see. “Look!” Jasmine whispered suddenly. “It looks like there’s someone in the Woolpack!”
As everyone tried to take in this news, Rodney slowly realised something. “Wait, where’s Edna?”
***
Matthew started forward, remembering what had happened when one of the tourists had got close to Jimmy’s neck. But Carl raised a hand and indicated that he should leave them alone.
“Oh Carl, what’s happening?” Chas was asking, clinging tightly to him. “I don’t understand. There are people out there. I saw Jimmy, but...” She trailed off.
“He attacked you,” Carl said sadly.
She looked up at him curiously. “You know? What’s wrong with him them?”
Carl sighed, pushing her gently away for a moment so that he could close the door again and pile the tables up against it. “It’s going to take a long time to explain.”
***
What to do about Edna was a difficult question. As Rodney pointed out, she wasn’t as far from death as the others might have the prospect of being, if they weren’t in such danger. And trying to find her would only shorten their life expectancy. While Viv agreed with this, Grayson and Jasmine were quite shocked.
“We can’t leave someone we know to be alive!” Grayson hissed. “For God’s sake, didn’t I tell you that we have to stick together?”
“Well she decided to go off on her own!” Viv said, now unrestrained.
Before the argument could get more heated, they heard someone call out. “Tootsie!” It was Edna.
Looking around, they saw Edna emerge from one of the gardens, carrying the little dog in her arms. It was covered in blood, and shivering though it made no sound.
***
It wasn’t long before Chas was sitting on one of the bench seats on the other side of the bar, taking long swigs from a bottle of vodka that she had insisted Diane fetch for her. Carl sat with his arm around her.
“So what did you see out there?” Jack asked, coming closer with the rest of the crowd.
“Can’t you leave her alone for a minute?” Diane asked. “She’s had a shock.”
“We’ve all had a shock, love,” Zack said grimly.
“He’s right,” Matthew said. “We don’t know how long we can hold out here, so we need to know what’s going on outside.”
Chas took another swig and a deep breath. “Oh, I don’t know, do I? I walked down from Home Farm, and I thought it seemed a bit weird. Quiet, you know. I saw some odd-looking people I didn’t recognise going round the back of the Post Office. I thought I’d go to the office and see if Carl was there, but he wasn’t...”
Carl squeezed her shoulder. “It’s alright, you’re safe now,” he said.
Chas gulped. “I went in, and Jimmy was there. So I asked him about Carl, and suddenly he turned on me! He had these horrible fang things. I just ran for it, so I don’t know where he went. I came here when I saw the light on. There was no-one around the car park.”
Everyone was quiet for a moment, and Carl took Chas’ shaking hands in his. “You’ve done well,” he whispered. “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you now.” She looked into his eyes with a scepticism she couldn’t shake.
“That’s interesting,” Matthew said thoughtfully, turning the fire axe that Diane had found earlier over in his hands. “Jimmy went to the office...”
***
Just as Edna was joining the others, a strange sound issued in the distance. It took everyone a moment to realise that it was the sound of an ice cream van. “Jamie must be OK!” Jasmine breathed, her eyes lighting with hope.
“What if he...” Grayson trailed off, realising that they all knew what he was going to say. Jamie might be one of them now. They looked to each other in fear and uncertainty. If he was one of them, that meant they were cut off, but above all it also meant that the tourists were intelligent creatures, able to drive. Indeed, they had come in a minibus.
It wasn’t long before the ice cream appeared and pulled up a few feet away from them. The light of the fire burning within the shop, a real blaze now, illuminated the side of the van with a strange glow, as if it were a vision in a dream. The unsuitably cheerful tune it was still playing only added to the weirdness of it all.
***
“What was that?” Daz and Scarlet cried in almost perfect unison. The distinct sound of an ice cream van could be heard, and they rushed to the window to see what was going on. Soon everyone was crowded around the window, trying to peer out and elbowing people in their way, but only Daz and Scarlet had a good view.
“It’s outside the shop,” Scarlet said. “It must be Jamie Hope, mustn’t it? I know I’ve seen him in an ice cream van before.”
“Oh my God!” Daz cried suddenly. “The shop’s on fire! What could have happened?”
Matthew, who was getting very impatient, elbowed Daz so hard that he fell sideways, and then took his place in the window next to his little sister. “Are those people by the ice cream van? I mean... real people?”
***
“Well get in then!” Jamie exclaimed when he saw that the people he was supposed to be saving weren’t running to jump in the van like he had thought they would. “The Hope zombie rescue service is here to save you!”
Now convinced that Jamie wasn’t one of them after all, the others piled into the unexpectedly narrow space between the freezer compartments in the ice cream van. Edna, nearest the front and still with Tootsie in her arms, knocked a box of flakes to the floor by accident, showering her feet with crumbling chocolate. Grayson inadvertently but his elbow on a bottle of strawberry sauce, and everyone could not help laughing, albeit nervously, as Viv’s skirt was squirted with the blood red liquid.
“Right, all aboard?” Jamie asked with a slightly out-of-place enthusiasm.
***
“Maybe they can save us!” Scarlet cried, clambering away from the window and towards the door, intending to pull down the barricade and make a run for it to the ice cream van.
“No!” Matthew called after her. “Those things are out there!” He looked out again. “There are two near the van and another three closer to the pub.”
But Scarlet wasn’t listening.
***
Suddenly, as if from nowhere, a tourist appeared in front of the van. A moment later there was another. The two strode purposefully towards it, their arms outstretched.
“OK, time to move!” Jamie cried, his voice breaking. Just as the tourists began to scratch at the windscreen, he reversed a little out of their reach. Then, feeling like a bit of an action hero, he put his foot down and the van shot forward, running over the creatures before speeding off down the village.
***
Just then, before anyone could stop her, Scarlet opened the door. The three tourists nearest to the pub turned at the sound.
Previous instalments to be found at...
shewolf.proboards47.com/index.cgi?board=fan&action=display&thread=1180892091
shewolf.proboards47.com/index.cgi?board=fan&action=display&thread=1180976796
shewolf.proboards47.com/index.cgi?board=fan&action=display&thread=1181061095
shewolf.proboards47.com/index.cgi?board=fan&action=display&thread=1185725157
shewolf.proboards47.com/index.cgi?board=fan&action=display&thread=1186680677
==============================================
Part VI
The door opened further, and the first tourist burst through from the cafe with alarming speed.
In a sudden panic, Grayson dropped the lighter and staggered backwards. He saw the fire begin to take hold but did not wait a moment longer and ran to the door.
Behind the counter, the flames sprang up, growing stronger quickly, with a speed to match the tourists. The first to come through gave a strange, hollow moan, low and unearthly. It sounded more of a protest than a cry of pain. Then the next one came through.
Blocking the door as Grayson tried to escape was Jasmine. “Wait, there’s my Granddad!” she cried.
For a moment they could not afford, Grayson looked into her eyes and felt sorry for her. “No, Jasmine. It isn’t him any more.”
Sandy, or what used to be Sandy, was now shambling forward with an oddly vacant expression in his eyes. Angry but vacant. He stumbled forward into the flames without hesitation, his only desire to drain the lifeblood from the humans on the other side.
Jasmine turned white as a sheet and gaped. “Granddad,” she whispered.
Grayson took her arm and forced her out of the door.
***
“Carl!” Matthew protested, too late.
Carl was holding the door open halfway, and his eyes were wide, though whether this was through fear or surprise no-one knew.
Then Chas stumbled through the door. “Carl,” she muttered. “Oh, Carl.”
“I didn’t know what had happened to you!” Carl whispered, pulling her close to him. Chas pressed her head to his neck.
***
Outside the shop, Grayson and Jasmine found themselves bursting out of the door practically on top of Rodney and Viv. Jasmine had tears running down her cheeks, but she didn’t make a sound.
Suddenly Viv squealed. “What am I going to do now?” she shrieked.
Grayson grabbed her, forcing his hand over her mouth. “Be quiet!” he hissed. “Everyone, stay quiet if you want to live!”
It was dark outside, and their faces were half in shadow and half illuminated by a growing yellow glow from the shop, which was beginning to go up in flames. Viv was understandably upset about this, but Grayson kept her gagged for a while to make sure she didn’t start making a noise again. Rodney and Jasmine just stared around, open-eyed.
At that moment, there was no sign of any tourists in the main street of the village, as far as they could see. “Look!” Jasmine whispered suddenly. “It looks like there’s someone in the Woolpack!”
As everyone tried to take in this news, Rodney slowly realised something. “Wait, where’s Edna?”
***
Matthew started forward, remembering what had happened when one of the tourists had got close to Jimmy’s neck. But Carl raised a hand and indicated that he should leave them alone.
“Oh Carl, what’s happening?” Chas was asking, clinging tightly to him. “I don’t understand. There are people out there. I saw Jimmy, but...” She trailed off.
“He attacked you,” Carl said sadly.
She looked up at him curiously. “You know? What’s wrong with him them?”
Carl sighed, pushing her gently away for a moment so that he could close the door again and pile the tables up against it. “It’s going to take a long time to explain.”
***
What to do about Edna was a difficult question. As Rodney pointed out, she wasn’t as far from death as the others might have the prospect of being, if they weren’t in such danger. And trying to find her would only shorten their life expectancy. While Viv agreed with this, Grayson and Jasmine were quite shocked.
“We can’t leave someone we know to be alive!” Grayson hissed. “For God’s sake, didn’t I tell you that we have to stick together?”
“Well she decided to go off on her own!” Viv said, now unrestrained.
Before the argument could get more heated, they heard someone call out. “Tootsie!” It was Edna.
Looking around, they saw Edna emerge from one of the gardens, carrying the little dog in her arms. It was covered in blood, and shivering though it made no sound.
***
It wasn’t long before Chas was sitting on one of the bench seats on the other side of the bar, taking long swigs from a bottle of vodka that she had insisted Diane fetch for her. Carl sat with his arm around her.
“So what did you see out there?” Jack asked, coming closer with the rest of the crowd.
“Can’t you leave her alone for a minute?” Diane asked. “She’s had a shock.”
“We’ve all had a shock, love,” Zack said grimly.
“He’s right,” Matthew said. “We don’t know how long we can hold out here, so we need to know what’s going on outside.”
Chas took another swig and a deep breath. “Oh, I don’t know, do I? I walked down from Home Farm, and I thought it seemed a bit weird. Quiet, you know. I saw some odd-looking people I didn’t recognise going round the back of the Post Office. I thought I’d go to the office and see if Carl was there, but he wasn’t...”
Carl squeezed her shoulder. “It’s alright, you’re safe now,” he said.
Chas gulped. “I went in, and Jimmy was there. So I asked him about Carl, and suddenly he turned on me! He had these horrible fang things. I just ran for it, so I don’t know where he went. I came here when I saw the light on. There was no-one around the car park.”
Everyone was quiet for a moment, and Carl took Chas’ shaking hands in his. “You’ve done well,” he whispered. “Don’t worry, I’ll protect you now.” She looked into his eyes with a scepticism she couldn’t shake.
“That’s interesting,” Matthew said thoughtfully, turning the fire axe that Diane had found earlier over in his hands. “Jimmy went to the office...”
***
Just as Edna was joining the others, a strange sound issued in the distance. It took everyone a moment to realise that it was the sound of an ice cream van. “Jamie must be OK!” Jasmine breathed, her eyes lighting with hope.
“What if he...” Grayson trailed off, realising that they all knew what he was going to say. Jamie might be one of them now. They looked to each other in fear and uncertainty. If he was one of them, that meant they were cut off, but above all it also meant that the tourists were intelligent creatures, able to drive. Indeed, they had come in a minibus.
It wasn’t long before the ice cream appeared and pulled up a few feet away from them. The light of the fire burning within the shop, a real blaze now, illuminated the side of the van with a strange glow, as if it were a vision in a dream. The unsuitably cheerful tune it was still playing only added to the weirdness of it all.
***
“What was that?” Daz and Scarlet cried in almost perfect unison. The distinct sound of an ice cream van could be heard, and they rushed to the window to see what was going on. Soon everyone was crowded around the window, trying to peer out and elbowing people in their way, but only Daz and Scarlet had a good view.
“It’s outside the shop,” Scarlet said. “It must be Jamie Hope, mustn’t it? I know I’ve seen him in an ice cream van before.”
“Oh my God!” Daz cried suddenly. “The shop’s on fire! What could have happened?”
Matthew, who was getting very impatient, elbowed Daz so hard that he fell sideways, and then took his place in the window next to his little sister. “Are those people by the ice cream van? I mean... real people?”
***
“Well get in then!” Jamie exclaimed when he saw that the people he was supposed to be saving weren’t running to jump in the van like he had thought they would. “The Hope zombie rescue service is here to save you!”
Now convinced that Jamie wasn’t one of them after all, the others piled into the unexpectedly narrow space between the freezer compartments in the ice cream van. Edna, nearest the front and still with Tootsie in her arms, knocked a box of flakes to the floor by accident, showering her feet with crumbling chocolate. Grayson inadvertently but his elbow on a bottle of strawberry sauce, and everyone could not help laughing, albeit nervously, as Viv’s skirt was squirted with the blood red liquid.
“Right, all aboard?” Jamie asked with a slightly out-of-place enthusiasm.
***
“Maybe they can save us!” Scarlet cried, clambering away from the window and towards the door, intending to pull down the barricade and make a run for it to the ice cream van.
“No!” Matthew called after her. “Those things are out there!” He looked out again. “There are two near the van and another three closer to the pub.”
But Scarlet wasn’t listening.
***
Suddenly, as if from nowhere, a tourist appeared in front of the van. A moment later there was another. The two strode purposefully towards it, their arms outstretched.
“OK, time to move!” Jamie cried, his voice breaking. Just as the tourists began to scratch at the windscreen, he reversed a little out of their reach. Then, feeling like a bit of an action hero, he put his foot down and the van shot forward, running over the creatures before speeding off down the village.
***
Just then, before anyone could stop her, Scarlet opened the door. The three tourists nearest to the pub turned at the sound.
